Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

Well, we made it through our first 14 months as parents! I can't believe it's been that long! I remember the first few nights we had Graham at home, when Drew and I were both wondering how in the world we'd get through. I was recently in the attic packing away some of the clothes he's outgrown, and I couldn't help but open the "0-3 Months" box just for fun. I can't believe how little he was! I miss the teeny infant months, but I MUCH prefer where we are now. We are more comfortable as parents, and Graham clearly enjoys life more! Drew and I are entertained just to watch him walking around and playing with such purpose. He laughs, claps, dances, and will stop in his tracks for a good cartoon. He also loves books. The reading part is optional...he just likes to pull books off his shelf and bring them to us. No matter how much energy we put into reading a book, he'll usually bring another within seconds and insist we take it. The beach has already been a hit this year. Now that Graham can walk easily, it's so nice to be able to set him free (well, semi-free) to play in the water and sand. He's taken a few face-dips, but they haven't seemed to bother him at all. He's also been gearing up for group swim lessons at the neighborhood pool with his friend Madeleine. So far when they go to the pool together, they are content in the water, but really excited about the poolside picnic lunches. Graham eats like a champ now, and I can't believe there was a time when he couldn't keep textured foods down! It's convenient that we can just order a kids meal in restaurants (usually a grilled cheese, torn into pieces) if we don't have time to pack a meal for him. One new, not-so-good thing that's begun is tantruming. It's just a little hint of defiance, but it surprises me when he starts to stomp or hit. It's also pretty cute, but we can't let him know that! He understands he's done something wrong when we say "no," and he'll look at us and shake his head "no." Maybe his testing the limits will be our next challenge. For now, I think we're at a nice place. I think of it as a parenting plateau...where we feel comfortable and want to stay, but we know there will be a new mountain to climb soon! My plan is to end this blog here. There may be an occasional "PS" that I post from time to time though. Thanks for reading, and Graham thanks you for checking on him.

Baby In a Basket

Graham at Easter 2011 (almost 13 months old)
















Graham at Easter 2010 (only 6 days old!)

"Look, I found an egg!"

...Actually, he didn't. We went to an Easter Egg hunt at the beach and were two minutes late, so all the eggs were already picked up. A little girl (well...her grandmother) gave one egg to Graham. He had such a good time walking around in the baseball field holding his egg way up above his head. That weekend we discovered how much Graham enjoys playing outside, even if it's just walking in a field.

Party Pictures

Graham had a great 1st birthday! Even though we’d only been in our house a couple weeks, it still seemed important to have some people over to help celebrate his big day…even if we had to dodge moving boxes. We had family over on Saturday to spoil him with kisses, cake, and lots of attention. Great Grandpa and Grandma Hardison even drove down from Virginia to visit with him for the second time! On Sunday we had some friends over for playtime. Graham seemed to enjoy walking around visiting with everyone, but he was definitely a little reserved because of all the action. He impressed me though by (1) being pretty independent during the day and never getting upset, and (2) eating cake! If he had refused cake, I would have questioned whether he got any of my genes! Anyway, we all had a great weekend and really appreciate family and friends who made the birthday special.

Happy 1st Birthday, Graham!

The Move

Farewell Poets Glade...












...Hello Walden Creek Drive!

First Haircut

This past week, we've been in the process of moving into our new house. While Drew dealt with all the nitty gritty of that, Graham and I have been hanging out in Clinton with my parents. He started the week with his first haircut! We were going wait until he turned one, but since we were only a couple weeks shy of that birthday (and since his hair was ridiculously long), we went ahead and had it cut. It was nice to be in Clinton for this so a friend's mom could take on that huge challenge! Graham fidgeted and fussed almost every time she was ready to take a snip, but we got through it with a cute little hairdo -- not too short to look like a "grown-up boy", but not as disheveled as it used to be.

Here are some other things Graham has accomplished this week: ~ Refined his walk. He can now make it across the den. ~ Continued to point to things and say "Dah." Is he asking for us to name stuff? That's what we're doing, just in case his little brain is ready. ~ Learned to lick his lips and make weird sounds. Thanks to my dad for that. Ugh. ~ Tasted lots of new foods and drinks - yams, ham, mashed potatoes, grits, tea, and Frosty! So maybe these weren't off plates of nutritious, home-cooked food, but no need to pretend that we eat like that.

First Steps

On Monday, Graham took his first steps! He was holding the sofa, and he turned toward me and took two little steps! Drew and I looked at each other wide-eyed...like "did you just see that?!" The first step was nice and upright. The second was a little tilty as he was reaching for me. I think it helped that it was a rare moment when he wasn't wearing socks.

Today Graham and one of his little friends went to a trial baby gym class. He was reserved for the first couple minutes, but during "free play", he had a ball! He seemed to have the most fun swinging in the dolphin. This picture shows him intently watching the owl finger puppet sing a song.

Busy February!

This has been a challenging month. It began with Graham having pink eye and the beginnings of an ear infection. For the record, someone needs to come up with a better treatment for pink eye than prying a baby's eyes open for eye drops three times a day. Pure torture! As soon as we celebrated the end of those infections, Graham got a cold. Did I mention that in the midst of that, we were having spur-of-the-moment showings for our townhouse?! One day someone showed up just before his morning nap, so I drove us all the way to Smithfield so he could sleep. At least there was some shopping to do when we got there! =) Anyway, our townhouse sold! We also have found a new house and are under contract!

Aside from his sicknesses, Graham's been doing well. He's beginning to stand on his own now, just for a few seconds. He also climbs the stairs very easily (with us right behind him). The most exciting milestone to me is that he ate his first non-pureed food without throwing up. I've been hesitant to try out textured foods again with Graham, but today I gave him a "Mum Mum" (dissolving cracker type snack), and he went to town! I was so excited to see him holding his own food and crunching away!

10 Months Old = Urgent Babyproofing!

We tried to hold off on full-fledged baby-proofing since our house is on the market, but we can't wait any longer. Graham prefers drawers and cabinets to any of his toys now! No matter what room I'm in, he goes straight to his favorite drawer or cabinet to pull everything out. In the kitchen he likes to pull out every single Ziploc bag, in the bathroom he gets Drew's toothbrush (which hides in a low cabinet for house showings), and in the loft he opens the file drawer and pulls out his x-rays. It may be a lot of work to install child safety locks, but I think it's going to save us from the constant scramble we do now!

Two-A-Days

We're down to two naps a day now. We had previously been squeezing three in when possible, but it started to seem like Graham wasn't sleepy enough to put him down that often. It sure makes it easier to plan a day without three naps going on. The downside is that there is a long stretch between nap #2 and bedtime, and it's sometimes hard to keep Graham entertained that long. Our fall-back entertainment plan is to watch the cartoon "Sid, the Science Kid" (we keep several on the DVR!). It's got some really catchy music that Drew and I have taken a liking to!

Last week I went to the Kids Exchange consignment sale at the Raleigh fairgrounds. It was so overwhelming that I didn't really try to look at anything other than clothes. It's hard to predict what size Graham will be when the weather is warm, but I just went to the long aisles of 18-month clothes and found lots of cute stuff. Now I just have to find a place to put it all.

Walking...With the Help of Dino

I couldn't resist getting Graham this cute little dinosaur that he can push. As soon as I put it together he was off! I was worried that it would roll out from under him, but he does a pretty good job of keeping up. He's so cute smiling proudly at us as he walks across the room. It gives me visions of him as a 12-year old boy mowing it lawn (probably without the smile).

During Christmas and through the stomach virus week, we gave Graham a vacation from his least favorite vegetables. Now, we realize absence has not made his heart grow fonder! He refuses to eat anything green now, among other things. Our solution to this is to mix vegetables into the oatmeal he loves. It's an ugly mess, but he's much more likely to eat it this way. I'm sure we gross out the people around us when we take this concoction to restaurants. Hopefully we'll work our way back to the plain ol' veggies soon. We're still not giving Graham finger foods because the three times we've tried, he gagged and threw up. The pediatrician said some children just take longer to adjust to the texture. Oh well. Some new things he does lately are reaching out and opening/closing his hand (kinda like a wave), and shaking his head "no." His timing of the "no" head shake is funny sometimes...like when we left a daycare tour and the director asked him if he would like to come back.

Happy New Year!

We had a great Christmas! On Christmas Eve, we went to Raleigh to spend time with Drew's family. Graham stayed up extra late to socialize with his relatives, but around 9, we put him to sleep in his pack 'n play so that we could continue hanging out, eating dessert, and watching DVDs of old Christmas cartoons. Eventually, we had to wake up the sleeping baby to take him back to Apex. The next morning, Drew carried Graham down the stairs to see what Santa had delivered.... a toy truck, a book, a musical hammer, and a lion puppet. The truck was definitely the favorite. Then, we rushed (too much rush) to finish packing and headed to Stedman for lunch with the Gainey clan. Graham did a great job sitting at the table in his portable high chair while we ate. He had a good time playing with wrapping paper and his toys during the opening of about a hundred gifts (slight exaggeration). We think next year he'll be able to take over my role as gift distributor. Without a midday nap, Graham fell asleep as soon as we loaded up to head to my parents' house in Clinton. Later that day, my mom's side of the family came over for a candlelight Christmas dinner. It wasn't supposed to be a candlelight dinner, but a power outage set the festive mood for us. Graham seemed to enjoy having his little second cousins to play with in "the hexagon" (a playpen).

The day after Christmas, we woke up to see LOTS OF SNOW! Even though it created some inconveniences (like another power outage), the experience was worth it. We passed up the Christmas leftovers to drive around and find a place that was open for lunch. Andy's it was. After lunch, we built a rugged snowman for Graham. I made a mental note to figure out what people use to decorate snowman faces, and keep those things on hand in case we ever get a chance for a do-over. Unfortunately, the snow prevented Drew's grandparents from making their drive from VA to Raleigh. Hopefully we'll have a late Christmas get-together with them soon. It was probably for the best though, because we brought a stomach virus back to Apex with us that Graham and I really struggled with. I think we're finally well though - just in time for 2011!! Last New Year's Eve, Drew and I went out for steaks and then put a crib together. This New Year's Eve, we heated a frozen dinner and watched a movie from the floor (our sofa cushions were in the washing machine because Graham threwup all over them). Then, as the Times Square ball was dropping on tv, we listened to our little boy wake up and cry from his crib! Our lives have definitely changed a lot, and we realize that we are so blessed for what we've been given.