the life of baby jude

Mommy & Daddy thoroughly enjoy a cheesy pick-up line. Well, luckily for me, I don't really need to use them. One, I can't talk, and two, the ladies come to ME. I'm so lucky, it's almost criminal. Well, anyway, M&D looove the line, "Nice bum, where ya from?" Well, in a heat-induced delirium (I swear it's like the Amazon here in Jersey), Daddy came up with a baby friendly spin on that old classic-- "Nice fanny, where's your nanny?" So, readers, if you know any kids that need to use that line, please pass it on. I'm sorry, but it's gold.

Having said that, I've decided that the world needs more baby/toddler personal ads. I mean, it's not like we're looking for romantic involvements, just friends to play toys & sing songs with, really. I came up with a few. Tell me what you think!

"ADORABLE WAVY HAIRED TODDLER looking for someone to share a good board book with. Must have hair and be on solid foods. Those still on formula need not respond."

"FUN! FUN! FUN! LIKE PLAYGROUPS? If you're eight months or older and sitting up, join us Saturdays on my living room floor. My toys are umatched by any other baby, hands down. I provide the milk, you bring the snacks and we'll call it an afternoon."

"YOU WERE SITTING IN YOUR MOMMY'S LAP. We were at Dr. Maniar's office on Eagle Rock. I was the hazel-eyed boy in the tie-dye. You tried to stick your fingers in my mouth. I bit you with my four teeth and you didn't cry. Let's meet up again sometime."

"HATE NAPS? ME TOO!! Let's play in our cribs together while our mommies think we're sleeping. I've got awesome crib toys and my mobile is bright and stimulating. Call me!

Seriously, folks, try it. If you do it, this could be your afternoon! Of course, these two ladies are mine. But ones of this caliber.

Admittedly, I don't know that much about computers and I'm still not a pro at this blogging stuff. Mommy, unfortunately, isn't really that savvy either (but I have an excuse-- I'm barely 14 months old!). We made a discovery yesterday, though, and I think all my friends will find it very exciting! Mommy found a setting that when chosen, allows ANYONE (not just blogspot members) to post comments on my blog. I'm so cute, I know your all just dying to post about it! So post away! But they better be good. They will be reviewed by yours truly.

Here's a pic of me and ole computer whiz herself, just for giggles. Aren't we silly?

My Grandma Ginny came to visit me this past weekend. What a pleasant surprise. She was pretty excited to hear that I was walking and wanted to come see my moves live action! I think I really impressed her! She thinks I'm very smart and adorable and commented on my superb hand/eye coordination. I've been working hard on that-- I'm glad she noticed. :-) Anyway, she also bought me lots of cool stuff while she was here. I got some new socks, a pair of PJs, a Mother Goose book, a toy truck AND a pair of walking shoes! Can you believe it? I'm still getting used to them, but I must admit, they look quite cute on. I'm such a big boy. Grandma even watched me while M&D hit a movie Monday night and while they worked on Tuesday. I really wore her out, I think. Let's just say we took LOTS of walks. Thanks for humoring me, Grandma. I love you! See you soon!

Remember when I went to Denver and saw my friend, Maddie and her mommy, Kim? Well, guess what? They came to NY! Maddie's auntie live in White Plains, NY. So on Saturday we met in the city for a day o' fun! Of course, like all my trips to the city, it was raining. But we managed. Mommy got a great parking space (go Mommy!) and brought my stroller plastic, so we were all set. Luckily, the rain was short-lived. First, we had a nice brunch. Mommy and I shared panckes! So good! Maddie also was kind enough to share her Cheerios with me. So thoughtful! So in turn, I gave her some cereal, too. It's fun to try different kinds of cereal, you know?

After we ate, we went to the Children's Museum of Manhattan. I've actually been there before, but it was right before I started my blog. Back in April I went there with my pals Natalie and Matthew. We had fun, but it was raining and a school holiday, so it was packed! Plus, I was just a baby back then and couldn't move around much. This time, we had so much fun! First, we went to the "baby room." It was fun but a little beneath us. We're big kids, afterall. We need excitement and intrigue. Stuff animals don't cut it anymore. So we went to the other exhibitions. First we went down to the Clifford room. They had all sorts of fun stuff down there. A "sandpit" to play in, a doghouse to crawl in, a car to drive. They even had HUGE bones! I actually toddled over to some poor unsuspecting toddler and tried to steal the one he was carrying. He didn't relinquish right away, so it was a fight to the finish. I know it seems kind of mean, but I just started walking and I really was just holding on the keep my balance. At least that's what Mommy told the little boy's mother. :-) We also went to the Dora room. There were more great toys to play with there, but I found the stairs most interesting. I guess it's because I don't get to see stairs very much. I just love them! Also, there's something about Mommy's face as we walk up and down 95 times that tells me she's having a blast, too. I think.

After the Dora room, Maddie and I were pretty tired, so we went our separate ways. (Thanks for the fun, Maddie! Love ya!) Mommy took me on a nice walk in my stroller so I could fall asleep seeing the sights of Manhattan's upper west side, but when I woke up in the cafe of Barnes and Noble, I figured what Mommy really was doing. Although, after the stairs incident, the woman really did deserve a latte.

I'm WALKING!!!!!!!!!!! Yesterday, I could barely stand and tonight the baby lightbulb went off!!! I'm WALKING!!!!!! It's a little drunken sailor, but..

I'M WALKING!!!!!


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I'm really getting a hang of my sweet new set of wheels! Isn't my ride the coolest? M&D got it for me for my birthday. It was a little hard to handle at first, but I'm learning. I'm still a little small for my rockers that I got from both my grandmas (although I love playing with them), but this is just low enough for me to push it around. I'm mostly into going in reverse, but forward is cool sometimes, too. It's a "corn popper" too, so it makes popping noise whenever I get it going. She purrs like a kitty. Well, not really, but it's fun. It also has sparked a new nickname from Mommy-- Cornpoppy Jones. Honestly, the woman is relentless. It was really not the image I as going for. I mean, what a lame nickname. I think something like "Spike" or "Jude the Destroyer" would be much cooler. I also think I need leather boots or something. I'm working on it.

I had a nice weekend! After my tumble class on Saturday, Mommy and I went upstate to visit Grandma. We had originally planned on going swimming, but it was pretty rainy when we got there. We hung around Grandma's house for a few hours. That was okay because Grandma has the most fun bed and all sorts of cool toys for me! It got sunny, though, so we decided to take a trip to Forsyth Park in Kingston. They had a really neat nature center that we walked through. There were pretty flowers and animals! I liked all the animals and even waved at them. The only one I was not a fan of was the black goat. He got a little too close to my stroller and scared the bejesus out of me! Mean goat!I like my animals small and furry. There was also a cool playground that I crawled around. And you know me-- I'm usually not a fan of swings, but these were fun! Mommy pushed me and I just giggle and giggled! Fun! Thanks for the great day, Grandma! I love you!


On Sunday, M&D took me to the beach. It was a little crowded, but we decided we could tolerate a little traffic. It was so hot at home, anyway. I really had a good time. I really enjoyed playing with my sand toys and walking around and waving. I even ate the sand!!! Gross you would think, right? It actually wasn't that bad, believe or not! I know, I'm crazy! I got sand and salt water all over my paci, too. But that was okay--a paci is still a paci, no matter what. At first I found the waves very scary. It was high tide and they were crashing really loud at my feet! And the water was cold! But eventually I warmed up to it and dunked my toes a little. I even laughed! There were tons of nice of people to wave and smile at. They don't call me "Mr. Meet & Greet" for nothing. So I made lots of friends. The only people who didn't really like us were the ones we sat near. I guess my stroller was in their way?? In my honest baby opinion they were just crabapples! I heard Mommy make a joke that a young family having fun at the beach must be really infuriating! Ahh, that Mommy and her sarcasm. Anyway, I've decided that I really like the beach. I hope that M&D take me again! Here's a funny picture of my family. Daddy was trying to take it of us, but the sun was in our eyes! Good thing for my sunhat (and the rest of my matching beach ensemble-- thanks Grandma Ginny!).

Summer Olympics 2020, here I come!!! I am currently enrolled in the "Birds" class at The Little Gym. I've been to two classes so far, and we've done a ton of cool stuff!! We start every class ringing bells and singing, but I find the wheels on the bins that hold the balls to be much more interesting. So Mommy usually sings by herself while trying to capture my interest. Maybe one day I'll throw her a bone. The real fun is when we got climb around on all the mats and equipment. We dangle from the parallel bars, walk on the balance beam, crawl up and down sloped mats... so cool! Mr. Paul (our teacher) and I went rolling down the mats this past Saturday. I like that guy. He's really nice! Everytime we perform one of the stunts, he's always claps and makes a big hoopla. Not necessary, but appreciated, nonetheless. There's not many kids there, so we all get lots of attention. The first class there were only two other girls, of course! But, there was a little boy there, Ryan, last week. Thank goodness! As much as I love being surrounded by all ladies, sometimes a little testosterone is needed. Plus, he's sixteen months old and walking and I'm hoping he can teach me a thing or two.

That class really tuckers me out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EVIE!
Saturday was little Evie's first birthday party! It was a really nice day-- a perfect day for a party. Evie's M&D got a really cool kiddie pool for us all to swim in, which was fun. I wasn't that into it, but at least I got to show off my swim trunks! And the food was delicious! They had two of my absolute faves-- corn on the cob and watermelon. YUM! Oh, and lots of fun buddies were there. Lucy was there with her M&D, Evie's three boy cousins, Alec, Will & Barbour were there, and another little boy named Charlie who I had never met before. He's a little older than me and walking quite well. I liked him, he was a very friendly young lad.

Evie was super cute all day, of course. You should've seen her bathing suit! Too cute! She even had a little watermelon dress that matched the cake that her mommy, Katie made (which was deee-lish, by the way.)She got lots of cool presents, too. She got a really cute Elmo doll because I guess she has a little thing for the guy. I think she liked the present that we got her. I hope so because I really hemmed and hawed in the toy store (see previous blog). :-)

Here's a random party shot that I really think captures the spirit of the day. Mommy is trying to entertain Lucy by making goofy faces at her and Evie's cousin, Will is asking Daddy about all his tattoos. I wonder where I was at this time. Playing with Evie's cool toys probably!

I just want to say, Evie, that it's been really great getting to know you. I really can't believe that when we met, I was four months old and you were the three month old at the movies with the crazy hair! Now, look at you! Happy Birthday, Evie!!

I'm back, everyone! Anita was kind enough to send M&D our camera battery back, so Mommy was able to upload our vacation photos! Yippie. I've been dying to blog about it. I think I'm experiencing blog withdrawal. Anyway, let me tell you about trip to Mass & Maine! It sure was fun! We left Thursday night and went to Daddy's friend Eric's house in Waltham, MA. I didn't know where I was, so I didn't really sleep great, but we sure had fun the next day. We walked around where Eric lived and went to the coolest toy store ever! M&D got me a really cool wooden helicopter and we even bought my pal, Evie's, birthday gift! Fun, fun! We found a really cool park, too, and took some really cute pics! I even got to wear Daddy's sunglasses!

That night, we rambled onto Maine. We arrived too late to do anything, but had so much fun the next day! It was totally action packed. First, we went to see Grandpa Rick and Uncle Brandon. Can you believe I have an uncle that is seven years old? He's really cute and very fun! Anyway, we took a walk to Mackworth Island together. We went towards the beach and I dunked my toes, but as usual, I was not a fan. I mean, really, can we get some water that's not freezing, folks? This feels nothing like my bath water! After that we hiked around the island and saw all sorts of cool stuff. I even took a little snooze. I love that sea air!
That night, we had a really nice dinner care of Anita and then M&D put me to bed and went out. I woke up, though, before they came home and had to be comforted by Eric's poor girlfriend whom I woke up from dead sleep with my crying. She was very nice to me, though, and entertained me until M&D returned. I just wanted to make sure they got home safely!

The next day we went to Daddy's friend, Geoff's 30th birthday party. It was held at his parent's house, which is right on Highland Lake in Falmouth, Maine. It was so pretty and such a nice day! The eats were delicious! And get this: Geoff proposed to his girlfriend, Kyanne. I don't really know what that means, but it seems pretty special because Mommy cried.

We had to leave the night of the party because Mommy had to work the next day. I slept all six hours home, which was great for M&D. But when we got home at 2am, I was wide awake and ready par-tay. I'm guessing from their reaction that, on the otherhand, was not so great. What can I say? After six hours in a carseat, you're ready to move around!

It was a wonderful weekend! Thanks to Eric and Anita for their great hospitality and to Daddy's friends for being so nice to me. I can't wait to go back!

# posted by The Joodles : 10:58 AM  2 Comments

Can you believe that M&D left our camera battery at Daddy's friend's house?!? Now we gotta get Schlemann's mommy to send it to us! Mommy left it charging in her kitchen outlet... all the way up in Yarmouth, Maine! Until then, though, I don't think they'll be a lot of pictures.

It's a real pity because we all went to Maine this past weekend and took some choice shots. Hopefully, later, they can use the adaptor and upload the pics from the weekend, so I can blog all about my weekend in New England. But what about tomorrow, when I'm in my 4th of July gear? I have a romper with a little dog on it that says "Home of the Brave!" Oh, the humanity.

Hopefully, Olan Mills (AKA my snap happy mother) will be up and running soon. I hope so! My summer gear is just TOO cute to *not* capture on film.

They even both forgot their toothbrushes. Honestly, get it together, guys.