9 months old...

You had your 9 month check-up today and we will just say that your doc is fairly impressed with you, Cash. She said that for your age, you are "way advanced" in your motor skills... but we already knew that. She said you were growing perfectly and doing everything you are supposed to be doing at this age...plus a little more.

You weigh 21.9 lbs (you lost 2 pounds since the last time you weighed in, but she said it is because you are walking everywhere now and not really crawling anymore.)

You are 29 inches tall (I thought you were taller than that, but what do I know?)

You get to ride in your big boy car seat now... good thing too because it was becoming a really tight squeeze in your carrier

You can start eating some table food... which is good too because I have already given you some

You like bananas, green beans, peas, cheerios, mashed potatoes, and cooked carrots.

Keep growing like a weed and sprouting that little personality of yours! It makes our day to see what new things you will do each day.

Love,
Mom

Dear baby Cash,

This is a picture of the living room 25 minutes after I cleaned it. And I mean cleaned it. (Dust, vaccum...you get the picture). And then you woke up from your nap and Hurricane Cash hit the Allen living room.

Your newest adventure is pushing all of the chairs away from the dining room table until it hits something and won't move anymore. But you sure do push with all of your might to move the chairs through the walls! Thank you for all of the scuff marks on the dining room walls.
You are freaking nuts, but we still love you.

Love,
Mom

Easter around here is for...

Little tiny Easter baskets...

Opening a little tiny Easter basket in your 'jamas...
Going for a stroll with your new Easter basket...
Hunting and finding Easter eggs in the living room...

Eating the Easter eggs you finally found...

Finding more Easter eggs...
Getting tired of finding Easter eggs. Would much rather just eat them...
Snuggling with daddy on this rainy Easter day...

It was a perfect way to spend our first Easter... together!

Love,

E

Thunder Up!

We took Cash to his first Thunder game, which just so happened to be a playoff game. He was awesome and only slept a bit during the first half (I have no idea how he did that because it was so loud). He clapped and cheered and screamed the entire second half and flirted with the two women behind us. He particularly loved having his picture taken with a few of the Thunder cheerleaders, and Noah was the one who set that up :)

We had a great time and got a few good pics. The one right below is particularly interesting. If you look closely, you can see ONE of his top THREE teeth! He's such a big boy now!

Dear baby Cash,

Tonight we did something a little different.

Normally, I put you in your crib while you are still awake and you tend to quietly put yourself to sleep. It makes me so proud of you because some babies can't or won't do that... and you do. So, go you!

Now to what was different.

I couldn't put you down tonight. I don't really know why but I had this intense feeling that I wanted to hold you and put you to sleep myself. So that is what we did. I held you snuggly in my arms and stood with you in the middle of a dark and empty living room and danced you to sleep.

We danced to some of my favorite mellow musicians... David Gray, Joshua Radin, Ray LaMontagne, and John Mayer.

You stared at me for what seemed like hours and we locked eyes and just danced. No one around. No one to see us in our special moment. It was one of my favorite 10 minutes of my week.

You have no idea how happy you make my heart and if you will let me, I would love to dance with you until you 50 years old.

Until then...

I say we have another dark, quiet, mommy-son, living room dance date again next week. Are you in?

Love,
Mom

Just now getting around to posting our family pics...

We went to Houston a few months ago and a woman named Ginny Henderson, who just so happens to be a part-time physical therapist as well as a rock star photographer, took our family pictures. I could not have been happier with the way the pictures turned out.

Please don't focus on the randomness of the pictures and the way they are aligned... I have no idea what I am doing here. Please don't mind the mile and half of white space at the bottom of the page. I can't figure this thing out...

I have a test today (which is why I am up early this Monday morning... should be studying)and I have a test tomorrow for school. Instead of studying Sunday night, I think I spent my time a bit more productively and definitely more enjoyable. You see, I really try to strive to do my very best in school and sometimes (actually most times) that comes at the expense of spending time with my boys. I had an epiphany yesterday afternoon. I realized that while it is important to study and gain the knowledge that I will need to become a great Physical Therapist, it is more important to me to spend quality time with my family while we have these moments to share. So, I put down my notes and Cash and I went outside to help Noah work in the flower beds. Well, Cash helped. I simply took pictures to document the evening.

The following photos do not show how much joy and excitement Cash got from being outside. Starting from when he was a wee little tot, if Cash was upset or fussy we just took him outside. Instant calm. Instant quiet.

I love having a little boy. I love that he is so mischievous right now. I love that it is acceptable to let them play like little boys and make a mess. I love that I don't care how messy he gets, as long as he is having fun and not taking that mess inside. I love that he wants to eat dirt and anything else that he finds on the ground. I just love having a boy.

I mean, it really did start this innocent...

And then, well, you can see how things went from there...

This fat foot is just so yummy... And then, this is how it ended...

He really didn't mind the freezing cold water coming from the garden hose. He actually liked it. I can see how we will be spending some of our future 100+ degree days in the future.

Love,

E

A crazy confession...

I told myself, maybe more convinced myself, that when Cash turned mobile I would put off wanting another baby for at least another year or two. Well.... maybe not so much.

I am by no means saying that I am ready for another baby right now! As a matter of fact, I have adamantly stated that I will not have another baby while I am in PT school. That would be the equivalence of educational and professional suicide. But I think I have been bitten by the baby bug again.

I want so badly for Cash to have someone to play with. I want so badly to have that sweet newborn baby smell floating throughout the house. I want so badly to feel another life growing inside me and trying to figure out who he/she will look like and what kind of personality they will have. There are so many little things that I miss about having a small baby, but I suppose I can put off my baby fever for a little while and focus on raising this crazy little boy of mine for the time being. After all, that isn't such a bad job.

Love, E

Dear Cash,

Baby boy... you are everywhere. The funny thing is, I have prayed and wished and asked for the day that you would be mobile and here it is. You are walking all over the house and prefer to be on the floor to explore the areas of the house you have yet to tap into. The excitement in your face when you reach your destination of the couch, my leg, the wall, or wherever is an emotion that makes my heart smile. You stop in the middle of your baby waddle and clap for yourself with the most innocent and pure elation, as if to say, "Look at me! I am doing it!". As your mama, I am so proud of how curious you are. How you love to play by yourself but always check to make sure I am there. How you love to smile and laugh all day long. How easy-going you are. How rough you play with me and daddy. How I can see the wonder in your eyes when you look outside or see something new. You are my blessing. You are my gift. I am the "mama" that was chosen to raise you. And raise you I will with all that I know. I love you, Mom

He walks the line...

Cash used to have a shirt that said "I crawl the line", which was very fitting for a while. But now... He walks the line. And he is trying to waddle his little legs everywhere, but he is still getting the hang of it. This video was taken the second night he started to walking around, so he is much better now. There have been quite a few people comment on how "big" Cash is. And by big I mean chubby. I am convinced there is a lot of muscle under some of that cushion or else he wouldn't be able to walk at 8 months. Love, E

Unacceptable...

It is really unacceptable how fast my little boy is growing up. I took the picture below when Cash was about 4 days old and the picture below it was taken when Cash turned 8 months old. Man oh man, time needs to slow down a little. Love, E P.S. May I also comment on the difference in Noah's weight. Look at how skinny he is now. Not that he wasn't skinny before, but this picture is after his weight loss challenge. Good job, Noah!

Some pics from this past month that are pretty random... cute, but random.

Cash giving daddy a big, wet kiss...

I love this kid...

Cash has recently discovered the doggy door and has decided that when he wants to go outside he will just use that door...

This was before Duke was knocked out of the NCAA tourney... it doesn't matter, we are still Duke fans win or lose!

This is how Cash travels... like a stud. I seriously have no complaints about his travel skills and I cross my fingers that he keeps it up...

This is during our rest stop on the way back from our 7 hour drive from Houston...

Had to put this picture in there. He is already trying to be like his daddy. Noah is rarely seen without a toothpick in his mouth and Cash always tries to grab it. Well... he finally got it!

Love,

E