Sock monkey

Leo got an early birthday present from his Nana. She told me he could go ahead and open it.

"This looks interesting; I think I'll just beat on it a while." "Hmm...these look tasty."
"???"

"Come on out, monkey."
"Hello there."
"I'm coming to get you, monkey."
Honestly, he was a little wary of the monkey at first, but then he saw mama give the monkey hugs and kisses and he decided he should give it a kiss too. Now monkey, who I've been calling Sockie (not very creative, I know), has been accepted into the fray.

Play date at our house

I thought it would be fun to have some moms and kids from my moms' group over for a swim. Of course, in the days leading up to the big pool play date, we had cooler temperatures and overcast mornings, so the pool got too chilly. Some folks showed up to just play and hang out anyway and we had fun. Leo showed off his new crawling skills and took a really long afternoon nap.

Here he is with James (fussing a little over getting a toy stolen). Getting a toe tickle from Jordan.
Trying to escape through the cat door.
Trying to look innocent.

Weekend wrap-up

We had a fun, but busy weekend. Having Leo on the move has completely changed the game. Luckily he's not too fast yet. I did some childproofing today, but there is still a lot more to do. I'm so glad we dealt with the pool fence when we did, because we are very use to closing it each and every time we go in or out. That's a good habit. On Saturday, we drove to San Rafael to visit some friends. Oh, and he definitely said something very close to "dog" three times while pointing at their dog. I guess he's just an animal-loving, super-sporadic speaker.

I fed him some lunch shortly before we needed to leave and he decided to rub hummus in his hair. Little stinker!Relaxing in the yard.
Playing with the big kids.
"Look, Leo, dad is taking a picture that includes mom so the blog readers know she still exists."

Playing with one of Jacob's cool toys.
Working on some watermelon chunks today. And....CRAWLING VIDEO!!!

Lunch with dad

Yesterday we met Tom in the park for lunch. It was perfect weather and Leo enjoyed seeing his dad in the middle of the day.

11 months, on the move and Nana!

Leo is 11 months old today. Only one month until he's one. I can't believe it; my brain won't comprehend the fact my baby is growing up so fast.

We had an exciting weekend. On Saturday morning, Leo army crawled about three feet while Tom and I watched with pride. (I teared up again; I'm such a sap). My mom arrived later that day, so she got to enjoy a newly mobile Leo as well. She was incredibly helpful as always--helping me shop for Leo's party, babysitting so Tom and I could date, and taking over baby duty so I could see the dentist. She also fed, changed, played, chased Leo so I could get some stuff done around the house and rest (I'm trying to recover from a sinus infection).

On to some pictures and videos.
Playing in the pool with dad. (Can you spot Leo?) Cracking up at daddy's bubble blowing.
Bath time with Nana. Reading books with Nana.
Being silly.


Here is one of Leo's creative ways of getting around. He does the army crawl, back scoot, and of course, lots of rolling.

Mr. Fussy face cranky pants

Leo has been...challenging these last few days. Don't get me wrong, he's still lovable, adorable and the greatest thing on earth, but he's also extremely cranky. He throws mini-fits pretty consistantly throughout the day. It can wear on a woman's nerves, I tell ya. You'd think he's being poked with pins (he's not, I checked). I think he's just very frustrated with his limited moblity, but that is starting to change. He is pivoting a lot and scooting backwards. He even did a little bit of an army crawl today. My favorite is when we're sitting cross-legged, facing each other and he lunges into my lap. But none of this is official crawling or getting him where he wants to go, so he gets pissed. He's still a master roller and can cover quite a bit of ground that way.
Here's some footage of his mad pivoting skills.

Three day weekend

Happy Labor Day everyone. We had a nice weekend, though Tom took on a lot of projects around the house making it less relaxing for him than I think he needs. But he can't help himself.
Leo was a bit cranky today and I don't really have an explanation. He was well-rested and well-fed, so I decide to blame it on teething. But really, who knows. Leo's new interest is belly buttons. When he's sitting on my lap, he lifts my shirt to poke my belly button. Tom's is equally fascinating. He hasn't discovered his own, but he can't really see it because of his pudgy gut.

Before we get to pictures, I want to acknowledge my blog-versary. I've been maintaining this blog for a year and over that span of time I posted 183 times. That's an every-other-day average. Pretty freakin' good for a new mom! I love being able to chronicle my son's life, and I hope everyone enjoys reading it.

"This is my dad's idea of fun."

Helping dad do yard work.
Leo cries any time Tom makes a "nose noise". If Tom sneezes, blows, even sniffs, Leo will wait a beat, and then break down into tears. It's so sad (but a little funny). Here they are enjoying a moment together in the morning.
And this is right after Tom sniffed. Chillin' in the pool.