First Play Group and Feeding Himself

Jack and I went to our first play group on Monday. Usually a play group consists of more than two mommy's but you've gotta start somewhere. (We're waiting on a couple mom's to either have their baby or recover from having their baby.) So, Jack got to spend some quality time with Nora Somerville. She was a little scared of him at first.

Well, ok, she was scared the entire time.

In other news (well, news probably only the grandmas will be interested in), Jack is now feeding himself. This is a big step because it used to be that he only put things other than food in his mouth.

I took this video of him the other day. You'll notice that he's got the idea, but most of the Cheerios still fall to the wayside. But, he's pretty proud of himself when he hits the mark. Since then he's improved his Cheerio to mouth average. :) You'll also notice his affinity to his baseball. He's a boy, through and through.

Well, at least he's got the idea.

Goofy Boy

Our little guy is turning into more of a little ham. Recently his new trick is to look at you from the side (see pic below). We don't know why, but there's something about it that's contagious.

His teeth are also becoming a bit more obvious. In this lovely picture below he's actually singing me a beautiful song...he's definitely not angry at me for relentlessly taking pictures of him.

As you know he also loves to read. He got a hold of a very special book the other day. It's called The Dangerous Book for Boys. It is filled with tons of ideas for him and Daddy to do together, as well as practical tips.

Kris was reading through it a couple days ago and took the liberty of adding his own commentary as he highlighted the "Essential Gear" for boys listed on the first page. Here it is as I recall...

1. Swiss Army Knife
Kris: I need to get one of those.
Me: You have one.
Kris: I do?

2. Compass
Kris: Ah, this couldn't be more true. It's always good to know where North is.

3. Handkerchief
Book: There are many uses for a piece of cloth, from preventing smoke inhalation or helping with a nosebleed to offering one to a girl when she cries. Big ones can even be made into slings. They're worth having.
Kris: I think it's funny they didn't even mention blowing your nose.

7. Pencil and Paper
Book: If you see a crime and want to write down a license plate number or a description, you are going to need one. Alternatively, it works for shopping lists or practically anything.
Kris: If you see a crime?!

I have a feeling Kris and Jack are in for some good times. The next section is on "The Greatest Paper Airplane in the World". As soon as Jack understands English they'll be off to the races.

Snow Day!

Jack and I enjoyed the beautiful snow today. It's still coming down. So far it looks like 4-5 inches! Here are a few other "artsy" pictures I took. I have to credit inspiration to my friend Rachael who used to do this sort of thing anytime it precipitated.

First Kiss

I caught Jack in the act of practicing his kiss for his first date. You know you've done it too.

You Might Be a Mom if...

...Cheerios are strewn around your home like plastic eggs at Easter.

Yes, Jack has graduated to "table foods". Yesterday was his first non-gag experience with Cheerios. He hasn't learned to put them in his mouth by himself yet and only giggles when I try to place them in his hand, but he chews like a champ.

In other news, he now has 5 and 1/2 teeth. It really could be counted as 6, but it's just not all the way through the gums yet.

The Giant Jack's were finally able to hang out this weekend. Jack Marc met Jack White on Sunday night. I think they'll be buddies.


Lastly, this one is for our friends the Spitzburgs. Even though your "hoosband don't play no bongos", my boy plays some mean bongos!

The Gentle Giant

Today was Jack's 9-month check up. We love going to the pediatrician because we get to see Mrs. O'Brien. Jack really likes her and even gave her a great big smile when she first walked in even though it normally takes him a little while to warm up. Today he had a couple of firsts.

1) For the first time he didn't pee all over the room when we put him on the scale (he must be growing up!).

2) He was ON the charts! To give you an idea of his growth in height and weight since he was born I've filled out a little chart online. Click on this link and then push the "Graph" button at the bottom of the page to see a graph of his progress verses the national averages.

Yep, that's why Mrs. O'Brien calls him the Gentle Giant. We like to call him Goob. :)

Here he is, in all his rolling splendor.

Jack's Wagon and Friend

Jack was given a wagon for Christmas. We didn't think he'd be able to use it so much immediately since it is January and all, but today was his third outing in it. I think he really likes it.


Notice his propped foot in this picture.


Part of getting a new toy is learning to share...and with a 2-seat wagon it makes sharing easier. Today Jack took Anna Tilles on a chariot ride around the neighborhood. Who knows, this could be how he picks his dates up in the future!

Then we went to the park for Anna's first ride on the swings. She was a little taken back, but I think she really enjoyed the time.



Jack was his usual self, showing off for the camera. I have no idea where he gets that from.




He even posed for one with me!

Thank you Lord for 60 degree weather in January (and for two-person wagons)!

Christmas and My Daddy (by Jack)

Merry Christmas! I just had my first Christmas ever. Mommy and Daddy and all my grandparents were extra happy and did some weird things. First of all, Mommy and Daddy brought a sparkly tree into the house! I wasn't sure what to do with it, but it was fun to play with. They seemed to think it looked better with things hanging all over it. Those thingys sure did look tasty!

One of my favorite things about Christmas is all the messes everyone lets me make. I think because I'm getting older they finally let me play with paper. I liked tearing the paper because it made neat sounds.

(They can't prove it was me!)

Once all the neat paper was out of the way there were actually some more fun things under them!

The picture below is one mommy said you would think is funny. It has nothing to do with Christmas, but she asked me to include it. I don't see what's so funny about it.

And then there was the day that mommy accidentally put both my chunky legs in one leg hole! She seemed to think it was funny enough to make me stay like that long enough for pictures.

And this is the real reason I asked mom if I could write this post. I wanted to make sure my daddy knows how much I love him. My dad is the coolest daddy in the entire universe. The only problem is that daddy knows all of my ticklish spots.

I like to hang out with my daddy when he is working. I have lots of reading to catch up on anyway. My daddy loves books and he's taught me how to love them too. Right now I even know how to turn pages all by myself (ok, with a little help).

Some other things dad and I do is play tickle...

play peekabo...

more tickle...

read together...

and kisses (but his beard is usually tickly).

I love you, Daddy.