Wallet Thief

I have not been able to carry my purse on my shoulder if I am also carrying Collin and think that I will have my wallet still in my purse when I get to where I am going with him. No matter what shoulder and what hip Collin is on, he is able to twist over to stick his arm in my purse to pull out my wallet. There are plenty of other fun objects in my purse but he only wants my wallet. When he was younger, he would chew on the outside of it but now, he wants to snap and unsnap the flap to the main part of the wallet. Tonight was the first time I noticed him looking at the contents in the it. He started to pull some of the folded cash out but decided to snap the flap closed instead.

Mimi and Pappy's 23rd Anniversary

Tonight, we celebrated Mimi and Pappy's 23rd anniversary. Collin was a little out of sorts when we got there but Pappy was able to calm him down and get him to eat a little which really helped. I am sure he was tired from his full day yesterday and full day today before we got to the restaurant.

After going to church this morning, we went over to a coworker's house, Ginni, to play with her and her 14-month old daughter. Collin enjoyed playing with the new toys but mainly wanted to crawl up their hardwood floor stairs. Emilia does not really crawl up the stairs but she was trying to keep up with Collin. I would get him back down the stairs, then turn around to get him a snack and he was already headed back up the stairs. He did get a workout but I am not sure how much of a play date it was since he did not play with Emilia that much. At one point, Collin found my purse, pulled out my brush, crawled up behind me, pulled up on my back and started to brush my hair. I have NEVER had him do this to me before. At night, I do brush his wet hair out before he goes to bed. As i am doing this, I do say that "mommy is brushing your hair" so maybe that is where he learned it from. I told Mimi about it tonight and she said he has brushed her hair out before.

Party, Party, Party!

Collin had two birthday parties Saturday...and for two ladies. One was for a 3 year old at an indoor playground that had the blown-up play structures that he could bounce and crawl around in. He was the littlest guy there but that did not stop him. He could crawl and keep up as best as he could. He really liked the one were he could bounce and crawl up the slide.....yeah, he did not like sliding down it as much as he liked crawling up it. After playing on the playground, it was pizza and cake time. He had his first bite of pizza and was not impressed. He did like the vanilla ice cream though. Both of us were miserably hot from the playground and he needed a nap so he threw a tantrum or two when I would take a fork out of his hand or move something out of his reach. He was just fine though after he got a balloon to take home.

He even fell asleep with the balloon string in his hand as we were driving to the next party as you can see in this picture.

At the next party, he got to play in a sand box for the first time. He LOVED it! I enjoyed watching him experience the sand and see what it could do. He had a great time pushing his hand through the sand, picking it up and watching the sand fall through his fingers. He would do that over and over again. Then, he figured out that the shovel could pick up the sand too. Sand stuck to it especially after he licked it a few times. He definitely got his fiber for the day...maybe the week!

We then went to Saige's house so he could take a nap since the second party was close to her house. He sleep for over 2 hours! I guess he was a tired party animal. He then played with Saige a little before she had to go to bed. Daddy came over after work to have dinner and watch a movie.

Collin had a long day but a lot of fun.

Smart Kid!

Well, Collin has now figured out how to open one of the security gates by watching us open it many times. There is a latch at the top that can be locked down. We have been lazy and not including the lock on the top latch. Collin had been flipping the latch up for a few weeks but could not get the latch to go up all the way. He finally figured this out and was surprised when the gate opened. He just stood there for a minute and then let out a big, happy scream because he figured out what he did. He walked through the opening and then dropped to a crawl really fast because he knew cat food was waiting for him to play with it. ;)

Tuesday's with Daddy August 26th

Collin and I visited some friends today that have a big dog. Collin really likes dogs. Collin was in heaven and would chase the dog and then let the dog chase him and never wanted to stop playing with the dog. Then Collin found the dogs kennel and decided to play inside it. So for about 30 minutes he would open and close the door and crawl around inside the kennel. He hated to get out and yelled at me when it was time to go home.

Collin was so worn out from playing with the dog he took a great long nap. Once mommy came home we went back to the friends house with the dog and Collin got so happy when we were walking up to the front door because he reconized the house. When we went inside it was all you could do to hold him, he instantly wanted down so he could get the dog. Collin has no fear of big dogs and this dog was very good with him. Doggies play the "I'm gonna Get you" game very well and Collin loves that game.

Another great day with a fun little boy with tons of laughter.

Screaming Clarification

I feel like I need to clarify what daddy meant by Collin screaming in the restaurant yesterday afternoon. He was not screaming because he was in a bad mood. He was screaming with a quick, loud burst and then laughing. He has found his voice!!! Tonight while trying to feed him....yes, trying since he was more concerned about raising his arms above his head to try to dodge the spoon coming towards his mouth...he would do the same burst of a scream and think he was being cute. He was more interested in trying to pull the top tray of his high chair off than to eat. I eventually gave up and took him upstairs for his bath. No more screaming at least. He LOVES his bath.

Collin found his voice or at least his scream box

Collin was a joy today. Collin is usually a very peaceful energetic child. Not today. For what seemed like all day, he was screaming at the top of his lungs at least I hope that is as loud as it gets. This was especially fun when we met some friends that have an 8 month old daughter for lunch at a pretty nice restuarant. Anyways, we did not let it phase us since we were there later in the afternoon and the place was pretty empty.

I spent a good 30 minutes making fart noises on Collins hands and watching him laugh. I think our son will become a Dentist because of his careful inspection of my teeth. He gets a kick out of putting is hand in my mouth and rubbing my teeth and then laughing about it. SO I do the same to him. Although as Grandma H found out, he has sharp teeth and a strong jaw.

Fun day and always something new. Like today while feeding him, he would lean back and gargle the formula. Interesting kid.

Update from Mimi

Collin is so cute crawling while he holds a ping pong ball in both hands. He likes the noise they make when he hits them on the tile as he crawls along. One of his favorite spots in Mimi's house is the laundry room. He likes to open the drawers of underneath the washer where he puts some toys for Mimi or Pappy to find. Collin looked bewildered when he sat on one of his toys and broke one of the hands that makes noise when moved back and forth. He so enjoyed sitting on his knees and and playing with the toy to make the clapping noise (it's a clapper that has plastic hands on both sides. When moved back and forth, it makes a loud clapping sound). He empties containers or boxes of toys as he is searching for a certain toy and leaves a trail of destruction behind him.

Mommy's not gonna be happy!!!

SO I successfully taught my son the trick that so many dads look forward to teaching there son. I have spent a good portion of the time Laura has been out of town and away from thwarting my attempts to teach my son how to MAKE FART SOUNDS WITH HIS MOUTH AND HAND.

So today on Collin's first birthday we truely have something to celebrate.

Yeah Collin........

Look Who's One!!

Today is Collin's birthday!!!

Tuesday's with Daddy August 19th 2008

Today was a blast. We plan on staying home almost all day and just play with all of the new toys. This one was the Piano toy that I gave him for his birthday. It is fun watching play with toys that make music. I guess it is true at any age "The rhythm is gonna get cha" It got Collin because he likes to shake his booty. SoI will try to get a video of that some day.

Anyways he went from toy to toy with a few breaks in the day to chase the kitties around the second floor. Collin did not like it when they jumped on the pool table and cried at them, then looked at me as if to say "Make them come down and play" Not doin it the cats stayed up there. Chloe finally relented and let Collin pet her for a while. She really like me being here to protect her it was funny watching Collin chase her around me sitting in the middle of the floor. I believe Chloe knew exactly what she was doing and I do not think Collin understands that cats do not like to be SCREAMED at.

Later in the day Collin wanted to give Chloe the ball from one of his new toys. Chloe did not understand and would swat at him as if to say "You are being a pest Kid, I already played with you today". Collin is so friendly and just kept trying at some point he put his head down and tried to understand why she did not want the ball.

I learned something today, when Collin is quietly playing it is not a good thing!!!!

Collin ran around the second floor safe zone all day long either screaming at the cats or dancing to the music or throwing his blocks and balls and anything else he could get his hands on around the room. So when he started to crawl between the couch and my chair I thought he was looking for one of his toys. So I paid it no never mind but about 5 minutes go by and I look over and there he is not making a sound but sitting on his calves, wedged in between the couch and chair looking down at the ground. SO I look over his head to see what he was doing and much to my surprise he found the box of tissue paper. Yeah that was fun? So I got to find out what a full, brand new box of tissue paper looks like when it is out of the box and SHREDDED into about a BILLION Pieces. Oddly enough nothing went into his mouth, at least I did not see it today. Maybe tomorrow, if you get my gist.

Last but not least, since today was such a fun day I decided to let Collin feed himself with some solid food. Collin has not been eating a lot of solid foods lately and only wanted his formula from his bottle. So when I was eating dinner I gave him some of what I was eating. Lo Mien Noodles with Mushrooms. He also had crackers, goldfish, and cheerios and Cantaloupe. Well I say he had them but it is more like he WORE them. As you can see by the picture he did not get much into his mouth and what did make it into his mouth got spit out after chewing it for a little while.

Don't worry I cleaned up afterwards and then a bath was in order. I found noodles in some fun places, it is amazing what can fit behind his ears. Also if we ever run out of hair gel and want to stick his hair straight up we can use cantaloupe juice. It is really sticky.

SO another great day being Collin's Daddy.

Collin's Birthday Party

We celebrated Collin's birthday yesterday with his friends and family. His birthday is actually this Wednesday but I will be out of town and it was easier to have everyone over on a Saturday instead of during the week. Collin's buddies that were able to make it were:

Addison and her mother, Kristin

Matthew and his parents, Tony and Maria

Melia and her parents, Terry and Shane

Saige and her parents, Todd and Kristen. Her bother Ethan made it also.

I am sure he did not know what was going on. He had to know something was different because we have not had that many people in our house at one time since he was born. He had a great time playing with his friends and flirting with their parents. When it was time for the cake, he was not ready. I think he was confused because his highchair was not in the kitchen like it usually is when it's time to eat. Plus, about 15 people were staring at him smiling. He would just stare back at them. He also did not know what to do with the cupcake and ice cream. He usually has his food on the highchair tray and not on a plate (we are not dumb....we know what happens when a baby picks up a plate and decides they are not interested in it). So, he did sit the for a few minutes before he picked up the spoon and played a little with the ice cream. Eventually, he did eat a little of the cake too. Next, it was time for presents. He would open one and be so interested in it that he would not see that another one was waiting in front of him for him to open. Halfway through opening presents, I think he got bored because he started to crawl away. We eventually opened them all.

Thank you to everyone that was there to celebrate this milestone in Collin's life. We had a great time sharing this time with you. Thanks to Grandma H for all of her help. The food and party would not have been such a success without her.

I'm hungry. What's there to eat?

Collin is VERY curious these days. Nothing is boring to him...including the refrigerator. Fortunately, ours is airtight and very hard to open so Collin is not able to open it himself. However, if he sees either of us headed toward the kitchen, he is usually not too far behind. Once in the kitchen, he either opens the cabinet that is lock-free to pull out most of the food containers or he wants to open the refrigerator to have a look inside. We have shown him that both sides are cold but the freezer side is much colder. He already knows that the freezer side is where his food comes from. Whenever we open that side, he thinks it's time to eat even if it's not and we are getting us something to eat from there. He will throw a fit for a few seconds until he is distracted by something else.

Tuesday With Daddy August 12th

I would like for you to take a real close look at this picture. Notice the CALM, INNOCENT,LOVING, QUIETLY SLEEPING, little boy in the crib. Now look just to the right of the crib, notice that nice big pile of stuff on the floor next to the crib. Yeah you guessed it, that was all inside the crib when Collin was placed in there for a nap. Needless to say Collin did not like the idea of a nap, he never does, no matter how much his eyes were saying it was time. Collin is on the go from the time he wakes up until he completely crashes. The real funny part of this is that after he woke up and played for a while I caught him trying to put all of this stuff back into the Crib, so at least he is trying to clean up after himself. He must have learned that from me.

Collin likes taking things out of the place where it was and then putting it back. He is also in the stage that anything you hand him he will look at it or play with it then throw it on the ground. He then proceeds to look at it and then look at you as if to say "You gonna Get that." Anyways we had another great day with loads of fun, Collin got to go on a business meeting with me today and he quickly made friends with the lady that I was meeting with. He is such a flirt, I think it is funny that I can not get him to sit still but when he was in her lap he was calm and sweet.

This is THE END of the day after a bath with mommy, Mommy is much braver than Daddy, mostly since every diaper Daddy had to change today was a good dirty one. But I digress, Mommy is brave and lets him crawl around his room without a diaper on, the poor carpet is defenseless. Anyways he likes digging around the Armoire where his clothes are. Remember he likes to pull everything out and then put it back. The good news is that Collin wears himself out so much he is out as soon as Mommy puts him down at night and usually does not wake up til the next morning.

White Boys Can Dance!

Collin has been listening to music since I was pregnant with him. I could tell the difference in his movements in my belly depending on the type of music I was listening to. If I had not felt him move much that day, I would play Lenny Kravitz (Greatest Hits, Oct 2000) on the way home and that would get him moving. Well....he has continued to get his groove on outside of the womb too. We were playing in his room and I decided to play a CD while Collin was focused on his stuffed animals (which is his new love...he has to sleep with his monkey Grandma H bought him). As soon as the CD started to play (Wheels on the Bus), Collin stopped what he was doing and started moving to the music. When he dances, he typically is sitting with either his legs crossed in front of him or he is sitting on his shins. In either position, the way he dances is he moves his hips back and forth while he has a huge grin on his face. This, of course, makes me smile and instantly do the "while girl" dance with him. Daddy should be teaching Collin to dance since he has more rhythm than I do.

I will post a video if I get get it....I might be laughing too hard to stop and think about filiming him though.

Relaxing Morning

After breakfast this morning, the boys relaxed by reading and watching the Olympics while I scrapbooked a few pages in Collin's baby book. I had to capture the moment because 1) Daddy was actually reading and 2) they looked like they were having a good time doing it. It put a huge smile on my face.

Typically after breakfast because Collin inhale his food, we wheel him into the living room in his highchair to rest and digest his food before we let him lose to crawl with a mission like he does. No, he is not walking yet and we are not encouraging it at all...hahaha. This also gives daddy or I time to clean the kitchen before we move on to the next adventure raising a little boy full of energy.

After a little reading, daddy laid on the couch to take a nap and tried to get tired Collin to take one two with him. I thought he would fall asleep fairly quickly because his eye lids were getting heavy, his eyes were red and he was rubbing them....all signs that he is tired. Well, he never fell asleep because he had things to do. Daddy gave up after what seemed like an hour. Guess who's sleeping now.....

Addison's Birthday Party

Today was Addison's birthday party. We arrived before the other guests arrived. Addison's big present, her kitchen, was already opened so her and Collin "cooked" while her parents got ready for her party. Addison would cook on the stove and Collin would give her the food to make. The food was below the stove in baskets. Collin's new thing to do is take things out of containers so he gravitated to the food in the baskets first. Addison was busy really salting the food and the entire counter top. After "lunch", the two of them walked over to the window to watch the dog play outside. It was really fun to watch the two of them together.

Then, Ethan arrived. We met him and his mom, Wendy, when we were attending the Thursday morning class at the hospital. Ethan and Collin are the same age which is about 11 days younger than Addison. He is on the left in this picture. After playing for awhile, it was time Collin to eat his first cupcake. He was not interested in holding it himself but he did let me feed him some bites with a spoon. He really made a nasty face when I gave him some ice cream...probably because of how cold it is. Collin is used to room temp or warm food. I was happy to finish the rest of the cupcake and ice cream....hey, I did not want it to go to waste. :)

Reminder - No Postings for a Week

Since daddy and I will be out of town on separate business trips, there will not likely be any postings about Collin unless Mimi has an update about what he is doing new........

Collin's 12 Month Pictures

Despite it being really hot and humid outside and needing a nap, Collin did really well this morning while he had his 12 month pictures taken. The setting was the local arboretum which I cannot believe I had not discovered yet....we are definately going back for some long walks!

We got some great shots of him near a log, sitting on a log and exploring the twigs, leaves and other things laying on the ground. Daddy, he did get his fiber intake for the day. :) I then placed him near a tree and he tried to stand on his own for a brief moment but the ground was sloped a little and it was hard for him to take his balance. We will have to see if the photographer caught the moment. The next spot was a long bridge that he enjoying race-crawling back and forth on. We then changed his clothes and headed to the bog so he could watch the fish and minnows swim along. It was during these shots that he started to get cranky. I don't blame him either. We were both really sweaty and he was hungry and needed a nap. As soon as we got home, he devoured his food and he has been sleeping for about 45 minutes already. Here are a few pictures I took to give you and idea of the setting....


Here he is with the photographer, Kelley. She and her husband, Dustin, used to be our neighbors. She started her own photography business, kd loftis photography (http://www.kdloftisphotography.com/), after she had her first child, Amelia. It was really fun to see her again.












Later that night: Collin did end up taking an almost 3 hour nap after his pictures this morning. The "little bug" was REALLY tired!

Collin and Addison

Since daddy and I will be out of town all next week for business on opposite sides of the US, we spent the day with Collin instead of working (well, not working most of the day). For lunch, we went to Addison's house to meet her grandparents that were in town for her birthday. Daddy enjoyed the visit because he got to see Collin play with another baby. I get to see this all of the time and it's fun but daddy is usually working so he misses out on the interaction. What one baby would do, the other would also do. If Addison crawled over to a toy to play with it, Collin was right behind her. Collin crawled over to her "office" and Addison was not far behind once she heard the familiar sounds coming from the "office". They were really cute. Collin would open the red circle on the toy and then Addison would close it. Collin would open in again and then...yes, Addison closed it. Here are some pictures of that....

Addison should Collin her new early birthday present...an Okiedog's Cheeky Chick. It's this really cute riding toy that Addison loves! Collin got on it and seemed to really like it. I wonder if we will see one of these on his birthday....hmmmmm.....Here is Addison on the riding toy....what's a Cheeky Chick anyway?

After leaving Addison's, we had to run a few errands before we ended up at home and enjoyed the rest of the evening. Collin went to bed early probably because he did not nap well and the fun he had at Addison's house.