17 months

Wow!! What fun times we are having!!! My heart melts when Tank reaches up and holds our hands!! We had a fun walk, the three of us where he held each of our hands!! So cute!! He loves to walk everywhere now and my need to carry him for redirection is less and less! He is excellent at "bye, bye!" He knows shoes and gets them out, ready to put on to go bye, bye. He also is in the routine of socks, shoes, coat, hat, gloves, etc. before going outside.

Tank is quite the Daddy's boy!! He LOVES his daddy!!! He wants him all the time!! Chip has taken more on with this new need of Tank's in more bed time nights together, cooking him eggs or whatever else Tank points to in the fridge, mucks (books), gucks (trucks).


We just arrived back from our Christmas trip to IL. His communication has really evolved these past two weeks. We arrived to my parents and he looked around at all the horse pictures on the wall. He pointed to the picture of the horse and said "neigh" for the first time out of no where!!!! It was so amazing!! Other words that have evolved recently are hat, muck (book), milk, snack, no, baba (baby), and what a monkey says!! He is awesome at signing and saying "please" though he has mushed it all together saying more+please=mas!! ha!! Once we arrived home he drinks out of the cup by himself and sits in the booster seat at the table! He keeps us guessing of what exactly he wants for snack and has become more opinionated by saying "no" appropriately.

Tank continues to loves "a bath!" He gets so excited and could bathe twice a day if I let him!! He has been taking more and more showers than baths, but either way, loves the water! Early January Tank sees and hears Daddy go up to the shower. I let him go upstairs, but didn't follow him. Next thing I know he opened the door to the bathroom and went in. Chip had him in the shower already. They came out and I said, "thanks for taking him in the shower." Chip didn't realize Tank had let himself in! He put my shoes on for the first time and walked around the house!! Hilarious!!


He has been sleeping really well. Usually 8 pm-6 am ish. He naps from 11-1 pm. As I am wearing down these last four weeks of pregnancy I try to get him out once a day. That is about all I can do! He gets lots of oohs and auhs at the OB and is very cooperative during my appointments.

Tank Loves his mucks (books)!! He crawls up in anyone's lap for a story, song, puzzle, etc. He can quickly put together 3 puzzles (he calls them books)! Two of the puzzles are farm themes. He doesn't like to put the duck in one of the puzzles! He knows the sound each animal makes!

Aunt Tammy taught him some dance moves over Christmas break!! He loves the Rock'n Santa that has a hip motion while playing Jingle Bell Rock! There is also a turtle that sings and dances that he could not get enough of! Once we got home (early Jan.) Tank is dancing more and more. He loves praise when he spins around!!

Another favorite toy is truck. Anything with wheels is a truck! He has a couple new ones from Santa that have sound and move! He runs after them or tries to push them himself which wears him out!

I am thankful we have Alvin for Tank to learn behavior with animals and he just loves him so much. Alvin gets a tail or ear pull once in a while and Tank is getting better with handling him. He loves throwing Alvin's toy or chasing each other is quite a hoot!!



Concluding 17 months Tank has been saying "bite" for "I want a bite of your food! He is very good at asking for milk and drinking a lot more of it these days. He loves puzzles and can complete them by himself! He has a farm puzzle and refuses to put the duck piece in!!! Every piece is put in correctly and then I hand him the duck and he says "no, no"!!! He loves his train that includes placing blocks onto it. Every day, twice a day he asks to take a bath. Chip and I have to sneak in a shower so he is not bathing twice a day every day!! LOVES, LOVES blackberries. This morning (1/9) he gave me all his blueberries back and wanted
blackberries! We play pat-a-cake and head, shoulders, knees and toes and he enjoys it!

Tank says: oink, ga-ga, socks, shoes, baby, blocks, box, hot

He is really into mimicking me. He takes a wipe and starts cleaning things! He takes a shower with me and now squirts my shampoo/conditioner into his hand and rubs his head. One time he did it outside of the bath and rubbed some on his head. It got in his eyes so we had to get in the shower right away.

16 months!!

We have such a blast with Tank at this age!! Its fun that he still has a lot of babbling going on but really has a lot to say! He loves "a bath"!! He climbs in and out of the tub himself without the water running. As soon as he sees the water running he says "a bath." He even wanted to get in with Alvin during his bath!

He is saying lots of words: yes (to everything), no (he'll rarely say and doesn't use it appropriately),Nana, mama, dada, woof, baa, tractor, a bath, byebye, waves appropriate hi and bye, lets go-pats his leg, car (a little bit), varromm, ball, bubbles, nigh nigh, more, cheese, please, book, babbla (applesauce), shoes, points to feet for socks, he knows shoes and coat go on to go bye bye, .

Thanks to the inspiration from my friend in Hong Kong (her daughter is one week older) we have taught Tank: eyes,nose, mouth, ears, and belly. He points to them appropriately. We are working on baby in belly because he'll lift up my shirt and pat my pregnant belly.

He loves my neighbor's Tonka wagon. I was surprised he stayed seated, holding onto the sides. He loves the ride around our neighborhood.

We had a great car ride to IL for Thanksgiving. He has his hands in his mouth a lot again. Four more teeth to come then he'll have a full set. He had a couple restless nights in IL where he slept with me. He likes cuddling, twirling my hair, patting my back, putting his head on my shoulder.

His new animal sound other than woof, woof, is baa. Chip was brushing Alvin this morning (11/28) and Tank pointed to Alvin and said baa! LOL He recognizes pictures of dogs as well as real dogs and says "woof" so I guess Alvin just looked like a sheep when he was bathed and brushed!

Halloween 2011

We had a great time with our family circus theme!!! It was quite the ordeal to take pictures beforehand and get everyone ready!! I am glad we did though, the pictures turned out great!!! Tank carved a pumpkin with his name on the back! He played with the guts a little bit, but wasn't that interested in the pumpkin (he tries to say it)!! until the final product! Then he takes the pumpkin top on and off, on and off!! Before we went to the Leesburg Parade we skypped my mom so she saw us all dressed up!! We even brought Alvin to the parade! Tank received a mini pumpkin souvenir from the float that carried a 1600 lb. pumpkin on it! Chip and I dressed up too. Chip really got into it this year so that was fun!! We came back and took Tank to a couple houses for Trick or Treating. He doesn't eat the candy but the small amount he received he loves to carry around and put in and out of the bowl a million times!!! Its hilarious!!! We were all pooped out by 8 pm!!

15 months!

Tank was not very happy at his 15.5 months (24lb.11 oz.) appointment. The pictures are quite amusing! Tank has made hugs strides in the past week-two in communicating. Chip quotes that Tank says things like: "No, papa, I already said that" or He just told me: "I want to drive a race car!!"! Its not really what he is saying but we can understand his gibberish and communicate at a new level. I do ask him questions and he answers back appropriately with "yes!" Its really awesome! He'll sign he wants to eat, walks to the fridge and pulls out bablesauce, cheese, yogurt, etc. When we grocery shop I put items in the cart like strawberries, yogurt, animal crackers, regular crackers, and bananas and he recognizes the packaging!! He recognizes the sound or sight of a dog and says, "woof, woof!" (Oct. 30)

Tank got a train table and tracks and absolutely loves them!!! We read him his train book from BB a million times a day. I'll tell him to get the train book and he know what I am saying and retrieves it!! He also does that with shoes and coat (and socks as of Nov. 2011) knowing he gets to go somewhere!! LOL He is beginning to dance a little more! We watch Two and a half Men at 7 pm and he knows and loves the theme song. He stops what he doing, bends his knees and tries to snap to the music! He climbs into his highchair on his own. Thankfully I caught it on video!! He continues to climb on the kitchen table and grab the chandelier!

We are back into the fall swimming sessions and also taking a Little Gym class. I have met some great mom's and plan to keep in touch. Tank loves the pool! He is doing well at going under and is kicking and splashing up a storm. He just started to blow bubbles this past session (Sept. 2011)!!! He tries to put his face in during regular bath time too! He is quite comfortable at the gym childcare. He even reaches out to the lady to leave me and play!! He loves the slides at the playground. Some slides he goes down frontwards by himself!! We have had many fun park experiences with my neighbor and her son as well as Maggie and Laura Claire who came for the weekend as Mother's Helpers!!

We are down to one nap a day! This has been a bit of an adjustment especially since he gets up at 5:30 am!! I have been tired off and on and try to nap when he naps (12 weeks to go until baby #2)!! We are getting the hang of the new schedule after a couple weeks. I continue to purge, organize, rearrange, etc. getting ready for this new little one! Not quite set yet but making progress! My friend did give us a second crib, so we are thankful for that! We plan to change the guest room into a nursery sometime in February!

Tank LOVES books. He brings us books to read to him and he looks at them constantly!!! Tank loves his Farm book, Alphabet touch and feel, and his potty book. The potty book has a button that sounds like a flush with kids laughing in the back ground. He cracks up every time he presses the button! His most recent favorite is Billy the Blue cab book!! We read to him constantly!

He has become such a cuddle bug in giving hugs and kisses to me, daddy, and Alvin! He wakes up very slowly after his rests and just lays his head on my shoulder, tucks his hands in and I carry him around for a few minutes. I am taking in all the love that I can while he is an only child!!!

He points to eyes, nose, mouth, and belly on command. He'll pull up my shirt and pat my belly too. I say belly but also baby!! Not sure if he's quite caught onto that yet ;)! He has been a great help in learning how to put his toys away and helps me when its time to clean up.

Tank had a blast at Aunt Emilee's baby shower!! It was fun to see Meriwyn and visit with the Baber family. We are very thankful Alison and Jenaire came for a visit as well!!

Tank is eating with a spoon by himself very well:)!!

14 months!

Tank is one active 14 month old!!! He has become more independent in trying to feed himself with utensils as well as climbing on the table to get his drink! He had two molars come through while we were out of town for two weeks. That was an experience! He LOVES Alvin and continues to rub his face in his fur, gives him kisses, as well "try" to pick him up. The funniest thing is when Tank has food in his hand and runs back and forth around the house trying to get Alvin to chase him! Alvin complies very well:)

Tank has increased his vocabulary saying: nigh, nigh, mom, dad, papa, bye-bye,no, yes, cheese, shoes (a tiny bit), and he has repeated the word tractor. He is signing: eat, all done, more, potty.

I really enjoyed the three nights that he slept 12 hours straight!! One night sleeping from 5 pm until 6:15 am!


We had a great trip to see our family and friends in IL! Mom and I went to see a dinner theater and we took Dad to see his first Nascar Race. My parents treated Chip to a Cubs game for his birthday so we froze our hinnies off at Wrigley Field! Tank had a great time playing with his new toys at Nonnie's and GranPa's. Chip and I enjoyed a couple date nights while my mom babysat! While Mom babysat Tank during the Nascar Race (that ended up rained out and postponed until the next day) Tank brought her the wipes 2x. She finally realized he was asking for a diaper change! He hadn't done that before. Then he proceeded to climb up the stairs saying "nigh, nigh." Mom followed him upstairs, he stood at the crib and put his hands up to take a nap!! Funny!!!

While we were at my parents, Tank started walking down the stairs while holding onto the railing (most of the time)! He LOVED the horses and gave them kisses (also his new thing!) It was so great seeing him excited about them. I took him to a petting zoo to get more experience and excitement for the animals. He loved feeding the goat and the sheep! He did have a high fever one day and was out of sorts for Nonnie. I stayed home the next day and took him to the doctor. Thankfully he didn't find any sickness, just teething most likely. He felt better a day or two later for the drive back home.

We had a great visit with Aunt Emilee, Aunt Betsy and my great friend Jan for the weekend!! They loved on him and Tank showed him all his toys!

We continue to take swim classes. This session Tank is one of the older babies as well as more experienced. He bolted toward the pool and became familiar with the layout of the class immediately. He knew after we did our swim practice we played with balls and swam for ducks!

One night Tank did not sleep well. Daddy was so kind as to tuck him in our bed with him!! LOL See pics! Other than that you'll see him "in and out" of things: boxes, stool, basketball fort, even cousin Jackson's swing!

His new face expression is the "Home Alone" face! He dumped a whole bag of animal crackers on the floor and gasped "uh oh" while doing the face! It was hilarious!

We are really enjoying this phase he is in!

Oct. 13th he has started signing "please" appropriately ;)!!!

Tank's one year photoshoot!

13 months!

Twelve months ended with a bang!!! Clapping, dancing, high-fives, drinking through a straw, climbing up the slide, and up and down the stairs-hands and feet style!


Tank loves Dada's hats. He signs and says hat and wants to wear them all! He has been mimicking me with the broom and using the wipes to clean up! Such a smart cookie!! He is getting on and off the couch on his own. We go to the park a lot and is now going down the slide sitting up, facing forward! He pretends he is on the phone and talks to the phones or remotes in his baby babbles!!! Cracks me up!

We went to Tank's first Hampden-Sydney homecoming game. Tank met the mascot, Tiger! It was quite a hot day even though the skies look like it would storm any second. Aunt Kristin and Uncle Pat brought along Gus. Tank got a good ride on Gus' back!! We had a grand time!

It was also Homecoming weekend at the Oakwood Church. Tank stayed home to nap during the service, but we made it in time for lunch! It was fun to see Theo and Meriwyn!

Aunt Trysta came to our house once last time before leaving for Germany. She and Tank played hard with the water hose!! He loved every second of it! We joined them at Lisa's house for a final goodbye dinner.

Tank loved eating his first waffle!!

Our neighbor's son also came over and played in the Garden cottage. It is fun to watch them interact with one another!

Baby T

We are very excited to be expecting Baby T who will be arriving at the end of January!!!! The whole experience has been so wonderful so far.

Knowing we want more kids we didn't hold back! Tank is completely worth the three years we knew we wanted him, and this pregnancy time was on our side! We found out I was pregnant around my ten year college reunion weekend- May 20th! I called to have my blood work done right away and the result was Yes, I am VERY pregnant!! Even though this is my second time I thought this couldn't be this easy!! After much excitement from us both we took several weeks to let it sink in, just us!! I had the first ultrasound June 30th at 10 weeks along and the baby is very healthy!! The doc could hardly get the measurements on the screen because it was so wiggly!! She said, "You'll have your hands full!!" Along with much congratulations and excitement for us!

The quickening started Aug. 22nd in the pm. I was 17 weeks along.

At 23 weeks along, I am feeling great!! It was fun to take some belly shots with my SIL, Emilee, who is expecting early December. At my appt. this time, I have reached the weight I started my pregnancy at with Tank! Half way there!!!

My glucose drink went well. I forgot how disgusting it was getting down. I have lost two pounds but am up 22 lbs. total so far! A little indigestion at night but sleeping well and minimal times to the restroom on most occasions! I look forward to our next appt. Nov. 14th! I will be scheduling a c-section during the week in case I don't go into labor myself again. Vbac is an option for me so only time will tell.

C-section is scheduled with the same doctor for January 23rd. The baby is doing well with a heart beat rate of 155. The gender is still a surprise, even though the drs use the pronoun "he" a couple appts. now. I am still being optimistic. Nov. 14, 29 wks along and +25 lbs. My hips have been caused me some pain during the night while I sleep. The baby is moving a lot, but NOT kicking me in the lower right rib like Tank did! Now that Christmas is a few weeks away and I am scheduled to have an appt. every two weeks we are getting last minute things ready and we are very excited!!

36 weeks and counting!!! This baby loves to stretch its arms and legs through my sides, sometimes painful!! Still no rib kicking. The trip to IL and back went very smoothly. Baby is doing great! I asked for another ultrasound, but no luck. Tank is getting excited to become a big brother. He pats my belly and says "baba" (baby) I gained 6 lbs. over Christmas!

37 week appointment went great. Heart rate 155. I talked with the doctor about the c-section date. Everything is still planned for January 23rd. Lost one pound!

38 week appointment: no progress of dialation or effacement, no contractions. I am not sure why the nurse was surprised I haven't had any Braxton Hicks! Nothing happened with Tank either so we continue with the plan on the 23rd. I have gained 35 lbs so far. Tank pats my belly and leans on it! He even tried to kiss it! We took some great family pictures at home! Stayed the same weight! I had a really bad acid reflux night. My throat burned for quite some time. I was coughing so bad stuff came up. It was awful. The past two nights no problems thankfully!

39 wk appointment went well. Still no progression. The baby is predicted not to be as big as Tank. I am keeping the 23rd C-section date even though my mind is toying with me. We are very excited. Chip is counting down the days until the baby as well as when he'll get a break from work! Tank has been especially clingy, saying mama, dada all the time!!! He says it repeatedly like its the only words out of 20+ he knows! LOL I awake frequently at night so I think I wouldn't be able to wait another week or two to see if my body will go into labor. If I did there is still no guarantee that I won't have a c-section because then the baby will be huge! My mom is flying in this Saturday and everything is set and in its place so that is a bit of a relief!! Keep you posted!!

12 months!!!

Happy Birthday Tank!!! One year has just flown by with many happy days and wonderful memories!!

We continue to be in awe of all his adventurous moves! He is on the go non-stop: climbing up the stairs and now down just as fast, he signs more, all-done, and eat/drink. He understand the signs sit and dirty. We are still working on please and thank you. He cracks us up of climbing in Alvin's bed, crate, and even the rabbit cage! LOL I placed the rabbit in there with him and neither seemed to mind.

We enjoy our trips to the park and taking walks in the early mornings. Its so hot by lunch time its been hard to enjoy the month of July. Since his birthday we have set up the backyard with a swimming pool, garden cottage, lawn furniture he and get up and down now on his own, his push car, etc. He likes to cool off and run around and get dirty these hot afternoons.

The 12.5 month well check up went great!! Tank is 21 lbs and 30 inches tall. He continues to have a head size in the 91 st percent!! Otherwise he is measuring tall and skinny!! He has experienced many spills lately, which has been hard on mommy. He seems to bounce back and recover just fine. He continues to be very vocal on what he wants and when he wants it. We are working on using the signs more in that frustrating time for him. He likes pulling out the applesauce and other yummy treats from the fridge. Cracks me up! He just started clapping his hands and dancing to music (July 31st)!!!

I am feeling good being 12 weeks pregnant with a 12 month old!! He keeps me on my toes and I enjoy every minute of the day!

Tank's first waterpark experience (8/5). He loved the lazy river and his first waterslide! He was amazed in the tall buckets that dumped water. This was Chip's first time with Tank in the water. One woman complimented Tank in how well he gets around, plays, and has fun in the water at his age. After two hours we were pooped and hungry. Grand time had by all!

11 months!

We had a great week in Chicago over Chip's first Father's Day! Tank had his first kids meal off the menu at Bob Evans!! He enjoyed the turkey, mashed potatoes, and carrots!! We arrived there safely that evening. Tank was a trooper making the 12 hour trip straight. Chip did a wonderful job driving as I was really car sick. The first two days we had beautiful weather!! Tank enjoyed swimming in Nonnie's little pool! He practiced stepping in and out of it a million times. He was able to get in and out himself after all that practice! He enjoys his early birthday present too. The tunnel!!! He loves crawling through it and even pushed the car all the way through as well all on his own!! Smart cookie!!! He had his first Portillo's lunch and we played at the mall playground. He had a blast! Adrienne and Anna went on the merry-go-round with us too! We ate blueberry pancakes on the veranda to celebrate Father's Day. Tank enjoyed watermelon too (first time he tried it, he wanted nothing to do with it)!! Tank loves dogs!! He and Denny had a blast together! It was great to see Uncle Kevin, Great Aunt Terri, Great Uncle Steve, and cousin Trevor, my friend Amy and her two kids too! As always, we were sad to leave.

We went to Cartersville for a visit. Tank received many early birthday gifts from his aunts and uncles. Kristin and Patrick gave him the cutest cowboy hat from their trip to Texas! Betsy and Jared gave him the alphabet train, which he loves. Bumble B and I made Tank's chocolate and raspberry birthday cake!! I had a blast over two days of baking and decorating it!!

As soon as we got home from IL I started Tank on whole milk and he started sleeping through the night without nursing!

Tank is on the go!! Its never a dull moment trying to keep him occupied! He continues to figure out ways to get through the blockade up the stairs. He has also watch Alvin get under the gate so Tank turns himself around feet first (because that is how we go down the stairs!) and tries to push himself under and through. Tank is too big to fit, but he tries. He is also getting himself up on the couch. Its takes a bit of work, but he can do it. He likes answering the door and swinging it back and forth. He has even tried to bust out a couple of times ;)! We go to the park often and take walks in the morning before its too hot or sometimes we go when he wakes up from his afternoon nap. He has narrowed the nap times down to 1.5 hours to the minute still twice a day. We have been successful in sleeping 8-5 am consistently. Though he has been up and atem' by 6 or 6:30 for sure! He loves strawberries and popsicles! We went out to a chinese buffet and he loves it! Probably really bad for him, but in moderation. He has enjoyed mac n cheese and spaghetti. He went in the sprinkler for the first time!! He enjoyed it the first time though then the four consecutive times he stopped in the middle of it and cried!!! I captured the experience on camera so it will be a good laugh when he gets older!

10 months

Tank loves climbing up the stairs, pushing his walker, and rubbing his face in anything soft (including Alvin)!! He runs his hands against the wall and side steps as fast as possible to get where he is going! He is so proud of his 3-4 steps at a time and gets braver each time in increasing the distance that he wants to accomplish.

We have been traveling a lot this May. During the 10th month of his life he enjoyed my ten year college reunion. He met "X" for the first time who is just four days older than him!! We had a blast showing him off and were so thankful that Emilee could come and hang out with him one night! We spent Memorial Day weekend celebrating both Tammy and Trysta's birthdays. It was really nice having my whole family in for the long weekend. Tank experienced many firsts: walked to the top of the lighthouse, mosquito bites, boat ride, and the beach! He loved the waves coming in even though the water was freezing!! He did well on the long car rides too. He has so much energy now he doesn't want to sit for too long. I have to make sure he plays for a least an hour before strapping him in that car seat.

Once we came home from Chincoteauge, Tank has increased his steps as well as #1 and #2 in the potty, he is climbing UP and OVER things now!!! Wheww....keeping mommy on her toes!! Yesterday (June 2nd) he said mamama about 100x over and over!! Even though the EC has been touch and go since we haven't been home much. Tank astounded me June 1st by going #1 and #2 in the potty at the same time!! Yeahee!!


He is still eating 3-4 meals a day. Loves his meat and potatoes. Green beans is a favorite too!! The boy does not miss a meal! I am working on a sleeping schedule where he only nurses once a night. He has been waking 2-3 times but puts himself back to sleep after about 5 minutes of crying. Little does he know sleeping through the night is a goal in the very near future.

We continue to blockade the stairway going up with furniture and things. Alvin figured out how to get himself through and Tank followed!! Tank crawled in the saucer bottom and crawled right through!! Smartie pants!! ;)

Mother's Day in Chicago

Tank and I flew to IL for my first Mother's Day. This was Tank's second time flying in an airplane. His first flight was at 10 weeks old and now he is 10 months old. I was a bit concerned because he is so much more active now than before. Thankfully there was an open seat in the middle so I could give him his own seat to move around in. The people were very nice. Tank played peek-a-boo with the man behind us and didn't fuss much at all. I was on my toes keeping him occupied with something new every 15 minutes. He played with the headphones, plastic cup, some toys I brought, looked out the window, etc. We finally arrived to O'Hare!! I nursed him on the take off and landing and it didn't seem that his ears bothered him at all.

Mom and I were going to scout out some toys in the attic, but never needed to because Tank had "some" and really was more interested in exploring the house than anything else! Mom has this great car he pushed back and forth all day, everyday!! He pushed it from the kitchen oven all the way to the picture window, two rooms away. This was over uneven terrain and he even walked to the back of the car to turn around and go the other way! He also pushed it on the veranda and loved every second of it!

Dad took Tank on a wheel barrel ride and he explored the hay a little bit. Tank loved meeting Flash again and loved feeling his soft nose. Flash flared his nostrils and Tank got a bit of a breeze and just laughed!

We went to Villa Olivia (where our wedding reception took place) for a yummy Mother's Day brunch. Tank slept through the first hour and woke to eat the last 30 minutes while we ate dessert!! It was a great time with both my parents and Tank in celebrating my first mother's day and my mom!!

Easter 2011

9 months

Tank is a very healthy 9 month old!! Thankgoodness Chip was with me at his appointment because I talked with the Ped and he kept Tank occupied. He weighed in at 19 lbs. 11 oz. and 29 inches long. He has been standing on his own for 4-5 seconds straight. I told the Ped about his accomplishments and she said he'll be walking in 4 weeks!! Whoa!!

We tried to get some pictures outside since it was a nice day for once. The grass was a bit itchy but he did very well for the first time:)

I started giving Tank the YoBaby yogurt!! He absolutely loves it!! I am thrilled not to pump anymore and just mix his cereal in with that! He loves blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries! As you can see he wears a lot of it!!

I bought a potty chair at the April consignment sale and sat him on it at 9 months. He has been eliminating #2 on a consistent basis:) It's called elimination communication. I can tell when he needs to go, so I take the diaper off real quick and set him on it. We had success 5 days straight!! whoohoo! My goal is once a day:)

Tank experienced his first Nascar Race. We took him to the vendors before the actual race. Its way too loud for him to sit through the roar of the cars so Betsy and Kathy were so kind to babysit while we went. Tank loved the Sprint Cup girl. He also got a Digger stuffed animal, which is the groundhog on the Nascar cameras they always show on tv.

He loves Alvin more and more! He even copies Alvin carrying around the toy in his mouth. Alvin usually heads the other direction when Tank is coming his way. Tank seems more and more interested in him, laughing when he sees him and they even played tug a war with one of Alvin's toys.

Just got a babysitter for Tank on Monday mornings while I go to the kickboxing class and run errands, etc. She is a great girl from our church, who also is a mom of a boy. That is really helpful because she has already been through a lot of these stages already and gives me pointers! Its been nice to get some time to myself and also feel like I am being productive while checking things off my to-do-list!

Tank's 8th month!

Tank is 8 mo. old!! He has grown so much this month and is doing so much fun stuff!

He is crawling very fast. He'll lay on his stomach and pull himself all the way to a standing position! He'll stand and hold onto any piece of furniture within reach. Tank is very brave. He started climbing about 3 stairs. Of course we are right there with him! March 29th Tank pulled himself up to standing position in the crib!! He also started walking along the furniture! He also practices walking in his crib while holding onto the rail! We have even started passing him back and forth while he tries to walk to the next person!

It was so nice to have company come and visit us! Aunt Trysta, Uncle Joe, and cousin Liv (dog) had a lot of fun playing and taking lots of good pics with Tank! He loved Liv! She liked his face and was very affectionate to him! Aunt Betsy and Uncle Jared also came to play and passed him back and forth as he was getting stronger with every step! Kyle even stopped in and met Tank for the first time!

He continues to try many yummy fruits! He loves kiwi! Not a big fan of apples.

Tank has started looking out the window and watching the squirrels and birds next door. It keeps him occupied as well as pulling himself up to the window to look out! He and Alvin are good housekeepers!

Funny faces!

7 month continues...

Seven months has been a blast!! Tank has been going from the army crawl to pulling himself up into a standing position. He gets up faster and faster each time. He has been getting up on all fours and exploring by crawling on me and Chip like a jungle gym. We go for walks when the weather is nice or I'll put him on my back and do stuff around the house. He loves to ride in the carrier. More and more of his personality is showing every day. I was carrying him on my hip and looked over at him while he was just staring at me!! It fun to see him smiling at me first now! I just started laughing and he joined right in too! He loves the freedom of playing without his diaper. Mommy is careful so we don't have too many accidents!

We had a great visit with the Walker family. Both girls are so responsible in playing, holding, and caring for Tank while they were here. My friend Renee also brought her daughter Michaela over for a visit. She is one week older than Tank. Its fun to watch them interact and talk to each other. We tried to see each other a few times before their big move to Hong Kong!

Tank is a very good eater. He eats three meals a day and Michaela introduced him to cheerios!! He has been eating them ever since. He loves lima beans, brussel sprouts, and avocado are his favorites.

Yeahee for 7 months!!!

Here are his first moments of being 7 months old!!  Time is going way too fast and we are enjoying every moment with him!!  He started feeding himself bites of banana and wanting to drink out of the cup himself!  He is beginning to understand some of the mealtime baby signs: eat, drink, more, bib.  I just started the sign for dirty, so we'll see if that catches on this month!  He has been mimicing.  He just started smacking his lips (like a kiss) today (2-18-11).  Fun!!!  One or two people have also understood him to say "mama" without my prompting.  Though its only been a week into 7 months, he continues to have two good naps.  The nights continue to be sporadic.  Sometimes his teeth wake him up and I pray he gets some relief soon.  Last night the teething pellets helped him.  Hope better nights continue.  Keep you posted.

Swim class and 6 month milestones continued...

Tank has made great strides this month!!!  He is loving the vegetables and a banana each morning!  We continue to work on the meal time signs and learn more each week at our class.  Tank gets fussy if we are eating  and he is not.  We try to include him every meal even if its just a bit of something.  Potatoes and asparagus seem to be the latest hit!  He is watching me sign "to eat" as well and looking interested in understanding. 

He has been up on all fours, rocking, but no gas pedal yet.  He rolls and rolls so quick and pretty much gets to what he wants eventually.  He can pick up, chase, and put the ball in the hole of the toy to make the music go on!! He gets so proud of himself!!  I am really enjoying him learn to do this for the first time.  I put him next to the couch in standing position because he'd rather stand than anything else and he loved it.  He didn't move any which way obviously but we had a good time.

I made a make-shift sled because it was in the 50s and still snow on the ground.  I called around to purchase a sled and no luck.  The pictures really grasp the adventure we had.  Alvin was able to join in too!

I signed up for a mommy and me swim class.  There are about 10-12 moms with children 7 mo. (Tank the youngest I think) up to 18 mo.  We sing songs, grab and kick a ball, paddle our arms to "Row, Row, Row your Boat", etc.  The instructor dumped about 50 rubber duckies to "go fetch" so that was a workout for me!!  Tank had to grab one and we'd paddle back to place it on the pool deck to collect at the end.  Yesterday we did a fun circle, jump, and under the noodle to London Bridges.  He hasn't gone under the water yet, still too little.

Tank's first Valentine's Day!!!  Chip and I stayed in and enjoyed Chinese, watched our shows, and played with Tank.  He really loves balloons so the Valentine balloon has kept him interested this whole week.  Last Valentine's Day we were getting anxious to find out boy or girl and now a year later our baby boy is celebrating with us!!

So many milestones that I can't wait to see what 7 months has in store for him!!  His contentment has changed to 0-60 in just about that quick at times too!  When he wants something he means yesterday...at least he gets it honestly!!!  The teething is quite awful for us all.  I feel so bad for him so we are doing the best we can to get rest and keep him somewhat relieved of pain.  The teething pellets have worked well the past night or so.  He awakens himself at times and then goes back to sleep.  Other than that he is still nursing 2+ times a night.  I try to rest some during the day while he naps.  Sometimes I can other times I can't.  I feel my body is regulated pretty well to his somewhat still inconsistent routine.  Its nice Chip works from home and we take turns going to the gym almost every night.

First Tooth!

Tank's first tooth (bottom left) joined the world on Feb. 9, 2011!!   It may have well been there for a day or so.  By the time I saw it, it was white and sharp.  Poor baby.  The night before I knew it was coming, he was just so uncomfortable and didn't sleep but 2 hours at a time.  The next day I didn't put my finger in his mouth until about 2 pm and was happy to find a tooth!!  Yehaeee!!

First foods diary!!

We started Tank on rice cereal and oatmeal cereal with banana.  He enjoys both very much.  The fresh banana bites are delicious too.  His first vegetable was green beans followed by avocado, spinach, peas, broccoli, potatoes, and asparagus.  He is becoming quite good at drinking out of his penguin and incredible hulk cups!  I think lately he enjoys drinking/blowing bubbles in his cup more than eating!!  I am giving him two meals a day though he knows when we are eating or he is hungry again and could definitely eat a third time.  This boy is an eater!!!  We are having fun experimenting and trying all these new foods. He is picking up the banana pieces and eating them on his own as of this week 2-18-11.  He also is capable of holding and drinking out of his cups though he is soaked by the time its over!  Thankfully Tank is a good eater.  You'll see a couple squirmish faces, but by the third and fourth day of the food choice he is loving it!!  You will also see in the pictures that eating is a fun and messy process!!

6 months!

Tank had his 6 month appointment on Jan. 14th.  He weighed 17 lbs. 12 oz.  27.25 inches long and his head is 17.75 inches in diameter.  He has grown so much!!  The ped was impressed of all of his motor and verbal skills thus far and declared him a happy and healthy baby.  We asked a lot of questions about the foods we were about to introduce.  He can start having up to 8 oz. of water a day!  I was surprised at that.  She said he could be eating table food as soon as 9-10 mo. old.  I am still nursing as his primary source of nutrition but will try green vegetables first!  We are excited.  One thing the ped was alarmed about was his lack of naps.  Over the holidays his schedule was a bit off and I was up more often, but as far as naps during the day I always said he sleeps good at night.  She recommended a nap in the am and again in the afternoon.  I am thinking, whoa!!!  Well, he must have heard her because the following days he was taking text book naps!!!  He was still up a bit at night but at least we were both resting during the day.  Now he sleeps about 2.5 hours at 10 am and 1-1.5 hours at about 3 pm ish.  Yehaee!!

Tank likes to practice sitting up and playing with his toys.  He especially likes the Nascar race track with a spinning roadway, lights and music.  He continues to roll and roll and just recently is up on all fours!!!  He just started rocking back and forth on all fours as of 1/27/11.

We are only in the middle of 6 mo. so I'll keep you posted:)

New Years 2011

Happy First New Year Tank!!!

We began our drive home New Years Eve. We had a very smooth drive leaving at 6 am and spent the night in our own beds. Tank did great until we were less than three hours from home. His cough was getting progressively worse as the day went on. I took his temperature two times in the car, which read 99 degrees. Chip and I decided to call the pediatrician and describe his symptoms to her. In a nutshell she advised we go to the ER for a chest x-ray and oxygen level read. At that time we were 45 minutes from Leesburg. We had just stopped to nurse in Fredrick and took her advice. Alvin stayed with a friend so we called her and said we'd pick him up tomorrow. We arrived at our ER at 7 pm. They took his temperature in his ear and it read 99 as well. Then the nurse took a rectal temp and got 102! Tank was smiley, in a good mood, etc. only coughed twice the three hours we were there! The Doc diagnosed him with croup. Tank received Tylenol for the fever and one dose of liquid steroids for the cough. We were home by 10 pm, whopped! He has felt much better each day. I am thankful he didn't have anything worse.

 Here is a picture of him on New Years Day.  He has croup and is still smiling!