11 and 12 Months!

Well, Levi is obviously not 10 months old anymore.  Clearly I'm behind.

Some things from the last two (!) months.  

He finally got his first tooth at eleven months old..on top.  As of now, he has one tooth on top and one tooth on bottom.  We affectionately refer to him as Snaggletooth, and he resembles a jack o lantern.  As of yesterday, his second top tooth has popped through.

(11 months)

He loves to clap as soon as someone else starts clapping or someone tells him "good job" or "yay."  I find this adorable and love his chub little hands.

(11 months)

He continues to stand on his own and has gotten pretty fast at crawling but chooses not to walk.  I think the most he has taken on his own is three steps.

(11 months)

 

He needs a haircut.  I cut off his curls prior to his one year pictures.  We wanted him to look like a little boy and the curls needed to go.  I don't regret it, but I do enjoy when the back starts to curl some days.  His whole head of hair has now grown to the point that he needs an all-over hair cut.  The front falls into his eyes if we don't keep it brushed to the side.

(11 months)

He has turned snuggly on us.  I didn't see it coming.  Don't get me wrong, I love love love it, but I thought the snuggles were gone.  Somewhere right around his birthday, he decided he liked laying his head on Mom's shoulder.  I wouldn't have it any other way.

(11 months)

We've entered into somewhat of an attached phase.  This also came right around his birthday.  Its generally not too bad as he is still able to be distracted.  However, there are certain times he only wants mom.  I usually wouldn't have it any other way.

(12 months) 

He's growing.  Mostly just taller.  He eats tons (if Mom and Dad don't cut him off) but he hasn't gained much weight.  One of his favorite activities is escaping from Mom and visiting Dad in his office.  Here he finds the printer which he used to be just tall enough to reach the on/off button (Dad doesn't enjoy this but Mom does as she knows he is safe and occupied with minimal supervision while not being able to see him).  We also have to make sure things left on the table are pushed away from the edge as he can easily reach up and over, but can't see over.  I one time found him sucking on a banana peel he had pulled off the edge.  Thankfully I learned early and no plates or glasses have been grabbed.

(12 months)

He understands.  He knows what he is supposed to play with and what he is not.  He now has a mischievous look where he looks at one of his parents before doing something he knows he's not supposed to.  This is encouraging to know that consistency is paying off, but definitely a reminder of what is to come.

(12 months)

He loves the vacuum.  Its funny.  He follows me around while I vacuum and if the vacuum is turned off, he knows he's not allowed to touch it (ours tips over easily).  You should see the wonder he has while staring at it and trying so hard to leave it alone.

(12 months)

He continues to love people..especially in the grocery store or one of my favorites, Hobby Lobby.  We made a lot of trips to Hobby Lobby prior to his birthday party and we are now friends with most of the cashiers.  

(12 months)

Boy do we love him! 

10 Months!

Ten months!  We are closing in on the one year mark!  My heart is so full because of the blessing in this little boy!

His new tricks: clapping and standing (each on their own and simultaneaously).  Climbing the stairs.  Crawling intside the cabinets.  Baths in the big tub.  Successfully going up and over the one step landing.  We even get some waving from time to time.  And..sleeping through the night again! 

His little body just wants to go and go and explore so much.  He can crawl at a rather rapid pace when he wants to..and turns it into somewhat of a game for us to chase after him.  He's in a stage right now where he laughs at everything (I know..what an awful stage to be in).  I'll have my eye on him, and then he darts down the hallway.  I ask him where he is, and I hear laughing and the clomp clomp of his crawl suddently speeds up..  He also thinks its funny everytime he successfully craws up and over the landing into Dad's office.  Clay taught him how to crawl down the one step off the landing without face planting, and he has it mastered.

As I mentioned, he is sleeping through the night again from time to time.  Levi has been a great sleeper for us from about 3 or 4 months old but a couple months ago, he started getting up at least once a night - sometimes for up to 2 or 3 hours.  Those were long nights with a little boy who just wanted to sit on mom's lap and play.  But, as with all phases, it has passed and now even if he does get up, its a quick feeding and he's back to sleep.

We take a trip to the library every week or two and get Levi new books to look at.  He loves for us to read to him, but generally favors the same book over and over; we just don't know which book it will be for that week.  Its been fun being able to take advantage of a decent library not too far away, and I've gotten into the habit of reading more for myself.  My selections recently have been a parenting book (Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman - highly recommended!!), a biography of sorts (The Duck Commander Family by Willie and Korie Robertson), and a feminist take on more women of my generation choosing to stay home (Homeward Bound by Emily Matchar).  Quite the variety I know, but I've enjoyed all three of those for vastly different reasons.

I couldn't ask for a better buddy to have with me throughout the day.  We have our rough spots but they are far outweighed by the very bright spots.  Right now I'm enjoying him getting a little older as each month brings more interaction and new "tricks."  We were a bit shocked when he started standing on his own so I guess we'll see what his next trick will be!

Mini Van in the Big City

This post is long overdue, but it might be Levi's only visit to NYC so I figured I should share it.  I have to say, New York City is just not quite my thing.  Visiting in the summer does NOT help make it more appealing but in my defense, I have visited when the Christmas decorations were still up in January and its still not my thing.  Give me some wide open spaces over dirty concrete floor to ceiling any day.

However, I shouldn't come off as such a debbie downer when we really did have a nice trip!  Actually, I'm so proud of Clay earning his invitation on this trip!  We went for a long weekend in July as it was an incentive trip for the reps in his company.

We stayed in the Waldorf Astoria.  This was nice for several reasons but one of the main ones being that we were within walking distance of just about everywhere, but we werent in the middle of the chaos of Times Square:

Levi in Times Square!  We were rather obvious tourists for two reasons: 1. tennis shoes and 2. baby.  Those two things don't really hide in NYC.

 Levi and Clay in Central Park!  I learned on my tour of the city that all of Central Park is man-made.  The tour guide made it a point to say that not even a single blade of grass grew there on its own and that literally every part of it was designed and brought in. 

 My treat on the trip was a stop at Crumbs cupcake shop.  Cupcake shops are rather trendy I know, but I wanted to go and get to pick out any cupcake I wanted.  So we did.

I picked out a chocolate and vanilla milkshake cupcake and Clay went with classic cookies n cream!

To be honest, they were dry.  It was rather disappointing.  However, the most bizarre lady was in Crumbs.  She offered to babysit Levi so we could go to a broadway show.  We were both very surprised by the friendliness of this grandma, but then again, our whole weekend trip showed us that people in NYC love babies (not so much strollers)..and therefore talk to you and your baby.  Needless to say, we thanked her for her generous offer but declined.

Guess what else happened on this trip?!  Clay turned 27!  We were limited in celebratory options but he opted to eat Chinese that evening for dinner, and we both wore shoes other than sneakers.  Here is our selfie picture complete with stroller:

Monday morning I spent on an air conditioned tour bus around the city while Clay sat in class.  God was so gracious as Levi was a very well behaved travel companion.  I also made friends with a mother and son (from Indiana - the Midwest kindness) who were so nice - they were always aware of me on the walking portions and made sure I could get the stroller up and down stairs or tight places!  I know it may seem small, but they were a huge blessing!

One of our walking stops was the 9/11 memorial site:

I took other pictures on the tour but we're going to move on.



That evening we went to eat at a small Italian place.  I thought it was rather humorous that because we had the stroller with us, we were banished to the outside back corner (note stacked tables and chairs behind). 

Just a couple more pictures and we'll be done.  This little guy slept horribly all weekend long.  Oh well.



Finally, for those of you who are not aware, we are the proud new owners of a minivan.  If you are debating, or even considering, the option of minivan ownship, please reach out.  We're here for you and we will convert you as it. is. AWESOME.  Just don't tell anyone we said so. 

All that to say, we welcomed Van to the family by driving her right into the heart of New York City.

View from inside:

Overall, we really did have a great time despite the heat and the fact that we had a 7 month old baby with us in a city that is not really known for their family accomodations.

The sweetest view there was on the way home: 

9 Months!

Our little love bug is 9 months!  Boy has life changed!  The eighth month brought in a whole lot of life changes for our little mister..mostly his ability to move where he wants on his own..and the ninth month continues to show all he is learning about himself and his surroundings!  What fun it is to see Levi learn and understand.

This month has meant lots and lots of books.  Last month he would attempt to help turn a page sometimes, but now he has mastered turning the pages when he wants to help.  Its really cute to see which pages he likes to look at longer than others.  His favorite book right now is the Touch and Feel Farm Animals book, and he literally turns to each page and touches wherever the textured part is before turning to the next page.  We also recently checked out a What Am I Tractor book from the library.  This book has a little peek a boo hole to the next page to give a hint as to which type of tractor is coming up.  I think I have that book memorized (as well as my tractor types down) along with all the noises they make.

Levi continues to scootch about where he wants.  He will make his way walking along the couch and coffee and end tables to get where he wants before plopping down.  We've had a few bumps and bruises but I think he's learned to catch himself better than before.

He has also recently started waving and clapping.  Oh - and dada was spoken the day before turning 9 months!  Dad's little heart turned to mush I'm sure :).  Still no teeth so we have his gummy open mouthed smile to enjoy a while longer yet..which I don't mind in the least!

A couple pictures to leave you with as his monthly crib pictures are getting very difficult to take..such a little squirmy worm!

8 Months!

Well, we've hit 8 months..the one year mark keeps getting closer!

I know I always say this, but Levi really does keep getting more and more fun as he gets older!  He started making me laugh on a regular basis around four months and he just hasn't stopped!  This little wiggle worm has changed drastically this month in his abilities, and his personality comes out as he learns more and expresses more.

Over the course of what felt like two days, he learned to push himself up to sit, crawl on all fours with his belly off the ground, and pull himself up to standing on anything he can reach.  This probably happened more over the course of two weeks but he went from being a somewhat stationary baby to what feels like a mobile toddler! 

He seems to find every possible cord in our house and gravitate toward it and unfortunately, I think he's learning when he is supposed to do something and when he is not; his little mischevious look comes out at times.  I say unfortunately because that means discipline has to take place and thats when parenting becomes a challenge..so far I've just gotten to love on my little boy!

What a joy we have in our little boy!  So thankful to God for this blessing!

Blueberry Festival

Behold, the Blueberry Festival:

Are you as astonished as we were?!  I had seen an ad for a Blueberry Festival this weekend and eventually talked Clay into letting us go!  This is the excitement and non-stop activity we were met with. 

I personally have this long-time affection for fruit festivals.  One summer, I made it a goal to attend as many as I could..I still have great memories of the Elmwood Strawberry Festival filled with Elvis impersonators, strawberry shortcake, friends, and stuffing myself with fresh strawberries.  I'm afraid this Blueberry Fest won't quite go down in the books of having the same caliber, but we made the most of it!

Clay was more interested in taking pictures and eating the bluberries than actually picking: 

(note me in the background actually working)

 We all wore blue in honor of attending the Blueberry Festival:

Levi inspecting my work:

We ended up picking about 4 1/2 pounds of bluberries!  We found out that basically the Blueberry Festival just means the blueberries are on sale for $1.99 per pound..and blueberry smoothies are available for purchase.

My boys :)