Mirror, Mirror.

Here's some photos we took tonight. Evan checking himself out in the mirror and giving himself kisses.

Double vision.

Kiss the baby.

Climbing the Steps

Mommy acts as a spotter, but the climbing is all Evan!


Halfway up, no looking back now!

Always a big smile for his Dad.

Welcoming committee at the top of the stairs, he made it!

Up the Steps!

I was hanging out with Evan all day yesterday. Mommy was at a shower, so it was just me and Evan home alone. We had a great day, I was even able to get him down for a nap, which amazed me. But what amazed me even more yesterday, was Evan climbing up the steps to the second floor! I thought he'd maybe go up the first or second step, then be done. This was not the case, he climbed up the first few steps and never looked back! I was right behind him the whole time, but he did it all by himself!

Some Recent Photos and Milestones

Evan's really been starting to show signs of trying to walk in the last few days. He's already let go of the furniture on two seperate occasions for Genevieve and I. When he let go in front of me, he kind of stood there for a second, legs wobbling, then plunked down on his butt. I sat there frozen just watching him, it looked like he may try to take a step, but he just landed on his butt. He can walk around if we're holding both of his hands. We do that quite a bit, and he seems to like being upright better than crawling. When he crawls now, it's so much faster than it was even a week ago. He's doing that typr of crawling where the baby's hands and knees smack against the ground. He also goes up on his tippy toes and sticks his butt up in the air as though he's about to stand up. Could be any day know...

He's not into playing with his toys so much. He'd much rather crawl around the house, opening drawers, cabinets, and doors, and seeing what's inside. Anything you wouldn't want a baby to touch, he's there. Outlets, cords, silverware on the edge of the table, sharp corners on furniture, you name it. He'd much rather explore than play with his toys...

Here's some recent photos by Mommy:

Bath Time!

Peek-A-Boo

Inauguration Day

Snowmen

The snow men were the same height as him before Christmas...

Infant to Toddler

Without a doubt, Evan is making the transition from infant to toddler right before our eyes. In the past few weeks, we've watched him go from scooting on his stomach to crawling across the floor with speed and agility. We've watched him climb up onto furniture to his feet, only to let go with only one hand holding his balance. Most noticeably, he's outgrown his infant car seat. We realized this with a little distress the other day when we were taking him out with us. The harness straps barely fit over his shoulders, and he seemed cramped and uncomfortable. So here I am in New york tonight, about to pick up his 'Toddler Seat" tomorrow morning. More later...

Guess Who's Still Awake?

Evan at 1:30am this morning.


Evan's been using the ottoman to get to his feet.


He loves the guitar, he'll crawl all the way to the other room if he sees it.

We had a long day today. Evan was up pretty early, and Mommy was up pretty late. So I took Evan downstairs to feed him and play with him for a bit while Mommy got some much needed rest. He's into everything now that he's more mobile. He's pretty much drawn to anything he's not supposed to be touching; wires, electrical sockets, christmas lights, drawers, the remote, DVDs, dog bones, you name it. I spend most of the morning watching him with the vigiliance of a Secret Service agent. I'm by no means overbearing, I just can't take my eye off him for too long, and I have to be ready to catch him in an instant when he topples over. Now that he's getting to his feet with the help of furniture, I have to spot him for those moments where he loses his balance. He's also opening and closing drawers now, usually trying to slam them shut with his fingers still inside, so I have to watch him constantly. He's acutely aware of the world around him. You can see him tyring to figure things out.

A few mornings ago, we woke up and he was staring at his fingers as sunlight came through the window. He had his hand in front of his face, wiggling his fingers, turning his hand around, looking at the back of it. I thought it was so cool, he was totally chacking out his hands. The other thing he's been doing that is new is climbing up in his crib. Yesterday was the first time. He grabbed onto the railings and pulled himself up and looked over the side, smiling at us. There's no turning back now! It won't be long before he's on his feet and running around the house.

Evan had a nap earlier this evening, but now he's wide awake. He started throwing up and we're not sure why. He's in good spirits though. We played him the the video on YouTube of Andrea Bocelli singing Elmo to sleep. It seems to make him sleepy, so we kept playing it for him. It didn't work tonight. You try to hold him and he pushes away from you like he wants to get down. I'm like, "Evan! where are you gonna go!" He's really active to say the least, even late at night. Well, it's after 2am and Mommy has just informed me that after much of a battle, Evan is finally asleep. WHEW!

Baby Mum Mums

New Developments...

In my haste to post a new entry last night, I spelled "developments" wrong. I'm sure no one noticed, but just figured I'd acknowledge the correction just incase anyone is keeping tabs. Evan has been pulling himself up onto his feet on various pieces of furniture and his Leap Frog Train.

Here's a clip:

Black & White

Sleepy Baby

I had my first sort of "Baby Emergency" yesterday morning. One of those, "I just turned my back for a second" moments. I was up early watching Evan, and I made my cup of tea, and brought him into the computer room with me so I could check e-mails. I sat him in his "Sweetpeace" swing. It's a swing that swings left to right rather than forward and back. It has a child restraint that goes over the legs, kind of like something you'd have when you go on one of the newer roller coasters. I sat him down in the seat, just two feet behind me, and clamped him in. With him being 7 months now, he's starting to figure things out. He opened the restraint and was lifting it up and down. I smiled at him and he smiled back. I turned my head bak to what I was doing on the computer and heard a horrible thud. Poor Evan was laying in a heap on the floor and even though I scooped him up right away, it was still in that tiny sliver of time between when a child falls and when they let out the biggest scream of their life. I panicked and ran him upstairs to Genevieve, holding his head. I was so worried that he had hit his head on the floor. He was wailing so hard that there was moments of silence in between so he could take a big, giant breath and let out the next one.

He seemed to be okay, mommy took him right away and he seemed to begin to calm down. I ran downstairs to call the doctor right away. They pretty much tell you these days that if the child is not visibly injured or unconscious, then they are probably okay, just look out for signs of a concussion. Within an hour or so, he seemed okay. There were no bumps or swelling, and he didn't seem to be in pain, so I guess he's okay. Today, you'd never know anything happened. He's been trying to pick himself up and is pretty good at getting to his feet with the help of some furniture or his Leap Frog Train. He's probably bumped his head a dozen times since the fall, all only seem to bother him for about a second or two, then he goes back to climbing, crawling, and getting into whatever interests him, which right now, seems to be everything.

Taking Some Steps (With Some Help From Mommy)

Here's a clip of Evan taking a few steps with Mommy. He's not walking yet, but he's always trying to pull himself up and stand while holding on to things. Daddy's very proud of him.

Photo Shoots Don't Always Go Perfectly

This is how we know when Evan's had enough...

Evan in his Baptism Outfit

Evan's 7 Month Photos

Evan at 7 Months

Evan Turns 7 Months

Evan turned 7 months yesterday. We're going to do his monthly photo shoot today and post them later on. His two bottom teeth have poke through, and we're still waiting for the top ones, which should be any day now. He's really been suffering with his gums. We also suspect he may be going through a growth spurt. He's been having trouble sleeping through the night and he's been eating quite a bit more than usual. I look at him some mornings, and I'd swear he'd gotten bigger overnight. His hair's growing in more and more every day and right now looks reddish blonde. Look for photos this evening. Until then, feast your eyes on these new shots of Elvis and Lucy!

Happy New Year!

Quiet celebration at home tonight...