Nico: 11 months

Dear Nico,
Wow, this past month you've changed a lot.  Luckily, I captured most of it in pictures (thanks to the iPhone).

You currently have 2 teeth.  You drool all the time now.  Last night, you were crawling around, with a steady stream of drool escaping your mouth.  I thought, "Man, he's drooling a ton," and then I thought, "Hmm.  This seems to be a different kind of drool."  I pried your mouth open and sure enough, found a broken yellow crayon.  Change #1 is that you are putting everything in your mouth these days.  We have to watch you like a hawk. I've lectured both Bode and Gianna to make sure that the floor is clear of any small objects. They understand this, but they are babies, too, so can't be expected to remember to pick up stray crayons and Legos. But they do know to tell me if they see you put something in your mouth.  They are always quick to yell, "Nico put something in his mouth! Nico put something in his mouth!" so that I can quickly fish your mouth for the object. 

Change #2: You are starting to pull up on things.  The very first time I spied you doing this was in the garage.  Whenever we go outside, we all stop at the shoe basket and put on our shoes.  And you've learned this routine, too.  Once that garage door is opened in the kitchen, you make a beeline for the garage.  (Yet another area that I have to be careful about because I don't need you attempting to crawl down stairs!) The first time I saw you pull up was on a low basket in the garage.  And now, you are pulling up on other objects, too. You are ready to stand, moving your legs out straight, so that you are doing an inverted V on the floor.

The biggest surprise was last week, when everybody was in the playroom.  You decided to crawl up on the trampoline!  That was a pretty amazing feat, and I just sat there and stared, snapping pictures while you climbed up.  When you got up there, you sat and bounced, like you knew what to do.  While you bounced, you had this big smile on your face. You were so happy.  I clapped and cheered for you.  Then I called Daddy and told him that he needed to put the trampoline in the basement ASAP.  And so it is, but you're still looking for things to climb on. 

Speaking of play, you love playing ball. You are so good at rolling it to another person, catching it, and throwing it out again.  We usually do this in the morning before your sibs wake up. It is our little morning routine, and we both enjoy it. If I need a minute to do something, I can just roll a ball to you and you will play  with it for awhile. You love chasing after the ball, rolling it away, chasing after it again. 

Change #4 would be to food.  No more baby purees for you.  You won't even let me near you with a spoon.  If I approach you with a spoon in my hand, you push your arms out as if to ward off something bad, and turn your face away.  Today, you'll only eat finger foods: shredded chicken, peas, banana,  strawberries, watermelon, pasta, and pancakes.  It stresses me out, because I worry that you're not getting enough to eat.  I just have to trust that you're going to fill yourself up. At dinner time, you're more vocal and will 'demand' food while we're eating. Sometimes I don't give you what you want and you'll grimace and demand again.  It's kind of fun, to see what you'll eat. But it's also nerve-wracking, like, "Is he going to choke on this?"  

Change #5 is to sleep. But isn't sleep always changing with a baby? And it is a Rule that if you talk about sleep and a baby, the Universe and Baby will decide to change things up on you real fast. So let me just say that I've had a good sleep this week, and leave it at that. 

Thanks for being so wonderful.

Love,

Mommy

xo

If there is a water shortage in California

Mia Gianna is back! I want to keep her away from little ones, so we are not going to playdates or to the park for a few days. We all needed a break from the  house, so we headed to the grocery store for some fruit.

Hello, lovely G.

Bode loves getting Gianna's attention.





I usually put them in a two-seater shopping cart, but I couldn't find one today. It was a quick grocery store run, so I put Bode into the shopping cart's basket. He loved it. And he loved taunting Gianna into turning around to look at him.  Shopping for fruit is the perfect activity with a toddler!  Bode and I picked out a watermelon, some peaches, oranges, and apples. We counted them and talked about their colors. Plus, he loved sitting in the basket with the fruit we acquired.

As usual, while Gianna napped, we went outside and watered the plants.  Bode has figured out how to put his little thumb over the hose, so that the water sprays into a big arc. He thinks that this is the greatest thing ever!

"Working at the car wash...."



I finally realized that I should probably just take the soaked clothes off of him!

I told Bob that we could turn the water hose on, give it to Bode, then leave for hours. And when we returned, several hours later, Bode would still be in the backyard with the hose, happy as a clam, playing "car wash" and hosing down everything in sight. Of course, we would never really do that.  (And before I get any frantic emails, I don't leave Bode alone outside.)

I realized today that I really should pull out the wading pool for him to splash around and play. He goes to swim lessons once a week, and I'm sure he'd love more pool time.

Then again, if I do that, I may never get him out of it.

Happy Wednesday!

xo

Some like it hot

The heat. Oh my, the heat.  I know I am a wimp. I know (as Bob frequently reminds me) that I lived in Texas, where it is above 90 degrees most of the year (okay, not really, but it feels that way sometimes). This week, our temps here are in the 90s with lows in the 60s.  I'm wilting.

Babycakes is doing much better. Thank you, everyone, for your concern and good thoughts.  Unfortunately, the fever was not due to teething, as I had optimistically naively stupidly thought. Her fever just kept climbing.  And finally, when it reached 104 degrees, I was "allowed" to bring her in for an appointment. 104 degrees!!! I had no idea that babies could have such high temps for so long. It was so frightening to read the thermometer. I felt like I was living in a nightmare. Really, it got to the point that I could just feel Gianna's forehead and guess the temp. Friday night was brutal, with a pediatrician visit and a visit to Urgent Care, but we survived. My poor baby went through so much.  Her fever broke on Sunday, and a few minutes after that, the e.r. pediatrician called and diagnosed her with a virus.  Today, she is looking and acting so much better. What a relief. And, my favorite thing right now is when I pick her up from a nap:  a smiling baby with a cool forehead!

So Sunday night, I knew I was going to be under house arrest for a few days while Gianna recovered. I put the babies to bed, and then ran out to the store for groceries. FYI, I despise doing any kind of "work" after I put the babies to bed.  I feel like I am "off work" once those little ones are sleeping. So running to the store was not high on my "want" list.  But it was a "need" so I went.  While shopping, I found this gluten-free pizza dough mix, and thought that sounded...interesting.  Bob has been gluten-free for too long.  I miss pizza!  So tonight, Bode and I made pizza.  Why I *choose* to make pizza on one of the hottest days this year, (a sweltering 92 degrees), I can not explain. Maybe I want to see how hot I can take it. So I crank up our range to 425 degrees, and put a pot of tomatoes on the stovetop to boil because hey! if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen!

Okay, that made no sense.  Here is Bode topping our pie.  He enjoyed putting piles of cheese and veggies on one part of the pizza dough. I had to remind him to spread things out. 

"I do it myself"

His shirt is wet, but his hands are clean.

More cheese, please.

The finished product (after we ate more than half of it)

The dough came out pretty good, considering (considering: it is gluten-free, considering: I have never made pizza dough, considering: we were all starving, etc.). Of course, I would have preferred a thinner crust.  But it was fun to make and to eat (even though our house felt like the inside of an oven).

Stay cool.

xo

A mustache and a fever

Every morning, Bob makes a green drink.  It consists of water, spinach, banana, and some frozen fruit.  Bode always has a green drink with Bob. It is their little ritual to start the blender by announcing, "blending" before the blender roars, and grinds everything down to a green, pulpy liquid.  Bob pours the drinks, they clink glasses and say, "Cheers."  This morning, after guzzling down his green drink, Bode had a huge green mustache.  It was cracking me up. I sat across the table from him and giggled like a loon.  Maybe it was from lack of sleep, but I could 'see' him as an old man.

Our lovely G is not feeling well. Gianna has been running a fever since yesterday.  She's been averaging about 102 degrees.  We almost took her into Urgent Care yesterday afternoon. But, right as I strapped Gianna into her car seat, a nurse called and told me how to care for her through the night.  I was nervous about her temp, but put her down for bed around 7 PM. Gianna woke up crying at 11 PM with a temp of 103.  Yikes!  But the nurse told me not to call unless her temp was 104. So I gave Gianna a sponge bath and some drugs.  After an hour, her temp was down 1 degree.  Then she was up again at 4 AM. And again at 6 AM.  She is so hot to the touch. I hate to think about how she must be feeling.

Every morning, Bode "hides" behind Gianna's high chair so that she has to turn around in her seat to "find" him.  But this morning, our feverish girl could barely smile and engage with her brother. 

I have made an appointment for the pediatrician this afternoon because Gianna isn't doing any better.  I am hoping that it is just teething. I am sure that her top front teeth are coming in.  But I don't like this fever! So we'll see her ped and get the OK from her, so that we can hopefully stop worrying.

xo

The "no dairy until 1 year" rule no longer applies

Sunday, I gave Gianna a sippy cup of water while I ran downstairs to pick out her outfit.

But, that wasn't good enough for her, because when I returned, she was helping herself to Bode's snack cup of cheddar Goldfish crackers.

And apparently, that wasn't good enough for her, either.  I went downstairs again to retrieve something else, and when I returned, I found that she had taken Bode's yogurt off the table.  And she was eating it.  She was sticking her whole hand into the cup and then sticking her whole hand into her mouth, just like when the bears eat honey on cartoons.

Yep, she was eating yogurt, and painting herself and the floor with it.

She was having a great time, until I decided to take the yogurt cup away and put her into a bath!



Happy Wednesday.

xo

Gianna's First Playdate

 Gianna went to her first playdate today.

With Bode at swim lessons, and Gianna not napping, I was not tied to the house today. I could have run to Target for baby wipes, which we need. I could have gone grocery shopping for food, which we need. I decided to take Gianna to a playdate. The playgroup met in front of a Starbucks (yay) and then walked over to a park.  I had to giggle, thinking "the stroller brigade" as a group of us moms rolled our babies in their strollers across a busy street. Once at the park, we spread out blankets near a swing set and the moms chatted, while the babies crawled around, on, and over us.

I think Gianna had a good time. But honestly, the playdate was more fun for me. I really enjoyed talking to other moms with the same-age babies. And it was a bonus because, while mobile, most of the babies stayed on the blankets that we had spread out. So we could sit and talk in the sunshine without a lot of interruption.  The babies had fun rolling balls and gumming teethers, sippy cups and stuff.

I learned something today, too. Gianna can throw a ball!  She'll throw it, and if I give it back to her, she'll throw it again. We did this for a long time at the park. 

I would love to dedicate 1 day a week to each baby. It would be great if Gianna could have a playdate on her own, and Bode could have one on his own. I remember after Gianna was born, I would spend a few hours alone with Bode, once a week, just taking him out to lunch or to a park. I need to continue to do that. I think we all would enjoy that time together, alone.

It is windy up here in the hills today. There is a wonderful breeze coming through the house. I am actually chilled; I think I may have gotten too much sun.

I started on our summer list. I would love to go to a farmer's market tomorrow! I know that the babies will enjoy it, too. But I'm afraid I'm going to have to go to the grocery store first, for dinner tonight. ;)

Happy Friday!

xo

Park Playdates

Last week's wind and rain has been replaced by sunny blue skies and warm air.  I've been cutting Gianna's nap short in the mornings in order to do some house hunting and errand running. Oh, and let's face it:  hitting Starbucks.  But the babies have enjoyed Starbucks. I have proof.  And, they have enjoyed a couple of park playdates, too.

Enjoying the lights in Starbucks.

Bode mixing his yogurt parfait.

Mommy happy, babies happy.

Bode wore this hat for the first year of his life. Gianna? --Not a fan.

All his toys are being played with by others.



After holding a squirming Gianna for 10 minutes, I finally let her crawl around in the sandbox. Eeek!

Bode brought his construction trucks to the sandbox at the park. This of course attracted the attention of all the boys in the park.  Bode wasn't sure about sharing his toys. I could see the confusion/anger flash over his face when other boys helped themselves to his toys.  After my gentle reminder that it is  a requirement  fun to share with strangers friends at the park, he just let the boys play with the trucks.  I hope that he remains "sweet" like this for awhile. Dammit. I just jinxed myself again, didn't I?

I am dreading the time when Bode becomes more aware of, and participates in, every day things like, not sharing, yelling, pushing, etc.  I know that it's all a part of growing up. But man, he is just so sweet, so pure and good right now.

A few weeks ago, we were at the park. I was leaning on the edge of a play structure, watching Bode.  This little boy walked right up to me and screamed in my face, "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" I blinked, took a deep breath, and calmly replied, "I am not in your way."  I wasn't. I wasn't in anyone's way. This kid was just out of control. I immediately began looking for the responsible adult.  Then the boy did it again. He ran right up to me and yelled, "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" This time, Bode witnessed it and laughed out loud.  I told Bode that we don't yell at people.  But of course, Bode repeated "Get out of my way!" several times. Every time, I would remind him that this was not an acceptable way to talk. He thought it was funny. I was really angry about how this boy yelled, and that Bode witnessed it and thought it was okay, funny even, to talk like that. I worry about Bode changing from sweet boy to this...other...kind of boy. This kind of behavior is what prevents me from enrolling Bode into preschool.  Well, that and the fact that I can't stand the idea of being apart from him. Maybe it is inevitable. Maybe I will read this post one day and laugh and laugh at my naivete.

Today, we went house hunting (again).  There was a fabulous park in the neighborhood. It even had a dog park attached! Too bad I didn't bring Priscilla with us. We stopped and enjoyed the swings. We also watched the doggies in the dog park part. Bode really wanted to go in there. He loves dogs so much!

A similar play structure as our park, but still fun for Bode.

Without socks. Daddy would not approve.

At least her head is covered.

Tire swing = big fun

Removing her hat in the shade.

Do you have any fun weekend plans? I am hoping that we put together a summer list. Do you put together a summer list? Here are a few things I've thought of that I would like to do this summer:  eating ice cream at an ice cream parlour (a first for Bode!), a picnic in the park, the farmer's market, and a visit to the zoo (another first).
Oh, and there are also two major birthdays up ahead!!! I can't believe I have made it this long without an obsessive post about the birthdays!  Here is a hint:



Gianna, one day old

Looking at that pic of Gianna and Bob makes me weepy.
Happy weekend!
xo

P.S. Bob, I know that you don't approve of Gianna being without socks/shoes. But we were in the car forever, and you know that the car seat gets really hot for her. So I let her go sockless while I drove to San Jose. Then we stopped at this park. I didn't realize that I didn't have her socks/shoes with me until we were like 5 miles away from our car (ok, not really 5 miles but it would seem like 5 miles if I had to haul everyone back to the car for a stupid pair of socks). (Oh, and will you please pick up some coffee the next time you are out?) (Oh, and this is how we communicate now, through this blog. Love you!).

P.P.S. to all who are concerned about the above, I am just kidding! (about the communicating through the blog part, not the socks part.)

P.P.P.S. It is really just a way for me to test to see if Bob is reading this blog.

P.P.P.P.S. Kidding!