Grandma is watching you nap as she writes this

Dear Hayden, I am not sure that I will be able to finish this before you wake up from your nap but at least I was able to upload some recent pictures of you. You continue to love bath time and I love you in your hooded duck towel.

Here you are with your first Easter Bunny. Your outfits were coordinated and you didn't seem to mind sitting in his lap at all.

Waiting in your dapper outfit to go see the Big Bunny.

Your smile melts Grandma's heart. And you smile a lot and have begun talking and get really excited when you converse. Your vocabulary is the usual for a 3 month old --"ahhh-ooooh" and "ga" etc. but we all love every word!

You began sitting in the bumbo several weeks ago. It helps you to gain control of your neck muscles. You have had excellent head control for quite awhile but this is the next step for sitting up by yourself. The pictures were taken within days of each other and you can tell that the weather could not make up its mind. In one picture you have on your plaid shorts and monkey shirt and in the next you are in your winter Steeler gear.

Easter Sunday was also a very warm day and you and Momma and Daddy spent the day at Uncle Tommy's and Aunt Debbie's house.

You met some new relatives including Uncle Brad. In poor Brad's defense you were already crying when he received you from Uncle Tommy and Aunt Debbie.

Aunt Brenda is holding you-glad she had the burp cloth! Sometimes Aunt Brenda can be a "klutzy" as Grandma so I am sure that Uncle Tommy said something about your safety!! but you look quite contented with Aunt Brenda. This was your first introduction to a family gathering and everyone wanted to meet you and hold you.

Grandma and Pappy had good times with you again and even came to visit you at your house on Easter Monday.

Then I came to stay with you while Momma and Daddy worked. Here you are in your Daddy's Garage ("cute and handy") outfit in your Bumbo and playing with the tool box that the twins, Anne Marie and Duncan, had given to you. You really like the tool box because it makes lots of sounds and music and lights up.

You like being read to and you and I have have fun reading your books together. This is a nursery rhyme book that sings, does numbers, and letters, and colors. I think your favorite part is the blinking red noseon the caterpillar. You look like you are attendong school in these pictures. The book is standing on the tray of your Bumbo. This week Grandma has been having a little trouble getting you out of the Bumbo--we may need a jumbo Bumbo.

The other night your Momma and I were sitting on the floor with you after you had done some frustrating tummy time. You were leaning back against your Momma and you suddenly used your tummy muscles to pull yourself into a sitting position. You did this over and over and your tummy muscles got quite a workout. There is only one problem, once you get into the sitting position, your head keeps you going forward so one of us had to catch you before you did a face slam into the blanket on the floor. But you are getting stronger and I don't think it will be long before you are sitting and turning over (at least from your tummy to your back because you get quite frustrated on your tummy).

When we are in the kitchen you love to talk and laugh at the giraffe on your bouncy chair. You have even started to squeal when you are laughing. So many changes in just three months.

You also carry on quite the conversation with your friend who hangs from the sunvisor on your carseat/stroller. You and I have tried to take a walk each day.

Last weekend Momma's friends from Richmond, Deb and Jess (and Jason and Troy) came to visit. You, as always, were fascinated by the turning fan blades. You all went out to lunch and visited before Momma's friends returned to Richmond.

Your Momma and Daddy went to a friend's surprise birthday party that night and I got to get you ready for bed, give your bedtime bottle, and read a beautiful book, Good Night. We actually read the book several times before you fell asleep. This weekend you and I will spend a night alone as Momma and Daddy are traveling to Maryland for another surprise birthday party. Your Daddy has a bunch of friends getting older around the same time it seems.

You have developed a strong attachment to the TV. You will even lay in your play mat and lean your head completely back to watch the TV upside down. Grandma has heard that TV is not good for children until they are 2 so she turns it off and you cannot figure out where it went. The other evening you were in your swing (you like it more now that you are almost too big for it!) and probably thought you had been given a gift--a direct line of vision to the TV. So Grandma could not help but put the remote in your swing with you.

Grandma found the sunglasses Momma had bought for you (your caps are still too big!) and we have been using them during our walks each day. Some days they stay in place and other days they are all over your head. But you are cute enough in them to be an advertisement for a sunglass company (of course Grandma is a little prejudiced).

Well love, I started this hours ago but we had a feeding and playtime and a second nap while I was writing this. Momma and Daddy are trying to get you into a routine and so far it is working out pretty well. You usually sleep until 3am and sometimes until 5 am! Every once in a while (as in last night) you wake up for a change and a snack at 1 am.

Momma is home now and you are cozy in her arms.

I love you very much Hayden Joseph and cherish each moment with you

Love

Grandma

The day of the 3 P's 3/30/2011

Yesterday your great grandparents came to visit. We started out the day in a really cute outfit with a striped shirt onesie and brown pants with a star on your bottom. The pants fit fine but the onsie was a stretch. It was not tight at all but trying to get the snaps at the bottom snapped was like trying to get a giraffe into a tutu. You are a very long child my grandson!

But you took care of that outfit with one of the first P's. Alison spoke in her blog of an explosion of words from Katie but you had an explosion of a different kind. So up the two flights of 16 steps we went to find you another outfit for your visit. Grandma had just gotten everything in place when there was the sound of perhaps another explosion. But she was prepared or so she thought as she had another onesie downstairs and figured she had caught everything in time. In the changing process, Grandma had you positioned to put the second diaper on when you decided that immersing your new onesie and "bulldog" jacket in liquid would be pretty funny. So up the stairs we went again and Grandma carried you and half of your wardrobe back downstairs. Thus you ended up visiting with your great grandparents in the outfit that finally made the grade for the day but not before a fourth blow out. We had a good time with Great grandma and Pappy as you will see in pictures farther below.

When I came back from the conference on Sunday, you had outsmarted your Momma and Daddy regarding tummy time. You just decided the heck with it and went to sleep on your stomach. Of course we were all checking on you every 5 seconds to make sure you were doing okay but you slept like a babe--oh yes, you are still a baby!

Your smile and sweet "words" make everyone smile with you.

Check out the dimple!

Here you are when you decided to join the Winnie the Pooh gang for a day or so.

You have just this week learned how to grasp toys and the swinging toys on the play mat. You love to kick and hit the bee, zebra, butterfly and when you get your hand in the rings of the hanging toys, you get this look that says 'what now?' Grandma.

Here are more pictures with your visit with your great grandparents. We are so blessed to have them come to visit and play with you. Your great grandparents remain very healthy and keep very busy with all of their volunteering and other events with their friends and family.

Great grandma originally had you in her right arm but, like Grandma, she likes your head to lay on her left arm. Trouble was, you were too long and a little heavy for Great grandma to get you from one side to the other. But Pappy and I helped her and as you can see you loved having her hold you.

Just one more picture of you batting the toys about in your (Katie's) play mat/yard. Each day you spend more and more time there and discover new activities that cause you to smile and talk, and talk, and talk. You said Mama yesterday but we pretty much know that it probably wasn't the first word of your vocabulary and most likely just an accidental combination as you try new sounds.

Here lie the remanants of the day of the 3 P's. Neither you nor Grandma smelled like a rose by the end of the day. I had 1/4th of an inch between my shirt cuff and my skin and you managed to do the 3rd P straight down the cuff after you ate. Nice aim baby boy! Still not sure how you perfected that move.

Another fun time with Momma--so many changes in such a short period of time.

You love to stick your tongue out which seems to fascinate you a bunch and makes Grandma smile and want to stick her tongue back out at you but she restrains herself (most of the time) in the interest of your further childhood development.

This is your Eric Carle The Very Hungry Caterpillar sleeper. The Hungry Caterpillar crawls all around the sleeper. Your Momma loves the Very Hungry Caterpillar book and you will be listening to it many times I am sure.

And finally here you are in your official prison stripe sleeper--too cute for words. You love it because it is so comfortable and was a great gift from Cousin Sarah.

Grandma must leave much too soon in order to return to work. She will miss you very much. She will have vivid memories of your antics with the 3 P's --did I tell you that you hosed Grandma down last week? You made her think that your diaper needed to be changed but it was dry, so Grandma went to put the diaper back in place and HELLO from Hayden.

I will miss your smiles, your coos and being able to hold and feed my sweet grandbaby and will leave with tears in my eyes. I will be back soon to love on you so such more and enjoy each moment with you. So many joyful memories to treasure.

Love

Grandma

Changing Every Day

Dear Hayden--we had quite the week for Grandma's first week of being with you while Momma and Daddy were at work. The picture above shows you at your most peaceful. It is hard to believe that such an angel could raise enough ruckus that Grandma was afraid the neighbors were going to call someone to come rescue you. Lesson learned was that when you start making movements and "muttering" in your sleep--Grandma needs to run and get the milk warmed and in a bottle pronto. You are a demand feeder--when you demand, you expect the product to be presented!

Here you are in one of your favorite things--the play yard. You now are tracking and swinging away and seem to feel quite proud when you make the singing bee swing or the rattle swing. Thank you Katie for lending Hayden your play yard!

You have developed significant head control as demonstrated in this photo. You do not like tummy time on a blanket but do consider this position on your Daddy's leg to be the perfect place to perch and practice your neck muscle use.

And you have developed a real smile which just brings big smiles from Momma, Daddy and Grandma. You are a happy baby as long as you get changed and fed promptly (and you have redifined prompt), are being held to go to sleep, are playing or are in your bathtub. You really love bath time.

When you get sleepy but are fighting going to sleep, you tend to suck on anything that happens to be available. You particularly like arms to suck on. And you will suck and suck and suck until all of us have strange red marks on our arms. Eventually however you slip into your world of dreams.

You love to play after you eat. You are really liking the light up toys that play music. Your attention span is still short but easily entertained. You have really started talking and telling lengthy tales, and you do expect those listening to respond to your tales. It is amazing to me how much you have changed in just a couple of weeks.

You go for your 2 month check up (and shots) this Friday. Grandma is wondering if there is such a thing as the 150th percentile for height and weight?) You have chubby cheeks, several rolls on your thighs, and a tummy that all beg for Grandma's kisses and "raspberries".

Here you are in your camos in your bouncer in the kitchen. You have pretty much decided you don't like the swing and you may be getting to its weight limit pretty soon. During Grandma's first week, when you were fussy and not due for a feeding, Grandma tried the Mobey carrier. Alison and Pat and Katie had given me lessons as had your Momma. By the time I finally got you out of the Mobey which did not soothe you (might of had something to do with Grandma's technique), we both looked like we were in the Cirque de Chaos with yards of material everywhere.

Gotta run for now. I think you need changed

Love

Grandma