Been Around the Block

Justin and I just went for a walk around the block. He pushed his new fire engine walker all the way. When we got home he was pretty tired so he went to take a nap.

Busch Gardens

Justin visited Busch Gardens yesterday for the first time. He seemed to have a great time, and despite taking a nap at the park, he was still pretty tired when we got home. Chris posted a bunch of new pictures in the gallery, some of the theme park, some of Little Gym, some miscellaneous.

Mr. Body

Two pics from the Halloween party are up.

Bubbles

I've uploaded nine new pictures to the gallery. I don't have time at the moment to add captions, so you'll have to imagine your own captions for the time being.

Drinking and Drawing

Justin has started drinking from his sippy-cup all by himself. You can tell that he is very pleased with himself between sips. We should be completely weaned off of the bottle in a week or two.

Also, I got him a ball to play with that will not roll under the furniture. He chases it around, then grabs it and hugs it as if to say "My Ball!" or "I love you ball."

We got crayons at the grocery and he did his first drawing. He prefers red.

Pictorial proof of all these things is available in the gallery.

There is no picture to be had but we think he has started saying "da-dy" on purpose. I think we're going to officially call it his first word.

Boy meets dog

I've uploaded four new pictures of Justin meeting Rachel and Jeremy's dog Duncan. They had a good time together.

Hot off the wire

OK, here is the Justin news.

He's weaned off of the breast and is drinking cow milk exclusively now. He doesn't seem to mind and we haven't had any problems.

Yesterday he had his one year well baby checkup. Everything looks good. He got 3 shots and was cranky today, but I expect he'll be over it by tomorrow. He is now 30 1/4" tall (62%), 19 lbs 13 oz. (9%), and 17 1/2" head size (7%).

He is able to pull up on the coffee table or his toybox. He's more willing to do it if I spot him, but I think in a few more days he'll be doing it with no problem.

We've added brushing his teeth to the nightly routine. So far, he hasn't been complaining about it.

I've added a new link to his new gallery. The first one was for the first year. From now on, new pictures will go into gallery 2.

How Now Brown Cow

Last night Justin had his first bottle of cow's milk. He didn't seem to notice anything unusual and drank almost the whole bottle without complaint. He also didn't break out in hives or have any other kind of allergic reaction. What this means is that, because of Jenny's hard work and dedication to nursing, we made it to 1 year without having to use any formula (not that there's anything wrong with formula). Whoohooo!

He is the easiest baby ever. I played tennis on Wednesday and he happily sat on the side of the court in his stroller watching us play for an hour and a half. I'd go over to him every few minutes and tickle his feet or bob the tennis ball on his head and he would laugh and giggle, then we'd go back to playing and he just hung out. Unheard of.

I think he's starting to get the idea that he can make sounds (other than crying) to communicate. He says "Da do da da deh de ga da guh buh meh da Da DA DA DA" now.

Environmental Exploration

Justin is getting better at manipulating his environment every day. He's always figuring out how to open cabinet doors or pull things off shelves or flip the plantation shutters open and closed. last night he was wired. He was in his crib, not sleeping, so we got him up and let him crawl around for a while. He kept it up until eleven, when we decided it was time for bed.

I uploaded 11 new pictures to the gallery, in case anyone was interested. . .

Baptism and Theme Parking

On Sunday, Justin was baptized, along with a few other babies, at Espiritu Santo Church. He was very good and didn't even cry when the deacon poured water over his head (though he made a very unhappy face).

Yesterday, we went to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. Justin actually had a great time because he got to touch lots of different video screens, sit on Daddy's shoulder, and have his head bopped by large hanging pieces of foam. He laughed and laughed and waved his arms like mad. There are pictures of Justin with his favorite screen and Daddy trying to feed him to a large carnivorous dinosaur in the gallery.

Big Day

Yesterday was a big day for Justin. In the morning he had his 3rd haircut (getting ready for his baptism). It makes him look so different, especially with his four front teeth.

In the afternoon we met Denis and Stacey at the beach. The water was much warmer than when we were on Anna Maria Island so we took him out. He got splashed in the face a few times, which he didn't like, but he looked like he was almost having fun some of the time. It took a few minutes for him to get used to it, but he likes playing in the sand and was crawling around.

Overall it was a much better beach experience than last time and we think that after one or two more trips he will have the hang of it.

Red Beans & Rice

Justin is eating more and more real food. Tonight he had 15 or so bites of red beans and rice. He seems to really enjoy eating, but still gets that confused look when he has solid food in his mouth.

Tonight while he was crawling around he got tired and let his head drop on the wood floor. Bonk! He was ready for bed after that.

9 Month Doctor Visit

Justin had his 9 month well-baby appointment today. He had his third hepatitis shot and had blood drawn for the first time (to check for anemia). He is in great health. For those keeping score at home, His length is now 90%, weight 25%, and . . . head size . . . 4%! It can't get much smaller.

He's pulling up to a kneeling position now. It won't be long before he's pulling up to standing and cruising around holding onto the furniture. When I put him on the floor by his tent, he'll crawl into the piano room, back to the tent, into the kitchen to the other side of the kitchen table, back to the tent, under the dining room table, etc. . . We have to keep a close eye on him because now he sees things that he's interested in and goes after them. We let him explore as much as possible without getting into danger.

He's started eating adult food. We've given him bits of donut, tortilla, rice, and watermelon. He seems to like eating. When we put food in his mouth he makes a face like he's concentrating really hard, then makes a big smile and says "a-Gaa!!"

Back From the Beach

We got back from our mini beach vacation today. I've uploaded 11 new picures from the trip and 1 from his 8 month birthday.

We waded out into the surf with Justin, but the water was too cold for him to enjoy getting wet. He did like the wind is his face a lot though.

We had a great time.

New Teeth and Rolling Around

Justin's two top front teeth are coming in and he's cranky about it. He wakes up in the night sometimes now crying and will not be consoled until he gets a teething ring fresh from the refrigerator.

He's really rolling around now. He can get up on all fours for a few seconds at a time, but he still has problems making much foreword progress. We're having lots of tummie time sessions so he can practice. That works out really well except that I have to keep cleaning the carpet after he spits up squash or sweet potatoes or whatever he's last had to eat.

Also, he's making a lot more different sounds and is getting more talkative. He seems to make 'da da da da da da' sounds when he's happy and 'ne ne ne ne ne' sounds when he's upset. He blows lots of raspberries too.

Diet expansion and 9 New Pictures

I've uploaded nine new pictures, including some pictures of trying to introduce peas to Justin's diet. As you will see from the pictures, he is a big fan, NOT! Jenny started him on prunes yesterday. He seems to like them a lot, but Jenny said that I probably won't like them very much due to their look and smell.

He's sitting up real well now. Yesterday he was sitting in the piano room playing with his peek-a-block train and he spit up and I felt comfortable going into the kitchen to get a paper towel and letting him sit up without any help nearby for ten seconds or so. He's already fallen over a bunch of times on the carpet and it doesn't seem to bother him. He just rolls over toward whatever toy/pet/person/shiny thing he was trying to get at that made him fall over in the first place.

He's been sleeping a lot the last few days. He's probably going through another growth spurt. Maybe his head will get bigger. Stranger things have happend.

P.S. For Rosa: There is nothing wrong with his head. We just keep bringing it up as a running joke now. Everything is fine. :)

6 Month Doctor Visit

Justin had his six month appointment yesterday (Monday). His numbers are Height: 27.5in (80%), Weight: 18#12oz (75%), and Head: 16.5in (10%). His head continues to shrink at an alarming rate. The good news is that his weight % is still lower than his height %, which means he is not overweight, despite his large thighs.

On Easter Sunday we gave him the toys that the great grandparents gave us when we went to Shell Point. He loves them. He has tasted them all and found them acceptable.

I uploaded five new pictures, two from when I was playing with him on the couch, and three of him getting his new toys.

Sit Like a Man

Justin can sit up on his own now. Not for very long, but Thursday I sat him on the floor with his train toy in front of him and he sat up playing with it for 4 - 5 minutes without falling over. I still have to stay next to him because if he gets too excited, he throws his head back and tips over backwards.

His solid food eating is still going well. Yesterday we introduced sweet potatoes and he seemed to like them too. Maybe next Friday we will try something green.

The most exciting new development is that yesterday he started babbling. He lays in his crib now, awake, going "ga bwaa haa da da. . ." etc. . . It's very cool, and very cute.

To commemorate these momentus milestones I have uploaded eight new pictures to the album. In the pictures where he is eating, he's having rice cereal.

New Picture

I uploaded one new picture from the shell point trip to the gallery. It's of Jenny's grandparents, Jenny, Justin, Haydee, and myself.

Six Month Birthday and Red Poop

Justin loves carrots. He eats them up yum (my vocabulary may be deteriorating). After a bit of a rocky start with the rice cereal, he took to the carrots like a fish to water. Next weekend we'll start with the applesauce.

Today he was flailing his arms and I mimicked his motion. He stopped, looked at me, and flailed his arms twice. I flailed my arms twice. He flailed once. I flailed once. Then he laughed, and we played that game for a minute or so. It was the first time he has really been consciously interacting with us and it was pretty awesome.

Today is his six month birthday so I have uploaded nine new pictures to the gallery. Enjoy!

Vacation One

Last weekend Jenny, Justin and I went to a small town up in the pan-handle of Florida called Shell Point, where we met Justin's grandparents and great-grandparents. It was the great-grandparents first time seeing him and he was a big hit, as you can imagine.

It was Justin's first long car ride, over five and a half hours. In what I'm sure is a huge suprise to everyone, Justin slept for the entire trip, both ways, except for a stop for feeding him in the middle. I'm telling you, we're in trouble if we ever have a second child.

While we were there, we took Justin down to the beach and he got his bare feet in the sand for the first time. I foolishly forgot to take the camera, but it wasn't all that exciting really. He seemed happy just to be standing and didn't particularly notice the sand all that much.

He's starting to notice that the water makes noises and feels different when he splashes around in it during bath time. Fun for Justin and wet for Mommy and Daddy.

He might be starting to teeth a little bit, but he could just be having a cranky phase too. Time will tell.

Intelectual devotional topic of the day: Leonardo da Vinci

A Flurry of Firsts

Today, on the way to Babies R Us, Justin was sitting in his car seat and he blew a raspberry. I'm pretty sure it was an accident. Also, he has become fascinated with Haydee and loves to pet her. I have to help him so that he doesn't bop her in the head, but we get big smiles from it.

The reason we were going to Babies R Us was to get some replacement hardware for his new highchair. Now he can sit at the table with us while we eat. I put a bunch of his toys on the tray and he seems to like it a lot, but he can get overstimulated and fussy if we're not careful.

He can reliably roll over from front to back and back to front now. I think he will start with the consonant sounds any day now. I've also started tossing him in the air. He loves it about 80% of the time, and the other 20% he's not so sure.

I put up four new pictures of Justin in his highchair on the gallery.

Late-night picture post

It's late so I'll make this quick. There are three new picutes up from our trip to Dallas.

Grab Your Feet

Justin has started grabbing his feet whenever we are changing him. I have uploaded three pictures to the gallery and one of them shows him grabbing his feet before his bath.

4 Month Well Baby Visit

We went to the doctor's office this morning for Justin's four month checkup. He's doing great. Check this out though, remember how last time I mentioned that he has a small head (22 percentile)? Well his measurements now are 88% for height and 15%! for head size. His head is shrinking!

But seriously folks, he isn't having any health problems and, his lower jaw seems to be growing into better alignment. He weighs 16 lbs. 5 oz. now. We will probably introduce solid foods sometime during the next month.

Sitting up like a big kid and pictures

The other day I took Justin and Haydee out for a walk. This is not unusual, but for the first time, Justin sat in the stroller without the infant seat installed. I think that makes him a big kid now.

Jenny and I started looking at high chairs today. Justin is facinated with anything we eat. He wants it SO bad he can almost taste it.

Eleven(!) pictures have been added to the gallery. They are awesome.

Remote Site Sitting

Justin had his first session of babysitting away from home tonight. Jenny and I went to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat while Justin hung out with Chris and Kristie Schweyer over at their apartment. Apparently all went well. Justin drank a whole bottle of milk, had a smile session with Chris, and drove their cat up onto the cabinetry. And Bob, Kristie informs us that he likes the Saints by 3 points this weekend. He would not be swayed from this position.

Pics, Piano, Blood, and the Dr.'s Office

Justin's jaw and tongue are both still fine and nothing to worry about says Justin's ENT doctor. We went back for a three month visit to make sure everything was growing in the proper direction and everything is fine. The doctor wants to see him again in a year.

A few days ago, while I was trimming Justin's finger nails I accidentally snipped the tip of his thumb and drew blood. He was upset by this, but he settled down quicker than I expected. We had to create a tiny makeshift bandage for the wound so he wouldn't keep tearing it open. He took a nap and that let the blood clot enough to take the bandage off. His first bo-bo doesn't seem to bother him at all which is good so I don't feel so bad about almost cutting his opposable thumb off.

On a more positive note (pun intended), Justin has realized that if he bangs on the piano keys they make noise. He loves this. Usually when I first sit down with him he wants to grab the music notes off the sheet music. When he figures out that he can't get them, he takes notice of the keys and if I play a little, he remembers and starts banging away, squealing the whole time.

Justin, Jenny, Grandpa Bob, Grandma Aylie, and I all went down to the Anclote River park today and I uploaded one picture to the gallery of everyone fawning over the baby. Go check it out.

Justin Flirts With Bethany

Justin went to have his first haircut today. All the ladies at the salon ohhed and ahhed at all his hair, then my hairdresser Bethany cut about half his hair off. He's more blonde now. There are new before and after pictures in the gallery.

Friendly Neigborhood Restaurant

So last night we took Justin out to a restaurant for dinner. I had taken him to lunch before at a very informal place on the day we went to the Dali museum, but this was a step up: Applebees. OK, a small step up. Jenny was very nervous about taking him out because she was afraid we might have to keep switching off taking him out of the restaurant and we'd end up eating alone. Luckily, Applebees is very loud on a Saturday night. Even when he did complain a little bit towards the end of the meal, no one could hear him anyway. We had a very nice time and Justin drooled and flirted with the lade sitting two tables back. A good time was had by all.