Our Morning...

05:45 a.m.
We were all sleeping peacefully like this...


...when Elliot awoke (1 hour earlier than usual) and visited us in our bed.

06:00 a.m.
Elliot threw up in our bed.

06:00-07:30 a.m.
We ate breakfast, bathed, and dressed.

07:30 a.m.
We canceled the babysitter (who also has a toddler boy since we didn't want Elliot to infect him, too) and started driving to our dentist appointments.

08:00 a.m.
Heather went to the dentist while Jeff drove around with the children in the car, praying that they would not scream the entire time.

08:40 a.m.
We swapped; Jeff went to the dentist while Heather sat in car nursing Will and letting Elliot pretend to drive like this...


09:20 a.m.
We swapped again. Heather went into dentist to have two chipped teeth repaired while Jeff sat in car holding will and letting Elliot pretend to drive some more (after all he is 2 going on 16).

10:00 a.m.
The dentist adventure is over (breathe a sigh of relief for us...no children were emotionally battered in the process and our teeth are clean and we didn't have to reschedule for 6 months from now because of a sick child). BUT, before we leave the parking lot Will has his first "mudslide" (if you're not familiar with that terminology...that's when your newborn shoots a yellow, seedy poop rocket from his bottom up to his neck, drenching his clothes and anything touching them...like Jeff's pants...with baby poop).

10:02 a.m.
Heather cleaned up the poop rocket mess and Will got back in his car seat (naked, of course, because since this is his first mudslide, we're not accustomed to carrying an extra set of clothes yet...sigh is it over yet...I hope so, too).

10:15 a.m.
At home and tired...I think we may all be taking naps this afternoon...

Good Times with Granny...

Grandma was in town visiting the kiddos this past week. Here are a few highlights from the visit...

We broke out Elliot's birthday present from last year...Harry the Pedal Car. Elliot is tall enough now for his feet to reach the pedals; however, we're still working on the "pedaling" motion. So, for now, it's great for lounging in the sun. :)

Will also enjoyed spending time with Granny outdoors; but he mostly stuck to lounging in her arms.

Grandma and Elliot spent a lot of time getting dirty in the sandbox (and even more time getting dirty in my flower beds). Funny story...during the course of play, Grandma said that Elliot's "favorite" shovel broke (I didn't even know he had a favorite), so the next day we went shopping and bought 4 shovels and 20 other sand toys to replace it...aren't grandmas great! :)

After each hard day in the sandbox, Elliot needed a bath, although I'm not sure who was giving who a bath...

Granny and Elliot were running circles around Will most of the time, he did a good job of trying to keep track of them though...Will thinks they went left...

Praise God for Swaddling...

I don't know the name of the person who came up with the idea of swaddling. And, franky, I haven't though much about it until now because Elliot hating being swaddled. We tried it for a few nights after he was born only to hear him grunting and kicking in his cradle until he was free from the confinement of the swaddling blanket. Obviously, 41.5 weeks of confinement in the womb was enough for him.

Will, on the other hand, loves being wrapped tighter than a burrito. We didn't bother swaddling him the first day because he was so tired from the birthing process that he didn't need any help sleeping. The second day he became increasingly fussy, wouldn't sleep well, and we had no idea why. It wasn't until our midwife came over and got him to lay peacefully by swaddling him that I remembered that many babies are comforted by the familiarity of the confinement of swaddling. Needless to say, Will's been wrapped in a blanketed cocoon ever since and is sleeping like an angel. I'm so thankful for more sleep than I deserve these first few nights! Accordingly, I've come to believe that swaddling must have divinely inspired and one of many things in parenting for which God is due immense praise!

First days of fun...

As you probably assumed, we've been busy here in the Hartman home welcoming sweet Will into our family! Be sure to check out Jeff's first blog in the previous post, complete, not surprisingly, with a video of Elliot and Will. For the classic among you, I went through some pictures of our first days together today, so I thought I would share them.

We've been sharing the good news...


Visiting with friends...


Tuning up the gear (for its second time around)...


Primping for the guests (in the tuned up gear)...


Looking for attention in the most precarious places (that's Vaseline, folks...everywhere)...


And, resting...lots (Elliot and Will actually took simultaneous naps today...it was heavenly)...

Will Short Clips

Daddy thought that his first post should include video... So here are a few short clips of Will and Elliot: (If you listen really close, Will says 'Hello' and 'Daddy')

William ('Will') Jeffery Hartman

We warmly welcome sweet Will into our family.

He was born on April 6, 2008 at 4:45 a.m.
weighing 8 pounds 0 ounces and measuring 21 inches.

Mama and baby are doing well and sleeping a lot;
daddy and big brother are enjoying lots of quality time together
and admiring the little one when they can.