Wes Wild: 18 Months Old

Wes! You are a year and a half old! This is such a cute stage and you are doing so many fun things now! Here are some highlights:

On Oct 11, you graduated from your helmet! It was such an emotional day for me. We went in for your checkup, did your measurements and they said you were looking fantastic and that you could be done wearing your helmet. They let you ring the little bell in the hallway, and we all took a group pic. I cried when I got in the car, just because your helmet had been such a big part of you for so long, and it was also something that you and I handled mostly by ourselves while your dad was deployed. And plus, you just looked so cute with it on! Everywhere we went, people wanted to talk about it because you were so cute. We came home and put your helmet in your memory box. I'll always remember you in it!

For Halloween this year, we dressed you up as a baby shark. There was a popular song called "Baby Shark" for kids, so we thought that was pretty funny. Daddy got a daddy shark costume - a big onesie - that he wore so you guys were twins! We pushed you in your toy car while your sisters trick-or-treated and you LOVED it. You seemed very excited to be out with everyone.

For Thanksgiving, we traveled to Didi and Pops' house in Beaumont. We spent the week there hanging out with family, then went to Crystal Beach for Thanksgiving. You loved riding on the golf cart down the beach and fell asleep almost every time. You also loved your Thanksgiving dinner and ate so much! On our last day there, we went to Galveston to see an ice castle. We had to bundle up in giant jackets to go in. You didn't like being so cold in there, so me and you left early and went to the gift shop where you pulled all the stuffed animals off the shelves for 45 mins while we waiting on everyone else.

For Christmas, Didi and Pops came to visit us. We decorated cookies and wore ugly Christmas sweaters and your favorite gift was a giant tunnel that you can crawl through like the one they have at daycare.

In Feb, you started becoming more expressive with your emotions. You learned how to crinkle your eyebrows like you were confused and you did it all the time - it was the cutest! Daddy gave you your first at-home haircut in Feb, too. He did a pretty good job! We had a few snow days in Feb so that was fun! You loved bundling up and going out to play in the snow with your sisters. In Feb, you also learned how to crawl up into the dining room chairs and get to stuff on the table. This is the worst! Because whatever is on the table, you make a giant mess of. If sisters leave their crayons on the table, you throw them everywhere!

In March, we roadtripped to Disneyland and Didi and Pops met us there. You really liked Disneyland! You pretty much fell asleep on every dark, slow ride we went on (Small World, Little Mermaid, Pirates of the Caribbean, etc) and it was really cute. When we went to meet some princesses, you didn't want to go over to see them, so you stood by me and daddy. Your sisters went over and were talking to the princesses and Ariel said "Oh, who's that little Flounder over there? I bet he's silly. Is he silly?" and Elle said no and Ariel said "Oh, so he's more serious - more like a Sebastian??" The girls thought that was hilarious!

One of you favorite things to do that we tell you not to do is to play with the cats' food and water. You love to take cat food out, put it in the water bowl, put it on the floor, put it in little toy cups that you have. You like dunking things in the cat water bowl. You do it all the time even though we always tell you not to!

You also love to "sing" into microphones. Your sisters have a couple microphones and you love to carry them around the house singing. You basically open your mouth wide, shove the microphone almost inside then go "aaaaaahhhhhhhh" over and over again. :)

You also really love to play in the toilets - so gross! We put child locks on all the bathroom doors and we have to keep the doors closed so that you don't go in there, take the toilet brushes and make a giant mess by splashing water everywhere!

You really like to eat and you get pretty fussy around dinner time every day because once someone starts preparing food in the kitchen, you want to eat right then so you just follow them around and wine at their feet. You know so many signs from baby sign language videos daddy shows you. You can say water and cracker and so when you're hungry you point at your mouth and then hit one arm with the other hand, the sign for cracker. You also learned how to say "poop" in sign language, which is pretty funny.

You are still so cute that your dad and I say it a million times a day - "why are you so cute??" We call you "bub," "bubby" and "brother" for nicknames. You are still a very happy baby and you have the best laugh. You love to be chased and to play hide and seek.

You've learned a lot more words lately. I think your first word was either "hot" or "bo-bo." Our grass outside gets hot in the sun, so we taught you that it was hot and now you say "hhh" for "hot." (Sounds like just the first part of the word - like an "h" sound.) You do say "mama" and "dada" sometimes, but not to us really, more like just walking around saying it. You know how to say "flower" but it sounds more like "flala." One time I swear you pointed to a picture of a cat and say "kii caa" - but you've never said it again so I'm not sure. When you do your "poop" sign, sometimes you say "poooo" at the same time.

We know you understand a lot of words because if we ask you to find something, you can do it. Or if we ask you to throw something away, you can do that, too. One time the TV remote was missing so we asked you where it was and you opened up a drawer where you keep your toys and got the remote out - haha!

You also really love to dig in the trash can. We put something in, you take it out. You are ALWAYS over there opening the trash and sticking your head in to see what's in there.

You love to be outside and you love to play in water, whether it's outside or the bath tub. Water always makes you happy. You can play in the bathtub for hours, especially if we keep the water running for you, even just a trickle, because you like to be able to fill up cups and pitchers with water and then dump them out. You also like to stand up close to the faucet and stick your belly out so that the water runs down your belly.

We still give you a bottle every night before bed because we just love snuggling you up close so much. We put you in your pjs and your sleep sack and snuggle you up - your dad and I take turns every other night. You don't usually fall asleep on us, so we usually put you in your bed still awake. Lately you've been standing up in your bed and pointing at your rocking chair, so we rock you for a few minutes then lay you back down.

You love riding in your toy car that we push around. You sit in it and hold the steering wheel with your two little hands and just look at everything while we push you around. You love to hold a rock in one hand when you ride, so if you don't have one, you point at the rocks until we give you one. (In El Paso, everyone has rocks in their yards.) The front of your car lifts up for a little trunk and you love to put rocks in there and routinely stand up while we're riding to open your trunk and check out what's in there.

You are very good at climbing. We had to take some steps off the swingset outside so that you can't climb up into the top part. You climb on the garbage cans in the bathrooms to get into the bathtubs. If there's a stool, you'll climb on it! You can finally climb onto the couch by yourself, which makes us nervous because we don't want you to fall off. You love to climb onto the benches of the picnic table on the patio - that makes us nervous, too.

You don't like getting in trouble, so when we do get you in trouble for doing something wrong, you really cry about it - like loud wails and run all over the house like you are just heartbroken. You have a very sweet personality and really are such a lover. You know how to blow kisses, you always want to be picked up and really are just happy if someone carries you on their hip around the house all day. You always give hugs and kisses if asked.

We just love you SO MUCH, and feel so lucky that you are in our family! Love you, little bub!

Happy Birthday, Wes!

All footage captured by Jon. Music by Dave Matthews. Full birth story here. 

Happy first birthday, sweet Wes! You have completed our family! And what a fantastic grand finale you are! You are the sweetest, best baby in the whole world. You bring so much joy to our family every day with your smiles and your snuggles and you bright blonde hair. We love you more than words can say, and we are so, so happy that you are ours! 

Wes Wild: 1 Year Old

You are one year old, baby Wes!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

The last month of your first year was an exciting one because you were trying so hard to walk! You learned to cruise with your walker. The only problem is you don't know how to turn corners so you walk straight until you run into something, then whine until we come and help you around the obstacle. :)

You walked for the first time on Oct 18 - so just a few weeks after your first birthday! It was so fun and we got it on video, even though they said you'd been walking a few steps here and there at school before we saw it for the first time.

Speaking of school, your favorite toy at daycare is a blue doctor dress up shirt that you can pull on yourself over your helmet. Your teachers say you wear it all day long, and they even took a photo of you in it and made it your cubby photo. You are smiling so big and I can tell you really love that shirt. HAHA! So cute!

For your first birthday, we decided to go with the "Wild One" theme since you are our Wes Wild. We decorated with play animals and greenery and got you a carrot cake to smash. You loved it, especially the icing! We invited the Brenneman's over and we all watched you smash your cake. Then we ate chili (and you loved that, too). For your big gift, we got you a car that you can ride in that we can push and you LOVE that. Months later, you still absolutely love taking walks around the neighborhood in your car. You stay in even though you aren't buckled and just sit and hold onto the steering wheel like you're really driving. It's the absolutely cutest. Your car has a front compartment like a trunk that you can put stuff in, and you like to put toys in it and then routinely open it to check on them throughout our walks. :)

We are so thankful that we get to be the ones to watch you learn and grow, baby boy! You are the best baby we could have ever asked for to complete our family. I love you x 100 million!!

Wes Wild: 11 Months Old

Wes! You are almost 1 year old!! I can't believe you are 11 months old now!

You continue to grow like a weed and you are so smart. We put up a baby gate between the living room and the kitchen when you started crawling, and the gate has a pet door in it for the cats. Well, this month you learned how to crawl through the pet door - haha!! So we had to zip tie it closed! You were so sad when you saw it was stuck closed and you couldn't sneak through anymore.

You are now eating all solid foods at school and at home. You are a great eater and like everything. With your sisters, I did baby food for much longer, but you are ready to start eating actual food so that's what we're doing. You never really liked being fed with a spoon - you'd rather do it yourself. One of your favorite places to eat at is Chipotle because you love the rice and beans!

Another difference between you and your sisters is in how you play. You are very easily occupied playing by yourself with your toys. Sometimes, you'll wander down the hallway into your room and just play with your toys by yourself. We love that you can be self entertained sometimes! You like to study your toys and really seem curious about how they work. You also do this with things around the house like the baby gate or knobs on a cabinet - you can see your brain working trying to figure everything out!

You hate it when your sisters go in their room to play without you and close the door. You bang on their door until they finally let you in.

We just love you so much, little man! Now it's time to start planning your first birthday party! :)

Wes Wild: 10 Months Old

You are ten months old, baby boy! You continue to be on the move and this month, we got you a brand new walker so that you can really get around the house! 

You had been using a wagon that your sisters have but we'd have to load it up with stuff to make it heavy enough that it wouldn't fall over while you were trying to stand with it, so finally I just ordered you a legit walker and you love it! You can't walk with it yet, but you love pulling up to stand on it and I can tell it won't be long before you're cruising with it!

You are still pulling up on everything like crazy. You've also started babbling lots of sounds - "lala," "mama" and "dada" are some of them, but you don't know what the words mean. It's still really cute to hear you say "mama," though! 

You really love to eat and your daycare teachers have started giving you more solid foods because if everyone is eating except you, you start to yell really loud - HAHA! So they put you at the table with everyone else and give you the stuff that you can eat. 

This month has been so fun with daddy being back. You continue to warm up to him, but I'm still you're go-to if you need to be comforted, especially in the night. 

I wish I could say you are a good sleeper, but you are not! It's probably the only bad thing about you! You continue to wake up multiple times a night and have since you were born. You are still sleeping in our room in the Pack 'N Play, but we've started talking about sleep training you and moving you to your crib. Now that daddy's back, I'm ready to do that, but I wasn't before. I've loved having you so close all these months. 

Love you more than anything, baby boy! Keep growing! 

Wes Wild: 9 Months Old

Happy nine months, baby boy! This was a BIG MONTH for you (and for our whole family) because daddy came home!!

Daddy was SO EXCITED to see you! We went to the welcome home ceremony and it took FOREVER and we didn't end up seeing daddy until almost 11pm. You were so tired, probably wondering what in the world we were doing up so late and who in the world was this man we were so excited to see. You did not warm up to daddy right away - you still preferred me for a while - and daddy would joke that you thought of him as "man that lives with mom." HAHA! But daddy is just so happy to be home with us to watch you learn and grow and get to know your fun personality!

You also got your first tooth this month and started eating more solid foods. I still stay away from vegetables because I'm worried about making you sick so you get a lot of fruits, eggs and breads right now. You're also able to drink out of a straw now, so we got you your own water bottle to keep in the fridge - you love it!

You've become a super fast crawler and can jet all over the house to get whatever or wherever you want!

We went on a little trip this month to celebrate daddy being home. We loaded up and drove to Scottsdale, AZ. We stayed at a couple really fun hotels, which was both fun and challenging with you. Challenging because you crawled all over the hotel room and we'd find you digging in the carpet trying to find things to put in your mouth - SO GROSS! But so fun because you LOVED the hotel pool! (And we spent a ton of time in the pool because it was so hot in AZ.) You loved us holding you in the pool and were so relaxed. That shouldn't have been a surprise because you also love love love bath time - you are just a water baby! We had a floaty for you and you would float in it but you didn't love it - more preferred us to hold you in the water.

We also spent a lot of time at splashpads this month. I would just plop you down by a water spout and you'd sit and fill up, then dump out your buckets for hours. Your swim suit bod is my FAVORITE! Love you, little man!

Wes Wild: 8 Months Old

You are 8 months old, baby Wes! This month had some pretty big developments!

You are still sleeping in a Pack 'N Play in my room by my bed, and one night I heard a knocking sound. Turns out it was your helmet knocking against the wall as you figured out how to go from laying to sitting. Now every time I come get you in the morning, you're sitting up, smiling at me. Ohmygosh, it's the cutest thing ever!

You also learned how to crawl this month!! The first time you crawled it was because you were trying to get your sisters' shoes. This was your first time legit crawling - not Army crawling or scooting like you had been doing. I got it on video. Me and your sisters were so proud of you! We kept moving the shoes farther back so you would keep crawling to them - you did not like that! :)

It's a good thing your dad comes home next month because it's time to do some baby proofing!

You also started pulling up shortly after you learned to crawl. When you get to a standing position, you look SO PROUD! It's so fun to watch you learn and grow, love bug!

Wes Wild: 7 Months Old

I can't believe you are seven months old, Wes Wild!

You had one REALLY big development in your seventh month - you got a helmet! We've been seeing a specialist since you were two months old, and finally decided this month to go ahead and get a helmet. This was a big adjustment for you and for me! We had to slowly transition you into the helmet - wearing it for a few hours at first and then building up until you wear it everyday, 23 hours a day, with only an hour break in the afternoons to clean it. Weirdly, I cried when you got your glasses, but did not cry when you got your helmet - I think because you just looked SO AMAZINGLY CUTE in it!! :) 

You adjusted to the helmet very well, and I am so glad. At first it was kind of big on your head and twisted a bit to bother your ears. We went in and had it adjusted a bit and it was much better after that. The more your head grew, the more comfy it seemed for you. You don't mind one bit when I put it on you - you just sit still so I can do it. 

We have to clean it every day by spraying it down with rubbing alcohol. It helps keep it from getting stinky from your head sweat. It had affected the kind of clothes I can put you in. Because I don't want to be taking the helmet on and off all day and I don't want your daycare to, either, I now dress you shirts that can stretch over the helmet or unbutton completely like the kimono style onesies. 

Everyone that sees you has to comment on how cute you are. Your helmet is quite the conversation starter! So many people ask about why you have it or tell me about their baby that had a helmet. Little kids LOVE to ask questions about it. I always answer by telling them that your helmet is helping to make your head nice and round. One little girl in Elle's class at school asked me if you were wearing it because you ride a motorcycle. BEST comment ever! :) 

You can't wear your helmet when you're bathing or swimming because it can't get wet so we always take it off for that. Also, if it's a really hot day and we're outside, I will take it off to let you cool down a bit. We got you a special clip on fan for your stroller to help keep you cool in the El Paso heat!

You also had a terrible visit to the emergency room this month. I had noticed you were acting funny with one of your legs when I would pick you up. You were holding it close to your body and whining like it hurt. I went ahead and took you into the emergency room, and they were worried that your leg joint might have an infection in it so they had to run some tests. It was CRAZY hard to get blood out of your little veins. They poked you so many times. It was terrible. I usually do not do well with needles but I was there with you every step of the way. I held you and watched everything they did. I willed them to find a vein that worked. Finally they ended up pricking your heel and squeezing the blood out drop by drop. It was the WORST! You were so hungry but they didn't want you to eat in case you ended up needed a treatment that required an empty stomach. You cried and cried and I walked and bounced you and we were there for so long. It really was a terrible, terrible night. Finally, all of the tests came back negative and we got to go home at 11pm. Wren and Elle were with us and the nurses gave them peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and juice because we were there for so long. On the way home, I went through the McDonald's drive thru and we all got midnight snacks.

The next day when you woke up, your little body was covered in tiny red dots. I texted a photo of it to your Aunt Kelli (because she's a nurse), and she said it looked like Fifth or Sixth Disease, a common infection that babies can get. It can also cause joint pain, which is most likely why you were holding your leg funny. I was relieved to know what it was but also hated that I had put you through all of that terribleness the night before for nothing. But I guess better safe than sorry. That was such a terrible experience!!

I started trying out some solid foods with you this month, and it did not go so well. Every time I would feed you a vegetable puree, you would get really really sick a few hours later. (Fruits were fine, though!) Usually, I was feeding it to you for dinner, so a few hours into sleep, you'd wake up projectile vomiting all over your bed. It scared me to death! I'd have to clean you and your bed up, then I'd cover myself in towels and let you sleep on me. You'd puke until there was nothing in your stomach and then you would just dry heave. I felt so bad for you! It took me a few times to figure out the pattern, so I did some internet research and there is a condition where you can be allergic to the proteins in vegetables. I asked your doc about it but he wasn't concerned, just said to stay away from anything that's made you sick before and try other foods. Not going to lie, it kind of scared me away from solid foods for a bit. I decided to try new foods earlier in the day on the weekend days moving forward - that way if you got sick, at least it wasn't during the night when we needed to be sleeping. 

This month it got hot enough to introduce you to some of El Paso's splash pads - our favorite thing to do in the summer months! You love splashing in the water! We also celebrated Mother's Day this month - so happy I get to be your mom and that you joined (and completed!) our family, baby boy! 

Wes Wild: 6 Months Old

Baby boy! You've been a part of our lives for HALF A YEAR! And we feel the luckiest!

During your sixth month, you mastered rolling both ways (so you were no longer stuck on your belly!) and you learned to scoot. The scooting phase is always one of my favorites - I never know where you'll end up around the house. Once I found you stuck between the TV stand and the lamp. And usually, you'll scoot until you scoot yourself into a corner, then you get mad that you can't scoot anymore and start to cry. I rescue you, put you back in the middle of the room and you start scooting again! :)

In your last update, I wrote that you got glasses, but you hated them on your face. During your sixth month, we went back to the eye doctor and talked to her about how you'd rather eat your glasses than wear them. She suggested we start patching your good eye for two hours a day to make your weak eye do more work. She said we could do that instead of the glasses and see what happens, so we are! Every day when you get home from daycare, we put on your patch. You don't seem to mind it, thankfully. And you are the cutest little pirate baby I've ever seen!

You celebrated your first Easter this month! Didi and Pops came to visit for Easter, and you got your own Easter basket filled with bath toys and cool eye patches and fun diapers - all the things a baby needs!

The weather started to warm up this month, so we were able to play outside more, which you love.

You light up our lives, baby boy! We love you!

Wes Wild: 5 Months Old

Wes! You are a big five month old now! There were two really big things that happened during your fifth month...

One of the biggest things that happened for you this month was that you learned to roll from back to belly! Then every time I put you down on your back, you immediately rolled onto your belly. However, you were not usually happy to be on your belly and then would get mad until someone put you back on your back, but then you would immediately flip again to your belly! HAHA! Babies are silly!

Another pretty big thing during your fifth month - you got glasses! You absolutely hate them and never wear them, though. But you look SO CUTE during the five seconds a day you keep them on your face. :) Your pediatrician saw something with one of your eyes and referred us to an eye specialist. At our first appointment, they dilated your eyes and did an eye exam. She said you have an astigmatism in one of your eyes and the glasses will help correct it so that you don't need surgery down the road. I cried in the hallway after she told us that. Then I called your dad and told him that I just felt so sorry for you - no baby wants to wear glasses! But if it means no surgery, then we will definitely do what we have to do to make your eyes better! 

You continue to be the happiest baby on the block. I really don't know what I did before I had such a big hunk of love in my life. You're always smiling and making everyone around you smile. SO happy that you are ours, baby boy! SO HAPPY! 

Wes Wild: 4 Months Old

Little brother! You are four months old now! That seems so old, and you are growing like a weed! You celebrated your first New Year's Eve and New Year's Day during your fourth month. You also outgrew your 0-3 month clothes, and I broke out the 3-6 month clothes, even though they are still a tad bit too big on you.

You started daycare this month, and the transition went pretty good except that you've pretty much been sick ever since your first week. You are happy when you are there and you nap good and you seem to be fine with being there. But being around all those kiddos with all their germs has done a number on your immune system. You caught a cold after your first week, which then turned out to be the flu and double ear infections! You got a terrible cough that sounded like a barking seal and made me very nervous. Then once I thought you were getting better, you started running a fever, which thankfully only lasted a couple days. Then Wren got sick and you got sick AGAIN - sneezing and coughing all day.

I really hope you will get over all of it soon! The good news is that it doesn't seem to phase you. You continue to be the happiest baby on the block! Smiling and laughing, kicking your legs and sucking your hands all day long!

This month you definitely found your hands and realized you love to eat them. You're also getting better at grabbing toys and bringing them to your mouth. You get REALLY excited when we show you a toy and immediately bring your arms together in the middle to try to grab it.

You've gotten a lot better at tummy time this month, mostly because they do it with you multiple times a day at daycare, which I am thankful for. We've been putting you in your Bumbo seat for short periods of time and you do like that, until you get too tired of holding your big head up. :)

At your four month check up, you weren't able to get your four month shots because you had just been running a fever. The doctor still does not feel good about the shape of your head, so they are recommending we put you in a helmet when you turn 5 months. I ordered some head shaping pillows to use for this month to see if we can get some improvement. Also, your doctor wants us to get your eyes checked out. He thinks one of them turns in toward your nose, which might mean you need baby glasses. :( We will see what the specialist says.

You started sleeping for longer chunks of time during your fourth month - 5-6 hours at a time! Except when you were sick, then you went back to waking up every 2 hours, which was not fun. Our nightly routine is for me to put the girls to bed at 8pm. Then I put you in the bath, which you love, and I pour water all over you and show you your bath book and you smile and kick your legs and wiggle your body until you're almost falling off your bath seat. Then I get you all lotioned up and in a clean onesie, zip you into your swaddle and feed you one last bottle. You usually fall alseep during your bottle and I can transfer you to your Rock 'N Play, but sometimes you are awake after your bottle. When that happens, I'll put you in your bouncer and bounce you until you fall asleep. Usually I'll watch TV or work on my computer while I bounce you, and you just stare at my face the whole time and when I look over at you, a slow sweet smile spreads across your face and it is my favorite thing EVER!

You are the happiest baby I've ever known, and I am just so happy that you are ours. You are such a fun addition to our family, and I can't imagine our lives without you in it!

Wes Wild: 3 Months Old

Wes Wild! Happy 3 months old! Your third month was a fun one because you got to celebrate your first Christmas with your aunt, uncle, Didi and Pops! Everyone came to El Paso for Christmas and we all had fun celebrating together. Even though you weren't too interested in them, you did get a few gifts for your first Christmas. You got a Bumbo seat with a tray for your toys, you got a cool toy car with a surfboard on top and you got a super soft blanket to snuggle with in your car seat.

On Christmas Eve, we all wore ugly Christmas sweaters, and you even had one! It was tiny and had the Grinch on it. You looked super cute!

I was still on maternity leave during your third month, so we did a lot of snuggling while your sisters were at school. I wrapped a lot of Christmas presents while you watched me from your bouncy chair.

You learned how to grab things this month, starting with your burp rag. If it was on your lap, you would grab it and bring it up to snuggle by your face.

You also let out your first real laugh this month, and it is the best sound ever - super squeaky! You continue to be so smiley and happy all the time. The only time you really get upset is when you are hungry or when you're sleepy and want someone to cozy you up for sleep.

We love you so much! So happy you are part of our family, Wes!

Wes Wild: 2 Months Old

Little Wes, I love this photo of you so much! Your little face just looked like it was made out of clay! Like I could mold it with my hands! :)

Your second month continued to be just as sweet as your first. We dressed you up as Batman for your first Halloween, but it turned out to be a super cold, rainy night so you couldn't go trick or treating with your sisters. You went out for a sec, and then headed back home with your dad to hand out candy.

The biggest milestone for our family during your second month happened on Nov 8 when your dad deployed to Korea. He was so sad to leave you. He'll be back when you are 9 months old this summer. It was really hard for me to adjust to not having him there to help with you, and the first couple weeks he was gone were hard, but I'm happy to say that we got in a good groove eventually and all is good now.

At the end of your second month, we took a road trip to the other side of Texas to spend Thanksgiving with your Dengler side of the family. You got to meet your Didi and Pops, Aunt Brianne and Uncle Andy and all your other extended family! Your pops flew to El Paso to make the drive with us. We thought it would be an easy trip because you loved your carseat and slept in it really well, but it turned out to be pretty stressful. You would wake up ready to eat and sometimes there was no where to stop and you would just cry and get so upset that you would have these terrible coughing fits. Then once we got to Houston, we hit some horrible traffic and you were so upset and it was all just bad. But we made it to Beaumont and had a great week with family and friends, and I'm thankful for those memories. I think we'll just hold on another major road trip for a while. ;)

You transitioned from sleeping on your Boppy pillow to sleeping in your Rock 'n Play during your second month, but you continued waking up every 3 hours at night to eat. By this time, I was used to it and operating pretty well on 5-6 hours of sleep a night. I realized this month that you didn't sleep as good when your arms were tucked down by your sides, so I found a swaddle that lets you keep your arms up by your face and you started sleeping much better with that.

During your second month, you started having some scary reflux issues. You would sometimes vomit after eating and then choke on the vomit. It was terrifying to watch. You would vomit, then I would immediately have to suck your mouth out with a bulb syringe so that you could breath. The scariest part was when it happened at night. At your two month check up, I told the doctor about it and they sent us to a specialist to do a barium test. You had to lay on this xray table and drink barium (a thick white liquid) out of a bottle while they took xrays. The test showed that you did have pretty bad reflux. I did some research and learned that ready to feed formula worked better for babies with reflux than powder formula so we switched to that and you stopped vomiting immediately. One day, I only had powder formula with me so I fed it to you and you vomited twice after that. That's when I knew for sure that the powder formula was not working, so I stopped feeding it to you. Since that day, we've only used ready to feed formula and you haven't vomited since!

Also at your two month check up, your doctor referred you to a specialist to get your flat head checked out, so we did and you were diagnosed with Torticollis just like your sister, Elle, had. So we started head positioning and stretching exercises with you to work your neck muscles and even out your head.

But aside from all that not so fun stuff, my favorite thing about your second month was when you started smiling! And you have the sweetest smile that just lights up your face. I took a photo of you every time you smiled and sent it to your dad so he could see the cuteness.

We love you so much, Wes Wild, and are having a blast watching you grow!

Wes Wild: 1 Month Old

Oh, Wes! Our first month with you was so snuggly, so cuddly, and sooooo sleepy. I forgot how tiring it is to have a newborn! The first few weeks, you mostly slept and ate. Your dad and I took turns holding you allllll day and night long. We really didn't put you down much! You were born with just the sweetest disposition. I could tell that you were calm and so loving, and that has 100% continued to be true.

I feel like I called the doctor a lot more with you during those first few weeks than I did with your sisters. I didn't know anything about healing a circumcision so we called a couple times for that, and we also called about you looking a little yellow in the eyes one day. Everything turned out perfectly fine, but I felt like I was acting like a brand new mom! You definitely brought some new things into our life!

During your first month, you slept best either being held or on your Boppy lounger. You liked to sleep at an incline, not flat on your back, even though we tried that. You woke up every 2-3 hours to eat, all day and all night, and your dad and I took turns feeding you. Even though those middle of the night feedings were so tiring, they were also so sweet. I tried to soak in that feeling of snuggling you in the night when the rest of the world was asleep.

You were our first baby that didn't HAVE to be swaddled to sleep. Sometimes when you just couldn't settle, we would swaddle you and you would calm down, but you didn't have crazy arms (again - you were so calm!) and you could easily fall asleep without being swaddled. You were also our first baby that really liked the pacifier and used it for longer than your sisters did.

Before you were born, everyone warned us that we would get peed on a lot, and that did happen a few times (and was always such a surprise!), but thankfully not as often as people warned. By the end of your first month, we were able to get through diaper changes without any accidents, which was good!

Your very first outing was to your 1 week doctor's appointment. Then after that, we did quite a few things during your first month. We took you to the zoo twice, the pumpkin patch another day and Chalk the Block in downtown El Paso. We also took new family photos during your first month - you slept through the whole thing. And your Grandma and Grandpa Klock and Uncle Seth came to meet you right at the end of your first month, which was super fun.

We just love you so much, Wes Wild, and look forward to watching you grow!

Elle Evergreen: 1 year old

Elle, you are ONE! Below are a few photos and highlights from your twelfth month AND your first birthday party:



Your twelfth month was a big one! You learned to stand on your own without assistance! We also took the changing table out of your room and got you a big girl shelf for all of your big girl toys.

You continued to play with Wren and thought she was pretty great. You sisters were so sweet sometimes! You loved playing outside as the weather got a little warmer, and you didn't officially start walking until March 24, 2016 - but you loved walking around the house using the ride-on toys.

You hit a really great stage at twelve months, and you were such a happy baby most of the time. Since then, you've had bad times here and there, but no more constantly fussy baby - yay!

Your first birthday was a pretty simple celebration, but you loved it! You started the day off by standing up BY YOURSELF for the first time - a great way to kick off being one year old!



After a morning of playing, you took a good, long nap and woke up ready to open presents and eat cake! We got you a little red piano, a walking toy and some other little things, and you had a blast pulling the paper off. For your cake, we made a strawberry cake with pink cream cheese icing and pink sprinkles.

Your cake topper was ordered from Etsy and custom made for you. I loved it SO much - it was beautiful! Wren was playing with it before we put your cake together and she broke part of it off. I was so upset, but Daddy was able to super glue it back together - thank goodness! I saved it in your memory box because I loved it so much.





We didn't really have to prompt you to try your cake. You had your fingers and hands in it right away. I love this last photo so much. It really sums up how much you loved that cake - ha!

Daddy, me and Wren had strawberry cake cupcakes while you enjoyed your big cake. We sang you happy birthday and took a million photos of you getting all messy. Then we stuck you in the bathtub to wash it all off.

We love you so much and had so much fun watching you grow during your first year! Looking forward to the years ahead and hoping all your days are happy ones!

Elle Evergreen: 10 & 11 months old

Elly belly! Your tenth and eleventh months were so fun and festive with the holidays in full swing. Here are some highlights:



At ten months old, you were standing up all the time (but still holding onto things for support). You learned how to shake your head "no." You also started

When you got upset and started to cry, you started screaming these loud screams, like a Pterodactyl! We got you a sleep sack around this time because it started to get cold at night, and you loved it! Even today (at almost 18 months old), you can't sleep unless you're zipped up in your sleep sack.

You continued to make fart noises with your mouth by sticking your tongue out and blowing. You loved to do it when you were riding in your car seat, which meant many times you were completely covered in spit by the time we got to where we were going.



At eleven months, you continued to LOVE solid food. In fact, when Wren was eating in her chair and you weren't, you would crawl over to Wren's chair, pull yourself up on it and try to steal her food off of her tray! You loved eggs (scrambled, fried or boiled), bananas, crackers, black beans, cheese, apple sauce, yogurt and oatmeal. You didn't love meat, but would sometimes eat it if it was the only option, and you didn't love a variety of fruits - not even strawberries, even though we kept (and keep) trying to get you to like them.

You loved bath time at eleven months, and you were really crazy in the bath! I couldn't take my eyes off of you. You would try to crawl, stand, and even swim! It was super nerve wracking making sure you didn't slip and go under!

You celebrated your first Christmas at eleven months, and you loved it. Your favorite toy was probably the ride-on cow toy. Your legs were too short to ride on it at first, but you used it as a walker to walk all over the house, which you loved!

Then we rang in 2016 with a bunch of silly family pictures, which you seemed a little confused about. What can I say, we love a good photo booth!

You loved walking anywhere with assistance at this stage. You even loved pushing Wren in her wagon.

We had a crazy snow storm during your eleventh month, and we were stuck inside the house for days! Daddy had to shovel a mountain of snow off our driveway, and we took you out to see if you liked it - NOPE! ;)

You were just so cute and so pretty at this age, like a little baby doll! It's so much fun watching you grow!

Elle Evergreen: 8 & 9 months old

Little Elle Belle - You continued to get sweeter with every month! Here are some highlights from your eighth and ninth months:



You learned how to move around during your eighth month! It wasn't exactly crawling, more like scooting - and you really only knew how to go backwards - ha! That means you sometimes got stuck (like in the photo above when you're stuck under the TV stand).

We took you to your first play when you were eight months old - Newsies! You didn't love it and didn't love having to be quiet, so it was actually pretty stressful. We sat on the very back row and brought lots of toys, but we ended up taking turns walking in the lobby with you until you fell asleep on Daddy's shoulder.

The fall in Virginia was pretty rainy and chilly, so we did a lot of playing inside during your eighth month. You didn't seem to mind, and it made for plenty of practice time to perfect your crawling skills.

Your temperament continued to shift in and out of fussy phases during this time. Sometimes you would be super pleasant and easy going for a while, and then you'd start cutting another tooth or something else would happen that would throw you back into fussy baby mode.



During your ninth month, you started legit crawling - on all fours! It was crazy to see you go from scooting to crawling, and man, were you fast! You loved being able to cruise around the house and get to where you wanted to be all by yourself.

You also started pulling up to stand during your ninth month. I would be sitting on the couch, and next thing I knew, your little head would POP UP as you pulled yourself up to see what I was doing.

You started doing this mouth breathing thing, almost like you were pretending to be a puppy dog. And you gave us BIG cheesy grins all the time, squinting your little eyes. Your hair was so dark at nine months - it slowly started to get lighter after this. And look at that belly (above)! You loved food - eggs (prepared any way) and bananas were your favorite. Also, look at your tiny feet! You had the smallest feet ever and it was really hard to find shoes to fit you to keep your feet warm outside!

You took your first plane ride during your ninth month - to Texas for Thanksgiving. It was a terrible flight (bad weather + a bumpy failed landing attempt), but you handled it like a champ and slept most of the way. Everyone in Texas was so excited to see you and hang out with you, but you were very nervous because you didn't know them and preferred to be with me most of the time, which was a-ok with me!

Elle Evergreen: 6 & 7 months old

Oh, Elle - You keep me so busy, I'm having to play major catch up with your monthly posts! Here are some highlights from your sixth and seventh months:



You sixth month was pretty momentous because... your crazy hair finally laid down! We weren't sure when this was going to happen - or if it ever was! But somehow, during your sixth month, we just noticed that it was not standing straight up on the back of your head anymore. Haha! You also got your first teeth, the two bottom ones in the front. Which was perfect timing because we started you on solid foods during your sixth month. We started out giving you baby cereal/oatmeal and bananas - and today (at almost 18 months old) bananas are still one of your favorite foods!

We continued our summer of fun during your sixth month, and you went to the Chesterfield County Fair for the first time. (It's the best fair ever, so we were excited to take you.) We also did some adventuring around Richmond and the Outer Banks. You continued to love the warm sunny days and were happiest when we were outside in the sun + playing in the water.

During your fifth month, we transitioned you into your crib, and you continued to sleep so good in it. In the mornings, you would wake up and cry for someone to come get you, and Wren would climb into your crib to play with you until we got there, which you loved.

You were so squishy at this age, with soooo many leg rolls - I just wanted to chew on them! ;) You loved being held all the time and were happiest when someone was walking around with you on their hip.



At seven months, you started sitting up on your own, which is always such a fun stage (but we always put a pillow behind you because sometimes you would fall over with no warning). You started making sounds with your mouth - fart noises + snorting while scrunching up your face.

Football season started during your seventh month, and Daddy made sure you had a Dallas Cowboys shirt to wear for the games. In fact, you had two! With football season came fall and Halloween, too! We visited the pumpkin patch and dressed you up like an Elle-ephant for Halloween, You were THE CUTEST! You didn't even mind your costume and loved walking around the neighborhood on Daddy's hip while Wren trick-or-treated.

We took a family trip to Shenandoah National park during your seventh month, and you went on your first hike! (Strapped to me, of course.) We hiked a bunch that weekend - to waterfalls and lots of pretty spots - and you were so heavy. It was a major workout to go up and down all the mountains with you!

You can really see your torticollis in this seven month photo (above). We continued with our physical therapy to stretch your neck out during this time.

Seven months has always been one of my favorite baby stages, and it was with you, too! You loved playing with us and interacting and learning to use your little body - so fun to watch!

Happy Birthday, Elle!

All footage captured by Jon. Music by Ed Sheeran (the song Elle was named after and born to!). Full birth story here. 

Happy first birthday, sweet Elle! Over the past year, you have added an element of craziness to our family that we didn't know was possible. ;) But we wouldn't have it any other way! We love you to pieces, and we're having a blast watching you grow! xoxo

Elle Evergreen: 3, 4 & 5 months old

Oh Elle Belle - You are almost 6 months old now, and I am so behind on your monthly updates! What can I say - life moves FAST with two little ones! I will try my best to keep up in the coming months - for now, here is a little summary of all that you learned and all the ways you grew during your third, fourth and fifth months.



Your third month was pretty laid back. You got to meet your Didi for the first time, your hair got even crazier, and your sister continued to think you were pretty cool - but most importantly, we got out your sister's old swing from storage and you LOVED it. You were still pretty fussy this month, and the swing was sometimes the only thing that would make you happy when you were sad.



Your fourth month was a big one because we moved to a new house! You did great with the move and settled in with no problems. We started setting up your room (your very own room!) even though you don't sleep in it yet. I still like having you in our room next to my side of the bed, but we'll probably transition you to your room in a month or so. This month we learned that you love hanging out on the patio - we think you like the heat - which is great because I like it out there, too. We survived our first girls only weekend without daddy - hooray! And we took our first trip of the summer to the neighborhood splash pad. You liked the water and splashed around with another baby your age while we held you in the water. Your temperament went up and down this month - sometimes you were so relaxed that we thought the terrible crying was over and sometimes you cried until we thought we would go crazy. You like to keep us guessing, that's for sure!

You found your fingers and toes this month and love putting them in your mouth every chance you get. You also rolled over for the first time this month, from your back to your belly. You were pretty  happy about that. And you started laughing! (The best sound ever!) You always laugh when we tickle your belly or when we kiss your neck, and you think it's really funny when my hair tickles your face.

Also, during your fourth month, we found out you have torticollis - a condition in which your neck muscles are shorter on one side of  your neck - and we started physical therapy to correct it with a series of stretches and exercises.



Your fifth month was full of summer fun! We celebrated Father's Day by taking daddy to brunch at his favorite restaurant and giving him lots of presents. Your sister got a big girl bed and gave you her old bed, which we transitioned back to a crib for you and you tried it out with a few naps and liked it! Then we set out on our summer staycation, and you got to visit the ocean for the first time (and this might be my favorite picture of you yet!). You took the best nap on the beach in our little beach tent, and we had our best beach day yet! You also were a trooper at Water Country USA and napped all day in the wrap while we played in the water. We went to the zoo, hosted a BBQ and welcomed some visitors (Uncle Andy and his friend Preston).

You really started to like tummy time this month, which is great because it helps stretch your neck muscles out. You tried really hard to roll back over from your belly to your back, but you're not quite there just yet. You continue to love eating your hands, and you love any toy made for chewing, including Sophie the Giraffe, a wooden heart toy and your multi-colored teething ring.

You love your big sister and watch her wherever she goes. You even laughed at her when she was being silly for you one day - the first time you laughed at something that wasn't brought on my physical touch (like tickling).

You are growing up so fast, little Elle! Time is flying by and you are getting bigger, chubbier and happier by the day. Your six month birthday is on my 34th birthday in a few weeks, and I can't wait to celebrate with you, big girl! I love you sooooo much - may all your days be happy ones!