I'm the TOUGHEST...I got a SHOT!

Lincoln has been for his 2 month and 4 month Dr. appointments already. He is growing so fast! At his 2 month appointment he weighed 11 lbs 7 oz. His height, weight, and head wear all in the 50th percentile...just an average Joe! Lincoln did well with his first shots. He cried, but I was able to feed him right away and calm him down. We watched him close for the next 48 hours and he did really well recovering. Derek and I had a hard time watching him go through that so Derek felt the need to get Lincoln a sticker to wear that day. It said, "You think you're tough, I'm the toughtest...I got a shot!" So cute!Sporting the sticker that Derek got for him. He doesn't look like the happiest camper!

The shots absolutely wore him out!

This is what the Dr. said about Lincoln at 4 months:

Weight: 15 lbs 8 0z...60th percentile

Height: 26 in...88th percentile

And I can't remember his head, but it was still in the 50th percentile. The funny thing about the whole thing is that he is considered "tall and skinny" because of the difference in his height and weight, but most would beg to differ. Lincoln's second round of shots was a bit tougher on him. He would only sleep if I held him, and even then it was just off and on. We decided to have a kick-back day after that rough night. I wanted to find Lincoln some comfy clothes to relax in. This is what we came up with:

A friend of mine gave him these baby scrubs...so so cute huh?!

He was so mellow and cuddly all day!

We're so happy to have a happy, healthy baby. He is getting more of a fun little personality each day!

Girls Day Out

Me, Ashlyn, Emily, Beverly

Caitlyn, Jen, Candice, Natalie

Grandma Peterson and Lincoln

We met all the Ririe girls for lunch at Mimi's Cafe to celebrate Natalie's birthday. It's always so fun to get together with this family to catch up on old news and to laugh and visit. We need to get together more often!

Little Fishy

Lincoln takes after Derek's love for water. He could spend all day in the bath! We've been able to take him out swimming a few times this summer.

Sunbathing before a dip in the poolSwimming with Jesi and Taylor at one of our playdatesDerek teaching Lincoln to float on his back..haha!
Linc wrapped up after a swim at the hotel in Winemucca

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to Derek! I appreciate you so much. You are an amazing husband and father and provider! I love you! Also, Happy Father's Day to
Dad: Thanks for being such a great example. I'm so glad you're my Dad. You're such a wonderful Grandpa to Lincoln as well. And Happy Birthday!
Robert: You raised such a great man. Thanks for always making me feel so welcome in the family, and for being an awesome Grandpa!
This past Father's Day was great! We started off by heading to American Fork for little Maddox's blessing. What a special day for him and his family. Then we headed over to the Peterson's to wish the Dad's there a Happy Father's Day. Lucky for us, Grandma and Grandpa Peterson were in town. It was such a treat to see them and introduce them to Lincoln. After that we cruised to Centerville to celebrate the rest of the day with my family. We had a delicious dinner at the Brey's home and were able to visit outside in the warm weather. Then we went over to Brandt and Kelly's house to celebrate my Dad's Birthday. When we got home, Derek opened a new pair of jeans and some shoes to wear with them. It was a busy day, but so much fun!

The Peterson Boys

Close Cousins

Lincoln's cousin Trevor is just a month older than him. It's already so fun to have such a close cousin. We get to watch Trevor doing cute new things and know that Lincoln is coming up behind him.
We're grateful to have family that we see often so we can build close and lasting family relationships. We look forward to all the fun memories we will have together in the future!

Professor Lincoln

Grandma Sharp put her reading glasses on Lincoln. To him it was serious business, but it was hilarious to the rest of us! Check out the diamond rims!

Best Buds

Lincoln and I are lucky to have some great friends. Once a week we get together with Hayley and Maddox, and Britney and Dax for a playdate! We trade off hosting eachother at our homes. We visit, eat, play with babies, eat, go on walks, eat...! It's nice to talk to someone who's in your same boat, and share the things we are learning as we're all new moms. So, I guess the playdates are more for us girls right now, but I'm sure the babies will appreciate them more down the road. Occasionaly the dads (Derek, Derik, and Greg) meet up with us after work and we get to hang out with them too. We hope this continues forever! Hayley and I with Maddox and Lincoln

Daxton, Maddox, and Lincoln at playdate (as you can see, Linc was in the colicky stage)

A Real Mother

This Mother's Day was the best! Derek gave me some new shoes and a new pair of jeans...something I really wanted after the pregnancy! Even though Linc was only 2 1/2 weeks old, I really wanted to go to church for a little bit. Derek and I took Lincoln and sat in the very back during Sacrament Meeting. I loved listening to the talks. They all touched me so much, especially since I was a new Mom. At the end of the meeting we snuck out and headed down to Lehi to celebrate with Derek's family. Carolyn, we love you and are grateful for the wonderful Mom and Grandma you are! I got a cute picture board for Linc's room from Derek's parents and a framed picture of Lincoln from Derek's sister Candice...so fun! After dinner at the Peterson's, we came back to West Jordan to wish my Mom a Happy Mother's Day. Mom, once again, you're the best! I love and appreciate you so much! I hope I can be the best Mom, like you! I'm so thankful for the oppurtunity I have to be a real Mom now!

A Splishin' and a Splashin'

Lincoln has always loved bathtime. We started putting him in the sink for a bath, then quickly grew into his baby tub. Since that didn't give him enough room to kick and splash we are into the big tub now. I'm so glad he likes the water! It really has been a lifesaver. When Linc gets fussy we just throw him in the tub and he calms right down. He even loves and occasional shower with his Daddy! And at the end of it all, he can't wait to get wrapped up tight and cuddled! That's my favorite part!

Who's The Boss?!

Lincoln's first couple of weeks home.

We were so happy to finally be home with our little babe. It was like playing house for the first few days. My mom came and stayed for an entire week! Thanks again Mom...I couldn't have done without you! It was so nice to have some extra help and someone to show me the ropes of mommyhood (feeding, changing, bathing, sleeping). Baby's are a lot of work! Linc's first two week were a breeze. I couldn't stop bragging about how good of an eater and a sleeper he was. I guess he was just preparing us for what was to come because at the two week mark Lincoln decided he needed to show Derek and I who's boss. He had two months where his agenda was eat, sleep, and cry. He told us when to stand, sit, sleep, eat, hang out with people....everything was on L-time! We spent many hours (and dollars) driving in the middle of the day AND night so that Lincoln would calm down and go to sleep. I felt so bad not knowing what to do to help the poor little guy. I am so grateful to family and friends who stepped in to help with meals and to just hold Lincoln so I could clean or even just rest!

So the guy who wrote "The Happiest Baby on the Block" is amazing! That book seriously saved my life. It gives 5 simple techniques (swaddling, sucking, side/stomach, swinging, shhhing) to help calm a colicky baby. I used and still use all of them and would recommend that book to EVERY mom with a newborn...colic or not! Linc's colic stopped pretty much overnight when he reached 2 months...it's been awesome! We still use all the techniques from the book to help settle him down at fussy times and to help get him to sleep at night.

Although being a mom is the hardest job in the world, it's the most exciting job as well. It's been so fun to spend each day with Lincoln as he learns and grows. It seems like he picks up on something new or becomes more alert and aware everyday. Derek is such a great dad too. He counts down the minutes left in his work day so he can rush home to see his "bubba". There is so much love in our home and we enjoy spending time together as a family. Our lives are so much more meaningful and fulfilling!

Our Beautiful Baby Boy Has Arrived!

Lincoln Derek Peterson was born at 6:20 am on April 23. What a long night! I had Derek and my mom stay with me in the room during the delivery. It was such a cool experience to have my mom with us to share such an exciting time (plus she was a ton of help...feeding me ice chips and holding the oxygen mask). Thanks Mom! The Lincolnator weighed in at 8 lbs. 3 oz. and was 20 1/2 in. long...not a very small first baby. When he came out he gave a little yell and then just lay there wide-eyed, checking out his new surroundings. I will never forget the joy I felt to see my healthy, beautiful little baby. I would give anything to go back to that first moment as he lay on my belly, staring up at Derek and I. We were the proudest, most happy parents ever! I lost quite a bit of blood during the delivery so our Dr. wanted us to stay an extra day in the hospital. It was actually kind of nice to have that added rest and help before we headed home with our little bundle. We enjoyed having so many friends and family come to visit us (and to eat with Derek in the delicious hospital cafe)! Lincoln was a little jaundice so he had to spend an entire day in a bed with lights. Luckily he was able to stay in the room with us. We cherished the few times we were able to take him out! Oh, another crazy thing...Linc was tongue-tied when he was born, meaning he had this little piece of skin connecting the front of his tongue to the bottom of his mouth. This made it hard, well impossible, for him to suck. In fact, he would just chomp instead! On Saturday morning he went in and had is tongue clipped before we headed home. He was so brave during the little procedure and has been a champion eater ever since! We loved the experience we had and the memories we made as we brought a precious baby into the world. We love him more than anything!

Our new little family.

Linc scrunching up his face as he gets his head measured.



Grandma and Grandpa B were some of our first visitors. We love spending time with them!
I spent a lot of time just examining Lincoln's cute little body. Everything is just so tiny!


We couldn't get enough of all the dark hair. Derek insisted we do it in a fauxhawk like his!


We were so fortunate to have our baby right on the day that Grandma and Grandpa Ririe came into town from California. We had to take advantage of getting a four-generation picture.Lincoln was so good laying in his little lighted bed. It was so hard not to be able to hold him!
The lactation specialist at the hospital taught Derek how to burp Lincoln. So sweet!
On the last day I was finally able to get a little cleaned up and actually sit up to rock the baby.

The Linc man ready to head home. He loved his car seat!

I'm Having a Baby!

I went in to labor on April 22 at about 1:15 pm. I had just been to a Dr. appt earlier that day and had come home to get the rest of the baby's room set up. My mom came over to help and we decided to go grab some lunch at Pei Wei and then hit Babies R Us to grab a crib matress and burp cloths...the last two things I needed to feel ready! Halfway through our dining experience I had a super hard contraction. Then 9 minutes later another one came. Not close enough! But the next one came 7 minutes later, then 5, then 3, and then they came 2 minutes apart! I insisted on heading over to Babies R Us (my mom wasn't thrilled) so I could feel fully prepared. By the time we left the store I could barely walk and I gave Derek a call to tell him to meet us over at IMC (the new hospital in Murray). We made it to the hospital...barely. Kidding. I was in labor for a whopping 17 hours. I took the epidural route so I could relax until the baby came. That wasn't happening either. I was sick through the entire labor (don't have Pei Wei if you think you might go into labor soon), and it took them 5 hours to find a Dr. who could stop in to break my water! Luckily I have great family who came to the hospital to hang out...but, unfortunately they had a sleepless night out in the waiting room. Finally at 5:15 am Dr. Peterson showed up to get that baby comin'!

I'm Getting Started...For Real This Time!

Okay, I've decided it's really time to start my blog and keep it updated! I get so annoyed when I go through other people's blogs and they never update, yet this is my first post after having a blog set up for 9 months! I decided a good starting place would be Lincoln's birth since that's where all my picture-taking started! It might take me a while to catch up to now since that was 3 months ago, but be patient...especially if you see me all the time and know what we're up to anyway!