Big man at dinner!

So Connor is officially a big boy now....thats right....he sat in a restaurant high chair for dinner Wednesday night! Talk about exciting for everyone! I got to eat my dinner with both hands free, Connor got to check everyone out from his OWN seat, he learned how to eat the paper table cloth, and was quiet the whole meal with the help of his mesh feeder with ice in it! Talk about a wonderful invention that thing is...I put ice in it to keep him cool and busy, but can avoid the sticky mess of food and ruining his appetite for his dinner. He likes to bang toys (or anything) on the table, so he is quite the loud restaurant guest! Thank goodness he likes being outside--he's happy and everyone in the restaurant doesn't have to listen to him babble & bang. Now our goal is to seek out every restaurant in town that has outdoor seating.

Next on Mommy's list--trying out the big boy seat in the shopping cart!

Professional Pics

We did it! Talk about stress & lots of planning...but with the help of Grandma- we were successful! Photographer was kinda dopey, so Connor was more apt to give her the "What?!" face rather than the "Smiley" face, but we got a few good ones out of him! Talk about over stimulation for a 6 month old...three women making faces, funny noises, and waving toys in the air to get Connor to look and smile! Poor kid...but we did it! Enjoy~

Best behavior

Ok- so my lesson learned recently in life is this:

Do not pass judgment on people that have children that are 'acting out' in public. Most of the time they are wonderful parents that have been blessed with a stinker of a child that will save all of their poor behavior for the perfect opportunity when you are out and everyone is watching! I haven't had too many of these experiences yet, as I carefully plan out each outing with my son to avoid these occurrences. I certainly know my day is coming, as Connor definitely has the power to 'act out!'

My other child-Cooper- is another story! Anyone who knows me, knows that he was my 'first child.' He has a toy for every day of the year, is always stocked up on treats, gets at least 3 walks a day, has a big backyard to play in, and is rarely left alone for more than a few hours. This dog will never know how good he has it! He, however, has learned to make a complete fool out of me lately!

EXAMPLE: My new neighbors moved in behind us about 6 months ago. They have two little dogs, that are oh-so-well-behaved. They have no fence around their yard, but just let the dogs out to 'do their business' and then they come right back in. Every command is listened to the first time. I have yet to see them misbehave.

Then.... enters Cooper.

Cooper, the one with the fenced in back yard, is not allowed out back without FULL supervision. He is a lizard hunter and knows exactly where to seek them out when I open the back door. He jets straight to the trees (I have 2) and sniffs around, apparently finds their scent, and begins to dig in order to find them! We have filled these holes several times, which over and over again, become holes again! Not only does he dig, he continues to dig while you are yelling obscenities at him, grabs a hunk of grass in his mouth when he knows you are approaching to scold him, and runs from you all around the yard. This was not as much of an issue when I had all the time in the world for Cooper (and didn't think anyone was really watching), but with Connor needing full supervision, Cooper takes full advantage of the opportunity. So every once and awhile, I run into my new neighbors and they always have a good laugh for Coop's 'exceptional behavior!' I'm sure its quite comical to look out your back window to see your neighbor chasing her scrawny little dog with dirt all over his face and a huge hunk of sod hanging from his jowls! Yep, that's my Coop!

Captain Cutie

Connor is oh-so-much fun these days! He is so much happier now that he can sit, roll, and some what move by creeping! We just got back from a very successful shopping trip to Carter's and Gymboree Outlet...thank goodness its about a 1/2 hour drive from my house, because I would probably be there all the time if it were closer! Got a lot of unnecessary clothes for Connor, but it was so worth it! Got a few ball caps, which he needs since his head has outgrown most of his hats already. Grandma bought him his first pair of sandals and we also found some great outfits for his professional pictures on Monday. We will have to do a trial run to see how they fit and stuff before we go. Enjoy the pics!

Sitting and playing!!


Snacking on toes...Mmm


Captain Crabby


Precious little man


Happy guy shopping with Grandma and Papa


Making a mess out to lunch...Mom will rethink the white shirt next time!

Sitting Pretty!

Sitting up all my himself!

In shock he was sitting up all by himself! : )

Such a big boy! So proud of himself!

So after my last post, the day got quite interesting! We made a trip to Target to get Connor a new blow up duck tub, because he's not completely loving his new bath seat since he has to reach over to touch the water & it's too hard to splash. So we made a trip to Target in the rain, got his tub, and a shirt to wear for his professional pictures in a few weeks, and headed home to wait for Grandma to come over. Once Grandma was over, we were sitting in Connor's room talking when he had a huge breakthrough! Grandma decided to let Connor sit on the floor and let go of him... that's when he sat up by himself for about 4-5 minutes!! He was flapping his arms in the air, laughing, let me grab my camera and take a million pictures, then after a bit kinda tilted to one side & we caught him before he crashed to the ground! Man, was that exciting though! So as I watched him sitting there, I began to smile thinking about the world of shopping cart seats, restaurant high chairs, and sitting upright to play....Woo Hoo!! He was so proud of himself too!

This exciting moment allowed me to get through what I experienced later in the evening without breaking down... Papa and Grandma were over helping install Connor's big boy carseat in the garage and Connor and I came out to see how it was progressing. Connor began his normal grunts about that time of night, when I know the prunes he had for dinner were kicking in, and we'd have a nice, stinky poop cleaned out of him before bed. WELL, did we have a nice, STINKY poop! He grunted as he poohed and it shot out the side of his diaper, half landing on my clothes and in my hand, and the remainder splattering onto the garage floor and blowing all over!! Thank goodness I had other people here to help me, because it was EVERYWHERE! So thank you Grandma for cleaning Connor up, thank you Papa for cleaning up the poop on the floor, while I changed, took a shower, and lured the dog inside before he walked all through the pooh explosion on the floor!

An exciting day for turning 6 months, don't you think?!

Happy 6 months!

I can't believe its already been 6 months! Most days seem to crawl by, but its still shocking that Connor is half way to being a year old! He's decided to celebrate the day by not sleeping last night, practicing crawling all day, getting mad that he can't quite crawl yet, and then took 4 hour morning nap! Hope this crawling stuff continues to wear him out! Not sure what the rest of the day has to hold for us, since it's storming outside. I'm hoping to make a trip out the Carter's Outlet to find Connor an outfit for his 6 month professional pictures. He's been a stinker most the day, but man...he's cute! : )

Big boy!!

Chowing a banana in new mesh feeder...less mess & no choking!

Big Boy bath seat

Some days I wish Connor could do just a little bit more than just lay there, but then other days I wish he would stay tiny forever and quit growing! Just the past week Connor has become a 'big boy!' We upgraded from his whale tub to a bath seat in the BIG tub. He did great, although kinda hates that its more work to sit up and trying to splash through a plastic chair all around you is somewhat difficult. He does like the fact that all of his toys just float around him and he can just pick and choose what he wants to play with/suck on!

About two weeks ago, we started Connor on a sippy cup at lunch and dinner time. He just gets water, but its fun for him to have something new to put in his mouth! I'm still holding it for him most of the time, but he does great with it.

He is quite the monster in his car seat now, so as soon as Mommy has the time and patience- she will install the big car seat in her car. Wish my luck!

Connor has been rolling for quite a few months now, but has just begun to get the hang of rolling both directions. I think it scares him to roll from his belly to his back--startles him a little--so when he sees his head hanging to the side and rolls about 3/4 of the way, he stops himself and rolls back! On the other hand, put him on his back and within 2 seconds he is on his belly! He has begun pulling his knees up under his belly and lifting his belly (in the crawl position), but doesn't know to lift his head...looks kinda funny! Over the past few days though he has really started to creep- he steers with his arms and moves himself backwards. Hasn't mastered going forward yet!

He should be in size 3 diapers now, but we have quite a few size 2's left...so we are trying to stretch them as far as they will go! He has met the 'weight limit' on the box, but they still fit him pretty well...hopefully for a little longer.

He has also outgrown quite a few outfits. He already has one full rubbermaid of clothes that I will be keeping, but we also just got rid of some a few weeks ago at a garage sale. It's unbelievable how fast he is growing out of stuff...clothes, hats, etc. His bathing suits are size: 12-18 months, his onesies/jammies are 9-12 months, and most of his other clothes are 6-9 months still. His outfits only get to be worn 1-3 times before they are tight! Sounds like a good excuse for us to take a trip to Kohls/Carter's Outlet for some new clothes!

We also recently lowered Connor's mattress for the first time, as he kept bonking his head on his fish tank toy on the side of his crib. Wasn't a big deal, but made me feel like he's growing too fast!

Thats about it for milestones lately- Connor turns 6 months on Monday & we are going to the Dr. on Thursday. Anxious to see how much he weighs/length/head size! Not too excited about the shots...

Snuggle Bunny

Since Connor was about a month old, he decided he was NOT the kind of child that likes to be snuggled and held like a baby (he ONLY liked facing outward to see things). As he has grown and become even more interested in seeing outward and all that's going on around him, he rarely let me hold him 'like a baby', resting his head on my shoulder, unless he had just woken up, got a boo-boo, or was asleep. Then about a month ago, ENTERS: NEIL SEDAKA....God bless this man, who allows me to hold my son like a baby!! I saw him singing on Regis and Kelly one morning promoting his new kid CD and Connor just zoned in on him while it was on. Thought I would give it a try and bought the CD. Never had heard of the guy, but he's more of my parents' generation I guess...sang songs like "Breaking Up is Hard to Do" and "Love Will Keep Us Together." His CD is all of his popular songs just put to kid words, so its really catchy! So every day around lunch time when Connor is ready for a nap, I pop in 'Neil' and dance away. Connor lets me hold him like a baby, rests on my shoulder, and just tunes into 'Neil'. He falls asleep to him EVERY TIME! So everyone is happy- I get to hold Connor like a baby, Connor loves this music, and then he falls asleep! I recommend this CD to all of you parents out there! May Neil Sedaka bless your house like he has blessed mine! : )

Mr. Smarty Pants

I have one smart little cookie on my hands these days...

I have this Fisher Price Fish Tank that is attached to the side of Connor's crib that I turn on every morning when he wakes up to give me a few extra minutes to brush my teeth, make my bed, etc. Well about two days ago, I awoke to Connor babbling on the baby monitor. I got up and walked into his room to see him reaching up to turn on his fish tank! Sure enough- he did it! Now he thinks its fun to see me turn it on, then he turns it off, then I turn it back on, then he turns it back off... little stinker!

My strong willed little guy has also made some attempts to becoming mobile! He keeps trying to tuck his legs up under his belly and lifts his belly (but sometimes forgets to lift his head!). He'll be up and moving before I know it!

Caught in action turning on Fish Tank


Trying so desperately to crawl

Mother's Day should be once a month!

Mother's Day dinner at Craig & Nicole's

My parents at breakfast- Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Breakfast at Panera Bread

Connor loves Papa's hairy arms.....Mmm!

Playing at church in Children's room

Auntie Katie and Connor

What a great day! Someone must have informed Connor that today was Mother's Day, because he has been wonderful! To start my day, I had a great night's sleep : ) -Only got up once! Connor was up and fresh this morning, so we put on his Sunday best and met my family at church. He did great through church, started the sermon in the 'big church', waited until everyone was quiet in prayer to let out a huge burp! He then decided to eat the bulletin that they hand out to everyone, which left ink stains on his face! Katie and I escaped to the 'Children's room' to watch the rest of church via TV. Connor did great and his Grandma was able to show him off to all of her choir buddies. They held a special family photo session after church, so we got a great family shot. We loaded up from there and headed to Panera Bread for breakfast, where Connor slept in his carrier the whole time. We were surprised with a new digital camera from Grandma and Papa, which was VERY exciting for me since my old digital was the size of a computer and not working anymore! We went home, loaded up Coop, and headed to Grandma and Papa's for a swim in the pool. In a few hours we are off to Uncle Craig and Auntie Nicole's for dinner. Connor is happy, Coop is happy, so MOM is happy! Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there and Happy Women's Day to all others! : )

Happy Mother's Day to me!

I know it's kinda silly to wish myself a Happy Mother's Day, but hey- I deserve it! Becoming a mother is something I have always dreamed of and now that I am, it couldn't be better! Yeah, I don't get any sleep, wear clothes that can double as pajamas and day wear, rarely get a daily shower, my house is dirty, usually miss meals, am rushed doing anything, feel successful if I make it through another day, and am always preparing myself for what I have to do next...but it's all worth it for my precious little Connor man! I think it is until you become a mother yourself that you realize just how much your own mother sacrificed for you...although from what I've heard- I was an angel child and Connor is, well, a pistol at times!

So on this Mother's Day this year, relax if you are a mom, and praise your mothers!

WATCH OUT!

Talk about one strong little person!! Connor has the strongest grip in the world! I have been sporting a pony tail for about the past month to save myself, but Auntie Katie just learned first hand on how strong that little Connor is! If he doesn't slime you to death with his drool, he will yank all your hair out! Can't help but love him though : ).

I love my son : )

Me and Connor man

Connor using big boy sippy cup!

Connor entertaining himself in Aidan's walker

Connor and Aidan


Connor and Lillian

The other night we got together at a family friend's house for dinner. Between our family and two others, we had a 5 month old (Connor), a 9 month old (Lillian), an 18 month old (Aidan), and two pregnant girls (one 10 weeks, one 20-some weeks)! It was controlled chaos, was hard to carry a conversation and/or eat, but we had a good time! Connor was the youngest, but weighed the same as the 9 month old...needless to say his head was bigger than her's too! Was fun to see that only a few months difference in ages made a big difference in what they were able to do! It was exhausting since Connor fell out of his regular night time routine, but we had a good time.

The neighbors are talking...

So my neighbors probably think I am such a weirdo-

Last night, I got home about 8:00pm from dinner with the family & still had a few things to do around the house before bed.

1. Get the mail
2. Put fake deer in my car to give to guy at work (don't ask)
3. Let the dog out

So since I was running short on time before Connor had to get to bed, I tried to do a few things at once. (My mom was inside with Connor at the time). With Cooper on his leash in one arm, I was grabbing the giant deer in the other to load it in my car. Well, stupid me, should have remembered that my dog is deathly terrified of the deer- so as I grabbed it with one arm, Cooper tried to take off my other arm running in fear! So I put the deer down and tried to console my dog, when I notice my next obstacle--I just stepped over a snake in my driveway! So as I screamed in complete terror, my dog then freaks out and runs toward me stepping over the snake himself! I then decide it would be easier if I took the dog inside for now. So now I have this stuff to do, but can't focus until the snake is out of here, so I grab a shovel...

So as I am pounding this tiny, foot long snake with a giant shovel into a million tiny parts (which by the way when you cut a snake in pieces, it still moves, kinda like a lizard tail). My neighbor then decides to walk by with his dogs and gets a glimpse of me chopping up a snake in the dark, then heaving a giant deer into my trunk!

"That crazy lady"....

Anti-Binkie

For all those parents that got their kids to take binkies, I completely envy you! You name it- my son will put it in his mouth...but try to give him a binkie & he'll spit it right back at you! So instead of a binkie, he has decided to make me his human binkie. My shoulder, arm, hand, boob....I am at his service! Here is a picture of my latest 'binkie branding.'

Fun in the Sun!

When you live in Florida, nothing is better than a family day outside enjoying the beautiful weather. Connor is such an outdoorsy kid--could be fussing and all you have to do is open the door and step outside & he's a happy, refreshed kid. The past few days we've been hanging out in the pool, the swing, and lounging in the sun. Once I have Connor completely bathed in sunscreen, we are good to go for the afternoon! We had a great time today introducing Connor to basketball...where all he wanted to do was eat the ball, but he loved it!

A little bit Mischevious...

Last night I was making dinner in the kitchen and had Connor in his jumper in the living room. I could just hear him laughing and 'talking' to Cooper, so figured he was fine and didn't think he could get himself in any trouble.

Well...I poked my head out of the kitchen to find Connor grasping onto my silk palm tree tugging the whole thing over! And I thought he couldn't get into anything...that little weinie! I need to wise up and move his jumper into the center of the living room so no limbs can reach out and grab anything! For a kid that is barely mobile, he can make quite the trouble! When I got a few pictures, he just looked at me like "I'm not doing anything"...Funny little guy...

Splish Splash!

My child LOVES the water!! That and he LOVES being practically naked...

so combine the two and he is one happy camper!

Auntie Katie just got home last night,

so she's been helping me get some great shots of

Connor in the tub and the pool.

Oh the pool is such a blessing--

we spent about an hour swimming today, got out,

stripped him of his wet diaper and suit,

let him lounge in his beach towel watching Dora the Explorer,

and he just dozed off.

Nothing is more precious than his little chubby body

after the pool when his face is all red from rubbing his eyes

from the pool water and he is looks so sleepy : ).

We had a great day splashing in Grandma and Papa's pool today

and Mom and Auntie Katie were able to get some sun in the process!