Henry's 10 Months Old

There were so many Fall firsts for Henry this month. First pumpkin patch, trunk-or-treat and Halloween! I love that I get to help make these wonderful memories for Henry.

Also, baby curls, lots of travel, and pulling up and bumping into everything pretty much sums up everything else that happened this month.

 

Here is what's new this month:

Eating: It finally happened, something most breastfeeding women dread...being bit! Ouch! Once he bites, he is done nursing, so hopefully he gets the picture fast.

He tried Spaghetti for the first time and loved it!

Per doctors request, I have been doing my very best to fatten my child up, so he has been eating a lot more fatty meats, dairy and rich fruits/veggies. I've even been putting butter on his toast, which of course he loves. He gained two pounds, so I guess the better on the toast trick worked : )

Activity: Henry loves to clap his hands, especially right after bath time. I guess that's when he's happiest? He has also started shaking his head "no", although, I don't think he knows what it means yet.


This boy! He pulls up on everything, thus creating lots of falls. This month he fell right on his upper lip (the Frenectomy) and busted it. There was so much blood! But thankfully it healed and is looking well.

Well, hello there, sticker. 

He figured out that he can take the sticker off. Grrr.

Sleeping: Two words, time change. We had finally caught a break on the sleeping issues. He had been sleeping 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. if not later for a few weeks and then BAM, the cursed time change occurred (that I once adored) and it messed up everything for Henry. He now wakes up before 7 no matter how much a try and tweak his schedule. Maybe it will even out in a few more weeks.


Doctor Visit Stats: 

• Height: 29 inches
• Weight: 19 lbs 7 oz
• Other: Had his blood drawn to check for iron levels and it was a horrible experience (mainly for me to watch). Thankfully all came back normal, so we don't have to do it again.
  

 Likes, Dislikes and Other Milestones:

•  Has started to pat my back when I pat his.
• Celebrated first Halloween, dressed up as a Dalmatian puppy while big bro went as a firefighter.
• Went to his first pumpkin patch.
• Laughs at himself when he scrunches up his nose and snorts.
• Flew to Virgina for the first time for a wedding and had many other firsts: strayed up way too late, rode a carousel and saw Aunt Molly, Uncle Jonathan and Cousin Cassidy.
• Climbed a few steps on the stairs, yikes!
• Cutting 3 new teeth!

He is just the happiest baby!

A Life Update on Emerson

The Good. The Bad. The Ugly...and The Wonderful.

I'm talking about life moments with a toddler. Oh my, the past six months has taught me a lot about my little guy. Emerson is just so much fun at this age, and yet so very challenging. He makes me question every parenting decision I make, teaches me new patience daily, has made me pull my hair out, and yet still I discover a deeper love for him.

If it sounds like a crazy roller costar, it is.

Parenting a toddler is no joke, but watching him grow into the little man that he is becoming is so very worth it.

He laughs at his own jokes. He likes to play with his brother (on his own terms of course). He is social and yet shy. You never know which Emerson is going to show up (personality wise) when we are in public. He is very verbal. I often catch him singing Faithfully by Journey or There's a Fountain Free from our church song book. He likes to mimic everything! He loves his momma, but is attached to daddy's hip on the weekends.

The past six months has brought some changes. He's finally adjusting to having baby brother around (only took about 6 months, eek). He had tubes put in his ears and it made a world of difference on his mood since the ear infection were gone. Now, unfortunately, we can't blame his tantrums on his ears...its all him! We celebrated holidays, went on vacations, played and grew. All the while, I didn't think he was changing much, until I went back and looked at pictures. Emerson has changed so much! It's scary how quickly my mind forgets the baby he once was.

Each day he changes, each day he makes me smile, each day I laugh with him and each day he makes me mad and feel tired. But that's what it's like being a parent. You take the good with the bad, with the ugly, and in return you get the wonderful : )
 

Just after his second birthday.

 He looks like such a baby here!

 

This is our everyday norm. No pants and lot of tears.

I can't even handle that hair and those glasses. This was right before our beach vacation in July.

 Heart melted. Probably one of my favorite photos ever.

And we can't forget about brother. This was the first time Emerson ever asked to hold Henry. Made my world. 

Showing off our more feminine side.

First day back at Play School. It's like he grew up overnight in this photo.

 Sharing sweet hugs with brother.

Happy 2.5 years, Emerson. We have survived this far, let's make it to age three!

October Travels, 2015

It's that time of year...time for beautiful Fall weddings! We had two weddings on back-to-back weekends. Location wise, they were far apart, but we embraced the travel and enjoyed spending time with family and friends.

First stop was Tulsa, OK. Jesse was a groomsman in his college roommates' wedding. And I knew the bride from PR classes in college.

One of the best parts of this trip was getting to spend time with my brother, Ty, and his family.

Emerson's cousin, Jack, is only 9 months older than him, so it was so much fun to watch them play together.

We took full advantage of our car space and loaded all the kids (and adults) to an aquarium and tour downtown Tulsa.

Only picture of all four cousins.

At the aquarium.

 

My favorite picture of these two!

Trip number two was to Virginia for Jesse's cousins' wedding. We loved the cooler temperatures, beautiful Fall leaves and spending time with family. 

Family photo time!

Pops and Gramma with all their grand kids.
This was the first time all the grand kids had been together.

Trying to make the kids smile means adults making funny faces too : )

With Aunt Molly.

A special treat was the fact that my college roommate lived very close to the wedding site, so we got to stay with her and her husband for the whole trip. Loved catching up with her.

Touring the Air and Space Museum with Aunt Leah and Uncle Evan.

Nothing like a little light reading and chocolate milk with Pops :)

Henry's first carousel ride. He liked it!

Ah, fun trips, but we are so very thankful to be back in our own beds...for now, anyway :).

My Little Fireman and His Trusty Friend

Hope everyone had a happy Halloween! It rained (and rained) here in Lumberton, TX. But that didn't stop several adorable trick-or-treaters from getting out and about.

We had a memorable Halloween this year, due to the rain (flooding, really). We started our day by going to the Children's Museum, but by the time we came back, the rain had flooded our streets and we couldn't get through. So we went to our church building, hung out, ate our Chick-Fil-A and had many races around the empty fellowship hall. It was actually quite fun : ) That night we stayed in and passed out candy. Emerson thought he needed a pieces of candy every time we had trick-or-treaters come to the door. I may or may not have given in, because I was also eating candy.

Although we didn't trick-or-treat, the kids still dressed up and did several Fall fun activities the days leading up to Halloween.

Here's Emerson the Firefighter with his trusty friend, Henry the Dalmatian. 

 Getting ready to go to our church's Truck-or-Treat.

Emerson's school party.

 Pumpkin Patch time!

Henry's first time at the Pumpkin Patch. 

He loved riding around in the wagon.

A big milestone for Emerson was jumping in the bouncy house. He has always been too afraid to go in. I did have to go in with him and only one other child was in there, so I guess that seemed a little less overwhelming for him.

Happy Fall fun to all!