Monday, January 31, 2011

Movin' On Up

After Asher's 4 month checkup from Dr. Randles, and a couple weeks of sickness, we are FINALLY all well! On that note, I thought it was about time to start him on some rice cereal. We're starting really slow, once a day, just to see how his body does with it, but he seemed to do ok with it tonight, although I don't think he liked it very much according to some of his facial expressions we kept getting! I think he finally caught on towards the end! Here are some pics from our eventful evening!!

1st bite...

"not sure about this mom..."

"ok, maybe it's not that bad..."

"yeah, i think i'm ok with this!"
Daddy took over so I could get a couple more pics, I think he had better luck!

more spitting it out...doesn't quite have the whole swallowing from a spoon down yet...

"ohhh, what's that?!?"

"maybe yes, maybe no, which one will it be?"
"sure, why not?!?"

And finally, what my little honey looked like after his first try at rice cereal!!

One of my absolute favorites of him ever!!! There is no mistake that he is happy with that massive smile on is face, LOVE IT!!!


Be Blessed and Encouraged!

Monday, January 24, 2011

Sickfest 2011

Oh boy, this has been a GREAT month (enter sarcasm NOW)! We did great until January 6th, when I came down with the stomach bug. I then passed it along to Caleb, Asher and Aaron. From that point, somehow, Asher managed to get RSV, from where I don't know since we had already been in quarantine for 4 days. During this time, I began to have an extremely sore throat, dry cough, and runny/stuffy nose. Then, Asher, as sweet and innocent as he is, decided to share his RSV with his big brother! YUK!! So, for the past three weeks, yes, that's right, three weeks, we have stayed in. Caleb has not seen any of his friends, or even left the house, except to go to the doctor, FOR THREE WEEKS. Thankfully, I have been able to get out, in order to keep my own sanity, and have fully enjoyed the freedom that Target, CVS, Tom Thumb, or any other "errand" has provided me. And yes, I have made a quick drive-thru my favorite coffee shop during those quick errand runs to help ease the stress of going back to an apartment full of sicky germs. This is the point in time that I wish I knew how to invent what I would like to call a disinfectant bomb, where all I had to do was pull a string, and quick "boom" would occur, clear smoke of some sort would consume our entire apartment, including door knobs, base boards, carpets, tile floors, and all would be 110% clean within a matter of seconds. But since no one has invented that, yet, I will settle for today's Groupon, which was a one-time deep cleaning maid service for only $49. The best part, was that after I purchased it, I realized that I had a $10 credit on my account, and so we only paid $39!!! $39 for someone else to come in and deep clean my apartment, base boards, doorknobs, everything you can see! I think this calls for the Hallelujah chorus to be sung by my invisible choir. Can you hear it now?!?

Ah yes, the Sickfest 2011 is quickly exiting the Garcia household, and while I can't guarantee that it won't return again some other time this year, I'm praying that the Lord would shower us with grace and mercy, and would keep us healthy through the remainder of this winder season.

To top off this unforgettable month, I'd like to share a few of my favorite pictures from our three weeks of quarantine. Enjoy!!

It doesn't get much more pathetic than this. My poor, poor baby!!

He thought a Cars bandaid might make him feel better. He wore it for two days straight!
Ah yes, this was in between the stomach bug and RSV. It amazes me how happy he looks when he's feeling semi-normal!
This was taken at their well-visit checkups, not their sick checkups. Although, Asher got sick with RSV starting later that night...maybe that's where he picked it up?!?
Breathing treatments for my baby, poor thing. He did good with them most of the time.
Had to add this one in. Caleb woke up with the best bed head hair of all time the other morning!! The view from the back is even better!!
This is almost a daily occurance at our house. This happens right around the dinner hour. Aaron holds Asher, and they both take a little 30 minute snooze together! And yes, those are socks on Asher's hands. I couldn't think of another way to keep them warm since he doesn't like his arms under any type of blanket.
My boys!!! LOVE this picture!!
My sweet little sickling, on his worst day, he had tears just streaming down his face all day, not from crying, just because his poor little eyes wouldn't stop watering. Same with his nose...
Asher getting some much needed sleep, and yes, his pacy was almost going up his nose!

So there you have it, sickfest 2011!

Be Blessed and Encouraged!

Sunday, January 9, 2011

4 Months Old

Oh my handsome little Asher! You are four months old and such a honey!! Already sleeping through the night, and bringing such joy to this family, you truly are such a blessing!! You are full of smiles, giggling, cooing and absolutely love watching ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that your big brother does! You are holding your head up, and have been since birth. You are responding when we say your name, and you love to stand up on our lap when we are holding you. You are also super cuddly, which I can't get enough of! Your 4 month check up went perfect! You are growing so fast! Here are your stats:

Height: 25 1/4" (50%)
Weight: 17 lbs. 3 1/2 oz. (90%) (not surprising!)

Since your two month appointment, you grew 1 5/8 inches, and gained 3 lbs. 6 oz.!!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of you from the past month, I know some of them are repeats, but I just had to post them again! Daddy and I love you so very much my precious son!






I just had to get a picture of you sleeping on the couch, with your little mullet! Your bald spot is pretty bad, yet the hair below it keeps on growing! It's so cute!!

Happy 4 month birthday sweet boy!!

Be Blessed and Encouraged!

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

TWO YEARS OLD!!!

I cannot believe my baby is TWO YEARS OLD today!!! Where has the time gone?!? Seriously!! My precious first born, Caleb, there are so many moments during our day together that I want to remember. I absolutely LOVE being the one to get you up in the morning because you jump out of bed and the first word out of your mouth is MOMMA! You run towards me, and then proceed to run right past me, but sometimes I catch you on your way out and sweep you off your feet and in to my arms! You continue to learn new words and sayings each day, and this past week, I taught you how to give eskimo kisses and you love them! My favorite part is when you grab my face, pull it to yours, give me kisses and then eskimo kisses and end it with a huge smile!! Seriously, you continue to melt my heart EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.

I can tell that your sweet little brain is developing, not only by the way you handle situations, frustration and emotions, but by the precious looks on your face that you don't even know your giving. It's like you're frozen in time, staring off in to space. That little mind of yours is working so very hard to process all of the new and exciting things that you are learning and I love to see how you truly think about so many different things.

For your birthday this year, daddy took off work Monday (the day before your actual birthday) so that we could all spend the day together, and boy oh boy did we have fun! You woke up in the BEST mood, and truly were a joyful little boy to be around all day long. We started off by sleeping in, which is pretty normal for you these days. I think it's because of your brain development, and also sharing a room with your brother. Either way, I love it! We ate some breakfast, packed up and headed down to Fair Park to visit the Children's Museum. We had a BLAST!!!

We got to see dinosaurs (but skipped the exhibit because last time you completely freaked out)

play in the sand, which you loved by the way, even though you have a phobia of having weird things stuck to your hands and feet



this is your "thinking" look, seriously, I can just see your brain developing through this expression!
the dinosaur exhibit was right next door and you kept hearing the big dinos make all their noise. You kept pointing at and telling us (in your own language of course) about what you were hearing and I kept affirming that they were not going to come through the wall and get you. You were genuinely concerned, but never ran away from it.
Next, we hit up the bubble room! You LOVE bubbles and especially the really really big ones that momma made! What a cool thing it was!
Your favorite room was next. Last time we came, you spent almost 45 minutes in this firetruck. I'm so glad they had these cute little fireman outfits to play in!

Ok, seriously, I just don't think it gets any cuter than this!!! I just wanted to eat you up in that little hat and jacket!!!!
They had a little farm area with play animals. You love doggies, fake and real ones, and you walked right up and petted this one like it was real, so cute!!
they had a "bug" area but we didn't spend too much time there. However, Aaron got this awesome picture of the tarantula they had.
More sand!
I can't get over your hair in this picture! It truly is out of control darling! I wish there was something I could do, but none the less, it's got a mind of it's own!
Oh the hot air balloon, you really liked this!
You press the button and it goes soaring up to the ceiling! You thought this was great!


And of course, legos. How could we pass those up!?!
Ahh, the water area. Yes, I forgot to bring you an extra shirt, but you definitely did better this time than last! You were very curious, but quickly made the most of your time here!
Checking out the hens in the farm area. I later found you carrying one of the "eggs" around. I had to distract you with something else just to get you to let go of it!
On our way home from the Children's Museum we stopped off to eat lunch at McDonald's. What an experience! It was the first time I actually caught you picking up food off of the play area floor and eating it, Y.U.K.!!!! Please, for my own sanity, and for your own health, don't ever do that again! (Yes, I know, it's not even close to being over!) After McDonald's we went home and you crashed, but not for too long. A short 2 hours later you were back up and ready to go again! We decided to make a trip to Willow Bend Mall so you could play in the play area there. It's by far my favorite one in town, and definitely the cleanest! You LOVE coming here, and I think the excitement on your face is complete proof!!
This was your first "train ride" in one of these little things and you enjoyed it for about a minute, then you were ready to move on!
And how could I forget about this little guy! Asher, you were perfect all day long!

We ended the day with a crockpot roast and veggies, and our normal bedtime routine of reading bible stories, singing and praying together. It truly was one of the best days we've had together as a family in a LONG time!

My precious boy, I am so very grateful to the Lord for blessing our lives with you for the past two years. You bring such joy and happiness to our family, in ways that no one else ever will! Your passion, strong-willed and fierce personality is like no other, and I absolutely LOVE IT! Please stay your sweet, gentle and sensitive little self forever! Mommy and Daddy love you more than words can ever express! Happy Birthday my little man, I can't wait to see what adventures we have together this next year!

I love you so very very much, Caleb!
Love Your Momma!!!

Be Blessed and Encouraged!