Indian Peaks, Longs Peak, & Estes Park

Our little Brantley family spent the day in the mountains doing a little bit of hiking. I know, big time shocker! We finally broke down and bought a much needed kid carrier pack. I am not sure what the technical name is, but that is what I call it. So, we decided to break it in today. Harrison seemed to love it. He loved looking at the trees and water the entire time we were hiking/walking (I say "hiking," but Adam says we were "just walking"). From the kid carrier pack, he had a great view.

As a total aside, I finally took my cousin, Laney's advice on shoes for babies. She told me before I had Harrison that the only shoes that she could find that would actually stay on Ethan's feet were called Pedipeds. Since the weather is cooling, I thought it was time for Harrison to wear shoes. All of the ones I have here pretty much slip off fairly easily. So, I looked up Pedipeds and I ordered a pair. I will have to say, I paid more for this pair of shoes than I really wanted to. I had full intention of returning them if they didn't work. Well, they do! It's a miracle! Harrison wore them for 10 hours today and they never came off. That is just short of a miracle in the Harrison Brantley Chronicles. He only has one pair and he will only have one pair. They are too expensive to buy more than one. I say all this to let everyone who may be reading this blog that has a baby, to just save your money and buy this one pair of shoes. I thought I would pass on the advice that was given to me. Anyway, that's it for my tangent on infant shoes.

Dog Days in Colorado

Okay, so I know that I posted a couple of weeks ago about it being really cold in Colorado. I speculated that it was a freakishly cold day, and I was right. Well, since then, Adam has decided that it feels good enough that we can fore go the air conditioner and just leave the windows open. That was a great idea until the temperature got back up to 90 degrees the past couple of days. Oh, and now that the A/C has been turned off, it can't come back on until next summer. Adam doesn't understand why I complain, but he doesn't have to be in the house all day. Furthermore, Adam actually enjoys sweating. Anyway, I decided that I would let Harrison just wear his diaper around the house. Normally, he is dressed, but the heat has been too much to handle. I mention all of this so when you look at the pictures and say to yourself, "Self, why doesn't Mandy put clothes on him?" now you know. I am actually posting so you can see how well Harrison is standing. He seems like he has such strong legs. Oh and just in case you're curious, we will try not to let him stand on the kitchen counter anymore!

What A Day!

Harrison was holding his pants all day after his shots; he must have been trying to show off his boo-boos
Drools Brantley
So tired in Daddy's arms at work
Total Self-Destruction
Harrison had his 6 month check-up today and everything seems to be going really well. Here are his stats:

Weight: 18lbs 13.5ozs (75th percentile)

Length: 27 1/2 inches (85th percentile)

I think we can say that Harrison is starting to level off. Actually, I think this is the first appointment where he isn't in the 90th percentile for anything. Harrison did pretty well today after his vaccinations, but when it was time to go to Adam's Chick-fil-A, Harrison was a little out of sorts. We had a going away party for his biggest raving fan tonight. Harrison was good for a little bit, but then he totally self-destructed at the end...as you can see in the picture.

Happiest Baby Ever

Here are some pics I snapped of Harrison today when I picked him up from his nap. I think he must be the happiest baby ever. As a side note, I picked him up to his feet and he stood all by himself holding onto the rails. Momentarily, I was excited, but then I quickly realized that if he learns to stand on his own, he will be walking eventually. I am definitely not ready for that yet.

Adios Yankee Stadium

Ahh...I Can't Help Myself

Okay, so I know that everyone is thinking that I am blog obsessed. Well, you might be right! I am trying to pace myself, but after we took these pictures and videos today, I had to put them on here. I figured everyone out there who is especially fond of our Harrison would love these. As an aside, I have decided that the best sound ever heard is when my son laughs. I feel like the world pauses momentarily when he laughs. I remember the first time I heard it, I thought I would cry. Hopefully you will feel the same after seeing these videos.

Rolling Over

So, I blogged last week about Harrison not rolling over, but it turns out, that he is rolling over. Every night, we put him down on his belly to sleep. When we wake up in the morning, he is on his back. This happens every night. Early this morning, I was watching him on our video monitor and I saw him rolling from one side to the other over and over again. Well, today, I was taking these pics of him and I was able to catch the end of him rolling over on video.

6 Months Old!!

My heavens! How fast a half a year flies! Harrison is 6 months old today. It just so happens that today is also his Uncle Tree's (my brother) 31st birthday. While Tree and Harrison haven't met yet, today has me thinking about what Harrison and Tree have in common. After all, they are related; some things have to be similar.

• The first thing that comes to mind is the infamous "Tree Martschink Scowl." I have blogged about this from the beginning (see posts on 4/3 and 4/30). Very few people in this world can look at others the way Harrison and Tree do. It makes you feel dumb and silly, all at the same time. However, I am not sure that either intend to make you feel that way.


• I feel like Harrison and Tree are similar in that they both have flatulence that could kill a small army. I don't think I need to go into that any further.


• I think they are both great observers. When you spend time with Tree, you may find him just sitting back and checking everything out...like he is trying to solve the world's problems (which he may be). Harrison is definitely an observer. He is constantly looking at everything. The grocery store is like a playground of objects for him to look at.

I actually can't think of a lot they have in common, because Harrison, at 6 months old, is a little hard to gauge. I hope, and have a feeling, that Harrison will possess certain qualities that Tree has. Here are a few that I would love to show-up in Harrison in the future:

• Tree has a magnetic personality that makes you want to be around him. Whatever you have on your agenda to do, it is always more fun if Tree comes along (unless he is sporting that Tree Martschink Scowl). Right now, everyone wants to be around Harrison, but I have a feeling that is because he is a really cute baby.


• Tree also has a great spirit of adventure. He is always up for trying something new. I really think that Tree missed his calling as a river guide, sailboat crew member, or ski instructor...not that lawyering isn't great, but Tree seems to really be at home trying something new outside. I am sure that Harrison will posses this quality because his father and I love to be outside and trying new things.


• Tree is super-witty. He has the kind of wit that makes you feel much less intelligent. Now, I don't want Harrison to make me feel that way, but I do hope that he is quick on his feet.

I am sure there are many more things that I want Harrison to take after Tree in, but I can't think of them right now. In fact, I am sure that Tree will point them out to me later. They will be meeting for the first time in October, and I will let you know if there are any other similarities that I notice. Happy Birthday Tree!!

Harrison Attempts a Sippy Cup

I thought I would let Harrison try a sippy cup while I was feeding him the other day. I hear the transition from the bottle to the cup can be sticky, so I thought I would give it a shot. He has two sippy cups: one, his Nana bought him while she was out here and the second one, I bought the other day because it was on sale. I tried the one that I bought him first. As soon as he put it in his mouth, he made the most horrific face I have ever seen. It was as if I had dropped acid in his mouth (maybe that is why that sippy cup was on sale?). The one his Nana bought him worked like a charm. He loved it. He hasn't quite figured out the exact mechanics of it, but he knows to bring it to his mouth. I think he just isn't ready to hold it the whole time. I can understand that. I have been holding his bottle for him since day 1. If someone held my drink for me all of the time, I would be reluctant to let someone know that I could hold if for extended periods of time. Why give up that luxury? I have a feeling this train of thought might resurface during potty training.

Another Rockies Game

I can't believe we decided to stomach another Rockies game. Again, the Rockies didn't play well, but we still had a great time. This time, Harrison was way more in to the game then he was last time. At the last game, he couldn't keep his eyes open. This time, he was really into everything. His facial expressions show how into it he was.

Brunches of Fun

Today, Allison, Adam, Harrison and I spent the day in Boulder after church (that's right, my best friend and Harrison's Godmom came on a surprise visit). We had a really fun day together. We went to brunch at a really yummy place called Chautaqua Dining Hall right at the foot of the flatirons (a part of the Rockies). Harrison had his first taste of carrots while we were there and I am not sure that he loved them, but he didn't refuse them. He doesn't really refuse any food. While Adam went for a long run, the rest of us shopped around in Boulder. Thankfully, Harrison isn't old enough to absolutely hate shopping yet. For now, he is thrilled by all of the new sights.

Sitting Pretty

I am so proud of the way Harrison sits up. He actually loves it. I guess after 5 months of being completely horizontal, he thought it was time to get vertical. While he was learning, you could just tell, that it was something he wanted to do. As for rolling over, he still isn't doing that. And honestly, I don't see him doing that soon. I think he CAN do it, I just don't think he WANTS to do it (I have actually seen him do it about 15 times over the past couple of months). For now, he doesn't really see a need to do it. For a while, I was getting a little worried that he wasn't rolling over, but then it occurred to me that it isn't such a bad thing. One of my friends pointed out that she has never heard of a kid starting kindergarten without rolling over, so I shouldn't stress about it. She is right. There is no reason to stress about it. I think Harrison has the resilience of his parents. Adam and I are both, whether a good thing or not, the kind of people that will do and go after things that we want to do, making sure we accomplish what we set our minds to; but then we don't bother with things that don't seem important to us (for the record, Adam and I both see the importance of doing things that don't seem important to us). Now our offspring is pretty similar to us (go figure). He sees the importance of sitting up, but not of rolling over, so why bother.

Fall is Upon Us...I Think

Living in Denver has a lot of advantages & disadvantages. Unfortunately, one disadvantage is that Fall comes too early. I am not seasoned enough out here to know if today was just a freakishly cold day, but it was certainly surprising. For most of the day it was about 47 degrees here. Supposedly, there was a high of 56 degrees. I am not even sure of what tomorrow holds, but I can only hope that we are going to see more 65-75 degree weather. Well, Harrison and I had to brave the cold weather today to get to the grocery store. Once I layered all of Harrison's clothes on and put him in his car seat, he barely fit (as you can see from the picture)! Could this be true? Harrison is already outgrowing his car seat? I know that the extra clothes made it more of a snug fit, but extra clothes are a part of the Denver climate. One of my friends told me on Saturday night that she just bought the new car seat for her daughter, but she is almost 14 months. I still think I have a little bit of time ahead of me, but we shall see. I am still trying to cope with my having to buy a high-chair for him. Also, Harrison sat like a big boy in the grocery cart for the first day today. He is sitting up and because he is outgrowing his car seat, I figured it was time. Here are pictures that I took of him in his grocery cart. And, yes, I do take my camera to the grocery store. You never know when you will need it.

Snuggling with Mommy

Last night, Harrison and I cuddled on the couch for an hour since Adam wasn't home. I love this time with my sweet boy. I know that he isn't going to want to cuddle with me forever, so I am soaking up this time now. I love these pictures that I took while we hung out last night. I feel like you can see his little personality.

We Need Family in Colorado

Don't get me wrong, we have wonderful friends in Colorado. However, it sure would be nice to have some family around to help with Harrison. I went out of town last week and Adam's mom came out to take care of Harrison so Adam could actually work. I went out of town another time in July, and my mom came out to be with Harrison. Today, Adam left to go to Texas for a couple of days, but we don't have anyone coming into help. It's not that we can't take care of Harrison by ourselves. I certainly find a way to take care of him and work from home (and of course, blogging) while Adam goes to work each day. And I know there are numerous families all over the world that don't have family close by to help, but it sure would be nice. After Adam's mom left yesterday, Adam remarked that he was so glad she came out because of all of the work he was able to get done. For now, we will just continue to make do.

On another note, here are some pictures of Harrison from yesterday. He was wearing his orange overalls for game day yesterday. He looks too cute...even in orange! Also, I took Harrison over to a girl's night last night and Adam thought he was dressed too cute. So, he thought it would be fun to take pictures.

Harrison Is Getting Big Too Fast

Well, I was gone for work all week and Harrison looked and acted like such a big boy when I returned. He is full-fledged sitting-up on his own. He has started to object when we take toys away from him. When I say object, I mean that he turns on the waterworks in less than 5 seconds. And we finally bought him a much needed high-chair last night. He ate in it for the first time this morning and he loved it. Oh, and he is sleeping on his belly for all of his naps and at bedtime now. We are really exited about this because it may help to round out his head. Here are some pictures that his grandma took of him while I was gone as well as him in his high-chair this morning.