Crazy Man Alex

We are amazed at how much Alex has grown. He is definitely his own little person now with one vivacious personality. He spends a lot of time talking to Jeff and me, himself and his toys. He won't sit still-not even for a second. This is truly one of the most fun times in our lives:)

Life

For those of you who don't know, I just got a brand new job. I am still teaching 2nd grade but now I am in the public school system. I will be teaching at Pullen Elementary which is right down from our house. I am very excited but pretty overwhelmed. It is hard enough to put together a classroom but even more difficult when attempted 4 weeks into the school year:) It was mean to be and I am super excited. I am always up for a challenge and excited to model this "taking chances and working hard" attitude for Alexander. We are slowly but surely finishing up the house. Jeff and I just renovated a room and made it into an office. It is wonderful and I love doing my Grad work in here! He has also finished a lot of trim and the staircase. They look wonderful! It is really starting to feel like a home! Alexander is now eating carrots and loving every minute of it. He truly has a love affair with food as Daddy says! More to come...

Out to lunch!

Mimi and Billy's beautiful home

Alex with Grandma Grace

Last weekend Jeff, Alex and I took a trip to Columbus. The trip there was easy as we drove through the night while Alex slept. The trip home was a bit trickier but he did well for a 5 month old. We stayed with Mimi and Billy at their new house and had a wonderful time. Mimi put on a wonderful party and Billy did some fabulous grilling:) We were able to visit with lots of family and Alex was able to meet both of his Great Grandmothers. What a lucky little man. Thanks to everyone who came. We loved our weekend spent with you all and hope to do it more often.

New News!

I know it has been a while but life has surely become busy! I started back to work last week and life has become one big circus. Alex has been in daycare and although I really like where he is going and trust the ladies in his room, it breaks my heart every time I drop him off. My friends keep saying that it will get easier but I have my doubts:) Well, I also applied for a teaching position in the Mt. Pleasant School District and got an interview!!! It went really well but I haven't heard anything back yet. No matter how it turns out-it was a great experience for me!

Jeff has been working a lot. He is very busy and it is definitely hard to find family time these days. We are planning to spend some time together next weekend-as it is his birthday on the 5th:) He has just completed the painting in our new room. We decided that a dining room is just not practical for us right now and have turned it into a guest room/office. We are going to purchase a new sofa bed and Jeff is in the process of building bookshelves and a desk. We are very excited about this and will post pictures as updates are completed!

Alexander has two new teeth! That's right-TWO teeth. He is a drooling machine but is soooo cute with his new little chompers. He is definitely ready for some real food-as it won't be long now.

Jeff and I miss you all very much. Take care and I promise to try and do better at updating this blog.:)

We had a very busy week last week. On Tuesday, I was able to go to the Dave Mathew's Band concert at DTE with some great friends. - Thanks to Jeff for switching his schedule a bit so that I could go:) Alexander and Poppies spent their first ever, alone time for a couple of hours that day! They had fun-as my dad says-he stepped outside and Alex fell asleep for a couple of hours and woke up crying. When Grandma Peg got home, Alex was in a full blown fit but ended up sleeping through the night and awoke a happy baby:) Thanks to my wonderful family, I was able to spend some much needed friend time!

Then, Wednesday night, my Aunt Bentley and Uncle Gary drove in from Florida. We had a BBQ at my dad's house and it was great to spend some time with them! It was a lot of fun! I am so glad that Alexander and Aunt Bentley were able to spend some time together. He enjoyed himself:)

Sleeping Too Long?

Ok, so I am not sure, since this is my first time being a mommy, should I be worried that Alexander slept 11.5 hours last night? Please, don't feel the need to sock me a good one:) I am just not sure if long stretches of sleep like this, on occasion, are normal or if this means impending illness, growth etc... I am just not sure. Yesterday, he hardly napped and every time I tried to put him down, he screamed. So, I was just figuring that he would be overtired and not sleep well during the night.

This whole sleep/nap thing has got me confused. Every book says that by now, he should have scheduled naps but how do you do this? I have the morning nap pretty much scheduled (varies 1/2 hour each way) but the afternoon is tricky. He usually falls asleep when he is tired but lately it seems as though he is playing games with me. He will fall asleep in my arms but the moment I put him down, he begins to scream. Anyone have any suggestions?

Thank you God for allowing me some sleepy time. I have been sooo busy!

I am having so much fun with Grandma Peg!

Love those Boots!

I can sleep anywhere!

I am hot!

The lovely couple!

Grandpa Don and Me!

Poppies and Me!

Grandma Peg and Me!

Chillin!

It has been a long trip! I'm exhausted!

Mommy and me in the airport!

Grandpa Jack and me on the plane!

Hanging out at Nonnas!

Texas Trip

24 Hours and Counting until take off!!!

Well, Alex and I are officially home for a few days at least. We have been traveling all over to visit family and friends and it has been wonderful. The trip to Texas was a huge success and the wedding was beautiful. My brother, Maggie and the boys are great and it was truly a wonderful wedding! Here are some pictures of the wedding and reception. I tell you what, Alexander LOVED the airport and is a true people watcher. I took him over to watch some planes take off and he couldn't tear his eyes away. He also made some great friends on the plane. People were actually commenting on what a great traveler he was both on the way there and the way back. I had been sooo nervous (shocking) about the trip but in the end, it turned out to be one great adventure. Actually, I am not so good on planes-especially during take off and landing but Alexander taught me something - just fall asleep quickly and everything will be ok:)

However, I do have one complaint. What's up with the rental car - car seats! They are from the 1980's- so severely out dated. No shoulder or head pads, extremely flimsy, the straps did not tighten down nearly enough. You would think there would be strict regulations on these things. I am in the process of writing a letter to the company and demanding that they get up to speed on this issue! It is not to be taken lightly - when it comes to the safety of babies! There- I feel a little better:) Enjoy the pictures!

Since Alexander is now a little over four months (crazy!!!), we have decided to begin him on some single grain rice cereal. Actually, the pediatrician recommended it, impart due to his insciable appetite, but also it prepares them for veggies and fruits at 6 months. Aunt Andrea had some good advice on this subject as well. Thanks!!! We did not know how Alex would react but this video says it all. These moments are the best!!! Enjoy!

Cute Pics!!!

Mother of the Year

So, I purchased this new chair for Alex. It is called a Bumbo seat. He really loves it! It allows him to sit up while still receiving the support he needs. Well, to be honest- I love it too! I can sit him in it and go do something in the kitchen real quick without having to worry about him falling out of it or scooting around in it.- for now:) On this day I thought I would face the seat so he could see me in the kitchen thinking he would enjoy the new view. Well, when I turned around this is what I saw:) He surely wasn't interested in what I was doing.

At least it was Seinfeld and not Family Guy-right?:) Boy, I sure deserve the Mother of the Year Award for this one.

Dreaming of food I think:)

I just thought this was too cute to pass up! This is the way he fell asleep this morning for his morning nap. Must have been exhausted from yesterday:)

Alexander and the no good, very bad day

Yesterday was, let's just say, very stressful for all involved. For whatever reason, Alexander was just not having it! This is what he looked like for most of the day:) No matter what Jeff or I did, he would cry and scream and cry and scream. We tried all of the old standbys like walking, rocking, swaying, talking, the swing, singing, the pacifier, feeding, changing of the diaper, car ride, feeding, feeding and more feeding (you all know what an eater my son is.) Finally, we just put in the bathtub and screamed the entire duration of the bath. I then put him in his crib and he fell asleep. Woke up this morning as happy as a lark!!!

Let's Try this Again

Well, I have decided that I need to give this blogging thing another try. With everything that has happened over the past year, my first attempt at blogging kind of got pushed to side. But, we are back with a zest for blogging our way back into your lives!!! We just don't see you all as much as we would like and we know how very interested you are in knowing the ins and outs of our lives (actually Alex's life) but we can pretend:) So, I have decided to give this my best "girl scout" try and please feel free to yell at me if I don't keep this thing updated. Sometimes I need a little reminder when life gets crazy! I am going to try my best to post everyday-yes, try my best being the key phrase here! Love to you all and I hope that I become proficient at this - I guess time will tell!!!