Day 159

Well, I know we said a post a day might not happen, but Colton has some bragging to do. First, he wants to report that his babysitter commented that mom "does not know how good of a baby he is" and that he is "truly fantastic." Mom did in fact know both of those things, but it was really nice to hear it, especially from someone who has seen so many babies over her lifetime! Colton also wanted to report that the JCC babysitter texted mom today to say that she misses him; I mean, seriously, could this baby be any more loved? Finally, Colton wanted to show everyone his picture from last night. This early morning thing coupled with all the excitement at the baby sitter's (those kids are so much fun to watch) knocked our baby boy out at 7:15, right in the middle of his bottle!

Day 158

Well, today was finally the day...the day Colton (and mom especially) have been dreading...the day that mom had to return to work full-time and Colton ventured to the babysitter's house for the first time. Aside from a clear aversion to the earlier wake up time, Colton seemed unfazed by the new routine. The babysitter reported that he was wonderful (we already knew that, of course), and he came home to have family play time and eat some apples with dad. Mom, on the other hand, is still a little wary of the new arrangement. After a little breakdown upon leaving baboo, she managed to get herself together, but was sure to be there promptly at 3:30 to pick him up. With our new schedule, the blog may suffer a bit; I am sure you all will understand if there is not a post daily:)

Colton's first day of school picture!

Day 157

Colton was so excited to wake up at his own house today, and especially to spend the day with his brother instead of travelling in the car. He clearly had grown a little tired of his car seat and being restrained and spent most of the day squirming around, jumping in his bouncer, and mastering sitting up. As mom and dad worked hard on their fantasy football drafts, Meme and Papa stopped by for a visit. They were very excited to feel Colton's first tooth poking through his gums (there's not enough of it to really see yet, but we will be sure to post a picture when there is!). After dinner, Colton got ready to go to sleep early, as tomorrow begins his first day of the new routine, including a much earlier wake up time. Wish us luck (I think mom needs it much more than Colton)

Day 156

With summer quickly coming to a close (boo!), Colton was anxious to get back home to Va. Beach today and tackle his long list of tasks to do. He woke up and hit the road, getting to ride on the infamous ferry one more time. After a couple stops...one at Aunt Sandi's and then again for lunch at the Kill Devils Grill...Colton arrived home around 2 and was VERY thankful to get out of the car and be able to squirm. In fact, when mom and dad tried to go to dinner later, Colton was clearly miffed at the notion of spending more time in his car seat and was not very anxious to make the trip easy! Needless to say, dinner was quick, and afterwards, Colton was home for the rest of the night to move around all that he wanted.

Day 155

Colton woke up (at 8 AM...we must have worn baboo out the night before) in beautiful Ocracoke. After a morning bottle with mom on the balcony, he let mom and dad go to breakfast at the Pony Island Restaurant. While there, he really enjoyed playing with all the creamers and jellies (oh yes, dining out with Colton is certainly becoming more exciting!). With breakfast complete, it was off to the beach for the day. Ocracoke's beach is beautiful, especially with the wind blowing and slightly overcast skies. Colton loved hanging out, eating seaweed and sand, and playing in the water with mom and dad. With dad's beach patience running thin, Colton left the beach and did some island shopping before going back to the hotel for a nap. At night, Colton went back to Howard's Pub's deck for the view and drinks before going to the Back Porch for a wonderful dinner. Although Colton was fighting sleep the whole time, he was quite the hit at the restaurant, especially later when he ran into his cousin Mary and a flock of women who were eager to get their hands on him! With all that excitement, Colton was ready for bed, so mom and dad headed back to the hotel and put baby boy to bed for the night:)

Day 154

Have no fear, Colton is back from his vacation and ready to report on his last couple days' activities, including his 5 MONTH BIRTHDAY today Colton celebrated in style by hitting the road for Ocracoke bright and early in the morning. On the way down, Colton slept most of the way, but woke up with a vengence, so mom and dad made a pit stop at Aunt Sandi's in Hatteras to feed a very hungry Colton. The stop proved to be really beneficial because Aunt Sandi also gave mom and dad a ferry priority pass that allowed them to bypass the 2 hour wait. For those of you that don't know, Ocracoke is an island in the southern Outer Banks; it is only accessible by ferry, so we loaded the car on to the boat and set sail!

Once arriving in Ocracoke, Colton was quick to explore the small island and get a quick bite at Jolly Rogers on the water. After heading back to the hotel to freshen up, he was off to Howard's Pub for some drinks and dinner before hitting the sack for the night.

Day 153

Further proof that we have the world's best baby? Colton went with mom today to get a pedicure, and sat in his chair and then in her lap perfectly the whole time. Other than that highlight, today was a bittersweet day for mom and Colton. It was the last day Colton and mom would be able to share their routine that they have grown so fond of over the last 5 months: tomorrow the family is going on vacation, and sadly mom returns to work. Colton hung in there as he went on his morning JCC run (the ladies there were very sad that they might not see him for awhile) and then ran some errands with mom. After the pedicure, he stopped by the office to pick up some papers from dad and was lucky enough to run into Meme and Papa there. After that, it was home to rest up and get ready for the big vacation tomorrow:)

PS: you can't tell from the picture, but Colton is in a pink butterfly chair while mom gets her nails done; I think thats why he looks so miffed

Day 152

Colton was a very busy boy again today. He had to get up bright and early in order to eat and get Chipper to the vet in time for his scheduled hair cut. After dropping off Chipper, Colton was off to the JCC for his daily visit. With that out of the way, Colton headed down to Norfolk to visit his babysitter and drop off all of his supplies for when he starts next week (tear tear) and then to go by mom's school to take care of a little business. With all that running around, Colton was ready to go home, eat, and take his nap, but unfortunately, as soon as he got started, the vet called to say Chipper was ready to be picked up, so it was back in the car. With Chipper back at home, Colton was finally able to settle in for his nap. At night, he joined mom and dad for dinner out. Because of the cool weather, he got to wear his jeans for the first time, and he sure did look cool!

Day 151

Colton had a big success today: he was able to eat, without being stripped down to just his diaper, and was not a complete mess afterwards!!! Mom was really excited. For those keeping track at home, Colton now has a very complete list of foods he enjoys: oatmeal, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, green beans and (dad's favorite) bananas! All this eating is packing the pudge on to baby boy, but luckily the rolls fit him well and he looks just as adorable as always. On top of eating, Colton was a busy boy today in his last week at home with mom:( Colton ran a ton of errands, but was luckily at home when his grandma stopped by with his great-grandmother for a visit. After that, he relaxed for the rest of the night with mom, dad, and Chipper before hitting the sack a little early so he could be up bright and early the next day.

Day 150

With it raining outside this morning, dad was unable to go on his scheduled golf outing. Instead, Colton got to go out to breakfast with mom and dad and even meet Grandma there. He had a great time at breakfast, looking around at all of the cool stuff. When breakfast was over, Colton ran a few errands with mom and dad, but was pretty tired and slept through most of it! At night, Colton got to have some boy time with his daddy and Chipper, while mom went out for a wine group. Mom got home just in time to put baby boy to bed, all snug in snuggle sack!

Day 149

Colton had a wonderful Saturday. He started it off by staying home with his daddy while mom went to get her haircut. It was only Colton's second or third time home with his daddy by himself, so he was very excited to have a boys hour! Once mom got home, the family ran a coupld off errands and then came home for Colton's (and dad's) nap. At night, Colton went over to Meme and Papa's condo to see it all set up. He thought the place looked really nice and enoyed crawling (ok, flopping is probably more accurate) around on the floor. After finishing off a bottle, he headed to Chicks for some dinner with everyone, but the long dinner was a little too much for him, as he was fast asleep through the whole thing!

Day 148

Today was moving day for Meme and Papa, so after his morning trip to the JCC, Colton headed over to 965 Calypso one last time to supervise the move. Meme fed him green beans and a bottle as he watched the packers load boxes and furniture. Meme was even certain to take Colton for one last visit to the pool. Colton was sad to see the house go, but excited for Meme and Papa's new adventure (whatever that may be!). After moving, Colton headed over to Babies R Us to get himself a Bumbo seat. He loves how he can sit up in his new seat and even be at eye-level with Chipper, which has created a whole new set of games for the brothers. At night, Grandma and Grandpa came over to watch Colton, so mom and dad could join Uncle Jordan and (soon-to-be) Aunt Stephanie for Stephanie's birthday dinner at Steinhiblers.

Day 147

Colton spent a nice day with mom today. He started it off with his daily trip to the JCC. After coming home for a meal of sweet potatoes (which luckily he now seems to like!), it was off to Target to pick up some essentials. Once the errands were done for the day, Colton came back home with mom to play in his jumper and take his afternoon nap. When dad got home, Colton got to go out to dinner and then came home for some bananas (dad really likes to feed Colton his bananas!), take a bath, and then read a story in his "snuggle-sack" before bed.

Day 146

Mom wanted to take advantage of the rainy day to get her classroom done (well, close enough anyways), so Colton spent his day with his grandparents. He went on a walk, ate some squash, and took a little nap while haning out. When mom came to pick him up, Grandma wanted to take him by her friend's house for a quick visit first, and Colton was happy to olige as usual. Grandma must have really wore him out, though, as Colton was grumpy all evening and even fell asleep while eating his bottle!

Day 145

Colton must be growing because he seemed to be constantly hungry today! Luckily, mom didn't really have any plans so she and Colton stuck close to home in order to get him all his bottles and bananas in a timely manner. To keep himself entertained, Colton spent a lot of his day bouncing in his jumperoo banging on all of the fun toys on it and making tons of noise. Colton also managed many good giggles today, finding it especially funny whenever mom mentioned Chipper's tuchus!

Day 144

With only a couple weeks left before mom has to go back to work, Colton geared up today for what is going to be a busy time! Today was just the start, with him starting the day off at the JCC and then heading over to mom's school to work in the classroom a little bit more and pick up mom's money! Colton was a good boy at school, although he does slow down the process mainly because mom can't resist his adorable face! After a day spent working hard, Colton came home for a nice nap, a lovely bananas meal, and some quality time with mom and dad.

Day 143

Colton had another fantastic day today. He woke up in the morning to find the Steelers on television (last night's game was being shown on the NFL network), so he was so excited to finally get to see them play. He started learning player names and cheers, and promises he will be completely ready when the season officially kicks off in a few more weeks. After watching a part of the game and finishing his bananas breakfast, he was off to the beach with mom and dad. He ended up meeting Papa, Meme, Uncle Ryan, Aunt KC, and a few others there for a day of playing in the waves followed by a nice snooze on the beach. After his beach day, it was off to a Mexican dinner before relaxing for the night.

Day 142

With the weather beautiful, Colton was excited to enjoy a summer day with his family. He joined mom and dad for a nice breakfast/lunch down at the oceanfront at Doc Taylor's. Colton sat right next to a baby girl who was 10 days older than he was, so he spent most of the lunch fascinated with her. After lunch, the plan was to go for a walk on the boardwalk, but with dad's on call phone ringing, the family headed home to relax...well, relax was the plan, until Chipper decided to catch baby rabbits for the afternoon and mom and dad had to keep trying to catch him and save the rabbits! At night, Colton got to go to his first baseball game!!! He met Uncle Ryan, Aunt KC, and Aunt KC's siblings at Harbor Park for the Tides game, and fared pretty well for his first game, making it all the way to the 6th inning before leaving to pick up a quick bite with mom and dad.

***sorry for the blurriness of the picture; it was our only option today!***

Day 141

Colton was a busy boy today. After his morning trip to the JCC, Colton quickly ate his squash (he was introduced to it yesterday and is loving it!!!) and then headed over to Meme and Papa's house to wish them a Happy Anniversary. Colton loves going there to visit because someone is constantly playing with him and/or spitting in his face. He has even started to show Papa his appreciation by spitting right back at him:) After visiting, though, it was time for Colton to head to the doctor's office. Mom just about had a nervous breakdown on the way there, but Colton seemed completely unfazed by the whole thing...we have decided mom is going to need to toughen up:) Unfortunately, he still seems to be battling the stomach bug that mom and dad had earlier in the week, but the doctor informed us that it is G-d's way of protecting our little boy that he gets it much less severely but for much longer...mom thought that was really interesting!!! The good news is to combat his stomach he now gets to try bananas and applesauce, so he is really excited. Finally, Colton ended his day with a dinner out at California Pizza Kitchen and then by stopping by Uncle Jordan's house to play with Mojo and hear about the upcoming wedding plans.

Day 140

With Dad still not feeling well, Colton was anxious to get out of the house again today, so he joined mom at the JCC and then to run a few errands. He enjoyed being out and about, especially because he got a cool new shirt for fall! When he got home, he was happy to see dad was feeling better, so the family took a trip over to Colton's great-grandparents' house. They were celebrating their 60th anniversary today (pretty impressive, huh?!?), and Colton was very happy that he got to spend a small portion of their special day with him. After visiting, it was home for some take-out dinner (for mom and dad....carrots for Colton) and resting and relaxing.

Day 139

Well, it seems the family stomach bug has caught up with dad, so Colton and mom were careful to spend the day away from the house in hopes that Colton can avoid the bug. Colton started the day at the JCC as usual, and then joined mom in her classroom to start getting it ready for the first graders that will arrive in just a few weeks. Colton loved being at school, especially with all the attention he got. He also enjoyed playing on mom's carpet with his toys and watching mom work, careful not to take his eyes off of her for even a second! When Colton got home, he spent his evening playing with mom and Chipper in his favorite "snuggle sack."

Day 138

With mom and Colton back to normal (well, we think Colton's is more a result of his new diet and/or teething, but at least he seems to be feeling fine), it was time to resume our regular routine today. Colton started off the day with his trip to the JCC. After coming home for a quick breakfast of oatmeal, Colton was off to the grocery store to pick up this week's supplies. With errands done, Colton came back home to take his nap in preparation for dinner out at Wild Wing with his grandparents.

Day 137

Colton and mom took it easy today as they both were getting over a stomach bug of some sort. Colton even skipped his daily trip to the JCC, and pretty much spent his day at home relaxing and playing. On a bright note, he appears to be getting oh-so-close to learning how to sit up on his own. While he is still leaning forward when he does it, he can now hold himself up for a few seconds before the lean begins!

Day 136

With mom not feeling good today, Colton spent a very uneventful day inside, mainly with dad to watch him. He handled the day very well, and was particularly excited when Aunt Genna and Jenn stopped by for a visit on their way back up to Arlington. Proving he is a ladies man in the making, Colton was very enamored with Aunt Genna's chest burying his head deep inside over and over and then smiling coyly when called out on it! The other highlight of Colton's day was watching his very first football game. Even though it was not the Steelers quite yet, mom and dad were busy teaching him all the rules of the game so he will be ready when the black and gold take the field:)

Day 135

Aunt Genna and her roommate, Jenn, came in town today, and Colton was very excited to spend the day with them. He went over to Meme and Papa's house to meet them before joining everyone, including Uncle Ryan, at the beach for a day of jetskiing, swimming, and sunbathing. The day in the sun was fun, but also exhausting, so Colton headed home for a nap before meeting everyone again for dinner at Il Giardino. Colton was such a star at dinner that other tables were even snapping his picture (well one other table, but still!)

Day 134

Colton had a really nice day today. After his morning trip to the JCC, he came home for a nice meal of oatmeal before heading over to Meme and Papa's for a swim. With moving day nearing, Colton was excited to take advantage of the pool for what will probably be one of his last swims there, and today he was sure to leave his mark, having a small accident in the pool (don't worry Papa, mom and Meme cleaned it up, added some chlorine to the pool, and bleach to the deck...all is good!). After that, Colton decided it was time to vacate the pool and head home to get ready for dinner with mom and dad at Wild Wing (dad was having slight withdrawals after a nearly two week absence).

Day 133

Colton and mom enjoyed a nice, lazy day inside today. Colton seemed to be struggling with teething today; mom swears she feels the first tooth coming through the top and our babysitter last night said she sees Colton's bottom teeth! Colton was cheered up, though, by his fun feet and mom's funny faces. After dinner (carrots for Colton which he devoured in less than 10 minutes!), Colton joined mom and dad for some frozen yogurt before passing out for the evening.

Day 132

Today was mom and dad's anniversary, so Colton spent the morning at the mall with mom, who wisely decided not to spend any money:) After the shopping excursion, he stopped by the office to say "happy anniversary" to dad in person before going home for his nap and oatmeal (which he loves, even without apple juice!). At night, mom and dad were going out for dinner at Ruth's Chris, so Colton got to stay home with his first official babysitter, his friend Koriann from the JCC. When mom and dad got home, he was tucked snugly in his sleep sack and got a wonderful report, as did his brother who mom and dad were truthfully a little more worried about!

Day 131

Whew! Colton was a busy guy again today. He started the day off with a trip to the JCC and then to the grocery store. After that, it was home for carrots before jetting off to meet mom's friend, Beth, for lunch and a little shopping. Colton, then, went over to Meme and Papa's house to help them out by going to look at a house with them. All of the running around and lack of an official nap really did a number on poor Colton, as he was particularly fussy during the day and night. To top it off, mom and dad also think his teething has kicked into another gear, as he has been particularly drooly and gnawy (obviously not a word, but exactly what is going on!).

Day 130

Today was another busy day for Colton. After a morning Target and JCC run, it was home for a lovely carrots meal. Colton, once again, LOVED his carrots and is getting excited to move on to his next food soon. Dad came home early from work, so he could go with Colton and mom to meet Colton's babysitter for next month when mom goes back to work:( Mom had met her before, but this was Colton's and dad's first time. She is a very nice woman, and Colton already took a liking to her dog, so we are confident he will be just fine with her, even if mom won't! Because the family was down in Norfolk, Colton had dinner at No Frill Grill before coming home to a meal of rice cereal and a much-needed bath.

Day 129

A rainy day in Virginia Beach meant two things for Colton: eating and relaxing! Colton started off his Sunday with a breakfast out with mom and dad. He enjoyed being out, especially when he got to taste syrup for the first time:) After watching mom and dad eat, it was time for Colton to come home for his own meal of carrots which he once again devoured! All of the eating must have made him tired because Colton took a nice, long nap for most of the day. Luckily, then, he was well rested for Aunt KC's birthday dinner at Isle of Capri, where he stole the show like always:)