Lesson in Listening (and Acting)

You would think by the title of this blog, and knowing that we have 4 young boys, that this post would be about a lesson for the boys. But no ... this one was for the parents.

As most LDS people know, this time of year means Tithing Settlement with the Bishop and today was our appointed time to go in with Rehn right after church. Rehn went through the usual questions and message, slightly abbreviated since our kids weren't paying a ton of attention, and as we were finishing up Grayson tells us he needs to use the bathroom. But since we are done, Rehn asks if we can have a prayer first before we leave. As he finishes the prayer, we look up and there is a puddle forming under Grayson's chair! And did I mention that Grayson was sitting behind the desk in the Bishop's chair?! Not much to do but laugh ... and hurry to find something to clean it up. I think the next time Grayson says he needs to go we will be a little faster at getting him to the bathroom. Lesson definitely learned!! And I can honestly say that today I'm glad Rehn is the Bishop!

Just like our home

Sorry, I had to do it. Since Thanksgiving weekend, we have had chirstmas music playing ... sometimes the entire day. So I thought it would be fun to add it on here. Now you can feel like you are in our home!! You just don't get the joy of hearing my kids sing along or seeing Connor bee-boop to the music. I had the boys help me pick out which songs to add (some are my favorites) ... you are lucky they aren't all Chipmunks songs! Rehn and I are about sick of hearing "Christmas, Christmas time is here ..." we at least made them learn the words. And it is better than "Jingle bells, Batman smells" which I haven't heard so far ... yay! Hope you enjoy the music and are enjoying this holiday season!!

The life of a 6 month old

Here are some of the things Connor did when he was 6 months old ...
Went from the baby bath tub to the bath ring. We were all excited about this since it is much easier to store and he loves sitting up to splash and play.

This one is for my parents. My dad got him this outfit. He does look pretty cute in it ... but I think he looks cute in anything!

This is Benjamin singing him the Tigger song on Halloween night. Sorry it is so dark ... I think you can still see Connor's face. He loved it!

Buddies!

Rehn called this his circle of trust. He was pretty good at sitting up, but I needed to cook dinner so the pillows were just in case ... and you never know which way they will fall! He loves being able to sit and play ... and I love that he can entertain himself while I get things done. This is a GREAT age!!

And finally here is a video of Bryant and Connor. He will laugh at about anything his brothers do and the boys love to make him laugh. I love watching them together.

I am so grateful that all of the boys adjusted easily when Connor joined our family. They instantly loved him and that has only grown over the last 6 months. Connor is such a sweet baby. He is a quiet baby (unless he needs something!) and very fun to have around. It is hard to remember what life was like before him. We love having him around and watching him grow and learn new things every day.

Just about 6 months

As he was about to turn 6 months, I finally got out the high chair. Actually, I just put Grayson into a regular chair without the booster and added the tray for Connor. Both were happy with the new arrangement and I like that it doesn't take up as much space as a regular high chair.

Sticking out the tongue ... again. I told you he was happy to have his own chair!

Grayson decided to entertain him while I was trying to get some dishes done. Of course I had to stop doing the dishes to get this video but the dishes will wait and this won't! If you listen you can hear Connor grunting ... that is the main way he talks/babbles.

I left him laying on this blanket while I went to do something and when I came back into the room, this is what I found. He doesn't do a lot of babbling, but he doesn't lack for personality!

Getting ready for church in his cute outfit from Uncle Ethan and Aunt Lindsay. You can't see it, but the tie and socks match. I love it!!

Once again I took advantage of his cute church outfit and took his 6 month pictures. This is actually the day he turned 6 months. This was my favorite "photo shoot" with him so far ... lots of fun shots to choose from. These are a few of the highlights ...

Catching up on Connor ... 5 months

I've realized that I have not been very good at keeping this blog up to date, especially with pictures of Connor. After all he is the one that changes the most. So I'm going to try and do a quick update on him ... and hopefully I'll get to the other boys soon. (It's good to have high hopes!)
These pictures were all taken when he was 5 months. Here he is in the exersaucer.

And here we are enjoying an early fall day at the park. We had some great weather all the way into November and we tried to take advantage of it. He loved swinging during this last month and it was great to have something to do with him besides sitting in the stroller or carrying him around.

Here he is with one of the many faces he likes to make. He did this tuck in the lower lip for several weeks. I always miss them when he stops.

Practicing sitting up. He was still pretty wobbly at this point so it took a good bit of propping, but he liked it. Much easier to enjoy a good book when you can sit up.

Swinging again and another silly face. This was one of my favorites. He loved to play with his tongue and whenever he was happy he would stick it out. Sadly, he hasn't done it much in the last month.

Since digital cameras, I haven't taken my kids in to get professional pictures taken very often, but I try to do some on my own to mark their stages. Here are a couple of the 5 month shots ...