Grayson's favorite toy

Here is a video of Grayson playing with his favorite toy--his kick'n' play. Before this, he was making lots of "talking" noises, but of course as soon as I pull out the video he just sits there and stares at it. I'll keep trying...

A Summer Favorite

Fresh, homemade salsa is a favorite in the Hayes' household during the summers. I thought I'd share our recipe--well, it's not really a "recipe" because I never really measure anything. Just add what you like in the amounts that you like! I chop everything up in my food chopper so that it's fast and easy.
Here are the ingredients:

Tomatoes (I used about 6 for this batch and then I drained some of the excess liquid)
Chopped onion
1 clove of garlic
cilantro (fresh!)
ground cumin
salt
cider vinegar

Tomatoes and garlic came from my dad's amazing garden--thanks, dad!!
Enjoy!!!

Day 3 and Pacifier Free!!

Grayson is now 4 months old! He weighed in at 15 lbs. 4 oz. and he was 26 inches long!
Here he is showing off where he got all of his shots on his chubby little legs.
Our big issue lately has been with the pacifier. We started the paci when he was 2 weeks old. It was the only to get him to stop screaming at 2:00 am. I didn't want to, but it worked and it meant that we got some sleep. I think it was probably a good thing for him to have for comfort since he was dealing with reflux and gassy issues. It had even gotten very easy to lay him down for naps and at night--we would put him down awake with the paci and he would put himself to sleep-no crying! Well, a few weeks ago, he started flipping over alot at night and this would cause his paci to fall out. This meant that me and Chad would have to get up and stick the paci back in his mouth. This would happen about 5-6 times a night (on a good night!). I had finally had enough. I knew that he was capable of sleeping 9.5-10 hours straight at night because he had done it on and off for several weeks. I felt that we had worked too hard on this for the paci to disrupt his good sleeping habits (not to mention our own!). So I decided to go cold turkey this week--no pacifier! It actually has surprised me how well he has done. We had already limited the paci to his crib, so this meant he just had to learn to soothe himself to sleep. Naps have definitely been the hardest for some reason. He'll cry for about 10-15 minutes before he's out. Nights have been amazing! I was prepared for the worst and was pleasantly surprised when after 10 minutes of crying, he slept for 10.5 hours straight!! The next night he slept 10 hours straight and last night he did not cry at all when I laid him down and slept 10 hours!!! I am so proud of our little man! We're all so much happier because everyone is getting good sleep--finally! Hopefully, naps will get better and the nights will continue to go well.
Here he is--no paci!!! He sleeps with this little teddy bear instead.
We started rice cereal this week--which has also been interesting! He would drink an 8 oz. bottle and still want more--so we decided he was ready! I'm reading up on preparing my own baby food now. This should be fun!

A friend came over last week to take some pictures of Grayson. She did an amazing job!! I love the pictures and I'm trying to decide which ones to hang up in the house! Thanks Amy!

I was inspired by the 4th of July outfit from my previous post to try and make Grayson a little "john john" suit. So here is my first attempt. I thought it turned out really cute! Of course, the minute I put it on him, he spit up all over it and it was soaking wet. And he can't keep his hands out of his mouth--which creates more wet mess!! Oh well...I'm sure it will only get worse with a little boy!
I plan on making some more fun outfits this summer--I'll keep you posted.

Happy 4th of July ( I realize that this is late!)

For the 4th of July we went with some neighbors to a show at a new theatre on the square. Grayson loved the lights, but the singing was extremely loud, so Chad ended up standing in the back of the theatre with him for the whole show (along with all the other babies in there).

Here is Grayson early in the morning waiting on his playdate (still in his pajamas).
And here she is...Grayson and Ella get to play together on Wednesdays. Grayson loves to watch her and Ella likes to "mother" Grayson--it's really sweet.

Pawley's Island and more

We made it back from the beach and we're getting settled back in at home. We had a great time at Pawley's--just relaxing, playing games, and the guys did some fishing. Grayson did great for his first vacation and he's doing even better since we've been home. His reflux issues seem to be under control and I've learned how to calm his gas problems by watching what I eat. So we're all so much happier!

Thanks, Mimi for the cute outfit!

Grayson's 2 new toys he can use now!!

We started cloth diapering this week. Alot of his clothes don't fit when he wears them because they're so bulky!

Dakota and Grayson checking each other out.

Grayson with Pops--We stayed with Chad's parents a few days after leaving Pawley's Island.

Haye's family-- Chad's family came to visit afew times while we were at Pawley's.

Grayson can't take his eyes off of his big cousin, Noah

The Trammell family

Grayson with Uncle William and Aunt Bonnie

napping on the beach

Grayson with Mimi and Papa


Grayson in Charleston--he was such a trooper in the heat!