seventh heaven

Gah, this kid.  With a (toothless) smile that would melt the coldest heart, endearing chocolatey eyes, and the lushest lashes, Axl Phoenix never fails to astound us with his preciousness.  These months have absolutely flown by, but our family is so much more beautiful and complete and full of love. 

 sweetest, happiest little thing ev.

 ears!

 classic Axl

 it seems this silly boy's always got that tongue out

Axl moved from sitting up for a few seconds at a time for most of the month of April, to mostly sitting all the time this month.  We saw an ENT for his reflux, and Axl's voice box looks great.  Such good news!  He's now on an adult dose of prevacid, though.  Poor kiddo also has another nasty set of ear infections.  Still sweeter than ever, though!  Still no teeth, but although the pictures don't show it, he's getting more hair! Still red and fuzzy...my mom's betting it's curly, and if his lashes are any indication, she's dead on. 

I'm writing this post early and scheduling it to post automatically because on Axl's actual 7 month birthday, we'll be showing him the beautiful Gulf of Mexico in FL!  Woohoo for family vaca!!  Photographic evidence to follow, for sure!

hilare and presh.  the both of them.

HOW has it been (more than) half a year?!

Our lives are oh, so much richer with you in it, sweet boy!  We're really buckling down and making Axl do more tummy time and sit up.  It seems to be working!  He's actually starting to enjoy playing on his tummy and sitting up - BIG accomplishments!  The acid reflux is really wearing on us...a lack of good sleeping, a hoarse voice, painful spitting up, etc...we see an ENT in May and are hoping to get things nipped in the bud and for Axl to be pain-free soon.  Sweet boy is such an angel, but we know he's hurting and are anxious to get him feeling great.  I've taken it slow with solids, but he's regularly eating about one jar of baby food, thickened with cereal, twice a day. Sleep at night is touch and go...about one night a week, he doesn't make a peep.  But I still haven't been feeding him between about 7:30pm and at least 6am.  Good grief, this child is precious.  Wish I could relay his preciousness via the internet, but I'm pretty sure it's not possible!

five months young

Dreamy, dreamy boy.  Axl is such a go with the flow little guy.  He adores his daddy and brother and there is none like his mama for him.  At five months, he can sit for a few seconds, but I am not persistent or consistent with making him do tummy time, so while his legs are pretty strong, his upper body tends to just topple over.  Pretty funny to watch.  His fingers(or anything else that looks fun to chew on) are always in his mouth, and we keep thinking any morning we're going to get him out of bed and he'll have his eye teeth(vampire baby, much?), but he seems to like taking things slowly.  The biggest difference between Ace and Axl, aside from the obvious - eye color - is their personalities.  I always tell people that I should have taken a hint when Ace came out breathing to rapidly, and Axl came out no breathing fast enough, haha!  Both boys are sweet and happy and attentive, but Ace is so aggressive and Axl is really chill.  They are the perfect fit and match for each other as brothers and for Mace and me as sons.  So, so grateful for them!

at four months old...

Axl was wearing some newborn, some 0-3 month clothes, and some 3-6 months clothes.  He was about 13.5 lbs.  Little boy lights up our life like no other.  We all adore him - this month Ace really started to show interest in Axl.  Probably because Axl's more "entertain-able" now(aka, Ace can make him laugh)!  Sweet boy had his first ear infection this month, and started getting some relief from reflux on Prevacid.  He hates tummy time, but can roll both ways now.  Still wakes pretty regularly once or twice...well, maybe three times, a night.  Reflux?  Who knows.  He's precious and pleasant and so laid back. 

A Little of What We've Been Up to...

Pulling aaaallll the diapers out...

Reading...and sitting like a freakin' 6 year old...

Adoring these out of place shoes

Introducing Ace to Stavros Flatley and the JK wedding dance on YouTube...he was SERIOUSLY cracking up!!

And, here are a couple of hints about our upcoming changes...

...doing (familiar) laundry...

and finding something...can you guess what we are up to?

Less Than a Week...

In less than a week, this huge child will be three months away from TWO years old!!



How is that possible?! He is looking much MUCH less like a baby and every bit like a big boy these days...



Watching himself on video...so vain, so my child! ;). Look how big he looks here!!

Like a Tall Glass(or styrofoam Chic-fil-a cup) of Lemonade

Mace got a job as assistant store manager at two Tire Discounters stores here and I am so proud of him and so excited for him to be able to work again.  We're getting used to the long days again, hating the time we're apart(really, more about that later), and so thankful he's got a job!  These are a few weeks old...Ace is doing so many big boy things as of late...

These days, more than ever, Ace is our glass of lemonade.  Enjoy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The "Great" Pumpkin(s) '09

Last year we went perfect-pumpkin-hunting with our dear friends John, Kara, and June.  I cannot believe how much our babes have grown in a year!

 

 So sweet...we miss this gal(and her parents and sibling in utero) so much!

This year Mace, Ace and I were hoping to go to a farm here in Kentucky to pick apples and find a pumpkin at their patch, but it never worked out so we went to a church we had passed on Sunday that was selling pumpkins.  We got Ace two pumpkins for less than two bucks and this "pumpkin patch" was only 10 minutes from the house.  Winner! 

 He pretty much touched every pumpkin we walked past

 They were wet on the bottom...he's saying, "eeeew"

 

 Off to find the perfect punkin

 

Finding beauty in the ugliness

 

Very intrigued by the wart-y ones 

 Touching...

 

 every...

 

 pumpkin...

 So many to choose from

 

 yeah, he's barefoot...parents of the year

 

run, fat boy, run

 pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere

 I CAN'T PICK THIS ONE UP!!

 

 I asked him to sit with the pumpkins (please notice his anti-grass hands)

 

 poppin' a squat with the pumpkins

 

 found more wart-y ones

 

 not that one

 

 trying to get the warts off

 

 two-timing

 

we hope his infatuation with warts exists only with warts on pumpkins

 

 nasty

 

 sweet baby(I know, I know, big boy) hands

 

 And this is exactly where we were when Mace asked, "what kind of church is this?"

  Love you, Captain Obvious

 

 These are more like it

 Got me a pumpkin

  

 hey, hey, hey, hey!

 

 another weird pumpkin/gourd

 

Ace and the Giant Scrotums

 

 Wanted this weird white pumpkin

 

Warts, what else?

 

 Perfection

 

 He needed two

 

Inspecting

 

Hey, look everyone...

 

me Ace. you pumpkin

 

 A whole bunch of the weirdest, ugliest I've ever seen

 

 have you ever?

 

 Pride

 

 satisfied

 

 counting the pumpkins

 

holding his pumpkins

 

Checking out their smell...please notice it IS in his nostril

 

peace and a pumpkin