Brusha-Brusha

Even though Henry only has 2 1/2 teeth, I'm told it's important that he (I) start brushing them. Supposedly babies don't like having their teeth brushed, so they should be introduced to it early in order to prepare them for the time when they really need it. I bought Henry a Baby Einstein toothbrush and mixed-fruit flavored toothpaste a couple of months ago, but they sat in the packaging just waiting for teeth. Somehow 2 teeth just didn't seem brush-worthy. The day after Henry's birthday, a 3rd tooth emerged. It's still only a tiny sliver of tooth, but I figured that makes 3 teeth...time to brush! The first time I tried to brush his teeth, Henry clamped his mouth shut and pushed the toothbrush away with his hand, saying "nah-nah-nah!" I finally coerced him to try the fruity toothpaste, and he was hooked. He grabbed the toothbrush, stuck it into his mouth, and sucked all of the toothpaste off. Then he chewed on the brush for a while, and even allowed me to brush his 2 1/2 teeth, which made him crack up laughing. I don't know why. Now Henry gets excited when I pick up the toothbrush. He opens his mouth and leans forward, waiting for me to brusha-brusha. Then he grabs it away and does his own version of sucking/chewing/brushing. Hopefully he'll have his Daddy's teeth - no cavitites!

Henry: A Year in Pictures

Every month since the day Henry was born, I've taken a close-up picture of his face on the 14th (give-or-take) of the month. At first, I made SURE the picture was taken ON the 14th. But, after a while I relaxed, and a few days earlier or later was o.k. I wanted to chronicle the changes in Henry over the first year. Now that I've started, I don't think I want to stop with the first year. It's amazing to see how his precious little newborn face evolved into the beautiful boy he is today.

Picking, Kissing, and Stealing Pumpkins

Jeff & I took Henry to the pumpkin patch on Sunday. We went to a place called Lakeview Farms. All of the kids in my class told me that Lakeview Farms is the best pumpkin patch around. We happened to go on what turned out to be their busiest day of the year. It was a beautiful sunny day, and apparently everyone else within a 20 mile radius thought it would be the perfect day for a trip to the pumpkin patch. We were directed to pull into a very full parking area. We had to navigate the stroller over what appeared to be a field that had already been harvested, but was now just rows of dirt. Not the easiest terrain for pushing a stroller, but our Jeep stroller pulled through for us. We made our way to the big barn, where we found a Disneyland-like line. We had to wait in line to buy tickets for the boat that would take us across a lake to the pumpkin patch, and a train that would bring us back. Once we got our tickets, we waited in another line to get on the boat. The boat line took about 45 minutes, during which time Jeff wondered about the safety regulations governing the pumpkin patch boats. Once we arrived at the pumpkin patch area, we made our way into the middle of the pumpkin patch, where we set Henry free to roam around. He had a great time walking around the big pumpkins and sitting on the dirty ground playing with the pumpkin vines. We picked out some good pumpkins and took a bunch of pictures, but the bright sun made it difficult to get good pictures of Henry. He didn't want to look up into the sun, and therefore most of the pictures show Henry looking down at the ground. It didn't take long for Henry to get hot and tired, so we started to head over to the the train area. On our way we passed a mom taking pictures of her adorable little boy (probably 2 years old) kissing his pumpkin, a pony riding area, and another exremely long line of people (waiting for the train). Before I could say it, Jeff suggested that we skip the train and walk back. We began the long trek back to the barn to pay for our pumpkins. On the way back to the barn, we approached the parking lot. Again, before I could say it out loud, Jeff asked a great question. "Do you think we should just leave without paying for the pumpkins?" Afterall, we were already at our car. We had paid for the train ride that we didn't take. Henry was hot and tired. We were hungry. There were a many reasons that seemed to make it o.k. to take the pumpkins. So we did. We left without paying for our pumpkins. Yes, we stole four pumpkins. I realize we did not set a very good example for our son, but Henry is too young to realize that we'd committed a heinous Halloween crime. As we left with our stolen pumpkins, we talked about how next year Henry would enjoy the train ride. Next year he'd probably have fun picking out a pumpkin. Jeff said "maybe next year we can get Henry to kiss a pumpkin for a picture." Maybe. And maybe next year we'll pay for our pumpkins.




If you want to see more pumpkin patch pictures, click on "Pumpkin Patch Pictures" in the Links section to the right.

Newsflash: Henry is walking....

Henry took his first real step the day after his birthday. Later in the week, he took 4-5 steps at daycare. Since then he's taken up to 6 steps at a time! We've tried to capture Henry walking on video, but he's not always the most cooperative. I have several good videos of Henry temper tantrums while we tried to get him to walk. Maybe I'll post those later. Here are a couple of very short clips of some of Henry's first steps.

This one is a bit dark, but you can see Henry's wobbly steps as he tries to grab the fake carrot.


Henry looks pretty happy with himself for walking to his mommy.

Henry is ONE YEAR OLD!

Actually he's 367 days old today. How long before that becomes obnoxious? Oh, it already is? O.K. I guess I'll just refer to him as 1-year-old. I can't believe a year has gone by since Henry was born. What a wonderful year it's been. In some ways it seems like he was just born yesterday, and in other ways it seems like he's been with us forever. I can't even imagine my life without Henry. He is such an amazing little guy. He has the best laugh. And the best hair. I can't help but smile when he flashes his open-mouthed smile. I love how he lights up when he sees me in the morning, or how he cracks up laughing at the pugs, or how he plays "roll around" with his Daddy. I even love it when he gets mad and says "nah-nah-nah-nah" (for no-no-no-no) as he pushes us away from him. He is just the best. Jeff & I constantly tell each other how much we love him. The first year of Henry's life has been the best year of mine.

On Henry's birthday, we had a big luau at our house. In Hawaii people have huge parties for their babies' first birthdays, so me being from Hawaii, Henry had to have a big party. I know he won't remember it, and I know he didn't care whether we had a party or whether he got presents, but it wouldn't have felt right to me if we hadn't had a big celebration. We had presents, tropical drinks, kalua pig, kalbi ribs, shoyu chicken, yummy banana cake, and lots of family and friends (about 40 people). Henry got great gifts, and had a good time with his cake. Here are some pictures of the big day!






Here are a couple of quick videos of Henry enjoying his very own birthday cake...

The Evolution of the Bath

Over the weekend Henry had his first "big boy bath." Up 'till now he's had his baths in some sort of baby bathtub or the sink. I thought it would be fun to look back at the evolution of Henry's baths.

His first bath, just moments after birth, in the sink at the hospital.











Henry's baths were in the infant bathtub for the first several months.














He graduated to the kitchen sink once he could hold his head up and could sit pretty well alone.














Henry loved playing with the water during the kitchen sink baths.














I bought this inflatable duck tub so that we wouldn't have to fill up the entire bathtub for one little guy. Also, the soft sides were nice for lounging.











A couple of days ago, he kept trying to crawl out of the duck tub, so now he's a big boy in the real bathtub!











Henry seems to enjoy the big tub! Check him out splashing and playing:

My Little Man

Today I took Henry to Yuen Lui - a fabulous portrait studio- to have his One Year pictures taken. It took me a while to decide what he would wear for this very special photo shoot. Overalls again? Jeans? Dressy outfit? I ended up buying him a new outfit last week. I can't believe how grown up he looks in it! He looks like he's ready to go off to college (or at least kindergarten). The studio pictures turned out adorable, but here are a couple of shots I took at home before we left. Yes, he's standing on his own. He's been doing it more and more, and for longer periods of time. He's so grown up! I think I might cry....

Doesn't he look like he should be strutting around the campus of Harvard or Yale?

Very dapper...especially with a Goldfish cracker firmly grasped in each hand.



Too much standing and looking cute is tiring...must...sit...down....

Winter Hat Fashion Show

Cold weather is coming, and soon it will be hat season. I've been putting together a hat wardrobe to keep little Henry's head warm (as if all that hair won't do it). Unfortunately, every time I put a hat on his head, he pulls it right off. I barely had time to snap these pictures before the hat was off and sailing through the air.

Cute puppy dog hat. So sweet...














The argyle hat: skater boy or preppy?














Auntie Kathleen knitted this cozy Winter hat:














Henry or Elmer Fudd...you decide....














Obviously Henry's favorite. The fleece Jester hat.