Our Crazy Week in Pictures

Life has been hectic the past several days so hopefully that explains why I haven't posted anything in a week! We had a really busy weekend and the week hasn't slowed down much either. On Saturday we got to have lunch with our friends Aimee and Ryan Fox. They went to Lee University as well and the three of us (Aimee, Ryan and I) actually went on our England/Scotland trip together with our history department in 1999 where Aimee and I were roommates for the whole trip! Time got the best of us and we never kept in touch but they recently moved back to Old Town and I'm so happy because they are a lot of fun to have around. Plus, they are expecting their first little one any day now! A baby girl! So we had to have one more lunch before Mercer arrives. Then Brad and I were off to Ikea to get a few things and to run more errands. It was a late afternoon but we got him just in time to put Baker to bed!

Rolling around on our new rug...thank God! We hated our other rug for several reasons and are so happy to have this non-shedding one!

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On Sunday, we had a church picnic at Fort Hunt Park. It wasn't shy of games, including volleyball, softball, cards, those huge blow-up things for kids, and tons more. We just had a great time hanging out with all of our friends, eating fried chicken and all the fixin's. It was a gorgeous day for it no doubt!

1. Baker loved laying in the parachute. All the colors and papery sound must have been fascinating! 2. With our pastor, Dale - he's so great with kids!

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Yesterday, I had my MOPS meeting that morning and that afternoon, Baker had his pictures taken...another full day. Now, we are awaiting the arrival of Brad's parents! We're so excited that they are coming up for a visit during Andy's fall break at Lee. We always love October because it means a visit from the parentals. They have come to visit us every October since I can't remember when - in NYC, London, I think Atlanta (?) and now DC. I'm sure we have a very exciting few days ahead of us!! Can't wait!

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More pictures from the week

Sleepy after his bath and ready for bed. I love when he rubs his little eyes!

1. Up to no good, under the chair. Baker may not crawl but he manages to get around by rolling everywhere he wants to go. We're beginning to wonder if he's ever gonna crawl for this very reason! He's perfectly content with rolling and he's super fast at it! 2. He now goes straight to his toy box and dumps it out!

I went to get him from his nap the other day and he had reached through the crib, grabbed several pieces of laundry out of his basket and into his crib, then dumped the rest on the floor!

The Teeth Just Keep Coming!

Okay, so our little monkey may need to change his nickname to gator. I mentioned that 2 weekends ago Baker got his first front top tooth but his second top tooth came in this past weekend. And just yesterday morning, once again Baker woke up moaning and that's always a sign of something but I knew for sure it wasn't more teeth so I didn't even bother looking. I thought for sure that since had his top 2 and bottom 4 that we were set for a while. Yeah, not so much. When Brad got him from work last night, he had Baker laughing and looked up at his gums and there were 2 MORE teeth on the top, one on each side of the front ones! We couldn't believe that Baker now has 8 teeth...that's just crazy. I didn't think babies got their teeth this fast but he's proven that theory wrong. So, Baker got a total of 3 teeth in the past few days! I'm not sure that I like this very much. The more teeth he gets the quicker he looks like a little boy and I'm not too fond of the idea of him growing up this fast. Can they stop already?

On another note, this morning Brad and I had an appointment with Alexandria Cares, a non-profit organization that educates families on child seat installation. Did you know that 7 out of 10 kids are not properly buckled into their child seat? That's a scary number. Brad and I wanted to make sure that we took every precaution in making sure Baker was secure in his seat. Sure enough, despite reading the manual, we didn't have the seat installed correctly! Mark Bergin (the guy that runs the operation) took it out and reinstalled it, educating us along the way...so well that I may even be able to install it by myself! And, I gained more leg room because of this! Who knew that it could be so complicating. If you have kids, I encourage you to contact your local police department or fire department to see if they do inspections on car seats or even go online to find support. It's worth the phone call!

A few pics from our afternoon in the park on Sunday

I just love the picture of Bleeker and Baker and their sweet profiles. I'm not sure what they're looking at over there but it must have been exciting!

What on earth is he so surprised about? Let's hope he makes this face on his birthday! That'll make us feel good!




Being silly - Baker loves to sit way up high...he gets a real kick out of it!

In deep thought..."What will I have for dinner?"

Dying to touch Bleeker. Don't you love Bleeker's tongue in mid-action?

Day at the Pumpkin Patch

The autumn bug has definitely hit the Blackmons and what better way for us to kick off the season than spending the afternoon at a pumpkin patch with our little one! This past weekend, we did just that and took Baker out to see his first pumpkins...wow, did he love it! On Saturday, the weather was perfect so we traveled up to Hollins Farms with Jeff, Anna and Charlie - a huge farm near Middleburg, VA where you actually pick them straight off the vine...a first for all of us. It's crazy to think that such beautiful farm land, mountainous terrain and scenic country is just a short drive outside of DC, only 45 miles away. Of course with traffic, it took about an hour and fifteen but so worth it.

As we were driving down the dirt road to the farm, we noticed tons of cows and huge pigs and we knew that we HAD to show Baker his first livestock. He first saw the cows because they were right next to the pumpkins and was so happy that he was kicking his legs, waving his arms and squealing! I think he smiled almost the entire time we were out there. It was a lot of fun for all of us. We were all shocked to see all the different colors of pumpkins too...from deep orange/red to white. Who knew? After we picked our pumpkins and gourds, we went straight to the pigs...HUGE pigs! I think that Baker fell in love with the pigs. After all of the excitement from everything else, this was by far the part that he was most excited about. I think it was a combination of the noises they were making and how funny they all looked that captivated him. He just laughed and squealed like all of the pigs. At one point, this one pig came right up to the fence and stuck his snout through it and had I not restrained Baker, I think he would have totally grabbed it! We tried to capture a video of his excitement but it doesn't do it much justice. One thing is for sure, he loves animals just like his parents!

Our first autumn with Baker...so much fun!

1. I love this picture of Baker eating out on the farm! 2. Baker and the pig go face to face!

Sitting in the pumpkins! They are about as big as he is!

1. The Laughlins 2. Charlie and Baker sit with their pumpkins.

How beautiful is this place?! View from the top of the patch and looking at the corn maze down at the bottom.



1. Before we left - Baker looks like a prisoner in his own crib. He was actually trying to stand up. 2. He does this back bend in his exersaucer to play with the toys dangling over his head!! It's a bit alarming to see him bend like that!

Video of Baker and the pigs

Times are a-Changin'

Well, the crib has officially been lowered which means we are one step closer to our little boy growing up way too fast! While I was away at a doctor's appointment this morning (which BTW, please say a prayer for a little biopsy being done on a small mole of mine), Brad was home with the boys and trying to get ready for work. He put Baker in his crib to play and moments later, peeked into the nursery and saw Baker STANDING and holding onto the side of the crib only to be followed by losing his balance and falling back down! Very alarming! Waisting no time, Brad and I decided to lower the mattress this morning before Baker decides to jump out of it. Who knows, he may not do this again for weeks but if he does, we are prepared!

1. It's a bit difficult to get a good picture of him sleeping in his crib now but you get the idea hopefully! 2. This is the precious face we get to look at all the time. How amazing is that?

1. More sweetness - this could be my new favorite picture. Gotta love his little profile.

Sucking on his thumb, which he does a lot. It's cute and all but I hope it's not one of those things we have to break later! For now, we'll enjoy how sweet he looks while he does it.

Playing in his crib after his nap. We thank his daddy for the new romper he got on his last trip to LA. I love it! Of course, I've always loved to see Baker wearing those sweet one piece sleeper/outfits. It reminds me so much of his little days....awh. I think all babies are so sweet and cuddly in them.

Just for fun pictures:

I love his little rock 'n roll outfit! And more of that sweet profile!

1. Told you he sucked on his thumb a lot! 2. This is Baker's new face that I posted a video of the other day. It's his "I don't want to" face and he'll huff and huff when he makes it. He knows it makes us laugh so he does it at random times now!

1. More of that face 2. This is what I typically get nowadays when I try to take pictures - reaching for the camera!

"I think I'll rock on the couch. Whew, that's a lot of work. Maybe I'll just take a rest"

"I'm learning to stand up and play with Bleeker."

Speaking of change, I get so excited this time of year! The weather has been turning a little cooler, the leaves are beginning to change and I tend to have a pep in my step. I just ADORE the fall season! It has something to do with swapping out the summer wardrobe for my beloved layers, and Brad would agree...he loves it too. Not only do we get to dress ourselves in fun fall clothes, but we get to dress our little boy in them too! So let the fun begin!

1. There is this cardinal that always perches on our patio right outside the window and I just love to watch him! Until moving here, I've never seen one of these up close but they are so beautiful. I finally caught a picture of him without him flying away. 2. The leaves on the tree outside our home are already starting to turn red along with most of the trees in town...I love it!