Onward and Upward! Also, a Special Welcome!!

So it's been a little while since I was last able to fill everyone in on what's been going on here. There's sooo much to tell. I guess I should just jump in with both feet and start. I was having a little trouble with my solid foods and I wasn't feeling too well as a result. Mom and Dad started feeding me more fruits (which you will never hear me complain about ;-). They also started giving me new bottles, filled with apple juice and pear juice. I can't get enough of that stuff, let me tell you! Mom went to the market and got me some squash so I could try something new since we are avoiding peas and other "binding" ( that just doesn't sound good at all ) foods. I really enjoyed the squash, so Mom got me more. I think I am starting to catch on to things here. I let Mom and Dad know I like something... they go get me more of it!!! I can live like this. Speaking of the good life, I got some sweet relief for my aching gums. Zwieback toast!! It's the first food I have eaten with my own hands! It's REALLY messy, but OH SO GOOOOD!!!! I also tried some celery but Mom and Dad just laughed at me. Apparently I was making some kind of "face", whatever that is? All I know is I wasn't about to keep chewin' on that. Something about it just didn't sit right with me. Maybe I'll give it another try later.

Mom had a friend from college visit, named Jeff. We all got to go to lunch at the Potomac Grill and met another friend from college named Liz. Everyone was really nice. I hope I get to see them again soon.

As for that special welcome that was previously mentioned... the highlight of the past couple of weeks has been the build up leading to the birth of my new cousin T.J. My Dad's brother's first baby boy. He was born on March 18th, weighed 7 pounds even, and measured 19 and a 1/4 inches long, same as me when I was born except for the weight. I haven't been able to meet him yet because of some rule the hospital has about "non-sibling" children under a certain age not being allowed back in the labor and delivery department. Something about germs or something. I don't know. Uncle Tarl, Aunt Rosemary and T.J. are all home now so we are planning a visit over to their house real soon. I can't wait!!! Mom and Dad already got to meet T.J., but I think they are pretty excited to see him again!

When we weren't running around getting new food and juice, or going to the hospital to see family, we have been having a blast rolling around on the bed and floor. I am starting to figure out I can use my arms and legs at the same time when I am belly down, but not for very long yet. I still get where I need to go. One way or another. When I get tired of rolling or working on my crawling posture, I like to fly around the house. Dad seems to like it too!. Sometimes I think he might be sillier than I am. Mom's always laughing at us, so I guess neither of us are doing too bad. Are we?

Jump Around, Jump Up, Jump Up and Get Down!

The past couple of weeks have been a blur, sometimes pretty literally! I've spent much of my time lately jumping, bouncing, kicking, rolling, reaching, grasping, and even dancing (with Mommy and Daddy's help, of course), so time has sort of flown by. And I had my first visit to the eye doctor, which made the way I see things fuzzy for a couple of days, so I'm not sure if I really even know what happened for a while :)


I really love my jumper, now that my knees can bend when I touch the floor, because I can bounce for a long time and not get tired! I laugh all the time when I really get going, and most of the time Mommy and Daddy join in.



This is me, doing what Ronin's do best! :)


I can also tell that I'm growing up to be a big boy - you wanna know how? Because Mommy and Daddy let me try to drink from what they called a "sippy cup," and it looked sorta like what they drink out of... only it also kinda looked like what I drink out of. Anyway, Nana D was happy to help me out!




































This is my cool green sippy cup - I'm not sure if I quite like drinking out
of it as much as I thought I would. At least I look cool...


I can also tell I'm getting big because my mouth hurts all the time! Mommy and Daddy say that I'm "teething," and I get the impression that "teething" is only something very grown-up kinds of babies do from everyone else's reaction to learning that I'm doing it. It gets better when they let me chew on this little blue ring from the freezer, though, so it's not all bad all the time.


I also got to try a new food - prunes! They're very different from everything else I've tried, all dark and sweet. So, for those who are keeping track, I've had rice cereal, pears, apples, sweet potatoes, peas, bananas, and now, prunes. Mommy says I get to try things called "peaches" and "squash" soon, which must be good because she and Daddy get pretty happy talking about it.



















Prunes are pretty good, and they leave really cool stains on everything, too!


Another interesting day was the day that Mommy and Daddy took me to the eye doctor. They said that my eyes dilate differently - I don't really know what that means, but all I know is that I see everything pretty well for me! Anyway, the doctor was nice and all, but she kept turning all the lights off and shining a really bright light at me, which was really strange. And then she put drops in my eyes, and that was really awful! After a minute it was okay, but then everything got really fuzzy, and she started shining that light in my eyes again! I was glad when the whole ordeal was over, and she told Mommy and Daddy that my eyes are okay, they just maybe formed a little differently before I was born. Unfortunately, I have to go back to that place in a few months - I hope I don't have to get those drops again, or deal with that bright light!



Anyway, I gotta go practice my rolling - apparently they say it'll help me "crawl," which I overheard will let me finally get to go where I want to go myself! Until next time!