~~Happy St. Patrick's Day Update!~~

Happy St. Patrick's Day Everyone!  So sorry for the lack of blogging over the past couple of days.  But this little man has been taking up most of our time.  I mean, how can you not stare at this cutie for hours on end right?  Anyways!  I am sorry to disappoint everyone with this blog, however, there will not be any photos. But don't you fret, there will be plenty in the next few weeks.

Matthew has his BIG showing at, and let me be quite honest, AWESOME events!  This Sunday his face and hands will be painted different shades of red and pink as this will be his first Sunday at church!  Don't worry, I will pack extra wipes.  The next weekend is my best friend son's first birthday party!  It's Sesame Street themed, and with all the hard work she has put into this Extravaganza, it will be one party to remember!  Then that afternoon, he makes his way to his Papa Clark's (his great-grandfather) Birthday Party!  This will be the first of many visits to Granny and Papa Clark's house.  :)  If there is one thing I have learned in all of my years of being in the Clark family, it is this the moment you step foot out of the car (not exaggerating, btw) you will not see your child again until it is time to go home.  Which is a nice break for mommy and daddy, and in my case, "a photo-opportun"  :)

Matthew has been doing great since we brought him home from the hospital.  We got our taste first hand of colic when we decided to switch his formula from liquid to powder!  BIG MISTAKE!  Everything is back to normal now.  If his belly could talk it would thank us!  :)

He went to the doctor on March 15 and weighed in at a whopping 8 lbs 8 oz!  He was 21.75 inches long. The doctor said he is doing just fine, and we go back when he is 2 months old for *Gasps* Shots!  EEk!  Don't worry I have it on my calendar to give him Tylenol (per Doctor's order) and to get a sedative for mommy and daddy!  haha!

**Milestone Alert!  Milestone Alert!**

(This is the part of the blog where we will start telling about his Milestone!  YAY!)

Matthew can now flip his head to the other side!  Give it time and he will be able to hold his head up on his own!  :)

He now can recognize voices, and think his vision is starting to clear up.  He will look in the general direction of whoever is talking to him.

**Me Likey-Me Don't**

(This is the part of the blog where in short we will tell you things that Matthew likes and things he could care less about at this point in his life)

Likey--> Bottle feeding, Kisses, Sleeping on his side (clinically proven in the Ashby home to produce 3-4 hours of sleep!), Bathtime (especially since we got a seat that is like his bouncy seat), the bouncy seat, and the swing that plays jungle music (clinically proven in the Ashby home to produce a happy awake baby during the daytime), being my father's son (i.e. diapers), taking long naps in the play pen on the back deck, spending time with his Aunt Chelle, Uncle Jeffy, Uncle Chris, and Miss Lindsay, being held by my two cousins, Alex and Andrew.  I also like my Nana and Pop time at night, not as much as mommy and daddy does though.  :)

Don't--> When mom takes too long to warm up my bottle, long periods of tummy time, when I get tickled, and when diaper changing takes longer than I like, peeing on my face during bath and diaper change.

Mommy and Daddy Update:

Daddy is learning so quickly what it takes to be a dad.  He is doing a great job!  For someone who has not been around a lot of babies in his lifetime, he is picking up on this rather quickly!  Mom has been very patient with him, teaching him everything he needs to know while I rest.

As everyone knows, Daddy is in graduate school working on his Master of Ministry from FHU.  He must get an internship in order to finish his degree.  After some discussion with his advisor, he must find an internship dealing with a class that he has taken during his graduate study.  He can get an internship with a local congregation doing various bible classes, preaching, etc.  Well, he was told that he could work with a missionary overseas for 6 weeks in order to receive credit for the internship.  So, on May 9th, Daniel will be leaving to go to New Zealand for 6 weeks!  We will miss him greatly.  However, we are taking the following view on this situation:  Even though he will miss Mother's Day, Father's Day, Wedding Anniversary, his birthday and my birthday; it will be doing the Lord's work.  And on the day of judgment, he will be judge on what he did to serve the Lord, and not how many events he was present for.  So, in the meantime, we will be frantically stuffing envelopes and mailing them to congregations asking for financial assistance.  Be on the lookout for more information regarding the New Zealand trip next week.

Estimated Graduation Date:  December 2011!  YAY DANIEL!  :)



Final Thought:  Am I the only parent who is sadden by the fact there is not colored formula for the different holidays?  I mean, kids can eat Valentine cookies, and other festive dessert and/or foods... but poor infants get stuck with Formula!  Outrage!  hehe


Until Next Time

~~Daniel, Angel and Matthew