Christmas Videos

Here are some videos of Alex's first Christmas:

Feeling snow with Grandma Brady:


At the Como Park Conservatory with all his Minnesota Grandparents


Kissing Aunt Jean


Meeting Buddy the dog


Talking to Aunt Maureen on the phone

Alex's 1st Christmas in Minnesota

Alex is really enjoying his trip to Minnesota. He is fascinated by the snow, the fish tank, and all the holiday lights. The airplane flight went pretty well, although the boarding process was a little traumatic. We had to wake him to go through security so he was out of sorts. Then he got a nose bleed and wouldn't stop crying. But, he fell asleep once the plane doors were closed and didn't have any problems after that.

The first night in Minnesota, Alex went to the Holidazzle parade. He was very cute bundled up for the very cold temperature. Unfortunately, he slept through most of the parade. Yesterday he went to a fancy restaurant for brunch and was very well behaved - he even sat on Santa's lap and gave lots of smiles and sucked on Santa's hand. He also went to the conservatory and zoo for the first time. He really liked the fish and the baby monkeys. Mostly, Alex has been hanging out with all of his relatives. He loves smiling and being held and has had a lot to say to everyone. So far, he has spent a lot of time with Grandpa Stewart, Grandma Jane, Grandma Brady, Aunt Emily, Cousin Diane, and Aaron. Last night he had dinner with the extended family - Jean, Dan, Colleen, Maggie, Claire, Erin, and Warren. He also got to meet a number of dogs and didn't mind being licked.

On Vacation

Alex is going to visit both his sets of grandparents for Christmas. He is going to take his first flight to Minnesota tonight and then he will fly to California next week.

Holiday Party at School

Alex's room at school had a holiday party today. Activities were frosting cookies, looking at a pine branch, playing with wrapping paper, and fingerpainting. Alex liked the wrapping paper, the pine branch, and then he helped frost a cookie (too bad he could not eat any of it).

One week until Christmas!

Alex is starting to like to do what he sees adults doing. He likes to take assisted sips from adult water glasses. If he is near a computer, he likes to be on the keyboard. YouTube has a number of Sesame Street videos that are good for sing alongs.

He did not like solid food this evening. We are not sure why.

He had a lot of fun in the bath last night. The most splashing and shouting he has ever done.

Dec 15

Saturday, Alex was busy all day. He played with presents in the morning, he went shopping with Mom and Dad, he played with his toys, he moved around on the swing, and he ate more solid food. Unfortunately, his routine of the last week was broken when he woke up for a couple hours around 3 a.m.

Here he is playing with a present from his friends in Detroit: Harrison, Ava, Jeff, and Johanna.

And on the swing:

And eating:

Stable Routine

Alex has been in a stable routine over the last week. He gets up at 6:15 for breakfast. He leaves for school at 7:00 and gets there around 7:30. He has 2-3 naps and 4 bottles through the day and then he goes home around 6:00in the evening. He will play with his teachers and by himself during the day.

He then plays with Mom and Dad (rolling, standing, talking, books, toys, etc.) until around 7:45 when he has a final meal. Most days he has some rice cereal around 7:00. He goes to bed around 8:15.

On Friday, Alex left school early and hung out with Grandma and Grandpa Felton because he was not feeling very well.

Here is a video from Thursday, Dec. 13 of Alex becoming an expert at eating solids.

Dec. 12

Alex has had a good couple of days at school. In the evenings, he has been practicing his (assisted) rolling and talking. He likes to laugh at Dad and Mom when the look funny or make funny noises. Tonight he had the most solid food in a single meal that he has ever had. He really liked it and was very excited throughout the meal. He got upset when we ran out of prepared solid food.

Full Day

Very full day: Alex wore a holiday outfit this morning for taking Christmas card pictures. He had a good time playing with the wrapped presents. The bright-colored and 'crinkley' presents may be more fun wrapped than unwrapped.

We also went to sign language class and learned about animals. Alex practiced his sitting and talking. In the evening, Alex had some rice cereal with a thicker consistency than he has ever had before. So far so good.

Holiday Spirit

Alex started to get in the holiday spirit on Saturday. He visited Santa in the mall (pictures later), he helped decorate the house, and he went shopping in the evening. He also ate more solid food (rice cereal again) without problem. He had two long naps, but we think he was just catching up on sleep he lost during the week.

"Giggles"

Alex's report from school today said that he had a lot of "giggles" so we think he had a good day. Since the last Blog report, Alex visited his baby friends in PEPS, Mom learned not to eat Brussels sprouts, and he slept through the night every night.

Alex is starting to get very excited about Christmas:
-- He is going to visit Santa tomorrow
--Grandpa and Grandma Felton brought him a Christmas outfit to wear
-- He is getting excited about visiting his family in Minnesota in a few weeks

School Days

Alex had another good couple of days at school. He has been in a very happy mood most of the time the last few days. He seems to be a favorite of his teachers (or so they make us think) because he smiles at everyone and is not fussy. One of the teachers told Joanna that Alex is her favorite. She always looks forward to spending time with Alex because he is so social and happy. In the evening, Alex played with Mom and Dad and practiced his shouting and standing.

Volunteer Work

Today Alex helped Mom with the voluteer espresso stand at the Phinney neighborhood fair. He also played all morning with Dad and watched some football.

He is definitely starting to show strong preferences at times. Tonight, while he was watching Dad type some emails, Alex started using the computer keyboard. He got quite upset when he eventually had to leave the computer.

First Solid Food

On Saturday, Alex ate his first solid food. The food was a small amount of rice cereal for babies mixed with milk. Although he did not eat very much, it was a good start.

Also on Saturday, Alex saw his first snow. I picked some up for him to grab on to. He shoved his hand right in and then got upset. Snow looks better than it feels.

Preparation for eating:

First "bites" of solid food:

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Over 15 lbs

Alex had his 6 month check up today. He weighs 15 lb 3.5 oz. He's in the 10% percentile for weight and 25th for height. Adjusting for his earliness, Alex is way above average in height and weight (around 75th percentile). He got 4 shots and 1 oral vaccine. Alex is in perfect health!

Sleepover

Dad was out of town in DC and snow was in the forecast, so Mom and Alex spent the night with Grandma & Grandpa Felton. Alex slept in the pack n play with no problems. He enjoyed standing with Grandpa and practicing his rolls with Grandma.

6 months

Alex is 6 months old today! Today was a long day in daycare because Mom had some early meetings. Alex doesn't seem to mind, though. He is almost always very happy in the evenings.

Dad was very sick last night with the stomach flu. Apparently, there's a nasty bug that's been going around the daycare for the last 3 weeks. So far it has skipped Alex and Mom. Alex is over last week's cold with just a little congestion. He only woke up once last night (compared to 5 times for Dad).

Not So Perfect Sleeper

Alex has lost his title of world's best-sleeping baby. After 6-8 weeks of sleeping through the night, he has been waking up every night since he got sick last week. Last night Mom had to get up 3 times, 2 of which he wouldn't settle back down until he ate. We think the congestion in his nose and chest is bothering him. Or maybe he's cold. We put a space heater in his room and his congestion is getting better, so hopefully tonight is a better night.

Below is a video of Alex talking and trying to roll over. He is getting very close.

Garden D'Lights

One of Alex's favorite things to do is stare at bright lights, so tonight we went to the Botanic Garden's holiday light display called Garden D'Lights. Alex seemed mesmerized by it. He got to ride around in the bjorn with Dad and looked cute all bundled up from the cold.

TGIF

Mom had to work and Dad had lots of errands so Alex went to daycare today. He got lots of special attention since only 1 other baby was there. In the evening we took advantage of the holiday sales and bought Alex a big puffy winter coat for $20 at Old Navy. Even though it's cold out, they still like to take the babies out for walks in the buggy.

First Thanksgiving

Alex had an exciting first Thanksgiving. The sun came out so he went outside for the first time in a while with Mom and Dad. He talked to his grandparents in Minnesota on the phone. Grandma and Grandpa Felton came over for Thanksgiving dinner. In the late afternoon, he went for a swim in an indoor pool in Bellevue and he read books. His only regret is that he is still not eating solid food.

Slideshows!

Alex made his first artwork earlier today. With his teacher's help, he made a hand-print and foot-print turkey with a message that he was thankful for Mommy and Daddy.

We figured out a new feature in the blog. Here is a slideshow link to pictures from November.



And, here is a link to earlier pictures.

Cookie Monster

Alex did some rather boring errands with Mom and Dad today around town and he was very good the whole time. In his play times, we note that he keeps coming very close to turning over. Also, he has been waking up a couple of times during the night again. We are hoping he goes back to sleeping through the night soon.

In the afternoon, he went with Mom and Dad to a party watching football. He was too tired to watch. He slept through most of it, but he got to meet many new friends, a cat and a dog.

Below is a video of Alex being introduced to Cookie Monster singing "C is for cookie".

Big Smiles All Day

Alex was so happy to be feeling good that he spent the whole day smiling. He also had lots to say now that his voice is back. He went grocery shopping, played in his jumper, and helped Dad on the computer. For the last 2 nights in a row Alex has woken up in the middle of the night to eat (he had been sleeping through the night for about the last 6 weeks). Mom is hoping that was due to his sickness and not the start of a new pattern.

Healthy Again

Alex felt good again today except for a mild cough. He had a full day at school. Grandma and Grandpa Felton visited him there and he was glad to see them. He had a 3 hour nap in the afternoon -- about 3 times as long as normal.



In the evening, Alex was in a very cheerful mood. He was excited to feel good again and he had a lot of energy. He tried to turn over back-to-tummy a number of times and came close a few times. He also practiced shouting. I think he was glad to have his full voice back. It was very cute.

Sick Day

Alex and Dad took a sick day today. In the morning, Alex had lost nearly all of his voice and had a mild fever so he could not go in to school. He slept most of the morning and hardly ate at all until the afternoon.

After a morning with some good rest, he was feeling a little better. In the afternoon, he spent some quality time reading books and playing in his gym. He is still quite congested and we hope he is better tomorrow.

Still Sick

Alex is still sick. He had to go home early from day care because he was running a fever of 99.9F. We doubt he will be able to go in tomorrow and Dad may stay home from work with him (Grandma Felton is out of town or we would ask her to help).

He is doing ok most of the time. He has a cough and congestion. The worst part is that he has lost his voice so when he cries he sounds very sad.

First Time Sick

Alex finally caught the cold/flu bug that Mom and Dad had over the weekend. It is just the start of the sickness, but he is taking it well so far. His voice is hoarse, he is congested in his sinuses and lungs, and his energy level is down. But, he is not fussing too much. We hope he is better tomorrow, but I expect it will last a few days. There is a chance he will not make it to school tomorrow.

Here are a couple videos:

Half Day

Dad had the day off work so he picked Alex up from school early.

Alex had a good time, but he got fussy in the early evening and he was really happy to see Mom when she got home. He definitely has a cough and minor congestion. It does not look like he has the virus yet that Mom and Dad had over the weekend. Also below are a couple of videos from yesterday.

November 11

Mom and Dad have been sick the last few days and have not been posting to the blog. Luckily, Alex does not appear to be sick. We expect he will get this eventually, but we hope it is when we are better.


The big milestone that he has hit in the last few days is that he has been able to sit up on his own, without external support. Right now, he needs to be set into a position and he cannot hold it for long. But, he can balance for a little bit and he seems to really enjoy sitting.

He also spent Saturday evening with a babysitter and two of his friends, Kaye and Lila, while Mom and Dad went out. The babysitter reported no problems but she was impressed with how good of an eater he was.

Really Happy at Night

Alex has been really happy at night for 3 of the 4 evenings since he started daycare. We'd like to think he's happy to see us, but we suspect the change of scenery is also nice for him. Daycare is going well. We now bring 4 bottles instead of 3 for the day and that makes Alex happier. The daycare workers have mentioned many times that Alex is an exceptionally good eater and sleeper. Grandma F has tried to visit twice but both times Alex was sleeping. Below is a cute picture where Alex noticed that the feet of his pajamas had dog faces on them. He studied them intently for a long time.

Nov. 7

Alex was very happy in the morning before school and in the evening after school. Especially in the evening, he was in a very good mood. We like to think he had no troubles all day at school too. Grandma Felton visited him at school, but I guess he slept the whole time because he did not know she was coming. Alex and Mom seem to have fully adjusted to daycare without any problems. We did get some bad news, our favorite teacher (of 3 days), Cheryl, is leaving his school.

Here is a video of Alex playing with his burp cloth.

So Far So Good

Alex and Mom survived the first 2 days of daycare/work. Mom really likes Alex's daycare teachers. They are very attentive and loving. The other babies are mainly 6-10 months so Alex will learn some new tricks from them. The teachers marveled at how much Alex eats and then how much he spits up. Normally they ask a family to bring 1-2 extra outfits per week but we've been asked to bring at least 1 extra per day because of all the spit ups. Alex is still adjusting to the new routine. He is still shy and little fussy around the other babies. He does like it when they put the babies in the big buggy and go outside for walks.

Sign Language Class

This was Alex's last full day before starting daycare tomorrow. He is excited but he will miss all the extra time with Mom.

Today's big adventure was a 2 hour sign language class that Alex took with 5 other babies. The class is really for the parents so the parents can teach their babies to sign. The theory is that babies can learn sign language long before they are able to speak. Being able to do some simple communication can avoid some of the frustration of not being able to speak. The class covered numbers and letters and some important words like:
milk
more
eat
change
diaper
toilet
sleep

Mom also took some glamour shots for a passport photo -- no travel plans yet, but just in case.