Off to AZ

We have been wanting to go to Arizona for a long time. My grandparents who live there have not yet had the opportunity of meeting Gabe and we felt that that was a shame. So we starting making plans for going, and when my parents heard we were thinking of going, they said they wanted to go too. So here we are in the car, all five of us, headed South. Gabe by far has the most luggage. We got a not so little pack and play for him to sleep in and play in while we are down there. We have set it up before just to see how it works but have never used it yet. We are now getting down into the St. George area and seeing all the red rock around us. We have been on the road for a little under 5 hours including a few breaks, and Gabe has done well so far, but we can tell he is getting fed up with being in his car seat. He doesn't seem to take very good naps in his seat and so he is getting kinda tired too. He has been growing so much lately it seems. Rochelle mentioned in his 10 month blog that he started to do an army crawl. He is still doing an army crawl, but he is getting much better at it, and now does it all the time. He will bat at a ball, crawl after it, and bat it again until it comes close to some other toy that distracts him. He likes books now, and has learned to turn the pages of a board book (with a little help). It's hard to tell for sure, but it really seems like he knows a few words now, and tries to say a couple. He says 'dada' fequently but also sometimes when I walk into the room he will look at me and say 'dada'. He also seems to know the word 'kiss' which he says more like 'diss'. He will give just about anyone a kiss with a little prompting. He doesn't seem to be afraid of strangers too much. As long as he is fully awake, and generally happy, he will go to anyone, which is nice because that makes it much easier for us to take him over to a baby sitter. He loves noses. He can point out your nose or mouth on your face if you ask him to. He also might decide to try and pull off your nose if you are not careful. He's full of personality, and loves to be entertained. If you play with him, and give him your full attention, he will be your best friend. He loves to be taken by his hands and walked around. While he doesn't really have much balance, he sure wants to learn how to walk. We recently bought a little toy that he can hold onto to help him keep his balance, but he will still need some help for a while. We get lots of complements on how beautiful he is, and especially his eyes. Rochelle's aunts couldn't believe how blue his eyes are. He likes to make growling noises, and will do so whenever he is happy. If you growl with him, he will growl back and forth with you for a long time. He is lots of fun to be around, and seems to charm people who meet him. Anyways, it will be good to take this little boy down to Arizona and introduce him to his great-grandparents. I'm sure he will love them, and they will love him. I'm also sure that he will love the pool. :-D

Quilted Camera Bag

 

Here is a project I made a while ago. I got the idea for this camera- protecting pouch from this blog: http://ayumills.blogspot.com/2008/04/how-to-make-super-simple-camera-case.html
Since I let my camera pretty much just float around in my purse, I thought this might help protect it a bit. With a few modifications- i.e. velcro instead of a button- I was pleased with the result, although it was my first real experience with bias tape, so parts look a little clumsy. However, I decided I love bias tape! I know some people have a hard time with bias tape, but let me share a little secret with you- a YouTube video I found a couple months ago called the "No swearing bias tape method"- check it out here.

Handtowel Bibs

 

 

 

I have always wanted to make one of these- it's a very, quick, satisfying project that is useful! You can probably figure out how it's made by looking at the pictures. I used a $1 handtowel from Target, a fabric remnant, and some bias tape.
I would like to try this again. What I would do differently? 1. Use a more sturdy handtowel. 2. Make the neck hole much, much smaller, so as to not end up with a bib that is too big for Mommy! 3. Make the ties a little longer for ease in tying.

Update

A quick update of the goings- on of the last week...
We saw Tayler off at the MTC last Wednesday, which was a bittersweet (but mostly sweet) experience. I then flew back to Oregon with my parents. Gabe did alright on the plane, but truly, its not his favorite thing. Luckily, he had 3 people ready to keep him entertained. Once in Oregon, I enjoyed visiting with my family and just relaxing. My Mom's Voices for the Performing Arts Foundation put on a great benefit concert. The chorale did a great job, and the guest artists- Julianne Johnson, and Michael Allen Harrison- and his stepson Tanner were phenomenal. It was so enjoyable. BJ surprised my family by showing up at the second half of the first concert- on Friday- and he was able to be there until Sunday and fly back with me. I won't go on too much about all the details because they have been recorded very nicely with pictures on my parents' blog- check out the sidebar for the address if you're interested.
By the way: We are trying to plan some fun activities/ trips this summer, so if you have kids (or don't but want to come) and want to go on some fun day trips i.e. to the zoo, any number or parks, picnicing, animal spotting, scenic walks etc., let me know and we'll be sure to include you!

Gabe is 10 months old!

Wow, did that ever go by fast! Here are the recent "stats" on Gabriel: Gabe is looking less and less like a little baby and more like a little boy. He is so curious, and loves to poke and prod things to figure them out. He has been babbling all sorts of "words", especially "dada", and he also loves to growl. He is fascinated with people's noses and takes every opportunity to point them out (or just grab them). He has really good fine motor skills and uses his little pincer grasp to pick up food and toys. One of his favorite games right now is to play "roll the ball" where you sit in front of him and you roll a ball back and forth- Gabe also kicks it- it really goes where he intends it to go for the most part! Also, he has shown a lot more interest and understanding of being mobile by walking than crawling until yesterday, when he decided that eating Grandma C's shoelaces was interesting enough to try to move across the floor on his tummy. Gabe also loves to have stories read to him. Cheerios are still probably his favorite thing to feed himself. He hates being in the stroller to go shopping, but he loves going on walks outside in the stroller. He also hates going in elevators for some reason. He is a very sweet, affectionate little boy. Although he doesn't like to be held for too long, he does love to give wet kisses and hugs. Gabe is pretty friendly, and as long as he can see someone that he knows, he is happy going to new people to play.
Here are some pictures from the past couple of days. My parents brought Tayler to the MTC and we were able to see him off. It was really good to visit with him and be able to say goodbye at the MTC. Afterwards, Gabriel and I flew back to Oregon with my parents. I will post more about that later.
Anyway, I love this kid, and am enjoying watching him grow and develop! What a sweet guy he is! BJ and I have so much fun with him.