Saturday, October 2, 2010

My cuties

Posted by Picasa

X at 11 months...

Please note:  "A" will now be referred to as "X" b/c "X" is not a word and I won't get as confused when I write.

Another month older...now only one month from the big 1st birthday.  Crazy.

Walking is X's big accomplishment this month.  On Tuesday, September 7th (the first day of school), I was lamenting the fact that I had passed up an opportunity to go back to work.  X rewarded me with his three first unassisted steps.  Yipee for him!  He's steadily worked on that skill this month.  He spent a couple of weeks really focused on learning to balance himself.  He's up to 10-12 steps if he really wants something but usually its 3-5 and then he crawls.

X also said his first understandable words this month.  He said "Bye" first.  He loves to wave bye and say "bye".  He'll say it and say it and say it.  He also changes it a bit to "Hi", I think...but its really close to bye.  He said "Kitty" last week at G'ma & G'pa's house when he was watching the kittens out the front door.  This week he said, "Be-Be referring to a baby.  He'll also put the sounds, "Ma-Ma" together...but I haven't really decided if he really means me yet.  (But, maybe I'm just skeptical about it since it took 21.5 months for E to say my name and then she called me "Hom".)

X also learned how to shake his head "No" this month.  It really doesn't mean "no" most of the time...but I know that he'll figure that out quickly too.


Tooth #8 appeared on the 27th.  Its the second bottom left one.

X met Jut's extended family over Labor Day weekend.  They had his Grandma's internment service on the 4th.  So, we spent the night downstate in a hotel.  Let the kids swim in the pool...Both of them LOVE the water.  X was bound and determined to crawl into the hot tub but we managed to keep him out of that.  Met all the family on Saturday and then headed home that night.

We had X's first head trauma this month.  We were at church and I had X in Jut's office looking for something on the bookshelves.  Well, I wasn't paying enough attention and X grabbed a power cord dangling from Jut's desk and BOOM!  The PS2 was attached to the top of that cord.  Lot of crying occurred and a some blood appeared.  Hit him right between the eyes.  Probably will leave a scar.  Poor guy.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Wordless Wednesday

One of the reasons they love "Gwampa"

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Crazy sliding boy...


This is the slide that A was determined to go down on Friday night.  I went down with him several times before he decided to try it for himself.


He carefully inspected it...


And was determined to go down head first...


However, I though that feet first was the appropriate way for a 10-month old to try this slide...oh wait.  I didn't think that a 10-month old should go down by himself.  His dad thought it would be a great idea.  I thought 1 time would cure him of his love/obsession with this slide.


I was wrong.  He really enjoyed it...and did it several times...and wanted to do more.  Luckily, it was time to go home.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Look who is on the move...

A's first steps were yesterday and he's cruising right along!

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

The choices we make...

Last Sunday a job opportunity presented itself to me.  I was made aware of a part-time middle school science position at a Catholic school about 45 minutes from here.  With only a week before school starting, I knew I had to make a quick decision...and Jut was in Haiti without phone access.  So, I decided to send in a resume.  Monday morning I got a phone call requesting an interview for Tuesday afternoon.  Yikes.  Thankfully Jut arrived home Tuesday morning at 1:30.

The interview went great.  I also got to teach a science lesson to about 10 students as part of the interview.  It went so well.  I had so much fun.  I had forgotten how much I absolutely love to teach.  It was a wonderful experience.

I ended up being their #1 choice for a candidate.  But, I turned them down.  I just didn't know how I was going to adequately prep for 3 science classes and be a great teacher working only part-time and still have time to be a great mom and wife.  I guess I wasn't ready to give up my freedoms of being a stay-at-home mom either.

However, I've been plagued with 'what-ifs' since turning down the job.  Until this afternoon.  A took his first wobbly steps unassisted this afternoon.  He was standing up holding on to me.  He let me go and slowly moved a foot forward...and then plop on his bottom to the floor.  I helped him back up and he did it again...this time getting the second foot to move a bit before the 'plop' occured. 

Had I taken the teaching position, I would have missed it.  It was a great sign to me that I did make the correct choice for us...and I'm so glad that I did.  I missed many of those 'firsts' with E because I was working.  I'm so glad that I got to see those wobbly steps!  He got up to 6 consecutive steps today.  He's going to be running entirely too quickly!  I'm glad that I'm here and am not going to miss it!!!!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

A at 10 months...

My adorable little guy is changing so quickly!  He's becoming more mobile by the day.  Walking skills are progressing rapidly.  Yikes!  He'll be 1 in 2 months.  How did that happen so quickly?

Teeth #5 and #6 showed up this month.  The second one of the top right erupted on August 9th followed by the second one on the top left on August 25th.  The dentist wanted to do fluoride treatments already for A at E's visit because he had so many teeth, but I opted to wait awhile yet.


A figured out that he could stand up in his crib on the 9th and nap-time hasn't been the same since.  He gets that little body into a standing position and stands and cries there until he falls down.  Then I hear, "Thump, thump" as he hits his head on the end and then side railing of the crib.  Its quite pathetic.  I'm hoping one of these days that he'll learn to go to sleep peacefully and it will be less painful for him.

I got the pushcarts out for him while Jut was gone.  He loves them!  He has trouble standing up behind them because they move, but if I stand him up, ZOOM...He's off like a shot!  When he figures out how to do it on his own, I'm in big trouble.


Stairs were discovered this month.  We have to leave the gate locked at all time or A is going up the stairs.  He climbed them for the first time mid-month and he hasn't stopped since if he's allowed the opportunity.  He loves going up them but he hasn't even begun to figure out the down.

Once he gets to the top of the stairs, his favorite room is E's.  He loves to go into her room and see what treasures he can find.  E on the other hand, hates him going into her room.  There is too much drama about the entire thing for my liking.  Sometimes she shares well...but most of the time, life involves a lot of screaming.


We had 8 days of extreme potty successes while Jut was in Haiti but since he's been back, A hasn't shown much interest in the potty.  Oh well.  Eight days of very few poopy diapers was a nice change.  However, he has started signing to me when he has to poo when he's in the high chair.  He must not like pooing when he's sitting there because he really doesn't do it anywhere else.  Oh well.  It is not like I have any hopes of being diaper free for a long, long, long time.

He's still eating whatever I give him.  He likes his pancakes...if I can call them that.  I swapped the egg for flax seed & water, regular flour for rice flour, oil for applesauce and added vanilla and cinnamon to the recipe.  But, he gobbles them up.  The same goes for his noodles.  I swapped the regular flour for rice flour and the egg for flax seed & water...they look and taste pretty yucky to me, but A inhales them.  He also loves lentils and has been eating lots of lentil-based casseroles.  Meat is his favorite thing to eat, I think.  He ate as many chicken nuggets as E on Sunday and ate more roast beef than E and I combined last week.  I'm going to go broke feeding the crazy little guy.