Christmas Day 2006

Trenton woke up at 6:00 on Christmas Day. He was all decked out in a new bib and PJs (the fanny flap reads "Grand Teton National Park" and was a souvenir from Grandma and Grandpa's vacation trip).





By this time, Trenton had kind of gotten the idea of opening presents... but he still liked playing with the bows the best.




Daddy got a new shirt, which he proudly displays here.

Mommy received a certificate for a massage!



We spent the rest of the day at Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Ed's where we all got to talk and play with the other Lacina kids.



Needless to say, Trenton slept well this night!

Christmas Eve in North Brunswick

We arrived in North Brunswick in time for dinner on Christmas Eve, with Grandma and Grandpa Lacina, and Uncle Len and Aunt Lizzy. Trenton opened his gift from them-- a new Elmo Chair! It took three of us to figure out how to get it to giggle and shake... and then we decided he'd like it better if the motion sensor was turned off!

Christmas Eve with the Wilson Family

On Christmas Eve, the Georges and Grandma Wilson joined us for the celebration. Trenton adored the animal train that Carolyn and family brought for him.
Bryan and Peter scored with some new gifts, too.
Grandma was very pleased with the Hints From Heloise book that we found for her gift. Now she can reference it whenever she needs a new idea!

Bucky was even decorated for the event. We think Trenton knows what we are talking about when we say "Trenton... deer?" and he looks up at the buck on the wall!

Christmas Eve Eve in Holland Twp.

We arrived at Grandma and Grandpa Konopack's home on Saturday. Trenton was able to open all his presents with just the few family members there (including Uncle Jay). Grandma made a wonderful dinner for us all to enjoy.

It was great to have the whole family together!

Visit to Great Grandma Konopack's Home

Today we took a trip to see Great Grandma Konopack. We usually visit her on Chrismas Day, but this year we made our appearance early. She was in very good spirits. Trenton liked sitting on her bed and watching her TV.

Aunt Carole and Grandma bought Trenton a wonderful gift for Christmas! It is a veterinarian kit, with vet tools and little animals to care for. Trenton really liked the bright colors... but his favorite part was the bow!

All done with the Nebulizer

Went to see Dr. Shkolnaya today for T's 9 month physical. He is in the 50th percentile for weight (22 lbs), 75th for height(29 in) and head circumference!

She told us that he no longer had to use the Nebulizer air treatment for his cold. This morning, I snapped a few shots of him doing it for the last time. He became an old pro, and even let me put the proper mask straps on today! We got him to sit still for it (three times a day) by using the Baby Einstein DVD. ;)

Get OUTTA There!!!!

And so it begins...

I stepped outside to get the mail, and when I came in, I heard a rustling... Trenton had figured out how to get in the garbage can!

I started shouting "No, No!", but then decided that doing it with a laugh was not too effective, and that I might as well get out the camera so that I can blog this!

I think I solved the problem by turning around the can so that he can't open it as easily. We'll see....

Morning Routine

So this is what goes on every morning! After waking up at about 5:15, Trenton joins us in bed for a bit. He nurses, and then is up and ready to go. This morning he played a bit and then had his Nebulizer treatment (he is still taking the medication for a cold) while he watched Sesame Street.

After that, he was eager to eat breakfast. Today Trenton had about a quarter of a banana and some Cheerios. Daddy fed him breakfast while Mommy fell back asleep on the couch ;) Daddy was tickling Trenton's feet, which is why you can see all four teeth really well!

After we get washed up, we usually come upstairs to play a bit. Mommy decided to check e-mail, so Trenton got to 'go jumpa jumpa' in his jumper. He loves that thing! And of course, he had to have the camera case to chew on (one of his favorite things).

I joined Retro Fitness Gym yesterday and I am eager to get to exercise at a gym again. They have a child care room that is fully equipt with lots of toys that T has never seen. Needless to say, he absoultely loves it. More later about our time at the gym...

Christmas Party at the Konopacks

Today we invited our friends over for a holiday party. We had lots to eat and games to play. Trenton even scored with some gifts! Andrea brought a Leap Frog Drum for Trenton. The drum plays songs in English and Spanish, and has different modes for interactive play. He loved watching the lights on the top move in time to the music.

Melissa is quickly becoming Trenton's new best play-friend. Here we see them stacking cups in an unconventional manner! Trenton and Jim both loved the book, Green Eggs and Ham, that Melissa brought. Elaine and Mike were extremely thoughtful in bringing the game Balderdash! We all had a blast playing this cerebral definition game.

It was great to have so many people at our home for the first time. We love having enough space to entertain guests. Kim came down from Hoboken and brought T an adorable outfit and jacket. Trenton really loved the tissue paper in the box, too!

Danton and Jonathan helped fill out the female-to-male ratio (and keep Daddy happy).

No, we did not let him drink it...

This is December!?

This weekend was just beautiful! The temperatures were close to 55, 60 degrees. Not bad for the middle of December. People are complaining that it 'doesn't feel like winter', and that it is too close to Christmas for it to be this warm, but Jim and I both decided that we'll take this weather-- besides, winter does not technically start until the 21st!

We decided to go to the Manasquan Reservoir for a jog. There is a five mile loop around the water and we really enjoy walking through the woods in this area. Trenton fell asleep around mile three, and stayed that way until the end. Thanks to Aunt Shairna for letting us borrow this warm bunting!

Helping Around the House

The most exciting new place in the house is now our kitchen cabinet. In the past, Trenton loved to climb around the kitchen holding onto the cabinet handles. We have the safety locks on all the doors, but I had read somewhere that you should have a "safe" cabinet that baby is allowed to play in, to quench his curiosity. So Trenton gets the one with the mixing bowls, cookie sheets, etc. He enjoys pulling everything out of it and smacking things together.

However, he also seems to think that he gets free reign of the dishwasher. Gotta hand it to him, though. The appliance almost screams "grab onto me!"

Trenton and I had been playing in his room and I decided to go downstairs to get some laundry. Thank goodness I locked the gate. By the time I came back upstairs, this is what I saw! We will soon be putting a mesh netting up around the black railing, as he can probably fit most of his body through it.

Our Christmas Tree

Last weekend we got our first live Christmas Tree in four years! In the past, we'd come to NJ for a few weeks around the holidays, and it was not practical to leave the tree alone in our apartment for that time. Needless to say, Jim and I were both excited to get a live tree this year. There are quite a few local farmers' markets in Howell and we made our way to Wolley's Farm Market to purchase our tree. Seems that a lot of the pre-cut trees had multiple trunks, or one trunk at the base, then splitting into two trunks as you got further up. This was a problem for us, as we needed to cut these 9 foot beasts down to size to fit nicely in our living room. The one we got was splendid, though. Can't really find a bad spot on it!

Trenton does enjoy looking at the tree. We've placed it behind our couch and near the back door. He has not once tried to crawl over to it. I'm not sure why! He does enjoy sitting on the couch and looking at it. There are a few ornaments I let him hold. Grandma Konopack gave us an early present for our tree-- a Baby's First Christmas ornament. We are so excited for Christmas to be here soon!

Today we tried out a new church. It is a United Methodist congregation, right here in Howell, called Church of the Master. We felt very welcomed, enjoyed the service and sermon, and came away with an overall positive feeling. It is exciting to think that, in nice weather, we can walk to the church from our home!

This outfit was absolutely adorable on T. It was the first time he wore it! He is growing out of his 6 to 9 month clothing so fast. The sweater barely stretched down his back, and the pants are already too short. But the matching hat was enormous!

I'm Gonna Be Like Him, Yeah

Trenton had a bit of a rough night last night. He has developed a wicked cough, and it kept waking him up. Daddy slept on the couch, Trenton slept a bit in bed with Mommy, and Mommy didn't sleep much. A trip to the doctors this afternoon didn't prove much. We were told to invest in a humidifier and to contact her again if the cough got worse. Other than sounding like he's smoked a pack a day, he has no symptoms of a cold. So we'll just wait and see...

Each morning, Trenton loves watching Daddy get ready for work. He is starting to pick up on how to wave bye-bye, and we practice as we watch Daddy leave for work each morning. Yes, he has an obsession with shoelaces. Yuck!

Teething Biscuits

Today we went grocery shopping and got T some teething biscuits. I wasn't sure which kind to buy, so we got the wheat ones, the barley ones, and some vanilla flavored ones. They make those things so small. I tried to give it to him in the Baby-Safe Feeder Bag, but he wouldn't work at it long enough to get it mushy. So I let him hold it (which is what he wants to do with everything nowadays). He was able to dissolve most of it. When it got to be about a third of its origional size, I took it away. He had another one at dinner, which is when Jim and I snapped these pictures of him.

We also got a Gummi Crib Rail Protector for his crib. I've noticed scratch marks made by his teeth on the inside rail of the crib, and I'm hoping this thing will work. So far he hasn't tried to do any teething on the crib. We don't really keep him in the crib too often though, just when he is sleeping. I took this picture tonight just after I put him down to sleep. Cutie pie, right?