Yes and No

Jaden has become very vocal about what he wants vs. what he doesn't want:

Mr. Crab

Jaden is cutting two molars on the top - this may be the reason why he's been an absolute terror lately, otherwise, I would have to say we've reached the terrible two's a bit too early.

Every time we say "No," he screams and flails on the ground. I'm wondering if it's his lack of being able to communicate with us that frustrates him. Although, he tries in his own language. He'll point to something, speak in jibberish and look at us as if we understand. To spare feelings, we tell him we agree.

Jaden has also started hitting more frequently, and I have found that I am his primary target. We have committed to using the time out chair more consistently, although he doesn't stay put for more than five seconds. Yesterday, he must have smacked me a good five times or so, each time catching me off guard. Anyone have any wisdom to share on how to nip this in the bud?

Mike bought us a massive 9-foot, pre-lit, faux Christmas tree that commands the formal living area. When Jaden saw the tree on the box he pointed and said, "tweeeeeee." I learned something today that was disappointing - even during the holidays must you baby-proof your decorations. So, our gorgeous 9-foot tree is unfortunately lacking in four feet of ornaments. Jaden has already destroyed some of the Christmas balls by shattering them against the tile and hardwood, thinking the balls were of the bouncing kind. I also ordered some embroidered stockings from Pottery Barn that I'm looking forward to receiving but realized today that I may not be able to hang them from the heavy metal stocking hooks that sit on the fireplace. One tug on them will surely hurt.

We think Jaden is teething; he's been a handful lately with tantrums and all (this is perhaps why I haven't had the time or energy to post anything as of late) I even took a picture of what appear to be molars, but I can assure you that there is nothing there at the moment.

After I took this picture, I checked his mouth and couldn't feel or see anything. I have a clairvoyant camera!

Jaden is demanding his independence more and more each day. He will no longer let me carry him out of the car, demanding to be put down immediately so he can walk in the house on his own. He does the same thing with the stairs, so it often takes a tedious five minutes just to go up or down. He helps me with the laundry, loading clothes, closing the detergent drawer and turning it on. He claps after he finishes. If I don't let him press the buttons, he gets pissed off.

After I change his diaper, I ask him to put his wipes away in the drawer and he happily obliges. In fact, the other day he watched Mike pick up a pack of water and Jaden tried to pick up the second pack by himself! He tried for a good two minutes before he gave up. It was cute watching him try...

Cooking has increasingly been a challenge with Jaden around; he refuses to let me cook and will push me away from the counter and clutch onto my legs until I stop to play with him. In a short time I have mastered many quick dishes that take little effort but are quite tasty.

This weekend we are taking family pictures with a friend who wants to practice with her camera. I don't know how they'll turn out but I'll post one as soon as I get them. One will be used for our Christmas cards so look out for those soon as well.

Goodnight...

Jaden the Giraffe

I know, I know...it's cruel but hilarious.

P.S....

I don't like MobileMe, so I'll be discontinuing that soon and will continue with Picasa... :)

Jeez...

Today, Jaden flat out refused to take a nap. I must have tried four or five different times with no luck. He ended up crying himself to sleep for about 45 minutes. So stubborn!

Jaden's been saying a lot more lately; it's amazing once they hit a year old that their verbal communication starts really picking up. A lot of the time he's babbling about stuff we can't yet understand, and other times he saying words like tree, that, yes, no, ball, buh (for balloon), Tete (for Christy), nana (for banana), shoe, sock, night night, byyyyeee...

I was changing his diaper the other day and all of a sudden he starts shaking his finger at me, saying, "no! no! no!" When Mike disciplines him, he sternly says no while he shakes his finger. Now and then when I discipline him he'll look at me, shake his finger and say, "no no no." Toooo funny.

The other morning, I was at the dining table on my laptop, and from under the table I hear, "I seeee youuu." I asked Jaden what he said and he goes, "I seee you!" very clearly. I often say this to him when he's hiding under the table. I then called up Christy who thought I was just hearing things and while she was on the phone I kept encouraging Jaden to say it. I think he finally had enough of my nagging because he yelled, "I SEE YOU!" Christy said, "wow, that was really clear." It was officially his first sentence!

I realize I've been really lazy with the pictures - to be honest, my camera has been dead for about a month and while Lolo visited we just used his. I got so spoiled using his DSLR that I've purchased a really nice Nikon kit that I'm hoping to get in the mail tomorrow. From here on out, you'll be getting so really sharp pictures. I've also signed up for a 9-week photography class at UCSD so my long-term goal is to start a small photography business some day. I've certainly got a lot to learn but I've got the creative mindset and the rest just requires some studying and LOTS of practicing. :) Thankfully, I have a willing subject (Jaden). Well, maybe not always so willing...

Speaking of Lolo, we had a really nice, low-key visit. Luckily, Jaden was in a really good mood that week even though he was diagnosed with an ear infection. Jaden had a lot of fun with Lolo and he still mumbles "Lolo" when we Skype. He enjoyed all of the walks and was so spoiled that when he left, Jaden was demanding to go to the backyard and for strolls. He's still enjoying his new shoes although he is so enamored with the velcro they often fall off. Apparently, I learned from others that it's not the best idea to get them shoes with velcro because of this. Oh, well...

I bought Jaden some potties. I've attached a grainy picture that Christy took during our Skype session - Jaden was showing Tete how to sit on the potty. Now, some of you may think it's way too early to even try, but I think it's worth getting him used to the idea. Who knows, maybe we'll be out of diapers by the time he reaches 15 months. That's my hope, at least!

My interest for early potty-training was encouraged by a few friends that have told me that they had their kids potty trained by a year old...and even one friend had their baby potty trained at ONE MONTH! This might be shocking to us, and even unbelievable, but I can assure it is very possible and is done in many countries. My friends are from India where it's a normal part of child-rearing to have them trained shortly after they're born. In countries with high poverty rates, diapers are often unaffordable, so this makes sense. In the U.S., it's referred to as Elimination Communication, which is simply the parent being attuned to their child's queues that they need to potty. When they see these queues, they will bring them to a sink or bathtub and the child will go immediately. I asked my friend if her son ever has accidents in his diaper, which he wears in the event of one, and she said no. He's now three months and has been trained for a couple of months now. Can you imagine how much waste is prevented and money saved by potty-training this early??? Amazing! For now, Jaden will just continue throwing toys in it and wearing it as a hat...

He's Bananas

Jaden decided to experiment with his snack by purposely mashing bananas in his hair.  And face.  It was so not fun to clean up.

Jaden's just about outgrown his shoes - time for a new pair soon.  I received the shoes that Lola sent (thanks, Mom!) but he won't be able to fit into them for at least another 6-8 months.  They're super cute though...I love them.  Time to spend another small fortune on shoes that he'll wear for two months!  

Jaden was at the park today and heard an F-14 fly by (the air show is this weekend) and he pointed up and said, "pane."   I don't know where he learned it, but it was awesome.  He also saw me grab his shoes and said, "shoe."  Fun stuff!

We're getting ready for Lolo to come into town next week - it should be a real treat.  And Dad, we'll have to reserve the mini Cadillac Escalade for perhaps his third Birthday...I think he'd do some serious damage with it, which we're not really prepared for.  :) 

Hello Again

It's been awhile since I've posted, and for that I apologize.  We've had quite a busy September - Jaden's Birthday Extravaganza, Mom's visit, illness, etc. etc. etc.  

Mom's visit was great - it went by way too fast but Jaden enjoyed it.  It was especially nice to have the extra help since Mike was sick almost the whole week!   He kept us busy... here's a video of Jaden pushing Lola's luggage on her arrival:

Jaden's party was a huge hit with the kids - they all loved it.  We held it at a place called Kidsville Playtown - it's a little town for kids to run around and play.  Most parents said that when they asked their kids if they had fun, they replied, "it was the bestest party I've ever been to in the whole world."  If kids walk away saying that, it's (a lot of) money well spent!

Jaden is getting more hilarious as the days go by - I guess when he gets loud in daycare his Mimi will "Shhh" him with her finger over her mouth, so the other day he came home and when I said "Shhhh" to him he put his finger over his mouth (and nose) and goes, "tttthhhhhhhhhh."  Lori and I also spent 10 minutes the other day looking for his lost left shoe in her garage which is jam-packed with toys, and Lori had the foresight to check the play kitchen, where it was conveniently stowed in the refrigerator.  Everything in it's right place, according to Jaden.

The boy had his one year checkup last week and it was a real treat to have Lola along.  I had his stats but I seem to have misplaced it.  Oops...I do know that he's 23.5 lbs.  He is on cow's milk now and seems to be doing great on it.  I hope that will save us a few bucks from the formula days but I feel very strongly about giving him organic milk so it is likely moot.  He's learning how to say the word "Milk";  for now he's saying "Mo."

Here's a funny video I'll call, "Salty Kiss."

Birch Aquarium

Today, while Mike worked in the office I decided to take Jaden to the Birch Aquarium in La Jolla.   He seemed to have had a good time, although I think he's slightly young to really enjoy it.  He did check out the fish and sharks but really just wanted to walk around and scream with glee.  

After the aquarium, I took Jaden to lunch at Souplantation - a first date with just me and him!  It was really quite daunting and I had to walk in there with a plan - I would make our food with him confined to the stroller, a helper to help move my tray of food to the table that I already setup with high chair and chair cover.  I would then take him out of his stroller to grab the other goodies, which took a good two or three trips before we could actually start eating.  When we were finally ready, Jaden seemed really excited about sitting across the table from me with his own plate of food.  He was dancing and smiling and was well-behaved for a good ten minutes before he started getting antsy.  I made him a plate of sliced celery, peas, corn, plain pasta noodles and another dish of mac n' cheese and blueberry muffin.  He didn't want to have anything to do with the healthy stuff and instead stuck with the mac n' cheese.  A true product of his father!  

Mike and I bought Jaden a bunch of new toys for his playroom - we're introducing them one at a time to make them last.  So far, we've introduced a couple of bouncey balls, a giraffe bike and a big foamy monster truck.  He LOVES the balls and can say the word "ball" very clearly.   He can also say "kick" and will kick the ball when I ask him to.  There are some pictures on Picasa of him on his giraffe bike.

Twirling

Here's a video of Jaden "twirling." He just started doing this a couple of days ago. Hilarious!

PS...

....Oh goodness, I just watched the videos in Christy's previous post and I look horribly FAT.  Yes, family - I am quite thick, in fact, about 7 lbs. heavier than when you last saw me in Tennessee.  Don't worry - I am working on it.  I am hoping to complete a 5K in December with a friend so I purchased the Mercedes Benz of jogging strollers so I can take the boy with me on jogs.  

Jibber

Sorry I haven't posted in a while - after Christy left I got sick, among other things.   Christy's visit was fun, albeit short.   Jaden is still loving on his Elmo Live - I'll ask him to go find Elmo and he'll walk into his play area, sit down and talk to Elmo.  Then he'll knock him over and once he is asked to "help Elmo up please," as Elmo says, he'll try to stand him back up.  Then he'll roll on the floor with him, and I'll find them both laying on their backs, staring at the ceiling, hand-in-hand.  

Jaden is much more affectionate these days.   He kisses Daddy much more than he kisses me, but that's OK.  He'll even make kissing noises now during (and sometimes after) a kiss.  He'll go, "mmmmmmmwah!"  He even kisses his hand and throws it at you!   When he kisses me, he'll try to bite my nose and when he tries it, he laughs.    Mike made him laugh so hard in the shower last night when he was making funny spitting noises in the water.  He was going nuts!   I wish I had the camera for that one.

Speaking of cameras, I took some pictures today but my camera died on top of the memory card being full  (hmm....must have been all those videos Christy took).   I'll try to post some stuff tomorrow.

I've started to remind Jaden that Lola's coming into town very soon.  In fact, we've already prepared by painting the exterior of the house and updating landscaping!   Well, not really - that's the owner's doing but it looks very nice nonetheless.  Lola will be MUCH more comfortable staying with us this visit, unlike last time where we didn't have much room in our narrow "bowling alley" house.  We're ready for you, Lola!

Peanut Butter Jelly Time

This is Christy! I'm checking in with videos taken during my visit with the boy. He's running around and playing up a storm. Dominic and I bought him an Elmo Live doll for his 1st birthday. He loves Elmo and it's sweet to see him bend over and give Elmo kisses... and try to pull out his eyes. Jaden also shows affection on his terms - kind of like a cat. It's cute though when he decides to give you a hug or a kiss because it's always when you least expect it. I will say that he is a mama's boy. When he pitches a fit he will pull on Cheryl's legs and fall to the floor all dramatically if she doesn't pick him up right away. It's cute, but I guess I think that because I'm not here every day. In any event, keep checking in to Picasa because Cheryl has been adding some photos that we have taken throughout our weekend.

Head Knot

Jaden and I were at the park with his friends after daycare and when he was walking towards me he tripped and hit his forehead on the metal bench that I was sitting on.  It didn't sound like he hit it too hard but when I picked him up he had an instant knot on his forehead.  He was upset but not as much as one would expect - especially since it doubled in size in about 5 seconds.  It looked painful and frightening.   Maddox's dad Dominick ran home and got an ice pack for it which helped slightly but after about a minute he insisted on continuing to play.  Tonight it turned a bit more grayish blue but the swelling has gone down a bit.  Tough guy!  I took a picture but it didn't come out so well.  

Tonight, Jaden raided our pantry - he's been handing us things lately and saying his equivalent of "thank you."  He handed me a bunch of stuff - a reusable grocery bag, a huge multipack of chips, plastic bags and even Mike's shoes (both of them).  He then conveniently stored one of his shoes in the pantry and tried to close the door before he got himself stuck.  What a clown.

Look on Picasa for more pics!

Sick Day #2

I left work early today to pick up Jaden from daycare - he was still feeling under the weather and needed to be coddled.  Today was perhaps the worst day for Jaden in the crankiness department - he had an all-out temper tantrum after he woke up from his nap and flailed on the ground like a fish, screaming for about 10 minutes.   He repeated that tantrum during and after his nightly shower until I stuck a bottle in him.  Quite a challenge today, I must say...

Today is Jaden's 11 month Birthday!  Countdown begins for the big "One."   I'm eyeing this venue for his Birthday party.  Forgot to mention about Jaden's haircut in the previous post; we cut it on Saturday with electric clippers.  It was starting to look like a mullet so we had to do something about it and it was too fine to effectively cut with scissors.  And yes - I kept the clippings!

Sick Boy

Jaden's had a fever for a full day but luckily just broke it this morning.   We don't know if he's actually sick or teething...even after his fever broke he's be gnawing on his hands.  We shall see...

Here's a video of him last night displaying his funny antics.  Enjoy!

Hide and Seek

Enjoy!  

Dancing Fool

He sure loves the Ramones!!

New Videos

Here's Jaden in his new sandals I got him yesterday; he insisted on walking out of Nordstrom with them on and when I offered him a hand he pushed me away.  He then proceeded to walk out of the mall, proudly breaking in his new shoes!   When we were in the car, he admired his shoes the whole way home.

New Videos

Trying out the New Shoes

Here are some pictures of Jaden at a friend's birthday party earlier today; he was trying out his shoes and he eventually got the hang of it!

Walkin' and Talkin'

Jaden is walking pretty much non-stop now, only crawling to the closest thing that he can pull up on to resume walking.  He is also talking a LOT more now, trying to repeat our words and pointing at things and asking questions in his own way.  

We bought Jaden a big Mickey Mouse mylar balloon last week and we referred to the balloon a few times as "Mickey."  A few days later when Jaden was busy playing I asked him where Mickey was, and he stopped playing, looked up, spotted Mickey and pointed to it, saying "Tete."  He's also done that with trees!  It's fun to see how much he's absorbing.  He's certainly paying attention much more than we think and he lets on. :)

 

Walking Videos

Here are the long-awaited videos of Jaden walking and other funny antics!  Enjoy!

Three Steps Forward...

Jaden has finally taken three steps by himself!  We were playing in his play area and he was pushing his little cart when I told him to come to me.  He let one hand go, positioned himself towards me, and let the other hand go and took three steps to me, laughing the whole way.   He fell into my lap and gave me a big hug afterwards.  He then did it again a couple more times!

I also observed him playing with toys while standing, balancing on both feet.  I don't think he realized he was doing it, but it was pretty cute to watch.  

Today after work, I met up with Mimi and the kids at her community pool for a swim.  Jaden was a little timid at first but enjoyed it for the most part.  He did love slapping the water...

 

New Backpack from Meemaw!

Jaden, modeling his new backpack from Meemaw!  Thanks, Meemaw!  He loves it!   I'm sure he'll be putting it to good use, storing his toys and girl's phone numbers in it once he learns to walk. :)

Kisses on Command

Jaden can now kiss on command.  Anytime he hears the word "kiss," he leans in and plants a good one smack on the lips.  He was playing with his toys while I was lying nearby and I told him to "come here and give me a kiss," and he stopped playing, crawled over to me and gave me a big kiss.  It was so CUTE!

He can also wave and say "bu-bye" now.  I love it.  He's also been pretty adventurous and will let go of whatever he's holding and he'll stand there, unassisted, and clap for a few seconds.  If he attempts it but is wobbly, he'll stop clapping, secure his footing and try again.  If he knows he doesn't have the balance at the time, he'll lean on something so he can clap.  

Jaden's been sleeping through the night for over 10 days now, so we now know it's not a fluke.  It's amazing how well the Ferber method works and I recommend it to all of my friends who have babies.  The Ferber Method requires you to allow your child to "cry it out" for certain intervals until they learn to fall asleep on their own without being rocked or fed or with a parent present. It's really hard to do but persistence pays off and you'll be blessed with good sleeping habits for the whole family.   It took Jaden four days to learn and since then, he's watched me walk out of the room without a whine or cry and has fallen asleep shortly after that.  He wakes up at 6 or 7 in the morning and I can actually say this is the first time since being pregnant that I've had a solid night's sleep.  I'm actually not used to this much sleep so my body needs to adjust - I've been pretty groggy lately. 

Updates

We're currently in the process of re-training Jaden to sleep through the night unassisted.  He's gotten used to sleeping in our bed with us and it's about time that he learn to sleep - and stay - in the crib.  It's been challenging but it's getting better.  

Jaden had his 9 month wellness checkup last week - here are his current stats:

Height - 29.25 in. (78th percentile)

Weight - 21.13 lbs. (66th percentile)

Head Circumference - 47 cm. (88th percentile)

He was down a couple of lbs. I can assume due to teething.  He now has a total of 7 teeth!

He has both of his front top teeth, three on the bottom and I just discovered two more coming through right next to his front tops.  He was very cranky and clingy all weekend and I couldn't figure out why until I happened to stumble upon those two.  7 teeth at 9 months...quite exciting!

Jaden's speech has changed recently as far as the intonations and expanded consonants.  We also feel like he can understand us more.  This morning, he crawled on me in bed, looking for a bottle on my nightstand.  When I asked him if he wanted me to make him a bottle, he looked at me and said, "baba?"  And when I told him that Daddy was coming home, he peered over to the garage door to see if he was there.  He then cruised over to the door and sat there against it, looking up, waiting for his daddy to come through the door.  It was very sweet!  

As I'm sure you all have already seen, Jaden has been trying to "break out" of his playpen we setup in our formal living room only days ago.  This is quite disturbing to us.  He's only 9 months old for crying out loud!  We really don't think he has the leg strength yet to actually accomplish this but it is a strong reminder that we have to install the gates at the top of the stairs for when the day comes that he decides to bust out of his crib.  

Jaden is almost exclusively on sippy cups now.  Luckily, the sippy cup geniuses made "no-spill nozzles" so he can zip around the house in his walker with his sippy cup in hand, waving in the air and not one drop of milk ends up on the floor.  He's also content sitting in his little rocking chair in front of the TV watching Sesame Street, drinking from his cup.

So, I've finally busted out the Beaba Baby Food Processor and will be using it this week to make my own baby food.  I've already bought organic fruits and am just waiting for them to ripen.  My first batches will include peaches, bananas and sweet potatoes.  I'm very excited!  I've been waiting to use this wonderful gift from Meemaw and am finally unpacked and settled in the new house where I can make this a bi-weekly event.  I plan on hitting up the farmer's market this weekend for more organic produce and am hoping to score some mangos.   

 

Move Complete

(Jaden watching HBO's Flight of the Conchords Episode where they sing about their "Sugarlumps.")

Our move over the weekend was very painful but is luckily complete.  JoAnn, my Mother-in-Law was a HUGE help - helping finalize packing, cleaning, un-packing, feeding us and keeping us hydrated, entertaining the baby, picking up and delivering furniture, more cleaning, more unpacking, etc.  What a Godsend!  We couldn't have done it without her.  

Jaden was terrible all weekend - poor thing has been dealing with teething and constipation issues.  NOT FUN.  We think he's also experiencing some anxiety with being in unfamiliar surroundings.   He's been a trooper, though.  

Jaden dances a lot more nowadays - in fact, he rocks out when I play or sing Michael Jackson (RIP).  He even DJ'ed for us in our living room with his little roundabout toy.  It was hilarious. 

He also loves Elmo, we've come to realize.  Sesame Street doesn't really capture his attention until Elmo's segment comes on.  Once he's on, Jaden's mouth drops and he's glued.  He often smiles and laughs throughout it.  Looks like he'll be getting a Tickle-Me-Elmo from "Santa" this Christmas...

The house is nice but not yet completely put together.  I'll take some pictures and post them when everything is in it's right place.  

Front Toof.

Jaden got one of his top front teeth today!  This makes a total of four teeth with another following soon.  He was a major cranker last night; in fact, he was so bad I had to take him for a walk just so he could cool off.  He was in a really good mood tonight, though.  

We are in the last leg of our move - Mike's moved a few small things and we let Jaden romp in the empty house.  He made a bee-line for the stairs and mastered that pretty quick.  The movers are coming on Saturday so we'll be officially moved by Saturday evening.  Should be an interesting move with a baby...

I weighed Jaden the other day and he's 23 lbs.  He's officially exceeded the weight limit on the car seat that Lolo and Lola got us so we've moved him to the "big boy" car seat.  This car seat is the Mercedes Benz of car seats and will carry him into toddlerhood.   He looks like a little King on his throne!   In fact, we loved this one so much we bought another one just like it on Craigslist for a steal - $60.  It looks brand new and is a third of what we paid retail for the first one.  

Jaden has his 9 month checkup next week - I'll provide all the stats after our appointment.   He's grown out of his Level 3 diapers, which means he's gotten taller and perhaps wider.  We shall see!

Sick Puppy

I picked up Jaden from daycare today and it was clear he has a cold.  His nose is running and he's super crabby pants.  Now it all makes sense since it felt like we got zero sleep last night due to his tossing and turning (he woke up at 11PM, 30 minutes after we turned in for the night so we threw him in bed with us).   Tonight should be interesting as well; Mike and I are zombies right now and I don't know how we're going to pull it off tonight.   When he gets sick, he typically wakes every hour.  FUN.

Bath Time

Jaden has been a bit timid towards bath time as of late; he had a bath last weekend that scared him (too much water on the head that made him cough).   We're back to daily showers but I thought I'd try another bath tonight, with no luck.  He started whining to the point where Mike jumped in to finish with a shower.  We'll keep trying until he gets comfortable with it again...

Another Tooth

Another tooth has revealed itself yesterday.  This one is located right next to one of his bottom teeth.  We were expecting it, and others - his sleep, attitude and appetite were all affected by it.  

We're actually expecting three more...we'll be sure to keep you posted as they reveal themselves. :)  

Sorry I don't have any new pics to include - been busy packing and getting ready for the move.  More will come soon, I promise!

Some Updates

It's been awhile since I've posted anything; Jaden's pretty much cruising and no major milestones to report just yet.  He's saying "Dada" more frequently now, which is cute.   When I ask him where Dada is, he looks at the garage door because that's where he enters when he comes home from work!  

Jaden's getting more comfortable standing - he'll sometimes practice balancing on his feet, clap, and then fall on his butt.  Then he'll repeat all over again.  He's also eating a LOT more than usual - we think he may be going through a growth spurt.  He eats a ton of cereal and fruits and veggies each day.  He's also started eating crackers!  As soon as we move to the other house i'll be using the nifty baby food processor that Meemaw got us to make our own organic baby food.   I plan on growing a garden at this house as well so it'll be interesting to see what I can grow and make baby food out of.  

We will be moving on the 27th of this month, which is only a few weeks away.  We're packing slowly but surely - it's hard to get stuff packed when you have a baby curious about everything you're putting in the box.  Once we are all settled, I will post pictures of the new house!  We're very excited...

Teeth Care

Jaden got a toothbrush about a month ago.  The books and other mothers say that as soon as they sprout teeth, we must keep their new teeth and gums clean or else they are at greater risk for cavities and teeth rotting.  I mean, I guess this makes sense but c'mon, on two teeth?   Whatever - I bought one anyway and am trying to be better about brushing his teeth after I feed him baby food.  Here are some pictures of me attempting to teach him good brushing habits (with success!).   It tickled him so picture him laughing the whole time:

Teething: Round 2?

Jaden has been terribly cranky for the past week. We speculate his front top teeth are coming in. He hasn't been napping during the day and because of that you'd think he was sleeping well at night, but that is WRRROOONG. He's awful at night. Just terrible. For the past four nights he's been waking multiple times a night and wakes for good at either 4 or 5 in the morning unless he was up in the middle of the night for over an hour, at which point he'd conveniently sleep in until 7:30, making me late for work. He's so hard to get to sleep when he wakes in the middle of the night that I resort to throwing him in our bed just so we can get some sleep.

Besides the crankiness and sleeping problems, he's started to dance. When I sing to him or when he plays a toy that plays a song, he'll do a little shimmie or bounce a bit. It's cute! He has no rhythm - just like his Daddy. :)

Jaden's starting to say "Mama" a lot more. No "Dada" just yet, but we're working on it.

Stair Master

Jaden is now master of the staircase. The video depicts him tediously crawling up the first three steps, however, tonight he climbed to the very top of the staircase! He did it with such confidence and class. Here's how it went down:

Jaden deciding it was time to conquer the stairs. Starting out....


That was easy!


Hmmm..what's in here?


"The Lavatory"


Let's get down to business.


So far, so good...


...halfway there...


...almost done!


one...more....


YEAH!!!


"I am the Stair Master! And this is my Mom."

Videos of Jaden Climbing the Stairs

He's Climbed the Stairs

So, remember how yesterday I mentioned that Jaden was trying really hard to climb the stairs? Well, he accomplished that feat this afternoon. Our home has three steps before you get to the bathroom and when I was using it, he decided that he wanted to follow me. I actually didn't think he'd be able to do it but I cheered him on anyway, and low and behold he got on the first step, and it gave him the confidence to attempt the others! He was very proud of himself...

We've captured it on video but i'll upload it on a later post.

Standing around...

Jaden can now stand while holding onto things. I walked into his room at 5AM this morning to respond to his whining and I found him standing up in the corner of his crib closest to the door, eager to escape. It was pretty surprising! He was verrrrry proud of himself. He was beaming and practiced whenever he could today. Grandma Jo was watching him last night so we could go to a baseball game and she said he was trying really hard to climb the stairs!

New pics...

...he looks so tan!

Hello, again...

Wow - it's been quite some time since I've posted an update, and for that I apologize!  I know a lot of you check daily so I'll try to be better about posting more regularly.

As you all know, Jaden and I went to Tennessee to visit the family.  We had a great time!  The boy had a blast and LOVED the space to cruise around and terrorize the pets.  We felt right at home with all the goodies that Lolo/Lola and Meemaw bought for him (thank you!).  It was very special to finally meet family friend Phyllis, whom I've not met until then but who felt very connected to us through pictures and stories.  Phyllis gave Jaden the most beautiful gift of a silver piggy bank - it's very endearing to know that people find him just as special as we do.  

Although we stayed a week, sadly it felt like it was much shorter.  I regret not spending as much time as I would've hoped with Elisa and family and especially Meemaw, who unfortunately came down with the bug during our visit.  Regardless, the time we did spend was awesome .   Thanks for the wonderful time!

Jaden was a real trooper on the long flights and 3-hour drives.  He was such a good boy!  In typical Jaden style, he flirted with all of the passengers, showing them his newest tricks such as waving and clapping.  We had some tense moments, such as him deciding to poop during takeoff going back to San Diego.  We were still ascending and I had to change his diaper in the tiny airplane bathroom before he fell asleep.  Luckily, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be (except for that he was touching everything, including the faucet...yuck.)   Now, I feel that I can overcome anything since I traveled alone with a 7 month old... :)

Jaden turned 8 months yesterday.  Time flies when you're really busy raising an active son. 

Auntie Christy and Uncle Dom stopped in town last weekend for a brief visit before they went to Maui and will be stopping briefly before they return home.   They took him for a walk for coffee one morning and allowed Mike and I to sleep in for another hour, which was heaven.

Another update - We are moving!  We just signed a lease today on a 2,100 sq. ft. home down the street from where we currently live.  We're busting at the seams in our current place and are desperately needing the space to accommodate a growing boy.   There is plenty of room for family to visit, which we are excited about.  We also have a nice backyard to put a baby pool in so the boy can go swimming this summer.   We'll be settled around the end of June so I'll post pictures at that time.  We feel very fortunate to have this space and did it for Jaden.   Do we really need that much space for the three of us?  Probably not, but we can afford it and it's a good move for us in a family-friendly neighborhood. 

Good night!

Clap, Clap, Clapping...

Jaden can now clap. He started this a couple of days ago. Here are a few cute videos we took tonight of him showing off his new skill:

Maddox's Birthday Party

We took Jaden to his pal Maddox's Birthday Party today.  Maddox is his buddy from daycare and turned a year old today.  Before you know it, Jaden will be turning one as well.  Time flies....

Here are some pics we took earlier: