Pray for Tuck-Tuck

Please pray for my dad, Arden and Silas' Tuck-Tuck, this morning. He is having back surgery at 10am to repair a herniated disk. He has been in a tremendous amount of pain over the last several weeks and I know he is looking forward to some relief. Please pray that the surgery will be successful and that he will have a fast recovery.

Applesauce

Arden has been eating cereal for two weeks now and is doing a great job! She loves it so we've started feeding her cereal twice a day in addition to her bottles. I decided this weekend that I wanted to introduce applesauce to her and this is the reaction I got:

Priceless, I know! Funny enough, she ended up eating almost all of the tablespoon I had for her, but this is the face she made with almost every bite! I know she will hate us one day for taking these pictures of her, but I just couldn't help but take it and share with all of you! Hopefully, our next few encounters with applesauce will be better!

So I don't leave you with that pitiful image of Arden stuck in your mind all week, here's a cute picture I took of her during our trip to Nashville (more on our trip to come):
Have a great week!

4 Things...

4 jobs I've had:
1. 2nd grade teacher
2. Office Manager @ Carpet One
3. Space Camp Counselor
4. Director of Education @ Sylvan

4 movies watched over and over:
1. Pretty Woman
2. Conspiracy Theory
3. Beauty and the Beast
4. Rush Hour

4 places I've lived:
1. Huntsville, AL
2. Searcy, AR
3. Kernersville, NC
4. Harvest, AL

4 shows I watch:
1. American Idol
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. Brothers and Sisters
4. Friday Night Lights
(I could list a million more---do you think I watch too much t.v.???)

4 places I've been:
1. London
2. Antigua
3. Bahamas
4. Vancouver

4 people who e-mail me regularly:
1. Steph
2. Geoff
3. Cani
4. Facebook notifications :)

4 favorite things to eat:
1. Vegetables
2. Mexican
3. chocolate
4. potato chips

4 places I'd rather be:
1. Hawaii
2. Antigua
3. London
4. Any beach :)

4 things I look forward to this year:
1. Going to the beach!
2. Traveling to Boston and Dallas with Geoff and Arden
3. Seeing old friends on our trip to Dallas
4. watching Arden grow!

4 people to tag: (I wish everyone would do this because it's fun - but I'm limited to 4 people)
1. April
2. Steph
3. Dasha
4. Shelly

4 month pictures

http://www.carlabphotography.com/VanZoeren-March2009/ is the link to Arden's 4 month picture slideshow. We are thrilled with these pictures and once again are going to have a tough time deciding which to buy! Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

4 Months Already?

Arden is another month older and again it has come so quickly! It seems that every time I blink, she has changed in one way or another. She is such a happy baby--talking and laughing all the time! She loves her bouncy seat and is starting to play more independently in her exersaucer. She is a rolling machine when it comes to rolling from her back to her tummy, and is starting to try and figure out how to get back on her back. Arden is also getting used to being on her tummy--it's still not her favorite position, but she is spending more time on her tummy before she gets too fussy. She is becoming a wiggle worm on her back and her tummy--I have to watch her very closely or she will end up right next to Murphy. Of course, this is partly his fault since he thinks he has to be right next to her everytime she plays on the floor! We have discovered that Arden is very ticklish! It is so fun to tickle her and listen to her laugh :) Geoff and I truly enjoy every moment that we have with her--each day brings something new and exciting for us. Speaking of new things, Arden is starting to try and sit up! When I change her diaper, giver her a bath, put her in the car seat--practically anytime I lay her down--she props herself up on her elbows and tries her best to sit up. It is so cute! Even when the nurse put her on the scale at her last Dr. appointment, she tried! I'm sure it won't be long before I'm posting that she sat up :) Oh and have I mentioned she sleeps GREAT at night?! Hopefully I won't jinx myself, but Arden has been sleeping through the night for quite sometime now! Occasionally, she will wake up around 3am, but those nights are very rare. On a normal night, Arden goes to bed between 8-9pm and wakes up to eat around 5-5:30am. She then goes back to sleep until 8am, sometimes 9am! I know, I know I am very lucky--trust me, I count my blessings every day!

On to other news--Arden had her 4-month check-up last Friday. She weighed 16 lbs. 1 oz, and was 25.5 inches long. She is still in the 90th percentile in length and weight so that is great news! She had to get 3 shots again, but she did great--only crying while the nurse stuck her. Once the shots were over, so was the crying. She slept for most of the day too, which was very nice.

Arden's doctor also gave us the green light to start her on cereal! She has been eating rice cereal once a day since Saturday and loves it! She was definitely unsure about it the first time around, but now she gets excited when I put her in her bumbo seat and sometimes even helps me feed her! One time she literally grabbed the spoon and shoved it in her mouth! We are so glad that she has had a smooth transition with her first "food" experience.

And last, but not least, Arden had her 4-month photo session last Saturday. Thankfully we were able to get a morning session because that is her best time of day, and boy did she do a great job! She was so happy the whole time and cooperated as much as a 4-month old can--I can't wait to see the pictures! As soon as I get it, I will post the link so you can see the pictures too!

Sorry this post was so long--it has been quite some time since I have updated and I had a lot to share. Now that I've finished rambling, you can enjoy what you've all been waiting for...PICTURES!!!

I had to include a picture of poor Murphy--I think he's been missing out on a lot of attention lately :(

Spending some time outside

Arden's first basketball game!

We tried so hard to get a good picture of Arden in her very first gift (the ADORABLE onesie from our friend, Stacy). As you can see from Geoff's expression, we were having lots of fun trying to get Arden to cooperate!

Arden loves to play on her tummy time mat!

Our house the morning it snowed. Unfortunately we didn't get a picture of Arden in the snow because she was sleeping.

Just a few pictures that I love!

Trying cereal for the first time--she's definitely not sure about it!

But thankfully she loved it--can't you tell?!