Caden's Cooing

Caden has started playing a little game with Bryan and I--we coo, he coos. It's pretty dang cute. And his smile just keeps getting bigger, and bigger every day.

Evan

Evan, our nephew, is learning to talk and thus, has been nothing but pure entertainment this summer. Example:

Today he comes back to our room carrying one of Caden's pacifiers. He hands it to Bryan, waits a minute, and gives him this sideways look. Then he points hard at Caden and grunts, "Eeeh," as if to say, "Don't be confused Uncle. That isn't for you; That is for Caden."

Hilarious.

8 & L

Today's post is brought to you the number 8, the letter backwards L (he's not old enough to know the difference between the right L and the wrong L), and a little bit of Bryan. 8 is the number of weeks Caden will be this Friday. 8 is the number of diapers he goes through a day. 8 is also the number of hours Caden sleeps at night without waking up!!! The letter backwards L is in the word sLeep. The backwards L is also just the letter he makes at night when he is busy not waking up.
After a few tears (on my part and his), and some difficult days and nights we officially have a sleeping baby! He's such a great little guy. Thank you Baby Wise...and Tami C. Larsen, my mentor. :)

Afraid that One Morning...

I am afraid that one morning, years down the road, I will wake up and hurt from wishing that I could remember exactly how my baby was--that I could remember his exact looks: his little smile, his big blue eyes and how they search a room, how he purses his lips when he doesn't want his pacifier, the way his little toes curl up when you touch them, and how he arches his neck so he can see the lights on the ceiling. So because of this fear I take a million pictures so that I am always able to remind myself of exactly how Caden was when he was my beautiful baby.

The big picture and bottom left picture are of Caden with all of his animal "friends". He is so cute with them. He smiles, coos, makes eyes at them, and lately has started batting at them.
Caden has developed the BIGGEST smile. Every time he does it melts my heart. One of our friends left me a comment saying that she heard about a study that said for a mother seeing a baby's smile is like cocaine. I'm pretty sure it's true. It's so addicting and such a natural high.
Caden officially survived his first cold this last week and a half. That was not fun! The little guy has found his thumb and is EXTREMELY loud when he tries to suck on it. It's pretty funny. He has also become the "baby in training" around our house. We are working on getting his schedule down during the day so he sleeps through the night. By we I mean my sister in law, Tami, and me. She is my support system. He's doing pretty well so far; most naps he will go down with only a whimper which is still so, so hard.
These last pictures are just an example of how Caden HAS to be looking around, specifically at the ceiling. He arches his back in a S shape and just sits like that for an hour. He can hold his head up all on his own and also enjoys standing up with our help. The other day I had him in my lap and he pushed himself into a standing position all on his own. I'm pretty sure last time I checked my child development books that he was not supposed to be this strong yet.

Besides news with Caden, Bry finishes his internship in two weeks. Tomorrow he gets to appear in court all on his own. Did I mention that he also has his own office and parking spot. He's really hit the big times. The only thing that would stop you from believing that is the fact that he had to put together his own leather chair. Haha. :) He has had many growing experiences at this firm; It has been such a huge blessing. Other than that we are just looking forward to our visit to Wisconsin.

Coolest Tag Yet.

I got this off my husband's blog, who was very excited to get his second tag from Alli! I think this is probably the neatest one yet.

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn’t matter if you knew me a little or a lot or if we’ve actually met in person or not---anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. If you don’t want to play on your blog, or if you don’t have a blog, I’ll leave my memory of you in my comments.

Twenty Five in Tahoe.

As my dear, dear sister-in-law said to me..."You are half a centry old...oh wait...a quarter centry." :) I turned 25 on the 2nd. True to my husband's style, he made this birthday yet another one I wont forget! The night before we left for Lake Tahoe the family gave me my birthday present...a Nikon D40 camera. I was just a little ExCitEd and totally in sHocK. Bryan wrapped the box, then as I was opening it I see him taking pictures of me with my new camera. There are so many good things I can say about my husband; One of the good things being that he is the most sincere gift giver I have ever met. Right after we started dating I had a birthday, and Bryan surprised me with this necklace I'd wanted forever and just mentioned to him in passing. I'd completely forgotten about it but he didn't. He's pretty awesome. Tuesday night we drove up to the Lake Tahoe cabin for a relaxing birthday. We got up there around 9pm and headed straight to the grocery store to stalk up on treats for our movie night. We spent my birthday walking by the lake, at the local Bert's Cafe having the best french dip I've ever eaten, watching season 4 of Smallville, eating half baked ice cream, trying out the new camera, and having the worst Italian food of my life. It was perfect! I told Bryan that never in my life have I felt so fulfilled. At this point there is nothing missing; I wouldn't change a thing. I'm 25 and I have SO much to be thankful for: I have an incredibly sweet husband who's going to provide our family with such a great future, I have a beautiful baby boy who fills my days (and nights) with so much joy, I have the gospel that brings me hope, I have the best family, I have a home, and I have wonderful friends. I couldn't ask for anything more.
We stayed in Tahoe two 1/2 days. We had a great time and took a few pictures...400 to be exact. I'm pretty sure 350 of those were of this little guy. What can I say...we like him.

Happy 4th Because Jarom's Home!

After serving two years as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Phipps is finally home from Boston. And we are all so proud of him! Jarom's flight came in on the Fourth of July so we went to the airport to pick him up. This was my first time picking up a missionary. I really feel so blessed to be a part of this family and this experience. Watching Jolene gave me a small taste of what it will be like when we go through this as parents. She was SO excited!! Today was also the first time Jarom has met Evan or Caden. Evan is pretty in love with him...I'm sure Caden will be when he has the ability to show emotions. :) After picking Jarom up we took him to In and Out burger for his first taste of the goodness after his mission.

We ended the day with an awards banquet. You see when 11 people are living under one roof it is pretty difficult to keep a house clean; It is especially difficult when every room in the house is a "bedroom" except the bathrooms and kitchen. So...we had a family cleaning day and competition to see who's room was the cleanest. Thanks to us, Tami and Weston, well probably just more Tami, won the white glove inspection. She saw us cleaning our blinds and did the same. Unfortunately, we took the lazy road and only cleaned one side of the blinds. However, Bryan and I are quite pleased with our son's award: The Biggest Suck Up. We left a note on Caden during our inspection that said,

Dear Bumpa and Grandma,

I would love you even more if you gave my parents the cleanest room award.

Love, Caden

Caden's prize...a teething toy.

Jarom also brought home gifts from Boston. He gave Bry and I The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere by Henry Longfellow for our little fam. He's awesome!