Jazz Handzzzzzzzzz!!!!

Quinn's parents both participated in 'Show Choir' (did I say that out loud) while in High School. So, he is pretty much destined to shake it, sing it, and yes- jazz hand it! The past couple of weeks Quinn has begun to feel the rhythm and share his groove. I should have left the video going a bit longer on the first video so you could really hear him hit those high notes! There are three (mostly for those hard core Q fans) videos to share all the ways he likes to let loose.

Yes, I CAN stand up in my crib!

But I don't know HOW to sit down! For the past few (too many) nights Quinn has been standing up in his crib screaming because he can't get down (at around 8:30pm, sometimes 1:30am, or what about 3:30am). Oh joy for mama and dada! So today began 'sit down class'. John started it in the morning with pillows around the coffee table, and I continued the training in crib with the help of Peter Rabbit. Quinn got very curious when Peter Rabbit went down the "hole" and had to follow after him. Tonight will be the big test to see if Q learned anything today. I sure wish Peter Rabbit could help out (without mama or dada) in the wee hours of the morning!

A Good dose of G-ma and G-pa

Quinn had a Great visit with his Grandparents. He got lots of cuddles, laughs, and enjoyed having two extra sets of eyes to admire his cuteness! Q's M&D also enjoyed the Grandparent factor (for oh so many reasons) and will miss sharing all the fun with them on a daily basis. Thank goodness for Skype. It makes us feel not that far away. G-ma and G-pa headed off this morning to Montreal to see Aunt Jill, Uncle Pete and the rest of the Pozar/Verreault family where they are sure to enjoy more fun, love, and snow!

Merry Christmas to All....

And to all a Good Night! We skyped with the Niekrasz family, the Pozar/Verreault family, and made a toast to all of those we are far away from tonight. Wishing you all a very Happy Day, a Merry Night, and many good wishes in the year to come. Love to you all~

Christmas Carol

While most people are celebrating Christmas on this special day. We in the Niekrasz family celebrate for a different reason...it's gramma's (mom's) birthday! So mom, here's a little special gift in pictures that we prepared for you. Of course, Quinn decided to eat it, but we captured it before it was entirely consumed. Burp!

Happy Birthday Mom / Gramma / Carol! Enjoy the sun and 70 degree weather!

Love,
John, Jenny, Quinn, Cindy, and Harvey

PS. The ukelele is Quinn's new passion, a present from Mommy to Dad and son.
PSS. When you get here in the Spring we want to take you to the Willows Tea Room for a Birthday treat! http://www.willowtearooms.co.uk/

A White Christmas

I have always dreamed of one, and have now experienced my first! A special year of many firsts to celebrate. Of course the most memorable is that it is our little guys first Christmas. Yesterday on Christmas Eve we woke up to a layer of fresh snow and were delighted to get even more as the day went on. We enjoyed a beautiful walk along the River Leith, a Christmas lunch out where G-pa got a special cup of melted chocolate (Italian hot chocolate= yum), and Quinn was all smiles for the blanket of white that covered our street!

Funny faces, sounds, and holy moly I think another tooth!

Q continues to entertain us with his ever changing facial expressions. I wonder sometimes where he comes up with them?!! Our new favorite is when he squints his eyes when smiling. He likes to play with his tongue and often makes some funny sounds when doing so. I am thinking he is feeling his teeth in his mouth and might be soothing yet another lower one coming in. We have a new nickname for him right now, because of all these teeth. So Santa will be gifting "Shark" this Christmas instead of Quinn!

I can do it!

Quinn is working on feeding himself. Some meals or snacks are messier than others. Spoon feeding on his own is a meal full of spillage. Thank goodness for the washing machine! Here you will see a clean treat and one that ends with Quinn feeling very proud!

A couple hours spent with my Grandparents....

and I am all smiles! Today I got to spend some time over at my G-ma and G-pa's flat. I loved climbing on my G-ma's red coat while my mama cleaned house, took a shower, and got ready for the health visitor.
Good news is that I (Quinn) am in the 95th percentile for height (surprise), in the 50th percentile for weight, and am an all over healthy, progressing very well little tike (except that my parents want more sleep---whats up with that?)! The health visitor also said I was really cute...that was a shocker!

Where The Wild Things Are~

Today we went to the Big Scream showing of "Where the Wild Things Are". It brought back some memories of the great story from childhood, (with an added psychological understanding... being this much older. Here's hoping Quinn doesn't need to experience the land of the 'Wild Things' to learn a lesson).



After the film we walked outside to find the first snow of the season. We walked in a few snowflakes to our Mexican food grocer and picked up some goods for a fiesta later this weekend. Then we enjoyed lunch at "Peter's Yard" where we warmed up with some yummy soup and freshly baked bread. The restaurant has huge windows where we got to watch the snow fall. Then we bundled one more time and walked home across the city in many types of snow (small flakes, huge flakes, and balls) a nice winter treat for the Californians!

It's beginning to Look a lot like Christmas!

The tree is in it's place, Quinn is sporting his holiday wear, and we took a walk up to Princes Street to see all the festivities. What a delight for all. We watched the sun set (at 3:30), the fairy lights turn on, all while sipping some mulled wine. We will be making this winter walk many more times before it disappears into the night like Santa's Sleigh!

They're Here!

G-Ma and G-Pa Warren arrived safe and sound yesterday morning and got a good dose of Quinn! We shared lots of hugs, a walk, Manhattans (of course) and lots of chat around the Christmas tree. The fun has only just begun!

Yes, I see you!

Here's Quinn doing one of his new tricks of pulling himself up on the furniture. He's a little shaky here and there and sometimes ends up doing the splits! He prefers a real person to climb up on, over, and around. So it's a good thing G-Ma and G-Pa Warren are getting on a plane today to come be another set of jungle gyms for Quinn to play on.

Winter hat, bright-eyes, and lights!

The weather is chilly, actually below freezing on some days, so we have been keeping Quinn extra warm with hats, mittens, warm suits and an extra foot warmer to keep him snug in his buggie. The Christmas lights are starting to pop up everywhere. Since the sun is setting around 3:30-4 pm, a late afternoon walk always gets Quinn bright- eyed seeing the sparkle from the lights that turn on. He also makes the same sound "iih" whenever he sees a light. So we hear this sound/word come from him a lot!

Let's Swing!

It's official, we can play on the playground now! Quinn is pretty much able bodied to play with the big kids...on the baby swings at least! On Wednesday, Quinn and I met up with our friends Kate and Olly for a turn on the swings.




Hey Olly, want to race?


We tried out the teeter-totter too. It got Olly to share his charming smile!


It's very tiring playing on the playground!

A rub dub, just relaxing in the tub!

Quinn is our little rock star (especially with hair styled that way), and this week he rocked three teeth! Two top teeth are in, and one other front top tooth is nearly here (almost a total of 5 teeth). A good way to help our little rocker unwind from his days is a good soak. When he first gets in he always gives a big yawn (I will get on video soon), followed by telling us what he got up to that day (see below). Some baths are more relaxing than others. Some include much more splashing, trying to climb out of the tub, and lots of laughs with a dropping washcloth that talks (Daddy's voice). The bath captured below was a more mellow experience (with some smiles of course). Just what a little guy needs who has had the teeth knockin' on the door. Heck - rock star's mom needs a relaxing bath too!





Note to the Grammas...the water is white from a milky oil we use to keep his lovely skin not so dry in this Scottish winter weather! ;)

Just another cute video

Quinn is quite a crawler these days -- not fully up on his all fours, but doing the commando crawl very well. He's also massively cranky, since his 3rd and 4th teeth are just breaking through. The combination means he's using the "stranded beetle" move quite a lot. It's his way of saying "pick me up".

A day to say THANKS!

I am thankful for So much in my life...
Tonight we spent some nice time on skype with both sides of the family. This summer we traveled to CA and saw a lot of our family and friends we hadn't seen in a long time, and Everyday I am thankful for these two guys... My two guys!