Hello again..... I (again) apologize for falling off the face of the earth for a while. Just been a few stressful weeks.... I've got a lot of pictures to post to make up for my absence. Dad is doing much better - every day he's a little stronger. I got to go visit him a couple of weeks ago and Lawson was such a good dose of medicine for Dad. The little guy really cheered him up. We spent a week in Dallas just hanging out and enjoying each other's company. The weather was nice so we took a lot of walks in the neighborhood so Dad could get some exercise. Lawson's getting to be such a cool, relaxed little dude. He spends most of our walks with either one or both feet up. This is the life....

Here are some fun pics I was going to post a while back from early April when my mom was here visiting.

Gig 'Em Aggies:

Grandma taught Lawson a great new trick. She's probably going to buy him a drum set when he's 13..... oiy....

Hi everyone! Sorry for being MIA but most of you know why. Dad is still in the ICU after his quadruple bypass surgery, but I believe they're going to move him into a regular room later today. He'll still be in the hospital for the rest of the week.

As you can imagine, life's been a little stressful here lately. Dad's sudden surgery in addition to Brad being out of town and his mother just moving to town made for an interesting cocktail of crises. Brad's home now, his mom is getting settled in, and Dad is recovering, so life is returning to somewhat normal.

I have some pictures and vignettes of Lawson's latest antics - I'll try to get them posted later. I just wanted to check in for now.

Lawson had a big day today. We did 2 new things. First, he got to sit in the cart at Wal-Mart like a big boy. Ever since he's been sitting up so well and trying to get mobile, he's getting antsy in his infant seat in the cart. So, today I busted out my cart cover and strapped him in. He loved it! He could see everything so well and he loved the feeling of kicking his legs as they dangled. He smiled at everyone we passed and started laughing at the checkout girl as she talked to him. I guess he was ready.

The next big thing was for him to try drinking from a sippy cup. He's been going after my drink glasses with a vengence here lately and so I figured he was ready for his own cup. I put a little water in one and set him loose. It's a work in progress.... He had a rough start trying to decide what part to put in his mouth and once he got that, he still couldn't get the head tilt down to bring the water to his mouth. After lying down with it, he finally got some water. He liked it a lot, but this will take some time to learn.

The following pictures will help illustrate how to feed your child in such a way as to require a garden hose to clean up after him:

Step 1: Be sure to feed your child bright orange carrots on a night when he's especially tired. He will then proceed to soothe himself by sucking his thumb, regardless of the presence of said carrots.....

Step 2: Be sure to turn your back for a moment, so you have no way to prevent your child from rubbing his very tired eyes with the same fingers he just had in his carrot-filled mouth...

Step 3: Be sure to repeat steps 1 and 2 over and over again until your child is thoroughly coated in pureed carrots. Then, after the carrots have been completely ground into your child's face, rendering his skin a delightfully glowing orange slightly reminiscent of an Oompa Loompa, give up all hope of cleanliness and allow your child to fulfill his weeks-long dream of grabbing his spoon and feeding himself pureed peas.

Step 4: Laugh as hard as you can and prepare the garden hose, as you will need it to remove peas from the back of your child's head and carrots from his eyebrows.

My carefree Mommy days are coming to an end.... Lawson has been getting up on all fours this week. Every day he stays up just a little longer. It's still a very short time that he's up on his knees, but it's a big step. He'll be crawling before too long. He can already roll across the floor to get to what he wants. It's a slow process for him, but he does usually get where he wants to. I'm proud of my athletic little guy, but boy I was hoping he'd wait a little longer for mobility....

Hi! Just a quick check in with Lawson's stats after his 6 month appointment today:

Weight = 17 lbs., 4 oz - 50th percentile
Height = 27 in - 75th percentile
Head circumference = 17 3/4 in - 80th percentile

That head of his is why he looks so much bigger in his pictures than he really is. He got 4 shots, an oral vaccine and a finger prick to have blood drawn to check his hemoglobin levels (which are normal). He cried for all his pokes, but not for long. He's a brave little dude.

Here's a little picture, just because....

I've mentioned before just how much Lawson loves food. We haven't really given him any table food yet, but I'll occasionally let him taste something. Well, yesterday, he watched me eat some Flat Earth chips (my favorite!) for lunch with such intensity, I let him taste one. I didn't want him to actually eat it, so I just put it on his tongue and let him lick it a bit. He loved it! They were the garlic and herb ones and so they had a pretty pungent smell. He wanted more chips, but I wouldn't let him have them. So, he attacked my face because my breath smelled like them. It was so funny! It was like he was trying to eat my mouth. It was a little gross, but absolutely hilarious. Silly boy!

While adding all these pictures here lately, I came across a video I forgot I had. It's of Lawson playing with his friend, Jack, a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy!

Klepto Lawson.

We couldn't decide on just one Easter outfit for Lawson, so he had two (and by "we", I mean "me"). The first one was for church and for perusing his basket. It just so happened to be filled with Cadbury creme eggs - Mommy's favorite! Hmm.... He had lots of fun playing with all the goodies.

This outfit was just for fun. If you click on the picture to make it bigger, you can see his two bottom teeth coming in.

Happy Easter, everyone!

We took some more Lawson pictures this morning. Here's our little man playing with one of his favorite toys...our remote. Such a boy!

We tried peaches this morning. We don't like peaches.... To be fair to the little guy, they smelled awful! I love peaches, but I'm not sure I would have eaten these. Yuck! We'll try them again, but I'm not going to force him. Poor kid!

Lawson is 6 months old today! We can't believe he's been in our lives for half a year already. I decided it was a good day to take some "just because" pictures. Here he is, looking like a little jock in his jersey with football in hand. Also note the wildman hair - he woke up today with really bad bedhead!

Lawson wanted to "help" take pictures, which of course means he tried to grab the camera as I tried to snap a pic. Hence, this next one... At least you can see just how blue his eyes are.

And I just couldn't resist this one. Just a random shot of my goofy kid.

My little man loves to eat! He got a little overzealous this week when he thought I wasn't feeding him fast enough..... He literally took the bowl out of my hands and went in for the kill.

Big news!!! Lawson cut his very first tooth today! Maybe that's why he was so fussy yesterday.... I noticed it this morning - just a little white thing barely above the gums. When I ran my finger over it I could feel the sharp edges - ouch! Lawson spent a good part of the day chewing on teething rings. Other than that, he's been in good spirits. I can't believe my baby has a tooth... I was hoping he'd wait a while before growing teeth since I'm nursing, but now that one has come through I'm so excited!!!

Lawson has a new trick.... and it's not a fun one. He's found the upper ranges of his voice and he practices his screeching technique at every opportunity. Ugh..... He loves the sound of it, so he just keeps doing it. There's nothing I can do except wait for the phase to pass.

Well, today was my first major grocery run since Lawson learned that trick and he did it up and down every aisle! At least it made me shop very quickly! The screeches of joy turned into fussy screeches, which is unusual - my little boy loves to shop! By the time I got to the checkout line, he was full-on pissy and I was ready to leave. I was putting my food on that conveyor belt thing, when Lawson distracted me causing me to drop a glass jar of applesauce on the floor. It went everywhere! Fortunately, someone came and cleaned it up quickly, but Lawson finally snapped. We're talking red-faced, tonsil-showing screaming! People were really nice and sympathetic, fortunately. I mean, he's a baby not a misbehaving kid. (I'm sure he'll be that from time to time, but not yet.) He finally calmed down on the ride home. I actually think he got overheated in his infant seat - I think he's ready for me to just put him in the cart. I have one of those covers and it'll buckle him in so I think that's what we need to do. Needless to say, I was happy to get us home and settled.

On Sunday, 2 March, my cousin Brian and his wife Michelle welcomed their first baby into the world. Brian is attending the army school where Brad teaches, so they live here in town very near us. I've had so much fun with Michelle in the final months of her pregnancy and so it was very special when I got to meet Adam Brian on Monday. He's positively adorable and weighs about 8 pounds - he was so tiny! It was hard to imagine Lawson was even smaller than that once! He looked so huge comparatively.


Baby Adam slept for most of the visit, but we did manage to snap a picture of the cousins in a brief moment of awakeness. Are they second cousins? Brian and I aren't sure.... Lawson was so funny - he was completely fascinated by Adam. He reached out and grabbed hold of his hand and wouldn't let go! Brian and Michelle are here for another 3 months, so the boys will see each other a few more times.

Part 6:
Lawson learned a couple of new tricks in Texas. First, he's figuring out how to get his binky in his mouth without help. Well, sort of.... sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't:

Second, Lawson started eating veggies. He loves his rice cereal, but now he's moving on to tastier things. His first veggie was green beans. It was tough sell at first, but after a few days he was more willing. He's also had peas and carrots, both of which he loves. We try squash tomorrow!

Third, Lawson is sitting up on his own! He's pretty steady, but he still falls over every now and then. He loves the new perspective on the room from an upright position. These pics were taken at my friend, Katie's, house here in Kansas.

Whew! Now I'm caught up!

Part 5:

For my mom's b-day, I took her and Lawson to JCPenny to get some portraits done. They turned out much better than the Christmas ones (where the lady didn't notice the battery was dead until the end of the shoot) and so we bought a bunch. They let you access them online to share now, so here are some of our favorites. These are not bad for inexpensive JCPennys....I'm saving my pennies so my amazingly talented friend, Susan, can take some really awesome ones of my little man!

Part 4:
Lawson found his feet! He loves playing with them and tasting them as often as he can. Bathtime in the Texas tub allowed him greater access to said feet. I need to buy that tub to have here - he liked it so much better than the one we have.

Part 3:

Lawson had such a wonderful time visiting with Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Mary Beth. He basks in the glow of the spotlight and is fiercely aware of how much he is loved. Doesn't he look like my dad?

He's getting to be such a big boy!

Part 2:
We took Lawson outside in my parents' backyard to enjoy the spring-like temperatures. Lawson is a Kansas winter baby, so we've not spent a lot of time outside and he's never put his feet in the grass before. He was already a little cranky when we went outside and so he did not have a good time! I'm putting up these pics though because he's so stinkin' cute when he's mad! He's got the greatest little pouty lower lip thing going on when he's upset. You'll probably need to click on the picture to enlarge it in order to see his face.

*Disclaimer* Obviously, I don't take pleasure in my child's distress, but as long as he's not in genuine pain and is just being a little fussy, I find his face hilarious!


He did calm down when we gave him a dandelion to play with. He was fascinated by it. This is not the most flattering picture of Lawson, but it shows his "tongue-thinking" that he does. Whenever he's really concentrating hard on something, he sticks out his tongue like this. What a goofball.... Oh, and 3 seconds after we took this picture, he shoved the flower into his left eye! There was yellow pollen all over his eye and face! Grandma washed out his eye and saved the day.

Okay, I'm back! Lawson and I had a wonderful two weeks in Texas visiting lots of friends and spending time with family. I'm going to do this in installments since I have oh so many pictures.

We arrived in Dallas on Thursday and left for College Station Friday morning. It was very important to dress Lawson up like the baby Aggie he is to parade him around town. The next most important thing was to introduce him to the glories of Freebird's burritos. Maybe the next time we visit, he can actually eat one....

We also got to meet one of my internet buddies. Last winter, I joined a message board for mommies expecting in September. A group of about 20 of us chatted all the way through our pregnancies and continue to share info now that we all have babies. One of the girls lives in College Station and we got to meet while we were there. Lawson and Kaden loved playing together!

So.... yeah, it's been a little while. Sorry.... I'm in Texas right now visiting my folks. The days leading up to my departure were pretty action-packed and we've been so busy here. Lawson and I flew in on Thursday and we took off for College Station Friday morning. I had a wonderful time introducing him around to friends for two days. We're back in Allen now and having a great time. Too bad Brad had to work....

To continue with stories about Lawson wanting a grown up drink (like the Dr. Pepper one below)... he's been grabbing at my water glass and taking a sip like a big boy. It's cute and scary all at once. At church on Sunday, my dad took Lawson up with him to communion and when Dad grabbed the goblet of wine...so did Lawson. He got a death grip on the stem and sloshed wine on himself. Some quick intervention from the pastor kept the wine from flying all over the church!

I bought a new camera. I got a Canon Powershot and so far I love it! It seems to be taking much better pictures. I haven't actually seen them on a computer yet, though. When I get home next week, I'll upload my pics to my machine and share them with y'all.

And now for another installment of "my weirdo kid"....

So, Lawson is paying very close attention to our eating and drinking habits here lately. He's mastered the art of eating off a spoon and is intrigued by the drinking out of a glass thing that big people do. He's taken to grabbing my glass and trying to drink out of it (I obviously won't let him...), which is pretty funny. Today, he grabbed at my Dr.Pepper can and wanted a sip. I think he was drawn to the red and shiny surface. He molested this can like you wouldn't believe! Well, actually, you can see it. We took another short video with the nearest camera, which happend to be my regular camera, so there's that clicking noise again. If you listen closely, though, you can hear him "num, numming" on the can! Poor kid's face was numb when he was done!

Dr. Pepper Kiss

Happy Valentine's Day!!!!

Lawson is still having a fit when I go to work at night twice a week. Poor Brad tries his hardest to keep the little guy happy, but almost every night becomes a battle of wills. This week, both Brad and I are battling colds and so it's particularly hard for Brad to deal with a cranky baby. I came home Tuesday night to find Lawson finally asleep in his crib and Brad passed out in bed as well. However, Brad's sense of humor always shines through the tough times.....

I just wanted to provide more evidence of how much Lawson loves his food! We're still just giving him rice cereal once a day, but it's basically the highlight of his day. He makes such a mess because he loves to stick his fingers in his mouth while he's "chewing"! My mom says I used to do that, too....

Here's a link to a video I shot of mealtime. I just used my digital camera and there's a weird clicking noise in the background. Ignore the silly baby-talk.... :)

Lawson Eating Video

I got some shots of Lawson in his bouncy chair yesterday. He loves this thing! I had to enhance these pictures because they were so dark. I'm not sure why - I took the picture when there was plenty of natural light and the flash went off. I'm not liking my camera these days.... At least I managed to capture Lawson with a cute expression.

This is a big week for Lawson. He got to try out a new high chair with new food (he ate yesterday, too, and it was fun!) and he got some new toys. We put him in a bouncy chair that hangs from an open doorway - wow! He loved that! I didn't take any photos, but we got some video I'll try to post later. I put together another new toy for him - an exersaucer. Ooohh - he really loves that, too. Here are some pics of his first experience with it. Next week is going to seem boring compared to all the new adventures this week!

What a momentus occasion! Lawson had his first taste of solid food tonight. We got him set up in his new highchair and got out the baby bowls and spoons (and camera) and sat down to have him try to eat some rice cereal. It was really runny, so the transition wouldn't be too hard for him, but there were still some small lumps to give him the new experience of texture.

He didn't seem to like the taste - boy he made some strange faces! But, he seemed to like the process. He didn't thrust it back out with his tongue (babies often do), and he kept opening his mouth up in anticipation of the spoon. He's been watching me like a hawk when I eat, so I knew he was ready for food. This is a huge milestone - my baby is growing up....

It's been a busy week here - mostly dealing with family crises on Brad's side. We're hoping things settle down soon. His mom has been sick again and we're all trying to figure out what's best for both her and those of us who need to take care of her. Ugh...

But, that busyness meant that I still hadn't posted pictures from my friend, Jenny's, visit last weekend. Her baby, Ashley, was born 3 weeks before Lawson. Jenny and her hubby (also Brad) just moved to Iowa, so they're much closer than when they lived in Texas. She and her girls stopped by last weekend on their way back home to Texas to see her new nephew. It was a short visit, but we had a good time.

Unfortnately, the babies didn't cooperate well for a picture. She got in Saturday evening and Lawson was fussy. Sunday morning as they were leaving, Lawson was fine, but Ashley was fussy. When they swing back through on their way back to Iowa, we're hoping to get better pictures. For now, we have this great shot of the babies engaging in "sympathy crying" and poor Lexie's (Ashley's big sister) reaction to all the rucus.