One Tooth, Three Parties, Five Weeks and Thirty Years

One is the number of new teeth Noah has...three is the number of birthday parties Tony enjoyed...five is the number of weeks we have left until Oak Island, NC...and thirty is the age my hubby turned this past Saturday!!!

It seems that our lives have turned into quite the whirlwind of events over the past month or so, which has been exciting, exhausting and much treasured. It's been amazing to see how we continue to find our groove as a family of three with every new discovery Noah makes and every change of his routine we make and each day's uncharted territory of parenthood becomes old hat so quickly. God really sent us a great baby to learn how to be parents with, he's so laid back, smiley, patient and just such a joy each and every day. Especially when he gets his first ear infection and never once complains about it! So Noah is experiencing his first ever round of antibiotics and he's back on Albuterol for his wheezing. Everything from congestion, to coughing to an ear infection all happened within the same timeframe of him cutting his first tooth, so it's hard to know what started what, but he's happy and healthy as usual and his second tooth is going to make it's grand appearance anyday now!

We celebrated Tony's 30th birthday this past weekend with three parties, starting with a wonderful family dinner at Bravo. It was fun to get both sides of the family together to celebrate such a milestone for Tony, what an old man he is! Then he had a guy's night at the house with all the food you could eat and all the Poker you could ask for! This party was equally fun for Noah and me because we got to have a sleepover at Grandma R*'s house...he is a noisy roomie though, I don't envy his future college roommate. Noah's rolling over consists of snorts and snarfs and moaning and groaning and he is sure to use every last inch of his crib at some point throughout the night. But it was funny to wake up in the morning and see him propped up on his belly just beaming from ear to ear that it was morning time and I was right there in the room to greet him. The third party was thrown by the youth group, each kid brought Tony a qty. of 30 of a creative item. He got everything from green olives, to bandaids to squares of toilet paper. It was a fun event for the kids and the cupcakes and presents marked the official end to Tony's 30th birthday celebrations!!

So we are five weeks from vacation at Oak Island and I just have to throw that in here because I cannot wait to have time away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and just breathe. I'm planning on spending as much time playing with Noah as possible, napping often, reading all my mom's People magazines and soaking up the sun!!! Ah, Oak Island...

But getting back to reality for a second...my sister is flying in from SoCAL tomorrow and is staying with us for a week! I am so excited, I haven't seen her since our wedding, and she was thirteen then, so we have lots and lots of catching up to do. I think we may even squeeze in a day at Cedar Point and try to get to the pool, fun!

And then I get to try out my skills of being a single parent for a week while Tony is camping at Alive with his youth group. I'm really looking forward to having Noah all to myself, besides the fact that I have to work every day. But I'm envisioning lots of early-to-bed nights for me as May and June have been exhausting months and July doesn't hold the promise of being much quieter, besides the week at Oak Island!

So, to make a long story even longer, all is as it should be in our little world. I guess it's just amazing to me how life brings you so many blessings and good times with those you love the most and being able to share all of these moments with our new little man, even though he will not remember them in the future, means the WORLD to us! It's the little things...it really is. It's about doing everyday life with those you love the most, and he's at the top of the list! I'll finish with this moment I had the other night with Baby Noah...

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A few nights ago Noah was having a terrible time falling asleep. He would cry because he couldn't breathe, then his crying would cause him to become more congested, then he would cry harder, which would make him cough, then he would cry even harder and I just knew he was miserable. He's never been sick before and although he never had a fever or grabbed his ear, I was sure it was hurting as the antibiotic hadn't had enough time to take effect yet. So, despite all that I've read and all that I've been told and all that I know to be true, I went into his room, shut the door, picked him up, wiped off his face and sat down in the rocking chair with him. I started singing "Prince of Peace" just like I always sang to him when he was crying in the first few weeks after coming home from the hospital, and he started to calm down. I laid back in the rocker with my feet propped up and laid him face up down the front of me. He wiggle and scootched and finally got comfy with his head laying on my arm, his little body positioned right down the front of me and his chubby feet sprawled out across my thighs...and he drifted off to sleep, so peacefully. I watched his little face in the dim nightlight as I rocked him back and forth. His face so innocent, his plump, round cheeks were so precious, his little mouth was making a sucking motion as if he was dreaming of his pacifier and every once in a while he'd take in a quickened, staggered breath remant of his crying as if to say, 'I'm okay now, my mommy's here with me, there's no need to cry any longer'. Never have I felt a greater sense of love and fulfillment than I did in that moment. Words cannot describe how I felt knowing that that little baby face was sent straight from Heaven to us with such promises and distinct purpose already evident in his first few months of life, and a few tears quietly trickled down my cheeks as I thought to myself, Jen, you need to never take for granted the little human being God has entrusted to you. Noah won't be six months old forever and stopping time just for a minute, throwing the rulebook out the window and trusting my mommy instict gave me the opportunity to really look at this little man and take him in and know he truly, truly is a gift. Sometimes a baby just needs his mommy. I love you, little man!

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Hi, World, I'm Noah!

Daddy's comfy

Yummy! More peas please...

Seriously, give them to me...

I guess I will just have to go after them, then!

Yes, I stalk my child while he's sleeping...

Priceless!!!