OW...2 year molar!

Sydney has started BITING again... and chewing on EVERYTHING! We pulled out the "Teeth are not for biting" book from the library, as well as the baby teething rings for his urges to bite. Also, we remind him that "BITING HURTS" by reminding him of the day that he was helping Mike plant flowers and the beetle bit his finger... and how much THAT HURT!

Sydney also has been over-using the word "OW!" He yells it loudly when you try to hold his hand, when you attempt to lay him down to diaper him, or when you try to get him to do ANYTHING he doesn't want to do. He yells "OW!" whenever something doesn't go his way... for example, if his toy horse gets stuck inside the barn, he yells "OW!"

Mommy is TRYING to teach him: we only say "OW!" when we are hurt.

Don't get me wrong... the new (upper) 2-year molar that just poked through the surface probably DOES leave him in a near-constant source of pain and discomfort, but this is NOT what the word "OW!" was intended for.

NOTE: During the night, late Tuesday/early Wednesday of this week, Sydney started yelling "Ow! Ow!Ow!" and Mike went into the nursery to find Sydney SOUND ASLEEP... and dreaming! Hmmm, not only does he over-use "Ow!" during the day, but now, it seems that he is TALKING IN HIS SLEEP, too! (Funny!)

Rotavirus suspected in house, Sydney sick now too

On and off, all week long, we've had a mixture of good days and bad. 

On Sunday, I had been chilled and achey, but after a nap and some Tylenol, felt quite a bit better. My stomach had felt "off" much of the day, but I didn't know if it was from questionably old leftovers or my prenatal vitamin. (I, thankfully, felt fine on Monday - other than a cold sore and my normal pregnancy-related indigestion.)

Mike had thrown up at work on Monday and Tuesday and had come down with a fever, chills and aches. Tuesday through Friday, he's been focusing on caring for his "other end" and had stopped vomiting. He has had almost NO appetite for much of the week. Sydney and I appeared to remain healthy throughout this spell; although, we did notice that we were all starting to have some rotten smelling gas.

Some nights Sydney slept fine, while other nights, he woke up a lot. Some days, he's been especially snuggly and others, he is full of his normal spunk and charm. One day, he'd have an odd diaper or two and the next, he's be fine. Some meals, he would devour EVERYTHING on his plate and the next few meals, he would eat almost nothing.

This morning when he woke, Sydney was especially thirsty. (He's normally signing EAT before I pick him up out of his crib, but he did NOT do that today.) When we went downstairs, he asked for some "betta-butta" which in today's context means blueberries. We're out of them so, grapes were substituted for the request. He also wanted some of Mike's homemade banana bread. Knowing his typical morning requests, I got him some juice as well. He ate a few bites of food and quickly requested to drink MILK instead. (Hmmmm, odd... but no warning bells YET.)

Soon, he pushed his plate away, signed ALL DONE and asked to watch "ah-lee-I-on"  which is his version of "LION"... meaning that he is requesting to watch the PBS show - Between the Lions. He sat briefly in the recliner watching LIONS while I made myself a cup of chai tea and soon sat on the couch. He came over and laid down on his belly next to me so, I rubbed his back. (Hmmmm, also odd... but STILL no warning bells; silly me!)

Just a few minutes into the show, he sat up and snuggled against me. All of a sudden, he reached for my hand and started to throw up in it. (It IS normal for him to sometimes spit food into the palm of my hand so, at first, I wasn't shocked.) But it overflowed my hand so, I attempted to catch it in BOTH HANDS - hoping to contain it. Turns out, after multiple waves of it, I had puke all over my belly, arms, both hands and lap and wondered WHAT DO I DO NOW? (He's NEVER, thankfully, thrown up - like this - before.)

I instructed Sydney not to touch ANYTHING, but he seemed confused by my request. (I really didn't want it all over the couch and rug, too.) I was lucky enough to be wearing a button down fleece pajama shirt (phew, unbuttoned at least) over top of my short-sleeved pajama shirt so, I reached (carefully) to pull it off so that I could use it to contain the puke. Feeling like a turtle stuck on its back, I gained my composure and balance in order to stand up with Sydney and the mess of soaking wet pajamas plastered to my fat, pregnant body. The smell was HORRIBLE! We moved quickly to the kitchen where we stripped off nearly all of our clothes. (I left on my short-sleeved shirt because I didn't think it was best for the neighbors to witness the pregnant woman walking naked past the large picture window, knowing good and well that the teenage son is on spring break and spends A LOT of time in that nearby room playing video games.)

I started running some bath water and Sydney started to cry. I assured him that Mommy was going to come into the tub, too. Soon, he forgot that he didn't want to be there and I had to coax him to share some of the space in the tub so that I could come in to wash off, too. (He was all sprawled out in the tub, as if he was swimming.)

I washed and rinsed off as quickly as I could, dried myself and grabbed some fresh clothes to throw on. Sydney was content playing in the tub so, after I dressed, I ran downstairs to briefly assess the damage. There were a few small piles of partially digested grape skins laying in various spots on the dining room floor, as well as a trail of liquid drips; all-together, not bad at all considering what it COULD have been. I grabbed a fresh diaper for Sydney and ran back upstairs to find him still playing in the tub.

Once he finally agreed to come out of the tub, he was dried off and diapered. Within a few minutes though, he got a scared look on his face and started signing POOP. I assured him "It's OK." He ran to me as I sat on the floor; he exposed my belly, announced "betta-butta" and gently placed his cheek on my belly for comfort. (The belly, I tell you, has some magical powers that can make him feel instantly better!) It took some convincing, but I finally was able to get him out of his poopy diaper and into a fresh one. A few short minutes later, we were going through deja vu, but this time, he needed Elmo to join us for the group (fetal position) hug on the floor while he feared the next round of poop explosion. Afterwards, he was content to just stay there - curled in a ball between my legs with his cheek on my belly.

I talked to Mike and thanked him for sharing 1) his homemade banana bread and 2) his sickness. I told him about our exciting morning. He insisted that I call the doctor's office since we suspected that Sydney had been a little bit under the weather on & off - all week. They later informed me that there is a nasty G.I. stomach bug going around - a rotavirus - which sounded like what we had in our house this past week. I was warned that it can dehydrate toddlers quickly so that I should push fluids - with an emphasis on Gatorade, Powerade or Pedialyte. The nurse informed me that Sydney would most likely NOT want to eat anything at all and THAT IS OK as long as he's taking in fluids. IF, by chance, he did want to eat - keep it bland... cheerios, crackers, toast. Also, treat fever/aches/etc with Tylenol because it is gentler on the stomach.

Sydney wanted to watch tv, snuggle and read books all morning. (I did make some time to spray Lysol disinfecting spray on doorknobs, light switches, drawer/door pulls, remote controls, and telephones.) Mid-to-late-morning, Sydney asked for some cheerios so, we munched them dry while watching tv. Mike worked until noon and took over the tv-watching, snuggling and book reading duties so that I could go for a haircut and to the store. While I was gone, they enjoyed a one hour nap together.

We enjoyed some 50°F+ temps after carrying in the groceries and Sydney insisted that we draw with chalk in the driveway for a few minutes. The rest of the afternoon was hit-or-miss with playtime vs. snuggle time. When he saw mommy sit down to eat some dinner, he requested something to eat as well. He had a few bites of turkey lunchmeat and a couple of grapes before pushing away his plate to color with crayons instead.

He played a round of bedtime "HIDE" before Mike headed off to bed and we headed to the nursery to continue with bedtime routine.

I also discovered that Sydney's climbing earned him a free - headfirst - trip into Silas' crib tonight after he was climbing the one side and figured out that leaning would pull him in on his face. Unfortunately, it did NOT scare him... in fact, he - of course - found it FUN... so, looks like we will NEED the crib tent to keep Silas safe in his own bed. I reminded Sydney that "that bed is for the baby" but he pointed to himself, indicating that HE is mommy's baby. (I guess it doesn't help that I DO, in fact, still think of him as MY BABY.)

What a day! Hopefully, the illness in our household will pass quickly (and hopefully, I will remain healthy).

New favorite: HIDE!

Hello JCP (headless) mannequins

Today, Sydney and I ventured out to see Daddy at work. (Daddy hinted that he wants to purchase new carpeting for the upstairs bedrooms this weekend so, we were checking out his selections in order to save time on the weekend.) Afterwards, it was almost time for daddy's shift to be over so, we suggested that we meet for a lunch date in a little while. While we waited, Sydney and I ran to the mall to pick up Daddy's birthday present.

As we walked through the JCPenney store, Sydney was fascinated with all of the mannequins. He kept waving at every one that we passed; he didn't seem to notice that NONE OF THEM had heads because he waved HELLO to every one of them. (It was OBVIOUS that we don't go shopping all that much.)

Once in the center of the mall, headed towards our TOP SECRET DESTINATION, I laughed because Sydney suddenly stopped walking and started to dance. He could hear loud music playing from one of the stores that we were passing and he thought that it was a perfect time to dance. :) A few of the mall walkers smiled at this, as did I; it was pretty cute to watch.

We picked up his gift and headed back to JCP towards our car. Sydney ran into one store to wave HELLO to another mannequin along the way; the worker there smiled. He ran into another store to check out adult baseball hats that appeared to be Sesame Street characters, as well as a pole dancing kit; we didn't stay in that store for more than a few seconds. He also ran into another store because he saw Mickey Mouse in their window. Eventually, I kept ahold of the hood on his jacket, which he was NOT A FAN OF AT ALL; I think I might be best to get one of those monkey backpack-type leashes for him before the new baby comes and I find it nearly impossible to keep up with him. (At this age, he likes to run and be chased; it is SO FUN... for him! Not so much fun for us. I noticed other mothers had their kids contained in umbrella strollers... that's a nice thought, I guess.)

On the way back through JCP, we walked past the lingerie department. By then, I had picked him up because he was upset that I was holding onto the back of his hood to keep him nearby. Sydney saw two mannequins dressed solely in bra & panties and all of a sudden, he grabbed my chin to direct my attention, pointed and yelled "BOOB!" {I guess that's what a bra means to him... kind of like (age 11 months) any animal with four legs and a tail was EDDY and (20-months) any round produce is ONION. The brain development of children is truly fascinating!}

What a kid! He sure keeps LIFE interesting and full of fun!!

• • • • • • • 

At lunch, Sydney spoke a new word: SALSA!

POP, goes the weasel!

Yesterday, a package arrived on our doorstep from Uncle Mike & Auntie Karin; it was Sydney's belated Christmas present. He was SUPER EXCITED to discover the Jack-in-the-Box, as he plays with a vintage one with Grandpa Lowell (out of the toy chest at Grandpa's house). That old Jack-in-the-box was probably one that Mike used to play with when he was little.... and being that Mike is "almost 40"... that is A LONG TIME AGO! (When Mike got home from work today, he announced "I'm going to be really, REALLY OLD this weekend!")

Sydney caught a glimpse of the new J-i-t-B as we were headed upstairs for naptime. He yelled "POP!" and jumped (upwards) in my arms while I carried him upstairs. Once we got upstairs, I hummed the song for him and whenever we got to the POP-part, he would jump into the air. He was having a GREAT TIME pretending to be a jack-in-the-box, but FINALLY I had to encourage normal napping routine. (Perhaps, we will have to video tape him in action later.)

He also enjoyed some new puzzles from Mike & Karin. Thanks for the great gifts! He LOVES them!

3B's

Bath, Boob and Breastfeeding...

This morning, I woke before Sydney and had hoped to take a bath so that I could comfortably shave my legs. With just a few inches of water in the tub, I heard him start yelling "Up! Up! Mama! Up!.... Mama! Mama! Mama!..." When I went into his room, he insisted that we go downstairs to EAT right away. I showed him the tub of water, but he INSISTED that we eat so, we ventured downstairs to have some cinnamon raisin toast, sliced apple and some banana. The whole time we sat downstairs, I dreaded that the tub would cool off and that we wouldn't have enough hot water left to take a warm shower.

Thankfully, it was still warm enough for us by the time we were done with our breakfast snack. Sydney and I hopped into the tub together. Not feeling overly attractive anyways (with my growing belly and bulging leg veins), I opted NOT to shave my legs because Sydney probably didn't want to play in water that had stubble floating in it. After I had washed both of our hair in the tub and scrubbed him with baby body wash, I got out and started to dry off.

Sydney started talking. To me, it sounded almost like he said POOP.

"Poop?" I questioned (as my heart and thoughts started racing... NO, please DON'T poop in the tub... I HATE having to clean poop from the tub!) I decided that he had been in the tub long enough and didn't want to take any chances so, I quickly scooped him out and bundled him in his towel.

He shook his head NO and attempted to say the word again.

"Poop?" I repeated.

NO (shaking his head). Then, he reached his hand out of his towel and touched my boob, saying his word again.

"Oh, you said BOOB!" He smiled and proudly nodded his head YES! I confirmed "Yes, that IS mommy's boob."

I immediately took him into his room to dress him in a diaper and some clothes. As I knelt on the floor in front of his dresser, partially covered by my towel, I stood him back to his feet again. I was caught off-guard when he reached out to touch my boob again; I was downright SHOCKED when he leaned towards it - with an open mouth - and attempted to make contact with his mouth. "What do you think you're doing?" I questioned.

Ironically, just last Monday - at the library - I had talked to another mom (of 2 girls - about 2.5 years apart) about the thought of nursing NUMBER TWO and wondering if Sydney would remember it at all. She assured me "He wont have a clue!" Hmmm, now I am starting to wonder if perhaps she is mistaken in her analysis. (She had stopped nursing her first child at a much younger age than what Sydney was and her first-born was 7 months older when their second child came around .) It has been 5 months since Sydney last nursed; once NUMBER TWO comes around, it will be about 8 months since Sydney last nursed. I wonder what will happen once he sees his little brother doing it... or once he gets a whiff of that familiar (and comforting) "mommy smell".

I guess things will be interesting...

I did learn, however, that it is WISE to have an assortment of activities that Sydney can do while I am nursing NUMBER TWO. She said that her first-born wanted to sit near them while the new baby nursed, but needed to be occupied. I was also warned that I will most likely be nursing while doing TONS of other things around the house. We'll have to see how it goes...

Rollover accident for Sydney

The neighbor girls came over to play (while their parent's went to an Open House - because they just put their house on the market earlier this week). While they were busy playing, Claire (4) accidently ran over Sydney's foot while riding on the Sesame Street car. Sydney yelled "Ow!" and started to cry. He ran over to me and gave me a GREAT BIG HUG and patted my shoulder, as if he were telling me "There, there... it's OK!" (Funny how he comforts US when HE gets upset.)

Between his sobs, I asked him what happened. With tears rolling down his cheek, he pointed to his foot. "What toes got hurt? Should I kiss them?" He nodded YES and pointed to his foot again so, I started to kiss the toes on his one foot.

MOMMY: (Kiss) "One" • (Kiss) "Two" • (Kiss) "Three" • (Kiss) "Four" • (Kiss) "Five"

SYDNEY: "Ah, ah, ah" (sounding like The Count from Sesame Street)

MOMMY: (Kiss) "Six" • (Kiss) "Seven" • (Kiss) "Eight" • (Kiss) "Nine" • (Kiss) "Ten"

SYDNEY: "Ah, ah, ah" (sounding like The Count from Sesame Street)

Amazingly, he was ALL BETTER after that and ready to go play some more. (Between KISSES and him laying his head on my pregnant belly, I seem to have MAGIC HEALING POWERS.)

Sydney noticed the baby kicking, now says BABY

The past couple of days, Sydney has been saying a new word: BABY! (He knows there is a baby in my belly, but I'm not sure that he knows WHAT that actually means.)

This morning, after he woke (around 8am) we were sitting in the recliner together as he was resting against my body. I could feel Number 2 kicking and kicking up a storm as Sydney's back was pressed up against my belly. Finally, I asked "Do you feel the baby moving around in there?"

He sat up, turned around and looked at my belly (with a furrowed brow) - as if saying "THAT's what that is..." Then, he started poking and prodding at my belly with both hands. 

It was kind of funny.

No one noticed the shoes

This morning, while Mike was going to the bathroom, I noticed that his underwear was on inside out. He didn't seem to care all that much because he was tired and un-enthused to go to work. (He clocked in 60 hours this past week.)

Later in the day, when we talked to him on the phone, he questioned if Sydney and I were going to be running out later in the day. I explained that I hadn't necessarily planned on it, but inquired WHY.

Mike informed me that he was wearing two different shoes.

"What do you mean 2 different shoes?"

"Well, they are BOTH Reebok, but that's about the only similarity. They are two different colors... like one is navy blue and the other is white."

"Seriously? THAT is funny! So are they making fun of you at work for it?"

"Surprisingly NO. No one has noticed... or else they are too polite to say anything."

Interestingly enough, today was NOT a day that he was up at 3:45am getting ready for work. He didn't have to be there until 7:30 so, he should have been a little more alert than that, getting up at 6am.

I reminded him that his underwear were on inside out and said that he could use that as ammo to detract from the shoes if anyone noticed. "No, I think I'll keep THAT to myself." he quickly replied.

• • •

When he came home from work tonight, I couldn't wait to see (and take a picture) of his mis-matched shoes. He said they were VERY BUSY all day at work and that thankfully no one noticed the shoes.

I still think it is pretty funny! (At least he wasn't wearing two left - or two right - shoes.... and they WERE on the correct feet.)

Ah, honey... thanks for the laugh! That made my day. :)

Sydney teaches Tigger to JUMP

At naptime today, Sydney grabbed Tigger on our way upstairs. Once we got into Sydney's bedroom, he started jumping and hopping all over the place. Then, he would grab Tigger (with both hands) and airlift him repeatedly into the air. 

"Are you teaching Tigger how to jump?" I asked.

Sydney grinned from ear-to-ear, as if you could read his inner monologue saying: 

How did you know? I AM teaching Tigger how to jump!

Soon, Sydney started jumping and hopping on the twin mattress that rests on the floor in his room (for emergency sleeping station #2).

I reminded him that we were in his room for NAPTIME. I finished reading my book selection (to Tigger and Sydney... whomever was listening) and turned out the light.

Sydney climbed all over the twin mattress, adjusting the pillows and much like a cat - trying to find a comfortable place to lay. After a few minutes, as I could tell he was starting to get into a more calm and nap-ready state, I scooped up his blanket and Tigger and placed them into his crib. I scooped Sydney up, like a baby in my arms and said "You're next!"

We hugged and I laid him in his crib.

While I wrote this post, he has been talking to Tigger for the past few minutes, but has now quieted.

N-A-P-T-I-M-E!

Now, time for Mommy to do some more laundry - and retrieve the toy spoon and toy spatula from the current load of wash after they both went for a spin.   :)

Hats, Baking and tricks up his sleeve

On December 11th, Sydney woke from his nap and discovered lots and lots of SNOW! (He thought it was pretty funny that our car was completely covered.)

On the way upstairs, Sydney grabbed Mike's hat. We left it on the stairs and I told him that he could wear it when he woke up from his nap. (This kid doesn't forget a thing... he grabbed that silly hat right away and plopped it on his head.)

As I was putting him down for his nap, I told him that I needed his help in the kitchen to make cookies after his nap. He was pretty excited for that! I guess he had "a thing" for hats that day... as he wore the strainer on his head.

He wasn't quite sure WHAT we were going to do with all of these "things." After he helped me measure out all of the ingredients, we used the big mixer. Then, we rolled out our dough. (He kept reaching over and tearing off pieces of raw dough to eat.) He thought it was pretty fun, but didn't understand WHERE the cookies come into play. Then, as we started cutting out our cookies, he got REALLY, REALLY MAD that we couldn't eat them RIGHT NOW!!! He didn't want to wait for them to bake.

So, we had to take a break and color while they were in the oven. (I am LOVING how he is starting to purse his lips when he colors; he says "Oooooh!" as he tries the different colors on the paper. It is SO CUTE!)

I think that the cookies were WELL WORTH THE WAIT!

He likes them!!!

Someone has TRICKS up his sleeve!!!

Belt confirms belly is a little bigger (x+9)

I have a belt that my dad punched extra holes in it to make it SMALLER for me over the summer. I had been wearing that belt on a particular set of holes, but have since EXPANDED to the next larger set for my lower abdomen. That, to me, is proof that my baby belly is getting a tiny bit bigger. It'll be interesting to see where my belt ends up this time around, come April or May...

Last pregnancy, I regretted that I didn't take waist measurements until the very end. You'd think that I would have recalled that piece of information so that I could take a BEFORE measurement. Although, since I didn't really know I was pregnant at first, and with the worry of the repeat ultrasounds, etc it kind of slipped my mind to do just that. I'll try to do that more often, for my own peace of mind, but like daily flossing - can't guarantee anything.

As we walked from our car to the building, Sydney waved and smiled at anyone approaching him. A few old ladies were inside waiting for a ride and he did the same for all of them, too. Sydney charmed the receptionists, all of the patients in the waiting room, as well as all of the clinic staff that we encountered.  We were told that we have THE CUTEST KID EVER and how friendly he was. He gave out a few HIGH-FIVES to random women in the waiting room, as well as played peek-a-boo with one woman. He also showed a magazine cover of an owl to a few women.

When they called us back, we stopped in the hallway to have me weighed. The nurse announced "Go ahead and hop on up there so we can check your weight." Sydney assumed that she was talking to him so, he hopped up there onto the scale. (He weighed 22.6 pounds.) She laughed how he knew just what to do. We explained that we had him stand there a month ago so that we could see how much he weighed. She couldn't believe he remembered. (Ah, yes... this kid doesn't forget much, it seems!)

Today, at our 16-week appointment, I weighed in 3 pounds heavier than one month ago. That means, I am currently up 9 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight. (I am currently 11.1 pounds LIGHTER than my starting weight when I got pregnant with Sydney so, that makes me feel pretty good.)

There were no traces of sugar or protein in my urine. Baby's heart tones were 146 - which the nurse said was PERFECT. My blood pressure was nice and low. (I did forget to ask the doctor about that... since I have had dizzy spells when I stand up sometimes; I read somewhere that THAT can be normal for pregnancy though.) We declined the (optional) Quad Screen blood tests that test for 4 different birth defects; we're told that the 20-week ultrasound can detect all of them, except Down Syndrome and that we have until 22 weeks to have the test done if we change our minds. (I believe it was a routine test in MN. It is optional here and we're told that most people pass on it.)

Our nurse and the doctor both commented on how inquisitive and curious Sydney was. (As for the inquisitiveness, we did have to stop him from helping himself to the drawer full of vaginal speculums. His eyes lit up when he opened the drawer on the end of the exam table; to him, I'm sure that it looked a lot like Grandpa Olson's tool chest where anything was fair game to play with. The nurse laughed.) He also checked out the doctor's pretty necklace and her wedding ring. If only she would have let him play with her laptop...

On the way out, he stopped to charm a nurse in the hallway. She dug in her desk drawer and found him some animal stickers. (We warned her that he may stop by next time to help himself since he doesn't seem to forget much. She laughed.) She offered to give him more, but we politely declined because he tends to just eat them; someday, he will appreciate them for more than just flavor. While I stopped to get my glasses adjusted, Sydney decided to try on sunglasses. He's a funny kid and sure did look cute! 

I am told that I am no longer able to lay flat on my back from here-on-out. I suggested that I'm not giving up stomach sleeping yet though because it is nice to have more options than left-side or right-side. (Doctor tells me that I'll know when it is time to give up stomach sleeping because it will no longer be comfortable to lay on my growing belly.) 

Doctor wasn't surprised that I feel the need to see a chiropractor more often to keep my hips and low back comfortable - since the pregnancy hormones do a number on relaxing the body. (I've already made a mental note to ask for sleeping suggestions  from the chiropractor so that I can try to keep myself comfortable for longer stretches of time.) All in all, it was a silly (rather pointless) appointment without much to do or talk about. Next time, will be the SUPER FUN ONE... ultrasound! (I'm rather anxious for that one!)

31 days until the ultrasound! 169 days until our due date! It's getting pretty exciting...

Fussy butt... STILL (teeth or ears likely cause)

Sydney has been a fussy butt for most of the week - with the exception of when he's medicated. Didn't OFFICIALLY take his temperature, but his head has felt warm for most of the week and he has taken a liking to removing his pants and running around half-naked so, I am guessing that he truly IS hot. He's been snugglier, which is good most of the time. Although, this week, he has also been QUITE WHINEY and near-impossible to please.

He knows he wants SOMETHING, but not sure what... he'll point to a food, agree to eat it, take one bite and swat it away - pointing to something else. He will bring you a book to read and then, suddenly decide that he wants to watch tv instead. He'll chose to sit in his high chair, but then suddenly freak out because he wants to sit in the booster instead (or vice versa). He'll say he wants to color/draw, but suddenly suffers from extreme thirst or hunger. He'll tell you he's thirsty and you will give him a cup of something - only to have him throw himself onto the floor; although, twelve seconds later, he will calmly take a drink. He'll indicate he wants JUICE, but suddenly starts signing MILK instead. He'll throw a tempter tantrum if he expected his food in a bowl, but you gave him a plate instead. Sometimes, he wails because he wants to sit in the recliner with Eddy, but Eddy is busy looking out the window instead. Behavior like this makes for INCREDIBLY LONG (and exhausting) DAYS. (I had even threatened to go visit Daddy at work - and leave Sydney there on one occasion.)

He threw a fit yesterday afternoon that he wanted to eat RIGHT NOW. My first choice (string cheese) was NOT what he wanted. He INSISTED upon a hot dog and a banana instead. He ate NONE of the banana and just a few bites of hot dog before changing his mind that he didn't want to eat ANYTHING anymore. (I broke down and medicated him shortly after that.)

With ibuprofen (or Tylenol) in his system, he is his normal HAPPY CAMPER self. (And you can almost set a watch to it taking effect in 29-31 minutes.)

Yesterday, he put his crayons in his ears. (He's never done that before.) At the grocery store, he kept covering his ears with his hands whenever we neared the refrigerator cases - as if the SOUND was bothering him. I'd GUESS that he may have an ear infection. To outsmart him from putting crayons in his ears, I fastened his winter hat onto his head so that the little "mud flaps" covered his ears. It ticked him off, but kept his ears safe (for now). Otherwise, his upper eye teeth had poked through the surface weeks ago, but seem to be STUCK in a holding pattern - without any visible movement. (So, I guess his MOUTH could be bothering him as well.)

Hopefully, he'll be feeling better soon and back to his normal, chipper self. (And hopefully soon, we will all get rid of our colds for good, too!)

Goofball keeps GAGGING himself

Sydney has a new fascination: he thinks it is HILARIOUS to use the handle of his fork to gag himself while sitting in his highchair or in his booster seat. (Yes, for each meal we DO give him the option of where HE would like to sit.)

He did it a few weeks ago and naturally, I shook my head and said "You don't want to do that." He, of course, decided at QUITE an early age that "Mommy doesn't know what she's talking about;" THAT or the simple fact that he likes to test his boundaries and whenever we discourage something, he thinks it is funnier to proceed full-speed-ahead.

Naturally, from that first incident, he continues, from time-to-time, gagging himself with his fork - sticking it into the back of his throat farther and farther each time. He has now learned that he can make his eyes water and that it causes him to spontaneously gag. A few days ago, he did it to the point where he was involuntarily making barfing sounds. (I, of course, need him to learn that it is NOT fun to do, but verbally discouraging him will most likely add fuel to the fire. It seems some good old-fashioned reverse psychology may be in order somehow.)

As he did it at his most recent session, I pretended not to notice. Although, when he was making the barfing sounds as he pressed the limits to the max, I simply and calmly stated "Won't YOU be surprised when you throw up all of your lunch onto your tray?"

Somehow, I'm thinking that THAT is exactly what needs to happen before he realizes "Mom, you're right... that wasn't so fun afterall."

Some people's kids... I tell ya! Oh, the JOYS (and challenges) of parenthood!

Rotating books vs Upside Down

Developmentally, it is QUITE INTERESTING to watch Sydney grown and learn. It is fun to watch all of his AH-HA moments as he figures things out.

Interestingly, a few months ago, it wasn't uncommon to find him sitting on the floor and looking at an upside down book, not seeming to notice that there was anything wrong with it. Then, last month, he found it easier to stand on his head when his book was upside down. Now, he skillfully rotates the book with both hands so that he is holding it in the right direction.

Kitchen Helper and Tickle Fingers

This morning, I got out the rather neglected video camera and taped Sydney "cooking" in the kitchen with me. We were making Wedding Soup together. I cleaned some celery and carrots and placed them on a plate. Sydney had a chair in the kitchen so that he could supervise. He separated the carrots and celery into two respective piles and nibbled sample bites from both.

I encouraged him to go find his salt and pepper (toy shakers) and he quickly climbed down and went to retrieve them from the living room. I diced some of the carrots and celery for him and we put it in a bowl for him to stir and pretend to cook.

It was cute video footage.

Then, when Mike came home from work - after we had tried the soup for lunch - I showed him the footage. Of course, Mike agreed with me that Sydney is SO STINKING CUTE!

Then, we flipped through old footage on the camera and showed Sydney "That was YOU when you were a little baby!"

At one point, in the old footage, I had been tickling Sydney near his shoulders in our first real successful attempt to get him to laugh. (We had struggled for quite a while and despite the baby book telling us that he should be laughing, we just couldn't get him to do it.) So, we had caught him laughing on the video - with me tickling him by waving my fingers in the air and announcing "Tickle Fingers, Tickle Fingers, Tickle Fingers!"

Sydney thought that the Tickle Fingers video footage was funny. He held up his hands and mimicked my "tickle fingers" from the video. Mike and I thought that THAT was pretty funny.

Later in the night, Mike witnessed Sydney "walking" on his knees across the dining room while doing "tickle fingers" as he approached Mike (who was laying on the living room floor). Mike says he looked a little like Frankenstein. What a funny kid!

Now, if only I can get him to demonstrate "Tickle Fingers" for my video camera... 

Let's Pretend... chef at work

Sydney spent a large majority of the day with a spoon or spatula in his hand and an assortment of sauce pans, lids and frying pans within reach. He was BUSY BUSY BUSY pretending to cook food and would often stop stirring his pretend dish so that he could feed me a taste of it.

The hilarious part was that sometimes, he would stop to blow on it before serving it into my mouth.

Eventually, I got out his toy salt and pepper shakers. I showed him that we sometimes use just a little bit of salt and Mommy likes A LOT of pepper. He must have taken note because the S&P were his favorite additions to his pretend kitchen.

Sydney was "cooking" when Mike came home from work. I explained that we had done A LOT of cooking and taste-testing in Sydney's pretend kitchen. Mike thought we've got our hands full... Sydney LOVES to help in the kitchen. Also, I think he has been inspired by watching the Food Network with Mike. (Surprisingly, Sydney will willingly sit through almost an entire episode of Alton Brown's Good Eats, too - as long as we fast forward through the commercials!)

When I was making dinner tonight, I brought a kitchen chair in for Sydney to stand on. I showed him how to bend asparagus to make it snap at the good breaking point. I showed him that you snap it and keep the flowered end. I was pretty impressed when he stole a piece off of the counter and snapped it into two pieces - just like mommy did. We also measured water into a liquid measuring cup and I showed him which tickmark we were shooting for. He helped measure out some rice granules, too. (We were having FUN!)

After dinner, Sydney dug out our lemonade pitcher from a kitchen cabinet and insisted that he pour pretend liquid into his pans before seasoning and stirring. We asked him what he was pouring into his saucepan. Mike and I were pretty impressed that he knew to tip it over to pour (although, he does watch me pour milk onto his Cinnamon Life cereal some mornings). Mike laughed because he would shake the container to get the pretend liquid out. (Sydney was watching me shake the container of BBQ sauce the other day because it was almost empty; I think he is a little sponge and takes everything in!) I told Mike that he sees me get his cereal ready. At that same moment, Sydney was signing the word MILK with his hand.... YEP, he thought the pretend liquid was MILK.

This kid makes me LAUGH! He's SO STINKING CUTE!!!!

There was an incident with some POOP!

Sydney protested his afternoon nap AGAIN - similar to the rest of the week - where he hung out talking and singing to himself. Like a handful of other days this week, he did this for an hour. (You'd think he would have had enough incentive to sleep since I told him that Grandpa would be here when he wakes up from his nap. Perhaps, he thought it was better to wait UP for Grandpa.)

Around this time same time that an hour had elapsed, Grandpa Lowell showed up for his weekly Sunday with Sydney visit, but I insisted that he MUST get some sort of a nap in this afternoon because there is NO WAY he can make it from his morning nap until bedtime. We left him in his bedroom and after a few more minutes, he eventually settled down.

A short while later, Sydney started SCREAMING. It wasn't a "Mom, I'm up!" kind of cry. It wasn't an "I'm hungry" kind of cry. To the best of my better judgement, to me, it sounded like it was a "HELP! I am REALLY UPSET" kind of cry. I offered to bring him down, but Grandpa said "I'll get him."

Grandpa went up the stairway announcing "Who's making all the noise? WHO is crying?"

Soon, I heard "Oh, what's with all the poop?" (The voice in my head was saying "that's not a very funny joke, Grandpa.") Next, I heard, "I think you're best to go straight into the tub."

At some point during Sydney's nap, he managed to remove his athletic pants. At another point during Sydney's nap, he managed to remove HALF of his (poopy) diaper. (Grandpa reports that it was half-hanging on.) Sydney had poop all over his hands and smeared all over his butt cheeks. We set him, screaming, into the tub. I'm not sure if he thought he was in trouble - or what - since the screaming is not really his nature. 

We cleaned him up and got him dressed in fresh clothes. Then, he went for a stroller ride with Grandpa while I sprayed some Lysol into the air - in hopes of neutralizing the strong stench of POOH. Then, I stripped his bed and made a wipe-down concoction to thoroughly clean his crib. I did not find visible poop in his room, but it sure smelled HORRIBLE in there. It seems that the poop was (thankfully) mostly all over Sydney instead of his room. I have heard HORROR STORIES of people who had poop incidents where it was used as finger paint. (Shiver.)

Of course, Mike (and my mom) laughed when I told them the story. Sadly, I did NOT find the humor in it one bit. I had planned on running to the grocery store so I could finish up on our dinner plans. I wondered how I am ALWAYS the lucky one who gets to clean up poop. (Mike reminds me that it is because I am lucky enough to stay home with him every day.)

MENTAL NOTE: Purchase some tshirt onesies in his current size so that it becomes more difficult from him to EVER do this again.  Also, make a point of checking on him while he is protesting his nap to make sure that he is NOT getting into trouble. Little stinker.

• • • • • 

Happy Birthday "Auntie" Terri!

So many new things to attempt

Zerbert

On Thursday night, following a shower for Mike & Sydney, we all laid on our bed as a family. Sydney started laying his head down on our bellies lately so, I lifted up my shirt - exposing my belly button. 

I said: Sydney, do you want Daddy to show you how to ZERBERT on mommy's belly?

Without being shown, Sydney instantly crawled over and (proudly) started blowing zerberts on my belly. Mike and I looked at each other - puzzled - wondering WHO taught him the word zerbert. (Immediately, I thought of Aunt Sue.) We have done that before, but I don't know that we actually called it a zerbert.... or perhaps, we did - quite a while ago - and thought that he didn't take note of it, but obviously - he did! Silly boy!

Marketing Ploy

While watching the Food Network, there was a commercial for a brand of juice that is "healthy". Pictured on one of the bottles was Elmo. "Gee, that isn't targeted to kids now, is it?" I asked. All of a sudden, Sydney was pulling me out of the recliner and dragging me by the hand into the kitchen where he stopped in front of the fridge. He indicated that he wanted UP and that we should open the fridge. He pointed into the butter drawer where we keep his Sesame Street juice boxes.

I denied his request - indicating "You have a cup of juice in the living room. Let's go get that one."

Mike announces "Well, I guess that marketing ploy DOES work!"

Nose Blowing

Following a week of having colds, Sydney has observed Mommy (and later in the week - Daddy, too) blowing my nose. So, it was pretty cute when he took a Kleenex and held it to his nose before making a blowing motion into the Kleenex. (Granted, he is blowing with his mouth instead of his nose, but he understands part of the concept.)

Laundry Basket as Step Stool

Today, Sydney discovered that he can use the laundry basket as a step stool. He picked it up and carried it to his desired location before standing on top of the basket. Mike and I agreed that we should let him LEARN that it can be dangerous to stand on top of things. We didn't (seem) to notice him on the basket so, he nervously got back down again. 

Phew! Saved for a few more days, I hope.

Running blindly and BONK on head

On September 23rd, Sydney found a new fascination with RUNNING BLINDLY. He thought it was H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S to grab some clothes from the laundry pile, put it over his head and run around the house (not being able to see where he is going) while Mommy held her breath. (Thankfully, he did NOT run into anything... although, he came close to running into the wall/doorway from the dining room into the living room a couple of times.)

I am convinced that he could NOT see through my yellow polo shirt at all - which made me VERY NERVOUS. Eventually, I was able to convince him to wear a white kitchen cheesecloth dish towel instead - which should have allowed some LIGHT and vague shapes through. (And with that... he just ran FASTER! Hence, all of the blurriness in my low-light photos.)

Silly boy.

On October 7th, we were outside in the yard playing and Sydney discovered that he could cross both arms in front of him, as if giving himself a hug. He started doing this and running around the yard, laughing at himself all the while. He thought that this, too, was H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S, until he managed to trip. 

THUD! KA-CHUNK! (Imagine fancy Batman word graphics here.) WH-AAAAAAAH! (Wailing and searching for an immediate hug.)

Instead of being able to brace himself for the fall, since his arms were "not available", he landed hard on his stomach and hit his head on a tree root in the yard. (He got a good sized goose-egg almost instantly and had some minor abrasion.) He, of course, liked to look at THE BUMP on his head in the bathroom mirror and demonstrated with his hand "Oh, man... I BONKED my head!" when Daddy got home and asked "What happened to you?"

Poor little guy: Life is rough - living the life of a daredevil - it seems.