How Squirrely

The night after Christmas my mom woke up thinking she heard something out in the den. The next day she continued to hear a noise but couldn't figure out what it was or where it was coming from. Then my brother heard it too and walked around the kitchen trying to listen for it. Finally my mom realized---it was coming from the fireplace. There must be a bird in there! So my dad got up to check it out, and there was no bird, but instead a squirrel looking back at him!! That was enough to make me squeal! Everyone put on their thinking caps of how in the world we were going to get this squirrel out. All I could think of was Chevy Chase in Christmas Vacation with the squirrel on the loose, the dog chasing it, and well you know the rest.

So, after much thought, Operation Jason came into play. He and Josh turned tables onto their sides and made a trail from the fireplace to the back door. Then they got several blankets and covered the top. The brave men stood by the fireplace and released the doors. They had to poke around a little bit to get the squirrel to move and finally he did. We didn't really know if he had gone through the trail or not, but Mom turned around and saw him on the back deck.

Operation Jason was deemed a success!! Below are pictures and a short video of our extra house guest.

Christmas Fun

So here it is the day after Christmas and I sit in shorts and short sleeves! Something is wrong with this picture...
What a week we've had. Connor woke up Monday night not feeling well. The next couple of days were bad so we finally took him into the doctor on Christmas Eve. His temperature was 102.4 and the doctor said he had a virus--the flu!! We just got his flu shot last week, but it takes 2 weeks to really get into the body and become effective, uf! So we took it easy and had to cancel Christmas with my mom's family because we have a new 4 week old cousin. His temperature went away by Christmas Day and he felt much better. In fact, he felt so great, he wouldn't sleep! He woke up at 5:30am took one 30 minute nap and didn't go to sleep until 9:00pm last night. So we were battling the flu, being overtired and now he's starting to cut his two bottom teeth. However, he woke up this morning talking and playing and has not slowed down. So hopefully we're on the up and up now.

As far as Christmas gifts, our parents went above and beyond. I knew with Connor being the first grandchild he'd get a lot of toys and every other present was for him! Josh and I racked up too---we got a grill that we desperately needed, $$ for a new chair in our den, fireplace accessories, a college savings plan for Connor, about 4 months worth of formula (a gift every new parent would love) and so many more wonderful things. Thanks parents!!!

Connor with Uncle Jason (sorry J!)

Opening one of his many gifts

Family pic


Sitting with Santa

Telling Santa what he wants for Christmas

Still growing like a weed!!

Yesterday Connor went to the doctor for his 6 month check up (a week late.) He now weighs 20 lbs which is in the 90%tile and once again, he is off the charts for height. In fact, they just wrote on his file greater than 98%. The nurse said he looks like a one year old. We got a clean bill of health, which is always a comfort to hear. The doctor said Connor was much heavier than he appears but for us to continue doing what we're doing because he looks great.
Last night we went to Zilker Park in Austin to their trail of lights. It was really pretty and Connor was a trooper. He got to bed 3 hours later than normal, but he never fussed. Before we went, we fed him peas for the first time. He ate like a champ and gobbled down the whole container laughing through it all. We tried again to have peas for breakfast, but he didn't care for it much. I thought everyone liked peas for breakfast?!?
Here are some photos from the past few days:

My First Taste of Solid Food

Now that Connor is 6 months, I decided to try solid food for the first time. We haven't been to the doctor yet, so I hated to do anything without his go ahead, but figured this wouldn't hurt. For the past week or so, I've been putting rice cereal in his bottle at night. (And it's a myth that it makes babies sleep longer!!) Since he didn't seem to mind that, this morning I mashed up a banana. It was only about 1 or 2 teaspoons, but that was enough to get a reaction. We haven't needed to wear any bibs thus far, but that's all about to change. Here are a few pictures from this memorable moment:







Just give me my bottle!