30 Weeks Old

Another week done already! We are all looking forward to the three day weekend here at the Wilbanks House. We don't really have much planned, but that's okay by me. There is a Blues and BBQ festival here in North Liberty on Sunday, so if it's not too hot, maybe we go out for awhile and walk around. We haven't really done much of anything around here this week besides be fussy! Eric and I are sitting here trying to remember what we did last weekend...I really have to start taking notes or something for this blog. Oh well! On Sunday, our friends Konstantin and Deepa came over with their little boy Aiden who is 3 months younger than Max. We had a great visit and grilled out. It had been a long time since we had seen them, but now we will have to not wait that long again.

This week we have tried to get Max on a schedule and work at getting him to sleep more during the night. It hasn't been easy, and that is probably the biggest reason why there are not very many pictures this week. Our biggest problem seems to be that he is not taking good naps during the day. So, I've been trying to get him to take a good nap when we get home from daycare in the evening. Some days it works and some days it doesn't. The past two nights have been pretty good. We were giving him an extra bottle after his dinner and then his regular bottle before he went to bed. But now, we are having a problem getting him to eat his food for breakfast or dinner. I don't know what is wrong with him. It is frustrating and I constantly feel like I'm doing something wrong, but hopefully, this is just a phase. I'm hoping that with our three days at home he will get back on schedule. Things have been pretty hectic at his daycare. Our school is combining with another school and they are doing a lot of renovations. I feel really good about. They are totally remodeling the room that Max usually is in, so they moved the infants to another room. I think this might have thrown him off a little bit. But, on Tuesday, he moves back into his room that he is used to and things can get back to normal, I hope. So, to sum up this week...I'm a frustrated, tired Mommy with baby food stains on my shirt.

Max is getting stronger and stronger every day. He is pulling himself up on everything. Tonight he pulled himself up on the side of the tub while taking a bath and just stood there, shivering, banging his toy on the side of the tub. It is scary how fast they grow and change. We love every single moment we get to spend with him...even the fussy ones! 

I am going to finish this up and go to bed. I hope everyone enjoys the holiday weekend! 

Wait! Wait! Wait! Make sure you get my good side!

Looks like he's getting ready to take off running.

You can't touch this!

He is pulling himself up on everything!

He was being so silly in his exersaucer today.

Watch out ladies...that grin is gonna melt hearts!

Having such a good time playing with Mommy!

29 Weeks Old

Oh, Mighty Max! He is growing SOOOO fast!!!! We dropped the mattress in his crib last weekend and the first time we put him in he was grabbing onto the sides and trying to pull himself up. I can't believe how many changes he is going through so fast. For so long, he didn't do anything and now he is going everywhere. Tonight, he discovered the land behind the couch. We have him basically quarantined in an area between the couch and the wall. Tonight, he crawled over to his swing, then to the stairs, then back behind the couch. It's only a matter of time before he starts to venture on the tile floor and is at my feet in the kitchen. Scary!!!! He is eating so well now. He has oatmeal with fruit in the morning and a vegetable and fruit in the evening. I bought him some of those Gerber puffs today and he really likes those. It's so funny to watch him grab it, try to get it in his mouth and then move it around with his tongue until it dissolves. It keeps Eric and I entertained for awhile. 

Our biggest challenge this week has been naps. This kid goes all day some days with only a 30 minute nap. Those days are hard because then he is ready to go to bed by 7:00 and we know that he'll be up at 6 in the morning. I guess we are just going to have to get used to the fact that he will be waking up that early and we have to get ourselves in the routine of getting up too. I have been pushing Eric out of bed the past few mornings and he'll take Max downstairs, put him in the exersaucer and then fall asleep on the couch. Hey, if it let's him get a few more minutes of sleep in the morning, I guess that's how it will be done. But, I'm sure we'll get into a routine sooner or later. Right now, we are just taking it one day at a time. Max only wakes up once during the night, so I guess we are lucky in that respect. Of course, we could be luckier and he could sleep all the way through the night, but he likes to keep it interesting!

Eric and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary last weekend. Eric's mom kept Max for us and we took in a movie and a nice dinner with an even better dessert! It was nice to have time with Eric again and be able to talk without anyone distracting us. I missed Max while we were gone, but I enjoyed being able to spend that quality time with my husband! :)

Not much else going on this week. We just got finished booking our flight to Texas in September. I am so excited and pretty nervous. Max will be 10 months old when we travel and I just hope he does ok on the plane. But, we will have a fun time at the beach with my family when we are down there. I can't wait!

Daddy...why are you taking me out of my high chair?

Silly boys!

Baby Prison

He held on to this water bottle for dear life. Feel asleep with it in his mouth, but every time I would pull it out, he would wake up and reach for it.

Eventually, he fell asleep and we were able to get it away from him. The bottle is now in his bedroom and used to try to occupy him while we change his diaper.

You can see how his butt is up...he is pulling up on the side of his crib.

He played in his crib for about 40 minutes...had a good time. Hasn't thrown any toys out yet, but I'm sure it is only a matter of time.

Looking to the doorway...he heard me coming. No sneaking up on him anymore!

Playing with Katarina after the art fair

Hi, Mommy!

Mommy and her little Hawkeye!

With his cousin Ellie

Cousin Sophie

Mmmmm....that comb is good!

Such a cute picture!

He got away from me when I was changing his diaper and I just had to snap a few pictures...naked driver!

Happy Anniversary to my Mom and Dad. They will celebrate 39 years together on May 22nd. We love you!

28 Weeks Old

Wow! I can't believe how fast the weeks are flying by. I feel like I don't get anything accomplished anymore. We're doing good to get home, get fed, bathed and to bed every night! Max has had a great week. His teeth are still coming in and you can really see them when he smiles big. He still likes to chomp down on our fingers and it hurts now...those little baby teeth are sharp! He is crawling and scooting everywhere and getting in to everything! AND...this morning he started to pull himself up on the side of the bathtub. My baby is growing up so fast. This evening, Eric and I were sitting on the couch and Max was on the floor. I put my hands out and he grabbed them and pulled himself up. He then proceeded to lean on the couch and he just stood there by himself for a few minutes. Oh, it is so scary to think of him being even more mobile. But, he is growing strong and is more and more curious every day. I just love him! We've also had to make another switch-a-roo with the jammies. He is no longer in his 3-6 month pj's. I figured I shouldn't have to tug on them so hard to get them up far enough for his arms to go through and they are supposed to be long sleeved, not short sleeved. So, we got out the 6-9 month stash that has been waiting on the closet shelf. I can't believe how long he is! I remember looking at this stack of jammies and thinking that it would take my baby forever to be able to fit into them. Well, he we are! In the big jammies!

We went to take our 6 month pictures this morning. He did okay, but I could tell that he was getting tired. I can't wait to see them!

I guess not much else has been going on this week. Eric and I have been researching cameras because we want to purchase a new one and we want to get one that is better than the little point and shoot that we have. One of my co-workers let me borrow his Canon Rebel, most of the pictures on the blog this week are from that camera. I think we have it narrowed down between this one and the Nikon D90, but we haven't been able to get one in our hands yet. So, a bit more research and hopefully, we will have better pictures soon!

This weekend we are going to head over to Marion and check out the art festival and have lunch with some friends. Then, on Sunday, Eric and I will celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary. What a wonderful weekend this will be. I'm sure it will go by all too fast and we will be facing Monday too soon!

We hope everyone has a wonderful weekend...let me know what you think of the pictures!

Surprise, surprise! Max goes right to the closest cords he sees!

Aaaahhhh...he loves to chew on his giraffe!

I think he's trying to figure out how he can get to Berkley without her running away. He's not too good at the sneaking up business yet!

Ummm...what are these and how do I get them?

What does this "NO" mean?

SIMON!!!! He loves to grab the kitties!

Max standing up like a big boy!

I just thought this picture was cool!

He does NOT like to be strapped into anything, so this is the pathetic little face we get when he gets put in the high chair or the car seat....I hope he grows out of this stage soon!

He has become really good at stopping the water from going out at the end of his bath...I don't think he is ever ready to get out!

Playing with Mommy before going to bed. MOM-can you believe that he is in these jammies already?

Such a sweet boy!

Just waking up from a nap...lookin' pretty rough there, bud!

He likes it when you blow raspberries on his belly!

Happy boy!

He likes them on his neck too!

He's gonna be dancing with Mommy in no time at all!

Doin' his stretches!

Hey, Dad..

What's up?????

Now what?

Getting ready for bed.

27 Weeks Old

Whoo! I thought last week went by fast...this week absolutely flew past me! Probably because I have to work all weekend and I DON'T WANT TO!!!! But, I have to. It is the last show of the season, so we will have time to devote to other projects at work until we start programming again in September. But, enough of the boring work talk! ;)

Max and I went to the Farmer's Market in Iowa City last Saturday and met up with some friends. It was great to be out and we ran into so many people that we know. I think Max had a good time looking around and chewing on my shirt the whole time. There was a huge wet spot when I removed him and his Moby from me. But, all of the hard work paid off and he cut his first two teeth on Sunday and Monday. His two front bottom teeth are in and they are sharp little suckers. Don't know which ones are going to come next. I don't see any signs of his upper ones coming in, but he has been jamming rags, teething rings and his hands into the back of his mouth. So, who knows.

Max is almost a crawler!!! He army crawls around the living room getting to everything that I don't want him to get to. So far, his favorites to go after are shoe laces and paper. Eric and I are horrible about just taking off our shoes in front of the couch and leaving them there. No more will we do that! Motivation to break that habit is seeing your little one grab the shoe laces and go straight for the mouth. There has been one instance in which we did not catch him soon enough and I didn't realize it until I went to tie my tennis shoes. Eeeewwww! And paper...he loves to grab it and krinkle it and put it in his mouth. Whenever I pick him up from daycare, he is always grabbing the daily sheet while I'm trying to read it. Don't know what it is about paper but he loves it! We had our six month check up on Thursday and he was lying on the table, on the paper of course. He grabbed both sides in his hands and was pulling it over him like a blanket. At one point, he was sitting there and I was holding his hands so that he wouldn't grab at the paper and he just leaned forward with his mouth open...bound and determined to get at it one way or another. He's so funny!

Yes, it's true...six months has come and gone. I can't believe how much he has grown. As we were sitting in the doctor's office, I was thinking of our very first visit with Dr. Powers. Max was so teeny and just laid there while the doctor checked him out. Not today! We had a fully active little boy that just wanted to get down and explore. It's great that he is so interested in the world, but I'm not totally ready for him to be mobile. Guess I better get ready...and fast! We had a great visit/checkup. He is now 16 pounds 2 ounces (30%) and is 26.5 inches long (50%). He's just a growing. He did okay with his shots, but I think it all hit him later in the day. When I picked him up from daycare, he was not a happy camper. Just wanted to be held and was really fussy if you changed positions. I think his legs were just sore and he was tired. Poor guys...we tried for 3 hours to get him to take a nap and finally, he nursed and just fell asleep for the night. He was so exhausted. But, he slept through the night and woke up in a very happy, playful mood this morning. So, I am hoping for another all niter from the little guy tonight and then we can get up and play in the morning before I have to go to work!

Well, this Mommy is tired. It has been a cold, dreary, rainy day here in Iowa, so my bed is calling my name...loudly!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the mommies out there. You are all amazing, wonderful women and I hope you enjoy your day on Sunday!

Such a happy guy!

I just love this picture...such a great smile!

Sleepy Max...getting so big in that swing!

He enjoyed playing with the Vavra's puppy dog...he just laughed and giggled as the dog would lick his hands!

Practicing his pike position!

My cute little guy

He likes to look at his reflection in that silver thing. He loves his bath

Max with his new Rex moments before he puked all over him!

 Watching a little tv with Daddy