5 Months!

Parker got a bit cranky yesterday afternoon so I never got around to doing a 5 month photo shoot, but hopefully I will get a chance this week!  I did take a couple pictures tonight since he is officially 5 months today!  The city planted a new tree in our front yard as part of a big road construction project.  We have dubbed it the "Parker Tree" and decided it would be great for his pictures tonight.

Today is also a significant day because it was my great-grandfather's birthday.  He would have been 112 today.  That seems like a long shot to reach, but he did live to be 102!  The significance of this is that Parker's middle name is Emory, just like my great-grandpa's was, but he went by Emory.  I can't wait to tell Parker about him.  He was a really fun guy to be around and talk to.  When you've lived as long as he had there were plenty of stories to share.  I hope Parker has the same appreciation for him as I do even though they never got to meet.

At 5 months now, he is starting to do some fun new things too (in addition to what I shared in my last post!)  He has is squealing, but only rarely, I think it is just the best when he does that! He babbles a lot, which is fun too.  Sometimes it is hard to tell if he is distressed or just playing and having fun.  He is getting closer and closer to sitting up too.

He is also starting to really interact with his toys and with people.  His favorite toy of the moment is the Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Puppy.  It teaches all sorts of things and sings songs.  He will lay on the floor forever just squeezing all the buttons (maybe not intentionally yet) and chewing on it's ears.  He is becoming more aware of his surroundings and loves to turn around and look up when he is sitting on my lap.  It seems like he is learning that there is a person behind him and he wants to know who is there.  He also tries to look back when he is laying on the floor, it is quite cute.  

I am sure there are a bunch of other new things too, but it's hard to keep track of them all sometimes.  

One more shower! / Parker on the move

It is amazing how time can get away from you so fast, especially when you have a baby!  Just wanted to give a quick update of the some of the happenings at the Herrmann house!

A few weeks ago (the same day as our Twins game) the ladies at my work threw a shower for Parker and I.  He got so many fun toys and cute summer and fall outfits!

Super cute jungle cake

Look at that spread! 

Parker had fun with all the ladies that came out.  He got a bit cranky at the end, but it had been a long and stimulating day after a 4 hour ball game and a party!  Thank you so much to all my friends at work, we really appreciate your generosity!

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Parker has also been working on some new skills!  He has officially figured out where his bottle is supposed to go.  He has recognized it for a while, but recently started grabbing for it and bringing it to his mouth.  He tries holding it himself, but doesn't quite have enough coordination yet and it usually falls out pretty quickly.

He has also become quite the little mover.  He has never been one to stay still, but now we are realizing that true mobility is probably coming a bit quicker than we thought.  He is always rolling and prefers to be on his stomach.  He also likes to pivot and turn himself from side to side.  We usually keep him on a blanket upstairs because we have hardwood floors, but it's fun to let him play on the wood or tile because he can easily turn himself and even pull himself forward a bit.  The picture below illustrates just how much he can maneuver!  He started on his back head towards the bottom of the picture in the middle of the mat.  He managed to roll and turn himself between the arches, get out and turn again...Sometimes this kid just amazes me!

That's the update for now.  He is going to 5 months old tomorrow so I may have to attempt a photo shoot this afternoon!  I hope to have some more fun pictures to share soon!  

Parker's First Baseball Game

          Today was a very exciting day! Parker went to his very first baseball game!  The Twins finally got their first win on Wednesday (yesterday) so we were hoping they would keep up the pace.  We had been watching the forecast all week hoping it would be nice enough to take Parker.  We could not have asked for a more beautiful April day for outdoor baseball!  It was 56 degrees when the game started and we were in the sun.  I was hoping we would be in the shade the whole game since I can’t put sunscreen on Parker yet, but we kept him covered and facing away from the sun to protect his sensitive skin.  Within about 40 minutes we were in the shade.  I was glad for Parker’s sake, but it made it a bit chillier too.  We kept him pretty bundled up and he is a warm body anyway so it was just right!

          He was so well behaved and intrigued by everything that was going on.  He took 2 decent naps, which I was thankful for, given we were at a noisy sporting event.  He also got to see not 1, but 3 HOME RUNS!  Both Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau went yard!  That probably hasn’t happened in the same game since ’09 with all of their injuries.  (Update: I had to google this!  Last time it happened was July 6th, 2010.  That was the day before the concussion that ended the season for Morneau.)  The Twins pulled out a big come-back win after going down by 5 early.  We were so happy that Parker’s first game was a good one.  It was also a LONG game, at almost 4 hours, but he was a champ.  We can’t wait to take him again soon!

Watching with dad

Go Twins!  Great win!

Happy Easter!

It is Parker's first Easter.  We are so excited to share such a special day with him.  We went to the Easter service at our church last night.  Parker had been pretty cranky all day so we weren't sure how he was going to behave.  He must have liked the windows open and lights up because he did great!  

We gave him a bath when we got home and dressed him in his Easter jammies.  We then read the Easter story from his children's Bible as he has his bedtime bottle.  So many holidays can get over-shadowed by the commercialized stuff.  I always said I didn't want to buy (literally) into that, but its hard not to when you have a little one of your own.  I think we will always put a focus on the real meaning of Easter and still let him enjoy some of the commercial fanfare.  

He is Risen!  We will always recognize and praise that.  It is because of this that we can live and enjoy life.

I had to take some fun pictures of P in his jammies.  The green rug in his room felt like the perfect backdrop (is kind of looks like grass!)  I must thank Auntie Julie for the fun hand-me down!  I hope you all have a fabulous day celebrating!