Sofian Family Update!

Sorry for not updating in a while. Our laptop bit the dust and we haven't been able to replace it iust yet. Aaron and I both upgraded our phones, so here I am being all tech savvy and posting this from my new Android phone.  :)

We are all doing well and anxious for the holidays.  Aaron is currently in training to be an assistant store manager. He has been away  in training for 4 weeks. He is able to come home on the weekends so we are lucky to be able to spend some time with him. We miss him but are excited for what is in store for our little family.  :) His new position is in Big Rapids so we are looking for housing but not in too much of a rush because our lease here in Lansing isn't up until February. 

Evan is crawling all over the place and even trying to climb too.  He is wonderful and I praise God every day for allowing me to witness his remarkable growth. :)  He has 4 teeth already, 2 on top and 2 on the bottom. There is one more on top that is trying to make its grand entrance...which is making for a fussy unhappy little bubby at times, but we are working through it. :)

I am participating in Etsy's Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale this year so if you are interested, check out my shop for some great deals and FREE SHIPPING!!! I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!
Http://www.simplymejewelrybyamy.etsy.com

Avocados!!

So we decided to try avocados for dinner the other night and Aaron took this video for us to show everyone what Evan thought about them.  We tried them again last night and had the same reaction so we have decided to wait a few days and then we will be trying the sweet potatoes.  Evan is such a character.  Enjoy the video. :) 

PS.  Evan is officially 6 months old as of yesterday and today I discovered he has a tooth popping through.  My baby boy is growing up so fast!

Rolly Polly

Evan is rolling ALL over the place and I am loving EVERY minute of it. He is so fun to watch. He reaches for everything and loves getting into "trouble" as he tips over baskets.  He is so cute when he tips his toy basket and digs his toys out to play with. I am enjoying him at each and every step of his development.  On Monday Evan will be 6 months old and we are looking forward to starting him on solid foods. Monday for dinner we will be trying sweet potatoes and I can't wait to try out my new food mill. :)
We will be doing avocados too and then maybe bananas. Wish us luck. :)

PPCM Awareness Jewelry

So I finally have some bracelets made and listed in my shop.  I have had 3 sales so far and hope to have even more in the future.  The lovely ladies who purchased bracelets are some of my "Heart Sisters" and they very much like what they recieved.  I am so happy.  I plan on making and listing 10-15 more in the next month, if I am able.  Evan has been keeping me on my toes and so I really haven't had much time to do a whole lot.  He is rolling all over the place and enjoying every minute of it. :) 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SimplyMeJewelryByAmy?section_id=10346725


That's about all the new stuff that I have for now, someone is waking up as I type for a midnight feeding...I think we might be having a MAJOR growth spurt. :)

~Good Night
~Sleep Tight
~Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite. :)

A Day to remember...

Yesterday we went to Domino Farms in Ann Arbor to meet with Evan's hand surgeon.  FINALLY!  It was a nice ride there but I was a bit anxious.  I tried to keep the conversation light, so Aaron and I talked about all kinds of things, the weather, work, possibly looking at buying a house in the spring, etc.  Before I knew it, we were there.  I'm not exactly sure what else they do there, but I saw all kinds of animals as we pulled into the parking lot.  There were long horned bulls, striped cows from Scotland, and even some alpacas.  It was neat see them all grazing all around the building.  I wish I had taken my camera, I definitely will next time we go there.  The wait wasn't too long.  We got some x-rays and then we waited a bit more.  When we went in to see the doctor, the nurse was super nice.  She took a look at Evan's hand and said, "Oh, that's not too bad."  She said that they see cases like Evan's at least once a month.  That made me less nervous just knowing that Evan wouldn't be a first for them.  The PA came in first and then went to get the doctor.  When Dr. Chung came in he was very serious looking.  He asked some questions and took a look at Evan's hand.  He said it wasn't too bad, but it WAS going to be tricky to fix due to the location of the bands.  He said that we will wait until Evan is a few months older before we do his first surgery, there will be more to come as he grows.  When we do, he will have the band on his left leg released, some of the bands on his hand, and also the band on his right big toe.  Then someone came in to take photographs of Evan's hand so the Dr. can take a look and figure out what exactly he will have to do to repair Evan's fingers.  I am NOT looking forward to ANY of these surgeries, but I know that they are necessary to keep Evan growing and developing the right way.  I am nervous and a bit scared of what the recovery will entail on my part. I am not sure what to expect as far as the healing process and what we will need to do to take care of Evan properly so he heals the best he can.  It will definitely be interesting to say the least.  I will update more as we get more information, right now it is just waiting for them to schedule the surgery, it should be in November or December.



Alpacas~Taken with my phone

When we left the building and walked to our car, this is what we saw.  The alpacas had made their way to our side of the building and were grazing on the hill right in front of where we were parked.  It was kinda cool. :)

Love is...

I stood there in a tanktop and pajama shorts that had been worn for one too many days with spit-up dripping from my shoulder to my backside.  I hadn't showered in days.  We swayed back and forth, dancing to the soft melodies that came from the CD player.  A memorable song from my own childhood was playing, "True Colors" by Phil Collins in the form of a quiet lullaby just soothing enough to lull my little one to sleep.  I looked down at his round sweet face and whispered in his ear, "You are perfect",  "You are wonderful."  I make sure to tell him this every chance I get.  I kiss the top of his head and feel his fluffy blonde hair on my lips.   I remembered back to just 4 short months before when I first laid eyes on him and I began to weep.  His hair was darker and fuzzier.  He was so small and fragile and dependent upon me for everything he would ever need.  I never knew it would become something so much more than just being a mommy.  I never expected to feel this way.  I never expected to be so overcome with emotions, some new, some old.    I had finally figured out exactly what unconditional love really is.  To me it means that I would walk to the ends of the Earth for this sweet boy.  I have been to Heaven and Hell for him already and would do it again in a heartbeat.  When I met my husband I understood love, but I never thought I would ever feel THIS type of love for another human being.  It is more different than any other feeling I have ever had.  It is an all encompassing feeling that takes over my entire being.  I feel beyond blessed to be able to experience all of this and to have Evan in my life.

When I tell him I love him

it is more than just words,

it is my life,

my heart,

my soul.

He's off and Rolling!!!

Yesterday morning Evan and I were hanging out just like we always do.  It was a normal day pretty much like any other.  He was hanging out  on his activity gym enjoying the rings and rattling things that were dangling above his head while I was doing some much needed emailing and catching up after being away from home for a week.  I decided that it was time for me to eat breakfast and take my meds while he was content and not really needing my undivided attention.  I walked into the kitchen to make a bagel and grab some juice.  While my bagel was toasting, I peeked back into the living room to see the most AMAZING thing before my very eyes.


When I left him this is what he was doing...

But when I returned, THIS is what I found...

After Evan showed me his wonderful new trick, he proceeded to spit-up all over himself because he had eaten a short while before rolling onto his tummy.  When Evan was all cleaned up he decided that he would let me record his new fun trick, in case he wouldn't do it on command when his daddy got home from work.  I didn't really need to.  He has been off and rolling ever since yesterday morning.  It's kinda funny how he used to HATE it when I put him on his belly for tummy time, but now he can't get enough of it. :)   He even tries to roll while he's buckled into his bouncy seat. Lol. 

  I am so excited that he is advancing developmentally pretty much right on schedule, but I am sad that he is growing up way too fast.  I am definitely enjoying watching him grow and learn new things and I am making sure to document each and every move he makes. :)

Off to Dream Land...

I have always been one of those people who looked at other parents and said, "When I have kids I'm not gonna do that."  I will never again say that.  I HAVE done that...I have done all the things that I said I wouldn't do when I became a parent.  I think that it is easy for people who have never had children to judge or decide to do things differently.  Until you have the experience of bringing life into this world, you have NO idea what you will or will not do.  I always said that I wouldn't hold my baby all day long, yet I find that my arms ache when Evan is not in them.  I always said that my baby would NEVER sleep in my bed because it would interfere with the intimacy of my marriage, yet I wake up in the middle of the night just waiting for Evan to cry so I can run to him and bring him back to bed with me.  He has had a rough time sleeping, pretty much since he was born, and we have had to make some adjustments to our thoughts and feelings of how we had wanted his sleep habits to work.  From 0-3 months old, Evan had an infant startle reflex that would cause him to wake himself up if his arms were loose.  He would only sleep in his bed if he were swaddled and napped in my arms during the day.  When he grew too big for the sleep-sac with the swaddle wrap, we referred to our midwives who make GIANT swaddle blankets...They saved our sanity.  When he outgrew those, or it was too hot to swaddle, I would bring him to bed with me and we would fall asleep together.  Then I would wake up and put him in his own bed for the night.  My body ached from sleeping so stiffly while he was in our bed.  Thankfully, that didn't last very long.  Recently, Evan has begun sleeping by himself, in his own bed, WITHOUT being swaddled.  He is of course still rocked/held until he falls asleep, but he stays asleep in bed ALL night long! Yay!  I am so excited because now he can wear all of his cute sleepers and sleep-sacks.  He has a TON and now we can actually use them. :)  Here are a few pictures of our little guy in his sleepwear and on his way to dreamland...

Mommy wanted to snuggle in her bed!

Sleeping soundly...

Getting ready for bed...but I'm WIDE awake!

Look at me sleeping so peacefully in my cute sleep gown!
(I think I'm going to be a side sleeper when I get older.)

We're growing bigger every day!