NINE MONTHS OLD!!!!! by Shepard

Today, I am nine months old. I am almost as old as it took to grow me. Everything is really really interesting to me. Since I have discovered crawling I just want to crawl everywhere and touch everything and pull myself up on my knees and see if I can taste it. I do not have any teeth. Mommy keeps joking that we've been blaming everything on teething for a few months now but since I don't have teeth we have to stop that. Today I went down the hall and found the air conditioning grate. It is great. I can run my fingers up it and make noises over and over and over then mommy makes me stop because of my fingers and it is metal. She wants to find me some kind of music instrument. If it is as fun as the grate, that would be nice. I like the noise it makes. When I reach out and hold on to the hearth I can stand on my own feet. It's a little scary but really fun too. Mommy and Daddy help me stand up sometimes and I shake around like Elvis (whoever that is) and then sit on my bum. I am a really good crawler and am excited about maybe walking or at least standing up more.
Here are pictures of me from Sunday when I was exploring in the den.

My favorite toys are just about anything that makes a crunchy noise or rattles and I still like to taste everything especially the remote control but mommy's afraid if I play with it one day it will end up outside or in the toilet so she doesn't let me see it much. Mostly I like to go places. I went through a growth spurt a few weeks ago when I ate a lot...even in the middle of the night! But I think I like sleeping at night more now so I don't wake up so much. Mommy seems happier about that, but she told me that she would always feed me when I'm hungry no matter what time of the day.

Here is a picture of me with my Mommy and Daddy before church. I love them a lot. I think they love me too. They are always saying it and kissing my head. I like being nine months old. I am growing and learning a lot. Next week, the doctor will tell us how I'm doing. Mommy will probably write all that stuff down here for you to read. I am ready to go crawl some more so bye bye.

Be excited. It's almost Worldwide Winthrop Day, y'all!

Gooooo Eagles!

Shepard is ready. Worldwide Winthrop Day is Saturday, March 26. All Winthrop-alum, students, fans, etc. are to wear their Winthrop shirts and take a picture of yourself wherever you are.  :) We decided to go ahead and get his pic today so we could promote the day via Facebook. Cute little eagle. Mommy is class of '97 and Daddy is class of '98. Shepard would be...class of 2032 if he chooses. 2032!!! That'll make you feel old in a hurry. He was already made famous by the Winthrop President as I relayed here.

This week, Shepard added some new skillz to his repertoire. In addition to the now-speedy crawling, he has pulled up to his FEET several times. We will be dropping that crib like it's HOT all the way to the lowest setting in the morning. The ladies at pre-school tell me that he is into everything...and trying to get out the door. Just Wednesday, he opened the one cabinet w/o a kid-proof lock and tried to unplug the fridge. Yesterday, he crawled out the door (with supervision) and went as far as the next room before he tuckered out and Ms. Pebbles carried him back. Adventurous. She said he kept looking back as if to say, "Is this ok? 'Cause I'm going!"

I don't have enough high surfaces to contain my piles of "stuff." Yikes!! I think we're going to have to get a gate too. And I need to do one more pass on the outlet cover thingies...and get our bathroom cabinets latched. In my free time. This is all happening too fast! Now, what would be awesome is if he would grow some TEETH so we could feed him energy foods instead of purees. The kid seems big enough to munch on a roast beef sandwich, but we're sticking with sweet potatoes and such for now.

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Here's my little crawling machine!

Crawl...crawl...crawling!

Here he is earlier this week...



And here he yesterday getting close to the crawl...

Quick Request

Dear Shepard,

I realize you wake up and think you're starving to death. Not that we aren't giving you plenty all day long, mind you. You are so happy at first to be awake at midnight and 4 am, crawling around the crib and talking to yourself. However, after a few minutes, you realize that it's dark and your tummy is growling and your bones are growing before your eyes. But Mama and Daddy would really love it if you could remember that we will feed you FIRST THING IN THE MORNING...lots of food...a bottle, oatmeal, yogurt, whatever you want. And armed with that knowledge, could you put yourself back to sleep?

Thanks sweetpea,

Mama and Daddy

Remember this? Sleeping blissfully?

Has it really been 8 months?

Look ma! No hands!

Here we are, perched on the edge of spring. The little guy is growing by leaps and bounds...and also seems to want to PERFORM leaps and bounds these days. He has figured out that he has some mobility and can do a combo roll-scoot-pull-army crawl maneuver to make his way around the room. His curiousity is through the roof, as he wants to touch and taste everything he can get his hands on. And boy! Is he making the reach for EVERYTHING.

My house has never seemed more scary. I found myself crawling around on all fours the other day to see what he's seeing. Let's just say, we might want to address the colony of bunnies under our sofa. And I don't mean Easter.

Toothless Grin. Looks like me (mom) as a baby here.

Last week, Shepard finally got the stomach bug and was a little pitiful for a few days, so I was able to stay home and cuddle him and make sure he got his rest. He graciously gave a touch of it to both Jerod and me, but this one didn't seem nearly as virulent as Jerod's Christmas bug. Shepard has bounced back and has taken on the appetite of a 15-year-old boy. His food intake has nearly doubled in the last three days. He's making up for last week I guess. Jerod said that he fully expected to check on him this morning and see that he'd grown two feet in the night!

We still have a few weeks before our 9-month check-up, so no new stats on his height/weight just yet.

We've definitely had some good visits recently with uncles, aunts and grandparents. We're so blessed to have such a wonderful family.

Here are some recent pics of Shepard hanging out on the floor.


Nothing like a new pair of kicks for the spring.





Still no teeth, but I seem aware that they're on their way!



A little laughter

Still catching up on video posts. Enjoy our time hanging out at the changing table. It's often where we get the best laughs!