Dinner with the fam

This past Saturday night my parents, my brother KC, Jonah and I all went to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. It was great to spend time with KC, as he leaves shortly for border patrol training in NM. It's always great to get snapshots of family-even if it took a bit of convincing for my brother to crack a smile. :)

A weekend in Leavenworth, WA

This past weekend Jonah and I had a chance to get away for a bit and head up to Leavenworth, WA. My friend Bree and her son, Cody (he is 3 weeks older than Jonah) invited us to a weekend away up at their cabin. Bree and I had the chance to do some shopping, get some good food, and spend some quality time with the boys. Her parents were up at the cabin too and went along with us to partake in Jonah's first time swimming! Both Cody and Jonah were troopers, despite being tired and wanting to nap. It truly was a much needed get away. Here are a few photos we took.

"Mom-do I have to wear this?"

"Um..not so sure about this..Cody, what do you think?"

"Okay..this isn't that bad-it's kinda fun!"

..best buds tuckered out from an afternoon of swimming!

Time with Grandpa

When I was home my dad made sure to spend some time with Jonah, letting him know that "us guys need to stick together". It was cute seeing Jonah respond to my dad. Here are a few snapshots.

First trip..Oregon bound

For the 4th of July, Jonah and I headed down to Oregon for a few days to visit Grandma, Grandpa, friends and family. It was great to see friends and meet new faces. For it being our first road trip, Jonah did pretty well! And of course, Grandma was all ready for his stay-equipped with diapers, pack n' play, and swing! Here are a few pictures we took while visiting with friends and family.

Jonah with Great Aunt Barb

..loving Aunt Julie

..hangin' with Grandpa and lounging with "auntie" Monika

A blessing

It's been a few weeks (9 to be exact) since Jonah was born. God truly has blessed us! We experience something new everyday with him-whether it be a smile, new facial expression, a change in his sleep patterns(which by the way, are pretty good-he's almost sleeping through the night..almost!), seeing him play while taking a bath, learning the difference in his cries, his eating habits, and even learning what is "normal" as parents. One of my favorite things to do is watch him sleep. I know it's silly, but those are the moments where I realize the small blessings are so important. I hope that we do not forget or fail to recognize what an amazing gift God has given us. Here are are few photos we had taken when he was three weeks old.

Meet our new family addition..

Jonah Allan Hancock

born April 12, 2010 at 8:44pm

8.3 lbs, 20.5 inches

I went in for my induction at 9am, Monday, April 12th. After receiving my epidural around noon, I quickly progressed through the stages and delivered Jonah at 8:44pm. It was an amazing, emotional experience. God truly has blessed us. I never would have imagined the love that one can have for a child. I am so thankful God has given us that opportunity.

Jonah was born on a very special day. It would have been my grandparents 65th wedding anniversary. Before they passed I hoped that they would be able to see their grandson. Even though God took them both home before his arrival, I know that they were smiling from above. In addition, we carried on the tradition of cousins in our family sharing the same birthday. Patrick's cousin, Robbie, was born 2 years to the day of his arrival, and now Jonah was born 4 years to the day of his cousin, Kaitlyn. Here are a few pictures just hours after his birth with family...

Planes, trains, and cars...

With the exception of a few pictures and personalized wall art the nursery is finally complete! I really cannot take much credit for it though. Patrick was the one who painted, replaced the floor boards to white, installed the ceiling fan, installed the closet organizer, put the curtain rod up, put all the furniture together, and installed the hardware! I just sat back and watched anxiously! :) A big thank you goes to my mom. She made the curtains and pillows-aren't they cute?! They turned out perfect in my eyes:) I truly am grateful for all the hard work Patrick put into our little guy's room. He knew exactly how I wanted it to be and made sure I was happy. It makes me appreciate my wonderful husband even more:) Now we just have to wait for his arrival-we are ready!

I love the pillows-they match perfectly. Thanks, Mom!

I love this airplane dresser hardware-great find on Amazon.com!

I think our little guy will have more clothes than me!!

Something to celebrate!!

With the passing of both my grandparents in January, the year, thus far, has been hard for our family. Looking forward and moving on, we had an opportunity to celebrate new beginnings yesterday. With a total count of 32 dear friends and family members we celebrated a soon to be new member of the Hancock household! My loving mom hosted the shower for me that I will forever remember. The shower was equipped with all the traditions- games that stemmed several laughs, a delicious meal-made with love from my mom, an overwhelming explosion of gifts-several handmade and dear to our family, and an abundance of excitement. Thank you to all who could be there and share this special new beginning in our lives!! :)