Happy 1/2 Birthday Cade!

Wow, time flies when you are having fun!!! Cade is officially 6 months old today. We celebrated by going to the park for the first time and taking a ride on the swings. He just sat back relaxed and PEOPLE WATCHED. That was his favorite part of the park experience, watching all the children play around him. Regardless, he had a fun time relaxing in the swing.

Isn't he big?!

Just haning out...

Now, I really debated adding these photos to the blog. I didn't want to get Cade in trouble already with his dad but...

Cade decided to try and take my car for a joy ride today, as he was feeling so big and manly due to his 1/2 birthday.

BUSTED... Doesn't he just look like he has been doing something he shouldn't have?!

He thought it was pretty funny to get caught in the act....

Cade meets Edgar (not Martinez, the cat)...

For those of you who don't know, Edgar the cat, is a family relic. The story of how she became a part of our family is a little questionable, so we will leave it at that. What you should know is that Edgar is a girl. Alex named her after one of his all-time favorite Mariners players, Edgar Martinez. What he failed to realize (along with everyone else) is that Edgar was a girl, not a boy. She had (and continues to have) a fat pouch that nearly drags on the ground everywhere she walks which I believe Alex thought was her (his) genitalia. Regardless, we went on believing Edgar was a boy until we took him to the vet and learned she really was a girl. And that is the story of Edgar.

Now, Edgar is a bit of an adventurer. She made her way down to our house last night and ended up meeting Cade just before bedtime. Cade LOVED her. I don't know what he thought was cooler... the cat or her tail. This video is evidence of his excitement for her. Enjoy.

VOGUE

Well, Grandma and Grandpa Strand returned from a short little jaunt to San Diego with gifts for Cade in tow! Amongst the cool items were a pair of shark sunglasses! He just loved having them on and looking at himself in the mirror! Of course, we enjoyed a good chuckle at his cuteness too!

Cade talking...

This is one of those videos that you will appreciate if you are able to catch all the subtleties. Keep your eye of for them. I like this video for one because he has a fun manchu made of sweet potato! But mostly, I enjoy this video because there is a point when he seems to be talking with such conviction that you can't help but listen to the point he is trying to make!

Cade feeds himself... sort of :)

This video is deliciously (pun intended) cute... as Cade is learning how to use a spoon! It is worth it to watch the whole video as the last five or so seconds pack a real punch. HA. Our little man is getting so big!

Standing...

Another proud moment... Cade is able to stand by himself (while holding on to something)!!! He even gets adventurous and let's go with one hand, what a daredevil!

Daddy is SO funny....

Nick can always get a laugh out of Cade...Isn't this precious?

Who is this guy???

Well, for as long as I can remember Cade has been a BIG fan of Elmo. He really enjoys the Elmo Live he got for Christmas from Dennis and Michelle. The funniest thing is that you can tell he is really trying to figure Elmo out... Elmo is just about the same size as Cade, so you can imagine how confusing that probably is for him!

Laying the foundation....

Hey everyone... I realized that we haven't posted a video of Cade's physical development in a while. Cade has been spending a lot of time on his tummy but not really knowing how to move from there, besides rolling. Well, on this particular morning, Cade figured out how to get his knees under him (very important first steps to learning to crawl!). So, here he is; laying his foundation.

Roots of Empathy classroom visit

Cade and I returned to the Kindergarten class today as a part of our ongoing family educator experience in the Roots of Empathy program. Today the discussion revolved around how Cade has changed but the main focus was on sleep.

Here is a video of Cade playing with a sock that has a ladybug rattle on it. Last visit (about 5 weeks ago) he wasn't interested in this rattle at all. This time he was trying to play with it!

As a part of the sleep discussion, the children wanted to sing Cade a lullaby and see how he reacted.

Can you tell how excited he was to be there and see all his friends??!!!

Butternut Squash... YUM

Well, adventures in solid foods continues with the introduction of.... BUTTERNUT SQUASH! Here is the intial taste test:

Cade tries peas... and likes them!

The adventures in solid foods continue with the introduction of... PEAS! The last thing he tried was pears and he loved them, so decided to go for a vegetable and peas it was! He seemed to like the peas but only time will tell?!

Who can resist a baby with green mush all over his face?!

He's a reader!!!

Cade has really been enjoying all of the fabulous books that he received for Christmas. He not only likes to hear the stories but he likes to explore the books with his hands, mouth, and eyes! Here is our sweet boy reading Eric Carle's Ten Little Rubber Ducks. As an educator with an advanced degree in literacy, you can imagine how proud this makes me! He has even figured out how to turn the pages on his own!

Also, doesn't this little photo spread make you appreciate the glory of digital photography?! I could take pictures of him all day long :)

Please note: Excessive drooling present in all photos.

Cade is sitting...

All our dear Cade wants to do these days is sit up! If he is laying on his back, he tries to sit up directly from there. It has been fun to watch him slowly gain his balance while sitting. He has even mastered the art of catching himself with his hands when he falls!

Weebles wobble but they don't fall down...

You'd be shocked to learn that he is actually catching himself in this photo!

Just sitting up, no big deal ;)

Cade loves pears!

Just yesterday afternoon, I found myself snacking on a delicious pear in one hand and holding Cade in the other. I couldn't help but notice that he was totally interested in tasting the pear. So, I gave him a little nibble (more like suck) and he was hooked. So instead of trying to get him to like rice cereal, he dined on a feast of pear for dinner fed to him by Grandma Col (GC). He devoured almost two pears for dinner last night! Col barely had enough time to dip the spoon in the dish without him fussing for more. It was so cute!

The video camera was out of batteries from the holidays, so you will have to feast (pun intended) on these photos instead....

Cade's first solid foods!

Well, it's official, our baby boy is growing up...FAST! Just two days before the new year, he was introduced to the wonderful world of solid food! This video is a short clip of the original full length film. He first gets to eat rice cereal, as it is the least allergenic food, then he will get to graduate to more interesting and appealing fruits and vegetables. He seemed to like the cereal at first but has since shown a dislike for it...

Santa Claus visits the Higgs house!

Here are some videos that we took on Christmas morning. It was the FIRST white Christmas that we can remember and what a special way for Cade to celebrate his very first Christmas. Santa Claus even came and brought our dear sweet boy some presents!

This video is proof of Santa's visit, as well as the white Christmas!

Here is Cade opening a present from Chris and Col:



Here is Cade checking out his new Elmo toy, thanks to Grandpa Denny and Michelle...

Here is Cade trying out his new authentic Australian Uggs from Uncle Al!!! So Cute.

Christmas at Grandma Sammies...

We spent Christmas eve at Grandma Sammies house. We enjoyed great food (as usual), laugther, stories, each other's company, as well as some thoughtful Christmas gifts. Thank you everyone for your generosity and for thinking of our family in these tough times!

Aunt Slugger with Cade in his new hand sewn drool rag made by Slugger herself!!

Col, Slugger, and Cade...

Nick, thinking really hard about something...

Let the present opening begin!

A bowling set from Slugger, Julia, Ben, Tippie, and Bagels...

A shiny gift from Grandma Sammie... wrapping paper is so cool!

It apparently tastes especially good too :)

Elmo, from Grandma Sammie, his eyes are delish...

Can you tell he likes Elmo?

This took about a dozen shots to get...

Cade and I...

The Great Snow of 2008

First of all, many apologies for not updating our blog for so long. We have been away from home for most of the month of December... So now we play catch up!!!

Here are some pictures from the Great Snow of 2008. I have never seen so much snow on Mercer Island ever and the best part is that it just kept coming! It wasn't SO bad that we couldn't leave the house, it just made it a little more difficult. The only downside of the snowstorm was that the grocery stores were left depleted, so even if you did need something, they probably didn't have it. Luckily, we were only home for a couple days so this didn't pose much of a problem.

Cade seemed to enjoy the snow, although it was so cold it sometimes took his breath away. I think he was really impressed by the brightness of the snow!

Me and the wee babe...

Our snowy family...

Cade (the bear) and Uncle Pat...

Our backyard... you can see just how much snow there was by looking at our patio table.

The view from our bed in the morning... beautiful!!!

The front of our house, you can't tell but there are actually steps, the snow is covering them so it looks solid! HA!