Photo with Santa

Sam and I went to the mall today to get his picture taken with Santa. He loved it! He was so good...he was very intrigued by Santa and kept waving at him while we were in line. It was adorable! Hopefully he will stay that way...this poor 2 year old in front of us was terrified by Santa!

Thanksgiving, etc

So, I have lots to catch everyone up on since my blog updates have sadly become a once monthly event!  (Perhaps I'll add that to my list of new years resolutions...)  Anyway, Sam is about to turn one and has really shown quite a bit of progress over the past month.  His confidence with walking has increased dramatically...we really never see him crawl anymore.  It is so fun to watch him explore now that things are at a whole new level for him!  I thought that walking would be a lot more stressful for me, but so far I am finding it a bit easier, to be honest.  It is nice now that we can go to the park and he can run around with the other kids rather than sit on the ground eating rocks the whole time!  So, we are really enjoying this period.

We traveled to Cohasset, MA to visit with Arjen, Margot and the kids for Thanksgiving.  We had a great trip, even though it was quite short!  It was a long way to go for only a few days but it was so nice to be with family.  Anneke and Elfried were there as well as Margot's mother, Betsey, so we had a full house.  Sam did well with the travel, despite several delays in Houston, so that was a relief.  I can't say that we are terribly excited to do it all over again at Christmas, but we wouldn't miss a family get together!

Here are some pics from the past month which includes Thanksgiving.  Enjoy!

Sam playing in his school bus full of balls!

Sam with his cousins, Anna, Noah and Emma Sophie

Enjoying his first Thanksgiving with Mom & Dad

Bouncing around on his new bean bag from Aunt Jen & Uncle Adam

Early B-day gifts are always fun

Oma and Opa Althuis are visiting and surprised Sam with an early birthday gift - a new Firetruck!  Needless to say, Sam loves it!  Anything that's red, has wheels, and can be pushed is always a hit!  He's having a great time with Elfried and Anneke...it had been too long since we'd seen them!  

Sam's First Halloween

Baby Elvis was a hit this Halloween. Robert ran out of time to be matching Elvis, but managed to pull off a Dutch soccer player costume. I mean, really, does it get any cuter than this??!!

A visit to the neighborhood pumpkin patch

Sam visited his first pumpkin patch today. I think he only saw "orange balls" instead of pumpkins because he was determined to pick them all up and throw them! But, we had a great time. The weather is absolutely perfect now, so we are outside as much as possible! Notice his newly developed walking skills in the photos. He is going to be running before the end of the month, mark my words. YIKES!

Sam the Zookeeper

So Sam had his very first Halloween party yesterday. We decided to save the real costume (Elvis, of course) for the big day, but fortunately his friend Shane loaned him an adorable Zookeeper outfit for the party. Notice the sweet camo shoes too! Luckily he wasn't afraid of any of the costumes (then again, most of the kids barely kept them on for more than 5 minutes!!!) More to come after the real Halloween!

Sam gives a whole new meaning to "sloppy" Joes

Need I say more?  But he LOVED them!

Sam visits Pittsburgh, part 2

So I couldn't resist posting this shot of Sam with his adorable new hat. Is he a little rascal, or what? Also included is Sam hamming it up in Grandma's bathtub (or laundry basin, whatever you want to call it!) Notice all the teeth...I think has at least 7 teeth now!

Sam visits Pittsburgh, part 1

While Robert is boondoggling with GE for 3 full weeks, Sam and I decided to head up to Pittsburgh for a stay with Grandma and Grandpa Ennis. It has been so nice to have their company and to be able to see so many friends while we are home. Just about everyone we know seems to have baby boys, so Sam has had many play dates! We have also been able to enjoy much cooler temperatures, so we've been getting plenty of playground time in. Aside from the fact that Sam is on a total milk strike (he has randomly given up the bottle!), he seems to be quite content in the Burgh! Here are some shot of Sam with his cousins, Ashton and Tanner Schmidt (3.5 months older), as well as with friends Ben Kandravy (2.5 months older) and Will Gagliardino (3 days younger). There is also a cute shot of Sam with his cousin, Taylor Jenkins.

Sam's maiden voyage

Well, I finally loosened up and let Sam go on the boat this weekend. We didn't get too crazy or anything...we really just stayed in our cove and went swimming off the boat, but it was a start! He didn't love the lifejacket, but he wore it anyway, and I think as far as Sam could tell the lake didn't seem very different than the pool! Here are a few shots from our adventure. Maybe next time we'll exceed 5mph! Oh, and for good measure I threw one in of Sam driving at the boat slip because it was too cute to resist (I was trying to entertain him while Robert dealt with the boat!)

Best sound EVER!

So here is the easiest way to get Sam to laugh...just find Rocco!

8 month update

So....Once again I am behind on my blog.  But really, if the whole world would just join Facebook then we wouldn't even need blogs!  All of you on Facebook are up to date on little Sambo, but for the rest of you here are some of the latest pics.  Sam is now 8 months old and crawling everywhere.  He is not walking yet (thank GOD) but cruises everywhere by barely holding on to the furniture.  He will even let go and stand by himself for a second, but then falls down.  Needless to say, I am not exactly encouraging the walking! 

He is also getting to be more chatty these days.  Many of my friends here tease Sam for being so "serious", but lately he is giggling a lot more and making all kinds of noises!   Rocco (the cat) tends to be the greatest source of entertainment and diversion.  Any time Sam is bored or fussy, all I have to do is ask, "Where's Rocco?" and he perks up and starts looking for him.  He yanks that tail all day long and amazingly Rocco allows it!

Grandma Ennis had a brief visit this month so that Robert and I could take a vacation.  Unfortunately it was cut a bit short by Grandpa's eye drama (which is on the mend), but Sam really enjoyed the time he had with her none the less (and we definitely enjoyed the break!)

Only about one more month of summer heat torture to endure so hopefully we'll make it through!  Everyone is welcome once the lovely fall arrives!

Back with more at 9 months!  For now, enjoy the pics!

Catching up on lost time

OK, so I admit, I have totally been slacking on the blog.  But, I do have a few good excuses.  First of all, we had some visitors in June (more on that below).  Then I bought a Mac and had to figure out how to use it (and I now love it).  Then, Sam decided to start crawling so that means I have to keep my eyes on him at every moment!  And finally, I discovered Facebook, which means that every moment that I am not keeping my eye on Sam, I am looking for an old friend online!  Sooo, now that we've gotten that out of the way, here's the latest:

The "other" Althuises (that would be Arjen's family) came to visit in June.  Noah went to soccer camp at UT while Margot, Emma-Sophie, Sam and I hung out.   Arjen joined us at the end of the week and he and Robert tore it up on Lake Austin.  Noah had a great time at camp so we hope he'll come back next year!  We missed Anna this time around, unfortunately, but we'll see her again this fall.  Here is a picture of Sam with his cousins from 6/27:

Sam also got an adorable new hat that week.  He is a native Texan, afterall!

Then, on July 2nd, life as we know it changed.  Not only did Sam get a 3rd tooth, but he started crawling!  And with crawling comes pulling himself up onto everything!  He really is a curious little boy.  A bit hesitant at first, but once he has thoroughly studied his target, he goes for it!  Here he is showing off his new skills (notice the standing in the crib...naptime isn't always so easy anymore!)

So that's it!  This week we are off to visit Jen & Adam in Chicago so that I can see her cute belly.  I'm nervous to fly solo with Sam now that he is so mobile, but I am hoping he can behave for a few hours!  We'll report back after our trip!

Six Months Old

Hard to believe that Sam is already 6 months old. It seems like only yesterday when he was swaddled up so tight he could barely see and now he is already sitting up! Check out his nice posture! He'll be crawling any day now...already on his knees rocking back and forth. Yikes...no free time left for me once he's mobile!

Memorial Day Weekend

Well, summer is officially here in TX! Already triple digit temps, so we headed to the pool with the rest of Austin to cool off. Sam really seemed to enjoy it...he loves any excuse to splash! We also relished some down time with Daddy whose been traveling way too much. Sam has now discovered Robert's newspaper (much to Robert's dismay as Sam stuffs the paper in his mouth!) You know that having children really changes a person when Robert actually allows Sam to interrupt his periodical time!!!

Happiest Baby on the Block

I mean, come on....does it get any better than this??!!

Sam's Feet

Like most babies at this age, Sam has a love affair with his feet. He can't get enough of them...it is so freakin cute. He actually looks forward to diaper changes now so that he has an excuse to grab his feet!!!

The Avid Outdoorsman

Unlike his Uncle Adam, Sam has taken a real liking to the outdoors! In an effort to maintain my sanity, we spend a lot of time playing in the yard or cruising through the hood in the BOB. Sam loves to stare in wonder at the trees and he is particularly interested in yanking the grass out of the ground (and then, of course, putting it into his mouth.) It's an easy way to kill 30 minutes, which in baby time is an eternity! I am really going to miss these afternoons when summer kicks in...only a few more weeks before the blazing heat hits us!

Not sure how he feels about cereal...

We started Sam on rice cereal this past week, and so far the jury is still out on the taste! He is definitely very interested in the spoon and enjoys sucking on that, but the cereal seems to be more on his bib and his face than in his mouth! Still no teeth yet but if his sleep patterns and drool factor are any indication, I suspect they are on their way...

Sam's Super Roll

Being an Althuis (I mean Ennis), Sam is naturally advanced and decided to go right to the "back to tummy" roll! :) This is his favorite move and he does it frequently (much to his mommy's dismay because tummy time is pretty much "pukey time"!) Not too shabby for a 4 month old, eh?!