My Baby is 9 Months Old!

Where has the time gone? Cannon turned nine months on the 21st. I can't believe that he will be turning one in a few months. We had his well check on the 22nd and here are the stats:

Weight: 21lbs 2oz - just above 50th percentile
Length: 29'' - 75th percentile

Cannon was so cute with his nurse and doctor. He always has lots of smiles for them. He was such a wiggle worm during the whole visit. If I held him, he wanted down. So I sat him on the table, but he tore up all the paper and started eating it. His weight has really slowed down from his 6 month well check, but he keeps growing tall. Ryan and I think he looks skinny. He's not really skinny, but he is starting to lose some of that baby chubbiness.

He had to get two shots, the polio vaccine and a flu shot booster. They also drew blood from his finger to check for anemia. He didn't even flinch when they poked his finger, but she had to squeeze his finger which bugged him. He whined a little, but then he started watching the nurse squeeze his blood into the vial. It was kind of funny. He cried for his shots, but not for very long. I think he got his feelings hurt because he kept looking at the nurse like he was wondering why she did that to him.

I love Cannon's personality! He is such a cuddler and loves to give hugs. And if you ask him to give you a kiss, he will lean towards your face with his mouth wide open. I love it, even if it is so drooly! He has noticed stuffed animals, or anything else that has a face. He will give kisses to them and talk to them! He has also started to give high fives.

He is a champion eater. I still haven't found anything he won't eat. He is nursing four or five times a day and eating three solid food meals. He also likes to drink water from a sippy cup. He will also take a formula bottle if we want to go out. But I think we will just stick with using a sippy cup when I stop breastfeeding him instead of going to a bottle. The only problem we have with feeding time is the bib. He hates wearing a bib and so he will pull it off. But he looks you right in the eye while he is doing it because he knows he supposed to leave it on. He can't take off the ones that snap in the back, but we only have two of them. Today I didn't put a bib on him for lunch, but he started to tug on his shirt because he thought it was a bib. Silly guy!

He still sleeps pretty well. A couple of weeks ago he started sleeping 11.5 hours straight, from 7:30 pm until 7am. I was excited was pretty excited about it, but then he regressed. He started waking up again at weird times in the night, but I think it was from teething. I don't mind feeding him at 5am, because then he sleeps until 8 or 8:30. He is taking two naps a day, with each one lasting about 1.5 hours. Sometimes he will sleep for two. He is really good about falling asleep on his own, which makes things pretty easy. I have officially stop swaddling him in any way. Now I just lay him on his belly (which is now his preference) and I cover him with a small blanket. He's not a crazy sleeper, so the blanket is usually in the same place when I come to get him when he wakes up.

He definitely has toy and book preferences. He loves balls, drawers, cords, dog toys, tupperware, socks, ring stacker, trains and cars that move, paper, keys, phones, remote controls, animals (real or toys), electrical outlets, and rugs (just to name a few). His top three books are: 1)CAT, 2)So Big, and 3)One to Ten Pop up Surprises. If you are reading to him and he sees ones of those books, he will forget about what you are reading and reach for the one he wants. The cat book has a page where there is a cat hiding in a boot and when you pull the tab, the cat pops up. This is his favorite page and when we get to it he immediately pulls on the boot to look for the cat. And he thinks it's hilarious when the cat pops up.


The weather here has been gorgeous, so we have been taking advantage of this!












No he is not sitting on a cliff and he is not alone! I photoshopped Ryan's hand out of the picture.


This is his first true bubble bath! The first thing he did was try to eat the bubbles.


I think we went overboard on the bubbles and we both got lost!







Cannon loves this fox! We play peek-a-boo with it and he gives it kisses.

Cannon's First Black Eye

It's not a full black eye, but I think it counts. He fell into his bookshelf and got this shiner. He cried, but not for very long. I was amazed at how fast it started to heal. Now there's just a red line where he hit.

I also discovered Cannon's secret. I had a hunch that he had been sleeping on his belly, but I never knew for sure. Last night when I put him to bed, he immediately tried to roll on his belly. I turned him back on his back so I could wrap him in his blanket, but he rolled back over. I left him there and he watched me leave his room. I didn't hear a peep from him, so I was sure he went to sleep. I waited 20 minutes and I quietly went in his room. Sure enough, he was sound asleep on his belly! What a silly guy!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

On January 7th, Ryan and I celebrated our four year anniversary! Since it was on a Thursday, we planned to go out on Friday. So Thursday night we watched the very sad UT game. Let me just say two things about that game: 1)Alabama almost lost to a true Freshman; 2)we would of crushed them if Colt wasn't injured. Although we were expecting a win, we still have a team to be proud of and Garrett Gilbert is going to be awesome! Anyway, on Friday we ate dinner at Flemings. Luckily we had a gift card, otherwise we couldn't have afforded it! We had made reservations, so there was no wait. And luckily we found a good parking spot because it has been FREEZING here (in the 20's)! Neither of us ordered a steak, I had the salmon and Ryan had the pork chop and a side of garlic mashed potatoes. Ryan's pork chop was huge and thick and it was served over shredded apples. We were very pleased with both of our meals! For dessert we ordered the chocolate lava cake. It sounds incredible and it tasted incredible! It was chocolate cake, but when you got a piece the whole inside was gooey, like pudding. It was served with vanilla ice cream, fresh raspberries, and cream. I think this might come close to beating BJ's triple chocolate pizookie (okay, maybe it's a tie!). Since we have been trying to save more money, Ryan and I rarely eat at restaurants now, but if we do we usually have Cannon. So this was such a treat for us! And being the thoughtful son that he is, Cannon slept in until 9:30 the next day!

In other news, Cannon and I have been sick with colds. He got it first then gave it to me. This time it was for real. He had a little runny nose about a month ago, but it was hardly anything. But this was a full on cold with congestion, cough, and lots of mucus. He's had some fussy moments, but he's still been mostly his happy self. He did scoot backwards the other day, but he won't go forward. And I have caught him lifting his hips off the ground when he is on his belly. So's he getting a little closer to crawling. He also started to move his head from side to side when I sing the Wheels on the Bus. It's really cute! Sometimes he does it when he's looking at himself in the mirror. Cannon has also decided that he prefers to feed himself. So now I have to give him small pieces of food in addition to what I'm feeding him. He is getting really good at feeding himself and sometimes he hardly drops anything. He will eat ANYTHING if I put it on his high chair tray. I still give him cereal mixed with fruit as part of his breakfast and dinner. For breakfast he will also have cut up fruit. He is not a huge breakfast person, so I keep the portion smaller. For lunch I make him baby food veggies plus some cut up fruit and something else. I bought some tahini and he likes to eat it on bread, so sometimes he'll have that for lunch. For dinner he has his cereal plus whatever we're eating (as long as it's something he can have). He has a HUGE appetite for dinner and sometimes I just have to stop giving him food because he will keep eating. I still nurse him five times a day.


My little mischief maker!


This is his current favorite toy. It's a Fisher-Price bumble bee, but it's one from a long time ago. Ryan and his sibling had it when they were babies. It's kept at Ryan's parents house, so he only gets to play with it when we go over there.


He likes to stand now. He also kneels and holds onto his toy box.


We watched Cole on Thursday so Kristina could go to her OB appointment. I love watching these two together! Cannon was all decked out in his longhorn clothes, ready for the game.


Cannon scoot himself all the way under the table and Cole wanted to copy. It was funny because he kept crawling over Cannon.

A Year to Remember

This has probably been the fastest year in my life! Once I had Cannon, time froze for me. I feel like we just got out of summer. That's probably why I was completely unprepared for Christmas this year. I can't believe it's 2010! I'm not ready to start a new year, or a new decade! Ryan likes to remind over and over again that I will be turning 30 this year. Ugh. Granted, I have until December, but it's still THIS year. Actually, we never really got to celebrate my birthday. Ryan got really sick on my birthday and it lasted for four days. I have never seen him so sick and he doesn't ever remember being that sick. Once that was over, then it was Christmas. Oh well. We are going to celebrate our anniversary this week anyway. I was in freak out mode for my birthday this year. The last time I did this was when I turned 22 and I felt like I hadn't accomplished all that I wanted to. So I don't know what the problem is this time. I'm finished with school, I'm married, and have a kid. Time just goes by so fast. I feel like I just got out of high school a few years ago. I used to look at people in their 30's and think that they were real grown ups and that they had they act together. But I'm not really a real grown up! I'm just faking it!

Anyway, this was probably the biggest year of my life, next to getting married. I have to say that being married was an easier adjustment than having a baby, but what an amazing blessing!

Here's the decade in review:


I moved to Austin in July 2001. This picture was actually taken in 2005, but I thought it was a cute one of my dad and me.


I caught the record rainbow trout that summer (2001, I think) at Diamond Lake Oregon.


I became a nanny in 2002 for Cade and Carl.


I made new friends. I am the Spartan cheerleader down in front.


I babysat Sydney, the wallaby, for a few weeks at my house.
I went to UT (University of Texas), graduated, then went back, and then graduated again in 2007. I have pictures from my undergrad ceremony, but I can't find them. I didn't attend my other graduation.


I met Ryan in 2002, but we were just friends. We went on our first date in 2005 and got married in 2006.

I have lots of regular photos, but I don't feel like scanning them. We also lost a lot of pictures when Ryan's lap top died.

Here's some highlights from this year:


This is Christmas last year (2007). Look at my little baby belly. We had just found out that Cannon was a boy.


Ryan grew a mustache.


Blue became part of our family in March. She was a spur-of-the-moment idea and Ryan brought her home in his backpack.


Here are the "four" grandkids at my baby shower. We will welcome two more in the next couple months!


Then we got our baby! A little early, but the timing ended up being perfect!


This is our first family photo.


Ryan grew a beard.


After eight flights and six hours in the car (round trip), Cannon went to Utah twice and Idaho once. He also got to meet his new cousin, Kennedi.


Oh how I love to watch this baby grow!





This list could be a hundred times longer! We have had many great adventures this year and we're looking forward to all the new ones this year.

Christmas

I have to say that Christmas is SO much more fun when you have a kid! Ryan and I were so excited for Cannon. I actually wouldn't have cared if I didn't get anything, because it was so fun getting things for Cannon. He was into it too. We sat him on the floor and put all the presents around him and let him open them. He enjoyed tearing the paper from the first couple of gifts, but then he lost interest. Blue was excited to play in all the wrapping paper. We got a few things for her to open too. I got Ryan a soft serve ice cream maker. He loves soft serve, so he was pretty excited. Ryan got me an Electrolux cordless vacuum. It's nice because it's small and lightweight so it's perfect for doing a quick vacuum in the kitchen or entry way. I prefer to vacuum the kitchen rather than sweeping it.

After we finished up at home, we headed over to see my dad and my sister. My dad was super excited for Cannon to open his presents! We all got our stockings and took turns opening our gifts. Usually we go one at a time, but we let Cannon do all his first so he could take a nap. He got lots of toys and clothes from my dad and my sister, but the big gift was the bike! My dad got Cannon a tricycle, but it has sides and straps so that older infants can go in it too. And it has a handle on the back so you can push him. Then when his feet reach the pedals, you can take off the safety sides and handle so he can do it himself. My dad put it together and we took Cannon for a little walk. It was cute because he immediately held onto the handle bars, but then he just chilled.

We stayed at my dad's for awhile and then we went to Ryan's parent's house. It's nice that we all live about 5 minutes from each other, it's makes it so easy. Ryan got a new suit and I got a deep freezer. We waited for Rob and Bev and the kids to get there so we could open the presents together. And we had Kylene and Jeff on skype so they could be part of the fun. It took a really long time to open all the presents, but it was fun to see what everyone got. Overall, Cannon got lots of outfits, pajamas, and toys!

We had a great Christmas! I can't wait until next year when Cannon is older!


I think his favorite thing was the string on the present.






Blue opening her bone.


Blue going to hide her bone.


My dad and Cannon.


Cannon's new train set.


Cannon opening his tricycle.


He loved riding on his bike!


On a side note, I was contemplating the real reason we celebrate Christmas. I'm not usually one to be sentimental on my blog, but I thought I would share this. I teach the five-year-olds at church and a couple weeks ago we sang the song He Sent His Son. I learned this song when I was a kid, but this time the words really hit me and I began to appreciate the beauty of this simple message. It's probably because I have a baby now and my understanding of things are deeper. Here are the words to the song and if you want to listen to it, click HERE.

How could the Father tell the world of love and tenderness?
He sent his Son, a newborn babe, with peace and holiness.

How could the Father show the world the pathway we should go?
He sent his Son to walk with men on earth that we may know.

How could the Father tell the world of sacrifice, of death?
He sent his Son to die for us and rise with living breath.

What does the Father ask of us?
What do the scriptures say?
Have faith, have hope, live like his Son,
Help others on their way.

What does he ask?
Live like his Son.

The Christmas Gift

We had a really nice Christmas this year, especially now that we have Cannon. I will blog about the details later, but I first wanted to post this video for Ryan's mom's family in New Jersey. Each family got one book of Nana and Grandpa Landolfo filled with pictures of them and all the kids and grandkids and great-grandkids throughout the years. It was also neat because each page had one of Nana's famous Italian recipes! This was a really special gift that meant a lot to everyone. I was never able to meet Ryan's grandparents before they passed away. But I look forward for Cannon and I to meet everyone else in New Jersey one day! I love family history, so I will cherish this book and hopefully have success with some of the recipes. Afterward, we went through the book with Toni and she told us who everyone is, so that was fun for me. Cannon still has lots of relatives to meet! So thank you Aunt Meg and Lisa for this wonderful gift!

8 months old today!

Time has been going by so fast, especially these last few months! Cannon is such a delight and brings so much joy to everyone he meets. My favorite thing he does right now is give hugs. He's been doing it for about a month now, but it never gets old. He wraps his arms around your neck and squeezes really tight! It just makes you feel so good. Stranger anxiety hasn't hit him yet, but there will be times when he wants to come to me when Ryan is holding him. There were a couple times last week when I handed Cannon to Ryan and I walked out of the room. Cannon started to scream! It's funny because he used to be such a daddy's boy. But I have noticed him preferring me to do certain things, like feed him. Cannon also loves his uncles and his grandpas. He LOVES his Uncle Robert (Ryan's brother). He always reaches out for him! It's fun to see him recognize other family members. He also LOVES my sister Shae. He lights up whenever she comes over. Of course, Blue is the one that makes him laugh the hardest.

Cannon is not even close to crawling! For some reason I knew that he was going to be a late crawler and late walker. I knew this when he was just born. But this fits with his personality. He is a very laid back baby (people at church comment on this all the time). He is content to sit and play with his toys or roll around when he wants to. Sometimes he will just roll around the room without playing with toys. He likes to look around and take notice of things. I put the humidifier in his room the other day, and he immediately knew it was something different. He kept staring at it. He will still lay in his crib and look at his mobile! He is also obsessed with pulling off his socks and eating them.

He has learned to hold his bottle. I don't know how he did this because I don't give him a bottle very often. I guess he learned it from holding his sippy cup. He continues to be a good eater. If you don't feed him fast enough then he will grab the spoon from you. So I now try to give him his own spoon. It will definitely be easy to transition him from baby food to regular food because he loves textures and loves to chew. I will give him pieces of what we are eating if it's something he can have. He especially loves meat! I let him try brisket a couple weeks ago, so now he's a true Texan! He also likes chicken, turkey, and pot roast. Recently I gave him asparagus and egg yolk for the first time (not together). He seemed to like the asparagus and he loves scrambled egg yolk! I also gave him mashed potatoes, but they were made without milk and butter. Of course he loved it! He still seems to be sensitive to milk products, so I am really cautious. I usually mix in a little soy formula with his cereal, but I just can't stand the way it smells. So the other day I bought goats milk for him to try. It's nice because it doesn't stink and you don't have to mix it. He seems to like it too. It also has Vitamin D which he needs. I have the vitamin drops for him, but they are so nasty! So I bought soy yogurt for him (he LOVES it), but it doesn't have Vitamin D. I have a recipe for making yogurt, so if I am feeling extra adventurous one day I think I will try it. It's a lot cheaper than buying it. There are lots of new foods that he can have this month, so I am really excited to try them!

Cannon just got his first cold the other day. It's so mild that I can hardly say he is "sick." He only has a little runny nose and congestion. He sleeps with his humidifier on and I put a pillow under his mattress to keep him elevated. He has been a little cranky, but he is also working on his teeth. Hopefully those things will pop through any time now!

Sorry for the picture overload, but there were so many cute ones. He was not in a smiley mood this morning when I took them. It was right before his nap so he really wasn't in the mood for a photo shoot.