Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Cheeseburger in Paradise

This first picture is the obligatory airport shot. It's just a little bit easier to travel when there are two adults. But only a little easier. It's tough when you're used to doing things your way and now you have to occasionally acquiesce to someone else's ways.

Yes, this is a hamburger. McDonald's happy meal.

And this one is just a little teaser to some of the great shots from Colorado. I'm finally back in Chicago, but leaving again Saturday morning, so hopefully I'll get most of these up before then.

Friday, September 25, 2009

Land Ahoy

Last night was bath night, and I am continually delighted at how much Joey absolutely loves the water. He was splashing and clapping and kicking. I think he's starting to train for the Olympics.



And then this morning he was back to practicing his new tricks. He was climbing all over the tv stand yesterday, but only getting to a kneeling position. Today, he stood up!

Thanks to Kiddie Junction and Aunt Christina for helping him practice!!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Don't Be Afraid of the Dark

So Joey's finally done it. He's crying and doesn't want to go to sleep, and I went up to check up on him and he's standing up! Probably doing it right this second as he cries some more. (Hopefully he can get back down, or he's going to be stuck for a while.) I promise, there will be pictures in the morning (if he's standing up then).

Stacks

Joey was having fun playing this morning before heading to daycare.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Play the Game

So as I may have mentioned before, Joey's been pulling himself up onto his knees. He was particularly adept at it today. Not sure if it was because he didn't have pants on, or he's just getting better. But that was only the beginning of the surprises he had in store.

Joey can put the rings back on the post! I saw him putting the yellow ring back on the table, which I was able to snap in the above picture. But then I sat him down and put the full Fisher-Price version in front of him and he was so happy. Putting the rings on, getting lots of congratulations from Mommy, kicking his little feet in joy.

And again at bed time, he did not want to go to sleep. He contorts into the strangest positions sometimes. I swear I've seen him touch his head to his butt. Ah, to be young again.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Wave Bye Bye

Joey loves to crawl. He's still not up on all fours, but he just can't get around fast enough. He's even figured out how to move the gates out of the way. Done the hall, into the kitchen. He loves moving!

And look at those little feet. I don't know how he does it, or why, but he pushes off with his right toe. Always his right big toe. Never the left. It's so cute!

While he was playing on the little push car that his Cousin Shae gave him, I told Joey to wave "hi" to all his adoring fans. He was more than happy to oblige.

Then it was bedtime. (We took a bath first, and Joey splashed and splashed and got Mommy soaking wet. But we had a great time!) Joey has finally figured out how to pull himself up on his knees on the side of the crib, where he'll occasionally position himself so that he can scream louder for Mommy and Daddy. So we put the crib down as far as it will go. And he still was almost able to pull himself up. We're planning on putting the exercise mat down on the floor, just in case.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Vamos la Maquina Roja

Are you ready for some football? Joey is!

But first, we went for a visit to see Joey's great-grandparents. Once again, Grandpa busted out the pigeons, but Joey was more interested in the ceiling fan Daddy accidentally turned on when he was trying to turn on the light.

I was able to get him to smile for the camera.

And, of course, the obligatory great-grandparent shots. We don't see them nearly enough, so I try to make sure we capture those moments.

Grandma really wanted to hold Joey. That lasted about two minutes. He's so much dead weight, don't you know?

Joey was ready to watch some football ...

real football. Go Fire!! (One day we'll take him to see a Bears game. In the meantime, he'll have to settle for HD.)

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Hangin' Out

Knowing that I've been slacking a bit on the posting, I took a picture a couple nights ago while Joey was sleeping. Seriously, I don't know how the flash didn't wake him up, but it didn't. And then I never got around to posting it, but I figured since I risked waking him up to take it, you all deserved to see it.

I finally got around to taking some pictures yesterday. Joey just loved that while sitting on the couch he could reach the tissue box. Not sure what's so special about the tissue box, but he loved it!

Then this morning he and Daddy were just chilling watching tv. He looked so comfortable just sitting there. And Daddy was enjoying himself, too.


Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Dewy Drops of Spring

I promise. I'll post more pictures of the boy soon. Things have just been crazy around here. In the meantime, I have a morning conference call, so I had a few extra minutes at home to snap the above picture. It's pretty impressive, if you ask me. I've had more growth on my rose bushes in the last month than I've had all summer. The combination of rain and cool (but not cold) weather has been a pleasure to my gardens. And yes, I got the gerbera daisies to rebloom, numerous time, actually. Thanks for all the hard work, Mom and Dad!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Billion Dollar Babies

The outfit Joey had on yesterday was just adorable. I think it was another Laura Ashley ditty that Nana got him. Little clam-diggers and everything. Joey loves pirates!

This weekend is Laura's bachelorette party, and Christina flew in from Boston to help celebrate. Since Joey was asleep, Christina held little Diego all night long! (Nicole and Diego came out to visit after she picked up Tammy from the airport.)

Little Diego was so tired!

And here's Joey this morning, while he wasn't eating his breakfast again. This boy is just so stubborn! (Does he take after Daddy or Mommy? Or both?)

PS - Happy Birthday, Dad/Grandpa!

Friday, September 11, 2009

Moonlight Swim

Apparently I gave birth to a little fishie and not a human. He loves the water!

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Just Feel Better

My wonderful husband sent me this picture this morning of better times in the Burger household. Unfortunately, Joey's feeling a bit under the weather. After waking up this morning, Daddy got him dressed and tried to feed him, but Joey wasn't having any of it. Daddy put him down for a second in his crib, and the next thing you know Joey's sleeping again! He had a little cough and just was exhausted. A quick call to the doctor's office and we find out the cough is going around. So Daddy gets Joey some Triaminic, and we're feeling better already.

At least that's how I heard the story through brief phone calls and text messages this morning. I'm still in California (in Redding and Sacramento), so I have to let Daddy take care of everything. It's so hard not being there!

Monday, September 7, 2009

Things to Do Today

Look! Grandpa actually is holding Joey!! (Sorry the photo is out of focus - not sure what happened. I guess I need a new camera.)

And then the festivities began. Apparently there was just a mix up on the date, and everyone thought the party was today. Since Joe and I weren't doing anything anyway, we figured why not. Sammy J was interested in the adult beverages; we will definitely have to keep an eye on him and Joey as they get older.

And they loved playing together. It was so cute because they took turns "patting" each other on the head, trying to figure out what was going on. Sammy's a bit better crawler, so when it got to "fighting" over the toys, Sammy tended to do a little better.

The rest of the crew showed up a little later. Yes, these pics are from the same day. As the sun went down, it definitely turned cooler, so we had to bundle up. But they all played together so well - it was great!

We'll have to make sure we're in good shape before we have any more parties. Between soccer with Anabel and chasing the twins, the adults get a great workout, too.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Kids on Holiday

Today was a good day. We had plans to have some friends over, which never materialized, but we had fun anyway. We tried to take a family photo, but Ginny wasn't having any of it, and Joey didn't necessarily want to look at the camera. Oh well.

Ginny had no problem posing on her own, though.

And Joey and Daddy had so much fun just hanging out, listening to the music and clapping along. It was a beautiful day.


Saturday, September 5, 2009

Orange Crush

My concern last night about putting the baby down at 6:30 turned out to be all for naught. He was a little fussy at 3, which is (unfortunately) the norm right now. He started crying a bit at 5:30, so before he even woke up fully, I went down and fixed his bottle. Joey drank the whole thing and went back to sleep. UNTIL 8:00!! The only "unfortunate" thing about Joey sleeping in today was that I had already made plans to meet up with Connie and Chris for a 9:00 brunch. So I couldn't sleep until 8:00 with Joey. (Seriously, he must have been exhausted.)

Anyway, we met Chris and Connie at the Orange at Clark and Fullerton. At 9:00, there isn't much of a crowd, so we were seated right away. (I've waited anywhere from 30 to 60+ minutes to be seated at Orange before. But it's worth it.) We got the Frushi (yum!), and then each had a different form of eggs. The only one who ate pancakes was the baby, and he only ate one of his, so Daddy had some leftovers when we got home. (Orange is known for it's pancakes, so it's almost sacrilegious that we didn't even get a side stack.)

We all had fun, and, as usual, all of the wait staff wanted to play with the baby. Daddy was just a little upset to find out I didn't wake him up for Orange - but he got over when he found out I brought leftovers home.

I forgot to mention - I had a big open mouth smile for Joey, trying to get him to smile for the picture. Instead, Chris smiled big with his mouth wide open. Pavlov would be proud!

Friday, September 4, 2009

Little Baby

I just updated my Baby Counter with the newest addition, and all I can think is, really? That's it? After a year of babies, we're done?

Folsom Prison Blues

Joe is still (unfortunately) furloughed on Fridays, but it does mean he has time to do a few chores and errands. Today he went out and bought the extra large play yard we've been talking about for days. It'll be really great to have, especially on those days when I want to do a little cleaning, but don't want to worry if Joey's getting into the vents or pulling on the internet cable.

As you can see, he had fun playing in it, and even was willing to hang onto the rails. (Full disclosure - he didn't pull himself up, but one of the reasons I wanted to get the play yard was so that he's maybe encouraged to try to pull himself up.)

He didn't exactly love it completely, but he did have fun peeping over the top at the television. And was Ginny ever confused. I've never seen a dog so excited and try to get INSIDE the "cage."

And once again, Joey was exhausted. I think he went to bed at 6:30 tonight. Here's hoping he's not up at 5:30 for good. I can deal with getting him a bottle, as long as he goes back to sleep for at least an hour. Keep your fingers crossed.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Kick It Out

Joey had so much fun in the bath tonight. He was kicking and splashing. But I don't need to tell you ... just watch the video!


And after all that splashing around, we were beat. Joey drank his bottle and was out.

Sweet dreams!