Shantel Elise Walker - Baby's First Year

A while ago, while my mom was cleaning out some things, she gave me a calendar that she and my dad had filled in throughout my first year. She thought I might like to have it. I don't know where to keep it, but I didn't want to lose the information - so I thought that I'd type up all my first milestones and post it to this blog so that it will be recorded, but that I won't have to actually store the calendar. 

Thinking about my now-seasoned parents as once-first-time parents makes me so grateful for them and for all their time, effort, and love that they put into my life. It's true what they say, that the older you get - the more you appreciate your parents. And I? I have some of the best that there are. 

Baby's First Year

Sticker Calendar

This is the Keepsake Calendar of 

Shantel Elise Walker

who was born to 

Scott Colvin + Lori Anne Walker

on September 15, 1987

September 1987

Weight: 7 lbs 4 oz  Length: 20 1/2"

15th - Baby arrives. First Day Home. 

25th- First Outing. (We went to Sale Lake to visit Uncle Lloyd, Aunt Berthene, and Great Grandma Elvin)

30th- Turns head. 

October 1987

Weight: 8 lbs 4 oz  Length: 21"

1st- First Bath

3rd-First Sitter (We went to a BYU Football Game) 

5th- Sleeps all Night. (Began before this but sporadic before now.) 

11th- Shantel's Blessing Day

15th- One Month Old

21st- Turns toward sound. 

31st- Smiles (Halloween)

November 1987

Weight: 11 lbs 8 oz  Length: 22 1/4"

15th- Two Months Old

16th - Visit to Doctor

20th- Reaches for Objects

23rd- Mom's Birthday!

26th- Thanksgiving (In Boise, ID) 

December 1987

Weight: 13 lbs   Length: 23"

2nd- Holds Head Up

15th- Three Months Old

16th- Coos

19th - Mom & Dad's 2nd Anniversary

23rd - Recognizes Mother

25th- Christmas (In Lyman, WY) 

26th- Plays with Toy (Likes Doll and Big Bird)

29th- Laughs

30th- Recognizes Father

January 1988

Weight: 15 lbs  Length: 24 1/2"

1st- New Years Day (In Provo, Utah)

5th- Sits With Help

9th- (Rolled from back to stomach with help.)

15th- Four Months Old. Rolls from back to tummy. (1st when we weren't watching.) 

19th- Visit to Doctor

22nd- First Cereal (rice cereal) 

26th- Discovers Toes

29th- First Fruit (bananas)

February 1988

Weight: 16 lbs  Length: 25"

1st- Sits Alone

5th- (Eats applesauce)

7th- Rolls from Tummy to Back

12th- First Vegetable (carrots) 

14th- Valentine's Day

15th- Five Months Old

19th- (Eats sweet potatoes) 

20th- Plays Peek-a-Boo

26th- Drinks from Cup

March 1988

Weight: 17 lbs  Length: 20 1/2"

2nd- Discovers Face

4th- (Eats pears)

15th- Six Months Old

17th- Creeps. Visit to Doctor (ear and eye infection)

20th- First Visit to Park

22nd- (Pulled herself up to standing position by holding on to the bookcase.) 

29th- Visit to Doctor (infections cleared up) 

April 1988

Weight: 17 lbs 8 oz  Length: 26 1/2"

2nd- Waves Bye-Bye

3rd- Easter (In Lyman, WY)

6th- Visit to Doctor (Another ear infection - fever.)

15th- Seven Months Old

18th- Visit to Doctor (Ear infection gone) 

22nd- (3rd DPT Shot) 

May 1988

Weight: --- Length: ---

11th- Stands with Help

15th- Eight Months Old

25th- Dad's Birthday!

June 1988

Weight: ---  Length: ---

3rd- Crawls

15th- Nine Months Old

20th- First Tooth

23rd- First Word (kitty) 

25th- Climbs Upstairs

29th- First Step

July 1988

Weight: ---  Length: ---

4th- Fourth of July

15th- Ten Months Old

19th- Throws Kiss

29th- Walks

August 1988

Weight: ---  Length: ---

10th- Stands Alone

15th- Eleven Months Old

19th- First Meat

September 1988

Weight: ---  Length: ---

15th- First Birthday!

(There is a note at the end under Special Names and Numbers that says "Roger + Beth Ormsby" in my mother's handwriting. I have to wonder if maybe they were the ones to give my parents this book.) 

Austin Scott: 19-20 Months

Austin Scott, my little boy. You are the best of the best. Happy, easygoing, loving, and so funny. 

Stats: Size 12 month pants. (In honesty- I went and dug out some 9 month shorts from last summer and those are the ones that fit the very best.) Size 18 month shirts are still a little baggy but is what you wear most of the time. Size 4 diapers. Size 4 shoes. Four teeth on top and three teeth on bottom. We went to the doctor and he's exactly 21 lbs. 

Some other things to remember about this month: 

 --We went minigolfing and Austin loved it. Wandering around with a too-large club, trying to hit a too-small ball = heaven.  He was so fun. I can't say enough how much I love this age.

--We went branding! I'm sure that we went last year, too - but this year was his first real experience. He loved seeing the cows - although he was slightly concerned about how many there were and he preferred to look at them from a distance. His favorite part of the day was riding on the tire swing and getting so much attention from Grandpa Walker (and Aunt Melissa). 

-Bedtime is such a charming time right now. We do most of the bedtime routine in Lydia's room - scripture, song, prayer and such. Then about 6:50-6:55 one of us (usually David) will take him into his own room, read a few books to him, set him in his bed and tell him to lay down, cover him up with a blanket and make sure he has a stuffed animal, then say goodnight and walk about the door. He's in bed for the night at 7:00 p.m. and it's wonderful. Also, he sleeps through the night - no middle of the night calls - and it's amazing.

-He loves being outside "side". Specifically in the front yard - but if Lydia is in the backyard that will suffice. We are loving the warm weather.

--I love him. (Stake Conference at the Alpine Tabernacle.) 

--He got sick this month with a little bug and was the sweetest snuggler. Even when he was sick he was pretty happy, but a lot more content to sit and snuggle instead of running around. (Also that orange Contigo waterbottle is our favorite!) 

-He and Lydia play SO well. Among many other games, they've started racing each other around. They'll line up, Lydia will say "Ready, Set" and they'll both say "GO!" and run to the designated finish line. It's so fun to watch them really playing together. 

--He gives kisses on command and if you ask him to give one person a kiss, he'll go around the room and make sure that everyone gets one. It's mostly just leaning his face into your face and waiting for you to kiss him, but it's so fun. His favorite person to give kisses to is Lydia and it melts my heart when he's standing on tiptoe trying to reach her face and she leans down and kisses him on the forehead. 

--He's really starting to say a lot of words. Shoe(Shuh), Bear (Beah), Cow (Coh), Outside (side), and so many more it's hard to remember to write them all down! 

--He loves shoes and has specific opinions about which ones he would prefer to wear. (No moccasins or flip flops for him.) 

Anyone that knows this little boy can't help but love him. He's sweet, funny (seriously - he has such a funny sense of humor), and darling. 

Happy 20 months little man! 

Wednesday

Summer is a-comin'! I don't know who is more excited, me or the kids. It's so funny because nothing technically will change much for us. Lydia does a little preschool co-op that ends next week, and I've been doing some babysitting that will probably trickle off into the summer. But as far as everything else goes - it will all be the same stuff.

Except sun!  And swimming. And popsicles outside on the grass. And shorts, and sandals, and eating dinner outside!

Yes. I'm really really really excited.

--

I have so many things to blog about, but then I sit down and can't think of a single flowing thought. So here's a list of things I'm thinking about today:

-Babysitters. We're so blessed to be surrounded by so many willing babysitters (friends and family). It seems like this is such a busy time of year for everyone. But literally, just this week, we need a babysitter almost every night. Tonight my sister Jenna is letting us drop our kids off at her house while David and I go to dinner with one of the partners from David's firm. Tomorrow, my brother Matthew is watching the kids because I have a meeting that evening and David has a work event that goes until late at night.  Friday our good friends, the Shields, are watching them while we go to the temple for our babysitting swap night. Saturday we have tickets to Jane Eyre at Hale Center Theater and my sister Melissa is coming to watch Lydia and Austin at our house. (It's going to be a busy rest of the week!) Then next week is our anniversary and David's sister Wendy said she would babysit, and just the past couple weeks his sister Amy watched the kids for hours and hours while we went van shopping. Whew! I'm so incredible grateful for these wonderful people who are willing to play with Lydia and Austin and take such good care of them for us.

-Window Seat. When we built our home, we bumped out the window/wall in our stairway so that we could build a window seat. After 3 years of living here - we are finally making it happen! Here's hoping that in the next month it will be done. I can't wait!

-I still haven't blogged about Lydia's birthday or her turning four. (You better bet that when I post them, I'm going to back post them for when they belong - but this is my honesty post.) I really should be working on that instead of this random post. But, really, how did my little girl turn four? She tells everyone that she is four - almost five. She's embraced it, that's for certain.

Happy Wednesday!