Bringing in the New Year... My Way

Mommy and Daddy are not letting me stay up ‘til midnight tonight to celebrate the New Year. I feel this is an infringement on my constitutional rights. Apparently, I'm too little this year and have no choice but to go to bed at my usual time. However, this doesn't mean I can't bring in the New Year without participating in some New Year traditions.

First, there's the ball drop. I have no idea why dropping a ball gets everyone so excited. Mommy drops stuff all the time and you don't hear anyone hootin' and hollerin' afterwards. Oh well. I'll do the honors:

Then there's the partaking of a certain adult beverage once the ball has dropped. I'm going to have to modify this custom slightly with a formulated beverage of my own. Bottoms up!

Finally, there are fireworks. After partially singeing hair on the dog's tail, Daddy and I had to come up with a much safer means of illustrating fireworks. It's a very crude representation, but in the end, fireworks are just lights and noise.

I hope that all of you find an appropriate, fun, and safe way to bring in the New Year. Also, let me add 'quiet' to that list, as I'll be sleeping snug in my crib and can do without the interruption, thank you. Happy New Year and…

Have a great weekend!

Smiling is My Favorite

Some say a real, genuine smile lasts only up to two seconds.  Anything longer than that and the smile changes so ever slightly to a fake smile.  If any of you have taken a picture of me recently or at least held a camera near me, you know that I know what to do in front of that camera and that I'll bring out my big, cheesy smile.  People get a kick out of my smile, real or fake, and it makes them smile a real smile.  Then I smile a real smile back.  Observational learning is an amazing cycle.  I smile, you smile, we all smile.  Plus, it's a great flirting technique when you're in a female clothing store attempting to buy your mommy Christmas gifts and need help from the female store associates.  If you need proof of any of this then you need look no further than in the picture above.  That picture is certainly not one of my best representations of my good fake smile, but it gets my point across.  I can't wait until Maxwell and all his buddies make their appearance so that I can give one big, goofy, teethy smile.  The "scream and smile" is also a great attention grabber:

The Letter for Today is "B"

That's right: I've decided to crawl the traditional crawl instead of only using a military-style crawl. There's less friction with the traditional crawl and it's much gentler on my belly than dragging it around the floor. Also from the video above, you may have noticed that I declared "B" as the letter of the day. I've been working on it since I woke up this morning. Mommy has been teaching me the 'b' sound so I can say "Aunt Bethy," while Daddy has been trying to teach me to say "baseball" and "baseball bat." I think you see where each of their priorities lie.

This new crawling switch is still just a temporary mode of transportation until I start walking. It turns out this whole walking thing is taking me longer to figure out than expected; such is life, I'm beginning to find out. Note to self: maybe this is why, when I cry because I need something and I'm not getting it quick enough, Daddy attempts to explain that patience is a virtue. Anyway, I'm using a baby’s toy walker in order to stimulate some coordination and leg strength.

Perhaps I'd be better off with an adult walker.  I mean, I want to walk like an adult, not a baby.

Christmas Hangover

My first Christmas was a smashing success. It was a nonstop thrill ride of present opening. In fact, I went eight rounds (three on Christmas- hey, it takes me a while) with my gifts in a span of four days. I received so many toys that when lined up side-by-side they span 15 feet- but who's measuring? I'd like to thank every one of you for making my Christmas so wonderful, but I'm too exhausted. Besides, Mommy has got me covered in the ‘Thank You’ department. She's so thankful that she's even been known to send thank you cards in response to receiving thank you cards and she is the only reason that the U.S. Postal Service still makes any money. If you don’t deserve a thank you because you forgot to get me a gift this year, please don't worry about it. Instead, you can save it for next year. This Christmas will be difficult to top but I'd like to push the 20-foot mark with new toys next year.

So why am I so tired? I should have had plenty of rest this past weekend, right? Wrong! After falling asleep on Christmas Eve, I woke up at 3 AM to my body demanding to utilize my diaper- and utilize it I did. I haven't done that since I was a newborn. Then on Christmas day, I was about three hours, 20 minutes short of my normal four hours of napping. I guess I was just so excited to play with my new toys that I couldn't sleep. Mommy's side of the family must have been really excited to play with their toys too because they did not provide a single moment of peace and quiet the entire weekend. Hold on…did anyone else receive gifts of his or her own? Was I the only one? It was difficult to see over my mounds of toys and clothes. I’m sorry if this is the case because I’m not sharing. I’ve somehow managed to play with each of my toys and they’re so awesome that I will not be parting with any of them.

It’s back to the same old routine today. Daddy and Onyx are tired and recovering too and I’m looking forward to them keeping quiet so I can catch up on my sleep. I'm so tired that I can hardly make it through breakfast...

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town

I'm just warming up.  Please have a happy, safe, and very merry Christmas.  And as always...

Have a great weekend!