Brothers

From the moment Landon saw Blake he was as infatuated with him as we were. It makes my heart so happy that Landon loves Blake so much and is so concerned for him.  He will come and tell me when he is crying, try to cover him with a blanket when he thinks he's cold and hand me his pacifier to give to him if he's upset.  So far there haven't been any jealousy issues and Landon isn't bothered if we have to attend to Blake.  Landon wants to hold Blake daily and constantly says, "he's so cute!"  He also rubs Blake's head about 100 times a day because it is "so soft".  

Both Jared and I have prayed hard since finding out we were having another boy that they would grow up as friends.  We aren't naive enough to think they will never fight and that they won't have their share of issues, but I pray that deep down they will have a strong brotherly love and bond.  That they will be supportive and encouraging of one another.  

All that to say, here are a few brother pics we have gotten over the past 6 weeks: 

One of the first posed brother shots we got, Blake was only about 4 days old

6 weeks later, here are the two monkeys again

 Landon has been very gentle with Blake when giving him kisses and holding him

A lot of holding sessions happen first thing in the morning during our cartoon cuddling

Landon needed Blake to get a little closer, and decided his knee was the best option!

Apparently Blake loves his brother too and is trying to give him a little smooch :)

Blake never seems to mind when Landon holds him and has even fallen asleep

Cheesy grin

One of their first "play" sessions, not super interactive yet!

 It is so fun to have two boys and to think of all the messes they will make and "trouble" they will get into together :)

Bath Time

Although Blake's first bath was quite awhile ago, I never got around to putting up pictures.  He took his first bath while my parents were here.  He seemed to really enjoy the bath and was pretty content in the water.  Landon loved trying to "help" as well and kept trying to hand him his cars to play with or wash off his head!

Making faces with Grandpa before bath time

Relaxing in the water!

Nice and Clean!

A quick shot of Landon before Blake's bath that I absolutely L.O.V.E.

Here's some other pics of Landon making faces at daddy...just a little glimpse into his personality!

What precious boys we have!

1 Month Old

Our little guy is 1 month old already (actually 5 weeks yesterday).  Time has gone by so fast, with the exception of middle of the night feedings!  Blake continues to be a true joy and blessing.  He can be a bit demanding at times when he wants to be held or when he is hungry, but overall he is a real sweetheart!  

Here's what our sweet boy is up to these days:

* You are sleeping in our bathroom (only because our bedroom is downstairs and your bedroom is upstairs and I refuse to walk up and down stairs 3-4 times a night)
* You sleep about 2 to 2 1/2 hours at a time

* We are trying to convince you to sleep longer at night, but you aren't too keen on the idea :)
* You are EXTREMELY noisy when going to sleep or waking up (grunting, groaning and moaning)

* You are a good eater (you seem to eat about 2 1/2-3 oz at each feeding)

* You like to be awake and asleep for long periods during the day...you don't typically take catnaps
* You are usually awake for a good chunk in the morning, asleep for most of the afternoon and then awake in the evening before you go to sleep for the night

* You like to sleep in our arms, your crib or your vibrating chair

* You like to sleep on your side and seem to find this the most soothing when napping or trying to go to sleep
* You really like your pacifier if you can't nurse (you seem to have a strong need to suck)

* You are wearing size 1 diapers

* You are beginning to transition out of newborn clothes into 0-3 months

* You are starting to focus on things better and are beginning to try to locate my voice

* You can sometimes track loud toys or bright objects

* You haven't really smiled yet but you like to form an "o" with your lips (funny thing is that Landon did this all the time too)

* You are definitely a cuddle bug and love to be held tight and close

* You usually are ready for bed by 9 or 9:30 at night and then wake up for a long stretch about 9:00 in the morning

* At times you can grasp items (although I think this is unintentional at this point)

* You have a strong neck and can lift up your head when you are on our chest or your tummy

* You like to be wrapped warm in a blanket but don't like to be swaddled tight

* You are fairly quiet throughout the day but will definitely let us know if you are hungry, tired, bored or need to be held

* So far your hair remains brown and your eyes are still blue

* You haven't had a Dr. appointment since 2 weeks but when I weighed you, you were 9lb 4oz

* Your brother continues to adore you and you don't seem to mind him either...you rarely cry or fuss when he is holding, hugging or kissing you

 

I like to cuddle with you in bed for about an hour in the morning before your brother gets up, you seem to enjoy the cuddle time too!

You definitely have this mommy completely infatuated and wrapped around your little finger!

You are truly a blessing from the Lord and are so LOVED!!!

Welcome to the World Baby Blake

I've been meaning to get this post up for the last 3 weeks but unfortunately haven't found a lot of time to do so!  That is a sad statement though because I have had sooo much help for these last 3 weeks that it scares me to think what life will really be like when I am on my own with these two sweet boys!

Blake Isaiah Smith was born on May 19, 2012 at 8:12 am, weighing 7lb8oz and 20 inches long!!!

I ended up doing another c-section, it was scheduled for 7:30 in the morning on the 19th...which meant we were up at 4:45 so that we could be to the hospital by 6:00 (early morning)!!!  Overall, the surgery went great.  I got nauseous and dizzy during recovery like I did with Landon.  But I was up and moving around sooner than the first time around.

One last profile pic being pregnant with #2

At the hospital getting prepped in our cool outfits and waiting for surgery to begin

 My first view of this sweet boy coming into the world...we were so excited to meet him but he didn't feel the same way!

Brand new little guy getting cleaned and checked

Dad getting to cut the umbilical cord...we wouldn't want him to miss out on anything with a c-section

7lb 8oz little boy

Love at first sight...he was so stinkin' cute already

First family picture

Jared getting to bond with Blake while the doctor was finishing up with me

He was fairly alert while we were in the recovery room

He slept so much at first and rarely made a sound...only really woke up to eat and for an occasional 15-20 minutes

Our precious family of 4...although big brother wasn't interested in looking at the camera

It seemed to be love at first sight for Landon as well

 Proud daddy with his two boys!

Daddy love

Mommy love

Although, mommy was a little tired that day

Going home...I was so ready to get home!

Sweet Blake

Landon still can't get enough of holding, hugging, kissing and loving on his brother (with the occasional lick on the head...weird!)

He is such a joy already and has been a pretty "easy" baby so far.  The biggest challenges have been some sleeping issues the last week or so in which he wakes up during the night wanting his pacifier but can't quite seem to keep it in himself.  He also loves to be held while sleeping and has been having a bit of a hard time staying asleep for long periods of time at night in his crib by himself.  Overall though he is a real sweetie that rarely cries (unless he's hungry) and is a big cuddle bug!

What a blessing this little guy already is!

We are overjoyed to have two boys who will keep us busy and full of love!