Sign of the times!

It's time for signs! We're starting to work on signing with Sutton. We have NO expectations of him picking these up any time soon and are sticking with the simplest of signs:

Tap fingertips to lips several times.

Tap the 'C' shape to chin

Tap fingertips together several times

PLEASE

THANK YOU

ALL FINISHED (with food)

 We would LOVE it if everyone in his life were to learn these simple signs to help Sutton get the idea. So far, the only consistent reaction we get is the fishy-face when we ask if he's hungry or wants some ninny (to nurse.) And of course, the screams and grunts when we flash a bottle in front of his face! I really want to find a sign for nursing. I'd use 'milk' (tap fist to chest) but I don't want to confuse him in a few months when he starts drinking regular milk and I sure as hell don't want to rub my boobies as a sign asking him if he wants some milk! Kinda defeats the purpose of a discreet sign for nursing! 

 He's such a big kid and eats so much! I went grocery shopping last night and went ahead and picked up stage 2 baby food instead of the stage 1 he's been on. We tried mixed vegetables last night, so we'll wait on the poop report from Nanny (his sitter) to see how that went! So funny that we're so dependent on his poop to tell us how he's doing. Oh well, I hear it's the topic of choice for the very young and the very old.

We also tried some fruit-flavored puffed snacks last night. Those Gerber Graduate puffy-star things? I had to try one to see just how quickly they dissolved, because I was pretty nervous about him putting something so small in his mouth. Faster than TP in a tsunami. Satisfied my curiosity! He ate one, but made a pretty funny face and gagged alot. He wasn't choking as we could see the puff on the end of his tongue, so we're thinking it was either the sensation of solid food on his tongue or the tartness of the Strawberry-Apple flavor. Maybe he'll like the Tomato ones better... No matter the flavor, he spent quite a bit of time working on his hand/eye coordination, so that was a plus! He's getting really good at gripping things and both Rusty and I were pleasantly surprised at his dexterity when handling the food. At one point, he was struggling to pick up a star-puff with his right hand so he reached over with his left hand and grabbed it right away! Lefties run in both sides of our family so we may have a south-paw on our hands!

Sutton's First Halloween Party!

We had a crazy busy couple of days this past weekend! I completed my Hunter's Education Safety Course on Saturday (from 9am to 3pm. EXHAUSTING.) got my herrrr did after that and then we loaded up Sutton to head over to Marli's brother Vince's house for a Halloween party. Rusty and I dressed up in our regular, day-to-day clothes as 'the parents of the cutest baby EVER.' (We were a big hit.) Sutton wore his ADORABLE dragon costume. Here are a few pictures we snapped of Sutton.

So many changes in so little time!

I really can't remember life without Sutton, but when I sit down and ponder on it, he's only been here 5 months and that is just a drop in the bucket of time. I am truly amazed at all the changes we've seen in him in just that short period. I'm amazed at how Rusty and I have grown as parents and how our love for each other has grown since Sutton came into our lives. I really can't imagine a life without my two guys. I am so blessed to have a sweet, even-tempered baby boy and a supportive, caring, funny, and straight-shooting husband.
There are so many things that Sutton is doing now that I really haven't mentioned on Facebook or on here.

• He's rolling over, both from his back to his belly and from his belly to his back.
• He sleeps on his tummy, even if you lay him down on his back and it's so simply sweet to see his little cheek pressed against the sheets of his crib, squishing his lips up as he slumbers away.
• He loves to chew on his feet and fingers and (luckily) has not shown any tendencies to suck his thumb.
• He now has TWO teeth! His bottom middle teeth hav both come in and they are so cute! I will say it's a bit disconcerting to look at a five month old who has teeth. It's like a weird baby/toddler look.  His first one came in on October 1, just three days before the 5 month milestone and the other came through this past weekend while Rusty and I were in Lubbock.
• He reaches for everything! You have to hide his bottle from him until you're ready to give it to him or he'll go nuts reaching for it, leaning towards to and making a fishy-face and noises. Not going to lie, sometimes we tease him because it's so cute!
• He likes all fruit, squash and green beans, but not peas! I guess I'll still be the only one in the house who eats them.
• He is very ticklish, just like me! Tickling his ribs, thighs and neck will make him laugh so hard he gets hiccups.

I'm so excited about Halloween this year. We have an early Halloween party to go to this weekend and Sutton (finally) gets to wear the costume I ordered him months ago. Can't wait to see him in his dragon costume! I'm going to go ahead and dress up for the party, too. It's going to be a suprise, and I sure hope it turns out ok.
Sutton and I are going to spend some quality Mommy/Son time together this week. Rusty is in Kansas for EM training. I know Sutton and I both are going to  miss him so much!

More Peas, Please!

Sutton had peas for the first time last night. This was his first vegetable or even non-sweet baby food (we started with fruits, so he was in for quite the suprise on veggies!) I walked in the door from work and Rusty was veeeerrrrryyyy ssssllllowwwwllllyyyy getting Sutton to eat the peas. He would make some very funny faces, but he ate them all!

This isn't pears...

I don't know about this, Daddy!

Might take me awhile to get used to this!

5 Months Old and So Much Fun!

I love this age! Sutton is so much fun. So sweet and cuddly, but starting to really show some independence and amazing us every day with new things. Just this morning, he started blowing 'raspberries' and it was the cutest thing! Add to that the SUPER cute hat Rusty put on him and it was just an overload of adorable-ness.

Sutton and I made our first Mommy/Son roadtrip together this weekend to go visit our family in Victoria. I was so proud of myself. I even stopped to use the restroom at Buc-ee's, took Sutton in with me and made it out alive and with no crying (from either of us!) KK, O'Rear and Tia Brooke and Tio Tyler were so happy to see Sutton! We just hung out at the house, watched some football and then made a quick trip to Target Sunday morning before Sutton and I headed back home to meet Rusty (who spent the weekend hunting with the guys.) Here are some pics of Sutton hanging out with O'Rear:



Jeff was obviously more interested in the book than Sutton was.

Saturday night, my Mom gave Sutton a bath in the kitchen sink, which I think is just the cutest thing ever! I walked away to get the soap while she was undressing him and when I got back, he was facing away from me. Mom turned him around and I had to snap a few shots of what I saw:

Who bathes a baby with a tootie in their mouth?

"Mama, I've never had a bath with my tootie before!"

"My tootie is nice and clean, too!"

Sunday morning, Tyler was playing with Sutton on the couch and started blowing in his face, just one little puff at a time, and every time he would blow, Sutton would do this little gasp thing and laugh so hard! It was so sweet to watch them playing together!

Sunday before we left, my Mom and Brooke tag-teamed lunch. Have to make sure that baby is nice and full before we get on the road!

Tia Brooke's lap is way better than a Bumbo!

Sutton is just growing and changing so fast! I'm sure everyone saw on my blog that Sutton got his first tooth a few days ago. It was October 1, so just 3 days shy of his official 5 month birthday. Very early to be cutting teeth, I'm told! I haven't been able to snap any pics of that little bitty tooth, but I'm still working on it! Maybe once  he falls asleep it will be easier to get!
In Nanny News (Sutton's sitter, Phyllis, is called Nanny by all her kids! How cute is that?) Sutton might be kind of a bully. He's her youngest right now and the next youngest is a 9 month old bruiser of a kid named JJ. Sutton is so loud with his squeals and laughs that all the noise scares JJ! Phyllis laughs about it and has a story for me every morning when I drop off Sutton. She just adores all her kids and is always quick to grab Sutton for a hug in the mornings and is always holding him when we pick him up in the evenings! She's one of those people who hide their wings very well!
Phyllis took her semi-annual vacation back to New Jersey (Good Night, I can't wait to see what Sutton will sound like when he starts talking between our Texas twang and Phyllis' Jersey accent!) last week and we were lucky enough to have Rusty's mom come and stay with Sutton. She got a whole week of Sutton/Grammy time and loved every minute of it! She was a God-send. Came home to supper cooked every night, house picked up, stocked us up on groceries and took Sutton on all kinds of adventures! Botanical Gardens, swinging at the park, lots of walks and they read lots of books, too! I know you enjoyed it, Debbie, but we REALLY appreciate everything!
Whew! That's a lot of updating! Maybe I should try to make this a weekly thing...