11 Months Old

The days seem to be getting shorter and shorter, as Jalen is eagerly exploring his environment at faster and faster speeds. His favorite new discoveries include Poika's water bowl and toy box. Putting his mouth on everything that Poika does is prime entertainment for this monkey-see-monkey-do... and why not? With three little teeth, he's ready to chew!

Beach Baby

At just 10 months old, this lucky little boy got to enjoy his first Caribbean vacation. The water - both beach and pool - was a big hit; the sand took a bit of getting used to. Overall, Jalen (and Mommy and Daddy) were able to find plenty of time for relaxation and peaceful reflection.

Funny Tub Time

We seem to post a lot of bath videos! Jalen threw his toy out of the sink at me (along with a handful of water), and was quite bemused when I jumped out of the way. Apparently it continues to be hysterically funny, no matter how many times he does it...

10 Months Old

10 months has been a big milestone for Jalen! He's learned to sit up from lying down, he's said "Mama" and "Dada", and he's starting to crawl and pull himself up on things. He also apparently no longer wants to smile for his monthly photo shoot- sitting still no longer fits into his busy schedule.

First Words

Uncle Jesse confirmed that 'uh-oh' does indeed count as a first word (and even speculated as to its correlation with his presidential capabilities). He might not be quite yet ready to take on that role, as these days he's totally engrossed in his new hobby - throwing things on the floor.

First Christmas

Jalen really seemed to enjoy his first Christmas. Santa had stuffed his stocking full of blocks, and he was very excited to empty it, one by one. He also had lots of toys under the tree (mostly thanks to his nanny, Emma). After opening presents, he headed to Nana and Vaari's house to spend the rest of the holiday with them, as well as Auntie Erica, Uncle Ayman, and cousins Ella and Maddy, where he was again spoiled with gifts.

9 Months Old

Our big boy now weighs 22 lb, 10 oz, and is 31 inches long, again putting him in the 75th percentile for this weight and off the charts for his height. This has been a big month for the little man. After overcoming his first attempts, he now eats finger foods happily. However, he insists of being fed the finger foods directly - any placed on his tray or in his hands quickly becomes a Poika snack. We're seeing a lot of signs of increased mobility, but no crawling... yet! He can get into crawling position, but flops back down to his belly and ends up moving backwards, instead (and usually ends up wedging himself under a couch, chair or bed in the process). In general, he's turned into a very squirmy, wriggly, wiggly little boy.

He's also gotten to host his first Hanukkah party, and loves to play with his dreidels and watch the candles on the menorah. The lights on his very first Christmas tree is also a source of fascination, and we all can't wait for his first Christmas morning!