Upgrading to REAL Mommyhood

We finally felt it was time to bite the bullet and purchase a minivan.

I really was not so big on the idea but we knew it was the most practical choice if we were going to get a second car and after Pete had a rough week of long commutes on the bus I finally decided I would just look on KSL. I came across a van that looked like it was in good shape and was a good price.

I saw it on KSL on Saturday. We couldn't find the time to see it with it being a test week for Peter so the guy agreed to let us see it on Sunday. And we purchased it on Monday. That is really how it had to be since Pete's free time happens only after 7:00pm and bed time is soon after that.

So here it is in all it's glory. The kids were with us when we looked at the car and when we paid for it and picked it up. We didn't really talk to Afton about it other than "we are going to get a new car" but she immediately started calling it "The Josh Car" which completely blew us away because that girl is so darn observant! (The guy we bought the car from was named Josh!)

It has all the works of a Honda Odyssey and only had 75K miles. So we plan to have it last us through residency!

4 Months

I was so good at documenting milestones with Afton each month of her first year. But, not surprisingly, it is a bit harder to do with your second. So here are a few pictures of Peter around 4 months and a few things I love about him off the top of my head!

Around 4 months we have found that Peter has a hard time sleeping unless he can cry for awhile before falling asleep. I was hesitant to let him cry it out but once we started it he began sleeping 8+ hour stretches at night and occasionally through the night. It is hard to listen to him cry but it seems like he just needs to burn off some energy in order to sleep better.

The poor kid has a really hard time falling asleep and staying asleep. You can just see him struggling; he will suck his thumb for a few seconds and then pull it out and scream, only to put it back in and calm down. This happens over and over for as long as 45 minutes sometimes! We are trying to help him any way we can but often he just fusses or cries until falling asleep.

When Peter smiles he does it with his whole body! That is why most of the smiling pictures are blurry. His body immediately squirms when he smiles. It's the cutest!

I feel like this picture most accurately depicts Peter at this age. Fingers are ALWAYS in his mouth and slobbery. :)

I'm a sucker for fresh-from-the-bath babies!

He is very patient with Afton and lets her get right in his face and even put her dress ups on him!

Sitting in big sister's stroller!

I have put him in front of the mirror a few times (because Afton LOVED seeing herself at this age). He squealed the first couple times I did it which gave Afton and I a good laugh. He will shyly smile at himself and turn away. It's pretty cute.

We love our little Peter Michael!

Grandpa Doctor

Peter's grandpa passed away unexpectedly at the end of July. We miss him dearly and have such fond memories of him with our children that we will always cherish. We are so grateful that we were able to live closer to his grandparents this past year so that we could see them more often before his passing. We recognize that as one of the many blessings of staying here in Utah for medical school!

Pete and I both discussed how sad we were that we never took the time to capture Afton with Grandpa Doctor on the many occasions that he took her around his yard showing her the birds and letting her jump on the tramp. He loved to tease Afton which often made her cry but she now recalls it fondly and I hope she will have some memories of him.

We were so glad that we took the time at Baby Peter's blessing to get a four generation photo of four Peter Sundwalls. It is such a special picture to us!

Grandpa Doctor always wore a bowtie to work and his brothers, sons, grandsons, and many others wore bowties at his funeral to honor him... including baby Peter.