The Bumbo and Mama's Visit

Today was Noah's first go at the Bumbo. He was a bit bobbleheadish, but he was able to sit up in it. He looks so big to me in these pictures.
"I'm tired mom; get me outta here"
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Here are some of the pictures I finally uploaded from mom's visit. Noah was so at peace in his Gram's arms.

The day before mom left, we went to the zoo. Noah slept through most of it, but we still got a few cute pictures.

Baby Massage...Who would of thunk it?

I tried something new. As my title indicates, this something new was a baby massage on Noah. Before knowing much about it, I thought it sounded a little fruity, but it was and has been a wonderful experience. My research revealed that 46% of babies who receive these massages have higher IQs later in life, and it makes them (the babies) feel more secure. At this point, those are just bonuses. Giving Noah these massages has been one of the sweetest experiences I've had with him to date.

Here's what I've done: After his bath I dry and warm him in a towel. Then I lay him on the floor with his towel still around him, and I sit in front of him. I rub baby lotion in my hands to warm it up, and then unwrap one of Noah's legs or one of his arms, leaving the rest of his body still covered. I start by slowly and softly rubbing his foot or hand, and then work the rest of the limb. Once he's used to my touch, I can rub his back, belly, neck and shoulders without it bothering him. I also sing a slow and soothing song to him the whole time. I've only done this twice, and both times he just calmly stares at me wide eyed, and he seems really at peace. I feel such a strong connection with him during these massages. It's so sweet; I even teared up the first time. I'm just a beginner here, but I would highly recommend getting past the initial weirdness of massaging your baby and JUST DO IT. It's great.

What a Week

We've had company since last Friday. I really enjoy having people stay with us, and Matt's pretty cool with it too. We just wish we had a bigger place. It started with Matt's family last weekend. They were in for his birthday as I reported in the last blog. The family left on Sunday, we took Monday to rest and clean up, and then my mom arrived on Tuesday. Mom stayed until Saturday, and then Sarah G. arrived and stayed through Sunday.

We were so happy that mom decided to come again before Christmas. We originally weren't planning to see her again until we went to Florida, but she said she couldn't wait that long. I have always wanted my children to grow up around my parents (which at this point just isn't possible), so it's really fantastic that she's in a place where she can visit often. I got some great pictures of she and Noah together that I have yet to upload, but I'll post them as soon as I do. One of the moments I was most looking forward to was when Noah showed Grams his newly developed smile. She melted just like I knew she would, and she spent the rest of her time talking and playing with him so she could see more of those precious smiles. He would just stare and smile at her and open his mouth like he was trying to say something, but no noise would come out. So cute! We didn't do too much...a couple of trips to the store and on Friday we went to the zoo. It was just nice to hang out. Mom bought Noah a super cute Christmas outfit, and also brought him a book entitled, Just Grandma and Me. She kept trying to read it to Noah, but he wouldn't let her get through it. He's going to be a reader, whether he likes it or not though!

Mom offered to stay with Noah while Matt and I had our first date since the little guy came into the world. We went to The Cheesecake Factory, and then to a couple of stores in the mall. It was great to hold a conversation with Matt in a public place without worrying about Noah. Mom took us out to eat her last night here. Noah wasn't too happy that evening though. I tried to feed him, Matt tried to bounce with him, but he didn't calm down until he sat in Gram's lap...and boy did Grams eat that up! We miss her already.

Saturday Sarah stayed with us. She was in town for a conference, and that afternoon Matt watched Noah while Sarah and I scrapbooked into the night. Sarah and I had a couple of observations about each other. I realized that she has the gift of generosity, and she noticed that I say delicious a lot. (Random bits of info, I know.) Anyway, we always have fun together, and hanging out with her was a nice little getaway from my mommy responsibilities.

Matt's 30th Birthday Weekend

Matt turned 30 on Friday, November 7th, and his family came up here to spend the weekend with him. We surprised Matt with a new TV when he got home from work on Friday, and Saturday we joined several of his friends at a surprise dinner. After dinner, we had a little party on our rooftop with a slide show of Matt's first 30 years. I have to say that although I thought Matt may have had some suspicions, he was clueless of our plans! I think he really enjoyed his birthday.

Noah wore his little argyle sweater vest for the first time. He looked so cute! He slept through the majority of the evening, which was fabulous! He's such a good boy!

Noah met his Uncle Brian, Aunt Janet, and cousins, Parker and Tyler for the first time. Parker was so sweet to him...he said things like, "you're cute," "Noah's hungry," and "that's my cousin Noah." Tyler was sweet too...he kissed Noah several times, but he wasn't too crazy about his mama holding another baby! He was funny. He's used to being the baby!

Cousins!

Little Pumpkin

We enjoyed a low key Halloween night at Steve and Andrea's house. We sat around their fire pit, chatted and munched on candy. Not good for my diet, but that's beside the point. Noah didn't dress up, save this cute little pumpkin onsie. I don't have much to report, but wanted to post my new pics!

Congrats to Rodney and Gina for their new little Eva. She is precious, and we are so glad she's healthy.