Beatin' the heat

It has been incredibly hot here during the days.  So in order to beat the 100 degree plus weather we have every day, I went and bought Harper a little pool to play in and some new toys.  Then we had to wait for the weekend to get here.

On Saturday while Dustin helped his dad haul hay, we went to Kerrville.  There we met Nannie and went grocery shopping where Harper had his first official shopping cart ride.  He did great until I picked up my last item then he decided he was tired of sitting there.  Thank goodness for baggers at HEB to help me unload the basket, bag our stuff, and unload things into the truck. 

Harper's First grocery cart experience

After getting back to Nannie's house and helping her cook food for Papa to take with him to work this week, we decided to hit the pool.  We set the pool up on the deck and dumped in the toys.  Harper absolutley loved playing in the pool and splashing around.  He stayed out there for about 45 minutes enjoying the warm afternoon and the shade on the deck.  And yes, he went naked because no one can see you up on the hill!  I thought he was so cute!!

Harper's Scooby Doo pool an new toys!

And here are just a few pictures from that morning. He was such a good boy playing around the house and then took a great nap in his crib. He looked so cute so I had to snap a few shots. 

Hi everyone!!

Napping...I love how cute it is when he sucks his thumb!

Time for some fruit!

This week we have started adding a little fruit to our milk diet.  Let's just say the first couple of times, Harper was not ready nor receptive to the idea.  But we have persisted and tried a little bit every day.  Last night he finally figured it out and decided he likes fruit! We had been doing apples for 5 days and he finished off a container of that so we threw in a little peaches too yesterday.  He did fabulous with it!  Now we hope it helps his tummy and we can gradually add a little cereal too.

Here is Harper this last weekend at Nannie's house trying it out...obviously still not receptive to the idea of eating from a spoon!

And finally here he is on his successful attempt at eating last night!

Our other fun this week has been working on a little sleep training.  Harper had a few issues with his tummy that kept him up for a few nights straight.  That quickly became a habit for the next week and now we are having to break that as well as transition him from his little sleeper to his playpen (Mommy's still not ready to put him in his room).  Since he will not sleep on his back, we are letting him tummy sleep which is not always great but he can roll and has great control of his neck so I don't worry as much.  Two nights down and things are already getting easier.  I'm hoping by the end of the week things are back on track!

Beach pictures...2 months old but as promised

Here are some of the beach pictures that I had said I would post and after seeing how cute my little one was, I just had to share some.  Needless to say, since he was just two months old, we didn't go out too much.  One excursion to the pool and one to the beach, plus once out for dinner.  Not much but it wasn't bad for his first trip to the beach at that age!  Below are some of my favorite pictures!

Mommy and Daddy with Harper in his first pool adventure!

Sleeping at the pool the next afternoon- so peaceful!

Harper's first time in the ocean at Port Aransas!

Mommy and Harper enjoying the ocean and sunshine

Nannie and Papa spoiling Harper and loving on him at the beach

In the condo at the beach talking to his Daddy and playing on the floor

Naps, Rolling, Shots, and No Sleep...Oh My!

Well this week has definitely been interesting in the Kothe household.  This weekend we transitioned to putting ourself to sleep for naps in our playpen and/or crib.  It really isn't as bad as I thought it would be since Ms. Linda has been making him do that at her house for a little over a week.  Sometimes I still want to run in, pick him up, and walk with him, but I'm learning how much more I can get done with him laying down doing it on his own!

Monday, Harper decided he could really roll by himself.  He only did it once or twice but you could tell he was excited.  Then by Tuesday he decided he was an expert and now that's all we do.  I lay him down on his mat in the living room on his back and he rolls to his tummy, to his back, to his tummy, to his back just constantly.  He really likes not being sedentary.  Now he just really wants to crawl.  The few stops he makes on his tummy, those legs get pulled underneath him, butt in the air and he really tries.  Look out world when he finally decides he can crawl!! 

Yesterday we had his four month check up (about a week late due to changing insurance from Dustin's new job).  Which as everyone knows....means more shots for my baby boy.  Amazingly enough, he did pretty good- definitely a few minutes of crying and screaming (can you say German attitude?!?! which I completely play on his daddy :) ) but all in all he did great yesterday.  He is now 16 pounds, 10 ounces and is 25 3/4 inches.  Apparently this month was his weight gain so I look for a height increase next month.  But running at 75th percentile in height and almost 90 in weight...I think I have a big boy on my hands!  We had to ask the doctor about his little tummy because we haven't had regular bowel movements the last two weeks (and before becoming a parent, I never thought talking about pooping schedules would be a normal thing- but we are definitely learning!).  So our solution is to start him on a little bit of fruit tomorrow.  I was planning on waiting until at least 5 months to add solids but if it makes his life better than that's what we will try! 

And the worst part of the week has been our sleeping patterns...or should I say lack thereof.  Poor baby isn't sleeping well and we are back to up every 2-3 hours, crying and screaming.  Not sure if it's the tummy, teeth, or something else, so we just keep an eye on it and Mommy is learning to go back and adjust to no sleep (but this time having to get up for work instead of staying home all day).  Hopefully we will get that all regulated soon- I hate that he doesn't get good sleep at night!

4 Months Old!

On Sunday, August 1st, Harper turned 4 months old.  It still feels like just yesterday that I held him for the first time!  He is growing so fast and I just can't believe it.  We go to the doctor Wednesday for his checkup and shots so I'll know just how much he has grown then. 

His milestones at this point: he has rolled over a couple of times unassisted; is very close to sitting up on his own (he can sit there just barely assisted by hands and for about 30 seconds unassisted); I think he is starting to teethe because he gnaws on everything rather than suck on it and drools constantly; for the most part we sleep through the night maybe waking up once but sleeping very good!

After having such a great time on Saturday at the ranch and with such beautiful weather, we decided to venture back out there for Harper's 4 month old celebration with me, Daddy, and Kendall.  Below are some pictures of us all playing in the creek, riding the mule, and hanging out.  We had such a good time!