Air Conditioner

It was really warm today and so the air conditioner was on. Calder discovered that it feels much cooler if you lay on the air conditioner grate. He laid his head down for a few seconds, which was so cute! I'm so afraid he'll start dropping stuff down there. I may need to add a screen below it or something.

Graduation

Jason's graduation from the University of Chicago Law School was yesterday. Instead of going to graduation Jason was in court in Cincinnati for the first time. It went well and Jason had a good time. Every six weeks or so the Judge goes to Cincinnati for oral arguments. He takes his clerks and Calder and I may go next time. It would be fun to see another Ohio city for a few days.

I'm so proud of Jason. He worked very hard in school and did very well. He received High Honors which is incredibly impressive. I know he really enjoyed school and appreciated the challenge it presented.

It's fun to move on to the next stage of life. We now have evenings and weekends together again. It's been years. Seriously. We're loving every minute of it.

Deebo's Antics

Deebo sits like this A LOT. I love it.

Deebo has adjusted quite well to the move. A back yard will do that for a dog. He has unfortunately been a bit of a pill on occasion. Here's a few things he's done:

When we first got here Deebo was checking out the side yard which has a picket fence. He conveniently found a loose picket and was able to squeeze through. As Jason was driving down our narrow street with the world's largest moving truck he sees our dog running away from the house. He then sees me running while holding Calder trying to get him. Thankfully Jason's mom was getting Deebo's food bowl out of the car and was able to hold Calder so I could run faster. And even more thankfully a nice neighbor saw what was happening and caught Deebo.

Calder had his first taste of dog food.

I'm not proud of it. I'm even more ashamed that it has happened since. He loves the stuff and any time I turn around he is crawling at full speed towards the kitchen to find some dog food. He screams at me when I dig it out of his mouth.

Deebo also ran away when the FedEx guy handed me a package. Thankfully the FedEx guy is in shape and was able to chase him down. Calder was napping so if he went further than he did I would have been in real trouble.

Deebo is still adjusting to having windows that can see the street. He barks at anything that moves outside. We're working on it.

8 Months

Calder,

Yay! I'm so glad you're 8 months old! It is so fun! You are learning and growing so fast. I can barely keep up. Here's what you've been up to:

• You love to stand up and are very stiff whenever I try to sit you down.
• You point at things you want.
• You can get from sitting to crawling position without hitting your face. You could do this before but you were too scared to try.
• You know how to sign 'more' and 'nurse'. You understand 'please' and 'go'. When I ask you to sign 'please' you try the two signs you know and then start emphatically flailing your arms and legs. I love it! You want so much to be able to communicate.
• You love to tease me. You try to escape every time I take your diaper off. You think it is so funny. You can't stop laughing at yourself. I love it! You also tickle your Daddy and me.
• You love it when I gently tickle the back of your neck.
• You walk up the stairs if I hold your hands.
• You can stand for a few seconds at a time.
• You love having naked feet.
• You give high fives and wave on occasion.
• I love that you were okay being left with Grandma Kate. I also love that once she left you recognized her on Skype.
• During the move I wanted to maximize nap time so I nursed you to sleep. It was the fastest way. Now that is the only way you will go to sleep. It is also the only way you will nurse. I've created quite a predicament now haven't I?
  

Our New House

I know you all have been sitting on pins and needles waiting for me to post pictures of our new house. Well, you can stop checking every 5 minutes to see if they're up yet because here they are!

The front door, dining room and living room.

Calder's room.

The back yard. I know I'm so spoiled. I love it! So do the boys.

The kitchen.

The dining room.

The living room.

Now that you've seen it in pictures you'll have to come visit so you can see it in person. Doesn't everyone need a vacation to Columbus?

Patience

Hi friends. I promise I will be posting pictures of our house and Calder's first backyard pool experience as soon as I locate my camera cable. Hopefully tomorrow. Cross your fingers ladies and gents. I know you're all dying to see.

Oh, and one more thing. I'm not ignoring the poll on the side. I acknowledge that the outfit is girly. I'm trying to 'man it up' and will post pictures when I get to it. I'm still convinced Jason created 30 blogger accounts just so I would stop letting Calder wear it.

We Made It

*This picture doesn't have anything to do with this post, but I can't very well post without including a picture of Calder.

Well, we made it. We're 90% unpacked and we LOVE our house. It is so cute. Once we get 100% unpacked I'll post pictures. Everything fits so well and Calder has been sleeping pretty well in his own room.

The trip was uneventful for me. I drove with Jason's mom (Kathy), Calder and Deebo in the car. Jason drove the truck by himself. He actually beat us to the hotel on Friday night. He made great time and I think we would have made it there at the same time if I didn't have a few errands to do before leaving Hyde Park.

The second day we were getting on the freeway and I was following Jason. He didn't seem to be accelerating much but he was in a massive truck. We passed him and didn't think anything of it. Well, apparently he wasn't accelerating past 40mph and his check engine light was on. He got off at the next exit and was sure he was going to have to call Penske and wait forever for them to come. He tried waiting 10 minutes for the engine to cool (even though he had just left the hotel and it was a cool morning). Then he warmed the truck up for 10 minutes and the check engine light went off! Yay! So he drove until he had to get gas and the stupid check engine light came on again and he couldn't accelerate past 40mph. He tried the same trick and it seemed to work. I'm so glad it was him not me. Our house is on a narrow road and there was a sign that says 'no trucks'. Jason drove right down and parked on the sidewalk in front of our house. We didn't get towed.

We had 5 guys here to help us move in. It was so quick since they didn't have to carry everything down 3 flights of stairs. The couple who own the house were also here doing yard work. How sweet is that? They are the nicest people. It's nice to have a great yard and flowers (and a guy who comes to mow the yard). I'll post pictures of that too.

It was so nice to have Jason's mom here. She made the move so much easier. Otherwise I couldn't have really done much. She took Calder and Deebo for long walks almost every day she was here so I could get everything done. She is fantastic!

Rings

I love wooden toys. They seem so sturdy and timeless. Calder is also a fan.

Laundry Basket

Now that Calder is mobile I'm having a harder time containing him! Our apartment is laid out in such a way that if I'm in the kitchen I can't see the living room or bedroom so it is hard to just let him roam. (We're waiting to baby proof until we move) I've become rather creative in my containment methods. The laundry basket is awesome! I love that when Calder gets tired of the kitchen tool I've given him I can just give him another one.

Calder does have a Johnny Jump Up in the doorway and an exersaucer that I haven't packet yet but there's only so long he's willing to stay in one place.

7 months

Calder,

You are such a sweet little man. I love everything about you. It is so fun to be with you all the time and see you discover new things. And this month was full of new things.

• You spent a good part of this month sucking on your bottom lip. Just recently you stopped doing that but you stick your tongue out just enough to touch you lips and hold it there. I think you're biting it but I'm not sure.

• You scoot like a mad man. You can get all over the house in a matter of seconds. It's a good thing we're starting fresh in a new house so I can baby proof as I set up. Things are way too accessible here.

• You are becoming better friends with Deebo. He hasn't growled at you all month. He appreciates that you don't pull his fur or pinch his face as much as you used to.

• You can clearly say Dada and Oma. I assume Oma is me. If you're really mad you throw out a Mama, but those are rare. You also seem to say DeDe for Deebo. I'm not 100% sure about that though.
  

• You are incredibly ticklish. Especially on the back of your neck. I love it!

• You are eating so much now. You LOVE sweet potatoes and bananas. Avocados have not been a favorite lately. And you love puffs.
  

• You can pull yourself up from sitting to standing in your crib. You can't yet get yourself to sitting position.
  

• You love to watch hockey with Daddy. When I had a meeting and Daddy needed to put you to bed this is the special trick he pulled to calm you down and get you to sleep.
  

• You love socializing but don't want other people to hold you. You talk to everyone at the grocery store and at the park. You even reach out to them but it's not because you want them to hold you. It is your special greeting.

• You give the best high fives.
  

• You clap your feet when you are happy or excited.

• You recently started quickly sucking air in and out of your nose. You find it absolutely hilarious when we do it.
  

• Although you still don't take a bottle very well, you started taking a sippy cup and you LOVE to drink water out of it. Especially if it is cold from the fridge.
  

Your Daddy and I agree that you are the best kid ever. We are so thankful to have you as part of our family. Life with you has been so much better than we could have ever imagined. We love you.

Productivity

(I know it looks like Calder is the one doing all the packing, but I promise I help!)

I had a very productive day. Calder, Jason and I woke up, had breakfast and got dressed. Jason went to school and Calder and I had friends over. Calder played with his friend. I sewed an apron with sleeves with my friend. It was fun! Since I packed my crafty stuff a few weeks ago I haven't done any crafting and I really missed it. It felt good. All my creative juices are going towards getting many things in not many boxes.

Calder enjoyed two beautiful naps today and I used my time very wisely. I did ELEVEN loads of laundry and packed 3 boxes. I'm a little embarrassed to admit that there were 11 loads of laundry to do. Every linen in my house is clean and many are even packed.

After a productive afternoon I made dinner, fed and bathed Calder and put him to bed. Now I'm going to work on a presentation for work. Yep, I'm going to work tomorrow! Just for a meeting so I can give a presentation, but it will still be fun! I'm looking forward to it. Calder gets to come with me.