Cruisin' right along

11 months, 2 weeks

Although Brock has been crawling for quite awhile now, in the last couple of weeks his speed has picked up so much! He's finally really figured out how to get going really fast if he wants to. He loves for someone to chase him. He just takes off as fast as he can go, little butt wiggling back and forth and then stops if he doesn't hear you close enough behind him. He just laughs and smiles! It's the most fun game to him right now! He also LOVES to crawl over to our vents in the house and bang on them. Ours are all on the wall, not in the floor so they are tall and perfect height for his wrath.

He's really pulling up with such ease on anything and everything now. He has also started walking down coffee tables, couches, whatever he can. As long as he can hold on to something, he's cruisin'.

We have officially eliminated the last bottle of the night! It could not have been an easier transition. Seriously, he's the easiest baby ever!! I want to eliminate ALL bottles at his 1 year birthday. He'll still get milk in sippy cups and lots of snacks, but no more bottles (is the plan for now). He seems to be losing interest in them anyway.

I think we have left the stranger anxiety phase in the dust and he's back to his happy, friendly little self. He'll pretty much go to anyone and smiles at every person we see.

He's eating like a little horse! I make sure he gets veggies at least every night for dinner to try and make that a routine in our house. I know eventually it'll be a fight, but the longer we can put it off the better!

He is still saying and repeating so much. He has mastered 'bye bye' and he waves when he says it. He is still working on blowing kisses...he knows how to do it, its just a matter of GETTING him to do it.

This weekend will be our first night away from him! My 30th birthday is on Sunday and Nick has informed me we are doing 'something'. I don't know what or where or who will be there, just that SOMETHING is going on. So we have a sitter arranged for Brock (Cynthia) and he's just going to spend the night there. I was a little hesitant at first, but for his first time away from us, if he's going to be comfortable anywhere, it would be with her at her house since he's there every day.

I'll update next week how it goes!

Mini-vacation

11 months, 1 week

One of my best friends in the whole wide world, Rea, is having a baby in June. She lives in Arkansas and we don't get to see each other more than a couple of times a year. Well, being from Wichita, I was planning on attending the baby shower she had there. Unfortunately dates didn't match up, so we decided to drive down to Fayetteville for her 'couples' baby shower. Since both girls hosting the shower were pregnant, I offered up any help and we made plans to head down south!

Our original plan was to head to 'the lake' - Grove, OK where all my dad's sisters live and meet my Dad/Pat down there for the weekend. Then Nick and I would just drive over to Fayetteville for the shower. Well, my dad had some minor health issues come up last week and they decided they weren't going to be able to make the trip. Once we knew my dad was in the clear, we were still going to head down for the shower and just leave Saturday, instead of our original plan of Friday.

Well, my fabulous husband and the best daddy ever, found this awesome place in Eureka Springs, AR called Turpentine Creek (http://www.turpentinecreek.org/). They rescue wild cats (think tigers, lions, cougars, even bears) from crazy people who think they would make good pets. They have over 100 animals (sadly) that have been turned over from again, crazy people, who decide that cute little tiger cub isn't as cute when it becomes a full grown adult tiger that could eat your face off. So these wonderful people have set up a sanctuary for these animals - some are in small caged areas, but many have large caged grass areas with room to roam. So we decided we had to take Brock to see it! We re-planned our entire trip to leave Friday morning, head for the 'big cats', then stay near Fayetteville for the weekend.

Turpentine Creek, while it was cold/windy, did NOT disappoint and it's somewhere we will go again! You could get so close to these wonderful creatures! Tigers, Ligers, Lions, Bears, Cougars and other animals. While I usually hate seeing them in cages, all of these animals seemed very happy in their home!!

Friday night we went to dinner with Rea and her husband Budd. Brock absolutely loves both of them! They are going to be such amazing parents and I can't wait to meet their sweet princess in a couple of months!

Given that our trip was altered, this meant we still had time to make the hour drive over to visit my family. Randomly, it turned out a bunch of my cousins were there also, one with his baby that is just 3 months younger than Brock. It was WONDERFUL to see my family. Brock got to play with his cousin Tristan and while Brock is usually grabbing at people's faces, etc, Tristan was giving Brock a taste of his own medicine. However, Tristan was much more gentle than Brock usually is! LOL! Only a few little melt downs out of Brock due to being tired, but they seemed to love hanging out with each other!

The shower on Saturday was so fun and Brock was the life of the party. He let people hold him and play with him and finally passed out on Mommy at around 9:30. He certainly took advantage of the 'vacation schedule' with later bedtimes! Luckily, he also slept in a bit!

Overall the trip was just wonderful. Life down there is so much less complicated and slower than where we are and in the best way possible. You feel like you are able to clear your head and think of what really matters. It's just an absolutely gorgeous part of the country. There were so many times over the weekend that I just wished time could stop. Seeing Brock laugh at the 2 tiger brothers wrestling each other, taking him to my absolute favorite place as a child and introducing him to my family, seeing him watch the fish in Aunt Mollie/Uncle Delmar's pond, being with Rea and Budd and seeing how great they will be with baby Monroe.

It was a much needed break from everything for our whole family. I feel like it even helped Nick and I reconnect. Those 4 hour drives to and from really gave us time to just talk. Not about what was going on this week, or what chores need to be done, or how work went that day. Just talk, like we used to, about everything and nothing all at the same time.

Brock wasn't a fan of being in the carseat that long, but overall he was wonderful! People at the shower kept asking if he's 'always that good' and while we do see his 'naughty' side more than others, we were so proud and thankful to be able to say 'yeah, pretty much!'.

Rea and Budd taught him how to say 'bye bye' and wave! He had been doing the waving, but they really helped him put the 2 together! We are now saying 'mama', 'dada', 'dog', 'oscar' (sometimes and it's still a work in progress), 'uh oh', 'bye bye', 'no' and many other things he randomly repeats after us! He LOVES to clap! If you start cheering 'yeah', he'll start clapping! He also started mimicking our faces this weekend. He's just so much fun!!!

Pull up man

11 months!

Sorry I missed a post last week. Easter was crazy and so fun!! Brock got totally spoiled with lots of Easter baskets and toys. We debated on the Easter bunny situation for a bit, but when Nick mentioned our little shopping center by our house was having a free one, we figured we'd give it a shot. Who would have known, but Brock LOVED him...thought he was hilarious!!

 On Saturday, we colored eggs (he just wanted to smash them), then Sunday went to church and had a nice lunch at our house. And in true Brock form, he just wanted the food. The kid LOVES ham...it's maybe his new fave. He also looked like a total stud in his Easter best. Here are a few fun pics from Easter morning.

Believe it or not, this is his 'funny' face. He crinkles his nose and squints his eyes when he laughs now. LOVE!

 My handsome Easter man!

 Our happy little family after church!

Brock is starting now to pull up on just about EVERYTHING! He went from just doing it sometimes to quickly pulling up on anything and everything he can!

He has also started wanting to walk while we hold on to his hands. I'm thinking we aren't too far away! Right now, Mommy is in the party planning trenches getting ready for the big bash for his 1st birthday! They only turn one once and being the party planning addict that I am, I'm going a little overboard.

We are heading to Arkansas this weekend to see my friend Rea for her baby shower! She hasn't seen Brock  for a long time so she'll really get to see how fast they grow! We are hoping to take him to a 'big cat' - ie: Tiger, Lion, Cougar and even some bears - rescue on Friday afternoon. He just loves animals and you can (safely) get pretty close to see them!

Tonight, it's girls and baby night! Brock gets to see all his ladies (Madison and Marlee) and hopefully meet his newest buddy Charlie!

Our little fish

10 months, 2 weeks

We had our first swim lesson on Monday! I'm terrible about putting pictures up so forgive me, but I promise I'll get some up eventually! Anyway, he LOVED IT! There was one poor little girl that just screamed through the whole thing, but Brock was in Heaven! He laughed and chased after toys in the pool, he totally chilled when Daddy had him on his back, kept creeping on the older lady in the next lane doing her laps. He was just taking it all in! I can't wait for next Monday when I can get in with him!!

This Sunday is Easter and I'm so excited! We are having my mom and sister, Nick's parents and brothers (and Erin), and Nick's grandpa over for lunch at our house! We are going to make Easter cookies, cake and dye eggs tomorrow! I know he's probably too young to get into it, but hopefully he'll at least be entertained!

We have also bit the bullet and hired a cleaning lady. I was really struggling with the 'deep cleaning' in our tiny house (so embarrassing). But, working full time leaves little time with the munchkin and the time we do have, I certainly don't want to be cleaning. I have to say, it was some of the best money I have ever spent. She got that house cleaner than I ever could have and in probably half the time. It was such a huge weight off of my shoulders. I hate things being dirty so it was driving me crazy, but I just couldn't find the time/energy to do it myself.

Brock is now repeating words like crazy. He usually only does it a few times right after you say something, but so far, here's what he's got down: Hello, Woah, No No No, Oscar, Babe (yes, hilarious!), What...I think that's about it.

Meme and Poppy were in town last weekend and had a total blast playing with him. He was all smiles and a lot of fun! The mommy phase has slightly improved this week so he's letting other people hold him more!

Happy Easter everyone! I hope the Easter bunny brings you all lots of goodies!

Feeling very thankful...

10 Months, 1.5 weeks

Sadly, times are changing at Casa de Barbosa. Our sweet, friendly, smiley little man has started to get a bit of a shy streak. I'm hoping it's just a phase and luckily it's just mostly turning his head away and no meltdowns. It all started last Saturday at a housewarming party. We walked in and while Brock is always a little nervous the first few minutes around new people, he'll usually smile. Not this time, he just had on his best 'stone face' and kept turning his head into my chest. After about 30 minutes, he warmed up and was watching the other kids, talking to everyone and smiling. He used to be such a friendly little guy to everyone so again, we are hoping it's just a phase!

The biggest event in our house has been patio furniture shopping. It has been so hard!!! We have gone to pretty much every store in town that sells patio furniture and looked online and I just couldn't find what I wanted. I'm being extremely too picky about it. I don't want it to cost too much, but I want it to be good quality. I want it to be colorful, but comfortable. I have found chairs one place, but no table. Or cushions but not chairs. I have been scouring for an umbrella, patio set and rug that all coordinate and not only are functional, but fun. Patio furniture is just so blah - the colors are browns, greys, etc. I know why, it's because they are exposed and get dirty and fade, etc. However, for those of us in the Midwest, we only get to use them part of the year so bright colors are what I was wanting!

After a few weeks of talking about and searching, we finally found a set I felt like I would maybe work with. I wasn't 'in love' with it, but it was a great deal and was functionally just what we were wanting. So Nick pulled the trigger and bought the set while I continued my quest for the right pieces to 'brighten and spice' it up for summer. I finally found a rug that peaked my interest from Wal Mart of all places so that gave me a direction. Then I went searching for an umbrella. Pier 1 (one of my FAVE home decor places) ended up having a great umbrella (ON SALE!!!) that I think will match the rug. I still am not 100% sold until I see it all together -- hopefully this weekend. I'll try to remember to post pics!

Well, as if the search wasn't crazy enough, we decided to start putting the furniture together last night. While I appreciate the secure packing job the wonderful folks at Sears did to keep our set protected while traveling to the store, it was a pain in the a** to unload and unwrap it all. After about 30 mins of unpacking the boxes and getting all the bubble wrap off of it, we finally had all the pieces ready to be put together. However, while unwrapping everything, we had Brock sitting in his new 'big boy' patio chair in the garage. He dropped a toy and while trying to reach it, totally fell out of the chair and hit his head on the cement floor of the garage. It was a pretty loud bang and I was a little worried, so we kept a close eye on him and put some ice (well, as much as he would let me) on it to prevent too much swelling. But it was just a tiny little knot that never even bled. Crisis #1 - averted.

The close call with Brock forced us to move everything out of the garage and to the back deck to hopefully avoid any further injuries. So, we move everything out back and Nick gets to work with his favorite tool (the allen wrench - please note the sarcasm). I start working on the 'inside' part of dinner while his job was to work on grilling in between assembly of the chairs. I come out to monitor the situation and while Brock is sitting on my lap, he bites his tongue to the point it started bleeding. And here comes meltdown #2 in as many hours. He cried harder for that than he did the head bang, but eventually all was well again. Crisis #2 - averted. During the hysteria, Nick goes to start the grill for dinner and what do you know? We are out of propane and therefore it won't start! So dinner inside is halfway finished and the main course is on pause. Nick runs down to the hardware stores, switches it out and Crisis #3 is averted.

Finally, after dinner, all the pieces get put together, the family gets our dinner, Brock gets his bath (which makes his world all better) and then it's bedtime. While I was a little worried about his head and kept checking on him through the night, he woke up this morning and while the bump is still there, it's not nearly as bad as we thought it would be!

At the time, all of that drama seemed so stressful. Typing it all out however, makes me realize it's just 'First World Problems'. We are lucky we were able to buy a patio set, lucky that Brock didn't seriously hurt himself from the fall and lucky we can put food on the table (and propane in the grill). Having a baby certainly changes your lifestyle, but for me, it's made me just overall more thankful. I know there are so many families out there who don't have even the small luxuries we do and I try to never take that for granted.

There are some days I wake up and see Brock and sometimes still just can't believe he's mine! Meltdowns or not, he is my sweet angel boy and he makes even the worst days so much better! My mornings are better because I get to see him when he wakes up. My nights are better because I get to kiss him goodnight every night before bed. My workdays are better because I know I get to go home to him, Nick, Oscar and our home. It's not perfect, it's not big, but it's home and we are making some wonderful memories there everyday!

Meme and Poppy are coming up this weekend for Poppy's birthday so it should be a great weekend!

Finding his words!

10 Months - ummmm, how can that be right?!

Well folks sorry for the lack of post last week, but I'll be honest, for once - ya didn't miss much. The first part of the week was filled with a very tired, fussy, cranky little man! Very unusual for us so I thought it was some teeth coming through, but so far, haven't seen them!!

Over the weekend we went to the St. Patty's Day Parade...well, let me correct that, we were IN the parade! Nick's entire family was in for his aunt's 50th birthday! It was nice weather and it was so much fun! LOTS and I mean LOTS of walking. But Brock was a total champ. We were out there for a long time and I was so afraid we'd lose him to either hunger or tiredness as we were walking during both lunchtime and naptime. We were prepared with snacks and a bottle, however, he just wanted to people watch! He LOVED the parade! He was so quiet and just taking it all in as we walked down the street in his St. Patrick's Day decorated stroller (sorry, no picture!). However, I did get a couple of pics from the day:

Here is Brock with his 'Mom's Lucky Charm' shirt and the headband he really was not fond of wearing!

 Here is Erin and I in our 'attire'. My tutu that I made and the veil I made her...gotta get her practice in for the big day!

After the parade, when we FINALLY got to our car after the longest walk of our lives, we were all starving! Luckily, Brock slept most of the way back to the car in his stroller so potential drama #1 avoided. I was SURE he was starving, but he totally content in the car. We went out for lunch and ordered him some food, but he barely ate it! He just was having so much fun with the day, he could care less about eating! We got home and CRASHED...we were all so exhausted, but it was such a great day, and wonderful memories for Brock's first St. Patty's Day!

Sunday was sort of errand running day and we decided to throw a little barbeque together at 'Brock's park' by our house. There is a small grill and covered area with a table there and we are always saying we should invite some friends down to grill out. We did it on Sunday and Kristin, Brett and Madison and Tracy, Matt, Carter and Marlee all came down. The kids had a BLAST! Madison likes to swing as much as Brock does so we decided to put them in the swing together! As you can see, they were a little confused!!

Cynthia had a family emergency and had to leave town at the last minute which meant Mommy had to work from home for a couple of days. I was a little nervous as he's so mobile now I was afraid I wouldn't get much done. However, I was able to get everything done that I needed and get to spend some extra time with my sweet angel boy!! I cherish any extra minutes I get with him so it was a blast. 

He's become quite the little comedian. He does a 'Donald Duck' sounding voice that is just hilarious. He has mastered 'uh oh' and says it all the time! He also is quite the mama's boy right now. At the parade if anyone else was holding him, he would mostly be ok until he saw me...then he wanted Mama. If I walk by at home and don't pick him up or acknowledge him you'd think I had just taken a bottle away from him! It can be full on meltdown in no time! As much as everyone else hates it, I am loving it! I know this time will fly by and I'm going to enjoy it while I can!!

He can now fully get himself sitting up from pretty much any position. He's gotten a lot better at standing and is starting to pull up on things. Right now it's just to his knees, but sometimes he'll get himself in what Nick calls a 'football stance' where his legs are straight and his arms are straight like he's in a 'V', but he can't get all the way up. It won't be long before he's trying to walk!! I don't know if I'm ready!!! 

When he wakes up in the mornings, he sits up and just plays and talks in his crib. He's such a patient and sweet little man! Eating has been a little hit or miss. Some days he loves everything and other days he just screams through the whole meal. It's a work in progress at this point. I hope we aren't forcing him to eat solids if he's not ready. He just seemed to be 'over' the baby food about a month or so ago, so we switched over to a sort of half and half. Now if I'm making a dinner that's not too seasoned or spicy, I'll make him a little plate. Sometimes it's great, sometimes not. LOL! 

We start swim lessons in a couple of weeks and I can't wait to see him splashing around. Bath time is his favorite thing right now so I hope he feels the same about swimming!

Monkey See, Monkey Do

9 months, 2 weeks

Missed last weeks post, but have lots to catch up on this week!! Brock is now full on crawling, not just army crawl. He still prefers to army crawl, but over the last week, he's gotten up on all 4's and finally this weekend took his first little 'steps' forward! He also LOVES to stand up on his own. If you put him up against something, like a toy, he'll stand there until his legs just give out on him!!

He has started to mimick things we say now. It started last weekend with 'uh oh'. Then over the last week, he's started to slowly repeat more and more things. He shakes his head 'no' when he doesn't like something (or sometimes for no reason). And this morning while I was getting ready for work, he was fussing (for no reason at all) so I turned around, pointed my finger and told him 'Stop'. He pointed his finger back at me and said 'ta' like he was trying to tell me to stop!! It was pretty hilarious!!

He has started to really love cartoons. He'll watch all kinds. Last night we turned on Shrek and he was completely amazed and engrossed in the show. He especially loves to see animals and kids on TV. He seems to recognize them and respond so happily to them! It's so adorable.

Last night, he had his first mommy/daddy meal. Usually, we feed him his own food, veggies, fruit, yogurt, etc. But last night, due to the unseasonably nice weather, we grilled out hamburgers. I made one for Nick and I and a tiny one for Brock. I gave him only about half of the burger, but he also got a couple of baked french fries, peas/carrots and applesauce. He ate the whole meal! Probably the biggest one he has had to date and he seemed to love it all! I found these little mini cans of just peas/carrots and they are perfect. 1 can probably is enough for his dinner for an entire week and they are nice and soft so easily baby safe!

He definitely recognizes us and the dog now. The other day he looked at Nick and said 'Dada', if you ask him where the dog is, he looks for Oscar, as well as says 'da' when he sees him. It's hard to believe he really knows what it all means already, but he's pretty consistent with it!

We put the bumper back into his crib last night. I was a nervous wreck, but I think it will be helpful. It made his bed seem so much more cozy and he can't throw his binkies out in the middle of the night anymore!! He's had a terrible cold/cough the past few days, but while he's been fussier than normal, he's still mostly in a good mood!

This past weekend we went 'park shopping' for a location for his 1st birthday party and found the perfect place!! We are so excited and just praying it doesn't rain! We still have over 2 months to go, but I know it'll be here before we know it!