48-51 weeks

well, this post started out as a 48 and 49 week post, then quickly became a 48-50 week post, and well....you see what it is now!  :(  we have just been so busy I've hardly had time to get the pictures off my camera, much less sit and write down everything that he's been doing!  Not to mention, the battery on my computer is fried and won't charge at all so I have to sit here with the cord (which is having trouble keeping a good connection) plugged in and try not to move it or the whole thing turns off!  I'll be ordering a new battery from Amazon this week!  I've started working on this post MANY times and ended up so frustrated that to computer keeps turning off that I just give up....for 4 weeks now!  Sheesh!

Oh boy are we ever at a stage where Cooper's little personality is really coming out!  :)  He is really just SO much fun right now!  As he is beginning to be able to do more on his own, and gaining a little more independence because of that, he is just so happy!  There's not a whole lot that this kid won't at least try to do! Warning, there's a lot here...he's just into so much and this is such a busy time for us!  :)

at 48, 49, 50 and 51 weeks Cooper:

• FINALLY has another tooth poking through, a top one.  It only took how many weeks?  10...I just went back and looked!  I noticed it looking white a few days ago and today (October 27th)  we noticed that it has broken through!  I guess that's why he's been a bit crankier lately....I thought perhaps he was getting sick because he's been sleeping more and crying more...guess it was that dern tooth!  :)  Even still, he's hardly been fussy at all!  Such a good baby!
• is walking with such steadiness now!  Sometimes he walks completely normal (as opposed to baby godzilla walk) and will even walk with something in his hands or will stop, change directions, turn around, pick something up and keep on going!  He still has his moments where his body gets ahead of his feet and he takes a tumble but he's getting really steady now!
• knows where his belly is!  When you ask him, he pats it with both hands and just GRINS at you like he's really done something smart and wonderful!  And of course we don't encourage it or applaud it profusely AT ALL!  ;)  he's also learning where his feet are!  This one isn't as consistent as the belly, but from time to time he will grab his feet when you ask where they are.  :)  *update*  he now clearly identifies his feet when you ask and can even show you where mommy's belly is or where daddy's belly is, as opposed to his own.  Interestingly though....when he tries to find ours he always has to pull up our shirt looking for it....not sure why, because he will pat his own without lifting his shirt?!?!  silly boy!
• signs "more" pretty well.  He's actually been doing this for a month or so, I just keep forgetting to put it here in the blog!  it's not a clear sign for "more" but he puts his hands together in an attempt to imitate what I've been doing to him for months and months!  :)
• Loves playing in boxes...I mean really, what kid doesn't?!?!  he will crawl in and out of one endlessly!  *side note moment...but there is a point to this story*  When Carrington and I met, we were working at a summer camp at church for kindergarten through 7th graders.  At least one of the summers that we worked there we did a giant box maze that covered the floor of most of the gym.  We used any large boxes that we could round up from various stores and places around town and taped them together end to end making a tunnel that the kids crawled through.  Carrington was one of the ring leaders in putting this together and I like to think that i helped a pretty good deal one of the years that we did it. The counselors had JUST as much, if not more, fun than the kids!!  *here's the point*  I told Carrington that after we have moved and we have lots of boxes lying around....he's going to have to build Cooper a box maze, and we may or may not all crawl through it together!  :)  (secretly, I can't wait!)
• keeps his feet moving CONSTANTLY!  When he's walking (obviously), eating, riding, sitting, playing, nursing, ALL THE TIME!  
• Has started to dance to the music of his toys....it's so cute!  He just grins and starts bouncing while the music plays.  I'll have to try to catch him on video.  :)
• Has been sharing his kisses with me profusely!  and when he decides he's giving a kiss, you better get ready because he's coming in!  :) I've also started trying to teach him eskimo kisses....so far is just me giving him eskimo kisses and him grinning, frozen, and cutting his eyes up with the look of "this feels a little strange, what is mommy doing?!?!"  But I love it!  it's so cute because he really just doesn't know what to think of it but of course he's just grinning away!
• loves throwing the ball for the dogs; he just laughs when they retrieve it!
• does not like being confined to one room at all!  We used to keep him blocked in the living room so that he wouldn't get into things and he was just not happy with that, even when we were with him in the living room.  So we expanded his play area to the dining room as well and he has been much happier with the larger area now!  Perhaps its because he now has access to the dog bed and dog toys...which he thoroughly enjoys!  The other day he curled up in Arnold's bed and snuggled up with one of Arnold's toys!  :)
• LOVES his daddy!  Don't get me wrong, of course he loves me just as much :)  but we spend all day together so it's really cute to see the big grin spread across his face when he sees daddy!  When he's taking his bath, which I usually do, we will call "daaaaddyyyyy" and he will crane that little neck to look out the bathroom door and down the hall waiting for daddy to appear.  And when he does, he just grins!  It's the cutest thing ever! 
• seems to be getting a little finicky about his meals.  If he doesn't want something, he doesn't' hesitate to toss it over the side of his tray!  He's now mostly feeding himself (until he starts tossing things or if he's just lolli-gagging and we need to move things along, in which case...I'll feed him some too)  He hasn't shown much interest in actually using the spoon, he'd much rather grab the food by the handful and shovel it in.  He will hold the spoon and let me put something on it and then he gets it into his mouth, but as for scooping it up himself....uh-uh, not happening.  He has, a couple of times, picked something up, put it on his spoon, and then picked it back off the spoon and into his mouth.  :)
• doesn't particularly care for broccoli, but loves cauliflower.  I did make some broccoli and cheese nuggets that he seems to like better than just eating plain ol broccoli.  And they are pretty good, I ate a couple!  :)
• Has now tried turkey, chicken, and beef....no more vegetarian meals for this kiddo.  He has also had his first cookies....the arrowroot cookies by gerber.  I had bought some but just had them in the cabinet, saving them for a later time.  One morning Carrington put Cooper in his seat and handed him 2 cookies for the road....he LOVED them!  Of course they were all over his face!  Through the course of that day he ended up having somewhere around 6 cookies and this child was WILD that evening...just going non-stop!  it was quite comical, so I looked at the package and realized that each cookie had a gram of sugar, and surely not a natural sugar like fruit, so he had around 6 grams of sugar just from his cookies that day!  whew, we could tell it too!  :)
• will go in and out of our back door onto the deck for like 30 minutes at a time.  There is a small step, about 6 inches maybe, and he will drawl up into the house then turn around and crawl backward back out the door!  He's really starting to figure out the going backwards down something now....as opposed to the head-first-I-hope-someone-catches-me method!  I'm so thankful for this!  He will also crawl up the stairs at my mom's house like a pro!  we're still working on going down....he gets that he should go backward but somewhere after the first step he thinks that's it and he just sits down, which often results in a tumble backward.  Luckily we've always been right there to help him out.  I think he'll get it soon. *update* he now completely gets the turn around and slide down trick!  He will get to the top of the stairs and turn around, swing a leg over, and slide down.  He also does this with getting down off the bed or couch.
• does not miss ANYthing!  if he sees you do it, you can be assured that he will be right behind you repeating what you just did! and you can just see the little wheels turning in his head as he's learning about things.
• loved playing in the leaves at grandma's house!  and he never tried to eat them, surprisingly!  :) 
• visited his first pumpkin patch!  we wanted to get some fall pictures so we went to a farm near our house (it's where I got the pumpkin that I painted for our maternity pictures last year).  There were SO many people there that Cooper was quite distracted and wouldn't really look at the camera.  We still got some cute pictures though.  He really loved the little various gourds.  He stood at the basket and picked them out one by one, turning them over in his hands and really checking them out!  :)
• "helped" carve his first pumpkin...he just jumped right in there and helped pull the guts out...then proceeded to put them back in...where they belong  :)
• wore his halloween costume a couple of times!  A week before Halloween we went to Wake Forest where they have a pumpkin fest each year.  All of the student organizations set up booths and had various games and activities, and of course candy, for the kids!  Cooper wore his costume and we met up with Sara, Darby and Walt.  Coop was too young to care a bit about what was going on but Darby had a blast!  He just wanted to push the stroller the whole time.   :)
• visited daddy at one of his soccer practices!  One of the teams that Carrington coaches has been dying to meet Cooper so we went out to practice one night and they got to see him and play with him.  He loved the fact that there were multiple balls around that we could chase and kick!
• went to his first college soccer game!  Wake Forest hosts the twins soccer club occasionally for a practice session followed by free admission to the game so Cooper and I got to tag along; we even saw my cousin, Taylor, there!  He had fun walking around the bleachers and checking out the various mascots that were there (it was also mascot night).  He also got passed around amongst some of the players and parents; he did really well with it considering he was quite tired by that point!
• Celebrated his first Halloween with trunk or treating! Some friends of our do a big Halloween trunk or treat event at their church each year and this was the perfect year to check it out!  We saw Jackson there, who is only 8 days older than Cooper, and Coop had a BLAST!  I wasn't sure how the evening would go since he was almost alseep in the car when we got there but he really got into it! by the end of the night he was pulling us from one booth to the next and got so excited about visiting them all!  He really loved digging into his treat bag (or the candy bowl at the booths...whichever was closest!).  I was really surprised with how much he actually enjoyed it, I didn't think he would really care too much for the costume and all.  :)  next year should be really fun!  :)
• had a play date with Mason!  Mason is almost 2 months older than Cooper and they are so cute together!  It was really fun to see them playing together since they are so close in age and are really doing most of the same things!
• has become a wonderful napper!  I love that i finally have a good sleeper, not only at night, but also for naps!  I can totally tell when he's ready for a nap and he generally goes down with very little, if any, struggle and usually sleeps for and hour and a half to (sometimes) two and a half hours! The last couple days have been 2+ hour naps...I think he's just had too much fun with all the festivities and it has worn him out!  :)
• has finally learned to throw his arms up for "touchdown!"  much to his daddy's pleasure!  He has worked really hard with Cooper trying to teach him this and, up until the last couple of days, Cooper has had no interest in replicating the action but would rather look at you like you're silly and crazy!  now, whenever you shout "touchdown!" he throws his little hands straight up in the air and grins at you, waiting for approval!  Of course, then he waits for the high five moment (carrington usually said "high five!" after each touchdown when teaching him, so now he just thinks it all goes together!) so cute!  :)
• Has finally learned how to clap!  I will say "yay!  clap clap clap" and he just claps and looks so proud of himself!
• IS TALKING!!!!  he's always been very vocal but he haven't heard any discernable words until this past week...now he says "dada dada dada" all the time!  I told Carrington that I'm kinda glad that was who he learned to scream at first!  haha, he will just scream out "DADA!" sometimes!  At first we weren't sure he really knew who he was talking about/to, but I really think he knows that he's saying dada and that means daddy.  he will say it right to Carrington many times and sometimes I will talk to him about dada being at work and he will start looking for him!
• feeds himself almost completely now.  He's still not interested in using the spoon and it usually ends up on the floor but he's got great little pinchers for picking things up!  :) This week I made some muffins that he LOVES!! he will eat 2 mini muffins at a time!  They have some applesauce, banana, shredded carrots and shredded zucchini in them and he gobbles them up!  I  think I might try making another batch and hiding some other veggies and such in them.  :)  tricky mommy!
• chases Arnold and just LAUGHS at him!  he has found the cabinet where my wooden utensils are stored and he will pull them out and chase Arnold with them!  too funny!
• waves bye-bye finally!!  seriously, the last week and a half have been FULL of him discovering these things we've been trying to get him to do for so long!  he suddenly started waving bye-bye and now anytime you say the words (just about....he's still a bit choose-y about when he wants to perform) he stars waving.
• LOVES playing in the dog crate!  he has played with the door for a long time now but never crawled in until recently....now he climbs right in with a toy and closes the door behind him and lays down!  What is it with kids and playing in the dog crates!?!?!?
• stayed with grandma for a whole day while Carrington and I went to Boone.  Saturday was my birthday so we went to the App game and I think that was the longest we have both been away from him at once.  We were gone for about 8 hours that day and he stayed with my mom.  He did great and we were ready for some snuggles when we got home!
• has had his first diaper rash.  We have been so lucky in that respect the past year, but this past weekend he made up for it big time!  I don't know what it was he ate, but it sure made his lil butt raw!  poor little fella just laid on the couch after his bath and was afraid to move because his butt hurt!  :(  it was pitiful!  and diaper changes have been EVEN MORE of a battle since then because it does hurt him so badly.  Thankfully, we seem to be almost rid of it completely.
• can identify so many objects now!  I can ask him where something is, like his bink or a ball, and he will look around and find it and bring it back to me!  Today, I asked for a ball and he brought them to me one by one until he had brought them all to me!  :)
• is really expanding his palate now....i'll will let him try almost anything now, within reason.  he really likes his food to be seasoned though, which is great that he's willing to try new flavors and a variety of things.  sometimes it takes a little warming up to, but he's pretty open to it most times.

Ok, I think that's enough for now!  :)  I'm sure there's more that I'm forgetting but I'll add it in later.  As for now, I'm back to working on bee-day party stuff while he continues napping!  My baby is almost a year old!  yikes!  where did the time go!  I'll share party details soon....I'm SUPER excited about it!  :)  Here are some pictures for now  :)

48 weeks old!

playing in the pots and pans!  yes....everything is something to get INTO these days!  he did this himself and was so proud when he finally got his little feet tucked inside!  :)

mmmmmm!  cookies are delicious!

the bakery at Old Salem, where Cooper's great grandmother used to work

playing at the water pump at Old Salem with daddy

getting up close and personal with the toys in his toy box!

riding on his car!

watching daddy working in the yard

"watcha doin out there, Arnold?"

49 weeks....showing off his belly!

49 weeks...making me work for it!

Cooper's first pumpkin!

the pumpkin farm!

Pumpkin fest at Wake Forest with Darby and Walk....he was more interested in pushing the stroller than anything else!

50 weeks

Having fun in the leaves!

some of the many faces of Cooper....

riding his turtle!  Ok, funny story time....after bath time Cooper loves to be naked for a little bit so one night he flips over after drying him off, and makes a b-line for the turtle.  I called Carrington into the room to see because it was quite the funny sight seeing him sitting there buck naked on his turtle.  as SOON as Carrington walked through the door Cooper let one rip and it reverberated on the plastic of the turtle and we both just died laughing!  of course he sat there with the biggest grin on his face looking like a proud peacock because we were both in stitches laughing at him!  :)

Trunk-or-treating and dragging US from one stop to the next...he was really getting into it!  Once he had some candy in his bag, though, he seemed a little more pre-occupied with pulling it out and putting it back in.

51 weeks....I guess things can't ALWAYS be rosy...he was NOT having the picture taking this day and kept throwing the sign....this was the best shot we got, if that tells you anything!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!

my little walking monkey!

So I'm noticing a pattern.....the older Cooper gets, the harder it is for me to get on here and update!  This little booger is into EVERYTHING!  :)  He is officially a walker now and most times it is his preferred method of travel.  We have had a very busy couple of weeks and rather than tell you all about it, I'll let the pictures do that.  :)

Over the last few weeks Cooper has developed QUITE the independent streak!  he wants to feed himself and take care of his own bottles.  The good news is....he's back on the nursing bandwagon!  whew, that's a relief!

Breakfast is Cooper's best meal of the day these days!  He LOVES yogurt and cheerios!  We've been doing a lot of oatmeal (with brown sugar and cinnamon of course!) with the yogurt and sometimes he'll eat that PLUS almost a whole banana!  This kid can put away some food!

The cabinets are a lost cause now...he WILL get into them, and it's usually the ones you really don't want him getting into.  Here he is rearranging the bathroom cabinet at my mom's with Tucker, his partner in crime...even Cooper's accomplices get worn out from his constant shenanigans!  :)

I LOVE these overalls on him!  He is getting so big!

the last weekend in September we headed down to Georgia to visit my dad and to go see Nicole at UGA.  Here is Cooper on our way down....with the window's open, looking like a wild man!

Visiting Sanford Stadium at UGA

The Arch at UGA...The story is that if you walk through it while you're in school there you won't graduate/won't graduate on time.  We all walked through....except Nicole  :)  I told Cooper that he couldn't go to UGA now because he might not graduate....better go to Tennessee instead!  ;)

Cooper's new buddy Madelyn.  She was so cute with him and just loved playing with him!

And she did such a good job feeding him!  he loved the new helper!  :)

On Wednesday, the 3rd, (our anniversary) we spent the day at the fair with cooper.  The petting zoo was a big hit...Cooper has NO fear!  The goats would stick their heads out right up to his face and he didn't flinch a bit....we concluded that he probably thought they were funny looking dogs with horns!  :)

Just another day at the barnyard! :)

Mommy and me at the giant pumpkin (that weighed almost 800 pounds!)

the first hour of our fair trip was spent with a screaming child!  NOTHING was making him happy until we tried this and he was content as could be for a while.  :)  I love that Carrington will wear him and doesn't care if he gets strange looks from other fellas....I think it's sexy when a man is eager to be this close to his child, and Cooper LOVES it!

Having fun with his buddy Carter at the fair!

Of course Carrington had to stop and check out anything that had a motor and moved, and Cooper loved tagging along with daddy to try out the fancy equipment!

Mommy's favorite part of the fair= swifty swine pig races (especially the precious little baby pig that jumps into the tank and swims across to the other side!  ahhh, so cute!)  I'm pretty sure Cooper enjoyed it too!

Sleeping on mommy after a rough afternoon at the fair....life is tough!  :)

oh my gosh, I love this child!  is he not the cutest thing EVER!

Toy box diving at grandmas!  The first time (pictured) was an accident...but once he figured out he could get in the toy box, he much preferred playing inside it!

This week we also discovered the soft dog bed!  he crawled in and out of Arnold's bed a dozen times, played with the toys, fluffed up the blanket, and talked up a storm!

he also figured out how to climb INTO the dog toy box....and he did it over and over again!  :)  This little guy is going to be a climber (already is!) and is going to be into everything....such a boy!

47 weeks....seriously, I could kiss that sweet face all day long!  and look at all that personality!!  :)

 Whew, I told you we've been busy!  So there's the run-down of what we've been up to....here are a few more things that Cooper is doing at 45, 46, and 47 weeks:

• weighed 19 pounds 10 ounces about a week ago....we've probably hit the 20 pound mark by now!  :)
• wears lots of 12 month clothes (mostly t-shirts and one piece outfits for the length) and 9 month clothes.
• LOVES madarin oranges!  he will gobble them up in a heartbeat!
• will climb into anything the could possible be climbed into...a box, a pan, a laundry basket, the bottom of the stroller, a storage container, the toy box, and upside down step stool....anything! :)  I think we have QUITE the little monkey on our hands...if it involves climbing in, or on, you can bet he's going to try it!
• is walking everywhere!  He is becoming so steady and even walks without his hands up in the air sometimes!
• has really gotten into the fun, playing, interacting stage!  You can just see the wheels turning in his little head as he's learning new things and figuring things out.  
• LOVES to share!  He will readily share his paci with you, whether you want it or not!  If I'm not paying attention he will pop that sucker right in my mouth before I have a chance to avoid it!  :)  he'll also share his snacks with me (and sometimes just teases me that he's going to share and then eats it himself!)
• finds the silliest things hilarious!  The other day I was "cleaning" up some of his toys with him in my arms so i kicked a block across the room towards his toy box and he just died laughing!  :)  silly boy!
• is starting to get a bit of a temper....he works so hard at things sometimes that when he can't accomplish what he's trying to do, he gets a bit angry!  Recently he was trying to get himself into an upside down step stool and he just couldn't figure out how to get his body between the legs and get himself seated inside...he tried a few times and then started to get very frustrated...but he did finally get there!
• loves watching soccer....or just people kicking a ball around.  He just laughs and intently watches...makes his daddy proud!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Whoa! I'm way behind....

The last few weeks have been the weeks of  "What did you just do?!?!"  This kid is growing up fast and I think he decided to do it all on one month!  We have spent a LOT of time packing and getting the house ready to list and it is FINALLY on the market!  We listed it last Thursday (the 13th) and on Sunday we had an agent showing it.  We still haven't gotten feedback from that agent so we don't have anything to report yet.  Last week, after getting the house listed and ready to go, I started working in the preschool at the Y, instead of just in the nursery (I'm still working nursery until the end of the month and will continue here and there after that).  The preschool program is rapidly growing and they feel we could have an actual pre-k program.  Since I was a teacher and have a degree in the field, I have been handed that project!  I'm so excited about building the program and getting back into the planning and teaching that I have loved, and have missed since leaving in November.  This will be a great opportunity for our family because it will mean, number 1.....more money!  yay!  That will help out tremendously!  Cooper will also be able to go to the preschool and be there with me still.  The preschool day is only from 9-1 so Coop and I will still have our entire afternoon together and I most likely won't have to do anymore evening nursery duties at the Y!  To me it sounds perfect.....I get paid more, get more hours, still have Cooper right there in the next room with me, still have my afternoons with Cooper to do whatever, and I get to do something I love again....teach!  Now the next thing is to get moved back to Winston completely!  Pray that it happens soon (we've found a house we love but can't act on it until ours sells!  :(  )
Friday morning Cooper got up and just decided "I'm not nursing anymore!"  That little stubborn booger screamed and arched his back and threw himself backwards any time I tried to nurse him!  Unfortunately we were in Winston, without my pump, so I had no way of getting milk to him!  Not to mention the pain I was in after 24 hours of a non-nursing baby, but boobs that continued to produce milk!  And at the risk of sharing too much, I did end up hand expressing milk Friday night and got a hand pump on Saturday to relieve the pressure and pain....I felt like a whole new woman after using that pump! We are now on day 6 of the nursing strike and no signs of letting up....could he REALLY be done nursing?!?!?  what in the world!  :(   breaks my heart because I was fulling planning to nurse for AT LEAST the first 12 months....never intended to stop at 10 months!  :(  Guess you just go with the flow and adapt and we'll see where it takes us.
Saturday, Cooper and I went to Mason's first birthday party (which was If You Give a Dog a Doughnut themed and was super cute!).  Carrington had a soccer game for the team he plays on and then 4 games for the teams he coaches.  In his game he severely rolled his ankle and we REALLY hope it isn't broken....so far it's still too swollen to tell....He's been hobbling around for 5 days now.
Sunday was a dreary rainy day.  We had someone come see the house at 3:30 so we left for about an hour but pretty much took it easy that day because I felt like POOP and Carrington had a bum ankle!
Monday morning I went to the dr and did indeed have a sinus infection.....thank goodness for the Z-pack!  Monday was also Cooper's 10 month "birthday!"  That sounds so much older than 9 months!
Wednesday, Sept 19th, was "talk like a pirate day" and Krispy Kreme was giving away a free doughnut to anyone who talked like a pirate and a free DOZEN to anyone who dressed like a pirate.  I got Cooper a cute little Pirate outfit from Once Upon a Child and we met Sara, Darby, and Walt at Krispy Kreme for an afternoon snack.  Cooper was the CUTEST little pirate there and earned us a free dozen doughnuts!  Of course I had to let him try it since he earned them for us.....they were a HUGE hit!  He loved the glaze and kept opening the box and grabbing more!  Needless to say, we had several doughnuts with little baby finger prints/holes in them!  Check out the picture of him below.  Of course on the way home he washed it all down with some of mama's milk!  :)

At 42, 43, and 44 weeks Cooper:

• walks all over the place!  he can EASILY go from standing at one object, turn, take a few steps to the next object, and continue on his way.  He is also pretty good at squatting down and back up again!  I think we've got a few more weeks and then we'll probably have an independent walker!
• loves the cabinets!  He does not hesitate to open them up anywhere he sees them and proceed to rifle through whatever is inside....he particularly loves the tupperware, pots and pans, and the cheese grater (?!?!?)   I'm not too fond of that last one....I can just see it grating his little perfect baby skin some time.  It might need to find a new, higher up, home soon!
• likes to "help" unload the dishwasher!  I usually have to do this quickly when he's not looking because you can bet he'll be there pulling the spoons out and sucking on them!
• definitely knows which toys are his and which toys are the dog's toys.  he will pick up a dog toy and hand it right to the dogs!  He also seems to know which dog is which, you can ask him "where's Arnold?" and he will look right to wherever Arnold is....smart little cookie!  :)
• has the cutest little (well....big) open mouthed smile when he's super happy!  it's the cutest!
• still wears 6 month pants because his tiny little waist can't hold up anything bigger!  Other than that, he's pretty much in 6-9 month or 9 month clothes
• Attended his 2nd wedding (Uncle's Chris and Aunt Stephanie's was the first) and was so good!  My old roommate, Anna, got married to Riley last Saturday (the 8th); It was an 11:00 wedding which is right smack in the middle of nap time but he was SO good!  only got a little noisy toward the end but my mom moved away with him and it was fine!
• is always bumping, scratching, scraping or bruising something!  Poor kid, right now he has several scratches on his face and a bruise on his forehead (from crawling RIGHT into a shelf unit!)  I think every time I go to get him up from a nap or in the morning he has a new scratch....I don't know what monsters he's fighting in his sleep but sheesh!
• loves to be naked!  I am dreading the day that he figures out how to get his clothes and diaper off!  After bath time, when I lay him down in his towel, it takes all of 3.6 seconds and that kid has flipped over and is booking it down the hallway buck naked!  it's the cutest little butt I've ever seen crawling away at lightning speed!  He loves being naked....but it's sooo dangerous!  :)
• loves Cheerios!  we have introduced him to the multi grain cheerios and he loves them!
• is no longer a vegetarian!  he's a meat eater now!  We introduced him to ground turkey as his first meat; he kind of mashed it around in his mouth for a minute trying to decide what he thought, but it was a definite hit!
• likes to take control of meal time himself!  usually we make it halfway though the meal and then he decides that he wants to spoon...it usually ends up with him holding one spoon and me feeding him with another one.  On a few occasions I have put food on his spoon and he's been able to get it to his mouth!  
• Eats like a little piglet!  He has 3 regular meals and can put away some food each time he eats!  We've gotten into quite a good schedule with his meals and nap times now.
• is FINALLY sleeping ALL night long without waking up at all!  honestly, this happened in conjunction with him giving up nursing....which I'm surprised because I expected him to be more hungry without getting as much milk and I expected him to wake up more at night but it's been quite the opposite!  He's always been a good sleeper but he's been in the habit of waking up somewhere between 4 and 6 each morning.  I used to nurse him and he'd go back to sleep until 8 or so.  I then decided that he didn't need me to nurse him to sleep and instead I just rocked him a few minutes and put him back in his crib when he would wake up in the night.  now he will go to bed between 7:30 and 8:30 (on a typical night) and will sleep, without a peep, until 7:30 or so!  YAY!  I am SOOOO thankful for this!  :)
• Has quite an ear piercing squeal!  He will share it with us when he's happy but even more so when he's not happy!  he is starting to get quite the stubborn, temper-tantrum, streak to him....he does not like to be told no or to not be allowed to get into something he wants to get into!  I've had to let him lay in the middle of the floor squealing a couple times because he's throwing a 10 month old version of a tantrum.  After a couple seconds of getting no attention for it, though, he typically gets over it and moves on with life.  :)
• is just the most amazing little thing ever!  Some days I really can't get over the fact that he is my son!  I could just stare at him forever when he sleeps, smother him in kisses all day long, play with him on the floor and listen to his little giggles every day, and tell him that mommy loves him a million times a day!  I LOVE this little boy and the person that he is becoming!  I can't imagine my life any other way than the way it is in this very moment with my sweet family!

I'm sure there are things that he is doing that I'll remember as soon as I publish this post, but that's enough for today!   Now for some pictures and videos!!

Seriously....any time I need a good smile from this kid all I have to do is give him the soccer ball!  Daddy is so proud!

Eating breakfast is exhausting!

Double Trouble!

It takes a LOT of work to get a good weekly picture....this is typical!  :)

Oh, just playin' with my workbench mom!

Taking control of my own lunch!

43 weeks!  If you look closely, you can see his little bottom teeth!

"I could have SWORN I had ONE more Cheerio left....Where did it go!?!?!"      This is my FAVORITE group of photos so far!

Tuckered out little baby!  Look at that sweet hand behind his head!  he never sleeps on his back, so this was a verrrry tired baby!

44 weeks.....and again, with the soccer ball!  :)

Arrrr!  Ready for his free Doughnuts.....and trying to get into the box!   And of course, any baby chases that Krispy Kreme doughnut with some of mama's milk!

Thanks for stopping by!