Just a Few Pics

New Toy

Graham has been eyeing the TV remote over the past few weeks. Whenever he is close to it he reaches for it and wants to touch it. Here was one of the first times he was close enough to really get to it. He was really interested in all the colors and buttons on it!! :)

Date Night

This past weekend Eric & I went out on a date to celebrate my birthday. Our good friends Mike & Renee volunteered to watch Graham for us. We had an excellent time going shopping and then eating dinner out at Bravo. Graham seemed to have a fun time with them as well. He loved playing with their children, Lauren & Andrew. Here's a couple pictures of him and Lauren.

Tickle Time

Graham & Daddy spent some time together last night while getting Graham ready for bed. Once again he was squealing with laughter, but once the camera comes out he's not nearly as talkative! :)

More Push-ups!

Graham continues to build his strength. He is constantly doing 'push-up's', holding his upper body off the ground. He is also pushing up on his knees building up his leg strength. He's had a couple of times where he coordinates the two motions and gets his whole abdomen off the ground. We'll probably just wake up one morning and he'll have learned how to crawl!

Oh, and the bear he's looking at is still his favorite toy. The bear plays music while his nose flashes. When you turn him on, Graham looks at him and flashes a huge smile! He would be happy with just his bear!

Baby Wearing

Our good friends Mike & Renee were kind enough to let us borrow their Snugli carrier. We were thinking this might be a good thing to pack for our trip to Arizona in case we want to do any hiking while we're out there! We tried it out this weekend and Graham seemed to like it alright. He wasn't sure at first, but he seemed to enjoy it later.

Mozart??

Is 6 months too young to start giving Graham piano lessons? He sure seems interested in the piano...at least his toy piano. Just this week he's begun to play with it a lot. One morning I was holding him and showing him how it worked. I don't think he even played it once. That afternoon he saw it and started playing it with no problems. Since then he's loved playing his piano. How quickly he learns! He also enjoys checking himself out in the mirror that's on it!

Roll Over

Here's a quick video clip of Graham's latest trick...rolling over from his back to his tummy! He's quite good at this now and can do it at will. It's amazing how one day he wasn't able to do this and then the next day he had no problems with it! They grow up so fast!

Also...Graham wanted to wish his Grandpa Lowery a very Happy Birthday!! :)

Gummin

It seems that everything is going straight into the mouth these days. Whether it be a finger, hand, sleeve, arm, washcloth or toy. The item goes very quickly to the mouth! We can see the tiny start of his two bottom teeth, however it's anyones guess as to how long until the teeth actually break through. To go along with constantly having a toy in his mouth is the never ending supply of drool! Thankfully he isn't experiencing too much pain if this really is teething!

Sleeping Baby

I love to watch Graham sleep. He seems so sweet, peaceful & innocent! I pray that he stays that way always! :) Here's a few recent pictures that I've snapped of him sleeping. Thankfully the flash doesn't seem to wake him!

Doesn't he look huge in this picture?? I can't get over how big he's getting!

More Giggles

Here's another laughing video...we just love this little guy! :)

Precious Giggles

Graham is giggling so much these days. We love his sweet precious laugh! Here's just a short clip with him laughing. I have a few more clips that I'll be adding over the next few days (hopefully!).

Thank You!!

Thanks Ed & Liz Burk for my adorable monkey outfit!! Mommy says I'm her little monkey, so it's very fitting. It fits me perfectly right now and I should be able to wear it all spring and into the summer! Can't wait to see you again!

Look at Me....

I'm flying!! :) Graham must of taken to heart that we were literally flying to Arizona in May so he's been hard at work practicing his flying skills. He loves to lay on his tummy now (it's hard to keep him on his back during diaper changes, bathtime, etc). He will lift his legs up and stretch out his arms as seen in this picture. He's also big into completely lifting his chest off the floor and then after he lowers his chest lifting his butt up into the air. Won't be long until he can us his legs and knees to lift his whole body off the floor...and then he will be off to the races!


Don't mind the drool in this picture...we're used to it here! Graham has been drooling up a storm lately. He has several signs of teething, however we're still not sure if that's what it is or not. We don't think he's currently cutting a tooth, but I'm guessing that his teeth are affecting him a little! Thankfully he's still been his happy self. But, Daddy was helping Graham to really be able to fly!

New Sleeping Position

Graham has a new sleeping position...his belly! Since he learned to roll over last week, he is now allowed to sleep on his tummy if he wants. The first two nights after learning his new trick he would have a hard time going to sleep. He would flip to his tummy and then get upset about being on his tummy! It seemed like he forgot that he knew how to roll back the other way! So, we had a couple of times where we had to go in and 'save' him by flipping him over. However, after two days he figured out that sleeping on his tummy felt good! Since then there hasn't been a wake up, whether from naps or in the morning, where he isn't on his tummy!

Daddy's Favorite Time of the Day!

Eric's favorite time each day is Graham's bath time. Graham starts to get fussy in the evenings when he is getting tired. However, as soon as you pull his bath towel out and start getting him ready for his bath he immediately starts to flash some of the biggest and brightest smiles. He completely stops fussing and is super happy that it's time for his bath. Every night Eric gets him ready for his bath and loves the time he spends with Graham, and enjoys those smiles! Here's a couple of pictures from bath time the other night.

Living up to the Name!

Graham is living up to his name, Armstrong!! He's gaining arm strength everyday, especially now that he is always rolling unto his belly! Here he is working on doing some push-ups, ok, really he's just doing a good job of holding his chest up! It's amazing to see how much he grows and changes everyday, although I'm starting to get a little scared about how my life is going to change here in a couple of months once Graham starts crawling!! He's going to be in to everything! :)

Battle of the Wills

Since about four weeks old we have given Graham a bottle a couple times a week. We wanted to make sure that he would take a bottle in case of emergencies, or if the time arose that I was out and he needed to be fed. He always did alright taking a bottle, although he definitely preferred to be breastfed. A couple of weeks ago he went on a bottle strike. He would not take a bottle. He kicked and screamed and really threw a fit if we attempted to give him a bottle. Since he was sick we didn't fight him and decided to just breastfeed him during that time. This past week though we battled it out....Graham's will vs. Mommy's will. Guess who won? Well, the one who should win, Mommy! :) It took a crying session without being consoled (since the crying was due to not wanting the bottle) and persistence. After about 25 minutes he gave in and slowly took the bottle. He finished just about 5 ounces that feeding (which is a typical bottle feeding for him). Since then we've given him several bottles....each time has been less of a fight with him taking a bottle with no problems on Friday. The bottle strike is officially over!

Friends

Eric and I feel blessed to have found quite a few like-minded friends in our church, Hope Church. We are enjoying fellowshipping with them on Sundays and at our weekly Bible Study. With me now staying home with Graham we are also taking advantage of getting together with other moms & their children. This past week we had a few friends from Bible Study over for a playdate. Graham had fun watching all the older children play and was very interested in watching Margaret, who is just about two months younger than him. Here they are propped up for a picture!

It's Official....

Graham can now roll over from his back to tummy and also from his tummy to back. Yesterday he finally figured out how to roll from his back to tummy after being able to go the other way since being only 5 weeks old. Once he figured it out he kept doing it. I even found him this morning in his crib on his tummy and not happy! :) He hasn't quite figured out that he could roll across the floor, but I'm sure that's coming soon enough! Way to go Graham!

These pictures have nothing to do with him rolling over, we're working on catching that on camera....but these are just some recent pics.

Reading Time

Graham spends some time each day reading books with either his Mommy or Daddy. He's showing more and more interest in the books and settles right down to read them. Usually he'll last through three or four books before being ready to move onto something more active. However, he's happy to return later in the day for more reading. One of our favorites to read is Clifford's Big Red Dog!

Naptime

Getting Graham up from his naps is one of my favorite things to do during the day. Normally when he wakes up, I will just hear some soft sounds coming from his room. He'll normally talk, squirm and wiggle about until I come to get him. Often he will just softly 'goo & boo', his two favorite words to say. When I enter the room he flashes me a huge smile and is thrilled to see me. It always brightens my day and brings a smile to my face!

Highchair

This past weekend we got out Graham's highchair. We decided that it was time that he sat at the table during meals and got used to 'eating' with the family. He isn't quite sure about mealtime. He would rather be off playing somewhere else. But, he does like getting to have a spoon and bowl to play with while Mommy & Daddy eat. He also likes being able to look all around. Sam, the cat, is also starting to think that maybe having a baby in the house isn't all so bad. He realizes that someday the baby will be eating and he will be able to sneak food from him!

This picture was taken immediately after putting Graham in his highchair for the first time. His face tells it all...'What is this contraption and why am I in it??'.

Hanging Out

Graham is loving the whole new perspective he is getting of his world. He likes to sit up (with support) and see everything going on around him. If he's not sitting, he likes to be standing in his exersaucer or with Mommy & Daddy's help. We're noticing how his muscles are getting stronger and sturdier with all of this practice. Soon our life of an non-mobile child will be over and Graham will be on the go!

Father/Son Time

Eric & Graham love to spend lots of time together on the weekends. During the weeks they don't get to see each other too much due to Graham's early bedtime. However, they catch up with all the lost time every weekend. Here were a few special moments from this past weekend.

Stuck

Graham has become very interested in trying to roll over from his back to his tummy. He accomplished rolling over from his tummy to his back when he was just five weeks old, however he has yet to go the other direction. It seems like every time I put him on his back he instantly rolls over to his side and can get his legs flipped over but not his upper body. He then gets stuck in this position! He'll lay there contently for a couple of minutes before he gets frustrated and turns to crying because he can't move in either direction! Soon enough he'll have this figured out and then our little guy will be rolling all over the place!

Bubble Bath

Graham had his first bubble bath on Sunday night. He wasn't quite sure what to think of all the bubbles, but he quickly adjusted and went back to his favorite bathtime pass time...sucking on his fist! Graham still loves his baths and looks forward to them each night! He definitely seems soothed, relaxed and ready for bed as soon as the bath is over!