Daddy got to visit again!

If anyone who follows my blog noticed I posted like 4 times today its because my internet hasn't worked for TWO MONTHS!!! It's been so awful.  Especially with me being here alone all day with nothing to do! Now i'm back to blogging, looking for a home for us in GA, doing family history... watching my shows and other general online time wasting activity. :)  Sigh I can't wait to go back to GA and have my things back!!!

When Danny came home for the birth it was on emergency leave.  He only came home about 2-3 days earlier than he was already approved to come home on R&R but because of my blood pressure they took Rowan on the morning of the day Danny would have arrived.  Anyway, I sent a red cross message to get him here earlier on emergency leave.  We had no idea at the time but doing so made it so Danny STILL GOT R&R! Kinda worked the system but wow, we had no idea and WHAT a blessing!!!! He got to come visit for two weeks at the beginning of September.

I had this sign made to take with us to the airport... and I forgot to get a picture of Rowan with it! But, its still cute :)  I taped it to his stroller.

Little Rowan all ready to pick up his Daddy from the airport!

Dang  I don't know why but I get so nervous every time I have to meet Danny at the airport... ha, seems like that's all we have done our entire relationship! It's getting so old... i'm tired of the drama of it all! We are almost done though.

Idaho Falls Airport

We got to the airport just in time for Danny to land, I prefer it that way instead of sitting there getting more nervous.  There was a family there waiting for a kid getting off of his mission.. they were blocking the doors, taking up all of the chairs and basically dominating the entire airport.  Not gonna lie, super annoying. I had to weed through people and stand off to the side trying to see if my sweetie was coming.  And we had our private little meeting once again, lucky to have him home safe while the missionary mom was bawling...

Poor Rowan was soooo exhausted by the time we got to the airport, it was past his bed time.  I handed him to his Daddy... it was pretty funny to watch Danny hold Rowan like a new born hahaha, supporting his neck and cradling him lol I was like ummm babe, he's a lot bigger now, he doesn't like that.

Blurry, but cute- poor Row Row.  He even cried while I held him he was just so sleepy!

First family photo in 3 months

Awww love him! 

I'm so grateful Danny was able to come. Rowan was ten days old when he left and had changed so much.  It was really important to me that he got to see him at this stage. And while Danny was here he got to see Rowan hit a growth spurt and all of the sudden develop a few skills. I was so grateful!  

Growin' Rowan

Our little "Row Row" is growing so fast!  He changes so much even from day to day it seems that I don't even know where to start on updating everyone on regular life and not "events".  For starters... after a month and a half  I moved out of the nasty, old, dark, depressing, smelly windowless motel.  I now have been in a new one bedroom apartment owned by the same complex.  Rowan has been a joy to watch grow and develop over the last 4 months (today is his 4 month birthday!)  It's been so fun to see his little personality come out.  It has been a real challenge by myself but I have a lot of support from family and friends and that helps a lot!

Rowan can now smile, babble, roll over both ways, grab objects, blow raspberries, laugh out loud, claw and pinch and pull mommy's hair and eat rice cereal.  Oh! And sometimes hold his on bottle haha, usually it just ends up a fight over the bottle.. because he can hold it but has trouble keeping it in his mouth and at the right angle to have the milk flow down.  He's funny.  I have to pin his little arms down sometimes to feed him because he fights me over the bottle and gets so angry he just wants to do it himself!!! He's a VERY independent curious little man.  He doesn't snuggle unless he is sick and has to be sitting up facing the room so he can see everything that's going on :) .  This can be a fight during feedings too, he's constantly trying to sit up haha, he's a strong little guy!  Even though he's learned how to take his binky out of his mouth he cant quite get it back in and that makes him so mad!  I keep looking through my pics to find ones I want to add to this post but... I just can't decide! And all of my day to day fav's are on facebook anyway.

Sleeping is hit and miss.  I can pretty consistently lay him in his cradle at bed time and he will put himself to sleep, he just still doesn't stay asleep.  Unless he's going through a growth spurt, then I get spoiled, and then its over!  For a while he had a pretty consistent pattern of bed around eight or nine, get up at 4 am and sleep till about 9.  But after his last growth spurt its been pretty sporadic and I think he's teething and thats been making sleep difficult.  He gets low grade fevers and drools but I haven't been able to tell if his gums are swollen... so we will see.

I'm so bad.  I have been feeding him rice cereal for a week now.  I would try it off and on for the last 4 weeks but just recently did he really start showing signs and skills that he was ready for food.  I'm terrible though i'm always putting different foods in his mouth! You'd think studying child development would make me more anal about those things but.. nah. :) He so far loves popcorn (the soft part), cooked carrots, mushed beans and dinner rolls lol 

4th of July

The 4th was a rough day for all of us.  It felt really odd to talk to my husband... who is sacrificing everything he loves about life right now on a day when he should be honored and nobody cared. Nobody thanked him, and he didn't get to do anything special, just went to work doing what he does so that we American's can all sleep peacefully.   

My family all went camping for the fourth.  I told them I didn't think I could do that with a newborn.  He was crying a lot and night and I was still healing and had an infection... yeah.... So I was at home dressing Rowan up to go nowhere... and having a semi-meltdown.  (After getting him all cute in his patriotic onesie and legs and I in my red pants and blue and white shirt he threw up all over both of us.)  So I called Jaimee, kinda freaking out and she invited me to hang out with her family for the fourth.  I had fun and was grateful once again for  her friendship.  We went down by the River, got dinner and watched the show!

I Love Baby Legs!

Sad face after throwing up all over his patriotic onsie

Rowan and I at the fire works

Rowan Daniel Tracy Baby Blessing

 

Rowan Daniel Tracy was blessed on June 2, 2013 at my parents house in Rigby Idaho.  June 2 was actually his original due date, he was only 5 days old.  We had to, or wanted to, have Rowan blessed by his Daddy before Danny had to go back to Kuwait.  We believe that the priesthood that Christ had while he was on earth has been restored. Blessing a baby and giving them a name is a priesthood ordinance practiced in our church.  Danny, as a worthy holder of the Melckizedek priesthood, named and blessed our son.  My Dad, grandfather, brothers and uncles stood in as he did.  They also hold the priesthood. 

Rowan and I before i got him all dressed

Getting Rowan Dressed for the blessing. I found this sweet little white suit online.  It was pretty big on him, but that's ok, we were just grateful Danny was there to do it even if Rowan was only a few days old. 

Sweet little jaundiced yellow bubba before his blessing. 

Danny fasted all Day before the blessing.  We were both nervous.  Danny hasn't had the opportunity to give many blessings in his life and most that he has were for the sick and done in private.  He gave a beautiful blessing, he named our son Rowan Daniel Tracy and blessed Rowan.  It was short, sweet, eloquently worded and powerful.  Our home was flooded with the spirit, our hearts were touched and eyes were moist.  I wish more than anything I could remember the words he said.  The only specific I remember was that he said Rowan would be a light to others.  I don't know why I can't remember the words, I think it's because the feeling I felt was much more overwhelming.  I know this little boy is so loved, not just by us but by his father in heaven as well.

Mom, Dad and Rowan after the  blessing- Poor squished baby :)

The Family

Jacob, Mom, Dad, Me, Danny, Rowan, Kenyon, Marissa, Spencer

My long time friends, all of us with babies! :0) This pic is funny lol

Emily Davidson, and Jaimee Young 

We were blessed to have family and friends that came to the blessing. Danny's Mother, Barbra Tracy and Grandmother, Dorothy Witzman came from Farmington, New Mexico

Grandpa Keith Shipton came from Vernal Utah.  I was so happy he was able to attend. I felt grandma Shipton close to me during my last months of pregnancy and during labor and delivery.  She passed away last year and I know she helped Rowan to get to us safely. 

Sam and Carrie's family was able to come from Boise, It was great to see them! I hadn't seen this little guy since our wedding! She took the photo's too, thanks you guys!

 

Mom and Dad admiring their first Grand-baby! 

Row-Row's Circumcision :(

I'm pretty sure what the doctors say about how long the numbing medication lasts its a BUNCH OF CRAPPP!  Just saying.  Danny and I took Rowan in for his circumcision after his bili levels were back to normal and he'd chunked up a bit.  We were both nervous about how Rowan would take it.. and I was nervous of how i'd handle it.  

 Here's the bubba strapped down and ready to go! We both stayed in the room during the procedure.  Rowan did really well actually and we were impressed!  And I didn't freak out, we were both just concerned for our baby and curious about how it worked. They did the little ring and string method.  The nurse gave Rowan little tastes of sugar water with his binky to keep him calm and he did great. 

 

 See? Immediately after his little surgery he still looks happy as a  clam! I still look a little pale lol It was when we got to the car that i'm pretty sure that "medication that will last a few hours" was worn off. He went ballistic.  Poor baby!  He screamed and screamed an awful hurt cry... and he wouldn't be comforted for anything.  He wouldn't  take his bottle or binky and no amount of shushing was making him feel any better. Poor little man clawed at me with his tiny nails and screamed until he crashed.  When we got home he glared at us for a few hours :) Poor guy.