Cooper and Brooks

Our sister Jodi recently took our nephews Cooper and Brooks to a photographer in West Des Moines. She wasn't thrilled with the outcome and knowing that Kelli and I love taking pictures, asked us to come visit and snap some shots of the boys. She thought it would be good practice for us if we ever decide to try our hand at a side business. We agreed!

We went to Des Moines on Thursday. Between a quick stop at the mall, a bucket of crab legs at Joe's Crab Shack, fishing camp, creepy crawler camp, and a baseball game, we had roughly ten minutes to squeeze in some pictures. Thanks to Cooper and Brooks being good sports, we did it! We had fun and learned a few things . . . for instance, we had never considered how difficult posing subjects could be. Not that Coop or Brooks were difficult, but it's definitely an area of photography that we had totally overlooked. Luckily, Kelli caught on quickly and arranged the boys while I snapped away. We'd love to practice with them again soon when we have more time to practice angles and settings and such, but for the ten minutes we had, we were pleased with what we got! Here are a few of them . . .

The boys are so great with Charly. She loves them. Her little face lights up the instant she sees their shaggy blond hair. They fight over who gets to hold her and they smother her cheeks with kisses all the time. Some of the widest smiles we've seen on Charly's face have come when the boys are around.

They have grown up so fast. Cooper will be in 5th grade this fall, while Brooks will be in 2nd grade. It seems like yesterday we were babysitting them, looking for bugs and frogs at Island Park, and riding the lawnmower around at Grandpa and Grandma Henning's. Charly is lucky to have older cousins like these two. They're a perfect blend of rough and tough and kind and sweet. She's bound to have all sorts of raunchy fun yet be well taken care of in the process!

4 Months Old!

Last Thursday, Charly turned 4 months! On Friday she celebrated by visiting the doctor and having two needles slammed into her little thighs. Ouch!

She blows us away each and every day with the things she is able to do. I'm sure all parents say things like that, especially all NEW parents! But its true. Babies are so smart, so early, there's so much to experience and so much to be amazed by . . .

Charly has so many different faces, so many different expressions, and so many different sounds. We couldn't seem to get enough of her sweet coos and stories so naturally this month Charly decided to surprise us and try out a new voice . . . a growl. It's this soft rumble that comes from somewhere deep in her throat, and she makes it all the time! The coos and giggles are still present but it's obvious this growl is so much more fun to make! It's hard to imagine such a cute little blue eyed thing making such a vicious sound!

Kelli and I love pictures. We waste days away taking our own pictures of Charly but it was important to us to get some good professional pictures taken of her as well. Kelli made a connection through her school and set up her "3 Month" photos. We were excited. It was an opportunity to show her off. She's cute. She makes fun noises. She smiles. She giggles. What could go wrong? She's the perfect baby!

Turns out Charly doesn't like anyone other than her mom and dad behind the camera. The day was a semi-disaster. She was an absolute bear. The photographer did really well and the pictures turned out fine, given the circumstance, but it taught us a valuable lesson: When plans involve a 3 month old, be prepared to alter your expectations quickly! We actually had 4 month photos recently taken as well, by a different photographer, and Charly behaved much better!

Other 4 Month milestones . . . Charly outgrew her vibrating chair so we needed to find a new place for her to sleep at night. She still sleeps through the night so we were a little nervous about this. We slowly transitioned her into her pack and play so she could be near us (a little apprehensive about trying the crib just yet). It didn't seem to phase her. She still sleeps the night away! She often snoozes until late in the mornings (9:00!) but she's also a night owl so Kelli and I are rarely in bed before midnight.

She giggles a lot. She loves to grab her toes. She rolls over from her back to her stomach quite a bit (which we're told is difficult) but cannot for the life of her get from her stomach to her back (which we're told is easy). Go figure!

She stayed overnight with her Grandma and Grandpa Henrichs (and Uncle Taylor), her first ever overnight. They loved having her and said she behaved perfectly while we were away. The night we returned from Minnesota, she was tired and kind of crabby! Another lesson learned: Babies like routines, no matter how much they love their parents and grandparents!

Charly turning 4 months is bittersweet in a way. There are times that Kelli and I can't wait for her to be older, so she can enjoy and remember some of the experiences we try and provide for her. Yet when her face lights up as we walk into a room or while we lay on the floor, singing and growling along with her, it's difficult to imagine her any other size or shape than she is now! Time goes by so fast and we are both very thankful our jobs as teachers allow us the summer off to enjoy her.