Party Machine

Mateo celebrated his first birthday on Saturday, which included hanging with the big kids and eating two, count 'em, two! cupcakes (okay, they were mini cupcakes, but still...). Fun was had by all.

Vero, Armani, Andre and Lexi made the trip from Spokane for the occasion. Mateo just loves his cousins! We swear Armani is a baby whisperer.

Mateo Is Number ONE!

Today was Mateo's first birthday! No party, since it's a school night. We'll party it up a little on Saturday. Today, Mateo ate steak (effectively chewed it up with his 6 extremely sharp little teeth) and a pint-sized cupcake. He especially liked the frosting...but who doesn't.





We can't believe he's already one! The year went by in a blink. It's been a wild ride! Mateo brings us so much joy...we couldn't imagine life without him! He talks all the time, and has a few distinct words in his repertoire. The little guy crawls super fast, and is just about to walk, we think. He's very good-natured and happy...we love him so much and look forward to many more birthdays to come.

Mateo's First Halloween!

In honor of the occasion, Mateo donned two costumes. While on the outside, he may look like a little monkey...





He's all scary skeleton on the inside! ;-)





He had fun walking around downtown at daycare. On Halloween, we went over to Ambika and Paul's to have some fondue and lamb burgers...yum! Next year, we're all about trick-or-treating.

Obligatory Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Last weekend, we took Mateo for a hike at Priest Point Park in Olympia. He loved it! Mateo definitely likes the outdoors.




On the way back to Seattle, we stopped by a pumpkin patch in Dupont. They had a petting zoo, a hay maze, corn toss, tractor and pony rides...the works. Mateo was not a fan. Let's hope he was just tired, and next year he'll fully appreciate all the patch has to offer.



None of those smiley, demure poses sitting on a pumpkin here at Casa Garcia. Mateo cried every time we set him near a pumpkin. Oh well.

Wedding Guests

We went to Tasha and Cailen's beautiful wedding a couple weeks ago. Mateo did his parents proud - he behaved himself and fell asleep in his stroller so his parents could enjoy themselves!

11 Months Old!

Okay, 11 months and almost one week old! How can it have been almost a year since Mateo was born?

In addition to crawling, pulling up on everything, creeping from his little table to his exersaucer and around the ottoman, and babbling up a storm, Mateo has had a couple episodes of standing without a prop (much to his surprise). He has a few words in his repertoire as well. We determined that "dog" was his first word, most likely learned after hearing mommy and daddy yell at the dogs to stop doing something or other. He also says "dada" and, very occasionally, "mama." The people at daycare inform me that he says "bye bye," but I have yet to hear that one, and I'm still skeptical.

He eats all sorts of solids, including tofu, mango and bagels, and has a love-hate relationship with his sippy cup. He is a joy every single day, even after a rough night of the dreaded teething.

Who Needs 'Em?

Today was a teacher in-service day at Mateo's school, so we stayed home and enjoyed the beautiful weather. We walked up to the Junction for some window-shopping and french pastry. Yum!



Mateo also enjoyed the snack tray on his stroller. Built-in teether!

Fun with the Flemings..

Mateo likes hanging out with Nate and Denny! He had fun "playing" (if you call messing up Denny's meticulously laid train track "playing"). ;-) He hopes someday he'll have awesome Batman PJs, too!






He also got to meet Sarah and Dan for the first time. He can't wait to see them again!

Drool.com

And you thought the adults were providing the content for this blog...



Mateo likes a little blog with his drool.

Cousins!

The last weekend in August, Mateo spent some quality time with his cousins, his Auntie Vero and Uncle Igy. We also got to meet Alexis, who is absolutely adorable! We vowed to hang out more often, since Mateo and Alexis are so close in age, and Mateo got a huge kick out of Armani and Andre!

What??

Geez, Mom...what are you trying to do? Make up for two months without pictures or something?

Teo and Mac

Just look at how cute Mateo and MacKenna are together...I see the beginning of a beautiful friendship! Uncle Bryon, Aunt Mary and Mac came over to Seattle for a visit in August. We all took a trip to the zoo. The kids were less than impressed - they both fell asleep in their strollers at one point.

While we think they enjoyed the monkeys, the prowling jaguar made Mateo cry. His daddy isn't a fan of cats, either. ;-)

Creepy Crawler

Mateo is a crawling machine! Not only is he into everything and all over the house, but he has learned to climb! The hearth is his new favorite stage. He also pulls himself up on everything. Of course, he goes straight for every outlet and cord in the house. Guess it's time to baby proof!

The little guy has been trying his hand at feeding himself lately, as well. Not only does he eat baby mush, but he enjoys Cheerios, all sorts of cut up fruit, tofu and broccoli. It's fun to watch him experience real people food, and witness his attempts at getting the food into his mouth. He's getting pretty good at it!



Of course, those sharp, little pearly whites help Mateo chew his big boy food. Just look at those puppies! He now has five-ish!

The Lake

Mateo spent a little time at Lake Chelan this summer. He took his first boat ride! As you can see, he was very excited about it. ;-)

Doggies!

Mateo loves his dogs, though we can't say the feeling is mutual. It's more of a bemused tolerance on the canine side of the fence. The dogs are unsure what to do when this little guy crawls all over them. They are such good boys and very patient...

Grandma and Grandpa to the Rescue!

Thanks to grandma and grandpa's gracious loan of their camera, we now have pictures of Mateo to post! He's back and he's cuter than ever! He donned his UW onesie jersey to celebrate the opening of college football season. As you can see, he's very excited that UW won their first game in ages. He's also excited that the blog is back!

And the Camera Is a Casualty

Well, we fully intended to post some updates, but the camera appears to be a casualty of the move...we can't find it! The case is there, the cable for transferring pictures is there, but alas, the camera is not. Therefore, we have no pictures to post! Hopefully, we'll remedy the situation soon by either digging up the camera or purchasing a new one. Did I mention moving sucks?

Wow, Where Am I Again?

We are SO sorry for our absence from the blogosphere. You see, life has been a bit topsy-turvy in these parts. For starters, we searched for and bought a new house! We then had to pack and move (gulp) after spending nearly 5 years in our little Craftsman. It's truly amazing the amount of crap one can accumulate in that time (and stuff into a two-bedroom house). Anyway, we packed, moved, and are still trying to unpack (a task made extremely difficult by the presence of a certain adorable 8-month-old). It also took TWO WEEKS for Comcast to hook up our internet. But now, we are wired and promise to post some pics and updates this week!

7 Months Already?!

Holy shnikes, I can't believe Mateo is already 7 months old!! And he's very happy about that fact:



Mateo is quite the little charmer. He giggles, smiles, squeals and chatters all the time. He's recently started saying "da da," although he hasn't yet associated the word with his daddy. We're working on "mama" and "papa." He wriggles around on the floor and gets his knees under him, although he can't yet propel himself forward. Mateo rolls all over the place and tries to pull himself up whenever possible. Once the kid's truly mobile, we're going to be in real trouble In addition to all the exciting sounds and activities, Mateo is a bona fide solids eater now! He has many veggies and fruits under his belt, as well as rice cereal and baby oatmeal. Yum! Mateo has also been practicing on the sippy cup - we're not quite there yet, but he enjoys chewing on the spout.



We don't think any teeth are ready to break through, but he's drooling and putting everything into his mouth, including his crib rail:



Mateo has also perfected some awesome facial expressions, as evidenced in earlier posts. We like to call this one "The Elvis":



We love being Mateo's parents! Every day brings something new, and it's a joy to see him grow, explore and blossom.