New Englanders Again

Wahoo! We're finally home. On Will's first birthday we moved to Marblehead, MA - a wonderful town on the shore about 15 miles north of Boston. So far we're adjusting well to the new house, new schools, and new town. We're taking care of all the important things like testing out the ice cream, pizza, and chowder restaurants. We're also loving just wandering around town and, thanks to some recommendations from a friend, we're finding lots of good stuff in the area. Including apple picking at Russell's Orchard. So much fun...and Will loved his first whole apple straight from the tree! Here are photos of our new community.

One Year!

I'm not sure how it flew by so fast, but Will is a year already! He spent his official birthday moving from Chapel Hill to Marblehead, so we had a fun party at out new house the next weekend. It was great fun to have lots of family and friends to help celebrate. He thoroughly enjoyed his carrot cake and the chance to play with everyone.

No official first steps yet. I like to think he's kindly taking his time and giving mom and dad a fair chance to baby proof the new house. He has a little language of his own, though he clearly says E-it for Ian and Mmmmmmm for anything related to food. He's go, go, go all the time - usually with an agenda all his own that he is determined to accomplish. It should be an interesting year ahead!

Eleven Months

Will celebrated his eleven month birthday this week. Milestones for this month include two top teeth, cruising, and his first attempts at walking with his push toy. I don't think the first steps are too far away. Will's favorite summertime activity is going to the pool with Ian and his friends. He just loves the water and is happy to spend hours playing there. Thank goodness because it's about the only suitable activity for the North Carolina summer!

10 Months!

Will is 10 months old...double digits! Well, almost 10 months but I've got blogging momentum today. I don't have much to add from the last post of five minutes ago, so instead, some recent pictures!

Nine Months & All Other Things Belated

With less than 24 hours until Will's 10 month birthday, I figured it was about time to post his 9 month news. And, why not catch up on everyone's busy lives while I'm at it?

Will is full of new tricks. Nine months marked official mobility and he is fast! He army crawls all over the place and is into everything he can reach. He waves, points, kisses, and we're working on clapping and blowing a kiss. He's still 100% enamored with Ian, who is just the best big brother.

Ian finished 4th grade with great success. He made the honor roll all four quarters and did exceptionally well on his end-of-grade testing. Now that school's out, he is attending a few science camps at UNC and enjoying his new bike, learning some new songs on the guitar, and hanging out with friends.

Brian and I are both doing well and keeping busy at work. Brian recently made a trip to California to show off his new iPhone application at the Oracle developer's conference. I finished off the third year of my PhD program and am now collecting data for my dissertation. I'm also back at NORC doing public health policy work four days a week from home.

Our house is still on the market in NC and we're very eager to move up to the Boston area once it sells. The summer down here is already balmy with most days over 90 degrees. Send any good real estate vibes our way if you can spare them!

We're all excited to head up to Northern VA to see Uncle Tim and Aunt Abby for the first time in a long time, and to spend time with Uncle Scott, Aunt Shannon, Isabella and Owen.

Eight Months

Will is becoming more and more his own little person as the months go on. We're encouraging him to crawl, but he prefers to roll wherever he wants to go. He loves to watch the dogs, his awesome big brother, and to play outside. He caught and made it through his first real cold this month. Although he had a few restless nights, he maintained his usual good spirits. Since he's close to being on the move, we thought we should capture his fabulous baby thighs now. So that's the first picture and the second is of Will teaching Annie how to cook!

Seven Months

Will is seven months old today! He is starting to "talk" more, wants to try every food that comes near him, and is desperate to learn how to crawl. He loves to swing in the baby swings at the playground when we take Ian. He loves a good thrill - the higher you push him, the more he laughs! His seven month photos are from last night when he enjoyed his first March Madness pizza crust!

Florida

We had a terrific visit to West Palm beach to introduce Will to his Grandma Go-Go, Grandpa Don, and Great Nana Sinda! Everyone had a great time. Ian loved the chance to get into the pool and was joined enthusiastically by Will. Ian's beach time was hampered a bit by a "sea pest warning" (man-of-wars!), but he still collected a nice bunch of shells and treasures! We can't wait for our next visit.

Six Months

We can't believe it, but half a year has already past. Will is doing so well. His personality is emerging full force now. He is curious, funny, stubborn, and sweet. He still adores his big brother and loves to swing, jump, and bounce. He's starting to get the hang of sitting up and playing in his room, but he tends to prefer rolling all over the place. He's a giant - already hit the 20lb mark. I feel like he grows out of clothes before I even get a chance to wash them! Looking forward to next month.

To Sabrina...

Roses are red, violets are blue.
I am sorry I haven't been able to see you.
I am just a baby, so subject to the whims of my mother,
who thinks that parking at Hamilton Hall is a bother.
My mommy promises that I'll meet you in time.
Sabrina, won't you be my Valentine?

-Love Will.

Ian's Belated Update

Ian celebrated a fabulous 9th birthday with all his friends at a warehouse full of slides and games, followed by pizza and cake. It couldn't have been more fun to see him at the center of the action.


Ian also just made the all-A honor roll even with all his AIG classes. He has been on the honor roll every quarter since they started getting real grades. We are very proud of course!!

He continues to work on his guitar, now electric, and is learning lots of new songs. He also adopted a fiddler crab, Patty, from his class after they were studied in science. Not surprisingly, he loves Patty to no end despite her, um, lack of interaction.

Last, but not least, he is a wonderful big brother!

Five Months

Will continues to grow like a weed, now facilitated by some real food. He just loves his vegetables - peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, and avocados are all a big hit. Brian took a video of dinner last night. And yes, those are the dogs off to the side that he keeps looking at. They have already learned that babies leave tasty messes behind!
But, so far, we've had no luck with fruit. He puckers up those big cheeks and pushes the spoon away after each bite. Ironic since I couldn't get enough of the fruit when I was pregnant! This is the apple face.

He is also grabbing at everything these days and is very close to sitting up on his own. He gets more and more interactive every day and we can't get enough!

Four Months

We are just returning home from Will's four month doctor's appointment where he weighed in at 17lb and 14oz, and 25 inches long. He is a lot of baby, but it is 100% adorable and sweet! He has learned a lot this month and is really playing with toys and interacting with people, especially Ian. He also learned to use his laugh, as in this little clip of Will laughing at Ian's laugh. His favorite games are playing with his toes, banging on board books, acting shy, and observing the antics of his dogs. He is doing pretty well with sleeping at night most of the time, and we're making small but steady progress on daytime naps. Will had a wonderful first Christmas and even made a successful journey to Maine where he was able to see his first snow. We're looking forward to what the next month will bring!