Halloween & 8 months

Ethan is now 8 months old! How the time flies!
We now have a baby who can get from laying to sitting in no time. He also has crawling a bit faster now. He still loves Daddy's camo Cabelas hat. He says "Bop Bop Bop, Da Da, Mmmmm" He also loves to make different sounds like clucking his tongue. He is fascinated with our ceiling fans and the strings that make them work. Smokey is starting to realize that she now has to watch out for Ethan instead of the other way around.

We celebrated Halloween a day late as that day baby Ethan was too tired and Daddy was working on the car. But, this year Ethan doesn't know the difference.

Friday

Today is a dreary Friday. Ethan has had a rough week as we think he has another tooth coming in. Poor baby refuses to nap. He spends hours each day playing with his feet, crying, talking, and generally keeping himself awake instead of peacefully sleeping. We are trying to maintain his normal morning and afternoon naps so he has an hour of playing alone for each one instead. Hoping this passes soon as he is a grump by the end of each day.

Mommy has had her own rough week. Emotionally spent dealing with over-tired baby. Car issues that seem to be getting more and more frequent. Looking into November which leads to December and the madness that Christmas has become. Trying to maintain work & home and balancing who gets to see our family when has become a chore. The house is a mess, I barely keep up at work. I have made several resolutions this week and I pray they help me maintain emotional balance this holiday season. I have begun a pre-set up Christmas planner, intend to meal plan, set a designated grocery day, and follow a cleaning schedule with the house chores. Sounds daunting right? Well, having some sort of a checklist helps me to stay on task instead of being so scattered like I've been feeling lately.

Jason has had a rough week just because mommy & baby have. But, he has been diligently working on our home during the week as Saturday will be a work day at Grandma Sherry's again. We now have heat tape on the roof over the back stairs to prevent ice buildup on the stairs. This required an additional outlet to plug the heat tape into. Uncle Justin stopped by to help with the electrical needs of this heat tape. Jason did the fastening on the roof later in the week. After the project was finished and Jason safe on the ground, the ladder went through one of the old windows in the laundry room. Looks like the projects won't end and the back windows will be replaced this spring. Never ending list of projects!

Trying to keep our heads up

New tooth & catchup

Wow, Time has flown! While I can't go into detail about the last several months (that would be a thick book) I can summarize.

March 5th we had our wonderful son, Ethan. He was 6lbs, 6oz and 3 1/2 weeks early.
Spring was cool and wet for the most part and I stayed home for 12 weeks. I spent most of this time recovering, adjusting, and getting Ethan's room ready. We celebrated a few firsts: First Mothers day, First Father's day, Ethan's first Easter. Aunt Vickie came from Texas for a week to help out too. She made some wonderful meals for our freezer for when I went back to work!

I went back to work the Tuesday after Memorial day, Ethan went to Robin's for daycare. He seems to enjoy watching the other kids at daycare & it is a few minutes drive from work for either Jason or myself. We endured one really bad storm this summer that included streamline winds over 90mph!
Shortly after I went back to work, we started renovating our only bathroom. The toilet and flooring had given up so we gutted it. New tub, new toilet, new ceiling, new floor, new walls, new heating, new vanity. Whew. Jason did so much work thanks to the help of his brother and dad.

We were excited to learn a few weeks ago that Ethan will have a cousin, baby Brownie, whose gender will remain anonymous due March 31.

Ethan did give us a scare just before Labor day, he was acting really funny and we made our first ER visit to DeVos. He was admitted where they checked for possible signs of seizures and it was concluded that he was fighting his reflux.

Now, the bathroom is nearly finished (trim work in the process). Ethan's room is organized (most days). Ethan turned 7 months today and rolls like a champ. He loves to jump in his doorway jumper & grab at Smokey. He is ever curious and a bit cautious. He is on stage 1 & 2 baby food and likes most of it. The green beans take some coaxing. Jason is off to deer camp this week and while he was away, Ethan's first tooth popped through. No muss, no fuss, just showed up for Ethan to play with. Jason got a doe on Monday so we will have some venison for the winter.
Now, we are enjoying the sunshine and warm temps for today. Fall colors are showing brilliantly. We have applesauce in the pantry, a full freezer. God is so good!

Changing of the Seasons

So fall seems to be settling in with cooler temperatures and less humidity. Apple picking I will go, soon!

I have now made it publicly known that Jason and I are finally expecting a baby. After several years of waiting and wanting God chose to bless us! He or she is due March 29 and it may be a long winter waiting for that arrival. As of today I am 11 weeks along. Last Friday we were able to hear the heartbeat which was so exciting! The heartbeat was 172 bpm which was fast but the doctor thought was healthy. Whew, a relief to me! I am starting to feel less queasy but still very tired. Last weekend was Labor Day and due to my lack of energy we didn't do much. Monday we did go visit with Jamie and John which was cool. We went to Dunhams to stock up on hunting gear while we could still get Jamie's discount and Toys'rUs to start scoping out baby stuff. Somehow, the boys got lost in the video game section LOL! We are working on the house a little faster this year to try and get it all done before the baby. So, thus begins a new season for Jason and I.