7 Months!

Here are Cole's 7 month pictures.  The pictures are getting harder to take each month because I have a wiggle worm on my hands.  He hasn't quite mastered sitting on his own, so he's all over the place.   But he did have a case of the giggles in the middle of the photo shoot! He's so much fun at this stage!!

So In Love!

I'm so incredibly in love with this tiny dude! I don't think my days could get any better when I see his smile and hear him laugh. I'm so blessed to be his mama.

Cole's First 4th of July

I have always loved The 4th of July!  I hope that Cole grows up to love it as much as I do.  This year we spent the night at my parents house on the 3rd and spent the entire day of the 4th at their house.  We had such a great time with my parents and my sister and her husband.  It couldn't have been a more perfect day.  We had plenty of good food and time to relax too!  We sat outside for part of the day in the 100 degree heat and we also chilled out inside with the A/C on.  Cole had a great first 4th of July!  He even got to try out his swimming pool for the very first time, and he LOVED it!  But that didn't surprise me, because the kid really likes to be in water.  This post will be mostly photos of our time spent at my parents.  Happy 4th of July everyone!

Basement Remodel

A couple of months ago we decided that our living room was being overrun by baby toys and supplies and we were continually tripping over things every time we took a step.  We have a basement in our house, and for the last four years that we have lived here it has been a place where all of our junk collected.  We got motivated to clear out the clutter, sell a bunch of stuff, and finish the basement.  Luckily my dad is the handiest man I know.  He was the mastermind in getting the job done.

Matt and I spent a few days cleaning up and organizing the stuff that we wanted to keep.  I was also able to sell a lot of items on the classifieds we have at work.  My dad helped us plan for the materials we would need as well as what the estimated cost of the job would be.  It's so nice to know someone who can give you the details without having to worry if they are trustworthy or telling the true cost of things.

My dad definitely deserves a shout out on my blog for the time and effort he spent during the past few months on our basement.  He came several days after work.  His job is physically demanding and I'm sure the last thing he felt like doing was working up to 4 more hours.  But he never complained.  And I think he secretly wanted to come over to see Cole so he could brag to my mom :o)  He also worked almost every Saturday for the past few months.  We really appreciate the time and energy that it took to get the basement done.  I also think Matt did a wonderful job of being the apprentice.  When I met Matt he knew nothing about using tools.  But over the years he has gotten better and has learned a lot from my dad.  I know Matt put a lot of pressure on himself when working on our basement.  He wanted things to be perfect because he knew that is how my dad would do it.  He worked very hard a lot of nights after my dad left our house and also on weekends to get the tasks finished.  I think putting so much effort into it has made him take even more pride in the finished product.

Yesterday we got the carpet installed in the basement.  That was the last big step to being able to use the room.  We still have a few minor things that need to be completed, but all in all the room is done!  It looks amazing and we are so excited to be able to take Cole down there to play often.  Last night my parents and my sister and her husband came over to see the basement and to have dinner.  It was so much fun to see their reaction to the space and to be able to sit and relax for a bit after all of the hard work that was put into it.

I am so glad that the painting is done, I think I may have gone over the brick wall a hundred times with a brush.  I am also glad the drywall is done as it was causing some kind of allergic reaction in my eyes. But most of all I'm so glad we will have a place in this house to create fun memories with Cole as he grows.

Thank you sooooo much dad for all of your hard work!  We love you so much.  The room is even more special b/c you built it for us.

Here are the pictures:

Before:

During:

After:

I realized that through all of this process I never got a picture of my dad and Matt together.  Probably because most of the times they were working I was taking care of Cole.  But I do need to get a picture of them together relaxing in the finished space :)  I'll try to get a pic next time dad is over and then post it.

Cole is 6 Months!! (And I'm very behind on posting)

On June 21, Cole turned 6 months old!  I am super late in posting his pictures.  We have been very busy so far this summer.  When I look at Cole's six month pictures I realize just how much he has changed in such a short amount of time.  We love him so much!  We have been truly blessed to have him as our son.  I certainly don't want him to grow up any faster than he already is, but I also can't wait to have so many new experiences with him.

(By the way, this was the first time doing his monthly pictures that Cole was more interested in the bear...I had a hard time getting him to look at me and smile)

Random Happenings

Wow, can you believe it's been 3 weeks since I last posted anything on my blog?  We have been so busy.  Some events are boring and some have been fun.  I'll try to give you the run down of what's been going on.

• Work:  Matt has taken on a new position at work.  This is a position that will set him up nicely for a promotion in the near future.  It's also a great learning opportunity.  But, it's meant that he stays at work until 6-6:30 a lot of nights.  Cole goes to bed around 6:30, so we have been missing out on family time during the week.  And I've been running around like crazy keeping up with Cole and his needs as if I'm a single parent some days. 

• Basement:  We are in the process of finishing our basement.  And when I say "we", I mean my dad is finishing our basement.  Matt has been helping quite a bit too.  And I have also picked up a paintbrush a few times.  I'll save the photos of the before and after for another blog entry since it's not quite done yet.  My dad is an amazing carpenter, electrician, painter, and drywaller :)  We are so lucky to have him help us with this project.  I know I will enjoy hanging out in our basement even more because my dad did the work!  Cole sure has enjoyed the extra time with Grandpa, and Grandma too when she tags along!

• Walking:  When we have enough time in the evenings we like to take a walk around the neighborhood.  Some nights Cole goes with me, and some nights it's just me and Ritz.  I love to walk in the summertime.  Ritz has been getting a lot of exercise checking Cole out and playing with his toys...but a walk is always a good way to calm Ritz down.

Getting ready for a walk

• Birthday:  We celebrated Matt's 31st Birthday on June 14.  Matt and I were able to go out to lunch together, and he chose Meatheads.  Then I cooked dinner for him and also made M & M cookies for dessert at his request.  Cole and I let him open his gifts before dinner, and before Cole had a meltdown and was ready for bed.  We didn't get to celebrate too much since it was the middle of the week, but Father's Day is this weekend, so we will plan to do something fun as a family this weekend.  I know that FlatTop brunch is part of the plan!!  

Smiles for Daddy on his birthday

• Kidneys:  Cole had a doctor appointment in Peoria today to check on his kidneys.  It's hard to believe it's been 3 months since the last visit.  We got good news for the most part.  Nothing has changed, so he does still have reflux in both kidneys, but the good part is that the doctor doesn't think it's too bad and we don't have to go back for another 6 months.  And at that time he thinks it may clear up even more.  We are so lucky that his kidney issues have been minor.  And we are lucky to have such a great Children's hospital so close to home!  

• Food:  Cole has started to eat solid foods.  He LOVES to eat.  We found out today at his weight is 16.3 pounds and he is 27.25 inches long.  Since the end of April, he's gained 2 lb. and grown 3 inches!!  The first food we tried was oatmeal.  I could not feed it to him fast enough, and he was getting pretty mad.  Then we tried avocados next.  The first time he ate them he liked them, but then the second night he was making gagging noises and acting like he was going to throw up every time I put some into his mouth.  It was hilarious.  He's since tried sweet potatoes, butternut squash, acorn squash, peaches, and bananas.  He loves all of them!  He's getting the hang of taking bites and swallowing and then opening his mouth for more.  I love dinnertime with him.  He's just so fun to watch and in between bites he's usually smiling at me.  Enjoy the video of him eating for the first time!  I've been making all of his food (except the oatmeal) myself.  I have really enjoyed doing it and knowing that I'm feeding him as healthy as possible.  It isn't as much work as I thought it would be either.  I found this great website (http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/index.htm) and have been using it for tips and will use it for recipes in the future too.  I have spent about 3 hours total making the food and have probably a months worth in the freezer to pull out and feed him every night.  

Link to the video (since it wasn't working on this page):  Cole's First Time Eating

Frozen homemade baby food

Thanks for still following my blog, even though I have neglected it for a few weeks.  I would like to post more often, but I have a little guy who doesn't yet believe in sleeping through the night...or even close to it.  So I've been trying to either catch a few hours of sleep earlier than usual at night, or I'm picking up from the tornado that goes through my house every day.  Still loving every minute of parenthood and my sweet baby Cole!  Have a great weekend everyone!!

Central Illinois Honor Flight

The first time I heard about the Central Illinois Honor Flight was at the celebration we had for Braelyn's first birthday.  We asked family members to do something nice for someone else or donate time/money to a good cause.  Braelyn's Uncle Kyle (my brother-in-law) donated money in her name to the Central Illinois Honor Flight organization.  For those who haven't heard about this cause, WW2 Veteran's are flown to Washington D.C. to see the memorials dedicated to the war they fought in.  It's a two day trip to the Nation's Capital, that is of no cost to the Veteran's.  Many WW2 Veteran's have never seen the memorial that was built for them.  This is a wonderful organization that takes great pride in transporting Veteran's to Washington D.C. and helping them to experience the memorial first hand.

A few weeks ago, we found out that Matt's grandfather, Marvin, was asked to be a part of the Central Illinois Honor Flight.  We were so excited that he was going to have this opportunity, as well as blown away that this was a cause that Kyle had donated money to in Braelyn's honor.  How cool is that?  Another awesome thing is that on May 24, 2010 we found out that we were pregnant with Braelyn.  The Honor Flight was set to return to Champaign on May 24.

The road to the airport was lined with 1,000 American Flags

The flight is welcomed home at Willard Airport in Savoy by thousands of people.  People come to recognize and support our Veteran's.  It's such a cool sight to see so many people who take pride in our country.  Since Cole is just a baby, I wasn't able to go welcome home the flight.  But, Matt went, along with his sister and my family was also there.  Matt's grandma and his Great Aunt Love were waiting there too.  I don't think his grandma has been away from his grandpa for two days in a row in a very long time, so she was nervous about him making it home safely and also excited to see him.  Matt's grandparents are in their 90's, and probably about the cutest couple I've ever seen!

I heard the "P" sticker fell off in the wind...  Marvin was a PFC

The flight was scheduled to arrive at 7 p.m.  But after a few hours of waiting around they announced that the plane had some mechanical issues and was delayed leaving Washington D.C.  They said the plane would come in around 10ish.  So Matt and our families decided to wait it out.  But then, they came on again and said that the plane wouldn't leave D.C. until after midnight.  It was chilly and windy outside, so my parents offered for everyone to come back to there house to eat and wait on the plane.  I know that it was a big change in plans for my parents, and Matt and I feel so blessed to have them in our lives because they do nice things for others all the time.  Matt's grandma and Aunt Love would not have been able to wait that long outside, so it was perfect that they could go to my parents and warm up and eat too.  I know that both of our families had a great time talking and waiting.  I'm so glad that they all had that opportunity.  I really wished that I could have been there too...but I had an important job at home taking care of Cole :)

My whole family wearing their Braelyn bracelets

Matt said there was still a decent turn out of people there to greet the plane around 1:30 a.m.  I was disappointed for the Veteran's sake that they could not see the thousands of people who had come out earlier in the evening.  But I am glad that they had some support there to greet them as the de-boarded the plane.  Matt took some video footage of the moment his grandpa got off the plane and it brought tears to my eyes to think that he sacrificed so much for this country and our freedom.  I hope that he knows how much people appreciate him.  It was so sweet to see his grandparents reunited after he got off the plane!

Matt with his Grandma and Great Aunt Love

I couldn't help but to also think about my Grandpa Andy.  He fought in WW2 as well, and would have loved an opportunity to fly out to Washington D.C. to see the monuments.  I wish he was still alive to experience something like this.  My grandpa was in the Navy and he worked on blimps that were flown in the war.  He has some awesome pictures of the blimp hangars.  He was always very proud of the time he served our country.  He shared many stories with us when we were younger and I always loved to hear them.

It is so special to think that Marvin benefited from this once in a lifetime event.  We couldn't be more proud of him and what he's done for our freedom.  I also feel so honored that money was donated to this wonderful cause in Brae's name.  Thanks Kyle!


You can find out more about the Central Illinois Honor Flight here:

http://www.centralillinoishonorflight.org/