My 1st Christmas

I think I have a new favorite holiday. I was pretty keen on Halloween and Thanksgiving, but Christmas might trump both of those. For starters, it seems like we ate all week long to celebrate Christmas (well, mom, dad, and everybody else ate all week long. I was on my normal eating schedule with the same old, same old milk at every feeding). Plus I got to play with ribbon and paper. Apparently I got some toys and clothes and other gifts, but I was definitely more interested in playing with the ribbon and trying to eat the paper. Unfortunately, mom kept taking the paper away from me every time I would rip it off the package and bring it towards my mouth.

The best part of Christmas though was all the people I got to see. Mom, dad and I went to Atlanta for the week where I got to meet Great Grandma Mieyko, Great Uncle Doug, Great Aunt Hally, Santa Claus and a polar bear. Grandpa Brian, Grandma Linda, Aunt Kali and Uncle Tom were also there. And then this week, Grandpa Jim, Grandma Barb, Uncle Keith, Aunt Maribel, Uncle Scott and Aunt Mollie are all coming over to celebrate Christmas since we didn’t get to see them on the actual day. And if that wasn’t enough, mom, dad, Jesse and I had our own little Christmas celebration today since we were once again all together (Jesse didn’t come to Atlanta with us – maybe he was naughty and that’s why or maybe it was because he didn’t fit in the suitcase – I’m not sure).

My first airplane ride was quite an experience. I was pretty cranky on the flight to Atlanta so mom had to feed me the whole time to keep me quiet. I just wanted others to know I didn’t like sitting in the very back of the plane. On the plane ride home, I was much better. Even though I had to wait 3 extra hours to get on the plane, I was in a good mood and didn’t have to eat the whole flight to be happy which I think mom appreciated. In fact, I was making friends with lots of people on the plane. Daddy called me a ladies man. Not quite sure what he meant by that but I think it had something to do with the smiles I was giving the ladies behind me.

So what else have I been up to? I’m rolling around a lot. I like to roll onto my sides, especially while on the changing table. I even did a 360 as mommy calls it – I started on my back, rolled onto my tummy, and then rolled back onto my back. I also giggled quite a bit for daddy one morning. In her rush to come see me giggle, Aunt Kali went splat on the floor. Hope my giggles were worth it! I also love sitting (with a little help) standing (with more help), and flying (with lots of help). My favorite toys of the week are measuring spoons, my teething book, and my vibrating elephant that hangs from my car seat.

I’m still not a fan of that white fluffy stuff. Especially when it’s almost over my head. It was nice to get away to Atlanta for a week and to be able to see the grass and go for outside walks with mommy again. But it sure is nice to be home with my doggy and sleep in my own crib and play on my play mat. It’s almost like having a bunch of new toys since I haven’t seen my own mat, jumper, or swing in nearly 10 days.

Well hope you all had a Merry Christmas too and found joy in the little things like ribbon and paper and the big things like family and faith.

Love,
Cameron

Off the Charts!

I am off the charts! At least that is what the doctor says. At 11 lbs, 10 ½ oz, I’m so tiny that I am not even on the weight percantile chart. At least my height of 24 ¼” has me in the 25% range for my age. To help me “beef up” a little more, the doctor suggested mom and dad start me on solid foods. Sounds like fun to me! Mom got out the spoons today so I could practice having one in my mouth. She forgot to put the food on it though. I guess she wants to wait until we get back from Atlanta before starting this new adventure.

Yup, we are headed to Atlanta on Saturday to celebrate Christmas with Grandpa Brian, Grandma Linda, Aunt Kali, Uncle Tom, Great Grandma Miyeko, Great Uncle Doug and Great Aunt Hally. Should be a fun time and from what I hear, a slightly warmer Christmas than here in Wisconsin. Once we are home and all settled back in, we are hosting the Kruepke side of the family for Christmas so I will get to celebrate again with Grandpa Jim, Grandma Barb, Uncle Keith, Aunt Maribel, Uncle Scott and Aunt Mollie. Two Christmases sounds great to me! Mom finally explained what Christmas was and why there was a tree in the middle of our living room (see my previous blog). One of the ornaments on the tree is my new favorite toy. It’s a miniature See and Say – you pull a cord and the arrow spins and points to an animal. Then when you pull the cord again, it makes that animal’s noise.

My other favorite new toy is the Jumperoo that Auntie Jill and her family lent to us. I’m still not quite tall enough to fully appreciate it, but I do like the lights and noise that the toy makes. And once in a while I actually jump a little when I’m in it.

It’s a winter wonderland here. I heard mom say the other day that we have at least a foot of snow on the ground and we have already received 17.5” of snow this winter. I’m not much for the winter weather as I have to stay home when it’s too cold or too snowy. I like being out and about, whether it’s running errands with mom and dad, visiting friends or family, or walking with mom and Jesse, I prefer having opportunities to get out of the house.

Mom had some friends over last night while dad was out with some of the guys. This was the first time that mom or dad had a social gathering at the house since I was born and I think it went pretty well. Aunties Jill, Lisa, and Lauren were over along with two of my favorite friends, Ben and Abby. I was in a pretty good mood and let the adults hold me and even smiled for Ben and Abby as I watched them play. I was a bit disappointed that mom put me to bed while the party was still going on, but I ended up sleeping right through whatever merriment occurred. I can’t wait for the next party!

So that’s about all from here. I did laugh again for mom the other night and one day I kept rolling over from my tummy to my back, but have refused to do it on my own again since then. I can be stubborn at times just like my mom. I keep learning new things and am just taking it all in. It’s a big and sometimes confusing world to me, but I sure enjoy all the new experiences I have. In case I don’t get a chance to write again before Christmas, have a wonderful holiday season.

Love,

Cameron

P.S. Despite what it looks like in the picture above, Jesse was not actually trying to eat me. He was just telling me about different animals at the zoo and this was his imitation of a lion. You should see his impression of a monkey...

Turkey Time

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I had my first Turkey Day and spent it in Madison at my Uncle Keith & Aunt Maribel’s house. I got to meet their dog Jordan and had a lot of fun with him. He even gave me a kiss on the face! Both grandpas and grandmas were there along with Uncle Scott and Aunt Mollie and of course, mom and dad. Poor Jess had to stay home since we didn’t have enough room in the car for him and my play mat. It was a hard decision, but I went with the play mat. Plus, with Jordan there, I figured I would have a dog to entertain me. But I was happy to see Jess when we got home and I think he was happy to see us too. The only real bummer about Thanksgiving was the Seahawks made a pathetic showing against the Cowboys. Yep, I watched football as that is a favorite tradition of both mommy and daddy and they didn’t want me to feel left out.

This week I experienced my first real snowfall. I am not a fan of snow. It’s cold and wet. Not a good combo. Maybe when I’m older and can actually play in the snow, I’ll appreciate it more.

Another big milestone for me – I am now grabbing and moving my toys that hang over my play mat. In fact, I sometimes get such a good grasp that I yank the toys right off their links. I especially enjoy my vibrating dog. I haven’t figured out yet how to pull this toy and make the dog bark and vibrate, but mommy and daddy will do it for me and then let it tickle my face as it vibrates. I also like the chimes and am starting to really like the keys that hang above my head. Even when I’m not on my play mat, I like to grab things. Like the wipe mom uses to cover me during diaper changes so I don’t pee on her. I also like to grab my butt when she is putting on my clean diaper. And I still move my legs a lot – I stepped in my poopy diaper yesterday because my legs were moving faster than mom. I guess I’m easily entertained. I am also entertained by sucking my thumb. I have discovered that I can put just my thumb in my mouth instead of my whole darn fist. Much easier (and tastier).

Grandpa Brian and Grandma Linda visited last week so I’ve been able to charm them with all my noises and facial expressions. One of my favorite noises to make is smacking my lips. I also squeal once in a while, but still no laughs since the first one a couple weeks ago. We (mom, Grandpa Brian, Grandma Linda, and me) went to Chicago to meet a family friend for lunch. The Hu family is originally from China but lives in Chicago for 9-10 months of the year. Grandpa and Mr. Hu have known each other for almost 20 years. It was neat seeing all of the bustle of the dim sum servers (a traditional Chinese meal where servers bring around small appetizer-like dishes of Chinese food and the whole table shares many different plates). Apparently I slept as we drove in and out of Chicago so I missed seeing all of the skyscrapers up close, but I could see them from our table in the restaurant. What a big city. I can’t wait to go back in nicer weather so I can see more of the city.

The other big news from here is that mom went in to work the Friday before Thanksgiving and left me at home with daddy. The few other times she has gone in to work, she brought me and I would just sleep in her office. But that Friday she went by herself and daddy and I hung out. I think it was a bigger deal for mom than for me. I got daddy time and lots of naps so it was a good day for me. I guess she is going in again tomorrow as she tries to ease back into work before going back “for real” in January. Although I have really enjoyed having mommy home, it will be nice to have some new entertainment during the week. She went in again Monday and Gabrial, who will be watching me when mommy goes back to work “for real”, watched me as a trial run. I cried a lot of the time because I wasn’t as used to her. But once daddy got home, I ate and got better. I think if I see Gabrial a few more times, I won’t be so anti-social around her. I think it was hard on mommy to be away from my cute self all day because she sure was clingy when she got home. What’s a boy gotta do to get some time away from the ‘rents? They are going for an overnight trip on Thursday and Friday and leaving me with Aunt Mollie during the day and Grandma & Grandpa Kruepke at night. We’ll see who takes it harder – me or mommy and daddy. My money is on mommy & daddy – I’ll be living it up with my aunt and grandparents and probably won’t even notice mom and dad are gone!

Finally, when I woke up the other morning, the house had a tree in the middle of the living room and snowmen and reindeers all throughout the house. Not sure what strange decorating mommy and daddy are doing, but I better go investigate. Maybe the next time I write I will have an explanation.

Love,
Cameron