My Guys!

As a mom, nothing makes my heart happier than these boys' unconditional love for one another.  The bond between them is already so strong and so sweet.  Max is an excellent big brother.  He is a great helper, he isn't jealous of Hudson or the attention that he requires, he is so concerned and aware of his brother at all times, and he is just as protective of him as I am.  

When we have visitors he makes sure they wash their hands or use hand sanitizer before touching him, he loves to make sure he has his binky, and he gets really excited when he gets to help burp him.  One day Hudson was crying and Max told me, "It just breaks my heart when my brother cries."  

One of my favorite things is when Max sings to Hudson when he's upset. Hudson is immediately drawn in and calms right down.  He likes to sing "You are my Sunshine" and "I am a Child of God". 

Hudson often gets the hiccups and he gets so bugged by them.  Lately Max calls me over, holds our hands, bows his head, and says a prayer asking Heavenly Father to take his brothers hiccups away.  Priceless. 

Max has learned how to spell Hudson's name and he loves coloring pictures for his baby brother and writing his name on every single one of them.  

and this is what happens when mommy tries to shower. 

Max was elated when Hudson was finally old enough to share his bath time!

Max loves being a big brother so much that he has already asked when we are going to have him a baby sister :) 

3 Months

It's hard to believe that our baby boy is three months old! He has been so much fun and has brought so much joy to our lives.  

We(I) recently started sleep training him.  He was waking up every three hours, sometimes sooner, and was still sleeping in a bassinet in our room.  At 12 weeks, I decided it was time. The first night he slept in his crib and he slept for 12 hours, only waking up once to feed. For the most part he's continued to keep that schedule. It amazes me what sleeping for more than 3 hours at a time can do for a mother.  

He has continued to put on weight and is doing much better on formula now.  He's still a little guy, but we are extremely happy with his progress. We went in for his check-up at 3 months and his stats are as follows:

Weight: 11.4 lbs- 20%

Height: 22 in- 5%

Head: 14 in- 5%

We also had a follow up ultrasound on his kidneys and the hydronephrosis has resolved itself! No more daily antibiotics or ultrasounds for this guy! 

 6 weeks old 

Headed to the doctors office, it's the only time we leave the house. 

7 weeks old

8 weeks old

Dad's favorite thing to do. 

9 weeks old- Max learned that giraffes only sleep for 15 minutes and a time, and he dubbed Hudson a giraffe baby.

10 weeks old- I love me some baby long johns!

Listening very contently to dad playing the guitar. 

He is so focussed on his daddy and trying so hard to talk to him. 

11 weeks old- finally starting to smile and talk to us!

12 weeks old- still unable to stay up for more than one hour...let the sleep training begin!

Now that he has started sleep training, cuddle time is few and far between.  We love getting cuddles while we can. 

I love that my baby is finally starting to fill out.  Chubby cheeks and double chins are proof that he's packing on the pounds.

13 weeks- These smiles melt our heart every single time. 

3 months old- He's so much more alert and active.  He loves talking to us and smiling, looking at the ceiling fan, music and the vacuum, and this little piggy snorts more than any child I know.  

Hudson's first photo shoot

Since Hudson is was a premie we were told to limit the time that he spends outside of the home and be very cautious about taking him out.  I was sad to think that we wouldn't be able to take him to get any newborn photos.  I have a very good friend that does this as a hobby, and she offered to come to my house and take some.  I was so happy at her offering and even more happy with how they turned out.  Thank you Shannon Evanson for taking time out of your schedule to do these...you're the BEST! 

Here are a few of our favorites:
(I apologize this is a lot of pictures, but I couldn't narrow it down)

Dad likes this one with the flag and his army gear.

My baby isn't a baby anymore.  What a handsome young lad he is!

He's making the face that his brother makes so well...

Those dimples are to die for!

These pirate photos may seem a little silly, but the unit that Drew was deployed with were the "Air Pirates." These are for our Army family :)

Back to Ft. Hood

Today we took Drew to the airport.  He is going back to Ft. Hood to bring the rest of the 1-211th soldiers home to their families!!! It was one year a ago that I sent him off to Ft. Hood the first time, and it hits way too close to home saying goodbye again.  I know that this time is different, but there is this place in my brain that takes me back to those same feelings I felt last year.  I forgot how lonely I had become.  As I sit here on a Sunday evening without him, I am reminded what a hard year it was.  He will only be gone 2 weeks, but it seems like forever away.

Feeling sorry for myself I realized that I am in no position to complain.  There are over 200 wives and/or families anxiously awaiting the return of their soldier that has been gone an entire year! I cannot believe this deployment is officially coming to a close.  For a while it seemed as if it would never come, and I'm sure those still waiting are feeling this way now, but here we are at the end of this journey.  What an amazing group of soldiers who are an example to us all.  I have met some of the strongest women along the way, and have made some of the best friends too.  Hang in there ladies...your soldier is coming home THIS month! 

Man problems

Today we took Hudson in for his circumcision (dun, dun, dun)...

I was a little worried how he'd tolerate it since he was six weeks old.  Max had his done prior to leaving the hospital, and I would much prefer it that way.  

Drew was more than a little worried, he was fearful.  Not enough to stop me from getting the procedure done, but in a loving dad kind of way. 

It went really well.  Hudson was a champ and dad survived as well.  He wasn't even all that fussy after having it done. (dad or baby)  

While we were there he was weighed and measured...let's just say he made his daddy proud!!! 

These are his 6 week stats (he made it off the premie chart and on with the regular babies):

Weight: 8.3lbs- 12%

Length: 20.5 in- 5%

Head: 13.75in- 2%

This means I don't have to wake him up every three hours any longer! Yay for more sleep. Yay for healthy a baby. Yay for his chubby little cheeks. 

Happy New Year

It was our anniversary, but we weren't very motivated to go out. The baby couldn't leave, but I didn't want to leave him. I hate the chaos of big events and traffic, it causes some serious anxiety! So it was decided... We were staying in.
Some friends of ours, Brett and Shannon, came over with their little girl Hadley. We had fondue, played cards, and all of us adults made it to midnight!! Max stayed up until about 11:30, he was so close! And it must be noted that I won both games of Screwy Louie.
It was the perfect way to ring in a new year.

My husband, for an entire year!

I cannot believe that it has been one year since I married my best friend.  In some ways it seems like yesterday.  We are so connected, so in sync with one another, we have experienced a lot during our short relationship, and our love is durable, strong, and deep.  On the other hand, we have only known each other for a year and a half and have spent more of that time apart than together.
This deployment has taught us so much about ourselves, but even more, it has taught us so much about our marriage.  We have had to learn to communicate in a whole new way. To not have any sort of physical connection, and have to focus on the emotional, was a different approach than most couple's first year of marriage.
We spent a lot of that time learning more about one another.  We had only dated for six months prior to getting married, so we took advantage of our current situation as much as possible.  Andrew and I had, what I thought to be, very good communication skills and this experience has strengthened that even more.
Because of all of our time apart, we have learned to appreciate our time together that much more.  We have also learned to appreciate the little things a relationship has to offer. To fall asleep holding hands, to have a family prayer before bed, to sit in the same room together simply because we can, a kiss goodnight that isn't blown through a computer screen.  These are just a few of my favorite things.
As our first year of marriage comes to a close, I can only imagine what life has in store for us.  We survived a deployment, some health issues, living on opposite sides of the world, and started our family together this year. It has been a year that I will never forget and I cannot wait to make many more memories.
I wrote this for Andrew when we were dating, and I meant every word.  It's crazy to think back to these days and these feelings, and still be every bit of twitter-pated now as I was then.

I longed to be loved for quite some time, I longed for a love that I could call mine.
In search of a man genuine, loving, and kind. In search of a man seemingly impossible to find.
I had given up faith, hope and trust.  I had given up the idea of ever finding "us".
When I least expected a knock at my door, when I least expected to find what I had been looking for.
My prince charming, my love, my better half, you allowed me to forget the pains of my past.
In you I see my best friend, my husband, and our life, together forever, with me as your wife.
Our family, our future, our journey ahead, are the things that I dream of when I go to bed.

Drew-

To my husband, my best friend, I would not have taken this journey with anyone other than you.  You give me strength to get up when I'm down, you encourage me when I'm feeling blue, and you make me feel beautiful when I'm at my worst.  You bring out the best in me and you inspire me to be a better woman, mother, and wife.  I do not know what I did to earn a love so strong and so true, but I give thanks every night for whatever I did to deserve you.  

Thank you for your unconditional love and your unwavering faith in us.  Thank you for choosing me to be your wife. 

With love, to Afghanistan and back 

Hollie