6 Months!

I hope everyone had a good Christmas. We'll have some Christmas photos soon, but for now I'd like to point out that today is Lincoln's 6-month birthday! It's been a crazy and wonderful 6 months, and Lincoln has gone from a small 7-pound newborn to a little man that can play with toys, smile and laugh with mom and dad, and is awfully close to sitting up all by himself! I can't wait for the next 6 months (and the 6 months after that, and the 6 months after that....)

Fabulous Surprises!

Just in time for Christmas, my Secret Pal sent me another fabulous package! Where to begin...instead of one pattern, I recieved two patterns - a fair isle (mult-colored) sock pattern and a felted entrelac tote pattern. There was also yarn to complete the socks - two skeins of brown and two multi-colored. I'll use both skeins of brown and one of the multi for the fair isle socks - which one would you pick? The "tropical" colors would make some cool retro socks, and the "bright" skein would be a bit more traditional. I also got a tool bag and a set of needle sizers (so I don't forget what size needle I'm using if I put a project aside for a while). There was also a set of "kitchener stitch" stitch markers. Kitchener stitch is used in socks (and sometimes sweater shoulders) in lieu of a seam. It's a bit fussy to do, and these markers provide a quick reminder of what to do....Awesome.

There was also non-knitting spoiling going on...a set of gingerbread cookie cutters, a "hand spa set", and some recipes for teething biscuits for Lincoln (and a treat for me!). Am I spoiled or what??

His Father's Eyes...

Well, the wait is over...I haven't been able to get a good picture, but Lincoln's eyes are definitely brown now. They're almost exactly the same shade as Scott's. I had been thinking for a while that they'd still turn out green like mine, but there's no doubt now. I have a brown-eyed baby!

Mmmm

Says Lincoln: "There's nothing better than a delicious bowl of unflavored tepid rice mush, except...

tepid rice mush I get to feed myself!" As you can see, Lincoln's been eating some "solids". He does about a tablespoon of rice cereal twice a day. After Christmas, he may get to try something new!


Edited to add: As I was making this posting, Lincoln was quietly playing in his jumparoo. I realized that he was playing a bit *too* quietly, and when I looked over he was fast asleep, his head leaning against the yellow tray. Keep in mind this is the same boy that *hates* taking naps. You'll be happy to know that he is now safely in his normal nap bed in the bedroom. Sleep tight, little man!

Jumparoo!!

Check out Lincoln's new toy - it's a Jumparoo. Lincoln can bounce and "hang out" in any doorway. So far, he mostly enjoys playing with the tags, although I'm sure he'll eventually learn to "bounce".

Frankenhorace

I love knitting things for Lincoln, but I've started to realize that I am not very skilled at toy knitting. Case in point - I have finished "Horace", the lovely pattern given to me by my secret pal. My "Horace" looks decidedly mouse-like, however, and has a stuffing malfunction. Lincoln doesn't seem to mind Horace's weaknesses, however...

On the other hand, I can at least do a decent Christmas stocking (here modelled by Dr. Zaius). This is a Knitpicks pattern, but I subbed the yarn, using Cascade 220 for the body and a combo of Cascade 220 and Caron Bliss for the cuff. I can't wait to fill it for candy for mysel...um, I mean Lincoln.

Sorry for not posting for a while...I was a bit under the weather last week.

One more Thanksgiving photo...

Here's a nice photo of Austyn, Lincoln's cousin. Isn't she cute? In this photo, she's hanging out with me, Lincoln, and (great!) aunt Angela.


After visiting the Kings, we went to the Hauner's where Lincoln showed off the New York onesie Mary and Randy bought in (where else?) New York. It's a little small, but I think that adds to the charm. So would you call these pants capris, culottes, clamdiggers, or something else? Whatever you call them, Lincoln always appreciates the ease and comfort of cotton pjs.

The blog post karma just didn't work...

I guess the karma generated from me making a Huskers post before the Big 12 Championship wasn't enough for Nebraska. We did our part...Lincoln was dressed head-to-toe in Husker red. Now we'll have to put that outfit in storage until January 1st.

Go Huskers!

Saturday is the Big 12 championship game, so I hope everyone out there will be rooting for Nebraska. Lincoln will be wearing his best Huskers outfit, and we'll be cheering them on from Mary and Randy's.

5 Months! and some Thanksgiving Photos...

Our baby is 5 months old today!! A friend told me there's an old saying when it comes to children: the days are long but the years are short. It's true -these past 5 months have really flown by!

As promised, here are the first Thanksgiving photos. We started our trip at the King's, where Lincoln tried to impress his grandparents by helping out at the store. As you can see, first he helped grandpa inspect the garland and then went back to the office to do some paperwork. A little while later he took a break to pose for a photo with grandma and grandpa and great-grandma Lutz. Whew - what a busy day!!

Back at home...

We're back home after a week of visiting family (and finally settling back into our routine), and I'll be posting photos from our trip over the next few days. For now, I'll show you the "toy" Lincoln fell in love with at Scott's parents' store. While he enjoyed looking at everything on the shelves, this paintbrush turned out to be a winner. The only problem? The sponge tip absorbed spit and made it possible for Lincoln to "paint" his face with saliva. Yum!!

Also, yesterday Lincoln was weighed again and he's over 13 pounds. My little man is growing up fast!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving today. Scott and I have many things to be thankful for this year - not the least of which is our beautiful baby boy (and he is thankful he gets to visit both grandparents this holiday).

My secret pal has asked me if I stay home with Lincoln. I am thankful that I am able to stay at home during the day with Lincoln, and teach an Economics class at UMKC (University of Missouri-Kansas City) two evenings a week while Scott watches the baby. I am *still* trying to finish my dissertation, but it's slowed down a bit with the baby...

So...what are you thankful for this year?

More Surprises!!!

The rest of my Secret Pal package arrived today - and it is awesome! True to her promise, my spoiler had things to spoil both me and Lincoln. First off, notice the "King" can of Pringles the Lincoln grabbed for himself. There was also a very lovely scarf pin, and a pattern and yarn for "Horace" the bear. What really impressed me, though, were the stitch markers that my secret pal made herself - the photo doesn't do them justice, but they're siver with a deep purplish red bead. They're much nicer than the yarn scraps I had been using as stitch markers.

Since I am such a selfless mommy, I've decided to make a horace bear for Lincoln before I start on the sweater for myself...

Another first caught on tape...

While Linda was in class tonight, I was lucky enough to get proof that Lincoln can roll from his back to his front. It's not the best angle, but I didn't have much time to prepare. Lincoln has now gone from tummy-to-back and from back-to-tummy, so soon he'll be rolling all around.

Lincoln gets some advice...

We visited Mary and Randy last weekend, and Randy took the opportunity to hang out with Lincoln and offer some "uncle-y" advice - or was Lincoln the one offering advice (he seems to be the one talking)? Perhaps they were having a discussion about football...Randy is an OSU fan, but we still love him. GO BIG RED!!!!!

Fall Leaves

We've been having beautiful fall weather her in Kansas City, and we decided to take advantage of all of the leaves in our yard to snap some pictures of Lincoln. As you can see, our first attempt was less than successful - Lincoln didn't like the noisy leaves very much. Attempt #2 the next day turned out much better.

Some of my knitting projects...

The grey sweater is one I've been working on for myself (Zaius couldn't resist getting in the photo). I'll finish the sleeve on the right, add a bit of length to the body, and then join the sleeves and body and knit up to the collar. It's an Elizabeth Zimmerman basic pattern, and it's been going really fast. It's made with Cascade 220 superwash wool.


The other sweater is another completed sweater for Lincoln, and is my reason for hating cotton yarn. Unlike wool, cotton is not very stretchy, so it really made my hands sore to knit with it.

Getting to know my house...

Lincoln has been having nap issues for the past few weeks. He does not want to go to sleep for naps, even though he gets very tired and overly cranky. On good days he falls asleep in his boppy after just a bit of fussiness. On bad days we have to take him somewhere in his car seat. So, whenever he falls asleep I will do whatever it takes to keep him asleep.

I have recently discovered that there are several creaky floorboards in between the TV room and the living room. I think of it as the "creaky moat", since if Lincoln is sleeping I have to jump over them to get from the living room to the kitchen or the bathroom. Funny, I never knew they were there until Lincoln arrived.

Also - Lincoln was very brave at the doctor yesterday. He had an official weight of 12 pounds 8 ounces (though I think he's a bit heavier than that), and he very much enjoyed flirting with the doctor and the nurse practitioner...he's going to be a heartbreaker some day!

A Thief is Caught!

Here's the final installment of "What will Lincoln eat?" Scott loves Pringles, and there is usually a cannister left out on our coffee table during the day. Sometimes, Scott will notice that there are a few of "his" Pringles missing, and he always blames me for the theft. Here is irrefutable proof that I am not the person responsible for the missing Pringles. Lincoln is so wiley!!

Also, today Lincoln is going in for his 4-month doctor appointment and immunizations. I'm sure he'll be a brave little boy, but there are no guarantees that I'll be a brave little mommy.

Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween!! Today is Lincoln's first Halloween. He won't be trick-or-treating this year, but he'll be wearing his costume!

Open mouth, insert foot

Here is part two of "what will Lincoln eat?" He has discovered recently that his feet make wonderful chew toys, and sometimes his toes get wrinked from being slobbered on so much. If he maintains this level of flexibility, he can always have a fallback career as a contortionist.

There is other big news today - Lincoln is 4 months old today! My little baby is growing up fast!

Watch out, little birdie!

This photo is first in a three-part series I've titled: "What will Lincoln eat next?" Lincoln loves putting things in his mouth, as this poor little red bird found out. Stay tuned to find out what else Lincoln tries to eat...

Lincoln's New Skill

Not much to say about this, except that you just need to watch the video. Lincoln does this all the time. We've been spending a lot of time lately wiping spit off of Lincoln's face.

A Visit from Grandma and Grandpa Hauner

My parents came to visit last weekend and had lots of fun spoiling Lincoln with attention. We watched Nebraska *almost* beat Texas (we were sooooo close!), and Lincoln showed off his new "talking" ability...(video to follow soon).

Company Picnic

Last weekend we travelled to Blue Springs for Scott's company picnic. Lincoln is very "distractable" at this age, and Scott and I spent most of the picnic trying to keep him calm enough to eat. True to the spirit of his "monster truck" hat, Lincoln wanted to be where the action was and eat manly hamburgers - not drink from a pansy baby bottle. Of course, even with a monster truck hat it's hard to pass for a "big boy" when you're wearing a Pooh outfit...