March Wrap Up

This is our adopted Grandpa Randy. He simply adores Dace...and us too. ;) He is an avid motorcycle enthusiast so he and Dallin get along like two peas in a pod. This is his newest toy. He's training Dace early.

Dace's first bandaid. He pinched his thumb so hard in a drawer that it cut open. I wrapped it up then had a mitt on it all day so that he wouldn't pull it off or eat it. He tried shaking the bandaid off a few times then forgot about it and got on with his playing.

Lastly, I got some footage of Dace in the kitchen.

Babies Love Puppies...or is it the other way around?

Here's Dace, minding his own business. Simply checking out the puppy toys.

Here comes the puppy.

And here come the love!

A little too much for Dace's taste.

We went to see the new Husky puppies that our friends the Fry's have. They are almost 2 months old. There is 5 of them and they are so adorable! But they wanted to lick Dace within an inch of his life. So we tried to get some pictures just one on one but that didn't work too well either. The potential was there for a really cute shoot but Dace wasn't in the mood for a lickbath and the puppies had no intention of doing anything else. We gave him a reeeeeally good bath when we got home.

It's so much easier when they can't move

I apologize for the lack of photos lately. See, we have a bit of a problem. Dace loves the camera and because he is such a speedy little crawler, most of my shots these days look like this....

Or this.....Even this one is blurred because as soon as he saw the camera, he thought it would be more fun to play with it than continue playing stowaway in the bottom shelf.
But then there are moments where I can make the shot and they speak a thousand words.

Adventures at the Beach and Tooth #6

As previously mentioned, Dace loves playing outside. So when he crawled over to the patio door yesterday, pushed it open and crawled out, I knew it was time to go play. I can take a hint. So we got Dallin up from his Sunday afternoon nap and headed to the beach. I think Dace crawled about a mile while we were there. He pushed the beach cart around on his knees and then used it as a walker too. Then he would just take off humming to himself and crawl as far as I would let him before bringing him back to our camp. He met a really big collie and then a few minutes later met a 7 1/2 week old puppy of some sort, about the size of Dace's thigh. The puppy licked his fingers and Dace cooed back at him. Then Dace sat down and the puppy crawled into his lap. But Dace was over it and picked him up by the scruff and tossed him to the side. The kid is too strong! But it was hilarious. Neither baby nor puppy were injured in the stunt. Dace is good at not putting everything he sees in his mouth. The odd piece of twig gets in before I can reach it and he will occasionally eat some sand too. He smacks his lips at the taste of salt, something that is pretty much nonexistent in his mainly-vegetarian diet. He put up a bit of a fight when we packed up to leave but he was clammy at that point from the moist sand so he was ready for some fresh cozies and a warm bottle.

Last night he cut his sixth tooth! It is his other top middle tooth. It fills in the gap so now he has 4 across the top center and his bottom two. And the kid has the jaw power of a shark! wow! Right now he is enjoying raw apple chunks as his dessert from lunch. He has almost completed his first box of Cheerios all by himself and has got the self-drinking thing down pat for both bottle and sippy. Yay!

It's Only March But Feels Like May

It's shorts season in South Carolina!

The kid is solid. Gotta love the cankles.

My handsome buddy needs some treats too.

We've had upper 70's for a week now and it feels fantastic! Dace loves being outside in general and loves the beach especially. Except for the sand. He doesn't like it on his knees so he crawls around on his hands and feet with his butt up in the air! So funny and so cute! He looks like a baby hunchback of NotreDame or something. Stay tuned for pictures the next time we go. His favorite trick to do at home is banging his hands really hard on his food tray to make his cheerios bounce. He also tiddlywinks them into the cup holders on both sides. He has figured out how to open every cupboard and drawer in the whole house and can now reach the top of the garbage can. He loves the big puppies at the Staff's house and the two cats on our street and talks to them excitedly whenever he sees them.

In other news: we're moving! But not far, so please keep us as your favorite holiday destination. We are just crossing the river back onto the mainland and will save a lot of money in rent and utilities. I will miss the quick jaunt to the beach but it will give us a good excuse to stay in touch with our good neighbors here on our street. We have a building picked out in Bluffton with plenty of vacancies and will begin talking with them next week. We'll be moving over on April 1st and I've already started spring cleaning, getting the windows and fireplace done today.

Our branch president was just called this week into the Stake Presidency so we are on the verge of a reorganization in our branch. Dallin is very intrigued to see what happens and admits he is only a little bit nervous. We both have the potential of getting shuffled in the next few months and look forward to whatever changes or stays the same. So lots of things are happening and good things are on the horizon.

Glorious Giggles

9 Months Old

Classic Dace- laughing, smiling, one sock on, one sock off.

My new favorite toy.

Bundled up for my morning walk. Yay!

Wrestling with Dad

Dace is just such a joy. He was 9 months on Sunday since February didn't have a 29th and measures in at 30 inches, 23 lbs, 10 ounces. He chats up a storm all day long and loves talking on the phone. Every time it rings, he looks over, smiles and starts racing over to see if its gramma. He crawls around all day exploring the same nooks and crannys but never gets bored. Well, hardly ever. He loves feeding himself cheerios, whole wheat bread, veggie macaroni, bits of cheese and the occasional piece of carpet lint. He is getting better at the sippy cup and is slowly accepting the fact that he can hold his own bottle and mom's not going to do it forever. He loves books (which I am thrilled about) whether he is flipping through them on his own or if I am reading him the story. He giggles at all the silly different voices and sound effects. It's been record cold here the last couple days but I have bundled him up for our morning walks. He gets all snuggly under the wind guard and has a great nap. When we get back, I park him outside in front of the door and he'll sleep for another hour all cozy with a cool breeze. He gets that from his Racicot DNA. He squeals with delight when daddy gets home then follows him around like a lost puppy until bedtime. This includes waiting outside the bathroom door, pounding on it with his little fists and whimpering. (Welcome to my world.) But they have a blast wrestling and playing like boys in a way that only a dad can do. Sleeping through the night is still hit and miss but its a quick change and bottle and back to sleep he goes. And yes, Dallin still takes the graveyard shift every night with the exception of Saturdays for which I am eternally grateful. In a nut shell, life is good.