April 13-26: Disc Golf, a Thumb Sucker, Basketball Games, Late Nights with Friends, Our First Baby-less Date.

This is what I get for neglecting to update this blog last week: the 13th-19th are especially vague in my memory. But here is a list of highlights from the past two weeks as best as I can remember them:

***Parker gave a great FHE lesson April 13th about fasting. We read snippets from President Eyring's talk this last conference and realized that we could both improve in how we fast. 

***We went to a delicious restaurant called Sauce on the Side with Abbigail and Jessie Willingham. They serve salads and calzones. We each ordered a different calzone (I got the Roasty Toasty, which is filled with pesto chicken, ricotta cheese, arugula, and pine nuts. Delicious), and when we were finished, we decided we were hungry enough to split two of their dessert calzones between the four of us. It was all so yummy. We really love the Willinghams.

***Parker and I finally watched Interstellar, at my brother Taylor's suggestion. We had to break it up into three different parts (movie-watching is a totally different experience when you have a little person to attend to), but it was good. Mind-blowing and intense, but good.

***On Thursday April 16th, Parker had a short day at school, so he and Jesse Willingham went disc golfing and I went to Sarah Dickey's house to plan our cub scout activities for the next few months. While I was there, Gage sucked his little thumb for the first time! I was one proud mama.

***I picked up Dana and her two kids on Friday the 17th, and we met Cegan and her kids at a local park. We had a good time chatting and chasing kids around. Its still an adjustment for me taking Gage to public places like that though. I was feeding him as discreetly as possible (I'm getting less awkward at using the nursing cover), when this woman and her dog came walking by. The dog darted straight towards us and was sniffing all around me and Gage's head, and instead of calling her dog back over to her, this woman talked to him in a baby voice, saying, "Ooooh, is that a baby? He smells so sweet, huh?" And I'm thinking this whole time, "uh, lady, I'm trying to nurse here. Plus I don't want your dirty dog around my brand new baby." I don't mind dogs, but I start to really mind them when they come near my baby. Again, paranoid new mother alert! Just after I finished feeding Gage, I propped him over my shoulder to burp him, and Cegan caught my eye from across the playground. "Did he have a blowout?" she asked. And sure enough, the back of his little onesie was all messy. So we learned how to change a diaper in the car. Oh, it was a thrilling outing.

***On April 18th, my baby boy turned 3 months old! He is such a joy. He smiles pretty readily at Mom and Dad and is getting better at being friendly to other people, he has several "chats" with us every day, he is especially happy when he's lying on his changing table, he is not a fan of tummy time, he puts weight on his legs like a champ, he LOVES bath time (minus the shampooing his head part), and he's learning to hold his head up. He is a sweet little person and is so much fun to hold and cuddle. I don't know what I'd do without him.

We also had the Pinewood Derby/Blue and Gold Banquet that day. It went pretty well. I'm learning more and more about this cub scouts thing, but I still feel a little out of my element. That's what callings are for though, I suppose. They're there to help us grow. Poor little Jack Durphy. His car was the slowest, by a long shot. He was pretty upset about it until Bro. Posey presented him with the "Golden Eagle Award" for having the most creative car. 

***Monday the 20th, we had a little lunch at Liz Metcalf's house with me, Millie Bazdresch, and Sarah Dauphinais. It was good to get to know them all a little better, especially Millie. She moved here from Kenya a little over a year ago to marry Sam Bazdresch (they met online), and she is such a sweet soul. She doesn't say much at all in a crowd, but when I picked her up and dropped her off and we were by ourselves in the car, she really opened up. She talked about her family's home and about the food in Kenya and how different everything is here--busier and bigger and louder. I'm grateful to be her visiting teacher.

***On Tuesday, the Tervorts had us over for dinner. They were very kind and generous. They slapped these HUGE pork steaks on our plates, along with corn on the cob and a baked potato, and they finished off the whole thing with cherry pie and ice cream. They're nice to us. 

***Friday the 24th, Parker and I went on our first date sans Gage. We left him with Cegan and her kids, and we played 14 holes of disc golf at Wilmore Park. It was so so fun. We really are the best of friends.

That night, Parker played in the last basketball game of the season. Our ward's team lost, but they all played hard, and it was fun to watch them. Cegan, Sarah Dickey, and Sarah Tuttle all came, so we chatted as we watched the game and tried to keep the kids from running onto the gym floor. It's crazy to think that our little guy will be mobile in a little over a year (or less!). Time goes by too fast.

After the game, we all met up at the Hansens for ice cream. We chatted, watched an Office episode, and chatted some more. We stayed there until 1:30 AM. We always joke that the Hansens' house is like a time warp . . . time goes by without us even noticing! We're grateful for such good friends.

***On Saturday, Parker had a mixer at the school for the upcoming first year students. He got home around 3:30, and we went to the Takis' at 5:30 for a French-themed movie night. We watched "The Hundred-Foot Journey" and ate cheese, pears, salami, french bread, chocolate, and sparkling grape juice. Very fun.

***Today we went to church, had a great testimony meeting, came home and napped for a bit and had family council, then we headed to the Willinghams for dinner. They fed us delicious German food--yeagerschnitzel, pretzels, potatoes, and green beans, and then Reese's cheesecake for dessert. Get outta town. It was so good. And I'm like dying of fatness right now. But it was so worth it. 

Here are some pics/videos from the past couple of weeks:

 This is what Gage thinks about tummy time:

Parker is fulfilling his Dad-ly duties and teaching Gage to "fly" (three months isn't too young, right?). Gagers seems to like it, as evidenced by the bubble of contentment he's blowing in this video.

Trying to find his thumb. It's still a frustrating process sometimes:

Week of April 6 - 12

Nothing too out of the ordinary happened this week, but it was a good one. I've been wanting to get to know Dana Moss a little better, so I invited her and her two littles, Khalil and Khalise, over for a pizza lunch on Tuesday. We had a nice chat. She has so much common sense; I always learn something valuable from her when we talk. She is a devoted mom and is so motivated to progress. I'm really inspired by her.

Friday evening, Parker had a basketball game, and Gage and I went to watch him play. It wasn't his best game offensively, but he killed it on defense, and his team won in overtime. It was a nail biter of a game. Cegan and her kids were there too, which made it all the more enjoyable. Heath was so funny. He was always very concerned with the scoreboard and was overjoyed every time we pulled ahead.

Parker has discovered a disc golf course just five minutes away from our house at Wilmore Park. If you know Parker, you know that he's made his way over there as many times as humanly possible since that discovery. I love how passionate he is about things. When he loves something, he really LOVES it. It's awesome. Anyway, he went to Wilmore a couple times this week, and on Saturday, Gage and I tagged along and walked/jogged the trail while Parker played. Every once in awhile our paths crossed, and he'd let me throw a hole. It was a gorgeous day. There were a few colorful characters at the park, though, so I was ready to take Gage home pretty quickly. That afternoon we went to a little send-off party at Park Forest Apartments for the Chamberlains, Newmans, and Gublers, who will all be leaving the ward within the next couple of months. It's sad to see them go.

Saturday evening, we had the long-awaited Nacho Party as a belated celebration of Matt Hansen's completion of boards just before Spring Break. Cegan made her delicious nachos (definitely the highlight of the evening), then we ate banana splits and watched Nacho Libre. I will admit, I laugh during that movie, but when it's over, I wonder why I spent the last two hours watching it. More entertaining than the movie itself were Parker and Matt while they watched it. It's a boy humor kind of movie.

I forgot to mention . . . Parker stayed home with Gage Saturday morning and let me go do initiatories at the temple. It was a wonderful experience to be in the temple again. I was impressed by how many blessings the Lord is eager to give His children. The temple feels like home and reminds me that I am here on Earth with the goal of returning Home again. I want my daily life to be a reflection of that goal.

Gage is cuter than ever. You can usually find him with one sock on and one sock off (and many times without socks at all) because he is constantly kicking his little legs. He'll almost always give Mom and Dad smiles and coos, and pretty readily too, but he's still a little more reserved around other people. He's doing a good job of putting weight on his legs when we stand him up, and he holds his head up like a champ (most of the time). His latest thing is gnawing on his right hand, just below his thumb. He's trying hard to find something to suck on in that vicinity, and we're pretty sure we'll have a thumb sucker on our hands soon. We just moved him to his real bedroom and to his real crib this week, and he's doing pretty well. So far, there are no really noticeable differences in how he sleeps. Let's be honest: the change was harder for me than it was for him. Sigh. I am learning to be a progressively less paranoid mother though. So yay for that.

Here are some pictures from the week:

I have had this idea to do some kind of salad for dinner once a week in an effort to eat healthier, but it usually doesn't happen. It did this week though! We had Cobb salad, inspired by Stephanie, who introduced it to us when she and Weston visited Mesa last year. Delicious.

On the way to Parker's basketball game Friday evening. I couldn't resist snapping a picture of him in this little jacket and hood. He's too adorable for words.

It was National Siblings Day this week! I love all five of mine and am grateful for their friendship and for each of their unique personalities. They make my life richer and more blessed because they're apart of it.

Catching Up

The last three posts, I've been playing a little catch up. This post is (hopefully) the mother of all catch-up posts and will bring this blog up to date 100%. Then, starting this Sunday, my goal is to post weekly so that I'm not posting pictures of a 1-month old Gage when he's actually 3 months old.

These pictures should give the reader a glimpse of what we've been up to the past couple of months. In a nutshell, we are the proud parents of a perfect, healthy, happy, smiley, sweet little 11-week old boy. Gage is the sunshine of our lives and we ooh and aah over him constantly. I am so blessed to have such a beautiful little family. And Heavenly Father, of course, is to thank for that.

One of my favorite shots of my favorite little face.

When Gage was a few weeks old, our friend and neighbor, Cegan Hansen, came up to take a few pictures of him. Below are a few (well, several) of my favorites:

Isn't he the sweetest?

Good morning, Gage!

Valentine's Day with my two valentines. This was a sweet evening. Gage was an angel and snoozed most of the evening, so Parker and I were free to make pizza together, play a few rounds of Yahtzee, share a few dances, and laugh and chat a lot. I am in love with that guy . . . even more in love with him now than I was when he proposed to me exactly two years prior to this day. I'm so grateful we get to spend a whole eternity together.

The V-Day dinner spread: a heart-shaped pizza and sparkling cider.

Oh, and a heart-shaped giant cookie.

Julia came into town to visit and help out for a few days (Feb. 9-13). It was so fun having her here. We ate lots of yummy food and watched Cranford and Call the Midwife to pass the time. She brought a beautiful quilt that she made for Gage, and she snapped this priceless picture of him enjoying it. If you're the cutest boy in all the land, raise your hand!

Man Time: snuggling and watching Footy Tube.

I made Parker a lunch that had a little more character than usual. 

Great Grandma Gage sent this beautiful quilt to her little namesake. He's clearly content with it. We're so blessed to have such talented people in our family.

These two boys love each other. I love watching Parker and Gage interact. Parker is such a natural, wonderful father. He is gentle and sensitive and loving and fun. I have a feeling that he and Gage will be best buds forever.

When Gage was 1 month old, I decided to try my hand at a little photo shoot. Overall, I was happy with the results. It helps when your subject is so darn cute. I love his little yawns.

Another picture of him at one month old. Parker gets the photo credit for this one. It has become one of my very favorites. 

 Spring has finally shown its face around here, and we are so glad. There were a couple of sneak previews of Spring weather in early March, so we ventured to the park a couple of times. 

This was at Brinkop Park with the Hansens. Parker accepted 5-year old Heath's invitation to race down a very muddy hill, and they both came out a little worse for the wear. It was pretty comical.

Our visit to Brinkop Park was Gage's first real experience with being outdoors (except for the occasional trip to the doctor's office). I was a little nervous about it (paranoid first-time mother here), but it was a successful outing. I kept any dogs that came near him at bay, as well as any curious strange little children, and he slept the entire time.

These pictures are from another outing a few days later, this time to Wehner Park just down the street. It has a nice fitness trail with lots of beautiful trees alongside, so we went for a little walk.

Parker gets all the fun it seems. We were walking along as innocently as can be, and a bird flying overhead decided that Parker's neck would make a perfect landing pad. Parker disagreed. So funny.

My handsome husband who is a good sport, even when birds decide to poop on him.

 I had been eagerly awaiting a visit from Mom and Emily for awhile, and the day finally came! Gage and I picked them up from the Amtrak station in Kirkwood Tuesday afternoon. It was so fun to see them, but it was especially fun to watch Emily see Gage for the first time. Up to that point, I think it was hard for her to really fathom that I had a child, but it became a reality pretty quickly. She and Gage got along well. 

Since it was St. Patrick's Day, I checked out Darby O'Gill and the Little People from the library and bought a box of Lucky Charms to enjoy while we watched it. It was my attempt at being festive. We had a good time. That could become a tradition for our family.

Other fun times had while Mom and Emily were here: going to Hobby Lobby to find decor that could "Spring-ify" my apartment; doing a Denise Austin dance workout one morning; buying a blessing outfit for Gage; watching both seasons of Cranford; and chatting and laughing, as a mother and her daughters tend to do when they get together.

These two love each other.

This was such a sweet moment. Em was chatting with Gage, and he was chatting and smiling right back. 

Hunter was so good with Gage, and it was fun to watch them interact. Since Hunter's the youngest in our family, I had never seen him hold a baby before (he was the baby we were all standing in line to hold almost ten years ago!), and it was really endearing. He couldn't get over how tiny everything was about Gage--especially his little toenails. So funny. 

Gage has a very loving grandpa who I'm sure is already dreaming of the day when he can take Gage for a ride on the tractor and enlist his help in feeding the calves and gathering the eggs. I hope these two become the best of friends.

Tanner was a little hesitant to hold the baby, but isn't he a natural? Not only is he Tan Tan the Ladies' Man; he is also Tan Tan the babies' Man!

Possibly one of the funniest moments of my family's visit: Dad taking on the human hamster wheel. He started off in fine form (see picture above), but after fifteen seconds or so, he ended the experience in not-so-fine form (see video below):

It's pretty clear who was the center of attention over Spring Break while our families were in town. This little guy was the star of the show. Oh, how we love him.

Gage Parker Pratt, two months old, how do you like the world so far? Sweet baby Gage, two months old, what a lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky boy you are.

Making an obligatory trip to Ted Drewes, despite the chill in the air. It was worth it. 

A group picture of all the family that came into town for Gage's blessing. We are so grateful for the sacrifices they made to be here on that special day for our little family. We love these people very much. (From left to right: Tanner, Hunter, Emily, Sterling (Dad Knapp), Jennifer (Mom Knapp), Kaitlin, Gage, Parker, Emron (Dad Pratt), Julia (Mom Pratt), baby Raleigh, Jeannette, Sienna, Matt, and Evianne. The Monson kids in the front, from left to right: Malynne, Baylor, and Daimon).

These boys are my whole world. I love love love love love them.

My sweet parents and their first grandchild.

The Knapp clan. Emily didn't like holding Gage at all. Nope. Not one bit. (In other words, she snagged him every chance she got. She is such a doting, loving auntie).

Oh, be still my heart. One of my favorite things in the world is how these two boys love each other. Sometimes Gage just stares at Parker for the longest time; he is mesmerized by him. I look at this picture and wonder if life could get any sweeter.

March 24 was a big day for this kiddo. He got his little head higher than he ever has before during tummy time, and all of a sudden, he rolled right over! I think it scared him a little bit and was probably just a fluke thing, because it hasn't happened since. But it was an exciting moment nonetheless. And both Parker and I were there to witness it, so that was neat.

It looks like one of us is having more fun in this picture than the other one, but I promise, he really does love his mama.

So Parker had a revelation the other day: Gage is his aunt Elizabeth's twin! Just to make sure, Parker asked Christian to text him a shot of Lizzy's baby picture that hangs in the Pratts' family room. The similarities are pretty wild. 

I could snuggle this boy all. day. long.

The many faces of Gagey Boy.

My Aunt Megan sent Gage the most beautiful crocheted quilt this last week. We are blessed to have so many talented, generous people in our family.

One of my favorite pictures of the year I think: Gage providing much-needed moral support to his daddy during a particularly intense study session. My boys are the cutest.

On the Saturday morning of general conference (my favorite two weekends of the year!), I made blueberry muffins for breakfast, per our conference tradition. The recipe made way more than the two of us could eat, so we decided to run down to the Hansens and share the wealth. It was a little chilly outside, so we wrapped Gage up in this cute blanket Mom and Emily made for him. It was so cozy in there, he immediately fell asleep.

Two thirds of our family snoozed through some of conference . . .

Sweet little guy.

Spring green + thunderstorm gray. God is the Master Artist.