NO!

DJP has added to his vocabulary as of this week the word that most parents dread hearing...


NO!

However, DJP has given the word 'no' some added enthusiasm: he says it with a smile and vivacious shakes of his head. Due to this motion, there is no picture (unfortunately)!

When Delilah cut Sampson's hair

DJP's hair was getting a bit long...that even he was pushing it out of his face!

BEFORE



DURING



AFTER
(Well...DJP was not very happy afterward and did NOT want his picture taken.)

And a big thank you to Ms. Clare (aka Delilah) for cutting DJP's hair!

15 months

DJP is just a bit over 15 months old now. WOW! Time sure has flown! (And yes, he does know how to use the iPad and the iPhone!)

We had a well visit to the doctor today in which DJP did another first: he has been able to reach our door handles and pull them down (they are of the lever variety) but has not been able to pull the handle and open the door at the same time. DJP apparently wanted out of the exam room, reached up for the handle, pulled it down, opened the door and dashed out. Jason went to follow him. The receptionists got a big chuckle out of the spectacle. Of course, DJP went straight for the toy box and picked out a truck to push around.

DJP's current stats:
Height: approximately 32 inches (he becomes Mr. Squirmy Wormy when you try to lay him flat when he doesn't want to be flat)
Weight: 23 lbs 14 ozs (which doesn't seem to be a lot until you hold Mr. Squirmy Wormy)

DJP is also acquiring quite a vocabulary: Hi, woof, Ma-ma, Da-da, no (said with smiles), more (without the "r" and signing), Grandma (sounds like Ma-ma but different because he's not saying it to me!) and various other sounds that we have yet to decipher.

DJP is eating pretty well except for the fact that meat gets pushed away as do noodles and bread. Some new favorites are pretzels and Craisins as well as any freeze-dried fruit (justtomatoes.com has a wonderful variety) including cherries (which I think are the tartest things ever).

DJP enjoys having Ophelia around again (she has returned from Spa Grandma) and likes to lean in and attempt to give her kisses. Ophelia is not so sure about that and tends to shrink away as fast as she can. He also enjoys that the cat's water bowl is on the floor and becomes his own personal water table when Jason and I are not quick enough to stop him. I've never seen a bowl of water emptied so fast!

Speaking of kisses, the cat is not the only recipient of kisses from DJP. He will occasionally give Jason and me kisses at bedtime when asked but the cutest thing happened over the weekend. My mom was visiting and we told DJP to give Grandma kisses before going to bed. He not only went over to her and gave kisses but also walked over to me and to Jason and gave us each kisses before we took him upstairs.

DJP also went to his first Orioles v. Rays game. He spent most of it walking around with me or wandering around the open areas on the club level. We did take him out into the stands for about an inning and a half, but he was not fond of the music nor the cheers/jeers from the surrounding crowd. We did happen to bribe him a bit with some ice cream...

...and then once we left the game, it didn't take more than five minutes before he was asleep.

The Count Down to a Year

DJP is well on his way to being a year old! One month to go... This year has flown by with all his milestones, which keep on coming.

The newest editions are that DJP can:
-stand on his own (tentatively but still on his own);
-plays well by himself and with others;
-can move cars, trucks and trains around without "throwing" them;
-can climb on various objects (like the IKEA container to get into a chair; the ottoman; on his parents to get onto the sofa);
-feeds himself apple, peaches, pears, puffs/O's, and bananas (these are his favorites);
-has tried strawberries, blueberries, kiwi and mandarin oranges (likes these);
-likes spoons-to chew on not to eat off of;
-enjoys pulling all his books off the shelf and then picking a couple to sit and 'read;'
-will sit and push a toy back and forth with Mommy and Daddy;
-loves to listen to '70s and '80s music and apparently his favorite genre is disco because he definitely 'dances' to it! He will even tap his knee (while sitting) to the beats;
-can turn on his 'seahorse' while in his crib to listen to lullabies (Thank you Counsins K & A) and also throws it out of the crib (the boy likes to throw);
-likes to cuddle with a few of his stuffed animals-a teddy bear with a rattle (Thanks, Aunt Rosalie), his 'Tub of Cubs' (Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa) and his Rays panda, Asta, which also plays lullabies (Thanks, Nina and Papa);
and
-has started to repeat some of the things that we say...one day I was playing with his toy camera (Thanks, Aunt Megan and Uncle Stan and Cousins G, J & L) and I started saying "Say Cheese!" What DJP repeated was something like "ay, chee!" We also think we've heard him say "nigh, nigh" for "night, night." However, these are not said on a consistent basis and could just be DJP getting the right sounds together at the right time. He has definitely become more vocal with different sounds including an ear piercing scream (Mommy's eardrums will never be the same again!) and using his hands to make all kinds of sounds.

10 Months

Our little boy is now 10 months old! How time flies!


Current observations of DJP:
*He loves all fruits (especially bananas, blueberries and apples), vegetables and meats;
*greatly dislikes rice pilaf and one other thing that I cannot seem to remember at this moment;
*still has 6 teeth (4 top, 2 bottom) and is currently teething with more bumps present on the bottom on both sides;
*is being more and more vocal each day with more complex sounds rather than just repeating "da da da" and "ma ma ma;"
*will occasionally vocalize "orders" to the cat whenever she is nearby;
*is walking along furniture and with his walking toys;
*has occasionally let go of said furniture and toys to stand on his own for a few seconds;
*has had his first "bloody" accident in which he fell and split his lip. He is fine and the swelling has gone down thanks to the teething rings;
*has been sleeping through the night (except for last night-he woke up around 4am probably because he was hungry-he didn't eat much dinner and then threw some of it up for no apparent reason);
*is super duper curious about everything (especially the remotes and phones);
*is definitely a people watcher (going out to eat and trying to feed DJP is its own Olympic event with head twisting, food on spoon balancing, etc.);
*has started to throw all of his toys-out of the crib, into his FP Speedway and just because he can;
*has learned to climb up on boxes (that are used to blockade an area for DJP in the basement; and
*has been enjoying his time with his daddy taking care of him during the week (Jason has done a FABULOUS job!!!!).

9 Months Old

DJP is now 9 months old! He now weighs 20lbs. 8oz. and is 28 inches tall (we think he was measured incorrectly last dr's visit because this measurement means that he's only grown 1/4 of an inch in three months!). He has 6 teeth (4 top and 2 bottom). He crawls faster than we can walk. He stands. He walks along the furniture (has gotten quicker!) and will walk holding onto our fingers. He no longer falls trying to get down from standing but lowers himself.

DJP claps (with noise) and smiles all the time. He plays well by himself but by late afternoon wants someone to be with him constantly (there's a bit of separation anxiety too!). He enjoys all of his toys especially his very own TV remote. He likes to be chased-thinks it's the most hysterical game in the World.

We still have to say that Kitty (aka Ophelia) is his favorite play toy. Even with the gate up now, he will talk to her (more like giving her orders since his voice gets a very demanding tone to it) when she ventures to her food and water bowls.

He's also discovered that he can bounce when he's in his exersaucer. I love watching him do this-one of these days he's going to bounce himself right out of the exersaucer with his very powerful legs!

Eight month birthday

For DJP's eight month (plus) birthday he got a special present-he got to go on a cruise! Actually, we had planned this cruise before DJP was even a thought in our minds and now that we cannot imagine life without him, OF COURSE we took him along.

He enjoyed being on the ship, people watching and meeting so many new people, especially his two "girlfriends" from the main dining room, Monika and Precious:

DJP made friends young and old, so many that he has learned how to wave within a week and as we were waiting for Aunt Niki to pick us up, people that Jason and I had not met were saying "Bye DJP!"

While on board ship, DJP continued his teething and two new teeth broke through-a top incisor and a top front tooth! We could also feel the other front tooth and incisor which have started to poke through as well. Two of DJP's favorite "toys" in our cabin were the door stop and the metallic trashcan. (Yes, we wiped them down before he started chewing on them!)

Another "skill" that DJP worked on while we were away was his fearlessness. When DJP was on the bed, he would crawl around then look at us and then crawl to the edge and even attempt to crawl right off without seeing there was no where to go!

We're definitely going to have to watch out for our little daredevil!

DJP has also gotten brave enough to start hanging onto various pieces of furniture (and fingers too!) and walk! We are amazed at DJP's progress every day. He learns so quickly!

Seven Plus Months

I'm a bit behind...as usual!

DJP is seven months plus a week or two and has changed so much in the last month.

DJP now has TWO (yes, they came in together!)bottom teeth which we avoid since they are super sharp and he likes to gnaw on various items. He has chewed on his Halloween book from Nina & Papa so much that he has put a hole in it (he liked it that much!) and we now look at that book from a distance. DJP is still teething-top gums are super swollen and have widened even more than the bottom gums did. Still no obvious signs of teeth yet, however the ear tugging and chewing on everything in sight (including Grandma's arm and thumb) has commenced once again. With the teething in full swing, there's been little sleep the last few days. We were very lucky last week that we had five FULL nights of sleep (well, DJP did!).



DJP is also not just rolling everywhere but he is crawling! He took the first few tentative crawls on his 7 month birthday then nothing for a couple of days. He moves around like a pro now! He's even been able to catch up with Ophelia lately-she'll learn to move faster when he grabs her tail and won't let go!




Our little boy is growing up so quickly!

Six months ago...

Six months ago today, Jason and I went to the hospital very early to have a baby. DJP arrived at 9:58pm weighing 8 lbs, 3 ozs. We haven't had our official weigh in at the pediatrician's office, but we're guessing he weighs at least 17lbs. and has grown an inch or two more since our last visit.

DJP can sit up (once we put him there)and stay that way for quite some time (probably about 10 minutes) before he decides that he's had enough and falls over to be either on his back or his belly. He also rolls from belly to back and back to belly-today he did both while watching football with Jason. Apparently he wanted to go somewhere!

He's still teething-not so much drool but pulling on his ears. There's no sign of teeth other than his gums have widened a bit more and are definitely bumpy. DJP has become more vocal with lots of sounds and has different facial expressions to go with them. My favorite is when he gets this serious look and he raises one eyebrow! (Neither Jason nor I can do this...) He also can form his mouth into an "ooh" which is fun when we do it first and then he mimics us. Whenever we do something new, DJP is observant and taking it all in so that he can do it later!

DJP's favorite thing to do is watching Ophelia (aka "Kitty") whenever she's brave enough to come into the living room. He will squeal and his little legs go (this is while in the exersaucer) and Kitty avoids the little hands as much as possible. She came a bit close on Friday and DJP was able to grab her tail and didn't really want to let go! I had to pry his fingers off-he had a hand full of cat hair...

The biggest change has been that DJP has been pushing himself up with his hands-lifting his belly off the floor. If he can get his legs coordinated, he'll be mobile shortly!


ETA: DJP is 27 3/4 inches long and weighs 17 3/4 lbs. WOW!

5 Months Old

From this:


To this:
DJP is 5 months old today! I cannot believe it's been that long and how much he has changed.

He is still teething with possible signs of teeth starting. Stuck my finger in his mouth to apply some orajel and there were bumps instead of smoothness on his gums. An the amount of drool has increased yet again, if that's even possible. (Still looking for a viable use for all this drool...)

DJP has rolled over from his back to his tummy however neither Jason nor I have seen this actually happen (he's done this at some point during the night/morning before we've gotten him and also on Grandpa P's bed but we think he cheated...)

He loves butternut squash-finishes the entire jar in one sitting! Definitely did not like peas (me either kiddo!) and is okay with green beans. Jason and I were wondering if DJP remembers the taste of butternut squash from last Christmas when Grandma P made butternut squash soup and mommy tried some?!?! Next up is either carrots or sweet potatoes.

DJP continues to smile easily (even when extremely tired like he was today since he'd only taken a total of an hour's nap all day), still not always sleeping through the night (dr. says 8 hours at a time...Jason and I laugh...it's about 5 if we're lucky! Kiddo wakes up with a hefty diaper and starving!) and is loving his exersaucer. He definitely likes the part where he throws toys on the floor and mommy picks them up (ha ha...that doesn't last long!)