Update on the Little Buddy!

Christian is 6 months old! We just had his 6 month appointment and he did really well! Weighing in at 17 lbs 9 oz and measuring 26.5 inches, he's an average kiddo. :) ... with a small head. :) He's doing well and so much fun! He finally has the rolling down... he doesn't really stay on his back anymore. He instantly rolls to his tummy... and loves it! He looks up with a big smile and seems so proud of himself. :) Our other new stuff is food! As of now, Christian seems to enjoy rice, oatmeal, and barley cereal... although he makes some faces with the barley, so I'm not too sure he likes that! Below are some pics to catch you up!

Hopefully we're through with the cold weather, but we (Mark and Grandpa H.) were able to build Christian's first snowman...

Rosey cheeks! He loved it. :)

All bundled up to visit the neighbor for his first official play date! (Our neighbors had their first baby boy about a month before we had Christian... I'm sure they'll be buddies!)What a little marshmallow!

Christian & Colton... checking each other out!

Christian's first Easter! (and Easter basket from Grandma S!)

All tuckered out from an Easter lunch with family... I love this little face. :)

And here it is... first cereal!! Daddy had the honors! (and keeps baby MUCH cleaner than when Mommy feeds him!) He did such a good job! I wasn't sure what to expect, but he looked like a pro!

I'm ready Mom! Let's go! :)

Another first... first basketball game! First of many I'm sure. :) Mark sold tickets at church to a Fort Wayne Mad Ants game... Faith and Family night. After the game, Mark, Stan & Murph (senior pastor and exec pastor at Sonrise) played in a Preachers in Sneakers game. :) SO fun! And they all scored! It's hard to believe that Mark has now completed about 2.5 months at Sonrise church as the youth pastor- time has flown by! But things are going so well. It's busy, but Mark's really connecting with the kids and I'm excited to be able to help out too. :) Sonrise also has a MOPS group... I finally went to a meeting this week and had such a fun time. It was great to meet other moms and have time just to hang out (and Christian did good in the nursery too!). Slowly but surely, we're getting to know people and really feeling at home in this new church family. Thanks for all your prayers during this transition for us! For more info about Sonrise, their website is http://www.sonrisechurch.info/

LOVES his toes! This usually happens right before "the roll."

Bath time has also changed! We now get to sit up (kind of). :) He LOVES it! Check out all those ducks! (and all the belly rolls!)

Wow... sorry for such a long post!! I guess a lot has happened over the last month or so... and Christian has changed a ton. But life is good. We're so blessed in so many ways! Until next time... :)

Go Hoosiers!

So, this is just a fun picture collage I made for Mark for Valentine's Day... the hat was a Christmas gift from Mark for our little guy... fits perfectly! (it's so tiny!)
And I was looking through our pics and found these two... so cute. It's amazing how much our little munchkin has changed!! I told Mark this was an early Father's Day gift... somehow I'm sure there will be more then too! Maybe we'll have to snap the same pose in another few months. :)

"Almost" 5 months!

How time has flown by! So what's been going on since Christmas? Well, Santa's little helper is getting bigger! And now we have an almost 5 month old! Yes, I'm putting off saying just how old he is until it's official... to me he's still 4 1/2 months old. :) Christian continues to be a sweet little guy- lots of smiles, giggles, sqeaks and drool! It seems he's discovering new things every day... the 2-story ceiling in our entry way just became a highlight! Toes are fun... and so is his hair and ears. :) He's definitely grabbing more too- reaching out for our faces, petting the doggies, and trying to get some food! That will be out next step, but no solids for Christian yet- soon! Oh- and he rolled over on Jan 26! But no more rolling since... seems to like just hanging out on his side instead! The stats at his 4 month doctor appt. were: 15 lbs 5 oz and 24 inches long! Also news for the Hammonds is that Mark started a new job- both of us really. As of mid-January, I'm officially at home with Christian (after 7+ years with Taylor) and making some connection to do some freelance design work from home... and Mark (after 10+ years with YFC) is now the new youth pastor at Sonrise Church! Big changes, but things are going really well! The Church is great and the people and students have been so welcoming and friendly. Definitely big changes for us- it's been a busy few weeks lately- but we can't complain. The Lord continues to bless us! Thanks for your patience in hearing updates and seeing pictures! We'll try to be a bit more consistant. :) Okay- so here are some pics from the last couple months...

New Years Day! (snacks for everyone!)

I love my exersaucer- thanks Grandma!!
Happy times on Superbowl night! (surprising happiness! we just got home after a few hours at the youth superbowl party- he had fun hanging out with about 90 people!! guess he's just a little social butterfly!)
Just chillin watching the last minutes of the superbowl...
All wrapped up after bath time!
Little buddy!

Christian's first vacation! The 2nd week of January, we headed down to Brown County and rented a cabin... even got to take Soph along! (Glad we didn't lose her in the leaves!) It was so fun and relaxing... a good few days away. More room than we needed, but it was nice to spread out! There was even a hot tub on the porch, fireplace, pool table, and dart board- fun times. :)

Ah yes, we also celebrated some birthdays in January... Sophie turned 3, I turned 30 (!), and Mark turned 34!

Merry Christmas!

Wow - what a Christmas week! SO much fun! We spent Christmas Eve with Mark's family - his brother and family were up from Arkansas - and Christmas Day with Mark's extended family! Needless to say, Christian was quite spoiled. :) On Christmas morning, we opened stockings and then that evening, had our own little family Christmas. From hats to Thomas the Train, Christian had lots of fun ... or maybe we had more fun this time around. :) Then a few days later, my parents and one of my sisters and her family came for a visit and yet another Christmas. Again, more spoiling! It's been a very fun week and a great ending to 2007. Now on to 2008! (Christian didn't quite make it up til midnight!)

Christmas Eve...

I know which present I want!

Taking a break on Christmas Day. :)
And a snack!

Our first family Christmas! Presents for the doggies!


Later that week ... still bows on the head!