Truman's First Birthday

Today we celebrated Truman's first birthday and had a "jungle" of a time! What a day, full of both excitement and emotion. Unfortunately, the weather did not hold up for us and we spent most (read: all) our time inside but a good time was had by all! Truman wanted to thank everyone for all the gifts and for spoiling him.

Truman seemed to enjoy his party and loved all the attention he was receiving! Grandma spent a lot of the day walking him around, and around, and around some more. Thanks Wanda for all of your help! Truman was very interested in his cake and took the toy monkey off right away and wanted to have a taste! He seemed to enjoy his cake as he dove right in, face first. The sugar effects lasted well into the evening, and he was not interested in napping at all. I don't think I have EVER seen my little one so excited before! Nor has he ever had so much energy!

I want to send out a special thanks to both Tina and Misty for all the time and energy they spent on helping Truman's day be so special. THANK YOU!! As well, an extra special thanks to Tina for making a spectacular cake! WOW!!! Truman feels so special that he had one of his very own!

Truman is definitely turning into a little boy and I am noticing it more and more every day. Today he said "light" for the first time, even though it sounds more like "li". Or, I could also be a crazy mommy and am making nothing into something!

On Friday we took Truman for his 12 month check up and he is 21 1/2 pounds and 72 cm, which means he has shrunk 2cm from his last visit, and went from the 90th percentile to the 10th in a few months. Hmmmm.....I'm assuming that a mistake was made somewhere! Jerry was so excited to turn around the car seat that he locked himself in the car while doing it.

Peek-A-Boo

Truman's new favourite game to play is peek-a-boo! He thinks hiding is quite fun, but doesn't want me to be out of his sight for too long.

Truman has been extra cuddly over the last few days. I think all the fussing is because he is getting another molar. Poor thing! Let me tell you it's not so easy being with a little toddler when he's teething! He doesn't seem happy unless he's in my arms!

Morrie has not been himself since he returned from the hospital last night. He had surgery on his tongue and we are hoping that it is only calcification and not anything more serious. I think he is still in a lot of pain. He too has been extra cuddly and wants a lot of attention. Tonight, he decided to sleep in Truman's room under his crib (which is a first). Misery likes company?

A Trip to Boston, Walking, and a New Molar!

Saturday morning we began our Boston adventure. We did however go to Tim Horton's with Emily, Mark and Grace before driving to Buffalo. Truman really wanted to have one last date with Grace before he left for a few days! The drive to the Buffalo airport was long and painful...at one point we thought we were going to miss our flight. Luckily there was little traffic at the border and we had a little less than an hour at the airport. We flew to Boston on a tiny propeller plane (Dash 8 aircraft). Truman was great on the flight and he insisted that we read him book after book after book!

We arrived in Boston fairly painlessly and because of my mommy craziness, I refused to take a taxi to the hotel (because there were no car seats) and insisted that we take a subway. I can't tell you how many stairs we had to climb while carrying our luggage and Truman in his stroller. I thought Jerry was going to kill me! But, at least we got a great workout in!

On Sunday morning, Truman decided he was ready to walk! He would just let go of my hands and walk! It was such a proud mommy moment for me! Now, he wants to walk everywhere! After practising walking we began our day of sight seeing. We decided that the best way to see Boston was to walk the city and explore. We headed to Harvard first to show Truman where he will be going to university, specifically Harvard Law School (but really Truman, no pressure!). What an amazing campus! Although I think Western was as close to an "American" type campus as it gets...it was NOTHING like Harvard. WOW!

We then headed to Quincey Market/Faneuil Hall to check things out. I was a little disappointed in the lack of chachkas and the more mainstream type stores....does there have to be a GAP everywhere? We then decided to walk back to our hotel, but to take a long, walk to tour the city. We walked part of the Freedom Trail, Boston Commons, and then down Newbury street.

Monday we took Truman on his first train ride to Salem! I have never seen Jerry so excited to visit a place! We went on a witch tour and went into about a dozen cheesy shops. We visited the cemetery and the oldest candy store in America! Unfortunately, we missed our "spell castings" tour, Truman was really looking forward to learning some spells to teach his friends at day care. I tried to get a picture of a witch, but I could not catch one on film.

I noticed on Saturday morning that Truman had something white poking out of his gums near the back of his mouth. I touched the area and felt something quite sharp. OMG! Truman was getting a molar! It didn't seem to bother him too much, but on Tuesday night he woke up at 4am and would not stop screaming. I tried to console him as much as possible, and we gave him some Tylenol and then he finally fell asleep (on me, and I think I drooled on his head!). Poor thing! I am so happy that his pain only lasted one night! For both our sakes.

After a nice swim on Wednesday morning, we wanted to see some more of Boston, and do some more touristy type things. We first headed to the Boston aquarium. We saw three types of penguins, seals, sharks, turtles and many, many fish! Truman had a great time looking into the tanks and trying to touch the fish. He also enjoyed walking everywhere and would fight Jerry and I when we would try to put him back in his stroller. Our little one is definitely exerting his independence!

We then headed to Fenway Park to take a look at the baseball stadium. There was a game on when we got there, but because we had the stroller, we didn't attempt to go in to watch. It was too bad, but when Truman goes to Harvard we'll have many chances to catch a game!

Wednesday night we met up with Erin for dinner as she has been working in Boston for the last 6 months. It was a great meal, and Truman was a complete gentleman, despite all the food he had on his face and hands!

August Long Weekend

Saturday morning Jerry, Truman and I headed downtown to St. Lawrence Market to pick up some fresh food for the weekend, particularly some meat to BBQ. After a quick visit we headed back uptown for Truman's swimming lessons, which both Truman and Daddy enjoyed. Saturday night we headed to one of the restaurants in our neighbourhood with Rebecca, Ryan and Jake, and Bronna, Jeff and Macayla. The kids were very well behaved and another couple dining in the restaurant commented on how great they were. Truman could not get enough bread to eat. Rebecca and I decided that we had to take a trip to DQ, since it had been almost a year since we last satisfied our DQ cravings! I gave a little ice cream to Truman to try, but he didn't seem to like it that much.



Sunday morning we woke up and headed to the zoo! We met up with Ryan, Rebecca and Jake and had a lovely walk around the park before the heat was unbearable. We headed to the water park where we were joined by the Thornton's. Truman only wanted to walk around the water park and touch the water. Jake had so much fun playing with the spraying animals.....he has no fear!


Above is a picture of Jake at the zoo....we found him hiding in one of the bushes!



After the zoo, Ben, Steph, Christine and Dash joined us at our place for some pizza. Christine is such a sweet, polite little girl and I don't buy her parent's sentiments that she only shows well! Dash is a little flirt (taking after his friend Truman), but keep that boy away from the beer!

Sunday night Jerry and I had a lovely dinner for two on our patio (while Truman was napping). Then, we woke up our little one and headed to Mel Lastman Square to listen to a swing band. When we arrived the party was in full swing and the dance floor was already full! Truman and I danced together, and I hope that I will always have him as my dance partner.

Monday morning, while Jerry went golfing, I took Truman to Tim Horton's for our weekend bagels and coffee. I could not believe how quickly Truman polished off his food! Monday evening, we had the Starkman's over for a lovely BBQ. Truman and Jake took a little dip in the pool...well, it took Truman quite some time to get comfortable sharing his pool with Jake. He would not stop crying, so Jerry hopped in with them, which I think helped Truman calm down a lot. It was so adorable watching the two of the them have dinner together. As you can see, Jake likes lamb, while Truman prefers beef! Jake taught Truman a new song tonight....we'll see if Truman will catch on!

Heat Wave

How do you entertain a little one in this heat? It has been a trying week for Truman and I. We have been going on our walks early in the morning (with Lana and Masha) or later in the evening (with Morrie). On Monday and Tuesday afternoon, we splashed around in the pool, which Truman is quite fond of. He is not afraid of puting his face in the water over and over again. His favourtite thing to do is climb in and out of the pool and then insist that I walk him around the backyard. He needs to investigate EVERYTHING!!! He also tries to imitate me by grabbing the watering can and water the plants!

Wednesday Truman and I met up with Rebecca and Jake for our weekly visit to the zoo. Every animal seemed to be out, except for the Elephants who were attending an (off-site?) training session! We stopped by the cheetah exhibit...and all of a sudden three or four cheetah's approached the glass and it looked as though wanted the boys for breakfast. One cheetah in particular looked like he was trying to contemplate his escape. After we walked around for about an hour we headed to the water park to cool down. My sister and parents then came for a nice visit in the afternoon. We headed to Starbuck's even though it was so hot out....we all needed a caffeine fix!

Truman is walking most of the time now with one hand and occasionally lets go to walk on his own, only to fall. I am so proud of him to have enough courage to let go, and continually let go. I am sure that he will be walking without our help soon enough. Truman also has a new word "ball" and loves to roll and chase his little basketball!

11 Months!

Truman's social calendar was quite full this weekend. On Friday afternoon we headed home from Ajax, as we spent the last couple days there while Jerry was in Vancouver. I quickly dropped off Morrie and went for a walk with Masha and Lana. Masha is adorable and looks exactly like Lana. After our walk, Truman and I headed to Milestones to meet Jessica and Lisa for lunch. Truman was very well behaved and enjoyed eating lots and lots of bread. Friday evening we met up with Grandma, Grandpa, and Baba for dinner. Grandma offered to babysit, so that Jerry and I could attend a work function later that evening.

Saturday morning we headed to Tim Horton's for our weekend morning bagels and coffee. Truman can now identify the Tim Horton's bag and gets extremely excited once he sees it. I can't get the bagel out fast enough for him! Later that morning, Jerry took Truman swimming while Emily and I decided to pamper ourselves a little. Jerry dunked Truman five or six times in the pool and he didn't even flinch. Lately as well, while we are bathing Truman, he'll put his face in the water. He can't get enough of it! Later that evening, Tina and Pat came over to babysit for us while Jerry and I went out for dinner for Ryan's birthday. HAPPY 35TH BIRTHDAY RYAN!!! We had a great time with the Starkman's and the Silver's. We will have to get sitters more often!

Sunday morning we headed to the Silver's to celebrate Macayla's first birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MACALYA!!! Mac had a great time at her party and had fun with her closest friends Jake and Truman. Mac tried cake for the first time, but wasn't too interested in the sweet stuff! What a great party! Truman had a lot of fun, even though he continually was frightened (by a certain nameless someone). My poor sensitive boy! Truman also turned 11 months on Sunday. The countdown to his first birthday begins. OK, I've wiped away the tears, I'm OK, really.....

After the party, we headed to the Pickle Barrel to meet up with Jamie, Erin, Tim, Katie Ben, Steph, and Dash. Christine decided she wanted to go shopping instead. Can you blame her? I think she said she wanted to buy a new purse. It was great seeing everyone again, even though it was a short visit. Jerry and I were so full from Mac's party that we couldn't even order a smoothie!

When we got home we tried to put Truman down for a nap, but he simply refused. So after some time trying to get him to sleep, we packed up our stuff and headed over to Grandma's for dinner. Truman only wanted to walk (like usual) and took about five or more steps on his own. He had a great time exploring Grandma's garden and even crawled on the patio, which I was really surprised about.

Truman is enjoying walking and reading. He can't seem to get enough of these two things. My back is a little sore and I am a little bored of some of the books....but I'd do anything for that little bug! Oh, yes! That is a picture of Truman pregnant, he's due in January! Lucky for him, he hasn't experienced any morning sickness!

Harry Potter and the Welbeck Manor

This morning Truman decided he wanted to earn his keep at Welbeck Manor. He went to the bottom drawer in the kitchen and took out a cloth and started to clean the floors. He rubbed that cloth has hard as he could and made the floors sparkly clean. Good boy! Taking after is father already! The silverware needs polishing next!



This weekend was all about Harry Potter....we picked the book up at 8am (although we pre-ordered it to be picked up at midnight, sadly the Death Eaters placed the catterwauling jinx around our house which forbade us to leave). Jerry started to read the book immediately and put it down only to to take Truman to his swimming lessons. During the lesson I grabbed the book so that I could start reading about the Deathly Hallows too! Jerry then begged me to go to the mall so that he could continue to read in silence and being the good wife that I am, I obliged. Jerry finished Harry Potter as we were pulling into the Sullivan's driveway later that afternoon. Yes! The book was finally mine! I managed to finish last night.

I got one picture of some of the kids Saturday afternoon. Here's a picture of Christine who just took a dip in the pool, Olivia who decided she wanted to crawl away to something more interesting and Truman who is not particularly happy with sitting on the grass, he's somewhat of a delicate lad. Ethan was just too busy jumping in the pool and Dash was taking a nap so we didn't get the other boys in the shot. I have a feeling it will be some time before we can get all five (soon to be six) kids in one picture together.

Step One, Step Two

Truman has decided that crawling is so passe and that he would rather be upright every chance he can get. He especially loves to climb up my legs so that I have no choice but to grab his hands and help him walk around. On Monday, he took his first two steps unassisted. He is becoming more fearless every day....or maybe more in dependant! Which leads me to eating...gone are the days of spoon feeding my little one. Truman would rather feed himself, so I have been giving him a lot of finger foods. But now he also wants to use his spoon himself. Mealtime is no longer clean or neat (or quick)....food is everywhere, one me, on the floor, on Morrie's back...and of course all over Truman. Doesn't his tray just look delish?

I wanted to say a special thank you to Misty for helping Jerry and I so much on Saturday at the BBQ. Whenever Misty would like to quit her job and come be our nanny/au pair, she should let us know as we would take her in a heart beat!

BBQ Season

The Topolski Family ended the weekend with "Naked Time" however, I think I should clarify that Truman is the only one of us that actually gets naked. I am sure he is going to be so embarrassed by the fact that we did this to him....but honestly we love it! Although, as you can see in one picture, our always naked puppy was left out of the festivities.





















Anyhoo, summer time is BBQ season time and Jerry, Truman and I have been getting our fill. Last weekend we were invited to Emily, Grace and Mark's house for an early dinner as we both have young kids who are in bed by eight. Luckily we live a two second walk away from one another. Truman and Grace had so much fun playing with Truman's shoes and crawling around. As a side note, Truman and Grace learned to crawl on the same day!

Also, last Saturday was a special day for our close friends Lana and Mario, they welcomed their daughter Masha Sophia into the world. Mom, dad and baby are all doing well! CONGRATULATIONS!

This Saturday we skipped swimming (bad parents) because Truman spent the night coughing and had a bad runny nose. But, we'll be back next week. However, we did not skip our weekend tradition of Tim Horton bagels (and happy juice for mommy). Saturday afternoon we headed out to Brooklyn for an indoor BBQ at Tim and Alie's house. Here's a pic of Alexis and Truman on their first "date" together. Truman polished off a lot of meat and loved the pulled pork that Tim made. What a feast!

Today we had Pam, Ashu, Ana Sophia, Mike, Sue, Tyler and Brendon over for an afternoon BBQ. Little AS is so adorable and is Ashu's spitting image! Brendon had a great time playing with Morrie, and Truman loved watching them run around the backyard together. I am sure that we will have a few more BBQ's before the summer is through!

Too Busy To Pose

Since Truman has learned how to crawl he is investigating everything in the house. He also enjoys pulling himself up on everything and trying to stand on his own. Poor boy hasn't mastered balance yet and inevitably falls down. Truman is now too busy to pose for a picture...he would rather chase Morrie around the house or find out what is in the closest drawer. What can a mom do? I may only have action shots for the next little bit.

Truman made my day today by saying "mom" for the first time. Honestly, I was so excited and touched I thought I might cry (even though I doubt he was actually calling me!). For the past few days I have been amazed with his level of understanding and amazed at some of the things he has been doing. Such a sponge!

Yesterday Baba took Truman and I to buy Truman his first pair of shoes. We went to the same store where Baba bought Jerry his first pair of walking shoes, some 33 years ago. Truman was so good while he was getting his foot measured and when he was trying on different styles of shoes. Baba was so happy that she was able to do this for her great grandson.

10 Months!

On Friday Truman turned 10 months! It is hard for me to comprehend that in 2 short months he will be a year old. I am having such mixed feelings....how life will change, but I suppose change is what also makes life interesting.

On Friday afternoon, Aunt Lily came from NYC to visit with the Topolski fmaily this weekend. We are so happy to see her as we missed her last weekend. The three of us spent the afternoon hanging out together. It was so nice to see Aunt Lil and Truman bonding. We then headed over to Grandma's house for dinner (Chinese...yum!).

Saturday afternoon we were invited by Eddie to the Granite Club for brunch and were joined by Ryan, Rebecca and Jake. It was such a lovely afternoon and it felt like we weren't even in the city (although, the city is DEAD this weekend.....where did everyone go???). After brunch, we headed to KiddieProofers to purchase some gates and some other gadgets to keep Truman out of trouble. Now that Truman is crawling, he is into everything. I also have to say he is a lot happier now that he is mobile. Jerry was so upset when we were at the store, and not that the salesperson helped in the matter. We felt like such neglectful parents for not buying EVERY gadget that they had in the store. I think at one point Jerry was going to leave after a few words that the salesperson uttered. Anyways, we purchased only what we needed and I am sure that Truman will be safe. Yikes! This place preys on the fear of the first-time parent!

Saturday evening we met up with Baba, Grandma Wanda, Grandpa David and Lily for a delicious Italian dinner on College street. Truman was an angel and decided to flirt with every woman he saw....blowing kisses and waving. Machismo! He is starting so early, what am I going to do?

This afternoon we headed to Oakville to visit with the Sullivans and Thorntons. Truman found a few toys that he was really interested in (maybe Mommy may have to buy one) and the kids seemed to have a great time playing....oh and maybe the adults had fun playing with some of the toys too! We then went to Grandma's to celebrate Baba's 91st birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABA!!! Aunt Lily taught Truman how to identify "light"....I was so proud of my little boy. He also said his first real word this weekend "up"! He may not be the most mobile kid....but he sure loves to "talk'!

On the Move

Yesterday Truman started to crawl, instead of just pulling himself along commando style. On Thursday evening I put a trail of food on the floor in hopes of enticing my son. Not to say that he is the most graceful crawler yet (he keeps one knee off the ground). But, he has learned he can now move himself places (wherever Mommy is) and get to objects of his desire (again, Mommy). He especially likes to pull himself up on his highchair.


Saturday we are off to get baby proofing supplies! He has already discovered a few drawers with some choice items in it, none in which are appropriate for young children to be playing with!

Today, because of his new found skill, Truman decided that he did not want to nap. I took him for a walk this morning in hopes that he would sleep in the stroller and he did but for only a half hour or so....not long enough. This afternoon I tried again. The little Tdot just wanted to stand up in his crib and could not figure out how to get back down. I can't tell you how many times I went into his room to lie him back down. Tonight, it wasn't any different when I tried to put him to bed for the night. My usual wonderful sleeper decided that sleep was not on his agenda. It took him an hour and a half to go to sleep most of which he was crying in hysterics. Poor kid.

Today was Morrie's birthday! HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY MORRIE! Here are some pics of the kids playing outside today!

Back from NYC

Like usual we had a F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S time in NYC and like usual most of our events revolved around food. The Topoloski's love food, Truman included! So the flight to New York by myself was fairly seamless...we were a little worried as the night before Jerry spent five hours at the airport only to come come and fly out the next morning. I had visions of me trying to figure out how to entertain our little one for hours upon hours. Luckily, our flight was on time and the woman sitting beside me liked children (thank goodness!). Truman was a saint and when we arrived in LGA, our car service was waiting for us and we headed into Manhattan. Truman had not eaten dinner yet and was exhausted, it was close to eight o'clock. So we fed him and put him to bed...although he had some difficulty falling asleep and ended up waking up in the middle of the night, but what can you do? Once the Tdot was asleep we ordered some food and caught up with Sabrina and Mary. Here's the thing about NYC, no matter what time it is, you can ALWAYS have food delivered from ANYWHERE!!!

Saturday morning Truman decided to sleep in (yippee) and we went for brunch at our usual place. After brunch Truman, mom and dad took a much needed nap. We then headed to Riverside Park for an afternoon picnic. We were joined by Allegra and Mike. What a spread! Delish!

After our time in the park, Frans picked us up and we were off to Queens to see Adrianna and Frans' new house and of course see the girls, Rochelle and Natasha. Here's a pic of the kids playing...it looks as though Truman has done something he shouldn't have with that smirk on his face. Adrianna and I determined that Truman and Rochelle are very similar in terms of their verbal skills. The two of them had fun "talking" to one another. Unfortunately our stay in Queens was cut short because of Truman's bedtime. We were so worried to miss his window again and be headed for disaster. Truman fell asleep on the drive home and was an angel all night. Sabrina, Mary, Jerry and I stayed up to all hours debating the world's problems but I don't think we solved anything!

Truman again slept in Sunday morning (I am not sure what it is about NYC, I thought it was the city that never sleeps?). We headed to The Water Club for a delicious Sunday brunch. Truman slept for most of our stay there so Jerry and I really were able to enjoy ourselves and the food. After brunch we went down to Greenwich Village to watch the Gay Pride Parade (Truman's first parade!). Truman LOVED watching all the people and looked as though he was having a blast! We are so sad that we had to come home so quickly, but we know that we'll head back soon!

Stand Up!

Saturday morning after Truman, Jerry and I went for our regular trip to Tim Horton's, I put Truman down for his morning nap while Jerry and I got in some much needed gardening. After about 20 minutes outside, I decided to go in and check on Truman, even though we had the monitor on and I wasn't hearing any complaining coming from his room. Truman was not sleeping as I had hoped, instead he was standing up in his crib! He looked so cute, but he looked as though he was trying to figure out how to sit down. Poor thing! Who knows how long he was standing for! He has also been moving a little bit more over the last few days, although he is still gets frustrated. He has also figured out how to get from his tummy to sitting position and he thinks this is a lot of fun!

As for Truman's eye infection, as of Friday morning the swelling was completely gone and it didn't even look like there was ever anything wrong. Thank goodness!

Jerry celebrated his first Father's Day on Sunday, although he had to go into work for the morning we were able to spend the rest of the day together. We invited Nanny, Oopa, Baba, and David over for a BBQ. What a beautiful evening!