Jude is 18 months!

I've never had 18 months go by so quickly! So here is an update on Mr. Jude. I'm going to be bragging about how cool I think he is, so if you're not into that, then don't read my post. :)
Weight: 24 pounds in the 25%
Length: 34 inches in the 90%
I didn't think Jude had really changed too much from 12 months, but looking back at his one year post and pictures, he has definitely changed!!! Here are some fun facts about Jude:

• 10 teeth, with 4 ready to poke through
• Lots more hair, even on the sides now. He doesn't like it to be combed, touched, and especially cut! Needless to say, we are going for the long look. It is also starting to be curly. 
• He is a walking now. And when it comes to his walking, he wants no help or assistance. This is quite different from his normal attached at the hip self. When we are out walking he wants nothing to do with you, you are not allowed to hold his hand, or direct him in the right direction. Lets hope this new found independence transfers over into a little independent play. :) 
• He is still a thrower. He throws everything. Food. Balls. Sippys. Toys. Remotes. Large toys. Clothes. Anything. 
• He is in love with basketball and likes to "Shoot". He is actually pretty good!
• Favorite foods are: Macaroni and cheese, ramen noodles, hot dogs, popcorn, alfredo (or anything with noodles), and granola bars. He is really good to try just about anything. Some days he really loves to eat certain things, and other days he doesn't want anything to do with it. My least favorite thing eating habit is that although he will try anything, he spits it out if he doesn't like it! YUCK!
• Jude loves movies and TV. He would watch TV all day if I would let him! His favorite movies include: Despicable Me, Toy Story 1 & 2, and How to Train Your Dragon. Some of his favorite shows are: Mickey Mouse, Little Einsteins, and Sesame Street. 
• He likes to color/scribble, but sometimes he is only interested in trying to eat the crayons. 
• Jude still does a few signs, but has really learned to say a lot of different words. This has made figuring out what he wants LOTS easier. He still signs: more, all done, please, eat, and drink. 
• Jude will try to say almost any word I ask when we're at home, when we are out and about he doesn't like to "perform." He has about 45 words that he will say and say regularly, and about 10-15 that he attempts to say, but really doesn't sound like the word at all. My favorites are the animal sounds he says: baa, maa, moo, neigh, and ribbit. He also makes a popping sound for a fish and a vroom sound for a car.
• He is still very stubborn. I know anyone who knows me or my family well is surprised by this. 
• I think the funniest thing he does right now, is when he gets frustrated or mad he rambles and throws his arms all around. I know I shouldn't laugh, but I try to hide it. He definitely has a Lish temper. YIKES!
• Jude will also fold his arms when we pray, it is so cute! 
• Now that Jude is 18 months, he can go to nursery while we are at church! I don't know what to do with myself! Although he is very attached to me he has done surprisingly better than I thought! 
• Jude is still cuddly which is so fun...sometimes. Right now I am working on changing behaviors in myself so that he feels more comfortable in playing by himself. Not that I don't enjoy playing with Jude. 
• Since his first birthday he has also added a new scar... it was really sad and we've tried to put different things on his forehead to get his head not to indent, but when he scrunches his forehead it is really noticeable. He is still very handsome!

He is such I sweet little boy! I love him! I am so glad to have him as a part of our family! Happy 18 months Mr. Jude!

A few weeks ago we went to Temple Square and attempted to take 18 month pictures of Jude. The flowers were really nice and it wasn't too sunny. However, my subject was less than excited to take the pictures. Here are a few.

Jude is 1!!!

Today is Jude's first birthday! I can hardly believe that we have a one year old! This year has gone by extremely fast! Jude is our miracle baby, I definitely know he is very special! I am so thankful everyday that I have Mr. J in my life, a good husband, and doctors and nurses that took such great care of Jude. 

If you want the details of our journey with Jude, posted about it in one of my two posts from 2011! Our experience with our first child was traumatic to say the least! I definitely don't know if/when I would be ready to have another baby. 


After I had Jude at 7:25 p.m. on September 27, 2011 he was sent to Primary Children's Medical Center. Literally, right after I had him! I didn't even get to hold him! I couldn't have more great things to say about Primary Children's Medical Center. They do such great work and work really hard to help you feel sane and loved when you are going completely insane!  Their cafeteria is even good (for a hospital) and very reasonably priced! I wouldn't have wanted Jude in better hands. At the same time, I shudder, want to curl up in a ball, scream and cry every time I think about our experience there.  I hope I never have to go back. It was so hard to sit in the hospital every single day and see your baby struggle, do well, and leave him every night. It was also really hard to see other babies and kids who were much worse off. I only know that I made it though that time by having an amazing husband, parents and parent-in-laws who called or visited everyday, and one amazing sister-in-law (shout out Katie, who got a babysitter everyday) who sat at the hospital with me everyday! I'm so glad I live in a time and place where they could take such good care of Jude! 

Last year seems like a blur. I had no idea a year could come and go so quickly! I'm so glad to have Jude. Even though getting him here was tough I wouldn't change it! I learn so much! I know without a doubt that God knows me (very personally) and loves me, and my family beyond explanation. I know Chis is freaking amazing (I knew it before, but I know now even better). I know I am stronger than I could have ever thought I was. And, I know Jude is one special little guy that we are SO lucky to have! 

I don't have stats on Jude yet because we haven't gone in for his 12 month checkup yet. But here are some of Jude's other stats:

• 8 teeth
• Lots of dark hair (mostly on top, and it kind of looks like a hair piece) 
• A+ Jabberer 
• Words he says: Baba (for bottle, and sometimes he will stay bottle), Amen, socks, dad (when he is happy), mom (when he is mad), and bob (not sure what bob he is referring to).
• Sitting up
• Rolling
• Throwing anything he gets his hands on
• Eating table food 
• Favorite food is macaroni and cheese  
• Drinks milk (no more formula!!! WAHOO!)
• Favorite things to play with are: balls, straws, bowls, and the laundry basket. 
• I know, I know, the laundry basket is super weird. But Chris and I decided a long time ago that we want Jude to learn to clean up after himself. So we have been teaching him to put his toys away before bedtime and naps. Does he do it? Heck ya he does! So, where does the laundry basket come in? A few weeks ago I was putting laundry away in his room and he started taking the clothes out and then putting them back in...just like his toys. So I gave him the laundry basket loaded with stuffed animals, and the kid will load and unload it for 30-40 minutes without even caring what else is going on! 
• My favorite thing about Jude, that he hasn't grown out of, is he is so cuddly. This is tough when I want to get something done and he just wants to be held or cuddled, but it is SO fun! He has learned to put his arms around me and hug. He has learned to give kisses, slobbery yes, but so sweet! I love that he will cuddle and rock with me! I hope he never grows out of it! He has such a loving personality! I also love that he is so easy to please! This age is so fun! He gives great big smiles and giggles for the simplest and dumbest things that Chris and I do. I will definitely be sad when he stops thinking we are the coolest people ever. 
• Jude is also stubborn. Yup, he is stubborn. He gets it from me, I can't even pretend to blame that on Chris. 
• Jude is also a flirt! It is so funny! He gives a shy little smile and turns away from girls, no matter the age!
• Does Jude crawl or walk? Nope. He isn't super interested in it yet. And I am not super concerned. We try to get him to try, but he doesn't really want to. What does concern me, or make me mad, is the rude comments I get about him not moving around yet...but this is a happy post so I won't talk about that! 
• He started doing some simple signs: more and all done. He also does touch down :) 
• If you ask Jude how old he is he will tell you 1 by holding up one finger. 

I could go on and on about how cool and amazing this little guy is for hours. But I'll end here. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JUDE! WE LOVE YOU!!! 

Jude's First Haircut!

Jude had his first haircut over the weekend! He doesn't have a ton of hair. Actually, when people comment on his hair I tell them he has a nice 'cover.' Although he doesn't have a lot of hair, he has a few really long chunks that are always sticking up. Chris and I get a good laugh out of the crazy things his hair does. So, we had my mom trim his hair so it was one length. In order to keep him still, we set a bucket of Laffy Taffy in front of him. He loved it!!! I'm pretty sure he gummed at least 20 Laffy Taffy wrappers! So, there was probably some poor little kid who got one of Jude's slobbery Laffy Taffy's at the lamb sale the next day! Here are a few pictures of the event!

Cowboy Boots

When Jude was first born, some really good family friends gave him a pair of cowboy boots! They are ADORABLE!!! Well, I really wanted Jude to have a pair for the fair! Since his feet are so HUGE, I went into IFA and changed the size. This past weekend he had a chance to break them in at the annual Lish Lamb Company Sale!!! He looked SO cute in his little boots and Lish Lamb Company jacket!

I know, I know...skinny jeans and cowboy boots don't go together! HAHA! I put him in regular jeans the next day!

Jabbering Jude

Jude is a jabberer! He had been babbling "MAMA" then one Wednesday morning, he kept saying "Ba, Ba, Bab." I couldn't figure out how he had learned the sound. When Chris got home, he explained that while I was at school the night before, he and Jude were playing with a ball and Chris kept telling Jude 'ball.' Well, when Jude was saying "bab" it sounded like BOB, so we kept laughing and saying BOB right back to him. The result?! Now Jude will only say "BOB"! He no longer says "mama," unless it is "MABOB"! So I've been trying extra hard lately to get him to say "MAMA" again. The result!? He will now say "MAMA," but only when he is MAD! UGG! It is pretty funny to listen to this little guy jabber on and on about his friend bob. We have been lovingly referring to Chris as Bob, since Jude says "mama" and "bob". I wonder if Jude will call Chris "Bob" when he gets older? I will have to figure out how to upload videos so you can see the little man in action for yourself!

Jude is 7 Months!

I can hardly believe Jude is already 7 months! It is amazing how fast time flies! I guess it is just a constant reminder that we can just sit around waiting for the "right time" or "when it isn't as busy"! We had Jude's 6 month pictures done by an amazing photographer named Alie Blackburn. You can see here website here: http://sallyphotography.blogspot.com/. Jude is always such a happy, content little guy. So, when he was fussy and crying during his pictures, Chris and I were a little worried. We ended up getting great pictures of him! Once we got home, Jude woke from his nap with a cold! Poor guy! No wonder he wasn't happy! So far, at 7 months, Jude: eats solids, eats a few finger foods, has two teeth, sits on his own, rolls from his belly to his back, babbles, babbles "MAMA", takes 2-3 naps a day, and sleeps through the night! What a kid! Chris and I are always talking about how cool he is, and I am always saying I'm so nervous to have another kid because I don't know that we could get another baby that is as good as Mr. Jude! The past 7 months have been so busy and ever changing, but the one thing I have been baffled by is how much I love Chris and Jude more everyday! There must be something about getting an addition to your family that helps you see how wonderful and amazing life is. I know I complained a lot, while Jude was in the hospital, about not being able to bring him home. However, that experience has helped me to be so unbelievably grateful for the smallest things. Here are some of Jude's 6 month pictures!

Jude's Name

There are two reasons why we decided to name Jude, Jude. Chris and I always wanted to give Jude a family name that had a story or meaning behind it. Throughout my pregnancy we had lists and lists of names. Jude had been on our list and I knew it was a family name, but we didn't really think anything else of it. We eventually narrowed our list to 10 names.

Then we went to Bear Lake for our Lish Family Vacation. My dad was put in as bishop of his ward that weekend. When they put him in, some of the ward members mentioned a pioneer story my dad had shared while on trek. When we got back to Bear Lake all of the nieces and nephews gathered around my dad and asked him to share his pioneer story about his pioneer ancestor Jude Allen. After hearing the story, Chris and I both looked at each other and knew we were going to name the baby Jude. Here is the story of Jude Allen:
A few years ago when my brother was on a mission, he wrote home wanting to know who was the first pioneer member of the church in our family and also the first person to hold the priesthood. As we researched we found that Mary Camp Miner, my sixth great grandmother was baptized in 1831. Her daughter Eunice Miner Allen was baptized on 15 April 1832 and her husband Andrew Allen was baptized in May 1833. Their son Jude Allen was baptized in May 1832. My mom found a book that was written about Jude Allen. We were excited to find out that he had been a body guard to the Prophet Joseph Smith and the first member of our family to hold the priesthood. We were disappointed to find out that Andrew Allen, Jude’s father was one of the few members in the Allen clan that was not preparing to go west. Andrew had come in search of land, and he was staking a 40 acre claim on some land there in Iowa. As her family was packing and doing the chores necessary to go to Utah, Jude’s mother Eunice, tried to convince her husband, Andrew, to forget about establishing a farm in Iowa and come with his family to Utah. Eunice wanted to go on to Utah with her family and she had on several occasions begged Andrew to give up his land and go to Utah. The morning the wagons were lined up ready to start for Winter Quarters to meet the other Saints making the trip West, Eunice once again asked her husband to give up his land and make the trip to Utah. He turned to her and said, “I wish to Hell you would go to Utah and I would never hear the word Utah again.” With that she turned and went into the house where she rolled up the few clothes she had, put her shawl around her shoulders and walked out to the wagons. She Climbed into Jude’s wagon, never looking back. She went to Utah with Jude, her daughters Sarah and Nancy, and their families.


After looking up the meaning of Jude, we also found Jude was the Saint of Impossible Causes. We knew it was an even more fitting name for our baby. Our baby had an omphalocele. Baby's with omphalocele's have a large portion of their stomach in the umbilical cord, genetic defects, and heart problems. Jude's omphalocele was the smallest our doctors had seen (3 cm...that was still huge to us when we saw it!), he had no genetic defects, and signs of a very strong heart.

Jude is definitely a fitting name for our little guy and we have great stories to share with him when he is older. I can't wait when he asks why we named him Jude.