October 2009

September 2009

August 2008

July 2009

June 2009

May 2009

April 2009

Cole 4Mo Photos

March 2009

February 2009

January 2009

Christmas 2008

2008 Phone Pics

Cole Week 9

Cole Week 8

Cole Week 7

Cole Week 6

Cole Week 5

Cole Week 4

Cole Week 3

Cole Week 2

Cole Week 1

Poling Publishings

Poling Publishings
a journey
Bubble Baths in Jetted Tubs
Cole and I went up to College Station and stayed at the Miramont with Rick this weekend. It was fun meeting Rick's co-workers and touring the facilities. It was like walking through the most expensive place I could imagine. This guy spared no expense in building this country club - blown marble walls, marble inlays in the wood floors, fancy fancy furniture, lighting exactly designed to accentuate every wall hanging and pillar. Amazing. Rick has been staying in one of the 15 rooms they have available there (yea, tough life). Sunday night Rick and Cole jumped in the jetted tub for a bubble bath. With the jets, it created quite the bubble experience! Cole loved it. They both looked like Santa Claus with bubble beards. Cole kept eating the bubbles too. I think they stayed in for a half hour and even then Cole didn't want to get out. You can see just how happy he is. They even took a second on Monday morning. Silly boys. Cole just laid back and relaxed during the second one. He is definitely like his daddy. I get bored sitting in a tub after about 5 minutes.


We also took the opportunity to look at neighborhoods around the club and further south in College Station near my aunt and uncle. Rick, my dad and Uncle Lynn went golfing at the club on Monday as well since it's closed to members on Mondays.

Cole doesn't really do well sleeping anywhere but his own room so that wasn't the funnest. He does better if I lay with him on the bed, but I can't move him else he wakes up and won't calm back down. So we ended up just leaving him on the bed and rushing in to get him when he wakes so he doesn't crawl or fall off the bed. He will go in the pack n'play for nighttime sleep with struggles, but I think if I want him to nap at all it will always have to be on a bed with me beside him until I can sneak off. He was so happy to be home Monday night. All day Tuesday he was giddy and silly playing with his toys and roaming around the house - like he had been gone for SO long. Oh how I love my silly boy!
Halloween and More
Halloween was a busy day for the Poling family. The Friday before was Rick's last day working for the Austin Country Club. He turned in his resignation a week prior and offered them up to 3 weeks to stay on but in the end they decided to promote from within and just did it quickly. Good think that was the same day he got a final offer from the Miramont Club in Bryan, TX. We already had prayed about this change of jobs and cities and knew that it was going to happen and was the right thing to do for our family. Yes, we are sad to leave friends and family so close in Austin but thankfully we aren't going that far away.

So for the past few weeks (really since Rick's interview there the first week in October) I have been getting the house sell ready. I felt this rush that I needed to get it done quickly. I am so glad I did. So I've been painting and repairing and getting glares from the neighbors seeing me up on a ladder. They've scolded but they also chipped in to help when they realized I wanted to chop down a tree growing in between our fence and the school's fence behind us all by myself. I was grateful for their help there. I have to say I'm proud of myself for fixing the fence, painting the gutters and wood trim on the house, cleaning and organizing all the closets, etc. etc.

Okay, back to Halloween...Rick painted the chimney as I wasn't about to go on the roof. I'm not crazy you know. We also planted flowers, weeded the garden beds, laid mulch, mowed and trimmed the lawn. Then dad came over, who is our realtor, and took pictures. The entire family took a nap after all that and we woke up so late we already missed the chili cook-off at church! Whoops! We came in time to get a little and to see everyone at the trunk or treat. Well, in my rush to get the house done, I failed to try on Cole's costume to make sure it would fit. When I first put it on him he kind of grimmaced - especially since his feet were pushing, pushing, pushing against the length of the little pea pod! Silly mom! But I showed him what he looked like in the mirror and then he was all smiles and laughs. He didn't mind keeping it on even though he was crunched and a bit warm. He even complained when we finally took it off for the night. I thought he would have been relieved!



Cousin Cannon wasn't thrilled with his costume but he managed to crack a little smile for me...


After the trunk or treat we went to my mom's house. There Cole saw trick or treaters and had his first lollipop! He LOVED it!

So our house was officially listed on Monday and we had a couple look at it on Tuesday. Their realtor called my dad last night and said they want to make an offer but are waiting on an approval letter from their bank. Wow! Let's hope it is a good offer so we can just move on to the next stage. I'll keep you posted.


So ever since planting flowers, Cole has been dying to pull off the mums. So the other day I just let him. He LOVED that. I didn't let him pull them all off though...

Oooh, flowers!

How many more can I pull off before she stops me...

It's okay this time??

So happy to have gotten what he wanted...

Cole's 1-Year Check-Up
Well, we went to the doctor today for Cole's 1-year checkup and all is well. His growth has increased like it should so she was pleased with that. Here are the stats, percentiles are estimates:

Length: 29.5 inches / 40% percentile
Weight: 19 lbs 10 ounces / 10%
Head: 46 cm / 40%

He still gets little red dots on his belly which are caused by allergies but there were three others that don't fade when you touch them. They are little blood vessels that burst. She said this could be a hereditary thing from me because I bruise easily, but if more show up he needs to have his blood platelet levels checked. The burst vessels can be caused from the way I hold him or even his car seat straps, etc. It apparently doesn't take much just like it doesn't take much for me to bruise.

Also, because he doesn't drink a lot of milk regularly (soy though, he's REALLY allergic to cow milk products), I need to make sure I feed him salmon (good thing he loves it), broccoli, or even try veggie patties with tofu. I'm going to try to find some soy yogurt too which will help him get the calcium as well. The problem with him drinking the soy milk is it doesn't come with as much Vitamin D I guess as regular milk which prevents absorption of the calcium. I didn't realize that they didn't add it. I'll have to check the labels and be sure before I start feeding him those awful tasting baby vitamins. They are so stinky and make his breath smell all day long. Ew.

He had a short morning nap today which meant we went to the doctor right when he was ready for another nap. Ugh. He SCREAMED bloody murder just taking his clothes off to get weighed. I have a feeling he also remembered the place from the week prior getting his flu shot because any instrument against his skin made him cry out and grab me like they were pinching him. Holding him down for the shots was awful. He didn't even want to lay down to get measured so you can imagine what it was like getting him to lie down for shots! We opted to wait until the 15 month visit to get his MMR that way he only had 3 shots this time and will have 3 shots next time. I asked a lot of questions about the MMR vaccine and the possible connections to Autism. He's going to get the shot for sure, especially since there was a measles outbreak in Houston just last year, but I wanted to wait a little bit. We have to take him back in about 4 weeks for a second round of the flu vaccine anyway since it takes two doses the first time you get it.

Cole also grinds his teeth. A LOT! Doc said that it's actually hereditary and that me or Rick must grind. I've already caught Rick doing it in his sleep before so we're blaming this one on Daddy. I hope he stops it soon because it is the WORST sound!

Overall baby is healthy and on track!





Happy Birthday Baby!

Yes, it's been birthday time for the Poling family. All of our birthdays are in October so we got together with family Monday night mainly to celebrate Cole's 1st Birthday. I seriously can't believe he is a year old already. Rick had to work on his actual birthday, the 20th, so we opened all his gifts on Monday too.


Cole wasn't really interested in opening them but was a little interested in the ribbons and throwing around the clothes once they were out. This little man loves clothes. Every time he sees an open closet he must go touch the clothes. He is the same way while shopping. He must touch and pull all the clothes off the hangers. I think it's hilarious. Anyway, Cole was definitely spoiled by his grandparents, as he should be! :-) He has had a great time discovering his new things like this rocking horse and walker!



He ate a HUGE dinner. Seriously, more than I've seen him eat in a long time. It must have been the meatballs. He's never had them before and he devoured like 3 of them! When it was cake time he wasn't too keen on having a hat on.


But calmed down so we could light the cake. He didn't know what to make of all this. We were going to just let him dive in, but then cut him a piece. Cole is going to be a neat freak I swear. He is always shaking his hands if he gets food on them and didn't mean too. He also points to the food that dropped on his leg or foot or floor or where ever so I wasn't really expecting him to "dive in" to the cake and he didn't.

He was very timid about it like he is with most new things. But I gave him some and he liked it. He just didn't want very much on account of having filled up on real food. (yea!)


Overall it was a fun celebration for the family. As you can see Cole continues to crinkle his nose...


And he is now officially drinking milk. He chugged an entire glass TWICE today. He didn't stop until it was gone. His eyes were turning red, he would breath through his nose and keep drinking. I was ecstatic! I don't want problems with not getting enough calcium so this comes as a great relief. The trick? He likes it after sitting out about an hour. He doesn't really drink it cold or hot, just sort of cool. Crazy. He definitely likes meatballs. I gave him more on Tuesday and he chowed down. He loves salmon too though we aren't a fan of his fish breath afterward. It's worth it for the nutrition though. He is just growing up so quickly. He doesn't army crawl anymore. I haven't seen him do it for weeks. He also doesn't nurse at all. It's been a little over a week for that too. He doesn't even act like he wants any. But I get plenty of cuddles, probably more than when he was nursing. He has really become a snugglebug when he gets tired and I love it!

Thanks Jefra for the additional photos! Luvs to all!
Videos and more
So life continues...Cole is getting to be the pickiest eater ever. So we've had a few days of struggle. When he throws the food he doesn't want on the floor or whines about it I take him out of the highchair. He cries and throws a fit. We start the process again. It's getting better. Thank heavens! His favorite is hotdogs and rice cereal, though he loves oatmeal, peaches, bananas and sweet potatoes but is finicky about when he wants to eat them. I try to get him to eat other things like more vegetables. He is so strong-willed which I love and hate. I know this is just a phase. Besides, he has had a runny nose and more icky teething days so he's probably like his mom and pop and wants comfort foods. Poor guy.

This is Cole's new favorite expression. Uncle Robert just loves it. I think it's cute but it is usually accompanied by a high pitched whine which doesn't thrill me after a while.


His favorite form of entertainment - pulling out dvds, turning the dvd player on and watching TV like this.


Him watching Baby Signing Time ....he cracks me up when he does this!


Sunday we tried on the suit Aunt Jefra bought for him at my shower. It fit! Unfortunately he had a cold so wasn't in the mood for good photos. This is the best I could do. Still adorable!


I have gotten some cute videos of him lately doing some of his favorite things like riding in the laundry basket and driving cars. The last one is him mimicking Rick licking his lips. It was so funny. He kept doing it too. I love those moments!

Lilah, Lila or Lyla???
Sorry to all those who have been patiently (or impatiently) waiting the results of the today's ultrasound. You can pat yourself on the back for all those who voted GIRL! She was being very modest but then decided to help us out in the end. However, our DVD didn't turn out as well as Cole's because the placenta is on the front of the uterus and baby was snuggled up to it most of the time therefore, no good 3D shots or even much movement on the dvd. Oh well. Here's a great profile shot and you can see the placenta (the big blob right in front of her that is about as long as she is).

We already agreed on little baby girl's name, however we do disagree with the spelling. Rick totally picked out Cole's name and vetoed every name I offered so I say we should spell it however I want since he's picking out the middle name here as well (because I still prefer to have no middle name for girls). So there is a new vote - let us know which spelling you prefer. Rick wants Lilah Noel but will compromise with Lila. I think it's best as Lyla Noel Poling. What do you think?

By the way, the baby is still measuring for a due date of February 22nd rather than the 16th but I'm not changing the countdown because I'm expecting to go early with Lyla just like Cole. (Keep your fingers crossed, but not too early, K?) She weighs about 11 ounces right now and everything is there in perfect order. Another thing about the placenta being in front is that it dampers me feeling movement from the baby. I had been wondering about that because I feel her move but definitely not like I felt Cole by this point and it's really only been a couple of weeks when I should have been able to feel movement before that. Apparently, it will make me more "comfortable" since I won't feel big rhythmic hiccups and kicks as much. I've only gained 4lbs thus far which mimics how much I'd gained with Cole by this point as well. I'd like to not gain as much this time around but we'll see.

On a downer note, I think we are all coming down with a cold here. Ugh. I blame it on my brother, Ryan, who is a high school teacher and just had to share all those ugly germs with us. Thanks a lot bro! However, Rick did just return from a trip so who knows what he picked up on the plane either.
And By The Way. . .
We are past the half-way mark in pregnancy #2! Only 3 days left to vote before we *hopefully* find out what this little one will be...it's now 50/50 for boy or girl! I have no clue which it is either so maybe that's why everyone else is too!

P.S. I'm not a very big Halloween fan. I like fall and the colors and the crispness of the air but I don't like scary, oozy, sticky, webby things or masks so I'm not a fan of all that. I'm not big at getting into costume unless it's really dressing up so that limits what I usually do. I know, I'm drab. Speaking of drab...am I the worst for not wanting to do a huge shindig for Cole's 1st birthday?!? I mean, we'll have cake and let him eat it (he probably won't since he sort of has an aversion to sweets...but he did chomp down some cherry fruit snacks at my mothers yesterday...hmm). We'll have family get together and such but as for themes, elaborate schemes, lots of people, etc. it just seems like more energy than I have right now. That's okay, right?
Teething Mania...
Right after posting about how well Cole was handling teething, we hit a week of crying and sobbing. Poor guy. I didn't realize until this week how very little tolerance I seem to have for crying when there is nothing you can do to soothe the child or stop it. Sometimes Motrin and Orajel just don't cut it either. He's just unhappy. He seems to be getting his right bicuspid in as well and it is causing a noticeable swelling in his face too. Anyway, I'm definitely learning patience. It started last Friday but he gave me a breather last Sunday. This was him during breakfast. . . soooo cute.


He isn't sleeping well so on top of hurting teeth, he is cranky. Every diaper change is an ordeal this week. I practically have to hold him upside down to get it on. He won't even stand up for me to put it on and he screams when I start undressing him to change it. He started the same reaction when I go to put him in the carseat when he just wants to be held. That being said, let me also state how AMAZING he is at playing by himself so mommy can get a little work done now. This has developed while he is hurting and wanting mom all day. Incredible how they mature in phases in the blink of an eye. His new favorite hobby is pulling out his pajamas from his changing table. I don't mind. They are just pj's! The bottom drawer is filled with odds and ends like bottles, pacifiers, changing pads, etc. He pulls those out too but his favorite is the pj's. He will turn around and look at you and seems to say, "See how great I am!?" Goodness, I love that boy!


My little man is really too smart for his own good. I was talking on the cell phone the other day and he wanted to talk as well. After I was finished I gave him the phone slid shut (you have to open it to unlock the phone). He was NOT having that. He grunted a little and handed it back, and then squealed. So I opened it and he was very happy pushing all the buttons. My word! Yesterday he was playing with the dvd cases in the TV stand where the dvd player is also. Again, I don't mind him pulling them out because they are so easy to just put back. I was then able to do other things...like check email on my ipod on the couch. When he crawls over to me and hands me a dvd. My first thought was shock since all the dvds are in the cases, where did he get it? Then I looked at it and realized it was "Baby Signing Time" which was IN the dvd player. He had opened it and pulled it out and brought it to me right away. (I know because I had looked up at him just a few seconds earlier and he didn't have a dvd in his hands or mouth or anything.) I laughed and went and put it back in and we watched it. He loves that video, well, at least the first 10 minutes or so of it.

Cole also loves the swing. He usually squeals with delight. I decided to bring the camera with me this morning but it was a little chilly out which I think hampered his excitement but here is a short video and a few pics anyway. This is not a look of terror but pure of pure ecstasy!






Happy 29th Birthday!

9 Month Photos and More

So pics from this post are those we ordered from Cole's 9 Month Session. It seems we just had them done but here it is almost time to get the One Year! Just remember these are scans of the actual photos. Which technically I guess I'm not supposed to do that but since I did let me say something about the photographer. She's awesome. She's really good at what she does if you like the studio type shot. For the young babies, I do. We did some with natural lighting (see 4 months) and in the end with all the skin fixes for babies blotchiness, etc. the pictures we got just weren't his coloring really. They were beautiful but I think I prefer studio shots for babies and outdoors or natural lighting for older kiddos. Just my opinion I know. She is great at being patient, having a million different classic poses and backgrounds with new toys for babies to enjoy. She used to do it out of her house but just moved to Round Rock. Yuck. Anyway, the BEST thing about Lesley is the prints you get. I cannot adequately describe how beautiful they are. I've never seen a print like it - ever. They are basically like thin pieces of wood almost with gold around the sides if you looked at it from the side. There is not a print paper name or anything because it isn't paper. It isn't canvas either. But it's sturdy and the clearest picture I've ever seen. I will end this with a disclaimer: She's expensive. Had we not gotten 4 free session we would NEVER have gone with her. The prints, though beautiful, are paid for in the price.

In other news, last Monday I decided to try and give Cole baby Whole Wheat Cereal. He had some around 6 months but didn't handle it too well. I remember he spit it up. Well, I only gave him 3 bites and almost instantly he started acting sick. He got really pale and just wanted to cuddle and he whined while we rocked. I was so sad for him! About a half-hour later he seemed to be feeling a little better so we went and sat on the bed and talked to Rick. Suddenly, from out of nowhere he vomits (over me and the bed I might add...ew...) I threw him in the tub and started to wash him down while Rick cleaned up the bedroom. (Thanks Honey! So glad you had the day off work!) Cole didn't like the bath at all and jumped into my arms soaking wet to get out. I wiped him down quickly and got him out. He cuddled in his towel with Dad for a long time, then seemed to be doing a little better. I gave him some Benedryl and we started to get him dressed. When I stood him up he vomited again. This time a little over me but Rick caught most of it with the towel. (Thanks again!) Tears filled my eyes. How could I do this to my little boy!?! How was I to know such a violent reaction was going to happen?! It took a few hours before our little man started smiling and laughing and willing to get down from our arms. I was so baffled by this reaction because Cole eats wheat bread all the time as well as regular cereals with wheat in them, pastas, etc.

Well, we ran out of soy milk on Tuesday but when we went to the store I thought, "Well, he's had cheese and a little milk and hasn't had hives like usual so maybe he's ready for milk. It's cheaper and has more fat which is better for him." I bought whole milk. So onto Wednesday. He had eaten some lunch but was still a little hungry so I mixed up some oatmeal with whole milk. Again he had three bites when he shivered and grimaced his face like he had with the wheat cereal. I instantly stopped and waited for the sick reaction. I didn't really get one but I quit feeding him. I had a piano student come by for her lesson about 20 minutes later and about 20 minutes into her lesson Cole started throwing up. I was faster to recognize his signs and got him to the sink ASAP before everything I was wearing was ruined as well as the carpet. The poor guy emptied his stomach for sure. But this time he felt better very quickly afterward. What kind of mother am I?!? I was so distraught. I pulled the wheat cereal out from the trash and read the ingredients..."whole wheat, whey protein"...wait, WHEY PROTEIN! That's a milk protein. Oh my goodness my son is allergic to whey. That has to be it because why else can he eat cheeses and other milk products and not get so sick? Now granted, he never eats a lot of them but he doesn't grimace nor does he get sick at all. Well, now we know. By the way, unlike other instances with milk when he was younger, no hives, no rashes, nothing. Just vomit. Such a weird reaction for an allergy. Maybe it's not an allergy? He's definitely not sick though (besides the bad 3 days of teething we've had this week...ugh...just when I wrote how good he was doing too...)

In pregnancy news, I already feel as big as a house and every night I am so bloated and gas-y from all the day's food I'm guessing (just what you wanted to know, right?) that I feel monstrous before bed. I'm glad that each morning I'm back to somewhat normal. Still, I know I wasn't this big at this point with Cole. I feel so much larger in my hips and butt than I did with Cole too. Guess the second just feels different. Oh well!

And finally, stolen from Jefra's blog (Thanks!) a pic of Cannon and Cole. Cole kept trying to put his finger in Cannon's mouth but we failed to get a pic of that and we were heading out at this point because it was Cole's naptime so he wasn't too excited about a picture session. This is the best we could do. :-) Cutie Cousins!

And We're Back!

It seems I've become a slacker blogger. My apologies to everyone! So much has been going on and to be truthful the time I could update the blog has been spent napping. Even my house and chores are in need of an "update" from my lack of attention. But all in good time...

Pregnancy Update: Things were going swimmingly when all of the sudden I started getting a little cramping. Not anything that caused pain but enough that I knew something was off. I started to pay attention to when it started each day and it was when I was nursing Cole. So I called the doctor and they said I was probably dehydrated (not good) and that I was to STOP nursing him ASAP. That's always a risk when you get close to 20 weeks and still nursing that it causes actual contractions. More on that later. I'm having Braxton-Hicks contractions two or three times a day. I don't mind them at all. They just remind me, "oh yea! I'm pregnant!" And, yes, my belly popped. I'm definitely showing. I'll have to see if I can get a picture. Last night I was particularly bloated too and even Rick said "WHOA! Look at that belly!" Besides that things are great. And for those of you who think it's a girl, I might add that this baby is particularly low - often sitting on the ligament above my leg, preventing me from standing up straight sometimes after sitting down for a while. Still think it's a girl? Guess we'll see soon enough!

So back to Cole...I immediately decided to stop nursing Cole during the day and move him to just a morning and night feeding. I prepped myself for the worst possible reactions from Cole. When I had tried this earlier he would scream and claw at me to nurse and no matter what I did he wouldn't move on and be happy until he nursed, even if it was just for a little. He normally nursed after each nap and then would eat. So after his first nap he was fussing and did so until I got food in him. And then he was great! The same thing happened after the second nap. It's been six days since stopping those feedings and if anything, it has matured him. He goes down easier for naps (aka. not begging to nurse to go to sleep) and often falls asleep quickly while singing to him. He would NEVER fall asleep in your arms previously. Maybe the timing was just all right but I'm grateful. He nurses very little for the morning and evening feedings as well so I'm sure those will be easy to get rid of too. At this point, the morning feeding is more just Mom being lazy and wanting to lay down longer!


Obviously, without the nursings in the day, he is taking a sippy cup and doing very well. He really only likes water though which I guess is okay. He likes to feed himself and hold the cup by himself too but in both cases when he is done he throws the cup or the food. So I'm not a big fan of letting him do it all by himself. I hate messes and broken cups.

He has figured out that when we are in the kitchen we are most likely preparing food. If he is eating baby food he will instantly stop and beg for "real" food. For example, last night Cole and I went to a mexican restaurant with my parents. He was eating his baby food just fine until he saw dad eating chips and salsa. My parents thought I was insane for telling them to give him a chip (He'll choke! It's too hard! He'll scratch his throat!) But Cole started fussing and begged to get out of the highchair. As soon as they gave him a chip of course he was just fine and ate it just fine too. I've learned that if he starts choking, you just get it out and he won't ask for that item again. If he doesn't like the taste or texture, he'll just spit it out, but you HAVE to let him try it or there's no end to his complaining. He just wants to be a big boy. So he enjoyed tortillas, rice and a little guacamole for dinner instead of baby food.

Cole got this little puppy from Grandma and Grandpa Solotes when he was born.

It's always been out in his play things but he just barely developed a fascination with it and particularly his nose. He will grab him, hug him and then eat his nose and laugh. It's adorable. I have yet to get a good picture of him playing with the puppy (which also makes barking noises which he also thinks is cute). He's just so quick to stop once he sees the camera.


Cole loves to play the "jumping" game (where he turns around and jumps - or rather falls sometimes - into your arms). He also loves to try to get away from you so you don't "get" him. He particularly likes this when dad holds him and can move him away really fast from mom, the getter. Here's a video of one instance. (Warning: I cannot watch this from all the moving of the camera - it makes me sick. So if you are sensitive to that, just listen to that little boy laugh. It's good for the heart!)

In other news, this week marks the official start of traditional crawling. He has lifted that belly off the floor and stays on his hands and knees. Now, he is faster scooting or army crawling, as some call it, so if he's in a rush he resorts back to that. He is acting more and more like a little boy. Cole now has two bottom teeth and is getting his top two. He has some bad teething days but for the most part he's a trooper. I also noticed a bump in the back of the left side of his mouth - a molar! Yikes! That should take awhile to break through. No such bump on the right side though. Also, he has "found his voice" and "talks" so much of the day. I love to hear his babbling. I try to figure out most of it. Sometimes it's easy because he'll point outside and start talking. I'll look outside and see a bird or know that he wants to go outside and we'll go. Now this past Sunday I wasn't so happy he was so vocal. At church, due to Rick's position in the church, he has to sit up front. Now, normally there are adults sitting in front of us so Cole has a hard time seeing his dad up front. Well, last Sunday there was just a family with a bunch of little girls sitting in front so he had a clear shot to see dad. This was fine until Rick started smiling at Cole. Cole instantly starting screeching for dad. Grabbing for him and standing on his tippy-toes. It was adorable but none the less bothersome as it was church! I had to keep distracting him and get him to look behind us or down so he wouldn't see dad and start reaching for him again and get loud. I wasn't really bothered by it because I love to see how much he adores his daddy. Just worried that he would be bothersome to others around us. I guess we have lots of years of that to look forward to!

On a totally different note, while Cole and I were on our front porch waiting for dad to get home I spotted this little critter. I don't know what it is...locust, secada? It was dead or dying but what the heck is on it's rump??? Any ideas??

And finally, I can't believe my little babe is almost ONE! 1! Un Ano!
Getting Bigger

Cole loves to be a big boy. He wants to eat anything you are eating, hold anything you have, be anywhere you are (which often means at your height too...which requires lugging around over 19lbs of reaching, grabbing and turning), unroll the toilet paper like you (except ALL of it), brush his teeth, etc. You name it and he tries it. This is a video of the first time I let him eat a banana without me slicing it. You don't see it here, but he often took HUGE bites and I had to fish it out of his mouth so he wouldn't choke. But no worries, he's got the hang of it now.


Cole is also attempting to stand up without holding on to anything. It's mostly because he forgets and tries to grab a toy with both hands. Sometimes he will be able to balance for a second or two but mostly he falls. He's cruising across the furniture which is normally fine except when he tries to do it along the dining room chairs. They slide so he loses balance pulling up and I'm petrified he is going to fall and crack open his head on the tile floor. We are considering getting a rug for under the table so the chairs don't slide and he can still play on them (because he LOVES the chairs and table).


His favorite toys are balls. He rolls them around and crawls after them. He likes to play catch as well. His second favorite toy is a leap frog pop up toy (as pictured). He would continually go back to it multiple times a day. He also loves big cars. He just started pushing them around. He was getting kind of bored with his toys so Jefra loaned us the bigger kid toys she had that Cannon isn't using yet. He's been enjoying them this past week and I am SO grateful!

I was getting worried about Cole being dehydrated. He started taking a sippy-cup more but it wasn't enough. So I decided to start giving him Popsicles (up to 3 a day) since he LOVES those even though they have lots of sugar. He gets so excited when you pull them out. He and I both prefer the Wyler's Italian Ice Pops. They don't get so messy and they aren't as sweet.


Cole still loves to play in his sink in the bathroom. He now has two bottom teeth so when he sits in front of his mirror he rolls down his bottom lip and wrinkles his nose and laughs at his teeth. He really gets a kick out of his new teeth. He had a few weeks there of waking up at 4 or 5 in the morning. He hasn't done it for a few days now but I'm pretty sure it was teething issues. We also keep him up a little later too. There were a few days we kept him up until 9 or 9:30pm but now it's settled to about 8 or 8:30. I try to go to bed as soon as he does since the napping has been irregular and the night wakings too. I feel so old going to bed so early but it feels so good!


I don't have a lot of pictures lately because this is what most of them look like:

Little man loves the camera now and wants it - BAD. And I don't know what is going on with my camera. It doesn't seem to want to focus anything perfectly anymore...so sorry for the blurries.
Baby News
Nothing really exciting to note but thought I'd fill you in on the new baby. My nausea has now ceased (THANK YOU!) but I'm still so tired and since I'm still nursing I struggle to stay hydrated and nap. I went to the doctor on Wednesday and heard the heartbeat again. The first time we heard it, it was about 154bpm. Wednesday it was 150bpm. I think Cole's was always in the 140's but I can't recall exactly.

We have the next doctor's appointment and ultrasound on October 5th. Yes, we will find out the sex of the baby then as well. Which brings up the next topic and new poll - Girl or Boy?

Chances it's a Girl: I wasn't at all sick or tired with Cole. Different sex or simply second child? Slightly higher heartbeat. Normal or Sign of girl?

Chances it's a Boy: Rick's father only had boys. Rick's Grandfather only had boys. Hmm...

What do you think? I'm excited about either option. A boy would be easier since we have all the clothes and the boys would have so much fun growing up so close in age. A girl would be fun because it would be new and we would at least have one of each already.

P.S. A gender predictor based on the mother's age at the time of conception predicts a girl.

Also, I think I forgot to mention that they changed my due date to February 22 when it was the 16th. I don't mind. The baby will come when it wants to come anyway!
Crying, Napping and Clapping
Well, let me catch you up on the advances of Cole. For weeks Cole was refusing to eat anything but rice cereal or oatmeal. He wouldn't eat it as soon as I would mix fruit or veggies with it either. Little stinker! So for days he was just carbo-loading. He still is hesitant to eat anything else now but I sneak it in. Here's a little clip I took when trying to feed him applesauce (which he previously loved). Such big tears...the crying sometimes gets hysterical and yelling begins. I tried not feeding him unless he ate what I gave him but it doesn't work. Trying to wean him from nursing has been futile as well. I just can't stand to watch him cry and fuss when really is it that hard to give him cereal and nurse him? Nah. So I give in.


Also, his napping is too short and nothing I've tried yet is fixing it and it's getting progressively worse which then affects his moods and his nighttime sleep. Dr. Weissbluth's book (the bible for baby sleep) says this can happen to babies if they start getting overtired and it gets worse until they don't nap at all. He is starting to only sleep 10 hours at night and wake up at 4 or 5 am. I tried pushing bedtime back but that seemed to make things worse, so now I'm trying to move it up (which is what Dr. W recommends anyway but seems totally counter intuitive so I didn't do it). We'll see what happens.

On happier notes:
One of my favorite things to watch is Daddy and "ColiPoki" (a little nickname we have for him thanks to John H. Groberg's book "In the Eye of the Storm") eating a popsicle.

Cole is so smiley now and his laugh is more like a grunt or growl when he is amused but not enough to give you a belly laugh.

Wednesday he waived "Bye-Bye" at the appropriate moment while leaving Jefra and Cannon. He's waived before but never at the right time. He's starting to get the hang of it. When we left the house Thursday I said, "Okay, we're going bye-bye" and he started waiving his hand. SO CUTE!

Another "new" is he started clapping on Thursday. We were snuggled up on the couch chilling out before a nap when all of the sudden he clapped. It took me a second to realize what he did and then I got so excited so he did it more. He has been doing it A LOT since then. He loves it! I sing lots of clapping songs with him so he probably thinks it's the cool thing to do.

He loves to crawl around the house. He still does it mostly on his belly but he's quick! He loves to be in just his diaper but since his skin is so sensitive to the rubbing on the carpet I usually don't let him. I did once just putting on his pooh-bear diaper cover. He was a mad man crawling all around. It was so adorable. I didn't get a clear video of it. Sorry!

But here's another little video of him playing.

7 Month Photos


We had pictures taken when Cole was 7 Months and just now got the prints. He didn't smile for any pictures during that session which is why these are just sweet ones of our boy. I'm sure the photographer wouldn't love me posting scans of her photos, but I just have to share.



We had pictures taken today with the photographer as well and did really well considering Cole woke up extremely early (5:30am) and I could only get him to sleep 20 more minutes after that. We had a tired baby on our hands and getting his picture taken isn't his favorite thing in the world anyway. But Grandma and Grandpa came and REALLY helped out to get some great shots.

Also, FAMILY, if you know you would like a picture from his latest photo shoot, please call us. We only have one opportunity to order photos at a discounted rate.
Baby Adventures
So some may have wondered what exactly is "BIG" on Cole's shirt...so here are a few more pics with a better view of the T-shirt.







The little babes will be about 16 months apart - sure to be lots of fun for mom and dad. On the other hand, the new little baby will also have a cousin born (or is due to be born) about two weeks after!! Yep, Beverly hasn't updated her blog but she and Robert are expecting a surprise 3rd little one. Jade and Jeremiah are SO excited to have a little baby of their own now! There are babies everywhere in this family!
Long Time No Post
So what has been going on the past two weeks? In short, packing for a short trip to Utah to attend the Rees Family Reunion, the trip, then the recovery, then the realization that I haven't touched the camera in over two weeks. Eeek! The photos from this post are from two weeks ago when I was attempting to finish doing laundry before heading out. I was moving the clothes from the washer to the dryer and had another basket of clothes to put in the washer. I set Cole down beside the basket while I transferred clothes. It took all of about 1 minute. When I turned around to get Cole again, this is what I found!


I about died. He was so stinking cute! He obviously can pull himself up to standing and then proceed to pull himself into the basket. He thought it was great fun and frankly so did mom.

In other news, as of this past Friday, Cole learned how to stand in his crib. It was pretty funny because the first thing he did was pull the animals down from the mobile, which I then proceeded to remove. However it has taken him three days to realize he can reach the humidifier on a table beside his bed. Personally, I didn't realize he could. So this morning after his morning nap, I found a pool of water on the table and the top pulled off the humidifier. As I was in a rush to leave after getting him from his nap I was a little frustrated, but honestly, more proud that my son had such guts to attempt to pull this thing off the table. I thought his mattress was pretty low already but maybe not.

Our trip to Utah was fun. Cole was such an excellent traveler. He didn't mind the plane at all and in fact, fell asleep on the the way there and back. We were glad to have a nonstop flight though. I'm not sure we, the parents, could have handled a layover and second flight. We flew in on Thursday and went straight to the Reunion at the Lodge at Camelot. He doesn't sleep well outside of his crib so each day he was more and more tired as well. I was grateful that my parents had him in their room. I get so stressed out when he wakes up and cries because he doesn't like the Pack N' Play. I was surprised to hear he actually slept a couple of hours in bed with Grandma and Grandpa though. He doesn't normally like sleeping in beds.

Friday night we headed back to Provo and visited with some friends on Saturday and finally were able to meet up with Jeff and Kylene. I wish we'd been able to stay longer but it really would have been impossible because Cole was wiped. After being there Thursday and Friday, I think Cole had really had enough of being passed around to a ton of strangers. He wouldn't go to anyone but Mom and Dad after that. He kind of stayed that way much of last week too. Thankfully, he accepts Grandma and Grandpa and warms up to his aunts and uncles quickly. I can't say the same for others. We saw one of my favorite people in the entire world that Saturday in Provo, Marilyn Huntsman, and he absolutely would NOT let her hold him. I felt so bad! By the time we got home both baby and momma took a few days to recover on lost sleep and now we're back on track. He did pick up the sniffles though and a little cough.

And because I was a total slacker and didn't take any pictures (and still haven't since the aforementioned shots) here are pics from the Reunion from Kylene. (Thanks Sis for letting me steal!)


Food, Faces and Races
Days go by and it seems Cole does something more advanced or new everyday. The other day he seemed so bored. His favorite toys are the musical ones so I put his bumbo seat on the piano bench and let him "play" the piano for a bit. He was content there about 20 minutes without me having to be there either! I loved it and he did too. No banging was involved either as he played nice!


Cole really is not taking well to 3rd foods. Actually, he just doesn't like any foods with meat in them unless it's Applesauce & Chicken which basically tastes like applesauce. So is my son telling me he's a vegetarian??? The doctor says it can take up to 10 exposures to a new flavor before he may accept it. At this point, I'm not sure if it's the meat flavor or the bits of food in the 3rd stage foods. So I'll have to backstep. But I needed to share his reaction when he is barely tolerating something in his mouth. Sometimes it's a food he doesn't like and he eventually keeps his lips closed and won't open them or sometimes it's just when he's nearing completion for eating.


Yep, no great winces, just wrinkled nose and heavy breathing! I think it's hilarious!!

Last week Cole officially had pizza. Well, at least the crust. He LOVES it. Now when he sees pizza he knows exactly what it is and WANTS it. Here he is Friday night enjoying his crust.


And finally, Cole is getting quicker at the scooting/army crawling. It's almost a froggy hop sometimes. He loves to race to dad best. This was taken Sunday morning before church. Enjoy!


San Antonio and Nine Months!
Last weekend Cole and I accompanied Rick to San Antonio to the Westin La Cantera Resort. Rick had to go for a Country Club Managers Association meeting. They have them for the local chapter somewhere in Texas 3 times a year and then a National meeting somewhere once a year. Since the room was paid for it was really just food cost in us going. We loved the hotel and enjoyed our entire weekend. Cole loved being with dad so much (and so did mom) and was really very fun. The nighttime sleep wasn't the best for mom but Cole actually did really well the first night. He awoke only once at 4am. I didn't sleep well because there was a baby in the room next to us who decided to wake up and cry just about every hour of the night...and since I'm still tuned in to babies crying...I was up every hour. Ugh.. The second night Cole was up a few times and was really, really upset. He didn't even want to nurse. After one of his wakings he passed gas and then was SO CALM, so I am just assuming he had gas pains all night, hence the crying and waking. Poor guy!!

While there we went swimming and saw some exotic animals like a hedgehog, bearded dragon, hissing african cockroaches (disgusting), an african constrictor snake (ew), and tropical birds. There were more but Cole was sleepy so we left. This group called Zoomagination brings the animals to the resort. They get them from people who used to own them as pets but then decided they either didn't want them or couldn't care for them adequately. There was so much to do for little kids there. The resort is right down the street from Six Flags so needless to say the resort was filled with families the entire weekend.

Part of the meetings was a dinner at a local country club. The theme was a hawaiian luau. Everyone commented on how well behaved Cole was. He really is SO good, and especially so in public. He is so fascinated by everyone and everything around him that he really doesn't even make a peep!


As I said before, Cole thinks Daddy is all fun (and well, he is). Rick had Cole on the bed and was trying to change his diaper and get him in his PJs. I was brushing my teeth when Rick calls me out to see what our son is doing. As soon as he was naked he started rolling all over the bed and laughing. Of course, I had to get a pic. I'm sure he'll hate me for this later, but he's the one who did it! And if you look close you can see his little tooth which popped up last week.


Cole is officially 9 months old! We had our checkup Tuesday and all is well. He is still only weighs about 18lbs but is now 28 inches long. He's such a little guy and so mellow in his personality so the doctor wasn't surprised that he isn't crawling. He does TRY though. Here's a video for proof... he just get SO upset and only manages to pull himself along the floor. I think I need to let him stay upset until he figures out that I'm not going to save him and he can do it. We'll see.


The doctor did give me some advice on getting him to drink through a straw. I tried it that afternoon and it kind of worked. Then I tried again yesterday evening and viola! Here is the result...drinking formula no less! We may be on the road to some freedom here!


Sleeping, Eating and Drinking
I am SO ready to sleep through the night. I started turning Cole's baby monitor off so I would only hear him if he were REALLY crying ... okay, screaming. It worked. He's sleeping 11 hours most every night. The problem(s)?

1. I still wake up during the night at least once or twice. Grr!!!!!! Sometimes it's around 5AM and I'll hear Cole squirming or whining trying to fall back asleep so I'll go in and nurse him (since I can't sleep either and it helps solve problem #2).

2. He really needs 12 hours of sleep in order to make it a good 2-3 hours before another nap. But he can only make it 11 before starving for food. So I deal with a pretty tired baby in the morning.

I've also decided since the babe can only go 11 hours, going to bed at 7pm and getting up at 6am was not satisfactory for mommy. So I pushed bedtime to 8pm. It fixes the morning problem but adjusting his naps so he can make it until 8pm is still in the works. He really fights a 3rd nap now so I'm trying to delay the morning nap until 10am (have yet to make that one) and then a 2nd nap at 3pm. Right now we're struggling to even make it to 9am and 2pm. But we'll get there!

The best part about Cole staying up later is we've gotten more time with Daddy and he has decided it is SUPER funny when dad turns his back on him and walks away. I thought maybe it was just the after 7pm bewitching hour, but he was laughing at him this morning too since Rick didn't go into work until later. Cole has definitely figured out that Dad is the funny one. I've got a little on video but I'll try to get more.


We bought some blocks for Cole this week and he loves them. Well, he loves mommy to build them up so he can knock them down. Such a boy.



He is eating more baby food and actually eating fruit by itself without having to be mixed with rice cereal. He loves Cheerios but I have to watch him close because every once in a while he won't chew it enough and he coughs. He also doesn't have the the coordination to put them in his mouth. They are simply too small for his manly hands!

I'm desperate to get Cole to drink from a bottle, a sippy cup, a cup, anything! I'm just ready for him to not be so utterly needy for mom. Rick and I are going to San Antonio in a couple of weeks for a weekend stay at a fancy-smancy resort. He has to go for a business conference so why not enjoy it?! Now as it is getting nearer and nearer I am dying to go alone without baby! I hope that doesn't sound awful. I just think it would be more fun. But without Cole being able to drink enough from any of the above options, it's impossible. He will nibble on bottles and silicone sippy cups. He will drink a little from less secure sippy cups that just drip out when you tilt them. He will drink from a little cup too but not enough for a full dose of milk that he wants and it would certainly be messy in the end. I'm not saying I don't want to nurse anymore, I'm just saying I want other options too! I'm thinking he's too old to get him to take a bottle but if that's what will work, then I'll buy 30 brands if needed to find the one he will take. Same for sippy cups, etc. Any ideas?

Oh yes, and the first baby tooth popped up. It's just barely above the gums but the other is close behind as well!

In other news...

Cole and I went to College Station last weekend with Grandma and Grandpa to spend time with my Uncle Lynn and Aunt Barbara's family. Okay, and their new pool too. It was the first overnight stay for Cole anywhere. He didn't sleep too well in the Pack 'N Play but I think he would have done better if we'd stayed another night. I figured out too late it wasn't really where he was sleeping so much as it was too DARK where he was sleeping. I forgot he has a nightlight in his room. Here he is being so patriotic like his daddy.


It is hot, Hot, HOT here! Cole takes it pretty well though. Give him a cracker, a hat and some shade and he's content.


Daily Activities
Cole really sticks anything in his mouth. Every time he sees me drinking from a straw he wants to put it in his mouth too. He doesn't really know he's supposed to suck on it too. At first I was afraid to let him just play with them, but thus far no incidents and he loves them!


I took video of his nighttime play routine. As soon as I walk into our guest bathroom he throws up the biggest grin. So on evenings when he is a little fussy I'll play with him in here. Well, last night he got in his giddy mode. He just chatters away. This is actually a sign that he is SUPER tired, but I love to see it. As soon as we left and changed his diaper the crankiness began and the whining didn't cease until I laid him in his crib. I'll take giddy baby chatter any day as a sign for being tired over the whining and crying!



During the day Cole and I don't usually watch TV because we have more fun things to do, but if we do decide to turn it on for a change in routine, I have two favorite shows on PBS.

Word World
It is on at 10:30AM here. It is totally not for teeny tots like mine but we both like it. Some children shows really annoy me but this is so creative, the music is catchy and I haven't seen an episode yet with an annoying storyline. They build words and then the word turns into the object. The artistry behind it is so inventive. Cole likes the colors and the songs. I get the "Build a Word" song stuck in my head everyday we watch it.


It's A Big Big World
This isn't as exciting as Word World. It's a mellow little show, kind of hippy-like. It works to help wind down before his nap sometimes. It's on at noon everyday. The show is puppeteering with a green screen backdrop. Again, I like the songs and someday Cole will think it's very educational too.


On Monday, Daddy finally got to go swimming with us. We were at the Lifetime Fitness pool so we couldn't bring any floaties for Cole. It was in the evening and getting a little cooler too so we didn't stay too long but we had a great time!


And finally, our little guy has teeth coming in - It's about time! He hasn't been acting too fussy or anything. I didn't even notice these puppies until Wednesday.


And for the close up...


We'll see how long they last hidden in those gums!
Pool Day
Cole and I were lucky enough to join some friends at the pool on Thursday. Cole loves the water! Because it's been so hot, there wasn't even a chill to the water temperature for him to get used to. I could have had it a little cooler than it was but I won't complain. I usually hate getting into the pool and adjusting to the cooler temperature. We stayed about an hour and had a great time! Cole was exhausted afterwards and fell asleep like a rock.

Here he is with his cool baby sunglasses (UV 400%). Even with 50SPF sunscreen with titanium dioxide (complete sunblock) my little man still got a bit of a tan on his arms. I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't used such a strong block?!


Elvis is Alive!
Saturday was customer appreciation day at my mother's store. They had giveaways and goodies but the coolest part was they had Elvis perform! He was really great. I could have listened to him a lot longer. I am not even a huge Elvis fan! The singer is actually a family friend who does this for a living. So fun!


Cole seemed to enjoy listening and watching him too. Then again, Cole was also extremely distracted by the plant beside him.

Then he saw Grandpa's water bottle and that's all he wanted. He's so funny in that Cole loves to try to do whatever he sees you do. He sees me drink from a straw and he wants to try. He'll put it in his mouth but that's about it. So the same goes for us drinking from any cup or water bottle. I should start drinking from his sippy cup then maybe he'd show more interest!


This is a picture this morning before church. I wet his hair down so it would actually lay flat and then hairsprayed it. I know you can't really see his hair in the pic but he looked so cute chewing on his church shoes!


Today was special because Cannon was blessed today in church. It was beautiful. It's fun to have family come to church with us that normally attend other buildings closer to their home. Cole sat with Uncle Robert and Aunt Beverly most of Sacrament Meeting. He was so patient as Jade and T passed him back and forth and back and forth!

And finally, a special Happy Father's Day to Dads and Granddads out there!
Sunny Days and Tasty Crackers

Cole and I have been going for walks almost everyday. We've done this really since he's been born. Well, now it's hot, really HOT. It's actually unusually hot even for Austin in June. We were going in the evenings to avoid the heat but I finally realized that at 6 or 7pm, it's still just too hot and too sunny. Cole's little face gets SO red from the heat, but he doesn't complain. Sometimes, when I get him out of the stroller he is a big ball of sweat. So we've switched to morning walks and it seems to have helped a little. The sun doesn't get steaming until about noon so we go sometime before that. These pics were taken about 20 minutes after we got back. His cheeks are still so red and his lips and chin are wet still from him trying to drink water from his sippy cup (he doesn't quite have the hang of it). But he was extremely happy and didn't seem to mind the heat at all. Such a great kid!

I promised a video of Cole eating his crackers. He really loves them. I like that they don't make a crumbly mess and they are relatively clean. His hands get a little sticky, but that's to be expected. They are basically really refined rice cakes.


Cole has started to pull himself up and thinks he's so cool after doing it. He'll look at you with this big grin. It makes me laugh because he tries to do it all with his legs instead of using any upper body strength so he's wobbly. He still prefers to use mom's hands as his stability bar but I'm working on getting him to realize he can hold on to other things as well.

He's also become quite clingy to me (yes, even more so) lately. He doesn't even want me to put him in the high chair to feed him. He will refuse to bend his legs. There are times when I can convince him, but I'm a softy and just resort to holding him to feed him the cereal and baby food. I'll admit, even though at first it was a little frustrating, it's become quite endearing to see him clawing at my shirt and squeezing my neck begging me not to put him down. Thus far, it's only during mealtimes or when he's tired so he still plays on the floor and such by himself. Thank goodness for that!
Popsicles
Rick loves those cheap little popsicles in the plastic that you push up to eat. Well, Cole has watched him eat them and decided he HAD to have some. Rick thought it would be too cold for him to eat, but Cole seemed to enjoy it!


He's also started eating baby crackers. He LOVES those. I think he just mostly enjoys the fact that he can hold something and actually eat it too. He's eating more baby food and his favorites seem to be butternut squash and sweet potatoes. I think he eats those even when he isn't hungry.

On a regular day, Cole still takes three naps. Most moms look at me like I'm crazy, but it's true. It really all depends on when he wakes up from the second nap if he'll have a third. The third is only 30-45 minutes but it puts him in bright spirits again and has no impact on his bedtime either. Although I have been trying to push bedtime back to 7:30 or 8:00pm instead of 6:30 or 7:00pm. We're down to one wake up at night sometime between 3:30 and 5:00am. He's a little over 18 pounds now and is definitely trying to make all the sounds he can. He has this new "clicking" with his tongue he's started the past two days. He gets happy when he does it so I'm sure he thinks he's so cool. I'll try to get that on video as well as his little hand trick. I thought he was finally signing back to me but he isn't. He's just playing with his fingers. He lifts his forefinger up and wraps the other fingers around his thumb. Pulls out the thumb and then rubs the thumb down the fingers. Odd to explain and even odder to see a baby doing it.

11/21/2009 8:36:49 PM