Sunny and Tom Richins

Swimming Downtown Disney

2012-01-07T09:17:00.000-08:00

For FHE one night a few months ago during the heat wave we went to Downtown Disney. We sat down by a water fountain and Porter loves playing with water. It was so hot we just let him climb right in. The Swart family who were with us decided that if our kid can get in then their kid can get in. The two little boys played and splashed water and explored the whole water fountain. Of course many people looked at us parents as if they were disgusted and couldn't believe we would let our kids into a fountain. I thought for sure security would kick us out with 5 to 10 minutes but to our surprise they didnt and the two little boys played in the fountain for a good solid hour. After thinking it through for a few minutes I came to the determination that I valued the fun Porter was having in the water more than some strangers opinion on rules for a water fountain and as all parents know, when you see your kid happy and playing and having a good time, it is a sweet feeling.

St. Jude Baby Board

2012-01-07T08:30:00.000-08:00

Porter was born at St. Jude Hospital in Fullerton and now that Sunny is pregnant with Wyatt, We find ourselves going back for Doctor appointments, ultra sounds, blood work, probing, etc. etc. The day we found out that we were having a boy, Sunny and I went up to see Porters name on the board for the first time. Some of the names on the board were 50 years old. Soon Porter will share the board with his brother Wyatt.

A Day Out With Thomas

2011-11-13T16:00:00.001-08:00

The Swarts and the Richins at "A Day Out With Thomas".Meeting Sir Topham Hot in person! Playing with trains Story time with Jannene.Ringing the bell

The kid hay mazeThe bounce house.Time to see the real trains.

Why you should never leave your tractor unattended.Time to go home after a long day without naps!

Strong House

2011-11-08T11:34:00.000-08:00

ERNEST AND NORMA STRONG HOUSEErnest and Norma Strong were my Great Grandparents on my father's side. Above is a photo of the last house Ernest built during the 1930's in Springville, Utah. Ernest grew up very poor on a farm on the outskirts of Springville, Utah. When the time came, he left his girlfriend Norma, went on a mission to Germany and Switzerland and then came home, married Norma and started a road construction company and became a millionaire. Over the years, he would update his houses according to his wealth. This is the last house he built and the detail is simply awesome. The above photo is a picture of the house within a year or two of it being built. A couple notes to mention, the brick chimney is made from the same rock that the Manti Temple was made from and, in my opinion, the house resembles a house you would find in Germany that he would have seen while there on his mission.Ernest was both an Architect/Engineer as well as a General Contractor. I see a lot of genius in his design of this bathroom. For example the ceiling radius is perfect in dimension. The toilet is placed perfectly center. The tile is laid diagonally which is a more labor intensive format for laying tile. I also like that the tile border matches the tile trim.I have seen laundry chutes in hallways and occasionally you will see one in a bathroom, but Ernest took it a step further and added a laundry chute inside the shower itself. In my opinion it is as efficient as you can get.The rumor to the lights in this house is that they are the same lights that are/were used in the Salt Lake City temple. This certainly fits Ernest's style and this style of lights does reflect the style of lights used in the temple. However my guess, after some minor research, is that the lights are from the same manufacturer. The Byrd family, who currently own the house, went through a remodel a couple of years ago and had some left over original light fixtures and were kind enough to give us one of them. I am excited to have one of my Great Grandfather's light fixtures from his old house to rehang in my old house.I don't know why but I have always had a fascination with door handles. It seems that as they become more and more mass produced the more the fascination diminishes. Here are a couple original door handles in Ernest and Norma's house.The railing is custom and this is the pattern that Ernest chose to go with.Here is a steel pass through that Ernest had installed so that deliveries or groceries could be made regardless if the Strong's were home or not. This one is located in his kitchen. There is another more defined one in his lobby/office.Picture of the living room. It was hard to shoot good angles in this house and since it was a self invited tour, we were thankful for the pictures we could get.Here is a picture of the fire place from the inside. I cant tell if this has been remodeled or not through the years. I suspect the bottom is original and the top (above the brick) has been modified.I saved these photos for last. Ernest understood construction and framing was his strong suit. While I was on my mission in Virginia, I met an old man who knew my Great Grandfather and he bragged about his quality and his speed. He said while building roads, they would be forming up one side and pouring the other side at the same time. The form workers had to hurry because the concrete was coming their way. Looking inside the attic spaces in Ernest's house, his framing was immaculate. I also noticed some job site materials made their way into his house as well.

Porter House

2011-10-27T13:35:00.000-07:00

Family Home Evening

Rufus Porter House

For the last couple of months we as a family have been holding Family Home Evening every Monday. When it was just Sunny and I it was hard to see the value in FHE, but now that Porter is older and able to go out and play and have fun, just about anywhere we go can be an adventure.
Because we bought an old house, I have become more aware of old homes in the surrounding towns. People at work have been telling me about Fullerton. After a quick internet search, I found the Porter House and because we have a Porter, it was a definite must see.
The house is a wood framed grove house and is now the oldest home existing in Fullerton. Originally built by John Kerr in 1882, the home first stood in the midst of a vineyard. The growing of grapes subsequently changed to apricots, plums, walnuts, and during the first decade of the century switched to oranges.
Rufus Porter, son of pioneer rancher Benjamin Porter, bought the property in 1919, and the orange productions continued on the surrounding 40 acres of land until 1952, at which time tract housing replaced the grove. The Porter family continued ownership of the house until 1984, when it was renovated and enlarged for the use as a restaurant.
Lately Porter has been copying a lot of things that I do. This is one of my favorite moments. I went and sat down on the curb and immediately he came and sat down on the curb with me. It amazes me just how impressionable children are and that leads me to the next thought of how important we give the right impressions to our kids.

Porter is 21 months old

2011-09-18T08:43:00.000-07:00

Learning to take a bath in the big bath since all we had was the sink at our old house. Playing trains with cousins.Watching and learning from cousin Liam. Porter already loves the computer.Playing stickers and trains with his best friend, Porter.Playing with Jeckel. Porter is good about being kind to other kids but he does bully Jeckel around. However, Jeckel sticks around to take it when he could leave the room like the other two cats. I think he's just glad to get the attention. Porter does love Jeckel and Jeckel loves Porter.We have been having Family Home Evening almost every Monday night. Well, I guess it's not so much Family "Home" Evening as it is Family "Out" Evening. This was our Monday night at the Mexican Circus in town. We waited in line to ride the llama and then when it was Porter's turn the guy looked past us and asked if anyone else wanted to ride the ponies. When we said, "he does!" (pointing at Porter), the guy said jokingly, "he's too big." I think they were wondering what we were doing at the Mexican Circus when we obviously weren't Mexican.Family "Out" Evening at the Angels baseball game. Porter's first baseball game.Family "Out" Evening in Chino looking at the cows, goats, and chickens. Oh, and rocks.Discovering Thomas the Train apps on Da's phone. Porter loves playing with his Da.Family "Out" Evening at the Chino Airport. Tom told Porter this helicopter was Harold, one of the Thomas the Train characters. Porter was in love with the helicopter after that but didn't want to leave until we took off the cover over the helicopter's nose so that he could see Harold's face. We had to convince Porter that Harold was sleeping and we couldn't wake him up.Having fun at the airport hangers.Running around at the airport.Playing with Brooke. Sarah and I took our little munchkins out a couple days in a row. First, to Dos Lagos, then to the Irvine Park. Everyone we talked to asked us if Brooke and Porter were twins. Brooke is 5 months older than Porter but they are both about the same size and both cute little blondies. These two looked so cute running around together but they wouldn't slow down long enough for me to get a good picture of them together. A few crazy photos is all I could get.Looking forward to Halloween.Porter will be 21 months old on Monday 9/19. Time flies! This last month it seems like the flood gates of words and understanding have been opened. He is curious about everything and when I give him a word for something he remembers it and repeats it. One night I told him there was a dinosaur on his shirt. In the morning he got up and looked in the mirror and said "d-saur". I couldn't believe that he remembered me telling him there was a dinosaur on his shirt the night before. His favorite words are all of the names of the Thomas and the Train and Friends. For awhile I wondered if he knew any other words. His favorite train is Gordon. He says this name constantly and Gordon seems to come up in a lot of conversations and even when he talks in his sleep. The name is kind of starting to wear on me. I'm almost thinking Gordon is a good name for a boy if we have a boy. Which, by the way, my ultrasound to find out the sex of the baby is in less than 2 weeks, Thursday 9/29. I have been far enough along this month to go to a private ultrasound place and find out the sex of the baby but I have just decided to wait. My life is so busy, waiting actually makes me feel like something isn't rushing by. Although this pregnancy already seems to be going faster than when I was pregnant with Porter. The only thing I really want to buy this time it a double stroller. Well, and be into our new house (I guess that's a pretty big one).
But, back to Porter... He really has turned into a toddler. It's a whole new experience that makes me question if I'm a good mother or not. Especially when I am in public and Porter is running around while everyone elses kids are sitting quietly. He has high energy and a bright smile but when he doesn't get something he wants he arches his back and lays on the floor and cries. Porter and I started going to a class called "Musical Munchkins". Porter is so good at listening to the teacher and following her directions. He loves the music and dances and marches and plays along. However, when she handed out maracas and he wasn't first he threw a temper tantrum and when she let all the kids touch her tambourine and he couldn't hold the tambourine he threw a temper tantrum. Hopefully this class will teach him some patience. I'm excited for the next class.
Porter's 2 year molars have come in. He has been back to the teething phase of chewing on everything. His favorite thing to chew on is a tooth brush. He brushes his teeth morning, noon, and night. His teeth should be very clean!
He is still a bad eater. He won't try new things and only likes crunchy things like crackers, cookies, chips, and granola bars. His main supply of nutrition is PediaSure.
Porter hates wearing shoes. He hates sitting if we are not moving, unless we are watching a movie. He LOVES to play with trains, especially Thomas the Train. He loves to watch movies in my car and walks me out to my car some nights because he wants to watch a movie in my car. One night he brought me my purse and then started waving and blowing kisses to Sue and Tom like we were leaving together. So, Porter and I went out to the car and watched a movie. Porter loves his mom and dad. I think he is a mama's boy but he loves to play with his dad and says "da" more than "ma". Sometimes when he wants his dad to play with him he yells really loud, "DA!". Sometime he yells this when Tom's not even home. Tom makes up stories to play with the trains and makes everything fun. Porter's new word that he says really clearly is "water". He likes to take walks and ride in his little red car. He likes to swing and jump on the trampoline. He usually wants me to help him jump but just yesterday we went out to the trampoline and he bent his knees and jumped up really well. I was impressed. He had a big smile on his face and kept doing it. I think he is going to be a jumper!
I fall more in love with Porter every day. He keeps getting cuter and cuter. Every age I say, "this is my favorite age!" I wonder when I going to stop saying that. Friends say that is about 11 years old when they stop being cute and start being teenagers. I really hope Porter and I always stay close and that he is a good kid. I wish I knew what the secret was.

Monterrey Vacation

2011-07-31T17:12:00.000-07:00

This was our second annual trip to Monterrey with the Swartz family. Porter & Connor loved the ocean. What a beautiful private beach this is that we stay at.
Hanging out inside the beach house playing trains...
And watching movies...
And swimming...

We stopped in Solvang on the way up to Monterrey. Porter loved this dolphin and gave him a few kisses. Porter and Connor looking dapper in hats. Too bad they wouldn't leave them on.
Porter and I looking cool in our sunglasses. This was a great family vacation. I love my little family.

Only Child...until

2011-07-30T16:55:00.000-07:00

Visiting my mom

2011-06-19T15:54:00.000-07:00

Porter and I took a trip to St. George to visit my mom in the hospital. This was Porter's first trip out of California. It was a long road trip for just the two of us but Porter did great. Here he is taking a nap with Grandma in the hospital bed.And playing with his trains in the hospital room. Porter is so good at entertaining himself. He was such a good boy. We also went outside and played in the fountain and walked around the halls and said "hi" to all the nurses.This is a photograph of my mom's gallbladder. Some people get a few gall stones and have them removed. As you can see, my mom's gallbladder was completely full of stones so they had to remove the whole gallbladder. My mom didn't notice the pain until her gallbladder was this bad because she has such a high tolerance for pain!

17 months old

2011-06-03T22:13:00.000-07:00

The cutest kid Porter knows is himself. He can have a full conversation with himself in the mirror. And the person in the mirror actually understands him!

Porter is lucky to have so many Mothers that take care of him. Here are the mother's day photos.

Grandma Sue
Grandma Care

and Denise

Porter loves Jeckle and Jeckle loves Porter. Porter tackles Jeckle, pulls his tail, and plays with his ears and Jeckle still wants to be right beside Porter.

Porter took his first trip to the Zoo on Memorial Day with his friends Everett and Connor. Here are the boys in the goat cage playing with the goat toys.

"Hello Goat. I'm Porter. What's your name?""This is a thumbs up!"

Hanging out with dad on the front porch now that he has his own little matching chair.

Relaxing on the floor after a hard day of playing.

Trying to be like mom. Porter likes to put my sunglasses on and sit in the driver's seat. It's amazing to see how much he is really watching me.

Getting a work out with dad's pull up bar.

Speaking of working out, Porter has some new exercises. Grandma Sue taught him to squat down and stand up to the "Up and Down" skit on Play With Me Sesame. It is so cute. The first time I saw him do this, Porter had woken up in the night crying so we were laying on the couch watching Play With Me Sesame. When the "Up and Down" skit came on, Porter got off the couch and started squatting and standing up. I was in shock. I called for Tom to come and see. It's fun to see him interact more with TV and people. He has such a cute personality. He is sensitive and sweet. He has so much love for Tom and me, it melts my heart. Porter gives the best hugs and is always excited to see us. He can't sit still for 5 minutes and is a picky eater. But I love his energy. He really loves to play and be outside. He also loves the trampoline and to laugh. His favorite game is hide and seek. There's no counting, we just run and hide behind something and when he catches up and finds us, we jump out and say "boo!". He loves to be tickled and cuddled.

16 months old

2011-04-20T13:49:00.000-07:00

This is Porter's "I don't know" look. So cute!

Everett and Porter were playing on the trampoline. They had so much fun. It was so cute! I love these little babies!

Everett loves pushing this wagon. Porter loves sitting in this wagon.

Everett is so coordinated. Take a look at Everett using the wagon as a skate board!

Porter playing at the park. I wanted to video tape him going down the slide but of course he wouldn't go down the slide for me this day.

Everett pushing Porter around in the wagon. These boys are so cute playing together. I can just see them causing trouble together as they get older.
Everett mowing the lawn with the wagon...

15 months

2011-03-28T20:57:00.000-07:00

Porter is 15 months old.He LOVES to be in my office. Mostly because we are trying to keep him out of it most of the time. He thinks that something good MUST go on in here. Here he is reading my email. And steeling my pens. Porter is obsessed with pens lately. Porter squats and plays like this a lot. He must have strong thighs and great balance!Helping Grandma Care make biscuits. Playing at the park with Everett.Porter's new favorite place is the playground at Chick-fil-A. He loves to climb and he thinks he is one of the big kids.River is ready to be fed. She sees us feed Porter when he sits in this chair. Where is her food?Porter got an ear ache. So we just cuddled and watched Sesame Street.Porter's first motorcycle from Grandpa Blair.We took a Saturday off of working on the house and went to the air show with our friends the Terrys. And then to Chick-fil-A.

Some home movies:

Progress

2011-03-16T23:01:00.000-07:00

We have been making some slow progress on the house. Progress at the beginning always seems to go slow because you have to get everything set up and make a lot of decisions. We made a big decision last Friday by finalizing the design of the kitchen cabinetry and placing the order through Crownpoint Cabinetry. Below are some perspectives of what it will look like. We are going with the paneled refrigerator and dishwasher so they will blend in with the cabinetry. This kitchen will have a bar with bar stools, a desk at the end, and upper cabinet boxes for extra storage. These perspectives don't show the crown molding that will be added on after the cabinets are installed.We have cleared about every tree from the yard. The old trees were just too over-grown. We plan on planting some lemon and orange trees, some flowers, and a lot of grass. We also want to put in a fence around the entire yard. This might have to wait though because its not high on the priority list. We did start on the sprinklers though so that we can add some green in the front yard. This has been the biggest sprinkler job we have ever done, starting from scratch.Tom and Gerome have been working on the new electrical meter upgrade that will go on the garage and take the meter off of the house and the overhead electrical line back to the property line. Here is their trench and conduits they have run so far. We have a permit for the meter upgrade and are just waiting for Edison to schedule our meter installation.One of the first things we did was clear the basement. Matt Richins, Rafael, and I ripped out the ceiling, cabinets, floor, walls, and doors in one day. This is what it looks like now. Once we can open up the windows on both sides of the house we should be able to get some light down there.

We tore out all of the carpet on the second floor. My mom and Tom have been working on scraping the old melted carpet pad off of the wood and pulling out the staples. I think the wood's in great condition for being 98 years old!

Rafael is our door and window guy. He has been working on getting all of the windows back in working condition by replacing the ropes and resetting the glass. Tom is currently hunting down replacement glass for the broken windows, heavier weights for some of the windows, and a place to make vintage double hung windows for the places we want to add or change windows.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2011-02-28T15:11:00.000-08:00

14 months

2011-02-21T19:27:00.000-08:00

14 months of Porter in our lives!

The biggest change this month has been that Porter now walks most of the time. He is still a little unsteady and gets frustrated when he falls. The other change this month is that we finally installed the safety latches on our cabinets. Porter is into EVERYTHING. I have had to move things around because anything that is in his reach he will get in to.

Porter has always liked to play peek-a-boo. Now that he is older he can be the one to hide from us. He gets us every time!

Porter Rockwell and Chino Hills

2011-02-14T11:44:00.000-08:00

Porter got his first history lesson yesterday. We took him to the place that Porter Rockwell stayed when he was here in Southern California. When the saints arrived in Utah, Brigham Young decided during the month of September 1847 to dispatch Porter Rockwell and Captain Hunt of the Mormon Battalion to journey to Rancho Santa Ana Del Chino (Present day Chino Hills) to purchase supplies from Isaac Williams who was friendly to the Mormons and sold them cattle, seeds, and other provisions at half price.
An additional trip was made by Apostle Charles C. Rich, George Q. Cannon, Amasa Lyman and Adison Pratt in 1849 with a whole separate purpose. The four leaders with a combined group of about 150 men stayed at Rancho Satan Ana Del Chino as a stop over during the month of December 1849 to wait out the rainy season and to earn money while working for Isaac Williams on his ranch. Departing the ranch the four leaders and their companies of men in separate directions. Chrales C. Rich and his company traveled towards the north stopping at members locations along the way to gather tithing funds to be transported back to the church. Adison Pratt led a contingency of men to San Pedro where they caught a ship to the "islands" to serve missions for the church, and George Q. Cannon led a contingent of men to work the gold fields in northern California for the purpose of raising funds on behalf of the church.
Later during September of 1850 Porter Rockwell who had joined up with the apostle Charles C Rich in northern California escorted him and 50 other men back to Utah first stopping at Rancho Santa Ana Del Chino to stock up on supplies to bring back to Utah.

Additional History: April, 1847 the Mormon Battalion was dispatched to Rancho Santa Ana Del Chino to protect the ranchers from attacks from hostile Indians.

Note: Sunny doesn't believe that people will actually read down this far so please leave a comments if you actually took the time to read this entire blog entry........

Baby Bowl

2011-02-07T22:38:00.000-08:00

This is how Porter and Connor watched the Super Bowl.

The Neighborhood

2011-02-06T23:46:00.001-08:00

13 Months Old

2011-01-25T23:52:00.000-08:00

Taking some steps.

The biggest change this month was stopping breastfeeding. I was ready to be done but a part of me wishes that I could still breast feed him if I absolutely needed to; like if there were suddenly no food available. I know that would never happen but maybe it's just the mother instinct in me.

The Original Blueprints

2011-01-25T20:16:00.000-08:00

Nap Time

2011-01-24T11:23:00.001-08:00

MaKenna helped Porter fall asleep on Friday by cuddling with him. So cute!

Our New Baby

2011-01-21T21:08:00.000-08:00

One Year

2011-01-10T14:18:00.000-08:00

Porter turned 1 three weeks ago, right before Christmas. We had quite the birthday bash! The house was packed full of friends and family. Porter is a very loved little boy. I wish I would have taken more photos of the birthday party. I just don't want to forget anything. Balloons filled the ceiling and there was tons of food. It rained all day so we were all snug inside. I couldn't have imagined anything better!

Pj's from his birthday and learning to brush his teeth.

Christmas was special this year even though Porter didn't understand that it was a special day. My mom and I tried to get up before Porter woke up and put his little red car together but when we opened the box and saw how many pieces it came in we knew we were doomed. We'll just call this year a practice run. Hopefully by the time Porter understands the magic of Christmas, we'll have the "magic" part down. After opening presents at our house we went over to the Wilkes house to see what Santa Claus brought them. We stayed until Tom was kicked out for teasing too much and they just wanted to play with their new toys without Tom. Christmas Eve was spent at Grandma Sue's house with the cousins.A new box! A new backpack! I got this headband for Christmas and couldn't help myself. I had to put it on Porter and dream of having a little girl someday.Porter's favorite... a balloon!Porter pushing his little wagon. Still not walking on his own. I wont even try to speculate when he will decide to walk. Ive learned that there is nothing I can do to help him, he's got to decide he wants to walk on his own. Drinking cows milk and holding his own bottle. Life is getting a little easier!We have had lots of rain this winter. Here's Porter all bundled up for the cold.The cousins. Allie and Liam are so good to Porter. He already loves them. I hope these guys are always close.

I can't believe it has been a year. In some ways it seems like Porter has always been in our lives but in other ways it seems like he was just a baby yesterday and now he seems like a little boy. How did he change so fast right in front of me?! Porter has grown into his own little personality. He is stubborn and funny and full of life. He is in an exploring phase. He loves to open anything and empty out everything. Then he finds new homes for things and put things away for me to find later where I never would have expected. He puts his Lego's in his crib, the balls from the wac-a-ball in his clothes hamper, the balls from the ball popper in the basket with the blankets, the macaroni with the pots and pans, and the pots and pans on the floor. He loves to empty out the video cassettes from Denise's entertainment center and he goes about it like he has a job to do - so serious. He points to where he wants to go and what he wants. He can't talk but he can make it very clear what he wants and when he wants it. He is a good eater. He still likes baby food. Maybe because I'm not the best cook. However he does like bacon, pasta, apples, and any snack food, especially Cheetos. Right now he has 4 more teeth coming in - 2 back molars and 2 bottom front teeth. This is painful for him and he lets us know. Why do they have to come in waves all at once?! He loves to climb up and over anything - stairs, the side of the couch, me. He is still in a mama phase. He doesn't seem to have separation anxiety as bad, he just wants his mama. His two favorite words are "mama" and "ba". He seems to try out all the letters of the alphabet though. One day he will practice saying "ka" all day, the next day "da", and the next day "ga". He still gets hungry in the middle of the night, but then again, so does Tom. This is the only time I nurse him (Porter that is), although I would like to stop sometime soon. I always say maybe when he isn't sick or isn't teething or we aren't so busy, but of course that never happens. This year has been a VERY busy year. Too busy if you ask me. I was so worried I would miss something but actually I have enjoyed watching Porter grow and I look forward to him growing every day. I wouldn't change this experience for the world. Porter has changed my life and given it so much more meaning. I love being a wife and a mother more than anythinge else in the world!

Mail

2010-12-03T16:59:00.000-08:00

I thought I started early this year preparing to send out Porter's first birthday announcements and Christmas cards but it's already December 3rd and I just ordered my cards today. Which means that I wont receive them until next Thursday (that's with paying for priority shipping). And then I need to address them and send them out! And Porter's birthday is in two weeks and Christmas is in three weeks!! Where does the time go?!! So, here's a sneak peak at my cards and some extras.

11 months old

2010-11-21T09:36:00.001-08:00

Porter is now 11 months old. I cant believe he's almost a year old. He has grown so much in the last 11 months. It's truly been a miracle to watch him go from a newborn baby to a little boy with his own personality. He loves to open cupboards and drawers and empty them out or put things in them. He loves to find toys that will fit into the hole on top of his ball popper. One day we were sitting in the living room talking while Porter was playing and all of the sudden we heard a loud squeal from the ball popper fan. I ran over to check the ball popper fan and Porter had put a plastic spoon down the top hole that had lodged itself in the fan and stopped it from spinning. Porter was delighted in himself. He still loves the vacuum and can follow it around even better now that he can almost walk on his own. Close, but not yet.He got a balloon from Kennedy's 1st birthday party and then wouldn't let go of the balloon to take a nap. I tried to take it away from him after I laid him down but he just held on tighter with both hands. So, he slept with the balloon.These are Porter's adopted sisters and brother. He fits right in with the Wilkes. And now there will be one more to come next month. What cute kids. I'm glad that Porter has them to teach him the ropes and play with him. Just look at the girls fussing over him. They are so good to him and yet toughen him up at the same time. I forgot to mention in my previous blogs that Porter has a bit of separation anxiety when I drop him off in the mornings. It started at about 9 months. I cant complain too much because I'm the one he wants. It makes me feel very loved.Porter LOVES apples! I cant eat an apple without giving him one. I used to hold it for him and let him taste it, but now I just give him the whole apple and he goes to town. He'd eat the core if I didn't stop him. I thought this meant he was ready for other solid foods but he's not that adventurous, he just loves apples.Eating an apple....

Halloween

2010-11-14T14:01:00.001-08:00

Christmas came early this year and Porter got to be Santa's little helper. We had fun at the Ward Party, the Isobe's block party, the pumpkin patch and petting zoo, and at the cousins' house on Halloween. I don't think Porter knew it was Halloween but he did have fun. And we had more fun because of him.Helping Grandma make Mrs. Claus' apron and hat...And the finished apron and hat! What a good little helper.Picking a pumpkin...The petting zoo...Friends, Cam & Angie and their new baby, Chloe...Angela's sweet niece, Bobby...Porter is no longer a little baby compared to little Chloe...Porter looks like a little elf upon the shelf...Halloween with the cousins...Allie in the bean bag toss pumpkin...Porter in his pumpkin shirt from Joanne...What a Happy Halloween!

10 months old

2010-10-24T22:07:00.000-07:00

Porter turned 10 months old this week. He's really turning into a little boy. I can see the gears turning as he thinks about things. And I can tell he understands more of what we are saying and what is going to happen next. He is trying more to mimic us. If we do something, he will try to do it. He can do "the sunshine" and makes noises with his hand and mouth. He of course still loves to do raspberries and he can make sounds with his tongue. His main words (sounds) are Ba, ba, ba.... Ma, ma, ma.... Da, da, da... and He, he, he. Lately his favorite word is Ba, ba, ba. I wonder what "ba" is? He has an opinion and knows what he wants. I'm realizing what a push over I am and who is really in charge. I am just here to serve him! Angela and Cam had their baby this month. Here is me holding baby Chloe. It just makes me realize how much Porter has grown. Porter's fascination lately is toilet paper!
During General Conference, Porter practiced his toilet papering skills on his parents' bathroom. Not bad!Then his daddy taught him how to really watch Conference...Everett and Porter in the shopping cart at Costco. What cuties!
Everett and Porter watching the water at Downtown Disney...Best Buds! You can already see the trouble in their eyes! We are in for it!What cute dads! Tom and Tristan are great dads. These little boys are lucky to have such great dads.Porter's first chair. From Grandpa Blair.This baby loves water! He cant get enough.Brown Bear...Caught a fish...Watching the BYU game together with matching jerseys... Porter's almost a year old. I can hardly believe it! By the time he turns one I hope that he is sleeping through the night, eating real food, and walking. We'll see what the next two months have in store!

9 Month Photo Shoot

2010-09-28T14:34:00.000-07:00

9 months

2010-09-25T08:23:00.000-07:00

Porter is 9 months old. The next 3 months should be exciting months. Porter is a little ball of energy. He's curious and loves exploring new places. He has discovered the cat door, the trash can in the laundry room that he can tip over and find new treasures, the washing machine, opening the kitchen drawers, crawling up stairs, and crawling under and around almost anything he can fit through. He loves to follow the vacuum cleaner around the house but when we tried to teach him how to push it he just gave us a look like, "Nice try! I'm not doing chores!" He still loves TV. He seems to understand more and more. He helps put on and off his car seat and clothes by pulling his arms in or changing the hand that his toy is in. Porter has gained a couple of pet names. "Brown Bear" is Porter's favorite pet name. I think he answers quicker to "Brown Bear" than "Porter". We call this his Indian name. This pet name developed from his love of the book "Brown Bear, Brown Bear". I love that book. I can read it to him even if I don't have the book with me. And if I forget any of the words or run out of words I can just make up more things that Brown Bear sees! Just saying the words to this book usually calms Porter down. When its time for bed we say "Bedtime for Bonzo!" or when its time for a bath we say "Bath time for Bonzo!". Porter doesn't really like this pet name because it usually means he's done playing. He had his 9 month check up on Wednesday and the stats are: Height: 28.5" (60%), Weight: 20.2 oz. (45%). The doctor says that we need to feed him more! I don't know how that's possible. He can down three containers of Gerber baby food like its no big deal. The doctor said to try mixing breast milk with the baby food because breast milk contains more fat to fatten him up (I wish I had that problem!). Speaking of breast milk, Porter is back to waking up every 4 hours in the night to eat. How did we get back to this?! Maybe he really is hungry! I am going to try feeding him more during the day and hopefully he will decide that he doesn't need to eat during the night anymore. Good thing he is so cute! Gotta love this baby!! Porter's baby doctor, Cherise, taking care of him after facing planting and filling his mouth with so much blood we couldn't even see where it was coming from. We were looking on the ground for missing teeth. Luckily it was just a cut on the gums.Friends Jannene & Connor and Sarah & Brooke. Playing with Everett. Exploring.... The washing machine.Exploring the cat door. "Why is this cat door so small?" Where did those cats go?!"Playing with cousins... Liamand Allie.Watching the airplanes with daddy.

8 month old portrait

2010-09-05T10:22:00.001-07:00

This is Porter's 8 month old portrait that was taken at Babies-R-Us. I had high hopes of having portraits taken every month but that never happened. I'm still kind of kicking myself for not doing it. Tom says that the candid photos are better anyways. I don't know if I agree with that or not, however, I am excited that I have booked the same photographer that did Porter's newborn shots to do his one year old shots. I hope they will be great again.

8 months old

2010-08-24T21:31:00.000-07:00

Porter turned 8 months old on Thursday. This month he has gone from army crawling to crawling with his belly off the ground. He can pull himself up to standing and can sit and crawl like its no big deal. He is also much more adventurous. He wants to look in things and around things. I can tell he has a mechanical mind the way he studies everything he touches. His favorite toys are cables, extension chords, strings, the hose extension on the faucet, my purse, Grandma Sue's pedometer, the American flag, and other baby toys like that. He likes books and can turn the pages with a little help. He also has developed a fascination with the camera and seems to understand that we are taking pictures of him. Porter has become better at entertaining himself and the biggest miracle of all is that he is finally sleeping through the night; thanks to a little help from a case of thrush and my mom's persistence. He has also become a good eater and seems to actually enjoy baby food. His favorite food I would say is apples. Maybe that's because I eat so many apples my breast milk tastes like apples. Porter has six teeth! The first two teeth came in like it was no big deal but it seems to become more painful with each tooth. He has also started grinding his teeth! Porter loves dogs and likes pulling the cats tails. Dogs barking and cats meowing make him laugh. Porter got his first cold this month, took his second trip to urgent care, and went on his first nursing strike which lasted five days. We lowered the crib to the middle setting now that he can stand up and bought him a musical table to play at. Porter has become very observant and has started copying Tom by opening and closing his hand in front of his face to put himself to sleep. Now that I know he'll copy us I want to teach him to wave. Porter is the apple of my eye. I love him to pieces and could spend every minute of the day with him. I actually wish I could. Since I cant Ill just try to make the most of every minute I can spend with him!

Stake Champions!

2010-08-24T17:19:00.000-07:00

Its hard for Tom, the cats, or any one else to make it on my blog lately but our ward won the stake softball tournament so I think that deserves a post on my blog! Tom was the first baseman. Here are some great photos that our friend Diana Hunt took of him.

Pajama Party!!!

2010-08-22T10:02:00.001-07:00

Porter had a pajama party with his friends Connor and Everett last night. I can't wait to show these pictures to them when they are older. What cute babies! Everett (9 months) - Porter (8 months) - Connor (14 months) Down. Set. Hike!!!

Story Time

2010-08-21T10:34:00.000-07:00

Porter, Porter, What do you see?

I wanted to film Porter turning the pages of his books, but I got a surprise of my own. Porter has developed a facination with the camera.

Eat, Pray, Love

2010-08-12T21:53:00.001-07:00

EAT PRAY LOVE

Proud to be an American

2010-08-07T15:06:00.000-07:00

Grandma Sue bought the grandkids these flags on the fourth of July. Porter played with his flag and then I put it in a junk drawer in my office. A few weeks later, as Porter was going through the drawers in my office he found his flag and was delighted. Since then, it has become Porter's ritual to make a b-line for my office drawer as soon as he is put in his walker to find his flag. Every night I put the flag back in my office drawer so it is there for him the next morning.

One day, he could not part with his flag and so it went to Denise's house with him for the day and then didn't make it back home that night. Tom knew Porter would go for my office drawer in the morning so he put Porter's giraffe in the drawer instead. In the morning, when Porter found his giraffe instead of his flag in the drawer he was very disappointed. He kept looking for the flag in other drawers but finally gave up. I was so sad for him so I made sure to get his flag back from Denise that day. Porter seems to grow more and more attached to this flag. If he is holding his flag and you try to take it away from him he becomes very upset. So, this flag has got to take a bath with Porter, sleep with Porter, and eat with Porter.
Every night the flag goes back in my office drawer so it is there for Porter when he goes to find it in the morning. It's amazing to me that Porter remembers where the flag is kept every day. I also wonder why he loves this flag so much. Is it because his Grandma Sue gave it to him? Is it because it come from my office so he thinks it's mine? Or is he just proud to be an American? It makes me want to sing "Proud to be an American" to him every time I see him waving his flag around.

Dizzy

2010-08-06T16:07:00.000-07:00

Porter loves dogs. This is Dizzy the dog who was given to Porter by our neighbor, Wayne. He is the best neighbor ever! He is the glue that keeps our neighbors connected and in on the neighborhood gossip. Wayne also taught me everything I know about sprinklers. Porter says "Thanks for the dog, Wayne!"

7 Months Old!

2010-07-25T21:13:00.000-07:00

I finally finished my post below on our road trip and in the meantime Porter turned 7 months old. It kind of snuck up on me. I had just gotten used to the idea of Porter being 6 months old and all of the sudden its 7 months. My life has been really hectic lately so I feel like Ive missed a lot. Thank goodness for the road trip when I got to just spend 24 hours a day with Porter. Porter is beginning to develop a sense of humor like his dads. He likes to pet the cats and pull their fur but LOVES to pull their tails. Jeckle hangs around and just takes it but the other day River came around and Porter got a good hold of her tail and she didn't like it. She started whining and swatting at Porter but he just held on tight and laughed harder. I had to make him let go. So, his first teasing victim is River. I'm sure there will be more to come if he follows in his dad's footsteps. He's still army crawling but he's getting faster and stronger, he's almost ready for the army! He got his first two teeth (bottom, front) and can really bite hard. He watched his first fireworks, had his first trip to Urgent Care, went to his first birthday party, went to the beach for the first time and played in the sand for the first time, and went on his first vacation. His personality is becoming such a big part of our lives. We love him and cant wait to see him smile in the morning. Everything is more fun with Porter! I left the vacuum out and Porter decided to pick up where I left off. We're starting him early with chores!Porter LOVES water! Here he is taking a bath and LOVING it!

Porter loves dogs. My friend, Gretchen's, dogs are the best with babies. They played with Porter and tickled him. Here is a video of Porter laughing at the dogs but unfortunately I didn't get video of them playing with him.

First Road Trip

2010-07-24T21:52:00.000-07:00

We took a short vacation last weekend. This was our first road trip since Porter was born. It was so nice to not have anything to do but just hang out with my husband and baby. I was worried how Porter would be spending so much time in the car, but he did great (thanks to a little help from a portable DVD player). This actually ended up being my favorite part just to sit in the backseat and play with Porter while Tom drove. Our first stop was Solvang...Porter and Connor amazed at the big bubbles...Next stop, Hurst Castle... Just look at these tourists! Is that Angela & Cam?Johnathan?Jannene & Connor?Let me in the pool, dad!The entire gang: Johnathan, Jannene, Connor, me, Porter, Tom, Angela, Cam, and baby Pittman. Next stop, our Moss Landing beach house, just north of Monterrey. This was the most serene place. In the mornings it was misty and felt almost mystical. This group of beach condos was the only thing on the beach and the town was small. In fact, we called for pizza the first night and they didn't even know where we were. The perfect place to escape from the rest of the world! Here's Tom and Porter standing on the patio... Porter and I watching the dolphins ride the waves first thing in the morning (Porter's choice, not mine)...The view from our living room window...Our last stop was the Monterrey Aquarium. Everything is so much more fun with a baby. Porter is just beginning to be curious. I cant wait for more fun with Porter.Our treasures in the oyster shell....And the proud mamas...The famous Cannery Row...Back to home... What a great break from the every day life! I feel so blessed to have a wonderful husband, a beautiful baby, and great friends!

First Trip to the Beach

2010-07-10T21:33:00.000-07:00

Porter and I tagged along with the Wilkes to the beach on Saturday. This was Porter's first trip to the beach, first time to see the ocean (other than on tv), and first time to play with sand.

4th of July

2010-07-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

We had a happy forth of July! I love the forth of July. I love the weather, the food, the fireworks, and the fun. And it's not stressful because you don't have to worry about presents, and decorating, and getting dressed up. It's just paper plates, and shorts, and free fireworks shows.The cousins...The friend...Uncle Matt and Aunt SarahUncle Greg and Aunt SuzyThe Swarts...Porter with his daddy, watching his first fireworks. He loved them. He's so curious about everything. This was just one more fascinating experience. I love this little boy!At the end of a late night out...Oh, and Porter's first tooth popped through July 7th!

Porter's Officially Crawling!

2010-07-04T09:15:00.000-07:00

Porter has been rolling and scooting for a few weeks but yesterday he officially move forward with full intent. Here's the proof...

Did I happen to mention that this is my favorite age. Porter has entered a whole new phase. He is so much more content and happy. He also interacts more and seems to be taking everything in and thinking about it. I love love love this age!Brooke & Porter playing.Hey! She pushed my buttons, Mom!!!

Well, I'll show her!I put this toy arch by the door to take back to Denise but Porter kept picking it up on his walker and dragging it around. Maybe he was trying to tell me something.

6 Months/ 7 Years/ 1st Year

2010-06-27T22:37:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Porter turned 6 months old. I know I say this every month, but this month is my favorite so far! This is what I pictured a baby would be like. He is so fun and playful and lovey and happy. He's acting like he wants to crawl and lifted up his belly for the first time today. He doesn't let that stop him though, he gets around by rolling and scooting and turning. The walker makes him even more mobile and he loves that. The walker is also where he likes to poop and is in fact the only place he likes to poop these days. I think that being more mobile has made him more content and happy. This month Tom also went back to work so now onto our day care plans. I'm glad that he is 6 months old before we have to leave him with someone else because he is less fragile and helpless. He can hold us his head and roll over and scoot himself around and almost sit up by himself. We have started to try and feed him solid foods but he is not taking onto them yet. Porter weighs 18.4 pounds and is wearing 12 month clothes!
Applesauce... yum!
Waiting for Grandma Sue.
First time in the swimming pool.
Last weekend was also Tom and my 7 year anniversary and Tom's first Father's Day. We had a great weekend. This is a very busy but happy time in our lives. On Father's Day it was almost as if Porter couldn't wait to wake Tom up to wish him a Happy Father's Day. I guess he didn't remember that the Father's Day present was supposed to be letting his dad sleep in! We laid in bed all morning and played. It was great! Me and my dad on his first Grandfather's Day with Porter...
Today we took a trip to Urgent Care because Porter had an infected toe nail. Yesterday his toe looked red but this morning it was swollen and oozing. The doctor had to pull back the toe nail to empty the puss. I held Porter's foot and watched while Tom held Porter's hands and cried with him. We got some antibiotics and Epsom salt and are on our way to healing Porter's big toe.

Today was also our friend, Connor's first birthday. This is Connor and Porter being entertained by Tom, the baby comedian. Happy Birthday Connor!

Father's Day Card

2010-06-16T12:58:00.000-07:00

Porter picked out this Father's Day card for Tom. When I showed it to Porter in the grocery store he was laughing so hard people were coming over to see him. When I got home I showed it to him again and he still laughed hard. This card is amazing! I had to buy it. This will be Porter's first Father's Day card to his dad. This is a video of my friend Jannene playing with the card with Porter.

Ready for the stroller without the card seat. So big!
Carrots? Nope! I dont think any of the carrots actually made it to his belly.

Working on crawling. Porter can almost do the army crawl.

So many toys, so little time...Watching Tom play soft ball.Snuggling with Grandma Care before church.Snuggling with Grandma Care in the morning.

We love this baby!

2010-05-24T17:38:00.000-07:00

5 months old

2010-05-20T21:39:00.000-07:00

Porter turned 5 months old yesterday. The months seem to be going faster and faster. And Porter just keeps getting cuter and cuter. He is growing into his own. He has a sense of humor and laughs at funny noises, faces, and the Baby Einstein puppets. He is also very loving. He loves to give us sloppy kisses and hugs. Its the best! His new toy this month was a race car walker. He loves to be mobile. He wants to crawl so bad. He's not there, but he's getting closer by scooting with his arms and pushing with his feet when he has something to push against. He's also getting very close to sitting up on his own. He can sit up but still needs a little help for balancing. He is also gaining a love for books. He studies the pictures and tries to turn the pages and then puts them in his mouth, of course.
This month has been all about sleeping for me. Five months of sleep deprivation are finally catching up to me and I'm exhausted! I've desperately been looking for advice on how to get Porter to sleep through the night. In my search I found a great book called "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child". This book advocates a 7 pm bedtime with a 7 am wake time and three scheduled naps during the day. This is only our third night of this, but I love it! And Porter seems to love it too. Although he is still waking up twice to eat at about 11pm and 3am. Once we get the sleep schedule down we are going to concur the night feedings starting with the 3am wakening. He is up to 17.4 lbs. and gaining! I don't know why I'm worried about cutting out a night feeding! He is obviously eating enough. Speaking of which, we gave up on the rice cereal and are going to wait until he is closer to 6 months old to reintroduce it along with other baby foods. I'm excited for what the month ahead holds!

Rice Cereal & A Spoon

2010-05-08T17:46:00.000-07:00

This last week I have been worried if Porter is getting enough milk to drink or not so we decided to mix in a little rice cereal and see what he thought. I read somewhere that you were suppose to introduce rice cereal with a spoon but this didn't last very long before we poured the rice cereal in a bottle and fed it to him that way. I don't know if Porter's ready for solids yet, but this sure was fun!

Porter's new commercial

2010-05-04T14:59:00.000-07:00

Stats

2010-04-28T21:48:00.000-07:00

Porter had his 4 month doctor's appointment today. The stats are:
Weight: 16 lbs 3 oz (75%)
Height: 26" (77%)
He also had his second round of shots. He was happy for a couple of hours after the shots and then they all of the sudden kicked in and Porter started screaming in pain. The only way to calm him down was to either be pushing him in the stroller or driving around in the car so I took him on two long walks today and a drive this evening. He is sleeping soundly now; which, by the way, is in his crib. The night before his 4 month birthday I put him to sleep in his crib in his room rather than the bassinet in our room for the first time. He is doing a great job sleeping in his crib and I can even put him in his crib when he is sleepy yet still awake and he will fall asleep on his own. However, he is still waking up one to two times in the night (every 4-5 hours) to eat and then falls quickly back to sleep. I have decided that I need to read Baby Wise to make sure that I am not starting any bad habits now that I will regret later. Porter and his friend, Connor, playing with the exersaucer. This is by far Porter's favorite toy. He acts so serious in this thing like he is getting some real work done. I'm sure he was happy to get a little help for once!How can you say that Baby Einstein toys don't make kids smarter? Just look at this baby! He looks like he is ready for kindergarten! A very close second to the Baby Einstein exersaucer are the Baby Einstein videos. This is Porter laughing while watching one of the videos. Apparently he thinks these movies are comedies.

Morning Surprise

2010-04-23T15:00:00.001-07:00

Look what our good hunting cat brought us yesterday morning.... We could hear the bunny squealing and Jeckle pawing at the door. When we opened the door Jeckle let the bunny down inside the house and the bunny went running for cover.... with now three cats after him. We saved the bunny from the cats and let it go outside.

Porter is 4 months old

2010-04-18T20:21:00.000-07:00

Porter turns 4 months old tomorrow. This last month Porter has come into his own. He is funny and playful but also determined and curious. Today he laughed so hard at the kangaroo that does back flips on Baby Noah that he got the hiccups. I have no idea why he found it so funny but it cracked him up and the more he laughed the more we laughed. Tom can make him laugh just as hard by just singing "Shake It Up Baby" and making funny faces. The toy of the month is definitely the Baby Einstein exersaucer. We call it his cubicle because he looks so busy in his exersaucer and wakes up at the crack of dawn and can't wait to get started working in his cubicle. Every day he gets better and better at turning, pushing, and grabbing the toys. He also seems to be gaining a memory and seems to know what is going to happen next when we go to give him a bath, feed him, or change his diaper. He rolled over from front to back for the first time this month. His grandma Sue is his tummy time/ rolling trainer. She works with him every time she sees him which is good because Tom and I are not good and giving him tummy time. His new trick this month is grabbing his toes. If only he could get them in his mouth he would really be happy. Everything goes in his mouth! However the more he chews on something the more he seems to think about his mouth hurting. I cant help but think that teeth are in the near future. This month is even more fun than the last! I just hope I can remember every moment. It seems to go so fast!

What's new with Porter?

2010-04-11T18:49:00.000-07:00

Porter rolled over today! Take a look....

Porter's new favorite toy: the Baby Einstein exersaucer. This is perfect for him right now. He can stand up and he can play with his toys. He likes to push the animal sound buttons and spin the slot machine wheels.
Mom and Porter's first matching outfits...First yard work: watering the lawn with Grandma Care and almost giving mom a shower while taking the picture.Favorite movies: Baby Mozart and Best of Sesame Street. Porter loves Ernie!

Porter's First Easter

2010-04-11T18:46:00.001-07:00

Blessings

2010-03-21T23:28:00.001-07:00

Tom gave Porter a Baby's Blessing on Sunday, March 7th. I stressed over what Porter would wear and trying to make sure Porter was happy and did not cry during the blessing. Tom stressed over the blessing. In the end, Porter looked adorable, didn't cry during the blessing, and Tom gave a great blessing. What a special day for us. We felt very blessed to be Porter's parents.

3 months old

2010-03-20T21:10:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Porter turned 3 months old. This marks the end of the "fourth trimester", the transition from fetus to baby and the official graduation from newborn to infant. I already see him changing. He plays more with toys by trying to grab them and watching them with more interest. He also really watches the Baby Einstein video with more interest. I love that he can hold up his head now. He looks like a little boy when I support him to sit or stand up. His smile is contagious. I absolutely love it! I hope that never changes. I finally feel more confident as a mother. I feel like I know his schedule and I know what he needs. Its a good feeling to be able to pacify him when he cries. And he looks at me with such love. I feel that we have a mother-son bond just between us. What a great feeling! He still needs to be swaddled to sleep at night so I still love the Miracle Blanket. He also loves his binkie. He needs this whenever he is tired to pacify him and put him to sleep. His favorite toy is the Baby Einstein radio. The lights and music hypnotise him. Stats are: 14.8 lbs., 24".

Hot! Hot! Hot!

2010-03-18T10:38:00.001-07:00

This is a special treat for all of our blog followers to give you incentive to keep watching...

Shout Out!

2010-03-18T09:44:00.000-07:00

We want to give a shout out to our friends at HDR (Michelle & Debbie especially)! Porter says, "un goo!"

2 months old

2010-02-22T21:18:00.000-08:00

On Friday Porter turned 2 months old. He also had his second doctor appointment.
These are the stats (50% being average):
Length/Height = 24.5" (90%)
Weight = 13 lbs (80%)
Head Circumference = 39 cm (40%)
The doctor is very please with his growth. He is a big baby and obviously eating very well. In fact, he is officially wearing 3-6 month old clothing at only 2 months old. He also got his first shots (Hep B, RV, DTaP, HIB, Pneumococcal, and Polio). This was a traumatic experience for both baby and father. He went into the doctor's office as a happy baby, flirting with the nurse and showing off, and came out as a very sad baby. Just like when we brought him home from the hospital for the first time, his guardian cat, Heckle was here to greet him. This weekend has consisted of a high fever and crying himself to sleep. We are hoping we are through it and not looking forward to the next round of shots.
On the bright side, Porter smiles, sticks out his tongue, "talks", laughs, and plays. He has become more fun to watch and play with. His toothless grin melts my heart and he seems to talk to us like he really has something important to say. He is getting better at holding up his head and standing when we hold him up. In fact, I got out his jumper tonight and he loved standing in it and jumping a little. I can already tell that this is going to be a favorite toy. Porter is a cuddler. He loves to be close, hold onto your shirt, and wrap his arms around your neck. I love to cuddle with him, especially in the mornings when I don't want to get out of bed. I call him my "trophy baby" because I love to show him off. I think he is the cutest baby ever and I am so proud of him. Although I still have anxiety about him growing too fast, I have to say that this month is even better than the last!

Favorite baby items this month:
1. Miracle Blanket (how does anyone put their baby to sleep without this?!)
2. Binky
3. Bassinet
4. Swing
5. Jumper

Babies Night Out

2010-02-18T21:33:00.001-08:00

Who will Kennedy's first date be? Will it be Porter or Everett? Never mind because Porter's first date will be with MaKenna so Everett you can have her!

Birth Announcement Photos

2010-02-18T16:59:00.000-08:00

Catching up

2010-02-14T22:21:00.000-08:00

My mom was in town this weekend so we went to the Crab Cooker and the mall. She wore Porter in the carrier the whole day, including while she ate. Porter looks upset in this picture but he quickly went to sleep. He was so content to be held and moving around.

Last Sunday was Superbowl Sunday. The girls were in the kitchen cooking...While the men watch the babies and the game....What cute dads!So who is bigger? Porter or Jeckel?...... Still Jeckel, but Porter is gaining quickly. Porter weighs about 12.5 lbs. and Jeckel weighs about 13 lbs.

Porter taking a bath with his cousin Allie in their grandma's tub. Allie helped bathe her cousin but was not happy when he peed on her.Sucking on Bert's ear.

Today

2010-02-12T22:19:00.000-08:00

A morning with Porter...

Porter's new trick, shaking the rattle...

Leak Protection

2010-02-12T14:26:00.000-08:00

This is Porter's first commerical (and I didnt even know he had a job). I cant tell you how many times I've cleaned pee or poo off the floor, wall, closet doors, lamp shade, furniture, me, Porter, etc... I've changed numerous outfits due to firings. And when Porter's pee shooter happens to be pointed at his face during a firing he starts to cry and looks at me like it's my fault!

Happy Baby

2010-02-11T14:37:00.000-08:00

There's nothing better than seeing my baby smile. Somehow everything else seems less important.

Porter's first girl friend

2010-01-28T16:54:00.000-08:00

This is Brooke Lyn Robinson. Hello blue eyes! She is only 5 months older than Porter. This will seem like nothing when these kids get a little older but right now it seems like a big difference. I guess it is 2-1/2 life times difference for Porter. Brooke is a talker (her own language). She can sit up on her own and she has such personality. I look forward to these days with Porter. Brooke Lyn, I added this song for you!Brooke is already fussing with Porter's hair for the picture - typical girl! And this is Brooke's cute mom, Sarah.

Happy 1 Month Birthday, Porter!

2010-01-19T20:16:00.000-08:00

We threw Porter a 1 month impromptu birthday party. Porter's big cousins, Liam and Allie, stopped by and made their own birthday hats. I made a special birthday hat for Porter. Liam and Allie asked if we could have another party next week! "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to!"It has been one month since Porter's birth. In some ways it seems like we have always had Porter but in other ways it seems like the month has flown by. We didn't know what to expect having a baby would be like before we had Porter. It is a lot more work than we thought it would be. How can such a little baby take so much effort?! I am very glad that Tom took off work for the month. It has been great to have both of us home. We are able to tag team the effort so that we can take turns taking a break and get something done. I have been able to still work a little during the day. When Tom goes back to work next month, we'd like to hire someone to be here at our house and watch Porter while I work. That way I can still work and be a mom. I am feeling great and getting used to getting by with less sleep. Tom is learning that babies get diaper rashes, grunt, and cry and it is still normal. He worries a lot about Porter. It is hard to know how to take care of a baby when every baby is different and the baby cant tell you what is wrong. Porter is so adorable. He sleeps good during the night (knock on wood) and wakes up every 2-4 hours to eat. He is very active but happy in the morning. He kicks his legs and waves his hands and wants to do everything but sit still. During the afternoon Porter calms down and usually takes a nap (especially if we go for a drive or walk). In the evening is his witching hour and he is usually cranky. Sometimes he will want to eat every hour to try and sooth himself. The binkie has really helped with this. We do everything we can to make him happy but usually he is just working out his digestive system. Porter keeps us on our toes but when we are away from him for even a minute we miss him. I hate to see him grow up on one hand but one the other hand I cant wait to see what tomorrow will bring! Happy 1 month birthday, Porter! We love you!!

Top Favorite Baby Gear During First Month:
1. Bassinet with wheels (Bam Bassinet by Argington is the best! - we wheel this around from our bedroom, to the living room, to my office.)
2. Boppy (great for feeding and holding the baby)
3. Baby bath tub with hammock (holds the baby safely in the water with their head out of the water)
4. Binkie by Avent (this has been Porter's favorite binkie so far)
5. Changing pad (used for changing diapers and getting in & out of bath tub - Porter is almost alway happy when he lays in this thing)
6. Poang chair from IKEA (great modern alternative to the glider)
7. Miracle Wrap (a must have for getting Porter to sleep at night and not wake himself up)

Other great things:
8. Moby Wrap (I love to use this however you have to wake the baby up to put him in and out of it).
9. Aquafor (this healed Porter's diaper rash and has been great)
10. Nursing veil (uddercovers.com - use promo code "thanks" for 90% off)
11. Favorite toy: lighted stacker toy

Top Favorite Prego Gear During Pregnancy:
1. "The Belly Book" by Amy K.
2. Weekly email from parentsconnect.com & babycenter.com
3. Black dress
4. Belly Butter
5. Sleeping bra (for use during the day to be comfortable)

Porter is 4 weeks old!

2010-01-15T15:44:00.001-08:00

This week Porter started making eye contact with us. When we talk to him he seems to be taking it all in. Sometimes he smiles and sometimes he looks disgusted. I know I said that I don't want him to get older but every day he gets cuter and cuter. Tom making Bert and Ernie talk for Porter.Taking a bath. Thanks to Jannene for the wash cloth on the tummy trick. Ever since we started putting a wash cloth on his tummy during his bath he likes it a lot better.He has taken to the binkie this week. I kept trying to give him another type of binkie but he didn't like it. Finally I got out this binkie and he took to it right away.First Friends. This is Everett Von Terry. He is 3-1/2 weeks older than Porter. I can already tell that they are going to be great friends. His parents are also pretty cool.The proud dads and their handsome sons.Porter loves riding in the car and going for walks. Both put him fast asleep.This is four weeks late, but the winner of the birth date pool was Cam Pittman! (Really this was his wife, Angela's guess).

Weigh In

2010-01-05T15:04:00.000-08:00

7 lbs. 11 oz. - 20" long: Birth Weight (12/19/09)
7 lbs. 4 oz.: 2 days old - Hospital Check Out (12/22/09)
8 lbs. 1 oz.: 1 week old - Hospital Check Up (12/26/09)
9 lbs. 0 oz. - 21" long: 2 weeks 3 days old - First Doctor Visit (1/5/10)

The doctors say that Porter is gaining weight great. That is his only job right now. So, whatever I am feeding him to keep it up! We are already noticing that he is getting bigger. His clothes are getting a little tighter and we've already loosened up the car seat harness a little. I just don't want him to grow too fast. I'm afraid I'm going to miss something. I'm trying to make sure that he wears all of his clothes before he outgrows them!

Porter is 2 weeks old

2010-01-01T21:50:00.000-08:00

Every day is a new experience. Tom and I are learning to live on less sleep and trying to learn how to be parents. Every day my love for Porter grows stronger and I fall more in love with him. Its a good thing he is so cute because when I have to get up three times a night to feed him I am not in the best mood until I just look at him and melt. The last couple of days he has developed a grunting problem. He seems to have to work so hard after he eats to digest the milk. I don't know if the problem is that we are not burping him enough after he eats, my diet, or just that his digestive track is still developing. We called the pediatrician but the nurse said that as long as he is eating and pooping, then he is fine. On one hand, I look forward to Porter growing and developing but on the other hand I am so afraid that I am going to blink and miss something that I don't want him to grow an inch. On New Year's Eve his belly button scab fell off. Now we get to give him a real bath.
Here we are living on little sleep. This is what our life looks like lately. The days and nights blend together into one.
Porter likes to play with his ears. Here he is chillin' with his hands behind his head.The cats are getting used to having less attention. Here is Jeckel taking whatever attention he can get.My mom helped me finish my bird mobile before Porter was born. Here is the final bird mobile.

Our best Christmas present ever!

Porter's Here!

2009-12-23T16:18:00.000-08:00

PORTER ROCKWELL RICHINS

was born Saturday, December 19th at 5:56 pm.

He weighed 7 lbs. 11 ozs. and was 20 inches long.

I had so much anticipation about what the labor experience would be like. It was better than I expected and was an experience of a life time. It still seems surreal that this little baby is mine.

Porter Rockwell - Movie Clip

2009-11-30T15:23:00.000-08:00

Porter Rockwell - Movie Trailer

2009-11-30T15:04:00.000-08:00

SLR Photography

2009-11-23T18:35:00.000-08:00

Photographs by SLR Photography -Sarah Lyn Robinson- at 35 weeks pregnant:Thanks Sarah! You were so fun to hang out with this afternoon! You did a great job, especially considering the difficult models you had to work with!

The crib arrived!

2009-11-22T18:18:00.001-08:00

The crib arrived on Thursday! I was so excited. Tom and Johnathan Swart put the crib and dresser together on Thursday night because I couldn't wait one more day! (Thanks Johnathan!) You can see we also finished putting up the wall decal. After putting together the crib, I went to try out the bedding I had made however realized that the mattress did not arrive with the same order and the skirt does not fit because the slits for the crib legs are in the wrong place. So, as you can see, I just have the bumper for now. Also, the chair that I planned on putting in the nursery is too big for the space so I am looking for another chair. I'm also looking for shelves to go above the dresser and the perfect mobile to hang from the wood arm you see sticking out of the crib. Below are some thoughts are these last items. Id like to make a bird mobile with black, white, and grey fabrics to hang from the wood arm. I found a simple pattern for the bird below on line. Anyone up for sewing birds???I think the Ikea Lack shelves in black-brown (below) would look perfect above the dresser. Unfortunately they are out of stock on-line and at all Ikeas until January. Should I just find another shelf I like or wait until January?

November Showers Bring Friends & Family

2009-11-22T17:51:00.000-08:00

My mother-in-law and sister-in-law hosted a great shower for me last Saturday. I was definitely showered with gifts... But even better was having so many people show up. I have been amazed by how supportive and excited everyone has been for us. I have had fun preparing the nursery and being showered with gifts but now I just want Porter to be here! The cake... so cute!My mom and Sarah trying out the Moby Wrap. I'm excited to try this out with Porter. It sounds like a good idea to be able to "wear" your baby. Angela, Jannene, Amberly, me, Gretchen, and Karen (this is a blurry photo but I had to include it because of everyone in it)Terry, my mom, me, and Sarah (sorry another blurry photo)Sarah, Donna, and meMeghan, Trena, Thorey, and meHolly, Dee, Jack, me, and TraceyMe, Melissa, Sarah, and MeghanNancy, me, and TerryThat's all the pictures of people I have. I wish I had taken more photos of people because it was so nice to have so many of my friends and family there. These are the flowers Joanne sent me from Oregon because she couldn't be at the shower.... so cute in the little red wagon!

Fall Is Here!

2009-11-03T20:32:00.000-08:00

October 17, 2009 - BYU vs. San Diego State football game. Sitting in the box enjoying the company, the weather, and BYU winning the game.October 24, 2009 - Halloween Block Party at the Isobe's. Tom and I went as polygamists. Notice the hair. Once again, enjoying the good company, food, and dancing in the street.I had to throw this photo in for memories sake. This is Katie, Sarah, and I dressed up for a skit we did at church in 2007. We are dressed as vices. I can't remember what my vice was but I looked dressed to kill, didn't I? I borrowed these clothes from one of the teenage girls at church. These clothes came from her actual closet! This photo reminded me of Halloween but also reminded me how I used to be skinny. I miss those days.

Cribs

2009-10-25T09:49:00.000-07:00

I finally ordered Porter's nursery furniture!... Well, let me be honest, I finally ordered MY nursery furniture. I think the nursery is more about what I want than what Porter wants because I don't think he will really care about the aesthetics of the furniture as much as I will. After looking at every crib out there I finally found one that I think fits what I am looking for. My first criteria was a black crib with simple straight lines. I also really wanted a bassinet despite being told that it would only be used for a few weeks. I just picture a baby going in a bassinet or crib. So, when I found a crib that converts from a bassinet I finally felt justified in spending the money on a bassinet. So I ordered the bassinet with conversion kit to a crib and the six drawer dresser. The bassinet came with the mattress pad and two white sheets. I also ordered the white bumper and a canopy support that attaches to the edge of the bassinet which I plan on hanging a mobile from. The crib also came with a mattress. It should all arrive November 16th. I cant wait! I hope Porter will like it. This is the Bam Collection by Argington if you were wondering.

10 weeks to go

2009-10-11T09:39:00.000-07:00

I'm at 30 weeks this week. I feel like I'm passing the point of looking cute to just being big. I'm starting to feel the extra weight I'm lugging around. Its hard to believe that in just 10 short weeks we will have a baby. I really cant imagine what it will be like. We finished our Bradley class a couple weeks ago. I learned a lot, but I also learned that I really don't know what to expect. I'm enjoying having my energy back, having thicker hair than usual, and people being so nice to me. I'm not enjoying the extra weight and not being able to sleep on my back or get comfortable when I sleep. I'm obsessing over decorating the nursery. Thankfully I have patient friends help me look for the perfect decor and try to help me make some decisions.22 weeks - This is the week I felt like I could no longer hide that I was pregnant. I started to feel light bumps in my stomach.26 weeks - This is when I felt the best. I felt like a cute pregnant woman rather than just a woman with a beer gut. I also started feeling Porter move and kick more noticeably.I went to visit my mom in St. George for her birthday. A group of friends came over for brunch to shower me with some gifts. My mom took some t-shirts from Tom's last job with the clothing company and made a blanket and some onesies. I'm so excited for our little boy to be the most stylish kid on the block!I have an awesome ward. This is the shower they threw for me last Thursday. What a blast just to hang out with these women!Now onto actually ordering my nursery furniture. I bought a rocker and fabric to make crib bedding yesterday. I'm so excited for the crib bedding. I have looked everywhere for what I want and couldn't find it so I'm just going to have it made. The chair that will go in the nursery. I love this chair. Im very happy with this purchase.The fabric for the crib bedding. Im very excited about how this is going to turn out. Im meeting with "The Baby Guy" this Thursday to discuss making my crib bedding.

I "POPPED"

2009-08-16T16:21:00.000-07:00

Last week (21 weeks) was the week I felt like I "popped". My flabby stomach turned into a hard ball making bending over a much harder task. Hello maternity clothes. To me, I look obviously pregnant now, however I am amazed at how many of my clients don't notice or are afraid to ask. I finally told my biggest continuous client just last Tuesday that I was pregnant. They were surprised but excited. They were actually less worried than I thought they would be. It's a relief to not be keeping that secret any more. On Friday, Greg, Tom's youngest brother, got married to Suzy. My other sister-in-law, Sarah, and I were the two bride's maids (all S's). Sarah and I threw Suzy a bridal shower last weekend, I was Suzy's escort for her endowments on Wednesday, and then Sarah was Suzy's escort for her wedding on Friday. It was a busy week. Today when we were eating leftovers from the reception at Tom's mom's house, Liam, my 7 year old nephew, out of the blue told me that Porter is going to be a healthy baby. I asked him how he knew and he said he didn't know how. This was such a strange thing to say because this is my biggest fear. I worry about the baby being OK often. Sometimes I think I can feel light little bumps or brushes in my stomach however I wish they were more obvious kicks so that I could actually feel him moving. Liam was convinced that I was having a boy before I knew it so I hope he's right about this too.

MY BIG NEWS

2009-07-29T11:58:00.000-07:00

My big news is that I'm pregnant! I am almost 20 weeks along (half way). The due date is December 21st. So far, everything is "normal" according to the doctor. I have found that doctors don't give you a lot of information on what is going on or what to expect. So, I've decided to take a Bradley Method class. I went for the first time last Wednesday and I loved it. We talked about exercise and nutrition, something I need a little help with (well, actually a lot of help with). I like having the structure and accountability of a class to get me to do the exercises that will be best for preparing me and to eat all of the nutrients I need to be eating.

Tom hates doctors offices and is petrified of hospitals. He hates needles or the sight of blood. He can't wait for the baby to be here but he is scared to death of the pregnancy and especially the labor. Up to this point, he has tried to avoid knowing anything that is going on with the pregnancy. But this week has been a transformation for him. He sat through my entire ultra sound, has been reading my pregnancy magazines, and will be going with me to my Bradley class tonight.

Both of us are amazed at the miracle of having a baby. It all seems so surreal. We just pray for a normal, healthy baby.

10 WEEKS (2 MONTHS):

This was my first ultrasound. I was amazed to hear the heart beat and see something actually growing inside me. Seeing and hearing the baby made it more real for me.

14 WEEKS (3 MONTHS):This was my second ultrasound in the first trimester since I changed doctors. During this ultrasound I definitely saw something between the baby's legs. I asked the ultrasound technician if it was what I thought it was and she said, "We don't know for sure until the second trimester ultrasound. But, I would bet on it." I had really wanted a girl so this was a shock to me. It took awhile for the idea of having a boy to sink in. I think I was just destined to hang out with males growing up, go to college with mostly males, work with mostly males, and then have a male baby. I have been watching boys and men differently ever since. I think I have seen a softer side of men and I have become more comfortable with the idea of raising a little boy.

18 WEEKS (4 MONTHS):The third ultrasound - the second trimester organ check. Everything looked normal and they confirmed that it's definitely a boy! Tom stayed with me through the whole ultrasound! A first.And what will the baby's name be? I think we have made our decision..... It will be Porter Rockwell Richins. Tom has always loved this name, since before we ever got married. From the moment he found out I was pregnant he started calling the baby Porter (whether it was a girl or boy). I like the name too. Porter was tough, loyal, and brave.

4 Posts!

2009-07-15T22:31:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in about 5 months and then all of then sudden I decided to empty my camera tonight and post 4 blogs. So, take a look at the 4 posts below. I'm not promising to be better at blogging more frequently, but I promise that my next blog will be about my big news! Ironically, I enjoy keeping up on all of your news by frequenting your blogs.

Architecture Tour

2009-07-15T21:47:00.000-07:00

Tom is my travel planner. I don't dream about going anywhere, yet when I get there I am amazed at the world outside of my daily routine. Lately, Tom has been interested in architectural history. So, a week ago he planned a tour of two historic architectural houses in Los Angeles, the Gamble House by Greene & Greene Architects and the Hollyhock House by Frank Lloyd Wright. We brought along our mothers and had a great, educational day. The Gamble House was built in 1908 for the Gamble Family of Proctor and Gamble Company. I've been to the Gamble House once before during an architectural summer camp at USC after I graduated from high school. I think I have even more appreciation now for the beautiful construction details after working on my own plans for the last 15 years and after working on remodeling our house for the last 5 years. Tom and I kept pointing out details that we liked about the house. What a beautiful house! I would love to live here. The Hollyhock House was built between 1919 and 1921 for Aline Barnsdall. Aline only lived in the house for a few months and then moved into the guest house because she didn't like the house. The Hollyhock House has unfortunately not been kept up very well and is in disrepair. However, it is still an architectural landmark because it marks a transition in Frank Lloyd Wright's architectural style from his Prairie style houses to experimenting with concrete and outdoor spaces. So, what is next on the architectural tour? Tom is planning our next field trip to Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin in Wisconsin. I've never been to Wisconsin. I'm looking forward to it. I'm currently reading "Loving Frank" to prepare for my field trip.

We finally have two bathrooms!

2009-07-15T21:20:00.000-07:00

We have pretty much finished our master bathroom remodel. We are just waiting for some hooks, the wall mounted soap dispenser, and the glass shower door. This only took us two years! I want to start the other bathroom but I want to wait until we have a plan and are ready to execute it within a couple months instead of years this time.

BEFORE....

AFTER...

Connor Swart

2009-06-27T18:03:00.000-07:00

My friend, Jannene, gave birth to her baby boy, Connor, a week early. Jannene and her husband, Johnathan were at our house just 3 hours before her water broke playing cards. Jannene made the whole pregnancy thing look easy!Me & baby Connor. Angela & Connor
Tristan, Cherise, & Connor Denise & Connor

Denise, me, Jannene, baby Connor, Angela, & Cherise - 6/27/09

Girl's Night Out

2009-06-04T21:35:00.000-07:00

I have more friends in my ward than I think I ever have. I have really enjoyed their friendship. This is just a handful of them at a girl's night out at BJ's.

Stephanie, Cherise, Sarah (my sister-in-law), me, Anna, Denise, & Lindsay

Happy Birthday to Me!

2009-03-08T11:49:00.000-07:00

I'm now 33 years old! Can you believe it. We flew all the way to Colorado to celebrate with the Orsers.

Sunny & TomDan & SarahRob & BeckyAllen & ChrisThe theme of presents this year was flowers. Look at all of the beautiful flowers I received...

The butterfly bouquet is from Joanne & my dad. So cute! I love butterflies.

The fruit bouquet is from my friend, Denise Wilkes. It was delicious! In fact, there are a few pieces of fruit missing from the photo because I couldn't wait. I loved every bite!The plastic flowers to be planted in my yard are from my mom (she knows I can't keep real flowers alive!)The ceramic lotus is from my aunt Nancy (thanks to the great sale we found at the Z-Gallery in Denver) I also received a great fur scarf from my cousins Rob & Becky! (They didn't get the memo about flowers this year.)