Who does Henry look like?

We've had so many people ask...who does he look like? And to tell you the truth..it has been really hard to say. There are times Henry makes a face that is totally Lance..and definitely times I can see myself.  We went through some of our baby pictures..and we found our answer! Here are some pics from Lance's album to answer the question once and for all! What's funny is I don't think these pics look like Lance now at all....I guess Mr. Henry is truly a chip off the ole block:)



Here is a side by side comparison! The blanket was made by Henry's Great-Great Grandmother!

Relaxing birthday weekend

We had a great weekend here at the Smith House! On Friday, I turned 29! What a wonderful year it has been.  Henry gave me the BEST present ever...a full night of sleep for the first night since April 25th! Lance and I couldn't believe it and since then have not touched our routine so we don't risk loosing that pattern:)

I woke up to a lovely surprise from Shelley.  She tied some birthday balloons to the mailbox with my birthday present...a conversion magnet for the fridge.  We will put that to great use on our cooking adventures!! Lance got takeout from Mr. Chens...my FAVORITE chinese place and a delicious ice cream cake from Brusters!



 Lance and I lounged around most of the weekend and managed to take a few pics of Henry.  He has changed SOOO much and it is fun seeing him learn the world. 


 The pic above has Henry wearing an outfit that Lance's Aunt Tricia made for Lance before he was born.  The truck was made by Great Grandad Henry for Lance! What wonderful hand-me-downs!

On Saturday, Shelley and Kathryn came over and we tried out a petit four recipe that Kathryn had from a lady in Mississippi.  They turned out okay...we need to perfect our technique...but the flavor was delish!!! 

 Henry got some snuggle time with Aunt Shelley too! Of course we had a couple of evening storms so we had a late dinner compliments of Lance's grilling on the egg...yummy blue cheese burgers!!

Lance has perfected calming Henry down in the Baby Bjorn.  It is a life saver when all else fails! Here is a pic of both my boys getting some R n' R Saturday evening:)

 
Henry also turned 2 months this weekend! I can't believe the time has flown by so fast! Henry almost weighs 13 lbs and loves to play in his activity center.  His best times are in the morning and after his evening bath.  He is still a bit gassy but his fussy bouts don't last as long and we can usually 'walk it out' or calm him down in the tub.  He is laughing and cooing more and more.  Lance and I catch ourselves singing the silliest things just to make him smile!

He is the BEST snuggler! We can't give him enough kisses!

Sweet Sav "sharing" Henry's boppy:)

I had a wonderful relaxing birthday weekend! Lance's mom visited for a night to get some needed Henry time too.  We are so blessed with our little family and I can't wait to see what next year brings!

Two month checkup

Henry had his two month check up today and for all the moms out there...you know what that means...lots of shots.  Poor baby did better than I expected.  It was hard seeing him hurt but I know its for the best. Dr. Simpson said Henry is doing great...he weighed in at 12 lbs 5 oz! He is a chub.  Henry was all smiles when we got home but had the funniest not-so-smiley look at the doctors.....

"Mom..this is not my idea of fun!"

Happy First Father's Day!

Happy first Father's Day to my hubby! Lance has had some major milestones these last four months...he turned thirty, graduated from law school, had his first child, celebrated six years of marriage, and now is celebrating his first father's day...so today the Smith House is celebrating the guy that makes it all possible! We love you Lance!!

Love at first sight!

And of course, Lance and I celebrate our own dads today too!! Here are Henry's first texts to them this morning!! Too cute! We are very very blessed.  We also pray for all the new dads, soon-to-be dads, long time dads, and dads that are no longer with us....

For Grandpa Elias

For Papa Jeff

You got a friend in me!

All this attention for Baby Henry but we can never forget Miss Savannah. She has been the best big sister.  She is always there for every middle of the night feeding and she never fails to alert us if Henry makes ANY sound! She always brings one of her 'babies' if he is crying and love to lick Baby Henry's feet.  She hasn't acted jealous although I know she feels that things are different. We love her soo much and she will always be our first baby!

Here are some pics of Savannah and her little brother....

Sav taking a nap with Henry

Savannah bringing Henry her 'baby'

Making sure Henry is okay on his belly during tummy-time

Savannah's spot while Henry eats...I mean...everytime!

Snuggle Buddies! I think she may love him almost as much as we do!

Beach Time and some lessons learned

This weekend, Lance and I took Henry on his first beach trip.  We were a bit nervous about making the 4ish hour trip with him.  After Lance got done with class we decided to wait until Henry ate and fell asleep and left around 7pm.  It was a great idea...no traffic and a sleeping baby! The weekend was sorta  relaxing....we did learn that Henry has little tolerance for three bean salad with raw onions and peppers!  Unfortunately, didn't take too many pictures because until Saturday night, he was a tad bit fussy! Henry did act perfect when Aunt Jo and Aunt Brenda came for lunch though:) They brought Henry a beautiful monogrammed silver cross and train piggy bank ...so sweet!

We managed to slip Henry into his swimsuit for a few pics on the balcony.  We didn't make it to the beach this time..but we have the rest of the summer!  Lance was able to catch a couple of hours of deep sea fishing though! I know both of them can't wait to catch some snapper together!

Henry loved visiting his grandparents at the condo! Maybe we will actually make it to the beach next time!!

Things we learned on this trip!

1) No three bean salad with raw onions for me and Henry for a while:)

2) Traveling at night makes for a peaceful roadtrip!

3) Grandmothers can give you a much needed night's rest...well we already knew this but it was a great reminder.

4) Ice cream on a cone is not a great idea while feeding a baby....well it does work if you don't want to eat ice cream and you have a hungry puppy nearby that does!!

Happy Monday!

Happy Six Year Anniversary!

I can't believe it has been six years since I married my best friend.  I am so thankful that God brought Lance into my life and that I am lucky enough to call him my husband.  He is such a loving and giving man and I pray that the next sixty years are as wonderful as the last six! He is truly my better half. We have been so blessed with a wonderful family and the sweetest friends, and now even more blessed with our little Henry. Happy Anniversary Lance! I love you! I I





Baby Announcement

Heather Swanner is the photographer that we chose to take Henry's newborn pictures.  She is fabulous and we had a wonderful experience.  We had just been home from the hospital for two days when we went to her studio.  She was so welcoming and made us feel right at home.  After the 'group' shots and a little accident by little Henry all over Lance's clothes, she let me relax on a comfy sofa in front of the tv while she took beautiful pictures of Henry.  Besides being a talented artist, she is also a baby whisperer...not kidding..we didn't hear a peep out of Henry for almost 4 hours:) We couldn't have been happier with all the pictures and it was so hard to choose which ones made it to the announcements! They are kinda artsy but I absolutely love them!! We can not wait to see her again for the six month pictures! I'll post more pictures from our newborn session soon.

Baby Stuff I love!

Today my friend Meredith came over to meet Baby Henry.  She is expecting her first baby girl in 5 weeks! While she was here I was trying to come up with a list of things we love here at the Smith house....here is a list of things I love....
Mamaroo (http://www.buybuybaby.com/product.asp?SKU=16995924)

Henry loves it for naps or fussy times.  It has different settings to rock your baby allowing us time to get stuff done.  It also has a hookup for your ipod so you can play some tunes.

Bloom Highchair (http://www.buybuybaby.com/product.asp?SKU=17813145)

This one is a bit pricey but this was a great investment for us  This highchair can be used from birth which is different from other chairs.  Since we cook a lot it is a great, safe place to keep Henry while we are in the kitchen or at the table. 

Medela Pump (http://www.buybuybaby.com/product.asp?SKU=15961422)

This is a personal must-have.  It has helped from day one and I wouldn't trade it for anything!!

Mini-Fridge

We are lucky to have a walk in closet in Henry's nursery giving us extra room for a mini-fridge.  I love keeping all the baby feeding supplies away from our own fridge and very close to where we need them.  I also keep some water for us during those late night feedings.  The fridge also came in handy when we lost our main fridge a few months ago.

Oxyclean (http://www.oxiclean.com/)

Most people that know me know I love Oxyclean.  It is truly amazing if used properly.  Now-a-days we use it lots of baby stains! We buy it (and so many other loved supplies) at Costco so we always have about a years supply at home.  I definitely consider it a must have for new moms and dads!

Summer Baby Monitor (http://www.summerinfant.com/)

This probably goes without saying but I had to mention it.  This is such a great way to watch baby at night and during naps so you can do other things...like sleep or eat or just BE! Before Henry was born we enjoyed spying on Savannah when she would go explore the nursery! 

COSTCO (http://www.costco.com/)

Umm...this probably goes without saying...Lance and I are kinda obsessed and if we can buy a product from Costco we will.  As far as baby products we do buy from there...costco brand diaper and wipes, oxyclean, and kirkland brand dye free detergent. 

Lysol NoTouch Hand soap (http://www.lysol.com/cleaning-products/healthy-hands/no-touch-hand-soap-system)

Obviously we are washing our hands tons of times a day...before diapers, before feedings, after diapers...you get the picture! I bought these at Costco and have them at every sink in the house.  They make handwashing fast and easy.  Not to mention they are wonderful in the kitchen when you have stuff all over you hands...no need to pump soap...just hold your hands under there.  So...I think it is a great "must have" have new parents!

Changing pad liners (http://www.buybuybaby.com/product.asp?SKU=15909129)

These are made for the changing pad in case of accidents so you don't have to completely change the pad covers.  We pretty much use them wherever Henry goes.  They are so easy to just throw in the wash without having to change a complete sheet etc....Love them!

I know there are a ton of baby gadgets I could add but these are just things that really jump out at our house! Baby Henry is doing great and changing everyday...and we are learning a lot from him:)

Just chillin...not sure what this look means?!

What's been happening at the Smith house....

These last two weeks have been busy busy at the Smith household.  We have tried to take Henry out as much as possible while we have time.  First, we took Henry to one of our other favorite hangouts...Whole Foods.  Of course, Henry slept but we had a ton of fun! We even purchased a few bottles of wine...and yes I did get a couple of looks pushing a sleeping baby up and down the wine aisles....oh well:)

Last, Saturday we took Henry on his first road trip.  It was just an hour to Gadsden to visit my parents but he did great.  It was more so a practice round for us...I never realized how much stuff we needed to pack in the car to take a 9 lb baby for a day away from the house!! You would have thought we were moving to Gadsden!! Henry got to meet many people in Gadsden and by the time we got home we were all exhausted...but a happy exhausted!

This past weekend we took Henry on his first overnight trip.  We spent Memorial Day weekend in Atlanta with Lance's mom and my parents and great aunt.  We stayed at the Embassy Suites in Buckhead which was so baby friendly.  The extra room and three sinks makes having a new baby a whole lot easier.  We did a ton of shopping and ate some yummy meals.  Henry had his first real restaurant experience at Ruth's Chris.  He was perfect! The restaurant staff and neighboring tables stopped by to let us know too:) 

One of our purchases...baby Sperrys!

We also met some great family friends for dinner.  The Parmar's have been family friends of my family since forever and it was so wonderful to see the third generation of Parmars and Ghafary's playing togethers:) 

Before we left Atlanta we stopped by the Dekalb county Farmer's market.  If you haven't been, it is amazing.  It was also freezing inside, so we didn't spend too much time but managed to grab a few yummy staples.  We also stopped by King of Pops and grabbed some very delicious popsicles.  King of Pops have a couple of food trucks around Atlanta and also sell their pops at some grocery stores.  Our favorite was the Chocolate Sea Salt!

We stopped by Five Guys on the way back from Atlanta! I hope Henry loves to eat as much as we do:)

Lance's mom spent a week with us and was so much help.  Lance and I got some great sleep and Henry enjoyed spending time with his Grammy.  Henry is changing everyday so it is obvious that all of us love taking advantage of this wonderful newborn stage! 

Miss Savannah (btw) is adapting to being a big sister sooo well!  She is so loving and has not acted jealous at all.  We know that she hasn't received as much attention as usual but she seems to be okay with that...I did find her doing something new....She loves sleeping on Lance's shirts when he lays them out.  On this day, Lance had not left one out so she found a clean one folded and used it!!! That's my Sav:)

 We did get in some great naps in between all our outings! How can you resist snuggling with this sweet baby!!