Tyler and Carly's Weddding Day

Friday July 31st was a very special day for Tyler and Carly, it was their wedding day. Baron had the honors of being his ring barrier while Nathan was Tyler's best man. One of the busier individuals was Vanessa as she spent two days before the wedding helping get all of the flowers ready fro the big day and then at the wedding helped with all the last minutes touches along with taking care of Baron.

This is a great picture of Baron getting a snack from Grandpa Holstein before its time to get dressed in the tuxes.

We didn't get a picture of Baron dressed in his Tux but here is a great picture of his tux hung up on the same rack as the other tuxes.

Baron finishing his bottle with Grandpa Holstein while Nathan and Tyler relax as much as they can in those penguin suites!

Baron making his entrance as the ring barrier asleep in his moms arm. Man his date looked hot!!

Here is a picture of the Holstein family after the wedding. Notice Baron has already been stripped! (Thanks Ashley for the last two pictures!)

Congrats Tyler and Carly!

The flower day!

I didn't spend much time with Baron today. It was a boy's day at the Holstein house. Instead I spent 8.5 hours doing flowers for Carly and Tyler's wedding. It was alot of work, but I learned alot. This is just a picture of a few things we did.

Immediately after the flowers were done, we rushed back to Lynn and Fred's to prepare for the rehearsal. Poor Baron was in shock while he watched us scramble to hang lights, decorate, and set up tables. I think if he knew how much he was going to be held during the next 48 hours he would have appreciated the time alone more.

Cousins!

This is the start of a very very busy week/weekend. We are in Seattle to prepare for Tyler and Carly's wedding and a family reunion! Tonight we went out to eat at Anthony's Home Port to celebrate Aunt Pat's birthday (and a late birthday celebration for Grandma Lynn). Baron met his 2nd cousin Amy. She was the first of the 2nd cousins to meet and hold him! Aren't they cute together (but I wish I had the picture where they both had their sunglasses on)! Baron wasn't sure about Amy's laugh at first, but then it grew on him and he thought she was hilarious.

Ta Dah!

Who is This Tiny Little Peaceful Boy!

We didn't snap a picture of Baron today so I thought it would be a perfect time to post a coule older pictures of the little guy. Both of the pictures are from the day he made his entrance into the world.It really is amazing how fast 6 months have passed and how everyday we grow to love him more and more.

Growth Spurt

Baron has gone through a growth spurt in the last week. He was eating the normal amount of formula, but he was eating solid food 2 times a day instead of one. He was napping three times a day and sleeping all night. It is obvious he is growing like a weed, but this weekend it really hit me. The reason it was so obvious is because on the 4th of July we noticed he was practically jumping out of his excersaucer so we raised it to the next level. His little toes were barely touching the bottom. On Saturday (the 25th - 21 days later) we noticed he was standing flat footed again and really rocking the toy. At first we thought it must have fallen back to the lower level, but that was not the case. Baron AKA "Little B" is not so little anymore...

I felt it was only appropriate to post pictures of him eating this weekend. After all, it is what is contributing to his size!Morning bottle with Daddy.

Afternoon bottle with Mama

Snack time! These are the best invention! It is a mesh bag with a handle that is designed to have food put into it. Baron can lick and taste the food - even chew on it - through the bag. We don't have to worry about him choking. I started using them with ice cubes to help his teeth feel better (even though I am so confused about whether or not he is teething). Today we upgraded from ice cubes to watermelon and Baron was in heaven.

He couldn't get enough! I wish these pictures had sound effects because the slurping was out of control!

Carrots and a much needed bath!

Baron had carrots for the first time tonight. He liked them, but not as much as apple sauce and sweet potatoes. He washed it all down with an ice cold Tecate. Not really, but we have found that an unopened ice-cold can keeps him occupied for a little while and we can eat dinner.

Carrots are messy so we took a long bath. After the bath Baron sat on his changing pad and watched the crazy neighbors (that is another story for another blog). Yeah for bed time! Tomorrow is another day with another adventure.

On a side note - we ran into Carla (his old daycare provider) today at the post office. She was so excited to see him and couldn't believe how much he has grown in a month. It was great to see her. I believe that God puts people in our lives for many different reasons, but I don't feel like the only reason Carla was put in our lives was to just watch Baron for that short time period...I guess only time will give me that answer.

Hours of fun!

I interrupted Baron to take this picture. We had been playing on the living room floor for a longer period of time than normal. Perhaps it was because we read every book and played with every toy that we had downstairs.

The day ended in our normal routine. Baron has become a splasher in the bath. Nate and I end up with more water on us than in the bath tub. Here he is splashing (and he strategically splashed a privacy cover for the picture!).

What is so funny?

For the past couple of days it seems like Baron finds every move and sound we make hilarious! He giggles if we turn and look at him. He giggles if I drop a pan or stomp my feet. At our baby/momma class today he thought another little girl was so amusing that he would do his excited scream then wait for her reaction and then laugh. He had all of us entertained for a good 5 minutes. Tonight he was riding around on Nate's shoulders and giggling the entire time. Now I believe the email forwards I receive that say a child laughs on average 50 times a day, but adults only laugh 5 times a day. However, I am way above the adult average of 5 because this little guy is so silly!

Wild hair!

We found another use for the oatmeal cereal...it is a great replacement for hair gel.

Side Sleeper

I've been wanting to take a picture of Baron sleeping on his side, but I feel bad doing it after I put him to bed. It also doesn't help that he hugs the side of his crib (and occasionally licks the crib bumper) so it would take a creative angle to take the picture. While we were at our friends house this weekend Baron took a nap on the floor so we were finally able to take a picture. The only part that is missing is the blanket that he rubs on his face, but it was too hot so he just layed on it instead. I don't think anything is much sweeter than a sleeping baby.

Fun with Food

It was a HOT day in Portland today and we took advantage of the nice weather. Baron and I went downtown to Nate's office and packed a pinic lunch. Here is our picnic in the park. It is hard to see, but Baron was being very serious and drinking from his sippy cup.

I asked Baron to smile. I guess this is the age when I need to start being more specific...and ask him to set down his sippy cup first and then smile! :) At least he did what I asked!

Baron wanted everything we pulled out of our lunch bags. So I gave him a carrot to suck on. Who knew a carrot would entertain him for nearly an hour! Here he is loving his carrot (that comes from his dad - who eats 10 POUNDS of carrots a week - seriously!).

The fun continued. Baron decided that the best thing to do with his oatmeal cereal is to spit it out and then play with it on the highchair. In all honesty I think that might be the best use for it as well. It tastes terrible, but it is a step up from rice cereal!

Sweet moments

I can barely remember the last time Baron slept in my arms like this. He actually fell asleep in Nate's arms while Nate was talking on the phone. I took him thinking he would wake up so I could get him ready for bed, but that was not the case and I did not complain!This picture of Baron reading his favorite book is from yesterday, but it was too cute to leave out. I read this book and sing the WSU fight song to him everyday. He loves it and tries to clap his hands with me as I sing. He must know that crimson blood already runs through his veins :)

Happy Half Birthday Baron!

I can not believe that Baron is 6 months old today! It is so exciting to see how much a baby grows in 6 months. Here is a sneak peak at his pictures. The downloaded version is terrible quality, but I suppose that is so I don't print them on my own.

Sippy Cup

Baron tried a sippy cup for the first time tonight. The sippy cups are so similar to a bottle so it makes for an easier transition. I have a feeling he might try to drink more water now because it is new and exciting!

Oh the places we go!

We had a weekend FILLED with fun! This is a long one....
On Friday I packed up the car with just about everything we own including Gus and Baron and we picked up Nate after work. We drove to Quincy and Baron did pretty well. However, he decided that once we arrived to Grandma and Grandpa's house he wanted to PARTY until 11pm. The next day we had a yard sale at Grandma Weber's (my grandma) and we were there all day. My cousin Brent stopped by with his wife Deidra and their son Caiden. It was so cute to watch Baron and him play together and to be able to share parenting stories with Brent and Deidra. They rolled all over the floor and shared toys. Caiden is three months older then Baron. I want to find a picture I have of Brent and myself because Brent is only 2 months older than I am.

On Sunday we got off to a slower start. Baron hung out with Grandpa in his recliner.
Later that morning we went to church. We didn't actually make it to the service, but we met up with the Hooyer's and Becker's to get Baron and Calvin together again.

Calvin and Baron are exactly 1 week apart. I think Calvin is teething because he did not want to take his hands out of his mouth. He is such a cutie! Now if only we lived closer so we could have actual play dates...

Here is one of the highlights of our trip! Baron went cherry picking for the first time! I LOVE cherries and I was so excited to get out to the orchard to get some. We let Baron play with the cherries on the tree and he even sucked on one. He likes cherries just like his mama! He even figured out how to pick one on his own. This particular orchard was damaged in a hail storm so we were able to pick as many as we wanted. There were so many on the trees that they were hanging like grapes. Mmmmm...so good!

It didn't take long to get a few boxes of cherries so afterwards we met up with Sara and Todd and went down to Sunland to go swimming. It was Baron's first time in a big pool and he loved it! His little legs were kicking the entire time and he was splashing and smiling. We didn't get any pictures in the big pool, but here is one from the wading pool which he also liked.

Later that evening Sara, Todd, Nate and myself spent some time on the river and Baron went with my mom and dad (we heard later that they had a GREAT time visiting friends and eating apple sauce). When we finally got back to mom and dad's house Baron was still awake and he wanted to party again! In fact, he tried to convince Todd that he was old enough to really party :) It was another late night for him, but he sure enjoyed himself.

After a good nights rest we woke up to a beautiful Monday morning. Grandpa showed Baron the potato field. As time goes on Baron will realize how much fun it is to go to the farm and play in the dirt, but for now he is just trying to take it all in.

Bye Bye Grandma and Grandpa! Thanks for letting us come and play (and eat cherries!). We love you.

Clean up crew!

Gus has discovered that he loves the high chair! Especially when 5 tiny fingers dangle over the edge!