Ain't Nothin' but a Hound Dog...

What a great weekend!

Yesterday Lincoln and I went to Zeeland and Grand Rapids to see Quin and the triplets and then to my parent's house for a visit.  Each time we get the kids together, it is more and more fun.  Quin is still so sweet with Lincoln. She touches his face and tells us how soft his skin is.  She always wants to sit next to Baby Lincoln.  I love it!  Lincoln and the triplets could not be better buds these days!  They play really well together.

This trip together wasn't unlike any other: we tried to get them altogether for a snapshot in their costumes...no such luck.  I always think Joelee is lying when she posts a picture on her blog and says it was the best one, but let it be known, I don't think she is!  It was impossible to get a good picture of all 5 of them.  This is the best:

Here they are:

Quinners the kangaroo:

Ellery the giraffe:

Gianna the lion:

Easton the monkey:

Adorable!

We didn't do too much at Gigi's.  Papa went to the Zeeland football game with Jason and Quin so it was just us hanging out.  I was able to get a couple good pictures of him playing with all Gigi and Papa's fun toys.  I love how he is standing up in this picture.  You can really get the full effect of the costume.

I finally found the shoes we had been looking for all week to go with Lincoln's costume: blue "suede" shoes!  So they aren't suede, in fact, they are probably plastic, but they are the perfect companion to the Elvis costume.  Did I say Lincoln was Elvis for Halloween yet???  He was the sweetest, blondest, littlest Elvis ever.  He wasn't a fan of the shoes, but the one piece leisure suit didn't seem to bother him one bit!

What a difference a year makes:

Happy Halloween everyone!  Hope you all had as much fun as we did.  :)

It's true: I'm a Sap

Yes, it's true.  I've always been sappy...it's just gotten worse since I had Lincoln.  I find myself tearing up at the strangest moments and say to myself "what is your PROBLEM?!"  I cried when we had to put away Lincoln's newborn clothes.  Even now I have a stack of Lincoln's clothes from this summer on his dresser that I just can't put away.  It makes me sad he'll never wear them again.  A few weeks ago while I was getting my hair done, my stylist told me her 5 month old had just discovered her feet.  I literally could not stop crying!  (I retold this story at day care just this week and started crying AGAIN!) Lincoln used to play with his feet all the time.  It wasn't until then that I realized he doesn't play with his feet anymore.  :( 

I was just reading old blogs and looking at pictures and it absolutely amazes me how fast time has gone.  I cannot believe Lincoln is 14 months.  It amazes me how much he has grown and changed.  In the last few months his personality has really come out.  He is so much more of a ham than I ever thought he would be!  He does this thing now where he looks at you, scrunches up his nose, purses his lips and huffs.  It cracks us up!  Apparently he was entertaining everyone in the hallway at day care during the tornado warning on Tuesday by huffing at them.  The ladies think it's hilarious!

We stopped to eat at a restaurant on our way home from Frankenmuth last week and someone actually said he was so polite!  For anyone who knows me, this was one of the greatest compliments anyone could have given him.  I hope this is only the beginning of his politeness.

When we were at the doctor in September, the doctor told us Lincoln still had to be facing backward in his car seat because he was under 20 lbs.  We still had him in his infant carrier at that time.  Recently, we got his "big boy" carseat.  Kirk took the base for the infant carrier out of my car and installed the new car seat: I cried. 

 

It really seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.  He was so tiny and lovable.  I love all my days with Lincoln, but I really miss the days when I could snuggle him and he'd snuggle back.  These days all he wants to do is get down and play.  Which is normal, I supppose.  I just miss my little snuggler.

As I look back over the last year of blogs, I am reminded how fast the time has gone.  I said in a blog a while ago that Kirk and I would agree that Lincoln is the best thing to ever happen to us.  I still think this, but I would also add that he makes me a better person.  I was afraid when I got pregnant that something would change as soon as I had him and I'd be a different person.  I didn't think I'd be able to turn the music up and sing loudly and off-key, or dance around the living room looking like an idiot or suddenly I would lose my sense of humor.  I can say now that I can do all these things AND more.  I'm a better version of the pre-baby me.

Forgive me for being so sappy!  How cute is his bed-head??

We'll see you all on Halloween.  :)

Frankenmuth

Kirk and I had a couple days off work and decided to spend the day/night in Frankenmuth.  We love Frankenmuth and decided it would be an easy overnight trip for all of us.  Not to mention they have a waterpark in one of the hotels.  Perfect!

We left yesterday so that we can spend the day hanging out.  We got there in time to watch the start of the Lions game at the Frankemuth Brewery.  The food was good, the tvs were on, Lincoln was really well-behaved...perfect! 

After lunch, we headed out onto the busy streets of Frankenmuth.  There were so many people out since it was such a nice day.  We were able to stop and take a couple pictures, but it's hard to get around with a baby and a stroller.  Couldn't help but stop at the lederhosen!  Our little German boy!  Maybe Uncle Nate will let him borrow some REAL lederhosen someday?!

We had to wear these bracelets in the waterpark. We decided to put one on Lincoln even though he didn't need one. I know it's mean, but I thought it would be the first time of many where he'll be wearing one of those annoying bracelets. Haven't we all spent hours (ok, maybe minutes) trying to get those things off??

Lincoln's favorite part of the trip was defintely the waterpark.  He loved it, but was tired after an hour!  That was perfect for us!  He loved everything.  So fun!



(Looks like someone needs to find a new waterproof mascara...)



 As you can tell by the lack of posts, our fall has been pretty boring. We haven't done anything too exciting. Enjoying the beautiful weather. It's going to be winter before we know it.

Happy Fall, everyone! Halloween is around the corner...

 

Stylin' and Proflin'

Today was the day...Lincoln got his first haircut.  It's amazing what a difference a haircut can make!  I swear at 12:59 Lincoln still looked like a baby.  At 1:30, after his haircut, he looked like a toddler.  No more whispy hair, no more hair growing over his bangs, no more little curls when it's humid out...gone just like that. I'm proud of myself for not even tearing up!

I took a couple of before pictures so you could see the long dangles in the back of his hair (also known as his mullet) and the long hair growing over his ears. 

Lincoln was so well-behaved during the haircut.  Then again, she said most kids are at his age.  He let the stylist cut his hair and hardly even flinched.  She also razored the back of his hair and he did so good.  He was, of course, obsessed with her comb. 

I wanted a mohawk so she styled his hair into a mohawk, but didn't cut it into a mohawk (no worries Mom!).

I can't believe how much older he looks with the short hair!  It amazes me the new things he does and the new sounds he makes everyday.  His newest thing is saying "Abbey".  I'm not sure if he's meaning to say Daddy, or if he's copying one of the boys at daycare who says "Aubrey" over and over because it's his sister's name, or maybe it's "baby" he's trying to say or if he's actually meaning to say "Abbey".

We can't wait to bring Lincoln to the pumpkin patch this year.  And wait 'til you see his Halloween costume.  :)

12 Month Appointment

Can't believe it was already Lincoln's 12 month appointment today.  Seems like we just brought him to the doctor's office for his post-hospital follow up.  This year really has flown by!

His stats were:
Height: 28 3/4 inches (13th percentile)
Weight: 19 lbs 2 oounces (4th percentile)

Let me just tell you, Lincoln is small.  I think he'll probably be short and stocky like Kirk  A football player, perhaps?  The doctor said not to worry about his size at all.  He has chubby little thighs and a "beer" belly.  When he was first born we used to say he was tall like us, well, we jinxed him cause now he's short like us.  The doctor also said breastfed babies tend to be smaller than formula fed babies, so much so that they have created two seperate growth charts: one for formula babies and one for breastfed babies.  I'm not sure if anyone actually uses the seperate growth charts, but they're out there.

Because he's not quite 20 lbs., he still has to be facing backward in his car seat.  The Dr. also said he has a mouth full swollen gums...lucky us.  It was also a visit with lots of shots.  Kirk always handles calming Lincoln down during shots.  I turn my head and tear up every single time.

I think it could be a long few days and/or nights with the shots and all. 

We also may or may not have heard him say "ball" today.  It's so hard to tell between the gagas, googoos, mamas and dadas.  For the first time he actually LOOKED at the ball and said "ball".

Can't wait to hear his little voice!

Mullet

Soooo, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but Lincoln has a mullet.

In case you haven't noticed, let me point it out for you:

The post bath shot:

Yes, I know he has a mullet.

I'm not sure why I feel the need to offer an explanation to my few readers, but I am.  Probably cause everyone keeps asking "Does Lincoln have a mullet?" or they say "Lincoln has a mullet!"  To which I respond, "I know, I know..."

As you all know, Kirk has curly hair.  Seeing as Lincoln seems to be a miniature version of Kirk, I was holding onto a hope he'd have his curly hair, too.  It is blonde, afterall, it should be curly, too, right?  I think the curls may not happen.  I see a haircut in Lincoln's near future...

One Step at a Time

It's amazing how much Lincoln changes from week to week or in this particular case, day to day.

Yesterday morning Lincoln learned to climb the one step from the living room into the dining room/kitchen.  This officially makes our lives that much more crazy.  Now that he has learned to climb the stair, he has access to the kitchen, the bedrooms, the front room, the bathrooms and YIKES! the stairs.  Being that Kirk and I are the world's hugest procrastinators, (anyone remember that Kirk was working on the baby's room the night I went into labor?!) we didn't have a gate leading down the stairs into the basement.  Yesterday was a crazy day of us following every move that Lincoln made.  As soon as he figured out how to go up the one step, he never stopped.  I swear he could not climb that one stair Friday!  (we did get a gate today)

He also pulled himself up onto the coffee table yesterday.  He took one step along the coffee table.  His walking days are getting closer!  EEK!

He was combing his hair yesterday...it was so cute!  He's also been trying to put his shoes and socks on.  I love all of these new things he does everyday. 

Tomorrow Lincoln has his 12 month appointment.  I hate shot day, but I can't wait to see how much he has grown since the last time we were there.  He seems to be getting taller and thinning out a bit.  He still is a little peanut!

I will update tomorrow with his stats.