4 months and counting

Today marks month 4 since Cole made his early entrance into this world!  Every day has been a new adventure and new progress.  Its pretty incredible to watch him grow and pick up new traits.  Time flies and when you compare these photos with previous months, its pretty amazing to see how quickly he's growing!  We love you very much Cole!

Happy 2nd Birthday Maggie!

We're definitely missing our favorite niece (and nephew) today on Maggie's (American) 2nd birthday.  For those of you that don't know, Melissa, Jason and the kids are abroad in Japan for the next two years, but are certainly making the most of it!

We got to Skype with Maggie and Melissa on her Japanese birthday and sung her (a terrible rendition of ) Happy Birthday.  Here's a picture at her birthday party.  Happy birthday Mags!  We miss you and are excited to see you in March!

Go Cougs!

Emily was gracious enough to let Cole don his crimson and gray on Saturday and the Cougs pulled off a win against ASU.  It was pretty satisfying to see him in his future colors!  We spent most of the weekend relaxing or doing chores.  In between we had my company party on Friday night and also headed to our friends, Mike and Jody, to watch the Cougs on Saturday.

Here are some photos from the fun!

Chubby Cole!

Cole in his crimson and gray.  Thanks Melissa for the Cougar bib!

Cole, trying to look tough for the picture and fighting back a smile. 

Cole with our friend Kyle, who has the most extensive hat collection of any male I know.  Kyle approved of the knit billed beanie, but wasn't wearing his matching gray one.

Cole's first girlfriend (or so I'm predicting)

Our friends Libby and Brian welcomed a baby girl on Thursday, 2/16 (yes, on my 30th bday - that's why I think it's a sign...).  Elizabeth Mae Carter was born at 9 pounds 6 ounces and the entire family is doing well.  Drew, Cole, Kristal and I went to the hospital to meet Elizabeth just 12 hours after she was born...she is beyond gorgeous and has already stolen both her mom and dad's hearts : )

Libby & Elizabeth

Brian & Elizabeth

Cole meeting Brian & Elizabeth 

Kristal & Elizabeth

Week in review

It was a busy week last week with Emily's birthday celebration and other happenings.  Cindy came up to babysit while Emily was out responsibly enjoying her 30th birthday.  We also got a visit from my Cousin Kim who popped by to meet Cole and leave some great gifts!

Cole continues to make good progress on gaining weight and giving us more smiles.  He's also spending a lot more time in his crib and has had a few nights of staying in all night.  Emily posted a bunch of flashcard / pictures on the crib walls and those keep Cole quite entertained!

Thanks to Jon and Nicole for Cole's great Valentine's Day clothes (bulldogs on hearts)

Then and Now

It's amazing to think that Cole has almost quadrupled in size in under 4 months - our Little Man just continues to grow like a weed and we couldn't be any more excited about it :)  Liz and I were chatting the other day, we're both pretty sure Cole is going to catch up to Cade within the next month or two!

For those of our friends that are able to see Cole frequently, they are able to see his growth and progress easily.  I thought it might be fun to show two pictures of Cole in his car seat for those of you that don't get to see him in person. I know they're not the exact same, but I think you can tell just how not so little he is anymore : )  The picture on the left is Cole passing his car seat exam in the hospital on 12/3/11, the day before he came home.  The picture on the right is Cole taking a nap after we went for a walk around Greenlake on 2/3/12 (just 2 months later).

Photos from the week

Lots of fun stuff happening here over the last week.  Cole had a doctor's appointment on Monday and got a great review.  He's up to 11 pounds, 4 ounces and growing strong.  The doctor says he's coming along great, so we're happy to hear that.

We did take some photos to share of the week, so here they are

Kristal came over to spend some time with Cole.  Always great to get some help!

 Emily's friend Liz and her son Cade (who was born on the same day as Cole), before heading out on a walk.  We've had great weather here in Seattle over the last few days.

 Thanks to Cheeseman for this awesome bib cape

Cole enjoying his new poster / flash cards Emily posted in his crib.  Apparently they are quite entertaining because Cole spent a good 20 or 30 minutes checking them out on his own.

Update on Benson

Most of you have asked me for an update on Benson over the past couple weeks, I apologize for not keeping everyone updated via our blog!  I'm extremely happy to post that on Monday, 1/30, after a total of 140 days spent in two NICUs, Benson was finally moved to a "regular" hospital room at Children's Hospital. While Benson still has quite a bit of growing to do, he has overcome more obstacles in his short life than most of us have endured in 30+ years.  Thank you to everyone that has had Benson in your thoughts and prayers!  I remember the excitement and anxiety Drew and I felt when Cole was getting closer and closer to getting the green light to come home; I can only imagine how excited Benson's parents are at this time!