Messing with Sasquatch

Hello gang!   Daddy here taking the reins this week - finally with some time to update the blog.  This year has been a complete BLUR - it has gone by sooooo fast!    And adding a baby into the mix, well, let's just say that I've become good friends with the Costco-size Tums containers!   Gotten a lot of emails about Hudson's avocado incident.....for all those disgusted, we're just letting you all in on the secrets of parenthood!!  

But still, we are so blessed to have a baby Kemp in the family to have and to hold and to love...and to mess around with.  :-)   This past week, Mommy and Daddy were playing with baby Hudson when I decided to mess with his cheeks for a few laughs.    

Who said parents can't have fun at baby's expense every once in a while????  C'mon, give us a break.   It was one of those days last week when we got some major snow (for Dayton) and were forced inside all day....what ELSE were we to do?!?!!?   It was so funny b/c Hudson had no idea what was going on at first.  His eyes would get all big like "Mommy, Daddy?  What in the he....?!!?!"   Then when he saw us laughing, he would start to laugh too.  Which makes us laugh even more (Huddy's laugh is a hybrid b/w Beavis & Butthead and an old man - it's quite humorous and always with a prolonged coo at the end).   

I've also begun dressing Hudson - at least more often than I used to.   So Angela wants everyone to know that if you see a picture of Hudson in an outfit that doesn't match, it was I that dressed him that day.   But in being able to dress my son, I find outfits that were given to us that Angela likes to hide in the way way back of the closet.   Thankfully, I found some dusty LSU gear (Geaux Tigers!!!).    I dusted it off, immediately slapped it on little Huddy and snapped some pictures!!!  

Hudson leaves you all today with a nice little picture he took with Santa at the mall a few weeks back.   Santa's other knee was supposed to have cousin Anderson on it, but as Anderson and his Momma came closer, Anderson realized he was way too scared of Santa to get into his lap.   So Hudson was on his own!  Hudson can already tell he's got a LOT of work to do in toughening up his cousin's backbone!!!   Merry Christmas everyone!!!!   See you in 2014!!!

Hudson's First Food! Must see video!

Angela here! It's been a very busy Saturday for the Kemp family. And I busy, I mean we're stuck indoors due to the weather. It's cold, it's wet, it rains one minute then snows the next. Good thing we have a cute baby boy to entertain us.

We decided Hudson was ready for solids. And since we had time on our hands and no where to go, why not start today! Huddy's only five months, but he's been showing all the signs that he's ready for the good stuff. He can sit up by himself, grab and hold things, and he is always interested in what we eat. So I put him in his cute overalls and Chris and I faced the unknown of new parenting....

Farmer Hud ready for the big tasting.

I decided avocado was going to be his first food. Chris and I love it, so he should too, right?!? This was the look after the first taste. Confused. Conflicted. Definitely not rice cereal...

But my boy wanted to give it a second shot...on his own turf. He grabbed the spoon and took it right to his mouth. 

"Still not sure mom..."

End result, a happy baby boy!

Ok, and now for the truth. Yes he took the spoon and tried to feed himself. And yes he was full of smiles at the end. And yes, the moment was cute and fun for the family (Lolly may debate that statement). The above pictures you see are the beginning and the end of today's big milestone. What you didn't get was the middle. Well here you go folks. Thank the lord for iPad's and YouTube! Chris and I are not afraid to disclose the truth....life isn't always what people perceive. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKTILwmj6Wo

Happy Saturday!  :)

Let it Snow!

Angela here! This past weekend was a whirlwind of snow, ice and cold weather for us Ohio folk. Hudson got to experience his first snowfall and he was in awe. Or maybe just confused. He loved looking out the window as the snow fell and the dogs played in the backyard. We ended up getting a few inches, which kept us indoors for most of the weekend.

He has this orange winter hat that is a tad too big. But it makes us laugh so we keep putting him in it.

  

                          

Helping Pop with the snowblower. Anyone worried about safety precautions?!?

  

This is Hudson's "help-me-mom-because-dad-is-about-to-do-something-that-will-make-me-cry" face. Dad wanted to make snow angels and Huddy got nervous. Luckily, mom intervened. Chris says I can be a 'fun-sucker' because I suck all the fun out of his brillant baby ideas. I'm just trying to keep my child alive.

Cousin Anderson came over to hang out on Saturday. Anderson has mastered the high-five and he wanted to show Huddy how it's done.

Hudson is in the process of mastering sitting up on his own. With toys in front of him, he can sit with the best of them. Between the nonstop rolling, sitting and feet kicking, I think I'm going to have crawling baby on my hands very soon. 

Big or small, he wants to put everything in his mouth. Chris even let him suck on a squeeky dog toy this weekend. I had to be the fun-sucker again and stop the madness. Poor Huddy. I'm praying he doesn't go to Show-and-Tell one day saying all his parents give him is dog toys.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!!

Patriots and Pilgrims

Well hello there lads and lassies!!  Oh man, am I excited to be able to blog it up again finally!!   I have been going through one of those baby growth spurts that cause me to become highly irascible, easily irritated, and dangerously easy to make boo-hoo.   Nothing would make me smile for longer than a few seconds.  Mommy says I'm overly dramatic "just like your daddy!" - but I think it was because I just haven't been seeing much of Daddy lately.  He has been coming home late these past few weeks, and it has really been a bummer!!   We've got all these little games we play - he tosses me in the air [DADDY NOTE:  a very small, gentle, doctor-and-baby-approved toss] which is SOOOOOOO much fun......or he plays peek-a-boo, or makes funny noises, or makes up new songs to sing to me, or plays "The Claw" with me.   Who needs toys when your Daddy gives you all THAT??!?!   And I've been missing all of that lately!!!   Luckily, Daddy doesn't see the late work nights lasting too much longer.   Woo hoo!!!!

But I think I am finally starting to get out of my funk.   It all started a couple weeks ago when Daddy got the entire family ready for the Big Game - we all got dressed in our New England Patriots gear in giddy anticipation for America's Team against the hated Denver Broncos!!!  

Unfortunately, Daddy turned the game off at halftime to put me to bed....with our Patriots losing 24-0.  When I woke up and heard Dad tell me that America's Team had come back to beat Peyton Manning, I was ecstatic!  Woo-hoo!!   Things were right with the world.   Yup, I knew then I was gonna be okay!

Last week, I had my first doctor's appt. since arriving in Ohio.  Of course, being a Kemp, I was given an excellent bill of health (minus the ear infection I was told I had....don't worry gang, M&D have me on some pink liquid that has made me feel a lot better) and was all smiles next to my stat board.  Also last week, I finally figured out how to roll from my back to my belly!!!  The trick now is learning how to roll in more than one direction - I can roll to my left (which I like to do over and over until I'm about to hit something!), but not my right.    Am I going to be a lefty?   Daddy sure hopes so!      

I also learned about Thanksgiving this week!   First, my teachers at daycare taught us about the turkeys and pilgrims......well, not so much teach, as let us do fun, messy activities to get our creative juices flowing!   I made two turkeys with my feet! 

We celebrated Thanksgiving day at Lolly and Pop's house, but spent Thanksgiving weekend in Louisville where I got to see all of Mommy's side of the family!!!  Once again, it was a big turnout.   There was my great-grandma Memaw, Mimi and Big Irv, Uncle Brandon and Aunt Sam.  Even Mommy's Uncle Steve and Aunt Kathy showed up with their two sons, Robert and Patrick Michael.  So many people!!    

But I was most excited to see my cousins, Hannah and Nate.  Nate is so BIG!  Uncle Brandon and Daddy were talking to each other on who would win in a fight so they put me and Nate together to see what happened.   

I don't have anything against cousin Nate, so I just stared at him.   After a while, I finally pulled his ear a bit, and Daddy thought that was enough to declare me the winner!!    Afterwards, Nate and I shook the proverbial hands and took a picture with Daddy.

All in all, it was a wonderful Thanksgiving and so much fun!   It was a shame we had to leave, but I am ready to go back whenever!   That's all for now.....it's snowing outside and I can't wait to experience my very first snow!!!   Til next time, take care y'all!!

- Hudson