This past weekend was a big weekend for us. Saturday was Cade’s 2^nd birthday. Where does the time go? We had been talking to Cade about his birthday for a while; asking him how old he was going to be and that he was going to be a “big boy” now and that he no longer needed his “bah” (pacifier). We told him that baby Cole (Kevin and Carla’s new baby) needed his bahs and he was excited to donate them. That would happen on Sunday.

I woke Cade up early on Saturday to take him on a hike with Kevin and Connor. When I woke Cade up, I was excited to tell him Happy Birthday and his first reply was a still half asleep “Cake?”. That’s what a birthday is all about. Cade and Connor rode in the backpacks for our 6 mile trek. They are our training weight for our backpacking trip that we are doing in 4 weeks. Cade and Connor love going on hikes with us, looking for bugs, lizards and airplanes. When we got back from the hike, we gave Cade his presents from us. We got him a little scooter that he was very excited about. He quickly reminded us that he needed a helmet and was ready to go for a ride. I took him to the park to cruise around.

After nap, it was time for his party. I grabbed everything (almost- I forgot the homemade guacamole and chips that I had to run back and get just before dinner) that I was supposed to bring and ran by Chronic Tacos to grab the trays of rice and beans that I had ordered. The guy helped me out and put the trays on the front seat. When we got to Grandma and Grandpas, I noticed that most of the bean ‘juice’ had spilled out of the container and was soaking into the seat and dripping onto the floor. What a mess but no time to clean up. I took out the floor mats and threw down a towel...back to the party and BBQing the carne asada.

At the party, Cade opened his gifts. This year was much better than last to watch him open gifts. He was “wowed” by each of them. It was so fun to watch. He got a ride-on motorcycle from Grandma and a Scooter from Uncle Nick that he loved showing off. He was actually quite good at riding both.

The next day he played for hours with his new water table. He loved splashing around and dumping water on his head. He got so many new toys that he was in heaven all day. Also, thanks to Uncle Nick, Cade’s new favorite phrase is “Oh maaan…” It was cute for the first 1000 times, but then we wondered if he could say anything else.

Later on Sunday, he said that he had to go pee-pee. He has said this many times and we take him to the potty and he sits for 2 seconds and says “all done”. So I assumed that this time would be no different. I took him to his potty and he sat down and…HE WENT! His potty started playing music and I yelled to Kaity and praised him for going potty like a big boy. I think that I scared him a bit but then he was very excited that he did something good. He got a jelly bean and immediately wanted to go potty again to get another jelly bean. He knows how to work the system. He went again later that day and again on Monday. Looks like we are on our way…

Since today was the day that we were to donate the bahs, we got a bag and gathered up all of the ones we could find and walked over to Cole’s. Cole was happy to get so many new bahs but Cade was not so happy to leave them with Cole. We tried several diversion tactics on the way home but he was not a happy camper. When it was time for bed, of course he was asking for them and we reminded him that he was a big boy now and that baby Cole needed them more than he did. The first night was a little rough but much better than we anticipated. He was restless and cried on and off for about 45 min and then he was out. On Monday at naptime and bedtime, he asked for one but he quickly went to sleep without it.

When I got into the car on Monday morning to go to work, the car smelled like I left the body in the car. I swore I threw it in the river… Oh yeah, the bean ‘juice’!!! I shampooed the carpet and upholstery when I got home but I think that the damage is done. I may have to call a professional. It is disgusting…

What did you just read???

As our little boy begins to talk more and more, I am sure that we will be amazed, shocked and wowed by the things that begin to come out of his mouth and the words he picks up. As I am preparing dinner on Saturday night March 21, 2009, I opened the pantry to hear Cade say "Bikick"?? I casually dismissed the gurgle as baby talk but when he repeated it and pointed to the Bisquick I was amazed that he had read the box in the pantry. We often practice words with him and read to him every day but he has yet to repeat a word without a picture. Where did he learn this? Did he read it? That is not the easiest word in the dictionary (ok, so it's not in the dictionary--I know). It may be a fluke that he knows this word ( I had him repeat it several times throughout the night) but a genius he must be;)


On the same night, Cade was playing in the backyard and getting into everything that is not his and nothing that is, you know, the norm for a 19 month old. As I constantly remind Cade that the BBQ is Daddy's and that he cannot go into the planter, he manages to outsmart me and find something new to get into. One of his favorites is the green drain covers in the planter. They are regularly found all over the house. Again, as I am preparing dinner and running back and forth between the BBQ and the stove, Cade walks in with, what else, a drain cover. "Cade!, how many times do I have to tell you not to play with the drain covers?" Cade replies calmly with his favorite number "five". Favorite because of 'high five'--any time you ask him a 'how many' question this is his answer. How can you get mad at that? Kaity and I just lost it. We are still laughing about it. Priceless moments....

Happy New Year!

Heeeeeeeeeellllloooooooo 2008! I am 5 months old today. A lot has happened in the last month of my life and I am ready for what the new year will bring me. At my last check-up (at 4 months) I weighed in at 14 lbs. 1oz. and had grown to a whopping 24 and 3/4 inches. I finally figured out the whole rolling over thing and now do it every chance I get. You can see me in action on my photo album site. Check it out!! I celebrated my first Christmas with all of my family, including cousin Audrey, but it was a little bitter sweet for me. I was pretty sick, throwing up all of Christmas Eve and most of Christmas day. I was feeling pretty bad. I got a ton of new toys though, including my first real hatchet (Thanks Uncle, Uncle Mark)! Needless to say, I am looking forward to next year and the big Santa guy visiting me again. I ended the year with my first tooth breaking through and popping up. Number two is close behind. Now, I am enjoying biting Mom and Dad with my pearly white!!! ;o)

Lobster Boy Celebrates 3 Months!

Wow, it has been a while since we last updated and quite a bit has happened. First, we finally bit the bullet and placed our little man in his crib, in his own room a few weeks ago. This has turned out to be so wonderful, despite the anxiety Mom has had. On the first night Cade slept 10 hours straight and each night since has slept between 10 and 12 hours...Woo Hoo!! Cade is also experiencing teething. His first tooth is starting to pop up and he does not like it!! He is such a trooper though and has not been too difficult for Mom and Dad (according to what we have heard could happen from other parents!) If you are wondering why we have referred to him as Lobster Boy, well that's because for Halloween we dressed our sweet boy up as a lobster. He never cried or whined, but he also never smiled for any pictures, so we think that means he was not too happy about being our entertainment. Everyone loved his costume though. Cade and Mommy went to St. Josephs hospital to partake in a baby parade for the rehabilitation patients and we had so many other mommies take his picture and boast about how he had the best costume. We had a lot of fun! Finally, November 1st was Cade's 3 month birthday. He had his check-up with the doctor yesterday and he is still as perfect as can be. He now weighs 13 lbs. 1 oz. and is 24 inches long. Dr. Manuel always comments on how perfect he is and his calm personality....yup, we know he is perfect!!!

2 month Dr. Appt today

Today we took Cade to the Doctor for his two month checkup. He is now 23 inches long and weighs a whopping 11 lbs 9 oz. He is now in the 50th percentile for his weight (most of which is in his Buddha belly), length and head size. He now also sleeps 8 hours during the night giving Mom a huge break. Dad didn't wake up anyways so it doesn't really matter to me. Cade also got his first shots. There were a total of four, two in each thigh, each increasing the volume of the cry until the last one when there was no more air left to come out. Mom couldn't take it. I think that it was as hard on her as it was Cade. He only cried for a minute after the last shot though. What a brave little boy!
He is also smiling much more now. We finally caught one smile on the camera. Check out the pic on the photo site.

I Can Smile...well, sort of...

Cade is beginning to smile but he has to be in the mood to do so. We have not been able to capture a picture yet because they are few and far between. When we get the camera ready, of course he is stubborn and wont give an inch. At any rate, it is the cutest thing.

Audrey's Birthday

We drove up to Sacramento to celebrate Audrey's 2nd birthday. We left at 5AM and drove to Kristen's house arriving just before noon. The trip was rather uneventful thankfully. Cade loves being in the car and slept the whole way, only waking to let us know he was hungry. There were several kids at the party, most of whom were in the bounce house when we arrived. Cade, with some assistance, jumped in the bounce house with Audrey. We watched Audrey open her gifts then almost pee on Kristen in the process as she stood completely naked in front of her. Too bad nobody caught of pic of that. What a crack up. Audrey didn't want much to do with Cade at first but she warmed up to him as the night progressed. Later, Cade, Kaity and I went out to dinner with Kristen and Grandma Rona. Audrey was still sleeping then woke up cranky so she didn't join us for dinner. She did play with us when we got back from dinner, serving us coffee and noodles...mmm. Then Audrey got to hold Cade while sitting in her new chair. She really seemed to enjoy holding him. Kristen said that when she woke up in the morning she was asking "Cade go?"
The next day we drove over to GREAT Uncle Steve, Dana, Olivia and Alison's house. Olivia has grown up so much since our wedding. and we met Allison for the first time. They are both so adorable and will talk your ear off if you let them. Soon after we arrived, we took a short trip over to Uncle Murray's and we all walked to downtown Healdsburg (3 blocks) to Cathy's shop. We visited with them for a while then walked around the plaza with Uncle Murray catching up since its been a while since we have seen them. We then drove up to the winery Dana works at for a 'preharvest BBQ'. This was a good time watching the kids play in the bounce houses while the adults enjoyed margaritas and good food. Cade was quite a hit as usual. I don't even know how many times he was passed around.
The next day, on the way home, we stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge for a Kodak moment then stopped at Fisherman's Wharf for a bite to eat. A quick bite it was since we only had an hour on the parking meter. Since we spent so much time sightseeing, we got stuck in SF rush hour traffic. Not much better than a parking lot all the way to San Jose. We arrived home at about 1AM. It was a long whirlwind trip but it was great to see so many people that we don't get to see very often.

Big Bear Camping Trip

Cade, Kaity and I went to Big Bear last week for Cade's first camping trip. We went with Grandma Cookie and Grandpa Fred and Uncles Chris, Kyle and Kevin. Cade got to sleep in the luxury coach (with Mom and Dad of course)...truly roughing it for his first time. We were leery of how Cade would handle being on the road as far as his sleeping and eating schedules are concerned but he did very well. Although, it was difficult to get in any activities because he eats sooo much. At any rate, the trip was still fun and relaxing. I went fishing with Kevin and Kyle but the only thing we caught was a buzz. We also ate at a few good restaurants, one with a view of the lake and another right on the airport runway. Kaity and I rode the alpine slide which is a luge on a fiberglass track (instead of ice) and the vehicles have wheels (instead of blades). We raced down the track side by side, even though it is not allowed (breakin' the law, breakin' the law). I won the first time but Kaity won the second. Cade will love this when he gets older. Grandma and Grandpa also took a turn on the alpine slide while the other watched Cade at the bottom, each enjoying their ride on the slide.

Dodger Game

We took Cade to his first Dodger game yesterday. Grandpa was able to get awesome seats right behind home plate. Cade will never be able to sit in the 'regular' seats again. Cade made his television debut on the Dodger Vision screen during the ninth inning of the game. They sought out fans throughout the game but either he was sleeping or the cameraman wasn't looking but finally the cameraman spotted Cade and put him up on the screen. Mom and Dad and Grandma and Grandpa were so excited!!! On our way out after the game, we had a few people recognize him "there's that Dodger baby!" His first 15 seconds of fame. Oh yeah...the Dodgers won the game.

Visit to Great Grandma and Grandpa's

Today, Cade got to finally meet Great Grandpa and to visit again with Great Grandma. Cade was very good and Great Grandma and Grandpa were very impressed....that is until Cade decided he was hungry and he let us all know. Grandpa is doing quite well and was very happy to be able to hold his Great Grandson for the first time. Check out the pics on the photo album site.

Cade's first earthquake

At 1258 this morning a 4.5 magnitude earthquake shook our house. Dad, of course, did not wake up, Cade did not wake up but Riley sensed it and woke Mom up just a minute before it struck. Once it hit, it scared the daylights out of Mom and she screamed "Eric...earthquake". I jumped out of bed and over to Cade's bassinet in about one leap. By the time I got up and over to Cade, it was over. I doubted that there was one so I got up to look on the internet and sure enough, she was right. Sleep is precious now and the first night that Cade wasn't waking us up every two hours, the earth has to shake and ruin the little sleep we get.

Cade Christopher enters the world

Cade Christopher Anderson was born on August 1st, 2007 at 1305. He was 6 lbs 6 oz and 20 inches long. He had his first doctor visit on August 6 which went well. He is still down little weight since birth so the little guy only weighs 6 lbs now. Otherwise, all else is well.


Go to http://ericandkaity.myphotoalbum.com for photos. This site is password protected. Just e-mail me at anderson_e99@hotmail.com and I will send it to you.