St. Lucia Bound!

Well, the blog will be put on hold for a few days while we take our anniversary/honeymoon!!


Today, we picked up Grandma "D" from the airport! Jake has been having a blast with her while Daddy and I finish packing and running errands. He still has his rash around his mouth so I'm hoping by the time we get back it will be gone!

This is our first trip away from Jake overnight. I'm so bummed, especially since internet at St. Lucia is super expensive so we won't get to skype! I guess a phone call here and there will do the trick.

Lots of pictures will be posted when we come back because I'm sure Grandma "D" will take a TON! Grandma "D" is taking Jake to the toy store this week, which will be fun! Already being spoiled by all the grandparents!!

The video below was from a week or so ago and never got posted.

She's My Girlfriend

Today we had to say goodbye to Aunt Kath! But, before we did we all took a trip to Babies R Us to check out some car seats. Jake barely fits in his infant one anymore so it was time to check them out. There are so many different brands and types, I didn't know where to start! I finally started to just take them off the shelf and put Jake in them to see. He definitely fits! I found one I really liked, but after doing research it looks like it's not the best one for Jake. It was a First Years one with air side headrests. I'm so stuck! Any of you know the good brands that aren't a Britax? (average cost = $300!) I checked out some Evenflo ones, too that I liked...plus they're on sale!!! :-)

After the store, we went out to Portillo's for some good Chicago food! A lady that worked there thought me and Kath were lesbians. YIKES! She asked me if I needed help carrying my food to the table since I had Jake and I said no thanks, my girlfriend was right over there to help me. She gave me the strangest look and then I realized what I said. Oops!!! How embarrassing!

Then we brought Aunt Kath to the airport. Jake slept the whole way, of course. We said our goodbyes, but we'll be taking a family trip out to Maryland very soon!

Tonight for dinner Jake ate stage 2 foods for the first time. They have a larger amount of food in each container and different varieties such as Apple Sweet Potatoes. Jake ate the entire container and still had his little mouth wide open waiting for more! He is loving the food thing! So, on top of 3 1/2 oz of food, I gave him another container of sweet potatoes that were stage one, which is about 2 1/2 oz! Glad food was on sale today 10 for $10!!

Jake was also introduced to Puffs for the first time. Now that he has some teeth I decided to try them with him. I put one puff in his hand and he didn't know what to do. It ended up in Addy's mouth! So, I put the second one in his mouth myself. He actually started chewing it which I was very surprised about! The puffs instantly start melting in his mouth. I'm so proud of him! BUT, after I gave him puffs (probably about 4), a few hours later he started to get a rash all around his mouth. The puffs have rice in them and I know before his skin would breakout when he ate rice cereal. I've never heard of a baby allergic to rice though. I'm going to see how he looks tomorrow and try puffs again to see if that is really the issue. Poor little guy!

I started packing for St. Lucia tonight and Addy was not happy about it. The pictures above are her trying to find a spot on the bed. The entire time she was sighing and huffing as loud as she could! I swear she's part human!

The video below is of Jake trying out the puffs. Don't mind the outfit! He threw up on his shorts and the red ones were the first pair in the bin!

Lions & Tigers & No Elephants?

Today was our big trip to the zoo! The day was beautiful! Not too hot. We explored most of the exhibits and Jake did fabulous. I don't think he really was interested in looking at the animals. He was more into the people and all the kids running around! Every few minutes we'd hear him give out a loud screech and see his little legs and arms flailing in the stroller. His favorite part of the day were the goats because he was able to pet them. I think he thought they were just large Addys walking around. He pulled their coats pretty rough, but the goats were good sports, or just depressed that they were trapped in such a small space. Either way, it was a wonderful day! Oh, and do you believe there was not a single elephant at this zoo?! Strange!

Aunt Kath leaves tomorrow so we're going to make the most of our morning/afternoon together!

Our Shopping Extravaganza!

Toady was full of shop, shop, shopping! After Jake took a TWO HOUR morning nap (very unusual) we decided to go to all the stores we had gift cards for and spend as little money as we could! I was looking for last minute outfits for our trip and Kath was just looking to see if she could break the world record for most items jammed in a carry on for her flight back! Daddy had lots of studying, so he didn't tag along with us. We stopped by Old Navy and managed NOT to buy one thing for Jake....first time ever! I walked out only spending $9 on a swimsuit, shorts, and tank top. Jake was soaking all the sights of the clothes in and getting lots of attention from others.

Then it was off to Payless Shoes where Jake began making his grunting noises that were not just for fun. His face was turning bright red as he was grunting and pushing, so we knew we had to act fast! I grabbed a pair of shoes and earrings and we were out the door back to our place to see the "damage." Do you believe we put him on the changing table and he didn't poop at all?!! Jake faked both of us out!

Daddy took a study break and we all went to Panera for lunch. Jake is getting to the point where he does not want to be confined to his car seat. I think we may be moving up to high chairs at restaurants now. This means not as easy to go out anymore!

We dropped Daddy off and Jake took a nap in the car on our way to Macy's. Jake did great at this store. He was talking in his high pitched voice. The quiet "da-da-da"s. Many sales clerks and customers were commenting on how cute he was. Aunt Kath and I got lots of goodies at Macy's and I spent $0 because I had so many gift cards saved up! It's always nice to shop with free money!

We ran in to a couple in front of us in line that had a baby boy the same size as Jake. When I asked how old he was, she said 10 months!! WOW! Jake really is the size of a 10 month old!

Tonight we made dinner and drank some champagne! Then we took a walk to get some ice cream for dessert. Jake got a bath and we read him a bedtime story! Daddy tried to fix Jake's CD player, but it's just plain broke! Needing to invest in another one, but for now, it's up to Scout to play him his bedtime music.

Tomorrow Aunt Kath, Jake, and I are heading downtown to the Lincoln Park Zoo. Aunt Kath is in LOVE with zoos, so we figured the FREE zoo is the best! We'll have LOTS of pictures tomorrow capturing our adventure!

Goodnight for now!

Chillin' Poolside with TwoTeeth!

Keeping this blog short tonight so I can spend some time with Kath! Aunt Kath made it in last night and we've been having so much fun with her!

This morning we discovered Jake's other tooth broke through the surface. He's been slightly fussy due to the tooth, but overall, not so bad.

We got ready for the party and Aunt Kath made an awesome appetizer! A very tasty veggie on croissant dish! Daddy grilled out and Becky, Steve, and Emersyn joined us! Check out videos and photos from our day!

Jake had much more fun in the pool today! Much more splashing and actually opening up his mouth to try and catch the water! He was not at all afraid. He lounged in his float and even went on Daddy's shoulders!

A great day! Can't wait to see what tomorrow has in store for us!

7 Months!!

Happy 7 months to Jake for growing big and strong and to Mommy and Daddy for not messing up too much! :-)

Today Jake slept until 7:00, which I hope he keeps up. He had his bottle and did not want anything to do with the swing. I think we may be putting the swing away! His feet hang off the edge and he doesn't really use it or enjoy it now that he's not taking his nap in there. So, I let him play a bit on the floor before I brought him to the Pack n' play to take his morning nap. Sure enough, it worked, and he passed right out for an hour and a half! This gave me lots of time to tidy up the place a bit. After he woke up, he ate some pears and we were off for our walk.

Daddy came home for lunch and helped me try to get a picture of Jake at 7 months. It's much harder taking the pictures now that he grabs everything and wants to put everything in his mouth. We didn't get any good ones, but at least we have them.

He no longer fits in any of his Old Navy shorts 6-12 months. They're actually tight around the belly area which is surprising. Hoping I can make it out to the store to get him a few pairs of 12-18 month ones. I'm running low on onesies now that he only fits in 12 month! Bye bye carter's 9 month onesies! Hopefully, we'll try to do some measurements tomorrow to check his length and weight.

Addy and Jake were playing together again today. He absolutely gets a kick out of her. Videos below....hopefully better light.

We went out to Fridays tonight for dinner. Jake was quite the character as he grunted and "ehhh" ed the entire time. He grunted so much that it made him poop! Figures! I went to change him and a lady in the restroom was convinced that he was at least 9 months old. When I told her 7 today, her mouth dropped. Jake flirted with her and gave big smiles to her two little kids. We had to leave dinner quickly when Jake started grunting on top of his lungs, so loud that it was causing him to cough. I guess he was trying to have a scream off with the music. He was never crying or fussy, just very vocal. I didn't want to be "those" people in a restaurant!

I gave Jake a bath when we got home. Lots of splashing and playing! Kathleen's flight got delayed so I'll be picking her up tonight around 10:00. Looking forward to our pool party tomorrow with some friends!!

Tails

What a great day! Jake decided to skip his nap in the swing again this morning. He's down to two naps today, which can't be good.

Today, we ventured out of the house to go get my hair cut and dyed. We drove down to my hairdresser's place near my school. Jake slept on the way there and back, luckily...does that count as his missed nap? Jen has two dogs, Piston and Rocky. Piston is a giant Shepard mountain type dog and Rocky is a Jack Russell. Jen is six months pregnant with her first kid so the dogs have had no experience with little ones, which made me nervous, especially with the hyper Jack Russell. It was a madhouse when we got in. They both were so curious as to what was in the car seat. I put Jake on the couch and Piston (being super mellow and lazy) gave him one look and went back to laying down. Rocky, on the other hand, licked Jake from head to toe! Jake was giggling and trying to grab the crazy dog. Rocky then moved on to the Boppy pillow and proceeded to hump the pillow. NOT THE PILLOW! Even when we tried to grab him off the pillow he was still holding on strong. Jake again was laughing and screeching! While I was getting my hair done, Rocky stayed right by Jake and would steal a smooch every now and then. He would circle Jake and pull his blanket and knock over his toys. Rocky was constantly running around the house and knocking into Jake. Piston stayed completely out of the picture the entire time! Moral of the story.....NEVER get a Jack Russell unless you want to go insane! Needless to say, Jen is a tad worried on how Rocky will act once the baby arrives! Sure makes me thankful we have Addy! :-)

We had some more family time on the bed once Daddy got home. Addy was so excited to see Daddy that her tail kept getting in the way. Below is a video. Before this video, Jake was grabbing Addy's tail and squealing. Then he couldn't keep up with it!

Addy finally was playing with Jake tonight, but it was completely out of jealously. Daddy was playing "Where'd Jake go?" with a kitchen towel and Addy decided to steal the show. Video below.

All four of us went on a walk tonight, which is rare since Daddy is in the middle of mid-terms and still going strong on his P90X. Hoping for a nice relaxing rest of the night!

Tornados, Tornados All Over the Place!

Today started out not too eventful. We woke up to some rain and small thunder storms. Jake had his nap in the swing and ate some applesauce. It rained most the morning into early afternoon. Jake has been scooting a lot lately and even turning his entire body 180 degrees to grab toys! He is still on a drool fest!

Finally, by 2:00 the weather was looking good. So we took our daily walk around the neighborhood. Pictures below of our walk. We played on the floor and read some books until Daddy got home.

I made Chicken Paprikas for dinner tonight and it turned out delicious! The homemade dumplings were fabulous thanks to my dumpling maker that my Grandma bought me. It's so nice to know how to make some of your family's traditional meals that have been around for ages!

Then the severe weather hit! It was pitch black and the wind was blowing hard. Next thing we know the sirens are going off and I'm yelling at Daddy to get in the bathroom with me and Jake. Of course, he doesn't listen and instead went back to look for the tornado! He makes me so nervous! The sirens finally stopped, but turns out there was a tornado right in Elmhurst/Oakbrook!! We have severe thunderstorm warnings the rest of the evening and our power has went out once. I hate storms!

After the storm scare, Daddy had Jake and Addy up on the bed. I had just folded the laundry and his socks were there. So, of course, Jake had to grab them. Addy was not having this and would grab it out Jake's hand. Whatever sock Jake touched, Addy would grab! It was hilarious! And Jake was laughing at Addy the whole time.

Below is a video from last night. We call it the Jake slide! We would put him on a pillow on the bed and he would keep rolling down the slop! He LOVED it! We must have played that game a dozen or so times last night!

Only two more days until Aunt Kath comes to visit us! Really looking forward to her stay with us!

One Hungry Kid!

Jake slept in his crib the entire night until 7:15 this morning! This was HUGE considering the past nights have been a little rough with the teething and all. He woke up happy as a clam and didn't pee through his PJs! YAY! He decided to skip his morning nap in the swing and head straight to the playing. This made me nervous since it was not the normal routine, but I went with it.

After his bananas, he took a short cat nap and was up screaming and crying. Checked his tooth and it looks like the other one is right at the surface causing him lots of pain. I rubbed some teething tablets on them and fed him another bottle.

We took a walk in the afternoon, but I think it was a tad bit too hot, at least for me and Addy! Addy was foaming at the mouth and I was working up quite the sweat. We turned our usual 1 mile walk to about a half mile. After our walk Jake played and rolled around on the floor. I didn't get much housework done today!

Jake's been very vocal today with his screeches and screams. We had a little giggle time on his changing table. Video posted below. I also gave Jake a Dr. Seuss character to play with and we were having some possession problems with Addy. She swore it was hers!

THEN CAME DINNER!!! Jake usually eats one container of veggies for dinner. Well, after he demolished the sweet potatoes, I decided to give him half a container of bananas. He opened his mouth up sooooooooooo big for more. He "mmmmm" and squealed for more. So, I broke down and gave him the rest of the bananas. Maybe he's going through a growth spurt?!


P.S. Take note on how many onesies Jake went through today! Between drool and poop, we're on outfit number 3!!!!

Houston, We Have a Tooth!

Well, it's official, Jake's first tooth broke through the surface. It's a pointy little fellow! He was fussy last night because of it and eventually had to come sleep in the pack n' play in our room, BUT he slept until 7:00 so I'm not complaining!

Jake played on the floor with his blocks and plastic keys for quite some time. Then we all went on a walk in the morning since it looked like it was going to rain. We watched the ducks swim until Addy was about to pounce in them.

Jake is now in the stage where you CANNOT turn your back on him for two seconds. Today he rolled around his room while I was folding his laundry and manged to find a curtain rod end, a coupon for diapers, and a little swimmer diaper! He is a riot! We are also working on saying Addy. Right now it is coming out "Ad-die," but we're close!

After dinner, we all went on a family walk before Daddy had to study for the night. Jake played on Daddy's tummy a

Bath night, which is much needed considering Daddy fed him his sweet potatoes tonight and they got up his nose!!

Daddy is the BEST!

Happy Father's Day!! Jake slept through the night 'til 6:30. He gave Daddy lots of hugs and slobbery kisses this morning for Father's Day. We're waiting for him to get home so we can give him his gift. Jake ate prunes for breakfast and ended up with most of them on his face, arms, hair, and ears. Video posted below.

Jake played in his highchair for a bit while I got some housework done. Looking nice outside now, so after Jake finishes his morning nap we may all go for a walk! Loving the umbrella stroller and its convenience. It stays right inside the house so I don't have to have a baby in one arm the dog in the other AND pull the big stroller from the trunk all by myself!


Daddy opened his gifts and got a photo book of him and Jake and a surprise lunch at Two Brothers Brewery in Warrenville, IL. The brewery had a tour we missed, but had a tap house. It was in the middle of nowhere and didn't even have a sign that said Two Brothers which was interesting. The beer was great though and the food was awesome! Ben did a sample and then had two other pints. I think he enjoyed himself. Jake flirted with a little girl in the booth behind us and eventually drank a bottle and fell asleep the rest of the time. Not bad to still be able to go out to eat and not worry about him.

BWAH!

We started the day out at a much better time (6:30). Jake was fussy last night, but when I went to check on him he had peed all through his PJs! I think we may need to invest in the next size up in diapers due to his explosions and night pees! He ate pears again for breakfast and afterward he got his first gum cleaning. We bought him a "toothbrush" which is really just a rubber covering for your finger. He had so much fun getting his teeth cleaned. He was laughing and biting down on my finger, which I'm sure felt good!

Jake stayed in his PJs 'til NOON! It's the weekend so I let it slide! haha We're going to go finish up Daddy's Father's Day gift today and maybe even find him a bathing suit for the trip. Daddy is at school ALL DAY today for a class and he'll be gone again tomorrow! A total bummer since usually the weekends are spent hanging out together as a family.

Jake's new word is "bwah" He says this over and over, especially when he's excited! Sometimes it comes out "ma" and I just smile! Daddy and Jake played together on the floor. Trying to post a video below so you can see how loud Jake was giggling!

We all went to the pool today and ran into a 7 month old baby girl named Ella. She was much smaller than Jake, which doesn't surprise us considering Jake is measuring as a 10-11 month old. Jake floated and relaxed, but still no excitement about the water. The pool trip ended quickly when jake got super fussy! Teeth make babies crazy! One is really starting to push through and the other is close behind.

Bath night tonight and hopefully one sleepy baby!!

We love the government!

Started with an early morning today (5:19 am!), but it's turning out to be a productive one! Jake ate pears for the first time today and loved them! He ate the entire container this morning when usually he only eats half. His new game while eating is to turn his head side to side with his mouth open and wait for me to time it just right. It's quite a challenge! Hoping this fades fast! Then we played on the floor and watched 15 minutes of cartoons together. Not really looking forward to cartoon time with him as he gets bigger due to the fact the cartoons nowadays are horrible! What happened to Looney Tunes?!

After some cartoon time, we got dressed and met Daddy at the unemployment office (dun dun duunnn). Luckily, the lines weren't that long and we were able to sit. I was hoping Jake would be napping, but sure enough, he was wide awake and LOUD! He was screeching and laughing and squealing. Of course, he wanted to grab everything and I was being the crazy mom telling him how dirty everything was and "kucky." An hour an a half later, we were finished with 26 weeks of unemployment, which equals 26 weeks of stay-at-home Mommy time!

We all went out to Chicks 'n' Salsa for lunch where Jake proceeded to use his feet to hold his bottle. Interesting that he won't use his hands. He looked like a monkey and managed to get quite a few smiles from a table of ladies next to us! Such a flirt!

Later, Jake played "chase Addy." He runs and tries to get Addy (while I'm holding him upright, of course) and Addy chases him with one of her toys. He giggles on top of his lungs!

Huge storms here today, so it looks like no pool. We did manage to make it out to Babies R Us. We are finally baby proofing the house and we even found Jake a cheap umbrella stroller. I'm not sure what age you're supposed to use these strollers, but we thought it would be great to travel with down to Indy, Ohio, and even the upcoming weddings in the fall. Jake seemed to like it so we pushed him around the house a few times.

At the end of the night, Addy and Jake both wanted to be with their Daddy. Having trouble uploading a video. I'll try again tomorrow!! Goodnight all!

Let the Summer Begin!

I figured since I've been taking tons of pictures of Jake and Addy that I would start a blog for family and friends. I'd like to try to post something new each day!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Jake's new discoveries
-sitting up on his own
-sippy cup
-man parts
-solid foods

Jake's favorite foods
-Bananas (which considering Ben overdosed on them when he was little, I'm worried!)
- Squash
-Sweet Potatoes
- Apples

Jake's least favorite foods
-Peas
-Green beans

Catch up!

These past few weeks have been great being a stay-at-home Mommy! Jake has been obsessed with his blocks and a new toy I bought him that he spins. Everything goes in the mouth! We are starting to see his two front teeth make way to the surface. Any week now (fingers crossed). Over the weekend, Jenny and Chris came out to visit us and we all went bowling. Jake loves them!
Yesterday, we went to visit Daddy at school. There was a Mexican cookout (don't ask) and lots of fun friends. We walked around the lake. Addy came, too! Tonight we went to the pool for the second time. Jake is still unsure about the water. He gives "Mommy eyebrows" and really focuses. He had fun splashing and making the water spray on his face. We came home and had a nice bath, except he was holding a little something the entire time. Oh boy! Afterward, we had family time together and Jake played with Addy. Addy was in no mood to play. We'll see what tomorrow has in store for us!