first Christmas

we got these canvas bins at Big Lots - only $7.50 each and great for throwing all the toys into at the end of the day. thomas, like many babies his age, now must examine all things that are new on the house (just like our kitties). tests them for playability, studyness and of course, edibility.


Wow... first Christmas with Thomas. what a crazy year and how fast it has gone by. many older/wiser parents have told me to enjoy the first 5 years because they go by so fast. they weren't kidding. the past two weeks have been amazing developmentally. it seems like he does something new every day!
- 1st time he stacked blocks together! 3 of them and he can do 4 if you straighten out the first 3 for him :)
- he cruises like crazy now
- he can do the dylan lu "sumo squat" for a few seconds
- stand on his own, even claps while standing
- signs for "all done" when he wants to get out of his high chair
- says mama and dada purposefully (although sometimes he says mama with a really really whiney tone... not so wonderful ha ha...)
- drinks by himself from a sippy cup
- even responds to simple commands, like "give it to me", "push the button", "give me a kiss", hug the bear", "put it in there" and "don't go over there". of course, he doesn't always listen to us... but it's a start!

baby cereal mustache!

i started reading "Wisdom of our Fathers" by tim russert. it is a collection of stories about fathers, kind of like reading "reader's digest". it has some very sappy stories in it that have made me teary, plus having our own kid makes it so much more meaningful. it has some great reminders in it about what matters to kids. the best one for me is that the best gift you can give your kids is time, your time = attention and love. no one ever writes "the thing i remember about my dad is when he gave me that awesome TV/computer/car" ha ha ....