Grand Easter Weekend!

Egg Hunt One: GG's Church

GG attends a small church and invited us to join their egg hunt on Saturday morning. Colin was the smallest by 3 years, so they gave him his own patch of grass and eggs. Gramma, Grandpa, Gramma L, GG, Momma and Dadda were all armed with cameras and helping hands. He saw the eggs as we were coming in, so he was ready to go! We were pretty surprised at how well he did. He went right for the eggs and after Momma showed him to put the eggs in his basket, he knew just what to do.

Egg Hunt Two: At Home

Later that afternoon, we decided to go ahead and have an egg hunt for him at home. Rain was forecasted for Sunday (Easter) so we went ahead with the hunt Saturday in our backyard. The same crew came over to help him out, and he had a grand time!

Easter Sunday: The Goods

Today all the Grammas and Grandpa came over for Easter lunch and to give Colin some goodies. He got an Easter basket from Gramma and Grandpa, then one from Momma and Dadda, and a third from GG. We hid them around the living room and he found them pretty quickly. Amongst other things he got a camera (toy) and telephone from Gramma and Grandpa, some Sesame Street figurines, and a cool book and sunglasses from GG. He got lots of goodies (candy!) that he took full advantage of. He's also been learning to use a spoon, so when eating some dessert with GG he had his own spoon, but that wasn't enough, so he stole her spoon too!

The Shirt That Broke the News

Meet My Little Brother

Colin would like to introduce you all to Lucas, his new little brother (or soon to be). You can find his blog at:

www.lucasclarkebaker.com

Introducing...The New Mr. Baker

As you already know, we are now expecting our second son, and after much thought, discussion and debate, we've decided on the name Lucas Clarke Baker. How did we get to that decision?

Lucas was simply a name we thought fit well with the name Colin, it's a name you don't hear everyday, but when you hear it, it doesn't sound strange. Clarke is Brad's father's and grandfather's middle name, so we are following a family tradition.

So let's start from the beginning. We had been trying to get pregnant for a few months with no luck. We had decided to take a couple of months off at the end of the year to avoid an August/September baby. Then laying in bed one early January evening we realized I was already over a week late. Brad forgot about it, but I didn't. He went to work and I took a test. That was the hardest secret to keep for an entire day! I wanted to tell him so bad, I couldn't stop smiling. I wanted to tell Brad in a special, memorable way. So I made a onesie for Colin to wear that said "I'm the Big Brother" and had a picture of a baby and a toddler. So when Daddy came home, Colin was wearing the onesie and I had placed his jacket over it, zipped up. We were playing in the front yard when Daddy got home. We came inside and I asked Brad to take his jacket off while I went to the restroom. I waited to hear something, but didn't. So I came around the corner and Brad was holding Colin up studying his shirt. He said, "I don't get this, where did he get this shirt?" The letters were iron-on and the "B" in "Big" had started to fall off. I started laughing, and pulled the test out of my pocket. He caught on then.

We had our first appointment at about 7 weeks and got to hear the heart beat, a beautiful sound. That is when we received our due date of September 10. Our second appointment was at 11 weeks, and we again got to hear the heartbeat and got a picture.

Yesterday, we had our 18 week sonogram. We got a very healthy report card, Lucas is weighing in at 10 ounces and 5.5 inches. About the size of a dollar bill. This is also when we learned he is a he. We were very excited, we both really wanted a boy, thinking that he and Colin would play and get along better. Brad surprised me by taking the whole day off so we could follow the tradition we had set when we had Colin. We celebrated all the good news by shopping for Lucas. We bought an outfit, his bedding and a couple of blankys for him to cuddle with when he gets here.

Reminder: For the photos click on them, and they will pop up larger, so you can get a good look at Mr. Lucas.


Profile


His fingers spread out by his face.


Another profile.


The first one is a front view of his face, hands by his head, and body. The second photo is the "male proof." hehe

Monthly Newsletter: Month Sixteen

Dear Colin,

A few days ago you turned 16 months old. Your sixteen month was almost an uneventful one, the biggest news we have this month is those teeth! You've gained 2 more now, up to 12. You go 2 of your top molars, and it was hard work for them to come in, you were cranky and cuddly (so that last part isn't so bad).

Your favorite thing continues to be books. Bringing us books, climbing up in our laps and reading them over and over. I love how when a word intrigues you, you will look up at us and study our mouth to see how it comes out and then try to form the word too. Two that come to mind are "lumpy" and "bumpy."

Another large milestone is that you've switched from two one-hour naps to one nap in the afternoon. Now, that nap can last anywhere from an hour to three. It's a crap shoot, I never know. But, at least you are napping, and without complaint now.

One fun highlight from this month: Dada was in a particularly good mood one Friday afternoon after work, and heated the hot tub so we could get in for a swim. You had a blast! You also remembered your swimming and breath holding skills you learned last summer.

My favorite part of the past month is your new skill in saying, and waving, bye bye. You say it to the check out ladies at the stores, to Gramma and Grandpa when they drop you off back home, and to anyone Momma is talking to on the phone. But when you tell Momma "Bye bye," at night when she tells you "Goodnight," and wave your little hand. That is a moment that melts my heart. For those moments, I'm grateful, and anxious for more.

I love you,
Momma

Balloons!

Hehe.

Walkin' with Dadda.

Swimmer boy!

He loves to play with Momma and Dadda's shoes, and put them on.

Mommy, you're silly!

Mmmm, snack.

His best friend, blanky.

Big boy dining chair.

ELMO!

Balloons and Elmo? This must be heaven...

Sorry Uncle Kenny...

He loves his fries, I had a hard time explaining to him that this was a toy, not a real fry, he got very frustrated.

Field Trip: Fort Worth Zoo

With the beautiful weather we had on Sunday Brad and I made the last minute decision to take Colin for his first trip to the zoo. One of the few animals he can recognize, point out and say is "Lion." So we knew we had to see the lion before we left. Of course, the lion was his favorite. When we got there, he pointed right to him and and started saying "Li, Li" (his word for lion). Then we got a real special treat, the lion roared for us, and almost right in front of us!

Overall Colin did really well, he wanted to walk a lot, which slowed us down a bit, but like Brad said, the day was all about him so it didn't matter how fast we went. I'll let the pictures tell you the rest of the story:

First picture of the day; Zebra!; Posing with Momma

Elephants!; "Li, Li!"; Lady Lions



With Daddy in the bird area; Checking out a big bird; Walking with Dadda!



Colin's new stroller, and his silly face; With Daddy at the Parrots; One of his favorite things about the zoo was all the water features, lots of water falls!





Colin's Souvenirs from the zoo, he's got a funny Dada: