Smiles All Around!

At 3 weeks and 6 days, I finally got a genuine smile from Brooks! It was one of those wide open gummy smiles and of course it made me tear up in excitement! I can't believe how fast the time is already flying by...out little man is going to be a month old on the 21st.

I will try to get a picture of his handsome smile and post it for you all to see.

On the same day of his first smile, he had his first diaper blow out that somehow travelled all the way up his back to his neck. :) Good thing he is so cute!

Until the next milestone,

B

Duck and Cover!

Bryant was changing Brooks this afternoon while I worked on my computer. All of a sudden we heard an explosion, and Bryant shot out of the line of fire. When I looked up, I saw a buttery substance fly across the room! I know Brooks will kill me for sharing this story when he is 14, but we laughed so hard we cried. His poo shot about 4 feet off of the pack and play, covered the floor, the couch and Bryant's shirt. Oh the joys of motherhood! :)

Becca

Proud Auntie

Trevor's oldest daughter, Karsyn Jo, who is 9 years old has really fallen in love with fly fishing, much to her parent's delight. Each summer Trev's three girls go to Washington to spend a couple weeks with each set of grandparents. When they are on the ranch with our parents, they always go fishing. My parents had a pink barbie pole and without exception, whoever fished with the infamous pink pole would outfish everyone! So, my dad hand crafted a fly rod with pink highlights for Karsyn and gave it to her for Christmas this year.

When he was down to meet Brooks a couple weeks ago, they were finally able to hit the Frying Pan and test out the rod. Karsyn did great and if I remember correctly, everyone caught a fish.

I can't believe how grown up she is! Time is flying by.

A Clarification...

I want to clarify something I mentioned in my last post about being a stay at home mom and feeling surprisingly productive. As a working woman for the last five years, I have idealized the position of a stay at home mom to include afternoons of gossipping with girlfriends and watching Oprah. However, now that I have a sort of internship as a stay at home mom, I realize that a lot of effort and time goes into making sure the house is kept, diapers are changed, babies are bathed, laundry is folded and last on the list, I am showered every day...oh and exercise has somehow found the very rock bottom of the list thus far.

So, to all of the other moms out there, way to go, I now truly understand and respect the work you put in to manage your home and raise your babies.

My apologies for any past disrespect. As I go back to work on June 1st with my baby in tow, I will longingly reflect on my internship and wish I too could apply for a full time position. :)

Becca

Update

I have been excited to blog and share with you all that has been going on since becoming a mommy over 3 weeks ago, but it seems like every time I sit down and start writing, my little guy wakes up, or something else pulls me away from my computer. In fact, I started this blog last week, and am just now sitting down to continue it.

As any mom can attest, the first weeks of motherhood are filled with sleepless nights, frequent tears and a major readjustment to your schedule. Bryant and I are finally starting to get a little more sleep (with the occasional "off" night that our boy wants to eat endlessly), and we are getting our routine down...if you can call it a routine.

I am into my third week of maternity leave and I surprisingly love being home and actually feel productive, it is just a different type of productivity than I am used to. I head back to work with Brooks in tow on June 1st after six weeks of being 100% mommy.

I have been able to get out most days and have enjoyed the adventures. My mom was here for two weeks and was extremely helpful in our transition into parenthood. She cooked, cleaned and took Brooks at night and in the mornings so I could sneak in an extra hour of sleep here and there. My dad was able to join her toward the end of her stay and we loved hanging out with him and I loved watching him hold his newest grandboy! :) I can't wait until they come back again. We were so blessed to have them here for so long! On a side note, my dad is officially retired! We are so excited for him and hope to see them more often now that he owns his schedule for good! Way to go daddio! We are so proud of you!

The day my mom left, my best friend from home, Sarah came down to visit for a few days. She too was an immense help. I miss her like crazy and can't wait to see her again this summer (right, Sarah!?) :)

My cousin and great friend, Kelly arrives in just over a week, and Bryant's mom will be out to visit, soon after Kelly leaves. It has been so fun to have so many close friends and family members down to see our boy. We have truly loved the company.

This past Friday we were really suffering from a sleepless night and didn't get out of the house to go out to lunch until after 2:00. We met up with Emily at Ajax Tavern and on a whim, decided it would be fun to go to Santa Fe for the weekend. We left lunch, and all headed home to pack. With two infants in tow, we left our driveway with the Garaffa's at 6:30pm. We pulled into our hotel in Santa Fe around 2:30am. On Saturday Em and I enjoyed a great walk around town with the munchkins while Bryant and Dave went on a huge mountain bike ride. When they got back, Em and I were able to sneak away and enjoy the spa for a little while. We went to an amazing dinner at Geronimo's, and I have to say, both boys were exceptional. They slept the entire meal, so we could enjoy great food and conversation.

I put off the laundry yesterday and met a friend in Aspen for coffee. After that I went of my first hike post partum up Smuggler Mountain. It was great to get out, and to my excitement, I was down another pound this morning from yesterday... :)

Motherhood has been such a blessing and every time I hold Brooks in my arms I feel like the most blessed mommy on earth. Every time I see Bryant hold him, I feel like the most blessed wife on earth. He is truly an amazing daddy...a natural.

I will be posting more pictures soon, but they are on Bryant's computer, so I have to wait until he gets home.

Thank you for your patience between updates. I am still working on putting together the birth story to post, but need some assistance from my amazing doula and sister in law Amy Jo. For some reason, I can't remember the details as well as she can! :)

All the best to you, and thanks for your thoughts, prayers and comments.

Love,

Becca, Bryant, and Brooks