Christmas!

We had so much fun this year in Arizona. Davy had a great time getting to know the all of his cousins.

He played at the park with Mikey,


Watched Sleeping Beauty with Jason and Brett,

Opened Christmas presents with Parker and Dallin,  (he is more thrilled than he looks.)

And watched the Nutcracker with Mimi.

During the beautiful weather he played basketball with Spo.

At Thanksgiving he chased Madeleine around her house as the "Hug-Monster".  

We have had a great time hanging out with all the cousins and their parental units. 

Zoo and Art Day

We have had a fun month of outings, the weather is perfect and David has been pretty cooperative. We went to the zoo and for the first time he acknowledged that the animals were there and slightly impressive.

I also spent a morning preparing an "art day" for Daivd. I got paints and posterboard set up, the cd player set up outside, and Davy dressed in old clothes. Perfect-the budding Picasso sat down and painted...for 15 seconds which was long enough for me to snap the picture. Apparently squirrels beat painting in entertainment value.

Also thanks Marci for sending us an air filter. Davy thought a box full of packing peanuts beats painting and squirrels. He insisted I drop a cupful of them slowly onto his face--we did this for 30 minutes.

One final shot of a staticy boy who takes his sliding seriously.

Cold Weather and Cleaning

Davy continues to help with the house work. He puts away the silverware (dirty or clean), helps me sweeps the floor (demands the broom), and puts the laundry in. We might have to start paying this kid an allowance! Here is a quick video of him doing his chores.

Stephen started taking Davy on his morning run, and now Davy runs to the stroller when he wakes up. It is getting colder so Davy goes encased in wool.

It is finally cooling off and we can once again go outside without sweating to death. As soon as David wakes up he makes a dash for the door and lets me know it is time to go outside. We have spent a lot of time at the park.

We have also spent some time at the Missouri Botanical Gardens. Their childrens' garden is fantastic--basically a maze of different games and activities. David ran around shrieking with delight.

I have also obtained video proof that I clean the house occasionally. This is one of his favorite post-meal activities.

Walking Man

Last week David's walking was limited between the couch and the ottomon. This week he walks everywhere we go--in fact he is now too cool for the cart at the grocery store, and too cool to sit in the stroller--now he has to push. It is amazing to see this little verticle man strolling through the house. He has also found that because I am not holding his hand, I do not always follow him like an oversized shadow. He gets between me and the counter and pushes until I back away, then he continues to push as hard as he can until I reach his desired destination. Then he goes back to playing, it is my job to watch him complete tasks, give an occasional cheer or acknowledgment of talent, and occasionally poke him with things.

Also updated the cooking blog!

New Group Blog

I really want your recipes. In exchange I will share some of mine. This should be pretty casual and pretty easy--If you don't have time to write out the recipe, even just a link and review will be fun.

You can find the new blog at

http://www.cookingshmooking.blogspot.com

I have added one of our current favorite recipes that uses our food processor!

Disclaimer: I cook only through necessity, and extreme hunger is usually the extra ingredient that makes my meals tasty.

New Apartment

Quick video of our new apartment!





One more quick video giving an update on the Davster. He demands to be walked around the house and yard everyday. He is getting a lot steadier each day. I went out today and bought him new shoes, he wore through his little leather ones. I had to go to three different stores before I found shoes that fit. I guess he has unusually fat feet--two of the clerks let me know.

Davy plays this game a lot...and is extremely frustrated if he cannot get the towel/blanket/pillow to cover his head completely. He then throws himself around yelling with delight. He currently has a big bruise on his forhead from playing this game then crawling straight into the wall.