We said goodbye to one sister, but the same week, we said hello to another! Brent's sister Emily is staying with us while looking for a nursing job here in Houston. We're so happy that she's here as an official Houston resident! She's filling in the gap Marie left and has been just as helpful around the house and with Isaac. Can I always live with sisters?
It was so hard to say goodbye to Marie. But after living with us for 3 months while working as a nanny, she had to go back to BYU-I. Living with her was so wonderful! I told her she needs to come back every year. And I'm serious.
As soon as she came home everyday, she went straight to Isaac. He already misses all the cuddles and attention.
Isaac as the centerpiece at her goodbye breakfast:
One last picture:
Thanks, Marie, for loving Isaac, for running errands, for babysitting, for doing dishes, and for hanging out with me. Love you!
Can you tell I just figured out how to load videos to my blog? I've had problems uploading them through blogger, so I finally just started uploading them to YouTube-- duh! I love this one of Isaac. It's amazing how important eating is to a new baby. That's practically all they think about--even in their sleep! I think he was about 2 months old here. Brent and I were laughing really hard and trying not to make noise. I think we did a pretty good job. :-)
In February (when Isaac was just 7 weeks old), Grandma and Grandpa (my parents) and Baba and Jiji (Brent's parents) were in town for Isaac's baby blessing. Jiji got to help with bath time. Check out what a cutie Isaac is!
The week Isaac was due, Brent started on a project: to make a mobile for Isaac. The mobile that came with our pack 'n' play had 3 hanging stuffed elephants on it-- that were cute, but not very mobiley. What baby wants to look at the boring, gray, underside of 3 elephants?
Brent decided to make something much more stimulating and baby-appropriate. He based his design on the concept that new babies, before their eyes fully develop, prefer high-contrast black and white images-- similar to the book Black on White. He printed out images, cut up a metal hanger, and used electrical tape and wire to create this amazing masterpiece. It spins and moves just like a mobile should-- but without the need for a motor. A ceiling fan or even just Isaac's kicking provides enough force.
And Isaac LOVES it. Just watch him kicking and cooing in the video below!
It seems that at every month mark Isaac has a burst of development. On his 3-month birthday, he suddenly gained neck control. This has been fun because now he can sit in his Bumbo chair, play Trot Little Horsey, be held up in the air, and ride in the Baby Bjorn facing outwards. He loves looking at the world and gets bored very easily, so we switch activities about every 10-15 minutes. He also suddenly became a drool machine. It's so bad that sometimes I put a bib on him when he is playing because otherwise he will soak his shirt. He is still growing like crazy (15 lbs and counting), but has yet to sleep for long stretches at night (waking up every 1-2 hours is all too common). However, he is napping more predictably--with 3-4 naps during the day, and he goes down very easily now (pacifier, loose swaddle, and just 30 seconds of bouncing) which makes life SO MUCH EASIER. Here are some pictures of the cutie at 3 months:
