Funny Faces and Boy Bands

 Angela here! So they say a picture is worth a thousand words, but I think my little man's facial expressions are priceless.  He cracks me up every time I get out my camera.  His personality just keeps getting more fun and exciting everyday.  And when it comes to taking a bad picture of Hudson, I usually do one of two things....I will either delete them or file them on the computer under the "Embarrassing-photos-for-Huddy's-18th-birthday-or-wedding-or-whenever-he-needs-a-reality-check."  The collection is getting larger by the week.  As his mother, I know I am bias thinking my child is just the cutest thing.  And I'm OK living in that denial.   But I just had to share these pictures.  I definitely think we can add "Gerber Baby" to his resume...

           

                 

 On the left, I call this the "seizure-look" as he can make one side look droopy.  On the right, he is trying to destroy my camera with slobber.  Below is probably the only pic that turned out good.

 I still melt over those baby blues!

Hudson has decided he thinks he can master crawling now.  He can't.  He's wobbly and clumsy, as any seven month old should be.  But this newfound strength has really made me nervous.  Lolly has this "no-walking-baby" policy in her house, aka, her grown children and their children should be moved out by the time Hudson starts to walk.  So whenever I see a crawl or walk start to develop, I do what any mom in my situation would do...I pin him to the ground.  I'm hoping this doesn't affect his ability to develop in the future.

 Stuck indoors again this weekend, I decided to recreate a boy band to entertain myself.  Huddy on the piano; Anderson on the drums.  And once baby Claire can stay awake long enough, I'm going to make her lead singer.  

Have a wonderful week!

Airplanes and Football

Angela here! It's been another crazy week in the Midwest.  It won't stop snowing!!!  Grrrr.  My work and daycare are on a delay today so I thought I would update the blog.  My little boy had a check up last week to get more immunizations.  He took it like a champ and only cried for a second.  He's 75th percentile for height and 50th for weight, happy and healthy.  The doctor approved of everything we are doing as parents...except for allowing him to eat puffs and sleep with a blanket.  Oops.  But according to daycare and the internet, you want to start giving puffs to develop fine motor skills.  As for the blanket, I can't help it if my baby gets cold.  I need a blanket at night in this subzero weather, why shouldn't he?  So I did the medically approved heavy-blanket-over-the-head test to make sure he would be OK.  We kept stacking blankets on his head to see if he would/could pull them off.  He passed with flying colors.  Genius baby.  Don't tell my pediatrician, but he will be sleeping with a blanket tonight.

Super Bowl weekend was nothing crazy at our house, mainly because Chris was sulking that the Patriot's were not playing.  Huddy still had a good time playing with a football though....

"Where is Brady? Why am I watching Manning and Wilson on tv? Why is daddy crying?"

Sunday morning, we got up early and headed to the Air Force Museum as a birthday present to Chris.  He had been bugging me for months to go, so I finally caved and said yes.  Pop volunteers at the museum, so we always hear the 'happening stories' about how cool the museum is and how crowded it always is. 

"I can't walk yet, but that doesn't mean I can't wear cool shoes."

Hudson's first airplane experience just so happened to be Air Force One.  Chris tried to "Michael Jackson" my baby in this pic and wanted to dangle him over the edge for a "better picture."  Luckily, my loud mom-voice kicked in and stopped him before he did something stupid.  

No injuries and four hours later, my two boys could not have had a better day! Hudson kept clapping at everything he saw...airplanes, engines, anybody that walked by.  Chris was in awe at everything historical he could read and teach Huddy.  My son did his father proud and listened contently as Chris rambled.  The picture on the right is where LBJ was sworn in on Air Force One.
Yes, Chris is re-enacting it.... 

This is what I like to describe as Chris 'lion-kinging' my baby.  He says Hudson will learn more if you shove his face up close to things.  I question if this is why Chris is so smart....

Again, Chris being on nerd-alert. Imitating Nixon getting off Air Force One. 

Despite the 'Michael-Jackson' and 'Lion King' moves, the museum was pretty cool.  And it was surprisingly crowded for a Sunday morning, and Super Bowl at that.  I will definitely take Huddy back when he's a little older.  It's a great place for kids.  As for Chris, he is welcome to attend every weekend if he wishes....by himself, alone, without the rest of us :)

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Video posts and Tricks

Angela here! Just wanting to update the world on how smart my son has become. Like every other mother, I tend to think my baby is a genius (I mean, he does take after me, right?!). Hudson has been so entertaining lately and is starting to have 'tricks' that he loves to show us. And he does these tricks with purpose and meaning...not at all because it's a reflex or just accidental. He clearly taught himself everything...with the help of mom of course.

Trick ONE: Hudson says 'No' - this video was taken a couple weeks ago but it just goes to show who his favorite parent is.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHryHdPYhfc&feature=youtu.be

Trick TWO: Hudson likes to clap - such a happy baby!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jACWpl7I_I

Trick THREE: He sticks out his tongue....

Sticking out his tongue AND clapping. Such talent. And his awesome hat is courteous of cousin Nate. Thanks Sam!

Trick FOUR: Starting to crawl/reach/grab. Not really a trick, but the funny thing is that his main motivation is squeaky dog toys. He loves them so much that Chris even lets him take them to school. After I apologized at daycare one day, a teacher said "Thank God. We didn't know if you knew it was a dog toy." Can you say parent-of-the-year award? Yup, we are those parents.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChvGPyju45s

Still going strong with the cloth diapers!! Never thought I'd be saying that six months later.

Today is Chris' birthday and this pretty much what we'll be doing all day. Lounging around. Huddy is sitting is the rocking chair that was Chris' when he was young. It won't stop snowing here in Dayton so the Bockelman's are headed over soon. Which means snuggle time with baby Claire and playtime for Huddy and Anderson.

                          

Stay warm everyone!!

Peas, Corn and Snow

Angela here! We now have a healthy, happy eater on our hands. Hudson passed the six month mark last week and he's already tried an array of different foods. We had to start solids a tad early because he kept grabbing our spoons or smacking his lips as he watched us ate. It seemed torturous for the little man to only have bottles. So I got out the baby blender and went to work this weekend. First on the list was avocado (no more projectile vomiting since that video), then bananas, mango, sweet potatoes, peas and corn...not all at once, of course. Huddy LOVES it all. Except for the mango, so we'll have to try that again soon. Not too shabby.

He likes to hold the spoon himself. And he's only poked his eye a couple times.

Just like his dad when it comes to eating. Messy and clumsy = no shirt

It was another snowy weekend for us. Which meant staying inside most of the time and finding things to entertain us. After 24+ hours of football banter, Lolly and I decided all the guys and dogs to get out of the house for a bit. So we bundled Huddy up and wished him farewell with Dad, Pop and the pups.

His face told me he'd rather stay indoors with mom.....

But I wasn't going to let those baby blues sucker me in. We strapped him into his winter snow swaddle that attaches to the stroller....

And according to Chris, he had a great time....still pondering if that's true  :)

Have a wonderful week!

New Cousin Claire!!!!

Hello gang!  It has been a while since I've had the time to sit down and talk to you guys!!!  It has been a busy few weeks!  The big, BIG news this week is that I have a BRAND NEW COUSIN!!!   Aunt Shannon and Uncle Drew had baby Claire on Monday morning.   I finally got to see her this weekend, and she already has more hair than I do.  :-(   But she does look super cute...and at least for now, she is a lot more laid back and relaxed than cousin Anderson!   That boy is all over the place!!!   I'm so excited to hang out with cousin Claire!!!

Other than that, things have been low key....only a New Year to celebrate, a stomach bug to get over, a wild and crazy nephew to watch, new foods to try, and a road trip to Cleveland - all while growing leaps and bounds!  It's been hard, and my moods frequently changes from super happy to whiny and unsatisfied in the blink of an eye.  It confuses the heck out of Daddy (he usually just hands me over to Mommy at that point)!!  Needless to say, I feel worn out - especially after doing Christmas twice....once in Springboro, and once with Uncle Brandon and Aunt Sam up in Cleveland.   I discovered this bouncy machine that cousin Nate had abandoned, and absolutely LOVED it!   I would bounce and bounce and bounce and if nobody was watching me, it was okay....I would just get real loud until someone looked my way!    I love it when people watch me and I am the center of attention!!!

Mommy & Daddy need to buy me this bouncy thing!

All these gifts are MINE!!!

As good as it gets....do you know how hard it is to get me, Anderson and Pop to all smile at the same time?!!?!

I got a stomach bug from day care right after New Years that I then gave to Daddy, then Mommy, then Lolly, then Pop, then Anderson, and then Aunt Shannon!  Lolly was very quick to point the finger and blame me for her ails, but she has a tendency to put on a show and make it seem like the sky is falling when she's not feeling well, so I'm not entirely sure she was even sick!   Anyway, I think these photos were taken after I had gotten better but had given the bug to Lolly & Pop.

I feel like a million bucks!

No sickness here!!!

I was also introduced to some new foods this past week. I have been given bananas, peas, mango, and squash. Mommy and Daddy have a hoor watching me eat peas - so far I am NOT a fan!  But I love the bananas ans squash!

Last week was also cousin Anderson's birthday party.   I messed up my first outfit and had to go with the backup.   I still made it work though!!!

All ready to go and celebrate cousin Anderson's birthday.

I cannot keep my arms still!!

And they're still going...

I also had my first errand run with ONLY Daddy!!   He was so much fun!  We drove all the way to Costco - Daddy's favorite store.   He said I was so well-behaved.   I never had time to make a scene..at Costco he just yapped and yapped at me as he went down each aisle.  I'm curious as to what the other shoppers who passed us by thought....b/c you know Daddy wasn't quiet about talking to me!!!   I thought it was funny....and afterwards in the car ride back home, I just started laughing and giggling.  I have no idea about what, but something was cracking me up and I couldn't stop giggling...which of course got Daddy to start laughing.  I guess I was just happy to be having a guy's day out!!!  

After all the craziness and growth spurts and upset stomachs, the best part of the past few weeks was when Daddy's New England Patriots crushed the Indianapolis Colts!    Unfortunately,  I had to go to bed before the game started, but I was rooting them on all day yesterday afternoon!

Go Patriots! Tom Brady you're so coooooollll!!!

That's all for now gang!!   Stay warm!  

Happy New Year

Angela here! Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! It's been a whirlwind at the Kemp's. We celebrated the holidays and then as everyone was headed back to work, the flu destroyed us all. Literally. Both Chris and I called into work on Friday. Everyone was bed ridden for at least a day. And it all started with my dear sweet boy. My innocent Huddy almost killed off his family. It began with smelly diapers and more projectile vomiting all New Years Day. He didn't even want to eat...which was when I knew something had to be wrong. The only upside was that he sleep 10 hours through the night. Regardless, his sickness spread through the house like wildfire. It first got Chris, then me and Lolly and lastly Pop. It even struck Aunt Shannon and cousin Anderson. Everyone is better and well now. I feel though some family members are still holding a grudge against my sweet sweet boy. Below are pictures of Christmas, pre-sickness....

Cousin Anderson and Hudson playing together.

We had a second Christmas in Cleveland with the Wilson's where Huddy got to spend some more time with cousin Hannah and cousin Nate. Hannah loves her little cousin and his "little chubby cheeks." 

  

Cousin Nate is six months older than Hudson. Both their first Christmas and they just so happened to have matching outfits. Poor Nate could only sit still for a few pictures, then he was off rolling.....

Hannah made her "Mr. Uncle Chris" a coffee mug an even personalized it with his name. Uncle Chris is her favorite uncle. He teaches her knock-knock jokes and can even list all the My Little Ponies. He has currently been instructed to start memorizing all the Flutterbye fairies per Miss Hannah.

Lastly, we spent today celebrating cousin Anderson's 2nd birthday. It's not till the 12th, but tomorrow Anderson becomes a big brother and life will get crazy for the Bockelman's. This was his last day as an only child. We can't wait to meet Miss Claire Elizabeth tomorrow!

It was a Mickey Mouse theme!

Huddy got to slobber on some toys for cousin Anderson.

Last picture of the Bockelman family of three...tomorrow there will be four!

Hope everyone has a wonderful week. There is lots to be thankful for this year!