dedication

last night our small group had a christmas dinner and dedicated all our children to the Lord. two years ago, we were a group of 5 couples and 1 child. now we are a group of 5 couples and 7 children! it has been so great to walk together through life and encourage one another.

the verse we read for miles was 1 Corinthians 1:4-9

"I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way - in all your speaking and in all your knowledge- because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. Therefore we do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful."

19 months old

dear miles,

on monday you turned 19 months old. we are getting close to christmas, and as we think back to what you were like at this time last year, it is truly amazing to see how much you have grown in 1 year.

in the mornings, you eat breakfast and hang out with your dad until it's time to go to preschool. your teacher mrs becca always has great things to say about you, and you are learning a lot of things. every day you get to do crafts, sing songs, eat snacks, and play on the playground. your teacher says you have learned how to sit at circle time, but are still learning how to keep your food on your napkin while eating. i usually walk to come pick you up and you are always so happy to seem me and immediately start waving bye bye. you are so tired after school you make me carry you all the way home. when we get h

ome the first things you do are give minnie a big hug, sit on your truck, and ask for a snack! you have a starwars lunchbox and water bottle you take each day.

you are really talking a lot these days, even more so now that you are at preschool with some older kids. i will probably forget some, but here are words that you say in addition to yo

ur constant "chatter" : night night, bye bye, brady, minnie, car, truck, banana, snack, macaroni, book, ball, shoes, sock, mama, daddy, milk, belly button (be be!), hi, cracker, more. you know and use the signs for all finished, milk, and more - which you use to get whatever you want help with.

you love to sing songs and always perk up when i sing songs you also sing at school. you will often request that i sing certain songs as well. you know the wheels on the bus, itsy bitsy spider (eee bee), patty cake (paa paa), and if you're happy and you know it.

you love to put on your clothes and your shoes and socks. you will put your hands on your face and when someone says "Where's miles" you excitedly take your hands away and say "BOO!". you love to help feed the dogs, sweep, cook, vacuum, fold laundry, and other chores...hopefully this will last! you are a great little helper.

your #1 favorite thing right now is

to do gymnastics on daddy's and my bed or the couch. you will roll around and do head stands/somersaults foreeever and just giggle like crazy. you also go to the back door, move the blinds, and bang on the door yelling brady until he comes up to see you. you also can count...except you exclude one. you either say two two three, or just two three. so cute!

you are starting a bit of a whiny phase which i suppose is the beginning of the terrible twos, or it could be because your canines are coming in (counting them, you have 14 or so teeth). at your 18 month check up you weighed 23lb 12oz (20%) and were 32in long (40%). you love multigrain club crackers, danimo yogurt snacks, and macaroni and cheese.

your grandma and opa have hosted you overnight on several occasions, we went to san antonio for a spurs game (you loved the nachos, the dancers, and a large bubbly man sitting behind us who was kind enough to let you stare at him, and the spotlights, and when everyone clapped) and the zoo (super fun!), we spent thanksgiving in college station with the crew, and watched the aggies have a successful football season.

sometimes when you are playing you will all the sudden come up to me and give me a hug and then look at yourself hugging me in the mirror and shrug and smile.

YOU bring me more happiness than i have ever known before and i love you :)

a boy and his "boo"

miles is happily obsessed with balloons right now. he tries to say "balloon" but it comes out as "boo". so fun!

16 months old

update: i should say for the record that you have 10 teeth (4 on top, 4 on bottom, plus 2 top molars) and at your 15 month appt at 15.5months you weighed 22lbs 10z and were 32.5(??)in long.

dear miles,

last week you turned 16 months old. i never did write your 15month update so it will be obvious to everyone just how much you have changed in 2 short months. you are not a baby anymore, you have turned 100% into a toddler right before our eyes. here's what you are like right now:

-you are pretty independent. given free reign of the house, you will spend hours walking around, picking up things and just playing, playing, playing. it's so fun to watch you run around exploring. you've mastered climbing up onto the couch and love to crawl around with someone chasing you.

-you walk like a pro, even scoot sideways. you can bear crawl, put your head on the ground and look between your legs, and you often squat to look at something or play with toys.

-you sleep through the night, going to bed between 6.30-8.30pm and getting up around 8am when your babysitter arrives. you are really good about waking up happy and entertaining yourself until we come get you. one day last week your babysitter arrived to find you sitting in a corner of your crib, reading a book. on most days you will take one nap, usually 2-3hrs in the early afternoon. sometimes when you get tired, you will go in your room, get your blanket, and wait to go to bed.

some of your favorite things:

-your mega block legos. you bang them together with glee. you've also figured out how to put them together, take them apart, which you repeat indefinitely. you also love the dump truck they are stored in, you take them in and out and push the dump truck all over the house.

-books. you love to read. you've learned how to turn the books in your hands until they are facing the right way and then you "read" the book in a very animated way, turning the pages as you go. when you want me to read a book to you, you bring it to me and plop down in my lap, occasionally looking up at my lips while i'm reading. these are some of my favorite times. today you wanted me to read a book to you, but i was laying on the floor. you looked at me, confused, then came and sat down on my head!

-containers. bowls, cups, empty drink bottles. you like to screw the lids on empty bottles as well.

-your pets. the cat is your favorite, you get so excited when you see her and you have learned to pet her very gently. you also love your puppies. you play "fetch" with them and are always trying to share your toys, drinks, and snacks with them...such a nice little boy! if they are outside, you will walk over to the back door, lift the blinds out of the way, and bang on the door until they come up to it and stand there talking to them. it's so cute!

-my phone. you walk around with my phone to your "ear" (really its more like your neck) and blab away. you also flip it open and "text". you get really excited when i make a phone call on speaker phone and you actually get to talk to someone. the other day you brought me the phone and i kept giving it back to you. you kept bringing it back and then said your word for "auntie jen." so i got auntie jen on the line for you and you happily paced around the living room and kitchen for 15 minutes, chatting with your auntie.

-the broom. anytime we open the pantry you want to get the broom out. you push it around the floor, "sweeping."

-outlet covers. you have mastered the art of removing all the carefully placed outlet covers and carrying them around the house. needless to say your dad and i are going to have to make some adjustments to our childproofing strategy.

-cords. you love to go into the office and dig around in your dad's drawer of cords. you unplug the vacuum cord and try to plug it back in. the other day you carried a usb cord around very happily for almost an hour.

-your dad. anytime he is home, you are not far from him. you follow him around the house from room to room. sometimes you try to get him to chase you and he will crawl around all over the house, "chasing" you while you giggle so hard you sometimes lose your balance.

-cars. you love carrying your cars around and rolling them back and forth on the floor, making "the car" sound.

-balls. you LOVE balls. you carry them around everywhere and are quite good at throwing them (we have a lefty!). you also love to play fetch. you will come over to me, turn my hand over, and place a ball in it. i will throw it, and you will go get it. and repeat. many times. sometimes your dad gets a "double fetch" game going involving you, brady, and a tennis ball....hilarious!

things you say

ball

car

dad

brady

peyton

shoes

baby

cracker

quack quack quack

auntie jen (this one is a stretch, but he definitely makes this same sound everytime he sees her)

these are the words you say repeatedly. you have said lots of other words, but not consistently.

what we've been up to

-we've gone to the park (you are learning how to go down slides and climb up steps)

-we've gone to story time at the library. you loved all the songs and the toys they had there.

-you've moved up to the toddler room at church and really enjoy all the fun things they do

-your mom mom came and took care of you for 10 days in early august- she took you swimming at the ymca and all sorts of fun outings.

-we've had playdates with several friends from our small group. you love playing with the other kids!

-you went to work with me, and climbed in the lockers.

-we took you kayaking and you were a great sport, even though we went during your nap time.

-you went for several bike rides, sitting kangaroo style on my bike.

-we went to college station so you could meet your cousin and see family.

-we spent time with your grandma and opa

-we went swimming and hung out at auntie jen's apartment. we also took you to see some live music at a place across from jen's apartment complex and you absolutely loved it.

you play patty cake, wave goodbye (backwards), love fresh fruit but hate all meat except chicken nuggets, play peek a boo, and give the sweetest hugs. you are laid back, pleasant, and the sweetest little boy i've ever seen. we love you!

14 months old!

Dear miles,

last week you turned 14 months old! You have changed so much the past few weeks, this might just be the month that you have changed the most. This is what you are like right now:

1. you are in 100% exploration mode. If you see an open door and a split second opportunity (Such as when dad is changing a dirty diaper) you make a break for the door, army crawling as fast as you can. Your favorite place to end up is the kitchen, playing with the dogs food and water bowl. Often you can find tasty remnants of your meals in there as well.

2. you can army crawl faster than anyone I know, slithering like a little snake. But you are starting to walk more and more! You started taking steps at the beginning of the month and have been getting more and more adept and adventurous. You can easily walk back and forth between two people (your fave game right now, walking back and forth between mom and dad) and have started walking short distances towards toys in your playroom. At first you would lose your balance a lot and fall over sideways, but you are able to keep your balance pretty well, at least enough to plop down on your bum if you need to switch to crawling or if you have arrived at your destination.

3. you are a good sleeper. You sleep from 7.30 or 9pm until about 7.30am. When you wake up you play in your crib for awhile. You occasionally sleep in on the weekends. You often will take a morning nap (1-2 hrs) and an afternoon nap (1-2 hrs) but you are flexible with these if we are out and about.

4. you love to talk! Most of what you are saying I have no idea what it means, but your words include “dad”, “car”, and “ball.” sometimes you say “bee” for book and also “brady.” (the dog). I am STILL waiting to hear mama! Sometimes you make the sound, but you do not consistently refer to me as mom....hurry up already!!!

5. some of your fave things are: balls, cars, water bottles, books, milk, blueberries, strawberries, bananas, mandarin oranges, mac n cheese, crackers, banging things together, straws, phones, laptops, music.

6. You dislike riding in the car, unfortunately. You also get frustrated when you can't do something and ball up your fists and growl or scream. You did this a LOT for the first part of this month and it has tapered off some, thankfully.

7. You learned how to sit up from laying down. This was the last piece of mobility that was really frustrating to you. But one day early this month you just sat up and have been moving around like a pro ever since.

8. Two of my favorite things that you do 1. you find books and open them and turn the pages and read them in a really sweet sing-songy voice. 2. if i'm laying on the floor you will cruise down to where my head is and get really excited and laugh and turn your head sideways to look right into my face.

what we did this month

1. auntie jen lived with us and you loved getting to spend so much time with her. We also helped her move into her new apartment here in town and I know you will get to spend time with her in the upcoming months as well!

2. Swim! It's hot and we tried to cool off by going swimming. You absolutely love the pool and splash pad at the ymca. You are quite the hit with the little ladies. We also went swimming at jen's apartment with your aunt bekkie and you went swimming at leah's house as well.

3. Maddie came over for a few play times. You guys get along really well and like to stare and touch each others faces for the first 10min or so when she arrives.

4. Aunt bekkie came to see us and you loved playing with her.

5. We went to college station to see family. You showed off your walking skills to everyone.

6. I started teaching summer school so you have been playing with leah and going over to luke and lila's house some days.

We cannot believe how grown up you are. Everytime I come home I feel like you've gotten older. You seem so much like a little boy instead of a baby. This makes us kind of sad, but also really excited for what's in store! I think I write this every month, but words cannot express how much I love being your mom. I love you!

13 months old

dear miles,

yesterday you turned 13 months old. you are the sweetest boy i know! right now i'm excited to get to stay home with you all summer. here's a little bit about what you are like right now.

eat

you eat breakfast around 9am. some fave breakfasts are rice cereal mixed with baby food fruit or fresh bananas, blueberries, and a waffle. and of course milk, you love your milk! you usually drink organic HEB central market whole milk from a spill proof cup with a straw. you always push the cup out of your way onto the floor when you are through with it, though your auntie jen is trying very hard to teach you how to put it in the cupholder. for lunch you usually enjoy cheese and veggie crackers (colby jack is your favorite, you also like american and cheddar). you also love mandarin oranges and lil' crunchies. i usually offer you turkey as well but you are not so fond of meat. for dinner you sometimes eat lil' entrees or pasta pickups, or whatever we are eating. the other night i put some pasta we were having on your tray and you looked at me like there was no way you were going to eat that stuff. but then you gave it a try and loved it. depending on your nap schedule, you sometimes have a late afternoon snack as well. you still like drinking water, but we have been giving you lots more milk per your doctor, and you are not complaining about that one bit!

sleep

i'm not entirely sure what time you wake up to be honest. but you have a ball, blanket, bear, and a book in your crib. you entertain yourself with these things and looking at the shadows from the window blinds until i come to get you around 8am. occasionally you sleep (or fall back asleep?) until 10am!! you are usually good for a morning nap from 10.30-12 and an afternoon nap from 3-5. if you sleep in or miss your morning nap you will squeeze in two afternoon naps. we usually give you your bath and the rest of your bedtime routine between 7-8.30pm, depending on how things are going. you have started sleeping on your side, still sucking your fingers and holding onto your little blue blanket. you are a great sleeper!

words!

yes that's right, this month we can say that you have some words! there is no doubt of your favorite word..."ball". there is no doubt because you say it all. the. time. like a question. ball? baaaalll? ballll? until some says "ball" back and then you are so happy. you crawl around your playroom finding all the balls (there are lots!) and push them around with your hand and saying "ball."

another word is "da". you call your dad "da" and it is so cute. you also use "da" to refer to other people and even me sometimes. i'm still waiting to hear your sweet little voice say mama!

you also say "car" and can go find a toy car if we say "where's the car?"

earlier this month you would say "be de" for brady. but recently you have figured out the "r" sound and when you see him you very carefully say "brrrrrrre". so you have the "r" but then can't put it together with the "d" sound. on the bright side, you will have no trouble with your aunt bree's name!

you also have a word for book. i'm not sure how to describe it, it's something like "booa." but most often you affectionately refer to them as "be be".

what we did

after your birthday we had a second bday party for you in college station while we were there with family celebrating auntie jen's graduation from a&m. auntie jen is living with us this summer while she is working in austin, so you have had lots of great bonding time with her. we joined the ymca and you have gotten to go swimming there and use the splashpad, which you absolutely loved. we also have gone swimming a few times at a friends' apartment pool. your mom mom came and stayed for a week with you while i was recovering from having my wisdom teeth removed. you had so much fun with her, especially since she took you to the splashpad for the very first time. we also made a a day trip to cstat to meet your very first cousin! you didn't get to actually meet him but you stood on the door outside the nicu and talked very loudly to him.

things you love and do

-when you get excited you squeal and clap your hands together. it is absolutely adorable and i hope you never stop, though i'm sure you will.

-if i say "can you give me a kiss" you open your mouth wide and give a great kiss. sometimes. other times you laugh and laugh and start pushing my face away.

-you army crawl all over the place and can pull yourself up to standing if someone is sitting near you.

-you are cruisin' like crazy! you move up and down the futon in your playroom and can let go of one thing and reach for another. you can also bend down to pick things up while you are standing and holding onto something. however you don't seem very interested in standing alone. if i try to get you to stand, you just start giggling like CRAZY and fall over reaching for me.

-you love for me to read books to you. you climb up in my lap and turn the pages, occasionally looking up at me as i read. i LOVE reading books with you. you also read books to yourself, which i love to see you crawl over to them and flip through the pages "reading" them with funny baby sounds.

-you love fresh fruit, your puppies, the cat, your dad, your dad's ps3 controller, phones, laptops (in fact you have your own cell phone and laptop with the batteries removed because you love them so much), balls, cars, teeth, baths, swimming, other babies and young children, glasses (i had to go back to wearing contacts), and music ( you are still quite the dancer!)

i love you SO MUCH. i have so much fun playing and reading with you. i love to hear you laugh and see your sweet smile every day. you're the best!

miles goes swimming

miles used some of his birthday money from his mawmaw to pick out a small wading pool and some pool toys. yesterday afternoon we set up the umbrella and the pool on the deck and miles changed into his swimming clothes. he also used his beach towel from his nana for the first time. he didn't mind the cool water at all and started playing with his new toys right away. i showed him how to splash the water and he enjoyed splashing as well, except when he got the water in his eyes. his puppies were very jealous of his new set up! i think this will be a great way to keep miles cool during the next few months.

miles' second first bday party

coming soon!!!

miles' first bday party

miles' first birthday was on a friday, so that night we had a big birthday bash for him at our house. he had a lazy morning with miss leah in his pj's, then ross, miles, and i went to go get his uncle jared from his golf tournament. miles played and laid down for a bit before we all headed to the grocery store to get everything for his party. ross grilled fajitas and jared made fruit kabobs and we picked up his cake from heb. everything was quite tasty! miles took a nap during the first part of his party before waking up to eat cake and open presents that all his friends brought for him. he had a pretty good time, but he was a little nervous that so many people were there. he is quite sensitive when people laugh loudly, especially when he is tired, so there were a few tears, but overall i think he really enjoyed himself. he definitely is enjoying all the wonderful toys and clothes from his friends, and it was so neat to see all the different people that have been apart of his life here in austin this year gathered together helping us celebrate such an awesome little man.

for all the grannies and other interested people, here are videos of miles enjoying the first cake of his life (just click each picture to see the videos)

beginning

middle

end!

12 months old!

coming soon.... ;)

park dates

the past few weeks the weather has been pretty nice and not unbearably hot. miles has taken advantage of this a couple times by meeting up with his friend maddie at the park. they have enjoyed sitting on blankets in the shade playing with their toys, and here is a picture of them swinging.

11 months old

dear miles,
last week you turned 11 months old. i can't believe that the next time i write an update it will be for your 1st birthday!!

eat
these days you are eating 3 meals plus 1-2 snacks. for breakfast you usually have yogurt "dots" and rice cereal mixed up with some sort of fruit. for lunch you often have crackers or bread plus turkey and cheese, lil' crunchies, and fruit. you're favorite snack is a strawberry-banana cereal bar. this month you tried out some organic smiley grain snacks which your really like and also some veggie crisps...it seems you really like crunchy things the best! for dinner you either eat what dad and i are having (your personal favorite...mac n cheese- you open your mouth extra wide for that!!) or you have a lil' entree (think chef boyardee made by gerber) meal such as chicken with mac & cheese & veggies, spaghetti rings, or turkey and vegetable stew. you have been nursing 1-3x per day.

sleep
since you've been nursing only 1-3x per day, do you know what this means?? yes!! you are sleeping through the night (happy happy dance). well most nights any way. but you just kind of dropped your last feeding on your own when you were about 10 1/2 months. the first night it happened i was so excited i couldn't believe it...imagine my excitement when you did it 5 nights in a row! you've been heading to bed around 7 or 8pm. in the mornings you usually wake up around 7.30am though somehow on the weekends you will often realize you should sleep in until 8 or 9.30am...you are awesome. for most of the month you were taking about 3 naps, an hour nap in the morning, an hour nap around lunchtime, and a 1-2 hour nap in the afternoon, waking up around 5pm. recently it seems like you are getting ready to drop that nap in the morning time.

skills
you have perfected the army crawl, you look like such a little bug inching around on the floor, it's super cute! you have escaped the playroom twice on a mission to find something interesting and once when you were trying to keep up with peyton. your first love however is walking which you are still working on. you are getting more adept at cruising and LOVE to stand and hold on to things/people and look around.

you are talking so much and we like to pretend you are saying things! we do start to recognize some of the same sounds, especially something that sounds like a combination of "hi dad" and "hi there". it was really neat because you always say it to your dad when you see him (you also wave your arms around and open your mouth wide and do a dance of excitement...even if he left for 20 seconds), but then now you also say it to minnie our cat, and peyton and brady, or whatever person/animal has caught your interest. things you are really excited about such as brady, baths, and books you lovingly touch and say "Be"...of course all of these things start with "b" so i like to pretend you are saying them! i hear the occasional "nana" when you really want something but have yet to hear "mama"....get working on that!!

you will occasionally wave bye-bye, with your whole left arm. more often you will do the same motion when we see sometime, as if waving hi...especially when you see your dad...or brady. :)

we have a volleyball and you will roll it back and forth with me. you use your little toes to help you catch the ball. it's so fun!

this isn't really a skill, but i want to remember that you do it...everytime i park the car and come around to get you out of your carseat, as soon as i open the door you laugh and do a happy dance, as if we are at the most exciting place in the world or you have missed me SO much while i was in the front seat. sometimes i glance back and you are craning your neck backwards so you can look at me while i'm driving. <3

things you love
you still love mostly the same things, not too much new here.

books - the farm book is definitely first place here. a new book you've been interested in lately is a touch and feel baby animals book
baths
brady
minnie
dad
mom
cereal bars
eating whatever we are eating
drinking from my cup
your blanket square and comfort animals you sleep with each night
your orange laptop
your singing/magnetic farm animal barn
animal shaped easter eggs
rocks/sand at the park
swinging at the park
tennis balls/volleyball
laughing- you spontaneously laugh while you're eating, bathing, or if i look at you. you are so funny!
music! - anytime you hear music you stop what you're doing, "dance" until it stops, and then you continue on. it's sooooo funny. it doesn't even have to be actual music...if your dad or i start making a beat by drumming on something, you will start to bob your head like you're feeling the beat.

what we did
celebrated your first Easter with auntie jen and some of our friends from small group
hung out with aunt bekkie while mom and dad went to a rehearsal dinner/wedding
watched dad and mom and friends play tennis
went to the park, a lot!
went for walks in the stroller
started going to a friends house with the babysitter 2x per week
painted your playroom brown and mint green

i know i say it each time, but everytime i look at you i am amazed at how much i love you. i love feeling your fingers hold onto me so tight as you hold yourself up and explore what's going on around you. your laugh is the sweetest thing i have ever heard and i look forward to hearing it every day. i love you little man!

first easter

last sunday was miles' first easter. we went to church on saturday night and then some of our friends from our small group at church came over for dinner. everyone made their own kabobs and ross grilled them. auntie jen was here and made caprese salad as an appetizer, and we also had deviled eggs, salad, and the most awesome cupcakes ever! we got to hang out and watch the final four and really had a great evening. unfortunately miles ate his dinner right when we came home from church and promptly went to bed so he missed out on the party.

this left easter sunday wide open! everyone, including miles, slept in and then i made easter brunch...ham, eggs, and toast. afterwards miles opened his easter basket (as shown in the video below) from his grandparents and aunt and uncle. his favorite things were these easter eggs that were shaped like little animals. he still is enjoying playing with them over a week later! what he doesn't know is that his daddy ate the candy out of them!!

we all just kind of hung around the house for awhile, then we sat on the deck and chatted and ross grilled up all the leftover kabobs. in the late afternoon we went to the park and auntie jen and miles took a walk and played together while ross and i played tennis. the weather was beautiful, the company was great, and i don't think miles could have had a better first easter!

on the move

as i have mentioned previously, miles really wants to walk. he is beginning to pull himself up and cruise. he occasionally stands for a few seconds by himself. it is very frustrating to him that he can't get to where he wants to go. up until a few weeks ago, he would burst into tears if i laid him on his tummy...it's almost as if he finds the concept of crawling insulting! but just over two weeks ago on a friday night, he started scooching! it was so cool to see him basically army crawl to a toy that he wanted. ross and i were so proud! then aunt bekkie showed up and we all watched him and laughed. over the past two weeks he has been scooching more and more, and now is content to play on his tummy so that he can scoot around and play with toys that around him. however, his preferred method of movement is still trying to walk. below is a video (it is lengthy but after about 1 minute you will get the general idea) of him playing and scooching.

first haircut!

on tuesday march 16, ross and i took miles to get his first haircut. his mad scientist hair following his bath times was getting a little OOC. and it just needed to be evened out some. so we took him to this place called floyds where ross gets his hair cut. miles was very interested and calm until ross had to hold his head still, when he promptly burst into tears. after charging us FIFTEEN DOLLARS, the lady gave miles a sucker. i let him suck on it for a few seconds then we tossed it in the trash. we are still disgruntled over the price, but agree the haircut turned out well. i did have a moment when i took him home when i became very distraught over how grown up he looked. but, it was needed and next time we'll just go to super cuts i guess!

before

during


after

10 months old

dear miles,
you are 10 months old (and 4 days...i have been a slacker!) and loving life. here are some things about you right now -

let's move it!

you want to walk. badly. you refuse to crawl or anything that resembles crawling. but if i hold out two fingers to you, you will grab on and pull yourself up and walk around. at first you would only take a straight-legged step or two, but now you can walk all across the house and bend your knees as you step. you also have a big grin on your face and bounce up and down excitedly between steps. you can also stand up while holding onto the coffee table or couch, which also makes you very proud of yourself. you have taken one or two steps toward something while holding onto the table, so i'm quite sure by next month's update you will be cruising for sure, with walking not too far away either. this still makes me nervous! but i am excited for the new opportunities it will bring you.

eat
you are starting to eat more and more solid foods. you have 4 teeth now to help you( 2 on top, 2 on bottom)! though you are still nursing 4-5 times each day, you are starting to eat 3 meals plus a snack each day. for breakfast you usually eat yogurt melts (freeze dried yogurt & fruit) which we call "dots" and rice cereal mixed with apple or white grape juice. for lunchtime sometimes you have chicken & carrot sticks, turkey & veggie ravioli pickups, or cheese & crackers & chicken with some lil' crunchies. sometimes we go out to lunch with your daddy or friends and you are quickly learning that this is way fun! you love sitting in the high chair and eating your snack and trying whatever we are eating. you also like to order a kids water so you can drink from a straw and cup just like everyone else. in the afternoon you usually have a fruit & cereal bar or lil' crunchies for a snack. for dinner you often eat pasta & veggies, veggie soup, or whatever your dad and i are having for dinner. throughout the day and with meals you drink water from your no-spill cup with a straw, with the occasional cup of juice. the other night i was eating chicken and some macaroni and cheese while you were playing and you just HAD to have some. you absolutely loved it and couldn't get enough. you got another treat yesterday on our spring break road trip to mom mom's and big papi's house. we stopped at a sonic for lunch and you got to sit in the drivers seat with me and eat a grilled cheese and apple juice...you were the happiest little boy ever, you thought you were so big! you also got a tot baby and a balloon which you were very proud of.

sleep
you have become quite attached to a little blue blanket square that my friend mindy gave you when you were born. its silky on one side and soft on the other. as soon as i lay you in your crib for a nap or bedtime, you stick two fingers from your right hand into your mouth, and stick out your left hand to cuddle the blanket. when you wake up and i come in to get you, you almost always are playing with the blanket happily. you also have a blue bear (from your great aunt sara) and a brown bear (from your daddy) that you enjoy playing and sleeping with in your crib as well.

you have a bedtime routine that we start around 7-8pm of bath, pj's and lotion, 2 medicines (prevacid and iron drops), nursing, brushing teeth, reading good night moon, and then laying down in your crib. you've been sleeping really well, from about 8.30pm until 4am, waking up to nurse and then sleeping til 7.30am (8.30am now that daylight savings came!). on sunday night you slept from 8.30pm-8.30am and it was awesome. you woke up and cried once but you quickly fell back asleep. we have been doing some cry it out with you and are now down to just one nightly feeding which i'm hoping to phase out before your bday...i'm sure you will be thrilled.

you are still taking 2 morning naps and 2 afternoon naps, though occasionally you will combine two of them for a 2hr nap instead of your usual 1hr nap...i'm hoping this trend continues and becomes your norm.

things you enjoy
baths
straws
puppies
lift the flap books (we had our first flap casualty this week :( )
mirrors
your jumper
toy baskets
tags
teeth
your toes
climbing on your dad in the morning
giving me kisses :)
strings
looking at things sideways and/or upside down

things we did
surprised aunt bekkie for her birthday in college station
played with grandma and grandpa
helped daddy build a deck in our backyard
went to church and small group and played with the other babies
met daddy for lunch
swing at the park
went to see big papi, mom mom, aunt bekkie, uncle jared, and aunt rachel for spring break

i can't believe you are 10 months old, now i truly understand what people mean when they say it goes by so fast! thoughts of your first bday party are already forming in my head. yesterday in the car i just kept looking back at you, singing to yourself and sucking on your toes, and i was thinking wow i have the sweetest baby in the world. you bring me so much joy and i love you very much!!

happiest boy in town

i keep resolving to blog more often about the little day to day things that miles does but the more i neglect it the harder it is to keep up with all that is going on...but i figured i would at least get in another update before miles turns TEN MONTHS on sunday.

for starters he went to his 9 month checkup on feb 16th. he was 28.5 inches and 19lbs 11oz. he had his blood drawn to check for lead and iron levels. i had to hold him while the lady drew his blood because she was the only tech working there that day...we all survived though! unfortunately miles' results came back that he has anemia so he has been taking iron drops each night to boost his levels. they will recheck when he goes back for his 12 month appointment after his birthday.

our little guy is still immobile, though the end is in sight. it seems that he is not going to crawl after all, but he has become quite interested in walking. he can hold himself up on the coffee table or bath tub, and loves to take little steps walking around while you hold his hands for him. he also will pull himself up to standing if you offer him your fingers. so once he gets his balance figured out, he will be taking off in no time!

on feb 18th my parents and rachel came to watch my last basketball game. we went to dinner afterwards and then on the 19th miles and i rode to college station with them to surprise bekah for her golden birthday. ross met us later for dinner and then we headed back home with him.

miles' grandma and grandpa are in town so he has had a couple opportunities to play with them, and his mom mom just came and spent a couple days with him this week as well. we stocked up on some summer clothes for him and he also got a new walker toy that he can push around as he gets more comfortable holding himself up.

he is settling in to a very predictable routine during the days and we are working on getting him to sleep through the night. he is doing better each night and currently we are down to one waking/feeding between 8pm and 7am. not too bad, and we will continue to work to eliminate that feeding hopefully very soon.

everywhere we go miles gives people smiles. the cashier, the tech who drew his bloood (AFTER she took his blood!!), friends, family...anyone we come in contact with miles will generally give out a smile. he is a laid back guy who seems to be loving his life so far!

9 months old

dear miles,
today you are 9 months old AND you are celebrating your very first valentines day so it is an extra special day around here. evelyn was visiting us (you could not stop smiling at her!) and we had cinnamon rolls for breakfast. you got a baby songs dvd, a musical key ring, and a container of lil' crunchies (your fave!) for your valentines gifts...sorry, no chocolate for you just yet!

this is what a sample day looks like for you...

7.15am - wake up. lay in crib and play with toes. sing. talk to the decorations on the walls.

8.00am - get up! you are always so happy to start your day with your mom, dad, or miss leah. i am "training" you to sleep until 8am mostly because this is what time leah arrives and because on the weekends when leah is not arriving, i would not like to get up before 8am. :)

8.15am - feed puppies breakfast. feed miles breakfast. this month you have been really into rice cereal with mixed fruit. we mix up the cereal with white grape, pear, or apple juice and you eat bowls of the stuff! sometimes you also have yogurt bites with your cereal. this month you also tried waffles and pancakes, and enjoyed both.

8.45am - jump in the jumper in your playroom.

9.00am - a nap in your crib. i am going to be really sad when you stop scrunching up into a tiny ball and sucking on your fingers to sleep. its adorable! you've been using a handmade afghan that a friend of mine knit for you as your blanket and you've been cuddling with a little puppy dog rattle/blanket thingie. if i watch for signs that you are getting sleepy (rubbing eyes, cranky, staring) and lay you down then, you usually will go right to sleep.

10.00am - wake up. play with blocks, musical train, etc in your playroom. you sit and reach for your toys. if something is out of reach you lean forward, folding yourself in half and stretch your arm out sideways to reach it. if you can't quite reach it, you either give up or start to get upset. you are still not seeming interested in crawling at all. we will enjoy it while it lasts i suppose.

11.00am - another nap in your crib.

12.00pm - breastfeed. hang out with mom and blab away. you love to hear the itsy bitsy spider and play peek-a-boo. if i put a blanket on my head or on your head then you will pull it off and grin when i say peek-a-boo. i also do patty cake with my hands and sometimes help you do it with your hands. you love just chillaxin with your mom.

12.30pm - play with toys in the playroom. maybe jump for a few. read some books. all month your two favorite books were your lift the flap books ...."little people farm book" and "toes, ears, and nose". though you still enjoy these books a bunch, this past week you found a new favorite book. it's a baby einstein book "mirror me" that i bought for you at half price books. it has a mirror on every other page for you to mimic what the character on the previous book is doing. you rarely look at the mirrors but you LOVE the pictures of the animals. you grin like crazy when we read this book. and when its over you slap your legs and get really excited because you can't wait for me to read it again. so i do. again. and again. the other day, after 8 times, i hid it under the couch. you strained and strained trying to find it and then burst into tears.

1.30pm - nap in your crib.

3.00pm - snack. usually lil' crunchies and water.

3.15pm - play with toys in the playroom. if the weather is nice we sometimes go to the neighborhood park. sometimes we go to the grocery store or run an errand.

4.00pm - breastfeed. then, a nap in your crib.

5.00pm - sit and play with the water bottles and pitchers in one of the kitchen cabinets while mom cooks dinner. try some of what mom is cooking for dinner...pasta, sweet potatoes, green beans, bread, chicken, cheese, etc.

6.00pm - nap in your crib.

7.00pm - play with dad. jump. play with toys.

8.00pm - bath time. you LOVE bath time! this past week you graduated to the big tub. you have already figured out how to drain the water. you love to feel the water coming out of the faucet and investigate the bubbles it causes.

8.30pm - breastfeed and a good nite story. we have been reading goodnight moon (another half price books find) each night the past few weeks. then to bed in your crib.

12.00am - breastfeed and go back to bed.

3.00am - wake up, cry.

3.15am - fall back asleep. mom refuses to wake up for less than a 4hr interval these days. :)

6.00am breastfeed and go back to bed.

and there ya have it. this is what you are up to. most days you spend from 8am to noon with miss leah. your dad is also starting to take care of you a lot more and you are really bonding with both of them.

you enjoy going to the nursery at church. yesterday when i went to pick you up i was a little embarrassed because you were having so much fun with the toys (they were pretty cool toys!) that you wouldn't even look up to see me! and when i did pick you up, instead of acting happy to see me, you just craned your neck down to try to get back to the toys that were on the floor.

you get very excited. you show this by breathing really fast, nodding your head, rocking your body, and slapping both arms on your legs repeatedly. you have also started making a clicking/smacking sound with your lips when you are happy.

you had a rough week this past week because you were teething. yesterday i felt that one of your top two front teeth has poked on through, giving you a grand total of 3 teeth, and the fourth is going to be here very shortly.

you love your puppies, especially brady. you watch their every move and love to try to pet them. you laugh and laugh if brady licks you and then reach out your hands to pet him.

we love you so much and think you are the most beautiful and sweet baby in the world! nothing makes me happier than seeing you smile. :)

google chat and a message from miles

miles had the opportunity to video chat with his MomMom and big papi this afternoon. it was one sided as their web cam was not working, but they were able to see and hear miles playing and we were able to hear them. he seems to enjoy listening but was pretty mellow. he was happy to eat a mum mum and play with his blocks though. but he was most interested in typing on my laptop. he loves to type. instead of hitting at the keyboard in the office like he does most toys, he will put his little chubby fingers on the keys and move them like he is typing, staring at the screen (he has learned a lot from his bumbo time watching his daddy in the office!!) today was no different and he had a lot to type to his grandparents! thought you would enjoy this message from miles....

5:25 PM
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lcz zxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
5:26 PM
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x yxuxxk.k
5:27 PM
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cfytbv g
5:28 PM
gggf bv

m, nx cxx cxxfxvf
5:29 PM
CVVVVVVV
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5:30 PM
v.g kv , vkm.,., m n ';/ .6;0
5:31 PM
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5:32 PM
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"B BV? GH
5:33 PM
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5:34 PM
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8 months old!

dear miles,
today you are 8 months old! this month has been super busy and i think this has been one of the months you have changed the most. i was also just thinking yesterday that no matter what is going on, whenever i look at your sweet face i can't help but smile. i am so glad to have you! here's a look at what you are up to these days.

sleep
you sleep in your crib on your tummy. 2 fingers from your right hand go into your mouth, your left hand you stick straight out behind you. just about all the time. sometimes you still scrunch up into a ball, bum up in the air, hands under your tummy, ankles crossed. so cute. you are doing a great job of falling asleep on your own when we place you in your crib. unless you are super tired or have just had a bath, you burst into tears when i lay you down, then abruptly stop, suck on your fingers, and fall asleep. sometimes you take awhile to fall asleep and we will hear you in there talking and wriggling around. you are rarely in the same place as where i left you when you wake up, but i find it so cute that as you inch around your crib, your blanket travels with you.

you wake up in the mornings usually around 8am and take a good morning nap or two short ones. in the afternoons when i am home with you, you usually are still napping every other hour for an hour, though sometimes you stretch it to every 2 hours. lately you've been taking a nap from 5.30 or 6pm to 7.30pm which i would like to remove and just move your bedtime earlier. but for right now you've been going to bed around 8.30-9.30pm. you still are waking up a couple times per night but go right back to sleep after i feed you.

you did struggle some this month with sleeping because you had a super nasty cold and because we were traveling. when we returned home we put a pillow under your mattress to elevate your head and that seemed to work well. i was pleased with how you settled back into your routines after two weeks of travel.

eat
you are nursing at 5.30am, noon, 3pm, 6pm, 9pm, and 1am...or around those times most days. in the mornings you eat baby food and occasionally a bottle of formula. at lunch and dinner time i have been offering you baby food and snacks. your favorite baby foods are bananas, strawberries & bananas, and chicken noodle dinner. though recently you have been very interested in feeding yourself. once you mastered cheerios, you decided you don't really want me to feed you baby food (though your babysitter reports that you eat well for her). so i bought a variety of baby snacks from the grocery store so you wouldn't be eating only cheerios. you LOVE them and can't get enough of them. i was worried you would struggle to eat them, but you grab them up, some in each hand and chomp them. right now you are eating banana puffs, sweet potato puffs, mixed berry yogurt bites, mum mums, and veggie dip corn snacks. this month we are going to continue to try baby food, but also i am going to buy some frozen veggies for you to try and some diced fresh fruits. you also enjoyed chewing on celery and tangerines over the christmas break.

i offer you water while you are snacking. your favorite sippy cup is one that has a straw. recently you have wanted to drink out of anyone's cup who happens to be holding you and a cup! especially if the "cup" is a water bottle or gatorade bottle, etc with a crinkly wrapper. so this week you have been working on drinking a 20oz dasani water bottle through a straw. it is hilarious to watch! i think you think you are so big, feeding yourself and drinking from a water bottle. yesterday you got your first taste of apple juice...i think you are a fan.

skills
your biggest achievement this month was learning to sit up. it seemed to happen overnite while we were traveling for christmas, but you have definitely got it down. but now that you can sit, you don't really like to be on your tummy. you don't really seem interested in crawling, but i know it will come soon, whether we are ready or not!

you have been saying "dada" a lot, sometimes it seems like you are saying it right to your dad. you also have "baba" sound down and you seem to say "nehnehneh" in relation to food or in relation to me or just randomly, i'm not sure.

you have been blowing lots of raspberries this month.

you love to look at yourself and other people in the mirror and smile.

you have graduated to the last section of your infant bathtub. you've gone from the hammock, to reclined, and now you are in the sitting up section. you love baths just as much as ever. you have moved to splashing with your hands rather than your feet. you sit there and hit the water with both hands, splashing water everywhere, looking startled when it hits your face!

play time
we moved the office into the old guest room so that the back bedroom would be emptied out as a playroom for you. we moved the guest bed out and bought a futon to have in the playroom. we loaded up the cabinets with all your christmas toys and moved your jumper and other gear into the playroom. the plan is to paint the walls and do some decorating and baby-proofing so we will have a safe place in the house for you to explore and play with your toys. the closet doors in that room are mirrored and you love to jump and look at yourself in the mirror.

you also are pretty happy to lay in bed with us or on the couch and play with remote controls, cellphones, or laptops...anything with tiny buttons to stare at.

your aunt m and uncle m gave you a sailboat quilt that was hand made just for you for christmas. we usually spread that out on the floor and you sit on it and play with your toys. you take blocks in and out of buckets and chew on them and bang them together. you still love to read books. at the beginning of the month the touch and feel books were your favorites, but this past week i have noticed you are learning to like the lift-the-flap books more and more. the two books you are most interested in right now (though i think 'that's not my puppy' is still your overall fave) are called "Ears Nose & Toes" and a Little People Farm book...both are lift the flaps. you stretch forward and lift each flap after i do...i love it!

the weather has been really cold, but one day this week i was able to take you to the park (we also took you to the park in graham over the christmas break). you enjoyed the swings and watched the other kids running around playing. a 16month old girl came and was in the swing next to you, and you really stared at her while she laughed and talked.

what we did
you spent the mornings i was working with your babysitter. it's obvious you are getting to know and recognize her and enjoy your times with her. your dad and i both had 2 weeks off work and we spent them traveling to graham and missouri to celebrate christmas. auntie jen babysat you, you hung out with your dad while i had bball tournaments, we rang in the new year with friends, played in snow, went shopping, had a cold, got your first stomach bug, celebrated mawmaw's 80th birthday, and celebrated your first christmas!

i wonder if this time next month we will have a mobile miles??? scary thought!!!

christmas video

i almost forgot! click on the video below to watch a slideshow of some of the christmas pictures.

Movies

two teeth & sitting like a pro

it was on dec 17th that i first felt a little tooth poking thru miles' gums. over the 2wk christmas break, miles has grown two little teeth...the two front bottom teeth. he enjoys rubbing his tongue over them. they are quite sharp! and he also enjoys practicing his bite...so beware! he now enjoys chomping bites of mum mum rice cakes, gnawing on celery stalks, and most recently eating cheerios. the first time i gave him some cheerios he was struggling to pick them up and i needed to break them in half for him to eat. today i put him in his high chair and he was picking up handfuls of cheerios in each hand and stuffing them in his face...he's a fan. i like watching him practice picking up tiny things. and i like that they entertain him. today he also grabbed his cup with a straw and drank some water, without any help from me.

it seems like overnight on our christmas travels he could suddenly sit unassisted. it's way more fun for him to sit on a blanket and play with all his new toys. i just put his buckets of blocks on either side of him and he happily takes blocks in and out and bangs them around everywhere, it is so cute! he also likes to dump the entire box out...how does he learn this already? he also likes to sit next to his dad and "play playstation", though ross informed me yesterday he has already figured out which controller ross is using and only wants to play with that one, rather than the one that is turned off. again, how do they learn this stuff so soon?!?

perhaps the most significant thing about miles sitting so far is that today he and i were able to do a full week's worth of grocery shopping with him strapped in the cart! he had grown too big to ride in his sling while i shopped, but usually would get tired of sitting up before i was done shopping. but today i strapped him in and he happily sat the whole time and played with a packet of cheese, making it crinkle in his hands. he did great, even while checking out and loading the car. no less than 7 people mentioned how cute he was, and one lady told whoever she was o the phone that she had just seen the most beautiful baby in the world at the grocery store. i certainly don't disagree and i am blessed to be holding that baby right now! (yes, really right now...i have sacrificed my cell phone to him so i can have sole use of my laptop, even if it is just to type left-handed only).

ringing in the new year for the first time

after being gone for a week, we returned home around 2pm on the 31st. miles was so glad to see his jumper and especially his crib. he took a long nap in it. i went to the grocery store and cooked dinner. brittany, brian, and jennifer- a friend i coach with at school- came over to celebrate new years eve with us. we ate dinner together (i made enchiladas using a recipe from friend), played an intense game of scattergories, and then played ticket to ride before ringing in the new year. miles hung out with us during dinner and then made an appearance during scattergories before going down for the night. maybe next year he stay up until midnite, who knows?

miles' first christmas

this year miles celebrated his very first christmas...3 times! ross and i both had 2 weeks off work and we spent all but 4 days of that traveling with a baby, 2 dogs, and snow-covered roads. perhaps it was a little crazy, but we wanted our families to be able to spend this special time with miles.

christmas...graham style
after our last day of work on the 18th, we got up early the next morning and drove to graham just in time for mawmaw's 80th birthday party. All of my dad's family made the trip and it was no small affair! i was glad we could be a part of the special day, though i'm not sure anyone noticed us because they were so glad to meet miles! nana and delbert also joined us for the celebration, and they could not believe how much miles had grown since the last time they had seen him! on sunday miles went to the park with his cousins and nana and then celebrated christmas with my cousins. we had declared monday as "christmas day" in graham. we did our traditional stockings, breakfast, presents combo with my parents, mawmaw, and all of us siblings. my mom bought miles a huuuge stocking and he enjoyed holding each item i took out of it. he also loved to crinkle the wrapping paper and of course tried to eat it. he got some clothes (some for when he's older), lots of books...his fave, blocks, and lots of other little goodies. it was a lot of fun to be with the complete family.

christmas...austin style
we left the next day (22nd) and came back home. miles was perfect in the car (for the record, so were the dogs). we unpacked everything and relaxed. auntie jen came over on the 23rd and babysat miles while ross and i went to san antonio for a spurs game (our christmas present from my parents). i think we calculated it was the longest spurt i had been away from miles and i definitely missed him. we demanded jennifer keep texting us pics of him while we were at the game. we ate at saltgrass before the game and had a really great evening together. jennifer did a great job with miles, even though he was getting sick and was a super crankpot that day. christmas eve day auntie jen took care of miles allll day while i cleaned the house and ross took care of all the leaves in the yard and did some other work outside. then we went to church and afterwards ate brisket and had a game night with 2 new games ross had purchased as his christmas gift from mawmaw. we wanted to stay up all night playing but we had a busy day the next day. we were super glad jfer came and helped us out while she was cramming in as much miles time as she could before she left for her semester in wales. christmas morning we ate cinnamon rolls and packed up everything again, then we all headed out.

christmas...missouri style
we drove back to graham and spent the night with my parents there before heading up to missouri the next day. the roads were very icy and we saw more than 60 cars that had driven off the road between graham and wichita falls, but ross did a great job and 8hrs later eventually drove us safely to his parents house. ross' nephew, brother, and sister-in-law were also there. miles' grandma was so glad to see him again, the first time since he was more than a week old, and it was his grandpa's first time to get to meet him. right away he got to work opening more presents. already he seemed better at it. he started ripping at the paper right away and found a musical train and a set of shape blocks with a bucket which is turning out to be his favorite toy. miles had a great time receiving lots of love and playing with his new toys...he even got to play the piano! his uncle mike took lots of pictures of him that turned out so cute! one evening miles hung out with his grandma while ross and i went to see a movie and did some shopping at the mall...it was quite the treat for me, only the 2nd time we've gone out to the movies since miles was born. we also watched the a&m bowl game and some movies at the house. also, i read a book...a novel concept! i really enjoyed having so much help with miles. we left missouri on the 30th and made it to graham, once again spending the night there before finally heading home to austin on the 31st.

i think miles really enjoyed seeing all his family. out of nowhere, on the 19th, he decided he would smile and laugh at everyone...previously he had been very stoic when he was not at home. i was so glad that everyone got to see his personality and his beautiful smile. also, while were in missouri he started sitting up more for longer periods of time, and over the break he also began to eat cheerios he had gotten in his stocking. unfortunately he had a cold from the 23rd onward so he had a lot of difficulty sleeping, which made for a very tired ross and me. he did great riding in the car ( i think i calculated 1700+ miles), if he got bored i just rode in the back to talk to him, feed him baby food, or hand him toys/read him books. all in all, it was a great first christmas for our sweet baby boy!