India!

Summer, 2007

I hope you all a great summer. The parents had me in planes, trains, and automobiles all summer with trips to Lake Placid, Cincinnati, Denver, Connecticut, and San Francisco. Most people think they are nuts and I tend to agree (especially during the sixth hour of a flight to San Francisco and the seventh hour of the drive to Lake Placid). It would be fine if we at least rested a little bit, but nooooooo . . . they want to break bread with every person they've ever met (I did enjoy seeing you, of course ;)

Remember Me?

Hi all . . . its been awhile since I wrote and sent pictures. It has

been a rather busy couple months for the Schneider family-- college
reunions, weddings, vacations, and of course, we finally moved into
our new apartment! We are all very happy and enjoying a quiet summer
without any of the aforementioned items.

I hope all is well and I hope to see you soon!

Love,

Max

Pizza and Painting

It's been a good winter in NYC-- I really don't like to stay insideall day so I have been braving the cold.

Here are the highlights of the last few weeks:

-- Mommy and I went to San Francisco for Auntie Amy's (Alfano not Schneider) baby shower. We left on Saturday morning and we were back home by Sunday afternoon. I enjoyed wreaking havoc at the baby shower, but I was especially happy when some dudes finally showed up (Uncle Matt, Uncle Kevin, and Uncle Edwin). All those women were great, but sometimes you need to hang out with guys . . .

-- I've been enjoying watching Daddy cook lately. Usually he just lets me set up some bowls in the living room while he cooks the real stuff, but last week he let me make my own pizza! I rolled out the dough, spread on the sauce, and put on some cheese and spinach.

I have to say, homemade pizza is much better than Fresh Direct frozen pizza.

-- I went to Toronto last weekend to see my family that lives there. It was fun to hang out with Ambika and Mayank. I especially liked when we got to paint together (I even managed to keep the brush out of mymouth).

Lots of Snow and Crayons

Happy New Year! I hope that 2007 is treating you well. We had a great Christmas in Denver (lots of snow-related adventures, some fun, some not so much). I enjoyed playing in the snow with Grandpa even though he kept throwing me into snow drifts that were taller than I am (by at least one order of magnitude). The last few weeks have been prettyuneventful, but Grandma tells me that is no excuse for not sending pictures (she's tough).

My favorite new activity is coloring-- its funny watching Daddy try to make sure I stay on the paper. I've also started to dance quite a bit, I especially like step dancing, which Mommy and Daddy think is quite amusing.

A Sickly November

Unfortunately, I have been sick most of the month. It is the first

time I have ever been sick and it really sucks. Mommy and Daddy are
certainly waiting for the old Max to come back-- I have to admit I've
been a little bit of a bear over the last few weeks.

I did have a nice time with the fam in Cleveland over Thanksgiving
(they might not agree since I made sure everyone knew I was sick).

Looking forward to a better December!


Love, Max

Halloween Apple

It was quite a Halloween in our neighborhood yesterday . . . we went to a parade, a concert in the park, a party at my gym, and of course, trick-or-treating. I still don't get the idea of knowcking on someone's door and them handing me candy. To be honest, I don't even know what candy is since Mommy and Daddy have never let me have a piece.

Unfortunately, we had a costume hitch-- I hated my lion suit and I cried everytime I came near it. That, plus the fact that it was way too big, forced me to wear last year's Superman costume-- yeah, it was a little small, but at least I didn't have to wear a lion mane on a 70 degree day.

In other interesting Halloween news, we got to hang out with some ofour more elusive neighbors at the party. Apple was there with her mom, Gwyneth, and Grace was there with her parents Christie Turlington and Ed Burns. It was nice to see them, but its hard to be friends with these girls if I only see them on special occasions.






 

My First Wedding!

We went to San Francisco last weekend so we could go to Michelle and Edwin's wedding. All week long Mommy talked about how excited she was to dance with me at the reception-- the good news is that we got to dance . . . the bad news is that I fell asleep half way through dinner so I don't remember dancing at all. Next time I guess . . . something tells me I'll be going to a lot of weddings in the not too distant future.We also got to spend a lot of time with Mommy and Daddy's college friends while we were in SF . . . I'm beginning to see why Mommy and Daddy like them!




 

I have no words . . .

Sorry I haven't sent an update in awhile (I'm sure you wait with bated breath for my e-mails). Not that much has been going on. We've been enjoying the end of summer-- spending lots of time in parks all over NYC. Mommy and Daddy did hire a part-time nanny for me-- her name is Nino and she is a doctor from Georgia (the former Soviet republic). Leave it to my parents to find a doctor to take care of me.

Here are some highlights from the past few weeks:

-- I've been spending a lot of time with my friend Alexandre . . . wel ove to go to Central Park and we even went to a museum yesterday(little did we know a plane crashed into a building two blocks away).

-- I went to my pediatrician today and she's surprised that I don't say any words . . . I'm like, dude, I have various people speaking English, Hindi, Russian, Georgian, Armenian, French, and Spanish tome-- how am I supposed to know what to say? She backed off a little bit but said she expected to hear some words next time . . . whatever languange they might be.




 

Beach Bum

We went on a terrific trip to San Diego last weekend to reunite with
all of Mommy and Daddy's friends from Stanford. Here are some of the
highlights from the trip:

-- We went to the San Diego Zoo, which was nice, but I don't think I'm
quite ready to appreciate the joys of sleeping animals in artifical
cages. I did enjoy watching a bear that like to play peekaboo and two
big fat hippopotomi.

-- Mommy and I spent a morning on the beach while Daddy was taking
surf lessons (yeah, that was a site). I loved splashing in the waves
though it was a little shocking when they jumped right into me.

-- I enjoyed spending time with the adults on the trip, but I
especially enjoyed hanging out with my friend Julia. She kinda kept
showing me up though-- she can climb the stairs faster than I can, she
can say a few more words than I can, and she gets to stay up until
9PM!

The Dog Days of Summer

As summer winds down I have been very busy savoring every moment of nice weather before the blister and bluster of an NYC winter. We spend every possible moment outside-- usually playing in the park. Daddy even lets me out of the stroller when we walk through the park. I am definitely the kind of person that likes to stop to smell the roses . . . and to taste the walls, eat dirt, and play with garbage cans.

Other highlights from the last few weeks:

-- I survived my first days without Mommy and Daddy when they went to Andy and Jimena's wedding in Peru. Grandma and Grandpa came to take care of me and I had such a good time that I hardly noticed that Mommy and Daddy weren't around. Mommy and Daddy seemed to be pretty happy to see me when they got back!

-- we went to a family drum circle in Battery Park a few weeks ago-- the park rangers brought out drums from all over the world and a music teacher taught us all how to play different beats . . . I'm looking forward to going every Friday night next summer.

-- we went to visit Mosaji and Mosiji (Uncle Chris and Aunt Nellie) in Cincinnati over Labor Day weekend . . . I had a very good time spending time at a house with a yard (I think Mommy and Daddy did too).





 

Not a baby anymore . . .

Now that I've entered my second year of life, Mommy and Daddy aren't treating me like a baby anymore. I have to walk by myself part of the time on their marathon treks around NYC. My current gym class lasts 50 minutes and I'm pretty much, climbing, rolling, and jumping the whole time. They're even trying to make me hold my own bottle when I drink
milk-- but that's where I draw the line-- can't I act like a baby for a few more weeks?

Some other highlights from the last couple weeks:

-- I finally have a friend! Alexandre Jules Goh Saint Saveur (I think I'm going to call him Alex) is going to be playing with me as soon as he gets his bearings. I'll give him a few more days.

-- Check out the picture of me playing in the water-- that's our new apartment building in the
background. Daddy makes me walk by it almost every day . . . this place better be nice!