Enjoying a Cloudy Day at the Park

We don't have many cloudy days here but this last Sunday we did and we got out and enjoyed it. It dropped the temperature to 75 degrees and it was beautiful considering we were well into the 90's at this point in the summer plus we didn't have to worry about cooking the little man. Hayden got to ride in the swing for the first time and he LOVED it. He was just giggling the whole time. Too bad you can't catch that on regular camera. He watched as Dad and Mom and Dad and Sadie played around throwing a baseball and playing fetch, respectively. I love giving this little guy new experiences. I love how the little things bring him so much joy and I hope he never loses his excitement for life and will do the best I can to help preserve that. You can also tell from one of these pictures how much he adores Sadie. The first person he looks for in the morning when he gets up is Sadie. He loves to pet her, though I'm not sure it she enjoys it that much at this point with his surprisingly strong grip on her floppy lips if his she gets close enough. She loves him too. He adores her drive by lickings that I can't seem to guard him from at all times. And as soon as he learns to crawl I'll just put a bell on Sadie to know where Hayden may have run off to (since a bell on him might be a little deprecating.) None the less, until he has a sibling, Sadie will fill those shoes and perhaps even after.

Taking the Plunge

On Father's Day, Hayden had his first pool experience. We joined Dad at the pool for a little fun in the sun before he got his napping in the sun started. It was a dry 90 degree day and my son was by far the most ghostly pale little baby at the pool (we are in New Mexico after all and it didn't help that I had about a 1/2 inch layer of white SPF 60 sunscreen on him). He definitely drew a few stares. We started out in the baby pool thinking it might be warmer...it wasn't. Then we moved to the adult pool. Try putting a 6 month old in the water and that will clear the pool out. No one trusts the diaper. Anyway, then we broke out his floating gear but he wasn't crazy about it at first. We eventually got into it after the hypothermia was finished setting in. You'd think the water would be warmer here but it's not. As for the social aspects, he didn't really notice the other babies, the splashing kids, yes. Though he drew some notice from the ladies. A 10 month old baby girl was totally digging his frog outfit and his little bird belly. Lock up your daughters. Poor little guy was so exhausted from his first swimming experience he didn't even make it 5 minutes on the drive home. He took a 3 hour nap and then slept 12 hours that night.

Sit Boy, Sit

Hayden has been dabbling at sitting for a month now. He would do it here and there for a few seconds, a few minutes but now he's hit the big time. He's a professional sitter. While a picture doesn't capture the length of how long he can sit it does express my confidence to leave him, unpropped and without a protective mommy hovering too close. Next step...mobility. Get your baby-proofing gear ready!

4 month photos

So Hayden had some professional photos taken when he was 4 months...he is now 5 months for the record. He was brilliant in front of the camera. A regular little baby model. Not like the first pictures we had done when he was 2 weeks old where we spent 45 minutes consoling a wailing newborn. This round was much more relaxing. Sorry friends about the delay in posting them. I'm a little slow at getting things out and not truly a professional blogger. Enjoy the cutie! We are.

Mmmm! Solid Food...well sort of

Hayden has begun his journey into the land of solid food with a mixture of a rice cereal and his favorite liquid up until now. We caught his first experience on video. Since then we have gotten the whole eating-off-of-a-spoon thing down better and can get through about 2 tbsp. of rice cereal in about 5 minutes. He also now does the baby bird move- where he opens his little mouth to indicate he is ready for the next bite. Sometimes I can barely get another spoonful ready before the baby bird comes out. Anyway, its been fun to feed him, a little messy at times, but every step is exciting. You can't help but be happy for the little guy every time he figures something new out, even if it is how to wolf down mush in 5 minutes or less.

A Little Purple Pride

We have to give a shout out the the Kansas State Wildcats and so Hayden got done up in his little outfit to show his pride in his potential future school. Just some cute pictures. Moms are allowed to get a little picture happy occasionally right? Occasionally means everyday right?

First Visit to the Zoo

Hayden and I went to the zoo this past week and I explained all the animals to him and he completely understood everything. Okay not really, but a lady with another older child had the nerve to make fun of me trying. Hey when my kid is smarter than your kid then we'll see who's laughing. Alright, maybe a little defensive but we get picked on a little more out here. Anyway, besides the comment it was fun and we were actually there for a birthday party for another little guy who was turning 1. All the kids attention spans were a little to none at all but it was fun for the mommies. Especially the mommies who got to eat their kid's cupcakes. Mmmm. Oh the picture on the left is in front of the polar bears (in the desert...poor polar bears) and if you look really close to the left of me you can actually see one and the picture on the right we are looking at seals. They were coming right up to the glass and Hayden actually saw them. I told him they were like the "Sadies" (labrador retrievers) of the sea since that is the only animal he really understands right now. Who knew...admission to the Sadie zoo is free and air conditioned.

Monster Baby

So, I wanted to share a little game we play with Hayden because he loves to stand all the time and this makes it a little easier on the arms. Its called monster baby and sometimes it involves me getting drooled on but it definitely keeps him amused. I have to use what Derrick calls my cartoon voice (though he has not perfected his cartoon voice yet,) and pretty soon, Hayden is imitating me. Its really cute, at least from my angle. Sometimes Sadie (the chocolate lab) wants to play too. I'll be sad when he doesn't want to play this little game anymore, or when he gets too tall and my arms can't hold him the same way though I can't picture doing this when he's 10.

Hayden's Dedication

Hayden was dedicated to God this week at our church. It was a large group of children each individually named and dedicated by their parents. This is different than what I grew up knowing occurred where baptism was favored for babies. We chose to dedicate Hayden to God and for God knowing that we are a steward of God in the raising of this child whom He has given to us to raise up for His glory. So we chose to formally proclaim our desire to obey the Lord in raising him knowing the One true God. When Hayden is old enough to understand who Jesus is and Jesus' sacrifice for him (and all of us) and to accept his gift of grace, mercy, and redemption, then he will have the opportunity to be baptized. We ask for your prayers that his heart would be soft to the yielding of the Holy Spirit and he would come to live all the days of his life for the Lord.

Hayden's First Visit to Kansas

This past week, Hayden took his first ride on an airplane (smooth for the most part and boy do I appreciate all the help you get traveling with a baby by the airline employees) and went back to Kansas for the first time. He got to meet a lot of of the family including 3 sets of great-grandparents, great aunts and uncles, his aunt and uncle and new baby cousin Colton. He also got to see his grandmas and grandpa. We spent a week there running all over the place to introduce Hayden to as many people as we could and still didn't have enough time. As Hayden's personal assistant, let me say we will now be taking appointments for his next visit. I mean it...I'm actually going to put it in a planner. It took my little guy 3 days to get back in his groove because of my over-scheduling (novice mom) because he just hasn't figured out how to run on my schedule. Though we did fit in one day of rest because I came down with the flu...don't worry not the H1N1 (swine flu)...just the good old fashioned stomach flu. We also got to try and teach Hayden the color green. We have mainly focused on the color brown since that is what we have the most of here... brown houses, brown bushes, brown dirt, so much brown. It was so green in Kansas it hurt my eyes. He also had a growth spurt while we were there growing almost a pound in a little more than a week. Must be all the fertilizers they use leaching into the water...and then through me...to him. Interesting theory...I'll have to run a few more studies on that one. Anyway, we had a really good time seeing everyone and wish we could do it more often. Though we do have some open floor in the living room of our condo. The invitation is open to those who don't mind a mattress on the floor for a little one-on-one time with Hayden.