Michael's sort-of first sort-of steps

Michael attempted to take his first step yesterday when Grammy and I were watching him, but he fell down. Today he has managed successful baby steps without falling, and even managed two steps once! This video shows some of his less successful attempts. The first half is showing off his baby walker driving skillz. A future NASCAR star, he can only make right turns (or perhaps fashion model, for you Zoolander fans).

If they wanted me to sleep on the trampoline, then they shouldn't have made it so bouncy

Finally! Michael standing

I finally captured Michael standing yesterday! He was standing for awhile and so I grabbed my videocamera and started recording.

Michael videos

I haven't been able to get a video of Michael trying to stand up, because whenever I turn on the camera, he does this....



I did manage to get a video of him walking along the walker that was passed down to him from his cousins. It drags on a little towards the end, but try to stick it out for the exciting conclusion!

Standing?

Since yesterday, Michael has been practicing standing by himself, by going from a sitting to a squatting to a standing position.  He looks immensely proud of himself each time he pulls it off, even though it's never longer than a few wobbly seconds!  He keeps a wide stance and usually has his arms out for balance, so his inner engineer knows about stability, which is neat.

I am surprised that Michael is not practicing standing by pulling himself up on objects and letting go.  He did that a bit on Wednesday, and then yesterday learned he could stand up by himself and hasn't gone back to the old method, which I would have thought would be easier.

I tried to get a video of him standing, but he immediately ceased all non-videocamera-focused activity and switched gears into getting his hands on the camera.

Michael is up to 10 teeth, including two molars now!

South Carolina pictures

We were in South Carolina in early August to see the Schmid grandparents' new summer home on Lake Keowee.  Our visit overlapped with the Smith family's for a day, and then my family came for several days.  I went out canoeing or kayaking three times, which was probably my favorite thing to do there, probably because it was so new to me!  Michael reveled in the attention of all four grandparents -- it was hard for him to adjust back to just his mommy when we came back to Texas and Ben had to go to work, but probably not half as hard as it was for me.  ;-)

Michael's messes are not bound to our dining room, unfortunately!  Here he is enjoying Weetabix in spaghetti sauce, an unlikely combination but probably not as strange as the celery and cherry jam I just had for breakfast.

We went on a boat ride and the sound of the motor put Michael right to sleep!

Michael with his cousins:  Marian, Brennan, squirmy Evan, and Aidan.  Michael and Evan were really cute the way they played together, and Michael loved Marian -- she was the only one who could make him stop crying at one point (I was away).

The Lerros:  Grampa, Mommy and Michael, Grandma, and Uncle Dominic

The Schmids:  Aunt Becky, Marian, Uncle Thomas and Evan in front of Brennan, Gramps, Aidan, Mommy, Grammy and Michael, and Daddy

Michael with his Godparents:  Aunt Becky and Uncle Thomas

Michael with all four of his grandparents!

9 and 10 months

My little boy is 10 months and three days old!

9-month photo taken in South Carolina in August, with the little version of his sizing bear (Michael did not shrink!)

10-month photo with his regular-sized bear and the owl quilt 'specially made for Michael by Grammy