Playmates

Austin started off the new year with some playdates.

Last week, we headed up to the Dings to belatedly give the girls their Christmas presents. Plus, we wanted to see how Maven and Austin are stacking up.

Austin's definitely catching up with Maven in weight, but Austin is a little bit more advanced in crawling. Maven was far more interested in Austin than Austin was in her. A smiling Maven kept patting and jumping on Austin, who just kept trying to play with their toys. She even put her mouth on his head. It was as if he was saying, "Girls are yucky."

That's a Cheerio stuck on Austin's face. He tried Cheerios, without much success, for the first time at the Dings.

Still, he had a great time at the Dings' house with both Maven and Sedona.

Today, Austin had a playdate at the park with his buddies from the "Mommy Matters" class that I took over the summer.

Allistair shared some of his cool toys.

Bobby came later and showed off his impressive crawling and standing skills.

The boys didn't look up much, but here they are together at Hart Park:

Unfortunately, Austin caught his first cold, so he wasn't very energetic or playful. We had to leave early so he could try to take a nap. Sleeping has been challenging. Wish us luck with getting through our first illness.

Here's a leftover family picture from Christmas. Aunt Karen sent it over this week. Family pictures are rare:

Austin would like to welcome potential new playmate, Ella Navarro, who was born Thursday. Ellyn's a bit busy with the newborn now, but I'm sure she'll be posting updates soon on her blog.