Tummy Time

Sullivan has been practicing his tummy time lately, we are anticipating a roll over so we can put him on his tummy to sleep, since that seems to be his magical sleeping position. He has been a total ham lately, as soon as I put him down (on his back) and start talking to him, he pulls his legs up and starts chatting. Although he is not laughing yet, he is so close. His little eyes twinkle with delight.

He is not a huge fan of tummy time, but does tolerate it for short periods of time. He actually rolled from his back to his tummy tonight when I was lying on the bed with him, although Im not sure if my weight on the bed helped him over, so its not official yet. I took this photo when he was practicing, just before he got super mad at me, and I love everything about it. My only dilemma is that I have too many favorite photos, Harolds Photo is making a killing on this first time mom :). Oh well!

Love is all you need.

Movers and Shakers

We have had lots of movement this past week. We moved Grandma Helen to All Saints, and Kyle and Amy moved back to Sioux Falls from Valentine, NE.

We had been toying with the idea of moving Helen closer to us for some time, she had been at The Inn at Westport in their memory unit and we were happy with the care, but thought we would all benefit if she were closer. We knew if she were closer we would see her more often, and so far our theory has been correct. We moved her to Touchmark All Saints on Friday. Dave has been over to see her daily this week, and most times Sullivan has gone along, which completely makes Helen's day. Sully loves her so much, she has the perfect voice and words to get him to smile, which is great for all of us.  Unfortunately the move has confused her a bit, we are anxious for her to settle in and feel more at home.

Amy and Kyle also moved back, Kyle is working for The Prairie Club and spent the summer there, but will now be able to do the same work from here. Amy will be working as a substitute teacher at Sioux Falls Christian and hopes to find something full time next year. We had a 'welcome home' bbq here on Sunday with the whole family, which was really nice. It will be great to spend more time with them.

On a less exciting note, Sarah went back to college up in Minnesota a couple of weeks ago. We all miss her, and are thankful this is her last year, so she can get back for good :). We are hoping she has a great year, and it flies by.

Sullivan and Grandma Helen in her new apartment.

Welcome home, Amy and Kyle!

Happy (very belated) 17th, Matt (with Cassandra)! 

"Its great that you are so happy."

As I do day to day chores around here, I catch myself thinking of things and remembering certain instances, and today one in particular crossed my mind. I wanted to get it in writing, so it wouldn't fade away like so many memories do.

I was on our return flight from Seattle and was lucky enough to be bumped to first class (ok, so Dave was actually the one bumped because of frequent flier miles, but being the guy he is, he gave the seat to Sully and I). It was wonderful, we had plenty of space, and Sully enjoyed that he was able to stretch out in the window seat.

I was sitting next to a man named Randy, he works for FedEx and was traveling on business. He is a former NFL player and was a very talkative man, and very friendly. He was asking all about Sullivan and our lives. I was deep in conversation when Dave came up to see if I needed any relief from Sully. They quickly exchanged a few words before Dave got kicked back to coach, and we resumed talking. Shortly after Dave left, he looked at Sully and I and made a simple comment that has stuck with me ever since, he said, "Its great that you are so happy." It was only a few words, but it was spot on. I am so lucky to be blessed with a great family, a stellar husband, and a good baby.

Jesus Loves Sullivan

Sullivan was Baptized today!

We had a nice service at Westminster Presbyterian Church with Pastor Val presiding. Sullivan had lots of family present to support him on his special day. He wore the same baptism gown that his aunt Maggie and his cousin Isaac wore on their baptism days. Sully was a super good boy, he got a bit emotional when the water first hit his forehead, but seemed to shake it off and do just fine. He is lucky to have Maggie and Jeff as his sponsors.

We had brunch at Spezia with friends and family following the service. He did very well there, too. He had a quick lunch when we arrived and then pretty much snoozed through the rest of it.

All in all it was a great day.

Happy Baptism Day! 

Chatting with Pastor Val.

Sullivan with his sponsors and parents.

Sullivan is loved by so many, such a lucky boy :).

Grandma Mary doting on Sully.

Sullivan and his cake.

Three is Our Magic Number

Sully officially turned a corner this week. He turned three months on Thursday and its almost like he is a new baby. He is happy about 90% of the time, sleeps like a champ, and just so smiley. I remember trying for smiles only a few weeks ago and they were so few and far between, but now, he mostly smiles. He blows bubbles, coos, kicks, loves his baths, still hates his car seat (grrrrr), but otherwise he is making mommyhood feel easy. Ok, ok, not easy, but much more fun. I'm not saying he was a bad baby before (I mean really, is there such thing??), but it was trying at times when he would become fussy and was difficult to soothe. At this rate, I'll be ready for number 2 in no time...HAHA! Im sure that would be music to Dave's ears, but in reality, Im enjoying Sullivan way too much right now, Im not ready to take any attention away from him :).

Mama, RN

I went back to work on Wednesday, and I had a great day.

It was so nice to be out and about, and social. So much of my job is socializing, whether it is with patients, patient's families, or coworkers, I get to be engaged for 8 hours straight. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure if I was doing it full time, I may have my druthers, but I was happy to be there while I was there. Not to mention, I have some really great coworkers. I was excited to come home to my happy baby, happy husband, and a bouquet of flowers from my husband and baby.

Life is pretty good if I do say so myself :).

Seattle, WA

We had a great trip to Seattle, great enough that we even extended our stay by a couple of days :).

The travel went really well, I was super anxious about how Sully would do, and he was a breeze. I had not given him a pacifier yet, but had one in my pocket in case we needed it. This three dollar purchase ended up being my saving grace nearly every day while we were there. He doesn't totally understand how to use it, but if I help him, it is very effective.

We stayed in a really awesome house that Maggie and I found on VRBO last fall. It turned out to be perfect for our situation, plenty of room for the kids to play, a full kitchen, hot tub, dock, and lots of space for each family to have privacy (except bright and early when Isaac and Anna would come to find Sully, screaming "baby! baby!"). In all honesty, we love every second of their excitement.

We did almost every touristy thing in the book; Pikes Place Market, a Mariners Game, The Children's Museum, The Aquarium, The Duck Tour, The Underground Tour, Bainbridge Island, The Space Needle, The Ferris Wheel, and (my favorite) the flagship Nordstrom store (twice). Im sure Im missing something, but you get the drift, we were busy and got a ton out of our trip. I had no idea Seattle had so much to offer. We had so much fun and Sully was an absolute trooper. He pretty much slept in the Baby Bjourne during our outings, mostly fussing only when it was time to eat.

The biggest deal of the trip was Dave and Jeff reaching the Summit of Mount Rainier. We are so proud of them for this big accomplishment. Dave had been training for months and was quite nervous about the climb and the shape he was in, but we knew he could do it, and were so happy when they returned. I had no idea how dangerous the climb actually was until he got back. Listening to stories made me nervous for him and thankful to have him home. He was sore, tired, full of bruises and loosing toe nails, but he was home in one piece. I think that is the last time he will do anything like that.

Maggie and Jeff left on Saturday which was our original plan, but Dave didn't feel as though he was able to fully appreciate the trip because he was gone on the climb for three days, so we decided to extend out stay. We were hoping to go to Victoria, BC, but the ferries were sold out so we stayed closer to Seattle. We moved downtown the last two nights and got lots of walking and touring in. We also took the ferry to Bainbridge Island for lunch and a bit of sight seeing. What a great little spot.

We had a great time traveling with the Olivers and hope we are able to do it again someday soon!

Below are lots of picture from the 10 day adventure, enjoy!

Sullivan's first flight.

Family photo on Lake Washington.

Pike's Place flower market.

Who are you calling crabby?!

Mariners game with the Oliver family.

Space Needle dinner and John and Linda Oliver's 43rd Anniversary.

The Seattle Aquarium, we are all in stripes, including the fish! 

Group photo at the house.

Sushi date with my boys.

Ferry ride to Bainbridge.

Dave and Jeff on the mountain!