Tag Archives: crawling

9 Memories From My 9th Month Since Going Dad

Hey hey, we’re in the 4th quarter of Avery’s first year of life! Time keeps zipping by without signs of slowing down. Kind of like this little crawler; she’s non-stop!

You're mine now, Ball!!
You’re mine now, Ball!!

This post needs to be quick since I should be packing to go to our hotel for the weekend right now. I’m writing this on Friday afternoon and G-Ma will be on her way soon (cool, I rhymed!). Going Mom and I will be staying two nights at the Embassy Suites in Downtown Fort Worth, about 20 miles from home, for our 7th wedding anniversary.

As I write this, Kelley doesn’t know that I spoke with a kind lady at Embassy Suites who agreed to have a bottle of champagne and strawberries waiting in our room. Can’t beat that as a perfect way to start our “getaway” at a great hotel! If you know my wife, champagne is her favorite, and it was the hardest thing to talk her out of getting a bottle before we checked in. Geez, stubborn woman!!

Hopefully G-Ma is rockin’ out with Avery at our house and they don’t have any issues. But, if they do, that’s why we’re only so far away. We are so grateful that G-Ma agreed to stay the entire weekend with Avery, especially since she’s so mobile now!

I’ll have a recap of what went down sometime next week; I’m sure it’ll all be good…..right? Crap, I’m already taking too long. Let’s get on to the highlight of today’s post, shall we?

1. At 8 months, your first tooth was making an appearance, and now you have 4 almost all the way out!

Avery's First Tooth
Just one little tooth at 8 months…

It was a painful experience for all of us as those teeth pushed through, and we’re not looking forward to the next round. But, like everything, we’ll deal with it as it comes.

Flashy Four
Flashy Four

2. With those 4 teeth, 2 top and 2 bottom, you’ve taken to grinding them…..all the time!! I hear the grinding even when you’re not grinding; it’s like nails on a chalkboard. Hmmm, will you even get that reference anymore? Anyway, it’s bad, and it drives Mommy and me insane!

Doing the daily "grind"
Doing the daily “grind”

Even from afar, we know you’re grinding when your cheeks stick farther out and you have an apparent under-bite. Like most baby things, we hear it’s a phase and are anxiously waiting for it to be over!

3. You had just started crawling at 8 months, and although you aren’t walking now, you are pulling up on everything and anything with ease.

Soon, I won't rely on these and you'll never have time to yourself!!! But I'm cute, right?
Soon, I won’t rely on these and you’ll never have time to yourself!!! But I’m cute, right?

It’s only a matter of time until you take those first steps away from your support structures. Maybe by 10 months? I’m placing my bets now.

4. Since you are crawling like a pro now, you can easily make your way around the house and constantly amaze us at how quickly you make it to another room. Despite our cardboard box barriers you easily bust through, you find a way to get into exactly what we don’t want you getting into. A few of those things are the dog’s food and water bowl, the vacuum cleaner I constantly forget to put up, or the kitchen trashcan. Saying “No.” is futile, but we do it anyway.

5. Your playfulness keeps increasing and I get excited to see your happy face when I get on my hands and knees with you now. I’ve even started to put off washing dishes like I normally do and just get down to crawl around with you.

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6. When Mommy and I aren’t crawling around with you, the beach ball keeps you pretty occupied as you push and then chase it across the house.

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I’m hoping this fascination with the ball will help G-Ma wear you out while we are away for the weekend. Fingers crossed!

7. We brought you to two birthday parties for the neighborhood girls turning 1 and you did great at both! At one of them, we even came out with our own gifts for you; two types of walkers!

Heeeyyyyyy!
Heeeyyyyyy!

Since their little 1 year old girl now walks on her own, they had no use for these, so they let us borrow them until you’re in the walking club. I’m hopeful that we get to return them soon since that means you’ll be walking on your own too!

8. Our dinners are usually later than they should be, and you have been throwing most of the food we give you on the floor. At first it was cute, but now it’s obvious you know what you’re doing. On top of that, you will scream loud and thrash around just because.

Goodbye, broccoli!!
Goodbye, broccoli!!

Sometimes, we resort to showing you videos of yourself on our phones, but try not to put the screen in front of you that late.

9. Getting into things is just a part of life now, and Mommy and I quit trying so hard to stop you. Now we try to only have things left out that you are allowed to get into and topple over. You seem to enjoy pulling down on and spilling toys from the basket.

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This sequence is a daily thing, but at least you’re going for the book. Oh, wait, that’s a blank photo book….oops!

Well, Avery, you’re growing up fast and we love seeing how aware you’ve become of your surroundings. I can only imagine what another month will bring, but know we’ll be here to capture it all!

I could go on, but now I’m really pushing my time and Mommy’s patience! So, I love you, and when you read this some day, I hope we can tell you how great you were for G-Ma while we were gone. 🙂

 

Learning to Walk: Is it Wrong to Place Bets on your Baby?

As long as it’s just among friends and family, it’s fine, right? Not like I’m setting up an online betting site where people around the world can place wagers on when Avery will start to walk. Plus, how would they know if I rigged it or not?

I could rig it and say this counts as "walking"

I could rig it and say the above picture counts as “walking”. Or if she’s in her walker, that must count, no?

Ummm, no, dad, this doesn't count.
Ummm, no, dad, this doesn’t count.

Not that I’d actually try to make money by creating a gambling business centered around my daughter, but I’ve been making bets with myself on when she’ll actually take her first unassisted steps. I was thinking she’d do it before 9 months, but that’s only 5 days away, so now I’ll revise to before she’s 10 months.

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What do you think?

Here’s several pictures of Avery showing signs of progress, please let me know your thoughts and we’ll see how close you are when it actually happens!

Walker in training.
Walker in training.
If only those feet would go flat!!
If only those feet would go flat!!
This is my "Spider-man" impression....
This is my “Spider-man” impression….
On the tip toes
On the tip toes
Flat feet!!
Flat feet!!
Sup, dude?
Sup, dude?
You need something?
You need something?

I’m feeling pretty confident her crawling days are numbered. Should I be scared or excited?

Enjoy your Sunday!

In the Mind of a Crawling Baby: The Beginning

So close, if only there was a way to get closer…

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Ah Ha, got it!!

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Now that I can crawl, they give me this thing? What am I supposed to do with this?

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I think I’d rather work on my pull-ups…

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Okay, another day of crawling! I can go anywhere!!

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Ooooo, a springy thing!

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Guess Daddy didn’t want me playing with that. I’ll show him; I’ll climb on this box!! Grrrrr..

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Crap, that’s not how I planned it. #babyfail

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Oh, I see, now that I move more, they put me in a cage. Didn’t Mommy and Daddy want me to crawl?

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Seriously, Dad, you suck the fun out of crawling. I don’t care about your stupid Ninja Turtle fort.

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Yes, freedom! Hi dog, you should feel lucky they don’t put you in that fort/cage.

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Come to think of it, I’m starting to like this area. And Dad, your TMNT blanket isn’t that bad, sorry for the harsh words.

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Plus, in here, I can practice my pull-up and standing skills!

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I’m just not getting that full standing position. Today WILL be the day!

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Oh look, a hair.

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Lucky animals, living cage-free. Come here cat!!

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Fine then, don’t listen to me….I’ll pull your hair eventually!

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Nice, new territory to explore at G-Ma’s! Hope that photo-bombing dog keeps his distance.

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One thing that sucks about visiting other places is I don’t have my crib to sleep in. So, I’ll just do the opposite of sleep….

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Back in the cage…..starting to get annoyed with it again.

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Phew, guess my whining paid off, I love exploring the kitchen more. Maybe I can climb these…

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Oh, hi Dad. Maybe, I can’t climb those?

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I’ve been crawling for a while now, but I can’t find that darn spoon. Anyone know where it went?

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Ahhhh, found you, spoon!! Come here!

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Yay, Mommy’s home! I can count on her to bring me somewhere new. Like the bathroom where my pink ball is hiding!!

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MINE!! I love crawling to things!!

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Yes, Dad, I see the camera, here’s a pity smile with a squinty eye and my snaggletooth. PS – I’m going to walk soon and drive you even more crazy!

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See, what did I tell you? Here I go!!

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Crap, never mind. But next time, I’m gone!

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It was the bear’s fault, he was talking smack! Listen here bear, I’ll show you!!

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Done, he won’t mess with me again. Now, what do we have over here….

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C’mon, Dad, you could’ve let me go a little further! Ooooo, a light..

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Back in the baby jail again. I gotta find a way outta here. Yes, this is it, this is the time I make my escape!!

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Blast! Hand grip has failed me once more!

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Maybe I’ll have better grip over here….

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Well, it kinda worked, but more because Daddy brought me to the kitchen. Hey, nice shoe, can I eat it?

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What? How dare you say no! I’ll show you NO!

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See, I’ll move this rug however I want!

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Geez, I just got really tired. Must be the rug moving and climbing.

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Time for a torpedo-shaped nap…

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Wow, now they have a cage for me at dinner time? Ha, I found a way out!

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Didn’t get too far. I don’t want to be in this highchair….if you can’t tell.

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Ummm, Dad, something’s wrong with your foot.

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I’ll just crawl right over that thing and…

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…..hey, who straightened the rug?! I’ll fix that. All better!

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Last attempt for a while, I.Am.Going.To.Do.This

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Noooooooooooooooooooooo

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