new car seat

Aiden's long little legs were peeking out over the edge of his baby car seat. He is technically below the 22 pound weight limit (but probably not by all that much) and the carry handle was buckling if you carried him in it at the wrong angle. He loves his floppy seat in shopping carts and now we'll have to use it in high chairs at restaurants too. The days of the handy infant seat that Aiden could nap in at restaurants are over. No more toting him into school in his little seat so that Kyla character can come over to rock him a little harder than she should. Oh, it seems like just yesterday that I put him into it for the first time on my bed in the hospital.

I finally found the car seat that my parent's had that converts up to 80 lbs that we really like, so it was time for a switch. J took on the task of switching out the base and putting in the new one, which is no fun at all in hot humid weather. It took longer to mess with the seat than it did to cook fish for dinner... and I called him in to eat before it was even finished. By the time we got it in, all three of us were outside (as the weather had cooled) fussing with it. Aiden and I were sitting in the seat to press it down enough to tighten the strap (looking kinda funny I'm sure). It was a nice way to greet the neighbors. Aiden practiced his new wave (which is now facing the right way) and tested out his new seat. In hindsight, it might be smart to get it tested at the fire station ;)

weekend enrichment

When asked what should we do this weekend, J always responds with "something enriching"... So, since it's been nice out and Baby AB likes getting out on excursions, we decided to head over to RISD's art museum for their FreeforAll Saturdays! The theme was styrofoam and they advertised that there would be puppets. We know that Aiden loooves laughing at puppets, so we figured he'd enjoy it... even though we are well aware that he can't quite appreciate an art museum quite yet. Although he did have moments where he seemed to really be examining things and letting his eyes feast on all the crazy patterns and designs.
We arrived about two hours before the Big Nazo puppet show was scheduled, but we managed to keep busy essentially playing in the museum... and just when Aiden started yawning, it was time to go outside for the show. As we were refreshed by the free Del's frozen lemonade, the crazy costume "puppet" show began! I wouldn't describe these as puppets, but Aiden's reaction was just as excited mixed in with sorta a skeptical stare. (You also get to see snippets of him practicing his new backward wave - He waved at the museum guard!)

Speedy video making is my nursing routine for Aiden. So, here is another view into Aiden's world:

Or visit:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-REXFzUyCdM

waving at visitors!

We love visitors! My aunt and uncle from Ohio were coming to town for a memorial service and they brought my cousin and his girlfriend along for a BBQ. It was nice to share some good food and some smiles (Aiden says thanks for the Indians gear and great bath toys too! Go Tribe!) My cousin and his girlfriend stayed over with us for the night to make their drive to the service quicker, and Aiden was all bright eyed in the morning. As we said good morning, he waved unprompted for the very first time! It's sorta a backward wave with his palm facing him most of the time, but he thinks it's fun to raise his hand and wisk it around when saying hello and goodbye.

locks of love

I was mildly embarrassed when I would be in a meeting and notice someone staring at long hair strands full of Aiden slobber. I was tempted by photos of Sharon Stone and Natalie Portman with pixie cuts that kept popping up on my favorite yahoo links. I was worried that I would look like Kate from the John and Kate Plus 8 tv show. I was thrown off when Aiden would start eating my hair when I was trying to talk to his teacher at pick up time. All of these things led to my impromtu third Locks of Love donation, my overgrown hair, just perfect at 10.5 inches with a half inch over the required amount. My first donation was on our honeymoon, and my second was only about a year and a half ago. Both of those times I hummed and mummed about it for a bit, but chickened out and went for a simple bob. I was bored with that idea and I knew that those bobs always turn out to be more work than they should be because my hair likes to flip out. I needed a hair cut where it wouldn't matter if it flipped out.


I wanted something that I can wet, shake, and walk out the door with (but per J's request wouldn't make me look like a boy). Verdict is still out on whether this cut will do accomplish that, but it has potential. If I end up hating it at least I have my locks of love donation to know that it was worth it. I hope some little kid is more comfortable and gets a smile from wearing some of my hair (which Aiden has kissed/slobbered for good luck). J's verdict is still out, although I think he's warming up to it. He said it looks rockstarish when it's pulled forward, so I guess Aiden's guitar tye dye onesie works for the new look. I'm sure I'll get better pictures sometime, but it's dinner time soon.

school luau!

Aiden's school kicked off the summer with a luau this year (last year they had a cowboy hoedown complete with pony rides!). This was a much more elaborate event than I expected with a dj, Polynesian dancers, a bouncey house, frozen virgin drinks, and catered food. They said the best dressed boy and girl would get gift certificates to the book fair, and people really took them seriously. I half expected that Aiden would be the only boy dressed in luau gear, but oh boy I was wrong. I think the little boy that carried a ukulele probably won. J could have let Aiden carry/destroy our real ukulele from our honeymoon, but it wasn't worth a book fair certificate ;) Aiden missed a big nap, so he was calm, tired, and pretty easy going about his raffi skirt, although his flower lei had to go early on because he wanted to eat it. I'd tied strands of raffi to buttons on these shortalls that had a matching hat and layered a little Hawaiian shirt over it.



You'll see him below with his teacher Miss Rebecca (Ms Kim wasn't there because she just got married last weekend and is honeymooning). I think Aiden thinks that Miss Rebecca is his Auntie Liz because he gives her big smirking smiles.

Konked out tired after the party:

happy 1st day of summer!

Celebrating the first day of summer by taking a trip to the swings and slides:

Or visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxr5DV32K9M

first dip!

Aiden's first splish splash (not quite a swim, but a dip):

Or visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAOIInkgoB0

zoo visit!

Or visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKJuRnyAbRw

ohio vaca

I felt like this third trip to Ohio was a real vacation. It was longer than a long weekend and J came along (which was really nice for Aiden and for me - for more reasons than just being able to stretch out on the plane - Aiden gets a solid A on both trips. As we landed he didn't even wake up, and J's commentary is that this kid flies too much to not even flinch when the plane skids to a stop.) It was a nice time to get away after a really busy time at work. It's hard to give a rundown of all the "events" but my mom, dad, uncle, and aunt deserve a big thank you because nearly every meal was an event. My sister, her fiance, my grandfather, his girlfriend, and J, Aiden, and I made a big group of visitors on top of an already large coalition of ohio fan club members (13-17 more making over 24 people some of the time). Aiden got to meet his great grandfather and some more great, great uncles and aunts and second cousins. I feel lucky that we can all get together so frequently.

Aiden had his first dip in a little baby pool. We were going to go to the city pool but decided it would be too much trouble, so we bought a cute little froggie pool where the eyes and mouth shape make a shaded area. Aiden loved splishy splashing away with his whistling hippos floating all around them. The little hippos had rings that they floated with and he picked out the yellow one as his favorite and chased it around the little pool. It's amazing that he can concentrate on anything with so many people gooing and gawing at him from outside the pool. His clapping was in full effect, and it seemed that he would start clapping just to get a ooh-aah out of everyone and get us to start clapping. I think he has us well trained.

A highlight of the trip was getting a chance to visit the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. We were able to meet up with a friend from high school and her adorable little boy who was celebrating his 9 month birthday (about a month and a half older than Aiden). It was nice to meet up and meet her family and I hope we can meet up during other ohio trips. It turned out to be free day for Cuyahoga County residents, and it seemed that the entire county showed up, along with a bunch of summer day camps. I couldn't help but think how "the zoo was a zoo"... I even had to let that "joke" slip when we got wedged into the monkey house with too many squealing kids...couldn't help the bad joke. We saw just about every part of the zoo and the rainforest and spent nearly five hours cruising along. Aiden and Ben were in and out of napping and sometimes looking at us wondering what we were pointing at... The really excited reaction we got from Aiden was in the hippo house. I think he got excited because mom and Auntie Liz were so smiley.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some stories, but I'll post photos later... maybe even video sometime this weekend if Aiden's a good sleeper ;)

happy first dada's day

Or visit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCVFxfMqes0

the rhythm of parenthood

Visiting home is always a treat and I can't help but sneak away for a bit and "jot down" some thoughts. I would consider a live blog of all the excitement, but this will have to do for now ;) We were originally planning to come to town because my sister and her fiance were going to be in town, but it just happened to coincide with the graduation at my old high school. They had invited me to "participate" as a former award winner and I thought it would be a nice chance to see the school without all the fuss of alumni weekend. My mom came along as another alumnae, so we took the same drive together that we took together for all 4 years of high school. I was feeling reflective, and I couldn't help but think as I spoke to another parent about what it will be like when Aiden's graduating from high school. I know getting ahead of myself... but I don't think I quite understood what it meant to be proud until I became a parent. I also don't think I really knew what tired felt like ;) But most of all, I think I am more grateful to my parents than I've ever been... definitely more grateful than I was or realized I should be when I sat at that graduation 11 years ago.

The Head of School did his typical amazing job of putting together simple words to say really meaningful things. He started off by talking about how proud the class and their parents should feel. He spoke directly to the parents and described "singing the song of parenthood" by keeping "the rhythm of holding close and letting go". I thought about all the milestones where I will hold Aiden close and how learning to let go will be just as important. It all sounds trite when I try to explain it, but the senior speech given ended with a duet singing of the "For Good" song from the Wicked musical.
Here are my favorite parts of the lyrics:

"I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you..."
"So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart"

crazy class photo

I promise that Aiden's class is usually not miserable.  I also assure you that I laughed out loud and giggled all the way home after picking up this photo from Aiden's school today.  They had said initially that it "didn't go well because everyone got going after the camera guy scared Zach," and we may not get copies this year.  Bummer, I thought it must be a really good shot then for a good laugh.  Lucky us:


Aiden is no longer the itty-bitty new kid on the block. There are at least three new babies because some of the bigger kids moved up. Miss Rebecca on the left is still his secondary teacher although Ms. Kim started just after this was taken and that's Ms. Sandy on the right with her batch of cuties. I don't know all of the kids, but I hope to learn more of their names as I continue to be the primary pick up parent during my summer hours. We also have the workshop's annual summer party, this year a Luau, where we can meet more people. But here is a rundown of some of the more memorable characters:

On the far right with the little pointy pig tails (that hair stays like that even without rubber bands) is "that Kyla character" who literally hunts down Aiden and tries to unlatch him from his seat every morning.  She was an early walker and she can really get around.  She always has cute shoes on, but somehow they are missing in this photo.

Zach, the late bloomer, is smack center in the dark navy hoodie.  He made a pretty slow transition over to the big kid room and was pushing the 15 months old boundary (I think they told me he was 15 months for 3 straight months in a row).  He liked being the ring leader.

In Miss Rebecca's lap on the left, Aiden is sandwiched between Stephanie (formerly known as cry baby because she started daycare a little bit older and all she did was cry and/or have her back rubbed for weeks) and Tyler (who always wants me to pick him up and is Aiden's little buddy). You'll notice that Aiden is missing his white button down but still has his bear vest on with some sort of onsie peeking out - oh, his fashion sense is well beyond his years really and that is why he is crying.

baby signing

We're going to give it a try. His teachers are on board with signing so we have to learn their signs. Another mommy let me borrow her baby einstein first baby sign dvd.  For those that haven't had the pleasure of baby einstein, picture this: a puppet without any arms pops up on the screen, then a series of pictures of babies, followed by a sprinkling of rembrandts and other art history slides. The first thing out of J's mouth as he held our excited bouncey puppet lover was, "Now that puppet can't sign, it has no arms!"  But that puppet can show our baby how to feed another puppet by putting the spoon backward in it's mouth I guess.  The puppet doesn't need to sign because they have these other little cutie pies and Marlee Matlin for that (although some of those kids look old enough to do calculus or at least talk without baby signs).  Another thing I think is funny is which signs are considered to be "first" or most important.  One site I was reading had sign number 14 of babies first 100 signs as divorce.  The practice sentence was my aunt and uncle are divorced.  Now let's see: first, teach kid about the institution of marriage, then the legality of divorce.  Crazy?

I brought signing up with some other mommies and their advice was:
1. Always use a word or phrase while you're doing the sign
2. Use only a few signs when they are really young
3. Make good eye contact and watch them look at your hands signing
4. Teach them useful signs that can help them avoid frustration or gain control
We are starting to use signs for all done, more, and need diaper change. One mom swears that it made her potty training easier because he was already used to sharing when he needed a change.

clapping

Aiden likes to clap!

7 months, five days
His teacher noticed his clapping a while ago and wrote it on his daily highlights, but I got it on tape recently. He's also learning the "more" sign which he shows off a little bit with the closed hand. The teachers plan to use some signs with him too so I think they will help.

anniversary debrief

Last Thursday was our 4th wedding anniversary. The traditional gift is fruits and the modern day gift is appliances. Hmm, I had a predicament, because J's not a huge fan of fruit and he likes to think that anything of use shouldn't qualify as a gift. Lucky for me, he bought a really extravagant upgraded drum set that he promised would qualify as his ultimate gift for the year. In a sleep deprived stupor, I did remember to bring J's card to lunch with us that afternoon. After our somewhat botched valentine's day dinner, we decided to go to lunch while Aiden was at daycare shouting at puppets (instead of yelling at the robotic moose head like he did at our vday dinner). It was a nice lunch at the Cheesecake Factory where the 40 page magazine menu was narrowed down for us because there was a health scare on fresh tomatoes. We ordered a matched set of compatible, yet different meals so that we could share a bit and that food never disappoints. Then we cruised through the bookstore were I couldn't help but buy Aiden a set of safari puppets (hippo included) with matching books. My gift from J was a chance to hear a complete song created completely by his hands, called These Hands, using some of the words from our wedding vows - That new drum set and all those bass and guitars at work: http://www.lightningmp3.com/live/95243-TheseHands.mp3
I feel like Aiden's lucky to have a daddy that can teach him about music.

hot hot

Today is the hottest day in all of Aiden's life. It's a ridiculous 94 degrees plus humidity here in New England (it was a cool 65 degrees that day before!). Our friends from Tucson came to visit this weekend and they brought the weather with them (which wasn't nearly as cool as the mercat shirt for Aiden and the prickly pear cactus picture - thanks Becca and Scott!). Luckily, our new window air conditioner scheme seems to work out well and we are keeping cool. We were so glad to have a taste of Tucson from our friends, all though we could pass on this weather.

travel advice

From a blogging "friend" -

9 TIPS FOR QUICK AIRPORT SECURITY SCREENING WITH A BABY

Admittedly, Bryan and I stress about getting through security efficiently. We don’t like to delay other people, and we also don’t like to miss our flight. So we developed a system, a meticulous system, early on.

If you’re a laid-back sort, these tips will amuse you. If you hyperventilate at the thought of people in line behind you rolling their eyes, you’ll find this helpful.

The tips assume one baby, two adults, and three carry-ons. And away we go:

1. Get organized. Put liquids, gels, or powder (including baby food) in clear plastic bags. Wear shoes that slip on and off. Skip jewelry, empty your pockets into your bag, and affix your watch to a bag strap.

2. Toss contraband. Before queuing, ask yourself if you have any food or water that you’ve forgotten, and then throw it away. If you accidentally stow it in your bag, they’ll have to search your stuff, possibly send you through the air-puffing machine, call out the dogs, strip search you, and so on. It’s a pain.

3. Centralize IDs and tickets. Have one person keep IDs and tickets in an accessible pouch or wallet. That person shows ID for the group, and collects boarding passes after screening.

4. Get in the fast line. Lots of airports will send you into a quicker line if you have a baby with you. Approach the security agent with your stroller and ask, “Should we be in a different line with the baby?” Blink innocently.

5. Prep while you wait. Remove your shoes and laptops while you’re waiting. When you reach the magnetometer, un-stack as many trays as counter space allows.

6. Use lots of trays. Laptops need their own trays, as do your plastic bags full of food and toiletries.

7. Split up if possible. Ideally, one of you loads the conveyer belt while the other carries the baby through and packs up on the other side.

8. Load the conveyer belt judiciously. That means:

- Stroller or sling so the baby is situated right away and you have your hands free.
- Bag, then contents of that bag, rinse and repeat. That way you can zip one bag shut before tackling the next.
- Shoes go last. Either slip them back on, or go sit down elsewhere so you’re out of everyone’s way.

9. Exchange high fives. Damn, you’re good.

Like I said, meticulous. But awesome, no? If you have more ideas, please share them in the comments.

12 TRAVEL TIPS FOR FLYING WITH A BABY

In Hank’s first year, we’ve visited four different states and three different countries. We’re very tired. Still, we’ve learned a lot about flying with the little guy, and it’s all stuff you should know too.

Follow these guidelines and you’ll be comfortable, entertained, and prepared for the duration of your flight. And if not? Well, at least you’ll be in Belize when it’s over.

1. Book wisely. If your baby is on a regular sleep schedule, take a moment to savor your good luck. Then book your flight during nap or sleep time. Booking tickets is your first chance to optimize seating, though fortunately not your last.

2. Ditch your diaper bag. This smallish Samsonite tote is Hank’s travel bag. (On sale for $20! The hell?) We use it as his carry-on instead of the diaper bag because it has more room, but still stows under the seat. The extra pockets and U-shaped top zipper also make things much more accessible.

3. Provide entertainment. Pack a few new toys if the baby is older, otherwise cup lids and pretzel packets will fascinate. Leave noise-making toys at home. Even soft jingle or squeak will irritate others after an hour or so.

4. Prep for security screening. Invest in a couple of sturdy clear bags that you can yank out of the tote when you get to the security gate. (By the way, food doesn’t count toward your quart-bag limit on toiletries.) We use a medium bag for all his food—usually two ready-to-use bottles of formula, one empty bottle filled with the right amount of powdered formula, and a baggie of powdered formula with the scoop in the bag. The little bag houses children’s Tylenol, hand cream, travel-sized butt paste, a nasal sprayer, eye drops, thermometer, etc.

5. Plan for mishaps. Tuck in two fresh onesies for the kiddo, and a clean T-shirt for you or your partner, in case there’s an incident. You’ll want a few quart-sized plastic zippie bags for wet clothes. I also throw in a large plastic yard bag because it packs so small and is useful if you have a little guy who decides to poop, pee, spit up, and repeat. Dress the baby for easy changes.

6. Prep for fussiness. If you know your baby is a screamer, pack a bag full of foam earplugs for your neighbors. We also find that chamomile or herbal teething drops help calm our baby when he’s grumpy.

7. Buy a couple bottles of water. You can’t get bottled water through security in The States, but you can bring it on the plane if you buy it at the airport. The water on planes has lots of bacteria, so I add bottled water to our powdered formula. We also use a little bottled water and bathroom soap as a last resort if we have to wash a bottle for re-use on board.

8. Strategize seating. A bulkhead seat or an extra empty seat will change your life for the next few hours. First ask for the bulkhead (if you’re traveling internationally with a baby who’s under 28″ or so, this is where they hook you up with bassinets). If they’re not available, and you’re traveling with a partner, ask them to seat one of you on the window and the other on the aisle. This often leaves you with an empty seat between, because no one wants to sit in the middle. If you still haven’t wrangled an empty seat when you get to the gate, bring your cute baby up to the counter and ask very nicely if they can help you find an empty seat should one open up. Then ask if you can get them some coffee.

9. Keep your stroller with you. They’ll give you luggage tags at the gate, and you just leave it outside the door of the plane. We travel with a Kolcraft car seat stroller so we can check the wheels and take the car seat aboard if there are empty seats.

10. Make friends. Be extra kind to every crewmember you encounter. When you board the plane, show the flight attendants your baby, introduce them, take your baby’s hand and help him wave. Flight attendants are awesome, and they’re your allies in keeping the little one quiet and happy. They’ll heat bottles, bring extra blankets, supply cup lids, you name it. But only if you’re pleasant.

11. Do a scrub down. Our doctor advised us to use a few baby wipes to clean our arm rests and table trays. We even clean the light buttons and air vents so everything we touch is a little more sanitary. When you use the changing table in the bathroom, you might also want to wipe off anything the baby can reach in there.

12. Ease ear pressure. The baby should suck on something during takeoff and landing. Nursing works, as does bottle feeding, pacifiers, or a lollipop.

That’s all there is to it. Easier than you thought, right? You’re welcome to leave more ideas in the comments. Tomorrow I’ll do a little roundup of the best way to get through airport security efficiently. You can hardly wait.

family moments in a fast paced world

Yesterday was Brown's annual staff development day. I decided not to run my own session this year because I wanted to participate. I took a digital video class (yeah I know predicitable), a digital photo class (even more predictable), and a course called, "FamilyHood: Family Moments in a Fast Paced World". The description said something about how to "find more time" with your family. Yea, I know cliche and not possible, but enticing. I mainly just wanted to see who else showed up and I thought maybe, just maybe I would hear people say things that I think about. Of course, it was raining and they planted that session at the farthest, most unfamiliar corner of campus. I almost turned around on my way there when the street was blocked by a construction crane, but I made it. I'm glad I did. She described the things I expected: the power of play (NPR had a story about giving kids the executive function to create their own play), the hurried, overscheduled child, weekdays as layovers to the real family time on the weekends, car schooling, and family traditions.

She shared an interesting tidbit that working parents in the UK reported only interacting with their children about 32 minutes a day. She emphasized "opportunity time" with your children and all sorts of books with suggestions. Most were for much older kids but it was interesting to learn about the trends now (which I'm sure will change by the time Aiden is that old). She was into getting kids out into the woods (book called Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv), letterboxing (letterboxing.org), and getting kids to connect tv time to adventures (kidsoffthecouch.com) which made me wish Aiden was older ;) Some of my favorite tidbits were when she went into talking about music (John Lithgow's Singing in the Bathtub - big band children's music, J laughed, but he does have a song about hippos), using wordless books to create your own stories so that you remain engaged while reading, and the contact for the spouse of someone that works at Brown that sells pre-prepared meals each day (like the Mixing Table, but never frozen and delivered to you directly).

There was a question and answer time and it was interesting to hear what people had to say. I asked about signing with your baby and the newer moms said they used a few (like done, more, and dirty diaper) and it was well worth it. One mom even reported that it made potty training easier because he was already used to reporting his dirty diaper. There was a guy there that asked for advice on his 16 month old's seperation anxiety (which we can see twinges of in Aiden - Once he sees you at pick up time you can't go around the corner to grab his bottles without a little fuss. He is so excited to see us that I can't help but scoop him up right away anyway. I'm well trained in trying to do things with one hand and his nice teacher Kim helps me). Their advice was to make it predictable so that they expect you will be leaving by playing the same song in the car on the way to school.

Speaking of school, Aiden's not-so-new-anymore teachers, Kim and Rebecca, are great. He is happy to see them and gives them smiles. They've reported lately that he can hold his own bottle while being snuggled, he likes playing in the sand box outside, he "tries" to dance with them (he does a Stevie Wonder impersonation where he sways his head side to side - He's either saying no and really into the music) and he loooves puppets.

7 months!

Dear Aiden-bo-baden,

Daddy likes to calls you bitty baby boo, but you'll only be bitty for a bit. You started giving us glimpses of your future toddlerhood. You started the month off continuing your good eater reputation. You would share half a banana with your monkey mama, who only imitated a monkey occasionally just to get those giggles out of you.

When I was pregnant I used to say pip likes to nip to those ligament pains, but now you really like to munch. You'll munch on anything, but your favorite slobbers are sorta like baby kisses with an extra slime. You have a gummy smile with teeth buds stretching out those gums more and more with each drooly day. You only occasionally bite me while nursing and it's usually to tell me your done. Then there is the panda tongue (named after the baby pandas born recently) that you love to use to make us smile.

You laughed out loud for minutes when I hummed the flinestones song to you as you bounced on dad's tummy. Then you pulled out your little lobster claws and started your wham game. Daddy says that we should rename you Bambam. Just the other day you woke up all of a sudden and your arm immediately started drumming the bed. You've got a pretty consistent rhythm....making your daddy proud. A survey of parents found that fewer than one in six 6-month-olds regularly sleeps through the night, and some wake as many as eight times nightly. (babycenter.com) But don't you wanna beat the odds Baby AB?! You sing a sleepy song when you are tired and it sounds like a weak protest against your heavy eyelids.

I like to nurse or hold you on my lap with the laptop off to the side (which is much less distracting than the tv). You always wants to type or more specifically whap on the computer keys to write your own message. The other day you signed off on your little message to Auntie Liz with a ",a" just like you knew what you were doing. You did manage to teach me that the space bar will scroll my email and how to reattach the caps lock key.

You are in full scale sippy cup training. I help you with your form by helping you lift it high enough, but you seem to get the concept. You are usually so excited that you make this anxious aah, aah terradactyl noise. You make this noise when you see something you're excited to mouth or you see us eating or drinking. You get especially excited by the big orange bulb on your boon spoon which somewhat unsuccessfully squeezes out food directly onto the spoon. You even made that noise as you unsuccessfully tried to get our big exercise ball in your mouth the other day.

It was a pretty big deal this past weekend when you took your first ride in the floppy seat covered shopping cart. You sat like such a big boy with a whole new perspective and sense of independence. We are probably going to miss the car seat days when you could snooze, but the floppy seat that covers the yicky cart is your new favorite colorful play area. Some times I will show you things and you will reach for them with your eyes wide with excitement and if you really want it you will grunt like a baby terradctyl. We ended up taking one book home the other day because you were so excited by it. It just makes your day to see the Dino2News reporter with his munchy mouth. You even try to feed it your rings when it's not busy munching your fingers.

Your dad commented recently that it's hard to believe that it used to be a big deal for you to track us moving across the room with your eyes. Now it's a big deal if you can wack a drum consistently and you reach for a toy with your pincher fingers. Someday you'll be pulling out of the driveway in your car and we'll remember when it was a big deal for you to razz at us.

Mwah, mwah, Mommy

P.S. Here is a special edition howdy from Aiden that we sent to some rowdy folks this month.

P.P.S. We get to visit Ohio again this month! This time daddy gets to come along so that he can see you ride your hippo

23 hippo friends!

Oh my goodness, 23 happy hippos and Baby AB!