Taji's first Turkey Day

So much fun was had, so many photos to share!

starting with our thanksgiving trimmings! Even though it was just the boys and I (Grandpa Grover, Daddy Grover, and Baby Grover) we still had a lot of food! Taj sat at the table with us, and had his very own place setting! He feasted on yams (which was one of the tasting winners so far) and breastmilk!

Look 'Ma..... no hands!!! Taj sitting straight without hand support, such a big boy!

A nice day for a leisurely cruise around Newport Bay, the older Taji gets the more he likes being on our duffy and looking at the water and the other boats :)

All in all, we had a much needed restful and relaxing long holiday weekend, ending the lounging with a nice nature walk and swinging at the park down the street from us. Taji and I had lots of mommy-son bonding time while Brad and his dad played chess and poker with the guys.

I'm thankful for.....

this little dude! I LOVE his laugh :)



I'm also very thankful for my awesome husband, our family's health, the life we have created together, my sister- her family and my parents, as well as my rewarding school psych career and creative outlets. SO MUCH to feel grateful for! Happy thanksgiving from our family to yours! xo

The Cat is Out of the Bag

Let me be the first to introduce you to my other "baby". I have been using my free-time (after Taji goes to bed and while he naps) to carefully shape and nurture this creative little thing. My Taji Baby actually had a lot to do with it, and with my husband's encouragement and support, it made it even more possible. Some of you have already met this "baby", and well for those you of you that have absolutely no idea what I am talking about, I proudly introduce you to Color En Vie. Go ahead click on the link, you know you want to see what this is ;)

And while you can read up on the background in my "About" section of the website.... this is how it all really began. It all started with my beautiful baby boy, that twinkle in his sea-blue eyes and the postcard beach behind him. Yup, the photo below is what inspired me to look further within my artistic thought.

As I began to play more with my camera, try out different poses and themes (hence all the portraits you randomly see of Taji), others started to notice and inquire within. I seized the opportunity to photograph my newly engaged friends, my pregnant friends, and their little babies. I began to build my portfolio, my blog, and now my website. With the holidays approaching, I was offered yet another opportunity to shoot family portraits and design holiday cards. Having many years of photobook design and photo montages under my belt (as many of you witnessed at our wedding, and on this blog), I realized how all my artistic hobbies have collided.... and all it took was that click of my first SLR camera. It was there all along, hidden. With the right tools, it poked its head out and has never looked back. I feel fortunate to be able to explore this creative venture while I work part-time. While I was on a mission to become the best photographer for my son, and document every expression and memorable milestone, I stumbled upon something else: the excitement and reward I feel when I photograph others' special moments as well.

Regardless of what kind of an adventure Color En Vie takes me on, I love this hobby of mine because it continously incorporates Taji. I like to think of Taj as my Muse, his continous development, transforming smiles and giggles give way to inspiring ideas. If anything, the second Taji sees me pulling out the camera and clicking away, he immediately lights up and begins to pose.... how's that for inspiration?!

And if things couldn't get any more exciting, my friend Jamie put in a good word, and next weekend (Dec 4th) I am shooting an intimate and beautiful sunset wedding at the very exclusive Bacara Resort & Spa in Santa Barbara! They are generously compensating me and have reserved me a room for the night :) Since Brad will be busy working and entertaining both his client and his employee-best friend Jason who are from out-of-state, my sister, niece Chloe, and Taji baby in tow will accompany me to this event. I feel very grateful for this opportunity, and a weekend away with my sister and our babes! Wish me luck! :)

The Half Birthday Celebration

I had a very special half birthday party, thanks to my mommy and daddy! First off, I got to meet my Grandpa Grover for the first time, who flew in all the way from New York, for my half birthday and thanksgiving! Upon meeting him, I gave him a big grin and haven't stopped smiling at him :) I began my birthday celebration with a morning visit with Dr. Harbert, who I was happy to see but then not so happy to find out I had to get those yucky shots again AND a half flu shot! After my 6 month well-baby check-up, I spent the rest of the day playing with grandpa and watching mommy bake and decorate my cake, cook my first veggie, and cook dinner for the big Grover men. Babi and Deda even skyped me from the Czech Republic, to wish me 'happy 6 months' !

Here is my fancy cake my mommy made me for my special day.... too bad I wasn't able to enjoy just yet!

After a fun day of playing on my keyboard, attempting to nap, and jumping in my jumperoo, it was time for dinner! This is the special dinner mommy made for the grown-ups: rosemary basil chicken, broccoli cheddar pasta rice, and steamed spinach!

I got to sit at the head of the grown-up table with everybody else, in my cool highchair!

In honor of my 6 month milestone, mommy cooked up some butternut squash using the Beaba. I was pretty curious to try my first vegetable, and especially liked the color of it! Taking a bite and tasting it for the first time........

Wait for it.......

Hmmm, not too sure about this new taste...... i guess its 0-kay. eh! After a few bites , I was over it! I think I'm ready to move on to the next veggie on the menu, ha ha!

This was by far my favorite part of the evening....... dessert! My daddy, mommy, and Grandpa Grover sang me happy birthday, and daddy even helped me blow out the big 6 candle on my cake! While the grown-ups had some cake and ice cream, I had a dessert of my own.... my mommy's milk :)

Can't wait to see what mommy has in store for my next big milestone birthdays: the double-digit 10 months and my ONE year birthday!

Taj turns SIX months old!

Happy 6 months buddy boy! My, how much you have grown, since we brought you home from the hospital! I remember when you were a teeny tiny peanut growing and kicking around in my belly, then you were born and you were our little munckin that made "seahorsey" sounds, and now you are TWICE as a big and the cutest, talkative, and happy infant that we have ever laid our eyes on! You are such a JOY and have brought so much happiness to our lives! Taji, we want you to know how happy you make us, and not a second goes by that we don't count our blessings because we feel truly lucky to have you! It has been tons of fun and way entertaining to watch you grow, master your development milestones, and come into your own! You make us so proud! Ten, twenty, years from now, when you read this in your Year in Review photobook (which mommy is working on!), I want you to know that you are the BEST thing that has happened to me, to daddy, to us..... we are still in disbelief that our love has created such an adorable and perfect little human being! Thank you for coming into this world, and for filling our hearts with your precious love. We love you to the moon and back!

At 6 months old, Taj weighs 16 lbs (23rd percentile), and is 26 inches tall (35th percentile)..... Taji Waji, are you shrinking on us all of a sudden, or growing sideways?! LOL He sits up now with minimal hand support, esp. when his hands are occupied with a toy. When he is on his back, he likes to crawl like a crab, pushing his knees and butt up and scooting. Its soooo cute! You can catch a peek at it on the video in the previous post. When he is seated, he can actually lean forward now and get into crawl position, although he ends up rolling over to his back. When he's on his tummy, Taji balances on his belly and pushes up on his knees and arms; he is quickly figuring out how to crawl. Did I mention how strong his little legs are? He really enjoys pretend standing, and likes to "pretend" walk from room to room as we hold him under his arms..... I think he loves the sound of his own footsteps pitter pattering on the wood floor! Taji is a babbler, mixing and pairing many consonants, such a "ma mu", "ba ma" etc. He regularly says "mama" and at times he sounds italian as he belts out "a-mama" with an accent! Of course, his frequent and clear mama's are music to my ears, and get this, he also is starting to say "ya ya" (which is chloe's nickname for me!..... and I would like to believe it has to do with me, ha ha) Taji is at times saying "da" but for Brad that's not good enough so he will correct his mama's with dada's. He is eating rice cereal now in the morning and the evening, with whatever veggie is on his tasting menu for lunch. I had him eating oatmeal for a little while until he began to get very gassy and constipated.... so we switched back to the rice cereal. His pediatrician and I believe he may have a sensitivity to glutein, so for now we are glutein-free. As for his sleeping, Taj is now finally getting back to sleeping a consistent 8-9 hours through the night, after a very exhausting, sleep-interrupting few weeks with his teething. You won't believe this, his pediatrician told us his upper gums are swelling up, and then within the next couple of weeks we should expect him to cut his first upper tooth, WOW! Our baby is growing up, and getting more teeth in! Its so crazy for me to picture him smiling with his teeth.... I'm so used to the toothless grins!

I have this feeling that Taj is musically inclined, because since he was a newborn he has always gravitated toward anything music-related, singing, musical instruments, and such. So we started an 8-week infant music class, Kindermusik, that Taji absolutely LOVES. He smiles and laughs so hard when we do our dancing, movement, and song hand movements! He also really likes observing and interacting with other babies, and exploring the musical instruments. And after weeks of playing with his baby piano, Brad stumbled upon a cool keyboard at a garage sale, and brought it home for Taji. Taji was beside himself, so many keys to hit and so many different different sounds..... check out these 6 month portraits with his new keyboard.... can you see the budding musician in training?

Oak Glen Apple Picking

October was pumpkins, December will be christmas trees, and November? Well, apples of course! Today we took a family day trip to Oak Glen to do some apple picking, eating, and frolicking in the apple orchards (Riley's Farm to be exact). Oak Glen is right underneath the San Bernadino Mts, and a blast to the colonial past. Its an awesome place to visit around Thanksgiving time because the apple orchard community is like walking into a quaint colonial town like back in the day. They even offer a "feast" in which you eat like the pilgrims! We had our own feast at their beautiful restaurant in a historic rustic house, the food and apple cider beer were incredible!

Taji, on the other hand is real stinker when it comes to dining in restaurants, he refuses to sit, and wants to move about! LOL So Brad and I took turns scarfing down our food while Taji eyed it and tried reaching for everything we were eating and drinking..... can't wait to get the 'go ahead' from his pediatrician this week because he is definitely ready to eat real food!

Here is Taji kissing (more like eating) my cheek!

After lunch, we toured and hiked around the apple orchards. There was so many photo opportunities I just couldnt resist!

This one was Brad's idea, when Taj was napping...... we call this photo "The Sleeping Beauty" :)

I have to say we are really enjoying the local southern california farms, such a breath of fresh air to be within nature and away from all the hustle and bustle of everyday life in Orange County! We took in the scenery at the Riley Farm, visited the horses and goats, then hiked up a hill to a big apple orchard where we picked both red and golden sweet apples. I think Taj loves apples :)

Taj is quite the baby model, he is so photogenic, smiles on cue, and already knows how to pose! Check out this other fave:

this one is for you, Babi and Deda!! Can you see his two beautiful bottom pearly whites?

One homemade apple pie (with our very own picked apples) coming up for Thanksgiving! Oh, and yes I know what you are thinking, Oak Glen has in fact been added to our list of annual fall traditions!!!! We had such a gorgeous day, we really look forward to coming back here, feasting on a traditional Thanksgiving meal, and taking pics of Taj running around!

The Talented Mr. Taj

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I be the first to show you our baby boy of many talents. He's sitting up (the tripod style), he's beginning to crawl, scoots on his back, he sucks and bites on his toes with his TWO growing pearly whites, beginning to wave bye-bye, and he is babbling many different syllables! He is even wanting to stand and holds himself up against the couch! Taj is also becoming a comedian with his "tricks" and we regularly have laughing contests!

I'm telling you.... with every month brings more determination, skills, and excitement for this little man! No doubt he is talented and driven!

Let's start with a little trick he likes to entertain us with (he reminds me of a little seal in this one!)

Now let's celebrate his many accomplishments with a a few videos i captured :)

I present to you...... the "little Taji That Could" practicing his crawling:

Up next, is a longer video in which Taj is sitting up, going into crawl position, scooting on his back, sucking on his toes, showing off his teeth, smacking his lips ("fish out of water" we like to call it), saying "baba", and attempting to wave! Phew..... hard work for a little guy! And just in time for his 6th month birthday!!! I wonder what we'll see next month!!?!!

And lastly, this one is pretty incredible! a little peek into what our little Taji will look like standing and walking in a few months. He loves to pretend walk with us holding him under his arms...... he gets very excited and thinks he's a big kid... what a "stand-up" comedian eh?!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Every hard-working mommy deserves a great girl's night out, and I can't even tell you how lucky I am to be surrounded by good girlfriends! While Brad took over the feeding/ bathing/bedtime duties on Saturday evening, I drove up to LA to see my fabulous girls Dina and Rana. Dina surprised me with a beautiful and thoughtful necklace she had made that is stamped "TAJI" with his birthstone :) Now I can wear Taji close to my heart when I am far from him, I don't ever want to take it off!

Dina has always been like a sister to me, and such a caring auntie to Taji. Thank you my dear friend! After a mini mommy make-over at Dina's, we headed to Katsuya (yummy sushi spot!) to meet up with Rana, and boy did we feast on delicious sushi and tasty wine!

Even though we don't see each other as often as we used to, when we do get together it is always so special and we have such a good time. I don't know what I would without my girls..... they never cease to amaze me with their kindness and love!

Our 1st Annual Baby Halloween Bash

Our little Wizard of OZ family had a blast at our first annual baby Halloween Party, on Halloween Sunday! The day before, Brad and I carved our family of pumpkins.... can you see each one of us? (From left) Brad with his "flava sava" on his chin, me the girly lookin' pumpkin with the huge lips, then Taji (with his two lower teeth) and Kuki the cat sitting on the haystack! We also decorated the house with spider webs, a giant ceiling hanging spider, and very cool black cat scenes on our balcony that made the house glow orange.

On the morning of Halloween, we awoke to find our very own creepy crawlers strike war (ants!). So while Brad battled them, Taji and I prepared all the tasty treats and bites to eat, and baked homemade pumpkin pie and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. We got into our costumes just in the knick of time before our guests began to arrive. As you can see from the first picture, this year we went for the Wizard of Oz family theme. I was a blonde dorothy, Brad was the scarecrow (and yes! it was his idea to paint his face...... i love how much he got into the spirit!) and of course, our little Taji baby was the cutest little lion cub we've ever seen. He was the cowardly lion from the Wizard of Oz story, but we like to think he was a "brave" lion like his middle name Leon!

Taj was the perfect host, he greeted his friends by showing them how he can sit up now, and smiled at them with his 2 tooth grin :) He was quite comfortable in his costume too! At 1pm, our friends began to arrive. The Brandt family with their teddy bear Regan, the Jacobsen Family with their pea in the pod Cade (who was snoozing in the beginning when all the babies showed off their costumes), the Rodriguez family with their pirate Ryan, the Marovic Family with their girly pirate Gracie, and we also had the Tennant family stop by to say hi with their baby girl Brooklyn still in her mommy's tummy (she will make her costume debut at next year's party!). And last but not least, my sister and family arrived in the BEST family themed costumes. The Fetters family "Scooby Doo" themed, loved it! (Check out their pic in the slide show below). I LOVE LOVE this sweet photo of Scooby Doo Chloe and Lion Cub Taji:

Here are all the mamas (minus Ashlea) with our babes..... hope our little ones had a fun first halloween! Can't wait to show Taj this picture of him and his buddies when he is older!

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect way to celebrate our little guy's first halloween! The weather was sunny and beautiful, and we are very fortunate to have incredible friends who are all new parents just like us! With so many great photos to share from our little spooky soiree, check them out in this slideshow!:

Already looking forward to next year's halloween party, when our babies will be cruising and walking all over the place!