July 4th

This year was Brady's first time attending the Nova Court July 4th Extravaganza!  When we bought our house, the selling agent touted this party as a selling point, and it does not disappoint.  Every year, our friend and neighbor Madelyn (the Yankee Doodle Queen of Nova Court) organizes a really fun day for the kids (and grown ups too!).  Brady spent most of his time watching the action (which included a bounce house, snowcone machine, and water slide).



Sabine and Coco, official snowcone quality testers



Some grown ups also enjoy the slide.

Brady squeezed in a little pool time with his friends Coco and Sebastian.

That night, we had a huge potluck dinner and dessert, and then the kids piled onto our next door neighbors' driveway to watch a movie projected onto the garage door.  Overall, I'd say Brady's first July 4th was a success... he can't wait until he can slide with the big kids!



Travelin' Man

This month, we enjoyed a trip to Sunriver, Oregon.  My grandfather has a home there and Bryan and I have been lucky to use it since we've been married.  This year, Brady got to check out the Sunriver scene!  For anyone who might be wondering, vacationing with a 9 month old is a very different experience from vacationing without one.  You heard it here first.  Speaking of firsts, Brady experienced a few on this trip! 

He ate his first meal in a restaurant high chair.

Rode in a shopping cart for the first time (Yes, I let him ride in the cart without a protective cover.  I have a theory that the germs are good for him and build his immune system.  I repeated said theory over and over to myself when he leaned forward and started sucking on the shopping cart handle.)

First time on a swing!  By far Brady's favorite part of his trip.

First bike ride.  By far Brady's least favorite part of his vacation.  

Before



After



The Next Michael Phelps

Except Michael Phelps couldn't pull off this hat.

Brady at 8 Months

Brady has been a busy boy this month!  After weeks of rocking back and forth on all fours, he began to crawl.  Alarmingly, within days he was a speed demon.  For some reason I thought it would take longer for him to really get moving... not so much.  Needless to say, Brady spends no time sitting still anymore.  One of his favorite activities is inspired by Seven - Brady likes to throw a ball and then chase after it.  His own version of fetch.



Brady has transitioned away from his baby bath tub and is now taking big boy baths in the kitchen sink.  I hope he enjoys it because he may be bathing there until he can take a shower, as we have no bathtub at our house.

This month has been the most fun so far!  It is a blast watching Brady pick up new things so quickly.  Can't wait to see what 9 months brings... we won't have to wait long, due to how belated I am on this post. :)

Working on his core strength - it's bathing suit season, after all.

Fathers Day

We celebrated Bryan's first Fathers Day by participating in the Pleasanton Rotary Club Spirit Run.  Bryan, being a superior athlete, runner, and all-around show off, completed the 10k in 51 minutes and 38 seconds without having trained in a month.  We are very proud of him!  He's going to breeze through next month's half marathon.  I ran the 5k in 38 minutes and 9 seconds - slow, steady, and beet red.  We had a blast and hope to make the race a Fathers Day tradition.

Happy Fathers Day!

Brady at Seven Months

Brady is currently devoting most of his energy to attempting to crawl, so it's becoming increasingly difficult to get a monthly photo of him on his football blankie.  I can see a glimpse of him as a sullen teenager in the above photo, minus the thumb sucking.  Hopefully.

This month, Brady's two bottom teeth pushed through.  He is currently testing them on everything he can get into his mouth - his toys, his books, his blankets, his hands, MY hands... yes, Brady has literally bitten the hand that feeds him.





In other news, Brady's diet has expanded to include some veggies.  He is now demolishing man-sized portions of almost anything offered to him.  Almost. 

Peas are a polarizing vegetable in my family - my dad loves them and my brother hates them so intensely that at one memorable Thanksgiving dinner, he accidentally consumed one that was hiding under his mashed potatoes and threw up all over the table.  Having now prepared a big Thanksgiving meal myself, I have a much greater appreciation for the restraint my mom showed in not screaming/crying/refusing to make a holiday meal ever again.  That is a LOT of work to put in, only to sit down and have it covered in vomit.  But I digress.  Since peas seem to be a love-them-or-hate-them veggie on the Milhous side, and Bryan loves them, I was very curious where Brady would fall on the subject.  Without a doubt, I can report that for the time being, he strongly agrees with his Uncle Al.  Peas were the second vegetable I offered Brady - I tried sweet potatoes first, which he adored.  After three days of polishing off sweet potatoes like nobody's business, I figured I'd give him some peas.  He opened his mouth wide, probably expecting another heaping spoonful of delicious sweet potatoes.  When the peas hit his palate, his face registered shock, betrayal, and finally disgust, before spraying them all over his high chair in a way that would have made his uncle very proud.  I tried one more bite, thinking maybe it was just the shock of something new.  Upon being offered this poison a second time, Brady's face turned beet red and he began to grunt angrily and bang his fist on his high chair tray like a little dictator.  I ditched the peas and offered him some of his rice cereal, which he accepted hungrily until he detected trace amounts of pea contamination due to the use of the same spoon.  At that point he went back to red-faced protest, this time throwing in some violent back arching for good measure.  Message sent, message received - not a fan. 



Not amused.



A Star is Born

Yesterday, Seven filmed his first (and very likely, only) television commercial.  He will appear in a station identification ad for KOFY TV 20 here in the Bay Area.  Apparently anyone can sign up to do this with their dog, but there is a three year waiting list.  Proving it's not what you know but who you know, Seven managed to get in with only a two week wait.  He's very well connected (thank you Stacey!). 

Sev managed to also snag a call time for his best gal Piper, so they spent the morning rehearsing together(method acting, of course) and attending hair appointments (they both got the special Petsmart de-shedding bath.  Piper came home with an A+ report card.  Seven did not receive a report card.  I am guessing this is because he acts like he is being water boarded any time you try to bathe him.  Petsmart apparently follows the 'if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all' rule when filling out report cards). 

Once the stars were ready, we piled into the car for our glamorous ride into the big city.  If you have never been locked in a car for 40 minutes with two panting 70 pound dogs, it is quite aromatic.  We arrived at the KOFY station (reeking of dog hair and saliva) with almost 90 minutes to spare thanks to my neurotic fear of being late, and decided to take the dogs for a walk... our choices were the following scenic tours: the dump located literally across the street from the station, the freeway, or Cesar Chavez Blvd.  Once we finished taking in the sights and sounds of Cesar Chavez, we headed into the KOFY lobby.  We had already been tipped off by the location that the KOFY station would probably not have a glitzy lobby with free bottled water and a cheese tray.  We were not wrong.  The dogs were extremely interested in various spots on the lobby's carpet, but they did stop sniffing long enough to pose with the poster of KOFY's current mascot and some abandoned janitorial supplies. 

 


















After a few minutes, a producer came to retrieve us and it was time for the real excitement to begin.  Behind a set of double doors was our set - a fake living room.

For those who have never seen it, the commercials include a dog sitting in the leather chair staring at the camera.  The KOFY logo appears on the set's television and the dog looks at the TV.  The shot requires the dog to stay and stare at the camera for about 30 seconds.  At home, we spend most of our time trying to keep Seven off the furniture but at the KOFY set it took four failed attempts before we got him to stay in the chair.  Piper was a total professional and nailed her shot much more quickly.  And just like that, Sev's fifteen minutes of fame were up.  Well, that's not entirely accurate - Seven's fifteen minutes will be up when his commercial airs, May 24th during the 10:00pm showing of a Scrubs rerun.  We can't wait to see it! 



The Wrap Party