WHO CANCELS HALLOWEEN?

The Vicksburg Police Department, that's who! We had planned to attend the kids costume contest and parade downtown this morning, but when we showed up we learned that both had been cancelled last night due to expected bad weather - and it had turned out to be a BEAUTIFUL day! Boo. It didn't stop us from having fun though. There were lots of kids dressed up (we only saw one other adult in costume) and the store-to-store trick-or-treating was not cancelled, so James managed to score us some candy. Pirates need sustenance you know...

We'd had our costume ideas picked out for James' first Halloween since the month we found out we were having a boy... we're THAT into Halloween! And since we love to dress as pirates (as if you couldn't have guessed from James' nursery theme), we thought it only fitting that James go as our parrot. Luckily, the costume fit him perfectly (I had ordered it back in April, when we really had no idea what size he would be at 8-months), except for the head piece - it wouldn't snap shut around his neck...

Is he not THE CUTEST little bird you've ever seen?

It was definitely a successful first Halloween! We hope all our friends and family had a great day too, and we'd love to hear what your costumes were, so don't be shy about commenting.

To end the day, we let James open his Halloween cards from his Grandpa & Grambot, and Grandma. Well... he enjoyed chewing on the envelopes anyway. We had to open the cards for him, of course.

BOUNCING BABY BOY

OK, I know I've mentioned it before, but it's starting to get out of hand... Our "bouncing baby boy" is now throwing himself around so much that he can literally MOVE the highchair (only a couple of inches backwards, but still). And it all started out so cute... He's wild I tell you! Wild!

CAN YOU SEE IT?

James was practicing his imitations at dinner tonight, so we were finally able to get a photo of his first tooth while we told him to say "Ahhhhh!" Can you see it in there? It's very, very tiny still... bottom, left (his left), center (don't mind the yogurt and crackers all over his face):

BREAK ON THROUGH...

Bottom, left, center.

Tooth numero uno has broken the surface and it's a sharp little thing... We woke up this morning to see an opening in the gum (kind of creepy, actually, to see a hole in your babies mouth), but no tooth in sight. Following James' afternoon nap, we peeked again and then we could see the littlest something poking through... so we felt around, and sure enough, the little thing is on it's way. Later that evening, we could see it better, though James wouldn't cooperate for a photo - can't say we blame him - not that it would have captured well on camera yet anyway). Maybe it will make some progress tonight... and maybe tooth numero dos will begin the ascent as well. Regardless, we think James is handling this all really well. His fussiness is subsiding. He played by himself today. He's been sleeping through the night again. And his appetite hasn't slowed a bit! Here he is trying yogurt this week (a hit from the start):

I'm just glad the bottom teeth are blocked by the tongue during nursing... I still have some time!

PUNKERDOODLE

What's a Punkerdoodle? Well, it's a universal nickname that my mom, grandma, and aunt used for all us kids, and are now using for all the grandkids. Strange, eh? But cute. When I asked my mom what a Punkerdoodle is, she said it's a cross between a pumpkin and a snickerdoodle. That actually sounds pretty tasty... maybe I'll do some experimental baking next month! Actually, it's a nickname she picked up from someone else when she was a kid, so I guess it's been passed down the family line. In honor of this nickname, and the fact that Halloween is our favorite holiday, we thought we'd do a post to show off the many, many, MANY Halloween-themed outfits that we bought James, or he received as gifts or hand-me-downs. Pirate PJs:

Sweeeeet!

Lil' Pumpkin (a hand-me-down from Jackson):

Little Terror:

Daycare disagreed with this last onesie, but in all fairness, I ordered it at the end of last October when I was still pregnant (and it was on super-sale), so we didn't know at the time that our 8-month-old would be so perfect.

Boo! This one is from his Grand Aunt Margie: And you've already seen this one... Teething Bites:

And finally... I Love My Mummy (from his Grambot):

Luckily we have another week until Halloween so James can wear them all again!

TEETHING BITES!

Yes, it really does. For everyone involved. It's been such a long week... and there are still no teeth in sight.

See, you can't see anything:

We can see the outline of those 2 front bottom teeth in his swollen gums though, and they look HUGE! Poor baby - teething must be so hard! James keeps his spirits up most of the day though!

However, add to the teething a potential head cold (though maybe his nose is runny just due to the teething) and a dose of separation anxiety, and you'll understand why we've been so tired this week. James has been waking at night, starting his day far too early, napping poorly during the day, acting fussy (which is very unlike him - he even received his first less-than-perfect report card from daycare yesterday due to fussiness), and generally needing our undivided attention while he's awake. It is no longer acceptable for us to simply be in the room with him, even if he can see us, and even if we're talking/singing to him. He wants us to be right there with him, or holding him. Mostly holding him. Sigh. This to shall pass. But it might be a long weekend...

SOME MORE FIRSTS

James had another first over the weekend. Since the shopping cart adventure was such a success, we thought we'd give the boy a chance to sit all by himself in a restaurant highchair. James doesn't go to restaurants very often, mostly because we don't go out to eat much (and also because there are very few restaurants in town, and even fewer good ones, and even fewer good ones that are baby-friendly). So, while driving out to the pumpkin patch over the weekend, we stopped at Sal and Mookies (we had been hearing rave reviews for years, but had never made the time to go before), enjoyed a yummy lunch, and had fun showing the other diners what an awesome baby we have (he behaved beautifully and was quite the waitress charmer):

Then, this morning, James had his first school photo shoot. Daycare had two requirements: he had to be there early, and he had to be dressed cute. No problem. We can handle that any day of the week. We made sure he looked especially adorable this morning though. Doesn't he look like such a big boy in his shoes, jeans, and dress shirt (it's a little big, we know)?

Even with a photographer in the family, you know I won't be able to resist purchasing one of James' first official school photos. I just hope they use a super cheesy background...

Since James seems to have pretty good hand-eye coordination these days (or should we say hand-mouth coordination?) and he's doing great with his solids (we even gave him some cantaloupe in the mesh feeder the other day and he did really well), we decided to let him try feeding himself some finger foods tonight. We ordered a case of Mum Mums (similar to Puffs, but cracker-sized, so easier for beginners) and let him have at it (while sitting at the ready, right next to him, just in case):

They come 2 crackers to a bag, and I ate half of one (just to make sure it tasted OK), but James finished the rest without a problem. We were pretty impressed, especially since it was his first attempt. We figure these will be a good afternoon snack for daycare (once he's had a bit more practice at home).

James also tried his first spice this past weekend. We added a little cinnamon to his applesauce and he was definitely pleased. We won't do it all the time, but it's nice to know that we can switch up the flavors a little now and then.

And lastly, when Jay dropped James off at daycare this morning (I had to go to work early, so we drove separately), he noticed that the baby gate that is usually in the door to the nursery had been moved to separate the 2 nursery rooms. He didn't really think anything of it, and he handed James off for photos and headed to work. However, when he picked James up this afternoon, he got an explanation. Apparently yesterday James suddenly became very mobile... not just rolling and spinning as usual, but scooting and army-crawling as well. He was moving too far, too fast, so they locked him up! How exciting, right? So we tried and tried tonight to get him to do it for us, but this is the closest we got:No movement, but he sure did look cute with his booty up in the air!

(This was right before his shower, something we just started doing in place of baths on some nights - he loves it and even dunks his head under the water without a fuss)

31

That's right, as of today I am officially IN my 30's. Do I feel older? YES! Do I mind? Only a little... At least I finally had an excuse to try all 31 flavors at Baskin Robbins! Just kidding. I really only tried 3. Twice. Then I picked 3 other flavors for my actual treat. Yum!

To go along with my major ice cream splurge, I've had a pretty chill day (pun intended). Jay let me sleep in and made me chocolate-chip pancakes for breakfast. And chocolate-chip cookies for lunch. Then I opened presents and went for a walk in order to burn enough calories to make room for birthday cake. Speaking of which... this birthday cake (which Jay ordered from Kristy) is hands-down the most beautiful birthday cake I've ever had. It was almost a shame to cut into it... though I'm glad I did, because it's also delicious (chocolate, of course)! What better way to spend your first birthday as a Mommy than with your baby and his Daddy?

Thanks for all the birthday wishes today friends and family. I've really appreciated all the phone calls and Facebook shout-outs!

PUMPKINS AND APPLES

We couldn't let James' first Halloween go by without a visit to a pumpkin patch! There are a few pumpkin patches in our general area, so we picked the one that boasted a zedonk (that's a zebra-donkey for those who aren't up on the insane animal combo lingo). Why? Why not.

We tried to get James to pose in the pumpkin pile, but he was far more interested in trying to eat the hay than in smiling for the camera:

So, we took him on his first hayride out to the pumpkin patch:

It was cold, but he didn't care. He looked all around, talked to the other kids and babies on board, and kept trying to get his hands free from the blanket to grab the hay:

He even peeked over the side to get a better view of the zedonk:

We picked our pumpkins from the patch and set James down for another photo shoot. This time we put his blanket on the ground to block the hay and grass:

The pumpkin patch we visited is also a Christmas tree farm, and since we plan to buy a fake tree this year (to prevent James from eating pine needles), we decided to take the oppotunity for some photos in front of live Christmas trees (James was taking a quick catnap when we started):

By the end of the adventure, James was completely exhausted. I love taking pictures of him when he's sleeping in the car - I always get a great view of those amazing eyelashes:

Since James had already tried pumpkin and hated it, we opted for a fail-safe fall treat to try this past week: apples! So, we bought a half dozen of my favorite variety (Honey Crisp) and made our first batch of homemade applesauce. Even though the first few bites made him pucker with that tart-and-tangy face, James loved them and kept asking for more (and by asking, we mean that he kept his arms open wide instead of putting his thumb in his mouth, leaned forward, and assumed the baby bird pose)!



Our boy is quite expressive, though we guess that goes along with him being quite opinionated...

MASTER SPINNER

James may not be able to crawl yet, but he can do 360's til the cows come home.

He's a master spinner.

SNEAKY

We're so sneaky... upon suggestion from OB, we found a way to get James to eat his green veggies: one cube of something green mixed with two cubes of something he finds delicious (like sweet potatoes or carrots). Tada! Nutrients consumed! Here is James with his broccoli-face before (back in Georgia when he first tried it): And here he is now, not even SUSPECTING that broccoli lurks in those potatoes:

Oh, the tricks we will play on this boy as he grows...

QUIET WEEKEND

After such a relaxing day on Saturday, we figured we'd do a repeat on Sunday. Then, since Sunday was so great, we decided to do the same thing on our day off today. If only every weekend was a 3-day weekend...

We all did a LOT of sleeping: James once again bounced himself to sleep. And then stayed asleep on the couch while I relaxed next to him:

And not only that, but he had already slept until 8am, so we all got extra sleep! When he woke up, we went for another walk to enjoy the cool weather (cute outfit courtesy of his Uncle Jamie):

That evening we washed the cars. Even James' little car got a dry-scrub in his "drive-through carwash" (the dash was covered in drool, so it needed it!):

This morning James posed for some photos on his monkey blanket (from R&S - it's WAY cute, thanks you guys!) while we were lazin' around, but the super-soft fur was tickling his nose the whole time:

Then we ran a couple errands on our way to Amy & Jason's house (for an Azure photo shoot and some homemade cheesecake - DELICIOUS!), and by the time we were headed back home, James only lasted about 1 minute before passing out in the car (this is the view from the front seat, via his mirror):

MY FAVORITE SEASON

Fall has definitely arrived! It was still 59 degrees at 11am this morning when we decided to take James for a walk. Awesome! I REALLY love this time of year. In all the many places I've lived, fall has always been the best season. So, we dressed James in one of his adorable fleece hooded rompers, put some shoes on him, and headed out for an hour to enjoy the fresh cool air. How cute is this little dude?