August 2016 Recap

I've already written about a number of our August adventures, so here's a quick post with a few more pictures that fell through the cracks. You may notice fewer photos in my monthly recaps, at least for a bit. We visited a number of our usual places, Jon and Matt went out on their own a number of times, and I often just had my hands too full to snap as many shots. But hopefully there are still enough to enjoy!

Some events:

Listening to music at a library-sponsored concert (and it took a little persuading to get him into the performance)

With his puppy ears at an outdoor storytime

At the library

Inside fun:

Lining up animal figures

Sick day

Puzzle fun (Matt has pretty much mastered 24-piece puzzles and is moving on to 30+-piece puzzles. He still loves his puzzles!)

Mr. Potato Head getting a makeover

Hooking up his trains

Building tall, tall towers out of his Duplos (Matt has really gotten into these this month, which is good because we have quite the collection of these, more than enough for both boys to build tall towers side by side when Andy gets to that point. But right now Andy just watches and gets startled at the inevitable tumbling down.)

With Dada's "robot eyes," or virtual reality goggles, watching some fish

Outside fun:

 

Digging in the yard (so far no dinosaur bones or footprints located, much to his disappointment)

Hitting the ball

On a hike with Dada

At the playground: "Did you want to sit right there?"

And one more photo from this past month:

With his turkey feather collection (two wing feathers and one tail feather, all found in our yard)

Andrew's Week 5

Andy had his 5-week appointment today. He weighed in at 13 lbs. 1.8 oz. (The nurse said, "Hello, big boy!" as soon as the scale clearly indicated he'd be over 13 lbs.) He measured 23.5 inches, although he was very squirmy, so the length measurements may not be entirely accurate. That said, last week Andy was wearing 3 month clothes, but when he hit one month old I swapped them out for his 3-6 month outfits. So he has definitely grown in length as well as in width. In any case, the nurse practitioner proclaimed him a very healthy, strong baby.

After only a little thought, Andy agrees.

This past week we went to the playground, Andy accompanied me to a board meeting, and Matt had a program at another playground. We also had some friends visit Sunday evening. Andy slept through most of those things, although he was awake for the two toddlers terrorizing the toys on Sunday. He needed a nice relaxing bubble bath after that to calm down before bed!

Some photos from this past week:

Little brother 

Working on his strength

Tiny (well, maybe not quite so tiny) toes

Sleeping peacefully

Hanging out on his back

Squishy face during sleeping

Being a digger man

Rooting for the home team

Happy 1-Month Birthday, Andy!

Today Andy is 1 month old. He continues to be a happy, healthy little guy. He enjoys baths, especially alongside his big brother, listening to (short) books, napping with Dada, and "talking" with Mama. Since he usually sleeps while we are out and about but is awake at home, maybe he is a bit of a homebody. That said, he had always slept in the car, but recently he has stayed awake for some trips, and he does not like to be confined to his car seat. He is getting more used to diaper and clothes changes, but they are not his favorite things. He continues to eat well and grow; it will be hard to hold him back from moving and talking louder and louder to compete with big brother. Andy also sleeps decently, including at night (most nights).

A very content baby after his warm bath:

I didn't get a great full body shot of him today, but here is the chunky monkey snoozing:

Andy is already smiling:

(This is one of his first smiles from a couple of days ago.)

Andrew's Week 4

Today Andy is 4 weeks old. He is still doing well, with lots of eating, sleeping, and using up diapers. Andy has outgrown his 0-3 month clothes and may be out of his 3 month sizes by the end of the week. He is starting to have more and more alert periods, however, and we're having to balance his desire to see what's going on with the sometimes overwhelming activity of his older brother. For better or for worse he sleeps through many of our excursions!

Speaking of excursions, this past week Andy journeyed to the playground, lunch, and Trader Joe's with all of us; went to an activity at a local park with Matt and me; attended his first baby playgroup; and joined Matt and me at an outdoor toddler playgroup. You've already seen our fair adventures, too. And this past weekend he met his Uncle Vic. Today we went to the library and Matt's swim lesson. Needless to say, we have been busy!

Here is Andy at 4 weeks old:

Resting up after sleeping through our trip to the library and watching big brother swim 

Another little nap

His "concerned" face

Awake

And here is one more photo from this past week:

Asleep under the cat's attempt at indifference

A Visit to the Fair

Friday afternoon we drove to a nearby fair, just to get out of the house and do something different. We concentrated on the animals and agricultural exhibits rather than the games and rides (the vast majority of which Matt is too young to do anyway).

Collecting eggs 

Not so sure about the alpaca 

Looking at the yak 

Touching the zebu's nose 

Steering clear of the llama 

 

Looking at the bunnies

Petting a bunny 

Watching the miniature trains go around 

"Milking" the cow 

Looking at the donkey

Posing in the horse barn 

Getting acquainted with the horses 

Who is checking out whom? 

How now, brown cow? 

Meeting Double Stuf 

Looking over the Holstein calf 

Looking at the pigs 

Looking at the baby pigs (just one week older than baby brother) 

My best attempt at a quick shot of Jon and Matt gearing up for the demolition derby before baby and I took cover somewhere quieter - with 35(!) cars in the heat it was apparently a loud and messy one

Yes, the baby came along for the ride, too. He spent almost all of the time asleep in my carrier. But here he is hanging out with me in the little family area under the grandstand after a snack: