Ice Cream

Anthony had his first ice cream cone today, when we went out for dinner at Souplantation. At first, he wasn't sure about it - initially he wouldn't even taste it, then he wouldn't hold it...as you can see in the photos, he got over his trepidation! He had the couple at the next table cracking up.

Venice....again

We're chillin' out in Venice again this weekend...we drove down last night. Do you know what it's like when you leave someplace and it's 110 degrees, and you arrive at your destination a couple hours later, and it's only 75? It's PURE BLISS! It's so much easier to withstand the heat all week when I know there will be relief on the weekend. I'm telling you, this heat has been making everyone so irritable and cranky!! Me included! October can't come soon enough - that's when it finally starts cooling down in the desert. I can handle the heat during the day if it cools off some at night, but when the LOW at night is 85 or 90, there's no relief.

Anthony is sitting here next to me, watching one of his beloved Elmo videos. He loves to sit on the couch as if he's a big person. He also has a newfound fascination with kid-sized chairs - loves them! He's so cute as he scoots his little butt backwards, closer and closer, until he can sit down on the chair with a look of triumph on his face. At home he has an Elmo stuffed chair he sits in - one day he even dragged it into the bathroom when I was sitting on the potty, so that he could sit in there with me...it was adorable. Here in Venice, he has a little rocking chair which has been in Dan and Gloria's family for several generations. He loves to sit in it and make it rock back and forth.

Hoping to go to Borders later and take Anthony to the kids section - he's like a kid in a candy store when he sees all the books on the shelves. NOT because he loves books so much, but because one of his favorite pasttimes is to pull books off bookshelves!! HAHAHAHA...the store doesn't know what's coming!

Doctor Appointment

Well, we met Anthony's new pediatrician today...Dr. Aguirre. Have to say - I love her!!! Finally! The facility is brand new and is really nice, and everything is charted on the computer. The doctor is very experienced - in fact, she is the physician-in-charge over the three new facilities Kaiser has built out here in the desert. She was very thorough - and was actually concerned about his nasal snorting/congestion that he's had for what seems like forever - every time I brought it up with our previous provider, it was just dismissed. Anyway, she said that it is probably allergies and/or asthma, and that when he turns 2, we can have allergy testing done. He weighs 24 lbs, which is at 37% on the growth chart for his age, and is 30 inches tall, which is only at 9% on the growth chart for his age - he's a shrimp! How is that possible??? He is developmentally advanced, though (but we knew that, right?). He had to get 2 immunizations - one in each leg, which he did not care for, but he did great - only cried for about 10 seconds. I had given him tylenol about a half hour before his appointment so it would already be in his system - I think that helped. Jana, his day care provider, said she had to give him another dose this afternoon because she could tell he was hurting.

Thank goodness for Jana - she has been the most amazing gift - she adores Anthony and cares for him as if he was her own child or grandchild. And he LOVES going there - never gets upset or complains when I tell him we're going there, and is happy as a lark when he arrives.

That's all for now - Anthony's a bit on the cranky side tonight b/c of the shots.

New things

Anthony's newest "game" so to speak is that he has discovered the joy of pretending. Already! I did not expect this for some time yet - I thought kids were older when they figured this out, but Anthony now pretends to eat. He pinches together the fingers on one hand, in the palm of his other hand, as if he is picking something up, then puts his fingers in his mouth and says, "Mmmm." If you're lucky enough to be around when he does this, he joyfully shares his pretend food with you, but expects you to show the same kind of enthusiasm that he does - "Mmmm, good!" Then he cracks up laughing as if this is the best game ever! He will also do it with a spoon if you give him one, pretending to scoop up something delicious out of a bowl, pie plate, or whatever other container he can get his hands on.

He also loves loves loves to run around naked before and/or after his bath...what kid doesn't? As long as he doesn't pee on the carpet, I suppose it's okay. He sure is cute! Ahhh...soon will start the days of tantrums...better enjoy the cuteness now!

Beach photos

Here are some pics from our trip to Venice Beach this weekend. As you can see, he played so hard he crashed, covered in sand and all. He actually slept for over an hour!

We made it home safe and sound tonight; our house was 95 degrees when we came in - although I think that may just be as high as the thermostat goes! We also have lots of dead crickets in the house - had it sprayed Friday before we left. Oh the fun of summer! At least they're dead now!!!

Hugs,

Jen

Let's get started

Well, I am brand new to blogging...so we'll see how this goes. I will try my best to update this frequently so everyone can keep up on what we're doing. Right this minute, we're all in Venice, CA, with friends Dan and Gloria, a block from the ocean. It's beautiful here, though warm for this area - but NOTHING compared to the 120 degrees it was at home yesterday. Anthony, Gloria and I spent this afternoon on the beach, in and out of the water. Anthony fell asleep under the umbrella and took a nice nap while I played in the water and Gloria burned her legs. Meanwhile Darrell and Dan were playing with the Townhouse equipment, preparing for a band coming in to play tonight. I took some pictures of Anthony playing in the sand - will upload them when we get home - don't have the cord with me here.

So excited to see Emma, my sister Karen's new baby, on her blog tonight - adorable! I can't wait to meet her. She looks just like Karen did as a baby - I couldn't believe the resemblance! Check out the link to her website over on the right of mine - "Savage Family Blog" - to see the photos yourself!

Hugs, Jen