Hand- Me- Downs and a New Shirt

Isn't this shirt the cutest? A local gal made this for him to wear on the 4th. She does great work and I can't wait to order more stuff. I love anything with his name on it! He is one tired baby!

We have been so blessed by getting hand- me-downs. My neighbor brought another load of clothes and toys today. Look at this stash! This is just stuff that is not his current size. There is even more in the closet .

Hudson was unimpressed by the clothes, but loves the toys. I should have saved them and introduced them one by one, but we just couldn't wait to start playing.

He's a prodigy- already playing the piano! As a matter of fact, he rolled on his tummy and hit a few keys with his toes- now that's talent!

New Faces

Hudson is very expressive and has a lot of new faces he's making. This one is when he's so excited about a bite of food coming his way. What a porker!
This didn't show up very well. It's so hard to capture a fleeting expression, especially with the digital delay. This was a pursed- lip squinty look that says "I don't want my diaper changed!"

This is just one of the sweet faces I am blessed to see every day. Hands in mouth as always!

Crawling Soon

It won't be long! Hudson is up on all fours rocking back and forth. Sometimes he'll get his hand lifted, but doesn't seem to know what to do next. He is able to get where he wants by rolling and wiggling. Usually he goes backwards. I hope that when he does start crawling, it's on a day when I'm home with him. I don't want to miss it!

Battle of wills

We won! Jimmy and I have finally won out against our strong- willed child. A little background: The past 4 nights, Hudson has been waking up by midnight and will NOT go back to sleep. We have given him bottles (Which we stopped doing during the night over a MONTH ago!) We have rocked him, swaddled him, everything we could think of. If we did get him to sleep, his eyes would pop open the second we laid him down and we would start all over again. Mysteriously, if we laid him in our bed, he would rest peacefully. I even let him sleep for 30 min in our bed, then took him up to his crib and he immediately awoke. He has like this sixth sense or something. Problem is, we don't want him in OUR bed. It's only a queen, not to mention I'm paranoid about rolling over on him. So last night, Jimmy gets up with him and this whole think rocks on for an hour or more. Finally Jimmy comes downstairs minus baby and says he's through. He can't think of anything else to do. Let's try the cry it out approach. Well, this has never worked before, but we were at our wits' end. I watch him in the monitor and he's doing some serious gymnastic moves up there. He ends up untying the bumper pad and chewing on the strings. Major choking hazard, right? This goes on for about 30 minutes, and just when we're plotting strategy, we realize it's gotten quiet. He was ASLEEP! Miracles do happen! Score one for mom and dad!

Chattanooga

Yesterday, Hudson and I went with my dad and Grandad to Chattanooga. We have family there that I love to go see. Since it was a work day, we only got to spend time with the retirees. It has been a long time since my grandad has had to deal with a crying baby, so I was a bit apprehensive about the trip, but Hudson was on his best behavior. We got there about 10:00 and the guys got to work on doing some projects for my great-aunt Bernice. She is one of my very favorite people and I swear that's where I got my crafty genes! I was so glad that Hudson got to spend some time with her since she has not been well lately. Dad's cousin Gary and his wife Brenda were also there, and my great- aunt Caroline and her husband, Jim, came over later for lunch. I was so glad that Hudson was not in a fussy mood, because he never quite got a nap out all day. My aunt's house is filled with breakables on every surface, but we made it out without breaking anything!

Hudson with his Papa Bob

Hudson with Pop Pop (my grandad)

Grandad hates having his picture taken so I got this one on the sly. Somehow, I didn't get pics with Hudson and my other relatives- too busy keeping him out of stuff I guess!

Miracle of Life

When you have time to think about it, you realize your baby is really a miracle. We wanted a baby for so long and were overjoyed when we conceived. Now, I am continually amazed that he continues to grow and develop into this fabulous little person. God's plan for our lives is so awesome! Starting from the first minute, so many different factors are in His hands. It truly is a miracle that everything comes together for babies to survive, much less have such different personalities and characteristics. I am in awe that God, Jimmy, and I have produced such a perfect baby.

Playtime

This is what Hudson did with his pallet today. I was working on the other side of the room and he was carrying on a dialogue with himself. When I glanced over, he had cocooned himself in his blanket that he was playing on. All his toys are rolled up inside!

Fathers Day Continued

Last night we went over to Jimmy's parents to see his dad. We took supper and basically just hung out. I had gotten David a 3 generations picture frame, so we tried to get a good shot to put in it.

I think these two turned out the best!

We are so crazy about our Hudson!

Who wouldn't love this face?

First Fathers Day

Lots of pictures today, but after all it's an awesome day! There were times in the past years that I wondered if Jimmy would ever get to experience a Fathers Day for himself. one of the reasons I wanted a baby so badly is that I knew what a great daddy Jimmy would be- and he is!

Crazy busy day yesterday! Hudson and I went to see Pop Pop and Grandpa while Jimmy and his dad did some work around our house. I wanted to make sure everyone got adequate, equal time and we didn't have this mad rush from stop to stop like we usually do. It was a great day, but unfortunately it's not captured on film because I forgot my camera! Hudson entertained Pop Pop and was on his best behavior for about and hour and we had a really great visit. on the way to Grandpa's (1 mile) he fell asleep and I couldn't wake him! As I was getting ready to go, he woke up in a sweet mood, so David and Grandpa got to see him in action. Last night, we all went to Amberly's for cake with my mom and dad. They adore Hudson! They got Jimmy a gift for being a great son-in-law.
This is what Jimmy woke up to this morning. (The toast is cinnamon, not burnt!) He's not as into holidays as I am, but I have the do unto others mindset.

Hudson always looks up to his dad! What a sweet smile for daddy!

We don't have very many family pictures, so I had a friend snap this at church. I'm not looking so photogenic today, but it's not about me, is it? Hudson's Sunday school teachers traced his hand and made a cute card.

Me, Hudson and my dad (Papa Bob)

We went to the country club for lunch, and when we got home, Jimmy and I were ready for a nap. Unfortunately, no one told Hudson about this plan! He was so sweet and playful, Here's a couple of pics of him giving daddy all his smooches.

Messy Eater

You know it was a good meal when you are wearing most of it! I have been really pleased with the quality of food that I'm giving Hudson. I started making his food as soon as we established that there were no food allergies using the jar stuff. Don't get me wrong, I'm not like crazy holistic and think the pre-made stuff will hurt him, I just love to cook and felt like this was a better quality option for us. Tonight was a mix of sweet potato, carrot, and parsnip. I must admit I didn't really know what a parsnip was prior to buying some to make this combo. It looks like a white carrot. I didn't eat it on it's own, but this veggie mix is quite tasty! I have tried everything I've made, and they've so far been very good. I am hoping to introduce cauliflower later this week. Hudson is a great eater, which I'm thankful for. I can count on one hand the times he's not finished his supper. When we upped his food intake at 6 months he was the happiest kid ever!

Mr. Independant

At Hudson's age, stages come and go weekly, if not more quickly. Lately he has switched from crying when I get out of his sight to wanting to do everything for himself. He does OK with his bottle when laying down, but sitting up he can't quite manage it. This pic shows his problem solving skills. If he can't tilt it up to his mouth, he'll lean down to it!












He also thinks that he can feed himself and "help" me change his diaper. That consists of corkscrewing around so that he's bottoms up. He's always been really good about letting me change his clothes, but lately that's reversed too. He fusses every time I lay him down to change his outfit and tries to fight things getting pulled over his head. It's like wrestling and octopus! It seems like every day he gets more fun to be around. Tons of personality for our little man!

Wordless Wednesday

My two favorite fellas

Water Bug

I'm so glad that Hudson likes the water! We've been to the pool 5 or 6 times now and he has enjoyed all but the first trip. It was Memorial Day, and I think the water just wasn't warm enough yet. The second time we went was with Mom's Club. It was the most peaceful 3 hours of his life! I guess the water relaxed him and he was content just to float around and watch all the big kids play. The prep time is awful, though!



I am a freak about sunscreen (which he hates!) and then we have the swimmy diaper, hat, and sunblock swim shirt. I've quit doing the sandals because it's cute but frankly a waste of time. He hasn't warmed up to the sprinklers yet- a little too much action I think! The kiddie pool is too cold, but he likes the noise of the rushing water from the mushroom.


Hudson was content to just ride around in his float, but lately he's been getting more adventurous. He wants to be held and bounced in the water. Last week I got brave and was even tossing him and letting him splash down into the water up to his waist. As uncoordinated as I am, that was taking a big risk! At least he's somewhat buoyant in that huge diaper.






Last weekend, Nana, Grandaddy, Aunt Kelly, Hunter, Blake, Jimmy's cousin Matt, and Aunt Delores and Hudson's cousins Olivia and Annabell came over to swim. It was nice having the extra help!. We went in the morning but it was already hot. I wish I'd had a swim shirt on Hudson, but he seems to tan well and not burn.





Aunt Kelly is so fun! She always plays with Hudson. I guess she has a lot of practice with boys! As the day wound to an end, all the kids were exhausted, but wanted to keep playing. The older ones had turned into little daredevils and had shed their floats and were going down the slide.

Here's all the kids after a hard day's swimming. We never got everybody to look in the same direction at the same time for a picture. Hunter is really good about taking care of Hudson and looking after him. Kelly's boys had such a good time they came back and swam with us again later.

Dear Diary

Dear Diary..... Every time I start typing I have this deja vu thing back to writing in a diary as a kid! Anyway- What is it about having a baby that takes normal people and turns them into blathering idiots about their kid? I consider myself a pragmatic person- very down- to- earth. I'm not warm and fuzzy, I don't like to hug, I'm not "Sweet." Since Hudson has been born, Jimmy and I are both totally, stupid crazy in love with this child. I kiss him probably 50 times a day, and Jimmy's worse than I am. We act like we are the first people to ever achieve having a baby. And he's not just any baby. No, he's the smartest, most advanced, handsome baby ever born. We KNOW that he is going to be the very best at something when he grows up! Things that we would never have mentioned in polite company before, now we brag about. Things like bodily noises and/ or fluids. And while we're on that subject, if they brought one of those CSI blacklight things to our house, it would probably light up the entire block! We have had some serious messes! But I digress..... Even if we make some mistakes in our parenting, it's not from lack of love. I hope that comes through in everything we do and he grows up knowing that he's the apple of our eye!

Hudson's Love of Literature

It's too bad that I don't believe in learning by osmosis, cause Hudson would be the smartest baby ever!

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From the time I found out I was pregnant, I started getting all these great baby and kid books. In my imagination, Hudson and I would cuddle together and read stories and he would amass this great vocabulary and be a child prodigy. The reality is quite different. So far, we've never made it all the way through even one of the literally dozens of books he has.

Wednesday, my friend Joy brought a big bag of books from her kids. This baby words one seems to be his favorite....as a teether! Although we don't actually get to read them, we spend a lot of time with his books. Maybe one day he'll want to hear the stories... SIGH!

Oh yeah, whats up with that "Baby can Read" system? Is that for real? I don't think that either of us have the attention span it would take for that!

Guess who slept all night?

Guess who slept through the night last night? Yay! This is one of only a handful of times in his life that Hudson has managed to go all night without us having to go upstairs and rock him. Earlier this week we were up 6 times by 12:30. A supermom may be reading this and be prepared to tell me all I have done wrong to cause this to happen, but let me tell you Hudson has NEVER been a sleeper. Last night he also got out of his swaddle and still slept! Jimmy and I were on pins and needles watching the monitor as he moved around his crib, flipping and turning all night, but at least we didn't actually have to get up. Maybe he is finally outgrowing that startle reflex of his. Maybe it's that I wore him out yesterday at the pool- who knows, but I hope for many more peaceful nights to come.

The new teeth

OK- A picture really is worth a thousand words so I'll keep this brief. The new teeth that have been the bane of my existence for 2 weeks are both finally in! We have made it through first time teething, VBS, 6 month shots, his first fever, a huge mouth ulcer, and a mysterious rash all in under 2 weeks! I feel like super mommy! Actually, I feel really tired! It made me think about parents who have babies with really bad stuff going on. I mean, how stressful! I had to stop complaining and say a prayer of thankfulness that we ARE going to get through this and have a healthy baby again. My heart goes out to the moms and dads with terminally/ chronically ill infants. You guys are due for some serious blessings!

OK- this is my first blog post ever! One day my son is going to look back on this and laugh at how unsophisticated his mommy is! I am starting a blog so that I can REMEMBER all the crazy, fun wonderful things that we do on a daily basis. I love to scrapbook, but sometimes it's weeks before I get around to it and I can't remember all the details of what was going on when the picture was taken. They say your memory is the first thing to go, Right? Our Little Hudson is the light of my life and I want to truly cherish all the great things that are happening in his world. Right now, we are dealing with him rolling, tumbling, and maneuvering his way into whatever he finds interesting. Usually it is something inappropriate for baby. Sigh! Mommy needs to learn to keep up a little better now that he's mobile!