I'm Glad That I Live In This Beautiful World Heavenly Father Created For Me!

As Hudson and I went walking through our lovely little neighborhood today, I couldn't help but let the primary child in me free!  My mind immediately started singing my rendition of "My Heavenly Father Loves Me"...  

"Whenever I hear the song of a bird, or look at the blue, blue sky... whenever I feel the rain on my face, or the wind as it rushes by... whenever I touch a velvet rose, or walk by a lilac tree... I'm glad that I live in this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for me!... He gave me my eyes that I might see the color of butterfly wings... He gave me my ears that I might hear the magical sound of things... He gave me my life, my mind, my heart, I thank Him reverently! For all these creations of which I'm a part-- Yes! I know Heavenly Father loves me!

I couldn't help but post these beee-aut-iiii-fullll pictures of this gorgeous Fall season out here in the Midwest. I know it's a bunch of trees...but I went crazy and couldn't resist taking a million pictures! It was a blast:)

Hudson braved the weather and enjoyed the colorful show of Fall with me! We try and get out as much as we can now before the weather gets unbearable and we are forced to order groceries in and hibernate for the winter. We have been told that people come out of their houses at the end of winter like moles out of the dark ground with eyes squinting, pale skin, and some extra pudge to keep em' warm... Looking forward to that one. Don't think I'll be posting those:)

 My dear little partner in crime looks like a thug in his beanie:) he's been enjoying nibbling his fingers of late. His Dad isn't thrilled about that one. It makes me recall my parents going to great lengths to get me to stop sucking my fingers... Those spiked braces were both really attractive and not-so-kid-friendly. GOOD RIDDENS! Hopefully yucky tasting goop will be enough to get the job done with this guy if the habit sticks. We just love our chunky Hudson man!!!

Our Little Sunshine In Cold/Getting Colder Chicago

Hudson is nearly 5 months old this week and I am absolutely bedazzled at how fast time flies! He is so much fun. Every day seems to have it's surprises. Hudson has decided he actually does LOVE rice cereal (especially all over his face, body and Mom), LOVES talking to himself and anyone that will listen, LOVES story time, LOVES splashing the bathwater all out of the tub and getting Mom as wet as can be:), LOVES when Dad makes him giggle, LOVES being rubbed down with lotion before bedtime and LOVES the dog's barking at the grooming shop  "Shaggy" right below our apartment (we make WOOF WOOF sounds when we hear them and Hudson enjoys watching Mom make a fool of herself), and I think the train that goes through our living room every couple minutes has also grown on the whole family:)
As of 2 weeks ago, Hudson has started to roll over! At first, he got really scared at what had taken place that his eyes flew wide open and he started breathing really fast. Then he just smiled when he realized I was clapping for him and he had done something pretty nifty.

Sitting up is a lot easier when you don't have a little Pilsbury dough-boy belly in the way. I'm impressed at how well Hudson maneuvers his chubby little body:)  We are proud of this little man's efforts to sit up all by himself! 

What a big kid! Hudson has figured out how to master his top-heavy figure-- He balances by bobbling his head around with both arms and legs out to support him with his eyebrows raised high, HIGH, HIGH and eyes WIDE open:) I don't know how this guy figured it out, but it works folks! This scenario usually ends with Hudson leaning too far to one side and then toppling over or just flat out face planting.

Hudson sings to his toys. It makes Tom and I crack up. EVERY TIME. Without fail. I figure it stems from me singing nursery rhymes to him with his stuffed giraffe, Jerry. Ever since then, whenever we give him a toy to focus on he starts singing. I love this kid:) Please don't tell me I have a Donny Osmond on my hands.

I FINALLY FINISHED THE ROCKING CHAIR GRANDPA!

After much sanding, more sanding, and a little bit more sanding, I FINALLY got to painting this rocking chair (that my mother also rocked me in as a baby) to match Hudson's crib. The project took 4 cans of paint, but it is now a finished product! My next project is curtains that I promised Thomas...Will somebody PLEASE nag me to make sure I complete them???

THANK YOU GRANDPA MONTAGUE FOR ALL YOUR HELP AND EXPERTISE TO FINISH THIS CHAIR! I will always think of you each time I look at or rock in this chair:)

This Kid Is A Riot- I Realize Other People's Children Aren't As Funny As Their Parents Believe Them To Be

The BUMBO has got to be one of the baby industry's finest inventions. Hudson did the bobble head and had his arms straight out to his side for the first little bit but now he is pro! It will do as our high-chair for the time being.

Hudson and Mom have been enjoying our walks through the crunchy, Fall leaves that line the sidewalks and seem to be doubling in number daily! This is Hudson's Fall, flannel, harvest shirt. Tom teases me for how much I love dressing Hudson. It's just that as a little girl you miss out on the good stuff--- it is WAY more fun on a real baby:)

Hudson is getting much more control with his body movements such that tummy time has become more productive for Hudson rather than janitorial for me. He is no longer launching all the food in his tummy to get out of working on his neck and back muscles:) I really feel like he had some sort of plot going on for a while... 

This is Hudson's little BABAR "dining set".  Talk about cute. Grandma Lisa brought them out when she came to visit and it was such an exciting event to try them out after the go ahead from the pediatrician just this last Monday. Our big boy has gained 5 pounds in 2 months!

This first rice cereal experience was not as glamorous as I thought it to be! Can't say I wasn't laughing  the whole time:) Hudson was trying so hard to figure out what was going on. "Ok Mom, I just got the whole sucking thing down---why do we have to even do this?" I thought that one through and quickly realized it's because I love him enough to not let him be the only kid chugging a bottle of milk down at the 7th grade lunch table. Point and case buddy. We ARE figuring this out.

The good news is that even just after rice cereal experience #2, things were looking up. Although nearly covered from head to toe, mission accomplished. It is just getting easier each day! In fact, today he inhaled two bowls in 7 mins flat. 

Hudson's Top 3 Tricks

Hudson LOVES this red toy. It is the first toy that actually has peeked his curiosity. It rolls, rattles, is colorful, flexible and even light-weight! We get a kick out of watching him concentrate as he motions his fingers to grasp it. Look at me go folks!

So when did this little man decide he wanted to start growing up too fast???! Ask Thomas, I am always telling Hudson to SLOW DOWN! Tom just keeps telling me to have another baby... Oh that Thomas is funny:)
Hudson found out he has 2 hands! And since then, they are rarely apart. He holds them together, plays with his fingers, stares at them, and uses a team effort to pick up small objects. 

This is a stuffed giraffe my cousin's wife, Emily made (super cute). Hudson is fascinated by this guy! As  I was singing "The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round" (animal version) I couldn't figure out what noise to make for the giraffe... Hudson quickly chimed in "Aaaaaaaa" after my long pause. So for all of you who didn't know, giraffes say "Aaaaaaaaa" :) Thank you Hudson.

We Are Considering Paying People To Come See Us---Think About It.

We made a trip to the beautiful Chicago temple (Steve's 3rd new temple trip after just receiving his endowment a few days previous). Ash was a good sport and watched Hudson while I went through a session for the first time since having Hudson. So wonderful to be back!

This pizza is deliciously sinful!!! Hudson was eyeing it for a taste.

It was so fun to have Grandma Lisa come out to Chicago and be with us for a few days! We hated to see her go...

Aunt Ashley had him totally mesmerized. Hudson had such a hard time falling asleep the night they came into town because he didn't want to miss a thing. What a little party animal:) We loved having everybody here in our little apartment! 

Our trip into the city---in front of us is a big Marilyn Monroe statue of the air vents blowing her skirt promiscuously... Although it's "cute" we decided to NOT take a photo of that to put in our records.

The three of us are going to soon be spread all over- Steve in Brazil (on his mission), Ash in D.C. , and Syd in Chicagoland. It was a treat to be together for one last hoorah!

Uncle Steve decided he liked being an uncle and did a MORE than FABULOUS job at it!

We took about 500 pictures to see if Hudson would eventually look up at the camera... Nope. They sure look cute together though! 

We tried to maximize time by eating whenever Hudson needed to eat. I've never had so much great food all packed into a couple days! 

The Discovery of the Mouth, Hands, and Fingers

This is consequence of ALWAYS wanting to put his hands and fingers in his mouth these days. He sometimes gets his hand in so far that he gags! Wow he's ambitious! We use the binky to switch things up a bit. He looks like a victim, but really he's a happy kid:) 

Exhibit A: The intense concentration as he gnaws on the finger. "Why do they taste SO GOOD?!!!" He can't put his finger on it... okay that was lame grandpa joke. Hudson is constantly figuring out how his hands work, taste and feel.

Exhibit B: If it's not the fingers, it's the fist. Mmmmm Mmmm. He just loves the taste of Johnson's baby lotion.

Exhibit C: Even his little collar made it into his mouth. You'd think we starve the poor guy.

Caught in the act of pulling out the binky to replace it with his little finger sausages:) What a fun discovery for Hudson! Oh the excitement that awaits him when he can put little objects in his mouth to taste test: bugs, lint, dirt, crumbs... you name it!

Our First Visitor Since Being In Chicago: Spencer!

The Wendella Boat Tour through downtown Chicago in 90 degree humid weather... Nothing like a good sticky sweat!

Hudson was a champ on the boat. He just happily looked around like he actually knew which building the tour guide was referring to.

Call me lazy, but I highly recommend going the shaded boat tour route to see the city (hot day or not, but ESPECIALLY on a hot day!)

We walked down the "Magnificent Mile" on Michigan Ave. stopping at: Tiffany's & Co. (Spence was awesome to pose as my "fake hubby" for the day since Tom was at school, I couldn't ask him to buy me some "bling" too), Neiman Marcus , Nike Town, going to the 95th floor of the Hancock building, and eating Chicago-famous deep dish pizza at Giordano's off of Superior and Rush (totally worth the stop!)

Bonding with Uncle Spence at Lake Michigan beach in Lake Forest 

While downtown, (and after nearly missing the boat tour even though we pushed it back 3 times...) Spence learned how our schedule revolves around our little guy:) We had to frequently and strategically stop to feed and cool down Hudson... Spence went the extra mile to read a book to Hudson in the "ritzy"Trump Hotel during one of our stops.

I put Hudson in this ducky outfit thinking he looked fit for the beach. Although he had to think about it for a little bit, he really did enjoy our trip to the beach. He particularly loved the pebbled sand granules between his toes!

Documenting the 3 amigos at the Hancock building. Hudson insisted not only on being apart of this picture, but on being front and center.

Spence tried to get Hudson into the water without him YELPING. He really didn't like it at first (Lake Michigan isn't the warmest body of water), but he eventually warmed up to it. "Look Mom, just chillin' in Lake Michigan" :)