Ode to The Sippy Cup

The sippy cup - what an amazing invention. So simple, yet so useful in preventing gallons of spilled milk and juice. So creative, yet so practical for little kiddos. Though the internet, the automobile, and electricity are pretty cool inventions - I think that the creation of a cup that could be turned upside down without spilling is right on up there. Caleb's preferred sippy cup is even more amazing in that it is a Nuby Sippy Cup with the straw, which means that he doesn't even have to exert the energy to lift the cup up at all in order to drink. I mean really - how did toddlers survive before the sippy cup?

Before I was a parent, I always thought how strange it was that parents can get so excited about the coolest and most convenient baby items. You will hear me get a bit excited when I talk about our cool, lime green stroller - but I must admit that in terms or my own personal benefit, nothing compares to the sippy cup. Some other baby items provide me the indirect benefit of Caleb's happiness or satisfaction leading to my own. Yet the sippy cup is one of the few things that really benefits me directly. At first, I was a little skeptical of drinking from one - until the day came when I was dying of thirst and all we had was Caleb's sippy cup with us. Since that moment when I first sucked that delicious watered-down apple juice thorough that plastic straw, there has been no going back. Juice just tastes better when it comes from a sippy cup. Even if the same perfect blend of 66.7% water and 33.3% juice is produced in a glass mug or regular standard cup, it just doesn't taste as good then if it came from a sippy cup. Although my new-found fondness for the sippy cup has been exciting for me, Caleb doesn't seem to see the benefit of having to share his drink with another. Maybe the time has come for me to just get my own, and with my birthday coming up next month - maybe I'll get lucky.

Not only are they so useful - they're also so stylish as well

Caleb learning valuable lessons about sharing

Caleb's First Shoes

One day after I flew up to Philadelphia for work, Caleb had another landmark experience in his life: buying his first shoes (well actually I guess he wasn't technically the one doing the buying). I always thought that buying shoes for a baby would be a fairly simple process because it's not like he cares if they're stylish or anything and they only fit for a few months. However, after our first Target shoe-shopping trip for Caleb in mid-February, I realized that finding shoes for him would be a little trickier. You see, Caleb is "blessed" with what we refer to as very "meaty" feet. That is to say - they're not so much long and slender as they are just super fat and wide. We found that out the hard way as we tried to cram his feet into standard sized shoes at Target that we just assumed would fit based on the length of his feet. After 15 minutes of screaming and fussing every time we tried to find a good fit at Target - we gave up on the shoe idea for a few weeks.

However, as the weather started to improve, we realized that we would just have to bite the bullet and go the local Stride Rite store to find his custom-fit shoes. Sharon's parents were excited to buy Caleb's first shoes, so they had a fun trip to the mall the day after I left for Philadelphia. As you can see from the pictures' below, he really enjoyed wearing shoes once we were able to find his correct size, which is 5 EXTRA WIDE. It is fun to be able to have him walk around in stores now rather than always having to lug him around, yet now we also have to keep a closer eye on him since he has no qualms about running away from his parents.

The same day that Caleb got his first shoes, we also had a rare winter event: a snowstorm in Atlanta. Since I was in Philadelphia, I missed out on all the fun of watching southerners try to get around in the snow. To add insult to injury, as I was trying to figure out how much snow we were going to get in the Philly area - the weatherman would make a point of saying (with extreme excitement and amusement): "And it looks like they're going have some serious snow in Atlanta!" The one good thing about the storm was that we really did get a good six inches of snow up in Philly and I was able to go sled-riding with my nieces Ella and Catherine while there. Another highlight of the trip was the introduction by Ella (and my sister Megan) to the wonderful world of Webkinz. I also got my fill of Guitar Hero while there and enjoyed catching up with the Demos. As you can see - we still haven't changed the blog name. We've appreciated the suggestions so far, and we promise we'll have a new name by the time I turn 30 (which is coming all too soon!).


Caleb with his mom and grandpa while trying on shoes.


The best way to know that Caleb really likes his shoes: he tries to eat them.

Isn't this what you picture when you think of Atlanta?

"Let me out mom! I want to play in the snow!"

The family on top of nearby Arabia "Mountain" (which is more like a glorified speed bump). This is just days after our snow storm:)

Caleb and Daddy