Happy Spring!

I hope it's as warm and nice where you are as it has been here. We've been enjoying the opportunities we've had to get Cade outside. Just tonight we walked down to the park and spent some time swinging while the wind blew the little bit of hair Cade has around until it stood straight up. The daylight savings time has helped too.

This last weekend he ran a bit of a low grade fever so we took him into the doctor's office on Monday. Turns out he had a small ear infection. He was determined to prove to us that winter wasn't over yet. He's been teething for a few weeks now (getting his fifth, sixth, and seventh teeth, no word yet on the eighth, so he's remains a little lopsided), and that's kept him a slightly clogged up in the nose. The doctor guessed that all the congestion helped plug up the tubes going from the ear to the throat, causing the infection. Either way, he was impressed that Cade made it this long without any other kind of sick baby visit. We've really been blessed with good health and a very smiley, happy baby. He continues to become more and more fun.

He's getting the hang of feeding himself. He takes after his Grandpa Gronseth and will eat Cheerios at every chance he gets. Tonight we went to a Turkish restaurant owned by a friend of Susie's here in Bloomington and he got a chance to try the Turkish chicken, bread, lentil soup, and white bean soup. Yum! There really isn't anything that he's repeatedly turned down yet.

I'm wondering if Cade will become a world famous singer someday (or at least famous to himself like his daddy). :) Most of the time we put any kind of music on he's hollering at the top of his lungs and changing pitch every once in a while. It probaby sounds like crap, but it's beautiful in Mommy's and Daddy's ears. He'll make that Wookie-like noise you get when you talk with a little spit or phlegm in the back of your throat. I kind of think guys can make that sound better than girls for the most part. Mommy can't make it but Daddy can, and Cade and I go back and forth with that one. It's hilarious. And we've just started making Indian Chief noises with his mouth like Mallory in our friend's blog. He'll get this big smile on his face and keep yelling as a way to encourage me to keep popping his mouth. Lots of fun. That one got quite a few smile tonight at the grocery store. I'll try to get a video of it soon.

He's also getting a lot more independent physically. He's not crawling yet, but he loves to wiggle and bounce, and it's for longer periods of time now. Remember the balancing baby pose from one of the last pictures in this post? Well, now when I hold him up like that he'll get this huge grin and just lean back so I have to catch him while he falls backwards. We've decided he might be a stunt double someday with that lack of fear. He'll just laugh and laugh and wiggle until I hold him up again for another round. I think that move makes the ladies at church cringe in fear. I need to get a video of that too.

Another thing I've noticed just in the last week is that Cade is becoming more spatially aware of his surroundings and more able to focus on things and recognize them at a distance. He'll watch someone walk away until they leave the room. Or he'll be sitting in the kitchen and hear someone coming down the stairs and look to the door that comes into the kitchen from the stairs.

He also loves bouncing in his exersaucer (if that's even a word). Our kitchen has a couple different doors and I'll go back and forth between doors and pop my head out and say "Hey!" He'll crack up and start bouncing and then I'll go to a different door. I'll pop out again and say "Hey!" again and he'll crack up and bounce again. Here are a couple picture of that exchange.

Here's the cracking up when I jump out from one side.

Here's the initial look of surprise when Daddy shows up in a different doorway.....

.....and then the action shot of a bouncing kiddo.

He's started getting smart about it too to where he'll anticipate me switching doorways so I have to mix it up on him and pop out of the same side every once in a while just to keep him honest. Brilliant kid, I tell you. He's already in the gifted program: he makes gifts for us in his pants every day. :)

Speaking of talented, I have to brag on Cade just a bit and let you know that we've already trained...uh, taught Cade to fold laundry. Tiny, nimble, baby fingers can fold clothes much faster and more efficiently than adult hands. So if you need laundry help we'll rent him to you for a low rate.....uh, let you watch him while we go to the movies or something. Just kidding, but I did catch him when he was just hanging out at laundry time the other day. He kind of looks like a prisoner in his stripey onesie. He may not know how to fold laundry but he sure is cute (spoken like a totally biased parent, I know, but I'm allowed to say that every once in a while, right?). Thanks for checking in!