Walking video

Watch out HEB shoppers, Caleb is on the move... Check out his cute walking video complete with dancing!

A Belated Merry Christmas

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! We did and so I'm just now getting around to posting..

Santa Claus came to visit Caleb!

Ooo! A cell phone!



That giraffe looks suspiciously similar to the one Daddy was putting together when we came home from our walk yesterday... It has squeaky ears - yippee!


Nana put jingle bells on Caleb's Christmas presents. Who cares what's inside when you have bells!

Needless to say, we had a lovely Christmas. Caleb has learned some fun new tricks. He can shake his head to say "no" although I'm not 100% sure he always means no. He knows it's guaranteed to get a laugh out of his adoring audience and so sometimes he really means no and sometimes he does it just to be cute. Hmm, cute. Let's see if I'm still calling it that in another 12m. We got to see Lily and Homer on their way to and from the Valley and even had a Christmas morning video conference with Bub and Amber. They'll be in town on Thursday and we are very excited to see them again.

We took Caleb into the Dr this morning b/c his ear infection is back. He's in good spirits and not too uncomfortable. I think we'll have a quiet New Years. We're looking forward to celebrating Christmas with Nana, Poppy, Bub and Amber this weekend. We're going to Maggiano's and then to the botanical gardens in San Antonio. YUM!

More Christmas pictures in the slide show. A happy New Year to you and yours...

Feed Me Seymour!

Here's what was written at the bottom of his daycare sheet today:

Caleb seems very interested in eating table food. He likes to assist the other children in eating! :) You might start picking up a menu and circling things that he can eat. He seems VERY interested!

My kid is stealing other children's food! Ugh! I sent him with three bottles, apple/pear sauce, green beans, carrots, yogurt plus the snacks I keep in his cubbie. This was for half a day! And he still wants more!

Not that I should be surprised. Last week I brought him in around 7:30am and several of the babies were getting fussy - breakfast is at 8am and they were already hungry. Ms. Ashley put some Cheerios out on the table and four of them scampered up to partake. Caleb was on the end and promptly ate all his Cheerios and then started elbowing his way down the table eating all the other babies Cheerios. I turned around and Mara was on the ground and Caleb was about to push McKenzie out of the way to steal the rest of her Cheerios! I rescued the girls and plopped Caleb back down with a toy. Mind you he'd already had a 8oz bottle and yogurt at home that morning.

How will I be able to afford to feed him at 16? He might eat me.

Crafty Momma

I am not crafty. As much as I'd like to be crafty, I'm just not. I'd love to knit or sew or crochet but several failed attempts have left me with the realization that my visual perception is too poor and my patience too short. I cook. I clean. That's my contribution to domestic goodness and I'm ok with that.

I had an idea earlier this week though to make Caleb some toys for Christmas. He loves simple things - I suppose all babies do. Tupperware lids, paper towel rolls and an empty wipes box entertain him for hours. I decided to take some empty water bottles and fill them with fun stuff - beads, glitter, other sparkly things (with the cap super glued shut so as not to come open). He can then shake, throw or roll to his heart's content. And it worked! I made something! And he likes it! I am way super proud of myself.

My other big win yesterday was Caleb's dinner. There's a recipe in my baby food cook book for a vegetable custard. I've tried twice before to make it and failed. The first time I thought the problem was that I'd used Enfamil instead of cow's milk. The second time I used cow's milk and the stupid thing still didn't set. Last night I tried again and it worked! I used half the amount and doubled the cooking time. I'm assuming there's a typo because Super Baby Foods has a very similar recipe and it calls for a much longer cooking time. Caleb loved the custard! It was his first time to eat egg and he gobbled it up (veggies were carrots, green beans, broccoli and peas). Hooray!

9m Checkup

Caleb saw Dr Ramirez this morning. He was 23 lbs 1oz and 28.5 inches. That's almost 90% for weight and 50% for height and head. We got the ok to eat all table food as long as it's not on the bad list (nuts, seafood etc). Caleb got two shots and handled it very well. Next checkup is 1 year!

9 months in, 9 months out

Caleb turned 9m old yesterday. Crazy, isn't it? The last 18 months of my life have been devoted to growing a healthy, happy baby. It's actually hard to remember life before him. I know that I spent a good 30 years without him but I honestly don't remember much of it. He is our whole world - as it should be.

He goes for his checkup tomorrow. We did see the pediatrician on Friday though. He has another ear infection. They weighed him then and he was 23 lbs even. I'm curious to see how tall he is tomorrow. I think that the %'s will go down for his weight and height now that he's mobile. Although we still have baby thighs to rival no others. That's where all the good tickle spots are though.

I have more pictures to post. Will try and do that later.

Christmas Pictures

Merry Christmas 2008!



The incarcerated Christmas tree



Mantle - also with baby gate

My Family Rocks!

Check us out...

The Acosta Family Dancers

Love,
Jan

2 for 2

Caleb woke up at 5:32am -- we're getting there!

Detective Mom and the Case of the 4 AM Screamer

We have a mystery at our house. For the last 15 days a certain little person has woken up between 4 and 4:30 AM and not wanted to go back to sleep. Eight months ago I would have told myself to shut up and be grateful but alas in the succeeding months Juan and I have grown accustomed to Caleb sleeping 12 hrs at night and the peaceful evenings and good nights of sleep it means for us.

At first I chalked it up to the ear infection. And then to being away from home. And then to being back home. And then to teeth. And then to being un-Ferberized. But by the beginning of this week I began to wonder if something else was a foot. We've tried several things to get back to normal - Tylenol, Ferberizing, letting him cry, rocking, getting up, feeding him. Nothing has seemed to work though and I was starting to wonder if this was the new normal. That would not make for a happy Mommy and Daddy for sure.

He's gone from four naps a day down to two naps in the last month. Thus, by 6pm the kid is dead tired. If you try and gently suggest a third nap though he wails. And a screeching wail at that - the dog goes outside to escape the noise! So, moving bedtime really isn't an option. I might be able to push him to 6:30 PM but certainly no later.

So there I was. Tired, confused and really at a loss for what Caleb's problem was. I spent a good part of Tuesday reading up on normal schedules and meal plans for 9m old babies. The hard thing though is that an average 12m old weighs 21 lbs. Mine is 9m (this weekend!) and over 23 lbs. He's not normal - he isn't yet ready for the big people food that one year olds eat but yet needs more calories than a typical baby his age. Hmm.

I finally decided to rework his daily schedule some and see if that helped. Here's the new plan:

6am Wake up - 8oz bottle
8am Breakfast - Yo Baby or Fruit (1 jar or 4 cubes)
9am Morning nap
10am Bottle - 8oz
12pm Lunch - Veggie and Fruit (2 jars or 8 cubes); Puffs or diced fruit
1pm Afternoon nap
3pm Bottle - 8oz
5:30pm Dinner - Protein and Veggie (2 jars or 8 cubes); Wagon wheels or diced veggie
6pm Bath
6:15pm Bottle - 8oz
6:30pm Bedtime

Sounds great, right? Works for me. Worked for him on Tuesday and guess what? This morning he slept until 5:22am! Woo hoo! Now, one night isn't proof that the new schedule will fix our problems but I'm hopeful. Ideally, he'd sleep until at least 5:45am but I'm not going to bicker over twenty minutes.

Stay tuned tomorrow - I'll let you know how tonight goes...

Caleb's New Favorite Things

1. The Dishwasher. He loves to roll the racks in and out and bang on the door when it's closed.



2. Standing up. He can move from the window to the Exersaucer and back. He even went from the saucer to the house the other day!



3. Shredding paper. Any paper, all paper.

Christmas Pictures - Round One

Tricky, very tricky. Getting a teething 9m old baby and an unimpressed basset to sit still and smile. Here are the first attempts at a Christmas picture. I find them pretty amusing. Knowing Caleb and Chloe you can easily see what all went on. Ho, ho ho...

Parents Night Out!

Juan and I went to dinner last night. Alone! Angelica graciously agreed to baby-sit the little beaver. We got to see her new car, visit some and then we were off. Dinner was very good (Truluck's - I absolutely adore good tomatoes and bleu cheese. Wow.) We got home and Angelica seemed unscathed. She said that our little darling was a good boy - ate his dinner and went right to sleep. Hooray for good friends and a nice evening out!

Speaking of Caleb... He's doing this new thing where he rubs his bottom teeth over his top gums. I guess they itch or hurt since the big top teeth are coming in. Both are through the gums and just starting to descend. Anyways, it makes a creepy noise (like teeth grinding) and he gets a odd look on his face when he does it. Freaked us out at first until Nana assured us it was normal. I'm still a bit annoyed that after all this drama all these baby teeth are just going to fall out. And then I have to pay him for them! Who came us with this plan, seriously?

Yesterday morning we tried to take Christmas pictures. The aforementioned teeth were an issue and so our Santa Claus (Caleb) was whiny and uncooperative. The reindeer (Chloe) actually did a better job of following directions. Perhaps I should try bribing Caleb with a doggie treat and see if that helps. I'm going to upload the reject pictures into an album. They may not be Christmas card worthy but they're pretty funny to look at. Caleb kept grabbing Chloe's antlers and pulling them off.

This morning Caleb and I went to the grocery store. He was good as usual. Juan's running a half-marathon and should be home in a bit. Caleb's napping now and I'm going to have breakfast and then do some laundry. This is my last week before Christmas vacation! Yeah!

Super Cool Baby Shoes

I love Stride Rite!

Caleb was soooo good at the mall. He let the sales guy measure both feet, stood up to let him feel his toes and put up with Mommy trying to decide which shoes were the cutest. We actually only had four pairs to choose from. It seems that Caleb has super extra wide baby feet and not a lot of shoes come in that width. Jonathan and I both had super wide feet as babies so he comes by it honestly. He seems to like his shoes and hasn't fussed or tried to pull them off. Success!

Merry Thanksmas

I'm excited that Christmas is almost here! Although, if you came to my house you'd think that it was already over! Caleb got to open his Christmas presents from Abuelita, Abuelito, Tia Adriana and Tia Lily over Thanksgiving. Then he came home and Nana let him have his big boy bibs. Juan already knows what he's getting from me. And to top it off, my present from Juan came in the mail yesterday (and I promptly opened it). What are we going to do on Christmas morning? Luckily, my baby has no concept of time and so my plan is to re-wrap everything and then act excited. The paper and boxes will be the highlight of his morning anyway.

Today my goal is to take Caleb to get measured for REAL shoes. It's getting cooler and he's standing more and starting to cruise a little. Thus, we need shoes. With traction. And preferably no laces. This should be interesting.

We've already made a quick trip to HEB and now Caleb is down for his morning nap. I'm making baby food (zucchini and yellow squash) and hoping to pick up the house a little before he wakes up.

If we find shoes I'll post a picture!

Thanksgiving Pictures in the Slideshow

I'm still missing some from the Valley - will add them soon!

Warm Fuzzies

Hope this makes you smile!

Each of the babies in Caleb's room at school has a "family board". It's a poster that their Mom and Dad put together with pictures of them and their families. Caleb's has pictures of Juan and I as well as his grandparents, aunts, uncle and Chloe.

When I drop him off at school in the morning I fill out his daily sheet. I have to put when he woke up, when he had breakfast and how much he ate, last diaper change, who will pick him up and when. Then as the day progresses Sarah fills in his nap times, meals, diapers etc. There's also a spot at the bottom to denote his mood throughout the day as well as a comment section at the bottom. The comments are usually along the lines of "Caleb ate leaves outside today while chasing his shadow" or "Caleb enjoyed chewing on the toy phone while chatting with Mara and Zoe". Here's what Monday's comment from Sarah said:

Caleb ventured off and found his family board this afternoon. He sat and touched all his family members pictures and chatted with them. Very cute!

So sweet!

Big Boy Pajamas

Caleb has some big boy pajamas thanks to his Nana. He looks like a toddler and not like a baby!
I have tons of Thanksgiving pictures - will try and upload them tonight.

A Grateful Heart

Happy Thanksgiving!

I Am My Father's Child

This post is sure to make Nana and Jonathan laugh so hard they cry.

We gave Caleb his Christmas present this morning. After only having it for one week the suspense was killing me and I begged Juan to let him open it now. And so we did. Caleb was super excited and immediately set about banging the truck on the floor and attacking the box.

Why did I want to give him the dump truck? First, because I have no patience for surprises whatsoever. It's genetic. And second, he's now pulling up to a standing position. Yup, you read that right. Standing. He crawls up to something, latches on with his baby fingers and up he goes. I'm proud and petrified - we haven't yet mastered falling.

Anyway, the dump truck is supposed to help with walking so I justified it by saying that it'll help him developmentally. Not sure what that means will be under the tree of Christmas morning. Perhaps a helmet...

You should check out the latest two videos - one of crawling and a new one of pulling up . Yikes!

Double Ear Infection with a side of Conjunctivitis - Hold the Mustard

When it rains, it pours. Caleb is being a good sport though and we're armed with antibiotics and eye drops. Hopefully, we'll get those germs on their way soon. He's sleeping now and we won't start the drugs until tonight. We're hoping he has no issues with the meds and that the side effects are minimal. It's a stronger antibiotic than they usually give because the infection is in his eyes, nose and ears. I'm a little worried being that he's never had any drugs before. We're hoping he's not allergic to penicillin and that things go smoothly. Keep your fingers crossed and I'll make sure I keep you updated.

Ear Infection in a Box

Caleb may have an ear infection. He has thick yellow snot and now his eyes are weepy and gooey. I called and the nurse said that Dr Ramirez needs to see him in the morning.

He doesn't have a fever but is in a rather irritable mood. Thanks goodness for Chloe and the box! Otherwise I don't know how we would have made it through today.

On a happy note, I'm wearing pre-preg jeans today for the first time. Hooray!

Why I Like Blogging

How about a fun Top 5 list for your cool Sunday morning?

The Top Five Reasons Why Jan Likes Blogging

1. I like to hear myself talk. And you reading this is kinda close enough to me talking. I think I'm rather witty and my kid is really cute.

2. Caleb doesn't have a scrapbook or a photo album and so blogging makes me feel less guilty for not documenting every nanosecond of his life. Although, I wonder if this blog is backed up. Do they sell blog backing up software? Can I download my blog and save it? Juan?

3. It has made me improve my html skills. I knew a bit of html before but I know much more now and see stuff everyday that makes me want to go and research how it's done. Wow, maybe she is a computer dork.

4. I love to read other people's blogs. It's like a good book about the people you love and an easy way to stay connected.

5. There's really not a fifth reason but the Top 4 just wasn't very catchy.

I know I promised baby pictures. I'll do that now.

Happy 8 month Birthday Scooter!

Our big boy is 8m old today. We took pictures but I left the card reader at work. I'll post them tomorrow.

Caleb Update

We've still got a fever. It was 102 around lunchtime so I gave him more Tylenol and fed him. He's scarfing down the solids but drinking very little milk. I tried cutting out solids think that would force him to drink more but no go. So, some milk and normal amounts of food are better than nothing. The fever should break by Sunday so hopefully then he'll be back to his normal self. He was up every three hours last night - something we haven't done since May! Wow, I am not ready for a newborn again any time soon!

Here are some pictures from this afternoon. Caleb is wearing his new outfit (12m) from Tia Adriana. He looks happy but it's just because he likes the camera flash. As soon as I stopped taking his picture he started screaming!

I See Spots

Well, I might see something that could be considered spots. There are like three tiny dots on his forehead. The beginning of a rash? Residue from lunch? Marks from where he wacked himself with the dinosaur? Who knows.

Caleb's done well today despite being sick. He's slept well, ate so-so and napped like a champ once he falls asleep. Falling asleep is harder than when he's well. He fights it more and wants to be held. I'm thinking we'll have to re-Ferberize once this passes. I'm not going to deny my sick baby a rock to sleep if thats what he wants.

We're tromping onward though. I ran the vacuum today and - as always- Caleb was totally mesmerized. He loves my Rainbow. I don't know if it's the hose or the noise of the fact that it rolls - maybe all three. I put him in the "cage" (pack-n-play) and he crawled all around watching me as I vacuumed. Whatever Trevor!

On a happy note, Caleb has learned TWO new tricks. Or at least is showing pre-trick indications. First off, he can wave! Really! I was changing his diaper today and I was waving to him and he kinda waved back. There's no concept whatsoever that waving goes with hello or goodbye but he can mimic what I'm doing. I tried to get it on video but he kept on crawling away rather than sitting still and waving. You'll have to take my word for it. Second new trick - he can crawl up in my lap. Talk about melting Mommy's heart! He crawled over to me today and then up in my lap. I picked him up, gave him a huge hug and a bunch of kisses. Mommy really loves her baby.

A few pictures from today - enjoy.

The Neurotic Mother Who Cried Tooth

This is the updated twenty-first century version of the little boy who cried wolf. You know, the one where the Mom swears for months and months on end that her baby is teething? And then nothing appears. Well, I promise that those top teeth are coming people. You can't feel them but they HAVE to be on their way with all the baby drama we have going on. He's fussy, cranky and chewing like a new puppy. I almost entitled this post "Our New Puppy" just because I could go on for quite awhile about how the child gnaws on everything he can get his fat baby fingers around. He cut his top teeth the first weekend in August. August! It's November! Where are our top teeth! I actually laid in bed last night wondering if Caleb didn't HAVE any top teeth. But I checked this morning and there's something up there. Just not out yet.

In a moment of Baby Orajel induced bliss today Juan recorded a cute video.

They're coming...

Halloween Pictures

Caleb wearing his Halloween onesie - it says "This is my costume".
The backside of the "puppy" - it's rather difficult to photograph a moving object.

Puppy was more interested in crawling and playing than sitting still for Daddy.

My babies!

Chose is very confused.

Love,

Jan

Happy Halloween!

Ah, Halloween. I've never been a big Halloween fan - I have nothing against candy mind you, I'm just not big on dressing up. I'd rather have real clothes than duck suits or a Marge Simpson wig. Parenthood has given me cause to stop and take a new look at Halloween though. What are little babies good for if not dressing up? He can't talk (and thus protest) and despite his new found mobility I'm still much faster than he is. It's perfect! I've been waiting for today for over a year now. My master plan was to dress up Caleb like Chloe and Chloe like Caleb. And, as I connected with my inner Martha, I was going to make their costumes myself.

Yeah. Notice all those past tense verbs? I've had a horrid sinus infections for two weeks now. Caleb has a runny nose and Chloe is already so traumatized by this baby brother thing I feel guilty making it worse by putting her in a diaper and head band. Finally at 8pm last night I started on the costume.

Anyway, I actually think his costume came out really cute. He hasn't worn it yet - today was a school day and then he was seriously overdue for a nap when we got home. He's still sleeping now so I'll wait until Juan gets home and then take some pictures. Chloe's been let off the hook this year.

So, we're on to next year! Raggedy Ann and Andy? Jack and Jill? CP3O and R2D2? I'm taking suggestions...

Move over Monet - Here come Caleb Rafael!

Caleb brought his first official piece of artwork home from school today.
It's a tree (obviously!) with leaves that are changing colors. Pretty creative for a child who has never seen a real season change, eh? Note how the fingerprints slowly trickle down towards the ground as if to symbolize summer's passing and autumn's arrival. Just like he's transitioning from infanthood to babyhood. As he becomes more and more mobile so do the leaves move on too. The alternating colors surely represent the inner struggle he faces as he struggles for more independence yet still relies on us for everything. I'm not going to discuss what the brown smear of tree trunk stands for. I'll leave that to you artsy types.

Ok, this is getting deep. Time to stop and go do laundry.

Caleb Goes To Camp

Caleb went to Camp! It was totally one of those full circle moments as a mother when you realize that your child is creating the same memories you had (and deeply treasure) as a child. I realize he's not going to remember it but I will, Juan will and Nana and Poppy will too. My baby went to Camp. He got to "walk" in the woods and listen for wild animals. It will be his playground as he gets older. One full of adventure and fantasy and hopefully not too many bug bites, four wheeler accidents or minor forest fires. Not that anyone in my family would do a thing like that anyway...



Needless to say we had a lovely visit with Mom and Daddy this weekend. Besides our trip to the great outdoors we watched the football game, did a little shopping and gave Caleb a haircut. Yup, a haircut! I'd trimmed the top a few weeks back because he was totally getting a comb-over. Poppy graciously offered to trim the sides and back on Sunday. Juan has a video on YouTube and despite it's name we did NOT eradicate the baby curls. I promise that all is well with our baby curls.

New photo album on the left - forgive the slobber, snot and basset hair. It's a losing battle.

Crawling Chaos!

He's on the move people. And wow is the learning curve steep.

Caleb started crawling on Tuesday. It's now Friday and he's a mad man! If it is remotely dangerous or not appropriate for a seven month old baby he is ALL over it. His current list of favorites include:

• dryer sheets
• curtains
• the poor, poor dog
• any cord, wire or other electrical thing
• the vaporizer
• dirt, rocks or leaves that have been tracked in by the dog

Nice. Silly old me thought that once her beloved first-born was mobile he'd joyfully turn and crawl towards HER as she clapped and called his name. Yes, she who endured 41 weeks of pregnancy only to be followed by 14 hours and 18 minutes of childbirth. (OK, so I had good drugs and it wasn't all THAT bad). No, no fair reader. When I try and get him to come towards me he simply smiles, turns the exact opposite direction and then high-tails it for the nearest illegal object at lightening fast baby speed. Lovely.

Here's an example. This afternoon Caleb and I were in the nursery and I was trying to change the sheet on the crib. I put him on the floor (I couldn't very well put him IN the bed if I was changing the sheet, right?) and was proceeding to untie the bumper (which we have to have or else he gets his fat baby legs caught in the slats). I'd untie and turn around and check, untie and turn around and check. He was slowly making progress towards the curtains. Fine, I had only a couple of ties to go and figured I'd finish before he managed to pull them down. So I finish and turn around and see this:



That's the bag of new diapers that I keep next to the changing table. He graciously pulled them all out of the bag and was slinging them around the room. And there's the super dangerous plastic bag to boot! Agh!

To quote my beloved mother, "At least he wasn't twins!"

There's a fun video of him crawling on YouTube and also another one from tonight.

We may have met our match....

IBM 10K

Look at us sporty types! Ok, so maybe sporty is a stretch but we did get up quite early and do the IBM 10K this morning. Juan ran, Caleb and I walked. We had excellent company to walk with - Angelica, Melva, Jennifer and Noelito. We had a nice stroller brigade going while Juan and Noel ran. Juan beat his time from last year and was quite pleased I think. Caleb babbled, kicked and tried to wiggle out of his socks when Mommy wasn't looking. He fell asleep about halfway though and napped until we finished and were back at IBM. It was a fun morning!

Here's a picture of Angelica, Caleb and I after the race.

We've had a quite afternoon since we got home. My boys (and Chloe - as always) are napping and I'm about to start dinner. The weather in Austin in beautiful. Finally a change from the heat.

We're already looking forward to next weekend when Nana and Poppy come to town. Perhaps Caleb will finally start crawling when his Nana's here...

Walking

I have a new goal: To be able to take a nice walk in the neighborhood with BOTH Caleb and Chloe. Now, those of you who are familiar with my beloved basset know that this is much easier said than done. She can't walk in a straight line to save her life, she enjoys peeing every five feet and she pulls really hard. Juan has tried again and again to make her walk like a civilized animal and in all honesty she does do pretty well with him. I'm another story though - I let her go as far as the leash will allow and pulling hard just means we all walk a little faster. To walk with Caleb though means that we had to first lay some ground rules.

1. No pulling.

2. Walk in a straight line (or as straight as the stroller driver walks)

3. When Mommy says stop, you stop.

4. Basset ears and front stroller wheels must be even. We all walk together.

5. No whining or slinging slobber on the baby.

Off we went! Well, until I opened the front door and realized it's (gasp!) kinda cool this morning. Door closed and baby was forced to put on pants and socks. Major whining ensued on both the part of the basset and the baby for the delay in travel.

Off we went again! Only to encounter a pug and it's owner walking down our street and just one yard away. We had to stop and let them pass. Mommy gave another pep talk to the troops.

And off we went for real!

We did pretty good for our first try. Chloe pulled. I corrected her. Caleb got the hiccups. Chloe whined. Caleb giggled. Stroller ran over Chloe's feet b/c she didn't stay in line. Chloe whined some more. Caleb chewed on the stroller straps. Chloe peed. I ran over the basset feet again. Caleb kicked. And so on and so forth.

We made it to the end of the street and back. I'm happy and ready to try again tomorrow.

Here's a picture. Hope you all have a good day.

Cranky Rasberries

So, in the past four posts or so I've mentioned that my baby is cranky. Well, he's still cranky. And no, it's not something we're doing (or not doing) to him. He's just cranky. Thankfully he's eating better so that makes Mommy happy but the attitude is not improving. He did take a break from his whining yesterday to blow some rasberries for me. Even when fussy, he's really very cute....

Happy 7 Month Birthday Scooter!

Mommy and Daddy love you very much!

Una Visita de la Familia!

This past weekend Abuelita, Abuelito and Tia Adriana came to see us! Caleb had lots of fun playing with them and laughing at Rocky. I know they enjoyed spending time with him as well.

Adriana got some really cute pictures!

This is one very loved baby...

We had a quiet rest of the weekend after they headed back to the Valley. Caleb played with his blocks and keyboard. Day care is closed today so Juan and I worked from home this morning and traded off baby duty between meetings. Caleb's still super fussy and cranky. No sign of those top teeth but if that's not the cause of his problems I don't know what is. We're hoping this is a passing phase - I want my sweet baby back!

Auntie Am's Visit

Pictures from our visit with Amber last weekend...

Caleb's New House

We got our little rug rat a Fisher-Price house! It's not big, just a glorified (and rather noisy) doorway but it has cool stuff like a window, doorbell, clock, rain spout and a radio. It's fun! Juan was Super Dad and put it (and the 1000 screws that it came with) together without a hitch. Caleb really likes making the door say "open" and "close". And chewing on the "mail". New pics in the album. Maybe Santa will bring him the accompanying cell phone and bird bath. I'm not joking - this house has accessories.

We think the top teeth are on their way. He's super fussy, super sleepy and isn't finishing meals. Something is going on for sure.

Hope everyone is having a good day!

Pictures, pictures, pictures

Here are the 12m pajamas that Nana and Poppy sent. They're a little long but fit everywhere else!


Here's a picture of our new entertainment center. I tried to get both Caleb and Chloe to sit in front but Chloe couldn't be bothered to interrupt her nap and pose.

And our big boy up on all fours!

Yikes

I was in the kitchen last night making Caleb's dinner while Juan gave him a bath. I heard all this excitable noise coming from the nursery so I trot down there to see what's going on. This is what I find:

Yes, that is my baby. Yes, he's standing on his changing table. And yes, Juan is only holding him up by one finger.

Yikes.

Chica Chica Boom Boom

A told B and B told C

Meet me at the top of the kitchen light.

Remember how about a month ago we bought Caleb a set of the foamy alphabet interlocking blocks? Well, tonight it was time to clean them. Basset hair, dirt, unknown substances and decomposed granite have all made their way onto and under the mat. My husband being the true engineer that he is took it upon himself to hang them out to dry in the most efficient manner possible. Pretty creative, eh?


They're all clean now and tomorrow we can reassemble the mat and go back to scooting and potentially crawling as normal. And it's clean. For our next child we may just bathe them with the hose and give a stick to use as a teether. At least Caleb can say though that we really did care about germs (or lack thereof) and tried to keep the rocks out of his mouth.

It's not like he can get much IN his mouth though as illustrated in the picture below. Those are banana puffs people.

He likes playing with the banana puffs - smashing them into the high chair and feeding them to the dog. Not so much interested in eating them and even if he was his aim sucks. This bodes not well for potty training...

I love my boys!