A Thanksgiving Miracle, Part 2

Last year on Thanksgiving, Z slept through the night for the first time. It was a wonderful day that I'll never forget. This year, he took his FIRST STEPS on Thanksgiving Day. I mean, the boy can perform.

My family went to Pensacola for Thanksgiving, but since Nick has been working so much lately, we decided to forgo the family trip and stick around the house and catch up on stuff. We were fortunate to get invited to our friend's house for an amazing Thanksgiving lunch and spent the day with them and their families. Everybody was so sweet to Z, and he was loving all of the attention. Nick just stood him up for a second and he took the plunge. He probably took 4 or 5 steps then lunged forward into Nick's lap. Then he did it a few more times after that. By Sunday, he was standing up by himself and taking a few steps. Here comes the fun, but let's be honest, it's been a while coming...

The Great Outdoors

We are so blessed to live in such a beautiful neighborhood. We have thoroughly enjoyed discovering the lakes and play areas within the 'hood, and this past weekend we even discovered a little walking trail just outside of it. We try to get out there as much as possible, and if it were up to Nick, we'd be out there all the time! He gets really excited whenever he spots a turtle or sees little minnows swimming around in the lake. I'm sure Z will be a nature nerd just like him.

Nick wore Z for our little nature hike, just as a little reminder the good ol' days. Although it may not look like it, he actually really liked it and fell asleep on the way back (with the sleep hood on, of course).

Note to self: it's not too late to wear Z in places like malls and such, where navigating a stroller is a big pain...

The ducks and geese were out when we hung out near the lake the day before. We fed them some of Z's crackers, but we were a little stingy with them as they were organic and not the cheapest...

All of these pics were taken with an iphone. Including the following, which I think is rather impressive (my dad took it, so I'm not just tooting my own horn, here).

Friday in the Fall

This Friday, Z and I went outside for a bit to enjoy the weather. It was a little steamy for Fall, but we enjoyed being outside. Then, we drove to Homewood and went shopping with my mom. Nick and I ate dinner with my parents then went to Harry Potter that night with some of our friends, while they stayed with Z. All in all, it was a great day off and a fun evening.

I took a few pictures outside, but it was quite difficult to get him to look at the camera.

So Much to Say

I feel like I have been slacking on posting lately, and I really don't know why. I guess somehow it was easier to post and take lots of pictures when Z was little. He was doing new things less often. Nowadays, I feel like he is a different person every day! It's like there is so much to report and yet nothing to report at the same time! I went home last night and attempted to take some pictures for inspiration. Then I remembered why I had stopped. The minute he sees me with the camera, he is all over me trying to take it from me. Or maybe that's because he's not used to seeing it because it has been so long... Either way, it has become rather challenging.

I also thought I would run through a typical day so that I could remember our life with a single 1 year old in the house. Z wakes up usually around 6:30 or 7. We wake up, around the same time, get him, change him, and he goes straight to his highchair, where he gets his first breakfast. He usually eats cheerios while we are getting ready. He takes off with dad to school, where he quickly has his second breakfast. The teachers say he has a most voracious appetite, eating adult sized portions of things like pancakes or cheese toast. I usually watch him throughout the day on the webcams. He naps (along with the rest of the class) from about 11:30 to 1:30 or 2:00. He also happens to be one of the better nappers in the class. He eats a few more times, and I pick him up around 5 or 5:30, then we get home and begin the evening routine of eating, bathing, reading, then bed. Nick gets home between the last two activities, except on days when he misses him completely, which kinda throws Z's routine. Nick gets to love on a clean, tired child for about 5 or 10 minutes, then Z hits the bed at 7 sharp. Z is pretty serious about his bedtime routine. When I mention the word bath, he smiles widely and crawls into his bathroom (it (along with his room) is on the main floor where we usually eat and play). He also likes to read a minimum of 3 books. His favorites are Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Hungry Caterpillar, Very Busy Spider, and Time for Bed.

 Then, we become normal adults for the remainder of the evening, doing such civilized things as cooking, watching TV, talking about our days, etc. That is, of course, when I don't pass out at 7:02... Admittedly, that does happen occasionally, but only when I've had a particularly busy day or Z has been a particularly challenging child. It is a running joke that Nick has to fend for himself sometimes. Sorry, I'll try to get better about that.

Z gets into everything he possibly can. Some of his favorite things to do include:

Throwing things (such as food and sippy cup) on the floor
Taking things out of containers
Handing you items
Waving, giving high fives, clapping, sometimes while exclaiming something in Z language

Pulling up on things and cruising
Attempting to open cabinets, drawers, etc. and getting into the pantry whenever he sees the door open

We have gotten where he will follow me into my room or my closet on the rare occasions that I have time to change my clothes before the bedtime sequence is initiated. He finds something to play with in each and every room we enter.

Z's little personality, ever-changing, is becoming more playful, or as we like to call it goofy (the goofiness, he gets from his dad) lately. He plays several games with us. One where he likes to shake his head then bust out laughing. He usually plays that one with Nick. And, one where, he looks down for a few seconds (sometimes sticking his lower lip out), then bursts into laughter. I tried to capture that face last night.

No He's Not

Walking yet, so stop asking! I'm kidding, but no he really isn't walking. However, I have always tried to be one to focus on the positive. So, what he is doing is:

1. Sleeping like a champ, with almost no exception. I DON'T take that for granted!

2. Talking. He totally has his own language complete with changes in intonation. Some examples: "ahhh--khennn" and "glb glb glb." He uses his throat a lot. I think he thinks he's German.

3. Saying bona fide words: light (liiiii), bath and ball, (both bba, but with subtle differences), mama, banana (only like a couple of times, na na). He also sometimes says "da" when he hands you something, which I'm sure makes total sense in his head.

4. Eating. A lot, so they tell me at his school. He is still quite picky at home, but I am thankful for the things he does like, even though that changes daily.

We had our first dreadful call from the school last week. The stomach virus has been spreading in that school and his classroom like wildfire. It had been almost 2 weeks since the teacher was struck with it, so I thought we were probably in the clear, till we got the call... I was in a room checking a patient and one of my staff members came in. She had that look on her face so I knew it was serious. She said they'd been trying to call me (which I had only been away from my phone for about 2.5 minutes) and that I had a sick baby. They called my husband. So, I called him and he said what I dreaded: he's throwing up. WHAT? Immediately I started crying. Now, I realize that was a mild overreaction, but don't judge, I just couldn't bear the thought of my baby going through that. So, I pulled myself together and drove over to the school. The plan was to bring him to my office if he was somewhat okay, and I had Nick on hold at work just in case I would need him to be home with him. When I got there, they had him in the swing and said he just threw threw up and threw up, okay people enough with the histrionics can't you see I've been crying?! He was pale and his eyes were watery. He looked up at me with the most pitiful looking face and reached up, barely managing a smile. He patiently waited for me to unbuckle him and get him out of that thing, and just clung tightly to me. The whole way out, he was pointing up and feebly uttering "ligh, ligh." Here was my little fallen soldier trying to be strong for his clearly emotionally fragile mother.
I ran home and got his stuff, and came to the office. He was exhausted and slept for like 2 hours. When he woke up, he was hungry, thirsty and his temperature had gone down. I kept him from school the next day (because it was Thursday), and by Friday he was back to normal. I am so thankful I never had to see him get sick.

Well, we had a good relaxing weekend, and back to school on Monday. Now, I love my baby, but I do not enjoy having him at the office. It is very stressful for the both of us, so I was more than excited that things would return to normal on Monday. But, I guess I spoke too soon because in the middle of my lunchtime shopping break, I got another dreadful call from the school. Z's got a fever, 101.5 and he didn't eat his lunch. Dang it, is it possible he's still sick? Well, what did you guys serve for lunch? Hamburgers, tater tots, and oranges. Hello! My child doesn't eat that. He's not sick, he wants a cheese sandwich!

So, I go pick him up, and yes, in fact he felt like a little furnace and his cheeks were fire engine red. Other than that, he was acting perfectly well. Okay, Z is this just your little infant genius plan to get out of school? Get close to the sickest looking kid in the class, wait 24 hours, and just like that, Mom appears at the door. It's a fool proof plan, and I'm the fool! So, a lot of TLC from us and my parents, a good night's sleep later, and he seems to be much better. He's staying at my house with my mom today, and we're hoping he'll stay symptom free so he can return to school tomorrow, that is, of course until he figures out another way to get out of it....

Halloween

Nick's college friends planned a cabin getaway this year for Halloween weekend, and Z's presence was requested. Even if it hadn't been, I probably would have taken him because I'm not sure I'm ready for a night, much less a whole weekend away from him, but I'm working on it. Anyway, three of the girls in the group (of 20) are pregnant, but otherwise we are the only ones with a child. About 10 days before Halloween, one of them requested that we dress up on Saturday night. It was going to be his birthday, and that was what he wanted. We racked our brain for the next week, and just couldn't come up with anything that would include Z and be funny. You see, we were going for pop culture/DIY type costumes because we didn't want to spend a whole lot of money. Besides, this will probably be the last time he will have no say so in what he is wearing. We thought of the gay couple on Modern family, but then Z would have to be a girl. We thought of Lucy, Ricky Ricardo, and Little Ricky, but there was going to be too much prep work, and we were closing in on 3 days till the weekend. Then, it dawned on me... Antoine Dodson. Enjoy...

I fully admit, this is probably inappropriate for a child of 13 months, but one day, we will explain it to him, and I think he will think we were pretty darn cool! For the record, he has some skeleton PJ's that he changed into that night, when he turned back into the innocent child he is.

We had an amazing time catching up, and I was so excited to see the preggo bellies (only one was really showing). Z was an angel the whole time, and we were told several times that we make parenthood look doable. I basked in the compliments and tried not to tell too many horror stories of the early days. It truly does amaze me sometimes that he is the same child. He didn't fuss at all and slept amazingly well! Even the car rides, which were long and not very far apart were great, except for the last half an hour or so. Even then, he was good once I went to the back and entertained/fed him some puffs.

We loved getting away but were all glad to get back home. Z, if you read this one day, at 13 months, you had the coolest Halloween costume ever (if I may say so, myself)!