Christmas Trip

Wednesday morning we flew from Cleveland to Manchester, NH. Micah squealed with delight at the big windows in the airport. He also had a lot of fun pushing his stroller around the gates and smiling at people. Micah did not have any poopy diapers or temper tantrums on the plane, so I consider that a successful flight.

Thursday morning we opened presents, ate sticky buns, and hung out in our pajamas. Lucy passed out presents in her penguin slippers. She also redistributed some of the bows that were on the packages (you may spot one on Micah's back).



Speaking of Lucy, she is amazing! She has the language and comprehension of an almost-three-year-old! Everyday she would say something new that surprised and entertained us. She also did a fantastic job of playing and sharing with Micah.

That afternoon, Dad, Eric, Mer, and I took advantage of the nice weather and went skiing. The conditions were so bad that it was really more like ice skating, but I still had fun!

Friday morning Scott and I tried out snowboarding. We did more falling than boarding. We ended up trading in our boards for skis to join Eric, Mer, and Dad in the afternoon.

On Saturday a photographer friend of my parents came to take pictures as a present for my mom. We took some nice ones then a few sporting the hats and gloves that Mom made for everyone.

More family and friends joined us on Sunday, then Monday we packed up. After another successful flight, it was good to be home.

Eric and Meredith bought Lucy some trains. Funny, I don't see Lucy here....

Home

We're home! I'll post about our great trip after I get some rest. :)

Merry Christmas!

We hope you have a wonderful day celebrating the birth of God's Son!

Christmas Preview

Since we're leaving in the morning for NH, we decided to open our presents from Scott's side of the family tonight. Micah happens to be very good at tearing paper. (And Daddy quickly took the torn paper before he could get it in his mouth.)


He loves his presents! Thanks everyone!

Book worm

Micah has been a big reader lately. He'll sit and flip pages by himself. He doesn't really want me to read it to him, though. It often amazes me how well he can entertain himself.

We're getting ready to fly to New Hampshire for Christmas. Today is dedicated to cleaning because I hate coming home to a messy house. Tomorrow is dedicated to packing. Then we leave Wednesday morning! (I also need to finish addressing Christmas cards, delivering cookies, and making one last present.)

More Teeth

The current tooth count is three on top, one and a sliver on the bottom.
Not much progress in the walking department. Yesterday, though, he took two solid consecutive steps. Why? He was trying to get to Carter, of course.

Besides teething, Micah has had a cold, cough, and some stomach issues for the past two weeks. He's over most of it now - just a runny nose and an occasional cough left.

10 Months

Christmas Dance

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

I'm not sure which is funnier - this video, or watching Carter dance as he watches the video.

Family Portrait

Yay! We finally have a family picture!!

A Third "Eye"

Micah may have psychic powers...

My Helper

I don't think I'm violating any child labor laws....

Carter painted with watercolors while Micah napped today. He saw me use a spray cleaner to wipe down the table afterward, and he was enthralled. I gave him a rag and a spray bottle of water - my walls and floor are much cleaner now!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

Micah helped me set up the Christmas tree today.

The Boys

Every day the boys take out all the tupperware and play with it. This day Carter had the idea to get in the drawer after it was emptied.


This morning I went into the bedroom to get dressed while Micah and Carter followed each other up and down the hallway. A few minutes later I looked out to check on them. Micah was standing up playing with the zipper on Scott's suitcase, and Carter was standing with him, petting his head. He's so sweet. :) Here he is trying to help Micah drink his formula.

Thanksgiving

Scott, Micah, and I packed up Wednesday to drive to Indiana for Thanksgiving. We had to explain to Micah that you pack your stuff in the suitcase, not yourself.

Micah did really well in the car. He slept most of the way there and was easily entertained on the way back.

It was a pretty full house with Grandpapa, Nana, two aunts, two uncles, two cats, a dog, and an unborn cousin. Unfortunately, Micah spent a lot of his time sleeping or hanging on his Mama because he didn't feel well. Apparently it was his turn to have the stomach virus that's been going around. (Micah wants to give a special shout out to Nana and Aunt Julie for cleaning up his explosions. That's true love.) We were apprehensive about the drive home, but we only had to stop twice for diaper changes. Micah seems to be over the worst of it now.

Mike and Laurie's wii was a big source of entertainment. You may get to see a little video clip in the upcoming days...

In other news, Micah took a step!! He hasn't repeated it, and it was a bit of a stumbling step, but Aunt Julie was my witness - so it counts!

No Pictures

Happy Thanksgiving! We are in Indiana until Sunday. We're having a great time, of course. I'll try to have pictures and a better post for you all by Monday. Hope you're enjoying your holiday!

Jaws

This is actually a video I made in June. At the time, I couldn't get it to upload, then I forgot about it. Enjoy!

Doorman

One day a few weeks ago, I was changing Micah's diaper in his room. I left to go take care of the dirty diaper, and when I came back I found a sentry at the door.

Partners in Crime

Poor Carter has been home sick today and yesterday. I think Micah misses him. I'm not nearly as fun or entertaining, and I don't know how to play cars as well as Carter does.

The door to our bedroom doesn't latch correctly. Since that room is not baby-proof, we use a gate. It's convenient because I can see and hear the boys if I need to go get dressed or quickly use the computer. Of course, they can also see me as they shake the gate and try to get in.

Doing Fine

Micah had his 9-month well-visit yesterday. He barely made a face when the nurse pricked his finger and squeezed blood out, but he screamed like a banshee when the doctor checked his eyes and ears. Crazy kid.

As I wean him off breastfeeding, I've been worrying about nutrition lately (is he getting enough milk? formula? solid foods?) The doctor listened to what he's been eating and told me he's doing fine. He was also impressed that Micah feeds himself his formula from a sippy cup. :)

Just for the record, he now weighs 19 pounds, 13 ounces (45th percentile) and is 29.25 inches tall (77th percentile).

"Yay!" for....anything!

Micah learned how to clap today! The first time I thought it might have been a happy accident, but he's been doing it all day (with Carter's encouragement).

Nine Months

Reading was too easy; he's reading upside down.

Inventiveness

Sorry, you'll have to turn your head sideways. I can't rotate video (at least not easily).
I thought it was pretty clever of Micah to figure out a new way to get around.


P.S. Micah has two teeth coming in on the top!

Drinking Buddies

Micah and Carter like to imitate each other. Carter sees Micah eating peas, and suddenly he LOVES peas! Micah sees Carter playing with cars, and now cars are the ONLY thing he wants to play with. Micah is having a drink...well, you get the picture.

Micah's second tooth has broken through the top gum. His new chomper is a factor in our decision to stop nursing over the next month or so. (He bit me three times in one feeding!) Since Micah prefers his sippy cup to being confined with me in the rocking chair, it's a win-win situation. This week formula replaces one nursing, next week it will be two, and so on. I'm excited for the independence, but of course a little sad that this part of his life is coming to a close.

Cuties

Overalls are cute. You can't deny it.


Maybe lunch was a little too close to nap time?

4-wheel drive

Micah has almost completely abandoned the army crawl.

Brady! Brady!

In case you hadn't heard, the Cleveland Brown's Brady Quinn (of Notre Dame fame) got his first NFL start last night. The Browns still lost, but Brady had two touchdowns and no turnovers. Thanks to Mike Hay, Scott got to witness Brady's big night in person.

No More Posing

I think there will be fewer fantastic pictures of Micah from now on. He still loves the camera, but instead of posing and smiling when he sees it, he now wants to grab it. (That's the lens cap in his hand.)


By giving him a leaf to hold, I at least got him to hold still so I could take a picture to send into the GCC alumni magazine.


Micah is getting a lot better at crawling on his hands and knees, rather than on his belly. He'll go long distances holding that chubby belly up off the floor. He also stood unassisted! Both Monday night and this morning, he let go of the furniture and stood without falling for a few seconds!

Toe Pick

First of all, Micah has a foot fetish. He likes to chew on socks and shoes - both his own and other people's. For example, on Saturday Scott put Micah in his crib for a nap. After 15 quiet minutes, Scott looked in on him, figuring he must be asleep. Nope. He was wide awake and barefoot, sitting happily with two socks in his mouth.This next picture requires a little bit of explanation. The boys and I took advantage of Monday's nice weather to walk to the park. On the way there, Micah was taking off his shoes and trying to eat them, so I just put them in the diaper bag. On the way back, he took off his socks. (Well, actually Carter helped him take off the second sock.) When Carter grabbed Micah's bare foot, I thought he was going to tickle him, as he sometimes does. He didn't tickle him, but he kept grabbing Micah's toes (and surprisingly, Micah sat still and let him). It took me a minute to realize what he was doing. Carter was picking the sock fuzz out from between Micah's toes! Ha! It was so funny! I'm so glad I had the camera in my diaper bag so I could share the moment with you all. :)

One More Costume

Our ABF (church group) had our annual fall party last night. By popular demand, we picked a costume that would allow Micah and Scott to dress alike (and feature their bald heads). I'm still not sure how a nun could have a child with a Buddhist monk, but....oh well.

After about an hour, we dropped Micah and Carter off with our fantastic babysitters so we could party like....like we did before we had a baby. :) There were lots of great costumes, games, prizes, and a campfire! What a night!

Hi Ho Silver

The kids wore costumes for story time at the library this week. I knew that Carter was going to be a cowboy, so when I saw a $3 horse costume at Gabe's, I knew it was meant to be.

Finger Food

Micah cannot live by Cheerios alone...but he wishes he could. I'm starting to get creative with finger foods because Micah doesn't really want to be fed anymore. I have to distract him with crackers, then sneak in my spoon of vegetables. I don't remember where I read it, but rolling bananas in graham cracker crumbs makes them a lot easier to pick up. It's messy, but effective.

Blessed

A few weeks ago a friend posted on her blog about how thankful she was to be a stay-at-home mom. It made me stop to be thankful as well. I know lots of awesome moms that either enjoy working or do so to help their families, but I'm glad I don't have to. I love being home with Micah (and Carter) every day. I look forward to each day, instead of just looking forward to the evenings and weekends. Praise God for giving me this opportunity!