Blog Vacation

I think this might be the longest I've gone without making an entry! So here are some miscellaneous pictures and videos from this last week.

We got Nathan some new toys, and this push toy was one of them. He loves it, especially the blocks that came with it. As long as we keep it on the carpet, it doesn't get away with him, but he's getting pretty brave and just holding on with one hand :)

Here's a video of him standing up with it.

Nathan also loves to play on the bed. His new thing is to bounce up and down and then throw himself forward to land on his tummy. This video gives you the idea, but he was a little distracted by his reflection in the mirror :) I'll get a better one later.

Peekaboo!

We've always thought Nathan has the cutest personality, and he just keeps getting cuter and more fun with every day! Last night after dinner, Nathan played peekaboo with us. It was so funny because he knew what he was doing but he was thinking, "I don't know why you two think this is so funny, but I'll keep doing it to make you happy."

And now not only does he play peekaboo with his bib, he's also learned how to rip it off which makes feeding time a little messy :)

Wiggly Play Center

Yesterday Alison and I met our Gymboree friends at a place called the Wiggly Play Center. I had never been before, but we are definitely going back! It's a huge indoor play area that is perfect for the little ones to get their energy out and let us grown-ups visit. Plus it's free for kids under 1. I had to shell out a little money though because you have to have socks on there and I just wore sandals. Of course, they were selling them for $2.50. What a rip-off! But now I have some cool Wiggly socks. Nathan had so much fun and was wiped out at the end. He fell asleep in the car before we got out of the parking lot!


Nathan loved this box! He kept standing up and leaning over it to make it fall over!


While in the box, he was able to get his neck rubbed by Alison...


And his head rubbed by Lauren!


Once Alison pulled out a baggy of Cheerios, the babies (especially Nathan) headed her way.


I love it that Nathan is crawling now. He crawled all over the place to play with more toys.


They had these soft shapes everywhere for the kids to climb on and play with...


But then a big kid took the box Nathan was playing with :( He just watched the other boy play with it and looked so sad.


While we were all talking, I noticed that Nathan was crawling away. I thought he was going after a ball that was in the corner. But no, he headed straight to my diaper bag and pulled out his puffs!

Here's a video of him and his cute little crawl.

9 Months Old!

Nathan is nine months old! Well, nine months and one week...I was a little behind on doing his birthday picture. We went to the doctor yesterday and here are his stats: 20.5 lbs(50%) and 28.8 inches (75%). I had to fill out a checklist to see if Nathan was doing all of the things he's supposed to be doing and I was able to check YES to everything! He is now able to eat anything, not just baby food. So Wayne and I have let him sample pancakes, cheese, chicken, and of course he loved it all!


"Happy Birthday to ME!"


"I can't wait to get presents and cake!"

At nine months Nathan is crawling (finally!). It's a bit of a "special" crawl. He uses one knee and one foot to push himself along. But I'm just happy he's doing it so I won't critique his style. Nathan also says so many new sounds including ma-ma! He understands when we tell him no, he still bounces on his bottom, he claps (sometimes), he plays ball (I promise!), he bangs everything together, loves to throw things and watch them fall, and he is just as happy as ever!



And these pictures were from Mama and Papa's new house. While I helped Mom and Dad unpack, Nathan was so happy playing on the floor. Those two toys in front of him were toys I used to play with!

Splish Splash

Kelly invited Nathan to play at the splash park by her house. It was so neat! We had never been to one before, but it was a huge area that had tons of sprinklers to play in. Nathan didn't feel like crawling around...just sitting in a puddle and banging the cups Kelly brought :)

Welcome to Texas Mama and Papa!

It's official, Mama and Papa have moved into their new house! Wayne, Nathan, and I are so excited to have them here with us. They still have lots of boxes to unpack so little Nathan decided to do his part and help...

"Don't worry, I've got this box under control. "

"Actually, I think I'll just get inside. Does anyone care if I take a break?"

"Let's see if I can close the top."

"That was dark! Let's leave this open!"

"Mama, Papa, Cookie, are you all still out there?"

"Mommy, while you're in the kitchen, will you bring me my sippy cup and a banana?"

"Mama and Papa, are you going to be able to handle me???"

This picture is from the night before. When it was bedtime, I laid Nathan down on his back but as you can see he turned over. He's laying on his blanket and lamb! How sweet is that?!

Happy Birthday Carolina!

We had a very busy but fun weekend! Nathan had two birthday parties to go to. This afternoon was Carolina's party and she had a petting zoo! It was so neat! They had an area fenced in and inside were tons of baby animals. I think I had just as much fun as Nathan! I wanted to hold and pet EVERYTHING! There were baby goats, ducks, hens, guinea pigs, kittens, bunnies, and even baby pigs!


I'm holding a kitten here. They were so tiny!

It's Wilbur! These piglets were so funny! If you barely touched them, they just squealed and squealed.

"Mommy, I want a kitten."

Lauren and Nathan had so much fun petting the animals...although they haven't quite learned the concept of "gentle" petting.

Even Daddy got in on the action!

I think the kittens really were Nathan's favorite...and mine...I kind of wanted one too :)

But he loved this bunny also.

There's Wilbur again :)

Wayne and Shawn (Lauren's daddy) hanging out.

Who needs toys when you have a bucket of ice? Sorry boys, there's only Gatorade in there.

This was one toy that Nathan couldn't get enough of. He kept looking at himself and smiling and laughing! I think someone might be a little vain :)

Happy Birthday Jackson!

On Saturday, Nathan was invited to Jackson's luau birthday party. Jackson is one of our friends from Gymboree. I think Nathan is the cutest Hawaiian baby I've ever seen!


He had so much fun playing with all of his friends and with so many new toys.


Nathan and Luke


As party favors, Nathan got his very own sand bucket and shovel. The bucket was filled with lots of goodies! "Are these all for me?"


Nathan and Thorne had fun exploring their buckets together. After Nathan went through his bucket, he decided to take over Thorne's too!


There always has to be something in their mouths.

Now it's off to Mama and Papa's new house!

Hallelujah!

The following videos say it all!

Now we really do have to baby-proof...and vacuum...and mop...we're going to be exhausted!

Visiting Aunt Carrie and Uncle Chris

Wayne had to go out of town again so Nathan and I headed to Austin to visit Carrie and Chris. We spent the first afternoon at Carrie's school and then spent the next day shopping and playing with Nathan. That night we watched The Bachelor finale with three of Carrie's friends. We all know who the most eligible bachelor is though :) We had the best time!


Carrie teaches first grade, and her kids were dying to meet us. So we met Carrie at her school and met all of her students. Of course, they loved playing with Nathan and he had so much fun seeing all of them.


Nathan was a good little student in Mrs. Parnell's class. We made a pallet on the floor for him, while we watched Carrie teach. Nathan also got to be the teacher's helper and helped pick out the quietest table group.


Carrie's friend, Nandini holding Nathan

Carrie is so proud of her nephew that she has told EVERYONE about my blog and is always showing pictures of Nathan. So he was quite the celebrity!


And here he is with his new friend, Allison


Nathan decided to make himself useful and help Uncle Chris shred some paper.


"Do we really have to get rid of this one? It says we won a free trip to Hawaii!"

Nathan's Dedication

After our busy day Saturday, we had to get ready for our big day Sunday. It was Nathan's dedication at our church. It was such a special day and we loved being able to share it with our family.



Daddy, Mommy, and Nathan (playing with my necklace).


Grandmother, Wayne, Ashley, and Nathan


Mama, me, Nathan, and Papa


And Aunt Carrie!


Here we are walking up to our pastor. Nathan was in such a good mood and was so happy. He was very serious until the end when we were standing in front of the congregation. After the prayer, Nathan yelled "Dadadada!"


Here's our pastor meeting the cutest and sweetest baby ever!


Nathan loves his mommy, and I love him more than anything! It was so neat to have his dedication on Mother's Day. He got a certificate and his own little bible. Last Mother's Day was special because I was pregnant with Nathan, but it was even more speical this year. I am the luckiest Mommy ever to have my baby boy.