daddy's little drummer

One of Stephen's new tricks is pounding on the table or boxes or tubs within reach. He gets pretty into it ... video to come. ... this video isn't actually the action I was describing, but it's cute just the same.

mommy n me

I'm posting these because it looks like Stephen is kissing me. Of course, he doesn't really know how to kiss yet. He's actually trying to eat me.

Mmm mmm sweet! It appears he's hugging me... but actually he's just trying to yank a chunk of hair out of my head.
This was taken over Thanksgiving, and I just found it on my folks' computer.

Merry memories

Stephen enjoyed drooling on the clementines.
Yanking mom's hair...
Being da cutest little superfan...
And avoiding direct eye contact.

Alternatives to tummy time

Sorry again for the lapse in daily posts. This was taken last week. Stephen seemed to enjoy lounging around on Daddy's lap with his gund dog for a pillow.

Four months old

Working hard at his blog... ;-)

Stephen was up to his usual antics this morning (and he's been up since 4:30)... surrounded by toys, but more interested in chewing on his blanket. Blech!
We're not planning anything special for this mini-milestone, but I recently got Stephen a bunch of Leo Lionni books. Kind of a present for me since I get bored of reading the same books over and over. Stephen is a good listener and he seems to stare pretty intently at the pages of each book.

It's been a little dry at our house and we've all had some congestion so I also got a frog-shaped humidifier with my Toys R Us gift card from "the two Kathys" -- Thanks, Kathys :-)

Stephen's first "snow"

I put that in parens because what's coating our cars and crusted the grass is probably more like "graupel" than snow. (I had to look that word up on the Internet).

Anyhow, here's Munchie in his bear snow suit. (Thanks, Mom, I guess it does fit afterall)

And here's a little video of the uneventful introduction.

Stephen's favorite toy

My son loves this stuffed taggies lion... sometimes he likes to eat it. In this video he tells Joe how much he likes the toy :-)

Taking lunch into his own hands

And making lunch out of his own hands...

fun with tissues

Again, sorry that the Daily Munchie hasn't been daily the last couple of them... Here's a cute action shot of Stephen pulling tissues from a box this morning. (Minutes of endless fun!) We're headed out to visit Jennifer and Emily Couchman this morning. Will try to post more when I get a chance. And here's a picture of Stephen waking from a brief nap in the swing yesterday... always gotta chew on something, dontcha?

You'll have to forgive me

I forgot to bring my camera today when Munchie and I met Joe for lunch at Tandoor, an Indian restaurant in Clarksville. Tandoor has a lunch buffet that's $6.99... and some pretty tasty food. Today, there was really soft naan, crisp papadum, eggplant and mushrooms, potatoes and onions, a mild chicken curry, a spicey chicken dish and tandoori chicken and some flamin hot greenbeans.

Joe took Munchie around the buffet to introduce him to Indian cuisine. That little baby really seemed to be absorbing the sights and smells, looking intently at each dish as Joe pointed them out. He also likes to look at the artwork on the walls.

It's been raining steadily all day... making Munchie transport more cumbersome than usual. Plus it seems like southern cities don't quite have road drainage down, there's huge puddles on the roads, parking lots, etc. I guess because the water table is really high here... Well, whatever the reason, I got soaked sloshing through some big parking lot puddles. After Tandoor, I took Stephen to Toys R Us to look around. I carted him slowly up and down all the baby toy aisles so he could look at everything. Also jingled some of the toys in front of him to see if he liked any of them :-) But in the end, I spent my $40 gift card on a cute frog-shaped humidifier. The irony is that it's so soggy today, I don't suppose I'll need it yet.

As I type, Munch is having a tough time winding down in his crib. I know he's tired, but he persists in letting out a little whine every few minutes or so.

Cereal take 2

Since eating at dinnertime seemed rather traumatizing, I decided to give Munch his second spoonfed meal at lunch, after he already had milk. He did well, despite being distracted by the flipcam. What I didn't get on film was my precocious baby grabbing the spoon and flinging it to the ground, or the huge noisy poop he did after finishing the bowl!

It was very quiet

I left Munchie with Joe this morning and they were playing their usual game that makes my baby squeak (see video in previous post). I was washing dishes in the kitchen, and would stop the water periodically to listen. At one point, I couldn't hear anything. So I went to investigate. Munchie was wide awake, Daddy was zonked.

What, I have to wait for the next spoonful?

Munchie didn't have any problem eating rice cereal, he had a problem with waiting the .5 seconds when the spoon wasn't in his mouth. He got so worked up that we decided not to finish the little bowl. We'll try again tonight.

Oh, and he didn't sleep any longer than ususal. I was up at 2 a.m. and 5 a.m.

Playing with Picasa

These are photos my mom took over Thanksgiving...

Four-month check up

Stephen had a doctor's appointment today, and he's doing well. 11 lbs 2 oz. (one pound gain from last time, 10th percentile), 23 3/4 inches long (25th percentile). And he's got a big head (75th percentile).
He also had some shots today and only "purpled screamed" for a little while. The big exciting news is that he's allowed to start eating some real grub! I'm going to run out to buy some rice cereal today and I'll give him his first spoonful tomorrow evening when Joe is home. He has to work late today to cover a sporting event of some sort.

A friend at church whose little girl Avey is about a month ahead of Stephen, said baby slept through the night after getting some solids. I'm hoping, but not overly expecting, that the Munch will do the same.

Also, I've long dreamed of making my own baby food, but that will come a little later, when Stephen is old enough to try veggies.

As I type, he's cooing in his crib and playing with the beloved IKEA fish mobile. I noticed he turned from his back to his side two times in the last 30 minutes.

Tummy Time

Up until a couple of days ago, Stephen would grunt, fuss and then cry after about 10 seconds on his tummy. Joe and I were both happy to discover that he's getting more used to the exercise that all the books and doctors say babies need to develop the muscles needed for crawling.

Squeaky Stephen

I heard some odd noises coming from the bedroom yesterday evening...

Daily dose of munchie

I was getting the feeling that many of my readers are more interested in the mini munchie (a.k.a. Stephen, my son) than the Moody Foodie (a.k.a. Emily the girl who tries to cook what she wants to eat). So I'm starting a new blog, devoted just to giving you a daily dose of the little guy and his antics.

Here he is in his chair watching me at my computer. He's snuggled in a fleece blanket from his great auntie Betsy Harlor... He likes the thing so much he smiles when he sees it coming. Any ideas where I can get another one, just in case we lose it?

A little bit about Stephen--born on August 17, 2008, making him about 15 weeks old. In recent weeks he's begun drool-bombing everything, blowing bubbles, and just today he started "razzing." He likes to laugh, loves hugs and kisses and to fly through the air (with some assistance from mom or dad). He'd much rather face out into the crowd when he's held, though once in a while he'll submit to some snugglin with whoever is holding him. He's small, but mighty and full of energy.

I've got a couple of videos of him on The Moody Foodie, but just today they seem to have disappeared... anyone else having problems with them? (edit 12/3: I guess it was just my computer acting goofy.)