King of the Mountain

Jack is eleven months old today and decided to show us a new trick by climbing from the foot stool to the coffee table. I can only imagine what the coming months have in store.

Story Time at the Library!

Jack went to his first storytime at the library today. We sang songs, read books, and did fingerplays (where is thumbkin). Jack had lots of fun. He was the youngest guy there but he did a good job of playing along. I think we will go back!

Spa Day aka Perfect Husband Day

For Christmas Chad got me a gift card for a local spa. It was a very generous gift and I planned to go for a very long time. Of course I got busy and kept putting it off. I finally decided to celebrate the end of the school year with an afternoon of pampering. I had a 30 minute massage, mini-manicure, and spa pedicure. It was wonderful! I haven't had an afternoon to myself like that in quite some time. I kept thinking - WOW I must have a nice husband to get me a gift like this.

Then I got home.


You won't believe what I came home to. A clean kitchen, freshly baked cookies, and a baby in the bathtub. No, I am not kidding. My perfect, loving, handsome husband made my wonderful spa day even better! I was so happily surprised. Let's just say that today was a good day and that my husband is pretty spectacular!

Last day of school!

Today was the last day of school for the year. I would like to say that I am happy, elated, on top of the world thrilled about it. But, I'm not. Unfortunately, a few of my favorite new coworkers have been laid off and I am worried that they won't be called back. These teachers are amazingly dedicated and very talented and it is a shame that they are being forced to leave a job that they love. It makes me have such a mix of emotions, I mean, I am glad that the school year is over, I am excited to spend my time with Jack but worried too that I will not be a good full-time mom. I chose this career as a child because it would allow me to be a working mom part of the year and a stay at home mom for part of the year. We will have to see if I will be patient enough to handle this tough, tough job. I have enjoyed our current schedule but during long weekends and breaks I remember thinking that I was looking forward to going back to work to let someone else take care of Jack for just a little bit! Maybe now that Jack is a bigger boy and a better napper we will have an easier time.
Speaking of time with Jack, that boy is in to everything. He is pulling up on any and everything and cruising along in record time. Of course what comes up must come down and Jack does that regularly with a thump. He has his mother's grace (sorry Jack) and his dad's sense of adventure, a dangerous combo. We will probably be using our ice-bear pack quite a bit this summer but hopefully he will learn to be careful. Oh well, as long as he doesn't have any huge bumps and bruises for pictures on Tuesday!

Maybe I can start back up?

So, for the last three years I have had a blog called life of a newlywed. Well, now that we are coming up on our third anniversary next month I guess we are hardly newlyweds! I have been so busy with work, school, and Jack that I have abandoned my blogs altogether. The good news is I am about to become a stay at home mom now that school is getting out for the summer so I am going to try (key word here) to blog on this site to keep everyone updated on the big man. And I do mean big! Jack is about 20 lbs now and VERY mobile. Not only does he do the worm crawl (think: crawl, crawl, belly flop, scoot, crawl, crawl repeat), he also pulls up on anything and everything and cruises along the furniture. He also sits up very easily on his own now. He can get anywhere in about three seconds flat! We put out a basket of toys for him to play with and he is happy to play on his own for quite a while. Of course he is more interested in cords, remotes, cell phones, and mommy's earrings but he is happy nonetheless.
I hope to keep up with my blog more diligently. School gets out next week so I should have lots of time on my hands, right? Let's just see what Jack has to say about that???

Jack's First Solid Food

Tonight we gave Jack solid food for the first time. It looked and smelled pretty gross but I guess that he liked it just fine. Part of the time it seemed like he just wanted to chew on the spoon. He got all dirty and a lot of the food ended up smeared across his face. Enjoy the video.

Jack's First Swim

Here is some video of Jack's first time swimming. He did a good job and really liked kicking his legs in the water. We also had an inflatable crab that he seemed to enjoy. Amy and I can't wait until this summer when we will be able to take Jack to swim lessons and get him back in the pool.

Jumperoo Jack

Jack's tried the jumperoo before but this is the first time he seems to have tolerated this game. Hope you enjoy!

Jack Dancing

Here is a video of Jack dancing to some Westside Connection. This one is done especially for Uncle Ari.

Jack Discovers his hands!

Here is a short video of Jack realizing that his hands might have a greater purpose than just being a chew toy.