Christmas!

Pictures are coming soon!

Christmas in our house was a lot of fun. First, we went to our Christmas present dinner at the Melting Pot, and A was so well behaved especially considering the length of our meal. We went early so he would be alright, and as long as I let him walk around a little, he was great!

On Christmas Day, A was beyond well behaved. He interacted with the family so much better than last year. He knew that Grampy was the go to guy for playing, and on several occasions reached out for him. He didn't need any warm up time for Grammi, Grampy, or even Mom Mom. He was a little bit less comfortable with Grandpa and his great-aunt, but did warm up to them pretty quickly.

Since receiving the Hess truck, he has been carrying it around pretty much non stop. A enjoyed all his toys this year, which included an xylophone that comes with balls, a Little People car, Animal Bowlingl, a Little People airplane, and a huge floor puzzle. He loves them all, which is so great to see. He also got some books, clothes, and an ornament.

Grampy and Grammi left for Florida yesterday morning, and arrived at their first stop early this afternoon. We'll miss them but know they'll have a great time, fishing and shrimping and bridge playing and swimming.

Found

A Visit to Mom Mom's...

We made a hasty visit to Mom Mom's house yesterday, and something adorable happened.

Mom has a mantle full of family pictures. So I got one of Grammi's old school pictures and showed it to A. He walked around with it for a little bit then gave it a kiss. So then I got down Mommy's graduation photo, and he showed it to Daddy and then gave it a kiss. As an experiment, I took down a picture of my cousin with his wife and daughter and gave it to Alex. He smiled and pointed at the baby, but no kiss. How cute!

He warmed up very quickly to Mom Mom, who he has not seen since Thanksgiving. A good sign for Christmas!

He also seems to remember some things from her house (we were there about a month ago). He went into a drawer he was playing in the last time we were there and took out these cigar cases in which she keeps crochet hooks and started shaking them, just like he did last time.

We didn't bring A's chair along for the trip, so he sat on a chair on a phone book, just like Mommy used to at her great Grandmother's house!

What's shakin'

A lot has been happenin' in the world of Mr. A.

First, it is clear that this is my child. My mother used to lament that my teachers all thought I was a perfect angel, but that I was a PITA at home. A's teachers say that he only cries when he gets hurt, doesn't thrash for his diaper changes, etc etc etc, and are surprised when they hear that he often cries in the mornings.

Next, the return of the mayor. I'm told that A is a fantastic sharer. He gives toys to the other kids in his class often... pretty impressive for such a little guy. I'm amazed that EVERYONE seems to know this child; we'll be leaving and parents I don't know will say "Goodnight, A!" and so will kids who are much older. They all know him, and by name! So he's clearly Grampy's grandson too.

We visited Santa again yesterday. He was fascinated by the big guy while we waited in line, and I thought that there might be a chance. As we got up to see Santa, however, A became VERY clingy and started crying as we approached. We ultimately took pictures with me sitting next to Santa, but A didn't look great and I didn't look so great at all. So, definitely not worth the $25 (!!) for 2 pictures.

While we were at the mall, we met up with Best Bud and his mom. Despite not having seen each other in what feels like forever, they went right up to each other and started playing. They were so cute, having conversations and feeding each other snacks. A now weighs more, but Best Bud is still a bit taller.

Last night, we went to Grampy and Grammi's house. Grampy took A almost immediately after he got out of the car, and to my surprise, didn't make even the slightest fuss. He was very happy to be with his grandparents and also very happy to see his old toys.

We also went to the annual Christmas party. Last year, M and I had to leave after about half an hour because A was INCONSOLABLE. What a difference a year makes--not only was he a perfect party guest, but he also went to sleep in a bedroom for a several hours. It took a bit longer than normal to get him to sleep, but he did go down eventually! Hooray for sleep training!

The most adorable thing today... we were out at the stores, and couldn't get A to hold our hands as we walked through a parking lot. So, in order to force him to hold our hands, we did the old swing the kid between the hands trick. But we weren't doing it for awhile and so we hear A make a noise just like our "1, 2, 3 swing!" and then he did like a kick thing. It was hilarious!

That's what's shakin for now. Have a great week!

Updates

A has added some new words to his vocabulary. He now says:
Cookie (a favorite in our house)
Cracker
Kitty
Duck
Daddy
Dada
Car
Jimmy
Michael

He can point to his head, ear, eye, nose, and mouth. When I say "Gimme that foot!," he brings his foot up to my mouth for an eating and giggle fest.

He can walk pretty well now.

His room has a new teacher at daycare. I really liked his old teacher, and the new teacher has brought some concerns. The other day, she told me that his diaper rash was fine at the noon changing, but that he had developed a BLISTER by the 3pm changing. My poor baby was in so much pain, but luckily it only seemed to bother him when his diaper was off. I'm concerned because I thought he was supposed to be changed every two hours, but she was clearly changing him every three. So I left a note yesterday (there is only one teacher in the school when A is dropped off) to please change him at least every two hours and to make sure he was slathered with lots of butt cream. As of last night, it looked a lot better and the blister is starting to heal.

I also worry because A begs for the teacher's food, and she gives it to him. It seems as though she gets McDonald's every day, so he has had french fries the past few days. It isn't a big deal--he's had french fries with us before--but I really want him to eat as healthfully as possible for as long as possible; to get him eating the good stuff before he knows any better! I also don't want to be THAT PITA parent... a tough balance.

Finally, we took a holiday visit to Picture People and Santa the other day. The Santa picture didn't come out so hot, so we didn't get it... A didn't scream at all, but Daddy was in the picture and A just had a weird expression on his face. I'm currently debating whether to get photo cards made up or if I should just use the regular cards I already have and add in a small picture of A... At any rate, here are some of the shots from our PP session:

Picture People

We never received notification that our last photo shoot had been uploaded. Here's the link.


And I just wanted to share this picture because I think he looks SOO much like I did as a kid. I don't have any pictures for comparison right now, but I do!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great day yesterday; so different from last year. I didn't take too very many pictures, but I know Grandpa took a LOT, so hopefully he'll send some my way.

A warmed up really quickly yesterday. He was my adorable little walking man. As far as dinner, he ate a roll... and some crackers... maybe a little bit of cheese. Oh, and some tomato. That's all. Watching him "eat" the turkey was pretty funny, since he spit it out the instant it touched his mouth. The dark meat, which I figured would go over a little bit better, was treated as though it was covered in acid.

He had a great time visiting all his old toys that are at Grammi and Grampy's house. We also got him to take a decent nap.. thank God for AM radio and it's static--as long as that's playing, we can pretty much go into the bedroom and do anything!

We took A out for a little bit of Black Friday shopping as well. He and I went to AC Moore and Old Navy while Daddy hit Target. We all then went to the mall just to do some walking. While we were there, we stopped at Stride Rite to get A fitted for shoes. She said he is a 4 or 4.5, and to go with wide or EXTRA wide. Ugh; I hope this kid doesn't have my struggle with shoes, although men's shoes go wider than women's. Neverless, the saleswoman told us that he really only needs the wides because of his baby fat, that you can even see how chunky his hands are, and that once he starts running, it will probably be more manageable. What's not manageable is that the shoes cost $50 a pair. YIKES. So now I'm on the lookout for some decent walking shoes that aren't going to cost us a gazillion.

Tonight, we're going to game night at friends' house. We haven't seen them since A's first birthday party, when their little girl was only 2 months old!

I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving, and a happy birthday to Grammi!!

Way Back Wednesday!

These were taken on Thanksgiving last year, November 25.



Wow, check out A's hair in that one.





Happy Thanksgiving to all, and to all, a good turkey!

Drop off Today

A did a LOT of walking this weekend and is so much better than he was on Friday.

When we got to school, I put him on the floor, as always, while I filled out his chart. He went straight for the soft stuff for climbing. We then went into the kitchen; he walked the whole way through, and pushed open the door to get into the other room. While I put away his food, he went right into the room and started playing.

Again, he went straight to the soft climbing stuff. It was ADORABLE, because he climbed up this thing that had like stairs, and then slid down the ramp side...

I couldn't even get a good bye kiss outta this kid!

A Picture Roundup

I haven't been sitting here at my desktop computer in several weeks!! As a result, lots of pictures have been languishing on my camera's picture card... here's what's been taken in the last few weeks!


A very sleepy boy, pre haircut! October 25

Coloring! October 25


October 26

He loves to ride this horse, seeks it out, and giggles while he rocks. I think this was the day of his haircut... October 26

Standing on his own, October 27

Humoring Mommy? October 29

Mischief!! October 29

October 29

Teeth hurt? Check on something squishy--like a Tylenol bottle. November 2

We bought this for messages. It's taken on new purpose for our budding artist. November 8

Enjoying some pastina... all over his face. November 19

Not sure how THIS happened, but it cracks me up!

What's New?

Lots of things going on here, so what's new with our little chick (get it? Anyone?)...

Hugs continue often. We love it!
Kisses are given, mostly to Dada (A speak for Mama)... just like a little baby bird with his mouth wide open. Sloppy yet adorable.
Language grows despite no actual words. It's like he's having a whole conversation using a language we don't understand.
Understands commands incredibly well. Especially likes to nod yes to "Do you want a cookie?"
Does not like meat. At all. Even in different sauces. Very particular and stubborn about food... at home at least; not so much at school (although he won't eat meat for them either).
Prefers to hold a spoon while he eats, even if he doesn't use it to eat. Can feed himself using a spoon, but not very well.
Walking is getting better. If he is wearing socks only, he will take them off, because he slips too much with them!
Changing teachers at daycare... he apparently likes his new teacher a lot--I was worried about this when I heard the news. Attached to her as much as he was to his old teacher.
Very clearly has friends at daycare... when I dropped him off at school this morning, no crying when I told him to go play with a little boy who happens to be in his class. He walked right over to the boy and started playing with the toy he had.
Apparently, one of those friends is a girlfriend. He is especially nice to her, giving her toys all day long, according to the teacher! My boy the charmer!
Solidly in 18 month clothing. Still can wear 12 month shirts, but legs are too long for 12 month pants. Bought him a belt (!!), which is especially handy for jeans.
Prefers Daddy when upset. If Dada is holding him, he reaches for Daddy. Often inconsolable if Daddy leaves at bedtime.
Still LOVES his Mitten. Giggles lots when she walks by, and usually tries to pet her from his high chair.

Walking

M took this video this morning. Perhaps you'll see why I call him Charlie Chaplin...


Today, A also mimicked my "Ew," and also my "Ow." He's getting better with his language.

He has become very particular about his food. We bought these little baby tv dinners that Gerber makes. He REFUSED to eat his pasta with chicken (so strange that he wouldn't eat pasta; he normally LOVES it) but LOVED the peas, which looked more like canned peas than fresh ones. We have a really hard time just getting him to try certain things--things we know he likes.

The Loveable Huggable A

A has learned to give hugs. And boy does he love to give em, and how we love to get em. It's adorable. The funny thing is that M will be holding him and A will reach out to give me a hug. He CAN'T leave Daddy's arms to do it, though, or he starts yelling.


Yesterday, A was in the kitchen and I was in the family room. He looked over at me, stood up, and walked across the room.
Today, we were cleaning his room and I held his blanket like a matador's thing, and he took 5 steps toward it before grabbing it and falling down. So cute.

Random musings

Young presidents.... Since the turn of the 20th century, the presidents who were under 50 when they entered the office were Theodore Roosevelt, John F Kennedy, Bill Clinton, and now Barack Obama. Ole TR was the only of them who was a Republican, but he sure would be considered a liberal in today's world. The highly quotable JFK, although his term was brief and we really can't know what he would have achieved, had lots of great domestic policies. He also did a lot of good on the world stage, and would have done more had he not been embroiled in that pesky Cold War. Clinton, although plagued by scandal, brought the unemployment rate to its lowest in who knows when and gave us a balanced budget for the first time in however long.

Wouldn't it be cool if, in an effort to truly heal the wounds of the last several elections and the bitterness of blue vs. red in this country, if Pres elect Obama offered a position in his cabinet to Senator McCain? Surely, he could take advice from the man even though their politics are so different. I know, it'll never happen, but it would really be cool.

There are some schools of thought that believe a teacher should absolutely bring her politics into the classroom; it's so important to make our students engaged and interested, so we should show that we are engaged and interested. I don't follow that philosophy because, first of all, I don't want to get involved in that.... I don't want to at all be accused of trying to sway any young impressionable minds. Granted, of the students I've taught, the ones who disagree with my way of thinking aren't changing their minds no matter what I do. It's also far easier for me to play devil's advocate when they don't know what I believe. I suspect that many of my students believe I voted a particular way, but I can also think of one class that probably thinks I voted another way.

In the end, it doesn't matter. Students, their parents, and the whole country got interested in this election. That in and of itself is the historic part of this--the highest voter turnout since 1908?? Sweet. Whether someone voted/campaigned/talked to someone about candidate A or B, or did the opposite AGAINST candidate A or B... this is what makes our democracy thrive.

Eh, no real point here. Hope everyone is having a great Thursday.

Well, THAT'S new.

I had to pick up A from school today, but first had to run several errands. I got him around 4:40. As we pulled off the highway, I told him that there was "stupid 5pm traffic," but that hopefully we'd be home soon... I mention this because I was cognizant that he was awake at that point.

Less than a mile later, when we pulled into our driveway, he was asleep. He was so soundly asleep that he didn't stir when I turned off the car or opened the door to his side. He did wake when I took him out of the seat, but went back to sleep on my shoulder.

I had forgotten that I had taken off his sheet this morning and not replaced it. I also wasn't aware that all his clean sheets were still in the dryer, so the poor kid is asleep on his mattress with no sheet. I was correct, however, when I told him that he was so tired he probably wouldn't care because the monitor is silent.

German/English eyes are smilin

Mom Mom must be happy today!

15 month appointment

A had a doctor's appointment today. We got to see my favorite doctor of those we've met so far.
Everything is on track, although he did mention that A's not walking is a possible developmental delay... it's not a concern, though, because he IS trying.... we'll see what happens in three months, though.

He weighs 23.54 lbs, which is the 30% (up from the 5th at 12 months), and 30.71 inches, also the 30%. His head circ is the 40th percentile, so he's really proportional.

We also asked the doctor to take a look at the "barking" cough A has been waking in the middle of the night with. He believes that A has Croup, which is worse at night--exactly what we have been experiencing here. He also noted that A has some fluid in his ears... yep, only 2 months in daycare, and it looks like A might be on his way to his first ear infection. As a result, A didn't get his shots... the doctor suggested we get them in a month when he is due for his second flu shot anyway. He indicated that it is better to get three shots at once than to have him get his shots today with these other problems.

Either way, he seems to be in great spirits... except when he's on the changing table (for us only.) M noted at daycare that A doesn't scream or flip or anything that he does for us. How nice.

Remember the tool bench?

A had a tool bench that he was sitting in a few posts below. I bought it on consignment, and a woman who helped me carry it to my car said her kids used it until they were three.

Not around here.

We have officially retired the toy (although, perhaps it will return) because A now likes to STAND in the tray part. He sits when we tell him to, but he goes right back to standing asap.

Oy.

Way Back When-s-day!

A year ago this week, A turned THREE months old! He happens to be wearing a Halloween tshirt today, so I'll try to get a nice shot of him in it.

I seem to remember NOT having snow and sleet in the days before A's first Halloween, but that doesn't seem to be the case this year. There was snow around lunchtime yesterday, and it looked like it was either snowing or sleeting today around lunch as well. WEIRD, man.

I hope to get some great shots of A in his costume. He's wearing it to daycare, though, for a Halloween "parade," so I don't know how much he'll actually tolerate it on Friday. :)

Words

A has developed some new words. He very clearly said, "Teddy" this morning.

I can't think of any others right now, but I know he's said something new this week!

The Wiggles

We have tried, as much as possible, to not allow A to watch tv. We do have the tv on for us while he's in the room, but he doesn't generally pay attention (unless an animated commercial comes on). Even if we are watching a Disney movie, he generally isn't interested.

While he was sick, however, we discovered that he was pretty easily soothed by sitting on one of our laps, cuddling, and watching the Disney channel or some of the other children's programming... certain ones only, though.

Like his good buddy Ryan, it seems that A is a devotee of the Wiggles. If it's on, he's watching. And grooving to the music. He loves to point out the Doggie, and it's pretty clear that the bright colors catch his eye.

Update

A few things have happened in the past week...

First, both of A's top teeth have popped through, making his grand total FOUR teeth. Woohoo!

Next, A has learned the parts of the face. It all started when he started pointing to my mouth during cuddle time. He loves to "honk" our noses, and I always say "nose" when he does it, but the other day, I asked him to point to Mama's nose, and he started honking it. I then asked where was Mama's eye, and he pointed to it, then where's Mama's mouth, and he got that too. It goes back and forth--sometimes he'll point to his own face when I say point to Mama's and sometimes he'll point to my eye when I say where's A's eye, but he at least knows what's what!

Next, A took a step yesterday! He took one step with Daddy, but he also took one step from my knee on the couch to Daddy's knee on the other couch. Progress (and trouble) is coming!

Ball Pit Fun!

For his birthday, A got this neat ball pit and climbing thing from his Godmother. He loves it, and often seeks it out, but here I caught him actually using the stairs. This was Aug 26.

Friend's Birthday

A's Girlfriend's birthday party was on August 17. Her Mommy and Daddy threw her a fun party, and were so very smart to have lots of toys for Girlfriend's friends! This wasn't too long after A's first haircut, which explains the extra short bangs.

Water skiing

We stayed at Grammi and Grampy's in August and Grampy took us all water skiing. This was August 9 or so.

County Fair

Oh boy does my "little" camera have quite the backlog of pictures. This was our trip to the Middlesex County Fair on August 8! Woops.