Bird Watching Lunch with Mommy

Colin and I have been spending lots of time outside since getting our new furniture.  On St. Patty's Day we enjoyed some bird watching along with our lunch.  I've always enjoyed looking at the birds in our backyard but never really took the time to truly watch them.  Having Colin has helped life slow down a little and has given me the opportunity to take in our surroundings (I love being a stay at home mom!). 

 Colin enjoying some bird-watching:

Actually...to be honest...he did a lot more mommy watching, which he thought was hilarious.  Apparently watching Mommy try to take pictures of birds is pretty funny...

Okay, so maybe I was getting a little too into watching the birds....it just amazes me how much wildlife you can find in our back yard even with the major thoroughfare behind us. Thankfully, I was able to capture a bunch of shots...most of them from my seat, while feeding Colin.  I've tried to identify each bird and hopefully I am correct!

Male Cardinal:

 (check out the worm)

Female Cardinal:

Northern Mockingbird: 

From the front...

From the side...

From the back...

On the fence...

 Eastern Bluebird:

Favorite shot...

 Yellow-rumped Warbler

 Couldn't figure this one out:

 Robin:

This one brought back some great childhood memories for Mommy.  Each year a Robin lays its nest on the beams underneath Mimi and Pappy's deck (for over 20 years now!). Each Spring brought great excitement as a new nest was built.  Not only could you see the nest and the mommy Robin by looking through the steps you could also look directly down into the nest between the slabs of the deck. The best part was getting to see the eggs inside and watching them as they hatched and grew their feathers.  We were able to see into the nests just like this:

It was truly amazing!  Some years, the nest would be just below a slab blocking the view into the nest.  I was always so disappointed when this would happen.  Since we are at Mimi's now, while I'm writing this, I just checked and this year the nest is completely under a slab...bummer!

And finally, a Red-bellied Woodpecker...It was not easy getting a shot of this guy!  After several failed attempts, I captured this one the next day.

Alright enough bird watching...now for some Colin watching...
He's been making some silly faces lately that I think may be a result of his teething:

 Turning up his nose:

 Gaping mouth for Lilly:

 

Colin is 8 Months Old!

8 Months Old?  Can you believe it?!  We sure can't.

This month has been filled with silliness...

smiles...

and lots of scouting around trying to get into trouble.

We are happy to say, Colin now prefers to be on his belly most of the time. This is major progress from when he would cry after less than a minute. The chiropractor has really made a difference. He'll be crawling before we know it.

Since we've had such great weather I decided to capture Colin's 8 month shots in the backyard.  First things first...got to get the sneezes out!

Colin sneezes every time he gets in the sun and does two adorable little sneezes every morning when I turn the light on in his room.

Let's make sure we get the dazes out of the way as well...

This is new for Colin and he seems to really enjoy the peace it brings him. For a kid who is hyper alert I'm glad he can zone out once and awhile now. Just like his Mommy he doesn't want anyone waving their hands in front of him while he's having a moment!

Alright, Mommy couldn't resist and forced Colin right out of his daze and into this sweet smile.

Within seconds he was right back to that daze again...

But alas, he is distracted by his diaper...

Oh man! He's figured out how to take it off...

We're in trouble! I have a feeling Colin is going to get into a lot of mischief over the next few years.

Speaking of mischief...This month Colin has been infamous for his go-go gadget arms...

He has become obsessed with the lawn and each time I put him on the picnic blanket he finds a way to get to the "grass":

Even after being moved back to the middle of the blanket and a little irritated by this fact...

he's determined to find his way back:

Seriously, those go-go gadget arms are crazy!

After nicely playing in the grass (dirt) Colin began exploring with his mouth and it was time to go inside and wash up!  Dirt doesn't quite go with the bowtie. :)

To wrap things up, a monthly post would not be complete without a sleep update. There were a few nights this month when Colin was waking as many as four times a night to eat...growth spurt maybe? Daddy said it felt like he was a newborn again and Mommy was just glad it didn't last long! Other than this fluke, Colin has really gotten into a great routine and usually follows this schedule:

7:00 AM - Wake (sneeze two times)

7:30 AM - Nurse
8:00 AM - Breafast
9:00 AM - Nap
10:30-11:00 AM - Wake and Nurse
12:00 PM - Lunch
1:00 PM - Nap
2:30 PM - Nurse
4:30 PM - "Nap" Nurse (Colin passes out while feeding :P)
5:00 PM - Dinner
6:00 PM - Bedtime Routine
6:30-7:00 PM - Asleep
9:00-11:00 PM Wakes for 1st night time feeding (nurse)
1:00-3:00 AM Wakes for 2nd night time feeding (bottle)

I really didn't want to have such a regimented schedule with my child but I tell you, Colin needs it...he thrives on it! And therefore so does Mommy. He knows what to expect and is such a happy kid. I've included the schedule because I want to be able to remember it when the next one comes along. Of course, he or she will inevitably be totally different but it will be fun to compare.

We can't wait for Colin's 9 month doctor's appointment so we can find out how much this chunk has grown!

Spring Break with Aunt Veronica

Aunt Veronica decided to visit us over her Spring Break from college and we were so happy she did!

She brought along her friend, Catherine, who was a bunch of fun!  Mommy enjoyed spoiling them both with lots of home cooked food...a college student's dream.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous while they were here and they got to spend a day on the Isle of Palms.  Aunt Veronica captured this awesome shot.  Sometimes I forget what beauty lies just five minutes from our house.

 

Colin marveled at Aunt Veronica while she got herself all done up for a night out in Charleston.

He just adores his Aunt Veronica.

He warmed up to Catherine too...

...no Colin...she is not Mommy...

Love and kisses from Mommy...

We can't forget Lilly who also loves her Aunt V!

Yay! Patio Furniture!!

It may seem strange to make an entire post about patio furniture...but let me tell you how excited Mommy is to finally have a nice place to sit outside and relax.  Its been over two years in the making. Colin is excited about it too!

Watching Daddy in action:

Enjoying lunch at our new table! Daddy is relaxing with a beer and a yummy guacamole grilled cheese while feeding Colin.

All cleaned up from lunch and taking it all in.

Looking up to Daddy:

 Kisses!

Lilly started getting a little jealous...

...so Daddy had to give her some lovin too

Sadly, Daddy had to leave us the next day for a few weeks but we had some great family time together before he left and I have a feeling we are going to get a lot of use out of our new furniture!

Daddy's Birthday and Uncle Thomas's Visit

This was the first time Daddy was not on the road for his birthday in several years.  He spent two birthdays in good ole Altus, Oklahoma and another in Tanzania of all places.  He was so excited to finally be home on his big day that he celebrated by...

getting himself a brand new car! That's right, he traded in his Mazda 6 for a Ford Focus.  It's got great gas mileage and lots of gadgets and gizmos.  Perfect for Daddy.

Colin went with a gift that was a little less expensive...a homemade card.

 Can you see his sweet baby hand on top of Daddy's?

Although Daddy was home for his birthday he had to fly all night - left home around 4pm and didn't return until 6am the next morning! Luckily, Uncle Thomas decided to come to town for a few days and got in the night before Daddy's birthday.  We celebrated a day early by getting a babysitter and having an awesome dinner downtown at Tabbuli, a hippie-esque, Mediterranean restaurant with all outdoor seating.

We continued the birthday celebration the day after his birthday with a trip to the beach.  It was absolutely gorgeous when we first got there but before we knew it the fog rolled in. It got really cold and we could barely see down the shoreline. 

We packed our lunch so Daddy held Colin as Mommy fed him.

It got a little messy...

We all still tried to rally and have a good time. Uncle Thomas's friend worked hard to get some smiles out of Colin.

And it worked!

Uncle Thomas REALLY wanted to enjoy some sunny beach time but was glad to at least get time with Colin.

Uncle Thomas makes fun out of everything!  Here you'll find him scaring off the seagull from our food.

We had a great time celebrating Daddy's birthday and spending time with Uncle Thomas!