Back in LA

December has been busy so far!!!  I've had a lot of work so Otto has been playing with Gram and Grandps and Dad a lot.  He's been having so much fun and I've been loving coming home to see him once my jobs are over!  We've had some beautiful mid-70's weather and have spent most weekends outside. When I'm not working our days have been action packed.  We went to Ora Duplass's 3 birthday party, we went to Chucky Cheese with Gus and Luke and some other friends, and tried to go to Shana and Nick's holiday party but ended up missing it by a day.  Otto was a trooper despite he mix up.  The reunion between Otto and his Dad was the best.  Trevor grew a mustache so even I was a bit taken aback when I first saw him.  Otto paused a moment then got a HUGE grin on his face.  He knew immediately that he was looking at his DAD.  Trevor grabbed him and hugged him and didn't put him down for the rest of the night!  Otto also got his first haircut this month.  We put his highchair out on the porch and strapped him in.  I was a bit nervous to hold a pair of sharp scissors so close to his little squirmy body but it ended up ok and I think he looks really cute-the picture of him in the red shirt is post haircut.  The other photo was taken in front of the Science Center downtown.  The summer weather we had in the beginning of the month has left and now we are in the middle of a predicted 10 day spell of rain.  Because of the rain we are forced to do indoor activities and the Science Center is one of our favorites.  Otto, Trevor, and I all had a great time!    

13 Month Duck Photo

Here's the latest Duck Photo.  Otto is HUGE and just to prove it he really wanted to stand next to his duck.  I like how casual he looks in this shot.  I had to work this day so Trevor did the photo shoot.  He got lots of cute ones but this particular shot was so different from all the others we had to choose it for his official 13 month image.  Trevor sent the photo to my phone so I could see it while I was at work.  It made my day!!!! 

Otto WALKS!!!!

Otto's big accomplishment now that his is a one year old...he learned to WALK!!!!  It happened in Texas so unfortunately Trevor missed it but we skyped and got it all on video so it is pretty much like he was right there with Otto.  We had been practicing with Otto all month letting him take a few steps on the carpet kind of stumbling back and forth in between Stacy and I while we sat on the ground.  And Gram and I practiced with him by letting him "get" us around the corner of a bed.  All this practice payed off on Saturday November 20!!!  He just sort of figured out that he could get anywhere he wanted to go by toddling around and so he did.  Later that day we took him to a little outdoor mall area in the Woodlands where a lot of kids play with the hope of inspiring him to walk more and explore the big Christmas tree and fountains.  It worked and he walked all around and loved it.  I've posted some video of his new accomplishment.  And the photo is of Otto celebrating how big he is on a donkey statue.  He's SOOOOO BIG!   

More Texas

Texas is huge so it deserves a few posts!  Plus we did so much  I can't fit all the pictures in just one entry.  We spent a lot of time at HEB-the coolest grocery store ever.  It is massive and has so many unique delicious items and best of all it has CAR CARTS!!!  Although they are impossible to steer they pretty much rock and Otto loved going to the grocery store because of them.  He is pictured very casually driving the green version.  The photo of Aunt Stacy and Otto was also taken at HEB.  We were shopping for Thanksgiving after a long day of playing at a Woodlands playground.  Otto was exhausted and snuggled with his Aunt for quite a while.   He even rested his cheek against hers but sadly I didn't get a photo of that.  They were both soooooooo happy and cozy!  The next photo was taken at Ryan and Stacy's neighbor's house.  Clearly Texans, they had a hay bale longhorn that Otto loved to ride.  After I took this shot I realized that Otto was wearing University of Texas orange while sitting on top of a longhorn.  Hmmmm...do I detect a little foreshadowing?  Maybe but I think he's sticking to his roots with the Gator blue socks.  Orange and Blue let's go Gators!!!!  The last two shots were taken outside the ice skating rink in the Woodlands.  Otto's love for bright orange cones has not waned.  He got so excited when he saw the first and then he noticed a whole row of cones to play with.  Christmas came early for Otto!!!!  

Texas

On November 3 Otto, Gram, Grandps and I took off for Houston to visit Uncle Ryan and Aunt Stacy for the entire month.  We had an absolute blast and really fell into a super fun routine right away.  The plane ride out there was even fun and Otto got so many compliments on his behavior.  I told people that he is a very seasoned traveler who even has his own passport!!!  Once we got to Texas we started our vacation out with a bang.  After a crazy packed clown car ride back to Stacy's we unpacked and got ready for the first of many adventures.  Perhaps the most exciting was just exploring the house.  I've never seen Otto so excited.  He ran from room to room with his arm up in the air saluting all the fans.  He loved the washer and drier (they were a source of entertainment all month) and all the buttons on the refrigerator, he was THRILLED with the stairs and the carpet upstairs.  He loved to turn the handles of the faucet on Stacy's bathroom hot tub and open and close all the doors and play with all of the Christmas decorations.  I wish I had the whole first night on video.  The first weekend in Houston we went to the Zoo.  Otto rode a carousel for the first time and we made sure he sat on a cat (Otto's favorite animal).  We heard a tiger roar, saw a lion eating lunch, watched giraffes get brushed, and ate pizza-a first for Otto.  Not surprisingly, he LOVED it!  Then we went to the aquarium and saw so many cool marine animals, a parrot, and a white tiger.  Otto got to steer a boat wheel, pose as a deep see diver and even touch a live sting ray's wing.  Stacy's complex has a cute little playground that I would walk Otto over to in his car (Stacy and Ryan bought Otto the same car that Trevor and I got him for his birthday.  They were sad he had to leave his birthday present so soon after he got it so they got him one for his holiday in Texas!!!!).  We really enjoyed the park with the playground mostly because of the huge green wheel that rotated very fast!  I took Otto on walks around the neighborhood almost every day.  We really got to know the area and the neighbors and all their cute dogs!  Otto loved to run up to them and sometimes would even pet them.  Stacy and Ryan live on a golf course so in the evening I would let Otto walk part of the course.  He loved the short green grass and the sand traps! But mostly he loved all the golf carts.  One man even took Otto and I for a ride in his cart.  It was a blessing and a curse because after that ride Otto became obsessed with golf carts and would get fairly upset if he couldn't go play with the tires and wheel.  I tried  to rent one from the clubhouse but they wouldn't let me.  Boo.  Instead of the golf carts Otto spent a lot of time "driving" Stacy's Toyota FJ.  He loved to sit in the drivers seat and steer the wheel, beep the horn, and mess with all the gadgets.  And an added benefit was that on the way to the car he got to push the button for the garage door to open.  Aunt Stacy and Uncle Ryan have the best stuff!!!!    

1 Year Duck Photo

Here is the one year installment of Otto's Duck Photo Project.  This was the very first photo I took during this month's photo shoot and it was the clear winner.  He was having so much fun! 

Otto also had to see Dr. Crosby for his 12 month check up and vaccinations.  As luck would have it he was able to avoid 3 of the 4 shots! 2 had egg byproducts (and we weren't sure at the time if he was allergic to eggs) and the 3rd shot can cause a bad reaction a week out and we were going to be in  Texas and wouldn't be able to get him back in if he were to have an adverse reaction.  Whoo hooo!  Happy day!  Dr. Crosby said he looked perfect and was developing just fine.  He will most likely have to see an allergist about his inability to digest poultry but otherwise he is absolutely right on target.  Here are his latest stats:

Head Circ: 46 cm 39%

Weight: 21 lbs 14oz 37%

Height 31 1/2 in 93%

1 YEAR OLD!!!!

WOW.  This has been the fastest year of my life.   I can't believe Mr. Amazing is one already.  People always tell me to cherish every moment because it goes by so fast and I honestly do cherish every moment and it does go by so fast. Otto is just so fun and wonderful and he makes all my minutes and days and weeks and months joyous.   I love that little guy.  Anyway, let me get on with what Otto's been up to now that he is one.  He is drinking whole cow's milk now.  He hated it at first but after maybe 3 or 4 days he developed a taste for it and loves it.  He still does not like water no mater how much I try to get him to like it.  He took his first step a day before his first birthday.  Gram and I took him to Traveltown (which is where the picture of the 3 of us was taken) and he was looking at all the plants and took his first little step to get closer look at a purple flower.  It was pretty exciting!  We got professional photos taken of Otto by our good friend and photographer, Mike.  He got some terrific shots despite Otto's initial shyness.  The photo of Trevor giving Otto a bottle is one example of the photo shoot.  Grandpa Ray and Grandma Deidra came to visit for Otto's birthday.  They brought him a little talking dog that he loves and we were able to personalize what he says to Otto.  We went on some great walks, ate yummy food, watched Otto do cute stuff.  It was such a memorable and fun weekend.  And the next day was Halloween!  Otto dressed up as a monkey, Trevor went as a lumberjack, and I was a cat.  Otto laughed when he saw my whiskers and ears.  We went over to Ross and Agnes' and had a great time playing with Ella, Hudson, and all the other neighborhood kids.  Otto didn't eat any candy but he got his first taste of hummus and that child was hooked!  Now it is one of his favorite foods and a staple in our refrigerator.  And the final picture is Otto at his birthday party with his friend Hailey.  She is a month older than Otto and is already a wonderful share-er.  They looked so cute together I had to add this photo.  Well, I can honestly say that this has been the most new, full, and exciting year of my life.  Having little Otto around makes life better!           

October's milestones

Otto has learned some pretty cool new things this month.  He can point out my nose and ear when I ask him "where is mama's nose" or "where is mama's ear."  He can also stand all by himself but he just doesn't know it yet.  When he is already standing I will give him something to hold with both hands and he'll let go of whatever is helping him keep his balance to hold the new object and he balances all by himself.  Now we just have to make him realize that he can do it!  And the biggest milestone...Otto said his first word!!!  "CAT!!!!!"  It is not a fluke either because since yesterday Oct 25 when he said cat for the first time when referring to a picture of a cat we have showed him every cat we could find and he always says cat.  Aunt Stacy, Grandpa, and Trevor are a bit disappointed that cat is his first word because none of them are big fans of cats but I think it is adorable.  He has always loved cats since he first started recognizing them. They are his favorite animals (well, he loves owls too but it seems as though he likes cats more!).  Gosh, I love that baby!

I have posted a few more photos from the party.  A photo before everyone started singing, a photo after everyone finished singing (Otto is facing me because he is crying) and one of the boys' Halloween theme sheet cake.  I also will post video of Otto standing and will try to get video of him pointing to my nose and ear and one of him saying cat.  

Birthday boys

We have had a busy month.  And honestly I don't remember a thing because Gus and Luke's mom, Sonja, and I threw all three boys a whopper of a first birthday party and I am totally exhausted!!!!  We held the party at Coldwater Canyon Park in Beverly Hills on Sunday Oct 24.  It was  the first sunny-ish day we had in about a week and a half so the outdoor party was perfect.  Tons of people showed up-somewhere in the vicinity of 150 people.  We had an overabundance of food but believe it or not most of it disappeared.  I made 108 bagel sandwiches, HUGE pasta and quinoa salads, vegis for hummus, we had chips and salsa, a 6.5 pound chocolate cake, and 3 baby cakes.  I started cooking at 6am on Saturday and finished 11pm that night.  Thank GOSH I had my little elves Aunt Stacy and Gram helping me out.  They took such great care of Otto-playing with him all day and taking him to the Children's Museum in Pasadena so I could cook for the party.  And despite having a million movies to watch Trevor pitched in and took Otto for a long morning walk.  And Grandps helped the next morning by slicing all 108 bagels.  We were all a pretty great team!  The boys LOVED the cake, especially Otto, who dug in like I've never seen before (after a brief cry when he got scared at all the attention and singing!).  This was his first taste of refined sugar and he liked it!  Singing happy birthday and eating cake was pretty much the only activity at the party because instead of opening presents we asked everyone to help Otto Gus and Luke raise money to build a clean water well in a developing nation AND they met their fundraising goal of $1,000!!!!  It was a glorious day for so many reasons.  The third photo is of Otto in the back of my Subaru sitting among all the groceries that I bought from Costco for the party.  And the other 2 were at Toys R Us.  Otto decided to help out Bert and Ernie rescue a cat from a tree and the first photo is of Otto trying out his new birthday present.  I set him in the car to see if he would like it and he LOVED it.  One of his new little tricks this month is that every time he sees something he likes he raises his hand over his head.  It is the worlds cutest thing and he does it A LOT.  Every time he sees a fan or a wheel or a dog or Gram and Grandpa or a bird or stairs, etc.   We all love it and have started raising our hands when we like something too.  Otto is such a trend setter.  He's the best!    

sleep training and other stuff

Just like everyone said the 3rd night of sleep training was a total success.  Trevor was out watching the Bears game but otherwise his night time routine was exactly the same...dinner, bath, books, 6 oz bottle and when he got drowsy I put him in his crib.  He cried for 5 minutes and I checked in on him to tell him I was still here and everything was ok.  Aunt Maria was here (it was her birthday-Happy Birthday, Auntie Mia!!!) so she came in with me.  We quickly left and Otto cried for about 9 more minutes before falling asleep.  No further check in needed.  AND...he slept solid until 5:20!!!!  Trevor said we should wait until 6:00 so Otto fell back asleep after a few minutes and when he woke up again at 6:06 we ran into his room and congratulated him on such a terrific night sleep.  We are thrilled to have slept-last night was the first full night of sleep I've had since he was born.  

The video was taken this morning while we were all eating cereal.  It is the tail end of "So big" and the little snorting thing he has been doing lately.  ENJOY!     

11 Month Duck Photo

Well, Otto clearly LOVES his duck! He was soooo rambunctious during this month's photo shoot-even more so than last time. And truly the cutest thing is that he now knows what we are doing. He understands that it is time to take his picture with his duck and he turns on the cute! He got sooooo excited for this photo shoot and just squealed and hugged his duck. Trevor and I were so happy just to watch his excitement and I think this picture really captures his joy.
Otto has gone through some big changes so far this month. He is really pulling up and standing easily now so I've been trying to encourage steps. Gram, Otto, and I went to the library and I stacked some chairs side by side so he could walk next to them while supporting himself and unfortunately he fell and split his lip and gum. My poor baby!!!! He cried harder than I've heard him cry and then I saw the blood. It wasn't too horrible so I knew he didn't need stitches but I also knew it hurt him pretty badly. I just held and hugged little Otto in the bathroom until he felt better. Then, for better or worse, we chose that night to sleep train the little guy. It is no fun at all. For any of us. The first night was horrible, the second night got better, and tonight is still going on so I'll report back on our progress in the next post. So, Otto split his lip, slept in his own room with out us, in his own crib, AND got night weened all at the same time. It was probably the worst day of his life. And he is handling it all fairly well. He is a trooper and I love that little boy like crazy!
On to more fun stuff...he is doing this cute little scrunchy face thing while he breaths in and out of his nose really quickly. It is INSANELY cute and we are all doing it in order for him to do it back to us. I'll try to get some video. Gramps has taught him the sign for fan and he now does it every time he sees the ceiling fan. Brilliant! He still throws his hands up when we say Otto is soooo big. He also has begun to really LOVE reading and can't get enough of his books. He absolutely has his favorites now too. He loves looking at the cat in his farm book and really laughs hard when he sees it. He's beginging to love the bunny and the pig almost as much. He loves the owl in his Pooh book, he flies through Brown Bear and won't let me even read the words, and he loves Pat the Bunny, 10 Rubber Duck book, and Baby's First Christmas. He is crawling a lot more now too and begining to crawl up our legs. Oh and he has found the toliet paper and loves unraveling it. Gosh, he is just sooooo cute Trevor and I have a hard time talking about anything else. And even though we are sleep training him I haven't given up napping with him curled up in my arms. It is the best!!!!! He is the best!!!!!

Steps and SOOOO BIG

Otto had two new firsts yesterday.  Since he learned how to crawl he hasn't been doing it much-he still prefers to be carried!  So yesterday I took him to the park to play around with the wheels and hopefully crawl a bit.  I set him down a bit away from the wheel to try to entice him to crawl up the stairs over to it but instead of crawling up the stairs he tried to walk up them!  He would put his feet first instead of knees first.  So I held him under his arms and let him climb the stairs and he did it like a champ!!!!  When we got home we climbed up and down the stairs of the porch a million times.  He must have been exhausted but each time he would squeal with delight and his new accomplishment.   When Trevor got home he took him up the baby steps in the driveway and he just laughed and laughed. 

Otto's other new first happened while Trevor was giving him a bath.  I skipped bath time so I didn't see the first time he did it.  Trevor asked him how big he was and showed him how to answer"SO BIG" while his hands were in the air.  And...Otto did it back.  And will do it every time we ask the question.  We did it a bunch of times yesterday and again this morning all to the same result.  We ask how big he is and Otto puts his hand in the air while we say "SO BIG!"  It's adorable.  That little guy is getting so responsive and smart and capable.  

AND WILLFUL!!!!  He is absolutely turning into his own little person who does not like diaper changes, or being put down to play by himself while I go do something, or going in his car seat, or getting dressed, etc! 

Ohhhh and he's getting another bottom tooth and the top ones look like they are close behind. That little guy is just growing leaps and bounds!!!  His first birthday is just right around the corner.

Anyway, we have video of him climbing and in the next post I will have video of so big.  Enjoy!           

HE'S A CRAWLER!

It is official!!!!  On Saturday, September 11 , during Stacy's visit while Trevor was in Venice and Toronto, Otto crawled for the first time.  Otto, Gram, Stacy, and I went for a walk around the reservoir and then grabbed a coffee and a bite to eat at LA Mill.  We decided to walk around to a few little shops.  We stopped into Yolk first and bought Otto a ball then we continued on to Lake to look at some cute clothes.  Stacy was trying on a shirt so I put Otto on the carpet and rolled his new ball to him.  We were doing that for a while and he was making all the moves to crawl and then finally he just did it!  We were in shock and sooo thrilled.  This video is the tail end of his crawl.  He was mostly finished by that time but I caught a bit of it.  We must have just hung out in the store for 20 minutes just watching and video-ing that little guy on the floor.  It was the most exciting moment and everyone in the shop was pulling for Otto to crawl.  What a day for that little 10 month old!!!!    

Aunt Stacy

When we got back from San Diego the fun continued with Aunt Stacy's visit.  She was my one armed angel and helped out SOOOO much with Otto.  I had to work one day so she watched Otto and took him to the indoor park for about 2.5 hours.  She snuggled with Otto every night and opened and shut the washer and drier with him every day.  We took him to the park a bunch of times-Stac took these photos of Otto playing with the wheel, on the swing with me, and in the rocking dino.  And she took the other photo the morning of trash day.  Otto likes to watch the big trucks pick up the garbage so we make sure to get out on the porch the moment we hear the trucks.  Aunt Stacy SAVED us while Trevor was away and we miss her like crazy! 

Visit with Morgan and Troy

For the Labor Day holiday Otto and I took the train down to San Diego to visit Sarah, Morgan and Troy.  Sam and Maybe met us by car.  We had a fun time on the train.  It was a little hectic getting on at first but once we were settled it was smooth sailing.  And seeing the boys play together made our journey totally worth it!  Morgan is sweet and adorable and Troy is a big bundle of love who is also giving Otto his hand me downs!!! We had a wonderful time and can't wait to do it again. 

Trevor is in Italy

Well, Poppa is away for two weeks.  We are sad and miss him but we've been trying to do some fun things while he is away.  Gram and I took Otto to the LA Zoo for the first time.  It was pretty hot and sunny but we found a little shade in the petting zoo and indoors while looking at the small animals.  Otto LOVES meerkats...and they love him!  I stood him up to the glass and he ran right up to him and he giggled "heh heh heh!"  We watched them for about 10 minutes with out Otto getting board at all.  It was sooooo much fun.   Gram took a photo of us petting a sheep.  Otto wasn't too interested-he prefers the little guys.  CC came over today with her kitty and again Otto laughed and laughed.  We have got to get this baby a pet.  He still loves to drive so when we went to go get burritos for dinner I ran in and Otto and Gram got in the front seat and played with the wheel and mirrors.  The first photo was taken when I came out of the restaurant-Otto was hanging out the window having a ball.  When Trevor left I took Otto into his room to play with the globe and to point out where his Dad was going to be for the next couple of weeks.  He really enjoys spinning it around.  And the final picture was taken in the park when Otto was just about to go down the slide.  He was contemplative because it is a pretty big drop and I usually go with him.  He was never that excited about the slide until this week.  Now he loves it and gets sad when I take him away.  What a brave little guy! 

Otto is 10 months old

Ok, I can't seem to choose anymore.  Here are 4 pictures from our photo shoot.  In the first he is happy...then he is getting a bit board...then sleepy...and back to happy.  He's such a cute, fun guy.  He still loves playing with the door handles and the washer and drier.  He laughs a lot..."heh heh heh".  He is big into opening and shutting anything.  And he has begun to mimic with little sounds and fake coughs.  Now when he sits in the annex (the excersaucer in our side) by our kitchen table he pulls the table cloth over his head when I say "where's the baby" and then uncovers his face and I respond "there he is!"  We've been doing that every morning lately while I eat breakfast.  I love it and he does too!  Another little fun thing-he holds his arms out and holds his hands in fists and sort of grunt/growls in a triumphant manner.  HE CAN DO IT!   

Otto's new trike

Otto got a new tricycle and after a few tries he got it!  He struggled getting on but he was determined and after a bit he was sitting on it like a champ.  He's not peddling yet but I know it won't be long.  It has been a billion degrees and sooo sunny in LA lately so I took Otto to an indoor playground where they had little cars for the kids to drive around in.  Otto was in heaven.  That baby loves to drive. And the final photo is of Otto and Kathie outside Gilina, the restaurant that Ali works for.  Ali, Kathie, Gram, Otto and I had a lovely lunch and strolled along Abbott Kinney one afternoon last week.  Toward the end of lunch Otto was getting a little squirmy and Kathie offered to walk him a bit outside.  He spotted us at the table inside and started smiling and patting the window.  Adorable!   

Utah

Otto, Trevor, Stacy, Ryan and I went to Utah for the weekend and had such a terrific time.  We spent our first evening over at Cori and James' house.  It was wonderful-we played and hung out and ate pizza.  The next day was the Judge and Tooele football game.  After the game Otto and I took photos on the field and Stacy and Ryan raced in the 40 yard dash.  We had a blast then went home and ate Grandma Deidra's homemade clam chowder.  Yum!  The next day Stacy Ryan Otto and I hung out in Park City and then headed up to Sundance to stay at Trevor and Cooper's house.  The four of us road the chair lift up to the top of the mountain and hiked down.  We were a bit nervous with Otto on the lift and we did get lost but both only added to the adventure.  Then we had a delicious dinner at the resort.  Ryan and Stacy left in the morning and Trevor, Otto, and I spent the afternoon with the Cordova and Groth gang.  It was a PERFECT weekend!