Backyard swinging

Taz

"The tasmanian devil" is what comes to mind in describing Jordon's sleeping patterns. He turns himself about in his bed and gets into everything. We have had to take a few things out of the crib for safety reasons. His arms and legs are in constant motion. Sometimes he'll pull out the pacifier and try to give it to me and then cry because it's not in his mouth anymore. Many nights we will partially swaddle him just to try and keep him from moving so much because it keeps him awake. Here's what a typical night is like at our house: down to sleep between 7 and 8, wake up x 3-4 times that first hour wailing. Wake up again between 11:30 and 2, then again at 4. Then Mom and Dad wake up by 5 to 5:30 to get ready for the day and get Jordon shipped off to Granny's. When Jordon wakes up, his bed looks something like this. Don gets worried about something weird happening to Jordon, so sometimes he'll sleep in his room for a while and comments about the thuds coming from the crib (from his kicking). Jordon has an aquarium in his crib that plays music and has moving fish and lights. Don said that Friday night Jordon had woken up and was bouncing his head off the power button, turning the music on and off with his noggin.

The little red and blue rocker is a great item we got from Christian and Kelly. He takes a lot of naps in it and sometimes sleeps there when we can't get him to sleep in his crib or anywhere else.

Is this what you call food?

At about 4 months of age, we started trying to give Jordon some rice cereal. He is not a fan. He usually makes a nasty face and spits out more than he swallows. Then there's the coordination factor. The thing he does like is chewing on the spoon and not wanting to give it back.

Yeah! I can fit in my stroller!

We got a nice jogging stroller as a gift and had been waiting to use it until Jordon could sit up better. Now he does great in it and seems to like going for walks around our neighborhood. He stays quiet and entertained without even needing any toys or a pacifier most of the time. He also loves being out in the baby carrier at HyVee, Target, Costco, etc. He smiles and just looks like he is lovin' life! Dad likes to haul him around in the carrier 'cause he thinks it's a work-out. I think it's a backache if you do it for too long. At his last Dr. appt. on 8/6 he weighed in at 15 lbs, 6 oz. and 25 and 1/4 inches long.

Going to Granny and Gramps

Don started back to school and we now are taking Jordon to Grandma and Grandpa's farm on the days that I work during the week. It has been a challenge for everyone. At 41/2 months old, Jordon had always been around either Mom or Dad and it's been an adjustment getting used to something new. He has spent a good deal of time crying and fussing at Grandma and Grandpa's place, which has worn them out. He also is a sleep-fighter so it's hard to get him to take naps. We are really hoping he will settle down soon so watching him is not such a chore. Mom has said that Jordon is "a different kid". I think that's her nice way of saying he is a hell-raiser. Sure, he has his smiling, good natured moments and overall likes to be out and about and around people, but seems to be more high-maintenance than some. We're hoping this is a phase he out-grows. Time will tell...

The rolling machine

Jordon temporarily stopped rolling and we thought at first something was wrong or he forgot how to do it. Not to worry.... a few days later he resumed rolling from front to back. He rolled back to front for the first time at Grandma and Grandpa's on 8/3. Now he has been doing it both ways, and even does double rolls. He has been up on all fours in what looked like an attempt to crawl, but so far he just ends up with his face in the floor. This w/e I checked on him at one point to find he had somehow wiggled his way under the rocking chair, and another time was chewing on a desk leg. The whole crawl/walk thing is making me a bit nervous. He is so active now that I'm a little afraid of what he will be like when he can really get around.

The sock monkey

After a few weeks of no blogging, we have some things to report. Jordon has earned the nickname "sock monkey" because as you can see in the first picture, he loves to pull at his socks and stick them in his mouth. Between him pulling his socks off, getting them soaked in his mouth, and kicking them off, it is hard to keep socks on him anymore. It is also getting harder to keep him in the bumbo. After Don had a near disaster with the bumbo, it is now confined to the floor. But little man has figured out that if he drags his foot and leans to one side, he can scoot the bumbo across the floor. He throws his toys off to one side just so he has something to reach after. Here he is itching to get at Smokey. He has really been watching the cats more lately... maybe it's their movement that gets his attention. The cats, on the other hand have been a bit neglected at times. Especially poor Sammy; he gets super needy at times. He's here head-butting Don and trying to claim some attention.

Grandpa x 2

This is a rare and special event to have both Grandpas together at the same time! Here you are with both Grandpa Kirchhoff and Grandpa Ferrell.

More fun at Grandma and Grandpa's

Fun at the farm....

Here are pictures of your Uncle Nathan and Aunt Stef, and cousin Logan. I think we missed getting a picture of your cousin Evan because he was out helping Uncle Tim and doing one of his favorite things -- spending time on tractors.





















Here is your Dad, who has become the designated griller at family get-togethers. He is seasoning some steaks to throw on the grill. We also had special visitors this time as your Grandpa Don and Joyce were able to join us at the farm while they were here visiting. Dad gave them a tour of the farm while they were there.

Funny story Grandpa!

Three generations

Here is Jordon with Dad and Grandpa Don. The background is where the Kansas and Missouri rivers meet and according to Don, Lewis and Clark thought this high ground would have made a great military post.

What do you think of my hat?

Here's a good picture of Jordon at about 4 months old, in his bumbo with his lion hat on from Grandpa Don and Joyce. He has an outfit to go with it, but it was full of drool and in the dirty laundry. Jordon seems to be at his best in the mornings; the cranky factor tends to increase as the day goes on and as you would expect, his mood often depends on how much he has napped. He has been more cranky than usual over the past couple weeks, drooling a lot, and cramming everything into his mouth. We thought maybe he was teething but we haven't seen anything yet.

Hi Grandpa!

Don's Dad and Joyce came to visit us on July 24th and stayed for a few days. They live in Idaho so this is the first time they were able to see the little guy in person. We showed them around downtown KC and visited the WWI museum and Union Station. We also took a trip to Lawrence and Leavenworth, and showed them around the greater KC area. Jordon did pretty well considering he gets bored and fussy with being in the car seat for too long. There were times when he and I stayed at home while the 3 of them went exploring to give everyone a break. We had a lot of fun during their visit!