Winter Wonderland

We are in the middle of getting lots and lots of snow here in Ohio. (Insert obligatory groan).  When I watched the news last night it said we got four inches yesterday and we are expected to get another two to four today!  Lots of schools had snow days all week long and are expected to be off again this coming week because of the windchills ( -25 people..) Oh my...that's a lot of cold and snow! 

 

With all of these flaky friends hanging around...I knew it was the perfect time to bust out Max's snow suit.  This little number was given to us by Max's girlfriend Brianna.  She only wore it once last winter...and then thought we might be able to use it this winter.   Max wore it the first time when we went to see the live nativity in Dayton in December.  Then yesterday, Papa Rob wrestled him into it for the lovely pictures below.  :)

 

(Mama and Max on the front porch).

 

Once we got him all bundled up it became evident that this will likely be the last time he fits into this snow suit...so I'm glad we were able to capture the cuteness!  Also - this child has like 10 winter hats now and each time we shove one on put one on it's cuter than the last!  I can't even handle it.

 

 

I plopped him down on the bench on the front porch and he struck this "model pose".  He's all like, "hey, look at me...I'm the most precious child ever and I'm available for baby modeling".  Carters - please call us.  We own like 3/4 of your store...and homeboy needs some cash in the college fund! haha!

 

 

After he sat there for like thirty seconds - I think he realized the cold was seeping through his snow suit and freezing his buns!  Above is his - "I'm tolerating this picture business but not for much longer Mom..also why does Daddy get to stay inside?!" Oh man...I really do wish I knew what he was thinking sometimes.

 

One last attempt to get a perfect picture :) 

 

After Papa Rob got over the initial shock of me wanting to take Max out in the snow for a total of five minutes...he decided that maybe we should shovel the driveway and side walks a bit.... so old man winter, I mean Rob, got to work! I should also mention, this is after he fell down the stairs this morning (he blames the cabin socks for being too slippery - I refuse to believe anything negative about cabin socks).  So - we are very thankful that his shoulder was still able to shovel the 2 tons of snow that was residing on our driveway..

 

Once he was finished shoveling...we were all happy and warm again inside!

 

 

Xoxo  

Crawl Car

(Rumble bee circa 2010)

 

When I first met Papa Rob he was driving a truck called the "Rumble Bee"...and friends, it literally rumbled each and every time we drove it.  It had a hemi engine (or something like that) and so when Rob left for work every morning at 6:40 ...I swear it woke the whole neighborhood.  I also joked that I had to vault myself into it because it was so high off the ground. But -- that truck did get me moved two different times, drove home many a treasures from the flea market, and most importantly was where we shared our first kiss :)  All this to say it was only a matter of time until Max would need a sweet car of his own! 

 

 

Enter...the Fisher Price Crawl Car!  I think I was with Stacy when we first saw the commercial for it and we both went "well that looks awesome...I bet Max would love that"!  It stayed on my mind for days...but to be honest - I had already purchased the gifts we were giving Max and I had not budgeted for an additional gift.  The age range of the car was 6 months to two years...so I thought maybe we would get it for him for his birthday.  However...imagine our delight when there was one more gift for Max to open on Christmas day...and a big box at that.  We ripped into the paper and discovered that Auntie Kathy had purchased the crawl car for Max!  Hooray! 

 

 

Fast forward to two weeks ago - Grandmim and Grandpa Tim brought up the car up (sadly we did not have room for it when we were returning to Columbus after the holidays.  It's ironic that we gave up the rumble bee to get a more "family friendly" car and then all of our "family gifts" did not fit into the new car.  We have very generous family and friends :)  Papa Rob got to work putting it together...and Max has been enjoying it ever since.  I like that while it is battery operated...there are lots of other uses for it.  Max can go in and out (the door opens) - he can pull up on it...there is a shape sorter on the side...he can push it (hello gross motor skills) and on and on... 

 

 

I think you'll agree from the pictures below that he is having a great time with it!

 

(open shut them...doors are so much fun!)

 

(he found the turn signal!)

 

(are his hands at 10 and 2?!)

 

(beep beep....coming through!)

 

Turns out someone else likes the crawl car too...

 

 

We're looking foward to many more months of fun with this car! 

XoXO

10 Things Right Now

(morning books, bathtime/mirror faces, and daddy and Max selfies)

 

1.)  Max is teething.  First he cut the bottom two teeth back in December...then my sister mentioned that she thought maybe he was cutting the top two.  Hmm...on Friday I stuck my finger in his mouth during a diaper change and low and behold...I felt two tooth buds.  This has made him a bit crankier and I'm going to blame his recent lack of sleep on this too. 

 

2.)  We are enjoying Max's music class called "We Joy Sing".  Tonight was the second in the series of ten.  We always sing the welcome song first while rocking and then it seems the class follows a pattern of songs, movements, and musical instruments.  Last week Max was by far the youngest in the class (at eight months and the oldest child was around 24 months).  This week, there was a little girl who was also eight months and her name was Natalia.  Max and her noticed each other right away and crawled toward each other several times during class.  It was kind of precious.  Also Miss Rachel, the teacher, gives each child a "la la" (which is a music note stamp) after class and I just love it.

 

3.)  I have spent the last week or two organizing Max's clothes (along with a lot of help from my mom).  Suffice it to say that the child has a lot of clothes.  Honestly, I don't know what I would have done without my mom's help...she pretty much whips through my house like a tornado (albeight a very organized tornado) - and when she's done - like 100 onesies fit in one tub.  It's nothing short of a miracle really...

 

(funny faces, selfies with Max, and cuddles in the bed with Mommy)

 

4.)  Recently Papa Rob and I both got new glasses!  Hooray for new specs :) 

 

5.)  Papa Rob is also trying to fit in exercising again (props to him for getting up extremely early to make it to the gym, shower, and arrive at work by 7).  I can't imagine getting up any earlier or staying up later (other than to blog - that's clearly worth it). I wish it were possible to somehow get a bangin' body by blogging...

 

6.)  We rearranged things a bit in our cars -- meaning...no more infant car seats/bases!  Even though lugging Max around in that car seat pretty much felt like it was breaking my arm off - the big boy car seats feel awkward.  It's still a five point harness...they are just bulky and will take some getting used too.  He is still rear-facing because honestly they say you should rear face kids as long as possible (like two years old!) - so hopefully we ease into using these new seats. 

 

7.)  We are adding a little meat into Max's diet...  he is still skeptical of lumpier textures but practice makes perfect I suppose...

 

8.)  Papa Rob and I had a date on Saturday night.  It was our employee recognition dinner at the Zoo!  The event was held at the Hollywood Casino and the theme was "Afrikhaki...a little bit of Africa...a whole lot of khaki"!  I was able to get my hair and nails done (feeling fancy!)...bought a new dress...and Papa Rob donned his finest frocks.  Meanwhile Max had a grand ole time with Mim and Auntie Stacy.  They sent us hilarious pictures all night long!  We each got a five dollar voucher to play with at the casino and I kept joking that I was going to turn it into a college fund for Max.  I regret to say this did not happen as it turns out I don't know anything about how to gamble.  Like nothing. And I would rather cash the voucher in for the five dollars to be used at Starbucks.  Priorities, right?

 

(drumming at music class, slot machines, and more music class!)

 

9.)  I'm trying to catch up on the endless piles of pictures happening around here. I've been keeping a special scrapbook for Max and a calendar for him too (documenting the day to day) - as well as our family scrapbook.  The holidays set me back a bit...but I'm determined to catch up!  (Another shout out to my mom for tackling the printing of all the photos and keeping my sane when I want to give up on all the scrapbooking). It's worth it.  I love flipping back (even just a couple months ago) and seeing how much Max has grown and changed.

 

10.)  Already thinking of Valentines....I'm pretty sure Papa Rob thinks I'm bananas for thinking that Max needs to give out "valentine's" to all his school friends (of which there are a grand total of four) - but let's be real....my Pinterest boards say otherwise...

 

xoxoxo

Adventures in Eating

Meal times are definitely changing around here.  We went from trying to spoon feed Max rice cereal and him spitting right out...to finally getting the hang of it.  It seems he will eat most fruits and vegetables (minus avacado) as long as they are pureed.  We have also been introducing "puffs" and "wagon wheel" type foods for him to self feed with. But, his one true love is the pouch food. And by pouch, I mean any of the Gerber, Plum, Earth's Best etc. pureed food combinations that come in pouches. They are so handy...and he LOVES them!  The only problem is - Max would very much like to be feeding himself with them (instead of mama squirting it on the spoon and feeding him like a tiny baby bird). For mama, this means accepting a whole lot of mess EVERYWHERE.  Without fail - the food is in his hair, behind his ears, in the rolls on his neck...even in his eyebrows!  To give you a little taste (see what i did there?) of how it went down tonight..I present "adventures in eating"(from Max's perspective):

 

What?  Mama let me have the pouch?! This is too good to be true.  First, I must

check the ingredients.  Let me inspect this combination?  Carrots, Spinach, and Beans...hmmm..well okay, it's all organic.  

 

Tastes okay I guess.  I mean good enough to squirt all. over. my body...just not actually in my mouth. Let me try again.

 

Alright I'm getting the hang of this...well at least the opening is closer to my mouth anyway. 

 

**small intermission while I feed him some more off the spoon. And we offer the sippy cup.

 

 Oh man, it's all gone...nothing is coming out!!!!  Why?! Oh the horror!

 

I'm over it. I can't believe there is none left.  I can't wait till breakfast!

 

I think it's safe to say that it's only going to get more messy from here on out.  Maybe Papa Rob and I need bibs too?  :)

 

xoxo



Around Here

 

We are off and running into 2014 over here.  Max is pushing himself into the upright sitting position and cutting his two bottom teeth like a pro. Rob and I are back into the swing of things after our practically two week vacation.  I've got more lists than I know what to do with. Even Pecan seems to be relaxing into her role as big sis...mostly tolerating Max's "gentle" touches.  :)  He is busy exploring all kinds of his Christmas toys...in particular the crawl car from Auntie Kathy, tool bench (just like daddy's), and push and pop animal toy.

 

(beep...beep!  Max coming through!)

(what can I build with all these tools...)

 

(still mastering this one...)

 

We spent most of the weekend cleaning up around here.  Christmas is finally put away.  All of the totes are full and stacked up again till next year. And, I didn't even need to purchase any additional ones (thank goodness).  As much as I like Christmas, I also really love the fresh, clean feeling that comes after we put it away.  The house feels new again and I want to purge all the closets.

 

(this will likely be the only shot you see of our basement....but

suffice it to say that's not the only row of tubs we have).

 

 (We are ready for Valentine's Day...bring on the hearts and love!)

 

(My paper whites are blooming.  Every year it takes me by surprise

how easy it is to grow these flowers.  Such a treat when they do bloom!)

 

Amidst all the cleaning, organzing, and running around...we did manage to have some fun...well if your definition of fun is meeting at Jason's Deli and then hitting up Costco on a Friday night.  That's pretty much what we call fun - and bonus because Auntie Stacy got to come too!  And - Max rode up front in the cart and everyone complimented him :)  Then, on Saturday - more fun running errands - Babies R' Us (for a co-worker's shower present) and DSW (new shoes for Papa Rob). Sunday we got to see Auntie Stacy again - she made us a delicious dinner and mama got some free clothes! Honestly, we are so lucky that she lives so close.  She takes such good care of all of us, has boundless patience for us, and never complains that we leave her house a mess :)

 

(rocking the cart at Costco)

 

(free fro yo at Jasons = we become regulars)

 

(cheesin' for the camera)

 

(love this picture!)

 

After 8 months - I feel like we are starting to really settle in to this whole parenting thing.  Most days we even remember to bring the diaper bag (now - wether or not there are wipes, bibs etc. inside - well that's a crap shoot). We can plan when to best run our errands, manage to take down holiday decorations, and even get our own laundry done. #progress.  Now - that's not to say in two weeks things might totally change and I will eat these words...but for now it feels like we got this.

xoxo

 

p.s. I thought my mom was being a little ridiculous when she proclaimed her love for "cabin socks" by this company called yak traxx.  But, then she let me borrow a pair and my poor cold feet have never been the same since.  I was hooked.  I'm the proud owner of four pairs now and they are totally worth it.  They keep your feet just the right temp and bonus for fun colors!

(I'm not afraid of a little pattern mixing - polka dots and stripes...my jam ;)

get yourself a pair - and thank me later!



8 Months of Max

Can't quite wrap my head around the fact that we officially have an eight month old. I'm actually surprised I'm getting this update out on the actual date (is my word, balance already kicking in?) because Max is quite busy these days too!  We had a busy holiday, now we are back at "school", music class, and have I mentioned he is super wiggly now? It's getting more difficult to wrangle him for pictures because he's very interested in the chalkboard (yikes! for the sharp edges) and because he does not want to be in one place for too long!  Here are the weekly updates leading up to the big eight month mark...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have to be so sneaky about these pictures!  It now takes Papa Rob and I both to get even one decent shot (and trust me...the outakes are hilarious...should probably do a separate post just on that).  Usually one of us is manning the camera and the other is shaking some sort of toy to get Max's attention.  Possibly there is some arguing between said photographer and the assistant, but I digress..

 

As for stats - we don't have another doctor's appointment till next month (fingers crossed anyway) - so we're just taking guesses on his measurements.

 

Weight:  around 22 pounds?

 

Height:  29+ inches

 

Always growing:  toy collection (hello, Christmas!), hair, at least two bottom teeth, sounds he can make, and appetite!

 

Shrinking fast:  desire to sit still, number of times he wakes at night, pacifier usage, room in the infant car seat, and wanting to lie flat for a diaper change.

 

On the development front...

 

Crawling:  I use that term loosely. He can get his belly way off the ground and wiggly his bootie around but has not connected how to actually make it all work together.  However, if he sees a toy he wants, you better believe he will army crawl across the carpet to get it. He pulls himself foward on this elbows and knees.  I think it won't be long now...or maybe he won't be a great crawler...because he has also started to try and pull up on things.  Again, not making it all the way up but to his knees.  Basically...there is never a dull moment because he is constantly moving, flapping his arms, or babbling!

 

Sitting:  He can sit very well upright and we've seen him push himself into the sitting position a couple times too (like from his tummy to the sitting position).

Exploring: He pulls books off the bookshelves, toys out of baskets, and even manages to locate the phone, computer cords, and remotes that we think are pretty well hidden.  Nothing is safe...and he is very rarely fooled by the "plastic" look alike toys! I like to show him the pictures from the "Faces Book" I made at Christmas...he will make little grunts and reach out to try and touch most people's faces. Block towers and muscial instruments (especially drum sticks!) still seem to be strong toy favorites too.  Though - Papa Rob put together his "crawl car" and he is pretty smitten with that too.

Babbling:  Lots of babbling...experimenting with different octaves of sounds, shrieks, and other high pitched noises too.  He is prone to waking up around 5:30 and babbling for about 20 minutes in his crib before going back to sleep for a bit. We have heard the "da," "ba," and "ta" sound lots...mama only twice.  What a stinker!

 

Eating

 

Still doing four bottles a day (8, 12, 4, and bedtime).  He sucks the bedtime bottle down like a champ.  The other bottles though - take about an hour to get through.  He will do an ounce or two and then need a break.  Also - he's easily distracted while drinking...if daddy is walking through the room...forget about drinking the bottle!  Max also "eats" two meals a day.  Breakfast with me at home and dinner at home with both of us. I was really gung ho on making the food but I have to admit the pouches are so convenient!!  I also feel good about the pouches because it gives him a variety of fruits and vegetables that I probably wouldn't make anyway (i.e. kale, rutebega, pumpkin, mango etc.)

 

We have also added in some crackers (called mum mum's)...and "puffs" so he can practice using his pincher grip (thumb and fore finger). He's getting pretty good at it too! 

 

There has been a bit more interest in the sippy cup...but he's not a 100% on board yet. 

 

Sleeping:

 

Naps have been going great. We are officially down to two naps all the time now, and it is so nice. I love that we get more time to hangout and go places before we need to get back for naptime. His first nap is usually an hour or an hour and fifteen.  The afternoon nap is hit or miss in length...ranging from 45 minutes to an hour or longer.  I'v started putting a lovey in the crib for him to sleep with (it's a cat...called Sardine).  Not sure he actually likes it...but want to be consistent.

Nighttime is (finally) going good. He was doing great with sleeping from about 7:30ish PM – 6:00 AM (with maybe one wakeup) before Christmas. But, then the holiday hit...and it got crazy!  We spent some time at my parents and Rob's mom's.  Max had to sleep in a pack and play (not his favorite) and because we were surrounded by family we felt the need to quiet him down quick (as opposed to letting him fuss for a bit).  Let's just say he got pretty used to us catering to his every whim (even swaddling again!) Once we got back from Arizona we went cold turkey on letting him "cry it out".  Super tough the first three nights but going really well now.  He will sleep from 7:30 to about 6:30.  Let's hope this continues!

Just plain Fun

 

Clapping, waving (for the most part), trying to high five (working on this), blowing raspberries with his lips, playing "where's Max" (aka peekaboo), smiling all the time, sleeping through an entire airplane ride (giant fist bump between Rob and I on that one)...rocking out on all the instruments and in general just being one happy boy!  

 

We love you Max and can't wait to see what the next month has in store!

xoxo

Preparing for 2014

 

For several years, one of my scrapbook idols (yes I have idols for everthing...my hair idol (Sarah Jessica Parker)...work idol (Becky Rose our conservation coordinator etc. etc) has challenged people to choose one little word to focus on for the year.  This word is then to guide you throughout your year (however it manifests itself for you).  Anyway - I've been giving this a lot of thought...and at first, I thought of the word "imperfect".  Now this may sound strange to some - but for me I saw that as an opportunity to let go of some of the impossible standards and lofty goals I set for myself.  Ultimately what happens is that I drive myself (and possibly those around me) crazy.  But - the more I really thought about it and reflected, I think the more appropriate word for me is BALANCE.  It goes back to one of my favorite quotes "you can do anything, but NOT everything".  Balance is something I strive for...especially since becoming a mother.  How then do I still be a good wife?  A good friend?  A good sister?  A good teacher at my 40 hour a week job? and on and on... 

 

I think in the first couple months of Max's life, I cut myself a lot of slack (after one should when they have a newborn at home).  Now that he's a couple months older...I find myself just shuffling my roles around.  This doesn't really allow me to do any of them well - just good enough.  So - in the months ahead I will probably need to do some re-evaluating and cutting of things that don't help me cultivate balance. 

 

(more balance = more jam sessions with this little man.  also it was pajama day all day when this photo was taken.  and, our band will likely be called MJ and the Rockers...stay tuned).

 

I also filled out a fun little worksheet of other things to work on too...(it's the overachiever in me :)

 

A bad habitat to break... expecting perfection

A new skill to learn...does sewing a tee-pee for Max count? alright it's likely my friend Emily will do most the sewing.  How about tap dancing? I would love to tap dance.  And grow sunflowers.

A good deed to perform...delivering more flower bouquets from my garden and meals for new moms (two of my work friends are having babies).

A place I would like to visit... Oregon so we can see Grandpa Jim and Grandma Sugar's new house and Max can see how awesome it is.

A book I would like to read...Honest by Jessica Alba

A letter I would like to write..  I have someone in mind.

A new food to try...bread in the crockpot

I'm going to do better at...taking pictures of the three of us and asking for help when I need it

I'm going to do more....dates with Rob.

I'm going to do less...social media while Max is up and around.

 

 



Arizona Christmas

Yes I know Christmas has already past...and you're probably sick of hearing about it. But, we Haucks...man - we love the holidays!  So, it seemed only fitting to celebrate Christmas one more time in warm and sunny Arizona (aren't we lucky to have family living in such cool places?)!  Does traveling around the holidays make me bananas?  Yes.  Did I run out of notebook paper making lists? Yes. But, it was totally worth it.  :)  I don't want to forget the memories we made...so here are a few of the details...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-Possibly the sweeetest thing was finally introducing Max to his cousin Charlotte.  Charlotte is now eight years old and had prepared her "babysitting" resume for us to peruse. I was all set to hire her until she bailed on the stinky diapers :)  Ha! Her patience and willingness to fetch Max whatever toy/book/cup etc. that he wanted was precious.  She built him towers to knock down and wanted him to sit in her lap whenever possible.  I hope these two can have lots of adventures in the future!

 

-Walking in the Arizona sunshine (can it please be flip flop weather soon?)....the cactus (with Santa hats even!)...and those adorable quail that I'm always on the look out for.

 

-Hauck/Alaburda/Carr Christmas 2013 - Max once again loved all the presents and wrap! 

 

-Charlotte wanting to show us all her "tricks" (including cheers, karaoke machine, craft projects, and peacock decor) and her new obsession with fedoras!

 

-The Oregon Ducks win the Alamo Bowl...and I had green and gold jello shots and cake pops! Those ducks fans sure know how to party :)

 

-A New Year's Eve bash for the books!  We put Max to bed in the pack in play in my in-law's closet...which worked out great because it was the furthest room away from all the noise...and we even added a sound machine. He slept pretty much through the whole thing (as Papa Rob wore the monitor on his belt loop) - and this party was crazy (and I'm not joking...they hired a mentalist and a musician!)  The mentalist wandered around to groups of people and did crazy "mind tricks" and even bent quarters and spoons.  Needless to say, I'm a believer.

 

- Also, sparklers are fun, no matter the age.  Seriously, the box should say for ages 5-105 because I'm always game (and so were the other 12 children at the party).

 

-And can we talk about Max's tuxedo onesie?  Obsessed. 

 

-I once again got to visit the Scottsdale Sprinkles location.  It did not disappoint.  I got a smores cupcake and Rob got a chocolate coconut.  It literally had a grahm cracker bottom.  Delish.

 

-Shopping in Fashion Square.  Shopping at the outlet malls.  Shopping in Old Town Scottsdale.  This may be why my suitcase was 55 pounds.  Whoops.  I cannot resist those outlet malls.  It's a problem.

 

-A gold shimmery pedicure on my toes with my sister-in-laws

 

-Papa Rob putting together Charlotte's 3-D swan puzzle with no help or direction.  He is the puzzle master...probably he should have glued it, as in her excitement, Charlotte dropped it not five minutes later.  I may have seen a small tear well up in Rob's eye.  But fatherhood suits him as he didn't even miss a beat - picked up the pieces and promised to put it back together again.

 

-In and out Burger.  You had me at special sauce. Please open in Ohio soon.

 

-Papa Rob driving me to a new little boutique in Phoenix called "Frances Vintage"...then entertaining Max in the back of the car while I shopped my heart out. He's so great!

 

-The Daisy Mountain train ride!  I hyped this up all week....and finally made it happen on the last day.  It's a train that does a long loop around the local park....even through a tunnel!  Max loved it and so did we :)

 

-And finally - our delayed plane situation.  While, it super stunk to be delayed twice - we made the best of it in the airport and Max was an angel baby.  He entertained himself with anything and everything...took his regularly scheduled nap (even amidst the airport announcements which were seemingly non-stop). Then, he slept the ENTIRE way on the flight home in our arms.  And, shout out to Auntie Stacy who picked us up at three in the morning and gave us dinner for the next day (complete with homemade bread and carmels). (Though it should be noted that she said she "didn't want Max to be riding in a "ghetto" cab.  If it was just "us clowns" meaning Rob and I, that we could cab it).  haha! Either way, nice to see a familiar face after a long day.

 

This now concludes the 2013 holiday.

xoxo