On Saturday night we had dinner at Aunt Laura’s.
C3 got into her plants, tried to hide his toys in strange places, and begged Laura to take home a stuffed animal that he LOVED but Laura wouldn’t let him. See how much he loves this stuffed dog named “Skippy”!
Truth is that Sarah and C2 have been trying to adopt Skippy for many years and now C3 is being used as emotional leverage. In the meantime, C3 is perfectly happy playing with his mini-cooper.
On Sunday we went to C3’s friend Cole’s birthday party. They were playing with Cole’s new trucks and having a total blast! C3 is three weeks older than Cole and they are neighbors… so many years of stealing one another’s toys are ahead of them.
C3 is obsessed with the kiddie pool. The water is so cold but once we fill it up he will not wait to go in… in the words of my brother who watched this first hand “wow, he really can communicate what he wants now!”. Once he is in the pool he just likes to throw his toys out of the pool. It’s not so much fun for Mom, because I am basically playing “fetch” the whole time!
I realize we have not posted many photos from Charles’ birthday (or any other July events) … I am trying to collect them from others because unfortunatly we did not get too many good ones. We were busy hosting the party and playing with the birthday boy on that day. Thanks to Danny we now have some to show here. BELOW: C3 tries cake for the first time and likes it - a lot!
The gifts with wheels are the biggest hit of the day. This train could drive Mom and Dad over the edge with all the racket it makes. 
Opa examines the wheels at eye level with C3. C3 always lays his head down when playing with cars, trains, etc so that he can see the way the wheels work.
On Dad’s day we took a trip to the Brooklyn Museam to see the Takashi Murakami exhibit. Big Charles likes little dolls and figurines more than most children do.
C3 is close to walking on his own. For now he holds on to our finger and sometimes prefers to run rather than walk. From the picture, do you think he likes his mobility?
Clearly baby charles was having an emotional reaction to this peice of art behind him. Only problem is that it was the opposite emotional reaction than the one the artist imagined.
This Memorial Day we took a risk and brought the baby to our friend Elliot’s house on the north fork of Long Island near Cutchough. He was planning a romantic final getaway weekend with his girlfriend before she leaves for Africa (Sudan no less) for the summer. He was kind enough to let us crash their weekend and all things considered it was a success for everyone! This is a picture of C2 and C3 (with his sand pale).
When we arrived we were greeted by Eliott’s Mom’s dog - Pan. He is very gental and Charles enjoyed mauling him mercilessly.
Here is the view from Elliot’s deck and the following picture is us having our first dinner together at sunset. C3 is peacefully sleeping to the sound of the ocean (or us in all of our revalry… whichever).
The next day we took a boat to Shelter Island and then to the Hamptons (nice beach but we are North Fork lovers at heart). The ferry rides were fun though. Although this is not the most flattering picture of the family it was worth posting because this pinwheel is Charles’ most FAVORITE toy-of-the-week. He actually carries it with him everywhere around Brooklyn.
Here’s Kelly and Elliot, we owe them a lot since this was our most relaxing vacation since our honeymoon!
Before leaving, C3 and I took and outdoor shower. He was slightly terrified at the time but after it was all over he kept wanting me to take him back in (ah… the games children play!).
Mother’s Day was so totally cool. Okay, it was my first but let me tell you I am already looking forward to next year. Charles made me breakfast of waffles and strawberrys (and did the cleaning up). Then he prepared a picnic in the park. We spent the day watching kites flying (you can see Charles reaching for one below). And kicking a ball (C3 found this to be a hilarious past-time) while holding mom and dad’s fingers of course! We basically just spent quality family time together and it was great.
A word to those who have checked this site regularly and have almost given up on us. C3 is very active these days. He is getting ready to walk and needs our fingers to take him everywhere he wishes to go. He also sleeps MUCH LESS than other babies. I am lucky if I get an hour and a half of naps (that is in aggregate) a day. While we feel so fortunate to have a lively little guy in our lives, it leaves little time for blogging (no less brushing teeth, showering, putting away things, you get the idea…). But bare with us. We will post monthly at least and are happy to let you know when we do (just let me know to include you!).
Okay and a few other tricks Charles has up his sleeve: he waves and sometimes says “bye bye”. He dances… seriously he dances. You have to see it to believe it. He coughs to get your attention. He is tickelish everywhere! He is not shy at all and loves to flirt with strangers. He attacks the cats and they let him so he keeps doing it. He knows the word “no” because after a few stern no’s he no longer tries to eat cat food or tip their water bowl over.
