Sweet Pea Palmer

Pumpkin Patch

2009-11-17T14:50:00.000-08:00

Just before Halloween we took Drew to the pumpkin patch. He loves pumpkins and loved the grocery store during October, we had to pat the pumpkins every time we walked by. We had a great day seeing all of the pumpkins, walking through a corn maze, and petting the animals at the petting zoo. He is saying a few words these days, the favorite being, "dog" he affectionately pointed at everything from the ostrich to the donkey and said "Dog!" Here are a few pictures from our trip:

One Year Old Stats!

2009-09-19T05:51:00.000-07:00

Here's how Drew checked out at his one year old appointment.

Height: 32 inches 97th percentile
Weight: 23 lbs. 50-75 percentile (we think their scale is off, he feels way heavier than 23 lbs)
Head: His head is continuing to grow at an alarming rate, which is fine, but it is huge and is becoming the reason we are outgrowing shirts, it no longer fits through most 18month -24 month clothes, 2T here we come!

The Happiest One Year Old!

2009-09-15T22:05:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that two weeks ago Drew turned one years old! This year has gone faster than we could ever imagined, we have had so much fun watching him grow. In celebration of his big birthday, we thought it would only be appropriate to spend it, in Disneyland. So hear are some of the highlights of our trip!

Drew was definitely over stimulated from the moment we walked in the park until we came home 5 days later! And although I would like to think he thoroughly enjoyed himself at Disneyland, I think having dad all day long, for 5 days may have been the highlight for Drew. As you will see by the pictures, Mommy was chopped liver, while at the happiest place on earth!

Our first day at Disneyland and Drew's Birthday! He received a "Happy Birthday" pin, that we pinned to his stroller and everywhere we went Disney staff wished him a Happy Birthday. We think it was all of this attention that helped him master the art of waving and blowing kisses.

It's a small world was Drew's favorite ride. We rode it several times and he would either get so relaxed that he would fall asleep or he would dance to the music!

Too tired to eat!

His first pair of ears!

It was so much fun, we can't wait to go back!

MMMMM...cake!

2009-08-30T21:23:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Drew's 1st birthday, a few days early. We had such a good time with our family and friends. Here is what he thought of the cake...more pictures to come!

Sweet Pea Turns 11 Months

2009-08-05T21:34:00.000-07:00

Our little boy turned 11 months old yesterday. It was funny, that as Nik and I got things together for pre-school, we reminisced about how she was full-fledged prego at this time last year. Drew has officially outgrown any clothing in the "12 Month" range, and the "18 Month" range is getting a bit tight. He started using sign language...sometimes... every once in a while. We taught him the sign for 'please', and when I came home last night, he reached up for me and then motioned 'please' for me to pick him up. I was blown away! I have a hard time believing that 11 months ago, this beautiful baby boy was so frail and needy. Now he is almost walking by himself and feeding his face. Side note: He double-fists the chicken into his mouth... officially making him a 'Meatatarian.' I am so proud!

2009-07-07T20:11:00.000-07:00

Nikki was fortunate to capture his first major crawling on video. Since Friday (the day before he turned 10 months), he has become extremely mobile. He has begun going from a lying down position, to a sitting position, to standing-up, and of course (drum-roll please) crawling. It's time to get baby gates! I'm afraid that I'm going to come home from work one day and he'll be running circles around my feet... I'm sure that day is coming soon enough!

Like a Fish...

2009-07-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

Over the past couple of weeks Drew and I have been attending a "Mommy & Me " swim class. It has been a blast to watch him in the water. I hope that I am training up a little fish because if I could, I would waste my summer days in the pool! So in hopes of some day having a pool buddy, we began swim classes on June 11th. The idea for this first session is to teach them how to float and when under water how to roll and float on the surface. He is getting the hang of the floating, but the underwater part seems to be a bit traumatic. Here are some pictures from the first class where he was apparently in so much shock he didn't know he should cry...at least not right away! He has cried the entire time, the past two classes! We go tomorrow for class number 4, hopefully with less tears!

9 Month Check -Up

2009-06-11T20:12:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday we took Drew to his nine month check up, where we confirmed that he is indeed growing like a weed. Here are his stats:

Height- 30 inches-95th percentile
Weight - 22 lbs - 75th percentile
Head 18 in- 9oth percentile

Getting Big!

2009-06-01T21:23:00.000-07:00

Well it would be an understatement to say we are a little behind in keeping up with Drew's blog. Since he is 9 months old today I thought I would share what he has been up to for the last month.

His biggest accomplishment is that he is finally eating things other than cereal and enjoying getting it everywhere!

Sweet potato mmmmmmmm!

Yeah Cheerios!

He is also on the move quite a bit, although he still isn't crawling. He seems to think that there is nothing worth crawling for that he can't reach by rolling. I think if he has it his way he'll skip the crawling and head straight to walking!

How do you make a kleenex dance?

2009-04-27T17:04:00.000-07:00

Answer: put a little boogie in it.

Here's how Drew boogies.

The Monkey That Escaped at the Zoo

2009-04-02T21:25:00.000-07:00

Drewbie had his first zoo experience on Tuesday, when Nikki, Heidi, and Greatleaps Preschool went to the Wildlife World Zoo. Over thirty people were there, between the parents and kiddos, and I gained a new respect for what teachers of a preschool encounter. I was able to hang out for a few hours and see Drew's reactions to all the crazy animals. He enjoyed the spider monkeys, and anything that was brightly colored. Although, I didn't get to see it, Nik told me that Drew loved the giraffes. When we play with Drew, we'll stick our tongue out at him, and I think he thought that the giraffes were playing with him, when they stuck their long tongues out to gather food to eat. Anyway, we had a ball! (PS-Mom, did you notice what exhibit we are standing near in the picture above?)

My First Road Trip!

2009-03-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we took Drew on his first road trip to San Diego. We met the rest of the Palmer family there for a long weekend. We had a blast enjoying the weather and experiencing a bunch of "firsts" with the Drewbie. Here are just a few pictures of our adventures!

We took Drew on his first Carousel ride!

We went to the beach!

I think we wore the kid out!

6 Month Reflections

2009-03-05T19:48:00.000-08:00

Drew turned six months yesterday, and I have a hard time believing that half a year has past since he came into the world. Over the past couple weeks we've watched him rollover, sit-up (somewhat assisted), eat oatmeal, and stand (with assistance). I was looking back on some older pictures, and thought I'd post a few. Here are his stats from today:

Weight: 18lbs 14oz (75%)
Length: 28 3/4" (97%)
Head: 17 1/2" (50-75%)

This was taken by one of our nurses, right after Drew-bie came into the world. It will always be one of my favorite pictures.

This was day 5 and 6 of his life. Seeing this picture still humbles me and reminds me to thank God that He is always in control, no matter what the situation.

This is one of the fantastic pictures taken by our friend Beth at Dolce Studio. She did an amazing job capturing our little boy on film (.... I mean digital)!

He was the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Here's my boy a few weeks ago... this picture always melts Daddy's heart. (Unfortunately, no matter what I do, I can't get the picture to rotate. So just cock your head to the right).

The Marvelous Toy

2009-02-17T19:36:00.000-08:00

The song 'The Marvelous Toy' was always a favorite folk Christmas song. Every year at Christmas we attend the Gaslight Theater in Tucson, to enjoy a Christmas-themed play put on by professional actors, in a modest-sized theater. This happy thought crosses my mind when I see the toy that Great Aunt Pam got for Drew when he was born. This toy reminds me of the song, due to the many features and noises that come from it, and like the song " I never knew just what it was, and I guess I never will." I'd say the best description of this toy is that it looks like the Swiss Army knife of toys. Drewbie will never get bored, and as you can tell he loves it!

FREAKOUT!!!

2009-02-10T15:33:00.000-08:00

I laugh every time I see this picture of Drew!

The "Drewler"

2009-01-26T21:31:00.000-08:00

2009 TO DO LIST

2009-01-11T20:28:00.000-08:00

To Accomplish This Year:
1. Rollover
2. Crawl
3. Eat Solid Foods
4. Walk
5. Continue to Eat, sleep, and poop

A Peanuts Christmas

2008-12-26T22:12:00.000-08:00

We have had so much fun watching Drew be at awe of Christmas lights and dressing him up in various Christmas garb. At our Christmas Eve service at church, about ten children from the church, got up and sang the song from a Charlie Brown Christmas. Besides being adorable, I couldn't help but imagine having Drew up there someday, if the opportunity presented itself.

100 Days Old

2008-12-15T21:34:00.000-08:00

He made it to triple digits. On his 100 day birthday we spent the day at Nik's family Christmas party. Drew loved spending time with his family. Here are some pics.

Big Boy

2008-12-10T15:08:00.000-08:00

Drew is growing up so fast! I love watching him develop daily and being able to be a part of it. Nik was showing me this morning how he is soooooo close to rolling over! He's holding his head up really well and as you can see in this picture, he doesn't look nearly as "baby-like" as he did a month ago. He's my little man!

Sweet Potatoe Pie!

2008-12-01T20:05:00.000-08:00

Drew's first Thanksgiving. He turned three months on Thanksgiving day. You'll notice the stylish bib, courtesy of the Campbells, and the cammo pants so that he can hunt turkey.

Grandma & Grandpa's Christmas Card

2008-11-17T08:12:00.001-08:00

My parents were in town this weekend and wanted some pics for a Christmas card with Sweet Pea. Here are a few of the fruits of their labor. Saturday night, we drove him over to say goodnight to Gma and Gpa on the way home from church, and he was all smiles. Then on Sunday morning, he started giving smiles out when he woke up! We've been waiting for this day to come.

All Dressed Up

2008-11-10T21:32:00.000-08:00

2 Month Check-up

2008-11-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

Here are the stats from Drew's two month appointment.

Height : 25 in. 97th percentile
Weight: 12 lbs. 10 oz. 70th percentile
Head: 25th percentile

For Me to Poop On!

2008-11-05T08:08:00.000-08:00

Normally, Jason posts to this blogs, but today I couldn't resist sharing about our most recent bath time experience with the Sweet Pea. Usually, I bathe Drew in his little bathtub on the kitchen counter. We have had many humorous moments of him peeing in the tub the second his feet hit the water, or pooping just as I start to soap him up. In either case it becomes quite humorous to hold him out of the tub while I drain and refill it with clean water and start his bath all over. Last night I had the brilliant idea (or maybe not so brilliant idea in Jason's opinion) to throw Drew in the shower with his dad in order to expedite the nightly bathing ritual. I thought I could soap him up and rinse him off quickly and be done with it. Needless to say- quick was not what happened, I did however, get to enjoy the look on Jason's face when he realized that there was potential for him to be pooped on in the shower. But nothing beat the look he gave me afterward, when he said there was something warm running down his arm and onto his foot. Gross I know... but priceless!

It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown

2008-11-02T21:03:00.001-08:00

It was too warm to keep our Pumpkin in his outfit this year, but he was very amicable to allow us to at least photograph him. Drew and I went trick-or-treating with our friend Aaron and his son Xavier (who was dressed as Ironman). Drew was asleep the whole time... so the candy was sparse. Luckily, Xavier was willing to share the candy that he didn't want, so our sugar fettish did not go unquenched.

Sweet Pea's Night On the Town

2008-10-26T10:15:00.000-07:00

We took our little Cassanova out for a night on the town last night. One of Nik's friends from high school was getting married in Tucson, and we couldn't resist dressing our little man up for the occasion. He was quite the Lady's-man. He made his rounds with the women at the party all night long, showing no shame in allowing each of them to feed him or run their fingers through his hair and give him kisses. He's gonna be a heartbreaker!

Can you not see the resemblance?

2008-10-19T21:30:00.000-07:00

That's right folks... there is no denying that Drew is Nikki's kiddo. I took this picture and two others while the room was pitch black and neither one stirred. This had been a long night, where Drew's belly didn't feel well, and the only way he was going to sleep was if his Momma snuggled with him.

Our Little Angel

2008-10-12T22:33:00.000-07:00

One Month Old Checkup
Length 23.2" (He's big!)
Weight: 9lbs 8oz.

Here are a few of the fabulous pictures that we had taken at Dolce Studio. We were overwhelmed with how beautiful... I mean handsome, our little boy is. I was equally impressed with how amazing all the pictures turned-out. He's such a cutie pie!

Our Little Family

2008-10-01T22:14:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we took some impromptu family pics for a baby announcement in a professional organization that I'm part of. Here is one of the fruits of our labor. Drew likes to nap through photo shoots, but that's not unusual because he likes napping through most things that we do.

Awww Moooooom!

2008-09-23T22:00:00.000-07:00

What'll the other kids say when they see me getting smooched?

Drew had his "two week checkup" today, and he's getting to be a big boy (tear). He is 21" long and 8 lbs 3 oz. He likes to play a game with Mommy and Daddy... He likes to see how little sleep we can survive on, or as we call "Hide and Sleep." This is when we hide underneath the covers to go to sleep, and he counts to 10 (or thereabouts) and then starts crying. He must think its hilarious deep inside, because he keeps doing it! We love him anyway

I Get to Cut the Cord... Again

2008-09-16T20:56:00.000-07:00

Work has been crazy lately, and I haven't been getting home until about 6:00, which is usually just in-time to catch the messiest diaper of the day (I don't think I'll ever be able to eat curry again). Today I got an added surprise to the blowout (that's what we call an explosion in the diaper), Drew's umbilical cord was holding on by a thread. Being Dad, I figured it would be better to cut the "thread" than to have it get ripped-off during a diaper change, so I took the opportunity to once again cut the cord. It was bittersweet, especially because although I can't wait for him to grow up, I don't want him to grow up... at least not too quickly. Here's a post cord shot, isn't he cute!

The Life Cycle of a 10 Day Old

2008-09-14T20:07:00.000-07:00

Sleep... Eat ... Poop...Pee on Dad... Back to Sleep.

Even though this seems monotonous, Nik and I fall more in love with the little Dude everyday. We are so glad his jaundice is better and can get on with life. Here's what our big 10 day old looks like!

Baby Drew is Here

2008-09-04T18:00:00.000-07:00

Here is the reason for this blog... our precious little Sweet Pea.
Born 9/04/08 at 5:50am. 7 lbs 8oz and 20.5" long.