He can sit!

Yes, my little man is even more amazing now than he was last week. Yesterday morning, I put him on his stomach and he managed to get to a sitting upright position. It took a lot of effort on his part but it was so amazing watching his slow motion maneuver to first get one foot underneath him to form a base and then slowly, every so slowly, pedal his hands backwards until he wound up on his bottom.

He has also learned to make a motion with his mouth that would be blowing bubbles if he were underwater, but instead is just sort of spitting. Since it has yet to involve his dinner, it's pretty cute, but I imagine that could change in a minute when peas are all over my face!

Ed has been playing Jedi mind tricks on Connor. Apparently sweet potatoes are the gateway vegetable, because Ed can mix almost anything with them and Connor will eat them. But, lest he be outdone, Connor has been playing Jedi mind tricks on me. One of his favorite activities is pulling my placemat and hoping that my plate will come crashing to the ground. A few nights ago, Connor first attempted the straight out pull, but obviously I have mastered this and can catch my plate before chaos ensues. But, the little man looked out the window as if he were interested in something, got me to follow his gaze, and then snatched the placemat. Fake right, go left. Luckily with Ed around we have a pretty decent double team going and Ed was able to catch the plate.


And here is my most recent parenting revelation. Here I am, writing about all of the things Connor is doing - and all across the globe there are other mommies writing about essentially the same thing. And you know what? We're all unbelievably impressed at these mundane acts. I think that this is so fabulous, and something I'm happy to be a part of.

Baseball season starts on Sunday. Connor has his first fantasy team. We'll see how he does against the rest of the family.

This final photo was taken last night. Every night I read Connor 3-4 books before bedtime. He's gotten to the point that if he sees a book sitting on the chair he will reach for it and not start nursing until the book has been read. This means that I must deposit books beneath the chair after I read them so he can't see them anymore.


Elaine

Why are we so weird?

I went to another consignment sale to pick-up some toys for Connor on the cheap and met a woman carrying her 8 month old in a sling. So, I just had to try it out with Connor. per usual, Connor was not impressed, though later on in the weekend he seemed to enjoy it more. I think he must constantly be wondering why he got such weird parents who can't just carry him around all the time! We never got him in there stable enough to not have to worry about him dumping out, but hopefully we'll master that skill soon - since the sling is not really an "arm's free device" if one has to use one arm to stabilize the child in the sling.


As usual, it was a fun weekend. Ed built a shed which will hold our bikes, Connor's jogging stroller, and the bike trailer my sister gave me. Now we can use the basement storage area and the garden shed for their originaly purposes.

We held the "My Wife's No Longer Stout" beer-tapping last night. It was a beer that was named at our baby shower in the "beer-naming" contest. It turned out quite nicely. Connor slept through the party, but managed to finagle his way into our bed by about 2 AM because I didn't have the energy to resist. Next weekend, we are entering the world of paid babysitting and my boss's teen-age daughter is going to come over. Hopefully Connor will sleep through the whole event, but if not, we'll only be about 4 blocks away.

Elaine

Yes Connor, you are definitely ours.

In the seven plus months that Connor has lived on the outside world, there have certainly been times when we wondered if he was really ours. In reality, we know he is, because I gave birth to him at home. This means there is no possibility he was switched with another baby in a hospital nursery (one of many benefits of a home birth - plus you get to see the shocked look on your neighbor's faces when they find out all the hullaballoo at your house one morning was you giving birth!). And, I know he is the child who I gave birth to because during the first few weeks of his life, the only time he was not within sight of either Ed or myself are the few hours he spent with my parents during his 4th week of life (thanks for the nap and letting me run an errand!). And after that, he started looking like an actual person instead of just the most adorable baby we'd ever laid eyes on. That, and about that time is when folks started pointing out that Connor looks exactly like Ed (except for the one kind lady at the Breastfeeding Center who said "Wow - he sure has your eyes!"). However, we question Connor is ours when he wakes early on the weekend and occasionally looks at us like we are too weird for spit-up. But...we now know for certain he is ours, because he is as impressed with our robotic vacuum as we are - and that means he's highly impressed!



Just at the point Connor thought he had Roomba figured out, Ed lifted his foot up so Roomba went beneath it rather than bouncing off it. That was very exciting, in case you didn't know.

I also know that Connor is our because at times, he looks like a complete goofball, just like his dad!

And finally, I know he is mine because he has dreams of being in the marching band some day.



A belated Happy Birthday to Grandma H. who celebrated a birthday yesterday.

Elaine

I laughed out loud, hope you do too.

A friend of mine, who I will allow to remain semi-anonymous (but I've known her since grade school and she currently lives in MN) e-mailed today that she had a small contest going about whose baby put the most disgusting thing in their mouth. She thought her daughter had won with cat vomit, but apparently as she was bragging to her neighbor, her neighbor's daughter picked up a piece of dog poop and put it in her mouth. Game, set, match. Sort of makes this sweet potato incident and the pickle seem pretty innocent, eh? I'll keep you posted if Connor decides to enter the contest.

Elaine

Happy Seven Month Birthday

Dear Connor,

Yesterday, you turned 7 months old. That, my friend, seems like quite a lot. It was a gorgeous weekend and we spent most of it outside while you played and Daddy and I alternated between playing with you and doing yardwork (of which there was plenty).

It's been another big month for you. For starters, you went on vacation to Utah. Daddy and I skiied and you turned your Mims and Pappy into your biggest fans - well, outside of me, that is. You taught them all about peek-a-boo, sleeping in laps, eating all that solid food, and beating up on Mr. Cow so he would jingle. Mims had to cut her visit a little short, but Pappy went the distance and we think he's just about recovered at this point. During this vacation, on February 27, to be exact, your eyes changed color. They are no longer blue, but more of a hazel. I miss those big blue eyes, but I love your big hazel eyes too. It made me think about the day, sometime during your teen years, when your voice will drop an octave and I just know I will miss what was your high-pitched voice.



I introduced you to the outside swing, and like most things when you are introduced, you were unimpressed. When I reported this to Aunt Linda, she replied dryly "Gee - I wonder where he gets that from?". Yesterday though, I heard you laughing out loud as you were swinging with Daddy, so I guess the second time is a charm in your case.



We tried to feed you peas several times, and each time you gagged, stuck out your tongue, and looked at us like "what the heck was that all about?". Tofu, on the other hand, got the go ahead. Not sure what we have planned for you in the next few meals, but I can say that boy cannot live on milk, sweet potatoes, pears, and cereal alone.

You impressed both your dad and I one morning when you decided to use your beloved bouncy seat and pull yourself to a standing position. Sitting is no problem for you these days, and you can stare at a toy with great intensity. We hope you have good intentions when you figure out what makes the Jingly Guy jingle and the cow chime, because otherwise we could be in a lot of trouble.

You ate a pickle - or at least gummed it for a while and you have mastered holding your bottle on your own. You will even take it out of your mouth before it is empty, which I am presuming means you are full. I have no idea why we pay a nanny since it seems like we could just sit you in the middle of the floor with some bottles and toys and you'd be OK - unless you needed to actually move to get them. Oh, and I guess you're not too nuts about being left alone.



Sometimes, it is obvious you need to tell us something, and it pains my heart that I can't understand yet what it is. At the end of the day it might be "Daddy, I'm not ready to stop playing in the bath" or, equally likely "Daddy, I don't feel like bathing today". I promise Connor, we're doing the best we can figuring out what you want. This afternoon I was talking to your nanny about a new stroller and you let out the longest sigh as if to say "who cares about the friggin' stroller, you're home now so it's time to nurse and play and not worry about stuff like that". It was really quite cute.

You are a joy to be with and I love seeing things through your eyes. Yesterday you discovered grass, which is much cooler than I had remembered. After all, you can push it down and it pops back up, it must feel pretty neat, and lucky for me you can't quite pull it out because then you would do an impersonation of a cow and eat it. I think you might be planning on being a dentist because one of your favorite activities is pulling my teeth - that or you're trying to let me know you plan to get some teeth in the near future.

I can happily report that your sleep is getting better, which means my sleep is getting better, and I suspect the folks I work with are happy about that. Perhaps the things I write are becoming easier to follow.

You are still the cutest child in the world!

Love,
Mom

Sometimes, you just gotta throw him in the sink!

Babies, especially mine, are really cute - especially after they've been chowing on cereal and sweet potatoes. For some reason after dinner this evening, it seemed appropriate to throw Connor in the kitchen sink and hose him off. We think he had lots of fun.

Elaine

Back from vacation

Last week we went on our annual ski trip out to the wild, wild, west. Per usual, Ed's dad and youngest brother joined us, but this year we had the additional treat of my parents coming along. No, for those of you falling out of your chairs right now, they did not ski. But they did provide excellent childcare while the rest of us (excluding my little man) skiied. We had a great time and my sister has confirmed that my dad is still standing and looking pretty good after having solo baby duty from Wednesday - Friday.


Although Connor did not ski, he did get to enjoy his first pickle! Yes, I am a nutritional goddess. Actually, he swiped the thing from my plate and never looked back once he managed to get it in his mouth and got his gums a chompin! Of course, he wasn't nuts about the mango we tried to give him for dinner tonight. Guess it's never wise to assume your kid will eat anything - even if he did get quite a bit of pickle in him a few days ago!


Life was pretty fabulous for Connor with two granpas, a grandma, and an uncle around. Naturally, Ed and I were available to fawn over him as well. Hopefully he won't have a mental breakdown tomorrow when he has to (gasp) share his nanny! It's not exactly the ratio of adults to kids he's grown accustomed to.


Mims had to leave on Tuesday, and after that, Connor apparently decided it was a men's week all around and abstained from bath for the remainder of vacation. Connor, my friend, you will fit in well in this family. He already belches and farts like a man, so why not adopt the hygiene of one as well.

For amazing feats (beside the pickle, of course) Connor started off vacation by pulling himself up on his bouncy seat - with only balancing help from Ed. We were both totally impressed and decided that's way better than rolling.



Today Connor spent most of the day impressing us with his laughter - and at one point he apparently laughed at / with Ed for no apparent reason, so maybe he was just practicing up hoping something really cool was about to happen.

Elaine