Just a few snapshots of what’s going on in the life of this one year old!

A new big boy carseat.  I’d like to report that he loves it, but alas, not much has changed.  He still hates being strapped in 99% of the time.  I’m not sure what I did to deserve the 20 minutes of quiet time when he passed out back there the first time he rode in it.  And I’m not convinced it will ever happen again.

And today, his first hair cut!  It was long over due, but I refused to get it done until after he turned one.  He just looks way too grown up for this mama’s heart.  After looking at these, I will go right back to the one of him sleeping in the carseat.  Because when he’s sleeping, he still looks just like he did as a newborn.  I hope it stays that way forever.

Not sure about this…

Before & After

He’s pretty much been called Cohen Monster by the whole family since he came home with us, so a monster party was only fitting.  The poor guy is dealing with a cold, and a nose that has been running like a faucet, so he was a little out of it for part of the day, especially after not much of a morning nap, but I think he had a great birthday.  It was so nice to have all of our family and friends there, so thank you all for helping us celebrate!  I was worried it was going to be unbearably hot, but we had plenty of shade, and it seemed the weather was perfect!

I hardly saw Rory the entire time.  She was having so much fun at the playground with all of her friends.  She came out for the pinata and treats, though!

I loved how the invites turned out…

Lots of little monsters and polka dots!  Cohen LOVED the big balloons!

It was a great way to end a great year!

You’re sweet, snuggly, funny, mischevious, smart, busy, and best of all…mine.  Here’s to one of the fastest years of my life.  I feel like there is no way it was already a year ago that I met you, and even though you’ve grown and changed so much, when I’m rocking you to sleep and I look at you, to me, you are the same tiny baby we brought home.  I love you! 

Oh boy.  I am so behind on my blogging.  These photos were actually taken on Father’s Day, so right around the time Cohen turned 11 months.  In the last month he has reached two huge milestone.  Four teeth have FINALLY made their way through.  I never thought this would happen, I really didn’t.  The poor guy has been struggling with those teeth for so long.  For over three months, his gums have been white, puffy, and swollen.  Practically every day, one of us has said, “Any day now!” and that day never seemed to come.  Just this past Sunday night, before I put him to bed, that forth tooth was not yet through.  That night, he was up at 11:00, 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, and 4:00 when he finally was able to sleep until 7:00 when I had to wake the poor kid up, but the next morning…the tooth was there!

The next big piece of news is that he is walking!  The kid was holding out on us for this one, too.  For several weeks, he could stand in the middle of the room.  Play around, almost fall, catch his balance, squat down, stand back up.  He could do it all, but he would not take a step.  Finally, one night I bribed him with the suncreen bottle that he is so attached to, and he did it.  Rory and I both let out a simultaneous “YAY COHEN!”  We were both so excited, and I was so happy that I was home this time around.  When Rory took her first steps, of course, I was gone.

So, here we are in the eleventh month, gearing up for a big first birthday party, and wondering where in the world the time has gone.  I love rocking him to sleep and looking at his little profile.  He still looks exactly the same as the day he was born.  And looking back on photos and videos of Rory at this age, I see a ton of similarities that I don’t see every day. Mostly in their expressions.

He’s much too busy to pay much attention to me these days.  But I love those sweet little lips.  The purple eye lids that are a sure sign that he’s tired.  The slightest red tint to his hair that only shows up in certain light.  And that middle finger. 

This girl loves playing outside and loves the water.  No doubt about that.

These photos have nothing to do with Mother’s Day other than, since it’s Mother’s Day, I took the time to finish editing some of them.  Cohen really doesn’t sit still anymore.  At all.  That is, unless you put him in the grass.  He wasn’t too sure what to think of it, and when I walked out and saw him sitting so nicely, I knew I needed to take advantage of that.  In fact, I am now thinking of bringing a piece of sod, just large enough for his little hiney, into the house.  Things would be so much easier if I could find a way to keep him in one place for longer than two seconds!

He is constantly crawling on something, falling and hurting himself.  And no matter where she is in the house, if you hear Cohen crying, you will immediately hear, “I didn’t do anything!” from Rory.  And I actually believe her.  If Cohen is crying, you can bet that 99% of the time it is self-induced.

He thinks I’m pretty funny!

I don’t know why, but he is always doing everything with that middle finger stuck out.

That or, his hand is in his mouth, creating an even bigger puddle of drool beneath him.

Gosh, I haven’t updated this in awhile.  I have a ton to write and a ton more photos of Cohen from Monday evening when we were hanging in the yard, but no time right now.  It feels so good to get outside and shoot for a change.  I was playing around with some different post processing on these two before bed last night.  Anyway…

It has been a rough week on this baby boy.  A rough week on all of us, really.  He just hasn’t been acting like himself and has had such a hard time sleeping, which is totally unlike him.  At nine months, he still has no teeth, and all of his symptoms lead us to think that is the culprit of all of his problems.  He has been such a trooper, though, and after a good visit to the chiropractor along with some teething tablets (they really do help!), he has had a much better weekend.

This week was also the first week he spent in the new room with his sister!  Knock on wood, they both have done so well with it.  I am so proud of Rory and how well she has behaved and how quiet she has been when she is in there awake and he is sleeping.  She was so excited about their new room, too.  We still have some more work to do in there.  I have nothing up on the walls yet and Josey has a little project to contribute as well, so hopefully we will get some of that done soon.  Like, maybe when four extra hours are added to the day!  LOL!

So, with the big change of moving into his new crib, where else would these nine month photos have been taken?

Where is my baby?  He looks like such a big boy here!

The smile never changes, though.

Of course, it wouldn’t be Cohen if he wasn’t chewing on or drooling on something.  Notice how the bottom lip is all the way on the bottom of the rail?  I think it’s so funny because now that he is crawling all over the house, there is a constant trail of drool down the hallway that leads back to the bedrooms.

The entire time I was going through these photos, I kept thinking how much he looks like Josey.  And then this one popped up.  Wow.  I wish I had a photo of my brother Adam to put beside this.  I think Adam has this same wide-eyed, mouth open expression in about 50% of his baby pictures.  I think our kids really are a perfect mix of the two of us, which I think it so cool.  It is fun to try to pick out features from each family and to wonder what they are going to look like in the future.

Our newest little family member!  We are so excited to have him!  He is just over nine weeks old.

Cohen wasn’t too sure what to think about this!

You know how they say the owner and the dog resemble eachother? Well, I didn’t notice until I was editing these, but Cohen’s shirt and Simon’s collar match, and I think their hair color is even a little bit similar!

The time has come.  On Thursday, we painted Rory’s room in preparation for her baby brother to move in.  It wasn’t long after I started in on the task that it dawned on me.  We moved into this house on April 14, 2006, just a little more than a month before Rory was born.  A couple weeks prior to moving day, coincidentally almost exactly four years ago, we were painting this very same room for the first time.  My belly was *out to here* and I was so excited to finally get moved into our very first home and get the nursery all set up and decorated for our first child.  

I rolled this coat of primer on with tears in my eyes.  I am just not even sure how four years could have possibly gone by already.

She has slept in this room since the day we brought her home.  How could she have gone from this…

…to this so quickly?

I started to think about her upcoming birthday, and as if I wasn’t emotional enough already, I realized that only two months after Rory turns four, Cohen will be turning one.  Now, I have never understood why people make such a big deal about birthdays and getting older.  I actually love celebrating my birthday each year, and I’ve never seen it as a negative thing.  Until now.  It is so much fun seeing them change and learn and grow,  but I don’t want my kids to grow up so fast!  I just don’t.

1. I’ve been feeling totally uninspired lately when it comes to photography.  I’m sick of shooting in my house.  Sick of it.  Green grass, please hurry up!  Thank goodness the weather has warmed up, and I can see the end of winter in sight.  I’m not going to actually say it is over yet, though.  You never know around here!

2.  The thought of spring makes me anxious for spring photo sessions!  If you are thinking about scheduling one, now is the time because, as always, my time is limited and they fill up fast!  Also, I’ve added a “what to wear?” section in the top header with some links to my favorite places to shop for my kids’ clothing.  I always think a big part of the fun of a photo session is seeing what the kids wear, and anyone who knows me knows I LOVE shopping for kids clothes!

3.  Over the weekend, Rory and I did some fun Easter activities.  We made these egg rice krispie treats.  Rory is always up for anything involving sprinkles.

4.  Diet eggs.  I thought it was so funny that she thought that’s what I was saying.  I really didn’t even want to correct her!

5.  I always love pulling up images that are so similar and in the same time frame.  It makes me a little sad, actually, seeing how much she’s changed.  2009 to 2010…

6.  Speaking of change…her forth birthday is just around the corner.  My gosh, it doesn’t seem possible!

7.  Poor Cohen has an ear infection.  He has just not been his normal, laid back self, so I knew something was up.  On the way home from the doctor today, we stopped to pick up his antibiotics.  While waiting for the prescription, we did a little shopping, and he got to ride in the cart for the very first time!  My gosh, he was just so cute sitting in there, checking things out.  And he looks so small.  He was clinging tight to his nose drops.  I just had to snap a photo with my cell phone.  I barely even notice how bad this photo is because that smile is just so great.  How do I get a face like that out of him?  Just by saying, “Mama loves you!”

8.  Remember this couple?  Rory gets to be the flower girl in their wedding!  As of right now, she really doesn’t even know what a flower girl does, thank goodness.  When we got her dress, I was afraid to let her try it on for fear that I would never get it off.  Isn’t it so pretty?  I love it!

ETA:  After a few emails, I thought I should mention that the dress is from CrewCuts.  Link found in my “What to Wear?” section!

9.  I’m pretty sure I’ve been looking forward to this short week/long weekend since Christmas.  Okay, maybe just since New Year’s!

10.  I’m in love with this song and this video.  Amazing harmonies,  locations, and lighting.  I have listened to/watched it no less than ten times just tonight.