Blessed Baby

Ephraim has only been with us for a few months, but he is already such a blessing in our lives. He has such a happy disposition and we are grateful that he is a part of our family. Doesn't his sweet smile just melt your heart?

We love Ephraim so much and were excited to be able to give him a blessing on Sunday.


We waited to have Ephraim's baby blessing until Joe's family would be able to come from Tucson. His parents and grandfather have been here for a week and we have enjoyed spending time with them. Here is Joe and his parents Steve and Jane with our boys:

My parents came on Saturday and we had a fun evening together. It isn't very often that we have both sets of grandparents at our house, so it was especially fun. Here I am with our boys and my parents Mark and Marilyn.

Three of my four sisters also made it to the baby blessing on Sunday. Shannon, Jalene, and Deanna came with her kids, Marisa and Braydon. We also got to visit with Great-Grandpa Sabey, Joe's Great-Uncle LaVell and Aunt Clara, and Joe's cousin Allen and his wife Cameo. We had a backyard barbecue right after church and it was fun to get to see our family and friends and spend time with them. The little man that everyone was here to see slept through most of the afternoon. 

Saturday and Sunday Jacob was in "Grandpa Heaven". This is not the place that grandpas go when they die, rather it is a state of bliss that occurs when two of your favorite people come to visit you at the same time. Jacob has always had a great love for both of his grandpas and he had SO much fun this weekend.


It was a beautiful day and we had a great time visiting with family and friends. I am so thankful for my little family. I have a wonderful husband and two beautiful boys. The best part is that I get to keep them all forever.

Ephraim at 2 months

Time flies when you're having fun! I realized today that I needed to get Ephraim's two month comparison photo put up because before long we will get busy with Grandpa and Grandma Devereaux visiting, then the baby blessing, and before you know it he will be three months old!

Look how much Ephraim has grown! (click on the "bear compare" label to see all the photos) Not only has he increased in stature, he is also more active and playful now...

I love that babies become more interactive the older they get. Ephraim is so much fun! He is so alert during the day and he wiggles a lot more. He is also becoming quite a talker. Maybe that is why Joe calls him Mr. Wiggles and Giggles.

I just love his little dimpled smile. I enjoy "talking" with him and seeing all the expressions on his little face. So I couldn't help myself. I had to post another video of Ephraim talking and you can see how much more vocal he is becoming.

Mother's Day Weekend

I had the best Mother's Day weekend! It actually started on Thursday evening when I got home from work. Joe surprised me by installing our new faucet while I was away. Our old faucet was old, leaky, and disgusting-looking. The arm of the old faucet was also closer to the bottom of the sink, which made it hard to wash long or tall items (ie. cookie sheets, stock pots). This new faucet will be great (and isn't it pretty?... so shiny!), thanks Honey!

Of course I didn't just get a faucet for Mother's Day...

there was much more to come. First on Friday my new stroller arrived! I was so excited! My mom decided that I needed a double stroller so I can take my boys on walks, so we picked one out together. Saturday morning Joe put it together for me and I have to say, I LOVE this stroller. It is so nice to be able to put both the boys in the stroller and go for a walk. Jacob loves being able to climb in and take a ride, and Ephraim was certainly comfy and completely oblivious in his car seat.















At first I thought the steering handles looked a little bizarre, but they are great. It makes the stroller so easy to turn! Plus it isn't very wide, which is nice. We went for a walk with the new stroller and had a great time. The only unfortunate thing is that none of my friends were outside to show the stroller to. I guess most people aren't up as early on the weekends as we are.

Saturday morning Jacob also helped Joe wash the car. Here is a cute video of Jacob being helpful.

We had a fun and productive day. We were supposed to go get family pictures taken, but unfortunately had to cancel. I was going to make a special meal for my photographer friend, so I made it anyway. We had some kebabs and fruit salad which were great! I am definitely going to have to make these again. Wouldn't you want to eat these kebabs?

We borrowed our neighbor's truck and took some items to DI and then picked up our new windows. Joe let Jacob ride in the truck from our neighbors house to 

our house, and then Jacob didn't want to get out of the truck. As a matter of fact, when Joe got him out of the truck he was so sad! So Joe put him back in the truck. I think he sat in there for at least 20 minutes. We kept asking him if he wanted to get out, and he said no. What a funny boy!

Mother's Day was fun too. Every time I went to sit down at the table there was another book there! Joe got me three fun books that I am looking forward to reading... including "It's OK to take a Nap" and "Piggyback Rides and Slippery Slides- How to Have fun Raising First-rate Children". I'll let you know how I like them.

I also got my first Mother's Day gift from one of my boys. Jacob made me the cutest pipe-cleaner flower in Nursery. He was SO excited to give it to me and my heart nearly melted... what a sweet boy!

Here is a picture I took today of my other cute boy. Don't you think I am a lucky mommy?

The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new. ~Rajneesh

Rock-a-bye Baby

I woke up this morning and thought... what time is it? I looked at the clock and it was nearly 6 a.m. That is when I realized the I had not gotten up to feed Ephraim in the middle of the night! He slept all night and woke up just after 6 a.m. It was wonderful! Now we just get to see if he keeps on doing it.

He's so cute when he's asleep, don't you think?

Anyway, most mornings I end up feeding Ephraim around 6 or 6:30 a.m. This is also the time that Jacob chooses to wake up (no matter how quiet I am). So usually I have already poured a sippy cup of milk for Jacob and I have it ready by the bed. Then Jacob comes in and drinks his milk in my bed while I feed Ephraim. It is so warm and cuddly in my bed... especially when there are two cute boys in there. We were having such a good time the other day that I had to get the camera out and take a couple of pictures:



They are the cutest boys ever! Notice how even at eight weeks old Ephraim already shares his brother's interest in toys with wheels. Funny, huh?

After getting so much sleep last night, I was very productive today. Here is a short list of my accomplishments:

-cleaned and vacuumed the entire upstairs
-flattened all the miscellaneous boxes in the garage
-washed a load of laundry
-slipped on the boxes I stacked on the floor, fell down, and hit my head on Joe's car (I'm ok)
-organized boxes and cleaned in garage
-hung load of laundry out to dry
-loaded car with excess cardboard bits and foam
-fed boys lunch
-put Jacob down for a nap
-hoed the sand box (in prep for Jacob's birthday party)
-washed dishes
-supervised Jacob playing on his bike
-made dinner
-came to work
-unloaded cardboard and trash
-worked on Jacob's birthday party favors
-updated blog
-passed out

Ok. I haven't passed out yet, but that is what I plan to do when I get home tonight... right after I feed my baby again. I love my little Mr. Dimples.

I Looked out the Window and What did I See?

That's right, ladies and gentlemen... snow on the FIRST OF MAY. Isn't that insane?

Some of the snow probably melted before I managed to take these pictures. I guess I could ask Joe because he left for work on his bicycle an hour before I took these photos. We are all getting a bit tired of these spring storms and all the cold weather. For some reason I don't think that tulips and snow really go together. What do you think? I just hope that we still end up with some fruit on our peach and apricot trees at the end of the summer!

This morning Jacob, Ephraim and I went to see my friend Melinda and her two daughters, Laura and Sara. Jacob really enjoyed playing at their house, and I had a blast talking to Melinda. She let me borrow her baby mat/gym thingie (what do you call these anyway?) since Sara is crawling now and she was just going to put it in storage.

Ephraim was definitely interested in it. When I got him home I put him underneath it, and he was fascinated. He talked to the toys and looked at them very closely. I grabbed the camera, and here is a super-cute video of Ephraim talking:

Ephraim wasn't the only one who was interested in it. Later in the afternoon I came in the living room and found Jacob like this:

He's just a tad bit too big, don't you think? Funny boy.

Monkey See Monkey Do.. and I Coo for you--Take Two!

It's been a fun and busy morning. Today the weather is finally gorgeous! (sunny without all the wind we had this weekend) This morning Jacob and I put in a load of laundry and went outside to work in the garden. I have been weeding the strawberries while Jacob plays in the yard and Ephraim just hangs out in his bouncy chair. Then I hung the laundry out to dry and we had lunch. It wasn't until after lunch that I finally got to take a shower.

It's funny how kids see the things you do and try to copy you. I put deodorant on after showering, and saw Jacob in the bedroom looking at himself in the mirror while pantomiming putting on deodorant. I can't even describe how hilarious it was watching him with one arm in the air and the other waving around by his armpit. 

Also hilarious is this picture I took this morning of Jacob after we came inside and he took his hat off. Nice hair, huh?

This weekend we had a good time together as a family. We went shopping and bought some plants for our garden. I am so looking forward to fresh tomatoes! I just hope that the weather gets better soon!

On Sunday after church my friend Stacy came to visit. She got to see Ephraim and told us what a cutie he is. She also wanted to see Jacob, but he was napping. I took her to his room, and this is the sight that greeted us:

Aren't kids adorable when they are sleeping?

After Stacy left we got a cute video of Ephraim talking to his daddy. For some reason he especially likes the sound of his daddy's voice. Joe can get Ephraim to coo really well, so he talked to Ephraim and I shot the video. So in this video you can hear him cooing much better than the previous video (plus Jacob was still asleep, so there is less background noise!).

We love our little boys!

I Coo for You!

While putting up videos of Jacob, it occurred to me that I haven't posted any video clips of Ephraim yet. I told Joe it was because he doesn't really do anything interesting yet. I guess Ephraim decided to prove me wrong because he has started cooing and smiling a lot this week. So here is Ephraim's video debut:

Doesn't that just melt your heart? He is such a sweet baby.

Jacob has decided that he will allow me to take pictures and video of him without a fight. For a while there he just wanted to see what you were looking at behind the camera. I have finally convinced him that you have to stand IN FRONT of the camera before you get to see yourself in the little screen on the camera. Here is a video of Jacob saying his name (and at the end he requests that I sing "If You're Happy and You Know It" to him):

Joe has started riding his bike to work since gas is so expensive. Jacob thinks that daddy's helmet is interesting, so I showed him that he has a helmet too. 

Here is a picture of my bicycle boys. 

Jacob's vocabulary keeps improving and he keeps putting more words together. In the past week he randomly told me "Baby Eper... wake up... middle night" and I told him that Ephraim does wake up in the middle of the night. Pretty smart kid, huh?

 Now he can also tell me all about what he wants. For example, the other day he told me "want tractor". I told him that his tractor was right over there. That prompted him to tell me "want new one... big bucket loader". I told him that maybe Grandpa Devereaux would bring him one (his daddy's old one) when he comes to visit. Now Jacob is constantly telling me things that he wants. Today he told me "want fire truck" and the other day he told me that he wanted a "motorbikle". Sometimes I tell him that maybe he will get one of these items for his birthday... and occasionally he will ask "papop bring you one?" Isn't that funny? Apparently Grandpa will bring you whatever your little heart desires.

Ephraim at 6 weeks

Ephraim is six weeks old today. I can't believe how quickly the time has passed. Here is a picture that I took today of Ephraim with Brown Bear. I took it just after I fed him, so that's why his little tummy looks so big! :o)

If you go back and look at the other teddy bear picture you can see how Ephraim's legs, arms and face have really filled out. (click on the label for this post that says "brown bear" to find the other one).

Here is one of my favorite pictures of Ephraim from the last six weeks. I like how well you can see all of his hair in this picture... and his eyes are open! Isn't he absolutely adorable?

Ephraim has started to smile and coo at us. It melts my heart when he looks at me and gives me his dimpled smile. I know there is more of this interactivity to come, and I am looking forward to playing with Ephraim. And finally... here is a picture of mommy and Ephraim. Usually I am the one taking the pictures, so yesterday after church I had Joe take a picture of me with my baby boy.

We are both doing well, and look forward to seeing everyone when we have the baby blessing in June!

Grandparents are Great!

This evening we got a visit from my parents and grandparents. They were in Utah to attend my cousin's wedding at the Bountiful temple. I told my mom that they were close enough that they should come visit me. Everyone thought it was a great idea, and they made it to our house after braving the rush hour traffic in Salt Lake.

We had a fun visit. It has been over a year since I had seen my grandparents, so it was nice to have them at our house. Of course Ephraim got passed around so everyone could hold him.

Here is a picture of Ephraim and his Great-Grandpa Heiner:

Nearly the entire time they were here Jacob sat with Grandpa Heiner. He brought book after book for Grandpa to read with him. Jacob loves his grandpa, and tells us about "grandpa's airplane" all the time. So dad gave him a business card with a picture of his airplane on it so Jacob could see it whenever he wants to. Here is a picture of Jacob and his grandpa.

Ephraim slept through the entire visit. I guess he wouldn't remember their visit even if he was awake, so it's a good thing we have pictures. Here is a picture of my mom and Great-Grandma Heiner holding Ephraim.

Playgroup at Arctic Circle

Remember the beautiful weather I told you we had on Monday? I posted a nice picture of our apricot blossoms and a visiting bee (what? you didn't see the bee?! go look at the picture again!). Well since then it has gotten cold again. It froze yesterday, and now our apricot blossoms look like this:

Not all of the buds have opened yet, so hopefully we will still end up with some apricots... providing the weather cooperates! We are getting pretty sick and tired of the cold and wind. What ever happened to spring?

On a happier note... each week we get together with some of our friends for playgroup. Jacob really enjoys playing with the other kids, and I enjoy talking to the other moms. We haven't been able to go much since Ephraim was born. Now things are a little more settled, and we all went to playgroup at Arctic Circle this morning. They have a play area just like other fast food restaurants, however it is smaller and easier for little kids to play on.

Here is a picture of Jacob going down the slide. He likes the slide when I can get him to go down it. (Sometimes he wants me to "come too").

Here is another picture of Jacob. It looks like I got him to pose for me, but actually I just got lucky and caught him laying there.

I didn't take any pictures of Ephraim on this outing because he just sat in his car seat and slept the entire time. Isn't he a good boy? Later in the day I put Ephraim on his tummy so he could exercise his neck muscles. Of course, Jacob wanted to participate so here is a cute picture that I snapped of my two boys.

Ephraim is growing like crazy. He will be six weeks old soon, which is hard for me to believe. I will have to post another "teddy bear comparison" photo soon.

A Hint of Spring

Today was gorgeous! This is the spring weather that I have been waiting and waiting for. Our apricot trees are in bloom and the air is alive with the chirping of birds and the buzzing of insects (which I don't mind as long as they leave me alone).

I finally got to hang out my first loads of laundry to be air dried.

Brenda and Alyssa came over to our house after their prolonged absence (due to sickness and our new baby). Apparently getting up close and personal with Ephraim is something that is not restricted to Jacob:

I guess Ephraim is simply irresistible. The kids wanted to share their toys with Ephraim, which was adorable. And who wouldn't want to share with a boy this cute?

Jacob loves his little brother

After initially ignoring Ephraim all together, Jacob has decided that he likes his little brother after all. He seems to be fascinated by Ephraim, and constantly puts his face right next to his little brother's. Of course that is only a problem when one of your kids has been sick. It was quite a task to keep Jacob away from Ephraim while he had the croup. Now it's not such a big deal, but we do have to tell him to back off when he gets a bit too friendly.  Here is a picture of Jacob "holding" Ephraim:

It has been an adjustment for Jacob to have to share Mommy with Ephraim. I have tried to make this easier by reading with Jacob or singing him songs while I feed Ephraim. Jacob LOVES for me to sing songs so he can do the actions. He is so enthusiastic that it makes me laugh. 

Jacob's vocabulary amazes me. He isn't even two years old yet, and he can already speak in 4 to 5 word sentences. Some of his phrases are so cute that I smile every time he says them. Whenever he gets hurt Jacob tells me, "Mommy, tiss (kiss)  it better". Whenever we get out something that he doesn't like or is afraid of (ie. the nose bulb or scary cow flashlight) he will say, "Daddy, put it away". Today I was working on the laptop computer and Jacob wanted me to play with him. He told me to "Mommy, turn Tuter (computer) off.... put it right here" while pointing to the piano bench. He is one smart cookie!

Sleep in Heavenly Peace

I have the best baby ever! Last night I fed Ephraim at 9:30 p.m. and then put him to bed. We went to bed shortly after that, and I fell asleep pretty quickly. I woke up in the middle of the night when Ephraim started to cry. I looked at the clock, and can you believe that it was 3:00 a.m.?! I was so excited. I ended up feeding him then and again at 6:30 a.m.  Now if only Jacob hadn't woken up at 5:30 a.m. to come tell us that he was starving! :o)

I can't believe that Ephraim is doing so well with sleep so young. I just hope he keeps it up. Someday (hopefully in the near future) we will achieve the ultimate wonder and every new mother's dream... sleeping through the night. 

Speaking of sleep, I took the most adorable picture of Jacob while he was napping the other day. Isn't it just precious? Sometimes I don't know how he sleeps in such strange positions.

Here is a photo of my two boys that I took last night. I have to say that Joe and I sure make cute boys, don't you think?

Well, Ephraim is one month old today. Can you believe it? Right now both of my boys are napping. Here is a picture that I just took of Ephraim:

He is getting so big! He is a really good baby, and we are lucky to have him in our family.

Ephraim at 17 days

Here is a cute picture that I took of Ephraim today with the teddy that he brought Jacob at the hospital. I plan on taking a picture every month just like this so I can see how Ephraim grows. Isn't that a great idea? I stole it from my friend Melinda, so you can thank her. :o)

2 Week Checkup

Today was Ephraim's first doctor's appointment. I love our pediatrician, Dr. Arnold, but apparently Jacob does not. The minute we headed back to the exam rooms he started crying and telling Daddy to pick him up. We tried to tell him that we were there for baby Ephraim, but that didn't seem to matter to him. He did finally settle down after a while.

Ephraim is doing great. He now weighs 7 lbs 1 ounce, and they said he is now 20 1/4 inches long. When we left the hospital he only weighed 5 lbs 15 ounces, so he is growing fast! 

They also did the PKU test, which made Ephraim mad. I guess I'd be upset too because it's basically like they are milking your foot for blood. No fun at all.

Jacob is our dancing maniac. Whenever there is fun music on the radio he tells Daddy and me to dance with him. One of his favorite songs is "I Don't Want to Be in Love" by Good Charlotte. It is absolutely hilarious to watch him get his little groove on.

Precious boy

There is no question that new babies are a lot of work. The first few days at home have been mostly sleepless and incredibly tiring for all of us. But you know it is worth it when you go check on your baby in the crib and find this:

Isn't he adorable? 

Every day things get a little bit better. Ephraim is starting to figure out that he should be awake during the day and asleep at night. Hallelujah!

Oh baby!

Here is the newest member of our family:

His name is Ephraim Joseph Devereaux.

He was born March 10, 2008 at 6:21 p.m. 

He weighed 6 lbs 4 oz and was 18 inches long. 

As you can see he has lots of hair, and we think he will have blue eyes. What a cutie!