Waving

Evan's learning how to wave! He's got great wrist movement going on, though the wave isn't quite connected to a word or action like hello or goodbye. He just likes to wave...whenever, wherever.

Bananas & Peas

Cup

It's almost time to start drinking from a cup. We'd better practice. Evan held his first cup today, and while drinking from it wasn'ta total success, it wasn't a total failure. Some of the water did make it into his mouth...though much of the time the cup was upside down. We'll get better at this!

'Round the Corner

This photo is just so much fun. Evan is sure tracking us around the house. He wants to know where everyone is at all times, and is the cutest thing when he looks around corners or over the edge of the chair to find us or Ernie. His world is getting bigger and bigger as he realizes that we can leave his sight but still exist, and while we may go somewhere for a second, Mommy, Daddy, and Ernie will always come back.

Eating Puffs

At just shy of 8 months, Evan was ready to try Puffs. He loves them, and is getting more and more coordinated when he picks them up. He's becoming such a little man.

Push Ups

Daddy is getting in shape and doing push ups every day. That sounded like a good idea, so Evan got in the game. They both provide a little motivation for the other, and have fun all the while.

Crawling

Evan's moving all around the house now. He's still got the military-style crawl as his go-to move, but he's trying so very hard to stay on his hands and knees. He'll get into the right position, take a "step", then fall flat. His face says it: "I'm working hard!"

Daddy's Day

Today was Daddy's Day. Daddy came back from a trip today, and I got to tell him how much I missed him. We played games, read books, told stories, I gave him presents, and we snuggled. Mommy even made a special dinner so Daddy knows how much we love him! Daddy, you're the Superest Man I know, and I'm glad you're my daddy. I love you, Daddy!

Standing Up

In the last few weeks, Evan's learned to pull himself up from a sitting to standing position. He loves to be up and on his feet! This new musical activity table from Grandma Mary (thanks!!) is the perfect place to practice standing. And look - he can even maintain balance long enough to stand by himself! He was up about a full 20 seconds before gravity took over. But we're continuing to practice. It's just so hard to stand still - with all the fun music, he wants to dance!

Quite the Morning

Editors Note: there is no photo associated with this post. By the time you finish reading, you'll thank me for that.

Mike is in Pittsburgh this weekend for his annual concert trip with the guys. Evan woke at 630, looking for his Paci, which I happily supplied and even more happily went back to bed. He got up again at 830, and I could hear him talking to himself on the monitor. In the few minutes before he'd let me know he was hungry, I got up, let out and fed Ernie, and got Evan's breakfast ready. Evan was still happily chatting to himself, and I was ready for a good morning.

When I opened the door, I could tell right away that something wasn't right. Evan was just too happy, and there was a big dark spot on his sheets. And the room smelled. As soon as I turned on the lights, I knew the morning wasn't going to be quite as happy as I had planned.

During the morning, Evan had done what all babies do, pooed in his diaper. But this was a big poo, and it had overflowed out the top. Since Evan's a curious little fella, and since he's outgrown his one-piece jammies, he decided to reach around and see what this new texture was that was on his back. His hair, shirt, legs, arm, hand, and sheets were covered in poo. There was even poo in his ear! Oye, what a mess! (But he thought it was pretty cool - after all, it's a fun squishy texture.) So I picked him up and carried him, holding him as far away from me as possible (think 90's movie "Three Men and A Baby"), straight to the bath. He got soaped up, rinsed, and soaped again. One more time for good measure... then into new clothes. The bed was changed, his clothes went to soak, and I washed the floor where I had dropped his dirty jammies. Then it was into the shower for me. Finally, we could settle down to a good breakfast, an hour later. He was such a good sport about the whole thing, I just had to laugh...then call Mike and tell him what a big morning he missed.

Mommy's Fave

Mommy just couldn't resist this photo.

Wedding!

Auntie Chrissy got married!

Evan has a new uncle, and couldn't be happier. Jeff & Chrissy's wedding was beautiful, with a beach sunset as the perfect backdrop. Evan got to meet Jeff's niece and nephew and they enjoyed playing together. Everyone was dressed up and family photos on the beach will turn out great. Even though pictures and dinner started way after Evan's bed time, he stayed up very late and didn't miss a moment.

Congratulations, Chrissy & Jeff!!

Gulf of Mexico

While in Naples, we of course had to go to the beach. After slathering on lots of sunscreen (on all of us), we headed for the sand. Evan wasn't too sure about the sand - it's a very different texture than he's ever experienced before - but he was good about trying it. The waves were big that day, but he sat with Daddy in the surf and got wet all the same. He seems to like the pool better, but all in all the ocean wasn't bad.

Airplane Ride!

Evan rode on his first airplane to Florida. He was an absolute champ. We made it through security without a hitch, he loved watching all the people in the airport, and the flight couldn't have been better. It was during nap time, so Evan fell asleep as we were taking off. He slept half of the trip and played the other half. There were three other babies sitting in the rows around us, so they kept each other entertained - Evan loved the 11 month old behind us and they flirted much of the trip. After we got off, I could swear I heard Evan say, "Let's go again!"

My first hotel

We drove to Baltimore Wednesday night for our Thursday morning flight. It's time for Aunt Chrissy's wedding! This was Evan's first hotel, and he did great. The big fluffy bed was so much fun to play on.

Cut the Grass

Daddy was out cutting the grass, and Evan wanted to see what all the fuss was about. So he stationed himself at the door and watched. Ernie took up a post too for a while. It was fun to see Daddy go back and forth. Now our yard looks great - thanks, Daddy!