The Business of Being...Levi

Well I've been hanging around this world for  SIX MONTHS now and here's what I think about things so far... 

The month started off with a grand celebration for my Tati and Uncle Chris...their wedding and I got to be in it! I left Virginia with Mommy, regrouped back in Boston for a couple days and off we went to New York. 

Once in New York, I helped Mom get everything ready for Tati and Uncle Chris's wedding shower with the family. Then I hung out with Daddy on the 4th of July all day AND all night while she celebrated Tati in the city. It was my first night away from Mommy, but lucky for Daddy I didn't give him too hard a time. I did decide I hate formula. Dad tried to give it to me in the middle of the night when he ran out of breast milk and I took a sip or two and thought, "Who is he trying to fool!?" and I spit it right out. GROSS! So much for having it as a back up. Mommy better get back to stocking up the freezer with backups. Hey, at least I'm willing to take a bottle occasionally when I have to. 

I stayed with Grandma and Grandpop during the rehearsal dinner and during the day some with Dad while Mom did the busy bridesmaid thing. I met her at the wedding for pictures. It was such a hot day out that Dad hadn't gotten me in my suit yet when we met her, so she actually got me dressed on a blanket in the grass where we were doing pictures. She's lucky I'm not a shy guy and my sweet cousin Maddy helped her get me ready too. I looked pretty sharp in my seersucker suit, crisp collared shirt and yellow bow tie. It was fun to see everyone at the wedding. I met new relatives and reunited with other relatives I had already had a chance to meet. I was in all the family photos and gave some pretty great smiles for the camera and then I charmed everyone when Dad carried me down the aisle and I actually did my part and held my sign that read, "Uncle Chris here comes your girl!" Since it was a late wedding, I wasn't up for much dancing because it was well past my bedtime. I had a sweet babysitter waiting for me right upstairs in the bridal suite, so Mom get me all ready for bed and off to sleepy land I went knowing Mom and Dad were just downstairs in case I needed them. It was my first wedding and a good time was had by all, myself included!

Grandma and Grandpop came back to Boston with us, so we all went down the Martha's Vineyard together one of the days they were visiting. It was my first trip to the Vineyard outside of the womb and also the first time I put my toes in the sand at the beach. Then the next week Mom and Dad took me to Singing Beach at Manchester by the Sea for a real beach day. I was a little timid in the water even though Dad was holding me. The sound of the waves crashing was like nothing I'd ever heard before really and it made me a little nervous, but I got used to it the longer we were there and I wasn't as nervous later in the day. It was also really fun to sit at the beach because I didn't topple to one side or the other as easily and if I did topple over the sand was a pretty soft cushion for my fall.

While we're on the subject of sitting, I'd like to pat myself on the back for sitting on my own like a champ! If I'm not rolling then I want to be sitting on my own. It's so much easier to play with my toys that way too! I can sit on the living room rug and look in my toy container and I can sit on the kitchen floor while Mom is cooking. Those are two of my favorite places to be when it comes to sitting. 

In other news, last month I started rolling and now I roll all over the place. Who needs to crawl when you can just roll around the room. I'm also pretty good at rotating, so once I roll to whatever I'm interested in I can rotate in a circle and roll back or head towards something else. Mom and Dad keep wondering when I'm going to start crawling. They tell me it's good for my brain development and athletic ability and coordination, but I'm making them wait. I've started to scooch or inchworm as Dad likes to call it on my own now, but it's such a slow way to get around when I can roll my way to what I want. 

I'm still laughing up a storm, but only if something is truly hilarious....the funniest thing I noticed this month was ping pong! The sound of that ball bouncing off the table just cracked me up! Mom even got it on video because I was laughing so hard and for so long. I am also ticklish! I laugh pretty hard if you tickle my underarms and sides and I still crack up if you tickle my belly or have me ride on your head.

The other BIG news this month is that I've started eating SOLIDS! So far I've tried rice cereal and oatmeal, which are pretty tasty. I've been eating them regularly for a couple weeks now. Mom keeps trying to get me to like pears, but I'm not loving them. She tells me I'm going to like fruit. I hope she's right because so far this fruit stuff is just plain weird! She told me she's going to let me gum some banana or avocado next. I'll keep you posted on what my taste buds enjoy.

My sleeping habits also seem to interest people and I've made some headway in the sleep department. While I'm not quite sleeping through the night yet, I am sleeping without my swaddle! Ever since I started rolling around I've wanted to sleep on my side or stomach and even though Mom puts me down on my back every time I go to sleep I always roll over, so she had to teach me to sleep without my swaddle in case I needed my arms to help me turn my head and stuff. It was tough the first few nights because I'd wake up pretty easily, but it's definitely gotten better. I hear I'm going to start sleeping in my crib in my nursery like a big boy this coming month too! I've always slept in my Mom and Dad's room in my pack n'play up until now, so that will be a pretty big change for me. Who knows, maybe it will actually help me sleep better.  

A couple other random things you should know...I am loving a couple special songs lately. Which songs are my favorites at the moment? So glad you asked...Elmo's song which mom shows with the video on her phone (this one was inspired by my Auntie Thais) and The Itsy Bitsy Spider which Mom sings complete with hand motions (and this one was inspired by my Auntie Cola). I LOVE THESE SONGS so much so that they will sometimes help me stop crying when I'm somewhere I hate like the terrible carseat! I've also become very interested and entertained by clapping and dancing. I don't clap myself, but I love it when other people do. I also don't dance on my own yet, but Mom helps me stand up and shake what she gave me (haha...get it?) Maybe it was all the concert going I've done in the past couple months. 

Of course this has been another month of firsts...

      Eating rice cereal and oatmeal.
      Trying pears.
      Sleeping unswaddled.

Overall,  in my  SIXTH MONTH I've enjoyed the business of celebrating.

The Business of Being...Levi

Well I've been hanging around this world for  FIVE MONTHS now and here's what I think about things so far... 

It's been a fun month filled with what else, travel? This time to Virginia for a good part of the month, one week while Dad was with us on vacation and two weeks while he was working for the Airforce. Here are some highlights from this month...It began with a big Boston ice cream event and I wanted to taste that ice cream SO badly!! 

I went to my first baby shower for my future friend, Baby Albright. The night before I got to hang out just me and Dad at a BBQ while mom helped get things ready for the shower. Guy time was a good time.

I still hate the car, so after crying for over an hour one trip in the car even with pit stops for me to eat and take a break from the car seat I still kept crying, so Daddy declared I had won myself a ticket to Virginia. I didn't mind having to fly and I took Mommy along too.

While in Virginia I kept a full calendar of course. I met Nana for lunch and visited her office, visited Grandma's elementary school, met Mom and Dad's small group from VA Beach who prayed for me when I was a twinkle in their eyes and on the way. I also celebrated Dad's first Father's day with all the family. Mom and I got him a Red Sox jersey and a coffee mug that says "Wicked Good Dad", which seemed fitting since I'm a true New Englander. I finally met my Great Grandpa and Great Aunt Linda and the rest of my cousins through Grandma this trip too. Then while Dad headed to his Airforce base, I hung with Mommy and my grandparents for a couple weeks in Virginia while he was away working. I visited Charlottesville and hung out with my Great Granny, Aunt Cindy and cousins Sarah, Sophia, Henry, Ashley and Gabriel as well as mom's friend Celeste and her girls, Ariana and Ivey.

I had my first pool day at Nana's. She got me the perfect raft to float around in the pool, so I put on my first swim diaper and swim outfit complete with sunglasses and sun hat and hung out by the pool. I wasn't sure how I felt about being in the water when mom first dipped my feet in the water because it wasn't warm like the bathtub, but Mommy and Daddy were there with me, so I figured it would be all right and while I remained pretty serious at least I didn't cry. Nana even brought her swing outside for me and I napped in her stroller in the shade too. It was a pretty fun in the sun day.

Later in my Virginia visit Mom took me to Williamsburg to visit my Big Nana again and we had lunch with Aunt and Uncle Blah while we were there. I had a playdate with mom's ESL teacher friends and then lunch with her school friend Lauren. We had sushi and it looked SO good. Then, I spent the whole day with Grandma and Grandpop while Mom photographed a wedding, so I got to go to a graduation party for Brooke Cardwell with them. That Sunday I enjoyed brunch with Aunt Haley, Aunt Courtney and Uncle Austin followed by a day at the pool with my little friends, Liam, Evelyn and the Mazzio twins. Nana got home with Aunt Cola from Tati's dress fitting in New York and we had a clam bake. Then Monday we had a pool day at the Van Nest's where I got to meet Miss Eliza Lane and her mommy, Jessica, while hanging out again with Auntie Haley, Auntie Courtney, Liam and Evelyn. I also went to dinner club and met mommy's friends there. At Grandma's I also met my Great Uncle Owen. My last day in Virginia I watched some of the Miss Virginia pageant with Mommy, Nana and Grandma before going to bed because we had to fly back to Virginia VERY early.  

Another trip highlight was going to a couple Y Knot concerts with Grandma and Grandpop and wore ear plugs to protect my ears. It looked like I was listening to an Ipod when I had the earplugs in my ears. My grandparents get a VIP table front and center at the concerts, so that was fun. I also met Daddy's friend Eric at the concert. He said he's going to come visit me this summer in Boston. 

In other news, I have officially started rolling. I don't just roll by accident anymore. I can see a toy I want and roll over to get it and then roll back over to chew and play with it. Watch out Mom, I'm going to be on the move before you know it!

I also cracked up at Mom for a long stretch of time on a couple occasions this month. She is one funny lady and I know she loves my belly laughs, so I'll keep em coming! 

My nana is getting really excited about me eating solid foods, but it's still a little while away. In the meantime, Mommy let her give me some ice water droplets from a straw and boy oh boy did I like that. It was so nice and cold on my gums. My mom will sometimes give me some water as entertainment when I'm in a restaurant now. Oh and speaking of restaurants, I can sit on my own in highchairs now. It's fun for a little while. Mom puts this cool cover on the high chair, so I can suck on the chair and not get sick from yucky germs. 

I also started sitting on my own for short stretches of time before wobbling to one side or another. Mom's been enjoying that for taking my picture. My sitting skills were even put to use when I  got to sit in my Grandpop's baby rocking chair. It was fun to have my own perfectly sized chair to sit in and I hear I'll get to sit in it some more this fall at Cabin Weekend.

I loved all the time I got to spend with my grandparents and extended family and friends this month. I know a lot of people love me and I'm one lucky boy!

Of course this has been another month of firsts...

      Tasting ice water.
      Meeting my great grandpa.
      Meeting my great aunt Linda.
      Had my first pool day.

Overall,  in my  FIFTH MONTH I've enjoyed the business of family time.