Jude @ Tom Brown

Jude and Jeremy went to Tom Brown together...

Month 5: Rolling over and Holding His Head Up

Jude is growing so fast! He is now 5 months old. He rolled over to a head up position Friday night, March 14th while Sarah and Matt were there. We gave him a standing ovation and he got a little scared. ;) Of course, we didn't get it on video tape though. We will just have him re-inact it. He loves his new ExerSaucer that is in the pictures. He just stares at all his toys and then tries to eat them all. He is now eating peas, sweet potatoes, carrots, pears, and rice cereal. He likes them all but his favorites seem to be anything sweet: carrots, pears, and sweet potatoes. His hair is coming back in blonde which is what happened to Jeremy and I when we were little. We had such a great Spring Break. We went down to Titusville to visit my family from Saturday to Wednesday and then my friends Ashlee and Kristin came up to meet Jude! Also, Jeremy's dad and Terry came up for the weekend. It was great to see everyone. I am now entering into the homestretch of second year...the good being that it's almost over, the bad being that it is going to be the most study intensive time. But, God is faithful so I am not worried...in my weakness He is strong!

Month 4: Cereal, Peas, and Trying to Roll Over!!

I can't believe how fast time is flying...it seems like everyday when I come home from school that Jude has grown so much! It has been so much fun having a little one around, he makes life so much more enjoyable. The weather has been beautiful here so we have been able to take lots of walks at Tom Brown Park and also around Southwood. Our stroller broke but the company is sending us a new one right away so I highly recommend Chicco. ;) We don't have to send the old one back or anything.

Jude has made so much progress during this past month...I don't even know where to begin. For starters, he is now eating peas and rice cereal. He loves them both! He had a doctor's appoitment on February 14th and he received his second round of immunizations. Dr. Sowande told us that he could start eating solids since he was holding his head up so well. He is completely on track with everything developmentally and he was in the 50% percentile for height and head circumference. His weight was a little low but Dr. Sowande thought the measurement might have been wrong because he is clearly not too skinny. ;) He is now 25 inches long and they said he weighed 12.5 lbs. He is getting so big!!

Jude is also trying to roll over. It is so fun to watch him get halfway and then scoot around because he just can't quite get enough momentum to roll completely over. I am sure it will happen any day though. Four days ago he was able to roll halfway over but he landed on his arm and he could not figure out how to get it free!

Jude loves his toys now and he is extremely fond of his jungle gym. He lays on there for 30 minutes at a time just looking at his animals. He actually started grabbing at them a few days ago. He has been putting his hands in his mouth non-stop for the past couple of weeks and he has been drooling alot. Dr. Sowande said that he could be experiencing pain from his teeth trying to come in although we may not see them for awhile. He has been a little more fussy than usual so that's what we think it is.

He has been sleeping well in his crib. We got a CD player for his room and put his lullabies on and that seemed to do the trick. We also took Barb and Dave's advice about giving him a bath before bed and I also nurse him in the rocking chair. He doesn't cry at all when we lay him down. I know that people say you just have to let them cry but if Jude is ever crying, he does not stop so I know that something is wrong therefore I don't let him cry it out too much. He is still able to hang out by himself and sleep in the crib for atleast 3-4 hours at a time without me so I don't think I've spoiled him. ;) Every baby is different so I think you just need to stick with what works for you...try things out and if they don't work, try something else!

I hope you enjoy these pictures...I still can't tell who Jude looks like so if you have any idea, let me know! ;)

Hard Times: The Loss of Raddle

I know this blog is supposed to be about Jude...but I thought I would share a little something about my family's dog, Raddle, that just passed away on Sunday, February 10, 2008. She was the most loving dog I've ever known (sorry Eli) and she was such a great companion. She went with my family everywhere and did everything with them. Raddle was extremely well behaved and good natured. She touched the lives of everyone she came into contact with. Her loss was unexpected and has been devastating for everyone who knew Raddle. Even though my family got her when I was already in college, I considered her my own. I know that my heart is extremely heavy since her loss so I can only imagine how my brother and sister must feel. She was a their sister and their friend. Also, my mom and dad have to be taking it hard. Over time the pain will subside and our tears will come less frequently but as of right now, we are all grieving her loss. She was such a huge part of our lives and although time will heal the hurt, she will never be forgotten.

Month 2: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years!!

This picture is from Thanksgiving break when Jude finally got to meet Uncle Chris and Aunt Karen. It was great getting to spend time with family. Jude did well on the ride there, he pretty much slept the whole way down and back up. We only had to stop a couple of times to feed him but otherwise it was a great trip.


This is Jude when he turned 2 months. I cannot believe how much he grew in such a short time. Christmas vacation was so great. It was awesome being able to stay home with him during the day. We were able to spend some much needed quality time together. It was the first time that I was able to play with him without having school in the back of my mind so that was extremely enjoyable.

Here's Jude in the middle of December. He's just hanging out on his boppy pillow, looking around. Over the month of December he became so much more alert. He also began entertaining himself for a few minutes at a time which was so nice!

Here's Jude wearing his First Christmas Outfit! He looks so precious. It was so fun having him on Christmas morning even though he did sleep through most of it. I guess he was tired from having been up all night. ;) Jude got so many great presents from the family. I can't wait until we can start playing with all of his toys!!

Trip to the Park

Here's Jude in his car seat, waiting to go to the park. He is all bundled up!
He is wearing the hat Melissa made him. It fits perfectly.

This was taken when we were walking around the lake at Tom Brown Park. He slept the whole time we were there even though it was really bumpy.
Here he is sleeping. He got himself in this position on his side. I thought it was too cute! He is growing up so fast.

He is still waking up about every 2 hours throughout the night. Jeremy has really been helping me though by giving him a bottle of pumped milk when I just can't get myself out of bed. ;) Jude is doing so well. It is amazing to watch him get bigger and put on a little more weight. He is absolutely adorable now with his chubby cheeks. We should have some Thanksgiving pictures up in about 1 week from now so stay tuned for those!

1 Month Old!!!

Today Jude is officially 1 month old. I can't believe how big he is getting. He is starting to get some fat on him so he has some chubby cheeks now. ;) He is absolutely adorable. He got his circumcision done yesterday. I stayed in the room with him and he was actually really good. He cried of course but it wasn't as bad as I was expecting it to be. Dr. Hall performed the circumcision.

Jude is eating about 3 ounces of food at every feeding which is alot more than he used to eat. Keeping up with his eating habits is a full time job! He still wakes up about every 2 to 3 hours through the night. He has been using his swing more during the day and he loves it.

I ended up doing really well on my test this past Friday so that was a relief. I really wasn't sure how it was going to work out. I feel a little more confident now that I can be a good mom and do well in school at the same time...it's just going to take some work. But, everything good in life takes work so I am ready and willing. Without the support and encouragement of our amazing friends and family this would not be possible. Know that we appreciate you all more than you could ever know and we continuously thank God for you.