Baby in a basket

Just some creative playing around...:)
James has this new game where he likes to put his finger in your mouth. And we are the lucky contestants.

Lucky number 7

Hey little guy,
I can't believe you are 7 months old. Already you are starting yet another transition into independence. I push the limits and before I know it you're ready for something else. What on earth am I going to do with you once you're completely mobile?!
It's great to see you blossoming out of your shell. Yesterday we went to Mommy and Me group for the first time and I've never seen you so animated. You played with peg board games, tried to stand by yourself and make yourself move as you jealously watched the older kids run around. I know it's hard, but you will get there soon. And then I'll have to be like the other Moms running around making sure they are not swallowing pencils or throwing beanbags at the smaller babies. So I'll cherish the fact that for now, you're more of an observer than a participant! :) You are growing up so fast my little man. And I'm cherishing every wonderful minute of it.

James and his "lovey", Elmo. He has to sleep with him every night now.



Attempting to eat finger food. Most of the time he just sucks on his hand until they turn to mush and then he eats them...but you gotta start somewhere. And of course our little Hoover (a.k.a. Pixie) is always waiting to gobble up any that are left behind.

James loves to eat his shapes.

Giggling with Pixie.

Having a Ball

James loves his newest toy that Daddy bought for him...so much that I can always get him smiling as soon as he has it in his grasp! He is also figuring out how to roll it back to us..and has so much fun with it that he shakes his whole body in anticipation whenever he sees it. He's so funny when he bends his whole body to pick it up. He scoops it up and tries to eat it first, then roll it. It's pretty cute. :)

Here's to you, James! Happy 6 months!

Well, the day has finally come. James has turned 1/2 year old. And it was quite an eventful day. First stop: the pediatrician's office, where James weighed in at 15 1/2 lbs, and 28 inches long. He's quite the string bean, as the nurse proclaimed. But the doctor told me not to worry, that he is in a perfectly normal weight range. He also told me that James not rolling over yet is fine. Since he is 'lunging' forward from his tummy, he is making progress and soon he'll be crawling around like everyone else on his own time. So, that was a relief.
After his shots (thank goodness, no screaming fits), James promptly fell asleep in his carrier. Later this evening, we cooked up some pureed carrots and gave James his first solid meal outside of cereal!

And his reaction? Gimme Gimme!!!!! He all but screamed it. This kid can't get enough of anything we put in his mouth. So...no funny face, or strange expressions. He just opened his mouth wide like "what are you waiting for? Give me that orange stuff!!!" And promptly made a mess all over the place :-)


Good job, James! You're such a big boy now at 6 months!! :) We love you little man!

Fun Stuff

just highlight the things you’ve done.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and much more...

Happy Holidays, everyone!Well it has been quite some time since I have posted anything, but let me tell you it's been quite the eventful past few weeks. First off, we had a huge storm on Wednesday, Dec. 17th. The high desert was literally covered in snow. It was very unusual..but a lot of fun to watch. Of course, not so much fun to dig the car out of the snow. But James was able to see his very first snow! And as an added bonus, tried out his new peacoat!


Then on December 21st, we had my Dad, my sister and my nephew up to our home for a pre-Christmas get together. My nephew Ian had fun playing in the snow and we got some nice family pics.


Whew! Next on our agenda: 3 day trip to Kansas. We left early on Mon. Dec. 22nd..and after 3 very long days, we made it to Winfield, where Tim's parents, grandmother and brothers all live. We rolled in Christmas Eve night and within minutes we were already starting Christmas by opening up presents! We continued to open presents all the way through Christmas Day! It was quite the event, but I've got to hand it to little James..he was a trooper. I was so proud of him. He had a very nice first Christmas. Here's James with Grandma:

And with Great-Grandma and cousins:



And of course, with Daddy:

Suffice to say, James was hooked up for Christmas. He received clothes, toys, books..everything! Thank you to Grandma and Grandpa! James loves his gifts..especially his Tugboat bath time. And yes, we even have a Tugboat bath time song for him now....:p

While we were in Kansas, James also started solid foods - for real this time! He downed some mashed potatoes on Christmas and never looked back. Now he's gone from rice cereal, to baby crackers, to oatmeal cereal. He loves it!

It's hard to believe that James is almost 6 months old now. The time has gone by so fast! It seems so surreal that we are now feeding him cereal and juice. He is also sitting up for long periods of time, and reaching/grabbing everything in sight...he's just grown up so much. And it's only the beginning!

All in all, we had a great time in Kansas. Here is little James with his grandparents and Daddy:


We stayed until New Year's Day, and then it was on the road again. This time, due to good weather, we were able to make it home in 2 days. I stayed in the back seat with James the whole time and that made the ride home a lot easier for him. For a baby, he did pretty awesome. He had a nice Christmas and a nice New Year's Eve (he did not stay up until midnight, alas..but he slept pretty well, better than he had the whole time he was in Kansas..and I was so happy for that!)

Now that we've been back home for a week and have somewhat recuperated, caught up on everything and have gotten back on a more or less regular schedule, things are getting back to normal (well as normal as can be with a 6 month old...!) Every day I feel so blessed to have the family that I have..I love little James with all my heart, and am so happy to share him with my incredible husband. Here's to a great 2009!

Rice, Rice, Baby

As Tim & I sat inside Farmer Boys munching on our burgers and sandwiches last night, we realized that James was eyeing our meals once again and looking like he wanted to sample some of our food. So, we took the plunge and decided to see if once and for all, James was ready to try some solids of his own.

After a whirlwind trip to Target, we set up the high chair and mixed a little bit of rice cereal in with his milk. And..voila!

Hmmm...what is this stuff?


Here comes the choo choo train!






Hey, this tastes kinda good!



Unfortunately, the cereal seemed to stimulate James' appetite even more, and instead of going to bed, he ended up wanting to eat more and more, until even I did not have enough for him and had to serve him up some stored milk from the freezer. The boy was insatiable!

So, as of now we think he can still wait a while until we make this a regular thing...but a momentous occasion, all the same. And yes, there is video, but haven't yet acquired the technology to hook our camcorder up to the computer for downloads. Someday, though..

:)