#36: Happy Memorial Day!

We stayed around town for Memorial Day Weekend this year, which was a welcomed treat from our typical travel on holiday weekends. It was nice to have Joe home for three days in a row, especially since he's been working so hard in the office these past few months.

On Friday, Joe was able to get out of work a little early so we took a stroll to Menchie's for some frozen yogurt. Hudson loves to get tickled and laugh loudly in response, the little video is on Flickr - it's pretty cute! Saturday was a nice relaxing day, we took it easy in the morning and afternoon hanging around the condo. We headed to Hostaria de Piccolo for an early dinner out, and met our friend Nicole there. Hudson was a good little guy, keeping nice and bundled in his blanket. Sunday we grabbed brunch at a nearby outdoor restaurant then met up with our friends, the Lamb's, for a Happy Hour dinner at M Street Kitchen.

Monday ended up being warm enough for the beach, so we took full advantage! We left after Hudson's 11:00am feeding and packed a ridiculous amount of bags, including an 8-ft umbrella, and made our way to the sand. We met the Lamb's there, and Sawyer was really sweet with Hudson! Little Hudson pretty much stayed in the shade the whole time, but we did take him down to the water for a minute and dip his toes in the ocean. It was his first "real" beach outing, we've been down there a couple times before but it was always super cold.

Looking forward to more days on the beach this summer!

Sunny Beach Day | Memorial Day 2011

#35: First-time Eating Solids

First-time eating solids | 5.23.11 | 23 weeks, 1 day

Hudson is approaching 6-months old, which is when most parents introduce solids to their babies. However, he was starting to wake up in the middle of the night (after sleeping pretty consistently for 11-12 hours), so our doctor recommended starting a couple weeks early.

We started with the standard rice cereal, it took a few bites to get used to it, but he ended up eating the whole thing! It is fun to feed him and I can't wait to start making him some homemade purees (my parents got us the Beaba food maker). He's only eating 1/4 cup rice cereal twice a day now, and we'll move him up to three times a day soon.

I feed him by myself so it's been hard to get pictures, so will take some more soon! There is also a cute video on Flickr when Joe was able to run home during lunch to catch the second feeding.

#34: Hudson's 5-month Update

Hudson turned 5 months on May 12. Since his 4-month appointment was a week late due to travel, we didn't have his 5-month update until today (May 20) - so it's technically his 5 month and 1 week update!

He is slowing down his weight gain, only gaining 1 lb and 9 oz since his last appointment. He grew 1.5 inches bringing him back to the 75th percentile for height.

Here are the month five stats:

• Weight: 19 lbs, 6oz  (92nd percentile)
• Length: 26.5 inches (75th percentile)
• Head: 44 cm (50th percentile)

#33: Rolling from Back to Tummy

Today Hudson rolled over from his back to his tummy - which is a pretty big feat considering his weight! He is 22 weeks and 3 days today, a couple days over 5 months.

He was laying on his brown blanket next to me, I put him down on his back and go to sit down in the chair, look down and he's on his tummy! He had been reaching behind him and grabbing toys, so we knew it was coming soon. Now he gets on his tummy all the time, and is starting to push to try and move. It will be interesting to see when he'll start to actually move himself forward!

Here's the video, capturing the third time he rolled over that morning:

#32: Hudson goes to Santa Ynez Wine Country

My girlfriend, Angie, was visiting us from NYC this past weekend. Unfortunately the weather in Santa Monica was overcast and cool, so the beach day we originally had planned was no longer a go. So we decided to head up north a couple hours to show her one of our favorite places in California - Central Coast Wine Country. Typically we stay the night, but since we had the Santa Monica Classic 10K on Sunday morning we made it a day trip instead.

Joe and I wanted to head up there before Hudson started crawling and becoming more active, so the timing worked perfectly. We only had time for 2 wineries, Demetria and Rusack. Hudson was a great baby at both places and enjoyed his bottle while the adults enjoyed some wine tastings.

We hope to head back there again this summer for an overnight trip, but were glad to make it up there for a few hours!

#31: Hudson finds his toes!

Grabbing his toes at 21 weeks | 5.9.11

We've been wondering when Hudson would reach down and gleefully take the "happy baby" pose that we've so many babies do. Well, today was that day! Right before bath time, Hudson was on his play mat and finally discovered his toes (maybe it was the fact that he didn't have pants on).

It was a fun moment and we got way too many pictures and videos...I don't know how we're going to react when he begins to crawl, walk and talk. I don't think we'll be able to sleep those nights!

As we draw to an end of month four (he turned 21 weeks on Mother's Day), we've seen Hudson grow mentally and developmentally by leaps and bounds this last month. It has been filled with a lot more exploration and socialization for Hudson. He knowingly smiles and 'flirts' with the ladies, grabs toys and objects much more fluidly, and continues to be a chatter box.

#30: My First Mother's Day

Sunday was my first Mother's Day as a mom. Joe was a sweetheart and really made the day special. I slept in as he took care of Hudson in the morning, giving him his morning bottle and then taking with him on a secret grocery store mission. I woke up to Joe and Hudson bringing me coffee in bed with some fresh tulips. Hudson was also in a special onesie Joe had made.

Hudson then went down for his morning nap, while I sat on the porch reading (baby books...still) and Joe made two kinds of delicious pancakes from scratch. We sat down at the table with fresh OJ, chocolate chip and blueberry pancakes topped with fresh blueberries and raspberries drizzled with maple syrup. Yum! Joe and Hudson had sweet cards for me and got me a special necklace.

We then got ready headed off to church. After Hudson's afternoon nap we headed to the beach for a late lunch and some sun. Unfortunately, the clouds rolled in just as we got our spot set up, so we left pretty quickly.

It was truly a wonderful day. I'm so grateful to be a mother to my sweet son, Hudson. He's a blessing in our life and we thank God for him daily. I also feel so grateful to my own mother, who loved me and raised me in a way that I hope to raise Hudson.

#29: The Froggy Bouncer

We brought out Hudson's new Froggy Bouncer toy today. He's already loving the thing! He is just a little shy of reaching the bottom, but he enjoys sitting in the seat and playing with the eyes (which activate a sound) and the lady bug crawler on the side. He was starting to get bored in the infant seat, pulling his head up and trying to turn around - so we thought it was time for something new!

Once he gets a bit longer he'll be able to spin himself around in the seat with his feet. There is also a toy bar that goes over his head, but I'm waiting to introduce that a little later. Hopefully it will make it even more entertaining to him. Now that it's getting warmer outside I'll take him out on the balcony in this and he loves it. There are a lot of flowers on the balcony so I think he enjoys seeing all the different colors.