Happy Christmakkah!!

I took my first airplane ride to Florida to see SOOO much family for the holidays: The Manns, Nonna, the Antin's, Aunt Marie, Aunt Ginny, Aunt Josie and Cousin Lee!



I'm so lucky because I celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah - Christmakkah! It rocks. I got so many presents!



Oh and I met Santa! He was just sitting there at the mall. I couldn't believe how relaxed he was. You'd think his stress level would be through the roof with all those toys to make.

I hope you all had a Merry Christmakkah too!

Look What I can do!!

A few days shy of 9 months and check me out! I'm pulling myself up on anything I can get my hands on.

And the environmentalist in me discovered a great way to reuse a diaper box. Look at me walking with it!!
Check out this video - and notice how I listen to mommy's command when she asks to see my cute face.



Some other NEW things I'm doing:
- eating finger food!
- saying mama! (not really to her, but I do make the 'm' sound now and you should've seen the floodgates open when mommy first heard it)
- drinking from my sippy cup! (the straw thing was tough to nail, but I'm getting it)
- and finishing the New York Times crossword puzzle

Feeling Strong Now!

I think my mom is confused about my crawling technique. I hear her telling people that I'm definitely crawling because I'm all over the place, but it's not so much the standard on-your-knees crawl, it's more of a military-style crawl. She knows I can do that knee thing because I sometimes fake her and daddy out and do three or four knee crawls. There's just something about pulling all my weight with my arms while sliding on my belly that just really appeals to me. I've been doing it for months now and before you know it I'll be walking - so why bother switching it up now? Check me out (and turn your volume up.)

Happy Birthday G-man!

We just celebrated my cousin Grady's 1st birthday! It was so much fun.
Aunt JJ's birthday is the day after Grady's (Nov. 28th and 29th). Aunt JJ is in China so we celebrated early.

Then we all celebrated Thanksgiving the next day at Aunt JJ's and Uncle Peter's house. My Grandma Helen and Ed and my Nonna were all there!! Mom is still thinking about the sweet potato pie. She says it was delish, but still not as good as Grandmas.

Did you know the average American consumes 5000 calories on Thanksgiving?

yo yo yo baby pop yeah you come here give me a kiss

Kissing Bandit, Play-a, 2-timer, Loverboy - call me what you want - that's OK. There's so many cute ladies all around and only one T-man. I'm just not afraid to spread the love.That's me kissing Maddy (left) just a few hours after Noa (right). Mommy says I'm so sweet, but she's wondering how long it's cool for me to kiss all the girls. I don't think dad is too worried though. When he read Baby Noa's blog about my kiss he said.."that's my boy!"

Look out Phelps!

I started training on Saturday mornings with my future team USA. In just a few weeks I'm doing the hokie pokie, the wheels on the bus and even the motor boat motor boat song where we blow bubbles! Despite some apprehension from my coach and dad, I put my head under water! OK so he held my nose, but that's ok - mom still holds her nose when she goes under. (oops I wasn't supposed to tell anyone).

Mom's bedtime book

I'm reading my mom a bedtime book. We take turns. I try and get her to taste the pages with me, but she says she's saving her appetite for her skinny cows. Oprah's even on the skinny cow kick now. We started to go to story time at Barnes and Noble where this man who looks like Chris Elliot, remember that old sitcom 'Get a life'. Anyone? Well, you know him from 'Something About Mary', anyway he reads to us and he sings and let's us yell out animal sounds. I'm not quite there yet, but I laugh when the moms start chirping and oinking. Good stuff.

So Grady, what do you think of this Girardi?

Go Aunt Jenny!!

Mann oh Mann!!

I had some weekend! My Aunt Jenny came to New York to run the Marathon. She's an incredible runner. This was her 12th marathon!! SO I got to hang out with my 3 cousins (The Mann Family); Reuben, Matthew (the one w/ that crazy hair) and Ilyssa. We all played at baby Riley's house in Chappaqua. No Bill or Hill sighting unfortunately.

My Uncle Bruce likes playing this game where we touch foreheads and laugh.
I hope he doesn't do that with his patients, but then again they say laughter is the best medicine -maybe that's what he does to make them better. Hmm I can totally be a dr. one day too..


You can see all the pictures of my day with the Manns and Grandma here. There are also two shots of the amazing view from our apartment. The sky was all shades of orange.

Tanner the Turtle! Oh the Irony...

Yes a Turtle! I know what your thinking.. He must be playing up the irony. We all know my military crawl is more representative of a Hare, not a turtle. But isn't that what Halloween is all about - being something you're not? I mean my buddy Manny went as a chili pepper and unless he replaces Anthony Kiedis one day I don't see him actually being a pepper.


Anyway, we had a really fun party with all my friends in the building. Check out the festivities here.

Bonham, Lee, Ulrich got nothing on T!

You should hear me rock out on my brand new drum. I'm starting to put it all together now. I bang the drum. I bite the drum. And then I move onto something else.

Here's a sneak preview of my latest drum solo:

Me and my Nonna

Thanks for coming to visit last week Nonna. I had so much fun with you. I hope you don't mind when I squeeze your cheek. I'm just showing you the love.

And as much as I dread going to the mall, I totally scored when we went. I love this shirt you got me. Can you tell from the expression on my face?

They've got my back!

How lucky am I? I've got my 2 cousins right up to road .. well, right up I-95 (20 short minutes).
Macy is 3 and she loves me. She told me so. We play this game - I pull her hair and she laughs. When I play that game with Mommy she says "let go." It's automatic. I'm not sure what this "let go" means, but I know she'll say it. It's like a conditioned Pavlov response. I get a kick out of it so I do it everyday. But Macy laughs. Interesting.


And Grady is only 4 months older than me, and man he is solid. We think we might have a future linebacker in the family. It's so cool to watch him do things I'll be doing soon.

More pics from our play-date here

Can you stand it?

Book of the Month Club

I love this new book I'm reading. Well, more like biting and hitting.
Did you know there is a fish with a star on his belly? pretty cool.
The old fish makes me laugh.

Happy Anniversary Mommy and Daddy!

Thanks for tying the knot September 24th (2 years ago) because without you guys I wouldn't be here talking shop with my little bear. I like to tell him my plans for the future. He is a great listener. I do smack him a lot - it's fun and he doesn't mind. Hey look I'm sitting up by myself!

Critics applaud the Fall premier: CSI White Plains

Forget Las Vegas, Miami and New York – the final installment of Bruckheimer’s CSI franchise set in the emerging city of White Plains is being praised: the hottest show this season!

Stripped from the headlines, the pilot episode titled: Now you see it; Now you don’t uncovered the mystery of the infamous Westchester baby’s so called “first tooth”.

Flashback June 2007 where a mom publicly claims a tiny white spec was seen surfacing her 3-month-old’s gums.

Jump cut to August - the cover of the NY Post reads: Mom caught in tooth tale – investigators find nothing but gum.

Was the infant’s mom fabricating the arrival of an early tooth? What was her motive? Conspiracy theorists set the blogoshpere ablaze. Can she ever prove her case with her only witness being the baby’s father?

A-list film star, Tanner R. Johnson makes his small screen debut as not only the pilot episode’s protagonist, but also the series main character TJ Looker, who leads an elite team of forensic investigation experts.

In a chilling quest for the truth, viewers are taken on a suspenseful ride of unexpected plot twists and turns. Camera angles never reveal TJ’s mouth until the last minute where the camera zooms in ever so slowly and TJ flashes his budding pearly whites.... or does he?



Tune in next week to see how baby TJ Looker takes over the department.

Gonna party like it's your half birthday

I turned 6 months today!

Mom and Dad got me this exersaucer. It rocks. I mean everywhere I look there is something to hit, shake, pull, eat, talk to and some things even sing back to me.

I had my 6 month Dr. visit today. I'm now 15 lbs 3 ozs (25th percentile) and 25 3/4 inches long (50th percentile) so I'm tall and thin -mom says "sweet" dad says "ha! it miiiight not last." I got the last of my shots! I was such a good boy too. I cried at first with that really cute cry face I make, but then I was my usual laughing, flirting, smiling self all day. Oh and my ear infection is all gone - poof -just like that!

I can say Haaaa Chooo

I got my first cold this week with an ear infection to boot. I'm sorry you got it too grandma. So Dr. Avvacato (yes that's her name) has me sleeping in my stroller all week. I don't mind it - I don't even have time to fuss because daddy has the quickest pacifier trigger on the East Coast. Speaking of dad, has anyone ever watched him watch the Jets on TV? I think he thinks the players hear him. He wasn't happy with a guy named Defense, but pretty impressed with"this Kellin Clemins".


Hey look... I'm already getting better.

Anyway, Happy Bithday Matty Moose (he's my cousin- turned 9 today!)

He's the Man!

Thanks for coming over today Manny.

We had so many laughs my belly still hurts. That joke you told about the rabbi, the priest and Dora the Explorer was a classic. I tried to tell it again later and it came out all jumbled. It sounded like "da da daa da", which my daddy loved.

I think my mom caught on to our plot to crack this crawling code when they're not looking.

So anyway.. Ya wanna come over for the Jets this Sunday?

Enough Jibba Jabba - there's a new T in town

First name: Mister Middle name: Period. Last name: T

I pity the fool who don't know my Uncle Robbie.

Montauk '07

We drove home from Montauk for the last time for a while today. Summer '07 rocked - my best summer yet (wink). It started out a little rough being just 2 months on Memorial Day and mom was really nervous. The whole pack n play thing threw me for a loop, but soon enough I stopped checking out the scenery every 3 hours and finally let mommy and daddy sleep - 10 hours - your welcome.

The first beach days I stayed snug in my bugaboo in my lil' tent. By 3 months I was sporting my wetsuit and lounging in a swimming pool. 4 months I was watching the sunset at the Montauket. And 5 months I'm ready for my board, well.. maybe not yet, but I did graduate to playing freely on my blanket on the beach.

And the friends I made..I never knew I had so many Aunts and Uncles.. .

I'll miss seeing Charlie, Olivia and Henry every weekend. We had some serious bonding in the 'under 5 club'. Thanks everyone for looking out for me and making me laugh - so much.

(all the pics are in the photo gallery to the left..)

Bundle up .. It's August

Just last week mom had me down to my size 2 Swaddlers because it was too hot out and suddenly I'm in my first pair of jeans and a sweater. Who knows what brought on the quick cold spell, maybe hurricane Dean? maybe Rhianna's ubiquitous Umbrella (ella ella) is shaking up the atmosphere? Anyway, don't I look cute?

Sorry about the spit up stain on your sweater mom.

Fine Dining

I don't know what was going on. Mom sat me in this chair and put this soupy banana tasting milk in my mouth. I spit some out, swallowed some down, made confused faces and smiled when everyone around me was cheering and laughing like they were watching Eddie Murphy Raw for the first time. Every time the phone rang mom said "Tanner had his first food today! Rice cereal with bananas." Daddy says if I'm like him I'll really love this food thing. Chinese food is next.

Stay Tuned..

We're away all week in Montauk and mommy doesn't have a way to load up any of the trillion photos she's been taking of me, but stay tuned! There are lots of firsts for me this week: first cereal - big event! First time wearing a sweater and even my first pair of jeans.. You might wonder what's up with that gear in August? A random cold spell hit us, but it'll be short lived.. I'll be back in my board shorts tomorrow. I'm hanging with my new friend Olivia Rose Comella. She's so little at just 8 weeks and really cute.

Oh and I turned 5 months this week! What else is happening in the world this week? A-Rod hit his 40th HR for the season.. that's 500 something now (but is it enough for us to make the playoffs?). The mortgage meltdown rocks Wall Street (daddy's been calling it for months). Leona Helmsley dies (mom tells me my grandpa had a meeting with her once). And K-fed looks like the angel in the custody battle for Brit's kids, but really..who gives a poop?

Sparks fly over Live Jazz

Tanner and his buds took in some funkadelic White Plains jazz down by the fountains tonight. Pudgy legs were kicking, little heads were bopping...
and I think the sparks were flying with baby Noa. YYYY

And then the dads got involved..

Just do what I do...

Tanner: Hey Henry, How do we get my mommy to stop photographing us?
Henry: Just do what I'm doing - cry!



Tanner: whhhaaa!
Henry: whhaaaa! works like a charm!