Weekend fun with family

This weekend we had Matt's dad and his wife Shelia, and Matt's brother Beau and his girlfriend Kate come to visit! It was so good to see them and I think they enjoyed seeing our little man!

Friday night we had pizzas from the Homemade Pizza Co and hung out at home. Here is Will being introduced to Beau and Kate for the first time!

Saturday morning we went to Walker Brothers for breakfast. Check out the apple pancake a la mode that Mr. Dart got to share with the table - it was soo good!!

After breakfast we drove around Evanston to show Matt's family around, and then we came back to our place. Here is Will with his uncle Beau. Beau said this is the first time he's held a baby! He looks like a natural to me!

Saturday night we went to Pete Miller's for dinner. We took Will with us and he slept the whole time as we gorged ourselves on steaks, seafood, and ice cream sundaes! Afterwards Mr. Dart and Shelia came back to our place to help put Will to bed. Mr. Dart sure does love his grandson - he must have said 20 times what a miracle he was and his face lit up every time he was around him. Shelia couldn't get enough of the little guy either and kept saying how excited she was to begin a relationship with him.

It was such a great weekend and a great time with Matt's family!

Friday randomness

We went last night for Will's 6 week doctor's appointment. He weighs 9 pounds, 4 ounces!! The doctor said he is gaining weight at exactly the right rate, so we were happy! He also told us that at Will's 2 month appointment he will have to get shots...I am not looking forward to this:(

Today is Matt's last day at his internship! I think he has really enjoyed it this summer, and they offered him a job when he graduates next spring! I am excited that Matt will be around for the next couple of weeks before classes start, and I think he is really looking forward to this break as well!

This afternoon Matt's dad, Shelia, his brother Beau, and Beau's girlfriend Kate are coming to visit! We are really looking forward to seeing them!

Also, here are some cookies that Matt's mom brought up last week that she had made. Aren't they cute?

Bath time

Here is Will getting his bath tonight! He really seems to like it!

Engagement announcement!

I just wanted to share that my cousin Sarah got engaged last night! She was in St. Simons for the weekend with her boyfriend Dalton. After he proposed, he took Sarah back to his parent's house, where a house full of their friends and family were waiting to congratulate them!

Here is Sarah, walking into the house surprised to see everyone:

And here is my sister Mary Beth, Sarah, my Aunt Faye, and my mom:

Congrats Sarah and Dalton! We are so excited for you!

Butterfinger cake

I was in the mood to bake something today and saw a cake recipe here that looked delicious, so I made it today! It is called Butterfinger cake (I've made something similar before with Heath Bars and chocolate cake, but in my opinion this was better). It was SO easy to make and SO good!!

Here is the recipe:

yellow cake mix
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar caramel
3-4 crushed Butterfinger candy bars
Cool Whip

Bake the cake according to the package. While the cake is still hot, poke holes all over the top and pour the milk and caramel (that have been mixed together) over it. Top with the candy bars and refrigerate until cool. Top with Cool Whip (and more candy for decoration).

And I thought Will looked cute tonight so I tried to take a picture of him, but he clearly was not in the mood! Oh well!

Due date and a little outing

Today, August 20th, was my due date and a date I've had circled on my calendar since last December. I've been thinking all day today how thankful I am that Will came safe and healthy, and that I've gotten to hold my little bundle of joy for 5 weeks now! He is so precious, and I thank God for him every day!

I had a doctor's appointment this morning so I got up and got ready (including makeup, which I haven't worn in awhile!) and got Will fed, dressed, and in his car seat. As I was walking out the door, I got a call from the doctor's office that my doctor had to go to the hospital for labor and delivery, so I would have to reschedule.

Since we were already ready, I decided to go ahead and get out of the house for awhile. This was the first time I'd gone anywhere with Will by myself, so I was a little nervous! We drove to Old Orchard, a nice outdoor mall. I strolled Will around to a few stores and got lunch and then we had to head home for his next feeding. It was nice to get out, and Will did SO well! He slept the entire time...I never heard a peep out of him! Here is a picture of him in his car seat today.

One month!

Will is one month old today! I can't believe a month has already gone by!

And now, to my one month old baby boy...

• You are such a good baby. You sleep pretty much all day, and you rarely cry (pretty much only when you have gas or need to burp!)
• We have to wake you up to feed you every 3 hours, but once you are awake you are a good eater!
• After taking a two-week hiatus from pooping, everything is now back to normal:)
  
• This week you have started sleeping more through the night - last night you went 5 hours between feedings!
  
• At your latest appointment with Dr. Fox (at 3 weeks, 2 days) you weighed 8 pounds, 7 ounces
• Your eyes are dark blue right now, and we are curious if they will stay that way!
• You've started getting a little bit of baby acne this week, but don't worry, you are still the cutest baby in the world to your momma!`

**UPDATE: The white monogramed outfit he is wearing in the top picture was a gift from his aunt Casey! It is so cute!! Thanks Casey:)

Good weekend with Matt's family!

This weekend Matt's mom and his sister Casey came to visit us and see Will for the first time! They got here Friday morning and Casey spent the day making casseroles for us and freezing them. This was awesome! We tried the first one tonight (a mexican casserole) and it was soo good!! Saturday we showed them around Evanston, and then we took a picnic to the park with Will and the dogs. (By the way, he is wearing the first outfit that Matt and I bought for him, right after we found out we were having a boy!)

Saturday night Casey and Cathy watched Will so Matt and I could go on a date! We went to an indian restaurant (Mount Everest....sooo good!!) and then we went to see 500 Days of Summer, which was cute. On Sunday Matt and his mom went to church and Casey cleaned our apartment and did laundry for us (a HUGE help!). Sunday night we all went to Campagnola, a very good restaurant here in Evanston. We took Will and he did great - he just slept in his car seat the whole time! We had a great time with Matt's mom and sister and are so thankful for the MANY ways they served us while they were here!

And here are a few pictures of Matt reading to Will. In the first picture he is reading "Are You My Mother?" This was one of my favorite books when I was little and we have a video of my mom and I reading this book.

And the verdict is...

After much deliberation, we have finally decided what we will call our son. Matt and I have unanimously agreed that at least for now, he will go by Will. We had a tough time deciding because we both really like William and Will. But following in the tradition of Dart males Bob Dart, Bill Dart, Don Dart, Rob Dart, Matt Dart, and Beau Dart, we thought that a single syllable nickname was appropriate. And we like the name Will and think it is cute for a little boy.

We know that no matter what we decide, he may at some point in his life decide to change it. But for now, he is Will.

I have the best mom in the whole world!

Seriously, I do. Matt started back to work this week, so my mom came back up to help me out. I don't know what I would have done without her! She got up at 6am each morning to feed William and she kept him in the living room so I could sleep until his 9am feeding. She would then cook breakfast and lunch (and dinner!) for me, go to the grocery store, clean our apartment, wash clothes, take the dogs on walks, help with changing diapers and bath time, and she would watch William again in the afternoon so I could take a nap. And then on Friday night she offered to watch William so Matt and I could have a night out by ourselves! It was awesome! Also, it kind of got to be a joke that every time William started crying, she would hold him and he would immediately stop crying and fall asleep in her arms! He loves his grandma! One day I walked out of my bedroom and mom had William in one arm and she was washing dishes with her other arm! Mom left this morning, and once again it was very sad to have her leave.

I haven't posted in a whole week, so I'll give you a synopsis of the past week:

Sunday - our friends Dave and Courtney (Dave went to Kellogg with Matt, and I worked with Courtney at the church) came over to hang out and eat pizza with us and see William. They are our closest friends up here and we love hanging out with them! Mom also came in town Sunday night.

Monday - William had to go back to the pediatrician to see if he'd gained any weight yet. He'd gained one ounce since Friday! Dr. Fox said he needs to be gaining an ounce a day. At least he's gaining though! We have another appointment on Monday.

Tuesday - I was still in a LOT of pain, even though it had been 2 1/2 weeks since giving birth, so I went in to see my doctor. I'm glad I did - I had an infection from the stitches. I've been taking antibiotics and I'm feeling MUCH better!

Wednesday - Not a terribly exciting day...I think the highlight was putting William in his carrier and walking to Whole Foods to look around and buy dinner!

Thursday - Mom took our dogs in to be bathed and groomed!! Matt and I had seriously been neglecting them, so this was AWESOME of her to do for us!

Friday - Mom and I were really hoping to get William out of the house since I was feeling better, but it rained all day:( She watched William while Matt and I went to dinner at Pete Miller's, and then we went to a movie. We went to see Julie and Julia, which was awesome! We both really enjoyed it.

And right now, William is asleep in his bouncy seat, Coco and Ellie are asleep on the floor, and Matt is asleep on the sofa! It's a pretty relaxing Saturday at the Dart household!

Yay for poop!

I never thought I'd be this excited about my kid pooping! As a lot of you know, he hasn't gone in over a week. Since last Friday...the day he switched completely to breastmilk. We called our pediatrician twice last week about it, and then took him in on Friday, after it had been a full week. He had an x-ray done to make sure everything looked ok. He hasn't been fussy or acting like he's in pain, and his stomach is not distended, so the pediatrician was bewildered. We have another appointment on Monday and if he hadn't gone by then, they were going to give him an enema. So we've been "encouraging" him to go. We do bicycle kicks with his legs, and massage his stomach and back (both things that the doctor suggested). Even so, up until tonight he still hadn't gone.

Then tonight we decided we needed to get out of the house, and we went to Babies-R-Us. Sure enough, as soon as we leave the house, he goes! We didn't mind though, and were so relieved! We decided to do a post about this because a lot of you are concerned and have been praying for him.

Afterwards, we went to Noodle Company for dinner. This is our first time in a restaurant with William, so we had to get a picture, of course!