4 a.m.

a.k.a. Anthony's new wakeup time. Yay! There's our little go-getter above...no, I didn't give him that plastic bag in hopes of getting revenge...

The 4 a.m. rising has been the case since Thursday, I think, I'm too tired to say for sure. We'd been able to get him back to sleep after an hour or so, until today, when it became clear around 5 or so that it just wasn't gonna happen. This charming development, among others, indicate Anthony is developing a major will of his own, and that he will truly give new meaning to the words "a handful" in the weeks (years?) ahead.

It really hit home Friday, my work-at-home day, suggesting my ability to work from home and get anything done are numbered, if not over.

This Friday, following the 4 a.m. wakeup call, I hit up the world's most fabulous coffee institution (I'm not even being sarcastic...even though I hate world-dominating mega-corporations like WalMart and McDonalds, I love, love, LOVE everything about Starbucks and its overpriced product) in hopes of staying awake long enough to accomplish something; anything.

After having two (yes, two) of my fellow latte-buyers slam the same door in my face (only in Miami is it possible for two different individuals to slam the same door in the face of the same woman carrying two full beverages and a baby...they call it the Magic City because it magically manages take random acts of rudeness and multiplies them), waiting five minutes to back out of my parking space because the line of cars waiting at the drive-thru was blocking my path, and cursing at a woman who blared her horn at me as she sped into said drive-thru line even though it was soooo obvious that I'd been trying to back out for five minutes (I swear the fact that we live in Miami makes it inevitable that Anthony's first word is going to be a curse word), I looked at my coffee cup and saw the following quote:

(inspirational quotes...one MORE reason to love Starbucks! the four shots of espresso in that cup don't hurt either...)

I don't know about beauty, but Anthony can certainly be described as chaos these days.

This past Friday alone, he managed to climb up the stairs (I did not help but did follow -- OK, hover -- close behind to avoid any disasters); pull the babyproofing outlet covers out of the outlet (ummm...are those things worthless, or what?); grab a metal picture frame, the camera, a glass, the remote, my work folder and the cat in the three minutes it took me to make a phone call, this despite the 300 baby toys scattered across the living room floor for his enjoyment; protest so much when I dared to force upon him the indignity of eating breakfast that it took forever to complete the meal; etc., etc.

Here's some photographic proof of what we're up against:

Anyone who knows our house knows one of its classiest features is its all-mirror bathroom. Anthony loves this. I find myself chilled to the bone by the image of four Anthonys.

Terrorizing the cat continues to be a favorite. Sometimes Anthony gets so excited by Javier, he interrupts important business (third photo). But the sheer joy (fourth photo) is worth it.

Luckily for Anthony, we still think he's pretty cute:

9 month checkup

We hit the doctor's office today for Anthony's 9-month checkup, spending the typical hour-and-a-half waiting for 10 minutes with the doctor.

We confirmed that the little guy does the things he's supposed to be doing...

Like sitting...





Pulling himself up (constantly, he is single-mindedly obsessed with this new skill, and is now starting to "cruise" just a little, which means hundreds of sticky little fingerprints on the glass top of the very non-babyproof coffee table)...



Crawling for real (sometimes)...





And feeding himself (but not nearly often enough for our liking)...





We also told the doc that Anthony seems to be ahead of the game in several areas...

He's already taking an active interest in planning his first globe-trotting trip with Aunt Kerry...

(Looks like he's eyeing China, Kerry, is that OK?)

And is learning the value of a dollar (my favorite part of this video is that he totally eschews the ones for the big bills. That's my boy!)

For his part, the doctor checked Anthony's measurements (19 pounds, 6 ounces and 29 inches "tall"), reiterated the heartwarming news that our little daycare dweller will get a cold every two or three weeks, and ordered up more finger foods for the little guy's palate (please, please let this mean an impending end to the puree-shoveling phase of parenthood).

But overall, he said we're doing a "good job" with the little guy, and that all seems normal.

Anthony is 9 months old today!

Not to pat myself on the back too much, but could that little shorts and polo ensemble be any cuter? Anthony hit the big 0-9 today, and right on cue he's starting to mimic our sounds and actions, crawling for real (though he still reverts to the belly scoot when he gets really excited, like if the cat's in striking distance), pulling himself to standing and throwing a messy, red-faced hysterical fit when I betray him each morning by leaving him at the same daycare he's gone to happily for the past six months. As I imagine is the case for most moms, the latter leaves me feeling both awful and good (I've put in my time, the kid SHOULD miss me when I'm gone!)

We go to the doctor Friday for Anthony's 9 month checkup, ending a record-breaking streak of not being in the pediatrician's office for an amazing amount of time, like, seriously, several weeks. At least I hope we make it to Friday before breaking said streak!

On another note, this month is a milestone for another family member...happy 3 years, Javy! Actually, Javy was born in January, but he joined us in March '06, so that's when we celebrate.

Anthony Does the Midwest

Last week we bundled up the little guy, threw some clothes and diapers in a suitcase and popped him on a plane bound for our homeland, the great Midwest.

Home Alone IV, anyone?

Just kidding...Grandma Char and Grandpa Dave were just an arm's length away after meeting us at the Bloomington, Illinois airport.

After getting out of the airport in about 10 minutes and making the five-minute drive to Grandma and Grandpa's house (I LOVE the Bloomington airport) to enjoy a true Bloomington classic -- Avanti's gondola sandwiches -- for lunch (next time, little guy), we headed north to Freeport to visit with Grandma Dianne and Grandpa Harry.

Anthony had some fun new experiences, including sitting up in the bathtub like the big boy we all know he is.

He also sauntered into the barber chair for his first professional hair cut...

... and encountered his mom's old nemesis -- snow -- for the first time, although just through the window (I would never subject my child firsthand to such torture).

Finally, Anthony took his first "drive" courtesy of Grandpa. Unfortunately for Grandpa, no good deed goes unpunished, and Anthony immediately started crying everytime Grandpa dared to stop pulling Anthony and his car around and around in circles.But even better than all the fun and games, Anthony met a lot of new family and friends and enjoyed spending time with some old favorites, although Aunt Kerry, Jane and Ed, and mom's Aunt Becky and Uncle Jeff somehow managed to escape the camera...

Best of all, Anthony loved meeting and spending time with his Great Grandpa...

He got to hang out with mom's longtime friend Megan and her daughter, the adorable Alexis. Although Alexis is twice Anthony's age, it was love at first sight...

Anthony got a lift from one of our closest friends from college, Matt; and hung out with Grandma's and Grandpa's good friends Joe and Carolyn (who showed pictures of a granddaughter the little guy would definitely like to meet some day!)

After Freeport, it was back to Bloomington, where Anthony was thrilled to meet his Aunt Ellen and cousins Bradley and Matthew; and to spend time with Grandma Char and Grandpa Dave.

He also got to see his Aunt Jenny, mom's oldest (as in longtime, not age!) friend, meet Grandma and Grandpa's friends Don and Bev, and partake in another Midwest classic, Tobin's Pizza. This time, Grandpa Dave, Aunt Ellen and Don and Bev all managed to escape the camera.

Anthony even found a new victim -- I mean friend -- to pull him in a wagon when Bradley, who is almost 3, took him for a spin. Once again, Anthony graced us all with tears and whining when the ride stopped, but Bradley was a good sport and made many trips around the house.

Meanwhile, Anthony checked out his younger cousin, Matthew, who is four months old, adorable, quiet, constantly smiling and already sleeps from like 7 p.m. to 8 in the morning.

Not that I'm jealous.

And the little guy got to see one of the first people he ever met, Aunt Jenny.

He wishes to apologize for attempting to eat her necklace.

It was so much fun seeing everyone, and watching how quickly Anthony took to his cousins.

He almost immediately showed more interest in them than I've ever seen him show with other children. Usually he plays "near" other kids, rather than "with" them. But in this case, his eyes followed Bradley everywhere Bradley went, and he spent lots of time terrorizing...I mean gazing at...little Matthew.

We're really look forward to the years ahead, watching the three boys growing up and having fun together.

Here are some photos... Anthony enviously watching Bradley eat his Tobin's pizza, stealing Matthew's pacifier and either gazing into Matthew's eyes or trying to tackle him, whichever you prefer.



After Bloomington, we headed to St. Louis, where Aunt Ellen, Uncle Justin, and Bradley and Matthew reside. Our main goal was to spend more time with family, but Brandon and I had a couple ulterior motives...a visit to yet another Midwest classic, Cunetto's House of Pasta (apparently all we did when we lived in the Midwest was eat Italian food), as well as several outings to watch our alma mater, Illinois State University, play in the Missouri Valley Conference basketball tournament. Many thanks to Grandma Char for enduring (watching) the boy while we enjoyed some baby-free outings!

We even convinced Grandma and Anthony to join us for the final game of the tourney (which the Redbirds lost in overtime, unfortunately).

Despite that, Anthony was so excited to attend his first sporting event, and spent the first half helping to cheer the Redbirds onto victory, every voice proclaim, we've got the fight, we've got the might, let's win...this...game...I-S-U Go!

(Sorry, college flashback...)

However, as the second half wore on, Anthony got a little bored, and found a comfy shoulder courtesy of Grandma Char...

No big deal...it wasn't a very exciting game, anyway....

After the game, we made it back to Miami intact, with only Brandon's Miami sweatshirt and my cell phone going missing. We had so much fun visiting family and friends, and it made us realize how much we'd like to live closer to family.