For some reason we felt we had to have these "studio" photos taken. Frankly, I believe I have taken much better pictures of my son in this past year (even if I have never made him pose or sit still for one). Being a web developer, I'm perfectly able with graphics and photo editing software to put any background to any portrait. And with services like Snapfish.com getting professional prints is easy and cheap. So what's the point really?

We did get a diskette with digital copies of the photos. But I knew they were of poor quality (low resolution) because they all fit on a regular 3.5 inch diskette. Also, I believe it's ridiculous that they make the very first photo you Ok the one printed as a "package" before you have a chance to evaluate the rest of the pictures. Why? How can you decide without all the options?

The party was on the 14th, and many baby friends came to play. Benjamin was really happy to have them all around, and liked his presents very much, although he apparently played with only one that day: the dumper truck, of course. And he wasn't at all interested in his birthday cake, so thankfully (I guess) there wasn't a big mess to clean afterwards.

On the actual birthday, we took Benjamin to the park during the day, and to another park by the beach in the afternoon. We gave him another opportunity to make a cake-mess, and again he didn't want anything to do with it. Oh, and what probably made him most happy, is that his car seat now faces forward: he's fascinated by all the new and cool things he can now see through the window.

It was fun, there was plenty of food, the kids enjoyed themselves, Benjamin was thrilled with all the company... see the pictures!

It's been a month since I reported on Benjamin's walking ability. I'm not sure when I can definitely say that he is officially walking. This week however, we saw a marked improvement in his range and confidence.

He can go much, much longer now, across our apartment. He can change direction, stop and then continue. He will even recover from near falls.

I believe the only thing holding him back a little, is the fact that in order to stand up, he needs something, an object or person, on which to pull, lean, or support himself. That is, he can't yet get up from the floor unassisted. When he falls, he just starts to crawl, rather than get up and walk some more.

But when we call our pediatrician, we're told that it really isn't necessary. I'm confused as the article says: "(the AAP) stops short of saying they are absolutely essential because of concerns over vaccine shortages"