Virginia Christmas Day 1

We are spending Christmas in Virginia this year!  We got in the car Sunday night at 8pm and arrived at the house in Virginia at 8pm last night (Monday).  1462 miles in 23 hours with several stops.  James actually did very well.  He slept all night.  He woke up at 5am for 30 minutes, but other than that he slept from 8:30pm-6:30am.  He took a couple naps during the day and we played and blew bubbles and read books while he was awake.  The whole thing was much easier than I thought it was going to be, but I only had to drive 4 hours.  Matt slept til noon on Sunday so he could drive all night.  He woke me up at 3:30 to keep him awake then I took over at 5 for a couple hours.  I was really worried about this trip, but it worked out quite well.  Dad called and asked me if we had seen any snow.  We saw a little bit in North Carolina and then a bunch in Virginia.  Well, it looked like a lot to me, but I'm a Texas girl.  By the time we got to Virginia it was pretty dark and the moon was out in a clear sky.  Snow by moonlight is a beautiful sight.  There were a few whole fields covered in snow.  There's some in the yard here, but it's pretty solid.  I tried making a snowball to throw at Matt but it didn't work very well.  The forecast says we may have snow for Christmas and again right before New Year.  It has been a very long time since I have had a white Christmas.  This is going to be a very full house this week.  We are the first ones here.  Deb and her family with 4 kids are coming in this afternoon.  Bec and her 5 will be staying here too I think.  Not sure how we'll all fit.  It will be fun. 

James' Birthday

was awesome!  Trey and Rachel brought their families and some friends from our church came.  Matt grilled for lunch and I made the cake.  James wasn't all that interested in opening presents.  He just watched me open them and then played with them.  He got some new shoes that he wore all day yesterday without crying about it.  He also got a couple bath toys that he is fascinated by because they swim around the tub.  He loves the John Deere tractors and we already used the travel place-mat.  He did enjoy the cake.  I made two small round ones so we put a whole one on his tray.  It took a while for him to taste it, but once he got some in his mouth he really dug in.  I had a couple games to play.  The two older kids did a scavenger hunt around the house.  For the adults I had a photo album with pictures of James' milestones that they had to guess the date.  Amy won because she used her calendar for several.  I also had a guess the number of cheerios jar.  Emma won that one with a guess of 900.  There were 1014 cheerios in there and I counted every one of them.  Trey got the next closest bid with 587 or something like that.  It was a fun day.  I can't believe that boy is already one. 

Christmas!

We opened presents last night at our house.  It was so much fun.  I got most of my Christmas last Saturday in Austin.  I got my ear pierced and we went to see the new Narnia. 

Back to last night:  James opened his stocking first.  He loved it!  He had so much fun pulling stuff out of that thing. 

We gave him a set of five tiny Tonka trucks.  Those were a huge hit.  He pulled out the first one and immediately started rolling it on the floor and making truck noises.  What a smart boy.  He was delighted every time he pulled a new one out.  A couple times he brought something to show me and then went back to Matt for more. 

When James was finished with his, Matt opened his stuff.  I only had a few things to put in his stocking, so I filled it with random things from the office to make it look full.  I also gave him a big box of stuff.  When he opened the big box there was another box to open and another and another...  I wrapped 5 boxes inside each other.  At each layer there was a present and another box to open.  I know, kinda rude, but it was fun. 

The only things in my stocking were a ticket stub from Narnia, a pair of earrings, and a big dark chocolate bar from James.  What a sweet boy!  ;)

my little baby Jesus

Today at our church we had a thing called Experience Bethlehem.  It was really neat.  We had different rooms with Harod, the Inn, the Stable, food, and music.  I got to be a beggar this morning.  Then we did it again tonight and I ran the candy shop.  Not a good place for me.  James got to be baby Jesus.  He's a little old for the part, almost a year too old, but it was fine.  He seemed to have fun and everybody loved him.  About half way through tonight, a little girl came to my shop and said, "James' pants are stinky."  :)  Before I could get to the stable two more people came by to let me know they had smelled it too.  I get in there and check his diaper and it was just gas.  My boy already has the power to clear a room.  What else can I say.  Anywho, I know someone got a picture of him all dressed up and wrapped up in swaddling clothes, but I haven't gotten it yet.  And of course I didn't take my camera. 

Before we started tonight, I took James to the nursery to let him play a while.  James went straight for a car that converts to a push toy (just like this: http://www.amazon.com/Playskool-Step-Start-Walk-Ride/dp/B00004T2WP).  It's one of his favorite toys in the nursery.  He usually stands up, grabs the handle and starts walking.  Then when he runs into something, he sits down and fusses because he can't turn it.  So I let him play with it.  I turned around to do something else and when I turned to check on him I could hear him, but I could not see him.  He had walked right out the door and started down the hall with that thing.  I watched him push it around the nursery.  When he got to a corner he stopped, turned it, and kept on going.  He is getting way too smart. 

The Bumbo

If you don't know what a bumbo is, look here: http://www.amazon.com/Bumbo-402-Baby-Seat-Blue/dp/B0007ORN7M

So, James has a Bumbo.  We got it from his wonderful aunt Bec.  He used it before he could sit in the high chair and now we take it on trips.  After Thanksgiving I left it on the floor in the living room.  I came back into the living room after being gone for only a minute or two and James was sitting in it.  I'm thinking, "I didn't put him in there did I?"  He had climbed into it with the tray connected. 

Now it's one of his favorite toys. 

My sweet sweet boy.  When he was tiny, he loved to cuddle.  Then as he started to become aware of his world more and move around more, he never wanted to cuddle.  The only time he would cuddle with me was while he was drinking his bottle.  As soon as he was done, he wanted to get down and play.  After his surgery, when he felt so bad, he wanted me to hold him all the time.  I rocked him to sleep every night and for every nap.  I know, I know, I spoiled him, but he needed it and I LOVED it!  As he recovered, I was able to wean him off of being rocked to sleep and he puts himself to sleep very quickly now.  But my cuddle bug has stayed.  When he gets sleepy or right after he wakes up, or if he feels bad from teething or snotty nose, he'll lay his head on mine or Matt's shoulder and cuddle.  It's the sweetest thing ever.  Just a few minutes ago I was feeding him his bottle and when he was done, he turned around and laid his head on me.  It may not sound like much, but I get the greatest feeling in the world when that little boy lets me hold him. 

sleep

James can be a light sleeper some days.  One day he was napping and I dumped ice into the ice bucket in the kitchen and he started crying.  That has gotten better since we got him a loud fan for his room.  But that's not the story I wanted to tell you.  This morning we went to MOPs (Mother's of Preschoolers).  That means he didn't get a morning nap because he can't sleep when other people are having fun.  So we left at about 11:30 and he fell asleep in his carseat almost immediately.  We went to get gas and he slept through that.  That's not all that exciting now that he can sleep through the car stopping.  Then I went to the tax office to renew the registration for Matt's truck.  I got James out of the car seat, carried him in, took care of business, strapped him back in the car seat and drove home and he is still asleep at 1pm!!!!!  He groaned a little and squirmed when I took him out of the car, but he never opened his eyes.  I wonder where he got that from.

In other news, he is walking very well.  While we were with family for Thanksgiving, Matt counted 20 steps without falling or holding onto anything.  He still doesn't want to eat much table food, but he is eating baby food pretty well when he feels good and he's growing.  He'll probably pick up on that like he has everything else:  avoid it at all costs then one day pick it up like he's been doing it all along.  My stubborn boy.  No idea where he got that trait either.  ;)

My Baby is turning into a Toddler!

My child is entering into toddlerhood.  He has been standing on his own for a month now.  Matt got to see his first step unassisted when I went hunting one night.  Now he can stand up in the middle of the floor and he takes 3-5 steps at a time.  Yesterday we were in his room.  I was sitting on the floor and he was several feet from me.  He stood up and looked at me with a look of pure excitement as if to say, "Watch out mom, here I come!"  He took 5 steps before falling into my arms.  He was so proud of himself and it goes without saying how proud I am. 

He's also finally getting the hang of the sippy cup.  We've tried many times in the past months, but he is just now starting to like it.  He'll even sit in his highchair and hold it himself.  The proud moment of today was when he figured out the shape sorter.  He was playing on the floor while we ate lunch and Matt looked down to see him putting the square block through the correct hole.  He sat there for several minutes dropping the blocks through the holes. 

Picasa

I just realized I didn't post pictures at all in October.  Not sure how that happened.  We did have other things to think about.  Sorry.  Here are a bunch from October and some from November.

http://picasaweb.google.com/matt.claire.wall/JamesOctober2010#

http://picasaweb.google.com/matt.claire.wall/JamesNovember2010#

Tooth Race Update

Earlier today I said James has 4 teeth with one on the way.  I lied.  Not intentionally or anything, I just didn't know.  I've been watching one trying to come in on the top to the right of his teeth.  Today he smiled really big at me and showed me another tooth I didn't even know was about to come in.  It's on the bottom to the right of his other teeth.  Yay, we win the tooth race again!

Another cute story that happened today:  James loves the camera.  He poses and smiles when we try to take his picture now.  Several times Gigi or I have tried to take a candid shot of him, but when he hears the camera, he turns around and poses.  Today I tried taking pictures of him standing for everyone to see, but he was not cooperating.  He came to get the camera and I got several close up shots of his teeth instead.  I tried hiding it from him and he crawled all over me trying to find it.  He loves that camera. 

Whew!

Time is flying by.  James is doing great.  After the cath came out (almost a month ago) he is much happier.  He is healing great.  And you have to look very closely to see the rabbit bite.  We go back to Austin next week for a follow up visit with the surgeon. 

James is keeping us very busy.  He loves standing up and letting go.  He'll stand on his own for 30 seconds at least.  Matt says he took his first step unassisted one night that I went hunting and left them at home.  Here are a few fun stats:

favorite toys:  play piano, daddy's shoelaces, plastic spoons, the big lion

favorite things to do:  stand up, fall down, open and close doors, go outside

milestones: sits, crawls, pulls up, cruises, stands on his own, self feeds finger foods, holds bottle (finally), signs "milk" when he wants more of anything, says mama and dada, waves and says bye-bye, has 4 teeth and working on one more. 

food:  holds his own bottles, still doesn't like sippy cups, eating baby food and cereal very well now, loves cheerios and puffs, slowly trying out our foods

His first Thanksgiving is coming up soon.  I can't believe it is already here.  We will be going to Virginia for Christmas this year.  25 hours in a car with a one year old, yay.  We'll spread the driving over 3 days and hopefully do most of it at night.

Woah!

I was in the nursery with James at church this morning.  He was playing with a puffy book and kinda squatting near me.  All of a sudden, he STOOD UP!  with nothing around him, not holding on to anything, just stood straight up.  He's never done this before, but he was confident and steady.  I was shocked!  He stood there for a couple seconds and then plopped down and smiled at me.  What an awesome kid God gave me.  9 and a half months and he can stand up by himself. 

Tomorrow we go back to Austin.  The cath comes out.  yay!!!   Hopefully that will help him feel better. 

A good story

Yesterday, James didn't sleep very much.  We went to MOPs in the morning, which meant he skipped his morning nap.  He slept for maybe an hour when we got home and then was awake all afternoon.  We had some very rough times yesterday, but last night was great.  I finally put him back to bed when Gigi left at 5:30.  He slept until about 7 when Matt got him up to feed him supper.  I fed him his bottle in our chair about 7:45.  When he was finished with it he fell asleep in my arms.  What an amazing feeling that is!!  I held him for a long time.  He smiles a lot when he sleeps.  The first time I saw him smile, I giggled a little and woke him up.  He opened his eyes and glared at me then went back to sleep.  When Matt got out of the shower, he helped me get James ready for bed.  We changed his dirty diaper without him waking up until the end.  Then we got him in snuggly pjs and I cuddled him for a few more minutes and put him to bed.  He was just so cute and sweet that I had to share it.  We still have rough moments, but he is improving. 

the dressing is gone!

We had an appointment today to remove James' dressing from surgery.  The nurse practitioner in Dr Seremetis' office did it.  She said he looks good.  He cried through the whole process.  That was very tough.  He kept reaching for me but all we could do was hold his hands and try to comfort him.  But it's over now.  The catheter will be removed next Monday.  For now, we're just using LOTS of Neosporin. 

Gigi comes tomorrow!!!  That's my mom for those of you who don't know.  She'll be staying for at least one day.  Maybe I can get her to stay longer.  It will be nice to have help.  Rachel was here yesterday for a while.  And Matt took off today after lunch.  Changing diapers is more than difficult and he's very clingy.  I don't mind doing it, of course, it's just tiring and hard to do by myself. 

On a side note.  When James came into the post-op room on Friday,  I noticed he has a third tooth!  He has had two for a while now.  And the two on the top have been trying to come in.  The one on the left cut through on the day of the surgery and the second one is close behind.  They probably aren't helping with his pain and fussiness. 

Just to brag on my honey a little bit:  Matt is my superman.  He has washed dishes 4 times in the past week and twice has had to buy feminine items for me.  So, he gets major points in the superman race.  ok, time for supper.  yum. 

surgery recap

James is doing great.  He's playing at my feet just as happy as can be.  Here's what happened yesterday:

Matt and I got up at 4 and were in the car out the gate by 4:30.  My dad met us at the surgical center and we all went in at 6am.  Matt, James, and I went back to pre-op about 6:30 and I handed him to the nurse at 7:30 to go to the OR.  We were scheduled for 7, but the doc was a little late.  Our pastor sat with Matt in the post op room while I waited in the waiting room with my dad, sis, and later grandparents.  At 10 I was called back to the post op room to talk to the surgeon.  They brought James out a few minutes later.  He was awake, but sleepy and obviously uncomfortable. Once the nurse gave him more pain meds, he was ready to get up and move around.  I expected him to be very out of it and not do very much at first, but he wanted to play.  We left the surgical center at about 11:30.  All of our visitors [BLEH...a daddy long legs just crawled onto my keyboard,  YUCK!!!]  had left by then.  James slept all the way home and dad met us there before he went home.  The doc gave us 3 prescriptions for James and I was worried about how much it would be, but all 3 cost less than $15!!  Some friends brought us supper (thanks guys, it was great!).  James had a great night.  Matt got up a couple times to give him pain meds and then I got up with him this morning. 

We're out on the porch right now.  He's playing with daddy's boots and the dogs.  You'd never know anything had happened.  Well, until you look at the size of his diaper.  He has a HUGE dressing on it that we will go back to get removed on Tuesday.  And he has a catheter that will stay in until Monday the 11th.  And he has a nice little bruise on his hand from the IV.  Oops, Daddy scared the boy coming by on the lawn mower.  I think it's time to go in.  more later.

And more doctors

 James got bit by Gidget the rabbit this morning.  Matt wasn't up yet.  James had eaten and was playing on the floor near her cage and I was online.  I heard him cry out and looked over to see her licking his finger.  I picked him up and started comforting him before I realized it was bleeding.  I yelled for Matt and put it under the water.  We couldn't get it to stop bleeding, so we called the doctor and went to the ER.  They didn't do much except get it to stop bleeding, which was my main concern anyway.  Doc said they don't stitch animal bites to keep from sealing any bacteria inside.  They want it to stay dry so that it can heal up.  James was a trooper through the whole thing.  He is a tough cookie.  Poor little guy.  Once we got back home, he's been playing and crawling around just like normal.  He may be favoring the hand a little, but he hardly seems to notice it.  I looked over at him right after we got home and he was banging his bandaged hand against one of his toys.  It must not hurt that bad.  We'll keep a close eye on him and it should heal up quickly.  And the rabbit is moving.  Either to a stew pot or a cage on the front porch.  I'll let you know tomorrow how dinner is tonight.  He's on an antibiotic from his ear infection last week, so that should keep any infection out of his finger. 

We are all set for surgery on Friday.  Don't know what time yet, but we'll keep everyone posted.  Time for James' supper. 

Doctors Doctors Doctors

bleh.  First of all, James kicked the hand, foot, and mouth thing pretty good.  His fever lasted about 48 hours and he was still acting sick for a couple days after that.  He was back to his normal happy self by the time we went to church the next Sunday. 

Today was his 9 month check-up. 
Weight: 17 lbs 15.5 oz (10th percentile)
Height: 25.75 in (below the chart still)
Head: 18 in
She said his weight could be low because he is so active.  He is an expert crawler and puller-uper.  He is still quite short for his age, but you have to consider the parents :) and he is still growing at a good rate.  She said we'll keep watching his numbers, but she's not worried, so neither am I.  She did finally admit he has eczema.  Only thing we can do is try to figure out what his triggers are and keep his skin moisturized.  He also has an ear infection right now.  We didn't even know he was sick.  She gave me a Rx for Amoxicillin, but we caught it early so it shouldn't be too bad.  We have to go back to see her in 2 weeks to make sure it is gone.  His appointment is the day before his surgery.  wahoo.

And that's the last thing to talk about.  James' surgery.  I can't remember how much I've said on here, so here's a recap:  He has Hypospadias plus two other conditions that are related that commonly accompany hypospadias.  We'll be doing surgery October 1st in Austin.  It is an outpatient surgery that should last 2 hours.  It is fairly common and our surgeon does these surgeries all the time.  Hopefully we'll get to be first in the day since James is so young (they schedule based on age).  The part that I dread the most is waiting for 2 hours or more.  Recovery isn't supposed to be very bad, but it's still surgery and he's 9 months old.  My mom is planning to come the week after surgery.  And we have an awesome church plus the camp so I'm sure we'll be well taken care of. 

August

Wow, over a month.  I told you I was bad about these things.  August has flown by.  I can't believe it will be September in 2 days!  Oh well.

I will start with today and then work backwards to fill in what I missed.  We took James to the doctor today.  He woke up from his pre-lunch nap with a high fever.  So, we took him in as soon as we could.  His fever had already gone down by the time we got there just from the Tylenol we gave him.  She said he has a virus I can't remember the name of.  It's kinda like hand, foot, and mouth disease.  She tested him for Strep, but it was negative.  The only treatment she recommended is Motrin.  He has been acting very tired and sluggish.  He's cuddling a lot more than usual.  But right now he's quite happy and crawling around like he always does.  I guess he doesn't feel that bad.  Oh yeah, he weighed in at 17 lbs 11.5 oz. 

He's eating much better now.  For a while he didn't want to eat baby food at all.  Even his favorite things he would cry if I tried to feed him.  Now he's doing great.  He loves his morning cereal.  And he will eat most of the baby foods without protest.  He still doesn't like green things very much.  And he doesn't like the stuff I have tried to make for him.  I think what I make isn't pureed enough.  It's still a little chunky.   He is also eating banana flavored Gerber puffs.  He loves holding them and sucking on them.  It's the first food he has fed himself.  I only give him one or two at a meal to keep him happy while I get his food ready.  Cheerios have not worked yet.  He still chokes on them.  The sippy cup is still not working very well.  He will take a couple drinks sometimes, but not much. 

Hmmm...what else?  He is crawling on his knees with his belly off the floor now.  It's so cute.  Usually he gets too impatient and wants to go faster so he switches back to swimming across the floor.  He's doing really good standing up.  He can stand up against anything, even a bare wall.  He is starting to cruise around.  He's not very confident moving around on his feet though.  But he is not falling as much either.  He has learned how to get back to the floor from his feet without hurting himself.

Favorite toy this month:  his soft blue blanket

nap time again!  still to come: stories from Arkansas.

new fun!

July has been full of new things:
new foods
sitting up confidently
crawling everywhere (inch worm style)
new sounds
peekaboo
cheerios
sippy cup
and now...pulling up without any help from mom or dad

So, he has pulled up using our fingers or legs or shoulders or whatever, but he did it this morning without any guidance or help from me.  I was folding clothes while he crawled around.  When he saw the basket on the floor he made his way over to it.  He crawled half way up on the Boppy that was right next to it, then grabbed the edge of the basket.  I had to stand in it so that it wouldn't tip over.  It took him a while to get his feet and legs in the right position, but then he just popped up.  He was so excited and apparently proud of himself.  Then he got really brave and tried to let go of the basket, but that didn't work. 

We're starting to try cheerios and a sippy cup.  The sippy cup is somewhat working but I don't think he wants what's in it.  We may have to try giving him formula in it to get him used to using it.  Then we can switch to water and/or juice.  I have given him pieces of cheerios once.  It was fun.  He did not like it.  He did eat them, but he made awful faces and coughed and choked.  There are some great pictures on picasa of that.  oh well, we'll try again later.

My boy's wicked smart!

name that movie!

While I was eating lunch today, Matt and James were playing on the floor.  I hear Matt saying peekaboo so I look over to enjoy watching them play.  They were playing peekaboo with James' lion but to my surprise, James was the one covering his face for a moment then pulling it down to look at Matt.  He did it over and over and each time Matt would say, "peekaboo!" and James would laugh.  I just sat there and enjoyed, then thought, "oh crap, I should video this." 

James has been able to sit up for a little while.  He is still wobbly, but he's getting much better.  He has also started trying to sit up himself from lying down.  Today he did it.  James was crawling around while Matt and I talked.  Then he was sitting, quite confidently. 

He also pulled up today.  He has been doing it with our fingers because we help him a little bit, but he hasn't stood up by himself yet.  It was while Matt was laying on the floor.  James partially crawled up on his shoulder and then stood up.  He wasn't straight up, but his legs were straight and his feet were flat on the floor.  My boy's wicked smart!

Gidget

Gidget is our rabbit.  She is a year older than James.  She was my Christmas present in 2008.  So, as you know, James has been crawling around everywhere.  This morning he found his way to the tile and caught sight of Gidget.  He had been rolling around with his stuffed lion.  Then I look up and he is just staring at that rabbit.

He reached out and grabbed the cage and they just stared at each other.  I'll have to let her out sometime and let him chase her around. 

This boy is growing up so quickly.  He can go anywhere he wants and get anything that's on the floor.  This morning I helped him stand up and he walked all the way to his room holding my fingers.  He just woke up from his nap and is cuddling with me right now.  I treasure these moments.  He usually doesn't want to just sit with me.  He wants to be up moving around.  Ok, time for his lunch and then mine.

Lock the cabinets and hide the wine!

That was my thought this morning as I watched James crawl across the floor.  He is a-movin'!  I'm sitting on the floor working on VBS stuff.  He was laying next to me playing earlier when he decided he wanted the book I was looking at.  Kinda like when a cat lays in the middle of whatever you're doing.  As he came closer to grabbing it, I pulled it further away and he found his way up onto my lap all on his own.  So I put him back on the floor and tried to distract him.  He caught sight of a paper bag next to the door and was there chewing on it in a matter of seconds.  I looked up and suddenly he was 6 feet away.  I think it's kinda like a soldier crawl.  He reaches as far as he can with his hands and pulls and pushes with his feet at the same time.  We should invent baby racing.  He would totally win.  They would have to be in a sound proof room where they can't see all the spectators so they don't get distracted.  And then have mom or something shiny at the end for them to race to.  Awesome. 

Urologist

No, I'm not dead.  I'm mostly over whatever I had last weekend.  I think it was just allergies that I let get out of hand.  Matt gets the superman award again for staying home and taking care of James so he wouldn't get sick too.  I barely touched that boy on Saturday and Sunday. 

We went to James' urologist yesterday.  Everything is pretty much the same.  We have scheduled his surgery.  (If you don't know what I'm talking about, look back a few posts.)  I'm not going to post the exact date on here, but if you want to know, you can call or email or whatever.  It won't be for several more months.  It will be at a clinic that is in the same building as our doctor's office.  It is supposed to be more efficient because they don't have to plan for every possibility, cheaper, and safer because there shouldn't be sick contagious kids there.  Surgery is supposed to take about 2 hours.  James will come home with a catheter.  We'll go back at 4 days to have the dressing removed, 10 days to have the catheter removed, 6 months, 1 year, and after potty training for checkups. Please pray for us to trust God with this situation and for Dr. S.

In funner news, James has learned to say dada.  He says it constantly.  He woke up happy this morning and I laid in bed and listened to him for a little while.  dadadadadadadadadadadad...on and on.  Sooo cute.  I love it when he learns something new.  He does it constantly until he figures out the next thing.  He has also started shaking his head.  He's so goofy. 

6 month appointment

Weight: 16 lbs 9.5 oz
Length: 23.5 in

James is doing great.  No major concerns at this point.  We'll see his urologist this coming Wednesday.  I'll post after that visit. 

Sorry for the short post.  I'm quite sick today.  Going back to bed now. 

Monster

Lauren made a funny noise Sunday night after we left.
Amy:  Are you a chicken?
Lauren:  I'm a monster!
Amy:  What kind of monster are you?
Lauren:  James.

We went to Trey's house this weekend.  Spent Father's day with my dad.  We went swimming on Saturday at their community pool.  Had the whole place to ourselves for most of the time.  James got to play with Lauren and Maggie (the beagle).  They are both so big now.  Mostly we just hung out and ate good food.  We gave Lauren her birthday presents.  I can't believe she'll be two this week.  Oh, and James is a monster, I guess. 

James turned 6 months on Friday and was supposed to have his 6 month appointment, but Dr. Amy was at a conference, so we'll do that on Wednesday.  I'll let you know the results of that later this week. 

I'll be posting to Picasa today I hope. 

Crawling and Superman!

Yes, James started crawling this week!!  Ok, so it's a poor excuse for crawling.  It's more like wiggling and scooting forward to get to his new Tonka truck, but he's moving across the floor, so I call it crawling.  I guess I shouldn't be surprised to have such a strong baby, seeing as I'm married to Superman and all.  Oops, maybe I shouldn't have said that.  Oh well, I think all of you have figured it out by now.  How do I know he's superman?...what proof do I have?  Well, only superman could have made this last weekend so amazing.  Only superman could have made our lawn look so lovely while also cooking dinner for me two nights in a row (one of those was steak by candlelight).  He also took care of James and got him to bed on Sunday night while I went to a meeting and let me stay in bed until 10:00 Monday morning.  I don't know how long it's been since I've done that.  What a guy!

Surgery

Melissa just let me know that I said the word surgery and didn't explain myself.  James was born with a pretty common urological condition called Hypo-Spadias.  It's not a huge deal, but it does have to be fixed.  This is his urologist's website: http://www.childrensurology.com/.  If you want to know more, click on "Health Care Info".  His condition is the first one on the page.  His case is not a severe case.  It should be an out-patient surgery, so we can take him home that day.  I will let you know when the surgery will be once it is scheduled. 

Wow, Matt has him laughing hard right now.  Soooooo cute. 

Tonka, teeth, and mama!

Well, I'm not posting twice a week like I promised.  But I only promised I would try. 

Matt bought James his first Tonka truck.  It's a cute little red dump truck that had 2 and up on the box.  But it's really soft for him to chew on and he likes watching it roll around the room.  About 15 minutes ago, I left him on the floor chewing on his truck and I went to the bathroom.  He started crying pretty quick, but I had to go.  So when I had finished my business, I came back to find him throwing a fit and reaching for the truck just out of his reach.  So, I pushed it back where he could grab it and he promptly stopped crying and has been chewing on it ever since.  Every once in a while he starts fussing again and I turn around to push it back to him and he continues chewing.  It must taste pretty good. 

No, he doesn't have any teeth yet.  But he's working on it.  He chews on anything he can get in his mouth and tries to get everything in his mouth, including my toe if it's in reach.  His fingers and toes are some of his favorites.  He's had little buds on his bottom gums for a while now.  So I'm expecting teeth at any time.  Does getting the teeth make it better or worse?  I hope better.  He's pretty clingy and fussy these days. 

He said mama this week!  But I don't think it counts because he was just babbling and I don't think he knows what he said.  Still, it's one of the greatest sounds I've ever heard. 

Doctor update:  We go to his regular doc on the 18th for his 6 month appointment!  Dang, time flies!  We go to his Urologist on the 30th.  We'll be scheduling surgery as soon as possible after that.  yuck.

My first mother's day!!

Was wonderful!  On Saturday we went to a tea at the church.  Not a tea party, a tea.  Tea, on Dictionary.com:

 

British . any meal, whether a light snack or one consisting of several courses, eaten in the late afternoon or in the evening; any meal other than dinner, eaten after the middle of the afternoon.

 

Well, it was actually at 11am, but they still called it a tea.  We're not British, so we don't have to follow the rules.  It was a lot of fun.  Good food (lots of sweets), a couple games, and me and my boys.  :)  

 

Sunday: Matt got up with James.  I slept in late, until 7:45!  Matt and James gave me a gold necklace!  Went to church, got LOTS of "happy first mother's day" wishes.  Got to stand up when they honored the mothers :).  Got chocolate.  Went out to lunch.  Went shopping in Austin.   And back home to eat burgers Matt grilled on the porch.  whew!  Beautiful day!  My necklace has a gold heart that says "Mom" with a little diamond in it.  Very pretty.  I'm wearing it in the pics on Picasa of James with carrots all over his face.  

Carrots!!!

Well, James has been eating cereal for a couple weeks now.  We started with one meal a day, then 2, then 3.  And now we've added carrots!!  So much fun.  He didn't really like the cereal.  He never got the hang of eating it from a spoon.  But he likes the carrots a lot.  The first day was interesting.  He didn't eat very much.  But then the next day he had a half of a container.  We started Friday and he's been doing great.  It gets EVERYWHERE.  But it's so cute.  He even fusses a little if I take too long.  He also likes to get it all over me.  We've tried using the Bumbo, but he won't sit up straight.  So, I eventually just hold him.  I usually have orange goo all over my clothes and face.  Ah, the joys of motherhood!  I have to feed him in just his diaper now, because we stained a couple of his outfits with the orange goo.  One day after feeding him I had to use 5 wet wipes to clean up just the carrots.  Total wipes used that diaper change: 8. 

Poop and giggles

The world of babies is poop and giggles. 

James pooped on me today.  Well, I guess he poops on me a lot, in a sense.  But usually it stays in his diaper.  This time he was only wearing a diaper and onesie.  He pooped so much so fast that it came out on my leg.  Bleh!  You're probably thinking, "that's gross, why is she writing about poop on a blog?!"  Well, this is a blog about a baby, and anything about a baby will include poop talk.  Get used to it. 

Ok, something more fun.  Giggles!  So, usually, when I tickle James or do something else that makes him laugh, he just smiles real big and squeaks.  He has just recently started laughing.  It is so cute.  It's kind of a heh heh heh.  Real deep belly laughs.  I haven't been able to record it yet, but I will try.  I would love to share it with everyone. 

Oh, toes!  We mustn't forget the toes!  For those of you who don't know, my happy place during labor was thinking about baby toes.  I would get into a bad contraction and start chanting "baby toes baby toes baby toes."  Now, this little man is obsessed with his toes.  Whenever he catches a glimpse of them he tries to grab them and eat them.  It is quite cute.  I have some pictures that I will post soon. 

To Gigi's house we go!!

We went to Gigi and Grandpa's house this weekend.  So much fun!!  Well, the days were fun.  Not so much fun at night.  The big boys went to look at birds and the girls and baby stayed home and played.  So much fun.  Gigi helped me with feeding him cereal.  He doesn't like to keep it in his mouth.  He usually sticks his tongue out and it dribbles down his chin.  So, she found that she could put some in his mouth, then shove the bottle in there and he would swallow all of it.  it was pretty funny to watch.  I have some pics on Picasa.  very cute. 

We had lunch on Saturday with a friend of mine from camp, Rachel, and her daughter, Claire!  named after me of course.  :) 

Oh, Gigi also gave James a bath in the big bath tub.  Those are really cute pictures.  He had fun eating the rag and playing with the duck.  The ducks I have are too big for him to grab, but Gigi's are much smaller and funner to play with. 

Oh yeah, the nights.  He learned to roll over the first of April.  Now, he rolls over while he's sleeping and wakes himself up.  Or maybe he wakes up and rolls over while trying to go back to sleep.  Either way, he finds himself on his back and gets mad.  So now we have to get up 8-10 times a night to roll him over.  Talked to a lady from the camp about it tonight and she said when her kids got to that point, she started trying to teach them to roll over the other way.  I'll have to work on that during the days.  Maybe tonight won't be so bad.  ha.  maybe I'll just sleep in his room tonight. 

Cereal!

We started cereal this week.  Quite an adventure.  You can see pictures on Picasa.  He didn't really understand the spoon.  I don't know if he got any that way.  But we got some good practice in.  And some cute pictures.  He had it everywhere.  Then I poured the formula/cereal mixture in his bottle and fed him that way.  It wasn't quite as fun as I hoped it would be, but still cute. 

Wednesday, I went to the Chiropractor.  I've been having some back pain and he said my back was jammed up in a couple places.  I feel much better now.  A little sore, but so much better.  Anywho, this blog isn't about me.  James came with me, of course.  Dr. Marc said he would have an attendant hold him while he did my adjustment.  He goes out of the room and asks who wants to hold the baby.  There were about 4 women working that day and they were all fighting over who would get to take James.  So fun.  He's only 4 months and he already has women fighting over him.  What a charmer. 

4 month appointment

James turned 4 months on Sunday.  So, today we had his 4 month checkup.  He did very well.  I really like his doctor.  She is a friend of Camp Tejas, so we know her already and she lives just on the other side of camp from us.  She said developmentally, he is doing great.  Here are the stats:

weight: 14lbs 11.5oz (50th percentile)
length: 23in (5th percentile)
head: 17in (75th percentile)

She said his weight couldn't be better.  She is not worried about his length, that will catch up eventually.  The important thing is to see good growth. 

He got 3 vaccines today.  1 oral and 2 shots.  He really likes the oral one, it's probably sweet.  But, of course, the shots were no fun.  one in each leg.  He cried for a long time.  Then we got in the car and he passed out before we even started moving.  He tired himself out pretty good with all that screaming.  poor baby. 

We get to start cereal this week.  fun fun fun!  I'll get some tonight and start tomorrow.  Those should be some cute pictures.  ok, time to wash some dishes while he's still sleeping. 

new mommy blog!

So, I've never blogged very much, but for the benefit of all those who can't be here to witness James' many adventures in person, I will attempt to maintain a mommy blog, where I will tell wonderful, crazy, and sad stories about my beautiful baby.  Wow, that was a long sentence.  Does anyone know if that was grammatically correct?  I will try to post here at least two or three times a week.  If you haven't already, check out the right side of this window and you will find a link to our Picasa web album.  I post new pictures there when I have them.  If you need help subscribing to this blog, ask somebody who knows a lot about computers.  I might be able to show you, but I probably couldn't explain it to you.  anywho, enjoy the random stories and pictures!