Jam packed weekend fun

This past weekend was a complete blur, but it was packed full of fun activities!! Friday night we had a cookout at our house for the first Chiefs pre-season game. My dad set up Brock's high chair and he sat in it for the first time while we all ate. He seemed to love it! He was kicking his legs in excitement and I think he felt like a big boy!! He LOVED watching football!! He just watched the TV in amazement! He also got to wear his Chiefs jersey for the first time! Here is modeling it and standing on his legs! He loves to stand up!

Saturday we met up with my Dad and Pat and went out to Olathe for my dad's helicopter ride. Mia and I bought him a helicopter instruction/ride package for his birthday in March where he got 30 mins of ground instruction and then got to ride in AND assist in flying the helicopter. He loved it!! After that was lunch as his favorite place, Oklahoma Joe's and then back home to get some final things ready for the Baptism and luncheon on Sunday. We went over to Gary and Judy's and got everything set up, then met back up with my parents for dinner at Grinder's downtown (Best cheesesteaks ever!!). Brock was , as usual, such a good little guy! He LOVES to pick his head up out of his carseat to look around so it may not be long before he starts stitting in the highchairs at restaurants! He just wants to see everything around him!

Sunday was his big day! He was so tired from the day before that he fell asleep around 9:30 Saturday night and slept until 7 am on Sunday!! He was a total champ and slept thru most of Mass and woke up just in time to get changed into his Baptism gear! He was all smiley and happy until right around when the Baptism started and he was a little fussy. But, nothing a binkie couldn't fix. He was great thru the rest of the ceremony, didn't mind the water on his head, let the Priest hold him and did great for all the pictures! (Will post pictures tomorrow from the ceremony and luncheon). The lunch went great, he got lots of sweet religious gifts and even a little money to start up his own little savings account!

We took a long nap when we got home and woke up just in time for his first 'date' with Madison! Our homes association had an ice cream social and since Kristin, Brett and Madison live in our neighborhood too, we all walked down for some ice cream! We got a super cute picture of the 2 of them and Brock looks like a beast!! Pics to come with that one too!!

We picked up a few new hobbies this weekend too! Along with football, Brock LOVES to watch Cartoons on TV!! We put them on while we were getting ready and he was watching so intently and laughing and kicking his legs. I know he doesn't understand what they are saying, but it's so cute to watch him get excited! I think the colors and sounds must be what he likes. He's up to a full 6 oz now at pretty much every feeding and I think we're finally able to phase out the middle bottle at night. I think just one around dinner time and one before bed should be plenty! He's started getting better control of things if he gets ahold of them. If there is a blanket at the bottom of his carseat, he'll grab ahold of it and pull it up toward (and sometimes over) his head.

How about a hand sandwich?

As of last night, Brock has a new favorite snack. His fist!! He tries to stick the ENTIRE thing in his mouth!

12 week mark!

12 weeks old

I'm not entirely sure how it happened, but our little angel boy is 12 weeks old today!! I know everyone says it when you have kids, but seriously the time has flown! This is the same length as a pregnancy trimester and I can guarantee none of them felt like they went this quickly! We were just talking the other night how it seems like it's gone so fast, yet at the same time it feels like he's been with us forever! On one hand there are still days I have to remind myself I'm not pregnant anymore (like when trying to eat for two...lol!) and then there are days where I feel like that was so long ago I can barely remember what it was like.

There is no doubt this has been the most emotional 12 weeks of my life. It's been the hardest, scariest, happiest and hands down most fun 3 months! The first few weeks were tough. Getting used to no sleep and trying to adjust to this new little human that needed me for everything. Then at the 4 week mark we started to get the hang of it and by week 6 it was just downright fun!! We were blessed with such a wonderful baby - not very fussy, eats well, sleeps like a champ, so it started to get really fun, really quickly. He started to smile on purpose around the 4 week mark and it turned into bigger 'laughs' by about week 6. Now he laughs at everything and everyone and it's so much fun!!

I had to work from home this morning and it was a little bittersweet. I loved the extra time with him, but it also made me a little sad. It reminded me of being home with him for maternity leave and how even THAT feels like so long ago. I miss those days so much and can't believe it's already been 4 weeks since I came back to work. I would give anything to slow down time and be able to spend more time with him. It seems like there is no amount of time in the world that would be enough!!

My dad and Pat (Meme and Poppy) are coming up tonight and I know they are going to LOVE playing with him for the next couple of days! He's just so much fun!! They don't get to see him as often as his other grandparents so it'll be so great for them to get 2 whole days with just him and then we have a fun filled weekend planned.

I'll end with a few things Brock is up to at 12 weeks:
- He LOVES to play patty cake and have his hands clapped together
- He smiles when he wakes up in the mornings and talks up a storm on his changing table
- He wears 3-6 month clothes (and has been for awhile)
- He doesn't hate bathtime, but it's not always his favorite
- He goes to sleep so well...even if he's not totally tired, he'll lay in his crib and talk and watch his 'stars' until he falls asleep (we do have to go pop his binkie back in a couple of times first). He usually falls asleep within about 10-15 mins of being laid in his crib
- He eats 5 to 6 oz bottles 5 times a day and still has his 4 oz bottles twice a night
- He's not a total fan of tummy time, but he's been holding his head up for so long so he'll tolerate it
- He picks his head up off the back of his carseat and sometimes off of my legs if he's laying on me
- He has started grabbing things near his hands - his clothes, burp rags, Mommy's necklace, Mommy's hair

What we're working on now:
- Rolling over - this one is tough because we don't ever want to put him down for tummy time! LOL!  But, I know we've got to let him try so every night we do Tummy Time for at least a little while
- Grabbing at toys - he'll bat at things sometimes, but he hasn't really grabbed on to his toys if they are sitting in front of him. He only grabs things that are already in his hand or near his hands

Nicknames:
- Boo boo/boo boo bear
- Brockie/Brockie boy
- Boogie/boogie bear/boogie boy
- Bubba/Bubs

Here's a picture of my little boo boo bear today:

New Favorite Game

Brockster has a new favorite game as of this past weekend. Patty Cake!! He absolutely LOVES IT!! He thinks it's hilarious! He loves the clapping part the best. Even if you just take his hands and clap them together like you're cheering, he just cracks up!

He is talking and laughing more and more each week and it's so much fun! I didn't realize you could have so much fun doing nothing but I could sit there all day and make him laugh! It was the best way to spend a Saturday afternoon!!

We went to Michael's this weekend to get some things for his Baptism and they had out their Halloween and fall stuff!!! Brock was NOT a fan of the scary skull I showed him, but he really liked the friendly ghost I was making dance in front of him...lol!

We've got a BIG week coming up - my parents are coming in town Wednesday night to watch him for a couple of days. The first Chiefs game is on Friday night (just a pre-season, but Brock has his jersey ready), Poppy has his helicpoter ride Saturday and then Brock is getting Baptized on Sunday!! We've got a fun little luncheon planned at G'ma and G'pa Barbosas after the Baptism!

TGIF

It's Friday!! WOO HOO! So ready for the weekend and to get to spend 2 full days with my little man!! Weekends have taken on a whole new excitment. Not just for sleeping in anymore and being able to run errands or lay around and be lazy, but to spend all day with my little family!!

Today started off as just 'one of those days'. Bad hair day, bad outfit day, running late, Brock had a wet diaper I had to change while getting ready, it started POURING down rain JUST as I was going to take him to the car to leave, just one thing after the other. Things that usually would have put me in one of those 'why me' bad moods for the rest of the day. But, as I was driving to drop him off at my mom's this morning, he was just in the backseat smiling and laughing away. How in the world can you be in a bad mood and let little petty things get to you, when you have such a miracle in your backseat?

It really made me put things in perspective and turned my what would have been a year ago bad day and bad mood, into a great day! Everyday with that little man can be nothing but great. As cheesy as that sounds and I know there will be tough days ahead, I just feel unbelievably lucky and BLESSED to have the chance to be his mommy.

He takes happiness to a whole new level and I mean, come on, how can you NOT smile and just LOVE this face?

Chillin' to the max

11 weeks old...

So Brock has a new 'pose' he likes to do. He just started it a couple of days ago and it's HILARIOUS! Sometimes he just puts one hand behind his head, sometimes it's both, but either way, it's so funny and cute!!

It already looks like he's posin' for the ladies!! Love this little man!

Memorable Moments part 1

While there have been more memorable moments than I could ever count in these first months of having my little man, I wanted to compile a list of moments, things, places, etc to always remember this magical time:

1. The first time I heard him cry the day he was born. I hope I don't ever forget that sound because it was the best sound in the world. I still think about it and get choked up!

2. Seeing our families meet him for the first time. There was such an overwhelming amount of joy and love in that hospital room. The entire hospital stay was wonderful between all the family and friends who came to visit and the amazing nurses at St. Luke's South who took such good care of us!

3. Our first trip to Target - He was not quite a week old and I had been struggling with the 'Baby Blues'. I had barely eaten or slept for a few days. So after one night of full sleep, I woke up feeling refreshed and a little stir crazy. We loaded Brock up and took him to eat (McDonald's - the first time I had an appetite and it sounded SOOO good) and then to Target to get some baby essentials. I was such a nervous wreck, but he was a perfect angel and slept through the whole thing!

4. The first time he met Oscar. Our dog Oscar has never been a fan of kids and has always been our baby. He's a 7 year old chihuahua so he's had lots of time to really work on his 'only child' routine. I was so nervous at how he would react to the baby and I couldn't have been happier than when he sniffed his carseat and licked his little hand right when we brought him home. I was so proud I cried!

5. His first road trip - When Brock was a month old, we traveled to Wichita to visit my parents and for Brock to meet his Aunt Teea, cousins Brigdon and Tatum, and Great Aunt Mollie and Great Uncle Delmar who were visiting from Oklahoma. He was wonderful and slept all 3 hours there and back without a peep. He turned on the charm for all his admirers and as usual, was such a good baby!

6. Peeing all over Mia and I during my post-op doctor's appointment. I had just told her how he hadn't gotten me when changing his diaper yet and that was all it took. He started spraying us and the entire room not once, but TWICE! We were laughing so hard we could barley get it cleaned up!

7. Snuggle days with mommy - Knowing I would have to be coming back to work, I took at least one day every week of maternity leave to do nothing but lay on the couch and snuggle with my little man. I will miss those days for as long as I live! They are never that little again.

8. His first bath - Nick and I decided to give him his first 'at home' sponge bath. He was crying and so unhappy with the whole process, then proceeded to pee and poop on the bath mat he was laying on. We couldn't help but just crack up!

9. Party Rock by LMFAO - this isn't a 'moment' as much as it is a reminder of being home with him. We watched LOTS of music videos while I was on leave and this one just happened to be popular. I changed the words to 'Party Brock' and sang it to him all the time!

10. The Casey Anthony Trial - this is sadly not a happy memory. The trial started the week I went on leave and the verdict was reached the week before I came back. My mom and I were glued to the coverage and watched it daily!

11. Tornadoes!!!! Our first night home, right as we were settling in to go to bed, the tornado sirens went off! We slept half of the first night in our basement. Luckily, it was a false alarm. Then, just over a week later, on my first day home by myself with the baby, we had another scare. This one was a little more 'real' and there actually were touchdowns very close to our area. I was huddled under the stairs on a blanekt in the basement with a half naked baby (he was mid-feeding when they went off) and very scared chihuahua.

There are so many wonderful memories I have of our time together while I was on maternity leave and things that have happened since I've gone back to work, but these few really stick out to me! I hope we are blessed enough to have a lifetime of memories watching this little man grow up!!