A visit from Great Aunt Betty!

Today my Aunt Betty came to visit us. We missed Uncle Ed - he was holding down the fort at home. She was in Houston for some appointments and stopped by to say "Hey!" to JHP since the last time she'd seen him he was about 2 months old. Boy, was she surprised at his size! He's such a chunky little thing. Jimmy, Jane, and June came over to visit as well. John always likes when his cousin comes over. And June loves to play with her Baby Peanut! (yes - she still calls him that - I imagine there will be words later in life on the topic...) Daddy John made an observation today: June loves to "play" with John as long as he doesn't play with something she wants to play with. It will definitely be interesting in another couple of months to see how she deals with his independence at playtime. Anyway, we all enjoyed our visit together with family!

-EBP-

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I like this book!

John Harrison has really been into books lately! He will sit down and flip through them on his own. (This has not always been the case. Books were for chewing!) And now he'll sit a let you read him a story (if you make it fast) and actually pay attention for 30 seconds or so at a time. He likes the book John was reading to him tonight in this picture. It has fabric inserts. His favorite is the horse's black furry mane. We have some other touch and feel books that he likes as well. Hopefully he'll be a bookworm like Daddy!

-EBP-

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Shhh... I'm trying to sleep!

Sleeping like a baby! He still likes to sleep with his arms tucked under him. Sometimes the butts up and sometimes not. This afternoon he was sleeping so hard that the flash didn't even wake him. I shot three pictures and finally had to lay my hand on him to get him to rouse. It was 5 pm and he'd had a long day at MDO! I guess he needed the sleep.

Here's what he looked like after I woke him. Poor guy! He still REALLY doesn't like being woken up. I hate to do it, but sometimes you just have to.

A little story to tell: Lately, JHP will eat just about anything, especially if he's seen it go into your mouth. (Real people food - not baby food.) Most of the time, he'll let me feed it to him. Or he'll reach out to grab it and put it in his mouth himself. Last night I fed him some broccoli, potato, and green bean. Tonight, some rice and peas. The cute part of the story about the peas...we had finished dinner and were clearing the table, and putting food away. There were some peas leftover, but not enough for a serving. So I decided, I'd suck it up and eat them (what a sacrifice - I know). JHP was a bit fussy and really wanted to help Daddy with the dishwasher, which wasn't on Daddy's agenda. So, I was running interference by holding him. I started to eat the peas and John reached over so I gave him one. He'd take the pea in his fingers and make it to his mouth and when I decided I'd had enough, I just let him fish them out the serving dish himself. So, there we were standing at the counter, me holding John and the dish, and John fishing out the peas one by one and putting them in his mouth. Now, mind you it wasn't that long ago, when he refused the mashed up peas I tried to feed him. I guess I'll start offering him a bit of everything we are eating from now on. I think he's only just now starting to be interested in feeding himself. I guess one day, I'm going to have to get brave and let him try it himself. I'm just not looking forward to cleaning the mess up!

-EBP-

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Happy Baby!

Here's today's picture! I took advantage of the light that comes into John's room to snap this pic after his nap today. Looks pretty happy, huh? He should - he'd just had a 3 hour nap!

Today JHP showed me how he could put the balls into the dinosaur to make the music come on. This is a new skill! Before today, I've kept trying to show him each time we played with it, but he didn't seem interested enough to mimic me until today.

-EBP-

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I like the view from up here!

I was eating my breakfast this morning when I looked over and found my son perched atop the upside down laundry basket. His previous use for it was to push it around the house. Yesterday he pushed toward the kitchen and created a little traffic jam and then could not get it to move. And he wanted to be on the other side where I was. So he went over and landed head first. He cried and I think he ended up with a knot under the yellow bruise that was already there. I did manage to talk him down from the basket today, showing him how to get down feet first. This is still something we are working on. He does usually try the head first bit if I'm not watching too carefully at the playground. I guess I'll have to pay closer attention to what he's trying to scale now!

Tonight was our second swim lesson. It went well. Daddy took some video which I'll try to get downloaded to the computer soon (don't hold your breathe too long though!). John still likes to splash with his hands and only uses his feet occasionally. He did, however, jump from the side of the pool into my arms today (sorry - Daddy missed that on video!).

I want to make note here of the odd tree sightings in the area. This is one of our Bradford Pears. This is January 27 and it's losing leaves along with lots of other trees in the area. They are putting on quite the color show! The sight of the red leaves on the Pear trees, the bright yellow ones on the Crepe Myrtles, and the red & yellow leaves on some of the oaks is quite impressive. We don't usually get color this nice in the fall! The reason - As a result of Hurricane Ike, a lot of the trees lost lots of leaves. The weather was still quite warm and we'd gotten lots of rain. So, the trees put out new leaves. Dropped the old ones at the regular time and are dropping the newer ones now. It's really pretty odd. And in addition, someone told me just today that they saw a Pear tree in full bloom. Definitely a little early, yet!
-EBP-

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What's this here under all this other stuff?

Short. John is short but still manages to get his belly over the edge of the toy basket to what's under all the other stuff. This was this morning after breakfast. I was cleaning up in the kitchen and found him teetering on one leg. He likes to dig to the bottom sometimes.

He's feeling a little better. His nose is not running, but he's still coughing when he lies down. Hopefully, he won't wake up tonight just as I'm falling asleep like he did last night. I'm thankful that he's only a little sick. I know it could be a lot worse...
-EBP-

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The latest infant fashion: Bibs that convert into Superhero Capes!

Every so often John gets his bib turned around and it looks like a superhero cape. This was one of those times! And no matter hard you try to keep it straight, it turns around again. It must be the clothes he's wearing on that particular day. Today it was these cute little corduroy overalls. Daddy thought he looked like Farmer Fred! I thought he looked pretty darn cute myself! In this picture John is sitting on the boxes from our new desk. He's had the best time climbing all over them. Good for him that Daddy didn't make it to recycle today!

And to show you how long his hair is getting, I made this little mohawk during his bath tonight. It's too long to stand up straight. It curled over, instead.

-EBP-

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Look, Mom, no hands!

JHP tried out our rocking chair today for the first time. We are getting more comfortable with putting him in a chair, knowing that he won't tumble right out. Although, in this instance, Daddy was right there with him. Daddy was entertaining him while I worked feverishly on our new desk. It took many hours to assemble and I only messed up twice (and I'm not fixing it). And it's not real obvious. So, tomorrow will be a day of rest and church and Mexican food. WooHoo!

And did I mention yesterday that JHP has a little cold? It started Thursday night. He was up several times during the night (as was I). He wasn't too bad Friday or today, though. The funny thing is that I think I jinxed myself! I shouldn’t have said anything about John not being sick in a long while to a friend that I was talking to on Thursday. And then Thursday night, John woke up at 930, 1030, 1130, and 300 with a tiny cough and a runny nose. I’m not sure if it’s as a result of the weather change or that fact he was sucking on someone else's pacifier when I picked him up from MDO Thursday. I guess the ladies there will have to watch John to make sure he doesn’t steal someone else’s from now on. Little stinker! Funny thing was that the little boy was just smiling away like it was no big deal that John had taken his paci. Anyway – John’s nose is still running a bit, but not bad, thankfully. I had forgotten to give him his Zyrtec at bedtime that night, but gave it to him later one of the times he was up. Hopefully, it’s just weather and the Zyrtec will keep it small and at bay.

-EBP-

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Hey Baby!

I was playing around again today with the camera (ok - when aren't I playing). I held it by my head so that John could see me instead of the camera lens. This should explain the poor framing and odd tilt. Just one of the few good shots. I'll put the rest up on the WebAlbums.

Here's another, but you won't see it on the WebAlbums. It's desperately out of focus, but I liked the expression on his face. At web size and resolution, it doesn't look half bad. At 100%, it looks horrible!

Nothing else really new to report here. It's Friday - yeah!
-EBP-

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Hey, lady, when's my time up in here??

I took this picture this morning when I went in to get him out of bed. Most recently, JHP thinks it a game. He will crawl/walk/scramble from one side of the bed to the other trying to keep away from you. Often, you can sit there waiting for him to be ready for some time. But he'll cry if you leave the room. And most of the time, he's not chomping at the bit to get OUT of the bed as long as you are in the room with him.

I forgot to tell this story from a couple of days ago...JHP has started making sounds in response to others that he hears. A couple of days ago, Daddy farted and JHP made some farting noises with his mouth to follow-up Daddy's. John busted out laughing! And when he told me what was so funny, I laughed pretty hard myself. I'm sure that is only the beginning of the funny things John H. will say or do!
-EBP-

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My little man and Please tell me real Peeps taste better than this does!

He looks so grown up here! It hit me today at the park that with his little cap and jacket that he doesn't look quite like a baby anymore. In some ways that makes me sad. He's becoming more strong-willed by the day and I'm not looking forward to the first time he tells me NO to something I wish him to do. Right now, I can distract him into compliance. One day he'll be too smart for that. That might be sooner than I want. We've been putting one of the baby gates up about a foot or so so that Wicket can get in and out of the roped off areas. Well, one day last week, JHP watched her go under the gate and so he followed her. He's only done it once, but I'm sure it won't be the last time.

Just a funny picture...He's taken to carrying things around in his mouth. We don't give him a pacifier except at naps and night. So, I guess he's finding other things to use in it's place. Tonight, he went through several things, the last being this stuffed Peep courtesy of Great Aunt Susan.

-EBP-

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Momma, that's one BIG bathtub!

Tonight we had our first swim lesson. Here we are waiting for our lesson to begin. John seemed in awe of all the water. I had to buy him some new swim trunks (they have sharks on them). There was no way he was fitting into the 6-12 mo trunks I bought him last year. These are 18-24 mo. Hopefully they'll make it through the summer.

This isn't the best picture. The point and shoot wasn't real happy about the conditions. Daddy came along to observe and document the occasion. Maybe next time he'll participate. John may not look real excited right here, but it was near the beginning of class. He was a little tense at first, but relaxed a bit later. By the end of class he was making lots of commotion with his splashing. We go every Tuesday. Maybe next week we'll get some video. I did upload more (not so great) pics of us swimming to the WebAlbums.
-EBP-

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Uh - Am I gonna have to clean this up all by myself?!?

I knew I'd the get this picture eventually. There are several more I've uploaded to the WebAlbums. Tonight, as we were working in the kitchen, so was JHP. He finally got deep enough into the cabinet that I had to remove the glass plates that I store(d) there. Time for a relocation! At one point, he was just about standing up inside the cabinet!

He played for quite a while in there before he actually fell out backwards on his behind. He was fine and decided he'd had enough. I'm sure it won't be the last time I have to pick up the plastic!
-EBP-

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Busy boy! And video, too!

I've included this picture to show just how chubby his legs have gotten. It was rather mild today and so Daddy took JHP's pants off in the house. This boy's thighs are massive! I hope that will make him a good soccer player when he grows up. Of course we had some cleaning up to do after JHP was finished with this cabinet. The picture I missed was of him climbing in the cabinet. I was too slow...Maybe next time!

This face was as a result of me walking away from him. He didn't get his way and so he started to tell me all about it. I stuck the camera in his face and he quieted down for a little while. What a pouty face!

And this is the shot of the day! Daddy took it! John always gets lucky at least for one picture when he picks up the camera (or in this case, is instructed to do so). There are others that he took of me and John on the WebAlbums.

JHP is getting a little more confident about letting go and taking steps. On several occasions today, he reached out and took a couple of steps all by himself with no encouragement from John or me. And you'll be happy to know that we finally caught some walking on video. I know it won't be enough, but I do have two little clips of JHP walking.

And here's one last video (ya'll are going to be SPOILED!). I'm sure I told you about the little game of chase that Daddy and John play. Here' s a little clip of it! Interestingly enough, with all the laughing that JHP does when they play this game, he never gets the hiccups, but if you tickle him, he's sure to get them. Strange, but true!

I think I've kept you long enough today! Enjoy!

-EBP-

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Oh Daddy, Mommy caught us playing Wii!

John and I were playing Wii this evening. JHP was watching after he woke up from his nap. This isn't the best picture, but it tells the story...

This one shows JHP's new bruise near his right eye. He was walking in the kitchen tonight and lost his balance and then began to crying loudly. He did not quickly stop even when consoled. Later this bruise began to show with another less noticeable one near the hairline just about it. John and I were on the other side of the island from JHP and really aren't sure what he hit. We suspect it was the edge of the cabinet. I'm sure this won't be the last of the bruises, since the walking has just begun.

And I've included this one just because I like it (OK - I rarely include ones I DON'T like!).

Sorry - no video today. JHP took a total of 3 steps by himself the and video camera was nowhere to be found. I do have 10 minutes of us trying to get him to walk...figures!
-EBP-

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11 months and WALKIN'!!!!

JHP took his first steps today on his 11 month birthday! He was helping me with moving the laundry from the washer to the dryer today. As I closed the door to the dryer (he was leaning on it - pat, pat, pat), he stood there steadying himself and then took two steps to reach the dryer. I stopped and thought to myself about what I just saw, thinking I think he just took his first steps. But I just let it go, thinking when he's ready he'll do it again.

And then tonight, we went over to SNBNA's for dinner. B's sister Lisa and her family were in town and RNR came down from Spring, too. After we ate, we were sitting around and John decided it was time to show off his new skills. He first started off walking from Renee' to me and then he went back to Renee' and then to Daddy and then to Lisa. With each successful trip, he got a loud round of applause! He looked so proud of himself! Lisa was real fired up (as you can tell from the pictures) and made sure I got these good pictures to show off to Peanut's gallery. In the picture above, Lisa's egging him on, Renee's holding her breath, and Daddy is concentrating hard for JHP's sake!

And in this picture John is walking towards me. Unfortunately, he didn't get too far before he fell.

I'll try to get some video up tomorrow. I didn't take any tonight, but will surely get some tomorrow, unless JHP is uncooperative.
-EBP-

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Don't mess with me, Momma!

It's not the cutest picture, but it's funny. I'm not sure why he felt the need to be so serious. Daddy had just woken him up from his nap. (Yeah I know it's kinda late for nap, but today was MDO and his morning nap started about 130pm. So, his afternoon nap did get started until 345pm.) He wanted Momma at first and then I was able to hand him off to Daddy so that I could take a picture of the scratches on his face. That's where the real story for today lies. The scratch on his nose was from Tuesday. The new ones on his cheek and near his left eye are from today.

The story: After MDO we went out to one of the playgrounds on the church grounds. It's kind of a bigger boys playground and some friends of mine and their sons (age ~2.5 or so) were out there playing as they usually do. This afternoon was nice and mild and we had our jackets to keep the breeze at bay. It's been that way the last couple of days - really cold at night and nearing 60-65 during the day - REALLY nice! Anyway, John has been climbing the steps on the little play equipment at our neighborhood park. So, I figured that this would be just a slight step up. After he climbed the steps and got past the distraction of one of my friend's snack bag, he really had fun moving around the equipment. I was careful to be right by him since there were several drop-off points that were 4 feet+ high. So we played, including going down one of the slides together. We ascended the structure again and made our way eventually back to the slide we'd gone down before and before I knew it, he'd gone head first down the slide! Thankfully the ground in the area is covered with wood shavings. He landed facedown and looked up as if nothing special happened. We dusted him off and went back up again. You will all think I'm a horrible parent, but he ended up going down a different slide, again without me! This one seemed like more of an accident and he was a little shook up after this one, although he never cried. He actually went down sideways and got stuck briefly halfway down, wriggled a bit and completed his descent, landing again facedown in the shavings. Luckily, the fall from the end of the slides to the shavings are less than an inch. And after the second time, I decided it was time to go. My son, however, was wriggling to get down and play some more. I guess we'll have to do that again soon (the playing - not the sliding headfirst)!

-EBP-

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Look what I found in my cereal this morning!

It's not the face of Jesus or the Virgin Mary, but I thought it was pretty neat! If you want to come see it, I'll hang on to it for a couple of days.

So JHP must have a pretty strong need to have something in his mouth. We only give him a pacifier at naps, bedtime, or if we can't handle the whine (yes - we use it to plug the hole!). Today he was carrying this ring of keys around in his mouth. He's working on his jaw strength because those keys are pretty hefty.

I spoke recently about John pushing the chairs around the house using them as a walker. Today he pushed this upside down laundry basket from the hall near the laundry room all the way around to the back door, stopping a the bookcase to peruse it's contents. He's letting go more often and tonight he was standing by himself in the bathtub, although he thought it was kind of a game and started to bend over backwards (not a good thing in the tub, mind you!).

And last but not least, John's favorite pastime when I'm working in the kitchen - emptying out the plastics cabinet. Needless to say, we quit washing things every time he got them out and slobbered on them. I just put them back and wash what I need when I need it. At least it keeps him quiet. I've latched most of the others. The rest will be done shortly. I had to buy more latches.

-EBP-

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