Snow Day!

Chad and I had a snow day today for actual snow. We had to take Henry, our nature boy, for a quick sled ride. Chad rigged up a little box on the sled to hold him.

Then below you will see him performing his latest trick, "So Big!" Since Sunday, everytime we ask, "How big is Henry?" this is what we get. He's just pleased as punch about getting us all to play along too.

(He sort of looks like a little gymnast here. I give him a 10, and he stuck the landing!)

The Tool-Man

Henry loves tools just like his Daddy. He also seems to enjoy watching Chad in action. By the way, that's a tape measure he's studying while Chad installs our tot locks.

He Loves a Balloon

Henry was handed a leftover from a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese, and he's still playing with it over two weeks later!

Brian's First Bottle

When our friends Brian and Heidi came to visit, Brian claimed he'd never given a baby a bottle until this one with Henry. Maybe that's what he tells all the babies...

10 Months

Wow, time is flying by! Henry was 10 months old on January 13th. He crawls all over the house (still gravitates toward the kitchen), pulls up to his knees (gets one leg out like he's thinking about standing), waves bye-bye, and imitates tongue clicking and sometimes "mama" and "dada." We think he's getting the idea of "no" although not always listening. He also turns his mobile on by himself! He continues to try lots of new foods. Some of his favorites include noodles and yogurt (not necessarily together). He added another tooth on top with more on the way. He's really into his touch and feel books these days, and he likes to get under things (e.g., the table, Jumperoo, a blanket or cloth diaper with mommy). Chad and I think his first tent will have to come soon. Although Henry is a generally happy guy, we have seen a little more of his temper come out in recent days. I know, I know he gets it from me!

Some Christmas Memories

At our house Christmas morning

At his Grandpa and Grandma's house (Chad's parents). All the grandkids have to sit in this little rocker. It looks like he's ready to host his own talk show! Ride your little pony...at Nonni and Papa's house!

A New Addition...

to the blog, of course. You'll see to the right a way for you to subscribe to Henry's blog. My friend, Brian, is visiting and showed me how to add this little feature. If you sign-up, you will get an e-mail whenever I update the blog. So, no more disappointment checking in and finding nothing new. Also, for some friends (like Brian) it's another way to keep up with Henry without having to remember to actually go to the blog. So, subscribe if you like, or just keep coming by the old-fashioned way.

Oh, My Head

Okay, so I need to put up some Christmas videos, but Chad (aka Daddy) is the video man. So, I'm at the mercy of his priority list. Instead, I will post about another of Henry's adventures...his surgery at St. Louis Children's Hospital. As I posted before, Henry was born with a little congenital anomaly called an aplasia cutis on the top of his head. His presented as a small concave circle with extra hair surrounding it. Well, it is no more. Dr. Smyth, his neurosurgeon, kindly removed it today. The typical protocol is to remove them because the irregular skin is susceptible to infection which could spread to the brain. I won't give you the play-by-play of our whole visit, but I will say Henry did so well. "He was as good as gold and better." (a little quote from the Muppet Christmas Carol). I was glad they took him from us and sedated him before the IV was administered. That IV part was pretty tough before his MRI. Anyway, there were no complications. The staff even gave us an envelope containing the hair they had to remove. We've had very good experiences at Children's and would highly recommend them. Here are some before and after photos. I think my sister will be proud that I even documented this event by taking pictures at the hospital.

The spot was a little left of midline. You can barely see the circle here, but you can surely see the extra hair. I already had to trim it once.


Our happy boy charming the hospital staff before surgery.
Here is our sweet little man snuggling with Daddy after the operation. His hair was kind of spiky because of all the triple antibiotic ointment or TAO as Chad calls it.

Back home I get a close up. We're supposed to keep the wound clean and dry and apply TAO as necessary. It stays exposed to air, no bandages. The stitches are dissolvable.

Here's Henry saying, "Don't worry I'm back to my old self already!"

Henry Goes to Disney World

Henry's Nonni and Papa provided us with a wonderful Christmas present...a trip to Disney World! We went with them along with Henry's Aunt Brooke, Uncle Bob, and cousins Eva and Eli. We explored the Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios. We had breakfast with Winnie the Pooh and Friends at the Crystal Palace. Henry loved meeting all the characters. He made friends with the people behind us in every line. He was even given an award for "Being Charming" at one of the gift shops in the Magic Kingdom. He enjoyed swimming for the first time in the pool at the house we rented. We got him his first set of mouse ears with his name embroidered on the back. All and all a good first trip to Disney World. Hopefully, I'll have some video to share soon including our meeting with Mickey!

Fun with Henry

Watching Daddy cook, one of Henry's favorite things.

Place your baby in a box, instant fun for all!

Here's Henry sporting one of his new cheesy grins.

Henry as a shepherd for Christmas?