My Incredible Husband!

So, for those of you ladies who think your husband is the best in the world, you'll just have to bear with me here. God has truly blessed me with the most incredible husband in the world. When I think back to May of 2003 and signing up on eHarmony.com I had no idea what was in store for me. Then when God brought Justin across my path I started getting an idea. I had always prayed that I would have a marriage like my Grandma and Grandpa Slagenweit. Let me explain, after 50 plus years of marriage they were still "newlyweds". As in love or more in love than the day they got married. No, Justin and I are not at 50 years yet, but it has truly been the happiest years of my life. That being said, I have had the best life in the world! Justin has taken the God given responsibility of being the leader of our home and I am SO thankful for that. I know it isn't always the easiest job loving me, but never once has he done anything but love me unconditionally. He lets me know that on a daily and even hourly basis some days. So why am I bragging on him now. Well, for one I don't do it enough and two I was reminded yet again how awesome he is. It has been a pretty sleepless few weeks with Evan due to teething, tummy pain, etc. As much as I try not to get grumpy with the lack of sleep it unfortunately comes out sometimes. Today, he sent me to the Spa for the afternoon for some serious relaxing. A facial, massage and sauna were among the things on the agenda. He knows how much I enjoy this! Mind you, he kept a teething Evan with him! It was while I was there that I thanked God once again for sending Justin into my life. Thank you God for blessing my life with this wonderful man! Thank you Justin for loving me! I love you Sweetheart!!

Busy Week!

Wow! Finally a chance to get a little caught up! It has been an exceptionally busy week, but a very good one. Justin had surgery on Tuesday to have a wisdom tooth removed. He was out of commission for a few days. In fact, he doesn't even remember Tuesday! (Ask him about the guy in the next room!:) He told me the story 8 times on Tuesday!) He has been working hard on finishing his step-dad's book before our trip north. Evan is doing great. He had a eating check up on Wednesday and weighed 15lbs and 6ozs. So, he has gained a pound in a month. Not to bad in Mommy's opinion! The last time we increased the medication he really slacked off in eating. Last week he had gotten to the point where he couldn't care less about eating at all. I decided to back the medication off and he seems to be doing much better. It seemed like it was working as an appetite suppressant. He is laughing at everything now and becoming Daddy's boy. He loves to just watch Justin whether it's talking, eating, shaving, etc. He is also rolling all over! The other day I had him on his activity gym so I could do some work in the kitchen and when I checked on him he had rolled to his exersaucer! I have been busy cleaning, finishing my Christmas shopping and taking care of my boys with a swimming lesson thrown in here and there. We are leaving for PA next Saturday so I wanted to have everything in order before we left. This week I can wrap presents, finish Christmas cards and pack. Not to bad! We had our family Christmas pictures taken as well as Evan's 5 month pictures. If you go to www.smilesbywire.com , enter Jennifer Harris as customer name and LTP72801008019JCP as access code the next page will have a link that says click here to view all portrait images. You can view our sitting. Enjoy and have a blessed week!

Happy Thanksgiving 2007 cont.

Out little family! Can you tell Evan is ready for a nap?
Daddy's little man!
Evan with Daddy and Yogi. Evan, "I think I like this dog!".
Evan, "Okay, maybe not so much! At least not when he barks!". Yogi decided to bark at something Justin did and it really startled Evan. He really does like all 4 of the dogs. Normally he'll sit and watch them and giggle at their antics. They seems to return the affection. They'll bring Evan toys and when he cries they look at you like you had better help him. Very cute!

Happy Thanksgiving 2007!

First time driving! (Don't worry we are just sitting in our driveway!:)) This was Thanksgiving day and we were getting ready to go to Grandma and Grandpa White's house. We spent the day with them just hanging out. It was actually a little cool which was nice for this northern girl. I get very nostalgic and homesick this time of year. I'll have to do two posts as I can only post 4 pictures at a time. Sorry!
Great-grandma White and Evan. She hadn't seen him since he was 3 weeks old. They got along great and of course Evan ate up the attention!
Grandma and Grandpa White with Evan and little Tiffany.
Grandpa and Evan being silly! We're not sure who enjoys it more! Evan or Grandpa? Oh, the faces they do make at each other!

Just saying hello!

Greetings from the sunny south! Much to my dismay, I received a phone call yesterday morning from my mom saying it was snowing there! Then in the afternoon April so graciously sent pictures with the caption "Want to build a snowman?". It's times like these that I really miss living up north! I always love the first snow of the season and wow, what a ton of memories come flooding back! Hopefully, when we go to Mom and Dad's next month there will be snow. After all, Evan needs to make his first snow angel. It has been a little cooler here in FL which I am very thankful for. It has been a busy month for us so far. Justin has been working on his step dad's book and trying to keep up with the shopping centers. It looks like he will be getting another center in TN come the middle of December. Of course, on top of all that he makes time to help me around the house and keeps Evan entertained. Evan thinks his Daddy is the greatest and I whole heartedly agree! I thank God daily for such a wonderful husband! Evan is doing well and starting to sleep better now that the growth spurt has subsided a little. We did end up having to switch formulas again. He just wouldn't take the hypoallergenic formula. Believe me, I don't think I would have either! It was awful smelling and apparently Evan didn't think it tasted so great either! He is now rolling from back to tummy as well as tummy to back. His favorite position is standing up. He prefers to be in his exersaucer or standing on Daddy's lap. He does sit up although falls over quite quickly due to the fact that he tries to stand. He finds falling over very funny! He is ALL boy! He laughs so much! I think he must have his mother's laugh gene because it sure doesn't take much to make him laugh. For some reason, one look at Grandpa White never fails to make him giggle. Not sure what that's about!:) We are spending Thanksgiving with Justin's family. I get to do some of the cooking which I really enjoy. This year I'm making stuffing, bread pudding, jello salad and mashed potatoes. I have got nearly all my Christmas shopping done. I don't know what I would do if there was no Internet as that is how I did the majority of my shopping this year. Talk about convenience for someone who despises shopping!

I'm a big boy now!

Evan had his four month two week check up today and (drum roll please) he weighs 14lbs 5ozs! We're finally making progress! He is 26 inches long so we are way ahead in length. The doctor switched his formula again to Similac Alimentum. This is due to the fact that since we switched formula last time Evan has had diarrhea every time he goes. This formula is lactose free and also the proteins are partially broken down. This should take care of both the reflux and any issues with lactose intolerance. He got 5 immunizations so this picture is a good one of how he has been all day. Okay, well except the fact that when he is awake he is pretty fussy. Other than that he is doing great. We have so much fun with him! Well, I'm having my in-laws for dinner and I need to get the lasagna out of the oven. I'll try and get more pictures up of Evan playing. Sorry, I tried posting a picture with this post, but for some reason it didn't show up!

Early Christmas Present!

Yesterday my early Christmas present was delivered! For Christmas Cheryl (my mother-in-law) got me a new washer and dryer. After a ton of research online I decided to go with this LG set. I've always had a top load washer, but we decided to go with a front load this time as the reviews were the best. I've already done 6 loads of laundry in them (it's amazing how much laundry a little one produces!:)) and love them! They are so much quieter which means I can now start laundry in the middle of the night when I can't sleep. (Yes, I actually did this last night because I couldn't sleep after Evan was up for a bottle!)

Four Months

How time does fly! Evan turned four months old on the 24th. He is doing really well! The formula has made such a huge difference. He is taking about 29 ounces a day now as well as eating a little cereal and bananas. He's not to sure about the cereal yet! The tummy pain is considerably better which we are so thankful for! He is rolling from his tummy to his back now (he loves to do it and then giggles like he's big stuff!:)) and loves to play in his exersaucer. He also has started really laughing. It is the cutest thing! We haven't had him weighed in a while, but he has gained at least a little weight. He's now completely out of newborn sized clothes and into three month size. His next appointment with the pedi is Nov. 7. I am





anxious to see where we're at.

We're back!

Hello! Sorry it has been so long since we posted new pictures and updated the blog! (Dad and Mom, the bottom picture is the one I told you about last week!:)) We were in Hobe Sound last weekend visiting my brother Jonathan and his lovely wife Tonya. We had an awesome time! Thanks you guys for opening up your home, helping with Evan and the wonderful food! (Tonya, you are a great cook!) We love you and can't wait to get together again! While we were there we were able to see the extended family as well. Thanks to my aunts and cousins for helping with Evan and keeping him entertained. We found out that Evan is quite a little flirt! He just adored his girl cousins and was being quite the little charmer! Justin picked up a very bad case of the flu on Friday (10/5) and passed it to me this past weekend! So far Evan hasn't showed any signs of getting it. We had a huge answer to prayer this past week in the form of a new formula! We were kind of at wits end with Evan's reflux as I didn't want to give him any more medication than what we were already giving him. When I called the doctor last Thursday (10/4) we discussed changing the formula and also the possibility of Evan being lactose intolerant. He suggested trying Enfamil Gentlease which is thicker (because it is made for reflux babies) and also has only one forth of the lactose that the rest of the formulas have. So on Friday we switched and so far he is doing great with it. He has been taking 26-28 ounces a day instead of 22-24 ounces and hasn't fought us nearly as much. We are to give it a couple of weeks and if things keep improving we will leave him on that. Otherwise, we will switch him to a completely lactose free formula. The other big news with Evan is we think he is starting to cut teeth! He has been chewing on whatever he can get in his mouth for about two weeks now and drooling like crazy. I finally felt around in his mouth yesterday and you can feel them in his gums. His gums are also starting to get white. Much to my dismay he has discovered he likes to suck his thumb! I had been hoping to avoid this as I was a thumb sucker until I was much older than I should have been!:) I had been pulling his thumb out every time he seemed to be sucking on it, but last weekend in church he was sleeping and I had him covered with a blanket, when I checked on him there he was with his little thumb in his mouth. The picture on the bottom is one I snapped last week when I checked on him during his nap and once again he was sucking his thumb. The only good thing about a thumb instead of a binky is that you can't lose a thumb like you do a binky!

Visit to Orlando

Well, it has been an incredibly busy, but very fun week and it isn't over yet! This past Tuesday Justin, Adam (Justin's brother), Evan and myself went to Orlando to see some of Justin's family. Uncle Gerald and Aunt Donna were down on vacation and Uncle Ron and Aunt Cindy live near Orlando. We met up at the condo were Gerald and Donna were staying and then went out to eat. Afterwards we all went back to the condo to hang out and talk. We had a wonderful time and really enjoyed getting to know everyone better. The top picture from right to left is Jennifer (Ron and Cindy's daughter), Gerald, Ron, Cindy holding Evan and Kyle (Christina's boyfriend). The second picture includes Christina (next to Kyle) and Katlyn (Gerald and Donna's daughter). The last picture includes Donna. The only people I missed getting a picture of was Andy (Gerald and Donna's son) and Larissa (Jennifer's daughter). Thank you ladies for entertaining Evan! He loves the attention! Tomorrow we are leaving for a weekend with my family in Hobe Sound. We should get to my brother's mid afternoon and will return on Monday. Of course I will post pictures of that when we get back. Just a quick update on Evan, we switched formulas today to see if that will help. In the past week he has started with the really bad tummy pain and gas again. We have such a hard time getting him to eat when he is in pain and I can't blame him because I don't want to eat when I don't feel good. We're praying the new formula will help and hopefully we can start getting him off some of the medication. Other than the tummy pain he is smiling and laughing all the time. He has such a cute personality and is very sociable! Don't know where he gets that from!:)

Three Months Old!

Evan turned three months old September 24 which is incredibly hard to believe! He is such a little charmer and has a very cute personality. We were out to eat and he was cooing and smiling at everyone that walked by him! Yesterday he laughed out loud for the first time! I figured it would be soon and as I was getting him dressed for the day he looked at me and giggled. Of course, when I got Daddy he stopped and just looked at us grinning. Sometimes I think he knows too much already! It's so amazing how he changes daily. His acid reflux is about the same. We now have him on Maalox every feeding and Axid twice a day. He isn't having the pain like he had been, but he still doesn't want to eat much. He sleeps now from 9-10PM until 7AM. We have also been successful at getting him to take three daytime naps. He loves to play and be sitting up when he is awake. We have also discovered he loves being outside. Since we live in Florida we hadn't taken him out much due to the heat. It is finally cooling down enough to take him for walks.

I've been tagged!

I was tagged by Misty to give seven random facts about myself. Sorry it took me this long to get to it, Misty!

1. I think it would be neat to be a race car driver. I have a need for speed!
2. I met my handsome husband on eharmony.com.
3. I am living my dream. Being a wife and mother. Ever since I can remember that's what I wanted to be and I love every minute of it.
4. I love to clean! (Maybe it's more that I like the results than the cleaning itself!)
5. Ever since I was pregnant with Evan I have suddenly developed a love of spicy food.
6. In my job as a pediatric nurse, I resuscitated a patient of mine that was 1 year old at the time. Something I hope I never have to do again as long as I live! If I close my eyes I can still see his little blue body laying in the crib.
7. I have driven from PA to Fl in 17 hours only stopping 3 times for a total of 40 minutes. (I never want to do it again, but it was worth it to see Justin!)

Friends!

Evan and I had the chance to catch up with some "old" friends today. Sharron and I attended Hobe Sound Bible College together. She was such a great friend to a very homesick girl! It has been really neat to recently "reconnect" with her and her husband Tim. They are truck drivers and had a load in our area so we met at Cracker Barrel for lunch. Evan of course loved them and the attention they bestowed on him! Thanks Tim and Sharron for lunch and the wonderful time visiting! It was so great seeing you!

New Pictures

Here are a few pictures we took of Evan the last two weeks. He is doing great other than not wanting to eat much. He will take three to three and a half ounces per bottle but not much more. The doctor wants him to be taking four to six ounces per feeding. The doctor is going to decide tomorrow if he needs to be seen by a specialist. Other than the eating issues Evan is a very happy healthy little man. He is "talking" and smiling constantly now when he is awake. He likes to "talk" on the phone. I put my mom on speaker phone on Sunday and Evan just looked at it and smiled and talked! He had no idea we weren't talking to him. He is sleeping from 10:30pm to 8:00am which is a blessing! No matter how he feels or whats going on he still sleeps like a champ! We are to work on getting him to sleep 11-12 hours at night by his 4 month checkup. I think he will once he starts eating more.

Evan Update

Evan had his two month two week check up yesterday. He weighed 12lbs 2 ozs and is 24 inches long! I can't believe how much he has grown. The medicine for his reflux is working well and he is eating much better. Also he is back to sleeping 11pm to 7am. The doctor wants us to work on getting him to take 4-6 ozs at a feeding and sleeping 10-12 hours straight at night. His next appointment isn't until the four month check up so we have some time to work on it. He got four shots and one oral vaccine yesterday. Poor little guy reacts so strongly to vaccines! He has been running a fever, not eating well, crying in pain, gassy, swollen, red thighs, etc. He also is very congested which doesn't help anything. Gone is our smiling happy little boy for now! We moved him into our room last night so I could keep a close eye on him. Bless his heart, even when he isn't feeling well he sleeps well which I thank the Lord for! He has been so alert and happy since we got his reflux treated. We are amazed at how alert he is and how aware he is of his surroundings. When we were up north he would be crying while someone was holding him and looking around for Daddy or Mommy and be comforted the minute one of us picked him up. We had not realized until then how much he knows us. Here in Fl he doesn't really see that many people (outside of Grandma and Grandpa White, Gigi and Pa, and Justin and I) and has really gotten to know us. When we arrived home Thursday evening I carried him into the house and turned the lights on as I went through the rooms. He started looking around and then got a big grin on his face as if to say "I'm home!". He was smiling and giggling all evening!