November Update

What everyone told us would happen is now officially happening....Alex is growing and changing faster and faster every day.

The critical facts:
Alex weighs about 12 lbs. 7 oz. and is about 24 or 25 inches long.
Alex LOVES to "talk" - to everyone.
He makes lots of ahhh, ooooh, eh-uh sounds for hours on end.
Alex is laughing every now and then and smiling socially every day.
Alex can grib and hold his pacifier and teething rings and a couple of small, light weight toys.
Alex is sitting up with support of pillows or in his bumbo and today he began playing in his exersaucer!

As for events and activities, we have been to Houston for a funeral for Helen Linbeck, a dear family friend. We spent lots of time with both sides of the family that long weekend and got to meet extended family like Aunt Theresa and Uncle Robert. Ma Ma and Pa Pa were in for the funeral and Alex got to spend some good time with them, but of course it is never enough. We were planning a surprise trip to Abbeville (well, it would have veen a surprise if I had not posted in the last blog entry!!) but of course we were not able to make that trip due to the funeral.
The funeral was truly the most wonderful service I have ever attended. For anyone who had the blessing to know Helen, it was a celebration of her life that she would have loved in every way.

This weekend, cousins Jen and Dave came in and we took a trip to Azuca, a great Latin restaurant where we celebrated Jen's birthday and then we strolled on the river walk. Sunday, we drove to a small town about 75 miles from our house to visit the Lost Maples State Park. We hiked about 3.5 or 4 miles up a Texas "mountain". Jonathan and I took turns carrying Alex in the baby bjorn and he loved it! I will admit for my awesome husband's sake that he did the heavy lifting taking Alex up the mountain and back down. (See the pictures below)

We can't wait for the holidays to arrive so we can spend time with our loved ones. The days seem to go too quickly and we look forward so much to seeing friends and family again soon!!

Another new chapter

Well, another new chapter has begun as I headed "back to work" today. Mary Beth Schutz (JT's cousin) moved in with us about 2 weeks ago and she and Alex have really bonded and she is just wonderful with him. Because my job allows me the flexibility to work from home when I am not meeting with clients or business partners, back to work means going into my home office, closing the door and hitting the phone for conference calls and of course, relying on e-mail to save the world!

Having Mary Beth here is more of a blessing than I could have imagined. Realizing with great compassion that some people simply have no alternative, we are so grateful that we do not have to drop Alex off at day care at this young age. He is here in the comfort of his home with loving one on one attention and...I can sneak a break in and go get an Alex fix when I need one. I think it is allowing for a less painful transition back into the work force.

Alex weighs 12 lbs. and 5 oz. and he is about 24 inches long. I am so amazed at how much he changes, grows, develops and surprises me every single day! He is vocalizing quite a bit and he smiles and tries to laugh virtually all day long. He truly seems to be a very happy and healthy baby. His schedule is very stable and he is going to sleep around 8:30 PM, then wakes only to eat at 10:30 or 11:00, wants a diaper change around 3:00 AM and then sleeps until 6:30 or 7:00 AM. We are going on about 4 days of that routine and pray it will continue.

Jonathan is doing great and is receiving recognition and praise for the great work he is doing at the CTRC. We really like the team of doctors he supports and the team of nurses, admins,scientists and physicists who complete the team. We will host the department's Christmas party here at our home - about 150 people! We are excited about it but pray for good weather so that there will be room for everyone inside and outside.

We are looking forward to a trip to Louisiana this weekend - Alex's first trip to Cajun country!


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Love from The Tinkers of the Alamo City