A White & Merry First Christmas

As you know, Christmas takes a lot of preparation.  And before you begin any serious present opening, you really need to stretch your muscles...

Once Wade was nice and limber, he was ready for Christmas to really begin! 

After the three of us (plus Annie) opened presents, the Brueckmanns came over for brunch.  In the afternoon, we spent time at the Lesingers'.  We were very happy that the Emsleys drove in from Indiana. 

 

We went back to Waterloo on the 26th to visit again and to conquer the sledding hill on my youth.  Wade got to try some sledding of his own (minus the big hill).

Eight Months Old

Wade was 25.5 pounds on his 8 month birthday earlier this week.  We shouldn't have been at the doctor for 8 months, but he was back for another case of pink eye and surprise, another ear infection (#4).  Luckily he continues to be a happy baby who fusses very little and doesn't seem to mind things like pink eye or ear infections.  (He doesn't so much like the eye drops though!)

This week he got a letter from Santa in the mail and then he met him in person!  What a big week!  He didn't even know the guy existed before this!

Wade wasn't too sure about the visit to Santa though.  Santa was a great sport as he never stopped smiling but we couldn't get Wade to smile no matter what we did. 

Would you call this crawling?

Wade has been moving around on the floor a lot lately and I captured this video this morning.

I guess it's crawling, or perhaps "army crawling."  He's not quite up on his hands and knees, though he does sometimes get on his hands and knees and rock back and forth.  Either way, he knew what he wanted (that dog kennel!!) and it definitely motivated him to move from point A to point B.

I think Ryan and I better start baby proofing.  I don't think the outlet covers that we installed are going to be enough for much longer.

It was a Happy First Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is always a little tiring, traveling from one giant meal to another but you can't complain when everyone is happy and healthy.  It's always nice to spend time with family and the food was delicious!

Wade enjoyed lunch at Grandma and Grandpa Lesinger's house in Waterloo.  He took a nap after lunch and then played with lots of fun toys before we headed to the Brueckmanns' in Manchester for dinner.

Time for dinner!  "Yes, I have two Thanksgiving bibs", says Wade.

On Saturday Wade, Annie, and I sat on a blanket outside and watched as Ryan put up the Christmas lights.  It was such a nice, sunny day.  We haven't put up our indoor decorations yet, but we couldn't pass up the opportunity for the outdoor decorations.

Seven Months Old Last Week

Wade turned seven months old last week and has gotten to be quite the expert at sitting up.  Expert might be a slight exaggeration since he still topples over and bops his head periodically.  But sitting up has made life much more fun for everyone!

Sitting up also means that it's fun and easy to play with toys!  So "SEVEN MONTHS" didn't stay spelled out for long. 

We aren't so thrilled with "falling back", the dark evenings, and the cooler weather but this will give us lots of time to practice crawling and to continue playing with Wade's fun toys.
And speaking of fun toys...

...someone got a new camera!  Photo #1 demonstrates how I need to own an external flash (hint, hint)...photo #2 demonstrates no flash and check out the cute close up shot in photo #3...anyway, I still have a lot to learn but I'm excited!

Happy Halloween!

We celebrated Wade's first Halloween with his grandparents and Aunt Kristin, who came over for dinner tonight.  Wade visited the house of three neighbors before enjoying his bedtime bottle in front of the firepit.  After he went to bed we continued to greet trick or treaters from the driveway.

What a beautiful night!  It's a shame we all have to go to work tomorrow.

Wade at the Pumpkin Patch

We visited Stuckmeyer's Pumpkin Patch with the Haarmanns this weekend.  Wade was still a little young but we promised him that we'd be back next year!

I missed a 6 month post.  Wade actually turned 6 months old while we were in Denver and then when I took the official picture a couple days later, I had trouble uploading it.  He had a rough go of things the week before his half birthday, with a cold, pink eye, and an ear infection.  As a result, I had my first ever case of pink eye too.  Wade really was a sport through the bad times - he still slept through the night and really never was too fussy.  The worst part was the horrible case of diaper rash that he got as a result of the constant dirty diapers from the antibiotics.  Anyway, he made it through and we discovered some great tips for curing severe diaper rash (so check back if it happens to you.)

We went back to the pediatrician after our trip for his well doctor visit and everything's going great.  He weighed 23 pounds, 7 ounces and measured 29 inches - both greater than 97th percentile still.  The doctor (and I quote) said, "he looks awesome!"

The other news as of late is that Wade is sitting up.  He could do it for a few seconds and then suddenly on Thursday he found balance and started sitting up for longer periods of time.  In this picture, he's holding on to his toy but he can sit up for 20-30 minutes without holding on to anything.