8 months!

8 Month Photo Shoot - Discovering the Basil, taking a stand, and loving on Gerry the Giraffe

Getting his crawl on!

I love the stage Ezzie is in right now. I know, I know - I have loved them all, but it just keeps getting better! This month Ezzie has been crawling backwards, and is beginning to make his way forwards. He does an arm, arm, leg, leg, flop things, but he has moved about 2 feet forward! No matter where I put him sitting up, he keeps laying himself down and trying to move. One of my favorite moments was when he first crawled forward. Jon and I were on the couch, and Ezzie on the floor. We both called to him with a lot of enthusiasm. Ezzie was so overcome by excitement that his face lit up and he began crawling (one crawl I might add) without thinking and just trying to be near us. I hope I have his expression etched in my mind forever - it was priceless :)

One of my favorite things right now is that Ezzie giggles up a storm so much easier than before. I simply squeeze his little tummy and tickle him and he laughs so hard! I often find myself so overwhelmed with pride and joy in him. He makes my heart swell with happiness :)

Ezzie is beginning fingerfoods, and the two little teeth are beginning to surface little by little. Hopefully he will have some teethy grins by 9 months :)

The onesie, Daddy and Ezzie going to Daddy's Aero meeting

Ezzie finally can wear the onesie I made for his daddy when I found out he was coming. It says, "Don't worry, my daddy's a pilot." For those of you who know Jon well, he commonly will say, "Don't worry, I'm a pilot."

The pool, Ezzie doing what he does best - chewing on things :)

As our summer is drawing to a close, we are taking advantage of the pool Grandma got for Ezzie. He loves sitting in it and splashing. Summer run long here, so hopefully we can get another month out of it!

Speaking of summer - it is finally drawing to a close. We have had a couple of mild, non-humid days this past week which offer us promise of a beautiful fall. Ahh, changing leaves and cool, non-humid days. Something SO needed!

California and Oregon Adventures

Ezzie looking at the plane - who knows if he will be like his daddy :)

We had such a great time visiting family and friends this past week. I must say that my husband and little guy were incredible troopers! Jon had been traveling and working crazy hours for over a week straight in Oshkosh (his dream aviation conference) before we left. He actually flew home Monday and we left Tuesday really early in the morning. Ezzie, who had a lot of time in a carseat and on our laps, also did amazing. It can be so much work traveling with a little guy!

Cool dude, Looking at Burney Falls (Ezzie loved watching the water - probably thinking huge bath!)

We first went to Camp Pit. It is a campground I grew up going to with my family, my Nano and Nana, and my Aunt Debbie and her family. This year was a little different without Nana and with all of the extended family. Just writing about my Nana brings back a flood of memories. I loved her dearly, and took it really hard when she died when I was nine. It took me until I was 12 to actually cry over her death, but I showed my grief in my writings and simply thinking about her all the time. My favorite memory of her was getting up really early, wandering into her garage, and sitting with her as she did the crosswords in the paper. Ahhh, Nana.

Back to our trip. We had a great time hanging out with family and eating a lot of good food. One thing about our family is that we eat well, eat a lot, and usually have a lot left over when we are done. We seriously need a fast after we are together :) This year Dani commented that we were sympythizing with Sarah, who is pregnant :)

The red sun, A helicoptor with the water basket, Dipping the basket into the reservoir

One big event that surrounded us had to do with wild fires. There was a lot of smoke - so much that the sun was almost red. This pic doesn't even do it justice! Our campground is near a reservoir, so hellicopters were coming in and out and getting water. We went up and checked it out - and yes, I was just as interested as Jon in this one :)

My nephew Jackson has been healing really well from his burns, and was a lot of fun. Here is a video of my brother, Matt, throwing him in the air and him laughing :)

Aidan and Faith with Ezzie, Mom about to teach me how to help Ezzie swim, The lesson in progress!

The weather was cool - especially compared with Texas. We braved the cool, and took Ezzie swimming. His cousins, Faith and Aidan, surrounded him as they did every day giving him attention. Faith especially enjoyed pulling him around the pool, and squeezing his cheeks - ah, they are so kissable and squeezable! My mom also showed me how to teach Ezzie to swim at a young age. She used to do this with Sean. It is amazing how they still have their fetal swimmers legs and arms! My mom showed me how to hold him so he could do it on his own - it was amazing :)

After saying goodbye to my parents (and family), we went for a trip to Trader Joe's before hitting Oregon to see Jon's parents - I know, surprise, surprise. My favorite thing about the trip was that Ezzie was thrilled to be there! His little legs were kicking, he was laughing and talking like crazy and that smile kept on coming. Sure, maybe part of it had to do with him not being in a carseat, but I think he has a love for Trader Joe's that is so innate! :)

Grandma and Ezzie, Ezzie loving the swing!

We spent less than 24 hours in Ashland with Jon's parents. It is such a quaint, romantic, and lovely city! We visited the downtown and walked through Lithia Park. Jon and I talked about it being a great weekend getaway location. Ezzie got to swing for the first time and loved it. What doesn't he love, other than Mac N'Cheese from the jar?

Our final destination took us to Mark and Tracey's house. It was so great to catch up after not seeing her and Mark for a while. They treated us to an amazing meal, and made our last night such a relaxing evening. Thanks again!

Friends and Cows

Back in our Gladstone teaching days - we were "Dryer Lint" for Halloween, and made Pi shirts on Pi Day (3-14).. just to name a few things :)

Jon told me on Mother's Day he had a surprise coming my way - one that wouldn't happen for another month or two. He threw me off from my original guess - that Benny was coming to visit - by date-napping me for the night while Ben and Teresa came over and took care of Ezzie. We went out for a special dinner and to a bookstore. I didn't exactly think this was too out of the ordinary, but considering our not really eating out anymore, I took the bait. Well, the next evening Jon said he had to go pick up a potential instructor for LETU. He returned and pulled me outside, telling me he wanted to share the sunset with me. Well, I looked for the sunset, and found something better - Benny!!! Out from behind the car she came! We only had a couple of days together, but those days were so refreshing and such a blessing. I miss her terribly. I miss teaching next to her, collaborating, doing crazy things with our students, going to walks pretty regularly, and just being able to be around a girlfriend who I totally can let my hair down with.

Check out Ezzie's long Torso and squatty legs :), Zinks, Webers and Benny!, Herd Names

While Benny was here, she got to meet some of our friends and have go to Chick-Fil-A dressed like a cow for free food with Bill and Crystal Zink, two of our really good friends here. We made shirts and gave each other fun bovine (cow means female bovine) names.

Benny = Cow-lifornia
Tam = Moo-my
Jon = Papa Bovine
Ezzie = Calf
I miss Benny dearly right now, and wish we lived closer.

I am also so grateful to be married to a man who is so thoughtful and loving :)

7 Months and More!!!

7 Month Photo Shoot

Ezzie is now 7 months, and has developed so much in the last month. I am continually amazed at how fast he picks up on things and becomes more expressive. As mentioned in the 6 month blog, Ezzie began turning over from back to front on Father's Day. He has since grew to be a roly-poly! He rarely stays where we put him anymore. He also loves to stand by himself when he is holding onto something stable.

In the pic on the right, Ezzie was originally in front of the mirror - he backed himself into the corner :)

He went through a phase where he would cry when he rolled onto his tummy - because he forgot how to roll back over - even though he began doing that months ago! Now he has transitioned to crawling backwards and crying when he gets himself into a corner. It is hilarious :) We know crawling is coming - in some ways I am not ready for this. I knew time would fly - but, really, this fast??? I cannot even imagine how fast the next year will go. All I know is that Jon and I continue to find ourselved overtaken with how much we love our son. We heard people talk about not remembering life before kids.. and thought this was silly... well, silly no longer :)

I think Ezzie really wants the coffee - not the glass :)

Ezzie has reached the age when he wants to eat whatever we are eating. He especially loves glasses - cold coffee cups. It cracks me up when he grabs for my glass and tilts his head up to suck on the bottom. He is beginning to become more interested in the top though. This adds some lovely moisture to my drink, but I just shrug it off :) I have tried giving him water from a glass a few times, and he does pretty well with it!

All sunscreened!, Loving it!, Family Pic :)

Another big thing this month is swimming! We have heard from friends that Daingerfield State Park was beautiful and relaxing. My image of the other lakes around here made me reluctant to really check it out, even though a part of me was curious. So, we got Ezzie a floatie, and headed to the park to get away from Longview. As a side note - I have been craving a change of scenery - mountains, wild rivers, the beach... something!. This proved to be a solace from the boring-nothing-to-do-outside place of Longview. It was so relaxing and beautiful! When Ezzie first began to swim around he immediately loved it! His legs are powerful, and he loved to jump and stand up. We weren't totally surprised when he began to kick in the water - our little waterbaby :)

We are headed to California soon to spend time with my family, and hopefully Jon's family for a day! One drawback of being here is them missing out on all of these changes. It'll be nice for them to have a chance to see Ezzie in these stages of cuteness, allertness, excitement and discovery! Plus, we will have a chance to visit some beautiful rivers, waterfalls and lakes. I already am looking forward to Burney Falls and Whiskeytown Lake. I love the beauty and clarity of Whiskeytown Lake, and have heard Burney Falls is beautiful!

More to come :)

6 Months and Father's Day!

So, Jon had a very special Father's Day this year - Ezzie turned 6 months. We had a very relaxing day, and ended the day with Jon's favorite dinner that included Mac N' Cheese (obviously, it was made with Tillamock). We took a few pictures to commemorate the day. Ezzie is wearing his daddy's old shirt from when he was a baby.

Ezzie is becoming more and more captivated with the world around him. If there is anything new around, he will even refuse to eat just to take it all in. So, I find myself having to change the scenery fairly often when he is ready to eat. Ezzie is eating lots of fruits and vegetables, and sweet potatoes and applesauce seem to still be his favorite - though Apricots seem to be giving them a run for their money :)

(Here is Ezzie in his daddy's overalls, and a pair of shoes I made for him... I love creating things!)

On Father's Day Ezzie turned from his back to his belly when he was in his crib for naptime. He is developing so fast! He also is laughing more, and Jon taught me the trick to get him to giggle. He picks up on things pretty well too - when I show him raspberries (tongue vibrating - watch the video) he actually will imitate me. In this video he simply responded really cute :) He is also sitting up by himself! We stll put pillows around him, just in case, but he rarely needs them anymore!

We love that he still has bright blue eyes. I call him "bright eyes" and have since he was born. We are hoping they stay. His eyes remind me of my little brother's eyes. He has brilliant blue eyes. Ezzie also is getting blonder hair, and Jonathan had blond hair - so, who knows, maybe he is getting the recessive gene from my side, and Jonathan is the one he links to. He is such a joy. We hope you enjoy some of these pics, and these videos!