Caden's 6 month

So Caden is so sweet.

He never really cries or fusses. 

I didn't really have to do much to sleep train him. As long as he's swaddled and nursed, he just goes to sleep.

He goes to bed between 6:30-7:30 and wakes up around 6:30. He usually wakes twice to eat. There have been a couple of 10 hour stretches, which are glorious! Until I realize I'm about to explode. No crying it out for this little one ( fingers crossed I'm not jinxing myself right now). I'm happy though because Carson was much harder. More crying with him.

I have fed him avocados, pears, green beans, squash, and sweet potato so far. And he took a bite of my banana once. We did oatmeal a few times when he was 4-5 months old just to see how he would do. He loved it sometimes and wasn't interested the other times.

He's pretty good as sitting up. 

He really wants to crawl. He rolls everywhere. He gets up on his hands and knees and rocks like crazy. He can scoot himself backwards. And the past couple of days he has figured out how to move one knee forward. So we'll see what happens with that. 

No new teeth yet. Still just the one.

He smiles ALL THE TIME. And his dimples are the best. His hair is crazy--but cute. 

He just started saying, "Buh, buh, buh," over and over.

He squeals. A lot. Sometimes it's really loud. He does it on purpose too, which is funny. And he thinks it's funny, which is more funny.

He loves Carson. Anytime Carson even looks in his direction, he gets excited. Sometimes Carson catches on and will play with him. They will sit and giggle at each other for a few minutes. 

He loves sleeping on his side. It's the cutest.

I made a bow for Simone's baby. But I couldn't resist to put it on Caden.

And because I love comparing their pictures--here are both of their 6 month pictures. They look so different now!

Cory's 28th

Cory turned 28.

I got him Einstein Bagels for breakfast.

He got himself a dog as his present.

We went to Amber and Warren's in the evening.

They watched our kids while we went to Costa Vida.

We walked around the mall with no kids.

Then we went back and had cake.

We got a dog

So, Cory had been talking about getting a dog for awhile. "Maybe when we move," he said. "Like for Christmas," he said. Once we moved, he started browsing dogs for sale on the internet-- "For fun," he said. He started spending more and more time looking at dogs. He narrowed it down to a labradoodle. He was telling me, "We can't get one until I start working because they are expensive." 

So we would go to the mall and play with dogs in the little puppy shops. 

Then one day, he found a labradoodle for really cheap. "This is such a good deal," he said. Later that day... "I'm going to look at that dog later. At around 4.... uh, do you want to come?" No, I didn't care to go look at a dog we clearly were not going to be getting. But the trying-to-be-supporting-wife in me said, "I guess." 

On the way there, "Is it rude to go look at a dog we have no intention of getting?" he said. 

"YES," I say.

All 4 of us park the car waiting for the owner and dog to get to the park we are meeting at. Next thing I know, "THERE THEY ARE!" 

Cory's face lit up like I had never seen. He had the biggest smile on his face. He was holding back jumping out of the car and running to that dog. He was giddy. I was confused. But in that moment, I knew nothing would stop him from getting that dog. It was love at first sight. So I prepared myself to meet our future dog. 

The owner and Cory hit it off. He told Cory there were 20+ people who had contacted him about the dog and most of them really wanted the dog. The owner said he was looking for the right family. Later that day, he told Cory he really wanted us to have to dog over the other inquiries. So, the next day, Teddy became part of our family.

He's a really good dog. He's 2 years old, so he's house trained and such. His previous owner had kids--so he is great with the boys. He is very sweet. We all love him. His hair has grown out a lot since these pictures and I love it! He is so soft and fun to pet. Carson and Teddy immediately became best friends. It is so fun to watch them together--when Carson's not beating on him.

Caden 2, 3, 4, and 5 months

I've been awful at updating Caden's baby life. So here are months 2-5.

March 7th. He really started smiling around this time.

2 month picture

First park trip in AZ

One day I put Caden in his bouncer in the bathroom so I could shower or something. As I was getting up, I bonked the bouncer then tripped over it. Caden's buckled self got a good bonk on his head. I felt SO bad. I cried with him. Worst mother moment ever.

3 month picture!

His little swimsuit was so cute!

4 month picture!

He's got this mad-scientist hair. He had a couple of days where I thought he was teething. I don't know what it was, but it was the worst couple of days. Nothing ever came through, either.

5 month picture!

During months 4 and 5, Caden and I went through a major biting problem. He bit me so hard one day, that I bled. And it wouldn't heal. And it was extremely painful every time I nursed. Like the worst pain ever. Then I got mastitis from not nursing on that side. It was bad. I had to do saline soaks and pump to get it to heal. And even pumping killed. But a week or so later, it finally started getting better. 

A month later, he bit me again really hard in the same spot. It opened back up and I had to go through the whole process again. Luckily, I knew how to get it to heal. But unfortunately, he wouldn't take a bottle this time. So I suffered through it. ( No mastitis this time, so the pain was a bit better). But I literally had an open wound on my nipple for another week! Not fun.

He knows he's not supposed to bite me and has stopped. But I almost gave up nursing. I went through a little biting phase with Carson at the same exact age. It wasn't nearly as bad. But he learned not to do it. That was the only thing that kept me going.

Since the day Caden started smiling, he's pretty much been doing it. He is such an easy baby. Love him to pieces. 

Easter 2014

This was our first Easter in Arizona! Amber and Warren invited us to have Easter with them. We participated in their ward's Easter egg hunt, which was held at Warren's parent's house. That was really fun! They had games, crafts, and lots of donuts. We had Easter dinner with Warren's family as well. They are so kind. I made the boys matching ties. They looked super cute!

2 Year Old Adventures

Photos from the last 6 months

One day we heard giggling coming from the kitchen. Carson was dipping his head in the running water and thought it was hilarious.

Cory's work (at the elementary) had a party for him on his last day. He brought home what was left of the cookie they had. Carson loved it, obviously.

Phoenix aquarium

Enchanted Island

We ran through the sprinklers with our clothes on.

Phoenix Zoo