Major Cutie Alert

Brace yourself for some serious cuteness going on at the Linker house...

Exhibit A. - Sweet sleeping baby. Not to be confused with adorable awake baby. 

Exhibit B. - Owen "reading" to Mitchell. Amazingly, I was able to take this picture mere seconds before Owen tried to feed the book to his baby brother. 

Exhibit C. - Owen exploring his palatial backyard and having fun wearing Daddy's glasses. 

Oh wait...vintage shot. That's me, circa 1983-ish, with my Care Bear. 

Best Buddies

Hello World!

After 40 long weeks, we welcomed Mitchell Harris into the world on April 4th at 6:22 am. Our little guy weighed in at 7 pounds, 10 ounces and 20 1/2 inches long. So far he's taken pleasure in the usual newborn activities of eating, sleeping and pooping and is pretty much a contented snuggle-bug. 

Nearly one week into our newest adventure, Steve and I have been faring well with sleep deprivation and managing the demands of a toddler, a newborn, a slightly crazy dog and a cantankerous cat. Finally meeting Mitchell makes the exhaustion a bit more tolerable but the spring-like weather and sunshine helps too!

Big brother, Owen, was a little unsure of baby Mitchell at first but his loving and compassionate nature has really been apparent. Perhaps the Owen-sized Darth Vader, a present from Daddy (I mean Mitchell), helped sweeten the deal. 

Owen spiked a temperature the day that Mitchell was born so we've been trying to keep him away from his little brother; a tall order for an inquisitive two-year old. Anyway, here's our first picture of the Linker brothers!

 

Cute? Forget About It...

39 Weeks

It's official, we're in full on baby waiting mode. I'm 39 weeks today with no baby to speak of and we still haven't decided on a name. We keep asking Owen what we should call the new kid and his answer varies from "pizza" to "bagel" to "Chewbacca." 

Steve and I are both excited and terrified for our family to grow from three to four. And while Owen talks about "baby brother," we know that his world is about to be turned upside down. Fingers crossed that, ultimately,  he'll be happy to have a human brother instead of a Wookie as a playmate.

Going to California

 

For the past few days Owen has been carrying around his backpack and boldly announcing that he's going to California.  Last night we told him that he had to say goodbye to Johnny before heading west.  Considering that Owen has taken to riding Johnny like a horse, I'm pretty sure our pup was disappointed to find out this was only a pretend trip.

Not to worry, Johnny enjoys the occasional respite from life with a toddler at doggie daycare. In fact, he's found a new best friend.  Here is Johnny and his doppelganger, Zak. The resemblance is uncanny and, oddly enough, these handsome boys are both from Chicago.

Kiss Me? Yes, Please.

In case you were curious, I spent St. Patrick's Day trying to get a picture of this kissable Irish lad. You wouldn't think that such a simple photo-op would be an all day affair but trying to get a two-year old to look at the camera and smile is a tall order. We danced, we read, we played hide and seek, we took selfies. It was exhausting!

Ironically, the best picture of the day was one of our voluptuous kitty enjoying the sunshine and her new favorite bird hunting spot. Aww...

Party Animal

This is what happens when you eat cake for lunch and ride carousels and "roller coasters" made for wee ones. And may I remember this angelic little face when I visit him at college, see this poster hanging on the wall and I am scared to death.