It's also clearly tough to be the mom of an 8-month old, since I am a week late with this post!
I have loved every minute that Ethan has been in our lives (well, I could have done without some of the screaming and crying minutes), but I have to say, that this past month has been the most enjoyable so far. I can't believe how much Ethan has grown and changed already. This is a fun time where he is so curious, silly, funny, sweet, playful - I do not want this time to end!
He continues to love his swimming lessons and is actually starting to kick his legs when I take him across the pool. I guess if you say something enough times, they eventually figure it out! I have never taught him to blow bubbles but for the past couple of weeks, he plants his face right in the water and tries to blow. It's so funny!
Ethan and his BFF Parker have had lots of playdates, including going to the Museum of Science, the Arnold Arboretum and the Clayroom to paint pottery for Father's Day. They went to their first concert to support Daddy at Earthfest...we were worried the music would be too loud but they fell asleep as soon as we got to our seats! As much fun as all these adventures are, they really just like to sit on the blanket and play!
He continues to have a better social life than his parents. We went to Marblehead for Memorial Day weekend and he got to play with his buddies Pete, Ryan, Grady, Nick and Drew. He also got to go to the Salem Willows, one of daddy's favorite childhood places. No popcorn bars for him just yet, though. He also went to Newport and had his first oyster crackers (no oysters just yet, either). He went to the Franklin Park Zoo but was pretty underwhelmed with the animals. We'll try again in a few months!
Daddy put an infant bike seat on his bike and Ethan went on his first bike ride! He loves things that move, so naturally he loved this. We can't wait to go conquer the bike paths on Nantucket this summer.
He eats and eats and eats. Clearly, if you've seen any pictures of him! He really prefers finger foods to purees, so it's been a struggle to figure out what to feed him and how much. He loves waffles and cheese - who doesn't?!
He is so mobile in his crib, I know it's just a matter of time before I walk in and he's standing up! He started to sleep on his belly, which made mom a little nervous, but I know he's strong enough to do it. He seems to like to sleep on his side the best. Watching the monitor for hours is an activity in and of itself!
He loves music and claps along to the beat (the "Hokey Pokey" is the clear favorite these days). He does a new dance move of shaking his head when he's happy (video to follow soon, I hope). He discovers new things about his toys everyday. He wears sneakers and is working on pulling himself up to stand. No crawling yet, but some signs are there. Mommy needs to stop handing him the toys he wants to play with so he can actually be motivated to crawl. He got a new indoor slide and likes going down it, even though he can't figure out how to scoot down on his own.
I made a decision to go back to work part-time in the fall. I will be working on reading intervention with kindergarten students in the mornings. We found a wonderful woman who will watch Ethan until noon and then I get to have him all afternoon. He already has his first personalized backpack for his new daycare. It was a hard decision to make - as much as I love my job, I really couldn't see how I would do both with the amount of effort that I like to put into things. This seemed like a good compromise for now.
We're just a week into month #9 and we've already had so many adventures this week to write about. Stay tuned. He is just the best and we love him so much. Thanks for reading :)
June was a great month! Father's Day, my birthday, family trip to Ogunquit and our first weekend away from Ethan in Martha's Vineyard! Enjoy the photos and stay tuned for more updates on all the fun, new things Ethan has been doing!
It's hard to believe May has already come and gone! It was an exciting month - Mother's Day, Earthfest, day trips to Rockport, Marblehead and Gloucester - this baby gets around! Summer weather is upon us (I think...I hope) and we're trying to make the most of it!