Chicken's Siblings

Happy 3rd Birthday!

2012-01-22T22:49:00.000-08:00

This year we wanted to throw a big birthday party for Big Brother. We finally finished our backyard and thought a birthday bash would be a good excuse to invite friends and family to our home. We also thought that we were going on a cruise the first week of January, and possibly a weekend trip to Monterey this month. We thought that Christmas weekend and Big Brother's third birthday weekend I would be awake more hours than I was asleep. We were wrong. The last few months various forms of the plague have been released upon our house.

On Friday evening we had dinner with my mother and came back to the house for cake and present opening. I put up a Spongebob Squarepants banner, The Daddy got a few balloons, and I arranged them on our table. I made a gluten free dairy free cake, and put Big Brother up on the table for a party picture in his favorite Batman t-shirt, jeans, and blue tu-tu.

Apparently when you're three years old, A Party is about eating a somewhat crappy homemade cake and opening presents that your parents forgot to give you at Christmas. Hopefully Big Brother doesn't remember that I spent the whole weekend throwing up his birthday dinner.

Something Rare

2011-11-20T22:24:00.000-08:00

Not only did I get a picture of The Daddy and Little Brother, but they are smiling!

Picture taken on November 20, 2011 in Santee, CA.

Almost Five Months

2011-10-16T20:27:00.000-07:00

At almost five months old Little Brother weighs 17.5 pounds. He is strong, but not rolling over or even thinking about it. That is probably because he strongly objects to being put down for more than a moment or two. He talks to Big Brother in baby babble, and Big Brother talks back to him in their own language. The funniest thing his world is Big Brother.

His napping has turned into several fifteen minute cat naps and one long one in a classic four month sleep regression. He'll sleep in his swing, next to me in bed, and occasionally in the co-sleeper. He will take a bottle of pumped milk but still hates any pacifier. Little Brother is still pretty grumpy but easier to soothe. He has started to prefer a side carry in my favorite carrier so he can see what is going on in the world. He likes to flirt with people and then bury his head in me in mock shyness. It's adorable.

Brothers

2011-09-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

Little Brother is four months old. He rarely laughs at anyone other than Big Brother. They're enjoying each other a lot.

August Portraits

2011-08-10T23:16:00.000-07:00

(Note: Normally I post full resolution pictures for ease of printing. These are copies of screen shots for viewing only.)

Big Brother is two and a half years old. He is so darn cute.

Little Brother is two months old.

Little Brother was back to birth weight at five days old. At six weeks old he was about twelve and a half pounds. At two months old he weighed thirteen and a half pounds. Between his love of eating and the cute cloth diaper butt he is almost out of 3-6 month clothing. Tomorrow I am washing the last load of small (yellow trimmed) prefolds and covers, as his thigh rolls are too much for them.

We're still hoping that he will take a pacifier some day, and today I bought a preemie flow bottle. It would be great if Little Brother would take a bottle of pumped milk occasionally, but regular newborn nipples flow too quickly and he chokes. Hopefully the preemie nipple works!

Big Brother

2011-05-28T18:48:00.000-07:00

The Baby is a Big Brother now! Little Brother was born at home on Thursday, May 26th at 9:04pm. He weighed 8 pounds, 7 ounces and is 21 inches long. Big Brother is thrilled to see the new baby and enjoying the attention from all the grandparents.

Easter Weekend

2011-04-23T23:37:00.000-07:00

This morning we went to get an ultrasound. Late last week The Fetus decided that all the cool kids hung out sideways (transverse) instead of head down and we wanted to see which end was up. It's easy to tell when a baby is transverse because it's like swallowing a huge pill sideways. I'm happy to report that The Fetus is once again head down. During the ultrasound I asked about the cord, as The Baby was born with his cord wrapped around his neck three times. There was no sign of the cord around The Fetus' neck, and it is all bunched up in front of his face. I guess neither of us can see our feet at this point.

This afternoon we went to my mother's church in San Diego to attend their annual Easter Egg Hunt. I started bringing Chicken to this event in 1999. It starts with a bunch of crafts and ends with an egg hunt. They let the three and under crowd hunt for eggs first, which keeps the big kids from grabbing all the eggs. The Baby decorated a bag for collecting eggs and made a butterfly with jelly beans, a snack sized bag, and a pipe cleaner. When it came time for getting the eggs, The Baby wasn't sure why we were yelling, "Pick up the eggs! And that one! Grab that one!" Until one egg had an m&m wrapper around it. He knows what m&m's are because he gets one after he uses the potty. After that he gleefully grabbed a bunch of eggs until the area was picked over by the big kids.

All of us after the Easter Egg Hunt! Chicken did not attend the festivities because teenagers are too cool for crafts and egg hunting. Of course he'll be helping The Baby eat all the goodies he got today.

This is the key moment when The Baby figured out why we were so excited about picking up eggs. If you've spent any time with him lately, you probably know that he was saying, "OOOH!"

After two big events today, tomorrow I am celebrating Easter by sleeping. Chicken is going to have Easter dinner with a good friend, and The Daddy and The Baby will do manly stuff. I'm 34 weeks along, and nothing sounds as fabulous as a day of rest with breaks to eat.

Seven Months Down, Two(ish) To Go

2011-03-29T23:23:00.000-07:00

There's nothing like standing next to a super skinny 14 year old to make a pregnant woman feel rather round. If you haven't seen Chicken lately, this picture might come as a shock. He's grown so much in the last year. I'd say that he needs to eat a cheeseburger or twelve but he is constantly eating. Maybe he has worms or a hollow leg?

This picture is from yesterday. I'm officially seven months pregnant!

Baby Registry

2011-03-17T00:45:00.000-07:00

Due to peer pressure, I've created a registry at Babies R Us for The Fetus. You can find it by searching under my name or The Daddy's name. Leave a comment if you want the registry number. We only need a few things this time around. We're still doing cloth diapers, but for the first two weeks (give or take) we'll be doing disposable diapers on both babies to ease the laundry burden initially. I'm assuming that The Baby won't be fully potty trained by June, but we're working on it! We need a new infant car seat because The Baby's was a hand-me-down and is going to expire.

Speaking of potty training, The Baby has been going several hours at a time with a dry diaper, and is great at peeing in the potty when I put him on it. He's also woken up dry in the morning a few times. He initially protests when I put him on the potty, but as soon as I sing and dance the potty song he relaxes and pees. The only problem at this point is if he pees when we're out doing errands after several hours of holding it he pees a lot. One minute he's dry, the next everything is soaked. It looks like I'm going to have to put him on a public toilet (yuck!) to pee sooner than I wanted.

I don't have any new ultrasound pictures of The Fetus, but I do have a belly picture from February 12th. Since then I think my belly has really started to poke out, and a few people have said, "You're due WHEN?!" because they think I'm about to pop. Nope, I still have about twelve weeks to my estimated due date.

The last bit of news is that it looks like The Baby failed his most recent Early Start developmental testing. In this case, failing means that he is doing so well that they are likely to discontinue services in the next six weeks. He is testing at 20 months for expressive language and 32 months for receptive. He is still slightly behind on gross motor skills, but is catching up nicely. Normally they like to see children caught up to their actual age, but with current budget cuts they are more strict with qualifications for services. As long as he is not 30% below his actual age in skills he loses services.

So he's done a great job so far, and accomplished a lot. He is just starting to put words together, like "No pee-pee!" and his single word vocabulary has exploded. We put wheat back into his diet after eliminating it for several months. I wanted to have his teacher observe his development and any reaction in that area before we lose her. Thus far, it looks like there is no change. I'm crossing my fingers that we can continue to allow him to eat whatever he wants (within reason of course) because having food allergies is no fun!

Two Year Portraits At Last!

2011-03-05T23:20:00.000-08:00

The portraits were taken before his first real Big Boy haircut last month. Of course the day the pictures were done his curls had fallen mostly flat. I figured that with his hair much shorter it would be fairly straight, but it really depends on the weather (dry vs. moist) and if he goes to bed with a wet head. I love his curls.

In the last few weeks The Baby has really embraced being two years old, with lots of loud "NO NO NO" even if what he means is "YES" and temper tantrums about bath time, diaper changes, the potty, the grass growing overly fast, etc. Being two is hard! It has been an adjustment for all of us having a noisy toddler in the house. I love telling Chicken, "Just wait until there are TWO of them!"

He uses new words every day and frequently repeats the last word we say. The Daddy measured his height at home and guess what? He really was 34" tall! I have no idea how the nurses get an accurate measurement, but I stand corrected this time. Enjoy the portraits!

I didn't think I was going to like this picture, but I LOVE the expression on his face.

The one eyebrow up kills me every time.

This one was the best shot of his blue eyes. (It doesn't translate on the computer very well.)

Here's the card that some people will get as soon as I am semi-functional, and hopefully before his third birthday.

Two Year Pediatrician Appointment

2011-02-01T20:24:00.000-08:00

The Baby had his two year appointment today. He is 34" tall (approximately because the way they measure height is ridiculous in my opinion) and weighs 24 pounds, 8 ounces. This puts him at the 29th percentile for height and 10th percentile for weight. He is just starting to be big enough to wear 2T pants, although they are little long yet. If he didn't wear cloth diapers they wouldn't stay up at all! He is wearing size 18-24 month shirts. The best part is that I don't need to bring The Baby back for a well visit until he is three years old!

The Baby is saying many single words and we are still working to get him to say two words together. A teacher from Early Start comes out for an hour each week to work with him. She says that his receptive language and cognitive development is right on target. He is still behind in expressive language. So his noodle works and he understands what we're saying, but his ability to say what's on his mind is still lagging. This has resulted in some minor temper issues when he doesn't have the oral or sign language to express complex thoughts. Overall, he is very easy and even-tempered. We've started a gymnastics class once a week, and he is really enthusiastic about it. There are only two other preschoolers in the class, so he gets a lot of individual attention and can work on gross motor skills like jumping and swinging and climbing!

As soon as I have the energy to pick up the portraits, I will be posting them here!

Two Year Portraits

2011-01-25T18:23:00.000-08:00

Here is a sneak peak:

Happy 2nd Birthday!

2011-01-20T12:52:00.000-08:00

The Baby turned two years old on Thursday, January 20th. I can't believe how quickly the past two years have flown by. I took The Baby in to have portraits done on his birthday, and I will put up the result when they come im next week.

We aren't having a party this year, but I did make him a little gluten free cake to eat tonight. Pictures of cake eating to follow! Thank you for all the Happy Birthday wishes!

We bought The Baby a small SpongeBob and a set of Duplo Legos for his birthday.

His favorite part of his birthday dinner was the gluten free lasagna we made. I haven't made lasagna in quite a while, and now he will stand at the refrigerator and say, "lasagna!" Or at least as close as he can say it.

The Baby was afraid of the candles on his SpongeBob cake, so we helped blow them out. The look on his face was, "Holy crap! There is FIRE on my cake and you're asking me to blow on it?" I managed to get this one picture where it looked like he was blowing and not terrified.

After all the lasagna he ate, The Baby had about three bites of cake. And I've been eating it since then.

It's A Boy!

2010-12-29T14:41:00.000-08:00

This ultrasound was done on December 21st, in the middle of week 16 of my pregnancy. The baby is dating 17 weeks 1 day at this point.

Above: looking down on his head, you can see both arms extend in front of him.

Above: The arrow points to the boy parts!! I think this shot requires imagination. I'll take the tech's word on it.

Above: side view of reclining baby, with legs tucked at the left and profile of face on right.

Above: this is a great shot of his right arm and hand. If you squint you can see the left hand.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T21:23:00.000-08:00

Guess What?

2010-12-19T23:56:00.000-08:00

In The Sticks

2010-11-23T18:54:00.001-08:00

The Baby observes his first walking stick.

Picture taken November 21, 2010 in Arkansas.

Teeth Update

2010-11-02T21:19:00.000-07:00

In August The Baby cut three molars.
In September he cut his bottom two eye teeth and his final molar (top right).
In October he cut his top left eye tooth.
It looks like the final eye tooth will come through soon, and then we are done until his 2 year molars. Hopefully they come in late. I'm over teething, and I'm sure he is too!

August Portraits

2010-09-25T22:24:00.000-07:00

Early Start

2010-09-15T21:22:00.000-07:00

On Monday I took The Baby to Early Start for a comprehensive developmental assessment. The assessment was two hours, during which one evaluator asked me questions and the other played with James. According to the assessment, his present levels of development are as follows:

Social/Emotional age level 20-23 months

Adaptive/Self Help age level-feeding 12-15 months, toileting 16-23 months, dressing 16-19 months

Fine Motor age level 16-19 months with scattered skills at 20-23 months

Cognitive age level 16-19 months with scattered skills at 20-23 months

Gross Motor age level 12-15 months with scattered skills at 16-19 months

Communication needs to be broken down more than the other sections because it was assessed with two different tests and includes receptive and expressive language. Under the Michigan his receptive and expressive tested at 9-11 months. Under the Reel 3 his receptive tested at 18 months and his expressive at 3 months. At the end of the assessment, they felt that The Baby is in the 9-11 months age level in communication overall.

To qualify for services through Early Start The Baby needs to have a significant developmental delay of 33% or more in one or more areas. The Baby qualified. At this point, he is scheduled for one-on-one in home therapy for one year. The therapy will be once a week for an hour. His primary goals are communication and gross motor skills. The therapy may change, and I will know more when I talk to the case manager here locally.

They said that The Baby is walking very well for being so new at it. They also said that if he didn't know sign language that I would likely have had a miserable baby that was unable to communicate at all. I asked them if the sign language has exacerbated his speech delay and they said emphatically that it did not. I will be contacted by the local case manager in the next week or two. I will let everyone know when I have more information!

After reading all that, how about some pictures? The Daddy took the following picture at the Wild Animal Park while The Baby was on the changing table.

The Baby checks out the scenery on the day that I took him to the Wild Animal Park.

Pediatrician Appointment-Done!

2010-09-10T22:53:00.000-07:00

The Baby had his first official appointment with the new pediatrician today. I'm pretty tired so I'm going to cheat and use bullet points for this post.

Things I liked:

They asked me to strip him down to his diaper for measurements and physical exam

The doctor played with The Baby to gain his trust

The doctor discussed the drop in The Baby's percentile in weight

I filled out a couple of questionnaires about The Baby's development

A more thorough physical exam than I've seen done by the previous physician

Recommended test for iron levels due to breastfeeding until 18+ months

The doctor asked intelligent questions and listened to my answers thoughtfully

End results:

It is likely that The Baby will gain more weight now that he is eating foods that are calorically denser than breastmilk

His weight isn't a big deal overall

The doctor is glad that I'm pursing Early Start and the audiology appointment (to be on the safe side)

He was impressed at how quickly I got the Early Start appointment

He fully expects that The Baby will start talking by 2 years and be caught up to his peers by 2 1/2 years (just like brother!)

The doctor isn't worried about The Baby's development

The Baby's iron levels tested at normal

Stats:

Height: 2'8" (25.2%)

Weight: 22lb 14oz (8.61%)

Head: 48.3 cm (57.18%)

Notes: The height may not be super accurate because The Baby thought we were laying him down to give him a shot. He fought furiously and yelled his head off until we were done. Poor baby! Also, the weight is the first time he has been weighed at the doctors' office with only a diaper.

I'm sure that I'm missing a few things that will need to be updated over the weekend. Overall, I'm happy that I switched pediatricians and I feel less worried about The Baby. Here's a picture from yesterday's trip to the Wild Animal Park:

Oops!

2010-09-08T20:56:00.000-07:00

I posted here that The Baby received his MMR and Chickenpox vaccines at his 18 month check-up. I realized today going through his shot record that he had the MMR at 16 months and only the Chickenpox vaccine at 18 months. So I'm either not as dumb as I thought, or dumber. Either way, his reaction to the Chickenpox vaccine was not due to combining the two. Today I got copies of his medical records from the former pediatrician to take to his new pediatrician on Friday and the Early Start assessment on Monday. Onward!

Summer Fun & Appointments

2010-09-06T22:13:00.000-07:00

The Baby checks out a grasshopper that we found in the backyard. Later, he picks it up and put it to his mouth with a question in his eyes, "Can I eat it?" NO! Then he removes a hind leg and I decide that grasshopper time is over. The poor critter was fed to the chickens.

Later we played in The Baby's fancy new swimming pool. There was a lot of splashing and happy noises. He looks like a little boy here and not a baby. Where did my baby go?

On Friday The Baby has an appointment with his new pediatrician. The Early Start assessment is on the 13th, and the audiologist appointment is October 18th. He has started to babble "l" sounds and continues to say, "No no no" as well as shaking his head to indicate "no" and nods to say "yes." While I was out of town over the weekend The Daddy got him to "moo" in the phone so I could hear him. He also said, "mamamama" but I couldn't hear it. The Baby has figured out how to call and text his daddy with my phone, and when I put him on speaker he waves, "hi daddy" to him. I bet if I changed the picture of The Daddy to someone else on my phone he would be stumped!

Wizard of Oz

2010-08-14T12:21:00.000-07:00

Am I the only one who is reminded of a scene in The Wizard of Oz?

Picture taken in Temecula, CA on August 14, 2010.

New Pediatrician

2010-08-13T15:50:00.001-07:00

Today I met with a doctor recommened by two different people, one of them a parent of two small children and the other a nurse and parent of a teenager. The appointment went well. It was a Meet & Greet appointment, so he was not able to diagnose or examine James. The appointment was free. I brought up two issues that I felt the previous doctor had bungled: The Baby's walking and his talking.

The previous pediatrician had watched The Baby walk holding my hand at 12 months and diagnosed him with flat feet. I was skeptical because all babies have flat feet. I chose to wait and see with this topic, and The Baby started walking at 17.5 months. When I brought this up with the doctor I saw today, he was incredulous. He said that true flat feet are rare and overdiagnosed. He also stated that you wouldn't be able to tell in a toddler because...they have flat feet.

We discussed The Baby's speech delay in terms of referrals and the Early Start process. The pediatrician said that he would take The Baby to an audiologist because a slight hearing loss can affect speech and not be easily recognized without a professional exam. The craziest part was that he gave me the phone number to an audiologist without me even asking. I still have not heard from the audiologist that is in my insurance network. Thanks for calling me back!

The pediatrician also agreed with what I have been told: Early Start is the place to go for an assessment and speech therapy if it is needed. He did mention that county services were probably cut back due to budget cuts. I agree with everything that we discussed. He also brought up antibiotic use, and I agree with his stance on limited antibiotics. Ladies and gentlemen, I think we have a match!

I'm going to call the audiologist on Monday. I am still waiting for a phone call or letter from Riverside County early start. The Baby is babbling more and Chicken is not pleased at the noise. He doesn't understand that babies make noise-it's their job! He's a fussy old man in a teenager's body.

This picture is from a Kate Nash concert that we attended in May 2010. I love the lady in the back that pulled a photo bomb.

Early Start

2010-08-09T11:55:00.001-07:00

Thanks to help and support from a literal trio of Amy's and a whole bunch of other people I talked to Early Start this morning! We did an initial interview over the phone and the woman I spoke with said that based on the fact that The Baby has no "real" words at 18 months he will likely be referred for a full assessment. A review panel will make the final decision and I will find out in a few weeks. The Early Start woman asked if I could drive to San Bernadino for the assessment. Although that doesn't sound like my idea of a great day trip I'm sure that I will be scooted through the system sooner with my ability to get him there instead of waiting for someone to come to me.

Math, It's What's For Breakfast

2010-08-08T14:33:00.000-07:00

The Daddy got on a tear about The Baby's height and weight figures, which makes sense because the nurses doing the measurements at the former pediatrician's office are making an educated guess from 50 feet away at best it seems. Watching them makes the math geek in me scream, but then I realize that at age thirteen it doesn't matter one bit if Chicken was 30th or 35th percentile at age blah blah blah. So I try to relax.

However, when I'm worrying about the baby, having The Daddy accurately measure the height and weight of The Baby is a good thing. The Baby's actual height is 31 3/4, which puts him in the 29th percentile. The weight reported in the previous post is accurate at 23.2 pounds. He's still on the skinny side, which is obvious looking at his marked lack of fat rolls.

The Daddy took out his out chart where he has been keeping track of The Baby's growth, and since he has been 7 months old his growth has increased at approximately the same rate. Which means that he's growing steadily. Which is a good thing! The Baby is also making more animal sounds thanks to The Mommy selflessly playing Farmville for him. Mooooo!

Of course I won't make you read all the boring stats on The Baby without some pictures! He went to a friends 2nd birthday party yesterday and there were a lot of firsts for The Baby.

The party favor was a kite, and The Daddy and The Baby flew a kite together:

The Baby flirted with the birthday girl's grandmother while he ate his cupcake. Then he asked for a second cupcake. Only one per person, greedy baby!

The Baby quickly figured out that all the kids scrabbling on the ground for beads, small toys, and candy had the right idea. He was thrilled with his haul, even though he had no idea what he was picking up off the ground. The Mommy might have said, "Hey look at all the beads! It's Mardi Gras! Pull up your shirt, baby!"

We really enjoyed ourselves at the party and it was worth the drive down to San Diego. Happy Birthday to our little friend!

Stats

2010-08-04T21:25:00.000-07:00

Chicken went to the pediatrician yesterday and I remembered to ask for a sticker with his height and weight. And the numbers are...5' 5 3/4" and 127 pounds. Today he registered for high school, received his "draft" schedule and his books. He is taking:

Spanish 1
Chemistry
Algebra II
Human Geography AP
English 9 Pre-AP
Physical Education

The Baby's height and weight on July 22 was 23.2 pounds and 30.5". He is 14th percentile for weight and 6th percentile for height. He's a cute little dude. I discussed the speech delay referral with the pediatrician again and he is apparently a moron. We're getting a new doctor and I am contacting Early Start for an assessment.

The Baby received the chicken pox vaccine on the 22nd, and for some reason I forgot that a side effect can be getting a mild case of chicken pox. So maybe The Baby is cranky because he feels like crap? He has spots on the injection site and a few other places as well as an off and on low grade fever. *sigh* I have a huge case of the crankies as well. I waited on the MMR vaccine until 18 months, and somehow ended up getting the baby his chicken pox and MMR at the same time which increases the chances of side effects. I was planning on waiting to get the chicken pox vaccine until he started preschool. Mommy FAIL.

Speech

2010-07-27T14:58:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons that I failed to get an accurate height/weight at The Baby's most recent check up was that the pediatrician gave me a referral to an audiologist and speech therapist. It didn't take me completely by surprise, but it was upsetting. The Baby is officially speech delayed at this point. I'm not horribly worried, however I would like to follow all the proper channels to make sure that The Baby will have any and all medical care that he needs.

I was told by the pediatrician that most insurance companies do not cover speech therapy until the child is two years old. This is understandable because many children catch up with their developmentally "normal" peers by that age. However, when I called my insurance company today I was told that speech therapy is not EVER covered at ANY age for a developmental delay.

So I will take The Baby to the audiologist to have his hearing checked, and if the tests come back normal we will have to make a decision. Wait to see if The Baby catches up at some point in the future or pay for speech therapy 100% out of pocket. I am really upset.

I'd really like to hear what this adorable toddler of mine has to say!

Aquarium of the Pacific

2010-07-25T16:51:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we went to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California. Chicken had been wanting to go ever since the last time we went in 2004. Can you imagine six years of "Mommy, when are we going to the aquarium? Mommy? Mommy! Mommy?" The horror, I know. Here are some pictures from the day:

A family picture! Of the whole family! Amazing!

I'm not a big fan of birds, except for chickens and lorikeets.

In the lorikeet enclosure, The Baby was fascinated by a very special rock. He also tried to climb the fence. Since he isn't much of a climber yet it was more fun than scary to watch.

I cautioned The Daddy to hold The Baby's arms out of the lorikeet's reach. "But I was holding one of his arms!" exclaimed The Daddy after someone got nipped. You might notice that this picture was taken after the lorikeet got The Baby. The Daddy is holding both arms and The Baby has a displeased look on his face. I bet he was thinking, "My birds at home never bite me like that!" (No babies were harmed in the lorikeet enclosure.)

Shoes! I really love baby shoes. These are The Baby's current shoes and I love them as much as the previous version which was a fox dressed up as a knight. Robeez are adorable.

The Baby recently discovered OMG!!1! SPLASHING!!! in the bathtub at home. The sharks and rays in the tank were probably not too pleased with this behavior.

Eventually The Baby discovered that the sharks were there for petting, and not annoying. We worked really hard to get his fingers all the way down to the sharks.

This involved taking his shirt off and holding his face out of the water, but eventually we were successful. The Baby was thrilled.

This week The Baby had his 18 month check up, and I will have an update with accurate height/weight as soon as I call the doctor to get the numbers. I forgot to have the office write them on a sticker for me. I do remember that he weighed 23ish pounds, which is between the 10th and 25th percentile for his age. He is a skinny little guy!

Pictures taken in Long Beach, Ca on July 24, 2010.

Summer Fair Fun

2010-07-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

In June I went to the Del Mar Fair. I went this year with my mother, The Baby, Chicken, Chicken's best girl friend, best guy friend, and his best girl friend's mom. The Baby had a great time watching everything and practicing his walking with a little help.

We went into the petting zoo area and I thought The Baby wouldn't care about feeding the animals. However, he picked up some pine chips, held it up to his mouth and then signed, "Eat/food" to me. He LOVED feeding the animals. He would hold his hand flat out and the goats would lick the pellets off while he grinned. He could have spent half the day feeding the animals.

I've learned that if I want a decent picture of myself I have to take it. In my world, decent doesn't necessarily mean my whole face. Or anyone else's whole face.

The Baby is really starting to look like a little boy.

I swear this picture is like a miniature The Daddy looking right at me. If The Daddy had blue eyes, light hair, a gap between his teeth a SUV could pass through and no facial hair.

The Baby had some yummy fresh potato chips (thick sliced) with cheese sauce and thus began the phase of dipping things only to lick them clean and dip them again. Without eating anything but the dip. Then I got a creme puff with fresh whipped cream inside, and The Baby fell madly in love.

But when the whipped cream was gone, The Baby was the embodiment of *sad face*.

Poor baby. I absolutely loved his pout.

Pictures taken June 15, 2010 in Del Mar, California.

Brains!

2010-07-05T22:24:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, The Baby finally decided to begin walking. His current method involves his arms stretched out like a zombie. We like to say things like, "Brains! I need brains! Yummy brains! NOM NOM NOM," while he is walking around. This morning, The Daddy caught him walking around at Lowe's on his phone.

In other developmental news, in May The Baby cut three teeth. This put the total at four on top, four on the bottom. In June, he cut his first primary molar on the bottom left. In July he cut the top left primary molar. I am going to believe that this means he will be left handed, while ignoring the fact that he favors his right hand while eating, drawing, and grabbing for things.

Lastly, The Baby signs up a storm but has only in the last few weeks begun to babble and "talk" like a baby. We had a feeling he would start talking and walking at the same time! Next up, a picture I took at the San Diego Fair last month where The Baby looks just like The Daddy.

Chicken and His Sibling

2010-05-02T21:54:00.000-07:00

People comment frequently that Chicken and The Baby look a lot alike each other, so I thought I would put similar pictures of them at around age one. The first and last pictures are The Baby.

And...

2010-04-21T18:47:00.000-07:00

The Baby just pointed at a picture online of a toddler and signed baby. Someone said that The Baby had a lot of words that we weren't aware of and I think that Someone is right.

More Words

2010-04-21T18:15:00.001-07:00

I forgot that The Baby knows how to sign please and thank you. I just saw him sign airplane correctly for the first time. Airplane looks like this:

I couldn't believe that he got the fingers correct!

Yesterday The Baby cut tooth number six! I'm sure he would feel much better if he didn't have a cold. The poor boy is full of snot and in a foul mood.

(Picture from Baby Signs by Beth.)

Baby Signing Time

2010-04-19T23:33:00.000-07:00

The Baby is talking up a storm with his hands these days! While he still says, "Dude" (which means all animals not including dogs) and "Do" (which means dog) and "New new" (which means pacifier) he doesn't speak very much yet. We watch Baby Signing Time and Signing Time with him every day and he loves the videos! His current signs (that we can figure out) include:

Cat, dog, frog, fish, horse, bird, milk, more, all done, water, potty, eat, daddy, mama, grandpa, grandma, brother (which he signs as "boy" because brother is difficult), soap, wash hands, cheese, and play. If I'm forgetting any, please leave them in the comments.

The Baby is essentially night weaned, but still nursing about 3 times a day. He nurses first thing in the morning, once during the day, and right before bedtime. Last weekend I went on a scrapbooking retreat and left The Daddy in charge Thursday night until Sunday afternoon. The Baby had a lot of fun with his daddy and grandma, even sleeping through the night one night. For those of you keeping score at home, The Baby has slept through the night four times, and three of those in the last two weeks. It looks like he is trending toward waking up once a night or sleeping through the night. I prefer the latter, but once a night is a vast improvement over every hour. Of course this evening The Baby has woken up every hour, and has napped no longer than twenty minutes at a time. He's feeling miserable, poor boy.

We still haven't seen tooth number six break through, but it should be any day now. He hasn't had a bottle in a few months, and much prefers a sippy cup with a straw. His late love of a pacifier has not waned, and I wonder some days if he is going to want to take it to kindergarten. He has learned to climb, and if something is too tall he will push his red chair (a hand-me-down from big brother) to the place he wants to go. He then climbs the chair and onto the couch (his favorite place) or wherever he wants to be. The Daddy got out Chicken's old PS2 steering wheel and attached it to the coffee table. The Baby sits in his chair and "steers" in his brother's video game. No one has the heart to tell him that Chicken is playing an Xbox360 game that is not compatible with the ancient PS2 wheel. Shhh! And lastly, The Baby has discovered using crayons! I am afraid for my walls, hard floors, furniture, and slow-moving cats.

Here's The Baby right after we told him about the Easter Bunny:

Can you see the third top tooth?

Picture taken April 3, 2010.

Playing Outside

2010-04-15T11:53:00.001-07:00

The Baby was pulling up grass and feeding it to Buttercup, the yellow chicken.

Behind The Baby on the right side is Monty, our Christmas tree.

The Baby learned to climb up and slide down all by himself. He doesn't even mind when he leans too far forward and rolls sideways down the slide. He picks himself up without a fuss and climbs back up to slide again.

Pictures taken in our backyard, April 14, 2010.

The Cutest Teeth Chart

2010-03-27T21:55:00.000-07:00

I found the original version here and modified it a bit. It is an adorable way to keep track of The Baby's teeth! I think I am going to use a copy of it in a scrapbook. The other day I was looking at the pictures on my camera and found this:

The Daddy took this picture. Someone looks like a little old man reading the Sunday paper while doing his morning business.

Eating Yogurt

2010-03-18T23:34:00.000-07:00

Recently The Baby has shown an interest in feeding himself with a spoon. Today he started off slowly with some tasty yogurt.

But when the rogue left hand joined in all order was lost. At first it was just a finger tip, dipped into the yogurt and then into his mouth.

Then, it was chaos.

And someone really enjoyed himself.

After he was finished eating, he took a moment to reflect on the squishy feeling of both hands covered in yogurt.

Then he decided that I was to be his next yogurt victim.

And then it was time for a midday bath.

Pictures taken at home: March 18, 2010

*A side note before I forget, on March 10th The Baby cut his right lateral incisor. This brings his tooth count to five.

Someone Turned One!

2010-02-14T20:58:00.001-08:00

At his one year doctor appointment last month, The Baby weighed 21.06 pounds and was 30 inches long. However, the manner in which nurses do the weighing is far from accurate.

The Baby still has only his two top and bottom center teeth, four total. He isn't walking yet but spends a lot of time on his feet. He has really lost much of his baby fat and we are using the smaller red-trimmed cloth diapers that he had previously outgrown. He isn't talking much but points excitedly and signs occasionally. His nap schedule seems to be settling on a long late morning nap and nothing for the rest of the day. He loves to swing and I can see us spending a lot of time in our backyard in the coming months.

Happy (Belated) Birthday Sweet Boy.

The Baby's First Word

2010-01-12T20:52:00.000-08:00

1 Year Pictures

2010-01-11T17:38:00.000-08:00

Although The Baby is not quite one, I had some pictures taken in his big brother's tuxedo. Chicken wore it to his first birthday party 12 1/2 years ago!

Remember the last post on The Baby's sleep? That night he slept from 8:00pm to 5:30am. The very first night he has slept through in his life. And of course, he has yet to repeat it. *sigh*

Oh Hai!

2010-01-07T21:54:00.000-08:00

Between my new phone and the holidays I have neglected my poor blog! I have a few updates:

The Baby is not yet walking but spends a lot of his time cruising by holding onto anything that will support him and some things that won't.

I was wrong about The Baby's first word. He hasn't repeated bird much (at all?) but has said Dude many times. Dude is my cat's name, and to The Baby, Dude is what you call cats. And the fish at the pediatrician's office today. Sometimes it is pronounced "Doo" but each day it sounds more like Dude. I am very amused by it. Maybe Dude means animals or pets to him?

I am not very amused by The Baby's desire to wake up every 1 to 3 hours all night every night to nurse at the ripe old age of almost 1 year. So we have started sleep training, otherwise known as "Mommy is going to lose her mind if she cannot start sleeping in at least 4 hour increments." Luckily for him, The Baby is very cute and wonderful during the day. Otherwise I would post him on Craig's List.

I'm betting that you would like to see some pictures, right? First up is The Baby taking a bath on Christmas day. You know how sometimes when you look at a young person (or their picture) and you can see the boy or man that they will someday become? This picture does that for me. Plus, check out his top two teeth!

The Daddy and his baby on Christmas day:

Now that the holidays are over and I have a brand new camera, I hope to post more pictures for everyone! For those of you that know me in real life keep February 13, 2010 available and check your mailbox (snail mail) next week! Or send me an email telling me that I'm a moron and I forgot you!

Teething and Outing

2009-12-08T13:57:00.000-08:00

On Friday, December 4th Egg cut his top right tooth amidst a flurry of snot and angst. This is Egg's first experience with a miserably runny nose, and I can say that nursing a baby with a yucky nose is not on my top ten favorite things to do. We've tried feeding him more cereal (baby oatmeal mixed with breast milk) because it is easier to eat with a stuffy nose, but he is preferring milk from the source still.

Benadryl is helping dry up the yuck and he is finally sleeping better than he has since the first top tooth started to come into the world. Babies only need four teeth, right? Because I'm not sure I want to go through the next set of teeth. At least not until I catch up on some sleep.

We went to the Hotel del Coronado on December 2nd. We went with my mother, two of her friends, Chicken and his best friend to enjoy the lighting of the Christmas tree. There was Santa, hot cocoa, watching ice skating, a very tasty dinner, and fireworks. The Baby was fascinated by the fireworks but a little scared by the noise. He really loves being out with people and showed off his fabulous temperament throughout the evening. Yes, I am a proud mama.

Ten Months Old, (Two Days Late)

2009-11-22T18:27:00.000-08:00

We have a top tooth today! The left middle one to be exact. Please oh please let him sleep better now. The Baby has been waking up every 1.5 hours throughout the night for what seems like forever but is probably just a week or two. His attitude during the day is great but the nights are miserable for everyone. We also have a baby that can quickly crawl on hands and knees. He is unstoppable! He weighs 21.5 pounds and is an unknown height, likely less than three feet but who is going to hold him down and measure him? Not me!

He ferociously hates diaper changes and really dislikes getting dressed. Bath time is awesome, as is tormenting cats and tenderly petting Buttercup the baby chick. We call it tenderly but sometimes Buttercup loses a few feathers. She doesn't mind, and will stand still for him to pet her. The relationships between Muffin (Chicken's kitten, one month younger than The Baby), The Baby, and Buttercup are hilarious. Muffin has learned that Buttercup is now bigger and rather scary when she decides to give chase but she still really wants to eat her. We decided that a group photo shoot was the only way to illustrate the fun.

No animals were harmed, although Dude (in the bottom right corner) appeared horrified by it all. It is very difficult to take a picture of three babies at once.

This is a better picture of how tall Buttercup is compared to Muffin. I think Buttercup will at least double in size in the next few months, and will be the biggest chicken that we have. Poor Muffin.

And The First Word Is...

2009-11-10T22:09:00.001-08:00

Bird!

He started to say "du" and "da" about a week ago, already had "bu" "ba" "ma" "mu" and "nu" in his vocabulary. If you can call a bunch of sounds a vocabulary. Tonight I was holding Buttercup (our new chick) while saying and signing bird to The Baby and he said bird clear as can be. I looked at The Daddy and asked, "Did he just say bird?" Yep he did!

Here is a picture from last month, with The Daddy hunting for pumpkins that we still haven't carved. Darn flu bug! My goal is to carve them tomorrow since Chicken has the day off of school.

Picture taken October 11, 2009 at Bates Nut Farm.

Moving On Up!

2009-10-28T20:48:00.000-07:00

On October 20th The Baby pulled himself up to standing in the bath for the first time and of course I grabbed a picture of it for teh innernets. Since that day he has started crawling a little bit on all fours, sitting on his knees, scootching to sitting on his bottom, pulling up on anything that will hold his weight to a standing position. At this point we are taking bets on whether he will crawl on all fours competently before he gives up using his clothes to clean my floor and walks. Isn't he the cutest?!

ETA: If you click on the picture and view it larger, you can clearly see his two bottom teeth.

Bate's Nut Farm

2009-10-13T21:15:00.000-07:00

Although we had a great time at Bate's Nut Farm on Sunday, last week The Baby had his first sick visit to his pediatrician. His stats were: 20.08lbs, 28" tall, head 44.5cm. He had a tummy bug that left me temporarily regretting the choice to use cloth diapers. Yuck. This was The Baby's first real illness. The pediatrician told me to give him 1-2 ounces of Pedialyte every time he went potty, even if he didn't like it I was to make him drink it to help with dehydration. Well, The Baby hated it so much that one sip made him throw up. He threw up the Pedialyte AND all the breast milk in his stomach. Then we tried Gatorade, same result. Then we tried Sprite and no dice. Eventually we gave up as I decided that throwing up was not helping the situation. For the week he nursed and nursed and nursed and refused all other food and drink. By Sunday he was better and ready to try a first that his brother loved: New England clam chowder. He ate it until I thought his was going to burst. That's my boy!

What A Look!?!

2009-09-23T22:21:00.000-07:00

The week beginning September 6th The Baby added "M" to his sounds. This week he added "N" sounds. He is getting really good at scootching around the house, using both arms and his right foot to propel him around the floor. He is starting to get up on all fours but can't figure out what to do from there, and plops back down onto his belly to move around. Today I noticed him pulling up on things to hang out on his knees. The crib is being lower some more this weekend!

Last night he went down in his crib around 8pm, I got him up to dream feed* around 10pm, and then he slept until 5:30am. He was up to nurse and then back to sleep until 7:45am when he was up for the day. I would LOVE for his to repeat, but I will take anything over the up every two hours to nurse all night long routine. That was a bummer.

On the nursing front, after some middle of the night biting, he hasn't bitten me in a while. [crosses fingers] He has really started to eat food, preferring finger foods to baby food. The only baby food he will eat is rice cereal mixed with breast milk. He is eating a small bit at lunch, just a few bites and much more at dinner. Tonight he had some dehydrated apple bits, cheese cubes, avocado, and rice cereal with a nursing session to finish the meal.

*Dream feeding is getting him out of his crib, nursing him while he is mostly still asleep, and then putting him back into his crib. He never even opens his eyes. This way I can go to sleep around the same time as The Daddy and hopefully The Baby won't wake for a feeding until 1am or thereabouts.

Who Does This Look Like To You?

Picture taken at home, September 13, 2009

Growth Spurt

2009-09-06T19:09:00.000-07:00

This weekend The Baby:

started to say his first consonant sound, "ba"
learned to scootch, which is what we are calling his style of crawling that is not up on all fours
started using his first sign, "milk"

Picture taken September 6, 2009

Now With More Bite!

2009-08-29T19:33:00.000-07:00

Lions and Tigers and Bears

2009-08-23T23:15:00.000-07:00

The Baby cut his two bottom teeth today, besting Chicken's record of the bottom two teeth in three days. Chicken's teeth came in at 7.5 months, very close to The Baby's at 7 months, 3 days.

The Baby also moved around the whole living room floor today for the first time. Today's goal: grabbing Dude's tail. Dude was not happy when The Baby succeeded. That boy has fast hands and a fierce grip! The Baby isn't crawling yet but he can roll with the best of them! I guess tomorrow is baby proofing and floor cleaning day for me. I can't believe how fast he is growing up.

Last night The Baby went down to sleep in his crib around 10pm. He woke up an hour later, I nursed him and he went back to sleep. He slept until 6:15am, making it the first night of full sleep I have had since before The Baby was born. Go Baby! Moving, sleeping, and teeth all in 24 hours. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

Laughing and Sleeping

2009-08-16T23:31:00.000-07:00

The Baby has gone to sleep every night in his crib since Wednesday (and naps, too). When he wakes (between 1 and 2am) I bring him into bed with me to nurse and he stays with me until morning. As this schedule becomes more routine, I will be nursing him in his room at that first awakening and putting him back in his crib. Eventually I will be soothing him back to sleep without nursing him. Some day he will sleep through the night by himself, right? Although I am ready for him to spend some time sleeping away from me, I really enjoyed every moment of snuggling with my fabulous baby. Isn't he adorable?

What Do I Do Now?

2009-08-12T23:39:00.000-07:00

Today The Baby took TWO naps in his crib. Then, I put him down for the night in his crib. Where he is currently sleeping, like a baby. For the very first time at night. In his crib. In his own room. Asleep. I have proof:

The baby monitor, held right in front of The Baby's room. No bad red lights of yelling or crying, all is quiet in mommyville. G'night!

Not To Read While Eating

2009-08-01T17:36:00.000-07:00

Recently I have found myself learning that whatever I once firmly believed was very, very wrong. For instance, the other day I was confronted with this sight:

I said to myself, "This is the scariest thing involving poop that a parent can see." Then I found out that I was wrong. Now I believe that this is the scariest thing:

I can't wait to be proven wrong again.

Pictures taken July 30 & 31, 2009

Wonder Week

2009-07-28T18:16:00.000-07:00

According to the book Wonder Weeks, there are eight specific periods during the first year of life where the infant's development leaps forward. This causes said infant to be a little fussy as their brain goes, "WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON I NEED MY MOMMY!!!" After a few days of weird sleeping patterns and fussiness, I thought, "I wonder if this is a wonder week?" I looked it up in the book and LO and BEHOLD it is. The current Wonder Week is said to interfere with their sleep, eating, demeanor, and generally mess with their whole entire world. It lasts on average FOUR weeks. I guess Chicken is going to be awfully glad that he is in Virginia.

The Baby has also decided that 8am is a great time to get up in the morning. While still going to sleep around 11pm. *sigh* Last night he took a nap from 11 to 11:30pm and woke up happy as a lark. I was not quite as happy. For those of you not at my home, this video is what it sounds like when no one is h0lding or talking to The Baby. After I shot the video, I let him watch it about twenty times. He loved it. He's lucky that he is so darn cute.

First!

2009-07-25T16:17:00.000-07:00

Today's milestone: First poop in the bathtub! Followed by first spit-up in the bathtub! Luckily The Daddy and The Mommy were on hand to work together on clean up. While we're in too much information land...the poop was a traditional breast milk poop, AKA super easy to deal with in the tub.

Hey Chicken-your brother just pooped in your tub. Wanna take a bath when you get home from Virginia? :)

Captain What?

2009-07-24T23:30:00.000-07:00

Onesie by Carter's from Neighbor Lady

Update: The mysterious red spot is gone. Teeth? Still none!

Picture taken July 24, 2009

What Is This?

2009-07-23T19:23:00.000-07:00

It looks like a blood blister to me, but all Dr. Google talks about are purple blood blisters when molars are erupting. Any guesses?

Picture taken July 23, 2009.

I Am Super Cute

2009-07-17T00:24:00.001-07:00

First time ever at the beach day! Or, maybe I should title this, "Very close to the beach picture taken during a diaper change and nursing break!" Except this picture wasn't exactly taken DURING a diaper change or nursing session. Hmmm...how about "I AM SUPER CUTE." Yep, that works for me.

Picture taken July 15, 2009 in Camp Pendleton, CA.

Bath Tub Fun

2009-07-11T23:27:00.000-07:00

Picture taken July 11, 2009

Fun In The Sun

2009-07-07T00:24:00.001-07:00

I bought this pool at Target a few weeks ago and we finally got it out last Friday. It is more of a water activity center than a pool, and a perfect way for The Baby to enjoy his first summer.

For those of you readers that know The Daddy, I bet this looks familiar!

Next we have The Baby's patented Elvis lip sneer plus his one foot toes curled one foot toes relaxed look. Check out who is sitting up like a big boy!

Pictures taken July 3, 2009

Dinner

2009-07-05T20:52:00.000-07:00

Video shot July 2, 2009

Sitting Pretty

2009-06-29T23:12:00.000-07:00

Guess who has started sitting up unassisted for a moment here and there?

Guess who fed The Baby prunes today because he hadn't pooped in three days? His awesome mother! Guess who realized after feeding The Baby that that he was being fed prunes while sitting in a poopy diaper? Oops. Anyone want to babysit tomorrow?

Picture taken June 26, 2009

Pooh Bear

2009-06-22T23:30:00.001-07:00

Picture taken June 22, 2009

Sleeping With Dude

2009-06-17T22:28:00.001-07:00

Dude decided that the baby needed company. He has gone from being unwilling to occupy the same room as the baby to wanting to cuddle up next to him. By the way, those pajamas are size 9 months. Egads! The Baby and Dude are approximately the same weight now. Big boys!

Note: You can click on any picture to get the full size version of it. All pictures are uploaded high resolution so that you may save them, print them, show them off to others, etc.

Picture taken June 19, 2009

4 Month Check Up

2009-06-17T22:28:00.000-07:00

A little late, but better than never! The Baby was 16lbs and 25 1/4 inches at his four month check up. The doctor gave me the okay for him to eat rice cereal and vegetables. He agreed that we should hold off on any grains that are more prone to allergies due to my wheat intolerance. The Baby has eaten rice cereal a few times now and sweet potatoes once. He LOVED the sweet potatoes. I am going slowly on introducing solid foods and just listening to my gut. Or The Baby's gut. Nursing is going well except for the ever-present yeast that seems to love springing between The Baby and myself. Yuck! It forced me to stop drinking sweet tea at Chick-fil-a as yeast is supposed to enjoy feeding off of sugar. I'm not sure that it helped combat the yeast but I lost two pounds! I will be making my own baby food but yesterday's meal was thanks to Earth's Best organic sweet potatoes.

Is this jar empty already?

I think I missed a spot.

Tasty!

Pictures taken June 16, 2009

Experimenting With Rice Cereal

2009-06-10T21:35:00.000-07:00

Picture taken June 9, 2009

Sea World Trip

2009-05-03T12:36:00.000-07:00

Chicken's school had a field trip to Sea World and The Baby and I were lucky enough to come along for the fun! It was also the first time I got to try out the new stroller!

Picture taken May 1, 2009 in San Diego, CA

Introducing.... CHICKEN!

2009-04-16T22:26:00.001-07:00

The Mommy, The Baby, and Chicken in Vail, Colorado

Picture taken April 8, 2009

The Best Onesie Ever

2009-04-16T20:55:00.000-07:00

Picture taken April 16, 2009

Happy Easter

2009-04-13T15:15:00.000-07:00

Picture taken April 12, 2009

Smiles For Daddy

2009-04-09T21:54:00.000-07:00

Picture taken April 9, 2009 in Ouray, Colorado.

Everything But The Kitchen Sink

2009-04-05T21:38:00.001-07:00

The Baby got a bath in the kitchen sink today.

Picture taken April 5, 2009 in Vail, Colorado.

Daddy's Pajamas

2009-04-05T11:20:00.000-07:00

Picture taken March 29, 2009

Road Trip

2009-04-04T20:09:00.000-07:00

The WHOLE DAY in the car?

Yawn. This is boring.

Resigned.

Photos taken April 2, 2009

Sleep Smile

2009-03-23T16:56:00.001-07:00

The Baby smiles and even giggles in his sleep. What is he dreaming about?

New Things, Blue Things

2009-03-22T12:37:00.000-07:00

I've added a section on the sidebar called "The Baby's Library" to keep track of books. Someone might have purchased Goodnight Moon recently when The Baby already owned the book. Oops. I guess I am going back to Barnes & Noble, huh? Each book is linked to Amazon in case you want to see exactly which book I am referring to in his library, and new books are welcome! I especially like board books and books by Sandra Boynton. *ahem* *cough* *cough*

During The Baby's recent trip to the doctor we asked about when we could expect The Baby's eyes to turn brown. I had calculated that there was a 50% chance of brown eyes, 37.5% of blue eyes, and 12.5% chance of green eyes. The breakdown of relevant eye color is as follows:

The Daddy: brown

His mom: blue

His dad: brown

The Mommy: blue

Her mom: brown

Her dad: blue

The doctor took a good look at The Baby's eyes and said, "They aren't going to turn brown. Blue or hazel but not brown." I guess I have two blue-eyed boys!!

Two Month Check Up

2009-03-20T19:48:00.000-07:00

Weight: 12lbs 5oz
Height: 23.5"

He got his shots but politely declined the rotovirus oral medicine by spitting it all back out of his mouth.

WOW

2009-03-19T08:36:00.001-07:00

He smiled at me!

The Baby's Favorite Toy

2009-03-17T20:48:00.000-07:00

The Baby is fresh out of the bath and enjoying his mobile! He is wearing a cloth diaper (from Green Mountain Diapers) without a cover because we hadn't gotten that far yet. I am loving using cloth diapers. All the colors! And styles! And CUTE!! Here is one of the covers:
After bath I put a cloth diaper on to avoid peeing on the wall incidents (he loves to pee on the wall) and I rub him down with lotion or Burt's Bees Apricot Baby Oil. He smells yummy when we are done and he enjoys the massage and watching the mobile. Hopefully this will become a relaxing routine but right now he is so excited about the mobile that sleep is not on The Baby's mind at all. The mobile is the very first toy that The Baby has noticed. *pats self on back again* Isn't he cute?

Smiling

2009-03-17T18:34:00.001-07:00

The Baby is smiling, but not for his parents, oh no! He has smiled for his Grandma Becky and our favorite Neighbor Lady multiple times. He has also smiled for his Pooh Bear mobile that we suspended over his changing area. Diaper changes are much happier events now that Pooh and Friends play music and twirl above his head. I fully accept all kudos for the idea of a mobile to distract from the horrors of getting a clean diaper!

Rollin'

2009-03-13T16:16:00.000-07:00

The Baby just rolled over from his tummy to his right side and then his back. I think this development is why he was so darn fussy last week. Now that he is moving he is a much happier camper!

Milestone

2009-03-11T11:25:00.001-07:00

Last night The Baby rolled from his tummy to his left side then to his back. So I put him on his tummy to see it again and he did it faster!

Wearing The Pajamas A Little Late

2009-03-08T21:03:00.001-07:00

Too Cute

2009-02-11T21:46:00.000-08:00

Picture taken February 6th

Well Baby Check Up

2009-02-06T17:23:00.000-08:00

9lbs 1oz
20.5 inches long

New pictures coming soon!

Co-Sleeper

2009-02-01T23:30:00.000-08:00

Look who is sleeping in his co-sleeper!

A co-sleeper is similar to a bassinet but attaches to the parent bed. It makes it easier for the mom to access the baby for meals during the night. This way The Baby can sleep very close to The Mommy without fear of The Daddy rolling over and smooshing him. The Baby had been waking up every time I put him in the co-sleeper but is now sleeping there for a few hours at a time. This means that I can stretch out in bed a little bit between feedings-and even lay on my stomach for the first time in almost a year!

I See You

2009-01-30T23:51:00.000-08:00

What The Baby Says To Diaper Changes

2009-01-29T18:05:00.000-08:00

Kitty Cat Blankie and Sleeping on The Daddy

2009-01-28T21:55:00.000-08:00

The Baby enjoys a handmade blankie from a friend.

One of two places The Baby sleeps is on The Daddy. The other is on The Mommy. I'm not quite sure if The Baby has noticed that he has a crib and a co-sleeper but I'm sure he'll use them one day. Maybe when we are able to put him down for more than 30 seconds at a time?

Thinking Thoughts

2009-01-24T19:07:00.000-08:00

The Baby Arrives

2009-01-22T19:55:00.000-08:00

The Baby is a Boy!
January 20, 2009
6:03am
7 pounds 7 ounces
19 1/4 inches

Above: Moments after birth

Above: With The Daddy in the hospital

Above: At home with The Mommy

38 Week Update

2009-01-12T19:39:00.000-08:00

Although I went to the doctor last week, I didn't post an update because there was no change. However, this week things are changing! My current stats:

Cervix: dilated 1-2cm, 80% effaced, station -1

The Baby is now vertex position! This means he is head down AND his head is facing away from my front, which is the optimal birthing position. I am started to get excited. I've been having a lot of contractions and my doctor said that he doubts I will make it to my next appointment on Monday. YAY!

I'm still fighting the cold that The Daddy gave me around New Years and I hope to kick it completely before going into labor. Wish me luck!

36 Week Check Up

2008-12-29T21:48:00.000-08:00

Guess who has the most awesome baby in the whole wide world? I do! The Baby is head down!!! Next doctor's visit is a week from today, and will continue each Monday until The Baby arrives.

Current stats:

1cm dilated
50% effaced
-2 station

34 Week Checkup

2008-12-15T18:08:00.001-08:00

The Baby is still breech as of this afternoon, with his feet planted next to my right hipbone. My next appointment is in two weeks, during which I will further discuss my options with my doctor. At this point two of my options are my doctor trying to manually flipping him or having a C-section at 39 weeks. As much as I cannot wait to meet The Baby I am going to try whatever is possible to flip him head down before scheduling a C-section. Cross your fingers for me and think head down thoughts!

32 Week Upset

2008-12-04T22:44:00.000-08:00

On my regular OB appointment on Monday, I had a quick ultrasound and the doctor discovered that The Baby is in a breech position. My next appointment is on the 15th of December and we'll check his position again at that time. Hopefully he flips back head down soon!

I talked with my doctor about the results of the in-depth ultrasound in the middle of November and everything looks good. They did say that The Baby is measuring 1-2 weeks ahead of his due date. This means either the dates are off (we know the dates are right on) or The Baby is BIG. We've been expecting a bigger baby than The Chicken was (7lb 8oz) but I'm hoping for not too big, especially if The Baby continues to be breech.

I'll update if there are any changes between now and the next appointment! Cross your fingers for a head down baby!

30 Week Ultrasound

2008-11-18T19:11:00.001-08:00

Today I had my big ultrasound. The Daddy and The Chicken were able to come, and we all saw The Baby! We even watched him practice swallowing! It was amazing and I can't believe in a little more than two months we will get to meet him.

Above: Most definitely a boy!

Above: Profile of Face

Above: Front of Face

Above: Face Profile

The Daddy Checking in.

2008-11-06T22:33:00.000-08:00

First off, I want to thank "Ducky" (friend of the mommy that looks nothing like a duck). She really deserves her own post -- she recently gave us a TON of baby clothes, some used, some new, all in great shape. Our baby room is starting to fill up, and when it comes to clothes, well, it's starting to look like this :

The mommy has been fervently working at cleaning, folding, sorting, and putting away clothes, so we're in much better shape now. I'm amazed at how many outfits fit in the washer -- it seems like hundreds, when i can barely fit in 5 pairs of my jeans.

We've recently taken on some *real* chicken family members to our household, Beck, Peck and George. The chicks were a present to chicken for his birthday, and hopefully will be keeping us in eggs soon. Here is a picture of their keeper (my cat) watching over them :

We're going to build them a bigger coop this weekend, along with about 10,000,000 other things. The projects never seem to stop around our new house, but it's becoming more our home everyday. I'll check back soon with more pictures for everybody.

- The Daddy

Time Ticks By

2008-11-06T19:26:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry that I haven't updated in the last two months, house buying took up all my energy. We are completely moved at this point and finishing up projects on the house one by one. Yesterday I had my first ultrasound in two months, although I didn't get any pictures this time. I will be scheduling my "big" ultrasound soon and might have more pictures from that appointment. The doctor said that The Baby looked great and is still definitely a boy. He is head down at this point and using his hands and elbows to communicate with The Daddy. I feel his arms much more frequently than his legs or feet.

At yesterday's appointment my doctor told me that I failed my gestational diabetes glucose test. The cut-off in his office is 140 and I scored a 146. Instead of making me take the 3 hour glucose test he is going straight to the dreaded DIET. I am supposed to eat every two hours, avoid simple starches and big meals. Since I've had so much trouble with my appetite in the last six months and cannot eat wheat anyway this is not good news. The thought of 12 weeks eating protein and vegetables is not good. Yuck.

In other not so fun news, I spoke with my doctor about my hips and he warned me that by the end of this pregnancy I will likely be horizonal most of the time. I am already having trouble getting around and as The Baby grows and puts more pressure on my hips my mobility has decreased. Luckily I have The Dadddy and The Chicken to help out around the house. Is is time for The Baby to come yet? I cannot wait!

The Baby's room is almost completed, and the registry has been updated. We have decided on the Soft & Fuzzy Pooh line found at Babies R Us for decoration. I bought the 5 piece wall hanging set and it looks adorable with the colors that we painted. Here is what the full line looks like:

We will be using cloth diapers, and I will be creating a separate registry at a diapering website. The world of cloth diapers has changed so much since I was a baby. We are also planning on using a co-sleeper for the first months of The Baby's life. A co-sleeper is similar to a bassinet, however it is attached to the side of the parents' bed for easy access to the baby. At some point The Baby will transition from the co-sleeper to the crib in his own room. This sleeping arrangement is supposed to help nuture the breast-feeding relationship while keeping The Baby from being crushed in bed by The Daddy of flailing arms. The co-sleeper is listed on the Babies R Us registry if you are curious to see one!

I received an abundance of baby clothes handed down from one of my good friends, and I will be going through all of them to determine if I need any more clothes for the first year. At this point it looks like I will need only socks for the first three months! I would hold off on any sock puchases until The Baby is bigger and I can gauge foot size when The Baby tries to stick his feet out of my stomach! The Chicken never wore newborn socks his baby feet were so big.

My wonderful mother-in-law and stepfather-in-law have purchased the glider and ottoman from my registry and I cannot wait to cuddle The Baby in it! The Chicken and The Daddy have already voted it the most comfortable seat in the house.

I will hopefully update with pictures of The Baby's room soon, and any pictures from the next ultrasound. At this point I am visiting my doctor every two weeks on Mondays, and then eventually every single week. I have every appointment until delivery scheduled already in my phone-eek! I can't believe he is going to be here so soon!