Happy Fall...

Well, once again, I have let too much time elapse between postings.  Travis is changing so much with each new day.  He seems to be happier and happier all the time- quite a relief for me and Ken. It is so fun watching him make new discoveries, i.e., his hands, his feet, his reflection in the mirror.  We have been taking advantage of the nice weather with walks, and even some patio dining.  It was such a treat to be able to go to brunch after church a couple of weeks ago- Travis stayed content in his carrier the whole time.  He just looked around, cooed and enjoyed the day. :)  It was a FIRST.  We will have to take advantage of this time before he hits the high chair stage...I know that "all bets are off" for a peaceful meal at that point.  Wait, did I just write peaceful- is there such a thing?  Only kidding, our little man is such a gift and we really can't get enough of him.  Enjoy the pictures!

Our first family photo shoot...thankfully, Travis allowed us to get a few good shots.



Travis' first night of rice cereal.  All of the sudden, Mollie is quite interested.  Travis now prefers oatmeal.

Travis' new favorite toy...HIS FEET. They are in his mouth all of the time.  Pretty darn cute. 

Another cute video

Here is another video...no one would ever believe me that this child is "sensitive."  Well, I take that back, many of you have witnessed his demonstrative state in action! :)  After seeing this video, there is hope of a sweet little boy!

Flirting with his vent...

As we have told many of you, Travis LOVES to flirt with the vent over his changing table.  I tried to get a video of him...funny that he was more interested in the camera!

WHOO HOO! 3 MONTHS!

We made it!  Travis turned 3 months old last weekend. He spent his birthday in the Panhandle celebrating with family!  We were able to spend time with both our families and both of my grandmothers.  We had a great visit- Ken might say otherwise...he made the drive to Lubbock to watch his SMU Mustangs get beat pretty badly by my Texas Tech Red Raiders.  (Sorry honey, we know that SMU is on the mend and in the middle of a rebuilding year!)  We have all been enjoying this nice week of cooler temperatures.  We have been taking lots of walks- Travis is already proving to be quite the outdoorsman...he can be in the midst of a meltdown and a trip outside can usually calm him instantly!  Like father, like son.  Travis has made several new discoveries over the past few weeks: 1) He LOVES the vent over his changing table...he smiles, coos, and laughs at his new little friend 2) I put in Baby Einstein a couple of days ago to see if he was interested (and to see if it would distract him from crying)- he loved it!  Ken and I LOVE Baby Einstein as well.  3)  He now is much more aware of his brother and sister, aka, Mollie and Aspen, or should I say, he is aware if their noises.   The barking used to not really phase him, and now, he pops his head up when he hears it and gets quite upset if Mollie barks too loud, and 4) The SMILES- they make it ALL worth it...I finally captured one on camera! -- enjoy; xoxo, jenn

Mom and Travis on his 3 month birthday!

Ken's mom, Grandmother Dawkins and Travis.

Grandfather Dawkins

My grandmother, Nana.

My grandmother, Meme.

It's been a long time...

Sorry!  I can't believe it has been so long since I have posted!  We have had a busy few weeks around here.  At Travis' 2 month check-up, our pediatrician sadly told us that Travis had "classic colic"  :(.  Tough times for Travis (and Jenn, and Ken).  So, we have been trying EVERYTHING, and I mean EVERYTHING to decrease the crying at our house.  About 2 weeks ago, we started noticing that Travis was crying much less, and was becoming easier to soothe as well.  So, all said, we think he has turned the corner and things are only going to get better.  Travis and I were able to make a visit to Amarillo for some much needed R & R.  My mom was an angel and kept him through the nights, allowing me to get some sleep.  He met lots of new friends and most importantly, he met both of his great-grandmothers!  We head back for another visit next week...crazy that he will be turning 3 months while we are there.  Here are some pictures from the past few weeks!  

Chillin' after his 2 month check-up. 

Getting better at sitting up for a bit.

Taking a snooze at Julie's in his cute dinosaur outfit!

Yippee! College football has started! 

11 weeks old!

Growin' like a weed...

Hi there! Hard to believe that Travis is 6 weeks old today! It is amazing how fast he is growing...at his one month check-up he weighed in at 8 pounds, 2 ounces. We have been getting out more and more...Travis does great as long as he isn't late for a meal...kind of like his dad! As our pediatrician said...Travis is proving to be pretty "sensitive" to his surroundings...i.e., a little on the fussy side. Each day is a new day and we know that he will get more comfortable with time. Here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks. Enjoy!

Lazy days of summer...

Mollie was quite interested in what was going on.

Dad and son in their SMU gear!

Lots to catch up on!

Hi there! We have had a fun couple of weeks around here. Last week, Travis and I had several much-needed outings. It's amazing how a "quick" errand can last almost an hour. Something that used to take me 15 minutes, now takes A LOT longer. :) We enjoyed walking at Northpark...he is going to be such a good helper when it comes to shopping. DeDe and Grandy came in town for the weekend to see Travis, AND to celebrate Reagan and Olivia's engagement!! Yes, Reagan proposed Friday night, and Olivia said YES!! We are all so thrilled for them and know that they are going to have a blast on their life adventure together. Here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks. We head back to the pediatrician on Tuesday for his ONE MONTH checkup (can you beleive it?), so I will give an update on his "stats" after that.

I love my paci! I can even hold it!

STRETCH!!!

Just chillin' in my red, while and blue on the 4th of July.

Looks like a little smile! :)

Sweet Baby.

Waiting to surprise Olivia at Terrelli's after the proposal. She didn't know that my parents and her parents came in town to celebrate!

First night out at a restaurant with Travis. He was a champ and slept the whole time! Thanks Travis, for letting mom and dad have a fun evening with everyone!

Reagan and my "soon-to-be" sister-in-law, Olivia!!

What? It's time to feed again...

I can't beleive how fast the days go by...Travis is doing great! Another blessing that he came home with from the hospital was a pretty predictable schedule- at least for last week :). He is eating every 2.5 - 3 hours consistently and really getting the hang of things. We went to his first pediatrician visit last Thursday, and were excited to learn that he had gained weight and is now up to 6 lbs, 2 oz. As my mom said earlier in the week...you start to wonder what you ever did before he got here? I couldn't agree more... :).

First bath at home.

Sweet baby.

Hanging out with Grandy in my Tech gear!

Mollie checking things out as Travis relaxes in the beautiful handmade crib from Grandfather Dawkins.

Welcome Home, Travis!

Hi there! What an exciting week so far! Travis was released from the hospital on Sunday! We are so thrilled to have him home with us. His week in the hospital was tough on us, but there were so many blessings, a few I would love to share:

- The NICU nurses and staff were absolutley amazing...sometimes I felt as though they were just as much my nurse as Travis'. They were able to coach me on feeding and guide me through the process.

- Ken and I were able to get "hands on" coaching allowing us to feel so at ease with Travis.

- Having the support system from Ken and my mom that allowed me to be up there vitually all day with Travis as we got feeding down. What a relief...I am so thankful that he came home a successful eater- we already think he has his dad's appetite...OH NO!

Here are a few new pictures...can't wait for you all to meet him!

love, jenn

His last "look-over" by the doctor before leaving.

All clean and ready to go...we gave him his first bath before leaving.

Resting peacefuly at home!

Update on Baby Travis

Hi there everyone. First, thank you all for your prayers, calls, texts, etc. Again, we feel so blessed being surrounded by such an amazing group of friends and family. I apologize if I have not called or texted you back, my phone's display screen went out yesterday...so, I have no way of seeing who has called, texted etc. I will hopefully be getting a replacement today :). Travis is doing great...however, they are going to keep him until Sunday at the earliest. We know he is getting stronger and stronger with each day, and pray that he will indeed come home to us on Sunday. He is still being fed through a tube in his nose because his breathing is too fast. He is doing a good job of maintaining his weight...last night he was 5 lbs, 10 oz. The doctors and nurses have been absolutley amazing in the NICU...they allow us to be as hands on as we want. We both have been able to change his diaper, and as he moves to feeding by mouth, they will allow us to feed him and allow me to try breastfeeding. I will keep you updated as the week progresses- so thankful that it is already Wednesday!

Early Pics of Baby Travis

Travis Wesley Dawkins

Hi there everyone! Our world completely changed on June 14th! Travis Wesley Dawkins arrived at 7:34 pm weighing in at 5lbs 12 ounces and 19.5 inches long. He looks to be very healthy, however, because he is a little early and he might have injested some fluids (because we are not sure how long my water had been broken- which we found out Friday afternoon), he is going to spend a couple of days in the NICU to make sure his lungs are funtioning and to make sure that he is infection free. Please keep him in your prayers that all of the tests will come back favorable and he will not be in the NICU very long. More pics to come...here is our first family photo!