The McDannell Family

B-I-G

2011-10-24T21:17:00.003-04:00

Logan turned six months on October 13th and we had his doctor's appointment a few days later. I had a sneaky suspicion that he was going to measure on the large size since he is currently wearing 12 and 18 months clothes. The kid did not disappoint! Check out his numbers...

Head- 18 1/2 inches (off the charts)

Length - 29 1/2 inches (off the charts)

Weight - 20 lbs 4 oz (90%...slacker!)

With working at the Y, subbing more, and keeping up with the boys, the days are going by so quickly. I've been wanting to write Logan's six month update for two weeks and finally I decided to let the clothes stay unfolded for another day so I can write about life with our sweet baby boy.

After only six months, it's already hard to imagine a time without Logan. This guy is not only big in size, but also in personality. All you have to do is look at him and you will see his big round cheeks turn upwards as he flashes his great big smile. Here are some of his current favorites: eating in his high chair (not a fan of peas though), reaching for toys, rolling over and over to get to something fun to explore, drinking milk, being tickled, and watching his big brother play.

There are so many amazing things about having two kids. I absolutely love watching then interact with each other. Henry gets so excited when he makes Logan smile. And I can already tell that Logan thinks Henry is he coolest thing on earth. But the one thing I didn't anticipate about being a mom of two is one feeling in particular...GUILT. I don't think I really knew what the word meant until just recently. I've always been very good at time management, but now I struggle with balancing my time between the two and giving Logan the same opportunities I was able to give Henry, which I know is somewhat impossible now. Working part time is great for the extra cash, but not so much for my feelings of guilt. To feel better, I remind myself that Logan is lucky he will always have his big brother around to play with and learn from.

Logan has grown so much (developmentally and in size!) over these last six months. I'm excited to see what these next six months bring and I'm hopeful they won't go by as quickly as the first six!

(sorry no picture tonight. I'm writing this on the iPad and I'm not sure how to post one from here and I think I've exceeded my "free time" so I'll figure that out another day).

Birthday Bash #2

2011-09-19T21:19:00.003-04:00

September 4th Henry turned three. I'm not sure how that happened. Just the other day he was learning to crawl and using baby sign language to communicate. Before having kids I would hear parents talk about how time flies and how their kids are growing up before they eyes. I didn't truly understand this until a few weeks ago. It really blows my mind that my baby isn't a baby at all anymore. I'm absolutely having a blast right now watching Henry's personality really come out. I just wish we could slow down time a little.

Henry is a very sweet three year old. Occasionally he needs a time out here and there, but for the most part is really well behaved. He LOVES books and to be read to before "quiet" time and bedtime. Henry can play independently especially when cars or Buzz Lightyear are involved. I love watching him play and hear what his imagination comes up with next. Each day he is more loving toward his little bro. Watching that relationship grow is such a thrill.

Here are some pictures from Henry's birthday. We had "Pizza Planet" cater lunch and I made my mom's famous mint ice cream cake (Henry's choice, of course). He partied so hard all weekend that on our way over to my parent's house for dinner, he fell asleep and was out for the rest of the night. Poor guy didn't even eat dinner on his birthday, but I think he still had a good day and felt special so my mission was accomplished!

PreParty

2011-09-19T13:55:00.003-04:00

The day before Logan's baptism we had a pre-party for those who came in town that day. After dinner we enjoyed another night around the fire pit. Henry wasn't too sure about the flames, but he eventually got close enough to roast a marshmallow or two. He still needs a lot of practice before he masters the art of roasting the perfect marshmallow. His attention span is great, but not quite great enough to be still long enough for roasting. I'm not complaining about more roasting marshmallow time!

Logan's Baptism

2011-09-14T15:20:00.005-04:00

September 3rd we celebrated Logan's baptism. We had family and friends in town to help us welcome Logan into the Catholic church. Somehow Logan squeezed into the same outfit Henry wore on his baptism (not buttoning all most of the bottons helped out). Logan's godmother is my sister, Kathleen, and his godfather is Todd's friend, Mike. Although Logan won't remember the ceremony or the after party, we'll be sure to tell him how much love surrounded him on that day. Thank you to everyone for coming to help us celebrate!

Birthday Bash Part 1

2011-09-10T09:39:00.004-04:00

We have been doing a whole lot of celebrating lately. First, we had Henry's friend birthday party and then last weekend we had a baptism party for Logan and a family birthday party for Henry. Here are some pictures from party #1. I had a lot of fun putting it together for Henry. This year I asked him what kind of party he wanted. For the longest time I thought he would want a truck party, but when I asked him he requested a "Buzz Lightyear" party. Soon after Logan's arrival, my first guilty feelings of sharing my time with the two boys really hit hard. To do something fun with Henry (and still stay close to home for Logan) we started watching the Toy Story movies together. And that is when Henry's love all things Toy Story began.

Fabulous Four

2011-08-17T08:59:00.007-04:00

Logan turned four months on the 13th of August. We have definitely hit a turning point. Those hard first few months are behind us and we are left with the most adorable laid back four month old. Logan smiles a lot these days and has already rolled over from both his belly and his back. His favorite things include putting his fingers in his mouth, watching his big bro run around the house, and play with his cute little "toesies." Considering his massive growth in just two months, eating is on the top of his favorite things list.

Here are his numbers:
Head: 17 1/2 inches
Height: 27 1/2 inches (up nearly three inches from 2 months!)
Weight: 16 lbs 7 oz (over three pounds more than at 2 months)

No surprise that he is in the 90% for all three areas.

Here are some pictures from the past few weeks.

Our Number One Fan

2011-07-28T09:04:00.011-04:00

Since Todd's last post about the Reigh's visit and Dutch Wonderland, our site has had some major traffic. Well, really there has just been one sweet little girl who just can't get enough of watching Henry going around and around on the rides. In honor of our blog's number one fan, here are some pictures of Henry with his favorite NC gal.

PS Christine, we'll try to limit all other super fun videos of Henry to under 5 minutes for your sake! Miss you! And hope we can get together soon! I have a feeling Santa might bring Elly a trip to Dutch Wonderland this year (feel free to not read that last part aloud to Elly).

A visit from Alaska!

2011-07-13T07:59:00.004-04:00

Jenny's sister recently visited from Alaska. It was a great couple weeks of fun with family and Henry really enjoyed playing with his cousins. Watching them all interact made us really wish they were closer but we know they love it up in Alaska. Between playing in the yard, tackling uncle Todd, running around at Dutch Wonderland, the kids all got their share of fun over the last couple weeks. Enjoy the pix and video.

Help!

2011-06-20T17:54:00.004-04:00

For the past few months (yes, months!) Henry has been resisting his nap. It started off as him just quietly reading a book in bed or playing with his blanket for the duration of "nap time," but has recently become a battle to keep him in bed for even just a "quiet" time. He has become quite good at procrastinating as he often asks for "little bit of water" or he says "Mommy, come get me" and he knows I can't ignore "Mommy, come change my diaper."

At first I thought I should push back nap time, nope that didn't work. Then I thought, ok, I'll make sure he is really tired by taking him outside to play, nada. Lastly, my thought was he must be out growing this nap thing. Well, once dinner rolls around and he is literally falling asleep at the table, I know his little body still needs some day time sleeping.

This afternoon around 5:00 he was eating a snack (and falling asleep). I tried to wake him up by switching to another activity, but when he was still falling asleep I asked if he wanted to lay down on the couch for a little bit. Surprisingly he said yes and even more surprisingly he fell asleep immediately. I really don't want him sleeping now (bedtime should be interesting), but I just can't figure out how to make him sleep at the right time these days! And what is even more frustrating is if I was given the chance to sleep everyday for two hours, I would take it! I sure do miss my sleep these days!

Any suggestions would be highly appreciated!

Two Months

2011-06-13T21:17:00.003-04:00

It's hard to believe Logan is two months old! I took him to his two month check up today. He is doing right on track with his cooing and smiling. His slightly lopsided head shows his preference to one side so our homework is to give him more tummy time. Hopefully Logan won't start resisting homework this early on in life.

Here are his measurements this month:

Head: 16 1/3

Height: 24 1/4

Weight: 13 lbs 4 oz (same as Henry at two months)

Not surprisingly, Logan is in the 90th percentile for all three measurements.

Photo Shoot

2011-05-17T09:37:00.002-04:00

One would think with a toddler and a newborn, there would be plenty of adorable pictures of the two together. Well after two attempted photo shoots with my fellas, I have realized getting them both to look on camera as cute as they are in real life, is not an easy task. One that I will be leaving up to the professionals in the future. Here are a couple of the best of the worsts (and believe me, there were plenty to pick from)!

Thank you Aunt Kathleen!

2011-05-16T18:08:00.004-04:00

Two weekends ago, my sister, Kathleen pretty much saved my sanity. I can't thank her enough for coming up here to help me with my two boys and Riley. I'm not sure if it was pregnancy brain or lack of a brain with a newborn in the house, but I gave Todd the go ahead to travel to Jamaica for a friend's wedding just three weeks after Logan's arrival. So I was home alone with the boys Thursday and most of Friday (until my savior arrived at around 8:00). While I was dealing with lack of sleep, crying, diapers, and a toddler who needed more attention, I completely regretted my decision to let Todd go (He insisted he would stay behind, but I was the one who kept saying to go...crazy me!), but as soon as my special helper arrived, I knew we were going to survive the weekend and I was glad Todd wasn't going to miss out on such a special day for his friend, Clev. In fact, we more than survived the weekend. We had our first public outing with Logan which was to Target, of course. It was a wonderful visit with "Aunt Kafleen" and I hope she comes up again to hang out! One bonus to letting Todd go on a tropical vacation without me and the kids (on Mother's Day weekend no less) is I should be able to win any discussions about what we want to do for the next several weekends or better yet, months! Plus, I'm planning on a trip with all my friends to St. Lucia for Father's Day weekend. well, not really, but a girl can dream!

Clev and Jen, sorry I missed your awesome wedding weekend! Believe me, wish I could have been there! But can't wait to celebrate with you sometime soon!

One Month

2011-05-16T12:42:00.003-04:00

We had Logan's one month appointment today. He only had one shot which he was not a fan of. I'm already dreading his two month appointment where he will get more shots. Logan came into this world at 8 lbs 11 oz and one month later he is weighing in at 11 lbs 5 oz. I'm quite proud of this accomplishment since it seems all I have done for the past thirty days is feed Logan (and change many diapers). He was 20 1/2 inches at birth (although the nurses measuring didn't agree so we aren't too confident that measurement was accurate) and today he is 23 1/4 inches. Logan is in the 95% for height and weight (no big shocker there). Now that Logan is getting bigger I am hopeful that he'll start sleeping more at night!

Easter 2011

2011-04-27T13:44:00.001-04:00

So far Logan and I have left the house twice. Once for his first doctor's visit. At the visit we were thrilled to find out he has already passed his birth weight and I was even more thrilled to hear I didn't have to wake him at night to feed him anymore. Although he is waking up about every three to four hours on his own. I love the newborn snuggles, but not the newborn feeding schedule :)

The second time we left the house was to spend Easter day at my parents. It was a beautiful day and if felt great to enjoy the fresh air and the wonderful meal was a big bonus, too. Before heading over to my parent's house, Henry followed a trail of hershey kisses. He was giggling as he picked up each clue, but when he got to the end of the trail that ended in front of a closet door, he was very afraid to open the door. He thought he would find the actual Easter Bunny hiding in the closet. Eventually I had to pick inside to assure him there wasn't a bunny, but instead a basket just for him.

Here are some pictures of our first holiday as an expanded family.

Henry and Logan

2011-04-27T12:08:00.003-04:00

A lot of people have asked us if we think Logan looks like Henry did when he was born....

We'll let you decide...

Henry

Logan

Henry getting ready to go home

Logan getting ready to go home

Logan Todd

2011-04-27T11:43:00.005-04:00

On April 13th we welcomed our newest member of the family into the world. Logan Todd arrived three days past my due date at 1:13 in the afternoon weighing in at 8 lbs 11 oz and 20 1/2 in. Now each April 13th we will be celebrating both Logan's and my brother's birthdays. After waiting for him to arrived which seemed like forever, it was so amazing to finally meet him. Those first moments of his life are just too surreal to put into words. This time around we were more in the moment which meant less pictures, but I think we still were able to capture the magical time with some photos.

During the first week home we were so fortunate to have a ton of help from our family. Todd's parents were with us for our first weekend home and completely took care of us. I felt so spoiled to be able to solely take care of myself and little Logan. Also, it was so wonderful for Logan to meet his cousin and aunts and uncle. I'm finally able to write this post thanks to my parents who are watching Henry for me today. He has been so wonderful while we all adjust to life with a newborn. I'm pretty sure he was thrilled to get out of the house and spend time with Nonna and Pop without a screaming baby.

Here are some of the pictures from our first days with our expanded family.

Chef Henry

2011-02-21T21:30:00.005-05:00

Lately Henry has really enjoyed helping me to cook. We recently made a carrot cake for Valentine's Day and Henry especially loved putting the cream cheese frosting on the cake and loved licking the frosting off the spatula even more (don't worry, the licking occurred after we were done icing the cake).

Didn't look the prettiest, but it was tasty!

Today Henry's specialty was Belgium waffles for breakfast and smiley face pizzas for lunch He has been wanting to try out the new pizza recipe ever since checking it out in one of his High Five magazines. Today was the big day and he had a blast making the faces and piling on the mini pepperonis.

Before

After

Time for Travel

2011-02-03T14:25:00.003-05:00

As we get closer to "Duece's" arrival, we wanted to visit with friends and family before we are officially in the no travel zone. A few weeks ago, we traveled to Brooklyn to spend some QT with Uncle Clev and Jenn. Henry loved seeing the city and even got to bowl for the very first time.

The following weekend, we traveled to D.C. to see Uncle Mike, Aunt Jeannine, and cousin Colin. We had hopes to see my cousin, Tracy, from California, but the airlines had different plans. Bummer! I hope Henry's uncomfortable look below isn't foreshadowing how he'll feel when his baby brother arrives. He is actually really into his cousin and hopefully next time we visit he won't have the sniffles so he can actually give the little man a hug.

After D.C. we drove up to Baltimore to see Aunt Kathleen and check out the aquarium. As you can see Henry couldn't take his eyes off all the fun sea life especially the dolphins!

I'm not sure when or where our next road trip will take us, but we will be a family of four (five, really when you count our first born, Riley, the best dog ever). And I couldn't be more excited about that!

Thank you, Dr. Seuss

2011-01-24T20:41:00.007-05:00

We had a moment tonight in the McDannell household. Each night Henry cleans up his toys before heading upstairs for "night night" time. Tonight Henry decided after putting his toys away, it was time to read a book. As Todd and I left the playroom, we heard Henry say, "Hop on Pop by Dr. Seuss." I peeked back into the room and saw Henry sitting on his little stool and flipping through the pages while he "read" the book. Todd and I both looked on while Henry turned each page and "read" Dr. Seuss' rhymes. I'm not sure if it was the pregnancy hormones, the fact that my favorite part of teaching first grade was teaching students to read, or if it was seeing my baby act like such a big boy, but tonight's moment made me more proud than I could describe. While Henry was "reading" he knew he missed a few pages and even said, "I missed a page" and then went back to look for his missing page. Eventually, Henry noticed he had an audience of two parents with very big smiles on their faces. We told him how proud we were of him for reading his book. Then Todd reread the book to Henry while I wiped the tears of happiness away. Thank you, Dr. Seuss, for making such wonderful books that inspire even the youngest to pick up a book and read!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-28T13:43:00.004-05:00

We had a blast celebrating Christmas with friends and family both in Virginia and Pennsylvania over the past week and a half. Henry was completely spoiled by his grandparents, aunts, uncles, and Santa this year. Over the past month or so his only request from Santa were stilts and an umbrella. Both typical of toddlers, right? Well, lucky for Henry, he has been a very good boy this year and his Christmas wishes were granted....

Here is a video of Henry getting his last Christmas present. The video is a little long, but thought it was a good one to post anyway.

Big Boy Bed

2010-12-02T14:33:00.003-05:00

It's hard to believe that my baby is really turning into a big boy right before my eyes. One major step past babyhood is moving into a big boy bed and saying good bye to the cozy crib. We are right in the middle of this transition. Henry helped Todd paint his new room (Baby McDannell will be moving into Henry's old room in April). After painting, we set up his bed and then he immediately asked to start reading books in his room. So before and after waking in the morning and for nap, we curl up together on his bed and read through his books. Naturally, his next request was to actually sleep in his new bed. I was thinking we'd wait a little longer for that big step, but Henry had other ideas (toddler with opinions....who knew!). Yesterday I took the plunge and let Henry nap in his new room for the first time. Since our baby gates aren't up, yet, I stood guard upstairs while I waited, and waited, waited for Henry to finally fall asleep. After over two hours, I almost gave up, but he did finally take a nap. Unfortunately, our intense guard dog sensed danger (probably a squirrel running across the yard) and began barking which woke up my slumbering child a little too early. Nonetheless, Henry successfully slept in his big boy bed. I'm happy to report that Henry is currently sleeping soundly upstairs for the second day in a row and this time around it took him less than an hour to fall asleep. I spoke with Riley about no barking during nap time and after I handed him a bone, he seemed to understand my request.

Once we install blackout curtains (this room gets lots of light) and the baby gate at the top of the steps, Henry will be officially moved into his big boy room. I think knowing a little one is on the way, is making this transition a little easier on me! Henry sure is ready for the move. Todd and I caught Henry in the act of trying to escape out of his crib this morning. I guess he is trying to tell us something!

It's a ...

2010-11-22T20:46:00.005-05:00

I had my 20 week ultrasound today. It was so awesome to see baby again. Todd and I were both amazed at how much more we could see compared to our ultrasounds with Henry. For the past 2o weeks Henry was 100% sure he was having a baby sister. We'll let Henry let you know if he was correct with his prediction...

East Coast Adventure Party III

2010-11-10T17:15:00.003-05:00

Before headed out of town, I decided to treat Henry to the beach. It was a bit of a thank you to him for being such an incredible traveler!

Henry before...

Henry after a big wave gets us both wet!

Since home was about 10 hours away, I decided to break up the trip by staying with Ann and Sean in Richmond for a night. So last night we crashed yet again with good friends.

Lastly, on our way home today Henry and I made one final stop in Baltimore for a lunch break with my sister, Kathleen.

I don't think I have been able to visit with so many people in such a short amount of time since our wedding!

I was thrilled to finally pull into our driveway this afternoon and feel so thankful that I was able to make such a big trip to see so many great people, especially baby boy Colin!

Colin is still in the NICU in Wilmington, but doing very well and will hopefully be released by the weekend so mom and dad can finally take him home.

East Coast Adventure Part II

2010-11-10T16:48:00.003-05:00

After a very long, hard, and complicated labor (almost 24 hours and ended with a C-section) Jeanine (aka ROCK STAR!) delivered our newest member of the family, Colin Joseph, November 6th at 1:00 am 6 weeks before his expectant due date. He was an amazing 5 pounds 15 ounces.

Early Sunday morning, Henry and I left Roanoke to make the 6 hour trip down to Wilmington, NC. I realized traveling at 7:00 am on daylight savings Sunday is the absolute best time. We saw about 10 cars throughout our trip on back roads. Finally, Sunday afternoon I was able to meet Colin and see Mike and Jeannine. Since Henry wasn't a sibling, he was not able to meet Colin, but did an exceptional job of going with the flow throughout the entire weekend.

Henry was a big fan of Aunt Jeannine's wheelchair!

Although it was not ideal for Colin to show up so early and when Mike and Jeannine were 6 hours from home, it was very convenient that my good friend Christine and her family live just 10 minutes from the hospital. So again, I stayed with friends for a few days while visiting and helping Mike and Jeannine out as much as I could. It was also great meeting the Mottram's newest member of the family, Miles. Definitely felt like baby weekend!

Again, Henry had a blast hanging with another two year old! He might start to expect instant playmates and new toys whenever we go out of town!

The next day a cold crept up on me so I wasn't able to see Colin in the NICU, but it was still nice visiting more with his parents and the Mottrams.

East Coast Adventure Part I

2010-11-10T16:25:00.004-05:00

Henry and I just returned from our East Coast Adventure. I'll try to condense the events of our travels as much as possible...

Friday morning I was minutes from getting Henry in the car to drop him off at my parent's house when I got the call that Jeannine's (my sister-in-law) water had broke while Mike and her were in Wilmington, NC for a wedding. It was such a shock since Jeannine wasn't due for another six weeks and of course because they live in Washington D.C. Quickly my plans for a solo weekend trip to Roanoke changed. Our original plan was for my mom to watch Henry during the day and then Todd and Henry would have some male bonding time while I was away for the weekend at Ann's baby shower.

I decided to take Henry with me to Roanoke so I could travel down to NC after the shower weekend to meet my new nephew. Unfortunately, my parents weren't able to make it down since they flew out on Monday for a trip to China!

So Henry and I made it to Roanoke in about 6 hours on Friday. The Smiths were so nice to let us stay with them during our time there. Henry loved having time to play with his pal Lillian.

Saturday was the baby shower. It was so wonderful to see so many great friends and to help Ann prepare for baby girl Sanderson!

More Fun Visitors!

2010-10-29T15:40:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago we had a house full of friends visiting from both Virginia and New York. It was so great to have the weekend to hang out with everyone. The whole gang went to a nearby arcade with moon bounces, go karts, and games galore. Later the big boys played some basketball. Between late nights (and early mornings with a toddler in the house) and maybe a few too many rounds of bball for the first time in years, I think Todd quickly realized he isn't in college anymore...

The second night we had a great bonfire. We let Henry stay up way late (9:00!) to check out the fire. He wasn't a huge fan as he was pretty much attached to me the entire time.

One of Henry's favorite books is Blodoq and Sammy Build a Fort and lucky for him we know the author and illustrator personally! Here she is reading the very cute and funny book to Henry.

We had a blast hanging out with everyone! Hopefully all will be back for another fun weekend in the near future!

Kentucky Wedding

2010-10-26T22:14:00.003-04:00

Henry, my mom, and I drove to Kentucky for my cousin's wedding earlier this month. It was a very long drive, but Henry was a rock star and handled the many hours in the car with ease. Uncle Mike's DVD player was a lifesaver on the way home! The highlight of the trip was watching Henry break it down on the dance floor. He absolutely loved dancing with one person in particular. We had to give her a break once in awhile which Henry didn't like that at all. He did like giving her hugs and kisses!

2010-10-26T21:45:00.002-04:00

Big brother, Henry, would like to introduce the first picture of baby...

This is baby at 12 weeks and I am now at 16 weeks. In just a few more weeks we will find out if baby is a boy or girl! Henry is 100% convinced a sister is on the way. I think he has even convinced me.

Visit from Friends

2010-10-26T21:33:00.003-04:00

Earlier this month Kim and Leslie made the long and rainy trip up here during the worst storm of the season. The downpour almost kept them from coming up, but I was so thrilled that they both braved the weather! The three kiddos had a blast playing, cooking, and jumping on the bed together! Thanks for coming up for such a fun visit!

September 4, 2010

2010-09-12T21:23:00.004-04:00

We celebrated Henry's actual birthday at one of his favorite places, The Please Touch Museum. This museum is basically a make believe heaven for little kids. It has a grocery store (Henry's fav), a hospital, water table taking up an entire room, and a car mechanic area...just to name a few! Todd's parents came up from Virginia which of course, Henry loved!

Later that night my parents came over for Henry's birthday dinner. Henry really loved being able to be with both sets of grandparents. What a lucky little boy! I was bad about taking pictures again, but we had a blast with everyone!

Henry loved us singing to him! But was not into blowing out the candle.

After the sugar kicked in from his strawberry shortcake birthday cake, the party really started!

The weekend celebration was so wonderful I didn't want it to end! I think Henry felt the same way since tonight at dinner ( a week later) when I was getting ready to serve dessert he said "sing birthday" over and over again!

B is for Birthday

2010-09-12T20:54:00.005-04:00

Last weekend we celebrated Henry's 2nd birthday. I can't believe our baby is already two and his baby days are a thing of the past. Henry is very much a toddler. His favorite things are trucks, balls, Elmo, and playing outside. Henry has been a part of a playgroup since he was about 6 months old. We meet every week and this group has been so wonderful not only to Henry, but for me as well. Since Henry has such great friends already in the playgroup and in the neighborhood, I wanted to throw him a friend party. So the day before his birthday we had an Elmo party for about ten little ones.

Henry getting ready for his friends to show up. Todd made Cookie and I made felt cookies for the Cookie Toss game.

Mckenzie and Henry playing with Dorothy's friends

Playing Pin the Nose on Elmo

Cookies and Cupcakes!

Getting some much needed help with blowing out the candle

YUM!

We had so much fun at Henry's party that I forgot to take any before pictures of the games and set up, but hopefully the pictures we did get will help Henry remember his first friend party. I had a sign welcoming the guests that said "Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Henry's party?" and the sign behind us in this picture says "This party is brought to you by the letter H and the number 2." We ordered pizza of course since that is both Elmo and Henry's favorite! We also had basketball with a Sesame Street ball, an Oscar trash toss, and I made mini Sesame Street coloring books. I think I had just as much fun getting ready for the party as Henry had at the party!

Roofs Visit

2010-09-09T15:46:00.003-04:00

I don't know how I almost forgot to post about the Roofs visit as a part of our Summer Lovin series. Our big adventure was going to the Please Touch Museum (as I mentioned before, we've been there a lot!) Of course, fun was had by all!

Giant water table

Henry checking out Sydney's tiny fingers

Boys love all things with wheels!

Katie, Bryan, Jackson, Sydney, and Charlie, thanks for making the trip up to see us!

Summer Lovin Part 3

2010-09-09T13:41:00.004-04:00

Here is the last of our summer updates....

Checking out the animals at the farm with Madalyn

On a hike for Pop's birthday. Henry walked (and ran) for the entire hike (probably close to 2 miles!)

We spent a lot of time this summer looking at, talking about, playing with, and reading about trucks! Living in a new construction neighborhood is pretty much heaven on Earth for Henry. LOTS O TRUCKS

We visited the fire station with our playgroup.

We discovered a great up and coming children's author....More to come on that!

This summer was actioned packed for us! We hope that Henry had as much fun as we did making so many wonderful family memories.

Summer Lovin Part 2

2010-09-08T20:28:00.005-04:00

Back for some more summer updates....

Visit from Auntie Ann!!!

NYC to celebrate our 5 year anniversary.

Next up...our trip to Cincinnati for my cousin's wedding.

Awesome Playground

At the reception

Splashing with Daddy at "The Beach"

Playing trucks with cousin Milani

Henry was such a great traveler this summer! We are so lucky to have such an easy going little boy. I sure hope that continues through the twos!

Summer Lovin

2010-09-08T08:11:00.008-04:00

We've had a fun filled summer. Here is a brief recap of what's been keeping us busy...

Staying cool (and hydrated) on hot summer days

Resting up after playing with Henry's friend, Lillian

Making new friends on the patio

Plenty of rock throwing in rivers and lakes

Reston Zoo with Grandma, Grandpa, and Dad

Fabulous Wedding with Fabulous Friends

More resting after our trip to Northern VA.

Several trips to the Please Touch Museum (and more to come!)

Well, that gets us through July. August updates coming soon! We are off to Henry's 2 year check up. We are both not excited about the shots, but I tried to prepare Henry for the visit by practicing what the doctor will do (check ears, eyes, mouth, etc....Christine, thanks for the idea!) We'll see if any of that helps when the actual doctor is doing it!

Oklahoma

2010-07-09T13:42:00.005-04:00

A few weeks ago we flew out to Oklahoma to visit Todd's grandma. Our flight out was suppose to depart at 7:20 am so when we arrived at the airport at 6 am we were in shock when we learned our flight was pushed back to 3:00. Luckily, Todd found a way to get us out at 1:00, but we still had way too much time to kill in the airport with a toddler. When we found our terminal we also discovered a little miracle. Next to our gate was a children's play area. We were able to kill an hour or so in there and then after walking the airport we discovered rocking chairs for Todd and Henry and The Gap for me. Somehow all of those hours at the airport were actually enjoyable. I think my company had something to do with it.

While in Oklahoma, we visited a farm, the zoo, and downtown Oklahoma. It was a short (and very hot) trip, but we were able to get a lot of visiting and sight seeing in. Here are some pictures from our trip.

2010-06-18T21:27:00.002-04:00

The first week of June we were so happy to have the Reigh family visit us from Alaska. Kathleen, Mike, and Jeannine came up, too to spend time with our family from a far. Even with the intense heat, we had a lot of fun hanging out together. It was hard to choose from my many pictures, but here are a few (well, a little more than a few) pictures from the week. Reighs, thanks for making the long trip out to see us! Henry is still talking about "Aug" and "Gis". And since Uncle Mike stayed with us, Henry sometimes asks if he is still upstairs. :)

More May Fun

2010-06-18T20:41:00.003-04:00

Later in the month we had a quick visit from Maura (college teammate) and her boyfriend from California. I was so thrilled to learn her boyfriend's family lives just a few minutes from me which means we'll hopefully see them during their next visit to the east coast! YAY!

Next, Todd's parents came in town for a weekend visit. Henry loved spending time his grandparents. We took them to a farm that's an animal rescue and then to a park. Henry showed off how he doesn't stop moving in or out of the house!

Stayin Busy

2010-06-18T08:51:00.004-04:00

I don't think we've stopped moving since my last post. Here is a quick recap of the last month or so.

First, in early May the Peregoys came for a weekend of hanging out filled with kid and adult fun. We headed to the Children's Museum in the morning (aka Henry's happiest place on Earth). From there, we checked out the outlets and then after dinner, my parents came over to babysit the sleeping babies and the four of us did a (mini) bar crawl through downtown Phoenixville. It was a blast and I now know which bar in Phoenixville is the "college bar" on Saturday nights. I will avoid that one from now on to keep from feeling old. We really enjoyed our time with Leslie, Tim, Lillian, and Kasey! Thanks for making the trip up to visit us!!

Shopping Time

Henry's favorite part was the truck!

Both Riley and Henry were curious about Kasey's tiny "box"

(sidenote: Henry put himself into the crate...several times)

Having fun in the tent

Ok, well, the rest of May/June updates will be continued, we are off to our weekly playgroup...

2010-05-03T21:48:00.003-04:00

We took a short drive this weekend to a nearby State Park. Todd wanted to check out the lake before his friend heads up for a weekend of fishing. Just as we thought, Henry loved every minute of being near the water, rocks, and dirt. We brought the stroller, but Henry had no interest in riding, he wanted to wak (walk) the entire time. Needless to say, Henry passed out in the car the minute he put his sippy cup down. Thanks to my parents for giving Henry the proper fishing gear that came in handy for this outing. Maybe next time, Henry will actually do some fishing!

Happy Henry

2010-04-30T22:18:00.004-04:00

I never believe it can happen, but each day life just keeps getting better and better with this little guy! He is saying and repeating more words all the time. I love hearing the sound of a word that he's never said before. I was keeping a running list of words Henry could sign and say, but now it's hard to keep up with his ever growing vocabulary.

Henry is an active little fella who loves trucks, dirt, balls, and basketball hoops. And now that the weather is nice again, Henry has rekindled his love of the outdoors. For those days we are inside, I've been searching for a table that Henry can work on his artwork (he loves to caa (color) with his cra (crayons)). When I found this toddler table on craigslist, I just couldn't resist. I knew it was a keeper when the day I brought it home Henry was completely content just sitting at the table without any toys to occupy his time. He was so proud of himself when he was able to climb on the chair (after several failed attempts) all by himself. It's been a little over a week now and he still loves his little table.

Long day in the office/playroom

Back to Work

Easter

2010-04-16T15:33:00.006-04:00

I know it's a little late, but here are a few pictures from our wonderful Easter celebration.

This is as close as we could get Henry to the Easter Bunny. As you can see he wasn't the cutest bunny out there, but Henry did like looking at him from afar.

When Henry woke up he discovered a trail of candy and followed it until he found his Easter basket in his tent. I was surprised at how quickly he found his basket. I'm thinking next year the Easter Bunny might need to be a little trickier.

All dressed up for Easter mass!

On the Hunt

Getting ready for dessert...

Fast forward a few minutes...
Todd takes Henry and the highchair outside for a major cleaning.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss

2010-03-01T20:19:00.005-05:00

Hope everyone curls up with a good book tomorrow in honor of one of Henry's favorite author, Dr. Seuss!

Happy Read Across America Day!

ELMO

2010-02-23T13:11:00.002-05:00

Over the last few weeks we have noticed Henry's increasing interest in Elmo. I'm not sure why toddlers fall in love with this character, but it definitely has some super natural powers. Let me back up, Henry has been extremely attached to his precious pacifier (aka paa). Each day he looked forward to reuniting with his paa during nap and bedtime. Some days he had a hard time parting with his favorite thing on earth, but the paa always stayed in the crib. Our goal was for the paa to be gone by 18 months and as we quickly approach that milestone, we decided to take the plunge and start the torture of sleeping without the paa. I pictured days, even weeks of crying and no sleeping, but thanks to Elmo our reality is a much different story. As I write this, I'm thinking for most people this is not a very thrilling post, but I'm just in such amazement. And for those of you who are ready to get rid of the pacifier, this might be helpful.
First, Henry was given a small Elmo plush toy/doll. He didn't show much interest in it until just recently. I think a big factor in his new love is Todd's nearly perfect impersonation of Elmo. Over several nights, Henry and Todd would play with Elmo and their fun sessions would always ended in the best belly laughs by all. Next, Henry and I would pretend to put Elmo to sleep by rocking him, covering him with a blanket, and giving him hugs and kisses. Yesterday, Henry brought Elmo upstairs and even put him in his crib. When I saw that I knew it the perfect time to switch the paa for Elmo.
Last night instead of Todd reading Henry good night books, Elmo did the reading. Then we asked Elmo if he wanted to sleep with Henry. Of course, he signed "yes" and then we asked Henry if he wanted Elmo to sleep with him. As we held our breath and hoped for the answer we were looking for Henry signed "yes"!
We waited and waited for the screams, but all we heard was silence! As I went to bed I was ready to be woken up in the middle of the night, but again nothing! So we made it through the night, but the next obstacle was nap. I'm so incredibly happy to report that right now Henry is sleeping (with Elmo and without his paa). Elmo (not sounding as great as when daddy does his voice) read books to Henry before his nap.

Now my only hope is that Elmo's magic can continue and Henry will soon forget about his first true love.

Blizzard 2010

2010-02-11T14:19:00.002-05:00

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday was dark, windy, and snowing most of the day and night. Today the sun is out and hopefully melting away some of the 20 plus inches of snow that's covering the ground. Feeling a little cabin feverish, Henry and I decided to get outside and enjoy the snow. As usual, getting him ready and then taking off all of his layers took about the same amount of time that we spent outside, but nevertheless it was worth it. At some points during our travels through the yard, the snow reached past my knees (that's a lot of snow!). Every so often I would stop to ask Henry if he was "all done" or wanted "more" and each time he signed "more." So cute. He just loves to be pushed around on the sled and he really loves to go down hills. Each time he would go down he would end his trip with a little chuckle. Here are a few pictures of our winter wonderland and our little man enjoying all that white stuff!

Time to Talk

2010-02-08T14:14:00.003-05:00

As I mentioned in my earlier post, Henry LOVES to play with cell phones. Ones that actually work are his fav. He can unlock mine and turn on the music in about 2.2 seconds. Here is a video from a few weeks ago. Since this was taken Henry has started to say "AAPPPP" when talking on the phone. I think it's his way of saying "Hi" (obviously). From this video I have learned that 1. Henry is always teething, notice the drool. 2. We need to invest in a chair for him (or at least a more comfortable basket) and the big shocker 3. Henry likes having his drawer closed, even more than talking on the phone.

Henry's First Production

2010-02-07T22:26:00.004-05:00

Like his dad, Henry is very into his technology. His favorite "toys" to play with are cell phones, the PS3 controller, cameras, and t.v. remotes. He loves to see videos of himself and look through pictures on my phone and the computer. Recently, he even took up video production. Here is his first attempt at a home video. Try not to blink or you may miss his big moment.

Sounds and Signing

2010-02-07T21:25:00.003-05:00

Warning: proud parent moment about to begin...

Everyday we are amazed at how much Henry understands. Although he is only saying a few words or at least sounds that resemble words, he can sign over twenty words and understands even more. We are so proud that he can tell us sounds that animals make like a cow, owl, and chicken. He can even tell us the sound a rooster says (minus the a-doodle-do part). You'll hear how close Henry's version of the animal sounds/signs are to the real thing in the video for all except one. Henry thinks (way) out of the box for his duck sound.

Future Picasso

2010-01-25T19:48:00.004-05:00

Henry's creative juices were flowing this afternoon when he experienced his first finger painting session. He had no idea what was coming when I put his fingers in the paint. Not sure what to do, he let me move his fingers to the paper. It took him awhile to try it on his own, but he started to warm up to the idea of getting a little messy to make a pretty picture (of course it was a masterpiece in my eyes).

Ice Show

2010-01-22T15:02:00.004-05:00

During our visit to Northern Virginia over the holidays, Todd's parents treated us to a wonderful family outing to the Ice Show at the Gaylord Hotel. Henry went through the extremes during this visit. He was not a big fan of the big coat and the coldness of the ice show, but he was a little boy in heaven running around the hotel and checking out the fountains, toy train, and all the people!

Total strangers were taking pictures and video of this cute little penguin waddling around.

BRRRRRR!

Christmas Day

2010-01-17T13:05:00.006-05:00

I'm trying to keep up with my New Years Resolution to update the blog more often so here is a long over due post about Christmas day...

Henry's first look at the tree Christmas morningWe didn't plan the morning out that well. Of all days, Henry decided to sleep in. I had to wake him up so he had time to open his presents. He didn't really understand he had more than one present to open. Once one was open, he was happy to just play with that one. We had to keep moving him along in order to get to mass on time. We were worried about finding a seat at church, but we quickly realized 9:30 mass is not very popular. I guess most parents were smart and went to the later mass so their children had time open and play with all the fun things Santa brought. At least next year we will be ready!

Here are some pix of Henry with his new fun toys!

The tent Santa brought is Henry's new favorite place to read books and play hide and seek. I'll say "Where is Henry" and he immediately jumps into the tent and sits patiently as the search begins. Henry has the biggest smile on his face while he sits and waits for me to find him in his secret hiding place.

Christmas Eve

2010-01-11T18:14:00.004-05:00

We had another wonderful Lemker Christmas Eve where we continue our tradition of eating as many different types of fish as possible. Once upon a time Christmas Eve use to be my holiday for fasting since I wouldn't even think about tasting anything that came from the water, but I'm happy to say I'm growing up and I enjoyed the feast!

Henry enjoyed a ride around the yard with Uncle Mike and the dogs.

Christmas Eve wouldn't be complete without a ride around the neighborhood looking for Santa.

Let the fun begin!

Henry needed some helping opening his presents, but he had no problems figuring out how to play with them!

First Haircut

2010-01-08T20:26:00.008-05:00

It took me awhile to finally admit Henry needed his haircut. The final straw was when his once cute baby curls started to resemble a not so cute mullet. I had such a great idea to spend a little extra money and take Henry to a hair salon for children. I imagined him walking in and looking around this very kid friendly establishment with amazement and excitement for his first haircut. While we were waiting for our turn, Henry happily walked around looking at toys, other children, and anything he could get his hands on. My plan was working perfectly. Well, up until the moment he sat in the chair. In that instant, the tears and screaming began. It was incredibly sad for us to see him sitting there so uncomfortable while a stranger cut his hair. Todd and I were doing everything from reading books, blowing bubbles, and singing to make him happy again. But the only thing that worked was finishing the haircut and getting him out of the chair. The prize helped, too. Looking back, I see my idea of letting a total stranger come at my son's head with a sharp object to do something Henry has never seen in his life, was actually my worst idea, yet. Live and learn!

Monkey Joes

2010-01-08T11:01:00.002-05:00

A new year, a new start to try to keep up with the blog a little better in 2010....so here we go...

We took a family trip down to the local Monkey Joes a few days before Christmas. We always knew Henry loved to climb, but after experiencing this fabulous moon bounce facility, we realized just how deep his is love for climbing, sliding, and bouncing. We will most definitely come back for another fun family visit. And to all of our friends with kids, we would like to bribe you to come visit us with this great place that is very close to our house!

Winter Wonderland

2009-12-19T15:03:00.009-05:00

The snow is still falling as we warm up by the fire after a family play time outside. It was Henry's first time really playing in the snow. We were going to wait until after the snow stopped, but my parents motivated us to get him outside since the snow isn't suppose to stop until tomorrow. Henry liked checking out the falling snow from inside, but we weren't sure how he was going to react to being in the snow and more importantly being in the cold and windy weather...

We quickly realized he was not fan of getting ready for the snow.

The Before Shot

The Action Shot
Doesn't look like he is having too much fun, but after going down the hill, he signed "more"

The After Shot
Henry's cute little cheeks quickly turned red so we didn't last too long outside, but it was a lot of fun and I think he liked Todd pulling him around on the sled. Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa McDannell for Henry's snazzy snowsuit.

Fall Fun 09

2009-11-04T21:18:00.003-05:00

Here are a few pictures from some of our fall adventures. It's such a blast to get out and see Henry experience things for the first time. Pumpkins apparently are very fascinating!

The Big Reveal

2009-11-04T09:21:00.006-05:00

A year and a half after moving in, we finally finished (well almost) Henry's playroom. It took us awhile to pick our theme. We were going back and forth on a few different ones and then I saw one of our options at a friend's house and loved it. So from there, we were pretty much copy cats (best form of flattery, right?). We ordered the decals, a few months went by, bought the paint, painting took a few weeks, had to wait another month according to the decal manufacturer, and then FINALLY, the decals went up. In the meantime, Todd was working on the design and construction of the custom toy chest with a compartment for our TV equipment. Being a big fan of "While You Were Out", I was so excited to finally show Henry is new room. I brought him downstairs, turned him around, opened the doors, he turned around and...he just walked in. No screams of excitement or tears of joy. I guess walking in and playing is what I should have expected. Oh well, hopefully over the next several years he'll enjoy playtime with his sea creatures. We are hoping to at least get 8 years out of this room considering I also painted the ceiling blue! On second thought, under the sea stickers are cool for teenagers, too, or so we'll brainwash Henry into thinking.

Henry's first look at his new playroom

He did like checking out the treasure chest

Reading Corner

Check It Out

Noticing his new friends

Update Finally

2009-11-04T08:49:00.006-05:00

Well, it's been way too long since my last post and I thought now that Henry is officially 14 months old, I'd send out a new update. Henry has really been keeping me busy with his new mobility. He loves to walk around the house and he is so amazed by the littlest things. I can see why they say the brain works the hardest the first three years of life! Henry had his first cold a few weeks ago. It's pretty amazing he went that long without getting sick and luckily it was just a little congestion. Although Henry's walking (and falling without getting hurt) is pretty impressive, right now I'm the most proud of his baby sign language vocabulary. I don't think I would have been a believer if it wasn't seeing my neice, Gisa, in action a few years ago. I can tell he loves being able to communicate with us just as much as we love seeing those cute chubby hands sign what he would like. Now that he has most of the basic signs down, he picks up new signs easily. A family favorite right now is "please". Henry has (almost) cut out the whining and gone straight to rubbing his tummy to say "please". Love it!

I tried to get an action shot of him signing "please", but he was too fast for me.

Peek-a-Boo

2009-09-12T13:28:00.001-04:00

Henry just keeps entertaining us with his new skills. Here he is playing his new favorite game...

Henry is Walking!!!

2009-09-10T21:42:00.002-04:00

Today Henry took his first steps. It began in the kitchen when Jenny asked Henry to close some cabinet doors. He obliged by closing the doors, turning around and walking about 8 steps to the carpet. The rest is captured here.

More Celebrating...

2009-09-07T20:20:00.003-04:00

We did a very low key party for Henry's birthday, but I couldn't resist decorating the house. His favorite book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, was my inspiration.

Todd's creations!

Henry wasn't sure what to do at first

Then he figured it out

How fast can Henry go?

How tall is Henry now?

YAY! Birthdays are FUN!

September 4th

2009-09-07T17:49:00.004-04:00

Todd took Friday off so we could celebrate Henry's first birthday all day together. We started off with a trip to the Elmwood Zoo. Henry wasn't overly impressed with the animals, but he was a big fan of watching big kids run around and the mist machine that sprayed water.

For dinner we were planning on a Japanese Steakhouse. We even drove to what we thought was a Japanese Steakhouse, but then I quickly realized that I forgot Henry's milk. Since we were already at the restaurant I jumped out to check it out. Since the place didn't seem like the right place to celebrate Henry's big day, we had a change of plans and took Henry to the very fancy Applebees (after picking up his bottle at home). It ended up being the perfect place for the celebration. I knew it was meant to be when I saw the Very Hungry Caterpillar Kids Menu. The host thought I was crazy when I said that was the theme of my son's birthday. Henry enjoyed people watching almost as much as people enjoyed watching him cheer for his birthday, drink out of a straw, and of course eating his ice cream. The first day of Henry's birthday weekend was a great success!

Celebrating Henry's First

2009-09-07T14:29:00.004-04:00

We started Henry's celebration in Virginia with his Grandma and Grandpa McDannell. He showed off how close he is to walking and they spoiled him with lots of fun new toys!

11 Months

2009-08-05T08:19:00.012-04:00

Yesterday we celebrated Henry's 11 months of being in the world. We can't believe our baby is fast approaching his first birthday. He is showing more and more signs of closing in on being a toddler. Where did the time go?! Since Henry seems very close to walking, I took him out shoe shopping. Surprisingly, Henry really enjoyed the process of getting his feet measured, trying on shoes, and "walking" to try them out. He gave the person helping us lots of smiles and giggles along the way. In the end, Henry got some sweet new kicks and loved every second in the shoe store (Dad is so proud).

Henry has had lots of first this month. Here are a few...

1. When I sing "If You're Happy and You Know It" he somtimes claps along

2. Started his first swim lessons and LOVES it

3. If I ask "Where is Dad", he will look in Todd's direction (same goes for Riley)

4. Henry likes to give high fives

5. After I make monkey noises or say ribbit, Henry looks at the picture of the monkey and frog in his room (thanks Aunt Kat!)

6. In addition to cruising around the house with the crawl he has mastered, he also likes to walk along the couches, cabinets and window sills.

7. Henry is now just eating food that Todd and I eat...no more baby food (even though I still try once in awhile, he wants nothing to do with it)

We are looking forward to many more firsts in the near future! Here are some pictures from the past month.

Celebrating the 4th

2009-07-07T10:40:00.007-04:00

After working hard all day painting, we enjoyed a night out in Phoenixville. Every Friday they have live music and the Friday before the 4th they also had fireworks.

Henry was up way past his bedtime, but held out just in time to see his first fireworks show. He was slightly scared, but not scared enough to fall asleep before they were over.

The next day Henry turned 10 months and we spent the day celebrating. He completely loved eating his special "10" blueberry pancakes.

YUMMY!

Later in the day Henry checked out his cake that Todd made for him.

Then we hit up the nearby park. Henry showed Todd how much he likes to swing. And lastly, we spent the evening at a neighborhood party. It was a fun filled day with lots of activity! I started writing this post a week ago, but between traveling to Cincinnati and chasing Henry around the house, I got a little behind!

Movin and Shakin

2009-06-15T22:27:00.001-04:00

Henry is now officially a mover and a shaker...

Southern California, it doesn't get any better...

2009-06-10T22:47:00.003-04:00

We just got back from a week in southern California and we already miss the weather. Jenny had a cousin that got married on Saturday in Carlsbad CA, so we decided to make a vacation out of the trip. The land is so beautiful with rolling hills, mountain vistas and intriguing architecture. Henry had a blast from take off to touch down. He slept most of the way home Monday night which made those flights a little easier, thanks Henry :)

My first pool!!!

2009-05-25T08:41:00.003-04:00

In celebration of Memorial Day we got Henry a pool to enjoy the hot day. He was a bit hesitant at first because he is used to the warm water from his bath but once he sat on the edge for a couple minutes he loved it. He was splashing and playing and having a grand old time. Check out it out...

Teeth, teeth and more teeth

2009-05-22T19:53:00.003-04:00

Henry has been popping out teeth left and right. He has four coming in real well and a fifth on the way. He has not been fussing much at all, just eating a little less when he's cutting a new tooth. Check out the new pix...

Mother's Day

2009-05-15T09:02:00.003-04:00

I had a wonderful first Mother's Day. In the morning, Henry and Todd made a scavenger hunt for me that led to a beautiful charm bracelet. I was shocked since all I asked for was not to cook, sleep in, and not to change the dirty diapers.

Todd even enjoyed the day while reading up on his new favorite person with Henry. He had an even better day when I finally helped out with the dirty diapers after number 5! I think Henry was going for a record.

We ended the day with a great dinner at my parents with my grandma. It was a perfect day.

Grandma and Grandpa McD Visit

2009-05-08T09:09:00.003-04:00

We had a great time visiting with Todd's parents this past weekend. Here is a picture at the Brandywine museum. Thankfully the rain held off for us to get out and about on Saturday. Thanks for making the trip to see us!

8 is Great!

2009-05-08T09:03:00.003-04:00

Henry turned 8 months on the fourth. It's hard to believe he is such a big boy now. His sleeping and eating routines are finally getting back on track. His favorite thing to do is look at books and tear up magazines at Grandma and Grandpa Lemker's house. And my favorite thing is when he reaches for me to hold him. Henry is working on growing three teeth (one on the top and two on the bottom). Here he is before bedtime on his 8 month birthday.

Red Cross Walk

2009-04-20T16:38:00.005-04:00

On Saturday we did the Red Cross 5K Walk. In addition to sponsoring the event, Todd's company also raised about $23,000. Overall, over $200,000 was raised to support our local Red Cross. Thank you to all of our friends and family who donated to the cause.

Todd and I had such a great time walking in Fairmont Park with Henry and Riley. Riley of course enjoyed the time outside and the endless attention from the other walkers. He sported his "doggles" and a t-shirt which was part of the reason for his celebrity status. Henry was having such a good time he didn't even let us know that during the walk he peed through his diaper, clothes and jacket. Luckily, we had a spare outfit with us. All in all, it was a great morning.

The morning was a little chilly, but we ended up with great weather.

Getting close to the finish line.

The Easter Bunny Came!

2009-04-20T16:01:00.003-04:00

Henry had a great first Easter. We made it back home from North Carolina just in time for the Easter bunny's visit. Check out the slideshow (below) of the big day.

Spring Break 09

2009-04-20T15:37:00.010-04:00

During my six years of teaching I never took a vacation over my spring break. So for my first Spring Break as a mom, I decided to give Henry a fun first one. We had a blast visiting with my wonderful school friends in Wilmington, North Carolina. Henry experienced the beach for the very first time. While I was able to catch up with my girls, Henry and Elly had some time to get to know each other better. He was a great traveler, but this last week back has been a bit of a struggle to get him back on track. It was of course worth it to be able to spend time with friends. Thanks to the Mottrams for being such great hosts!

Happy Seven Months!

2009-04-05T21:13:00.003-04:00

For Henry's seven month birthday we took a drive up route 95 and visited Clevenger and Barrish in Manhattan. It was Henry's first time in the city and he loved every minute of it. Unfortunately it was in the 40's and extremely windy so Henry spent a lot of time in the stroller while we were walking from one spot to another. All in all we checked out the Empire State Building, the Rockefeller Building where all the NBC shows are filmed, Times Square, Central Park and much more. Enjoy the new slide show...

A Reunion at the Farm

2009-03-23T21:03:00.004-04:00

This past weekend we went to Altavista, VA, for the second annual farm reunion with all of Jenny's high school friends. What a difference a year makes. Last year it was all adults and dogs, this year the dogs stayed home and instead there were 5 babies! While the car rides down and back were long (about 8 hours each) they were certainly worth it. In total there were 20 of us not including the babies and everyone had a blast. We were fishin, riding 4-wheelers, chillin around the camp fire, having an impromptu birthday party and just relaxing out in the country. Enjoy the pix!

6 Months Old!

2009-03-04T20:38:00.006-05:00

We can't believe it...Henry is 6 months old today! Time is really flying by. He did a fabulous job at his doctor's appointment today. I was really worried about the shots since he had such a hard time at his four month appointment. This time around I gave him Tylenol at the doctor's office instead of waiting to come home. After the shots, he surprisingly calmed down very quickly. That was good news for mom and dad! And Henry was great for the rest of the day!

To celebrate Henry's first 6 months of life, I made a dessert of course (thanks to Christine for inspiring this monthly tradition), but it didn't cool in time to make the picture. We also treated Henry to a new toy for his half birthday. And then Henry got to try out his new big boy bath tub. Hopefully, he'll enjoy it more next time!

We are so proud of our baby boy! He is sitting up on his own and reaching for anything that is around him. His new favorite thing is to try to eat whatever he can get into his mouth. We are going to move to veggies tomorrow! Hopefully he'll like the new tastes to come.

Height: 28 inches (95th percentile...shocker!)

Weight: 18 lbs 3 oz (75th percentile)

Henry and Dr. Seuss

2009-03-03T22:19:00.002-05:00

Henry has been making lots of new strides lately. He is now eating oatmeal two times a day and is able to sit up on his own. Granted he tips over every now and then but according to Henry, "that's half the fun". He is reaching for everything and also turning his head when he hears sounds. This picture is from "Read Across America Day" when Jenny and Henry were stuck at home because of the snow...

2009-02-07T15:42:00.002-05:00

Henry turned 5 months on the 4th. He has been reaching for things like crazy. We are still waiting for him to roll over. He seems to be getting really close. I fed him (or attempted to) rice cereal today. Each spoon full gave him the shivers. I'm pretty sure he didn't actually eat anything, but it's a start!

2009-02-04T17:21:00.003-05:00

After it snowed all day and night, our yard was covered in all the pretty white stuff. This morning Henry wanted to go help Todd shovel the driveway. Well, he wasn't much help, but he did looked super cute in his snowsuit!

Henry's 4 Month Check up

2009-01-13T12:15:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was Henry's four month check up. Todd and I were very excited to see how much Henry had grown. Henry wasn't in any rush to go to the doctor's. He slept in so much that I finally had to wake him up to get him ready for his big day. I think he was still catching up on his sleep from having his friend Lillian over for the weekend. Henry was very happy to see his doctor. He gave her lots of smiles and showed off his new moves. He was really active on the table both on his back and his tummy. She said he looked great and was right on track. After that point, the visit quickly became less fun for all of us. The nurse first gave him oral medicine that Henry quickly spit up and wanted nothing to do with. Then a second nurse came in to give him his vaccines (four vaccines that were luckily put into two shots). Henry quickly went from a happy baby to a very sad one. As soon as the shots were done, I swooped in to give my baby as much love as I could. Eventually, we were able to calm him down. I'm glad that Henry is too little to remember these shots! After the appointment, Henry seemed his normal self for about an hour. Once nap time hit, he became very upset again. I think his little body was sore. He did go down for a short nap only to wake up again in pain. Seeing him in pain was so incredibly hard for me. Finally the tylenol kicked in and he was able to relax while I was holding him. Eventually, he feel asleep in my arms. For two hours, I didn't move. I wanted my baby boy to get as much needed rest as he could and I didn't want him to wake up feeling sad again. Henry had a mild fever yesterday, but I'm very happy to report that my boy is back today! I'm so glad that his fever broke and he is back to his old too cute for words self! Speaking of Henry...he is up from a nap, gotta go!

His new digits...

weight: 16 lbs 8 oz 75th to 90th percentile

height: 26 in 75th to 90th percentile

Henry is 4 months old!

2009-01-05T09:01:00.006-05:00

For Henry's four month birthday we decided to go all out and buy him his very own bookcase! How exciting, huh? Todd and I have decided to turn our study into a playroom for all of Henry's fun new toys he got for Christmas. Henry might not be too thrilled with his present, but his mom and dad are excited to attempt to organize his goodies.

Henry's next doctor's appointment is on the 12th. We are anxious to see if our baby boy is as big as we think he is!

My boys (aka Henry and Riley) and I are missing the third male of the house today. After being off nearly 2 1/2 weeks, Todd is back to work. I'm off to play and then win the lottery so the four of us can go back to hanging out all day together.

Henry's First Christmas

2008-12-25T22:08:00.002-05:00

What an amazing Christmas season. We traveled down to NOVA to celebrate Christmas with my family on December 20-24. His grandparents spoiled him rotten. He got many clothes, toys and even a new car! Granted it is a plush toy car but they are setting a precedent that will be hard for the us to follow. Thanks again Mom and Dad, we enjoyed getting to spend Henry's first Christmas with you both.

Christmas Eve we traveled back to PA to celebrate with the Lemker's. Henry was again spoiled this time getting more clothes, toys and a nice (and I'm sure very loud) leap frog learning music station where he can play instruments and learn both English and Spanish. Henry even got a book, bib and shark all they way from Sydney Australia courtesy of his future god parents Mike and Jeannine. Thank you to all of the Lemker family for your generosity. I know Henry will enjoy all of his gifts and they will make us think of each of you.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-15T22:53:00.004-05:00

Well, the lights are finally done on the house. It only took two Saturdays and a solid 6-8 hours outside, however I must say, every night when I come home I love seeing them all lit up.

December's almost halfway gone!

2008-12-11T09:55:00.006-05:00

We are a bit behind on our posting so I'll try to keep this brief. Jenny took Henry for his 3 month pix @ JC Penny which we should get in a couple weeks. It wouldn't have been a party unless we had a potty explosion halfway through a photo shoot so Jenny had fun with that.

Last weekend we got our Christmas season started right by purchasing a tree, putting up lights outside and adding many, many decorations around the house. I got Tom's extension ladder so more lights will go up this weekend along with more pix!

Jenny took Henry to meet Santa this week which was a fun experience. He didn't smile but he didn't poop himself so I consider that a moral victory.

Jenny and I took several photos of Henry as we tried to get a Christmas card photo done but we didn't have a lot of luck. The slide show above are most of the out takes. We'll have some more photos after the weekend when we complete all the decorations. Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season!

Henry's First Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T23:25:00.004-05:00

Thanks to all the family that helped Henry to have a fantastic first Thanksgiving. We stayed here in PA for the holiday weekend and my parents came up so we had all four grandparents together for Henrys first turkey day. Henry also got to see his great uncle Al (all the way from Ohio) and his great grandma Carmela. At one point we measured him next to the turkey but the turkey edged him out by about 5 or 6 pounds.

Henry is tracking movement really well now and seems to really enjoy when we read to him. While watching football Sunday he had his first official laugh/giggle. He was trying to convince me to turn him around and let him watch the Redskins game but I told him, "trust me, you don't want to seem them playing like this." Henry has his 3 month pictures this Thursday so more to follow shortly.

Henry's first trip to NOVA

2008-11-17T00:06:00.006-05:00

Henry had a blast this past weekend meeting many new friends. He got lots of time to hang out with grandma and grandpa McDannell and says thank you so much for letting us stay with you!

Friday we visited Leslie and her daughter Lillian followed by a trip to Jenny's old school, Wakefield Forest Elementary. Jenny caught up with many old friends at the school and saw lots, and lots, of prior students. All of them asked some really good questions, my favorite being, "what is Henry's favorite color?"

Saturday we visited Brian & Katie and their son Jackson. He is two weeks younger then Henry but boy does he love to hear himself talk. Henry and Jackson are said to be BFF's already so I think we will have plenty of trips back to NOVA in our foreseeable future. Saturday afternoon we visited with one of my fraternity brothers and his 3 year old son.

Sunday started with a great breakfast then it was off to Jenny's brother Mike and his wife Jeannine's house in DC. We had a great time visiting with everyone and never thought it could be so exhausting. On our way back home we stopped off and grabbed a new macbook which I am playing with now, fun stuff. Enjoy the new pix...

2 Month check up

2008-11-11T22:02:00.003-05:00

Mr. Henry went in for his two month check up today and got a clean bill of health. He also got a couple shots which he was "none to pleased" about but Jenny said he calmed down pretty quickly. The doc gave him some infant tylenol to help with a possible fever so he's been sleeping for most of the day. We took his temperature right before bed time and all was normal so we are keeping our fingers crossed for the next couple days.

Henry's measurements were all pretty normal, head was 15 3/4 inch (50th percentile), length was about 23 1/2 inches (85th percentile) and weight was 13lbs 4oz (90th percentile).

Me and my bumbo

2008-11-09T18:20:00.005-05:00

We got Henry a bumbo today and from look the pictures, we're pretty sure he likes it. He can't quite hold himself up yet so we put him up against the couch to support his head. Now he gets two work outs a day, tummy-time and bumbo-time.

Meeting Great Grandma "Nona"

2008-11-08T22:55:00.004-05:00

Tonight Henry met his great grandma Gammarino. He also got to meet his great aunt and uncle and a few cousins. He stayed awake for a little while but then slept through most of our visit. Slide show below updated...

Happy 2 Months Henry

2008-11-05T21:47:00.002-05:00

We celebrated Henry's two month birthday yesterday and he was quite happy. Jenny made a house favorite, rice krispy treats with chocolate chips! Henry is becoming a lot more active and still has his best time of the day under his jungle gym. He really loves the lights and has started reaching for some of the hanging rattles and other items.

Halloween '08

2008-11-01T08:33:00.004-04:00

Henry woke up quite happy today so we took some videos. I think it was because he met so many new friends during Halloween. All our neighbors came by with their kids last night for some trick or treating and it looks like Henry will have many little friends when he gets older. Below are some new pix of Henry in his Halloween outfit.

ps, be sure you listen closely to what Henry has to say...

Henry for the Heisman

2008-10-18T16:20:00.004-04:00

Its only Saturday afternoon and we feel like we've already had a busy weekend. Kathleen came in early to surprise Eva for her B-day. Everyone came over to our house for lunch and helped us get ready for a neighborhood halloween party at 2pm. Jenny's great idea was to dress Henry up as a football and we'd obviously be Redskins players. As you can see from the pix we had WAY TOO MUCH FUN with this idea. New slide show below, enjoy.

Who needs Tae-bo?

2008-10-14T20:20:00.004-04:00

Henry asked that we put on some dance music so he could practice his moves and get ready for his first full work out tape. Coming soon to a video rental shop near you, "Raving with Henry", enjoy the short preview of this winters blockbuster...

Meeting Uncle Clev and Uncle Barrish

2008-10-12T17:09:00.004-04:00

Henry and Jenny have been having lots of tummy time lately and Henry is really starting to lift his head and look around. He is becoming very aware of loud sounds and just barely starting to track movement with his eyes.

This weekend Henry got to meet two of his uncles, both from New York. Uncle Clev and Uncle Barrish were on their way home from vising other friends in VA and stopped by to watch the Jets beat the bungles and the Redskins loose, miserably I might add, to the Rams. They enjoyed getting to meet Henry and Uncle Clev had fun showing Henry how his iphone worked.

Updated pix below...

Happy Birthday Gisa!

2008-10-11T19:07:00.002-04:00

My favorite cousin turned 2 today!

One Month Dr Appointment...

2008-10-08T07:02:00.003-04:00

Henry's one month Dr. appointment was yesterday and he wanted to make sure he showed the doc all his body parts were working well. After getting into the exam room he peed while being weighed, so we changed his diaper. The doc came in and while checking him for diaper rash he shot another stream across the exam table, so we changed his diaper. While changing Henry he decided to spit up, so we changed his clothes. Then the doc wanted to see tummy time and his neck movement so Henry simultaneously lifted his head while ripping a big fart, we didn't change his diaper. All in all she said he is very healthy and doing well. The stats:
Weight: 10lbs 2oz 70th percentile
Length: 23inches 95th percentile

Tummy time for Henry

2008-10-06T20:12:00.004-04:00

We celebrated Henry's one month birthday this weekend with some really fun tummy time. While enjoying his jungle gym he learned a new trick. We think his brother was involved but we can't be sure. Check it out...plus, new pics added below.

Hail to the Redskins!!!

2008-09-28T20:27:00.007-04:00

Henry was absolutely ecstatic about today's win over the Cowboys. I was explaining the long history between the Washington Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys and he couldn't get enough. He was cheering and raising his arms to say "touchdown!" Needless to say, he had a great Sunday afternoon.

FYI, I've added some pix to the slide show below and archived many of the older pix. The hospital, bath, and other pix can be found on the right in the "web album" section.