Alex 11 months old

December 3, Alex turned 11 months old.  Alex is on the go.  He is crawling everywhere and decide right at 11 months old that he would take a few steps on his own.  He has to pull up to stand, but he does it well.  He has so much character and loves to dance by tapping his right foot to any music.  Evan still likes to pull his hair, but Alex is getting better at trying to duck.

Alex loves to smile at everyone.  He's a naturally friendly baby!

Thanksgiving in Gatlinburg 2014

We took our annual trek to Gatlinburg this year on Thanksgiving Day.  I dressed the boys in their turkey outfits and we left the house by 8:30am in order to get to our lunch reservations on time at the Park Vista Hotel.  We stayed at a new condo this year, which was great for us & Vince's parents.  The boys had room to play without getting into too much trouble (no dangerous fireplace this year). 

 

 

The food was fabulous.  The buffet had so many items on it and everything was tasty.  I even tasted two different pies, pumpkin and pecan.

The next day we went to the Smoky Mountain Craft Fair, where Evan found a new friend, a service dog that is an English Bulldog named Violet.  She slept with her tongue hanging out.  Evan kept trying to stick it back in for her, but she just kept on sleeping. 

 

We also visited with Santa and took several great photos with our own camera (for free!).

Santa was located in the convention center in the Festival of Trees display.  We ran into Jerry's sister, Marie and her family.  It was a spontaneous family reunion!

 Evan loved this big stuffed teddy bear.

 

 

That evening, we ate at our favorite little Mexican restaurant, No Way Jose. Evan loves quesadillas and chips with salsa.

After dinner, we took the boys to see all the fish in the aquarium.  They both loved it.  Evan stared at all the fish while Alex tried to make fish faces through the glass.

 

On Saturday we took a trip to Ober, Gatlinburg, where Vince and I ice skated while the boys rode on the $.25 rides.  They also got to see the otters get fed and watch the bears sleep, which put Evan to sleep.

 

Our last dinner there was at the Greenbrier.  We had not eaten there for a few years and I had been wanting to eat there again.  It was very tasty.  We learned that Evan does not handle some types of vinaigrette dressing well on his salad.  He got very silly and had to be taken to the car to giggle in fits of laughter.  After dinner, Vince & I took a stroll downtown to see the sights and hear the bluegrass music.  Fabulous trip!  Wish we had more time...

 

Birthday, Pumpkin Patch and Wedding

My birthday seemed to pass in a blur this year.  Vince and I decided to be outdoors and took the boys to the European Car Show at BMW and to the fall festival in Simpsonville on that Saturday.  The weather was gorgeous and perfect for walking around outside.  I saw several cars that I wouldn't mind driving, but are a bit out of my price range (until I win the lottery).  The festival was low key and quiet by the time we got there so it didn't take long to see all the vendor's booths.  We ended the evening with Vince's parents at Macaroni Grill.  I had not been there in a long time.  The food and company were great!

The weekend before, we took the boys up to Strawberry Hill with my parents and brother to get pictures with all the pumpkins.  They both loved the pumpkins and straw.

This past Sunday, we drove to Atlanta, GA, for Vince's cousin's wedding.  The outdoor wedding was hot and beautiful.  Evan enjoyed the guitar player's music.  Alex enjoyed all the attention from relatives.  It was so nice seeing everyone.  And we got a great family photo!

 

 

Alex is 9 months old

Alex turned 9 months old on Friday and celebrated by going to his 9 month check-up along with his sick brother, Evan.  Evan has had a cold for a couple of weeks now and just wasn't getting better.  We found out he had his first ear infection after 2 1/2 years of never having one.  I'm glad he beat all the odds (98% of kids have an ear infection by age 2), but I'd rather he not have one at all.

Alex was very healthy at his check-up.  He did not like Dr. Parra holding him down as he is on the go now, wanting his freedom all the time.  But he made it through the appointment. 

He weighs 14 lbs 6 oz and is 25" long (way under the 0% scale).  Evan was 26 1/2" at his 9 month check-up, so Alex is a good inch shorter than Evan was at this time.  He is more than making up for his short stature in his mobility skills.  At 8 1/2 months old, he sat up by himself, army crawled, and then pulled to stand at his baby gate. 

Alex can hold his own bottle and does not like to be held for any length of time.  He knows what he wants and is ready to go after it all the time.  Evan still likes to pull his hair hard and poke him in the eyes so we keep them separated a lot with limited interaction. 

I'm hoping that Evan grows out of the harming stage soon so the boys can play together more often. 

At 9 months old Alex

• wears a size 2 diaper
• drinks about 5 bottles a day (3 to 5 oz of formula)
• eats 3 meals (oatmeal with fruit, meat, veggie with rice - so far he's not picky)
• holds his own bottle
• army crawls and gets up on knees often
• pulls up on his knees and feet
• loves his pacifiers, balls and books 
• likes to hold toys with his feet
• is very vocal and can say lots of sounds like mama, dada, baba, hi, gaga and more
• can patty cake when you ask him to
• swaps toys from hand to hand often
• likes Mickey Mouse on TV, just like big brother
• wears size 6 months clothes
• has fast growing hair like Evan, but it's very blond
• giggles and laughs at Evan all the time
• fights sleep

Alex is a joy to be around and so photogenic with his big blue eyes!

 Happy 9 months to Alex!