Greek Festival

St. Louis hasn't disappointed yet with all the things to do. This weekend we went to the St. Nicholas Greek Festival. We had Greek food, gyros and ice cream with baklava, which was delicious! Then we watched a  traditional Greek dancing performance. Henry was really into the music and dancing.

Opa!

Music in the air

I recently bought a metal bowl because I always seem to be in need of another mixing bowl. However, Henry has become very attached to it. He is occupied for quite a while if I give him a drum stick, xylophone and a bowl. It has been fun watching him experiment with them and make noise. He will tap on the xylophone, smile and then look at me to see if I liked it too. Sometimes household items are more entertaining than baby toys.

This past week has been a rough one.Teething, crying, tantrums, clingy, cranky. Henry just cut his 6th tooth. So now he has 4 on the top and 2 on bottom. Only 14 more baby teeth to go!!

This picture describes the week pretty well. Henry is thinking, "Mom, you can't get me to smile. It doesn't matter what you do. I'm not going to be happy. All week."

We gave him rides in a box around the house. No smiles. 

We read books. No smiles. 

We go shopping. No smiles. 

I have to remind myself that being a mom isn't always easy. There are wonderful days, ok days, and days you can't wait to crawl into bed under the covers. But I know that being a mom is such an important role. It's a role that I love and would never trade for anything.

It reminds me of the quote by Mother Teresa "Do small things with great love."

Saturday Mornings

Saturday morning is a special time. Time for Sam and I to play with Henry. No interruptions. No errands to run. No chores yet.

Story time.

 Henry LOVES books. Given the choice Henry would spend more time looking at books than playing with toys. He loves turning the pages by himself and has a collection of favorites. We go to the library each week to check out new ones. 

Play time. 

Bubbles. Blocks. Rings. Musical toys. Toys w/ buttons. Pop-up toys. Shakers. Pots and pans. Balls. Cars. 

These are his favorites. 

Activity time. 

New sensory experiences. This one is jello with toys inside. He really liked squeezing the jello in his hands and smearing it everywhere. 

A walk in the park

I've been told repeatedly that this Missouri summer has been really mild. I agree that it hasn't been too hot, but it more humid and rainy than Kansas. When it doesn't rain, Henry and I like to go for walks in the park. He has always enjoyed the stroller rides, even when he was little. When he was teething, it was the only way to help him take his mind off the pain.

On this walk, I had given him a leaf (under close supervision because he still loves to put things in his mouth). He looked at it, turned it over a couple of times, stared at it, looked at me and then slowly started putting it in his mouth. He understands the word "no" and after he took it out of his mouth he mischievously giggled. I love this little guy.

He loves grass and has no fear of getting a little dirty.  At this park, there were only a few shady grassy areas and most of them were sloped. I set him down on top of a sloped area and he immediately started crawling as fast as he could down the slope. He keeps me on my toes!

At the park there aren't many things that Henry can do, except for swinging. I can't tell if Henry enjoys swinging or not. He seems very serious whenever he swings. I wonder what is on his mind...

Lovely Locks

When Henry was born we thought he had a lot of hair. At least in comparison with other fair haired babies.

 It was long enough that I could even put a little part in his hair after his bath.

Once he started turning his head, he created a bald spot in the back of his head but directly below it, there was lots of long hair, so he looked like he had a mullet. We weren't that fond of it, so we didn't take pictures of it.

But now that he's 10 months old his hair was starting to hang over his ears. I didn't want to pay to have it cut (and have the chance that Henry would have a melt-down during the hair cut). So I decided I would do it myself! Very ambitious, I know. I watched lots of youtube videos and finally built up enough courage to give it a try.

Sam distracted him with toys and letting him rip pieces of paper while I started trimming. Henry did really well for his age. He squirmed a bit, but it wasn't too bad. No tears and no melt-downs! I know I'm not a professional, but it was effective. I was just thinking about how much money you could save by cutting your kids hair. It could save a lot, especially if you had quite a few kids. It would be a really useful skill to learn. Maybe one day...

Investment News Article

Sam had the privilege of being interviewed for an article in the Investment News Magazine. Over the next few years they will keep in touch with him to document his progress and career. Sam is really enjoying his job as a financial planning associate. Here is Plancorp's website if you want more information about what he does.

It has been a big transition from Sam being a full-time student, working 3 jobs and involved in clubs and groups to just being a full-time employee. I love that when Sam comes home at the end of the day, he doesn't have to eat a quick dinner and start doing homework and preparing for the next test. Although he will study for the CFP exam that he'll take in March.

It's nice to spend so much more time with him and see him play with Henry. When Sam was in school it was hard to make time for date night, but now after Henry goes to bed, we can have date night every night (in our house, of course)!

Speaking of date nights, this is one that we had recently. We take turns planning our dates and this was one of my ideas. A paper airplane toss! You throw your airplane through different holes, the smaller the hole the more points it is worth. I was in the lead and Sam was 230 points behind and he said I would have to get the 200 hole and the 30 hole to get caught up (up to this point no one had been able to get the 200 hole). And then he gets the 200 and the 30 hole! He was really talented...or lucky.

Meet the Splash Pad

Splash pads are wonderful inventions. We have one within a 10 minute walk of where we live right beside a  park. Henry really likes water and playing in the little fountains. Now that he can crawl he can go explore them more freely too! This one will be nice once Henry starts walking because it has a fenced area so he can roam but not run away.

Henry is starting to develop a adventurous spirit since he started crawling. He will try to dive off couches/chairs, chase vacuum cleaners, touch dogs, splash in pools and pull himself up to standing on anything. His favorite places around the house are the bathroom (we always have to leave the door closed or else he will go in there), and the place where I keep the broom. He is fascinated with the broom, so much that I can't sweep while he's around or he'll chase it.