Our Baby Boy Turns One!

Already! Our sweet Sander is one. He is such a sensitive little guy and so active. He can't decide if he wants to be held all the time or crawl and scale walls. He has been walking holding into things and getting around quite well. Sander has been doing yoga down dogs and looking between his legs while laughing hysterically. This is definitely my favorite trick of his.  It is even better when his sister joins in and we all hurt from laughing afterward. While there are no new exact words such as his "Da-Da" and "Ma-Ma" he has been saying "Deh" and pointing to the dogs when they are around. It is pretty cute. 

He weighs in at 15 pounds 6 ounces and is 29" tall. Long and lean!

Lucy had just gotten over the chicken pox just in time for Sander's 1st birthday bash. Nono and Pop-pop came up to celebrate. We had a good time.

Mama and the birthday boy.

Dada and the birthday boy with sun in his eyes. 

These two!

Nono and Pop-Pop

Lucy spent some time pulling Sander around in a sled in the yard. He giggled and love it. They even went downhill.

Always tapping on things these days.

A pull-bunny from mom and dad.

Proud Bob-Bob and Lyn-Lyn

Playing put-the-rock-in-the-hole together. This actually lasted about ten minutes!

The birthday bunch

A peach-blueberry crisp was enjoyed by all.

6 Months Old!

It's hard to believe that Sander is already 6 months old! I want to push the stop button and enjoy this babyhood for longer. It is such a fun age. Plus, I know this is the calm before the storm. While Sander cannot crawl yet, this baby likes to move. He moves nonstop. I can only imagine what our world will be like when Sander is on the move!

Canute loves these kids so much.

Sibling love.

So Sander now weighs 13 pounds, he is 27.5 inches long and his head is 18 inches. 

He is in the 7th percentile for weight, 70th percentile for length and 85th percentile for head. He has just recently started trying bits of frozen or fresh food in a mesh bag. His latest was blueberries and they were a hit.

Trying some frozen blueberries from Knoll Farm. Sander thought they were delightful.

As you can see Sander was moving too fast to get a clear shot. He flaps his arms around and laughs quite a bit, it's great.

Sander pretty much moves nonstop if he is awake. He also loves to laugh. I think one of Sander's favorite activities is getting put on the changing table (he instantly starts laughing and squealing), getting his clothes and diapers changed, and getting pampered and cleaned up in general. The laughing and squealing is hilarious. We all laugh with him because it is so very contagious. What a fun little guy. He gets frustrated when he is playing and drops something. He loves stuffed animals and has taken to a couple of Lucy's - she actually is really good about letting him play with them.

Inside a round tumbling mat at the gymnastics academy. Lucy asked to have their photo taken.

Yesterday we took a walk down the road, as we do most days, and Lucy came up with a new song. Sander thought it was the best thing he heard all day (as did I) and you can see his reaction below. Having two kids is constant entertainment.

And He Sits...

While at a baby shower for a dear friend today Sander decided to put on a show for all the ladies and sit up for the first time unassisted in the warm sunshine. It was so all of a sudden I was honestly quite surprised. You can see how pleased with himself he is here.

Sander is 5 Month Old!

Our little blondie at 5 months.

So, this is one happy baby! Sander rarely cries, which makes me feel really good. After such a rough start due to tummy troubles it is so fabulous to see our little guy glowing more often than not. Sometimes he tires of being in the car (still, but who doesn't) and sometimes he chomps down really hard on his little pointer finger (which is always in his mouth), or sometimes he is just plain tired (or overtired because he wouldn't go to sleep when mama tried to nurse him but rather he wanted to see what else was going on!)...most of the time he is smiling, laughing or exploring an object with his hands and mouth. Sander has become much more vocal. He makes a sound almost like "mama" but more like "baba" while opening his mouth repeatedly like a fish, very wide and then closed again, and quick. It is super cute. One thing that continues to surprise me about Sander is he would rather sleep on his own in bed than with me wearing him - unless we are out for a walk. This is very different than what I am used to. Most days he gets put down for one nap in bed and at night I am able to just put him in bed until we crawl in next to him later on.

Mama tried to take a photo of Sander while wearing him and using a huge heavy SLR camera. 

Sleeping peacefully.

The finger is a favorite these days.

The above is a very mild-mannered chomping session. Sander is so orally-oriented it is hilarious. If anyone's skin comes near him, especially a finger, he grabs at it and sticks it in his mouth. He sucks on arms, shoulders and cheeks. This has been going on for the last month. Luckily he is just as enamored with toys. He especially likes frozen breast-milk or ice inside a mesh bag to chomp on.

Some more of that sister love.

Sander has been sitting up really well against pillows! He only rolls over if he is trying to get at something, like his foot which he seems to enjoy chewing on. His arms and legs are always flapping around so much with excitement, it is amazing.

Fall Family Fun

Our morning view during breakfast.

It has been a beautiful fall and we have been very busy doing things together.

Day after day has brought sunshine, warmth and stunning colors. All we want to do is be outside!

My view of Sander while wearing him in the ergo (on our property).

To celebrate my 36th birthday I decided I wanted all of us to go apple picking together at Shelburne Orchards. It was so much fun. We picked 50lbs of apples in no time! Lucy loved picking apples and almost couldn't stop. Our bags were full.

Orchard eating.

My loves.

Lucy pleased with the day.

Late night applesauce making together. Smiling and having fun with mama.

The next day we went to the property to keep Matt company and do a little bit of work.

My first time wearing Sander on my back. Work had to be done on the property.

I moved and hauled 8 carts of wood chips and little people too. It was a fun day.

Sander relaxing on the property during lunch.

It is pumpkin patch season and being the nerd that I am, we just had to go to a pumpkin patch with our little ones. It was a small, quiet and simple farm with an antique tractor hayride.

Lucy loved the hayride. She chose this pumpkin out of the patch.

Matt and Lucy in pumpkin land.

Sander enjoyed the hayride too.

The Sweetness of Four Months Old!

This little guy makes my heart melt.

So Sander has reached what I believe to be a very delightful age of 4 months old. It's so fun right now! He can't crawl or speak, doesn't have teeth coming in, and he is so full of giggles and cuteness that it hurts sometimes.  For instance, he'll be crying or pouting (you know that pout) while putting him in his car seat because he still has a huge aversion to it and then instantly laughing and cooing after I smile and tell him it's going to be OK, we just have a short drive. He started laughing over and over again tonight after I gave him a bath and was rubbing coconut oil all over him. It was so darn cute! He's a truly happy little guy. Oh and he weighs abut 11 lb 13 oz now and is 24" long with a head circumference of 16". Official weigh in is next week.
Update: at 4 months and 10 days Sander weighs 12 pounds 2oz and is 25" long! Head is 16".

He breaks into giggles and laughs so often.

Classic.

Well, if this isn't a good place to lounge in the evening...