A Case of the Giggles

More teeth?? Growth spurt? Or Just Plain Cranky?

Ethan's new swing

He loves it!

I know what we'll be doing this summer!


He loves to stand!


Ethan and cousin Jack

Ethan and Mama

Ethan and Daddy

Hanging around

Ethan's entrance into month eight has been a challenging one! Remember how I mentioned that he was sleeping through the night so well? Not so anymore! Over the past week and a half, Ethan is back to waking throughout the night. We've also noticed that he has been much fussier during the days, though we are trying hard to stick to a pretty regular nap schedule. Finally, we are noticing a lot more drool! Our natural conclusion is that more teeth are on the way (at least we are hoping that that is what is going on!!) Despite the challenge of keeping our little guy happy, comfortable, and content, we've had a really nice week.

Saturday we spent the day celebrating Bob's birthday. It was a beautiful day, so we were able to hang out on their new deck and play. We really enjoyed being outside in the warm weather, and Ethan enjoyed playing with his big cousins.

On Sunday, Pete put up Ethan's tree swing. We didn't have any great tree limbs that would support the swing in our yard, so Pete attached a support beam, and an A frame to one our trees. After all of Pete's hard work, we were happy to see that Ethan loved his new swing! We've used it a few other times this week (between bouts of rain) and Ethan gets a huge smile on his face whenever he starts swinging.

Ethan is still trying to figure out the whole crawling thing. This week he is doing a lot more lunging forward from a sitting position, but his legs get in his way, and he flops down. He doesn't seem to be too bothered by this, though he is seeming more and more motivated to want to get to things that are out of his reach. I think that if he had his way, he'd go straight to walking, as he loves to pull up to a standing position (with help) and gets upset when we set him back down again.

Despite Ethan being a bit crabbier, we've had a great week. Hopefully our prediction of teething is right, and in the next few weeks Ethan will be more comfortable... we were just starting to really enjoy sleeping through the night!

8 Months Old!

Happy 8 Months Old and Earth Day!

Peeking through the bars of his crib

Learning to pull himself up in his crib


Playing

Sam and Ethan

Ethan is 8 months old today!!! We constantly ask ourselves where the time has gone? Hard to believe that in 4 short months we'll be celebrating Ethan's first birthday- everyone warned us, and it is so true- cherish every second because they are fleeting. We feel so lucky that we get to be a part of this little person's life!

We've had a great week. The spring weather has returned and we've taken full advantage. We've walked every day and taken short tours around the yard to see what new flowers and trees are blooming. Viewing the world through a baby's eyes really helps you stop and take in all of the little things that you would normally take for granted. I've never taken such an interest in each blade of grass in the yard, or flower in the garden. One of Ethan's favorite games is kicking the ball with Daddy in the backyard. Pete will hold Ethan and kick a ball around and Ethan laughs hysterically- pretty cute! Ethan (and Barley) have discovered the joy of bubbles. Ethan begins to squeal when he sees me pull out the bottle- I think that Barley and I have as much fun as Ethan watching them float in the air and trying to catch them!

In food news, our little guy continues to expand his palate. This week we have tried some more elaborate recipes- thankfully our hard work was appreciated! We made a tomato, butternut squash, pastina and cheese dish that he loved. We also made a meal with carrots, tomato, tilapia, and cheese. Ethan is eating more involved meals than we are these days!

On Tuesday we headed down to Portsmouth to meet up with Andrea and Sam. We had a great time! We found a grassy park, layed out a blanket and let the boys roll around and play. It was very entertaining to watch them interact. I think that a friendship is blossoming, though we need to give Ethan a few lessons on being more gentle with other babies! He was so excited to play with Sam that he kept grabbing at his shirt, face, hair- whatever he could get a hold of! It has been so much fun watching the babies grow and change- each time we get them together they interact a little more. Hard to believe that this fall they'll be running around together!

The past 8 months with Ethan have been the most amazing, most enlightening, most challenging, most humbling, most wonderful! Pete and I have learned so much about ourselves, each other, and where our priorities lie. We thank our lucky stars each day that we have such an incredible little family!

This was the first day that Ethan began to pull himself up in his crib- as you can see, he was getting a little bit frustrated by the process!

Back from our Hiatus!

Easter on Long Island with Great Grams and Grandma

Ethan loves to be on Daddy's shoulders

Another haircut!

Ethan loves splashing in the sink, he barely noticed Grandma cutting his hair

Merry Go Round

Ethan stole Grandma F's pear!

Great Grandma Fowler

Easter Bunny

Ethan loves his sippy cup!

We've taken a brief "blog hiatus" due to some technical difficulties and traveling. Now we are back after a few fun filled, busy weeks.

For Easter weekend, we headed south. Saturday we went to Long Island to celebrate the holiday. We had a great time visiting with family, and enjoying the spring weather. Sunday, we celebrated Easter with the Fowlers. It was great to catch up and enjoy each other's company. Ethan was a trooper through all of our travels and welcomed all of the new faces.

Ethan and I spent the week in Connecticut with Grandma and Grandpa Fowler. We had lots of fun! We went to the Bronx Zoo where Ethan rode his first Merry Go Round. He loved it! Looks like we're going to have to find one this summer in Maine. Ethan was mildly impressed by the different animals, but I think that he liked being pushed around in his stroller and watching all of the people best.

Ethan continues to amaze us with his growth and development. One of my favorites new things is that he reaches for us when he wants to be picked up. It is so sweet when he reaches up with his little arms! Another big development is that Ethan has begun to sleep (mostly) through the night! Up until now, he was waking every two to three hours- this made for a very tired Mama! While we were in CT, he began sleeping straight through until about 4 am, eating, and then going right back to sleep until 7 or so. I though that perhaps it was just being over stimulated and missing naps, but since we've been home, he's been following the same pattern. I don't want to jinx anything, but could we possibly be getting to a point where sleep won't be quite so elusive??!! Hope so!

Ethan has perfected sitting up and playing with his toys. He will lunge forward for things, but inevitably falls down to his belly- no signs of crawling yet. The other day Pete and I looked around our living room and decided that we were in no rush for Ethan to become mobile- that would require much more organization on our part!

While Ethan hasn't mastered the whole crawling thing, he is working hard on the food thing! He continues to love his puffs, and likes to have them on his high chair tray so that he can nosh on them between bites of baby food. We've tried other finger foods,but so far, puffs remain the favorite. Lots of the finger foods that we have tried tend to be slippery and eventually cause Ethan to become frustrated because he can't pick them up. We've attempted bananas, pears, tofu, and eggs. We'll keep trying to think of foods that he can get a good grip on- any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Ethan wants to eat anything and everything that we are eating! He opens his mouth up wide whenever we are eating- it's so funny! If he doesn't get a taste, boy does he get mad! There is no doubt that he is our child!!

Spring has sprung... hasn't it?

Checking out the new food

Investigating

Yum!

Still loving yogurt!

Playing with all of my fun toys

Not so sure I'm loving this swing thing

Nope, definitely not into the swings!

What a great week! We've had a few glimpses of spring and the warm weather has felt wonderful! I am so looking forward to spending time outdoors with Ethan as the weather gets nicer. As he gets older, visits to the playgrounds, parks, and beaches will be so much fun!

We had a perfect weather for Grandma and Grandpa Y's visit to Maine on Saturday. We spent the day in Portland walking around downtown, taking Barley to the beach, and attempting some playground time with Ethan. I was thrilled to see baby swings at the playground near East End Beach. Up until that point, it hadn't even crossed my mind that Ethan could actually use any playground equipment yet. I put him in the swing and he sat quietly staring at the kids playing all around him. After a few pushes, he decided that he'd had enough and started crying. Oh well, there will be plenty of time to enjoy the swings! We had a great visit with Grandma and Grandpa Y. Ethan loved being showered with attention and affection!


It seems that every day Ethan is making a new sound. Every morning we look forward to what new things Ethan has to tell us! This week, he has been all about, "the squeal". He loves hearing himself squeal as loudly as he can. It's pretty darn cute! He has abandoned his "ba, ba's" and "ma, ma's" for now. I'm discovering that his various sounds run on a rotating schedule. Eventually he rediscovers his old sounds and pulls them out again. It'll be so amazing when we can actually decipher what he is trying to tell us.

Our other exciting news this week has been the introduction of finger foods. My friend Andrea has a son named Sam who is just about the same age as Ethan. Her doc gave her the go ahead to try finger foods with Sam, so we decided to give it a shot too.

We spread some banana flavored "puffs" (like cereal) on his high chair tray. He did a great job! Ethan got some of them in his mouth, and the pieces that didn't make it, fell to our food disposal- Barley! I think Ethan really enjoyed feeding himself, though after a while, he got a little frustrated when he couldn't pick up the small pieces of food as quickly as he wanted. Very fun new chapter though- we are having a good time with the food stuff!

While we had a small glimpse of spring over the weekend, this weeks it has been cold, rainy, and we've even seen a few snow flurries. Needless to say, we've been pretty much, hanging out at home. I didn't think having this little guy could get much more fun, but now I realize how much more there is to look forward to once real spring/summer has begun!

**Addendum!
Okay, Ethan has made a liar out of me! This afternoon, he began true baby babble. He's stringing together all kinds of sounds- ba, da, ma, ga! He says it so passionately, as though he really thinks that he is talking. The squealing was cute, but this takes the cake!!

Party Time!

Mama and Ethan at Jack's party

Newly acquired skill- "taking off my hat!"

Ethan is sure he loves food, not so sure about the highchair yet

He'll take his foot, covered, or uncovered!

Breakfast with Grandma and Grandpa Fowler

We had a full week of fun activities! Grandma and Grandpa Fowler came to Maine to celebrate cousin Jack's third birthday. Ethan was thrilled to have guests in the house to shower him with attention. My parents and I commented on Ethan's ability to show his preferences for things now. While we were out and about in various stores, whenever we would show Ethan a wall of toys, he would squeal with delight and giggle. Makes the whole "don't spoil your child" thing tough!!

On Sunday we went to Ken and Melissa's house for Jack's birthday party. There were tons of kids there. Ethan loved watching them run around and play. He was particularly intrigued by a baby girl at the party who was a few months younger than him. When we held them near one another, Ethan immediately began grabbing her face, hands, feet- anything he could get a hold of! The girl chasing is starting early!

More exciting news! After a whole lot of researching, testing, returning, and re-buying, we have purchased a convertible car seat for Ethan! I think that he is going to be very comfortable in his new seat. It was a long process! Daddy, Grandma, and Grandpa F were very patient with my indecisiveness about which seat would be the best. Daddy was a trooper as he installed about 5 seats in torrential downpours just so we could test them out!

Developmentally, we are moving right along. Ethan really likes to get a reaction from us. He will squeal, giggle, coo, grunt, groan- whatever it takes to get a smile from us. He is sitting up on his own, though I still like to stay close by to rescue him if he topples. Ethan continues to LOVE food! It sort of amazes me just how much the little guy can eat. Our newest discovery is yogurt. I don't think I've ever seen Ethan open his mouth so wide- can't get enough of the stuff. Ethan has also let us know this week that for now, he isn't a hat guy. He has learned that no matter how cute Mama thinks a hat is, he can take it off by himself- a new skill that makes me a little sad!

This weekend, Grandma and Grandpa Y are coming to visit. More love and attention for Ethan. I'm sure he'll have no problems with that!!

Cruising!

Ready for vacation!

Key West (that's our ship in the background)

Sand! Cozumel, Mexico

Bathing Beauty

Ethan wasn't so sure about the cold water

View from the balcony in our room

Daddy and Ethan on the ship

Ethan LOVED his little umbrella stroller (and so did we!)

What an exciting week we have had! I can officially say that Ethan is an amazing traveler! He experienced more modes of transportation in a five day period than most adults and made it through all of it with a smile on his face (most of the time).

Our journey began last Tuesday. We drove down to Connecticut to leave Barley with Grandma and Grandpa Fowler. Thursday morning, we woke up very early and headed to the airport for our flight to Miami. Ethan was a dream! He fell asleep as the plane took off, and slept peacefully for about half of the 2 1/2 hour flight. After that, he was happy to walk up and down the aisle with Daddy. When we began to descend, Ethan started to get upset (I think that his ears were bothering him) but luckily Grandma Fowler had stuck a lollipop in our carry on at the last minute. Once we popped the butterscotch lolli in Ethan's mouth, his eyes widened and he was quite as a mouse for the rest of the trip!

After waiting for bags, taxis, shuttles, etc, we arrived on the ship. Ethan was a star through it all! He was happy to sit in his stroller and take in views, or sleep in my ergo carrier.

We had a wonderful trip! Though it was a bit breezy on the ship, the sun shined every day and it was so nice to just get away! Our first stop was Key West, where Ethan got to put his feet in the ocean and play in the sand. Next, we went to Cozumel, Mexico. More beach time for Ethan! He was very intrigued by the sand and kept trying to put it in his mouth! Finally, we had a day at sea. We spent the day walking around the ship, and sitting on the deck just relaxing.

While seeing all of the new places was fun, my favorite part of our vacation was simply spending uninterrupted time together as a family.

Monday morning, we woke up early and headed back to the airport for our trip back to NY. We got on the plane, and waited to take off. We sat, and sat. Then, they told us that our flight was being cancelled due to a mechanical problem. All of the flights to JFK for the rest of the day were either overbooked or cancelled. Yikes! Long story short, we booked a flight that connected through North Carolina to Hartford. Ethan was amazing through it all! He waited patiently with us in the airport, flew on two different planes, waited while we discovered that our bags were heading to New York (even though we were in CT) and slept for almost the whole ride home from the airport! It was a stressful, long day for us all, but I am happy to report that Ethan is a stellar little traveler and took all of our hiccups in stride!

Despite our not so relaxing ending, our trip was incredible. I realize that now more than ever, the importance of taking time to stop and smell the roses! This vacation allowed us to do just that- stop, take stock in how incredibly lucky we are to have this little guy, and how much we love being a family!