Our New Home

In our last post we were sooo busy listing all of this boy's six month stats that we failed to mention the two razor sharp teeth that accompanied his 6 month birthday! He seems to have cut them without too much turmoil, and he is completely convinced that he is now ready to eat anything and everything...go ahead, try to eat food in front of him without sharing...

Last weekend Jaime and Tad came to Tyler for a quick visit and Benjamin had is first official Christmas. We all had a blast and this boy REALLY got into the presents (his first basketball goal and a crawl and learn ball)...now we are VERY anxious for Christmas next week! We even ventured to the mall on Saturday and Benjamin sat in Santa's lap...no crying, no smiling...he just pulled Santa's beard...glad Santa didn't scream!!

In the last couple of weeks we began looking at houses in town again. On Monday morning I was driving by two houses (one recommended by MawMaw and one we found online over the weekend) to see if they were worth scheduling a showing when I came across this house...I went home and googled the address...AMAZING pictures...but we've been there, done that. So, I called the realtor and scheduled to see all three houses. The first two were the same as so many...if only we had $50-100K for renovations they would've been great...but the last one....well, we're closing on December 31st...Thank you, Lord! In God's perfect timing, an answer to so many prayers.

Our new address as of January 1, 2009: 1400 Kensington Tyler, TX 75703

6 Months

Stats:

Height: 27 1/4 inches - 87th %ile
Weight: 21lbs 15oz - 98th %ile
Head: 46cm - 100th %ile

He's at the top of his class...what can we say??

The most important news is that both ears are finally cleared up - Thank you Lord!

This little boy is growing by leaps and bounds and keeping us busy! We're hoping that this, our third round of antibiotics has finaly cleared up both ears...we'll find out on Friday at his 6 month check-up...can you believe he'll be 6 months old???

We know he's feeling better because he's back to eating like a champ...these days he's much more interested in tasting mom & dad's food than in eating his own food!

He's definatley mastered rolling over and loves to sleep on his tummy...rolling back over is still another story. He loves to sit up and play; however, he still hasn't learned to sit up on his own. Don't worry...he'll let you know exactly when he's ready to sit!

Thanksgiving was great - we enjoyed visiting with the fam. Benjamin enjoyed his 3rd trip to Shreveport in his first 6 months! This one was definately one for the record books because Grandpa Swanie hit a big one!!

Cruisin around the cabin in his red car...
Looking for presents under Aunt Casie's Christmas tree!

Family Photo Shoot

If you'd like to take a peak at our first professional family portraits just click on the link below:

https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0702101041JCP

Customer Name is COURTNEY GREGORY, once you login click on "View Images" and enjoy!

Survivor

Jaime came to stay with Benjamin and I Halloween weekend while Max was in Vegas for the TCU game...we had a great visit - hear are a few pics that Jaime took while she was here:

We now have ear infection #2 under our belts...I think this little boy can officially survive anything! Unfortunately, this time the fever set in on Thursday afternoon right before Max left for the deer lease (Yes, Max has been out of town the last two weekends in a row!). Luckily, the pediatrician was able to squeeze us in Friday morning so we were able to get meds a LOT faster than last time. However, the ear infection itself was the least of our worries...this time it came with an entire head cold which had poor little Benjamin's nose so stopped up that every time he would try to take a bottle he would get all choked up. Anyone that has ever seen this boy knows that he doesn't miss a meal, but don't worry now that he's breathing better he is definitely catching up on EVERY ounce of milk that he might have missed out on while he was sick!

This is one of Benjamin's funniest little quirks...he ALWAYS covers his face to sleep!

He has almost conquered sitting up on his own...

Oh, and did I mention that when we went to the Dr. on Friday he weighed 20lbs???

TCU Homecoming

This weekend we took our first family roadtrip back to Fort Worth for TCU's homecoming. For those of you that don't keep up with Horned Frog Football we won 54 to 7!! We enjoyed seeing all of our fellow frogs and hanging out in our old stomping grounds...

Mini me???

Chillin @ the game with uncle Alex (hey girls, is he lookin good or what?)

Enjoying the afternoon with mi Abuelo
As you might've noticed in the pictures, The Gregory's where in Fort Worth for the weekend too...what a treat for Benjamin...we came home with all kinds of new toys and clothes...thank you grandma Lynne y Abuelo!

We Love Fall

On Sunday afternoon we had the family out to the lake for lunch to celebrate grandpa Swanie's birthday...on the way Mimi and I picked up a few "props" for these adorable (if I do say so myself) photos!


Let me just tell you what a struggle it is to cross those legs in boots (yes, the boots that won't velcro in the back because those adorable little calves are just too plump)!

4 Month Stats

We always have so many different poses for each picture... I just couldn't choose the perfect picture today so here are all of them! While this outfit never quite made it out of the house Friday morning (yes, it was one of those mornings) I just love how it makes him look like such a little man!

Here are his 4 month check-up stats:

Weight 17lbs 15oz (97th %ile...Yes, our Dr. says this is a "Healthy" boy!)

Height 24 3/4" (63rd %ile)

Head 17 inches (84th %ile)

We were given the ok to begin cereal and such...however on our first attempt last night @ dinner Benjamin decided this was a highly inefficient way of eating and he much prefers the bottle for now! Bananas...definatley NOT going to be his first love! We'll try the outmeal again tonight...bananas, maybe we'll wait a little while before we go there again!

Next Visit @ 6 months on Friday, December 5th.

If you've noticed in the many pictures of Benjamin that he never has on shoes that it because we have had the hardest time finding cute little shoes for boys. Never fear, Mimi to the rescue! We found several pair of adorable shoes yesterday...yes, it took serious shopping and several stores, but we now have 4 adorable pair of shoes so be sure and look for them in future posts...

Smile

This smile is what gets us through the day...we hope it brightens yours!!

4 Months Old

Can you believe this little boy is 4 months old today???? We can't!! Of all of the advice that we were given from the time we found out I was pregnant, "enjoy every minute because they grow up so fast" has definately been true!

In just 4 months Benjamin has:

Moved from Fort Worth to Tyler

Boated around Lake Tyler on Gaylon's barge

Sat through "Big Church" without making a noise!

Taken 2 roadtrips to Shreveport...and spent the night @ the El Dorado!

Spent a day in the ER

Survived his first ear infection

Spent his first night away from mom & dad...you guessed it, he stayed @ Mimi & Swanie's

Helped with his first garage sale (O.K. maybe "helped" isn't exactly accurate...he smiled at the customers...that helps, right??)

I can only imagine what the rest of the first year has instore...

Jump Around...

Thank you for my Rainforest Jumper MiMi...now I can bounce around just like Abigail! Who needs antibiotics...this is definately making my ear feel better!

First Ear Infection

We've had so much fun experiencing so many "firsts" with Benjamin; however, this weekend came the firsts that no parent (or grandparent) wishes to ever experience. It all began on Friday morning when Benjamin was not his usual smiling, cooing self...we knew something was wrong...the question was what! Unfortunately for Mimi and Aunt Casie Benjamin had his most sleepless night yet on Friday while we were in Shreveport for the AMAZING Rascal Flatts concert. Fortunately, Saturday Benjamin was able to sleep most of the day - unfortunately, we did not get to sleep and were up all night again on Saturday night. Sunday morning came with a temperature of 102.7 which sent us to the ETMC ER for 5 hours of excruciating poking and prodding - this was a painful experience for EVERYONE! Once the giant dose of Tylenol brought his temperature back down from 103.0 we were released to go home with NO answers. Luckily, the pediatrician was able to squeeze us in today and the diagnosis...ear infection in the left ear! Obviously this is not good news, but we are just glad to finally know what is wrong with our little guy.

Moral of the story...ER doctors do not specialize in babies...in fact, I'm not sure that these Dr.s and nurses had ever seen one before...they took x-rays, blood cultures, stool & urine samples, a throat culture...but they were unable to diagnose and ear infection...

1st Roll

Max and I were sitting in the kitchen eating our dinner when we looked over to see Benjamin rolled over on his side with his face planted flat into the ground (per usual)...I decided to grab my camera and by the time I made it over to him he had rolled completely over for the 1st time!! Ali was the only eye witness, but you can see the evidence for yourself...

Now he's just got to figure out what to do with that right arm...everytime he rolls over he just lays on it!

Week of Firsts

We're back!! Last weekend we missed blogging because of hurricane Ike - unfortunately, Swan cabin lost power for about 48 hours so we were temporarily displaced to Mimi and Swanie's house. No worries, Benjamin successfully survived his first hurricane AND behaved like a perfect little baby during his parent dedication at church...he even sat through Big Church afterwards! He made us so proud!

This week Benjamin has really started grabbing at toys and clothes and well EVERYTHING in sight...yes, this definately includes earings and hair!! He grabbed onto Ali's ear for the first time...luckily mom and dad were close by and able to pry his little fingers off before he pulled too hard. We are just waiting for him to grab Bailey's tail and experience his first dog bite...you should see his little eyes watching that tail!

Last night Benjamin had his first East Texas Fair experience AND attended his first football game...Go Lions!! For those of you that don't follow JT football they won 28-24...looks like little Benjmamin just might be a good luck charm. Here's a pic from the fair of Benjamin with "Cujo" his stuffed dog that his dad won for him by throwing the rubber chicken into the pot!

Grandparent's Day

This has been a "normal" week and I feel like we really have a schedule and have completely settled in to Tyler as home. Who ever knew we could be so greatful for "normal"!

Benjamin is growing by leaps and bounds and his alert, happy times grow longer and longer every day...we are loving it! He still keeps us guessing at night...you never know if he'll sleep for 7, 8, 9, 10...or even 11 hours (unfortunately, when you go to bed between 8 and 9 it takes 9 or more to mean that mom and dad don't have to get up at 4am)!!

We met with Bob Randall at Legacy Estates in Bullard this week and we could not have been more impressed...we definately want him to build our house. Max is going to call him tomorrow to schedule a date for us to meet with the draftsman and finalize a floorplan (we have 3 different plans that we are taking ideas from...just have to get it all into one plan). Our tentative plan is to begin building in December and move in this Spring (March or April).

As you may or may not know, today is Grandparent's Day. We celebrated by having Mimi, Swanie, Grandma, MawMaw, PawPaw, Casie and Heath over for lunch...here are a few pics from the afternoon:

Labor Day Weekend

I have to start by bragging that Benjamin has slept from 9 to 11 hours the last 3 nights in a row...now these are the kind of records that we like to set! Here are a few of our favorite pictures from The Gregory's visit to Tyler this weekend:

The Ben Man chillin on Saturday morning waiting for the fam to arrive...
Aunt Sara giving Benjamin his afternoon snack!

Our family at Cracker Barrel - we have noticed recently that there are very few pictures of the three of us!

Daddy Max, Little Benjamin and his Abuelo:

The Ben Man with Thaddeus:

Three generations of Gregory's:

I've just realized as I was uploading these photos that Uncle Alex managed to hide from the camera all weekend...what a bummer!!

Mother's Day Out

In case you haven't been able to enjoy Benjamin's smiling and laughing as much as we have...no one can make this boy smile like his Dad!

This was a big week for the Gregory family...Benjamin began Mother's Day Out at Southern Oaks Baptist Church on Tuesday. Here's his first morning photo:

What a week

What a busy, busy week we've had... Saturday Sara, Phillip and Kaden came to visit us from Waco and we had a great time...believe it or not the pool was actually too cold for us to swim, but we enjoyed visiting, ate pizza and Kaden had a blast picking up sticks and putting them on the fire for grandpa Swanie!

Sunday we visited a new Sunday School class at GABC and everyone was so inviting they made us feel right at home - we look forward to going back soon. Benjamin was having a rough morning and we ended up switching formula AGAIN...we're now on Similac Isomil - soy formula and so far so good...thank you Lord!

Wednesday Max gave his first presentation to the J.T. staff - we're so proud of you, Dad!

Thursday Mimi, Benjamin and I went to "Meet the Teacher" at Southern Oaks where Benjamin will be going to Mother's Day Out on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting next week! We officially signed away our first home...we cannot believe it, but what a blessing...to God be the glory! Mom, Casie and I had a wonderful "girl's night" listening to Cindy Dykes at the GABC student center while Max and Benjamin enjoyed a "boy's night" at home.

Friday morning Benjamin visited his new pediatrician (Caroline McRae-Vogler) and we all loved her...what a relief! Can you believe that this 11 week old little boy now weighs 14 lbs and 7 oz (87th percentile)...if not, you obviously you haven't held him lately!! He is also 23 1/2 inches long (70th percentile). He is a healthy little boy and he was great at the Dr.'s office; although, he's not such a fan of shots. After the Dr. we ventured to the mall and bought Benjamin's 1st Halloween costume...he's gonna be the cutest little penguin you've ever seen!!

Finally, we got to pick up Benjamin's 1st professional photos this afternoon...yea! If you'd like to see the photos feel free:

https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0702100270JCP

Customer Name: COURTNEY GREGORY
Access Code: LTPP0702100270JCP

Back to Work

We've officially survived our first full "normal" work week in Tyler. Benjamin is enjoying his days with Mimi and even got to spend a morning with his great-grandma!


Thank you for my new JEEP stroller Mimi!!

Mirrors

Our highlight of the week has been showing Benjamin himself in mirrors. He obviously thinks he's a pretty funny looking dude because he cracks up everytime he sees himself...we have the best time watching him smile and laugh eventhough we know that he has no idea who he sees!

Thursday he just couldn't figure out who that little boy in the rearview mirror was...

Friday Benjamin had his first professional photo shoot at JC Penny - what an experience! Thanks to help from Mimi and Aunt Casie we all made it and Benjamin took some great pictures...we'll share them online just as soon as they're posted.

By Saturday he loved crusin around in his new ride...thanks for sharing your pic Mimi!

Sunday we had a fun afternoon of swimming at Mimi & Swanie's house...this boy is definately going to LOVE the water!

Two Months

Boy does time fly. Max and I cannot believe that Benjamin is already two months old! We celebrated with Benjamin's first trip outside of Texas - yes, we took our infant to Shreveport Louisiana - anyone that knows Max or grandpa Swanie will not be surprised one bit! We had great weather for strolling around the Boardwalk with Mimi & Aunt Casie and can I just say that the Copeland's Cheesecake Bistro is soooo YUMMY!! Unfortunately, I'm at home tonight on the internet so you've probably guessed by now that no one hit a jackpot (in fact I'm pretty sure it's safe to say that my husband left every penny in Shreveport...I'm sure he'll be going back to retrieve it soon).

Our trip was cut a little short this morning because we received the first offer on our house in Fort Worth last night. After a very long day of negotiating contracts and muddling our way through tons of paperwork we settled on an offer! The contract has been signed and as long as everything goes as planned we'll be closing on August 22nd. Thank you Lord - please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Tomorrow is Max's first day of work at John Tyler - Go Lions - we'll be thinking about you, Dad!!

A Few Recent Pics

Benjamin's best picture yet - posing with MawMaw the very first time she kept him:

First baseball cap - ok so we haven't exactly mastered keeping it on yet!

Swimming at Mimi & Swanie's house...ok maybe Benjamin is not enjoying the water nearly as much as his mom is - the beauty of the still photo is that you cannot hear him!

Settled in Tyler

We have waited and prayed for this move for so long that it is hard to believe we are completely moved to Tyler and settled in at the Swan cabin on lake Tyler...Thank you Lord!

Benjamin is growing by leaps and bounds! Yesterday Gaylon gave him his first car...yes, a red sports car (and it even has hydrolics). Ok so we're still a few weeks away from gaining enough control of our head in order to be able to fully enjoy the car; however, it is now completely assembled and waiting for the day!!

Today Benjamin went to church for the very first time. We went to GABC and visited a Sunday school class with The Adam's - Benjamin did great...he even tried to participate in the discussion...ok so maybe regular church participation is still a few weeks off!