Goofing around
Christmas morning
First haircut
silly straw
fun with dad



Aidan had a great Christmas. We were in PA for a week and had a lot of fun. He enjoyed seeing everyone and he loves all his new toys! Aidan had his first haircut on Dec. 23. He didn't cry, but kept shaking his head "no" when she was about to take a snip. Aidan's 11th tooth is now coming in...a molar on the top of his mouth. Oh and how could I forget the big news...Aidan is officially a man on the move now. He took his first steps on Dec. 17 and has now mastered walking short distances. With all this action comes quite an appetite. He LOVES peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and any kind of cracker.

Aidan turns 1 on November 29!
We had Aidan's first birthday party in PA this past Saturday. Aidan had a blast. He got lots of fun toys and plenty of clothes. Despite feeling under the weather, he enjoyed his birthday cupcake. We really enjoyed seeing everyone. Special thanks to Aunt Laura for being the party planner! Aidan battled his first serious cold last week. He woke up with a 102 degree temperature and had a nasty cold. We had a couple of rough days, but he fought through it and he's back to his happy self. It was great spending time in PA and we can't wait to come back for Christmas!

HALLOWEEN!


The game was too much for him!

Halloween and a new video!
Aidan had a blast during Halloween. We took him around to the neighbors and we even got a few roars out of him. He loved playing with the candy in the bucket. We pulled out a dancing reindeer that Grandma and Grandpa Drane bought Aidan last Christmas and he loves it. We posted a new link to the left of a video of Aidan dancing with the reindeer. We can't believe Aidan will be one year old soon. The time has really gone by fast!

We took Aidan back to Snead's farm because he liked it so much. Thought we'd share the photos of Aidan feeding the horse. Also, I figured out how to post video to the blog. There is a link on the left to Aidan's fiesta dance. Now that I know how to do it, we'll post new ones in the future. Hope everyone is doing well.

Aidan's saying Mama...Finally!
He's also started clapping! We had a fun weekend. We took Aidan to a farm with a pumpkin patch on Saturday. He got to see cows, a horse, chickens and llamas. He even fell backwards into some chicken poop. Just a day on the farm! We had a great time. Then on Sunday we went for a walk at Alum Springs Park. Aidan loved the swings and the slide. We got some fun pictures!

Aidan and Papa

The happy family

Handsome Aidan

Aidan and oreos!

Aidan and Aunt Judy







Aidan had a great time last weekend in PA. He got to visit Penn State and see Aunt Laura, then off to see Grammy and Papa Kocher. He loved seeing everyone at the wedding and then it was off to see Grandma and Grandpa Drane. Mom and Dad were exhausted by the end of the trip, but Aidan was loving every minute. We've discovered that at 10 months, Aidan is becoming quite the handful. He LOVES to get into everything he's not supposed to. He has figured out how to turn on the radio. He loves to crank it up and dance. He's still only saying dada, but I'm pushing for mama! Hope to get some more video of Aidan dancing and we'll send it along. Hope everyone is doing well.

Aidan went swimming with Aunt Laura in his "turtle" bathing suit!


Swimming in the backyard!
Playing with Daddy!

Wearing his big boy shoes!






Aidan's nine months old!

Aidan now has 6 teeth with a 7th on the way! We recently went to the doctor and he now weighs 20.5 lbs and is 29 inches tall. He can pull himself up onto furniture and he crawls/scoots very quickly. Aidan has mastered the word DAD. I've been trying to teach him to say MOM and he'll just look at me and say dad dad dad dad dad. That little stinker! We took Aidan swimming this summer at his great Aunt and Uncle Sutton's and he loved it. So we've taken his backyard sandbox and turned it into a swimming pool. Daddy went back to work a few weeks ago and mommy is working on staying home more often. Grammy and PaPa Kocher have been down all week to play with Aidan, Nick and Ben and they've been having a blast. We're all very excited to travel back to PA at the end of September!

In just the last few weeks Aidan has been real busy. Aidan was Baptized, he now has 5 teeth, he is officially crawling, he said dadda, he sat up on his own, he drinks out of a sippy cup and with a little support pulls himself up to his feet. These are exciting times for mom and dad too. Grandma Drane was down again to watch Aidan during Daddy's last summer baseball camp. Aidan gets to be with daddy all week now, they will get lots of play time in and start preparing for the upcoming Steelers season.

Our first attempt at green beans!
Playing catch!
Aidan calls mom at work to say hello!
Mr. cool
Yes, Aidan does cry!


What's new? Aidan and daddy have been having a blast at home together this summer. I think they are both getting spoiled. Aidan loves to call me at work and say hello. It's pretty much a one-sided conversation, but I love it! Aidan is getting bigger and bigger. In fact, when we are out, most people comment on how plump he is for a baby. Well, yesterday for the first time someone actually told us he was small for his age. She said her baby was a month younger and bigger. We were pretty proud of that! Aidan loves to "flirt" with strangers now when we are out in public. I swear he intentionally does silly things and makes cute faces to impress people. He's also learned how to drum at the table. Daddy will pat his hands on the table and Aidan will watch and then pat his hands on his high chair. It's pretty amazing to watch how serious Aidan gets and the determination in his face to repeat what daddy did. We're having family down over the next few days, so Aidan's going to have a blast. Hope you are all enjoying your summer!

Things are going well!

Aidan is growing and changing everyday. It's fun to watch him discover new things. Daddy has helped him discover his love of baseball. Aidan loves it when you roll his little baseball to him and he "catches" it. Then of course Aidan's got to put it in his mouth to make sure the taste hasn't changed. He also loves to watch you play hot potatoe with the baseball. He really loves that baseball. I can tell it's going to be a long road ahead! Aidan's new way to communicate is through a series of grunts. Anytime he sees something that he wants or if he sees his baby food he purses his lips tightly and lets out very loud, deep grunts. It never fails when I bring him home after work and we hit that answering machine button to play our messages he laughs and grunts! It's pretty funny. Although I'm sure this could turn slightly embarrassing in public. Grandma Drane came down this week to watch Aidan while Brad is at the FCA baseball camp. I'm sure Aidan is being spoiled and loving every minute of it!!! Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying their summer!

Baby Leap Frog!

Nick had a great time singing a song for the family!
It's hard to believe there is only 5 months difference between Aidan and his newest cousin Ben.





IT'S OFFICIAL!
Aidan can now sit up on his own! It took some practice and a few face plants into the carpet, but he now has it pretty well mastered. We've also discovered that Aidan is a little Ham for the camera. As soon as he sees it, he's all smiles...even if he's crying he usually stops right away to put on his camera face! Papa (Grandpa Kocher) was down last week to watch some Spotsy High baseball games. Aidan loved having company. Aunt Judy was also down recently. She bought Aidan his very first "computer" (baby leap frog). Aidan wasn't quite sure what to think at first. In fact the first day, every time we would turn it on and start to read, he would cry. But by the next day he was all smiles. He loves to try and turn the pages all by himself! He's a real pro now. We were recently at the doctors for Aidan's 6 month checkup and he now weighs 17 lbs. 14 oz. Our next big event is Aidan's Baptism on June 18th. You're all invited and we'd love to have you come visit.