who the cap fit

Our fair-haired boy is definitely vulnerable to the sun's harmful rays, so an excursion to the park means a healthy application of sunscreen and the selection of a rakish and flattering hat. It doesn't seem like it's possible that he could be cuter with his curls covered up, but apparently it's so.

He also got a new HazMat-esque bib that helps to minimize the collateral damage at mealtime. He's been diligently practicing his sippy-cup skills, with an assist from Grandma.

life and how to live it

As we all know, life is an education. Here's some of the things Cassidy has been learning:
- It never hurts to ask for what you want.
- Grandmas are very helpful at figuring out shapes.
- Pigeons are put on this earth to be chased.
- The slide can be scary, so make sure someone's holding your hand.
- Always wear your sun hat. Girls dig it.
- You have to keep up with your email, or it gets overwhelming.
- Babies should have a calendar to help plan their busy days.
- At the end of a busy weekend, there's nothing better than crashing out on Mom's lap.

happy feet

Here's some pictures from the last couple of weeks, including Cassidy demonstrating his new foot-oriented eating style, wearing his sun hat, practicing his come-hither look in the mirror, and singing for his supper. We've also got a photo from his recent excursion to Fairyland with Freya.

I'm just a boy with a new haircut

It was a busy weekend for young Cassidy. In addition to the usual agenda of playing, eating, and sleeping, he got a visit from Freya (along with DD and Mike) on Sunday. He had fun showing Freya his new garage.

More significantly, Cassidy got his first haircut. We just trimmed the bangs and sides a little so it would stay out of his eyes - everyone agrees that it's cute, and that he looks more worldly and sophisticated.

don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing

We took Rachel out for brunch this morning to celebrate her one year anniversary of moving to San Francisco to live with us. Afterward, we stopped by Holly Park for some playtime. As you can see, Cassidy thoroughly enjoyed himself.

He's doing well - still flirting with walking. He'll do it if you hold his hand, or if he's not thinking about it. Otherwise he feels that crawling is a much more efficient way to get from point A to point B. He makes a lot of incredibly cute baby noises that may or may not be words; it's hard to know how much meaning is behind them. His molars have come through and now the canines are on their way in. After this, hopefully the poor guy will get a break from teething for a while, at least until his second-year molars show up.

jellyfish heaven

On Sunday we drove down to Monterey with Cassidy. We got there in the late afternoon and headed out to Asilomar State Park for a walk along the beach. It was Cassidy's first up-close exposure to the ocean, and his mind was appropriately blown.

We spent the next day at the always-great Monterey Bay Aquarium. Incredibly cool seahorses, an awesome reef tank, unearthly jellyfish, sea otters, penguins, and much more. Cassidy liked the touch pool (he got to touch a starfish) and the kids' play area as well. Some of the sense of wonderment was lost on him; he's still a baby, so everything is amazing. More than once Holly and I would be staring at some incredible anemone or sea dragon and notice him with the same amazed gaze checking out an exit sign or someone's earring.

Tuesday morning we took a walk along the shore and checked out the waves, which he found quite cool. Then we headed home; by this point he was pretty wiped out, and so he crashed in that way that only babies can.