9 months

Rockwell is 9 months old and he is changing so fast. I get emotional thinking about how he is becoming less and less dependent on me. It makes me sad that he is so close to walking and so close to being a toddler. I can see my baby fading away and a little boy emerging. He pulls himself up on the furniture and even started sleeping through the night this last week. It's weird that something that I have looked forward to for the last nine months, is making me sad. But the fact that he needed me, even if it was at 4 am, made me happy. I was happy to get up and have that quiet time with my sweet baby. Just the two of us, quiet, calm and cuddly. I loved it. That time that I nurse him is our special bonding time. It's so peaceful and I'm really going to miss it when he's done nursing. Hopefully we'll make it to a year. 

And here are a few things that I want to remember about him at this age...

He crawls all over the place!

Just this past week he started standing up in his crib and all the other furniture. 

He's got the puff eating down now and we'll probably start him on ground meats soon. When he grabs the puffs he concentrates so hard and grabs them with his pointer finger and thumb. It's actually made eating out with him way easier. It keeps him entertained while we eat!

Now that he's mobile he is into EVERYTHING within his reach. 

He loves to laugh and smile. 

Still nurses at nap times, bed time and once in the early morning when he first wakes up. 

He loves being outside. He babbles the whole time and is super observant while we're out on walks. 

When he gets fussy a change of scenery is usually a quick fix. 

Anything he can grab goes into his mouth. He especially enjoys shoes and furniture. We call him our little puppy. The other day he got my wallet out of the diaper bag and ate one of my chick fil a coupon. 

Sometimes, when he does something that could hurt him, I get stern with him and he smiles and giggles at me. He is always reminding me to worry less, be more patient and love more. I am so blessed to have him as my son. He has taught me so much and he loves me so well. When I walk into the house and he smiles and starts crawling towards me it makes me so happy. I am so glad that I get to spend my days with him. To be his mother has been the most challenging and most rewarding time of my life. I am thankful for everyday, even the hard ones, because I know that I am doing God's work on the earth. I am blessed to have the chance to raise this perfect little boy. I pray every day that I can do my best to teach him and love him as best I can. 

His 9 month stats:

Length: 30 inches (97%)

Weight: 20 lbs 13.5 oz (71%)

Head Circumference: 17.9 inches (65%)

 

december happenings

basically a photo dump of a bunch of fun and cute things from december. i really do live a wonderfully beautiful life. i feel so lucky!

holiday sunday best!

my running buddy.

hot cocoa before the brea nativity. a special tradition in the rex family. 

ward christmas party! 

that christmas bow tie! it kills me. 

sitting up in the bath now!

hanging with brylee

made breakfast for the ronald mcdonald house! such a blessing to serve others in need. 

rockwell's blessing day

rockwell was given a name and a blessing in our ward on sunday, august 3, 2014. it was such a perfect day. he slept well the night before so we all got a good night sleep and i made all the food the day before so that i wouldn't be stressed out. i also made sure i pumped a bottle so that i wouldn't have to leave the meeting if he got hungry and set out my clothes the night before so that i could get ready quickly.

i fed him just before we left for church so he ended up being super calm and happy during the blessing and then fell asleep in my arms as soon as tyler was done with the blessing. tyler did a great job giving him a beautiful blessing. it was a very happy experience for our little family.

we were blessed to have a lot of family come and support us, it was so wonderful. afterwards we had dinner with our immediate family. rockwell was held and happy all day. he was SO good. we were all so happy about it. i've been dreaming about the day we would bless our first baby for so long and i can hardly believe that it has already come and gone.

rockwell is such a good boy and we are so happy to have him in our family. he makes us smile everyday and keeps us on our toes and we love it!

here is a note i wrote in my phone the morning of his blessing...

Rockwell, 

Today is your blessing day. Its 6:04 am and you're eating. I'm just thinking about you. What pictures were going to take, how you'll be during your blessing and how much i love you. I'm thinking about how you'll wear the same blanket i did when i was blessed 27 years ago. Thinking about how grandpa Larry is in the hospital so he won't be able to come. Thinking about how i had a dream that he and grandma surprised us and came to the church. Thinking about how time flies and how i want to vividly remember you at this very moment as you hum while you eat and hold onto me with your clammy little hands. Thinking about how i want to remember how your belly hangs over your diaper like a muffin top because you have a big thick wide torso like your dad and papa rex. Thinking about how you smile as your falling asleep or how you rolled over at the age of 6 weeks. I'm thinking about how many people love you, love us and would do anything for us. I'm thinking about your dad, who loves you so perfectly and has wanted you since i can remember. Tears run down my face. Today he will will use the priesthood & give you a name and a blessing and some special men will stand around you. I know that Heavenly Father and the Savior love you and that the spirit will be there. Rockwell i love you. I love your perfect little face, your cheeks, your little button nose and your spunky smile! Oh and i even love it when you snore! You are my sweet son and i prayed for you for so long. Thank you for coming to our family and into my arms. You are an answer to my prayers and i am so happy to be your mama!

two months old!

i cannot believe this boy is 2 months old today!!! words cannot describe just how much i love my son. he is so much fun to be around and seeing him smile everyday just lights up my world. i don't really remember what i did before he came along... he is my everything.

here are a few photos of him the day of his blessing, the day before his 2 month "birthday"

my life in instagram, starring rockwell

life with rockwell is kind of awesome. it is really hard sometimes, but really really great too. he is now 7 weeks old and smiling more and more. he doesn't really like tummy time, but he is super strong. he pulls his neck up and kicks his legs a ton. he is eating like a champ and although i haven't weighed him, the fact that he is in 3 month clothes and size 2 diapers reassures me that he is gaining the proper amount of weight. he is occasionally gassy/fussy, but for the most part he is a really good kid. we have been blessed with a few good blowouts, which is just how it goes with little babies. he usually takes a nice big afternoon nap and sleeps in 3-4 hour chunks. the last couple nights he has slept 6 hours in a row, which obviously i am thrilled about. having uninterrupted sleep for longer than 2 hours is amazing! i cannot believe how good it feels. i think i just forgot what it was like to actually get the proper rest my body needs. so thank you son, you are an angel!

basically we are in love love love with this little boy. he is the center of our universe, just as he should be. everyday we get better and better at being a family and figuring each other out. this parenthood thing really is a wild and crazy ride, but i would not trade it for anything in the world!

a few pictures from instagram as of late...