Hulk Smash

Dear Jericho,

Your Daddy plays with you a lot. He was the first to learn how strong you are, and he helped you pull yourself up to a sitting position and even a standing position when you were about 6 weeks old. I was shocked that you could do this so early. You are a strong little man!

One of the things you and Daddy do together is play "Hulk" you love it and flash smiles whenever you play this with Daddy. He pretends you are the Hulk and you smash things. Mostly Mommy's legs and the floor. You stomp on things and hit them with your hands. Of course Daddy is the one holding your hands and legs and making this happen, but he loves it, you love it and its adorable.

Your First Month.. Time Flies and You Grow Quick

Dear Jericho,

 Your first month in the world was an adventure. Your Dad and I had a lot of learning to do and we did it together. We watched you grow every single day and loved every minute of it. For most of the month, I sat on the couch in the Pirate room and fed you and held you as you slept. Sure, I could put you down but I learned you slept longer when being held.



Within a couple weeks of you being born, Daddy had to go back to work. Grandma Peggy came to visit you when you were two weeks old and to keep me company while Daddy was at work. It was wonderful for her to be here and she loved holding you and watching you. She even watched you for a couple hours alone so Daddy and I could go to the movies. We saw The Hangover 2.

Auntie Jen and Grandma Janice came to visit you as well. They stayed just for a few days but Auntie Jen took TONS of pictures (over 90) in just the short time she was here. Obviously I can't share all of them with you here, but these are the best ones.

Auntie Heather came too and we took you to the pool. Mommy really wanted you to go swimming but you slept through the whole thing. Sissy (Alexis) came too. I think she wanted to swim with you too but you had other plans of course.

You grew right before our eyes the first month. It was crazy how fast you grew. I would put you in an outfit one day and then the next day it didn't fit you anymore. (Seriously, I'm not exaggerating here either). I don't know when you grew, but I would've sworn it was in your sleep. You slept a lot so that's probably true.

One of our splurges in addition to all the baby clothes and toys and everything else we've bought you, we are getting monthly pictures taken of you to document your first year. At first, I didn't think we needed it but just after the first month, and getting the pictures back I can already see how much you have grown.

Having you in our lives, Jericho, is the best and biggest blessing we've ever had. Your Daddy and I love you so much. Your smile lights up our days.

Happy Birthday!!

Dear Jericho,

On June 3, 2011 I was scheduled to be induced. I wasn't sure if you would be born on June 3rd or June 4th. It all depended on how long I was going to be in labor. I was hooked up and the induction was started at 8am. I will save you from any details about what was done and everything.. You don't need to know any of that. I was in labor from 8AM to 5PM which was 9 hours and after that you were out and into the world within an hour. 

Your official birth time was 6:05PM. 

You Weighed 7lbs and 14.9oz

You were 20 1/2 inches long

Obviously, we named you Jericho. Your full name being Jericho Joseph Johnson. Jericho means City of The Moon in Arabic. (I looked it up, your not Arabic) Its also a biblical name and there is a story about the city of Jericho in the book of Joshua (1-6) (Yes I also looked this up. Your middle name is based on tradition. Your Dad's middle name, Glen, is his Dad's (Your Grandpa's) first name. So we carried that along to your name. If you decide to do this with your son, that is completely up to you.  It wasn't difficult for us to decide on your name. Daddy said it one day and I said huh... I like it, and it was done! Your Dad and I have very common first names. We are confident that you will be able to be the only Jericho in your classroom. When I was going to school, there were 3 Jessica's in my class one year. I didn't want that to happen to you by giving you a common name. This way, with your unique name, you can be who you want to be and make a name for yourself. You can be the president, or you can be a business owner. Whatever you decide, no one will forget your name. 

June 3rd will always be your day. No matter what, we will always celebrate this day as one of the best days in our lives. The day we brought our son, you, into the world. The day our lives changed forever, and the day your Dad and I had a family of our own.

Happy Birthday, our son, you are loved.

Before You Were Born

Dear Jericho,

Of all the things I want you to know is that your Dad and I dreamed of you before we were even married. We even bought a pair of transformer socks (which I'm sure you will wear one day) at Target. Daddy and I wanted to make sure we had some thing settled first before we brought you into the world. After owning our house for about 3 years and being settled in our jobs your Dad and I decided it was a good time for you. I found out I was pregnant in September 18, 2010 and we were as happy as can be. I knew I was pregnant when I ordered a pulled pork sandwich at Twist & Shout and ate EVERYTHING on my plate. I didn't use to eat pork, so as normal as that sounds now, it wasn't normal for me then. We also went to Ikea that day and were looking at baby furniture among other things just for fun. Your Dad was suppose to work that day, but he surprised me and took the day off.

It was a special day, the day we found out we would be your Mommy and Daddy.

The months I was pregnant went by fast. I tried to take pictures of my belly as you grew inside my tummy. You started off as a little tiny spec that resembled something similar to a seahorse and grew into the little baby that you are today.

Your Dad and I knew in our hearts that you were a boy. When we got the ultrasound on January 18, 2011 to confirm that you were a baby boy it was wonderful. Your dad's smile beamed and lit up the day. He wanted a son very badly and it felt like all of our dreams were coming true. Throughout my pregnancy, and your growth in my belly, you did great. You were happy (I think) and healthy in my belly and at every doctors appointment I looked forward to hearing your heartbeat and I got to hear it at every appointment. The first time I heard your heartbeat was on November 17, 2010 it was 7 days after my birthday, but it was the best late birthday present of all.

Being pregnant with you was an adventure. We told our families in October that I was pregnant.  Your Dad and I had already planned on traveling to California to pick up Mommy's car from Grandma and to go to Knotts Berry Farm for their annual Halloween haunt. At that time I wasn't feeling so great, it was hard to enjoy the trip but it was fun. In the first few months of being pregnant with you I had morning sickness. Its basically your tummy always feeling sick. It was worth it of course, and the doctor was nice enough to give me some medicine that I could take to make me feel better.  Everyone was excited that you were going to join the family. Grandma Janice and Aunt Heather cried with excitement.

To pass the time before you came Mommy's friend Amanda came over and we decorated your bedroom. We painted the monkey hanging from the tree and the Giraffe on the wall one weekend. I was very proud of our work. We did a good job.

Everyone was so excited for you to come that I was given two baby showers. The one in Arizona was on Apirl 9, 2011 and I flew to California and we had a baby shower on April 23rd for you there too. Everyone was very supportive. In total, we got enough presents and gift cards to get everything to make sure we were ready for you. One of the games in California was a diaper decorating game. We all decorated diapers for you to wear when you were here.

After the baby showers, everything went fast from there. I started going to the doctor weekly because I only had a few more weeks to go before you were going to make your grand appearance. Your Dad and I anxiously awaited your arrival. I found out in May that my doctor wouldn't let me go further than my due date of June 2nd. That day happens to be your Dad and my anniversary for when we got married. We scheduled an induction for June 3rd and the day before you were born, Daddy and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary and anxiously awaited one of the best days of our lives, our son's birthday.