The Monkeys at the Zoo

This past weekend we went to Ft. Worth to celebrate our nephews, Ian and Mac, birthdays. This was Wade's first big trip out of town. He had a rather hard time on the way there, but he made the trip home without any problem. It was such a treat to get out of town for a few days!

The birthday party was lots of fun, and we were very excited to get to celebrate with Ian and Mac on their big day.

Kate was helping Ian blow out the candles from across the room.
Wade did not like his party hat.
On Sunday we all decided to load up and go to the zoo. The weather was perfect and the animals were all out doing their thing. It was a great day!! Everybody enjoyed seeing the animals, but Kate was just the right age for the zoo. She really enjoyed the experience!

Our little family.
Cara and Beau with their boys, Ian and Mac.
Grandnanna and Grandpa.
Luke and Ian were best buds this weekend. It was very neat to see them truly enjoy each other.
The chimpanzees were one of the highlights of the zoo for us. There was a Momma and baby that really caught our attention. The baby would hang on underneath the Momma's belly as she walked around. We also got to see the Momma kiss and love on her little baby. It was such a sweet thing to get to see.

We asked Kate which animal she wanted to see the most before we got to the zoo. She said the Elephants. This picture is of Kate and Grandnanna looking at the elephants.

The lions were another highlight of the trip. The lions are always lying around sleeping when we have been in the past. This time the male was really putting on a show. He was pacing around and marking his territory. He even did some roaring and growls for us. It was quite a sight!!

The giraffes are my favorite animals to see at the zoo, so I had to have my picture taken in front of them.

Daddy with his babies.

Big Steve with Little Steve.

Little Mac with his daddy, Uncle Beaubie.
What a cute little guy!!
Momma and Baby Kate.

Daddy and Wade.

We just had the best time this weekend getting to spend time as a family. It was fun to get away and eat at some of our favorite places. The zoo and birthday party were both wonderful!! This weekend was just what we needed!!

Speaking of Little Red Mohawks

Looks like Wade's Momma had a Little Red Mohawk of her own.....

I was four months old and several pounds lighter than Wade in this picture. I looked in my baby book and I was only 19 pounds at 12 months. I was 21 months before I hit the 20 pound mark.

Little Brothers Are AWESOME!!

.....and so are Little Red Mohawks!!!!

Wade had his 6 month check up yesterday. He weighed in at 20 pounds 2 ounces and was 28 inches long!!! What a BIG boy!!!!

Spring Is In The Air

....Or in the Hair!!

After our two week cold snap things have really warmed up. We went from single digit temps to the 80's in just a few days! The kids were playing in the yard while Chris was grilling dinner yesterday. We even went for a walk after dinner. It is so nice to be able to enjoy being outside!

Thumbs Up For Kate!!

Kate has an announcement to make:

She is going on three weeks now, so maybe she has kicked the habit!!

She had sucked her thumb so hard the nail was coming off. She was also having trouble with her little teeth staying glued do to fatigue from the sucking. We used some spray on her thumb that tasted AWFUL. I know because I tried it first. It really only took a couple of days. We are so proud of our baby girl!!

Six Months!!!

Happy Half Birthday to Baby Wade!! Wow this has been a big month for Wade!!! He has had many firsts and learned some new tricks....like sitting up!!

He can sit up for short periods of time, but he tumbles over without warning. He looks like such a big boy now!

The first big thing that happened this month was we scheduled surgery to unclog his tear duct in his right eye. The only catch to that was he would not be able to eat after midnight on the day of the surgery. Since he was still eating twice during the night, I knew we had a lot of work ahead of us to get him prepared for his big night. First, I started putting him in his crib at night. He had been sleeping with me, but kept waking up and trying to turn over. This was causing him some frustration. It took him a few nights to get used to his crib, but it has been so much better for both of us. Second, with the advice of his pediatrician, I started him on solid foods. He has oatmeal mixed with prunes and some veggies every evening at 7pm. A few days after we started with the solids and sleeping in his crib, he started making it through the night without food. He still wakes sometimes but usually finding his pacifier for him does the trick. We are sleeping so much better but there is still room for improvement.

Though no surprise, Wade loves to eat! He makes no funny faces with the different flavors. He has happily and eagerly ate everything I have offered to him.

We have had lots of teething going on this month. He is trying to cut four at the same time!! He now has three teeth on top, with another expected any day, and three on the bottom. That is six teeth!!! One of the bottom ones I was not even expecting. I just found it after I noticed him chewing on his little index finger (his preferred teething tool). He has been fussier than usual. We have had a couple of bad days, but with a little Tylenol we made it through the worst of it.

If you click on the picture below you can see three little white teeth poking through. He has a rather unconventional order of getting teeth! He is still missing one of his front teeth. What is it with my kids and front teeth?

It has gotten colder this month. I still have not bought him a coat, so he has to ride like this when we get the kids from school...

Wade even saw his first snow this month. It was only about an inch but it counts. We have also had very cold temps down in the single digits and negative wind chills. He has stayed nice and warm inside. His brother and sisters have been crazy enough to go out and play in it though.

Wade had his eye surgery on the 27th. He did pretty good. He got upset and hungry when the surgery did not start when scheduled, but he made it. We are still not convinced the surgery worked. He is still having problems with that eye. We are diligently putting the drops in it. Wade does not like the eye drops. It takes both of us to get them in successfully. The doctor said to give it a week and see how it was.

Wade does lots of playing. The big kids like to play with him and keep him entertained. His favorite toy is probably his exersaucer. He is paying more attention to the dogs too. He smiles when they walk by him. He also loves for you to sing to him. His favorite song is "Jesus Loves Me."

We all enjoy nap time! He tends to take a good nap in the morning around 10am. The afternoon naps are hit or miss. He usually goes down for a nap around 3pm, but may only sleep 30 minutes. That may have a lot to do with the kids coming home from school and being loud. Depending how the 3pm nap goes he may take another around 6pm.

I just thought this was a funny picture.

The boy loves his bath! He loves to splash, splash, splash!!! Prepare to get soaked!

Wade weighs about 19 pounds. I am not sure how long he is, but trust me he is long. We go for his shots and well check around the middle of the month, so I will let you know then.

It is hard to believe his first year is already half over!! He brings so much joy to our lives!! We LOVE you Baby Wade!!!

Snow Play

Luke came and got me this morning and told me to get my camera. He was playing in the snow before school. It was 10 degrees with a windchill in the negative numbers, but my kids were outside playing. I wonder how cold it has to be for them to stay inside. We have had snow on the ground for three days now. It is not much snow, but some is better than none. Luke and Rachel have had a two hour delay from school for the past two days. I think I could get used to that pretty quick. They had muffins and hot chocolate for breakfast and a little snow play before school this morning.

For Lukie

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Not A Snow Day :O(

What??? We have to go to school today!!??? But there is snow on the ground!!

Yes you do.
My little snow bunnies...
Wade's first snow.
Can you believe yesterday it was 78 degrees and right now the temp is 16 degrees with snow and ice on the ground? Crazy!!!