Q's 15 month birthday was on Thursday, but since it was a school night, towards the end of the year no less, it was easier to do pictures and the measurements a few days late. Veteran parents are all nodding in agreement, but it is true: even though I love my son more every day, that greater love does not produce more photos. Katharine posted on facebook recently about how much she loves Q; the actual quote was, "Katharine Riedlinger loves her kid more than she ever believed was possible. I'm totally a cliche!" It's funny, but true. We go in to check on him before going to bed each night, and the little feeling I get in the pit of my stomach always surprises me: there truly is no greater love than that of a parent's to their children. (I love you Mom and Dad - thanks.)
Now on to the still-growing monster. Q weighed about 25 pounds today - the Wii scale is more approximate than the doctor. He was about 31 inches tall. I say about because we are trying to measure him standing up now, which is quite a trick.
The monkey photos -
Q is very excited to see his monkeys.
Hugs for EVERYONE!!!!!
I'm gonna get you!
Pinned down, but no longer small enough to fit on the monkey rug.
Laughing with Mom
After the photos, we used Q's awesome monkey swim wear to actually swim in the pool. He has already experienced the water once this year, sans swim gear, but with the weather we've been having, we wanted to actually get in.
Standing on the second step, all by himself.
Q trying to jump in, away from his Mom, who has quick hands.
The winter did not affect Q's love of the pool. He was ready to kick his feet, lay on his back and stick his face in.
The after swim cuddle. Q sat up on his own in the chair and dried off before heading back inside.
Q attended a party for Leah today, celebrating her 2nd birthday. Leah's Mom works with Katharine and was kind enough to invite Q to her party, held at the Little Gym. Q loved everything about it and was smiling and giggling the entire time, except when he was eating, even though he skipped the morning nap to attend.
Q wanted to check out everything in the gym. Here was a squishy mat that the larger kids could bounce on. Sitting worked for Q--for about 2 seconds.
Another spot that worked better for the bigger kids, a spring board. Q couldn't make it move at all.
Q chasing bubbles with the birthday girl.
On the inflatable tumbling pad with Dad; still can't figure out this whole jumping thing.
Very proud to be hanging around. He kept wanting to go back, but got tired enough that he couldn't hold on. Maybe he has a future on the monkey bars.
Walking the balance beam with Mom.
We had great fun with the parachute, even if holding onto the strap was not in Q's plan. We walked "round and round" while we sang The Wheels on the Bus.
Giant squishy bouncy balls were fun to play with and share.
Here Q makes a slight adjustment to the equipment before going back on the uneven bars. He hasn't found a knob yet that doesn't need to be turned.
Moving all the spots around, these giant circles are great fun.
After playing for an hour, there was singing, cake and snacks.
Q sitting at the table like the big kids, waiting patiently for any food that would come his way.
The pink icing was awesome. His fingers were dyed a great shade until I was able to get them under some water in the sink. He loved the cupcake, especially because it came before his sandwich and veggies, which he still ate.
As a bonus treat, Katharine shot this short video of Q Friday night, while I worked late. As you can tell from the cupcake shots, Q loves eating, but he is expanding his etiquette tricks to include utensils now too. Katharine shot this at dinner, with the sun shining in behind him. It gives a very angelic feeling to the video. She is thinking about enrolling in film school to expand the use of special effects.
It has been a pretty busy spring here in Austin. Q loves being able to spend more time outside and practice his walking all over the place. We have obviously not been keeping things up to date here on the blog - here is a little catch-up.
With all the fun that we have been having, there is, of course, Q's experimental cranky side.
That little personality comes out when he wants something we won't let him have. He is usually easily distracted; if we show him something else he wants, we get his sweet smiling face again.
The pool was opened for the summer: Q took the first dip, even though it was a little chilly. He loved it!
Now, it is part of his evening ritual with Katharine: water the plants and kick his feet in the pool.
He also loves to play in the yard. He pulls out the grass and waves leaves around like they are better than the most expensive toys.
In the house, there is nothing Q likes better than reading his books. He even started taking over shelves that we use. Quin will grab a book and bring it over to you and want you to read it to him. He also sits and pages through them on his own, both in the house and while he rides in the car. It is very endearing to watch him "reading".
Q has enjoyed playing on the computer ever since we started putting him in front of it and letting him talk to people on skype. He is now trying to get a reaction out of the iMac. He doesn't seem to understand that no one is talking to him on it yet, but he is still typing away.
Over the Mother's Day weekend, Q got to celebrate with his Mom and his Mossil, who came down to spend a few days with him. She spoiled him by letting him stay outside all the time.
Last Saturday, we drove down to Dripping Springs and had a picnic at the vineyard to which Katharine and I belong. Q had a great time playing outside and meeting new people, as well as a few dogs.
This was a great shot of him coming at me with the camera. Check out his awesome Olympic sweatshirt that Pops and Nona Stina bought for him in Vancouver. Yay, Q!
It has been a few fun-filled weeks with a lot of adventures. Q has been a busy little guy. He is enjoying lots of time outside, whether he is going on a run with his Mom, sitting in his swing, or wanting to help with yard work. He really loves being outside, which will be tough as it heats up and the sun shines more; we will have to keep him bathed in sunscreen with his pale, pale skin.
When living in Texas, is seems an obligation to celebrate the coming of spring by putting your child in a field with flowers and taking pictures. We tried last year and had to repeat the effort this year.
Q loves the sun and all the attention.
Q hanging out with Brazos
Ironically, as Q gets older so do all the little people that we know. With everyone getting older, Q has been making the birthday party circuit. This past week we celebrated our friend Zach's 6th birthday by going to The Jumping Bean--a giant warehouse type room filled with bounce-houses. Q wasn't totally sure what he thought about it, but he liked bouncing up and down while someone else jumped. A few weeks before, we attended the second birthday of a girl whose Mom works with Katharine. Little Farmer Payton invited Q to her petting zoo. It was an unfortunately chilly day, but Q enjoyed seeing the little animals.
Q checking out the goat.
Mommy helping Q get closer to the furry little creatures.
Q and his Mom staying warm.
The largest change in our lives recently has been Quinlan's newest ability: walking. He has been stepping a little more each week and now can proficiently walk across a (small) room if he is motivated enough to do so. It is very fun to watch him place his front foot forward and feel to catch his balance. I know before long he will be running all over the place, but these first steps are still fun every time he takes them.
We celebrated Quinlan's second Easter today with my (Katharine's) parents and sister. All three came in on Friday, and we spent a couple of days playing games, talking, and devouring Peanut M & Ms. Of course, they spent plenty of time enjoying the little guy, too. He's always the center of attention.
Auntie Liz brought his belated birthday present, which was SO worth the wait! Q loves his new drum set, especially the "high-hat". Jared tells me that drumming ability obviously runs in the family.
He absolutely adores banging on the drums and the cymbal. Too cute!
Here you can watch the young percussionist bang away for a few seconds, he gets interrupted by a barking dog (which is not heard) and calls out "Daow!", which is his word for Dog.
Loving the Peeps. . . just like Mom and Dad!
His first egg hunt! He found them all. :)
We did let him go after the chocolate bunny in his basket. It was small and melty. He attacked the ears, and Jared thought he was filming, but alas, the picture was what we got. It was hilarious!
The Peeps and the bunny came in his basket. Of course, the most fun after the food was the stuffing!
The full action shot.
Finally, we'll leave you with the basket shot. The top is this year. The bottom is last year. What a difference a year makes!
I know I have said this before, and I realize that every parent must look at their own child and think they are the greatest / cutest / most wonderful baby. Honestly, I get that, but, look at him. He makes us both so happy.
He loves playing in the bath. He puts his face in the water and splashes. He thinks it is the greatest when he sees his reflection and most of all, he thinks having water poured on him is the best.
Quinlan's Mom participated in the Zooma half marathon on Saturday morning. It was very exciting and full of first time experiences. Q got to eat off of a buffet for dinner Friday, he got to walk around at a resort (Hyatt's Lost Pines, very nice, wish we could have stayed longer and taken advantage of some of the resort amenities), and sleep in a hotel room.
The morning started off early when we got up to do all the pre-race prep activities.
Q listens intently while Mom tells him she will be done in only a few hours and will see him soon.
Mommy is ready to go.
Q waits patiently for Mommy at the finish line. He got a Cheerio stuck to his chin and was very proud of it.
Look, Mommy finished right when she said she would, and we watched her race over the finish line.
Mom did awesome; Dad and Q were both very proud of how well she did.
Q reminds Mommy that she needs proper nourishment after running so far.
Look at Mom's official time. If you can't read all of the numbers it says from start to finish she ran 13.1 miles in 2 hours, 1 minute and 1 second. Of the 1494 people who signed up to run, Mom was the 75th one finished. Of the 1401 other women, Mom was the 67th one in, and of other people in Mom's age bracket, she was the 19th person to finish out of 259.
