Tommy's 6 month update

I keep meaning to update & just haven't because life has been a little cRaZy to say the least! Let me just drop the bomb first.... Vic lost his job :(  It is oh so stressful to feel that we are not worthy of Heavenly Father's blessings & to stress about trying to find a job & be more righteous.  I do have to say that it did strengthen my faith in prayer as a couple of months ago I was praying to decide if I should keep working full time or go down to only 2 days & I kept feeling like I should work full time.  I didn't understand it at the time as I know being a mother is the most important job & we didn't need the extra money so why did I not feel good about giving up my full time status.  Now I know!  Fortunately we won't be hurt financially as my job easily pays the bills for now. :) 

Okay, now on to Tommy's 6 month update:

Tommy is adorable as ever... and crawling! I took these today & I should have done them a couple of weeks ago because it is so hard to catch him before he decides to crawl off again! Plus he's always waving his arms all over the place so I get a lot of blurry arms & crazy faces. I got tons of good ones though cuz this little guy is just HAPPY as can be!

Here is Vic's favorite 3:

A few cute close ups of his silly happy smile

My personal favorite:

 One of his silly crazy grin!

Last, but not least, TOMMY CRAWLING!!!!

Happy Days & Hidden Smiles

Yesterday was one of those days when I went to bed with a literal smile on my face. When it came time to pray I couldn't think of anything to ask Heavenly Father for because I was so overwhelmed with gratitude and filled with thanks for our many blessings.

The day started off good because I got to sleep in an extra 30 minutes thanks to Vic dropping Tommy off at the sitter & work starting 10 minutes later today.  Then I woke up to Tommy smiling away with his Daddy. At work I started reading the ensign while I pump & today I was reading the General Conference addresses & they really uplifted me & aspired me to be a better person.

On top of that I got a long lunch with Vic since he is on jury duty this week so we relaxed in our backyard, soaked up the sun, & had a picnic out there w/ Tommy.  I had one of those moments that made me love being a mommy/wife serving on Vic when he layed back on the blanket and exclaimed "This is the LIFE!"

 As I was leaving work I spotted an old couple hobbling down the sidewalk & they were holding hands. CUTEST thing ever. It made me smile. It reminded me that the night before we were at the restaurant & Vic & I were play fighting over who got to hold Tommy (an ongoing battle!) ...and I looked up in time to see a middle aged couple sneaking a smile at us... which made me smile again because I wonder how often strangers make us smile & how often we get to put a smile on stranger's faces too.

Vic got off of jury duty early so once again I didn't have to pick up Tommy from daycare & I came home happy from having a easy day at work &I got to come home to Vic making Tommy laugh hysterically for a LONG time. It was so much fun!

That same night we went and played baseball which I love doing just because it is a slow paced sport that lets you soak up the good weather. Plus it's always fun chatting up my lady friends :)

I ended my perfect day by going to the gym at 9:30pm. I knew I should really just go to bed, but my triathlon is getting close & I hate to miss a workout. I have been struggling with doing the full workout, but last night it was a good feeling because I can feel my mind getting stronger & not giving in when I get tired. I proudly completed the entire workout & at a higher pace than I normally do. Another reason to pat myself on the back and smile :)  Very detailed day, but I just had to share one of those perfect days!

Tommy's 4 Month Pictures

Okay, well more like 4 1/2 month pictures, but I am finally taking the time to play around with what my computer can do & I think these photo collages are so much fun!

This is my favorite picture of the day :)

April Update: SLC, Seattle, & Idaho Falls Visit

I feel like my head has been absolutely spinning the last month. Last month for Relief Society I organized a baby drive for the hospital. We all got together & learned how to make these adorable booties (plus another 2 baskets full!) I also made some for my sister-in-law's upcoming baby & some in bigger sizes for Tommy. They are so simple, quick, & cute. We made them to be given to every baby born in the Twin falls Hospital.

Then we had people sign up to bring stuff to donate. Each basket had at least 3 outfits, socks, pacifiers, wipes, diapers, & a receiving blanket. I guess because I am a perfectionist, it took me forever to get them all wrapped up cute in the baskets. I wanted to make sure each basket had the same amount of cute outfits, etc. Anyway, I could hardly walk through my kitchen for 2 weeks! These baskets are supposed to go the moms that come through the hospital and have absolutely nothing.

We drove down to SLC to visit my grandma. I love this lady more than any other. I look up to her in a million ways. What I love most about her is her ability to host & make everyone feel welcome & spoil them with love, games, & treats. Also, I think it is great that she respects mine & other religions so much when she doesn't go to church herself. It shows a lot of maturity & love for others when you can show admiration for the different beliefs. Here she is with little Tommy. I think they look alike. 

The next weekend my mom came here & then for Easter we drove to Seattle to visit my brother & his adorable family. Here is a picture of us getting ready to eat Easter dinner. It was of course yummy. I don't remember having twice baked potatoes before, but I loved them.

A bit blurry, but here is my egg from the egg dying. My brother was afraid we'd have too many eggs so he only let the girls dye 1 dozen.... so I only did two, one of which got covered in stickers by the girls :)

These flowers helped bring the Easter spirit. I love fresh flowers. I really should invest in buying them more often to have around the house. I always hope that Vic would just give them to me all the time, but after 4 years of marriage I guess I should figure that isn't about to happen!

Our family right before the big hunt!

Here is a sweet picture of Kara & Tommy in their Easter outfits. My brother's girls always have the most adorable dresses, hats, shoes, & matching gloves! Tommy's cute sweater came with blue pants, but looking back I guess I should have paired it with khaki pants to be snazzier.

Here are the girls doing their hunt.

Here is Tommy checking out his goods. He was very interested in his basket & the bunny sticking out the top. Also, he loves his new rattles the Easter bunny brought :)

It is always a big mess emptying out all of the eggs & baskets, but SO much fun!

...a cute picture of Tommy with his Uncle Ben & Aunt Becky (6 months prego with another girl!).

I didn't take specific 4 month pictures of Tommy, but I happened to take this right around it. I love his personalized towel that our neighbor made for him.

Vic was in Idaho Falls for business so we got to have a super short visit over there & cram in as many visits as we could!!! I started with lunch with my high school girly friends & their kids. Can you believe there are so many kids piled around us. We are getting OLD! ... but I must say I think all my girls are aging BEAUTIFULLY :)

Tommy got a new hat while waiting for Vic doing a business meeting in Pocatello. Isn't it cute?!

After lunch my mom made dinner for us & my step-sister's family. She has twin boys only 4 months older than Tommy. Here are the 3 of them smiling up at Vic. Her boys are rolling all over the place so I had to be quick to try to get this picture of them!

Next we visited my grandma Hill's house & my dad & step-mom met us over there for a quick hello. My dad LOVES grandkids, it's cute.

Then we raced home to see Vic's brother that hasn't been home for 2 years from the Navy. Here is my handsome boys on the way out the door. I love "little man" clothes for babies!

...and a final snapshot of us by the door. Tommy will stare at the camera almost every time, but if someone isn't behind it he won't smile. It's fun to see his wide eyes caught on camera though.

After all of that travel, working full time, doing spring clean up around the house & yard, & training for the triathlon next month, I am exhausted! Tommy goes to bed at 7pm every night & on Monday I just fell asleep with him & didn't wake up until 7am the next day! I wouldn't trade it though. Traveling, being with my sweet boys, playing games with family, & working out is the life for me :)

Tommy 3 Month Pictures

I can't believe that Tommy is already 3 months old! At his last doctor visit he landed int the 95% for length & 90% for weight. He is growing like crazy. He is now wearing his 6 month clothes! I took him to get 3 month pictures & really hated the photographers & only ended up ordering 2 pictures just to be polite. Then I thought to myself that I can take just as good if not better pictures of Tommy so here is my attempt! (By the way, my husband is in love with baseball if you didn't already know)

Vic's mom made this blanket & we absolutely love it and get lots of compliments on it.

I love these blue eyes.

Tommy can't sit up yet so every time he laughs he throws out his hands & falls over so it's a chore to try to catch him at the perfect moment!

Overall, I think they turned out pretty good for my first photo shoot so I think I'll keep on doing it!

A Day Of Smiles

It's funny that now I have a baby all of a sudden my life & updates are all about him!  I can't help it. Babies are the most adorable things on earth, and in my eyes, especially Tommy! We spend so much time smiling at each other & today was no exception! Here he is just after waking up this morning (his happiest time of day). My sister-in-law Becky made this adorable little sleep sack for him.

And here is his usual smile, a big huge open mouth silent laugh. Vic & I are so in love with it! 

Bathtime is non-stop kicking his legs like crazy. I can't decide if he thinks it is fun to splash or if he likes the squeeky noise his feet make against the foam. I feel like I need to put a towel down there so he won't bruise his heels. He loves the feel of water running over him. Every time I take a bowl of water & pour it over him he smiles in delight.

My mom bought him this cute little monkey outfit & here he is with the matching toy. I keep trying to make him hold this little blanket monkey & a fuzzy lion rattle, but he doesn't have any interest in either yet! ...mainly just trying to suck his fingers. I pull them out every time I see it & replace it with the binky, but sometimes he'll spit that right out & shove his fingers back in. Aaah! I don't want him to be like me & suck his fingers until age 8! 

A Breath Of Fresh Air

What do I love more than skittles, food, & clothes?..... ADORABLE visitors! My good friend Heather came to see me last week & it was so much fun. I've never dared to take Tommy outside yet, but Heather wanted to go on a walk since this side of the state is so much warmer so we did our first outing & it felt so good to get outside. Makes me realize what cabin fever I had! I need to get out in the fresh air even with a newborn!  We live right by the temple so we walked up to it. Here she is with her 2 cute kids.

Here's a picture I snapped. It's so pretty it looks fake!

Elli is exactly one year older than Tommy. Look how big he is compared to her!!!  

He is above the 95% line for height.

Here is Tommy snuggled up safely under my giant prego coat. Who knew I'd get so much use out of buying an extra huge coat :)

...and here is an upclose of him in his carrier.

Relief Society Dinner

I am the relief society enrichment leader & since it is Valentine's Day this month I hosted a "romantic dinner" at my house & explained all of the elements that need to be there to host a super romantic dinner for our husbands. Then we all went around & shared something our husbands have done to be romantic. I was so impressed with everyone's spouses! It was a lot of great stories & laughs, plus I must say my dinner turned out pretty good too :) Here is a shot of everyone right after dessert.

And here is the dessert. Mine was a little sloppy looking cuz after making 30 I didn't care what mine looked like.

Tommy's Blessing & Newborn Pictures

Tommy was blessed on Sunday. Here he is in his little church outfit. The tie is a little big, but it was better than the tiny one that came with the outfit. It made him look like "fat man in a little tie!"

Here is half the crew that came to support him: Our good friends the McCrackens up front, Vic's family, & not pictures was my mom & sister.

Trish made this cute french bread loaf. Isn't it so creative!

AND NOW... TOMMY'S NEWBORN PICTURES!!!