yogrit.

some things popular because they are trendy, but other things are popular because they are just dang good.

enter yogurtland.

i have never been a super intense fan of traditional yogurt {i am one of those, 'if i am going to eat sweets it may as well have a zillion calories and have big chunks of brownie in it, otherwise it is not worth it', types of people}. thus, i was a little reluctant when we planned to meet our dear friends the ross' there. i was very pleasantly surprised and rest assured that i will be visiting there frequently!

tradition.

my dear and talented aunt ketti has started a tradition of making fabulous quilts for all of her great nieces and nephews. hence as soon as we announced that we had a little manchild on the way, ketti chatted with me about fabric choices and colors. trusting in her fantastic taste and experience i turned it all over to her and i am more than pleased with the results.

and yes, she did name the quilt 'manchild' because she is just that wonderful. from the bottom of our hearts, thank you aunt ketti - we love it.

its raining. its pouring.

although i hate this dreary, grey wet weather with a fiery passion and may have mentioned yesterday to mr. oldham that we might have to move to sunnier pastures, i love that i can still stick warm hats on our little guy. i have been anxious to try on the following hat that my friend brianna made for roe and it was just as darling as i thought it would be.

so, thank you rain for sticking around a bit longer. and thank you brianna for the fabulous accessory!

squeaky clean.

roe and i love baths equally. we both love the smell of the night time bath soap we use. we both love scrubbing his head and washing away the toe jam found between his fat little feet. we both love toweling off and then the lotioning and massage that ensues.

i know this, obviously, because he told me. oh and the fact that these pictures just say a thousand words.

among other news.

i promise that although we have a newborn, we have still been living our lives. in fact a few weeks back some friends threw a backyard garden party to kick off the summer and despite the chilly weather we enjoyed good food, great atmosphere and fabulous company. images via the ever fabulous nicole

so blessed.

today, may 11th, our little manchild is two months old.

to: david monroe oldham

this last sunday {mothers day} your dad blessed you in church and since then i have not been able to push the feeling aside of just how incredibly and overwhelmingly blessed you really are.

first of all, i hope that you know and grow to appreciate the amazing man that your father is. not only will he always make you laugh and teach you how to wakeboard, but he will lead you by his example, to live a honest life, be the best friend a person can ask for, to uphold the priesthood and to love the Lord with all your heart. i hope you know how much i love him and how grateful i am that he is your father - we are both so very lucky to have him.

second, i hope that you know how many people love you. your extended family is made up of people who want the very best for you and who will encourage you from your very first step to the day you open your mission call {and further, of course}.

last of all, as cheesy as this sounds, i hope you know how honored i feel to be your mother. we are coming up on trying times and i know that you were saved for these days to be a beacon of light in our little family as well as to all of those you come in contact with. your smile, even now, warms up a room and i know that feeling will only become stronger as you learn and grow each day.

i love you. with all of my heart, i love you kiddo.

images from the blessing via Nicole

little ham.

our little guy is turning into quite the ham - i love watching this kid grow up right before my eyes. it seems that each and every day his personality develops even further.

one month older

and wiser too! happy one month birthday to you, Roe.

to: monroe

it has been one entire month since you were welcomed into our lives and i can certainly say that we have changed for the better having you around.

the minute you were born was - a relief. you were one entire week late and you daddy and i were so anxious to meet you, hold you and kiss you. i was relieved when they set you on my chest and your breathing calmed and your fever suppressed. i was relieved that you had all of your finger and toes and that your eyes were open and alert. i was relieved to see that you inherited your daddy's dark hair and my blue eyes. most of all i was relieved that pregnancy was over and that life with you HERE with us had started.

today i took you to the doctor and they weighed you in at 11lbs 14oz - we asked for a manchild and that is certainly what we have gotten. you grunt like a little man when you are hungry and obviously you dont skimp around when it comes to eating. you are awake more these days and your daddy and i do everything that we can to get you to interact with us during those hours, but you are still working on that. for now you are good kicking your legs and simply soaking up the world around you.

here is to your first month and to many more joyous months to come.

we love you: mom & dad

chit chatty.

doctors say that when babies smile it is just a reaction to gas, but we like to think otherwise. i look forward to many more days of making our baby laugh and watching him grow.

sleepy sunday.

although mom and dad may not get much sleep these days our little buddy enjoys lots of naps through the day.

maybe if our kid were uglier i would take a nap while he napped instead of staring at him obsessively. sigh.

snow day.

what do you do when it is snowing outside during the first week in april?

kiss on these cheeks, doi.

daddy duty.

since baby roe has been welcomed into our family aaron has been, in one word, a saint. he has gotten up with each late night feeding, has changed diapers willingly, has become the token bather of our boy and rocks the manchild to sleep when i am besides myself. best of all though, aaron loves our boy.

to: our little roe buddy

when you were still in my belly your dad and i would talk to you and play music for you so that you would learn to recognize our voices and start to love the bands/artists that we love. your dad's favorite line to say to you was "hey roe buddy, its your daddy. i love you." and he would say it over and over again to you. i think you remember that because even now when he says that to you, you calm down and search diligently with your eyes. right from the get go you and your dad had a special connection - you refused to sleep without sucking on your dad's finger in the hospital. even now when you get fussy and are ready to eat again your daddy picks you up, holds you close and after kissing you on the cheek you try latching to his cheek or onto his nose.

your dad calls during the day to make sure that you are doing ok and asks you how your day was when he gets home from work or school. i just want you to know how much he loves you and how much more i love him for loving you.

love: mom

saturday

is a special day. to gush over your baby all day long.

good morning

morning arrives at 4am and then again around 7am for us these days. when the sun is out and the babe is cooing we know it is going to be a good day.

to monroe:

you are three weeks old today and each day that passes you grow more alert and aware; your dad and i are really looking forward to the day when you can actually respond to all the funny faces and noises we send your way. you love to lay on your back, pant, kick your legs and flail your arms about and when we change your diaper you insist you keeping one leg kicking at all times. we had to invest in a few 'pee-pee teepee's because you like to shoot yourself in the face while we are changing you. your cry sounds a little like a teradactyl and breaks my heart, but you only cry when you need something and your dad and i are always willing and able to provide you with what you need. against the wishes of our doctor, you love being rocked and cradled to sleep, but honestly i have no objections to snuggle time with you. you listen when i sing to you and as soon as you hear your daddy's voice you start looking around trying to follow the sound. you still have a little bit of fuzzy, brown hair on your back and down your arms, but it is far less than when you were born and i am sure will all soon be gone. your double chin has started and the rolls on your wrists are getting fatter by the day; we cannot wait until you are covered in chubby rolls! your hair is still dark and full, like your dad's, and your eyes are still deep, deep blue, like mine. you dont adore being kissed all the time, but your dad and i are going to give you all the kisses we can until you just wont allow it anymore. we love you, probably more than you will ever understand.

love: mom

two weeks ago

the manchild who has changed our lives for the better came into this world.

now at one entire pound heavier and waking up only twice during the night our love for you grows each and every day.

dear grammy,

we already miss you dearly.

thank you for singing 'row, row, row your boat' and reading mother goose nursery rhymes to us. thank you for cleaning and tidying up the house constantly and being at our beck and call when we rushed to the ER just days after coming home from the hospital. thank you for making meal and washing the dishes after. thank you for knitting and sewing projects for us with love and for holding legs after major diaper blow outs and holding the pacifier during moments of panic.

most of all thank you for being here for it all and for your love and support during this transition in our lives.

all our love,

aaron, kayti and baby monroe

a very good place to start.

it feels like just yesterday that i sat in bed devouring an entire bag of lay's original potato chips before peeing on the infamous stick to reveal that we were in fact pregnant. i felt a rush a emotions then, but the one that sticks out predominantly in my mind is how elated i was to tell my sweetheart. aaron and i had shared so much up to that point in our lives, but finding out we were pregnant just days before our 2nd wedding anniversary seemed fitting. i knew what an incredible husband he was and anticipated sharing his humor and passion for life with little ones to call our own.

our due date of march 3rd came and went, but my SIL Meredith Carlson took some fabulous pictures to document those long months that i carried our manchild. i love look at these images because they encompass all of the anticipation and happiness that aaron felt during our pregnancy and the days surrounding our baby's due date.

here we are 10 months later with a little one to call our own and i love every minute of it.

arrived.

as of march 11th, 2011 at 5:14am aaron and i are the proud parents of 8lb 7 oz little boy Roe. he is the center of our universe and we love every minute of it.