first trip to the pool...

mommy started her summer vacation on friday and we've already been having so much fun! and when she goes back to work, it is only for 3 days a week. so she wants to help me write more in my blogs!

anyway, i have been doing lots of new things in the last month. i have 8 teeth (i got 6 of them all in one week) and daddy brushes them every night, i am starting to furniture walk and to climb the stairs, i love elmo and attempting 'so big', i sit in big boy restaurant high chairs and in shopping carts, i can stand independently for between 5-10 seconds, and i am eating 3 meals a day (and i love baby lasagna!). i can even say "mama", but only when i really need something...

most notably, though, i am getting into EVERYTHING! i have mastered the art of opening drawers to desks and dressers (and i love to throw their contents onto the ground) and opening cabinet doors...so mom and dad have kicked their childproofing efforts into high gear.

in other inaugural news, i went swimming in a pool today! i was scared at first and kept reaching for mommy and daddy but eventually i was a pro! below are some pics at the pool and a few other random ones:

this one is my 'pool hair':

now i'm gonna go watch mommy make some homemade baby food...this should be interesting!

happy father's day, daddy!

dear daddy,

mommy tells me all the time that you are a 'stand-up guy'. at first i thought that meant you like to do stand-up comedy, but now i know it means you are a pretty special person (even though you ARE really funny and make mommy laugh all the time).

anyway, i think you are pretty special too. in these past 8 1/2 months, i have learned that you are SO good at putting me to bed at night, bathing me, playing with me, hugging me, snuggling with me, feeding me, and taking naps with me (you are REALLY good at that one!)...just to name a few of your talents.

and i know mommy loves you for putting up with her craziness (she said it, not me!) and her soon-relieved stress, and for helping her so much with all the household chores. most of all she loves watching your love for me grow deeper and deeper with every giggle and tug at your pant leg.

mommy sure thinks you are a wonderful man...and so do i. it makes me want to be like you now and when i'm all grown up, too! See what I mean???


I LOVE YOU, DADDY! happy first father's day!

friends, friends, and more friends

gosh this weekend was jam-packed with good stuff. friday night was an impromptu guest appearance by yours truly and Dad and Papa at the Lake Erie Captain's minor league baseball game for ITALIAN NIGHT! i did my best to look like i was visiting the Italian Vets Club...i think i pulled it off pretty well :) (ps, the beer in my hand was NOT my idea...ew...not til i'm 21, mom says)


on saturday, mom and i held our first playdate, and dad ran far, far, far away. far. we had 4 moms over with their 4 babies: Aunt Jenna and Nina, Aunt Kara and Kamille, mom's friend Jenine and Natalia, and mom's friend Tracy and Aubrey. you may notice i am the only one in blue...because i was the only BOY! sheesh...dad, why'd you have to run so far away?! at least charley was there! (ps, you don't see Neens in the picture below, because she was doing her favorite thing...eating!)


mom wanted to take a group picture but absentmindedly waited until the END of the play date to do so, and we were all soooooo tired and didn't really want to follow mom's agenda. like it or not, though, she wanted to show you all the silly pictures she took. below is my cousin Kamille and me. i was holding her in place so she didn't slide off the couch :)

then some more pals joined...Neens to the left, then Kamille, then me, and then Nattie. i think i was trying to comfort her from crying...but upon closer look, she was probably crying because i was SQUEEZING her wrist! woops! sorry, Nattie!

and finally, we have all the troops present below. Nina, Kamille, Me (I was even crying by this point!), Aubrey (also crying), and Nattie (not surprisingly, crying as well). kudos to Nina and Kami for not crying; they don't look sad, they just look so annoyed that our moms actually thought this picture would be successful...and as a result seemed to want to slither out of the picture!

i can't wait for another playdate...even if it is with all girls!!! i can wear pink with the best of 'em!

just kidding, dad ;)