Poor Baby Max

Max is taking a much needed nap, so I thought I'd update. We've been at Children's Hospital since Monday. Apparently Max caught the normal cold virus but rather than giving him a normal cold he got a really bad respiratory infection. He was admitted and we stayed at Children's until this afternoon. I can't believe what a good little boy he was the WHOLE time. He was SO sweet. Needless to say, we are TIRED!! He's doing SO much better and we go to the dr. tomorrow for a check up. Thank you to EVERYONE!!! We are so blessed to have such great friends and family! Here's a picture of our sick little guy (please ignore his mother - remember, I was at the hospital with my sick child.)

On a happy note, Max turned 11 months old yesterday!! All in all it has been a FABULOUS 11 months. Monday was the first time he'd been sick - so I can't really complain. We are so excited about his 1st birthday. I'm almost finished with his invitations and they'll go out soon. We aren't really going all out but are planning just a nice day with family and close friends. (We are also going to have a night out at Cajun's the night of his party with grown-ups - my dad's band will be there! FUNTIMES!!)

Max spends his days crawling EVERYwhere and in the hospital he would get on his knees and try to pull up on the crib bar - this is something new. Also, last weekend we went to Memphis for AC/DC and, for the first time EVER, he slept through the night away from home. He has completely weaned himself from his mommy at his own prompting - no nursing in about 2 weeks. It's a little sad, but I'm so happy he did it on his own rather than me having to battle him later. He's just too independent these days.

He wears 18 month clothes. He's about 25 lbs and 33 inches. He loves to eat but these days he really won't take things fed to him - he really only wants to feed himself. Eating baby food has almost become a battle because he turns his head from the spoon. So, he's getting lots of big boy foods.

Well, I'm so exhausted and am going to sneak in a nap while he's napping. Happy Wednesday.
Love, Us

A Picture is Worth 1000 Words

Mmmmmmmm - Blueberries (and pasta pick ups!)

Maxnificent Max

So, this was opening weekend of the horse races. Unfortunately, Kelly and I didn't make it. I've had a lot of work lately and working from home (with busy little Max) usually translates into a lot of weekend work with Daddy Daycare, but we sure hope Pop and Sugah won big!! Max is just getting so big and continues to amaze us every day. He has really gotten the hang of crawling. He crawls everywhere and gets faster every day. (It's still an army crawl of sorts.) We have him blocked out of the other rooms pretty good, but as soon as he sees an opening into another room he is right there in a flash!

It seems like he is eating all the time. He LOVES eating solids and has started to wean himself (I definitely think we're on target to be finished at the year mark). He seems to prefer bottles these days because they allow him to move around while drinking. He'll lay in his bed (at nap time) with a bottle and play for about an hour and then go to sleep. This week we started putting his milk in a cup so he'll be ready for a cup once he's on regular milk. He doesn't even seem to notice.
I can't believe Max is so close to being a year old. It just doesn't seem as though that much time has past. I've started working on his invitations for his first birthday party - I may have mentioned it, but I'm making them. I think they are so cute! I'll share later. I figure if I don't start now then I won't have them ready in time to mail!

This weekend is the march for life. I think this year, more than years past, has more meaning now that I have Max in my life. I've always had such a respect for life but being a mom just gives a completely new perspective on the miracle that's life. It's so amazing. I am (Kelly too) so blessed. I just thank God daily for my sweet baby boy. We plan to attend mass with the group from St. Micheal's including Mary Jo and Susie.

Well, here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks. I hope you enjoy them (we sure enjoyed taking them!)

Here's Max trying to feed himself
Doesn't he look like a little boy in this picture??

He's got his spoon and is ready to go.
(Check out the WILD hair!! It reminds me of Ace Ventura)

He's trying to get mommy!

I sure love this face (even the hair!)I must say that his hair has been really wild lately. It is acting as though it is going to curl. His daddy had really curly hair as does his cousin Ben. So, we may have a curly headed little boy!! It's getting pretty blond too.

What a sleep position, huh?

Here's our little stinker, playing with his diaper bag!

We hope you all have an amazing week!

TEN MONTHS OLD!!

And what a happy ten months it has been!! Well, nothing much has changed since my last post just a few days ago. I guess we can say Max is crawling? It isn't a traditional type crawl but he does go forward. It is kinda like an army crawl and as I said before sometimes resembles a frog. Here's a video of just a short trip to a toy. (As you can tell from the pictures and video - we like playing in our pjs!)

Here are a few more pictures. Enjoy!!

He might be a duck hunter!Just a cutie!

I don't know if I mentioned it but Max DEFINITELY understands the word no, and he REALLY doesn't like hearing it. Here is a no incident with some "bacon."

Uh, O - he's gotten into Rocky's treats!
And he goes for a taste - so naturally at this point I say, No Max!
And this is what happens...
I have NO idea how I can POSSIBLY say no to this face! Look at those tears welling up! Poor guy - Mom is no fun.

SOOO SAD!!!!

Have a great week! Hugs and love

Where to begin??

So, we've had SO much happen! I'm so behind on blogging because we've been SO busy and things have been very hectic!! Since I last blogged, Kelly and I celebrated our wedding anniversary (Dec. 10)! Happy Anniversary to us!

We've also had some tragic events. First, our family (Lindsay and Michael) lost a daddy. It was so sad and very unexpected - words really aren't enough. We ask everyone to remember the Pirani's in your prayers.

The day before that tragedy Rocky was hit by a car and ran away. It was TERRIBLE!! It was the night it iced in Little Rock. We had EVERYONE searching for him in the ice and sleet, but we couldn't find him. (I'll never be able to thank all our searchers!) I was just devastated - I mean HEART BROKEN!! Before Max, Rocky was our child. He's been our sweet puppy for more than 4 years. The next day, we continued to search and put up signs. Kelly was up at daybreak searching for him before heading to work. I was so sad that my puppy (who is an inside dog) spent the night in the freezing cold - hurt. At about 1:30 in the afternoon, we found him! As I write, I still can't believe we found him alive. He was hurt and had to have surgery on both of his back legs. He's healing great. One leg is in a cast and we go back once a week for it to be changed. He should be out of the cast after 8 weeks - ugh, but it could be SO much worse.

Sweet Little Rocky Before the Accident.

During all of the drama, Max continued to reach milestones. Poor little baby. I swear he saves these milestones sometimes to use to make his momma happy! I would be on the phone or doing something related to Rocky and look over to find Max sitting up - which meant he pushed himself from a laying position into a sitting position. It wasn't until we found Rocky that I actually saw him put himself into a seated position. It's SO funny and I hope to get a video soon. When laying on his tummy, he puts his legs into the splits (I tell you what - Max is VERY VERY flexible. I've never seen anything like it!) Then he uses his hands and "walks" himself upright into a sitting position. Amazing!! In addition to rising to a sit, Max LOVES playing patty cake. His Sugah taught him that game! He will just start clapping his hands and breaks into a HUGE grin when you start singing patty cake. It's ADORABLE!! We still aren't crawling (in the traditional sense), but he tries. He slinks around the house. He pushes up on his knees and then pushes forward on his hands. It's almost like watching a frog swim. I'll try to catch him in the act. He rolls EVERYWHERE. So, even though he isn't really crawling, he is getting where he needs to go! (I have to vacuum ALL the time now-not fun!)

Woo Pig Sooiiee

We also went to the dr. for his 9 month appointment. He's definitely slowed down a bit. He weighs 23 lbs, which is in the 80% and measures 32 inches, which is the 98%. His head is in the 98% range too. We are eating ALL the time. We're even eating some table foods off of mom's plate. He really likes rice (Riceland Rice of course). His aunt Shannon's hashbrown casserole is a favorite too. Crackers, rolls and bread are definitely becoming a staple when we're out to dinner or at the dinner table.

My Little 9 Month old!

Of course, we had our first Christmas!! It was wonderful being in PB with all the family. Max went out to dinner with his best friend Harper to celebrate their first NYE. It was LOTS of fun!!

First Visit with Santa!

Opening Presents with my dadChristmas in PB
Sugah and two of her babies - watching the boys and eating cheerios. What a life!
Max and Harper's NYE's Party

We hope you all had a Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!!

9 months Old!

Max turned 9 months old on Wednesday. I really just can't believe it. He is just so stinkin' cute!! His little smile really melts my heart and I love when he "talks" to me and hugs me. He usually has A LOT to say - he must get that from his mom. He has started a new thing where if I try to hand him to someone he grabs a hold of me with both hands and won't let go. He started it at Thanksgiving. I think he may have gotten overwhelmed with all the people. He cries sometimes when I leave the room. It's so sad. We go to the dr. on the 19th so I'll be able to update more then. We are still sleeping through the night (when we are at home). We've just started eating a real lunch on a regular basis. He snacks a lot throughout the day. We still take our 10:30 and 2:30 naps and sometimes we take another one around 5:00 or so. Max still isn't crawling but he has started making some strides towards being a crawler. He still rolls ALL OVER the place. Now when he is on the hardwoods, he uses his hands to slide his body forward and backward (usually backwards). It's really funny to watch. He occasionally attempts to army crawl and tries to get on his knees. He really tries to crawl when he is in the bath tub. It is the most he has ever tried to crawl or get on his knees. We've decided it is due to the weightlessness of the water. It is GREAT and EXTREMELY cute! Now he'll even put weight on his legs and stand with assistance. He's just getting to be such a big boy. We can't wait for his First Christmas! Here are a couple of pictures. Enjoy and have a maxalicious week!!

Trying to crawl

Best Friends!

7!

That's right our 7th tooth poked through. I would have included this in yesterdays blog but the left lateral incisor didn't make it's appearance until today- he was working hard last night. I guess I just needed a reason to blog and post more pictures. And silly me, I thought we were taking a break from teething - I guess he's getting use to these teeth popping up all over the place!! Also, we are getting SO much better with using a sippy cup. I felt a little hopeless for the little guy but I'm hopeful now. He almost looks like a pro. Thanks Christina for the Nuby! Enjoy these pictures of Max riding the horsey at Joe and Gayle's. TOO cute - maybe this means he'll love horseracing as much as his big pop?

Is that Kelly's face or what?

Ride little horsey!!Sweet Baby Boy!!