Magic Happy Laughing Baby!

Jonathan was extra sleepy all weekend - we weren't really sure why. He would be alert and playful for short periods, but he took some looooong naps. We drove up to DC on Sunday because we had Maryland Basketball tickets. Jonathan stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Kwon and slept most of the time we were gone. We had a great time going to dinner and then the game with Dan and Angie. The Comcast center is enormous and very nice. We saw the national championship trophy, and Juan Dixon was at the game! He got the loudest applause of the night. We drove home to Charlottesville Sunday night.

Today, the extra sleep appears to have done Jonathan some good. He has started laughing and squealing! I wasn't sure what was going on this morning. I went in to check on him because it sounded like he was getting ready to cry as he watched his crib mobile. However, when I saw him, he had an enormous grin on his face and it turns out that odd noise was laughing. Then Chris came home for lunch and played horsie ride with Jonathan. He started to laugh some more and then threw in a SQEUAL! when his Daddy tossed him up in the air. It is quite something to hear.

Grandma Kwon got him the perfect toy for this stage in his development. It kind of looks like a model of an atom, with lots of plastic loops in bright colors around a central rattle. The loops are a little thinner than a pencil and perfect for those little fingers to grab onto. Jonathan set a new record for holding something with it this morning - he had it waving around in his hand for three straight minutes. He managed to stick his hairbrush in his eye later - we think he was going for the mouth. He also got a grip on the funny monkey on his playmat bar, and of course monkey feet always taste good in the morning.

Eighteen pounds of muscle and drool

That's our latest estimate for Jonathan's weight. He got pretty wiggly today in his bath. It's not easy keeping a hold on a slippery baby!

Apologies for the lack of a picture update. We seem to have misplaced the connector cable that lets us download our pictures of our camera. Also, either Chris or I have been away in the evening every night this week, which limits what we can get done.

We're a trend! The New York Times has an article today about parents blogging about their children. I am mesmerized by trixieupdate.com. Trixie's mom appears to have gone to Einstein. And they have a blog for their daughter. But otherwise, I have to say, we don't seem to have much in common. For example, Chris is not CRAZY.

Light snow here today without a lot of accumulation. We will make it to our restaurant anyway!

Bring on the germs!

This was exciting for me. Jonathan was spending time again in his play gym, with animal rattles that hang down for him to bat at. He loves the funny monkey. Today he was swinging at it again and again. But then he got an idea! He kind of carefully pushed it towards his face, so the monkey feet got to his mouth, and gummed away at it for a little. He did it twice in a row! He is also swinging wildly at the touch and feel animal books and laughing a little as he does it. This is a lot of fun to watch.

Some new skills

(I try not to think of them as "tricks" - too much like a trained seal or something)

Jonathan tried out some new moves today. He laughed out loud when he saw his favorite rattle, which is round and has a mirror on one side. He's doing very well with grasping it and waving it around, though I still have to wedge it into his hand. He's "talking" to his mobile quite happily. Lots of consonants in his babbling, including "g", "d" and "l". He's also learned to make a raspberry, although I don't think it's intentional! Finally, today was the first day he seemed to notice his feet, which happened while he was sitting in his Bumbo seat.

Daddy took off for class, but Joanthan and I went out to dinner with Tedra and Misha. They are going to babysit this weekend for us so we can maybe see "The Aviator" and get a bite to eat. He is so good in restaurants and never seems to cry. Long may it last.

I am curious purple

Some fascinating stuff going on today if you are a baby in the Kwon household. Daddy has the ironing board out and Jonathan just can't take his eyes off it. He is working to stand up on Mommy's lap just so he can get a better view of what's going on up there. The pink blouse (which Chris wants you all to know belongs to me, not him) got the biggest response.

I took advantage of Jonathan's absorption to go through his closet. He has outgrown a whole drawer full of clothes, so it is time to run them through the wash once more and them pack them away. I am sorry to see the ducky outfits go, as well as the Jockey onesies he practically lived in for the first six weeks. Fortunately, he is still a well-dressed baby, with plenty of outfits to carry him through the rest of the winter.

Jonathan can tolerate more and more tummy time every day. The playmat, with its mirror in one corner, is a help. Today he started off with his arms at his sides, and then brought them forward and raised himself up! He caught sight of himself in the mirror and stayed up for two minutes, looking intently at that other baby. He is also "swimming", with his pot belly holding him up and his legs and arms flailing in the air. The minute he learns to plant those feet, watch out! This kid is ready to be on the move.

I took a few pictures this week - they should be up soon.

First time on the playmat

Well, Jonathan was back to his smiling self today. He looked out the window at the snow, danced around in his crib to his musical mobile (with batteries freshly installed - thanks Daddy!) and talked up a storm. He seemed to be getting a little bored with his usual tummy time - two minutes on the sheepskin until the crying starts. So I got out the playmat I had purchased lo these many moons ago.

It seems to be a hit! He actually reached up and batted the dangling animals and laughed when they swayed back and forth. He also likes the crinkly texture under parts of the mat, and the Mozart it plays makes him wiggle. Classical music in general always gets his attention. I have some CD's coming from amazon - thanks to Uncle Sol and Aunt Chay.

Upset tummy.

Let's just say we have some extra laundry to do today.

New pictures coming soon. Notice Chris's captions as you roll the mouse over the thumbnails.

Pass the Schnitzel

Chris and I got out for a nice dinner tonight at a German restaurant. Delicious! Grandma Kwon came down to babysit. Jonathan charmed her by staying asleep the entire time we were out. This has been his usual way of charming his various babysitters.

He continues to do new things each day - it is fascinating to watch. He has recently started to take an interest in the "Touch and Feel" books his Presecan aunts and uncles sent him. The hand movements continue to look almost random, but somehow that hand always manages to wind up patting the ducks and bunnies in the book. His favorite is the baby gorilla; he has no use for the elephants because they are not furry. He also joined in a conversation his mommy and daddy were having by suddenly interjecting a whole series of babble with a big grin! Of course, that stopped all the talking so he could get a lot of kisses.

Sleeping better!

I can't say it's anything we've done, but Jonathan is back to his regular habits and once again sleeping through the night. Thank goodness! We are so spoiled, but we get very tired when we spend a night up with him.

We went to Dave and Michelle's baby shower yesterday, which was a nice affair. They are due in February and we are looking forward to having a couple with whom we can trade babysitting duties. There were many pregnant women there; it seems UVA is still putting that something in the water. We also met a couple with a beautiful five month old daughter. Jonathan, of course, was bigger than her. In addition to our real present to Dave and Michelle, we brought along a package of diapers that Jonathan has already outgrown. He'll be starting size three next week, I think.

T-bone steaks are on sale at Giant this week! So we are taking advantage of the continuing unseasonable warmth and grilling tonight.

Jonathan continues to love the bouncy seat his Auntie Liz bought him. We are starting to see more and more hand movements. He managed to bat the rattle that hangs off the activity bar several times today, although it still looks like random chance when he does it. He is also enjoying "talking" to the animals on his crib mobile. The bunny rabbit from Belgium keeps him company in his crib, and while he doesn't seem to pay much attention to it yet, he has knocked it over several times.

Nice Dinner

No babysitter, so we took Jonathan out tonight to the local burger place. He sat for a time in his new booster seat and looked befuddled to be in such a noisy place full of people. Hopefully this will translate to some solid sleep time tonight; he has been waking up more frequently over the past few days. Growth spurt? How can you tell when it seems to be one continuous spurt?

Attention Technophobes

Also my parents. . .

You are welcome to leave comments on our blog. Click the "comment" link. If you don't want to go to the trouble of registering, just leave an anonymous comment. Put your name in the body of your comment and then we will know who you are!

New Doggie Suit!

Tonight Jonathan is going to sleep in his new doggie suit. A doggie suit is a bag with arms and a neckhole and a doggie on the front. We got one as a present and he has always slept in it. And we have always worried about him getting it dirty during a midnight diaper change because what we would do then? But doggie suits are IMPOSSIBLE to find! JC Penney had a fairy suit (same concept, but pink) but obviously Chris wasn't going to go for that. The man can't even wear a beautiful purple dress shirt his wife got him for Christmas; no way is his firstborn son sleeping one night in a fairy suit. But we have finally located and purchased doggie suit number 2 and tonight is the inaguaration.

Now we just need to get him to, you know, actually FALL ASLEEP.

Welcome to the Kwon Family Website

Happy New Year!
Welcome to the Kwon Family Website. We will try to update our entries as often as possible and give any news of Jonathan's increasingly rapid growth. Please click on the link on the right side of the website to look at recent photos of our family.