Cohen Michael Speth

I'm a little late in publicizing this wonderful event, but I HAVE A NEW NEPHEW!!!!

Cohen was born on Sunday, April 14th at 10:12 am. He was 6 lbs. 13 oz. and 20 inches long. My sister, Valerie, had quite the labor experience and ended up having to have a C-section. She's such a trooper...

This sweet little guy also had a little battle with jaundice his first couple of days. Clearly, he won :) As Val put it, "He even makes jaundice look cool!"

He also has a very proud big sister on his hands. Sweet Emma loooooves baby "Coh-ey."

This face makes even the Bammers say, "War Eagle" :)

You are so precious, my little nephew. The KamPughs can't wait to meet you this Friday!!!!

Eight Months!

Whoa folks... My eighth month flew by! [and apparently a few days of my ninth... sorry about the posting delay] I've been dominating my milestones, so you just hold tight and be ready to be blown away. We might speed through this month since I have so much to share so stick with me!

Since we're talking speed, let me tell you how I'm getting around these days. I guess I'm not technically "crawling" just yet. I opted for the more manly option—the army crawl. I definitely get the hands and knees thing, but when I'm ready to move, my stomach hits the floor and I just get to scootin.  

A little journey down the hall to my room!

Also, the day after my 7 month birthday Dad found me like this—

You guessed it. I'm pulling up! You're so impressed right now...

Time to lower the mattress, Mom!

Sometimes I'm not as successful as I desire...

Staking my claim on the pulpit.

So proud...

I also found out that my ottoman pulpit doubles as a treasure chest! They store all the toys in there!

This pulling up phenomena has made me rather daring. So daring that I've tackled another milestone. A little something the experts would call "cruising" [moving from one piece of furniture to the next for support].

Oh and the amazement doesn't stop there my friends, I might as well be WALKING. Say hello to my little friend...

Unsuspecting $3 toy from a consignment sale about to get DOMINATED by my mad skills...

Picture on the right courtesy of my bud, Michelle. Thanks for making me look like a vintage hipster.

CHECK ME OUT!!! So when Mom initially introduced me to holding on to this thing, I would keep my feet firmly planted, even as she moved it forward. I didn't quite grasp the fact that I could go where it went. Well, I can now walk behind this thing by myself. I can sense your disbelief, but believe it. I really am that awesome. Lest you think I'm getting too prideful though, the only videos Mom and Dad have of me doing this, I fall. [For some reason they think this is hilarious] But for the sake of my dignity, I'm not going to show you those. We'll work on making a better video for you.

Speaking of walkers, Mom got the silly idea that I needed this new toy. [If we're being honest, she just wanted something that would provide some form of containment!]

I may look like I'm enjoying myself, but don't let that cute little smile fool you. This thing gets old real fast. Maybe because my feet don't quite touch yet. Whatever it is, I don't last very long. Unless you let me attack the trash can while I'm in it...



Well I think that about covers my mobility milestones of the month. Moving on to other impressive things— say goodbye to the gummy smile!

My first tooth broke through on March 21st. The second followed on the 25th. The shots above were early documentation. Check me out now!

I know you're distracted by my eyes in this picture, but don't forget to take a gander at those pearly whites!

If I were a betting man, I'd say I'll have some top ones to share with you next month.

As usual, I'm still chewing on everything. Having teeth makes this more fun. If Mom and Dad just let me roam in the living room, this is how you'll often find me...

I love chewing on our dining table and chairs. Surely I get tons of nutrients from this practice.

Speaking of nutrients, Mom moved me to 3 meals a day this month. At first I was not a fan. I went through this phase where I'd get really crazy at meal time and smack the spoon away and yell and get really whiny even though I was hungry and wanted to eat [I know, hard to believe, right?]. Well, Mom was distraught and somehow decided to try having meal time in silence. No silly songs about bananas or chickpeas. No conversation. Just straight up putting the food in my mouth. For some crazy reason, that worked! I guess I was just overstimulated by all that was going on, along with the new eating schedule. What can I say? We take food seriously in this household.

Don't fret, I don't actually eat with this spoon. Just another thing I like to chew on.

On a not so serious note, I really enjoy clapping.

I don't necessarily do it on cue. Just whenever I feel like it. So it's not always contextually appropriate, I just randomly decide to show my support of the situation and clap.


This month, I also started helping Mom with laundry. She emptys the hamper and I fill it.

This is a really entertaining activity for me. Sometimes I forget that I'm not really trapped and get a little anxious, but most of the time it is lots of fun.

I'm still having lots of fun in the tub as well. So much that Mom tried out a new tactic that Mama T told her about.

This was nice, but Mom still had a little trouble reaching all my crevices to wash so we've switched back to big blue for now until I get a little less wobbly. I look forward to seeing you again, my slotted plastic friend!

I definitely like playing with water, but am not so sure about drinking it. When Mom first tried the sippy cup in Month Six I would drink an ounce or two with my food, but now I just like chewing on my cups. I get a little water here and there, but no guzzling for this guy. I do, however, love "drinking" from big cups. I use quotation marks because I don't really drink from them. Once the water hits my mouth, I'm slightly alarmed that it's there and just let it dribble down my chin all over me. But everything else about it is really fun!


Speaking of being big, I've moved up in the stroller world as well! No more strapping that carrier in. Sit me up like a big boy, Ma!

Now that the weather has gotten nicer [and because I'm getting more restless inside], we've been taking lots of walks. I love being outside. It can calm me down if I'm pitching a fit [yes, that happens—I've really put my sin nature on display this month]. But the only problem with that is I'll get really upset once we go back inside. So I'm not sure if that's a helpful tactic...

Nothing like being barefoot outside in Spring.

The pictures above are from times when Mom will take one of my little play stations and put it outside on our front porch [a.k.a. a slab of concrete located outside our front door, nothing glamorous by any means] and sit with me in a folding chair while we soak up some Vitamin D. This part of our day is always very refreshing.

Lastly, this month I experienced the Madness that is March. [see what I did there?] I got to watch some basketball with Dad [don't worry, I didn't OD on screen time] and also filled out my own bracket. AND WON.

I guess success has just been the name of the game this month!

Well, thanks for sticking with me through all this. Forgive my boasting, I just really can't believe all that happened this month. As usual, we had our monthly photo shoot that you can check out on facebook. She got creative and tried this one outside. Yet again, another success for Month Numero Ocho— I loved it!

See ya next month, Lord willing.
Love,
Haddon

She's Baaaaaaaack!

You may or may not know this, but a couple of years ago, I embarked on quite the crafting adventure. What began as just the desire to make my own earrings turned into a slight obsession. With all these handmade whatnots lying around [that I clearly couldn't make use of in the rest of my lifetime], then came the idea— maybe I could sell this!

That's how yours.truly got it's start. I was able to be a part of a few craft shows and get a nice little revenue from it all. Then I got pregnant [a.k.a. life comes to a crashing hault]. We were thankful for this new blessing in our life, but yours.truly quickly got put on the back burner.

The goods at a local artwalk I participated in a couple of summers ago.

Now, here I am to revive her! In order to justify continuing this little venture, I thought it would be wise to get everything I had made before off my hands and then moving forward with some new creations. This is where you come in :)

I finally put together an etsy shop and am really excited about having this convenient outlet to sell my jewelry. What I have on there now are some fun little "grab bags" of earrings I've made, but will not continue to make [that's right, the last chance, super valuable, "discontinued" kind of stuff]. Once these sell, I hope to post new collections sporadically and keep things fresh. This is also a way to put some self-control in place and not make a million things at once. I'm striving to adapt the make-a-little, sell-a-little, make-a-little-more philosophy [I think I just made that one up].

Some glimpses of the grab bag selections on etsy.

But here I am, getting off topic again. I mentioned earlier about you, oh lovely readers, having a role in this. yours.truly is going to get in on the giveaway action :) The first person to place an order at my etsy shop will receive this lovely yours.truly original in your shipment...

Custom painted blackened bronze wooden bead necklace with jute bow-tie closure.

And just to give you a little more incentive, all funds help put my husband through seminary and feed our almost 8-month-old little boy [yes, I went there] :)

How's that for a guilt trip?

If in your browsing you don't come across anything that fits your style, don't give up on me, Lord willing, there will be more diversity in the future!

Happy Birthday to Kam

Another slightly overdue update, but no less important— a tribute to my favorite 25 year old! My wonderful husband had a birthday on March 5th and we've been drawing out the celebration ever since. We tend to have birthday weeks in the KamPugh home [at the very least].

It's hard to believe I've only known Kam six [it will officially be 6 years this May] of those twenty five years. Lord willing, maybe the day will come when we've known each other longer than we haven't. If my math is correct [which I say with relatively low confidence], that will be our 36th year of life, 14th year of marriage.

Kameron Meets Olivia: Summer 2007

Do you like how I strategically placed myself by him for this picture? Moving on...

March 5, 2013. Happy Birthday Kam! We started the party [on March 4th] with a home-cooked birthday eve dinner.

Garlic butter shrimp and broccoli with pan-fried orzo cakes. 

Oreo Rice Crispy Treats. Sooooooo good!

You may start to see a trend as this post goes along. [Namely, the trend that I automatically go the food route when trying to bless or give gifts to the people I love!]

The next day, his actual birthday, kicked off with breakfast in bed [with some of the best company ever].

Why yes, I did try to write I <3 U in ketchup on his plate.

Then, T came to visit! [Thanks for giving birth on March 5, 1988]

Sorry T, this is the only documentation I have of your visit!

She graciously suffered through watching the HadMan while Kam and I took a little trip to Montgomery. What's in Montgomery, you might ask? Well, that's a great question! It worked out [rather well] that Alabama and Auburn were playing each other in baseball that night in Montgomery. We bundled up, kissed our boy goodbye, and headed out on a birthday date!

An ominous orange and blue sunset loomed before us as we made the 45-minute trek down I-85. Foreshadowing? I think so...

Birthday boy's point of view.

Bundled and cuddled up.

Unfortunately, the Bama baseball team lost and therefore, didn't get the memo that it was Kam's birthday. His consolation? One of the best philly cheese steak sandwiches he's ever had. [Food wins again!]

It really was a blessing to be able to take this time with Kam. We love Haddon Pugh, but a free night every now and then isn't too shabby :)

Speaking of free nights, the grandparents get credit again for this one. The weekend after Kam's birthday, my mom and dad came to visit. Friday, Kam and I were able to have another birthday date night to celebrate.

I'm not sure how observant you were with the pictures above, but my outfit was one of my birthday presents to Kam. Crimson pants, houndstooth [sort of] shirt, black cardigan. [I know, right?] Strangely, I already had all of these things in my closet. This was originally intended to be my baseball game attire, but once I found out the low for that night was in the 30s, that plan changed. I decided to still follow through with the outfit for date night number two. [Don't worry, we went out to eat in Opelika!] I know you're all wondering [at least I would be], so I'll tell you where we ate :) Cock of the Walk [thank you, Restaurant.com gift certificate] and the Overall Company for dessert.

Happy Birthday, my love! Thanks for not needing much to make it a happy one.