Happy 9 Months to You, Wyatt!

This little dood is growing up way. too. fast!!!  I've said it before and I'll say it again - it is a bitersweet process.  On one hand, he is MUCH easier now than he was when he was an infant and on the other hand I do miss that little tiny (well, i guess he never really qualified as tiny) infant.  He is a happy child and I really love watching his little personality blossom.

Wyatt is picking up new tricks on a daily basis now.  They are all adorable at first, but some ... like the "uh oh" game get old pretty quickly!   It is fun to see him discover the whole cause and effect concept though.  Everywhere we go, he is constantly looking and observing.  People always say that at this age they are little sponges and it is so obvious to me that that is a true statement.

There is no doubt that he is all boy!! He loves to talk as loudly as possible (who does he get that trait from???) and makes sure you hear him.  He likes to bang objects together and is constantly throwing things to the ground.   Much to his daddy's pleasure, he is very interested in sports -- if Ben is watching something on TV it will usually captivate Wyatt's attention and he really enjoyed all the action at the GT basketball game a few weeks ago.

As for W's new "accomplishments" well, the latest thing is "peek-a-boo".  I have been playing it with him for a while now and sometimes he'll smile and sometimes he doesn't really care.  We played it the other night when he was in the bath tub then when he got out he started covering his face and eyes with his towel and would lift it when i said "wheeere's wyatt?"  It was so cute.

Also, he has semi-mastered the army crawl.  I am doubtful that he will ever truly crawl.  He can get where he wants by rolling, pivoting, and army crawling so the next skill we're practicing is standing!  Speaking of, he can stand for quite a long time provided someone is there for occasional assistance and balance.

We are trying to convert Wyatt over to 100% table food (in addition to his milk, of course) and I think this will be a slow process.  Other than puffs and yogurt melts, the only table foods that he will really eat well are green beans, blueberries, and grilled cheese so we are continuing to try other things and get him used to new textures. 

We have his 9 month appointment this afternoon, so I'll have a better idea then of his weight and height, etc.  I'm pretty certain whatever the weight and height are they'll be in the 90th percentiles .... he's a BIG boy!

Weekend at Meme and Papa's House!

We started off the weekend with a trip to one of my most favorite places in the world - Mellow Mushroom.  Its so hard to go out to dinner with a baby on a Friday night but we did it and it was well worth the effort! 

The next morning, I got up and spent some morning time with Wyatt before leaving to go to a friend's wedding shower.  I had such a great time relaxing and enjoying my friends that I didn't even stop to take a picture!  Ooops. 

After the shower, I went home, got our stuff together and took Wyatt out to Meme and Papa's house for the rest of the weekend.  We had planned to do his 9 month pictures on Sunday morning - and his best time is typically mornings so its just easier to be there rather than get up and rush out the door to catch him in his best moods.  Since we were going to be there, Kimmie and Ellie decided that they would come out for the night as well so we could all visit.  We don't live all that far apart, but we really don't see Kimmie and Ellie (or Dave) all that often so this was exciting for all of us.  

It was a pretty day, so once we got to Meme and Papa's house we decided to take Wyatt out for a ride on his tricycle.  He really does love this thing - you wouldn't know that from his expression in this picture though! 

Once Ellie and Kimmie got there, the kids played for a little while and then we went to dinner.  We didn't sit the kids together initially, we only did this at the end so we could get a picture.  Once we slid their high chairs together we quickly realized that they should have sat together the whole meal because they totally entertain one another.  Wyatt is interested in EVERYTHING Ellie does and Ellie likes to copy Wyatt. 

 We got home from dinner and it was bath time.  Ellie didn't want to get in the bath (she was tired and cranky) but once we told her we would put Wyatt in with her she perked up. 

Ellie wanted Wyatt to sleep in her big girl bed but we explained to her that he can't because he doesn't know how yet.  We did let him lay there for a few pictures though ...

W is normally a great sleeper but Saturday night was an exception.  He was soooo restless all night.  I think it was the fact that he was not at his house combined with the fact that he was worried he would miss something that Ellie was doing.  Ellie is always an early riser and Wyatt was on Sunday morning since Ellie was up.  Here they are playing in Meme's kitchen before breakfast.

 We did Wyatt's 9 month pictures (I'll share later ... it isn't his 9-month birthday yet) on Sunday morning and then had a fun afternoon playing and watching the two kids entertain each other. 

This jeep is OLD!!  My dad used to push me around on it when I was a little girl.  Wyatt is too cool to smile, but you can tell he thinks he's a big boy sitting there!

We tried and tried to get both of them to look at the camera at the same time but it was tough! 

Our Day in Pictures

I've seen people do this on their blogs in the past and thought it might be a fun thing to do on my blog.  It might be interesting for me to look back in a few months and see what a 'typical' Saturday was like with an 8.5 month old. 

Wyatt typically wakes up sometime between 5:30 and 6:30 to eat.  This is our usual weekday schedule, so that is what he's used to doing.  (Fortunately, on weekends he will usually go back to sleep after this).  Today he doesn't wake until 7:30.  We're having some nursing difficulties so I attempt to nurse then end up pumping into a bottle for him.  After his bottle, he is wide awake so I change his diaper and take him downstairs for breakfast.

Today it is yogurt and I think banana, peach, granola something.  His appetite hasn't been quite what it normally is so I trick him into eating as much as I can.  Eventually I give in and put some puffs and yogurt melts on his tray.  I think this child would probably walk over hot coals for some yogurt melts.  Well, except he can't walk but you know what I mean!

Around 8:30, I sit Wyatt in the den to play with his toys and sit down to enjoy my coffee and breakfast.  My favorite part of any weekend ....

 Around 9, I finish my breakfast and decide that W needs a change of scenery.  We go to his room to play and practice crawling.  I use his wubba nub for motivation, and this time it worked!  (Army crawling)

He starts getting sleepy around 9:30 so I give him a paci and rock him for a grand total of about 2 minutes before he's out like a light.  I put him down in his crib and take the opportunity to take a long shower. 

10:15 W's awake!  Earlier than I expected, so I go in to get him and put him in the jumparoo while I finish getting dressed.  He's in a good mood so he plays for a while and I am able to fix my hair and makeup while I pump and then start some laundry. 

 10:40 ... time for a diaper change and I get him dressed.  He does not sit still for this which makes a pretty difficult task!

At 11, its time for a bottle.  Damn nursing strike is pretty tough on me ... I'm not accustomed to keeping up with all these bottles every day!  He takes his bottle pretty quickly and then we play in his room for a while.  He is so entertained by his ceiling fan. 

Them fans are purdy cool, aren't they??

At 12, its time for W's lunch.  I try my best to convince him to eat but at 12:30 I finally decide to quit fighting him and let him play while I fix and eat my own lunch.  I  use my fun V-Day wreath (that I made myself!) to practice with my camera settings while I eat lunch.  I clearly need some work on my photography skills. I realize I'm going to have to take the wreath down come Monday.  Sad Panda.

I finish lunch and we go upstairs for another change of scenery.  He plays with his piano while I try to put on a Baby Einstein DVD.  Trouble is, we have 735 remote controls and I am unable to figure out the DVD.  W is tired so I give up after about 10 minutes and try to put him down for another nap.  Once again, he went down in about 3 minutes so I put him in his crib and decide to do some chores.

I decide to tackle the pantry .... it is a mess!

30 minutes later, it looks like this!!! So nice and organized (although this picture doesn't really do it justice)

 

  Do you think we have enough drinks?

Ben gets home about 1:30.  I talk to him for a few minutes and bring him up to date on our morning.  At 1:45, I leave him with instructions for Wyatt and hop in the car to go to Trader Joe's.  Ahhhhh, love that place and I don't go nearly enough ...

I finish up at TJ's about 2:45 but since Henri's is rightnextdoor I decide to stop for a petit four.  (And a shortbread cookie too, if I'm honest)

I get back home at 3:15 and discover that Wyatt is STILL ASLEEP.  I told you he didn't finish that morning nap! 

He finally wakes up about 3:45 and I give him his bottle.  I love that he is looking at the camera in this picture!

After his bottle, I play with him for a little while and then put Ben in charge so I can lay down for a few minutes.  I'm tired!

 

After my nap, I go to discover he and Ben having crawling practice again.  I join in for a while and eventually take Wyatt to get him and myself dressed for dinner.  Ben gets dressed too and we decide to go to Valentine's dinner at Muss n' Turners (one of my favorites, one of Ben's not so faves but he agrees to go there anyway). 

We head out about 6:30.  We pause for a quick family photo first!  I can't believe how good it actually turned out -- it could use a little cropping but we are both happy with it!

I feed Wyatt quickly while we're having our appetizer and waiting for dinner. I've found that this is the best way to keep him entertained during an hour or hour and a half meal ... feed him while you're waiting and then we tend to not have a meltdown once our food arrives.  

At about 7:45 he is just tired, over it, and wants to lay his little head on my shoulder and close his eyes.  I am happy to oblige him.  He's been good at dinner but its time for him to go home. 

We get home about 8, get his PJ's on, give him a bottle and put him to bed for the night.  Ben and I eat our dessert that we brought home from the restaurant (didn't have time to eat dessert there) and watch TV until we fall asleep on the couch.  I love lazy Saturdays when we can do this!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Filmstrip Red Valentine's Day Card

Create personalized greeting cards and invitations by Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

First Basketball Game

We took Wyatt to his first Georgia Tech basketball game this past weekend.  Ben tries to make it to most of the home games (why he is so loyal to Tech basketball, I'll never know) but Wyatt and I have never been with him.  I was a little nervous about how he would handle the game -- he had a cranky morning so we just figured we'd take him and if he wasn't happy we'd leave early.  True to Wyatt's nature he did GREAT.  He was interested in the activity on the court and watched almost the entire time and even took a little nap during halftime. 

 Watching the game in Daddy's lap

 "Whatchulookinat?"

 Kirby was so sweet to hold him in her lap for a little snooze (thanks, Kirby!)

We spent Sunday around the house doing little chores and getting ready for the Superbowl.  Ben was really cheering for Green Bay, but since the Roots gave him this Steelers creeper set we dressed Wyatt in that for game day.  Although he had quite the messy lunch and ended up getting changed about 15 minutes after this picture was taken ....

A Very Belated 8 Month Update

As I type this, Wyatt is actually closer to 9 months than 8, but I owe it to him and to myself to do a little update!

Wyatt is still an overall happy baby.  Not that I have much basis for comparison, but he truly is an "easy" child and with the rare exception of a little cold or sickness he has a great temperament and pretty much only gets fussy when he is tired.  He is very independent and will sit and play with his toys for 20-30 minute stretches - often he becomes so engrossed with his toys that he will just ignore us trying to play with him.  (And he's stubborn when he knows you want his attention) 

Although Wyatt loves most of his toys, his favorite things are non-toys: cell phones, keys, water bottles, paper, and coasters specifically.  I learned my lesson the hard way a few weeks ago on making sure my cell phone is locked before I ever give it to him -- he somehow deleted the 'phone' function from my iphone!  Thaaaaat was awesome.  He is becoming more and more interested and grabby these days so we really have to be careful as to what is within his reach.

Accomplishments: still "stuck in reverse" on the crawl - he pushes himself backward but can't quite figure out the forward motion yet.  we'll get there!, his new trick is turning on and off his closet light when he's laying on his changing table.  standing up -- although we are always right behind or beside him because he does fall sometimes

Words: same as last month.  hey, mama, dada (he says dada ALL. THE. TIME. and typically only says mama when he's getting upset over something)

Stats: almost 21 lbs, size 3 or 3.5 shoe, size 4 diapers, most of his clothes that fit him are 6-12 months or 12 months depending on the brand.




Likes: fans! (he has re-discovered them lately and loves to see them turned on), bath time (this is a great way to cheer him up if he's grumpy), all his fruits, yogurt melts, his learning table, balls, cell phones, car keys, paper, glow-worm, pacis

Dislikes: diaper changes, getting his coat on (can't wait for summer), getting into his carseat, table food (he is unsure of the texture, I think), tummy time/learning to crawl