44 weeks old

When I went to type the title, I realized that in 8 weeks, the title will be 52 weeks and folks, that's a year... wow. 8 weeks! 8 short weeks! I've been reminded this week as the weather has begun to get chilly and the fleece has come back out, that fall is here and winter is on it's way, but between fall and winter, my baby will turn 1. Unbelievable!

This has been a tough week for Nathan and me as Chad has been away on business since Sunday. We've both missed him GREATLY. Thankfully, by the time this posts, Chad will be with us again! We haven't taken many pictures, but we have had some fun. The toboggan has come out of the drawer, as have a few of Nathan's sweatshirts. Isn't he cute all bundled up for a morning walk?

This week, Nathan has taken a huge interest in Bailey (and her toys). He seems to follow her everywhere and he climbs on her constantly. If she's laying down, he's climbing on and over her. If she standing up, he's grabbing her fur and pulling up to stand beside her. He grunts and "talks" to her, and chews on her toys, and loves on her. Precious!




Bailey and Nathan at 5 weeks

Bailey and Nathan at 28 weeks

Bailey and Nathan at 44 weeks

Nathan is also quick to crawl down the hall and start up the stairs. Doesn't he look sneaky? He knows where the good toys are and he loves to be upstairs! Little stinker.

I keep reminding him that there are a few good toys downstairs, especially the refridgerator magnets! When I was a kid, the magnets didn't sing... come on if you have young kids, you know the tune... "B says buh, and B says buh, every letter makes a sound, B says buh." I hear it in my dreams!

Well, this week, Nathan has figured out how to make the "p", "g", and "m" sounds and he's been walking around for the past two days saying "mamamamamama". Tonight, our neighbor was holding him and she asked him where mama was and he pointed to me. Not sure if that was intentional, but if so... how cute! I'll keep you posted on that one. Another cute thing, Nathan has rediscovered his 4 foot tall giraffe that the greatest friends in the world gave to him. Every time we go in his room, he grunts to the giraffe, so we stand in front of it and Nathan touches his horns, ears, eyes, and just kicks his feet and grunts. Then, when asked, he gives the giraffe kisses! Too cute. So, today, I put the giraffe next to his crib. Now they can chat when he wakes up from his naps!

Have a great weekend!

What's missing from this picture?

GRASS!!!!!!!

Wordless Wednesday

10 months

Nathan will be a year old in 2 months! Can you believe it?



So what's the little turkey up to? Lots! Here's what he's accomplished in the last month.

New Foods: Quinoa, mandarin oranges, grilled cheese sandwiches, lime Popsicles, grape jell-o, hot sauce, dog food (yep, sad, but true), macaroni and cheese, goldfish, animal crackers, kidney beans, pinto beans, biscuit, chicken tenders, lemonade, brussel sprouts, baby guacamole (yogurt, avocado, crushed cheerios, and garlic), rotisserie chicken, and cheesecake pudding. He also likes apple juice now (diluted with 2/3 water).

Growth: Nathan has only gained 2.5 ounces this month and he's grown a half inch! He's currently 22 pounds 15 ounces and 28.5 inches tall! His pants are a little big in the waist, and his belly isn't so round anymore. All this crawling and cruising and climbing is wearing off that baby fat!

New Signs: ball, dog, book, light, help. Sometimes they all look like "more" but he knows the difference and expects that we do too!

New Sounds and Words: still stuck on the "b" sound, clicking his tongue, makes a "g" sound.

Language and Communication: In the last month, particularly the last 2 weeks, Nathan's understanding of language is taking off. He can identify many objects now and points to them or finds them when asked... fan, light, dog, Bailey, ball, book, baby, and zebra. He loves to point to pictures and listen to you name them. He gets his Baby's First 100 words book off the shelf and will open it and sit down and point to pictures. So precious. He's also learning that his hands can communicate and that's really helping him not be so frustrated.

Games/Play: loves peek a boo, being chased, chasing, tickling, being upside down, and looking at books. He's giving great high fives these days as well. Nathan loves wheels, steering wheels, balls, books with texture, zippers, buckles, and blankets. He plays independently for long periods of time... in the big playroom, where he also loves to pull up on the banister, making it an unsafe (unsupervised) area... so we're working on him playing independently in a play yard (baby jail). He's not so fond of it, but we're up to about 10 minute intervals which is just enough time for me to take a shower, fold clothes and put them up, vacuum, or just take a breather. I love that he entertains himself so well in the big playroom though. He will spend an easy hour playing with his trucks, balls, pulling the books off the shelves to find his favorites and then looking at them, climbing on his busy box, pushing toys. It's so fun to sit back and watch him discover his world, or jump right into his world and discover it again through the eyes of a 10 month old!

Movement: Nathan is crawling every where and can now crawl under and over things pretty well. Although he's all over the place, he spends more time on his feet than his knees. He can get to a standing position using almost anything, including a flat surface. He cruises around our kitchen, the living room, and the playroom with ease. He's learned to open cabinets as well! That's brought new "fun" into our kitchen time! He also loves to do the "wheelbarrow". Remember when someone would pick up your feet and you'd walk on your arms? Well Nathan can go about 30 feet that way and thinks it's so funny. I'm amazed that he has the arm strength, but he does!

Temperament: The 9th month has made us familiar with the "mini fit" and we usually see it when the little man is tired. Although the last week has been much better, getting dressed for bed, changing his diaper, and sitting still have brought about a few mini fits. We're working through them and have seen that Nathan responds really well to a calm yet firm voice. He understands so much more than we realize and it's wonderful that he's listening and following directions! He's still as social as they come. He has no trouble lighting up a room, smiling at anyone, and usually he'll let anyone hold him. He transitions perfectly into and out of the nursery at church, as well as with a sitter. Occasionally, he has a little separation anxiety when I "disappear" behind the island in the kitchen. Usually, he's as easy going as they come! He wants to play with the big boys though. He watches them on their bikes and playing in the yard and he wants to get down and go with them. He kicks his legs and goes "ooo" "oooo" trying to get to them. If we put him down, he goes straight for their bikes. One day he'll ride one, but for now I'm enjoying my sweet snuggly baby boy!

Teeth: Nathan got his first tooth on Sept 11. The second one came in Sunday night and they are both on the bottom. I think he's working on a few more because the chewing hasn't stopped. We've added teeth brushing into our night time routine too.

Sleep: Same sleep schedule... 730p to 730a, nap 10-12 and 3-5. He has recently begun to play in his crib when he wakes up and that's a beautiful thing! If he wakes up at 645, he'll play until I go and get him at 730. It's so wonderful to feel like I'm the one in control of the timing of the nap! He still goes down great as well and is so easy when it comes to sleep. Thank you Jesus!

Injury: We have had our first few injuries this month. The mobility is increasing faster than the stability and it's resulted in a few head on collisions with things like book cases, chairs, and the floor. He also cut his finger badly a few weekends ago - he grabbed a soda can and his finger happened to go right into the hole. Yuck. After a few days it healed up though. Then a few days after that, Nathan discovered one of his friends had teeth like mom and dad and he wanted to touch them. Well, his friend thought his finger was food and bit the fool out of his little thumb. For about a day and a half, he wouldn't use the thumb (next to the cut finger), so he learned to eat with his left hand! All is better now though!

Weaning from paci and bottle... this will be a long process, but we're down to just one bottle a day, sometimes 2 bottles. He's drinking his formula out of a sippy cup very well, much to our surprise. Hopefully by Oct, he'll be down to one bottle all the time, and maybe none at all. Then comes our next challenge, taking the paci during nap and sleep. I think we'll take it during naps first. Then again, we've really enjoyed it while he's been teething. It helps to cut down on the drool and gives him something to chew on! Hmmmmm... we'll have to think about that!

Enough text, how about some pictures and video!

We've resurrected an old friend... the jumperoo. Although he never learned to jump in it, it does safely contain, occupy, and entertain him for 5-10 minutes! He still loves the sunshine, just like when he was really little!

In the jumperoo for the first time at 16 weeks


He is thrilled to see Bailey, follows her around, takes her toys, chews on her collar, plays with her dog tags, crawls in her bed, squeals when he sees her... oh my goodness. This relationship between a boy and his dog is growing stronger by the day. Bailey enjoys him too. She likes to lay in the playroom while he's playing and she often follows him around, stealing a kiss every now and then. She is quick to come to him if he cries and she is so gentle and patient. AMAZING!

Here are some cute pics of their daily encounters





And a little video


Now, I'm not a big fan of kids watching tv or videos for extended periods of time, or even every day. In fact, we try to limit Nathan's tv viewing to as little as possible. I admit, most mornings, we watch a few minutes of the weather channel together. And, in moments where I just need to unload the dishwasher without "help" and water the tree in the back yard that was just planted, Baby Einstein is a great for a few moments! Nathan loves those DVD's and we let him watch either that or praise baby about once or twice a week... from the pack and play. He stands the whole time and talks back to the animals and laughs at the babies and plays peek a boo with them too. As a parent, those few moments are priceless...


Monday, Nathan learned how to "help" me unload the dryer!


First pair of real shoes... what a milestone.

Over the weekend, we decided it was time to get Nathan some shoes. He wants to play with the kids outside and the tops of his feet aren't tough enough to withstand the concrete... not to mention there's all kinds of construction debris, even in the yards. So, we went on a mission to find him some good shoes. So, when you're a first time parent and you don't know any better, where do you go for shoes? Well, Stride Rite of course! So we went, and waited for a while and then were informed we had to sign in! Thankfully that store is packed with toys and kids and Nathan had a blast. He's been wearing Target's version of Robeez every now and then, and we thought he was currently in a size 2...or maybe a 3. Can't remember. Anyway, the professionals at Stride Rite measured my baby boy and then brought out the right size in the shoe we'd picked. IT LOOKED LIKE A BOAT! Not a size 2, or 3, or even 4. Folks, the boy wears a 5 DOUBLE WIDE! Can you believe it? He certainly doesn't have my narrow and petite feet! My eyes welled up with tears when she put those shoes on him. My baby looked all grown up. Don't you agree?


Now, although I loved the look he had on Sunday ("Calvin Klein himself" is what our neighbor called him)... wearing jeans (instead of knit pants) and having rubber boats on your feet makes crawling and cruising a little more difficult... so for the rest of the weekend and on Monday, we put him in leggings... yes leggings. Carter's sells them and says they are for boys. Hmmm, with the shoes, they just look silly. At least they stay up above the shoe!



Standing on a sturdy (and lengthy) foundation

So there you have it... my baby's first pair of shoes, officially documented!

These pictures don't need words





Nathan learned to point to things this past weekend. He also discovered there is a baby on his yogurt container... see?


Smiling, signing and saying more (although he signs it below the camera lens- but waits patiently with his arms folded for another crack puff), pooping, growling, and doing his famous finger feeding (only famous to us... instead of using his pincer grasp, he grabs it with his whole hand and then does this funny thing with his hand to push the food up to the space in between his thumb and forefinger... doesn't work well with things like tofu and fish!

Nathan showing off a bit... finding the light and signing light, finding the ball... and then when I asked him to sign ball, he played dumb, but that's one of his favorites!


The smiling face I wake up to each and every morning


Demo of his stair climbing abilities... I filmed this with the camera propped on top of my shoe and have to climb back down the stairs to turn it off... so I didn't let him go all the way, but he sure will!


Pulling up , standing, and playing with the lights and music (he now knows where the on/off button is)

That's all for now.

10 month photos with Leo

One Month in the House

We've been in the new house a month now! So, how do we like it?

We love it!

Some of our favorite things about the house are:
programmable thermostats
energy efficient walls, windows, doors, etc
the space
it's new
layout
functional kitchen
lots of places for Nathan to explore, learn, and grow
shower with the body sprays and lovely tile (all thanks to Chad)

Our least favorites are:
cleaning the hardwood floors
still having no grass
still don't have cars in the garage yet (much smaller than our old garage)
very little attic space (and it's a pull down)

But our absolute favorite part of this new house has nothing to do with the house itself, merely its location... WE LOVE OUR NEIGHBORS!!!!! We have met so many of them and have become closer to some than others because of where they live, common age, common life stage, and time, but they are all really great! When I walk down the street, I spend more time talking to my neighbors than I do walking. It's so incredible. It's really something out of the 50's. Everyone speaks and is friendly and makes an effort to say hello and catch up. People are in their front yards talking or playing with their kids. Neighbors eat together, and do life together. It's like a huge family here and many have commented how we feel a sense of extended family here. Everyone looks out for one another and there's always an adult watching out for the kids.

Speaking of kids, oh my goodness... At any given moment there are at least 8 playing in the cul-de-sac, and when they are all out (often enough) there are close to 20 boys (ages 4-15) running through the yards playing tag, wrestling, riding their bikes, throwing dirt clods, kicking balls, pushing each other in strollers (not ours) really fast around sharp corners, talking to the adults... playing! Then you throw in the handful of girls and the 4 little ones (Nathan, two 14 month olds, and a 2.5 year old - all boys) and we're a full neighborhood! I walk Bailey often (since we don't have grass for her to pee in) and I can't get out of my driveway before the kids are making a beeline for her! They've nicknamed the area "Baileytown" and they call her "Queen Bailey". They are so loving towards her and always speak to her. They pet her and love on her. They're the same way with Nathan. Too cute! They push the stroller, walk the dog, help me carry trash to the curb, listen to direction, respect other people, and have fun! I love it! I also love how I am cared for. People talk, listen, and hang out. The other night, knowing Chad was working late, our neighbors asked me to come in and have dinner with them... then today another neighbor asked me to come eat with them... then later, another neighbor brought over pumpkin chocolate chip bars. Holy cow people - this is so good!

43 weeks

I cannot believe my baby will be 10 months old on Monday. He's really turning into a little boy and it's so fun to watch his personality begin to emerge. He's so adventurous and in the last week has learned how to stand up against a flat wall (instead of using a ledge or surface to pull with his arms), how to pull up on the cabinets and then open them,


how to sign fan, how to open the entertainment cabinet, and how to pull out his canvas bins from their cubby holes. He is almost signing all done, help, and drink without any assistance. He is really starting to understand that he can communicate with his hands and it's great. (Signing "more" below)

He's also starting to say up and what sounds like puppy. He loves to give kisses, point out lights, fans, and airplanes, and of course get into trouble. Although our table is pub height, he can still reach things sitting in the chairs and can almost grab the top of the table!



He's climbing up on everything and is getting much better at climbing the stairs.


His bottom left tooth has almost broken the surface of the skin and the bottom right is getting more and more prominent. He's starting to make new noises with his tongue as he feels this tooth coming in. We'll hear him making a clicking sound every once in a while while we're driving.

He's learning that it's not okay to roll on the changing table and is lying still so much better. We decided that somehow we taught him it was okay to roll around and it's our job to teach his to lie still and we're doing so without popping or squeezing his leg or time out or anything like that. It's great that our tactics are working too! He loves to hear animal sounds and that's been all it's taken to get him to lie still. Occasionally i have to say no rolling, or lie down, but in general, he knows what's expected! We still have some melt downs (5 second mini melt downs) when he's tired and it's time to get ready for bed, but even those are becoming less and less. Hopefully this is a trend that will continue for a bit!

Nathan is so smiley and very social. He loves to go for walks and see the kids in the neighborhood. He also enjoys looking for planes!

This last week he tried toast with cream cheese on it and he loved it!

Also, yesterday he drank an entire 6 oz serving of formula from a sippy cup! Usually, to get him to drink "milk" from a sippy I have to put yogurt in it, but yesterday he just drank it plain! We're trying to get at least one bottle moved to a cup and hopefully two bottles by the end of the month.

Here are some fun toothy and smiley faces!




He's started taking guitar lessons from Chad too! If Chad's playing, Nathan immediately crawls over to him and pulls up right next to the guitar. He loves to grab the strings and pat the guitar. Sometimes he makes singing sounds. It makes me so happy to watch he and Chad share that time together!



Watching it rain and wanting to go outside (he's actually signing more in this pic) perhaps because he wants to go back out?


chasing mom

pushing buttons is another fun activity and this giraffe has a great button that Nathan loves to push!

Remember Nathan's love for his swing as a newborn and little guy? Here's a picture of him at 5 months waking up from one of his last naps in the swing.

Here he is in Colton's swing (same kind, just a different color scheme) this past week - he's huge in it!

Have a great weekend!