Lazy Days of Summer

Grandma McCarroll got me this COOL swing!

Peek-a-boo!

-I can't believe summer is almost gone! Where did it go? It has been SO hot that we have not been able to do much outside. Brooks sweats so bad and gets hot easily. He does not seem to mind it too much...but bothers me. My sister's wedding is coming up soon and it is outside. I pray for a cool evening so Brooks does not get too hot (wishful thinking!). He is the ring bearer, so he has been practicing riding in a wagon. I can't wait to see him in his tux!

-Brooks has eczema. Ugh! It recently flared up the worst it has been. It started out as dry spots on his legs and now developed into red "rash" on creases of his knees and elbows. Of course I am worried about food allergies again. He just has the most sensitive skin and tummy. I pray he outgrows all of this. Only time will tell. I know that I am still so blessed that this is the biggest problem I have encountered so far. I could only imagine how it must feel to have a baby who is really sick. I work with so many kids with special needs. It makes me realize how strong and special the parents are through their struggles. No matter how bad you think things are when you are going through things...there are always others who have it worse. I have learned that it is a mother's job to worry. I don't think it will ever stop. I love my little boy unconditionally and with all that I am.

Birthday Bash

Who's this cougar? I heard her name is Reese.

She noticed me! I'll put some of my moves on her.

This is her mommy...better be nice to her!

I love my daddy.

My first experience with a water park

Not too sure about it....

Playing will my buddy, Brutus, in the morning.

-This weekend was my best friend, Holly's, daughter's first birthday party. Grace is so adorable and was a champ at making a mess in her birthday cake (did not get a pic...sorry!). I can't believe Brooks will be doing the same thing in 5 months. How fun! The party was at the Carmel water park. Brooks had fun at his first kid birthday party. However, he was a little unsure of the fountains. We can't wait until he gets a little older so he will enjoy it more. He is really interested in all the kids and loves watching all the commotion around him.

-We also went to downtown Carmel for the Rock the District Festival. Brooks was a little hot..but a champ! He sat in the restaurant highchair for the first time. He looked so cute!

-Brooks loves to sit and play with toys. He usually has his buddy sitting right next to him. It will be so fun when Brooks can crawl around after him. However, not fun for us! I have SO much baby proofing to do. I'm enjoying the "sit" and play time right now.

-On a side note, Grandpa Lee had his knee replaced last week. Josh was in town to help out for the week. We missed having him around, but knew Grandpa needed him more ;) We hope Grandpa continues to recover quickly! Ouch!!

-Also, Happy Birthday to Aunt Tara!!!

7 Months Old

Hey, this sign says I am 7 months old now!

Where did the time go?

I'm so big now!

-Brooks is now 7 months old! I can hardly believe it. He is such a good baby and so fun. I love his personality and sense of humor. He is a social bug and flirt with the ladies. I guess he got that from his dad;) He is such a joy to have in our lives. I know I have said this before, but he is a blessing. We are so lucky. I just can't believe he is ours! Everything we went through was well worth it. I'd do it all over again for him.

-He is sitting better on his own to play with toys. He still falls when reaching outside his base of support...but each day keeps improving. He is not crawling, but still rolls around the floor to get his toys.

-He tried dissolvable solids for the first time! He loved them and knew exactly what to do. He even cried when they were gone. How fun! (again...tried to upload video and just can't figure this thing out!)

Weekend Full of Fun!

Another outing with mommy

This time I got to have a play date! His name is Carter.

He has fingers too!

Hey...what's so funny? He's so silly!!

My new friend is so cool! I hope we get together more often.

Long day of fun after my cousin Cameron's 13th Birthday Party

-We had a fun weekend of get togethers. Brooks got to meet his friend Carter for the second time. This time they noticed each other and were so cute together. I met Farrah (who also works for First Steps) at Traders Point Creamery. Her son Carter is 2 weeks younger than Brooks. It was so fun to see them together! I just wish they lived closer so we could get together more often to watch the boys play. We attempted to play outside, but it was WAY too hot with this heat. So, we grabbed a few photos and called it a day. Next time we plan to meet inside!

-We went to my parents home Sat afternoon for cousin Cameron's 13th birthday party. We swam and had a great dinner! I can not believe he is a teenager now! He is such a good role model for Brooks. Cameron has been invited to a National Youth Soccer Camp in August. It is an elite camp for the top 120 soccer players (for that age group) in the Nation. Wow! How cool is that?

-Brooks has started stage 2 baby foods. He seems to like them, but also seems ready for solids. He loves to grab stuff I am eating and bring it to his mouth. On Saturday he grabbed my roll and put it right into his mouth to "gum". He got off a little piece and did great. He seemed to enjoy it! I can't wait to transition to solids for good.

Girls Night Out=Daddy/Son Bonding Time

I'm just one of the guys with by belly hanging out...

Bru Bru better not take my phone!

-Last night I helped host my sister Tammy's bachelorette party (no I'm not posting any pix!). We had a great time and I would say it was a successful night when Tammy was the first one to want/need to go home:) So, that meant Brooksy got to spend the evening with daddy. This was only the second time I have not put my little guy to bed. The first was when he was 4 months old when my mom watched him for us. This was the first time Josh has put him down since I am still nursing. I really enjoy and look forward to my evening time with Brooks. It is so special. I missed him, but enjoyed my night out! He did so good for Josh. He went down without any problems. Josh said he now appreciates my "job" a little more and all that goes into it on my days off. I actually really love taking care of Brooks and being his mommy. It is such a joy. However, since his second tooth is coming through...he has been off his normal sleeping pattern. He has been getting up around 3 am for the past few nights! Ugh...that makes for a tired mommy in the morning. I think he is also off schedule still from our mini vacation and small time change. Oh well....hopefully this week will be a better one!

-Brooks finally started his baby meats. YUCK! They smell so bad. I have only tried the stage 1 chicken and gravy. He ate it...but preferred it mixed with the vegetables. I don't blame him! I think I'll just introduce all them to him once to make sure there is no allergies and then move on to stage 2 meats.

First 4th of July: Boom, Pow, Bang....

I got to hang out with my Great GPa again...he slipped me a $20!

(He's SO cool!!)

Hanging out with the boys...

My first vacation with mommy and daddy

My Great Aunt and Uncle Wehmeyer's lake house

at the Lake of the Ozarks

Side view

A view to die for!

I loved watching the birds feed on the porch

Grammy helped take good care of me

(No she did not let me have a taste!)

My first time in the lake...so cool!

I'm such a boy....I loved riding in the "mule"

Slap happy and so silly this night!

I loved the fireworks...but stayed close to mommy just in case

I loved my Great Aunt and Uncle Wehmeyer's beautiful home

My third cousins Jake and Zane were so cool!!!

I loved getting to know my second cousins Jamie and Jeff

Can you see my second tooth starting to pop?

-Where do I start? We had such a wonderful 4th of July weekend! We decided to take our first family vacation to visit Josh's aunt and uncle at their beautiful home. They have 40 acres on the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. It was a 7 hour drive from Indy. We left Wed. am and drove half way to St. Louis to visit with Josh's dad. Grandpa Lee was also helping take care of the bullies while we were at the lake. We got to hang out with Great Grandpa Postol again and then visited Grandpa Lee's work to show off our little guy. Grandpa was so proud! Brooks put on a good show and flirted with all the ladies:)

-We left for the lake on Thursday and met Josh's cousin (Jeff) and his family (Jaime, Jake and Zane) up there. We had such a great time! Despite the fact that their boat was in the shop, we sill had a blast. We got to ride super-charged jet skis (they fly up to 70mph!) and lay out on the large dock. We enjoyed ourselves by visiting with family, having a few cocktails, eating good food, hanging out on the deck with a view to die for, and watching wonderful fireworks. Josh and I felt so spoiled. We were well taken care of with all the good food and drinks! Brooks was SO amazing. I could not have asked for a better son:) He was happy the whole time and loved all the attention. He had everyone going crazy over him and his fun new tricks. He loves sticking his tongue out, shaking his head "no", and smacking his lips by opening and closing his mouth wide. I heard a few "ma ma" vocalizations this weekend as well!

-Brooks had many firsts.... He went in the lake for the first time and seemed to enjoy himself by kicking his legs. He rode on a utility vehicle (mule) for the first time and loved shaking his head in the wind. He saw fireworks for the first time and no cries! He actually seemed to enjoy them! He got to watch birds tweet while they ate from the large bird feeder. He also started to get his second tooth while on vacation. All this while smiling, laughing, and sleeping through night in pack'n'play. Can you tell I'm SO proud of our little man? He is so amazing to me. I know I'm a partial and proud mommy...but I feel so lucky that God sent me this wonderful little boy for me to be his mom. I'm so blessed to get to know him each day. I'm so proud of the little man he is becoming. I just pray I am able to always be there for him to keep safe, offer guidance when needed, and raise him to be a respectful young man. So much to look forward to...for now I am just enjoying being his mom.