I got my first hug today...

No picture to accompany this post...just a weepy mama.

Spring 2009 Pictures

I like trashing Grandma's house!

Watching Dad mow the lawn!

Mmmm...Ikea crackers!

Helping Dad load the dishwasher. I'm so helpful.

Seriously. I'm in no mood today.

I like bath time, but Mom always does this to me.

Garrett's Surgery Day

Today was Garrett's day of surgery for his blocked tear duct. He did so well! He loved standing in that crib and looking out at the city of St. Paul. He was such an easy going boy that the nurses and doctors kept asking if he had actually missed his breakfast (as you must do when having general anesthesia). I think it was more fun for him than anything else.

I think he felt like he was flying being up so high surrounded by windows. Those people at Children's Hospital knew what they were doing when they designed those rooms. Babies love them!

This is how they could tell who he was without always checking his ID bracelet!

Administering the anesthetic. The nurse couldn't believe he was being so calm. They said most babies wiggle and try to get away from it, but G just sat there and went with it. I hope this doesn't forbode a life of liking mood-altering chemicals.

Baby passed out. He was a limp little biscuit. He was out, but his eyes were open. It was the weirdest thing!

In about half and hour, we were back to mom's arms with our blankie and bottle. The marking on his face is the marking the doctor put on there (A "B" for Dr. Ballard) to make sure he probed the correct eye! Nice. That fricken purple letter is not coming off no matter what I try to clean it!

He's home now and back to semi-normal. He's a little cranky, but he's happy that we have significantly less eye wiping, I'm sure. Yay for modern medicine!

First Fat Lip

Garrett pulled one of our end tables on to himself this evening and ended up with a terrible bloody fat lip. I can just imagine what a honey he'll look like showing up at daycare tomorrow. Nice. We should be expecting a visit from CPS this week...

Easter Weekend!

This weekend, Garrett received a visit from the Easter Bunny while he was visiting Grandma and Grandpa's farm! Just look at the little snot nosed egg hunter!

He started out strong! He was grabbing all the eggs he could find!

Even eggs that were all the way down on the ground!

Then disaster struck...Garrett discovered that the Easter grass was far more fun than picking up eggs.

Besides, why go hunting for eggs when you can steal them from your cousin Ben?!

Seriously, it took forever to get this shot...

Garrett had an opportunity to interact with the locals...

Snowmobiling Weekend

Garrett kept distracting me in the car! This is what I would see whenever I looked in the backseat to check on him. Luckily, Cal was driving. However, G tried to entice him, as well!

The gruesome twosome!
G's cousin Braydon had this cool dump truck toy that they could ride two up. They were adorable, if not a little difficult to capture on film.

Week of Super Growth! Plus 9 Month Stats

Well last week was awful! Baby G was ridiculously (using your best Derek Zoolander voice) crabby and cried constantly! Well, now we know why! In just the past week, Garrett has acquired the following:

• Two front top teeth!
• The ability to crawl!
• The ability to stand up with straight legs and hands on the floor! (That was cool!)
  
• The ability to stand up and walk along using the furniture or miscellaneous parents!
• The ability to clap!
• And the ability to wave bye bye!

Well, you can hardly fault the guy for being so pissy. I'd be uncomfortable, too, in the middle of such a growth spurt. The picture for this post is the result of his new ability to crawl and he landed his butt right in the bottom of his exersaucer. Weirdo.

Oddly enough, even with all this growth, his 9 month statistics are surprising! As follows:

Height: 27.5 inches (up from 26 inches at 6 months)
Weight: 19lbs. 11oz. (up from 18lbs even at 6 months)

I really would have thought that he would have broken the 20 pound barrier at this point. Cal asked if we need to feed him better! I guess the good part is that his 6-9 month clothes still fit him well.

Fun at IKEA!

Garrett had his first trip to IKEA today! He loved it! We got to sit in their cafe to eat cheerios and drink apple juice. Here he is watching the cars go by through the big windows overlooking the Mall of America.

PS: Shopping at IKEA is great when it's the middle of the day on a weekday.

Learning Gross Motor Skills

Recently, Garrett has been learning to stand and crawl. The standing video is a little old as he stands much better now.




This video shows Garrett "crawling", but only if you define crawling as pushing himself backwards on a slippery floor. It's the best he can do, give the kid a break.



After I took this video, we went out and bought a gate for that doorway!

Visiting Grandma Mary

When we go to visit Grandma Mary, it's always an adventure...
An adventure in FASHION!

Pooped out from learning to crawl.

Flashing my new bottom row chompers!

So far, this week has been pretty fun. Garrett is almost always in a good mood, he sits up all on his own, and he can play by himself for increasing amounts of time. His new independence offers me more opportunities to get stuff done around the house during the day and spend more family time with him and Cal at night.

Happily, my little guy likes to go shopping with me, much like his dad. We have been out shopping frequently to pass the time of our days and I have a feeling that we'll be doing lots of that considering there are no job prospects on the horizon. So how should I do this? Instead of buying my whole week's worth of groceries in one shot, should I go each morning? I like that idea...sort of.

Learning to Drink and Chew!

We've been using sippy cups for a while now, but we tried to drink juice from a regular cup this week. It wasn't a rousing success, but he wasn't opposed to it either.

Recently, Garrett has been starting down the road of solid foods. Like, real solids, not the pureed stuff. Here is a video clip of him learning how to chew his food.

And here is Garrett learning to type:


vurtttttttttttc jkuyt87,u ofyn,m ..nh,,ik-=--------------------`zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
)hhgggggbnnhfdsxcdddccAA V zzzzzzzzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxzy\`w0q654

Lots of pictures and visits!

Most recently, Garrett and I took pictures on the floor. He was in a very good mood yesterday and really enjoyed watching the flash of the camera. What a sweet kid.

Another of my favorites

Our first take!

Here is Garrett learning to stand. He can pull himself up using his exersaucer and gets as far as his knees. When Mom or Dad hangs on to his hands, he can get to his feet.

"Baa, ba, ba, ba!"

Getting to know Walker...

Here is Garrett with Grandma and Grandpa's dog. They get along pretty well.

But you wouldn't know it in this picture!

Meeting Cousin Cecilia from Colorado!

Garrett liked grabbing her bare feet. He was fascinated by the way they wiggled around.

Still totally fascinated. Garrett doesn't get to meet babies all that often, especially growling ones.
"Put that thing back in its cage!"

Crabbiest Day...Ever

My child has been the crabbiest little turd ever today. Lots of crying and whining. This was one quiet moment as I had applied some of the baby orajel to his gums. No ibuprofen worked, no acetaminophen worked, and he napped a little less than one hour total today. Considering I was up all night listening to Garrett's dad snoring, today has been a lackluster return from the holiday fun.

PS: Super congrats to Aunt Chelle...the new mommy-to-be!

The Dancing Cals!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Discovery of the tongue!

Young Garrett has discovered that he has a tongue and he likes to stick it out constantly! I think he likes to nibble on his tongue with his new teeth. It's so cute as he curls his little tongue and sticks it out like a little lizard. I stick my tongue out at him, but I don't think he gets it. He just tries to grab it. So, now, I just try to grab his tongue when it's hanging out.

And We're on Tooth Number 2!

Wow! It's like the lightning round for tooth sprouting in our house! Garrett cut his second tooth the day after he he cut his first! He's been a real joy lately. : ) I have no pictures to post with this update as he is really cranky and not taking pictures well.

I hope everyone is having a happy holiday season! I'll be posting new pictures soon of Garrett and our Christmas tree!

First Tooth! and Six month stats

Garrett had his six month check up today and he is doing great! He is in the 50th percentile for height, weight, and noggin roundness. Here are his stats:

Height: 26.25 inches
Weight: 18 lbs even

He was so wiggly and squirmy in my arms through the visit that his doctor was laughing at the impending future of this child needing to run around once he becomes mobile. While I am excited at the prospect of Garrett growing, I cower in anticipation of the chasing that will ensue.

More good news: Garrett has his first tooth! I found it last night and I could just barely feel the little ridges on the sharp edge. Today, I can feel it a little easier. I'll be sure to post a picture when it's visible.

Also, Garrett got his shots again today and he was such a trooper! He cried for about three seconds, then stopped altogether and even smiled at the nurse. She was amazed that he recovered so quickly. I was proud of him and his ability to rally so effectively.

On the less-than-good-news front: Garrett's goopy eye is a combination of blocked tear duct (common) that is infected. Poor guy. So he has to be on a course of antibiotics now to clear the infection. Also, doc said that his tear duct is blocked and most likely won't unblock itself. She said to wait until 8 months, then go see the eye specialist who can tell us if his eye will need a very easy, minor surgery to unplug it.

Surgery. Harumpf!

Thanksgiving with family and friends...

Garrett was such a sweet boy through all of our Thanksgiving parties. We started out at Cal's aunt's house where we had a great time getting to know all the new relatives. He was so happy and content all day, it was hard to believe there was a baby in the house!

This is our first real picture as a family! I love this one because everyone is looking at the camera!

This is Garrett having a "digestive experience". It was even funnier in real life.

Having dinner with Grandma!

Getting to know Aunt Miriam! Garrett liked to pull her curly hair. We met up with my friend Miriam on Friday after Thanksgiving. She had the opportunity to meet the little guy she saw me poking in my belly during our last semester of classes together. She was sure to let Garrett know that she was on his side the whole time. : )

"Great to have seen you, Miriam! I hope you had a safe drive back to Texas!"

Some more pictures from around home...

Getting ready to go to Menomonie for Thanksgiving weekend!

I loves me blueberries!!