10 Months

Lincoln is 10 months old! This month has been more fun than any month so far. Lincoln is really a sponge right now. Things I never thought he'd do, say, or figure out are nothing to him! He often gives me this look like "What's the big deal, Mom!" He knows that you put the basketball in the net, he can say Mama and Dada (sometimes appropriately), he can search through his whole toy box for one tiny circle that he wants to hold, and many other amazing things. We said goodbye to breast milk this month, and we all welcomed formula and whole milk with ease. Dr. K told us formula may help with his weight gain, and my body was ready to give up on the milk so it was the right time for a change. I hesitantly handed Lincoln his first bottle of formula on New Year's Day and expected a fit or curious concern at least. He drank the whole bottle and didn't blink an eye. I almost cried (of joy that we didn't have to fight about getting used to it and of sorrow that he didn't care that it wasn't my hard pumped breast milk!). Oh, well. I'm glad he likes both whole milk and formula - if only he was more interested in drinking them from a cup! Next month, I guess! 10 month stats are as follows:

Weight: 20 lbs! It took forever to get to 20, and we're eating as much as possible. He's in constant motion, so I know it will be hard to pack on the pounds.

Height: 28 inches! I think he's getting taller, but maybe he's just standing up straighter.

New discovery: the door stop! He loves it and stops to examine it each time it catches his eye. He walks by it often while pushing the cart, which is one of his favorite activities. The walking is much improved - he bends his knees and doesn't look like a penguin anymore!

New look: this one says, "Mom, why do you have that camera in my face again! I'm busy!" He's still really into books, so we read a lot! He picks out the book holds it up or hands it to us. There are certain sounds for "do it again" and for "now this book". The Sesame Street books are always at the top of the list and are usually read a few times each day.
New hair: notice it's not so spikey these days! He's growing so much more hair and it is behaving in its own crazy way. He's got a pinwheel around his crown - maybe that will be stylish by the time he gets to high school!
New car seat: finally!!!! We kept him in the little car seat as long as he would fit, but it was getting crowded in there (barely room to snap him in with a jacket on). He has moved up to the big kid seat, but he's still facing backwards of course. It has lots of room, lets him sit up straight, and gives him a great view of himself in the mirror . . . what else could you ask for?

It was a fun month, and I'm sure this month will be every bit as exciting. Happy 10 months, Linc!

How'd he do that?

Lincoln manages to get himself in the most interesting situations! I left him for a few moments to prepare his lunch, and this is what I found when I returned.

Either he needed to get in the bin to retrieve a toy, or he thought it looked fun in there. I'm not sure what his motivation was, but he found a way to climb on in! He fussed for a bit when he was ready to get out, and I just laughed. Mean old Mom made him figure out how to climb out!

Too Much Goop!

Conjunctivitis made its first visit to the Kuhlman's this weekend! Lincoln had lots of yucky goop in his eyes on Saturday, but I thought it was just the precursor to a snotty weekend. I regularly cleaned his eyes . . . much to his loud protests. It seemed that the goop was increasing by Sunday afternoon, so we made a visit to the After Hours Pediatrics clinic to find out what was going on. (By the way, the clinic at Forest and Preston is awesome! Not like the generic emergency clinic, it was so professional and the doctor and nurses were great.) Linc was diagnosed with Bacterial Conjunctivitis, which is technically Pink Eye but not the "pink" kind. He had lots of congestion that was coming out of his eyes instead of his nose. We got a prescription to clear up the infection, and it started working immediately! This is the least gross picture I have of his poor eyes.

We stayed home from school on Monday to continue the healing and prevent spreading it to his friends, and Lincoln was playing up a storm. The infection didn't hamper the fun at all! He's doing a new thing that is so cute . . . when he gets really tickled or excited he scrunches his eyes and squeals and even shudders. It's like there's so much happiness in there he can't get it out! This is the best picture I have of it, though he did it tons of times today.
One more first to report on - Ritz crackers. Kevin broke a cracker into small pieces on his tray for him to try. He also laid a whole cracker on the tray and came to help me finish dinner. We looked over and Lincoln had picked up the whole cracker and was taking bites. What?!?! It was the most grown up thing I'd ever seen! I think we'll be having many more Ritz crackers because Lincoln really liked it.

He also loves Goldfish, but he has to fight his Daddy for them. I don't think there was a mix up at the hospital . . . he loves Dove Bars, Goldfish, pancakes, bananas and cheese. Yep - he's our kid!

Peek a Boo

Peek a boo is one of our favorite games! Lincoln has learned the concept and loves to peek around corners, furniture or toys and wait for me to say "Peek a boo!" This picture was of Lincoln and Daddy playing a particularly fun round. Does he look happy or what!

Cutest Kid Ever - 2

"I'm ready for my corner office now!"

Always on the go

Why would anyone be still? That's no fun! Lincoln definitely doesn't believe in sitting still. He loves to throw the ball and crawl to retrieve it. He loves to crawl up to the tv and chew on the entertainment center. He loves to crawl through the kitchen and peek around the corner. He loves to crawl to his Daddy when it's time to share a Dove Bar (this happens at least once each night!). Do you get the picture - he loves to crawl?!?!

Another fun method of transportation is walking, but he needs assistance with this one. As long as there's something to hold onto and push, he's off. If we'll help him with he corners, he'll walk all night.
It's no wonder I can't put any weight on him . . . he burns all the calories by running around all day. It sure seems fun, and I get lots of exercise chasing him around. I think he'll skip walking on his own and move to running. He's always in a hurry to get to the next place!

Wheeeee!

Nana and Pops gave Lincoln his own Chateau (for real, it says that on the box!) for Christmas, and he's really getting the hang of it. To utilize the Chateau completely, two people are needed - one to help him climb up to the bridge and one to catch him at the bottom of the slide. This weekend I was on climb duty while Allyson waited to catch.

Here I go!

Wheeeee!
I help him get to the edge, and he leans forward to slide. There are a few seconds of "no hands" that he loves. Notice the eyes closed and roller coaster hands - he's a real daredevil! He squeals and claps at the end. You can also see by my stance in the background that I'm mimicking the catch position. I've done this a few times!!!!!!

(It's comical that the box said Chateau because we often refer to Lincoln as "French Link-ee." He says Mama with a French accent! I'm sure one day that will be a Texas Twang, but for now I love French Link-ee)

Daddy's Dove Bar

Daddy shared a bite of his Dove Bar tonight, and Linky appreciated it very much! Who doesn't love chocolate covered ice cream? Thanks Dad!

Daily Specials

Big Boy Eating continues at the Kuhlman's . . . Lincoln's menu today consisted of strawberry fruited yogurt, spanish rice, a bit of cheese quesadilla, turkey, cheese slices and Cheerios! Of course he had plenty of bottles to go with his meals, and I added a small bottle of whole milk as a pre-breakfast snack. He loved it! Here he is eating his supper and holding his big bottle! So big!

Later Linc and Daddy did some work on the computer. I don't know how much work they did because it looked like they were having too much fun!

Latest Favorite

Lincoln found a new favorite food this weekend . . . pancakes!!! Since I love pancakes so much, I thought I'd let Lincoln try them too. He gobbled them up so fast and kept reaching for more! I agree that Cindi's pancakes are super. Normally I put butter and grape jelly on mine, but I didn't think he was ready for all that. He was in heaven with plain ones, so we'll stick with that for now. His cheeks are full of pancakes in this picture.

Just hanging out

We had nothing on our agenda this Saturday, except to play! Linc stayed in his pjs until lunch and loved hanging around in his long johns. I finally dressed him to accompany me on an errand (lamp shopping-exciting!), and he looked too cute in his little outfit. Thanks Aunt Ally!

Yes, there's a scratch on his face! He's dives into and onto EVERYTHING, and I think we're lucky he hasn't gotten too beaten up yet. The incident report would read: cleaned wound, applied cream, and gave lots of TLC! (Lincoln could have done without the extra TLC as he was too busy trying to get into something else.)
He's decided Tickle Me Elmo is pretty funny. The vibrating part scared him at first, but now he thinks that's the best part. After a long day of playing, I got a few sweet hugs when it was time for bed.

(No) Snow Day!

Lincoln and I had the most wonderful day today - work was cancelled and we had a Snow Day! (Strangely there was no snow, but I hear there was ice on some roads.) We played so much and did lots of laughing. Linc does this really funny thing when you're holding him lately. He leans around to look inquisitively in your face then busts out in a smile. I don't know what he's doing, but it's hilarious. He played with lots of toys, we watched the Baby Einstein sign language video (slowly working on this one), and he tried several new foods (mozzarella cheese, Lean Cuisine pizza crust, and a bite of Reece's cup). Even though he hated bananas the first time I served them I tried again today, and it was met with much excitement! I'm so happy to add bananas to our routine because I LOVE them. (Seriously I eat one every day!) I adjusted Lincoln's feeding schedule to more normal breakfast, lunch and dinner times, and it seems to be working well. He naps better and is getting more food (I think).

I took tons of pictures today, and this is all that was blog-able! He lunges at me every time I whip out the camera. Here are a few cute ones:

He's constantly feeling his top gums with his tongue. I think we're close to some top teeth!

The cup: Lincoln will drink from his sippy cup but prefers to turn it upside down and chew on it. Where are these teeth already?!?!

Mmmmm Macaroni and Cheese

Lincoln had his first taste of a good old classic tonight! I made grilled chicken (healthy) and macaroni and cheese (no so healthy) for dinner, and Lincoln got to have a taste!

He wasn't sure at first, but he really did enjoy it. He sucked of the cheese and finally chewed the noodle. He readily opened up for another bite!
An hour later . . . macaroni and cheese makes little boys happy! (Oh, and naked baby makes him happy too!) We're on a food mission around here, so stay tuned for lots more "first" posts. I'm working on different tastes and textures and am feeding him whatever I'm eating. He's very curious but sometimes skeptical. So far, nothing beats sweet potato fries!

A Slinky For Linky

"Cool - my slinky! I'm gonna grab it!"

"Mom, watch me throw my slinky around. Are you ready? Here I go!"(clapping) "Yay! I threw that so far, Mom! I'm a big kid!"

New Game!

Lincoln and Daddy played a new game this weekend, and Lincoln loved it! I didn't catch the first run on video, but he was laughing so hard we were all in tears! What fun!

A little outside time!

It warmed up a bit today (50 degrees!) so we played outside for a bit. Lincoln inspected each leaf and enjoyed tossing them in the air. He looked so cute in his Razorback gear! I got him ready to cheer for the Hogs in the Liberty Bowl today . . . too bad the game is not until Saturday! (I was sure it was on Friday and couldn't believe when Kevin couldn't find it on tv.) Don't worry though, he definitely has more Razorback attire to wear.