Kids, kids, everywhere

The reason I haven't been posting as much:

Ruby, Jack, and Delilah

Our lovely friends from Portland are in town with their two kids and they've been staying at our house. Having a 4 year old, an 11 month old, and a 10 month old in the same house is quite a change from our quiet little existence. First of all, of course Jack's naps are exactly the opposite from little Ruby's. Then cute little 4 year-old Delilah is smitten with Jack and just wants to hug him and have him chase her. What does Jack want to do? Take his toys to the other room and play in quiet. Well, that's not fair. He does love smiling and studying Ruby and Delilah. He just sometimes needs a break.

The nighttime sleep situation has been so much better than I anticipated. For the most part, Jack has slept through Ruby's wake-ups and vice versa. The first night there was about an hour of "call and response" as John says. Ruby called out, then Jack answered, and back and forth for a while. My husband thought it was hysterical but I didn't see all the humor since it was 4am.

Anyways, we've loved having them in town and have definitely enjoyed our adult time after the kids are in bed at 7:30. Now we have to schedule a visit to Portland!

Here are some more pics from their visit.

Jack perplexed because Delilah seems to be burying herself in sand

Jack showing off

Jack learning about how girls play with stuffed animals

Delilah tackling/hugging Jack

A Day in the Life

I've been meaning to do this forever but always thought about it about 4 hours too late. So here is our last Thursday in photos. (Inspired by Stacey)

6:15 am - Daddy's turn to do the morning bottle

6:44 am - Good morning kiss for Jackie

7:00 am - Peek-a-boo with daddy in the shower

7:30 am - Saying bye-bye daddy

7:45 am - Coffee (decaf) in my Christmas mug.

8:15 am - Examining his breakfast

8:35 am - Generously reading a book in the bathroom so mommy can take a shower

9:00 am - Time for a walk

9:20 am - Stop at Vons

9:25 am - pretty minimal grocery list today

10:30 am - Nap time

12:00 pm - Car ride to Mommy and Me class

12:20 pm - Welcome Jack! (with mommy Lisa)

1:00 pm - Cheerios with his classmates

1:15 pm - Six mirrors are better than one

3:45 pm - Bottle after afternoon nap

4:28 pm - Drive to the park while making Jack listen to K-Earth oldies

4:40 pm - Flying up the steps

4:41 pm - The top!

4:41 pm and 2 seconds - Aaannnddd...down to the bottom

4:55 pm - He finally wore a hole through his pants

5:15 pm - Sun is setting...time to go home

6:15 pm - Dinner time!

6:40 pm - Winding down with a book

7:00 pm - Clean hair

7:45 pm - Milk and cookie and sleeping baby for me...end of a long day.

9:00 pm - John is home, we can finally watch "Homeland", and I can do a blog post.

Photo Challenge Week 21 - Light

Next week...Love.

Today Jack is...50 weeks old.

That's right people...two weeks until his birthday! Amazing. Look at that kid. Quite a handsome boy if you ask me. He was pretty happy this week until yesterday when a serious bout of teething hit. Or at least I think that's what it is. He was so cranky and just keeps jamming his fingers and whole hand to the back of his mouth. I guess his molars might be coming in though I'm not sure how to help him. But it's sort of sad to see him so upset.

But the week wasn't all bad. I find that if I keep him busy, Jack is a happy boy. He really hates just sitting in the house though. So we go out. To the park, to the zoo, to classes, etc.

The zoo is fast becoming our favorite place to pass the time. I just hop on over there for an hour or two to entertain him and tire him out. He loves the seals and is excited he can get right up against the glass.

His balance and strength is getting so good. He can stand unassisted and a few times this week he has taken a step without holding on to something. But I think then he realized that he wasn't holding on and just sat down. That's his usual move when I try to coax him to walk. Just sitting and crawling is so much easier! But he's getting there...

Jack and I have a lot of fun together every day but he has been exhibiting a little bit of separation anxiety. The other day we did a mommy and me class where the moms left for about 30 minutes while teachers watched the kids and I was called back to come get Jack because he was crying inconsolably. It was so sad but I guess he's pretty attached to me since I'm always with him. Soon we'll need to make room for daddy though! He'll be off work for a few weeks and we are so excited to have him home.

The other day I snapped this picture while he was sitting on the pool lounge chair. We haven't just sat there for a long time because he no longer will sit still. He still wasn't pleased that I was making him sit in one place. In fact, he looks pretty pissed and like he's going to kick the crap out of me.

But compare that pic (ignore the frown) to a picture of him from 6 months ago. Amazing. He was such a skinny little dude.

And now more pics from the week!

Five for Friday: Can't Get Through the Day Without

My top 5 things I can't get through the day without:

5. email

4. my contact lenses (can't wear my glasses for very long)

3. talking to my husband

2. coffee (decaf nowadays)

1. a shower. literally can't start my day without one.

A Boy's Boy

This is sort of a random post but I am continually amazed at what an adventurous, daring, "boy's boy" Jack is. It really stands out when we are at the park with his play group. While the girls are daintily stepping around the playground (yes it's a stereotype but it's true in our group), the other boys are cautiously climbing one step at a time. They get to the top and think about whether they want to go down the slide. Meanwhile, my kid is literally doing laps around them. He flies up the steps past everyone, teases me by faking like he's gonna go off the sheer drop side then sprints to the slide. Usually I make it over in time to hold on to his shirt or his hand before he zooms down the slide. But today at the park he just laid down on his tummy and shot off. Bam! Flying down the slide head first. No guidance from mom. The kid can't even walk yet. Every time he dove down the slide he giggled hysterically. Obviously there are no pictures because I was frantically trying to make sure he didn't crack his head open.

soaking wet pants from crawling through all the puddles

In addition, I'd say 75% of his pants are permanently stained. Because he can't walk, he crawls through mud, dirty water, grass, sand, and muck. The wetter the better. Today at the park a woman dropped her thick red slushee (why?) drink and, like a homing beacon, Jack saw it and made a beeline. I caught him just as he had put his hands all in the gross combination of the sugary beverage and mud.

I say none of this to complain. In fact, I'm rather proud of my little guy for being adventurous and not scared of a little dirt. It makes for a little more work for me but I don't mind. Especially since he's clearly having so much fun.

Very meta.

I took the video above of Jack playing with a little noisy plastic ball. It's not very exciting but it's pretty cute. Did I mention he's adorable.

The video below is Jack watching the above video of him playing with the noisy plastic ball. I'm pretty sure this is modern art of some kind. Either way, it's pretty funny.