Eight and Nine Months

I'm trying not to be too hard on myself for forgetting to write Daniel's eight month blog. The days fly by too fast and this sleep deprived mama just can't keep up sometimes. So, here's to trying to remember all the highlights of the last two months!

Obviously not in the mood for pictures. This is the best one we got! 

 Many things have changed since the last blog post. Not only is Daniel boy going from laying down to sitting up all by himself, he's also crawling everywhere! Starting just this past week, he can officially leave the room whenever he pleases! He is quite pleased with himself and is pretty happy most of the time just crawling around and getting into things he shouldn't. We're having to train him not to touch wires, outlets, and big brother's potty. Fun days ahead :)

Sleep is a struggle. We have hard nights and harder nights with a good night thrown in the mix every now and then. Daniel still wakes up every 2-3 hours, leaving this Mama very exhausted. He goes to sleep very easily at the beginning of the night. We just lay him down awake and he falls right to sleep. But during the night he just seems restless and wakes often. After nursing, he goes right back to sleep though. He's usually awake for the day between 6:45-7:45 am.  I'm still not sure what to do about this except cry out to Jesus for strength and pray he sleeps better soon. Thankfully, he naps really well during the day. This week he even took a four hour nap one day (which is longer than he sleeps at night, go figure!).

Daniel is still not into food. At all. He might take one or two bites of something, but after gagging and sputtering a few times, he knocks the spoon out of my hand. Little goober! He will drink chicken broth from a bottle occasionally, but other than that he is strictly a mommy-milk baby! I keep offering food, and he keeps declining. Thankfully, I know he's getting the nutrients he needs by nursing. He seems happy and healthy so we'll just keep on keepin' on for now! I do wonder if this is one reason he doesn't sleep well at night though. Maybe because he doesn't eat solids, he really is hungry at night? Who knows!

John Hudson and Daniel love taking baths together! They've been taking baths together for awhile now, but when Daniel started sitting up, I wasn't sure how safe it would be. Thankfully, I remembered something I'd seen on pinterest a while back...

A laundry basket! Brilliant! Both boys love it and I feel much better about letting them take baths together!

Daniel has really mellowed since he was a newborn. Other than the occasional fussy spell, he's a pretty happy baby! He smiles constantly and loves to babble. Ma-ma-ma-ma and Ba-ba-ba-ba are his favorites. Another new thing is pointing. He points at everything and says "ooooh." Its just so sweet! He was loving to sit in boxes and play, but now that he can crawl, that is so last week.

Daniel still adores John Hudson, and I'm pretty sure the feeling is mutual. John Hudson loves to "wrestle" with baby brother...and we have to remind him quite often to "be gentle"...although Daniel doesn't seem to mind the roughness one bit! One of my favorite parts of having two boys so close together is seeing their friendship form. They love each other so much. John Hudson will often say, "Mama, Da-Da play? Da-Da play?" Meaning, "Please put Daniel on the floor so we can play together!" God knew they needed each other!

Oh, and Daniel has a lot of teeth now! Four on the bottom and almost four on top. The top ones are barely through, but there nonetheless! No wonder the kid doesn't sleep! Lots of teefies coming in! We've begun brushing his teeth each night and he loves it.

Daniel got his first haircut a few weeks ago. Initially, we just cut the really long strand that stuck out on the side of his head. But then we decided to go ahead and trim the top too since it was hanging in his eyes. It was a small trim and he looks very handsome with his new 'do!

In June, we had the privilege of dedicating Daniel Thomas to the Lord during a sweet ceremony at our church. It was a special time of publicly offering our boy to the Lord and vowing to raise him in the fear and admonition of Yahweh.

Daniel, we pray that you will grow into a mighty warrior for Yahweh. May He strengthen you for every task He calls you to. May you believe that He is faithful and all-powerful and may His spirit dwell in you richly. We love you, sweet boy!

Mr. Hudson

I just wanted to write a quick post to document all of the adorable things our Hudson boy is doing these days. He is an absolute joy to be around--filled with compassion, joy, and happy songs.

John Hudson loves to sing. He hums constantly--playing with his train, eating dinner, reading books, you name it. He has recently starting singing songs that he's heard all his life. Its so rewarding to see that he's actually been listening! Hah! Currently his favorite songs are Jesus Loves Me, Praise Ye the Lord, Jesus Christ is the Same, and Good, Good Father. It brings such joy to our hearts to hear his pure little voice belting praises to our Father. I know it delights our Father's heart as well.

About two months ago, our neighbor came pounding on our door around 9:30 am. We were (embarrassingly) still in our pajamas. Her request? To come outside and see the firetruck that was out checking the hydrants! We scurried outside. The firefighters were so kind! They let John Hudson sit in the truck, try on their helmets, and even blow the siren. At the time, JH seemed very shy and unsure. But its been two months and he's still talking about it..so I'd say he secretly loved it.

John Hudson loves his Blankie. He affectionately calls it "Binka" and she is a girl. John Hudson is her Daddy. Binka loves to play and JH will often set her on the floor with some toys for playtime. She also loves to jump in Daniel's bouncer. Sometimes Binka cries and her daddy asks me to hold her. Binka also gets boo boos from time to time and needs special kisses. One day, John Hudson called me from the living room to tell me that Binka was hungry and wanted mommy milk. I came in to find this:

John Hudson was giving Binka mommy milk with my nursing pillow. We've since had conversations about how only mommies can give mommy milk, and daddies have to give bottles (haha!). Oh, and Binka also takes naps. JH will put her in his crib, turn on the fan, and close the doors. The whole family has to be quiet while Binka sleeps.

We were blessed to go to the beach in June. John Hudson loved the beach this year! His favorite part was having endless room to run, I think. He also enjoyed building sandcastles, jumping the waves, and meeting new friends. We had a blast.

John Hudson LOVES trucks, trains, and anything else that moves. He can entertain himself for a long time playing with his cars and trains. He loves to stack things on top of his trucks and see how far he can move the truck while balancing the various objects on top. This can also be a source of great frustration when the objects fall. Since Daniel is crawling now, he likes to grab John Hudson's trains and trucks, which is also a source of frustration. We're trying to teach John to be patient with baby brother, and trying to teach Daniel not to destroy John's hard work. Mr. Hudson loves to line up his cars and trucks and trains while he plays.

Since summer has hit, we've been enjoying the kiddie pool. John Hudson loves to get a running start and cannon ball into the water. He splashes and splashes and squeals with delight. I love how easily little ones can be entertained. Speaking of summer, we are thoroughly enjoying having Daddy home with us. John Hudson is delighted when he wakes up in the morning and Daddy is here. They have been able to get some good playing time in these past several weeks. What a blessing!

Socially, John Hudson has become much more self aware. Meaning--he is shy in public! Before, he would warm up to most people instantly, but now it takes much longer and he often hides behind our legs and whispers, "Mama, hold you!" when we're around people. I'm sure this is only a stage and once he does warm up, he's not a bit shy. His two best friends are Stephen and Joseph, both of whom we get to see often. Its sweet to watch these sweet boys grow up together.

Unfortunately, we found out a few weeks ago that our sweet boy has a hernia that needs to be repaired. He is scheduled to have surgery on July 21st, which makes for an anxious Mommy and Daddy. The hernia isn't dangerous most of time time, as long as it is able to be pushed back in. However, we did end up in the ER one night because JH was writhing in pain and the hernia would not budge. It was scary, but the Lord was ever gracious. After only two hours, some pain medication and a skilled doctor, we were able to go home. Being at the children's hospital reminded us just how thankful we are to have healthy children. It's a blessing that can be taken away at any moment and something we do not want to take for granted.

Mr. Hudson is talking a lot. Some of his most-used phrases are, "What doing, Mama?" "What happened?" "Shirt go?" (Where did your shirt go?) "Law home" (Lawrence (our neighbor) is home) "Da-Da wake!" (Daniel is awake!) "Boo Boo all better!" "Tilerd" (I'm tired) "LES!!" (Yes)" When asked what his name is, JH says, "John Hudson Schulte!" and when asked where he lives, JH says, "Stone Mountain, Georgia" One day a few weeks ago, we walked into the house and John exclaimed, "Mmmmm, smells good!!"

Oh, and John Hudson loves to stuff things in his pockets. And by things, I mean a lot of things. Sometimes his pants fall down when he's running because of the weight. When we go to friends' homes we have to watch him closely because he will stuff their toys in his pocket and bring it home on accident! We've had to return a few toys to the church nursery because of this as well. The other night, I emptied John Hudson's pockets at bedtime and found all of the treasures below (minus the wedding rings). He also stuffs crayons, small trains, quarters, and pens.

We are busy, indeed. But we wouldn't trade one single second. We love you, John Hudson!