Long, overdue update

Oh boy is Brent's life story out of date! The holidays kept us very busy and now that Brent is more active, I have less time during the day to narrate his life. Let me catch up:

He is very good at sitting up these days. Ryan and I think he will be crawling very soon, he likes to be on his belly and prop himself up on his arms or knees but so far not at the same time. His last doctors appointment was on 12/18/12 and weighed 19 lbs 4 oz. He is also a very happy and vocal baby. He is "talking" quite a bit but no discernible words yet. His nighttime sleep is hit or miss. He takes 2 naps during the day and on a good night sleeps 8:30 - 7. We have made some progress in getting him to sleep in his crib instead of the swing but we usually take the swing where ever we go. He really likes playing with his toys. I can usually leave him to play by himself for about 20 minutes and he stays happy. Currently his favorites are anything that make noise, like plastic cups he can bang together, the activity table, the jumper, and anything that can go in his mouth. He loves Bowzer and Olive. Bowzer is ok with him pulling on his ears and lips, although we watch them carefully together. Olive doesn't stick around long enough for Brent to touch her much but he occasionally gets fists full of fur and she doesn't seem to mind. He also really enjoys going for walks in the stroller.

One of the biggest changes for us is that I started back to work last week. I'm on a reduced schedule, three days a week. So far I've worked from home so it's been a fairly easy transition. My parents are on Brent duty on Mondays and we have a nanny, Ester, for Tuesday and Thursday. Ester seems to be wonderful and makes me feel comfortable leaving him behind. Of course Grandma and Grandpa will be perfect and I don't for a second about him.

Here is what we've been up to since November:

1. November Birthdays - Brent attended his very first November Birthday party and had so much fun playing with his friends Cooper, Carter, Jackson, and of course, his favorite cousin Dylan. It was so fun to have the little boys together and reconnect with their parents. Somehow we managed to get all of the boys down to bed and had a fantastic dinner & evening.

 

2. Thanksgiving - After we all (Ryan, Bowzer, Olive, Brent and I) ran a 5K Thanksgiving day morning, we were joined by our relatives from Wisconsin for turkey day. Brent and I went with Ashley, Sawyer, and Wyatt to the Children's Discovery Museum on Friday, then drove to the ranch that afternoon, spent Saturday and Sunday at the ranch, celebrated Sawyer's 5th birthday, and then went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium on Monday. Phew! We had fantastic weather, it was in the 70s on Saturday. I'm looking forward to taking Brent back to the aquarium when he's older. He already really liked the fish.

3. First solids - Brent has started eating solids. His first meal was applesauce. He wasn't a fan initially but he's enjoying food more and more. In addition to applesauce he has tried, oatmeal cereal, bananas, pears, and mango. Plus, Grandpa gave him a pork rib at the ranch after Christmas. Not my idea of baby food but he did really like it. Next up is sweet potato and carrots.

4. Christmas - The holidays were so much more fun this year with Brent. He loved looking at all of the decorations and even was pretty good at opening gifts (he had a lot of practice). We spent Christmas Eve at Nana and Pop Pop's, Christmas day at Grandma and Grandpa's, and Christmas night at our house. Santa was sure busy for Brent.

5. The Ranch - After Christmas, we went to the ranch. Parnell, Will, and Breck came to visit and then Justin, Adriana, Dylan, Rich & Deb. I think Brent enjoyed seeing how the big kids play!

We're looking forward to what 2013 will bring!