Visit to St. Louis and Germantown

Jay, Jack, and I spent the weekend in St. Louis to visit Grandma and Grandpa Heidemann last weekend. Jack and I also had the opportunity to expereince Germantown for very first time....what a place! We were in awe of Grandma Wuebbels HUGE garden! It was so big! Jack also got to see a goat in a neighbor's yard! For lunch, Jack ate some pizza and then some homemade carrot cake for the very first time (after his fruits and veggies, of course!)! Predictably, he loved the taste of his new foods! I mean afterall, who does not like pizza!!?!?!

As always, Jack had a great time with grandparents. He even had the opportunity to experience Grandpa Heidemann's infamous cheesy bread for the very first time as well! Like everyone who has ever tried it, Jack too thought it was like a little piece of heaven! He was into absolutely everything at Grandma and Grandpa's house...climbing everywhere, and walking from one piece of furniture to the next. Pretty soon, he will walking on his own....lookout world!

We are looking forward to seeing Grandma and Grandpa Heidemann again in 2 short weeks for Jack's big 1st Birthday bash!

Great pic- 4 generations!


Daddy and his Little Man....


Grandma and Jack walking near Grandma Wuebbels BIG garden.....



Grandpa Heidemann with his youngest grandson....


Grandma Wuebbels with her youngest GREAT grandson.....


The Little Man climbing and getting into everything and Grandma and Grandpa's house...

Jack's First Baseball Game!

Last night, on Aug. 17th, we brought Jack to his very first baseball game! Aunt Julie is a member a childhood brain research foundation and the whole family attended the game to support this very important cause. What better way is there is spend a summer night than with baseball, ice cream, hot dogs...and best of all, FAMILY! We certainly did not let the rain get in our way!

Jack had a lot of fun as he cheered on 1 of his 2 teams on that he roots for! Jay was a little upset that Jack's first game was a White Sox game rather than a Cardinal game, but we know there are many Cardinal games in the Little Man's future! Of course, Grandpa Harris had us make a stop at Grandstand on the way to Comisky. Grandstand is a White Sox apparel store located right near the park. As always, Jack was very spoiled by his grandparents! Grandpa Harris bought him a brand new White Sox jersey with matching mesh shorts...and of course, a matching White Sox hat! He looked very cute all decked out in his new Sox gear!

I was a little concerned about his behavior because going to the game meant staying up WAY PAST his bedtime! But, we rolled the dice....and I am happy to report that he was a real trooper.

Here are some pics of our Little Man at his very FIRST baseball game!

HA! I just love those shoes! Look at those legs!


Granny and Jack....

Grandpa and Jack.....
Aunt Katie feeding Jack LOTS of ice cream that he just LOVED!



Aunt Julie and Jack......

Mommy and Jack.....



Jack thinking it is HILARIOUS when we were taking pictures of ourselves....


Great shot of all 4 of the Little Man's top teeth that are coming in!


Jack still loving the camera of our self photos...HA!

Faces Only a Mother could LOVE!

Jack is a great little eater...he seriously loves almost everything with the exception of peas. The faces he often makes while he eats just crack me up! Anytime he tries anything that he has not had before, he shoots me a look like "Mom, are you SURE you want me to eat this!?!" As I said, it really cracks me up! I sometimes forget that everything is so new to him so his funny faces are just par for the course. Jack would probably be absolutely fine dining on nothing but Cheerios and yogurt virtully every day and every night, but we try to expose him to as many new tastes as possible. It is been oh so fun!

Below are some pics that represent a typical lunch hour at the Heidemann household these days! Some are truly faces that only a mother (and father and probably grandparents too!) can LOVE!

My Little Pastina Face......


Beets, beets EVERYWHERE.....beets, beets even in his hair!!!

11 Months Old Today!!!

The invitations are out....the party gear is purchased.....the menu and theme has been decided....the favors have been ordered.....the birthday party outfit is picked out......I must admit that we are well underway in the countdown to the Little Man's first birthday party scheduled for Sept. 5th! I cannot BELIEVE I am planning his first birthday party already!!! Didn't I bring him home from the hospital yesterday!!!?!? It certainly feels like it. But the reality is that my Little Man is not SO little more. He is getting so big and into absolutely everything. This morning, I was again reminded of much he has grown....he unraveled almost an entire roll of toilet paper, dirtied Mommy and Daddy's sheets, and had his hands in Ralphie's food and water....and this all happened before 8:30AM! Welcome to life with an 11 month old, I suppose! We are enjoying every minute of it!

Anyhow, we have a full month before Jack turns the big O-N-E! As always, we are going to try and live each and every day to its fullest! We have been blessed with a BEAUTIFUL summer filled with nearly perfect days (lots of which we have spent at Lawn Aqua or the park...or BOTH!). Most of all, we have been blessed with each other.

Happy 11 month birthday to my sweet baby boy!





HA....I love this face! "It is not easy being green," or easy being Jack either right now, I suppose!





Here are some pics of Jack and his best friend, I mean Daddy....

Our day at Deer Forest in Paw Paw, MI

One day during our vacation in Michigan, Grandpa Harris, Aunt Julie and I took Jack to the Deer Forest. Jay had not arrived in Michigan yet and since he is not a huge fan of animals or zoos, I thought it would be something fun to do with Jack before Daddy arrived.

Deer Forest is basically a very small scale zoo that was built perhaps in the 1940's I am guessing?? And I swear, not much has changed since then. What I found to be very nice about Deer Forest is that everything is so much closer than you would find at the typical zoo. So, Jack was actually able to see and feed the animals. He had a blast....except for when the baby cow mooed in his face. Although the moo came from just a calf, it was very loud and extremely scary for a 10 and half month old. My poor baby! He quickly forgot about it though and absolutely loved riding the pony immediately after the scary cow moos!

As I do so often lately, I thought to myself just how old Jack is getting and how quickly time flies. I mean, look at him...he is riding a pony! A year ago, I was still waiting for him to be born! What an amazing year....looking forward to so many more! Words cannot explain how much I love my sweet baby boy!




Jack absolutely LOVING the park area of Deer Forest with Grandpa....






Jack and Mommy feeding the deer....



Aunt Julie feeding the llamas....she was so proud of herself! It was quite the scene!



Jack's first pony ride! My very BIG Little Man.....