Cutest Baby Ever!!!

Hello Friends and Family!!!

Just giving you a shout out on this dry Sunday evening. We are super psyched for Jake's latest gadget the Baby Einstein Activity Jumper! The boy goes CRAZY for jumping these days and how can you resist the purity of baby laughter! So we buckled and sacrificed another 50feet of space for yet another huge, bulky, baby gadget! He gets so excited in jumpers that people actually ask us to put him in so they can watch his reactions! It's pretty intense and you'll see for yourselves soon enough!

We also had our third baby sign language class and picked up a few new signs like: gentle(brush flat hand), thank you(flat hand off the chin) not to be confused with f*** you(flat hand under the chin), mom & dad, grandma (one 5hand off the chin twice)not to be confused with two five hands which means vomit, and good job(two fists hitting at the wrists all knuckles facing up) not to be confused with good sex (same gesture but one fist up and one down)!!!! It's really funny how so many words in sign if not done correctly can mean something vulgar or inappropriate! So PLEASE don't try at home unless you are ready to sign something dirty and have your toddler sign it as well!Regardless, we are working hard to teach Jake some new signs that can help alleviate any stress or frustration due to communication issues! We'll keep you posted on progress!

We hung out with some friends from my Peps group on Friday and had a blast! It was super cool to be able to meet up with husbands, wives, and babies to share some laughs, good food and drink, at a time that works for us all! Baby less peeps don't understand the frustration of trying to hook up with people at times that works into baby's schedule! So this was a big deal! It was nice to make some friends and feel totally normal- pre-baby normal! We are planning on meeting all together at least once a month! I feel so lucky to have met and bonded with so many cool people going through similar experiences!

And... totally subjective but we think Jake is pretty damn cute so we are submitting the first of the below pics to the Reggis&Kelly cutest baby contest. I know don't laugh! But, it would be pretty cool to see him on the cover of Parenting Magazine! And.. we are such proud parents! So what do you think? Cute or what?

Well, enjoy the pics and I'll send a jumperoo video out soon so you all can share in the fun!!
Until then, keep shining!

WCB

Out and About

Hi everyone.
I just thought I would give a quick update and a new video post of Jake. So, I just set my dad up with his own blog - http://midwestbellers.blogspot.com - pretty cool. Now he will be very diligent on updating the world with all the latest news and family gossip. Today I had Jake while Maria was out by herself. She ended up going to a movie and shopping in downtown. We both think it is very important she get time away from the little guy every now and again to keep her sanity in check. So, I decided to brave the cold and snow and take Jake out for a walk to the lake and back. After that, I had to brave a fit with Jake that ended up putting him to sleep long enough for me to watch a little NFL football. Well, here is the video of the little guy. Enjoy.

Jumpin into 2007!

Hello Fan Club!
We have finally settled into the new year; Holiday cookies have been eaten, Christmas decor nicely tucked away, and a refrigerator stocked full of healthy snacks to support resolutions. We are all ready to jump head first into this year full of so much change and possibility!!!

Every year ending Eric and I sit down full of spirits and hope and brainstorm our top 5 goals for the year to come. So here's our list and by posting it we hope it will help us stick with it:
1. Health- in all it's meanings
2. Family- be a great family and try to get Jake a lil' peep to play with
3. Finances- debt and investments 201
4. Social Life- date nights, dinner club, new pals, and staying in touch
5. Home- organize, decorate, and finalize
We'll keep you posted on our successes! We are excited to start so many family traditions and log lots of great memories in 2007! We wish the same to all of you!

On the Eric Front: He celebrated another fantastic birthday! That's 24 in stamina/33 in dog years. Eric had a wonderful weekend of yummy pampering! He took Friday off for the big day, got some new duds thanks to some b-day cash and gift cards, (thanks fam!) went out to a top-shelf dinner at the Purple Cafe, slept in the next morning (which is a big deal these days) and chased that with an 80 minute hot-stone super-duper, deluxe massage a la Jeremy Todd Spa! Capping it up with a fantastic afternoon and slumberjam with old pal Mark Colby- who is always a breath of fresh air! What a way to start the new year!!!!

On the star of the show lil' man Jake: He has grown leaps and bounds in personality! He has acquired "his father's" enormous patience (thanks grandpa Ron)!!! He was weened from the boob and is now on a milk-based formula. He began eating solids, as you witnessed his first carrot side dish. Now he slams cereal, pears (his fav) and sweet potatoes all organically homemade by moi! Yeah for healthy starts! He is sitting up all by himself very,very well and needs to at all times! He is WAY better at tummy time and we do some great brain-body exercises to get him going! Thanks to holiday cash, we were able to get some pretty cool gear for the guy! We did a lot of research, lucked out with end of the year close out sales and ended up with a Deuter Kid 1 Baby Backpack so Eric can lug him around for hikes, walks, whatever/whenever! Eric is SUPER excited! Sometimes we walk him around the house in it! Jake really digs it too! He loves checking out new places and faces! We also got a jammin joggin stroller the Mountain Buggy Urban Single which is all terrain-rides like butter! Jake LOVES going for walks here in the area there is so much to check out- giant trees, relaxing lakes, crazy critters and tons of other kids at the local playground!This past Sunday we started our baby sign language class- yeah we know, it sounds crazy but so are most of the people out here on the west coast! Pretty soon Jake will be able to tell us when he is hungry, tired, pissed off (middle finger), or needs a change! We anticipate his first sign!

Me: I am still trying to grasp this whole mommy job! Everyday is SO different! I didn't realize how much I need structure and oh yeah SLEEP! I am going on officially 7 months of sleepless in Seattle. But, since we switched formulas from soy to milk based and finalizing all the holiday who-ha, Jake has done much better with sleeping! Now he only gets up 3-4 times a night! I am also still involved with PEPS (mommy group) and meet once a week which is pretty cool! Jake is the favorite because of his enormous personality! He really is a flirt too! I am trying to gear up for my big three-O! This is a big year for me in so many ways! On top of all that I am desperately recruiting my fam to move out here! I really think they will thrive here and we could use some more babysitters!

Enjoy these latest picks! Stay tuned in for some great videos! I hope they bring you as much joy and laughter as they do us!

Peace Out- WCB

Christmas Day Morning 2006

Merry Chrismas everyone! Here are some pictures of our Christmas morning. Jake looks so grown up sitting all by himself. He loves this stuff! Hope you all enjoy your day and enjoy some pictures of us. Most of these are this morning, but we have a few pictures of last night as well.

Lots of Love

Bellers













Jake playing with his toys!



More family memory making!

Christmas Eve 2006 - Seattle Style

HoHoHo, Merry Christmas Family & Friends!

We hope you all are enjoying the Christmas weekend as much as we have been. Yesterday, we shared the spirit with our friends the McFadden's, Johnson's, Discenza's, and the Gillespie'. We started by having our neighbors over for brunch - Bob, Jinnah, & Finn which Jake enjoyed very much as he looks up to Finn. We are excited that Jinnah & Bob are expecting their second child and moving into a new home not too far from us. After a day of friends and finishing the cookie making, we headed north to the Johnson's where we broke home-made bread and drank fresh brewed eggnog (adult style). There was much to celebrate yesterday evening as we found out that the Johnson's (Eugene and Rainee) are expecting their first child! This is wonderful as they have been talking about starting a family. What a better time to announce this news to their family and friends. We were also in the company of the Discenza's (Dan & Colleen) who are well on their way to getting their own family started. Colleen is starting her third trimester and motherly glow has set in. On top of all that, the Gillespies brought their 10-day old tiny little itsybitsy baby girl Sylvia over. It was the second time they had left the house (outside the doctor visit) and it was Sylvia's first party! It was really crazy to see how tiny she is compared to our little bugger Jake. It is really cool to see how far our little guy has come in personality, size, and energy.

So today we are enjoying some Christmas Spirit and trying to start some Christmas traditions of our own similar to those that we grew up. This evening we will be going to church, putting on a nice dinner, opening some gifts and and waiting anxiously for the big round & jolly St. Nick to pay Jake a visit (his first Christmas! Can you believe it?). Its hard to believe Jake is finally here to see what Christmas traditions will be all about. We are super excited to wake up early tomorrow morning and run down the stairs with babe in hand and video camera already setup on tripod (ala Rick Petersen style) and capturing everyone ripping open presents and enjoying some laughter before we have a tasty brunch and lazy Christmas day.

We really do hope you all have a wonderful, magical, and tasty Christmas! Remember the best gifts are those you share this time with!

We love and miss you - the Bellers!

Enjoy some pictures we took yesterday and today.