My Baby Grew Up Today

One day you put your baby down to sleep and when you check on him he is not where you have left him he has completely moved directions and location in the crib.
Hudson must have some developmentally enriching sleep. As a matter of fact I dreamed that he was talking to me last night.
All the new tricks Hudson performed today:
Mimicking me on the laptop mouse pad with his hand it was really quite amazing.
Diving at and attacking the craisins bag after I ate some he grabbed onto and sucked on it.
Grabbing all his toys and putting them in his mouth not just the monkey.
Moving locations in the crib, kind of scary for a moment I thought he was gone.
Rolling over to be next to me and because he wanted my attention.
I was going through his clothes today too and kept tossing shirts on him to see if they fit, he got a real kick out of this.
Oh yes and Hudson does not like his binky, he usually hocks it out but now that he has figured out his hands he will now grab it and drop it as far from him as possible, as if to politely say "keep that thing away from me!"
I don't know if I'm ready for all this growing up business!

Double Life

Having 2 blogs has been rough it's been splitting my personality in two and making me boring, the thing is I don't like having all our family pictures up for everyone to see. Maybe I'll reconverge the two. Speaking of which husband is looking at taking a job in that state that I love. We've been dreaming up a storm while looking at our life here, not wanting to leave all this wonderfulness behind. If it were up to me I would probably stay right where we are forever, minus the lack of windows in our one bedroom basement apartment, I've truly fallen in love with my life here. My home which I hated for about a year because of it's dark coldness (tip: add another person, now it is warmer and brighter), my in-laws who are amazing (tip: fully embrace in-laws, don't worry what they think of you and don't vent about your feelings in an email and actually hit send when you really meant save, trust me on this one), my neighbors (tip: if you want amazing neighbors move to Sugarhouse, Salt Lake City, UT) I think this part kills me the most, granted 9/13 of TJ's family lives in our neighborhood, I have never had such a family feel anywhere I've ever lived. Everyone knows each others names, your neighbors bring you meals for a month when you have a baby, you trust your neighbors, you stop and chat over the fence, people help each other and look out for each other. The houses are small but the hearts are big here, no wonder these itty bitty homes are so pricey.
We found an itty bitty home here that goes for the same as a garganch size one where we are most likely moving.
Besides this we've been dressing up kind of pathetically as Tarzan, Jayne, and a monkey for Halloween. I think that sums up our double life for now.
Here are some pics.
Update: Hudson is actually 4 months as of this week and he know is grabbing his little monkey stuffed animal it is so cute I'll have to post a pic.

He grabbed the fishing pole!!!

Hudson is 4 months now!!! He is huge and teething. Last weigh in was 16.5 pounds a couple weeks ago and a wiggly 25" or 26". He likes to show off standing by straightening his legs and smiling at everyone. He has been batting at things for a while but watch this sequence of events and look for his first grab:

he even held on while he slept, and yes in case you were wondering that is TJ in the first picture in the water at Rockport on October 21st brrrrrr!

PS Let me tell you something I love about TJ, we were looking at homes today online and I kept thinking that I wanted this one home but it is clearly out of our price range, TJ looked and the appraised value is 100K less than what was stated so he starts calling the real estate agent, I would never ask if the home was 100K less, that is like a lot less!!! The agent said actually yes the price is about that now. Granted we're not moving just yet but if I was that is where I would move, maybe it will be bank owned by the time we are ready.
Why TJ should love me, I wrote an 8 page paper for him today, and don't tell him but I secretly enjoyed it.

I'm writing this at midnight on Halloween but it just fit this post more than a new one could do it justice. Something really neat I've observed in Hudson is that he really looks to his dad to learn new things. For example the fishing pole and sometimes when I leave Hudson with TJ and come back Hudson is cooing back at TJ the noises TJ makes at him. I think it's so interesting even from babyhood we look to our fathers to learn things, makes me wonder if he somewhere in his brain remembers how important it is to look to his Heavenly Father. Hudson loves his dad so much, I love it!!!

This is My Baby

Or maybe I should say babies.
Hudson loves fire!


Not much to say today. Hudson is GROWING!!!! He's rolled both ways now front to back and back to front. I made him his football onzie and my sister-n-law Julie made him the ipood shirt(we wore it in honor of Steve Jobs)

14 weeks, the sneaky kiss, and when it rains it pours

My baby is huge!!! Last week Hudson got a new cousin who weighs pretty close to what Hudson did 8 pounds 14 ounces and I can't remember him ever being that small. Hudson is now 15 pounds!

So this one time way back when I was 19 I had a boyfriend and a guy friend of mine told me there was this new song he wanted me to hear so I finally said ok and we went to listen to it in his car, I can't remember how he convinced me to finally kiss him on the cheek but he did and then he turned his head and kissed me on the lips. I was mortified and felt guilty how could I explain that I kissed another guy. Anyway neither relationship lasted but Hudson seems to have learned this trick I go to kiss him on the cheek and I get his sweet slobbery mouth because he always turns his head. Maybe he was watching:-0 The following are Hudson with his cousin Vince who just turned 1 and my mom, Hudson playing bobble head, and Hudson's courtesy laugh, he'll never laugh for the camera.




Oh ya and when it rains it pours!!!!! TJ and I worked really hard to save money so that when I quit working we would have some funds. A couple weeks ago we were feeling really good, TJ was even considering quitting his night job and we were going to live off our savings.

Then a hospital bill came in for double what we thought we owed, I had even verified previously that I had paid our bill off but I guess the lady on the phone was wrong (as I'm typing this Regence my insurance co is granting the University of Utah, where I delivered money on the news)

Then our 2nd car broke down, we got it fixed, then the check engine light came on 3 times and every time we drop off the car it's only a certain amount and then they call to say its even more. Bleh!

So I was living in this world of perfect weather with my darling little family feeling like everything was going perfectly about 2 weeks ago, we had savings, TJ was following a course that was looking pretty promising to land a job upon graduation. Yesterday it started raining and hasn't stopped, our savings are nearly gone, and TJ has decided that he wants to try something new. I feel like my bubble has been popped but I know everything will work out, I just don't know how and I hate that, but like the apostle Neil L Andersen said:

"It was not in the Garden of Eden that Adam and Eve bore their first child. Leaving the garden, “Adam [and Eve] began to till the earth. … Adam knew his wife, and she [bore] … sons and daughters, and [acting in faith] they began to multiply and to replenish the earth.”¹¹

It was not in their Jerusalem home, with gold, silver, and precious things, that Lehi and Sariah, acting in faith, bore their sons Jacob and Joseph. It was in the wilderness. Lehi spoke of his son Jacob as “my first-born in the days of my tribulation in the wilderness.”¹² Lehi said of Joseph, “Thou wast born in the wilderness of [our] afflictions; yea, in the days of [our] greatest sorrow did thy mother bear thee.”¹³

In the book of Exodus, a man and woman married and, acting in faith, had a baby boy. There was no welcoming sign on the front door to announce his birth. They hid him because Pharaoh had instructed that every newborn male Israelite should be “cast into the river.”¹⁴ You know the rest of the story: the baby lovingly laid in a little ark made of bulrushes, placed in the river, watched over by his sister, found by Pharaoh’s daughter, and cared for by his own mother as his nurse. The boy was returned to Pharaoh’s daughter, who took him as her son and called him Moses.

In the most beloved story of a baby’s birth, there was no decorated nursery or designer crib—only a manger for the Savior of the world."

and as President Monson said:

“If you are concerned about providing financially for a wife and family, may I assure you that there is no shame in a couple having to scrimp and save. It is generally during these challenging times that you will grow closer together as you learn to sacrifice and to make difficult decisions.”

I have seen how the Lord has blessed our family and other families who have made sacred covenants with Him, for a minute I thought we were being cursed and thought of everything wrong I've ever done, but I know this is a trial of my faith and I can't wait to see how it all works out!

Motherhood

My life pretty much goes something like this
Typical Day 1:
7am wake up go running
730 come home feed hungry Hudson I'm all sweaty
8am play with Hudson grab some cereal
10am baby naps I hop in shower
1030 feed Hudson while wrapped in towel
11am play with Hudson
130 rock, bounce, walk, smile at overtired baby, while snacking on dried mangos and Chile Chips from Costco
2:40 Hudson falls asleep
3pm Hudson wakes up, TJ comes home
330 I hand Hudson to TJ and try to decide am I more hungry or tired
345 my vitals are dropping, TJ says I'm taking you to the Olive Garden
4 30 I've downed a whole plate of pasta 3 breadsticks and salad, more please, oh yes and Hudson has fallen asleep, TJ and I enjoy our freedom peace together for the next 4 hours
830 feed Hudson, bath Hudson(at least someone is getting a regular bathtime around here)
1030 freetime take II read/blog/watch movies oh wait I should go to bed
12 bedtime
5am was that a cough or a choke? must check baby

Typical Day 2
7am wake up hit snooze
715 wake up must pump if you know what I mean
725 ready for run
726 Hudson wakes up, he's so cute and me and other parts of me are so happy to see him
730 feed/play
9am take our Ghetto car to the shop go to the craft store while Hudson falls asleep on the drive over, good friend/old roommate calls she is in town
10am arrive at roommates in my workout clothes, sans brushed teeth
1015 while changing Hudson friends 1 year old who is the same size as Hudson drops her apple on his face, screaming ensues and I can't even finish changing Hudson till Koemi is out of sight, Hudson cries when he sees Koemi for the rest of the day
1030 Play at the park
11 feed Hudson
12 feed adults wait a minute have I eaten today? Hudson falls asleep
1pm finish craft store run
2pm drop off car at shop
230 feed Hudson, husband calls, have they called you about the car?, ummm no I just dropped it off
330 visiting teaching companion texts "shall I drive or you", me carless unless husband arrives home soon
340 I shower, no time to wash my hair, I think I washed it Wednesday, Tuesday, Monday(today is Thursday) no wait maybe I washed it Sunday or was it Saturday oh well side part bun, there is always tomorrow or the next day
355 vt companion arrives, TJ arrives, can't fit Hudson's car seat so I leave him on the curb for TJ but then I can't drive away with my son on a curb so I make vt companion wait and point at son till he picks him up, Hudson is asleep
4-6 vt
6 feed Hudson hang out at inlaws
63o inlaws house floods again, time to move out of this neighborhood!
7 arrive home Hudson fell asleep in the stroller ride
72o Hudson is awake, feed rock etc etc
10 freedom I mean bedtime for Hudson
Never been happier!

12 Weeks

Hudson is 12 weeks as of Thursday and cuter than ever! I couldn't sleep Friday night thinking how cute he is. If you can imagine this pure adorableness smiling and laughing at you and thinking you are his world you wouldn't be able to sleep either. He makes me feel glorious!
Hudson laughs a lot especially late at night he gets a little punchy and funny, I'll post some pics and you can see what I mean he will give me this inquisitive look and then coo and laugh I love it!
We recently discovered he really likes the color yellow, he will stare anything yellow down. Other things he likes to stare at are the clock next to my bed, a monkey and soccer ball burp cloth, stripes, and a piece of art I have of a mother and baby (he will coo at that it's so cute).
He imitates us more and more everyday and loves attention from his dad, sometimes I get a little jealous but than I remember all the fun we have when dad is gone and I figure he deserves some of this too.
His favorite song is 5 Little Ducks, he always thinks I'm the coolest when I sing it, sometimes I'll even change up the song because those ducks didn't listen to their mom, it often becomes "1 Little Hudson when out to play over the hills and far away, when his mom said come in for dinner, he ran in and gave her a big hug, 'cause he loves her so much". I know I have issues.
Well it's nap time for the whole Connolly home, sweet dreams!