Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

Hope is a VERB

Reuben may be sleeping as this post is typed, but today is a day worth remembering, regardless of one's political leanings. Reuben's parents are excited about the swearing in of a new president and vice president. Mom listened to the live stream on NPR and Dad watched the swearing in with this students. Reuben went with his mom to vote back in November and though he may not understand what happened today, he will live in a world where anything is possible! America has so much potential and hope is rampant! Mom couldn't help but note that in America voting rights have followed this pattern, 1st = white men, 2nd = men of color, 3rd = women... Are we seeing that trend played out in the executive office?

Soldiering Through

The past two weeks have been extremely busy for Colby, Hollie and Reuben. We have much going on professionally, personally, educationally and developmentally. We apologize for the lack of photos and updates. We have missed deadlines, birthdays, holidays, phone calls, opportunities and sleep over the past 6 months because we are still learning how to juggle it all. We are not fluent in the skills necessary to parent, work, and contribute to the greater good. We try, our intentions are good, and we still fall short.

We have learned so much over the past 6 months with Reuben. Perhaps the most important lesson we have learned is that time is the most valuable commodity we have and we want to invest it well.

Many thanks to you, our dear family and friends for being gentle with us while we learn and grow. As our friend Terri would say, "stretching can hurt!"

Six Months Old Today!

Ahh, month number 6... Momma's friend, Ginny, said, "months 4 to 7 are the best and happiest time in any person's life..." We agree! Reuben has happily done the following over the last month:

1). Ate his first food. He had rice cereal and he is still getting the hang of it.
2). Started sitting up in his little chairs, so sweet!
3). Got his first tooth, bottom-front-left side, yay!
4). Learned that the pups react to his grabby hands and loud little voice.
5). Celebrated the holidays with friends and family, generous season indeed.
6). Started "chomping" the faces of those he loves--these are kisses, right?

Baby Eyes Need Baby Goggles

We all went snowshoeing yesterday. It was beautiful and the sun was very bright. Reuben's mom and dad realized that if they needed eye protection then Reuben needed eye protection. We went to REI and found that there are little goggles for little people.

Christmas for Reuben

We had a lovely Christmas and were fortunate to spend it with great friends and family. We are keenly aware of how lucky we are to be healthy, happy and safe!

Reuben loved the shiny objects and lights that the holiday brought. To date, his favorite gift is some bright green mylar wrapping paper. Here are some examples of the fun gifts he received. What a generous season!




Reuben's dad cannot wait until he can play with things like this! His cousins received this gift and it was AWESOME. Reuben did get caught in the cross-fire once, but he is just fine! In 3 or or 4 years he'll be all over it, dad!

Year of the EAR

Reuben is blessed with some prominent EARS! His Poppy Bus and his Great Grandpa Gilbert must have provided the genes for them. Momma's friend Dan M. said that Reuben is in good company with news makers this year--Michael Phelps and Barack Obama both have prominent ears, could it be the YEAR OF THE EAR?

Rice Cereal, not so yummy!

Reuben's pediatrician said that he was about the right age to start trying rice cereal. So, we tried


And, um, yeah, he isn't quite ready....

Second Outing for Reuben's Mom and Dad

It has been brought to momma's attention that she talks about Reuben a lot. Dad has kept data and the interval between comments about Reuben, for momma, is less than 3 minutes (on average). So, we needed an intervention!

Thankfully, Reuben's Auntie Leanne was willing to babysit (or as us Utahn's like to say tend him). While on the adult's only date, Momma was able to go 7 whole minutes on average between comments about Reuben... Progress is progress.

As you can see, Reuben was 100% spoiled by Leanne... never leaving her arms!

Reuben came home with cute presents--night out plus loot for the boy, double bonus!

Too bad Reuben inherited from his parents a HUGE CLOWNISH CRANIUM--this cute hat would have probably fit a normal baby's head perfectly! It will be modified by Christmas.

Thanks Leanne, we appreciate and adore you! We also think you have excellent taste!

5 months old today!

We can hardly believe it, Reub is 5 months old today!

Still a thumb sucker...

During the past month, Reuben has:
1). Started a new baby school, this one is fondly called BABY YALE... No expense spared for the boy...
2). Gone on a road trip and celebrated Thanksgiving
3). Spent his first night away from mom (while mom was out of town for work, dad took full responsibility and did a FANTASTIC job with this daunting task).
4). Moved from indiscriminant hand sucking to "thumbs up" style
5). Starting cutting his first tooth (we can see it and expect it will peek out any day)