Funny faces

Colin's expressions are getting to be quite funny. I caught a few of them this weekend. I'm sure you don't mind if I share.

His teeth! (this one isn't funny per se, but it is a good shot of the chompers!)
If drooling is any indication of more teeth on the way, I think we're safe in assuming they are Old Man lip
"I'm-having-so-much-fun-I-need-to-scream-about-it" (usually accompanied by butt-shaking)The Stinkerface:Fun with Daddy:
Caught blowing raspberriesWe spent the weekend doing a lot of little things. On Saturday, the three of us visited Kevin's grandma. She's home now after having her brain tumor removed. I went grocery shopping. I also organized the 3-6 and 6-9 month clothes that Colin has grown out of and put them in the storage room in the basement. Soooo sad he can't wear that stuff anymore.

Today, Kevin worked at the Home and Garden Show to drum up some business. Colin and I met Jess and Nolan for brunch at the Day by Day Cafe in St. Paul. It was some tasty food, and it was fun seeing Nolan walking! We got home at about 1:30 and Kevin's mom came to whisk Colin away so that I could bake some cinnamon swirl bread for his grandma. I also made some freezer meals--2 batches of Sloppy Joes and 2 pans of lasagna. I try to do once a month cooking every month. I usually make enough for 4 separate things. The meals are handy to have around for Monday and Tuesday nights when I teach piano. We can just throw something in the oven and it's done right when I'm done teaching.

So it was a funny face, productive weekend. What more could you ask for?

Double Digit Monthday

Dear Colinator,

You are 10 months old and more amazing than ever.
This month, you showed us that you are becoming such a big boy.

You push toys all around the living room and dining room whether they're meant to be pushed around
or not.
Pushing things around is your preferred method of travel these days. It's faster than crawling.

You always have some sort of bump or bruise or scratch. You're a wild man and you just don't know your limits sometimes.

You're starting to stand for a few seconds on your own.

You can wave bye-bye and shake your head when we say no-no.

Can I finally say that you are a GOOD sleeper? We have our routine pretty set. I pump a bottle of milk for you, you snack on it for a half hour. Around 7:00, you start rubbing your eyes, so in the bath you go. You get your diaper and pajamas on while you drink more of your bottle. Then Mommy attempts to read you a book. You're usually interested in just the first 2-3 pages, then you start getting antsy. Daddy comes in to give you a kiss good night, and you lay in your crib. Within a few minutes you're sleeping. Sometimes in the middle of the night you fuss for a few minutes and go back to sleep. Sometimes you do more than fuss and Mommy feeds you. Once your belly is full again, you go right back to sleep. Now...how do we get you to sleep in a bit more on the weekends?

And guess what else? You don't even use your nukky anymore! After you got your two front teeth in, you started throwing it on the floor. So we don't give it to you. This makes Mommy VERY happy. She was so worried you'd be sucking on it when you're 3 (no offense to readers whose kids had pacifiers until they were 3....). You still seem to like it at daycare, but that's probably because you see everyone else sucking on theirs. Your teachers say that you take other babies' nukkies away from them and put them in your mouth. That is yucky, so they just give you your own. Mommy's sure that once summer comes and you aren't in daycare anymore, you'll certainly be done with the nukky for good if you aren't already.

You like to open cupboards. You have your own drawer in the kitchen where you keep your wooden spoons and empty containers. You like to be held while Mommy dries her hair in the morning so she'll blow dry your hair a little bit too.

We went to the zoo last weekend. You saw a lot of green plants in the Conservatory. You liked them so much that you ripped some pieces off to take with you as a souvenir. And you also saw a few animals. Although, you were more interested in the people than the animals. You enjoyed your bundled-up stroller ride. We also went to Panera and you shared some delicious mac and cheese with Mommy there.
You like to lick (err, kiss) the patio door. Maybe because it's so cold. You run your mouth back and forth, back and forth. Good thing I have those handy Norwex cloths that I use to wash the door so I know you're not eating chemicals. Now dog slobber...maybe a little bit. You'll survive. (For the record, the window is only dirty on the outside. It is much to cold to wash windows in WI in February!)
You like to crawl under things. The kitchen table, chairs, the piano bench (you take the long way to the kitchen by going underneath it), even Rocket.

You're starting to use a sippy cup.You're eating a lot of foods now! Almost anything Mommy and Daddy eat, you eat too. Your favorite foods right now are steak, hot dishes (er...casseroles), toast with plum jelly, ham and cheese sandwiches, grilled cheese, pickles, bread, veggies, frozen peaches, mangoes, and blueberries, bananas, broccoli, puffs, yogurt melts, and dried cranberries, cherries, and blueberries. You like to try to be sneaky and drop some food on the floor for Rocket, who is usually close by when you eat. I think Rocket's beginning to think you're not so bad to have around.
And we think you picked up on the baby sign for "more." Tonight you were eating blueberries, and you clapped your hands together, so I gave you another piece. When you were done with that bite, you clapped them together again. We'll see if you keep doing it.

We already know that you are a strong-willed and independent snacker. We can't wait to see what we learn about you this month!

Love you Little Man,
Mommy

Does this look like crap?

We're playing a onesie game at my friend B's shower next weekend. Family and friends who are concerned that B will see this, relax. She didn't ask for an invite to the blog, thus, she can't! I'm safe. Anyway...We're bringing a onesie that "relates" to our relationship w/B in someway. A loooong time ago, when we were in high school, B was at my parents' house and a bird flew by and crapped right on her curled bangs. So I searched for a bird onesie. Couldn't find one...and especially not a gender-neutral one. So I thought I'd try my hand at applique and see how it goes. This is my very first attempt at applique.

From afar:And the eh...not so cute closer-up version:
Tell me. Do I chalk it up to being a beginner, put it in Colin's wardrobe (it's in his current size), and try again? Or is this "good enough" (good enough is never good enough...)?

My concerns are...the onesie is Wal-Mart's version of Carters, which is great for a layer underneath t-shirts, but a bit on the thin side. So the space between the between the bird's legs is a little flimsy. Plus, the legs aren't as vertical as I'd like them to be. And just the overall quality of the stitching (uneven...).

I think it looks pretty good from a far. But what I think it looks like (wanting it to be perfect and JUST what I envisioned) and what B thinks it looks like will be a different opinion.

So...tell me. Vote to the right, or leave a comment.

Tomorrow's Plan

I'm so excited about it, so I had to come and share. We're going to go to the Como Zoo Conservatory in St. Paul. It's a huge indoor garden greenhouse type of thing. We know it's warm and tropical in there. It will be a nice break from the cold weather for awhile! We'll be able to walk "outside" without our winter coats on and take the Maclaren stroller for a spin. Here's a picture. Nice, huh?
(picture from comozooconservatory.org).

And then I'm hoping to stop at Peapods to possibly get some diapers that will work better for night time. I'm spending my evening researching our options.

Doggie Bday, Just like Daddy, and I Got Skillz

On Saturday, it was Rocket's 3rd Birthday. We celebrated in our usual way. Rocket enjoyed a cup of Frosty Paws ice cream while I tried putting a hat on his head. The hat lasted about a nanosecond, and I decided not to fight it this year.So Colin wore the hat instead.
I came to realize that Colin is much like his father in so many ways. Chapter 1: "Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed" is not a good description of either them after waking up. More chapters to come in future posts.
I found that the lighting in our bedroom has the best light for pictures.
Colin climbed a mountain of pillows while the bed sheets were being changed.
And then he decided to practice his box-throwing, lap-climbing, mama-saying, love-giving, waving skillz.

Evidence of a life deprived of sleep for over 9.5 months. Click to make it larger and get a glimpse of one of his teeth :)
Although we are making slow strides on the sleep thing. Those darned teeth really got all of us into some bad habits. Now that they're here, we can break the habits again and get hopefully get back into a routine. At least until the next teeth or sickness spring up, right?

Well hello there!

Whew! What a busy week it has been. It all boils down to this:
Thursday afternoon, I left work as soon as the kids were out of the building because I was not feeling well. I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in bed...and running back and forth to/from the bathroom with the flu. By the time I was feeling somewhat functional around 11 pm, Kevin was down for the count, so I took the overnight baby shift.

I went to school on Friday, not feeling awesome, but needing to go because we had our first grade program. I muddled through the day, glad it was the end of the week.

On Saturday, the three of us checked out the daycare we *really* wanted. It's an in-home place, and Sandy was really nice. Two of my co-workers have used Sandy for their children, and loved her so much. We're so glad she has an opening in the fall for Colin (as long as unforeseen circumstances don't happen between then and now). She has a very structured day with plenty of outside time, activities, etc. She has a tiny toilet, low sinks, and a kitchenette right there in the basement.

My parents came up on Saturday, too, and hung out with us. I made some cinnamon swirl bread and some lactation cookies. My supply had dropped after being dehydrated from the flu and I was worried. I thought it was the end of breastfeeding because when I pumped, I was only producing 1 oz. at best.

On Sunday, my parents left in the afternoon and we continued to lay low. Kevin and I felt like we were hungover.

Back to work on Monday, and after downing some lactation cookies and drinking plenty of high-calorie Vitamin Water, and finally getting my appetite back (I woke up with a growling stomach!), I was so happy to find that my supply returned.

Colin's cutting the other bottom front tooth. If sleeping poorly means he wakes up every 2 hrs, and sleeping well means he wakes up every 4 hrs, he's sleeping semi-poorly. Last night, after being rocked, nursed, Tylenoled, and Orajeled, we started letting him cry it out again. It sucked. But then he slept for 4 hours. I hate letting him cry, but for the past few weeks, because of his teeth, we've been catering to him (as we should). But we're exhausted, and getting up every 2 hours isn't helping any of us.

It's another busy few weeks at school. The 100th day of school is tomorrow. I don't remember EVER celebrating it when I was in school, but it's a big deal now. Then the Science Museum of MN is coming to our school next week to talk to the kids about Antarctica, and we're going to see a small-town theater production play next Friday. The week after next is conferences. The only part I look forward to is having them done and not having to think about them again until next year :D

We found out last week that Kevin's grandma has a brain tumor. I'm not sure whether it's cancerous or not, but she does have to have it removed and she'll probably need chemo as well. Keep her in your thoughts if you get a chance.