Baptism

Oden was baptised this past Sunday. The ceremony was held at New Life Lutheran Church in Bolingbrook. It was such an awesome experience. Oden was good for the most part. He was so excited about everyone being around, he had a hard time sitting still. While we were at the alter, I was releived when Pastor Carlson grabbed him. A break for me! I was sweating like crazy trying to keep that monkey still. The best part was when our Pastor walked Oden down the aisle and the congregation sang "Jesus loves the little children". It was just one of those moments you never forget. After church we had a luncheon at a Tommy Nevin's in Naperville. But not before the photo shoot outside. I sat Oden next to a tree in his adorable white outfit, stepped back to take a picture as he dived into the dirt! AHHH! Oh well, boys will be boys. The lunch was also nice. It was neat to have all our parents in the same room at one time. Overall, it was a great, unforgettable day. Thank you to all of our parents and grandparents who came to support us. For those of you that weren't there, I will be sending out announcements soon (so you can see him in his white cuteness). I didn't get many pictures throughout the day so .... if anyone has pictures from the ceremony/lunch I would love to have them. Let me know or you can just e-mail them, if you have a chance. THANKS!

Oden's Godfather Uncle Alex

Oden's Godmother Auntie Heather

Wrestling with Oden for a good picture!

Pre-nosedive

Who's trying to feed me lemons for lunch?!?!

Exhausted from the days events.....

Playing in the backyard at home

Yes....assisted walking is still his favorite.

New Cuteness

Hi everyone! I don't have much time before bed, but I just wanted to share some new pics. This week has been crazy so far, and it's only half way over! Preparing for Oden's baptism and party are more consuming then I originally thought it would be. It's only a few days away! Yay! It's very exciting!

Can I please go in there?

If you turn your back for a second......
.......he's getting into some kind of trouble
Oden's first football game. He's busy beating up Uncle Mikey.
Walking with Grandma, so cute.

It's not sunshine all the time ....

Here is a video of one of Oden's now famous temper tantrums. This would be the scene if you decided you were done walking him around, before he decided he was done. If you get through the first 25 seconds you can see him fake cough, and yell. It cracks me up. Sometimes I have to let him get through it by himself. I don't want him to be too spoiled! All it took was 1 minute and 46 seconds for me to cave. I'm getting better.

Quick blog before cleaning time!

This last week has been crazy! He is crawling, no scooting or flopping, CRAWLING! It's been quite an adjustment. We have to be very careful of what we leave within his reach. Even things I think he could never get to, he finds a way. His mood has definitely improved with his increased mobility. If he wants something, he can just go get it! Now I just can't wait until teething is over. He has cut his two front upper teeth, and I believe he is working on molars. Jess thinks that his two front upper teeth look big. He fears big teeth will make Oden look funny. He's funny. If this kid was missing a nose, he'd still be the cutest boy ever! He has mastered his sippy cup! His loves the juice/water cocktails I make for him. He has been resistant to eat 'real food' at dinner time. It's going to be fun trying to break him of that sweet tooth. Well, I have to go clean house now. Anyone want to come help me?......my door is always open :)

It's the Piano Man!
Here's the bottom ones.
Up close and personal. Sorry I couldn't get a good pic of the top ones.
Two of his favorites = walking and drooling!
Feeding fishes at Dee Dee's. Awesome picture by my cousin Daphne.
Dinner with my wonderful family :)

What's New

Well, he's a little over eight months old now and my how he's grown. It seems like only yesterday I could leave him on the couch, run to taco bell, the bank, and maybe do some grocery shopping, come back and he would be in the same spot. Totally kidding, but to me, the biggest change that I've seen in the little fella is his mobility. It seems like all he wants to do is get up and go. Whether it's rolling around, crawling, or his ultimate favorite, holding on to someones hands and walking, he can't or won't sit still. It's so funny how he cries the minute the old guy behind him gets tired and wants to stop walking. His futile efforts to continually move are squandered quickly by dads back. We work it out though, a little cookie here, some freeze pops when moms not looking, and we're back to smiles. He's so awesome, the way he looks at everything, new tastes, new smells, new touches, it still amazes me the surprise that newness brings to his tiny face. Soon that sense of surprise will give way to the toddler times, but for now, I'll take it. He's getting so big too. He's like a baby elephant. I mean the kid's huge, wearing 9-12 month clothes and growing out of them, the subtle but prevalent requests for more real food, and my arm, oh oh my arm how it hurts from lugging that sack of potatoes around for the last eight months. Papa needs a bow flex. No, I joke, but he's my guy, and I love him so much. I just hope that when I look back, I won't feel as if I missed something. They grow so fast and as Aerosmith says, "I don't wanna miss a thing." I just quoted Aerosmith, it's getting late, I hate that band. Well, in conclusion, time is flying within his development and he is getting more and more like a little person than a baby. I am trying to cherish the times I have with him in his fragile state and generate the most happiness I can for our small but loving family. I am blessed with alot of things, but nothing has prepared me for the joy that Tiff and Odee bring to me. None of this would be possible to enjoy without the love and support of my dolly. She is definitely the backbone of our home and she does a fabulous job of it, keep up the good work. I love you momma..... oh, and that little kid too.

8 months and I am obsessed with this boy

So here are a bunch of new Oden pictures. I am definitely obsessed with taking pictures of him. He is just so dang cute. I want to make sure I don't miss anything! Some of these pictures are from his 8 month photo shoot, others are just random. He really is getting so big. One of his front teeth is starting to cut through. I hope that explains his recent crabbiness. His new obsession is assisted walking. He will feel around until he finds your fingers and then grab them and expect you to walk him around all day. This was fun for about 5 minutes. Needless to say, anyone who has seen Oden within the last week has had a backache. We did get him a walker yesterday. Hopefully his new bumper car will detour some achy backs.

In other news, we finally planned Oden's baptism. It is going to be the last Sunday in September. His God-parents are going to be Heather and Alex. We are very excited about starting his spiritual future. We are also very fortunate to have so many great people to influence him and teach him about religion. It is going to be a very happy day. Don't worry, I will take plenty of pictures and get them on here ASAP!

Keep your sunny side up!

His first sippy cup! He doesn't quite get it yet.


Smiling in his sleep. priceless.
Trying to roll off the couch. He's crazy!
8 months old. This is one of my favorites.


His first pair of mittens! I had to get them, they were too cute!
Oden and Grandpa Dee Dee. This is a great pic.Handsome boy!

Fun in the Sun

This weekend we took our first family trip to the city. We went Saturday, and it turned out to be a great day for an adventure. It started out slightly hotter than I would've liked, but then the clouds rolled in and we were blessed with a slight breeze. We started our day at the Lincoln Park Zoo. Jess was a little disappointed in the selection of animals on display. I am willing to compromise the weak animal show for the scenic background. I love our Chicago! Oden didn't really pay attention to any of the animals. He was just happy to be outside moving around. After a mini picnic and a while walking around, we decided to walk to the beach. It is the same route my dad and deb used to take me and my sisters on when we were little. After our hike over Lake Shore Dr., we finally hit the sand. I was not at all prepared for the beach. I had envisioned Oden just dipping his feet in the sand and being done. But, we decided to go down to the water and let him play. HOLY MESS! You don't realize that sand gets everywhere! The mess was worth Oden's pure enjoyment in this new place. He loved the sand and the water. We held his hands and let him trounce through the wet sand and water. Then, we set out the picnic blanket and let him play in the sand. It was adorable how he tried so hard to keep the sand in his little hand. He would look at him hand as if to say, "Hey! Where did it go?" He repeated this for a long time. Then Jess rinsed him off in the lake. I did my best to clean the sand out of Oden and our stuff. That was awesome since I didn't bring one towel. After that we hiked back to the car, exhausted from hauling strollers and a baby all day, and drove Home Sweet Home. It was a great day with my boys. :)

Looking for some animals

"Super baby! He's the superest baby!" - Jess always says that.

Our mini picnic in the flower garden.

I'm thirsty, can I just have one sip?!

Loving the water

Cutest beach baby ever!

Showing him how to play with sand.

Family sandy toes!

Camping at Woodhaven

Oden took his first camping trip this weekend. My mom owns land in a camping community called Woodhaven. It's more like cheater camping because she has an awesome trailer. The amenities include a microwave, stove, beds, TV, etc. The water was broken though so we did have to walk to the public restrooms when needed. We went up on Thursday night with Sarah, Michael, and Marshall. My mom came there Friday night after work. Oden was definitely out of his element at first. He seemed a little "stir crazy", but then we went for lots of walks, and played at lots of parks. He loves baby swings. It was nice to get away, even if it was only for a couple days.

This is Oden all bundled up on our first morning walk to the bathrooms.

It was like 45 degrees! Freezing! Loving the swing :)
Checking out the swaying trees.

DUCKIES and HORSES

Here are some super cute pictures of Oden with all of his bath duckies. Some are from baby showers, and/or just random gifts, but most are from Grandpa Joe. He was recently staying at a hotel where they would give him a new one everyday. I guess I don't really have to tell you that he stayed there for quite a few days. Probably not fun for him, but it turned out great for Oden!!

It's a duck eat duck world!

No peep shows for you!!

I'm very serious about these ducks!

These last two pictures are of Oden on a very old rocking horse. My mom and dad made it for my cousin Joey when he was a baby. Which makes it about 26 years old. You can't see it but it says "Joey" on the back. My plan is to repaint it (not to change it, just to freshen it up), and add Oden's name somewhere. This way one day he could give it to someone in his family. I wanted to let him play on it now though, because I was told he couldn't fit on it much longer. He didn't love it. I think he's a little scared of the rocking motion by himself. I will just have to give it another go soon!

7 month pictures and random news

We have teeth people! Oden cut his two bottom teeth this past week. There are two little slits where and one little tooth is barely popping through the top of one. We're so excited! You can see him hurt himself sometimes when he is chewing on his hands. He pulls his hand out of his mouth with a quickness and makes the hurty face.

Oden also started clapping on Sunday. All we have to do is show him how, and he puts his hands together like he's known how to clap forever. It's so cute. He loves to show off too! His first performance was in front of an audience. Perhaps he's a natural born performer? Only time will tell....

Other then that, he has started eating weird baby foods. Yesterday he had Macaroni and cheese dinner, and the day before was Chicken and Broccoli. WOW, that stuff smells gross! He absolutely loves it! At this point, I think he'll eat just about anything.

Tonight Oden and I attended our first Chuck E. Cheese party. He was an angel of course, and was so amazed by all of the new sights. He still loves to watch everything so attentively.

Here are some of his 7 months pictures. He is getting so strong. Everyone says he should be crawling anytime now. I hope so!

Baby Hercules!

Mommy's cutie
Baby Monkey
Waking up from a nap
MOM! Can't I get a second to wake up!