9 Months - 9 Days Late

Nine days late, but we have an official 9 month photo!  I finally had him fully clothed without food or sunscreen all over his body.  It was moments before nap time, so the beginning of the photo session looked something like this...

Mr. Serious 

The Quiet Contemplator (title stolen from Mommy Shorts)

And then Mom acts like an idiot and we get a smile!  Success!

 And although we have a master of wearing sunglasses, I never tried to conquer the hat.  I bought this darling fedora from Baby Gap months ago.  It never fit so I'd been holding out.  It seems to have gotten a bit misshapen from being jammed in the corner of the closet with the rest of his unnecessary accessories stowed away with care in his closet.  Somehow when Palmer wears this fedora, it looks like a cowboy hat.  

Cute, but I don't see surfer dude.  I see Hee-Haw.

The kid does love to accessorize (Pete ignore that comment)

Maybe the misshapenness has caused the "Clampett's" look

Either way, we'll definitely have to bring it into the rotation

9 Months Pass...& You Start To Go Crazy

In case you were curious, I believe I might be losing my mind.  Somehow, with just 9 months between myself and the 42 hour debacle that was the delivery of Palmer Doyle, I find myself lingering over the idea of baby #2.  Those first few months of sleeplessness and sheer deliriousness have faded into a dream like cloud.  Pete and I casually chat over a glass of wine what it would be like to kick off 2014 by trying to expand our family.  How quickly we forget things like "chatting" and "wine" would quickly disappear from our lives again.  At least for those first few glorious months.  For now we will continue to drop wistful lines about Palmer as a big brother.  And when I'm cranky as all get out chasing a toddler while many months pregnant in 2014 I shall return to this post and tell myself "You knew what you were getting into, you crazy, crazy woman!"

Now on to the little bean that makes us want to multiply.  He is 9 months old! This (as with every stage thus far) is THE BEST STAGE EVER!  I feel as every month passes he gets more interactive and fun (yes I know he's not a video game.)

Daily cruises are a must.

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

Braxton and Palmer learn the art of sharing over dinner at the club 

Apricots score high on the list (and are also a welcomed distraction while shopping)

He floats!

Palmer looks like he had a rough night.  Parker wants his turn to take a hit off the straw.

Busy, busy, busy learning the basics of golf.  3 Wood.  7 Iron.  Got it, Dad.

Weekend sleepover with his buddy Parker

First trip to Sea World! He was wavering between excited and nervous with the dolphins

He settled on intrigued.

They say, "Let them explore the food..."

What they're really saying is, "He just wants to play with the food and make a huge mess."

And sometimes he just steals my heart

I've yet to take his 9 month photo.  We are about the standard week late.  Lord knows how I kept up with weekly pregnancy photos?  Oh yeah, I didn't have a teething 9 month old to chase after!

The Tooth Hurts

These are the days, right?  The ones we look back on and miss like crazy.  I get it.  I see it.  I already wish I could hit pause multiple times a day and linger in the moments.  The giggles, the cuddles, the new displays of strength and wit!  I believe over the past two months we have noticed we have been living in the honeymoon stage.  His army crawling is cute, not yet destructive.  His schedule is air tight. He does something new everyday (like grabbing his straw cup and taking a sip all on his own causing my heart to stop because he looks like such a big boy.)  He is easily entertainable (a cart ride or some music and life is good.)  He is just plain fun.  And sometimes wakes up from a nap looking like this...

Our first post-nap bed head

The tongue doesn't quit playing with his brand new tooth.  And his poor gums are swollen waiting for it's partner to pop through.  He is growing at warp speed!

Sweet little man

He's filling out rather nicely

Over the past couple months we've had a few vacations.  The annual Dairymen's trip with about 40+ members of Pete's family was in June.  Palmer really got to know the Doyle clan that week.

Would you like to try my chooch?  -Palmer and his cousin May

The newest addition to the family!  Baby Alanna <3

Matt, Palmer, Pete, Kevin & Uncle John

Here are my cousins and I at a winery on our annual girls trip.  We visited Cape Cod and couldn't have squeezed in more activity.  I love the Cape.  P'town was eclectic and fun.  Hyannis was historic and dreamy.  And at the end of the day we could have bagged it all and just lounged around the B&B (The Whalewalk Inn).  It was the quintessential New England Inn.  Perfection.

Best $10 wine tasting ever @ Truro Vineyards

These were the kinds of pictures I was getting from Pete while I was gone.  Torturous.

Life has been buzzing by.  I am so thankful for Facebook and Instagram which are single handedly capturing my baby's first year of life with little effort on my part.  

Our first attempt at a wee-baby-mohawk

Yum! Yogurt!

He takes a venti milk with two puffs on the side

Week 2 of swim lessons.  Chunky = Floaty

Can never have too many puffs

I'm currently waiting on Mr. Palmer to rise from his morning nap so we can make it to his swim lesson on time.  I have a love/hate relationship with swim lessons which is probably rather obvious. Love survival skills. Hate crying.  I beam with pride every time he finishes a lesson and improves.  That is how I know the DAILY effort of slathering on the sunscreen, squeezing on the rash guard and standing in 90 degree weather while you watch your 8 month old go under water is worth it!