The Life of Silas

Playing with balls VIDEO

2010-06-05T19:44:00.001-04:00

Playing basketball

Playing catch

April Highlights

2010-05-31T23:26:00.004-04:00

Technically, this picture is from the end of March, but it's adorable...
Silas with his friend Ruby

Silas with Nora

Silas with his Great Grandpa Randall

Silas looking stoic (or sleepy?)

Baseball!

Silas checking out the car

Playing with the train table at the library with Papa

His first bath with his sister

And, finally, going out for a walk with Momma, Nora, Susie, Ruby and Rose

March Highlights - post Nora

2010-05-31T23:19:00.002-04:00

So, this blog has been sadly neglected lately. Here are a few pics of Silas from March.

Playing with his good friend Ceci

Playing in the clothes hamper

Sitting at the big table for Roving Brunch

Taking Guthrie for a walk

Finally, making sure he still fits into this pot.

Mad Soccer Skills

2010-03-29T05:12:00.002-04:00

After we went running on the South Side (training for the Pittsburgh Marathon), we stopped in the part to play some soccer. While his old pop isn't much of a ball-sport person, Silas is a huge fan.

Running at dusk

2010-03-22T00:09:00.003-04:00

We had a nice picnic dinner at Schenley Park yesterday. Well, it's more accurate that Bethany and Robin had a nice picnic dinner. Nora had a nice outdoor nap. Silas and I ran around for most of it. It's crazy to see how much ground he covers now, after the whole winter of being constrained in short-distance mode, either indoors or on snowy city sidewalks.

Walking the dog and giggling

2010-03-21T23:53:00.000-04:00

It's been crazy since Nora's birth, but it also feels really good. Our sisters, Angela and Robin, have come and helped us out. It's been great! Today, Robin and Silas played at the park, while Guthrie and I went for a run. Afterward, while Robin was at the grocery store, Silas, Guthrie, and I had some time to kill. We bought the next book for book club (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies), then strolled around with Guthrie.

Big Brother

2010-03-21T23:44:00.004-04:00

Silas is now a big brother. He seems fond of Nora, his new little sister.

We're totally overwhelmed right now, so this is the extent I've been able to get posts or pictures up. Stay tuned. Nora will get her own blog soon enough, and the fun life we have with Silas will continue to be documented here.

Walking Bloomfield

2010-03-21T23:40:00.001-04:00

Oops. This was saved in the drafts folder, but never published...

Silas, Guthrie, and Papa took advantage of the sunny morning and strolled around Bloomfield for an hour. Silas had fun, despite his consternation in this photo:

19 months old

2010-03-13T12:34:00.004-05:00

I got a new camera for my birthday and I've been taking A LOT of pictures over the past couple of weeks. I've uploaded about 50 photos onto our flickr site today. Here is a link to the site. Below are a few of my favorites from the batch that I uploaded...

The snow from the big storm has been slow to melt, even though the temperatures have been above freezing. Here is Silas at our local playground. He was so happy to go down the slide.

Since I'm on maternity leave, Silas got to have a playdate with Ceci. They both really enjoyed playing in her kitchen.

Calliope is getting so big... here she is sitting in a high chair for the first time.

Silas at the pediatrician's office

Using his Papa to practice his balance

Silas helping to serve up brunch at our monthly Roving Brunch.

Silas, Tim and Calliope celebrating my 38th birthday (February 26, 2010).

Spirit of the Winter Olympics: Silas' Floor Routine

2010-02-25T00:29:00.002-05:00

Silas added some flair to bedroom cleanup day...

Miscellaneous February Photos

2010-02-23T15:54:00.003-05:00

Well, having a sprained ankle has some benefits. Eric has been taking a ton of pictures and I've managed to get a bunch of the pictures loaded on to our flickr site. Here are a few nice ones of Silas over the past couple of weeks.

Snow!!! February 6, 2010

2010-02-22T23:16:00.003-05:00

Pittsburgh received 21 inches of snow over a 24 hour period from Friday night through Saturday night. Silas got decked out in his snow suit and headed out to enjoy it. After the snow fell, the sun came out and we had a beautiful snowed in week. I had the entire week off of work because the storm was so massive (plus 4 more inches of snow on Tuesday). Here are a few pictures from the winter wonderland.

and of course... a Video

Video mania - January 2010

2010-02-22T21:58:00.004-05:00

Eric and Silas went to Valparaiso to visit Grandma Kathi January 15th-18th. Around that time, Eric got a bunch of great videos of Silas in action. I've spent some time today (February 22nd) uploading a few of them onto our flickr site, and I thought it might be nice to put a whole video post here on Silas's blog.

Here is Silas playing ball at a rest stop on the way home from Valpo

This next one is at the same rest stop. They had a lot of fun there.

After they got home, it was back to daily life in the winter - not a lot of getting out of the house. Here's Silas helping Eric empty the dishwasher.

Silas has also become quite adept at getting into his own chair when it's time to eat.

And this last video is a thing I find fascinating about our son. He prefers to go to sleep with a sippy cup, and whatever toy he was playing with last. Usually, it's a ball. On this particular morning, he woke up with his canoe paddle. Eric and I have speculated that he brings the toy to bed so he has something to play with right when he gets up. He sure seemed like he was glad to have his paddle on this morning.

Bike Geeks: New Trailer!

2010-01-15T02:40:00.003-05:00

Maiden voyage of the bike trailer!

Building the Bike Trailer

2010-01-15T02:32:00.002-05:00

Today was a warm and sunny day for the winter (up to low 40's F), so Silas and I decided to assemble the bike trailer we got from Grandpa Jack and Grandma Gail. It took some time, but we had some good tunes. Silas is a natural with the tools.

Old-time Electronics Store

2010-01-15T02:26:00.003-05:00

Silas, Ryder, and I drove out to Boston, PA (about 30 minutes from the house) to check out the only electronics parts shop that we could find in/around Pittsburgh. It was sort of an anachronistic experience, but Silas had a lot of fun.

They didn't have what I wanted, and they wanted too much money for what Ryder wanted, so we didn't end up buying anything. It was a neat experience, but they haven't really kept up with the times so much. I'm sure they're great for some things, but I'm certainly going to call ahead if I ever need anything specific before driving out...

Is it Deep?

2010-01-15T02:25:00.000-05:00

Checking out how deep the snow is...

Clean teeth

2010-01-11T07:10:00.000-05:00

Silas is always happy to brush his teeth.

Reading pod

2010-01-10T20:12:00.000-05:00

His own portable reading pod.

Poogweese

2010-01-10T12:51:00.002-05:00

One of the books we read on a regular basis is Echoes of the Elders: The Stories and Paintings of Chief Lelooska. He loves the paintings of masks at the end, the ravens throughout, Beaverface, and especially, Poogweese. Poogweese is a mythological merman and a messenger for a strong water spirit/god/creature.

Spelunking

2010-01-09T20:15:00.000-05:00

Silas hones his spelunking skills in the closet.

Carnegie Science Center trip

2010-01-09T11:28:00.002-05:00

We went to the Carnegie Science Center with Becky and Calliope for a few hours to get some exercise and stimulation on a snowy day. Calliope, of course, is a bit young to find it much more than stimulating. However, Silas had a great time in the kid's area. According to the sign, it's supposed to be for children 3-6 years old, but Silas held his own just fine. There were other <3-year olds there as well.

Going for Calliope's belly:

The outcome of drinkin' and plantin' is ears of corn coming out of the ground instead of stalks:

Giving Guthrie the Love

2010-01-09T08:10:00.001-05:00

Silas gives Guthrie some nice hugs.

Bathing in Syrup

2010-01-08T23:17:00.004-05:00

A couple of days ago, after a 'breakfast for dinner' sort of night, while Bethany was teaching her yoga class, Papa and Silas had a group hug with Guthrie on his bed next to the radiator. However, papa fell asleep, and Silas did not. Papa woke to the sound of a fork banging on a plate to find Silas up on the chair having a wonderful time at independent play. He'd poured out the rest of the syrup on the plate and table, and was eating a second round of pancakes and tater tots.

Although it was not shown in the photos, because it took a few seconds to get the camera, he had the biggest grin on his face when I got up. He was pretty proud of his achievement. I'm proud of him too, but sort of hoping to not repeat it. :)

Snow Day Family Breakfast

2010-01-08T23:02:00.003-05:00

An event that typically only happens on weekends and during summer break, we got to eat out together for a breakfast during the workweek. It was sort of cold and there was some snow, but not really enough (imho) to warrant a snow day for Pittsburgh Public Schools. However, we're not going to complain. It was nice to have Bethany with us on this outing. We went to a local Italian cafe, Grasso Roberto. I think it has new owners since we were going there a lot when we first moved into Bloomfield for their brunches. It was a respectable breakfast, enough to go back, but not the best we've ever had. The woman working there was kind and patient with the energetic baby dumping coffee and throwing pancakes. :) To some extent, she's paying the price for the shop not having any high chairs... hehe. At least we tip well.

See, the weather wasn't so bad:

It's not really "Silas" related, but it was interesting to see the pigeons huddled together to stay warm on one of our neighbor's roofs.

New Headphones

2010-01-07T22:00:00.002-05:00

We got new headphones today!

Hiking video

2010-01-06T19:03:00.002-05:00

I'm finally getting around to editing the videos from our Las Vegas holidays. Here is a clip from hiking outside of Henderson, NV.

New Year's Day Hike

2010-01-02T10:15:00.003-05:00

In pre-Silas life, we used to try to get out in the canoe for a bit of a New Year's Day paddle every year. However, small children and (now) pregnant women don't really mix well with wintertime water temperatures in Pennsylvania. We've reverted back to the New Year's Day hiking tradition. That's quite all right with us. Getting outside and having time some nonmotorized time to reflect and appreciate life and nature is what's important. Becky, Tim, and Calliope were up for wandering in the woods with us in mid-20's Fahrenheit temperatures.

Silas enjoyed it until the very end, when he'd had enough of the cold and having his arms stuck out at 75 degree angles to his body. The photo is pre-hike and used for arm angle illustrative purposes only, not to show his end-of-hike discomfort.

Guthrie had a blast. As far as he was concerned, it was the best day ever. That's the most beautiful thing about dogs.

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T17:46:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year!

Silas had a brilliant time at Matt and Kate's New Year's open house. He got to eat all sorts of sweets and potato chips, thanks to the Silas-height coffee tables with boxes of goodies and the inattentive adults. :)

Though, you can't see him in this photo, he was very enthralled with Matt's grand rendition of Auld Lang Syne.

We brought his Bumbo seat for Calliope to use because he has outgrown it. He found it very curious to see her in it.

Return to Pittsburgh

2010-01-01T17:39:00.002-05:00

Silas enjoyed the airport experience and the flight home. He didn't sleep a wink on the plane, but played through the whole flight. He did get a little grumpy for a couple of minutes when he wasn't allowed to climb under the seat to play with the couple behind us making silly faces at him, though.

We did get to see the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead out the window on the way home...

Lake Mead Area Hiking

2010-01-01T17:16:00.004-05:00

We spent half a day hiking at several spots on the north shore of Lake Mead. It turned out to be a sort of overcast day with a bit of a chilly wind, but that didn't stop us from having a good day of hiking and a lot of fun.

One of the hikes included a half-mile climb up to a nice vista of the lake. Here is a shot look up at Momma:

The view from the top was really nice. Behind us in this photo is Lake Mead. Hoover Dam is off the left side of the photo around a bend in the canyon, so it wasn't visible from that location. We did get to see it from the airplane, though.

Silas is working on the downhiking. He still needs a bit of a hand (or two)...

Another area we hiked was in a wetlands area between Lake Las Vegas and Lake Mead. Poor Silas couldn't really see around Papa's shoulders when in this carrier on his back. He spent half the time sideways trying to look forward. He still found it enjoyable. The other carrier (which we didn't bring on this trip) holds him higher, so he can see over the draft mule's head.

All in all, though, he didn't find it so uncomfortable that he couldn't sleep.

He remarked that there are nice colors in the desert before he fell asleep.

Las Vegas Proper

2010-01-01T17:01:00.002-05:00

We took a couple hours to see the sights in the Strip. It was Silas' first trip to Las Vegas, so he was anxious to see what all the excitement was about.

Despite his parents' neutrality toward the slots, Silas was pretty fascinated by all the flashing lights and ringing bells.

Surprisingly, in the Venetian, there were several folks who paid to take gondola rides, but then spent the experience talking on the cell phone. Maybe they realized too late the inanity of their decision and decided to at least share it with someone on the phone... Nonetheless, this part of the Venetian is visually impressive for a mall.

Crazy ceiling art:

We even found a lackluster Gold Elvis to sneak a picture with...

Hiking outside of Henderson

2010-01-01T16:38:00.005-05:00

We got out for a very nice hike for a few hours on the 27th. This trailhead is only a few minute drive from the grandparents' house.

Christmas day fun

2010-01-01T16:23:00.003-05:00

Silas had a blast Christmas day. He loved opening presents and hanging with his cousins (Quinn and Zoe), not to mention the rest of the family. He even helped the rest of us with the unwrapping.

He was particularly fond of taking Zoe's princess wand and trying to do some magic with it...

He and Boo also spent a lot of time wrestling over toys and balls.

One of his favorite toys of the day was a great ball drop tower. It came with a mallet to knock the balls down through the holes in the top so they would drop down the ramps inside the tower.

He helped read the instructions for cooking the ham.

And cousin Zoe was kind enough to show him how to use her Nintendo DS (DS Lite?)...

Good holiday eats!

2010-01-01T13:06:00.002-05:00

Silas had a lot of great food during the trip to see Bethany's parents.

Double-fisted utensile wielding with Robin:

Being fed by Grandpa Bob:

Filling up before a day of hiking near Lake Mead:

Breakfast before packing up and heading to the airport to come home:

Flying to Vegas

2010-01-01T13:01:00.002-05:00

We flew to Las Vegas to spend some time with Bethany's family for a few days. Silas was a trooper on the trip. He refused to sleep on the flight out. Except for a brief outburst, he did a really good job on the 4 1/2 hour flight.

Opening holiday presents

2009-12-29T15:55:00.000-05:00

Silas got all sorts of great gifts for Christmas/Hanukkah/Solstice. He had a lot of fun opening presents at the house before we left to spend some time with Bethany's family.

Sharing Christmas cookies (being followed by Guthrie)

Let's see, what else is in this box?

He's going to take a couple more rounds to warm up to the animatronic gorilla.

And in the end, he composed a very nice song about all the fun things he got...

Eating salsa

2009-12-29T15:51:00.005-05:00

After having been properly trained in the art of eating hot foods, Silas has grown to really love salsa.

CD Reorganization Day

2009-12-17T21:49:00.001-05:00

Left to his own devices for some independent play, the ever-helpful Silas decided to help reorganize the CD shelves.

Playing in the leaves

2009-12-13T09:32:00.001-05:00

So, this is from last month, but (for the family) it shows how big he's getting.

Walking the dog

2009-12-13T09:11:00.003-05:00

Silas and I have been trying to walk Guthrie more often. The poor guy is so pent up. It's also good to help Silas learn to stay with me while walking, instead of trying to go up every set of stairs to porches or into walkways to the backs of houses. Guthrie gets frustrated at the slow pace at times, but loves it nonetheless.

December 12, 2009: 16 months and counting

2009-12-12T09:32:00.002-05:00

Hooray for Papa for updating Silas's blog! They have so much fun together, it really makes me happy.

In the meantime, while the boys are sleeping in, I have finally got all of the pictures from October through the beginning of December up on our flickr site. We have been doing so much, it is really tough to update it all here, so I am going to just post a link to Silas's folder.

I must add one video though. Maya and Ryder got married on October 24th at the Mattress Factory. The wedding was beautiful and loads of fun. One of the nice things about it, was all of the guests were given time to wander around the museum. We must have spent at least 10 minutes in what I tend to call 'the dot rooms.' Silas had so much fun, and I can't remember the last time that I smiled so much, for so long! This definitely gets chalked up as one of my early fond memories of Silas.

Fall 2009, Part 4: Mama!

2009-12-11T14:28:00.004-05:00

But most of all, we like it when Mama gets home, and we all get to have adventures together.

Fall 2009, Part 3: Nature

2009-12-11T14:25:00.002-05:00

No matter where we go, we always appreciate nature.

Fall 2009, Part 2: Parks

2009-12-11T14:18:00.003-05:00

Lots and lots of time at the parks!

Sometimes, Guthrie gets to come along. We always feel guilty leaving him, but he's not so great around other kids sometimes and isn't allowed in the play areas... Alas.

Fall 2009, Part 2: Starting the Days off Right

2009-12-11T13:58:00.008-05:00

We know that it's important to start the day off right with a good breakfast, and we know how to do that! Standard breakfast items around the house are eggs, bacon toast, farina, coco wheats, french toast, and pancakes. However, when we go out for breakfast, our favorite is the home fries with eggs, cheese, soysage, sauteed onions, and garlicky aioli with tortillas on the side from the Quiet Storm (as shown above).

The rest of the morning (before Silas' midday nap) can be spent lots of different ways...

Usually, we read the news, check our email, and watch the Muppets, kittens and puppies, bike movies, and whatnot on youtube.

Then, sometimes, we go to the bookstore and play in the kids' book section, where we frequently meet new friends.

Sometimes, we do stuff around the house, like laundry.

And, we frequently make trips to the grocery stores, making sure to balance onion rings or faux chicken nuggets on our heads.

Although, the farmers' market was fun before it shut down for the winter.

To be continued...

Grabbing the reins

2009-12-11T13:50:00.004-05:00

Well, Bethany and I have been slack in updating this blog since she went back to work in August/September. I sort of suspected I should take a greater role in writing on his blog when I quit my job at the end of September to watch Silas full-time, but I didn't quite get there until now. I'm going to post as I see fit, and Bethany will do interstitial posts when she feels moved and has the time to put bits into the computer. The next few posts will be a quick catch up of what Silas and I do all day...

Thanks for sticking with us.

-Eric

PS. You'll note there is an extra person in the thermal image above. We took it at the Carnegie Science Center, and it was too challenging to wrestle a timed-out kid in a stroller, the streams of people wanting to see the exhibit (or just walking through), and the digital camera trying to think too hard about how to take the picture...

November 11, 2009: 15 months 6 days old

2009-11-11T22:14:00.002-05:00

Ok, so I have not updated Silas's blog in a loooong time. Part of the reason is because I really want to post all of the fabulous pictures we've been taking of him over the past two months, but at this point, a text post is better than no post.

Silas had his 15 month appointment last week and is holding steady as a cute, small kid. He weighs 20 pounds 13 ounces and is 29 inches tall - both ~7 percentile. He is also getting three more teeth - he now has four molars, and the final two non-molar teeth on the bottom front are working there way in. It's amazing how much older he looks just 'cause he has teeth.

Some updates over the past few weeks... he is saying more and more words, though his favorites are 'this' 'that' and 'duck.' Just tonight I said to him "say goodnight to papa" and Silas looked at Eric and said 'night!' He has also started to wave consistently. It happened shortly after Maya and Ryder's wedding (which was beautiful and tons of fun) on October 24th. So many people waved at him, it seems like he finally figured it out and now waves all the time. He is also walking comfortably now and loves standing and climbing on unstable surfaces. Another new development is a greater interest in books. He will now hand us a board book and then wait to actually read it, pointing at various things in the book and turning the pages. Eric has been doing reading time with Silas in the mornings and it seems to really be paying off.

Silas was a dragon for halloween and enjoyed hanging out at Kate and Matt's house for the evening. He spent a lot of time putting candy in his bucket, and then dumping it out.

It's hard to believe it is already the middle of November. As soon as I get on top of the picture situation I will be sure to post some here, or at least a link to our flickr site.

Happy fall everyone!

September 25, 2009: 13 months 3 weeks

2009-09-25T11:50:00.005-04:00

I guess my once a week plan is definitely a bust. The good news is that Eric has quit his job to stay home with Silas and start a consulting business, so maybe he'll pick up my slack and start posting more frequently again. Hooray for life's big changes :).

Silas spent a total of 3 weeks in day care, he ended up being sick for all of it except the first two days. He also managed to get both of us sick. I'm looking forward to the whole household getting better.

Silas's second molar also popped up last week. It's the furthest forward molar on the bottom left. So he has a pair on the left side now to really help him chew. His third molar is also coming in. I just noticed it today. It's on the top right.

Silas has stopped doing the 'franken-baby' walk and has moved on to the 'drunken baby' walk. He looked so grown up in his overalls and real shoes, walking the streets of Dormont. Thanks Grandma Bobbye and Grandpa Bob for the clothes and shoes! Below that picture is a cute pic of Silas with his papa. Next is a picture I took at Becky and Tim's house two days before Becky went into labor.... Then, a shot of Karen and Silas at Roving Brunch. I was pretty lame and didn't get any group shots of roving brunch this month. Becky and Tim were at the hospital laboring (they had a baby girl on 9/21 named Calliope... Congratulations to them!!!). So, I was kinda distracted. Plus, Silas and I were both feeling pretty sick. But, the food was fabulous and Maya took some pictures of the feast she and Ryder cooked up. Finally, the last pic is another cute one of Eric and Silas playing with Eric's thumb ring. Silas likes to take the ring off and put it back on Eric's thumb.

September 12, 2009: 13 months 1 week old

2009-09-12T12:47:00.003-04:00

Ok, so it's been waaaay more than a week since I've updated the blog. Life has changed bigtime in the past couple of weeks. The big change... I got a job teaching 8th grade math. I interviewed for the job on August 24th, got the offer on the 27th, started working on September 1, and the students started on September 3rd. Silas went to daycare for the first time on September 2nd. He's got his first daycare cold, but other than that, seems to be doing fine. We take the bus together in the morning and I drop him off on my way to work, then pick him up on my way home. We got lucky and found a decent daycare around the corner from my school.

Over Labor Day weekend, we went to Indiana to visit family and celebrate Great Grandpa Randall's 90th birthday. While we were there Silas got his first haircut and his first ride on a pontoon boat. I've posted over 60 images and a video on our flickr site HERE. Below are a couple of my favorite pics from the trip.

Playing on the swings with Grandma Kathi

Silas's first haircut

Silas on the boat

Silas with his Aunt Angela

Silas with his Great Grandma Helton

August 29, 2009: 12 months 24 days old

2009-08-29T22:53:00.001-04:00

Just a quick note. I forgot to mention that last Friday I was fishing something out of Silas's mouth and I felt his first molar coming through! It's the furthest one forward on the left. He's now up to 9 teeth.

August 26, 2009: 12 months 3 weeks old

2009-08-26T22:21:00.004-04:00

Silas had an action-packed week this week. He got to hang out with his friend Ruby for the first time in weeks, then on Friday he went to the pediatrician for his 12 month checkup. His stats: Height - 28 inches, Head Circumference - 44.25 cm, Weight (fully clothed) - 18 pounds, 12 ounces. He's tiny and healthy.

We then got to spend the entire weekend with Zen, Jeanette and Laz visiting from NY. They had planned on visiting sometime in the next month or so, but decided on Thursday night that this would be the weekend to visit. It was a great last-minute treat! Laz and Silas had never met before. It was neat to watch them interact since they are only one week apart in age. I have a ton of photos to upload onto flickr. Once they are all up I will post a link to the set here. In the meantime, here are a few shots from the weekend adventures, including a cute video of Laz and Silas playing with the wagon.

August 19, 2009: 12 months 2 weeks old

2009-08-19T22:39:00.003-04:00

Eric took a lot of nice pictures at Auggie's birthday party, so we have a whole set up on our flickr site here. I just put a couple of pics from the party below. He really enjoyed the sandbox. The next picture is Silas at Ikea. I'm posting it 'cause it's a really good shot of his teeth. You can clearly see the four teeth on the bottom here. The final picture is of Silas trying to climb a stone wall. His current favorite thing is to try and climb everything. If something is in his way, his first choice is to try and go over it. If he can't quite get up (like onto the coffee table) he just sits there with one leg up like in this picture and screams. It's simultaneously annoying and cute.

August 16, 2009: 12 months 11 days old

2009-08-16T23:57:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Auggie! Eric, Silas and I went to South Park today to celebrate Auggie's first birthday. I'll post pictures Wednesday when I do the weekly update. A couple of other things that have gone on in the past few days... Silas has gotten his eighth tooth. He now has 4 on top and 4 on the bottom (all in front). He also survived an entire week of both Eric and I working full time. I got a part time job that required one week of training and we found a great babysitter to come and take care of Silas all week. She did a great job. So great, that Eric and I decided at the last minute to take part in an Adventure Race on Saturday morning while she came back and babysat Silas again. Here's some official pics of the race. There aren't any pictures of Eric and me, but there is one of our bikes (first pic, second row).It's been a jam-packed week!

August 12, 2009: 12 months 1 week old

2009-08-12T23:30:00.002-04:00

So, since Silas turned one he hasn't been doing too much besides trying to figure out how to run. He walks almost all of the time now and will occasionally run. Eric and I took him to Ikea and then to the mall on Sunday and he got to play on the big foam playground in the mall for the first time ever. He really loved it. I have been in a training for a new part-time job (about 1 day a month) full time this week and Silas has been with a babysitter and Eric while I am there. He has been doing great without me and seems to not notice too much that I haven't been around. I know it's a good thing, though it is a little sad for me. Still, Silas is such an independent little boy, it's not surprising and I'm glad he is having so much fun.

August 7, 2009: a blog update

2009-08-07T10:57:00.002-04:00

Hello friends and family. So, I didn't want to spoil the birthday post by getting into this, but I am here to let everyone know that, now that Silas is a year old, I will only be posting updates once a week. Taking a picture every day was fun, but it has started to become challenging and a little dreary for me. Since I want the blog to keep going, cutting back to once a week should allow me to continue to enjoy this blog and thus keep it active.

Thanks for understanding!
-Silas's mom

p.s. This does not stop Silas's papa from posting whenever he wants...

August 5, 2009: ONE YEAR OLD

2009-08-05T22:11:00.004-04:00

So, I don't typically wax poetic on this blog, but today is a big day for Silas. Today is his first birthday. Yes, he won't remember it, but I will. One year ago today I was laboring away and in less than two hours from now, one year ago, Silas was born. The very first post on this blog is his birth story. It's pretty amazing a whole year has gone by. It's been so amazing to be able to spend the whole year home with him and watch him grow and learn and smile and laugh and walk. What an adventure. Even though he won't remember, we still tried to make the day special for him. We started out by treating him to a cupcake at Dozens in Squirrel Hill. Then, Eric went off to work and I took Silas to a new store called Toys 2 Try. They have a large play area and they sell tons of European made toys. Silas played and played, and then I bought him one of the toys he seemed to like the best (that wasn't a ball!) as a first birthday present from his Mama and Papa.

Happy Birthday Silas. We love you.

August 3, 2009: 11 months 29 days old

2009-08-03T13:47:00.003-04:00

VIDEO OF SILAS WALKING! It's only been eleven days since he started walking and he is getting steadier by the minute.

Also, here is the link to the flickr photos from Eric's family visiting over the weekend.

August 2, 2009: 11 months 3 weeks old

2009-08-03T12:09:00.004-04:00

Silas got some nice presents at his birthday picnic. One of his favorites (so far) was a large bag of rubber duckies. Here's a video of him playing with them with Grandma Gail.

August 1, 2009: 11 months 27 days old

2009-08-03T12:07:00.004-04:00

Silas's birthday picnic! We held it at North Park and we brought along our grill so we could make everyone burgers, sausages and veggie burgers. It was a beautiful day and a lot of fun!

July 31, 2009: 11 months 26 days old

2009-08-03T12:04:00.002-04:00

Aunt Angela and Uncle Jamie joined the crew visiting! This was the first time Uncle Jamie met Silas. We all went out to the Church Brew Works for some good food and good company.

July 30, 2009: 11 months 25 days old

2009-08-03T12:03:00.003-04:00

Visitors! Grandpa Jack, Grandma Gail, Uncle Brian and his friend Sarah showed up for the weekend. We all went out to mexican food for dinner.

July 29, 2009: 11 months 24 days old

2009-08-03T12:02:00.000-04:00

Another day spacing out about the camera. Alas.

July 28, 2009: 11 months 23 days old

2009-07-29T08:58:00.001-04:00

My attempts to get a nice video of Silas walking have so far failed, but here he is standing at the Natural History Museum. He pushed the stroller about half of the time that we were there.

July 27, 2009: 11 months 22 days old

2009-07-29T08:57:00.001-04:00

Susie, Ruby, Silas and I originally planned to go for a walk, but it was so hot, that we decided to let the kids play in Ruby's baby pool. Silas loved it.

July 26, 2009: 11 months 3 weeks old

2009-07-28T12:14:00.002-04:00

Eric competed in his very first triathlon today! It was an international distance event (1.5k swim, 40k bike, 10k run). Silas and I went and watched him compete. We are so proud of him!!! There are a bunch of pictures from the event on our flickr site here.

July 25, 2009: 11 months 20 days old

2009-07-28T11:12:00.002-04:00

Silas and I had to go back home today. Here's one last picture of Silas and I with Tante Robin and Cousin Quinn and Cousin Zoe. Silas and I got to meet Robin's new boyfriend Rob today too, so I put in the picture of the two of them here. One more time, the link to the flickr photo set from our trip is here.

July 24, 2009: 11 months 19 days old

2009-07-28T11:03:00.003-04:00

Silas got to play with his Grandpa Bob during our trip to Chapel Hill. We also baked two cakes to celebrate Silas's upcoming birthday, Zoe's upcoming birthday and Grandma and Grandpa's 40th wedding anniversary. Grandma Bobbye helped Silas blow out his candle.

July 23, 2009: 11 months 18 days old

2009-07-28T10:58:00.002-04:00

SILAS IS WALKING!!!!!
After a fun-filled day of going to the pool and hanging out with the family, Silas was playing ball with Boo and took 3 or 4 steps from the table to me in order to get the ball. It was an exciting moment that I have to get a video of soon. In the meantime, you'll just have to take my word for it :).

July 22, 2009: 11 months 17 days old

2009-07-28T10:45:00.004-04:00

Silas took his first airplane trip today. Silas and I flew to Chapel Hill, NC to visit with his Tante, Cousins Quinn and Zoe, and Grandparents Bob and Bobbye. We had to take two short flights to get there. Overall he did well, though he was pretty unhappy that we couldn't get up at all on the first flight and ended up crying for about 5 minutes before falling asleep during landing. There is a small set of pictures from the trip on our flickr site here.

July 21, 2009: 11 and a half months old

2009-07-28T10:42:00.001-04:00

We've decided not to totally deny our child of sweets. Silas seems to be really happy with that decision. Here he is sharing a Klondike Bar with Tim.

July 20, 2009: 11 months 15 days old

2009-07-28T10:39:00.001-04:00

Silas really enjoys playing ball. That mostly means sharing Guthrie's tennis balls that are laying around the house. Silas doesn't care, just so long as it's spherical and he can throw it.

July 19, 2009: 11 months 2 weeks old

2009-07-20T08:55:00.003-04:00

Oh, I keep forgetting to mention it... Silas has a new tooth on the bottom left. It came in just a couple of days ago.

So, we had to go to Lowes in the Waterfront to buy plywood, so we stopped at Steak 'n' Shake for food. Silas is now able to use a straw to drink the shake. He's come a long way!

July 18, 2009: 11 months 13 days old

2009-07-20T08:50:00.002-04:00

Rachael and I hosted a baby shower for Tim and Becky. It was a lot of fun. When Silas wasn't being entertained by Eric, he enjoyed watching the guys play corn hole. Notice the blue corn bag in mid-air. Mark threw the bag which is why Silas is facing him.

July 17, 2009: 11 months 12 days old

2009-07-17T23:04:00.002-04:00

We went out to dinner tonight at the Sharp Edge. It was a nice treat.

July 16, 2009: 11 months 11 days old

2009-07-17T23:02:00.001-04:00

Twice in one week I forgot to take a picture of Silas, so I snuck up on him while he was sleeping and took a picture. I know, lame. But still, he's so cute :)

July 15, 2009: 11 months 10 days old

2009-07-17T23:01:00.002-04:00

Another trip to the playground. Eric was heading off on a bike but stopped by to play for a little bit. The two of them were talking to a little girl just off the picture to the right.

July 14, 2009: 11 months 9 days old

2009-07-15T00:03:00.001-04:00

Silas really liked this piece of playground equipment. It played musical notes when he banged on the levers.

July 13, 2009: 11 months 8 days old

2009-07-14T23:42:00.003-04:00

Susie and Ruby came out to Bloomfield and we all went to the pool together. Ruby likes the water a lot more than Silas does (for now, anyway). It was really fun going with the two of them. I'm sad I didn't get a better picture, but here are Ruby and Silas sharing Ruby's toys.

July 12, 2009: 11 months 1 week old

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Silas sleeping.

July 11, 2009: 11 months 6 days old

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It was hot today and I didn't feel like walking down to the pool, so we decided to make do. The second pic is Silas standing under a frosted glass table at a restaurant we went to. It's kinda creepy in a way that I really like.

July 10, 2009: 11 months 5 days old

2009-07-11T22:00:00.003-04:00

Silas decided while we were in Canada that he likes blueberries. The second picture is from a trip to the Warhol that Silas took with Eric. Eric posted a bunch more pics of the trip on his blog here.

July 9, 2009: 11 months 4 days old

2009-07-09T22:42:00.004-04:00

Silas took his first unassisted steps today!!!! Only one step at a time, but he did it multiple times. We managed to catch it on video :).

July 8, 2009: 11 months 3 days old

2009-07-08T22:36:00.004-04:00

Silas and Ceci have not had a chance to play together in a couple of weeks. So Joy, Ceci, Silas and I met at Voluto coffee house to hang out and catch up. Then, Silas and I met up with Eric at the Eliza Furnace Bike Trail for Silas's first ever bicycle ride!!! Eric ran while Silas and I rode the bike. It went pretty well, he's still a little small for the seat, but he'll grow into it :)

July 7, 2009: 11 months 2 days old

2009-07-08T22:34:00.002-04:00

The weather in Pittsburgh is beautiful right now. Much cooler than when I was 8 months pregnant! Silas had fun playing outside with his soccer ball.

July 6, 2009: 11 months 1 day old

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Silas likes to crawl or walk pushing things around. He had fun pushing Ryder's moving dolly around the park. Later that evening, he got to water the garden with his papa. It was a fun filled day!

July 5, 2009: 11 months old

2009-07-06T11:03:00.003-04:00

Pretty crazy that Silas is already 11 months old! Time is flying.

We stayed the morning in Detroit before heading home. One more breakfast out with Troy before we hit the road. Here is the final reference to our trip pics on flickr. Check out all the photos (almost 200!) and videos HERE.

July 4, 2009: 10 months 29 days old

2009-07-06T10:58:00.002-04:00

Breakfast in Detroit... then a tour of the community garden by Troy's house... then some guitar playing with Troy.

July 3, 2009: 10 months 4 weeks old

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Happy Birthday Tante Robin!!!!

We left Komta after breakfast and drove to Detroit. Here is my view of Silas while driving. The next picture was during our lunch 'break' in Mackinac City. You can see the bridge in the background.

July 2, 2009: 10 months 27 days old

2009-07-06T10:49:00.003-04:00

Eric took a bunch of nice pictures of Silas playing on the dock at Komta. Here's one I really like, plus a few others that are nice. First though, is a video of Silas walking with Eric. He's getting closer and closer to walking on his own!

And, of course, a reference to our flickr photo set. HERE.

July 1, 2009: 10 months 26 days old

2009-07-06T10:45:00.002-04:00

Everyone at Komta loved Silas and took turns watching him so Eric and I could do things like canoe, bike, swim, read and relax. Here's Katie playing with Silas at the dining room table. Later, Silas went for a dip with me. The water was really cold, so it was just a quick walk in, walk out.

June 30, 2009: 10 months 25 days old

2009-07-06T10:41:00.001-04:00

It was another fun day in the woods. Silas started the day climbing the stairs at Komta. Later, Eric and Tim paddled Silas and I around in the canoe. Silas still can't sit while wearing his pfd, but he can stand for a much longer time. He had a lot of fun.

June 29, 2009: 10 months 24 days old

2009-07-06T10:37:00.002-04:00

Eric and Silas by the lake. More photos from our trip on our flickr site here.

June 28, 2009: 10 months 23 days old

2009-07-06T10:04:00.002-04:00

Silas would eat lunch and dinner with everyone in the dining room if he was awake, but he had his snacks at one of the round tables in the living room. I also have this picture of Becky 'cause she looks so great! This was the longest period of sunshine for our entire trip.

June 27, 2009: 10 months 22 days old

2009-07-06T09:59:00.002-04:00

We drove for a long time today with a couple of long stops. We stopped at a park and ate lunch so Silas and Guthrie could run around. Becky, Tim and Mike caught up to us (mostly because of a late start and long stops) so we all ate dinner together in Sault St. Marie at a place called Antlers.

June 26, 2009: 10 months 3 weeks old

2009-07-06T09:56:00.001-04:00

This evening we started our vacation up to Komta (Tim and Becky's family cabin in Canada). It's an 11 hour drive, so we broke it up into two days. This was our first night in the hotel. Eric and I stayed up way too late watching Live Free or Die Hard while Silas and Guthrie slept.

There are almost 200 pictures and 4 videos from our trip. You can see all of them on our flickr site here.

June 25, 2009: 10 months 20 days old

2009-06-26T00:15:00.003-04:00

Silas and I went to the playground for a little while today, and later, to deal with the crazy heat in our house, he got to play with a large pot of water. I decided to let him go totally natural for about an hour while he played with the water. During that time he peed four times and pooped once! He is obviously well hydrated.

June 24, 2009: 10 months 19 days old

2009-06-24T22:56:00.001-04:00

We went out to dinner at one of our favorite mexican restaurants tonight. It's the first time we've gone out to eat in a long time. It was fun.

June 23, 2009: 10 months 18 days old

2009-06-23T23:58:00.002-04:00

Silas, Guthrie and Eric went for a run on the North Side.

June 22, 2009: 10 months 17 days old

2009-06-23T23:55:00.002-04:00

Silas took his first dip in the Bloomfield neighborhood pool today. It was a beautiful day for a swim. He seemed to enjoy watching the other kids playing in the water the most. We will be going back for sure!