Say Goodbye to Non-smelly Poops!

Just one of the many great benefits (from a Dad's perspective) of infants who are nursed is the lack of stench associated with their poopy diapers. When Dane first started eating baby foods, I remember the foul odor hitting me in the face like a Mack Truck. Totally wasn't ready for it. Well Lil' E had rice cereal for the very first time today. While I can't speak to the changing odor just yet, I know it is coming soon. Instead, we celebrated by documenting this momentous feat.

We put him in the bumbo and, as usual, he was all smiles.

This truly is bite number one.
Didn't quite keep it all in!
His attention quickly turned to the spoon that mommy was using to feed him.
Give me that!!!
There were a couple times when he wasn't totally psyched about the experience.
But by the end of it, he was back to his usual smiles.
Congrats on eating your first solids, Erik!

5 Months!!!

Erik has turned 5 months old and we took some pics today in his 5 month onesie.



Last week, Shelly found an old video of her making Dane laugh. He was less than one and was in his high chair. Shelly was popping out of from behind a chair, the classic "Peek-a-boo!" When Shelly found the old video on the computer, Dane wanted to watch it over and over. We kept telling him..."That was you when you were a baby!" You could see him trying to process in his mind, what he was seeing. Well during the photo shoot, Shelly tried the "peek-a-boo" trick on Erik to see if we could get some big smiles. Once Dane saw what was going on, he wanted to get in the chair too. Result is below...



Lately, it seems like Dane never gives us that big of a smile. Too bad the trick didn't work on Erik! He was not amused :-)

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Here is the cutest spider you ever did see attending his ECFE class.
Yes, Little E was a Spider this year for Halloween. He was all smiles.
Mmmmmm! Candy!
Dane and Mom went to Target. This year he picked out his own costume. Shelly was trying to persuade him to be a Candy Corn, but he said "I just want to be a pumpkin." So here is our little pumpkin boy. We made a last minute effort to try and paint his face orange. Note to self: Allow more time for proper face painting!
Here is a group pic with (left to right) Shelly & Erik (Spider), Cruz (UPS Delivery Guy), Kristin and Simon (Tigger), Dane (DJ Grumpy Pumpkin...notice the portable CD player in his hand), Kelly and Rocco (Bear).
Cruz getting ready to deliver his package.
So when we actually went "Trick or Treating," Dane would not let go of his portable CD player and CDs. I would have to carry his candy in between every house. I'd give him his pumpkin as he would walk up to the door. Notice there aren't any headphones...he can't even listen to it, but it goes with him everywhere.
Til next Halloween...

Pumpkins and Face Paint

Grandma Cherrie treated us to a fun filled day at Apple Jack Orchards last weekend! It was THE Fall experience we were all looking for. Cool weather, sunshine, kids happy to be outside and lots of pumpkins (including pumpkin guts all over one Zitzlsperger kid...can you guess which one??).

Dane started the day by feeding this goat....over....and over....and over again. Seriously, Dane should know by now that force feeding doesn't work. His parents have tried it on him several times...
The family shot. We tried. Sigh.
On the way to the pumpkin patch. Someone's having fun :-)
The moms bringing up the rear...chatting about the coffee we desperately needed and should have stopped to get on the way to the orchard.
Mom, would you please pay attention?!?! I can't see a thing!I'll still smile for you though because that's the kind of baby I am :-)
Maybe this pumpkin? Nah, too big for Big D.
This one is much better!Dane: OH NO! I got all dirrrrrty.
Mom: What happened Dane?
Dane: I slipped down!
Mom: Uh, you sure did :-)
Dad (from behind the camera): It's okay, we have wipes in the stroller.
(Notice the rotten pumpkin guts in the background...ew)
All cleaned up and walking back to the car with Grandma. He LOVES his little pumpkin. Thanks Grandma!
We do heart Apple Jack orchards!
This was Dane's first face painting experience. He sat VERY still.
And this is the most precious face. The girl who painted Dane's face was probably 12. When she was finished, she held up a mirror for Dane to see his smiley face. This is the look Dane gave her after he saw his reflection. I just think it's the sweetest smile...sort of like he's in awe at what she'd just done.
And here's the finished product!!! Two sweet smiley faces on two sweet boys!!!
Happy Fall everyone!

A Visit from the God Parents!!!

Dane's God Parents and our good friends, Mike and Lindsay Keough came to visit us in September. They brought with them their precious daughter, Winter. It was my (Matt's) first time meeting her. What a little cutie. She is definitely going to be a heart-breaker when she gets older. Mike and Lindsay requested that we head to an Apple Orchard, so we took them our usual spot. What a cute family!!!


Daddy and his little girl!


Here are the ladies with their little ones. Winter is about 2 months older than Erik.


We took our annual picture by the "How Tall This Fall" sign. We get one every year. It will be fun to compare as the boys get older!


Lil' E showing off his tough guy pose!!! "What are you starin' at?"

Dane estimating how tall he was last year.


Mike took a family pic for us. As usual, Dane was not wanting to participate.


Next, we headed to pick some Apples. Our favorites are the Honey Crisps. If you haven't tried them, I highly highly recommend it.


Dane had a blast picking the apples off the trees.


It doesn't get much fresher than that. He ate the entire thing, core and all!


Dane and his God-Father!

We had a photo shoot with Erik and Winter. Winter's eyes are the prettiest shade of blue. What a cute baby couple.


We took some 5 month Pics of Winter as well.


Love the chunky thighs.

Uncle Hans' Visit

We've had an extremely busy September. Lots of visitors came to town. It was so much fun having folks visit and allowed us to take tons of pictures. Now we just need catch up on our blog posts. September started with Hans coming to town over Labor day. One of the first things he did was show Dane how to properly hold and play the guitar.


Dane played for quite a while.


Watch out Keith Urban!!!


Dane took a minute to daydream about a future Billboard chart topping hit and subsequent triple platinum album.



We also headed to Como Zoo. Dane followed Hans around everywhere and the two had so much fun playing together.

Dane was interested in all the different animals that he's seen on Go Diego Go, but not in actual life. This puffin definitely looks cooler than it does on a TV.

Just like the plains of the Sarhara!


Uncle Hans got some good pictures with the boys.

We also got a good family shot!!!

Here's a last one of Hans and Lil' E!

Thanks so much for coming to visit Hans. Dane is still asking about Uncle Hans and wants to know when you'll be back.

4 Months

Erik turned 4 months old today. We resurrected Dane's old exersaucer and Lil E actually did pretty well in it. He would stare so intently at all the toys. He's not too good at reaching out for things just yet, but he surely didn't complain about his new space.



We also had our standard monthly photoshoot in his onsie on the brown leather chair. This month was by far the easiest month in terms of trying to capture his smile.

This is a little bonus. I found him like this one night. Honestly, I went in to peek on him and immediately sprinted to get the camera. By the time Shelly got home, it had fallen off, but I was able to get the proof. It's even more impressive knowing that his hands are pinned to his side in the Miracle Blanket.