While we were giving kisses to Logan on his forehead/cheek to say goodnight, out of the blue, he leaned forward to me and gave me a kiss on my cheek.  He then did the same to daddy on demand.  He also had a smile on his face after giving the kisses.  It was such a sweet moment.  We had no idea that he had learned to do that.  Wonder if he has been practicing at school too?!?!

     Logan had his 15 month doctor visit yesterday.  He behaved very well during his check up.  He was nervous and sat very still while the doctor listened to his heart and lungs.  Everything checked out A-OK.  His stats are:

wt: 25lbs 11oz (with clothes and shoes on) (69 percentile)

ht: 2’ 8.6” (89 percentile)

head circumference: 19.7” (99 percentile)

After the visit, he also had to receive 3 shots.   Poor baby!

     Walking update:  Logan has been working on strengthening his legs lately.  While holding my hand for a walk last night, he squatted down attempting to pick up the balls on the ground.  He wanted both balls, therefore, for the first time, he let go of my hand, and grabbed one ball with each hand and slowly stood back up into the standing position for a couple of seconds before collapsing.  He was so proud that he did it.  Nowadays he is also able to walk a few steps without assistance.  Let’s see if he will walk on his own before he turns 15 months.

     Logan started the toddler’s room at daycare this week and has adjusted to it quite well.  He now has a much more set routine each day, i.e. mealtimes, outdoor play, music and story times, and afternoon nap.  The biggest adjustment he had to make was the two naps transition to one (12noon-2pm).  All 12 toddlers will eventually sleep on their individual mat on the ground next to each other.  The teachers were able to keep Logan occupied and awake until naptime almost every day this past week, and he also slept well on his mat.  He then enjoys all the activities in the afternoons and is still a very cheerful boy when I pick him after work.  The evenings are a bit tougher since he starts getting very tired.  He has been quite fussy a few evenings, even being too tired to eat dinner one night.  An unexpected benefit to come from this new schedule has been the good nights sleep.  He has been sleeping until much later in the morning (6:30-7am) almost every day.  So all three of us are much more rested as a result.  We are trying to keep him on the same schedule this long weekend in hopes that he will get used to this new routine soon.  So far he has been doing well. 

     Logan had a good time at the block party on Sat.  He was showing off his ball tossing skill to our neighbors, and he got to play inside an air jumper again.  Sunday he had fun playing at Julie and Robert’s house and at their local park yesterday.  Logan was even quite gentle with Copter this time (we thought).  Today, we had another outing to IKEA where he pretty much tolerated being carried almost the whole time.  We came back and enjoyed a delicious fast food lunch =)

     Logan is growing up so fast.  He had just graduated from the Infant Room at daycare and will be moving on to Toddler Room next week.  The daycare is closing for a few days to prepare for the new school year, so Stuart and I both took the days off to be with Logan.  Since the school closure did not match with the Henderson’s visit (Stuarts UK Relatives), we decided to postpone our drive to southern CA to another time.  At the last minute, we made a plan for a quick getaway to somewhere local instead, Santa Cruz.

     After some recommendations from a friend, we found a great place for lodging.  It was right on the Santa Cruz Main Beach. This was the first time Logan saw the ocean up close and was able to play at the beach.  The sand was a bit too hot on the first day (91F); so Logan was very reserved to play.  He was a little afraid of the waves too, but he had a great time playing with water and with other little ones at the hotel kiddie pool.  The rest of day, we spent strolling around the pier and enjoying delicious meals.  

     The evening was the part we were concerned about because Logan has not been a good sleeper lately due to teething and his new crib mobility.  He did wake up at midnight and took quite awhile before returning to sleep.  Stuart and I both worried about bothering the neighbors, so it was quite stressful to avoid any crying.  And hence, we decided to change the stay to one night instead of two. 

      We did so much on the second day before checking out from the hotel.  We had breakfast twice, did more strolling around and hit the beach again.  This time, Logan had a blast playing with the sand and watching the waves.  It was sad when we had to finally say bye to the beach. 

     Even though the trip was very short, we felt like we did a lot and had a great time despite the stressful night.  We all got quite tired when we returned home.  Logan must have missed his own bed; he felt right to sleep tonight with no complaints. 

Here are some clips of Logan learning new things. 

If you like to re-visit our old videos, double click on our Video of the Week to go into the YouTube site and click on Stuart’s account name “grandelatte2” on the right site.

   Logan is growing up so fast and is changing so much every single day.  Let’s talk about his teething first.  His first set of molars are coming in.  For an entire week he was very fussy and needy.  He would whine even while doing something he usually enjoys.  He was tiring us out so much even though he’s only up for just a few hours each night after school.  His prior good night sleep routine was broken up by one to three crying episodes.  Fortunately, the teething symptoms have now calmed down this past week.  As of today, three out of the 4 first molars are showing.  We hope that he is now used to having swollen gums and will not be acting up again =)

   Nowadays going out to dinners is not as easy as before.  We have to pack enough snacks or foods to keep Logan entertained so he will stay in his seat.  And we usually have to take turns walking him around the restaurant shortly after (or while) we eat.  At least Stuart and I are getting good exercise these days.

   On a good note, Logan is learning how to properly play with some of his toys now.  Instead of being a destroyer like he used to, he has learned to stack up blocks, place toy trains on tracks and push them around.  He uses his legs to move himself forward on his tricycle.  It is fun to watch him play and to see the proud smile on his face after he successfully accomplishes a new task.  Stay tuned for more videos of his new play activities.