Growing Up

Harrison seems to learn something new everyday.  He is quite stubborn and has satisfactorily learned how to throw a major fit (I thought that didn't happen for another year!?).  He loves to empty out drawers, play in the dog's water dish, pull all his toys off the shelves, and smear food everywhere.  But he loves to read books, play outside, twirl my hair when he's sleepy, and go for walks.  He is such a sweet and totally chill baby... most of the time! 

Hanging out with poppa 

(a rare occasion that Brian is actually home before the sun goes down)

Check out those 8 teeth!

GiGi and Grandpa sent Harrison a Radio Flyer wagon 

for his 1st birthday!

Taking a ride with Dakota

Splash!

We headed to a little splash park yesterday with some friends.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but Harrison had a blast.  He crawled around until his knees were red!  He was one tired little boy after two hours and I was sure he would nap for an eternity.  Much to my disappointment, he didn't nap AT ALL!  Needless to say, we were happy when Daddy got home last night (or at least Momma was!) 

I forgot to mention that the splash park doesn't close until October!! Yeah for warm weather!

Our Neighbor

So I have been saying that there are some big bugs here in the South.  Well, the other night, we met one of our little neighbors.  Meet Charlotte, who spends her evening spinning giant webs. 

Seriously, doesn't this thing look awful? Wonder if it's poisonous... 

Big Boy Haircut

So the time had come for Harrison to get his hair cut.  He looked slightly sloppy with hair growing over his ears!  So we hunted around B-ham for a kid friendly salon and found a great little place called Sweet & Sassy.  The kiddie salon/spa is used mainly for little girl birthday parties, complete with mini-manis/pedis! (how fun, right?!)  But they also do a special little 1st haircut package.  I was sold.  So what if he was hanging out with little girls covered in glitter making their own princess lipgloss!

Before

Goldfish and Cheerios kept him still (and happy)

Loved how his cape read "cool dude"--check out that mohawk!

After bathtime, looking like a big boy

And after his hair dried, it was right back to standing straight up

Birthday Hat

I have been busy trying to plan a little birthday gathering for Harrison's big day.  It's hard to believe he is just a few weeks shy of turning 1!  Time flies!  We went to Party City last weekend to peruse their goodies.  They had a ton of 1st birthday hats!  Harrison is totally posing in this one! I love it!  Too bad he pulled the hat off seconds after this was taken.  

Food Fight!

While Harrison thinks it's quite hilarious, I do NOT.  He has not only learned to smear his food everywhere (walls, face, hair, etc...) but he has now learned to feed the dang dog.  Dakota couldn't be happier.  She just waits patiently next to the highchair waiting for the smallest morsel of food to drop.  Lucky for her, there is constantly food dropping!  I wish I had some pictures of the messes I have cleaned, but I think I am too mad at the time to take pictures! :)

Bananas

His new "scrunch" face

McWane Science Center

Harrison and I have been on a number of outings with our new friends here in Birmingham.  Last week, we visited the McWane Science Center, which was a ton of fun.  Honestly, if I didn't have to watch Harrison every millisecond, I would probably have had a hayday by myself.  :)

Lindy and Anika 

Harrison with new girlfriend Hailey (2 days younger than the big guy)

Choo Choo

Peek!

Cole and Harrison-they both loved the water table!

 

One Foot in Front of the Other

Check out this cute little video of Harrison cruising with his toy.  He walks slightly like an old man with a walker, but it's cute anyways.  He will be picking up the ladies anytime.  

The New Kid on the Block

No, not the group... Our little Alabama surprise (who looks shockingly similar to a gummi bear!) is all of 8 weeks old.  The little pea is healthy and strong, according to yesterday's ultrasound.  Anticipated arrival date is March 18th. 

We are quite excited about this unexpected surprise.  And yes, I know we will have our hands full.  Only 10 people have told us that already!  

"What you looking at"

These pictures crack me up, so I thought I would share. 

On the Loose

Harrison is a crawling machine (it only took him forever to learn!)  We have two sets of stairs in our home here in Alabama.  Those stairs, I swear, call to him, begging him to crawl on them.  He's a maniac.  This boy eats his Wheaties! 

Quick Pics of our Alabama Home

**Be prepared, there are a TON of photos.**

This picture was taken by the previous owners, but you get the idea.

Master Bath

Master Bedroom--needs pics and decorating

Another view of Master

Spare room (and Dakota)

Spare room (for all our guests!!)

Little Man's room

Little Man's Room

Hall Bath

La Cocina

Cabinets are a little old, but it's definitely more than we had

Looking up in our backyard

The yard is fully fenced with a boatload of trees

Love it!

New washer and dryer--LOVE them! 

Playroom

Playroom again-this is supposed to be a family room

We just didn't have anymore furniture!

Looking up stairs

Living room-I love all the windows and wooden blinds

Again needs a little decorating

Looking towards dining room

I still need to take pictures of our dining room, but honestly, it's just your average dining room Nothing fancy. It was hard to spend a ton of time/money decorating this place knowing that in less than 12 months, we will be packing up and doing this whole moving thing again.  Brian, thinking he was some sort of superhero, insisted on packing and driving the 22 foot moving truck down here (getting lost on the way despite having GPS).  Midway through loading the truck, he said we will NEVER do this again by ourselves.  Thank you very much... I only said that we should hire movers 20 times.  I win!  I called the day the guys rolled out of town and arranged to have movers meet them at our AL house to "help them out."  Apparently they had all of our belongings unloaded in 1 1/2 hours.  Men and their superhero capes... 

Adventures in Alabama

We had quite the interesting drive to Alabama.  Harrison did fantastic.  There were only a few meltdowns that were easily fixed with a little Baby Einstein DVDs.  The dog, who I thought would be the biggest party-pooper, slept the entire way.  Ozzy, on the other hand, almost found a new home in Illinois.  I had gotten a prescription for kitty Xanax, thinking that would knock him out.  No such luck.  I took a video of the incessant meowing, pseudoseizure looking behavior and drooling.  It's hilarious now, but we will NEVER travel with the cat again.  Ever.  

We are mostly settled into our new house.  We are getting acquainted with our new surroundings.  I am happy to say that I have found a nearby Target and an awesome mall.  We also bought a cute baby pool for Harrison, which he adores.  I hope to take pictures of the house today and will post them soon.  For now, here are a few photos of the boy.  

Happy baby in the pool

This is his new face when he sees the camera

The oh-so-very-cool pool

Beanbags in the backyard

Hawkeye baby (in Madison)

Cormac and Harrison (last dinner out in Madison)

Cuddles with Aunt Keri -like the new couch?  :)

The army crawl

A quick video of Harrison doing his new thing... army crawling!