February 28

We celebrated my birthday today at my favorite restaurant with the fam.

Caleb seriously enjoyed El Maguey.

I seriously enjoyed the glass (!) of tequila they gave me as a birthday gift.

Hilarity ensued.

February 27

Chris informed me today that Saturday is officially his favorite day of the week.

I totally understand. It's been a great day.

One of the best parts?

Playing catch with Caleb. We're pretty impressed that our 7 1/2 month old can play (or attempt to play) catch.

He tries to throw the ball, but it doesn't always go where he intends.

Sometimes, his "throw" ends up right back in his lap.

He doesn't seem to mind.

February 26

It was above freezing today.

We celebrated with a trip to the playground after our 4-mile run.

Caleb was thought it was OK.

Picture him:

 kicking those little feet as he swung back and forth

giggling incessantly in his raspy, Ernie-from-Sesame-Street way

occasionally letting out a snort or chortle of joy

Swings = success.

We will return.

February 25

Have I mentioned that Caleb is a wiggleworm?

Polite people we've encountered have referred to him as "active."

That's my boy.

February 24

Caleb tried to eat rice-y poofs today.

It didn't go so well.

He preferred his high chair.

On a side note, I woke up this morning to find Caleb and this greeting:

What a thoughtful baby I have!

(did you notice that interesting paper Chris used to wrap one of those gifts....? Look closely!)

February 23

Oh. My. Goodness.

Baby in a sweatervest?

*sigh*

Is it just me, or does he remind you of Jake Ryan in Sixteen Candles?

What a dreamboat.

February 22

This is Caleb's new trick:

He pulls one sock off.

Then he plays with it.

Then he chews on it.

Then he throws it or hides it somewhere.

I learned it was his new trick the other day, when he fell asleep in the car. I took his car seat up to his crib and let him sleep there for what ended up being a 2 1/2 hour nap. When he woke up, he was wearing one sock. I searched for a while and finally discovered a wet sock tucked deep in his car seat. Sometime during his nap, he must have woken up, taken off the sock, and hidden it, then gone back to sleep.

Why was it wet?

He'd been chewing on it.

This has happened at least 4 times since Friday.

Every time, it's his left sock.

What an odd child I have!

February 21

Today Caleb got to go to his first ice hockey game!

OK, so it wasn't a Blues game, or an Olympic hockey game; it was his Daddy's recreational hockey league. But still. It was a big deal! And Caleb was so excited to see his Daddy all decked out in his hockey gear.

He really liked Chris' face mask.

And he was way impressed to meet Chris' friend (and teammate) Clinton, who must have seemed like a giant grizzly bear to little Caleb!

Caleb followed the game, which was quite exciting, from the comfort of Grandma's lap.

And then it was bedtime, and he fell asleep in his sling.

Unfortunately, he missed the end of the game, but Daddy's team won.

February 20

Bathtime!

(or, I didn't take any photos all day and then it was bedtime so I had to take a photo FAST!)

Caleb loves his bath toys. He doesn't play with them; he just chews on them. But when bath time is over, he insists on taking whatever toy is in his pudgy little hands into the bedroom with him. While Daddy lotions and diapers and pj-ifies him, Caleb chews contentedly on his toy. Woe to the man (or woman) who prematurely takes away Caleb's bath toy!

He is his mama's child.

February 19

Today Caleb got to play with his friend Cooper. The boys have known each other their whole lives, and see each other several times a week (Cooper's mom, Sara, runs with Caleb and me), but rarely get time outside of the strollers to play together.

Aren't they cute?

The boys were born a day apart, and they have always been a study in opposites:

Cooper is fair, Caleb is dark

Cooper was a big baby (nearly 9 pounds!), Caleb was small (only 7)

Cooper expresses his emotions loudly, Caleb is mellow

Here's a photo of them 6 months ago:

Isn't it crazy how different they are now?

I'll end this pointless post with a photo that just makes me laugh.

February 18

We had a busy day today!

We spent time at MOPs, Babymoon, Target, and the grocery store.

All told, Caleb spent 3 hours in the car today, driving back and forth among various activities.

Did he complain?

Does my child ever complain?

February 17

So one of my favorite blogs, I Should be Folding Laundry, has a weekly photo challenge called "You Capture."

 Every week, I think, "Gee. That would be fun! I should do it!" Then I don't do it.

This week, I did it.

The extra incentive to participate came because Beth, the author, will give a subscription to Picnik premium to one participant.

I am all about Picnick, so I am all about You Capture. Maybe I'll win!

This week's theme was kisses.

I know it's supposed to be a Valentine-y challenge, but I thought instead about Caleb. (of course) I love to kiss my baby. So I photographed my favorite parts to kiss!

And I might have written my captions in verse. It just kind of came out that way. Sorry.

I love to kiss his little face

and smooch those chubby cheeks!

Who can resist some baby thighs

(Not I!)

or some tasty baby feet?

I love to kiss his belly

and smooch those little hands.

I have to kiss his sides and arms - they're more than I can stand!

But we all know that kisses given are never as good as kisses received!

February 16

When I was a child, anytime I was difficult, spiteful, or strong-willed, my mom would say, "I hope you have a child just like you someday."

This is my child.

He sleeps on his own terms.

When it's the middle of the night and we want desperately for him to sleep, no such luck.

When he's been awake for six straight hours during the day and needs a nap, nothing doing.

When we're driving home from dinner with friends and it's a little bit later than his normal bedtime,

he falls asleep.

And stays asleep.

Even when we move his carseat from the car to his crib.

And leave him in his room for a few hours.

And then later, turn on the light.

And snap his photo.

And snap his photo again.

He just stays asleep.

Maybe I have a child just like me, after all.

Lordy, Lordy, what will I do?

February 15

I love bank holidays.

Because Chris was home today, we decided to have a family outing to the gym. We left Caleb in the Kids Korner so that we could run a few miles, then took him to the pool to swim for the first time.

It was so much fun!

There was a lot of stimuli for Caleb to take in, even before we got in the water: echoing shouts, loud music, kids screaming, water splashing, strange smells...

He was a bit skeptical at first.

But once he got used to things, he loved it!

(Don't you love his adorable little swim trunks?)

February 14

Caleb had a wonderful first Valentine's Day.

He got to wear a new sweater that was non-cheesy and manly, yet festive.

He got a new book about how much his Mommy and Daddy love him.

And it snowed!

He spent a lot of time staring out the sliding glass door, watching the snow.

After much thought, Caleb developed a hypothesis:

snow might taste good.

(yep. He is licking the glass. And I didn't stop him; I photographed it!)

He. LOVES. Snow.

(or does he just love licking the glass?)

February 13

Two things:

1. Caleb got to spend some quality time with his Grandmother Rife today!

2. Caleb has recently discovered the joys of hand-washing. He was chuckling to himself when this photo was taken. Glad he likes it!

February 12

OK, I managed to take some pictures today.

 After stroller aerobics and a trip to Costco with my wonderful friend, I think the funk is gone.

But the best funk-minimizer?

Playing with my baby boy, who is possibly the cutest baby ever.

I love the look on his face here, and the way he's grabbing his little foot!

Yep, you are pretty funny!

Bye-bye funk!

February 11

I confess:

for the first time in nearly 4 months, I skipped a blog post for no good reason.

I went all day on the 11th without taking a single picture of Caleb.

Maybe I am in a funk.

All I know is, at 7:30 pm, I realized I had no photo of the day and rushed upstairs to see if he was still awake. No such luck - Chris had just gotten him down for the night.

So no photo of the day.

I hope you'll accept this offer of a freshly woken Caleb, taken the next morning.

I hope the funk doesn't persist.