Point Reyes

On Saturday, Feb. 13th, mom and I joined Grandpa, Teri, Mari and Marisa in celebrating Grandma Joan's birthday. The day started at the Farmer's Market area, where the adults looked for goodies to take home. Mom and I spent some time looking at the animals that some of the farmers brought. Here I am petting my first rabbit. I wasn't sure what to think about it, but I got a few pets in.
Most of the morning, we roamed around the town looking in shops and I got to makes eyes at all of the people passing by. Many of them loved my new monkey hat from Teri, purchased that day in Pt. Reyes Station. Below I am getting a shoulder ride from mom, which is one of our favorite things to do together now.

After hiking for a bit in Pt. Reyes State Park, we went back to town to eat. My teeth were bothering me a bit, so I took turns eating bites and chewing on Sofie.

Since I actually slept for most of the hike, I enjoyed a little time walking after lunch.

It was nice to spend some time with Aunt Marisa, we don't get to do it nearly enough.

We finished the day by having celebratory dessert at a nice restaurant. I got to try some butterscotch creme brulee from Aunt Mari. It was super delicious. Come to think of it, I think it was my first dessert ever! WOOHOO! I have to hang out with these ladies more often. Towards the end of the evening, it was harder and harder to get good pics of me; although, Aunt Mari did her best and mom was very grateful that she remembered a camera. I don't remember what Grandma Joan and I are looking at here, but it was amusing...

When we got home that night, I was crawling around and slipped. My face hit the ground and i got my first busted lip. When mommy got to me, my mouth was full of blood. Daddy calmly brought me to the kitchen and cleaned up my mouth. They were thankful to find only one small cut caused by one of my bottom teeth. I was pretty upset though. I just wanted to be held by my dad and given a wet cold rag to suck on. The good news is that after some cuddling and a bottle, I was asleep in no time and the next day I didn't even remember what happened.

A few outings worth mentioning

February has been a busy month so far!

On Saturday, Feb. 6th, we went to our friend Richard's 30th birthday party. I was a bit tired and a little shy of the adults, but it quickly turned around when I saw Richard's gorgeous nieces and young friends. There were several kids to play with. I sort of fell for this one girl, Odessa...she is Richard's niece. She had on a pretty blue and white striped dress that I had to get my hands on. Odessa also said she liked the way I "slithered" across the floor. She may be 3 years older than me, but I think we had a connection. Mom and dad took me home before cake, because it was way past my bed time. So, I couldn't nail down any digits, but I have a feeling that I will be seeing her again.

Superbowl Sunday was a little excitement to our otherwise mellow routine. Mom and dad took me for a run around the MacDonald Mansion neighborhood. Dad was telling someone something about burning off calories before eating junk and becoming a couch potato (whatever that means). The weather was beautiful though and we opened all of the blinds to enjoy it from inside. Mom and I played most of the afternoon while dad made comments at the television. Our friend Jeff came by before work to watch some of the game with dad and to play a bit with me. I am usually a little nervous when someone new comes around, Jeff seems to really "get" me. He lets me warm up to him from across the room first, then he lets me make the first move in the friendship. By the end of his time at our house, I let him hold me and hang out. That evening we were fortunate to also see our friends Emily and Chloe. I slept part of the time that they were here, but in the end I got to spend a little time with them as I ate dinner and they caught up with mom and dad.

Wednesday, Feb. 10th, dad's best friend from high school and his family visited. Ben and Cat now live in Maine with their kids Joshua and Hannah. They were really nice and I was immediately drawn to Joshua. He played a little with me and my toys at the house and he told some great stories. Hannah was a little more shy, but she was very sweet. We went out to dinner at Mary's Pizza. Mom brought cheerios for me, so I didn't get to order off the menu like everyone else. In fact, I thought that everyone maybe needed to pay a little more attention to me, so I started yelling in the restaurant. I wasn't upset, I just wanted to exercise my voice a bit. Mom was thankful that the restaurant was big and loud anyway, but nonetheless she shushed me a few times. What really made me stop, however, was her picking me up and playing with me. Hannah ended up falling asleep on her daddy's lap and I showed signs of tiredness, so the night ended early. Dad was very happy to have seen his old friend again though.

On Friday, Feb. 12th, we went to our regular mommy walk with Becca and Violet. This time Violet was extra talkative and smiley. She seems to be maturing a bit and becoming more comfortable in her own skin. In fact, instead of me grabbing her hand, she actually reached for mine this time. I was a little caught off guard. Mom thinks it is adorable and kept commenting on how cute Violet is. I have to say, I agree with her!

Crawling to my favorite room in the house

I have a new crawl and everyone seems to love it. I am now on my knees and forearms. Grandpa Paul and Grandma Kathy think I move my legs at double the speed of my arms, which creates a fun little wiggle.

Mom and dad can't believe how fast I can go and it seems like every chance I get, I am headed for one of two places: Emma's water bowl, or the bathroom. Once in the bathroom, I head to the bath tub to pull myself up and try to turn on the water, or I head to the toilet to play with the bolts, or try to flush the handle. On a good day, mom or dad will forget to put the toilet seat down, and I can try to reach my hand into the water.

I do also have a new game called hide and seek from around the door frame. I will crawl out of the room, checking first that everyone is looking at me. Then, I crawl around the door jamb, just out of sight of those in the room, and I sit very still. When they ask, "Where is Tanyon?" or "Where is the baby?", I will lean my head around the corner and laugh at them. I won't let them see me for too long though. I quickly go into hiding again and wait for the magic questions.

Overnights in Middletown

Lately, you will find me in Middletown on Friday nights. Grandpa and Teri watch me while mom and dad have a date night. It has been a blast! One night this month, I got Teri one-on-one the entire evening. The next time, I got to hang out solo with Grandpa Matt. In Middletown, we hang out with the animals. This last month they had some new arrivals for me to look at. Baby lambs are being born weekly. They are so cute! The older ones sometimes bleat loudly and scare me, but these little ones are right up my alley.

Mommy's turn to blog

Tanyon was kind enough to let me write this blog. Every now and then it is nice to hear about what Tanyon is doing from the adults in his life...

Today was a fun day.
It started out like many other Thursdays. I went to the gym for a spin class and Tanyon hung out at Kid's Club. After a few fussy experiences at the gym, Tanyon turned a corner today and did quite well. He still requires a little extra attention from the caregivers at the gym, than the other kids, but he is only 10.5 months for goodness sake! He did just break his 6th tooth today, though. So, maybe that contributed to some of the prior fussiness?

We went to the grocery store and picked up some new foods for Tanyon to try. Spinach and brown rice proved to be a hit at lunch time. He also got his first goat's milk bottle, which he took like any other bottle he has had before.

At Trader Joe's, he also got his first balloon. For weeks now, he has been obsessing over balloons in every store that has them (which seems to be everywhere, since it is almost Valentine's Day). When he sees a balloon, he lurches backwards and yells out a deep throated, "ohhhhhhh." This is followed by many more grunts, reaching out, and somebody nearby chuckling. Taking the balloon home provided us with lots of entertainment. Although he didn't pop the balloon, I think his little teeth put a hole in it, because it was nearly deflated by the end of the day. Eventually, I had to hid this poor dying thing, so that he didn't eat the leftovers. I am pretty sure he can't wait until our next trip to Trader Joe's to get another.

However, the best experience of the day had to have been Tanyon's "first walk" to the neighborhood park. I put on his shoes and let him lead the way. Gripping my fingers tightly, Tanyon barrelled down the sidewalk. We were cruising at a good pace until we came to a tree. Tanyon stopped, looked up the tree and grunted. He is fascinated by trees and leaves lately. After inspecting the tree thoroughly, he continued down the sidewalk until the next tree (10 feet away). He stopped and screamed out "ahhhhhh." Once he was satisfied that he had sufficiently asserted his dominance over the tree, we continued on. Unfortunately, we were also stopped by a telephone pole. Who knew that telephone poles were so interesting? Well, I knew this walk was going to take longer than most, but this was comical. We hadn't even left the space in front of our house yet! Tanyon encountered several more obstacles for the next couple of blocks: leaves, cars, bushes, neighbors, a mailman, and a huge truck. All of these made him stop and take them each in. Tanyon was able to walk for about a block before I had to pick him up for a break. When we finally made it to the park (3.5 blocks away), he hit the swings. However, there were other children playing, which trumped anything else, in terms of interest.

It is so amazing to experience things for the first time through Tanyon. I was amazed at how much he took in from just a little walk through the neighborhood. How lucky I am to get to experience these things with him!

Note: I think I have fixed the problem with the videos, but please let me know if you are still having problems viewing them.

Lunch hour with Grandma Deanne

Last Thursday, February4th, Grandma Deanne came by on her lunch hour. I was so excited, that I dressed up in my new polka-dot shirt. We had a great time catching up. There were lots of smiles and hugs. I want to thank the Lunch Ladies at the Central Kitchen for letting her come by, and for checking out the blog so diligently. Maybe we can all meet someday...

My new teeth have been so fun. Lately, I discovered how to grind them. Although mom thinks it is funny, she is worried about the dental work it may cause down the road...

Life's too short not to smile and enjoy it...

Pseudo Walking

This toy was a gift from our friends, Emily, Chloe, and Jeff. Mom and dad were not sure that I was ready for it, but I sure proved them wrong. When they first set up the toy, I was more interested with the front of it. This is because I had no idea that you could push it and walk. Once I got the playing out of the way, I immediately set to walking around. Check out the gusto with which I approach this pushing! Unfortunatley, I don't have the steering quite figured out yet. And, right after this video was taken, I slipped and hit my head. It made me too sad to try again that night, but rest assured, I resumed playing and pushing the next day.

February 1, 2010

Frog March

My new favorite pastime is taking a hold of my mom or dad's hands and marching through the house. Aunt Sheila refers to this as the Frog March. It is a blast! I can't believe my parents don't want to do it more often. Sometimes when these adults try to hold me too long, I will screech and wail until they put me down to walk. Don't think that this is an indicator that I am ready to walk on my own though! I am quite nervous to let go of even one of my helper's hands during this process. I guess I have a bit of confidence left to gain before attempting this on my own.

Time with Aunt Sheila

Last Saturday (1/30/10), Aunt Sheila came over for a coffe and a chat. Mommy tried to talk with her and catch up, but I was quite successful in capturing and stealing my dear auntie's attention. We had big fun playing on the floor. Here I am after going through the recycling. Aunt Sheila made me some awesome box shoes out of our findings.

Cheerios

I am so thrilled...mom has begun feeding me Cheerios. She wasn't sure I could handle them, but thought she would let me try them with very close supervision. From the moment I put the first one right in my mouth and chewed, we knew we were both hooked. I think they are delicious, and mommy is happy that they provide so much entertainment. Now, Cheerios seems to be the way I start my meal (while mom or dad is preparing the other food) and how I end the meal (just for a little fun).

First Cheerios: 1/30/10

New Trick

I didn't know you could do this with your mouth. It makes such an awesome sound! You should try it asap. I promise, once you try it, you will also be spending most of your day perfecting it!

1/30/10

Reading with dad

1/24/10

I have been more interested in books lately. Of course, I am still a bit particular as to which ones I will sit through. Mom usually reads me books before I go to bed. Dad likes to make comments about the books from the other room and makes mommy laugh. However, when dad does read with me, I am very attentive. I like his voice. In the picture we are reading a book called Binky from Teri. It is one of my favorites, because I can relate to the material.

I'm back!

I have to apologize for my time away. It has been so busy around here, that I simply have not had time to blog. Between crawling, playing, trying to walk, and my busy social calendar, I have gotten behind. So, I will do my best to catch you up.

Lately, I have been eagerly exploring the house. If mom and dad set me down on the floor for even a minute, I am off and learning about my surroundings. In fact, I am learning that there are many uses for everyday things. Here I am discovering that you can crawl under and through my exersaucer:
I have also learned that the recycling bin holds lots of fun toys. Mom and dad have taken to "presorting" the items, so that I can safely play with each one.
My new squinty smile when I think I am being cute:

Well, I know mom and dad said "no" to the water bowl, and it does look kind of gross, but...I just can't help myself...

All of the above pictures were taken on 1/18/10.