October 13 - 21

Anthony gave up using his walker quite awhile ago. But, after seeing it in the garage recently, he has started playing with it again. However, he's not using it to walk anymore; he's climbing on it! He just used a fork for the first time and he was so delighted with himself being able to use it. He has started doing push-ups with Daddy, knows how to twist caps off of everything and our favorite learned behavior: he sits down and then lays flat on his back in protest of everything! (it's SO funny!) We are planning to go to the Pumkin Patch and pick up a Halloween costume this weekend. Cute video below of Anthony being Hypnotized!

October 6 - 11

Anthony is so much fun! Everyday we see him do something he hasn't done before. He's learned to come down stairs on his behind. However, he doesn't always use this new skill; he still tries to take the big steps down without holding on to anything! He's getting pretty good with his dexterity; putting the cap on the water bottle and putting shaped toys in holes where they fit. He finally started saying "mama" again; it's been a few months since I've heard it! He tries to fake sneeze, sings "yeah yeah yeah" when Grandma sings, "she loves you, yeah yeah yeah", holds his stuffed animals like they are babies and pats them on the back. And now when he gives them kisses, he says, "mmmwah"; too cute! He had a fun day at the park with daddy during the week; they found the water area and got soaked! We found some super cute new shoes for him; they are black and blue and have "police, K9, SWAT", etc written on them. And as an added bonus, they light up like a police car!

September 19 - October 3 2009

OK, it's been awhile since my last post... our trip back to Wisconsin for Jon & Abbey's wedding was great. (I still need to post some of those pics on the blog too!) Anthony was an awesome traveler! He did really well on his first trip on an airplane. Other people even complimented us on how good he was on the plane.

It's getting harder to keep Anthony in the stroller now; he just wants to walk, walk, walk and touch, touch, touch! He's been enjoying the parks now that he can wander around wherever he wants. He points at everything that he wants and says, "this". Grandma has been singing "Old McDonald" to him and he sings along, " Ee i Ee i". (no "o" yet) But, it's very cute! He's learned to open the freezer door. So, that's just another thing we have to chase him away from. He's figured out how to climb up on the couch using the ottoman for a boost.

Anthony "helped" Daddy clean out the garage. He had the best time running around outside carrying his pool noodle and bucket. And just like a little boy would, he took right to digging in the dirt! It was pretty awesome watching out little boy just playing outside on his own for the first time.

I knew that Anthony was the cutest & smartest baby in the world. But, I didn't know that he was the sweetest too! While we were over Cindy's house for a playdate with Alison, she started to cry about something. Anthony just watched her cry and when she finally stopped, he walked over to her and pat her a couple of times on her head! It was just the sweetest thing EVER!

2 new links to pictures on the right!

1 year check-up

Anthony had his 12-month check-up with the Pediatrician this afternoon. His Doctor is pleased with his health and growth. He's now 27lbs and 31.5" long. He also had to get 3 shots today and will go back in a month to get a few more! He took it like a champ though! Daddy is a great distraction for him! I will post recent pictures soon!

Happy Birthday!

Anthony had a great time today! He loved his balloons and presents and digging into his cake! He had such a good time and was so wiped out, he laid down on the living room floor and put his head down on the carpet; he's never done that! Of course, when we all said, "awwww", he thought it was funny and kept picking himself up and laying back down. Thank you Grandma, Auntie Diane, Sarah & Aunt Michelle for sharing this special day with us!

CraZy Hair

Hair "a la Daddy"!

Week 51

Anthony has been trying to use a spoon to feed himself. It's hard for both Daddy & I to let him practice and be messy. (much harder for Daddy than me though!) And it isn't enough that he wants to grab, squeeze and throw everything we give him to eat; but he has to wipe it all over me too! lol And for some reason, Anthony has learned to like and want his vitamin drops! We've always had to fight him to give them to him. Now, for the last few weeks, he points to the bottle, hands it to me, and wants me to give them to him! Weirdo! Only a few more days now until Anthony turns 1! Really? Has it been a year already? Since we are flying out to WI on his actual birthday, we'll just have a little birthday cake this weekend for him and then celebrate again while we are in WI. Gramma is happily gathering party supplies! We'll see how Anthony does on his first flight! (one video included below)

Week 50

As if walking isn't enough, Anthony is trying to add "running" to his repertoire. Favorite activities now include opening and closing the refrigerator & microwave doors and turning on & off the light switches. We can ask him where his things are (ball, book, water, etc.) and he will point to them or go get them. He can now stand up without having to pull himself up on something. He is mimicking gestures and sounds more and more every day. And what surprises me the most is that he will remember and demonstrate the gesture when we say or sing certain things. Anthony has also discovered how fun it is to throw everything down!

He's walking! Weeks 47, 48 & 49

Anthony is walking! He was just taking several steps at a time for awhile. But, Anthony got a jolt of inspiration after spending an afternoon watching his friend Alison walk around her house. He's been honing his skills ever since! He's been tasting a variety of new solid foods: meatloaf, waffles, tuna fish sandwich, noodles, macaroni & cheese, whole fruits, etc. He's very happy to have a dog back in the house now. Athena is a good sport and doesn't mind Anthony squawking at her and pounding on her crate when she's in there. She actually seems to like it and wants him to play with her. Anthony is quite the charmer when we are out shopping and running errands. He smiles, waves and "talks" to people as they go by. He draws a lot of attention; it's like being out with a puppy! Anthony amazes us with the things he tries to copy and immitate. He's trying to snap his fingers now, trying hard to say something close to "I love you" and when I say, "that makes me SO mad", he growls. He's also discovered balloons and LOVES them!

NOTICE - To view additional pictures

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Weeks 45 & 46

Anthony can easily stand without holding onto any support and he is building up his confidence to walk; his longest stretch has been 6 steps in a row! He has learned to clap his hands and is waving "bye bye" a lot now. We took Anthony to the Boardwalk at Santa Cruz and he enjoyed taking in all the sights. He didn't want to touch the sand at first, but then he took right to it. He seems to be losing interest in eating baby food and wants to eat whatever we have. Sometimes, he wont even take the food from his baby spoon; you have to feed him from a real fork. Anthony has become very interactive; he doesn't just want to be entertained anymore, he wants to entertain us and initiate the interaction. One of the cute things he started doing this past week... He has a big picture book of animals and when you turn the pages and get to the picture of the dog, he kisses the picture. And it's just so cute because the dog is the only picture that he will kiss. (note: there's 2 sets of additional pictures this week. week 45 & week 46)