When Mom's away

This is what happens when Dad is left in charge:

Plus this:

And some of this:

birthday: big #1

Typically, the first item of business on the boy's schedule is to make it known to his parents that he is hungry. But on his special day, young Theo wanted to first listen to music. The little family then headed downstairs for a birthday breakfast of berry pancakes and the opening of a few presents. Turns out the boy is not too fond of pancakes (yet), and the loud noise his new toy tractor made scared him to tears (but it's now his favorite toy). It's only fair to mention, however, that the previous late-night partying had caught up to him with a fever later in the day. He was very thankful for the many happy birthday wishes from so much of his family and friends.

halloween weekend

For his first halloween, the boy picked pumpkins, went to the Circleville Pumpkin Festival with his parents, dressed up as a care bear, and went trick or treating with his neighborhood buddies. He stayed up late not 3, but 4 nights in a row until the witching hour of 7pm.

mid summer

Theo at his happiest: a nice, safe distance away from the scary water fountains.



Next time: peanuts and cracker jacks (and maybe a Dodger Dog)

Captain T-Wolf and his fellow pirates.

CMA

Here are some highlights from the boy's visit to the Columbus Museum of Art:

your move

theo as a puppet

sweet baby, party baby

Singing with his dadums.

peek-a-boo

Peak-a-boo, with just a touch of terror:

The man behind the curtain:

Fellow Munchkinlandmen

Theo and his best buddy Jude frequent the zoo. Sometimes a nearby leaf, a wooden railing, or a zoo keeper picking up bat dung catches their interest more than the animals: Recently, he and another buddy, Graham , from down the street, apparently coordinated outfits for Eliot's puppy dog birthday party (where the hostess, by the way, outdid Martha Stewart):

The boy's new associate from next door is a little bit older than Theo's other friends and literally has his "people" call Theo's "people" to arrange for some hanging out. For example, the boys got together for an afternoon dip with the parents. All was going swimmingly until the inaugural dunk:

out with the old, in with the new

old

place new
place

Theo is adjusting well to his new home: a little more space, rad neighbors, a nice backyard (complete with tree swing as seen above), etc. This summer seems promising...

happy father's day!

#O

Being the son of one with a thing for teeth, the boy should hardly have been surprised at the excitement surrounding the recent eruption of his lower central incisors: #s O and P. In the days prior to their emergence, they boy enjoyed daily gum massages, a few doses of bubble-gum flavored medicine and out-of-the-ordinary, middle-of-the-night dates with his parents. Considering the horror stories they had been told, the boy’s parents thought that things went over better than expected. And adding to his mother’s delight, Theo already loves to brush his teeth. Take a look at these lovely gems:

its a family affair

Theo Sits

Sometimes getting back up is difficult:

Mother's Day

Much of the young boy's life has been spent prostrate on his back. Although he feels a lack of independence at times, there is a figure in his life that has always been there for him, bringing him solace in trying times, keeping vigilance over him while he sleeps, and prompting a loving smile or a look of wonder to Theo’s little face. This last Sunday, May 9, 2010, the Carruth residence celebrated Ceiling Fan Day to honor all the ceiling fans in his life.

Incidentally, he also loves his Mother lots and lots.

solid!

A week shy of his 6-month birthday, the boy’s mother tries feeding him ‘solids.’ Judging by his reactions, Theo doesn’t care too much for the rice cereal, but his parents made comparable expressions themselves upon tasting the stuff. On the other hand, the spoon and the shiny bowl are of great interest to him. He does not appear to ingest much, and he provides ample—though indecipherable—commentary throughout the experience, often talking more during this activity than other times of the day.
Polka dots are the new denim

looks lovely

Other points of interest:

Theo dances a st. patrick's day jig to the delight of his audience

The meets his aunt eva and uncle kirk for the first time

contest

As though he could further impress his mother, the boy devises a series of challenges against his father. The first challenge is a beard contest. The father thought this one was in the bag since he has been shaving fortnightly since he was 26 ½. The results, however, tell a different story:
BEFORE

AFTER

The father suspects foul play.

special thanks to jon and nat, creators of the beard

unwrapped

At 3 1/2 months of age, Theo summons up the courage to admit that he is addicted to sucking on his pacifier and being wrapped throughout the night. His parents decide to help him tackle the problem cold turkey, not wanting to deal with the hassle of weaning him off little-by-little. As they kiss him good night and close the door, they take a deep breath as the brave boy takes on the task of putting himself to sleep. He puts up a long, good fight and finally falls asleep for a mere 45 minutes before waking to eat. Strengthening his resolve after this nourishing meal, however, he takes to sleep like warm butter on toast and sleeps a delicious 8 hours, learning to suck on his fingers for comfort.

note: Theo has made an effort to never sleep this long again

Week 12

This week Theo comes to the realization that he would prefer to have his own room. Instead of breaking the news to his parents, he decides that he will wake up about every hour and a half feigning some variant of hunger, boredom, rage, pain etc. In this way, he tricks his sleep-deprived parents into thinking that moving him into his own room is actually their idea. At first content with his success, he soon realizes a lack of foresight in his plan as he failed to consider how acquiring additional shares in the family’s available apartment space results in a decrease in time spent in his parents’ presence, which he values greatly. Luckily, this dilemma is easily remedied by simply continuing with the initial scheme, i.e., calling for his parents throughout the night to soothe him. “Brilliant!”

Theo's victory dance