Baby, it's cold outside!

I am late blogging again this week. That is because I have been doing quite a bit of napping over the course of the last 10 days. Last week I had a fever, and that fever got higher and higher over the course of two days. When it reached 103.6 Mom took me to the doctor (in a panic) where we learned I had my first ear infection. A few days later that seemed to no longer be the trouble, but in the meantime Mom and I had, both, managed to catch a cold that had us coughing, sleeping, and dealing with runny noses until today. We are both on the tail end of things and feeling much better. We spent tons of time cuddled up catching zzz's. We spent most of the week at home. We watched the first snow fall. I thought it was pretty neat! With all the time around the house, I had to think up some ways to pass the time. Lucky for Mommy, she has herself a little character! My thing this week has been "hats". Not real hats, of course. I have used a bowl, my block box, tupperware, and the next two (which Mom got pictures of): a Christmas sack and a diaper...don't worry it was a clean one.

I have a new favorite spot in the house. I like to climb behind the Christmas tree and sit in the corner. I look at the lights and point up at all the shiny "balls" and ornaments.

I made a discovery this week. Hiding, ever so nicely, behind the speaker for the television was this nifty guitar. I don't know why Mom and Dad have been keeping it out of sight for so long. Here I am rocking out!

All this blogging has made me kind of drowsy. I'll be back next week, feeling 100% and ready to celebrate Jesus' birthday! Merry Christmas!

O Christmas Tree!

I've been getting ready for Christmas this week. We picked out a tree, Daddy built a fire, and we went to it, stringing lights and hanging bulbs. Truth be told, I was more about pulling lights off, climbing the step stool, and breaking the bulbs (4 so far). You'll notice that Mom and Dad decided it would be best to not decorate all the way down to the bottom because they know that in my eyes, those ornaments are perfect for throwing! We finished the evening drinking hot cocoa and reading stories, and of course, munching on Christmas cookies! What a great family night...Other highlights from my week included a visit from Rilei, playing with my Little People Nativity set that Grandma B got me, and running around the house with my balloon.
Rilei and I playing a drum duet...Me making smooshy faces with Daddy.This is Joseph:This is baby Jesus:Here's my balloon!

Many Thanks

Hi! How was your Thanksgiving? All of mine were great! This year we celebrated Thanksgiving several times. After all, we have so much to be thankful for it hardly could fit into one day.
It all started with our small group feast. Emerson, Allison, and I had a blast giving thanks with our friends and families.Did I tell you that I can walk now? I started Sunday the 22nd during the Colts game.

Next, we celebrated with Grandpa's family. I got to see all my great aunts and uncles, second cousins, Great Grandma, and Aunt B and Uncle E.Next, we stopped to visit my other Great Grandma. She was tickled to see me. I showed her how I play ball and gave her hugs.Then, I visited with Nana and Papaw. I showed off my new walking skills . Nana chased me and it was so much fun! I learned that it's hard to play peek-a-boo when the other person is sleeping.



Then we headed up to Goshen to see my Grandma. We celebrated Thanksgiving and my Aunt Genessa's birthday. I played with my cousins. It was fantastic!

How could I forget?

In my latest post I forgot to mention the super craft day that I had with my friends Emerson and Allison. Emer's mom, Lauren, created a fun and festive afternoon for us to finger paint for Christmas. I am pretty sure my grandmas are going to eat my handmade creations up! I should also mention that it was this same craft day that got Mommy and I really in the Christmas mood and thus the update to the blog color scheme and my Rykertunes going strictly Christmas music. A BIG THANK YOU to Miss Lauren for planning and hosting such an awesome experience!

Yea for Christmas time!

Fun Around The House

Busted! I am late blogging this week, so I'll get right to it. Last week was pretty low key. We spent a lot of time hanging around at the house, finding things to keep us occupied. That picture above is actually from Louisville, but Mom forgot about it and it was too cute not to put on the blog, she said. One thing that has been a constant the last month or two is that I can't be left alone for two seconds...even the toilet paper is fun for me! I'm still not walking yet. I take a couple steps here and there, but the bear crawl is the preferred method of travel. I am able to throw things now. Daddy had been working on that, for what seems like months with me, and over the last couple of weeks I have really gotten the hang of it. I throw just about anything, but my favorite is "ball, ball, ball". Here I am throwing my big baseball. Sometimes in the evening when Daddy gets home, he and I like to wrestle. Here we are wrestling...I am clutching my baseball, of course. We took a brief break to snap a family picture. I also like to read quite a bit. One book in particular, I like to ask for by name. I say, "Hand, hand!" and Mommy knows I want to read Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb. I've really gotten into bath time lately. I have this tub hoop set that Uncle E and Aunt B got me. I love it! It has extended bath time since I got it. I love to put the ball through the hoop. Early this week, my Grandma Brenneman and Aunt Genessa came down with baby Brannen. We got up and took a shopping trip to Edinburgh. Brannen and I were troopers, having to shop and hang out with the girls all day, but it was fun. I love seeing my family and I got to eat some tasty food, too! Here is a picture of me, the night before, checking out Brannen's rocker. Here I am, for what seemed like forever, in my car seat. Here we are enjoying an Italian feast at Bravo!Speaking of food, I'm trying to feed myself now. I have been doing so with my fingers (which I still find works best) for some time now, but recently decided to give it a go using my fork and spoon. It isn't always successful, but it makes for cute pictures.This week I said goodbye to my furry brother, Bilbo. Some nice people took him in until they could find him a home. If you are interested in adopting Bilbo, or another pet, please visit www.helpingmiamicountypaws.webs.com. A big thanks to April (Bub's foster Mommy right now) and Paula and Tana for helping get Bilbo into a rescue.
See you next week!

Bats and mail and a puppy dog tale...

Maybe that's not what little boys are made of, but that's what this little boy's week involved.

Daddy was working in Louisville for a couple of days, so Mommy and I went down with him to see the city. I got to visit the Science Museum, where they had an exhibit made just for me! I crawled through a city bus, an airplane, a space ship, checked the pint sized mailbox for letters, and even played at the water table. I got soaked from head to toe, but it was awesome!

Later, we went to the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory to see how baseball bats are made. It was pretty neat how quickly they crank them out. I got to play ball for a little bit, too. That was my favorite part.

This week also involved a not so good tale about my doggy. The other night, after Bilbo had finished taking a nap in front of the television, he did a naughty thing. I was standing by Mommy while she was sitting on the couch and he ran over and sniffed me, then bit me. I don't know what he was so grumpy for...maybe he had a dream that I was a kitty cat? Anyway, he nipped my lip and it hurt. I cried but after Daddy and Mommy cleaned the cut I was good to go. Sadly, Bilbo can't be my doggy any more because we don't know if he will hurt me again. We have been looking for a home for him the last few days. He is such a good boy, but he doesn't need to be around little ones like me. I hope someone we know takes him so that I can still see him occasionally. I'm going to miss my furry brother. "Bilbo" is generally the first word out of my mouth in the morning when I wake up. I love the pooch to pieces. Bye-bye Bilbo.