7 Months, etc.

So I neglected to take a 7 month picture of Calvin, so these will have to suffice. Above is what I wanted to be on our Christmas cards, but Cal didn't exactly cooperate, nor did I get cards made and sent out, so this is it!

Many thanks to Grandma Lori for watching Mitch while Cal and I were in California for Thanksgiving, and for staying an extra few days to see us and help me re-sleep train Calvin. (Thanksgiving in CA was wonderful, but I have no pics- sorry!)

Calvin dressed to the nines for church in an outfit from Grandma Shafer.

And all dressed up for a cold Cal football game, thanks to Grandpa Shafer!

A quick review of Calvin from the last month: he's learning to sit up, though he doesn't particularly enjoy practicing; his "tooth" decided it wasn't ready to come in after all and has decided to recede back down into his gums; he loves to babble- bababababa, and today he figured out how to make a high-pitched whining noise that is the most annoying sound I think I've heard; he's beginning to eat much better- he even expressed visible excitement about a meal the other day- shocking; if he's in the mood, he'll roll around on the floor so much that it's only the furniture or walls that are stopping him- I put him down and come back two minutes later and he's 10 feet away; he's starting to scoot a little bit more to get toys (favorites are keys and a wooden circle rattle).

Calvin makes me laugh many times each day, and I can't believe how fast he's changing. I love how ready to smile he always is, and that I can look at his face and see his daddy more and more every day.

6 Months

Happy six months to Calvin, my happy boy. I can't believe we've already made it half a year, all of us still alive, and not knowing what we're doing.

As you can see by the blurs, Cal is always moving. Even when the rest of him is still, his feet will be moving in circles or rubbing against one another. He is starting to learn how to give kisses, smile for the camera, and roll to where he wants to go. He loves looking at Mitch (our dog), and loves it even more when Mitch licks him.

Cal likes to chew on the leaves he picks from the trees when we go on a walk, suck/munch on any of his fingers or toes, and he goes berserk for paper- the program at church, junk mail, etc. His tooth is taking its sweet time coming in- it's still just a speck. Eric was sporting some facial hair when he was home this past weekend, and Calvin couldn't get enough of it- all he wanted to do was touch his daddy's face.

My efforts of getting Calvin to eat more has paid off! He has gone from the 3rd percentile for weight to the...6th! He weighs in at 14 pounds 12 ounces, and he's almost 27 inches long (61st percentile). I will continue to stuff him with food and see where we land in 3 months.

Happy 1/2 year birthday Calvin!

Snow

Last weekend my family was able to come into town for a short visit, and they brought us a coffee table (above) and end table that Dad made for us for our family room. They are beautiful! It was also nice to have lots of company- Cal and I get lonely sometimes, so visits are more than welcome.

Here's Cal surrounded by his toys during playtime.

It snowed last night! Calvin had his first taste of the cold white stuff this morning. I think he liked it.

We decided to go for a walk, but it was freezing (literally), so I had to bundle Calvin up in the Burley. I think there are a total of six blankets on top of him, which he promptly kicked off.

I think Cal's favorite thing about the changing of the seasons has been the birds. There are lots of geese and many other birds always flying in groups in the sky, and Calvin thinks he has to see all of them, so he's always craning his neck in every direction to catch as many as possible. I love it.

5 Months

Happy 5 month birthday Calvin! To celebrate, we went swimming at the local rec center. We went a couple times last week, and he loves it.

Other favorites: Mom's lemon yogurt, water, smiling at anyone wearing glasses, laughing when he gets tickled or overly-tired, going jogging with Mom in the mornings, standing with support, splashing EVERYWHERE in the bathtub, flames (he loves to stare at lit candles), and, of course, his feet.

Things he does NOT like: prunes, having his nose sucked out or even just wiped, going for walks in his stroller (he squirms and arches his back until he's half falling out), and napping.

Other changes/improvements: sleeping (last night he slept through the night except for a quick diaper change- he woke up a couple of times but talked for about 5 minutes then dozed back off), his first tooth, and riding in the car (if he's not talking up a storm, he's most likely sound asleep).

Calvin loves having lots of people around to look at, and will smile for anyone who shows him the least bit of attention. He's a wonderful kid and we hope he keeps on being his happy self.

Brrrrr...

We had a cold snap here in Utah over the weekend, so in order to go out we had to bundle up. This is another one of Calvin's hats that Grandma Shafer made- it fits perfectly and kept Cal nice and warm for our walk.

Chocolate

I decided to share my fudgesicle with Cal after his dinner, and I think we found his new favorite food. He was on a pretty good sugar-high for about 15 minutes after, but he loved it.

Feet Obsession

This is the position in which I usually find Cal- with his feet up by his face. It doesn't matter where he is: floor, carseat/stroller, crib, bouncy seat, my lap, etc. I heard sucking noises the other day and thought he had found some fingers, but he was happily slurping on his big toe. When we go to the store and he's sitting in his carseat in the front of the cart, his favorite thing is when I "eat" his little feet. Anything to keep shopping enjoyable.

Mango!

Yesterday Calvin tried mango for the first time and loved it. Perhaps too much. I put it in his mesh feeder (his first time using it), but his mouth is just too small for him to really get everything, so everytime I took it away to push more mango to the end where he could get it, he had a complete breakdown. I think for our next mango experience we'll have to take a different approach, as well as cover Cal in a plastic bag- he managed to get mango juice everywhere, including his feet.

Hat

It's starting to be chilly in the mornings now, so I decided Cal needed a hat before we went to play ball with Mitch. I found the one that Grandma Shafer made for him. It fit perfectly and I thought he looked pretty cute in it. Thank you Grandma Shafer!

Grandma & Great-Grandma Bryan Visit

We were so lucky yo have Eric's mom & grandma come visit last week. While they were here we rode on the Heber Creeper (above: at the train station)...

...riding the train...

...and at the rest stop at Vivian Park. Cal loved it all, except the train whistle.

Cal with Great Grandma Bryan.

We also went to the gardens at Thanksgiving Point, which were beautiful. Thank you for coming, and come again soon!

4 Months

Well, Calvin has made it to his four month birthday. He had his doctor appointment this morning, and here are his stats: length is 26 inches (75th percentile), and weight is 12 lbs 7 oz (3rd percentile). So he's pretty much just a tall, skinny little boy (though I think he looks just perfect).

Peas!

Eric and I decided to give Cal some real food last night, so peas it was. He's not so great at sitting up in his chair yet, so he ended up leaning way over.

So we transferred him to his carseat. He wanted to help Dad with the spoon.

Eric needed to make sure Cal had a proper example of how to open his mouth.

Then if Dad slowed down, Cal had to let him know that was unacceptable and that he needed to speed things up. Overall I think it was a good experience- I figure if Cal likes the peas, he's sure to like pretty much anything else we give him.

Silver Lake

On Saturday we decided to drive up American Fork Canyon and visit Silver Lake. It was beautiful scenery and beautiful weather.

On our way back home we stopped by Sundance to walk around and get some dinner. A perfect day with my boys.

New Chair

I left Cal alone to roll around on the floor for awhile, and after a few minutes it got really quiet, so I went to check on him and found him just laying on his belly sucking his thumb.

We received Cal's new chair in the mail yesterday, and he seems to like it! He sits up in it pretty well already, but for only a limited amount of time. Hopefully within the next few weeks he'll get better so we can start him on some solids!

Rolling Over

Some pictures of Cal rolling over. He can go both ways- back to belly and belly to back. He is getting better at it every day, but only really likes to do it if he's completely naked.

Fun Times

Calvin has discovered his lower lip and is it ever tasty! He loves breezes at the park, taking walks through the neighbors' sprinklers, drooling, scooting on his back, humming, playing with Mom in front of the mirror, putting his vibrating bird toy against his face, splashing in the bath, wrestling with his giraffe, and books. He received a new book from G & G Shafer in the mail last week, and everytime we finished and I put it down he immediately started crying. So we read it over and over and over. And over. We are now having to read every book at least twice. It's a great way to pass the time and quickly memorize board books.

3 Months

Calvin made it to 3 months! His big accomplishment for the day was rolling over for the first time. He loves to fold himself in half and put his toes in his mouth, and play peek-a-boo. He even laughed for the first time this past week. Next on the checklist: napping longer than 45 minutes. We love you Cal!

Eric

Eric is officially a lineman! While Cal and I were in California, he finished his hot hours- yay! He has worked so hard for the past few years toward this goal, so we are incredibly proud of him. We appreciate how hard he works and what a wonderful husband & daddy he is (I especially enjoyed coming home from a trip to a spotless house with not one but two boquets of flowers waitingg for me). We love you!!

California

Cal and I were able to visit Grandma & Grandpa Shafer in California for a couple of weeks. William (above), Jenny & Ben, and Jacob, John & Kristen were also there for Calvin to meet for the first time. It was wonderful to see everyone!

While we were there, Calvin started reaching and grabbing toys (YAY!), so Grandma Shafer bought him a play gym which he loves.

Grandpa Shafer babysat one evening so we could go to a play. It was rough.

All Calvin wanted to do was play, eat, and sleep with Grandma.

Other highlights: the goldfish, farmers markets, putting siding on the shed, and Cal's first cold & plane ride.

It was so much fun we hope to visit again in a few months!

2 Months

Cal made it to his two month birthday! Eric dressed him in a onesie from Aunt Jenny in New York- thank you, though I'm not sure he'll be able to fit in it again!

In honor of Cal making it to two months, he got to go to the doctor and get his immunizations. He was a champ though- he only fussed for about an hour later that afternoon and decided to nap for the rest of it. The doctor said he's a small little guy- 10 pounds 1 ounce, 22 3/4 inches, but to mee it feels like he's grown a ton over the last several weeks. We'll have to see what we can do to chunk him up before the next doctor's visit.

Calvin

One of Calvin's favorite thing to do is blow bubbles...

...while kicking in his bouncy chair. He'll sit and do that for sometimes 20 minutes at a time. I think I love it as much as he does.

Crib

This past weekend Calvin was blessed at church, so Grandma & Grandpa Shafer were able to come visit and bring Cal's crib! It is beautiful- thank you Grandpa!

Thumb Sucking

During our daily tummy time, Cal seems more interested in licking his hand rather than lifting his head, but today it paid off- he found his thumb! Needless to say, all point of tummy time after that was lost.

Good Baby

Calvin continues to amaze me- he is such a good baby! This is a picture I took yesterday- I set him down for a couple of minutes so I could do something on the computer, and he promptly fell asleep. He's a great sleeper (he sleeps at least 6 hours during the first stretch) at night, and takes several short catnaps throughout the day. He cries only about once a day, usually right after his bath when he's cold and tired, but it lasts maybe two minutes at most. I make sure to thank him everyday for being so good, and encourage him to keep it up!