10 Months!

Well, here we are again...another month flew by and I'm a week late on this post!

Austin Thomas - you are 10 months old already! And you are such a fun, happy, busy little boy.

You're still wearing 9 or 12 month clothes and a size 4 diaper. As usual, you are my tall, skinny boy.

So, what have you been up to this month?...mostly lots of crawling really fast all over the place. You really like to push things around the house while you crawl - your two favorites things to push around are a little red box and a jet ski. You've even started to make little motor noises for the jet ski when you push it around.

You also like to pull up and stand up (assisted), especially in your crib when you are supposed to be napping. We had a few rough days when you were learning how to pull up, but you couldn't figure out how to get down. You'd get stuck standing up in your crib and would cry until we came in and helped you back down. We also have to cover up your toys with a blanket while you nap. Otherwise, you will stare at them and cry.

We've been going to mommy and me swim class once a week and you really love it! You're all smiles when we are there and you are definitely a water baby.

I can tell you are ready to play with the big kids on the street. Soon enough you'll be able to run around with them. You are so lucky to have so many other kids on our street! You call your friend Jackson, "Austin" - you must think all little boys are named Austin.

Austin and the neighborhood crew

And, of course, you still LOVE Dexter.  He still really only likes you during meal time - otherwise he wishes you would leave him and his feet alone.You've started intentionally feeding him your food. You'll grab a piece of food and hand it directly to Dexter. You also look for him in the morning when you wake up. We get you up and bring you to our bed for your first bottle. As soon as you're done, you immediately crawl to the edge of the bed to look for Dex.

You also still really love your car (we upgraded to the "whisper ride" because you could hear us coming from a mile away in the red car). You call it your "Auto" (bilingual baby) and get really excited when you see it. 

Your schedule as pretty much stayed the same - wake up around 6:30 or 7, nap around 9/9:30, nap again around 1:30, to bed around 7 or 7:30. You get a bottle when you wake up in the morning, after your naps and right before bed. Then breakfast around 8, lunch around 12:30 and dinner around 5:30. You prefer finger foods now, but we sneak in a little bit of the pureed foods to make sure you eat enough. Half of your finger food ends up on the floor or in your lap ;)

I really can't believe another month has come and gone. Its been a fun San Diego summer and, as always, we are looking forward to the next month with you...

Here are a few more pictures from the last month:

Austin and Grace

Auntie Robin came to town! 

Encinitas "tide pools"

9 Month Update

Well, here we are again. Another month has flown by!

This has been a big month for milestones - you started crawling, you started clapping and you had your first ear infection.

You're still wearing size 3 diapers and we started putting you in night time diapers when you go to bed. It really seems like you shot up in height this month. We have a doctor's appointment next week, so I will update your height and weight stats after that. You've moved into a few 12 month items like pajamas because you are so tall, but most of your 9 month clothes still fit. Your waste is tiny, so pants and shorts are hard to find. You just swim in most of them :)

You continue to be a happy little guy. You smile and laugh a lot and are so much fun to be around.

You really love Dexter and now that you can crawl, you try to chase him all around the house. He plays along, but doesn't love it when you grab his feet and ears. He is a good brother.

Your vocabulary has expanded some this month too - you can say "mamamama" now but most everything is still "dadada" or "ahhh-guh". You definitely have a specific sound/name for Dexter - it sounds like a 2 syllable "duh duh."

Your daily routine is the same. You wake up around 6:30 (really wish we could figure out how to make it 7), nap around 9, nap again around 1:30 and go to bed at 7. You have a bottle when you wake up at 7, 11, 3 and 7 and you eat breakfast, lunch and dinner in between. We fully weaned you this month and you could care less. Your fine to take whatever we give you!
Your getting better at finger foods, but for the most part you still eat your pureed baby food. You LOVE your puffs and cry when you run out. You also eat bananas, little pieces of toast, noodles, raspberries and blueberries with your hands.

You started crawling on Fathers Day. It seemed like you were so close for so long and you finally put it all together and started moving. Every day you've been getting faster and faster and now we can't keep our eyes off of you. You try to reach all of the drawer pulls on the TV stand, you try to climb up the stairs to get to Dexter and you definitely reach for everything you shouldn't (like cords, coffee, and any spec of dirt on the floor).

About a week ago you started clapping and you're on the verge of waving. It is SO CUTE! One of my favorite milestones so far. You are so proud of yourself and you know what to do when we say "Austin, can you clap?". We play this game in the car and it keeps you entertained for a while.

The low point of this month was definitely your ear infection. You started with a cold on a Monday and by Thursday it just didn't seem like you'd gotten better quick enough, so I took you to the doctor. Sure enough, you had a mild ear infection. That night was the worst! We were up for hours in the middle of the night pacing around the house with an inconsolable baby. You finally passed out around 3am. Once the antibiotics kicked in the next day, you started feeling better and we didn't have anymore rough nights. It was a throwback to the newborn days, and boy am I glad we are past that!

You had a few other firsts this month. We took you to the San Diego fair for the first time, you celebrated your first 4th of July and you had your first sleepover at your GranJan and GranDude's house.

As always, we are looking forward to the next month! Summer is fun in San Diego - we will spend lots of evenings cruising around the block in your little red car and will hopefully spend lots of time in the pool!

Learning to Clap...

This was our morning fun today :)

Fun with Food....

Poor white curtains....good thing they are from ikea and are washable....

Summer Fun!

We have friends in town and we have been having SO MUCH FUN! I feel like we rediscover San Diego every summer when we have visitors. 

Saturday evening we went to Swami's in Encinitas and played in the "tide pools" with Lauren and William. It was a blast and I think Andy and I repeated the same phrase over and over and over again: "why don't we take advantage of where we live more often." There is so much to do outside, literally just minutes from our house! We chased crabs, poked at the sea critters, ran from the waves and watched the sunset. 

Sunday we had a picnic in the park and tried out a new playground.

Lauren and William came over for dinner tonight and we took a pre-dinner cruise around the block in Austin's "new" hand-me-down car from Daniel and Addison. He loved it! I think we have a new evening tradition.

Much more fun to come in the next few weeks and this summer! I LOVE the summer. I love the warm weather, the long days and the playful feeling that comes with the season. If only work allowed for a full summer break like school ;)

8 Months!

You are 8 months old already! Time still continues to fly and you are so much FUN!

We didn't have a doctors appointment this month, so we don't have official height and weight stats. My guess is 18 lbs and 27 inches. People comment to me fairly often that you seem very tall. Finding clothes for you is going to be a challenge. Your waist is tiny and is probably 3 month sized, but you need 9 month size clothes for length.

For the most part you wear 6-9 month clothes and you still wear a size 3 diaper.

So, what were you up to this last month?

You cut your first two teeth. Little cuties on the bottom. I thought I would be sad when you lost your gummy baby smile, but you're 2 little teeth are pretty cute too.

You did a lot of rocking back and forth on your knees and scooting backwards, but no official crawling in the 8th month.

You are a funny little dude and you love to laugh - your personality continues to show the older you get. You're pretty happy most of the time. You like to play on the floor with your toys, banging them together, scooching them around, and studying them. You don't spend as much time in your jumperoo now that you're a little more mobile. You still like it, but we try to let you practice crawling as much as possible.

You also love to read your books. You get a huge smile on your face when you see your favorites and you love to sit and listen to them.

You still love to go for strolls in the Bob. I think you like the quiet time and you love to look around.

You really like your "brother" Dexter and smile when he walks by. Dexter puts up with you because he has to :) I think you like him more than he likes you at this point. Soon you will be best friends.

You still love bath time and I'm usually soaked by time you are done. You love to spash the water and play with you little bath cups. I think its time for some Mommy and Me swim lessons!

Your routine hasn't changed much since last month. You eat at 7, 11, 3 and 7 and have "breakfast", "lunch" and dinner in between. Thankfully, you aren't a picky eater and you like most everything we give you. We still disguise the peas a little bit with apples or sweet potatoes. You are a great night sleeper and a decent napper. You sleep from 7pm to 6am (sometimes 6:30 or 7) and nap around 9am and 1/1:30pm. You don't always take long naps, but we try, and we are just glad that you sleep well at night!

It was a great month and, as always, we are looking forward to the next. It is so fun to watch you grow and learn. Stay sweet, my little man!

Howdy Y'all

We just got back from another Texas trip on Sunday. I had a work meeting the in late May, so we decided to make it a family trip and tack on a week's vacation during the week of Memorial Day! So glad we did!

Andy, Dexter and my dad drove from San Diego to Houston and Austin and I flew. Dad flew out to drive back with Andy.  Yes, my dad is the best! They took the "scenic" route through northern Arizona (vs taking I10 the whole way). Dexter is crazy and doesn't sleep at all on the road trips. He sat in the back with his head up for 21 hours of driving.

Austin was a champ on the flight out. Thankfully, we sat next to two high school girls who thought Austin was the cutest thing they'd ever seen. Here are a few of the comments I heard from my new high school friends on the flight: "OMG! He smiled at me!", "OMG! I love babies. I'm going to have 5 babies!", "OMG! I could eat 10 burritos today - I'm so starving." I also talked one of them out of a tattoo. I told her it wouldn't look so hot after her 5 babies. It was hilarious and it made me feel so old!!! Our flight back to San Diego wasn't nearly as fun. Austin was a little fussy and our row-mates were boring.

While at my parents and in Houston we spent quality time with my parents, Austin's cousins, aunts and uncles and a few friends!

Cousins! Wish we lived closer!

I even braved the Houston traffic one day and drove down to Memorial to meet up with a few friends and their babies. Sadly, we didn't take any pictures :( But we finally got to meet sweet Rebecca Wilmoth, Andrew and Sarah Steeg and I got to visit with my friend Jacqueline who was coincidentally in town from San Francisco!

Poor Dexter...

Hanging with "Aunt" Haley!

For vacation we spent the week at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country and it was AMAZING! The hotel was built in 2010, so everything is new and clean and they have "waterpark" in the middle of the resort with a few pools, water slides and a lazy river.

Making Smores at the hotel 

View from our Cabana! 

Grandpa floating the lazy river

Austin's first swim

Hanging on the balcony 

Our friends Genevieve and Jonny came up to the hotel to meet us for dinner. They have a baby, Gray, who is 2 weeks older than Austin. Gray is so so sweet -  I'm so glad we finally got to meet him!

Gray and Austin

Vieve and Gray came back the next day to swim us too :) Its a breath of fresh air to be around such great friends.

We had a blast in TX and can't wait for our next trip in September. Its always nice to be home and not living out of a suitcase. Austin slept in the closet at my parents (a very big one - don't call CPS!) and in the hotel bathroom in a pack and play, so he is probably glad to have his crib and room back too ;) Dexter went to bed at 7 tonight - he is either exhausted or depressed to be back in his boring house.