Rachel & Sean

Dean is eight weeks old today and he is currently sleeping in his dad’s arms, while his dad laughs loudly at the old Superman movie on the TV.  Sunday evenings are so wonderful when Sean doesn’t have to work.

Dean can be very entertaining when he wants to be.  Here are some pictures that make me smile.

Dean is getting older and bigger.  I am continually learning new things about him.  For instance if I eat a chocolate bar before bed he will be up most of the night and fussy all the next day.  I have also learned that rubbing his belly will sometimes calm him down when he is crying…and sometimes there is nothing that will calm him down.  I hung a plastic toy chain from the handle on his car seat, that is what he is staring at in the picture above.

I have still not been able to capture him smiling on camera, here is the closest I have come.

Finally, I had to post a picture of these adorable sandals my friend Shayna gave Dean.  At first, I thought the were doll shoes since they are so tiny.  Thanks Shaker, I love them!

My dearest sister Sarah, I can say dearest because she is my only sister, has a little baby girl, Jane.  She is about seven months older than Dean, but she was born very early so they are now nearly the same size.  It was so fun to see them together a few weeks ago.  Jane is a little miracle baby, and she is beautiful!  Thanks mom for these beautiful pictures.

Thank you Dean, for taking an extra long nap so that I could get a drink of water, go to the bathroom, clean the living room and kitchen, eat lunch, make dinner, respond to emails, and make this post (in that order).  You are so considerate sometimes. 

I always make sure I go to the bathroom and fill up my water cup first just in case he sleeps only a few minutes (which happens often).  My strategy for surviving life seems to have changed some now that I am a mother.

…except maybe a baby on a rocking horse!!!!

My dear friend Emily took these precious pictures of Dean while we were in Utah last week.  Emily has been documenting my life through pictures for years.  I won’t be posting any pictures of when she had me model for her on the beaches of Hawaii (although I looked pretty good at the time, the fact is that even at its peak my body was not made for swimsuit modeling).  So you will just have to admire Em’s work by looking a here at Dean and going to her company website, http://imagesbyemily.blogspot.com/

P.S.  Dean has started to smile…so cute…I am desperately trying to catch it on film.

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Dean had his one month appointment last Wednesday.  He weighed in at 9 pounds and measured 22 inches long.  I am so happy he is growing, now I have confirmation that he is getting enough to eat.

Dean is three weeks old today.  This past week he had his first check-up with the doctor, he lost what remained of his umbilical cord, he went through more diapers than I am willing to count and he learned to appreciate black on white images.  Happy three weeks little man!

Here is a photo of my two favorite boys…aren’t they cute?

Dean has fallen asleep on me.  He has been a little fussy the last day or two so I really don’t want to wake him.  Luckily my laptop was within reach, but I really wish Sean was home to get me a drink of water.

I must say this whole taking care of an infant thing is more time intensive than I thought possible.  Dean seems to want to nurse all day and night.  He produces more dirty diapers than such a tiny person has any right to produce.  He can’t be woken when he should be a wake and he can’t be put to sleep when he should sleep.  It is a good thing he is so darn cute.  I don’t know how anyone can care for more than one child or how anyone can do it with out a spouse.

I may be tired for the rest of my life but I already can’t imagine my life with out Dean-o.  I love you little man!

The week before Dean was born I entertained myself by trying some new recipes.  Since he joined our household the only things I have made either came frozen or could be prepared in the microwave.  One of the recipes I tried was Jenna’s Lemon Squares.  They are awazing when Jenna makes them and they turned out great when I made them so I think the recipe is worth sharing.  Enjoy!

Crust:

2 c flour

½ c powdered sugar

1 c butter

Filling: 

4 eggs

2 c sugar

¼ c flour

1 t baking powder

¼ c lemon juice

Glaze: 

1 c powdered sugar

2-3 Tbsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350º degrees.  Combine crust ingredients and press into ungreased baking pan.  Bake for 20-30 minutes.

Combine filling ingredients.  Pour over crust and bake for 25-30 minutes.

Let filling cool completely.  Mix glaze ingredients and pour over cooled filling.  Cut and serve.

Dean is one week old and he already knows how to make so many facial expressions.  I am so proud of him!

My dear friend Morgan came over and took some gorgeous photos of our little bundle of joy.  They turned out so great I have to share some of them.  Dean is only three days old but he has already had his picture taken hundreds of times and stared in many home videos.  Perhaps we are over documenting his life…but we just can’t get enough!

Our new favorite thing is watching him hiccup.  He gets a look of genuine surprise every single time he hiccups.  I guess to him everything is new.

Thanks for all the well wishes!  We are so blessed to have great friends and family to celebrate with us.