Halloween

Evan had so much fun this Halloween... and so did Dan ;) Dan set up some halloween decorations outside our house and scared some of the local neighborhood kids. I think Dan enjoys this holiday more than all the kids trick-or-treating! We had so much fun handing out candy. If I had to estimate, I would say we had 75-100 kids this year. I went through all 5 bags of candy. It was good though, no leftover candy to tempt me with! Evan had such a great time taking pictures and seeing all of the trick-or-treaters. We dressed him up as a cute little "chubby" skeleton.

Best Friends

It was so amazing seeing my friend Tiffany's son, Joshua meet Evan for the first time. Tiffany and I have been friends for over 10 years. We were best friends all through high school, she was my room mate in college for 4 years, we were in each others weddings, and we were at the hospital the days our babies were born.

Joshua and Evan looking so cute in their
matching "Best Friends" onesies.

Hunsader Farm

Over the weekend we went to the Hunsader's Farm to pick out Evan's first pumpkin. My parents were able to meet us down there to join in the fun! We all had an amazing time and could not have asked for better weather. It finally is feeling like fall! The farm had so much to see and do. There were craft booths and live country music. Dan, my mom and I bravely ventured through the corn maze. I am so glad they were with me since I have such a horrible sense of direction I might have been lost in the maze for hours :) There were scarecrow displays set up that made for perfect picture opportunities. There was even a petting zoo! Evan loved looking at all the animals. On the day we went there was also a classic car show going on, which was right up my Dad's alley. I am so glad this is going to be one of our family traditions. I can't wait to take Evan back next year!!

Rolled Over

This morning I put put Evan down on his play mat on his tummy and then went to put some laundry away in his room. I was only gone for a few minutes, but when I got back in the room there he was as happy as can be on his back! This was the first time Evan has ever rolled over. I yelled for Daniel to come over and we praised him a lot and loved on him. We tried to get him to do it again for us but he was not interested. We will try again tomorrow :) At least I know he can do it!! We could not be happier. Yea!

Busy Weekend

My cousin Lindsey got married over the weekend! Our family flew up to Philly for the wedding. This was Evan's second plane ride. He is such a great little traveler. The wedding was beautiful and my cousin looked amazing! I am so happy for her and her husband Greg. While we were on our trip my Granny noticed Evan's first tooth broke through on the day he turned 9 months old. My baby boy is getting so big!

Dan loved the weather. It was in the 60's. It finally felt like fall! I now feel ready to decorate our house with my fall/Halloween decoration.

Car Show + Swinging = FUN

My parents and I took Evan to his first car show in downtown Dunedin. It was so hot but Evan loved looking at all the old cars with Grandpa. I love the relationship Evan has with his grandparents!

There was a park at the car show. I did not think Evan was going to be able to sit in the baby swings by himself since he is not too stable when he sits up. However, when I put him in the swing he did great and was able to sit in the swing by himself. He loves anything that is fast so the swings were right up his alley. He laughed so hard. It was adorable! I took so many pictures and videos :) He has such a contagious smile you just can't help smile back.

Early Interventionist- Week 1

Last week was Evan's first meeting with an Early Interventionist. We got to finally meet the women Evan is going to be working with. Her name is Star and she was really nice and so good with Evan. She told me that a lot of the things I was doing with Evan was right along the lines of things she normally suggests. Evan and I were given homework :) He has to do two thirty minute sessions that look like this:

Tummy time on boppy- 5 minutes
Bumbo chair- 5 minutes
Practice rolling over- 5 minutes
Step & Play- 5 minutes
Tummy time- 5 minutes
Floor exercises- 5 minutes

We work on this once in the morning and then after his afternoon nap. Every Sunday Star will call me with when our next session will be.

Mommy Survey

1. WAS YOUR FIRST PREGNANCY PLANNED? We wanted to get pregnant after our 1 year anniversary but we got impatient and decided to stop being careful a few months early... we ended up getting pregnant right away :) Best surprise ever!
2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME? Yes, we were just about to celebrate our first anniversary.
3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS? Thrilled and surprised how fast it happened
4. WAS ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU? No way
5. HOW OLD WERE YOU? I was 26
6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT YOU WERE PREGNANT? multiple positive pregnancy tests :)
7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST? Dan was with me when I found out we were expecting. We decided to keep the good news to ourselves for a while and told our families on Mother's Day.
8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX? I wanted to know but Dan would have been happy to wait it out.
9. DUE DATE? Our due date was December 27, 2008. However, Evan did not want to come out and I was induced one week later on January 2, 2009.
10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS? Nope
11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE? Milk and Reese Peanut Butter cereal (I had to have a bowl every night- yummy)
12. WHO/WHAT IRRITATED YOU THE MOST? Heartburn, you would have thought he would have been born with a head full of hair... nope!
13. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CHILD'S SEX? boy
14. DID YOU WISH YOU HAD THE OPPOSITE SEX OF WHAT YOU WERE GETTING? No, I was just shocked that I was having a boy... I remember thinking "what am I going to do with a boy?!" I know nothing about bugs, trucks, and sports :)
15. HOW MANY POUNDS DID YOU GAIN THROUGHOUT THE PREGNANCY? 22 pounds
16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER? Yes, 3 of them.
17. WAS IT A SURPRISE OR DID YOU KNOW? I knew about them, one was with family in Philly, one was with friends/family in Florida, and one was a work shower.
18. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY? No, but there were plenty of complications during the delivery :(
19. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH? University Community Hospital, Women's Center
20. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR? Almost 11 hours
21. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL? Daniel
22. WHO WATCHED YOU GIVE BIRTH? Daniel
23. WAS IT NATURAL OR C-SECTION? Natural
24. DID YOU TAKE MEDICINE TO EASE THE PAIN? Yep
27. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH? 5 pounds 14 ounces
28. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN? January 2, 2009
30. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER? Evan Joseph Mota
31. HOW OLD IS YOUR FIRST BORN TODAY? 8 months

Mommy and Me

Today was Evan's first Play and Learn class at Gymboree. This class helps babies explore their senses and support visual and auditory development with tummy time, flashlight play, and songs. They did a game today with a puppet and he loved it! It really helped that he had a great nap and a full belly right before class so he was in a great mood. The only thing he did not like too much was the tummy time... not a big suprise there. However, he did it for longer then I thought he would. It is amazing how much better he is at tummy time then he was just 2 weeks ago. I think this class will be great for Evan to meet other babies and play in a different environment. I can't wait to go back next week :)

What's In a Name

During my pregancy, Dan and I thought long and hard about what we were going to name our baby boy. Although a few names made "the list", we knew pretty early on that we both liked the name Evan. We looked up the meaning of his name and liked that it was a Celtic name meaning "Young Warrior". Now thinking of the meaning of his name it is very appropriate since from the day he was born he has had to be a fighter. He was born weighing 5 pounds 14 ounces with the cord was wrapped around his neck. He developed pneumothorax shortly after birth. A nitrogen washout was done by giving 100% FiO2 for 24 hours. He also completed 5 days of iv for an infection. He spent the first 12 days of his life in the NICU. We thought the hardest part was over when we joyfully brought our sweet angel home from the hospital. Now Evan is 8 months old and he is having problems with developmental delays. He has gone to hearing and vision specialists and was seen by a neurologist. He has to have an MRI and second hearing test done on October 14, 2009. Starting Friday, Evan will have a Early Interventionist come to our house to work with him on his motor skills and strengthening his arms and shoulders. He has been working so hard with Dan and me and we have seen improvements over the last few weeks. We are excited to see and learn what the therapist does with Evan and are very hopeful that he will grow stronger and stronger. Nothing has come easy for Evan. He has had to work hard to learn what comes easily to most babies his age. He is a true young warrior!