Blazing Saddles!

Today we went to my friend Becky's house/farm in Sherwood so that my niece, Miranda, could go horseback riding. For the past few years, I've taken her horseback riding at Becky's & then we have a sleepover at our house. This time Cowboy Hank got to ride along. Miranda had a great time riding Dan, and Becky says that she's "a natural." After Miranda was done riding, we put Henry up on the horse with her and they did a little riding together. At first he wasn't so sure about being up there, but after a few minutes, he seemed to enjoy it. He LOVED sitting on the tractor even more. He looked so cute in his little cowboy boots and his HOWDY shirt. Hopefully we can continue the summer riding tradition. If Henry ends up not liking horses, he can always play on the tractor.

Henry "driving" the tractor....











Miranda & Henry sitting on Dan....











The cousins enjoying a little ride in the arena....











Here's a short video of the riding experience....

Halloween in August?

I know it's a little early, but I've already bought Henry a Halloween costume. I was at Babies "R" Us browsing through their adorable costumes, and planning on buying one closer to Halloween, when the saleswoman informed me that if I wanted a good one, I'd better buy it early. She said that some parents wait until the last minute to buy the costumes and then they're disappointed with the poor selection or can't find their kids' sizes. Well, not me! I couldn't let that happen! Henry will NOT have an uncool costume like a clown (hate them) or a vampire (boring...snore, snore) because I wasn't on the ball enough to buy a Halloween costume in August. I had a hard time deciding between the dragon, horse, or lion (all very cool choices), but I finally decided on the dragon. I think. They have a 90 day return policy, so I can still change my mind. Here's a sneak peek. What do YOU think? Scary? Funny? Cool?

It's o.k....Henry's secure in his masculinity.

I bought Henry a doll. I know that traditionally boys play with G.I. Joes or Stretch Armstrongs, and NOT baby dolls. I don't care. Henry needed a doll. Originally the doll was dressed in a frilly pink outfit, but I bought him/her a gender neutral outfit and named it Chris...or maybe Pat. I thought it would be nice for Henry to have a baby to hug and kiss and hold. I thought a doll might help him to grow up well-balanced and in touch with his loving, nurturing side. So far, all he wants to do is poke him/her in the eyeballs. I captured the following video of Henry and Chris/Pat in a rare moment of non-eye-poking sweetness.

Future Rock Star

Just because Henry doesn't go to school, it doesn't mean he can't get new school clothes, right? I saw this absolutely adorable outfit at Baby Gap and I happened to have a Gap giftcard burning a whole in my pocket (thanks Mom), so Henry had to have it. It even has matching socks that say "I love Rock." Having a baby isn't good for the shopaholic tendencies. I thought I was safe with a boy. I thought my choices would be should I get that t-shirt in navy blue or light blue? I was wrong. There are a lot of super cute boy clothes out there. MUST CONTROL SELF.... At least I've stopped buying clothes for Rocco & Stella. Yes, they have outfits and even pajamas. It's a sickness. I know.

A couple more pictures from the Future Rock Star photo shoot:

The Coy Rocker


The Pensive Rocker


The Party Animal Rocker


The Typical Rocker Tantrum


The Rocker Socks

Henry & Daddy

I know Jeff had some worries about fatherhood before Henry was born, but I was convinced he would be a great dad. During my pregnancy Jeff asked questions such as "what if I don't love him?" or "what if I'm not a good father?" I never worried about that because I'd seen Jeff playing with my neices and nephews or joking around with the kids in my class and I also knew first-hand the kind of love Jeff is capable of giving. Now, seeing Jeff with our son, I am still blown away by how much he loves him. Jeff cuddles Henry, kisses him, tickles him, and professes his love for him all the time. Jeff likes to say "You're my son...my sun, my moon and my stars." That gets me every time. Even though I knew I loved Jeff, and I knew Jeff would love Henry, I didn't know how much I would love Jeff loving Henry.

Here are some pictures of my two favorite guys:

Proud Papa at the hospital....











Rocking Henry to sleep....















Daddy with all of his "kids"....











Laughing together....











Bath time....















The Boys in Fall River over Spring Break....











Daddy can't get enough Henry kisses....















Watching the polar bear at the zoo....

Simple Pleasures

It's amazing what a 9 1/2 month old thinks is fun or funny or amazing. Yesterday Henry was absolutely delighted with the doggy door. He kept batting at it and laughing hysterically. He laughed even harder when one of the dogs used the door.















He had lots of fun playing in the curtains next to the doggy door, and he also discovered the amazing wonders of the heating vent. (Sidenote: After Henry demonstrated his love of the doggy door, it was thoroughly cleaned for future fun. Please ignore the extreme dirt.)

Here is a video clip of Henry and the HILARIOUS doggy door (46 seconds)...



Here's one of Henry playing with the super-fun curtains (40 seconds)...




Wouldn't it be wonderful to be so easily thrilled and entertained?

Let's try something new....

Have you ever heard of You Tube? It's a website where you can upload videos and then other people can go there to view them. Let's try it out!

The first video is of Henry crawling. He just learned last week, but is getting faster & better already. This video is about 2 1/2 minutes long, and was taken on July 29.



This next 30 second video from July 31 shows how quickly the moods of Henry can change!


Let me know if you are able to view the videos. I hope it works!