10 Months

My sweet H.E. learned to crawl this month!  Just a couple of weeks ago he took off and he can't stop.  Now he's already trying to pull up on the coffee table and walk and go to college by himself and all kinds of other things that I'm not ready for.  Poor mommy.

I'm really very excited that he's able to get around a little bit by himself because that boy is as heavy as he looks.  It's no surprise that beneath those sweet, chunky cheeks there lies a big eater!  Harrison is eating like a big boy--he's graduated to mostly table food and can out eat his brother and me most of the time.  I don't know how he does it.  The kid still has no teeth in his mouth but manages to gum down chicken nuggets like a champ.  Where there's a will, there's a way, I guess.

Little buddy is getting smarter every day and learning new tricks and bad habits from big bro.  Sign of things to come, right?  He's a precious little man and even though he's getting bigger he still likes to snuggle his mommy.  I hope that I get to keep squishing and squeezing that boy for a long time, but I sense that my days of him sitting with me are over now that he knows how to move it, move it.

Happy 27th, H.  I love you, baby.

Couldn't help it...had to include this picture.  When my boy smiles, he does it all the way!

Don't beat yourself up

Carter (and probably every other 2 year old in the world) loves to monkey around in my car, scampering to the back seat or front seat instead of getting into his car seat so I can buckle him in. It's a mildly annoying habit in the best of circumstances, but on a day when it's pouring down rain on me and I've already been soaked on the other side of the car while putting Harrison in, it's exceedingly frustrating.

To combat this little behavior, I did a bit of mommy magic and started letting Carter crawl in on Harrison's side of the car, then asking him if he could 'beat me' to the other side of the car. That way, while I buckled little brother in, Carter would rush to his seat, and then I would run around to the other side of the car and pretend to be dismayed when I realized he had beaten me into his chair. 'I beat you!' he giggles, every time.

Pretty smart parenting, right? Well, don't give me the Mom of the Year award just yet.

Imagine my horror when today, at the library, Carter told several people, "When I get in the car, Mommy will beat me!"

OMG. Just sitting at he now waiting on the call from CPS.

9 Months

The months are flying by now--it's time to celebrate another 27th.  Harrison is still working on crawling, although he's decided he might try the bear crawl instead of this silly hands-and-knees version that the other kids his age are doing.  Either way, I say, as long as that boy can start to get around on his own because he is getting HEAVY for this mama to hold all the time!  And let me assure you, he does prefer to be held all day long.  I call him my Velcro baby because he is stuck on me.  (And I pretend that I'm annoyed by it, but deep down I think it's so sweet.)

While he likes for me to hold him all the time, he still manages to be somewhat of a party animal.  Harrison is always happiest around lots of people and lots of action.  A nice relaxing day at home bores him, but take him out to the mall or a party or a ball game and he'll be so busy people watching that he forgets to eat!

Speaking of food--he's pretty much moved on to table food and we have yet to find a food he doesn't like.  Still no teeth in that sweet little mouth, but he isn't ashamed and lets those gums show in full when he gives me the good smile.  Boy, that smile lights up my days.

H-man, you're my favorite little.  Love you, kiss you, squeeze you.  Happy 27th, bud.

8 Months Old

Another 27th has come, which means that my tiny boy has inched one more month closer to a year old.  This time he's 8 months old and so much has changed.

He's gradually starting to work off those thigh rolls as he starts to try crawling (but don't worry, he's still as "plush" as ever).  He hasn't quite figured out how to truly be mobile, but he certainly gets around, usually by rolling multiple times to cover some ground. 

H-man is still very expressive with his facial features, but he's getting more vocal now, too.  He says "Dada" all day long.  Each time he says it Carter tells him, "Stop saying Dada, say Carter!"  Personally, I'm repeating the word "Mama" like a parrot to try and claim my name as his second official word. 

It's been fun to see him start to play with toys.  So far his favorites are the ever-popular ring stacker toy and a little toy train that moves and plays music.  Just like big brother, he loves music.  He would play patty cake all day, too, if mommy's arms didn't get tired. 

He's a good, good boy and I just can't believe he's so big.  Happy 27th, H.  Love you to pieces.

Lucky Number 7

Happy 7 months, Harrison!

Unfortunately, this 27th falls on a week when our entire family is fighting off an upper respiratory virus that just won't go away.  I really thought this might be the month in which an 'outtake' picture might have to suffice as THE picture, but in the eleventh hour Daddy and Carter managed to eek out this smile between coughs and sneezes. 

I love this picture because this is the face I see multiple times per day, every single day.  H-man loves to chew on that lower lip, and sometimes he just can't let it go, even for a big smile.  Of course, 'chew' might be an overstatement--this boy still just has a mouth full of gums.

He's eating lots of baby food and has declared a pretty strong distaste for rice cereal, but any other puree is fair game.  As he's gotten more steady with his sitting up, he's gotten more and more interested in the many toys his brother leaves around the house.  What happens if you put him in a jump up?  Well, he'll bounce and bounce until he just can't bounce anymore.  (Yet even with all that exercise, those rolls on his thighs just aren't going anywhere!)

Thanks for showing us a smile, buddy; we know you weren't feeling good, but this picture sure makes me feel better.