Gray's First Zoo Trip

Things I want to remember about this wonderful day that our family got to spend together at the St. Louis Zoo:

First of all, it was Gray's first trip! Of course, Gray does everything with a smile. :)

Secondly, I think it's fun to randomly mention that today Nora has been obsessed with the song "Home" by Philip Phillips. She had to hear it before we left, and again while we were at the zoo, then she sang it all afternoon, and played it again after we got home. She refers to it as the "ahhh-ah-a-a-ahh-ahh-ahhhhh" song. When we got home, she looked very seriously at her dad and said: "if you're lost, you can always be found." From now on when I hear that song, this day will come to mind!

Anyway, back to the zoo - Nora got to be an animal trainer at the Children's Zoo and use the clicker. She did really well!!

Another thing to remember is that we were at the zoo for SIX HOURS. From 10 a.m. to almost 4 p.m. I mention this because neither of my kids had a meltdown. Is that not amazing??!! Also, Gray spent all day in the stroller and though he was wiggly and probably bored, he was really very well behaved. They are seriously good kids.

Nora's favorite area was probably the butterfly tent. She was engrossed by this butterfly chart and did NOT want to give it back. I love watching her take such pleasure in learning.

Annnnnnd, we found all the animals on our checklist!!!! Neither Cory or I thought we would do it. :) This checklist was a lot of fun - I am glad I laminated it so we could use it again next time!

This is the end-of-day photo. We were overdue to spend some time together as a family, so this trip was good for us. What a wonderful day!

Until next time . . .

Gray 9 Month Update

It's going by too fast! I cannot take it! Just thinking that he's 9 months old already kills me.

This cutie pie smile also just kills me, for the record!

Gray's still eating like a champ. He's not too picky, which is a new and different experience for me! He doesn't love chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, or watermelon; but he does like crackers with garlicky hummus, scrambled eggs with onion, bagels with cream cheese, and anything with ranch dressing. He's starting to suck through a straw so he's able to down those food pouches quickly! He's drinking once or twice per day from a straw cup, but still gets bottles in the morning and night. Mostly he feeds himself, but he doesn't like to hold his own cup, although he has started to try.

He continues to sleep well also. He takes two naps a day, but every so often will take three still. He's awesome because if he falls asleep in the car, I can move him to his crib and he almost always goes back to sleep! YES!! He's taken a few naps here and there in a stroller as well if we are out and about, since he no longer fits in his infant car seat. (We bit the bullet and got Nora a new seat and moved Gray to her old one.) At night I don't generally hear from him at all - he goes to sleep and wakes up around 6:30-7:30 every day. It's great!

The kids loves to play! This is a photo of him with his "baby". He gives baby kisses, and talks and coos at it. He waved bye-bye once this month (although I haven't gotten him to do it again!) Crawling has opened up a whole new world to him - although at first he was still kind of "stuck". He didn't like to crawl on our laminate flooring AT ALL, so he would crawl across the carpet, get to the laminate, try to crawl on it, get frustrated, and cry at me until I came to move him! What a goober! Anyway, he still doesn't love to crawl on it, but he's gotten less frustrated. He tries to crawl on his hands and feet, which is pretty comical. ;)

Gray is in that stage of crawling where mom or dad can "lose" him if we are not paying too close attention! He loves to sneak into Nora's room, and is delighted when I let him be in there for awhile.

He's gotten much better at walking in his walker this month. He used to think that the only real way to go was BACKWARD, and to go forward he would hop! Recently he's "walking" forward, and steering his walker around like a pro. He loves it when we take him to a park with some kind of hard surface and just let him go wherever he wants.

This month was a doctor visit month, and Gray weighed in at 22 pounds and 10 ounces! His height is 29.5 inches. He's growing beautifully, so no issues at the doctor - although he did get his Hep B vaccine. (Side note: Have I mentioned how much I love our pediatrician? She's so on top of things. I feel so blessed to have her in our lives!)

That's the "basics of the baby" for this month! ;) Until next time . . .

Gray 8 Month Update

8 Months Old, folks! ;)

This post is a little late because I had to get my photos in order. It's hard having two adorable kids and a camera! ;) Anyway, Grayson had a great seventh month. He's growing so fast it's hard to keep up!! This month wasn't a doctor visit month, so I will just say that I moved him to size FOUR diapers, and he's wearing 12 month clothes still. Sheesh. He's also jabbering a bit. His word of choice this past month was "ob".

Eating-wise, he continued on with momma's homemade baby food. He likes a vegetable or fruit mixed with oatmeal and formula. He eats a LOT! And he's also kind of picky already. He loves Cheerios and is content to just eat those all day long. He's been working on a cup - we started with a normal sippy cup with handles, but then he learned to suck, so we are now trying a straw cup. He's doing great! He's also trying table foods. No real favorites yet (besides the Cheerios), but he did like garlic bread and spaghetti on the first taste.

The kid is trying SO. HARD. TO. CRAWL. It kills me. I have been in denial, but this month he started scooting. He was going backwards, now he goes backwards and in a circle. He even rolls around in his sleep, and many times this month he slept on his stomach because he just would NOT stay on his back (even though mommy flipped him four times in one night!) He's got that frustration of a baby who just wants to move so badly and can't figure it out. But he will. SOON. For now, he just settles for getting up on all fours and rocking, or doing planks that make me kinda jealous.

Lots of outside play went on this month! Gray likes to be outside. Mostly he jumps in his sister's old Jenny Jump Up, but he plays on the ground too. He doesn't seem to mind the feeling of grass, which is definitely unlike Nora. He likes to swim and splash in our kiddie pool, and makes momma nervous as he tries to dive in headfirst. The kid loves water! We even did a baby swim class this month, and Gray had a great time.

Since he loves the water, bath time is always fun! Big sister Nora likes to "help" give brother a bath as well. Gray doesn't splash as much as he used to in the tub, but he still has a great time. He and Nora took their first bath together this past month as well.

Gray had two major "firsts" this month. We had his first tornado warning (above photo) in which he chilled on a blanket in the basement while a small tornado went in between us and the town we live nearby. It was scary, but Gray handled it well. ;) The second "first" was his first visit to our nearby beach. We went as a family and Gray did wonderfully!! He also learned to give kisses this month, which just made momma's heart melt. :)

Until next time . . .

Nora's Big Girl Room!: Part Three

Nora came home right as we were finishing up today. I had her wait a few minutes while I set up her tent, and then I called her to come open the door . . .

She was so excited! Her first reaction was to just jump up and down, and then explore everything. She said her new room is "soooooo beautiful!" Another quote: "I love my big girl bed!, and my new mag-a-nets (magnets), and my campout!" She wasn't in there for very long before she was lost in playing and reading in her tent. ;) It was a great surprise!

Happy (early) birthday, little Nora. We are happy you are enjoying your new room!

Until next time . . .

Nora's Big Girl Room!: Part Two

It's done! ;)

Well, mostly. I still have some things to hang on the walls, but the room is 98 percent done! FINALLY! It took a lot of effort on our part, but we were able to get this done in 6 days with almost no issues. My mom and mother-in-law were a HUGE help in getting this done - trying to paint and drill into the walls with two kids around is tricky. But it's done now and it turned out awesome!

Anyway, here are the photos:

The official "big girl bed", complete with the bedding that Nora chose herself. We also used one of the ledges we had originally built for Gray's room above her bed - and I LOVE it! Above her head it says: "she leaves a little sparkle wherever she goes". So, so true for Nora!

This is the nightstand. I got this for ten bucks on a swap site, and I painted it and added new handles. It turned out fantastically! Plus - lots of storage. ;)

Nora's short dresser, with her own little mirror. She's a bit short for it now, but I am sure will be able to easily see herself in it much too soon. Also a little shout out to Fish Is Fish, who is happy to be out of Gray's room. ;)

Here's where I ended up putting Nora's magnet board. I really wanted her to be able to reach it so she could hang things on it, and so here's where it ended up. Also, a ton of her books are stored in the bin below.

A view back towards her right wall. This wall will look a little different as I hang her "gallery" here. It also houses her book rack, which she can now reach - even though it doesn't hold nearly close to all of her books! One thing she begged me for in her room was a tent - she had even specifically picked one out. It wasn't possible to get the tent she wanted in her room, so I was racking my brain trying to come up with another idea. My first thought was "bed canopy", but I couldn't find one that wasn't completely tacky. I saw this tent on clearance at Michael's for 40% off, and I picked it up!! This tent was 12 dollars, and it's Nora's new favorite thing - I call it her "Reading Tent", she calls it her "Camp-Out". Whatever you want to call it, it's awesome because it can be easily taken down if needed. WOOT!

A close-up of some of the items that will end up in her gallery.

Toy storage. The labels on the bins are dry-erase and are from Target. I think I may need a wet-erase marker to make sure they don't get rubbed off so easily! I am also entertaining the idea of using vinyl, so we'll see what works best as we go along.

A view of her tall dresser, with her new hook board on the wall. I still need to remove the Command Hooks from her closet door.

The view back towards the closet. You can see the growth chart Great-Grandma Pat made.

The view when you walk in.

Another view of her bed.

So that's it! Stay tuned for the next blog entry: Nora's reaction to her new room. :)

Nora's Big Girl Room!: Part One

Can I tell you a secret? Nora is turning FOUR this year. Seriously. She's practically in college already. *SOB*

Nora's room is still pretty "nursery-like". The rocking chair, changing pad/table, and diaper pail are gone, but the decor is still "baby". When I decorated this room, I had no idea who the little person was that it was being decorated for - or even if it would be a boy or girl! Now that we have had four years to get to know this beautiful, smart, creative, and exhausting child - it's time for a change. ;)

Before I dismantle the room, I thought it would be a great idea to show how Nora's room has "morphed" over the past four years. It still is nursery-like, but we made changes as necessary of course! I did a post on Nora's newborn nursery that you can see here. But this is what it looks like now!:

Nora's toddler bed, and the makeshift "house" I made her one day out of a sheet and a curtain rod that for some reason never went away. You can also see her train table.

The view walking in the door. You can see the book sling I made her long ago, that she has wayyyyy too many books for!

Her old changing table, that now houses "Fish Is Fish" (her fish). Also her not-very-old toy bookcase, that never looks like this! ;)

Another view of her old changing table. Here you can see her Pottery Barn magazine rack, that I intend to utilize much more in her new room design.

The view looking back. You can see her new magnet board and the wall hanging that has been there since she was born. *SNIFF.*

Another view of the magnet board and the growth chart that her Great-Grandma Pat made her.

Another view of the wall hanging.

I must admit: as I snapped these photos, I got a little teary. This room represents who Nora was as a baby very well - but she's just not that baby anymore! She's grown so much, and changed into this beautiful wonderful little girl. Her new room WILL represent that! Change is good of course, but I'm sad that this room has to change already. Didn't I just bring her home from the hospital yesterday??!! No? . . . Hmmmmm.

Nora's birthday wish this year is a "blue room and a big girl bed". That's where we will begin!

Until next time . . .