Zoe dropped us off at the house on her way to work, and we drove the dogs out to daycare. Enzo fell asleep on the drive back home. I was in no hurry to get back home because Alex had the day off, so I drove Enzo around while he took a little 30 minute nap. We stopped by the house for a bottle of milk and then off to Gymboree.

Everyone at Gymboree was like, "where's Alex?" and made a big deal about me being there, like I never spend time with my kid or something. Enzo was having a blast, running around, climbing on everything, but then he decided that he wanted to climb up and down the stairs that go out to the front door. When I brought him back into the play area (against his will), he started crying and wouldn't stop. So we left. I heard someone say, "I think he misses his nanny." My days of going to Gymboree are numbered.

We stopped by the house for a quick snack, and then drove down to Swork, a local coffee shop that has a play area for kids. Owen and his mom were there. They sort of played together, but were mainly doing their own thing. Back home, I tried and failed to feed Enzo lunch. He did want a big frosty bottle of milk, and went down for a 90 minutes nap (despite the gardeners with leaf blowers right outside his window), which was great.

After nap, we had a snack lunch, and then drove to Silver Lake to pick up a chair for his room. Driving around in the air conditioned car was the best place to be today. It was unbearably hot, in the upper 90s. We went straight out to pick up the dogs, with a brief pit stop at the bookstore.

Wes and her parents came by later to play in the pool, and then we all went out to dinner when Zoe got home. Dinner actually went pretty well. Definitely helps to have two kids. They sat across the table from each other, trading toys and crayons. It gives you that extra 10 or 15 minutes you need to actually eat your own meal.

Mommy stayed out with Wes' mommy to have a drink and complain about daddy, so Enzo and I went home, had a bath, read some books, and went to bed.

After work today, we just hung around the house and played. Way to hot for Thursday market. Enzo cooled off by spraying himself in the face again and again with his water spray bottle. It's funny because even after the 20th time in a row he sprays himself, he still seems surprised that it happened again. He didn't eat a whole lot for dinner, but seemed fine after his big bottle of milk later. He was running around crazy after his bedtime, but went to sleep without a peep when I put him in the crib.

After work, Enzo was in a fun mood and enjoyed his lasagna and pizza, but enjoyed feeding Betty and making a big mess even more. We went on the usual family walk, then hung out and read some books. Enzo started farting again, so daddy asked him again if he wanted to go poop on the potty, and he said yes again...yipee! another poop! Although this time he tried to stand up mid poop, pooped a chunk on the floor before sitting back down and finishing his business. He still has no idea what is going on, and we got lucky (sort of) twice, but he seems delighted with himself each time.

We took the dogs to play fetch, and then came home to big cheesy omelet that Zoe made. Enzo sat down and ate the biggest breakfast we've seen him eat in a long time. One giant mouthful of egg after another, all using his fork of course. Almost every bite, was "hot", but he ate it anyway.

Enzer was in a fine mood when we got home, and we tried out his new potty. He loved sitting on his potty and giggled when we encouraged him to pee. However, he did not understand the first thing about sitting on the potty and preferred running around with his little dingding flying around in the wind. He stood by the doggy door and took a nice long pee. After we caught him and put him back on the potty, he sat there for a few seconds, smiling, then stood up and ran away to the living room, where he took another long pee on the carpet. He was fascinated with the stream, and got startled when Zoe screamed.

We had a nice dinner - Enzo is getting much better with the fork - then took the usual family walk. Quick bath, books galore, then off to bed without a whimper.

Enzo wasn't too interested in his breakfast of MonkeyBrains that mommy prepared, but ate some fruit. It was too late for Rose Bowl, so we took the dogs for a walk around the block before Alex came.

After work, Wes and Eric stopped by for a few minutes. Enzo fed Wes some watermelon chunks, and they shared a bag of Booty. Enzo didn't eat much tonight, but managed to end up with a fruit popsicle anyway after. We went on our usual family walk, and then played in the front yard. Enzo saw an airplane and said "plane, up". He was kind of nuts tonight. Something we're getting used to. He wasn't too happy about his bath, but then settled in to storytime with Zoe. Bedtime was not far away.

After Peet's we went off to Whole Foods for our weekly grocery run, where Enzo entertained himself with a bag of organic fingerling potatoes. Once we got home, mommy had to run off to the baby shower she was throwing for one of her friends. After a bottle, some books, and a failed nap attempt, Enzo and I took the dogs tot he dogs park. It wasn't as hot as it's been, so we spent a long time throwing the ball trying to tire them out. It turned into a test of wills between me and Betty. Finally I gave up. She wouldn't stop fetching the ball. So we went home. Enzo was falling asleep as we pulled in the driveway, but he wouldn't go to sleep in his crib. He just cried and cried. We tried to eat lunch after that, but he wasn't interested in that either. So we had a little bit more milk, and he felt better. We played in the pool until mommy came home.

We packed up again in the car in search of Enzo's big boy furniture for his new room. We drove all the way across town only to find that the place is closed on Sundays. We checked out some other cool places near the area, though, and Enzo is the proud new owner of a kiddy rake and a balancing board. He is practicing for his future career as a professional surfer or skateboarder. We came home, read some books in his new room (he loves to hang out in his room and play with the gate at the top of the stairs), went on a walk, had a frenetic dinner of salmon and farro salad, then a long bath, lots of books, and an early bedtime. We plan on seeing him again at 5:30AM tomorrow morning.

We met Wes and Eric for breakfast in S Pas this morning. Wes and Enzo sat next to each and shared their food. Enzo offered Wes a spoonful of oatmeal, which she accepted, and then he blew her a kiss. Very sweet. Enzo feel asleep in the car ride home, so we kept driving and made big loop from Pasadena to Silver Lake and back, about 40 minutes.

After nap, we went to Gabe's 3rd birthday party. Enzo tried riding the pony, but did not like that one bit. He did like the ducks, because "duck" is one of his words. He spend most of his time trying to ride the many things that go in Gabe's garage - cars, bikes, trucks, etc. He really liked the bouncy castle. I took him in three separate times. He actually has pretty good balance.

Enzo took a decent nap when we got home from the party, and then we went into to Old Pas to run some errands. Wes and Eric came over for dinner when we got back. After, we played in the front yard. Wes pushed Enzo around in his car, and went down the slide face first a few times too.

Daddy accidentally taught Enzo a dumb game in the tub tonight called the lean forward and stick your face in the water and blow bubbles game. But Enzo was laughing so hard when he was imitating daddy that he breathed in some water instead of blowing bubbles which got daddy in some trouble with mommy who was right there telling daddy that it probably wasn't such a great idea and daddy should probably stop but daddy didn't because he thought it was funny and so did Enzo.

After some books with mommy, Enzo went to sleep without a peep right at 8:PM.

Wes and Eric came over for a great dinner of grilled rack of lamb. Meatballs and broccoli for the kids. Wes ate a big meal, and they both stayed in their chairs for a long time despite getting pretty close to bedtime for them both by the end of the meal. They really do have fun together.

Enzo had a very deep bath tonight. He seemed really tired but after his milk he got a second wind and was running around the house right up until 8:PM. He'd only had about 45 minutes of sleep all day, so we just planted him in his crib at the usual time, and he was asleep in just a few minutes.

Enzo and I took the dogs to play fetch while Zoe made breakfast. Enzo and Harriet spent some time together eating baby cheddar goldfish while Betty ran after the ball. When we got home, Enzo had his french toast breakfast and fruit. He managed to cover most of his upper body with syrup, and the table too, even thought he was only given about a teaspoon to begin with.

After work, we went to the farmer's market. I shared my hot dog with Enzo and Zoe shared her pasta. He walked all over, saying hello to people, grabbing straws from their drinks, and tripping or stomping on their blankets. We took the puppies for a walk when we got home, then took a bath. Mommy read books for Enzo while he sort of brushed his own teeth. More liked chewed on his toothbrush for 45 minutes. I put him in his crib around 7:45PM and he went straight to sleep.

After work, Wes and her mom and dad came over for a visit. Eric said that on their way home from Pismo Beach today, Wesley sang "the Enzo song" where she sings over and over "Eno, Eno, Eno" - her name for Enzo. Very cute. They play well together, and we noticed tonight that if Wes had a toy that Enzo wanted, he didn't just reach over and grab it - he pointed to it and made noises to let her (and us) know what he wanted. Nice to see him trying to communicate. He had a nice dinner of leftovers, went on a walk, then bath, then lots of books before bed. After he goes to bed, we talk about him and how much we love him. We hope we have another kid soon because all this attention and obsession over Enzo cannot be good for him in the long run.

Zoe got home early with a-ma, so let Alex go around 4:PM. Enzo watched some Nemo while Zoe helped a-ma with her new Mac. They video chatted with Mimi & JP & Sophie in Bermuda and saw all the family pets too. Enzo went was happy to see me, and was a little nuts after I got home - running around and yelling. He watched a minute more of Nemo as we got dinner together. He did OK at dinner, was much more interested in being silly than eating. He had trouble holding on to the slippery peach slices which were his dessert. After dinner he sat with a-ma and read some books before his bath. Zoe took a-ma back to her hotel and I put Enzo to bed after he had his bottle.

Unfortunately, he has really started to hate getting his teeth brushed. He loves to hold the brush himself, but the second I grab it to help him brush, he freaks out and cries uncontrollably. Thinking about a strategy to deal with that.

Zoe came home early from work today. After we ran some errands, we went home to play with Enzo. We ran around the house, played in the front yard, read books, went for a walk, and watched about 5 minutes of Nemo. We had Enzo's favorite beefy wagon wheel pasta tonight. We're noticing that Enzo is getting crazier by the day - running, climbing, yelling. He's like a little wild monkey.

He calmed down after his bath, and Zoe read him books for nearly an hour again tonight. He wasn't happy about being put in his crib, but he fell asleep after only about 10 minutes.

After his failed nap, we scooped him up and drove out to Manhattan Beach to attend Maya's birthday at My Gym. Enzo had a blast. He was sort of insane actually. Running around, screaming, climbing, falling, stepping off ledges. Zoe and I looked at each other and thought the same, he is a little boy now. After a few bites of pizza and cupcake, we headed back home.

Enzo slept the whole way home. We even stopped to pick up a-ma, and he didn't wake up. He finally woke up as we went into the grocery store. At home, Enzo played in the pool for a bit before dinner. After dinner, we took a break and video chatted with Grandma Dee and Grandpa Buzz and Auntie Shellie for the first time. They were all happy to see Enzo's little face. Enzo gave a-ma four kisses on the cheek before she left.

Enzo was still all hyped up pretty late into the night, talking and running around after his marathon story time with mommy. Finally we just put him in the crib wide awake. He spend about 20 minutes talking to Knuffle Bunny and then drifted off to sleep without much protest.

Mommy got home after we did and Enzo was happy to see her. We hung out for a bit and read some books before heading out to big boy level 4 gymboree. Enzo did great but was surrounded with older kids who were more physically confident and talked more. Something to look forward to.

After Gymboree we headed out to Brentwood to have lunch at City Bakery and look for a gift for Gabe's 3rd birthday party next week. Enzo took the nippiest of nippy naps on the way there, which turnedout to be his only nap of the day. We sat next to Naomi Watts and her new baby. Enzo was not at all impressed. After a great lunch for mommy and daddy but not so great for Enzo, we walked around and did some shopping. We bought Gabe a great gift, and watched Naomi Watts hide from the swarms of paparazzi.

We got home in time to have some fruit and some pool time, then went off to get Enzo a haircut. The second haircut was nowhere near as traumatic (for all of us) as the first one was - Enzo sat quietly in daddy's lap while he got a ridiculous bowl cut with too-short bangs. Oh well, good thing that hair grows. We went over to the Metcalfs for some great burgers tonight and Enzo had fun romping around with Luke and Gabe. We got home in time for the quickest bath ever, some milk and bed. Enzo was exhausted after a fun and full day.

Zoe on call tonight. Alex went home early, so Enzo and I had a chance to eat a snack and rumpus in the living room before driving out to get the dogs. Enzo was in silly mood this afternoon. Really into just rolling around and giggling. After we got home, I let Enzo watch Good Night Gorilla while I made him dinner. He wasn't quite as enthusiastic about his Chinese take out as he was last night but he still ate a lot. Then he had a giant bowl of grapes for dessert. We finished up his DVD after dinner, then played outside for a bit before driving up to Art Center to see Christian's graduation portfolio.

Even though I was pushing my luck with Enzo's bedtime, he did great. He was walking all over the place, looking at the art and video installations. The key was having a never ending supply of little cheese goldfish and pirates booty, which he ate the entire time we were there. He drank his milk on the car ride home, and then I put him straight into bed when we got home. After quietly recounting his day, he feel asleep.

Enzo's Grandma (a-ma) Li is in town this week and came by for dinner tonight. Enzo ate a pile of Chinese take out, and we were all impressed. Enzo was very interested in his a-ma, and really didn't take his eyes off her. We went our family walk, then played in the front yard. We tried to talk him into giving his a-ma a kiss, and he circled around her over and over again, eyeballing her and thinking about it, and right before she left he leaned over and gave her 3 very sweet little kisses in a row. Soon after a-ma left, he had a nice long bath, had some milk, freaked out when we tried to brush his teeth, then off to an early bedtime.

Both of us came home early but Enzo and Alex were still out playing at Gymboree, where Enzo is now in the level 4 big boy class. When they got home, Enzo was in a great mood - very talkative and silly. We talked with Alex about Enzo's ever expanding vocabulary and she said she thought he was very smart and very quick to catch on. High praise coming from her because she's been around a lot of kids!

Wesley came over for dinner and some horsing around, then we went into Old Pas so mommy could have a frozen yogurt for dinner. A nice long bath, then books, 3 poops, then bed.

Zoe on call tonight, so I made Enzo dinner right when I came home. I inadvertently gave him his new favorite meatballs for the third straight meal. Still ate them though. We were on our way up to see Wes, when she came wheeling around the corner with her dad. We all went on a walk around the neighborhood.

Back home Enzo had his bath. He got a bit of a diaper rash at the beach the other day that is still bothering him. I think it stings when I out him in the bath. He was pretty upset. He settled down when he got his bottle, and I read him some books. When I started to read Knuffle Bunny, he jumped off the couch, walked across the room, picked up his stuffed Knuffle Bunny, and brought it to me. Then he sat there holding it while we read the story. Slayed me.

Enzo was a little cranky when we got home tonight, but he perked up after some snacks. Zoe and Enzo spend some time in his new room while I finished putting the brib together. After dinner, we bumped into Eric and Wes on their walk, so we came back home so the kids could play. Zoe read them a book and gave Wes a snack. Enzo starting to get tired and fussy so we gave him a bath and a bottle. He seems to be doing OK so far in his new room. Sound asleep.

Our plan was to go to Bentwood to look for birthday presents for Gabe, turning 3, and Maya, turning 2. Traffic on the 110 was terrible so Zoe pulled off and headed into Silver Lake to a little store there called La La Ling. They have great t-shirts. We accidentally bought Enzo a new shirt in the process of getting presents. We made a couple more stops, one for a giant ice cream sundae. Zoe was in line listening to a couple women talk about how cute Enzo was (we were sitting outside). They also mentioned how sweet it was that he was out with his grandpa.

Enzo ate a bowl of fruit on the way home in the car. I tried to put him to sleep when we got home, but he decided not to sleep. He's really changed his sleep schedule the last few days - one nap during the day, and to bed an hour early. After failed nap, we played in the front yard. Enzo stood in the pool, spraying the hose all over himself until he was so cold that his teeth were chattering.

Our neighbors stopped by for a few minutes before heading across town. They should have stayed for dinner because Zoe made her fish tacos again, which were great. Enzo held his own corn on the cob tonight. He kept biting in the same spot over and over. He was ready for bed at 7:15 tonight.

We set up in the usual spot, and the the kids headed straight to the water. The sand was very "hot". Where ever Enzo walked on the beach, he said "hot, hot, hot" over and ocer. We dug a big hole that quickly filled with water for them to wallow in. For some reason there where dozens of the big sand fleas right where we were digging. Enzo liked to hold them and laughed when they scooted around his bucket of water. He might have held a couple of them a bit too tightly.

Enzo was much bolder about the ocean this time. I think because we had in the water in Hawaii. I had to keep an eye on him because he kept walking straight out into the surf. I held his little hands and we walked out together a few times. He liked it when I waited until the very last second to yank up and over the path of an oncoming wave.

He and Wes played really well together, and they shared all their snacks at lunch. Wes went off to play again and Enzo kept eating lunch for about an hour. I finally had to carry him away from the cooler and back down to the water.

After more playing in the sand and some gull chasing, we headed back home. Enzo fed himself a big icy cold bottle of milk, and then fell asleep for the whole ride. I sat in the driveway for an extra 20 minutes to give him so some more sleep.

Inside, we watched some golf, read book, and spread out a picnic of all his leftover beach snacks and fruit. After snacks, we spent some time just roughhousing in the living room, which was probably the highlight of my day.

We then went to South Pas for a milk shake, and to play over by the library. Enzo ran around the big lawn and crawled around the roots of a huge tree.

We went over to the neighbors house for dinner, which started out well with Enzo playing with Wes and Owen. But Enzo got tired pretty quickyl, and the next thing I knew, he was crying and it was time to go home. He took a short bath, read a few books, and was ready to go to sleep at 7:30.

After work today, Enzo and I walked up to the neighbors house to figure out a plan for tomorrow's trip to the beach. Zoe went to SF tonight for a work-related class, so I'm taking Enzo solo. Wes was happy to see Enzo as usual. Back home we had dinner, and then read some books. We gave him an early bath before Zoe had to leave for the airport. Enzo had his bottle and then got very sleepy just after 7:PM. He'd only gotten 45 minutes of sleep all day. He went down at 7:30, so will be up early tomorrow.

Zoe and I came home early this afternoon, and we took Enzo to the farmer's market. Enzo toddled around and pointed and stared at people, stopping by occasionally for a bite of hot dog or beans and rice. Instead of getting his usual shave ice, we got a gross watermelon smoothie that Enzo kind of hated. We took the dogs for a short walk when we got home, and bumped into Wesley. She was very cute tonight. She really likes Enzo. We gave Enzo his bottle during storytime, and he went bed with no problem again.

Zoe's on call tonight, so I went over to bug the neighbors and let Enzo play with Wes. They were really cute together. Most of the night was spend playing in her room or in the living room. We ordered Thai, and Enzo did pretty well eating in the new surroundings. At one point during the meal Enzo and Wes reached across the table and touched finger tips for a few moments. Very sweet. After dinner, Enzo was running through the living room and he stepped on a wooden banana which slide out from under his foot. He feel on his butt just like the classic banana peel slip. Even Enzo thought it was funny.

Tonight I gave Enzo his bottle during story time which was a first, and allowed me to brush his teeth after his milk - something we've been talking about trying to do for months. Right after I brushed his teeth, he got fussy so I brought him upstairs and plopped him in the crib and went to sleep without a whimper. I was pretty shocked. Hopefully something we can do from now on so he still has teeth by the time he's two.

Zoe and I switched on and off watching Enzo play in the living room during dinner prep. After our meal, we walked up to Wesley's house to drop some cake that one of Zoe's patients gave her. Wes was happy to see us and sad to see us go. Back home, we all shared a piece of the cake in the front yard, and then came inside to watch a little Harold and the Purple Crayon. After bath, Zoe read many books and then Enzo was ready for bed. He only slept an hour all day today.

Enzo and I spent some time roughhousing and rolling around on the couch after work today. Then we walked up to see Wes, and play in her room. When Wes saw us coming down the driveway, she squealed with delight. They really do seem to enjoy each other's company, even though they are frequently struggling over possession of the toy/book/snack of the moment. Wes was not happy when Enzo got back in his backpack to leave. She really wants a backpack too.

Zoe had dinner waiting for us when we got home. Enzo liked his cauliflower. After dinner, mommy and Enzo shared a fruit popsicle, most of which Enzo ate while standing in the dog pool. We gave Enzo an early bath, and then Zoe read him about 20 books, a few of them 3 or 4 times, before he was ready to sleep.

We all met at home, and then went to get breakfast at Peets. Enzo was all over the place as usual, saying hi to everyone he saw. Eric and Wes stopped by for a minute too. Enzo took a nap back home while mommy and daddy cleaned the house.

After nap, we played out front with the hose and then went out to get Enzo a drawing board. He loved his new board, and his new fishing pole with magnetic fish too.

He took a short afternoon nap, and then Wes came over to play. Eric and Christa stayed for dinner, which was total chaos. They managed to eat some food though, Zoe made the meatball sliders from the cover of Bon Appetit. Enzo and Wes really had a lot of fun tonight.

We stopped by the house for a bit to play then went off to meet Elijah for dim sum. Fortunately, he took a 20 minute nap on the ride over. Enzo had so much fun eating lunch. I think he ate more than Zoe. Bite after bite. He particularly loved: beef chow fun, sticky rice wrapped in lotus leaf, shrimp har gao, sauteed bitter chinese greens, shiu mai, char siu bao, and mango pudding. You name it, he ate it. All that eating was pretty remarkable, but almost more remarkable was how he sat in his seat for almost the entire meal. Probably enjoyed that meal more than any other he's ever had.

After dim sum, we came home and filled up the pool. Wes stopped by for a few minutes too. Enzo started to get cranky so we set off to Redondo Beach to see Maya, hoping he'd sleep in the car. After a painful trip down the 110, Enzo finally dozed off for about 20 minutes. He rallied and had a great time running around Leah and Paul's new house. Maya chased him aroound the house yelling his name, tried to hug him numerous times, and gave him a sweet kiss when he left.

He managed to stay in good spirits on the way home, and ate another good meal for dinner. He crashed hard after bath, and we're not expecting to see him again for about 11 hours.

After work today, Zoe and Enzo had a snack before she ran out pick up the mutts. Enzo and I went for a short walk, then looked at animal and bug cards. Enzo likes to throw them around more than look at the photos. He's discovered you can make a much bigger mess with a huge stack of cards than you can with a book. We also did some roughhousing on the couch. He loves to get tossed around and tickled. Seeing him laugh is the best thing. He ate a good dinner with Zoe and then had his bath. He was quickly tired and fussy so we put him to bed almost an hour earlier than usual. I'm expecting him up around 5:30AM.

On Wed, Zoe and I were talking about how we are sensing this snowballing effect with his talking. He's started babbling non-stop, making all sorts of different sounds, and a few simple words like - hot, duck & book. We both felt that any day now he going to start saying more and more words. And then just yesterday, there was an article about how baby babbles become talking tsunami. He is right on the crest. Amazing to witness.

We went to Thursday market tonight as per usual. Enzo enjoyed his hot dog and some of mommy's Indian food. He did his usual walking around offering his food to random strangers, or just walking up to people and staring at them. Dinner was followed by fruit and his weekly shave ice. Funny how he was wants to sit quietly with daddy once the shave ice is on the scene. Back home, we went our usual family walk, and the routine run up to bed.

We had a nice typical evening. Enzo had no afternoon nap or snack but hung in there until dinner. We went on a nice family walk, and came back to play in the front yard. Enzo favorite game of spraying the hose all over himself. Enzo had his usual long bath, and bedtime stories from Zoe.