First Steps - Solo

Joshua took his first steps on his own tonight (he is about 8 1/2 months old). He let go of one of the tan chairs he was using to hold himself up and walked towards Jason. After that, we made him repeat his new trick over... and over... and over. We got a little video, too. Can you tell we are proud parents :-)?

Kissy Kissy

Joshua started making kissing sounds yesterday and did it non-stop! He hasn't really associated the word 'kiss' to the sound but it is still pretty cute. The sleeping is going well and now we can put Joshua in bed, let him cry for about 10 min and then lay him down and he will go to sleep. He was definitely getting too big to 'walk' to sleep like we had been doing. He will usually sleep at least a couple of hours before needing a bit of formula or potty then he will usually sleep for 5-7 hours. What a huge improvement! Naps are now twice a day for 1.5 hours each and they are pretty much to a schedule. He has one at 9am and the second at 1 or 2pm. The next step to remove the need for us to lay him down after he fusses for 10 minutes. I think it won't take long to make that change, he is almost there already!

Here is a cute photo of Joshua after a bath:



Isn't he adorable!!!

Sleep Tight

Joshua slept 7.5 hours last night! I guess I am jinxing his success by writing this but it is exciting. I hope that it will happen again tonight. He is waving and doing 'so big' all the time. We are excited to see what else he can do :-)

This morning we will be going for a walk with Ellie and Miss Kim. We have to get out of the house before the temperature spikes and makes the humidity unbearable.

Joshua has been eating all sorts of new things including lumpy oatmeal, pieces of watermelon, banana and potato and spoonfuls of spaghetti o's.

So Big!

Joshua made the 'so big' motion at lunch today after I asked, 'How big is Joshua'.



Joshua loves eating table food. He has had Tibetan food, beef stew and chicken pot pie. Today he ate little pieces of bananas and watermelon. He is such a big boy!

That's it! I am goin' to Aunt Trina and Uncle Josh's

Joshua is all packed and ready to go...



I wonder if the airline will take him?

Weight Check

Joshua went to the dr.'s today for a weight check and passed! He had not been gaining as well as the dr. had hoped for the last two visits so he was back in today. He weighed in at 19 pounds 13 ounces and 29 inches long. Yippee!



This weekend he drove to Connecticutt for the first time to visit Aunt Jill and Aunt Tara. He did great! We went to see Jill perform on Friday evening and had a wonderful time out. Joshua did well for Grandma and Grandad babysitting. On Sunday we surprised Jill for her 30th birthday. Joshua had lots of time to play with cousin Stephanie. He did better towards the end of the trip but early in the visit every time Steph would squeal Joshua would lose it (cry). Such a sensitive child! Joshua also ate table food for pretty much the first time (mostly because I forgot his food!). So, Joshua's first food was Tibetan and he loved it. He is such a world traveler :-) He had a yogurt dish and a potato, avacado curry salad.

Happy 8th Month Birthday Joshua!

Joshua is eight months old today. In a few minutes we will be heading to CT for his first trip to Aunt Jill & Aunt Tara's house. We are going to see Aunt Jill perform tonight. Joshua is all over the house now crawling. Jason says that he is a 4x4 vehicle plowing through pillows, steps, toys and anything else in his way!

He is getting close to walking and often lets go of whatever he has pulled himself up on. Better get going...

Little fishie...

Joshua had his first dip in the pool yesterday and we are planning to go again today. He was a little bit concerned at first. We put him in slowly but was soon splashing and chattering along. We picked up a little floating device with a sunshade to put him in.



He now can move across the floor 'crawling'. He sticks one leg out to the side and folds the other underneath. It is quite a funny site but he can move! Now he is busy trying to get into things he shouldn't like the dog food bowls, climbing on the book case and dumping everything off the coffee table.

Have a great Memorial Day!

It won't be long now!

Joshua is really rocking and scooting now. I don't think it will be much longer until he is crawling. I wouldn't be surprised if I had to add an update tonight!

He is starting to gain weight again, too. It is nice to see those chunky thighs and chubby cheeks back. He takes formula during the day and mommy's milk at night. He has been eating a lot, too. His favorite foods are bananas and yogurt but he also eats oatmeal, sweet potatoes and pears. He only takes a few bites of peas and carrots but we are working on it.

Some more milestones...

Yay! Joshua can now get himself into a sitting position from either his tummy or his back. He also loves to stand up by himself by pulling up on anything in the vicinity (including the doggies!) I suppose we can't put off the baby-proofing any longer...

He also just started picking things up with his thumb and forefinger. Time to start some finger foods...

We'll try and get some more pictures posted this weekend :-)

A Day at Ladew

Joshua and Jason took me to Ladew Topiary Gardens today for Mother's Day. We spent the afternoon wondering around, smelling flowers and watching the leaves blow in the breeze. Joshua loved all the sights and sounds. He was tired but didn't fall asleep, he didn't want to miss anything!



When we returned home, Jason turned on music while I fed Josh YoBaby yogurt and Joshua bobbed his head along. It was hilarious! He also started waving. It is intermittent but I am sure he will pick up the frequency!

Happy 7th Month Birthday!

Joshua is 7 months old today. The past couple of weeks have been busy with firsts. First

• plane ride out to California
  
• meeting Jason's Aunts, Uncles and cousins
  
• drive longer than 1.5 hours and visit to Las Vegas
  
• walk around the inside of the pack n play
  

He now pulls himself up regularly and then just lets go. Litte dare devil. He is at a very fun age and we are enjoying the time.

2nd Tooth

Joshua cut his second tooth today in the afternoon. Grandma V. came over to help me pack by keeping Joshua occupied. They played together, napped and took a long walk with a stop at the playground. When daddy came home, Joshua pushed up to all fours for the first time. This is the first sign he has shown of crawling... won't be long now!

Happy Easter!

Joshua's first Easter was a wonderful day spent with Aunts, Uncles, Cousins and Grandparents. We attended church in the morning at my parent's church and then went back to Grandma & Grandad's house for Easter dinner. He ate bananas for the first time yesterday and had them again today this morning. He also ate more than a tablespoon of food tonight (sweet potatoes & oatmeal with peas for desert, yum!) a first! It must be that tooth that cut through yesterday :-)



Yesterday, Joshua enjoyed a day of shopping with Aunt Amy, Aunt Stephanie (my cousin), little Stephanie, Lily, Great Aunt Betty & Nanny. He tooled around in the umbrella stroller we are borrowing from friends and fell asleep in it. He did great with being passed around and meeting new people. We were so proud of him!

Good Friday

Today, Joshua met his Great Aunt Betty and Uncle George as well as his cousins, Stephanie, Kurt and Lily. Dispite Uncle George's best efforts, Joshua screamed at him for the entire drive to get ice cream. He apparently took right to Stephanie, and she entertained him on the ride home. He even let her hold him :-) Tio Omar showed Joshie all around Bomboys Candy Shop and introduced him to raspberry ice cream which he liked very much.

Pulling Up

Joshua hit another milestone yesterday, he pulled himself up. We had just finished a nice walk with Kim and Ellie and were enjoying the sunny 70 degree day in the backyard on a blanket. The stroller was parked near the blanket. Josh was sitting and reached forward, grabbed the wheel of the stroller and stood up. Now all he wants to do is sit or stand, no more laying down for this little one!

Joshua also had his 6 month checkup yesterday morning. He is now 17.5 inches long and 18 lbs 2 oz. He received several vaccinations.

We are getting ready for our trip next week. If you didn't receive the email about our plans for Cali, please give me a call or send me an email, I'll fill you in on the details.

Baptism

Yesterday was Joshua's baptism. It was attended by his Grandma V., Grandad, Tia Amy, Tio Omar, Dylan, Stephanie, Aunt Jill, Godfather Chris, Godmother Carie and family friends Richard & Donna with their children. The service was wonderful. Pastor Fritz had the children bless the font during the children's time, he incorporated baptism into the sermon and then there was the ceremony after the sermon. The congregation welcomed and blessed Joshua as we walked around the church so it was a very special time.



This week Joshua has been sitting up on his own for extended periods of time. He can rebalance himself if he is leaning over too far. He also started pulling himself up in the pack n play so he is no longer safe in there alone.

We are going out for a walk now since it is a beautiful day out. I hope to get on and write more later.

Long time no hear!

Wow! It has been two weeks since we posted... sorry for the delay.

Jason was out of town last weekend but Joshua and I survived. Joshua loves seeing daddy come home every time. He is really warming up to people (other than mommy) now. Looks like he is starting to get over the 'stranger anxiety' that he has been suffering from. The trick we found was to have whomever was holding him ignore him until he makes gestures to interact. Seems to be working.

He is rolling back to front and front to back now and likes to be on his tummy. He now sleeps on his side or his tummy because he puts himself in those positions. Sleep is no longer still, he moves all around these days but on an upside, he is starting to sleep longer. I think a lot of his sleep problem for the past two months had to do with the terrible rash that he had. We are working on fixing that and everyone seems happier.

We have been working on oatmeal, the sippy cup and sweet potatoes. He likes the sweet potatoes the best. We just started those last night.

Today, we all spent a good deal of time outside working on the yard. Still more to do. Josh likes to be outside when he can see mommy and daddy. So, we put him in his jumper to play along side of us.

Next weekend is his baptism. We are really looking forward to that. It will be during church service on Sunday.

Friday & Saturday

Friday, was a beautiful day of almost 80F. We took a nice walk with Ellie and Kim to the swings.





On Saturday, Jason, Joshua and I got ourselves going early and headed to the National Aquarium in Baltimore with Ryan, Kim and Ellie. We had a blast. Joshua loved the fish, sharks, birds, frogs and all the people we saw. After the Aquarium, we ate at 5 Brothers Burgers & Fries then headed home. It was a great day and Joshua did a very well. When we returned home, Stephanie & Harry had us over for more burgers and brats with beer. Josh, still in a good mood, wooed the hosts then after a fight, fell asleep for the night.

Happy 5 Month Birthday!

Today we took things easy since I was sick... but we did get outside to enjoy the sunshine. It was in the low 60's today. A regular heat wave!!

Joshua had a good 5 month birthday and is now in bed. Be sure to check on the pictures from today on Flickr.