9 Months Old

Leo is now 9 months old and he has advanced so much in just the last few weeks. It is becoming abundantly clear that these photo sessions are getting more and more difficult now that Leo is on the move. He just wants to show off his mobility all the time so it is hard to catch him still. Leo is now a "power crawler." He is so quick, but in addition to crawling, he is now climbing. I thought we would have a transitional period between crawling and climbing, but he seems to have taken on these skills simultaneously. He can now get into the standing position by reaching for objects and pulling himself up. It is so dangerous and very scary to watch, but I know he needs freedom in order to learn, even if it means a few bonks on his head.

Leo has also had a few nights of amazing sleep. He slept from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. last night! That is a record, but it also meant that I had to start my day at 5 a.m. I really can't complain though...if this is a new pattern, Joe and I would be thrilled!

Leo is also a tremendous eater. We have started to give him things like Cheerios and crackers to chew on. He eats about 1 in 10, and plays with the rest, but his hand eye coordination is improving and he is learning to chew very well. Speaking of chew, Leo's left incisor came through. This is a tad out of order since he doesn't have his front (top) two teeth.

On a side note, I just had to get a nude photo of Leo. I think it is in good taste and I hope he doesn't hate me someday for posting it. I am just so proud of all the weight he has gained recently. He really is getting quite chubby!

Leo's 1st Christmas

Leo and Butterscotch

Leo and Elmo share similar expressions!

What a cute face!

The stripey trio - Shelly, Kim and Barry

Uncle Martin, Aunt Tiffy and Leo

We had a great 1st Christmas with Leo! As with most days, we had an early start at 6 a.m. Joe had put together his new horse, Butterscotch (compliments of Joe Sr. and Grandma Paula), the night before. We took Leo into the living room and presented him with the horse and he was very pleased. Next, we helped Leo open his presents and he had a great time trying to eat the wrapping paper.

If I could make a theme for this year's Christmas, it would be called "a very Elmo Christmas", because almost every gift was Elmo related. The Sesame Street Corp. is making a killing off our family! Leo didn't disappoint though, and gifted us with huge smiles for every Elmo toy he received. He also received a new outfit and ride-in car from Great Grandma Naomi, a baseball outfit from Grandma Rita, a red hoodie and Elmo drum from Grandma and Grandad Cleveland, a bunch of cute clothes and a toy walker/car from Craig, Lauren and Tegan and a ton of Elmo stuff from us. Leo was definitely the star of this year's Christmas. Joe and I did pretty well too.

We spent most of the day playing and relaxing and then went to my parents house for an early dinner of ham with all the fixings. Yummy! While there, we watched Kim and her boyfriend Barry swing dance and played Taboo. Leo was mezmerized by the dancing and wanted to join in on the fun. Unfortunately, we had to leave just when things were getting really fun with the game on account of Leo's 7 p.m. bedtime. It was a great day!

Leo Crawls!

Leo's Dad Here making a post.

There have been some requests for footage of Leo crawling. I wish I knew how to make this file smaller and could put it into a better format. Maybe once I get more familiar. But for know please enjoy this short clip of Leo crawling!

Winter Wonderland

It is still snowing and the Portland area hasn't experienced weather like this in 40 years. Although it makes for very beautiful scenery, it is difficult when you have an 8 month old. We are all getting cabin fever. Usually, we leave the house a couple times a day, but we haven't left the house in 2 days! Luckily, our neighbors stopped by and Celia, who is 6, gave Leo a Jack in the Box (it's actually a cute bear that pops out) and a new book as an early Christmas gift.

As you can see by the photos, Leo is fascinated by the snowy outside, but when Daddy took him for a quick walk, he came back as cold as an icicle. Leo sure does look cute in his little snow suit!

Danger Baby!

With Leo's new mobility, he has become very dangerous and mischievous. Everything that he should not get his hands on, he gravitates toward. He loves cords and strings (see snow picture above with Daddy), his diaper pail, and sharp metal objects. He is quite the little menace and this means that we have to baby proof the house immediately!

Our poor little guy is still teething and this combined with a week of cabin fever due to snowy weather, and a propensity toward danger has left us a bit exhausted. We are still so proud of Leo for making such great strides.

Crawling!

Wow, what a week it has been. So much has happened, but the big news is that Leo is now officially crawling! It's hard to say exactly when this milestone was achieved because he has been working on this skill for a while, but Joe and I agreed that on Thursday, he was confidently crawling. We are just so proud of him and we can tell that he is proud of himself too. Now we will see what trouble awaits us!

In addition to crawling, Leo is now eating Gerber stage 3 foods, which have chunks. It can set off his gag reflex, but every time he eats, he gets better and better. Leo is a great eater and has been eating 3 times a day for nearly a month.

Leo has started showing us a little more attitude recently. He has temper tantrums and changing his diaper can sometimes be an all out battle. He also has had fits of rage when we take things away from him, get him dressed or clean his face. He sure is a feisty little man.

It has been snowing all week. The weather has been very precarious and my mom stayed with us most of the week because she works much closer to our house than my parent's house. Leo really enjoyed the extra time with grandma and I think she had fun too. Even though the snow was hugely inconvenient, it gave Leo more time to practice his crawling.

Lastly, Leo is teething... again!!! I think he is getting is upper 2 teeth. He has been putting his fingers in his mouth, tugging on his ears and has been fussier than usual. Poor little guy.

Snow Day

Today it has been snowing and we have had so much fun. We bundled up Leo and took him outside, but he wasn't too fond of the wind and cold, so we promptly came back in. I have already baked some oatmeal cookies and we plan to watch the Steeler's game, eat some of Joe's famous homemade chili and stay warm and cozy inside. The snow is the perfect excuse to do nothing and that sounds perfect!

Bath Time!

Leo had his first bath in our kitchen sink and it made for a great photo opportunity. Have you ever seen a happier baby? He sure does love his rubber ducky!

More Firsts

Today I surprised Joe and dressed Leo up in his Steeler's jogging suit. I didn't think it would fit because it is sized at 12 months, but it fit perfect. It's a good thing I tried it on him because it is the cutest outfit ever! Also, because Leo got suited up, the Steelers beat the nasty Cowboys. Yeah Steelers!

Well, 2 cool things happened this weekend. We reintroduced Leo to the Santa at the Beaverton Mall and he didn't cry. This Santa is awesome...maybe the best I have ever seen. Perhaps we will get the happy photo with Santa after all.

Also, apparently, since Leo has teeth, we are suppose to brush them. I don't know why this surprised me so much. I guess it's just because he only has 2 teeth and he is just 8 months old, but none the less, they are 2 very precious teeth and deserve not to become decayed. Luckily, Leo loved getting them brushed with his infant tooth/gum paste.

We also decorated the house for Christmas. We didn't go all out, but the house still looks very festive.

What...no photo with Santa?

Leo hates Santa Claus. It's just a simple fact, but none the less I am very surprised. I took Leo to see Santa three times this week. I know it sounds crazy, but let me explain.

The first time I took Leo was on Monday to Washington Square Mall, which is the local shopping mall. At first, Leo was stoic when he met Santa, but the session ended with him pulling on Santa's beard and then bursting into tears. He didn't crack a smile in the photos, which is very unlike Leo. I thought perhaps I would have better luck if we returned with Daddy and a toy that might persuade him to smile. On Tuesday night, we returned with Daddy and Cookie Monster and even though the Santa was a much better one, Leo immediately started crying when he met him. Today, we decided to try the Beaverton Shopping Center. We thought that maybe this time we would have better luck. Since there were no children waiting to meet Santa, we thought that perhaps if Leo were to get aquaited with Santa before he was placed on his lap, that might be better. No such luck. Leo was more hysterical than ever and even broke out into hives...which only happens when he is under great distress. I felt so sorry for the poor Santa!

Instead of the standard photo with Santa, I may just have to settle for this adorable shot of Leo dressed in his holiday sweater.

Thanksgiving in Colorado

We had a lovely Thanksgiving in Bailey, CO with Joe's dad Joe Sr., his step-mom Paula, great grandma Rita and brother Aaron. Leo was showered with attention, love and generosity and he was soaking it all up. Each day was better than the next and I do believe that Leo experienced some of the best days of his life. While in CO, he cut another tooth, started to rock back and forth in the crawl position and slept for 7.5 hours in a row one night.

The Morris family live in a log cabin about an hour or so outside of Denver and the scenery is breath taking. We enjoyed relaxing days just chilling with the family...eating great food, taking family walks and watching movies. Plus, Leo had a blast meeting his great grandma Rita (GiGi) and his uncle Aaron. He also loved hanging with his grandparents, who clearly adore him.

When we arrived, Leo was welcomed with a million hugs and kisses and a whole array of gifts. Leo now has a new toy horse he can ride named Butterscotch. He also received a Thanksgiving day outfit, a cool highchair, a blanket with his name on it, toys, food etc. It was awesome!

On the last day of our trip, we went to a cute little town called Evergreen. Leo loved cute little shops and flirted with all the shop workers. He also got an Elmo hat (a photo will be posted soon enough) and some cool new clothes too.

My favorite part of the trip was seeing my little boy in the presence of so many people who love and care about him. He is one very lucky young man.

Leo's 1st Tooth!

This is day 2 of Leo's 1st legitimate cold. He is still in quite a bit of pain and has been especially clingy. I can't say that I mind the extra cuddles, but I really wish he felt better. In addition to all the pain he is feeling from the cold, he also cut his 1st tooth yesterday. I was feeling inside his mouth and the bottom tooth on his left side has broken through the gums. I was so excited when I could feel the ridges, it is just unfortunate that he has both things going on at once. He also has been rejecting solid foods for the last few days, which could be caused by either the teething or the cold. Even though our little Boo boo (our pet name for him), has been feeling so cruddy, we can still count on him to give us a smile.

Sick Leo

My sweet angel is sick...really sick! He has quite the cough and last night he had a fever too. I took him to Dr. Crowley this morning, and his lungs and ears look fine, so that is great news. However, he has a horrible cough that makes him wince in pain. He didn't want to eat solids this morning and he has been much more sleepy and lethargic. Last night we didn't get much sleep, but I didn't think twice about it...I just want Leo to feel like himself again.

One fortunate aspect of visiting the doc is that Leo was weighed. Leo is now 16 lbs. He is still steadily following his growth path, which is between the 5-10% for weight. The nurse was pleased, especially since he was sick when he was weighed.

We have been very fortunate that Leo has been such a healthy little boy, so seeing him in this discomfort is especially difficult for us. I never like to make a post without a photo, but I didn't have the heart to post a picture of him in this state. Instead, I am posting a photo of us from last Friday, when he was my healthy, happy little boy.

Sporty Guy

Today was a beautiful Fall day so I took advantage of the nice weather and got some cute photos of Leo. Last night I cleared all the clothes he had outgrown and made way for his "big boy" clothes. He looks so grown-up and is wearing exactly the same kind of outfit Joe would...minus the hat.

Leo has been teething like mad and we are just waiting for those first pearly whites to emerge. Because he is teething, he has been ultra sensitive a will cry at the drop of a hat. Poor little guy! He has also taken to saying "dadadadada."

Great Birthday!

Joe had a great Birthday. It is a Tuesday, so he went to work, but we still had fun and it was the first family birthday we were able to share with Leo. Joe received new walking shoes (compliments of my Grandma), and two Polo sweaters and Polo Explorer cologne (from me and Leo). Leo had a great time wrestling with the wrapping paper and bows We also went to the mall and ate at the food court. Poor little Leo is teething, so we had to choose a noisy environment in case there was a melt down. Luckily for us, Joe and I will have a Leo-free date this weekend and then eat somewhere a bit fancier.

Happy Birthday Daddy!

As you can see by the photo, Leo was super excited to celebrate Joe's birthday with him for the first time. Even though Joe's actual birthday is on Tuesday the 11th, we jump started things with a celebration at my parent's house this weekend. In addition to many nice gifts and a fine dinner, Joe requested a special cake...pineapple upside-down cake. Thanks mom, he loved it! I will post more on the rest of Joe's birthday extravaganza tomorrow. Until then, Happy Birthday honey. Leo and I are so excited to celebrate your birthday with you!

Leo is getting into the spirit of fall by insisting I dress him to match the season. Actually, he would prefer that I not dress him at all. Many tears accompany an outfit change. Isn't he cute though? Who needs studio portraits when you have a crazy mom like me.

Growing up so Fast

Leo is growing up so fast. The first three months of Leo's life went by at a snail's pace, but the last four are racing by. Leo can do so much now. He can stand if he is able to hold on to something (but not for long!), and he is a pro at sitting.

Leo loves people! When strangers notice him when we are out, he always gives them a big, happy smile. This makes him a very popular guy.

The end of daylight savings time proved to be a horrible transition for us. Our poor little guy was so grumpy at night and has been getting up between 5-5:30 a.m. That is way to early for me! It seems as though things might be shifting back to his normal routine...thank goodness!

Leo's 1st Halloween

Leo's 1st Halloween was a real treat! I took Leo to visit Aunt Tiffy and Uncle Martin's and they had an Elmo music book for him...both music and Elmo are 2 of his favorite things. Next, I took Leo to see Grandma and Grandad and they had a treat for him as well. They gave him a toy snail that sings the alphabet song. What a lucky boy! I know Leo can't eat candy yet, but I never expected that he would receive such cool Halloween gifts. What a great family he has!

Leo was in bed by 6:45 p.m., but next year we'll make sure that he collects loads of candy!

7 Months Old

I can't believe Leo is already 7 months old. As you can see, at 7 months old, Leo has crazy hair, huge smiles and a friend named Elmo. Leo loves observing people as they do things. I am able to put him in the Bjorn and he will watch me do housework for hours. He is so observant and inquisitive.

Leo also loves watching older children play. I take him to the gym a few times a week where Grandma takes care of him and he always loves watching the older children.

Leo is also gaining independence. He is getting better at playing solo for a while, which gives me the opportunity to eat, go to the bathroom and even check my email from time to time. These simple pleasures are greatly appreciated.

Leo continues to be a fairly good eater. I pureed a ton of foods last night and he loved the pear, apple and prunes with cinnamon...heck, I even liked it. Yummy!