Posted by J Hopkins on May 31, 2011 in
General,
Pictures We have now realized that we need to childproof much sooner than we expected. We are also having to childproof the childproofing. For example, we put the foam fireplace edge protectors on, but as soon as Max noticed the new addition, he immediately crawled over and began pulling and chewing on them. The double-sided sticky tape is no match for Mighty Max. Sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor seemed harmless as well, until Max crawled over to a chair and almost pulled it down on top of him. He’s not quite used to his own strength yet. We looked at the “top of the staircase” gates this weekend and realized we needed some precise measurements prior to making a purchase. The balusters at the top of the upper level are presenting a challenge as well. If you don’t know what a baluster is click here. (I had to look it up too.) I’m thinking that we use large strips of pegboard or something similiar, but Charity may decide on something more aesthetically pleasing.
Finally, the baby cams for the crib cannot attach to the crib, or anywhere near the crib, for that matter. I could not keep Max from crawling over, pulling himself up and pulling the camera, electric cord and all, into the crib within and then chewing on them for good measure. I can see now that this is going to be much more difficult than simply spying on our cats.
Posted by J Hopkins on May 28, 2011 in
General,
Video Max has been doing this “army” crawl for a few weeks now… He can pretty much get to anywhere he wants to go, so we are now in the process of baby proofing!
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Posted by J Hopkins on May 25, 2011 in
General,
Pictures 
Posted by C2 on May 23, 2011 in
General Big hats, tall buildings,
steakhouses and green parks,
the hot sun, whipping wind,
and clouds with no rain.
Spicy food, cold drinks,
and a hotel filled with laughter.
My room is quiet.
I can snack in peace.
I sleep soundly
and uninterrupted.
But nothing about this visit
can make me forget about home,
where my little boy plays
and bangs on the table,
where sleep is often disturbed,
and meals are rarely eaten hot.
Warm with my son on our couch,
at home and completely happy.
That’s where I want to be.
Posted by J Hopkins on May 23, 2011 in
General,
Pictures 
Posted by J Hopkins on May 16, 2011 in
General,
Pictures Max has two pairs of shoes and has worn shoes twice in his life (this is the second time.) He got a pair as a gift out in western Virginia, and Mom picked out this pair over the weekend. He seemed very happy to be ready to go out for the day. (Click on the picture for a larger version. If you look closely you can see his two teeth..)
Posted by J Hopkins on May 16, 2011 in
General,
Pictures Max now has a set of lower choppers that are fully functional. He’s still eating Gerber Stage 1 and Gerber Stage 2 foods, so he doesn’t have to do too much chewing.. 
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Posted by J Hopkins on May 13, 2011 in
General,
Pictures 
Max has had a lot of fun playing outside in the nice weather with Dad until Mom get’s home. 
So far, hats nor shoes bother him.
Posted by J Hopkins on May 12, 2011 in
General,
Pictures Max had his 6 month Dr appointment on Monday of this week and checked out great. All parts are working correctly and he is right in line for proportion. I believe the official medical opinion for Max is that “he is one big dude..”
His current stats are:
31 Inches Long/Tall (100th Percentile?) Chart
23.1 Lbs (98th Percentile) Chart
Proportion: (48th Percentile) Chart
 
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Posted by J Hopkins on May 12, 2011 in
General,
Pictures I was wondering when and how the baby teeth came in (and when they fall out.. ) Found this nice graphic online:
Posted by J Hopkins on May 11, 2011 in
General,
Pictures Ok.. Here’s the pic I’ve been promising. It took Max falling asleep and some delicate maneuvering with his lip and the camera, but I was finally able to capture photographic evidence of Max’s first (and nearly second) pearly white… Feel free to click on the pic below for a view of slobber in High Definition…
Posted by J Hopkins on May 9, 2011 in
General,
Pictures Max had a HUGE weekend to honor his mother’s first Mother’s Day. He started everything off by popping a second tooth through his tiny little gums (with a little bit of help from his dad) Still no pics yet, but will have one soon. Tooth #1 is front and center now like a drool covered Tic Tac. On Saturday, Max went SWIMMING for the first time. We put on his Swimpers (or Swuggies as I can’t remember the brand) and put his cool board shorts over the top. He looked like he was ready to surf. He spashed in the shallow end and plunged in with Mom and Dad in the 4-5 ft deep section. As soon as he was submerged (not his head) he immediately began a little frog kick pattern that assured us he will grow to be quite the swimmer. He absolutely loved the water. He splashed and played and only dipped his face in the water a few times (by accident) Would have stayed for a long time, but Mom reminded Dad that Max may be getting a bit cold. Can’t wait to take him back!
From the pool, Max and fam went to the Children’s Museum via a Mexican food lunch. No work for mom today, it was all play and observe time for Max. We went straight to Dinosphere and we were eagerly anticipating Max’s reaction to the darkness, the flashing strobe lights, and the loud noises of the simulated thunder and lightning storm: didn’t phase him a bit. He appeared to be just as interested looking around at the other children and families as he was the giant skeleton of a T-Rex. After a closer look at Dale Chihuly’s Fireworks of Glass and a sojourn at Take Me There Egypt , Max was plum tuckered out. Have to ride the Carousel next time!
The weekend ended with a Sunday’s Mother’s Day Brunch of bangers & mash and other Irish fare with the kin at the Claddagh Irish Pub. Max wasn’t too much trouble as the rest of the family ate the buffet, though he threw his toys on the ground at least 157 times. He enjoyed the personal performance of the strolling fiddler and smiled devilishly while being doted on by a familiar waitress. You could tell by the look in little Max’s eyes that he would have preferred the Black and Tan libation of his father to his bottle of baby formula! (ok.. not really mom!)
Sunny weather permitted a long and lazy stroller ride through the neighborhood back at home and finished off the evening as always drifting to sleep in Mom’s arms…
This is a picture of the card and present that Max made for Charity’s first Mother’s Day:
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Here’s an updated pic of Max’s plant as of 5.28.11:
Posted by J Hopkins on May 7, 2011 in
General Poked through today! Pic soon.
Posted by J Hopkins on May 6, 2011 in
Mobile Post Dad & Max http://twitpic.com/4u92uh
Posted by C2 on May 2, 2011 in
General,
Pictures This weekend, we took Max to the “Clinch” of Virginia to meet his great Granny Counts and his now-dubbed Papaw Counts. Max did okay on the drive to and from Coeburn, only adding about 2 hours to our trip each way. Spending a couple days in the green, green mountain landscape and enjoying laughs over biscuits and gravy was a great break for all of us. Here are some photos of Max with his mountain kin.
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