Checking In

I can't believe November is halfway over already! It has gone by so fast. Before we know it, it'll be Christmas!!! We are just enjoying this nice cool weather. Gabriel loves his time outside, so we spend a lot of time playing in the yard, swinging on the swing, and looking at the leaves and flowers. He's not fond of crawling in the grass though. It's like watching a cat that has tape stuck on its feet; Gabriel will pick up one hand and hold it up high, looking for somewhere to put it (preferably not in the grass), then he'll reluctantly put it down and pick up a foot and hold it up high. It's really cute, but drives Gabriel crazy!

Gabriel is growing in leaps and bounds. He crawls sooooo fast. He can now stand up with support, even if it's just a wall or a curtain. He "cruises" all over the house, which means he's had a couple bruises and scrapes from his new talent. He's getting much more stable and adventurous, and I just know he'll be walking any day now. He can take a couple steps, but only if he is going toward Mama or Daddy and is really excited!

Okay, I have to say that he has learned the cutest trick ever. He's learned how to make Indian noises! As soon as we start to pat his little lips, he opens his mouth and says "Ahhhhh." It's great, and I can't get enough of it. We took a video with the camcorder, but apparently our computer is too old to transfer the video and get a good picture (that's why the videos below are grainy). Jake says we need a new computer, but I've convinced him to wait until after the move. If we are somewhere with a better computer, we'll put the videos up. It may take awhile, but I'll do my best to get it done eventually :(.

Another new thing he's learned is to say "hey." He just says it for fun, not knowing what it means, but it is so great to walk in the room and hear this tiny person say "heyyyy."

As an update about the sleep situation, it's getting better and better. He now sleeps about 8 - 9 hours, then I feed him at 5 a.m. and he'll usually sleep another hour. It's so much better than before, but it's been a long process. Hopefully it'll be easier whenever we get around to having another baby.

That's all for now. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Holidays

Halloween is over, and now I am ready for Christmas!!! Okay, I guess I should at least pretend to celebrate Thanksgiving. Christmastime is my favorite, although I have to admit that I enjoy a good Christmas carol anytime of the year (to Jake's chagrin). Before I get into it full swing, I'll be sure to introduce Gabriel to the joys of Thanksgiving baking. He's a great helper, and I love to see what kinds of messes he can make!

Speaking of Halloween, we had a nice, peaceful Halloween at home. We trick-or-treated next door, and we passed out a few pumpkin cupcakes to a few lucky friends. We even had two trick-or-treaters. That sounds like not many, but sometimes we don't have any here! We were delighted, and those two got as much of our candy as they wanted. Hope they like peanut butter candy! Just so you know, we think Gabriel is the cutest cowboy we have ever seen. We hope you agree!


Most of you know that we'll be moving up to Frederick, Maryland sometime in the near future, so it will be interesting to see where we'll actually be when Christmas does finally come around. As long as I have a tree with lights and ornaments and can listen to Christmas music, I can handle anything! We are really excited about the move, but we are just ready to find out when things will happen. We'll let everyone know as soon as we have more information.

As for Gabriel news, he is growing in leaps and bounds. He took his first step today! He doesn't like to pick up his feet unless he's holding our hands, but he finally decided to try it out. He immediately grabbed for mama, but there was definitely a step he took all by himself. He'll be running around soon, so I am just trying to enjoy this time of limited mobility. He is crawling around everywhere now, but he's slow enough that I can keep up with him and still wash the dishes or do a bit of cleaning. Once he's on his feet, I'll have to figure out a new method of madness!

And to update you on the sleeping thing, it comes and goes. He usually sleeps 6 - 8 hours (usually right at 7), but occasionally wakes at 6 hours and cries until we pick him up, even if that is two hours!!! I don't like it, but that is what my doctor said to do. Hopefully it'll get better with time. He's learned to stand up in his crib, so now it sometimes takes a bit longer for him to get to sleep. Last night he fell asleep immediately, but it took an hour tonight. His crying is a mad cry, not a hunger or hurt cry, so I know he's okay. But I still hate to listen to him so sad and not be able to comfort him. It's a choice between comforting him or getting sleep and being able to function. I'd rather be a better mommy during the day than spoil him at night.

That's all for now. Here are some great pumpkin pictures to help you get in the Thanksgiving spirit!