Two years ago today, hubby and I were married in the Rexburg, Idaho LDS Temple for time and all eternity.  What a sweet promise, to know that we will always have each other.  Hubby is honestly the man of my dreams, and I feel so blessed to be his wife. 

Happy Anniversary, babe!

(I can't wait to spend next weekend at the family reunion with you!)

When my baby was born I had the preconcieved notion that breast feeding, because it was natural, was also easy.  I was dismayed to discover that breast feeding is not easy.  In fact, it is a skill that my baby and I were never able to conquer.  He wouldn't latch, but would scream whenever I tried to present my breast to him.  So I began pumping exclusively and feeding him breast milk from a bottle.

I am grateful that I was able to find a way to provide my little man with the breast milk my body was making for him, but I sometimes feel that I have missed out on something special.  Every once and a while I try to breast feed my baby, but he screams and refuses to try.  I have to admit, it does hurt my feelings a little to have my son scream when I try to feed him in that natural way.  What bothers me more, though, is the judgemental looks I get when I'm in public and feed my baby from a bottle.  Perhaps I'm overly sensitive but it feels like people think I am feeding my little guy formula and they view that negatively.  I feel like I need to shout out to everyone I see, "I'm feeding him breast milk, he just won't latch!" 

Now that I've been through the struggles of unsuccessful breast feeding, I have a lot more understanding when women choose formula instead.  No one deserves to be judged.

He is such a pro at tummy time!

I love the opportunity I have to Skype family so that I can see them and they can keep up with my precious baby.  What a blessing to have all these technologies that make communication so easy!

I think that baby's ultra-adorable chubby cheeks and thighs make him look bigger than he is.  People are always asking how old he is and then making comments such as, "wow, really?  He's a big boy!"  Sometimes it gets on my nerves because he's really not that big.  He's remained in the 50th percentile for height and weight.  But when I look at him (especially when he's strapped into his car seat) I guess I can see where they are coming from.  He's got chubby cheeks and chubby thighs...I guess it does make him look "big".  But you know what, he's cute regardless, so what do I care?!

I've said it before, but I'll say it again.  My little man makes so many cute faces!  He made all these within a few minutes the other day...

P.S. I think it's now safe to say he enjoys his bouncy chair!

He did it!  He rolled over this morning!  I am one proud and super excited mama!

This picture was taken right after he rolled.  At first he was shocked but when he saw how excited I was, he got excited too!  I can't wait to get it on video so I can share his triumph with every one!

Last Saturday I left my baby boy with my mother in law for two hours so that I could go here.

It was hard leaving him, it was our first time apart, but he was fine with his grandma.  And I had needed that visit more than I realized.  Now we've conquered that first time apart and hopefully I won't be so hesitant next time I need a baby sitter!

I love being a mom.  Sometimes it's scary and I feel like I was stupid to think I could do this.  Sometimes I look at the world and all the things going on in it and wonder why I would willing bring a child into this.  But then I look at my adorable baby boy and my heart swells and I realize that despite all the bad surrounding me, my little man brings so much good into my life...and I wouldn't give that up for anything.  

I entered my baby in a photo contest at Babies R Us (mostly just for the free picture...)  I think he has a chance of winning...he's so stinking cute!  I wish it wasn't so expensive to buy all the pictures from the photo shoot.  I can look at them for free online but they have writing over his face.  Oh well, I can take decent pictures of him at home, right?

Today is my little sister's birthday.  She is one of my favorite people in the world.  I kind of wish I could celebrate with her.  Instead, we sent a fun card with our love.  Happy Birthday, sis!

I decided it was time to buy my little man a bouncy chair.  It is so hard for me to get things done around the house because my baby likes to be held or sit where he can see things.  When I lay him down on a blanket he has to stare at the ceiling...that's not very exciting.  So now he has a bouncy chair to sit in. 

The first time I put him in it he wasn't sure what he thought.  I tried it out again while I showered Sunday and he did alright.  He cried when I put him in it so I could make dinner later that day, so I took him out.  But I put him back in it so I could eat dinner and he did fine.  I guess it depends on his mood, but hopefully I'll be able to get a lot more done around the house now...and baby boy will have a lot more to look at!

Well my baby boy got his shots this morning.  It broke my heart to see him hurting!  We've been snuggling all day.  Thanks to medicine, tonight he was all smiles...until I took off his band aids.  :(  I know this is just the first in a long line of times when my baby will hurt and all I can do is hold him.  And I have a feeling it never gets easier.  I think this may be one of the toughest parts of being a parent.

Someone has been a bit cranky this morning...

Do you think he knows I'm taking him to the doctor to get shots tomorrow?

We went to Bass Pro Shops twice while visiting hubby and discovered that our little man is absolutely fascinated by camo.

He can't take his eyes off it and where ever we went in the store, he would immediately zone in to anything camo.  He even found a camo paintball mask to look at.

My darling hubby,

After a morning fighting with the bank and worrying about my abilities as a parent, opening the door to find a UPS man with a package of flowers really lifted my spirits.

A sweet note, two dozen roses, and chocolates...what more could a woman ask for?

I love you so much.

We went to an "Up" themed wedding over the weekend.  It was so cute!  My baby wasn't too happy though...it was hot and loud.  He decided the perfect time to announce his discomfort was as the bride was walking down the aisle (how embarrasing for Mama!)

But I love him so much anyway.  And look how cute he is on the swing.

We had a fantastic visit with hubby, but all good things must come to an end.  Baby and I are back home now and counting down the weeks until we get to see him again.

I think he has enjoyed Tennessee.

He's really starting to take an interest in his toys.

Seeing these two interact makes a mama happy.

When my little baby is upset, one of the fastest ways to calm him down is to let him snuggle up to my chest.  He also loves sleeping there...

We were at Old Navy the other day and found some fun hats that fit our little baby.  We didn't leave the store with any of them but later on we forgot his hat when we went to Nashville, so we ended up going back to buy one.  And although we considered the straw hat...the tan one had a chin strap, so it was the more logical choice.

Look what we found in the field next to our hotel! 

We could only see it well through binoculars but...how cool!

Happy Independence Day!

Currently the favorite song in our household is "I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly."  Baby boy grins when the old lady swallows all those crazy animals.  He may be only 2 months old, but sometimes I think he knows exactly what is being said!