Announcing my new Etsy Shop!

Inspired by Milo. After unsuccessfully looking everywhere for a crinkley baby blanket, I decided to make my own, and so my shop, Bella Mia, was born. Handmade goods for baby, dog, and home.

http://bellamiahandmade.etsy.com

I hope you like it and please pass it on to anyone who might be interested. If you like what you see keep checking back, or better yet, subscribe to the RSS feed using the link on the bottom right of the page because there is lots more to come!

Basketball Star

See Uncle Tommy, hope is not totally lost for him to play sports! :-)

I'm a model, you know what I mean

Milo wants to be a Baby Gap model so you better click this link and vote for him! You can vote all pictures once per day.

http://family.go.com/gapcastingcall/entries/SMCole121008/

I really need to thank the Fleet Foxes...

... for giving me a life for the last 6 months. Why, you ask? Because up until this past month, playing Fleet Foxes in the car was the only way to get Milo to not have a total freak out the entire ride. Seriously!

The thing is, Milo has hated the car pretty much from day 1. When he was first born he would scream himself to sleep every time we got in the car. But eventually the screaming to sleep turned into just screaming. So at 3 months we ditched the evil infant seat (because that made him scream ANYTIME) and installed the convertible car seat. This was an improvement, in the fact that my ear drums didn't shatter anymore. It was better, but he was still crying the whole time. So one day when he was around 3 months old I put in the Fleet Foxes and turned it up to favorite song and it was pretty much immediate happy!

So for the next 6 months, that was what we listened to in the car almost all the time if he was awake. And if he was tired it was put on a certain track which would put him out immediately. When we took a trip to MN and forgot the cd, we ran to a record store to buy another copy.

(Did you know people still bought cds in stores?!) When people came to visit that cd was playing, like it or not. We tried other things but everything pissed him off, except for that cd. Only now can I put on whatever I want when we're driving in the car. But I still reserve Fleet Foxes for when he is way tired and needs to nap.

I have to say, its a testament to how good the cd is that I could listen to it day in and day out for months and I don't run screaming when it comes on now, don't you think?

So, thank you Fleet Foxes, for allowing us to get out of the house everyday with my eardrums still in tact. I owe you one!

Toothy Man!

The first 4 teeth - finally all caught on film at once!

9 Months Old!

Height: 29.5" (88%)

Weight: 22 lbs 7 oz (80%)

Dear Milo -

Yesterday you turned 9 months old - thats 3/4 of the way to your birthday and I can hardly believe it! Though, to look at you, you are starting to look every bit a toddler lately, and less

like a baby every single day.

Contributing to that big boy look is definately the 3 more teeth you got this month! It took a solid month for your second tooth to show up but within a week or two after that numbers 3 and 4 popped right in. The top two have a little gap between them, that may or may not close up on its own, but it sure is adorable! Unfortunately, with all these teeth has come the biting during nursing sometimes as well. Luckily you only nurse 4 times a day now and we've only got 3 months to go. You'll figure it out and even if you don't we'll power through.

You have learned to do some much this month it is amazing! You are crawling around like a pro and you are pulling up to standing on furniture and things. When stand up you are so proud of yourself - you look at us and smile so huge! It is really cute and we are really proud of you too! You are even trying to stand without holding onto anything already. You can only do it for a couple of seconds at a time, but you are really determined to figure it out!

With all this crawling and standing you are an absolute tornado in this house! You are into everything and manage to make a mess anywhere within minutes. You love Bella's toys, almost more then your own, and will regularly try to steal them from her, even if she is playing with them already. Its a good thing she is so understanding, and you two regularly play tug of war together! You also love the springy doorstops and tearing up magazines. And I can't forget the dog water. You seem to think that it is your own personal splash pool! Thank goodness we have the "baby jail" up in the dining room to keep you in when I can't have both my eyes on you!

You are eating just about everything right now, although you still won't put food in your mouth yourself. You love finger foods though, you just want us to put them in your mouth for you. I give you finger foods everyday so you can practice, but you just throw it all on the floor immediately. Perhaps you and Bella are in colusion here?

You are so much fun, and becoming such a big boy! We love you and love watching you grow everyday!

ETA: There was so much that happened this month, that there are a few things I forgot to mention so I thought I should add them here. You eat anything and everything it seems like, with table foods easily being your favorite over purees (even though you won't put finger foods into your mouth by yourself yet.) You understand no and will stop doing something if I tell you now. You do, however, go right back to it usually if you think I'm not looking and I haven't been able to distract you with something else. Also, you have been taking both naps in your crib this month as well, when in the past you would only nap on the couch with me!