4th of July

Happy 4th of July! My great uncle Dave and Nancy got me a red, white and blue outfit for the occasion. It says "USA Baby" but of course the tag says, "...made in China".
I sure have been one busy baby lately. I go to BBQ's almost every day it seems. There is always someone new who wants to meet me and food is always a good way to get mom and dad somewhere! I am really enjoying the nice cool weather here. No humidity is really nice. I am learning some new tricks here too. I used to just roll one way but now I can go both ways. I giggle a lot when someone tickles me, I am putting a lot of weight on my feet now when someone is holding me, I blow lots of rasberries and stick my tongue out. I am a very happy baby and so far I am letting anyone and everyone hold me. However, when I start to get tired I prefer someone to bounce me and walk with me. And then there's the sleeping thing. Some days I take 2 1/2 hour naps and some days I don't nap at all! I like to keep my parents on their toes. Back home I used to be such a good night sleeper but here I've been waking up a lot. Hello!...my parents flew me across the world, what do they expect?? I'm sure I'll get it all figured out just in time to go back home.

Family Fun!

My first week in the US we went to Sun River for some R&R. I got to meet my Aunt Lindy, Uncle Justin, Aunt Sarah, Uncle Scott and their cute doggy Lucy Belle. It's a good thing Sarah taught her "no licky" because she liked to get real close to my face! I can't say that I liked her but I didn't mind her either.











Our next stop was to visit some family on Mommy's side. I met my great Aunt Nancy, Uncle Phil, and cousins Angela, Tim, Derrill, and lots of kids. My little cousin Elle liked me the best I think.










We also went to Seattle and I got to meet my Great Grandad Herzog and Betty.
We got a picture with 4 generations of Zogs!



Uncle Scotty and Aunty Sarah got me the little Husky outfit so the Zog boys had to pose for another pic.

USA!

Well, after a very long plane ride I finally made it to the good ol' U.S. of A. I love all of the grass and the wide open space! The air is also much cleaner but mom and dad seem to be sneezing a lot...
I was a very good traveler. From Hong Kong to Tokyo I made lots of friends when mom and dad walked me up and down the aisle. Everyone wanted to talk to me and hold my hand. I accidentally spit up on one guy though...oops, sorry! Then from Tokyo to Seattle it was my bedtime so I slept almost the whole flight. Some lady brought me a bassinett but I preferred to sleep on mom. I really liked to stretch out and kick the girl sitting next to us.
It was great to see my Herzog grandparents again and I can't wait to meet all of mommy's friends.

"I'm Leavin' on a Jet Plane..."

I've had one busy week. Dad was busy with school, giving finals, and grading and Mom and I were busy shopping, packing and cleaning before our big plane ride. Okay, so maybe I wasn't much help...in fact I may have been a little stinker lately (not wanting to nap, wanting attention every second of the day, you know the usual...)

Rumor has it I will be going on a big trip soon. I'm not sure how I will like flying but how can 24 hours on a plane not be fun?! Here I am packing all my things!

I've gone out on adventures every day this week. One bad thing is that I do not like to sleep in my stroller. I prefer to be held thank you very much. So if we're out and about and I start getting sleepy I just start yelling at the top of my lungs. Mom tries to ignore me for a while but she always gives in and holds me. People still stop to tell me how fat...I mean how healthy I am. Lately I've been giving people blank stares and not smiling at them. But every time I pass a mirror or my reflection in a glass window, I stop to smile at the cute baby that mom is holding.

5 Months!

I'm 5 months old today! Mom says the time has gone by so fast she doesn't know what happened to her little baby....oh, yeah I was never that little! Let's see...what have I been up to? I'm a steamroller! If mom leaves the room for one second I'm on the other side of the living room! When she comes back she asks me how I got way over there and I just smile at her real big.
Dad made it back safe and sound from Vietnam and I surprised him by being at the airport to meet him. He was so happy to see me! He got me a cute little outfit there with a hat to go with it!
I still like my play gym and bouncy chair. I have to wear the seatbelt in my bouncy chair now cause mom caught me trying to escape it today. I was just seeing if I could roll out of it... and yep, I can! Mom and I joined a mommy's group a few weeks ago and just yesterday we had a toy exchange and I got some great new toys! One is a jumperoo and I can't wait to get in that thing! I just have to learn to sit up on my own first.

On Mondays mom takes me to golf club with dad. We go to a driving range right on the water and mom and dad take turns holding me and hitting golf balls. On Wednesday I got to stay with my first ever babysitter! Luckily I still won't take a bottle so mom couldn't leave me for more than 3 hours. I know what I'm doin! I did have a fun time and I think mom and dad had a nice dinner out.
Speaking of those two, they've started playing this great new game with me. One of them holds me while the other chases me. I squeal and giggle really loud. When they catch me they tickle me! I can't get enough of this game, I just scream louder and louder.
I also like to grab anything I can get my little hands on. I usually try to eat it shortly after I grab it. My new thing is grabbing the people on the train that I sit by. It's usually real crowded so everyone is within reaching distance. One guy was trying to sleep but I kept waking him up by pinching his arm and grabbing his shirt. Dad is trying to teach me to keep my hands to myself.

As you can see, I'm one busy boy. Sorry but I don't have a weight update this month. I don't have to go back to the clinic till after summer vacation. Yippee!

Mommy and Me

Here are some cute pictures of Mommy and Me. My favorite thing to do now is pull her ears and kiss her all over her face! I'm just getting her back from all the kisses she gives me....only she thinks mine are a little wetter. Sometimes I even try to kiss dad but he's a little prickly.

It has been raining a lot here so we've been stuck inside. We did venture out once and got caught in the rain. Mom had me pouched in the baby bjorn but forgot the umbrella so we had to run back home as fast as we could. I thought that was pretty funny. We often get scolded by the Chinese grandmas here in our village. They don't think mom dresses me warm enough. For some reason they think I should be bundled up. Did I mention it's like 80 degrees with 100% humidity?? They also love to touch my hair. I guess blond isn't so common around here. One little old man even tried to touch my head while I was sleeping on the bus. Luckily mom kept turning so he couldn't.

Speaking of hair, mine's growing a little bit, mostly on top. Mom likes to brush it over to the side so I look like a handsome little boy.
I love to eat my hands too. It doesn't matter which finger I suck, they're all good! Sometimes I manage to get my thumb in the right way but it usually pops out and I have to put a different finger in. I also enjoy eating mom or dad's hands too. Basically anything that gets within range of my mouth is in danger of some serious slobber.

I'm rolling over like crazy now. Sometimes mom will put a toy just out of my reach and watch me go get it. I usually roll once and then inch my way over. Unfortunately sometimes I grab it and throw it even further away and then yell cause it's so frustrating. Dad has finally seen me roll now too. He says I'm such a big boy.

Visiting Mom's school...

Here I am at school! Now I know that in Chinese culture the kids start school early but this is ridiculous! Actually mom said we were just visiting. Her class was performing chapel so we decided to go watch. They did such a good job, I had fun listening to them sing.
After the show I made my rounds visiting all of mom's friends. All of the kids wanted to touch me but mom only let them touch my feet. Doesn't she know I'm ticklish!

Little man on the move...

I've graduated from wiggling to scooting now. I trick mom by showing up the opposite way she puts me in my crib. When she comes to get me my legs are where my head used to be! Then for one naptime I really threw her for a loop. She came to check on me after an hour and saw me wiggling...well not long after that I usually let out a yell to tell her to come get me. She thought she had a few minutes so she went to hang the laundry. When she was done she still didn't hear me so she had to go check again and whoops, she couldn't find me! I had scooted from the middle of the bed, past a blockade of pillows all the way to the curtains where I was happily eating them. Too bad for me cause I think that was the last time I will get to sleep on her bed!


It's just me and mom this week, dad took a trip with his class to Vietnam. Before he left we played the flying game which I really like. He also left me a sweet message on the stuffed ape. Mom said he just recorded his voice. I'm not so sure... maybe dad is an ape now?!
I love to put everything in my mouth these days.
I still like to play under my playgym and I'm strong enough now to pull the toys down when I want them. However, the bouncy chair is a different story....
You see, the toys seem to be attached really well. I try to hard to get them to my mouth but they just don't reach. Don't worry, I yell at them at the top of my lungs. Funny it doesn't seem to make a difference but it sure does make mom laugh. When I see her laughing I forget all my worries and start laughing too.

Lil' Shark

Wow! What a BIG bathtub! It has been so hot here that we decided to cool off in a giant bathtub. I got to wear my new "shark" swim trunks and everything (thanks Aunt Linda, Uncle Joe, Caitlin, Colin and Haley). I wasn't sure what to think at first but as long as the water didn't go past my belly I was okay. I mainly liked to splash my feet! I overheard my parents say they were going to get me a pool next year to put on our rooftop so I can go swimming everyday! Boy, will that be fun!

4 Months!

Yep, I'm a big boy now. 4 months and still growing like a weed. My new favorite toys are my feet! I scoot myself way down in my bouncy chair and play with the toys using my feet. It's a whole new world for me. However, they can't quite make it to my mouth yet....something big and round sits in between...don't tell but I think it's my tummy! I have also been working very hard on lifting my head and keeping it steady. I've rolled over a few times but I still need some practice at that game. I'm good at rolling from my tummy to my back but the other way is a little hard. I'm too big for my baby bathtub so I get to take a real bath in the big tub...with mom or dad of course. I like to look back at who's holding me and then I get my neck scrubbed out real good. You may not have noticed but most of the time you can't see my neck...I've got a few chins covering it up pretty well. I love to splash but I do not like my face being washed. Right after my bath I usually get really sleepy and it doesn't take me long to fall asleep.
Okay, so I went in for another check up and wouldn't you know it, they stuck my leg with that darn shot again! Of course I cried for a few seconds and mom hugged me real tight and sang sweet songs to me and then I was all better. My parents squirted some orange medicine into my mouth when we got home, but I quickly tried to spit that stuff out. Oh yeah, so I weighed in at only 18.5 lbs and I am 27 inches long now. I am definitely slowing down in the weight department. My mom thought for sure I was over 20 lbs ...oh well, maybe next month! Here are a few more pictures from our photo shoot. I kept tipping over! Enjoy!

Traveling in Hong Kong

I love exploring and seeing new things!

Taxis, Buses, Trains...Oh My!
I get to ride in green taxis, mini buses, double decker buses and trains! I like the big double deckers the best but the mini buses aren't bad either. I love bumpy rides! The only problem is red lights. I do not like stopping and I usually cry whenever we have to. Mom and dad try to keep bouncing me in their seat but they can't trick me. But as soon as we start moving again I'm all better.
I sure do keep myself busy these days. I don't let mom stay at home all day because I've decided that is too boring. I get tired of my toys and I need to see the world! So here are a few pictures of me traveling around the big city. I like my stroller now and of course I love to be carried anywhere. I'm even big enough to face out in the baby bjorn now...it's a lot better view than daddy's chest (no offense dad!) Even if it is my naptime I rarely ever fall asleep when I'm out and about. If I do, it's usually right when my parents are getting into a taxi and they have to take me out of my stroller, or when we're almost home.... That figures!

As you may know, Asia is not known for it's "plump-ness" so it's not surprising I hear the word "fat" quite often. When I'm on the train it never fails, I hear people talking in Chinese and then all of a sudden the words "fat baby!" come out of their mouths! (It's funny how they know those English words...) I'm not offended though, I could crush them! Plus, Mama always says there's more of me to love.
Most days Mom and I walk up to a place called The Wishing Tree and look around. There is usually a tour bus up there and lots of people walking around. Maybe next time I'll have mom bring the camera and take a picture of it. There is also a little playground there and I know I will love playing on it when I'm bigger.