Daddy's Hurricane Update

We still have power. The rain has been steady but reasonably light. PEPCO is one of the worst utility conglomerates in the country. We routinely lose power after normal rainstorms, so I'm sure it's coming. We stayed home all day today, likely will tomorrow as well.


Austin is enjoying the full-time attention. We played a lot today. He likes to ride on my shoulders. Also when I put him on the bed, we play chase--he throws himself forward and crawls away from me, I run around to the other side of the bed (where he is heading), and he squeals and throws himself the other way.

He climbs the stairs like a little monkey, full speed. Today he took off from the living room, climbed to the 3rd floor, down the hall and up the stairs to the 4th. I had to move pretty fast to keep up.

Being a daddy is awesome.

Jail Break

Nope.  No one's watchin'.

First step.

Almost there...

Fun Food Facts

Austin decided he likes pasta...at least he likes pasta tonight.  He has never eaten any kind of pasta, so this was new.  I'm fairly certain it had something to do with the fact that Daddy was eating a plate of spaghetti.  Somehow, things taste better when they come off Daddy's plate.

Austin loves his food and really thinks it is a mistake if someone is eating and he isn't.  Mrs. Fran told me today that when she eats her cereal and fruit, she has learned to fix two bowls so she has something to give Austin when he inevitably shows up wanting to join her.

Typical Night with a Busy Little Boy

Sorry for the orientation on the second video.  Just turn your head sideways to watch the first half of it.  It's worth it!

In Other News

I received an award at work.  I'm sure you will all be very proud of me.

Fun Food Facts

Austin recently discovered peaches.  They may actually rival CAKE in their popularity.  It all started when Mrs. Fran put a peach on Austin's tray and turned around to take care of one of the other children before she cut the peach for him.  When she turned back around, he was holding a fully cleaned peach pit.  She saved it for me to see, and I wasn't sure I believed her.  I've given him a peach, and I believe her now!

Here, Austin is trying to find the pit in a pear.

Crib Notes - Music Hour

I think music hour should be every hour.  You've seen how much rhythm I have.  I tried to explain to Mrs. Fran that we should have music time all day, but she just didn't understand.  I had to take matters into my own hands.  I figured out how to turn on the CD player.  Every time Mrs. Fran turned it off, I crawled over and turned it on.  Then, Mrs. Fran moved the CD player.  Hmmmm...  I'm still trying to figure out how to overcome this obstacle.

This is my new music player from Papa Mac.  I can turn this on whenever I want to.

Crib Notes - Bath Time

Now that I'm a big boy, I get to take a bath in the big boy bathtub!  No more baby tubs for me!  I can have so many more toys in the big tub.  I play so much, that sometimes I get thirsty.  Lucky for me, it is easy to find water in the tub!

Because I'm One

I’m one. I’m a big boy now. Do you know how I know that I’m a big boy?

Because I weigh 21 lb 3.5 oz and am 32 inches tall. Notice I’m not “long” anymore. I’m “tall” because I can stand up all on my own.

Because I have 7 teeth.

Because I can crawl super fast. I can even crawl straight up the stairs.

Because I can pull up on everything and cruise along the furniture.

Because I get to take baths in the big boy tub.

Because I can feed myself…sort of…well, I really like to have a spoon in my hand at dinner time. And most of the time I get the food to my mouth when Mommy loads the spoon for me.

Because I know how to use a sippy cup all by myself. And my bottle. And I can get Cheerios out of that non-spill bowl without help. Nemo likes when I do that because that bowl really will spill.
Because I can say "hello" and "uh oh."  I can also say dada and mama.  Mommy doesn't think I associate those sounds with meaning, but Daddy knows better.  He knows I'm calling his name.

Because I know how to give big hugs and huge, wet kisses.

And because Mommy tells me I'm a big boy, and Mommy is always right.  She wants to know when I learned to be so big and tells me to quit growing up so fast.  Her eyes usually get really shiny when she says this.

Crib Notes: Happy Birthday to Me!

I LOVE birthdays! Especially mine. Why? Because birthdays have CAKE! And friends! And Sassy! Mommy says birthdays also have presents, but I was really interested in the CAKE and the people.

I was worried that my birthday party would be cancelled. I woke up on July 23rd with a 103.5 fever. Daddy, Mommy, and I ended up in our favorite room in the ER. Apparently, I had a virus. Mommy said that just because we were in the hospital last year on July 23, it doesn’t mean we need to make a trip back every year on my birthday.

I woke up feeling a little better on Sunday, and Sassy helped me feel lots better. You have to have a lot of energy when Sassy is around because she really likes to play! I took a long nap in the afternoon. When I woke up, the house was full of people. It didn’t take me long to wake up. There were other kids there. Jonathon and Jacob brought cars! I helped myself to them and played vroom vroom with the big boys. Johnny is so big. He’s almost as big as Carly, but he still let me play Legos with him. And Stella was so pretty. I tried to play really close to her.

Aunt Kay made a CAKE that looked like KeyKey. How did she know that KeyKey is my favorite toy in the whole, wide world?

Aunt Liza and Uncle GB brought presents. They sure know what a little boy likes. I love playing with my puppets and still beg mommy to get them out of the closet every time she opens the doors.

All the ladies at the party thought I was cute! I made them laugh and laugh! It was so much fun. Mommy even let me stay up past my bedtime because I was having so much fun.

Sassy said she has never seen a 1 yo have so much fun at his birthday party. I don’t really have the time to do this parallel play that the experts talk about. I’m ready to get right in the middle of the action and interact with everyone. I mean, everyone says life is short. It really must be because this past year has just flown by!