Pulling himself up

Look Ma, no hands!

So yesterday I was getting ready for the day and I noticed that Gus had gotten really quiet in his room. I had him playing in his crib, so I wanted to check to see if he had fallen asleep. When I peeked into his room, he was standing in his crib! He had pulled himself up from sitting (ripping a tie off his bumper pad along the way) and with one hand was trying to grab for his mobile hanging above him. He was smiling ear to ear. He did not see me so I watched him for awhile and he was so proud of himself, it was hilarious. Needless to say, I took out the bumper pad and removed the mobile from his crib.

This morning he just keeps trying and trying to pull himself up in his crib. He keeps getting his little legs stuck in the rungs, but no major injuries thus far. He is finding that without the support of the crib bumper, it is a little bit harder to do!

He also has a cold, and you can see his gross snot-face in the pics. Poor little fella! He just keeps coughing and sneezing and his throat sounds so scratchy. No temp yet, so we will just have to keep an eye on it.

Lindsey, Kennedy and Gma Sue will be here tonight! I will have lots of updated pics after the weekend. Not to brag or anything, but they are predicting sunny and 65 degrees for Saturday!

Smile for the camera

Cold in KC

Gus trying to climb the stairs. We keep working hard with him on being more mobile.

Gus climbing on daddy. He likes to try and crawl over us when we are laying on the floor and couch.

Gus loves to 'eat' jewelry. I have started to take off my earings when I hold him because he tries to grab for them and can take them off me and always tries to put them directly into his mouth.

We have started to let him use the stairs to sit on. He is almost to the point where he tries to stand up on his own. Be brave little man!

Gus likes to try to stand alone, but it scares mommy so much! Good thing daddy was just a few inches away. He can stand for a few seconds, and can even balance himself if he starts to wobble, but does eventually fall over.

It is pretty chilly here in KC, although those of you in Iowa seem to have it even colder than us. We were supposed to get this huge snowstorm last night and we woke up with 1/4 inch of snow, at most, on the ground. And, some schools cancelled. To be fair we did get some freezing rain as well, so some of the roads were pretty slick, but it is nuts how they cancel school here.

We are doing good. This is my first full week of classes this semester, and they are off to a good start. Josh is busy with work, but loves it.

Gus is as cute as ever. He says and will copy 'daddadda' (in fact I hear him saying it right now with Josh). It seems like he says it more around Josh, but who knows. It is hard to tell if he means it or not. He is not crawling or walking yet, but he is getting braver by the day. He can almost crawl, he just has to figure out how to get his little leg under him. He can scoot backwards and sideways, and is starting to dive onto his belly when he is sitting. He looks like he is close to being able to move from his belly to sitting, but we are still working on it. He loves to try to stand, and walk with our assistance. He has just started 'cruising' along the ottoman and moves from mommy, to ottoman, to daddy and so on, albeit very slow.

We are getting really excited for Linny, Kenny and my mom to visit. They will be here Thursday evening, so they are going to watch Gus while I go to work on Friday. They saw Gus 5 weeks ago at Christmas, but he has changed a lot since then. He can't wait to show off for them.

Gus goes back to doctor in two weeks for his 9 month chheck up for more shots. We will keep you posted.

Tore up from the floor up

Pictures of our poor ceiling and bathroom wall. Our insurance rep comes tomorrow to estimate the repair costs. Yikes! Good news: thus far, the leak seems to be fixed. The plumber actually found three leaks today, so it is a blessing we didn't have more damage than we did.

Daddy Gettin' Gus

Warmer weather in KC coming soon

Gus liked the loud applause of the crowd during the inauguration.

Get away daddy!

Daddy getting Gus' belly and him loving it! Had to tickle that belly meat before PJ time.

Still no teeth. He is getting so bored with the food I feed him now. We can't wait for him to get some teeth so he can try some new foods.

He laughs so hard when you 'get' his belly and sides. He is ticklish like his mommy.

Gus and daddy, working on walking.

He wants to me more mobile so badly! Hopefully soon.

It is finally not frigid in KC. Today we got in the lower 50s and tomorrow we should get into the mid 60s. Gus and I are going for a walk tomorrow afternoon! Then, this weekend, we will have some more cold weather, possibly even snow. Brrr! I am already ready for spring to get here.

Next weekend, mom, Linny and Kennedy are coming to KC to visit us! We are oh so excited! Just eight days and they will be in KC!

Tomorrow we have a plumber coming in the morning to fix the leak in our ceiling (living room), which is good, cause each day the leak seems to get worse and worse. There will probably be some ceiling/drywall repair that will need to be done too. Thank goodness for homeowners insurance!

Gus is still not crawling, but he is getting closer and closer. He can move around better and better each day. Any day now!

Good news!

Gus and I just got back from the YMCA and he was in childwatch for 1 1/2 hours while I worked out and did great! They said he laughed and was so calm and relaxed the whole time. I am going to bring him tomorrow too... Hopefully this is the beginning of good things for Gus! I am going to continue to work hard with him and give him lots of alone time.

Happy Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. observance day everyone! No matter who you voted for it sure is exciting that 40 years after he was assassinated we are inaugurating our first black president. Set up your DVR's!

Also I will get new video of Gus in my facebook today or tomorrow, as well as some new pics of him up here soon. Last night we taped Gus laughing for about 1 minute straight at Buster. It was priceless. Buster was playing with a little plastic wrapper on the floor and Gus about busted a gus from laughing so hard. I got most of it on tape.

Learning to Crawl

Not crawling, but scooting slowly off the blanket this morning.

I have been working with Gus on crawling a lot lately. Last night, Josh and I really thought he was going to do it. Earlier today I placed him on the center of this blanket, with toys just off of it's edges to tempt him a little. I went to the kitchen and cleaned for about 20 minutes and when I went back to check on him, he had, albeit slowly, crept backward off the blanket- away from the toys. I watched him then for a while and he seemed to think he was going forwards but would go backwards instead. How frustrating it must be to be a baby learning to move around!

So we are having 'stranger anxiety' issues with Gus when he has gone to daycare the last two days. He basically cries the entire time he is there. It is the same sitter he used before break, so he should know her. I have been reading a lot online about it, and although his seems like he has it pretty bad, since he doesn't easily forget that Josh or I aren't there, it is normal for infants between 8-10 months to get it- even with familiar faces like a sitter. In fact, it is a milestone in development. Patience is the best way to handle it, I read... but does anyone have any other suggestions? He just has to learn that we will come back to get him.

I am trying to do things to help him get over it. This morning I had Gus play by himself in his crib for an hour, then I fed and changed him, and then he played alone in his room for another two hours. I just had him on his blanket downstairs for twenty minutes alone, I was in another room, and he was fine. He really hasn't cried at all today, and I haven't been with him that much at all- only for the necessities. At daycare, he has wanted to be held all the time, which is weird, because I basically only carry him when we change rooms- he is waaay to heavy for me to carry around.

I am just a little perplexed and Sandie, our daycare provider, thought it might be a good idea to blog about it and see if anyone has any suggestions. Help??

Bath in the big tub this morning!

A little while ago, just before his nap.

Gus took a bath in the big tub this morning. He sure loves splashing!

I finally go back to work tomorrow. As bored as I have been these last few weeks since Christmas, I have been able to spend lots of time with Gus. I will have T/Th days off this semester so I will get to see him a bunch then too (I still have to teach those nights, yuck!).

Now that he is 8 months, I thought I'd give a little update on Gus' recent accomplishments. He will eat just about anything, well as much as having no teeth will allow! He still has very little hair, but does have a bit of blond fuzz. His eyes are blue, no changing those beauties. He cannot crawl, but can walk along the coffee table or a tall, sturdy toy. He would rather stand, with help of course, than sit. He can shake his head 'no' if he doesn't want anymore food, and can clap his hands together in excitement. He makes all sorts of noises, although none really resemble the English language yet. He is in size 12-24 month, pending on the brand. He goes back to Dr. next month, but we think he weighs around 22-24 pounds, he is quite the chubber.

We have tried to take him to his daycare off and on the last few weeks, but he's having some meltdowns. I guess I have spoiled him a little since I have been home this break. He is starting to experience stranger anxiety, so he gets pretty upset when we, especially daddy, leave him. He also, as usual, seems to be teething. I have seen little white beginnings of teeth appear and disappear over the last few months, so I guess only time will tell.

Talk soon!

New Video

New videos in my facebook account...

8 Months Old

Gus was playing pretty hard on Friday morning. So hard that he rolled right off the bed! Mommy about had a heart attack! Our little man was just fine. Gus usually never rolls and can't quite crawl yet, but just wanted to test the waters. I guess we learned the hard way that he can't be on beds anymore- even if I am just 2 feet away from him. The second you look away, anything can happen.

But his spirits were still good. He smiled and laughed all day.

In the afternoon, I had him play in his crib, cause he can't roll off that! He was so tired though that he fell asleep mid-playing. I guess with the trauma of the morning we forgot a much needed nap!

This week Gus is 8 months old. Crazy!

This weekend Josh was back to work. Other than that, we just hung out around here. We went to church this morning, and this afternoon while Gus napped, I worked on my syllabi for this semester and Josh put baby-proof hinges on some of the cupboard doors. I guess we need to be ready for a mobile, exploratory baby now!

Loves to Bounce

Gus loves his Bouncer AKA Jumparoo. We are so glad he is able to use it, thanks Kennedy! I will try to upload to videos today, but if I can't get them in here, I will upload them into facebook.

Things are good here in KC. Josh is working all the time this week. This week so far he has had three 10 hour days, and he has to work Saturdays now too. It is a full season for him, and since he is at a new larger YMCA, in addition to his other two, he is crazy busy. I go back to work on Wednesday of next week, which I am very ready for. I like having a month off, but when no one else does, it gets kinda long and boring.

Be in touch soon!

Happy New Year!

Gus had some mashed up lasagna (that I made last night) and squash for lunch today. Yummy! I have a bunch of videos of him from lunch today and will try to upload them into blogger. If that doesn't work, check my facebook tonight or tomorrow for them.

Trying to make Gus crawl, but no luck. Who knows how long it will take him, he really has no interest in crawling yet. He loves to stand though!

Playing with his new Batman ball from dad. We watched The Dark Knight on Friday night and Josh really liked it ;)

Daddy and Gus, twins in their baseball caps.

In the car on our way back from Saint Louis. Gus was awake all but the first 30 minutes, but did a great job keeping busy and happy on the way home. He loved to feed himself his Gerber puffs.

~ kissing cousins~

Andi loves her snackies! Andi mostly wore her Barbie Princess costume dress while we were in St. Louis, but also loved her cheer leading outfit. Go hawks!

Kacy did a great job babysitting Gus!

Gus helping me do laundry before we left for St. Louis. It scared me half to death to put him in here, but he loved it! Surprisingly, it was a great way to keep him occupied while I separated loads.