I have still not recovered my camera. I'm not giving up hope yet that it will be found! So these pictures taken with my cell phone are all I have and I'm grateful to have them. I remember the deciding factor for me when choosing a phone was which one had the best camera and now I appreciate it more than I ever thought I would.
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I wanted to capture some of the cute faces Ezra makes as he babbles on and tells me stories while I feed him. He has great facial expressions and hand gestures to go along with his cute babbling.
Mostly these are just some cute smiley faces. I love his round little face! It is hard to not kiss those cheeks all the time!
9.1.08
*****
Labor Day Fun
It was very nice to come back from Branson and still get a day with Chris and Ezra! We started our day with jogging on the Brushy Creek Trail, then put E down for his nap and made smoothies. Then we met up with the Duke family at our big neighborhood pool. We all packed lunches and ate during the adult swim. Then we hopped back in the pool and there wasn't a dull moment with 4 kids and 4 adults between our 2 families. Ezra loved it so much that I decided I needed to take him back to the pool soon, before it got too cold. Here I'd had this beautiful pool to use and I felt like we hardly used it. We used the lap pool, but there were two other pools that Ezra really enjoyed. One is very shallow, and has a gradual slope like a beach, and it is all under a nice awning.
Another has a smaller pool like a very large spa, with a waterfall down to the larger pool below it. Ezra especially enjoyed crawling on this waterfall level.
Ezra was quite the little fish. He wasn't scared of the water at all and would stretch out and put his face in the water. Now if only we could get him to close his mouth when he put his face in the water; that would be good. I tried to teach him to blow bubbles, but I think it was beyond him. I remember teaching swimming lessons to young kids at the Y, but I don't think they were 11 months old. We could probably teach him if we were more consistent at practicing though.
*****
The first two weeks of September, I took Ezra to the pool a few more times. We started by going back just two days later on Wednesday, just the two of us. Sure there were other things to do, but it was September and summer would soon be over. There are always going to be things to get done and sometimes ya just need to make time for some fun in the sun with your baby. I packed his lunch and we played there between his naps. For most of our time there we were the only people there. It was so peaceful and beautiful. The weather was perfect. Ezra was so happy and cute. I felt very grateful and pondered life. There I was, the mother of a beautiful baby boy and I lived in a great family neighborhood, and I was married to a wonderful man. Life certainly isn't always a beautiful day at the pool, but I am so grateful for life. I think it is good to slow down and let all the good things sink in, so we can acknowledge them and appreciate them, and express gratitude to our Heavenly Father.
*****
A few days after I got back from Branson, Kristen went on a trip and I was more than happy to have Alyssa over to play for that Thursday and Friday. I was so happy to feel like I could return the favor, although I'm sure having Alyssa over was much easier than Ezra was with his naps and diapers and all. Ezra just loved Alyssa. She gave him lots of attention and I think Ezra always enjoys having another kid around. (She is three years old.) She did a lot of cute things, and of course I can't remember all of them since I take so long to blog about things, but one thing in particular that I remembered was when Ezra was throwing his usual "I don't want you to change my diaper" fit (seriously, why is this still such an issue kid?) Alyssa came and sat by him and sang "I Love to See the Temple". How cute was that?! And I thought she had such a cute little voice, like how she said "doe-uh", for Dora. She was very polite and enjoyable. See, it wasn't a fare trade of favors at all! There she was making my life easier as she entertained my child and she didn't need naps, diaper changes, or to be spoon fed.
On Friday Alyssa was dropped off before 8 and I had fed Ezra before so that when she arrived we could take off for a jog. Kristen had brought me her double jogger to use while I had Alyssa, so I strapped them in and off we went.
At the beginning I was a little worried that Ezra would bug Alyssa too much, as she had such great things to grab, like her Strawberry Shortcake Doll and bracelets. Alyssa was a great sport though and it wasn't too long before Ezra gave up on trying to get Strawberry. They got along quite well and seemed to be happy with each other's company.
Alyssa gave a loud "Hi!" to everyone we passed on the trail and they couldn't help but respond, which is notable because when I jog I say good morning to everyone, but I must mumble or something because I hardly ever get a reply. I bet it has something more to do with the cuteness factor of an adorable 3 yr. old girl.
After our jog Ezra took a nap and Alyssa and I had snacks and packed lunch for the pool. When Ezra got up it was off to the pool! I felt brave enough to take two kids to the pool by myself because Alyssa had a life vest to wear. She was quite the little fish. The only tricky part was when both of them wanted me to hold them, and doing that while Ezra tried to swim and put his face in the water was a little tricky but we managed to do great.
I brought the stroller in so I could feed Ezra and have him secure if I needed my hands free to do something else. I remember taking a picture of Alyssa eating her PB&J sandwich, because she liked to take a part the pieces of bread and lick off the good stuff in the middle, but I guess I don't have that picture on my cell phone anymore, just Ezra eating some cheerios.
After the pool we hurried home to put Ezra down for a nap and barely got Alyssa changed out of her wet suit before her dad was there to pick her up. The day just flew by! She was a delight to have and we hope she comes to play again.
That night we had made plans to go on a double date with Dave and Wanda so we met them at Ztejas. It is one of the few (if not the only) restaurants in the Avery Ranch area (if you count a smoothie place and Quiznos as restaurants) so there is never enough parking. We just went over the curb into some undeveloped land, did a little off-roading and found plenty of parking. I don't know why I think that is funny. I guess because I've never had to do that anywhere else. While we were waiting for the Coopers outside of Ztejas, I took these pics with my new cell phone which happens to be the Dare phone by Verizon, (which I got for a screamin' deal since I'd been such a great customer and hadn't upgraded my phone in almost 3 years!) and I am very happy with my new toy. I use it for just about everything but making calls, since I hardly get reception at home, and I try to not talk as much while I'm driving. (Something about having my baby in the car and being more tired makes me want to be more careful :) So I use the clock, the alarm clock, the calendar, the camera, the note pad, the web, the navigation, texting, etc., and occasionally I make a call. Ok, sorry for the tangent, back to the pictures.
Ezra is his daddy's biggest fan. He is always so happy to be with him!
Is that the cutest little profile or what?!
When I looked at these pictures a little later I started to think that maybe it was time for Ezra to get a haircut. That fine baby hair is getting a little wispy and long. And does anyone else notice the elfin ears on my little boy? Of course I think they are adorable, but undeniable nonetheless. I have to make note because I'm sure he'll grow out of them and I'll forget his cute little elf ears.
*****
Ezra and I fit in a couple more play dates at the pool with Wanda and Trish, and when we met with Trish and her daughter Brooklyn, Brooklyn fed Ezra her granola bar and he thought it was the yummiest teething food ever! I think that was the beginning of Ezra eating more "grown-up" finger foods. Wow, life gets so much easier when they can eat more things!
*****
Ezra's first hair cut!!
It started out good. I felt brave and did my best to tackle the job by myself since Chris wasn't home from work yet, and I wanted to do it before giving Ezra his bed time bath.
At first he thought the bag I put over him for a smock was fun to play with so he was a good sport.
Our clippers didn't cut his fine hair too well so I had to go back over a few times and he didn't like that. Especially as I got around his neck and ears, he seemed a little scared and started to whimper. I cut his hair as quickly as I could, so it wasn't the best cut I'm sure, but I just wanted it to be done. As you can see, Ezra was not too happy with me by the time I finished. He didn't know what to think and just kept scowling at me.
Isn't that a great face? I can just hear Ezra saying "Mom, what did you do to me?! I did not like those buzzing clippers all over my head!"
He was much happier once his favorite person walked in the door!
He sure loves his daddy!
9.9.08*****
9.13.08
*****
When we moved into this house we were warned how dangerous our fireplace would be for our little one, whether it was falling on the stone or getting burned on the glass. Since it is hardly ever winter weather here we don't turn on our fireplace, but there's not much we can do about the stone around it. So of course when Ezra started crawling I was worried about this, but one day I just sat back and watched to see what he would do. It was pretty cute. He crawled up, sat right in front of the glass and had a great conversation with his reflection. He patted the glass a few times, but mostly waved his arms around excitedly as he jabbered on to his reflection, with a few pauses to bite his toys. When he was done, he just crawled down. So far so good!
9.16.08*****
Does he look like a little Butch, or what? I don't know why, but I wanted to call him that after I cut his hair.
Yeah, I'm not sure I like this short hair on my baby. I like the soft, long baby hair! It's just not the baby Ezra that I'm used to! I don't think I will give him this hair cut again anytime soon. I just kept looking at him thinking "Oh no, what did I do?! I shouldn't have butched it so short." I guess I'm a little impulsive when it comes to hair, and apparently my son's hair falls into that rhelm along with my own. Sorry kid!
*****
We got to pretend we had twins for a day! We have traded babysitting a few times with some friends in our ward who also have a little boy, just one week apart from Ezra in age. Sweet little Benny Black came over for the day. He had a little runny nose and wanted to be held a lot, which I didn't mind one bit because I love baby snuggles! My baby boy is so active and determined to do everything on his own, so I enjoyed Benny wanting me to hold him. I thought Chris looked like a pro with these two boys. He did great. If I didn't know better, I would think he was ready for another one!
9.20.08
*****
As soon as Ezra was crawling and pulling himself up, people told us we needed to get him one of those walking toys. Either a walker he could sit in and roam around in, or the toys he could push and walk with. Well who needs to buy those when you have furniture that works just as good?!
This reminded me of the movie "Her Alibi" where the guy is afraid of the girl, so he is moving the dresser to block his bedroom door, but the girl comes in a back door and startles him by asking him what he is doing. To which he replies he is exercising by moving around his furniture. Well Ezra gets a lot of exercise moving our barstools, kitchen table chairs, and sofa chair around.
Yes, the only problem with putting felt or magic sliders under your furniture is that then the baby can rearrange all of your furniture within minutes. But hey, who cares. It just makes our house that much more fun!
I love you Ezra! You just make me smile and laugh! I delight in the funny things you do!
9.24.08
*****
Mac n Cheese. . . . sort of.
I was out to lunch with a friend and decided to order off the kids menu for Ezra! It was such an exciting moment for us. I ordered Mac'n'cheese and Ezra seemed to really like it. So I shopped for some version that I could approve of, and we ended up with some organic, whole grain, supposed all-natural version of something that didn't taste near as good as good old Kraft Mac'N'Cheese, but hey, Ezra didn't seem to know or mind the difference so I'll use it while I can! He liked it and I really liked that he could feed himself dinner. I tried to throw in some steamed, diced veggies, but of course he picked all around the veggies. I think he really liked being feeding himself.
I love the yellow nose. And hey, if ever in a pinch, this stuff works as great hair gel too. :)
9.25.08
*****
Ezra is so big all of the sudden. No really, he had a big growth spurt. He was barely 14 pounds at his 6 month check up, and now he is over 20 pounds. And then there is the sentimental part of realizing my baby is becoming a little boy and not so much a baby anymore. Wow; how did this first year fly by so fast? Of course everyone said it would, and I honestly feel I tried my best to savor and enjoy every moment. But it is true, and even though I was warned and savored as much as I could, ah sigh, I can not slow time and I can not hold him back. I kiss him and hug him all the time, as if to hold him back from growing up. Maybe if I squeeze him and kiss him enough it will slow the process down? Yea, I know it won't, but I'm going to get in all the baby loves that I can! And maybe if I tell him I love him all the time he will know it and never want to be anywhere else. But I know if I do my job right he will leave and be a happy and successful man. I know, sometimes I just have to remind myself out loud that that is the plan.
Ezra, I love you. You are a joy to have and we are grateful for you. I hope you always know you were and are and always will be wanted and loved by us.
*****
Poor Chris. His brothers plan hunting trips together years in advance!! A big trip was planned for this September to the northern part of Eastern Canada to hunt Caribou. (Yes we have a Caribou on our wall, but it is the smallest of the species.) At first the trip was postponed due to rainy weather, so the animals just sit and wait out the rain and they are hard to see and hunt. Then the trip was canceled all together. Most of the people who had planned to go will be able to go next year, but Chris most likely will not get to go since he had already made plans for a different hunting trip at that time next year! He was disappointed. He was going to spend this time with his father, his brothers, his uncle, and a few cousins and friends. Bummer. I had planned to get caught up on various projects around the house, including getting our blog current before Ezra turned 1, but oh well. Projects always wait. :)
I am mostly supportive of my husband going on these hunting trips. I say mostly, which really is quite close to 100%, only because sometimes it is hard for me to want to share precious vacation time (you mean you want to use your vacation time to go on a trip without me?!), and then sometimes I worry about him being safe on these adventures. But I support him in doing this because I know it was a big part of his life, he enjoys the time with his family members and it makes him happy. He really looks forward to it and really enjoys it. He comes back rejuvenated. His hunting experiences have taken him all over the world with his father and brothers and hey, lets not forget that it plays a big role in decorating our home as well. Chris rarely does anything as an outlet for himself and I'm a believer that we all need to have our own things every now and then. I wish he had more of an outlet on a regular basis, but his 2 hours of commuting each day seem to eat up much of that time. So anyway, sure I miss him, but I think it is important to find that balance of being a happy individual which helps one be a happy companion. I recognize that balance is different for every person and every marriage. But for us, this works. I am lucky that hunting season is not all year long. These trips are not regular things. And when Chris does have these trips, he remembers and is quick to be supportive of me if ever I need to go out and do something. The only challenging part is finding the time for hunts, visiting our families that live in different states, and then trying to find time to spend together. So we're working on a balancing that. Maybe he'll go on a big hunt one year, and then we'll go on a cruise the next or something. We'll see what happens. . . .
