Dane's 1st Swim

Dane had his first swim in Grandma and Grandpa Lohmeier's pool. He just loved being in the water and splashing the water. It wasn't too much of a surprise considering how much he loves bath time:)

We bought a house!

Here are a few photos of our new house! We are going to be living in Altoona, Iowa which is where both Grandma & Grandpa Widlund and Grandma & Grandpa Lohmeier live. We are so excited to move in but we don't close until October 31. Dane has always been such a good, calm boy whenever we go there so he must know it's his home. It's exciting to finally have a place of our own:)

Mr & Mrs Kelly's Wedding

Dane attended his second wedding. Our great friends Alex and Jonathan got married and it was an honor for both Josh and I to be a part of their wedding. It was a bit of a challange for Josh and I to have Dane there while we were both in the bridal party. But lucky for us the Lohmeier Family was there as well to help out with Dane. Dane had a lot of attention and loved watching all that was going on. I think he's going to be a party animal!

Three months old!

Happy 3 months old to Dane! He is just growing so big I can't believe it! It's crazy how the time just flies by. Dane is really cooing a lot more and is always smiling and giggling. Since we were back in the USA I decided to get Dane's pictures taken when he turned 3 months. He did such a good job at the photo shop and was all smiles for the camera. Let me tell you...it was so hard trying to choose the photos. There were just too many cute ones! Dane is still such a good little boy. He's adjusting well to life in the USA. It took him awhile to adjust his sleeping at night time but he's getting there. He's sleeping between 4-6 hours at a time at night. We are still hoping for one of those 8 hour nights!

Hello Vegas!

Well Dane made his first trip to Las Vegas at 3 months old! Yes we took him to Vegas! There were times when we felt like terrible parents as we pushed him though the casinos but boy did Dane love all the bright lights! My brother Jimmie got married and we were unable to leave Dane at home due to me me the "Dairy Queen" so he got to come with us! He is just a wonderful little traveller:) I just wish he'd take a bottle! We spent a lot of time in the hotel room but we managed to do some shopping at Caesar's Palace. We also watched the fountain show twice at the Bellagio which Dane just loved. It was a nice time but hopefully our next family vacation won't be to Las Vegas!

The long haul...

We managed to get home to the states without any hiccups...unless you count that Josh left my sandles on the luggage trolley before we went through security in LA. Dane did an excellent job on all the flights. It was about a 24 hour trip start to finish. Dane didn't seem to mind the planes at all. He was very excited when we landed in Des Moines because he got to meet his Aunt Kerri, Uncle Jimmie, Aunt Kelley and his cousins Austin and Evan. Grandma and Grandpa Widlund & Lohmeier were both there too. So we had quite the welcoming committee. It sure felt nice to be home!

Bon Voyage NZ :(

We had a little going away party at The Southern Cross to say farewell to all our great mates in NZ. It was a lot fun seeing everyone before we left but it was also very hard to say goodbye. Dane was a trooper and was such a good boy the whole time we were there. I'll never forget that when we left it was like a monsoon outside and we had to walk a couple blocks home. I was holding Dane and was very unhappy that we were walking home in a down pour. Josh had a nice little buzz going and didn't seem to mind as he was pushing the stoller and jumping in puddles. I can laugh now but it sure wasn't funny at the time!

A day at the office

Today we went and visited daddy at the office. Dane had a fun time sitting with his daddy at his desk and looking at the computer screen. Daddy thought it would be funny to act like he was changing Dane's diaper on his co-workers desk...see the photo:) I hope Dane is not going to be as naughty as his daddy!

Two months old!

It's crazy to think Dane is already two months old! The time has flown by yet it seems like he has been here forever! Today we celebrated by having a little photo shoot on the couch followed by some tummy time on the floor. Dane showed off how strong he is by rolling over for the camera. Then we read the book that he just loves! He is always smiling at the pictures of the babies. Then he started to get a bit grizzly...as you can tell it was time for a nap. Dane was all partied out after celebrating his two month old birthday!

Some random photos...

Here are some random but very cute photos of Dane. He's such a good little boy and is even starting to sleep a bit more at night...yippie! He will wake at least once a night and normally sleeps for 4 hours at a time but he has done a few 5 and 6 hour stretches of sleep. We always love those nights:)

We're moving to IOWA!

We have some big news...we are moving back to Des Moines, Iowa! Josh has accepted a job at Aviva as a Portfolio Manager. We will be leaving New Zealand on August 7th for a 24 hour trip home. With the time change we'll be arriving in Des Moines the same day...if only the flight was a few hours! We are so excited for everyone back home to meet little Dane:) He is also very excited! You can tell how happy he is from all the smiles in the photos. Sadly we will be leaving a lot of great friends behind here in New Zealand. We will miss them heaps!

Dane's first plane ride

Today we flew to Auckland, New Zealand to get Dane's American passport sorted. He was such a good little boy all day long. He slept the whole way up to Auckland and was only awake for a sort time feeding on the way back to Wellington. We can only hope that Dane does as well on the long haul flight to LA we have coming up in August!

Happy 4th of July!

We celebrated Dane's first holiday here in New Zealand...the 4th of July! We had our New Zealand family over...Fiona & Sal, Michelle & Graeme and Georgia & Kahu. Dane was all dressed up for the occasion in the adorable little outfit his Aunt Kerri got for him. The sunglasses and hat were a wee bit big for him but we sure thought he looked cute! Unfortunately we didn't have any fireworks or sparklers to help celebrate the 4th. Hopefully next year we will and I'm sure Dane will just love staring at the light from the sparklers...not too sure if he'll like the big booming noises though from the big fireworks! We had such a nice time with our NZ family here celebrating the American holiday:)

One Month Old!!!

Today we celebrated Dane being one month old! We just cannot believe how quickly the time has passed. We have enjoyed every minute of it! Before we know it he'll be a year old! Dane has changed a lot from the time he was born. He's much more active now...always squirming around when he's awake. He is so strong too! He has great control of his head and his little legs are so strong. Dane continues to roll over everytime we lie him on his tummy. Today he even did it when he was lying on the hard floor. Before it had always been while he was lying on our chase lounge which is a much softer surface. He is always smiling and he's starting to coo a bit more. At times it seems he just really wants to talk to us but instead a little coo comes out. He is also so close to laughing too! I'm sure it won't be too far away:) We love our little Dane!

Grandma and Grandpa Widlund

Today we sadly said goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Widlund:( We were so happy that they were able to come meet Dane here in NZ! They had a wonderful time getting to know their new grandson and just loved Dane to bits! Dane can't wait til he sees his grandma and grandpa again because he misses them so much!

The big weigh in...

Today we saw Margaret our midwife and she did a checkup on Dane. He's just 2 days shy of being 4 weeks old. He weighed in at 9 pounds 12 ounces (he was 8.8 at birth) and he grew 2 centimeters. So Dane is thriving!

Happy 1st Father's Day!

Today we celebrated Josh's 1st Father's Day. Daddy's little wingman just thinks he has the best daddy in the whole world! He got his daddy lots of neat presents including a Grill Slinger, a book called Daddy Kisses and a framed photo of him and his daddy. Dane wanted his daddy to have a photo for his desk so he can see him anytime he wants while at work. It was a great 1st Father's Day!

SMILE!

Dane is just all smiles and has been from quite an early age. He's just such a happy bub! His Dada and I just loves it when he gives us a big grin:)

Happy 3 Weeks Old!!!

Dane is 3 weeks old today! Time has flown by yet it seems like he has been in our lives forever! He is changing everyday and we just love watching him grow.
















Today Dane had a little explosion in his pants while his daddy was holding him. Dane managed to not only get his poo all over himself but also his daddy! Daddy loves hearing him rip loud ones but I'm not so sure he's keen when he gets blasted with poo!

Bath Time!

Dane just loves it when we give him a bath! You can tell by his big smiles:) He never cries except for when we take him out of the nice warm water. I think he might grow up to be a little swimmer:)

Cozy Dane...

Dane makes himself quite cozy at times. You can tell he's pretty content in all of these photos. What a cutie:)

Dane and Mama

Dane just loves to be cuddled! Here are a few photos of Mama and Dane hanging out relaxing together.

Dane rolled over!

At just 15 days old Dane rolled over from his tummy onto his back. It wasn't just a one time thing either because he does it everytime we put him on his tummy. Dane holds his head up really well too! He's going to be strong like his daddy:)

2 weeks old!

It's hard to believe that Dane is already 2 weeks old! The time has flown by and he is just changing everyday:) He's starting to fill out a bit and boy do we just love those little cheeks! He continues to be a great little bub and we just adore him! Tomorrow morning Grandma and Grandpa Widlund arrive in NZ. We are so excited for them to meet Master Dane:)

Made in New Zealand

Here are some photos of Dane sporting his "Made in New Zealand" shirt that Michelle a friend of mine here in NZ got for him. He seems to be pretty happy that he's a little kiwi:)