Christmas

Well since it is almost 2011, I figured I better go ahead and post Christmas pictures!  I decided to do a slideshow because of course we took tons and tons of pictures!

This Christmas was one of the best ever!  Just experiencing River's first Christmas with him was one of the greatest joys ever.  He loved every second of it and seeing the look on his face on Christmas morning was priceless.  I'm sure Christmas in the years to come will be even better!

And just in case you were wondering, River plays with every single one of his new toys! I have never before seen a baby that loves to play as much as he does!

Polar Express

Checking out the Polar Express that Daddy got him for an early Christmas present...notice the tight grip he has around his mommy's neck, he wasn't too sure about it at first!

Now warming up to and actually liking it!

But I'm not to sure who he is giving the side-eye in this picture!

8...8.5 months!

This picture completely sums up River and his personality! He is always so happy and smiles all the time and it still melts my heart every single time!

I realize this is more than a little late but between the holidays and a double ear infection for River :( , it took a little while to get a decent picture!

As you can see, River is feeling a lot better because this is how he spent the majority of the photo shoot!

What River is up to this month:

- Weighs 21.5 lbs

- Still has 3 teeth but 2 on top should be peeking through any day now.

- Officially crawling all over the place!

- Laughing at everything and it is the most precious laugh EVER!

- Loving his walker still and basically running everywhere in it

- He can't get enough of playing with his toys...he absolutely loves them!

8th Month in Pictures...

The Official Santa Picture!

Finally here is Santa, Take 2 that I promised last week!  You would think that since I am on a break with school that I would have more time to blog but apparently I have been keeping myself pretty busy! 

Looking at the Christmas trees and pretty presents was a very good way to pass the time while waiting to see the Jolly Ole' Man!

So was standing up in the stroller and checking everyone out...

Finally! It's almost my turn...

Hey guys, you can go ahead and shop without me, I think I will just hang out with Santa for a while!

And just because I couldn't resist...I think this is the most hilarious picture ever!

Santa...Take One!

I'm pretty sure River was quite smitten by Mrs. Clause...just look at that smile!

I think Santa finally caught his eye...

Taking it all in...

Although it looks like he isn't too happy...he is just trying to open the candy cane that Mrs. Clause gave him!

This was just a little test run...I will post the official Santa pictures later on this week! He loved him and I'm so glad he didn't take after me b/c every picture we have of me with Santa I am crying!

Big Boy

River has become some such a big boy in the last few weeks!  Just look at all of his new tricks...

As you can see, 2 out of 3 deal with him becoming mobile!  I guess we better prepare ourselves now...not to mention the house aka BABY PROOF!

7 months...

Better late than never right :)

What River is up to this month!

- Weighs about 21 lbs.

- Has 3 teeth and working on more we think or at least we hope! Teething and River are not getting along too well right now!

- Becoming very mobile. Not crawling yet but knows how to get to something he wants.

- His favorite thing to do is stand up. We have a feeling he might walk before he ever crawls!

- Starting to pull up on things aka his crib and other things!

- Loves his swing that daddy got him!

- Also enjoys his walker and going into his daddy's room with all of the aniamals (deer, duck, etc...)

- Loves to get peoples attention and really knows how. He is such a charmer!

7th month in pictures!

Still Here!

Just wanted to let you guys know that we are still alive around here! Here are a few pictures from the last couple of weeks. And no I haven't forgotten about River's 7 month post!  He has been a little under the weather the last couple of days so he hasn't been in the mood to have his picture taken! I'll post as soon as I can get some good pictures of him!

Pumpkin Patch

River got to experience the pumpkin patch for the first time this past weekend!  I think he enjoyed it but there isn't really much at a 6 month old can do at the pumpkin patch!  However he did love being outside and taking everything in!

I think we got some pretty good pictures but without fail, River would not smile for any of them.  I promise he will smile at everyone but us when we are trying to take his picture!  I guess he is already tired of having his picture taken :)

You Choose!

We need help deciding which outfit River should actually wear for Halloween!

 

This one is probably my fave because he looks so darn precious in it!

But both of these are running in close second but I'm not sure how well River likes the hoods on his head!

So let me know what you guys think? Cow, Chicken, or Tiger?!?!?

Learning to Let Go!

Turns out that this precious nephew of mine is teaching me more than I ever thought possible!  See one thing you may or may not know about me is that I am a complete control freak and a touch of the OCD side.  I wouldn't say that these are always bad qualities but I am learning how to control these a little better now and I have River to thank for this!

One of the main things that I have learned how to do is to just let things go!  I realized one day not to long ago when I was keeping River that the little things don't really matter so much anymore.  Sure the house needs to be cleaned, bottles made, diapers stuffed, laundry folded, etc, but wouldn't I much rather spend that time with River instead.  You betcha!  See this is hard for me because like I said, I am a little OCD ! But in the grand scheme of things, what does it matter that the house is dirty or clothes are still sitting in the laundry basket for a little while longer if it means that I get to spend time with the little guy and watch him grow into a little man! Now the only time these things will be getting done is when River is sleeping because the most important thing now is spending quality time with him!

Also something else that I have learned is how to say no and most of the time this means saying no to myself.  For some reason I always decide to put too much on my plate and volunteer myself to do stuff when I really don't have the time.  I don't have much free time right now but when I do it always seems like I am doing stuff that is completely unneccessary and mostly it is my fault.  I feel like if I am sitting idol with nothing to do that I just have to find something to keep me busy and that something then turns into to 20 different things.  I am still working on this one and trying to remember that it is ok to take time to do stuff for myself every once in a while, even if that is just laying on the couch and catching up on tv shows while doing absolutely nothing else!

And last but not least, I am learning patience and how to let go of my inner control freak (well maybe only a little but still working on it).  I used to be a planner and have everything planned out but with River that is just a little hard to do.  We work around his schedule now and that is completely fine by me.  I needed to learn to go with the flow and that plans change and that is ok.  It's still pretty easy to plan outings and such since River is on a pretty set schedule but sometimes that schedule changes and so do our plans! 

So thank you River for teaching me all of these things even though you may not know it :) 

Many Faces of River!

This little guy and his various facial expressions just crack me up!  He is always making some kind of face and they are all so funny.  Lately, he has really started to show interest in his toys and playing, which he likes to do all the time. He is sitting up very well on his own now and is ready to be mobile but just quite hasn't gotten the hang of it yet.  I don't think it will be long though! 

House Update

Yea so about my house, the one I bought back in June, you know the one that we have been working on since then, still hasn't been occupied by me and my belongings!  It's not that it isn't ready because it is completely livable now with the major projects finished, I just haven't had the time to get all of my stuff there.  I think the only way I am going to be able to do it is to move a few things daily because we can't ever find a whole weekend or even day to work on it!  That is seriously my goal for the next week! 

So for now here are a few pictures of the rooms that are completed!

This is one of my favorite parts about my house so far.  It is the entry way at the front door.  I love the mirrors and just really like the way it looks!  I definitely can't take credit for it though because it was Callie's idea!

And this room has been completely transformed and it looks totally different! You can see the original post here!

6 Months!

It is seriously hard to believe that River is already halfway to his 1st birthday!  He is at such a fun age right now and is really starting to show us his personality more each and every day. 

It is also become quite the challenge to take monthly pictures of this busy little guy.  He is always on the move and doesn't like sitting still very long.  And trying to get pants on this child is a task in and of itself hence only a t-shirt and diaper for these pictures! His facial expressions are too cute and always make me laugh.



What River is up to this month:

Weight: 19.7 lbs
Height: 27.75 inches
Head: 18.25 inches

- Has 2 teeth now.
- Eating solids, right now pears are his fave!
-Sitting up on his own for the most part.
- Mastered the art of rolling.  Let the babyproofing begin!
- Loves being outside.
- Being more vocal and really starting to voice his opinions :)
- Still sleeping through the night for the most part although lately he has been waking up about once every night (mommy and daddy are hoping it is just a phase)

Swinging Away!

I had the pleasure of keeping River all day on Saturday while his mommy and daddy went to the USC game (I also had free reign over his outfit for the day so of course he wore his Clemson t-shirt!).  So while we were out for a run, we passed by an empty park so I decided to take him in and see what he thought about the swings.

 

As you can see, he absolutely loved it.  I don't know why I would think any different since he has loved his swing since he was a wee babe! I have a feeling that it won't be long before he has a swing of his own at his house!  Since the weather is still pretty around here, we will probably be making plenty more trips to the park to swing and hopefully the next time we go I will have my camera and not have to use my cell phone! 



 p.s. please excuse the fact that River was still in his pajamas!  It was a little chilly out and when we got back I knew he was going down for his morning nap.  I promise he really did have on real clothes the rest of the day!

Around Here

Things have been pretty busy around these parts lately! But it seems that River is the busiest out of everyone lately!

He is seriously doing something new and different almost everyday!  Rolling, sitting, jumping, cutting teeth, you name and he is probably doing it.  It seems like since he turned 5 months old that everything has just taken off! I really can't believe that he will be 6 months old this week, time is just flying but he is also so much fun at the stage he is at right now (however, it is a just a tad bit tiring sometimes!)

He and Jackson are still the best of friends, although it doesn't seem like it in this picture!  The look Jackson has is hilarious, its like he is say "oh no, what is he about to do now!" It is so funny and sweet to see how they interact with each other.  River is constantly looking for Jackson and watching what he is doing. And if Jackson even hears the slightest cry from River, he goes to check on him...however, this isn't a good thing at nap time when he goes busting through River's bedroom door!

And just because I can't resist taking pictures of sleeping babies....

 

Vacation

Yea so I am just now getting around to posting the rest of the vacation pictures!  This is going to be a picture heavy post because I don't really have much time to write!  My goal for this week is to get back on track with my blog because it has been neglected for quite some time now!