Archives for November 2011

a baby portrait session

November 23, 2011

When Levi was born, JB’s squadron gifted us a free portrait session with Alyson Sword, a fellow milspouse with her own photography business. Since we had already taken newborn photos with Kameron Bayne Images, and have another session scheduled for Levi’s sixth month birthday, JB and I decided to take advantage of Alyson’s offer this past weekend. (Ideally, I would’ve liked to have taken them when Levi was three-months-old, halfway between his two Kameron Bayne sessions, but somebody just had to be away on a deployment in October…)

Of all the teaser shots Alyson posted on her Facebook page, this one of Levi and his sweet little smile is my fave. Look at his little dimple!

However, the best part of the session for me was being able to be photographed with my baby guy. As the designated photographer in our family, I have taken thousands of portraits of Levi and several hundred of him with various family members, including JB. But I bet I could count the number of shots of just the two of us on one hand. My darling husband tries his best to document Levi with his momma–usually only after I ask him to take our picture and then set up the DSLR for him (I shoot in manual, and JB refuses to take the “easy way out” by switching to an automatic mode). He’s getting better at taking spontaneous pics of us with his iPhone, but I’m the one with 2,000+ photos in my camera roll!

For all you photographer moms… How do you get yourself in the picture? Do you ever feel frustrated always being behind the lens?

{images by alyson sword photography)

baby it’s cold inside

November 22, 2011

Brrr!

When we went to bed last night, the thermostat was set to 71 degrees. When we woke up, the thermostat was still set to 71 degrees but was registering at only 65 degrees. Buried under our down comforter, I hadn’t realized how cold the house felt. In fact, I was sweating! But poor Levi’s hands were like icicles when I got him out of his crib! I made him wear his new mittens in the living room while JB messed with the thermostat. Surprisingly, Levi didn’t get annoyed that his hands were covered. He happily stuck the fleece mittens in his mouth, eventually spitting up on them.

It’s finally comfortable again in the house, but I’m nervous about tonight. Let’s hope that our heating issue was the result of us not knowing how to use our digital thermostat and not a broken furnace!

l-e-v-i

November 16, 2011

As I flipped through the latest Anthropologie catalog, these tie-dye monogram ornaments caught my eye. I’d love to spell out Levi’s name with them. It’s a good thing there are only four letters in l-e-v-i, though; these chic and cheerful felt ornaments cost $8 a pop.

Since we don’t celebrate Christmas, I can’t hang them on a tree, but I’m sure I could find a place to display them in his nursery. If I were super crafty (and had any spare time) I might even turn them into a mobile, but I’m not much of a DIYer. I’m creative, not crafty!

{image via anthropologie}

levi’s monthly baby photo (four months old)

November 15, 2011

Dear Levi,

You are four months old! Your daddy was deployed for most of this past month, but you and I managed to stay sufficiently busy.

It’s a shame that babies can’t earn frequent flier miles because you took six flights in October! We traveled to Washington, DC and Los Angeles for weddings, and everybody you met remarked how much you look like Daddy, although I don’t see that strong a resemblance. You spent your first weekend in the care of your grandma and grandpa, too. They flew to Omaha so mommy could go on a business trip.

These last few weeks you’ve really started using your hands to reach for and grasp toys, blankets and my hair. You also like to stick those hands in your mouth, but you’re getting a lot better at sucking just your thumb. Your neck muscles have also gotten a lot stronger, and when we put you in a Bumbo, you can nearly sit up straight.

You’re so much more vocal now and like to have fun with sounds, as Daddy calls it. You can be very loud! My favorite sound is your laughter. Daddy and I are pretty good at making you giggle when we’re singing and acting silly, so we try to do those things often.

This past week, when you were about 17-weeks-old, you reached a really big milestone — you rolled over from your back to your tummy! I wish I had gotten a video, or at least a photo, but I found you in that position at 3am and your room was dark! Speaking of sleep, the night of your four month birthday, you slept for 9 hours before waking up to eat. Incredible! But was it just a fluke, or are your sleeping habits beginning to change?

Now for some stats: On average you eat six times a day, approximately every three hours while you’re awake and once or twice in the middle of the night. You breastfeed in the AM and PM and get three 6 oz bottles of expressed milk while mommy works. You now weigh 13 lbs 7 oz, according to the doctor’s scale. You’re wearing a size 0-3 onesie in this photo, and it looks big because it’s brand new, but you are on the verge of outgrowing this size. Many of your pants are starting to look too short. That’s because you’re so tall — 26 inches!

Keep growing and stay happy, my sweet baby guy!

xoxo

***********

I’ll be photographing Levi on the 12th of every month to document his growth this first year. He’ll be wearing a numbered white onesie corresponding to his age in months, sitting in a chair next to his blabla doll for continuity. See Levi’s three month, two month and one month photos here.

{photo taken 11/12/11}

a rookie mom mistake

November 13, 2011

Baby guy was not happy that he had to be seen at Costco in this silly getup – a onesie, socks and sneakers – after he literally pooped his pants in the store. His seasonably inappropriate outfit was the result of a classic rookie mom mistake: I packed an extra top for Levi in my diaper bag but not spare bottoms. Naturally, he didn’t even need the new onesie because his poop came out the bottom of the diaper and straight down his pants, narrowly missing his striped shirt.

To make matters worse, Levi’s newbie parents left his fuzzy blanket in the car because we figured he’d be warm enough inside the warehouse store without it. He always gets so hotting sitting in his car seat. As a result of this gaffe, JB and I received several curious and judgmental looks from fellow shoppers concerned about Levi’s lack of pants.

It dawns on me now that one of us should have run back out to the car to grab his blanket. So why didn’t we think of that yesterday? We were too caught up in the moment, I guess. Throw a shrieking, stinky baby into the mix and your common sense apparently goes down the drain.

But can we talk for just a second about his sweet little sneakers? Tired of constantly readjusting his socks, I put Levi in his first pair of shoes with the hope that they’d stay keep his socks from falling off. Although baby-sized laces are a pain to tie (according to JB), his miniature kicks did the job! No cold toes for baby…just cold legs. Bad, mommy and daddy!

The moral of this story: Always pack at least one extra outfit, even for short outings. You never know when a diaper blowout may occur.