Happy Birthday Shae!

This week was special because we celebrated Shae's birthday (a friend of ours complimented him that he doesn't look a day over 360 months.) But the week was made extra special because Teddy officially started crawling! Teddy seems very motivated to move and his awkward movement has quickly evolved into an actual crawl. And when he is determined to get to something, he will make a bee-line for it, over and over again. (For example, as I type this, he is repeatedly trying to push the on/off button on the computer which sits on the floor. I keep picking him up and putting him in the middle of the room, and he KEEPS crawling back under my feet trying to push the blue button. I have probably picked him up 10 times just trying to type this paragraph.) The other thing Teddy seems very interested in crawling towards and touching is our stereo. He can be in a room FULL of toys, but he wants to play with the radio. Several times this week he has crawled up to the radio, turned the volume ALL OF THE WAY up, and then turned on the radio... as if to say, "Let's party!" It's pretty funny, or it would be, except it scares him and ends in tears! (above) Teddy discovers a tape! Yes, my children will know what cassette tapes are!!!

Another cool thing Teddy has discovered is how to pull himself up to stand, all by himself. Several times he has crawled over to the fire place and pulled himself up all on his own: (above) What a big boy!

We were very excited to celebrate Shae's birthday this weekend. Shae was not only happy about his birthday, but also about the first Hawkeye game on Saturday.

Of course, listening to a football game is hard work.... Most of all though, we were excited that Grandpa Steve, Aunt Sammie, and Oliver came to visit for the weekend and help us celebrate Shae's 396th month!

Teddy got to show off his new teeth to his grandpa and aunt:

On Sunday we had a fun day swimming at the pool.

Ooops, we forgot Teddy's hat; we had to use his dads!

Teddy shared a beach towel with his friend Phoebe (above), while his dad embarrassed him (below): We went to dinner at Provino's:
(above) Shae, Sammie, and Steve
(above) Teddy with Shae (and his rabbit ears)

(above) Shae and Maggie

Teddy and Violet sitting at the table

Teddy and Daddy

Teddy with Aunt Sammie and Grandpa Steve Shae sharing his birthday dessert. (Somebody does NOT look happy on the right side... think he was jealous he didn't get some ice cream??)

*

After dinner we came back to our house for cake and presents. Below Shae poses with his birthday cakes.... yes, I did write cakes... (thank you mom for teaching me to always have twice as much food as you actually need!)
Happy Birthday to Shae!

(above) Uncle Hal holds Teddy as his Daddy blows out the candles.

Present time! While Shae opened presents, Teddy shared his toys with Cousin Violet. We had a great day celebrating Shae's birthday. The evening ended with a surprise. The high school down the street had a fire works show to celebrate the end of summer, and we were able to enjoy them from our back deck. Well, most of them. Some were not high enough to go over the trees. If you are wondering if the loud booming of fireworks scared Teddy, check out the picture below:

Nothing like some fireworks to put a baby to sleep! And speaking of sleeping... Teddy is not the only one around here who likes to cover his face when he is sleeping. Apparently it runs in the family:

Who is that lump under those sheets????

Oliver!

Teddy LOVES his Aunt Sammie!

What's cuter than Teddy in a pocket T-shirt????

Teddy and his Daddy in matching pocket T-shirts!

Here's to many many more happy birthdays with Shae- the BEST daddy Teddy could ever have!

Shae is 396 months old!

Though he is older, Shae was also a difficult model for his monthly picture: Teddy shares his chair with his Dad:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHAE!
We were really excited to celebrate Shae's birthday with Grandpa Steve, Aunt Sammie, and Oliver!!! More pictures from the visit will be posted soon!

Teddy is EIGHT months old!!!

Not only did Teddy turn EIGHT months old on Sat., but I also got the day off! Yes, you read that right. On Sat. Shae declared it "Mommy day off" at our house. He changed all the diapers and took over all of the "Teddy duties" so I actually had an entire day off. Shae made my breakfast and lunch, and we went out to eat for dinner. We also went to two farmer's markets and to the pool. I felt so light not pushing a stroller or carrying a diaper bag! It was really fun and I know I am very lucky to have such a great husband!

But back to the blog, since this is Teddy's blog... These pictures are getting harder and harder to take. Teddy will easily smile, but he does NOT want to sit still! You can tell by these "out-takes":

Luckily Shae caught Teddy before he tumbled off of the rocking chair!

We may have to move these pictures to the floor!

"Yummy bear!"

Now that Teddy is getting bigger, and he has six (working on seven and eight) teeth, he is ready to start brushing them. OK, not really... but we are getting there:

He'd actually rather hit Shae on the belly with his toothbrush!

Teddy is definitely getting more mobile. Although he is not technically crawling, he is scooting and rolling all over the place. The other morning he was so proud as he slid all over the kitchen floor:

Another exciting thing happening as Teddy gets older is the return of his hair!!! When he was first born, he had a whole head of dark brown hair. We used to spike it all up when it was wet to style it, but as his hair got thinner and thinner the hair-do disappeared. Guess what has returned:

OK, so maybe now it's more like one little spot that sticks up, rather than spiked hair... but it's a start, and he seems to like it:

Teddy is growing so much he has outgrown his infant car seat!!!! Although he is getting so big, he suddenly looks small again in his new car seat:

Although he is growing every day (or maybe because he is growing every day) Teddy still takes several naps a day. And he still loves to cover his face when he sleeps. And he will nap pretty much anywhere he becomes tired. Here is what he did all by himself when he was getting tired while playing on his owl blanket:

Good thing he has his favorite napping buddy: