Halloween

John's in Atlanta so he is missing the cold weather and trick or treating tonight - lucky. Amy came over tonight and helped pass out candy and hung out with James and me - one of our many "excuses" to get together! I dressed James up as a dragon - he wasnt thrilled but he was a good sport. Our wonderful neighbors came over and brought him some rattles since he wasnt going trick or treating (I think its a little pointless to take a 7 month old trick or treating ... unless the point is to have a tired, grumpy, cold baby at the end of the night). All in all it was a successful first Halloween!

Crawling

James has been a pro at the army crawl now for a little over a month, but now he has started to really get up on his knees and move. Its really amazing to watch him think about how he wants to move - each little move is so big to him. I cant believe that he is 7 months old, crawling, playing and growing so fast! It seems like he has changed into an infant to a baby over night.

Pictures by Gretchen

Last Sunday James had his pictures taken for the first time. He did alright - he was way more interested in the props then looking at the camera, let alone smile. James just wanted to play and crawl around - not pose. Poor Gretchen had to work hard! Here are a just a few that she has shared with us, once we get them all back I will post some more.

Pumpkin Patch!

On Sunday we went to the pumpkin patch.  It was just one of those perfect fall days complete with apple cider and a hay ride. We left with 7 pumpkins (even though we only really need 1 or maybe 2) and muddy shoes - but it was a great day.

This blog is meant to be more of a way for John and I to share pictures of James and whats going on with our lives since we live away from everyone than like a "typical" blog. We wanted to keep everyone in the loop - but also wanted to have an easy way to document our lives and be able to look back. We are so bad at printing out our pictures and saving them in albums so this was a great alternative.

Even though this isnt a typical blog - I LOVE reading them! And for others who like to also - I have listed some of my favorites.

These are great for other moms (these bloggers are hilarious! And also make me feel more sane)

http://www.sundrymourning.com/

http://www.finslippy.com/

http://www.suburbanbliss.net/suburbanbliss/

This one is good for other tOSU Alumni (which Im sure if you are a true Buckeye you are already a follower)

http://clubtrillion.blogspot.com/

This is a great social media one

http://mashable.com/

And then this one is just a plug for a few photographer friends :)

http://juliebranyan.com/

http://gretchenburnsphotography.blogspot.com/

James really enjoys playing in the Sunday newspaper - its crinkly and colorful, just like he favorite toys. John reads the paper every Sunday and so now when he is done with a section, he will hand it over to James. It has become their little Sunday activity - James now reached for the paper when John starts reading because he knows that its play time! When we were taking pictures last Sunday he started to get upset because the flash kept going off. Sometimes he doesnt mind the flash and sometimes he will start crying when he sees the camera in our hands - even before we take pictures just because he knows the flash is coming!

    

The Siefert men :)

James got his first tooth, FINALLY! It seemed that he was teething forever, even though it was only a few weeks. We were convinced that his bottom teeth were the ones that were bothering him and were about to break through - but turns out it was a top one. Oops! James is now eating solid food like a pro - and on bath night, we will let him feed himself. Which he LOVES but I think he gets more all himself and the floor then in his tummy. The dogs love it though - they learned very fast to lay right by James' highchair for what gets thrown over the side!