Baby Gallory

We have recently rejoined our local YMCA, which, among other things, boasts a fantastic family pool. Julian is a bit overwhelmed by it all - there is always lots of noise, kids screaming and splashing, and the swimming diapers are quite an annoyance to put on and take off... However, he definitely enjoys the water, and we hope to keep it that way. We will sign him up for swimming lessons soon, but for now we'll just let him chew the communal rubber duckies (yuck, but no germ would survive THIS amount of chemicals), and just be silly... Mom

I wouldn't call it crawling yet, it's more like "beam me one-foot-over, Scotty". Hovever, the fact remains - Jules figured out how to get around. There is a lot of hands involved, forward AND backward motion, toes can be helpful, too...There is also a lot of squirming, sitting to laying down, twisting, and screaming impatiently, because he'd rather be training for a marathon with his Houston pal Kim... Enough of this stationary nonsense, huh??? Then there is standing. Standing is good, too. Additionally, we've been trying to max out on all the warm, sunny days by going to any and ever park we can think of. The biggest attraction there is grass, but Dad's sandals come in as close second. Tomato sat in a high chair in a restaurant for the first time on Mother's Day... Last Saturday, Julian had a first date with his beautiful friend Ama. It went very well, despite the fact, that Julian spat up sweet potatoes on her snow white blanket... Mom

Julian's first road trip was a huge success. We went to Chicago for a long weekend, which was the first mini vaccation for Dad in a year and a half... Thanks to Priceline, we stayed on the Michigan Ave, in a four star Westin hotel, next door to the Hancock Tower. Jules enjoyed having a king size bed to polish his sitting skills. We hung out at the lakefront Friday afternoon, and had spent almost entire Saturday in various parks. We started off with the Millenium Park, where Tomato had a chance to touch the biggest steel jelly bean he will ever see. We also visited Grant Park, and Oz park at the Vincent De Paul university's campus. On Sunday we toured the Aquarium, which was our first life lesson in universal access design - a way of designing buildings or exterior spaces that makes them accessible to all, including wheelchair users, and parents with strollers. Lessons learned there will surely make us better professionals... You know these annoying people who say "oh, when...

Mom's nose is almost as tasty as Dad's! Chillin' with Dad It's hard to keep up with all the changes. Julian is developing so fast, I probably wouldn't blink if during a diaper change he said "hey, Mom, I prefer Boudreaux Butt Paste to A+D Ointment, so let's stop buying it, OK?" Overall, sitting is good, and he can do so very well, without any help. Still learning that falling over means a bump on the head. Still learning how to sit up by himself. Turning over can be an issue - there is nothing worse than being stuck in crib's corner, butt up, really sleepy, without the slightest idea how to get out of there, and be on his back again... Though life can be rough sometimes, and require screaming and a tear or two, Julian's favorite activity, bar none, is laughing!!! Excuuuse me, I'm working here!!! No pictures!!! OK, if you must... I'll smile, I guess...

....Son of a gun, Julian had fun on the Bayou!!! We visited our families down South this past weekend. It's a very different place after Katrina. Most people can laugh again, and don't cry anymore when they talk about the hurricane, but not a conversation goes by without mentioning it. We were glad to provide an opportunity to look forward not back - Julian did the honors...

A major shift has occured in Julian lately. Though he has always been alert and wide-eyed when awake, for the past few days he seems to be intensly trying to observe, and make connections. His modus operandi seems to be "what is this, and how does it work?". If he can grab it, he looks at it, whatever IT is, then puts it in his mouth. So far, we've been able to limit the amount of things he tastes as he is not very mobile yet. I cringe thinking of the moment he starts crawling or walking, therefore greatly increasing the amount of things within reach... During our walks he no longer falls asleep the minute the wheels start moving or Mom or Dad start to walk (if in Baby Bjorn). Instead, he watches closely the everchanging scenery, asking (in his head, for now) "Why does this dog bark? Am I suppose to bark back? Who hung these sneakers on the power line? What is this bright thing that keeps blinding me whenever I go outside? Can I turn it off? Why is this person grabbi...

Julian has conquered the spoon! Mom and Dad timidly began feeding Julian an elegant blend of rice cereal and formula for the first time around 7:30 pm. After only two spoon fulls into the adventure, Master Julian was chomping his gums for more. We think the images speek for themselves... Dad " a flowery bouquet with a hint of oak" A foodist is born! He got a little confused and tried to eat the whole bowl. Jules insisted on wiping his own face and then eating the towel for dessert.