Texas in October!

Last month Ethan took his first trip on an airplane down to Texas. Uncle Marc & Kristeen just had their son, Eli, so we decided to head down and visit with them and the Pachas! Ethan did amazing on the plane... better than I could have expected. It was just one of those moments where I felt so blessed to have such a wonderful child with a calm temperament! Unfortunately, I took very few pictures (I was busy holding the new baby!), but here is one Kristeen captured while Ethan was running around their living room.

And here is with with Kristeen's neice, Aadi, cuddling with Ethan on the couch. She gave up her room for Ethan and I! We had a great time and were glad that we got to see everyone since the young ones grow up so, so fast!

Beads, beads, and more beads!

This picture was taken in July. Over the past few months, he has developed "favorite objects" that he seems to love and plays with everyday. In late June and early July, it was these mardi gras beads that I picked up at the Dollar Tree. Everywhere he went, he carried these beads... in the car, in the bathtub, in the high chair, and I made sure I never left home without a few strands. Since then, we've moved on to a little toy rubber chicken, a musical phone toy, and now he usually chooses a few favorite books over everything else (which I  think is awesome!).

Orbeez bath!

"Orbeez" are these neat small beads that expand in water, bounce, and are fun to squeeze. Ethan likes to play with them, but it's too hard to keep them from eating them. I thought maybe it would be harder for him to "catch" them in the bathtub, so we added some to the bath.

The pictures turned out bad, but he sure did love watching them swirl around in the water. You can see the enjoyment in his smile!! He is 15mo old now and this is such a fun age. I get to spend all day "playing" with this adorable little guy. I love him so much!!

10 Months old on April 30th...

I'm a little behind on these pics!  Truth be told, I took them a little later, more like mid-May.  We have pictures from each month with the onesie sticker, so I wanted to make sure I kept it up until he turned 1 (which won't be long!).  Luckily, he hasn't lost his arm and leg wrinkles.

I love his face in this picture!

 

Trying to crawl away from my picture taking!

First time swimming!

Ethan went swimming for the first time a few weeks ago and he LOVED it.  I knew he'd have fun, because he likes playing at bathtime and always wants to splash in the dog water.  He kicked and kicked, moving himself around the pool.  He also loved it when Pat lifted him out of the water.

He loves lemons!

Ethan had a lemon for the first time a few months ago and he loved it.  Pat let him lick it and we waited for the puckered face, but it never came. We usually don't have lemons on hand, but we let him have a taste when we go to a resturant.

Lots of Playtime...

Ethan loves these farm magnets that we have on the fridge.  He presses "Farmer Tad" who plays banjo music, over and over again.

Hanging out in the basement with Mom, playing on the fireplace ledge.

High Fives...

Ethan loves to give high fives.  He can also wave and clap, but doesn't do it very often - especially not on command. He smiles when we say "high five" and instantly lifts up his arm (although sometimes he grabs our hand instead of slapping it).

Books with faces...

Ethan's attention span isn't too long at this age, so we look for books that capture his attention.  His new favorite book is this one with lots of kids faces.. he just stares and inspects each picture carefully.  There isn't much to "read", but we try pointing out things in the pictures that he may recognize.  We're also working on learning the body parts... feet, hands, nose, ears, etc.  We have a few puppet books that he also really likes. Reading has always been important to me, so we hope Ethan will find enjoyment in it when he gets older.

Walks in the stroller...

We talk lots of walks around the neighborhood, because Ethan loves being outside in the stroller and it's good exercise for me. Sunscreen... check. Toys... check. $1.25 for Mom's fountain soda at Behme's... check! Ha.. we have a good time and usually stop at the park for a little swing.

He does this flat smile a lot. I think he's clenching his teeth together (maybe it soothes his top gums?)... it's adorable!

Our new playroom...

It's still a work in progress, but I'll post before/after pics once we get some more done. In the meantime, Ethan loves playing in here! The spare room used to be my scrapbook/craft room and Pat's office. Then it quickly became the collect all space, and filled up with left over baby stuff that we needed to sell. Ethan's toys were taking over his room and our living room, so we downsized our stuff and upsized his! Actually, it's a fun place for us all to hang out, because it's completely kid proof.  He loves taking his toys off the shelves and he can climb on everything.

  

Construction Ethan & Construction Dog...

I picked up this hat at a yardsale and Pat started putting it on Ethan's head and calling him "Construction Ethan".  Then we quickly all became the same - construction Dad, construction Mom, and construction dog!  The fun things we do for our kids... ha ha!  :)

He is so expressive... I love it!

 

Deck time, again...

So, we love being outside. Ethan is absolutely mesmerized by everything - birds, trees, the breeze, barking dogs, etc.  We both enjoy it and it breaks up the day.

Chewing on our fingers and eating paper!

 

Playdate with Lynleigh...

Ethan loves little girls! We had a play date with Alanna's little girl, Lynleigh, and he was very interested in her big pink bow!  It's hard for me to remember when Ethan was that small.

Playing in the Kitchen...

The minute Ethan could start rolling, he loved hanging out in the kitchen and dining room.  Six months later, the tile is still the funniest place to be!  It holds all sorts of things that aren't toys - dog water bowl, dishwasher, cabinets, kitchen chairs, etc.

I love how blue his eyes are in these pictures.

Looking like a Toddler...

Our little guy is getting so big! Sometimes he still seems like a baby (like when he's tired and we cuddle), but mostly Ethan acts like he is over a year old.  The weather has been beautiful, so we laid out a blanket on our deck and brought some toys outside.  He has fun poking at the screws and trying to get off TWO king size blankets.

"I don't need to hold on... I'm a big kid!"

 

Hanging out at the Wollenweber's...

Ethan loves crawling around and exploring, especially in other people's houses!  Here he is at Grandma & Grandpa Wollenweber's.  Playing with the piano and then the easter egg... he loves flopping the egg open and closed (and still plays with them almost every day).

Froggy Kisses...

We found this cool toy store in Edwardsville (Once Upon a Toy) where Ethan can crawl around and play.  They have play kitchens, train tables, and ride on toys.  The older he gets, the more fun that place will be!  We came across this frog that you write on and mail - no packaging needed.  So Ethan gave it "kisses", we doodled, and mailed him off to the Pacha's!

Bathtub in the Backyard!

 It was 80 degrees outside, so we decided to carry his plastic bathtub outside and have some fun in the water.  He loved it!  He splashed, played with his toys, and then splashed some more.  It finally started to get breezy outside, so I decided we better bring head back in.

Showing off his big blue eyes...

I love this funny, determined face...

He plays with these foam puzzle pieces every single day; they make great chew toys and bath toys!

Cousins...

Ethan has LOTS of cousins (so many, that I can't even count!), but most are in Texas. David is the closest in age, at 1 year old. I was proud of Ethan, he didn't seem scared, like he has been recently around other kids. Here they are playing together on Easter...

Ethan is holding David's arm... adorable! :)

Easter at Grandma & Grandpa Wollenweber's House...

Somehow we missed taking pictures of all the Easter festivities (egg hunt and the loads of goodies), but we did get it on video. It was a great day - all the kids and adults had fun. Here's all of the grandkids together (Ethan is the youngest):

Grandma Tammy pushing him around on his scooter. He hasn't quite figured out how to move it himself, but he loves using it as a walker and playing with the basketball hoop.

He was napless after way too many hours, so we resorted to pushing him around in the stroller. One of the kids got a set of garden tools and he thought the shovel made for a nice teether!