Big Boy and solid food

We are introducing more solid foods to Grant these days.  Here he is with his first cracker.  There is some great video of him making funny faces on smugmug. 

The cracker didn't get much love from Grant.  In fact, it got broken into about 15 pieces and thrown on the floor.  But he did taste it, and didn't really like it.  Nor does he care for puffs or anything with lumps in it, much like his sister when she was his age.  He's been trying mashed up banana and yogurt, both of which he did okay with.  (Well, better than the cracker anyway).  Maureen is giving him mashed up fruits too.  He now has 8 teeth that have popped through (4 on the top, 4 on the bottom) so he's definitely ready to use them!

Weekend on the Cape

The weekend of August 14-15, we all went to the Cape!  Natalie and Grant got to stay with KK and the kids in South Yarmouth, while Todd and I went to Wellfleet to hang out with some of the Wilmington crew.  We went last year too, but I was really pregnant, so this year was much more enjoyable!  At KK's, Natalie and Seth got to go to a carnival, and Natalie was riding all of the big kid rides and according to KK, wanted to go faster!  Uh oh! I think I have a dare devil on my hands!  It probably helped that Seth was going on the rides.  She even went on a mini roller coaster!  They also went to the nearby pond and saw some minnows.

We had so much fun on the Cape except for the Great Tsunami of 2010, but more on that in a second. 

Right after we arrived in Wellfleet, we joined the Cucci's and some of Karen's work friends at White Crest Beach.  This beach is insane- it's on the opposite side of a massive dune.  I think it's like, 3 stories high or something.  

See the people walking up to the parking lot? Todd and I were joking it was like a CrossFit WOD just getting up and down that hill!  But the beach was really pretty and the weather was surprisingly warm!

Just another view of the beach- the waves were pretty big both days.  But I don't think the water was over 70, so you know I didn't get in!  There were some cute seals in the water too!  I mean really?  Seals?  Don't they love icy cold water?  Yeah, that "sealed" the deal for me!  Plus with recent shark sitings off of Chatham and now near Truro, no thanks, I think I'll be staying farther up on the shore. Anyway, the waves were big, but we were set pretty far back from the wave line. Or at least we thought, until a crazy rogue wave came up and drenched us all, and all of our stuff. Including my towel, which was lying on the beach with my shirt and shorts on it. And both Todd's and my BlackBerry's in between. Somehow, Todd's stayed dry and mine was drenched. And ruined.  And there wasn't a wave before or after that was as big as that one.  A lot of people asked me why I brought my BlackBerry to the beach? It's my cell phone and I have kids that were elsewhere, so I needed to have a phone in case of an emergency! (I shouldn't mention that there wasn't any reception/service on the other side of those dunes though!) I was so mad.  We went back to the house and put it in a bag of rice, which is what you're supposed to do with them, but with salt water in a BlackBerry under the touch screen, I am doubting it will ever be of use again.

Saturday night, we had a big cookout.  (Karen, Cooch, and Mike Morris enjoying the food, above!) Todd and I managed to even eat pretty clean on our Paleo diet with the exception of the beverages, of course!  Oh and the dang donuts that Rob brought.  Oh, and the smores we had by the firepit later in the evening.  OK, so maybe it wasn't all that paleo!  But it was sure tasty.  Who doesn't love a good smores though?  The Cucci's had those colossal marshmallows that were the size of a fist --- YIKES!  Well, Rybo found it amusing, anyway...

Sunday, we all got up and went to the beach again.  This time to Cahoon Hollow Beach. It was a bit overcast and much cooler, and we had to leave to go pick up the kids, so we left just before lunchtime.  So long beach, until next summer!!! 

Weekend at Grammi and Bean's

Every summer, the Maryland Bailey's take a week long vacation up to Massachusetts to visit the rest of us Bailey's that all live up here.  Natalie really loves all of her cousins.  And cousin Megan is off to Gettysburg College in a few weeks, which is really unbelievable.

(Grant, Megan, Seth, Natalie, Lauren, and Ryan below.  Sorry it's not cropped very well.  There were several taken, but this was the only one where everyone was looking in the general direction of the camera!!!)

We had a lot of fun when they were visiting.  We went to the pond one day and Grammi let Natalie use a fun raft to help her swim all around without Daddy's help.

Daddy said the pond was chilly so Mommy and Grant opted not to get in!  But I snapped a cute profile picture of baby boy anyway...

Mmmm, snackalicious!  Anyway, we also spent some time at the pool.  Natalie had fun in the kiddie pool, but even got to go in the big pool with Daddy, Lauren, and Hannah!  The girls are so sweet with Natalie and she really looks up to them all.

Thankfully, the little pool was nice and warm, and we had fun splashing around!  They always have a huge basket of toys at the kiddie pool and there's always plenty of things to play with.  Now that summer is winding down, we are looking forward to some fall weekends in Plymouth and Great Island's new heated indoor pool!  It's open to kids (but only if they're potty trained, sorry G) and families from 2-4 every day.  So we are looking forward to that!  We will miss the warm summer days though!

What we've been doing in August

We have been so busy, I haven't had time to post anything.  We went to Plymouth last weekend to visit with Todd's brother and his family who were in town from Maryland.  We had fun going to the pool and playing with the cousins, Megan, Hannah and Ryan.  Ryan is 5'10" now, so other than Seth and my own wee bitty ones, I am the shortest person in the family!  Nice.

Then we all came back on Monday but we brought Lauren and Madison with us.  Maureen was closed for the week because she was on vacation, so the girls watched the kids during the day while we went to work.  They did great!  Todd and I were able to go to several CrossFit classes this week (including our first one together) and we both were able to work late one night each this week since we're super busy at work too.  I think I want Lauren and Madison to move in permanently.  I would love to have a nanny!

Helen picked Lauren up from our house last night and today, the rest of us are all going to Plymouth.  Todd and his dad are having a re-do of the Bailey Invitational at Cape Cod Country Club this afternoon.  The kids will be hanging with Madison and Grammi.  Then tomorrow morning, we'll take the kids and Madison to KK's house in South Yarmouth and Todd and I are going to Wellfleet to the Cucci house for some weekend fun with the Wilmington crew.  Good times! 

After this weekend, things will be quiet for a while.  Natalie starts preschool on the 30th, for 3 full days a week.  Sniff sniff.  I got her backpack already.  I know she's been going to full day daycare since she was 3 months old, but there is something about preschool that just makes her seem like such a big girl.  I know she will have fun though.  She's very much looking forward to it!

Serious vs. Smiley Grant

Serious Grant.

Smiley Grant.

Conversation with Natalie

So this was a conversation I had with Natalie in the car today on the way back from Joshua's birthday party.

Natalie:  Hey, there's old McDonalds!  (That is what she calls McDonalds)

Me:  Yep, there it is!

Natalie:  No it's noooooot!

Me:  What?

Natalie:  Old McDonalds isn't there!

Me:  It's not?

Natalie:  YES IT IS!!!  (say that with a good amount of whine to it)

Me:  What?  Okay, yes, there it is!

Natalie:  No it's not!

Me:  Okay, whatever Natalie.

Natalie:  Look, there's Wendy's!

Me:  (silence)

Grant's 9 month stats

Without further ado... my big boy's 9 months stats from his doctor's appointment this morning...

Height: 29" (up 1.5") - 75%

Weight: 21 pounds (up 4 pounds!!!) - 60%

Head: 47cm (up 2 cm) - 90%

Sheesh, no wonder my arms are getting tired!  He got a Hepatitis B shot, and Todd discussed the big gap between his teeth and how his frenulum comes down between his teeth.  Dr. Meisheid said that most likely when the other teeth come in, they would push the front teeth together and it wouldn't be a problem.  So for now, we're just going to watch it.  I just don't want it causing any speech problems!  Dr. Meisheid is also not concerned that he's not crawling.  Wow, what a difference - our pediatrician in Virginia was really concerned about Natalie not crawling at this age!  FYI- She didn't crawl until 13 months!!  Grant seems to be about a month ahead of her in everything so far, so hopefully by the time he turns 1, we'll have a crawler, and maybe a "stand-at-the-table" baby!

Visit to Grammi and Bean's

This weekend, we went to visit Grammi and Bean in Plymouth.  It was nice because it was just us visiting.  Oh, and favorite Auntie Helen, but we hadn't seen her in a while, and she is always so funny.  I feel like we haven't gotten enough quality 1 on 1 time with the grandparents this summer!  We got there Saturday just before lunch and I got to hang out with Carole and Helen while the kids napped.  Todd and Warren went to Cape Cod Country Club and went golfing, although their outing was delayed by major traffic at the Sagamore Bridge, and then cut short by thunderstorms.  The Bailey Invitational will have to be put on hold until next time...

Saturday evening, Grant got his first bathtub in the Bailey sink!  The Bailey's have pictures of all of the kids in the sink getting a bath.  He was so cute...

After the kids went to bed, we all watched Crazy Heart.  It was pretty good.  Although the ending was a little Hollywood, I guess.  Happy ending, all sunshine and flowers, and fairly abrupt. 

Sunday after church, Natalie took an early nap so we could go to the pool.  This is definitely her favorite summer activity!  She was SO funny at the pool.  She is just so friendly to everyone, and walks right up to other kids and says, "Hi, my name is Natalie!"  She met a little girl named Charlotte who was 2, and she said, "Hi, my name is Natalie!  This is my mom Colleen, and my dad Todd, and this is Grammi and Bean!"  I don't recall her mentioning her brother, which is funny since she usually loves to show him off.  But it was so funny how GROWN UP she sounded when she said it.  (By the way, Charlotte is the one in the lower center of the picture below).

For her birthday, Grammi and Bean got her a pair of goggles, which she did not take off for the entire 2 hours that we were there!  So this is what she looked like for another 2 hours after the fact...

Another quick story, she will probably kill me some day for posting this on a blog for the whole world to see, but we were in church Sunday morning in Plymouth, and I was finishing up giving Grant a bottle as the service ended so people were walking by us down the aisle to leave.  Natalie was waving at all of them, which is a total invite for them to talk to her.  One lady asked if Grant was a boy or a girl, and I said a boy.  To which Natalie replied, "Boy's have penises!"  VERY loudly.  IN CHURCH.  I wanted to crawl under a pew and cry.  The ladies laughed right out of the church.  Oy vey!

Good times at the Bailey's... we'll be back in a couple of weeks when Steve and his family come up for their summer visit!  I hope Natalie gets to participate in the talent show this year!

Sweet Grant

Sweetest.  Baby.  Ever.

Or, maybe the silliest baby ever!

Grant is getting to be such a big boy.  Sniff sniff.  He's still snuggly and edible though.  Yum!!!

Funny Natalieisms

Okay, I have three quick funny things that Natalie has said over the last few days...

1. Maureen lets Natalie bring home a toy every once in a while, but we have to bring it back the next morning. So she let Natalie bring a taggy blanket home one evening this week. The next morning, Todd apparently forgot to grab it, so the following evening, when I saw it in the playroom, I said, "Hey Natalie, is that Miss Maureen's?" And she replied, "Yes... daddy said, 'Crap, we forgot to bring it to Maureen's!'" Nice honey. Real nice. :-)

2. Natalie and Todd were in her room and found a beat up Go Diego, Go sticker when Natalie said, "Oh no, my Diego sticker!" And Todd said, "Yes, it got old and wrinkly." And Natalie said, "Kind of like your forehead!" Ouch!

3. This evening, Todd went to CrossFit after he had put Grant to bed, so it was just Natalie and I. In the middle of dinner, she declared she had to go poopy. It wasn't a pretty scene as she was pretty constipated. TMI, I know, but you need to know that for the rest of the story. Afterwards, I gave her some baby prunes and told her she needed to eat those so her tummy would feel better. Then, we saw our neighbor, Jean, outside with her dog, and Natalie said, "Hi Jean! I'm eating prunes! My poopies were hard!"

That's my girl!!!!