February 12th, 2009 — by dad
You are so fun these days. We just went to the playground for your friend Elizabeth’s birthday party. We went down the slide and you played on the swing. I sat you in a high chair for the first time (you didn’t like it). I take you to the gelato shop to “help” us make gelato. You can roll over pretty well now and you’re making high-pitched funny squealing sounds. You drank out of a sippy cup for the first time. You sleep in your big-boy crib. You have toys that you grab and play with by yourself. You are still drooling like crazy and you still don’t like your car seat, but you love watching us make faces in the mirror, you like bath time, you like to chew on everything you can get your hands on, and you love watching me do just about anything.
Last night was one of the best moments yet. We were playing on the floor with these little egg rattles you have. I dropped one on the floor and it made a loud sound and you started cracking up. You just laughed your little brains out for no real reason. You just thought something was the funniest thing ever! You, your Dad, and I just sat around in your room laughing and laughing.
January 18th, 2009 — by mom
Look at you! You have shoes on and everything! Soon you’re going to be walking around on those shoes. It’s crazy.
I like the 4 month old you. You’re fun. You are playing with, and then trying to eat or drool on, toys and books. You like to look at people, smile really big at them, and then turn away really quickly and bury your face in my shoulder. The first thing people say when they see you is either, “Look at those big eyes looking around” or “What a happy baby!” I don’t know if all babies are like that or if that’s just the way you are, but I like it. Curiosity and a happy disposition are qualities I deeply value in other people and it’s pleasing that those are two things people notice in you already!
I’m happy, too. I get to watch you learning and growing and laughing and that’s awesome. I’m teaching myself how to cook and I’m trying to make time to read and write and your Dad and I have been making it a point to go out to fun places. He’s working on personal gaming projects that he’s excited about. We’re about to inaugurate Barack Obama on Tuesday. The gelato shop is getting more business. Baby shower #2 plans are underway for Melanie. We’re thinking a lot about what 2009 will bring (Do you want to live in Japan? hmmmm) All sorts of things are going on!
RIght now, though, you just concentrate on learning to crawl and sit up on your own and we’ll take care of the rest. You’re getting close. It won’t be long now. I even see white teeth peeking through those gums. Slow down, mister! You just weighed in at 19 pounds, 12 ounces and are 27 inches long. You are well off the height and growth charts.
You don’t need to be in any hurry, buddy. You’ll get there.
January 2nd, 2009 — by mom
Last January you were a tiny hope. You were the possibility of being. Now here you are! Almost four months old! It is humbling what one year can do.
I was thinking about how glad I am that you were born in September because it meant that 2008 was all about you. I found out that you were definitely coming into our lives on your Uncle Adam’s birthday, January 15th. This coming January 15th will find you able to scoot across the floor (slowly), smile and, recently, laugh (that’s your new and, definitely, my favorite development that happens most often when I put the top of my head on your belly and wiggle it back and forth which makes my hair tickle your face. You love it for some reason). You can hold your head up without much struggle at all and you just rolled over for the first time! So much progress and so much more to come.
When I look at you, you feel like my earliest science lessons in potential and kinetic energy. Last January I felt like we were a science experiment. With each passing month I felt we were on a roller coaster creeping higher and higher up the first major hill. Your birth felt like an exhilerating plunge that sent you out on what will be the most incredible ride. Now that you are here, I feel like you are so full of energy – a ball set in motion, a roller coaster on a thrilling, white-knuckled, exhilerating…zoom! – and all I can do is try to keep up and help keep the train on its track.
Happy New Year, buddy! I hope each new year is a really fun ride.
p.s. I can’t include a special New Year’s picture of you doing anything celebratory because you slept through it. Way to ring in 2009!
December 25th, 2008 — by dad
HOLY CRAP LOOK AT HOW AWESOME IT IS!
IT’S SO AWESOME!
YOU CAN’T BELIEVE IT!
December 21st, 2008 — by dad
Just took a pretty fun 2-day trip to the Wilderness Lodge. The Christmas tree there is 7 stories tall. We rode a Surrey Bike and sung songs from “Hello Dolly” while I clanged a bell at passers-by. I made you sit through the hauntingly creepy boat-light show (at 9:35pm).
All in all we had a great time on a Disney Resort trip without going to one of the parks!
December 21st, 2008 — by dad
December 16th, 2008 — by dad
We can totally tell how excited you’re getting for Christmas! While we didn’t get you a Nintendo 64, I’m pretty sure you will flip out (someday) as a result of our awe-inspiring gifts.
December 11th, 2008 — by dad
…because you are eating it.
December 11th, 2008 — by mom
What a difference one week makes. Between week 11 and week 12 you have learned to suck just your thumb and not your whole hand, you have grown to be nearly 18 pounds, and you sleep through the night! Yay! For 6 nights straight you have slept eight hours, then you’ll sleep another couple hours after you eat something and you’ll have two good sized naps during the day. I find that I miss you sometimes because you’re sleeping so much!
Tonight you’ll officially hit the 3 month mark and I can’t tell you enough how much I love you and how much fun I’m having watching you grow and learn. At three months old I can already tell what a happy and curious little boy you are. People will comment on just how alert you are when we’re out and about. Your giant eyes just seem to be soaking up everything they see. I feel like I can actually watch your brain learning new things. You follow movement with your eyes and just recently started grabbing for things. The very best new development is your gargle voice. You’ll just talk and talk making funny sounds and then start to gargle. Then you’ll smile your fun crooked smile and it’s the best thing ever.
We’re busy getting ready for your 1st Christmas. We’re going to spend a couple nights at Disney World soon. You just saw your very first fireworks and I was afraid they’d scare you, but instead you stared at them and then flailed your arms and legs really big and smiled at the giant lights in the sky.
Motherhood has an interesting way of making you think about everything a little differently. I’ve felt much more forgiving and empathetic lately. I find myself saying about criminals on TV or people who are rude in line at the grocery store, “that guy has a mother, too” or “that girl once learned to suck her thumb, too”. For some reason, picturing someone as a baby with a mother of their own who once looked down at their child in amazement and adoration helps me be more understanding of people I might not have been otherwise. I saw the moment you first put just your thumb in your mouth and started to suck on it and thought how incredible and strange it is that we all develop the same skills around the same time. Around the world, babies around 3 months old are all figuring out how to hold their heads up, how to make their bodies laugh, how to suck their thumbs. If that’s true, in a weird way I find myself asking how can we not have peace in this world?
November 30th, 2008 — by mom
You slept through most of Thanksgiving, but did wake up long enough to see the turkey, cry during my toast, and then eat right along with the whole family at the table! I also had a first this Thanksgiving. I cooked my first turkey! You can see the three of us in the picture – you, me, and the turkey, Oscar. He looks pretty darn good, if I do say so myself…tasted good, too.
I have a lot to be thankful for this year, but you top the list, Jho!
