six years

Happy Anniversary to my David. Thanks for being amazing. You got me all tied up in knots and I'm lovin' you lots and lots*. We're spending the day at Disneyland together on Monday. Just the two of us. I can't wait to hold hands and flirt with him. He's the best flirter I ever did flirt with. And he's pretty sweet and just right for me. 

*Ten points if you can name that movie.

30 years of awesomeness

It's my guy's 30th birthday today. I sure love him. He's such a bright, cheerful spot in our family and I'm so grateful that even after a long day at work he comes home and makes our home a happy place. Hardworking and always kind, he's a wonderful husband and father. His "crinkly eyes" were something I loved and often complimented about his face when we were dating. They show his fun sense of humor and joy for life. I love you, David, for your kindness, your patience, your strength and your love. Happy Birthday.

fritz's first smile

The other day I was doing my makeup and the baby was in his cradle in my room dozing in and out of consciousness. William wandered in and walked up to the baby and I observed him in the mirror as he took one of his tiny stuffed doggies and gave it to Fritz and said, "Hi baby" over and over again in a sing-song voice. He brought him toy after toy and wiggled them in front of him and as he put his face close to Fritz's, I watched my baby smile his first smile at his brother. My heart! I loved see this act of love between brothers. So far William has shown nothing but love for his baby. I hope this continues forever!

growing up: 18 months

I took William to the bank the other day and the 20-something teller asked how old he was. I replied that he was 18-months-old. He looked at me kind of confused and said, "So, a year and a half?" I nodded and he asked, "When do people stop referring to their kids in months?" I tried to explain that parents normally do that because they change so much month to month. Especially this month, it seems.

This month has been a big milestone, especially at church. William is now old enough to go to our church's Nursery program. I've been looking forward to going to our adult meetings but he's not terribly fond of us leaving him. Any tips? I'm fine with just going cold turkey but the problem with that is the leaders taking care of the children bring him to me as soon as he starts crying. I certainly can't demand that they just deal with my screaming kid. Such a dilemma.

At this point:
- he's added these words to his arsinal - "choo choo", "eyes" (with pointing), "nose" (with pointing), "peas" (please), "yeah" (when I ask him if he's OK), "shoes", "hot" (even ice is "hot").
- I'm considering toilet training him. I know it seems early to some people but he's been going on the big toilet for several months as long as I get him there in time. He also knows how to hold it pretty well and hates wearing a diaper and getting his diaper changed. I've read about potty training in three days but I don't know anyone whose child has been able to successfully do it. I'm also worried about the being naked thing for three whole months. Sounds crazy to me.
- he carries around his little backpack all the time now. It is basically the cutest thing ever. If he has to take it off (to get in the car, for example) he gets really frustrated until he can put it back on again. People die over how cute he looks whenever we go out. Inside his "pack pack"? Water bottle, a small box of raisins, two or three trucks and a bag of veggie straws. What else do you neeed?

He is getting so big and so mature that it's heartbreaking to think about him growing up. I need another baby.

growing up: 15 months

At this point he:
- is officially on the one-nap schedule. The heavens have opened, you guys.
- loves to stack everything. Jars, bottles, cups, bowls. It's very amusing.
- has really bonded with his stuffed doggy. He likes to hold him close and snuggle at bedtime (this is new).
- has relinquished his title as "victim" and become the "perpetrator". It's very embarrassing. I know it's just the age but it's hard because the whole sharing thing is such an abstract thought for his man baby mind.
- enjoys sneaking in the cupboards while I make dinner and pulling out his snacks, which results in my saying, "not before dinner", which results in crying and screaming. It's lovely. I should go move those.
- loves these books best: I Love Trucks, The Big Red Barn, The Real Mother Goose (I could probably read him all 128 pages in one sitting if I didn't get so tired).
- is a CLIMBER! I can't say how many times he's fallen off the couch, the leather chair, our friend's bed (which is thankfully lower than ours) and . . . the newest pursuit . . . the sideboard! He likes to climb up on the chair, put his trains on top and climb up so he can push them around. I think he learned this from one of his friends. Ahem. :) One time he climbed up when I was in the other room and fell off. He hasn't tried that stunt again.
- is really developing his personality. David and I were just commenting about how it seems that we've seen such a growth in this area this month. Will is showing more of his attitude about life, expressing humor in the funniest ways and really pushing the limits of what his body can do. It's very fun to watch and we love him every minute!

firsts: feeding himself

William is learning how to feed himself. It is a fight. He really wants his independence and I really want him to get just one bite of food in his mouth. I'm not even stressed about the food that ends up on the floor. I just want some of it to end up in his belly too! Shredded Spoonfuls, however, seemed to be a hit.

so it begins: the staredown.

success!

not sure about this pose.



ahhh . . . forget it. this is way easier.



growing up: 13 months

I was going to stop doing these monthly blog updates of William when he turned a year old but I miss them. It's been fun to go back and read what he was doing each month. So, here's 13 months.

At this point he:

- wakes up in the morning and yells, "Dada!" over and over. He loves his old man.
- gained three pounds in one month. Yahoo! He's become rather chubby and it's ultra cute.
- doesn't just walk. He runs. Everywhere.
- found out that his kisses makes his mom really happy. When I'm at his level (on the floor or sitting on the couch) he'll stop his play to run over to me just to give me a slobbery kiss and then he's on his way until he comes back for another smooch. It makes my heart swell three times.
- has learned the act of toddler screaming. Sigh. Any tips you might have on ceasing and desisting this act, please share.
- refuses to sign the things I taught him - milk, more, please, all done, thank you - even though I know he can do them. See above.
- loves Little Bear, Thomas and Friends, William's Wish Wellingtons and Kipper (so maybe we love shows from the UK).
- looks like a big boy with his new haircut but I'm pleased to see that the curls are growing back.
- enjoys following me around the house all day and has even learned to help out a bit (like putting toys away).
- finally loves bananas. I was afraid he wasn't a normal boy but it's fine now. We dodged a bullet there, folks.

I love my boy more and more every day. With everything going on this last month I especially found myself soaking in the love I have for him. The moments when he cries at my feet to be held while I do the dishes is really frustrating sometimes, but this month I've thought about how I should hold him as if it's the last time I'll ever be able to. I know it sounds cheesy and even a little unrealistic but I guess losing this baby has made me grasp onto the one I have.

firsts: haircut

While we were in Arizona I decided it was time for William to get a haircut. I was hesitant to cut off those sweet baby curls because he would lose the "babyish" look that I love so much. At the same time I was getting really sick of trying to tame the rat's nest that was the back of his hair. So, off to Great-Uncle Don's barber shop we went. Don (my father-in-law's brother) has given David almost every haircut of his life so I thought it was only fitting that he cut our son's hair too. 

waiting his turn.

It seems like every mother has a horror story of getting their child's hair cut. Don told me that one of David's first haircuts was pretty traumatic when someone accidentally nipped his ear with the scissors, so when they brought him to Don to get his haircut David was very upset. I went into the barber shop prepared for a major melt-down. And this is what I got:

He sat perfectly still the whole time. In fact, I think he even liked the buzzer.

don't you love my antlers? totally unplanned.

Don gave William an orange sucker and he was in heaven. I was a really nice mommy and let him eat the whole thing. Taking it away would have brought the much anticipated super melt-down. The result was a very sticky shirt, sticky hands, sticky face, sticky hand prints on my jeans and orange drool for the rest of the day. A small price to pay for a really happy boy.

He does look older and more like a little boy than a baby but I'm okay with that because little boys are wonderfully sweet - especially mine.

growing up: 12 months

At 9:45 a.m. today my sweet baby William will be one year old. How did I ever live without him? I remember dreaming about the day that I would be a mother. I dreamt of bedtime stories, snuggled up on the couch and kissing just-washed hair. I dreamt of being "the only one" my babies wanted to kiss their owies. I dreamt of loving those babies forever and ever. But, not until 9:45 a.m. on November 2, 2009 did I feel all those dreams rush from imagination to reality. It was this overwhelming surge over my body - like I was battery-powered but someone had finally flipped the "on" switch. My life was incomplete until the moment when I kissed two perfect hands, kissed two perfect feet and kissed two perfect cheeks. I love him so!

first sight.

At this point he:

- is walking. A lot. And is quite good at it for being a beginner.

- says a few new words: "yum", "moo", "bbbbbb" (when he pushes his cars) and is learning some sign language.

- is fully weaned. I miss breastfeeding a lot and I think he does too sometimes but he needed to be weaned before our trip to NYC and this is how it worked out.

- has learned to quietly say "ahhhhhhh" while driving on the freeway because it makes a funny noise with all the shaking (our car might need a tune-up). It's pretty hilarious and we love it.

little lion - halloween 2010



firsts: walking

People, he is walking! This little boy has been taunting us with months of hand-held walking and cruising around the furniture so, if you can't tell by my voice (and heavy breathing) in this video, I was a little excited to see my baby taking off in his orange Halloween socks yesterday!

One of the best parts of watching him do this was that he kept squealing "dada?" as he walked along as if to say, "Where's Dad? He'd be so proud of me right now!" He is so cute I could die.

Many people have warned me that I should hold off encouraging walking as long as possible because "they get into everything". In our case William was crawling everywhere, pulling himself up and then climbing on top of furniture so he was getting into just as much crawling as he will be walking. The biggest advantage to walking instead of crawling is that his clothes will hopefully not get as filthy! I can't believe that he's big enough to be walking around (but doesn't he look so tiny with his little legs?)

P.S. Sorry the video is so crummy. I need a good video camera for moments like these but, let's be honest, grabbing my iPhone is so much easier!

I used everything you gave me

A few days before David and I got married, my mom was feeling nostalgic and sentimental about her youngest daughter leaving the nest. She sent out a letter to the family that said "dear Elizabeth will also leave us for the beginning of her new life with David. I want to weep. Sometimes I do . . . like right now as I write, but I also feel a great peace . . . this mother of eleven is losing all her chicks. It's a bit hard, but we knew by the timeline that this day was coming, so there! I have to face it."

1992 glam.

Just like my mom felt at the beginning of her child-rearing years, it's hard for me to imagine David and I being "empty-nesters". Thinking about it actually makes me a little sick to my stomach but I have to remember that there is good in every season of our lives. I really love this season and I hope that by the time I'm ready for the next one, I'll be able to greet it with a feeling that I savored every moment that I had with my babies.

My mom also included this column by Erma Bombeck which appeared in 1969, near the beginning of my mother's 42 years of child-rearing (1964 - 2006). You might cry. I did.

A young mother writes: "I know you've written before about the empty-nest syndrome -- that lonely period after the children are grown and gone. Right now, I'm up to my eyeballs in laundry and muddy boots. The baby is teething; the boys are fighting. My husband just called and said to eat without him, and I fell off my diet. Lay it on me again, will you?"

OK.

One of these days, you'll shout, "Why don't you kids grow up and act your age!" And they will.

Or, "You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do ... and don't slam the door!" And they won't.

You'll straighten up the boys' bedroom neat and tidy -- bumper stickers discarded, bedspread tucked and smooth, toys displayed on the shelves. Hangers in the closet. Animals caged. And you'll say out loud, "Now I want it to stay this way." And it will.

You'll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn't been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in the icing, and you'll say, "Now, there's a meal for company." And you'll eat it alone.

You'll say: "I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around. No demolition crews. Silence! Do you hear?" And you'll have it.

No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghetti. No more bedspreads to protect the sofa from damp bottoms. No more gates to stumble over at the top of the basement steps. No more clothespins under the sofa. No more playpens to arrange a room around.

No more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent. No more sand on the sheets or Popeye movies in the bathrooms. No more iron-on patches, wet, knotted shoestrings, tight boots, or rubber bands for ponytails.

Imagine. A lipstick with a point on it. No baby sitter for New Year's Eve. Washing only once a week. Seeing a steak that isn't ground. Having your teeth cleaned without a baby on your lap.

No PTA meetings. No car pools. No blaring radios. No one washing her hair at 11 o'clock at night. Having your own roll of Scotch tape.

Think about it. No more Christmas presents out of toothpicks and library paste. No more sloppy oatmeal kisses. No more tooth fairy. No giggles in the dark. No knees to heal, no responsibility.

Only a voice crying, "Why don't you grow up?" and the silence echoing, "I did."

growing up: 11 months

William is my little buddy. We play all day and I have so much fun with him. I've lately been trying to remember to get down on the floor and play with him rather than just watch him or do the dishes. I still have to get those things done but I also spend plenty of time wrestling and tickling, pushing trucks across the carpet, spinning tops and playing the harmonica for him.

peekaboo is a favorite around here.

At this point he:

- has really discovered his voice. He loves to babble sounds with lots of expression like he's convinced that what he is saying makes sense to us.

- has discovered his singing voice. Whenever I sing around the house, he "sings" high notes softly and holds them out. I really hope he keeps this up!

- has learned to dance to the music of the most annoying toy in the world. I would turn on the mute button but it's so cute when he bops his head and bounces.

- has taken a couple of steps on his own but still not showing much interest in doing it full time.

- will drink formula but only out of a sippy cup with a straw. (I'm still nursing but have decreased to about 3 times a day so that he'll be weaned before our New York trip).

- is sleeping really well. It's so nice that I can put him to bed at 7 every night and then at 7 the next morning, I pick up a very happy, well rested boy out of his crib.

- will finally let me put shoes on his feet. I have the most adorable shoes that he never got to wear because he would curl his toes as soon as I tried to put them on. I wasn't worried about him wearing shoes before but now that he likes to spend a lot of time on his feet when we go out (cruising or walking with help) I felt like he should start wearing shoes.

- hates hats. 

- has become a real daddy's boy. All day long he says, "dada da da da?" like he's asking me where David is. And then when David walks in the door at the end of the day, he screams and laughs and crawls as fast as he can to the front door.

photos by Lori Hull photography.

growing up: 10 months

Our little "Fox" is 10 months old today! We love him so much though this has been a rough month. He's been growing some particulary painful teeth, has dealt with a bout of constipation and then the reverse, a week of high temperatures, an Emergency Room visit, a new sleep pattern and lots of tumbles off furniture from his adventures in climbing. Through it all, we love him more and more each day!

Stats:
19 pounds (40%)
30 inches (97%)

At this point he:
- Says "duh" (duck), "dah" (dog), "dada", "mama" (only when he cries in desperation) and "no no no" (when I take something away from him that he can't have).
- Makes a new funny face where he squints his eyes and purses his lips (we think he's trying a new smile).
- Is learning to sleep independently (sigh - *see "says mama"*).
- Still happy to crawl, walk with the help of one hand and cruise along the furniture to get where he wants.
- Loves to climb on our blue leather chair as a sort of Mt. Everest - he's always very proud of reaching the top and stands there, squawking, until I notice and praise him.

People comment on:
How much he looks like his dad.
The curls that form around his ears.
His big eyes that are oozing with sweetness.

growing up: 9 months

My sweet baby is 9 months old. This month seems to be a turning point of sorts with him. I feel like he has matured so much in his personality and is such a funny person. He loves to throw his head back and "laugh" (something I do, I'm embarrassed to admit). He has learned lots of new noises and loves to play with cars, trucks and anything metal. Nothing girly about this boy! He acts pretty tough when he falls and has a very strong will to explore the world, but at the end of the day he is incredibly sweet and cuddly and will spend most of the day kissing my cheeks, wrapping his soft, baby arms around my neck, flashing a perfect grin at me from the backseat of the car and filling my life with more love than I ever imagined I could feel.

with pops at m & a's wedding.

At this point he is:
Walking while holding only one hand for support.
Sporting a fully-grown top tooth + half of another top tooth + two somewhat crooked bottom teeth.
Climbing on everything from the ottoman to the end tables to the piano bench. Lots of falls.

People comment about:
His cheesy grin.
Those BIG brown eyes that would even melt the heart of Ebeneezer Scrooge.
How quickly he'll smile at you from across the room, without much prompting.
The sweet curls he gets around his ears.

firsts: injury

We had our first injury last week. It was incredibly sad and I felt like a horrible mother . . . yet somehow had the presence of mind to grab my camera. What can I say? Photography is such a great way to capture important milestones.

I neglected the housework all week since we were playing with my sister and her family at the beach almost every day so I had a lot of chores to do. William was roaming around the living space, picking up little pieces of whatever was on the floor from my lack of vaccuming and practicing his new trick of climbing on top of whatever he can reach (i.e. an ice chest, his toy box, a dining chair, the ottoman, a soda box, etc.)

Eventually he made his way over to the piano and since I hadn't been paying him much attention, I walked over and pulled out the Big Yellow Songbook and started to play as he contently gnawed on the corner of the piano bench. Halfway through "Pitter Pat" he started to wail and I assumed he hit his gums too hard on the piano bench corner. After a few seconds of comforting, I plopped him on my lap and we continued to play the song . . . but then the blood started dripping onto my hands and that's when I flipped. I rushed him to the kitchen sink and frantically called my mom while trying to get a clear view of what was making my little baby gush. I saw that his two perfect bottom teeth were now "snaggle teeth".

My mom instructed me to get a wet towel and gently try to press the teeth back to their correct position. Anyway, long story short (and about a million kisses later followed by some heavy duty snuggling and nursing) he is perfectly fine. I know you've got to just let your babies learn the hard way sometimes and I'm actually really good about letting him fall and pick himself back up, but boy does it hurt when they hurt!

eight months

My baby is eight months old. He is slowly becoming less and less of a baby and it is so sad. My mother-in-law said to me yesterday, "You'll be amazed at how you love your 30-year-old son as much as you love him when he's a baby." I suppose that's true but it's too hard to think about when he's my little peanut who snuggles up to me in the middle of the night.

At this point he is:

Sporting two very sharp bottom teeth (and we're suspicious that the two top ones are growing).

Saying "dada" (and said "mama" once or twice) but not "at" anyone in particular.

Becoming interested in books (finally).

Practicing using his pinchers to get Cheerios off his highchair.

People comment on:

How fast he crawls and how easily he can stand up and walk with assistance.

Red hair (still).

How tall he is (97%).

His combined "mixed" resemblances of Mom and Dad (usually who ever is holding him).

seven months

He has two teeth.

He is an expert pincher (of Cherrios and Mommy's skin)

He has gone above and beyond the 20 pound mark.

He is crawling from room to room - no big deal.

He pulls himself to standing position.

He tries to pull himself onto the ottoman (almost succeeds), looks for me and then bursts out laughing.

He cruises from the ottoman, to the sofa, to the chair and then around again.

I predict walking within a couple of months, but we'll see.

I am especially loving watching his personality grow right now. He is still so happy and I hope he's always this way. He rarely cries, even when he falls down (which is a lot while he's learning to stand on his own). He just picks himself back up and tries again. I seriously hope that attitude translates into adulthood. I love this boy to the moon and back.

And his hair is still red. Yessssssssss.

firsts: the dip

One of the best things about living in San Diego is that on any given day I can wake up and say, "I feel like going to the beach today." More often than not, the weather permits and it's almost always a beautiful day. Although I'm not much of a body surfer or even remotely a beach babe, I still really enjoy the sand and {small doses of} the sun.

This morning two of my friends were headed to La Jolla Shores beach (my second favorite here) and asked if I wanted to tag along. It was so nice to take a break from moving, which is my least favorite activity right now. As much as I'm so excited to show you all our new casa and all my projects come alive - I just want someone to do it all for me.

Anyway, enough complaining. This was the first time William had his little baby toes in the deep blue ocean. It was surprisingly warm and his reaction was so cute!

First: CURIOSITY.

Then: CONCERN.

Then: FUN!

Then: INDIFFERENCE (I love this face).

P.S. I apologize if you are now blind from looking at the whiteness of my legs. I think it's time for another spray tan.

six months

My sweet babe is six months old today. He is so very sweet and I just want to eat him all the live long day.

At this point:
He is sitting up like a champ.
He has an insane grasp on whatever he can get his paws on.
He can almost crawl (there's an army crawl/scoot going on around here).
Lots of drooling, gnawing, biting, and grinding of gums but nothing poking through yet.
His favorite soothing songs are "Silent Night" and "All the Pretty Little Horses". His favorite funny song is "Little White Duck".
He reaches for Mama (and my heart swells three sizes every time).

People comment on:
His red hair.
His big, brown eyes.
His chubby cheeks.
How strong he is (grip and standing).
His perpetual smile and unfailing cheerful disposition. He smiles at everyone (especially blondes . . . I wonder why? *wink wink*)
Oh, how I love him!

a new taste

William had his first taste of solids yesterday. I was going to wait until he was 6 months to introduce anything but breastmilk but for the past week he's been diving for everything I've been putting in my mouth and practically drooling over my dinner. Plus he's been teething and I just feel that he's ready. Trust me. I'm not overly thrilled about the now "stinky" diapers he'll be having and I'll certainly miss the convenience of have ready made meals prepared by my girls. My baby's growing up! It's so sad.

The first bites went down pretty well. He seems to like the taste (most of it was breastmilk anyway) but he couldn't quite figure out how to get the food of the spoon so he just sucked. And sucking the spoon mostly resulted in lots of spillage. After about five bites (which was always my mother's requirement when I was little - "just five more bites and then you're done!") he decided he'd much rather use his sucking energy on his thumb and bib. So I figured he was done.

It's all good. I guess I better start making some baby food for the freezer! Does anyone have some good recipes? What kinds of food should I start with?