Boots

So Amy's mom gave Gus some boots during our visit to MD over Thanksgiving. Gus REALLY likes them. He had a great time stomping around in them the first day. The next morning, he let Amy's dad know that he wanted them back on right away. He grabbed the first, small pair he found and didn't seem to mind that they were pink and that they belonged to his cousin, Grace! Well, boots are boots, I guess. Ah...to be free of social constructs!

Christmas Parade

Tonight we trooped out in the cold to see the Chattanooga Christmas parade on Market Street downtown. Pretty cold, but totally worth it. Gus enjoyed the entire thing, especially since everything was on wheels!

Things started off on a good note for Gus: two police cars with lights & sirens

Living in a smaller town definitely has perks: we stood right on the street and got a great candy haul!

Our neighbor Erin snagged this fireman's hat for Gus when the firetrucks went by. Following in his great-grandfather Parkinson's footsteps!

Wheel Love

A while back, I read about a study in which researchers were exploring the nature vs. nurture concept. Part of the research focused on infant monkeys and what they preferred to play with. They concluded that the males tended towards things that can be propelled through space (cars, balls, etc.) and the females preferred baby dolls and things that could be held or nurtured. So, while nurture certainly plays a part, it seems that we are inherently wired differently according to our sex.

So Gus, staying true to form (apparently), has been into anything with wheels for a few months now. Every time he sees a vehicle in a book, he points and says, "cah" or "kuck or "cactah" (tractor). If we turn the page and there isn't a vehicle on it, he'll turn back the pages until he's found one again. When we're out walking, he leans over the side of his stroller and watches the wheels. If he sees a vehicle, he watches it drive by or admires the wheels if it is parked. When he hears them driving, he searches for their location. If he hears a siren, the world stops. He carries his toy cars and trucks all over the house and has mastered the "vrooooom" noise. He always points them forward, never "driving" them backwards. I don't know how he picked up on that. It is so amazing. He's all boy, for sure.

Amy has been talking about how excited she'd be to see Gus play with all of the old toys in her parent's basement when we went to visit over Thanksgiving. One of the first things she did the morning after we arrived was to take Gus down to the basement to check out all the options. I guess there wasn't much doubt as to what he'd gravitate to, but they have quite an assortment of options so we didn't know for sure. Well, Gus went straight for the box full of cars and trucks. When he had looked them all over, he went for the larger tractor-trailer trucks up on the shelf. He kept himself occupied whenever we were in their house. He learned very quickly which door led downstairs and would stand in front of it signing, "Please. Please. Please. Please."

He's our little "I love anything with wheels" man.

Big. Small. Tractors. Construction vehicles. Motorcycles. Sports cars. Jeeps. Big rigs. Car transporters. Fire trucks. Even an Oscar Myer wiener car. It was all at Gus's disposal.

He's definitely partial to emergency vehicles and big rigs.

This white big rig was one of his favorites; it was just the right size for him to hold. Not pictured were a pair of "Made in the USA" plastic Jeeps from Amy's childhood that made the top ten list.

He'd almost always have two vehicles with him; one in each hand. Here, while reading a book. Walking around the house. Getting his diaper changed. Taking a bath. At meals. Except for bedtime, Gus was rarely without one of his companions. It was fun to watch.

Dinner Club...for the Weekend

Ok. So if you don't already know, we are members of a dinner club with four other couples that all live within two or three houses of us. We get together once a month to eat together. We also have a dinner co-op with the same group. We share meals every Sunday and Monday and then again every second Tuesday. It sounds complicated, but it makes our cooking lives so much easier. I'd highly recommend it! Anywho, a few weeks back we extended our monthly dinner for a 24-hour jaunt up to a cabin on the back of the Mountain with two of the four couples. It was our first field trip and we really enjoyed it. Thanks, guys, for making time to get away together and for being such great neighbors! We're glad God put us where we are!

Cousins

"Yee-ya"

Gus enjoyed hanging out with his two Deterding cousins, Grace & Leah, this past week during Thanksgiving. They did lots of side by side toddler playing (at least the two older ones) and got to practice sharing (which by the way, Uncle Jim, I will always associate now with your hilarious story about your nephew Joey saying, "SHARE!!"). They also slept a lot:)

Grace & Gus: pre-zoo powernap

New Post

We'll try to get another update up soon. For now, here's a little Gus right in your living room:

Hook 'em Horns

Thanks for the t-shirt, Papa Gus. With me wearing it, Texas Tech and Alabama are sure to falter!

Avocados!

My grandmother has two avocado trees in her yard in South Texas, one of which came from a seed that my mother grew. Every once in a while, we get a shipment. Gus has been enjoying his first taste of homegrown, family avocados. Thanks, Mimi!

Gus Gus

Gus dressed up as Gus Gus for Halloween. You know, the mouse from Cindarella? We had heard through the grapevine that some of Amy's parents' friends had possession of the Gus Gus costume and so we made a few inquiries about borrowing it. A few weeks later it was shipped down.

Gus was pretty interested in his costume. We're not sure if it was because it was a novelty or

because he was embarrassed to go out into public.

Hitting the streets; mingling with the people.

Just like last year, we only made it to a few, select homes before Gus was ready to head back and go to bed.

I wonder what he'll be next year. Maybe he'll be old enough to decide for himself.

Epidemic

We have now all fallen, one by one, into the "yuck" zone. I had it Wednesday and now Scott is in the midst of it today (say a prayer for him, if you get a second-this is never fun). It's so terrible while you have it, but it's so true that once you've recovered, life seems rosier somehow.

While Scott is convalescing, Gus and I are housesitting on the mountain and making the most of the beautiful fall weather up here. We just got back from a short walk, and I had a blast watching Gus explore. He hasn't really hit that "into everything" phase yet (for which I suppose I should be thankful!), but he does observe everything pretty thoughtfully these days. Today, he discovered a new favorite: acorns. He looked at a bunch, found two favorites, and spent the entire rest of our walk with them clenched in his tiny fists. Every once in a while, I would catch him checking on them to make sure they were all right. We looked at leaves, bushes, grass, a fountain and climbed some steps-which, of course, was slightly more complicated due to the acorns. Maybe we'll go for a real hike this afternoon, after we check in on Scott, of course....

Hair

About a month ago, we decided that it was time for Gus to have his first official haircut. Here are some pictures:

Well, this morning I discovered that it might already be time for another:

"It's soooo early....want to get some coffee or something?"