Seven Months

Today Wells turned seven months old. I remember when he was a newborn, a seven month old baby seemed so old. Now, in the blink of an eye, he is there. Why can't time stand still for me, or at least move a little teeny bit slower? I kept him in my favorite pajamas for his photos this month. They are covered in moons, rockets and stars. I call him my little space cadet or space case. He is developing such a great personality and sense of humor. Can I count the ways that I love this little guy? Not in a day.

A Princess Gathering

A friend in my ward with two little princesses of her own hosted a very fun princess party this afternoon. While I was never much into the whole pretty princess dress-up as a child, I often wonder if it was because there was not an opportunity for such things. I remember most of my friends were the tom-boy types which suited me just fine. Nora, however, is as girly as they come, and I have to admit, it's been a lot of fun. She loves all of her girl friends and really knows how to have a good time. Here are some pictures of Nora and all of the princesses pursuing artistic endeavors.

Wells' new hobby

Snacks

Little Wells has started munching on biter biscuits and the like. I think I started this because he always looked so bored when the rest of us were snacking. Apart from a few gagging episodes, he has really caught on like a pro.

Tummy Time

Just when I think he couldn't possibly get any cuter, he does. Josh took these beauties while I was dressing Nora the other day. Although he wasn't completely sold on the new camera I wanted, I think he appreciates it now.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Our family has a fun Valentine tradition of following a trail of hearts from one's bed to a treat or gift. Nora enjoyed this so much that she followed everyone's trail and brought his gift to him. It was a little remniscent of Christmas morning and her desire to unwrap everyone's gifts. What a helper. The trail...

The gifts... (see if you can guess which went to whom!)

Valentine's Day 2

Following the trail... breakfast...

Sweet Success!

Although there is no shortage of dolls around here, the one that Nora got today has an interesting story behind it. Ever since she laid eyes on a certain doll in her nursery at church, she has been enthralled with it. Apparently, she spends the entire two hours each Sunday sitting with her doll, a little baby bottle and a blanket and rocking and 'feeding' it tenderly. I think it's so funny because neither Nora nor Wells would ever take a bottle consistently, but oh well. So she talks about the doll constantly and is always asking to go to church during the week so that she can care for her doll. Apparently it sits in the toy cupboard and cries for Nora until she arrives. There have even been brawls over the tiny rocking chair that Nora has commandeered. Anyway, at Christmas I searched for a doll to match the one at church to no avail. The tag said Toys R Us, but it also said 2001 so I was sure that they had discontinued production of it. I even considered purchasing another doll and performing a convenient 'switch', at the approval of the nursery leader, of course, but Josh wouldn't let me do it. The other day Nora and I stopped at the toy store to pick up some gifts for some of her friends birthday parties that are coming up and there it was- in a cute little rolling suitcase no less, with a baby bottle, bib, bowl, toy lamb and bowl and spoon; all for just $13.99. I couldn't believe it! It was identical to the doll at church except for the color. Nora's doll is pink, with blue eyes, the one at church is wearing green and has green eyes. But close enough. Nora was overjoyed. She named her Honey.

Valentine's Day Cookies

Nora has had a group of girl friends practically since birth. We met them in a breastfeeding support group that I started attending when Nora was 4 weeks old. Ever since then, we have been holding a weekly playgroup on Monday mornings. Some weeks the turn-out is better than others and all the girls now have younger siblings, or ones on the way. Today we decorated heart-shaped sugar cookies to celebrate Valentine's Day early. As you can see, there was a little more eating going on than actually decorating. I am grateful for the great friends we have made along this crazy road called parenthood.

Yummy

That skin!
Those eyes!
That smile!
Those lips!

I am experimenting with finding spots in my house of good natural light and using no flash. My great photographer friend used the changing table for some photos when Wells was a newborn because it is right next to a north facing window so I thought I might try the same. These pictures cost me having to change the pad cover due to unexpected showers, but I think it was worth it. This boy has delicious curves and I want to utilize the time when it is still acceptable to photgraph him in the nude.

my kids' room

We live in a very small, two bedroom home. Ever since I got pregnant with Wells, I've had concerns about putting the kids in the same bedroom. I was worried that there wouldn't be enough space (there isn't), that they would keep each other up (they do) and that Nora would do crazy things to the baby before I could get in there in the morning (she does). But overall, it hasn't been that bad. In fact, I love the kids room. It really has become and cute and fun space. It is nothing short of a miracle that all of their furniture fit- well, the bookshelf got exiled to the hallway, but all of their essentials are in there- and, at least for now, it seems to work. Here are some pictures.

kids' room 2

Repunzel

I put Nora's hair in braids yesterday and took them out this morning. She looked so beautiful with a full head of golden waves. I was admiring it throughout all of her many activities today and even got a couple of pictures at playgroup before my camera battery died. Nora has always had a great amount of hair- and it grows really fast too. I used to cut it every couple of months right to the chin and she had a cute little bob. Then one day out of the blue, Josh said 'I think we should grow Nora's hair long'. Since Josh has never before or since made any sort of mention of hair preferences, I decided it was worth listening to. Now that it's long, I can't get enough of it. But every now and then I long for the return of her cute bob. Oh, long or short- what do you think, folks?

Flash Back

I came across these pictures of Nora about when she was Well's age. I can't believe how much she has changed in a short two years. No one should grow that fast. I remember feeling so in awe of her and the life that I had helped to create. It was almost surreal. I still feel that way about her and now she's such a little adult. What a ride it has been.