Tickle-Me-Little Man

Today has been a lovely day. It started out rough, because James was sick and Little Man and I had to go to church without him. It's always tricky trying to teach a class of 7 year olds and watch a toddler at the same time. That part actually went ok; things got iffy in sacrament meeting, when Little Man's hunger and exhaustion got the better of him. We ended up leaving a little early. When I got home, I joked that James can never die, because I am not cut out to be a single mom.

After everyone took a nap, we went to Bryanna's for dinner and cake for our nephew's birthday. It was lovely to spend the afternoon outside in the sunshine enjoying our family.

One of the highlights of Little Man's week was getting his Elmo Live. A lady I work with got one for her daughter, but won't let her play with it any more. Elmo is a little addicting, it seems. She was grateful to unload him on us, and Little Man was thrilled to receive him. I let him play with it for about 5 minutes before I decided Elmo was a "sometimes" toy.


Little Man has also taken to laying down in the bath tub. He loves to lay there and kick his legs and splash. Here's a picture from tonight's bath. (Please excuse my crappy editing job.)


Little Man is slowly but surely learning to feed himself. Here's a video from breakfast this morning.



And here's a video from tonight. Little Man has really developed a great giggle. Enjoy.

Communicating

Little Man did something amazing today. He hadn't been feeling well, and hadn't had much of an appetite because of it. By the early evening, though, he started to finally get hungry. I could tell he was, but was trying to hurry and fix dinner so we could all eat together. Little Man was intent though, and started pointing to his high chair! Ok, maybe it's not as big of a deal to you. It was the first time he really communicated what he wanted in some way other than crying and whining. Or maybe it was just the first time that I understood what he was telling me.

Today was also the first time that he puked as a big kid. Toddler puke is much yuckier than baby spit-up. Actually, I wouldn't know, because James was the one home with him when it happened. By the time I got home, Little Man was in his forth outfit of the day. Poor Daddy!

Happy Easter!

What a great Easter it has been. Little Man really had fun. He loved his Easter basket this morning. There were a few little gifts, but he mostly just loved playing with the eggs. He spent most of the morning opening them, hiding stuff in them, then opening them again. We spent the day at my mom's where we had a little Egg Hunt. I didn't think Little Man would "get it," which is why I didn't hide eggs at home, but he really got into it. He needed a little help to spot the eggs, but when he did, he grabbed them and dumped them in his basket. By the end of it, he just wanted to sit down and open all the eggs. Unfortunately, Grandma didn't really think he'd "get it," either, and only put girly prizes like hairclips and bracelets in the eggs. Oh well.

Fun Day

I got to spend the whole day with my Little Man today. What a treat. Some fun things that happened today:

• He took two good naps. That's a feat that even Dad doesn't accomplish very often anymore!
• He successfully fed himself his afternoon snack and his dinner! My friend Mary suggested getting him some crackers to dip. I wasn't sure if he'd understand the concept, but he ended up loving it. For dinner, we had a Mexican soup. He ate all of the beans, corn, and bell peppers all by himself. Yea for being independent!
• Because I was so proud of him for eating his dinner so well, I gave him part of a REAL cookie for dessert. He happily munched it. James felt left out of the cookie sharing, so he gave him part of ANOTHER cookie. Within about half an hour, he was spinning around in circles la-la-la-ing at the top his lungs. It was hilarious.
  

By the way, has anyone seen the charger for my camera? I'd love to take some pictures to show you all.

What did you just say?

This story is getting old, but I've got to record it, so that I don't forget...

Last Saturday, while Little Man and I were at Target, we were wandering around the toy section. Whenever we're over in that area of the store, I try to show him the Elmo Live and make Elmo talk to him. Little Man gets such a kick out of it. So I made Elmo do his thing, and Little Man laughed, then Elmo went back on the shelf. We walked away, and I stopped to look at something else. From where Little Man was sitting, he could still see Elmo. Then, as clear as could be, he said, "Elmo." I stared at him, wondering if I really heard him right. He never repeated it, but said "Mm-mo" a couple of times, which is pretty close. I don't know if this really counts as his first word, because he does toddle around the house saying "Ma" and "Da-dee" and every once in awhile it actually seems like he says it at an appropriate time. He also says "Hi" sometimes, too (I think).

My favorite new Little Man trick this week is that when you say "kisses" he opens his mouth, slams it into yours, and makes the "mmm-mah!" noise. I love it! But don't ask for one if you have an aversion to slobber. They're sweet kisses, but messy.

Happenings of the Week

What a crazy couple of weeks we've had. I've been deathly ill, Little Man has cut two teeth (finally!), and we weaned Little Man from his bottle (those were a few particularly rough days!). We are really looking to some R and R around here this weekend!

Little Man went to his 12 month appointment earlier this week. He's 19 lbs. (5th percentile) and 29 inches tall (about 50th percentile). The weird part is that he only grew 0.2 inches since his last appointment. The doctor wasn't concerned about that, but was concerned about the lack of improvement with his droopy eye. He referred him to a pediatric ophthalmologist. We go in about a week!

Little Man has also discovered the outdoors. I let him walk in from the car yesterday, and I think it blew his mind. Ever since, he just stands at the door and cries. He'll even grab a set of keys and try to pry the door open with them. We tried to take him to the park to play this afternoon, but by the time we got there, he had fallen asleep, so we just went home.

Here are a few pictures from the last several weeks. Better late than never, right?

Little Man has been enjoying more and more table food with us lately. Here he is having some mac and cheese for lunch. The picture reminds me of Yankee Doodle.


We have now weaned Little Man from his bottle, but here he is lounging on the couch with it . He looks so comfy.


Eating some spaghetti.



My cute, skinny baby.


Little Man got a big set of blocks for his birthday. He loves them! He'll play with them for minutes on end.





Playing with another birthday present. He loves these so much that I have a hard time getting him out of the tub.



Our attempt of a family photo on Little Man's birthday.



Opening a birthday card.


This is my new favorite photo. We desperately need to do laundry and these were the only jammies we could find tonight. They don't really fit; notice how the top snap can't be done up. Plus, that face is priceless.

Numero Uno

One year ago from this moment, I was lying in a hospital bed downtown, writhing and screaming in pain. I was six days past my due date, and my water had broken that afternoon as I walked in the door from work. I was determined to have a natural, drug-free delivery (hence the writhing and screaming). I did have a moment when I wavered and asked for the epidural. In the time it took the anesthesiologist to get there (a mere 15 minutes or so), I had gone from a 4 to an 8, and I was feeling the urge to push. I sent the anesthesiologist away, figuring I'd done the worst of it. The nurses quickly called my midwife and by the time she got there, I was at a 10 and ready to push. I pushed for less than half an hour, and then my beautiful son was here! He was blue and slippery, but absolutely gorgeous. In the matter of about 5 1/2 hours, I had gone from a miserable pregnant woman to an elated new mother. We had gone from a married couple to a family. It was miraculous.

And today, my baby isn't really a baby anymore. He's a little boy, who toddles around the house, exploring, investigating, and learning. But he's still miraculous. Sometimes I catch myself watching him, my mouth hanging open a little, in awe of all that he has become, and is becoming. I am so proud of him every time he fits two blocks together, or makes a new hand gesture to communicate what he wants. I know every mother must think so, but I'm convinced everyday that my baby is the cutest, the smartest, and best all-around kid that has ever been born. I love you, Little Man. Happy Birthday.