The Last 8-9 Months: Only Skiing. Nothing Else.

Oh, hello. A few things have happened since JRR turned 1, but blogging is not one of them.

Our bad. We may go back at some point to fill in some blanks, but let's be honest - that seems unlikely. So for now, let's fast-forward to a recent update: we just returned from an incredible 10 day ski trip, during which AAR and LTR morphed into Picabo Street and Bode Miller.  LTR and I took a GoPro camera out for a spin on the last day to document the event.

Note: video looks best in HD  (click the video quality gear-shaped logo at the lower-right of the embedded video and then toggle the quality setting to 720p or higher).  HD will better allow you to feel the powder, hear the wind, and smell the fear.

Julian at One Year

First Birthday Cake

Dear Julian -

Before you and Luca came into our family, I don't think your dad and I had any real clue about how much goes on in the first year of a boy's life.  You have been transformed from a sweet, screechy, curled up newborn to an equally sweet, mobile person over the course of just 12 months.  

Things are different for you than they were for your brother.  You have eaten more dirt in a day than Luca ever ate in a year.  Everything goes in the mouth and I'm not always close enough to catch you before you grin up at me with a brown, gritty smile.  Your world is noisier and your mother less patient than the first go around, but all of this will make you who you are.  And who you are is perfect.

You give the best hugs.  They feel like gifts.  You have so many teeth!  And those pretty blue eyes in your big Allen head get you noticed every day.  You're stealthy and a little impish, capable of humor and ferocity.  You have entertaining habits, like smushing yourself into pillows and down comforters - a practice that dad has dubbed "murgling."  Every dog, cat, squirrel, and bird captivates you and elicits some window banging to get their attention.  

You and your brother crack each other up and pick on each other and couldn't do without one another.  You are never happier than when you first see him in the morning, but you are also never happier than when you have time without him in the house so that you can play with all the toys he won't usually let you get near.  

We can't imagine a day without you, little Ju Ju Bee.  Happy first birthday!

Love Mommy, Daddy & Luca

Looks yummy, right?

Brrr!

Bathtime shenanigans

Meditations on Mommy's Coffee Cup

Non-Winter

We're singing a very different tune this February as compared to last, as this year has been strangely absent of winter up here in the Great White North.  As a matter of fact, the Luminary Loppet had to be moved to a nearby park due to the thin ice on Lake of the Isles. Thin ice? February?

The last week has offered a couple of warm days with some rare snow, so we've been doing our best to get our winter fix in before this place becomes Oklahoma.

Snow Bros (Note: Luca inexplicably named this guy "Cornhucker")




Sledding without a Sled (Note: this snow heap is not a sign of winter, as it was made by a snow machine for some unknown purpose)

LTR for MVP!

Hi Backers,

Tom here.  I just wanted you to know that I hope your girls are feeling better.  FYI, your sick kids and canceled Super Bowl party left us watching the game at home, where bold statements and logically sound bets were placed.



So basically, watching at home was just like watching at your place.

Julian at 9 Months

Once again, we're a bit overdue for a JR post and are rushing to get the 9-month recap up before our little cherub rounds the 10-month corner.  My maternal guilt at this lag prompts the following:

Dear Future Julian:

Please do not take any delay in blog posts, deficit of photos and videos, etc. as an indication of lack of love or interest on the part of your parents.  We adore you and your sweet face and hysterical personality.  And we're very, very busy keeping your brother from loving you into the next county.

Love, Mommy 

Julian at 9 Months

We have another bruiser in the house!  Julian has made up for his lower birth weight and now tips the scales at 21 lb 8 oz, putting him in the 75-90% range.  Heightwise, he's middle of the road at 28 1/4 inches (50%). But the head...oh yes, the head is an Allen head.  At the doctor's office, the nurse returned for a 2nd measurement after charting the first one and finding that it was potentially alarming.  She settled on a 19" head circumference, putting him above the 98th percentile.  

Julian's bucket of tricks is suddenly quite impressive.  He's gone from occasionally pulling himself up from sitting (which is advanced, according to his doctor) to getting up and down with ease and cruising around any infant height furniture in his purview.  Admittedly, he has the distinct advantage of some show-stoppingly strong thighs.  Still, his dedication is admirable.

He's also added crawling to his repertoire, which has added a little something to our days as we frenetically run around the house trying to clear the floor of all the dangerous detritus that accumulates there - magnetic marbles, petrified bran muffin chunks, paper clips.  He's got great crawling style and clearly loves being able to cover more ground.

Recently Julian has also started waving and doing the "so big" thing, both of which delight him to no end.  He hasn't figured out how to clap his own two hands together, but thinks that clapping one of his hands to one of yours is a neat way to pass a minute here and there.  We're waiting for him to figure out that sleeping through the night is just as fun, but in his defense he falls asleep like a peach and we're confident he'll get there eventually.  In the meantime, his sweet face is more than ample payment for the occasional sleepless nights.

Christmas

We greatly enjoyed this Christmas, Julian's first ever.  Though this one will go on record as a brown holiday season with barely a speck of snow on the ground, we found ourselves with an abundance of festive spirit.  Luca could barely sleep on Christmas eve and so slept in much later than we anticipated, leaving the rest of us to a quiet morning waiting for the engine in our Christmas train to wake up.  Once he awoke he tore through all the presents (his, Julian's, and ours) and loved every single one.  Santa came through with a Batmobile for Luca and a block train for Julian, plus a few other treasures.  All in all, this was a wonderful Christmas season with lots of time for baking and spending time together - a perfect end to 2011.

Happy Christmas

Baking with mom is most fun when a hammer is involved.

Thanks, Santa.  These toys are delicious.

Hawaii

This November we were able to convert a portion of T's stockpile of miles & hotel points into the most amazing vacation either of us can remember.  We pushed aside our winter gear and packed up everything needed for a tropical clime, and the four of us headed to Kauai for an indulgent stay in Princeville.  Luca made huge progress at swimming thanks to long, daily sessions in the most beautiful pool ever.  He also mastered the Hawaiian "shaka" sign (otherwise known as hang loose, but properly taught to us by our new friend, Kaleo) and was entirely at ease in his island setting.  Julian was a champ, too, even on our multiple flights to and from Kauai.

The cherry on top of this trip was being able to spend Thanksgiving with the Mazzoccos on our way back home.  Quality time in 'Zaccoland (as dubbed by Luca) certainly softened the blow of leaving paradise.

Ketchup (is overrated)

Just a quick "catch-up" of some favorite pics from the late fall/early winter...

Lake Harriet

Happy Campers

Lake of the Isles Trees - 2010 and 2011

Julian in San Jose (7 months)

On the Court at The Barn

Cousin Sleepover

Halloween

This Halloween was the best I can ever remember.  Luca and I spent the whole month of October slowly decorating the inside and outside of our house, and developing a keen taste for treats.  Once the big day arrived, T was able to take the day off from work, so was able to head up pumpkin carving efforts and trick or treating.  To his chagrin, I accidentally taught Luca to say "Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat," which some neighbors found funny and others, maybe not so much.  Julian was a reluctant but adorable dragon (though 99% of people who see him say he was a dinosaur - apparently he didn't look very ferocious) and Luca was THE fastest Batman in town. 

Last Fall days at the park

Taking a break from pumpkin carving 

Big sweet face, little dragon costume

 

Ready to trick or treat

Batman, preparing the jack o'lanterns

Onset of chocolate crash

Into the leaf pile he goes...

Julian at 6 Months

Julian, 6 months old??  Well, actually, he's now 7 months old, but we're a little late to the party, mostly because time is flying by so fast.  And because that face is so sweet, it's hard to tear ourselves away to do anything else but jump through hoops to make him smile.

At his 6 month appointment, our little one weighed in at 19 1/4 lbs and was 27 1/4 inches long, both measurements falling in the 75th percentile.  He seems to have taken a page from the book of Allen when it comes to head size, though - he's in the 98th percentile with an 18 inch melon.  

Most notably, JR has the sweetest, meltiest smile.  And he has six crazy teeth that he has just started grinding together, much to our dismay.  He's starting to pick up foods with his little fingers but refuses a bottle and is mostly only interested in milk as nourishment.  He still loves his big brother, despite said big brother's open mouth "kisses" (licks) and insistence upon controlling every toy in the house (more on that later).   And he's working on his baby skills, like smiling, rolling, smiling, sleeping, and smiling.  

First Day of School, Ever.

This is one of those milestones that seemed to arrive both way too fast, yet also right on time - the first day of preschool.  Luca started at a wonderful neighborhood school this fall and has taken to the new routine (mostly) with ease.  He does occasionally tell us that his teacher, Heidi, is a pirate, and we're not exactly sure what that means, but we think that he's having fun and learning to socialize.  And that's what matters.

Schoolboy, ready for action

Somebody in this picture might be carrying a clipboard.  

Julian at 5 Months

Our sweet Julian has made some huge leaps forward in the last month or so.  In his 4-month post, we neglected to mention that he got his two bottom teeth at around 3 1/2 months.  Since then, he has added two more which you can just barely see in the photo above.  Strangely, he did not get his front teeth, but rather the next ones out, giving him a slightly vampirish appearance.  Part of me hopes that he can keep the front teeth under wraps until after Halloween.  He would make the cutest little bat.

Along with the teeth came a clear interest in expanding his dining options, an interest that he exhibited by reaching for every cracker, glass of water, or sandwich I held in my hand.  What he didn't know is that the path to cheezits and chicken parmigian panini is paved by sweet potatoes and pureed peas - but he doesn't seem to mind.  In fact, he took on his new options with gusto and almost immediately reached for the spoon so that he could feed himself.  

Julian's other new interest is the jumperoo.  He loves it.  Go JR, go!

End of Summer Round Up

With tomorrow's projected high coming in at under 60 degrees, I suppose the time has finally come to acknowledge that summer is over - at least meteorologically speaking.  And so it's time to hit the highlights of August, our fireworks finale at the end of the summer.

In Minnesota, people talk about the weather ceaselessly, for obvious reasons.  This summer was no exception, thanks to a long, rainy June followed by an unbearably hot July.  Thankfully, August treated us mostly right and we were able to spend long afternoons at various kiddie pools around town.  In my mind, this will be the year of the Lightnin' McQueen float ring.  We've purchased three of them.

August is always all about the special thing at the end...the Minnesota State Fair.  And this year, we had very special guests - the Rowans.  Their short weekend visit was extended thanks to a reprieve granted us by Hurricane Irene, and therefore we had ample time to enjoy the fair and many of its culinary delights and livestock viewing opportunities.

We saw pigs, large and small - though not the largest pig of record, 

which had mysteriously gone home early.  I think we all know what that means.

First trip to the fair

Tacos!!

Baby's First Snow Cone

Feeding the ducks on Lake Harriet with half of the Backers

Julian at 4 months

This face just about says it all.  At four months old, Julian is a very cheerful baby.  He's gurgly and giggly and would do just about anything to spend time with people, particularly his fortunate family members.  Anyone who's had a chance to hold him has noted that he's also quite a calm and peaceful boy.

Though he started out a pound smaller than his big brother, he's been quickly gaining ground in the stats.  At his four month appointment, he weighed in at 16 lbs 7 oz (75th percentile).  For height he was 26.25 inches (90th percentile) and his head circumference was 17.25 inches (95th percentile).

That last number would indicate that he has a healthy dose of Allen genes, and his overall appearance bears that out.  For now, his eyes are still blue - and the new hair coming in looks blond.  Both boys are crazy handsome right now and so endearing (when they're not causing a ruckus, and sometimes even when they are), it's hard to believe.  Tonight they had their first occasion of actively playing with each other when Luca invited Julian into his construction truck pop up tent, and the scene was so sweet that I didn't even mind when I was explicitly disinvited.  (An exception was made for my arms, which were needed to prop Julian up inside the boy zone.)