Happy 9... errr 10 Months!

I failed to post a nine month update.  However, I had this one started.  So, you'll get my nine/ten month update at once.

Nine.  A number that we love...


We dated nine months before getting engaged.
There were nine people standing on the stage during our wedding.
Rubix was nine months old when we adopted her in 2009.
I began my pregnancy in the year 2009 and carried Reagan for nine months.
Our first night in our new house was the ninth day of last May.
Reagan is now nine months old!

Technically, his 9 month birthday came and went without much ado a week month ago today.  Richard's family was in town, so we were busy entertaining and being entertained.  We spent the morning at the aquarium, came home for lunch, and then went to have our picture taken as a family (and others of Reagan with his cousin Samuel).  The rest of the week we... drove to Orlando to spend time with my family on Easter Sunday, spent the night and went to the Magic Kingdom on Monday, spent Tuesday resting and then went to the beach that evening, ate lunch with Richard on Wednesday, and then Reagan had his 9 month check up and we spent time with the family on Thursday.

Now, for the 10 month post:

Reagan is now proficient at...
- saying "Momma" and "Dada"
- clapping
- super-fast crawling
- walking next to the furniture while just barely holding on
- standing with large toys in his hands
- squatting and standing back up without anything to pull up on
- climbing over his tunnel we were using as a barrier to keep him in the living room (He thinks this is especially funny.)
- moving and climbing on top of the empty Atari box to reach things higher up on our entertainment center
- pushing objects while walking behind them
- feeding himself using his hands (The spoon usually ends up on the floor.)
- reading (Haha! Not really, but it sure sounds like he thinks he can read!)

Reagan LOVES...
- playing with his big sister Rubix
- crawling all over the living room
- reading books
- people watching
- when his daddy gets home from work
- playing peek-a-boo
- eating
- finding snacks in his music table's hidden compartment
- EASTER EGGS!
- empty cardboard boxes
- grocery shopping (mostly to people watch)
- playing at the mall playground
- Bible class (especially when he gets to hold the plastic toys)
- LIFE

So... I guess that's my big update.  Can't believe our little guy is only 2 months away from his first birthday!  Where did the time go??  I'm more in love with him every day!  He is so well behaved and laid back.  God has truly blessed us with an excellent child.

Ocho.

My baby is now 2/3 of the way through his first year!  EEK!  He changes so much and I love him even more every day.   Chasing him exhausts me, but he's a busy boy who needs to burn off some energy (and I need the exercise, anyway)!  I enjoy making things for him. (Cooking and sewing are two of my favorite things to do anyway and the fact that I'm preparing things for my son's enjoyment makes it even BETTER!)

Rockin' the fisherman hat and nerd shirt.

Pulling up the bathroom rug.

Telling me it's time to get off the computer.

Accomplishments this past month:

• Crawling quickly.
• Crawling up a single step/onto the fireplace hearth.
• Standing on his own for about 5 seconds.
• Growing 3 new teeth.  (He's got 5 teeth at 8 months!)
• Signing "more".
• Sleeping 12 hours at a time. (WOOHOO!)

Obsessions this past month:

• Socks.
• Shoe laces.
• Montel Williams in THIS commerical! (He'll still stop whatever he's doing to watch it... and lean to the side to see around my big head when he's eating, too!)
• Pulling up the corners of rugs (particularly the one in the kitchen).
• Rubix (her tail, her feet, her face, her everything)!
• Pushing an empty box over to the chair to stand on it.
• Puffs.
• Food.
• Signing "more"... even when it's not appropriate.
• Fake coughing for attention (especially in church services).
• Drinking out of my water glass.
• Climbing on the hearth.
• Bath time (and the bath tub in general).

A Month to Remember

Today marks 7 months since Reagan entered this world, and boy are we thankful we had him this past month!  As my brother-in-law, Shawn put it (while Reagan was crawling around in the funeral home this past Saturday), "It must be nice to think this is just another room to crawl in."  God sure has blessed us with a little one to cheer us up when we all needed it the most.

Here are some pics of Reagan with his Papa.  I have 3 videos, too.  I will make sure he knows all about his wonderful Papa!  I am so thankful to have had the privilege to meet this wonderful, God-fearing man (and to be married to the son he helped raise)!  He will be missed dearly.

Reagan meets Papa and Grandma for the first time, September 2010

Papa with his two Grandboys, September 2010

Reagan plays with Papa's hands, Thanksgiving 2010

Here are some of the little guy's stats:

Weight: 20+ lbs. (will know the exact amount next Monday)
Mobility: Crawling (learned this in the 2.5 weeks we were in Michigan), pulling up on things
Obsessions: Cell phones, buttons, jewelry, zippers, computer cords and shoe laces (he'll untie your shoes while you're sitting on the couch)
Diet: Nursing 3-4 times a day (mostly right before falling asleep), eating solids 3 times a day (rice/oatmeal cereal, apples, bananas, avocado, sweet potatoes, green beans, butternut squash) and snacking between meals on Gerber's puffs (sweet potato and banana flavors).  We'll be adding pears, carrots, acorn squash, and peas to the mix this month!
Teeth: No new ones this month... just the two bottom ones he got in just before turning 6 months.

Celebrating 7 months by riding in his new big-boy seat (still backward, of course)!

First time riding upright in the basket at Wal-mart.  He spent the whole trip grabbing my sunglasses and flirting with old women. :)  I love my little boy!

184 days

A letter for our son.

Today marks six months (that's 184 days) since you, our dear, sweet boy first entered this world.  Sometimes it feels like everything happened just days ago.  I remember everything so vividly--the excitement when the contractions first began, the joy we both felt when we first saw and heard you, the tears we cried after you arrived, thankful everything had gone so smoothly and that you were really here.  Other days, it feels like you've always been with us, like we've always been a family.

Six months ago, we began to look at the world through a whole new pair of eyes.  We learned to enjoy every moment before it passed by.  Our busy lives slowed down so we could take in the "little things".  We watched you sleep, listening to each breath you took.  We've already been through so many "firsts" with you--the first time you... smiled, laughed, rolled over, pulled on a toy in your car seat, bounced in your jumperoo, sat up on your own, ate solid food, cut your first tooth (and another a week later), and many, many more.  Every day you experience something new and we are right there with you, watching your excitement in the things we once took for granted.  Impromptu peek-a-boo games, staring contests, watching Rubix stare at squirrels, eating reading books, singing nursery rhymes, dancing for your entertainment; these are the things our life is about now.  Not a day goes by that we wish for something different.  Not a day goes by that we wonder what life would be like now without you in it.  Every day that goes by includes a thank you to God for giving us such a wonderful, happy, and healthy boy.

Here's to new experiences, and looking at them through your sweet gray-blue eyes!

All our love,
Momma and Daddy

Our sweet boy on the day of his birth!

1 Month

2 Months

3.5 Months

5 Months

6 Months, minus 1 day

Made with Love, By Mom

If you've ever talked to me for more than a minute, you know I'm a sucker for a bargain (and hate paying full price for anything).  In fact, last Sunday I nearly jumped out of my car to save the coupons that had been irreverently scattered across the road at the entrance to our neighborhood.  (Shame on whoever did that!)

Needless to say, the transition from exclusively breastfeeding (which, of course, is the most nutritious and cost-effective FREE-est way to feed your baby) to working our way into the world of solid foods has been really bothering me because of the cost.  The thought of buying baby food off the shelf at full price has really gotten me thinking.  Sure, I can find coupons and maybe get some good deals on occasion (and stock up when I can).  In fact, I did this months ago when some organic baby food was on sale (got $14 worth for about $4).  Still, Reagan will go through those in a matter of days.  I needed to find something much more cost-effective (and a way for me to know EXACTLY what is in the food my little guy is eating).

Enter Wholesome Baby Food, a website chock full of recipes and meal plans for your growing baby.  Not only is this a cheaper way to feed your child, but a much more healthy way, too (and the recipes are EASY)!  Today I made my first batch of homemade sweet potato puree for Reagan.  It only took me 45 minutes of baking 2 sweet potatoes + 5 minutes of pureeing them in the blender with a little breastmilk and some filtered water to get enough to fill 2 ice cube trays plus a little for a taste test.  I'm freezing them for a quick defrost-able meal for our little man. 

Oh, and here's how the taste test went:

Don't let his absent, deer-in-the-headlights look fool you.  He LOVED it!  He just gets sleepy when it's eating time.

A little MySpace action.