Bulldozer Bonanza

Here's an early morning shot of Alex and Melissa. Alex has fully entered the "big transportation vehicles are the most exciting thing" stage. It's been two days of fascination with bulldozers and cement mixers watching the city fix the sidewalk and curb across the way from our house.

Election day!

I hope you all are out voting right now. Alex and Bill braved the lines in DC, and Melissa headed out to Virginia to volunteer for Obama. Before going, though, she and Alex had a rousing game of "guitar in a box."

A Zoo Holiday

We took advantage of DC's excellent October weather and headed to the zoo for the Columbus Day holiday. Alex loved the goats, prairie dogs, and most of all, the tigers! It's wonderful when the world is one big playspace.

First Swim!

We're a little behind on posts, but we couldn't miss Alex's first swim over Memorial Day. He loves the water and both mom and baby had a great time. And, our lucky little movie star had Terri waiting for him with his robe after his dip in the pool.

Big boy!

I was going through our pictures from Tulsa tonight and this one took me aback. What a big boy! Alex is not a baby anymore. He is running everywhere and showing definite likes and dislikes. Spaghetti, water (any water--swimming pools, faucets, his bath) and playing outdoors are in the 'likes' column. Hats, most foods and sitting still are in the definite 'dislike' column.

Here's another that I really like.

And...he's biking

Alex celebrated Spring with a run to Logan Circle in his new chariot. Daddy was the mule and Jo the entertainment once we got there.

He's walking!

A belated look at our little guy's new moves. We can only blame the fact that he is moving constantly for not getting him up on the blog earlier.

Having His Cake

Alex's third birthday celebration was with friends from DC. As you can see, Alex definitely had the hang of things by his third cake!

Another Birthday Celebration

After a chocolate chip cupcake for his first celebration, Alex got his hands dirty during the second. Yummy frosting!

Celebrating with the Cousins

We traveled to Miami last weekend to celebrate my cousin Carlos Carbonell's wedding. For the first of his three first birthday celebrations, Alex got to meet the next generation of cousins. Above is Manuel Ito, son of my cousin Luis. Below are Mia and Juliana, daughters of my cousin Vicky (with my sister Krista). We had a great time in Miami!

Water Baby!

Alex is officially a water baby. He chirps and laughs excitedly as soon as he hears the bath water running (we have to watch him because he wants to leap in on his own). Next step is to get him down to the "Y" for swim lessons!

Friends and food

Two major milestones for us this month: friends and food. Alex has started developing friendships with his stuffed toys -- Oso (the white bear that Nana gave him for Christmas 2006), Tummy (the talking puppy Senior and GrandTerr gave him for Christmas 2007), and Brown Dog (a gift from the Lefkowitzs.) Here is Alex sleeping with Brown Dog in his signature 'butt up' position. We frequently wake to him babbling to Brown Dog--at 5am!--about his dreams.

Alex also loves feeding himself. He consistently refused a bottle for 9 months, but now happily gives himself milk through a sippy cup. In the video below he is eating Cheerios--another favorite--with his sippy cup. Yippee!

Christmas Elf

After Alex started preaching during Christmas Eve service in Charlotte, his mommy decided he would best show his Christmas spirit outside the sanctuary. The video below is of him on the speedway between the choir room and fellowship hall. To the left are all the cousins on Christmas morning.

It was a big time! We are very lucky to have such a generous family--on all sides.