Visiting Nana & Poppi's New House

A real suit...

Hanging out at HH Gregg...

Just my size.


My (other) totally cool hat...

This weekend we went to my parent's house...their NEW house that is. They have left the home where Jason and I grew up...to live on the land where my mother grew up. That's right, folks! My parents have fairly familiar downstairs neighbors--my grandparents. This has been in the works for some time. They've been working hard to completely renovate, remodel, and create their own (separate) home right above Grandma and Grandpa--this was the first time Bob and I had gotten to see it since they'd been there. The transformation from workshop to living space has been quite amazing.

Jack is quickly learning thAT Poppi (my dad) is all about making him laugh--and if Jack wanted to play and my dad wasn't paying attention to him, Jack would keep smacking dad's arm until he turned to look at him. I think those two might cause some trouble down the road. Nana (my mom) totally treasures the time she gets to spend with Jack--and I think they got some good snuggle time in.

We ended up staying late to watch the Colts BEAT the Steelers. Yeah!!! Jack also had a fever (101.2--a real one this time) and an icky cough which prompted me to stay home from work today. According to the doctor, though, it's 'just a virus' (thank you, that'll be $20). The doctor also suggested that I be very diligent with washing my hands so that I didn't catch whatever it was he had--that's fine, but exactly dear doctor, what do you recommend when he simply skips the transfer to my hands and just sticks HIS hands in MY mouth. Moot point anyway--I now have a stuffy nose, a sore throat, and don't feel well. Oh well...I'm sure it's 'just a virus'.

P.S. Jack turned 7 months old on Saturday. How crazy is that!?! Oh, and we still have NO teeth--but we've got every teething symptom in the book. Now, that IS crazy!

Bumming Around the House

Jack continues to amaze me every day. He is so curious and appears to have nearly boundless energy. He's a wild man and extremely goofy. Not only is he working diligently on his physical skills, but he's really figuring out how he can affect those around him. He sat with me on the floor today and he'd smile and then yell (happily) until I laughed--then he'd laugh really hard, and do it all over again. There's no doubt in my mind that he's going to be one rotten little boy--and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Below are some pictures of him playing with toys, exercising his new found skills, and some of the odd places he finds himself:

Jack likes to pull the binky out of Elmo's mouth!

This only lasted a couple days...

...then he moved on to this (I have no idea why he keeps doing this or where its going to get him)

He kept moving backwards until he found himself under the shelves in the entry way.

Goofing off on the floor of his room (in cool diaper covers I might add)

Move to the Big Boy Tub

Tonight Jack had his first bath in (almost) the real bath tub. He was totally outgrowing the baby tub and was kicking way too much water onto our kitchen counter. So we made the switch, and I don't think he could be any happier. He loves his new squirt toys (from his Aunt Ellen). And for the time being, he can splash and kick to his little heart's content.

First Trip to Granny's

Bob, Jack, and I made our first trip to Bob's mom and stepdad's this weekend. We hadn't seen our nephew Jason since July--and oh my, has he gotten big--he's definitely got Jack beat in that department (and the hair department as well). This was the first meeting that they actually took notice of one another. They spent a couple hours playing together on the floor. The only skirmish we had was Jack pulling Jason's hair (shocking, I know) and Jason choking Jack by pulling on his bib. Neither was any worse for the wear. Here are the pictures:

Relaxing with Granny

Wrestling match

Rolling around on the floor

First hands-on meeting with Jason

Figuring It Out

Jack has been a busy little guy the last few days while he tries to master some new skills and hone some other ones. I'm way tired from working the last couple of days, so I'll just leave you with some pictures and a couple videos (they're a few minutes long).

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Realizing that maybe he can sit still for a few minutes.

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I come home from work. Jack's in bed. I go to check on him. This is the bottom of the bed (the bed that's on an incline due to his pukey nature).

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Video of Jack

(there was another video but for whatever reason Blogger messed it up--I'll repost it tomorrow)

Hanging out...

Getting ready to go out for lunch. That teething ring takes 'cool' to a whole new level.

And here we are at one of our favorite lunch spots--Panera--with Lindsey.

Even Jack thinks its funny to leave a shirt stuck on his head. Goofball.

Proof that absolutely anything that CAN go in his mouth...WILL.

Jumping around on mommy--minus the jumperoo. Its a workout.

In the beginning, there were messes because he hadn't quite figured it out--the whole eating thing that is. Now...well, he's figured it out. Its a game to see if he can flip the spoon before it gets to his mouth, and then, he'll smack his hands all over the highchair and intentionally make a mess. Can you say rotten....really, rotten?

The many faces of Jack...

We've had a fairly busy weekend with different events and outings going on. So this afternoon, we devoted some time to just lounging around the house and playing with Jack.

Jack really reminds me of someone in the above picture, but I haven't quite figured out who. He kept pulling my glasses off my face, so...he got to try them on. Personally, I think he's still cute.

Below, is Jack sitting. This is a RARE occurrence. Not because Jack CAN'T sit...but because he really just doesn't want to.

In the picture to the right....this isn't exactly where I put Jack to start. He was originally laying near me on the floor next to the couch. After deciding he could scoot to get places on Friday, he figured out that maybe rolling was a little bit more fun (and faster) tonight. As for the hat and mittens, well, he got a little chilly during his bath because he literally splashed over half the water out, and then his little hands and cheeks were chilly, so I improvised (its not like he'd sit still to cover up with a blanket).

Over the last couple days (which also prompted an easy day at home)...Jack has become a little sensitive. He doesn't like to be laughed at. He certainly doesn't like to hear raised voices. And sometimes, he's just downright not happy. We're not sure if its just been a little too much activity and he's tired....or if like everything else, you could just blame the extra crankiness on teething.....but literally 20seconds after the above picture was taken, we took the one below. I don't think even HE knows how to feel these days.


I took the bumpers out of Jack's (rarely-used) crib today since he was just using them to pull himself places in hopes that maybe he would take a nap in here. Mmmm...not so much. It looks like he's found other ways to entertain himself like eating the bars and getting his arms and legs stuck.

Please occasionally leave us a comment if you're reading the blog--just so we know that someone actually is. :)

A day trip...

Jack and I spent the day at the Covered Bridge Festival. Thankfully, Staci, Lindsey (who I managed to not get a picture of), and Ashley helped take turns with Jack and the stroller (I say thankfully, because at times, he definitely qualified as rotten). It was gorgeous fall weather. And we filled ourselves with good food (that's pretty much the main reason for going, lets be honest here). Found a couple cute items. Got some great exercise in pushing a loaded stroller up and down a few hills. And headed home just in time to hit all the traffic.

Once we got home, Jack was pretty anxious to get out and get active. So...onto the floor he went (he was SO tired all day, and suddenly was JUST fine). Once on the floor, he immediately figured out a new trick.

Check the video out to see what Jack learned.

31-3

Yeah for the first Colts' win at the new stadium. Finally!

The hunt for a blanket in October

Today, we spent a large part of the day out of the house...on an insane hunt for the perfect blanket for Jack (don't ask). Eight hours later, we returned home, blanket-less with one tired baby. He essentially only took one nap (pictured above). He's sockless, not because we took him out that way, but because when we thought he was sleeping, he was really in the stroller, eating the sock after having pulled it off his foot with his teeth, er, gums.


Once we returned from this long day we promptly put the overly-tired Jack to bed after a quick change into pajamas and a bottle. For a baby who spent most of the evening a little grumpy since he was SO tired, we were rather surprised to find this scene an hour after we'd put him to bed..........

Apparently, he was just happy to be home and unrestrained....working on crawling, laughing, and saying ay-ay-ay-ay, ba-ba-ba, and (sadly for mommy) da-da-da-da-da. I am happy to report, though, that Jack is blissfully off in la-la land (for now).

Uh oh...

In just the last 2 days....Jack has suddenly discovered that he can push up and he can get his knees under him. And he likes to get up on his knees and elbows and rock back and forth. I'm fairly certain that this will be leading us to crawling. Jack being mobile is a little scary.

He went to the pediatrician today for his 6 month checkup. He got an A+ in the health department. Plus, a few remarks about him being "all boy", "a wild man", and "having gross motor control that was out of this world" -- all things to make a mom proud. Jack tends to enjoy putting on a show at the doctor's office so he was all smiles, 'talking' up a storm, and crazy active as usual. The doctor couldn't believe with as busy as he is that he had even gained weight. Nonetheless, Jack is up to 17lbs 20z and 27 inches long. All things considered, Jack was extremely happy and cheery for everyone, well, until he got his shots. His dramatic reaction led us BOTH to tears (I felt SO bad for him). After he was calmed down, he was back to his cheery, smiley self--except for (I know this sounds crazy) the poor girl who had wielded the weapons that wounded him--nothing but a blank stare. Ah well...he easily forgot after a nap and a tylenol/motrin combo.

Wild man Jack....

Half a year has come and gone...

I simply cannot believe how fast the past 6 months have gone by. I know everyone tells new parents that it will just fly by...but I guess you truly don't believe it until you experience it for yourself. And while its gone by so quickly....its hard to imagine when he wasn't with us. Its incredibly amazing, and I'll admit a little sad as well, but I absolutely LOVE watching Jack grow up.

Please bear with me....the following is an ungodly long update on Jack's current state of affairs (for the family--i.e. grandmas--who like that sort of thing).

He is so curious....and so 'hands on.' Sometimes when he sees something new or something he wants (which is pretty much EVERYTHING he sees)....he gets this excited look on his face, reaches his little arms out as far as they can go, and starts kicking his legs around. He is SO determined to explore every little thing (i.e. by, of course, putting it directly in his mouth). These days its hard to keep him from rolling onto his belly (which has definitely made diapering, dressing, etc rather difficult) ... especially since once there he can kind of scoot small distances and turn himself in circles. Still a little bit away from crawling, but once he figures out how to put his knees under him, we might be in trouble. Occasionally, he will sit up ALL by himself, but really he has no desire to sit....he'd rather stand or jump, but most of all his attempts at sitting often fail because he just can't sit STILL.

He has recently discovered faces (especially mouths)...but his version of exploring is to splay his fingers over your mouth and then pinch his little fist together (my efforts to thwart this behavior by demonstrating 'the nice way to touch mommy's face' haven't really been successful).

We're hoping someday soon we'll get some hard evidence that all this drooling, mouthing (and well, downright gnawing on OUR hands, his hands, his toes, his socks and basically anything else within range) isn't all for naught. But I have yet to see any real proof of teeth beneath those gums.

Other than trying to keep Jack occupied (and unoccupied at times....the boy's gotta sleep), we haven't been up to much else (we're totally that boring old, married couple). I'll try to update again with more pictures and all of Jack's information after his 6 month appointment.