Laughing Little Boy

Here is a video from last night. Doesn't look like John would be afraid of "The Hair." (Ro, remember that?) Ha ha!

April 19

JohnJohn has met yet another developmental milestone: he is able to pull himself up on furniture/toys regularly, and has begun "cruising." He had pulled himself up some during my spring break, but over the past week he really focused on doing it, and now has it down pat. He also seems to have grown a ton- he is so tall now!

We haven't weighed John recently, but I would say he is over 20 pounds now- at least my back and arms feel that he is. He still doesn't look fat, though, probably because he is so tall.

John finally has teeth coming in on the top- the two front teeth have started breaking through his gums. I know he'll be happy when they are fully in.

We had a good time in Columbia for the Spring game. JohnJohn really enjoyed all the attention from his cousins and aunt, and he loved watching all the people at the game. Carolyn and I stayed with John until after halftime, leaving sometime during the third quarter. SB and her boyfriend stayed a little longer, and Bill and James stayed until the end. It was very pretty and sunny, with a nice breeze. We had thought we were going to be in the sun, but fortunately the rich people seats were open, and we were in the comfort of individual seats with seatbacks, and a nice shady cover. That's probably why Carolyn and I stayed as long as we did.

That's all for this post. Today's pictures: from Columbia: Eating breakfast like a big boy; pregame napping; tailgating; at the game, everyone got in a picture except the primary picture taker- I am in only part of one! After the game- being silly; Sunday morning playing and napping; at home standing up!

Almost 11 months old!

JohnJohn is almost 11 months old and doing really well! He has really taken off as a crawler, and loves to be chased, especially if we're crawling also. He loves to crawl everywhere, his favorite places being the hall upstairs, where he can crawl into all the bedrooms, around the coffee table and the recliner in the family room, and from the family room down the front hall, through the dining room and into the kitchen. He's so smart, it didn't take him long to realize he could get to the kitchen that way, since there is a big, long baby gate blocking the open doorway from the family room into the kitchen.

JohnJohn is now working really hard at getting into a standing position on his own. If one of us is sitting on the floor with him, JohnJohn will crawl over and pull up on us, no problem. When he crawls to furniture, toys, or us if we're on the couch/chair, he'll get onto his knees (his now favorite way to play with some toys) and try to pull up, getting one leg or the other into the standing position but not able to or too timid to pull up with both legs standing. However, last night he did pull up on one of his toys by himself, to many cheers from Mommy and Daddy, so it won't be long before he's all the way up on his own! (And as I am updating this, the little man just crawled to the couch and pulled himself up without help!)

Our little monkey still has only 2 teeth, on the bottom, but I am sure more teeth are imminent. His drooling has really picked up again, so it shouldn't be long before more make an appearance. John loves to give kisses, which are sweet but very messy since they are wide-open mouth kisses.

Nana came to visit a couple of weekends ago. John really enjoyed having his Nana around for the weekend. He gave her lots of hugs and kisses, and really loved trying to pull her glasses off when she was wearing them. Unfortunately, all the pictures taken were with Nan's camera, so no new pictures to post.

This week is my spring break and we're just relaxing at home- I really am enjoying getting to spend day time with John! This Saturday is the Gamecock football Spring Game in Columbia, and we are aiming to go. It will be JohnJohn's first trip to Columbia, and his first Carolina football game. I think we're planning on taking two cars to the game so Nanny Sarabeth and I can leave with JohnJohn after a while, and Bill and James can stay for the whole thing. Hopefully the weather will cooperate! I want to go early, before the game, so we can get JohnJohn's picture with Cocky and maybe a football player or too (but mostly Cocky).

Pictures: John up on his knees,playing with a toy; at our neighborhood playground on a pretty day; being cute; sitting with Mommy; listening to Daddy read his favorite story; with his hair looking redder than it really is; and hugging a teddy bear when asleep

Video: more crawling!