Newborn smiles and other fun stuff

Babies aren't technically supposed to smile until they are 4-6 weeks old and often later. I dont think Alder smiled until he was like 3 months old! Heath is not only proving to be a very contented baby (so far - knock on wood), but one that smiles quite easily. Yes, like all newborns, he smiles as he is falling asleep and when he dirties a diaper, but he also smiles when fully awake. I like to think he was smiling at my voice in this picture....

Overall, Heath seems to be very easy to console. He only cries when hungry or tired and we can typically do something about that! I have had to wake him each night to feed except the last two when he woke only twice and went right back to sleep after eating. He has started to spit up quite a bit which is something Alder never did. Hopefully this is not a sign of a weak stomach in our future...

Grammy, Pa Pa, uncle Travis and Aunt Ana came to meet Heath this past weekend and celebrate the 4th of July with us. We had a great time and as is typically the case when the Bullucks visit, it was productive as well. Tom and Jason put up a gutter on the front of our house and replaced the landscape timbers along our front walkway! Alder had fun for at least an hour shuttling his matchbox cars down an inclined gutter.

We had a large feast on the back deck and enjoyed the unusually mild weather - nothing over 90 for at least a week! We love spending time in our shady back yard, but really hate the hoards of mosquitoes that arrive when there is no breeze. If anyone has any remedies for dealing with mosquitoes, we are all ears. The citronella spray works pretty well, but it would be nice to get rid of them!!

Pa Pa brought the great grandmas up for a quick visit yesterday so they could see our house and meet their newest great-grandson. As always it was so nice to sit around and hear stories from times past. Not having any grandparents of my own (since I was very young) I really enjoy being able to ask questions and gain perspective about a time that seems so long ago (1920s-30s), but really wasn't. Thanks so much for making this happen Tom!

Oh, yes and Alder received a gift from Heath - his very own guitar! For months he has loved to play with dad's guitar and dad has been toying with the idea of picking up a ukulele...so we went to a local music store and found an affordable uke. We thought it would be a good idea to keep Heath on Alder's good side (hee hee) as well as teach him to be respectful and gentle with a real (not a toy) musical instrument. It hangs with Dad's guitar out of reach when not in use and he has to ask to play with it. He has learned quickly and often says - "I not drag it, not step on it, not slide it, not throw it..." He really loves his "gi-gitar" and can strum it pretty well already! He prefers a pick and holds it like a backwards dobro.

Alder has also really been enjoying smoothie popsicles ("smoovie ot-sicools")lately. I make myself a smoothie at least once a week and then freeze some of it for these later treats. Super healthy too - frozen blueberries, strawberries, bananas, soymilk, peanut butter, and sometimes yogurt and coconut. Here are Alder and his buddy Sylvia posing with their pops.

Oh yes and one more thing about Alder...he often comes home from school in different clothes than we sent him in for various reasons. They have open access to sinks and they often get wet, they go outside in all weather conditions and often get muddy, boys sit down to urinate and he stands at home, so he is still learning how to keep the flow IN the pot! Regardless, sometimes he has to borrow other kids clothes and sometimes it is 'girly' stuff. He came home yesterday in this shirt! So Cute!!He resembles mommy as a child especially when wearing girl clothes. Dad thinks it super cool too.