9 months old!

(oh my gosh I am so behind! I am throwing a bunch of random pics on here so i can move on to Christmas stuff!)

Boy oh boy- does this little boy keep me on my toes!
He's got the super fast crawl down pat, although it's still quite crooked. He looks like a little gorilla/sand crab scooting across the floor!
And into EVERY BLESSED THING! You would not believe what trouble a tiny little 9 month old baby can find!
He loves to stick out his tongue, and you will believe me after looking at these pics!
He pulls up like a champ, and is starting to cruise the furniture.


He also get on his hands and feet on the floor, and stands there trying to figure out what to do next. lol.


We're up to 5 teeth. And sporting a gap, just like Mommy and Jacob! (which I love because otherwise, he would be an EXACT clone of Cotton, and I do deserve a little credit! haha!)


Eating Cheerios like they are going out of style. lol.
Still a major MAJOR boob man. Exhaustingly so.
Weighing in somewhere between 22 and 23lbs.

He's learned to say "Uh-oh" and uses it properly. Anytime there's a crash, or a cheerio thrown to the floor, or a sneeze, or someone else says uh-oh, Sam happily yells it at the top of his lungs! Heehee!




(oops)
Sleeping is done next to Momma 99% of the time. I sneaked from the couch to snap a pic in these cute jammies a friend gave us!
That curly hair just gets longer, thicker, and curlier! People have to touch his darling head everywhere we go!



these were taken by a dear friend, Cami.

Lucy loves her baby brother SO much!
First time in a swing- didn't go over all that well. :-(
First taste of CANDY (a grape dum-dum) at a Christmas parade. Mmmm...

AND the second, a candy cane snagged off the Christmas tree...

All in all...
I am utterly convinced that there is no smarter baby on this earth. None cuter. None more lovable, kissable, squeezable, funny... well... you get the point.

I can't believe it has been 9 months. I actually am starting to think of birthday party plans, it's nuts.
Mommy loves you, my little Sammy. My Peanut-butter. My funny squishy heart stealing bouncing baby boy!

Getting ready for Christmas!

Each year I let the kiddos pick a special ornament to add to our tree. Something to remind us of what they were into when we're all old and gray (oh wait, I already am!).

So for 2008-
Ballet slippers for lil miss
and a football for my big guy
Sammy didn't actually pick out this red ball, but he enjoyed snacking on it
(you aren't looking at my fat arm, are you?)
Being the cheezy mom that I am, I had to buy matching Christmas pajamas. Just like I do every year.
Only THIS year they put them on themselves, donned their Santa hats, and started ORDERING me to take their picture in front of the tree! HAHA!


I'm not sure if anyone can read the shirts. They all 3 say "Dear Santa, it wasn't me!"









Of course we need a nice group shot. 3 kids looking at the camera. 3 smiles. Ready?

Umm... Sammy?
D'oh! Not quite...
Close. So close...

Ta-da! Success! Cuuuuuute!
And for those who didn't get our Christmas card this year, I apologize. I lost my address book, I didn't ask for addresses in time, etc etc. I'm a busy, frazzled, scatter brained woman. So here it is- from my family to yours!

(you should be able to click it to see it bigger!)
Thanks to Laura, Jackie, and Rebecca for helping me put together a card that is so very US!

7 days to go! I hope everyone is ready.
I have no idea what Santa Clause is bringing my three, but their daddy has already gone out and gotten the present that Wii... I mean WE ;-) are giving them!

a little behind, hehehe

(I'm so punny!)
but I'll catch up soon!
Until then, please allow my nakie baby to make you smile!

My new home

and a new name.
If you've ever heard this song by Phil Vassar, then you know my life.
It's like he wrote it about us. So much so that I get choked up.
Enjoy... and update your bookmark!

Look out world, he's on the move!

this was last Friday. The day that Sam realized that all that scootching around the floor he had been doing, could actually be controlled and put to good use.


And this was Saturday, already picking up quite a bit of confidence and speed


And today...
he's become obsessed with the dog bowls and the trash cans. He's all over the house. I am running around pulling him out of messes and closing bedroom doors to contain him.

It's the end of the "sweet little infant" era, and the very beginning of something much scarier... dun dun dun... the MOBILE BABY!

Trick or Treat!

(better late than never, right?)

Batman, are you ready?
Batgirl?
Let's get this show on the road!

Robin isn't quite sure what we're doing, but he's game!
and we had a cute little lion along for the ride
Running back from the first door- checking to see what they got!
Sam says "what on earth are these people putting in my bucket?"
"Oh well- it's something to chew on." lol
And we ran into this guy... they were actually quite scared of him. Really the only moment of fear all night. I couldn't 100% convince them that he wasn't the REAL joker!

And now that Halloween is behind us... I'm already hungry for turkey!

Time flies: 8 months old edition

Yep, Baby Sam is now 8 months old. Good heavens.
And boy is he changing!

At 8 months old, there isn't much my baby can't do! At least not much that he wants to do in his little world...

He Sammy-crawls all over the house. Cotton and I have made the executive decision to say he does crawl, although it doesn't look like the classic baby crawl. He gets on his hands and one knee, and pushes along with the other foot. And he goes all over the floor with this method!
(I'm working on getting some video, bear with me)

He can pull up to standing easily now. Just give him something to hold onto. And he is SO proud of himself when he does. He gives me that classic "Jacob face" that I've been seeing on a proud and shy little boy for 6 1/2 years now. The look is kind of "yes, I did something great, but I'm not going to make a big fuss over it..."

His personality has kicked in full force! I now know that my youngest has a quick temper. He gets frustrated easily. And that he blames me when he falls over, as evidenced by a massive stink-eye ha gave me the other day the other day. He likes to make us laugh, and he has a selective sense of humor. Chances are about even that you'll get a crazy baby giggle or a "wow, you're stupid" look.
He is a VERY curious little guy, constantly moving, exploring, grabbing, mouthing, turning things over and over and over in his hands. Basically a genius baby.

He likes things that make noise. He loves footballs. He loves the dog. He loves being outside. I'm gonna go ahead and call him ALL BOY at this point!

He's not big on being touched. He likes me to hold him (or wear him) every second of every day, but he doesn't like anyone in his face. No hugging and kissing and breathing his air. He's tolerant of ME, and even graces me with a sloppy baby kiss here and there. But if anyone else gets in his face, he turns his head and grimaces.
And no holding his hands, either. Those hands are for being busy busy busy, not for being messed with. lol.

We're up to 3 teeth, and he's learning to take good care of them. ;-)



My boy is finally showing interest in food! But none of that nasty baby stuff, he turns his nose up at baby food. He wants what the big people are eating! I'm really going to have to start planning for that- last night I had to feed him one grain of my rice at a time through our entire dinner to keep him happy! It's time to start consciously feeding the baby, and making sure there is something on the table that he can eat at every meal! Wow!
He wants to self-feed, but he often gags on the tiniest things. I guess he just needs practice.



He's found his voice, and when he's in a happy mood it's "Mamama" or "babababababa." We hear an occasional, very precise "dada" once in a while. Usually he'll belt out a "Mama" when he's upset. And if I say "lalalalala" at him, he tries like heck to do it back.
My favorite is when he silently "talks," just moving that little mouth a mile a minute, but no sound comes out. Heehee.
And he has a very recognizable angry yell! He also "talks" while he's nursing, which keeps me giggling- but that's not new, he's done that for months now.

yea, we are still using the bassinet, although I have just taken the "basket" part off and put it on the floor for safety's sake.
His head hits one end, and his feet the other- but he sleeps in it so sweet and cozy... and I can't bear to put it away, knowing it is done. No baby of mine shall ever use it again... :sob:



He's still a little Mommy's man. He thinks Daddy is awesome, and Jacob and Lucy are hilarious. I don't think any of that will ever change.
I was thinking last night what an amazing thing it is to have him. I laugh and smile an extra 100 times a day or so, just because he's here. I'm so thankful for my little chunky... he's pretty cool!