Jacob is 2 months old today....it's hard to believe sometimes!  The time has flown somehow; we have loved and savored every minute of it. 

Jake continues to amaze us on a daily basis.  He loves to play with his tongue and suck on his fingers, thumb, hand, etc.  He coos and oohs and ahhs.  Tim and I love to sit and have "conversations" with Jake, mimicking and mirroring are favorite games of his!  What a smart boy he is.  Jacob's favorite position is laying on his back on a soft blanket, staring at the ceiling fan and kicking his legs and flailing his arms, "talking" away!  I love to watch him take everything in...

Last night was absolutely awesome -- Jacob slept 8 hours!  I know it won't be a normal happening for months to come, but it sure was a treat to sleep for 7 straight hours!!  Though I'll admit when I first woke up, I was confused, thinking "did I nurse him in the night and have no recollection of it?" and then I was worried that something was wrong with him, of course.  But nope!  He was sleeping soundly in his crib...ahhh!!!  (he has been in his crib for roughly 2 weeks now, it was too hard having him in the bassinet by my bedside, as I heard every move and noise he made = no sleep for an already sleep deprived mommy!)

Jacob and I are headed to visit family this week.  My parents, Jacob and I will be traveling to Chicago to visit with my brother Dan and SIL Anna tonight, then tomorrow we will head to Iowa to see Mark, Bo and to meet Ellie.  It will be so fun to have the 2 babies together!  The only bummer about the trip is that Tim can't come b/c he has to work.  Poor Daddy will be stuck at home with 2 wild dogs!  I promised him I'd take video and pictures every day though, and would make sure that Jacob didn't grow too much while we are away...

Life is wonderful with this Little Man.  God continues to bless us again and again!

Happy Birth Day Dear Ellie!

We are honored to welcome the newest member of our family (Jacob's cousin) Ellie Faith, born this morning at 8:23 AM.  Ellie weighs 7 lbs, 1oz and had yet to be measured when I talked to my brother Mark.  Mark (Daddy), Bo (Mommy) and Ellie are all doing well.  When I talked to Mark, I could hear Ellie "squawking" in the background, as she and her Mommy were learning to nurse.  what a JOY!  We can't wait to meet you when you come to Michigan in August, Ellie.  We have prayed every moment for your safe arrival, and God has yet again answered our prayers.  We are so grateful!

My parents are overjoyed to be grandparents for the second time in less than 2 months - and at that to have a grandson and a granddaughter!!  How special for them :)

Jake and I went to Target today to buy Ellie some cute GIRLY CLOTHES!!  A purple onesie and a pink and denim dress with tights!!! 

As for Jacob, he is now 6 and a half weeks old, growing like crazy and becoming more and more active every day.  Today he's discovered his tongue, and he has been wiggling it around all day long.  He has slept 5 hours at a time at night for a couple of nights this past week; it is heavenly!  He has also moved up to a size 2 diaper.  He is on the small end of the size 2's, but he was peeing through his size 1's and we were sick of changing bedding 3 times a night!  We are going to be starting cloth diapering soon - we just have to exchange the diaper covers, as he is already too big for them!  If anyone needs a reference to cloth diapering or just wants more information on it, go to naturalbabies.com. 

I am dreading going back to work in 5 short weeks (though it will be nice to have a paycheck again!).  I know that Jake will be in the best of hands, but I still don't want to not be with him for 8 hours a day!  In the same sense, I am also somewhat looking forward to rejoining the human race.  I just really wish I could be in two places at once.  Ah well, we will survive....but if you could keep us in your prayers, I would appreciate it!

As always, thanks for continuing to check in on us. 

 Beth, Tim & Jacob

Yesterday Jacob turned 5 weeks old.  In 5 short weeks, he has grown and done so much!   At his one-month check up on July 5, Jake weighed in at a whopping 12 lbs 3.5 oz and measured 23.25 inches long - he is in the 95th percentile for his age, WHOA!  What a big and growing boy.  Because of his length alone, he is already outgrowing his 0-3 month onesies.  I knew I wasn't that crazy when I was pregnant with him - I'm glad I purchased some summery 3-6 months outfits too.   They are already coming in handy.  (In his defense too, some 3-6 month stuff is still too big!  Baby clothes are goofy I guess)

He is starting to become aware that his arms and legs are attached to him, and is flailing them wildly!  Our usual routine is to eat, burp, change diaper, eat a little more and then play!  He is cooing, following voices with his eyes and head, and attempting to hold his head up for short periods of time.  It has been so fun to lay down next to him, and watch him smile and coo at both mommy and daddy - that is so special!

Jacob is also a traveling man.  Last week for the 4th of July, we went up north to Ludington to where Tim's parents have a place.  He did excellent on the 4 hour ride to and from; he continues to be a very good baby!  During our trip we got to introduce him to Aunt Brandee (one of my greatest friends from college) who made the trip down to see him from Traverse City, a 2 hour drive!  We very much enjoyed catching up.  It is not often enough that we get to see each other...but when we do it's like we've never been apart.  Also in Ludington, Jake took his first trip to Lake Michigan and the beach.  Although he never actually got to see the water directly or be in the sand, he very much enjoyed it.  We spent our time in the shade and grass across from the water - he loved the breeze on his legs!

We were home a day and then turned around to go to North Carolina for a long weekend - Tim's uncle retired this year and we joined them for a surprise party for him.  What a beautiful trip!  We all survived the 13 hour drive to and from - but even Jake started to get restless those last 3 hours of the drive home...ugghh!   The trip would have been less, but Jacob needed to eat about every 3 hours, with each stop being about a half hour to 45 minutes.  Everyone down there loved him, and had nothing but compliments of what a wonderful baby he is.  We are so blessed!  During this trip, Jake took his first boat ride - Uncle Jimmy has a huge speed boat, and had a baby lifejacket for him - one that covered him from head to toe.  We went really slowly (it was a sunset cruise) and he slept the whole time.  Silly boy! 

Needless to say it is great to be home - we are very comfortable here and there is always lots to be done.  It is amazing how much I DON'T get done during the day when I feel like I've been doing things all day long!  Between laundry, house cleaning, organizing, nursing, diaper changing, and playing with Jake it seems like I am always behind.  Oh well.  There are much more important things in life than always having a clean toilet!  So don't be surprised if you come to visit us and can't see the TV through the layer of dust that has accumulated on it - we've been busy loving and enjoying our Baby Mister!!

Speaking of...Baby Boy is waking up and will be ready to eat any minute.

Take care!  Lots of love to you all.....

There is no word or words to exactly describe the joy and love that fills you when you become a parent.  I knew that I would love this Baby, but I was unaware just HOW MUCH I would! 

Jacob has filled me with so much JOY in the last week that he has been with us.  I am so grateful for this precious gift; God has poured out His blessings upon me. 

I have loved watching Tim as a Daddy, snuggling with his son, making him dance, telling him things about life and the world, holding him in his arms, even changing his diapers!  Tim is such a wonderful husband and father, I again am SO BLESSED!

I love everything about being a Mommy - even the late night feedings, getting peed on (hey, when you have a boy especially, "you gotta cover it up!"), all the laundry, and total change in routine.  He is worth every bit of it.  I love to watch him sleep, when he twitches and moves his little lips around into a smile (Grandma Stein says that's when the angels are kissing him!), I love to hold and cuddle him, and sing him songs and talk to him. 

I could go on and on and on......

but the bottom line is - there is nothing in the world that is better than being somone's parent!