On the move

There's no stopping him now. On Monday night something clicked and Max finally realized that this crawling business is more than just a trick to perform for the crowds. It's a means of transportation to a whole world previously out of reach. Now he seems to realize the time he's wasted and wants to see it all. Nothing is safe - especially Richard's food. Richard seems perplexed that this thing which has never really moved before can now track him down. Yesterday morning while I was getting ready for the day, Max crawled up in to the shower.




All the adventures are tiring both Max and I out but Max is so excited to keep discovering that he resists naps even more now. He refused to go to bed in the afternoon on Tuesday and then exhaustion got the better of him and he fell asleep in his high chair. Check out his skills below.

Holiday Season

We're almost ready for the holidays. We've decorated the house and as you can see from the photo above, Max was very excited to find Poinsettias on sale at Home Depot.



We tried to take Christmas photos with some intention of making a family Christmas card. It was so cold that Max was shivering and we had to wrap him up in a blanket. If you really want to see how cold it was just look at Rylee's nose. Max preferred to keep warm in the car and had his first driving lesson. The only member of the family who we managed to photograph with any poise was Richard. So unless you'd like a Christmas card starring Richard, please don't expect one from these Lassens this year - maybe next.





For Thanksgiving we went over to our friends Ryan and Kristy's house. They have great kids who love Max and kept him happy all day long. Ryan smoked the most delicious turkey I've ever tasted so that kept Matt happy all day long. They have a crazy but sweet boxer named Sunny who Richard can't decide whether he loves or hates. They are the family who will look after Richard so we can go to Utah for Christmas - meaning Max gets to visit family. Thank you Smiths.



In fact Ryan's turkey was so delicious that Matt went out after Thanksgiving and found two 28 pound turkeys on sale. He and Joel smoked the ginormous birds well into the night. Here they are with Max before the smoking took place - three butterballs all in a row (note the whisk that Max has adopted as one of his favorite toys).

The House

A few people have asked to see photos of our house. We love our house in Kentucky. Though it may not be full of the charm and character of an older home, it is lovely to be able to concentrate on doing simple things like putting up shelves and pictures rather than knocking down walls and fixing broken pipes. One day we'd love to restore an old home but for now this is perfect.

Max facts

Max is still thriving here in Kentucky. He has reached 29 inches and 23lb putting him around the 95th percentile for both weight and height. He now has two very sharp bottom teeth and slightly more hair. He has been almost crawling for over a month now and we keep thinking it will happen any day. Currently he gets around by rolling or getting up on his hands and knees and lunging.

If you didn't guess from his healthy size and squeezable cheeks let us inform you that Max enjoys his food. He has liked everything he has tried so far - even peas and prunes. Yesterday as I was making a carrot cake Max was getting impatient as he waited in his chair. The carrot he was chewing on had lost it's appeal and he was ready to play. I handed him an empty bag of sugar to keep him occupied. He was remarkably quiet. When I turned around I discovered that the bag hadn't been quite as empty as I thought. Max was sucking on his arms and fingers which were covered in a sticky syrupy saliva-sugar mix. Notice in the photo the shiny sugary covering all over him. If you couldn't tell, he really enjoyed himself. Also, if you look carefully you can see his bottom two teeth.


Here are a few more photo's of the little guy.

Fun with family

Grandpa Lassen and Auntie Chrissy came to visit this week. Max was showered with kisses and attention. We had a lovely time and were sad that they weren't here longer.






Matt just got a new smoker so Matt and Gary smoked enormous quantities of ribs. They were very tasty.

Max and Richard

Max loves his puppy Richard. And Richard loves his baby Max. When Max comes down in the morning the first thing he wants to do is play with Richard. We are a little worried about what it will be like when Max can crawl around and keep up with Richard. We already spend most of the time trying to prevent Max feeding Richard his crackers and trying to stop Richard cleaning Max's face. Richard knows he is not allowed to lick Max but still gets the odd swipe in when he thinks no one is watching.

Kentucky living

I've now lived in Kentucky more than half of my life. Since we moved here we've really been enjoying the Kentucky way of life. We take a lot of drives to see the beautiful horse farms and we've been to the horse races at Keeneland. That's me in the blurred picture below and the things in the background that look like greyhounds are actually horses. We've even been to the Keeneland auctions several times but I don't know why because we never come away with a horse. I thought that's why dad was building that big fence but apparently that's just for me and Richard.



So, we came to Kentucky 'cos my dad's gonna be a dentist one day. This was me at his boring white coat ceremony - I don't know why I had to wear a fancy blue coat. I am however a fan of my University of Kentucky basket ball outfit which is much more comfy.



Though I've never even been there I am actually an English baby which means I celebrate bonfire night (a.k.a. Guy Fawkes night). We celebrated it with a bonfire on Seth and Lisa's beautiful Kentucky farm. Here's our friend Seth with Guy just before Guy caught on fire. It was a freezing cold night - I had to get dressed up in so many clothes that I could barely move.



I've also toured two bourbon distilleries during my short time on this earth. I don't know what the big deal is and those tour guides go on and on forever. I got really cross at the last one and refused to listen to anymore so dad took me for a drink in the barrel house.



All this sight-seeing really wares a boy out.

Halloween

Happy Halloween



For Halloween I was going to be a zebra - as you can see in the picture where my England Grandad is holding me. By the time my England Grandma came out 3 weeks later I had decided to be a giraffe. I'm trying to get through all the zoo animals by the time I'm 4.



I went to three Halloween parties all with my best friend Rylee who was a chicken. Here is a picture of us with our dads who didn't dress up at all.



One of the parties my mum took me to got a little crazy and my costume changed again - this time I heard someone call me a pimp but I've never seen one of those at the zoo.