So here's the update for the Nielsen family:
My students are turning in their 6-8 page research papers on Friday so I have a lot of lovely grading to look forward to. Luckily, this semester I get the help of 2 student graders who take a lot of the most tedious work off my hands. Justin is over halfway through his second to last semester of school and we are looking eagerly ahead to April when our school days will finally be over and we can move on to the next stage of life.
Chad, at one day shy of being 9 months old, continues obstinately to refuse to crawl. He is a great roller--I've counted six rolls in a row before--sits up well, can feed himself, and has pulled himself up to a standing position from a seated position 3 times now. However, he can't seem to get from being seated to the crawling position. And when we put him in the correct all-fours arrangement he rocks in place for a moment, and then keels slowly over to the side so he can resume his rolling. Perhaps I should be grateful. Our apartment has still not needed to be baby proofed and I know approximately where he'll be when I check on him.
Otherwise, Chad is a great smiler and laugher and uses the syllables "dadada" to refer to everything. He loves cuddling and dancing and sleeps fairly consistently through the night, though his "night" doesn't usually begin until 10 or 11 in the evening. Last week my parents bought us a high chair and Chad thoroughly enjoys his easy access to Cheerios and Fruit Loops and the fact that he's closer to our eye level when we sit at the table. The tray has a little honey pot attached that you can tip so that it dumps its contents (usually Cheerios) across the tray. Chad figured this out the first time we put him in the high chair and now will always check it first thing for goodies when it's within reach.
Looking ahead, we're excited for this weekend when we get to go to Boise to visit family and next weekend when we will be driving to Utah and then flying to Washington to spend Thanksgiving with Justin's family. I absolutely love the holidays and have to admit I started listening to Christmas music yesterday.
Cuddle time with Mom
Hamming it up for the camera
Escaping from his bouncer is a daily occurrence.
Enjoying the new high chair
Enjoying the high chair box his Daddy turned into a house/plane/car
