Where Did Those Blue Eyes Come From?

Because Grandma & Grandpa are a part of our every day lives (okay, not every day...but at least once a week), I never blog about them. But I feel I owe it to them to blog about them, how much Henry loves them, & how great they are as grandma & grandpa.

I have loved watching Henry (literally) eat up his grandparents & to see how much they reciprocate that love for him. (Or maybe that statement should be flipped around.) They never get tired of him...ever! They babysat him two days in a row last week, even volunteering to watch him. He is one lucky boy (not to mention we are two lucky parents) to have so many people who love him so much.

Grandpa has always loved babies, but I'm pretty sure he especially loves Henry. He even dropped by our house after a hard day of work for a little "pick me up" from Henry. We're glad our cute little boy can brighten Grandpa's day. Grandpa & Henry enjoy watching TV together on Grandpa's bed. Grandpa really, really, really likes watching--I mean holding--Henry at night time when we falls to sleep in his arms.

Grandma especially loves Henry, too. I think Henry has a little "thing" for Grandma. She has always been able to make Henry laugh, and laugh hard. She is extremely willing to donate her time to play with Henry. She is an expert mother, even getting Henry to fall asleep in church (she & Grandpa came to listen to us give talks) when his own parents can't even accomplish such a task. She loves holding Henry, giving him baths (and encouraging him to "kickey, kickey, kickey"), and making Henry laugh.

Thanks for loving our Henry almost as much as we do!

Life: Teaching Us About Love

This week I have felt an added measure of love in my home as I care for my baby. He is really something special. I had no idea my love would grow exponentially since his birth. Yesterday my dad reminded me of just how close children are to our Heavenly Father, which helped to explain the feelings I've been experiencing recently. Children are literally a piece of heaven on earth. Henry (and all children, for that matter) has definitely just come from our Creator's presence and has brought a piece of His peace with him. As I watched the video below at the beginning of this week, it reminded me of this post (when Henry was born). It really brings perspective into life.

In Chris Williams' words, "That’s a very difficult thing to go through, to kneel down and desire to speak to my Father in Heaven when I’m so lonely or when I’m so anguished. It’s an interesting conversation to have. He doesn’t immediately try to make it better; He listens to me first. I thought that was very helpful. He allowed me to get that anger off my chest, but inevitably He would always come back and teach me about His Son, Jesus Christ.

"I’m grateful that God allows tragedies and trials to occur in our lives—not because they’re easy or because they’re desired, but because they help us love.

"Coming to know a man of sorrow and one who is acquainted with grief…is really why I was sent here.

"I have always ended episodes of grief with an assurance and hope that perhaps one day I will see [Jesus Christ] as He is. One day, hopefully, I will be like Him. And one day, I will be with my family."

I love the gospel.

Friday

We went swinging.

  

We played in the grass.

Henry fell over.

We took pictures together.

And we kissed each other.

  

This kid is so cute, I could eat him.

One Wish and a Camping Trip

Brendon and I make wishes.  Whenever there's an unattached eyelash is on our face, the other one takes it off and the person whose eyelash it is gets to make a wish.  We always tell each other our wish; but before we tell, the other person guesses the wish.  We are good about guessing each other’s wishes, I mean really good. 

Last weekend Brendon and I drove down to Duck Creek Campground to meet up with Brendon's family for a much-anticipated camping trip. Shortly after our arrival, I found an eyelash on Brendon's face. His wish: Stephanie will enjoy camping (an outing I have never liked--but was open-minded to this trip--as neither of my parents’ idea of a "fun" vacation was camping).

On Friday afternoon, we met up with the Holmes clan for a long-awaited meeting between Henry and grandma, grandpa, aunts, uncles, and cousins.  He has six uncles, four aunts, and five cousins on the Holmes side, most of which he hadn’t met until this trip.

 

Henry ate up his grandma, giving her lots of kisses all over her face every time she held him.

He played with his cousin, Warner, for the first time.  They were caught holding hands and grabbing each other.  (They’re going to be great friends someday.)

  

He went on his first hike and managed to take a nap.

And he, being the outdoor lover that he is, loved camping.

Brendon enjoyed swimming in ice cold water with his brothers,

carving wood,

and mountain biking (the first time he's really tried it and he loved it).

Brendon's wish came true. I loved our camping trip!  I loved taking a hike, listening to the noiseless nights, making campfire meals, roasting and eating marshmallows (by the dozens), hanging out, playing games, laughing during late hours, holding all the babies, and taking time to be alone to enjoy the peace and stillness that is so easy to find in the mountains.  I’m so glad we were all able to be together for a couple days and I look forward to many more camping trips with my family for many years to come.

  

He Totally Rocks

"My Dad Totally Rocks"

The shirt says it all.  He did it!  He's done a lot, but he did it!  He passed his board exams and did well.  He says, "good enough," but really he did wonderfully.  And now he is one step closer to being "Dr. Holmes."  Weird.  Dr. Holmes.  Me.  A doctor's wife.  Who'da thunk?  Certainly not me.

Brendon is doing his pediatric rotation this month and has loved it (which is a good sign, being that peds has always been his area of interest).  I love hearing his stories every day: the funny remarks children make, the parenting help the doctor he's following offers, the newborns in hospitals, the confidence Brendon has to perform procedures, and the good time Brendon is having in a doctor's office.  Oh, and I especially love the hours: leaving after 8 AM and home before 5 PM (on most days anyways).

Next up...Internal Medicine rotation.

Onto the Next Phase

Life is full of new phases. It used to be a new school year, a change in roommates, or the beginning of a new year. I thought new phases of life stopped after marriage. Boy, was I wrong. Now my phases consist of (and will continue to consist of) a new baby, a change in location, or the beginning of a new round of medical school. We have experienced one new phase after another since being married: living in Orem, a move to Kirksville for medical school, and a new baby, all in the course of two and a half years.

And now here we are, onto the next phase: rotations in Orem, Utah. The move has been extremely bittersweet. The last two years in Kirksville have been the best years thus far. (I hope I say that about every phase.) It was the first time I have lived more than fifteen minutes from my parents. Thank goodness for Skype. I really grew to love Kirksville, and not just as a temporary place to live, but as my home. My home with a lot of friends, the best neighbors, and just all-around good people everywhere you turn. I miss Kirksville...a lot. I missed the rainstorm (and the clean car afterwards) last week, I missed the women and their babies in the nursing lounge on Sunday, I missed the sunrise on my run this morning, seeing my neighbors while getting my mail, my fast internet connection, and going swimming at a free pool and always seeing friends. I thought I'd miss the frogs and the squirrels, but I don't. I miss people. We made quick connections with people and made some lifelong friends. It always takes me awhile to settle in and feel comfortable in a new environment. I'll get there...

But even with all the missing I've been doing lately, I must say it has been so much fun to be with family. Henry has met cousins, aunts, uncles, cousins once removed, second cousins, grandpa, grandma, great grandmas, and is soon to meet more. I have loved being able to show my parents Henry's smile and watching them make him laugh. My heart gets warm when I see how much they love him. I didn't know they could love him as much as they do. They can't get enough of him! Brendon and I have definitely benifited and have even gone out a couple times with just the two of us. We are enjoying being near family for this short phase of life.

We'll be here for two years and are excited for what lies ahead, the growth that inevitably occurs, and watching our family grow (in years for sure, and possibly in number). And in two years, I hope I'm writing about how Orem, Utah was the best phase of our life thus far.

Baby Milestones

I never understood why moms blogged about their baby rolling over or why, as soon as someone has a baby, their blog changes from stories about their interests and exciting events to stories about their baby with every single post. Maybe my negative thoughts about doing so is somewhat hypocritical, seeing that my blog is now filled with stories and endless pictures, all about my baby. But I love it. I love my blog and I would do the same even if nobody read my posts (or visited our blog just to look at pictures). I "get it" now. I understand the excitement of a baby doing what may seem like minor accomplishments.

Henry is three months old today.  He is certainly growing, weighing in at 14 pounds 8 ounces.  I purchased size three diapers today.  Size three?!?  I have had to take back a box of diapers (or I should have taken back a box) to the store with every size increase.  My denial with each step of growth is not wearing thin.  I don't like opening the new box to find huge diapers.

I also purchased some teething rings.  The boy is chewing on everything and it isn't because of hunger: my shoulder, his hands, his fingers, his toys, and now his teething rings.  He was uncharacteristically unhappy this morning.  I blame the teeth.  How I wish he could talk sometimes!

Henry is changing, and getting cuter by the second...seriously, every second.  Here's the list of exciting things my baby is now doing:

 holding toys (which I usually have to force into his hand), 

(his favorite is the burp cloths),

holding up his head, 

holding up his body weight on his feet, 

playing games like hide-and-seek (in laundry baskets), 

learning to skateboard,

watching movies (he stares at the tv when we watch a movie),

and smiling and talking more and more.

  He even helped me feed him his nightly bottle of milk tonight
(and even held it on his own for a few seconds). 

Everything is so exciting for me. As cliche as it sounds, I honestly feel so much joy every single day around this boy. He is a bundle of love.  Not to mention, he is super easy (every day I make sure to tell Brendon our little Henry is a saint and an angel): he is so content, easy to make smile, and falls asleep on his own nearly every time we lay him down to sleep. I just adore him to bits and pieces.  This has been a really enjoyable month and a half (...I'm not going to lie, the first month and a half was pretty hard).