September and October

We are a little behind on the blog!  September flew by and we are already almost finished with October...we've been busy!  Matthew is more active than ever and makes us laugh every day. 

He loves to climb, play chase, be tickled, "talk" on the phone or anything he holds and decides looks like a phone, bounce on our feet or knees, feed Bailey snacks, try to wear things around his neck or arms (I think he is copying me!), and go on walks in his push car. 

He babbles all the time now!  He still says "gung-u" for Bailey and all dogs (and anything that looks like a dog to him), says "oh, oh, oh...." when he talks on his phones, says nana for banana, and sometimes says mama and dada.  He does sign language for more, all done, and milk.  He is catching on quickly and seems to really want to talk so we think he will start picking up more words soon. 

Matthew goes to school 3 days a week now so I can work.  He does great at school and seems to love his teachers and friends.  His teacher told me he tries to hug and kiss all the other kids!  He is so sweet...but we have to work on the kissing because his kiss is a big open mouth kiss right now that sort of resembles a bite ;)

We have been busy watching football, playing outside, going to birthday parties, and traveling a little bit.  Here are some pictures from September and October.  More posts to come soon with pictures from our trip to Dallas, football game watching, and more visits from family :)

Helping around the house

Had fun playing with the Fredland boys before they left for Hawaii

First trip to the Houston Zoo...which only lasted about 15 minutes because Bailey got out and went on an adventure around our neighborhood (long story)

Visit from Grandmother and Grandad

So much fun!

 Cooking with Dad

Ready for school!

With a few of his neighborhood buddies

Party Time

Matthew's 1st Birthday Party

August 17, 2013

 

 Playing at the water table with his friends

 Playing in the ball pit

 Playing with Zach

Family Picture - before the birthday cake :)



 Birthday Boy!

 Trying it out

 He clearly enjoyed the icing...

 and the cake!

All done :)

The cake was a big hit!

Bounce house with Ben and Zach

 Having fun with lots of family...

 

 

 

 

Our party favors were sailor hats...they were a hit!

Checking out all of his presents!

 

 A few shots of him opening presents

 And a few pictures of some of the decorations :)

We had a great time celebrating our little man! 

1 year old!

August 19, 2013

Matthew is ONE!!

We cannot believe Matthew is 1 year old!  This year has been amazing :)  In some ways it has flown by and and in some ways it has felt like the longest year ever!  We are so lucky to have a healthy and happy little guy.  He has so much energy and a really fun personality.  We are so thankful for all of the help and support from our friends and family that we have gotten this year - we couldn't have done it by ourselves!   

 

 

Matthew's Stats:

 

Weight: 20 lbs 10 oz (40th %)...finally gaining some weight!

 

Height: 29.5 inches (37%)

 

New tricks: Matthew is officially a WALKER!!  He took his first uncoaxed and unaided steps on July 26 and has not stopped since!  He is walking everywhere and already prefers walking over crawling.  He is getting fast and practically runs when he notices something he wants...like when he sees the bathroom door is open and wants to get in there and empty our cabinets and drawers as quickly as possible!  He is good at clapping, pointing, hugging, and waving now.  He puts the phone to his ear (more like behind his head) and "talks" - it is so cute!  He still calls Bailey and all other dogs "gung-u" and we occasionally get mama and dada.  He learned sign language for more and all done and does them all the time now!  He always does them when he is eating but he will give the more sign if he wants you to keep doing something like tickling him, chasing him, or bouncing him on your knee.  It is so cute and I love that he is really starting to communicate with us.  

 

Matthew loves: Walking, being chased and tickled, and climbing.  He loves being in the kitchen and has learned how to climb on the dishwasher door when it is open and pull out dishes and silverware.  This is not a very fun game for us but he loves it!  He really loves to be outside now.  He walks around on the deck and in the grass, plays with his new water table, splashes in the pool, and we have even let him run around in the rain.  :)  He got so many new toys that he likes for his birthday...too many to even mention! 

 

New foods: He is gaining weight fast because he eats so much!  He still loves almost all fruits, anything with pasta sauce, fruit/veggie squeeze pouches, apple sauce, yogurt, and peanut butter and jelly.  A few new things we tried that he likes: hot dogs, hamburgers, and birthday cake (more to come on the cake later!). 

 

Teeth: He now has his 4 front teeth and 1 more about halfway in on top. We have had a few hard days/night with teething but other than that the teething doesn't seem to bother him too much.

 

Sleep: He is still usually taking two naps a day but sometimes won't go down for an afternoon nap so we may be moving to 1 nap sooner rather than later.  He is usually a good sleeper at night now...still goes down between 7:30 and 8:00 and wakes up any time between 5 and 7am.  We are still hoping he will start to sleep in a little later in the mornings! We think the walking is wearing him out a little more so maybe that will make him sleep :)

 

He still does great at school and with his babysitters.  He has lots of friends and seems to recognize his little friends that we see all the time now.  :)  He is a busy guy and loves to be out and about. 

 

It has been quite a year and Matthew has taught us so much!  We love watching him grow, change, and learn new things.  We are so thankful for him :)

 

Here are few pictures from this month: