bottles, bumps and a belly.\

this is what cole got into yesterday while i was making supper. i knew he was playing with kelvin's 12-pack that was sitting on the floor, and before very long, this is what it looked like.
starting early... yikes!
today cole and i went to kmart while kelvin went to the (manual) truck wash. we just hobnobbed around for awhile, found some pj's for him and some for his nephew and since he was SO good in the cart the whole time, we picked up this classic. seriously, he didn't make a peep the whole time! i was flabbergasted... and he got a new toy out of it. i remember playing with one like this when we were little... he doesn't get the idea yet, for now he's happy to take all the rings off and then beat the stacker against the floor. hey- whatever keeps him happy!
and... the morning did NOT get off to a great start- cole was throwing a bit of a fit on the kitchen floor. he was crawling after me and got a bit ahead of himself and took a digger... his bottom teeth bit into his top lip. in fact, there was no blood, so i didn't even realize there was an injury until he was having his lunch-time bottle and saw it then. i doesn't seem to bother him.
finally, i figured i'd better post a belly shot- it's been mentioned several times that i should (already!!), so here we are. just enough belly to not fit into normal clothes, but still not enough to make the maternity clothes look decent. hey- at least maternity clothes are more comfy... i remember with cole, i was out of regular clothes by 12 weeks, and now it's just a tad bit sooner. oh, the joys of being short-waisted- the minute your organs even think they're going to get squished, out pops the belly. oh well... we ARE preggers, after all. oh, and another wonderful thing i've noticed with this pregnancy- i can't stand the smell of cole's formula! *barf* i can NOT wait until another month and a half, he can finally have regular milk. i'll no longer dread giving him his baba...

the years just fly...

6 years ago today we said our vows.... so much has happened since then and it seems that our bond has just grown stronger. we've had some wonderful times and some terrible ones too but since we've been through it together, we've come out stronger for it. so- happy anniversary, babe! i love you...

fun in the sun: the sequel

three boys in the water- yes, andy is sitting IN cole's pool toy.

the squinty face...

awww! actually, don't let the shy face fool you- most of the time when he sees the camera he starts to ham is up right away...

mommy and cole...

35 pound weight limit- phfffffffft! see, it floats even with andy in it! unfortunately, now that he's more mobile, cole doesn't really like mr whale as much as he used to. that would be why we got him the floaty wetsuit. it's an x-small, and i supposed to hold 20-33 lbs., and since cole is right around 20-21 lbs, it rides up quite a bit. but he doesn't seem to mind- it gives him something to chew on...

the scary night

actually, it was a scary morning, if you want to get technical. at about 1.10 this morning, i woke up to some major yelling and carrying on. at first, i thought i was dreaming, then i thought it was our upstairs neighbor watching something violent on tv (since i can almost always hear the dialogue of whatever he has on, he's THAT loud), and then i realized it was coming from outside. it took me a few minutes to get up the courage to get out of bed, and then i went out the front door to see what was going on. all the way across the park area in our complex, in front of the building directly across from us, there was some guy screaming for everybody to get out of the apartment. he was really irate about something, just hollering away, pacing back and forth... i couldn't tell if he was shirtless or completely naked (i didn't see any pants or anything, but in the dark, it was hard to tell for sure). interesting... i took my cell outside with me, although i have no idea why because i would have had to go back inside to find the number for the police, but i was ready to make a call, until a cop car showed up. then a police hummer... then another patrol car. there were about 6 cops that swarmed the place, handcuffed the guy (after tackling him to the ground) and lots of flashlights and whatnot. it was like an episode of cops, but live and right there in front of us. i still can't believe how loud that guy was; for those of you who have been to visit us here, you have a good idea of how big the park area is... it woke me out of a dead sleep. i was shaking, it was really scary. come to think of it now, it probably wasn't such a bright idea to be standing out there, since arizona law states that anyone can carry a weapon... what if the guy had been armed and firing?? it just goes to show that even in the more upscale and secure neighborhoods, there is still potential for craziness and violence. i don't think i've ever seen anything like that, except for once late february when i was pregnant with cole- some of the hispanics on our street at home went a little nuts and it ended up that there was a few cop cars and an ambulance in front of our house for awhile, but nobody was going super-crazy and they were all fully clothed...
so, that was the excitement, hopefully it won't happen again. maybe it's just the hormones, but man, i'm still a little shaken up and i wasn't even involved... but, all is peaceful at the moment!

by the way...

i keep forgetting things... i have a question for anyone out there who might have an answer: is there anything i can do about my son's bad breath? i didn't realize babies could have bad breath, but he does, and then when he chews on his fingers, they smell kinda yucky. i got a tube of baby toothpaste and a finger brush for him that i use morning and night for a week or so, but it doesn't seem to help. he likes having his teeth and gums brushed, though- any suggestions from anyone would be really welcome!

new funny face

cole has taken to making this new face on a regular basis- he tucks his bottom lip up over the top one and just kinda sits that way. what a goof! makes his eyes look even bigger...

last night cole was being a goofball, just having a good old time crawling around. actually, he more crawls over things than around them... instead of going AROUND daddy on the floor, he had to try to go over. in the long run, i think it would've taken less time to go around than over, but whatever. i figure if he wants to climb, he's more than welcome, because then he'll wear out faster and sleep better.

(his favorite game is playing with the bedroom door... easily entertained much?)

speaking of sleep, cole has been doing quite a bit better, although the last two nights i've noticed that if he's up till after 8.30, he's awake earlier and his sleep is more restless, so i guess we've found the magic hour for bedtime! as for my sleep, well, the insomnia is starting already, and the nighttime trips to the bathroom are more frequent. seems that my once high-capacity bladder has been reduced to holding the equivalent of a pea. if i'm lucky. oh, the joys of pregnancy! i don't mind it, really, it's just really hard to get up out of bed without waking cole... i could always hold it, but then a past experience comes to mind involving a high fever, a full bladder and a very realistic dream that turned out to be just that- a dream. the short story? i was in elementary school (just to clarify, it's embarassing enough...), had a rather high fever and had to pee. i THOUGHT i got up and went to the bathroom- i remember squinting in the light, hearing the toilet lid clunk against the tank, even felt the chilly seat on my rear end. however, i soon felt warm all over my back end and legs, and woke up to find that i had had a VERY convincing dream about getting up to pee. needless to say, i now have a great hesitation about just going back to sleep when the urge hits (during pregnancy, anyway).i mean, really, do i want to risk that again, and at my age? nah.
there- i think i just shared the most embarassing story of my childhood with everyone who will ever read this. how daring of me...

as if there were any doubt...

just in case we weren't quite sure that there's another baby on the way, my hormones had to confim it this morning. breakfast was a very tasty bowl of mac-n-cheese with broccoli! best breakfast i've had in a while...

muggy??

i promised new pics, here they are. cole's new outfit from old navy- what a total BOY! the sandals stayed on until about 3 minutes after we sat down for meeting. go figure.
after meeting, and i mean RIGHT after, the lights went out, went back on, then went out again for about a minute. it was thundering earlier in the afternoon and there were scattered clouds, and then by the time meeting was over, it was really windy and there was a bit of rain. i think most of it blew away before it touched the ground...! just around the corner from the grounds, a transformer must've been hit by lightening, because we could see it sizzling and sparking. kelvin slowed down to check it out, but i voted that we just get outta the way! anyway i had to take a picture when we got home to prove that we actually did get rain, and it's MUGGY now! weird- kinda forgot what that feels like.

cole hit the jackpot today... he fell into the doorway and then later he whacked his head against the computer station (just a plant stand, but it works). can't see it too well here, but he has a bruise by his temple and one above his eyebrow. the first one was funny- he gets ahead of himself sometimes when he's crawling and ends up doing this lopsided flop, and it just so happened that the doorway was there to catch him. the one above his eyebrow is from not listening to mommy- when mommy says not to play on the computer station, mommy says it for a reason... most likely because it will result in a bump of some sort. so anyway, he insisted on monkeying around and whadaya know- mommy was right. over went cole, and when he came up he had a nice little egg on his head. good thing he has a thick skull, his poor noodle has been through quite a bit today!

congrats to my wonderful little sister on getting her cna license today! sarah passed the written and skills test- way to go, seaweed! we all love you...

more playing round...

i am SO happy to have my corel back, i just can't stop myself. it's an addiction, i know, but hey- it'll make for some GREAT scrapbook pages! (if i ever get to it... poor kid STILL only has two pages in his book, and they're from before he was even born. it would help if we got ink...) anywayy, i was remembering cole's first bubble bath with real bubbles and couldn't resist...

love it... those chubby little fingers are priceless!

i think it's cute the way he was trying to figure out his little yellow plastic friend... so inquisitive!

i PROMISE i'll post up-to-date pics soon, probably today, since cole is going to wear his new outfit from old navy to bible study tonight. anyhoo, i just couldn't help but post these, and when i get around to scrapbooking them, well, they'll be cute then, too!

memory lane

i was able to extend my free corel trial by 15 days, so once again, i am on top of the world and editing away! i was inspired to do a little tweaking with some older photos, and i got through the first disc of pics that we have from when cole was born. i picked two to edit... and i vowed to never again gain that much weight during any future pregnancies, including this one! holy mackerel... that's all i have to say. cole was about a week old in this photo- oh, i miss those sleepy, warm newborn days! i just want to go back to those first weeks and freeze time and stay there forever. *sigh* time just moves too fast...

my dad and his first grandson... cole was about a day and half old here. i am still really glad that dad was able to share those first moments with us. i really missed mom, but if dad hadn't been there either, i don't think it would have been the same. i'll have to post one later of mom and cole meeting for the first time... oh, the memories! makes me really anxious to see this new baby. only 30 weeks more!

learning new things!

sorry, no pictures this post- it's getting late and i haven't taken any today. i know, i know, bad mommy! but, cole's learned a few new things: last night, he was getting really rambunctious in the bath so i told him (rather sternly) to settle down- he looked at me and LAUGHED. not his usual laugh, an outright belly laugh. nice to know he takes me seriously. today, he learned to high-five... no waving or pointing yet, but he's a major boy- high-fives all around. and, in the pool, he went under water twice. babies automatically hold their breath when dunked, so we tried it. he did very well- didn't inhale or swallow any water! we only did it twice... i felt really mean, but he didn't cry so i guess he's not afraid of the water- GOOD. and just now, he's finding it really amusing to get in the way of my view of the computer screen... his mission is chasing the letters as they are typed out. it's pretty funny, but it's taking a while to get this posted.

oh, the old navy JUST opened here! lucky us! we went there tonight and i was REALLY disappointed that they don't have maternity at this store. but, we did find two great onesies and a pair of brown cargo shorts for cole- the shirts are kinda 70's surf style, brown and orange. the onesies were $2.49 each and the shorts were on sale for $10- awesome!!!

10 months and growing!

i know that it's been a few days since cole turned 10 months, but i finally got around to getting his photos taken- i got ONE that i'm happy enough to print up (when we get more ink). i also have a site bookmarked in my favorites where i can enter his weight and length and it will calculate his percentiles for me so i don't have to try to get it on the printed chart that we have from dr h back home. he currently weighs 20 1/2 lbs (40th percentile) and is 28 12 inches tall (43rd percentile). i remember, it wasn't that long ago when it was the complete opposite... his weight percentile was in the high 70's and his length was between 40 and 45. this is partly why it's hard to get a decent photo- this is the face he makes when we take him outside. he'll do this the whole time we are at the pool- literally. he does this instead of squinting... just narrows his eyes a bit and makes this face!
this is the one i plan to print off. there was another one in this spot where he had a really goofy grin (what a cheese) but it turned out too blurry, i don't think i can fix it enough. oh, this is one of the times when i wish i had an slr instead of a point-and-shoot... i still have to get my photo software and then i can crop and play with this one.
i decided to take some inside the pool area because i thought the black iron fence would make a good backdrop... but he was done cooperating, and once again, it was either flash (too-dark background) or no flash (background and cole visible but blurry).

and, since nate was at the pool, we had to hang out for awhile! good ol' nate- cole FINALLY smiled at him! nate's been trying to get a smile out of him for quite a while now and yesterday, cole just couldn't hold out anymore.

this is what happens at the end of a photo session-meltdown! he was tired, hot, hungry... after 4 pm, all bets are off on whether or not he'll be cooperative.

today we got to sit all the way through meeting! wow- and we have a pretty long meeting, usually an hour and half at the shortest. he did SO good! a few little screeches here and there, but nothing a handful of sweet potato puffs couldn't fix. after meeting, our elder, paul, thanked all the kids for being so well-behaved. we have 16 kids under the age of 16, and 5 of those (including cole) are 6 or younger. they all are very well-behaved- cole is pretty much the only one who ever takes a trip to the bedroom... understandably. so, that was a big thing for us, to sit for almost 2 hours without having to leave! go, cole!

and it's working...

i don't know what the deal was because when i logged in to the computer under kelvin, the photo and font options showed up and worked just fine. since i am SO illiterate when it comes to technology, i just kinda fiddled around on the settings. i ended up deleting my history and cookies and all that (cookies? really? i like chocolate chip ones best... lol) and ta-dah! it works...
you can kinda see cole's light little tan line across his waist...


this was just funny- he thought it would be great fun to ham it up. silly baby! crawling away in the nude is the latest thing... i guess there's a certain appeal to being totally free...! better him than one of us, i suppose. just so long as he doesn't take a potty break without that diaper.

little tan lines...

cole has tan lines! they're faint, but there. and i DO have pics, but for some reason, when i go to post, i don't get any options for font, photo or video. a little disappointing, but hopefully blogger will have the issue fixed before too long. kinda weird, like the post page only half loads. anyway... today was the annual cottonwood crossing luau. apparently they do this every year- there's games for the kids (prizes too), swimming, and they grill out. glen's pretty good with the grill- great hotdogs! i know that you're not really supposed to eat hotdogs when you are pregnant, but i've been craving something off the grill for what seems like ages (in reality, probably only a week or two), so i couldn't resist. that's all there was anyway, just hotdogs. and they were GOOD! cole just munched on a cinnamon raisin bagel- no hotdogs for him for awhile yet. lots of people who comment on cole's eyes also say that he's "gonna be a hit with the ladies someday"... it's already started. we were minding our own business, eating our hotdogs (and in cole's case, bagels) when these two little red-haired girls came up and just stared at him. they were probably about 2 and 3... it starts early, i guess; can't say we weren't warned! they were pretty taken with him, but then again, they're at the age where babies are pretty fascinating. kelvin went to the pool later in the afternoon by himself. cole was napping and i had a headache, so he was able to enjoy some rays without any interruptions. and i got some cookies made- haven't done that in a long time, it's just easier to pick up a package of chips ahoy at walmart... not that we have them that often anyway. so, that's today in a nutshell. oh yeah, and cole has heat rash, but i guess it usually goes away on it's own in about a week or so. just some fine red bumps on his arms, legs and torso... no fever or anything else. i looked in our "what to expect the first year" book and that's the only thing i came up with; every other possibility included fevers and whatnot, which he doesn't have. and it makes sense- he's been outside almost every day this week at the pool. at least it doesn't bother him!

*congrats to adrian and anna, ella and tessa- baby jaci claire was born friday the 20th... we've seen one photo and she's beautiful!!!*

due date!

we had our prenatal appointment this morning, and so far so good. our official due date is 21st january, so the ticker is currently two days ahead. i will change it when i get the chance... we have an ultrasound scheduled for the 2nd july. i guess that they don't have the same equipment here as they do in wisconsin, so until about 12 weeks, that's the only way for them to check the heartbeat and stuff- maybe they've never heard of hand-held dopplars?? anyway, we went to ihop afterwards; there's an employee there with down's syndrome and sometimes he seats people. he sat us today, his nametag reads "dr allan"- when he sat people at the table next to us, he told them he was dr allan boss... how cute! so yeah, anyway, that's all for now...

today was a special day- cole went to phoenix with daddy and left me at home!!! kelvin took andy to the airport and cole went with... i got to stay home and have a little 'me' time- like, 2 1/2 whole hours! i got some photos sent out, the kitchen cleaned up a little, and then went to the pool BY MYSELF!!!! talk about being on cloud 9- and i am proud to say that i didn't once worry about cole. which was good, considering the night we had last night. it started out fine- he put himself to sleep in about 5 minutes, but was restless and noisy until about midnight (i didn't get a wink of sleep because i could hear him), when he started crying. i got up a few times to rub his back and let him know i was there, but by almost 1 am, i'd had enough, so he came to bed with me. he was still a bit restless, and i can never sleep as deeply when he's next to me, so i am TIRED, because of course, he was still up bright and early. cole loves the sunshiny place by the window- he's fascinated by the stuff going on outside. not much happens, other than the mormon dudes coming and going and the weird guy from the other side of the building that is in and out several times a day- every time he gets in his car, he takes out a can of aerosol hairspray, coats his head well with it and promptly lights a cigarette. how he hasn't asphyxiated or blown himself up yet, i have no clue. i'm not kidding about this- he does this every. single. time! even if he comes home and then leaves again 5 minutes later. maybe it's an ocd thing... maybe the heat is getting to him. i don't know. interesting, though!
papasan chairs are fun...!
after insisting on only peas and cottage cheese for supper, cole had a teething biscuit, since he needed to eat a little more. he was more than happy to chew on it, and then stick the last BIG bit in his mouth.... i though for sure he'd choke, but he just kinda worked it round and round, like you do with a big chunk of popsicle. meanwhile, a lovely concoction of biscuit and saliva is running down his chin and is smeared all over his hands, bib, legs...



the final chapter of the biscuit episode... sequel to follow!

of course, we all went to the pool together again, after cole and kelvin came back. this is becoming a daily thing, and we're really enjoying it! cole loves the water, and we like the tranquility of the heat and water... take away the kids, buildings and city, it would be almost like paradise. we got cole some pampers splashers, and they beat the soggy diaper hands down! they have diego on them... i wanted to get him the little swimmers with tigger and nemo, but they didn't have anything smaller than a medium in those- they're bigger than the 3-4 splashers, which are still a bit baggy on him, but like i said, gone are the days of soggy 2-lb diapers! oh, and cole's becoming quite the little beach bum- he permanently smells of sunblock and is turning a delicious golden shade, and his hair is starting to get bleached- like a surf dude in swim diapers!

we love dishwashers (?)

cole has this strange obsession with the dishwasher, but only when it's running. he thinks it the coolest thing to kneel in front of it and smack it with both hands... almost like a very clumsy baby homage!
i decided it was high time to get a few more pics of cole and i, since most of them are him by himself or with his daddy.
and this is how he fell asleep last night... what a goof! he's been doing quite well at putting himself to sleep, it takes about a half hour at the most... that's when he's feeling stubborn. it feels like an eternity for me, because 'mommy-instinct' says to go in there and rock him to sleep! but- he needs to learn how to go back to sleep on his own, which starts with going to bed on his own. he's doing a lot better than i though he would! this am was a bit rough- he was up around 3 and was quite vocal for almost an hour... then up again and into mommy's bed around 5. i know that i'm just prolonging the process when i bring him into bed with me, but sometimes a person can only take so much crying! like now- he refused to nap, even though it was not a great night and if you can't hear the tantrums from here, you are very lucky. it's not a very peaceful household today!!! maybe a trip to the pool later will help relax him...

waterboy 2...

our afternoon at the pool... i LOVE this suit, it hides all the yucky stuff. take a good look, folks, because this is the ONLY time i will willingly post a photo of myself in a suit unless i have gotten a tummy tuck and other various specific procedures... actually, i don't mind it while i'm pregnant. at least i have an excuse for not having a 'good' figure. but once this baby is born, all bets are off on the swimming suit photos!
fun in the water with daddy!
gotta tan those manly physiques...
mom, check it out!

("oh, uh, mom- is that a towel?" that's for you, mom and ted!)

this was too funny- who says you can't get away with goofing off at the table? not sure what the deal was, but cole started stretching his neck way out and then giggling like it was the world's greatest joke. apparently, anatomy is more interesting than lunch...

bummer

having plenty of photos to upload and share, i am extremely bummed that for whatever reason, i can't upload them. no clue why, but i suspect it might have something to do with our internet connection being REALLY slow. so much for broadband... that's a big issue we have with qwest, our ip. anyway, i will try again tomorrow, hopefully things will work.
after kelvin got home from work, we went to get new swimming suits for both of us. target is usually pretty good when it comes to selection, so that's where we went. he found a pair of trunks he really likes and HUGE surprise, i found a maternity suit that actually fits! it's SO comfy, roomy, and did i mention comfy?? thank you liz lange! it's wonderful to not have to try to suck in my slightly expanded waistline. not that i really have a belly yet, but regular clothes are definitely uncomfortable. ahhh, the wonderful weeks of "in-between". from what i've heard, things start be a bit more obvious a little earlier after the first time around. great- that means that the "in-between" time is a little shorter. i guess i really don't care if people think i'm jumping into the expandably waistlines too early- they're not the ones who have issues fitting into their normal clothes! there, i said my piece. rant ended.
back on track- after getting new suits, of course we had to try them out. so, we all headed out to the pool, cole and i for the second time. this time around, we had the pool all to ourselves, and it was DELICIOUS! even though it's well over 100, the water was wonderful- warm, but just cool enough to feel refreshing. we were out for about an hour, and i can't wait to post pics (grrrr)... cole really likes the water, which is great, since angie has mentioned giving him swimming lessons now that he's over 6 months. i can't wait!
adios for now...

happy father's day!

kelvin's first father's day... lotsa plaid! we went to the outlets yesterday and he found some shirts for a pretty good deal. the one he's wearing in the picture is my personal favorite... it's kinda like thw 70's are back- total vintage!
this was before breakfast- i got a few of him laying his head down on kelvin's arm, but just don't have the time to post all of them... but cole's expression is just so funny!
kelvin gave cole his bath last night... this is what he looked like when he came to get me so i could do cole's lotion;
...and this is WHY kelvin was soaked! cole had a lot of fun, though, and he SLEPT! again... i can't believe my luck! that's 4 great nights in a row!

anyway, yesterday for lunch we went to jb's in town- never been there, but wanted to try it. it reminds us of mary's restaurant in appleton- good food! and for the first time, we didn't have to pack cole's entire lunch. we just brought along his bottle, some crackers and a jar of applesauce, and then we ordered him a side of green beans, which he fed himself with great enthusiasm, and he snuck a little of daddy's cantaloupe from the salad bar. and just for a little variety, he had a few pieces of homestyle fries. not that we're into the habit of feeding him fries, but they were not too greasy, so we figured a few bites wouldn't hurt.

today was a potluck at philip and jeanette's after meeting. this is the third one since we have been here, which is really nice- keeps everyone closer! we've made rather fast friends with a couple who is also new here (they have two daughters, 8 and 4) and cole was more than happy to sit on angie's lap and eat more cantaloupe. he did VERY well, and took an hour nap when we got home.

i got the chance to call dad on the way home and wish him a happy father's day, and kelvin called his dad this evening... mom told me that they all planned to go to grandma and grandpa's for pizza, and i'm wishing more than ever that we were home to join them. there's so many good experiences and new friends that come with moving, but there are times when i can't wish enough that we were home to be with family. oh well... the move is only temporary, so i find comfort in that.

happy father's day to all the grandpas. dads. and dads-to-be (that one was for you, logan!)!

nice hair!

this photo is for dad- i just noticed this a few minutes ago, but close; nice bun, dad! actually, it's sarah standing behind dad- a totally accidental shot! i must say, it really does look like dad had a great hair-do going on! anyway, cole has had two better nights in a row. i'm not even concerned about jinxing it by saying it because i don't think it's possible to jinx his unpredictability! he woke up at 4.15 this am when kelvin used the bathroom before getting ready to head out for work, and after about an hour, he was back to sleep. i had to get up and lay him back down, rub his back, all that, but he eventually did fall back asleep. the night before, he got up around 3, grumbled softly to himself for about 30 minutes and then was out again. wow- i am impressed! and i do feel that i should clarify something: this sleep thing isn't so much that i think he's old enough to sleep thru the night- it's an issue because by the time he was 8 weeks, cole was sleeping thru the night on a regular basis (as in every single night). then just before we moved it changed, and i understand that a rather large change in routine can really do a number on a baby's sleep habits, but it's gotten no better (worse, in fact) since then. so i stress that this is NOT normal for him; while it may be another baby's nature to not sleep all night until they are a year or more, this is not cole's normal behaviour. there's also the fact that he doesn't just wake up- he wakes up and will stay awake for two hours, sometimes more. that is why it concerns me so much...

anyway, TGIF!!!

movin' n groovin'

well, he's movin', anyway... the groove has been VERY off this afternoon! i think we'll be seeing more teeth fairly soon here. cole's latest favorite activity, besides whining endlessly, is 'walking'. he does really well! the first time he tried it a few days ago, kelvin almost busted a gut- it was pretty hilarious to see cole taking these HUGE steps, like he was trying to do the splits!

this is why we let cole have free reign with the old laptop- if he played with the new one, we'd be missing an awful lot of keys! those little fingers just work their way underneath and off they pop. so of course, he wants to chew on them and of course mommy and daddy meanly take them away...

is this what they mean by spaced? (he's torn off the space bar key...)

the missing keys all end up in the storage in the arm of the futon- good place for them. the other side is for spare change. good for something...

and this is the laptop AFTER cole was done with it for the day. the work of a genius, no?

we have found out that cole loves the limelight even more than we thought- last night after bible study, we put him on the floor to crawl around (his reward for sitting all the way through). he explored a little and then realized that ALL eyes were on him- all 12 pairs. i braced myself for the panicked screams that i was so sure were going to erupt any second, but he just looked around at everyone, then layed on his tummy, propped himself a little to one side and kicked his leg up at the knee, like he was posing in some vintage lingerie ad. what a goof! the self-satisfied smile on his face said it all...