Here is Ethan playing outside.  He loves to chew on about anything in sight.  He has changed so much and has really been showing his personality lately.  He is doing great at Tosha’s house and loving great grandma.  He is reaching for me…..it melts my heart.  He has also reached for daddy, but reached for mommy first (for the record).  Ethan is rolling over both ways and is really getting the hang of it.  I guess I need to start really thinking about baby proofing the house soon.  I miss him when I’m at work, but we are getting along.  I stopped pumping.  It was so hard to keep up with that at school, so it just seemed like the time to stop.  We don’t have any more bags of breast milk.  So…….formula during the day and I nurse him at night.  Just gonna have to be.  He got a great start.  Not worth being stressed about and I still nurse him at night so I’m not feeling to guilty about it.  Loven life and we are alllllllll good!

Ok, to all of my readers………….sorry!  I am super busy with work and eman that it is hard to find time to blog.  I will post pics and update you all very soon.  Lot to say and little time.   LIFE IS CRAZY!!!! GOOD, BUT CRAZY

Deck Before

The contractor started on the deck on the 1st of this month and it is finally finished!  Although the landscaping is not.  We are going to add rocks and plants where the fabric is.  We also decided to add the gazebo for shade and a bug free place for Ethan to hang out and play.  We really love it.  It is composite decking so David doesn’t have to worry about staining it every year.  I will add new pics when the rocks are in and it is complete.  I know Great Grandma will like hanging out on the deck, Monday’s, with Eman.  It is a great place to chill and very relaxing.  I hope when we decide to sell this house we will get our money back and then some.

Deck After

Under the Gazebo (notice Ethan's jumpy/playstation)

Weight – 16.22 pounds -68th  percentile

Length – 25.75 inches – 71st percentile

Head – 42.5 – 75th percentile

He did great with his shot.  Turned red for a second and smiled about 5 seconds after the shot.  Much better experience than last time.  Doc says he’s right on track and a healthy boy.  I’m including a picture of him, at Tosha’s, this week.

Wishing I was in LA to celebrate your birthday and new home.  Hope your day is fantastic and you enjoy spending time with Mom and Dad.  Ethan and I can’t wait to visit you.  Love you sis!

Ethan is enamored with Sadie.  He has finally discovered her.  Sadie is also showing more interest in Ethan.  She will come up, out of the blue, and lick him on the face.  Ethan just gets a kick out of Sade and watches her contently.  It is great that they have discovered each other and I think it’s love!

My SIL graduated from SIUC today with top academic honors in radiology.  Rachel has been working on this degree for a while.  She got pregnant with Eli when she first started at Southern and now she is pregnant with her second child as she is ending her college days.  I am very proud of Rachel.  I remember when she told me she was pregnant with Eli, 5yrs ago, and we had a conversation about things.  I said it would be tough to be pregnant and have a child and get through college, but that she could do it and the family would support her.  SHE DID IT!!!!  Way to go Rach, there is no one more deserving than you.  Good luck with the job search, who ever hires you will be lucky to get you.

As part of the celebration we had lunch at Asian Bistro with family and friends.  It was delish.  David and I got Rachel outdoor furniture for her new home.  She really liked it.  We set it up on her patio after she had left for graduation and she came home to the surprise.

We toted Eman there and he did great!  He was cozy in his wrap although I had to get up and walk the floors at one point, but he never made a peep.  He slept at the Bistro too.

Of course Rachel took her grad gown off before I could get a picture.  The last shot is of her on stage, she is the one with the yellow ropes (hard to see, but it’s her).

I am feeling a bit nervous, excited, and sad all at the same time.  The count down to school/work is on!  I have been lucky to have  a little over 4 months off with Ethan.  It has been a great summer watching him grow and getting to love on him all day long.  He is such a good baby and I love him soooo much.  Just thinking about missing out on all of the great things he will be achieving in the weeks ahead makes me a little sad.  I know Tosha will keep us updated and posted on Eman’s new happenings and I know he will be fine with great grandma and my dad on Mondays.  I am looking for the positive side of everything these days, knowing the time is ticking for me and I will be returning to the classroom soon.  I had an all day conference the last two days and Eman was perfect for Tosh and Grandma, so that gives me some piece of mind that he will thrive just fine when I’m not there.   I will keep everyone posted in the weeks to come how we are doing with our new schedules.  Keep your fingers crossed for us:)

The deck is coming along very slowly due to all of the rain.  Hoping it will be done in a week.  We’ll see!

Sydney’s Birthday is on Sunday!  She will be 23, I think.

Rachel Blumestein, my sister in law,  is graduating from SIUC on Saturday with a degree in radiology (ultrasound tech stuff, I think)!  We will be there cheering her on.  Pics to come.

Ok….he did it and he loved it.  I fed Eman some rice cereal the other day and he couldn’t get enough.  He even lunged at the spoon as I was feeding him.  He swallowed most of it, which is a good sign he is ready for a little bit of “real” food.  His neck strength is excellent, as you can see in the pic below, which is also an indicator that he may be ready for a little cereal.  I probably won’t feed him cereal everyday just yet, but he is definitely diggen it!  Wow, this is my third blog entry today……you blog when you have time and Ethan is taking a nap:)

This is the most wonderful thing I have eaten all summer.

Fresh homemade salsa on top of hint of jalapeno tortilla chips and a slice of avocado (drizzled with lemon) on top.  DELISH!

Thanks to mom for bringing me the salsa, chips, and avocado.  I forgot how good it was.  I ate it for dinner last night and then lunch today.  Can’t get enough!