Alex's First Vacation -- To Kentucky!

We recently traveled to Kentucky to see Grandpa and Grandma Bryant- and boy were they happy to see their grandson! They hadn’t seen Alex since he was 1 week old so I am sure they cherished every moment with him. It was awesome because he recognized them. We Skype often enough that he sees their faces and hears their voices… the wonders of technology.

Alex had a great trip – other than being stuck in a car seat for 4 days! He did really well considering and was happy to just touch things at rest areas and flirt with EVERYONE that came in his line of sight. Alex does not discriminate that way. He is such a cutie pants.

On Easter Sunday, Alex got pretty sick. He was projectile vomiting all over the dining room and running a fever. Brent laid down with him for a nap but he wasn’t quite himself for the next day. Then on Monday Brent got the same bug, and then Tuesday I got the bug! It was a family affair of puking and feeling icky for 24 hours. Luckily, my parents didn’t catch whatever we had. Other than that, the trip went well. We got to spend plenty of time sitting on the porch enjoying the weather and Alex even got to see ducks and chickens for the first time. We also took a walk to the catfish pond on my parent’s property which he seemed to enjoy.

The best part for Alex, of course, was spending time with his family. He loves getting snugs! He seemed to develop a stronger attachment to mommy throughout the week and is officially a “Momma’s Boy.” Overall it was a great trip. Kentucky is just beautiful and it was awesome to spend a holiday with my parents, even though the star player was sick and missed the Easter egg hunt. My friend Tabitha and her family were there as well, so they at least got to enjoy the hunt. Alex and her youngest boy, Taylor, really hit it off! Taylor literally hit Alex, and then Alex bit him! It was awesome!

Enjoy the pics of our travels…

Alex totally wants to be a dog.

You wouldn't believe how Alex really does want to be a dog. We have daily evidence. He follows Marty. He lights up whenever Marty is around. He instantaneously crawls to Marty's water bowl when placed on the floor. He used to play nicely with the water. Now he picks up the bowl and makes a huge mess! What else? He regrettably loves playing with Marty's toys (especially the ones that really smell like dog breath) and he has unfortunately sampled some kibble. That was totally my fault. I wasn't moving fast enough that morning.

Oh my.

I keep telling Alex, "You are a boy, not a dog." He just smiles.



We attended Alex's first birthday party for one of his many girlfriends. Her name is Klarissa and she just turned 1!





First we went to his friend Abiniah's house for the morning so mommy could visit with one of her best friends Sugantha. He took a nice nap and had a great time. He really likes pretty girls. And that Saturday was full of them!



Another fun event for us was Cousin Ashley's third birthday party! She had a blast meeting up with all of her friends, opening gifts, and seeing everyone. There had to be a thousand kids there! LOL. Seriously though, lots of little ones = lots of fun.




Ashley got a sweet Power Wheels Mustang for her birthday. It freaked her out at the time, but I heard that Matt convinced her to drive it the next morning after putting Minnie in the passenger seat and a juice box in the cup holder. That can't get any cuter. That was a big gift for a big girl.



Alex, of course still being a little guy, had tons of fun with this stick.



The last big event in the past few weeks, and yes, it has been super busy for us lately- was a trip to see the great grandparents. Lee and Marlys really love seeing Alex. He is such a happy baby and just wandered around, took a little nap, and was very sweet the entire time we were there. Lee especially likes Alex. He seems to be the type of man that just adores babies in general. I caught him in action...



Here are some more pictures from our visit last Sunday:







This picture was taken out in the hallway. Lee and Marlys keep their apartment pretty warm... Sue and I escaped with Alex for a little while to cool off!

I just love this picture.



We have had such a busy time lately but it has been totally worth it. We love visiting with family and friends! Tomorrow we are celebrating birthdays with a family dinner and then next weekend we are off to see Jessica play volleyball and then the big trip! Kentucky! I cannot wait for that.

Big things are happening for our little guy. He is currently with his grandparents in Chisago. He had his first overnight away from his mom. I am hosting a baby shower for Jacquie this afternoon and needed the time to get the house and food ready. I am sure Alex is happy and playing right now as I type but boy do I miss him. I cried, a lot, last night but I trust Sue and Larry completely so that is very comforting. Brent and I took advantage of a baby-free home but we still missed our son.

Alex is a joy, a real blessing. Even with another tooth coming in (5 now!) he is a happy baby. He is starting to climb now. See for yourself...



And I will leave you with this excellent picture taken by Brent. My boss saw it and said, "He could be a baby model."

Gotta admit- he's pretty darn cute!

Finally- an Update!

Alex has two more teeth coming in… yes two! He has been a little fussy, drooling constantly, and is actually quite shy about his choppers. This makes 4 teeth for the big guy and we have yet to capture a picture of him showing them off! He doesn’t really let us look at them, but he will definitely let us put our fingers in his mouth for a chew toy. Ouch.

He is army crawling all the time now. He doesn’t get yet that if he lifts his tummy off the ground he will go much faster, but we are okay with that! Everything is moving so quickly with him it seems. He is already in 12 month clothes, stands well (with help), and is getting stronger every day. Soon enough he will be a holy terror running around our house and after poor Marty!

Alex has definitely gotten used to eating solids. He has never refused to try new food! He will truly eat anything we give him. He enjoys fruits more than veggies… but he’ll eat them! We tried something called Chicken Dinner and it was the first time I passed on taste testing a new food. It smelled wrong. It drove Marty absolutely bonkers! He was acting like a cat does with cat nip. But Alex loved it. His little nose crinkled up a bit and then he wanted it very badly. He makes this guttural noise like, Gimme! Very cute.

We are getting very excited for our trip to Kentucky for Easter. That will be the first big road trip for Alex so we will see how well he does traveling for 16 hours in a car. I am a little nervous about that but we will break often and stay overnight to make the trip more bearable for us all. My parents haven’t seen Alex since he was born so this trip is going to be so special. We call on Skype and he laughs with them. They have seen him crawl, eat, play, talk, etc… but I am sure they just want to hold him and snuggle. And they will!

One last thing- Alex has now been upgraded to a big boy car seat. No more travel system! It has been great just picking him up and carrying him versus carrying him in the car seat. It was SO heavy! He is definitely still rear-facing… but soon enough that will be a thing of the past as well.

Enjoy the pictures!

A Couple Videos

Since I'm a lazy blogger I just post pictures and videos. Here are two more videos.

Carrot Carnage

Part I



Part II

A growing Bond

Alex is becoming more and more interested in Marty. Whenever Marty is around, he reaches out for him. Last night I was feeding Alex some formula and Marty jumped up to sit on my lap. Yes, I had both boys on me at once!! Anyway, Alex got so distracted. It was clear he was trying to decide whether he wanted to pet the dog, or keep eating. He tried to reach out for Marty and keep sucking, but it was clearly too much for him to handle at once! It was pretty cute.

Another heart-warming site is when Alex actually gets a hold of Marty. He will hold onto his body, face, tail – whatever he can get – and start talking. He just moans and groans. And Marty just sits there like, “Okay, now what?” The only time Marty seems to care about Alex’s groping is when he starts to pull. Then Marty gets that look on his face like, “Mom, dad a little help here please.” Sometimes I really wish that dog could talk.

Those two are going to be the best of friends. Marty and I have talked about it several times. Alex knows. He loves Marty dearly. And I can see that bond growing every day. It’s awesome.

Green Beans

Lydia has been chomping at the bit since the Doctor gave us the go ahead for solids to feed Alex some veggies. He's been eating oatmeal up til now but tonight he experienced green beans for the first time.