while daddy went to the temple....

pinkies up!

which of these animals don't belong?

a barrel o fish.

7 months

everton is 7 months!

he's such a doll.

-he's sitting up a lot better now.  he still topples over but not as often anymore.  and when he's on his back he works his little AB muscles so hard to sit back up.

-he is SOOO close to crawling!  in order to get around he just rolls around till he gets to his destination.  he can get up on his knees and thaaaaat's it.

-the young man has been busy growing teeth.  his bottom 2 teeth have popped out and he's currently growing 4 on the top!  holy cow.  when he flashes his sweet grin we can see 4 white nubs peekin through his top gums.  and surprisingly he still sleeps amazingly through the night.  he'll get really fussy at times but other than that, he's been a really good teether.

in other news, thanksgiving was great.

i ate so much food i started to feel dizzy, everton peed on brett during dinner, and we relaxed while eating multiple kinds of pie and chatting it up with family.

and i became even more grateful for the fact that i have a ton of nieces.

brett and i feel like we hardly held everton the whole day due to my darling nieces wanting to play or cuddle with him.  and it definitely felt amazing not having to play "pass the baby back and forth while the other tries to take a few bites of the meal before it gets too cold" game.

also we took everton swimming for the first time!

brett's co-worker had a little birthday party for her kids at the indoor pool and at first i was like, "swimming in winter?!?!?!?!"

then the invite made us go on a frantic search for lil swimmers diapers and swimming trunks for everton, cuz those things are definitely not what we would have on hand in november.

but another one of brett's co-workers hooked everton up with the swimming necessities and everton seemed to really like swimming.  i think he'll be a water baby like brett and not a swimming wussy like me.

happy 7 months my little gentleman!

thankful for life

life is truly precious.

tomorrow is thanksgiving and we'll be spending it with my in-laws' in-laws.

which means, brett's brother darren's wife's family.

as much as i LONG to go home for thanksgiving (and we have yet to do that since being married) i'm so grateful for the family we have nearby who invites us over for the holidays.

i'm excited that we'll be bringing our latest addition to the family along with us for thanksgiving.  even though he won't be able to partake of that beautiful turkey i'll be bringing his favorite pureed sweet potatoes to the gathering.

i've been reflecting throughout november as to what i've been thankful for.
in addition to my previous posts of thanks i shall wrap it all up.

i'm thankful for a husband who supports, cares, and loves me
and i'm thankful for that same husband who became an amazing father to our son everton and is my teammate in the parenting adventure.
thankful for my everton who makes me laugh every single day and has truly taught me the meaning of patience.
i'm thankful for parents who are there for me anytime i want to talk/skype with them and are there to give me wise words on parenthood and have become such cute grandparents.
i'm thankful for in-laws who are not like the parents on everybody loves raymond and who are just so kind and caring and loving.  they too are such awesome grandparents to my everton.
i'm thankful for all of my extended families who have shown us such love throughout the years.
i'm thankful for friends who are always there for me, to laugh with or to console with.
i'm thankful for the beautiful church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints that i belong to and how the gospel has blessed my life in infinite ways.
i'm thankful for a roof over our head, food in our bellies, and for our health.
and most of all, i'm thankful for my life.

we hope everyone has a splendid thanksgiving tomorrow, full of food, family, friends, laughter, and love.

and i'm especially gonna be loving on this little turkey!

can i have it?

can i have it?

i'm also thankful for everton's feet.  i'm obsessed with them.

happy thanksgiving folks.

everton's new hurrdo

well it's happened.

we cut everton's beautiful long hair.

i REALLY wanted to wait till he was a year old but his hair was seriously getting out of hand.

it was crawling into and over his ears and over his big brown eyes.

it was also getting really hard to brush, when we would give him baths he'd have a ton of tangles!

but one thing i got so annoyed at was how many people think he's a freaking girl.

i would tell people who think he's a girl, "if i had a girl with this much hair, pretty sure there'd be like, 3 bows/flowers in her hair."

and the fabulous JILL cut his hair.

brett and i need to learn how to cut little boys hair...

tracing back to his West Virginia roots.

and after a few tears from everton (and from me of course) he was a changed baby.

it's so cute how we can see his ears now and they seem to stick out a little bit.  he looks a little chubbier to me and definitely looks a lot older.  he's pretty much a man now.

we couldn't believe how much lighter his hair was underneath the dark layers that jill cut.  he officially has brett's hair.

i am glad we cut it this short so that when it grows again it'll all grow in evenly.

rippin the air guitar

but i REALLY miss his long hair though, i miss how shaggy and soft it was.  i feel like it was the last thing that really made him a baby.  

after the momentous haircut we gave him a bath, fed him, and put him down for a nap.  i think he was traumatized as i was by the whole thing and went to sleep right away.  and when i went to get him after his nap i thought, "holy crap whose kid is this?  he's almost bald!"  i felt like i was babysitting for a few moments.

so what am i thankful for on this day?

my babe of course.  he's such a trooper.  we cut off a thumb and some hair and he still loves us.  he's actually now cutting his top two teeth!
did you know that the name everton means brave?

yup.

baby bullet

i make all of everton's baby food with this cutie.

our amazing friends, steve and gwen, got it for us and i am just in love with it.

i love the fact that i save so much money making my own baby food and how easy it is.

i know that a regular blender would work just as fine but we actually don't have one of those right now.

so how could i not feed my everton with my little army of smiling jars of pureed peas?

so far i've made peas, sweet potatoes, and squash.

 and he's been loving everything i've been feeding him.

but what can i say, his mama's a good cook.

and can i also say that from all these foods his poop is just so awesome.

so i am super thankful for my baby bullet, thankful that i can make everton super healthy food and i know what's going into that little body of his.

(the kid just gotta haircut, stay tuned)

good & bad habits

THE BAD HABIT

when everton was about 3ish months i got into a REALLY bad habit of letting him take naps on my chest, for EVERY nap.  and he takes about 3-4 naps a day.  

1. i just became really lazy taking him upstairs to put him in his crib.

2. i honestly took it as an opportunity to just cuddle cuddle cuddle!

3. and he would shnuggle and snooze on my chest while i had my laptop on my knees and the tv nearby. sounds convenient right?

but then my back started hurting and if i needed to get stuff done or get ready to go somewhere when brett got off work, i realized how screwed i was when everton refused to sleep anywhere else besides my chest.

it was time to break that habit.

it was definitely hard at first, letting him cry it out for a while but we broke his addiction.  he's been napping wonderfully in his crib, sleeping about 1-2 hours at a time.  and he still sleeps awesomely at night.

 i feel like a freer woman, even though i still often nap when the baby naps, i at least get to sleep on my stomach!  which is something i don't take for granted anymore.  not being able to sleep on my stomach while pregnant suuucked.

and this hairstyle is called, "i just took an awesome nap"

THE GOOD HABIT

now that everton is a successful napper there was something that i needed to start doing, and that is reading my scriptures, more specifically, the Book of Mormon.  i haven't read it in so long and i never have the motivation to.  i always get so confused as to what i'm reading and i always pick the wrong times and the wrong places to read them.  i've learned that reading right before bedtime in my bed was really useless because that pillow keeps screaming at me to lay my head down.  not productive.

brett and i want our kids to love the scriptures and get excited about them.  and that'll be hard to do when mom is passed out on the bed snoozin away.  not saying that my parents didn't try to get me excited about the scriptures, i'm just plain lazy.  then one day brett simply asked, "honey, do you think you could read your scriptures for 30 mins a day?"

my honest first reaction was, "bahhhhhhhhhhh, how am i supposed to do that taking care of a baby??"

then i realized, well maybe i can do it.  it is only 30 mins a day and everton does take awesome naps.  then perhaps i shall!

so i did.  i figured out that the perfect time is either before or after everton's naps.  i throw him in the bouncer with a bottle and i sit in the glider reading aloud to my son.

i truly have noticed a difference in my everyday life.

i feel more calm throughout the day.  everton is indeed a baby and likes to be cranky for no reason at times and i've found that reading my scriptures have helped me to have more patience with him.  i've learned to really cherish the moments i have with him, i always did before anyways, but i really work on spending more time with him.  i find myself turning off the tv more often to play, cuddle, or read a book to him.

and i totally notice a difference in brett and i.  i don't get mad (well, i try REALLY hard not to) at little dumb annoyances anymore. i try to be better at talking things out instead of taking things personally and get pouty and mad at him.  i feel the spirit more and all i want is to have the spirit just fill my home and my heart.

the scriptures make me feel good.

so the Book of Mormon is definitely on the top of my list of things that i am truly grateful for.

and naps, i'm also grateful for naps.

wishes

it is 11.11.11

and at 11:11pm

i made a wish

and it concerns these 2...

but i can't tell you my wish.

cuz it won't come true if i do.

happy 11.11.11 

and happy veteran's day to all those who served/serve/will serve in the military.

i am grateful for you.

normal...somewhat

ding dong the cast is dead!

but we're actually not done yet.

we got up REALLY freakin early-5am.  had to soak the tape cast so it could come off easier for the doctor.  drove about an hour to primary children's hospital in SLC with everton's arm wrapped in a really wet and warm towel (with it being 17 degrees outside.)  

the doc cut off the cast and there were 5, count em, 5 fingers.  now that was weird.

there were a lot of dead wrinkly skin and a pretty gross incision with dark stitches.

ehhh i can never look at his stitches for too long.  they freak me out.

and i think they freaked out everton too.  he just kept staring at his hand, slowly opening and closing it.

the doc said we can now give him real baths and his stitches will dissolve sometime soon, i hope.

doc even said that everton could suck on his hand as much as he wants, which really grosses me out as everton brings his stitched hand to his mouth.

ehhhhhhhhh.

but his little hand isn't free yet.

because they had to take some ligaments from his extra thumb...

-rest in peace little thumb-

...and put em into his actual thumb it sort of made his thumb a little wonky. it is causing his thumb to drift towards his fingers, which means, he has to wear a splint.

but it's a removable one!  the splint shall train the thumb.  for the first month he needs to wear it whenever he sleeps or whenever he's just chillin.  but when he eats or plays he doesn't have to wear it so that he could get his thumb some exercise.  then for the second month he just has to wear it at night.

so what am i grateful for today?

-that everton's cast is gone!

-my little baby boy who is such a trooper and has been so strong throughout the whole thing.

-primary children's medical center.  whenever we go there i always feel such a peace.  there are drawings and paintings done by children all over the place.  it truly is a place of healing and they have such amazing doctors, nurses, and many other people working there that will do anything to help a child feel better and comfortable.  i know everton's little thumb surgery is nothing compared to what so many kids are having to go through but i'm grateful that no matter the reason they will work as hard as they can to take care of your child.  now every time i'm asked if i want to make a donation to primary children's, i make one.

those pearly chompers

for 2 days in a row (nov. 3-4) everton was SO fussy and clingy.  i thought it was an after effect of his shots from his 6 month appt.  i couldn't help but get really frustrated.  when brett came home from work i would pretty much toss everton to him.  i was exhausted.  and then on the night of the 4th, he didn't wanna eat.  WHAT?  he always takes his bottle, esp before bed.  he kept pushing the bottle out with his tongue and was just shrieking.  he started breaking out in small rashes on his chin.  i bet most of you know where this is going.  then brett and i had that telepathic conversation like they do on How I Met Your Mother.

"MAYBE HE'S TEETHING?!?!?"

i felt his gums and there it was, a little rough white pokey thing jutting through his bottom gums!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH what??!!!?!?

brett and i got so excited then felt really bad for everton and the pain he must be going through.

i put his bottle nipple in the freezer for a few mins and then he downed his bottle.

so now that we're onto this new baby adventure....

question, what are some really good teething helpers?
we did just get some baby orajel but i JUST read that it's actually bad due to the benzocaine, even though there's only 10% in it.

and we did just get one of those teething rings filled with liquid that you can freeze...


p.s.

oh yay.

i know i'm smiling but i am truly miserable that it's officially cold and snowy and crappy.

with a baby in the beginning of his teething stage and tooele in the beginning of another dreadful winter, today i have become even more grateful for my husband brett.
i am just so freakin grateful that i have him right by my side to go through parenthood with.  as i frantically run through the house saying, "holy crap everton's gotta tooth and we don't have any teething things!  holy crap holy crap!" he's there to help me find solutions for our sore gummy child.

he is willing to change everton's diaper when i ask him and gleefully plays with everton when he comes home from work and for when i need a break.

he is protecting, trustworthy, responsible, supporting, loving, patient, and so freakin adorable.
we truly do have our little fights but we try to work em out and he knows how to make me smile. 

the wind

when we moved to tooele back in january of this year, my friends here told me about how the wind was so horrible.  and i was like, pshhhhh, false. the wind in rexburg idaho was horrible!

they also said that it gets really windy in the spring and the fall.

i was still in unbelief, but then spring came and the wind was buck wild.

and now that it's fall we had a wicked night of wind last night and all day today.

the wind is a treacherous, nighttime and naptime sleep disrupt-er, baby upset-er, freeze your buns off, hootin and a hollerin, shake your house, and slap yo mama monster.

ughhhh i hardly got sleep last night because it was so loud.  

i think i've grown to hate wind so much because of having to walk to class in it back at byu-i.

i am traumatized.

GLOOMY

but this post isn't about wind actually.

as i kept waking up last night clinging onto brett thinking the wind monster's gonna get me i realized how grateful i am for our home.

it's not the most fancy nor the most decorated but it protects us.  it protects my little family from the elements.  it gives us that feeling of, "welcome home" when we come back from a long trip.  i absolutely love my little house and am grateful it's where we'll be raising our kids (but only for a few years, shoo we don't plan on staying in tooele, ut forever.)
and you know what i'm also thankful for?
my friends and family who tell me not to freak out whenever everton's pediatrician makes it sound as if he's gonna grow into a skinny dwarf!

i think i really do feed him excellently.

seriously, thanks for all the comments telling me that babies who are slow at growing is COMPLETELY normal.

i love you!

the little guy

i just took everton for his 6 month appointment and he weighs the same as he did when he was 4 months! which is about 13 pounds.  he's also the same height too.  25 inches.

my teeny baby.

the doc says that babies do start slowing down their growth at around 9-12 months (i think that's what he said??)  and that everton is probably just REALLY early.

i coulda sworn he felt like he was getting bigger when i would pick him up.

every time someone asks how old he is, they comment on how tiny he is for his age.

so we'll be having to go back to the docs every month so they could monitor his weight gain and to make sure there's nothing wrong with him.

i guess i didn't have the eggnog breastmilk my mom did.

(check out this chubby baldy baby, proof everton didn't get his hair/poundage from me!)

i do feed him i swear!  he eats a lot.

a 5oz bottle every 3 hours, a full serving of oatmeal every morning, and a full serving of a veggie every night.

it really does make me feel crappy mom, always feeling like i'm just not giving him enough.

brett says that maybe all the weight is going to his hair.

yeah i think that's what it is.

BUT in other news, everton has been developing excellently in all other areas, brain-wise and in his motor skills.  he's so alert, active, smiles, babbles, and rolls all over the place. he's been hitting all of his milestones as he grows and seems really healthy, which as a mom, does make me feel really good.  he also takes his shots like a man.  he cries for a little bit, then just sucks it up and rubs some dirt in it...then takes a nap.

it is november.

tis the season of giving thanks.

and right now i'm really grateful for my healthy son, maybe he's a lightweight, but he's just perfect to me.

i'm also really thankful for the kindness of strangers.

i thought it was really cool that people would give up their place in line in the bathroom for me when i was pregnant.  but when i have a baby in my arms i realized how much more useless i am and how i do everything with one hand nowadays.

at the grocery store today i had to run in with a baby in tow just to grab a few things.  i grabbed a produce bag and i couldn't open the freaking thing!  i even tried to use my teeth to open it (i bet you can imagine the sight of that.)  and then a kindly gentleman came up and opened the thin plastic bag for me.  i always go around thinking how much people suck in this world then a kindly stranger helps me out.  it's always a reassurance to me that there are many many good people out there and i in turn, need to be a better person and help others out as much as i can.