Friday, March 28, 2008

Everyone should have one of these....

It's been a very long week so I'm going to keep this update short...

On Wednesday Sebastian's Nonee took the trek in from Guelph to spend the day with her favourite grandchild (he's the only one at the moment, so I'm allowed to say that!!) as Evelyn, our daycare provider, was unavailable. I loved being able to come straight home from work, as opposed to having to go to Evelyn's, and Sebastian seemed to have really enjoyed his day with his Nonee (he even wrote us a letter telling us about all the fun things they did!). Makes us wish we had Nonee with us every day!

And of course, as for the title of this blog look no further than the pictures below! Sebastian decided to throw most of his dinner on the floor Thursday night and then decided he wanted to help me clean up. Can't really complain since he helped clean up! Which made me wonder what really is so wrong with child labour?!? Ha! Anyways, the pics were too cute not to share!

Hope everyone enjoys their weekend,
Kim





Saturday, March 22, 2008

Easter Weekend




Our holiday weekend started off with a trek to the zoo on Friday morning. It was much colder out than we had expected and it wasn't until we started taking the path less travelled by (meaning we went the opposite way of all the other parents and their kids) that we wished we had dug up our long johns! Despite the briskness it was a nice morning strolling through the zoo and Sebastian really seemed to enjoy the tigers this time, stating "Tiger! Tiger!" when we picked him up so he could see them strolling below.

On Saturday we took Sebastian to his first Rainbow Songs class on the Danforth. This is a group that I heard about from another mom at our Gymboree Play class. As we had taken the Gymboree Music program we were looking forward to something with actual musicians playing music and we weren't disappointed. Although Sebastian spent the majority of the music class going back and forth between Jamie and I he definitely got something out of it as he now won't stop singing "Roly Poly" and doing the actions! So even though it seemed he didn't get much out of it, he definitely did!

We then spent our Sunday morning lazying about while Jamie baked fresh cinnamon rolls from scratch (yum!) and Sebastian went on his Easter egg hunt. We actually didn't colour any eggs this year and opted instead for plastic ones that we could fill with treats for Sebastian. Surprisingly he did quite well, as Jamie hid approx. 8 eggs around the living room and Sebastian found them all! Even the ones that weren't so obvious (i.e., there was one hidden in an empty cookie box and another hidden on the tracks of his train).

We spent the rest of our day in Guelph with family celebrating Easter and Aunt Judy's birthday. Sebastian, despite deciding that he was not going to nap at all, was in good spirits and he was fast asleep in the car before we even got to the end of the road!

All in all it was a busy, but fun, weekend.
Hope everyone enjoyed their Easter,
Kim



(A quick blurb about the hat seen in both pictures. Sebastian was given his "eggplant" hat as an infant by his Nonee. This is his indoor hat... for some reason, he just loves putting it on and wearing it around the house. He usually remembers where he leaves it and if by chance it's moved he will go around the house saying "hat, hat, hat" until we come across it. Which is, in case you were wondering, why he is wearing a hat in the pictures!)

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

18 Months Ago Today....

...Sebastian entered into this world.

Basil and Sebastian, Smiling
(Photo courtesy of Geoff)


Can you believe it? Sebastian is now 1 1/2 years old! Where did the time go? And what is even more strange is that, compared to when he turned one, I am actually looking forward to Sebastian's 2nd birthday!!

You see, what I've realized is that as time passes Sebastian just keeps getting cooler and cooler and the more fun we have. Sure he was cute and fun as a baby, but it's amazing the kind of things an 18 month old can do! Which of course, is my segue into a long post updating everyone on all the fun and exciting things Sebastian can do (hope you like to read!)!

At 18 months of age Sebastian....
- Talks non-stop. He can say at least over 30 words now, is pronouncing words clearly (for the most part) and is beginning to put words together (i.e., "How are you?").
- Uses his imagination! This one I love! Sebastian is beginning to use his imagination and play make-believe. He will often be seen using a toy and acting something out with it. We don't always know exactly what it is exactly he is acting out, but it's cute all the same!
- Runs! It is so much fun watching him run and bounce around the house. He's still a tad bit clumsy but I'm sure if we had more space he would be running laps around the place!
- Walks down the street. Sebastian and I went for our first walk down the street the other day. Of course walking isn't anything new, but now that the snow is melting we walked down the street side-by-side holding hands. It was sweet and I'm really looking forward to going on more walks like this.
- Recognizes people and says their names when he sees them (or a picture of them). Sebastian will also refer to his Uncle Danny as a geek (ah, the tradition continues!) and is able to connect people together. For example, if we ask him about his Nonee/Grandma he'll say Papa/Grandpa. He also enjoys calling me Kim - thanks Baz!
- Recognizes some shapes and colours. The other night while eating dinner he started pointing at the shapes along his plate and saying their correct names. I actually didn't know he could do this... so far he knows circle, heart and star... he'll repeat triangle and square but I don't believe he recognizes the shapes just yet. As for colours, he recognizes purple and sometimes yellow.
- Colouring. We're amazed at how much Sebastian loves to colour. He will sit in his chair and colour for a good hour before he gets bored. If he's asked too he will make circles and he's just beginning to attempt to colour in the lines (actually, he scribbles back and forth in a linear pattern with the crayon and is very determined in colouring/scribbling over the object).
- Puzzles. Sebastian is just learning how to complete puzzles. He has one wooden puzzle with insects that he is now very good at doing. Within the past two weeks we've seen a vast change regarding this as he's now able to place the insect in the correct place, whereas before he really had no idea what he was doing!
- Reading. I think I would have to say that this is Sebastian's favourite thing to do at the moment. He will get a book and sit quietly either independently or with us, flipping the pages and talking about the various objects he can see. Along with pointing out the various objects he's also quite proficient with matching the animal to the correct animal sound. And we must say, he does a pretty good seal impersonation! =)
- Follows direction. This is one of my favourite things! Sebastian will do what he is told and it is unbelievable. Now of course, there's moments when he doesn't want to come and sit and get his boots on, but for the most part, for example, when asked to come and sit so that he can put his boots on, he does! Same with going upstairs for a diaper change! Even though I think this one has more to do with being able to walk up the stairs than actually getting a clean bum!
- Forget sitting in the highchair, Sebastian likes to pull out the big chairs and sit in them to have his snack, complete his puzzles and/or just look at books.
- Prefers to use our forks and spoons opposed to the toddler ones we have (and is actually quite good at using them).
- When asking for something he will often say "Please" by either speaking it or using the sign for please.
- Sebastian now dances along with me to the music as opposed to being forced to dance with me (as I'd often just pick him up and dance around the room). It is so much fun being able to boogie in the livingroom with my boy! And his rhythm isn't too bad either!
- Sebastian prefers to walk up the stairs holding our hands as opposed to crawling
- Attempts to give the cats hugs and kisses and gets visibly upset when they run away from him (poor kid has yet to learn the intricacies of living with cats).
- Lies quietly and reads a book while getting his diaper changed.
- Says "coffee" whenever we start the grinder for our coffee beans (now if only we could teach him how to make our coffee!)
- Drinks from a cup, as opposed to the sippy cup, and sips the cereal milk out of his bowl (prior to placing the bowl on his head).
- Is now able to get most of the soup in his mouth as opposed to on him!

And of course with all these wonderful achievements our lil' passionate boy would not disappoint, as he definitely lets us know when his independence is being trampled on! Yes, we're talking about the so-called Terrible Two's. Not a big deal as it's nice to see Sebastian wants his independence and he's pretty easy to distract, but it's interesting all the same to watch Sebastian assert his independence. There are some days when Jamie & I could swear Sebastian is training us as opposed to us guiding him! =)

So, those are just some of the things that Sebastian is doing at the moment. He definitely keeps us busy but we don't mind...life is much more fun sharing it with Sebastian and I'm sure he'd agree with that!

Thank you to everyone who's shared the past 18 months with us!

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

It's All Going to the Dogs...

On our way home from work tonight Sebastian and I were stopped at a red light. Sebastian kept saying "dog" "dog" over and over again but I couldn't find a dog in sight. Just as the light turned green I looked up to my right and saw a billboard advertising 101 Dalmatians. I exclaimed, "Yes honey you're right, those are dogs" but secretly thought to myself, "Damn Disney! Stay away from my son!" It was my awareness of the media having an impact on Sebastian that freaked me out, not that he has a clue what 101 Dalmatians are or anything like that. But it left me to question, how does one raise a free thinker in a world in which our thoughts are manipulated by external influences?

Oh well...I'm thinking too much again....it was just 101 Dalmations and it's not like animators ever write words in the stars. =P

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Big Boy


Tonight I thought I would try to see how Sebastian fared sitting at the table with us for dinner.
He's actually always sat at the table but tonight I removed the tray to the highchair. As Sebastian is such a terrific eater and amazes us with his table manners (i.e., he says "more please" "all done" "thank you" and uses his utensils well), I thought it was about time we graduated to the table.

Well, as always he didn't disappoint and it makes me wonder how much longer he'll even need to be in the highchair? Now let's hope breakfast goes just as well.

Sunday, March 2, 2008


After having a busy start to the weekend we spent today relaxing and enjoying the beautiful weather by taking a trek through the ravine. If I haven't said it before I'll say it now. I love Bob.

Who's Bob? Well, Bob is our stroller. We purchased Bob to replace our Peg, and although I like the Peg I was so tired of having a sore back and I didn't want to experience another winter of trying to push a four-wheel stroller through the snow. Not that I want this entry to be an ad for the stroller.. but it was so nice being able to trek through the snow covered trails without much effort. After last winter and attempting to get our Peg through the snow (let alone the sand at the beach in the summer) this was a walk in the park! Ha Ha!


Sebastian has also spent the week practicing saying the names of our family members. This started after the wedding last weekend in which he kept repeating "Erica" during speeches. The only name I can't get him so say is Dan...however, to compensate I taught him how to say "Geek". Good enough if you ask me!! =P

And last but not least, this weekend also marked the birth of a new friend for Sebastian. Congratulations to Geoff and Pierrette who welcomed into the world the birth of their first child, Christophe Joseph Wiseman. Looking forward to meeting our new friend soon!!

Wishing everyone a wonderful week,
Kim