The Peapod

Friday night was Trunk or Treat at Asbury Church. We have some friends who go there and invited us, so we dressed Sutton up and walked around for awhile. We didn't get any candy...I was really hoping we would but I guess everyone thinks Sutton is to young for chocolate. Whatever. :)

Ginger's costume was awesome. And Avery was pretty darn cute.

Our nephew Corbin as none other than HARRY POTTER!!!!!

And his little sis Aubrynn as a stylish fairy.

I love my peapod. :)

Grandma Janet was making him smile for the camera.

I don't know if we'll dress him up again tomorrow night or not, but if we do, I'm sure there will be lots more photos...

Sleeping

Last night, Sutton got super tired in his Jumperoo again (he fell asleep in one yesterday morning at daycare!), so I gave him to Adam since I had some things I needed to do. He slept with hit little bottom up in the air.

Which reminded me of a simlar photo we took back in July...

The Stats

Well, it's just as I suspected.

 

We've got a big boy on our hands.

After our appointment this morning:

*Length - 25 inches (50th percentile)

*Weight - 17 pounds 10 ounces (90th percentile)

*Head circumference - 18 inches (>90th percentile)

Everyone there was commenting about just how big he is and how good of an eater he must be. One lady in the waiting room was surprised that he was only 4 months old. I can totally relate to this:

He also got his 4 month shots. He did so good. They gave him an oral vaccine first, and he cried a little during that, so it must've tasted gross. I was able to calm him down with his pacifier pretty quickly. Then when the poked him for his other three shots, it took a second to sink in, but he screeeeamed and turned all red. I picked him up and wrapped him in a blanket and rocked him and he fell asleep within a minute or two. :) But then I had to dress him so we could go, but he fell asleep again on the car ride home and slept for quite awhile. Such a good boy!

Sutton { 4 Months }

I had Adam come over to block the sun on Sutton's face, and the cute baby immediately was enamored with his daddy and started smiling at him.

Happy 4 months, Sutton Grey! You have brought SO much love to my life...more than I knew was ever possible. At 4 months:

-You're SO expressive. Your smiles are so handsome, and they happen all the time! You especially love it when your daddy gets home. You save up all your extra smiles for him.

-You love to jump. Whether we're standing you on our lap, holding you, or if you're sitting on our knee, you are always trying to bounce up and down. I'd think you'd have burnt off those thunder thighs by now, but no dice.

-You love your Jumperoo. You just go to town. It's our go-to to make you happy and to tire you out.

This was originally going to be the 4 month photo, it was taken this morning, but then I decided I wanted them all on the same side of the bench, so we had to wait for the sun to play nice. Meanwhile, we went through three outfits...

-You're getting to have more of a routine. Up until this point, we've pretty much just fed you when you were hungry, let you sleep when you fell asleep, and played with you while you were awake. We tried to loosely stick to the eat, play, sleep pattern that our pediatrician told us about, but it was kind of whatever. Now, you generally have a long morning and afternoon nap with a few short naps in between.

-You eat around every 4 hours. Sometimes sooner, sometimes longer. 

-You sleep from about 9:30 til 8, getting up once or twice to eat. Last night we had a great night...8 hours solid! But then I had to come wake you up because I was in pain. :)

-You're wearing a size 2 diaper, but who knows how long that will last. You've had a couple blow-outs lately that have ruined some clothes, so I tried some size 3s on you, and they seemed HUGE but contained the mess. Not sure what we'll do there.

-Your hands are ALWAYS in your mouth. I'm trying to encourage the pacifier over the hands, but you like to pull out your pacifier and put your hands in there. You also make really loud smacking noises when you're sucking on your hands. You will definitely be one of those babies who puts everything in your mouth. Fun fun.

-We had our first horrible, terrible, no-good day at daycare. I had to go pick you up on Tuesday because you wouldn't calm down unless Sam was holding you. She has several other kids there too, and so I just decided that I would go get you. I don't think you were feeling well because you rarely act like that. We've been having some tummy/pooping issues, so most likely that was it. You came to the studio to help me work for awhile and then Daddy picked you up so I could do my photo shoot that evening. It all worked out. And it made me feel like a real mom. :)

-I think we're getting to the point where you prefer Mom and Dad over everyone else. I'm glad you love me, but we're gonna have to push through this if it gets to be a big issue.

-You still love to talk to us, though sometimes it's hard for you to talk around your hands in your mouth.

-You LOVE sticking your left leg up in the air. All the time. Diaper changes are fun. Here's a photo of you doing it (AND we have the bonus of the hand in our mouth, yes!):

-Your hair growth is still lacking, but your thigh growth is as abundant as ever.

-You're wearing 3-6 month clothes, and even a few of those are too small. Some of them are too big though, so I think we're in the right size for now.

-I don't know if it's just a fluke, but you grab and pull at my shirt sometimes around when it's time to eat. Maybe you're just that smart.

-You are ALWAYS trying to sit up on your own. You're not quite able to, but you sure try. I had to tighten the harness in your carseat because you always strain against it to try and sit up. Here's photo evidence of that little trick:

 

-The carseat is pretty much too heavy for me to carry now. I can get you to and from the house to the car, but when we go to stores, I put you in a sling to carry you. It's easier so far.

-You're not rolling over, but you like to roll onto your side. Generally this happens while I'm changing your diaper, so again, that makes it super fun. Your big head may be what's keeping you from rolling over. :)

-You've really started enjoying bath time. When I put you in your tub, you just go to town splashing with your legs. It's a good thing we started putting your tub in our big tub when we bathe you instead of on the kitchen counter. You usually splash out half the water through the course of your bath.

-We've gotten a couple of belly laughs from you. They're my favorite...besides the noise you make when you yawn. :) The latest thing that makes you laugh is when I come in and plant a huge kiss on your face repeatedly. You love kisses from Mommy! They always make you open your mouth for some reason...

 

-You're a pro at playing with toys that are hanging in front of you. So you love your bouncy seat, your play mat, your swing, and of course your Jumperoo.

-Not sure on your stats yet, we'll find that out tomorrow and report back. I'm still gonna guess about 17 pounds. Maybe pushing 18...

And lastly, our month to month comparison. I still feel like 1 to 2 months was the biggest change, but he's definitely a growing boy!

One Year Ago...

One year ago today, we found out that we were expecting this amazing blessing:

In my wildest dreams, I couldn't have imagined a more perfect baby. Sure, he throws fits every now and then, and I have had my meltdowns too. But this little man has stolen my heart in every way. God knew exactly what Adam and I needed in a baby, and wrapped it all up in the handsome little package that is Sutton!

I took his 4 month photos this morning, but had to use the opposite side of the porch swing due to the sun. I've decided I want all his monthly photos the same, so I'm going to retake them when the sun moves. Today is also Sutton's 4 month birthday...he was born exactly 8 months after we found out about him.

I'll never forget that day. As many of you know...our journey to have a baby had been long and difficult. After all that had happened, we'd been cleared to begin trying to get pregnant in September 2009, but my doctor didn't put me on Femara (similar to Clomid) yet. I really thought I was pregnant that September. The night before I was getting ready to take a pregnancy test, I started my cycle.

I was devastated.

But, trying to look on the bright side, this meant that for this new cycle, we'd be starting Femara. Since the fertility drug had worked so well for us the first time, I had high hopes.

The morning of October 24, 2009, Adam and I were at the studio doing a couple things for my work. I was debating about whether or not I should take a pregnancy test, as I thought it might still be too early to tell. We'd driven separately to the studio, so Adam left while I finished up a few things. On my way home, I stopped by Jiffy Lube to get the oil in my Jeep changed, and they totally tried to rip me off. So I ended up having the guy call Adam and he spoke with him on my cell phone. I still ended up spending more than I should've. :)

The oil guy was also a "photographer" and so I had to talk with him about that forEVER because he saw the photo equipment in my Jeep.

Finally, they finished and I was able to go home. I posted the rest of the story of that day back in December when we announced our pregnancy, and you can read about it by clicking here.

Needless to say, the test I took that day was positive, and I was so excited and terrified at the same time.

One year later...and we have the best 4 month old baby boy that we could ask for. God is good!

MY Boy and his Dog(s)

In light of the last post, I had to try to catch some photos of my boy and his dogs interacting. Unfortunately right now, their interaction is minimal. They're mildly interested in him while he's sleeping, and usually treat him to a good sniffing.

 

I'm smitten. :)

The other evening while we were all (all 5 of us) sitting on the couch, Sutton was actually petting Diesel. Like, actually petting him. Lifting his hand and putting it back down on Diesel's back repeatedly...I think he may have pulled his hair a tad also...but Diesel was {at least acting like he was} loving it! So cute. It was probably a fluke, but still.

Last night, we had some thunderstorms. I don't know about all the other dogs in the world, but my dogs are scared of storms. I thought it was funny...Sutton was asleep in his crib all alone and was totally fine, but my dogs couldn't be more than 6 inches away from me. Diesel crawled on my lap:

And Axl jumped on the nearest chair so he could be close by (I was sitting in that office chair). He hasn't ever jumped up there before. Poor puppies. And I'm glad to report: they lived through the storm.

The Boy and his Dog

I can't wait for this in a year or so...especially what's happening at 2:03.



Thanks for sending me that video, Audra!

Sutton's New Spot

Adam (and I kinda helped) rearranged our entire house Monday evening. It's really fun. We've lived here for two years and have basically had everything the same since then. We moved my computer out into the main living area by a window so now I don't feel all cooped up in a cave when I'm working at home all day! Now, instead of Sutton having to lay on a pillow on my desk (which he was on the verge of outgrowing anyway), he gets to lay on his favorite oversized ottoman that's in a new spot by the window!

My Grandma Netta and Grandpa Rollie came to see Sutton this morning, and he wasn't quite ready to get up at 9am when they were here, so I left him wrapped in his swaddle blanket, and he went back to sleep after these photos. It was a little chilly in our house last night and this morning (Sutton sleeps best when it's that way), so I put an extra blanket around him.

Let's all just take a moment to laugh at his pacifier marks. :)

 He's usually in a very good mood in the mornings.

 

And I wanted to show you how nicely our new grass is growing. So pretty!

The Drehers 2010

I just couldn't wait...I had to edit all my faves from last night's shoot. So here they are. I plan to use these for our Christmas card even though Sutton could look completely different by then!

 

My fave of the two of us: 

I kind of can't express how much I love this photo. I actually like how I look, I think my husband's a total hottie, and that baby? Holy cow. And he's ours!!!!

Thanks again Ginger. I LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!

Family Photo!

Last night, I photographed Ginger, Sage, and their families as well as their parents and dogs! I'll blog some of those photos on my photo blog soon. I brought Adam and Sutton and Ginger snapped a few of our little family for our Christmas card as well. I had to share my favorite of the three of us...there will be more to come. Thanks Ginger!

The New Toy

Friday evening I was shooting a wedding, and Adam decided to pull out this Jumperoo we'd gotten a couple years ago from his sister Jessica. Thank goodness for older cousins who can lend us their toys! Sutton LOVES his new bouncer! And it makes him seem SO big.

I had to get a shot of his fat little legs sticking out under there.

Sometimes he'll play with the toys, sometimes he'll just jump.

And he sure can get going! He likes to go straight up and down again and again. I can't believe my baby can do this! He's better at this than the Bumbo seat. Weird.

The bouncer totally wears him out too. He can only last 10 minutes, max, then his eyelids start to droop, so I pull him out and he usually falls asleep in seconds. Nice.

I also got some major laughs out of him this evening while he was in his swing. He's getting to be so much more interactive and fun! His daddy is starting to enjoy playing with him more since he can actually get a reaction now. I love when they play together.

In other news...we've got his 4 month doctor's appointment a week from tomorrow. Anyone want to guess his weight? I'm gonna go with 17 lbs. Holy cow, he's massive. :)