Land Down Under

Is Joey not adorable in his Steve Irwin hat? I mean, come on. Too cute. (We had to upgrade to this one already because his head is getting big.) It ended up being a nice day (after a noon-time sprinkle), so we played outside for a bit today. Joey spent the first fifteen minutes just staring at everything. And the airplanes still catch him by surprise.

This one is from yesterday, or maybe Wednesday? I can't keep track. Anyway, he was playing with his rings and hamming it up for the camera.

PS - I can't wait for my sister and her Nikon to come visit. Just imagine how much better all these pictures will be! Oh, yeah, and I can't wait to see G and Cupcake, too ;-)

Keep Talking

The picture quality is admittedly horrid, but if you listen closely, I think I hear a Nana in there.

There's Gonna Be Some Rockin'

Here's a little video from yesterday of Joey enjoying his rocking caterpillar. Another month or so and he'll have this thing movin' and shakin', giving Mom and Dad heart attacks with his fearlessness. Can't wait!

Breaking News ...

We can feel the beginning of a bud of a lower right front tooth. Stay tuned for updates and pictures as events warrant.

Ticket to Ride

For Christmas, Grandpa got Joey this adorable rocking caterpillar with squeaky ears/antennae. We found out yesterday that even the feet make noise! (Squeak, crinkle, and rattle.) Joey had so much fun on his "new" toy. That's the great thing about kids - they don't remember everything, so if they haven't seen a toy in a while, it's new to them. Must remember this when he's 2 and our house is being overtaken by the boy's things.

It's Growing

Take a close look at these pictures and tell me what's different. Seriously, I took one yesterday and one today, so clothes/bib doesn't count. I noticed Joey was standing up in the Exersaucer and just seemed to be towering over everything. I was looking at his legs when he was in it today, and they seemed all bunched up. That was when I realized there are settings on the Exersaucer so that as your child gets taller, the Exersaucer grows with him. So today we went from the lowest to the highest settings. Geez, Mom, let's try to stay on top of these things.

Cut My Hair

Who knew The Who would be so useful? Did a search in my husband's iTunes library (it's technically both of ours, but 95% of the music is his), and found the perfect title for this post. Can you even tell? (Compare to this picture.) Yesterday afternoon. Not even sure how much I cut off, but I'd put it at about 6 inches. Might be a bit generous, but definitely typical. I'll let my hair grow and grow and then get sick of it and cut it all off. Also very typical, when I got home last night I wasn't thrilled with it. But after I did it this morning I was happy again.

Oh, yeah, and I had fun playing with the boy today.

Imperial March

Nana, the pajamas fit perfectly. A little big, but since they're 12 months, I expected it. He looks so cute in them. Thank goodness we finally had some warm weather and he could use the short sleeve ones.

Thanks, Aunt Danielle, for the cute onesie! (And Aunt Katy and Ashtyn for the awesome Adidas pants.) Joey just loves the warm weather and letting his piggies breathe.

Wordless Wednesday: Smokin' Green

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

I was downloading pictures from today's excursion to the park with the Schulers when I realized I had some pictures I hadn't downloaded from the last few days. Joey had such a great smile in this one, I had to share it.

Today is an absolutely beautiful day, near 80, so our friends came over and we headed outside. So much fun! Joey and Sammy just hung out together in the strollers, looking at the trees and all the other kids playing in the park. They are definitely a pair of curious Georges!

We also tried out the swings today. Joey seemed to like it. I mean, no huge smiles, but no crying, either, so we'll keep at it. He must take after his dad, because he really didn't want to look at the camera at all. I managed to get this shot in, and it even looks like he's waving hi. He can't wait to show his favorite cousin Shae the swings!

Mr. Big Stuff

Yes, yes. I know I've already included a post this week which alludes to (or comes right out and talks about) how big Joey is getting. Well, now you get another one. This is the mat that's supposed to go on the bottom of the pack 'n play. Since we play a lot on the floor, and we have hardwood floors (not good for the head when he rolls/falls over), we use this mat. And it's already getting too small for him. (I remember when we used to put him to sleep the short way across the bassinet.) We'll have to invest in that rubberized flooring and just put it everywhere ;-)

After lunch today, I thought I'd play around with the self-portrait feature on my camera. The pictures totally came out like we were in one of those photo booths, so I went ahead and made them black and white and put them together. I was going to just put them together in a long line, but I figured that would take up way too much space on the blog. This looks cute, too. I especially love the candid nature of the pictures - Joey hiding his face in one, grabbing my nose in another. We do have fun together.

You've Got a Friend in Me

I introduced Joey to Brown Bear yesterday, and did he ever love him. I actually had trouble deciding which picture to post, there were so many great ones to choose from. But this one just captures his sheer joy at seeing that bear. It really was amazing. I'm not sure why I didn't introduce them sooner. Needless to say, I think they're going to be best friends.

After dinner, our two favorite babies were playing on the floor. Daddy snapped this amazing picture. Yes, we let them get that close, but only under even closer supervision. I'm sure Ginny won't mind all the tugs and pats nearly as much once the boy's dropping food everywhere.

Wordless Wednesday: Sensation Lilacs

George of the Jungle

Today was Joey's first experience on the John Deere. I think Daddy enjoyed it more than the boy did, but they both seemed to have fun. I'm not sure if Joey knew what to think, but there were smiles, so we'll try it again next time.

I've also been walking Joey around the yard, letting him touch the flowers and the tree branches. He loves to pull the petals off. I'm not sure what he's staring at in this picture, but it sure looks interesting, doesn't it?

Finally, since he is over six months, I thought now would be a good time for a reference shot. It seems easiest (to me) to see how he's grown when I look at him in his carseat. Check out Walkin' the Dog (3 months), Kung Fu Fighting (six weeks), and Dr. Feelgood (one week) to see the difference. He'll be off to school in no time.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

When Joey woke up from his nap this morning, he was  babbling away. So I thought I'd see what I could catch while he was waiting for "lunch" to be ready. I'd love to hear your take on what he's saying. (At 6 minutes it is a bit on the long side, so I totally understand if you don't make it all the way through the video.)

Shake Your Tail Feather

We went to visit Grandma and Grandpa today, and Grandpa had to show Joey one of his prize pigeons. This pigeon is absolutely beautiful - a full white body and silvery gray wings. And then Joey almost pulled out its tail feathers. Guess he's not old enough to really appreciate the pigeons yet. Right now they're still just something else to put in his mouth.

When we got home, Joey was playing with all his toys. But he wanted to make sure to wish Busza and Grandma and Nana and Nana Betty and Nana Haldaman all a Happy Mother's Day! We love you all!!

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To my anonymous mom ... thanks for guiding me over these last thirty-one years and for giving me all the tools I need to be a great mom. 

All Those Yesterdays

I have a little catching up to do, so before I get to my Mother's Day post, I thought I'd let you know what's been going on the past few days. Because I'm a tool, I'm keeping it in reverse chronological order, like you would see it if I had posted on the right days.

Yesterday was a bit chilly, and it looked like it was going to rain all day. But we had plenty of fun inside! Joey, as always, was trying to figure out how to put the toys of his Exersaucer in his mouth. He can usually get the sheep and the pig in just fine, but he insists on getting the green slider in, too, and that one just doesn't bend the right way. Eventually he'll figure it out.

This one was from Saturday morning. I absolutely love these jammies. They are so cute - little Snuggle-Saurus. They're "ferociously cute." And they don't have feet, so when it gets a little warmer, his little piggies will get a chance to breath. 

It was a little warmer on Friday, and Joey actually went the whole day in just a short sleeve onesie and pants. I really find this whole clothing thing amusing. If Joey's arms and hands feel chilled, I assume he's cold and put on a sweatshirt or long sleeve shirt. Hopefully summer will actually get here. Otherwise, I'll need to invest in more jackets (or laundry detergent).

As I may have mentioned before, Joey absolutely loves to put things in his mouth. He loves the alligator and aquarium Nana and Pop-Pop brought him. I think he'll love them even more once he's sitting up on his own and figures out how he can make the alligator go. Oh, and you'll be happy to know I bought him a Sesame Street remote control, so he has his own (that doesn't have all the electronics in it). And it helps him learn his numbers!!

Wordless Wednesday: I've Got No Strings

Have a Drink on Me

I was "cleaning" out my camera, and apparently I forgot to upload a few images. This one's from Sunday, I think, as we were getting ready to go food shopping. Joey's not great with the sippy cup, but we figure he'll only get better if he keeps trying. Don't you just want to know what secret he's keeping? (Daddy says the secret's in his diaper.)

This one is from this morning. Joey's been sitting up better all by himself. But I'm still not comfortable leaving him there for long, so in this one he's looking up at me as I play contortionist to make sure I'm there if he starts to fall over. I'm sure I'll get a better one soon, or at least when Daddy's home.

PS - If you pay attention to any of the photos we've posted recently, you'll notice the boy's no longer a red-head. Thanks, Nana, for scratching off all that cradle cap.

Daughters of Triton

Happy Birthday to my favorite big sister! I'm not too good with the emotional stuff; I'll leave the creative writing to you. But just so you know, I realized how old I am because 35 doesn't seem old to me. Not at all.

Have to go. Crying baby and all. Love you!

The Perfect Nanny

I just put my parents on a plane, or, more correctly, dropped them off at the airport. It gets harder every time. But we had so much fun with Nana and Pop-Pop. All the walks, and the flowers, and the gum massages. We can't wait to see you in June! In the meantime, here are a couple of pictures from yesterday and today.

I don't know if Nana was tickling Joey here or not, but whatever she was doing, he absolutely loved it! And it looks like Nana was having a good time, too.

Seriously, look at the shape of their heads in this picture. They look the same to me. Seriously. Rounded on the right (their left), and more sloped on the other side. It's crazy. Daddy is wondering how strong Mommy's genes are, and where all of his went (other than to making the boy a boy).

I Just Can't Wait to be King

Daddy went to Burger King for lunch today, and needless to say he got a crown for the boy. At least that's what he insisted. So I told him he had to give the crown to the boy and couldn't keep wearing it himself. Tina, my mom says you've been de-throned.

Everybody look left. Everybody look right. Everywhere you look I'm standing in the spotlight!

Flower Punk

Since I missed "Wordless Wednesday" (seriously? is this an actual blog thing or did you just make it up?), I thought I'd start with a pic of my tulips. These are in the backyard along the garage. I had no idea we had planted that many already, in only the two and a half years we've been here. And by we, of course, I mean our anonymous mother. So many different colors, and the bleeding heart bush we transplanted is doing really well.

These are from today, with Pop-Pop and Nana. Joey had is six month check-up, which meant three different vaccines. But he took them like a trooper. The last one is always the worst, and I thought Nana was going to start crying when Joey did. Too cute. But all is good. He's measuring "normal" for weight, and between 75-90th percentile on length and head circumference. It's all that edumacation he has.

I also had them pose for a "family" portrait yesterday, Joey, Nana and Pop-Pop. This was one of the out-takes, and I just thought this face was classic. Hope you like it, too!