Happy Halloween

Henry's costume was a perfect fit this year. He just learned how to bark like a dog, and it makes me laugh every time because he bounces his whole body with each bark. He actually loves his costume and gets really excited every time we pull it out. Here are just a few of our favorite pictures that Grandpa took of him today.

What a Difference a Year Makes

On August 3rd we celebrated Henry's 1st Birthday. We had just barely moved into our new house the previous week and things were still in a state of chaos. But with a lot of help from my Mom, we were able to pull off a birthday party. Here are a few photos of the big day.

A monkey cake for our little monkey.

We decorated drums then drummed along with Henry's favorite book Hand, Hand, Fingers Thumb.

We gave Henry's stuffed monkey a ride on top of the parachute.

Then let Henry and all the other monkeys take a turn running under the parachute.

He did well with the present that was not wrapped but was a little unsure of what to do with the wrapped ones. He may have been a little overwhelmed by his large audience because he normally loves to rip paper.

Cake Time. To our surprise, he was a little reluctant to dig into the cake. You should see him work over a bowl of ravioli's, what a mess!

He did eventually warm up a bit.

Hey look, an airplane.

Trying out his new car.

He was one exhausted little birthday boy by the end of the day.

Thanks to everyone for joining us and making it such a memorable and special occasion.

First Steps

For the last month or so Henry has been playing with the idea of walking. In typical Henry style, he would usually try to walk away from us at full speed instead of to the parent with outstretched arms. Although he has taken several steps in the past, he never had much control at such turbo speeds and we never were able to capture it on video. After his surprise grand entrance into the kitchen this morning( walking all the way from the living room and around the corner into the kitchen), I decided we could finally say Henry is officially walking! He is so fast it is still hard to capture him on video but I did manage to get this little clip. I might have to post a better one when I get it.

H.C.

After checking the mail box twice a day for the last week, today was my lucky day. The CD of Henry's pictures from his photo shoot from Peekaboo photo finally arrived. Here are some of my favorites. You can view all of the photos online, so grandparents let me know if you are interested and I will give you the code.

Come and Meet the Animals on the Farm

Henry got his first look at the real live farm animals he had previously only read about in his farm books. There were plenty of baby animals to see which made are trip especially fun. We liked it so much, I am embarrassed to say we visited 4 times in one week. It might have been a little over kill, I started worrying that he was going to have nightmares about cows or something. I just wanted to ensure that my 9 month old learned his animal sounds. Ha Ha. Here are a few pictures from our trip with Dad, Grandma and Grandpa.

The Perfect Gift

To be the recipient of Mother's Day is a new concept for me as this was my first Mother's Day as a Mom. I must say that I am a fan. I felt honored to have been given the title of Mother. These last nine months, or Henry I should say, has taught me much about what it means to be a mother. Of all the things I could do or be in this life, I feel that nothing could ever be as challenging, as important or as rewarding as the role of a mother. I am humbled by how much I still have to learn and am in awe of the mother's who have gone before me, in particular my own mother. I often think how did they do it and make it look so easy? One thing is certain, I have never felt anything before like the love I have for me chubby cheeked, big grinned little Henry. I am so grateful to have been given this amazing gift.

To top it off, Chris gave me a photo shoot with Peekaboo Photos, something I have always wanted to do. We had so much fun and Henry was a trooper. The above photo is just a sneak peak. We should be getting the rest of the photos in about two weeks. I am sure this proud Mom will post a million more photos when they come. Happy Mother's Day!

And He's Off

How does this happen so fast? It feels like my little baby has become a toddler over night. It is so entertaining to watch him go. Take a look at the following video clips.