Abuela Comes for a Visit

Abuela came to visit us for 3 weeks in May, all the way from Cali, Colombia. We had a wonderful time hanging out as a family. She is so much fun and so creative. She loved spending time with Andres and he adored her. In fact, he really bonded with her on this visit. It was beautiful to watch.

Daddy's 1st Father's Day

Sunday, June 20, 2010: Daddy's 1st Father's Day! The good daddy that he is, he still mowed the lawn and weeded the garden as he usually does on the weekends. I think he really likes being out there taking care of our home so that I can run around and play. Daddy is so good to me. I am very lucky to have him for my DAD and I love him very much. We have a lot of fun together. Mommy took us out for dinner at "Bel Lago" overlooking Hoover Dam. It was beautiful and the food was delicious.

Mommy's 1st Mother's Day

Sunday, May 9, 2010: Today was mommy's 1st Mother's Day. She told me how happy she was to have me as her son. She gave me lots of hugs and kisses this day and always does. I have brought her a lot of happiness, and she loves to be a mom. We are lucky to have each other. Daddy took us to Mommy's favorite restaurant "Dragonfly" to celebrate for brunch. It was delicious!!!

First Birthday

Friday, March 26, 2010: Today is Andres' 1st Birthday. Where does time go? Just a little over 6 months ago, we were receiving him in our arms in Cali, Colombia. He is growing into such a beautiful boy. We are TOTALLY in love with him and can't imagine our lives without him. My best friend, Monica, flew up from Miami to celebrate his birthday with us. We were totally surprised! We also took Andres for his first real haircut. That wasn't too much fun. Poor little guy cried so much. He wasn't happy. He does look adorable though. He is now ready for his birthday party tomorrow.

Sunday, February 14, 2010: Andres' First Valentine's Day with Mommy and Daddy. We went out for an early dinner to Tratoria Roma in Grandview. We had a delicious meal, and Andres had the chance to play with heart balloons that daddy kept grabbing from the ceiling for him to play with. It was very cute!!!

Andres Travels to Miami with Mommy

January 28-February 7, 2010: Andres and I traveled together to Miami for 10 days and stayed at abuela and abuelo's house. Daddy couldn't come because he had market week in NYC. We missed him and hope he travels with us next time. Andres did very well on the flight there and back home. We got to visit a lot with family and friends in Miami. It was a nice break from all the snow and cold weather in Columbus. During our trip in Miami, Andres reached a lot of milestones. He started walking more consistently, learned to say "mama," and started to talk a lot more-in his own language, of course. He also got a 24-hour stomach virus which wasn't too much fun. Thank goodness that happened towards the end of our trip.

First Steps

Monday, January 18, 2010: Andres started to take his first steps all by himself. I think all the practice in his little jeep walker helped him a lot. He started out holding on to me, and then he turned around and took about 5 steps forward before falling. Then, he started to hold on to the TV in the basement and letting go as he took a few steps forward. Wow! It was incredible to watch. He seems excited about his development just like mommy and daddy. Incredible how this time with our son is going so fast. We just LOVE him so much! He is very physically advanced.

American Passport

Wednesday, January 6, 2009: Andres received his American passport in the mail, TODAY! Congratulations, Andres. We are so happy for him. It actually didn't take that long to receive. Well, now he can travel the world with mommy and daddy.

Andres' First Christmas

Friday, Dec. 25, 2009: Andres celebrated his first Christmas with family. What a special holiday this year, with our little one. Andres was our best Christmas present! Thank you, God, for such a blessing. Andres is bringing us so much joy.

Andres' Baptism

Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009: Andres was baptized at Saint Michael's Catholic Church in Worthington.

Godparents: Jonathan Galindez and Daniele Yannucci

The Galindez family flew up for the occasion and stayed through Christmas. Neighbors and close friends attended as well.

Andres' First Thanksgiving

Thursday, Nov. 26, 2009: Wow, it has been a long time since I have updated Andres' blog. He is obviously keeping me very busy. He is growing fast, so we are enjoying every moment with him.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with Doug's family here in our home. Andres was happy to meet them all, especially his cousins Matthew and Nathen.

Broccoli-Not so good either!

Friday, November 6, 2009: Andres tried broccoli today. He just doesn't seem to like green veggies. We are in trouble! I kept feeding him, and at least he wasn't as resistant as he was with the green beans. I ended up mixing some squash and carrots along with the broccoli, and this helped. He always enjoys fruit the most, so I gave him a mix of apples and blueberries which he ate very happily.

Green Beans-Not so Yummy!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009: Andres tried green beans today, and made a "not-so-good" face. I still tried to feed him, despite him turning his face away from me. Eventually, I mixed up some fruit with it so he would eat it. Oh boy!

Halloween Day

Saturday, October 31, 2009: We took Andres to Toys R' Us to meet Geoffrey the giraffe. It was a bit chaotic at the toy store, but we managed to take a picture with Geoffrey. Andres didn't seem that interested.

Halloween at Bluffsview

Thursday, October 29, 2009: We dressed up Andres for Halloween and took him trick or treating in our neighborhood. We dressed him up as a giraffe. He looked adorable! We didn't collect too much candy as we only wanted to introduce him to our neighbors. Everyone was so excited to meet him.

Proof of Citizenship

Thursday, November 5, 2009: Andres received his Certificate of Citizenship in the mail. We were told it would take 45 days to receive it, and it only took 19 days. Wow! Our little boy, Andres Sebastian, is officially an American Citizen.

All About Food

Andres loves to EAT! We started feeding him mushed up bananas and he ate it all. Today, we fed him carrots for the first time, and he liked those as well. He definitely has a good appetite. I am having a lot of fun making his food with vegetables from our community shared agriculture and organic items from Whole Foods. The best part is feeding him and watching him open his mouth wide for the next spoon. So cute!

7 Months Old

Monday, October 26, 2009: Andres turned 7 months old! Wow, time does fly. I can't believe our little boy whom we received at 5 1/2 months is already 7 months old. He gets cuter and cuter by the day. We love being his parents. I am sure you can see how proud and happy DADDY is. Andres is a lot of fun, and keeps us VERY active!

WE LOVE YOU, ANDRES!!!

Eating Rice Cereal

Friday, October 23, 2009: After talking to the pediatrician at the International Adoption Clinic about Andres' feeding, we decided to take his advice and start feeding him rice cereal separately and not in his bottle. As you can see in the picture, he enjoyed it, and ate it all! He has a very good appetite, I must say.

International Adoption Clinic

Today, we had our first visit at the International Adoption Clinic in Westerville, Ohio. This is where they meet Andres for the first time and give him a check up visit. The nurse ran a TB test which will give us results by Monday. A physical therapist tested his development skills with toys. The doctor checked him, and Andres is a healthy boy. We go to Nationwide Children's Hospital on Monday for more tests and to meet with a nutritionist.

The doctor recommended we start feeding Andres some rice cereal to feed with a spoon instead of mixed in his bottle, so I tried it this afternoon, and he loved it. He seems to like everything we give him so far.