Boy @ 9 Months

The awesome Cristi Nelson did Boy's 9 month pictures for us at the end of March--and just in the nick of time, too.  Boy started crawling exactly one week to the day after these pictures were taken.  I have to imagine that it is much easier to take pictures of non-mobile babies!

Boy continues to bring an immense joy to our lives.  He has such an infectious personality.  I can already tell that he is going to be a very social, outgoing kid.  Just like his dad.

Boy has had a very, very busy couple of weeks.  He learned to crawl, his two top teeth finally poked through, and he said his first word: "dada!"

His recent bug has somehow stimulated his gag reflex and he has been projectile vomiting.  A lot.  He's not sick, but the kid--being in the 4th percentile--can't afford to give up any extra calories!  I sure hope he outgrows this...

Since he has become mobile, life has suddenly become more difficult and easy all at once.  Difficult, obviously, because we have to watch not only everything he does but everything Bean does as well to make sure she's not playing with toys that are too small or dangerous (also Bean herself gets very bent out of shape any time Boy even comes close to her stuff.  This is going to be fun.)  Easy because suddenly Boy is just very content to explore beyond the boundaries his immobile self has been confined to for the last 9 months.  I don't know that he has sat and played with toys once in the last week while I've been watching him (unless you count our piano pedals.)

I sure do love this little guy.  These pictures were all taken right during his naptime.  The last two were when he had had enough.  I whisked him up and started tossing him in the air.  He can't resist this.  Cristi was like, "Wait, do that again!"  I love the pictures that came from this impromptu moment.  Screaming one minute and cracking up the next.  That's my Boy!

Sick week

So this post will actually come into play in several future posts, I'm sure, but I experienced my first "everyone-in-the-family-is-sick-and-the-____-has-hit-the-fan" moment as a mom.

It all started a few weeks ago, April 2, when Bean was just acting more irratible and difficult than usual.  She loves watching Dora while she has her bedtime snack but this particular night, she reached her #3 and ended up losing her Dora priveleges.  This led to a huge tantrum with resulted in her going straight to bed, kicking and screaming.  She ended up falling asleep right away so I figured she had just been really tired.  I went in a little while later and she complained that she was thirsty so I let her have some water and told her goodnight.

The next morning I got up with Boy and smelled this really strange smell from what seemed to be coming from the bathroom.  When nothing seemed apparent, I just figured it was residual from who knows what.  Bean had slept in a little that morning, so when I went to get her up the strange smell overpowered me as I walked into her room.  Her bed was covered in puke and as I got her up, I could tell that she had slept in it!  I asked her why she didn't cry or come get me and she said, "Because you were sleeping, mommy!"  Sweetheart!  But I felt so terrible to think that for some reason she didn't think she could come and get me!

It was a very long day getting everything cleaned up.  After she had a bath and two bites of cereal, she spent the greater part of the day like this:

I put her down for a nap and she went right to sleep.  In fact, I think we all did!

A few days later S complained that he wasn't feeling too great and, sure enough, Friday morning he and Boy woke up puking.  Awesome.  S thought that if he could just sleep for a few hours, he would feel better enough for me to go to work.  Needless to say, I ended up staying home that day.  That evening Bean started complaining that her belly hurt.  I figured she was just having sympathy pains or something so I didn't think too much of it.  Then, just as Boy started throwing up again, her illness, um, hit the other end and she spent the better part of an hour on the throne.  Poor kids.  Poor S.  He was in there feeling rotten trying to take care of screaming Bean and I was in trying to get screaming Boy settled down for bed. 

Bean's appetite had been nonexistent most of the week so I ended up having leftovers by myself after the 3 of them had gone to bed.  Wasn't exactly the day I had planned on, but I was so grateful that I was able to stay home and take care of my family.  Goodness knows there was no way S could have taken care of 2 kids, let alone 2 sick kids, feeling the way he did.

The sad part of the whole situation is I was supposed to run in the Salt Lake City Challenge race with my friends the next day.  When I could tell things were going down the crapper (ha), I regrettfully backed out.  It's a good thing, too, because 4 a.m. the next morning--BAM.  My turn!  Luckily S and the kids were feeling better enough the next day that I was able to spend most of the day in bed. 

So there is my pity-blog post of the quarter.  Having sick anyone in the family isn't fun, let alone everyone at once.  And I'm sure it's just the first of many to come.  But I did tell S amidst all of it that I felt more compassion and patience for the kids during/after the ordeal than I had for awhile.  So if there is a silver lining, I guess that is it.

Egg Hunts and Easter Pictures

Egg Hunt

We decided to go to our community egg-hunt again this year.  (If you will remember, last year I wasn't too thrilled with how it turned out.  But it just didn't seem appropriate not to go.)

We got there plenty early and, thankfully, the weather was much warmer this year.  Bean probably didn't need the jacket but she chose her University of Utah t-shirt to wear that morning.  The hazards of letting your 3 year old dress herself...

She ended up waiting next to a little girl who shared her name.  That became a little confusing.

As we neared the time for the hunt to begin, I could tell that my coaching was doing no good and this girl, who is in the midst of a major "shy phase," wasn't going anywhere without me.  There had just been an announcement that no parents were allowed on the field for the 3-4 year olds.  Normally I would be, like, great!  But I knew this was going to mean that Bean wasn't going to end up with one thing in her basket.  Sure enough...

Luckily, most of the other 3-4 year olds were pushed on the field with a dazed look on their faces.  So slowly parents started going out and, politely, pointing out things for their kiddos to put in their baskets.  The cookies that Bean had been eyeing were gone, but she still ended up with quite a few things including a bunch of empty eggs.  Some kid had gone and emptied all of the candy and dumped the plastic shells on the field.  Bean did not care.  In fact, these empty eggs were her biggest treasures found that day.

Egg Hunt p.2

I had a family obligation that afternoon so we decided to do our home egg hunt when I got home that evening.  I commented to S that it would be great to do the hunt outdoors again this year, especially since it was warmer.  S started cracking up with a hint of irony--he then told me he had just barely fertilized the lawn and that we wouldn't be able to walk on it for several days.  Soo...we settled for an indoor hunt.  Which was really fine by me!  Except if you lose an egg indoors...

Bean was so excited and up to the task!

Not only did she find her own basket but she was able to find Boy's.

This year the Easter Bunny brought her lots of stickers and coloring books.  Hardly any candy.  A chocolate bunny, of course, and some chocolate crunch eggs (because I happen to love those) but the kiddo is still working on Valentines candy.  The hit was a pair of easter-bunny sunglasses.

Easter Photos

I had two kiddos to dress up for Easter this year so I was extra-excited to take their pictures before church.

First one was pretty good, but Bean kept her bunny glasses on.

Second one was good, but I lost Boy's attention.

Then Bean decided that it was Boy's turn to wear the bunny glasses.

Finally.  This is about as good as it gets :)

Egg Hunt p.3

Grandma and Grandpa H. had an egg hunt at their house after dinner.  Bean loved looking for eggs with her cousins!

Bean told me that Easter is her most favorite holiday.