Quinn Loves Daddy

While Quinn and I are busy having fun in Oregon this week with family and friends, Pat is at home working away. Here are a couple of my recent favorites that capture Quinn's admiration for his Daddy.

11 Months!

What?!? How did this happen? Quinn is already enjoying his last month of infanthood. It's so hard to believe that nearly a year has passed since we were first introduced to our precious baby boy.

Quinn is still the busy boy that he's always been (with the exception of in utero), but lately he's been developing more social interests as well. He can get where he wants to go, and he loves to explore. Outside is one of Quinn's favorite places to be (who can blame him)? Thankfully, the rain doesn't seem to bother him one bit, either. When I take Quinn to a park, he loves to watch the other kids and then he tries to befriend them. He loves little playmates and so one of my goals is to work at getting involved in some playgroups with kids his age. I do participate in a stroller workout group called Stroller Strides, and once the moms finish working out the kids play together. That tends to be the highlight of both Quinn and my day most days.

We have been lucky enough to spend a lot of our time this past month with family, and Pat and I are thrilled to see how Quinn is bonding with his grandparents. He loves his time with grandparents which solidifies, once again, our decision to move closer. The only problem now is we wish that they were just down the street!

Quinn is turning into quite the ham. Lately he's been cognisant of what he can do to entertain others, and then he does it over and over and over again. A couple of weeks ago Will and Lisa were visiting us and Will was letting Quinn take pictures with his camera. Every time he pressed the button (for whatever reason) we thought it was hilarious. Quinn must have taken 35 pictures and after he pressed the button he'd look at us and wait for us to giggle. It got to the point where he'd prompt us with a really fake laugh deep in his throat. He loves to see people around him happy, and he'll do what he can to make sure that he is surrounded by happiness. His contagious laughter keeps this pretty easy, seeing as all he has to do is laugh to keep his audience entertained and laughing with him.

As American Idol came to a finish, Quinn started watching with me a bit during the day. This is when I discovered his most recent (and not yet mastered skill), dancing! You know, the baby bounce that we call dancing? Once I saw him bounce a little I have tried to encourage it, but it's pretty hit and miss at this point. We do have video, but I'm pretty convinced it's one that is only entertaining to Pat and me! I'm hoping that he continues to hone this skill and develops a love for dancing. This way I can have a partner to accompany me in my foolish dancing around the house when nobody else is around to watch!

This past month Quinn has been developing a love of being read to (as long as there isn't something more entertaining around, i.e. people). When it's just the two of us, he'll bring me books to read to him, help me turn the pages, and when they come to an end he'll cry a little and encourage me to read them over again. I love to see him enjoying books, and hope that this interest doesn't fizzle away as he gets older.

Quinn is a great eater, and has recently been completely weaned from me. We were both ready, and it was a gradual enough process that I wasn't even emotionally traumatized from the experience. He'll eat just about anything that I give him, but his favorites seem to be cheese and fruit so far. He's doesn't seem to enjoy meat very often, but does love teriyaki chicken! I am grateful for his willingness to try most foods, but I'm prepared for this to become challenging at some point. For now, I'm just enjoying the ease!

Quinn is developing new sounds and he babbles away most of the day, but I have no idea what he's saying! He did point at Lucy and say "goose" (or so I thought), which is one of her many nicknames and so that was pretty fun. It's happened only once. He also points to her and says something that resembles "gud grl". I excitedly told Pat that Quinn said "good girl" but was afraid to admit it to anyone else, knowing that it was probably a stretch. However, we've been with Grandma Cathy for the past few days and she heard him say it as well so I'm putting it out there. I know it's a stretch, but it's the only word we've got so I'm going with it! Sadly for me, Quinn is not interested in the "m" sound and so I haven't been fortunate enough to hear him mutter the word "mama". I look forward to this moment so much! I think I've been so distracted waiting for him to learn the "m" sound that I've failed to recognize the other sounds that he is developing!

It goes without saying, our love for Quinn only continues to develop and grow and we marvel at each new development and milestone that he reaches. Thanks for enriching our lives beyond explanation, Quinn. We love you!!

Happy Mother's Day, Mama!

Question: Can you identify this site?

Quinn was SO EXCITED to come and greet me on mother's day that he decided he wouldn't wait for his daddy or me to come and get him from his crib. Instead, he decided to take matters into his own hands. I woke up to a nice thud, followed by loud screaming. I shook Pat awake, asking him to please go check on Quinn. Pat brought him to me in bed, looking a little pale and a lot confused he said, "He was just sitting when I got in there... on the floor." Oh, my darling son, why do you have to be such a risk-taker all the time? I'm sure it's only a matter of time before those gray hairs start coming in! Pat and I were certainly counting our blessings that day. Luckily, Quinn was totally fine. In fact, he didn't have so much as a bruise to show for his accomplishments.

Despite this little scare, I had a very nice mother's day weekend. On Saturday, Pat, Quinn, and I played tourist in Seattle a bit. We started off by taking Quinn to the children's museum. He loved the aquarium and water areas and wanted to put anything and everything that he possibly could into his mouth (surprise, surprise)! After that, Pat got his nerd on and we went to the Science Fiction Museum at the EMP (experience music project). Luckily, it was pretty small and so I didn't get too bored! After that we figured we'd check out the music portion of the museum. This would have been great if we were into Jimi Hendrix or anything rock related, but we're really not and so after about 10 minutes of that we'd had enough. Afterwards, we simply walked around the Seattle Center area, saw the Space Needle, the water fountain, and just enjoyed the beautiful day.

When we got back to Redmond, Pat and Quinn went home and I went and had a manicure and pedicure (my first since Quinn's birth). It was a perfect blend of family time and "me" time. Then, on Sunday we had a nice brunch out and enjoyed the rest of the day at home together. On Sunday evening Pat asked me, "So, what was the best part of your mother's day weekend?" There were so many things that I enjoyed, but what stood out to me above anything was when Pat and I were just playing with Quinn on the floor in our living room listening to Quinn crack up. There is no better sound in this world than a child's laughter.

Thanks for a perfect weekend, Pat and Quinn. I love you!

"Look Dada, a zig-zaggity wooden thing!"

K: "Smile with mommy, Quinn."
Q: "No thanks, I'd rather watch the fish."

K: "Okay fine, smile with Daddy then."
Q: "Nah, I'm still busy checking everything out."

"These fish are awesome, mom!"

Funky mirror... but does Quinn care? Not really. You might wonder, what's he looking at anyway?

The awesome aquarium of course! (Our doctor's office has a nicer aquarium than this one, but Quinn didn't care. He loves to see the fish!)

"Come on Quinn, let's walk through the kelp."

Who needs smocks anyway?

Water play!

"Posing with your mom on mother's day is for babies. I think I'll just play!"

"Come on mom, let me down!"

Answer: Why, it's the Space Needle of course!

Spending $$ Has Its Benefits

Pat and I have one of those reward credit cards (have for a few years now) and a few weeks ago I decided to look up what "rewards" we'd earned. Much to my surprise, we were eligible for a free flight (or two or three). Pat's been working like crazy (and therefore I've been home alone with Quinn far too much) and so I decided to take advantage of our free air miles and go visit the Lincolns and my former students/coworkers at Monticello.

It was so nice to get back down to San Jose and spend quality time with Jamie and Max. We had a great time, and Max even decided to start rolling for us while we were there. It was so exciting to be there when he achieved this milestone! We got in some shopping, ate well, enjoyed a little sunshine, and just enjoyed our time together.

Quinn loved being around Max and the Lincoln's dog, Gracie. Lucy is not very playful and so Quinn gets spoiled when he gets to be around Gracie (who will actually play with him). She does such a great job with him too. I never have to worry about her biting or snipping because she's so gentle. With each visit, I feel like Max and Quinn interact more and more. They shared binkies, passed toys back and forth a little, and just sat and played. They are two of the cutest little guys on this planet, in my humble unbiased opinion!

Pat's overtime schedule worked out perfectly with Monticello's play schedule. One of the things that I miss most about Monticello is the drama program, and so it meant a lot to me to get to visit the week of the show. Quinn enjoyed his first musical, Aladdin! He clapped randomly throughout the performance, loved the singing, but didn't want to sit still for more than the first 15 minutes or so (no surprise there)! I loved getting to see many of my former students and their families.

I am so grateful for my life in Redmond, but I've definitely gone through several mourning periods when it comes to my leaving Monticello. Each time I visit I am welcomed with open arms and am reminded why I love the school so much. It truly is one of a kind, and I hope to find something comparable in this area someday too. For now, I continue to be thankful for my opportunity to stay home and watch my amazing son learn and grow each day. I am one lucky lady.


Quinn loves Macbooks!

The boys playin'

Cutie patootie

Our little loves.

10 Months!

Another month has already come and gone, and here I am just sitting down to reflect on Quinn's latest developments. For the first nine months of Quinn's life, I kept up. I took notes on his latest achievements and I was prepared to blog thoroughly on his progress. This month however, I have failed miserably. All that comes to mind when I reflect on Quinn's latest developments is: QUINN IS WALKING. I can't believe it. He's growing and developing so quickly. Too quickly. My baby isn't even one yet, and I've already got a toddler on my hands! I love you Quinn, and I promise to do better next month!

Obsessed

Have you ever heard of a wordle? Well, I hadn't until today and I've quickly become obsessed! Over the past several months I've been brainstorming ideas for Quinn's first birthday party (yes, I'm one of those parents who plans to go overboard for a party that Quinn won't even remember), and I think that a wordle will be a perfect personal touch for his party. Here's an example of one that I just worked up:
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/1998068/Quinn
My only theme for the party is Quinn which is why this is just perfect! I plan to stick it in one of the colorful frames that I've picked up and voila... free decor! So go ahead, make one for yourself. You know you want to!

Tug of War

Quinn learned a new game last week. Check it out at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NS9CidWSpbM