Go Utes!

I wanted to try to get a nice smiling picture to post of Jack in his cute Utah attire...

...but I couldn't catch him.

Good luck tonight Utes!

This and That

Jack is very busy these days playing with everything he shouldn't. We are looking forward to Christmas and the new boost of toys he wil be getting to hopefully divert his attention away from the hair dryer which he drags around the house like other kids might carry a favorite blanket. Seriously?


So far he has done really well with the Christmas tree and only tried to throw my ornaments in the garbage can a few times. He's also been a hit at all the family Christmas parties as he's quite silly and charming once he warms to the crowd.


He loves to read stories these days. I think I read "Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb" about 15 times in a row last week. Because he is loving books I took him to the library, but he got a little over excited tossing books, using his loud voice, and banging on the computer keyboard and the librarian got mad at us so we had to leave. We'll have to work on our library etiquette and try again.

He's even made it to a couple of his dad's basketball games this year. As long as he's got plenty of space to roam about during the game he does okay and will even watch and cheer for a while. The Titans are having a great year so far and we hope they keep it up.

We hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

Let it snow...

Brrr..it's cold outside. It sure makes me grateful for a house and a furnace, and good snow clothes for when we do want to go out.

Jack recently discovered one of the highlights of the holiday season is playing with Grandpa's train.

It's amazing how one little vacation can throw your whole schedule off. I've been confused as to what day it is all week. I think we're finally back in the swing of things though.

Disneyland!!!

This week we have had the wonderful opportunity to go to Disneyland. This place really is magical and we have had a fabulous time.





Highlight 1: We had breakfast and dinner one day with lots of fun characters. Jack wasn't too sure what to think about them, but he would usually offer up a high five.



The Opposite of a Highlight: The first night Jack refused to go to sleep in the port-a-crib so I let him snuggle with me. That was great until around 2:30AM when he fell out and landed on the floor! He didn't get hurt but he was very upset at the harsh awakening and took quite a while to calm him down.



Highlight: After eating dinner with some friends at Goofy's Kitchen we discovered this old Autopia car outside in the lobby. Jack thought he was in heaven pretending to steer that car. He laughed and played, and then screamed when I tried to take him out because his little buddy Jace was complaining that Jack stunk and needed a diaper change. Poor Jace.

Now what ride do you think was Jack's favorite? It's a Small World? Winnie the Pooh? Nope. He liked those, but his favorite was...

The Haunted Mansion, of course. He danced to the band in the grave yard and clapped with glee when he saw himself and a ghost riding in the car together. Go figure.

Hightlight: Aunt Gwen came down and played with us all day Friday. It was great for Hardy and I to be able to go on some rides together while Jack and Aunt Gwen walked around. Thanks Gwen!

Jack was a real trooper the whole time. He did great on the flight there, and by the second day he got the hang of taking naps in his stroller.

He thought the parade was pretty cool.

His other favorite part of Disneyland was Pirates Island (formerly Tom Sawyer's Island). You would think the caves would be dark and spooky, but not to Jack. He walked so fast his little legs could hardly keep up and he giggled with the pure thrill of an adventure as we entered into the caves.

Jack's cousins Seth and Paige and Uncle Matt came down on Saturday to hang out with us so Jack loved having his cousins to play with.

He even got to meet Santa in the hotel lobby.

So much fun. We can't wait to do it again in a few years.

Ode to my husband

You know you’ve married a good man when he offers (without even being asked) to skip the last home Utah football game of the season and take your sick child to the doctor (even though it made both of them cry) and stay home with him so you don’t have to cancel your plans.

Yep, that Hardy, he’s a keeper.

Jack is finally feeling better today. When I called the doctor Saturday to see if miserable fevers were a normal reaction to the Synegis shot she said "no" and had us bring him in so they could test for influenza. It came back negative, so did the strep test. So, we've just been waiting it out and by the amount of trouble he's been getting into this morning, I can confidently say that I think he's much better.

Limp Noodle

Jack got his first Synegis shot of the season yesterday. He was terrified and cried more than he ever had when he got it, but eventually he bounced back to his usual chipper self. Well, I think today he has had a bad reaction to the shot. He has had a fever all day and been completely lethargic. Poor little guy. He finally figures out how to walk, then we give him a shot that make him so sick he can hardly stand. What a mean mom I am.

Finally!

Look who's walking!

Yesterday afternoon he finally decided to let go and now he's strutting across the room like it's no big deal. Of course he refuses to do it on demand so pretend you're not watching the video or he might sit down.

His other big tricks for the week are that he can now tell you what a lion, snake and bear say.

Good milestone's Jack!

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E!

Yep, in just three weeks Jack will have his first trip to Disneyland, and can I tell you, I get more excited every day! Hardy won a trip from work so we are going to be livin' it up in the Magic Kingdom. I just can't wait to see Jack's face as he takes it all in. It will definitely be a different trip trying to work around nap times and sticking to the little rides, but Aunt Gwen is coming down to join us for a day or two, and I've talked with 3 other people I know who are going to be there with their families that same week, so we should be able to get in a good Space Mountain ride or two. SO EXCITED!

I talked with Jack's pediatrician today at his well baby check about our trip. I'm a little freaked out about the plane ride but she said to keep him hydrated and spray out his nose a lot and that should help to keep him healthy on our trip. She's also going to try to get him his RSV shot before we go which would make me feel a ton better since it seems to be a good immune boost. I also finally got him his H1N1 vaccine today so that makes me feel a heck of a lot better as well.

Jack did great at his check up today. Dr. M couldn't believe how good he looks. He's 75% for height, 10% for weight, and his huge head is still in the 95%. I also had her check his sats and he was hovering around 87%. We like that. I actually just bought a little finger pulse-ox that arrived in the mail today so we could check his sats while we are out of town and just have a little piece of mind. It will be interested to see what his sats do at sea level and in the airplane.

And to answer your question Hilary, no, he still isn't walking. Stinker. Despite all my best efforts, he just won't let go.

Enjoying the Sunny Autumn days

Trick or Treat!

Jack had a fabulous Halloween. He dressed as a very handsome Superman. We trick-or-treated at daddy's work on Friday, and to a few houses in our neighborhood on Saturday, but he prefered the kids coming to our house. Every time the doorbell rang he would speed over to the door and giggle and shake with anticipation. He was pretty funny.

He then spent Sunday like every other kid out there, looking thorugh his bag of candy and trying to get me to let him eat way too much sugar.

Suggestions?

So, Jack is still not walking. Yes, I know all kids do things at there own pace, and yes, I know he's been through a lot so it's not a big deal that he's not walking. The problem is that he's got all the skills (he does great only holding onto one hand or pushing various objects around the house), he just won't let go and it's making us both frustrated. I think he would really like the trouble he can get into once he puts it all together and starts walking.

Anyone have any suggestions as to how to get him to finally figure it all out so I can stop spending my days tripping over the laundry basket, garbage can, tall toys, and anything else he pushes around the house so he can walk to where he wants to go? Or do I just need to be patient?

Family Pics

We finally went and got some family portraits done last week. They turned out so cute. Here are just a few for your viewing pleasure.

Our cute photos were done by Carrie Butler.

Playin' and the Pumpkin Patch

Jack loves driving around in his car. He's really good at reverse, still working on going forward, but he's pretty good at keeping his feet up so I can push him around.
Here's where I discovered him the other day, just hanging out with a witch. Notice the laundry basket in the corner - still his preferred choice of transportation.

Looking pretty cute in his scary Halloween shirt.

Last night we went to the Red Barn in Santaquin with IHH and got to take a hay ride out to a pumpkin patch where we picked out a fabulous pumpkin. Jack thought it was pretty fun and we loved seeing our heart buddies and making new friends.

14 months old

Jack is now 14 months old. Here are some of the wonderful things he is up to these days:

1. He can stand all by himself…until he realizes that he’s doing it and then he immediately sits down because he doesn’t think he can.
2. He loves to walk around the house all day long pushing the laundry basket until it gets stuck against a wall (which is every 30 seconds) and then he screams and throws a fit, beaconing me to come get it unstuck.
3. I have no idea what he likes to eat these days. It completely changes from day to day, but Mac ‘n Cheese and teddy grahams are usually a “yes” when offered.
4. He can sign “all done,” “more,” and “milk.” And he gives a great “high five.”
5. He can say mama, hi, more, yes, and no and a variety of silly sounds.
6. He’s very good at going up the stairs, but rather unreliable going down them as he likes to stop and play along the way so we still have to watch carefully.
7. He sleeps pretty well at night, but gets up every morning between 5:00 and 6:00 and insists on coming in to snuggle with mom and dad, which we only allow because it usually buys us another hour or so of sleep.
8. He’s still a total mama’s boy and sometimes not even daddy will do, which is kind of sweet to be loved so much, but gets really old when I need to get anything accomplished that can’t be done with a 1 year old attached to my leg. He adores his father though and loves to watch him mow the lawn.
9. He likes music and will wave his hands to the beat with a big silly grin. He also applauds when I sing the ABC song to him while changing his bum since that is the only way to get him to hold still.

10. And now he's wailing under the computer so I don't have time to think about anything else. Good thing he's a cutie.

An update

I realized that I haven't posted for a while. Well, that because we've been playin'. A few weeks ago we took Jack to a High School football game. He made it until about half time before he was just totally done. It will be interesting to see how he handles the basketball games this winter. (For those who don't know or don't recall, Hardy is a basketball coach).

Then we took a fun trip to Idaho to visit my sister while Hardy was out of town. Jack just loved playing with his cousins. He thinks they are terribly clever and hilarious.

He and cousin Alex loved to play on the stairs which was good because Jack seemed to believe Alex when he showed him that you have to go down backwards. He thinks I'm just kidding when I tell him that.

While in town we stopped in to visit Jack's heart buddy Grant. It was so fun visit with you Alli!

On Friday we went to the zoo to see all the baby animals. We loved the little giraffe, and that baby elephant is so adorable.

Last night was Grandpa's birthday so we had a party.

Happy Birthday Grandpa! We love you!

Jack loved the cake, but then spent the night throwing up, so I don't know if it just had too many oreos in it or if he caught another bug. I swear he has been sick ever since he turned 1. If this is indicative of what winter is going to be like, I am really going to have to quarantine. I just can't bear to think about it quite yet.

Feeling better and getting out

A round of antibiotics later and Jack is feeling much better. He's now back to his usual busy, helpful self.

He helped dad make pancakes for breakfast by emptying the contents of all the drawers he could reach.
Then we went to the Utah State Fair. Jack loved the goats and cows, not so much the Bear Show.

And on Saturday Jack and I went to the Intermountain Healing Hearts Walk. There were probably 500 people in attendance. It was wonderful. We got to see Heart buddies (below are Teagan, Gracie and Daxton and their moms) and get to know some new families.

At the Walk they had a beautiful Angel ceremony and butterfly release recognizing those children who have lost their battles with CHDs. I was so sad this morning to read that another one of our Heart friends joined that group last night. Sweet Cali was just over a week old and after a valiant fight and numerous proceedures, she returned to the loving arms of our Heavenly Father. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Orrock family.

Jack's Trick

I think it's hilarious when Jack does this trick, and so does he. I was so happy I finally caught it on tape.

He's getting much more vocal these days and will answer questions with "Ya" or "Nah." In the last few days he's even finally started signing "all done" and "more." Communication is such a nice thing when trying to figure out what in the world a 1 year old wants.

Bumps, coughs and misery

Poor Jack. This past weekend he and I went to Swiss Days in Midway then up to my parents cabin for the night. On Saturday he came down with a fever which lasted through Monday. His fever finally broke and he seemed to be perking up yesterday, then last night he got glassey eyes and miserable again. He woke up this morning with a rash and has hardly eaten in days, so I finally broke down and called the pediatrician.

Diagnosis? Double ear infection which is why he is miserable, a bad reaction to his MMR vaccination which caused the measel's like rash and high fevers, and possible pertussis (or whooping cough) causing the terrible coughing fits he's been having at night for the past few weeks. Poor little fella. The result - we had a very excited Labor Day weekend that mostly involved me holding a listless Jack since he refuses to go to anyone else right now. And all the fun things I had planned to do for Hardy's birthday today? Umm, ya, instead of going out for a nice dinner tonight like we had planned, Hardy and I met at the pediatricians office, ordered pizza, and he's now off filling Jack's perscription. Happy Birthday honey :)

A Sand Box

Jack is getting so busy these days. Earlier this week he discovered that he could walk around the house by himself by pushing a laundry basket. The problem is that they don't turn very well so he's contantly getting stuck and throws a fit until I get him unstuck. Let's just say it's not my favorite game. He's got a car and a walker too that he pushes everywhere, but nothing is quite as fun as holding onto mommy.

His new thing is that at 7 AM (yes, I'm still in my pj's) he likes to grab my fingers, lead me to the back door and pound on it until I take him outside where he heads straight for his swing and then to dig in the dirt. I'm not a big fan of him digging in my flower gardens and picking my flowers, so a couple of days ago we decided to make him a sandbox. We already had a spot ready under the playhouse, we just needed some sand.

Well, look who thinks he's pretty hot stuff sitting in his very own sand box?

It is now a regular activity, but I sometimes suspect that he likes to dig primarily because he knows that I will then let him play in the water after to hose him off. Every day he gets a little busier, and every day I am grateful.