Before we forget...

A few things we want to remember that William used to say (and sometimes still does) before he stars to really talk like a college grad...

simote = remote
cemixer = cement mixer
tomato chips = potato chips
the diamond room = the dining room
amblieeance = ambulance
ho-n-tel = hotel

AK 2-Year Check-up

Had AK's 2 year check-up today (she's almost 25 months as of the appointment date).

We're still struggling with her weight gain - she's only gained a few ounces since her last appointment in November.  She keeps dropping down to other growth curves, weight-wise.  She is also has wacky hemoglobin, so we're back on the iron drops.

She is about 30th percentile weight and 30th height though, so perhaps she is just falling into her normal, lower weight.  We're keeping an eye on it.

On the personality and development side of things the doc was surprised that AK knew so many colors and words and that she was speaking in sentences and making jokes.  (AK pointed at a cow and said it was a farmer and then pointed at the farmer and said it was a cow and then laughed hysterically.)

The doc also called AK "precocious" said that she is acting more like a 3 year old than a 2 year old and has the personality traits (stubbornness, etc.) that go along with age 3.  Um, yay?

Anyway, she's doing alright and continuing to be a smart, generally happy and always sassy little girl.

He Who Notices Everything

William, to me, while eating dinner at Chipotle:  "Grown ups say 'right now' and kids say 'please'."

Me:  "What?  What do you mean?"  [Already sensing where this is going]

William: "When grown ups want kids to do something they say 'right now.'  When kids want something we say 'please'."

Denise:  "You think I should say please more?  I probably should.  I'll work on that, buddy. I promise."


Parenting 101, taught by Professor William.

Time for anatomy lessons

Anna Kate, as I'm changing her diaper:  "where's my penis?"

Me:  "You don't have a penis. Only boys have penises."

Anna Kate:  "Let's find my penis.  A green one.  And put it on."



I'll file this one under 'Conversations I'd Never Have if I Had Two Girls'.

Can you guess what this is a picture of?

It is a picture of...an ear that WORKS!  :)

AK had her 3 month hearing test on Tuesday and aced it!

The audiologist said that the guidelines for hearing loss risk factor monitoring have changed and with normal hearing and an existing risk factor (which is where AK falls), they recommend a newborn hearing test (which she had and passed) and one follow up within 24 months.

We agreed though, that we will do another follow up somewhere around her first birthday.

 

William is "cracking" jokes - about easter eggs!

After his "big girl" cousins left this morning, William was super sad.  He cried at home and then he cried again when I dropped him off at school saying "the big girls left! the big girls left!".  :(

However, it appears his day turned around.  Here is the note from his daycare "report card" for the day:

"William was excited to discover the classroom Easter eggs!  He was very happy to see squirrels, dogs and trucks on our walk and he kept asking passers-by if they were pirates.  He ended up finding one that "aaarrrggghh-ed" him.  :)  William also held up an eggshell to his ear after nap and said it was an "egg cell"!  Ha!  Such a great joke!  He said he wanted to take the joke home with him.  :) "

In other news, Bridget has confirmed that Anna Kate is a baby genius.  She is already rolling from her tummy to her back!

Lentil's 20 Week Ultrasound Pictures

I had my 20 week ultrasound today which marks the halfway point for the pregnancy. (Actually, for those of you doing the math, it is more than halfway through, seeing that I'll deliver at 39 weeks.)

Anyway...all is well with the Lentil.  He/She has all of the accounted for and appropriate body parts.  And as for the big question, NO, we still don't know if Lentil is a girl or a boy.

Below are a few of his/her first pictures.

First, Lentil in profile:

Now, for a close-up:

Look!  It's a foot!  (Lentil has two of them.)

And, finally, the spine.  The ultrasound technician seemed especially impressed by our Little Lentil's spine, so I thought I'd share the pretty picture with you all.

 

William says, "Check out my new shirt!"

Yup - that's right!

In case you can't read it, William's shirt says "Big Brother".

Baby Abatzis #2 (currently affectionately nicknamed "the lentil") is due 2/5/2013...but will be arriving at the end of January via a yet-to-be-scheduled c-section.

18 Months Old

We had William's 18 month "well* visit" today.

(*I use the term 'well' loosely b/c he is still recovering from his Hand Foot Mouth infection.  Sorry again, Bridget and Mom!  I owe you big time!  B - Let me know when you/Wells want a night away and Michael and I will come to your house and watch all the kids...even if they're sick!)

He is:

• 25 lbs 5 oz (45th percentile - which blows my mind b/c he seems HUGE to me)
• 32.25" tall (50th percentile)
• 18.75" head circumference (50th percentile)

So, all in all, he is an average sized baby. :)

He's started talking a bit.  He now says:  More, up, uh-oh, ball, beaux, cat, car, truck, bubble...and I'm sure I'm missing a couple others.

He's also into anything with wheels, climbing, running, and kicking.  He is 100% pure boy.  And still showing signs of tantrums and frustration...which I'm guessing will only increase in frequency and magnitude for the next 12-24 months.  (Yay!)

Here are a couple pictures from William's stay at Bridget's house last week while we were in Mexico for Adam's wedding (Congrats, Adam and Melissa!).  He was definitely feeling yucky but apparently still ate cookies and goldfish crackers.

Was okay and playing with Oliver the day after we left...but illness was already brewing, because then...

 He wouldn't eat. Or sleep.  Or probably do anything peacefully.  But apparently he still ate cookies.  (You can see a few of the rash blisters beneath his mouth; and this was only a bit of it, Bridget said it was much worse than even this picture lets on..)

 Asleep on my mom's lap while watching "The Sound of Music".  And trying to get out one more goldfish to snack on in his sleep.

Staying with a houseful of girl cousins means you drink out of whatever cup you can get your hands on...in this case, a pink Hello Kitty cup.  (At least we didn't see any pictures of him in tutus or with purses this time!)

Whew. On the road to recovery. Finally.

Well, his fever finally disappeared yesterday and hasn't returned since (thank goodness!)

Today, we had his 15 month "well" check-up.  (I use the term "well" loosely, as he is still not 100% - still has a super runny nose and a cough, but "well enough for daycare, where he finally returned today after a 9 day absence.)

Anyway, this was a LONG stint of a cold/virus and I'm so glad it is on the way out.  I lost my patience with it about three days ago.

His check-up went well today:

• He is now 23 lbs 8 oz (in between the 25th and 50th percentiles)
• 31.5" (in between the 50th and 75th percentiles)
• head circumference is 18.5" (50th percentile)

He's still not really talking much, and the ped isn't worried yet, but wants us to keep naming things as he points (which he does ALL the time.)

Other news and tricks:

• He has learned to walk a few steps backward and he thinks it is funny (although it isn't quite "moonwalking", it's close)
• He is getting more and more picky about food and clearly knows that shaking his head means "no".  He uses this frequently when we try to give him food.  (What in the world happened to my good eater???)
• He knows the sign for "all done", but only uses it when I try to give him medicine and he doesn't want it...he hasn't really used it to signal "all done" with his meal.  :)
• He is stacking some blocks now...but still mostly destroying the stacks that you make instead.
• He still loves books - especially the truck book that Grandpa Mickey got him for Christmas. Thanks, Dad!
• A few weeks ago he gave me my first slobbery toddler kiss.  It was pretty cute. I look forward to more - less slobbery ones - in the future.

Sick

The poor boy is sick.

He was sent home from daycare on Monday morning, showing "symptoms of pink eye".

He felt fine and acted fine...and his eyes weren't even that goopy.  So, we played a little here and there and had some fun.  Then his eyes looked a little better on Tuesday, so I thought for sure he'd go to daycare on Wednesday.  And then his eyes got worse.  And then, this morning, he woke up with a 102.4 fever.

He slept on my lap for an hour while I caught up on a few DVR-ed shows.  That's the only good thing about a sick boy...he is WAY super cuddly.

He definitely feels badly though.  You can see it. 

He's all loaded up with acetamenophin and ibuprofen (yes, both) and I'm hoping he feels better tomorrow.

It's a good thing that I had a light work week, so I was able to give him lots of love and attention.

William - 1 year old

The boy is one year old.

Whew.  What a year.

Here is a snapshot of who William is at 1 year old:

• William is 23 lbs and 6 oz.  He is 31 inches "tall".
• He is still not walking, but does a good job standing - unsupported - for 30 seconds or so at a time.  He has taken a stumbling step or so, but that's not walking...that's just momentum driving him forward.
• Having been a superior eater, William is now showing signs of independence and, well, will.  He is more picky (although still a good eater).
• He still loves fruit most of all - especially blueberries.
• He has moved past formula and is on to whole milk, which was no big deal for him.  He is still taking bottles, and I need to start getting him off those and on to exclusively using sippy cups relatively soon.
• He's turned into a great nighttime sleeper - usually sleeping a full 12 hours.  (He naps okay - some days are great and others aren't...but if that is the tradeoff I make for a good nightime guy, I'll totally take that trade.)
• He is very much a mama's boy right now, but he sure is happy to see daddy, too.
• No talking yet...we thought for a while he was saying "book", but now we're not so sure...as apparently EVERYTHING is "oo. ook."  He doesn't really say "mama" or "dada" either.  He makes those sounds...just not directed at us.
• He still loves books and being read to.  He turns pages and even "reads to himself" by talking to himself as he plays with books.
• He has started interacting (nicely!) with Beaux.  He "throws" tennis balls to him and hands him toys as well.  Beaux remains unconvinced that this little guy is a good thing (an issue that will probably be an even bigger concern once W starts walking).

And, while we may not necessarily be happier than we were in our child-free life, we are certainly more fulfilled.  :)

Daylight Savings

Daylight savings time SUCKS for moms and babies.

That is all.

His First Halloween and First Birthday

We celebrated BIG recently:

• 3 years of marriage
• 1 year of baby William
• William's first Halloween

We combined the celebration of our anniversary and W's birthday in a brunch this past Sunday.  I haven't uploaded my pictures yet, but will do so very soon.

The next day was Halloween and William got to be the "turnip" that he's always been in our minds!  (It has been his nickname since he was 17 weeks in utero!)  Thanks, Linda, for creating such an amazing costume!

Here is a quick picture of W in the turnip costume with daddy.  Birthday photos to follow later.

Happy, happy camper

William has been having some super happy days lately.  He is really fun to be around recently.  This weekend we've taken a stroller ride each morning - the photo above is when we went to Ellwood Thompson's grocery to pick up some pear juice for a drink I was making for a friend's baby shower.  And this morning we went to the art museum sculpture garden so he could crawl around outside. 

In other baby-related news...

• He has rediscovered clapping after some odd weeks of completely doing none at all, he does it all the time now.
• He has also discovered stairs and LOVES to climb stairs.  He is super fast at them now which means it is time to put the baby gates UP.
• He has gotten his 8th tooth.  All front teeth on the top and bottom are now accounted for.

Sleeping In

That boy has started sleeping in!  And by sleeping in, I mean he is sleeping over 13 hours straight now....from around 7pm to 8:30am or so. 

Just a Tuesday morning update

Just a couple quick things this morning...

• I *finally* started brushing William's teeth (7 of them now!) last night.  He thinks it is HYSTERICAL to have his teeth brushed.
• Aunt Bridget and the cousins sent some birthday books over so that William could "prepare" for his upcoming first birthday.  He really likes them.  Thanks!
• Poor W got his foot stuck in the crib slats last night - I had to go in and rescure him around midnight.  Must not have upset him too much though, because he pretty much went right back to sleep.

Another update about William

• William is still a big, big boy.  The ladies at his daycare seem especially impressed with his size as they are always talkinga bout how much he eats and today asked me, "was he a big baby when he was born?"
• He finally got his "bad report card" from the new daycare.  They asked, rather timidly, if "William was very demanding at home."  Ha - demanding?  That's putting it lightly!  They did say that they have learned not to put him in his highchair until his food is READY.  :)
• He seems oh-so-close to walking.  I think he'll certainly be walking by his birthday.
• We think he's saying his first word - "book".  And boy oh boy, does he love books.  LOVES books.  They are hands down his favorite kind of toy lately.
• I taught him to hold his play phone up to his ear ("Hello, is baby home?  Can I speak to baby?").  Well, apparently he didn't get the connection with it being a phone you hold up to your ear and instead holds ALL TOYS up to his ear and makes a sound that sounds like "hello?")  It's super adorable.
• He cut another tooth on the bottom...I feel like the 8th tooth (the corresponding one on the other side) must be right behind this one.  He wakes up at night when he is teething and is difficult to soothe.  Poor thing.  Must be really painful.  Oddly, his bottom teeth have been the biggest culprits...the top ones don't seem to bother him as much.

I'm glad I documented our "typical day" a few months ago.  Things have certainly changed.  Now a typical day looks like this:
6-6:30am - I wake up and get ready
7am - William wakes up and we head downstairs for his morning bottle
7:45 - 8am - I get him dressed and head out the door to daycare
8 - 8:30am - I stroll him to daycare (which is awesome).  Beaux comes with us.
8:30 - 9am - walk home from daycare with an empty stroller.  I look a little ridiculous, but only one person so far has said, "you lost your baby".  I do think a lot of people think it is weird though.
9-9:30am - get ready for work (change out of walking clothes, have some coffee, etc.)
9:30am - settle in to work for the day - sometimes from home and sometimes from The Workbox (http://www.attheworkbox.com/)
9:30 - 5:30 - work, work, work, with a few errands here and there
5:30 - head out (this time in the car) to pick the boy up from daycare.  usually when I get there he is all smiley and happy and adorable.  He now knows that I keep a pacifier in the cupholder of his carseat, so as soon as his butt hits the seat he grabs it and pops it in his mouth...even before I get his seatbelt buckled.
5:45pm - we're home and play until dinnertime.
6:15pm - William eats dinner.  so super fun to watch - he love love loves to eat.  His favorites are canned pears, fresh blueberries, tofu, and black beans...but he'll eat just about anything. 
6:30pm - He heads up to bathtime - usually Michael does the bath. It's a father son thing.
6:45pm - bedtime bottle - sometimes he takes it, somtimes he doesn't...sometimes he takes half.  The boy is unpredictable.
7:00pm - W goes to bed.  He is such a good sleeper right now - you just take him up, turn on his sound machine, hand him his paci and blankie and off he goes.  He makes these little "mmmm, mmmm, mmmm" noises as he gets cozy and settles in.
7:00pm - 8:30pm - we prepare and eat dinner.
8:30 - 10:00pm - watch tv, etc.  Prepare W's bottles for daycare for the next day.
10:00 - 11:00pm - somewhere in the neighborhood of when we go to bed.
...and then we start all over again the next day.

Turnip Update

I guess it is time for an update, huh?

William is now ~9.5 months old.  Here are some new tidbits:

• He has 6 teeth (4 on top and 2 on bottom)
• He is crawling (started ~8 months old), and pulling up to standing.
• He has learned to clap - which is adorable.
• He started a new daycare (I miss the old one a lot, but this one is okay and is walkable, so it has been nice to get out for some exercise and fresh air with the boy every day.)
• He eats EVERYTHING in sight.  He started with Cheerios, but soon learned that table food was MUCH more delicious than pureed baby food.  And he promptly rejected pureed food.  (I can still squeeze a little into him so that I can depete my stash...but he prefers food that he can pick up and feed himself.

Retiring the Pump

As of today, I'm no longer nursing.

I am definitely sad to stop nursing the boy...because it is one of the few times he is still and calm and cuddly.

However, I am definitely NOT sad to be retiring the pump.  I. Hate. That. Thing.

In the end, though, I'm glad to have made it to 7 months, I think that William and I have both benefited from breast feeding.

On to the next phase, I guess!

(Also, happy 7 month birthday to William!)