happy EARLY birthday!

We gave Drew his birthday present early - I think he likes it!

Later that night, after his bath, he got to sit in his new chair and watch some Baby Einstein. Sleepy boy!!

Drew has had a cough the past week and has been cooped up in the house. Luckily, he seemed to be feeling much better today, so we took him to ImaginOn (the children's library in Charlotte), and it was really cool! He met some other babies and loved the toddler section! We'll definitely be taking him back there soon. They even have story times that I'm sure he'd like.

Then he got changed into his NC State gear for the UNC-NC State basketball game. He made sure his chair would be comfortable to watch the game in. (Too bad he napped during the actual game.)

Then he practiced his jumpshot. He may eat left handed, but he throws and shoots right handed!

Father-son bonding IN THE DIRT!

Good thing Drew's birthday is coming up... he doesn't have enough toys!! Yeah right! I was sweeping the floors, so I had to put all his toys on the rug, and he decided to get in the middle of them all. I LOVED this outfit on Drew and had to get a couple pictures.
Happy guy!

Chad watched Drew while I was at work the other day. Look at how much fun Drew had outside in the dirt and leaves!! (And yes, this is a true Daddy-Son moment as Drew has NO shoes or socks and just a t-shirt and is eating dirt!! haha! I love it!)

I think the average age for boys to start walking is about 12 months, so I think Drew has a goal set. He has started letting go and just standing there a whole bunch lately. He has taken a couple steps as he's falling down, but no REAL walking yet. It won't be long!

Drew at Childwatch

One of the girls that works in the Childwatch center at the YMCA took some pictures of the kids, and she sent some to me. Here's what Drew does while I work!

Here's Drew with Fiona. Her mommy is a gymnastics coach too! She's one month younger than him.

Drew's first snow (flurry)!!

They were calling for 3 to 5 inches of snow last night... and we got a DUSTING of snow! But, that's enough to try out his snowsuit, right?? He could hardly move with all his layers on, but I think he thought the snow was pretty neat!

Drew is feeding himself!

Our house is hot upstairs, but chilly downstairs - so Drew wears his slippers that Aunt Sarah got him for Christmas!

On Sunday night, Drew had a fever and was really restless. We put his Baby Einstein dvd on, and he sat real still and finally relaxed. He LOVES this video! This isn't a great picture, but it was so cute how Charlie was concerned about Drew (or maybe he just wanted to be petted).

Saturday afternoon we went to Drew's cousin, Sawyer's, first birthday party. It had a Micky Mouse theme and Sawyer was dressed up as Mickey! Too cute!

Drew hung out with Granddad and played with his balloon at the party!

Chad was putting the bowl on Drew's head like a hat a few days ago... and then Drew decided to do it himself! He's learning a lot right now - and likes to copy things. My favorite is when he copies us when we sigh. He'll open his mouth and breathe out real loud! Here he is putting on his bowl hat!

Drew has been reaching for the spoon, but still being a very neat eater (if you've seen him eat, you know what I'm talking about - he opens his mouth real big and doesn't make any mess. We don't even use a bib most times.) BUT, he's been showing signs that he wants to do it himself, so I put some food on the spon and let him have at it. He did surprisingly well!!

Drew's out and about

Over the weekend, we went to Chili's and we were amazed at how good Drew was! He was really hungry, so he ate his finger foods (Cheerios, rice cakes, and puffs) the WHOLE time. And he had to turn around to smile and wave at the family beside us. The dad looked a lot like Drew's Uncle Marc, so I think that's why he kept having to turn to stare.



I took Drew to the park by our house, and he had a lot of fun! He'd only been on the slides and swings before, but we played with all the stuff this time - even the dirt! And another mom and her kids were there, and Drew got to pet their dog, Buckley. It looked like the dog on Frasier - very cute!! I'm thinking that Drew will need a puppy dog someday!!

Introducing a spoon and a toothbrush!

Drew has been getting more experience with different finger foods. He was eating green beans this time. And then I handed him a spoon - and he seemed to know what to do!

If we put our hands out or say "I dunno," Drew will turn his hands up too. I think he does it for "uh oh" too - and he'll say "uhh" but no "uh OH" yet.


He loves books, and this one is especially cool b/c it reads aloud to him and sings! And the pages make a sound when he turns the page, so that's fun too.

Since this guy has 8 big 'ol teeth, we've decided to introduce him to a good dental hygiene routine. He has his first toothbrush and some Elmo toothpaste and is trying to figure it all out!

Peekaboo!

Drew has started playing games now, and it's so funny! Here's a video of him playing Peekaboo with Chad. Then later that night, he would shoot a basketball and then crawl to Chad, shoot a basketball and crawl to me - and he was going back and forth!

Happy New Year!

Drew was a perfect baby on New Year's Eve, and went right to bed after his last feeding. This, of course, allowed us to test out our new Wii! It was so much fun! Even Simon got involved - he kept looking at the wall and down the hall to see what we were throwing!

We are working on the word "nose." I point to my nose and then to his nose, and then we put our noses together! This is one of the few times that he'll be real gentle and not flap his arms in excitement.
Drew's typical pose - loves the windows! I'm sure they could use a good washing!

We've been enjoying the nice weather this week!

Drew likes his sports toy from Uncle Grant and Aunt Sherry! He's good at dunking the basketball!

And, just for fun, I took another picture of Drew in his big rocking chair. But first, here are earlier pictures to compare it to.

3 1/2 months old

6 1/2 months old

10 1/2 months old