Connor's in love...

Connor is in love. Yes, that's right....and not just with his mother! Connor has his eye on a beautiful girl by the name of Dora the Explorer. Enjoy the little video of him talking to his girl friend (on the cover of her DVD that Nana got him).

Spit bubbles!

Hello Mr. Tooth!

Connor has the "Cheese face" down beautifully, but do you know how hard it is to say "Cheese, Connor, open your mouth wide, and suck in your tongue," so I could get a good shot of his new tooth!! Got one decent shot in the 2nd photo (may have to click on the photo to see it up close). The tooth is on the bottom, left side (your left, Connor's right).

I also need to take back any complaints I had about the hickies Connor gave me on my shoulder before, because NOW his little gummy chomps on my body feel more like a staple gun! His little tooth peering through is super sharp and always seems to pinch the tendons on the side of my neck perfectly! The more I tell him "Ouch," the funnier it is to him! Maybe I'll start to wear a teething ring necklace to protect myself : ).

My squishy son

I'm surprised Connor hasn't learned to say "Squish you"....that is pretty much all I tell him these days. He's so darn cute I could just squish him! : ) Been lacking on my picture taking these days (which is so NOT like me). Its probably because Connor doesn't stay still long enough to get a picture. He is one busy bee these days!

My days have been going pretty smoothly lately. Although, I tend to go a little bonkers after Connor's afternoon nap (naps til about 4pm then I have to keep him busy until dinner at 6:30pm). When you've been in the house all day, the toys get pretty old and the walls begin to close in on you. This picture was taken yesterday while I was unloading groceries around 5pm. I needed something to keep Connor happy and occupied, so I handed him a paper towel roll and it did the trick! He loved to look in it, talk in it, chomp on it...it was great! After he was over it, he crawled away to something else. When I came into the living room, I was quickly reminded that I used to give Coop paper towel rolls when he was a pup to keep him busy....so Connor's toy had quickly become Cooper's toy. Owell! It was nice while it lasted.

I have a huge basket of stuffed toys in Connor's room. Every once in a while I'll put a new one out & Connor loves the fact he has a 'new' toy. This morning, I found this teddy bear toward the bottom of the basket. When I pulled it out, I had a flashback. This bear was given to me by my Aunt Holly this time last year when I was going through all the horrible medical testing during my pregnancy. She said it was a "Lucky Teddy" and that it is! So a year later, I was sitting and watching my healthy son play with his bear. Just made me smile and cry at the same time. It reminded me to appreciate how blessed we are to have Connor. I think it's kinda funny too that the bear is the exact color of Connor's hair : ).

If only this picture had sound! This is Connor lately...bubbles...bubbles...bubbles. He loves to spit bubbles- when he's crawling, playing, talking, and my least favorite, when he's eating! Yes, I have had a few curdles of cottage cheese spit my way. You can't help but smile though : ). One funny kid!

Connor's a Celebrity!

Can you believe it? Connor was voted cutest baby in the world & I'm Mom of the Year! : ) Ok--not really. But I had fun making this magazine cover on Parenting.com. Thought it was cute and yes, Connor really is the cutest baby in the world to me!

Giggles!

Ignore the first few seconds, as I am griping at my dog....
Turn up your volume and hear some funny laughs : )

Some random-ness

Just had some random pictures taken over the past few days...enjoy!

Mr. Big head has a hard time finding shirts that fit over it!


Connor sharing his bath water with Coopy


Every night Coop likes to make Connor's tub his own water bowl!


Connor likes to climb up the window over his changing table.


Where's Connor?!?!

One crabby child= TOOTH!

Yesterday was Connor's big playdate and well...while the others had fun, Connor was pretty much a crab the whole time. I think he was a little overwhelmed.... new people.... playing with his toys....not Mom's full attention....tired....teething??? I didn't really know, but knew he was not himself at all! The kids were as cute as can be though. Ryder had the cutest smile (with his little teeth peering out) and loved to bounce in the jumper! Mady had a blast in the ball pit and was so precious with her "tank oo"s and kisses! We managed to work in conversation in between the trying to entertain/keep track of where the kids were! It was neat to see how much of a difference a few months makes in age.

Later on that night, I was looking at Connor in the tub and thats when I saw it....A TOOTH!! This little white fellow was cutting through his gums. Its about darn time! Feels like he's been teething for months! So, not sure if that was the main reason he was such a crab that day, but I'll blame his tooth! : ) Here are a few pictures from the day.

Mady enjoying the ballpit


Jumpy Ryder


Connor watching Ryder jump


A rare smile from Connor that day!


Danielle & Ryder


The group!


Danielles & their little ones : )

Nana's Birthday Fun!

This week has been a busy one for me. Been taking it one day at a time! Some fun stories to share:

Tuesday- Checked with Dad to make sure he was getting bday cake. Dad took care of it all, but being the crazy perfectionist I am, I called Publix to check on the cake order to make sure it was exactly what Mom wanted. Was first directed to 3 different Publix phone #s before I got the right one! Then, the nice guy in the bakery couldn't find the order...then he found the order & it was NOT what Mom would have wanted. Mom's faves: small round cake, white on white. The order read: 1/2 sheet cake, fudge on chocolate. I thought to myself "Geez, Dad, its not your birthday! Why would you get that cake for Mom?!" So I changed it all to what I thought Mom would want and before I got off the phone, the baker goes "You still want it to read the same...June- July Birthdays?" I was like, "Why would it say that..." Then realized, Oh My Gosh! This cake order was not mom's birthday cake order, it was the cake order for their office! (Once a month they have a cake for all the employees that have a birthday in that month). SOOO...I had to continously apologize to the baker and change it ALL back to what it was before! Oops! So after my long story...cake came out fine :). Sorry Dad...should have trusted you in the beginning!

Thursday- Got a card in the mail addressed to Cooper. It was sent by his hilarious Auntie Katie since he hurt his foot this past week. It read: "As They Say in Obedience School......................HEAL!" She attached a dollar for Cooper to get an ice cream at McDonald's too! Is that not the best Auntie ever?! Cooper has no idea how good he has it!

I worked until 5pm, zoomed home, nursed Connor, got Coop situated, then zoomed to Iguana Mia for an early dinner. Had fun stuff/dinner food/etc to keep Connor content through dinner. It was my first attempt at dinner inside at a restaurant. Connor was a good boy : ). Probably wouldn't have sat still for more than 4 minutes in his high chair if I wasn't continuously pumping him with food or a drink, but he did great! Was glad he kept his table banging, loud screeches, and fussing to an ultimate minimum since we were inside. It worked out great...food came fast, got to eat, fed Connor, then we were out of there in time to make it home for our regular routine as much as possible. **Mental note to bring drop cloth for under his high chair at restaurants...gets kinda messy!** We did play time, gifts, cake, mixed in with Connor's bath & bottle. We had a great day and hope Mom enjoyed herself too! She is so wonderful! She was out shopping the other day and got Connor his first pair of Nike sneakers : ). So cute! He'll be walking before we know it & will certainly get some good use out of them!

So today is preparation day--Connor's first big play date tomorrow. We have three little ones coming over tomorrow--2 boys and a girl. I'm anxious to see how it goes and how they interact. They all have a few months age difference, so I'm also excited to see if Connor is the largest one! : ) Hope to get some good pics!

This is why we lowered the mattress...

Modeling an outfit from Auntie Katie

Mr. Mischievous found his toys

1st dinner adventure inside-at Iguana Mia

Smiles for his Auntie Nicole!

Having fun with his Uncle Craig

Big boy!!

Coopy's get well card from Auntie Katie.

What girl doesn't like celeb gossip magazines and dessert?!

Lovin on his Uncle and Auntie

My wonderful mom and Grandma!

In his new jammies from Nana...
Who's birthday was it again? Connor's or Nana's?!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

Just wanted to take a moment & wish my best friend, Mom, a Happy Happy birthday! She is the most giving, selfless person you will ever meet! Connor will stop whatever he's doing when he hears his Nana's voice!

(****We just decided the other day that her title of 'Grandma' just didn't quite fit. I mentioned 'Nana' and then Connor smiled big! He decided for us and the name has stuck!****)


We love you very very much and hope you have a wonderful day--you certainly deserve it!

Pisghetti!!

We have been having fun trying out new foods with Connor lately. Some new favorites include blueberry waffles, Gogurt (yogurt in a push-up tube), frozen sherbet, and spaghetti!! I swear my child does not have a max when it comes to food....he just keeps eating and eating and eating. If anyone has any good finger food suggestions for this age, please let me know. Oh and still NO TEETH! He has been chomping down on everything (my feet, legs, shoulder, collar bone, face...basically anything he can get his mouth on). I have a feeling that like 4 are going to pop through at once!

In the life of a mother...

Throughout your pregnancy you find yourself complaining about how your feet hurt, how you feel ill, how you look like a bus, how you don't sleep, etc, but then the baby comes and you realize...what the heck was I complaining about? It is so much easier to take care of a child when they are safely curled up in your belly!!! Just wanted to take a moment and reflect on motherhood and what I would recommend to future mommies.

1. You will be so excited to have all these fun gadgets after your baby showers (swings, entertainers, bouncers, etc), but you will come to realize your child may not find them as fun & you will soon be experimenting with items to see what they will sit in for more than 2 seconds!

2. An emergency trip to the potty always seems to come when you are holding a child that is just about to fall asleep and you must try to pull all of your stretched out muscles together to keep yourself from going in your pants!

3. A shower quickly becomes a luxury! If you have 'time' for a shower, you find yourself flying through it in case the baby wakes or starts screaming!

4. If you thought sleeping was hard while you were pregnant, try doing it with a child that wants to wake every few hours. At least when you were pregnant, you could take naps at your leisure.

5. Your furniture turns from looking nice to looking like safety hazards once your little one is mobile. You will want to wrap everything in bubble wrap and strap a helmet and knee pads on your child!

6. Windexing is solely done for a mother's sanity! The fingerprints on the sliding glass doors and coffee table will never go away no matter how much you try!

7. Nothing is less appetizing than cleaning up a good poop in the tub!

8. A white noise machine and WD-40 should be on every soon-to-be Moms registry. White noise machine helps drowned out your spouses "attempts to be quiet" or the dog's lovely barks while the baby is asleep and the WD-40 for all the squeaky doors that you never realized you had until you had to be quiet for a baby.

9. The only time in your life you will have a nice chest (for most of us small chested ladies) and you barely get to enjoy it, as you are either leaking, engorged, or have a child grabbing for them!

10. The key to motherhood is distraction! A fussy child can become a happy child at the blink of an eye if you have a toy ready, lullaby prepared, or another creative way to draw their attention somewhere else.

11. Just when you think you have your child figured out, they learn something new and the challenge begins all over again!

I could go on and on, but as a mother, your free time is extremely limited! : ) I've learned to always be planned for the unexpected, never set my expectations too high, try to soak up every moment, and to always be one step ahead.

No matter how negative these comments sound above...its all 100% worth it! And if anyone says you forget the pain of labor and thats why you have another child, thats not really it. You never forget how painful it was, but once you see that when you have a child you can handle anything that comes your way, your confidence is suddenly higher & you think "Whats a little pain? At least I get to be off my feet for a few hours!" : )

Connor fun!

Connor loves loves loves music! Some favorites include: Neil Sedaka kid CD, "Dora the Explorer" music (especially the 'back pack' and 'map' songs), opening music to "Sponge Bob" and "The Backyardigans", "The Wheels on the Bus," "I like to Eat Apples and Bananas", and "Good Night Sweetheart" (song from Three Men and a Baby). Oh and definitely "Patty Cake"...you have his ultimate attention if you break out that song and dance! Anyone that rides in my car knows its like a circus on wheels...nothing but Baby Einstein and other kid songs. I have a feeling Connor will be quite the dancing boy once he is able to : ).

Ever try to dress a child that doesn't stop moving?! I would compare it to trying to catch a hotdog on one of those rotating things at the gas station.....with your hands tied behind your back!!! (Not that I have ever tried that or would EVER eat one of those). Guess I'm trying to say its rather difficult! Putting shorts on a kicking child is another task in itself as well! It goes like this- one leg in, try to put other leg in, 1st leg gets pulled out, start over...this goes on several times!

Does Connor need any more fun stuff? Probably not. Will that stop me from getting him more stuff? Probably not. We had this inflatable pool from when Connor was too small to go in the big boy pool. Figured out rather quickly how much work it was to get the water in it, keep child happy, clean up, etc...so thought I would fill it with plastic balls and have our own ball pit at home! He thought it was rather interesting. We practiced our colors while holding each ball, slimed a few balls, kicked a few around, then he was pretty much over it! We'll try it again later! : )

Bath laughs!

Been trying to work with Connor on saying "Mama" and "Dada" & for some reason he thought I was funny! Apparently Connor is one of the many that find my singing to be quite comical! Turn up your volume and enjoy some fun giggles! : )

Congrats Brad and Brit!!

I am also excited to announce that our friends, Brad & Brit, welcomed their precious little boy, Owen, into the world this week! We lived with Brad and Brit when they first had Lily and now she's a big sister! Time goes by so quickly! We love you all and are so happy for you! Wished you lived closer!!

***The last time we saw them...found some pictures on file : (.

Myrtle Beach--Lily was like a month old?

Two cute ladies!

She smiled with me! Oh I just loved her!

A Belated Happy 8 months!!

Connor enjoyed crawling over a 'speed bump'

With all the chaos of Coop's paw issues, I didn't find the time to post on Connor's 8 month b'day! So....HAPPY 8 MONTHS CONNOR MAN!! Connor had fun playing with his Papa for a little of the afternoon. He became rather gutsy as he would stand holding on to something then let go for a few seconds! Connor never fails to surprise me with something new he's learning. Such a big boy now!

Poor Coopy

Whether you are a mother to a child or an animal, your heart just breaks when they are sad or in pain. Yesterday was one of those days. My precious Coop had been licking his paw for the past few days, but yesterday it was so bad that he didn't want to walk on it. I know when something is really wrong, because he usually hides under the guest room bed. I was able to get a glimpse at his paw and found that it was raw on one of his pads. I took him to the Vet for what seemed like the longest visit ever! We got stuck talking to a nice gentleman in the waiting room that wanted to share his entire life story (nice guy- just a little much!). About an hour later, they called us back to a room. The tech came in to ask questions then took Coopy in the back for his favorite anal expression (if you don't know..its pretty much what it sounds like) and to shave his paw to get a good look at the problem. I just sat there and could hear my Coop crying in the back. The lady brought him back in and we sat there waiting for the Dr. to come in. Poor us and the poor Dr. because she went in to see 'Mr. tell me your life story guy' first, so we got to wait even longer. The Vet came in, took a look at Coop's paw (as he tried to snap at her since she was poking at it and it was so sore...don't blame him!), she muttled that it looked like a tumor, then took him in the back for a needle expression of the area to be sure. So I waited alone again...listening to him crying. My heart just broke and I was so afraid that it was a tumor or something serious. The tech brought Coop back in to me with his foot bleeding, so I sat there and 1. tried to get the bleeding to stop by applying a paper towel and 2. tried to hold Coop's face away from his foot so he wouldn't lick it. About 15 more minutes later (which feels like an eternity), the Dr. came in to say that it was a really bad infection and the bacteria appeared to be running through his system (in other words--he would need strong antibiotics to get better). She took him in the back AGAIN to bandage his foot and we were finally out of there (once we made it through a costly check-out, of course!). So we are home and Coop is so-badly wishing to get his little pretty booty off his paw! I feel so bad for him. It was quite the traumatic day for him. Hopefully he will have a speedy recovery and be back to his obnoxious, playful self again : ).

Swing fun!

Park and more...

We ventured out to the park for a nice change of scenery. Worked out great--we were the only ones there! As a mom, you tend to look at parks a different way now. Before they just looked like fun...now everything looks like a 'fall hazard' or germ farm! Had a good time trying out all the fun stuff and taking pictures (of course!). I realized this park must be made for the land of the giants, because the swings were freakishly high! Sometimes its hard to tell if Connor is enjoying himself or just having fun since he loves a camera in his face! Pretty sure he had fun though...he's so funny. Enjoy the pictures!

Mom will rethink the dress/slide combo.

Weeeeeeeeeee!!

Posing (should really get him into baby modeling!)

Banging on the rocks






My little monkey!!

The pulling up adventures continue around the house! Hard to make it through the day without at least 2-3 falls and bumps of some sort. I love how his clothes take on a new look when he's upright! : )

Couch....table....couch....table

Checking things out from a different view

Been keeping an eye on Coopy this morning. He has licked the pad of his back paw pretty raw...to the point he doesn't want to stand on it long and just hides under the bed. Might have to venture to the Vet later. My poor Coopy.