The Reeves

8 Month Updates

2010-01-22T22:55:00.003-06:00

I tried to keep my promise to post James' Christmas pics, but blogger has not been cooperating. I gave up after a while, but will try again as soon as my patience has returned.

In the mean time I am due for a James update, since he has mastered so many new skills in the past month.

He has always loved the stairs, and has been trying to climb them since he learned to crawl. Right about his 8 month birthday, he somehow figured it out and scooted all the way up both flights like it was no biggie. We must invest in another gate asap!

Round about the same time (a few weeks ago), he started standing up on his own for a few seconds at a time. Now he can balance himself for 5 seconds or so before he plops on his behind. He also loves to cruise on his walker across the den...I think he is over this crawling stage and wants to move on to bigger better things.

Grandma's efforts to teach him to wave and clap have finally paid off. Now you can waive bye bye and he will waive back, or clap and he will mimic you.

We have decided to move his nursery downstairs sometime in the next month, because he has taken over the guest room and it just doesn't make sense for him to be upstairs anymore. We realized this after David went to the nursery to change him and there were no diapers, clothes, wipes etc... We decided to paint the downstairs first, and then slowly move the furniture up/down, leaving the crib for last. Hopefully by this time he will get out of this habit of waking up at 2:30 or 3 in the morning.

Oh....how could I forget! He got his two upper teeth the week we went to California for the National Championship! Those were miserable. The lower teeth were so easy...but I wouldn't wish cutting the upper ones on anybody.

I was terrified about the plane ride to LA, but he was awesome! The first flight to Chicago he slept from take off to descent. From Chicago to LA he was awake half of the time and asleep half. He was pretty silly and loud on the flight, but no screaming and crying. The return flights went pretty much the same way.

We have been trying to get everything from Christmas packed up and keeping our den from being consumed by toys (hopefully moving him downstairs will help hugely). We also decided to build a room around our laundry closet to make it a laundry room. Last weekend David framed it up and started sheet rocking, and this weekend we are going to try to finish it. It should be a huge help with keeping things organized and clean. I've also finally picked out a tile backsplash for the kitchen. It is a really pretty tumbled marble small subway tile. Once we get it in we want to paint the kitchen (finally!) and install the tile. Too many projects, so little time.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

2009-12-24T01:14:00.014-06:00

Long time no see. We have been crazy busy and I have not blogged in forever. Forgive me.

Baby Updates

We can crawl! James started crawling (commando crawling) right at 6 months and has gotten MUCH faster to our dismay. Unfortunately he wants to pull up on everything, so we spend most of our time chasing him around the den to keep him from hurting himself.

He also cut his 3rd tooth (on the bottom gum next to the other 2), but it didn't seem to really cause him too much pain. Of course he chewed on everything in sight and drooled like crazy, but he has been doing that since 4 months (when the other 2 teeth came in). No sleeplessness or anything like that.

At his 6 month checkup (which was really 6.5 months) he was 90% height (27 3/4 inches) and 70% weight (18 lbs 14 oz). Everything went great and he still has not been sick (KNOCK ON THICK THICK WOOD).

David had been training for the Mercedes half marathon and takes James in the new baby jogger that his parents bought James for Christmas. I've been impressed with his commitment thus far. I unfortunately have had to work till 6 or 7 everynight, so when I get home it is time for dinner, bath, then bed. Boo.

We are super excited about going to Pasedena in a few weeks. Roll Tide.

We are looking forward to Christmas with all of the families (we have many). I'll post pictures of James' first Christmas this weekend. Till then these will have to do.

I hate the big orange

2009-10-27T21:11:00.009-05:00

Last week's game nearly gave us all a heart attack. I use to hate Tennessee more than words can express, but now that Fulmer's gone my absolute hatred has turned more to severe dislike. That is until Lane Kiffin had to go and whine to the press about the game. Ugh.

Nonetheless, we won. So I guess as David says a win's a win.

We got tons of housework done and Emily came over to take some fall pictures of the family (I'll post those later).

We still have NO pumpkin...maybe if I wait till Friday I can find one discount ; )? We have some friends who always carved out their pumpkin with and cut leg holes to take pictures of their babies in them. Soooo cute. I want to do it if I can ever get my ducks in a row. Doubtful.

Here are some pics from this weekend of baby and doggy!

The Best Birthday Gift Ever!

2009-10-27T21:03:00.005-05:00

I have the most thoughtful husband! He bought me the shoes of my dreams (Christian Louboutin Pumps) for my birthday.

Sadly they were too small (darn european sizing) and had to be exchanged.

James thought they were mighty tasty (don't worry Kameron he never actually got them into his mouth)! *please disregard all of the baby drool all over my shirt in the background*

Boo at the Zoo

2009-10-18T20:43:00.031-05:00

James had his first play date today with Ms. Bailey Rogers! We took the babes to Boo at the Zoo. They road the carousel and train and visited the kids zoo. Here are some of my favorite pics...there are lots so bare with me!

Riding the train

On the carousel

Humpty Dumpty

Baby Bailey was a Fairy!

Holding hands...what a ladies man ;)

Meltdown before Bailey arrived

Punkin!

He said MAMA!

2009-10-12T20:21:00.016-05:00

Sorry for our lack of posting! Lots of pictures in this post to make up for it.

First thing's first....HE SAID MAMA....and no it wasn't a fluke. Last Monday, Grandma Linda was keeping him and she said he woke up from nap looked around and said "Mama Mama." David was of course in disbelief and I decided to wait till I heard it for myself. Then on Thursday when Joe was visiting he started saying it over and over and over again. It was amazing. Of course I doubt he knows what it means, but still! David and I have been in a mini-competition since James' birth to get him to say "mama" or "dada" first. I tried not to rub it in his face ; )

Unfortunately, aside from James saying Mama, last week was a no good very bad horrible week (for me that is). Hopefully we are off on the right foot this week. Seeing this little face every morning is the best way to start the day.

The bug is sitting up really well and continues to grow like a weed. A few weeks ago I ordered his Halloween outfit from mamabargains.com. He is going to be a pumpkin...I know I know...it isn't creative...but there is something about a fat little round pumpkin that is just too cute. We are planning on taking him to Boo at the Zoo with Alyssa, Jeremiah, and their baby, Bailey. The babes get to wear their costumes, ride the train, look at the light display, and check out the animals. It will be James' first date...and with an older lady no less ; ).

We got James a sippy cup last week too. I wasn't sure when to start the cup, but everything I read said the earlier the better. We pretty much just let him take his prune juice mixed with water in it for practice. He is doing really well as you can tell from the pictures.

We are going to the Homecoming game this weekend. Grandma offered to keep the baby and who could turn that down? David has been to several games, but this will be my first. I just pray this rain will stop. We are also super excited that Uncle Charles will be home by the 21st.

I have many more things to share, but am honestly so tired I cannot type another word...so here are some pictures instead.

2 teeth, a 5 month birthday, oh yeah and I PASSED!

2009-10-04T13:06:00.004-05:00

Sorry we have been bad about posting. Football season and keeping the house clean are taking up most of our weekend.

Baby updates! The week after he got that first tooth his second one (on the bottom right) popped up too. It still hasn't bothered him that much, but he drools like crazy and puts anything he can reach in his mouth.

James has known how to giggle and squeal for a while now. But his latest interest is screaming at the top of his lungs (not crying just hollering). He's doing pretty good sitting up, but still loves to stand. He can stand against the wall unassisted for about 10 or 15 seconds. I've been trying to find him one of those sit to stand walkers (a very specific type), but can't find them in stores anywhere. Suggestions welcome?

The kid still LOVES his food. He has gone through peaches, pears, prunes, apples, sweet potatoes, squash, bananas, watermelon, and kiwi. Next we are trying plums, peas, carrots, oranges, and avocado. We try each food 2 days at a time, no reactions so far, knock on wood. I've been making most of his food, but more time consuming things I just buy the Gerber organic food. I know some people make all of their own baby food, but this is just one mom that does not have the time yet.

We are also going to have to break out the big boy high chair soon too. The bumbo has treated us kindly (thanks Wilkey family), but now that meal time involves things that stain we need to head towards the kitchen. He still loves to sit in the bumbo and play...that thing is a life saver in the morning when he wakes up too early...while I'm getting ready he just sits in there and watches.

His 5 month birthday is this week...I can not believe how fast it has flown by. We will have to upgrade from the infant seat to the toddler seat sometime before Thanksgiving. We love our current travel system http://www.orbitbaby.com/products/index.html so we will probably just get their toddler seat. I highly recommend it to anyone looking now or in the future.

Last but not least....I PASSED the bar!

Playing and Hollering in my Jumparoo

2009-10-04T11:30:00.005-05:00

So this is our first attempt at a video post, it took forever to convert the footage. Unfortunately most of James hollerin is at the end and some of it didn't get transferred over.

James loves playing in his jumper, watching Ginny play, and has found out he can holler pretty loud!

4.5 Month Check Up and First Tooth

2009-09-18T12:33:00.003-05:00

James had what should have been his 4 month check up today. I know what you're thinking...I'm 2 weeks late, but for good reason. They were slammed with flu patients the past 2 weeks, but we finally got in. Not to mention I have been super paranoid about taking him in with all of these germs going around. He has never been sick and I'd like to keep it that way for as long as possible.

Luckily there was only 1 other patient there (and we were in the well room). Plus, they took him back immediately, before I could even sit down.

He weighed 15.1 lbs (50th%) and was 26.5 inches long (90th%)! He is going to be tall like daddy. If you remember, last visit he was 50% height, weight, and head. I guess he just shot up in the past month.

Dr. Jamie said he looked great and seemed to be several months ahead on his milestones (rolling both ways, eye hand coordination, etc...)...just what a mom wants to hear.

She even said we can start him on some fruits and veggies (one at a time of course) since he did so well with the rice cereal! So I'm thinking we will start giving him rice cereal around lunch and then a veggie or fruit at night.

PLUS - that tooth he's been cutting for over a month finally came in last week. Its on the bottom gum. He was really pretty calm about the whole thing, but I'm sure as multiple teeth and bigger ones come in that will change.

Sorry it has been so long since the last post. I've been busy with work and am usually so exhausted when I get home it is all I can do to get dinner on the table. But I'm loving it. I promise to try to do another this weekend.

We are double booked tonight and are going to try to make it to both Laura's couples shower and Ashley's wedding. Tomorrow is game day #3 and then finally we can rest on Sunday.

Bama Baby (and doggy too)!

2009-09-08T22:05:00.009-05:00

A three day weekend was just what we needed to get our ducks in a row before I started work. We spent the weekend cleaning, shopping, and organizing. Most importantly, James saw his first BAMA game and loved it.

Ginny wore her goodluck houndstooth bandanna too!

We had been talking about getting a new TV for the den and there were tons of labor day sales . . . so we decided to bite the bullet and go ahead and get one before football season started. James LOVED HHGreg...all of those TV screens with flashing colors. He didn't make a peep the entire time we shopped. And thank goodness David is so handy...he hooked it up with no problems...if it were left to me it would still be in the box.

Daddy wasn't the only one who got a new toy....James did too. We decided to go ahead and get him a jumperoo. He can touch on part of his toes, but in a week or two he will fit into it perfectly. David took some video of him spinning the frog on the jumper around and around. I'll see if he can post it later (we have a backlog of video).

James' latest trick . . . taking the paci out of your hand and putting it in his mouth. I know it sounds simple, but he is still so tiny that it blew my mind.

Work is going great. Very very very busy. I'll hopefully post more later this week.

Baby's First Photo Shoot

2009-08-31T22:49:00.006-05:00

A few weeks ago we took James for his first set of pictures with Amy Henry. We made sure he was fed right before we went so that he would be sure to smile big. It worked! He loved it and the pictures turned out great (pages 2-4 are best).

The photos have been up for a little while, but I never posted the link here. They will be up for a few more weeks (9/23/09).

Password: jamesr
http://ahenry.photobiz.com/cart/event_login.cfm?eventID=222400

We've already ordered a ton. She has really cool storyboards, books, and canvases. If you are looking for family or child pictures I highly recommend Amy.

We plan to go back for 6/7mo pictures around mid November.

We had a super productive weekend, but that left little time to post those pictures I promised. So here they are...James' first experience with Rice Cereal (see slide show below). Needless to say it was messy. Especially when we let him try to feed himself (he made spoon to mouth maybe 3x before we took over).

The baby books warned that he would likely snarl his face at the first feedings, but he LOVED it and couldn't get the food fast enough (who does this remind you of?). We are doing one feeding most every night and he is progressively keeping more and more in his mouth (about 70%).

On a similar note, I bought 2 really cool baby food gadgets from the cutest store in Homewood called Swaddle (across from Smith's). The first is called a "Boon" (see picture below). It is a baby spoon that contains the rice cereal in its base. All you have to do is squeeze the base and more comes out into the spoon. It is really great for taking a meal on the go. The company also makes other really fascinating child toys and gadgets www.booninc.com

The other purchase was a baby food mill. It can mash up most anything (or so the booklet and reviews say). It can also remove all of the undesirables like skins, seeds, etc... I can't wait from another month or so when James is big enough to try some mashed bananas or peas!

Cape San Blas 2009 (part 1)

2009-08-27T21:32:00.002-05:00

First part of the beach pictures. Sorry for all of the dog ones in the beginning, but I promise there are people in the middle-end.

Count Down to Game Day

2009-08-25T22:56:00.023-05:00

Football season is official now that I have picked up James's new houndstooth jonjon. Thanks to Donya and her new company The Pitter Pat House (http://www.thepitterpathouse.com/). She makes very affordable custom clothes for little ones.

Also, this weekend Aunt Emy brought us a gift which was beyond cute. It is a smocked Alabama elephant jumper (from Once Upon a Time if you're interested). With these two additions to his stash of Alabama onesies, James is going to be decked out come game day. Needless to say we can't wait for kickoff.

Today was pretty low key. Jessica kept James while I went to the dentist to get cavity filled...which was miserable because they numbed my entire lower mouth (both sides). I went to UPS afterwards and I'm pretty sure the guy thought I had a major speech impediment.

Other than that James and I practiced his pulling up to standing from sitting position and when daddy got home James managed to mess all over him... and I do mean ALL over. It took 2 of us just to contain it. Thank goodness no clothes were involved.

As a side note -Is anyone else appalled by the shows they play on ABC Family? What is going on.

Well this post turned out to be random, but at least I've gotten 3 in a row out! Tomorrow David is keeping the baby while I go eat at Tavern (one of my favs) with Laura and Lindsey. Hopefully, he won't be too busy to post the beach pictures (finally).

Ps- I know many of you are fans of Funfetti cake....well I have news for you....Pillsbury is now making Funfetti COOKIES. We made our second batch tonight. They are addictive beware.

My Favorite Recipe

2009-08-24T22:20:00.010-05:00

I was inspired by everyone's Monday Menu posts and by an email asking for a recipe swap, so I decided to cook one of our favorite dishes tonight and share the recipe. Plus, I swore to David that after the Bar I'd be a good wife and make all of his favorite foods (this is one of the top 3). We call it the "round thing," but I'm pretty sure the proper name is a chicken, broccoli, and cheese braid (or something to that effect). It takes about 35 minutes to prep and 20 minutes to cook.

First, preheat your oven to 375. Next cook 2-3 boneless chicken breasts in olive oil and season moderately. I use garlic, onions, and some Mr. P's dried seasoning. After the chicken is thoroughly cooked dice/shred it into small pieces (2 cups) and set aside.

Wash and chop 1 cup of fresh broccoli into dime size pieces.

In a large bowl mix: broccoli, chicken, 1/2 can of english peas (drained...or you can use red bell peppers chopped), 1 garlic clove pressed (or garlic powder), 1.5 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, 2 teaspoons of dill weed, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

I know it looks odd at this point, but trust me it is soooo good.

Now for the more challenging part (and you will see why I included pictures). Take 2 cans of croissant rolls and a large round baking pan (preferably a pampered chef round stone or pizza stone if you have one). You want to unroll the dough and take each triangle piece and form a round circle like a sun (see picture below). Make sure to lay the pieces close to each other and use both cans. Press the pieces together to seal the ring.

Fill the ring with heaping tablespoons of the mixture.

Now bring the ends of the dough (the pointy parts that stick out) over and pinch them in to seal the mixture inside the ring. Baste with an egg white once sealed so that the tops of the croissant will come out crispy and goldenPlace in the oven for 20 minutes (or until golden). You can also fill this ring with pretty much anything you want...pampered chef has great Mexican and Pizza ring recipes.

Ok So We've Been Bad

2009-08-24T00:04:00.006-05:00

David and I swore we would post more pictures after the Bar Exam, but so far we have lied! Time to keep our word.

Also, if you can't tell, I'm so ready for Halloween/Thanksgiving...hence our new page background.

I have never posted before (I just pick the pictures and David does the hard stuff) so this is an experiment, but if it proves easy then maybe I can actually attempt to keep you all updated on our life (not just photos every few months). But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

A few updates!

First, the Bar is over, praise the Lord. It was not as bad as I built it up to be in my head. I'll probably regret saying that when the results come in (Sept. 25th - a.k.a - "Black Friday" ....or at least that's what I call it).

I owe my husband, mom, and mother in law a huge thank you for all the help during those miserable 3 months of studying/class. I start work Sept. 8th (that's when most of the B'ham firms start new associates), but for now I'm just enjoying being a mom.

On the baby front...James had his first experiment with rice cereal this weekend. I was bound and determined to wait till he turned 4 months (he will hit that in a week). However, after talking to my mother in law, I decided he was probably ready. Turns out he was. He kept down about 60% of it and kept wanting more (just like daddy). We even gave him his spoon to hold to see what he'd do and he managed to get it into his mouth. David will post pictures tomorrow.

At his 2 months check up (which was more like 2.5mo) he weighed 11.2lbs. He was 50% height, 50% weight, and even 50% head measurement (despite predictions that he would have a large head). Dr. Jamie said he was an A+ baby!

He outgrows clothes so quickly that I've been taking a smocking class this month to learn to smock his outfits in an effort to save some money. He is just now getting out of his 0-3mo clothes, but some of the bigger ones still fit him. I am smocking a teal and brown jonjon and Kameron is making him a Christmas jonjon...let's just say they are labors of love because smocking is not as easy as I was told (Donya!). I'll post pictures as they progress.

James has been one busy baby with all of these wedding, engagement, birthday, house warming and welcome back parties. But things are slowing down now that wedding season is over.

This weekend we went to Trey and Ashley's new place in Ross Bridge for a cookout/house warming and James was such an angel...to bad he doesn't behave like that in church. Their new house was gorgeous. It makes me want to move to house number 2, but we have to give this one a few more years (and wait for the market to pick back up). James also experienced his first round of Catch Phrase and ate it up.

That's all for now...more to come soon I promise.

Summer 2009

2009-08-23T22:07:00.000-05:00

James' First Week at Home

2009-05-17T16:14:00.000-05:00

Newborn James Russell at St. Vincent's

2009-05-17T12:16:00.001-05:00

34th Week Ultrasounds!

2009-03-31T21:10:00.000-05:00

Snow Storm 2009!

2009-03-07T18:23:00.001-06:00

Ultrasounds!

2009-02-27T18:58:00.001-06:00

Christmas 2008

2009-02-27T18:57:00.001-06:00

Building the Nursery

2009-02-27T18:49:00.001-06:00