Tennessee Snow Day

I know that our family and friends in Ohio are having a big winter storm, but y'all aren't the only ones out of school today. Most of the schools in Tennessee are closed today due to the "snow". Here are some pictures of our "snowy" day.

Our backyard

View out our front door (neighbor's house- I was going to take a picture of our house, but thought I would get laughed at taking a picture of the "snow" out in our front yard)

Solid Foods!

We introduced Max to solid food for the first time today. We are starting out with rice cereal that is very diluted with milk. He seemed interested in trying, but he's interested in putting just about anything in his mouth right now. I'm not convinced he swallowed anything. He still needs to learn what to do with his tongue (and to not bite the spoon). I'm posting two short videos. The lighting isn't great, but I hope you can see his reactions. I think Max was a little confused, but Jeff and I were highly entertained!

Before

After (So proud of himself)

Baby, it's cold outside!

All set to run some errands. Have you ever seen a cuter teddy bear?

Loud Talker

Lately Max has been having fun playing with his voice. He does a lot of grunting and babbling, but most recently, has enjoyed making very high pitched squeals. At times he seems to even surprise himself. It is fun to watch his language develeop. The video below is only about a minute and a half, but you may want to turn the volume down a little!

I am trying out YouTube for posting videos on the blog. I haven't found the perfect mode for sharing videos yet. Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! As I type this entry, Jeff is driving down to Miami with some friends to cheer on the Bearcats in tonight's Orange Bowl. He left last night around 10pm and I went to bed shortly after, so it was a pretty tame New Year's Eve at the Banta house! My parents are already in Miami and gearing up for the big game. Max and I are feeling a little left out, but the two of us are going to have our own party here. It's a fun day to be a Bearcat!

It's hard to believe that 2008 is behind us. It was a very exciting year for our family. One year ago today I was not even two months pregnant and so giddy with excitement that I could hardly contain myself. We had also just learned that Messer wanted Jeff to relocate And now, one year later, we have a beautiful, healthy five month old and we live in Nashville! I hope that 2009 will bring us continued health and happiness, but maybe a little less excitement!

Here are a few more pictures of Max getting ready for the Orange Bowl...

Why is there an orange in my lap?

I better put it in my mouth!

Why is Mom always taking stuff out of my mouth?