O' Christmas Tree

Dear Gage,

We put the Christmas tree up today along with all the other Christmas decorations. I was very worried about how you would behave around the tree, and you didn't disappoint. You were amazed by the tree at first, but then you got more comfortable. So comfortable in fact, that you decided to play with the ornaments. I tried to place all the breakables midway up or higher so you couldn't reach them, but once you were in the walker, they were well within your reach.  So we had to resort to our back up plan - segregate the tree with baby gates. You were not happy about this, but it really is your best interest and the best interest of the tree!

Shiny wonders!

I love you,
Mommy

Happy Thanksgiving

Dear Gage,

Last week, we celebrated your first Thanksgiving! I had to work on actual Thanksgiving Day, so we celebrated a little early with a family dinner on Sunday. Madeline, Granny Dowwoe, Auntie Weesha, Jett, Auntie NeeNee and Kady came over for a yummy dinner. We had quite a feast: Baked turkey, dressing, broccoli casserole, green bean casserole, chive mashed potatoes, marshmallow sweet potatoes, roasted brussel sprouts, cauliflower salad, stuffed mushrooms and rolls. Of all those wonderful things, you got to eat turkey, steamed broccoli, and sweet potatoes (minus the marshmallows and brown sugar). This was the first time you tried turkey and you really enjoyed it!

The yummy feast

Yay Thanksgiving!

Dessert table!

 On Thanksgiving Day, in between my naps, we went over to Granny and Grandpa Taulbee's house for another Thanksgiving feast. You ate green beans, corn, turkey and mashed potatoes. The mashed potatoes were a success this time around. Remember how you didn't like them several months ago? This time they were mixed with milk and butter and that seems to have made the difference!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Num Num!

It was such a great Thanksgiving week this year. This is a time to really reflect on all the things we are thankful for, and it goes without saying that you're on that list. Gage, I am so thankful to have you in my life. You have truly been a blessing to your Dada and me!

I love you,
Mommy

That is NOT for eating

Dear Gage,

I know it is a baby's nature to explore things. You are a very curious creature and you want to discover all the wonderful things you can uncover in our home. But this doesn't mean you have to put everything in your mouth. It is not necessary to taste all the things you come across. Or is it? You truly think so.

The camera lens cap is NOT for eating

The side table is NOT for eating

Dada's flip flops are NOT for eating

Your night time lotion is NOT for eating

The dogfood bag is NOT for eating

The mini blind cord is NOT for eating

The fold out chair is NOT for eating

This is not an exhaustive list of all the household items you have decided to taste. It's only some of the ones I've had a chance to catch on camera.

I love you, Pica-boy,

Mommy

Happy Birthday, Jett

Dear Gage,

On November 7, your oldest cousin Jett turned 6 years old! I remember the night he was born like it was yesterday. Time seems to have really flown by, and I can't believe 6 years has passed since he joined the family. We celebrated his birthday at Granny Dowwoe's with a little party. His meal request: Cheeseburger Macaroni and macaroni and cheese. Dowwoe added a broccoli apple salad for a little color. We had a lot of fun at the party, and you got to see all your cousins. This was the first time we had all the children together in one place!

Family photo - Jude, Molly, Gage, Kaydence, and Jett. Notice how everyone is leaned away from you. It seems they all have the gift of foresight! This was before you scratched Molly's eye. Poor little Molly. 

Jett wearing his new helmet!

Mommy's first cake pop attempt. They were yummy!

I love you,

Mommy

Reflections: Your birth story from Dada's Point of View

Dear Gage,

Your mom asked me to write about the day you were born, and this is what I remember about your birthday. We had an appointment with the doctor on Monday to get you induced, so it was going to be a busy weekend, getting things ready for you. On Friday, January 28th, your mom had gotten up before me, which was pretty typical of most days. When I got up, she told me she was having contractions. I tried not to panic and we just stuck to the plans we had made if she went into labor at home, and cleaned the house and continued preparing for your arrival.  By noon, or so, we decided to pack things up and get to the hospital.

We went up to the second floor and rang the little bell like the tour guide had showed us during one of the classes your mom signed us up for.  The nurse hooked your mom up to the monitors and asked a bunch of questions. She acted a little concerned looking at the monitor, but never said if anything was wrong.  After a little while, the doctor came in to check on her and bluntly stated that he needed to do an emergency C-section! Your heart rate was dropping with every contraction.

One of the nurses brought in the surgery suit and told me to put it on. I went into the bathroom and started to take off my clothes, but the nurse quickly instructed me to put the suit on over my clothes! Glad she got to me before I was down to my boxers :)  We were impatiently waiting, then more bad news came: Your mom was going to have to be put to sleep for the c-section because her blood platelets were low. On top of that, I was told that I couldn't go back to the operating room with her. I went out to the car to grab the camera among other things and to make a few quick phone calls. Your Poppa Joe assured me it was standard procedure that I wouldn't be allowed back there with her, and the same thing had happened when your Uncle Matt was born.  I felt a little comfort in that, but was still very worried.

As soon as I got back up to your mom's room, they were ready to take her to surgery. The doctor asked me if I was going to go back to the operating room, so I quickly grabbed the rest of my surgical attire and started to frantically put it on. I thought they were going to make an exception for me! But the nurse stepped in pretty quick and told me no, I couldn't go in there. So I stopped at the operating room door and waited with your Granny Dowwoe, Uncle Matt, and Sarah.

Twenty minutes later the doors opened, and the nurse brought me a beautiful baby boy! I got to hold you and show you off!

The first time I held you! I was so happy to finally meet my baby boy!

They then took you  into the nursery to check you over and get your weight and height. In the mean time, I ran to check on your mom. The nurses said she was fine, but I was worried because I wasn't able to see her. I then rushed back to the nursery, because we had decided to participate in "skin to skin." Ideally, your mother would have done it, but I had agreed to since she was still in recovery. So I took off my shirt and held you next to my chest with a blanket wrapped around us for over an hour. It was so sad, because I knew you wanted your mom. You were rooting around trying to find something to eat! I told the nurse you were trying to eat and she said, "Well honey, don't let him!" She then assured me that you were not starving. You never did cry. You just curled up and fell asleep. We just sat there together in the nursery, and made fun of all the other babies who were crying!

Skin-to-skin with my precious baby boy

The nurse took you then and gave you your first bath. I took that opportunity to go check on your mom. The doctor had come in while we were doing skin to skin to give me an update. He didn't want to upset me while I waited, but there were some complications during the surgery. Due to the low platelet levels, your mom bled more that usual and the surgery took longer.

It was nearly 3 hours before they brought your mom out of recovery. Once they got us into a room, they brought you to us. Your mom was still in a bit of a daze from the anesthesia, but she said you were beautiful. It was great to have our little family together. Madeline came to the hospital and our little family was complete! We had a lot of visitors come see you, and we were happy to show you off. We ended up staying two nights in the hospital and we were able to keep you in the room most of the time. On Sunday we were discharged from the hospital and we were so excited to be bringing you home. It was hard to believe they were letting us leave with our baby boy.

Me and my babies!

I love you so much Gage,

Daddy

Finger foods

Dear Gage,

You have been self-feeding puff snacks and Cheerios for quite a while, but recently we started to feed you "table food". I've cooked some squash and green beans, cut them into small pieces and let you feed them to yourself.  You really like the independence of self-feeding and you particularly enjoy dropping pieces to the floor for Emma dog. You have also tried cottage cheese, but that involves a quick spray down in the sink afterwards.

I know I say this all the time, but I can't believe how big you've gotten. Sometimes I look at you and am in complete awe that you are my son. I have to pinch myself to believe this fairy tale is true. You are amazing and I love watching you develop and grow!

I love you,
Mommy

They call it puppy love

Dear Gage,

You have become more and more fascinated with Emma dog in the recent weeks. You folleow her around, trying to grab her fur and pet her neck. She used to be able to get away from you with ease, but now that you've gotten faster, you give her a run for the money. She's particularly vulnerable when I'm cooking dinner. She hovers around my feet hoping I'll drop something. You've picked up on this and followed suit. Preparing dinner has become quite the challenge, with both of you close to my heels.

Tonight you helped Dada give Emma dog a bath. I tried to keep you away from the bath tub, but you kept crawling back to the bathroom. I think you were a little jealous that she was getting bath time and you weren't.  Or you were afraid she would play with your duckies!

I'm glad you both get along so well. I hope she continues to be patient with your rough love!

I love you,

Mommy

9 month check-up

Dear Gage,

Today we took you to see Dr. Chris for your 9 month check up. You weighed in at 17 lbs 15 ounces and measured 29 1/2 inches long. You've dropped down to around the 30th percentile in weight but you're now around the 90th for height. Growth in height is the true indicator at this age to reflect nourishment, so you are quite healthy. Mommy makes some good food for you! And you just can't get enough of your homegrown veggies. Since you move around and crawl constantly, you've been burning extra calories. Dr. Chris is very pleased with your growth and development and encouraged us to keep doing what we're doing!

I love you,
Mommy



Happy Halloween

Dear Gage,

We celebrated your first Halloween as Goldilocks and the two bears. Starring you as Baby Bear. We wanted Maddie to play the role of Goldilocks, but as a 13 year old, she wasn't really in the dressing up spirit! So I assumed the role of the nosy, blonde little girl and Dada was Papa bear. We went to see the Benningfields, aka Lois Lane, Clark Kent and Superman. Since we don't live in a nice little subdivision, we wandered around theirs. It was so much fun to see all the kids and some adults dressed up and enjoying the holiday. After visiting several houses and feeling a tad bit embarrassed about trick-or-treating (as you're only 9 months old and clearly this candy isn't for you. I'm sure you would have been perfectly content being at home playing with your toys, completely unaware of the holiday), we went to Living Hope's Trunks of Treats to meet up with Granny Dowwoe, Jett, Auntie NeeNee and Kady. Jett was dressed up as a scary vampire and Kady was the cutest little monkey. There were so many people there dressed up and trick-or-treating, you just couldn't figure out where to look. You were amazed at all the make-up and costumes. We saw some pretty interesting costumes, but my favorite (after ours and Jett's and Kady's of course) was the pirate and the boat. The Dad, dressed as a pirate, was pulling a wagon decorated as a boat sailing his two children dressed as pirates too. 

Goldilocks and Baby Bear

Papa Bear and Baby Bear

Baby Bear and Cuddly monkey

Papa Bear, Baby Bear and Goldilocks

Vampire Jett!

Baby Bear

All our your candy :)

After walking through the line and visiting all the trunks, we headed home to carve pumpkins. Your Dada had bought one for our fall decorations as we waited for the ones we planted to ripen. But this past weekend the weather turned cold and it frosted, killing our pumpkin plants. We carved the pretty orange pumpkin with a witch and the homegrown green one was for you, carved with your initials GJP. We had a great Halloween this year, but I know it will be a lot more fun once you can enjoy the trick-or-treating and festivities for yourself!

Witch and her brew

Your pumpkin

You and your green pumpkin

I love you so much,

Mommy