Festivities

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. DS's friend Finn's family adopted us for the day. We had a great day of turkey, talking, and tummy-stuffing. Then, on Friday, we spent the evening with our neighbors who have a tradition of doing gingerbread houses on that day. I have to say that this was the most elaborate gingerbread house I have ever made. DS enjoyed eating the candy.

We also had haircuts that weekend. DH was first, then it was DS's turn. This would be DS's 4th haircut. DH was excited about the difference in their hair color, but I'm sure DS's hair will get darker as it is already darker than it once was. In any case, it was worthy of documentation.

Now look closely at the next picture. Does anyone recognize that book? That's right! It's Richard Scarry's classic, "Cars and Trucks and Things That Go." My grandparents had a copy of this book when I was little and my favorite task was to find Goldbug...he's hidden on each page, you know. DS has began noticing trucks. He rides along in the car or on the bike, announcing every truck we pass, "guck!" Of course, it still sounds a lot like "duck" and "quack"...I'm only assuming he's not point out ducks along the way.

Speaking of DS's new words, one of our favorites is, "cookie". This one didn't take long to learn. One Saturday afternnon, DH announced that he was going to make some cookies. DS whirled around and repeated, "cah-kie, cah-kie!" Then it was nap time, so he took a nap, and when he got up, DH was finished making them. DS ran into the kitchen announcing, "cah-kie, cah-kie!" Apparently that particular nap time was full of sweet dreams of anticipation!

DS is becoming quite the climber. He seems proud of anything that makes him even slightly taller. They already grow too fast...let's not rush it.

Last weekend we headed out to DH's place of work for their annual Christmas Celebration. Some of you may remember the pics from last year's event. This year DS was old enough to enjoy it. First, we stopped by the live nativity. The most exciting part for DS was the goats and the rooster. Then, we stood in line for quite a while for the exciting horse-drawn carriage. DS naturally was pretty intrigued by the horses dressed with sleigh bells. Then we headed over to visit Santa, who, not surprisingly, was cause for some alarm. DS was not about to sit on his lap, but he did let Mama hold him next to Santa for a quick pic. How did parents ever torture their kids before Santa was invented?

And, our last stop was to make some antlers, which DS refused to wear. DH convinced him the next afternoon to keep them on long enough for a picture...before he pulled them off and ripped them in two.







We also put our tree up last weekend so we are now feeling festive!









And one more picture worthy of mention: DS has grown fond of DH's slippers. I think this is a phase that all children go through...






Merry Christmas to all!!

Bathtime Fun

I do believe DS will be a pitcher one day, but perhaps he will need to work on his aim and technique...


On a more solemn note, we said goodbye to Herman, our faithful beta fish, this afternoon. He has now passed through the porcelain passageway into fishy heaven where he is free from pain and suffering. He had quite a life for a fishy. Highlights included three weeks without food (NOT the most recent three weeks!) and a brush with death by dogs as he shared a back seat in the car for a week as we journeyed west to our "promised land." He was blessed to have entered and experienced the land flowing with milk and honey...Farewell, dear Herman. (Can you tell I've been reading about Moses lately?)

Long Overdue

Well, I wrote the following almost a month ago and didn't get around to adding pics and posting until now. So, keep that in mind as you read. I know, I've been slacking in my updating efforts...

I realized it has been over a month since I wrote. I suppose an update is long overdue. I have been studying...and loving it. Even if I'm not accepted into the Doctor of Clinical Psychology program, I have learned quite a bit. My perspectives have been challenged and I am only a better person for it. It is funny how being out of school for six years gives you time to fall into certain thinking patterns that aren't so beneficial. I have sat in class many times now feeling a little offended by the subject matter, only to realize that the reason I am offended is because these cognitive shortcuts and assumptions that people make have indeed become habitual for me, as well. These types of cognitive shortcuts are the basis of stereotypes and prejudices that cause serious hurt amongst the human race. The popular and yet despised psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud is quite famous for a lot of things, much of which I do not find worthy to be mentioned here. However, one aspect I appreciate is his emphasis on balance. Something that triggers a forceful emotional response may actually suggest an area where one struggles unconsciously, thus eliciting the response. Why do I get so offended or angered over certain ideas and topics? Maybe because I've got problems, too. ;)

About 3/4 of the way through the term, I welcomed a break! DH's parents were here to visit for a few days. What a wonderful time of relaxing and spending time together it was! And, we finally got to the portrait studio to get DS's one year pictures taken! I meant to do that when he actually turned one--2 1/2 months ago. I realized that if you don't do it when it is time, you miss your chance!! Of course, Grandma and Grandpa were excited to give DS one Christmas gift a little early so they would be able to enjoy watching him have fun with it. DS loves his new tunnel to crawl through. Of course, I am proud to say that I was actually the first one through the tunnel. (I even took it to Friend Finn's house today and they had a blast playing with it together!) Then, the weekend came to an end and they headed back east again. I love having family and friends come visit. I hate when they leave. I suppose you can't have one without the other. We are looking forward to our next break for Thanksgiving. Which is in about two weeks, believe it or not!

DS is living large and loving life! He is communicating, not necessarily speaking clearly, but communicating nonetheless. He loves to point to something so I can tell him what it is. A few of his favorites: ball, clock, light, dog, fish, Mamma's nose, blanket. And he still loves books. When he gets a little upset, I can tell him to go get a book and he will usually go sort through the shelf, pick out a book, bring it to me, crawl up on my lap, and listen intently as I read to him...and he usually wants to turn the pages himself. He has started trying to feed himself lately with a spoon. He tries so hard and does pretty well. I am thankful for my LARGE bib with a pocket at the bottom to catch everything that misses his mouth. Let's just say it saves me a LOT of work!

It poured all day today. It is supposed to be worse tomorrow. DH said we are getting the affects of a tropical storm. Who knew?!? I suppose when you don't get any TV channels and don't read the newspaper, or even check the news online, you miss a lot--but I suspect that if there is something important enough for me to know, people will talk and I will hear it from someone. Perhaps it is not always a most accurate version, but how is that any different from the actual media?

Busy

I guess you could say we've been staying busy. It all started a couple weeks ago when I was looking to make applesauce to can. We happened upon a lovely little ranch with a really sweet man named "Farmer Stan". He had several apple trees loaded with apples. He said, in essence, "Please come pick my apples because my horses are getting fat on them." So, my friend and I headed over one morning to do some apple picking and about three hours later, we had about 200 pounds of apples...each. Farmer Stan was so nice! He had a tractor with a big bucket that he let us climb into, then he would raise it up so we were in the tree. Sure beats trying to use a ladder!

So, I spent two full days making and canning applesauce and another full day making and canning apple butter. This was the first time I did all of that myself, so I was quite proud of myself by the end. Only problem is that I now have about 60 quarts of applesauce and I'm not sure that I want to see anything that has to do with apples for a while. I'm sure I will be glad for it during the winter.

At the end of the applesauce week, I headed into Portland to take the GRE--that big standardized test to get into grad school--kinda like the SAT's, only much harder. There are three sections. I did pretty well on some of it. Let's just say that I will be taking them again and in the meantime I am studying lots of vocabulary words. Vocab has never been a strong point of mine, so I am seizing this opportunity to learn and grow. Of course, sometimes it takes a painful reality check to motivate certain learning and growing. Did I mention I'm going to be taking them again? :)

We had a branch on the tree that looked a bit gnarled. That and it was kinda laying on the wires. So DH took it upon himself to cut it down. He borrowed a ladder and pole saw and had great success. It looks nice now. I would like to draw your attention to his "safety helmet" in the picture...that is indeed a bike helmet. Better safe than sorry, I guess! :)

DH is back in full swing for his second year of teaching. It is going much more smoothly than last year. That was to be expected. He has a whole new batch of students and a lot of gained wisdom from last year's growing pains. He's even finding time to play volleyball a couple times per week!

And of course, everyone wants to know about DS! What would my blog posts be without DS pics!?! He's doing quite well, now running around the house. It is hard to keep up with him. I'm glad I don't have a bigger house! He's had a few cranky days lately. I suspect there are more teeth on the way to add to the 8 that he has now. He LOVES the phone. It is not typically an approved toy since he has called people in the past. But, every time he catches a glimpse of it, we have quite a meltdown. He loves to chase the dogs. Beau usually now runs from him and hides. Ollie, on the other hand, likes to give him kisses, which DS usually thinks is hysterical.

We have a new clock. Well, it's a bit of an old new clock. DH finished his HS wood shop project! It is quite impressive sitting in our little living room with it's elegant chimes and bongs. It's been admired by everyone that comes to visit...and their even more impressed when we tell them it is home-made--from scratch.

Classes are back into session for me, as well. I have two new classes this term: Personality Theory and Abnormal Psychology. The first is interesting as it focuses on why people do what they do. The second is fascinating as it focuses on the various mental illnesses. Last evening we had a guest speaker that came to talk about schizophrenia. She, at age 30 and after a long history of psychotic issues, was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Now, being on a series of medications and with intensive cognitive therapy, she is able to have a relatively normal life and deal somewhat rationally with the irrational behaviors and experiences that come along with the condition. Talk about captivating! As I left class, I knew my world view had changed a bit and I will never be the same because of it. I suspect I will have many such experiences with this type of subject matter.

The weather has cooled and the rains have started. The first few weeks are more sporadic with some hot days and some rainy days. In a few weeks, the sunny days will be considered rare and the soggy ground will be the norm. I have to say that I am ready for the cooler, rainy weather, and by spring, I will be ready for sun again. I love the changing seasons.

One Year

It has been a year. Hard to believe, but it's true. DS is a walking, babbling toddler of 12 months. My parents came for the weekend to celebrate. We had a lot of fun relaxing and celebrating. On the 29th, his actual birthday, we went out for dinner at the Mexican restaurant in town. Then, on Saturday, we went out to the park and ate lunch and played on the swings. DS loves to swing. When it was time to get out of the swing, he crossed his legs so we couldn't pull him out and he had a fit.

Then, we walked over to the pet store in town...more like a petting zoo. DS had a lot of fun chasing the two dogs and the tortus' that were all running around. They also had a cute little lop-eared bunny that DS snuggled. He (and I) got to hold a snake. I do believe that is the first snake I have ever held. And there are lots of fish and birds to look at, which he found exciting. That evening we had cake. DS loved his cake. He went to bed with a happy belly full of cake that night. On Sunday afternoon, we went to a birthday party for DS's friend Finn. He turned one on the 27th. And, on Monday, we took my parents back to the airport. We were sad to see them go. DS still recognizes and points to their picture that sits on the bookshelf.

On Thursday, we went to the doctor for his one year checkup. She was quite pleased with all of his walking and babbling. The not-so-fun part of the visit was, of course, the shots. But, he got over that quickly.

Growth chart numbers are as follows:
Weight: 24 lbs. 2 oz., 65th percentile. Little surprised he is still under 25 pounds, but he is growing just fine...he feels heavier every time I pick him up.
Height: 31 3/4 in., 95th percentile. Still super tall for his age.
Head Circumference: 18 in., 35th percentile. Growing normally.

He's starting babble in ways that sound more and more like actual words. He also babbles in sentences. I think one day he will surprise me and all of a sudden start rattling off real sentences. He is definitely modeling behaviors. He sees me yelling and the dogs, so he goes out on the deck when they are running around the yard and yells out to them a sentence that only he knows the meaning. He will grab a phone and hold it up to his ear and start talking. Then, he'll start walking around the house with the phone still at his ear, still talking. He's my little shadow. He will follow me around the house as I work...my little buddy.

Happy 5 Years

On August 23, DH and I celebrated our fifth year anniversary. DH had a fun day planned with just the two of us. DS stayed with some friends for the day. First, we headed to the racetrack and did some go-cart racing. I am ashamed to say that DH beat me by just a split second. Only complaint I had, though, was that we had to wear helmets. I've never been to a go-cart place where they make you wear helmets...it smushed my new do. Anyway, from there, we caught the MAX and rode into Portland where we walked around downtown. This was the first time I actually walked around in downtown Portland. It is a beautiful city...definitely some weird people here, but a beautiful city nonetheless. We ate at a cute Italian restaurant before heading to the Beaver's game, which is the Portland minor leauge baseball team. It was super fun, but we lost. Not exactly a close game.

We left the game a little early to try to catch the MAX ahead of the rush since the stop was just outside the stadium. That was a big day in Portland, though, and we had to let about 4 over packed trains pass before squishing on one. One of them broke down right in front of us because the doors jammed up because it had too much weight on it. They started clearing the train out one door as people, not realizing what was happening, started cramming in another door. What a mess! Anyway, super fun day.

Happy Anniversary, DH!

The New Me

I cut my hair off again. About two years ago, I cut off about 10 inches to donate to Locks of Love. It is a company that makes wigs for people who have cancer. So, I let it grow and chopped off another 10 inches. I still have the braids laying on the counter because I haven't sent them in yet, much to DH's amusement. My friend Mary is a licensed hair stylist, so she gave me my new "do".


This is my Pocahontas picture. Don't I look lovely?









And the final product (front and side shots). Too bad I can't make it look just like that when I style it. Mary just has the right touch.

Quality Time

Well, DH is off to his faculty retreat at the coast. He just left and is riding out with a few others in a camper that one guy is staying in for the few days. He will be returning on Tuesday, so DS and I have a couple days together just the two of us...a great time to get used to not having DH around during the day since the school year is just about to start.

Lately, I've been having a lot of flashbacks of last summer as this is the time I was very uncomfortable and very ready to have the baby! It's hard to believe DS is almost 1. A few of his new tricks: I believe he has mastered the word, "dog." It's hard to tell as it also sounds an awful lot like "duck". Also, he is now starting to climb up and down the steps on our deck...it is just one step up at two different places, so I don't need to worry about him falling down a fight of steps. It is a good spot for him to learn how to do steps. One more thing he is learning is that if he wants to hold his sippy cup to drink out of it, he needs to hold it up. For a while, he has been letting me hold the cup so he can drink out of it. Then, he decided he wanted to hold it, but nothing came out...because he wasn't tipping it back. So, now I can give him the cup and he can do it all on his own. He seems to be understanding a lot of what we say. I will tell him certain things and he responds accordingly, which is a lot of fun to see. I really think babies are a lot more fun when they are about to turn 1.

So, here is another video for your enjoyment. I know I've mentioned before that DS likes books. Now you can see him in action. Enjoy!

Toddler Man

Okay, okay, I know I have bombarded you with posts in the past 2 weeks. But, here is a video clip DH caught Sunday evening. He then informed me, "If you would think it is blog-worthy, I would be honored." Yes, DH, I have classified it as "blog-worthy", so here it is!

Again, for those of you who receive my blog posts via email, you can go to the website to get the full video: notesfromthenorthwest.blogspot.com

Happy Birthday to Me!

Apparently, DS is now walking. Tuesday was my birthday, and one exiting thing that happened that day was that DS took his first unassisted steps. He has since been standing for longer periods of time and taking more and more steps. He stands and gets his balance, then looks at something, which he decides to go after. Then, off he goes. He has taken up to about 13 steps or so before plopping and crawling the rest of the way. He is quite a determined little man.

We've established that DS is not allowed to play in the dogs' water dish, so his determination to touch that water himself has started to fade. However, now the new fascinating activity is putting things in the water dish. We have recently had to wring out several of his toys. Ah yes, the world of a curious toddler!!

As an aside, last evening I was the closest I had ever been to going to the emergency room. Then, at about 3:30 am Saturday morning, I did. After a few hours of testing procedures and such, I was sent home with some antibiotics and a list of instructions that included "get lots of rest and drink plenty of fluids". Let's just say, I was in a lot of pain, but now I am feeling much better. Today, I praise God for doctors!

The Crawl

And by popular demand...I was diligent in my videography-ing and have finally captured "The Crawl" on video. In this video, DS does have socks on, which seems to hinder his abilities slightly. With the warm weather, he usually goes barefoot. Again, for those of you who receive blog updates via email, you may go to the website to get the full video: notesfromthenorthwest.blogspot.com

Also, with the nice weather we have had recently, we have ventured out to the sandbox. DS seems to enjoy getting dirty. I suppose that means he is a normal kid.

Concentration

Here is another video attempt. Again, for those of you who get blog posts via email, you will need to go to the web-site to view the video: notesfromthenorthwest.blogspot.com. My apologies for the fact that this video is sideways. I forgot that you can't do vertical video...only vertical still-shots. You will have to tilt your head...I guess I won't get any awards for best motion picture on this one.

Boy's Gone Camping

We decided to be brave and took DS camping for two nights. We went with a group from the university where DH works. It was a group of families that we have met throughout the year. We had a lot of fun. It reminded me of various camping trips I had gone on with my family when I was growing up. Only this time, I was one of the adults...having to help with meal planning, etc. But, I didn't let that added responsibility ruin my trip! :)

DS slept fairly well in the tent. I had been a little concerned that he might keep everyone awake, being that we were all sleeping in tents well in ear-shot range. But, he made me proud. He wasn't any louder than any of the other little ones in the group--at least from my perspective. And, I did get some much-needed sleep as well, so I can't complain.

DS loves to play in the dirt, we discovered. Having no bath tubs to use, his evening "wash-up" session included a wet-wipe wipe-down. I have come to be quite appreciative of wet wipes. Whoever invented those was a genious in my book.

Speaking of geniouses, DS is quite the little smarty pants. He has a toy with shape cutouts in the lid that you put the matching shape pieces through. I don't mean to brag (well, maybe I do) :), but he, at 10 months, has started putting shapes through the correct holes. He also has developed a passion for animals and balls...and the dog water dish. He loves to point at anything. That is his indication that I should take him there to examine it. And when I don't, he uses what has become labled as the "bear-crawl" or "monkey-crawl" where he is on all fours, but not hands and knees...he doesn't like using his knees, so he uses his feet instead with his little bum straight up in the air. Apparently, he thinks it is faster. Although, it is clear that he would much prefer to be walking. One day, little one, one day. You're not far off. He also likes to torture the poor puppies. He chases them and pounces. It is almost as if you can see them roll their eyes while thinking, "not again." They usually get up and walk away, which further encourages DS's game to again chase and pounce. He'll grow out of that game one day, boys, I promise.