BIG slide

James is truly fearless! Last year we went to Pump It Up for Abby & Bella's birthdays and I had to climb up and ride down the slide with James. This year, he was SUPER excited to see it and joined right in with the big kids without hesitation....over and over and over again :-) Thrill seeker I tell ya!

Father's Day

We busted out the water table on Saturday before the baseball game. James had a blast with it and I'm hoping he'll be more likely to play with the water when at school. He loved when Daddy put water in the blue bucket to make the green wheel spin :-)
All my boys playing outside -- Easton loves to run in the backyard

Happy Father's Day, Jimmy! James painted a cube for Dad at school and then his teachers put in pictures of him and Daddy.

Doing the sign for "duck" (or trying to get the camera) -- just wanted to get his "Dad's Silly Monkey" outfit shown in honor of Father's Day.

James has taken to reading adult books -- favorites include A Healthy Heart (I think he wants us to read it) and Webster's Thesaurus and Dictionary -- I read him a new word and it's definition when he gets them out, maybe I'll expand my limited vocabulary in the process :-)

Peek A Boo Around the Island

James and I played a game of peek-a-boo around the island :-) He will now put his hands over his face (not always covering his eyes) to play peek-a-book with us, too. That means he's learned almost learned the sign for "tiger" too to add to his repertoire of "more" "all done" and "milk milk milk!!!"

James v. Teddy 13.0

I have to get really creative to get these James v. Teddy pictures now a days! James kept walking back and forth from the sun room to the family room, so I propped Teddy up on one of the toys and had the camera focused in to try and "capture the moment." It worked until he decided that it was fun to play with the fly swatter and the note card :-)

James had fun playing bubbles with Elise

Katie and her parents stopped for a bit on their walk so the two friends could play (more like play next to each other rather than with each other, but it was fun all the same)

James took a little spill on the driveway while chasing bubbles (the downhill slope got the best of him) and he got his very 1st strawberry knee -- no tears, just a couple whimpers -- tough guy!

Exploring, Playing, Growing and Just Plain Being Cute

James has had a lot of fun playing with all his new toys since his Birthday (well, the ones Jim has put together anyway). He's also been working on his creative side at school with a lot of art projects using different mediums. He has painted using swatters with different shapes on the ends, played with Goop (cornstarch and water in a baggie -- it changes from liquid to solid and back again when played with, Ms. S was very excited to show them the Goop), used plastic shapes to play in Cool Whip (Ms. T's big project for the week) and painted with brushes of different shapes/sizes. For some reason, James is always the kid with the most paint/whip on his face -- hopefully he doesn't turn into a glue eater also! Yesterday was Multi-Cultural Day at school -- his classroom did a poster on Poland. They had pictures of all the kids taste testing boiled pierogies and kolaches -- the faces they all made were hilarious! Each child also got to hand paint a section of the flag for the poster -- James had a red section -- of course, it was all over his face in the picture (his one teacher says that means he's getting ready to go to Toddlers because that's what they all do -- eat everything -- good thing they discovered how to make non-toxic paint or James would never get to do art projects)! At school and home, we've gone on walks to enjoy the nice weather and let James explore the outdoors. At school they put all the kids in the 8-person buggie and walk away -- there's a really cute picture of James passed out in his winter coat on the ride (I only have a hard copy of the pic from school, so I can't share on here). When we go to take him out of the car, he points to the back window -- telling us "hey, that stuff stopped moving out there!" (well, at least that's what we think the message is relaying -- it could be "get me outta here" too I guess :-) ). He's also become a master at "Uh-Oh" -- his 1st official phrase that he definitely knows how to use correctly! He will say "uh-oh" and then drop his sippy -- I'm trying to work on the whole concept that intentional dropping is not an "uh-oh," but it's not going too smoothly...he is just too cute saying it though to always correct him :-) Onto the 12-month dr. appointment updates: he weighed in at 19lbs 11 oz (moved up to the 15th %tile) and 29 1/4 inches (moved up to the 40th %tile, woo hoo). We've been weaning him off the formula and onto milk (he's at a 2oz formula to 4oz milk mixture today) and are also trying to phase out the bottle to get him on all sippy cup-action (he does very well on this at school with his friends around him, not as well at home). Everything checked out well -- she's very impressed with his mad walking skillzzzz and he was still nice and congested for her, so she gave us a name of an allergist to take him to see to hopefully get to the bottom of it once and for all. Going along with the sippy cup is to phase out the baby food too, but the Stage 3 foods (a bit more chunky) will do for his really picky days -- he did eat the heck out of a California Turkey Burger and sweet potato with me last night, he ate more than half of the patty and almost 1/2 of the potato -- chunky monkey -- good thing I planned in advance so I got to eat something!
Above :: James loved the book Ms. S made him to remember his Birthday -- he carried around the pictures of his friends all night long (good thing it was laminated)
Below :: cute overalls pic -- he had green on for St. Patrick's Day (that was his first, "2nd" holiday) but the onesie didn't make it long into the day

Working on the sippy cup action (the pic kept flipping, so just tilt your head for the full effect)

His 4-leaf clover painting for St. Patrick's day

James loves getting in and out of his Super Coupe from GG and Pops

Playing with the ball popper from the York's -- he loves to hit the button to start it and then dance as it pops the balls

Taking his pal Scout for a ride

Sleeping in his safari camo -- it was hard to find him this morning :-)

Music, Puzzles and Sledding

James likes to make music -- whether it is the organ or a xylophone or a pot with a plastic spoon.

James also likes to be goofy -- always trying to make people laugh -- he's taken to carrying his toys around like a momma cub -- here it's one of the pieces of his puzzle that his friend Katie got him -- at school, I've seen him carry the plastic hammer like this too :-) Such a silly boy!

Aunt Cassie and Uncle Brian got James this awesome sled for Christmas -- it took us forever to get out there (first it was only in the single digits temperature-wise and he has no snow pants, then it was always dark out by the time we got home and he tends to fall asleep in the car after his busy day at school) and our adventure was only about 10 minutes (due to a little boy way overdue for a nap), but it was lots of fun and he liked to be pulled around :-) I have a feeling James is going to like living on the edge -- so I can only hope to contain his adventures now!

After Thanksgiving Weekend

Post-Thanksgiving found us relaxing. There was lots of football and hockey to watch! James has a new found hobby -- tantalizing Easton at every chance. He bee-lined over to Easton at mach-10 crawling speed to pull up and pet the puppy.

They played nicely. I'm glad we played with Easton's ears and his paws so much when he was a puppy because now he doesn't really care if they get touched.
James has a lot more hair these days, which makes bath time that much more fun for crazy hair do's! We still have him in his infant tub because he's not the best sitter just yet and he goes nuts in there -- kick, kick, KICK -- there's barely any water left in there when he's done playing around :-)

James is obsessed with people's faces -- mostly their noses, but he also insists on trying to put his hands in every one's mouths (gross considering his hands have usually just been in his own goober mouth). We try to make the "HONK" noise whenever he grabs our noses -- probably a bit too encouraging to keep him doing that to everyone, but it's so funny.Naked baby (he had just blown out a diaper - his 3rd of the day - and it was too close to bed time to run that risk again) showing us how he waves "HI" back at you...a new trick that he started on Saturday.

James showing that he's smarter than the average bear...sneaking through the exersaucer to get out of the family room to go play with the ceramic turtle (maybe turtles are his favorite, just like Mommy).Lil' peanut bear

Standing up to look outside in the sun room -- was very interesting I guess as he stood there for a few minutes.

Play Date Saturday

Our neighbors, Kathleen and Matt, brought Katie down for a play date on Saturday. James and Katie seem to be really in-tune with each other -- they both woke up at the same times from their naps (her afternoon and his morning) so it worked out well! Easton was waaaaayyyy too excited with another baby and adults sitting on the floor (he thinks anyone on the ground is there to play with him) so he got to spend some time in the sun room (it was a nice day out and he got a peanut butter-filled Kong treat). Katie had fun teething on James' keys and he had fun teething on her duck toy (neither of them have teeth yet at +8 months old, again, in-tune). They will still be in the independent-play stage for awhile, but they did acknowledge each other's presence every once-in-awhile :-) They really enjoyed the stacking table and knocking the blocks off it (Katie can even hold her balance for a bit already)!

James had such a great time! He was so tuckered out he went down for a 2 hour nap when they left! We've started to use one of the ottomans to block off his path from the family room to the kitchen (give him some room to play but keep him contained a bit, ya know) and he loves to stand up and use it for balance as he watches Daddy in the kitchen (Jimmy made homemade chocolate cookies, yummy)! The nap also helped Pops and GG be able to see a happy baby as we Skyped with them in the evening....technology is so useful sometimes!

Farmer's Market Friday

James was super happy to take a walk and not use his car seat -- what a big boy!!! He loved kicking his feet out against the foot rest of the stroller -- kept him busy and must have tired him out because he fell asleep just as we were walking up our driveway (the walk was cut very short because Easton's retractable leash stopped retracting) and he took about a 1.5 hour nap -- meant I got to pull some weeds (not fun, but needed to be done)!
Thursday I was determined to get James to take a nap in his crib. He fell asleep while breast feeding around noon, so I took him upstairs to go to nap -- of course, he was wide-eyed and bushy tailed as soon as I hit the top step. I tried rocking him and dancing with him to get him to go back to sleep -- no dice. So then I thought maybe he didn't get enough food from me, so I'd give him a bottle of milk I'd pumped a couple days earlier -- well, it made him happy as he probably was hungry still, but he refused to nap still. Fifteen minutes of dancing and 20 or so minutes of fussing later = James finally asleep...for 3 hours! I didn't get anything done though because I was paranoid since he was on his belly! I kept running upstairs to check on him and I had to get a picture because it's my favorite when he sleeps with his booty up in the air (I turned the fan on high and had it pointed directly at him through the mesh bumper to make sure he got fresh air to breath). On a cool note, this was during the time that Mark Buehrle was completing his perfect game (no-hitter) versus the Tampa Rays, so I'm glad I randomly called Amanda and found out the game was on TV -- very exciting to watch even though I'm not a Sox fan -- still a fan of baseball at it's best!
Jim and James got some fun play time together on Thursday when Jim got home from work.

A close up of our smiley Bug :-D

Our neighbor, Elise, came to visit with James during the afternoon.

James took the burp rag from me and was playing with it and it ended up on his head like this -- I had to take a picture because w/ the pattern on the rag, he totally looked like an Egyptian Pharaoh :-)

I have been wanting to take James to the local Farmer's Market since it opened in June. Mother Nature had a different plan though as it rained for 3 Fridays in a row and then last week it just wasn't gonna happen. So today, it finally happened :-) It was really nice outside (pretty warm actually) and we did a lap first to check out the goods. There was a knife sharpener (old-fashioned, very cool), lots of fruits, veggies, plants/flowers and pastries and even a doggie treat station! We ended up with some fresh cherries, apple butter, pumpkin bread and a peanut butter puppy treat -- I was pretty proud of my restraint at only spending $15 -- so tempting with so many yummy items! We then took a walk around the Town Square, which was really cute. They had a little program under the gazebo for ~2-4 year olds that were singing and dancing to a "Sticky Sticky Bubble Gum" song -- I'll have to remember that for a few years from now! There is a lake that you can walk right down to and put your feet in (which I thought was potentially a drowning hazard w/ all the kids there, but I guess you gotta put some faith in parents), a splash fountain and an amphitheater -- I was impressed and we (I, as James was passed out within 2 minutes of being in the market) got some exercise walking around.

I was so excited for James to wear these Safari overalls! If I haven't previously mentioned it, I LOVE OVERALLS on boys -- sooooo cute! He wore his sunglasses to protect his pretty, big brown eyes and there is a matching safari hat too (which he wasn't in the mood to wear).

The old-school knife sharpening station -- maybe this is the best technology they have for it out there now still, but I was pretty fascinated watching him work.

The backdrop of the gazebo is a renovated wildlife area -- it was gorgeous!
When we got home, I put James down on his activity mat to play while I went to grab my sandwich and I heard the chime from the elephant and looked but didn't see him -- he had rolled himself about 3 feet from where he started. Of course, he never did the "travelling roll" while I had the video camera rolling, but it's the only way he could have gotten from point A to B so quickly (unless Easton gave him a ride, which I doubt happened). The positioning actually worked out as it gave him some tummy time too. I love the "oh nuts, Mom caught me, maybe if I'm really cute she'll forget about it and still love me" look that he's starting to work on for when he's older :-)

He was so excited about roll-travelling that he was talking to me and he got some Easton kisses for his efforts.

Mommy-Son Saturday

Jim was out at Dominic's bachelor party festivities on Saturday, so James E and I had the day to ourselves. We chilled with Easton for awhile out front on a blanket and enjoyed the awesome weather (mid 70s and a nice breeze). The neighbors came over and played with James during his tummy time when their dogs came to visit Easton. At night we went with the Schillingers to Gma and Gpa Schillinger's block party. It was a fun night with karaoke (only heard mumbled Taylor Swift from 3-4 year olds about 4 times), largest adult egg toss and water balloon toss that I've ever seen and a bags tournament (that Laura and I got eliminated in the first round, bummer).

James can't keep his fingers out of his mouth...these teeth NEED to cut already! He's been waking up during the night about every other night bc he flips himself over, gets mad he's on his belly, realizes his diaper is soaked (bc he is drinking at least 6 oz. of formula at night when my supply runs low) and that he's hungry again since it's been 4-5 hours since his last meal...so I end up being awake for 45-60 minutes with him and then BEG him to take a nap in the morning (which usually doesn't happen). As you can see below, he's starting to "play shy" a bit with people. It's cute bc he'll smile and then bury his head in my neck/shoulder...which is OK now until he'll need to be broken of it when he won't leave me to let anyone else hold him...he's gettin' heavy!!! :-)
Tummy time outside in his cute airplane shirt from the Folzenlogels (the pants are still too big for our short stuff). Right after he spent 30 min on his belly and 10 more on his back, I put him belly-to-belly on me and he promptly spit up and both of us needed a wardrobe change! Look at those dark brown eyes -- so deep in baby thought :-)

Eric (our neighbor that will be a freshman this year, wow, he's grown up so much in the 3 years we've known him!) was great at playing with James and keeping him entertained during his tummy time (I think Eric was enjoying a break from the yard work and getting the rain barrel working at their house too). James is getting good at holding his head up high during tummy time -- he'll be on a tear around the house soon when he gets the strength to crawl -- I'm sure it's not far away!

Can little boys in denim overalls be any more cute??? James had a great night outside at Gma and Gpa Schillinger's block party with Laura.
Uncle Ed and Aunt Mary Jo took a turn walking James around as the night went on (he was up from about 7:15am - 9:30pm with just a 30 min nap on our drive over).
I absolutely love Gma and Gpa Schillinger! They came outside to enjoy the family fun for a little bit.
Perhaps the largest adult egg toss I'll ever see in my life -- at least 25 pairs competed and then maybe more for the water balloon toss (which I took the soaking on here w/ our thin balloon -- soft hands were no help at all)!

Look What I Found!

MY TOES!!!

James has recently become a big fan of playing with his toes :-) Mr. Independent generally prefers to find them himself though -- maybe he enjoys the surprise of finding a "new" body part every time? (Yes, our little Peanut still fits in this onesie -- the 0-3 month size when he's 4.5 months old -- as the doctor said: "someone's gotta be the little guy")!