February's developments

February has seen some fun developments for our family.  First, the weather is getting really nice- like low 70's during the day.  So, we had a family trip to the park.  Joseph was being a little fussy that day and needed to spend some energy.  Joseph still absolutely loves the swing.

We also went down the slide a few times.  He loves going down with Jodie.

However, he's a little more hesitant to go by himself.
 

Joseph is also working on standing.  He still needs a lot of support while he is standing, but he will go from a sitting position and stand up on his own.  One of his favorite "toys" is the laundry basket because it offers him lots of places to support himself while he is standing.

Another development is that Joseph is learning how to give kisses.  The first time he gave a kiss was actually to himself in the mirror, but he will now give kisses when you ask him in both English and Spanish.  Sometimes he will be in an especially happy mood and go on a kissing spree for a few minutes.  The only down side is that many kisses are still open mouth kisses, which can get a little slobbery at times.

While not a new development, Joseph continues to love books.  One of the first things he does every day is to attack his bookshelf and "read" his books.  

Hopefully this love of reading will continue for many years to come.

 Another new development is crawling.  While he will venture a few steps on all fours, he very strong favors a sneakier and stealthier army crawl.

The only downside of this improved mobility is we are having to further baby proof our place.  He has a intense interest in cords and wires.  While we thought we did a good job at hiding and covering the cords, Joseph is quickly proving us wrong.  Wires that have been tucked into the carpet or covered with furniture have all been discovered or he has gotten himself stuck trying to get to.  He's one determined little boy.

A very nice byproduct of his mobility is that he is entertaining himself much more than he used to.  When he gets bored with one toy, he moves off in search of something else; such as the big exercise ball.

Another fun development has been an expansion of solid foods.  Last night, we decided to try mashed potatoes because he has been wanting to be in control of his meals.  Although a little messy, it was a definite success and we got to eat most of out meal while he was eating his potatoes.  As you can see below, the hardest part for Joseph is trying to grab and hold onto the mashed potatoes.

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again...

and again...

Success!

Lastly, here are some pictures from today. 

Our little soccer player

 wore himself out completely and took a 2 hour nap.

On the way home from church, he was very interested in my sunglasses.  So, I wanted to see if he would wear them.  He looks pretty good, still needs to grow into to them a tad.

 And lastly for Uncle Jason, our little mechanic working on his toys.  We are frequently finding him under his toys playing with straps or whatever else he might find on the underside.