Assorted updates.

We've had a busy, happy couple of weeks around here. Milo is in a GREAT mood most of the time right now, grinning and giggling and interacting with everyone he sees. He now reaches for objects in his line of vision, and grasps onto anything he can. He can entertain himself for quite a while with his floor gym or in his crib with a couple of toys. He lets us know loud and clear when he gets tired or overstimulated, but true meltdowns are relatively rare and short-lived at this point.

Milo and Daddy are having a lot of fun hanging out together on Mondays and Thursdays. They hang out and play, go for long walks (8 miles one day!), and work on projects together. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Milo spends the day with Grandma S-J and Grandpa Bill. They've been teaching him lots of songs and games, and we expect he'll be singing Rogers & Hammerstein songs (and the Beatles) by the time he's two. Friday is Mommy's day. We have so much fun together, going for coffee and long walks in the snow, and talking and singing while Mommy works and Milo plays in the bouncy seat.

Mommy and Daddy are very happy that Milo seems to love being outside. We've taken him out in all sorts of weather, and he just seems to thrive on the fresh air. We bundle him up in his carseat, snap him into our awesome jogging stroller, and we're all set for some outdoor fun!

Milo still hasn't rolled over, but he's already "standing." He likes to stand up tall and wiggle and bounce, either in his exersaucer or - even better - when someone's holding his hands. Here he is, dancing in his crib with Mommy:

Milo has also started to love his bath time. We now bathe him in the big tub. Mommy plays in the water with him, then Daddy wraps him up in his big lion towel and gets him all dry, lotioned, and ready for bed. Milo is learning that he can splash his feet and hands in the water, and can float on his back (with a little help from Mommy). Pretty soon, he'll be ready to play with tub toys!

The biggest problem we're having right now is that Milo's sleep has deteriorated terribly over the past few weeks. He's napping much better, and he still goes down for the night with no muss or fuss, but he's started waking up hourly after 1:00 a.m. or so. Needless to say, Mommy and Daddy are TIRED. We're trying different approaches to improving the situation, and we have high hopes that Milo will start sleeping through the night before he goes off to college in the foreseeable future.