1600 Miles

is the approximate distance we have traveled since last we posted.  And  two house guests.  And that is our excuse for the lack of posts in the past week and a half.  Okay, a brief recap . . .

I (Ginger) spent my first night away from Walt last weekend when Josh and I went to see U2 in Atlanta (Josh's birthday present).  It was an incredible concert, but we decided that perhaps we are too old for the floor tickets -- we need someplace to rest our weary legs every now and then.  A picture. . .

That's Bono -- Walt's role model.  Walt did just fine without us.  He spent the night at Nana and Putty's house and was apparently perfect.  (Yeah, I know, but that's what they said.)

So then Melanie (real Canadian) and Drew (pseudo-Canadian) came to visit and somehow we neglected to get a picture of them with Walt.  Very bad form.  But they were wonderful house guests and even kept Evie entertained. 

Then we were off again on Wednesday for the Thanksgiving holiday.  First a stop at Nana and Putty's house for the night where we saw this gorgeous sky . . .

. . . and then on to (Ginger's) Granny's house in Glasgow, where we spent several days dividing (the furniture) and conquering (the kitchen cabinets) in anticipation of Granny's move to an assisted living facility next month.  Here, Walt helps Granny survey the scene in the dining room . . .

And I just have to post this picture of Granny with my cousin Susannah in Granny's wedding dress, which was unearthed from a closet during the clean-out process.

It fit her pefectly -- beautiful.  On Saturday morning, we headed back to Nashville to spend one more night before going home.  This picture was taken in the bathtub (obviously) at Nana and Putty's house . . .

How cute is that?  And now we're home again.  For another four whole days until we head off to the Smokies with the aforementioned Nana and Putty.  Road warriors we are.

Trash Man

I'll give you one guess as to who was in charge while Walt was playing in the trashcan.  (Here's a hint:  Mommy was out running an errand at the time and we rarely leave Evie to babysit.)  Walt's father assured me that there was nothing too gross in there.  Yeah, but still.

Ten Months

I can't believe we're in double digits.  Doesn't seem possible that he is ten months old already.  Until I pick him up -- the kid is heavy!  The rundown of this month . . .

Mobility:  Obviously the big news this month is the crawling.  He was so close for so long and finally he decided that he'd been practicing his take off for long enough and it was time to go.  And now no Boston Terrier (one in particular) is safe.  It's definitely a big change for us -- no more putting him down in the midst of a bunch of toys and knowing he'll be there when you return -- but one that is so much fun.   I never realized just how cool electrical outlets were!

Sleep:  Still going with the seven o'clock bedtime and a couple of naps a day.  The only change has come in the waking up time.  Since the time change, Walt has been getting up verrrry early.  The crib toy does stall him sometimes, but for the most part, he's out of his crib by about 6:15 at the latest.  I can't even remember what it feels like to sleep in.

Eating:  So, all of the above stuff was pretty much a rehash of things you'd already read in previous posts, but here's some new info as of today . . . Walt is feeding himself!!  Yes, hot off the presses is the news that Walt actually picked up a fruit puff and put it in his mouth all by himself at dinner tonight.  He started this morning by picking up a Cheerio and moving it in the general direction of his mouth.  I got excited and called Josh and we both cheered him on mightily.  Then, at lunch, he picked up a Cheerio and actually put it in his mouth, but would not let go, instead just sucking on it between his two slobbery little fingers before pulling it out and smearing it on his shirt.  Finally, at dinner, with just one fruit puff left on his highchair tray (Evie had enjoyed the rest), he picked it up, put it in his mouth and removed his hand.  You'd have thought that the Grizzlies had just won their first playoff game by the way I was cheering! 

Don't forget to check out the official ten month picture in the Birthday photo album.

Grow

. . . and grow, and grow.  They just won't stop!

It was a fun weekend spent celebrating the birthdays of Uncle David, Daddy, and of course, Cousin Collier!  Check out the new photo album for LOTS of pictures!

Horizons

I learned something extremely disconcerting tonight while watching Walt: his nursery is no longer big enough to hold his attention for more than 3.5 seconds.  I put him down in the middle of his floor, and he was out the door before I could sit down with him.  To the hall.  To the kitchen.  To the living room.  On to  things with more potential, more space, more power cords.  As I watched him (and took pictures, of course), I realized that the little room we spent so much time preparing for him had satisfied his curiosity for all of nine and a half months of his life.  I suspect that soon, the house will be too small, then the yard, then the neighborhood, then . . . I shudder to think.  He could live on the moon someday for all we know.  Wow.  I guess all daddies (is that the correct plural for daddy?) go through this, but I really hadn't considered until tonight that he might ever want to be somewhere other where I am. 

Enough of that.  Sorry.  I'm here unsupervised.  I just thought I should record it for posterity.  He's a traveling baby, and I've got to get used to it.  He even crawled down to the park today with Evie:

Actually, Mommy took him.  And he had a good time.

He even got to ride in a big-boy swing.

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

From your little rooster!

Love,
Walty

On the Move!

Apparently Walt took my directitve in the last post seriously because last night (during the one hour Mommy was away from him, of course), he put it in drive and actually crawled!  I got the report from Daddy when I arrived home, but had to wait until today to see it for myself.  He tends to only crawl when we put everything he might possibly want out of his reach (and even then, he'll look around for something nearby he could play with instead), but once he puts his mind to it, he's off and trucking across the floor.  Here's the proof . . .

Download MVI_2468.AVI

Some Updates

On Sleep:  Walt is still a very good little sleeper.  You can count on him to take two decent naps a day and to go to bed promptly at 7 o'clock.  It's that waking up time that we're having problems with these days.  Especially since the time change this weekend, our little early bird is getting up . . . well, let's just say the rooster costume was very appropriate.  So anyway, I got this crib toy at Target yesterday in hopes that he would maybe play with it for a while in the morning before demanding to be retrieved from his crib.  No such luck this morning.  Up at 5:55.  So far, all it has succeded in doing is distracting him from falling asleep for his nap this afternoon.  I think we may have to rethink our strategy.

On Teeth: Looks like we won't have to get those baby dentures after all!  I noticed on Friday morning that his gums were looking a little swollen, and sure enough, over the weekend a little tooth popped through on the bottom.  Nothing picture-worthy yet -- you can really just feel it (if you are inclined to stick your finger in his mouth).  But as soon as it makes itself a little more evident, you can bet you'll get a picture (or eight).

On Crawling:  Walt is the king of the fake-out.  He'll get up on his hands and knees and look like he is about to take off scurrying across the room, and then he'll fold one little leg under him and sit back up.  He can do this over and over.  It looks like he's doing some sort of crawling drill.  You know what, Walt?  It's game time, buddy!  (For those of you who would like a peek at this evening's practice, feel free to dowload the video below, which also features a waving exercise and what we like to call "the pivot" -- you'll know it when you see it.  But, I warn you, it's kind of long.  This may be a grandparent- and Dutch people-only one.)

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