First Tooth

Daniel has been working hard at teething for quite a while now and it has finally paid off! His first tooth broke through the surface of his gums today. He keeps running his tongue over it - a new sensation! Here is the picture I got. It isn't great, but it was not easy to open his mouth, get the tongue out of the way AND take the picture all at the same time. You can just see the tip of the tooth poking through his gums.

Happy Halloween!

Daniel dressed up as a penguin for his first Halloween. He is SO cute! Earlier this week we went to the spouses social for Allan's work. Daniel wore his pumpkin bib and then put on his penguin costume for pictures! On Halloween I got pictures of Daniel in his pumpkin bib. But then he went to sleep for a nap and never wanted to get back up to wear his costume. So I had to get his Halloween pictures on November 1. I got pictures of him in his cute penguin costume and his bee outfit. Click here to see the pictures!

In Bruges (It's In Belgium)

This week we visited Bruges, Belgium for a couple of days. Bruges is a lovely city! Bruges was a very important and wealthy trading city during the Middle Ages, with its heyday in the 15th century. After that time, the town fell into decline for centuries. This contributes to the charm of the city today, since there was little to no change during all that time. There was simply no money to tear down and reconstruct. So we now have a beautifully preserved medieval town. We strolled around, took a canal boat cruise and did some shopping.

Daniel also went "swimming" for the first time in our hotel pool. We figured that since there was a heated indoor pool there, we should use the swim diapers that I bought earlier in the year. At first, he wasn't quite sure about the water. But after a few minutes he played, splashed and enjoyed it.

We had a great trip and hope you enjoy our pictures! Click here for the pictures.

Daniel Eats a Cookie

Today Daniel ate his first baby cookie. He loved it. He could hold it in his mouth, gum on it and make a big mess! Mom loved it too. She got to eat her own lunch! Click here to check out the cute video.

Black Forest Day Trip

While visiting Allan in Stuttgart, we went on a little daytrip through the Black Forest to Freiburg, Germany and Triberg, Germany. It was a yucky, rainy, cold day - but we made the best of it! In Freiburg we just strolled around, had a tasty lunch and saw the Cathedral. It was closed for Mass, so we just looked at the exterior. Then we travelled to Triberg, where we saw the highest waterfall in Germany and then had some dessert before heading back to Stuttgart. Click here to enjoy the pictures!

Fall Foliage

Daniel and I took a nice walk today around our village and got some shots of the fall foliage. There are a lot of pine trees in the area around our house, so there isn't as much change in the tree colors as in some other places nearby, but I thought it was pretty anyway. Click here to see the pictures!

Daniel - Six Month Checkup

Daniel had his six month check-up at the doctor today. He is 16 lb 4 oz. and 26 1/4 inches long. So he is still small, but growing steadily! Everything was great - he is a healthy boy! Our next scheduled checkup will be at one year.

The doctor also said I could start giving Daniel Cheerios to eat and for him to work on picking up small objects. So later in the day I gave Daniel some Cheerios. He could pick them up off his tray, but then they were in his little fist and he couldn't figure out how to get them in his mouth. So Mom helped him out and put one in his mouth. He didn't seem to know what to do with it at first, but he gummed it until it went away!

Cannstatter Volksfest

While visiting Allan in Stuttgart, we went to the Cannstatter Volksfest in Stuttgart, Germany. This is basically their Oktoberfest and is a huge festival with several huge beer tents, carnival rides and games, plenty of food stands and vendor stands. We had a great time. Click here to see the pictures!

Daniel's First Time in a Swing!

Today Daniel and I travelled to Stuttgart, Germany to visit Allan. While we were waiting for him to get off work, we took a walk down to the nearby park and Daniel got to ride on the swing! It was almost too big for him, but I put his blanket behind him to wedge him in. He seemed to enjoy it and I got a few pictures and a little video. Click here for the video.