Baby Steps

Joseph Asher just turned 10 months old and I'm pretty sure he's not my baby anymore, he's my TODDLER! He only has a couple bottles of formula a day, instead drinking juice out of a sippy cup. Also, he's eating regular table food now. He loves macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, baked beans-- the only thing he refuses to eat are bananas (he takes after Aunt M!) and anything green (green beans, peas, spinach). He loves fruits though-- apples, oranges, pears, grapes, strawberries. The kiddo has a sweet tooth.

Speaking of teeth, he has at least FOUR now! The two front teeth on the top are kind of crooked and have a sizable gap between them. I guess he takes after mom that way. They haven't come completely in, so we can't tell if they are going to slowly move towards each other or not. We'll see! Just in case, I'll start a change jar marked "orthodontist".

The two biggest changes for Joe (that are possibly related) are that he has started full time day care and has taken his first steps! That's right, after almost four painful years of semi-unemployment, I finally got a full-time job in my field. So, Joe is now going full-time to the day care where he had been going one or two days a week. He LOVES it. There are three other older boys and a younger girl and a younger boy. He follows the older boys everywhere they go! Of course, because they are walking, he wants to walk too. He's trying very hard! Check out the video:



His personality is still sweet, friendly and full of happiness. Joe Daddy cut a hole in Joe's favorite big box and they played peekaboo together yesterday. Enjoy!

Joe's 1st Professional Photo Shoot

While in Georgia, my brother surprised us with a photo session for me, Joe Daddy, Joe, himself and his son. It was a lot of fun! The pictures turned out great! I put a tiny sample here, but if you want to see the whole set, click here!






Joe turned TEN months old a couple of days ago. I can hardly believe he's so old already! I will update soon with a Joe Progress Report. Until then, enjoy Joe's photo shoot!
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Where Do I Begin?!

The past six weeks have been a whirlwind, which you might have guessed since the blog went on hiatus. Well, we're BACK and I have come with almost 200 pictures, so hopefully you'll forgive me. Some of these pictures have a weird date stamp in the corner -- my camera must have been going out after so many pictures! I'll edit them eventually.

Let's start where we left off: GRANDMAS!



Joe Daddy's Momma (henceforth referred to as Joe Grandma) had a business trip to NYC and stopped in for a day to see Joe. It went fabulously. Joe Grandma was fantastic with Joe (no big surprise since she has two young kids herself). She was sweet and playful and Joe had a great time with her. After that, I felt like I should throw caution to the wind and invite my mom out too. My mother will henceforth be referred to as Joe MomMom. Her anxiety level is pretty high, but Joe's feathers didn't get ruffled and he seemed to enjoy her excitement. It is sad that Joe only got to see real blood relatives once during his first year, but hopefully that will improve over time. It would be a shame for our families to miss out on such a great kiddo. Click here for the set of pictures and videos from the Grandma/MomMom trips.




Next came Aunt M's New Years trip. We went down to DC and snagged Uncle J too and had a great time for Joey's first NYE. This was also the beginning of our two week adventure down the east coast. The first stop was DC where we got to see Uncle J's place for the first time and take a tour of the US Botanical Garden. Click here for the set of pictures and videos from the NYE trip.




The next leg of the journey was Virginia where we met up with Joe Daddy's Aunt Kim and Uncle Walter. Words really can't describe how fantastic it was to see them. I guess the best thing I can say is that it felt like home... or what I guess home is supposed to feel like. Joe LOVED hanging out with them and crawling around with Walter on the floor. I can't believe it took us so long to go visit them when we've been out here on the coast for so long. I also can't wait to see them again. Click here for the set of pictures and video from the Virginia leg of the trip.




Finally, we went down to Georgia to see my brother for the first time in about four years. My last trip to see him went poorly, so we were somewhat apprehensive going into it, but it turned out to be absolutely amazing. My bro has done a lot of growing up since the last time I saw him, thanks no doubt to having a little boy of his own (Christian). Joe followed Christian everywhere he went, we had a great time with Christian's Momma's family, did a lot of radio stuff (my bro is a station manager / morning show host), and just had a fabulous time all around. I also had the best BBQ I've ever had in my entire life. I can't wait to go back again! Click here for the set of pictures and video from the Georgia leg of the trip.

Since coming back, we got our Earth's Best prize loot! Diapers and wipes and food galore! It was definitely worth the hour of effort to make the video!


Also, I got to visit the boys I used to nanny and they got to spend some quality time with Joe. I love seeing my "practice kids"! I know I'm a better person and a better mom because of the experience I had raising them for 2+ years.



I'm sorry I got so behind on updating the blog, but I promise that I'm back and I'm going to update again in the next day or two with details about Joe's growth and pictures from his first ever professional photo shoot! Get excited!