SMILES ON DEMAND

Last night Mike's sister wanted to take a picture of Declan before we left her house. She pulled out her camera and Declan instantly smiled for her and she said, "Oh! He smiles on demand!" I just kind of shrugged it off. This morning I put him in his new walker and I pulled out my camera and sure enough, this is what I got.....

and then I got this.................

and then it was back to this.........

10 seconds, 2 smiling pictures...I'll enjoy it while it lasts!

3 KIDS, 2 DOGS & 1 BROTHER

Today started out terribly. Declan took his first (and hopefully last) nose dive off the bed and landed on his face. It scared me to death and it really shook him up. He spent the day being upset and clingy THE ENTIRE DAY. After two naps and being stuck in the house all morning long I decided to take him to the park. I figured since he loves to be outside and the weather was rather nice today, i thought what the heck. Our small trip to the park turned into a whole group. We called Logan to come with us and then we added Ruthie, Mya and Jason to the mix. It was a lot of fun.

This was Declan's first time in a park swing. He didn't know what to think of it.

There was NO way this kid was going to smile for me!

(Not sure if it was the bad morning or his unsureness of the swing)

Logan and Ruthie having fun with Uncle Jase

Mya and Lucky waiting for their turn to play

Logan throwing the ball for Lucky while Mya is waiting to get in Lucky's way

We threw the ball for the dogs for a little while and then we had to leave because it started to hail and we had to walk home 4 blocks. But we all had fun. Logan told me on the way home to his house, "I especially had A LOT, A LOT of fun at the park." So I'll consider the trip a success. Oh...and while I'm typing this Lucky is laying on the rug next to me and he's moving his legs like he's running (he must be dreaming about chasing a ball). Looks like everyone had a good time!

IT'S BEEN FOREVER

So I'm officially terrible at blogging...LOL. I've started a regimen of exercise and healthy eating hoping to lose the pounds I gained while being pregnant so life is definitely busy lately. Actually, I've finally decided that I need to take the time to learn how to use this program. Plus, I need to post current pics of the kiddaleewink because he's getting so big now.

Dex is now 9 months old. Where has the time gone? It's amazing this little guy has been in my life almost a year now. He's a happy baby who is social, loves to be with his cousins and is way too happy at 6 a.m. to be my kid. :)

He's now about 20 lbs. and sitting on his own. He's rolling everywhere and somedays I can get him to entertain the idea of getting on all fours until he realizes that it wasn't his idea. He's already a very determined baby and when he sees something he wants he does everything he possibly can to get it. When he learns to crawl, I am officially toast!

Here's a few random pics of what Dex has been up to.

Hanging out with Uncle Billy

Playing with Logan

Chillin' with Lucky

(which by the way...when Dex is upset about having to be in his carseat while we drive home, I ask him if he wants to go see Lucky and instantly he smiles and stops fussing - He loves this dog)

And last but not least, LOTS AND LOTS of bubble baths!!