Pacifier weaning (Update pt. 4)

While my mom was here, I mentioned that I wanted to try to get Colin to not be as reliant on his pacifier anymore. 14 months isn't by any standard TOO OLD to be using a pacifier. But...it's one less thing to remember, one less thing to keep clean, one less thing to take away when he's older. It's not that he uses it constantly. He uses it when he sleeps and naps, and about 1/3 of the time he's awake (if he's in a good mood).

Day 1 was horrible. We went grocery shopping, which he usually does just fine with because he loves to ride in the cart. And we rarely bring his pacifier in the store with us anyway. But, since he hadn't had his pacifier all day as it was, he threw an absolute fit almost the entire time we were there.

Day 2 was less horrible.

Day 3 was just as horrible as Day 2, but you could tell he was so distraught over the trauma.

Day 4 in the morning, I was talking to some co-workers who, when I mentioned I had decided to take the nukie away, immediately looked at me with horror-stricken faces and said "WHY!??!" I didn't really have an answer for them. One mother of 3 told me that when her kids were done with them, they were done. One threw the pacifier across the room and never looked back. The youngest opened the trash, spit his pacifier into it, shut it, and went about his merry way. Then I got to thinking...Colin doesn't have a blanket or a stuffed animal or any other sort of "luvey" that he's attached to. His pacifier is what he's attached to. And if that means we have to take it with us (almost) everywhere we go, then so be it. It's a lot better than dragging around something 100x its size.

So...it's his. Until some professional tells me he's developing an overbite. Or until he decides he's ready to give it up. Or until he goes to kindergarten.

14 monthday (update pt. 3)

...4 days ago.

The monthly updates will now be every-other-monthly-updates. Yes, he's still doing so many things so quickly, but he's not changing in appearances as fast as he did that first year.

Colin,

You are such a little monkey. You are beginning to really get the hang of climbing. I had a ladder out to cut the tops of the lilac bushes off, and you climbed up onto the bottom rung and wanted to go higher!

Your vocabulary is quickly growing. We love being able to communicate with you and know (almost) everything you want. My most favorite thing to hear is "Uh ee(s)" which means "up please" when you want to be carried. But before you say "uh ee(s)," you pull on our fingers so we get down to your level.

You seem to like a tidy house. First it was the obsession with the vacuum, then the brooms. Now I've noticed that you like to put your snack cup or your sippy cup on the end table when you're done with it instead of leaving it on the floor. You also like to throw things away in the garbage. You walk right into the kitchen and throw things away all by yourself. I really appreciate all the help, Buddy!

You are sleeping pretty well throughout the night. You don't wake up hungry anymore, which is a huge relief to us all. Sometimes Daddy has to give you back your pacifier at night, but other than that you're a great night sleeper! Now how can we get you to sleep later in the morning? You're an early bird who sometimes likes to wake up at 4:45! We let you sleep with us in the mornings when you do that, and then you sleep until 7:00 which is much better.

You like things with wheels and things you can push around. You give Rocket hugs and play with him by finding sticks for him to take from you. You love be outside, and sometimes we're outside almost all day long. We go for at least 2, if not 3 or more walks every day.

You still don't like very many vegetables--only green beans. But you continue to amaze us with your fruit-lovin' ways. You haven't met a fruit you refused to eat. You can eat a whole hot dog and a whole banana. You sign "more" and "please" with fluency, and "milk" can now mean milk or water or something else you want.

You still like to be snuggled. Mommy loves that.

I can't wait to see what you'll learn next, you little sponge.

Love,
Mommy

Where the heck we've been (update pt. 2)

Where to start really?

Kevin's brother got married on June 12. I'm sure the ceremony was lovely, but I was in the nursery supervising Colin and missed it. Kevin was in the wedding, and as soon as Colin saw him, he yelled "Dada!" and Kevin kept turning to smile at him, so then Colin tried to squirm off my lap. So...we left the sanctuary to play with toys instead.

Last Sunday, we went to Teddy Bear Park and met up with some of my friends from college, Rachel and Graham, and their son Corey. (I totally stole these from Rachel's blog. Sorry Rach!)
After playing at the park for awhile, we ate lunch at this really cool place with an outside patio area. Colin got into a bit of trouble there, because I let him walk around since a)we were outside and b)there were only 2 other tables with diners. He walked over to a water pipe, turned the lever, and got sprayed with some water. He seemed quite embarrassed :)

Later on that Sunday, my mom came up to visit. She stayed all week long to babysit Colin in the mornings while I taught summer school (after this week, I'll be halfway through!).

It was a rainy week, but we managed to squeeze in a trip to Como Zoo. This was Colin's second time there (the first being in the winter). His favorite animals were the monkeys because, you know, they actually move around. He loved standing at the glass watching them zip and swing back and forth. One monkey ran right up to the glass and put his hand over his eyes as if to see through the glass. Hilarious. And now whenever I do that, Colin cracks up.

I taught my mom how to knit, and now she's working on a scarf. She replaced some velcro that had worn out on Colin's BumGenius diapers. So now it's like we've got 6 brand new ones!

We moved plants around and mulched. My gardens have become so overgrown the past few summers, so it was nice to clean things out and move them to new places. Now let's just hope they survive!

On Friday, we headed up to Duluth so we could see my little brother run Grandma's Marathon on Saturday morning. He did a great job and finished with a time of 4:46, which isn't too shabby for a first-timer. On our drive up towards Two Harbors where the start is, I was dumbfounded that someone would actually RUN that far. And some people do it on a regular basis! We were able to see him at the 5 mile, 12 mile, 20 mile, and finish line points. Here he is at 20 miles.
After we ate some Little Caesars pizza, we headed home.

Happy Father's Day! (update pt 1)

(belated, I know...blogger has been a pain lately and I haven't been able to post).

Happy Father's day to this Daddy:
and to this Daddy (circa 1984):

and to all the other Daddies out there :) I hope you had a great day!

We spent Father's Day doing a lot of yard work. The weather was nice, so we spent a lot of time outside. We moved Colin's climber to the back of the yard and surrounded it with rubber mulch. The last part of finishing off his "play area" is getting some sand for underneath the climber, but we're not sure we're even going to get to that this summer. I started in on the HUGE task of trimming the lilac bushes. I have yet to start in on it again :)

Kevin got a weed whacker/edger/whatever you like to call it. He's pretty stoked about it. I'm all about the philosophy of giving presents that mean having to do work with...as long as it's something the person wants and makes their life easier. And I will receive gifts like that too. Remember...as long as it's something I want. I, personally, don't need a drum sander or anything.

Words and big boyness

For the record, I'd like to write down the newest words in Colin's vocab:

nahnah=nukkie...oh drats! He has a word for it now. I was hoping to get rid of the darned thing before he could ask for it!

nana=banana

Na!=snack...with a capital N because he really stresses it and pushes the /a/ sound out. It really sounds like the /na/ sound you hear when you say "snack."

broo=broom...only it's more of a lip vibration than an actual /br/ sound.

itty=kitty...this one is always directed at the neighbors' cats.

day du=thank you...I swear he has said it one or two times.

peas=please


And he also drank some of my Caribou smoothie from a straw today.

And I broke down and bought him "big boy" pajamas; the ones without the full-body zipper and feet.

And his other top tooth has broke through. He now officially has his 2 bottom and 2 top teeth.

And he's starting to take a few running steps. Hold me. Or at least recommend a good pair of tenny runners.

Oh, and I decided that Colin's going to finish up the frozen milk. I found in my research of milk donation that it takes 2-3 weeks to even go through the whole process, and it seems they want you to have testing done even before you freeze it. I could do a milk share thing where local people who want milk can hook up with people who have milk, but that seems sketchy. So we're just finishing up what little we have left. We'll probably finish it by the end of the month.

I missed my midwife

And no, just because I said that does not in any way, shape, or form mean that I have a secret to share!

My midwife-with-a-crunchy-name also does regular ol' GYN stuff. Like you wanted to know what I did yesterday afternoon, right? I'll spare you the details.

My coworker/friend also goes to the same midwife for regular ol' GYN stuff and for baby-birthing purposes. We were talking last week, and I mentioned I get (note: not have with a grumble inserted) to see Midwife, and she was jealous! THAT'S how much we love this woman. I mean, seriously, who gets excited knowing a speculum is in her near future? We do.

When you're pregnant, you have appointments at approximately 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, and 40 weeks. You develop a bump and a relationship with your midwife because you ONLY see the midwife at your appointments. No other doctors step in her spot. You go through this incredible birthing experience with her (again...no substitutes. She was there at 3 a.m., in her glasses, looking like she had been awoken from a fabulous night of restful sleep). Then, all of a sudden, she's gone. Sure you see her 6 weeks later for a quick appointment but let's face it. That's only a tease. Then, barring pregnancy or some other need, you don't see her for another year. It's like quitting a love of ice cream or pop or chocolate (heaven forbid).

Needless to say, I was amped to see her. She's still as wonderful as ever. She still thinks I'm wonderful ;) She, again, said my water birth was so perfect. She complemented me on being able to breastfeed a whole year, and how I'm going to feel so good about that forever. She asked about Colin--his hair color specifically--and loved that he's a blondie. I forgot to bring a picture of him as I had left my phone in my car. I told her I was crazy for telling her, at my 6 week postpartum appointment, that he's laid back. Because we all know that he's really quite stubborn.

I left feeling like I could've chatted with her for at least an hour more. I wish I were her friend. I wish we could have coffee (well--either a steamer or smoothie for me). She makes you feel so darned good about yourself, even when you think you're already doing alright.

::sigh:: Someday I'll go back to seeing her frequently again. For now, I'll bask in the memories of that appointment yesterday.

In Memory of Memorial Day, and other goodness

You know, since it has been almost an entire week.

Colin started off the weekend by devouring strawberries. We give them to him whole now, because he likes to take a bite (or shove chunks in his mouth). At the end of this video, he kind of claps, which is his sign for "more."

He also tried using a spoon to eat his yogurt. It was a big mess, but with a little guidance he's sloooowly getting better at using a spoon.
We went to my parents' house on Sunday for a family picnic where Colin was entertained by a cooler...
...and a wagon ride. He did GREAT in the wagon. He held on to the sides and sat very nicely. He probably took at least 10 laps around the yard throughout the day.

Colin's vocabulary is quickly expanding! His newest words are:
Mama
up
help (this one's still iffy. If he's struggling with something, I say, "Say help." and he says, "ahp". But it sounds a lot like "up," but it's always that same sound. so...)
please (by signing "more"--he has meshed the two together. maybe this summer I'll try teaching him the real sign for please)
Grandma (I haven't heard it, but Kevin's dad did, and my mom and aunt did too)
bump (another one witnessed by my mom, not me. When we go for stroller rides and go over a bump, I say, "bump," and he doesn't say it back)

On the milk front, we are currently mixing 4 oz of frozen breast milk with 12 or 16 oz of whole milk. It's to the point where it's mostly whole milk, and it seems pointless to even be putting breast milk in at all. So I've decided that I'm going to finish out the weekend with mixing in the 4 oz., and on Monday we'll just give him whole milk. After I'm done writing this, I'm going to research milk donation since I have about 100-150 oz left in the freezer, and I want someone to use it if we're not going to. It would be a crime to dump it. Oh how I wish it could keep for years so we can use it for baby #2.

On the school front, happy summer to me! There was so much on my mind today that I forgot to send the kids' report cards home with them! HELLO! I felt really, really stupid, but the secretary who is so nice assured me it was no big deal. I got them all addressed to be sent in the mail tomorrow. Call me Dingleberry. I have to work a half day tomorrow (which will really be a full day because I'm moving to a different room and I have to pack up). Then I teach summer school for a half day for 6 weeks. Colin's last day of day care is tomorrow. I might cry about it, and I can't even tell you why. Tears of joy? Tears of gratitude? Not sure. Either way, I'm so glad I get to spend more time with him.