The Sorensen Cousins

Cousin Tylar Grace Sorensen is the daughter of Austin and Mara. Tylar was born 15 days after Jade. It's great that Jade has someone her own age to play with while we are at Grandma Sorensens.

Boston is Jeremy and Jen's little boy. He is 9 months old. He's got tons of hair, super long eyelashes and chubby cheeks. I guess big cheeks are a Sorensen trait.

Ethan is Jeremy and Jen's oldest boy. He is three and a super smart kid. He currently loves to play transformers. Bumblebee is his favorite.

Aniston is Tylar's big sister. She is 2 years old and super adorable. She knows how to make the noises of lots of different animals. This is a pic of her lizard face.

Kylee is actually an aunt...not a cousin. But I thought I would add her to the mix. She is 11 years old and a great babysitter. All the kids love to hang out with Aunt Kylee.

One Month Old- June5, 2008

Jade is one month old today! She is so cute but she fusses a lot. I think it's because she has lots of gas, either that or she has colic. She is growing really well and starting to fill out, especially in the cheeks. Occasionally she will smile on her own and not just because she has gas. She tracks people that she recognizes with her eyes and can turn her head from side to side when on her tummy. Her head is still to big for her to hold up on her own but she is working on it.


We have been following the Babywise plan so that hopefully one day soon she will be sleeping through the night. Babywise is an infant management concept that uses parent directed feeding to help create structure and bring security in a baby's life. It teaches parents how to guide their baby's day rather than be guided or enslaved to the infant's needs. By putting the baby on an eat, play and sleep schedule it helps babies learn to sleep through the night by week 9-12. We have yet to get to that point but by putting Jade on a schedule it has helped both me and her to understand each other better.

I really love our little Jadester. I can't believe she is growing so fast and that the time is flying by so quickly. Pretty soon we will be sending her off to college. JK.

Jade's Baby Blessing June 1, 2008

Jade's baby blessing was today. It was a little short notice because I couldn't make up my mind when I wanted to have it so not many people were able to make it. However it was still a nice event.
RoAnne made a gorgeous blessing dress and my mom made a beautiful afaghan. Little Jade looked so adorable. We weren't able to have everyone in the circle that we wanted due to how large our families are. There ended up being Aaron, Clair, Austin, Jeremy, Cade, my dad, Austin, Hudson and Brother McKenna. Unfortunately Grandpa Gunn wasn't able to make it because they got lost, as did many members of my family. (That stupid fork in the road at 7800S messed everyone up and they ended up at another church.) Aaron did a great job with the blessing. He kept to the plan of naming her Jade Leighla Sorensen, not something like Jade Jubaca Sorensen or something ridiculous like that. A couple of things that I can remember him saying was he blessed her with the ability to discern the Spirit in her life and follow the promptings that she received. He also blessed her that she would find a righteous husband and children when the time was right. He also blessed her that she would be a good example to those around her.
After the meeting we all went to the park next to our house and had lunch of cold cut sandwiches and potluck salads. The weather was great, there was a playground to play on for all the kids and there was enough food for everyone. And of course the star of the show, Jade, slept through the entire thing.
It really was a special day and we appreciate everyone's support and love. Thank you to everyone that came and participated in this fabulous day!

Auburn's High School Graduation-May 30, 2008

We went to Auburn's high school graduation today. Because she is the Senior Class VP she had a part in the commencement. She did fabulous and she looked amazing. I can't believe Auburn is old enough to graduate. Pretty soon she will be going to college! Crazy!

First Movie May 26, 2008

We took Jade to her first movie, Ironman. I was a little nervous taking her to a movie theatre for fear it would be too loud for her and she would cry the entire time. However, Jade LOVED the movie. We got there for the 10pm show a little early and I fed her so that she would sleep. She was just finishing up when the movie started but she just sat there and watched the screen. She finally fell asleep and we watched the movie without any problems. It was great. We loved the movie and think we will be doing this again.

Brian and Aubrey's Wedding May 24, 2008

Brian and Aubrey Bills were married today in the Provo Temple. Our family was invited (except Jade of course) to the temple ceremony. Seeing Brian and Aubrey sitting there in the sealing room looking excited, nervous and sooo very young made me remember my own wedding day. I can't believe it was a year and a half ago. In some ways it seems so long ago because so many wonderful things have happened and yet it seems like just yesterday Aaron and I were in their shoes.
It was fun to have Mom, Dad, Grandma Bills and Austin in the sealing room together with us. Afterwards we took pictures outside the temple and then went to a church nearby for the luncheon. We all had a nice time and it was fun to see the Bills family again. It sure has been a long time.

Jade's First Sleep Over May 23, 2008

Grandma and Grandpa Gunn (my mom and dad) took Jade over night so that Aaron and I could sleep. Besides having to get up to pump, I was able to sleep for 10 hours. It was awesome and really needed. This whole getting up in the night 3-4 times is killing me. I never got sick while working at the hospital where I was surrounded by germs but just 3 weeks after delivering Jade I have been sick twice.

Mom and Dad said Jade did really well. They only got up 3 times during the night. :)

Jade Caught Her First Cold May 19, 2008

Jade has caught her first cold. It's all my fault. I started getting sick a couple of days ago, then Aaron got it and now Jade. It was inevitable. We tried everything to keep her from getting sick. We wore masks whenever we held her, washed our hands constantly and drank lots of Xango. But nothing seemed to work. She woke up yesterday morning with a fever of 100.3. It really made me nervous because at the hospital where I work, when little babies under 3 months come in with a fever over 100.6 we have to do a complete septic work up. That means a spinal tap, urinary catheter and IV. I didn't want to have to do that. I don't think I could have handled it mentally and emotionally, to be quite honest. It's one thing to do it to other people's kids but to do it to your own is another. This morning she is super congested and is having a difficult time eating because she can't breathe through her nose. I try to suction out her nose but I don't get much. It's too high up into her sinuses to suction. Plus she hates it when I suction her out.
Anyways, we are all miserable especially because we aren't getting any sleep. We are tired due to being sick and then to make matters worse Jade is cranky because she doesn't feel well so she isn't sleeping very well either. This mother business sure is tiring. I don't think I will ever sleep a full nights sleep again.

Jade's Two Week Check Up May 15, 2008

Jade went to her 2 week check up! She is 7.0 lbs and 19.7 inches long. That means she only lost 2 ounces her first two weeks which is pretty good for a baby that is nursing. However she seems to have shrunk since she was born. The nurse at the hospital originally measured her at 20.5 inches but at the MD's office she measured 19.7.
Jade goes to the Families First Clinic in South Jordan. Her doctor is actually a nurse practioner and her name is Cami Goff. She is fantastic. She listens to what I have to say and is easy to get a hold of when I have a problem. I really like the clinic and would refer anyone to them!

Jade's Belly Button May 18, 2008

Jade's umbilical stump fell off! She's officially a human being. :) I know it's gross but I thought you would like to see it!

(Disregard the fact that I'm in my G's)

Mother's Day May 11, 2008

I can't believe I'm a mother. It seems a little surreal. To think that I am now the full time care giver of a cute little girl. It makes me both proud and a little nervous to think of such a responsibility. I know that I have great examples of mother's in my own life, my mother, my grandmothers, and even my mother-in-law. I just hope that I can do as good of a job as they have done.

Mother's Day was Jade's first day at church. I gave her a bath and dressed her in a cute little white dress with a pink cardigan. She looked so adorable. People were surprised that I would bring her to church only a week old but I figured the weather was nice enough that she wouldn't be at risk for catching a cold and I just kept her covered up the entire time so she wouldn't catch any germs from people. She did really well. She slept the entire time. Didn't even cry once. I was hoping she would wake up so that I could take her out of her carrier and show her off but alas she was way too good.



Later that day we went to my parent's house and celebrated Mother's Day and my Grandma Bills' birthday. We had our cinco de mayo party a little late due to Jade being born. The food was fantastic-mexican food of course. Then our favorite tradition, the pinata. It was very fun. Dad has a film of it, it's classic.

First Week Home May 5-10, 2008

The first week home has been very eventful. We were discharged from the hospital on May 7th. On the 8th, Jade had her first doctor's appointment so that we could check her bilirubin levels after being under the lights for 24 hours. Her levels were still elevated and so we had to go back the next day for another check. Luckily this time her levels appeared to be lowering so we were able to take her off of the lights. However we still had to go back to the doctors the next day to make sure her levels weren't increasing. They were just fine.

It was quite the learning experience my first time out. I wasn't used to how many things a baby requires. There is the diaper bag and all the things that are involved with that, lots of diapers, extra clothes, wipes, bottles, formula, etc, etc. Luckily I had my mom there to help me remember all the things I needed. I don't think I could have done it without her.

Speaking of help, my mom only lives about 30 minutes away from my house. That meant that she could come up and help me as often as I needed it. I must admit, I needed her a lot. Babies are a lot of work!. She was kind enough to come up each day and help me out with things around the house, like cooking meals for me to freeze, doing my laundry, or grocery shopping. She would also watch Jade while I took a nap in between feedings.

She also recruited my dad, brothers and sisters to come up and help us with our yard. We had the curbers come out to our house a couple of days before I had Jade but we still needed to plant bushes and flowers in order to finish up our backyard. My family helped us do just that. I went out with my mom and picked out shrubs and flowers while my dad and Aaron laid the drip system and top soil and planted all the plants. I'll remind you that this was 4 days after I delivered Jade. It was good to get up and out of the house. It kept me from really being moody but I sure felt it afterwards. We actually got the entire front yard completed. It looked fantastic!

Also Mom and Dad helped us finish up the nursery. We had finished painting the nursery and setting up all the furniture before Jade was born but didn't have anything else in the room. I had tons of clothes to hang and wall coverings to put up...you know...cutsie stuff, I just wasn't able to finish before Jade came along. Thankfully my parents helped us put the finishing touches on the room besides everything else they did that week. It looked really cute when we were done.

We really appreciate all the things my parents did to help us out that first week. I'm sure we would have survived without their help, but it made those first days very enjoyable. We had a lot to get done and they really helped us out. We are very lucky to have such wonderful parents (grandparents) in our lives. We love you and appreciate all the things you do for us.