Up Close and Personal

So, I may be slightly smitten by the cuteness of my little boy. How can you resist this little face?

Milestones

Now that Colton is three weeks old, I thought I should post some of the major milestones he has passed so far.

First bath (He was slightly traumatized at first, but seems to enjoy it now):

First comparison with Grandpa Cole's hand (it turns out that Colton is only slightly larger):

First burp with Grandma Louise (this is one of his favorite facial expressions):

First moment of exasperation with his parents:

First prayer (he's already very spiritual--he folds his arms and everything):

First time rock climbing. Don't be thrown off by his crying face. He loved rock climbing. He was just sad because the shoes were a little too big.

It's a (wicked awesome) Boy!

We are so excited to announce the birth of our son, Colton Randle Scott. We were somewhat surprised at his early arrival (10 days) because he was certainly making no signs of wanting to come out, but thanks to a sudden spike in my blood pressure, the doctors decided to induce me while Colton and I were both still healthy (they were worried that I'd develop pre-eclampsia). They started pitocin at 1:30 on Thursday afternoon, and after a long slow night, Colton was born at 7:25 the next morning (July 17). He is 19 inches long and a bulky 5 lbs 10 ounces. Here are some pictures from the hospital:

Under the warmer. He has big hands compared to his skinny body!

I don't know about that Daddy person. I better keep my eye on him...


I'm sleepy...

But before I nap, I must finish my plans for taking over the universe.

Oh well, that can wait. Nap first...

A little too small for his car seat. Good thing we got that larger model.

Happy Feast of July!

This year we decided to celebrate the 4th of July the way the Pilgrims intended us to--by having an overwhelming feast. I guess technically the Pilgrims didn't celebrate the 4th of July, but I think the Founding Fathers probably would have had a celebratory feast if they hadn't just committed high treason by signing the Declaration, and if the British weren't already attacking.


Anyway, rather than go downtown to some of the many wonderful celebrations taking place here in our nation's capital (I was particularly sad that I missed the made-for-day pyrotechnic display at Mt. Vernon which was scheduled from 12:45 -12:50. It sounds amazing, but the thought of walking around through huge crowds at 8 1/2 months pregnant was, well, exhausting...), we stayed home and smoked an 8 lb pork butt and made all the appropriate side dishes--potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, and corn-on-the-cob. Top that off with some IBC Root Beer, and our celebration was complete. In hind sight, we probably should have invited some people to join our feast because it turns out that we had a little more than we could eat. Either way, we love America and all the delicious food you can eat here!

Better than flowers

Today when Justin came home from work, he brought me a present. I mentioned on Sunday how my dress would look cute with bright red shoes...and out he went and found me a pretty shnazzy pair. I love it. I love him. Who says engineers aren't romantic?

Watch out Bob Ross

I'm not exactly sure what possessed me, but I recently decided that it would be a good idea to paint a very large tree on the wall of our nursery. No, I have never actually painted anything, but I do have a deep and abiding love for Bob Ross and all the happy little trees he painted playing in the sunshine.

So how did someone so un-artistic as myself manage to paint an 8-foot tree on the wall? Well, I found this picture online:

Then I drew a grid on the picture and Justin helped me draw one on the wall. With the grid in place, I just had to go block by block and plot some points of the outline of the tree. Then I connected the dots and started painting:


Trying to blend the colors was the trickiest part. Here's the final product:


For an extra special touch, I "carved" our initials on he trunk. I did this because we are in love.


Here's the final comparison:










You may notice that my tree is a perfect reflection of the model tree. I decided that the big part should be on the left. Why? I don't know. It just seemed like that's how it should be. Anyway, the idea is that I will eventually gather pictures of our immediate families and hang them in the branches. Get it? It's a family tree. I'll post the final pictures of the nursery when I get it done. It's kind of still a storage room at this point, butI still have seven whole weeks...

Oh how lovely was the weekend...

There's nothing like breaking the end of pregnancy up into manageable chunks. Hawaii was obviously a major event that we were looking forward to. Thankfully, our dear friends Jen and Matt Pierson decided to get married last weekend, which provided another lovely event to break up the baby count-down.

Since Jen grew up in Rochester, the wedding was held in the Palmyra temple. Due to the fact that my camera was out of batteries, I don't actually have any pictures of the happy couple or their nuptual celebrations. It was quite a perfect weekend. Between the sealing and the reception, we were able to visit the church sites.

We were also fortunate enough to be able to hang out with the Fronces for the rest of the weekend--and they were smart enough to A) plan activities for us to do, and B) bring a camera to commemorate the festivities. On Sunday, we headed up to Niagara Falls to take in the splendor of nature. Too bad it is surrounded by a freaky fun-town. I'm kind of scared of Canada now. Also, since my last boating experience was less than ideal, I decided not to go on the Maid of the Mist. Justin and I got ice cream instead. I could be wrong, but I think we made a good choice. (Next time you're in Upstate New York, you must get some Perry's ice cream. It's all over the place, and delicious.) You can tell my belly has grown a lot in the past two weeks!


On Monday we discovered an amazing gem of a state park called Watkins Glen. I'll be honest, it was cooler than Niagara Falls. Anyone going up to the greater Palmyra area should definitely check it out.


Next major milestones: Two weeks and we finish the year of teaching seminary. Three weeks after that and I officially end my consulting career (woot!). Then I will lie by the pool for a few weeks until the baby comes.