First Real Bath and Site News

We took Evan into the big tub for the first time last week. Much like his big brother, he really enjoyed being in the water. He seemed to want to swim and I think the warmth felt pretty good for him.

He kept staring around in amazement (or in search of food, not sure which). He has become so much more alert and aware recently. And I swear, he has smiled at me a few times. We are getting closer to sleeping through the night. Keep your fingers crossed...

As for the site, it is finally updated with a new name and some info about Evan. Haven't changed the URL yet. Still trying to think of what I want it to be and whether I want to put this and smugmug on the same domain. Any web gurus have advice?

The First Month of Evan

I can't believe the little guy is a month old already. Contrary to what you've seen so far, I have actually taken pictures of him. It is amazing how much more alert he has become. There is so much curiosity in his eyes now. Evan has just started to notice the pets too.

So here is a quick photographic month in review...

Evan at one week old...



He hit two weeks old just before the new year and you could start to see some character and personality growing on his face...




when i took pictures of him at 3 weeks he seemed to be in a "funny face" type of mood...




here we are at 4 weeks - which is not the same as one month :) Evan has quite a few fire truck related outfits, mostly because they are a favorite of Ryan's.





And here we are at a month today. he is getting much more wiggly, spending more time awake, and is generally far more aware of his surroundings...







OK, so this turned out to be one photo filled long post. Thanks for sticking around if you made it this far. I will try to keep up a little better from here on out. One month down, a lifetime to go.....

Frostival

We ventured out a few weeks ago to check out the Frostival at Dulles Expo Center. It was an indoor playland for kids with crafts, entertainers, bounce houses and the like. Ryan also go a to check out his favorite band - Rocknoceros. Lisa would tell you that I like them more than Ryan, but we can't go anywhere now without listening to Pink, "park song", "time song" or "hat song"...

Entranced by the music.....

Chilling in the back of a Subaru that was on display while listening to Rockno...

Snacks and your favorite band....does it get better?

I think we need a moon bounce in the house to help burn off excess energy....

Welcome to the New Decade

Our new year is off to a pretty incredible start. Everyone is settling in to their roles in the family and we are approaching each new challenge with a sleep deprived enthusiasm.

One thing that is pretty consistent is Ryan's desire to hold, touch, hug and otherwise poke and prod his brother. He has started to spontaneously tell Lisa "I like him". These are my two boys sharing a hug on New Year's morning.

Christmas Recap

SO the holidays have passed, our live-in assistance has left (thanks mom) and we are knee deep in being a family of 4. Lisa has been awesome this week dealing with the boys and I've returned to work. Now that we are back to "normal", let's rewind.

Evan had a great first Christmas - we think. He didn't have too much to say about it. And here is his reaction to presents being opened...




Ryan had a great morning. he had this look of complete awe and disbelief on his face when he saw the presents under the tree. - like he didn't believe any of it was for him. With some serious bedhead and his McQueen PJs, he went about the business of opening gifts and really enjoyed his train table...




The day continued at Poppy and Grandma's house where the pattern continued. Presents for Ryan, sleeping for the little guy...






The big gift there was the bouncing hobby horse. Uncle Tom did a great job of getting Ryan warmed up to it and from there on it was a party...




We changed into PJs for the drive home to make bedtime easier, but we couldn't leave until Ryan took one more ride on the horse...




We could not have asked for a better Christmas. Both sets of grandparents, a new baby, great food, great company....it was an amazingly hectic time, but one we will always remember.

Last Time as a Trio

On what turned out to be our final weekend as a family of three, we took Ryan to an open house at one of the Alpaca farms near our house. We were really lucky when we got there as we had the place pretty much to ourselves.

Before even getting to the alpacas, Ryan fell in love with the two Great Pyrenees dogs used for herding.

But really, how can you resist these cute furballs...



Once Ryan got a hold of the feed bucket, he was the most popular guy on the farm...





This is definitely one of the perks of living far out in the suburbs. Can't wait til Evan is old enough to enjoy it too.

Oops

So I picked these up from the store the night before Lisa went into labor. Needless to say it is a little outdated now :) That means that we won't be getting a Christmas Card out the door this year. But i wanted you all to get a look at it anyway.

We are heading into Christmas as a family of 4 and are really thrilled. So while we are at it, here is another quick look at Evan. Many more pictures to come, I promise.

Brothers

A bond that will last a lifetime began today. After a little bit of uncertainty, Ryan is infatuated by his little brother. We are going to need to work on cuddling "gently" and that Evan is not a pillow. But I really think that Evan has a great teacher looking out for him.

Need a New Name

Ryan's Home on the Web has a new resident. Evan William Zolandz arrived this morning at 11:06, weighed in at 8 lbs 9 oz and is 19 1/2 inches long. Lisa was absolutely amazing (and continues to be) and the baby is doing great.

First Snow of the Year

While most "good" parents took their kids outside in the middle of the snow storm last weekend, we waited for the wind and snow to die down and went out the next day. Ryan didn't seem to notice the difference since his main goal was simply to eat as much of the snow as possible.

Maybe next time we will try to catch it as it falls.