Goodbye, Pappa Love

Trey lost his beloved great-grandfather Pappa tonight, following a series of complications after open heart surgery. Pappa was such a sweet, special man, and we are sorry Trey won't get to know him more as he grows. Before Trey was born, Pappa called him "Bo," which is why we often call our little boy "Trey-Bo." He is also one of the reasons Trey loves to bounce - from very early on, Pappa would bounce Trey in his lap singing "Old Dan Tucker." Pappa had said he never expected to live long enough to meet his great-grandchild, and we are so glad he had a chance to get to know Trey. They were so, so sweet together, and Trey loved his Pappa as much as the rest of us did. There is so much more we could write, but it's enough to say that we will all miss him dearly.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from Baby Trey! Trey enjoyed three days of Christmas this year - the first at his Riddle grandparents' house, the second at home (and the airport, after we were delayed for 4 hours because the pilot did not show up to work!), and the third at his Edwards grandparents' in Roanoke. Santa was good to Trey, and he now has all kinds of new toys to discover and play with.

Trey was a trooper on Christmas Day. Despite being exhausted from our trip on Christmas Eve and skipping his nap on Christmas, he spent the entire day smiling at all the family, playing with his "cousin" Lady June, and crawling all around the house exploring all the Christmas goodies. When the day was over, he completely crashed and is currently on hour 14 of sleep!

We hope you all are enjoying your holiday celebrations with friends and loved ones. We'll post pictures of ours soon!

ENT Specialist

We took Trey to see an ENT specialist this morning. Our visit started with some various hearing tests. The first test showed that Trey had some excess fluid in his ears, which prevents the ear drum from moving correctly. Because of this, the hearing technician explained that Trey is roaming around with the equivalent of foam earplugs in his ears. He did not expect Trey to do very well on his subsequent hearing tests, but he passed with flying colors!

For the first one, Mommy held Trey in a room and held a toy in front of him to keep his eyes focused straight ahead. The technician would play beeps or call Trey softly by name through speakers in the walls to see if Trey would turn towards the sounds. He did great on this test. The second one was akin to the newborn hearing screen given to babies - just some signals sent through the ear canal and a device to measure the sounds the ear sends back (I'm not very good at explaining it). He passed that test as well, even though he wasn't expected to. So, all in all, his ears are in good shape.

Alas, there is still the problem of recurring ear infections. The doctor gave us some nose drops to give to Trey each night, and then he wants to see us again in six weeks. If he keeps having ear infections, he'll go ahead and recommend tubes.

A fun part of our visit was watching Trey play in the waiting room. The doctor's office had lots of fun toys, including "big boy" toys to push around - a lawn mower, a Tonka truck, a fire engine, a vacuum cleaner, etc. There were other big boys (2-3 years old) playing with all of the toys, and Trey wanted to play, too! He tried his best despite not being able to walk the toys around. Still, he had so much fun that one of the "big boys" decided to crawl around pushing a toy like Trey did!

Visit with Santa!

Trey went to see Santa today at the Galleria. Yes, despite finishing all of our Christmas shopping weeks ago, we foolishly decided to brave the Galleria on today of all days. Although there was only about a 30 minute wait for Santa around 5:00 or so, we spent nearly that long just getting out of the parking garage when we were finished! Oh well, it was worth the trip for this result:

Trey was generally happy to see Santa, and wasn't scared of him at all. He did try to pull on his beard, but Santa said he is pretty used to that.

Merry Christmas everyone! Trey will celebrate Christmas with his Riddle family on the 23rd. Mommy and Daddy have put in a special request that Santa visit Trey early this year on the 24th, because Trey will be in Virginia with his Edwards family on Christmas morning. We'll keep you posted on Trey's first Christmas!

Christmas Show

This evening was the Holiday Program at Trey's school. It was precious. Since this was our first time to attend, I had very little idea what it was about. Turns out it's essentially the Kindergarten program, with the other classes making performances at various points throughout the show.

This year, the Kindergarten students put on a performance of Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. After each part of the story, one of the younger classes would come out in costume and "perform" to a song that had something to do with that part of the story. Trey's class played, appropriately enough, babies. There wasn't a lot of performing to it - the teachers essentially just held them and walked them across the stage - but the production as a whole was unbelievably cute. Unfortunately, the camera I brought was somehow out of battery, but we did get Trey's segment on video, which we'll post eventually.

Welcome Baby Lillie!

Trey is excited to have a new girlfriend! Lillie Kate Morgan was born this morning here in Houston. Trey will have to choose his girlfriend between Lillie and big sister Lindsey (15 months), but for now, he is excited to welcome his new friend!

Pictures posted!

I have updated some of our posts with pictures.... finally. Hope you enjoy. :)

Welcome Baby Piper!

Trey has a new friend! Piper Lee Jordan was born yesterday here in Houston. Although Trey has not met her yet (we want to make sure his cold is cleared up first), she is almost certainly a future girlfriend. Trey is excited to have a new friend in town!

Chasing Doggies

This past weekend, we took a day trip to San Antonio to have an extended family Christmas at our Aunt Patricia and Uncle Johnny's house. It was a wonderful occasion visiting with family and enjoying fabulous food surrounded by gorgeous Christmas decorations (Aunt Pud really knows how to entertain!). But perhaps the highlight of the day was Trey's reaction to the Ramseys' two girls, Annie and Katie - little white dogs that were just bigger than Trey. Trey was so excited to see them and chased them all around the house! The cute doggies were actually somewhat frightened by Trey's aggressive behavior and ran away whenever they saw him heading their way, but our fast little crawler did a pretty good job keeping up with the pups.

Uncle Johnny let Trey pet Katie, even though Trey didn't really understand that dogs are for petting and not for grabbing like other toys. Still, Trey's first experience around dogs was a true delight. Here is a video of just a sample of Trey's activity with the dogs (the best we could get).

Trey will have more interactions with dogs over Christmas when he meets his "cousins," Lady June (Aunt Dabney & Uncle P's new puppy) and Henry (Uncle Bob's dog). We're not so sure these dogs will react as mildly as Katie and Annie did, so it could get interesting. Stay tuned...

Let it snow!

Trey saw snow for the first time today! No, we are not on vacation in the mountains or even visiting family in Virginia... We are home in Houston! Trey left school this evening to see swarms and swarms of REAL snowflakes in the air. He didn't know enough to be as excited as Mommy and Daddy were, but he did survey the situation as usual. Trey got to break in his new winter hat, courtesy of his Sugar, which she gave to him with the intention of him wearing it in Virginia for Christmas. We memorialized the occasion with a few pictures.

Another ear infection

Trey woke up yesterday with a bad cough that sounded productive. He didn't have a fever, so I didn't worry much, but we knew something was up. He coughed all night and just wasn't his normal, rambunctious self this morning, so I made him a doctor's appointment. Sure enough, he has yet another ear infection. This makes #4 for him - one at 4 months, one at 6, one at 9, and now one at 10. So the doctor told us we should try and see a pediatric ear, nose, and throat specialist. He said they may not do anything now, but at least we can go ahead and establish a relationship with one since we're bound to need one eventually.

But the doctor says our little boy is doing great otherwise! He is really impressed with how comfortable he is around strangers and how cooperative he was in the exam room. He said he is interacting at an advanced level and seems to have excellent communication skills. If only he could see our little baby crawl, he would be very impressed by his gross motor skills as well.

When we got home, Trey and I rocked and he rested his sweet head on my shoulder for a long while. It was one of those touching moments that reminds you why you became a mother. As sad as I was for my little baby who didn't feel well, and as frustrating as it was to miss time from work today, nothing feels so special as cuddling with your little baby who depends on you for everything. And the older and more active he gets, the harder those moments are to come by.

Bouncing Baby

Trey has always loved to bounce. First, he tried his hand bouncing in the bouncer. Then, he moved on to the exersaucer. Next, he made a habit of bouncing in people's laps. And when Mommy and Daddy finally hung the Johnny Jump Up, Trey bounced up and down nonstop.

Now that he has outgrown the Johnny Jump Up, our little one has a new way of bouncing. His new favorite trick is to sit on his knees and bounce up and down to music - either our singing (Mommy's or Mama C's, that is) or songs coming from one of his toys. In particular, he likes the fun songs from his Laugh & Learn Learning Puppy toy. "Ears Hang Low" is his favorite, and he's also partial to "Old Dan Tucker," which his Pappa taught him. It's so much fun. We caught it on video the other day; Daddy will post it when he gets the chance.

First Sleepover!

Trey had his first official sleepover last night. He stayed at Mama C & Daddy Tom's for the night after we all celebrated Thanksgiving. Mommy and Daddy went to a birthday party (they went indoor rock climbing and had a blast -- Mommy got all the way to the top!) and hung out with friends. Trey was a sweet boy for his grandparents and they didn't want to give him up this morning! Trey had a great time too and didn't want to leave. He hardly even reacted when Mommy picked him up this morning. Mama C loved having her little baby around the house and missed him so much when he was gone!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from the newest little Edwards! Trey celebrated Turkey day twice this year. On Thursday we had lunch with friends at the Plaza Club downtown, where Trey feasted on an elaborate Thanksgiving Day brunch buffet with beautiful views of the city (as beautiful as views in Houston go, anyway). He even got a turkey bath squirter toy out of the deal, and Mommy and Daddy got to bring home a little takeout container of turkey and stuffing.

On Friday, we had a belated Thanksgiving with Mommy's extended family (Uncle Ryan wanted to go to the Texas - Texas A&M game in Austin on Thursday). Mommy brought a smoked turkey, gravy, rolls, green beans, broccoli rice casserole and sweet potatoes, Uncle Ryan made his famous carrots and ambrosia, and Trey's Great Aunt Mar brought banana pudding and the family favorite dessert - sundae pie. We had a great time, and everybody loved spending time with little Baby Trey.

Visit with Santa

Trey went to see Santa on Wednesday night. He reacted exactly the way we expected him to: he wasn't scared, just very serious and focused on figuring this new guy out. It was a challenge to get him to even look at the camera! We'll probably have a couple more Santa visits this season; I'll post a picture eventually!

Trey's Favorite Game

Our little crawling baby has a new favorite game: he loves to chase Mommy or Daddy around the house! We get on all fours and crawl into different rooms or around tables, and Trey follows with squeals and giggles. Occasionally he is the one leading the way, but mostly he prefers to try and catch us. He is a master crawler, so this game works really well. It's so fun for all of us.

I haven't been as good at blogging lately and I apologize. For the sake of the complete record, even though it's difficult to talk about, I should write that Trey just got back from a visit to Louisiana. We were there for his Gramps's funeral. Gramps passed away early Monday morning in the hospital after being sick for a while. He was 79 years old. He was such a sweet man, and Trey was lucky to get to meet him no less than three times this year.

We've also been overwhelmed with Trey's other great-grandfather in the hospital. Pappa is recovering from heart surgery and has had one complication after another. Trey visits when he can, although he's not allowed to see him in ICU (Pappa has been back and forth between ICU and his own room). It is always good therapy for Pappa to see Trey. We ask for your prayers during this trying time.

First Time Out

Our sweet little boy has turned into a very finicky eater. On Saturday, after his marathon portrait sitting that I neglected to write about, we took him to eat "breakfast" at Buffalo Grille. Trey dined on pancakes (no syrup) and loved them, so much so that when I fed him the leftovers for lunch the next day, he begged for more pancake pieces in lieu of the vegetables on his tray. Last night we gave him some chicken fingers and fruit. Trey loved the chicken fingers, but refused to eat the fruit. When we put the pieces in his mouth, he immediately spit them out, then whined for more chicken. Trying to negotiate with the little 9-month-old, we told him he couldn't have any more chicken until he ate his fruit. He still refused. So, we resorted to other measures and put him in "time out" by turning his high chair around for 45 seconds. I'm sure the little guy had no clue what was going on, but I suppose we have to start somewhere.

Meanwhile, we have the issue of getting Trey to actually eat fruits and vegetables! He loves beans, Cheerio's and all things carbs and meat. I guess he is a real man. Hopefully this is just a phase and it won't stick. After all, he thoroughly enjoyed dining on strawberries and bananas at Mommy's birthday dinner Saturday night.

9 Month Stats

Trey went to the doctor today for his 9-month check up. And his stats are:
Weight: 19 lbs., 7 oz. = 25%
Length: 27 3/4" = 25%

His percentiles are down from previous check-ups, but the doctor was not concerned about it at all, since the ranges for babies are so narrow after 6 months. 21 pounds would be the 50th percentile. (Personally, we think his percentage has gone down since so many babies go on formula after 6 months and bulk up on the extra calories. Plus, Trey is so active that he burns all his extra fat off!)

The surprise of the day was that Trey has ear infections in both ears! He felt warm to us in NYC over the weekend, but otherwise he hasn't had any symptoms other than a slightly runny nose. He hasn't even complained at all. So, the doctor prescribed an antibiotic and ordered him back in a couple weeks, since Trey has had so many ear infections in recent months. He did say it could be related to all the travel we've been doing since the pressure changes in airplanes promote ear infections. I guess there is a price to pay for being a little jet setter!

School Pictures

Trey had picture day at school yesterday. Who knew babies took part in this annual occasion! Those who know Trey know that whenever he is in a new environment, he has to study the room and the people in it before he can "let loose." So we were pretty sure Trey would not give us the smiley picture we were hoping for. Sure enough, Trey gave a very serious expression in his school photo. The teachers said he was trying to figure everything out. True to form! Oh well. We will have his "0-year" school picture for posterity and I'm sure we will come to treasure it (just like his hospital picture, which we thought was really good at the time but now looks nothing like him!). We are taking "real" pictures on Saturday and I am very excited to work with this photographer. She does amazing work.

Finger Foods

Trey is deciding more and more that he is tired of this baby food stuff. He would much rather eat big-people food. This week, he started eating the school-provided lunch each day. On Monday he had little pieces of steak fingers, green beans, french fries, and peaches. He loved it! Now that he is pretty good at feeding himself, he much prefers the finger foods to the mushy stuff (unless it's banana-flavored yogurt or something equally tasty). It makes our lives much easier because we can throw things onto his tray while we actually feed ourselves! Trey is eating pretty much everything these days. He loves beans, chicken, and peas. He also eats little pieces of tomatoes and other vegetables. And, of course, there are the beloved Cheerio's.

This weekend we are headed to New York City. Aunt Kacie is coming with us as Trey's date. Trey will get to see lots of Mommy and Daddy's friends, and he will finally get to meet his second cousin Evelyn!

Political Activist

Baby Trey went out with Mommy today to campaign door-to-door for his Congressional candidate of choice. He sported a T-shirt for his Presidential candidate of choice, and everyone, regardless of political affiliation, thought he was incredibly adorable. Note to all: babies are great for campaigning. Trey really enjoyed being outside, enjoying the ride and the fresh air, and munching on Cheerio's. Perhaps we have a future politician in the house!

Happy Halloween!

From the puppy dog on Swift Boulevard.

The Pacifier Drop

Trey has a little game that he likes to play in the mornings. After he stirs from his peaceful slumber (and he really is a good little night-time sleeper - about 12 hours each night!), he crawls around his crib, pulls up on the bumpers and the bars, and looks around to see if there is any activity in his room. He then takes a pacifier, bangs it back and forth between two of the bars on the crib, and eventually tosses it onto the floor. As we keep several pacifiers in the crib (fully realizing this is against the instructions of all the baby sleep experts), Trey repeats the process until each of his pacifiers is on the floor, with the exception of the one in his mouth. For whatever reason, he declines to do the same thing with the toys he keeps in the bed. He then rolls around a bit more, lies down, and rests until Mommy or Daddy come to get him. When we enter the room, we are greeted by a sea of pacifiers on the floor. It really is too funny. We's posted a video of it on the bar to the right.

Social Butterfly

Trey had all kinds of social engagements over the weekend. After Fall Fest and dinner on Friday, Trey headed to a birthday party (a costume party where Trey dressed as a tiger!) and then a housewarming party on Saturday, where he was the star of both shows. The older kids at the birthday party loved holding and playing with him, and he entertained all at the housewarming by crawling around everywhere, laughing and giggling. Then, at Aunt Kacie's birthday dinner on Sunday, Trey squealed and smiled his way through the evening. Even after spitting up all over the guest of honor, he was all smiles.

Fall Fest

Trey had Fall Fest at school on Friday. It's their version of a Halloween carnival, where all the kids dress up and have a "costume parade" for their parents and other guests, and then the school has little booths and games in the courtyard for all the kids to enjoy. Trey dressed as a puppy dog, and Mommy, Daddy, Mama C, Daddy Tom, and Aunt Kacie all came for the festivities. They all got to meet Trey's teachers and some of his friends.

Here is most of Trey's class at the parade (Emerson the bunny, Jake C. the lion, John as Humpty Dumpty, Trey the puppy dog, Jake B. the pirate, Matthew the penguin, and Jeremy the lion):

Afterward, we went to dinner at Ibiza to celebrate Daddy Tom's latest visit. Trey was absolutely an angel at dinner and drew the attention of waitpersons and patrons alike. When the table next to us finished and got up to left, they commented on what a good baby we have. Of course, we already knew that! :)

Babyproofing

Our house is now on its way to being fully babyproofed! On Friday I had a service in to install safety gates to block off the dining room, put latches on the kitchen and baby's bathroom cabinets, and do a couple other miscellaneous things. Trey is now crawling around everywhere and trying to get into everything he's not supposed to touch, so we're doing more and more babyproofing every day. He's a very curious little guy, so babyproofing only does so much - we still have to hover over him whenever he's "on the loose"!

Mommy's Home!

Mommy is home after her longest time ever away from Trey - 48 hours! Trey greeted her this morning standing up in his crib, hollering for attention. When Mommy spent her lunch hour with him today, Trey was full of smiles and energy.

Trey is now more active than ever. He is crawling everywhere and pulling up on whatever he can. We lowered the crib once last week, only to find him leaning over the railing when he didn't want to go down for a nap. So we were forced to lower it yet again; it is now as low as it will go. The house is being babyproofed on Friday. He is no longer the little baby that stays in place and is easy to tote around, but he is more and more fun every day.

Welcome Baby Chase!

Welcome to Trey's newest friend, Chase Curran! Chase was born late Thursday night in Boston will a very full head of hair! Chase and his mom will be moving from the Boston area to Charleston, South Carolina; his dad has been working there for a few months now. Trey now has so many friends in Charleston South that we are going to have to try and visit sometime soon!

Another new tooth!

Trey has a new tooth! And it comes with no complaining at all. It is his left bottom lateral incisor, if you're keeping track. No signs yet of its mate, but we'll keep you posted!

Pumpkin Patch

We took Trey to the Pumpkin Patch this past weekend. We thought it would make a great photo op. The setting was cute, but Trey was not interested in smiling at all. Nope, he was too busy looking around at everything and everyone. At one point he pulled up on a pumpkin, although he didn't even realize what he did! (Did I mention Trey is crawling everywhere and pulling up every once in a while? He is!!)

We ended up getting a few cute pictures, but all in all the outing was a bust. But at least we had an official "fall" activity this month!

Graduation Day

Today was the big day. Trey "graduated" from Nursery I to Nursery II at school. Although there was no formal ceremony, Mommy and Daddy hummed "Pomp and Circumstance" to Trey all along the way to his classroom this morning. After hellos and goodbyes with his Nursery I teachers, Trey was whisked away to Nursery II for good.

By all accounts, he adjusted well to the new classroom this week. He is really getting around crawling and has even taken naps that correspond at least somewhat with their set schedule. He was extra tired each evening this week, which means he's probably playing a lot more during the day. Nursery II will give him a better chance to move all around and explore. According to Ms. Angel, the head teacher, Trey is even trying to pull up!

At the end of the day, we snuck back into Nursery I to say goodbye to Ms. Vicki. Trey and Ms. Vicki have a special bond, and we hope they will still visit each other across the hall!

Grocery Shopping

After nearly eight months, Trey made his first trip to the grocery store. Mommy brought a plush shopping cart cover that she splurged on before Trey was born (pictured), but then couldn't easily figure out how to put the darn thing on the cart, so she gave up. Oh well, maybe next time.

Despite being hungry and tired, Trey loved the store. There was so much to look at! And when there was an announcement made over the speaker system, Trey looked and looked to try to find whose voice he was hearing. He also babbled all over the store ("ya ya," "ba ba," "da da"). His favorite part of the adventure were the helium balloons in the produce section and checkout line. Who knew grocery shopping could be so much fun!

Busy Weekend

Baby Trey is back in Houston after a very busy weekend. He flew with Mommy and Daddy to Virginia to see family and visit Heaven on Earth (a.k.a. Charlottesville). Trey attended his first college football tailgate and his first UVA football game. The little baby was a good luck charm - the 'Hoos beat Maryland 31-0!! By all accounts, Trey was great at the game, enjoying the halftime show and eventually falling asleep on his great-grandmother's lap.

This weekend also marked Mommy's first night out of town away from Trey. While Trey was at the game with Daddy and family, Mommy headed to DC for a friend's birthday party. Mommy was so excited to see Trey again at the family brunch the next morning (to celebrate Papa John's 65th birthday today!), but Trey was so busy checking out the surroundings, Mommy hardly got a reaction out of him at first. After settling down, Trey gave Mommy plenty of smiles and was so sweet at brunch as he was passed from person to person.

Now back in town, Trey is almost as exhausted from the weekend as his parents are. But it's a big week for our little baby - he is transitioning to Nursery II at school this week!

Welcome Baby Kate!

Trey has a new friend! Kate Ricord Griesemer was born yesterday afternoon in Austin. Reports are that she, Mom Sarah and Dad Paul are all doing well. Trey can't wait to meet her!

Frequent Flier

Baby Trey is headed back to Virginia this weekend for the third time in his short life. This time, Trey will attend his first college football game -- or at least the tailgate before. Go Wahoos! We have his bag stuffed with orange and blue gear and long sleeves for the slightly cooler weather.

This will be Trey's seventh round trip flight, and his 15th and 16th plane rides! Too bad babies without a ticket of their own can't earn frequent flier miles...

Moving up!

Next week, Trey starts his transition into Nursery II at school. In other words, he is graduating from the little baby class to the not-so-little baby class. Typically, Nursery II is for babies between crawling and walking age, with some give and take either way depending on the needs in each class. With this transition comes a whole new world: regular nap times, lots of new toys to stimulate the crawling baby, more defined eating habits, and even the introduction of baby sign language. It also means saying goodbye to a group of teachers we have come to know and love.

Trey is moving up with his friend John (another John III!), who is officially his first friend. The two boys already have a lot in common. Besides a shared name, John also has a father and a grandfather who are lawyers. And they were born just four days apart (John is a Valentine's Day baby!). Trey and John play together every day and their beds in Nursery I are right next to each other. One of the teachers told me today that when Trey and John were in the Bye Bye Buggy (large stroller for 6) yesterday, sitting next to each other, they were holding hands!

So, we will desperately miss Ms. Cynthia, Ms. Vicki, Ms. Alicia, and the other teachers of Nursery I, and Trey will say goodbye for now to his other little friends in the class. But we will get to know a new group of wonderful teachers, including Ms. Angel, whom we met today, and Trey will get to see some of his old friends from Nursery I who moved to Nursery II in the past couple of months. And we're not moving very far - Nursery II is just right across the hall!

Shopping Partner

Baby Trey accompanied Aunt Kacie and me at the Galleria today for some shopping. He was a great shopping partner. I don't think Aunt Kacie will disagree when I say he was even better behaved than she was - he complained less, anyway (she was tired from a late night out). He sat upright in his stroller the entire 4 hours we were there, looking at the spectacle that is the Galleria on a weekend. And he smiled and giggled at various passers-by. In fact, if I had a dime for every time someone commented on how cute he was, Trey would have his college fully funded.

Later, Mommy had to do some serious grocery shopping to stock up on everything we lost in our fridge during Ike. Because grocery shopping is easier without a baby in tow, Trey stayed back with Aunt Kacie. She fed him a good night bottle, read him a story, sang him a song, and put him down for bed. He went to sleep without a fuss. Aunt Kacie is so sweet with Trey, and we are lucky to have her so close by.

Single Mom

Daddy is out of town for the weekend, so Trey has a single mom for today and tomorrow. It's not the first time we've been alone together for the weekend. It's more like the third or fourth. The first weekend we were alone together for a whole weekend was when Trey was about six weeks old, and Daddy left us to attend a weekend bachelor party in Las Vegas. Coincidentally, that was the weekend that Trey decided to pretend to have colic, which was completely out of character for our sweet little boy. It lasted for two miserable days and then went away as soon as Daddy came home. So it wasn't the best weekend. The other weekends we've had to ourselves have been much better, but it's still not nearly as much fun as having Daddy around too.

This week I had lunch with another mom who has a little boy in Trey's class and she told me she is a single mom by choice. I think she's officially the first woman I've known personally who has chosen to have a baby without a partner. She's also a full-time litigation attorney at a big Houston firm, so she's just like me, sans husband. I don't know how she does it, and I really admire her for making such an amazing life decision and figuring out how to make it work. Weekends like this, as fun as they are, are harder than when Daddy is around. I totally respect all of the single moms of the world.

Fun with Mama C

Trey was in the BEST mood all day yesterday. Just a smiley, happy baby. From the moment he woke up until the minute he went to bed, he was handing out smiles and giggles like crazy.

Mama C came over after work yesterday to play with Trey. He had fun giggling, playing, and rolling around with her and Aunt Kacie (who is staying with us right now since their house STILL doesn't have power!). It was great entertainment for all of us. Mama C sings Trey the best songs, and he loves it!

In other news, Trey is trying really hard to crawl. He gets up on all fours and will sometimes take a stride or two, but then he falls back onto his tummy and "swims" for a little while before trying again. But his latest trick is to push up on the balls of his feet - like he is doing a real "push up." They say all babies crawl differently and it's just an intermediate step to walking, so I guess Trey is trying all kinds of things until he figures out what works.
(I know I need to post pictures of all of this stuff!)

Pictures Posted!

Here is the link to yesterday's portrait sitting.
http://smilestore.picturepeople.com/my/images?tk=89d56d65-16d6-463d-8e50-07e93198a43e

Back to normal...sort of.

Now that we have power, cable, and Internet back at home, Baby Trey's world is pretty much back to normal. He is sleeping in his own crib, playing with his regular toys, and eating in his regular high chair. He had his first fruit - pears - over the weekend. At first he wasn't sure about it, just as he is with any new food, but by last night he was gobbling up every bite.

But because a lot of Houston is still without power, Trey has had more visitors lately. Aunt Kacie is staying with us right now so that she can soak up our a/c and electricity. Mama C and Pappa came over yesterday to do laundry. And "Uncle" Joe spent the night on Saturday night while Mommy and her old college roommates had a reunion at "Aunt" Jenny's house. Incidentially, that was Mommy's first night away from Trey. They both did pretty well with the whole thing, and Daddy got up to feed Trey for the first morning in a long time. Fortunately for Daddy, Trey decided to sleep in until 9 a.m.!

Trey also had a re-do of his portrait sitting yesterday. He was much better behaved than the last session, when he had an earache (unbeknown to us at the time). However, the pictures did not turn out nearly as well! We aren't really sure why, but Mommy was very disappointed. Oh well - we will take Christmas pictures with a "real" photographer soon enough. In any event, we will post a link to the new pictures when they are uploaded.

It also looks like pretty much all of Trey's friends are back at school today. Trey was looking forward to playing with everyone today. This morning, upon arrival, he initiated a game of peek-a-boo with Ms. Vicki. (We secretly think that Trey is Ms. Vicki's favorite baby, but don't tell any of the other parents!) That is one thing Trey loves to do lately - play peek-a-boo on his own terms. He flirts and giggles with the intended target and it is absolutely adorable. We love it. :)

Let there be light!

The Edwards house now has power!!! We have never been so appreciative of electricity. No cable yet, but beggars can't be choosers. We are excited to sleep at home tonight!

Rub-a-dub dub

Trey took his first bath in a real tub last night. It was really more out of necessity than anything - we were at Jenny & Joe's and didn't have his infant tub. But it was pretty much business as usual and I don't think he even noticed the difference. Mommy still prefers the infant tub because you can keep the water running the entire time without worrying about the water level, but we will officially put down 9/18 for this particular milestone.

Nomads

Baby Trey's home is still without electricity, so he and his parents have become nomads. Last night we all stayed at our friends Jenny and Joe's house and enjoyed sleeping with the comforts of sweet air conditioning and ceiling fans. This weekend we will probably move to a friend's apartment, and come Sunday, if Swift Boulevard still does not have power, we'll likely be back at Jenny and Joe's. We are all thankful for such good friends and their hospitality. Trey has done reasonably well on-the-go, but I'm sure he is longing to sleep in his real crib again!

Correction: New TEETH!

Trey has not one, but FOUR new teeth coming in! He's been a pretty good sport about the whole thing. Pretty soon that toothless grin we've come to love will be filled with pearly whites. Anybody know a good dentist?

Boogy Man Ike

In case you have not already heard from us, we survived Hurricane Ike! The storm blew threw in the middle of the night on Friday-Saturday morning. Trey "hunkered down" in a portable crib in our master bathroom and slept through the entire thing! The rest of us slept off and on, occasionally peaking outside to see the strong winds and glimpse at tree limbs that had fallen (we lost a huge limb from our beautiful front tree!). We were lucky and survived the storm unharmed and with only a couple broken window panes. It took us a while to clean up our yard with all of the debris left behind by what Trey's friend Lily is calling "Boogy Man Ike." Thanks to Aunt Dabney for helping us over the weekend! We are still one of the hundreds of thousands without power but we are enjoying the time together as a family.

A new tooth!

Finally, the tooth we have been waiting for makes its appearance! It's his top right front tooth, if you're keeping track. We think we can see at least two others on their way in as well. Trey's been in as good a mood as ever, though, so they don't seem to be bothering him. He's still chewing on everything in sight, but that's nothing new!

Baby's First Hurricane

All of Trey's local family, friends, and neighbors (including Aunt Dabney, who is visiting for the weekend) are bracing for Hurricane Ike! Trey, of course, has no idea what is going on and thinks Mommy and Daddy are home because it's the weekend or something. Hopefully Trey's first hurricane is not like his mother's (Hurricane Alicia in 1983), when we lost power for 3 days. Ike is supposed to blow through in the middle of the night tonight, so if all goes well, Trey will not even notice!

Arts Alive

The second and fourth Thursday of every month, Trey has Arts Alive at school. It's a sort of music/dance class. A woman comes in and leads the babies and their parents (or designated attendees) in goofy songs, dances, and related activities for half an hour at lunch-time. It's REALLY silly, but Trey enjoys it and loves the eccentric teacher who leads the class. He stares at her the entire time, probably because he's intrigued by her loud, animated voice.

Trey's Day

Several people have asked me lately what Trey's typical schedule is. Here is how his day usually goes:

7:00 - Trey wakes up and rolls around/talks in bed, snoozes off and on

7:30 - He wakes up for good. We nurse, play, and get ready for the day. Trey goes to school and Mommy and Daddy go to work.

10:00 - Short nap (30 minutes)

11:00 - Trey eats some rice cereal and a vegetable, followed by a bottle.

1:00 or 1:30 (about) - Trey takes a 1-hour nap

2:30 (appx. - after he wakes up) - Trey has another bottle

4:00 - He sometimes eats a vegetable, and/or sometimes has another bottle later in the afternoon

5:00 - Short nap (30 minutes) - sometimes this nap is on the way home, or just after we get home, and sometimes he skips it.

5:45 - Mommy (or sometimes Daddy) picks Trey up from school

6:00 - Play time at home

7:00 - Trey has dinner - rice cereal and a vegetable, and we nurse (sometimes the nursing and dinner is switched, depending on his mood)

7:30 - Bath, followed by story-time

8:00 - Bedtime. Sometimes he takes a while to settle down, but he is getting better at going straight to sleep.

His schedule is still somewhat in flux, but when he moves up to Nursery II at school (likely sometime in the next month), he'll have more of a set schedule. The biggest adjustment will probably be the regular 9:00 a.m. nap time. Trey is not a big napper, as you can see from the above schedule.

Back home

After a weekend of at least 12 hours of driving, we are back at home. Trey took his longest road trip to date to see his Riddle great-grandparents (Mimmie and Gramps) and his 94-year-old great great great aunt (we call her Aunt Seetheart) in Louisiana. Everyone loved seeing our little guy, and he did a great job in the car. He especially entertained everyone by jumping for what seemed like forever in his Johnny Jump Up, which he can't get enough of! Trey also found a new favorite toy - plastic measuring spoons from Mimmie's house.

Trey, however, tried to tell us in his own little way that he has had ENOUGH of this traveling! Our first night, he hardly slept a wink, and wouldn't settle down at all until we put him in bed with us. He did not want to sleep in the Pack and Play that has become his second bed. He was better the second night, but generally just wasn't himself until we stepped foot into our house. One look at his exersaucer and he was jumping and squealing with joy. He was so happy, he forgot he was supposed to be hungry!

Despite plenty of naps in the car, the weekend events exhausted our little one. After an attempted dinner of squash last night (which he ate, but wasn't too thrilled about), he refused to eat anything else and, following a quick bath and story-time with Daddy, went straight to bed. He woke up happy this morning, thrilled to have finally slept in his own crib!

On the road again...

Trey is headed back out of town yet again... this time to visit family in Louisiana. It will be a record-length car ride for our increasingly active little baby. We'll give a full report when we return!

Welcome Baby Charlotte!

Trey has a new cousin! Well, second cousin, to be technical. Charlotte Elizabeth Marston was born at 2:49 this morning in Charlotte, NC, weighing in at 7 pounds, 13 ounces and measuring 20 1/2 inches. Trey can't wait to meet her!!

All clear.

The hives are gone! After just one dose of anti-histamine, Trey woke up this morning to perfectly clear skin. Ah, the wonders of Western medicine.

Allergies

Trey has broken out in hives, poor little baby. :( At first we thought they were bug bites, since the bugs were biting in full force the evening before he woke up with pink spots all over his face. Alas, the spots spread, and the doctor said it is an allergic reaction, most likely to the amoxicillin he was taking. So, we have switched the creamy pink medicine for a thin, clear liquid - an anti-histamine. Trey is sleeping off the day, but we'll see in the morning how well the medicine is working. He doesn't seem to be bothered, though, by the whole thing - he is as happy as ever!

Back to reality

We're back! We all had a great time in the Caribbean sun. We learned that vacations with kids are broken down into two daily segments: before nap time and after nap time. So, with that in mind, here's a recap of our adventures:

Wednesday:
We arrived, toured the Rainbow Beach Club (where the Ketrons live), and had a yummy dinner of homemade pizza courtesy of chef Lowell.

Thursday: (as mentioned below)
Before nap time: We played at the pool with a gorgeous backdrop of the ocean.
After nap time: Walked around Philipsburg and ate dinner at the Greenhouse.

Friday:
Before nap time: Playtime at the condo (due to rainy weather).
After nap time: Fun at the beach (Le Galion)! Baby Trey LOVED the waves and the salt water. Chef Lowell prepared awesome shrimp and beef kabobs for dinner.

Saturday:
Before nap time: We headed to Marigot for the open market and lunch at a yummy French bakery. Trey loved watching the pigeons that hung out on the patio!
After nap time: More beach time! This time we headed to Mullet Beach near our condo. Later we had dinner at Pineapple Pete.

Sunday:
Before nap time: Trey had play time with Spence and Everett (thanks Jill and Lowell!) while Mommy and Daddy went on a fun diving trip. Later, Trey tried carrots for the first time. He loved them!
After nap time: More play time at the pool. Lowell cooked up juicy hamburgers for dinner, followed by an impressive Bananas Foster.

Monday:
We all slept in and had a much-needed relaxing morning before heading to the airport (during nap time). :)

Now it is back to school for our little one. Definitely a change of pace from the island life we enjoyed over the long weekend!

Sint Maarten

Trey is saying hi from the Caribbean! We learned today that the Dutch side is Sint Maarten and the French side is Saint Martin, so we weren't really saying it right. Oh well. Today we played at the pool with the gorgeous backdrop of the ocean and then went to Philipsburg for shopping and dinner. Tomorrow it's off to the beach!

Pictures Posted!

The pictures from Trey's portrait sitting are posted! The poor baby wasn't feeling himself that day, but there are still some cute shots.

Here is the link: http://smilestore.picturepeople.com/my/images?tk=96558018-8c3c-4536-8aa2-24a99c856e15&CMPN=EmailAlbum

If for some reason that doesn't work, email me at kredwards@fulbright.com and I'll send you a link.

World Traveler

Despite past trips to Austin, Dallas, Virginia, New Jersey, San Francisco, and back to New Jersey and Virginia, Baby Trey officially becomes a world traveler tomorrow when we head to St. Maarten to visit his friends Spence and Everett. Trey is packing all of his resortwear and heading to the airport with passport in hand (or, in Mommy's hand, as the case may be). Stay tuned for a detailed report of Trey's adventures!

(PS - Aunt Kacie came over tonight to play with Trey while Mommy packed his stuff!)

6 1/2 Month Stats

Weight: 17 pounds, 4 ounces (50%)
Length: 26" (45%)
Head: 17 1/8" (30%)

I swear he's weighed over 18 pounds before, but maybe he hasn't been eating as much lately with the ear infection. Still, he's staying on pace with his prior measurements.

Tough little guy

Trey had his 6 month check-up at the doctor's this morning. The doctor confirmed his ear infection (after commenting that the hospital is sometimes a little aggressive with its diagnoses), but then cleared him to take immunizations. So our little guy braved his way through 1 oral dose and 6 shots (5 immunizations + a flu shot). This was on top of a dose of Tylenol and one of his antibiotic this morning. He's being a real trooper today.

Growth stats to be posted shortly...

Separation anxiety

It appears separation anxiety has set in for our little guy. For a couple weeks now, Trey has cried when I pick him up from school, he sees me, and then I walk away to grab his bag. Today he broke down when I left him with Daddy to go run errands, and after Mama C came over to take care of our sick guy, he cried when Daddy left the room. So far he hasn't complained when we leave him at school in the morning, but that may be just around the corner.

Peas and thank you.

Baby Trey had peas today for the very first time. Yes, Sugar, they were organic. No, Mama C, peas do not promote yeast (I don't think). And yes, Ryan, he seemed to like them. He ate about a third of the little carton easily. I'd say that's pretty good for a sick baby's first time eating veggies.

(PS - He also had about 2 tablespoons of rice cereal with milk, courtesy of Mama C. Let's hope the little eater keeps up the good work!)

Saturday Night Out

Trey's fever got worse as the day went on, so at about 7:30 this evening we decided to take him to the emergency room (since the pediatrician - crazy enough - is not open on Saturday night). After about 3 hours at Texas Children's, Trey was diagnosed with an ear infection, prescibed some antibiotics, and sent on his way.

Trey seems to have a thing with getting an ear infection just before his immunizations are due. Ear infection #1 was about 2 days before his last round of shots. His 6-month shots are scheduled for Monday. So maybe I can go ahead and preempt the next infection by making an anticipatory doctor's appointment for a couple months from now.

(Not so) picture perfect.

We had an appointment this afternoon to take Trey for portraits at Picture People in the Galleria. There's no sitting fee, but they produce adorably cute pictures, particularly of children. Unfortunately, Trey woke up today not feeling great. He's running a fever and was fussy all day. Still, we thought we'd take our chances at the pictures, since it's a no obligation kind of thing.

Trey fussed and cried through practically all of the shoot. If it weren't for one of the other fathers walking by and smiling periodically at our baby, he may not have ever smiled (Trey loves smiling at new faces). Still, our little boy is so adorable that he couldn't help but produce a few good shots. They'll be available online shortly for all to see (and order at your whim). But we plan to take him back again in a few weeks for a second spin of the wheel.

Up at the Riddle house last night, Mama C commented that Trey was not himself because he was very rambunctious. We thought he was over-stimulated, but perhaps it was foreshadowing of things to come. We still think it is just due to the next darn tooth on the way. Stay tuned for any dental news in the near future...

Too cool for Mom

Trey got a visit from Mommy at lunch today. Mommy wanted to see him since she has an event tonight and won't get to play after work. Trey was happy to see her and gave away plenty of smiles, but mostly he just wanted to carry on his business and play with his other baby friends. Only 6 months old, and already too cool to have Mom visit at school.

Surprise visit

Daddy Tom flew home yesterday for a short visit, and his first request was to come see Trey. So the Riddle clan gathered at our house for a little while before heading to a family dinner. Daddy Tom was excited to see how our little guy has grown and changed in the last three months, and Trey was very happy to see everyone. Daddy Tom attempted to toss his grandson in the air a bit, as he is famously known to do, but quickly concluded that our ceilings are too low. Still, they had some good bonding time.

At dinner, Trey fell asleep on Mama C's shoulder while we were waiting for our food to arrive. Mama C loved the cuddle time, and Mommy loved that Trey was asleep by his bedtime (8:00) despite our decision to go out. Our sweet little boy slept from then until 7:30 this morning. Can't ask for much more!

Here goes nothing...

Well, I am giving the blog thing a whirl. Who knows how long or to what extent I'll keep it up, not to mention if anyone will ever read it, but I figure I'll have an online diary if nothing else. So, I'm entering the world of blogging.