Malcolm at 5 Months

Continuing with late blog posts, Malcolm hit 5 months right before Christmas. December was a busy month for us with a wedding of a good friend and Christmas celebrations. I'm glad I remembered to take his 5 month photos at all!

At the time, he was working really hard on sitting up all by himself. He was also having lots of trouble sleeping at night, which made mommy very grumpy. We thought he was teething because he was so cranky and drooly, but he hasn't cut any teeth yet. I think it was just a growth spurt because he is in the next size of clothing now. He really started to get grabby too. He will lunge and grab for anything he sees. You really have to hold on tight when he's in your lap or he'll launch himself onto the floor in seconds.

He is pretty good at stealing his sister's stuffed animals. He has a great fondness for Foxy.

My cutie pie in his Christmas PJs.

Baltimore and Expo East 2014

So I'm a little behind the times. These are pictures from the end of September 2014 when I took the kids to Baltimore for a weekend because Sam was attending the Expo East trade show. I attended the show one day to hear a couple omega-3 experts speak, Michael Lewis and Dr. Alex Richardson. The other days I took the kids around Baltimore and met up with my cousin and uncle who live in the area. 

Expo East is a pretty fun trade show. I dropped Inga off at the show daycare and took Malcolm onto the show floor. I was able to score lots of baby food samples and tons of coupons. I had so many people stop and gape at my 2 month old because you don't usually see babies at a trade show, but the Natural Products Expo shows are pretty baby friendly for working moms (and dads). The two lectures were really great and I was glad to be able to attend something intellectual for once. Inga threw a tantrum when I picked her up from daycare because she was having so much fun with the other kids. Mom is boring.

At the Wiley's Finest booth. Inga was pouting because I made her leave daycare.

Dr. Alex Richardson's lecture

I took Inga the the Maryland Science Center and on a boat tour of the Inner Harbor on day. She really loved both and wanted to do them again the next day.

Playing at the science center

USS Constellation

National Aquarium

Ft. McHenry

Driving the boat!

 On our last day in Baltimore, I met up with my cousin and her two year old son. We took the kids to the aquarium, which they were not interested in at all. We found a sandbox near the science center for the toddlers to play in while we enjoyed the sun. Sam and my uncle joined us for dinner where the toddlers barely kept it together. Malcolm fell asleep on my chest, which made it really difficult to eat! We had a good time though.

Little baby Malcolm

Inga and Miles playing in the sand

It was pretty exhausting touring a city carrying Malcolm in the Ergo and pushing Inga in the stroller. It was like several days of intense strength training. Definitely a total body workout.

Malcolm at 4 months

Malcolm is growing up so fast! He is already 4 months old. He went in for his check up and weighs nearly 17 lbs and is 26 inches long!! I knew he was big, but that's quite fat. He's got lots of rolls on his legs and arms. I do love my chubby baby.

He has started teething so is drooling all the time and constantly has his hands in his mouth. He has also been having trouble napping during the day. He's been getting a lot of clove oil for his poor gums. He also really likes standing so we got out the exersaucer, which he doesn't find quite as fun as I thought he would. He really just wants someone to hold him up while he watches big sister play. Best part is he has reached the giggly stage. He will giggle at almost anything for surprising lengths of time. He is just so happy. 

Mmmm...thumb is pretty good for chewing

Seriously overtook the bunny this month

My two kiddos

Looking handsome as ever

He likes the book toy the best

Malcolm at 3 months

Malcolm has become so irrepressibly happy all the time. He loves playing with big sister, bats at his toys, and can sit up in the Bumbo seat. He greets me every morning with a big grin and very loud squeak. Very recently, he has started to squeak really loudly. He competes with his sister for loudest child award. He is also really close to rolling over in both directions. He is a very determined boy and will try to roll over for 30 minutes before whining to be picked up. He is getting very long, too. Some of his 3-6 month sleepers are getting too short already!! 

Smiling at Daddy

Inga's 3rd Birthday

Riding her new tricycle!

Inga is now officially a threenager! Everyday is an emotional roller coaster ride, but most of the time she is good natured. Last year, we were on vacation during her birthday and she didn't get a party so this year we threw a big one for her. It was a Jake and the Neverland Pirates themed party complete with a treasure hunt in the backyard. It was a chaotic party with four toddlers running around (and two older kids), but they all had a good time. 

Birthday girl helped frost the cupcakes

Pirate Malcolm

Three years old!

On a treasure hunt

These two are trouble!

Inga even got a pirate ship!

Finger Lakes, NY

About a month after Malcolm was born, I was feeling way too cooped up at home. I had spent way too much time at home waiting for Malcolm to arrive and then adjusting to our new family member. In a very last minute decision, we headed to the Finger Lakes region of New York to get out of Ohio. We'd never been to the Finger Lakes before, but heard they were really pretty. Sam was even able to turn it into a business trip by having lunch with one of Wiley's Finest's brokers who actually lives in southwestern New York.

Fox Mulder driving the car

We drove to Erie, PA in the evening and spent the night. The kids were so good in the car until after dinner. Inga was getting a little fussy so we played games like let Foxy drive the car. 

My breakfast dates

The next morning we drove to the town of Hammondsport at the bottom of Keuka Lake to have lunch with the Wiley's Finest broker and his family. The Finger Lakes is full of wineries similar to the Grand Traverse area in Michigan, but these wineries have been here for much longer (100 years plus). We ate lunch at the Bully Hill Vineyards. It's a rather quirky place, but the restaurant was pretty good and tolerated children very well. The wine was decent and super cheap. It was a gorgeous day and the winery grounds were very nicely landscaped.

Inga and Daddy enjoying the sun.

Keuka Lake is at the bottom of the hill below the cars.

 We actually stayed near Canandaigua Lake, which is closer to Rochester. We went to the public beach at the north end of Canandaigua Lake and has a picnic lunch. Inga had a fun time playing in the water and building sand castles. Malcolm slept in the stroller the entire time.

Enjoying his afternoon nap.

This girl loves to swim.

Perfect day for boating.

Sam and I were really wishing we'd rented a boat except Malcolm is a little young for boating. Next summer he'll be old enough, but one month old is a bit too early for wake boarding.

We left the beach and went to a park along the lake to find a waterfall. The region has lots of waterfalls on all the creeks that enter the lakes. When we got to the park, we realized the trail to the waterfall had been removed probably because it was too expensive to maintain due to seasonal flooding. That didn't stop us for hiking, but we didn't walk all the way up to the waterfall. Inga had a blast hiking and creek walking. I did a lot of creek walking as a child and really enjoyed introducing my daughter to all the fun.

It was a short trip and the next day we drove home. We ran into some really gnarly traffic on I-90 due to construction and a semitrailer catching on fire! Malcolm was such a good little traveler.

The Finger Lakes are really beautiful. Actually, the far western end of New York is beautiful and very sparsely populated. It is similar to the Traverse City region of Michigan minus the sand dunes. The wineries are suppose to be better, too, but we didn't really do any wine tasting. Definitely worth a second visit, but we'd need to rent a house and a boat next time.

Malcolm at 2 months

Malcolm is already two months old. He saw the doctor and checked in at 13 pounds and 24 inches. He is a long baby. He is also super happy in the morning. He smiles and coos when I get him out of bed and he loves being on the changing table. He is a very talkative baby. He loves to play on the floor with Inga. She brings him her dolls and stuffed animals to play with and he smiles and coos. He is also a total Mama's boy. He loves comfort nursing in a way Inga never did. In the evening, I am the only one he wants to hold him. It's a good thing I think he's so darn cute.

Working on smiling for the camera

Big yawn

Talking to Mommy

Hanging out with big sister