First Christmas

Hunter's first Christmas was very merry indeed!

The day before Christmas Eve Hunter exchanged gifts with his friends at day care and we were also given some adorable gifts that Hunter made for us there! That was such a sweet surprise. We are so lucky to have such a crafty and talented day care provider - I mean, son!!

He spent Christmas Eve at Mimi and Opa's house and opened presents with them there. Christmas Eve night his Mom-mom arrived and was with us when he woke up Christmas morning to open gifts at home. Christmas day Pop-pop and Granny J. arrived and we enjoyed a traditional Christmas dinner together. Unfortunately, Hunter also got his first big cold on Christmas Eve which slowed him down a bit (he was super congested with lots of coughing and sneezing), so he napped a bit more frequently. Hunter handled it like a trooper though, and wasn't too fussy for his mom and dad. In fact, he had received so many gifts from family, and friends who shipped them to him, that he wasn't able to open all of them in one wake period. It seemed like every time he got up from a nap there were more presents to be opened! We all enjoyed watching his determined face with lips puckered, as he tried to rip the paper off his gifts and his squeals of delight with some of the louder more animated toys. A few days later Christmas continued when we had another delicious dinner at Mimi and Opa's home; this time Uncle Scott and Jessica were able to join us!

We can't forget our oldest "child" Jack the Cat...it was 2 years ago this holiday season that he started showing up at our back door and, essentially, adopted us. He had a wonderful Christmas as well. With all the empty boxes and bags lying around he was in kitty heaven!

Though it was Hunter's first Christmas and he didn't really know exactly what was going on, he enjoyed his gifts/toys, and continues to play with them on a daily basis. For the most part, he seemed to enjoy basking in the love and affection of his family members, and playing with them best of all! Perhaps he really does understand what the holidays are all about after all!!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!!

This weekend we got over 2 feet of snow in a 24 hour period...more snow than we have seen in Maryland for awhile! We spent most of Saturday inside drinking hot cocoa and baking cookies, as we watched the snow fall! After Hunter's afternoon nap, we took the opportunity to bundle him up and play outside for a bit. We slid him around on an snow tube, made a family of snow angels, and just ran around in the snow, in general. Hunter kept sticking out his tongue like he was trying to catch snowflakes on it!

Of course, there was one family member who was not overly thrilled about all that white stuff...Jack! Jack the Cat was a little miffed that he couldn't get outside on Saturday. By Sunday, the snow had stopped falling and Ryan shoveled a little kitty path for Jack on our back deck, which he was all too anxious to explore!

A Fun New Sound

Hunter has figured out how to make raspberries and now he does it all the time. Rather than calling out to us when he wakes up, we often hear him making this noise from his crib instead. He will stop in the midst of playing and start making raspberries and, of course, if we instigate it he will mimic us as well.

A Piggy Says "Oink, Oink"

This is our experience introducing solid food to Hunter. We think the videos say it all!

His very first spoonfuls of rice cereal...

Two days later, his 5th feeding of rice cereal...

First Snow

This past weekend we took Hunter to Bloom's Diary Farm to see Christopher's Train Garden. This garden was set up by a one of Ryan's soccer mates, in memory of his son who loved trains. The train garden was amazing and the stories and comments posted around the room about Christopher were truly touching.

While there, Hunter also got to meet Santa for the first time, and it just so happened that we got our first snow that day, too!

Our Little Indian

Hunter likes this sound so much that if we put our hands in front of his mouth he automatically starts making the noise!

Now, if he could just relax in front of the camera...he still stares at it mesmerized!

4 Months Old!

Yesterday was Hunter's 4 month birthday, and today he had his check-up with the doctor. He was a trooper; didn't even cry when he got his vaccinations. He now weighs 15 lbs 11 ozs and is 26.5 inches long. That's the 68th percentile for weight and 92nd for height. What a big boy!!

Hunter continues to be a complete joy to us! We are still amazed by his daily growth and development. Lately, he wants to be upright all the time, whether it's sitting up or "standing". He is now able to roll over from back to front, as well as front to back. He also loves to chew and suck on his fingers, and seems to be showing the early signs of teething. These days it's impossible to hold him against our shoulders without getting a big wet drool mark indicating his presence there. We expect to see some little teeth buds coming through in another month or so.

Hunter's motor skills have also improved. He can now reach out and grab things (though depending on the object it may take 2-3 tries before he gets a good grasp) and once he has it, he inspects it and then tries to shove it in his mouth!

He is still quite vocal, especially when lying on his changing table. That seems to be his favorite podium from which to address his minions (us)! In the mornings, he "tells" us all about his dreams from the night before and in the evenings he "tells" us all about what he did at daycare. Not a lot of vowel sounds yet, but we're sure those aren't too far off. He continues to tease us with his belly laugh. He is basically giving us sneak previews of what is to come, but isn't belly laughing consistently yet. From what we've seen, it's going to be pretty awesome though!

Here are some pics from this last month! Enjoy!

First Gobble, Gobble

Hunter's first Thanksgiving spanned just over a week! We began the weekend prior in Ocean City visiting with his Mom-mom and Pop. On Thanksgiving day, we had a lovely dinner with his Pop-pop and Granny J, then a nice visit with Faye, Jerry and Nanny. The day after Thanksgiving we spent the day in Pottstown with the Vandreys, Scotts, Wilkinsons, and Wausnocks. Hunter seemed to enjoy the visits, though was getting a little tired of his car seat. Much like his mom and dad, he doesn't seem to be a big fan of the "road warrior" holiday tradition.

Of course, we were having such a good time that we forgot to pull the camera out and take as many pictures as we would have liked. Oooops! One thing is for sure...WE HAVE SO MUCH TO BE THANKFUL FOR!!

Squealer

We definitely have a little squealer on our hands. That, or he is just appalled at all of his mommy's split ends...

A Special Delivery

As everyone knows, Hunter was not cooperative about coming out of my tummy in a timely manner and actually arrived two weeks after his due date. This tardiness was an early sign that he is indeed his father's son! Unfortunately, because of his delay, he missed meeting his Great Grandmother "Memaw" before she returned to Georgia at the end of summer. (This fact has been driving her nuts, too! She has told me on several occasions that she is green with envy because everyone else has gotten to snuggle Hunter and she hasn't even met him yet.)

Though she is several States away, it is obvious that she thinks of Hunter often. We have received several packages from her filled with blankets that she and her girlfriend Sandy have handmade for Hunter. These blankets are in several of our previous web posts because we use them daily, whether it is to put them on the floor so Hunter can play on them or to wrap him up in them so he stays warm when we are outside.

Just the other day another package showed up on our doorstep and inside was a very special blanket, named Spencer the Elephant. It is the coolest blanket that we have ever seen!! Memaw hand knitted it for Hunter and it has taken her quite a long time to complete!! She actually mentioned several times over the last few months that she didn't think she'd ever finish it and, if she did, she wouldn't have any thumbs left. (I'm happy to report that she still has use of both thumbs!)

Here are some photos of this fabulous blanket. There are also some pictures of the sweater she knitted for Hunter. He looks like he's posing as a GQ model in it! THANK YOU MEMAW...We love you MORE!