Veggie Tales, Horse Riding and Treehouse Fun {Oh My!}

Look at me, look at me! I'm posting something TWO days after it happened!! I'm pretty sure for this wanna-be-blogger, that's a record!

This weekend, I decided on my own with absolutely no pressure from my little sister to make a trip down to Houston. We always enjoy our time when we go, but the drive has begun to scare me more and more every time I make it. Don't get me wrong, I (emphasize the "eeeyyyyeee") don't mind the 2 1/2 hour drive at all, it's the company I'm hauling that usually has issues. Blame the babies, right?! ;)

Anyhow, like always we had a pretty good trip. In order to keep things positive, I'm not going to address Reid and Maddie's horrible sleep habits leading to a very restless sleep and a much-too-early rise BOTH nights. Oh wait, did I accidentally mention it? Ooops!

We started off the weekend fun by driving out to Katy and meeting Bob and Larry from Veggie Tales. They are a big favorite in our house and have been since I was in high school. The kids loved them! Reid would not stop cheesing at Larry long enough to face anyone else and take a picture. It was so cute!

That evening Angelica was in her school's Mr. Valentine Pageant. She escorted her friend Caleb and looked beautiful! I was especially proud of her dance skillz! ;)

The next day Maddie got to ride Dancer for a few minutes. Side note: she had woken up Friday morning exclaiming, "I wanna go to Papa and Gelly's house and ride Skit." So to say she was excited about riding the horse would be an understatement.

Our last fun stop of the weekend was to visit the new treehouse that Houston Oaks CC built. I have to admit, it was pretty cool! Maddie's favorite part was the "treehouse potty!" And yes, we both used it. TMI? There's not much need to narrate our whole treehouse experience, so I'll leave you with some pictures that accurately depict the fun we had and then bid you adieu.

 

 

 

 

 

Anyone else feel like they're witnessing a death threat going on in the above left pic?

Reid {9 Months!}

Dear Reid,

"Busy" doesn't even begin to describe how active you are!! Seriously, Dude- you are anywhere and everywhere you aren't supposed to be within a matter of seconds. You have definitely got crawling down to an art. You see where you want to go, lower your head like a charging bull, and off you go! That's one reason why most of your 9 month pictures turned out like this:

I'd set you down on your bear and before I could get even half way ready, you were climbing up my legs to get a close up. I tried so hard, but you won the battle to NOT take a monthly picture sitting in the bear's lap. I guess we'll have to judge this month's growth in a different way. TBH- it makes this OCD mama want to cringe a little that the consistency has ended. I'll start my therapy next week.

On day 1 (yes, there were multiple days of trying to get pictures, don't judge) of the photo shoot, this is as close as I could get you to the bear before you were off to the races. You are so curious and seriously into anything remotely in your reach. Your newest nickname is "Reid the Destroyer," and it's pretty accurate! At Nana's house you knock over the play house daily like the Big Bad Wolf, you've knocked down the basketball goal (bitter you can't dunk yet?) and you knocked over the play kitchen into the wall where there is now a small chunk of wall missing. At some point you're gonna need to tone down the Godzilla impersonations. I don't think even Fisher Price can stand up to your destructive habits!

Some more proof of the above. Step away from the bear. ;) You FINALLY broke a tooth through. One of your bottom pearly whites made its appearance after teething since 2 months old (maybe not quite that long, but it sure seemed that way!) You need as many teeth as you can get too because boy do you like to eat. That has most certainly not changed a bit.

You LOVE to climb and are an expert couch walker! You have a push toy that you love to walk around with. We love your very wide football stance as you walk across the room; it's super cute! We also can't get enough of your sweet, sweet personality! You have an adorable smile and a contagious laugh. It's doesn't take much at all to get you to do either, especially if Big Sister, Madison is nearby. She takes the cake when it comes to entertaining you!

One more thing that you started doing that melts my heart...you've started saying "mama." We weren't quite sure if it was with-purpose at first, but it didn't take long to become pretty clear that you knew exactly what you were saying. I can't get enough of you crawling to me as fast as you can saying, "mama mama mama!" With a call like that and a smile that can brighten up any day, you definitely have us wrapped around your little finger.

We all love you Baby Boy, and thank God every day for blessing us with you!

xoxo,
Mommy

Reid {7 & 8 Months!}

Dear Reid,

I am so sorry this post is so late! You are already 8 months old, and I just can't believe it! It seems like time has started speeding up on me, and, well, I just don't think I'm ok with that! Time, I'm really going to need you to slow down. Thanks!

Can you tell how much you are growing?! It is simply crazy! I guess it's a good survival technique because your big sister can be quite the wrestler. Problem is every time we get on to her for being rough, you start laughing, so I guess there's not too much we can say. Y'all have fun and just try not to get hurt too bad! ;)

You are quite the busy-body. Staying in one place just wasn't good enough for you so you decided it was time to start crawling! You started crawling about a week after you turned 7 months old. I guess you figured where Maddie went, you needed to go to, too! We were relieved at first because we thought it would ease some of your frustrations. You had been wanting to crawl soooo badly for soooo long. Only thing was, the day you started crawling was the day you decided it was time to walk! You were not so happy to find out walking is slightly more difficult. Slow down there, Little Buddy!

You are such a curious little boy. I'm not sure if I've already posted about this but one thing that cracks us up is how animal-like you are. You LOVE shoes, and not in a girly way, in a hmm-I-wonder-what-the-bottom-of-this-nasty-shoe-tastes-like way! I'm serious; you even hunt them down when we think they are completely out of sight. You also like to pull up on the furniture, but not just to practice your football stance, to check out what the knobs or pillows taste like. To say everything goes into your mouth is a serious understatement! And yes- in the above picture, you tasted that sticker, just to get to know it better I guess.

Here are your eight month pictures! It is so amazing watching your little personality coming through. You are sweet, lovable, demanding and destructive...the perfect combination for an adorable baby boy! ;) You are getting soooooooo active. I tried to keep you contained to the bear for your pictures and you basically laughed in my face. We had a talk about being nice to Mommy, but I'm not sure you got the point.

Here you are trying to escape, as you did every. single. time I put you in the bear's lap. Now that you are a master crawler and climber, I guess you think you thinking sitting still is pretty lame. Agreed.

You did appease me by climbing up the bear and attacking its face with kisses, which by the way are so sweet and slobbery! No matter the drool, I love being loved by you!!

You, my sweet Reid, are so much fun and oh so happy! We are so beyond blessed by God to have you in our family. I can't get enough of your smile, your laughter, your scrunchie-nose face, your slobber kisses and your sweet sweet cuddles!

We love you bunches!
xoxo
Mommy

Reid {6 months}

Dear Reid,

Man, time is simply flying by!! I cannot believe that you are already a half a year old! CRAZINESS! We are having so much fun with you and your simply sweet and lovable personality. You are such a blessing to our family!

You are continuing to grow and grow. At your 6th month appointment you weighed in at 18 pounds and measured 26 1/4" long! I guess we aren't going to have a problem with you hitting the 20 pound mark when you turn 1. It appears you are bound and determined to beat Maddie at growing! ;)

You are really starting to jibber jabber. It cracks me up when you are upset, but you aren't quite crying. You just start talking in an angry manner...you'd probably get in trouble for talking to us that way if we had any idea what you were saying. Most of the time though, we get to enjoy you just telling stories and laughing.

You love to eat fruits and veggies, which is apparent from your previous measurements and have actually started getting bored with your bottle. You have been eating about a jar in a half to 2 jars of food a day, but the doc gave us the go ahead to move you to 3 jars a day. I think I heard you let out a shriek of joy when she told us that! ;)

You are so so playful and want so badly to start crawling. You try constantly which usually leads to a carpet face-plant and a few frustrated cries. No worries, buddy...you'll get there in no time!

Thank you so much for letting us love you! We have had so much fun with you! Lots of hugs and kisses!!!

xoxo
Mommy

Reid {5 Months!}

*We are all pretending this was posted a month ago. Thank you for your cooperation!* ;-)

Dear Reid,

You are growing up so fast! 5 months have sped by, and you have completely won over our hearts. You even have Maddie hooked!! She loves you so much, and you absolutely adore her! You even tend to get really cranky when she leaves the room.

You are still such a happy baby! You love to smile at just about anyone who gives you attention, and you love to laugh (we love it too!) I could listen to the sound of your laughter all. day. long! If I could set my alarm with the sound of yours and Maddie's laughter, I would wake up in a good mood every day!

Photo shoots are starting to get harder, especially if Maddie is in the room. You just stare at her no matter what kind of goofy sounds or faces I'm making. I see you've already set your priorities. :-P

You are starting to get more and more active. You do great at tummy time and are trying really hard to hold your bottle. Just a few more muscles and you'll be able to in no time. You are also great at sitting up. Every now and then you take a tumble (or are victim of a little love push from your sister) but once we set you back up you go right back to playing.

You are eating cereal, fruits and veggies very well. You don't care too much for green beans right now, but we'll try them again later. We're praying you're not a picky eater...which according to your current roll count, it's looking like our prayers will be answered. ;)

We love you so much baby boy! I can't to see what you'll be up to next month!

xoxo
Mommy

 

4 Month Comparison

For no other reason than to just take a look back at Maddie and to compare how her and Reid are both similar and unique, here's how they measured up at their 4 month check-ups...

Maddie: 12.9 lbs & 24 1/2" long
Reid: 15.9 lbs & 25 1/2" long

Look soooooo much alike!!

Reid {4 Months!}

Dear Baby Boy,

You are continuing to grow super fast...even though we've talked several times about how I'd like you to slow down a bit! ;) I think you are convinced that you are older than 4 months because you are constantly trying to stand up, hold your bottle and eat like a 4 year old! Some say "chunky" we say "healthy."

That smile is so precious, and thankfully you like to show it off all. the. time. You are such a happy and loveable baby! Hearing you laugh is one of the best sounds in the world, and it is so easy to get you to do it. You especially like to watch your Big Sister and crack up at her, even if she's just sitting there. I guess you kind of like her, and she kind of likes you back! Ok, let's be honest...you guys LOVE each other tons already!!

You are steadily growing. At your 4 month check-up you were 25 1/2" long and 15.9 lbs! So, you are on the tall side and of average weight. That means you are free to keep sucking down those bottles as much as you'd like!!

You have been doing very well with your tummy time, but especially love to show of your legs muscles by standing up. You're going to be walking before we know it! Seriously. Slow down.

You are really starting to take on your own looks and personality! It is so fun to watch you learn and grow every day. It seems like you have my eyes, versus Maddie, who has Daddy's. It's funny how even though you guys look so much alike, you still have your own unique qualities shining through. Your eyes, for one, I think are going to turn brown. They are much darker than your sister's were, who's are blue.

So that's been your month in a nut shell. I did have to start back to work this past month, and it was quite hard leaving you and Madison. I'm so glad to know you are in such good hands! I love you so so much, and I'm looking forward to seeing you continue to grow and learn.

Hugs and kisses!!
<3 p="">Mommy