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12.17.2007
AJ's stuffed animals
12.12.2007
AJ's 1st trip to see Santa
Today my mom and I took AJ to see Santa for his first time! We were not sure about the weather since the forecast was for freezing rain all day yesterday and that the conditions would stay slippery for today, but all the roads were dry this morning and the sidewalks were pretty clear as well. I should just stop going to the Weather Channel web site! Anyway, for whatever reason (cold? teething? grandma's too fun?) AJ did not want to take his morning nap, but we packed him up in the stroller anyway and headed out. 
We bundled him up pretty good, and on the walk to the El, he fell asleep and stayed that way for most of the trip to Macy's. Between the Blue Line and the store, we went through the Christkindlemarkt in Daley Plaza and took pictures by the tree, which is actually made up of 133 trees!
We thought the line would be relatively short since it was a weekday, and when we got there, the line was moving pretty quickly. After a bit though, things seemed to slow down and we started to wonder if Santa want to lunch! Several people waiting in front of and behind us turned around and left to avoid meltdowns, but AJ was hanging in there, so we stayed.
We took some pictures of him looking around in wonder at the little winter wonderland they created for the line. As our turn approached, Andy and his friend Tracy met us in the line and I was so happy that Daddy would get to see this special event! The line felt like it took forever to me, so I have to say AJ was a major trooper.
When we got to Santa, AJ was very interested in his beard!
I think Santa had to reclaim it more than twice, but he was very good-natured. The visit was actually free and we did not have to purchase a "photo package", so we just took a bunch of our own pictures and it was really fun. We tried to get AJ to smile, but he was in a more inquisitive mood. I think all he asked Santa for were his 2 front teeth (since he is still all gums)! Is it wrong to think your own baby is soooo cute?!!
After saying goodbye to Santa, AJ also said goodbye to his daddy, and then went to the food court for lunch and he did well there too. All this good behavior was surprising to me given the lack of normal napping today, and on the way to the train stop, he fell asleep again.
Here he is at the Washington stop, 
waiting patiently for the train...once on the train though, AJ woke up and let us know he was unhappy, but quieted down again before our stop and didn't make a peep for the rest of the ride home. There were no more naps today, but AJ stayed up long enough to hang with Daddy for a few minutes before he fell asleep tonight with no story, prayer, or lullabye! I guess Santa wore him out!
Oh, and one more thing...AJ is not crawling yet, but he does sneak backwards on his belly! Here he is again. The animals in the foreground were just inches outside his grasp when he started!
We bundled him up pretty good, and on the walk to the El, he fell asleep and stayed that way for most of the trip to Macy's. Between the Blue Line and the store, we went through the Christkindlemarkt in Daley Plaza and took pictures by the tree, which is actually made up of 133 trees!We thought the line would be relatively short since it was a weekday, and when we got there, the line was moving pretty quickly. After a bit though, things seemed to slow down and we started to wonder if Santa want to lunch! Several people waiting in front of and behind us turned around and left to avoid meltdowns, but AJ was hanging in there, so we stayed.
We took some pictures of him looking around in wonder at the little winter wonderland they created for the line. As our turn approached, Andy and his friend Tracy met us in the line and I was so happy that Daddy would get to see this special event! The line felt like it took forever to me, so I have to say AJ was a major trooper. When we got to Santa, AJ was very interested in his beard!
I think Santa had to reclaim it more than twice, but he was very good-natured. The visit was actually free and we did not have to purchase a "photo package", so we just took a bunch of our own pictures and it was really fun. We tried to get AJ to smile, but he was in a more inquisitive mood. I think all he asked Santa for were his 2 front teeth (since he is still all gums)! Is it wrong to think your own baby is soooo cute?!!After saying goodbye to Santa, AJ also said goodbye to his daddy, and then went to the food court for lunch and he did well there too. All this good behavior was surprising to me given the lack of normal napping today, and on the way to the train stop, he fell asleep again.
Here he is at the Washington stop, 
waiting patiently for the train...once on the train though, AJ woke up and let us know he was unhappy, but quieted down again before our stop and didn't make a peep for the rest of the ride home. There were no more naps today, but AJ stayed up long enough to hang with Daddy for a few minutes before he fell asleep tonight with no story, prayer, or lullabye! I guess Santa wore him out!Oh, and one more thing...AJ is not crawling yet, but he does sneak backwards on his belly! Here he is again. The animals in the foreground were just inches outside his grasp when he started!
12.11.2007
AJ Laughing: Clap, Clap, Clap
Okay, so here is a movie that is actually relatively old, but I have been having trouble figuring out how to publish it here...still funny though! AJ had just started to clap, back when he was about 6 mo old. Andy was trying to get AJ to clap again, when AJ decided that the word clap was the funniest thing he'd ever heard! I grabbed the video camera and captured his cute belly-laughing. We're happy to finally be able to share it with you!
12.09.2007
The Christmas Tree Farm
We planned to go to a Christmas Tree farm today with our friends (and neighbors!), the Long's a while ago...but when we woke up this morning and checked the weather, it sounded bad. There were all sorts of "extreme weather alerts" calling for freezing rain, sleet and snow, none of which sounded like a fun day driving to or finding a tree at the farm. I really wanted to go though! So after checking the radar and determining that we would just dress warmly and drive slowly, we decided to go. If the Longs could do it with a 2yr old and a one month old, we could surely do it with AJ!
The farm is called Pine Apple Acres, and it was very easy to get to, just north of the Huntley Outlet Mall off of I-90. It was cold, but there was no freezing rain, sleet or even a snowflake, so we just bundled up and started to hunt for our tree.
Our goal was to get one that was tall and thin (since our ceilings are high, but we don't have a lot of extra floor space...). Hunting was fun and sounded like this: "...do you like this one? it has a bald spot, what about that one? hmmmm, this one is too fat, I think..." We took some fun pictures (this one has 5 people in it: Emily and I with Kaya, AJ and little Ashwin bundled in a sling inside Emily's coat!) 
and when we finally made a decision, AJ and I left Andy to saw it down while we waited in the heated purchasing area, complete with hot apple cider. 
I heard cutting the tree down was difficult though, so good job, Andy! Emily and the kids and I watched as the dads tied the trees to the roof of the Long's car. After a quick lunch, we headed home and the guys did a great job, those trees didn't move a needle!
So, remember how I said our goal was tall and thin? Well, we got the tall part down and our tree is about 8', but when it came to thin, I guess your house adds width just like how the camera adds 10lbs. This is the biggest tree we've ever had, and what were we thinking??!! The huge tree is almost 6' in diameter, and we had to move our furniture around several times before we found a place to comfortably put it! But now it is happily drinking water and awaiting its lights and ornaments...coming soon.
The farm is called Pine Apple Acres, and it was very easy to get to, just north of the Huntley Outlet Mall off of I-90. It was cold, but there was no freezing rain, sleet or even a snowflake, so we just bundled up and started to hunt for our tree.
Our goal was to get one that was tall and thin (since our ceilings are high, but we don't have a lot of extra floor space...). Hunting was fun and sounded like this: "...do you like this one? it has a bald spot, what about that one? hmmmm, this one is too fat, I think..." We took some fun pictures (this one has 5 people in it: Emily and I with Kaya, AJ and little Ashwin bundled in a sling inside Emily's coat!) 
and when we finally made a decision, AJ and I left Andy to saw it down while we waited in the heated purchasing area, complete with hot apple cider. 
I heard cutting the tree down was difficult though, so good job, Andy! Emily and the kids and I watched as the dads tied the trees to the roof of the Long's car. After a quick lunch, we headed home and the guys did a great job, those trees didn't move a needle!
So, remember how I said our goal was tall and thin? Well, we got the tall part down and our tree is about 8', but when it came to thin, I guess your house adds width just like how the camera adds 10lbs. This is the biggest tree we've ever had, and what were we thinking??!! The huge tree is almost 6' in diameter, and we had to move our furniture around several times before we found a place to comfortably put it! But now it is happily drinking water and awaiting its lights and ornaments...coming soon.
12.03.2007
Thanksgiving
For Thanksgiving this year, we went to Roscoe to visit with Grandma Cheri and family.
AJ's Aunt Melissa flew in from the East Coast and everyone loved her turkey and sides. We all agree that brining is the way to go!
AJ spent lots of time playing and cuddling with everybody, and watching him with all the friends and relatives was the highlight of the holiday for me.
AJ did a good job of sleeping in his crib at Grandma Cheri's house. Since we were there 2 nights, I thought we'd see him get acclimated by the second day, but he slept well and stayed pretty much on schedule the whole visit. Yay!
I have been working with AJ on self-feeding and drinking from a cup for about a month now. While we were at Grandma Cheri's, all those lessons seemed to really gel and he drank from the cup repeatedly all by himself!
Everyone was excited and cheered him on, so I'm sure that helped! He is also getting pretty good at feeding himself the little star-shaped puffs, pasta and frozen fruit pieces. I'd say about 60% of what he eats and drinks himself makes it into his mouth...let's just say the floor under his chair is the most regularly-cleaned area of the house!
AJ is starting to learn to pull up on furniture and things, but seems to need lots of motivation. Here he is playing Peek-a-Boo with daddy over the back of the couch.
AJ is not really crawling yet, but does log rolls all over the floor to get where he wants to be! He also pulls his legs under himself and rocks back and forth often, so I'm hearing that the crawling is usually not far behind that maneuver...I'm sure the moment he crawls, I'll be posting an excited lament to go with the video!
AJ's Aunt Melissa flew in from the East Coast and everyone loved her turkey and sides. We all agree that brining is the way to go!
AJ spent lots of time playing and cuddling with everybody, and watching him with all the friends and relatives was the highlight of the holiday for me.
AJ did a good job of sleeping in his crib at Grandma Cheri's house. Since we were there 2 nights, I thought we'd see him get acclimated by the second day, but he slept well and stayed pretty much on schedule the whole visit. Yay!
I have been working with AJ on self-feeding and drinking from a cup for about a month now. While we were at Grandma Cheri's, all those lessons seemed to really gel and he drank from the cup repeatedly all by himself!
Everyone was excited and cheered him on, so I'm sure that helped! He is also getting pretty good at feeding himself the little star-shaped puffs, pasta and frozen fruit pieces. I'd say about 60% of what he eats and drinks himself makes it into his mouth...let's just say the floor under his chair is the most regularly-cleaned area of the house!
AJ is starting to learn to pull up on furniture and things, but seems to need lots of motivation. Here he is playing Peek-a-Boo with daddy over the back of the couch.
AJ is not really crawling yet, but does log rolls all over the floor to get where he wants to be! He also pulls his legs under himself and rocks back and forth often, so I'm hearing that the crawling is usually not far behind that maneuver...I'm sure the moment he crawls, I'll be posting an excited lament to go with the video!
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