Decorating the Tree

Yesterday we finally got around to decorating our tree! The needles on our tree are really sharp, so Shawn and I did most of the work, but it was still a lot of fun.

Daddy had to put on a sweat shirt and gloves to put the lights.

Johnny found the hat I made him last year and it stretched really nicely so it still fit....and oh my god have you seen how cute this kid is!

Here is Johnny trying to put ornaments on the tree, he just did what we did, but he didn't understand that you needed to put the string around the branch. He broke one ornament by just holding it up the tree and letting go.

Playing with the garland...he just gets cuter!

Johnny wanted to see all of the ornaments everywhere on the tree, so here he is using Daddy as a step ladder to do just that.

The apple pictures are from today, but I just couldn't leave them out. Johnny has been growing up so fast! No longer does he need apples cut up to eat, actually he eats more of the apple if you just hand it to him and let him go to town. When I pulled out the camera to get a picture of him biting into the apple this is the face he gave me, immediately. My little ham!

There is the big boy eating his big boy apple.

Post 2 of our Trip to Ohio...Before and After the Party

Saturday the 15th Grams and Aunt Chel planned a Dennison Penney family reunion. While the adults where preparing the food and the house for the families to arrive, the kids got the play. This bouncer used to be Johnny's and I thought it was amazing seeing Johnny stand next to it. When Johnny was nine months old he was already to big/heavy for the bouncer, Wyatt at 9 months is still prefect for it and loves it.

And Johnny loved helping Wyatt enjoy the bouncer!

Papa and Uncle Chuckles where putting together the new/old dinning room table and Johnny knew he could help them!

OH Momma I am such a little man and so strong!

Before the Party 8-15-09 Picasa Pictures

I have cut out the pictures from the party from this post since there are so very many of them and intend to do one more post.


Johnny was so dead asleep after the party that Momma was able to stage this picture :) I think it is very cute.

But this is what happened as he tried to hide from the light of the flash from my camera phone...still so super cute!

Asleep After the Party Picasa Pictures

Don't forget to look at the post before this one for the beginning of our trip to Ohio.

Post 1 of our Weekend in Ohio...Playing with Wyatt

Grams, Momma and Johnny left for a week end in Ohio on Thursday the 13th. During the 6 hrs in the car Johnny watched a lot of Elmo's World (at one point Momma tried to put in Big Bird and Johnny said "No no no no no no! Melmo") And handled the trip very well with Elmo's World and the binky. When we arrived at Uncle Chuckles house Johnny was pleasantly surprised to find cousin Wyatt waiting there and kept giving him hugs and kisses!!

Johnny also was VERY excited to get Wyatt to play with him. At 9 months Wyatt is developing great, but Johnny didn't get the 9 month age difference and kept pulling on Wyatt to get him closer to the toys and any where else Johnny wanted, though surprisingly pretty gentle.


Another GREAT thing is that Johnny really is learning to share and kept giving him his toys...Johnny gave up MELMO...how sweet is that? Oh and how cute is my nephew?

That night Johnny was getting ready for a bath and Wyatt (who already had a bath that day) heard the water and got REALLY excited trying to jump from his Momma's arms to the bath tub, so they took a bath together and really had a great time, splashing each other and dumping water on each other!

8-13-09 playing with Wyatt Picasa Pictures


The next day, Friday 8-14-09. We spent the day relaxing and catching up with Chuckles and Aunt Chel, doing some shopping and out to lunch at C Cs pizza buffet.

Look at those two big boys sitting at the table ready to eat!

Johnny was so ready to eat that he buckled himself in his high chair. Luckily her hasn't figured out how to unbuckle himself yet :)

After lunch Aunt Cookie came over to visit and catch up as well. See Johnny give her the stink eye? It takes him a little while to warm up to anyone he doesn't see daily, but once he does it is very sweet, he freely gave Aunt Cookie a kiss before he went to bed.


And then was tuckered out!

8-14-09 in Ohio Picasa Pictures

I have so many pictures I want to get up that this will be probably two more posts! It really was a fun week end!

Iky, messy, clingy...that is my life

Johnny fell asleep in my arms today so I layed him down on the couch next to me and it was adorable!! It has been so long since I have watched him sleep like this. Don't worry I was sitting directly next to him the entire time! He slept here for a full hour!I touched him and he cured up like a bug.

He has taken to a few of his books. One being "five little ducks" and the other being this cookie monster book(both given to him by Papa)...he brought it to me to read to him and then read it to me :) not out loud though (and yes that is a cookie monster shirt he is wearing!)


Johnny has been a clingy monkey since Shawn left, here is Johnny playing right under my legs (normally he walks around or plays in the ball pit or something) He needed to be close to me

Here again, right up from his nap and not wanting to be put down or leave my side he is leaning his full weight on my leg.I just love the monkey on the butt of this outfit!

So Shawn will be home in three days and we miss him a lot!!! I seem to have a slight head cold, just enough to drain the energy I need for the extra chores around the house and make me feel iky. But it is no big deal. Johnny is extra needy without Shawn here and the special time he would normally get with him. He still doesn't want to be held, but wants constant interaction and to be close by all the time...i must say I need it too, so it is okay!

Johnny got some special food the last few days. I made rosemary chicken, baby style (that is boiled and mashed with chicken stock) and he really loves it. We also started yogurt again (last time it upset his tummy a lot) and he loves that too, actually couldn't get the vanilla in his mouth fast enough and no belly problems.

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and the first day of lent, we are headed to church with Grams and our family.

Tattoo Pictures

Becoming a mother has changed me and my life and my out look on everything. I wanted something to show that, to have with me and to signify how much I love Johnny and how blessed I am be his mother. Such a significant life event deserves a significant tattoo (I guess stretch marks don't count) Four leaf clover for the luckiest day of my life...Saint Patrick's day 2008, the knot work inside the clover for the unending connection between us, the hearts inside the leafs of the clover for love of mother and son, and the blue flowers because well he is a boy and I thought they were pretty. I love my tattoo!!!! It took four hours and yes it hurt!!! Christian (our family tattoo artist, he has officially tattooed every member of my family) was very careful and took his time, I did not make it easy on him....sorry. When it hurt the most I found my self soothing Johnny..saying "it's okay it's okay" and "shhhhh shhhhh" which is what I do when he is mad or hurt. Then saying over and over "momma loves you" I looked at the tattoo for the first time and cried, I was so over whelmed.

Okay now that I am done over analysing I will move on....Johnny had another fun day in Ohio and has had a bout of teething with papa, who just holds him and sooths him, perfectly. He got to play with his second cousins Bennett and Asilinn, but wanted to follow Ella around where ever she went (who was following Asilinn, who is a couple years older then Ella) But Johnny has had no trouble going to all of his extended family and feeling comfortable to not be angry just because we are not there. I think it is wonderful that he is so secure with us that he knows and trusts that we will be back, and is comfortable enough with his Grams and Papa that they can sooth him and go day to day with them with no problem, even into a completely new environment. That being said I miss him so much!!!! I admire Shawn so much for letting me take him for weeks to visit home when we lived in Kansas, or even to have been in Iraq for those months. I don't know how much longer I can be away from Johnny. I honestly feel as if a piece of my heart is gone, I need him here. (which makes me take a step back to think how my parents felt when i left home for the army, or even Shawn's parents when he went to Iraq)

It was nice to reconnect to Shawn and not rush through our day to feed or nap, to get some solid work done in the house, I feel revitalised, but I need my monkey head baby boy. I am glad he got this special time, but I am ready for him to come home, we are waiting with a lot of new cloths, new bath toys, and and PERFECT room for him to play in!!!

Playing at Chick Fil A

He sucks his bottom lip a lot...always a thinker! (as always look at those eyes)

Look at the big boy playing in the big boy toys

Walking...or running away from mommy to get to the bigger boy section!

Static hair from climbing in and how of the tree, you can really see how much he has now...all on the top of his head, like a natural mow hawk!

OH THE FUN!!!

He liked the soup! (bet you didn't know chick Fil A had soup) And ate an entire apple....he has been eating a lot today!!! Oh how amazing he is and how big and beautiful. He loved playing with/around other kids his size (though twice his age) one girl kept hugging him!!! It was so cute! He would have played all day, though kept wanting to leave the 3 and under section for the bigger kid tunnels where cousin Ella was playing.

Just have to say thank god for sanitizing hand wipes and camera phones :)

Jousting Temporary Lactose Intolorence and WALKING

Shawn and I finally had a date night, thanks to the wonderful baby sitting skills of grams and pops (and how much they love doing it) We went to Medieval Times in Baltimore. It was super fun and check out the gigantic beers!!!! Mommy drank one and a half of these and then wanted to spend $60 on a big dragon for Johnny, we ended up getting him the $10 smaller version and he loves it!



It was so nice to be an adult and have a break after spending a week being thrown up on. Apparently after all of the stomach flu and trying to introduce yogurt Johnny has developed a lactose intolerance, our pedi says it is temporary and in a few days of no lactose he should be able to get his formula back. Johnny started to empty his stomach an hour or two after having a bottle. One night, after the first bought Mommy held him, and let it keep coming out right down the front of her dress in the bath tub, he was very tired and every time I set him down he would try to cry and be bent over with how his stomach bothered him. Papa and Grams running around the house helping us clean up and Mommy just holding a sick monkey trying not to cry. But now he is drinking soy milk (not formula since the pedi said it didn't matter and the milk is cheaper) and we are giving it a week before reintroducing any dairy. But I will be permantly tramitised just by the smell and watching it come out of him, but really as long as he was being held he would let it out and then settle back in, not a noise of complant.

I wanted to show Johnny and his favorite toy. There are four boxes of toys that light up and/or make noise and Johnny loves the stacking rings!!! These two he has tried to carry around and would not let them go. He also has been walking a lot lately!!! Up to 8 steps at a time and every chance he gets. He acually tries to run and throw himself on his target. He really needs little support ever and he often is on the go even when we do not prompt him. I have been trying to get a video for you all, but he gets so excited when he sees the camera he just wants to eat it :)

Papa's Birthday and Johnny's First Bites of Cake

John Robert got Papa a T-shirt with his picture on it and John Robert got him self a shirt with Papa's picture on it for the occasion.

Johnny got to eat cherrios off of a fancy Crystal plate at Papa's Birthday party

John Robert loved Papa's birthday hate

Papa loves his grand kids and loved being surronded by them for his birthday

John Robert loves his papa too

Ella and her cousin Sophia decorated papa's birthday cake

Papa loves giving his Grandkids special things and their firsts so John Robert got his very FIRST birthday cake...minus most icing and all sprinkles (apples, cookies and m and ms) :) He loved it!!!! Momma started to cry that it was his first sweet and it was wonderful that is was Papa's Birthday cake.


Looking for more cake :)

Momma tends to try and keep her baby a baby, I was grinding everything I was giving him for a while. Until we got to Maryland and Grams took the cubed steamed sweet potatoes that I was going to mush up and just gave them to Johnny, she also just cut up grean beans and gave those to him...he loves feeding himself and has no problems with any of it. He is using a straw cup and already cutting back on his formula (he will keep it up until 1 year, but will be ready to drink milk right away) He is eating so many new foods now, scrambled eggs, small crackers, and any soft veggies and cut up fruit (grapes he loves) It is all amazying. I guess I just didn't want him to grow up.... Now look at him....growing up....but he will always be my baby....becuase I won't let him not be!

Sorry i got off on a tanget, thinking about the first peas he ate and how they just fell out of his mouth and now he is feeding himself cake...where did the time go?

Papa's Birthday was a lot of fun. Everyone came over and it was so nice to just hang out, eat and chat. Kids running around every where and babies in everyone's arms was wonderful. It is amazying how this family is growing so fast!!!! The adults went to see Valkery (the Tom Cruise movie) since papa loves going to movies and it was acually pretty good, it really sucked you in.

I hope every year is this much fun!!!

There are 109 pictures from today...this is just an sample of the some focused on Johnny...check out land of mary for more later and Thomas' mobile me in a few days.

http://gallery.me.com/tedjr7ou