Rub-a-dub-dub, Nicholas is in the tub!

Nicholas just looks so cute during bathtime, that I had to post these pictures for all to see. We have now grown out of the infant net in the bathtub and onto the big boy tub! We all enjoy bathtime because we are all smiles and giggles, and everyone ends up wet by the end of the bath. Nicholas definitely enjoys doing his share of the bathing by getting Mommy and Daddy wet. (We just like it when it is the bathwater getting us wet and not the other!)

"I'm ready for my bath now Mommy and Daddy!"


"Here Daddy and I both have the 'deer in headlights' look on our faces because the camera showed up during bathtime. Who takes pictures of a boy taking his bath anyway?"

"Stop the photo shoot please. I do need to get clean!"

"Okay, I will give you one good smile if you will please stop taking photos of me in the bath!"

"Look at my cute little wrinkles on my belly and my adorable chubby cheeks. I must be the cutest baby ever!"
"Okay I gave you several adorable photos. Now I am ready to be lathered up. Let's get this bathtime party started!"

Valentine's Day

So being the crafty person that I am, I thought it would be nice for Nicholas to help make his grandparents a Valentine's card. I had a really cute idea that included his handprint and footprint, but Nicholas did not like my idea. When we stuck his hand in red paint to make a handprint, he just curled it into a fist and starting swinging. (Our little prize fighter strikes again!) Fortunately red paint only splattered a little in the bathroom, so we washed his hand clean and moved on to the foot. We had the advantage here because Nicholas cannot do much more than kick his legs. After several paintings of his foot with red paint and several attempts of a recognizable footprint on the paper, we finally got what we wanted. Below you will find the final product.

Nicholas was definately loved on Valentine's Day. Both sets of grandparents sent Nicholas his very own Valentine's cards and he even received some Valentine's from some friends at daycare! Little did I know that three-month-olds exchanged Valentine's cards, so Nicholas was not prepared. (Mommy's fault.) We will have to do something special for our daycare friends for Easter.

Brad and I received a special Valentine from Nicholas. He made us a Valentine at daycare! I think they did a better job with the footprint than we did, oh well.

Just hanging out

Okay so it has been awhile since the last post so I will try to catch you up on a few photos. Here are some of Nicholas and me on a typical evening. We are just hanging out together on the couch, while I am trying to do some school work. Tonight he is relaxing in my lap or the boppy pillow with Prancer and Maggie nearby, wanting to play too.

Nicholas is now able to hold objects in his hands. As you can see by the look on his face he is definitley not willing to share his reindeer rattle with Prancer or Maggie.
Nicholas was asleep in the boppy until Prancer jumped onto the couch behind his head. Notice the startled look on Nicholas' face. Luckily the dogs do not seem to bother Nicholas most of the time.

Prancer had not had his daily sniff of Nicholas, so here he is caught in action. Usually the sniff takes place on the hand or leg, but this time Prancer came a little too close for my comfort. Brad snapped the picture just in time, because seconds after, Prancer was banished to the floor for the rest of the evening.

Two Months Old

Nicholas is now two months old. (Well actually he is 10 weeks old, but I am a little late on this post.) Nicholas had his two-month checkup with the doctor last Friday. He weighed 10 lbs. 12 ounces and was longer than the average baby his age. I guess that means he is going to be tall like his Daddy. Everything else was normal. Unfortunately for Nicholas he had to get his first set of vaccinations while at the doctor's. He stayed tough and only cried a little. He did feel puny the rest of the weekend though.

Nicholas started daycare this past week. He is in a class with three other babies and two teachers. His class will stay this size for as long as he is in it. I have been pleased with the daycare so far. He gets a daily report card that tells what time he ate, when diaper changes happened (We really don't have to know all the wonderful details of this, but at least if we wanted it we would know.) and what he did all day while we were gone. His first report tells about how he listened to a story, how he relaxed in the bouncy seat, and so on. There is even a weekly newsletter from his class and this week's letter had the entire last paragraph devoted to welcoming Nicholas and telling what he likes to do in class. I think we will really be happy keeping Nicholas here.

So these days Nicholas is becoming such a little character. He continues to swing his fists (like the picture below), but our little prize fighter can do more. He has learned to smile the cutest, toothless grin you can imagine. He definitely is learning to wrap Mommy around his little finger. When he smiles at me, my heart melts and he could probably get away with anything. (Well at least for now since his options are somewhat limited.) Nicholas is also loving to talk to others. He just laughs and chats with anyone who will listen.

Okay, so everyone talks about how much Nicholas looks like Brad. I couldn't really see it until now. When I see Nicholas whining in this photo it reminds me so much of Brad that it is scary. Just kidding Brad!
Who knew that a fist could be the source of such amazement?

Meet Nicholas' favorite toy-the swing. If he doesn't want to sleep in his bed or when he wants to continue to eat just to make himself fall asleep or when his belly seems to hurt, the swing always comes to the rescue. We can sit Nicholas in his swing and within minutes he is off to dreamland. I know that this is not the best place for him to sleep hours on end, but you do what you have to do sometimes.

I told Brad to take a picture of Nicholas and me after church so I would look somewhat put together. Every picture of us seems to be of me in some old t-shirt, hair unfixed, and probably some spit-up somewhere. I at least want a few photos of me looking presentable.