Six Months!

Hard to believe it, but Charlie is half of one year.  Oh my goodness, how times flies!  The Brian residence has been particularly chaotic lately, what with Mommy starting a new job, Beau's second brithday party planning, Halloween, and other Fall festivities in general.  So, I'll keep it brief.  At six months, here is what Charlie is up to...

*  Saying his first word - Da Da.  No surprise there.  It was Beau's first word too.  His second was Paw Paw, then Maw Maw.  Somewhere down the road it was eat - still a popular one.  Then a year later - Mommy.  So, let's just say I'm not banking on Charlie calling out for me any time soon.

*  Sitting up unassisted.  Sure, he still topples over when he gets over-ambitious and tries to grab that toy just out of his reach.  But for the most part, he has mastered this skill.

*  Eating.  Lord, this child might like to eat more than his brother.  Thank God this new job pays well.  We're going to need that extra dough when the boys are older. 

*  Blue eyes - I think they're here to stay.  While Beau's eye color was not set until around nine months, it started to change/darken around five months.  If we can use that as any indicator, Charlie is going to have big, bright, blue eyes.  (The butcher actually remembers me, BECAUSE of Charlie's big blue eyes.  He told me just tonight how they are some of the most beautiful eyes he's ever seen.  I agree.) 

*  Playing with Beau.  Or maybe I should say wrestling with Beau.  Charlie might be the baby brother, but he is already starting to hold his own.  Just the other day I was in the kitchen when I heard the boys screaming.  I told Billy to go in and tell Beau to leave his brother alone.  Laughing, he told me I needed to see this.  When I turned the corner, there was Beau, on his knees whimpering, while Charlie had a firm grasp of his hair in each fist.  Atta boy. 

Our Little Guy is Two!

He loved his cake.  He asked for more for breakfast...and dinner...and his after dinner snack...





Say what?!

"Mommy, I want a horsie."

Yes, we're still stuck on that one.

"Mommy, Paw Paw stinks." 

I'm not sure why he insists that Paw Paw stinks.  I'm pretty sure I haven't notice any wretched odors emitting from Paw Paw any time in the recent past. 

"Honey, don't cry." 

Charlie sometimes gets fussy on the way to school in the morning.  Beau likes to try and help calm him down. 

Bath Time!!

Mommy's Project 52:11 Rewarding

You know what is rewarding?  Starting a new job after a long hard search.  It's especially rewarding when you actually like the new job and you feel like you are putting your talents to good use.  Unfortunately, sometimes said new rewarding job does not allow time to properly fufill blogging duties. Hmmm..I'll just have to figure out a way to fit all this in. 

Mommy's Project 52:10 Cleaning

Mommy, you're embarrasing me. 

Billy would laugh if he saw the topic of this week's blogging project.  You see, I am not, nor have I ever claimed to be much of a housekeeper.  I keep things clean enough...clean enough to keep away ants or other undesirables.  In other words, I'm not a dirty person, but I'm not a tidy person, relatively speaking. 

Beau on the other hand loves to clean.  THIS obviously was not a trait acquired from me.  While we affectionately refer to him as Hurricane Beau for his ability to destroy a room in no time flat, he often puts away his toys - without prompting from Billy or me. 

He also likes to organize.  He has on more than one occasion dumped out the contents of Charlie's diaper basket only to make neat stacks of the diapers, identifiable by the character on the front of the diaper.  "Elmo, Mommy."  "Nernie, Mommy."  "Cookie Onster, Mommy.  Nom, nom, nom, nom."  (So he doesn't quite have all the names down pat.) 

And, if you'll recall the last time he took a crayon to the back door, he delighted in having to clean up his mess.  Seriously, how do I punish the kid past a good time out if he is enjoying himself! 

So, although I am likely a foregone cause, there is hope for Beau.  And that makes Billy very, very happy.  (Of course, he's just waiting for Beau to put his skills to use outdoors.  All in good time, Billy.  I don't think he can handle the gas blower just yet...) 

Mommy, I want a horsie...

Beau has been obessed with animals lately.  It's gotten to the point where he mumbles under his breath, "The cow says, 'Mooo.' The sheep says, 'Baaa.'  The rooster says, 'Doodle.'"  And good Lord, if he asks me for a horse one more time...  So last Friday evening we decided to load up the kiddos and meet Maw Maw and Paw Paw at the fair.  We knew Beau would love seeing the animals again and we figured we'd try out some of the rides. 

I'm not sure if it was because he didn't nap well or was just in a sour mood, but Beau was not as big a fan of the animals as last year.  Or, maybe this whole scene was just so passe'?

Charlie wasn't very interested in the animals either.  Luckily, he's pretty easy to entertain. 

After the livestock, we headed for the rides.  I'm not sure what to think about Beau's experience on the carousel.  This was his expression for each go round. 

Spending time with Maw Maw was just as exciting as any old ride for Charlie. 

After the carousel we weren't really sure what to do when he asked to ride the kiddie roller coaster but...he LOVED it.  Seriously, he was the smallest kid on there by far, but he surely had the most fun.  He asked to ride it again and again and again. 

So what if Charlie couldn't really participate.  He enjoyed the beautiful weather. 

Mmmmm....nom, nom, nom

Fresh delicious pears

About a month or so ago, we started introducing Charlie to solid foods.  I don't know why, but I have been looking forward to this so much!  So, when we got the greenlight from his pediatrician at his four month well check, I got busy. 

From the market, to the pot...

To the freezer...

I just had so much fun making Beau's baby food - introducing him to new flavors and making sure I knew exactly what was going into that adorable little belly. 

"Seriously, THIS is what I've been waiting for?"

First up was rice cereal.  All I have to say about rice cereal is, "Boooo!"  So boring. Yes, I realize it is necessary and yes, I realize that it is an excellent source of iron.  But seriously, have you tasted this stuff?  It tastes like, well, nothing.  But off we went. 

"Maybe it's not THAT bad."

After a week or so of success in the rice cereal department we moved on to bigger and better things...namely, sweet potatoes.  Apparently the Brian boys, Billy included, really have a thing for sweet potatoes because they are an instant hit in this house. 





"What is this?  This doesn't look like white mush."



"Oh My God!  You've been holding out on me!"

"More, more, more, more..."

Since the introduction of sweet potatoes we've tried several items, most of which he has liked.  In fact, there are only two items he did not like - butternut squash and avocado - the latter actually induced dry-heaving.  Sheesh.  His favorites have been sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes mixed with bananas, peas (yes, peas), carrots, and as of last night, apples and blueberries mixed. 

And, I thought I'd take on another small project in this department.  I collect glass jars - no, not the pretty antique types - the types they sell pickles and pesto in.  It's a problem.  Apparently though, I'm not alone. 

I had about a dozen small jars from marinated artichoke hearts from our favorite salad.  Taking a cue from a friend's blog I cleaned the jars, removed any labels from the jars and lids and then spray painted the lids with chalkboard paint.   

Three layers of paint and 24 hours later - voila!  Adorable reusable baby food jars.  The only *problem* with these is they store a little too much food.  I've had to instruct day care NOT to feed Charlie the entire content of the jars (like they accidentally tried to do the first time...)   But they are just the cutest and so practical!  I love them! 

* ps - the title of this post is actually my impression of Beau's impression of Cookie Monster.  I'll have to get video on that soon. 

Say what?!

Beau:  "Mommy, I want a puppy." (As he points to a muffin.)

Mommy:  "You mean you want a muffin?"

Beau:  "Yes, Mommy, a puppy."

Mommy:  "No, Beau.  A muffin."

Beau:  "Puppy."

Mommy:  "Beau, say, 'mu.'"

Beau:  "Mu."

Mommy:  "Say, 'fin.""

Beau:  "Fin."

Mommy:  "Muffin."

Beau:  "Puppy."

Mommy:  "Here, enjoy your puppy."

Something got lost in translation there.