Just in case you needed a laugh today...

Cole's laugh is without a doubt the best sound in the world:

You're welcome!

Gingerbread Houses

Cole and I had a great time building Gingerbread Houses with some good friends last weekend:

My adorable friend Haley, who has been spit up on by my little man several times but doesn't seem to hold a grudge:

Risa, who is rockin' the reindeer apron:

Cole is such a little flirt...he just loves these ladies!

So here we are starting our gingerbread house:

But uh-oh, Cole decides to pretend he's Godzilla...

BAM! and here's the damage:

Maybe we'll try again next year!

Bathtime!

Bathtime just might be one of my favorite times of the day!  Cole loves it so much - he splashes and kicks his feet... it's the perfect end to the day!

thinking ahead...

As excited as I am for Cole's first Christmas, it makes me even more excited to think about how much fun it's going to be a few years down the road, when he's old enough to be excited too!  I just can't wait to buy him some of these awesome gifts:

 I absolutely adore this rocking elephant.  How cute is it?!  I can just picture my little mover-and-shaker man rocking away on it - and I love that it's plush so vigorous rocking won't be quite as dangerous.

These balance bikes look like a ton of fun!

I have a small obsession with child-sized furniture - especially black leather recliners. 

This trike is heirloom quality - I love to imagine Cole pedalling away on it!

And I have a confession to make...I truly wish they made these pedal cars in MY size - but I would be torn between the fire engine and the pink cadillac.  I think the deciding factor is the bell on the fire engine - any excuse to make extra noise!

Just when you think you've got it figured out...

You know, every time I think I have this whole parenting thing figured out, something else pops up and I have the feeling of oh-my-gosh-what-am-I-doing-I-am-in-completely-over-my-head! 

I remember the first time I was alone with Cole - it was the day we came home from the hospital, and Chris and my mom went to Target to pick up a few things.  I was nursing Cole, and I remember thinking, "Wait a minute.  What if I forget what to do?  What if he starts crying and I don't know what to do?  What if I change his diaper wrong?  How is it possible that they just let us leave the hospital with this tiny little human and we didn't even have to take a test or anything to make sure we were capable?"

But slowly, I added bits of pieces of "mama knowledge" to my repetoir.  I figured out how to calm his crying, the best way to get him to sleep, what to do if there was no changing table in a bathroom.  I started feeling like I could really rock this parenting gig, feeling capable and knowledgeable.

But of course, as soon as I start to get to that step of feeling confident, Cole likes to change things up and throw a monkey wrench into all my plans. 

Lately, it's been sleep that's been an issue.  Cole doesn't like to miss anything, so he fights going to sleep.  So, like any good parent, I do whatever I can to get him asleep.  Rocking, singing, bouncing, walking, standing on my head, you name it, I'll do it if it means he'll sleep (and hence, then I can sleep).  But lo and behold, now Cole is almost completely incapable of falling asleep on his own.  

So we are working on this.  We're trying slowly to wean him off his sleep dependency by laying him down when he's still awake, and not picking him up again, even if he's crying.  But it's a fine line - I want to nurture and comfort my son, and attend to his needs, but I also need to teach him to be self-sufficient as much as possible. 

Anybody have any advice for us?  I'd love to hear how you overcome sleep difficulties!  And Chris especially would thank you for any knowledge...the boy needs his sleep! :)

Daddy Time

Since Chris has been working almost non-stop in Medford, we've hardly seen him the past six weeks.  He's finally home for a whole week - and needless to say, Cole is delighted!  No one makes him laugh like his Daddy does!

O Christmas Tree

Last year, we went to a Christmas tree farm to cut down our own Christmas tree - we had so much fun, we did it again this year!  Cole loved it, of course - he loves doing just about anything outside!  And we picked out the most gorgeous tree, perfect for Cole's first Christmas!

Cole helped us pick out our tree!