Baby – Page 4 – Hello Leelo

Teddy | 11 Months

Teddy, I can’t believe next month you will be one year old. It’s crazy to think how much you’ve accomplished in just 11 months of life. You spent this past month expressing your independence through exploring, learning, and opinions. You’re pointing at things and grunting quite a lot. You’ve learned that if you point in a direction long enough, someone will eventually move in that direction and if you wiggle, smile and grunt enough, you’ll get what you want. I thought it was going to be easier now that you can let me know what you want, but a whole new world is here now where when you don’t get what you want. You cry and throw yourself on the floor. I thought that didn’t come until you were two?

You say, “dada”, “mama” (rarely), “papa”, “nana”, “doggie”, “hi”, “ba-bah” (grandpa), “dah” (jonna), “dee-doo” (thank you), and a series of grunts and variations of “da” for things you want. You’ve also learned “come here” (you wave towards yourself). You wave “hi” when someone says, “hi”, but you hold your hand to your ear whenever someone says, “hello.” You give kisses if someone says, “Can ‘dada/mama/whomever’ have a kiss?”, but not when someone says, “Can I have a kiss?”. You like to wave “buh-bye” to Daddy every morning when he leaves for work and you cry whenever ANYONE leaves the room. It doesn’t matter if 5 people are with you and one person walks out. Inevitably, that’s the ONE person you don’t want to leave.

You’re growing up so much and it’s so fun. I can’t wait to see what new things you’ll learn this next month!

* * *

This month has been crazy! We’ve travelled a lot and some of it I can’t even write all out because it was so crazy. We went to the beach many times this month because it’s Teddy’s favorite and despite my dislike for the beach in years past, I’ve actually come to enjoy it.

Nana and Papa went on a trip to Italy this month and we had the joy of picking them up at the airport! Teddy was a champ and was so excited to see them. He even made them a sign. We enjoyed seeing all their beautiful pictures and we enjoyed a quick trip visiting friends and family down south.

Later this month we made an epic journey from SLO to PASO to SAN JOSE, then back down to SLO and back home. All in about 4 days. It was a crazy, beautiful and fun adventure. I traveled whenever Teddy was napping and he was perfect. Even if he woke up and we still had a ways to drive, we would wave at each other and sing songs back and forth until we arrived. It’s amazing what songs and cheerios will do for an 11 month old! We visited Andie, The Brown Family and the Moseleys. We ate good food, had great conversation and made new friends. And the drive was BEAUTIFUL. Since Teddy napped every time we drove, I would listen to chill worship music, drive thru a Starbucks for a coffee and a treat, and then just enjoy the drive. Sometimes, I would cry from the sheer beauty of the view. Sometimes, I was processing our loss. Sometimes, I would roll down the windows to breath in the air. My hair would get messed up, the baby would wake up and I would realize I’m not a college student on a road trip. Heh. It was a blast.

The next weekend, my mom invited my sister and I to join her for a women’s retreat, which meant Teddy got to spend the weekend with Ba-bah (Grandpa). Every one at the retreat was so impressed that my Dad was watching him over night. Grandpa and Teddy had almost as much from as us girls did! It was such a sweet time with my sister and mom. We painted our nails, chatted for hours, and had times of fellowship with the other amazing ladies there. It went by way too quickly! But, at the same time, I was so ready to squeeze my little guy. He was happy to see me, and had huge hugs for grandpa before we left. He loves his grandparents, that for sure!

Much of this past month was spent getting ready for Christian Super Bowl (aka Easter). Lots of prep went into this past Sunday and the end result was wonderful. Everything ran smoothly and most importantly, people felt loved. It’s easy to get caught up in all the prep and forget the importance of the day we’re celebrating. So, I made sure to reign my Type-A personality in and just do a little bit each day while reflecting on Jesus’ sacrifice. Teddy even helped me get the “goodie bags” together. At first, it was frustrating that he kept trying to put stuff in the bags, but then a took a deep breath and found myself slowing down to allow him to help. It was so precious and I was reminded how important it is to teach our kids how to love others and take time for them.

Even if he crumpled a few bags and some kids got more stickers than others, every time I looked at one of those bags I smiled because my sweet little helper had put them together. And whoever received it was loved. It made me realize how much he can do, even if he’s so little. How impressionable he is, even at this young age. And the importance of taking every opportunity to teach him.

Last weekend, we had a wonderful relaxing time getting the signs together and prepping all the crafts for the kids but best of all, just being a family. Alex finally finished his Saturday classes so we had a Saturday all to ourselves! Then, Sunday morning, Easter Sunday, Teddy turned 11 months old! We dressed him in his Easter outfit and loaded everything in the car.

We arrived early and enjoyed a wonderful service with kiddos and people galore! 6 people were baptized on Sunday, and each and every person in the seats felt the weight of God’s sacrifice on Friday and the glory of his resurrection on Sunday, which meant our sins were forgiven.

After a time of celebration we ran home, grabbed our suits and head to… you guessed it — the beach! Teddy had a blast crawling in the water and walking on the beach. He picked up seaweed and squealed at all the dogs running by. After a good time in the sun we made the trip toward home and stopped at the Kappens for Easter dinner, prayer, and hang out time. We are so loved by so many and we were so blessed to be a part of a family meal, since we couldn’t be with our amazing families.

Here’s to month 11!

Teddy | 10 Months

Teddy, I’m not going to lie, this month has been hard — to say the least. You’ve been sick, teething, trying to learn new things this month and it’s been a whirlwind. You’ve mastered copying intonation in our voices, saying, “mama”, “dada”, “bah”, “dah”, “nana” “ah-duh” and “eeeeeeeeeee”. You love to copy hand gestures and you wave at everyone. You can even sing! You constantly bring joy into our lives, even during tough times.

You have two new teeth coming in but only one has popped through giving you 5 teeth total! You just started learning to nod — though it looks more like you’re bowing, AND THEN on the last day of your 9th month on this earth you learned to walk! You’ve taken 5 steps already and you’re very apprehensive but you did it. I knew you could!

We are constantly amazed by the gift that you are to us. We love you.

* * *

Where do I even begin? This month started out with us finding out some amazing news. While I was in the ER getting IV fluids from the awful flu I had, they doctor ran a pregnancy test and told me I was pregnant! I was floored. We had just started trying and I had taken a test the previous month but it was negative. I didn’t know how far along I was and they told me to make an appointment for that week with my OB. I drove home with new energy so excited to tell Alex. They gave me a piece of paper that said, “It has been determined that you are pregnant”, so I circled it a bunch and put some exclamation points after it. When I got home Alex was rocking Teddy so I got ready for bed and put the paper on his pillow.

When he walked in he thought it was a bill for the hospital and was frustrated, but then it hit him… “Are you serious?”, he said. I just shook my head and laughed. He face planted onto the bed. We both were shocked and excited.

The rest of the week is kind of a blur, I wasn’t able to get an appointment until the following week on a Tuesday, so we went through the week with this huge secret and getting excited. We told Teddy he was going to be a big brother — which of course he understood completely. Tuesday rolled around and we were so excited. I had mentioned to Alex that “this was the ultrasound where we [would] get the first picture of our baby!” We arrived and there was no one in the OB office, which I thought was strange. We were put into a room and we waited. The nurse and doctor came in and Alex excitedly talked with the nurse about how Teddy was going to be a great big brother. The doctor placed the ultrasound and looked and looked and looked… and looked. I saw the baby. I saw the sac. But what I didn’t see was a heartbeat. I knew. He didn’t even have to tell me. I remembered so vividly seeing the flicker of Teddy’s heartbeat and it was very clear to me that there wasn’t one here.

The doctor was quiet. The nurse was quiet. Then, finally he said, “Here’s the sac and here’s the baby, but as you can see… there is no heartbeat.” All I could say was, “Yes. I can see that.” I just started answering in the affirmative to every question. I don’t even remember what he said. Then, he printed out the picture. The first and last picture I would ever have of our baby. And I lost it. I was supposed to put that picture up on our fridge next to the one we have of Teddy. I couldn’t handle what was happening and it came out in shaking and tears.

Slowly, we began the process of telling family and friends that we had miscarried — which was difficult because we hadn’t even told everyone we were pregnant yet. I heard some amazing encouragement and had tearful phone calls for days with amazing people who loved on us. People brought us meals, visited us, took care of Teddy so I could rest and mourn. People were amazing. Loving. Alex and I researched our options, I spoke with people who had experienced all the options and ultimately we decided on a D&C. It was hard. They call it a “missed abortion”. It hurt to have a word with such a negative connotation ascribed to this situation where I wanted this baby.

Family surrounded us in the days before, loving on us and taking me shopping (Thanks Debbie). Then, my mother and grandmother came the day before my surgery and helped me. They stayed the day after so I could sleep. I remember being at peace about my decision. I don’t remember feeling empty like I thought I would. I just remember being so very tired. Teddy was amazing. He was so loving, cuddly, and so well behaved with whoever was watching him (Thanks Christy). So many people took care of us, bringing us meals (Thanks Jonna, Sarah and Billy, Sal and Barrett), wine and Oreos (Thanks Am), and talking to us (Thanks Andie, Bree, Ash, Amber, Kim, Meg, Cris, Sarah, Crisa), praying for us (Thanks, EVERYONE!). We felt so much love.

We didn’t really come out of the fog for a few days and I had finally had it. I just wanted to get out of the house. Amber agreed to meet me in Pasadena at the Kidspace Museum with the cousins. WE HAD A BLAST! The kids did too. It was so nice to just do something fun.

But, when I got home I was so tired. I tried to relax but I started shaking and felt cold. I did my best for about 4 hours playing with Teddy and getting him ready for bed, but when Alex got home from studying he took my temp and it was 102. I had to go to the ER because of the risk of infection so Auntie Jonna came over to watch Teddy. I was so out of it that when Billy and Sarah arrived at the hospital, I saw them and said, “Why are you guys here?” Sarah just laughed and said, “Because you’re here.” They admitted me and I finally went home around 3:00 am with antibiotics. The infection made things so much harder. The antibiotics were awful on my stomach and I was still having a full fledged “recovery” from the surgery.

I’m still recovering. Physically, emotionally, spiritually. We celebrate the life that we have and the precious boy we have. We mourn the loss of our little one. In all the mess, we continue living and enjoying and praising God for his provision and grace and LOVE.

And Teddy, he just keeps on smiling, growing, learning and changing. It’s been an insane month, but in the end We KNOW we are blessed. Blessed with life, friends, and our health. We are even blessed with the things we lose, because we had the joy of them being OURS even if it was just for a while.

To share in the joy that life brings, here are some pictures of our sweet Teddy and some of his adventures this month. Enjoy!

Teddy | 9 Months

Teddy,
You are nine months old! You spent most of the past month sick. It was so sad. You went from cold to cough to ear infection and right as we saw the beginning of nine months you were hit with an awful flu or some strange bug. We did however have some fun this past month. Even if we spent it mostly locked in our house while you were sick. You always surprise me at how much you’re up for anything and you do everything with a smile. YOU are a crazy crawling machine. You have turbo speed now and you squeal as you crawl fast toward your target. You can stand, feed yourself, and even walk along the couch. You love to climb, but hate when you fall. You do not like your naps lately and hate waking up alone. It’s been hard to put you down anyway since you’ve been so sick. I try to remember how sweet it is to hold you, so that way when you grow up and don’t want me to anymore I can cherish the times I did.
You are our sunshine Teddy bear and we love you.

* * *

So, this post is so so so late. Just as we ended Teddy’s eight months and we’re just ringing in nine, we all we’re hit with an awful bug. I’m not even sure what it was but it hit with a vengeance and hit all of us. We’re still recovering, 4 days later.

Most of this past month was spent with poor Teddy being sick. We did however get to start off the month with a trip to the beach with Miss Marissa and Auntie Jonna while Dad was in class. Teddy LOVES the beach. It’s seriously the sweetest and most wonderful thing to watch. He has no fear of anything, seaweed, crabs, dogs running by, wet sand or even the huge waves that come crashing on the shore. He crawls right into the water, no matter how cold it is. He’s so brave and of course that excites and terrifies me all at the same time. I guess that’s just a mother’s burden to bare though! I’m so excited for him to experience life and learn things. It’s so fun now that’s he’s more mobile and so much more inquisitive.

Teddy has started to imitate our gestures and sounds more which is so funny to watch. He can shake his head “no” and he even has started to repeat inflections in our voices. For example, this past month we celebrated Nana’s 50th birthday! We had an adult dinner at The Salted Pig in Riverside which was a blast! Then later in the week on her actual birthday I thought I would record Teddy saying “Happy Birthday” to her. I said, “Say, ‘Happy Birthday!’ And he said, “uhday.” I died and so did Nana when she got the super cute video. He’s seriously the biggest ray of sunshine.

One day, I was so tired of being quarantined that I decided Teddy and I would go out to breakfast. Just the two of us. Now, we’ve done this before but it’s always sort of been an attempt for me to escape or get him to fall asleep on the way there so I can enjoy some breakfast in peace. But this time was different. I actually wanted to enjoy breakfast with Teddy. And it was really sweet. We went out to IHOP, I got a classic breakfast combo and Teddy ate my pancake. He is now so intent on feeding himself and it’s the cutest thing to watch him shovel pieces on pancake into his mouth while he “mmmms”. I’d say our first date was a success.

One of the quarantined days, I decided to at least get some house organizing done and found a box in my closet that hadn’t been unpacked yet. I remembered how my Dad had made a car from a diaper box when I was little and pushed me around in it (I don’t actually remember it, but we have it on video). I also have a friend who makes amazing creations for her two boys out of cardboard and felt inspired. I figured, since we couldn’t have a real adventure we would make one! So, I made a plane and put on Teddy’s pilot gear from Halloween. The hat barely fit but I had a blast pulling him around while he laughed and laughed.

Then, Valentines Day! Each year Alex and I go to Buffalo Wild Wings in protest of Valentine’s Day. We kind of don’t see the point in the day, to be honest. I want my family members to know everything single day that I love them. Not just on one day of the year with chocolates and flowers. But, this year… We kind of had a reason to celebrate love. Teddy. Teddy had a fun date with Auntie Jonna, who joined us for our ritual. We decided to get Teddy all dressed up and he was a good sport. He even stood on his own for 30 seconds for pictures.

We ended the month with a ditch-day on Friday to celebrate Teddy turning nine months old and truly, to have a whole day together as a family. Since Alex has class every Saturday and I work every Sunday it makes it difficult to plan a whole day outing. So Alex took a PTO day and we had a blast. We “slept in” (meaning until 7:00), and then hit the road. We stopped in Camarillo at our favorite breakfast spot, The Breakfast Cafe.

The owner remember us from our frequent visits when we lived down the street and said how big Teddy has gotten. Teddy got and ate his first Mickey Mouse pancake! It was so relaxing to have no agenda and just enjoy the day together. We ended up in Santa Barbara for lunch after some errands and a hike, and then enjoyed the beach (Teddy’s favorite). It was a wonderfully slow day. Alex and I got to talk while Teddy slept and we both were able to enjoy time with our little bear.

We love him so much and can’t wait for him to continue to grow! Here’s hoping for a happy and healthy month nine.

Mama

It finally happened! Teddy started saying, “Mama.” It’s funny though, the first time I heard it I didn’t believe he actually said it. I thought it must have been a variation of “Nana”, which he’s been saying that for two weeks now. Nana is very happy about this; I, however, was very jealous and not too excited about being called, “Nana” instead. Then, last Wednesday at bible study, he started saying it as he was crawling around. Oh! He’s standing on his own now too. Did I mention that? This crazy kid can stand for 7-10 seconds on his own without holding onto anything. So, there he was standing on his own and saying, “mama.” I had to have confirmation from everyone in the group that he actually was saying it. We put it to a vote and decided it was happening.

Since then, he’s saying it a lot more now. Not so much in the endearing way he says, “dada”. More in the whining, crying, I need you, way. Which, unfortunately isn’t as cute. I’m holding out for the day though! One of these days he’s going to look up at me and say, “Mama.” And I’ll know it means, “I love you. Thank you for everything you do. You’re the best.”

Teddy | 8 Months

Teddy, this past month flew by! Between Christmas, New Year’s, My birthday and Daddy and My anniversary, we’ve had a crazy month. You, still, never cease to amaze me. You are so warm and sweet. You are much more mobile now, so cuddling is rare, but you’ve started to show your preference for me and you kiss me a whole lot! You absolutely adore your Dad. Every time he comes home for lunch or home from work you leap from my arms and squeal as you crawl towards him. It’s the sweetest thing. You and Boone are best pals now. You love to give him treats and you’re learning to give him space — sort of. This month you got two new top teeth and you learned how to stand on your own for 10 seconds! I think you’ll be walking by nine months and then, I better watch out! Oh, and in other news, you slept through the night TWICE this month. Thank you for the 8 hours Teddy!

* * *

This past month, seriously has been a whirlwind. Where do I begin? First, we celebrated Teddy’s first Christmas and New Year’s Eve/Day! We had a blast opening presents and sharing special time with family. I can’t wait to see more cousins enter the picture and see these little ones share memories as they grow. Some of my closest friends are my cousins. I cherished growing up with them and I love them dearly.

This month we had quite a few adventures. The first was an overnight stay with friends from church. Alex’s company hosts an annual party and this year I was able to help put it on! It ended up being an overnight trip so we had some dear friends from church offer to watch Teddy for us. I was nervous, but I knew they could handle it. Alex and I had a blast! Teddy on the other hand gave our friends a run for their money. I hope they still want to have children. He didn’t drink any milk for 12 hours — he just refused. Finally, they were able to get him to drink at 3:00 am and he drank 9 oz. Geesh. Still, they told me they had a fun time and they still love us, so that’s good.

That same weekend, Auntie Am, Uncle Trav, Camden and Tenley came for the weekend. Trav and Amy had a wedding to attend so Alex and I watched all three kids. Well, first Jonna and I watched them at her place because I lost my keys and couldn’t get into our apartment. Doh. Then we trekked over to our place and watched the kids go crazy in our tiny apartment. It was so much fun. When Trav and Amy got back we took out two blow up beds and made a giant one in the middle of the living room. Tenley was so excited. She kept bouncing on the bed and yelling, “This is the best night EVEEEERR!” Trav and Amy didn’t have the greatest night sleep, but I loved having them here! Next time I promise you won’t end up on the floor, freezing, sorry guys!

The weekend afterward, we drove to Mission Viejo to visit our dear friends Ali and Ashley. They are the parents to our godson Jaxon. Jaxon just go a new baby brother, so we had been dying to meet him. We drove over and they took us to a really fun petting zoo in San Juan Capistrano. Teddy loved feeding all the different animals and playing legos with Jackie.

Next, was my birthday! My first birthday as a Mom. I don’t know why Father’s Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s didn’t really have the effect I excepted on me — but my birthday seemed to just become a super emotional thing. Ever since I was a young girl I’d wanted to be a mother, and here I was a mother. Turning 28, standing in my kitchen with my two boys, the best birthday presents ever. I was overcome. Too top it off, both boys brought me breakfast and each gave me a birthday card. Teddy’s was my favorite.

Then our small group surprised me with a little shindig at one of my favorite places Stonehaus in Thousand Oaks. We enjoyed and evening of baguettes, wine, cheese, olives, and lots of birthday questions. Sarah, our fearless leader, always has a bunch of birthday questions that she asks the honorary birthday person and I personally love them.

I can’t forget to mention my bestie. Who drove what was supposed to be a 45 minute trip for both of us, and because of traffic and accidents turned into an hour and half trip for us both. We were supposed to meet up at a Kids Museum in Pasadena. It’s supposed to be super fun, but we didn’t realize that it’s closed on Mondays. Literally, the ONLY day it’s closed. Shoot. We made it work and approached some of the moms at the park nearby to ask what we should do. They recommended “Amy’s Place” in South Pasadena. It’s an indoor play place for the kids and man did they have a blast. Amy and I got to talk and eat our sandwiches in peace while the kids ran, crawled, and frankenstein walked (Camden) around. I love those Cotsenmoyers.

Then, came our anniversary weekend. I learned my lesson on the bottle situation and decided to solely pump for the two weeks leading up to our BIG anniversary weekend. We had planned to go out of town for 2 days while my Mom and sister came up to watch Teddy. I was nervous I wouldn’t have enough milk, but I was able to get Teddy to take a bottle for the whole two weeks prior and I even cut the milk with some formula. The day arrived for us to leave and I nervously made the 5 hour drive to Monterey with Alex. It’s amazing how Dads can just “checkout” after they kiss their kids goodbye, isn’t it? Alex was all relaxed and excited for the weekend as soon as we left. It took me a good 2 hours into the drive to finally jump on the road trip karaoke bang wagon. But, I finally did and we ended up having a wonderful trip! I definitely need to do a whole post dedicated to all the amazing things we did. First, we stayed at John Steinbeck’s cottage — it was magical. We visited quite possibility the coolest aquarium ever, we had pancakes bigger than the plates they were served on, and ate sorbet from an ice sculpted swan. Come Sunday, I was really missing the Bubbas so we made the 5 hour trip back. Teddy wasn’t even mad when I picked him up, which made me so happy. Grandma and Auntie Jules had a great time too.

I can’t say enough how thankful I am for great friends and family who love and take of us so well. We are blessed.

BTW…

I jinxed it. Enter zombie mode.

Teddy’s Firsts | Christmas

Growing up, Alex and I never spent Christmas together. We always spent it with our families because we each had our own traditions and there’s something sacred about that family time during the holidays. After we were married we really wanted to split the time evenly as much as possible and we still do to this day. So, Christmas is always crazy! So much fun, but crazy. Now that we live 2 hours away it’s even crazier. Oh, and we have a baby now too.

Our family has really been working on setting down roots here in Thousand Oaks. Part of that has been finding and growing with a church family. Boy, we have a great one. We decided to stay in Thousand Oaks through Christmas morning and then make the trek down to Riverside to see our families.

Christmas Eve service at church was magical. They had huge trees, poinsettias, lights, candles, and lots of music. I even was asked to direct the children’s choir on one of the songs. The evening was spent singing songs together and lighting candles. It was wonderful. Then we went home, ordered pizza and exchanged gifts with Auntie Jonna.

Teddy received so many cool gifts! including this “THEODORABLE” shirt.

Jonna went home to make the trek to Riverside herself, while Alex and I stayed up late setting up Teddy’s toys and wrapping the remaining gifts before passing out.

Since Teddy went to bed so late, we thought for sure he would sleep until at least 7:00. WRONG! Teddy was up at 5:00 am! Just as usual. You would have thought he knew it was Christmas. Alex played with Teddy while I put on some Christmas music, started the hot cocoa and got the camera ready. Then, Alex had Teddy crawl out to see his gifts! A ball pit, block toys, and stacking toys too! I’m sure we were more excited than he was, but it was still so sweet to see his face light up.

Alex and I both screwed up in the gift giving department this year by giving each other our gifts early. We decided to just make it a tradition now. Truth be told, I’m the one you royally messed up and Alex was the one to swoop in and turn it into a romantic gesture. That guy. Alex bought me a kitchen aid mixer, which I’ve been asking for three years for! I got him the 007 Trilogy and a new dvd/sound system to play it on. I accidentally left his gift out while I was wrapping the other presents and when Alex came home he say the movies out and said, “Who’s THAT for?!”

“Crap. It’s for you.”

“YES! That’s the best present EVER!”

“I know.”

“But, it’s Blueray.”

“I know. I bought you a new dvd player to play it on.”

“WHAAAAT?! YES!”

I was totally bummed and Alex was so sweet about it. I went out to get stuff for Children’s Ministry and when I came back my Kitchen Aid mixer was out on the counter with a note that said, “Alex, don’t forget to wrap this. Your pal, Alex.”

I actually closed my eyes when I saw it on the counter thinking it was a mistake. So, we just decided to make it our tradition instead. We forget to wrap each other’s gifts and the week of Christmas is fair game. We could receive our gift at any time. I think I like it this way. It’s kind of a special thing between us and we can keep Christmas about the kids.

OK, back to our Christmas Adventure!

We spent the morning playing with Teddy’s toys for a while, got dressed, drank our hot cocoa, ate breakfast, and packed up the car. Then, off we went to Grandma and Grandpa’s house!

We arrived around 10:00 am and enjoyed a relaxing morning as family arrived slowly. Grammy and Pa, Aunt Julie Ann and Uncle Thomas, and Uncle Jonathan. It’s so nice to have family who take your kid away for a little while so you can just relax. Even if the whole time you don’t know what to do with yourself. How did I hold my arms before I had a kid? Why am I always swaying back and forth? Why am I cutting up my food into such tiny pieces for myself? All these questions and more.

Anyway! We enjoyed a relaxing day, exchanging gifts and eating way too much food. Teddy was blessed with such fun toys and clothes. Alex and I were blessed as well! Our family started drawing names a few years back and it’s so nice. We focus on the time together instead of opening a million gifts. Each adult has one other adult in the family, all the kids get toys from everyone. My favorite part of Christmas really is the eating and the hanging out anyway.

When rounded out the day with an evening at Nana and Papa’s. Uncle Chris and Aunt Amber came with cousins, Julian and Emmy. Teddy and Julian are the cutest pair. Emmy is just the sweetest little thing. Teddy always has fun laughing with Julian and “talking” with Emmy. Since we have the three grandkids on this side opening presents is SO MUCH FUN! The adults draw names and of course we have fun opening those gifts, but the kids were just too much this year. The most hilarious thing was that the boy received tons of cars, planes, and boy stuff but they were the most interested in playing with Emmy’s tea set. Heh. She didn’t seem to mind much at all.

We all stayed at Nana and Papa’s house. We woke up early and enjoyed Cream of Wheat and more hang out time. We had to leave around noon to meet some friends for lunch at Gourmet Pizza in Redlands — our favorite! We had fun laughing, and eating and then more eating and laughing. Can you tell we really like to eat?

We went back to Grandma and Grandpa’s for the night and enjoyed relaxing the rest of the day.

On Friday we went to the Cotsenmoyers for Christmas there. Another fun time was had by all with three kids in the mix. Tenley took to making pictures and bracelets for everyone, while the boys wrestled over binkies and ate things off the floor. We had Del Taco (of course) for lunch and then all the adults melted into the couch to relax during naptime for the kiddos.

Finally, we made the rounds again to see Grandma and Grandpa, Nana and Papa for goodbyes. Then made the trek home on Saturday evening.

We really enjoyed our relaxing and fun, first Christmas with our Teddy! I can’t wait for many more years to come!

Hoax or Hallelujah?

For the past three days Teddy have been taking his normal two naps and the a quick nap around 6:30 for anywhere from 45 mind to an hour. Then, he’s been awake until about 9:00. It’s actually been pretty nice because… Get this.

Teddy has been sleeping through the night! You heard me! From 9:00 until 5:00/5:30! Then sometimes he’ll even go back to bed for another 2 hours! It has been amazing. I hope I didn’t just jinx it now by writing it down.

Fingers crossed!

Teddy | 7 Months

Teddy, you’re 7 months old today! This coming month you’ll get to experience two of my favorite holidays, Christmas and New Years. Last year I enjoyed them so much because you were in my belly and I was so anxious for this year to come and I could hold you. This year I’m so excited to have you here with us! I’m anxious to see how you respond to opening presents on Christmas day, I hope you like what you’ll be getting.

This month, you finally decided that you really like food. You were always willing to try foods but you weren’t much of an eater, now you’re “mmmmm”ing, smacking your lips and drooling whenever food is in sight. We are always having to move everything away from you at the table because you are so eager to get at it.

You’ve mastered crawling, pulling yourself up onto things, transferring, sort of waving, and saying “dada.” I can’t wait to see what next month hold for you!

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Wow! This month Teddy is more mobile than ever. He always is on the go. Grandma said, “Now I know why you’re always tired. This kid is crazy!” Teddy is hardly ever content to just be in your arms anymore. He always wants to be crawling around and getting into things. It keeps me on my toes, that’s for sure!

I mentioned that Teddy has mastered crawling, but what’s funny is that he’s such a hefty little guy that he’s not exactly fluid in his execution. He’s very rigid when he puts one leg, one arm, one leg, on arm to move forward. We joking call him Teddy “The Tank” because he’s so slow moving. That doesn’t stop him from demolishing anything in his path.

This month Boone actually started to be nice to Teddy. Not nice enough for me to capture any of the cuteness, but he’s actually kind of taken to him. It’s very sweet.

Teddy had many fun adventures this month, including going to Knott’s Berry farm! Nana and Papa are allowed discount tickets during the month of November since Papa is a Marine so the entire Lopez clan went down to Knotts and tore it up! I had forgotten how fun Knotts can be with all the western scenes and rides. That could have also been because cousin Ju-Ju LOVES “choo-choos”, “yee-haws”, and “bang-bangs”. It is so fun to experience things with kids.

Teddy loved all the rides he went on, including the balloons. He had to sit on his own across from Alex and he did great! It was so cute. I can’t wait to take him again next year when he’s a little older and can try out some of the bigger kid rides, but I don’t think I’ll ever be prepared for when he wants to go on crazy rollercoasters. I’ll just need to pray my way through that.

Teddy really loves music and not just in a dance to it kind of way. He really appreciates it. He looks in wonder whenever he sees someone playing the piano, cello, or guitar. He LOVES beats to music and gets very excited when people sing. It’s so sweet. This past month I showed him Yo-Yo-Ma playing his cello on Mister Rodgers and he was entranced. If he doesn’t end up doing something with music I’ll be surprised.

Teddy also had his first Thanksgiving this month! I wasn’t always a huge fan of Thanksgiving growing up because I don’t like turkey or ham. But as I’ve gotten older I’ve really come to love it. A friend of mine put into words exactly what it is, “I love this holiday more than any other for approximately two reasons. Number one being that you basically do nothing all day besides sit, talk and eat. There are no presents to be purchased, no nothing you need to do besides be. The second reason is, of course, the community.” I LOVE this. It’s exactly why this holiday is so great. We spent the first half of the day with the Thomazins and the second half of the day with the Lopezes. Then we decided to make a weekend of it and see the Cotsenmoyers for Auntie Am’s birthday. Teddy, Ten and Cam love hanging out, when they aren’t fighting over toys, stealing binkies, and scratching each other.

We also were able to finishing unpacking and decorate our house for Christmas! Hooray. I LOVE Christmas and the decorations that come with it. I wish we could leave them up all year; mostly the christmas lights. The glow the give is so cozy and warm.

So, here’s the Holiday season, to you and yours! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

The Food Fight

I know that I said Teddy has really taken to food, but he seems to be uninterested in anything baby food related. He’s not interested in rice cereal, baby oatmeal or even mashed up things like avocado. However, he’ll eat little bits of things from my plate during meal times. He loves eggs, sausage, and even blueberry muffins, beans and rice. I’m always shocked to find that he likes bitter and sour things. He LOVES to chomp on pickles, olives, and even blueberries.

So, today I thought I’d try something different. I warmed up a few blueberries and mashed them up into his baby oatmeal. Hooray! HE LOVED IT! He even ate the entire serving. He has never done it before.

Now if only we could find the secret to scheduled nap times, sleeping through the night, and above all, sleeping past 6:00 am.