Yes I know.  I've been very absent this month!  It's been busier than usual but I can't put my finger on what we've been doing exactly.  At the beginning of the month there were a lot of graduation festivities and that kept us busy for a few weekends.  And then, Enzo got mobile, got teeth, started eating and it's been a whole new world for us!  He's been particularly fussy due to teething pain and we've been treating with ice teethers and Tylenol.  I think he's better now and his two bottom teeth are pretty prominent.  I'm sure he'll let us known when the next ones come in.....

On the 10th he turned 6 months old!  We took him to the kids park for the first time and he had a blast on the swing.  He is now 18 pounds (I could have sworn it was more!) and almost 26 inches (though I think the medical assistant measured wrong).  

It's been sunny!  And he's a cool dude.

Two weeks ago before he was really mobile, Enzo, in all his brillance, figured out he could scoot on the floor easily if he had something under him!  In this next picture he's using a lid to his toy bin and on other occasions he has used that large book.  Right now he's doing mostly combat crawling (using his arms) with his toes for pushing.  He really gets around now and has to be watched all the time.  No longer are the days we can set him down and he'll be in the same place 5 minutes later.  Baby proofing our house is in the near future!

And we've been trying lots of food!  We finally got a high chair and he loves sitting in it.  His most favorite food right now is cucumbers.  He gums the poor things to death!  Sometimes I freeze the slices for extra teething comfort.

Nectarine!

Mint!  My baby has the freshest breath of all!  (He didn't really eat this, by the way.)  I like the picture because he reminds me of a stegosaurus for some reason.

Sweet potatoes!  Yum!

He's also had bananas, avocados, applesauce, crusts of bread (just to gnaw on) and oat cereal.  It's so funny how swallowing food is not a reflex and has to be taught.  Sometimes the food just sits in his mouth so I've actually been giving him a sip from his bottle after spoon feeding him so he swallows the food.  I have no idea if that's the right thing to do, but I think it's helping him learn how to swallow.

Jake and Enzo went olallieberry picking last weekend.  They brought home 5 pounds!  I made an amazing pie using the fresh picked olallieberries and blueberry balsamic vinegar from a fancy store in Santa Cruz.  Jake said it was the best pie he's ever had!

Last Wednesday I went to visit an old college friend in San Francisco who is expecting her first baby and then to see my cousin Tracey who was overdue by three days then.  Aunt Tina was visiting and we had a great visit.  It was the first time any of my family on my dad's side had met Enzo.  It was very special!  (Doesn't Tracey look a lot like me when I was pregnant?!)

 I have a video of Enzo swimming in a little kiddy pool with his second cousin Nolan, but it's on Jake's computer and it will take extra effort to get it on the blog.  I do want you to see it eventually!

Enzo and Turnip.  Best buds forever!

Enzo went on a boat!

Getting excited for our trip to MI!  Also, terrified about how we're going to entertain him for 5 hours on  a plane.

Enzo cracking up

I finally got a video of him laughing - it is so infectious!  Sorry it's so shaky but it's hard to record video and entertain him.

Also, this is not how to eat a banana!

We did try a little mashed banana (well, that banana!) after this photo was taken and just seemed confused about it.  Didn't love it, didn't hate it!  Lots more experimenting to do!

What Enzo is up to....

Lots of lots of baby things!  This is what he does most of the day - sitting up and playing with his tool box!  He is so good at entertaining himself and can sit there for up to 1.5 hours. 

In other goings on:

Playing with a green bean at Whole Foods.

Jake has built a beautiful garden this year and Enzo and Turnip have been helping so much!  

Tool box tool box tool box!  Look at that pincher grasp!  Such advanced babying.  

He's not eating food yet, but Jake will give him large chunks of apple that he will gum.  I think he's going to like food!

Last week we visited Lorenzo's namesake river, the San Lorenzo River.  Not sure what he thought about it, but it was still pretty cold.  We will definitely be going again this summer. Swimming is Turnip's favorite.  

Out to dinner in his fancy jeans from great grandma.  They are 12 month size.....such a big boy

In other news, today he cut his first tooth totally out of the blue!  There was no drama involved such as being fussy, drooling or having that characteristic swollen red lump.  I can just feel it poke through (ln the botton front) and it is sharp!  He's using the teethers a lot lately and especially enjoying the kind you freeze.

Today we got to witness the transit of Venus from the beaches of Davenport.  We met with our neighbor who brought welders glass which is dark enough to look at the sun through.  It was easy to spot Venus and I felt lucky to see such a rare astronomical event!  It was so cool!

Coming up:
June 10th - 6 months old!
June 18th - 6 month check up
Professional photo shoot (no date yet, but before we leave for Michigan)
July 11th - to Michigan!

5 Month Birthday and busier than ever!

I don't have a lot of time to write after a busy couple of days and starting work tonight for 3 days in a row.  However, you're due for some more pictures!

Enzo is sitting up all the time and can play by himself like this for about 30 minutes.  It's great!

Loungin'

Uncle Ezra strapped into the Bjorn at Cafe Verve.

Enzo modeling his speedo.  Not his greatest look!

5 month birthday!

Adventure hat.  He wears this all the time now due to the very sunny weather.

First ride in a shopping cart!  He thought it was pretty neat.

Sitting up, doing baby things.

First time in the big boy part of the stroller.  We had been using the carseat in the stroller up until now.  This is better since he can see out and look at the world during a stroller ride.

Enzo and Esme on baby lunch date.

Today we got a standing contraption that I knew Enzo would like as soon as I saw it.  Here's a little video of him enjoying the Go-Pod.  And yes, he is getting a little cough (Jake is now sick and I was 2 weeks ago but now have a cough).  He's not sick yet and we're keeping a close eye on that cough.

Enzo playing and standing.

Social Butterflies

Well we certainly have been popular lately!  We've been having (and will continue to have) a packed social calendar.  Almost every day that I'm not working we have people visiting or that we plan to visit.

Two weeks ago Noah and Gary visited for a few days and Jake put them to work soon after they got here:

They built a wonderful baby/dog gate for the front porch.

On Wednesday April 25th, our friend Brian had a short stop in Santa Cruz and we met him at a coffee shop downtown.  He took a few fun photos:

The Bald is Beautiful onesie was a gift from Esme.  She doesn't really need it because she actually has some hair!

On Saturday we met at Sandra and Matt's house (with Sage and River) who hosted a little potluck to welcome Kaija into town who was here briefly for a job interview.  Jake got some cute pictures, but they are on the other camera and I don't have the time right now to get them...

On Monday Enzo and I went out to dinner in San Jose with Amey and Musty.  I put Enzo in his first high chair which he tolerated for about 10 minutes.  He looks like such a big boy reading a menu and sitting up!

On Tuesday I took him to the UCSC infant development center where we volunteered him as a lab rat.  It was a fun experience and we'll do it again.

After the lab I saw that the UCSC arboretum was free admission so we took a nice walk on a beautiful day.  Lots of cool plants, hummingbirds and bees.  It was hard to tell if he enjoyed it since he was strapped to my front and I couldn't see his expressions.

 Yesterday I took him to my friend's to drop off some dinner for her.  She had a recent surgery and needed a little help feeding herself.  I was happy to make some food for her.  I could also tell that seeing Enzo brightened her day a little.  And he got kissed gently by a cat for the first time at Laura's house.  Dixie the cat loves Enzo!  Then I whisked him off the baby sign language where we learned about playtime signs.

And we've been doing a lot of playing. Turnip usually doesn't bark this much, but something was going on outside.  Also, we've been dealing with this.

So that was the past two weeks.  And we have so much going on the next few weeks!  This weekend Ezra is visiting and we'll be seeing some other friends as well.  Saturday and Monday are already booked!  The week of mother's day my friend Marissa is visiting, there's a work party and the strawberry festival at UCSC is happening.   So much fun!  So much love from friends and family!  Who knew having a baby would make us this popular!

New Stats

As of April 16th, Enzo is 16.7 pounds (75th percentile!) and 25 inches.  Such a big boy.  He's surpassed doubling his birth weight already.  When I visited Jen and her new baby Sarah, I couldn't remember Enzo ever being that small.  It must have been the delirium caused by sleep deprivation...

He had his four month vaccines as well on Monday and it was a very rough Tuesday.  So grumpy and just not feeling good.  I broke out the Tylenol and had to give him several doses throughout the day because he looked so uncomfortable.  Poor little guy.  Today he's doing better and a little happier.  Makes everyone happier for that matter!

In Sacramento after a looooong day (last Tuesday).

Bath toys are so much fun!!

"Stop it mom!"

Loves to sit and play.  His little chair helps him do just that.

The skunk sweater made its debut and it entirely too cute.

Eyebrows!

Today in the kitchen, where he watches me do dishes and cook.

Thursday Morning

So Enzo just rolled over from his stomach to his back.  Looked quite shocked after he accomplished that! It happened so fast.

Deborah would like me to put a more flattering picture of Esme up!  So here's the happy bunny: