Happy Halloween

'Allo, all! Grandma G made an Eamonator costume for me.

Nine months of Meemo, Nine months of Eamon

Nine months ago, I didn't know what we were getting into. Eighteen months ago, I was positive I didn't know what I was getting into (and I was right about that...).
Now, we have boy. Such a boy. He took his time coming into the world, and tried to do it backwards, but now... Headfirst. All the time. He's forgotten how to scoot backwards. Which means he gets stuck sometimes, a little human "c" of unhappiness. But lean him over a step, turn him upside down, or leave something in front of him that can be knocked down, and he's ecstatic. Even better, run a cat past him, and watch him scoot by at top speed, giggling to chase.

I never realized how hard this headfirst plunge would be. I want to protect him from every hurt. Every bump hurts me, even with his confused look as he clocks himself on the underside of a coffee table. For the fifth time. And now, he's challenging gravity at every turn. For now, we're keeping a hand on him, letting him fall gently. At least until he learns to tuck his head. But we're trying to let him learn at the same time. I can see this is going to be a hard balance to strike for a long time to come.

In the last nine months, he's changed so much. The grumpy old man is gone. Mostly. Take away his toy, scare off a cat, pull him backwards from his objective, and you see a flash of him. It's more of a stern, suspicious look, akin to this one. Now, it's more smiles. And waves and fist-bumps (not quite claps yet). Throw in entertainment from Dad, and you get belly laughs. The quiet cry is gone, too - now, a truly upset Eamon is a loud, sad being, oscillating between crying so hard he won't breathe and tearing your heart out with sound. But usually he's quickly soothed, happy to be held and bounced. Regardless, he has his own personality, his own wants and desires.

Milestones:
17 lbs today, with nappy. The rest of the well-child visit is getting delayed due to an ear infection.

Hair: Still blond/reddish. Eyes: still blue with brown centers. Sometimes greyer, sometimes browner.

Four teeth - two top, two bottom. Two more top ones on their way in. It's been a long couple of months in teething land.
Eating- just about everything. Due to his speed and my lack thereof, Eamon discovered corn chips this weekend, well ahead of the allergen-based schedule. Greek yogurt, mashed potatoes, Noodles carrots - all good. Nectarines and peaches? Even better. Milk and water come out of bottles, cups, and sippy cups.... depends on his mood. He'll empty his own sippy at daycare, but wants me to give him a glass and hold it while he drinks.

Eamon is still babbling, to himself and others. "Dada" is still the preferred word. He waves now, and has picked up the sign for "milk", but has yet to use it in a reasonable way (usually uses it right *after* he's eaten - advertising, perhaps?).

The army crawl is still the favored mode of transportation. He has pulled up a couple of times, but doesn't yet see its utility. I'm okay with that.

And, thanks to his OCD mother, his hair may have gotten a little trim last night. Just the back, where it was heading for the Bozo look. The mohawk lives.

And now for something ..not completely...sort of different.

I spent a day at the Denver Federal Court this month. Only in a professional capacity- one of my coworkers was an expert witness and couldn't be there to hear the opposing expert's testimony, so he asked me to fill in. One day in court, and both the procedural aspect and the utter disregard for science almost did me in. Not sure how Laura and Brad deal with this at all. More patience? (Turns out one of the attorneys I was working with was from Dayton - I found out after the fact and didn't get his name, though.)
Anyway.. not really the point. On my way out of the parking garage, I was treated to a different view of one my favorite (okay, two of my favorite) buildings in Denver.

1999 Broadway and the Church of the Holy Ghost. One of Denver's tallest skyscrapers, surrounding this gorgeous church. If you know the Denver skyline, this is the building that is outlined in green at night.

I love the juxtaposition of old and new. I love how the skyscraper was built around the church.

More info here.


The building is even cool from above: in the google view, you can see the skyscraper in the right hand corner and the church in its shadow (on my more poetic days, this seems metaphorical).

View Larger Map
I was in the parking garage over there on the left, and spent my day at the Federal building (the big U-shaped building on the top.  I wonder how many people in those two buildings never notice the view?

(in case you missed it)

I'm trying something new... I added page breaks to the last couple of entries so that I could put in more pictures, hopefully without the loading problems that happen on the main page. See those big green words at the bottom of the last two entries? Click on them for more!!
 Go ahead, I'm waiting.
Now...see the green word "Comments" on the next line? Please let me know if this works for you.

Adventure in Estes

The Clarks wanted to see the Stanley Hotel.
On the way up to Estes, Ray demonstrated his love for climbing about.
Which should make this less surprising.

A walk in the woods

Things have been busy lately. Good busy, in that we're getting to see some people we love. Work busy, too, but we'll skip that. The latest visitors were the Clarks: Brian, Tiffaney, and Nick. A couple of quick days, with some cards, a run up to Estes Park, and lots of hanging out. It was a really good weekend. And it is so much fun to watch Eamon and Nick. Eamon just watches Nick, so entertained, and Nick plays really well with Eamon.

Before everybody showed up, I was moaning to Ray that we have no pictures of the Clarks. Like many of our friends, when we're at their houses we're enjoying ourselves and relaxing and don't take out the camera enough. This time, I was on a mission to remedy the situation. Now I have too many to share!

The first night we took a walk along the creek path and over to the playground.

I think these pictures alone make up for the previous lack. Nick was playing with milkweed, trying to catch the seeds as they floated out. (Some of my favorites of Jen's pictures are of the backs of little boys - I was trying for that here.)

And, of course, the playground...

Hey, Mr. Driverman, drive this bus fast!

*Sigh*
This bus takes forever to get anywhere.
Good thing I packed lunch!


(Seriously, people, how many forms of baby containment could you find in ten square feet? There's only one of me!!)

Three Generations of Purple People Eaters

Sadly, they had to listen to the game on Ray's phone broadcast. Happily, the Vikings are now 5-0.

Somebody did it for me...

I try to resist this urge, but today, it's too great. Today, somebody else said it so perfectly.
Ezra 3:16 on amalah.com

All is well here. Grandparents Grunzinger are here. The next couple of weeks are going to be busy for me, so it may be quieter here.

E on the Road

I like taking Grandpa G's car out for a spin. You have to focus on the road. Quick eyes, smooth hands.  This is the best car I have ever driven. FOCUS! 
That is all for now. Talk to you later, maybe after I disguise myself to get sweet rewards for mom.

Oktoberfest 2009

The Rapps throw an awesome Oktoberfest on a regular basis. We enjoyed this year's a couple of weeks ago.
Dirndls and leiderhosen included.
Beer also included, of course. The smiling beermaid is extra.

Eamon was trying to fit in, and doing pretty well. They threatened to keep him. He still puts up with being passed around amazingly well.

This will get even more fun in a couple of years- along with the great food (and beer), there were a lot of games for the young kid set. And some for the adults.
Ray was very intent on German bingo... possibly concentrating on a a German word to shout...
 ...but I got the first win! (The stein is actually a winning from a previous Oktoberfest - I know Ray won a Wisconsin quiz a few years back (ringer!), can't remember what I did to get mine.)
Eamon found some of the fun confusing.
But he had fun.. and we did take him home, don't worry.

And I'm saving that hat for next year.

Yay!

I know, it's a repeat photo, but the big news around here (other than continuous teething, whee) was the Vikings/Packers game last night. I think Favre is now accepted around here.

Hopefully Fang's four neighbors will show up, already, and I can provide some more insightful posts for you all. Until then, Minnesotans, enjoy the glory (sorry, Laura Rose).