News from the land of Henry

I am sick AGAIN :( I feel like I just got over the last nasty cold, and here is another one. Mike literally just got over his sickness - Sunday was the first day he felt normal and needed no medication.

Sadly, it appears that little Henry may also be sick...he has a runny nose and has been coughing a lot at night. So, the Powell house is definitely a sick house right now. I am grumpy about this. I may complain about it A LOT, so be prepared.

One of the reasons we seem to be in a revolving door of illness may be that Henry has discovered "sharing". Meaning when he is thoughtfully chewing on his squeaky giraffe he comes to the sudden realization that we may also want to chew on the giraffe. So, he pops it out of his mouth and holds it out to you with a huge grin. If you do not also then take it and chew on it (taking it by the hand just doesn't do) he becomes distraught. So, there has been a lot of group chewing on toys here (and a lot of toy sterilizing by mom).

Henry also enjoys "sharing" at mealtimes, and holds his food out for you to have. He has not quite figured out to let go of that food though. So, he will hold out a cheerio for you, you put it in your mouth but he will not let go. He then whips his hand back with a laugh and pops it in his own mouth to eat. You can almost hear him thinking, "sucker!"

His range of "talking" has been increasing the past week. In addition to the tried and true shriek of joy (earsplitting) that he likes, he has a good command of "Da Da Da", "Bla Bla Bla", "Ra Ra Ra", and "La La La" and different combinations thereof (lease note the lack of "Ma Ma Ma". I'm not offended. Really). He also has discovered a fun noise where he sounds strangely like a Wookie. Mike enjoys this sound and encourages it, so Henry has been doing it quite a bit lately.

His cruising on furniture continues - he is getting a bit braver about one-handed cruising, cruising with toys in hand, and navigating between pieces of furniture. He still has zero interest in walking while I hold his hands, so I don't think he will be an official walker for a while - my guess is that his first steps will occur around 11 months.

We had a fun weekend when Grandpa Powell came to visit. The three of us made a day trip to Newburyport where Henry had his first grilled cheese sandwich (a hit, naturally) and was well-behaved in a few art galleries. Henry enjoyed his Grandpa a great deal and insisted on being held by only him for a great deal of the time.

I must stop ignoring Henry (currently enjoying a breakfast of champions - papaya, waffles, and yogurt) and go. We are braving the pouring rain today and heading to his 9 month well visit at the pediatrician, so we will have an update from that when we return.

(PS - I can't even discuss the Patriots. It was too devastating to mention. We are choosing to pretend like it didn't happen, and our focus is now on upcoming spring training for the Sox)