new things.

a picture of z looking fierce in his headlamp.

z finally said a vowel-consonant word this week. he's done well with both "in" and "on."

he can also reach doorknobs and turn them. last night while i was teaching & j was watching him, he successfully opened & closed our bedroom door.

z has fun zooming around on his little bus on the non carpeted floor - he can go really fast! we're working on throwing and catching balls. he received some new toys from g'ma & g'pa - mega blocks. they entertain him for a long time, but they're slowly spreading all around the house.

he's been enjoying the water room at the children's museum the past few times we've been there. the museum is a great way to entertain him when i haven't gotten enough sleep...

last weekend i got to stay downtown at the westin hotel all by myself. it was a wonderful break. i watched a lot of tv & slept. very relaxing! z & daddy got to hang out with his cousin j & abuelo and abuela. they went to the zoo last saturday & had lots of fun. we're looking forward to our quick trip to sunriver on labor day weekend.

new things.

z now has a stool to use to climb up to the sink. it's the one i grew up with. his new obsession is playing in the sink and wasting lots and lots of water. anything nearby he loves throwing in the sink (such as the hand towel). i'm waiting for him to try to eat the soap...

another new thing he does is throw tantrums. it began with him screeching at anything he disapproved, and as of yesterday (i couldn't quite believe he was doing it - it had never happened before), he got on the floor & threw an actual tantrum. i should've gotten it on video, but i wasn't quite sure it was a "tantrum." he was just hungry, but refused to say he needed food. thanks so much, little guy!

the other new thing he likes is doing somersaults on the bed (with our assistance). he LOVES it!

last, but not least, he pooped on the carpet in the bathroom this morning. :( yuck. at least it was well formed & easy to clean up. i have to give him credit for NOT playing with it, and making some very concerned sounds, that caused mommy to run over quickly (she was getting dressed).

my son, after a chocolate chip cookie.

he looks like the Joker.

my growing son

z can reach the top of the railing when walking down the stairs! he used to not be able to reach that high, but now it's much easier. my baby is growing up! :(

sunday was a busy day - drove to vancouver through the providence bridge pedal traffic to pick up a violin, and then j, z, & i went to washington square to run some errands. i met up with friends to see my second movie of the week, "eclipse," and then i met z & j at our friends' house for dinner. what a gem of a weekend, being invited twice for dinner, and seeing lots of great friends! very busy, though. it's tuesday, and i'm still catching up. i was lucky to have today off from teaching (although i can't get much done while z is awake), and got some cleaning done. i found out yesterday another student is moving away from portland - out to washington dc this time.

canadians!

z loves uncle p!

p actually got z to eat zucchini!

our canadian friends p & n were in town this past weekend, and we got to spend most of saturday with them. we went for lunch at the oak hills mcmenamins, n & i saw the movie "dinner for schmucks" while z, p, & j went to the climbing gym, and then we cooked dinner. z had fun trying to say p's name (either that, or he was saying pasta the canadian way...).

engineer?

my son, the problem solver. :)

dinner with friends

this past friday, we were invited over to dinner with friends in happy valley. they were my first tenants in my nopo house. it was b's birthday, and they cooked us thai food. they have a son, l, who is about 7 months younger than z. he's already talking more than z, and loves throwing his ball around. we all had a fun time catching up. we had a longer movie of z hugging l that was pretty amusing, but it was too large to post here, so here's a small uninteresting one.

national night out

the police gave the kids a bunch of free stuff - stickers, tatoos, pens, and the best part - these whistle lights. luckily z never figured out that they are whistles, but he sure loved the lights. he cried when we took them off for bath time.

national night out

our neighborhood had a block party on national night out, last tuesday evening. i cancelled my teaching because it was being held next door, and they wanted to limit traffic. here's a video of z meeting mcgrath, the crime fighting dog.

corn

z's first time eating corn on the cob. j was gone camping with soccer friends for the weekend, so z & i went to the park with pepper, g'ma & g'pa, and then they treated us to dinner. it was yummy - thanks so much! we had a great time!

abuelo

snack time during abuelo's visit!

hot weather

getting sunscreened up

first time in the kiddie pool! our neighbor k was kind enough to give us this kiddie pool that his daughter had grown out of. z loves playing in it, and also loves playing with the hose.