4 months

Dear Blaze,

You are so fun!!! You are 4 months old and you loooooove to eat. You had a doctor's appointment today and weighed 16 lbs! Yikes. You're a chunky little guy, 25 inches long, and your head was in the 90 something percentile. When you went to the doctor today you were SO happy! Every time the doctor checked something on your body you would smile and laugh at him. He said you were the happiest baby he has checked in a long time. You love to laugh and giggle at everything. You've got a cold (actually the doc wasn't sure if it was a cold or allergies, we're hoping cold) so you've been a little grumpy since you have trouble breathing sometimes. Hopefully it goes away quick.

You met your Grandpa Smith for the first time last week. You loved him! I don't know why but you laughed at him constantly it seemed like. I mean, I'll give it to him, he's pretty funny for an old guy, but you were his biggest fan!

You love staring at your hands and we think it is pretty hilarious how entranced you get. You are starting to reach for things sometimes. And we are going to start you on some rice cereal and see how you do! I've got a feeling you'll love it.

 You don't like the flash on my phone

 Daddy pretending to eat your arm

Silently defiant I guess :)

3 Months

Dear Blaze,

You are 3 months old! You have grown so much in that short little time. You have a cute little pudgy belly and you're getting little fat rolls on your legs and arms. You like to smile a lot, you laugh at the fridge, and sometimes at me. You are getting better at holding your head up, and you LOVE to eat your hands. You try to get those fists completely in there and it is hilarious!

You had your baby blessing yesterday at church.  The men in the circle were: - Dad - Sam Drown (Your uncle, but you already know that) - Jason Poetschlag (Another uncle) - Brett Heyland (He served with your dad in Taiwan. They were in the MTC together but they were never companions on the mission. Regardless they have remained good friends) - Adam Wingate (Dad's best friend, practically another uncle) - Greg Winder (Another good friend and neighbor)

I tried to write down a few things that were said in your blessing and here they are:

-Bless you to have a healthy body and able to enjoy all that life can offer
-Knowledge of the Drown name and add to its legacy
-You will have a special role in our family. There will be many times in the future when your dad will have to leave. You will have a greater responsibility than a child your age should have. You will rise up to the challenge and lead your family while your father is gone. (Dad and I both choked up at this part - You will be the man of the house every time he leaves on trainings or deployments)
-Faith like your parents and grandparents
-Eloquence in sharing your testimony and will be a blessing and force for good among friends

It was a beautiful blessing and you are a special little guy. We are excited to see you grow into a successful man and so glad we get to be your cheerleaders on the sidelines as you go through life!

Here are some pictures

 You love those fists

 Pretty sure your eyes are turning colors. They're not as blue anymore. They are almost silver! Wondering if they'll end up brown

Almost 3 months old

Dear Blaze,

You are almost 3 months old now! We can't believe how fast the time has gone. I wish it would slow down a little so I can treasure this stage of your life longer. You are getting so big and learning new things. You smile at us a lot now and  make the sweetest noises when you try to talk to us. This morning you blew some bubbles at me a couple of times. You must blow spit bubbles a lot though because there is often times some foamy bubbles sitting on your lips. I got out a little play mat for you this past week that Maeli used to play with. You thought it was okay. Obviously you aren't reaching out for toys and stuff yet but that will come soon. 

You have been sleeping 8 hours straight at night for 2 weeks now. I thought it was a fluke the first time it happened but nope. Every night you will sleep at least 8 hours. The past two nights you have slept 9 hours straight. You are spoiling us! And I appreciate it!

You like to punch dad in the face every time he gets up in your personal space. I think it's funny, so does he. We are going to be giving you a baby blessing in two weeks. Sorry it took a little longer than planned. We switched to a family ward and that slowed things down a little. I realized over these past few weeks that I am raising a future priesthood holder. Some day you will receive the priesthood, pass and bless the sacrament, baptize, serve a mission, go to the temple, get married, and give your own children blessings. You will also be the head of your own family and home someday. You will be the sole provider for your wife and children. Hopefully we raise you right and teach you the things you need to know so that you can be successful in all that you do.

I think we tell you about 30 times a day how handsome you are. By far the most handsome baby boy I have seen, granted I am a tad bit biased. Thank you for being such a great baby so far! 

Love,

Mom

10 Weeks

Dear Blaze,

I can't believe you are nearly 2 1/2 months old already! You are growing up too fast. I think each stage of development is fun though and obviously there are pros and cons to the newborn phase (You love to cuddle but...you can't entertain yourself. You either want to be eating or have us hold you). I know I say this a lot but you are the most handsome little boy! We just stare at you making your cute faces at us and can't believe how cute you are. You started smiling at us about a week ago but you don't smile back at us often...so when you do it makes us feel like we're doing something right! You had your 2 month check-up last week. You were 11 lbs, 22.5 inches long...and I don't remember your head size! 41? Anyway. So you are in the 60th percentile for height/weight and I can't remember your head. Maybe around the same. Your sister was the same length as you at this age but she had a good pound on you (not to mention that girl's head circumference, yikes!).

Daddy picked your outfit on Sunday. You weren't a fan.

 A little bit of a smile

 You're not easy to photograph when it comes to smiling. Every time you'd give a big smile you would look away from the camera!

 Looking a little worried in your bouncer

You had to get your immunizations on Monday. They gave you one in a dropper and then had to give three shots in your thighs. You were super sleepy that morning so you didn't see it coming. She put the first shot in and you let out one short little cry and then they did the two others really quickly. You took it all like a champ! You just let out a little cry (it lasted maybe two seconds) and then you were done. In fact, you smiled at the nurse when she was done! Maeli watched you get the shots and boy was that hilarious. I watched her face as they gave you your second shot. Her eyes got really wide and worried, and when they stuck you she gasped and put her hand over her mouth and her eyes started to water. She was on the verge of crying over her little brother getting poked! It was pretty sweet.

Oh, and you make the cutest little baby coos and sounds. I can't wait until I hear you laugh for real for the first time (doing it in your sleep doesn't count....but is still pretty cute!). Keep growing! We love you-

Love,
Mom

7 Weeks Old

 Watching some classic Westerns with daddy

Dear Blaze,

You have no idea how many kisses and cuddles you get every day! Maeli is constantly kissing on you. Daddy is constantly kissing on you. I am constantly cuddling with you - I love it when you fall asleep on me - which kind of stinks because the only time I can get things done is when you're sleeping.

You are getting bigger. I'm not sure how much you weigh but your legs are starting to get chubbier. You are really long though so it will take more weight to fill you out. But you are too big for your newborn clothes (luckily we only had a few newborn clothes anyway) and fit perfectly in the 3 month clothes for now. You are the best night sleeper! I'm guessing it had something to do with us trying to keep you awake from 5 PM til bedtime but you are in a perfect routine already. You'll fall asleep somewhere between 10:30 and midnight. Then you'll sleep for 6 hours at least. The past few days I have had to wake you up so that I can feed you. You'll eat and then pass out for another 4 hours. This means I have gotten a lot more sleep than I had been which means I have been much happier and productive. THANK YOU. I am so grumpy when I don't get much sleep so I am very grateful for your willingness to sleep at night. You're wide awake in the late afternoon and evening until bedtime. You went through a rough period for a few weeks where you were really fussy and it was tiring. Any time you were awake you'd be crying unless I was feeding you. I think you're getting over that and it will only get better.

You still make worried faces a lot, not a lot of smiles but that's okay! When you do smile randomly it is adorable. You LOVE to stare at the wall above our couch. I think you're staring at a picture of dad and Maeli - you won't take your eyes off of it sometimes. OH, and I have been meaning to write this down. Sometimes you sound just like a squeaky toy. Especially when you have the hiccups. It's so funny! You are definitely entertaining. You have a Dr. Appointment next week and we'll see how big you are. You're going to hate me, but you'll be getting a lot of shots in your legs too. I'm sorry in advance.

Love,
Mom

P.S. Thank you for liking the swing so much.