Hudson's First Vacation!

On Thurs., Jan. 26th I had a fun day at daycare where I pretended to be a race car driver using the car ramp and taking the cars around & around in circles.  Hudson hung out with Mom at home but had a big night as he almost slept 8 hours through the night!  On Friday, Jan. 27th and Sat., the 28th we were busy packing and getting ready for our big trips.  The Plan: to have me stay with Grandma & Grandpa Prestegard's while Dad, Mom & Hudson go to Chicago for a work trip for Dad.

On Sun., Jan. 29th Dad & Mom dropped me off at Grandma & Grandpa's mid-morning for my first independent overnight stay at their house.  I was pretty excited, especially because they had lots of equipment in the yard to inspect!  After lots of hugs & kisses Dad, Mom & Hudson left to drive to Chicago.  They decided to drive out on Sunday so they could stay with Uncle Adam & Aunt Audra before Dad's work stuff got underway.  Uncle Adam & Aunt Audra just bought a new home and according to Mom it's amazing!  It's a beautiful 96 year old home with original wood work and is just gorgeous. The drive out went really well and Hudson even had a first; first time using a changing station in a public rest room!  After a fun dinner at Uncle Adam's & Aunt Audra's they all hung out and caught up.  Here's Uncle Adam and Hudson watching TV together!

On Mon., Jan. 30th Dad, Mom, Hudson & Aunt Audra traveled north to the city. After checking into the downtown Hilton Dad headed off for his first seminar/workshop and Aunt Audra, Mom & Hudson went for a walk & lunch at Lou Malnati's. They spent the day together shopping/making purses, getting special gluten free cupcakes at Swirlz and having fun with Hudson. Here's Hudson flirting with Aunt Audra:

All smiles!

After a fun day Dad, Mom & Hudson had a work dinner at a fun Brazilian Steakhouse called ZED451 where they served huge spears of meat table side and everything was delicious.  Hudson was an angel and slept right through everything.  On Tues., Jan. 31st while Dad was at morning meetings Hudson had his first taxi ride with Mom for some shopping.  The day turned out to be beautiful so Mom took the stroller and enjoyed long walks with Hudson too.  After meeting Dad for lunch Mom took Hudson to the Shedd Aquarium.  Here's Hudson at the Shedd with the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan behind him:

For the first part of the experience Hudson slept right through it however Mom enjoyed all the sea life.

Hudson had a fun eating experience as he got to have his afternoon bottle looking into the tank of the dolphins and beluga whales.  The whales kept coming right up to the glass so after Hudson ate he got to have some play time with the whales.  Here he is looking as a couple swim by.

Here's Mom & Hudson with three of the four whales in the background.

Here's Mom & Hudson with the dophins.

After Hudson's afternoon snack Hudson enjoyed looking around and listening to all the people.

After a fun filled afternoon Mom & Hudson met up with Dad to go to the Sears Tower for a private night time tour and then dinner as a group at the Italian Village (*the oldest Italian eatery in Chicago!). Here's Dad & Hudson at the Sears Tower. They even stood on the clear glass ledge that juts out from the building - no fear!

Stepping out on the ledge:

Today, Wed., Feb. 1st they started the morning by visiting the Chicago Board of Trade and then having a group lunch at the hotel before everyone departed for home. What a fun first trip for Hudson - I wish I could have joined in. I did have an awesome time with Grandma & Grandpa and of course, with all the tractors! At daycare today I even got to play with the bender/builder toys. Before I forget I should note that during the trip Hudson had a few first in addition to his first taxi ride & first changing station. He also had his first night at another home other than ours, first night in a hotel and first museums. He also traveled out of state for the first time and now has been to Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin! The best part of the trip was reuniting tonight and I was sooo excited to see Mom & Dad and had lots of hugs and kisses.  I even gave kisses to Hudson.  Hudson was even excited to see Grandma & Grandpa as he cooed and smiled for them.  Good to be home & together again!

2 Months Old!

Today, Wed., Jan. 25th Hudson is 2 months old!  While I was at daycare Mom took him for his 2 month check-up in which he's already 15 lbs. 7 oz. and just about 24 inches long!  His check-up went well except he did need to get 3 shots; poor guy but Mom said he was really brave.  Here's Hudson at 2 months:

All smiles!

At 2 months some of Hudson's accomplishments are:

• He's now eating 6 to 8 times per day vs. 10 to 12; he's still nursing really good and so far no acid reflux or any troubles.
• He's sleeping through the night for about 6 to 7 hours at a time.
• He's smiling, cooing or saying "Ah-goo" & vowel sounds and really starting to focus on what is in front of him.  He turns to look at noises and/or when he hears a voice he recognizes like Dad's, Mom's or mine.
• Doesn't mind tummy time and can lift head 45 degrees and turn head side to side for a few seconds.  He can also raise his chest with the support of his arms.
• We're working on grasping objects, following objects and giving him sensory items to learn about and touch.

Today at daycare I had a lot of fun with the sensory tub filled with rice and made pretend snow angels on the carpet.  During outside time a few of us surprised our teachers because we even landed in the snow to make the real thing!  Well, I am Mom's little angel!  During January at daycare we have emphasized the colors blue & white, the shape triangle and the nursery rhyme "Jack Be Nimble".  Weekly we've emphasized teddy bears, mittens, snow, opposites and next week dental health.  Today I got to paint the following with one of this month's colors, white.

Happy 2 Months Hudson!

In Need of a Haircut!

On Fri., Jan. 20th Mom thought it would be funny to do my hair and send pictures to Dad to show him I'm in need of a haircut.  Do you like my first and Dad says last pony tail?  Mom even put in barrettes!

On Sat., Jan. 21st Dad came home early so we could get my haircut, church and then dinner.  I'm sorry to say my haircut did not go well at all.  I've typically sat really good for all my past haircuts but wasn't having it this time.  Afterwards Dad said we're going to buy a clippers and try it at home next time.  Hopefully it will go better than this one.  My night did get better as we got to eat at Pizza Hut and I got all the bread sticks I could eat.  I had a great time and was pretty tuckered out by the time we got home.

On Sun., Jan. 22nd I had one-on-one time with Mom!  Her and I ran errands in the morning in Albert Lea while Hudson hung out at home one-on-one with Dad.  Each of us had a great time and I even got to have a lunch date with ice cream with Mom!  What a fun filled weekend!  On Sunday night I had a hard time sleeping and on Monday, Jan. 23rd we found out why...I had ear drainage.  Which with my tubes meant another ear infection.  The doctor said I actually had another double ear infection so I got more drops.  The drops helped right away and especially helped me sleep.  Good thing we stayed home Monday and Tues., Jan. 24th so I could rest up.  On a good note Hudson is starting to communicate more; he now has a little cry to let us know if he's had too much stimulation and/or to let us know he wants to play more/more attention.  Fun to watch him grow and become more interactive.

More Smiles...

This week Hudson is 8 weeks old and smiling & cooing like crazy!  Dad thought it was because he came home from his work trip on Wed., Jan. 18th but who wouldn't smile over that!  Here are some pictures of Hudson showing off his smile and his snowsuit.  Too bad we don't have any snow for him to try out!

Big grin!

Snow here I come...

Hi!

On Wed., Jan. 18th I got to go to daycare while Hudson stayed home with Mom.  At daycare I was a dancing machine and had a blast building & knocking down towers over and over again with my friends.  On Thurs., Jan. 19th I had fun making big clouds (*and a big mess) using shaving cream.  Too bad I couldn't take any home with me!  Today Hudson & I stayed home with Mom and finished one of our secret family projects.  I even got to help Mom wrap them.  Tonight we relaxed at home but tomorrow will be a big day; haircut day!

Hudson's Baptism

On Sunday, January 15, 2011, after 10 a.m. mass at our church, SS Peter & Paul in Blue Earth, MN, we celebrated Hudson's baptism.  He was adorable in an all white satin suit and booties which were the same suit I wore for my baptism.  Here's handsome Hudson: 

The ceremony was lead by Father Leo and was brief.  Hudson's Godparents are Uncle Adam & Aunt Audra and Uncle Byron.  Hudson was amazing during the ceremony and didn't cry or stir once.  Even when Father Leo poured water over his head.  Everyone was also impressed with how well I sat and watched during the ceremony (*thanks to Aunt Ashley watching me!).  This is the initial reading during the ceremony:

Here's Hudson being baptized:

Here's are family afterwards:

Here's Mom's brother & Hudson's Godparent, Uncle Byron with Hudson:

Here's Mom's brother & sister-in-law & Hudson's Godparents, Uncle Adam & Aunt Audra with Hudson:

Here's a celebration picture with everyone afterwards:

After the ceremony and a few pictures everyone went to Double Play for a private lunch.  Here's Hudson's table with a special floral arrangement from Grandpa & Grandma Prestegard, a beautiful cake made by Juba's from Grandma & Grandpa Sergeant and many generous & thoughtful celebration gifts.

Here's Hudson's cake; it was white & chocolate marble with super good whipped icing.  My favorite part besides the ice cream that went with it was the little dove on top of the cake next to his name:

Here's everyone enjoying themselves:

Hudson received many warm wishes and beautiful gifts including an amazing farm animal homemade quilt by Grandma Judy.  Here's a picture of it however hard to show the awesome detail that went into this labor of love.  Thank you Grandma Judy!

Again, I impressed everyone with how patient I was before and during lunch.  I had a blast playing trucks & tractors with Great Grandma Mary and sat very still.

After lunch & cake I got to go to the park with Uncle Adam which was so much fun.  By the time everyone left and we were ready to go home I was ready for a big nap.  I slept for over 3 hours!  After nap I woke up with what Dad said was "wild hair" and to presents!  Unfortunately we weren't able to be with Uncle Adam and Aunt Audra at Christmas so they brought my presents this weekend.  Here's me opening it with Dad and at the exact moment I screamed when I saw it was a Cars 2 Tent!  So cool.

We actually got our entire family in the tent including our dog Kato, although a bit of a tight squeeze.  Would not recommend doing that again!

Peek-a-boo!

We had a fun night playing in the tent and playing with Thomas the Train bath toys that Great Grandma & Grandpa Kress sent for me too.  Sunday night Dad left for a work trip and won't be back until Wednesday so I was bummed about that and will miss him terribly.  Thanks again to everyone who celebrated Hudson's baptism with us both in person and in spirit.  We appreciate all your love & support.

On Monday, Jan. 16th Mom, Hudson & I stayed home all day and recovered.  We continued to work on our secret projects for family which I must say is going very well!  Today, on Tues., Jan. 17th we had fun playing at home in the morning and then met Grandma Judy for lunch after Mom's dentist appointment. (*Oh, she had a clear check-up!)  We had a very fun lunch and then home again for a big nap.   Finished the day playing and even talked to Dad on the phone and said night, night to him.  I can't wait until he's home!

Not Feeling So Well...

On Mon., Jan. 9th I woke up not feeling so hot and had drainage in both my ears.  Even though my ears now have tubes my cold still decided to settle there.  The doctor gave me drops to do 3 times a day so hopefully I'll feel 100% soon.  The medicine did start working right away or at least enough for me to sleep as by Monday afternoon I napped for 4 hours!  The past few days prior I was having trouble sleeping at night and the medicine also helped me get through the entire night Monday night!  I think Dad & Mom were very excited for me as the sleep should help me get better soon.

On Tues., Jan. 10th I started feeling a little better but still pretty mellow and just relaxed at home.  On Wed., Jan. 11th I was pretty much my old self so I went to daycare.  I had fun playing with my friends and really enjoyed reading the new seek and slide animal farm book.  I even showed off how I know all the farm animals and their sounds for the class.  On Thurs., Jan. 12th at daycare I got to play with yarn!  Yep, we made yarn go up and down and learned how to roll it up.  We even did splatter painting on mittens - here are mine.  Very Jackson Pollock of me don't you think?

On Friday, Jan. 13th we had a field trip at Mommycare!  Our local ECFE started hosting Fabulous Fridays from 9 to 10 a.m. so we decided to try it out.  I had fun playing with Mom and with our good friends son Maverick who we haven't seen in awhile.  We played with trains, trucks, painted and even had story time at the end which we got to sing and do actions to.  It was a jungle version of "If You're Happy & You Know It" which meant I even got to stand up and "roarrrr!"  On the way home we got to make a delivery to Dad at the shop which I was pretty excited about too.  The best part of the day was my good friend Ava came over for a play date after dinner with her Mom, Anna.  We had fun playing with my tools, trucks, trikes and just running around.  I hope they come back again soon and can't wait to see Ava again at daycare next week!

Today, Sat., Jan. 14th I hung out at home with Mom most of the day and then in the afternoon Dad, Hudson & I had dude time as Mom ran errands to get ready for Hudson's Baptism tomorrow.  The cake turned out really good!  We had a fun family night at home and even had a dance party.   Can't wait to see a whole lot of family tomorrow for the Baptism!  Don't worry I'll keep you posted.

Happy Birthday Dad!

After a relaxing weekend at home ringing in the new year we had a fun day of activities at Mommycare on Monday, Jan. 2nd including crafts for some of the people we love so can't say much as a surprise!  We did have fun going outside as it was really warm again and did lots of bubbles!  I took my bubble wand outside and Kato and I chased them while Mom waved the wand.  I love bubbles!  We finished up some of our projects on Jan. 3rd and had a special treat in the afternoon we took Hudson to the shop to see Dad & Grandpa for the first time!  We had a ton of fun hanging out and playing with tractors.  Even Grandma Judy stopped down to hang out.  I can't wait until we go back I love going to the shop.

On Wed., Jan. 4th I returned to daycare for the first time in two weeks!  I had a ton of fun seening my friends again and loved playing in the gym with Blake & Ryder.  We even finished our unit on stars and I helped cut out and color the star below.  I enjoyed using my favorite color blue or at least I say that everything is blue or green at this point.  Still working on those colors!

On Thursday, Jan. 5th I got to go to daycare again and we studied trees and even painted some.  Here's my tree and I had fun using green roller paints.  I look forward to returning to daycare next week as much as I have fun at home with Mom I love playing with my friends!  After daycare I went with Mom to help pick out Hudson's upcoming Baptism cake and even got a special treat!

On Friday, Jan. 6th I had fun getting ready with Mom for Dad's upcoming birthday celebration and after my nap we spent the afternoon at the park!  It was 43 degrees out and we had so much fun going on the slides, swings, running around, etc.  I hope this nice weather holds.  I also helped Mom with giving Hudson a bath and even picked out a truck outfit for him to wear.  Mom says I'm a very helpful big brother.  After Dad got home I had my bath and was excited to show off the outfit I picked out for Hudson.  Here's me pointing to and saying truck.  Dad was proud of me and loved that I had my tractor PJ's & was even carrying a tractor around!  He said that's his Hayden.

On Sat., Jan. 7th we celebrated Dad's birthday with having Grandma & Grandpa Prestegard over for a special dinner.  After a huge feast we opened presents and I was so excited to give Dad the present we made for him.  Here's him opening my present or rather me helping him open his present.

Here's me and Dad with my present.  I made him a special star paperweight for his office.  Of course I even put tractor stickers on it and he loved it.  I can't wait to see it at his work.

Here's Dad, me & Hudson opening his presents.

After dinner Mom took Dad to a movie (*Mission Impossible) and Hudson had his first babysitter - Grandma & Grandpa.  Hudson and I had a blast hanging out with our grandparents & can't wait until they babysit again!  I think Dad & Mom enjoyed 2 hours of free time too!  Happy Birthday Dad!

On Sunday, Jan. 8th we took Hudson to our church for the first time and had a fun family day.  We even all wore our Iowa State hats to chruch!  Here's Mom's Cyclone boys.  Looking good if I do say so myself.  I think we're representing pretty well & can't wait to take Hudson to a game; maybe for Dad's next birthday.

Happy New Year: 2012

On Friday, Dec. 30th I got to spend all morning at Granmda Judy's with Cousin Hannah!  I had a blast and while I was busy & away Mom was busy putting some of our holiday decorations away.  I was a little bummed to see the Christmas tree go but since we had more room with it all gone & now that Hudson is a bit older Mom also put together my old swing for Hudson.  Here's Hudson having his first ride on the 30th and he loves it!  He was fascinated with the mobile which was fun to watch.

On New Year's Eve, Sat., Dec. 31st we had a family day.  We spent the whole day together and played and just enjoyed ourselves.  Here's Hudson and I hanging out on the coach together.  As you can see he got dressed for our New Year's celebration in his tux and I was still hanging in my PJ's!

Me & my baby brother:

On the 31st the movie Seabiscuit came on and I thought riding the horse looked like fun so I kep turning anything I could into a horse to ride.  Mom then got out my rocking horse from the basement (*we try to rotate toys) and I had a blast!  Now I'm really good at it and I call him "Neigh Neigh".

Hudson ready for the ball to drop:

I was ready too although I did not make it until midnight - not even close!  Hudson did pretty good but I think that was only because Mom woke him up to eat.  Cheater!

Happy New Year 2012!  I tried blowing the horn but didn't work too good for me.  Hope you have a safe & very happy new year.  May all your goals come true in 2012.