Your Latest Nick Fix

I know it has been a long time since an update. I just don’t have the time to get things up as fast. Nicholas is keeping us quite busy all the time. He pretty much runs around non-stop. Occasionally, he’ll stop to hug me, Jackson, or his Blankie. Then he is off and running again. He’ll also stop to do some dancing. He really LOVES to dance. He loves all music, but his favorite songs to dance to are “Sweet Escape” by Gwen Stefani and “Walk the Line” by Johnny Cash. If he really likes the song, he will get down real low while he is dancing. We have a stereo in our front room now. So when he walks in there, he just starts dancing (even is the music isn’t on yet!). Recently, Nick has started conducting the music. I am pretty sure he learned that from watching Disney’s Little Einsteins during breakfast. It is very cute. He thinks that he is pretty cool when he does it. He just smiles and cracks up. Come to think of it, he thinks that pretty much everything he does is spectacular!!!.

Nick has also become quite the little talker. He repeats pretty much everything! He also likes to bark when he sees a dog. He runs to the gate and barks with Jackson when the doorbell rings :0) I am working on getting that on video!!! He is also becoming quite the little helper. This is what he does when I ask him if he needs a diaper change…he will go to the gate, wait to be lifted over, run to his room, grab a diaper, and wait to be lifted on the changing table. He likes to help pick out his clothes for the day and then help put them on. He has started to help wash, rinse, and brush his hair. He also brushes his teeth (after we have, of course). Nicholas will ask Jackson if he needs to go out when he hears Jax whining. He also will go to his high chair when you ask if he wants breakfast, lunch, or dinner. He goes to the cupboard when he wants a snack and points to the juice when he wants some. We got Nick a basketball hoop (when I told John I thought he said that Nick did not need anymore toys, he informed me that it was not a toy, it was Nick’s profession! HAHA). After he dunks the ball, he waits for applause. He also likes to rebound when his Daddy is shooting. Nicholas loves to ride in the car. He just looks out the windows and points things out to me. He seems to be explaining what he is seeing to me. Nick hasn’t had an ear infection since he got his tubes (knock on wood!), which has been a month now. That is a new record! GO NICK :0) As you can tell, Nicholas is doing great. He learns new things everyday and keeps us smiling :0)

John is also doing well. He likes his job (always a good thing!). He is trying to get into another basketball league. I think is has been a month since he played in competitive ball (gasp!!). Hopefully he can get something going soon. He still plays pick up ball once a week. John has become quite the landscaper. We tore up most of the plants in our front yard and picked out some new plants & flowers. John did a wonderful job with our front yard. I will take some pics and post them soon. Once we saw how great our yard looked, we decided to finish the back yard. John has wanted to do something with the cement wall in our back yard. After some research, he found what he was looking for. We went and got some Green Giant Arborvitae (evergreen trees). They grow to 12 feet in only 3 years. So, that will definitely help cut down on the noise from the street.
I am doing well. My life pretty much revolves around taking Nicholas to all of his activities. But, I am not complaining. He is a fun little guy to spend time with ;0) Now that the weather is getting nice, we will be going on lots of fun outdoor outings with our friends. I just went to a 24-hour scrapbook with some friends. I got 29 pages done!! So, now I am up to Nick being 4 months old! I finally realized that I need to just stick some of his pics in albums instead of trying to scrapbook all of them. I will try to get pics & updates up faster, but no guarantees ;0)

Such a strong boy!!

BUBBLES!!!

Hi Mom!

Nicholas & his Grandparents :0)

Grandma & Nicholas

Nicholas & Grandpa

Nick & Daddy~Colorado River

1st Annual Prebula Easter Egg Hunt

Here are some pictures for the Easter Egg Hunt we had with Nick's friends. It was a bit of a change from last year where Nicholas was asleep in his car seat. The kids just each picked up an egg or two and walked around with them. That is pretty much what I expected ;0) I can't wait to see what they do next year!!

Hmmm...what is this?

Walking around with my egg.

Ara, Morgan, & Nicholas

Nick's friend Abigail

Nick's Future Professions !?

Here are some more pics of Nicholas for you to enjoy. He is growing up SO fast. He loves music and playing Basketball. I am sure that he will have his own hoop by the end of the week. Could it be possible that he will be a musician or a NBA player (the Jazz, of course :0) or both?

A week or so ago, we went to The Blue Iguana with some friends that were in from Maryland. We go there a lot with Nicholas. They have a band that comes around and sings. This time they gave Nick a "Head Clacker" to play along with them. They have the clackers in Nick's music class, so he knew what to do right away. Everyone was watching him, so he was really hamming it up. It was very cute :0)

Nicholas playing along with the band at The Blue Iguana

Dunkin' like Daddy

Hanging on the rim

It's a Nicholas in a Box

I know some of you are going crazy without a Nicholas fix. So, here are some pictures of Nick playing in whatelse...a box! These are from a few days before my parents flew in. Anytime there is a box in the room, Nicholas has to get in it. He also chases poor Jackson around the room with it. I am working on getting the pictures from my parents' visit up. We all had a great time and I will tell you all about it soon.

Nicholas & the Easter Bunny

I took Nicholas to see the Easter Bunny yesterday. We went with his friends Ara & William. They all did really well. Nick was very excited when he saw the Easter Bunny. He was putting his arms out for the bunny to hold him. I guess since he loves animals so much, he was not afraid of the giant bunny. I was sure that he was going to scream like he did with Santa. He was very interested in the bunny, so it was tough to get him to look at the camera. But, I think we got a cute picture if I do say so myself ;0)

Nicholas is doing well. He is very excited that his grandma & grandpa will be out in a few days. We have lots of fun things planned for their visit. We are going to get some family pictures, have an Easter Egg Hunt with Nick's friends, and go to the Moab Easter Jeep Safari. We are staying in a brand-new cabin on the Colorado River. It is going to be so much fun!! John & I are looking forward to going Jeeping. And, I get the feeling that my parents are looking forward to spending tons of time with Nicholas ;0) We'll also be hooking up with some friends (Becky & Joe) down in Moab. It is going to be a fun time for all! I'll try to do another update soon.

Nicholas & the Easter Bunny

Oh, this looks fun!

Weeeeee...this is fun :0)

I know I can get closer!

Yeaaa...dirt, leaves, and woodchips!

Nick's Surgery

First, thank you to all who sent us your well-wishes and prayers for Nick’s surgery today:0)

Nicholas had his tubes put in his ears this morning. We had to be at the Surgery Center at 6:30 AM!!!! Luckily, it is only 3 miles away. We waited until the last possible moment to wake Nick up so we could take him right to the car. I didn’t want him to see any food or milk since he could not eat or drink anything from midnight on. They take the babies first so they don’t have to go all day without eating. So, Nicholas was the first patient with his doctor. A few more kids (all a bit older than Nick) came in while we were waiting. Nick just walked around the waiting room with John’s keys. He would go and show everyone his keys and then pretend he was shy. The nurse who took us back was commenting that he was one of the happiest babies she had seen. Nicholas got a bit unsure of things when we got in the prep room. They gave him a sedative so he would have an easier time being taken from us. I was kind of wondering why they did not offer me the sedative!!?? I was very nervous about the surgery, but I think I handled it pretty well. Once Nick had been given his sedative and was in his cute little gown, the anesthesiologist came in to talk to us. He was great at explaining everything to us. I got a little nervous again when he was going over the worst possible scenarios. But, Nicholas was laughing and smiling at him, so I knew that he was going to be ok going with him. After that, Dr. Hunter came in to talk to us. He said the surgery would be about 5 minutes and we’d see Nick again in about 10 minutes. By this time, Nick was quite loopy from his sedative. The nurse told us that he might look at us funny because he would be seeing doubles. He did seem to be seeing 2 mommies and 2 daddies. It was pretty funny. When the anesthesiologist came in to get Nick, he put his arms up and went right to him. Then he started pointing and talking, so I knew he was going to be just fine. I watched Nicholas go into the surgical room. He talked and pointed the whole way. John & I went to the waiting room. Believe it or not…I didn’t even cry!!! I really thought I was going to be more nervous when he was actually in surgery, but it was the anticipation that was the worst!

While Nick was in surgery, I just caught up on my celebrity gossip. A few minutes later, we were taken back to the consultation room. Dr. Hunter came in and said the surgery went really well. Nick had a lot of fluid in his right ear, so he should hear much better out of that ear now. Oddly enough, Nicholas did not have an ear infection in either ear. He was sure acting like he did yesterday, but it must have just been the fluid bothering him. As Dr. Hunter was talking to us, we heard some very familiar screaming coming from the recovery room. Nick had woken up and was not enjoying how the anesthesia was making him feel. They got him dressed and brought him out to us. The nurse had warned us that we would most likely not be able to console him at first. Even with his Blankie in hand and walking around, we could not get him to calm down. He did not like the way the anesthesia was making him feel. He was flopping all over the place. He just didn’t know what to do to get comfortable. Once he opened his eyes we were allowed to leave. He started to wave “bye-bye” so we knew he was ready to go. Once we got Nicholas out of the surgical center and in his car seat, he was much happier.
Nick was pretty quite on the ride home. Once he saw our house, he started talking. We came in and he chugged some grape juice. I tried to feed him, but he wasn’t too interested. He just wanted his Blankie. So, we gave him some Tylenol and his ear drops (that is a fun process with a 15 month old!!) and he went down for a nap. He is still sleeping. They told us that he may nap longer today…won’t that be a nice treat!! We are crossing our fingers that he will wake up and be back to himself. It was just way too depressing to see him so out of it and sad. So, long story short, Nick’s surgery went well and he is doing great. I also managed to survive the ordeal ;0) What everyone told me was true...It is much easier on the kids than the parents!

Thanks again for your thoughts!!

A little too early for pictures!

Waiting Room

Oppps...dropped my keys!

Still Waiting

I changed my mind...time to go!!

Nick a looking a little woozy in his gown

Home Sweet Home :0)

Nicholas & Grandpa

Nick had such a fun visit with his Grandpa :0) He was asleep when we picked my dad up, but it didn't take too long for Nicholas to warm up to him. Nick took his Grandpa to his gymnastics and music classes. He did a lot of showing off (mainly dancing)for him. We did lots of other fun things too. We took Nick for a carousel ride, which he did not really like this time. Every time we passed my dad (who was taking pictures, of course!), Nicholas would reach his arms out for my dad to come get him off the ride. Nicholas really loves his Grandpa and all of the attention he gets from him! The first day my dad was here, Nick brought me the phone to call Grandpa. It took him a while to understand that he did not have to call Grandpa...he was with us! It was pretty funny :0) Anytime we were riding in the car, Nicholas would try to get his Grandpa's attention the whole ride.

It was so nice to have some extra help with Nicholas. He is moving non-stop, so it can get pretty tiring sometimes. It was especially nice to have someone else get up early in the morning with Nick. I got a little extra sleep and when I got up, Nicholas was fed and ready to start his day. Nick was asleep when we dropped my dad off today. He was looking around for Grandpa for a while when he woke up. Luckily, Grandpa & Grandma will both be out in exactly 2 weeks for Easter break. We'll be going to the Moab Easter Jeep Safari. I know Nicholas will be excited to see them both. We can't wait!! I will try to get some more pictures of Nick with his grandparents. My dad is constantly taking pictures of Nicholas, so it is hard to get the both of them together! I know you may find this hard to believe, but my dad may take as many pictures of Nick as I do! If not as many, he’s a close 2nd. We’re also going to go get some family portraits while they are here (I know Gretch is THRILLED about this :0). So, look for those in a few weeks.

Hey! I gave you that piece of mulch!

(notice the camera around Grandpa's neck :0)

Mmmm...Goldfish!

Eating some pizza


I'm full!

Look What Grandpa Got Me!

Here are some recent pictures of Nicholas, including him on his new toy that Grandpa got him.

Look...Grandpa got me a Zebra :0)

Riding his new zebra.

Playing in the mulch.

Hmmm...what is in here!?

Getting ready for a roller coaster ride!

Awww...Nick hugging a dolphin :0)

More 15 Month Pics

Here are some more of the pictures from Nick's 15 month photo shoot. We are busying haiving fun with Grandpa Beckman, so I will write more soon!

Baby GQ Model

Here is my favorite picture from Nick's 15 month photo shoot yesterday. He looks like a baby GQ model!! We got this outfit from our friends Steph & Kris. I am working on getting the rest of the poses from yesterday up online. I will post them once I get it all figured out. He took some great pictures :0) We will be going every 3 months this year, so we won't go back again in June. But, rest assured, I will take a few pictures of Nicholas between now & then ;0)

Finally...Pictures with NO Binky!!!

Here are some pictures from Nicholas playing outside today. I know Grandpa Beckman will be happy that Nick does not have his binky in! He was commenting that he had not seen a picture where he could see Nick's whole face in a while. We are working on weaning the binky. Nicholas loves to be outside. I can't wait until it gets a bit warmer so we can go to the park. My Dad is coming out this Thursday. He had a free plane ticket to use, so he used it to see Nicholas, of course :0) Nick is looking forward to his Grandpa's visit this week. Both of my parents will be out in 3 weeks for Easter. I will try to update the Blog when my Dad is out here this week. More soon...

All smiles :0)

Look...his Camo pants blend right in!

Fun in the Backyard

The weather was pretty nice here today. We decided to take the boys out in the backyard to play. Nicholas had fun watching Jackson catch his ball and frisbee. He also loved to run around himself. He was very interested in the areas with mud and snow. We had a fun time playing :0) I will try to get a longer update soon!!

Walking with Daddy

Walking with Mommy

Trying to pick up a ball with his "mittens" (they have no thumb!) on

Running around the yard (notice Jackson in the back :0)

Oooooo...mulch!