learning to use a spoon

we let hendrix use his own spoon to eat his peach-applesauce at lunch today. 

he was very pleased that we allowed him this great step of independence.  he was actually better at it than i expected him to be, as he understand the basic idea of dipping it into the food and putting it into his mouth.  the coordination was just a little off yet.... 

it was quite. the. mess.  i don't imagine he could have gotten much in his mouth by assessing how much was on the floor and his clothes and high chair.

and at some point, for whatever reason, he got the spoon turned around and kept trying to eat the wrong end.  :)  

it was a valiant effort for a first try little pal, keep up the good work!

hendrix's ring bearer debut

so when my brother, jason and his bride, hannah asked hendrix to be the ring bearer in their wedding i was of course honored, thrilled, excited and just a teeny bit nervous.  i knew that he would be cute, of course, but i wasn't sure how much cooperation to expect from such a young fella.  :)  

i needn't have worried.  

he. did. awesome. 

he entertained himself very well during the down time at the rehearsal by finding a stick to play with. 

he practiced his walk down the aisle with his nana. 

he sweated a few bullets with his daddy, but remained smiley nonetheless.

his aunt hannah was the one that walked down the aisle with him.  she was the guest table gal, and that role gave her the freedom to help with him, and since he knows her well it seemed a good fit.  

being flexible to expect whatever he was capable of at the time, we decided to let him 'walk' holding onto her fingers as this is one of his favorite ways to get around!  his daddy was a groomsman so we knew that he would be able to look to him for encouragement as he started down the aisle.   

we planned to let him stay up there with daddy as long as he would cooperate (the backup plan would be to come and sit with me in the front row if needed).

hendrix helped decorate the park and reception hall in his jammies on the day of the ceremony.  he enjoyed lots of special moments with his various aunts and uncles throughout the day.  

he made a new friend in the hotel after he woke up from a nice long afternoon nap.

we opted to not go for a tux as it was an outdoor ceremony and we were not sure he would handle all the layers in the heat.  instead he had a tie and vest to match the big boys with just black dress pants and a white dress shirt.   he didn't seem to mind the outfit at all, and he even kept his coordinating 'camo' shoes on the entire ceremony!

he was ready to go!

he handled pictures like a pro, smiling and posing!  i am sure that it helped that daddy was there to hold him a lot, and don't forget to give me some credit for helping him to know what to expect when a camera is in his face!  lol

he walked down the aisle just like we planned, flashing everyone huge grins, and looking absolutely quite dapper.

then he stood up in front with his daddy for the entire ceremony and played with a couple books, sucked on his paci, and made a few appropriately timed squeals of delight. 

it was a beautiful wedding, and we were thrilled to be a very special part of it!  Congratulations to my brother and new sister-in-law!!

11 months already

another age milestone crossed and i really have no idea where the time is going.  way. too. quickly.

if i could sum up what he is up to this month in one word it would be standing.  he pulls himself up to everything and does lots of cruising.  he has ventured some steps more and more, though it is definitely not his go-to method of transportation yet. 

he has gotten more and more bold about only needing one hand to hold himself up and playing with the other.....and he has also recently started letting go completely and just standing to play.   he pulls himself up by my legs and is forever tripping me up when i am trying to get things done in the kitchen. lol

water remains one of his other favorite things! this was taken at the family museum when we were on vacation (which, by the way i plan to tell you all about with pictures as soon as i can get around to it.....)

he was a rockstar about travelling, and we stayed in two different bed and breakfasts along with a hotel on our trip.  he got really used to sleeping in his pack n' play, and this is the adorable face i see at the end of naptime.

he is super fascinated with animals.  he thinks that there are only two kinds though - kitties, or dogs.  anything with hair is a kitty, and everything else he just barks at.  this was interesting at the zoo. ;)

he is still a really good eater, though it is hard to tell these days as he is really thinning out.  i think some of that is because he is getting taller, but a lot of it is because he is on the go so much that he burns too many calories!  lol  

if i would let him eat a banana at every meal he would.  he recognizes them in the grocery store and hollers until i put some in the cart.  then he tries to crawl into the back of the cart to reach them.  i once gave him one to hold onto, but he ate right through the peel before we got to the checkout.  poor starving child.

he is getting so big, and gaining so much personality.  he is so much fun.

i am getting really excited about his upcoming birthday party! 

wordless wednesday {mommy and daddy baum}

these photos were taken by my brother, joel, when we were at the Amana Colonies on Sunday for his engagement photoshoot with his fiance, rachel.  

he offered to use my camera to catch a few shots of my hubby and i, which was really fun since i normally am the one behind the camera!

ring bearer ready

somebody has been practicing for his very important role this evening. 

if only he will look cute in the pictures and cooperate during the ceremony......

pretty pretty princess?

my little boy who loves to play with dirt and sticks, also loves to play with my jewelry and heels.  he has broken a couple bracelets and a necklace of mine, so jewelry is usually a no-no at our house.  i think this is why he was so excited when he got his hands on some of the jewelry from riley's 'pretty pretty princess' game. 

at first he seemed very calm and reserved as he was awaiting her reaction to him barging in on our game...

she was just so patient and kind and willing to let him interrupt us.

and i think he abused her kindness.  

way to ruin our game, little guy. ;)

wordless wednesday {cupboard invasion}