Happy Birthday/ Happy Halloween!

This pumpkin wants to wish his daddy, "Happy Birthday! Happy Halloween!"

Love,
Joshua

The Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday I took Joshua to the "Pumpkin Patch." I say this with quotes because apparently Monday was the last day for this particular pumpkin patch and the pumpkins were then given away for free. So when I showed up on Tuesday with a friend and her baby we saw scattered hay and some picked over, slightly rotten, cracked pumpkins. Well I couldn't let Joshua miss his first opportunity for pumpkin pictures so with the help of my friend, we gathered all the pumpkins that were salvageable (five), rearranged a bale of hay, and were ready to go. As you can see the pictures came out great and next year, I'll go earlier! Joshua is wearing his Halloween costume in some of the pictures. He is the cutest little pumpkin. He wanted to tell his Grandottie "Thanks! You're the best!" for making such a wonderful pumpkin.
Here is Joshua with his little buddy Chet. The challenge here was trying to get a picture where they were both sitting up. Chet would slide left so we'd straighten him up, them Joshua would slide right so we'd straighten him up, and so on and so on. They are some really cute boys. Below are a couple pics of one sleepy pumpkin!
Joshua is showing that even an unhappy pumpkin is still adorable.

Another Discovery!

Joshua has discovered his thumbs, specifically his right one, which will work at night when he's spit out his paci and is looking for something to soothe him. He has done this the past two nights. His technique really needs some work, but it's exciting that he's finding ways to calm himself instead of crying for his mommy to put his paci back in his mouth. So far he will suck on his right thumb, but the angle is really awkward and occasionally a finger will be caught in there with his mouth. Joshua started sleeping in his room last week. Overall the transition has been great! I think Matt and I spend more time watching him sleep on the monitor than we did when he was in our room! He usually gets up once a night, though sometimes it's twice at night.

As you can see, Joshua is getting better at holding up his head. We've been working on his tummy time to build strength. He also is very interested in that baby in the mirror that smiles at him.

Tomorrow I'm meeting up with another mommy so we can take our boys to the pumpkin patch for some fall pictures. I'll post some when I get home. Joshua will be wearing his Halloween costume, made by his very own Grandottie, so you'll have to check back and look at them. This last picture shows Joshua with Mommy right after his bath.

Family Photo

Matt, Joshua, and I enjoyed a nice weekend. There was some exciting (though nail biting at times) football on Saturday and a cold front came through bringing "football" weather. Joshua, my growing boy, has moved up a level in the restraints on his carseat. This past week he also has been taking baths in his baby tub instead of washcloth baths. I think he likes the extra water. He slept through church, although whenever the music began he would startle and throw his arms up over his head. It not only amused Matt and me, but the people behind us as well. Lastly Joshua slept really good last night! I put him to bed at 9:30 and he ended up wetting his pajamas and sleep sack so he got a costume change about 10:30, but then he fall asleep and didn't wake up until 5:30. Good boy!

What a big week!

Joshua has been busy since the last post. We spent last week in Birmingham. He got to meet many of our friends and family. We were in town for a Tool and Gadget Party for Joshua's Aunt Steph and Uncle Chad. We had lunch with Erin and her daughter Sarah Katherine who is one month younger than Joshua. Erin and I had fun dressing the babies up in our team colors! Joshua got to spend time with his Grandottie and JerryPop as well as his Grandaddy. His cousin Grace enjoyed petting his head and kissing his head. Also his Aunts Celeste and Elaine had a birthday dinner and gathering which was fun. Unfortunately Joshua did not get to meet the Tiltons this trip, but is looking forward to Thanksgiving and is glad that cousin Alec is feeling better now.

Here is what is new with Joshua: Joshua is smiling more and making more noises. He also likes to hold his right ear with his right hand when nursing. He traveled well in the car to and from Birmingham. He'd fall asleep after 20 minutes in the car and I had to wake him up after 3 hours driving because Mommy needed a stop. He's getting good at holding his head up. He flails his arms more and smacks himself in the face, but it never seems to bother him. He also kicks his legs like crazy to get stronger everyday.

Joshua went for his 2 month checkup Tuesday. Mommy and Daddy were sad because Joshua had to get 5 shots and an oral vaccine, but a few shots is better than the disease. The nurse was fast and he did really well. He smiled at the doctor and showed off his ability to hold up his head. It was funny because the doctor said Joshua would get more vocal over the next couple months and right when he said that, Joshua gave him a loud "ooohhr." He weighed 11lbs 14oz and was 24in long. That's quite a bit of growing over the last 2 months.

Week 8 Update

Joshua is 8 weeks old! He had a fun weekend. Matt didn't have to work on Saturday so he spent extra time with his daddy. Then he got to watch Alabama continue their winning streak to 6-0. Then he got to meet his cousins when the Edwards came over. John maintained his title of "baby holder" and either Joshua was fussy with Ryan or Ryan was pinching him. Maybe Joshua will be a better sport at Thanksgiving.

I hate to even put this in writing because it probably means he'll take a step backwards tonight, but Joshua is still doing well sleeping through the night. He's not there yet, but he's working on it. He's a happy baby just smiling, cooing, and intensely watching everything. His head control just gets better and better. He's also turning into quite the drooler. Lastly, Matt and I measured Joshua over the weekend and he is now 23.5 inches long and a little over 11 pounds in weight.