small freys

Vivi left the nest....

2010-06-09T08:23:00.000-04:00

Well, it's official.....Vivian is in her big girl crib now. I was a little teary eyed about not having her right next to me in the bassinet anymore, but I knew it was time to move on:) And what a great move it was....she slept 6 1/2 hours straight last night!

We had an official "crib passing down" ceremony (sorry, by invite only:). Henry loved getting in the crib with her and showing her the ropes. He even gave her the first "goodnight kiss" on her forehead to mark the occasion. Ah.....they are growing up so fast!

Pretty in Pink

2010-06-07T21:41:00.001-04:00

When Henry was a newborn, I used to spend hours taking pictures of him (as I'm sure you can remember:) But with two kids, life is a little busier! Tonight Viv and I were alone while Henry and Mike were working on the deck, so we had an impromptu photo-shoot!

"Pink is my favorite color:)"

Weekend Fun

2010-06-06T21:10:00.001-04:00

Vivi and her friend Sophia enjoyed playing on the Baby Einstien mat.

Henry is helping his Dad build a deck! We can't wait to have a deck-warming party soon....

Henry and CeCe spent most of their day playing with the dirt and rocks around our house. Henry even ate an occasional dirt cake for a snack.

The little goobers watching the wood for the deck get delivered.

Resting on Grandma's shoulder...:)

2010-06-01T22:35:00.000-04:00

Vivian is one month old!

2010-05-24T19:41:00.003-04:00

Henry and Vivi are already best friends.....Henry is the best big brother! He loves to play with her.
When Vivi is having "tummy time", Henry is right there with her.
She had her one month doctor's appointment today, and she is already 10 pounds, 1 ounce! Apparently she is a great eater like her big brother. She is 22 1/2 inches long and the doctor said she is in perfect health (minus her little cold the last 2 weeks).
One of the million kisses she gets on a daily basis from her loving big brother!
This is a photo I took of Vivi just a few minutes ago.....She is still looking just like her Daddy!

Henry welcomes his new baby sister to the blog!

2010-04-30T08:09:00.002-04:00

Meet Vivian Kate Frey, born on April 24th @ 9:58am. She weighed 7 lbs, 7 ounces and was 19 inches long. She is 4 days old in this picture....I can't believe how much she is changing day to day!

She is only 2 days old here, and already asking for bows in her DARK HAIR!!!! I couldn't believe it when she arrived with a full head of hair...and either could her brother!

Here we are....party of four now! The first time I saw this picture I had to look again, I almost couldn't believe it. We are multiplying:)

Hmm...not so sure about this new baby!

Meijer Gardens

2010-04-17T18:53:00.005-04:00

Henry and I went on a "date" today.......The Butterfly Exhibit was open at the Frederik Meijer Gardens....he was a little weary of the huge butterflies all around him, but he warmed up to it and loved pointing them out to me.

It was a little cold out in the Children's Gardens, but he still had a great time. I love this picture of his little pouty face:)

His first walk over a suspended bridge...he did well! I couldn't believe how many kids Henry's age were there....he was saying "hi" to all the ladies, it was adorable. He seems to prefer blondes:)

They have a special kid-sized entrance to the Gardens....I wasn't sure if we would ever make it in the actual play area, he liked this gate so much.

I'm so excited we signed up to be members for a year....free admission to the Garden's anytime, along with free admission to all of the exhibits!!! I think we will be here at least a few times a week this summer while I am on maternity leave.

This made me laugh so hard....I didn't think he would actually stick his head through for a picture, but once he did it, he wouldn't leave. I had to rip him away multiple times to let the other kids get a photo and then he would just run right back to it!

Hogging the photo op!

Staring up at the butterflies......

Happy Easter:)

2010-04-06T19:14:00.004-04:00

It was a beautiful day to be outside! Henry enjoyed playing with Mike's cousins at Grandpa Frey's house.

He was quite proud of his egg dying skills! When we gave him one on Easter morning, he discovered they look better than they taste.....he gagged on it!

Helping Mom dye eggs.....

We dyed one pink one for his baby sister to be! Only 3 more weeks until the due date....

He was a bit of a rascal on Easter morning and wasn't very cooperative when it came to getting a picture of him all dressed up! He looked like a little man:) We are all moved in to our new house now, when I get some time and energy (probably 20 years from now) I will post some pics. Oh, and Henry is doing GREAT in his big boy bed and new room, we are so proud of him!

Henry's last night in his crib......

2010-03-26T21:21:00.000-04:00

Tonight is our last night in our first house, and Henry's last night in his crib! Tomorrow night he will be in a big boy bed at the new house....wish him luck! Mike and I are very interested to see how this transition goes. We hope he goes to bed with the same ease and willingness he has done for the past 19 months.

Move over Henry, your new little sister is about to take this crib over!

Snuggling with Mom

2010-03-07T15:27:00.002-05:00

I have been feeling really sentimental lately, getting sad that Henry is growing up so fast (I'm blaming it on the pregnancy hormones too:)). The other day for some reason he just wanted to cuddle with me, so I soaked up every minute! I know these days are numbered, so I wanted to capture it so I can remember it always.....

Sophia Rose has arrived!

2010-02-27T22:51:00.001-05:00

Kris and Regina had a beautiful baby girl last week, Sophia Rose!

Henry wasn't quite sure what to think at first, and was a little jealous of her thick dark hair!

Isn't she perfect??!?! We can't wait until our baby girl arrives, only 8 more weeks and Sophia will have a buddy!

A Lady for Each Arm

2010-02-27T22:43:00.000-05:00

These pictures crack me....we put Eloise (9 weeks) and Sophia (1 week) next to Henry...... and he froze up and wouldn't move a muscle! Mike and I weren't sure if he was playing it cool with the ladies, or was just so intimidated by them he didn't know what to do! We have 15 pictures that look just like this, he wouldn't even smile, so funny!~

Harmonica Maddness

2010-02-12T13:16:00.002-05:00

Henry and I take a Kindermusik class, and we each got a harmonica to use at home....check out these musicians!!

Pics from my phone....

2010-02-06T19:08:00.002-05:00

I have WAY more pictures of Henry lately on my Blackberry, so I thought I would share a few on the blog. Here is Henry snuggling with his green hippo Grandma and Grandpa bought him. It is fun to watch him carry it around the house since it is just as big as he is.

Turns out Henry loves the bar! I captured this shot of him right before he launched the beer bottle behind him....and hit an innocent by-stander! Luckily it was empty, and the girl thought Henry was cute enough to forgive him. He also spent a lot of time dancing by the jukebox....I think we have a little party boy on our hands.

He still LOVES bath time, and frequently asks us after dinner if he can take one.

Mike got his wisdom teeth pulled yesterday, and Henry has been right by his side helping him recover.

I will have to post a video soon of Henry talking....he can say so many words now....MaMa, DaDa, ball, moon, baby, bye-bye, night-night, bath, mooooore, nana (banana), uh oh (his favorite), hi, CeCe (his friend Cecelia), LaLa (his friend Holly....that one is a stretch:), Grandma, and one that we have no idea what it means- Bab bow. Any guesses? He says it about every two minutes, and we just act like we know exactly what he is talking about:)

Hanging out with Grandma Linda

2010-01-26T10:14:00.000-05:00

I realize that I don't take near as many pictures of Henry as I used to....and the reason is he is so hard to capture these days! He is always on the move, and not as eager to pose for the camera with so many other things on his little agenda. I'm going to have to learn to shoot with a faster shutter speed to catch him!

This weekend Grandma Linda and Dan babysat him while we went to a concert...they took him to his first hockey game!

Grandma and Henry posing for the camera...he almost has the word "grandma" down, although it sounds a lot like "ma ma":)

17 Months ago today.....

2010-01-19T15:07:00.003-05:00

We had a baby from the Conehead planet join us......

Thank God the conehead has gone down (even though he has the same amount of hair still) and now he is a cute little boy!! Here he is at his Godparents, Kris and Regina's baby shower last weekend.

As you can see, he had a hard time waiting for the new parents to open their gifts, so he went ahead and started it for them.

Happy 17 month birthday!!!

Happy 2010!

2010-01-02T08:40:00.003-05:00

On New Years Day, we went to our new house and took Henry sledding down the back hill...enjoyed zipping down and kept asking for "morrrre".

It was so sunny we should have brought shades!

All smiles.....

Even Bailey came to see the new house for the first time- to run around in his new backyard with woods and all.

His new sled he got for Christmas was perfect for him!

Henry brought in the New Year with his best bud Cecelia......

And a new friend named Will! He will be living a couple houses down from us in the new neighborhood, Henry can't wait!

Another Christmas Remembered

2009-12-31T14:50:00.005-05:00

Henry's first bite of a Christmas cookie....and it wasn't his last, he loved them!

Opening up his presents Christmas morning from Santa. I can't even begin to explain how spoiled he was this year (we still have gifts that Mike and I bought him that he hasn't even opened, but we have no room in our little house!). I know his buddy Benjamin got the same pajama's Henry got...."What Santa doesn't bring, Grandma will!" ....that couldn't be more true! Even our baby girl who hasn't even arrived yet was showered with pink outfits and gifts!!!

He looked AMAZING in the outfit we picked out for him when I was in Germany (thanks Aunt Patty and Uncle Gary!!!). He had on tight Euro jeans and a black blazer.....he turned a lot of little girl's heads in church!

"Hmmm, which one of these ornaments do I want to pull off the tree?"

He LOVED playing on the stairs at Grandma and Grandpa's house....he made up for lost time playing on them since we don't have them at home.

Trying to get a family photo was like pulling teeth...he was always on the move with all the excitement and gifts. This was the best we could do.

What a character! I love his little personality....

He was fascinated with the train under the tree at Great Aunt Eil's on Christmas Day...too bad he kept trying to pick it up and knock it off the track!

He was always willing to help Dad put it back! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, I know we enjoyed spending time with our families and watching Henry get into the spirit. I'm sure next year will be even more fun with him!

Home Sweet Home

2009-12-15T19:08:00.001-05:00

Our house is moving along!! We stopped by tonight and met two of the workers (notice one waving for the camera by the garage)....they were quite friendly....Might have something to do with the empty pint of vodka I found laying in our driveway:) Apparently its totally cool to have a nip of liquor on the job...hey, as long as everything is hung straight, why not!

Walking up to the front door.......

We have windows now!

"Hey, get me out of here!"

Henry Meets Santa Claus

2009-12-13T10:38:00.000-05:00

We brought Henry to the mall yesterday, stood in a ridiculously long line (well....Mike and Henry did while I shopped!), and finally met the man! Henry took one look at him and started to cry, but as soon as he was on his lap and distracted by the obnoxious mall elves (and his parents), he started to smile:) This was the best photo of the bunch...it does a great job capturing our little guy trying to wiggle out of Santa's lap. Have a good day!

Henry's Getting a Little Sister!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-12-07T15:28:00.001-05:00

Winter Wonderland

2009-12-06T14:48:00.003-05:00

We have gotten SO MUCH snow on the west side the last few days! We bundled Henry up today and brought him out.....

It turned out he wasn't really excited about the snow (everytime he tried to walk in it he would fall over). Instead, he enjoyed sitting in it eating cheesy poofs watching us play!

Aunt Kate gave him his first taste of snow....and we tried teaching him how to stay away from the yellow stuff!

Henry's First Snowball:)

Check out wonder dog...!

This was his first time standing in the snow....he never left that spot, and when he finally tried, he face planted into it!

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-29T19:38:00.000-05:00

Sorry its been a while....I realized when I went to write this I have been slacking on taking pictures of Henry! Life has been a little out of control- I was in Germany all last week for work, so Mike and Henry were bachelors. I think they enjoyed the male bonding time! I am SO HAPPY to be back home!

Our new house is really moving along....we went tonight to take a look. It was only 4:30 and already dark, I will remember this next time I go to get pictures, sorry it is a little hard to see it.

Henry loves to be outside, even when it is cold out. Tonight we let him wander a bit and he ended up walking around the whole block...he absolutely refused to stop and even tried to push me back the other way so he could walk by himself. Quite independent!

He loves his chair! He likes to get a snack (here we let him have a whole apple which was comical to watch him eat at the time, and not so funny cleaning up) and sit and watch football with his Dad:) Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

House Update.....

2009-11-12T16:19:00.001-05:00

Things are moving along with the house! They have filled in the foundation and will begin framing next week....this is a view from the street. I'm glad they were able to save most of the pine trees!

Here is Mike and Henry going out the soon-to-be back garage door....I can't wait to drive a car into a garage, and not have to scrape windows in the winter anymore!

Mike and Henry standing on the site of our future patio off the kitchen.....

A view from our backyard looking out. This is definitely starting to feel more real, I can't believe we will actually be moving soon....I need to start packing! Well, not quite yet.....

A walk in the park....

2009-11-08T19:23:00.003-05:00

Henry loves going down the big blue slide at the park!

Stopping to pose for the camera:)
It's much more fun to push the wagon than ride in it!
He's off.....

We can't believe how beautiful it was this weekend....it might have been one of our last nice days at the park:(

Best Buds

2009-11-08T19:06:00.001-05:00

The dynamic duo, Henry and Bailey....never far from each other. Henry loves to hug him, pull his ears, and feed him, and luckily Bailey seems to be adjusting a little more each day.

A big part of Bailey's new found love for Henry is his snack cup:) Nothing makes Henry laugh harder than throwing goldfish at him.

Someone to lean on.....

Bear hug!!!! :)

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T20:37:00.003-04:00

All done trick or treating and ready for the State game!
So excited to be out running around the neighborhood....who cares about getting candy, he just wants to wander!
Who let the giraffe out of the zoo?!
One happy little animal.....
Family picture time....where's Henry's face??

Exciting News!!!

2009-10-23T12:37:00.003-04:00

Henry is very happy to announce that he is going to be a big brother!!! His new brother/sister is due April 28th. He was with us when we heard the heartbeat a few weeks ago....it will be a busy summer with two little ones! More exciting news....they have finally broke ground on our new home!!! It is amazing how fast they work. It only took 2 days to clear the land and dig the basement. It is nice to finally start seeing some progress, we were supposed to be by November, but who knew all the red tape you have to go through with permits! They are expected to complete the house in March, just in time for March Madness and the arrival of #2.

Another view from the street...we will keep you posted on the progress!

Fall Fun:)

2009-10-22T18:59:00.002-04:00

Henry was very excited about his pumpkin from Robinette's!

This year it was a little harder to snap a photo of him by the big apple.....he is constantly on the go now.

Here he is posing for the camera by his pumpkin.

The Grandmas and their favorite boy....Happy fall!

An un-welcome house guest....

2009-10-05T19:28:00.001-04:00

Why, why, why do we spend money on toys and playhouses when his preferred hangout is the dog cage? Please, don't anyone turn me into child protective services for this one!

Mr. Photogenic

2009-10-01T19:11:00.006-04:00

Henry had his 1 year photo's taken the other day at our favorite park by our house.....and our photographer ROCKED! Thank you so much to Lisa Shaw, of The Bigger Picture Photography....I would highly recommend her!
I love this one because he is starting to make his little scrunchy nose face!
He is constantly hanging onto to us whenever we give each other a hug, so I love that she captured this on camera!
He's walking!!!
Me and my buddy.....(which my Aunt laughs that he's going to think that's his name if I don't stop calling him that!)

Walking on the bridge..yes, his shoes are off....they didn't last very long for the session! He is always ripping them off.

If you want to see more.....click here

Look at Me Go!

2009-09-30T12:21:00.003-04:00

ArtPrize!

2009-09-30T10:41:00.007-04:00

For those of you that haven't heard, the city of Grand Rapids has been flooded with sculptures, paintings, photographs, and every other art medium you can think of with ArtPrize....an open art competition offering the largest cast prize ever of $250,000. It is a unique event, which lasts through Oct. 10th, where ANYONE can register to vote and determine the winner. My company, Coalesse, has been a major sponsor of the event. Here, you see Henry at Madcap coffee sitting on one of our newest pieces from our outdoor collection, Ivy. I can't believe how amazing this event has been for our little city.....artists from all over the world are here, and the local businesses have been flourishing ....so much for the economic downturn! What a brilliant idea!
Almost anything goes as far as venues.....bars, sides of buildings, bridges....you really can't turn your head without seeing art somewhere!
Someone put a gigantic table and chairs over the Blue Bridge!
Henry, Kate, and I on one of the entries.....an over-sized park bench.
"Nessie" the Lochness Monster has invaded the Grand River.....
Henry in front of one of the 1,262 pieces of art! Come visit if you can!

Slacker Blogger

2009-09-24T15:40:00.002-04:00

Sorry I've been such a slacker with the blog lately! Henry was able to watch State score their first touchdown of the season....I don't know what has happened since with the team though! Get it together Spartans, or Henry is going to learn some new colorful words from Dad this season!

Henry has discovered the spice cabinet....time to get a child proof lock on this one too! But, he saved the day by finding my cayenne pepper I needed to make the Tikka Masala...thanks buddy!

A friend at work lives on a farm with horses, alpacas, and other smelly barn animals.....here is Henry face to face with a horse!

Henry and Dad feeding a carrot from the garden to the horse.

And finally, his first ride! He wasn't that impressed....which Mike and I were happy, since horse riding as a hobby isn't cheap~!

Pick of the Day

2009-09-16T17:59:00.000-04:00

Learning how to walk

2009-09-06T09:31:00.002-04:00

Henry has been practicing his walking now for weeks...walking along tables, couches, behind his push toys. Lately, he has been letting go and trying it on his own. It is has been fun to watch the little drunken sailor hobbling around our living room. Mike was able to catch his world record of 9 steps on video! Go Henry! We don't know if this qualifies his as "walking" yet, but he is close!

Birthday Bash!!!!!

2009-08-23T21:16:00.007-04:00

On Saturday, Henry had all of his friends/family over for his First Birthday Party! He had a great time. If you want to see more pics/video (warning....there are over 200....I know, we are OBSESSED!), click HERE

After the cake.... What a mess!

Henry in his new Tigers hat with his name embroidered on it!

The bounce house was a hit with all the kids....except Henry. It was a little overwhelming for him!

He enjoyed sitting on his "throne" directing all of the kids on which present to open up next, and there were plenty!

Someone was SPOILED!

Digging into his first cake!

365 Days of Henry!!!!

2009-08-19T17:10:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday Henry! We love you!

Get this cheesy hat off of me!

2009-08-16T13:20:00.003-04:00

We haven't spent as much time on out boat this year as we would have liked due to weather, but when we do get the chance, Henry loves it!
What a cute little boat body! The ladies love the pasty white skin....
This in Henry and his new friend Jaden at their cottage on Lake Michigan....this was probably the 100th time Henry recieved a bear hug from him. As you can see from his facial expression, he wasn't too sure about them!
Henry enjoyed watching his dad try kiteboarding from the deck....He also enjoyed the water, but after putting a few fistfuls of sand in his mouth, we decided the deck was a bit safer.
Always on the go! And don't try to stop him....he is quite independent!
Henry's signature pose while drinking from his sippy cup.....very dramatic, he always throws his head completely back to get every last drop!

Getting the band back together again......

2009-08-05T19:51:00.004-04:00

The first time Graham and Henry were together they focused on perfecting the vocals........

But this time they added in the drums.

This garage band is ready to start rockin'!

Here they are on the keyboard, and of course, like all rockstars, always ready to pose for the camera......

Who wouldn't want to be this band's groupies?????

Early Birthday Gift

2009-08-02T20:46:00.003-04:00

Someone is already getting spoiled for their first birthday, and he hasn't even turned one yet!

It's been a while!

2009-08-02T17:59:00.006-04:00

Sorry for the delay in posting!! We have been quite busy trying to enjoy the few good days of summer we have had. We also took a week long vacation up north to the cottage in Charlevoix....these are pictures from the beach at Antrim Dells on Lake Michigan.

Henry enjoyed dipping his feet in the chilly water!
Henry and Grandma at his Great-Grandma and Papa's house on Burt Lake.......
it was a picture perfect day!
He loved playing with the beach toys.
Grandpa LeBlanc and his mini-me.....it is scary how much they look a alike!
Grandma, Aunt Kate, and Henry enjoying the boat ride down the Crooked River on the way to Burt Lake.
Eating some of Grandpa's black cherry ice cream on Mackinac Island.....
I couldn't resist getting a picture of this...
The happy little family on Mackinac....It has been a wonderful summer with Henry in our lives!

Take me out to the ballgame....

2009-07-12T20:51:00.000-04:00

Henry loves to watch his Dad play softball.....he also likes to try on his mom's sunglasses.

Henry and Dad after the game:)

4th of July Weekend in Charlevoix

2009-07-09T21:02:00.003-04:00

CeCe and Henry playing on the boat in Boyne City on the 4th!

Walking around the harbor in downtown Charlevoix

Bathtime at the cottage!

Henry with Grandma (aka the birthday girl!) and Grandpa walking downtown.

Relaxing in the sun with the birthday girl, wishing he didn't have his life jacket on.

Henry is crawling all over the place now! Pulling himself up on furniture and cruising around.....he is a little harder to keep up with now. He also loves to say ma ma and da da...it is so cute!

Summertime

2009-06-26T20:09:00.000-04:00

Henry's first time dipping his feet into Lake Michigan.

"Does this baby pool make me look fat? Get me out of here!"

Hanging with Grandma and Gramps on the boat......

First time "tubing" with Aunt Claire....:)

He's Crawling!!!!

2009-06-26T19:58:00.000-04:00

After a few weeks of "army crawling," Henry starting crawling for real a few hours ago:) It is amazing to us how these things just happen one day, all of the sudden, out of the blue!

Father's Day

2009-06-22T20:56:00.002-04:00

Naptime with Dad:)

I thought it would be appropriate to post my most favorite picture of Mike and Henry in honor of Father's Day......I just love it!

Happy First Birthday, PJ!

2009-06-13T20:30:00.000-04:00

We went to my cousin Pat's son's Birthday party today....his name is PJ and he is adorable!

"Hey, can I dip my hand in that frosting....?"

PJ is on the move.....he was a energetic little birthday boy! Henry kept trying to run his hands through PJ's hair, just practicing for when he get his:)

Pearly Whites:)

2009-06-13T19:07:00.001-04:00

Henry had a doctors appointment the other day, and the doc told us since he has a lot of teeth coming in, now is the time to start brushing!

He really enjoyed eating his "tutti-fruiti" toothpaste...it was like a bedtime snack!

Update.....

2009-06-09T20:45:00.000-04:00

Henry is really becoming an independent boy these days. A few weeks ago, he stopped wanting to be spoon fed, and will only eat if he is feeding himself......this has been interesting and quite messy! He now eats Gerber puffs (his favorite), any kind of soft fruit, ham and turkey, cheese, steamed veggie chunks....and oddly enough he loves hummus!? Basically whatever he sees Mike and I put in our mouths, he grunts until he gets it too! And when he is around the grandparents, he indulges in ice cream:)

He is waving hi and bye to everyone, has 3 new teeth coming in up top (along with his two bottom ones), and loves to clap and "cluck" on demand. He is really scooting around, army crawling everywhere. We are still waiting for that first real crawl....but I fear it will happen anytime now, and my house will never be the same!

Henrietta

2009-06-07T15:44:00.001-04:00

Oh he is going to kill me one day for these photos..... We went to visit Nanny Marcia at her garage sale, and he was modeling her great aunt's wig for customers!

Time for a close up, Henrietta:)

Henry's Red Wagon

2009-05-30T17:35:00.004-04:00

Henry's first time taking the Radio Flyer out for a spin!

He enjoyed the ride....

But his mom thought he looked a little loney and hopped in! (Notice Henry's confused look on his face, as if to say, "who invited her in here?!")

Alphabet Soup

2009-05-30T11:40:00.000-04:00

Hummingbirds

2009-05-18T22:31:00.000-04:00

Grandma and Henry waiting for the birds......

Henry's first look at a Hummingbird!!! Great-Grandma Kathleen was smiling down from heaven....she loved to watch the birds from this same window at the cottage.

Happy Henry

It only took a few minutes for the Hummingbirds to find the nectar Grandma put out!

Swimming with Daddy

2009-05-13T20:19:00.007-04:00

Last Monday, Mike took Henry in the pool for his lesson, and low and behold, he loved it!

Henry is under water! He did great.....

Mike and Trey enjoyed singing "the wheels on the bus......" (haha yeah right) with all of the other parents:)

This is my new favorite picture of the boys!

A Perfect First Mother's Day!

2009-05-13T19:39:00.003-04:00

Henry getting a massage from Grandpa! He loved it, it made him giggle.

The whole reason why I'm able to celebrate this day....my baby boy!

My Mom, Dad, and Claire came from Livonia, and Mike's mom Linda came too...it wouldn't be a Mother's Day without our Moms there! We love you both:)

The two Grandma's playing with Henry....what a lucky, spoiled boy!

Aunt Claire and Henry chillin' after pigging out on the Greek themed meal....it was yummy! And of course thanks to my AMAZING husband who cooked, cleaned, grilled, and cleaned again for me on my First Mothers Day....(wait, he does that for me everyday! :) I'm sooooo spoiled!

Henry's First Swimming Lesson

2009-05-06T19:15:00.000-04:00

His face says it all.......

"Are you kidding me?!?!?! Get me out of this pool!!!!!!!!!"

Even his buddy Cecelia couldn't talk him into having a good time....

As soon as we plucked him out of the water, he was all smiles! Next week Dad is going in with him, I don't always want to be the bad guy. Well......the real reason is that my legs are killing me from squatting in the water and lifting him in the air. I am SO out of shape....baby swim lessons kicked my butt!

First Day of Boating Season!!!

2009-05-03T22:01:00.004-04:00

Henry and I taking our first boat ride of the year.....the weather was perfect.

He wasn't so sure about boating at first, but he warmed up to it....

This is the same sun hat he wore for his very first time in the boat back in September....it was WAY TOO tight on him, and kept curling up like a cowboy hat. He looked fabulous:)

The Captain and his First Mate.

Relaxing in the sun.....

The Lighthouse in Grand Haven....we were one of the only boats on the water....:)

Aunt Kate comes to visit....

2009-04-30T20:24:00.005-04:00

Check out his baby blues!

Our little eskimo....in April?!

Henry loves his new dumptruck...it's his favorite toy.

I don't know why, but I LOVE to pick out babyfood! It didn't seem like that much, until we took it out of the cart....oops!!!! Baby food anyone??

Henry and his Harem......all the ladies love him:)

"You lookin' at me?!"

Hangin' in the backyard with his favorite girlies......

Nothing says summertime like a Corona with lime!

Twins!

Weekend Update

2009-04-19T17:09:00.004-04:00

CeCe and Henry in their PJ's before bedtime.

Henry is looking good in his first pair of shades! He is ready for boating season....only 12 more days until he and Mike put the boat in the water!

Aunt Claire came to visit this weekend and celebrate his 8 month birthday today!!!!!!!

Yesterday was sunny and in the high 70's...it was great to hang out in the backyard and enjoy the warmth.

Go Tigggerrrrrrssss!

Grandma Linda came over to show off her brand new ride.

Henry approves!

Little Duck

2009-04-18T11:27:00.000-04:00

The Amazing Doubling Boy

2009-04-14T10:32:00.001-04:00

The bottom picute was taken only a few days after he was born...and look at him now almost 8 months later!~ He barely fits on the table.......

Happy Easter!!!!

2009-04-12T22:20:00.001-04:00

The Easter Bunny spoiled Henry rotten with two baskets!

Grandma just loves putting things on his head. He looks just like Poppy here, our little Hank Jr.!

Here is Henry taking his first bite ever of Great-Great Aunt Eil's FAMOUS Jello! I've never seen him open his mouth so wide!

He was very excited about his new dump truck, and really enjoyed chewing on the driver!

Here is Great Aunt Eileen trying to patch up Henry's relationship with creepy bunny figurines....

Picture Perfect

2009-04-08T18:30:00.006-04:00

Here is a sneak peek at Henry's latest photo's! If you want to see more, CLICK HERE.

Attack of the Easter Bunnies!

2009-04-07T17:06:00.000-04:00

My Aunt Patty gave me all of her Easter Bunnies to decorate my house with while she is living in Germany, and I thought it would be cute to get a picture with Henry enjoying them.....boy was I wrong! I felt so bad, as soon as I sat him down with the bunnies, he freaked out! Looks like I won't torture him by getting his picture taken with the giant bunny at the mall this year! I think this was enough trauma for one holiday......

I'm officially a MOM.....

2009-04-02T18:25:00.000-04:00

...with a "mom 'do." I have finally made a good 0n a promise my sister and I made YEARS ago to chop off our hair for Locks of Love (she actually did it back then). I'm not sure how I feel about it yet, but let's face it, it's too late to look back now! I was thinking about keeping my pony tails to donate to my own son, just in case he never gets hair....

Finger Food

2009-04-02T13:06:00.002-04:00

Lucky Sweatshirt = Final Four!

2009-03-29T18:27:00.000-04:00

This sweatshirt has proven to be quite lucky.....Deeeeee-troit here we come!

Check this out.....

2009-03-26T17:24:00.001-04:00

"I have two bottom teeth now!! They started coming in a couple weeks ago. I'm not too excited about my Mom getting in my face with the camera, but what's new?!"

"So this is a shocker, but.....I've grown a few new hairs on my head! Just when I've convinced myself that bald is beautiful...."

"My Mom went to San Francisco, and all I got was this crazy outfit!"

2009-03-26T17:12:00.002-04:00

Check out the "faux tail" !!!!!!!!

Apparently he has quite a large head compared to his Chinese counterparts!

Lookin' good

So happy to be back with my Henry! I had to go to San Francisco for work, and was without him for 3 days! I saw this outfit in Chinatown and had to get it! I'm sure one day he will look back on this and want to kill me.....

Pog mo Thoin!

2009-03-17T18:50:00.002-04:00

"Happy St. Patty's Day to all my friends! Hello to our relatives over in Ireland...Especially my Gerti :) As you can, see my mom is still using her favorite Gaelic saying you taught her!"

"I have two bottom teeth coming in now!"

Henry LOVES to stand....even though he still needs some assistance.

We played outside today...it was beautiful! This was his first time sitting in the grass.

He grabbed a huge chunk of grass and went straight for his mouth ...good thing I put the camera down in time to stop him! I had to wear my sunglasses around Henry...His bald white head was reflecting all the sun!

March Madness

2009-03-15T00:05:00.001-04:00

"The team is looking good so far in the tourney...Can't wait til tommorow night so I can pick my brackets. State's goin' all the way baby!"

"Some guys palm the ball with their hands, I can do it with my MOUTH!"

Practicing his dribbling.....

"Get ready for the pass, Morgan!"

Top Chef- Baby Food Edition

2009-03-10T19:26:00.005-04:00

So Mike and I decided to jump on the bandwagon and make our own organic baby food.....Not only did it take a long time to steam & bake & peel & pit & scoop & puree (you get the idea.....), it turned our kitchen into a disaster zone, and check out this video to see the thanks we got! Oh, and I did the math......it was way more expensive than just buying Gerber! We did end up having fun coming up with different concoctions, and lucky for me, Mike cleaned the whole kitchen up afterwards (well, that's nothing new....I'm spoiled;)

The Happenings

2009-03-10T19:16:00.002-04:00

Henry is still loving his baths..... We can now let him sit up during bathtime, which is more fun for him because he can splash us more!

He had his 6 month doctor appointment today...he weighed in at 19 pounds, 11 ounces, and 28" and something (I can never remember the details) tall. So he is in the 75th percentile for weight, and 93rd percentile for height. The doctor could tell by the number of his fat rolls that he is a well fed boy!

Time to lower the crib! He was so curious to see what his buddy Bailey was doing, he pulled himself up to peek over the rail.

Check out this "Small Fries" shirt I found at Target!

Old Man Hat

2009-03-02T19:48:00.002-05:00

Henry has an old man hat, and he looks adorable in it!!!

Teething is in full swing now, he is always chewing on something...here it is his bottom lip.

This picture cracks me up....he looks like he is on Broadway tipping his hat to the audience!

Henry learned to clap last week, and now he can't stop. He is a clappin' fool:)

Storytime with Daddy

2009-03-02T19:42:00.000-05:00

Henry loves to read!

Prized Possession

2009-02-22T15:57:00.000-05:00

Right before the Spartans took the court this afternoon, we let Henry play with his State basketball, signed just for him by Coach Izzo!!! (Mike made sure to keep Henry's drool away from the signature). We haven't written much about the Spartans on the blog lately, but rest assured, Henry hasn't missed a game! He is learning how to be a Spartan fan, with all of its ups and downs...... he has even learned some new colorful words from his Dad. We like to call our fellow Spartan fan, Grandma Colleen, during the games to check in....sometimes when the games are really close, we have to hang up with her, because her TV is about 7 seconds ahead of ours!

Alright we have to get back to the Wisconsin game.....Henry is yelling "Hey Izzo, put my cousin Herzog in!"

Have a good week:)

Mya and Henry

2009-02-22T13:15:00.000-05:00

Last night we went to our friend April's house, and Henry hung out with her adorable daughter Mya......I brought my camera along for a photoshoot with Mya, and she was a little diva in front of the camera!

Happy Half Birthday, Henry!!!!

2009-02-19T22:30:00.000-05:00

The happiest half birthday boy in the world.....wearing his new bulldog jammies at bedtime (these are for you Great Aunt Patty!).

Almost time to take his mobile down, before he rips it down himself!

He also got to spend the afternoon with Joy for his half birthday! We can't believe he is 6 months already.....

How cute is this?!?!?!

2009-02-16T19:12:00.000-05:00

Holly and Henry- the perfect couple!

My Favorite Birthday Gift Ever.....

2009-02-15T18:51:00.000-05:00

Henry's First Valentines Date

2009-02-15T18:49:00.000-05:00

Henry and Grandma Frey had a wonderful time together playing and snuggling all night!

As you can see, Henry couldn't take his eyes of Grandma's drink.....he is already acquiring a taste for fine German Beer! Mike is a proud papa:)

Happy Valentines Day!!!!!!!

2009-02-14T14:09:00.001-05:00

We hope everyone is having a Happy Valentines Day! Henry is enjoying his first V-day, although he knows it is really ALL ABOUT his mom's birthday instead! Henry is looking forward to spending the evening with his sweetheart, Grandma Linda, while his mom and dad are out celebrating with friends!

Hangin' out with Grandma!

2009-02-09T20:31:00.000-05:00

Grandma LeBlanc came over for a visit this weekend while Dad was up north skiing. Henry was a good boy for his Grandma....he ate all of his veggies, and showed her how he can roll over and sit up. He was sitting up for over 30 minutes at a time.....show off!

We miss you Grandma, come back soon!!

Sitting on his own.....

2009-02-05T20:36:00.001-05:00

Big changes have been happening with Henry......He is eating all different kinds of fruits and veggies now. He is also becoming WAY more vocal- I think he is going to be chatty like his mom!

And he can sit up on his own! The other day he lasted two minutes before toppling over......

Now that he loves to stand (with the help of mom and dad), we took out the Jump and Go, but he isn't so sure about it yet.....I don't think he gets the concept, he just hangs out in the seat and taps his feet on the ground (it is quite funny to watch, he looks like a little riverdancer in training).

Please don't ever make me eat peas again!!!!

2009-01-26T20:22:00.000-05:00

Tummy Time

2009-01-25T15:38:00.002-05:00

Playing with his tummy time ducky......one of his christmas gifts from Auntie Claire!

OK, I'm getting tired now.......

Naptime for Henry! I love to sneak in and watch him sleep.

2009-01-25T15:33:00.000-05:00

The People Have Spoken!!! ....Carrots it is!

2009-01-22T22:19:00.003-05:00

Henry just before his first bite of carrots.....he was quite happy

Ummmm....yummy! He LOVES them!

He devoured the entire portion! We're not sure if we were supposed to let him do that, but he couldn't get enough! See video below!

Here is the video......

2009-01-22T22:03:00.003-05:00

5 Month's Old Today!

2009-01-19T15:01:00.000-05:00

....and it just keeps getting better!

Snowy Saturday

2009-01-18T10:11:00.000-05:00

Henry and Bailey sitting on the couch watching the Spartans pull out the win last night against Illinois!

Look at me, I can almost sit up on my own now!

Standing...with the help of dad...looking very French in one of his outfits from the girls!

It finally happened!!!!!!

2009-01-17T11:18:00.003-05:00

Hey Everyone, Take my poll to the right!

2009-01-15T18:46:00.002-05:00

"I'm so excited to take my first bite of real food! What do you think I would like the most? I wish I could go right to a big, juicy cowboy steak, but my mom says I need to start with veggies! Thanks for voting, I will post a video of myself spitting it all over my parents!"

Stats

2009-01-11T15:37:00.001-05:00

So I forgot to mention that we took Henry to the doctor's a couple weeks ago, and he weighed in at 18 pounds and 27 1/2" long! He is in the 85th percentile for weight, and the 98th percentile for length. Not too shabby. As you can see from this picture, he has almost outgrown his swing, and he is busting out of his carseat too....we have one long baby. He just started on cereal and he seems to like it. Last night, I couldn't shovel it in his mouth fast enough! It is amazing how fast time is moving...he will be 5 months old on the 19th! Pretty soon he will be off to college:)

Feeling Better!

2009-01-10T15:59:00.002-05:00

Happy Boy:)

The shirt says it all.....

I love this one....his eyes are so wide!

He ALWAYS has his fingers in his mouth now!

Henry's First Cold :(

2009-01-06T19:34:00.000-05:00

Our poor little baby has his first cold, and he is miserable! Coughing, runny nose, watery eyes, trouble sleeping....we feel so bad for him. (And a little bad for ourselves becuase we aren't getting any sleep either :) !!!)

Happy New Year....a little late:)

2009-01-04T21:53:00.001-05:00

This picture perfectly captures two things that Henry loves to do lately......rub his bald head and chew on his fingers!

Henry and his girlfriend CeCe in their matching adidas outfits a few hours before the ball dropped.

Henry's first NYE kiss from Aunt Kate.

The happy family on New Years Eve. I'm glad we took this photo before the craziness began! The rest of the photo's from the night are definitley NOT blog worthy!!! HAPPY 2009 TO ALL!!!!!!

Hello Again!

2009-01-04T21:16:00.005-05:00

Henry taking his first bite of "real food" on Christmas Eve......he wasn't impressed with rice cereal as you can see!
I was so excited to give him his first bite

Christmas morning......A Radio Flyer wagon under the tree at Grandma and Grandpa LeBlanc's, along with many more gifts for Henry! He was sooooo spoiled for his First Christmas.

Looking quite handsome in his button down shirt at Grandma Linda's

My two happy boys:)

Playing with silly Grandpa LeBlanc. He is always making Henry giggle.

Snuggling with mom on Christmas Day.

Posing for a pic in his Christmas day outfit... a sweater vest with a moose on it, how cute!

Here is a collage of just a few of the people Henry spent his first holiday with! It was definitely the BEST Christmas Mike and I have ever had because of him! What a gift he has been.....

Henry meets Alexis!

2008-12-23T23:39:00.000-05:00

"Aunt Alexis" and her sister Jessica came over today for a visit to meet Henry. It was so great to see them again! Henry loved his new outfit she bought him.......only Alexis would buy him an Ed Hardy baby jumpsuit!! (which he proceeded to poop up the back of shortly after this picture was taken.....babies have no regard for designer clothing:). We miss you already, and say hi to Sami for us!!!!