Trick or Treat!

Just monkey-ing around!

Brad's name-tag reads Jack Hanna.

Trick or Treat!!!

Our little punkin

Park Play

The weather has been so beautiful lately AND since we had some old bread hanging around, we decided to go feed the geese before they head North for the winter.  We ended up feeding 32 before we ran out of bread, they just kept coming and coming and coming!

Afterwards we went to the park down the way to play.  This was our first time at the park with the intentions to play and it turned out great.  They had a set of "little play ground equipment", made just for toddlers.  Caden could climb and explore, and that he did!  Here are some pics...

Check out that hair!!!

9 Months

At 9 months Caden now weighs 24.5 pounds and is 29.75 inches tall.  His measurements fell at 90%. WHAT A GROWTH SPURT!!!

He walks great with the push toy and is taking his first steps.  He walks along furniture and is able to stand tall on his own. He has started to show interest in cars and toys with wheels.  He pushes them around the house, even if they are on their side, or backwards or upside down.  He LOVES taking rides in his wagon and swinging in his swing.  AND now that he is 9 months we are able to give him more foods.  He's a pretty good eater, in case you couldn't tell!

The sleep situation is SO MUCH better (I am knocking on wood).  He sleeps from 7:30 pm - 7:30 am, with usually only waking for a paci intervention around midnight and a snack around 5 am. He is down to 2 naps a day, and in exchange they are a little longer!  He usually sleeps around 1 hour in the morning and will give me a good hour and a half in the afternoon.  :)  Unfortunately, the more sleep that I get, the more I want, so now I have to figure that out.

Now, for the pics......

One of my favorites thus far

Walking with the push toy

First Steps

Standing tall

Crawling in the grass

First Spaghetti

8 Months

We don't have any official stats because we haven't been to the doctor lately, yay!  Caden is definitely growing in length and putting on weight.  He has really improved on his sleeping patterns, I really hesitate to write this out per chance that I jinx it.  He's been sleeping from 7:30 pm to around 5:00, at that time he gets  a little snack and then will usually go back to bed until 6 or 7.  It's been so nice and I think that my body is getting spoiled by all the sleep!  He's been on a 3 nap routine, which has been pretty steady and predictable.  He has been eating 5 bottles a day, with usually 3 meals of solids in between.  We have had a couple of play dates with a friend that we met in swim lessons, he's not quite ready for parallel play, but at least the Moms have fun!

 

Getting into one last bit of trouble before bed!

We have a swing at our house now, he LOVES it!

Caden's Tutorial on Peach Baby Food

1.) Pick the peaches

2.) Bring the peaches home

3.) Take a long nap so that Moma can clean, steam, and puree the peaches

4.) EAT THE PEACHES!  YUM!

We'll Be Back Soon

"Hang in there loyal Schuelkins-Sentry followers, we'll be back soon!"

(Or, at least that's what I thought he was yelling...)

7 Months and Movin' On Up

 At 7 months Caden is now pulling up and standing with support.  He will take a few steps while holding on to objects.  He has mastered the crawl and can get anywhere within seconds.  He is discovering more and more of the house everyday, including the kitchen trash can and the kitties' water dish.

My best guess at his stats are:
19 lbs 12 oz
27 inches

He loves his solid foods and is starting in on the combined flavors.  We are just now starting to practice with a cup.

We had our first play-date with a little boy that we met at swim class.  He is 6 months older than Caden, but they were still able to interact.  It was a lot of fun.

His 2 new favorite tricks are to sit on the floor and roll the ball back and forth and blowing raspberries.  He is addicted to blowing raspberries and thinks that it is a language.  He uses them to get people's attention, even strangers in public (Nona taught him this during vacation - Thanks a lot Mom!)

We have a new nightly tradition of playing in the green bucket.  I fill it with water and let him splash around after dinner.  It helps get all the food off before we get into the bathtub!

We recently took a vacation to Lake Michigan, it really is beautiful!  The beaches and waves were just like the ocean, but we didn't have to deal with seaweed or salt water.  We were neck deep and could still see our toes, it was perfect! Caden loved it - of course - he is my little water baby.

Lake Michigan

Tuckered out after a long day at the beach

Breakfast and a bath on the porch?!?  It must be vacation!!!

Picking blueberries - YUM!