Thanksgiving 2008

Shane and I decided to stay at home in Florida for Taft's first Thanksgiving so my sister, Kristi, and her family came to visit. We were so happy to have them here and also that they were able to bring my brother's son, Gaven. They all arrived on Wednesday and the boys could not wait to get in the pool. Thank goodness that the solar heat was working! We had trouble keeping them out of the pool all weekend.

On Thursday we stayed at home and had Thanksgiving dinner and the boys swam. Friday, Shane took us all to Fort Matanzas and the boys enjoyed the boat ride over. Poor Mallory dropped her shoe in the intercoastal but it washed up on the beach after we got back. When we were finished at the fort, we traveled on to The Alligator Farm. All the kids seemed to enjoy it there, as did Shane. Taft slept most of the time in his stroller and we hardly knew that he was with us. We then went into St. Augustine for great pizza at Pizzalleys and turned in for the night. On Saturday, Kristi, Taft, Mallory, and I were able to go do some outlet shopping and buy out Gymboree and Osh Kosh while the boys went fishing and of course back to the house to swim.

All in all it was a great trip and Taft loved having his cousins here. He really got warmed up to Gaven and was always hugging him and smiling at him. I know that he liked having kids around. We hope that maybe they can all come back next year for the holiday also.

The boys in the pool.

You know you're from Alabama when you wear cowboy boots with PJ's and carry around an opossum.

The boys with the Fort Matanzas tour guide.

Taft and Mommy

Gaven and Travis
Justin and Kristi

Travis saving Gaven from the alligator
Shane and Taft

All the kiddies

Gaven, Kristi, Taft, Mallory, and Travis playing in Taft's room.

Our Boy Thinks He's a Puppy

A few weeks ago a friend asked me about what Taft was up to. I responded that I thought he was teething since he drools, growls, and chews on anything he can get in his mouth. She said that he sounded like a puppy to her! I left Taft in the floor for a few minutes and heard him giggle as I was walking back over. To my surprise, he was there with one sock on and one in his mouth. Wouldn't you know that he has on a puppy shirt today.

Growing like a weed!!

Our little prince is growing like a weed. He is out of control! Shane and I bought him new clothes again last night. His sweet little jeans were okay when he was lying or standing but if he sat in his stroller or carseat they appeared to be cutting him in half. We moved up to 9 months in most things and they have a little room but I know it will not be that way for long.
He is eating great of course. He loves fruit with oatmeal for breakfast and green beans anytime. He gets so excited when he sees me put his bowl on the highchair. He has also started to try to hold his bottle. He seems to push it in the wrong direction sometimes but he will get it soon.
He is now sleeping on his side all the time. As soon as I put him in the bed he flips over to his left side. He stays there most of the night but has been ending up on his stomach. He is not too big on tummy time so he sends out a baby distress call to get flipped back. I will be glad when he can get from the stomach back to his back. He loves to roll and every time is on the floor he goes straight to his tummy. He is pushing up and trying to reach for things but no crawling just yet.
We put up our Christmas trees this week and Taft loved to watch. The family room tree has all different ornaments that Shane and I have collected and he watched me put on every single one. Six of the seven trees have white lights but Shane got colored lights for the tree in Taft's room. He laughed and squealed as we put the lights on. He loves the Christmas section at Target and all the moving decorations.
We are having Thanksgiving here this year and are looking forward to having our first Thanksgiving with our wonderful little boy.

Jumperoo!

While Gran was here to visit, she bought Taft a new carseat and a Rainforest Jumperoo. The carseat is wonderful and was much needed since Taft had gotten to long for his infant seat a lot quicker than we thought. Lucky for us, there was a friend in need of a carseat and we know that it will be cared for and another wonderful little boy, Porter, will ride in comfort. Gran was also nice enough to transport the carseat to Alabama along with baby clothes for two friends with little boys on the way.
As mentioned before, Taft got his Jumperoo. At first he didn't seem to know what to do with it. It is wonderful and he is able to bounce up and down and listen to music and it has lights. It also has a moving seat that spins around to different little "stations". He has yet to be able to spin the seat himself since his feet don't touch the ground yet. But - when he starts to fuss, mommy and daddy are able to spin him around and he thinks that it is a new wonderful toy to look at.

Gran and Jenna visit!

On Saturday, Gran and Jenna drove down from Alabama to spend a few days with us. Of course we know that the real reason they came was to see Taft. While they were here we took advantage of the fact that they could help up take some family photos. Shane was so happy to get this picture of Taft with his bottom lip curled up. It is a look that we see quite a bit. It's in a way his warning that he is about to cry and is not getting his way. Gran said that Shane did the same look as a child. Jenna is great and taking pictures and she was so nice to help us and play along with me moving us to different "locations" in order to get a few photos that we love. If any of you are in Flagler County, we think that Princess Place Preserve makes a great place to take photos and on weekdays there are hardly any visitors there and you can have the run of the place.

Taft loved having people here to play with besides mommy and daddy. He loves us all but Jenna is his favorite. I think she may be his favorite in all the world and she is so wonderful with him. I think she should move in with us! =)

Jenna, Gran, and Taft

Taft with his Jenna

Happy Five Months Old!!!

As hard as it is for me to believe that Taft is already 5 months old, he is. I can't believe that it has been over a year now that we found out we were being blessed with this sweet little boy. He turned 5 months on Sunday and as usual, I am a little behind. I had all intentions of getting him out to take "good" pictures in a favorite outfit but the weather has not agreed with me. It is still cool and damp outside and not the best weather for him sitting on the ground. Hopefully it will get better and we can get those last Fall Photos before Christmas is here. It will be here before we know it!
At 5 months he is such a joy! He still "talks" all the time which is great when I can get him to talk on the phone with his daddy. He always smiles when he hears him but now he tries to talk to him also. He has started to do his version of a reach for mommy and daddy which is pretty cute. He gets all excited and waves his arms and kicks his feet, if he is on the floor, and his little eyes get big. If you walk past him though he quickly turns to a cry to let you know that you need to see him before you do anything else. Yes - he is the most spoiled little boy in the world.

He is a great eater at the moment. We started on those green veges and hit a favorite food - green beans. Not much of a surprise to us since Mommy and Daddy eat them at almost every meal here at home. He gets excited about food. He really opens his mouth and has his happy look. We are up to rice and oatmeal cereal, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, and bananas. I have yet to feed him something that he doesn't like. Hopefully we will get some videos of his new "tricks" up soon!!