Shorty.

Henry is a shorty-man. He is little. Friends of mine with similarly aged babies write things like:
Oh we had to childproof our front door because baby can reach the doorknob.
Baby is close to climbing out of the crib
etc.
But we are awhile from reaching that point with our short mister Hen.

Henry is just getting tall enough to ride his firetruck around and he practices getting on, getting off, getting on, getting, off. That exercise alone can keep him occupied for a good 5 minutes. I'm so proud of his dedication.

The other night I got back from a business trip about 10 minutes after he went to sleep for the night, and I went in to check on his sleeping self. He was seconds away from falling into a deep sleep, but aware enough to know somebody walked in. He lifted his head up, looked at me, then head back on the mattress. Then he did it again. Then he realized it was mama, and he woke up enough to stand up and reach for me, so I scooped him up and he fell asleep on my shoulder within minutes. It was so so sweet, I just never want to forget that moment. Henry is a pretty great little guy, even if he is already starting to throw tantrums (not even 16 months yet! help!?), they are few and far between. Let's hope they stay that way!

And I know Hen will hit a growth spurt soon and grow too fast for me. But for now, I'm enjoying his shorty status. It's so cute to watch him walk everywhere as a little guy.

Sleeptalking

Mark told me last week that I have started being a noisy sleeper. I've been more tired than ever in the past few weeks, and some mornings I wake up feeling like I've run a marathon. So last week he told me I have been snoring lately. Ok, whatever, no biggie, but it gets worse. Apparently I have a tendency to sit straight up in a panic, sometimes saying something, mostly just gasping for breath, than laying back down.

Last night I sat straight up and grabbed Mark's arm in a panic. He asked me if I was ok, then I rolled my eyes and laid back down to sleep. I don't remember that at all!


What is happening to me? I would be so freaked out if Mark grabbed me in the middle of the night like that, and we both need our sleep. I feel so awkward in the mornings when he tells me the weird things I did.

Anyone have similar stories like this? Is there any way to stop the madness?

Sisters and Babies

 I'm already nostalgic for these days of babies with my sisters. Look how young everyone is. Ugh, it is so beautiful and wonderful. I'm in a mood today!

All Done All Done All Done

Two funny things happened on this great 3-day weekend. First of all, it was cold enough to turn into a snowman, and we nearly did. We got pretty stir-crazy staying inside most of Saturday, so we decided to head to the playground on Sunday at sunset to swing with Henny. He swung and laughed for about 10 seconds, then started waving his arms and saying "all done all done all done all done". Too cold!

Last night, we went to Gravely Point to watch the planes fly overhead, something we've been wanting to do for a long time with Hen. We watched about 3 planes fly what-felt-like-inches-from-our-heads and about 10 minutes into it, Henny goes "all done all done all done" with that same I'm-cold look on his face. Poor guy! It was a really fun weekend, and we did do one non-outside activity that we all loved - we went to the American History museum on Presidents Day to see the First Ladies dress exhibit for me and the trains and trucks for Henry and Dad. Hen adored all the big trains and trucks, and we had a hard time pulling him away. It's so fun to see him developing interests and fascination in all things trucks, buses, trains.

And lastly, I finally got brave and just let Henry at the tomato-sauce spaghetti. He was asking for it for breakfast this morning.

Valentines + Music

Throw away all the fancy dinner plans, people, the Valentines day that speaks to my heart is 2013 Valentines day. I made Mark a playlist on Spotify, we went to lunch together to Cowgirl Creamery with a gift certificate I'd been hanging onto from Christmas 2011. I gave him a communist Valentine. He gave me a framed photo of him and Henry - my two favorite guys. We had burgers and fries for dinner at Good Stuff after Mark's mom came over to watch little Henry (Thanks Tootie!), and we ended the night with friends watching the worst movie ever made, Troll 2.

It was a great day. Everyone high on sugar. Pinks and reds and hearts everywhere, people smiling and saying hello to strangers on the streets. It was a beautiful day and I am thankful I was able to celebrate the day with those I love so much.

I'm feeling so high on love, I thought I'd share the Valentines playlist with you all, too. Happy Valentines day!

 

Family weekend.

On Friday, we made the hasty decision to have a fun weekend. Because planned fun sometimes isn't as fun as spontaneous fun, we didn't plan anything and just woke up and did whatever we felt like doing.
We walked out the door, saw the bus coming down the street, hopped on. Henry was in bus heaven. He learned how to stick his tongue out, thanks to a friendly bus rider (those bus people, honestly, they are cut from a different mold, are they not?). He sat the most still I've ever experienced while we rode down the street. AKA he liked the bus a lot.

We walked through Chinatown to the Air and Space museum. Henry loved the planes and rocketships, but mostly he loved running around and climbing on everything.

We started cloth diapering again because it saves money and waste, and forgot that you have to change the baby more than every 3-4 hours, and guess who peed all over himself and on Mark while we were eating lunch in the museum!? Stupid rookie parents! After we dried his pants in the bathroom super dryer, we walked the 2 miles home. It was a nice walk with my family.

Henry napped while Mark and I did some thinking about the future (oooo! the future!) and then we all drove over to Cristy and Sierra's to have our belated Christmas dinner with the gang. We love seeing all those guys, and I'm glad we still get invited to things with our old friends because all we do is talk about Henry and it has to be so boring? Thank you friends for indulging us and please help us to be better. I promise I won't be offended if you don't want to hear all the things that Henry is eating lately and the cute little things he is saying. Maybe that's what this blog is for?

So, spontaneity wins again. Lesson learned - plan less for a super fun time! Just remember to change the diapers more often and everyone will have a better time.

Saturday date.

Last Saturday, in anticipation of not seeing much of Henry this week, I decided to take him and I on a little date to the Portrait Gallery on Saturday. He tolerated the portraiture, but I knew he needed something more. Perhaps something with a little more color and movement, because you know - toddlers and all.  We took the elevator to the modern art portion of the American Art museum, and success! Henry kept repeating "wow!" "wow!" at everything. It was my first experience with him that felt like we were just hanging out enjoying something cool together. I was in heaven!

Afterwards, we went to the Kogod courtyard, where he could run around as much as his little feet cared to run. I snapped some photos and looking at them now, I cannot believe how grown up he looks. Definitely not a baby anymore, and still looks like a mini-Mark, but! I can see some Rowlett genes in those eyes of his, not to mention his chin. I never thought I would be so excited to pass on something as miniscule as a chin! Chinny chin chin! He is a handsome little devil and I love him to bits and pieces.