Where, Oh, Where Has My Cell Phone Gone?

This morning I could not, for the life of me, find my cell phone.  Until I was putting away Kolton's toys after he had laid down for a nap...

See it tucked carefully inside there?  In hopes that Mommy wouldn't find it and it could be his forever!  Even though, over the weekend he claimed my other cell phone as his own after he fried it from using it as a teething device.  FYI:  A bowl of uncooked, dry rice may fix a water submersed phone, but not one that has been drowned in a teething 10 month old's thick slobber.  Just so ya know. ;-)

Swimming at the Lake

 On Labor Day, Kolton had his first "beach" experience/swimming at the lake.  When we went to the lake last month, we put him in the water for just a few seconds while we were hanging out on the boat.  But it was awkward and he hated it.  He wasn't too sure about the sand between his toes or the cold water splashing up on him, but after a little bit he got used to it and I think he might have even had fun! (He can be one serious dude sometimes, so it can be hard to tell!)

He had fun splashing around for awhile before we got out and laid in the sun for a bit.

I just couldn't resist taking a picture of his cute little bum airing out from his water soaked diaper.  We didn't want to take it all the way off.  Gotta give him a little sense of privacy. ;-)

Then it was time to head home.  We had a fun afternoon!

Family Sedan

Chad and I recently finally decided to trade in my beautiful, decked out, sporty Honda Accord coupe for a four door family sedan.  I have loved that car and was so attached (a little sad/materialistic sounding, I know---but I think most people can relate to getting attached to a car you've had a long time :-)).  But the bigger Kolton gets, the more difficult it is to climb in and out of that backseat with only two doors.

Getting a new vehicle can be exciting, but it can also be a very stressful process with all the millions of options out there!  Thankfully, a tight budget cuts out a lot of those options. :-)

Saturday evening, we went to the local "autopark" (which, btw, is huge!) just to look around.  We ended up finding three vehicles that we liked/knew were good vehicles and were within our budget: a Chevy Malibu, Honda Accord and Toyota Avalon.  There were different features that we really liked about each vehicle, but we were able to narrow it down to the Honda and Toyota.  And the salesman was (hesitantly) willing to lower the price on both of them.

I was having an extremely hard time with the whole new car idea and had not been mentally prepared to go home without my car that night!  But Chad was able to negotiate an awesome deal with the sales manager that we just could not pass up.  We ended up getting him to give us more for my car than expected and almost a thousand more off the cost of the vehicle we chose.

Sooo, yada, yada, yada...

Here is what we came home with---

 

I swore I would never drive a gold car.  Or a car with tan interior.  But there it is!  They aren't kidding --- Never say never!  Ha!  (I have also sworn to never drive a mini van. Uh oh!)  But it still has the leather and sunroof, so that helped coax me.

 

 

We had it checked by a mechanic friend who knows everything there is to know about every car ever made, and he said we got ourselves and amazing deal.  I miss my car and am so thankful we were able to have it instead of the mustang I had when I got pregnant!  But we are very excited to have a four door vehicle.  It's the little things. :-) To us it is big.

 

AND, it was Chad and I's first big purchase together!  We thought that was pretty neat.

ANNND, Kolton was an absolute CHAMP for us throughout the entire process.  We ended up being out THREE HOURS past his bedtime, and he barely fussed for two seconds on the way home.  Not typical for him, so we were very proud of our little man for being so good for us. :-)

Speaking of Little Man, here's a sweet picture of him and his Daddy...

H

 

Have a great Labor Day!

Kolton Sneezing

For those of you who haven't seen it, and even those who have...

This is a video of Kolton sneezing when he was about a month old.  Sounds lame, I know.  But it was a big hit 9 months ago, and when I came across it today, I just had to share it again.  So have a good laugh. :-D

I'm sorry, but I just don't feel like uploading it!  So here is the youtube link.

10 Months

On the 30th of August, Kolton turned 10 months.

Look at that big boy.  I can't believe my baby is ten months old.  He is growing up so stinkin' fast!  It does not seem like it's been almost a year since my little buddy was born.  AH.

 For Kolton's 10-month 'birthday' he got two shots.  Happy Birthday, Baby!  Ha!

Here's what Kolton has been up to this month:

-He is 29 1/2 inches long and 20.6 pounds.

-He is a very good sleeper, with the exception of a few random nights here and there.  He started being ready for bed shortly after 6pm recently, which we're not crazy about---we'd rather he stay up longer to play!  But if we keep him up later, he wakes up earlier in the morning---like 4 or 5am.  Not fun.  Otherwise he sleeps until 6:15-6:30ish most days.
-He has finally become a great eater, chowing down at least one serving each of fruits and veggies every day.

-This month he brought back his wave, learned to shake his head, give high-fives, clap and dance and got his first (really bad, double) ear infection, but handled it like a champ.

-He's a pro at crawling, pulling up onto everything and cruising around, and climbs all over everyone and everything!

-Kolton, except for rare occasions, hates having his diaper changing and getting dressed.

-He is so funny and such an entertainer.   He makes us laugh so hard several times a day.

-He doesn't like being told "No" and has perfected the temper tantrum.

-We took him to the Wild Wilderness Safari at the beginning of the month and he loved it.

-He went to the nursery for the first time this month, which didn't last long.  Both times he threw such a huge, never-ending fit that we had to take him out.  But we know if we are consistent and keep putting him in there every week, he will eventually adjust.

-He went on his first little vacation to Table Rock Lake.  He had a hard time adjusting as far as sleep goes, but he handled it so well!  Mommy was more frazzled about his lack of sleep than Kolton was. ;-)  We spent an afternoon out on the boat and he loved it!  And, to Mommy's delight, he even took an hour long nap.

 -On the last day of the month, Kolton and I met Amber (and the little girl she babysits) at the Animal Shelter here in town.  I thought Kolton would enjoy it since he loves animals.  All the barking dogs upset him at first, but he quickly adjusted and could hardly take his eyes off the cute little puppy dogs!  He would touch their noses and then bashfully bury his head in my shoulder.  He did this over and over and over again.  It was so adorable.

-We also love to go for walks.  Especially now that it is starting to cool off a little.  Or at least not be over 100. :-)

We've had a busy month. :-)

Little Man, Kolton, you bring so much joy and laughter into your Mommy and Daddy's life.  Each month gets even better.  Your big personality keeps us on our toes.  You are a very strong-willed little boy who also has a sweet side that likes to give his mommy kisses (when you're in the mood, of course).  The first time you clapped really well on your own and really started the big dance was during praise and worship at church.  It brought tears to my eyes.  I couldn't help it.  (Shh, don't tell. ;-))  I can't wait to see what the next month has in store.  We love you so so much.