My "bowling ball"

Sorry for the blurriness and darkness in the first two pics. That's what happens when you're shooting with no flash and a baby comes toddling towards you with the momentum of a freight train. Caleb is officially walking up a storm. He took his first ever steps while we were on vacation at the beach. My sister and I were the witnesses of his unexpected steps into a new frontier. Since Monday at around 4:30 pm, it's as if his feet have taken on a life of their own, willing his body to move along whether it wants to or not.

Other parents have mentioned to me stories of their own childrens' first steps. More often than not, it's more of an omen, as in "You're really going to be busy now..." But others have commented more on the milestone itself in the grand scheme of things. I'll admit when he did his longest walk of 10 steps on Monday afternoon, I was crying and cheering and clapping at the same time. He deserved the shiniest gold medal that has ever been forged from the earth. I was the proudest mom you could find at 4:40 pm on July 12th, 2010.

But at 4:41 pm, on July 12th, another feeling also welled up: recognizing that now I had an official toddler, and his babyhood is quickly dwindling by the day. How do these memories come and go so flittingly? And pardon the cliche', but "they grow up so fast." And every time I hear that, I find myself nodding and giving a soft smile. But it really hits home when it's your precious babe that's doing all of the alleged fast growing. And the other cliche', "growing like a weed," that's true too.

Okay, I'm getting way too mushy for my own good right now, ahem. So as my toddler, is making his way through the house now, with increasing progress by the day (dear Lord!), I hear frequent thuds. At first, I thought I was hearing the typical house-settling sounds, or other quasi-legit reasons for random noises. But I soon discovered that those random thuds were none other than my toddler's head hitting the floor. Before you label me a complete moron for not thinking or knowing that this could be a possibility, blessed me has a son who doesn't cry when his head hits the floor. So he falls, thuds!, rolls over, and keeps moving on. Kinda like a bowling ball. :) And if I wasn't with him directly, I wouldn't have known he even fell.

So for anyone keeping track, Caleb officially began walking in his 49th week. You go, big guy!

~~~

To my beloved "bowling ball," Mommy is so proud of you. I've only caught my breath twice since you've been walking, and you were just fine. Keep up the awesome work! And if you ever need a hand to hold, I'll be here...

blankie lub

Caleb at 5 months

As a young girl, I was inseparable from my blankie and pilly. They were magical. I felt safe with them, they were close friends, and my imagination could soar while they were my faithful sidekicks. While the majority of blankets spend a great deal of time crumpled in a heap, I used to enjoy spreading my blankie out and admiring its 'bigness.' It's the little things that are mind-blowing to a kid.

I am proud to say that Caleb has inherited the blankie lub gene. I'll admit, I kinda set him up at first; think: arranged marriage. Seeing that precious hand crocheted baby blue blankie wrapped around a wee bebe was perfection. Still is. Their relationship has progressed to full blown lub. And this time, it's on Caleb's terms.

Cute baby trick #51: Every morning during our playtime in his room, I ask, "Where's Blankie?" And he dutifully and excitedly crawls over and stands at his crib until he locates it. He then bounces up and down, half squealing/grunting, and pulls Blankie out inch by glorious inch. Satisfied, he thrusts Blankie in the air with a fist pump then bodyslams it down for a nuzzle. I could watch this scene unfold on loop.

Inevitably, Blankie has inherited Caleb's scent. I love it. I'm not ashamed to admit this, but I nuzzle C's blankie a couple of times a day too. Ridiculous? A little. :) I am so darn nostalgic when it comes to blankies. I think of my own and the pleasure it brought. Mine is threadbare in places, and the lace border is quite frayed. I'm hoping Caleb's blankie will last just as long and be just as endearing.

The photo below is pretty much miraculous that it was captured at all. He is such a light sleeper and woke up seconds after I took this. Enjoy :)

Caleb at 10 months

Floating into Summer

We had a great impromptu time at the pool this evening. It was so humid and hot, that the cool water felt heavenly. Bub didn't seem to mind the temperature, but was rather quiet most of the time in the pool. I guess there was a lot to take in on his inaugural swim! He enjoyed splashing and watching Daddy blow bubbles while sitting on his shoulders.

Side note: Doesn't that crab float look incredible? Whoever blew that up needs a medal. And, no swim diapers were loaded during this delightful event.

A little bit of this, a little bit of that

So, unfortunately, my last post about having a 'splashtastic' time at the pool was a bit premature. We have yet to get Caleb in the water due to the weirdish rainsunstormcloudssun weather. Not to mention, we tested the water and it's quite cool given we've had mild temps. Thankfully though, the forecast is about to heat up. Frankly, I'm not a fan of NC-piedmont region summer heat. I wish 80 was as hot as it'd get. A girl can dream...



Oh, and here's a recent random photo of the Bub:

I told you it was random. This goes out to all the babies that have slow-growing hair, and who are, in actuality, not bald. My kid has hair, lots of baby fine, blonde strands, and one large downy, tuft on the back. I'm hoping this mini-skullet phase (I dare you to google-image search it) will grow out quickly. But darn it, it is sooo cute when Bub gets sweaty, it begins to curl and flip out like Bozo's 'do. As much as I look forward to his hair growing longer, I don't want his first haircut to be anytime soon.

In economic news, I'm becoming slightly addicted to couponing. There is nothing quite like paying next to nothing for something you need/love/want. I don't receive any newspapers, so I rely mostly on internet coupons or ones via mail. I've also gotten lots of full-sized samples of products which is even more awesome. It basically comes down to me searching for any coupons before I leave the house to go buy it. I kinda playfully berated Brent the other day when he bought full-priced Clif bars. "I just ordered a sample 6-pack of them! I'm sure they'll come with a coupon!" "I had a $1 off coupon for that..." and on it goes. But it's fun to me, like a game. And speaking of freebies...Chick-fil-A is giving away free spicy chicken sandwiches...reserve one (I know it's a little ridiculous sounding) here.

And lastly, I am getting psyched for this week's North Carolinians for Home Education (NCHE) conference. Hubs and I are only going to the free session (you know it) and walking through the book fair section. I don't think I've brought up homeschooling on the blog before, but it's something that has been one of those 180-degree things for me. I used to balk at the idea several years ago, but now it's something I'm interested in. It's not a definite, but we're looking forward to learning more about it. And obviously, we have several years before decisions will have to be made.

Okay....it's going on eleven o'clock....off to bed. Night, world.

Adventures in Parenting: Summer edition

Today is the big day, or so we plan. Caleb will be entering the splashy world of aquatics in our pool. This has been a day with months of preparation. Swim lessons? No. But rounding up the usual suspects of swim trunks, swim shirt, baby sunblock, sunglasses, swim diaper, and ginormous inflatable crab float. I'm just grateful we won't have to load up the car and transport everything to enjoy ohhh...about 10 minutes in the tepid water.

I felt like I had crossed some invisible threshold this morning as I blew that crab float until I was blue. I think I was channeling Dizzy Gillespie at one point. No matter, my precious Bub was chewing all the while...on the float. But as parents, we do those big-little things for our babes and if it gives them a second of joy, it's worth it. Yes, the 45 minutes (I kid you not) it took for me to do CPR on a happy crustacean was worth it. Now, where the heck am I supposed to store that thing when not in use?

The swim diaper. I kinda shudder as I type that. Being that I'm exploring unknown territory here, I really don't know what to expect. Currently, we're planning on trying the reusable swim diaper today. If only I knew when to anticipate Bub's inevitable poop. Maybe the water will be cool enough that everything internally will slow to a grinding halt. One can only hope. I will be mortified, to say the least, if a Baby Ruth incident occurs, ala Caddyshack.

One other key part of preparing for today that I almost forgot...the worst part...that most moms cringe at...swimsuit shopping. I used to think my pre-mom bod had some work to do....but now, oh pre-mom bod, how I miss you! I had it good, and didn't even know it. So also on today's agenda, finding a new swimsuit for me. Goodbye bikinis, hello tankinis! There's just something about three-way mirrors, a dingy and cramped fitting room, that removeable sanitary strip, and fluorescent lighting that make you want to...barf. I'm dreading the paleness, dimples (not on my face), and new merit badges of mommyhood: stretch marks. The only redeeming factor? At the pool, eyes will be on my incredibly cute son, and not me. :)

With that said, I cannot wait to have tons of splashtastic photos and video of our big event. Watch out poolgoers, there's a new kid in town!

With love from Caleb

Spring Shopping Fever or Get Your Frugal On

Just got back from the mall today with Mom and saw some really cute kid clothes at Old Navy and The Children's Place ($5 Spring polos!). I feel so conflicted though, attempting to plan ahead and buy for future seasons, but not knowing how big Caleb will be then. I exchanged many baby clothes when I was pregnant with him for larger sizes and the appropriate season, but he has been unable to wear them due to his larger size. What's a girl to do? Well, I still don't know...but spending money on full-priced clothes is not part of the solution.

I'm thinking.....SpRiNg CoNsIgNmEnT SaLeS!

What I just stumbled upon...(and man, I have a knack for doing that) was this:

Consignment Mommies which is a searchable, rateable, and highly organized site on all the consignment sales in your area. Score!

After having now discovered that there are 33 sales scheduled within the next few months in my area....this could be disastrous amazing.