Getting a bath

Ethan is pretty cute. He loves his bath! Here is a quick video of him getting a bath.

First "Official" Bath

It is a tradition in Brooke's family that the grandma gets to do the first bath. Since Ethan was 4 weeks early Cindy couldn't come out then, so the first "official" bath had to be postponed (yes, he did get cleaned inbetween). Ethan received his first "official" bath from Grandma Marcheschi. Now he is cleansed!

Grandma Marcheschi's visit

It was very nice to have Grandma Marcheschi come and visit us for the week. I don't know what we would have done without all the help. I do know our home would be a complete wreck. It is nice to have Grandma's that can come and help out. Brooke felt like she was back in the hub of what was going on at home and really missed it. Brooke is recovering and getting around. She still can't lift Liam, which means when I'm home I am on Liam duty. Ethan gained a pound in two weeks and was already in the 5% for his age, complete opposite of our other two.

Grandma's Last Good-bye

He is starting to fill out a little bit.

This picture took forever to get. We couldn't get Liam to sit still or put the red blanket away. It was pretty entertaining.

On Grandma Cottle's final night here she was able to get some final baby snuggles before she heads back to Utah. She has been a great help!

Funny Faces!

We were playing around and everyone got to make a funny face. They are pretty good - or - we were in a goofy mood (I tend to think the latter of the two).

More pic's

Here are some more pictures of Ethan's first week. Can you tell we're a little camera happy these days?
I caught Ethan smiling in this one.

Avery and her new glasses.

I was able to sneak in a quick cyclocross bike race on Saturday and won! I guess it helps to have little sleep and be tired.

Liam hiding in Grandma Cottle's bed.
This is one that Avery took while they were playing around.
The proud mamma! Brooke is recovering well. She is slowly starting to feel better after the c-section.

Poor Dad!

I heard a quote the other day, "Assume the best, but prepare for the worst." Because I couldn't tell if I was having an allergy attach or if I had a cold I got to wear a surgical mask over my face for the day. Sometimes you do what you have to and if that is what it takes for Ethan not to get sick, then that is what I will do.

@ the park with Grandma Cottle

Liam likes to fill his boots, yes he is still wearing his boots, up with sand. For days after whenever he puts his boots on he has sandy toes or socks.

My mom took the kids out to the park while I watched Ethan and Brooke got some rest. It is nice to have her here. We are lucky to have such a great park so close to home.

Halloween

Avery and Liam had a great time trick or treating. Avery was a witch and Liam didn't want to wear his costume, so we told people he was a boxer (sorry Margaret). I met up with the McFarlane's and the Ward's to go trick or treating. It was fun to have a Dad's Halloween out, while the wives passed out candy at home. Liam wanted to eat and eat and eat. I was glad that it wasn't as cold this year. Last year was freezing.

Avery & Ethan

Avery is a proud sister. She is always wanting to hold Ethan and cuddle him.

1st Bath

Here are some pictures from Ethan's first "unofficial" bath. He is still waiting for Grandma Marcheschi.

Liam & Ethan

Liam wasn't very interested in holding Ethan. He wanted to watch Thomas the Tank Engine!

Ethan Douglas Cottle

Yes, we have finally came to an agreement, and his name is Ethan Douglas Cottle!
We are glad Grandma Cottle was able to rearrange her schedule to come visit us early.
Margaret gave Liam a Thomas the Train Engine and he won't put it down. He was more excited about that than his brother.
This was as we were heading home out the door. Yes, Brooke was really smiling!

Our cute little family.

Suprise - 4 weeks early!

This is after his second helping of "nursey" and he looks pretty content.
Happy dad!

On Saturday night Brooke started feeling some contractions, nothing major, about 10-15 minutes apart. They continued throughout Sunday. Brooke was running around Sunday trying to get the primary program to run well, which it did. That night when we were putting the kids to bed she noticed that she was bleeding. We quickly called our friend Margaret who came over to watch the kids while we went to the hospital. I was able to give her a quick priesthood blessing before we left. Luckily, our doctor, Dr. Cooper, was on call that night. He examined her and found that she was dilated to a 6! Because of the bleeding, dilation, and the the baby was breech they quickly prepared to do an emergency c-section. Everything with the operation went well. When they pulled it out I got to have the first look at its gender - a boy. The little guy, no name yet, was having to work really hard to breath, so they took him to the NICU to give him a series of antibiotics and to monitor him closely. Dr. Cooper said that if we would have been 15 minutes later we might have lost our precious little guy. We are very humble and lucky to have him with us. Mom and baby are doing well. He is feeding like a horse and is pretty well behaved. If he continues to eat like he does he won't stay at his 5 lbs 10 oz and 19 in. frame for long. Brooke is sore, but smiling as always.

Thank you for all the support of family and friends. We couldn't have done it without you! Thanks for the phone calls, emails, and especially prayers.

Love,

Brady, Brooke, Avery, Liam, and (unknown first name?) Douglas (known middle name) Cottle

Trunk or Treat

We got to go to our ward trunk or treat. We went with the whole Oz theme, can you tell?