Week 32

This week was more challenging than average, on many different fronts. The most stressful aspect was definitely with my job. You would think that a 15 hour work week wouldn't be able to put such a damper on the other 168 hours, but it somehow managed to put a sour note on almost everything. I am so thankful though for August's new nanny. She was over at our house for the first few days of this week, and is such a fantastic asset in our lives. When August was napping, she literally scrubbed every inch of the second floor of our house. It was so unexpected, yet so much appreciated. As if we didn't already love her enough after the first week, we're so humbled by her work ethic and her love for our little guy.

On the August development front, this was quite a big week. He has decided that he's tired of just sitting and scooting all day, so he started pulling up. He demonstrated his new skills in his crib when he leaned over the top rail and attempted to untie the bumper pad from the outside. He has also spent a large portion of the week pulling up on the entertainment center in the living room. Along with pulling up, his 'scoot-crawl' has become much more coordinated and swifter. It's not your typical crawl on the knees, but it's a quite speedy hybrid of bear crawling and army crawling. He has also found that no barrier is too big, he will simply climb over what may be in his way, be it a dog or a parent! Needless to say, we have finally installed the baby gate at the top of the stairs, and covered all of the oh-so appealing electrical strips and outlets.

Finally, the most noteworthy development of this week is that August's top right tooth has broken through. That would be another reason as to why this week was a bit rough around the edges, and why we ended up changing so many diapers! And 'many' is no understatement. We ended up using disposable diapers around the clock for the entire second half of the week because we literally couldn't keep up. Hopefully his next top tooth will be soon to follow and the rest will be smooth sailing until we hit the molars.

Week 31

This week saw the beginning of a whole new routine in the Gupton household. Since I started working from home four months ago, we've had a difficult time getting into a functional routine. The days were spent catering to August's needs, as they should be, and once Kevin was home in the evenings, and the dogs were walked, and the family was fed, I would try to get my few hours of work in. Needless to say I was never really rested or in too great of a mood. I've always known that August is the priority, and would get really disappointed with myself if I ever found myself frustrated with him for interrupting my work. Just as I thought I had reached my breaking point, one of our neighbors approached Kevin about sharing their nanny. After debating the logistics of the arrangement, we have decided that August will spend 3 hours a day, every day of the week, playing and napping just a few doors down from ours. This way, ideally, I will be able to get my allotted 3 hours of work in during normal working hours, spend more family time in the evening, get a lot more rest at night, and August will get some socialization.

After just 4 days of this new routine, the dynamic of our family has made such improvements. August loves his new nanny, who is such an honest, hard-working woman, gets a decent morning nap in, and has found a new buddy in our 12 month old neighbor. I can only hope that this proves to be a routine that can last for a while.

7 months!

Week 30

Kevin had another trip to Norfolk, VA this week, so Daphne,Lilly,August, and I spent the week up in Granbury with my parents again. While it's always a bit of a transition from our normal routine, it makes a tremendous difference having someone to help snuggle with August in the evenings while I try to get my work hours in. And the two terrier playmates for Daphne and Lilly are a quick way for the girls to expend some energy. I always try to meet up with my old friends when we are up in that area, so this time August and I were able to spend some time with Christian and her boys, and my friends Cindy and Katy. My sister, Leigh Ann, and her kids even swung by a restaurant to visit with us for about 10 minutes before we headed to the airport to pick up Kevin. It was yet another great trip, but we are always happy to get home and back into our normal routine.

on the road again with his trusty fan

A Birthday Wish

August's Great-Grandmother Gupton, Nana, celebrated a birthday recently. While we couldn't make the trek down to Richmond to spend the day with her, we thought we could at least send her some birthday wishes from Austin.

Week 29

This week was another typical hot summer week in Texas, with the exception that Kevin's mom came to spend the week with us! August's KayKay took the week off of work, and drove up from Floresville on Tuesday afternoon. Kevin also took a couple of days off from work at the end of the week, and we were all able to just relax and spend some typical, laid-back, summer days here in Austin.  It was still quite hot outside, so our activities were limited, but we managed to spend a lot of quality play and snuggle time together. Among this week's developments, August has become quite the confidant sitter. While he still can't put himself in that position, he can quite happily balance himself while he plays.

yes, we're those parents

rare paci love

saturday morning sesame street

fussy baby + 69º morning = early morning balcony time

kaykay snuggles 1

kaykay snuggles 2