Happy Thanksgiving!

love, Connor

Never Did I Ever ...

"10 years ago, I never thought I would be in Alabama, at a Bass Pro Shop with a baby". This was Colin's statement this morning as we strolled up to the new Bass Pro Shop in Leeds, Alabama. We don't hunt, or fish or wear camo. We did however venture out to Leeds this morning to see the newest store in town. It was more like a small city.
It is right off the interstate but the road to get there is single-lane and long and winding. It was like a state park complete with a nature trail and fishing pond. When we finally arrived at the store itself we were stunned. The parking lot was PACKED! There must have been over 500 cars. I thought about turning around and leaving right then but we decided that we would at least go in the store to see if the line was ridiculous. The line for what? SANTA of course. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday (more on that tomorrow) . . . but we couldn't pass up Santa and his "deer". Connor loved Santa and we loved the fact that we were in and out of the store in less than 15 minutes with a picture of Santa (oh and to top it all off - the pictures were free!).

99 Days Old . . .

On his 99th day in this world (Saturday), our Connor decided it was time to sit up and see everything from a new angle. Now, he can't sit up and stay up for an extended period of time on his own, but he can sit up from a reclined position and look around. Even when he is sitting in a chair, he tries to sit up even straighter! He certainly has better posture than either of us. I'll try to get a video up of him soon - but as ya'll all know, I am new to this so it may take awhile.

Connor is also talking up a storm. He is practicing spelling his name (well, that is what I think). He is stuck on the "O" but has definitely mastered that letter.

It isn't really that cold here but it has been a little windy. We picked up this hat and sweater for Connor to survive the cold weather. We hear it is very cold at home.

Stroller Shopping

So for 3 months we have been keeping Connor in his car seat and just snapping it into his stroller for our walks. Yesterday my mom decided to see if Connor was big enough to ride in the stroller without the car seat. He is still in a reclined position but really enjoyed the extra space to kick his legs and move his arms while we went shopping. I thought it would be chilly yesterday since everyone here is wearing vests or coats - but it was really just a beautiful fall day and super sunny. I hear it is freezing and snowing back home - ugggh. We are happy to be here where it is fairly warm for another whole week! We are still working on the sleeping, but I am hopeful that patience will yield long term results. We are making progress, little by little.

Click on the image to see a close up of Connor in his stroller.

Since I learned how to upload the photos with the ability to "Click to Enlarge", I went back through the blog and reloaded many of the photos so you can now enlarge many of the old photos if you want to see any of them closer up.

Happy Fall Ya'll!

Connor is really enjoying his time in Alabama. It isn't as warm as we would like, but it is definitely warmer than Maryland. Connor is really trying to sit up on his own this week. He has found his hands (actually a few weeks ago) and loves to sit up and hold his hands together. So sweet.

I have gotten to see my girls from high school and visit with old friends. So far, it has been a very relaxing trip -- although we miss Colin and Auntie Cait very much.

Connor hung out in the laundry basket today. He is too long to fit in the basket!! . . .

We think Connor may have found his lovie blanket. Look how happy he is sitting up like a big boy and cuddling with his green blanket.

Sweet Home

Connor was 3 months old on Friday and to celebrate, Connor and I flew out bright and early to Alabama so he could meet more of his family. Although I was super stressed about the flight for several weeks, I calmed down just in time for the big day. Connor was an angel on the flight and didn't cry at all! We have been visiting with relatives (namely all of Connor's great aunts) and his great grandmother as well as watching a LOT of football. Both of our teams lost this weekend but we are still having a great time. Colin misses us (so he says). . .

Since we didn't find out whether Connor was a boy or a girl before delivery day and since babies first notice the colors black and white (according to all the literature), we decorated Connor's nursery in black and white with splashes of color. Here is what his room looks like at home.

Connor has 2 beautiful handmade quilts from great friends. You may notice that he has hand and footprint frames - the handprint is missing from the picture. We tried at least 10 times to get that handprint down without Connor crushing the paper or clinching his fist. Colin and I finally got it last week - but it didn't make the picture. I was determined to get the footprint and handprint before 3 months because I was afraid that if we waited much longer the prints wouldn't fit in the frames. He is growing fast!

Connor loves his black and white. He will talk for an hour in his crib while oohing over the patterns.

Miss you Colin!

Test to Upload Photos

This is a test run to see if I can figure out how to upload a photo and then allow you to "Click to enlarge". After visiting Blogger for Dummies - lets see if it works.