Summer time

Well I am sitting here by myself waiting to leave for the airport to go meet up with Jane and her family at the Outer Banks for a nice beach vacation before Jane goes back to school and the season really kicks off. So here is a summary of the last while.

On the Fourth of July we all ran/walked in the Freedom Run 5K in Provo. Jane and I ran it sort of together...I finished in 25:46 and Jane was right behind me in 26:29. Dad ran the 5K also (he's 73...pretty awesome) and Mom pushed Dorothy in the stroller in the one-mile walk. It was a lot of fun and we are excited to do another run sometime. It was the capstone event of Jane and I's fitness plan post-Dorothy. Jane is skinnier than before baby Dorothy and I have dropped about 25 pounds or so since she was born. I got on the scale and it read 201 (sympathy weight) and it was depressing, thus sending us into action... Before the plan I'd barf after about half a mile too. Here is a picture of us a week or so after Dorothy was born and then after the race!

Our next big event was the Cox family reunion in Yosemite. I had been looking forward to it for YEARS since I missed out on the last few it seems like. We were a little nervous about Dorothy's first camping trip but man she was so awesome! She truly was a happy camper. She slept great at night and was smiling all the time. She got to meet lots of cousins and play with everybody. She even met her cousin Kirra, born just a week after her. The highlights included a talent show, hanging out by the icy cold river, a boys backpacking trip to the top of Half Dome and a girls hike (featuring Dad) on the Panorama trail. Jane even hiked to the top of Vernal Falls via the Mist Trail with Dorothy on her back! We had a blast and were so glad Dorothy liked camping.

 Our happy camper playing in her favorite bug.

 Such a goofball.

 Mommy looks nice and Dorothy thinks she is funny.

 Hanging out by the river.

 Getting pretty daring there...

 Look at me!

 Aww, look at the happy ladies.

 Our daddies are embarrassing...

 Dorothy loves Grandpa's songs.

 Dorothy's version of a kiss.

 If that isn't the cutest thing you've ever seen.

 Roarrrrr!

 Smitten by Grandpa again.

Literally on the cables at Half Dome!

So now were are off to our last vacation (tears and frowns) of the summer before we get back into the swing of things. We've had lots of fun this summer with our little family. Dorothy is such a happy baby always smiling and talking. She is a big chatterbox...especially at church. She isn't naughty and crying a lot, just talk talk talk making noise. We love it. I've missed Dorothy and Jane the last few days since they went early to go visit Jane's parents before the beach. We'll give a last summer report when we get back!

Daddy-daughter snuggle time.

Nothing too exciting minus Mother's Day

There hasn't been too much exciting going on here the last few weeks. Jane's is finishing up the last bit of teaching (T-minus 8 days!) and then she's off for the summer. Dorothy is continuing to grow and grow and is getting so big. She is so much more playful now. She smiles and squeals and wiggles all the time. Little D as she gets called a lot these days has also been sleeping all the way through the night the last couple of weeks. She gets her last bottle at about 10 pm and then usually conks out until about 6 am, and the last few days made it to almost 8 am actually. It has been pretty awesome. Her new favorite thing is to sit in a chair or on the couch. She gets a big smile every time she gets to sit up there and watch some ESPN with Daddy of course. And that Daddy has been busy working and enjoying his job. Kenny also gets to spend a few hours with Dorothy all by himself in the mornings when Jane leaves for work and he has a blast playing with her and getting her ready for the day, complete with outfit and bow selection.

We also celebrated Mother's Day, Jane's first official one. She got surprised with a homemade craft that Dorothy (I helped some...) made for her. She also got some Amazon gift cards to use for some Kindle books as well as some of her favorite candy. She love's being a momma. We also surprised Grandma Cox with breakfast in bed, although she was already out of bed so we made her get back in!

We are excited for summer, vacations and getting to do a lot of fun things together. Only a few more days! Oh and we also had a recent impromptu family photo shoot...

Dorothy has discovered how to pull Mommy's hair, Jane is concerned...

The ladies!

Daddy and Dorothy

For fans of Bill & Ted's, this pose makes sense, as in, I am Dorothy Jane Cox S. Preston, Esquire...or every rose has its thorn, just like every cowboy sings a sad, sad song...

The Fam

The Goofy Fam

The Goofy Fam 2.0

Growing by the minute!

Dorothy is seven weeks and then some now. She seems so much bigger than before but still so little. Tomorrow is doomsday . . . Jane has to go back to work for the last six weeks of school. A definite bummer but luckily we have friends and family ready to help watch her and everything. It will hopefully be a fast six weeks and then it will be summer time and time to party it up! Anyways, over the last month or so we had Dorothy's baby blessing, Easter and some other fun things. Dorothy's blessing was great, we had lots of people come including grandmas, grandpas other family, friends, old roommates and more. Thanks to everyone that came out to support us on Dorothy's special day.

The Easter Bunny visited Dorothy for the first time, bringing her a nice soft bunny to snuggle with as well as some sweet primary tunes to sing along to. He also included some candy for Mom and Dad! What a swell guy. We had to go looking for it though and luckily Dorothy and Daddy found it hidden in the bathtub, one of Dorothy's favorite new places. She loves bath time now. At first she hated it, but now loves to soak in some nice warm water and splash around. Still hates diaper change time though. She has been a good baby so far though, sleeping anywhere from at least three to the occasional six hour stretches each night. Still pretty quiet though learning how to scream every now and then. She smiles some and just loves to bat her big eyes which are currently not brown, not blue or green, but somewhere in between at grey. They aren't dark at all so we'll see what happens. We are so grateful for little Dorothy and are excited for this next six weeks to be over with so we can play with her all summer long.

Dory and her two week + update

Dorothy "Dory" just had her two week (+1 day) check up on Friday. Glad to report all is well in the first two weeks. She is getting bigger. Measured in at past her birth weight but still a tiny one, 6 lbs, 12 ounces now, up about 5 since birth and up 11 since she dropped to 6-1 when we took her home. She is little but perfectly healthy. We did have to go in for a re-screen of her ears since she didn't pass her original hearing screening right after she was born. Turns out there was just junk in her ears then and has since dried up and her little ears are A-OK and can read us loud and clear. It was our first scary/worrysome moment of parenthood but we are glad she is okay.

Dory is a snuggler. She loves to cozy up with Mom and Dad, laying down on her tummy with her arms up in the air, almost wrapped around our necks like a big hug. She eats lots and right on schedule, seems like 3 hours on the dot most times. She is pretty good at night, following that 3 hour schedule, waking up to eat and then she goes right back to sleep for another 3 or even 4 sometimes. We can't complain about that. She has gotten a little noisier the last few days but still doesn't cry a whole bunch. Dorothy has been awake much more with big eyes and looking around.
She loves to be wrapped up in her blankets but hates having her arms trapped down. Her little arms always manage to work their way out of the blanket so they can be nice and free to stretch out while she sleeps.
Jane is saying that Daddy is the softee. It's true. Every peep she makes I want to check on her or pick her up. When Jane holds her I double check to make sure Dory's head is supported enough and when she wraps her up I always seem to be concerned that she can breathe in there. So far so good but I guess its true she has me wrapped around her little finger already. Oh well.

Speaking of Jane, she is doing great and feeling good. Getting enough sleep and looking forward to returning to her running routine. She has been going for walks with Dorothy around the neighborhood and may I say, has been looking great! She is already a terrific Mom and the motherly instincts are definitely there. I think Dorothy already favors her. What can you do? Jane is dreading having to go back to teaching after spring break but luckily it will be a short 6 weeks until the summer when she is done.


Dory's cousins, Christian, Andrew and Owen (the Red Ranger) all are in love with her. They love to come over and hold her and even read her stories. And they are very good about loading up on hand sanitizer when they come. They might love that more than Dorothy.

We are so grateful to have little Dorothy Jane with us. She is a sweet spirit in our home and so adorable. We love her so much and think she is perfect

Dorothy Jane Cox

Meet Dorothy Jane Cox born Feb. 23 at 7:08 p.m. This was about two weeks early as Jane went in for her checkup on Wednesday and the doctor found she was low in amniotic fluid and decided to induce Jane the following day just to be safe. We went in at about 10 am and got started around 11 am. About 8 hours later there she was! 6 pounds, 7 ounces, 19 inches long and perfect! She looks like a mini Jane. Mom and "Dory" as I like to call her are doing great and we will all come home tomorrow. Thanks everyone for your support!

See Jane Sew

Most of you know that Jane likes to sew and make all sorts of stuff. With baby coming she decided to make a carseat cover or as I like to call it, a “snooze cover.” She just whipped it up this afternoon. Oh, it's reversible too!

Daddy's Little Girl!

Baby is a little lady.