My first trip to the zoo!

Last weekend, we decided we would head to the cities for Valentine's Day. We thought it would be fun to go to the MN Zoo since we are proud members and have an annual pass (thanks Great-Auntie Lynda!) The best part of the zoo was the HUGE sandbox that I played in. Daddy was the "lucky one" to bring me in the sandbox to play. Cousins Lexi and Sam joined us and they had fun burying my legs in the sand. I loved the sand so much that I had to sneak in a little taste. Mommy found sand in every place possible for the next three days. Even after a bath that night, we still seemed to find lovely sand!!!

Another fun place at the zoo was the aquarium where I loved looking at all of the colorful fish and even saw a shark feeding. I think Mommy and Daddy need to take me to Cozumel when they go in three weeks, don't you? Since the Zoo was really a big ZOO that day, we were only there for two hours or so. The nice part is that we will have many trips back there, especially this summer!

If you look closely, you can see the big shark swimming past the window! Yikes, I would hate to see that thing in the ocean!

Last weekend was also Valentine's Day, so we celebrated by being with family, eating candy, and opening presents. I really love this holiday stuff. I had my first sucker... thanks Grandma Carla! Mommy wasn't as excited about this, but I really loved it and was able to have just a few sucks of it.

Grandma Lois gave me some biscuit treats to help my little teeth pop out (they still haven't yet). These little guys sure are tasty but what a mess!
This "lover boy" is a mess! These flowers were for my Mommy because I love her so much!

One of my favorite gifts from Mommy and Daddy was this Elmo. He blows kisses and says funny things. I am certain this will eventually put my parents over the edge!

In case you are wondering, my shirt says, "Single and Loving it!"


Another fun event around Valentine's Day was the party we had at daycare. We brought Valentine's for each other and had some fun. Ethan wasn't there (missed you buddy!) I got my favorite treats (Graduates) and some nice books!

Taking a break from rolling and "crawling"

I have been busy with practicing my crawling and I am SO close! I now rock back and forth on my knees. I really want to go places, so I mostly "log roll" to where I want to go. I can scoot on my tummy backwards and turn my body around. I still need to figure out how to move forward.

P.S. Mommy is not so thrilled about this picture of her. She made me write this so that you didn't think she was completely falling apart! It was an early morning and she was tired from the late evening out with Daddy and their friends.


Finally, I had my last swim class on Saturday and proudly graduated from "Skip class!" I am quite the fish in the pool. I love to kick my legs and scream really loud. We sing songs and practice jumping off the ledge and blow bubbles in the water. I was the youngest in the class, but I still was able to do all the things that were being taught. I am going to miss class, but Mommy promises we will sign up for summer swim lessons!

I am really excited to go to Lutsen next weekend to spend time with our friends. I am most excited to see my two little girlfriends (Lauren and Abby). I will have lots of fun pictures when I return! Have a great last week of February!

A helmet afterall....

Getting the mold of my head.. Plaster was EVERYWHERE!

This is the cast molding of my head (it is drying so they can send it in)

Well, as you many of you know, I have somewhat of a Charlie Brown look (block-head) and it finally came time to make "the decision." Mommy and Daddy decided to have my head fitted for the dreaded helmet. What was first explained to us as a helmet that would only need to be worn at night, will now most likely be worn 23 hours a day. The time frame for wearing this crazy thing is anywhere from 4-8 weeks on average. Since I am a little older and wiser, it could take a longer than this for my head to round-out. Mommy is a little more relieved that she won't have to try the repositioning suggestions at night, especially now that I roll all over my crib. Here is a picture of the little boy who is the model for OrthoAmerica, the manufacturer of my helmet. He is wearing the Safari Animals helmet, which is the one Mommy ordered for me too (Daddy wasn't too excited about the pattern).

It's not so bad, right!?!?

The helmet should arrive in a week to two weeks and I will keep you posted on how it is going for me! Onto happier news, I had my first haircut on Saturday at The Garage. I know it isn't the most manly place to go, but Mommy wanted my first haircut to be just right. I think Daddy would have preferred that I went to Sports Clips or a Barber Shop for just boys. Here are the pictures of my big day!

Waiting for my turn (you can now see my flat back of head here)

Before Picture

Wearing the cape

Cheryl is cutting my hair while Mommy tries to call me down (I didn't like sitting still for that long!)

After... SO handsome!

My Official Certificate and Lock of Hair (Mommy loves these little "trinkets" for scrapbooking!)

We also remembered the camera for KinderMusik this week, so here are a few pictures of me at music class.

Making noise with my girlfriend, Megan

Mommy and Daddy swing me (hammocking) for a lullaby and yes, I am still holding that silly little drum. I love that thing!

And finally, using the fun little shaker and STILL holding onto that drum! I am my own band!

Big News!

Hi there! Hopefully, I didn't worry you all with my lack of blogging these past few weeks. January was an "interesting" month to say the least. First of all, since I titled this "big news," I suppose you want to know what it is. No, Mommy is not pregnant, thank goodness, since I want her all to myself right now. The news is that Daddy is leaving Cumberland Hospital and will be the new Director of Rehabilitation at St. Joseph's Hospital! Daddy is really sad about leaving Cumberland because he loves it there, but he is also excited at the idea that he will be 4.6 miles from home. Daddy could ride his bike or snowmobile to work everyday if he chose. He is most excited about getting rid of his car in the near future and buying a pick-up truck... go Daddy! Mommy and I are very proud of him and we are optimistic about this new opportunity. He will oversee Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Cardiac Rehabilitation, and SPOTS house (pediatrics). Daddy starts March 1st at St. Joe's Hospital.

This past week, I was sick with a viral infection. Mommy got the "dreaded" phone call from daycare saying that my temp. was 103... Yikes! Mommy picked me up and brought me home to rest. She called the doctor who didn't seem overly concerned, but I didn't get better during the night, so Daddy took the day off and brought me to the doctor. They didn't see anything wrong with me, so we headed back home. In the middle of the night, I spiked a scary 104.4 temp. which prompted Daddy to call the doctor immediately. They said I should be seen the next day, so they gave me that icky, pink medicine and I slept a bit more. When I saw the doctor the following day, they "predicted" I had something called the Roseola Virus, which involves a high temp followed by a rash. So far, I don't see a rash on me, so we think it was probably just a virus. I am feeling much better and we even ran some errands today to get out of the house. Here are some pictures of what I have been up to lately!

Helping Daddy paint the inside of the pantry closet in the kitchen

Good thing I am not afraid of heights

Playing with my pal, Liberty

Loving my Cheerios (no wonder I still feel hungry after eating them!)

One of my most favorite days of the week is Saturday, because of swim lessons at the YMCA! I am also enrolled in Kindermusik on Monday nights but we keep forgetting the camera! Now that I am 8 months old, Mommy and Daddy have made a few changes. Both said I was way too heavy for the infant carrier (by the way, I weigh 18 lb. 1oz and am 27 inches tall=25% for height and weight. Goes to show that even with these chunky cheeks, I am not THAT chunky!!!!) Daddy also put the highchair together that stands on the floor. We have the one that sits on a chair, but we love this one too, so now I have two highchair seats!

Still eating Cheerios! 50 for me, 50 for Liberty!

Another little change, now that I am getting so big, is that I needed a 12 month snowsuit. We went to Scheels to buy the snowsuit and headed out to try it out. Here we are getting ready to take a loop around the yard. I was much happier this time around. I don't have winter boots since my feet are still so small, so Mommy put mittens over my socks (see below).

I am all smiles thinking about going fast in this thing!
Heading back in to warm up

That was FUN! Let's do it again soon!

Here I am in my wonderful, ducky tub. The quacking makes me giggle and laugh when we squeeze his beak! Bathtime is one of my favorite times of the day! My towel says "I love Mommy!"
I am still working on getting my first tooth and learning to crawl, although I am VERY close! I promise to blog next week after I get my FIRST haircut!