The Last Days of Summer

Hi, there! It's been a few weeks since my last post - my birthday, I believe. I've been very busy practicing my walking, so I haven't had much time to do anything else! I'm getting really fast, too!

I had my one-year doctor's appointment after my birthday, and I'm still in the 10th percentile for weight (20 lbs, 6 oz), so that means I'm growing at the rate I'm supposed to. I've been trying lots of new foods lately, and have really liked plums, kiwi, rice, and cheesy scrambled eggs! I also got some vaccinations at the doctor's office, and a week or so later I had a reaction to my varicella (chicken pox) vaccine... I got a rash all over my body, and I had a little fever for a few hours. It was really irritating, and I was cranky for a few days, but it eventually got better. Now I'm just fine!























This was taken only two weeks ago, and now I don't even need to hold Mommy's or
Daddy's hands to walk around!

Today, Mommy and Daddy and I went with Uncle Tarl and Aunt Rosemary and cousin TJ to Sugarloaf Mountain, and hiked up a big trail to the top of the mountain! It was really cool to walk through all those big tall trees, and to see so far once we got to the top. My Daddy carried me the whole way - he's really strong and has great balance! Mommy got some pictures of us on the mountain.


















It was a lot of fun hiking to the top of the mountain!




















































Well, I'd better get to bed - I'm exhausted after all that hiking today! Sweet dreams!

My Birthday - Part Two

After two whole days of celebrating, I can finally wind down and post the rest of the pictures and stories from my first birthday!

Yesterday, my Mommy made me a cupcake to eat after lunch, and she and Daddy even put a big "#1" candle on it for me. I was a little tired, so I just had some of the icing and then took a nap. When I got up, I played for a little while with all the books and squishy sports balls they got me for my birthday, then I had my dinner. We went for our normal after-dinner walk, and I had my bath and went to bed.

I was so tired from all the fun yesterday that I slept in until 7:00 a.m., but when I woke up and Mommy brought me downstairs, I saw that Daddy had put up even more streamers and balloons for my birthday party! We had breakfast and I played for a little while, then I took a nap. When I got up from my morning nap, my Nana D, Pap, Mom-Mom and Pappy were all waiting for me downstairs! Then lots more family came over, including my Nana K and my other Pappy, my Uncle Tarl, Aunt Rosemary, and cousin TJ, my Uncle Scott, Aunt Pam, and cousin Megan, and my Aunt Beth, Uncle Jay, and cousin Ava! Everyone had a yummy lunch, then I opened some presents... well, Mommy and Daddy opened most of my presents since I wanted to practice walking and visiting with everyone.

Then I got to have my very own little cake with a picture of Elmo on it! I was pretty tired by then, but I had some icing (that's really the only part I like) and then I took my afternoon nap. By the time I woke up, my Nana K was the only person left downstairs, so I got to say goodbye before she went home. I had a lot of fun at the party, and I played with the toys I got after my nap. I also got a lot of really cool clothes for when the weather gets cooler - it almost makes me look forward to the cold weather!

All-in-all, I think I really like this birthday stuff. I got to spend time with my family, I got to play a lot, and I got to have icing two days in a row - if that's what birthdays are, I'm really glad I get to have one every year! Anyway, here are some pictures from the past two days - thank you to everybody who made my first birthday so special!!! I love you all!!!!


















I was being a ham at lunch and having fun while Mommy took some pictures - my birthday puts me in a good mood!























































































These were the cupcakes that Mommy made for me - I ate the icing off the one with the candle on it! Daddy took a video of it, but I was tired and cranky so I prefer not to post that piece of footage, if you don't mind.... :)


















I got a few really cool books from Daddy and Mommy, including one that has a picture of a big purple cat in it! Crazy!


















Mommy and Daddy got me a really funny Elmo "jack-in-the-box" that talks!


















I had some fun with my own cake today at the party - the icing was really good!


















This is me and Mommy - she's helping me open a big present from my Aunt Michelle and Nana K. It was a big red "Cozy Coupe" for me to drive (as soon as Daddy puts it together!)


















This is me and Daddy looking at an awesome card from my Uncle Scott that plays music from an ancient video game they were talking about called "Pacman."


When we went on our usual after-dinner walk tonight, Daddy took some cool pictures that I wanted to post for everyone. As you can see, I was a happy boy after all the celebrating for the last couple of days. Being 1 year old feels pretty good so far... :)






































































Until next time... here's to another awesome year!!

My Birthday... Part One

Good morning! Guess what - I am one year old today! This past year has gone by very fast, and I've learned so many things, like how to roll over and crawl, how to eat solid food, how to say "Mama" and "Dada," and... drumroll, please... how to WALK! That's right! I took my first steps last Saturday, and Mommy and Daddy have been so busy ever since trying to spot me as I stumble all over the place that we haven't had time to post the news :) I love practicing, and we even got some video of my practice today!



Here it is folks - you better hide the breakables! I'm coming over!


I was really excited this morning when we all came downstairs and I saw the pictures of Baby Elmo that Mommy and Daddy put up around the living room. I even had a pile of presents waiting, and Mommy and Daddy let me open one up after breakfast - it was a little Elmo!


















Mommy and Daddy put up streamers with Elmo's face on them, and a big banner that they
told me said, "Happy Birthday!" on it!


















One of the hanging decorations had a big picture of Baby Elmo on it, with a big number "1" -
hey, that's how old I am today!


















These are the rest of the presents I get to open after my nap - I can't wait!


















Isn't he cool? This is Elmo - he was the first birthday present I ever opened :)


















This is me and Daddy, having a blueberry muffin for breakfast. It was a yummy beginning to
my first birthday!

Then we played and took a walk in the neighborhood, and now I'm getting ready to take a nap because all this excitement wore me out! More later!

My First Shiner!

Yep, that's right - I had my first black eye this week, and I'm not even one year old yet! I was trying to pull myself up on a banister, and my hand slipped - before anyone could catch me, bam! My face hit, right on my nose! It didn't hurt that much, and I didn't even cry, but my eye and nose got pretty purple a couple days later. Mommy and Daddy tried to get pictures, but the camera couldn't really capture it. Here's a few pictures, anyway!


















It's sorta hard to see, but that shadow on my nose and under my eye is
actually my first black eye!


















I was pretty proud that I got a "shiner!" Mommy and Daddy said that I'm
so adventurous and active, it probably won't be my last!


















I don't actually drink Dr. Pepper, but I love stealing Daddy's and playing
with the bottle :)

I've also been learning how to move around a little better, and I even figured out how to climb the stairs! It makes Mommy really nervous, so she or Daddy usually follows me pretty closely.


















Here I am, climbing up our stairs from the living room - I can climb up
all four flights of stairs to my bedroom! That is, if I don't stop on the
second floor to play Daddy's drums :)


















This is just me and Daddy goofing around - I have so much fun when he
squishes me with pillows!

I gotta go take my after-dinner walk around the neighborhood now, then it's bathtime! Sweet dreams!

Rub-a-Dub Dub!

Guess what, readers - I got to take a bath in a big boy tub for the first time last night! Mommy and Daddy set me up with this really cool bathroom, and I even have an Elmo on the tub faucet! I really liked it - so much so that Mommy and Daddy felt compelled to take pictures... so enjoy!


















Sometimes I don't understand why Mommy and Daddy feel the need to
commemorate certain things on film....


















I felt like a grown-up in the big tub!


















The bumper in my tub has all kinds of letters and shapes on it - it figures
that Mommy and Daddy have to get an educational accessory for something
as fun as bath time!


















One of my favorite parts of bath time is the bubbles!


















Until next time... happy bathing!

On the Road Again... for the First Time!

Hi, All! I've been very busy lately, and had an especially exciting weekend! It was my first road trip, which I think means that you get in the car and drive for a looooong time, and I got to meet my friend, Zoey! I had seen pictures of her, and her parents, Ms. Trisha and Mr. John, but I finally got to spend some time with them at their house in Ohio and play for the weekend. I had a lot of fun, especially playtime with Zoey and chasing their two cats around the house :)

I was hoping to put more pictures up, but it turns out that Mommy and Daddy actually took more video than pictures, and they still haven't gotten the right stuff to post the videos online yet. But, as soon as they are able to do it, I'll put some footage of the weekend up here. Until then, here are a couple of pictures....



















Isn't Zoey pretty? She tried to teach me to say some words, like "Vroom!"
and "Moo!" I'm still practicing... :)



















Zoey and I were also practicing sticking our tongues out - Daddy got
her on camera while I read one of her books.


















I liked reading some of Zoey's books together - she even had a copy of
"The Very Hungry Caterpillar" that Ms. Trisha read to us!


















I got to take some of my toys along on the trip, including one of my
favorites - my toy dumptruck driver!


















Zoey also has a "crazy face" she does when she's really happy (and on
command, which is really funny!) She's so much fun to hang out with -
I hope I get to visit her again soon!

I also had a recent visit from my great-grandparents, Mom-Mom and Pappy! I like spending time with them, and they loved watching my new trick - walking while I hold on to a grown-up's fingers :)


















I always have fun when Mom-Mom and Pappy come to visit!

Well, I should go practice walking some more - I'd like to be able to walk on my own by the time my birthday rolls around in August... until next time!

Happy Days...

Not much has been happening lately - I've just been honing my crawling skills (I can make it all the way across the living room in about 6 seconds!), and practicing standing and stepping around furniture. But, Mommy and Daddy have been taking lots of pictures lately, and wanted me to share some, so even though I don't have much to say, I thought I'd post some of the latest pics :)

















I really like crawling around the living room.

I like to practice standing and walking on
the coffee table - it's just the right height!

















Daddy put this gate up at the bottom of the steps so
I don't hurt myself - I still like to shake it and make
noise! One day, I'll be able to go up the steps myself...
every time I do this, Daddy says, "Attica! Attica!"
Not sure what that means, but he thinks it's funny :)

















I like to play with anything with wheels - I like to spin
them as fast as I can. This is Daddy's skateboard -
maybe one day I'll get to ride on it!

















Daddy cracks me up sometimes! This is me, laughing
at him while he puts my jammies on me before bed :)



















































I have to say goodnight to the monkey family
on my wall before bedtime :)

Maybe by my next post, I'll get to talk about walking around by myself... but I don't want to get ahead of myself, so if there are any other pictures to share before then, I'll post them. Until next time!