Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Birthday boy
We were lucky to celebrate Jay's first birthday with lots of family. First, the Balk family came over before they headed home to Davenport. The kids all had fun wishing Jay happy birthday at 1:37pm, the moment he turned one year old.
Chad, Christopher, Rachel, and both sets of grandparents came over later in the afternoon. Jay wasn't feeling the greatest, but he perked up when it was time for presents and cake and ice cream. Grandpa and Grandma Hoover were impressed with how he approached his cake with one finger first. He has to test out foods this way before deciding whether they are acceptable or not. Chocolate cake made the approved list!
After everyone left, I took Jay to relax on our bed. He wasn't feeling well again, and he laid his head on my chest moaning. I looked down after a couple of minutes and he was asleep! He hasn't fallen asleep on my chest like that for probably six months. Poor guy was tuckered out.
Two of Jay's birthday presents were bath toys, so we broke them in before bed time. I filled the bathtub up with the bubble bath we got him and lifted Jay to put him in. He was terrified! I got his feet in the water and he tried to crawl up my arms to get out! So I spent ten minutes emptying all of the water and bubbles and then refilling it with water. He LOVED his new toys! I got out the bubble bath and put just a teeny bit in to see what he would think. Yeah. He was having none of it. As soon as he noticed a bubble touching him, bath time was OVER. Oh well, we'll try again in a few months maybe.
Happy birthday, big guy!
Chad, Christopher, Rachel, and both sets of grandparents came over later in the afternoon. Jay wasn't feeling the greatest, but he perked up when it was time for presents and cake and ice cream. Grandpa and Grandma Hoover were impressed with how he approached his cake with one finger first. He has to test out foods this way before deciding whether they are acceptable or not. Chocolate cake made the approved list!
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| "What's in there?" |
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| "Oh! Buttons to push! I love to push buttons!" |
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| note the smidge of frosting on his chin - he swiped some with his finger when I put the cake too close |
Two of Jay's birthday presents were bath toys, so we broke them in before bed time. I filled the bathtub up with the bubble bath we got him and lifted Jay to put him in. He was terrified! I got his feet in the water and he tried to crawl up my arms to get out! So I spent ten minutes emptying all of the water and bubbles and then refilling it with water. He LOVED his new toys! I got out the bubble bath and put just a teeny bit in to see what he would think. Yeah. He was having none of it. As soon as he noticed a bubble touching him, bath time was OVER. Oh well, we'll try again in a few months maybe.
Happy birthday, big guy!
Monday, December 27, 2010
12 months
My dear Jay,
Today you are 12 months old. One whole year has flown by with you in our lives.You still surprise us with something new every day. Our favorite sound in the whole world is your laughter. Papa tickles you with his beard on your neck and on your feet.
You inspect everything with your index finger extended. Pushing buttons is one of your favorite activities.
You are a people person for sure. It's like you analyze everyone you meet, staring them down to figure out who they are. If we take you out to eat, you love to have your highchair right in a high traffic aisle. You follow everyone who walks by with your eyes and turn your head to watch them walk away. When they stop to say hi, you just look them over.
You still sleep in bed with us because you HATE your crib. You scream every time we put you in it. Waking up is hard for you - you always cry right away and it takes us a minute of saying "Good morning!" before you are comforted.
You babble a lot, but I wouldn't really say you have any words. You say "mama" and sometimes it's directed at me, but usually not. However, you can sign "more," "all done," and "hi/bye." You won't always wave bye-bye on command, but you understand what we're telling you to do.
I love to sing to you and it usually calms you down when you're fussing. I need to get more creative with songs though. Usually the playlist goes ABC, Twinkle Twinkle, then Ba Ba Black Sheep. Then if you need more, I do Mary had a Little Lamb. I really need to look up the words to more songs! I can never think of lyrics when I need them. You're usually calm during Baby Mine as well, until the last verse. It's like you know the end is coming, and you're not ready to go down quite so easily.
This has truly been the best year of our lives so far. You are such a joy every day. We can't wait to see what's in store for your next year!
Love,
Mama
Today you are 12 months old. One whole year has flown by with you in our lives.You still surprise us with something new every day. Our favorite sound in the whole world is your laughter. Papa tickles you with his beard on your neck and on your feet.
You are a people person for sure. It's like you analyze everyone you meet, staring them down to figure out who they are. If we take you out to eat, you love to have your highchair right in a high traffic aisle. You follow everyone who walks by with your eyes and turn your head to watch them walk away. When they stop to say hi, you just look them over.
You still sleep in bed with us because you HATE your crib. You scream every time we put you in it. Waking up is hard for you - you always cry right away and it takes us a minute of saying "Good morning!" before you are comforted.
You babble a lot, but I wouldn't really say you have any words. You say "mama" and sometimes it's directed at me, but usually not. However, you can sign "more," "all done," and "hi/bye." You won't always wave bye-bye on command, but you understand what we're telling you to do.
I love to sing to you and it usually calms you down when you're fussing. I need to get more creative with songs though. Usually the playlist goes ABC, Twinkle Twinkle, then Ba Ba Black Sheep. Then if you need more, I do Mary had a Little Lamb. I really need to look up the words to more songs! I can never think of lyrics when I need them. You're usually calm during Baby Mine as well, until the last verse. It's like you know the end is coming, and you're not ready to go down quite so easily.
This has truly been the best year of our lives so far. You are such a joy every day. We can't wait to see what's in store for your next year!
Love,
Mama
Friday, December 17, 2010
Caught!
Nick snapped this photo today when he found Jay trying to get some candy out of our candy case. Too bad he doesn't know how to open the packages!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Santa is in town!
J.J. and I went to visit with Santa, but unfortunately J.J. wasn't in the mood. He did tell Santa that he would like some toys to play with in the bathtub. We'll see whether he made it onto the good or bad list!
Growth spurt
This last week, it seems like we've had to try two or three outfits on Jay before finding one that fits. Even then, I'm putting him in something a bit too tight for him to wear for the last time.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Detail of chandelier
We are going to get bulbs that are less bright for the outside so they don't contrast as much.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Wow! week
Highchair
Nick left Jay in his highchair while he left the room for a minute. We do this all of the time, as he will happily munch on Cheerios. Nick came back to find Jay had climbed out of the highchair ONTO THE KITCHEN TABLE. Somehow he got his leg up through the leg opening and onto the seat and just crawled up from there.
Bed
That same night, they were hanging out in our bedroom before bedtime. Jay spent a lot of time peering over the edge, thinking about how to get down. Before too long, he figured out how to back up to the edge and slide down to the floor feet first. He was even able to repeat the accomplishment for me when I got home. He still has to think about it for a few minutes each time, and he's not always successful at a smooth landing so we still watch him like a hawk and prepare ourselves to help him out.
Teeth
Jay's first upper tooth finally cut through two days ago to join his two on the bottom. He was making me cringe this morning by grinding them together. He has two more on the way any day now.
Nick left Jay in his highchair while he left the room for a minute. We do this all of the time, as he will happily munch on Cheerios. Nick came back to find Jay had climbed out of the highchair ONTO THE KITCHEN TABLE. Somehow he got his leg up through the leg opening and onto the seat and just crawled up from there.
Bed
That same night, they were hanging out in our bedroom before bedtime. Jay spent a lot of time peering over the edge, thinking about how to get down. Before too long, he figured out how to back up to the edge and slide down to the floor feet first. He was even able to repeat the accomplishment for me when I got home. He still has to think about it for a few minutes each time, and he's not always successful at a smooth landing so we still watch him like a hawk and prepare ourselves to help him out.
Teeth
Jay's first upper tooth finally cut through two days ago to join his two on the bottom. He was making me cringe this morning by grinding them together. He has two more on the way any day now.
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