Fisher Grows! 8 Months

EIGHT MONTHS

Fisher: How are you eight months old? Time has never gone by this fast. I am amazed by you every single day! When your daddy walks into a room and you immediately start laughing - it melts me. I love your "new" smile where you show off your bottom two teeth! You are just so proud of them! You went to Disney World this month and LOVED every second of it! It was the most fun daddy and I have ever had at Disney! (And we didn't even ride a single ride!) For the first time, you spent 2 nights away from us! We missed you so much, that I canceled my plans for Sunday and went to get you first thing in the morning! I can not get over how fast you are growing and how fast you are changing! You attempt some sort of a "wave" and some sort of "dance" when we clap for you! You LOVE Tucker (by love, I mean pulling his hair, of course)! Thank you, little man, for making our little world so much bigger. We love you more than you can imagine : )

- Weighing around 18 pounds
- Size 2 diapers
- 3-6 and some 6-9 month clothes
- Eating 5 oz every 3-4 hours
- Sleeping 10-12 hours
- Stage 2 baby food at breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- You love to hold your own bottle
- When you are not holding your bottle, your hands are in the "praying position" : )
- You grunt when you eat your baby food!
- You love to feed yourself with your spoon
- Started on a sippy cup (water after baby food) and do REALLY well with it!
- You never really want your pacifier, except to play with or at night time - but only for a few minutes
- You have 2 teeth on the bottom, and the top 2 will be poking through any day now
- I am noticing some curl in your hair...Just like your mommy : )
- You love to wave, dance, and to watch us wave and dance back at you like crazy people
- Went on your first road trip to Disney...We learned that we need a TV in the car for these long rides : )
- You are just the chubbiest thing - We can't go anywhere without someone commenting on your knee rolls
- You laugh at just the sight of your daddy
- You will do anything to impress PawPaw and are in love with your YaYa - maybe because she spoils you rotten!
- When you don't know someone very well you will let them hold you, but stare at me to make sure they are okay
- You only want me when you don't feel good : )
- Love to play in your jumper and with your Spin-a-Letter
- Daddy and I have daily battles on how you should be dressed...I am in to monogramming and bubbles, daddy is in to Ralph Lauren and onesies
- Bedtime is 8:00, and surprisingly you will go right to sleep when we lay you down!
- You said "ma-ma" this month - my heart literally stopped for a second!! I was SO excited! You also said "da" and "ba-ba" : )

First golf club!

Look what I can do!

He looks a bit sneaky here...

The Collins Go to Disney

The traveling baseball team that Tanner coaches took us off to Disney for Memorial Day Weekend! The boys had a tournament at the Wide World of Sports, and we were more than excited to attend! We would just throw our bags of essentials in the car and go!

But wait... This was our first trip (more than an hour or so away and overnight) with a baby. Oh. My. Greatness. When I tell you that our car was loaded down.. It is an understatement. We were fully prepared with a pack n play, bumbo, bags of clothes, food, diapers, wipes, bottles, toys, stroller... You name it, we took it. Long gone are the days of throwing a small duffel in the car and taking off!

Normally, Fisherman loves to ride in the car. He will play quietly, talk to me a bit, then take a little nap. Well, those days are long gone as well. He was happy as pie until we hit I-75. Then he woke up. No bueno. Between I-75 and the Turnpike we stopped 5 times. He cried, we cried, we sang, danced, sat in silence, and prayed. (Remember I am not a fan of crying it out) He FINALLY cried himself to sleep. Praise God. I had never been so happy to be in Orlando.

Well, once we were out of the car, the demon that had possessed my angel was gone. Fisher was thrilled (as were mommy and daddy)! Thursday night we just had a low key dinner from the food court at the hotel and hit the sack - we needed to rest up for our fun-filled weekend!

Friday was quite the busy day. There were 2 baseball games, pool time, nap time, and finally - dinner at the Celebration Town Tavern. I am not sure what to think of this...But, Fisher was totally in his element. He sat between Tanner and me in his highchair - laughing, talking, linking arms with us (adorable, yet it was a bar...). I, on the other hand, was in heaven. If you have not been to downtown Celebration...Please go. I already picked out the house that we will live in (obviously with a picket fence - complete with ivy and yellow flowers growing on the front of the fence). I also found the place I will work - of course I can walk there from my ridiculously cute house. So, we are moving asap. I love you all and please come visit : )

He has a fan base.

Going to the pool!

Saturday was by far my favorite day. There was only 1 game, so we had the majority of the day to do what we wanted. Mickey Mouse made a special appearance at the game and Fisher was able to meet him! It was the cutest thing I have ever seen! Mickey walked up to him to say hello, and Fisher got so excited that he reached out and grabbed his face, pulled him in and bit kissed his nose! Unfortunately, I was holding Fisher and was not able to get a picture - but luckily one of the team moms was there snapping away! I am working on getting a copy of that priceless moment! After the game, we went back to the hotel so we Fisher could nap. Of course, napping is not cool, so it was a rather short experience. Instead of the leisurely nap we had anticipated, we went ahead and got ready for our Magic Kingdom evening! I was a little nervous about how this would play out - I had been warned that taking a 7 month old to a theme park would not be pleasant. I was expecting Fisher to be hot and fussy and for Tanner and me to be irritated and ready to go home. Well, I could not have been more wrong! I had NO idea that a baby could have SO much fun at Disney! Fisher was laughing, squealing, reaching for everything, and jumping on our hips in pure excitement. We did not ride any rides, but walked into all the shops and had a lovely dinner. We arrived about 6 pm, and stayed long enough to see the beginning of the parade. Fisher got a little extra excited when the parade started - babyman loves him some drums and lights! We finally decided it was time to get him in bed, so we left the park with some of our best memories yet : )

Mickey in the park!

I love this.

Sweetest boy in the world : )

On Sunday it was clear that Fisher needed a break, so Tanner went to the game while we stayed at the hotel and napped. After the game we went to Downtown Disney and had lunch at Rainforest Cafe. Fisher LOVED it! Then, we walked around to the stores and went to Disney Quest - where I was able to take an animation class that taught me to draw Mickey Mouse! (I thought I did okay, but Tanner informed me he was not proportionate...Thanks!)

Morning nap! Sooo tired!

Best picture in America. Just watching some baseball!

Monday brought the Championship game. The boys made a great run at it and ended up coming in 2nd place. After the game, we packed up (exhausted) and started our journey home. Well, again Fisher was an angel until we hit I-75... Then he cried all the way to my parents driveway. When we pulled in, my parents were waiting for us in the drive (they are still laughing at how frazzled we all looked!), grabbed Fisher and gave us a little break! (THANK YOU mom and dad!) We took a little bit to regroup, and decided we were ready to be home. We loaded our sweet baby boy and our crazy little dog (which had so much fun at my parents house that weekend - bringing the havoc to their house for a bit) in the car and went home.

 

Tanner and I were ecstatic to be home. It took Fisher a few days to become friends with the car seat again...But they have made up. Looking back, every second was worth it. I would not trade the amazing memories we made for anything. Gotta love my boys : )

So happy to be home : )

Crafty Time! Mossy Letter

Sooo, sometimes I like to be crafty. Although my career is as an Interior Designer, I would not call myself "crafty" - hot glue guns, ribbons...you get the picture - not my thing. But I want it to be. I look at all these blogs by crafty people and how they make things instead of just buy them, and I am inspired. So, I have decided to start small.

I found a tutorial for "Mossy Letters" - So, I think...Well that looks cute, and I think I can swing making it! So, I call up Tamara (one of those crafty people), tell her the game plan, and we are off. I have now made 2 of these letters and plan on making a 3rd for a friend who just bought a new home. The first go-round was with Tamara, and we made letters for our last names, the second go-round was a letter for my Grandma who was moving into an assisted living facility. All of the other ladies had their doors all decorated, so I was not about to let Grandma move in with a shabby door front. No ma'am.

I think it turned out super cute! And Grandma loves it : ) I found the tutorial at Craftaholics Anonymous  - love their site!

Fisher Grows! 7 Months

SEVEN MONTHS

Fisher: I can not believe that you are seven months old. Something about saying "seven" just makes me feel like you are all grown up. You are no longer a newborn. You are now a baby. Please slow down : ) Your personality just continues to shine through - you are amazing - you have the funniest sense of humor and are always smiling! You started eating baby food this month, and you love it! You are also sitting now! Mostly tri-podding, but every now and then you will reach for something and show me you can sit like a big boy. You love for daddy to rock you to sleep at night and to be there when you wake up in the morning - he is clearly your favorite. But, it's ok. I love seeing him light up when you reach for him. Nothing makes my heart happier than seeing the two of you together. I love our time together - you go everywhere with me, and are always such a good boy. You love to go to daddy's baseball games - you will watch an entire game! We celebrated Easter and also my first Mother's Day this month - it was more than I could have ever hoped for. You and daddy make my life complete - even though it has only been seven months, I can not remember life before we had you. We love you more each day Fisherman - everyday I am certain my heart is full of love, but then you make it grow more the very next day. Thank you for making me mommy - I love you.

- Weighing about 17 pounds!
- Mostly 3-6 month clothes, but some 6-9 month
- Size 2 Diaper
- Sleeping 11 hours most nights
- Eating 5 oz every 3-4 hours
- Started eating baby food! Pears, Peas, Bananas, Sweet Potatoes, Apples, Carrots, Squash - You eat about 2 oz a meal.
- Sitting in the tri-pod position, but will sit independently briefly
- Love to hold your own bottle : )
- I love the way you fold your hands when you eat, and the way you fuss at me when the bottle is empty 
- You started sitting in your highchair instead of the Bumbo, I love the way you immediately look so proud of yourself when you are sitting there!
- You are still not the biggest fan of tummy time, but you will do it longer now
- Loving toys! Reaching for anything and everything
- You love your daddy more than you can stand it! You laugh as soon as he walks in the room : )
- Tucker lets you "pet" him (pull his hair). You love animals
- It cracks us up when you are on the changing table - you kick for all you are worth!
- You have 2 teeth! The first popped through on Easter and the second popped through about a week and a half later. You are a great teether! Not too fussy, and you don't lose any sleep!
- Yaya is one of your favorite people in the world and Pawpaw makes you laugh. You laugh everytime you see Auntie and Uncle - you just think they are hilarious!
- Your hair is getting so thick! Daddy likes to give you mohawks : )
- You got your first ear infection this month : ( Thankfully, we caught it early and it was mild and only in one ear.
- You LOVE to play in the jumper! You are so proud of yourself when you jump high and we cheer for you!
- LOVE LOVE it when we clap for you!

Feeding himself pears

Sweet Boy

This is what our house looks like between bath and bottle. Clearly, he is very happy : )