4 Months

I love my four month old baby boy! The first 3-4 months after having Scotlin were a bit harder for me, because I wanted so badly to know him. I just needed to remember that it takes some time to get to know his personality, and to understand what makes him feel comfortable, happy, and loved. Now that he is over four months old, and we are more familiar with his disposition we are finding life with our little guy to be simply delightful. He sleeps more, eats better, engages socially, smiles, laughs, plays, coos, stays where I set them, is happy to see me, doesn't have any attitude or need for discipline, and is down right adorable. The past month or so has been so fun with little Scotlin, and it's like all of the sudden I remembered having a little baby is a blast.

It comes, sometimes as a shock, but mostly as a pleasant surprise when Scotlin will just go with the flow and be completely chill no matter what situation he is put in, or how little sleep he has had, or how hungry he might be. He is such a happy little guy. And it never ceases to amaze us.

Some of my favorite things about Scotlin at 4 months are:

• He likes to suck on two fingers just like I did when I was young.
• His cooing that sometimes sounds like a yell. And I especially love that Miley will gut laugh at him when he talks.
• His hair stays perfectly styled day and night without having to touch it.
• He will fall asleep in my arms.
• He prefers to be able to see me to drift off to sleep. All I have to do is stand by the crib in sight, and he will close his eyes.
• His squeal laugh.
• The way he smiles with his eyes.
• He will smile his biggest grin just from being talked to.
• He will laugh if I'm laughing.
• The way he watches his sister when she is near him.
• His mild, sweet, sweet, sweet, easy going disposition.
• He loves to snuggle and be held.

If he's not the most adorable thing you have ever seen, I don't know what is!!

In this family, he is so very, very loved.

18 Months

• It has been an absolute blast watching our little girl grow up over the past year and a half. Both Justin and I can't get over how smart she is. Miley is catching on to things so quickly. Her vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds in just a few weeks. We can understand her more, and there is no doubt she understands us when we talk to her. Becoming a big sister has made her more responsible, tender, and obedient. She did not struggle one bit with the transition, and her love for her brother is like nothing I have ever seen.

• Our little Miley girl is always keeping us laughing. She ran around without her pants on one afternoon because they had gotten messy after eating lunch. Her dad insists that she wear shoes when she is playing on the hard wood floors (because she took a really nasty spill once) so she won't slip. We laughed and laughed as she ran around with this 80's style getup.

• Miley is always running around and playing. She jumps from one thing to the next. Sometimes I just sit back and watch her, completely fascinated, because it literally looks like she is bouncing off the walls as she runs around in her own little world from the bookshelf, to the kitchen drawers, to the toy box, to the dollhouse, to mom, and back in 30 seconds or less. Talking to herself, and playing pretend. Miley is a very fun, playful little girl. Full of energy, and laughter.

• After all that running around a girl's gotta eat. And boy, can this girl put it away! She fills up from her head to her toes. Honestly, there are some days when she just eats and eats and eats all day long. Miley takes over an hour to eat lunch, and she is eating the whole time. She doesn't want to get down, she just asks for more food. But, when she's finished she's finished. And you could not force another bite if you tried. Justin took this picture the other day just to prove that our entire fridge is FULL of yogurt for Miley. She loves it. You can see it's stacked high and it goes far back into the fridge, but what you can't see is there is another stack behind the door. The girl just might eat us out of house and home, but I'll tell you what, I am so glad she's not a picky eater. I am so glad she eats, and eats healthy. One of her favorite things to eat are veggie burgers and radishes. She downs them. She also loves to walk around with a cup of fiber or bran cereal, and will come back for a refill whenever it's gone. What kid eats this kind of stuff? To be completely honest, there is not much she won't eat. I love that getting her to eat is not our battle.

• Something that makes me laugh lately is how she will mimic everything we do. I'll watch her with her baby dolls. Lovingly kiss their heads, lay them down, and place a blanket on top. She will get a wipe out of the wipe box and go to find her little brother and wipe his face. When the diaper holder in Scotlin's room is empty she will go to the closet, return with a bag of diapers, and load the empty holder. The first time I watched her do this I was totally amazed. She will mimic any word she is asked to say, and can repeat parts of songs when we sing.

• She's a great little helper. She follows me with a rag when I dust and wipes after I spray. When we do the dishes I'll hand her the silverware and she will put it in the tray. She's good to listen, and obey, and really good at communicating her feelings. How she feels is written all over her face. You can see it in her eyes. She's just like her mom, in that she can't hide her true feelings very well. Her personality is very suited to be the oldest child in our family. She has a very strong character, fun-loving personality, and tender disposition. Even when we think we could not possibly love her more, we love her more everyday.

Valentine's Love

Justin, Scotlin, and Miley are my Valentines this year.

We celebrated Valentines together starting with heart shaped pancakes for breakfast, giving homemade Valentines, and little scarves crocheted with love as gifts.

The day was extra fabulous after a gathering that evening with friends. It really could not have been better.

I love Valentine's day, and I especially love my Valentines.

"There really is beauty all around, when there's love at home."

Happy Valentine's Day!