Hello All!
This is at LEAST my third time trying to update my blog. I keep losing my nearly completed posts. BUT! I love to see everyone else’s blogs, so, I’m really trying to update ours.

Hooray for Family Pictures!!! A HUGE thank you to Sarah for taking them for us. We Love them!! The boys weren’t overly invested in smiling, this might be the only one where both boys are smiling AND Israel and I look normal.

As Sarah said, "He's a cute kid, but you're just going to have to remember that." Any pics of Asher smiling cutely are a tribute to Sarah's photography skills!!

BFF’s Luke, Jensen, Benson, and Asher. Ever since the Kramer’s left us, Asher asks about Luke every time we leave the house, and every time we’re on our way home, and in between. I’m sure Benson would too, if he could talk.

Brothers

Asher loves to help Benson - and most of the time it helps us as well. For instance, Asher can hold Benson's bottle for him as he's demonstrating here, but he also thinks it's funny to spin it so as Benson is trying to eat, it's spinning in his mouth. The latest trick Asher was trying is randomly dropping the bottle and watch Benson smack his lips and look stunned, then he'd hold it back up. I originally thought it was accidental, but it wasn't. After about three of these interruptions Benson tattled and Asher had to watch while Mommy finished.

Asher was begging to hold Benson this morning, so I got them all situated on the couch. I had a hard time getting Benson away from him. They stayed here for about 20 min. (that lamp on the table I got at Joann's this week for 5 bucks!)

Benson just being a charmer. His 2-month appointment was the 15th, and he weighs 14 lbs something now. I am impressed with how well he handled his shots. It seems like Asher had a harder time for a few days. Benson just slept that entire day and was back to normal.

Happy Birthday Mom!!

This was my first attempt at cake decorating (actually, they're brownies) and it went pretty well, except I need a bag instead of the cookie press that I used. I want to learn how to do roses.

Little Shepherd Boy

Here's our little shepherd boy and baby Jesus :-) Benson was taking such a good, sound nap, we couldn't resist throwing together a shepherd costume and blanket backdrop.

The past couple of days . .

Asher offered to hold Benson, what a nice brother.

We went to visit Great-grandma Zohner and Trish and Great-grandma and Grandpa Pond today. Benson was quite comfortable on the couch. I love this outfit, and I think he'll be grown out of it before Israel gets to see it on him in person!
The puppies were quite a hit with Asher. And they really liked him too, especially after he fed them his cookie :-)

Don't look at me too closely, I just wanted to show that I really do hold Benson once in a while, it's just usually in the middle of the night! I'm loving all the help I'm getting. There's always someone - usually my Mom - who is willing to get him and calm him and help feed/change him. It's such a blessing.

This was on Sunday. Asher likes to sit on the stairs, but he REALLY likes having company while he sits on the stairs. Jaxson, Austin, and Porter are his preferred tenders. He'll pick them over Mom and Grandma anytime. Their only rival is Grandpa.

A week at Grandma and Grandpa's

Asher, Benson, and I are here with Grandma and Grandpa this week - and we had to leave Daddy at home. Hopefully he'll be able to get his homework done! Since babies change so much so fast in this second week, I'm trying to keep the pictures coming for Israel.

Grandma is getting the house all ready for Christmas early

and Asher really liked the Santa hats.

Here's Benson just after a meal today. He still isn't opening his eyes too often,

so these moments are rare - and darling.



I was trying to catch his little sleeping smile.

I miss you Honey, and the boys do too. You're so wonderful, I love you.

Welcome Baby Benson!!!

Benson J Montano

Born November 6th, 2008 - 11:55 a.m.

8 lbs 13 oz

20 1/2 in long

Isn't he SO cute? :-)

I was scheduled to have him induced early on the 7th, so of course I went into labor around 1:30 a.m. on the 6th. I decided to wake Israel up around 3:30 when the contractions weren't pretending to go away. He gave me a blessing (how I love the priesthood!) and we woke the Kramer's up (Thanks guys! soo much) and Austin came to watch Asher. We left for the hospital at 4:30 and by 5 I was in my room and already dilated to a 6. They got my IV going so I could get my epidural ASAP. Israel and I got a short nap and I noticed that my epidural wasn't working extremely well. After a few extra doses that didn't work, they got a new one in for me, which I was very thankful for. My Mom and Jaxson got there just as I started pushing, and a littl less than an hour later, Benson came! I was surprised to see that he was so different from Asher. Different shaped nose and mouth, less hair, and more chubby :-) I'm amazed how two different kids can both be the cutest kids ever in my eyes :-)Everyone at St. Al's was great, I was very impressed with all of my nurses and the services and everything - the massage was wonderful. Overall, everything went and is going extremely well. I am having the exact same problems with nursing that I did with Asher, so we'll see how that goes in the next little while.

Looking forward to the epidural kicking in! I'm glad I remembered the iPod, I think I was listening to Mormon Tabernacle Choir - Peace like a river. It was great, very soothing.

It seems like I have always been the last one in the room to hold my baby. There was a meconium scare, so the NICU people were all there ready to clean him out as soon as he came. They apparently did a great job cause there haven't been any problems. I don't remember his eyes being open at all, good thing we've got this picture!

Here he is after being all wiped down and stuff. They sat him up so I could get a look at him, so this was my first glimpse of him. He was happy to get a blanket wrapped around him. Chubby compared to Asher, who was 7lb7oz. We just got back from his first doc's visit and Benson now weighs 9lbs 1oz at 5 days old. So, he's not starving.

Benson checking out his Daddy :-)

Happy Halloween

Here are our pumpkins. We actually had to throw them out a few days BEFORE today cause we carved them too soon and left them in the nice warm house, but they were cute while they lasted. Israel did most of the hard work, and I got to paint and help carve the pictures. Asher's contribution was . . .admiring them afterward.

Thanks to Austin Kramer, Asher decided it wasn't a bad idea to put on his pumpkin costume, and thanks to Heather, he had a nummy bread stick to eat. We could have gone home right then and he would never have known what he missed. This is the same costume he had last year, so the sleves are a little short, but I thought he was pretty darn cute. Almost time to start Trunk or Treating. Good thing I stuck that had on him, cause it ended up being the only thing we had to stash all his candy.

Woohoo, the hats full! It took him a few cars before he figured out that he was getting treats at every one. He never quite got to the point of actually saying "Trick or Treat" or anything else for that matter besides, "Da!" when we'd walk away from each car. He preferred to take the candy himself and then put it in the hat. I must say, I was pretty proud of our costumes :-)

Now THIS is a happy kid. He ate a sucker on the way home and a Baby Ruth and 3 Musketeer while sitting on the couch. Luckily Israel got home, distracting Asher long enough for me to put the candy away for the night :-)