First Bites

We gave Baby M his first bites of real food this week. Homemade applesauce was his first taste, followed by avocado a few days later.

We think he liked it.

Fun in the Arizona Sun

We had a nice time in Phoenix last week, where we soaked up the sun, hiked and visited the zoo and awesome children's museum. M had a cold, so he didn't sleep terribly well, and as a result we didn't exactly feel rested. But we'll sleep again...someday.

The Phoenix Zoo is just the right size. We spent a morning there checking out giraffes, baboons, elephants, rhinos and other animal friends. When we asked G what he most wanted to see, he said dragons. We were a little worried he might have a meltdown after discovering there were no dragons at the zoo. But guess what? There was a Komodo dragon near the exit. Crisis averted. Our favorites were the orangutans, including an 8-year-old ape who did somersaults and made funny faces at the tourists.

Another big hit was the Children's Museum of Phoenix, an old school building downtown converted into a fun space for kids. G loved running up and down their three-story climbing gym, racing cars on a racetrack and shopping in the kids' market.

They even had a special room just for babies. M liked this round cushion, where he could stare at colorful mobiles above.

The best part of the whole trip was hiking on South Mountain with the kids. You never know with a 2-year-old if something will be fun or a majorly annoying drag.G loved "looking for bunnies." {That was what we told him we were doing to get him out the door.} But once he started walking, he was our little adventurer, running ahead to inspect snake holes and pick up rocks. "Maybe I see a bunny. Maybe I see a snake. Maybe I see a monster." We saw none of the above, but it was fun to explore with him.

 The temps were only in the upper 60s and low-70s, but M did take his first dip in the {heated} pool. You can't tell from these pictures, but he loved it. So different from G, who hated water until he was well over 18 months.

Winter Is Here

It finally snowed yesterday -- really snowed. As soon as G woke up and looked out his window, he wanted to play in the giant white sandbox: "I build Frosty the Snowman."

After M went down for a morning nap, I bundled up G in his hat, snow pants, mittens, boots and coat. He was not entirely thrilled about this get-up.

But once we were outside, he didn't seem to mind: "I playing in the snow. It's fun playing in the snow!" 

He played outside until his cheeks were bright pink and snot was running from his nose. "Ready to go in yet?" "No, it's fun playing in the snow."

The only way to lure him inside again: the promise of hot chocolate--with a marshmallow.

5 Month Baby M

This month, Baby M weighs nearly 15.5 pounds. He is obsessed with his toes, baths and his big brother. If the two boys are near each other, M grabs for G and giggles. G thinks it's quite funny too. In other developments, M entertains himself for longer stretches of time, happily chewing on any toys he can get his hands on.

{This post is a few days late because we took our first family vacation last week--pictures to come.}

Toes

Someone has discovered his toes. He chews on them, smiles at them and babbles at them. They are more fun than any of his toys.

Jingle Bells

Because it's never too late to sing Christmas songs.

{That would be a mash-up of "Jingle Bells" and "Jingle Bell Rock."}

Our Year in Pictures

On the beach in Costa Rica

Hiking in Costa Rica

Feeding a friendly monkey bananas in Costa Rica

 

Sledding for the first time

Baby Dos at 20 weeks

At the Des Moines Sculpture Park

Jekyll Island, Ga.

Jekyll Island, Ga.

Checking out giraffes at the zoo

Second birthday party

Very pregnant with Baby Dos

Loving the pool

Baby Dos at 36 weeks

Enjoying a favorite summer treat

Feeding a giraffe at the zoo

Having a blast on his new swingset

Family photo six days before Baby M was born

Our new addition

Brotherly love

After riding Thomas the Tank Engine

At the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago

Happy New Year!