3 months!

Here I am again, better late than never on the Hayes Man update. Our sweet boy becomes more and more fun every day, and now that he is 3 months old it seems as if he is growing at an incredibly rapid pace! He has outgrown most of his 0-3 month clothes, is on his last leg of size 1 diapers, and has the cutest little rolls I've ever seen. Hayes has officially been a "student" at Calvary Christian School for one month, and he is already helping write the handbook and manage the everyday demands of the infant room (with his Mimi). He still loves his teachers and for that we are so thankful! I'm sure it won't be long before he's telling me "see ya, Mom" like it's no big deal. And now for the full report...

Weight: about 14 pounds

Height: around 24 inches

Loves: This boy still loves outside more than any other place. Whether we're going for a walk, to the park, the zoo, or shopping at an outdoor mall, he is perfectly content! I'm thankful for a child that loves the great outdoors, as his daddy and I spend most of our time there, too. Hayes also loves to "kick, kick, kick" while laying in his bouncer or Mamaroo. He clenches his fists and pumps his legs at the speed of light! The more we cheer, the faster he kicks! Hayes is starting to have more of an affinity for reading books, though he still doesn't like to sit still for very long. Our best bet for reading is usually in the evening when he's winding down for the night, so we take advantage of those times for cognitive development. :) He has also taken quite a liking to bath time, and it truly is one of my favorite times with my little man. (Who doesn't love a chubby, clean baby?)

Sleep: Hayes is still a great sleeper, and will go some nights without waking up at all for his middle of the night feeding. We usually put him down around 9:00 and he'll sleep (with the exception of his late night and sometimes middle of the night feeding) until 5:00 or so. He has had a bit of a stuffy nose lately, so that has been keeping him up a little more than usual, but he is still the sweetest little angel in the sleep department and I couldn't be more grateful for that, especially now that I'm back at work! We still aren't the best napper, but as long as he's not fussy, we can't deal with that. After all, who wants to sleep when there's things to do and people to see? (He might come by that naturally from both momma and daddy!)

Personality: As long as we are on the go, Hayes is happy. He is a busy, busy boy and loves to talk to everyone he meets. He has become quite the flirt, and will bat those big blue eyes and long eyelashes at all the ladies, young and old. I have a feeling I'm going to be in trouble when he realizes that he can get what he wants with the bat of an eye... oh, help me! He is still happy as can be except when forced to wait more than 1 minute for his bottle, or when he has fought sleep too long or has been awakened from his slumber for a diaper change.

Dislikes: There really isn't too much that upsets this little man these days, thankfully. Aside from a lack of patience when he's hungry, Hayes is usually pretty easy going. He had a bit of a hard time adjusting to our tour of TX travelling for Kirby's graduation and Mother's Day weekend, but all things considered, we think he bounced back pretty well!

I didn't think it was possible to love this boy anymore, but guess what, I'm wrong again! Hayes is the light of our lives and it's so fun to watch him grow and change everyday. I don't know what we ever did without him!

Fightin' Texas Aggie Class of '14

It's hard to believe that the time has already come and gone and my little sissy is a college graduate! Last weekend we headed to good 'ol Aggieland to celebrate the grand finale of her undergrad career. It was Hayes' first time to see College Station with his own eyes (he had been there already for the Ring Dunk, but obviously could only experience things through sound and taste at that point, haha!), and we had lots of fun hanging out with my parents, reminiscing on our own college days and most importantly, visiting a few of our favorite spots in our old stomping ground. I definitely had the best intentions to accompany Cody, Kirby and her friends to Northgate on Friday night, but alas, I chose sleep… what new Momma wouldn't? :) I figure there will be plenty of time for me to revisit my college bar hopping days once little man prioritizes sleep a little more, and for now, I wouldn't miss the snuggles that come from putting him to bed for the world! Returning to the graduation topic… I couldn't be more proud of my sister, who wrapped up her Bachelor's degree in Business Administration Management from Mays Business School with a  3.9 GPA and a membership in a very elite group of honors grads. She is definitely the genius child, and I just hope that Hayes got her intellectual genes. She will be staying in College Station to complete her Masters degree in Human Resources, but until classes start in August she will begin gainful employment with perhaps the most demanding boss: a four month old. We are so excited that Kirby will be playing nanny to Hayes for about 6 weeks this summer in between apartment leases, jobs and classes starting. I can't wait to spend some quality time with my sis and know Hayes is going to love hanging out with her everyday!

Congrats again, Sister! Gig 'em!!

Hayes Man's First Easter

Easter has always held tremendous significance in my heart for a number of reasons. When I was 10 years old, I asked Jesus into my heart on Easter. When I was 23 years old, I entered remission for Crohn's Disease on Easter weekend, and ever since then the day has become a tremendous reminder of the new life and renewal that we receive thanks to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus. Last year, I struggled to remind myself of God's mercy and goodness as we struggled to get pregnant. My body was being its crazy, walking science experiment self and I just wasn't sure that it was going to happen until we attended the Easter church service and something inside my heart told me that at this time next year we would be celebrating the first Easter of our own precious baby. I left that church service with my faith renewed and restored, and continued to wait for that amazing gift that God would give us. Sure enough, when Easter rolled around this year, I was holding our sweet baby boy in my arms and have never been so thankful for new life, miracles and a spirit of renewal and hope that only the resurrection can provide! And the icing on the cake... we were celebrating Hayes' first Easter in San Antonio at my parents house with my parents, sister, aunt, uncle and cousins! God has been so good and faithful and we enjoyed every moment of our first trip to San Antonio since Hayes arrived. I must also add that our little angel was the perfect road tripper, sleeping the entire way to SA and the entire way back (with the exception of one feeding each way). Hayes loved spending time with his GG, Pops, Aunt Kirby and extended family and didn't miss a beat in the sleep department. He even withstood a trip to La Cantera and an entire afternoon of shopping. I know it shouldn't surprise me that my child would be a natural born shopper, but I must say I was very impressed with his endurance! Perhaps it had something to do with us being at an outdoor mall... :) In any event, we had a blast with family and can't wait for our next visit!

Two months!

So, I'm a little behind on the official two month post. Don't worry though-- I have plenty of excuses and reasons for my lack of blog punctuality. In fact, since Hayes turned two months old I'm pretty sure life has pushed the fast forward X4 button (you know, like on the DVR, people) and there are moments that I feel like my head is spinning! Apparently that's part of becoming a new mom and it doesn't ever go away... you just become more accustomed to functioning normally with a spinning head. :) We are loving every second with our little man as he grows and changes SO much every single day. If the second month is this fun, I can't wait for what's ahead of us!

Here are the details of Hayes Man at 2 months old:

Weight: 11 lbs, 6 oz (50% percentile)

Height: 22 3/4 inches (50% percentile)

Loves: He would still live outside if he could! This little man loves the sunshine. In fact, we took him to the beach for the first time and he just soaked up every moment of the ocean breeze blowing through his hair! He might come by that naturally though. We have graduated to the big boy bottles and are eating 4.5 oz each feeding, which brings me to my next point-- this boy still LOVES to eat! The only time he really gets angry is if you take away his bottle or don't fix it fast enough. He is also the biggest fan of his "Never Grow Up" painting and critiques the beauty of its great design upon every diaper change. GG is convinced that we have a little art critic on our hands. We started taking baths like a big boy in the bathtub this month and he is a much bigger fan now that his booty can stay warm for the whole experience. Hayes also loves to look at himself in the mirror and chit chat with the handsome baby he sees. We're pretty sure he's commenting on how good he looks most of the time, and his daycare teachers tend to agree. :) Speaking of daycare, Hayes started school at Calvary Christian School this month and has loved every second with his new teachers, his Mimi and his new friends! He is affectionately referred to as "the Prince" by his teachers and the preschool director is considering creating visiting hours just for him due to the high volume of family and friends checking in on him daily. Mommy couldn't be more thankful for that, as it has been quite a challenging transition leaving my baby boy everyday!

Sleep:Hayes continues to be a rock star in the sleep department. While he openly refuses most daytime naps for fear of missing something (seriously- this kid is a social butterfly just like his mommy and daddy), he sleeps very, very well at night. For the most part he will just wake up once to eat and then go right back down, sleeping until 6:30 or 7:00. At 10 weeks he slept through the night two nights in a row (10:00 to 5:30)! We aren't sure if this is a fluke, but we're excited that the prospect of a full night of sleep returning is on the horizon regardless.

Personality: Hayes has become one BUSY boy this month, and would rather be laying on his activity mat kicking up a storm than being held almost any day. He also likes to threaten us with knuckle sandwiches and enjoys having his hands in a tight fist for a lot of the day to accompany those intense kicks. He is smiling, laughing and is great at engaging in conversation and just loves when Mommy sings "Rise and Shine and give God the glory, glory" and the ABC song.

Dislikes:The diaper change is growing on us, and the only time we really dislike it now is if we are asleep and are awakened by a cold draft in our booty. I can't say that I blame him for that! There really isn't much that bothers this boy at this point though, and we're very thankful for our sweet and happy baby!

Spring Break- Hayes Style!

At this time of year, we can't help but reminisce on spring breaks past. Whether we were freezing at the beach, lounging by the river or just spending some extra time with friends and our favorite alcoholic beverages (please don't judge), spring break in college sure does bring about some fantastic memories for Cody and me. This year's spring break was definitely one for the history books, too, and while it did have many similarities to our college vacays (i.e. late nights, not much sleep, loud noises), it seems that our beer bottles have been swapped for bottles of formula, and the loud noises are not coming from our crazy friends or the midnight dance party. Instead, we enjoyed our first spring break as parents, and while it was just as much of an adventure as our trip to Panama City Beach, I would venture to say that this has been our best one yet.

The week started with a visit from Auntay Kay on Monday, and her friends John and Hayli joined in on the fun on Tuesday. They attempted a trip to South Padre, but the less than mediocre weather conditions brought them back to sunny Harlingen after sampling some island cuisine and obtaining the obligatory henna tattoo. We got our nails done, ate raspas, laid out in the backyard, played games and most importantly, loved on little man like it was our job. Hayes definitely wasn't lacking in the attention department that week, and by the weekend when GG and Pops arrived he got so much lovin I'm not sure how he handled it. Mom and Dad arrived just in time to attend Cody's first slow pitch softball game (he's playing on the church league team) and celebrate Mom's birthday with some of Cody's famous barbecue, margaritas and, of course, chocolate cake. It's no surprise that we had a blast… in fact, due to the 6 week growth spurt and his desire to not miss a moment of the spring break fun and socializing last week, Hayes has been a little out of his element this week-- aka slightly grumpier than usual. :) I guess it's a requirement that everyone feel the effects of the post spring break hangover, huh?

GG and Auntay Kay hooked Hayes up with a new spring break wardrobe. This is one stylish kid, but did we ever have any doubts that he would be?

Greeting Auntay Kay with some nap time snuggles

Getting in our required Mamaroo Playtime

John and Hayli were so good with Hayes!

Looking so maj in his Nordstrom shirt from Auntay Kay

Just taking a moment to decompress

A rare pic of Mommy and Hayes

Morning snuggles with Mommy… can't beat it!

So excited to see his boy for the first time since he was born!

Nothing more precious than that!

GG and her little man enjoying the perfect weather

Pops was the victim of a urinary casualty…haha

Rio enjoyed the company and all of the extra attention

The week came and went quicker than we could've imagined, and now we anxiously await the next time we're all together at Easter. But let's not rush it-- when Easter comes I'll also be back at work, and who wants to think about that?