Hair, Hair Everywhere

Do you believe in superstitions? I'm not one to buy into to old wives' tales, but in the country (especially in the south) a lot of folks do. One commonly held tradition around here is waiting until after the baby's first birthday for a haircut. So, when I mentioned the idea of cutting Caleb's hair to my Granny, she made sure I was aware of the bad luck that might follow. :)

Despite these warnings, I decided Caleb's hair was growing a little out of hand and needed cut. I began to notice this overgrowth when my dad started calling Caleb a hippie. Aunt Courtney also commented about how scraggly his hair looked in one of his Christmas pictures. While I still thought he was adorable, I agreed that a trim might do some good since his hair was growing down over his ears and several long strands were creeping down his forehead. Yes, I know a lot of teenagers are growing their hair out like this, but I'm not sure it's quite the look we're going for. I just couldn't wait two months to have my sweet boy's hair trimmed and looking neat again.

I had mixed feelings before making the appointment though for a few reasons:

Number 1: Caleb LOVES my hair and constantly wants to touch it, play with it, and tug on it. He just recently began to realize that he has his own hair and has started to self-soothe himself on occasion by rubbing the top of his own head rather than needing me. I hoped that when it was shorter he would still be able to play with it.

Number 2: Look at these adorable pictures of Dave with his little curly-Qs:

Caleb's hair is starting to curl up like his daddy's, so I didn't want to mess up these sweet ringlets. However, unlike Dave's hair, Caleb's seemed to only stay in pretty curls while it was wet. After drying, it either got super messy if it wasn't brushed or it went flat and hung over his ears again or parted in the front. It definitely needed trimming.

Number 3: My son is a wiggly boy. His busy personality in combination with someone trying to use scissors near his head didn't sound like the best situation. I wasn't sure he could even sit still long enough for the hairdresser to actually give him a good cut.

Despite my concerns, we went last Friday to visit Image Makers, my cousin's wife's salon. Here are pictures from our visit:

This is the before shot; you can see the hair growing
over his ears.

Caleb sat on my lap so I could hold on to my wiggly boy.

Clip, clip, clip

Cindy was great at distracting Caleb and trimming
"a moving target."

Cindy posing with Caleb after the haircut

Much better!

Lookin' sharp, Caleb!

A sunny day in February

Today we decided to take advantage of the 78 degree weather and took Caleb to the park. This was our first trip to play at the playground and Caleb was running to get there!

Usually we let Caleb run around in sock-feet, but today shoes
were necessary. His cousin Bailey had given us several pairs of hand-me
downs, and Caleb got to try out this set. He stomped his feet
and watched them.

The fun began with the swings.

Look at the toothy smile.

Then, Caleb decided to do some more running.

...and more and more.
Unfortunately, his shoes kept coming loose,
but that didn't slow him down much.

We took some time to try out the slides as well.

...and climb the ladder.

I expected a big reaction, but Caleb didn't seem sure
what he thought of the slides.

We tried this one as a family.
(Thanks, Mom, for being our photographer. :))

Caleb's favorite piece of playground equipment was
definitely the car. Daddy was in charge of jiggling it around.

He immediately started steering like he knew just how to use it
and pushed in the center of the wheel like he expected a horn to be there.
No lie - he even made car-like sounds with his mouth.

One of the best parts of the visiting the playground though
was that he would watch the other kids. At first, he was
interested by some kids flying a kite. However, the baby in
the swing in this picture interested him the most.

There are three other playgrounds I'd like to try out with Caleb this spring and summer, but I started with this one because it's the one I went to most as a kid. I remember my dad taking me there to play. Aside from the swings and the large piece of pipe Caleb and Dave are walking through in the picture above, the equipment has been updated and more of the grassy area is now a parking lot, but it's still a very nice place to spend the day. I can't wait for more warm weather so we can go back!

A running start

Over the past several weeks, Caleb took advantage of any furniture or grown-ups he could find to hold on to as he maneuvered himself around. Two days ago, Dave and I started trying to get him to walk back and forth between us, but the only way it would work is if we gave him a running start.

Yesterday, my mom worked with him, teaching him to first get his balance and then try a few steps. It worked! He doesn't always want to walk though; he wants to run! He also learned yesterday that he can use the train my Granny bought him to help support him as he walks across the room -- unlike the furniture that limits him to a certain area. Here are a few clips I put together of this learning process:

After Dave came home last night, Caleb decided to show off some more. I counted nine steps in a row at one point. (Please excuse how ridiculously excited I am in this video.)

Red Balloon

I went to Stanley Flower Shoppe last week to pick up some things my cousin Angie (the owner) ordered for me. While we were visiting, Caleb lucked out and received a beautiful red balloon. To put it mildly, it was love at first sight. He giggled and then clutched the string for probably about an hour straight. Angie and the others at the shop were surprised that he held it so long without letting it float off; she even thought I may have tied it to him but I hadn't. At one point, I looked over and he was holding it just by the very very tip of the string. It's hard to explain on here just how sweet the scene was.

I forgot my camera but tried to take a few photos with my phone:


When we got home later that evening, we took some better pictures of Caleb showing Daddy his balloon. You can still see the excitement! He even tried to crawl around a little bit with it and managed not to let go.

Afterward, we had to hide the balloon in our bedroom so it wasn't distraction while Dave was trying to put Caleb to bed. The next morning, the little red balloon was laying on floor and had lost its glory.

This mama is thinking lots of red balloons for his birthday party in two months......

Enjoying the view

Playing in the snow is fun but staying toasty inside and enjoying the view is more "my cup of tea." This is the first year we've been able to enjoy the scenery at our new house, which has made looking out the windows on snowy days even more special. Dave even commented that he felt like he was at a ski resort when he glanced outside. Here are a few pictures that show some of the views from inside our house:

From the window in our nook

From one of my bedroom windows

From the Master Bath

Caleb liked looking out the windows too:

"Can we please go outside, Mom?

"Those snowflakes look yummy!"

Snow baby

Thankfully, last week we were lucky to get just enough snow to finally take Caleb out to play in it for the first time.

GEARING UP

Here is Caleb sporting the $4 snowsuit I found at Goodwill.

While putting on the snowsuit wasn't super exciting, the snow boots were a huge hit. We actually used a pair of muck boots my mom found at a consignment shop before he was born. They were really way too big for him in the foot part, but his foot is so fat that we probably couldn't have gotten them on otherwise.

Pulling the shoes off and playing with them made for a good time while Mommy and Daddy were getting ready.

Daddy is putting the boots back on again. Caleb thought this was so funny and just kept giggling.

"Okay, Daddy. I'm ready."

For those interested in the video version, here are a couple short clips:

OUT IN THE SNOW

Daddy gave Caleb a lesson in making snowballs.

He didn't let Caleb tippy toe around it either. Right in the snow they both went!

I love watching my boys play!

Our poor boy was so bundled up he could barely move.

We only stayed out for about four minutes but we made memories and that's what counts! Here is the video of our short adventure: