New Toys + Colts = Crazy FUN! :)

It's funny watching Camden play with his new Christmas toys. We've discovered that he loves shooting hoops in his new tiger basketball toy (watch out...we may have a future NBA star on our hands...especially with his staggering projected height. Ha!)

So excited to play.....

Thinking about shooting.....

Making sure everyhing tastes normal....

All ready to watch the Colts thump the Titans!

Hope everyone has a safe and happy new year!
AHhguuAHHDADADADA ~ Love, Cam

Merry Christmas!

We were so blessed to spend a wonderful Christmas with our family and friends....Camden is now officially spoiled. Mom and Dad did good with only a stocking and 1 present (which Cam could care less about....the tissue paper however was a huge hit!). The Grandparents/Aunts and Uncles on the other hand went crazy with new outfits, books, and toys. He is one lucky baby!!! It's amazing how much having a little one changes your Christmas!! Joel and I were more excited to see what Cam opened than our own stuff! I can only picture how exciting every Christmas from here on out will be! We hope everyone had a great day filled with family, fun and food!! :) Check out our Christmas morning!

Camden tasted each and every thing in his stocking! :) We're already annoyed with the rattling elephant! Big Boy sippy cup!How do you get in this thing??

Crazy Mommy trying to make us laugh on the right....

Crazy Aunt Natalie trying to make us laugh on the left! :)

We can't wait to show the boys pictures of them in their matching Christmas sweaters when they're 16! HA!

The Big 2-6!!

Well Camden and Joel helped me celebrate a fantastic birthday on Sunday! Actually it was more like a celebratory weekend! :) We had fun holiday plans both Friday and Saturday night, so Cam was with GREAT babysitters both nights! He loves playing at his Mimi and Papa Novak's house....and overnights at the Docks are so fun too! Rumors are that Ryan and April had a great time, but don't look for any precious Dock babies for awhile. :) So needless to say, by Sunday I was ready to spend the day with my baby! We had an awesome dinner at Nana's house and Cam got to play with cousin Gage while we watched football! After such a big weekend, Camden was so tired! Yawning and rubbing his eyes, we layed him down...but that sweet boy was just not ready for the fun to be over quite yet (which can you blame him?? This monunmental day only comes around once a year! :) Joel and I were putting songs on my new iPod and Cam wanted to join in. So we cranked the music up and danced for awhile....we've discovered that Cam likes a little Fergie! (We won't tell him that when he's older). He had a blast mocking the dance moves that Daddy did. I wish you all could've been a mouse in the room! :) Here is a picture of Cam and Mommy playing our favorite horsey game! Have a great week

Big Boy!

Camden went for his 6 month appointment this week....unbelievable! This has been the fastest 1/2 year of my life! Cam weighs in at a whopping 16.5 pounds which puts him at slightly below average and is 27 inches long which is a tad bit tall! :) Overall, very normal! Dr. Schulz was impressed at how well Cam was sitting and predicted that we'd have a crawler very soon. After spending 10 min. with sweet Gage.....I've decided that I'd LOVE it if Cam stayed immobile for a little bit longer. :) Camden also got 4 shots, which becomes harder for Mommy every time. The more he's aware, the worse it is!! We were happily singing the Itsy Bitsy Spider and then Bam!! :) He looked at me like "how could you let this happen!!" As terrible as it is to see your baby hurting, I will tell you it's the BEST feeling to be the comforter. To be the one he reaches for....burying his head in my shoulder. I LOVE that part of mommyhood! Dr. was also impressed with how Camden eats like a Champ! She said he's ready for another feeding of solids each day. That means cereal at breakfast and bed and veggies at lunch and dinner....ALL WITH BOTTLES TOO!! Wow...that's a lot of food! As you can see from the following two pictures...there is NO time to wipe off the peaches before he is screaming for the bottle. Why is he so messy all the time?? Well if you don't shovel the food in fast enough, Cam is quick to tell you that you're doing it wrong. So, I'm resigned to the fact that it's a messy process. It's okay, I'm a cool mom. :) Check out our messy eater:

One more shout out to Wade and Stephanie...the super photographers!! Here's a link to Cam's Christmas/6 mo. pictures....so cute!!

http://www.carignangallery.com

Go to clients: the password is novak

We love them all, but the pictures in the middle where Cam has the POOP face is histerical. You'll know when you see it! :)

Look what I can do....

Camden can officially pull up on all fours....but still can't go anywhere. :) It's so cute to watch him rock back and forth! Love that sweet little tush sticking up in the air!! He goes for his 6 mo. check up on Thurs. We can't wait to see what our big boy weighs!

Cam still loves playing in his exersaucer (which we refer to as his office because he just seems so busy...such a hard worker). Lately he pays special attention to the blue seal. As you can see in the picture, he can fit almost the whole thing in his mouth. We're so proud of him! :)

I couldn't resist including this precious one of Gage. Look how nice he's reading while he's waiting on his lunch! :) Such a big boy. That's it for now....kind of a boring week at the Novak house! Hope everyone is well!

More to come....

Hello friends and family! We haven't blogged in awhile, so I wanted to give a quick update! Camden is doing great....sitting up and rolling all over the place. Every now and then he'll pull up on all fours, but he can't figure out how to look up once he's there! So, he just lays his head down....pretty cute. We're convinced that the hardwood floors don't help...he slips and slides a lot! He has FINALLY figured out how to keep a pacifier in his mouth! It just clicked one day! Joel and I have been laughing that if it takes 6 mo. to master every skill, we're in trouble! :)

Good friends Wade and Stephanie Carignan took Camden's pictures the other day. Hopefully we'll have some to post soon! They are so incredibly talented....so creative and fun to work with. Check out their website.....go to gallery and then children......scroll down a bit to see some adorable pictures they took of Joel, Cam and I when he was just a week old! Wade even entered one of Joel and I kissing Cam's head and titled it "Love" in a contest and it won somthing! :) They had it framed and gave it to us....so sweet. I was a little offended they didn't want to hang it in their house...I was thinking right over their bed. Ha! Here's the link:

http://www.carignangallery.com/

Check out our cute little snow baby! :) Have a great week!

Busy boy!

Hey guys...Camden here! I had such a fun morning today, that I wanted to tell you all about it! It all started when I woke up and discovered something new and green in the corner of MY area. Just so you know, even though it looks pretty....it pokes. :)Then I saw a shiney angel....I almost had it!

All this playing made me ready for my morning nap! This is my new favorite way to sleep...with my cute butt in the air. Ooopss...not allowed to say butt.

When I woke up...my best buddy Gage was over to play for awhile! Our favorite things to do are wrestle and watch Boz. This is us starting to wrestle. Don't think I won't bust that lip again, Gage. :)

Gage, I can't see Boz over you!!

Aren't we good boys???

Before Gage had to go home, we had time for one book!

What a fun morning! I heard mom talking to daddy on the phone and she said it seemed like it should be dinner time....and it was only 8:30!! Wonder what that means?? Oh well....check you later.

~Cam

I Looooove Thanksgiving

This was Cam's first Turkey-Day and he had so much fun spending time with family, eating, playing, laughing, and just being a kid. We tried to talk mom into letting him wear his Thanksgiving pants (you know, just in case Camden needed a little extra room to let those sweet potatoes, carrots, and corn digest), but mom just had to dress him up and look cute to show off...Well I think this is a safe way to get put into the back-up outfit (YES, the trusty elastic waistband pants!!) His only request was that we leave his cool shoes on while we changed him.

The day after thanksgiving, mommy was ready for Christmas decorating. Now that she has a new platform to "dress up," (she still tries to dress daddy up also) Camden was once again dressed for the occasion. You have to admit he looks pretty cute in his little santa hat complete with candy cane striped pants. Tis the season!! More funny pics and holiday cheers to follow. Hope everyone's Thanksgiving was as blessed as ours.

Yumo Carrots!

Camden has recently entered the yummy world of baby food....and what a great eater he is! So far he loves sweet potatoes, carrots, bananas, and prunes (you know why I like you Cam? Cause you're a regular guy. We don't know what movie that's from, but Daddy says it a lot) :) Guess what else?? Our sweet baby woke up the other morning with 2 teeth!! I don't know why, but that made me so sad! I guess I never thought my baby would ever grow old enough to get teeth. Ha! They are definitely through the skin and causing Cam to drool uncontrollably! He has been such a good boy, though. We can tell they're sore, but he is still a happy little guy for the most part! I think he's trying to tell us he's ready for a steak. :)

We hope everyone has a restful and blessed Thanksgiving! We're planning on eating lots of turkey and taters! Check out this precious carrot covered face....

Daddy's so funny....

Joel's recollection of children's songs stinks, so when he is singing to Camden (if you call that singing....love you babe) he often resorts to Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children and Hush Little Baby. I've been so proud of him because in the last few weeks, he has been working on broadening his repertoire. So lately we've had SEVERAL lessons on how Patty Cake goes. Tonight I got out of the shower upstairs and overheard Joel trying to play Patty Cake with Camden. Here's Joel's version (you have to sing it in a silly, almost woman's voice, by the way).

Patty Cake, Patty Cake, baker's man. Bake me a cake as fast as you can. Roll it, Pat it, Throw it up, Shake it up, Bake it up, Eat it, put it in your belly and eat it, eat it, eat it. Needless to say, Camden AND Mommy were cracking up! We're laughing AT you Dad, not with you. Keep learning those songs!

Baby Dedication

This last Sunday, Camden was dedicated at church. It was such a blessing to stand in front of our friends and family to reaffirm our marriage vow, and promise to raise Cam in a loving Christian home. Even more special was that Adam and Natalie dedicated Gage with us. It has been an awesome journey raising these babies together. Adam and Nat are incredible parents, and we are constantly looking to them as examples. Thank you for letting us share this day with you!

Daily we are reminded of what a precious gift God has given us in Camden. He is the joy of our lives and we can't wait for him to know and understand Jesus and how much he loves him, too! Thank you to ALL of our family and friends who made his dedication a priority. It meant so much to have you there. Camden is such a lucky little boy to have the incredible support system that he does. Joel and I feel so blessed to know we can count on your love and prayers as we raise our son.

Ok, enough of the mushy stuff......how cute is our little newsie? :)

We're so thankful for Natalie, Adam and Gage. Have you ever seen a cuter baby wearing a sport coat? We love you, Gage!

The good ol exersaucer

It seems like yesterday that our sweet 7lb baby was staring up at cousin Gage, green with envy, about wanting to play in that exersaucer! :) Where has the time gone.....Cam is big enough now and he LOVES his exersaucer. His favorite thing is to spin the little noise maker (we were sick of that after the first 5 min.) or chew on the orange lion. Camden will be 5 months old next week! He eats his cereal like a machine and is so close to sitting by himself. My new favorites: getting him in the morning...I don't think anyone has been that excited to see me before :), when he trys to put his chubby slobbery hands in my mouth, and when he says "Ah" for each bite of food. It's hilarious. Check out the latest pics of our little guy living it up in the exersaucer!

Our Stinky Face....

Camden's favorite book is called I love you, Stinky Face......and so it was only fitting that for his first Halloween we dressed him as a super stinky skunk. :) We had a great time "trick or treating" with our sweet skunk who had no idea what his crazy parents were making him do! We were cracking up because after the first stop, he was already ready for a bottle! Ha! Let's just say by the end of the night, we had one tired trick or treater! In and out of the car seat wearing a skunk costume is not the easiest task. Cam had fun playing with cousin Gage, who was a precious turtle (it was hilarious to see this tiny turtle walking!!!!) Thanks to all who had special treats for the boys! Nana, we love our Boz movie! MeMe, our halloween toy is so fun! Aunti April had 2 fun toys and even Mommy's favorite candy! Aunt Maxine surprised us with a ghost bear and now our favorite word is BOO! :) Thanks to Aunt Jodi and GG Tanner who contributed to Cam's piggy bank, and Grandma Novak who had the traditional carmel candy and $1. :) Mamaw and Papaw Ward gave Cam 2 new bibs and some apples (it might be awhile for those!!) Finally, thank goodness for cousin Kati and Justin where we finally landed for the much needed diaper change...our skunk liked playing with cousin Justin's new wii better than our whole night of
house hopping! ha! Here are some pictures that capture Cam's 1st Halloween!

Our little skunk truly got into character.....no smiling for the camera! :) We love you, Stinky Face!!

Michigan vacation!

Well we just returned from our annual trip up to Traverse City Michigan for Fall Break. We had such a great time relaxing and hanging out with the family! We ate GREAT food (thanks to Nana!), played games, watched movies and the world series :), and just spent time together! Both Camden and Gage were SUCH good boys. Driving 6+ hours in the car will test anyone's patience, but they did outstanding! Both kids slept great and were good at restuarants....that becomes a big deal when you're parents! It's a success if you didn't ruin anyone's meal. Ha! It's getting so fun to watch them play together. They love to kiss! :) Check out some of the great pictures we took.....we're already planning next year's trip!