Everyone said that time would fly. And sure you believe it, but it doesn't really hit home till you look back to see how much Hudson has grown these (almost) eight months. This week he has been enjoying black figs and apricots in Greek yogurt. He also learned to clap on Tuesday and now he will sit and give him self a little applause when he is happy. He is happy most of the time, so this happens a lot in one day.
He also loves giving himself kisses in the mirror and playing pattycake with himself (and with others sometimes). You might notice that the photo quality has gotten better on this post. We got a faster camera to keep up with our fast baby. We are very pleased with the quality and will have a post later to discuss the process. Also this week, you can look forward to a post about how our one bedroom is working out for us as well as a post on strollers (a busy week to look forward to!). We also took gratuitous photos of Hudson today with the new camera and I'll post a couple more photos that I couldn't resist below...
Hudson had a good Independence Day weekend. Overall it was pretty low key (still recovering from the previous weekend's travel!), but fun just the same. The fireworks were over the Hudson this year, but we were able to see them from our roof top. Hudson was asleep during the show...he'll enjoy them more next year. And today, Hudson clapped his hands for the first time while Skyping with Opa. It was very exciting!
Hudson had his first adventure in the pool. He enjoyed dipping his toes in but much preferred pulling up the grass. At church, the nursery worker said Hudson was very active for his age. Everyone thought he was older than he is.
After spending the day with Oma & Opa, we headed to the airport to catch our evening flight. It was easier on the way home as the flights were connecting and empty. I also had enough finger food (puffs and freeze dried yogurt and pureed pouch food) to keep him busy and happy.
All in all, it was a great trip. I wouldn't call it a "restful" getaway (I don't know that any getaway is particularly restful with an active seven month old), but it was nice to see everyone. I think everyone was very happy to spend time with Hudson.
So after a delicious lunch, we headed to Aunt Roo's for the night. Hudson slept in the car and did pretty well all things considered. We took some pictures with Andrea & Mac the next morning. Hudson was fascinated with their faces! We hopped in the car to go surprise Oma & Opa and all the cousins!
Hudson was happy to see everyone. My three siblings and I had to 'earn our lunch' by playing games that the kids had played at cousin camp. They were 'Minute to Win It' challenges in which we had one minute to balance dice on a tongue depressor, coerce an Oreo from our forehead to our mouth (sans hands) and knock over four 2 liters with a baseball encased in pantyhose attached to our heads. Needless to say all the cousins thought it was infinitely cool comical to see their parents and aunts and uncle attempt the challenges they had done.
Hudson had a blast playing with cousins...After the GA & VA cousins left, he *finally* settled for a nap.
So here's the recap of our trip from the last weekend in June. With Dave's encouragement and airline miles, Hudson and I headed to the airport bright and early (5:30 am!). The plane ride down was not as smooth as I might have liked. I made the mistake of pre-boarding which meant we were in our tiny seat for an extra 30 minutes. Also the flight was packed and the flight was during Hudson's morning nap - he only slept 30 minutes rather than his regular 2 hour nap. Not so much fun. All in all, he did well and only really cried once during take off because he was d-o-n-e being in my lap. We landed in ATL and Aunt Kate and Aunt Roo were there to meet us along with great Uncle Bob and Aunt Vicki (they happen to be great on top of being 'great'!). Hudson was thrilled to see family that he recognized from Skype and was all smiles. Uncle Bob's mustache was pretty cool too!
Forty minutes later, we were at Uncle Bob & Aunt Vicki's home and Hudson hit the ground crawling. He loved all the new toys and places to explore. The push-cart car was a big hit - Hudson got the hang of "driving" quickly and looks pretty comfortable!
Look at me Aunt Vicki! I stood up all by myself!
Driving is fun!
Peek-a-boo Aunt Roo!
A chair just my size!
Moustaches are sooo cool, Uncle Bob!
You're so funny, Aunt Vicki!
I like your teeth!
That is a big flower!! Can I eat it?
Hudson loved meeting Aunt Vicki & Uncle Bob - those people on the Skype screen he sees every once in a while. Aunt Vicki, always promoting dental health, also gave Hudson his first toothbrush (which he loves!) It's great because the toothpaste is banana & strawberry flavored and the brush (which is shaped like a banana) is soft and feels good on his gums and teeth. You can never start too early with oral hygiene!
We got to take this photo on Oma's quilt. Hudson did not want to stay still. There were too many cousins to watch! I got this photo too, which I love. It is reminiscent of the cousin head-shots taken at the beach last year. Hudson *loved* being in the midst of all the chaos of his older cousins. He thought they were super neat. I was a bit surprised about how much of a people person that he is.
You can also see how olive Hudson's skin tone is compared to his cousins. He definitely got an ample dose of the Native American genes!
