Bliss

Perhaps you woke up this morning needing to see a baby with a look of absolute contentment on his face?

Look no further my friends... you've come to the right place.

Our Little Jelly Bean

Aiden is not yet old enough for Easter baskets, egg hunts, or chocolate bunnies, but he still managed to have a great first Easter holiday.  

We started our day with the obligatory Easter family picture.  It took a couple of tries, but I have to say; I think we have it easy.  We saw across the street our neighbors with NINE kids were taking a family picture out on their porch.

Yikes.

So here is our first official Easter family picture:

After the church service we had Easter dinner at Grammy and Pop Pop Hultslander's dining hall. We had a great meal with everyone.  Aiden enjoyed being passed from aunt, to grandmother, to uncle, to great grandmother, etc...

We also had time to celebrate Leann's birthday.  It was during this time that Aiden found a kindred bald spirit in his Uncle Darren.

Just a great-grandmother and her great-grandson, hanging out on Easter.

Mr. Big

It has gotten to the point where pretty much every day we comment on how big Aiden is getting.  He is already busting out of his newborn clothes, and it literally seems like he is growing right before our eyes.

For a side by side comparison here are two pictures of Aiden.  The first is from about 1 day old, the second from about 1 month.

And just for fun, here is a goofy picture of the way he almost always sleeps.  Kind of makes you wonder what he's dreaming about.  (weight lifting?  being robbed at gunpoint?  sky diving?)

Out for a Stroll

With the weather slowly getting warmer we've been doing our best to take advantage of the nice days by getting outside.  We've been living in Phoenixville for awhile now, but there are a lot of parks and walking trails nearby that we haven't had the chance to explore yet.  Hopefully this spring and summer we'll be able to get out there more often.  Monday afternoon was nice and warm so we decided to go for a walk at the Schukyll River Canal Trail, which starts right in Phoenixville, about 5 minutes from our house.

We are clearly going hiking because Aiden is wearing his hiking boots.

It was a really pretty walk with the river on one side, and the canal on the other.  We kept thinking that in the summer, once everything is green, it will be really beautiful.

Lots of houses back right up to the canal.  In one of the yards these funny looking geese were hanging out, honking up a storm.

Aiden liked his Baby Bjorn carrier.  He pretty much just slept.

Just a really nice, sunny spring afternoon.

Just the Facts

Scrolling back through old posts I realized that there has been very little actual information to be found on the blog lately.  Sure if your looking for fake children's books, essays on diapers, or pictures of Aiden making faces you've come to the right place.  But it occurred to me that some people may want to actually want to know what's going on in our lives after the last silly picture has been taken.

Like, say for example you live in Uganda, Jordan or South Korea (you know who you are), or even if you just live in another state, we started his blog so that you would feel connected with what is happening right here in Phoenixville Pennsylvania.  Not to say that the everyday goings-on here are especially riveting (or even that interesting.)  But still, we want you to KNOW the boring details of our day to day lives, not just sit there for hours speculating about them.

And so, a Jones Abode update:

It is finally starting to feel like we've settled into a routine here at home.  By now we are used to Aiden's little nuances and tendencies, and it makes it easier to know what to expect from him during different parts of the day.  

Jen especially seems to be able to understand his every whimper, yawn and burp.  She has also been adapting great to her new life at home with the baby.  If I hadn't been living with her for the last 2 and a half years I'd have thought she'd been doing this forever.  

My job has been going well too.  We are all working on being adjusted to the unique schedule that it requires.  The hardest thing for me is just being away for all those hours, because regardless of whether its day or night, it's hard not to feel like you're missing something.

It's tough to summarize your life in a blurb.

 I'd say that things here at the Jones Abode are going well;  life seems simple, and fun, and satisfying, at least right now.  Aiden is making us laugh all the time, and regardless of what else may happen throughout the day, having him around makes other stuff feel kind of small.

So hey, we'll keep you posted on whatever happens around here.  But for now, thats the deal...

Travels with Bailey

We've got a child now so it's about time we publish a children's book.  

The title is "Travels with Bailey."  

This is the rough draft:

"Hi, my name is Bailey.  I'm at the aquarium.  Whee!"

"Bonjour, je m'appelle Bailey.  I'm at the Eiffel tower.  Sacre Bleu!"

"Hi, my name is Bailey.  I'm the first dog on the moon.  Yipee!"

"Hi, my name is Bailey.  I like to play with clouds and chase sunbeams.  Wahoo!"

"Travels with Bailey" will be hitting bookshelves near you in short order.  Soon to be followed by "Travels with Bailey II: Bailey Goes Spelunking."

Say Cheese!

Aiden has lots of moods.  

In fact new ones are appearing each day.  Moods like "tired", "hungry", and "pooping" are old standards.  We could recognize them from a mile away.  These moods are tried and true, and we wouldn't think of leaving home without them.  

But, as I said, a new breed of moods has been popping up with greater frequency.  Some of these newfangled moods are things like "curious", and the ever-popular "gassy".  This morning Aiden was displaying a newer mood that I hope we will see more of in the days to come.  I call this mood:  "Smiley."

He may not know what he's doing quite yet, but boy is it cute.  Of the approximately 50 pictures that I snapped while he was grinning, these are smiliest of the bunch.

Enjoy these while they last, because tomorrow he may be perfecting "constipated."

4 Generations

Aiden got to meet his great-grammy Weidner today for the first time.  Grammy was so excited to see and hold Aiden, and exclaimed numerous times, 

"He's SO fat!"

Yes Grammy, yes he is.

In fact at Aiden's doctors appointment yesterday we found out he now weighs almost 11 pounds. So while he may not be SO fat... he is in the 75th percentile of fatness.  

We were just really glad that Grammy was able to meet her newest great-grandson.  And it was great to see her holding him, giving him lots of kisses.

Bootylicious

Despite strong evidence to the contrary (see "exhibit A" below) we are not smuggling any drugs or firearms in our baby's under-garments.

 No, in fact, Aiden's suddenly bodacious booty is actually a result of the new diapers that he is wearing.  We've been planning all along to use cloth diapers, but Aidens's body has only just gotten big enough for them.  The diapers that Jen picked out are from Bum Genius, and they are pretty cool in that they adjust so you don't have to keep buying new ones as the baby grows.

So anyway, don't be alarmed if you see Aiden cruising down the street, and it looks like he's got a miniature poodle in his pampers, it's just his bum, genius!

In non-Aiden-related news:  We just found out today that our great friends Steph and Bill Anderson (who are expecting later this summer), are having a girl! 

 Yahoo!!!

I guess in some ways this is Aiden-related, because once Aiden and baby Anderson get married- we'll all be related!

Congratulations Steph and Bill! We love you guys.

Boy's Club

What we do when Jen is not home.