Here we come, summer!

We've been busy around here! Hazel's smiling and growing, as you can see. At the doctor last Monday (for her follow-up visit after her trip to the hospital last month), they told us she weighs 10 pounds! Also, she's smiling a lot now. We love her little grin.

We've been spending a lot of time outside in the mornings, and inside in the air conditioning in the afternoons, since it's so hot now. Last weekend we went to the pool. Dad took me swimming and Hazel and Mom sat in the shade. It was fun. My favorite part was spraying water out of my favorite toy - a plastic taco sauce bottle - and splashing the water with my hands. I didn't have school this week so Mom and Dad made an extra effort to find fun things for me to do. I had a play date with my friend Benjamin Thursday and Friday we met up with him and his mom again at the Parenting Center at the JCAA. This weekend, we spent a lot of time at our park, met up with some friends for brunch (I had pancakes - yum!) and spent some time playing in the park at the Arboretum. Not surprisingly, we also stopped by Amy's Ice Cream while we were there and Mom shared her treat (dark chocolate ice cream with Heath bars) with me. At first I made a face and they thought I didn't like it, but then I asked for more. It's a good thing because for a minute, it made Mom wonder if I am her kid.

We celebrated summer by going to the park again this morning. Usually we can't go during the week because it's a school playground, so they use it during the week. But now school is out and we can go any day. Hooray! I've really been excited about riding my green grasshopper bike lately, and the past few times we went to the park, I spent a lot of the time there riding it.

Even our own backyard has turned into more of an adventure than usual this week. I am always happy to go out there and play in my sandbox and now I have my own playscape too, thanks to Grandma and Grandpa. It's really fun to climb on and I like the slide too. We will share pictures of it soon.

Mom and Dad think I'm heading into a growth spurt. I've been eating like crazy - some of my current faves are macaroni and cheese, cheeseburgers, chicken, refried beans, pancakes, waffles, and fruit, fruit and more fruit - and am starting to pudge up. I told them that of course I'm growing, that's my job.

For pictures of our latest adventures, click here.

A Horse is a Horse

Saturday we went to my friend Ellie's house to help celebrate her 2nd birthday. The past couple days Dad and Mom have been telling me I was going to get to ride a horse. I thought they were joking but, sure enough, when we got to Ellie's house for the party, they gave me a cowboy hat and there was a pony in the backyard that I got to ride! I'm still not sure what to make of the riding experience, but I liked petting the horse afterward. As usual, Hazel slept through the whole event. She'll appreciate parties more later, I think.

Click here for a few pictures from the party.

Goodbye Boker Tov, hello camp!

Thursday was a monumental day. It was the day I graduated from my class, Boker Tov! I thought I was just going in for another Thursday morning at school, but at 10:30 our teachers put funny hats on us and tried to get us to sit down to sing a song they taught us. Then Mom and my schoolmates' parents came in. A few of my friends sang the song while the rest of us ran around (Mom said it was like the teachers were trying to herd cats), then we ate cookies and said goodbye to each other. I spent most of the time pursuing my new obsession, pushing buttons on a CD player. Anyway, the good news is I'm not done with school, just moving up in the world. In a couple weeks I will begin going to camp Tuesdays and Thursdays. While I will go the same number of days each week, the days will be a little longer - from 8:30 to 2:30 instead of 9-11. Mom said the biggest difference will be that I'll eat lunch and take my nap there. We are excited. I hope I get to swim, color, and dance a lot.

Hazel's growing up too. The day she went to the hospital, May 15, she weighed 9 lbs., 1 oz. That Monday she was up to 9 lbs., 3 oz., and by Wednesday, 9 lbs. 6 oz. She is getting much more alert and stronger too. She's been pushing with her legs and Mom thinks she may be starting to smile at us. It seems like she might be losing a little of her hair, but we hope that sticks around because we like her little mohawk. Also, Mom's excited to finally have figured out which of our baby carriers Hazel likes. Although I told Hazel that riding in the Moby Wrap was fun, she screams her head off in there and in our sling, but today she tried the Baby Bjorn and it seems to be working out. Mom and Dad are glad because it'll make it easier for us all to go outside and play if Hazel has something to ride in.

I've been more interested in Hazel the last couple days - hey, I need something to occupy my time now that school is out. I've been touching her feet more and sneaking up to her to touch the top of her head. Mom and Dad say I'm a good big brother because so far I've been pretty gentle.

Here are some pictures of Hazel, my graduation (taken by Mom and my teachers), and some vacuuming adventures.

Summer fun

Bubbe and Papa were here this week, so I got to have a lot of fun with them. We went swimming at the pool in their hotel, and then Mom bought a kiddie pool for our yard that I went swimming in. Tonight, we went to Shady Grove for a delicious dinner. I was pretty happy with my grilled cheese sandwich - Shady Grove is probably my favorite place to eat. Mom and Dad like it because its a fun, relaxing way to spend dinner. Hazel likes it too since there's so much for her to look around and see. She's really strong - she's already holding her head up a little bit, and she follows people around with her eyes. She's also starting to sleep much better, waking up only 2-3 times a night.

As this video shows, I am dancing a lot right now. Papa brought Hazel some CDs I really like dancing to, and my favorite thing to dance to is my Word Whammer. Also, Bubbe noticed that I am getting my two year molars - a few months early! Its been bothering me a little bit, but not as much as Mom and Dad would expect.

Bubbe goes home tomorrow and we are all very sad to see her leave. Mom and Dad especially. They think raising me and Hazel is a three (or four) person job right now.

Here are lots and lots of pictures from this week. Summer is fun!

Hazel's adventure

I'm not the only one in our house that's gotten sick this week. I started feeling a little better near the end of the week, but then Dad got sick and Hazel got a fever and wouldn't eat. Since Hazel is so little, the doctor wanted to run some extra tests on her, so she went to the hospital for a few days. Mom stayed with her the whole time, while Dad watched me. Fortunately, Bubbe, Papa, Aunt Laurie, and Uncle Jonathan came into town Friday night, so they were able to watch me and give Dad a chance to go to the hospital to be with Mom and Hazel. Hazel passed all of her tests fine, and now she and Mom are back home with everyone.

It is very fun for me having everyone in town. We went to Whole Foods, and Uncle Jonathan was nice enough to help me eat. Aunt Laurie and Uncle Jonathan also got me some new bath toys - bath crayons and paint that I really love! They were nice enough to show me how to use them while they gave me a bath. Bubbe and Papa took me, Hazel, and Peepa to the park today while Mom and Dad caught up on some rest. I'll post some pictures of their visit in a blog entry coming soon.

Happy Mother's Day

We had a very exciting Mother's Day Weekend. Since this was Hazel's first Mother's Day, we'll start with her. She's gotten a lot of really cute clothes from friends and family, so Mom took a bunch of really cute pictures of her - some of her sleeping, some of her with her little feet in Mom's hands. One day last week, Hazel wore a dress for the first time (yellow with cherries printed on it), so we took a picture of that too.

At lunch on Saturday, Mom and Dad had burgers that Dad grilled, while I had some casserole. But Mom noticed me staring at her burger, so she gave me it to see if I would take a bite. A few seconds later I had finished the whole thing! Mom and Dad never cease to be amazed at how much I can eat. I LOVE cheeseburgers.

Saturday evening, my cousin Amy and her friend came to visit. Amy lives in Washington DC but came to visit Austin for a party, and to see me and meet Hazel. She was fun to play with - she even let me put on her shoes. We took some cute pictures of me with Amy, and Amy with Hazel. Amy's family also got me a neat Scanimation picture book that I really like, and they got Hazel some books.

For Mother's Day, Hazel and I made Mom breakfast in bed. Okay, not really - we're still a few years too young for that. But, I did make Mom a handprint in school, and gave it to her for a Mother's Day present. Mom said its her favorite thing that I've made so far. Dad, Hazel, and I also gave Mom a Snuggie for Mother's Day, because nothing is as useful during an Austin summer as a warm blanket.

As a treat for Mom, we went to Amy's Ice Cream Sunday afternoon. Everyone came - Mom, Dad, me, Hazel, and even Peepa. We really wanted to test our new car by fitting all of us and the double stroller. We fit pretty easily. It was a fun trip. In addition to sharing his ice cream with me, Dad saw his friends Kristin and Phil, who have a son Noble, who is a year younger than me. It was nice to see them again.

Unfortunately, Mother's Day ended on a bit of a sour note. Mom noticed I wasn't really being myself late in the day, and sure enough - I had a fever and a rash. It got worse throughout the night, and I had a lot of trouble sleeping. I also lost my appetite, which confirmed Mom and Dad's worries. We went to the doctor Monday morning, who thinks it's a viral infection that will pass by Thursday or so. In the meantime, I am taking various medicines to help control the fever and other symptoms. The good news is that Dad gets to stay home with us for a few extra days. The bad news is that the doctor told Mom and Dad that they have to keep me away from Hazel so I don't get her sick. Mom and Dad aren't quite sure how to do that.

We'll post more updates as soon as I am feeling better. In the meantime, you can see pictures from the past week here.

Some random facts about Mitch and Hazel

Hazel had a big day yesterday. Mom took off her outfit so she could change her diaper and her umbilical cord fell out onto the couch - right next to where Mom's water broke! [Any couch donations will be accepted.]

In other news...this week I showed Mom and Dad that I know some colors. When they ask me where the blue, yellow, red, green, etc. train or whatever is, I show them. Also, in all the excitement with Hazel's birth, I forgot to mention that when Aunt Lauren was here last month, I figured out how to eat food with a spoon all by myself. I've been having a lot of fun lately dancing, and I'm still really enjoying looking at and pointing to Hazel. This week at school we made a two-part craft project - an awesome Mother's Day card for Mom. It has my handprint painted in the middle and is framed by painted, glittery popsicle sticks.

We've all had a great week this week. Dad has been home from work with us again, so we've been spending a lot of time together and we've all been taking lots of walks around the neighborhood. Also, my friend Benjamin came to visit the other day. Dad said it's just fun that we've all survived another week, although Mom barely has - she has tendinitis in her wrist from picking us up. She said it's worth it though and it's nothing ice cream can't cure.