Gross!

So I know it pretty much is a fact that if you are a parent, you will get thrown up on. And I also know that most children will at one time or another puke in a public place. (pretty good forshadowing, huh?) Never did I imagine that my first time for both would happen at the same time... Lunch started out normally enough. I was meeting my friend Angel and her two kids at chickfila. Chris seemed a little fussy, but that is pretty typical for him in restaurants. I fed him some baby food and then tried to get him to eat an assortment of cheese, goldfish, and chicken fingers with a little bit of success. After we finished eating, Angel's kids went to the playground while we attempted to have some normal adult conversation. (remember, I was trying to entertain a fussing, squirming toddler at the same time!) Eventually I took Chris out of the highchair, and he amused himself for a (very) short time with my cell phone, keys, and crawling (and falling off - but I caught him) along the bench seat. However, he got tired of that after about 2.5 seconds and resumed fussing. So, I figured it was time to go. I was holding him while trying to finish up my conversation with my friend, and all of a sudden my precious bundle of joy coughed... and covered me with the most wretched, orange, chunky, foul-smelling mess I have ever experienced. It was literally covering me from my neck down to my toes, which of course includes him as I was holding him. My friend of course offered her assistance, but I honestly didn't have a clue where to begin... I fumbled for the wipes in his diaper bag and began swabbing at my now-orange shirt. She ran and told the restaurant staff about the mess - it was all over the bench and floor as well - while I attempted to gather our stuff together in such a way as to avoid smearing the remains of his lunch over everything. Chris was whimpering at this point, so I tried to offer him some water, which he refused. So at that point I just grabbed everything, said a quick good-bye to my friend, apologized profusely to the workers who were descending upon the area with mops and hazmat suits (kidding), and made a beeline for the car.

So, at the moment Chris is napping, and I am showered and cleaned up...Ah, the joys of motherhood! Something tells me this is just the beginning...

Ok... no sooner had I posted the above story, than Chris woke up crying. This was really strange, as he had only been sleeping for about 30 minutes. I went in to find him sitting up in - you guessed it - a pool of vomit. Poor guy! I gave him a bath, and now he is happily watching his videos. Hopefully we've seen the last of it...

We made it!

I just thought I'd let everyone know that we made it home from New Orleans in one piece :) It was a LONG trip... Mark flew, but first dropped me off at my sister Melanie's house in Alabama. So I had to then make the 8+-hour trip alone with Chris! My plan was to leave at 6am... However, Chris woke up randomly at 3:45am and would not go back to sleep, so I just threw him in the car and left, though I'd barely had 3 hours of sleep. It wasn't too bad, though. I took my time and stopped often, and we made it home around 4. Chris seems thrilled to be home - he is so excited about all of his toys, particularly his lawnmower. :) He has even readjusted to being back in the eastern time zone.
Now that he has gone from 2 naps to 1, I am looking forward to doing more fun things with him like story time at the library, trips to the zoo, etc. He seems to like playing at the park, too, so I am sure we'll go there often.

New Orleans

City Park

Chris did NOT like the train that went by...

So THAT's how you turn the firetruck lights on...

Look at me!

What a monkey... yes, he did make it all the way up!

Chris and his cousin Isaiah (Melanie's son) watching Baby Einstein

Chris loves Beignets - French doughnuts with powdered sugar on top! I think he just liked licking the sugar...

I am sorry it has been so long since my last post... things have been wild and crazy in the Billman household!



First, I was able to go camping with Mark and our friends, as Chris resumed sleeping through the night before we left. It was a wonderful break for Mark and I! It was so nice to be able to sleep in, relax, hike, and just enjoy being with our friends. Chris did fine with Mark's parents - we are so grateful to them! We did miss him, though, and were glad to get home.



One week after we got back, we left for a month long stay in New Orleans - and won't be home until Oct. 5. Mark's work wanted to send him here for some training, so Chris and I tagged along. It has been nice to get a change of scenery, and we've enjoyed seeing someplace new. The city is pretty dirty and run-down, and in some parts of town there is still considerable Katrina damage. However, we are staying in a fairly nice extended stay hotel, where we have a living room, kitchen, and separate bedroom. We've pretty much kept the same daytime routine: Chris and I hang out in the hotel room in the morning, then we explore the city, then after naptime Mark comes home. One of his friends from work, Matt, is also here, so after they get home and work out we wander the city until we find a good restaurant. (Having Matt here is somewhat like having a nanny along - he picks up after Chris at restaurants, pushes him in the stroller, entertains him, and even babysat once!) As much as we have enjoyed ourselves, I am looking forward to returning to our quiet little life in Melbourne next week.



Notable accomplishments: The biggest one is that Chris is now quite a proficient walker! Last Wednesday he took 2 timid steps, by the next day he was going 4-5 feet, and now 1 week later he can walk as far as he wants. I can hardly believe how quickly he learned! He seems quite pleased with himself, and loves to run into my arms laughing.



I think he'll be weaning soon, as we are down to 2 feedings a day. I am looking forward to a bit more freedom! And I am really grateful that the weaning process has been initiated by him, not me. However, he is not exactly the world's best eater. He absolutely adores bread - in any form. That means that the only restaurants we try to go to are ones that serve bread - because he'll gnaw happily on a loaf of crusty bread so we get a break! He also likes crackers, toast, cheerios, etc. In fact, the only way I can get him to eat any fruits or veggies is to either put his chair in front of the TV and put on his favorite Baby Einstein video (I can shovel in 2 jars with that diversion!) or sing to him while I feed him. I am now trying different tricks - today I gave him french toast so he'd get some protein (it worked) and yesterday I made him a little pizza on an english muffin (it didn't). Ah, the joys of parenting... :)



We hope you are all doing well! We'd love to hear from you.

1 year old!

Ready or not, here I come!

I meant to do that....

Just a little thirsty...

My birthday dump truck

The paper is always the best part...

Now I can be like daddy!

The aftermath...

Watching TV with my friend Carter

It is so hard to believe that an entire year has come and gone. We could not feel more blessed: we have a beautiful boy who brings us more joy as each day passes. However, as one of my friends recently said, "When will they ever make a pause button?"

Chris had a fun time at his birthday party. It was wonderful to celebrate with our friends and family. And he is having fun with all of his new toys!

His biggest accomplishment this month is that he is ALMOST walking. Several nights ago while I was washing dishes, I turned around to see him pushing his walker into the kitchen while walking behind it like he had been doing it his whole life! He walked around the house like that for an hour, leaving scuffed baseboards and scratched walls in his wake :) He's getting really good at it, though. He is going fast, and will even stop and swing it around to point in whatever direction he wants to go. It is pretty funny to watch, though - he looks like a little old man.

He has also developed a love of his little pool that Nanny got him. He'll sit in in for quite awhile and play. He gave me a laugh this evening, though. I'd put him in it naked in the backyard, as I just needed to keep him occupied for a few minutes. I walked around the side of the house for a minute, and when I turned around I discovered that my naked little boy had climbed out of his pool and was crawling after me through the grass.

Chris has always been a good sleeper, and has been sleeping through the night since he was about 4 months old. However, the past few nights he's decided that he wants to eat several times a night, and has been waking up frequently. This wouldn't be such a big deal except for the fact that Mark and I are supposed to leave him with Mark's parents for the long weekend while we go camping with some friends. And because he won't take bottles, if I can't get him back to normal by tonight I may have to stay back. So pray that he sleeps! Ah, the joys of parenting :)

Sorry this was so long! We love you all.

How Time Flies...

Our little fish...
Playing at swim lessons

Mom and I at the Inner Harbor in Baltimore

Hiking with Dad on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Me with all 9 of my cousins!

Helping Mom with dishes...

What a ham!

What IS this stuff? I don't know if I like it....

Ok, I definitely DON'T like it!

One day my turn will come...

In case you couldn't tell from all the pictures, it has been a busy few months! Notable activities and accomplishments include:

• Chris and I took a "parent and child" swimming class, the purpose of which was to get him used to the water. He was a little unsure at first, and definitely did not like getting dunked, but by the third or fourth class he was over that and seemed to enjoy the pool.
• We took our first vacation with him up north. We drove to Virginia for my cousin Laura's wedding, then visited Mark's family in Baltimore. After that we drove to visit my friend Amy in Atlanta, then it was back home. Chris did remarkably well for being in the car a lot and sleeping in different places practically every night! Praise the Lord for portable DVD players, though - it kept him occupied and happy in the car :)
• We are starting to see that our precious little boy has a bit of a temper! He gets so mad if a door that he wants to go through is closed - especially if it is the door to the refrigerator. He also hates wearing a bib, or being trapped in a playpen or a room with a gate at the door - he wants complete freedom! However, we often can't help but laugh at his tantrums - he usually gets so mad that he'll sit there screaming and clapping his hands! It is absolutely hysterical. And usually our laughter is a bit confusing to him so he ends up forgetting what made him mad in the first place :)
• He has learned to mimic. If someone claps, he'll sometimes respond by doing the same. He especially likes to copy us when we blow raspberries.
• He loves any toy that he can push around the floor - whether it is his favorite red truck, a tupperware container, a jug of vinegar... He pushes whatever the object is with one and while crawling quasi-modo style behind it. His favorite is definitely his trucks, though. He'll push them all over the house, and will even drive them back and forth over Mark's legs if he happens to be in the way!

For those of you who will be in town, we are having a birthday party for Chris on Aug. 25 at 5:00. We would love to have you all! Please let me know if you'll be able to make it.

10 months and counting...

Look what I found!

Our little Quasi-modo...

Eating Cousin Rose's biscuit... She better keep a better watch on her food!

Umm... help.... it's making noise.... (Visiting twin cousins Joy and Jane)

I'm gonna get you! (Hanging with Pop Billman)

Crawling lessons...

"Hulking up"

Visiting with Cousin Rose, Uncle Luke, and Grandma Sherrie...

It's so hard to believe how quickly time flies... Chris is (almost) 10 months old now, and is growing and changing faster than I can believe. Notable recent accomplishments...

• Can crawl "Quasi-modo style" ( keeps his right leg curled under him at all times, and kind of drags it along... not exactly the most efficient way to go, but it works for him)
• Ate his first cockroach... on his first day of crawling
• Survived his first night with Grandmom and Pop Billman while Mark and I escaped to Orlando... or should I say, they survived their first night with him! Everything went well, praise the Lord!
• We're working through a "nursing strike" - apparently he's decided he has better things to do.

Now that he's mobile, he only sits still long enough to find the next thing to get into! Toys are no longer any fun... so much for getting anything done around the house. Now whenever I put him down, he immediately starts moving to whatever forbidden object he can find... trashcans are a favorite. He keeps us busy, but we are having a blast with him. He loves attention at all times and from any willing person or animal... Tickling is a favorite activity, as are walks, outings to the store, naptimes, eating cheerios, reading stories, and getting into stuff. He also loves visitors, so come and see us any time!

9 months and growing...

I decided to try wearing my prunes...

Life is tough when you can only move backwards...

Playing with my friend Carter... Guess which one is teething! (boy is it tough trying to get two babies to sit still for the camera!)

Today our little guy is 9 months old. How time flies! Notable developments in the past month:


4 teeth!

Trying desperately to crawl - but can't seem to get over one of his legs. In the meantime he moves around using his arms - unfortunately, though, he can only go in circles and backwards!

Favorite delicacies: cheerios, toes, our belts (if left within reach) and remote controls...

Sounds: though he doesn't know what he is saying, when he is happy he says "dadadada"... and when he cries or wants something, "mamamama". Go figure.

He loves music - I can almost always get him to stop crying by singing to him. And he also seems to like it when I read to him.