Why can’t babies just skip straight to 3? Or better yet, 4. 4 is a great age.
(She was painting the oven with frosting leftover from Brennan’s party. Just what my oven needed. Thank you)
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
What We Learned About Batman
Batman is the name of the little guy I’m lugging around. Love the name? You have Asher to thank for it. This has been his one and only name suggestion since January when we found out the gender. And he’s sticking with it. Brian and I have gone with it for now, but if we’re not careful it may just end up on the birth certificate. Asher wouldn’t give it a second thought because he really thinks we ARE keeping it.
For the last couple of months my uterus has measured about 4 weeks ahead of schedule. So, to check things I had an ultrasound yesterday. My OB had told me that it could just be a lot of amniotic fluid, Or we may discover that he’s just a really big baby. My due date wouldn’t have changed, but I’d be able to prepare myself for a 90th percentile-sized guy. Gee. Thanks.
Anyway, we had the appointment, and learned lots of good stuff. First of all, his measurements are right on par for my due date. Whew! And, he’s totally healthy and whole. Definitely good to know and even better to have! Although good views of baby are harder to have when they’re bigger, we learned that he has hair. I can’t believe that shows up.
Can you make out that picture above? It’s a profile shot of his forehead, nose, and large pursing lips! Hahaha. When the ultrasound technician commented on his large lips Brian and I immediately made smiled eye contact. I’ve been making fun of his large lips since before we were married. And making it worse, Brian is a lip sticker-outer/purser by habit – when he’s on his computer or watching tv or whatever. It makes me laugh that our little Batman already does this! And here I thought it was a learned habit. Must be genetic after all.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
♪♫ Oh Sweet Spirit..., ♫♪
I suppose you won't get my title and the song now stuck in my head unless you're familiar with the movie Sons of Provo. Hill-Arious! Anyway...
I've been thinking about Brennan and his finest qualities lately - which is great timing with his birthday coming up next week. But I'm writing this now before I forget some of the examples.
Brennan has always been super sensitive. Historically, he cries really, really easily. Not to be manipulative though. He is just super sensitive and unable to control those emotions. As his kindergarten teacher wrote on a report card, "Brennan feels his emotions very strongly..." Yes. That he does. He really, really does. This has been considered a "weakness" of his for most of his life. Brian and I, teachers, and pediatric therapists have all actively tried to teach him how to rein in those emotions and express them in better proportion to the incident that triggered them.
But in so many ways, his high sensitivity is a huge strength. I've always consoled myself with thoughts like, "Well, he'll make a great Dad and husband because he'll be that sensitive guy..." His ability to feel compassion and sympathy for others truly is a gift. For example, the other day he came inside after having been playing with neighborhood friends hot, sweaty, and crying. As he commonly comes in crying due to conflicts (because he cries easily, remember?), this time was different. Apparently one of the boys had been injured and his head had been bleeding. Brennan was incredibly worried about him. He prayed for him. He fretted about the life expectancy of his buddy. A bit later the friend came over to let Brennan know that he was good as gold - he's gotten some stitches and was fine.
I've also more recently realized how this high sensitivity of his allows him to uniquely feel the Spirit pretty strongly for a little dude. On Easter Sunday we were shown a couple of videos that portrayed the final days of the Savior's life, his crucifixion, and his resurrection. Brennan watched quite intently. Honestly, I was concerned that he would react extra negatively to those scenes. But instead, Brennan thought about the message. He leaned over and told me that he loves me and that felt really happy about Jesus. Later he confessed that he'd started to cry a little during the closing prayer. Because he just felt really happy. His ability to feel the joy of the Gospel, and to let the Spirit be felt, is truly a Strength. I'm reminded of the scriptures that tell us that through Christ our weaknesses can become our strengths. I find Brennan an awesome example of that.
Brennan is that kid that acts really impulsively. But at the same time, he really is a deep thinker. His school teachers have always noted that. His primary president often shares with me the awesome thoughtful questions he asks that wow her in their depth. At four, Brennan was concerned about Santa, asking if he lives forever, and if so, how he would be resurrected. (Ummm... I dunno!) I like to listen to talk radio in the car. Brennan picks up on a statement given by the host, and the remainder of our car ride is spent with me explaining politics and social issues. His questions never end. Except when he pauses to ponder before dropping another big question. In honestness, this is a love/hate thing for me. On the one hand, I'm SO glad he has this built-in curiosity and interest in learning about the world. But on the other hand, the questions are usually incredibly hard to answer, and I don't get to actually hear the radio show! ;-) Brennan has a lot of questions about Gospel-related things and I am LOVING that. I'm so happy to get to teach him and share my testimony with him because he just soaks it all up. I explain to him not only what I believe, but other beliefs out there. Brennan always considers these different angles and asks many questions before coming to his conclusions. I love how he reasons things out while also feeling for the Spirit to guide him.
Brennan is a huge memorizer when it comes to lyrics and movie dialogue. He can hear a song once and will start singing it, including the lyrics that I never memorized after hearing the same song for years. When we went to see Oliver Twist a few weeks ago, I later heard him singing several of the songs. Not only was I impressed because that play was his first exposure to it, but also because he was singing more of the lyrics than I knew - and I'd been singing along as we watched it! Another example is when he recently shared with me a conversation/dialogue from a tv show he'd watched at his friend's house. The back and forth between the two characters lasted a good 5 minutes and Brennan just recounted the whole thing without skipping a beat. "And then the girl said... and then the boy said... And then she..." The downside of this is that he picks up things he shouldn't, and doesn't even know it may be inappropriate. Brian and I have to be super careful now to pay attention to radio songs' messages where we used to not pay attention. Same thing with background shows on the tv. Brennan picks up everything.
Alright, so that's a start. I love my Brenny so very much. I'm thankful for the joy he brings into my life and the love he so freely shares with me.
I've been thinking about Brennan and his finest qualities lately - which is great timing with his birthday coming up next week. But I'm writing this now before I forget some of the examples.
Brennan has always been super sensitive. Historically, he cries really, really easily. Not to be manipulative though. He is just super sensitive and unable to control those emotions. As his kindergarten teacher wrote on a report card, "Brennan feels his emotions very strongly..." Yes. That he does. He really, really does. This has been considered a "weakness" of his for most of his life. Brian and I, teachers, and pediatric therapists have all actively tried to teach him how to rein in those emotions and express them in better proportion to the incident that triggered them.
But in so many ways, his high sensitivity is a huge strength. I've always consoled myself with thoughts like, "Well, he'll make a great Dad and husband because he'll be that sensitive guy..." His ability to feel compassion and sympathy for others truly is a gift. For example, the other day he came inside after having been playing with neighborhood friends hot, sweaty, and crying. As he commonly comes in crying due to conflicts (because he cries easily, remember?), this time was different. Apparently one of the boys had been injured and his head had been bleeding. Brennan was incredibly worried about him. He prayed for him. He fretted about the life expectancy of his buddy. A bit later the friend came over to let Brennan know that he was good as gold - he's gotten some stitches and was fine.
I've also more recently realized how this high sensitivity of his allows him to uniquely feel the Spirit pretty strongly for a little dude. On Easter Sunday we were shown a couple of videos that portrayed the final days of the Savior's life, his crucifixion, and his resurrection. Brennan watched quite intently. Honestly, I was concerned that he would react extra negatively to those scenes. But instead, Brennan thought about the message. He leaned over and told me that he loves me and that felt really happy about Jesus. Later he confessed that he'd started to cry a little during the closing prayer. Because he just felt really happy. His ability to feel the joy of the Gospel, and to let the Spirit be felt, is truly a Strength. I'm reminded of the scriptures that tell us that through Christ our weaknesses can become our strengths. I find Brennan an awesome example of that.
Brennan is that kid that acts really impulsively. But at the same time, he really is a deep thinker. His school teachers have always noted that. His primary president often shares with me the awesome thoughtful questions he asks that wow her in their depth. At four, Brennan was concerned about Santa, asking if he lives forever, and if so, how he would be resurrected. (Ummm... I dunno!) I like to listen to talk radio in the car. Brennan picks up on a statement given by the host, and the remainder of our car ride is spent with me explaining politics and social issues. His questions never end. Except when he pauses to ponder before dropping another big question. In honestness, this is a love/hate thing for me. On the one hand, I'm SO glad he has this built-in curiosity and interest in learning about the world. But on the other hand, the questions are usually incredibly hard to answer, and I don't get to actually hear the radio show! ;-) Brennan has a lot of questions about Gospel-related things and I am LOVING that. I'm so happy to get to teach him and share my testimony with him because he just soaks it all up. I explain to him not only what I believe, but other beliefs out there. Brennan always considers these different angles and asks many questions before coming to his conclusions. I love how he reasons things out while also feeling for the Spirit to guide him.
Brennan is a huge memorizer when it comes to lyrics and movie dialogue. He can hear a song once and will start singing it, including the lyrics that I never memorized after hearing the same song for years. When we went to see Oliver Twist a few weeks ago, I later heard him singing several of the songs. Not only was I impressed because that play was his first exposure to it, but also because he was singing more of the lyrics than I knew - and I'd been singing along as we watched it! Another example is when he recently shared with me a conversation/dialogue from a tv show he'd watched at his friend's house. The back and forth between the two characters lasted a good 5 minutes and Brennan just recounted the whole thing without skipping a beat. "And then the girl said... and then the boy said... And then she..." The downside of this is that he picks up things he shouldn't, and doesn't even know it may be inappropriate. Brian and I have to be super careful now to pay attention to radio songs' messages where we used to not pay attention. Same thing with background shows on the tv. Brennan picks up everything.
Alright, so that's a start. I love my Brenny so very much. I'm thankful for the joy he brings into my life and the love he so freely shares with me.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
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