iPhone Dump

I literally have thousands of pictures on my iPhone...sometimes they are the best ones :)

I need to be better about puttin' them on the ol' blog so I don't forget about them!  Much of Banks' life is on that phone!

Here are some from the last few months...first instagram, then the rest.  If you follow me on instagram (@acogdill) you've seen some of them! 

 This was taken one day before I left for work...happy to be at GGs!

Pop pop having fun in the pool with the littles at the beach!

His facial expressions crack me up!  So many emotions in such a short amount of time! 

Last week at Camp GG it was "bear week."  They read Teddy Bear's Picnic the first day and then "painted" bears.  This of course is not real paint, its just pudding paint- has to be edible because he ate the majority of it!

That bear proudly hangs on my fridge...I've never been more proud!!!

 Cousins in the double cart at Costco...love that double cart!  Blakely though is not too fond of Banks touching her the entire time.  After a while she gets used to it. 

Chick fil a 

Watching Blakely play at Chikc Fil a

Color coordinated :)

My two favorite boys at lunch, this was in celebration this past weekend of Banks finally being fever-free!  

So Banks got his first two piece pajamas and I could have just died they were so cute!  I called them his big boy jammies!

We matched...again...in a dressing room...so random

The boy LOVES strawberries...but they are messy!

Proof they actually play together (sometimes)

Matt and I get the crazy idea every now and then that its a good idea to go out to dinner with a 7 month old.  Well its nights like these that the waiter takes forever and then its 7:00 and hes not in bed... Whats the solution?  Let your child jump in the booth while waiting for food...parents of the year :)

Publix...our favorite!

What would I do with my camera phone?!?

Surviving the First Few Weeks

As Banks gets older some things get a lot harder, but I think for the most part my job is easier.  The first few weeks with a new baby are tough...there's no way around it.  Of course they are magical and amazing, but no doubt they put a lot of pressure on the new mom. I look back to those first couple of weeks and I think to myself, "why didn't anyone tell me it would be this hard?" or "does every other mother feel so unsure?"  The truth is, I think women do, we just don't talk about it that much.  Those moment are fleeting and soon enough you are in the middle of baby food, nap schedules, temper tantrums, and sippy cups.  A few weekends ago, Kathryn and I talked a lot about "those first few weeks" and how stressful they were.  Please don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade those moments for anything, but there are just things I wish I would have known...or I guess things I wish I would have listened to people about.  I promise I heard all of these things before, but sometimes you just have to live through it to know.  I have compiled a list of "what I wish I knew" or more likely "what I need to remember next time." This is mostly for me so I can read this the next go 'round when I am sleep deprived and crazy :)

1. This too shall pass- SO many little things to worry and stress over the first couple of weeks, but I wish I could have focused on that the time is short, enjoy it now, worry later.

2. Breastfeeding will get easier- The pain, discomfort, hassle, etc. of breastfeeding gets better if you just stick with it a few short weeks.  Seems as if it will never get better, but it does...and it becomes easy!

3. Start in the crib- I know this doesn't work for a lot of moms, but we only waited a few days to put him in his crib and it was awesome.  He slept so much better and so did I.  I wasn't waking up to every peep and we could go to sleep normally without being too quiet or turning the light on.

4. Its OK to share- The first few weeks (or lets be real, months) I felt like I had to do everything.  I was scared to take a nap because what if he needed me?  My mom and others were very willing to help or take a turn, but I struggled letting go of the reigns.  Now I know...TAKE THE HELP, you will be a better mom for it, and the baby won't know the difference.

5. Organize the naps early-  Again I know this is not every mom's style, but I think that I was so excited to have this little sweetie home I didn't want a moment away from him.  For the first few weeks I held him for every nap and maybe sat him in his swing for part of it.  Around 2-3 months I realized he didn't need to be held or swung to sleep, but he was struggling to make the transition to crib for naps.  Next time I will do that from the get-go and I think it will make everyone's lives easier. I wanted to throw Babywise out the window a few times, but now I want to give it to EVERY pregnant mom...best thing we ever did, makes my life so easy!

6. Let them go to bed awake- I waited until 4 months to sleep train and you can see my post about that here.   Next time I will make my job a lot easier by starting to lay then down awake from the beginning.  It would be so much easier then because they are already so sleepy all the time anyways.

7. Don't invest in too many newborn clothes- This one is pretty obvious, but sometimes you just can't help the cuteness.  I probably bought way too many "newborn" sized outfits and in a blink he outgrew them.  We literally went nowhere, so just soft, little sleepers are the way to go for newborn size.

8. Take more pictures-  This can be said about any age, but these tiny, little moments go by so quickly and don't worry if you "haven't lost your baby weight yet" or "your face is still puffy"...hop in a picture, you will want to remember these moments.

9. Sleep will come- Eventually your baby will sleep through the night and you will, too.  The sleepless nights don't last that long in the grand scheme of things.  Eventually you WILL feel like a human again :)

10. Savor the moment- this one speaks for itself, these moments only come once and they are gone in the blink of an eye.

8 Months Old

Banks, you are EIGHT months old!

What fun we are having being your mom and dad!

You are growing and changing every day,  it is almost hard to keep up with all the new stuff you are doing. 

I don't know exactly how much you weigh, but I think its about 18.5lbs (according to a little infant scale the other day at a store). 

You really do not like to lay on your back right now, especially on the changing table.  When I lay you down you start to get upset, but if I just distract you, you recover quickly and go back to your happy self. 

Speaking of your happy self- that is exactly what you are...HAPPY!   All day long we see that smiling face, whether thats at Tiger, Blakely, us, or anything, you love smiling. 

You also LOVE standing.  You can't pull to a stand by yourself yet, but you can stand well if we place you there.  You aren't crawling yet and don't really have too much of an interest in any "face down" positions (tummy time, all fours)...so we will see if you are a crawler or you move straight to walking.  

You had two health-related things happen this month.  First, you had your first diaper rash- that was no fun!   I am religious about Desitin at every diaper change, but I guess this one couldn't be avoided. Then just this past weekend you had your first fever.  It began on Thursday when you were with Lauren.  It was 102.5 and hung out between 100-103 all weekend.  Lauren checked out your ears and she thinks you had a double ear infection, although they weren't terrible.  We are crossing your fingers you are on the mend.  I will say that you were SO SWEET despite your fever.  You were all smiles all weekend. 

You give the absolute best hugs.  Everyday when I come home from work and I scoop you up at GGs, you reach up and put your hands around my neck and snuggle in so close.  That is my favorite part of my day!

You have tried SO many new foods this months.  Pretty much anything we eat at dinner you have to have just a little bit.  We found there are two things you don't like, avocado and cottage cheese.   Your favorites are sweet potatoes, bananas, and you still really love oatmeal in the mornings.  Oh and you might like ice cream, too...ask GG about that one!

You are still talking up a storm.  You say "mama" and "dada" very consistently.  You also say "baba" and "gaga."  You have also said lots of different consonants such as S, C/K, N, and T.   You babble at us and we babble back and you think its hilarious.  When we are riding in the car, you are telling some one a long story because you talk the whole way.  It is the sweetest sound!

You are still loving bath time and you love it even more now that I trust you to sit up in the bath. 

You have almost mastered clapping and waving.  You will do both intermittently, but love the praise we give you when you do them.  You also really love to blow raspberries.   You have also started holding your own bottle and using a sippy cup more. 

You are wearing mostly size 9 and 12 months clothes, with just a few 6 months that still fit, but not too many. 

You are still on the same schedule and doing great!  You have started to get up a little early (earlier than mommy and daddy want!) around 6:30, but I've tried a lot of things and it just seems that is when you want to start your day.  I can't complain because you are such a good sleeper otherwise.   You wake up from naps and nighttime SO happy.  You are taking two 90-120 minute naps a day (at 9am and 2pm).  Takes two seconds to lay you down for naps and bedtime...straight to sleep without a fuss. 

As you can see from this picture, still NO teeth! 

You have started pulling Blakely's clothes and hair.  She does not like it, but I guess she is going to have to get used to it somewhat. She is usually so sweet about it.  I have a feeling she will get her revenge one day ;)

If I had to describe your personality I would say you are feisty, but with a sweet disposition.  When you start to move, watch out, we will have a time catching you.  Your legs are CONSTANTLY in motion, no matter what position you are in.  Changing your diaper is like changing an octopus!

You love all toys, but you especially love anything with wheels!

Nicknames include: Banksie, B, Tooters, and Turkey

At the end of our "photo shoot" I got you dressed for the day and you looked so darn cute I had to snap a few more. 

I think this is about the time that you were over our photo shoot. Even your sad face is cute ;) 

Daddy can ALWAYS make you smile again!  

I can't believe we are 2/3 through our first year together...where did the time go?  I am LOVING this age, you are so much fun, Banks, we love you!

New Set of Wheels

On our way home Sunday from Kathryn and Caleb's, we stopped and spent the day with Mama C and Papa C.  They had gotten Banks a little surprise...a new set of wheels!

He was so excited..he loved driving!

We was SO happy to ride in his little car, I am pretty sure he would have stayed ALL day if we let him. 

beep beep!

You know you're at your grandparent's house when they let you take your car inside and use the living room as your own personal race track :)