Bad Toes

An excerpt from a conversation with Patrick over lunch yesterday:

Matt: Patrick, what did you do this morning? Mommy tells me you played peek-a-boo with her toes.

Patrick: Toes? No kicking, toes. Timeout. Bad toes.

Who knew the blame game started so early? Patrick didn't do it; his toes did. Bad toes.

Unbelievable

Before I start the story, I have to warn you that I know how unbelievable this sounds. I know it looks like you are getting my very biased interpretation of what happened, but I'm going to tell you just the facts. If you choose not to agree with my interpretation, that's fine.

It happened yesterday afternoon. Nathan and I were sitting on the floor playing when Amber came up to us begging for attention. As usual when he sees Amber, Nathan got excited. I talked to him while I pet Amber, telling him to "say Amber! Say 'sweet Amber, good girl Amber.'" This went on for a few minutes where I praised Amber by talking to Nathan about her, telling him he should say her name.

Then Nathan looked up at Amber and clearly said, "Abba," much the same way his big brother says it, kind of like his nose is stopped up.

He has never said this while babbling; all of his "b" sounds have come out more like "babababa." The sound also did not happen in the midst of babbling. He wasn't talking before, and he didn't talk after. It was isolated and while he was reaching for Amber.

It happened again this morning during breakfast. Patrick was talking to Amber, and then she walked right into Nathan's line of sight. Without prompting this time, he again said, "Abba," while looking at Amber.

Sure it could be a coincidence, but I think it's entirely likely he's proving his place within his daddy's side of the family, the side that might as well be dog whisperers because of their unique relationships to all canines. I really do think that Nathan's first word (other than the "mamama" and "dadada" babblings) was Amber.

Nine Month Check-Up

Today we went to the doctor for Nathan's nine month check-up. It was pretty routine, even if the day didn't start out that way. I was pretty glad that we already had an appointment set up when Nathan promptly threw up all of his breakfast all over both of us as soon as he'd finished eating. Needless to say, that threw off my finely-tuned morning routine.

Fortunately, he seemed to feel better after getting it out of his system, and he's been fine ever since. We also still made it to the doctor with plenty of time to spare. I tend to leave a few extra minutes for traffic, and we were lucky not to need them today.

The doctor was pleased with Nathan's progress. He's a healthy kid. I asked about some of the typical physical milestones that he should be meeting by now and isn't, but the doctor isn't at all worried. Honestly, neither am I. Unlike Patrick at this age, Nathan seems perfectly capable of doing these things (like crawling), and it is merely a matter of motivation--or lack thereof. He'll crawl when he wants to and not a second before. In fact, he may not crawl at all and just get up and walk away one of these days.

I wonder if it's a second-time mom thing to just take all this in stride, knowing that he'll do all of this eventually and that worrying about it isn't going to change that one bit.

Anyway, as expected Nathan has grown less over the last three months than he needed to to keep up with his growth chart. Given his genetics, though, and the fact that his height and weight are perfectly balanced on the chart, this isn't a cause for worry. If he stays at his current percentile, he could still easily be 5'7''. I laughed when the doctor said that: "He'll be practically a giant in our family!"

For those interested in exact numbers, his weight is 18 lbs, 4.5 oz, height at 27 1/2 in, and head circ at 18 cm. For comparison sake, Patrick weighed about that at 15 months and was that height at just under a year. Despite slacking off in his weight gain, Nathan will still likely catch up to his brother before we know it. I can't wait for the first time someone asks me if they're twins!

Nine Months

Dear Nathan,

At nine months you are more special than ever. Did you realize that sometime around this day, you will have officially been outside my belly longer than you were in it? I guess that means you are quickly leaving behind your babyness and approaching big boy status.
This month hasn't brought on too many changes, though, which is actually kind of a relief. I get to keep you as my little baby just a bit longer. You see, I can tell that you're going to figure out how to start crawling any day now, and at that point there is no turning back. You're on a fast track to toddlerhood the second you learn about mobility. And while that isn't necessarily a bad thing, I'm not quite sure I can handle two active, mobile toddlers at once.

It's amazing how social you are, even at this young age. I'd like to blame it on your older brother and his example, but I wonder if you might just naturally be this way. Lately you have been working extra hard to win the affections of the other family members: Daddy, Patrick, and Amber. You and Amber had that special relationship from the start, and that continues. And it's not like Daddy isn't easy to win over with that big heart of his. All you have to do is babble, "Dadada" while looking at him, and he's gone.

Getting Patrick's attention, however, is your Mount Everest. Like any other toddler, he tends to be a bit self-absorbed, so you consider it a victory any time he's paying you attention, even if it's not quite as sweet and gentle as you might like. The last few weeks in particular, you have willingly submitted to being his toy, laughing as he plays peek-a-boo with you and shoves various toys at you only to take them back seconds later. I think you know that no matter how rough he can get, the second you get upset he will comfort you. You can wake him up in the middle of the night, making him cry as well, but the second he's comfortable again, he will start talking to you to comfort you until you've fallen back asleep. That's the kind of relationship I always hoped you would have, and it brings tears to my eyes to see how loving the two of you are with each other, with very little of the sibling rivalry I so feared.

For some time in there, I started mourning that your increasing closeness with the rest of our family meant that our special relationship wasn't as special as it once was. I suspect now, though, that it is simply because I am around all the time. You don't appear to cherish me as much because you don't have to work for my affection or attention. Yesterday morning, however, Daddy let me sleep late while he took care of you and Patrick in the morning. You were perfectly happy with the arrangements--until you saw me after I got up. At that point, you wanted nothing else, not even toys, until we had had some snuggle time together. I realized then that I still mean everything to you; you are still a Mommy's boy after all. And I suppose that as long as you keep coming back to me like that, I will willingly surrender you to everyone else around you whom you also love.

You are one very active boy, Nathan. This month more than any other, you have spent every waking minute playing. Just like your brother, everything is a toy. If you have been set somewhere without a toy in reach, you simply reach for whatever you can, playing with that object as though it was intended for you after all. It's been interesting watching your interest level in toys change over the last month or so. Suddenly you aren't content playing with one rattle or simple toy for hours; instead you get bored with the same few toys easily and insist on having them regularly swapped. It also astounds me to see that you seem to know how to play with each toy, even if you don't quite have the dexterity to follow through. Even two or three months ago you were attempting to replace the rings on the ring stacker. It's pretty clear to me that your mind works far in advance of your body. Honestly, I think I'd rather have it that way. It's just like the rest of us in your family.

Did you think I was going to go a whole month without commenting on your happy disposition? Of course I couldn't leave that out. Your goofy, toothy grin is absolutely contagious, and you keep me from losing my mind on some of Patrick's tougher days by flashing me that silly smile. You constantly remind me that life isn't all that serious after all and that there is much around us to enjoy and laugh at. I hope and pray that you never let life beat you down and that you can stay this happy and lighthearted throughout your entire life.

Sometimes I wonder what life would have been like without you, if I had been a mommy of just one. But then I remember how much it has enriched my life to have two sweet little boys, how much YOU have enriched my life. God certainly knew what He was doing when He sent you to me. I love you so much, my goofy, grinny, adorable, charming little Nathan.

Mommy

Shrug, Close Enough

As Patrick's language continues to grow, it's been great hearing him learn everyone's name. As he's done for a long time, he still yells, "Daddy!" when Matt gets home from work. He chatters to and about Gaga constantly, and he recognizes all his grandparents by name.

It's actually been a regular routine lately for him to crawl into my lap when I'm on my computer and ask for "pee-choo" (pictures). I'll pull up some of our vacation pictures or some pictures from Christmas, or anytime the pictures aren't just of Patrick, Nathan, and Amber. He thinks it's a great game to point out everyone in the pictures. "Gigi!" "Papa!" "Be-paw!" "Nana!"

Sometimes he surprises me with his memory. It only took one reminder each for him to remember his new cousins, Corey and Abby, that he saw last month. It's so cute hearing him say their names so clearly in his little voice. And one that didn't need any prompting was Uncle Steve and Aunt Ginny's dog Daphne (Daffee).

Oddly enough, the only person that he has a difficult time identifying in pictures is me. It's like he doesn't know what to call me. He can repeat me when I point to myself and say, "Mommy," or he can repeat Matt when he calls me Mommy, but he doesn't just call me that on his own.

Instead, I've often heard him calling me something that sounds strikingly like Jennifer.

Huh. I wonder what would make him think that all women who aren't his grandmothers are named Jennifer.

It's not like I'm not used to being called the wrong name. Up until a few months after I got married and shed my maiden name, I was called Christy. Anyone who knew both of us sisters as acquaintances got us confused, so I was called Jennifer regularly growing up. I guess it's not that big of a change to have my own son make the same mistake.

Of course, it would be a lot easier if every single one of his aunts wasn't also named Jennifer. But that's certainly not my fault, so I guess I'll just get used to being called Jennifer. In the meantime, I'll be reminding him that my name is Mommy every chance I get. And I suppose it's better than having him call every woman he sees Mommy.

Some Catching Up

I apologize for my prolonged absence. I just felt unmotivated to blog. I guess those monster vacation posts kind of took it out of me. So here's the short, bulleted version of the last week or so, minus the pictures I've been intending to post for even longer than that:

--I realized a little over a week ago that Nathan's weight hasn't changed in well over a month. He's barely gained anything since his last appointment at six months. Since he has his next check-up in a week, I decided the lack of weight gain was probably worrisome. So I started feeding him until he was at the point of spitting it back at me. It turns out at least part of the weight issues stem from my gross underfeeding of him. He's now eating over three times as much food as he was before. Hopefully he'll be able to make up some of that lost weight before Tuesday's appointment. Do you think his constant movement any time he's awake has anything to do with his need for so much food?

--Patrick finally figured out how to say "I love you" and what it means. He says it mostly before bed or when putting Nathan down for a nap, but he'll also say it to Daddy when he goes back to work after lunch or when he snuggles up to me during the day. My favorite part is that he will also do the "I love you" hand sign with both hands. He has to check each one to make sure it is done right, and then he'll say in the cutest singsongy voice, "I wuv oo!"

--Patrick apparently picked up a little stomach bug over the weekend because he woke up Sunday morning with a particularly icky diaper. He's had several each day since then, although he seems to be getting a bit better today. Fortunately, he didn't seem too bothered by it all. He was fine and happy until he had one of those diapers and was back to normal almost as soon as I could get the diaper changed. He also really enjoyed his "special juice," i.e. Pedialyte. I worried that Nathan was getting it too, but he seems to have escaped it, even though he did have one diaper that made me wonder.

--We didn't do anything special for Father's Day, since I'm sure you're curious. It was mostly just a lazy day at home, thanks in part to Patrick's poopy issues.

I guess that's about it. I'm sure there were more, less interesting stories that happened since I blogged last, but these were definitely the highlights. Stay tuned in the next few days (or weeks, you never know) for those pictures I have yet to get around to posting.

Thirty-Two Months

Dear Patrick,

I almost didn't write you a letter today. I figured in the aftermath of vacation, nobody would miss it. Besides, you might just be getting old enough that you don't necessarily need a letter every month. Oh, and it's tough writing something without lots of cute pictures to show off too, and I've been bad about getting pictures since we got home from vacation.

But then years from now when I'm finally getting around to compiling all these letters to file away for you to read when you'll appreciate them, I'll notice that your 32nd month is missing. I'll drive myself crazy looking for it, afraid that I mislabeled it or accidentally deleted it. I'll wonder why I didn't ever write something in the first place.

So to keep from driving myself crazy, I'm writing something anyway.

The biggest and funniest things that happened this last months have already been recorded in the last few posts about our vacation. Without a doubt, that was a blast. I suspect you had a blast as well, as you are still talking about your grandparents.

I realized this morning, though, that I'd forgotten a couple of great stories from our vacation since I didn't have pictures to go along with them. Together they pretty much sum up your personality right now.

While we were at Nana and Grandpa's house, Grandpa got some new speakers (or receiver or something) for the sound system in their living room. He and Uncle Steve were trying them out with some of Uncle Steve's eclectic music. They found a particularly rockin' song, one that was probably a bit inappropriate to play around you (but you would never know), and you started getting down to it. Lately you've been dancing a lot to all sorts of music anyway, but this was much more energetic than normal. One by one, all of us adults laughed at your dancing and then joined in the fun.

It took the utter lack of self-restraint of a two-year-old to get all of us uptight adults to dance as though nobody was watching, as though we were children ourselves. It was a good lesson for all of us.

Of course, as soon as we were all dancing like crazy people, we realized that somebody was at the front door--the etched glass door that looked right into the living room where we were dancing the toddler dance. Naturally we scattered immediately, but those few moments when you got to teach us how to let loose were worth the resulting embarrassment.

A few nights later, we got to experience our first time in a hotel room with a toddler you and the first time ever with Nathan. Daddy and I were nervous about how exactly we would all get to sleep, especially since you and Nathan are used to falling asleep in a dark room many hours earlier than Daddy and I do. Either we would keep you up late, or we would have to go to bed at 8 with you guys. Without going into details on how that worked out--since that's not the point--I'll just say that it did. We all got a good night's sleep both nights we were in the hotel.

The part Daddy and I loved, though, was listening to you put yourself to sleep. You did what we suspect you do every night after we leave you and Nathan in the room for the night. You started talking to your brother. "Good night, Gaga. Sleep tight. Night night. See you in a little while, Gaga. I love you." And on and on and on. The first night it went on for about half an hour; the second night it was more like two hours.

Nathan fell asleep about five minutes into the talking both nights. Hearing your voice comforted him enough that he fell right to sleep.

That's the kind of relationship you have with your brother these days. You're not without your sibling rivalry for sure. You've been known to kick him or push him when he's getting attention that you want, or sometimes for no reason at all. But minutes later you'll walk up to him and hand him a toy, telling him to "pway, Gaga." You're eager to put him down for a nap and then get him up from a nap and help change his diaper. You want to help feed him and always make sure I'm giving him enough to eat. "Bi, Gaga?"

In return for all your care for him, he loves you like crazy and looks up to you. Everything you do is either awesome or totally hilarious.

Most of the time, I tend to agree. Each month you turn into more and more of a little person with a charming, magnetic personality. If you continue along this route, you'll be completely irresistible by the time you're ten. Already you're someone I can be proud of, and I suspect that pride will only swell as you continue to mature into the awesome kid you're meant to be.

Mommy (or Jigglia, as you called me tonight) loves you, my sweet little man.

Vacation, Part 3

The last leg of our trip was to San Antonio, where we didn't visit family at all but focused on doing the normal touristy things. We started off in the Japanese tea garden, a lesser-known corner of a huge park that also includes the zoo, where we spent the next morning. The garden is beautiful and perfect for pictures.
Here's the waterfall in one corner.

A picturesque bridge

And another picturesque bridge and the pagoda in the background.

Unfortunately, the garden was a little less than stroller-friendly. There were stone steps everywhere. That was tons of fun with Patrick. He hadn't had a nap, so he screamed anytime he didn't get his way. And since he wanted to be moving every single second, it was tough getting good pictures of him.

So here's one of the better pictures of my three boys; it is one of several pictures that document their progress over the bridge. Patrick wouldn't let them actually stop for a picture. At least they got to slow down.

Then Matt hijacked the camera, and I'm glad he did. I think he ended up with better pictures of me and the boys than I've seen in a long time.

I really like this picture where you can see all the beautiful foliage in the background. You can also see Patrick tugging at my hand to keep moving, a common posture for us this day.

The only time I could get Patrick to stop was when I kneeled down to show him the fish in the water. He actually stayed like this for a long time watching the fish. He told me, "I see fishies," and then helped me compare the big fish and little ones, and fast and slow fish. This was definitely my favorite part of the visit to the garden, without a doubt.

The next day we headed to the zoo. It was super hot, and humid the way it only gets in central and east Texas. We were glad we chose to go in the morning, and even then we only stayed a few hours. Here are a few of the animals we saw; I chose most of the pictures I did because they were the ones whose names Patrick tried to say.

This bear showed off for me. Patrick said it more like "ba."

He also really liked the flamingos. I can't even begin to write how he said it phonetically. You kind of had to be there to hear how cute it was.

This rhino was right up next to the wall, showing off for all of us watching. Patrick easily said rhino for us but stumbled over rhinoceros a bit.

After attempting to say ostrich, Patrick gave up and insisted it was a duckie. Matt and I agreed to compromise with him that it was a big duckie. Really, that's pretty smart, isn't it? He made the connection between the birds even when they looked totally different.

Surprisingly, he said elephant quite clearly. Matt and Patrick stood watching this guy for a long time.

This is how Patrick spent much of the day at the zoo. The rest of the time he was holding one of our hands. We were impressed with just how much he walked at the zoo. I'm sure I tired out long before he did.

And this is how Nathan spent much of the time at the zoo. I don't blame him. It's not like he could see much of the animals anyway. He'll have a lot more fun the next time we go, I'm sure.

I don't have any more pictures of our vacation, but we did have one more exciting outing. Of course we meandered up and down the Riverwalk for a while that evening. By the time we stopped to eat dinner on the Riverwalk, Patrick was starving and ate more than Matt or I did easily. He didn't act at all tired of walking, either, but he didn't argue when we let him take Nathan's spot in the stroller for the walk back to the hotel.

Overall, it was a really fun vacation. I like that we split it up into time spent with family and time spent creating memories with just the four of us--well, five when you include Amber. Still, it's nice to be back home in a routine again.

Vacation, Part 2

I'm so, so sorry. I took a TON of pictures in Big Spring. I've been narrowing them down ever since, and I still have too many.

I forgot to take any pictures the first day, so I missed my chance to get any of Matt's brother Daniel. Funny that I should notice the pictures I missed when I still have this many, isn't it?

Anyway, we started the pictures with a photo shoot for all three boys. This was the first time we got to meet Corey (sorry if I misspelled that--please let me know if I did), so of course we took tons of pictures.
Yes, Matt got a decent picture of me with the boys, and I know I would catch lots of flak for not including it.

And this was the best one of all three boys. Patrick was being a little less than cooperative (go figure!) and Nathan had lots of fun looking at everything going on, not the camera. Thank goodness Corey is so photogenic!

How cute are these two together? Nathan was very curious about his cousin.

Did anybody guess that Nathan is a bit ticklish? Grammy had fun checking out just how ticklish he is.

I also took some portait-type pictures of Corey. I got a lot of good ones, but I think this one is my favorite. (By the way, if you're reading Jennifer, did you get those pictures yet? Do I need to burn a CD and send it to you?)

Boys and their toys...sigh. Gramps, Papa, and Nathan are all fascinated by that cell phone.

Gramps might as well be called the dog whisperer. The sad part is that this isn't even all the dogs that were there. Tootsie and Mitzi didn't make it in the picture. (And for those of you wondering, all six dogs were great with the kids. The biggest dogs are actually the most gentle, too.)

Patrick showed off his stripping skills as soon as the photo shoot ended. We couldn't keep him in clothes for the rest of the day. As for the expression on his face...I have no idea. :)

He's serious about riding that Harley. It makes a grandpa proud, doesn't it Papa? He's just missing a leather diaper.

Patrick had lots of fun with his great-grandparents. They both have a way with kids.

Gigi has the touch. She managed to get Patrick to sit still long enough to read a whole book. For Patrick, that's quite the achievement.

I LOVE this picture of the two of them. They are so photogenic, and they look so happy together.

For something different, we tried Nathan in the swing that was out more for Corey's sake. He had fun, as you can tell, but it didn't quite relax him the way it does for Corey. Patrick really thought that swing was cool, too.

Patrick kept wanting to wear these sunglasses, but he wore them on his head as often as he did on his face. And he never wore them outside. The things we'll do for fashion.

Papa and Gigi have a nice, lush, huge yard, so we took the boys outside late one afternoon to see if we could get a few pictures of them together. We have so few decent ones after all. For once, I think we got some pretty cute pictures. This is my favorite. I particularly like the pine cone that Patrick insisted on bringing inside with him. Somehow it didn't quite make it home, though...

Hmmm, I don't know about this picture. Neither does Nathan apparently.

That same evening, we drove up on the "mountain" (I think it's really just a big hill, but humor this Houstonian) that overlooks Big Spring for some more photo ops. If you look closely in the background of several of these pictures, you'll see some of the booming metropolis of Big Spring.

Aren't they cute? I haven't gotten too many pictures of Nathan with his daddy lately.

Nathan and Gigi are taking in the view. It was super windy (what, in west Texas on top of a mountain?), so you'll have to excuse the women's hair in these pictures.

Papa did a great job taking charge of Patrick and making sure he didn't run right down the side of the mountain. Patrick, that is, not Papa.

Because clearly Patrick was determined to get somewhere he wasn't supposed to.

Patrick and Daddy are taking in the view. By the way, you may notice the sky. Never, ever will I find a sky that compares to the sky in west Texas. It's always bluer and bigger there.

I attempted a group shot, too (I'm behind the camera, before you ask), but obviously it's easier said than done. This was actually the best one I got. At least both Matt and Gigi are looking at the camera, right?

They're not as close to the edge as they look. I promise. But that is typical of Patrick, isn't it? Let's get as close to the edge as possible and then lean over it. That kid's going to give me a heart attack one of these days.

Yes, I did hand over the camera for a few minutes anyway. I'm not overly fond of the picture, but I'm blaming it on the wind. Nathan, however, posed perfectly as usual.

At the very peak of the mountain is a playground. You didn't think we could leave before letting the boys play some, did you? These are the stairs to the playground.

The three generations of men swinging. I'm not sure who was having more fun here, Patrick or his daddy.

The kid looks like he's having fun, doesn't he? You can credit this photo to Papa who took over for a few minutes so that I could reclaim my own childhood in another swing.

Nathan was a little less thrilled about the whole idea of swinging in a big boy swing, but he obliged long enough for a few pictures.

Then Patrick tried the big boy slide. I managed not to have a heart attack with this one because he clung to both his grandparents' hands the whole way down. I'm not sure whether he loved the slide because of the rush of cruising down it or because he got to hang on to his grandparents as he did so.

And tomorrow, our weekend in San Antonio. I promise not quite so many pictures from this leg of the trip!