Another weekend...

Brent is doing a LOT of pulling up on things now. Sunday night he took a pretty good punch to the cheek courtesy of the coffee table, and then fell backwards and hit his head. I'm sure if I clocked it, he would have came in under .25 seconds. Then there was a second or two pause before the tears and the screaming. The tears weren't solely his either. I know he probably only cried for a minute or so, but it felt like an eternity. He came up and sat on the couch with us, and as soon as he saw the forbidden remote control, he started perking up. And this time he got to play with it for a minute. It makes a good bandaid, it seems. Then the squirming began again, so down he went, crawling and zooming around the room. Within 5 minutes he was back at the coffee table again, without any reservation. But he did pretty good from there on out.

I think he's going to wear holes in his pants the way he scoots around so quickly. His new thing is to carry some sort of toy in each of his hands, so when he crawls he can make loud clapping sounds with each "step". He certainly loves his loud noises. Of course sometimes that comes in handy. I managed to get his hair cut (yes, it had grown out already!), but with the clippers this time. I'm not sure it was the smartest thing I've attempted, but at least it's not in danger of getting in his eyes anytime soon. I'd say it was a little shorter than I meant to go, but in two weeks it should be looking pretty good. I'll get some pictures soon if I can.

He also got to eat at Taco Bell and KFC this weekend. He loves to sit in the high chairs and eat with us. Well...we eat...he plays with the food, but sometimes a little gets in his mouth. The lady at Taco Bell let us taste test some of the fiesta potatoes and he seemed to like them. They were almost like french fries. Other than that, I can't say Taco Bell has a baby-friendly menu. And at KFC, he tried the chicken poppers and the potatoe wedges, which he seemed to like.

And the best part of the weekend? A total of 4 2-hour naps! I was in heaven! Of course...you really only borrow the time in the end. At 5:30 he was up and raring to go this morning (he usually sleeps until 7). Oh well...he's such a joy in the mornings when he's all refreshed. It's the best alarm clock I can think of.

Outdoor fun

As usual, you can click on these to see a slightly large photo. I try to keep them small for dialup connections. A few weeks ago I tried letting him play outside and he didn't like the grass. But that's not slowing him down anymore, it seems. He loved it out there!

Touchdown!

This boy gets excited! Andy was holding his arms up and talking at him, and Brent was trying to copy. It was so adorable! He was acting so crazy!

It was a great weekend, though! He was so good, and took good naps...and ate lots of wonderful new foods. So far his favorites are chicken, turkey and fish. He's a meat man so far. I put a variety for him to choose from, and he always goes for the meat first, then macaroni or potatoes. If there's room (and there's usually not) then he might try a bean or pea or carrot. So for now I give him some jar vegetables afterwards and he'll eat some that way. He doesn't dislike the veggies, but he just loves everything else a little more.

And Sunday night he started standing up by himself. He can do it from a sitting position, and not just by climbing up something and letting go. He's such a strong little guy! He's been working very hard on his balance lately, and it's paying off now. What he'll do is get up on his knees, then get from there to one knee and one foot. Then he balances on his hands and just stands up. I don't think he chose the easiest way to do it, but it seems to work. I think in a few weeks he'll be taking a step or two. Then it'll be time to childproof a little higher in the house.

Young love

It's starting already!!

I was hoping to put this off for a few more years.
Perhaps a decade or two, or even seven.
But it's happenening so quickly!

Brent's got a girlfriend!

I was hoping that the first one would at least have hair. But I guess peach fuzz will have to do for now.

At first it was just friendly flirting - mostly on his part. I would put him in the high chair next to Jenna (who is 3 weeks younger than him), and he would flap and shriek and grin from ear to ear. Jenna always played it cool, continuing to stuff pancakes in (and on) her cheeks and pretending not to notice his advances. But it seems she has finally given in to his charm. This morning I set him down and he raced over to her while she played in her saucer. Both of their eyes lit up like it was Christmas! She started laughing and jumping around. He kept trying to pull himself closer, and she even put her hands over top of his to help him up, it seemed.

She's a feisty, hot-tempered little lass. I think they are soulmates. They can both go from zero to tantrum in 4 seconds flat.

It seems they are telepathically connected, too! Whenever one of them wakes up, the other across the room instantly knows it and is awake in a few seconds, even when they don't make any noise. They take naps, eat, and play at the same time as the other. And I hear it is quite a sight to see them on the floor playing and laughing and crawling over each other. They are the talk of the baby circuit these days.

His first real girlfriend.
(sigh.....)
It's all downhill from here...

All Smiles...

There's my boy! Showing off his new haircut. I especially like how he sets it off with the meat on his shirt and the carrot bits on his face. But this is actually a pretty clean picture compared to most meals. And they are my only time to really take pictures, because if he's on the floor, he's on the move. He was really good this weekend. We did some swimming, which he is really starting to like. And a couple trips to the store, where he practiced some of his new high-volume vocals. And a lot of crawling, pulling, smacking toys together, and general baby fun.

He's also starting to figure out that we are pretty fun people to play with. And it's no longer acceptable for him to be banished to his crib at night when there is so much left to do! I guess he is starting to have a little bit of separation anxiety. But after a rough start, he is usually sleeping well the rest of the night. I try to be strong. I really do. He gets on his knees, grasps his prison bars, and yells like a banshee...tears soaking his shirt as they pour down his sad red face. It all but kills me. I admit I gave in twice. But in the end I resisted, as I could see it was only making things worse. Good thing he's so happy during the day, or else I'd really feel like a heel.

Bert & Ernie

Woodburn/paint I just finished for my niece.

Cruisin' Along

That's how I feel about things right now...they're just cruisin right along. Things are pretty easy for the moment. He is having a great time learning and exploring life. He is eating just about anything I give him and seems to enjoy picking things up and doing it himself now. I know his independence will be both a blessing as well as having its difficulties. But for now I just enjoy watching him as he experiences the world with new eyes full of wonder, and a heart unscathed by all the challenges he has yet to face.

I think he may have said Mama this morning. He has been practicing with the "m" sounds lately. Whether it is for that reason or just exploring his new vocals, I'm not sure. But it sounded so sweet :) And I can't wait to hear it again.

Crazy baby :)

I swear this boy gets nuttier every day. He's like a little maniac, crawling into every crevice he can get into. We've actually created a safe area for him finally. It's called the hallway. We have a baby gate at one end, and all the doors shut to close it in. Andy washed down all the walls and trim, so maybe his hands will stay clean longer than 2 minutes now. He loves it though. He's so content to stay in there for 15 minutes while I do the dishes or some other small chore. But that's about all I can handle. I hate stepping over that thing constantly. So usually he still has the run of the house. It just takes the eyes of a hawk to keep him out of trouble.

I'm so amazed at how quickly he can get into trouble now. He can crawl like lightning. And it used to be he would stay within your line of sight. Now that he's getting used to things, he likes to wander off.

Oh well, nothing every parent hasn't gone through. It is just such an abrupt change in things. But I love seeing his personality develop and seeing him learn all these new things. He loves to experience, and (so far at least) he's not scared of much of anything. He acts first and asks questions later.

I know I need to get more pictures up. But I'm afraid they'd all be blurry right now. I'll do my best!

Blelp...

That's the sound throw-up makes on the hardwood floor first thing in the morning. He always tends to do that when he has a cough. Plus he got up twice last night, so he must not be feeling his best. Last night he ate cooked carrots and potatoes, and a little bit of cheese. He's doing really good with the solid foods now! Of course it takes him 1/2 hour to get 10 bites in him. But he'll get faster. I'm starting to believe I won't have to pack baby jar food in his lunches for school someday.

He's getting to be quite the ladies man at daycare. All the teachers are spoiling him rotten. And the two little girls his age are constantly after him. I may have to start earlier than I thought on that list of qualities any woman has to have to be good enough for him. HA! Just kidding...none of them will be!! Makes me wonder how my in-laws put up with me! I don't see how anyone is ever good enough for your first born. It's a good thing they're more laid back than I am! I'm lucky to have them :)

Coughin' Cutie

Poor guy has a little summer cold. It doesn't seem to be slowing him down any, though. Just a little cough and a runny nose. But he's as chipper as ever.

He ate a few lima beans last night. He made a funny face every time he ate one, but then continued to put another one in his mouth. So either he liked them, or is a glutton for punishment. I'm not sure which - he's a bit crazy some days. I tried to go and see him for lunch today, but he was taking a nap. Seems like that's always the case these days. I guess that means he's finally getting a little bit of a nap schedule. We'll see how long that lasts :)

Tonight I think we'll try some green beans. Or maybe peas. Can you tell I don't have much to write about today?

New Pictures

I'm so bad. I moused up his hair to take pictures! But it looks so cute all curly like that :)

It's not like it matters...in an hour or two he'll have some sort of food product in it anyhow.





He had a fun weekend, I think. Saturday Kathleen and Amanda and Allison came to visit again (my sister and her two girls), so he had someone to play with his own size. And I got some practice learning how to chase a toddler around. It's hard to imagine he'll ever be running around, but I know it's just around the corner!

And yesterday we went shopping for Andy's birthday present (he likes to start early). Brent was so good! He lasted through three different store and over 2 hours of shopping. And he was happy and smiley the whole time. He travels so well. It makes things so much easier. And then he napped on the way home without even getting fussy. He just loves riding around in the carts and watching everyone. It's nice to be able to go out without giving a bottle or changing a diaper every hour. And then we had a nice swim in the pool (swim = splashing and kicking for 20 minutes), so that tired us out for the evening. All in all, it was a really good weekend. He's really such a joy :)