10 months

Can't believe we've made it to ten months.  Why do I feel like we are still in survival mode?  Maybe because I don't work full time so our house is more lived in.  Maybe because 2 kids is at least 4 x the work.  But Tim and I are muddling through.  On to the big guy's update.

He LOVES his big sister (when she's not hurting him).  He wants to play with all her toys and follow her around.  He wants to eat whatever she eats.  He thinks she is super funny.  He plays games with us!  I don't remember Abby doing this.  He makes a really good baby monster or polar bear that we have to run away from.  His growls are hilarious.  He also likes to be the finder for hide and seek.

He's crawling, climbing, pulling up and playing with push toys, balls, and Little People.

He's always a mess.  Especially at meals.  I often just feed him in a diaper because he needs a bath after most meals.  His absolute favorite food is blueberries.  Today I got him to say "blue" when he was eating them.  This month he tried gazpacho, ground turkey, pork, and cheese quesadilla.  He has 3 teeth, all on the bottom row.

He loves bath time, especially splashing and squirter toys he can chew on.

He's adventurous and quick to smile or cry. He usually has an injury that neither Tim or I witnessed happening.  His face went under the water 3 times while playing with Abby in this pool and it didn't even phase him.  Looks like we have another danger mouse on our hands.

He is still very proud that he can pull himself up and grins or laughs nearly every time he does it.

 He still naps twice a day, usually 2 2 hour naps.  He always wakes up with a smile.  His bed time is about 7:00 pm and he wakes between 545-615 am.

He's a content baby as long as no one is bugging him and is always getting compliments about his adorable dimples from strangers.

I have no idea how much he weighs right now but he's definitely outgrowing his first car seat.  His personality is really starting to shine.  He might be the only outgoing one in our little family.  Time to start planning for the first birthday.  Can you believe it?  Happy 10 months Baby Person, it's been an interesting ride.

Abby's big girl day

What started as just a Brewer game with mom and dad become a really big day for this little lady.

In the morning one of her best bud's hung out while his brother went to the doctor.

They played in the pool.

He did a silly dance.  Abby was all giggles at all his "jokes" and "silly sounds".  He loved having such an adoring audience.

I brought out a new toy to play with - water bugs.  They both loved it.

Then we dropped off Emerson at Lori's because he's a baby and this was  a big girl event.  She was so excited to see the Packers/Brewers.  She was shouting with glee when she saw the stadium "That's where the Brewer's live Daddy."  Thanks to Ryan Braun we even bought her a new hat with our vouchers.

She loved all the treats, especially "the sour one" (frozen lemonade).

She enjoyed waving her wrapper like a pom-pom and shouting Luccccccccccccc and Charge.

There was lots of snuggles and no tears.

It was a great to watch Tim enjoy sharing one of his favorite activities with his little girl.

While at the game we got a voicemail from the library.  Abby won the BIG prize for summer reading!  She was so excited she kept thanking them and couldn't stop looking at the game so they could get her picture.  She almost walked into all kind of obstacles leaving the library.  I highly recommend this game.  It's a Disney Princess Cupcake Party game.  She's in love.  It's pretty fun.  She woke at 6 am today to play it again.

It was a pretty great day.  When Tricia came over this morning Abby asked her if she wanted to go to a Brewer's game.  That's our girl!

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I'm hiding.

Tim's been gone for 12 hours now and these kids are trying to break me.  Emerson is in his crib.  Sleeping? Who cares! He's quiet.  Abby's watching a Wild Kratt's episode from the library.  I'm sitting by the fan hoping that any minute I'll hear "IT'S DADDY!".

Then I'm going to run out the front door and never come back.  Grab one of the tents and live at Yellowstone Park.  12 hours with at least one kid crying for 11 hours makes for a loooooooooooooooooooooooooong day.

Sometimes I think that if He doesn't give us more than we can handle He sure likes to push us to the limits.  Every time I thought I was really going to lose it Abby would reign us back in.  "I love you so much Mommy" or singing to Emerson so he wouldn't cry.

So tonight as I prepare for bed I'll try to remember those squeals and laughs as Emerson had his first time on a swing.  The way Abby gently hugged and kissed Emerson after their naps. (YES, she napped today. Thank you Jesus).  The I love you so much Mommy when I belted her in the car at 6 pm for the emergency Target run for formula.  The quiet "hi" and wave from the baby that screamed all the way home from the store but was so happy  to see us when it was over.  Or my favorite of the day - as I was yelling at her to come clean up the water she spilled "Mom, leave me alone. I'm trying to go potty in here". Hahahahaha.

I'm trying to soak it in ladies.  But sometimes a beer might help.  Wishing us all an easier day tomorrow.  Abby has found me and said "I want you again".  Soak it up.

Early morning photo shoot

7:30 and your kids are driving you nuts?  Why not do a photo shoot?  Turned this day around.

One of the rare occasions he didn't cry when she touched him.

100 books

This year we signed Abby up for the Summer Reading program.  Our goal was to read 100 books.  We received all kinds of coupons to different summer activities as rewards for reading to places like Cool Waters, the museum, Betty Brinn, Discovery World, a local pool and some day trip places like Old World Wisconsin.  Being the sentimental mama I am I want to keep a record for Abby girl of her first summer reading list.  An * means this a book Abby really liked it, that she asked to reread it several times.  A # is a book that I really liked and recommend to other parents.

Abby's first summer reading list (Summer 2013)

1)Big Bear Hug - Nicholas Oldland * #- I loved this book.  It's about a bear that hugs everybody, but also about preserving our forests.
2) The Little Mermaid  *
3) The Lion King (Golden Book)  *
4) Micky Mouse and the Pet Show
5) Pizza Kittens  *
6) Bambi
7) Find a Cow Now * # This is a fun book about a city dog going to the country to find a cow because he has never seen one.
8) Dino Pets *
9) Tangled
10) The Jungle Book
11) Please Write Back - Jennifer E Morris #So cute.  Waiting for a letter from Grandma.
12) Max and Ruby's Treasure Hunt - Rosemary Wells. * #This is a treasure hunt book with flaps to see what it's in each hiding location.  It was a lot of fun to read and look at.
13) A Giraffe Did One - Jerry Pallotta
14) Biscuit and the Little Pup - Capucilli
15) Clifford's Valentine's Day = Bridwell
16) One Gorilla - Browne
17) Please Don't Feed the Tiger Lily (Disney, fairy book)
18) In the Sea - Ferraro
19) Danger at the Diesel works (Thomas the Train)
20 ) The Super Hungry Dinosaur - Waddell
21) Teacher's Pet - Mon-Kong * Abby loved this level 1 reader.  It had all the Disney Princesses in it.
22) Clifford's Class Trip - Bridwell
23) If I Ran the Zoo - Dr. Seuss
24) Lady and the Tramp
25) Carrot Soup - John Seagall * # Great Book and it has a recipe for carrot soup on the last page.
26) Dog and Bear Two's Company. * #This is actually a collection of 3 stories about friends Dog and Bear.
27) Monster's Munch Lunch - Tabby
28) Scooby Doo's Thanksgiving Mystery
29) Ol' Mama Squirrel - Stein
30 ) Monkeys - Schreiber
31) Green and Bear it (Muppets book) *We read this every night, she loved it.
32) Velociraptor
33) Monkey and Elephant Feel Better * #Fun book about being a good friend.  Another one that had to be read every night before bed.
34) Bernstein Bear's Computer Trouble
35) Clifford's Birthday Party
36) How Full is Your Bucket # I loved this book but Abby didn't get the concept yet.  I want to get again whens she's older
.37) The Witch's Hat.
38) A Bear For You - Kristen Hall #Describes all different kinds of bears
39) Old Turtle's Soccer Team
40) Swim Boots Swim (Dora the Explorer)
41) Pinocchio
42) Max Cleans Up - Rosemary Wells. *One of Abby's old favorites.  The Max and Ruby series has alot of fun stories.
43) Martha Speaks Jokes and Riddles
44) Once Upon a Banana
45) Sammy and the Dinosaurs - Whybrow *Another series Abby loves.  Usually they are called Harry and the Dinosaurs, this must be the first one.
46) On the Farm
47) Zoo Achoo.  * # Really fun book about one animal at the zoo getting sick and the effect on the rest.  Lots of silly noises/sounds in this book.  She laughed alot reading this book.
48) Follow those Feet (Dora the Explorer). *
49) When I was King * #A book about the hardship of being the older sibling with a new baby in the house.
50) The Moon Over Star. #This book is about an African American family during the moon landing and touches a little on civil rights.
51) Peter Pan
52) Bump in the Night - Hemingway. * #18 stars for this book.  Abby loved it.  We had to read it several times a day. I'm pretty sure Santa will be bringing it to this little girl.  It's about a little monster in the closet.
53) Pest of the West
54) Jen the Hen
55) Belle, the Last Mule at Gee's Bend - Ramsey. #True story about a mule that pulled MLK's casket.
56) Snow White
57) Cinderella
58) Risky Rails (Thomas the Train)
59) Quiet in the Garden
60) The Polar Bear's Home. #Talks about Polar Bears and how we can help save them from being extinct.
61) Fozzie's Funny Business. *Another Muppet's Book so she loved it.
62) Clifford for President
63) Ariel Above the Sea
64) How Do Dinosaurs Go To School? *#Another Series that Abby enjoys.
65) Endangered Animals -Forier #This was a little too advanced for Abby to but a good, simple book.
66) Secret of the Green Engine (Thomas the Train)
67) The Close Shave (Thomas the Train)
68) Knuffle Bunny Too - Willems. *Cute read, I liked the art in this book.  They used photography but the characters where cartoons.
69) Laugh Out Loud Baby - Johnston
70) If it Weren't for you - Zolotow
71) Diego's Polar Bear Rescue *What an exciting day for her when she found this book at the library. Go Diego!!
72) Here Comes Doctor Hippo - Jonathon London *#Another Christmas gift.  Cute fun book.  We've been reading every day since we got it.
73) Harry and the Snow King - Ian Whybrow. * Same character as the dinosaur books she likes.
74) Digging Armadillos
75) Martha Speaks Toy Trouble. *Abby is really into this show right now.
76) Owl Babies - Martin Waddell. *#Really sweet book about baby owls waiting for their mommy to come back.  The librarian recommended this one.  I think they read it at story time once two.
77) Tiny's Big Adventure
78) All Aboard A Train Story
79) On a Road to Africa #A book based on an animal orphanage in Africa.  Great pictures and rhymes.
80) Crankee Doodle. *A silly book about the "story" behind the song Yankee Doodle.
81) Ready? Click. Caren Stelson. *# A book about African animals.
82) Just Me and My Little Brother. Mercer Mayer *#
83) Kermit's Costume Capter *
84) Hello Mommy Zoo Borns
85) A Lion's Pride
86) Princess and Puppies. * Of course she loved it, more Disney Princesses.
87) Captain Pepper's Pets -Grindley.  *This is a long book, reading level 2 or 3 but Abby loved it.  It made for some long bed times.
88) Dora goes to the Doctor/Dentist -Rosebrough. *#Dora explains all the different equipment at her appointments.
89) Step This Way - Tish Rabe
90) I love you! A Bushel and A Peck.
91) Counting in the Grassland 1-2-3
92) The Princess and The Frog The Essential Guide. *She loved it, but so so so so long.
93) Thomas and The Shark *Another Thomas the Train Book
94) The Best Train Set Ever. *#This book is from 1978 but we both liked it.  It's a chapter book but really cute.
95) You're a Bear
96) The Littlest Dinosaur and The Naughty Rock
97) Ruby's Rainbow (Max and Ruby book)
98) Tell Me One Thing Dad # Cute little story about a dad and his daughter's bed time ritual.
99) The World In the Candy Egg
100)Winnie The Pooh's Silly Day *#Winnie the Pooh and friends try to out fool the April's Fool.

We did it with one to spare.  We had a lot of dud books but some definite Christmas gifts.  Looking forward to next year when she might be able to read a word or two.

The Pen

With Abby's jealousy on the rise and Emerson trying to pull everything onto his baby head or fall down the stairs, I thought I'd bring the play yard out to contain him so I can make dinner these days.

"Mommy, mommy!  I want to go in the cave too".
"Abby, you never wanted to go in there when you were a baby.  That's for babies to stay safe".
"Please. I love you. I want to share with Emerson.  I want to play with him".

So they did.

And then she bit his foot and left a mark.

9 months

He's got 2 teeth!  This is the only picture I have of them.  They are razor sharp.  Abby is very interested in them and is often letting him bite her finger.  She didn't believe me that babies didn't have teeth until he got his first one and now it is very intriguing to her.

He's practicing a whole lot of this:

 And this:

And this.

He still army crawls most of the time but has been working on getting that belly off the ground.  He is starting to wave and he has become really social like his sister was as a baby.

He says book and ba-ba.  He has said mama maybe twice but says da-da and even picked up a picture of Tim yesterday and said Da Da.  He consistently says Ba-Ba when he sees a bottle.  Usually he just roars and growls because that gets the most laughs.  I was worried about how he is "slower" than Abby at crawling and climbing but he seems a lot more verbal than she was.

His favorite foods right now are everything you give him.  He's had chicken, broccoli, yogurt, cheddar cheese, pork, cherries, nectarine, parsnips and toast this month.  He's transitioning over to formula a lot easier than his mama.  I'm having a real hard time letting the nursing part of his life end.  With Abby I had no guilt and just stopped at 8 months.  It just feels so permanent this time.

We've started reading to him before bed and he loves it.  Every time you turn the page he giggles.  His favorite toys are all Abby's - her musical instruments and her Little People princesses and zoo animals are played with most often.  His favorite game is peek a bo or monster (he's the monster and we run to the couch to be safe).  This great game keeps Abby from hitting, pushing or kicking him for about 30 minutes a day.

He takes two great naps 1-2.5 hrs each and sleeps consistently through the night now.  He goes to bed 630-7:00 which is difficult at times because my family starts all events real late and he does not like to be off his routine.  We say no to more events now and it feels good.  He wakes up between 5:30 and 6:30 am.  Not great for his Mommy and Daddy that are not morning people.  But it sure makes Abby happy to have an early bird buddy.

Look how long he is! 

His official 9 month old statistics were height 29.5 inches (little over the 85% ile), weight 18# 11 oz (holding strong at the 35th %ile).  Dr Cornell says he's going to be " a real string bean".  No shots and no concerns this visit.  Abby stayed with some friends so it was a nice relaxed appointment where I remembered ALL my questions and got all the answers.  It was fantastic!  And yes he is wearing sweatpants in July, and I'm loving it.