A week or so ago, when dad and Linda were here (before their trip to Florida) I ran a quick errand (like 20 minutes quick) to the post office. When I got home, dad says to me, “You didn’t tell us Owen could walk!”
I screeched said, “HE CAN’T!”
Yeah, turns out the little shit took four big steps—and dad thought I hadn’t told him about it so they’d be surprised.
Of course, he wouldn’t repeat it…and we tried and tried and tried. Since then, he might take a step (or half a step) but then he always kneels down and crawls. He does a lot of standing (you can see him working on balancing) and really-fast-walking-along-the-couch but that’s been it.
But he finally took a few genuine steps this weekend—and Tom and I both saw him, although we didn’t get it on tape.
He is 13 months and I think it’s now nearly impossible for me (alone) to get a good picture of him sitting with the sign:
I am thinking I might have to give up taking these monthly birthday photos because he will just not sit still for even 2 seconds and it’s absoutley THE most frustrating day of each month for me—and it should be fun. :'( I will have to wait until Tom gets home so we can double-team him. 😀
I did get this kinda cute one, though (although no sign):
I love my animals, I really do. But there are days…
We have a barfer kitty, Miss Bella. I am sure some of you have read my Facebook updates about cleaning cat vomit. Repeatedly. (And I know some of you have experienced it first hand.)
It drives me INSANE.
She has done it ever since she became a cat (I don’t recall her doing it during kittenhood) and she has been to the vet, she has been put on multiple different foods, she has been been on food restriction (which was VERY hard considering we have two cats) and nothing seems to help. She just barfs. A lot. And it’s NEVER hairballs. Sometimes it’s right after she eats (the food is still in big pieces, completely undigested) and we joke we have a bulimic cat. Other times it’s just foam. Other times it’s digested.
Today it’s been twice, once off the couch (which got the couch and wood floor) and once on the exercise mat. Usually it’s the couch or the wall or our bed or something that’s a pain in the ass to clean. And it’s not like you can always put everything away on a shelf or whatnot, because she gets up there, too (i.e. she puked on a camera—let me tell you how fun THAT was to try and clean).
I love her, but after five years, IT’S GETTING OLD. And I can only imagine another—what?—10 years or so of this? Sigh. Sometimes I don’t think I can handle it…or WANT to deal with it. But how can I get rid of her? In the heat of the moment I can easily see it, but in reality there is no way I could do it.
So we trudge on.
Of course, the other cat gets hairballs (and pukes) and one or both of them poop outside the box (and sometimes pee—and we’ve tried a million different solutions, there, too)… and the dog even gets in on the action by barfing now and again (in our bed, just this weekend) and peeing because she doesn’t like to go outside in the winter.
Big sigh.
Sometimes I think life would be so much easier without the animals… but on the flip side I can’t imagine NOT having animals in my life. I just never remember having THIS many issues with animals growing up. OR hearing of people with these issues.
So I am left to wonder if we just have craptacular luck in choosing animals or if this kind of thing is more prominent and people just don’t talk about it?
We’ve been teaching Owen how to “high five” and he loves it and does a pretty good job at it. Tom sent me these two videos (while I was at the dentist today) and it really showcases just how loud and crazy he can get!
This is just a reminder that February’s monthly photos are now online! There isn’t a special link for each month anymore…you can always find all the photos at Owen’s page on Shutterfly!!
This is what happened when Owen was chewing on the entertainment center drawers and I told him “NO!” It wasn’t really full-fledged crying or a tantrum, but he did have the crocodile tears and everything! Such a drama queen already!
We’ve been trucking along, trying new things and retrying old things…and things are getting somewhat better.
Tom said he ate TWO WHOLE PANCAKES one morning (the morning I was sick in bed after the stomach flu). The next morning he scarfed down a bunch of french toast and fried egg.
And he’s even been eating some small chicken pieces (which we gave him from our dinners of Pad Thai and chicken/spinach/alfredo pizza)!!
We tried avocado again—this time with some salt and lime juice (since he seems to like spices on his food)—and amazingly two small bites went down without any funny faces (way more than before) but then that was it.
He will chew on an almost-ripe pear and bite off pieces—but he won’t eat it.
He will eat Ritz crackers, although I don’t like to give him too many since I don’t want him to stop eating the less-flavorful snack crackers I have a ton of.
He now likes Cheerios (and will often stuff 3-4 in his mouth at once, which freaks me out but I’ve watched him a lot and he does just fine. He does the same with puffs, too.
I think the biggest thing, however, is that it has finally gotten through to my brain that he will NOT be eating as much as he used to, since weight gain at this age is supposed to slow waaaay down. Which means if he picks and nibbles and doesn’t seem to want the three things I’ve given him, then he gets a yogurt and that’s that. He will get his bottle (well, milk sippy cup) a bit after his meal and that will be good enough. Once I came to that conclusion, meal times have been better for me…although they can still be frustrating. 🙂
It started at 4:30am, when Tom’s alarm went off…which in and of itself is a necessity, I know. But he didn’t get up. EVEN THOUGH I SPECIFICALLY ASKED THE NIGHT BEFORE ABOUT IT AND OH, OF COURSE HE’S GETTING UP. 😐 So then of course he falls RIGHT back to sleep and I toss and turn, finally falling asleep until his second alarm went off about 5:15. Needless to say I was NOT happy. And he STILL didn’t get up and of course I had trouble falling asleep again. So just when I’m getting some sleep…*I* get a blocked call (had my phone on silent, but it still vibrates, which is enough to wake me up) at 6am.
>:XX
Then, after I put Owen down for his nap, I decided to get a bunch of stuff done around the house since I was feeling AMAZING (after a round of stomach flu this weekend) and was carrying laundry down from upstairs when I slipped and crashed on my ass. Luckily I didn’t hit my head or go down the entire staircase (or do any serious damage), but my butt, back, and wrists hurt immediately and I predicted in a few hours I wouldn’t be able to move (so I skipped the measly Advil and went straight to the prescription painkillers).
And just to round out my morning… I discovered that Maggie peed in the house. Again. I let her out this morning like I always do and tried to keep an eye on her (since she’s been peeing inside more often lately) and damn if she didn’t do it while I was in the shower. She just hates going outside in the cold/snow so if you don’t actually watch her outside I swear she fakes it…then pees in the house because you weren’t watching her at the exact moment she needed (wanted) to go outside. I think it might be time she goes back in her crate during the day.
GRRRR.
I know things could be worse (I could still have the flu, knock on wood, or god forbid Owen could have it, KNOCK ON WOOD) but this has not been a good day.
I’ve been keeping my online friends updated on Owen’s food issues, and one of them said today (after seeing the beaver picture):
Maybe you should try adding wood to everything.
Hee. 😀
So, today’s lunch was frustrating…BIG surprise, right?
No to mac and cheese (a previous winner).
No to Swiss cheese.
No to kiwi (a usual winner).
No to banana (loves it mushed in oatmeal, but apparenlty not in pieces).
No to plain tuna fish (new today, didn’t have high hopes).
No to my tuna fish (big surprise after the plain tuna).
No to puffs (what? whoa!).
No to bread.
Sigh.
I ended up giving him Stage 3 Broccoli & Carrots with Cheese.
We just tried the raspberries…and as I thought, no dice. BUT if I crushed them and put them in his oatmeal he ate them just fine. So it’s more texture than anything else, I think. Which means I will keep adding them to his oatmeal, while slowly making the chunks bigger and bigger. 🙂
How pathetic is it that NEITHER of us noticed this before this week? 😮
Our crib did come with the plastic covers on the side rails…but nothing on the ends, which is (of course) where he’s biting. He’s also biting the space below the plastic cover. Tom is going to install additional rubber stuff (that we bought for the entertainment center, but isn’t long enough) when he gets home tomorrow.
So I went grocery shopping today and thought I would get some new foods for Owen to try, that other moms have recommended. Since not a lot of fruit is in season, it’s all EX-PEN-SIVE. Yet I got the $5 pint of blueberries from Chile and the $3 half pint of raspberries from I forget where. I also decided to try avocado again (cheap at 79¢) and lima beans (at $1.39, more expensive than normal because I was at the fancy store).
So, how did it go?
Yeah…not so much.
I cut the blueberries in half to be safe…but it didn’t help. He opened his mouth like he’s good about—but as soon as I put the berry in, out it came. So I left some on the tray for him to think about. He did pick one up a time or two and attempt to eat it, but it just wasn’t happening. Then he squished some and that was, of course, much more fun. So those came off the tray pretty quickly so we didn’t get a big staining mess.
I tried the lima beans…and that was not just a no but a MAJOR no. The bean barely even got in his mouth before it came right back out. I cut one in half. Nope. I smushed one. Nope. I left some on the try and he didn’t even look at them or touch one.
Sigh.
Tomorrow we’ll try the raspberries and avocado, although I’m not holding out much hope (this will be like the fourth try with avocado).
BUT!
I had made some whole grain blends (think rice/couscous-y stuff) and…he liked it! AMAZING! I was so excited he was eating real food—except, of course, as boxed things go, it wasn’t particularly healthy—but he was eating it! And then, after maybe 5-6 tiny spoonsful, he was done. He didn’t want ANY more. Sigh. I guess it was a good start, right?
Then we tried leftover mac and cheese and he wanted nothing to do with it.
So, I just got an email that they sold the shoes in-store before my order came in and they didn’t update the website in time. HOWEVER, I can choose one of these two similar pair with a $10 refund:
And I’m torn. I like the one-color ones because they’re a solid color but I’m not sold on the loafer look. But the sporty ones are just fun and cute.
Normally ants would be on the bottom of my ick list (unless they were red ants, but I digress). But we’ve seen a few ants around the house lately, so have put ant traps (Terro) out. But last night, unbeknownst to me, I happened to drop a tiny piece of sugary food…so imagine my surprise when I later walked by that spot of food and saw *gasp* about 100 ants crawling around.
/SHUDDER
To say I freaked would be somewhat of an understatement. I called Tom (who is out of town for five days) and asked were the ant traps were. Whereas, at any other time, I would have looked in two places for them (one of which where they actually were). Even after he told me where to look, I had to ask again because I already forgot what he told me (because I was so freaked).
I am not quite sure why the ants freaked me out so much…I know they are harmless, Owen wasn’t up (to get into them), and it’s not like they were going to attack me or suddenly multiply in size. So I cleaned up the crumb and put an ant trap there. In the morning, the ant trap was FULL of ants but I could still see some squirming/crawling around.
ICK.
I am now wondering if we should ask the landlord to call the exterminator? I mean, we do not have a dirty house, with food laying out to attract ants (before this incident, it was maybe an ant or two once a week). We have never had ant issues before, EVER, anywhere we’ve lived. Does it being winter have anything to do with it? Meaning they don’t want to be outside so are finding any way in?
I really should get Owen’s feet professionally measured. I’ve just been guessing at sizes and/or holding them up to his feet—and while I’ve not purchased any that were too small, I have certainly bought some that were too big. At first, it was pretty easy—just move up a size in Robeez, starting with 0-6 months, then 6-12 months, 12-18 months, and 18-24 months…but then they stop measuring by months and convert to actual sizes. Well, Owen is currently in 12-18 and 18-24 month Robeez.
So anyway, I thought I had plenty of shoes for him (since I’ve bought a few pair that are too big PLUS we got some as hand-me-downs) but for whatever reason, they still aren’t the right size. Sigh. So I really like the pair he’s growing out of, so I just figured I’d buy them in the next size—but I can’t FIND them in the next size (they are out of stock everywhere). And it’s apparently quite hard (at least so far) to find an all-brown shoe in the size that I want that I like.
I guess he doesn’t HAVE to have shoes to match his outfits…but I thought I was doing well having only two pair (three if you count the cute red/black/white hard-soled shoes that I only have him wear when he wears the matching pants!)…but I searched and searched and searched and searched and FINALLY found the bigger size of his current pair (man I loooooove Google). Hopefully that pair will take us through to the rest of his shoes waiting for him. 🙂
Jennifer Hudson is currently restoring 97,600+ files via Carbonite onto her new 1TB hard drive with a new Windows 7 install.
Jennifer Hudson likes the thought and spirit behind “We Are The World 25” but it doesn’t even compare to the original.
Jennifer scored a BINGO in SCRABBLE with the word TOLLERS worth 81 points!
Jennifer Hudson was not excited at all about the Olympics, until watching an hour or so of Olympic preview-type broadcasts. Now I can’t wait. BRING IT ON!
Jennifer Hudson just realized it’s Friday night. Being a SAHM with a husband who works six days a week kinda lessens the impact of a weekend.
Jennifer Hudson woke up and was depressed her dream about seeing Roger Mitchell and Ursula Mitchell wasn’t real…but was glad her screaming match with Jean L. Schwalm and Tom Hudson wasn’t real.
Jennifer Hudson—The boy is 12 months old and still sleeping with his burpie over his face. I wonder how long he’ll continue to do it?!?! I wish I could ask him why he loves it so!
Jennifer Hudson is ready to throw the Windows7 Upgrade right out the window.
Jennifer Hudson never gets as much done during Owen’s nap as she hopes to.
Jennifer Hudson is happy to celebrate Valentine’s week by sharing a photo of hubby and me…we first met 2/7/97 and started dating 2/14/97…so we’ve been together 13 years and married eight.
Jennifer Hudson is finally watching the season premier of Lost!
Jennifer Hudson just downloaded and tried Google Chrome. They need to work on Tab issues before I switch.
Jennifer Hudson thinks it’s hilarious that I have Shazam’ed the same song now THREE times. 😐
Jennifer Hudson has decided life is too short for uncomfortable socks! In the garbage they go!
Jennifer Hudson wants someone to stop her the next time she wants to subscribe to Cosmo because it’s a good deal.
Jennifer Hudson thinks that the Chocolate Cheerios were a waste of money. Blech.
Jennifer Hudson just got Owen to wave back at her! YAY OWEN!
Jennifer Hudson was having fun watching Owen dig around in his toybox, leaning completely over with his feet off the ground…until he fell in and started crying.
Jennifer Hudson thinks she needs to take a break from Scrabble. I seem to be getting worse the more I play (instead of better) and it’s frustrating me terribly.
What kind of issues? Well, food issues, nap issues, playing, and then more food issues.
So today I asked some parents (on my online boards) what I can do with Owen and his eating. Meaning, we keep trying real food but he just isn’t loving it—but he should be getting off jarred food and eating more and more “real” food. So they gave me some ideas, which I had already mostly tried. But the big idea was
Babies/small children are MUCH better than adults at recognizing their own bodies’ signals for “hungry” or “need nourishment”. Some of the best advice I ever got about kids and eating was from my MiL. If a child gets hungry, s/he will eat. Period.
So anyway, just to share my response (so you know what we’re dealing with!):
We have tried frozen corn, peas, green beans, and carrots and he doesn’t really like them. Meaning he won’t eat them plain (heated) but he would eat a few of them when used in fried rice.
I have tried doing sweet potatoes a variety of ways—the consistency of jarred food (which he ate for awhile, but no longer likes), baked chunks, steamed chunks, a steamed mash, with cinnamon, etc., and he didn’t like any of them.
We’ve tried sliced cheese, chunk cheese, grated cheese, and melted cheese – none of which he’s thrilled with.
I tried cooking peas and beans (from dried) and those were a BIG no.
I have tried minced, chopped, and pieces of chicken (all a big no), roast beef and burgers (he likes it! he likes it!), and grilled pork (okay for a bit, but not terribly interested).
I have tried grinding/mashing various meals into a slurry and just chopping them up—no dice.
He does love pears and does okay with bananas—but doesn’t like watermelon, fresh strawberries, or apples (although he likes dried).
He does love yogurt, but he can’t live on yogurt, right?
So we ARE trying…it is just extremely frustrating because there’s really not much he likes so far.
All that said, I tried at lunch. (I really did.) I cut up half a banana, gave him about four rigatoni noodles with meat and sauce, and a tiny handful of puffs and dried fruit…with a sippy cup milk chaser. He ate about half the banana, half the noodles, and his pile of puffs/fruit. Which is about 1/4 of what he normally eats. I then tried to feed him the pieces and didn’t get much more down. And he was giving me his cranky “I’m hungry” cry. So I buckled and gave him a yogurt and that was it (still way less than he normally eats). About an hour later, he was giving me the hungry whine again, so I gave him a cracker—he didn’t want it. I tried puffs—no dice. I tried milk—nope. We cuddled on the couch and he got tired…so then he took some milk and…
On another note, it drives me insane how he is so tired and practically falling asleep on my lap so I put him in his crib and he cries and whines and screeches and cries and whines and screeches because he doesn’t want to be in there—but I leave him anyway, hoping he will just fall asleep…but this afternoon it’s been 30 minutes and it’s still going on. Ugh. I hate letting him win (LOL) but I can’t leave him in there forever.
They then agreed that he was being a stinker, and to just keep trying new foods. So, to continue the story…just to show you can never expect what will happen.
We ordered Thai for dinner, which was too spicy for him, even as Mild. But we did share tiny pieces—my chicken, egg, and carrot (from Basil Fried Rice) which he did eat (chicken, yay! except it took a few tries) and chicken and potato from Tom’s Massaman Curry. So we’re excited. He’s also eating some Graduates apple pieces (which he never ate before!) and puffs. And drinking milk. But even though he was eating, he wasn’t really eating that much.
But I wasn’t going to give him any jarred foods…but I was going to give him a yogurt. But before I did that we had some fun (which, of course, completely made up for him being a stinker earlier today at nap time):
And then, after playing, without warning, he barfed his entire dinner. So, was it from the raucous laughing? Or too many new things for dinner? Or something else entirely?
One day my mother was out, and my dad was in charge of me.
I was maybe 2 1/2 years old. Someone had given me a little ‘tea set’ as a gift, and it was one of my favorite toys.
Daddy was in the living room engrossed in the evening news when I brought Daddy a little cup of “tea,” which was just water. After several cups of tea and lots of praise for such yummy tea, my Mom came home.
My Dad made her wait in the living room to watch me bring him a cup of tea, because it was just the cutest thing! My Mom waited, and sure enough, here I came down the hall with a cup of tea for Daddy; and she watched him drink it up.
Then she said (as only a mother would know), “Did it ever occur to you that the only place she can reach to get water is the toilet?”
Owen was so cute today, leaning over into his toybox reaching for something, with his feet dangling off the ground…so I reached for the Flip…and the next thing I hear is crying so I quick look around to see him IN the toybox with his legs in the air.
Is it wrong that my first thought was “DAMMIT! I MISSED GETTING IT ON CAMERA!” ❓ :>
Gramma Jean brought soup for the lunch before Owen’s party…and of course I gave some to Owen so he could try a new food…and he loved everything in it! The beef, the barley, the carrots, the mushrooms, the celery—YAY! So he ate the leftovers for the next few meals and today we finished it! YAY, OWEN!
What a day! We had a houseful of family to celebrate Owen’s first birthday…
He wasn’t too sure about the cake but quickly got into it (while still holding his balloons). And I was expecting him to get VERY messy, but it wasn’t bad at all. YAY OWEN! GOOD BOY!
And things continued to go pretty well through the bath…
And the meltdown happened when we tried to get a group photo…
But all in all it was a great day…and here’s just a little 9-minute snippet of the festivities:
