Needle Time

From 9/15/2009

Highlights of our trip to San Francisco for IVF with the entourage (Jonas, Ed, Me, my mother, his mother, his sister, his brother-in-law, lots of drugs, tons of toys and toddler equipment, car seats, strollers, and oh yeah, luggage):

• My mother telling me that if she dies before her dog, have the dog euthanized and buried (cremated) with her.
• Hearing my mother-in-law laugh in utter joy with Jonas
• Jonas shattering the screen on the GPS when we’re knee deep in wine country, 70 miles from SF
• Jonas shopping at Justice – an all girl clothing shop in the mall; we watched him wander in and pick out silver sparkle ballet flats. He has a shoe fetish for sure.
• Jonas ignoring all of the fun climbing and tunnel scultptures in favor of selecting shoes from the shoe cubby at the mall playground.

I would have blogged more, but I don't think I was feeling well.

Papa's blog

I should have done it long ago, but I have some time now, so I guess Papa (Dad?) will blog a little bit. If you just read Shelly's last blog, you know that we are all here in San Fran. Normally, I'm at work all day and don't have the opportunity to spend gobs of time with Jonas like I've been able to do here.

One things for sure, Shelly & I have different parenting styles. The things that each of us will let him explore are different, and the things that we won't let him explore (danger!) are different. Sometimes the things that Shelly allows freak me out, and I'll admit, I am quick to admonish Shelly. I guess the shoes on the other fit, but enough about me....

Jonas is really developing well. He seems to have a new trick everyday now. Once a day, I find myself saying 'he wasn't doing that yesterday'. Between communication and motion he does quite well. He makes a lot of noise right now, but he isn't saying too much. The strange thing is that I've heard a lot of different words from him over the past 3-4 months, but he seems to say them once and then he's done. Almost like he's tried it out, proved that he can do it, and he's holding out until he's got it all put together. Even so, he makes a lot of noise, and it's pretty clear that he is working on consonants. We will see soon.

He's taken a liking to riding on my shoulders. Of course, that means I can't see him when everyone else can. Everyone says that he's smiling and happy when he's up there, but I have little proof other than some photos. He might just be smiling for the photos.

His ability to move around has gotten a lot better. He now runs everywhere and can get away pretty easily. He pushes this boundary pretty well. When you are trying to block him, he scans back and forth knowing that you don't want to knock him over. Next thing you know, he's found a hole and he's off. These skills may prove valuable in soccer or hockey.

I know when we get back to KC, we are going to have to re-baby-proof the house. So much that he couldn't get to before, he's going to climb to. I may have to figure out a way to bolt down the TV.

More later...
Ed

Developmental Leaps

I can't believe how Jonas has grown in the past two weeks. We've been in San Francisco with him, living in a hotel suite with my mom. Mother-in-law joined us halfway through, and he's been bathed in love and attention. I'm sure he will be a spoiled pain in the butt when we get home, but for now, we are enjoying him immensely.

All day long, I witness him doing something new or unique, and think to myself, "I can't wait to blog about that!" And when blog time finally rolls around (after mealtime, bath time, bedtime story, etc.), I'm mentally empty. But I'll try to remember something!

Tonight, as I was reading him a bedtime book, he identified the cat on the page, calling it "at" repeatedly. He also selects the books he wants me to read him, though he's done this for months. Tonight, he decided to read one on his own while I was in the middle of reading one to him. It was funny to see him pick it up, lean back on the pillow, and flip through it on his own.

He's also indicating that he really understands the world when we talk to him. When he hears "go bye bye," he heads to the door or gets in the stroller. He brings my mother her hat when we wants to go out. And he LOVES going out. Even though this is a 3-room suite, I think it must get to feel like prison to him, he is so eager to go out.

In our weeks here, we have developed some rituals. He sleeps with Noni, and when he wakes, she puts on the Zydeco CD, and they dance. Then, he runs into our room to wake us. We put on his shoes, and head down to breakfast. He runs around the lobby, checking everything out while we get coffee and food. Then, he sits and eats Fruit Loops, waffles, sausage, but not much else. He's still a picky eater. After about 10 minutes, he begins to buck the highchair, and screech. We capitulate, and let him loose. He runs for the stairs, and one of the grandmothers will monitor him going up and down. Then, he heads to the business center to watch a little pbskids.org, especially the Dinosaur Train trailer. It's hard to pull him away. He LOVES computers, and often climbs up on the desk to get at the keyboard.

Speaking of climbing, he's like a little monkey. And he loves to push buttons, including the ones on the TV and DVD players. His favorite toys right now are balls (any kind or size) and little cars. When we eat in restaurants, we break out a little dinosaur who likes to help him eat his food and drink his juice. He likes to mimic what we do with the dinosaur.

And he loves to drive the car. When let loose, he will rush the front seat, and dive into the driver's side to start turning the wheel. Again, he mimics what he's seen us do, so he turns up the radio (leaving it quite loud) and flips on the signal and wipers. I'm embarrassed to admit that I encouraged this as good entertainment during a particularly difficult day in Sonoma Wine Country (who thought that would be a toddler friendly activity?!!) He ended up pulling down the GPS and shattering its face on the gear shift. This was a rental (car and GPS) and we were 70 miles from our hotel with no idea how to get back home. Thanks Jonas! He also broke a few objects in the wine shops, some of which we had to pay for.

There have also been some interesting developments on the "potty" line. He seems to have become quite a little guerrilla pee-er. I used to take off his diaper without much worry of a surprise pee, but no longer. In the time we've been here, he's peed in or right outside the bathtub at least 3x, plus on bed dust ruffle (I hope they wash those!), his father's fleece pullover (during a trunk diaper change), his grandmother's hand-quilted, silk-lined jacket, and his father's ankle. He's also had some bathtub poopies, for which he seemed embarrassed. He goes behind a chair to do number 2, and seems to prefer a quick diaper change, and this wasn't an issue in the past. Maybe it's time to think about potty training? I know it's a long process. I'd better find a book, or some good advice, about where to begin.

He's also had his first official haircut; don't worry, we have video. It's a horrible cut - too short, and not even. But I can't blame the stylist. He just wouldn't stop moving. We should probably try to fix it while he's sleeping.

The Girl Next Door

Jonas has been doing some adorable things lately, and I just don't want to forget to share them. There is such wonder in seeing him learn the way of the world, and such joy in seeing him thrive.

At 16 months, he prefers to run, not walk. This can often cause a tumble, from which he no longer routinely cries. He remains a picky eater, avoiding most meats products, with the exception of crispy pepperoni from a fresh pizza. He turns his nose up at most proteins, including eggs. Like his mother, he could exist on carbs alone. But we experienced a significant breakthrough last week. Those "Lil Smokey Sausages" - remember those? My mother used to buy them directly from the butcher at Veron's in Lafayette. The butcher always gave her a few extra for us to eat right there in the store. As a kid, I rejected ground beef, tomatoes (including tomato sauce), sausages, and most veggies and fruit, but I ate these little sausages. So I thought, "What have you got to lose?" If he doesn't eat them, I will.

And he ate them! It's not like he's wolfing them down. He'll eat one, maybe two if I'm lucky. But it's a start.

He's getting more comfortable with his nightly bath, but can't stand to get his face wet. And he's fallen in love with our next door neighbor, Charlotte. Tall for her age (4), with pretty light brown hair parted on the side, peaches and cream skin, and a precious little girl voice, Charlotte is the epitome of feminine. I'm not sure why, but she loves being around Jonas. I think it might have something to do with a bill of goods I sold her one night while babysitting her. I told her that Jonas needed her to each him how to play. She took that bit of malarkey and has been running with it ever since. So, when they're together, Charlotte is very attentive to Jonas. And what boy wouldn't love that?

So, when Charlotte comes over to play, and Jonas sees her through the glass storm door, he begins to scream and hop around with excitement. Then she starts doing the same thing. It's a true joy to watch this. They play so well together, except for the fact that Jonas doesn't like to hold hands while dancing.

And speaking of dancing, my son is such a white boy. White and nerdy to be exact. How did Weird Al Yankovic's DNA get into my son? His first version of dancing was to stick out his right elbow and move it up and down like some kind of gimpy version of the chicken dance. It's downright hilarious. Unfortunately, my laughter makes him think he's really terrific at dancing. I dread the day when someone will burst that bubble for him.

He's also into mimicking things. When I cough or clear my throat, he does the same thing. Ed says that he is mocking me, but I disagree. I treasure these days of simple mimic; the mocking is teenage material, and I have a while yet before worrying about that.

The realm of reading has finally opened up for us. Jonas will pick up his favorite books and bring them to us for reading. I think I've read him "Brown Bear" about 200 times. I know the order and color of all of the animals. And we got the "Polar Bear" version. We are still on board books, as he likes to rip pages out of regular books. And crayons - he's just discovering those. They still get chewed a bit, but he knows he can write with them too. Chalk seems to be a preferred writing tool right now; he has a small chalk board in his playroom.

At the moment, his favorite toys are the musical ones - those to which he can dance that gimpy chicken dance. He has a "karaoke" Back Yardigans thingee, complete with microphone. It's such a cool toy; there are 5 types of music on it, including ska, zydeco, rock, disco, and salsa.

Since he imitates me talking on the phone, we got him a play cell phone, which he loves, especially since you can push the buttons on it. Personally, I think he likes it because the little girl who "answers" the phone sounds like Charlotte.

Some other mentionables - he can climb and descend the stairs, but this still makes me quite nervous. He is in love with his bottle (especially at bedtime) and I am horrified of the day we must confront this. He loves to go outside, and will bring me his shoes to let me know it's time to do so. He loves to watch other children, is not shy, but also is not overly aggressive. He jabbers quite a bit, but we still don't understand most of what he says. Charlotte, however, is quite confident that she does. Sometimes, she even tries to translate.

He's still throwing food off of his tray when he eats, and shakes his head "no" when he doesn't want something. We often hear shrieks of frustration when he can't get what we wants. I'm dreading the day when these become full-blown temper tantrums. Another precursor to those future days - he will occasionally try to buck himself out of the stroller or car seat.

Why didn't I realize that I had it so easy 6, 8, 10 months ago? Oh, but I still wouldn't trade anything for this phase of his development. We are exhausted, and sometimes frustrated, but it's still a great ride. And we are having so much fun with him. He is our little treasure. We still look at him with awe and adoration. We just can't let him know that - at least, not yet!

A brief update...

Jonas is sleeping right now, and he's due to wake-up any moment, so I hope to get everything down. Otherwise, this post will be in the "saved" rather than "published" column for weeks before anyone sees it!

A housekeeping note: I've begun to blog again at practicingpatience as we're going to try another round of IVF.

Back to the j-boy. He is so precious, and brings us so much joy. Although it sounds trite, I love to hear the pitter patter of his feet as he runs around the house. Yes, he's running now. And tripping. And falling. All of that good stuff that makes your heart hurt.

Lately, he's begun to dance, and boy it's funky. He is such a white boy. Basically, he bends his knees while simultaneously lifting one elbow up and down. I think he's trying to move his shoulders but hasn't quite figured out how yet. He has a few favorite toys, including two books, that play horrible sounding tinny music.

And speaking of books, he has several non-musical favorites, including Brown Bear, What Color is Your Underwear?, and Peekaboo Bath time. He especially loves any books with moving parts.

He is a picky eater, and will throw blueberries and other assorted rejected foods directly onto the floor. He does this with a great scream and decisive movements. Some of the food he does like - mashed banana with cinnamon sugar (Ed pointed out that this is basically a banana's foster, which is my favorite dessert) or almond butter, baked beans, guacamole, toast, and juice. He will snack on Annie's chocolate bunnies or gold fish, and also likes veggie straws, graham crackers, and all other junk food. Sometimes he likes to munch on apples. He'll occasionally eat beets, green beans, and apples. He is not fond of meat yet, except for pepperoni directly off of a pizza.

Yes, we are indulgent parents, but I'm sure that's already been apparent in our postings.

Looks like my time is up!!!

My thoughtful little helper

Jonas has become quite the asset here at home. Some of the helpful things he can now do.

He brings me the TV remote control. He throws it to me while I'm showering.

He helps me with the laundry by unfolding and throwing the folded clothes.

He helps me in the kitchen, by emptying the bottom two kitchen drawers onto the floor. He also loves to clean out the fridge by throwing items from the shelves to the floor.

He organizes clutter by moving things from room to room. I never thought about keeping maracas in the kitchen cabinet!

He helps me work out and burn calories by chasing him as he tries to climb the stairs. The panic that I feel when I find him halfway up is great for reaching my target heart rate.

I find myself thinking, "How did I ever manage without him?"

1 year update

Wow - it's been over a month since my last post. Motherhood has been keeping me busy, but there are lots of fun new things that are a part of Jonas' life, so I must take time to report. Since it's so hard to get Jonas to entertain himself while I post, the info below rambles and is in no particular order. I'm lucky to spellcheck before posting!!!!

Shoes are his new plaything. He will go around the house picking up shoes and moving them. Sometimes just one; sometimes, it's the pair. It's funny enough when he has my shoes, but it's really a riot when he picks Ed's shoes. They are so big that they almost drag the floor. I can't imagine how he has the strength to carry those heavy size 12 loafers around. We went to 2 shoe stores today, and it was nirvana for him, especially the women's shoes. I'm proud to say that he picked out the sandals with the most bling - rinestones and all! Sadly, he was chewing on them.

Ed thinks that Jonas has begun to say "dad" whenever he picks him up. This is a big deal because it was one of those items on the developmental "test" that I fill out at the pediatrician's office. At the one-year well visit, the doc told me that most 12 month-olds can use the words "dada" and "mama" to refer to the parents. We are training Jonas to say "poppa" but this is much harder to pronounce.

He does this thing with his mouth - sucking on his top lip - unfortunate, since he barely has a top lip. He has the "Meyer" upper lip from his paternal grandmother's side of the family.

If I thought he was a loud child before, I've been corrected. He is NOW a loud child. When he's excited or frustrated by something, he screams a very high-pitched loud scream. When crawling under chairs or behind furniture, he will often get stuck. Watch out for those screams. He sounds enraged and fearful all at the same time. And he's just beginning to show a temper. When you take something away from him that had entranced him (but was maybe not something he should be chewing, like the old batteries I had just finished changing out of a toy), he will scream in outrage. As of now, these outbursts are short lived.

He can also scream when he wants something, like juice. We don't let him hang on to his cup while in the highchair because he will just use it to smear his food. It gets all greasy and food encrusted, and then he flings it onto the floor so that it spatters food particles on the wall and baseboards.

About eating - he's somewhat picky, but will usually try anything. Unless it's an ice cream bar or cake, he must put it in his own mouth. We've been giving him kiddie utensils, but these are still seen as toys and often end up on the floor. Some things that he's always happy to eat: olives, bread of any kind, french toast (no syrup yet), beans, cottage cheese, and anything sweet. He loves to suck on, and squeeze in his fists, tomatoes and orange slices.

His length is in the 50th percentile, but his weight is low, as is his head circumference. He's still breastfeeding, but I am trying to wean him. We have regressed with his nighttime sleeping habits - he is back in our bed. He loves to cuddle when he sleeps, and prefers to "snack" all night long. We are trying to re-orient him to sleeping in his room and crib slowly - for both naps and overnight. Everything we've heard about it getting harder as he ages is right. But I know it's still easier now than when he gets to be more independent and willful.