Time Away

Levi, Rob and I got back last week from an extended trip to Texas and Oklahoma to see our families and attend a Wind River staff retreat. We were away for almost three weeks, and in that time, Levi learned how to roll over and find his feet. He's been busy! We took this picture of Levi and Tex just before Levi's four-month birthday to show how much he's grown:

Levi played nice for a little while, then tried to eat Tex:

I had a great time visiting with my best friend Stephanie, girlfriends I hadn't seen since before Levi was born, and some of our dearest friends from Tallowood. I loved watching our parents love on Levi. It was great to relax with our friends from Wind River at the staff retreat. I had a blast playing racquetball with my father-in-law. It was a complete shut-out (I was, of course, the one shut out), and I realized that it is unwise to trash-talk when you are learning to play a game. I'm a slow learner. I want a rematch, Luttrull!

Here are pictures from our time away. Levi playing:

Then napping:

Here's Levi in the swim trunks and hat that Rob and I picked out for the beach vacation we'll take next month. Pop Howell got a great grin out of Levi for the picture. Look at Levi's little frog belly!

This is Levi with his cousin Sophia. Levi looks more like Rob in this picture than any I've seen. In case you were wondering, Sophia's eyes really are that blue.

This is Levi and Pop Luttrull. Pop can get Levi to calm down and go to sleep when no one else can. Levi's two Pops can also get the best smiles out of him.


And a family picture:


This is Levi's other cousin. In a few more years, Levi is going to realize how cool his cousin is and follow him around incessantly. He has mad Wii and ripstik skills, which will only make him greater in Levi's eyes.

Now that he's rolling over and grabbing his feet, Levi's learning other tricks very quickly...lots more to post as time allows...


Lynda

Two Years

Two years ago today, I woke up in my apartment on my wedding day. My best friend and I headed to the salon, and afterward it was on to makeup, pictures and the ceremony. I paced in the church's foyer while our families were seated, and then they opened up the doors. I heard the Bridal Chorus and I remember thinking how strange it was that this time, the song announced my arrival. Rob stood at the end of the aisle, and I locked eyes with him. It was a good day.

Two years later, I woke up to the sound of Levi crying. I went in his room and hooted and smiled with him for a few minutes before he ate. The next fifteen minutes involved volcanic poop, spit-up, and three sneezes, all on my arms. I put Levi back in his crib to clean him up, then took him back to our bedroom to give him to his father. It's another good day.

I'm amazed at how much has changed in two years. The subtitle of the blog alludes to all these changes...new marriage, new job, new state, and new baby. I'm excited to see what changes will come over the next couple of years, and I'm thankful that they'll all happen with Rob by my side.

Lynda

Couch Potato

Levi loves to watch TV. Not that we allow it, you understand, but he's fascinated by the screen and tries to watch when we put him on the couch. Sometimes we just turn the TV off, and he turns back to play with us. Other times, though, we're watching something we don't want to miss, and in those cases, we turn the Boppy pillow so that he can't see the screen. Or so we thought...Rob caught Levi the other day craning his neck to see the screen behind him.

As much as we watch TV, I guess we shouldn't expect anything different!

Lynda

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love,

Levi

My bad

Rob here. I write a blog for the ranch staff and mistakenly posted that message to this blog - ooops! So I deleted it, but assumed that you still received the email saying there was a message...so here is a message:

I'm not very good at the blog.

Also, I walked down to the office this morning and noted what a nice day we're having. Bright sunshine, no wind at alll, and about an inch of new snow to make everything look like a postcard. I walked into the office and checked the outside temperature - it was 6 degrees.

I think we're adjusting to weather...

Rob

Precious Boy

Levi now sleeps through the night! Two weeks ago, we decided it was time to let him 'cry it out' at naptime and bedtime, and it was the best decision we've made in our short parenting lives. Before we made the change, he'd sleep a total of about eight hours a night, with two or three feedings or diaper changes in between. Now he sleeps 11-13 hours a night, and naps better during the daytime. The best part is that we can lay him down fully awake at naptime and bedtime. He may wimper, but he quickly finds his thumb and drifts off to sleep. I've almost forgotten what it was like to get up three or four times a night and be sleep deprived. Almost.

In other news, it's snowing more frequently now. I haven't seen the ground in several days, and I'm enjoying the cold weather much more than I thought I would. It helps a lot that I rarely go outside! It's really the wind that's problematic; I don't want to take Levi out while it's so cold and windy. Here are some pictures of the first real heavy snow that we had a couple of weeks back:

I wish that my niece Sophia could have seen all this snow. We had a lesser amount when she visited with her parents, and even then I think she could have stayed outdoors all day long if they'd let her. In Houston, we buy fake plastic icicles to string up at Christmastime. I saw these and thought they were beautiful:

Rob decided to grow a beard this winter, and he looks so different! I told him that the beard would go well with a turtleneck and a beret, but I doubt I'll see him in that getup. We'll all just have to imagine it.

Levi has started making new sounds with his mouth. I saw him stick out his tongue and make a 'pbbbbb!' sound yesterday. He did it accidentally, but you can see his mind working now as he tries to figure out how he did it. I've been trying to show him how, and he just smiles at me. If I can catch it on tape, I'll be sure to post it.

There's not much else to report, so I'll just post some of my favorite pictures from the last few weeks. Levi fell asleep in his swing one day in the strangest posture. I took this picture because his fat cheeks hide his precious neck most of the time. I think it's one of his sweetest features.

I call this Levi's 'big boy' picture, because in it, he looks so much older than his three months to me.

We were wrapping Levi up in his swaddle blanket one night when I realized that Levi looked a bit like a little angel.

I think I like this hat a lot more than Levi does.

We really like getting Levi dressed in the morning, because that's when he's the smiliest. Yes, smiliest.


This picture is for Auntie LaNell, who gave Levi this great bib. You can see that Levi is wearing the boots that we bought the day we learned we were expecting a boy. We bought them expecting that he'd wear them this summer, but he'll likely outgrow them before then.


We took this picture just before Grandma and Pop left last Sunday. Levi was a little sleepy, but it's still a great picture.

Pop can get Levi to sleep faster and easier than anyone. Levi is just moments from drifting off...
Here's one last shot of Levi in his most common pose. He figured out how to clasp his hands together a few days ago, and now spends most of his time like this.

We especially like this Winnie the Pooh outfit (thanks, Cyndi!).

Levi

It's Official...

...he found his thumb! It's pretty cute, too.



Lynda