Near Perfect Christmas

Look at my new coat...the paper is WAY more interesting. Grandma O and Grandpa Jim came over on Christmas Eve morning to celebrate. We made breakfast and enjoyed watching Henry open his gifts. What a spoiled little man.

Destroying the creation is SO much more fun than building the creation! Dad likes the fact these blocks are foam...much easier on furniture when they get hurled across the room.

Henry LOVES riding on Daddy's shoulders, hence the big grin. We visited Grandma Sherry and Grandpa Keith on Christmas Eve afternoon. They hosted a very nice party with the extended family. There was lots of good food and company. It is always fun to see Grandpa Keith's HUGE tree, which makes Grandma Sherry crazy, but I think it's fun. Henry enjoyed the dancing stuffed animals and reading books with his cousin Stella. He of course liked all the attention that his many aunties and grown-up cousins gave him. He is a much loved little boy.

Henry still really enjoys banging on anything he can get his hands on. This picture was taken as he was banging on Mommy.

Christmas Day we visited Daddy at the fire station. Henry enjoyed meeting some new people and getting out the house. He has turned out to be quite the social little guy. On Monday we went to visit the Chapman family, including their four kids, in McMinnville. We had a such a good time playing and catching up. Andrew, the Chapman's third in line, LOVES babies...and Henry was no exception. It was SO sweet to watch Andrew play with Henry and show him around the house.

The best part of the weekend was that Mommy didn't have to work. The only downer of the weekend was that Daddy did have to work two of the days. So goes the life of a fire fighter. The trade-off is that he gets lots of other time with Henry that most dad's don't, so I'm not complaining (well, okay, perhaps I just did complain a little).

By way of other Henry updates, he has found the joy of the stairs. He will do anything to climb up them, over...and over...and over again. It makes me a little nervous, but I suppose he will have to learn sometime. He is standing and cruising around furniture better and better every day. He can crawl at lightning speed. Henry now protests every diaper change and wants to play King of the Mountain on the changing table instead. He developed his first fever (low grade) today and got a taste of his first dose of baby Advil. Poor little man (he actually seems fine...it is sad for Mommy though). All in all, he's still a very smiley, giggle little man. I couldn't be happier with his development and easy-going demeanor. It helps that he still adores his Mama...just as his Mama loves him!

Merry Christmas

Mom's stuff is WAY more fun than Baby's stuff. This lint roller was quite the entertainment one evening. It was funny to watch him get his hands stuck to the sticky paper and then try to lint roll Soph...she wasn't amused. : )

Henry reading his FAVORITE Christmas book. He loves the end where Santa says "ho ho ho." He will read this book over and over again, talking to each of the characters.

Look Ma, I can climb up anything. The kitchen stools are one of my favorite.

Henry thinks he is just oh so amusing. He cracks me up! He played with the gladware container pictured for more than 30 minutes straight.

Uh oh! How did that happen!?! Henry had great fun "helping" mom wrap Christmas presents. He climbed up on the wrapping paper box until he reached the box of bows. He shook and shook the box of bows until all the bows fell out and then stared at all the bows on the floor with a confused look. Funny little dude.

Henry is super MOBILE and interactive now. It is so much fun to play with him. Henry climbs to standing with ease now and has starting crusing around furniture. He "talks" all the time, telling all kinds of stories. He recently also found his volume button. He often yells to his toys and books...or simply the cabinet doors. His favorite pastime remains banging objects together. The more noise they make, the better. Henry has begun to feed himself. He often makes a big mess, but surprisingly, much of his food actually makes it to his mouth...eventually. Tonight he even fed himself orange segments and chicken bits. Until today he had only really mastered eating Cheerios and other similar dry foods. Drinking still remains a challenge, but he is getting better and better each day. He actually did pretty well when I tried giving him a few sips out of my water glass. Perhaps it is time to invest in some normal plastic cups.

Christmas is just a few days away. I think we are ready for the most part, I just have a few more gifts to wrap and I need to do some grocery shopping. We are super excited to watch Henry open his Christmas presents. He loves the sound of ripping paper. I think he will be more interested in the wrapping paper and cardboard boxes than the actual toys and books, at least initially. I am also looking forward to watching Henry interact with his cousins on Christmas Eve. Ryan's mom decorates the house to the nines, making it one of the most festive places to celebrated during the season. Ryan's dad has a tradition of getting a HUGE tree, which is always decorated with tons of lights and fun ornaments that they have collected over the years. Best of all, the whole family gets together and brings their favorite snacks. Food and family...can't get much better than that!

I have been blessed with much good fortune this year, including good health, a loving husband, gainful employment, and supportive family and friends. Most of all, I have been blessed with a beautiful, happy, health little boy that I get to call my son. Doesn't get much better than that.

Merry Christmas to all those I love...you know who you are!

Little Man Standing

Henry loves sitting in Daddy's recliner. This is the most recent recliner photo from our last beach trip over Thanksgiving weekend. Mommy took Henry to the tree lighting in downtown Rockaway where we sang carols and he got his first glimpse of Santa. He officially visited Santa last Wednesday and did an amazing job. Even a few smiles.

Giggly boy.

Henry can now stand up. He climbs up EVERYTHING, even the walls, literally. It won't be long before he starts walking around furniture as well. I can't believe how fast kids develop!!!

By way of other updates, his favorite toys these days aren't toys at all. Today, he played with a gladware container for over a half hour straight. He also loves the sound of ripping paper and my metal water bottle. He LOVES his new Santa board book that Grandma Sherry gave him at Thanksgiving. He wants to read it over and over and over again, which I of course oblige. : ) His favorite foods these days include oatmeal (with a little agave nectar), cheese, cheerios, persimmons, clementines, raspberries, and butternut squash. His fourth tooth arrived this last week as well, which made for a few restless nights. He is trying desperately to learn how to drink water from a sippy cup but he still doesn't quite know how to seal his lips, so the water just dribbles down his chin. He is so proud of himself though when he gets the water to flow. Its pretty funny to watch.

9 Month Check-up

Mmm...mmm...eyeballs. Oh so tasty!

Boys and their toys. Anything with wheels are a hit.

I'm coming to get you Mommy.

What a flirt!!!

Today Henry visited Dr. E for his 9 month check up. Dr. E observed that Henry was "quite a healthy boy." He also commented: "I think you are growing a linebacker here."

Henry's 9 month stats:

Weight: 22lbs 4.5oz (89th percentile)

Height: 29.5 inches long (85th percentile)

Head: 18 cm (75th percentile)...all those who have said Henry has a big head are WRONG!!! : ) He is perfectly proportional.

Dr. E said that Henry is right on target developmentally and said that he wouldn't be surprised if Henry starts standing on his own and cruising around the house holding onto furniture soon.

Other updates for the week: Henry got his third tooth!!! He also started pulling himself up to his knees. He's getting more and more verbal by the day. New sounds for the week include "baba" "gege" "boowa" and "wawa". He still routinely says "mama" and "dada" (which just melts my heart). We have had to start reading board books exclusively because Henry thinks books are for eating and/or ripping, even though I constantly tell him that "books are for reading, not for eating." His favorites this week include Otis and Chicka Chicka abc. We have been trying more and more big boy foods, including pizza tonight (okay, really just peices of chicken, spinach, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, zucchini and cheese). Yum...what a treat. He also was a big fan of corn and yams this week. We now have officially installed two of the three new car seats. This weekend we will probably finish the process and get the new one installed in Ryan's truck. Amazing how I think I will complete things in a weekend and in reality it takes me three weeks or more to finally get around to the task. But hey, at least it's done now. I think Henry prefers the big boy car seats. They sit slightly more up right, even though still in the rear facing position.

Motherhood - The First 9 Months

Baby Boy is 9 months old today. He has started to pull himself up on furniture now. Not quite up on his feet yet, but up on his knees. It is just a matter of time before he makes it to his feet. He also discovered the kitchen cabinets this weekend. What a great new toy to bang on. I'll take it for now since he doesn't know how to open them yet. This weekend he got to see lots of kids. We went to Madison's (Ryan's cousin Travis's little girl) birthday party on Saturday where there were a handful of kids. I really like family gatherings, I wish we got together more. Yesterday Henry and I hosted a play date. Cameron, Jade and Layton came over to play (plus their mom's). It is fun to see them mobile and snatching toys from one another. Cameron is not quite crawling yet, but he is the youngest (a month behind Henry). I'm sure by next month he will have mastered it. I told Kellie that she should relish this time because once he becomes mobile her life will become much busier. I love this stage though. Henry is so inquisitive and likes to play independently (for a least a little while). But, he still loves his snuggle time with Mama. I know the day will come when he doesn't want to snuggle with Mama anymore, so I am cherishing these moments.

Lately, I've been reflecting on motherhood. Here are the top 5 surprises about motherhood:

1. Passion. I've always been one of those people that wanted to find my passion. I've been interested in lots of different things in life, but not passionate about anything. I had gotten to the point of thinking that I just didn't have a passion. I know it may sound cliche, but being a mom is my passion. I LOVE being a mom. There isn't anything that brings me more joy in the world than being a mom. It is all consuming. It is ever-present. From the time I get up until the time I go to bed, I am thinking about Henry. All I want to do is spend time with him. I never tire of being with him. I knew I would like being a mom, but I had no clue how much I would love it. I thought I was career driven and would be itching to go back to work after Henry was born. But, ironically, after all the time and resources I've spent becoming a lawyer and creating an amazing lifesyle, I would give it all up in heartbeat to be a full time mom. Funny how I spent almost a decade of my adult life not wanting children and now all I want to do is be with my child.

2. Love. I knew I would love Henry, because all moms love their children. What I didn't know was how deeply I would love Henry. Unlike other forms of love, that grow and are earned in large part, the love I have for Henry is different, its primal. It is truly unconditional. And he didn't have to earn it. I just love him with all my heart. Period.

3. Attachment. I have been very surprised with my parenting style. Because I'm so type-A about most things in life, I thought I would be scheduled and formulaic about my parenting. Surprisingly, I've gravitated much more toward attachment parenting or baby-led parenting. Because I don't believe infants are manipulative, I find myself letting Henry tell me what he needs. I feed him on demand when he's hungry (even in the middle of the night) and let him sleep when he is tired (although he does have a pretty set bedtime). He still primarily naps in someone's arms, even now. I don't necessarily think other parenting styles are wrong or bad, I just have naturally fell into this type of parenting...which is polar opposite of how I thought I would be. Tons of moms told me before Henry was born that I would just know what to do when Henry was born, and somehow, this is what I "knew" how to do. Fascinating.

4. Nursing. Before Henry was born, I was skeptical if I was going to be able to nurse for even the 12 weeks that I was scheduled to take off for maternity leave. I had hoped I would be able to nurse for 6 months, which was a goal I set for myself, but deep down I was skeptical. On the flip side, I am super stubborn, so since I set a goal, I was pretty determined to meet it. What has been surprising about nursing, is how emotional it has been. It has been one of the biggest sources of stress. I am constantly worried that I won't be able to keep up with Henry's demand, but here we are 9 months later, and he's HUGE and HEALTHY. Clearly, I've been able to keep up, yet I still stress about it. You would think the stress would lead me to supplement with formula, but I stress more about giving him formula...why, only heaven knows. I never thought I would be one of those moms who nursed for the whole first year, but with only 13 more weeks left, there is a good chance I'll nurse for the entire first year (or at least pretty close to it). Another surprising thing about nursing is my husband's perspective on breastfeeding. Before Henry was born he thought it was creepy for women to nurse for much longer than a few months, but he would tolerate the first 6 months. Now, he could care less how long I nurse. Go figure. I think the biggest perk of nursing, and also surprising (because again, I was skeptical), is that nursing has helped me lose over 60 pounds since Henry was born. Woo-hoo!

5. Guilt. I have heard time and time again from working moms about the guilt they feel after becoming moms. I never really understood it until I became a mom. I feel guilty when I spend time away from Henry. There is the undercurrent guilt about working generally, but most of the guilt revolves around spending time doing other things that pull me away from Henry (like grocery shopping, cleaning, paying bills...you know...life). I feel a tremendous amount of guilt, which I know is ridiculous, but I still feel it. This usually results in me trying to postpone those activities until after he goes to bed or when Ryan can play with him, but it means I have NO time for the things that I used to do for me (painting my nails, reading a novel, scrapbooking, playing the piano, gardening, etc.) But then, I even feel guilty for wanting time for those things. I don't think I can win this battle, nor do I think this battle is logical. Emotions are a tricky thing, something that you can't always control.

38 weeks

Henry puts EVERYTHING in his mouth now, even the couch! On Saturday we went and played next door with the Ko kids while their folks went out on a date. We had such a good time, but Bennia might have some slobber to clean off her couch now. : )

Happy Halloween! I love my little monkey.

Henry enjoyed his first college basketball game. Go Pilots! The earmuffs lasted about 10 minutes, but hey, that's 10 more minutes than I thought they would last.

Yes indeed, Henry's got two pearly whites.

Henry is a crawling machine now. He is all over the place. His new trick is to go from crawling to sitting to crawling again. He is developing so quickly, it is mind boggling. He also has become quite opinionated about stuff. He wants to hold (and eat) anything that I have in my hands, trash bags, newspaper, light bulbs, Windex, whatever. If he can't have it (because it isn't safe, or just plain gross) he screams...LOUDLY.

Halloween was a bit of a whirlwind. Henry started his morning off at Grandma Sherry's school. I think the kids got a kick out of having their teacher's grandkids come for a visit, in costume. Daddy brought Henry to Mommy's work to show him off. He was the talk of the day. : ) That afternoon we went over to Jeff and Vanessa's house for a kid costume party. We were a little early, so we didn't see many other kids in costume, but it was fun to see Jeff and Vanessa (and their two boys). Their next door neighbor Finn was over as well, who is just 2 months older than Henry. They had a nice game of keep-away with a plastic strawberry and hot dog. That evening, Henry and I went back home to pass out candy to the neighborhood kids and hit the sack at a reasonable hour.

On the food front, Henry has been trying big boy food. The other night, Henry wasn't digging the pureed food I had made, even though it was stuff he usually likes (avocados and sweet potatoes). So, I thought perhaps he might want to try what I was eating for dinner (beef stew). He LOVED all the different bits of stew I gave him. We started with the beef, then the carrots, then the potatoes, and ended with peas. All cut into TINY, TINY pieces. I am still super nervous he is going to choke, for goodness sake he only has two teeth. The next morning he was eyeing my Cheerios so we gave them a whirl too. He thought they were awesome and was not thrilled that I got the last bite. : ) Last night he actually ate a fairly good dinner of pureed stuff (beets with corn, sweet potatoes and roasted cauliflower) but he seemed pretty fascinated with my dinner (butternut squash mac n' cheese with broccolini and hot italian sausage). So, I cut up some of the noodles and broccolini and he was in HEAVEN. Yum-o. I love that he is so willing to try new foods and it is exciting that I might not have to keep pureeing everything. Henry also tried yogurt this week. He seems to be handling the dairy just fine. Thank goodness, no food allergies to report. : )

Gosh, Henry is growing up so fast. How in the world can I slow down the clock!?!

Fun with the Grandpas

On each trip to the beach I take a picture of Henry in Daddy's recliner. This past weekend he didn't really want to sit up for Mommy. Leaning forward and making it rock was way more fun.

Grandpa Jim is SOOOOOO funny!

I turn my back for one second and Grandpa Keith decided to give Henry a little pick-me-up. I think this is Grandpa's way of getting back at Ryan for all those sleepless nights when he was a baby (although if I remember right, Ryan was a great sleeper as a baby...perhaps this is pay back for something I did...)

This past weekend, we were very fortunate and had both sets of grandparents down at the coast. The men-folk (plus my mom) went crabbing on Saturday. Although they didn't have much luck (just caught 7), it was plenty for dinner that night. I made some awesome homemade clam chowder as well (I'm allergic to crab, so this was a great seafood alternative) . On Saturday afternoon I got Soph down to the water for a swim (her all time favorite activity). Henry stayed behind and played with Grandma Sherry while Soph and I were down at the beach. Henry thought playing with Grandma Sherry was great fun because she let him bang his toys against the table for more than an hour straight!

Henry's biggest achievement this week is crawling in the forward direction. He isn't exactly an expert crawler at this point, but he now knows that he has to move each of his limbs independently. It helps if he has something in his sight line to go after, like the vacuum cord, which is a "not for babies" item, but oh so enticing.

His favorite food this week is avocado. I think we might try salmon tomorrow.

Henry loves being outside, even though we have been in the high 50s/low 60s. Although chilly, he doesn't seem to mind one bit. The stroller is a back-saver. We sometimes still go for walks using the front pack, but the stroller is my preferred walking appliance now. Henry likes the stroller because Mommy straps on a few toys to chew on.

As for Mom, I'm doing pretty well. I am struggling to find the time to work on Henry's baby book and play the piano, two things I wish I had more time to do. I also recently realized that Christmas is just around the corner and I should start working on my cards, otherwise they will end up being Fourth of July cards instead of Christmas cards. On the mom-front I am toying with the idea of weaning again. Six weeks ago I gave Henry a bottle of formula. It didn't go well. So I continued nursing. Now, I'm thinking about giving him formula again, but part of me also thinks, only 16 more weeks and you've made it to a year. But, on the flip side, it's 16 more weeks! Perhaps I'll wait until Henry goes in to see the doc for his 9 month appointment and chat with his ped about weaning. Somehow I have a sneaking suspicion he will convince me to continue nursing until Henry's one. I should just accept it and look at my breast pump with more affection rather than irritation. After all, it has allowed me to continue nursing and work full time. Two things that mom's historically couldn't do at the same time. Thank goodness for cultural evolution.

Pumpkin Patch

Dad, this pumpkin is too big for me to carry!

On Sunday, we took Henry out to the pumpkin patch for the first time. It was such a beautiful sunny day. Henry loved all the people watching.

Wow, my head is as big as a pumpkin!

By way of other Henry updates, he turned 8 months last Friday. He is approximately 22 lbs now and very wiggly. He gets closer and closer to crawling forward, but he still primarily moves in the backward or circular direction. His favorite foods these days are bread, papaya and pumpkin. He tried chicken for the first time this weekend, and thought that was pretty awesome too (he gets that from his Dad). He can now sit in the bathtub like a big boy, but has recently learned how much fun it is to splash Mommy. We also retired the car seat adaptor on the stoller. He much prefers to sit upright and face forward so he can see stuff better. On the agenda for this week: retire the infant car seat and install convertible car seats (thank you Britney for the hand-me-downs!!!).

Buddies

On Saturday, Mama and Henry went to play at Kellie's house (Cameron's mom). Henry had a great time playing with Cameron (pictured left) and Cayden (pictured middle). Sarah (Cayden's mom) took this great picture. Who knew it would be so hard to get three little guys to look at the camera at the same time. It was comical. Henry was way more interested in playing with Cameron's toys rather than looking at the camera. We try to get together once a month. It has been so fun to watch the kiddos develop and great to have other moms to chat with who are going through the same developmental stage as us. Sometimes there are a couple of girls who show up, but this was all about the boys this weekend. It will be even more fun when they actually can play games together. At this point they like to stare at each other and grab at each other's faces, which is also adorable. Can't wait for next month's playdate, Henry and I are hosting.

All smiles and drool

Last weekend Mommy, Sophie and Henry went to the beach for a night. This was the first trip to the beach without Daddy. Henry was such a good traveler. He didn't fuss one bit on either the car trip down to the beach or the car trip back home. He usually doesn't like to be stuck in the back seat without any company for more than about an hour. It probably helped that he could see and hear Soph's rhythmic panting (she travels in the "trunk" of the Outback). Henry also was a trooper when we went down to the water so that Soph could play fetch. On past beach trips, Henry has been a bit sensitive to the wind. This trip, the wind seemed almost amusing to him. Every time a big gust would come up and hit his face, he would take a deep breath and then smile.

ALMOST crawling. Henry started to get on all fours this week. You can see here that he is quite proud of himself. Now he just needs to figure out how to coordinate all of his limbs and he will be in business. He now likes to get in this position and rock back and forth as if it is going to propel him forward. When it doesn't work as planned, he usually resorts to scooting backward, turning 90 degrees, scooting backward, turning 90 degrees and so forth until he gets either to his original intended destination or some new destination that seems just as appealing. Mommy doesn't know if she is happy about this recent development, or fearful.

Drool happens. My boy drools ALL the time. Sometimes it is kind of cute though. : ) Henry and I hosted a baby shower for Aunt Sarah and Cousin Mason last Saturday. Although he may not have been the guest of honor, he sure was a hit among the ladies attending the party. He is such a flirt! This picture was taken shortly after everyone left. Henry seemed to be happy that the world was back to revoloving around him...at least in Mama's world.

Indian Summer

This was the first time I tried sitting Henry in the grass without a blanket. He really wasn't too sure of what to make of the cold grass between his toes, as you can see by his expression. It became much more fun when he realized that he could pull up the grass and then try to eat it. Soph thought it was awesome to have a friend outside to play with. She kept trying to bring him toys for him to toss so she could go fetch. She didn't really understand why he wouldn't throw the ball when she dropped it within inches of his hand. Poor girl.

Henry is sitting so well independently now, even without something to hold or brace himself with. He likes to keep Daddy's recliner warm while he is away at work. It makes funny sounds when he slaps it with his hand, so he slaps, slaps, slaps away.

Henry thought sitting in Mommy's chair outside was the coolest thing ever. Henry LOVES being outside. The fresh air does wonders on his mood. We are experiencing a great Indian Summer here in PDX this year, so this afternoon we took advantage of the weather and sat outside, played with Soph and took a walk around the neighborhood.

As for other Henry updates...the boy loves to eat...he couldn't possibly get that from me, could he? As we all know, I love to eat! Henry tried mango and a new variety of squash tonight (there are so many great varieties in season right now, I love this time of year). Mama also served another one of his favorites, roasted cauliflower. I hope his affinity to try new things persists as he gets older.

Henry still can't crawl, but he is getting pretty good at scooting backwards and in 360s. Sometimes he gets a little frustrated because he seems to think by scooting backward he will actually move forward, usually trying to get closer to me, but he ends up further away.

Grandma O has been playing basketball with him in recent days. A few weeks ago, Ryan took out Henry's first basketball hoop that Grandma Sherry got him last Christmas before he was even born (thank you Grandma Sherry), but he cried anytime it got close to him. Strangest thing ever. So, we parked it in the corner of our living room for a few weeks. Grandma O took it out again this week and viola, Henry thought it was great fun. It is only about 18" tall and has lights and music that go off every time you make a basket. I think this is the beginning of a long love affair with the game.

Henry's very favorite toy is Mommy's hair. He pulls it EVERY chance he gets. He also really likes to pinch my neck skin or the soft part of my underarms. That boy has some grip strength, let me tell you!

As for mom, I'm doing pretty well. I still struggle from time to time with feeling overwhelmed with managing my personal life and professional life. I find myself ridiculously jealous of my stay at home mommy friends, but thankfully I enjoy what I do professionally, I just wish I had more waking hours with Henry (but don't all moms). I also dream of the day I have some hired help to complete the endless chore list. All in all though, I live an incredibly blessed life, and I try to remind myself of that every day. My little man brings me more joy than I can put into words and I hope to be able to provide every opportunity his heart desires to pursue, which unfortunately usually means $$$$, thus the necessary evil of work. I also hope that by growing up with a working mom it shows him that he really can have the best of both worlds, a loving family and a satisfying career. Balance is the challlenge that I hope to acheive everyday, but I can't say I'm always successful at acheiving it. I'll keep trying though.

First Crabbing Trip

Henry and Mama went on their first crabbing trip this weekend with Daddy, Grandma O and Grandpa Jim. Daddy did all the work pulling the pots and Grandma O helped sort the crabs (you can only keep the big boy crabs). We ended up with 39 crabs on this outing. Grandpa Jim drove the boat. Henry and Mama just enjoyed the ride. It was a little chilly and rainy, but Henry loves to be outside regardless. Luckily the boat has a canopy and Mama brought a blanket, otherwise Mama would have froze.

Henry didn't mind his life jacket (thank goodness). The neck support functioned as a nice pillow for a short morning nap in Mama's arms.

Grandma O is making funny faces while holding up various crabs. Henry thought she was funny. He was such a good sport. We were out on the water for about 4 hours and he was pretty content for the entire trip. I'm sure this is just the first of MANY boat trips. I know Daddy is counting down the days until he can hold a fishing pole on his own.

Yoga Baby

Yoga baby! Look at this great plank pose. This is Henry's new move. He can't quite figure out why this won't help him move forward, but keeps trying.

In Henry's continuing quest to figure out how to get from point A to point B, he has learned how to scoot moving backward. He often starts out on the rug and then pushes himself backward onto the hardwood floors (as you can see he is about half on the rug half on the hardwood in this picture) and then he can belly scoot around by pushing with his arms. He thinks it is ingenius on his part. He even lifts his feet so he can scoot better. I suppose the legs are just extra baggage at this point.

Henry is sitting up really well now. Amazing what just a month of practice does. In case you're curious, he is staring at his puppy (6 year old Sophie) in this picture. This week he has "discovered" her. They are becoming friends now. Until this week, they were both indifferent to the other's existence. Henry will now pet, pinch, pet, pinch, pet, pinch Soph when she gets in arm's reach of Henry. She doesn't seem to mind all the pinching. She basks in the new found attention. I'm sure she will super oober love him once he starts dropping food on the floor.

We love firefighters...one in particular

Remembering those who have fallen on this 10th anniversary of 9/11 and thanking those who serve us today. We love you Daddy!!!

Teeth...Solids...Sleep Training

He cut his first tooth on Monday (lower front right). His second bottom tooth is just about popped through as well, perhaps tomorrow we will see it. He sits up pretty well independently, especially if he has a toy in front of him to hold or bang. But, he usually ends up toppling over eventually. That big head of his often does not make a soft landing. He's pretty resilient though. He also recently started saying "mum ma" and smiling at me. If I say "mama" back to him he grins even bigger. I love watching him grow and develop.

Henry is super grabby now. After dinner recently I was clearing the plates from the table and turned around to see a mountain of napkins piled all around Henry and a fist full headed straight for his mouth. That is the inevitable location for all things that Henry can grab, his mouth. He apparently bent way over in his Bumbo (which we usually sit on the table while we eat dinner) and grabbed all the napkins from the napkin holder and threw them over his head. He was so proud of himself. He also really enjoys when Mama wears her hair in pigtails because then he can hold onto them like reigns.

Favorite foods of the week: spinach/pear puree and nectarine/cucumber puree. I really haven't found a food that he totally rejects. Some he likes better than others, but nothing that he completely rejects. As you can see from the picture above, he even likes onions! We tried oatmeal with some raspberries this morning. I think he liked the flavor but wasn't too sure about the texture of the oatmeal. It is always amusing to see the expression on his face when he tries a new food.

Henry wants to crawl so badly. He can get into the position to crawl now, but then flops on his belly when he tries to put all the pieces together. The funniest is when he gets into a bear crawl stance, up on his toes with straight legs. He is a champion roller though. One way or another he will get from point A to point B.

The newest challenge is sleep training. Two weeks ago we had to sadly retire the Woombie (a swaddle). This resulted in Henry waking up every couple of hours, just like when he was a newborn. I was so spoiled with a good night sleeper. For a few days after retiring the Woombie I would nurse him every time he would get up, thinking that perhaps it was just a growth spurt. When the night wakings didn't go away after a few days, I decided I needed to start sleep training again. The first night I decided not to feed him in the middle of the night was the worse. I think Henry and I only got a few interrupted hours of sleep. Over the next several nights, it got progressively better. By the middle of this week, he was back to sleeping through the night. Last night he was up a couple of times, but only for about 15 minutes and was able to put himself back to sleep. I think some of the trouble is that he is cutting his first couple of teeth. Hopefully he will get back to sleeping better. Everyone is better off when we all get a good night's sleep.

All in all, Henry is growing up to be quite a little boy. I can't wait until he starts walking and talking so we can go on more adventures. My favorite part of this journey is watching him discover the world for the first time. It reminds me to stop and appreciate life in the moment as well. I love my little man.

Meeting Mason for the first time

At 6:24 yesterday morning I became an aunt again! Welcome Mason John Booth, 5lbs 6oz and 18 inches long. He came 4 weeks early, but is healthy and already a great snuggler. Sarah, you are a rock star for hanging in there for 6 days in the hospital. Your kiddos sure do like to stay with their mommy for as long as possible! Henry is jealous that Mason has so much hair and he is still effectively bald.

Henry update: He loves fruit! Peas are his favorite veggie. We tried carrots yesterday with not much interest on Henry's part. I mixed a plum with his peas and carrots today and he was a eating machine! I think I have my new secret weapon. On the activity front, he has now learned how to roll. From back to belly, belly to back, back to belly. He also seems to really like tummy time now. Go figure, over night, he's changed from a tummy time hater to a tummy time lover. If you put him on his back on the floor, it takes but seconds before he is on is tummy. I'm sure crawling is not too far out. He still can't seem to get his belly off the ground though.

I'm a big boy now!

Henry made friends with the baby in the mirror. We went and visited Dr. E this afternoon. Henry's weight has finally caught up to his height, he is now above average in both height and weight. Way to go Mama, all that nursing has paid off! He is now 18 pounds, 5 ounces and 27 1/3 inches long. Dr. E was pleased with his development and said he looked great.

6 Months!

Henry turned 6 months today! In celebration, he got to try his first solid food...applesauce. Later in the day he gummed/sucked on some watermelon and the applesauce got doctored up with some rice cereal. As you can see, about half the appleasuce ended on his face rather than in his belly. Not too bad for his first shot at eating off a spoon though.Henry is now trying to sit up independently. What a big boy!

This picture was taken on the front porch of the house we rented last week in Jacksonville, OR (just outside Ashland), where we celebrated Mama's 30th birthday. As you can see, the view was great. I can't wait until we are out on the farm!

So excited! Look at my beautiful blue eyes, Grandma Sherry is so disappointed (she was counting on Mama creating a browned-eyed baby for her).

Ah, a little lounging while on vacation.