The Butterfly

As I mentioned before, Drew does this half butterfly stroke with his arms and frog leap with his legs in his makeshift version of crawling. Well, we tested the waters literally when we (Ngoai, MaryAnn, Uncle Footon, Daddy, and Mommy) took him to the pool for the second time. Well, he absolutely loved it again. Andrew was all about trying to put his face in the water and was quite successful at it at times (more than Mommy would have liked to have seen). He wasn't so good with his arms--but probably since we were holding him. But A.J. was good about kicking his legs in the water. When did Michael Phelps began swimming? Ha ha! We will definitely have to do it again.

Here are some pictures, but I didn't get any action ones since they would have been after I had gotten in the pool.

College Gameday

Oh, the world is once more right again. College football is upon us. Saturday mornings used to mean sleeping in (or later than normal) and watching College Gameday {Mommy has missed Kirk Herbstreit}. Then, we would would spend most of the day watching whatever games and especially the UT one.

But today, we didn't get to watch as many games as we would have liked. We barely watched any really. But I guess that is what happens when you have a kid. You don't get to do as much as what you used to like to do in your "former life." I am definitely okay with this sacrifice--for now, anyways. But Andrew will be taught early on to watch football or entertain himself while Mommy and Daddy watch some. Sounds good in theory, but in reality...not so fast, my friend.

But we did give it a good ole college try in our attempt to watch the Longhorns opener. After dinner at Aunt Hong's and Uncle Hung's house, we drove over to a local "family" sports bar to see if they were showing the UT game as it was on Pay Per View. Well, they didn't have it. We were going to drive over to Buffalo Wild Wings, but Drew was crying in the car seat (no surprise there). Since the Longhorns were putting the hurt on Florida Atlantic, we just drove home and got updates from espn.com.

Here's are some pictures of my little Longhorn with Uncle Anh Tuan's cap and of him hanging out with Cousin Mary Ann. I don't know why my flash didn't go off on the last picture, but I still like it. I guess I am going to have to try to do some photoshopping.

We were so happy to have them visit this weekend, especially Drew. Uncle Anh Tuan, thanks so much for driving in early and watching him on Friday. MaryAnn, thanks for hanging out with us and being our shopping companion.

Doctor's Visit #4 - Six Month Check Up

We had Andrew's Six Month Check Up this afternoon.

Six Month Check Up Vitals:
- Height: 25 1/4 in (from 25 in at two month check up);
- Weight: 15 lbs 4 oz (from 13 lbs 0.5 oz at two month check up); and
- Head Circumference: 17 1/4 in (from 16 3/4 in at two month check up).

He is less than the 25th percentile in height and weight, but Dr. Isenhower said this is still ok since he is still growing proportionately to where he was last time. However, this is not sit very well with Daddy who is now on a mission to get Drew to eat and drink more so he grow even more.

Drew did well at the doctor's office. We were most proud after his latest round of shots. The kid cried for like a minute (two at the most) and then stopped. Then, he even managed to give the nurse a smile. Such a good boy!

Ngoai was kind of enough to meet us almost halfway so James and I wouldn't have to come all the way down to League City from work just to head back up to Houston for the appointment. As such, she picked out his ensemble. He was a little taken aback from the shoes as he has only worn shoes once before. Here is my little prep.

Happy Six Month Birthday!

Where does the time go!? I can't believe Andrew is 6 months already. He is learning and growing so fast. Sometimes, I wish time would just slow down so we can cherish this time even more.

Some of his more recent dislikes: (1) car rides (not so a recent development, but probably his biggest grievance); (2) peas, peaches, applesauce, and pears; and (3) anything sour apparently.

Some of his more recent likes: (1) putting everything in his mouth; (2) climbing; (3) drinking from a cup; and (4) corn, mango, and baby food with meat.

Drew still isn't crawling the traditional way, but does a combination butterfly move with his arms and a frog style leap with his feet. He can really move fast.

A.J. is also getting the hang of sitting on his own. Sometimes, he will still topple over not fully understanding gravity. He can do it for a good while evidenced by today's picture of him with Auntie Monica.

Happy Half Year Birthday!

Bitter Beer Face

Drew can make some pretty funny faces, but we have been seeing some really good ones more recently when he eats. If he doesn't like something, he will give you this sour look on his face...kind of like what some of us refer to as a bitter beer face, but without the beer, of course. Here is a couple of pictures of him trying papaya baby food.

Three Men and a Baby

I think the title is somewhat fitting to compare our son and the men in his life that are in close proximity (say, within a 1 mile radius). Of course, the first man is Daddy, who A.J. absolutely adores. I never tire of watching them together. Then, the second is Papa, who has developed a very close bond with his grandson. I still owe you guys a video clip of Papa giving Drew a workout. And now, the honor of the third man can be bestowed upon Uncle Hung.

For a while, Andrew was pretty much indifferent to him probably because he didn't see him very often. But lately, we have gotten to see more of Uncle; and Drew is totally into him now. The last two nights, when we have had dinner with Uncle Hung and Aunt Hong, Andrew will give Uncle some very hearty smiles and laughs. I have always had a very close and special relationship with my uncle; and it melts my heart to see Andrew building a relationship with him. Here is a picture of Drew during one of their moments.

Teething

Well, for months now, Andrew has been drooling buckets and buckets and buckets. And so we thought he must be teething. But there hadn't been any teeth...until now. He finally cut his first tooth last Friday. And I finally got a picture of it today.

It's been hard because every time I try to move his lip to take a picture, he will stick his tongue out blocking the view. You can see it sometimes when he cries, but then I am trying to console him instead of taking a picture of his tooth. And you can see it sometimes when he laughs and smiles, but I couldn't ever get it on camera. Even now, this picture isn't that great, but it will have to do. I have zoomed in so hopefully you guys can see it.

Road Trip #2

Well, we braved the roads once again for Andrew's second road trip. This time, we headed for San Antonio. We left Thursday night hoping that Andrew would sleep most of the way. Nonetheless, he started crying about 20 minutes into the trip. I have to admit I was contemplating telling James to turn around and head back home. But luckily, shortly thereafter, Drew fell asleep and stayed that way for most of the trip just waking up a few times for a few moments quickly falling back asleep after drinking some milk. When we got in around 12:30am, Nonna was still awake waiting up for us. We put Drew down for bed, but he woke up a little while later in a ridicuously good mood wanting to play and check out the new surroundings. He finally went to bed around 1:30am.

Friday, we ran some errands around town including some shopping. That afternoon, we watched Stephanie's volleyball game. She did great, but unfortunately, her team lost. After the game, we headed for dinner at Johnny Carino's. A.J. did really well considering how much he was in the car going everywhere. He was also really cute when Stephanie's dog, Bandit, came up and barked at him and James. Did he cry? No. Did he shy away into Daddy's chest? No. He actually laughed. It was too funny.

Saturday, we went over to the Maher residence to visit with them. Sally made a terrific lasagna lunch. Brian even took James to see the new Brandies High School where Brian will be coaching soccer this year. When we were living in San Antonio, we spent a great deal of time hanging with Brian and Sally. So, in a way, it was just like ole times just talking and catching up. But this time was also nice and different because we were also spending time with their two sons, Chance and Brandon, as well as Andrew.

Later that evening, we had a nice family dinner at Doris's house with Mike, Janine, Stephanie and Thomas. It was an incredible meal as always; and we always love spending time with the Gonzaleses. We also spent a good portion of the night watching the Olympics.

Sunday morning, we went over to see Joey and Nicci Tse who were in town from Belgium where Joey is working for BASF. James and Joey went to elementary school together and lived together for one year at UT. We also stayed with them during our European vacation last year. During that time, we really got a chance to get to know their kids, Nathan, Hannah, and Sarah. It was great seeing all of them again and seeing how big the kids have gotten in about a year's time. One of James's soccer buddies and friend since elementary school too, Brad, also came over to Joey's parents' house with his wife, Laura, and their two daughters, Caroline and Rebecca. It was so much fun seeing all the kids together. We even took Andrew for his first dip in the pool; he seemed to really like it a lot, especially trying to drink the water just like he does in the tub.

After that, we headed over to visit another of James's friend, Alex, who James has known since he was 4 years old. Alex and his wife, Charlene, have 3 kids: Diego and twins, Xavier and Siena. We all went to lunch at Marie Callender's to celebrate Alex's birthday. The twins are just too cute!

By the time we were done with lunch, it was time to head back to Houston. We got really lucky because Drew fell asleep not even 15 minutes into the car ride and slept pretty much the whole time. Again, he woke up a few times, but each time, he went back to sleep right away after drinking some milk. About 10 minutes from home, he woke up for good. James and I were totally surprised by how well he did in the car both trips. He really did us proud that weekend.

We had a wonderful weekend full of family and friends. It was so nice seeing all the kids and their parents, of course. Thank you, Doris, for your hospitality and for everything you did/do! And thank you everyone for making the time to see us! We loved spending time with all of you and are missing you already!

Here is a slideshow of the pictures from this weekend. Mommy only wishes she had taken more, but she was too busy having fun.

Rubber Ducky

I thought this picture of Drew in the bath was cute with how he is lounging in the tub. I also love the strategically placed rubber ducky. I can't help to think of Ernie and Sesame Street...

"Rubber Ducky, you're the one,
You make bathtime lots of fun,
Rubber Ducky, I'm awfully fond of you."

Even More Visitors

On Monday evening, we welcomed even more visitors. Papa's cousin once removed, Di (aunt in Vietnamese and pronounced like /yee/) Xuan and her son, Vu, came from Sydney, Australia. So, that makes Di Xuan and I second cousins and Andrew and Vu third cousins. Cool, huh?

Their visit begin with a rocky start with Tropical Storm Edouard coming in. James and I didn't have to go into the office, which was nice. It reminded us of the good ole ice days at UT. We got some heavy rain and heavy winds, but nothing too severe. We were very fortunate.

Anyhow, it was incredible meeting more family and especically with them living so far away. My parents had visited them years and years ago when I was in high school. I had seen pictures and heard about them, but it was nice finally seeing them in person and getting to know them. They left this morning for San Francisco. I wish we could have spent more time with them, but know we can't hog them to ourselves.

The pictures below are: 1) Vu, Papa, Di Xuan at Space Center Houston on (I didn't go, but I loved this picture; 2) a bunch of the cousins at Kemah Boardwalk taken Friday night.*

*My cousin's boyfriend is supposed to send me this picture, but hasn't yet. When he does, I will amend the post.

**Update: I have added the picture of the gang below.

More Visitors

Well, we just keep on getting more visitors, which has been absolutely wonderful! On Wednesday night, Uncle Anh Tuan came into town for an Astros game. Then, on Thursday night, Granddad drove to League City. Lastly, on Friday night, Cousins Stephanie and Thomas flew in to spend the weekend with us.

Thursday night, Granddad treated us a very nice meal at Texas Roadhouse; and then he and Daddy went out to a bar for some drinks. On Friday during the day, three generations of Lenz men went out to lunch at the Aquarium at Kemah Boardwalk. Saturday, we all went to eat breakfast at Cracker Barrel. I then took Stephanie to have her hair done by my mom.

Later, that afternoon, Granddad left to head back to Austin; and James, Stephanie, and Thomas went to watch the third Mummy movie. I opted to stay home with A.J. since I don't like scary movies. Saturday night, we (James, me, Andrew, Uncle Footon, Stephanie, Thomas, and Auntie Monica) went to play pool, shuffleboard, and video games at Main Event.

Then, on Sunday, we went to mass where Andrew was really, really good. He only fussed when he was tired, but quickly went to sleep. We joked that had we known he was going to be that good, we wouldn't have sat in the Baby Room. But then again, had we had sat with in the main chapel, he probably would have cried and screamed to no end.

After lunch, we took the kids to Space Center Houston where they had a Star Wars exhibit. It was okay in that we had hoped they would have more memorabilia, but we still had a good time with some other activities there. Before we knew it, it was time to take the kids back to the airport. The weekend had definitely gone by too quickly. We really had a blast with everyone! Thanks for spending time with us.

Here are some pictures from the weekend: 1) Thomas battles a Storm Trooper; (2) Stephanie climbing; and (3) the cousins at my parents' house before heading to the airport.