Pictures

I apologize to those of you who were on the edge of your seats waiting for pictures. To make a long, fairly unpleasant story short, my dear laptop was out of commission for a few dark and dreary days. Now that the explanation is over let's see that BABY!

This is our nightly ritual. We had some hard times with Canyon sleeping on his back and after hearing about so many new parents who use the carseat in the first few months...we had to try it. Let's just say it has worked MIRACLES! I have to admit I die everytime I put him to bed...doesn't he look so dang cute?!?

Has it been...

...FOUR WEEKS?!?! I can't seem to imagine life without Mr. Canyon Walker Hawkins but I still am shocked that today marks four weeks of life in the outside world. I have officially been "mother goose" for twenty eight days and what do you know? I feel like I was born for the job, wait, I was. In the last six hundred and seventy two hours Zach has had the chance to show off is mad daddy skills as well as get his wife back!!! I'm Bailee again! What a BLESSING!! This week I plan on starting a running regimen, yes folks...I am signed up for two 5k's in the next couple of months and I fully intend on doing well. Don't you fret though, my dear friends, I wouldn't want to mark this momentous occassion without several pictures, I know they're your favorite. Be forwarned, as pointed out in the previous post, our litle monkey is growing at an astronomical rate...if you enjoy the "itty bitty" stage and haven't yet seen him, you better hurry. Before you know it he'll be in high school and not so appealing!

Pictures will shortly follow.

FYI... they grow:)

So apparently the little guys grow. This little guy has grown enough that he fit into an outfit provided by his Grandma Russell. I'm still beaming:)

My Valentine

I'd like to dedicate this little post to Zach. Cheesy, yes...but I want to do it all the same. Some of the little things I love about my husband:
**He's not afraid to tell me that he's always right...to be honest...he really is.
***He works his tail off in a job he hates so we can live with a little less stress
*He's a genius but doesn't let anyone know it...It has taken me two years to begin to comprehend how brilliant he really is and I still don't think I've completely tapped into all that he is.
**He holds my hand...all the time
***He smiles
*He doesn't freak out like I do when the bank accounts start lookin a little empty.
**He keeps my head on straight...it's quite the job.
***He laughs at me when I say stupid things
*He has such a strong Testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ...it's incredible.
**When something needs to get done...he gets it done...this man doesn't back out of anything!
***He protects
*He doesn't wear his emotions on his sleeve. Sometimes I curse this attribute but I love that I don't know everything he feels and then piece by piece he shows me. It's so nice when I get a little realization of how much he loves me.
**He puts up with my occasional lack of common sense.
***He loves his family
*He eats at least two bowls of Cereal everyday.
**I catch him eating chips and salsa with some other food that shouldn't be eaten with chips and salsa.
***He thinks I'm beautiful, even in my ugliest moments.
*He encourages me to be better while making me feel good about the person I am right now.
**He makes up songs in the morning and sings them loud enough for the neighbors to hear...they usually include something about the dog.
***Bruce is one of his best friends and part of Zach would be gone if Bruce were to go.
*He wants the very best for everyone.
**He's mine:)
***For being a dad of 3 weeks, he's dang good at it
*he cleans
**He's everything I could ever want in a man.

I'm sure there are plenty of things I missed but there are a few of the reasons I love him so much. He is my #1 and I'm glad I get to spend the eternities by his side. I love you, Babe!

Motherhood...

I really want to express the joy I have found in motherhood. It's something you just don't understand until you find yourself holding your child; cuddling him, soothing him, loving him. I have a new found appreciation for my own mother, my parents. As I hold my little Canyon, I want nothing more then him to be as strong as one of the stripling warriors of the Book of Mormon. I hope to instill faith in his heart like the mothers of those warriors did.

"Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them. And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it."

Yesterday, I attended the funeral service of Elder Mckay Choy Burrows. Elder Burrows died with his companion in their apartment in Romania of a natural gas leak. The stake president who set Mckay apart as a missionary told us about how Mckay's mother came to him after the setting apart and asked if her son would return alive. Oh the love of a mother. I can't imagine the pain she has felt in the last week. I look at my Canyon and ache for her.

It's quite a blessing to be a mom...a blessing I have enjoyed so much in the last two weeks and will continue to enjoy. I'm not sure what people were talking about when they told me that "as soon as he comes out you'll want him to go back in." There hasn't been one moment, not even during the long sleepless nights, that I have wanted him to return to the womb. I can't imagine life without his sweet spirit.

two weeks

It's been two weeks to the hour since we met our little Canyon Walker. According to the Wii Fit he weighs about 8.4 lbs now and it's starting to show:) He's chunking up real nice. I can't help but wonder if he's going to get a poofy as his dear madre! The little man has spent the majority of the day sleeping...YAY for two weeks!

Passin the Sacrament??

So he might not be ready to pass the sacrament yet, but he sure looks good in his Sunday best! Canyon enjoyed his first Sacrament meeting...dreaming. By the end of the meeting, although still asleep, we could tell he was about ready for some nourishment, Beteween my doctor's order of "no-church-till-April" and the approaching hunger monster, we decided to head home. We were sure glad to have been able to get the sacrament though:)

And we're off...

All buckled up and off to mommy's doctors' appointment! Today is the first day that Canyon has worn an actual outfit...complete with hat and shoes!

Cherish

Two Thumbs WAY Up:)

I hear they grow up in the blink of an eye. That seems pretty quick and I don't want to miss a beat. A friend referred me to Jennifer Fauset. Jen does all sorts of amazing photography. I'd seen some of her work in the engagement collection but never with children. Today I had the pleasure of spending a couple of hours at her house with her ADORABLE kids while she attempted to take fantastic pictures of my stubborn son. The pictures turned out amazing...the "attempted" comes from the fact that she just couldn't get exactly what she wanted.

Like all newborns, Canyon spends most of his day sleeping... so we didn't think we'd have trouble taking some glamour shots while he was zonked. Little did we know that he is more like his father than I could've ever imagined. The stubborn little guy woke up when we arrived and stayed awake for a full 3 hours. Those three hours were spent cuddling him, feeding him, soothing him....but instead of drifting off into a peaceful slumber...he just stared at the three of us, determined.

I can just see sweet Zach holding him last night telling him, "They are going to try and take pictures of you tomorrow, those darn women. Don't conform buddy, don't conform."

The pictures turned out to be better than I could've hoped for. I don't have any copies yet but if you'd like to see some, visit Jen's blog at http://fausetphotography.blogspot.com/search/label/Newbies
You can also view our pics and more by searching Fauset photography on Facebook.

If you're looking to capture a special moment at any stage of life, I really recommend giving Jen a call. She's AMAZING!

http://fausetphotography.com/ (link to her website if you want more info:)

One week old

Canyon Walker Hawkins has officially been here a whole week! After one week we've found that he:

likes the bouncy chair to be his bed

dislikes his bed

loves the Binki, just like his mom did

looks more and more like his dad everyday

likes to eat...and often

set up his own eating schedule (every three to four hours) and mom sure enjoys it!

makes the worlds cutest faces

doesn't like his diaper off

LOVES the carseat

likes the part of bath time where warm water is dumped on his head:)

LOVES mom and dad!