Henry is 4 months old!

Oh Henry...you continue to be the BEST baby!!!  Everywhere we go, people comment on how calm, good natured, and happy you are!  You rarely cry, love to be around people, and smile constantly!  People can't believe we have had two awesome babies but it is true! Here is what you are up to lately:

• You go to bed around 7:30 and wake up once to eat.  You were sleeping through the night but this last week you've been getting up at 4 am (growth spurt?!).  You wake up at 6 am to eat and then will sleep until 8 or later.  You are a great sleeper!
• You do not need your swing anymore to go to bed!  We have been putting you in your crib awake but you love to have your little monkey blanket with you!  We put it by your face and you love this!!
• The doctor gave us the go ahead to start oatmeal so we will see how that goes!!  I think you will like it since you are a big eater!
• You are a scheduled baby and have 2 solid naps a day.  Your afternoon nap is longer than the morning nap.  Again, you love to have your monkey blanket by your face!
• You are very close to rolling over!  I hope it happens soon before mommy and daddy go back to work!
• We fall deeper and deeper in love with you every day!  Your sister loves you so much and is always asking if you are ok and wanting to help!  She loves seeing you use all of her old baby toys.  I just know you two will grow up to be the best of buddies!

Christmas with the Nelson's

On Christmas Eve, we were with my immediate family.  We had a wonderful night filled with fondue, opening presents, getting ready for Santa, and enjoying the special time together.  Caroline and Henry were spoiled again!  Caroline got a soccer ball, Cinderella princess dress, clothes, games, movies, and much more!  Henry got some clothes and toys and again enjoyed watching everybody together.  What a wonderful, blessed Christmas it was!!

Aunt Sarah and Henry

This of course was Ashley's idea...I know you are not surprised :)

Ashley's beautiful family

Maybe she'll take after her mommy and love soccer!

Checking to see if Santa and the reindeer ate her cookies and carrots!
 

Christmas with the Stephan's

We celebrated at Baka Terry and Mama Sandy's house for Christmas! We had such a relaxing, enjoyable time with family. Caroline and Henry were spoiled rotten by Baka and Mama...of course they loved every minute of it! Caroline got her own dollhouse with tons of furniture, a make-up kit, princess dolls, and so much more! Henry got a riding toy to use when he is older. He had fun getting held by everyone and taking in his first Christmas! We are so blessed to have a wonderful family!

Our only family picture over Christmas!

She's so excited to see what this big present is!

Aunt Jessica and Henry

Shane and Caroline listening to Mama Sandy read...so sweet!

Great-Grandpa & Great-Grandma Siegel with the little ones!

 

Happy Holidays

We continue to stay busy and are enjoying the holiday season.  Caroline went to her first Holidazzle parade last week.  Her Baka Dave loves the Holidazzle parade and they couldn't wait to take her.  Uncle Jesse and Aunt Sarah also went with while I stayed back with Henry.  Our kids are so lucky to have so many people who love them!  She loved the whole thing!!

 

Caroline also went to her first play at Minnetonka High School.  She loves the movie "Annie" so when we heard they were doing a play, we knew we had to take her.  Her great-grandma Gladys joined us with her sister.  It was a great day out and our girl loved every minute of it!

 

Lately...

We have been getting into the Christmas spirit around here!  We woke up to a lot of snow this morning and I don't know who was more excited, Josh or Caroline!  Caroline wanted to go sledding, shovel, and make a snowman today.  We started with helping daddy shovel!  She had so much fun throwing snow up in the air and just being outside. 

 

We also made daddy's favorite cookie together...Wreath cookies!  Anytime we are in the kitchen, she loves to help out!

 

Henry has been a busy boy lately too!  He is just over 3 months old and continues to be the calmest baby around.  He still never cries!!  He is a mover though and is very strong.  He loves to stand up and is trying to sit up when he's laying down.  He watches Caroline whenever she is around...I know they will be the best of buddies!  I can't get over how fast time flies and how quickly they are growing up!  We are truly blessed!

Getting ready for Christmas

It is my favorite time of the year!!  Yesterday, we went to see Santa and to get our Christmas tree.  As a kid, some of my favorite memories are from this time of year: going to get our tree, Holidazzle parade, decorating the Christmas tree and the house, and so much more.  It is so fun to see Christmas through your kids' eyes and this year has been no exception! 



 

                                              



She loved decorating the tree!

Halloween

We had so much fun this year on Halloween!  Caroline was so excited to go trick-or-treating!  She picked out her costume again and she was a butterfly!  She was very disappointed when she couldn't fly though after putting on her wings.  Baka Dave, Daddy, Mommy, and Caroline went out trick-or-treating through the whole neighborhood.  After 20 minutes she said, "I'm getting tired of this."  But we kept on going!!  She was so excited to get all of her candy!  Henry stayed at home this year and helped Grandma pass out candy :)

 

 

 

 

Go Tonka!!!

If you know me even a little bit then you know these two things: I love coffee (preferably from a coffee shop) and football!!!  Growing up, I thought my dad had the best job as a football coach and I loved being a part of it...going to practice, playing with the dummies, Friday nights, etc.  Secretly, I always wanted to marry someone who coached football and my dreams came true!!!  But...reality is even better than my dreams because my husband, dad, and brother all coach for the same team.  It made Friday nights even more special.  Plus, my kids will grow up having the same memories as I had.  LOVE!!

First win in the playoffs!!!  Jesse, Grandpa, Dad, and Josh

Henry's Baptism

Oh Henry...you had a very special day today as we celebrated your baptism.  It was at Faith Lutheran Church in Waconia (same church your sister was baptized at) and our whole family was there to celebrate with you!  We picked two special people to be your Godparents, your aunt Jessica and uncle Jesse.  They love you very much and were honored to be your Godparents!  On this day and all the days to follow, our wish for you is to know God and to know how much he loves you and oh, how God loves you!!

Your baptism outfit is the same outfit your Grandpa Nelson and uncle Jesse wore!

Your Godparents, aunt Jessica and uncle Jesse



Look-a-likes

After looking at old pictures of Caroline and pictures of Henry, I've been amazed at how much they resemble each other.  Here are just a few:




Caroline coming home

Henry coming home



Caroline just a few days old.

Henry just a few days old.

Caroline: 6 days old

Henry: 11 days old




My Sweet Caroline

This post is dedicated to my sweet, spunky, entertaining, girly-girl Caroline Kay!  She turned 3 in June and I'm finding out all too quickly that she is growing up way too fast!  There are so many things she says and does that I don't want to ever forget. 

• Her new favorite word...frustrating.  She likes to say this when she doesn't know how to do something or doesn't want to do something.
• She loves to sing and dance with her princess dress on and especially when she has an audience.
• She loves her new brother and always wants him to be where she is.
• She loves anything and everything pink.
• Her favorite show is Phineas and Ferb
• She LOVES getting a "Boo Nummy" with mommy (Caribou) and even orders herself, "coffee" (hot chocolate).
• When her dad walks into a room, her world stops to concentrate on him...it makes my heart melt!!
• She loves playing restaurant and asking, "What you want for dinner?"  She rarely remembers to bring you what you ordered though :)
• She is in love with both her uncle Jesse and uncle Josh...she always asks them to dance and play with her.  She's only interested in them when they are around!



Here is my sweet Caroline as a babe :)
 

Here she is as a funny 3 year old!

My Henry

We welcomed Henry David Stephan into our family on August 27, 2012.  He weighed 7 lbs, 3 oz and was 20.5 inches long.  We are so blessed to have our little boy and couldn't be happier!  He is such a sweet, calm baby.  Caroline was an unbelieveable baby and we never thought we'd get this lucky again but we did.  He rarely cries, just whimpers when he needs something.  Here is what Henry is up to as a 7 week old:

• Gets up once a night for 20 minutes, around 2 am, and then sleeps until 8.
• He loves his swing when he gets restless and usually needs to be put in his swing before going into his crib at night.
• He is a big boy...already weighing over 12 lbs!
• He still sleeps a lot during the day but is a great sleeper at night so I'm just letting him do his thing!
• He is starting to smile and it resembles his sister's smile
• He is a mover and is strong!  He is always kicking his legs and moving his arms...I should have expected this as he was quite the mover during the pregnancy.
• He is over his jaundice after a 3 day stint of formula, needle pricks, and sunlight exposure
• He loves to watch people, especially his crazy sister.
• He's already a mama's boy and I'm totally fine with that :)

Entering the world of blogging...

I never thought I'd enter the world of blogging but I love following my friends and family through their blogs and thought I'd give it a try.  I thought it would be a great way to have a keepsake for my kids on different memories as time is already going by way TOO fast!!  I have 3 weeks left of maternity leave so I thought now would be a good time to start!  So here it goes...