Visit with Great Aunts Eileen and Gail and 'Aunt' Anita

Nathan, Caleb, and I arrived in Florida yesterday afternoon, goodbye 30 degrees, hello 80's! My parents were so happy to see Caleb again. He was 5 weeks old the last time my dad saw him and 11 weeks old when my mom saw him last - big changes! That evening, my dad's sisters Eileen and Gail, and Eileen's daughter Anita came over to meet Caleb for the first time. Eileen is so excited to be a great aunt, though she has been a grandma for 22 years, and Gail is excited to be a great aunt again. I said 'aunt' Anita because she is really my first cousin, but when I was little I always thought she was my aunt. Apparently at a young age I figured out that she was my cousin, and was pretty upset about it. To this day, I still call her aunt Anita, and she can be the same for Caleb -:). We had a really nice visit with everyone and Caleb was a lot of fun. He was talking up a storm and very playful. We will have to get more visits with our aunties this week!

We Adore Four!

Our sweet little boy turned 4 months old earlier this week while we were babysitting Jacob. Caleb is tons of fun, very active, and he is growing fast! Here are his latest stats from his 4 month appointment:

Weight: 12lbs 1.5oz (5th percentile)
Height: 23.75 inches (10th percentile)
Head: 16.2 inches (25th percentile)

- Diapers - size 1, but graduating to a size 2 today after pooping out of his diaper the last 3 days
- Clothes - 3 months for onesies and PJs, 0-3 months for pants
- Nurses - about 3-3.5 hours, spitting up less and drooling more - the doc said we can try to start solids!
- Sleep at night - unpredictable! Fortunately he sleeps from about 7-7 only waking to eat and then he goes right back to sleep. He will give us a good 6-7 hour stretch for a few days, and then it's back 3-4 hours the next night.
- Naps - usually 3/day around 45 min - 1 hour and sometimes a longer one in the afternoon

Caleb can now roll from his belly to his back, holds onto his feet while laying down, he yells all the time, and is very curious about the world. He holds small toys in his hands, which go straight to his mouth, he laughs out loud, and loves being read and sung to. He loves bath time with daddy and is starting to kick his legs in the tub, looking in the mirror, sitting in his bumbo seat, and standing with support. 

We have a very active little boy, and we think it will only be a few months before he will be cruising along!

We love you so much Caleb, happy 4 month birthday! We could not imagine our lives without you -:).

A special weekend with 1/2 the Jolliffs

This past week was a very special one for Hap and Elizabeth, commissioning week in preparation for their overseas deployment. They spent most of the time in Virginia for meetings, and then they flew to Mississippi for the commissioning ceremony later in the week. While in Virginia, Nathan and I were trusted to babysit for Jacob since nursing infants were allowed to attend, while Sam and Andrew split time on the farm in Patoka and in Salem with both of their grandparents.

Nathan, Caleb, and I met them on Saturday afternoon and we began babysitting that evening. Nathan was able to stay for Saturday and most of Sunday, then he had to return home to be at work on Monday.  We quickly learned the challenges of having two babies with similar needs, sometimes at the same time:). Thank God for helping hands. Once we got there, it did not take long for Caleb to beat up on his little cousin...twisting his ear! I also got to experiment more with my new camera lens throughout the week on another cute subject.

The place we were staying was is in a rural area outside of Richmond and it was especially beautiful with the pretty fall colors. There are a couple of playgrounds, a soccer field, barn, lake, indoor basketball court, and lots of open green space for the boys to play. The rolling hills and fields will be great for sledding too. It will be a fun place for them to be as a family for a couple of months. And the food was delicious too (except for the 2 times I thought I was eating chicken and it was unexpectedly fish).

We took walks around the area with the boys, went to the playground, and spent lots of time outside. While out on walks, many people asked if they were twins since they look about the same age...this gave us a small taste of what twins would be like! These two boys could not be more different though, and both are sweet as can be. We think Caleb is going to be a wild child. He is so active and curious, and quite the yeller. He really likes to practice exercising his vocal cords at all times of the day! Jacob is very patient....yes, that is a great word to describe him. He smiles alot and is so content in his surroundings. Elizabeth says he has to be with two older brothers -:). We had a great time watching the boys and it was fun to see the cousins together.

On Sunday afternoon after Nathan left it was me and the two boys...I was outnumbered. The boys were on the same eating and sleeping schedule that day, so I spent most the afternoon outside with them, and by the time Hap and Elizabeth got home that evening both boys were bathed and sleeping...success! Monday was a fun and long day. The boys were mostly on opposite schedules that day, which was a good thing because there was only one of me. We were staying in a building with other nursing infants, so when both boys were crying at the same time, another caretaker usually came over to hold one of them, which was sweet. I think they felt bad for me because they were both crying, even though Elizabeth and I have no problems letting our babies cry. I took a lot of walks with the boys, one in the stroller and one in the baby carrier, and we hung out outside on the blanket with the other babies in the building too. That night Elizabeth took Jacob to an inauguration event at a church downtown, so Caleb and I turned in early. Poor Hap was not feeling well all day, and he spent the evening at home sleeping too.

Tuesday they finished mid-morning, so it was a short day. Caleb and I hit the road and we were home around lunchtime. I was great having Nathan babysit with me half of the time, and I know he loved all the one-on-one time with Jacob and Caleb. The other days I was appreciative to have another caretaker lend a helping hand.

We were so thankful for the time we got to spend with Hap, Elizabeth, and Jacob this weekend, and it means so much to us to be a part of this important time in their family's life. While we also would have loved to attend the commissioning ceremony in Mississippi, we were selfishly thankful for the one-on-one time we got to spend with them those few days, and we had a good time catching up and laughing with them too. After hearing their testimony, I can so clearly see God's hand in the events that have led them to where they are today, and we are so excited to see how He will work through them with this new chapter in their life.  In the meantime, we are now officially ready for twins.....hahaha! 

Rollin, rollin, rolling

Caleb can now roll from tummy to back! For about the last month, he has been able to roll when we place his arms in front of him, but now he can do it all on his own. Don't mind the screeching -:).

Also, Nathan got me a new camera lens as an early Christmas present and I LOVE it!  I really like the types of pictures where the subject is in focus and the background is creamy. This lens has a wider aperture than the lens that came with my camera, which creates this type of affect. I have not been able to experiment outside yet, but here are some pictures from the other morning.

Happy Thursday -:)

Feeling a bit sentimental

This past week I have felt an overabundance of love and joy for Caleb. Not that it did not exist before, but for some reason my emotions have been overflowing lately. He is so much fun to be home with and I love every day we spend together.  He smiles, laughs, and yells, he likes sitting in his bumbo seat and jumper for 10-15 minutes at a time, and this past week he began reaching for low hanging toys on his playmat. He loves playing with daddy, especially when he pretends to be a rocket ship! One my favorite things to do is to show Caleb the mirror. He gets the biggest smile on his face like it is the first time he ever saw himself - everytime.  He focuses on Nathan and I when we talk to him, and he is so cute talking back to us. When at home, he takes all of his naps in his crib, and he loves going to bed at night, usually between 7 and 7:30pm for about 12 hours, just waking up to eat. We are lucky! This past week he began to drop his late night feeding and for a the last few nights he has slept from when we put him down until about 2am. We thank God everyday for bringing Caleb into our lives - we love you so much sweet boy!