Guess who?

Guess who has a little brother or sister on the way. :)
I'll give you a clue - we are planning a trip to the maternity ward on October 9th.

More words

Well, Sam continues to grow each day. These days he loves going on walks outside. He also went to the Minnesota Children's Museum twice this past week which has tons of new things and places to explore. At home, Sam has developed a strong affinity towards his stuffed animals (as you can probably see in the latest photo album) and generally loves hugging and kissing them when he isn't walking around the house with them.

On the language front, Sam is learning new words all the time. His latest word is "apple" which he says very clearly when he wants, well, an apple. He also says "on" in reference to the radio and lights. He knows "off" too, but the "ff" is still a bit muffled. Finally, and our favorite, Sam knows what a microwave and thermometer says - beep! Or as Sam says it, "Bep!" What a cutie.

On a walk

Pics taken from Auntie Zaidee's iPhone at the end of January.

No more sick

I'm happy to announce that the Jones household is back to normal. Sam had a bad case of the blowouts for the last two weeks, but yesterday and today everything was alright. Needless to say, I've enjoyed the reprieve from doing laundry today.

To celebrate, I've posted new pics to the slideshow at the right. You can also see them here.

From Sam at 13-14 months

Sick

Well, it was bound to happen, but Sam was sick for the first time this week. Tuesday morning, he woke up with the stomach flu. The good news is that it was through him in about a day. The bad news is that Lucy go it Wednesday into Thursday and I got it last night. Yay! Does anyone want to come over and play?

New babies everywhere!

Lucy, Sam and I wanted to congratulate and welcome the newest members of our friends' families.

Eamon Lewis Turner, son of Cory Turner and Rachel Taylor, born January 22nd weighing 8 lbs, 3 ounces and 20 inches long.

Wesley William Peters, son of Jay and Linh Peters, born January 27th weighing 6 lbs, 3 ozs and 20 inches long.

We are so happy for all of you and can't wait to meet the little guys. Enjoy this time and take heart, it gets more fun every day.

Words

Sam has become a little talker in the last two weeks. He now has several words including "Dada", "Mama", "Home", "Up", "Down", "Off" and of course "No". He also knows the sign language for "Airplane" and uses it anytime he hears (or thinks he hears) and airplane or sees one in a book or on a block.

Lucy also claims that on Sunday, after I had been away on business for a few days, Sam said his first sentence of "Dada home" and then started to get upset. Can we just all agree that the boy is a genius?

Hooray Obama!

Here's one kid (and family) who is excited for today's inaugruation and the promise of an Obama administration.

From Sam at 6 months

Happy Birthday, Mommy!

Hi guys, this is Sam. This weekend I learned how to roar like a lion, but that's not the big news. The big news is that today is Mommy's birthday! I love her very much and she is my best friend.

From Sam's 1st Birthday and Christmas

See how pretty she is! Happy Birthday, Mommy.
Love, Sam
Ps. Daddy helped me write this, but I told him what to write.

Happy New Years!

Goodbye 2008. Hello 2009!

2008 in Review

Wow, what a year! 2008 came in like a bang, or more like the bang, bang, clang from the workers in the basement, and is going out like a whoosh, or more like the whoosh of air as Sam walks/wobbles past you on his way to the living room from the kitchen.

From Sam's First Month

This was a year of big changes for Sam and the entire Jones family. And it was fun, exciting, wonderful and eventful throughout. The year started with a visit from Grandma Debby so she could meet her first grandchild. We all stayed at Grandma Pat and Grandpa Ron's because our basement was being redone. Sam was just a little nugget of guy back then, but he was aware of his surroundings and taking it all in.

February brought the smiles out of Sam as he began to let his personality out a little more. It was a special time for Mom and Dad as they go to know their little guy better with each day.

From Sam at 2 months

By March, Sam had become much more self aware and was interactive with Mom and Dad as well as Grandpa Jerry who was able to visit for a few days from California. He liked to stand up while holding on to Mom or Dad's hands and stomp his feet - foreshadowing his love of walking to come later in the year.

From Sam at 4 months

In April, Sam took his first road trip down to Kansas City to see Grandma Debby, Great Grandma Ann and Great Grandpa Dick and the whole Gray clan. He slept nearly the entire time in the car making the trip much easier on Mommy and Daddy.

From Memorial Day Weekend 2008

In May, Sam was really coming into his own. He liked to make faces and laugh and play with toys. We were fortunate to see our good friends Cory and Rachel as they celebrated Cory's premier movie, Graduation. Over Memorial Day, our great friend Jeana also came to stay for the long weekend. We had fun playing in the yard and enjoying the outdoors. It was this weekend that Sam really started pushing up with his arms and sitting.

From Sam at 6 months

In June, Sam got tired of laying on his back or sitting and was ready to move. By the end of the month, he was crawling up a storm. Just in time for our trip to the Rollins Farm with some good friends from Mnpls. Sam loved crawling in the yard, but was unsure about the lake. It proved to be good practice, though, as we traveled to Door County, WI for a Jones/Gray family reunion and there the lakes and beaches were much bigger (and more fun).

From Sam at 8-9 months

This was also about the time where Sam started eating solid foods. Starting with avocados and moving to bananas and sweet potatoes, Sam was in hog heaven. However, we quickly discovered that Sam had some skin sensitivities to citric acid and wheat so we had to watch his diet closely.

Over Labor Day weekend we took another trip to the Rollins Farm and took in the annual Steam Festival. Sam was excited about the tractors, however, was frightened silly when a steam engine blew a gasket and let out a deafening whistle that I think I can still hear. The rest of the trip was fun with the family.

From Sam at 8-9 months

In October, we took another trip to Kansas City unexpectedly as Grandma Debby had to undergo heart surgery. We stayed for about two weeks and Sam was an absolutely perfect little guy, even though he had to deal with a lot of new places. He was busy crawling and exploring and was curious in just about everything. It was during this trip that Sam weened himself off of breast milk and moved entirely to solid foods and formula.

From Sam at 1 year

In November, Sam started taking his first stand alone steps, 1 or 2 then a tumble into Dad or Mom's arms. He was also babbling and letting out the occasional "dada" or "mama". We returned to Kansas City for Thanksgiving. Grandma Debby was back home and we were joined by Uncle Grand and Aunt Shana (who same met the month before). We stayed with my Uncle Tom and the Gray family and had fun with Sam's 1st cousins once removed(?).

From Sam at 1 year

December was a busy month, as can be seen from the posts below. Sam got his first haircut, started to walk in earnest (he can now walk uninterrupted from one side of the house to the other), celebrated his first birthday and had his first real christmas with tons of family (entire Rollins clan plus Grandma Debby, Uncle Grant and Aunt Shana came up here).

From Sam at 1 year

All in all, 2008 has been a great year for all. Can't wait to see what's in store for 2009!

Christmas reflections

We all had a wonderful Christmas holiday this year. It started on a somber note, however, as Sam's great grandmother Grace passed away on the 21st. It was not unexpected, but sad none the less. She was 3 months shy of her 100th birthday. We all love her and miss her.

Sam was pretty excited about Christmas this year, granted last year he was barely a week old. He loved pointing to our christmas tree or to Santa on the mantle or to the ornaments on the shelf in the dining room. So many sights and sounds! He learned Santa says, "Ho ho ho" or "Ha ha ha" as Sam would repeat. He also liked to dance to christmas carols. Oh, and somewhere in all this excitement, Sam learned to walk.

Christmas really got going on Monday (the 22nd) when Grandma Debby, Uncle Grant and soon-to-be-Aunt Shana arrived. The house was suddenly full with hustle and bussle and presents and comotion. It fueled the holiday spirit in all of us as we get ready for the special day.

On Tuesday, we all made stockings with fun stickies and shapes. Uncle Grant's was pretty cool but I think mine was the best.

Christmas Eve was spent at Uncle Ben and Aunt Zaidee's house with family and friends (the Martin family - not related). We brought a big baked ham which Sam liked to munch on. We also opened one present that evening Sam got a super cute Christmas outfit from Grandma Debby (who he calls "Nanna").

Christmas morning did not disappoint. Santa had come to Jones household and left everyone lots of goodies including overstuffed stockings. Sam enjoyed opening his gifts, but he most enjoyed playing with his new toys including his matchbox cars, Tonka train pals, a talking puppy, some cool new clothes and a bunch more. Needless to say, the boy was a little spoiled, but hey, its Christmas.

We then all piled in the cars and drove over to Grandma Pat and Uncle Ron's for an extended Christmas morning with the whole family. It was chaotically wonderful and Sam had a blast. He got more presents which he loved and would walk from person to person showing off his brand new toy cell phone with pride.

Sam took a late morning nap while we all picked up a bit and around noon the Botkol's came by for a Christmas brunch. Well after that, we were ALL exhausted so we piled back in the cars and headed home with all our loot for more naps.

The next morning, Grandma Debby, Uncle Grant and Aunt Shana all headed home. The house got quiet and empty and somewhat smaller. I think even Sammy was feeling a bit of the post-holiday blues. But with all those new toys to play with, their is little time to dwell on sadness. Instead, its time to race cars!!!

And that wraps up Sam's Christmas 2008.

P.S. You can see pictures from the big day as well as Sam's birthday in the slideshow on the top right of this blog or by clicking here.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Love Sam (and Chris and Lucy)

Happy Birthday, Sammy!

Today is Sam's first birthday! It is incomprehensible how much he has grown in the last year. From a little bump of a guy to a walking (that's right, he's walking), talking (sort of), independent little man. He is the joy of Lucy's and my life and we are so happy to get to know Sam better with each day.

Sam had a birthday party this past Sunday with the whole Rollins clan. He played with his cousins, opened his presents and had banana cream pie for desert. I think it was a successful party as he took a nice long afternoon nap and had a lot of fun in the evening playing with his new toys.

Today, Sam woke up with a smile. Mommy and Daddy sang happy birthday to him and we had some fun before Daddy left for work. This afternoon, Sam and mom go to class and then Auntie Annie and boyfriend Jay are coming over for dinner and to decorate a gingerbread house. Sounds like a great first birthday to me.

Happy Birthday, Sam!

Love, Mommy and Daddy

Postscript - This is the 100th post on this blog. Two milestones in a single day!

First Haircut

Sam got his first haircut yesterday. He was a very brave boy and was wonderful. Leslie, his stylist, said he was a perfect customer. We then celebrated the end of the mullet era with a trip to the Christmas tree lot where Sam picked out his first Christmas tree. What a day!

From Sam at 1 year

From Sam at 1 year

From Sam at 1 year

Thanksgiving

We all had a great Thanksgiving down in KC this year packed with Grandmas and Great Grandmas, Aunts and Uncles and Great Aunts and Great Uncles, and cousins galore. Sam ate turkey and green beans on the big day. He also got to play with Grant's dog, Kichou, and they became fast friends (though we discovered dog allergies in the process). All in all, one great holiday. Here are some pics.

From Sam at 1 year

From Sam at 1 year

From Sam at 1 year

Walkin' and Talkin'

Among the babble and string of "dadadadada" and "mamamamama", Sam also used his first sign language on Saturday. It was for "airplane" and he used it each time he heard an airplane overhead or when Mommy or Daddy said airplane throughout the weekend.

Additionally, on Sunday, Sam took his first steps. They were a little wobbly, and after 2 or 3 steps he fell into Daddy's arms, but they were clear steps and he knew it. He was so excited about walking that he yelled for 10 minutes straight, waking up Mommy, and then did it again for her.

Quite a big weekend for this little guy.

Girlfriend

Word on the street is that Sammy has a girlfriend. While I did not personally witness it, I have a reliable source that says Sammy and said girlfriend engaged in what could only be described as a romantic first kiss at a coffee shop this afternoon. The girlfriend is described as an older (~12 months old), Italian bombshell named Hannah.

-Sam's story: your source for all Sam-related gossip

11 months today

Sam is closing in on the big 1 year bash. It is amazing how fast these past 11 months have gone and how much Sam has grown (and Mom and Dad have grown too). Needless to say, they have been wonderful and we are so excited to continue this journey.

One thing that has changed over the last month or so has been the lack of pictures and/or videos of Sammy. I think part of the reason is because he is so busy and we are so busy keeping up with him that we don't find the time. I also think Mom and Dad are much more exhausted these days and don't have the energy or wherewithal to remember to take a picture now and again. We did break out the video camera briefly tonight, though, as Sammy was having fun running around the house. Now mind you, he was holding on to our hands, but he is almost ready to walk unaided.

Other changes in the past month with Sammy - he has a lopsided grin (2 teeth completely out on his right side on top, 2 teeth not quite out on the left), he has been weened from the breast and is drinking exclusively from a sippy cup, he is sleeping through the night (at least the last few nights), he is generally happy as a clam and is learning new things every day (like "throw" and "put in").

Mom and Dad can't wait for his first birthday and X-mas. This is a special year for all of us and we are going to enjoy it.

Sam is the best little guy ever

Sorry for the lack of posting over the last couple of weeks, but Sam, Lucy and I were attending to a family medical emergency. Grandma Debby needed sudden heart surgery so we all went down to KC to be with her. Sam was a dear the entire time over the last two weeks even though his schedule was thrown to the wind and he had to sleep in strange places (like under the desk in a hospital waiting room). Throughout the whole ordeal, and while sprouting 3 top teeth to boot, Sam was all smiles, flirts and cuddles. He lifted everyone's spirits and really was just amazing. What a wonderful little boy he is.

As for Grandma Debby, she is doing better every day and is well on her way to recovery. Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. They were needed and appreciated.