Life's a Beach!

Well, it looks like we've been gone for a long time. And we were!

Over the week of your 5-month-iversary you got to take your first trip to the Beach!

And no, it wasn't some crazy old dream: your Mommy was there, your Daddy was there, Your Mimi was there, your Pops was there, 3 of your Uncles, 3 of your Aunts and all of your cousins (so far) were there too! And 1 of those aunts, 1 of those uncles and 2 of those cousins had never met you before...how exciting was that!?!


This adventure was too crazy for words. So I'll stop writing and just let the pictures and videos we took on our cool new HD under-water-safe digital video camera do the talking.

I realize this is a bit like looking at someone else's baby pictures, but it really isn't...because they're YOUR vacation pictures. And who wouldn't like to see vacation pictures involving a cute baby?

You got to meet your Aunt Deborah!
And your Uncle Keith!
And your Cousins Kobi and Ella!
And, of course, some of the folks you've already met got to hang out with you again too, including Uncle Taff!

And Aunt Mendi!Cousin Addy!
Kathryn!
And some regular suspects too:



Some of your jumping cousins!


Cousins Ruthy and Steve came by too!


Kobi was immediately captivated by you. And you were captivated by him too!

The mosquitoes were ravenous. But, don't worry...you didn't get bitten...except for maybe once...on your scrotum. But it went away very quickly! (the bite, not the scrotum). Sorry about that, by the way. That couldn't have been comfortable. And I don't know how the mosquito got there anyway!

Look! You have hair!

And a Mimi too!
You slept on my chest at the beach under the umbrella for a long long time!


We got you a little kiddy pool for 4 dollars and filled it with fresh water for more optimum beach enjoyment! And it turned out to be a family event!

You really seemed to (not completely dis-) like the pool and the beach breeze!

Look: 4 out of the 5 siblings with all of their children! Whoa!


Mimi and Pops (Saba and Safta to your British Cousins) with all 10 of their grandchildren (so far!)
Don't worry: I got you...
Here we go! It's your first time EVER to put your feet in the ocean!
No, don't look at my BFB (that's 'big fat belly'). Look at you! in the Ocean! (Actually it's the Gulf of Mexico, but who's counting?)





What a stud!

By the end of the trip you were so accustomed to the beach you didn't even mind it slapping you in the face a little. You're a little beach bum!



We also visited the historic Galveston strand!

The best thing about the vacation, though, was getting to spend all day with you for 9 days straight! I didn't want to go back to work. We got to show you so many cool things and have so much fun with you and your cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents.

You grew up so much during that week, or so said everyone who didn't go on the trip. But, I knew it too-- you got to play in the ocean, you stayed in a new town in a new house and slept through the night, you got sand on your feet and got passed around from family member to family member like a hot potato without a gripe! You made it through two 3-4 hour car rides without a major meltdown and you didn't even seem to mind sun screen. You were fascinated with the big kids and even managed to hold your own a little too!

By next summer you'll be digging in the sand and playing in the surf and probably won't want to take a nap all cuddled up on my chest in a beach towel, but your mom and I will never forget how fun it was to show you the beach for the first time...our little beach boy!

Funny Cousins, Hesitant Dogs and New Tricks, oh my!

As we approach your 5 month-iversary far too quickly, each week brings new fun, new friends and new feats!

First off...every week just before SHARK WEEK, it's COUSIN WEEK here in Dallas. This used to be called Nephew/Niece week, but since you're here and they're YOUR cousins, it's now called COUSIN WEEK.

Every summer more and more of your Uncle Dana's and Aunt Mendi's children come up to Dallas to spend time with Mimi and Pops, go to art Camp and hang out with their Uncle Aaron and Aunt Holly. This year, they got to hang out with their Aunt and Uncle...AND their cousin!

So, in reverse order, you got to chill with Holden:
Cuddle with Grayson...

Goof with Griffin...and play with Haley!

You really were fascinated by this small contingent of your first cousins. They all really love you and delighted in making you smile and laugh! Cousin Week will only get better and better!

But, of course, no matter how much you love your cousins, they simply can't compare to your four-legged friends. This week you finally got up the courage and motor skills to go after your dogs. You love these critters a lot and just stare at them, mouth agape, smile plastered on. When the dogs are playing, you are watching. When the dogs are near, you're interested. When the dogs want to lick your face, you open your mouth up wide for a kiss. We really need to work on the last one.

But, we caught a really sweet moment on camera as you got to pet Toby for the first time (by your own volition). It was really sweet for you. Probably not so sweet for Toby.


You pet him...

You grab him...You see him...
You WANT him! (He's smartly skeptical)
Toby did really well with this encounter. They really do seem to like you...but they really shouldn't pass judgment until you start crawling.

This week was also filled with some awesome new sleep habits.

First, check out these moments that your Grandma caught. This is a new sleep technique that you've mastered called the "chillax":


The "chillax" is often performed while napping in the swing:
And, of course, everybody's favorite which you just started this week was the "Ostrich":




There was also a great sleep move I witnessed called the "teeterer"... in which you are sleeping on your side...and then lose your balance a little and almost roll to your back, but you flail your arms and legs to catch you back on your side. Then you fall asleep again on your side and lose your balance a little and almost roll to your back...rinse and repeat.

You also had some waking feats as well! Namely, you found your feet.

I was so lucky to be there for it! This was, by all accounts, your third feet finding mission. The other two occurred during diaper time, and really complicated things. This was photographable and less complicated. But still quite an accomplishment!

Check it out!

No feet:

Oh hey, those are my feet!
These are MY things on the bottom of my legs? They're pretty bendy...
I will try to rip them open and see if there's milk inside.

Nope...no luck. I give up. These suck.Oh hey...what are these things at the bottom of my legs? I like them! I will grab them!

I will wiggle them all over the place! a LOT! I WILL CATCH YOU!

We counted...all ten toes were accounted for after this incident.

You also had some great moments with Grandma, who got to babysit with you a bunch this week. (And one day, I'm going to get her to write a blog entry too! I know she can do it!)

She caught you really really REALLY smiling:
And fighting a T-rex (which shows some serious dexterity!)

Speaking of dexterity though, you really surprised me with a major leap forward in your hand eye coordination. You've been grabbing things you want for a while now, and manipulating them too. You even started doing this "I see it...I grab it" thing that's really cool. Except at dinner. On Sunday we had dinner with all your cousins and Mimi and Pops at a Japanese restaurant. I was eating and had you in my lap.

In a split second you had reached forward, grabbed my Bento Box and were pulling it toward you. Luckily, your Mom reached out with lightning reflexes and saved both you and me from getting majorly teriyaki'd!

So, Cousin Week was an astounding success! Next week will be even more of a challenge! We're going to the Beach...to stay in a house...with ALL of your cousins! Including two you haven't met yet! (And your Aunt Deborah and Uncle Keith!)

So get ready for some more adventures, some more cousins and more developmental milestones! (just as long as they don't involve you and me covered in teriyaki sauce!)