A year goes by really fast...

Diego is a happy kid. And we are happy parents. 

Lots of exciting things have happened in the past 5 months. Diego went to a ton of A's games. And Molly's mom moved to Oakland!

His first tooth erupted in early August while we were visiting Josh's grandparents in Redding. It was a hard night for all of us. He now has 5 teeth, with 2 more in the near future.

Diego took his first steps at 9 months. (I just knew we had an early walker on our hands!) By 10 months he became pretty confident walker.

He eats everything in sight, and especially likes feeding himself.

His first words were "dog" and "hot". Plus many "mamamamama" and "dadadadada" sounds.

Diego likes wrestling, pushing buttons, dancing, being tickled, and cuddles. 

His favorite song is Let's go to the mall. He also really likes Man or muppet and Call me maybe.


Current nicknames: Diego D. Bear, Godzilla, Papito

And to think...this was us just a year ago. WOW. 

Diego is 7 months!

And the excitement continues!

I returned to work at the end of March. The transition has been pretty smooth, thanks to Diego's care providers (Josh, my mom, our friend Cindy, and a wonderful nanny named Laura), my flexible and supportive boss, and all our generous friends. It turns out updating your blog is not really a priority when you're a working mom!

Diego has hit all kinds of milestones over the past few months. He's quite interactive and really silly. 

He loves playing with toys and is getting good at grabbing them. Mostly he just puts them in his mouth. He's especially into toys that make noise, particularly bells and chimes.

By six months he started rolling over from back to tummy, and won't stop. Luckily he's getting happier on his tummy, otherwise we'd all be in big trouble. By six months Diego was scooting and crawling, and at seven months he's pulling himself up and starting to cruise. I have a feeling we have an early walker on our hands. (Josh and I both walked at nine months, so I've been expecting this.)

No teeth yet, which is fine with me. Diego is a pro eater, and has not found any foods he dislikes. He loves sweet potato, turkey/chicken and apple, lentils, split peas, carrots, and especially melons and fruits.








Diego continues sleeping through the night (thank goodness). He usually goes to bed around 8 p.m. and wakes up around 6 a.m. It's a little early for me, but he's pretty silly and cuddly in the morning.











 We started swim class a few weeks ago. Diego enjoys the water, though the class seems to be a little too close to nap time. Oh well.

We've taken Diego on a couple trips recently - to Oregon for a camping trip (we stayed in a house) and to Willits for another camping trip (this time in a real tent). Oregon was wet and cold, but we were prepared. Tent camping was a little harder - luckily the weather in Willits was *just right*. 









Current nicknames: Diego Burbujas, Diego Bear.

It's fun watching his personality develop. He's learning to communicate. It's really an amazing time.

3 months in the life of Diego

Ah, that Diego. He sure is leading us on new adventures every day.

The good news is that Diego now knows day from night. He began sleeping through the night (8-11 hours in a row) at 10 weeks. And let me tell you, it is AWESOME.

Other changes we've noticed:

• his hair is getting lighter
• he gives us signals that he's getting tired (rubs eyes, starts fussing)
• he discovered his hands, and loves jamming them into his mouth
• he started grasping toys and bringing them to his mouth 
• he is way more interactive - making cute sounds, smiling, laughing
• he started drooling
• he has the hiccups less frequently

Likes: stripes, sucking hands, constant movement, long walks

Dislikes: farting

I still call him Senor Burbujas/Diego Burbujas, a name that is finally appropriate as he has mastered the fine art of making spit bubbles. 

2 months and counting...

I can't believe Diego is two months old. He's way more interactive, and makes the most adorable little noises. He's holding up his head like a champ, and rolled from tummy to back a couple times. He's starting to get interested in toys. And he weighs more than my bowling ball! He's 12 lbs. 11.5 oz., and 24 inches.

We made the most of the last half of Josh's paternity leave with a couple road trips to see family. First we went to see Mita and Papi (Josh's grandparents) in Redding. Diego had a blast.

 

And then we made a couple trips to Monterey to see Baa-chan (Molly's mom). Diego and Baa-chan kicked us out of the house so they could play (we saw a movie and had dinner with friends). I think they're going to love it when Baa-chan moves to Oakland this summer.

Diego's current nicknames include Sir Squirms-A-Lot, Diego One Sock, Mr. Fussypants, [insert adjective] Bear, Dude, and Mr. Fuss-N-Squirm.

Likes: cuddles, milk, naps, clean diapers, baths, bouncing, hanging out on the changing table, long walks near the beach

Dislikes: waiting, cold, shirts that go over his head, getting out of the bath

Josh returned to work last week, and is back on the day shift. I am enjoying my days with Diego. My daily goals are to get dressed before noon and to get out of the house every day. My plan is to go back to work on 3/29. 

More photos of Diego can be found on Curly's website: http://www.windelsphoto.com/Diego/

Select "view all photos" to view the photo session menu.

Stay tuned for more adventures of Don Diego de Oakland.

Diego is 1 (month)!

Wow. We have a one-month old. I really felt like I was pregnant forever, but now I feel like we've had Diego forever!

Since day one we've had a parade of friends and family visiting and staying with us. They've spoiled him, cooked for us, watched him so we can run errands, and just provided whatever support we've needed.

We're really lucky; Diego is a champion sleeper. We haven't felt too terribly exhausted. He's been fussy a few nights, but that also leads to impressively long sleep cycles. I wouldn't call it a win-win, but it definitely helps us keep some sanity.

By day 12, we noticed Diego becoming more interactive. He's staying awake for longer stretches during the day and playing with us more. He's quite a strong young man, with incredible neck control (he started lifting his head the day he was born).

Some aspects of parenthood have been harder to learn and adjust to - like understanding the challenges of breastfeeding and determining if Diego is getting enough food, those late night sessions where he refuses to sleep, and keeping up with the never-ending laundry. We're learning to manage all of it. Diego's fat little cheeks are telling us he's definitely eating enough, we're taking turns for the late night sessions, and being strategic about laundry. Also, Diego is finally growing into his clothes, so he has WAY more options than he did a month ago!

It's been great living next door to a professional photographer. The amazingly talented Curly Windels is documenting the first year of Diego's life. Check out the first two installments, and check back for updates over the next 11 months: http://www.windelsphoto.com/Diego/

Select "view all photos" to view either his Welcome Home photos or his Two Week Old photos. I can't believe how small he was!

But the real superstar of our family is Siena. At first she was really upset that we brought him home. She refused to look at me. But he's grown on her, and now she sniffs him about once a day, runs to his crib if he starts crying and nobody is in the room with him, and generally leaves him alone. I think she's going to enjoy Diego's attention when he gets older.

It's been really great having this time together as a family. Josh returns to work on 1/25, and I plan to return on 3/29. We're looking forward to more adventures in 2012!