My One Year Old!

Happy Birthday to Sam!!

We had a wonderful day celebrating Sam's first birthday, along with Mother's Day, with both sides of our immediate families.  The birthday boy was in such great spirits all day!  He loved all the attention and just being around so many people who love him dearly.

We went to brunch at a restaurant on the water and couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day- sunny and the low 80s...perfection!  After brunch, we headed outside to take some pictures.  

 The birthday boy and his daddy!  Don't you love his "Birthday Boy" pin?

 Full of smiles on his special day!

  

Our happy family!

He looks like such a toddler!  On a side note, Sam has started to try to sit "Magic 5" or "Criss-Cross-Applesauce!"  I sit like that all the time and apparently his babysitter does too!

 Family pic on the dock.  I was super nervous about taking this photo...the dock was moving like crazy!

We then went back to my parents' house to continue the celebration.  After a little nap, it was time for cake, ice cream, and presents!

 Sam was a little unsure about the candle!  

 But he dug right into the cupcake!  He literally picked it up like it was a ball and shoved the icing part into his mouth.  Love my little sweet tooth boy!

 Giving mommy a taste!

 He's in Cupcake Heaven!

Checking out some of his birthday presents.  He got a Scout!  Can I just tell you how precious that thing is?!  I highly recommend a Scout or Violet.

What a fabulous day for celebrating Sam's first birthday and my first Mother's Day!  I couldn't have asked for anything more.  We can't wait to continue the celebration in two weeks with more family and friends.  

Sneak Peek!

Last Sunday we had Sam's one year pictures taken!  A friend of a friend had an opening for a mini-session at a local park.  This park was a former amusement park, so it has so many fun possibilities for photographs. My in-laws actually have many fond memories of visiting there as kids, which made this location even more special for us.  I checked my e-mail a few minutes after we got home from the shoot and we already had a sneak peek!  

Here's our birthday boy during the "cake smash" portion of the session!

Thanks so much to Dottie Millwater Photography!  I can't wait to see the rest!

Step by Step!

Yeah, those are lyrics of one of my favorite New Kids on the Block songs from back in the day, but it's also what's going on over at our house recently.  Last night, Sam took six (!!) steps in a row all by himself!  Well, mommy and daddy cheering him on and coercing him with a sock that he really, really wanted helped too!  It was awesome!  He's been so close to walking for like a month or more, and last night was really the first time that he walked more than one step without the help of one of us, his dinosaur walker, or some other push toy.

There is video of this momentous occasion, but I'll spare you of my screaming and fanfare!  I'll try to get it on video again and attempt to restrain myself from freaking out this time!  :)

For now, here's a cute pic of my boy and his pup doing their neighborhood watch!

Green with Envy!

We hope you all had a wonderful St. Patrick's Day!

Our day was very low-key, but that's exactly what we needed.  Kurt's been in Vegas all weekend, so it was just Sam and I at home.  We started out with swim lessons in the morning.  Since Kurt's away, I had to get in the pool with Sam.  This was my first time and WOW!  He's a mover in the water!  There were several times that I thought for sure that I was going to drop him because he's so wiggly.

After swimming, we came home, had lunch, and then Sam took a three-hour nap.  I admit that I actually took a nap, too.  Apparently I needed it because I was out!  

After naptime, we went to a really nice playground nearby.  It was packed, so we only stayed for about 20 minutes.  Sam got some swinging and rides down the slide in.  

Then, we went to the mall for a while.  Gymboree is having a good sale now, plus I had an additional 20% off coupon, so I stocked up on some summer clothes for Sam.  I don't know if you can see on his shirt in the pictures above, but it has Kermit the frog on it and says, "It's Easy being Green!"  We walked through Build-A-Bear and saw they had an adorable Kermit puppet.  I decided Sam needed it as a St. Patrick's Day present and he loves! He loves puppets!  After some Chick-fil-a for dinner, we headed home for a bath.

Gone are the days of all-day drinking and partying (who am I kidding...those were gone a long time ago!) on St. Patrick's Day!  Oh well, we had fun anyways!

Double digits

 Ten months ago today, this little guy entered our lives!  Part of me can't believe he's ten months old already and another part feels like he's always been part of our lives.  He such a joy!  Happy, active, smiley, funny...just a few words to describe our Sammy Doodles.  

 Sam has loved this nice weather!  He's such an outdoors boy!  The other day, we spent probably two ours outside and he was as content as could be.  He loves going for walks in the stroller or in his wagon, watching the neighbor kids play in their yards, and looking for birds and planes in the sky.  

 We're headed back to the pediatrician on Thursday for a quick check to make sure his ear infections are all cleaned up.  I have a feeling he weighs right around 20 lbs.  He's still in size 3 diapers, but wears size 4 at night.  Sam's wearing 9 month clothes.  He's eating pretty much everything we eat.  It's getting to the point where he has no interest in being fed by spoon.  I just hope he's getting enough food, since he still drops a lot on the floor.  

 Sam is sleeping about 11 hours straight through at night and takes two two-hour naps each day.  He's halfway finished with his second session of Waterbabies and still loves the pool!

 Little Mister is getting very close to walking.  He's cruising all over the place and walking with assistance from his "dinosaur walker" or mom or dad.   This week, he's started standing by himself for a few seconds at a time. 

Sam loves musical instruments (especially the marakas) and when we sing songs.  He's still not too interested in books, but we still read a few each day.  His giggles are absolutely contagious!

Happy 10-month birthday, Sam boy!!  We love you!!!

Cousins

I recently saw someone post something on Facebook about cousins being your first friends.  I truly believe that!  My cousin Kourtney, who is about 17 months older than me, was my first friend.  There are pictures from nearly thirty-two years ago of her holding me when I was just a few weeks old, and most recently, there are pictures of the two of us on her wedding day in November.  

I'm so glad that Sam has cousins whom he can grow up with.  His cousins, Jack and Will, are almost five and three, so that makes all three boys two years apart. Last night, we went over to Kurt's parents' house to celebrate Jack's early birthday (he's a St. Patty's Day baby!).  Now that Sam is active and mobile, it's neat to see them interact.  The older boys love "Baby Sam" and I can tell Sam already admires his cousins.  He loves to sit and watch them.  They live about 3 hours from us, so we don't see them as often as we'd like, but I've learned from my relationships with my cousins that distance doesn't matter.

Here are some pictures of the cousins from our impromptu get-together last night.  

 The three boys: Will, Sam, and Jack (Will was sad that the presents were for his brother and not him!)

Sam wanted to help his cousin open his birthday presents!

 Having a cupcake...and making a mess!

Rub-a-dub-dub, Three boys in a tub!

These are the days to remember!

Ear Infections...

Though he doesn't look like it in this picture, poor little guy has been suffering some bad ear infections over the past month or so.  First he had one in his right ear.  Then, a couple weeks later, it was his left.  And now it's still his left.  We're on antibiotic #3, which seems to be doing the trick.  I hate that he has been on antibiotics for over a month now, but we have to get this cleared up because he is not a happy camper.  Fingers crossed that this one (Augmentin) does the trick.  If not, his doctor is referring us to an ENT. 

Playground Fun!

Like a lot of the country, we've been experiencing unseasonably warm temperatures this winter.  If you add up all the snow we've gotten from each of the quick storms that have passed through, we've gotten maybe 1-2 inches.  This is no good for a teacher who is itching for a snow day!  I'm pulling for a big storm in March!  Fingers crossed.

This weekend, temperatures in the upper 50s had us wanting to do something outside.  We have quite a few regional parks in our area, so we ventured to one close to our house.  The last time I had been to this park was for the end of the year picnic when I taught fifth grade, so that had been almost eight years.  They've done a lot of work on the playground, updating the equipment and making a newer "kiddie area." I love that we have such a nice park facility so close to our house!  We will definitely be spending more time there this spring!

 Somebody fell asleep on our way to the park!

 Mommy and her boy on the giant climbing hill

 Before we went down the big slide

 This guy loves the swings

 Trying out the kiddie slide (with help from Daddy!)

 He loved the slides, too!

Riding a whale

So Thankful

Last night, I had to run to Target to pick up Sam's prescription for his latest ear infection.  As I pulled into the parking garage, I saw a familiar purple bus that I've seen around town several times over the past few years.  That bus was from the Children's Inn at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  It brings families of children staying at NIH for medical treatment to different places around town, like Target and the grocery store, to run errands.  


I had to wait about thirty minutes for the prescription, so I walked through Target. As I was walking up and down the aisles, I saw three families who I assume rode on that bus to Target.  Three boys, one was probably 12 years old, the next was probably 10 years old, and the third was probably 6 years old, and their moms were picking up essentials...granola bars, a Nerf dart gun, a new DVD.  I'm assuming all three boys were cancer patients.  Each had bald heads and puffy faces from treatment.  


I got emotional as I began to think about those boys and their families.  They are probably hundreds of miles from home, receiving treatment at one of the top cancer centers in the world.  They are probably spending most of the hours of their days in small hospital rooms entertaining themselves with those Nerf guns and new DVDs.  And here I was, all worked up about my little guy's ear infection.  


As I walked out of Target last night, rushing home to get Sam's first dose of antibiotic in him before he went to bed, I said a quick prayer.  I thanked God for watching over our baby boy and keeping him healthy and safe. I also asked Him to watch over those boys and their families.


I've seen that purple bus many times before.  And it wasn't until last night, the first time I had seen since Sam has been born, that I truly stopped to think about and pray for the people it carried from place to place.  I am so thankful for Sam's good health thus far and continue to pray every night asking God to watch over him.

This guy...

turned 9 months old on Monday!  

I seriously cannot believe that my baby boy is 3/4 of a year old!  Nine months seemed to be a really long time when I was pregnant, but once he was born, it has seemed to fly by!

Sam and I went to the pediatrician today for his 9 month "well" visit.  I put the "well" in quotes because the poor guy isn't really well right now. I took him to Urgent Care on Monday night with a suspected case of pink eye.  My suspicions were correct, so they started him on a prescription antibiotic ointment.  Try putting an ointment in a nine month old's eye...good times!  The doctor there also mentioned that his ear looked red.  Since he had an appointment with the pediatrician already scheduled, they didn't give him any medicine at that point.

So, that leads us to today.  Let me just say how much I really love our pediatrician!  She is fantastic!  She  makes us feel good about our parenting and about how well Sam is growing and developing.  Sam's stats at 9 months are:

Weight- 19 lb. 9 oz. (50th percentile)

Height- 29.25 inches (75th percentile)

Head- 18 inches (50th percentile)

The doctor said he really can eat anything we eat now, except for things with honey or nuts.  She said it's really normal for babies at this age to stop being interested in being fed pureed food and only be interested in table food, which we're starting to see with Sam.  She's happy that he willingly takes water in a sippy cup and said to keep him using the bottle for formula until he switches to whole milk at age one.  Dr. K calls Sam, "The Little Mayor" since he talks to, waves, and smiles at everyone he sees in the office.  I find that to be hilarious!

Poor baby boy does have another ear infection (his second in the past month), though, and a terrible diaper rash.  She prescribed a new antibiotic so hopefully we will get this thing taken care of once and for all.  Dr. K also mentioned that we need to keep a close eye on his ears since he seems to be prone to them.  Hopefully it's not a drainage issue because that could mean tubes down the road!  Ugh!

These monthly photos are becoming more and more difficult to take each month!  Sam boy does not want to sit still.  And that's okay...he always keeps us on our toes!

HAPPY NINE MONTHS, DOODLES!  WE LOVE YOU!

Happy Heart Day!

Waterbaby!

Sam has always been a fan of the water.  He loves bath time, which is part of our nightly routine, and he seemed to like the fews times he was in a swimming pool last summer at just a couple months old.  Kurt and I feel that it's really important for him to feel comfortable in the water, especially since we are members of our neighborhood pool and my in-laws live near the water and have a boat.  Kurt was on his neighborhood swim team for many years, so we decided that he'd be the one to take a swim class with Sam (it has nothing to do with the fact that I wouldn't be caught dead in a bathing suit right now!).

Our county rec program offers a class called Waterbabies for children 6-18 months old, which is held at a local indoor pool on Saturday afternoons.  We've had two classes so far and Sam has really enjoyed it!  He's learned to float on his back (while Kurt holds him), kick, blow bubbles, bob up and down, hang on to the side, push off the wall, and jump into the pool.  Next week, they are putting their heads under!  I was that mom with tears in my eyes during the first class.  It was so cool to see him so relaxed and comfortable in the water.

I'm sure we'll be spending a lot of time at the pool this summer!  Look out baby pool!  

The big guy in the red suit!

I'm a big fan of Christmas!  I always have been and always will be!  I enjoy the weeks leading up to Christmas, the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, the packed shopping malls, everything about it.  I've been looking forward to this Christmas for years.  Not Christmas of 2011 exactly, but the Christmas when we would have our own little one to celebrate with.  I believe there is nothing more magical than the holiday season as seen through the eyes of a child. I see it with my students at school (who come in and tell me where their elves were each day!) and I've already started to see it with Sam.

While at the mall a few weeks ago, Kurt and I decided that it was our day to introduce Sam to the big guy in the red suit.  I had been wondering how Sam would react to Santa.  He's an easy-going kid, who will pretty much go to anyone without much of a fuss. But you always see those pictures of screaming kids, stricken with panic, trying with all their might to get away from Santa.  I carried Sam up to the chair and let him look at Santa first.  Santa reached out his arms and Sam went to him immediately!  He was mesmerized by Santa's beard and kept pulling on it.  I felt bad, but Santa was a good sport and said he didn't mind.  I guess that is part of the job!  

We got a great picture of our little guy and the big guy, and I'm so grateful to have this memory.  I can't wait for the other exciting events this holiday season and to see the magic and joy through Sam's eyes!

Do You Tot Swap?

I'll be the first to admit, when I head the phrase, "Tot Swap," my initial reaction was, "What the heck?  Swapping Tots?!"  I definitely had to do a little investigating to find out what Tot Swap was all about, and I'm glad I did!

Tot Swap is a children's consignment sale.  They have pretty much everything a child would need for sale.  They have a lot of different rules about what can and cannot be sold.  Things have to be in good condition.  Clothes can't have any stains or holes.  You get the idea.  Sam and I ventured out to our first Tot Swap outing last week.  My mission:  a Snap and Go stroller base and an excersaucer.  This is what we saw when we entered the old grocery store building:

To say it was a packed house is an understatement.  I've never seen so many things in one building.  They had tables upon tables of toys, books, games, puzzles.  Racks upon racks of clothes for all different sizes.  Rows upon rows of accessories.  It was a new momma's dream come true!

I spent $150 (don't tell Kurt! just kidding, he already knows!) but got a lot for my money.  I bought...

This exersaucer for $15

This Snap and Go stroller base for $25

These two brand new Melissa and Doug toys (which I'm putting away for Christmas gifts!)

As well as a bunch of fall clothes, some with the tags still on them! I also got Sam a few gently used toys (which I came home and disinfected right away).  I thoroughly enjoyed myself at the Tot Swap event and can't wait to go again next year!