My Little Monster

8 Months Old-

This is my "little" big monster. I helped to shape him into that. He loves to cuddle to fall asleep and sleeps the best when mom is holding him. This makes getting things done around the house nearly impossible. But I can't be mad because I love that he lets me baby him like that still.

Just this week he has started going from laying to sitting by himself and actually standing up when you hold his hands. He would not put weight on his feet and that was kinda making me nervous but now he's a pro. He scoots around the floor backwards and will get on his hands and knees to rock.  I'm sad though, I thought that with Dylan not being as far as my other kids were at this age he would stay a baby longer, but I'm sure within a few weeks he'll be right on track with his brother and sister.

He just cut his 3rd tooth and the 4th is about to break through any day. He looks like a vampire.

He started clapping this week too. His favorite song is Pat-a-Cake so it was only a matter of time before he started clapping along with it.

He still LOVES Tray and Kinlee and would sit and watch them play all day if they would stay in the same room as him. I'm sure when he's fully mobile he won't have a problem following them around the house.

He went swimming for the first time yesterday and had so much fun! He loved watching all the kids play in the pool and loved playing in the water.

He totally surpassed the weight restrictions on his car seat so we had to get him a new one, so that means he gets to sit in the cart at the store like a big kid. The look on his face is so cute, he knows that he's a big boy and feels so special.

  

I can't get enough of this boy. I could hug and kiss him all day and I usually do.

Family Photo

Remember Dylan's gorgeous newborn pictures. Well my friend Jaci (U Pix Photography) recently took our family pictures and here is a little sneak peak. I can't wait to see the rest of them!

Who Do I Look Like....

I hope that Dylan only takes after his brother in the looks department, I don't know how well I can handle another Tray personality.

I love this picture! This is how our recent family pictures looked, Tray with a smile and Kinlee with a smirk.

Week 10 - 2 Pounds

I did it! I won the contest and lost 25 pounds! I never thought I would get on the scale and cry tears of joy. But I did! It was hard work and I missed out on lots of yummy treats and snacks along the way. But the results have been totally worth it!
Thanks to Kylie for all her help! And for Travis for doing the diet with me. It's great to feel so good and know that I'm healthy.
Now I get to go shopping! Yahoo!!!

Week 9 - 2 Pounds

Hooray! Looks like I've worked through my plateau. I want to get 2 more pounds down this week and then I will be at exactly 25 lost! Then I hope to drop the last 5 before we go on our trip!

I've had some people ask about my diet. I'm no fitness expert but my one piece of advice for any diet is to keep a food journal. I honestly feel like that was a key habit to help me stick to my diet. You honestly feel so guilty when you think about writing down the cheat meal you ate or even that extra helping of carbs. It's great to see what is actually put into your body on a daily basis.

The Daily Dish even had a segment on food journals this morning. (I'll post the link once they get it on their website)

I'm really nervous for my diet to end. Although I would love to be on this diet the rest of my life, we can't afford it. My grocery bill is outrageous and it's nothing that clipping coupons can fix when you just buy meat and produce.

I think I've learned some great habits that I can incorporate into our daily lives. Portion control, not cooking with a stick of butter for every meal. Eating small frequent meals, and exercise daily. I love the way I feel in the mornings after my workout! My goal for now is to keep this weight off.

Happy 1/2 Birthday!

I can't believe how fast 6 months has gone by! It's hard to believe that in another 6 months he will be blowing out a candle!

This boy is obsessed with food. But not baby food. He wants to eat what everyone else is eating. Every morning he has some of my smoothie and he's always trying to reach the kids' plates when they are eating. He was boobing the other night while I was eating so I gave him some asparagus and he LOVED it. He just sat there sucking on it and would scream at me when I took it away.

He loves graham crackers. Unlike Tray who would just crush his crackers and smear them all over, Dylan actually eats his! The other day I was busy cleaning and I came into the kitchen and Tray had gave Dylan a piece of his sandwich. Dylan was in heaven! He did mostly just squeeze it in his chubby fists but he did munch on some of it.

These two are best friends. I love the way Dylan lights up when he hears Tray coming in the morning. He gets so excited and kicks his chubby legs so fast. Tray adores Dylan as well. Kinlee is coming around to Dylan now that he is more active and Dyl loves to laugh at Kinlee. Dylan also LOVES Daisy. The first time I actually saw him reach for something he really wanted was to pet her.

Dylan now has 2 bottom teeth. I almost have Dyl completely weaned which is bittersweet. I just want him to be my baby forever! I could still kiss him all day long! I love his chubby cheeks and his toothy smile. His laugh melts my heart. I love when I bend over him and he reaches up to grab my face!

We're practicing sitting up alone, but I honestly don't want him to because that means he's growing up. He still hates being on his tummy. He can roll both ways but chooses not to. He likes to just sit and watch everything going on around him. He can hold his own bottle when he wants to. He loves to make noises. He still doesn't sleep through the night and I only have a few weeks until I have to get that taken care of. I don't think Grandma will appreciate waking up at 4 am to feed him.

We just love our buddy to pieces!  I couldn't imagine our family without him!

Out With the Old.... In With the New

(Don't mind the rug burn, it was self inflicted)



Just days after I noticed Dylan's new tooth (he now has 2 bottom teeth; tear, tear) I saw that Tray had a loose tooth! In fact he had 2 of them! What is the deal with my babies growing up?

It took 2 weeks for this tooth to fall out. And it came out while he was eating an apple. He was so excited! Then 2 hours later, he dropped the tooth down the sink because he was playing with it. Good thing Dad got it out.

Tonight I just pulled out his other tooth. It was so loose that he could lay it flat in his mouth.

Let's just hope he doesn't get any more soon. The Tooth fairy is running out of dollars.