7 month photo shoot

I wrote about what Evan has been up to lately here, but I wanted to post his pics for you to see as well.  I know that you all love his face as much as I do.  Well not quite, because that is impossible, but I know you are anxious to see Mr. GQ.  

Taking pictures of the little guy can be hard sometimes because he literally never stops moving. 

He loves reading and is currently learning Spanish. (total joke, but the book he is holding is a Spanish numbers book). 

Am I getting paid for this?

Everything he touches still goes directly to his mouth!  As an added bonus, he has learned how to be a man and will pitch a fit (back bending, arms flaying, etc.) if you do not let him have whatever his taste buds are after.  Mostly this happens with my keys.  

He is getting better at independent play and will usually sit for a while playing with toys.  At daycare, this  involves taking every toy off the bookcase so that he can lay on the bookcase with the toys.  Don't ask me, I have no idea. 

Happy 7 months to our precious little munchkin.  You have made our lives better in ways we could have never imagined.  

Life just got a little sweeter!

I know I'm probably behind the times, but I just realized blogger has an app. This means I can blog from my phone and thus hopefully blogging will be a little easier and I will be able to post more. Good for me, sucks for you!

Bill, Evan and I are headed to Little Rock for the weekend. Driving in the new car is awesome! However there are rules. For starters, there is no eating in the new car.

Clearly our only option was to stop at Cracker Barrel for a chicken salad sandwich and blackberry cobbler. I only realized a couple weeks ago that I even like blackberry cobbler so I feel like I'm trying to make up for all the years I have missed out on this delicious food.

Do they make banana cobbler? I'm thinking that banana cobbler with peanut butter and vanilla ice cream might be what is served in Heaven.

Bill, shockingly, ordered a cheeseburger. Evan was mesmerized and I'm predicting he will be eating burgers like his dad by this time next year.

Taking a Stroll

Yesterday, Evan had his first experience with riding in the shopping cart.  Only Bill's child could figure out how to making shopping car riding look so cool.

Sitting up quickly became boring and a nap was in order: 

I haven't finished my coffee and therefore it is a completely ridiculous request for you to ask that I turn this picture right side up before posting it.  Please rotate your head.

My Son, the Artist

I finally got around to taking pictures of Evan's artwork at school.   These masterpieces must have taken hours to create.

Let's pray his right foot straightens out before his teenage years.

When you give a baby a spoon.....

Last night, we were trucking right along in the baby food business.  Evan was not so willingly eating his green beans (he's not a huge fan) and things were going well.  Then, we decided to give him the spoon.

He wants to do everything himself, especially eating, although getting the spoon in his mouth proved a little difficult.  When Bill and I tried to get the spoon, it was instant back arching growling fit.  Oh boy, here we go!

In other fun Evan news, I am positive he tried to give me kisses this weekend.  As you can imagine, Bill and I are always kissing his cheeks and neck.  On Saturday, Evan started putting his mouth (wide open) on my lips repeatedly.  So cute!  He has also started patting my shoulders when I pick him up, imitating my tendency to pat his back everytime I pick him up to hug him.  Kid sure is smart, and by smart, I mean knows  exactly what to do to make mommy and daddy want to give him anything he wants!

Have a seat

Evan is now sitting up by himself for probably a minute at a time.  He cannot do it for long, but I am amazed how fast he is growing.  I took these pictures on Thursday.

and down I go. 

Cuddle bug

Sometimes Evan sleeps with us; occasionally he sleeps in his crib. I prefer him sleeping with us because I love to wake up to this:

Sorry the photo is so dark.   This is what happens when I try to use flash: 

Memorial Day

I cannot believe it is Friday and I am just now writing about our Memorial day weekend.  You'd think I am raising an infant or something.

We arrived at my parents Friday evening by the lovely Hantz's.

No, not those Hantz's (though they are lovely).  These Hantz's:

It took Eli a little while to warm up to Evan and he definitely wasn't a fan of Evan getting John or Savanna's attention.  But, after a little warming up:

and they were fast friends.  Eli loved helping Evan play with his toys and Evan, of course, loves the attention.

Lately, Eli has been all about showers, but after finding out that Evan was taking a bath, it was all bath all the time:

We woke up early and started the day off right with a 7 1/2 mile run.  Bill and dad ran a few miles with me, then biked the rest.  Originally, I wanted to run 10, but it was hot!   After the run, we soaked up the sun.

Evan loved the swing, so much so that it put him to sleep.  

I spent most of the morning attempting to get the most serious of boys (AKA Eli) to smile for pictures.  Success! 

 Eli spent most of the weekend stating "Hi Evan, how are you?".  Evan's still working on his response.

We did try a dip in the pool:

 But Evan mostly enjoyed hanging with mommy:

 And soaking up sun with daddy:

My sister Emily arrived with her little girls and my cousin Sadie Saturday afternoon:

Those two are so adorable.  Nyah wanted her baby to do everything that Evan did, including the swing:

 

We finished Saturday evening off with a crawfish boil, Pappa Joe style.  The boil included crawfish, mushrooms, onions, corn, okra, little smokes, sausage, broccoli, and potatoes.  Evan was so excited he even dressed for the occasion. 

The meal was awesome and I was asleep by 9:30.  Perfect Saturday!

Sunday was spent checking out John and Savanna's new place.  They recently purchased 7 1/2 acres in Santa Fe, next door to her moms.  It is a really nice place and I am so happy for them.  Sunday night was spent relaxing with Mom, Dad, Bill and Evan.  As much as I love all my family, it is really nice to be able to have one on one time with the parents every now and then.  

Hands, who needs them

On the way to my parents Friday, Bill, Evan and I stopped at Chili's for lunch.  I ordered a club sandwich and decided to give Evan a piece of my avocado.  We didn't have his spoon, so I decided to just put a little on a plate to see if he would reach with his hands.  After moving a little in his bumbo to get in position, he face planted directly into the avocado in an attempt to eat Ralphie style:

I see the resemblance.  

5 months

OK time, you and I had an agreement.  I was going to go back to work and you were going to tick tock along a glacier pace.  I never agreed to the speed at which you insist on moving.  How could it be possible that my little baby is already a feisty five month old?

There are so many things that I love about this age.  Evan is really starting to engage with us.  He loves to show us his tricks, which include sticking his tongue out, growling at us, trying to "get" us by eating our arms, face, etc.

Also, just the other day he started to wrap his arm around my neck whenever I am holding him, and touch my face and hold my ears when trying to fall asleep.  Melt my heart!!

He loves to play, can roll over easily now, but is still pretty tiny for his age.

He doesn't have any teeth yet, but it is obvious he is teething.  Some nights he is a little (ok a lot) grouchy and I know it is because his little mouth is hurting.  Speaking of the mouth, that is where EVERYTHING goes.

 GET

 IN 

MY MOUTH!

Evan has really started to love baby food this month.  Every time you set him in his high chair, he kicks his legs and gets very excited. Don't even think about eating in front of him or he will let you know that he wants some too.  Butternut squash is by far his favorite so far, and broccoli was definitely not a hit! 

We are sleeping lots these days and I attribute that 100% to the fact that I let him sleep in the bed with me.  Bill says that I have to start putting him in his crib at 6 months.  (Insert tear here).  We will see how it goes.  For now, I love cuddling with him.  

He still hates tummy time and would much rather be laying on his back, or sitting up in his exersaucer, jumperoo, or bumbo, or my favorite, in mommy or daddy's arms.