chef in training

Samuel loves to help around the house and one of his favorite things is to "help" me cook. He is not above taking a sample or two, either, especially if it is one of his favorites, like hummus.

This kid is a tool user for sure. Spoons for stirring are very popular, as is the Cuisinart. Samuel agrees with his Aunt Suzette, though, the Kitchen Aid is by far the best kitchen innovation. Samuel likes to make pizza dough in it, however he is not above mixing water with it, as his Bubbie lets him do.

how cute is crawling?

Here is video of some early crawling moments. I can't tell you how many times I've heard "If you think it's hard now, wait till they can move." I can't disagree more. Crawling in our household is the best thing since peanut butter. That's right kiddo - now you can go get that toy for yourself. Doesn't hurt that it's so darn cute, either.

barcelona, wow!

We took a side trip to Barcelona before returning home from Paris. Guell Park, Catalonian food, Picasso, Gaudi, Miro. Wonderful. It was rainy but the people made up for it. Everyone loved babies (in both Paris and Barcelona) and we were treated well everywhere we went. Our last night we took Samuel to the Parade for the Three Kings. He was mesmerized.

paris for christmas

Tom and Susan brought all of their kids and spouses on an amazing trip to Paris this winter for their anniversary. A free trip to Europe - need I say more? Thanks Tom and Susan.

It was also great that the European branch of the family could join us there. It was wonderful to see Francis, Teddy, Nik and Nicola

thanksgiving new york 2007

Samuel's first Thanksgiving. One of the great things about having a child who doesn't sleep (can there be anything great about having a child that doesn't sleep?) is that going on vacation doesn't make a difference, cuz they certainly can't sleep any WORSE. I mean, once you are already getting woken up every hour or two, can you really go down hill from there?

So the trip went off without a hitch and it was great to see Steve's fam.

first solids

This is a video of Samuel's first solid feeding. Not long after this we decided to not feed Samuel ourselves, but use the concept of "baby led solids." We didn't mash up food, or feed him with a spoon, but offered him soft vegetables that he could try to eat on his own. The idea is that developmentally he wouldn't be able to put anything in his mouth that was small enough to choke on, until he was ready to swallow it.

pumpkin pie anyone?

The pictures say it all. Halloween at Microsoft.