Dayton: 8 Months

Fall has been such a wonderful time for our little family. Dayton, watching you grow and learn is easily the most fun part!

We think you weigh about 20 lbs right now. We will get an official weight and length at your 9 month check up.

We started your photo shoot off with a bang.

I then bribed you with Happy Baby Green Puffs.

Here's what you've been up to this month:

-You've started giving Mama lots and lots of kisses

-Baby Votes! You joined mama in voting at our local election

-You took your first big boy bath in the tub -sitting up and with lots of fun toys

-You celebrated your first Halloween answering the door with Mama and Daddy

-First Tooth. Your lower left tooth popped through on November 16th after a couple of painful days with you.

-WORDS. Our hearts are so full! You have said and continue to say Dada (Nov 28th) and Mama (Nov 29th). Dada did come first and we consider it your first word, but you are saying both with such glee. Not quite sure the association is 100%, but you know they're important to say. We can't wait to see what comes next!

-You are suddenly a dog lover and are constantly looking for Toby and Jemmy. You want to know what they're doing all the time and feed them when you get the opportunity.

-You celebrated your first Thanksgiving while your Mama hosted her first Thanksgiving. It was quite the weekend.

Here are a few more pictures from your fun-filled month:

We love you sweet and silly boy!

Mama

Hosting Thanksgiving

I hosted my first Thanksgiving and did not die! And I did it with a baby on my hip -quite literally. It was a small, but wonderful gathering of family and friends. Friends? Coworkers to be exact. Well, foreign coworkers to be even more exact. If that is possible. My aim was to produce a thanksgiving meal they would remember positively and an afternoon/evening that would be full of easy conversation.

If we remember back to one of my very first posts (here), it was to use this home we've been blessed with to bless others. So as we opened our home to family and friends, this was again our goal -that our Heavenly Father be glorified through our hospitality.

So about my coworkers, one is from Spain and the other is from Mexico. Neither of them had ever celebrated Thanksgiving to my knowledge. This made for a day of firsts. I so enjoyed their help cooking. We all carved the turkey together. Everyone pitched in as Josh carved and his Grandma gave great instructions. I was trying to make sure the gravy was finished at the same time. It was beautiful, turkey day chaos!

Then we sat down and enjoyed the food, discussion about the history of Thanksgiving (Who actually does this? It was kind of fun and I want to implement talking about why we celebrate each year.) and what each other were thankful for this year.

Here's the menu from our special day:
Roasted Turkey (Fisher Hill Farm)
Mashed Potatoes
Giblet Gravy
Salad
Cornbread Dressing
Green Bean Casserole
Potato Rolls (recipe from The Kitchn)
Honeyed Cranberry Sauce with Kumquats (Nourishing Traditions)
Apple Pie
Pumpkin Pie

Not only did we have excitement because of our special guests, but it was also Dax's first Thanksgiving! We think he was pretty cute! Here are pictures of him and our fun day.

We couldn't be more thankful this holiday season!

Stephanie

Baby's First Halloweeny!

We had such a wonderful little first Halloweeny with our Dax-man! He dressed up as a fox (something I chose LONG before the song!). It was the cutest little hoodie set from Target. I loved it most of all because it was just that, a hoodie and sweatpants. No crazy face mask and polyester to smother my (already a space heater) baby.

Josh suggested we watch a movie while answering the door again this year. In previous years, it has always been Harry Potter. This year we decided it needed to be baby friendly. We hung out, ate chili, watched our movie and waited for the door to ring. We had about 15-20 kids over the course of night (a little low due to the rain). They all loved Dax and he loved them. His little arms and legs wouldn't stop moving when he saw them.

We loved seeing all the costumes, chatting with neighbors and enjoying another opportunity to connect with the awesome families on our little street.

Here are a few pictures -daddy was behind the camera.

Stephanie

Dayton: 7 Months

Dayton, you are charming the pants off of everyone you meet! Mommy and Daddy can't handle your cuteness! Thank you for being our sweet, sweet boy! You're getting so big -you look less and less like our little newborn baby. Tear.

Here's a look at what you've been up to this past month:
-You tried so many new foods: banana (both mashed and whole -by far your favorite food, black beans, pears, eggs, pumpkin, acorn squash, sweet potato)
-You went on your first hike in the Finger Lakes
-Went to the pumpkin patch with Mommy and Daddy
-We are still working on your baby sign language skills
-You love for Mommy and Daddy to play peek-a-boo and tickle time -that little belly laugh is infectious
-You're a pro sitter and you play with your little keyboard long enough for mommy to get the dishwasher unloaded
-Toby has piqued your interest -you want to know where he is if you hear him even when eating or nursing
-Kicking your legs on your mattress, the floor, your changing table and against the high chair is your favorite way to make lots of noise

Love you little bunny!

Mama

Our Little Pumpkin

After church this morning, we made our way over to Green Acre Farms in Greece. We caught some really great pictures of Dayton with the pumpkins and also came home with yummy Cortland apples!

Stephanie