So... Do you like green beans or not?

11 months

My baby is 11 months old! I'm kind of freaking out at how fast this whole motherhood thing goes.

Parker Walking!!

(with Aunt Allie, Roxy, and Grandma Fairchild)
Thanks Uncle Rick for the video

November was a HUGE month for Parker. He took his first steps on Thanksgiving Day! He had been wanting to walk for a couple of weeks and would take one step/lunge towards me, but he wasn't balanced enough. Then, on Thanksgiving, tempted by some chips and dip, he went for it. I can't give you much more information than that because Jake and I weren't even there! Can you believe that!? I have been with this kid every day of his life and the one afternoon Jake and I decide to get out alone he walks. The nerve. He will still get down and crawl for things because he's much faster at that, but he's definitely interested in walking. Last night, he turned and saw a hat laying on the other side of the room and started walking for it. He didn't get all the way there... still only four or five steps then he just plops down and crawls or loses balance.

Other than the walking there's no other huge milestones. He might be saying "dog" (he says "daaaa") but I'm not 100% sure.

Parker still LOVES Roxy... she loves the food he drops...

Parker saw horses and mules over Thanksgiving weekend...

...and he learned how to drive...

He has been a pain to change or put in the car seat and he'll throw major temper tantrums! Other than that he is a very happy baby!! He just needs to learn how to cuddle more and I will be in heaven.

October 2011

October was a very busy month.  It started with Parker turning 9 months and taking his first airplane ride.  Aunt Allie came up for a visit and we went to the pumpkin patch.  Parker had his 9 month check-up where he was very squirmy and nervous about the nurse and doctor.  We could barely lay him down to get measured.  Needless to say, he's going through his clingy phase.  Later in the month we met some old LA friends for dinner in Carmel... well, we tried to have dinner.  We spent too much time getting drinks before dinner and it got too close to Parker's bedtime.  Oops.  The following weekends were spent with Jake's parents visiting (step-mom the first weekend and then mom and step-dad the second weekend).  We love the grandparents visiting because it means date night!  Aaah...  dinner at a nice restaurant where you don't have to worry about highchairs, food falling on the floor, bibs, keeping glasses and utensils out of reach, feeding someone else in between each bite you take...glorious.  Now it's November and my baby is ten months old.  Eek!  Where has the time gone?!?  We'll be yelling "Happy New Year/Birthday" to Parker in no time. 

Parker was a cow for Halloween.  No trick-or-treating this year, but there was a potluck celebration in our neighborhood.   Parker was a huge hit with the little girls.

 He loves the new blocks grandma got him.  His latest entertainment is taking everything out of toy basket and throwing it behind him.  I clean up during his nap so we can repeat later. 

Boring summary that is probably only interesting to me and the grandparents... 

At 10 months old Parker:  

- can crawl very fast!

- pulls up on anything

- climbs up on certain furniture

- loves Roxy's bed

- goes up the stairs, but not down

- will stand alone for seconds at a time

- still loves to push his walker around the house

- takes 2 naps a day (but never for consistent amounts of time)

- goes to sleep around 7:30 and wakes up between 5 or 6 (no more night feedings! woo hoo!)

- plays chase/hide and seek (and the most adorable thing is that he initiates the game) 

- can be impossible to change 

- now screams in protest (usually about being changed, but also if you take things away or won't let him play with the window blinds)

- will eat almost anything, but he loves shredded cheese, yogurt, and breads.  his favorite is anything i am eating and he loves being fed off of my spoon or fork.  he still eats jarred baby food with whatever finger foods i give him.

- we think he understands mama, dada, ball, roxy, up, no.... but who the heck knows.  he only babbles "mama" and "baba"

his 9 month appointment (he was 9.5 months) stats:

weight:  19 pounds 3 ounces (32nd percentile)

height: 29.5 inches (82nd percentile)

head circumference: 47 cm (90th percentile)

so, he's tall and skinny with a giant head. 

The many faces of Parker...

 

We considered Charlie Brown as a potential Halloween costume because of his giant head.  Parker's head circumference is in the 90th percentile.  Doesn't sound that crazy except that his weight is close to the 30th percentile.   Only v-necks for this kid.

He also has some crazy hair days.  We couldn't get a good shot of the back, but trust of us... it's full Nick Nolte.  

 

OK, now for the cute pictures....

Just a day in the life of Parker...


Please excuse the clutter, the music, and our annoying voices... but this what our evenings usually look like.

The past few weeks have been crazy! So much has happened:

Parker got his first tooth!
We celebrated my birthday.
We celebrated Parker turning 9 months old.
Parker went on his first airplane ride to San Diego.
I vowed to never fly alone with a baby ever again.
Parker started to get his second tooth while in San Diego.

Parker can crawl and pull himself up on anything. He'll walk along the couch and can even stand on his own for a few seconds. He also has a "push-cart" toy that he can use to walk with and he'll push it all over the house. I think he'll be walking soon! We go to his 9 month appointment next week (he'll be 9.5 months) and we'll find out how big he is.

For my birthday we went to Carmel

Parker loves the sand and doesn't try to eat it... but he did try to eat a piece of bark.

He bangs on the table demanding more Cheerios!

Loves snacking on Cheerios all day.

8 months

Our little guy is eight months old. Here's a glimpse into his life:

He'll wear any hat I put on him.

He loves the swing at the park!

He loved his first trip to the aquarium and was mesmerized by all of the fish.

He is obsessed with Roxy and her toys. He'll crawl back and forth down the hallway as I throw Roxy the ball. (Great way to tire this kid out for a nap)
Finally, he has started babbling! He says ma-ma-ma and ba-ba-ba. After months of silence it is so nice to hear him talk to me.

We are loving our baby Parker! This is such a neat stage!

August

Parker loves grabbing the spoon and making a mess!

So then we take a bath... Parker James loves his bath seat.

He has already mastered the "you're so annoying, mom" look.

Now a video of Parker's latest skill...

This kid is all over the place now. Before this video he crawled the entire way out of his bedroom (to follow his mama, of course!) then crawled to the gate, pulled himself up, and then started shaking it. That's his latest trick: shaking things. He likes to be pulled up to a standing and then he grabs hold of something and gives it a good shake.

The crawling and pulling up has been so exciting to watch. It all developed so suddenly. Once Parker figured out how to get on his hands and knees it was only a day or two before he started crawling. It's still not high speed crawling, but he can get where he wants to go. And I still won't let him crawl around downstairs (on our hardwood floors) because once in a while he still loses energy or his balance.

At first all the crawling was helping tremendously with Parker's naps and sleeping. He must have been exhausted because he was taking long and regular naps and waking up only once at night. Well, now he's figured out that he can crawl to the side of the crib and pull himself up on his knees like in the video. He would do this at the start of every nap instead of going to sleep. Aye aye aye.

7 months

here's P with one of his favorite things

We're sick! Blah. Parker got his first cold this week. I guess I should be grateful he went seven months with nothing, but it's been sad to see the little guy all stuffed up. He is so squirmy and wiggly he wouldn't let me suction out his nose or wipe anything away. Nursing was difficult at first because he couldn't figure out how to breathe and eat. He already seems to be getting better but of course I came down with whatever he had. So now I'm hurting.

During all of this I decided to paint our master bedroom. Quite the project considering I can only make progress when Parker is napping. Each nap I would do a little bit more and now, five days later, I only have a small section left. Meanwhile the room is a disaster but the end product should be beautiful. I'm very happy with how it is turning out... and Jake likes it too.

Parker is now seven months old. Still no crawling or teeth, but he's just now starting to prop himself up on all fours and push forward only to face-plant on the carpet. He can army crawl/roll to get what he wants. Usually he sees a cell phone or remote control that he wants. He also has a walker that he zooms around in. He can pretty much get anywhere he wants to go in it... baby gates are the priority this weekend! Also on the agenda is lowering the crib mattress. He has been very eager to pull himself up on things. At this time he still needs help to fully lift himself up, but I'm sure he'll figure it out soon. He's also infatuated with Roxy now.

All over the place...

Our little Parker has been all over the place. Well, as much as he can without crawling (he'll be crawling any day now). He is able to turn on his belly and roll around until he gets to the object he wants. Changing him on his changing table has become more difficult (see pictures below) and he always seems to be in the nooks and crannies of his crib. After one nap I came in and found his leg wrapped up in the bumper of the crib. What a wiggle-worm! One night I awoke to him kicking the side of his crib repeatedly and turning on and off a musical nightlight with his foot. He is always kicking his legs and he constantly opens and closes his hands (like rapidly making a fist). Lately, he enjoys standing up (with our support) while he plays with a little piano and activity center. He is definitely an active little boy - I can only imagine what he'll be like when he starts crawling and (gasp) walking!!



He's also been eating like a champ. He's been eating solids now for a few weeks. He's had pears, peaches, peas, green beans, squash, carrots, and mango. His favorite so far has been pears. As you can see below he doesn't want to waste a drop!

San Diego

We've been in San Diego now for a few weeks and it has been great! I got here two weeks ago with Parker and saw two of my friends from college, Devon and Jessica. Devon is moving to Minneapolis for a new job and Jessica is teaching English in China for a month so I'm so glad I got to see them before they left! I also made a trip up to LA for a farewell dinner for Devon while Parker stayed with Aunt Allie for a couple of hours.

Me and friends in LA. It felt so weird going out for a few hours without Parker. I had to leave by 7:45 to get home to my baby.... oh, how life has changed.

I also got to see an old roommate from college, Shane, and introduce her to Parker. I loved walking around Balboa Island and I was reminded of how much I loved living by the water.

Shane, Parker, and I on Balboa Island

Last week my friend Kelly flew into town with her son Beau. Parker and Beau are only four weeks apart and we couldn't wait to introduce these future best friends! (I realized now I didn't take any pictures with Kelly and our babies... so sad!) Our friend Rachel and her daughter Lucy joined us for a couple "play dates" as well as Karyn and her two year old, Julian. We shopped and ate... pretty much what we did in high school only we had babies with us.

Beau and Parker tuckered out from a long day of shopping

Parker, Lucy, and Beau lounging

Beau and Parker rolling around --- I didn't realize what a giant head Parker has!

By the time Kelly was ready to fly home it was time to pick Jake up at the airport. I was counting down the hours until pick up time when suddenly he called to say Southwest was cancelling his flight. Such chaos! He would hang up suddenly and call me back with updates. On one call he blurted out, "Can you pick me up in Orange County?... OK... I'm boarding. Bye." It was intense. I jumped in the car with P-man and arrived at the OC airport the moment Jake was walking out onto the sidewalk. Perfect timing.

Now Jake has been here in San Diego with us and we've been enjoying some rest and relaxation. Parker has been in the pool a few times and slept (and woken up) at some of my favorite local eateries. Just today we went to La Jolla to walk around and take pictures where we had our wedding reception almost two years ago.

Out in La Jolla

We also celebrated my dad's birthday while here. Here is Grandpa with Parker in their matching 4th of July shirts:

Parker has been 6 months for a few days now, but we haven't been to our doctor yet. Weight and height updates will be coming soon. As for milestones, he's been rolling all over the place and he is definitely getting frustrated that he can't get to things he wants. On his belly, he is starting to pull his knees up and scoot forward a little, so I guess he's on his way to crawling soon. We shall see. No teeth yet. And napping/sleeping is inconsistent still. But he LOVES to smile and we smile back so much our cheeks hurt.