This was kind of a long month. Andrew got sick several times in February and for a while there, between him and me, we were averaging 3 or 4 doctor appts a week. They put Andrew on a controller corticosteroid he breathes through an inhaler. This takes a lot less time than the nebulizer, which is great. But because it's a controller drug, he has to take it every morning and evening, which is kind of a pain. Plus, these drugs really make him a lot more intense - he is more aggressive, more hyperactive, and just a lot more emotional in general. Plus, being a stimulant, it makes going to sleep more difficult. But Andrew got sick on Sunday night and has yet to wheeze, which is just amazing. So, I guess the medicine is working - now I just have a normal sick kid, not one you have to continually listen to him breathe and then rush him to the doctor everytime he gets a runny nose.
Other than all that drama, Andrew has been having a good month. He loves to play. He really like to play with his puzzles and his train set and the Easter eggs that we already got out. He has spent a lot of time just playing with the cat, too. He likes to dance to music a lot and loves to sing the songs he learns at his First Steps class. He doesn't really sing a long, but he does the hand motions. He really likes playing with magnets and putting them on the dishwasher.
Andrew really likes to clean up now and makes sure that everything goes in his place. He likes to be clean and still is not into art (especially markers or finger painting) because it makes his hand dirty. He wants a napkin at dinner every day. He also hates to be undressed and if I am lazy after changing his diaper and don't put his pants back on, he follows me around saying "Pants. Pants".
Andrew is quite talkative, but he really like to babble away even if he isn't saying any words at all. He also whines A LOT, but I think its just the typical amount for his age. Andrew loves to count, but unfortunately he only knows the numbers 1 and 2. So, as my co-worker says, he counts in binary. He is not the kind of kid who will repeat what we say (he has NEVER done this), so attempts to overtly teach him his numbers completely fail. But watching him count is very cute.
Andrew still loves to read and has an insane attention span when we read. We can read for up to an hour and go through like 20 or 30 books! But I like reading to him, so it works out okay.
Andrew watches more TV than I like because we let him watch a short Mickey short (like 5-10 minutes) when he does his inhaler. It is really the only way we can get him to cooperate. We also are starting a movie night once a week and Andrew and Katsu love it. Plus, we took Andrew to his first movie - Bolt - this month at the dollar theatre. He sat on our lap and only wanted to leave once. He was really good - I was very surprised.
Andrew loves to say "No" now - I guess it was about time. Thankfully, I think he likes to say "Yeah" more, so it's not too bad. And thankfully, when he has tantrums they are short.
Andrew is a pretty big eater. He eats TONS at his babysitter. I just can't believe how much he will eat. His favorite foods are veggies (corn and peas), fish sticks, rice, cheese, blueberries, strawberries, and meat. He also loves chocolate.
Andrew still loves nursery though he missed it for about a month when he was sick and while we were waiting for his controller medicine to be most effective. He does not like sacrament meeting at all and is quite loud and embarrasing. Last Sunday he just said "Car" over and over really loud during the entire Sacrament. Oh, well. He just doesn't want to sit still and do one thing. And he wants to talk.
I'll try to upload and post pictures later. Andrew and I are both sick, so we'll have to see what I feel up to.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Thursday, March 05, 2009
Pregnancy Update
Can I just say I am not loving this pregnancy much at all? Not one bit. So for anyone who cares, this is why. This will have to suffice for an Amanda update since we pretty much only post Andrew updates on here.
First of all, this pregnancy in general was a little bit early than I would have liked (like 9 months to a year). First, I wanted to be mostly done with my dissertation first so I wouldn't have to juggle two kids and a PhD. Also, I really wanted Andrew to be sleeping better (ha!) or at least weaned before I got pregnant. Neither of which happened, of course. Is it really too much to ask to have a little break between nursing and pregnancy, like where I get my body back? Plus, three years between kids just sounded way better to me from day one than a two year break. Especially with a PhD. Anyways, not of that really matters anymore, since I am obviously pregnant.
So, here is how this pregnancy stinks (disclaimer - I have pretty decent pregnancies. I don't get really really sick and throw up all the time. I don't (fingers crossed) have any complications. And I am in general healthy as is the baby. So, I really don't have any right to complain. But whatever - I'm pregnant, so I am going to complain anyways).
Good point - I didn't feel quite as tired in the first trimester as before. Bad point - I think I just didn't notice how tired I was because I was so tired to begin with.
Good point - I didn't throw up at all this pregnancy. Bad point - I had lots of nausea every afternoon and evening until New Years and basically laid around on the couch the whole time. (My advisor notes: you can still type while you're on the couch). I guess this is technically not "morning sickness" since the mornings were mostly okay.
Good point - Katsu takes over and really lets me sleep in a lot and wakes up with Andrew a lot at night. Bad point - my insomnia is back (it was finally going away ...) and there is at least 1 or 2 nights a week where I am awake for 1-3 hours and can not go back to sleep. This seems to be lasting the whole pregnancy this time.
Good point - My pain feels a little bit better than last week. Bad point - My second trimester, as with Andrew, is full of lots of pain. I did have some sciatic pain to the point where one day I literally could not move. I have been much more careful since then and thankfully I only get it occasionally and just a little bit now. Mostly I have my pelvic/groin pain. This is, according to my doctor, not round ligament pain, as I had thought previously, but some kind of special Amanda-2nd-trimester pain I get somehow from how the baby irritates my nerves. It was getting to the point where the pain was excruciating and I was having it 25-50% of the time. It is seeming to get a little bit better and I mostly just have it when I stand up, walk, or lay down. Usually sitting is okay. I also have not been able to sit on the floor for the last several months because I get into pretty intense pain and sometimes am worried I will actually not be able to get up. Okay, enough about pain.
Good point - ??? Bad point - I, the lone member of my family without allergies, have suddenly developed allergies. In the middle of the winter. In Michigan. When it is like -10 outside every day. How is that possible? Oh, the irony. And of course, allergies in pregnancy are wonderful, because really what medicine can you take? So, I have been constantly sneezing and in a brain fog since January when these allergies suddenly developed. Or else, I have a more than 2 month long cold.
Good point - ??? Bad point - I guess I had post partum depression with Andrew. I pretty much knew it but figured it was pretty much related to how well he sleeps (ha ha ha) and I kept thinking that once he starts sleeping better it will go away. Well, it was starting to fade until I got pregnant. But now it has turned into this much much worse pregnancy depression. Which really really stinks. I tend to not be really emotional in pregnancy (well, at least I wasn't too bad with Andrew), but now we are talking several time a week crying for hours. Plus, all kind of other lovely depression symptoms. Like I even stopped reading for a while because I had no energy or interest - is that possible? And of course, antidepressants in pregnancy will cause withdrawl in your baby - something I don't really want to mess with. So, we'll see how therapy works. But this totally stinks.
Okay, I think I'm pretty much done complaining. I am participating in a study at the hospital where they do ultrasounds of the baby every month or two, so we've already had like 5 ultrasounds I think. I keep hoping this will make me more excited about the baby. But it is most definitely a boy. And hopefully will be born sometime in the beginning of July (my original due date was the 5th, they switched it to the 12th, I'll shoot for anywhere in between). We are hoping for a much better delivery and recovery than last time. And really really really really really really hoping I don't have to be induced again (shudders).
That's all folks.
First of all, this pregnancy in general was a little bit early than I would have liked (like 9 months to a year). First, I wanted to be mostly done with my dissertation first so I wouldn't have to juggle two kids and a PhD. Also, I really wanted Andrew to be sleeping better (ha!) or at least weaned before I got pregnant. Neither of which happened, of course. Is it really too much to ask to have a little break between nursing and pregnancy, like where I get my body back? Plus, three years between kids just sounded way better to me from day one than a two year break. Especially with a PhD. Anyways, not of that really matters anymore, since I am obviously pregnant.
So, here is how this pregnancy stinks (disclaimer - I have pretty decent pregnancies. I don't get really really sick and throw up all the time. I don't (fingers crossed) have any complications. And I am in general healthy as is the baby. So, I really don't have any right to complain. But whatever - I'm pregnant, so I am going to complain anyways).
Good point - I didn't feel quite as tired in the first trimester as before. Bad point - I think I just didn't notice how tired I was because I was so tired to begin with.
Good point - I didn't throw up at all this pregnancy. Bad point - I had lots of nausea every afternoon and evening until New Years and basically laid around on the couch the whole time. (My advisor notes: you can still type while you're on the couch). I guess this is technically not "morning sickness" since the mornings were mostly okay.
Good point - Katsu takes over and really lets me sleep in a lot and wakes up with Andrew a lot at night. Bad point - my insomnia is back (it was finally going away ...) and there is at least 1 or 2 nights a week where I am awake for 1-3 hours and can not go back to sleep. This seems to be lasting the whole pregnancy this time.
Good point - My pain feels a little bit better than last week. Bad point - My second trimester, as with Andrew, is full of lots of pain. I did have some sciatic pain to the point where one day I literally could not move. I have been much more careful since then and thankfully I only get it occasionally and just a little bit now. Mostly I have my pelvic/groin pain. This is, according to my doctor, not round ligament pain, as I had thought previously, but some kind of special Amanda-2nd-trimester pain I get somehow from how the baby irritates my nerves. It was getting to the point where the pain was excruciating and I was having it 25-50% of the time. It is seeming to get a little bit better and I mostly just have it when I stand up, walk, or lay down. Usually sitting is okay. I also have not been able to sit on the floor for the last several months because I get into pretty intense pain and sometimes am worried I will actually not be able to get up. Okay, enough about pain.
Good point - ??? Bad point - I, the lone member of my family without allergies, have suddenly developed allergies. In the middle of the winter. In Michigan. When it is like -10 outside every day. How is that possible? Oh, the irony. And of course, allergies in pregnancy are wonderful, because really what medicine can you take? So, I have been constantly sneezing and in a brain fog since January when these allergies suddenly developed. Or else, I have a more than 2 month long cold.
Good point - ??? Bad point - I guess I had post partum depression with Andrew. I pretty much knew it but figured it was pretty much related to how well he sleeps (ha ha ha) and I kept thinking that once he starts sleeping better it will go away. Well, it was starting to fade until I got pregnant. But now it has turned into this much much worse pregnancy depression. Which really really stinks. I tend to not be really emotional in pregnancy (well, at least I wasn't too bad with Andrew), but now we are talking several time a week crying for hours. Plus, all kind of other lovely depression symptoms. Like I even stopped reading for a while because I had no energy or interest - is that possible? And of course, antidepressants in pregnancy will cause withdrawl in your baby - something I don't really want to mess with. So, we'll see how therapy works. But this totally stinks.
Okay, I think I'm pretty much done complaining. I am participating in a study at the hospital where they do ultrasounds of the baby every month or two, so we've already had like 5 ultrasounds I think. I keep hoping this will make me more excited about the baby. But it is most definitely a boy. And hopefully will be born sometime in the beginning of July (my original due date was the 5th, they switched it to the 12th, I'll shoot for anywhere in between). We are hoping for a much better delivery and recovery than last time. And really really really really really really hoping I don't have to be induced again (shudders).
That's all folks.
Friday, February 13, 2009
I Heart our Health Insurance
While Andrew is sleeping his nap away on my chest (refusing to sleep on his own bed) and I am refusing to try to work in said condition, I thought I would post ... about health insurance.
I love our health insurance. As kooky as it sounds, one of the reasons I really loved the U of M was the fact that funded graduate students (i.e. research assistants, teaching assistants, and those on fellowship) get free health insurance for them and their dependents. Major reason I wanted to come here - besides the fact that they had really good programs for both of us and we both got accepted with funding. Anyways, our health insurance is not only free but it also rocks.
For example, my entire pregnancy and delivery with Andrew = FREE (plus a $15 copay to inquire my ob-gyn why my episiotomy wouldn't heal).
Andrew's helmet and associated doctor visits = FREE
Well child visits, visits to doctors at the student health center, and routine obstetrical visits = FREE
I appreciate this insurance even on those days or months where the copays start adding up like this month.
Andrew got a cold again this week. Tuesday, standard sneezing runny nose - no big deal right? Wednesday afternoon - a little cough. Thursday morning - a little wheezy, no big deal. By noon, we have a coughing, vomiting, fevering, wheezing, screaming child who is having a horrible time breathing and who is not responding to breathing treatments again. So, again we go to the dr. office and after a nice 3 hour visit, two sets of breathing treatments, steroids, four vomiting episodes, and a nice prescription, we have a somewhat healthy child. So much for going out to celebrate Valentine's day last night.
We almost made it a whole week without Andrew going to the doctor. Almost. So, yeah, the copays for the doctor and medicine are starting to add up, but everytime (which is not often) that I actually see the bill, I thank my lucky stars that we are not footing it. Thank you U of M!!!
So, between Andrew and all my pregnancy visits (oh, right - I am having another boy in July and am trying to adjust to the news .... maybe in another 20 weeks, I will feel exited / ready / etc. for this pregnancy), we average 2 appts at the doctor a week! So, we really love our health insurance.
I love our health insurance. As kooky as it sounds, one of the reasons I really loved the U of M was the fact that funded graduate students (i.e. research assistants, teaching assistants, and those on fellowship) get free health insurance for them and their dependents. Major reason I wanted to come here - besides the fact that they had really good programs for both of us and we both got accepted with funding. Anyways, our health insurance is not only free but it also rocks.
For example, my entire pregnancy and delivery with Andrew = FREE (plus a $15 copay to inquire my ob-gyn why my episiotomy wouldn't heal).
Andrew's helmet and associated doctor visits = FREE
Well child visits, visits to doctors at the student health center, and routine obstetrical visits = FREE
I appreciate this insurance even on those days or months where the copays start adding up like this month.
Andrew got a cold again this week. Tuesday, standard sneezing runny nose - no big deal right? Wednesday afternoon - a little cough. Thursday morning - a little wheezy, no big deal. By noon, we have a coughing, vomiting, fevering, wheezing, screaming child who is having a horrible time breathing and who is not responding to breathing treatments again. So, again we go to the dr. office and after a nice 3 hour visit, two sets of breathing treatments, steroids, four vomiting episodes, and a nice prescription, we have a somewhat healthy child. So much for going out to celebrate Valentine's day last night.
We almost made it a whole week without Andrew going to the doctor. Almost. So, yeah, the copays for the doctor and medicine are starting to add up, but everytime (which is not often) that I actually see the bill, I thank my lucky stars that we are not footing it. Thank you U of M!!!
So, between Andrew and all my pregnancy visits (oh, right - I am having another boy in July and am trying to adjust to the news .... maybe in another 20 weeks, I will feel exited / ready / etc. for this pregnancy), we average 2 appts at the doctor a week! So, we really love our health insurance.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Swagbucks
I found a great new freebie. Basically Swagbucks is a search engine (I think it uses results from google and yahoo maybe?) that randomly awards you bucks when you search. I have been getting 3 or so a day for the last week. Then you can use the bucks to buy gift cards - 45 swagbucks (I'm halfway there in one week) for a $5 Amazon gift card. I just switched from using google to using swagbucks. Very cool.
Click here to sign up (it uses my referral code - you get extra bucks for referring friends, too).
Click here to sign up (it uses my referral code - you get extra bucks for referring friends, too).
Monday, February 09, 2009
Andrew is 21 months old!
Well, I guess I didn't take any pictures in the last month (whoops), but here's the monthly update.
Andrew is talking a lot more, although I swear, I understand less and less of what he says because he is adding so many new words and I'm not all caught up. He doesn't say any Japanese words yet, but is saying at least one Bulgarian word and what seems like a Spanish word (I can only guess he learned it from watching Dora at his babysitters ?). He loves to jabber away. He has finally learned some more verbs, like "want" and "play". He loves to say, "Uh oh, no no" from his favorite book, "Baby Says". He also is constantly saying "hand" and grabbing me by the hand and leading me somewhere.
Andrew seems to be much more opinionated now that he is talking more. He is always trying to tell me exactly what he wants, but a lot gets lost in translation and he gets really frustrated and throws these little tantrums. Andrew has become a bit of a drama queen this last week. Whenever you say no or he doesn't get what he wants, he flops on the ground and rolls around a bit. Overall, though he is mostly pretty good.
Andrew finally seems to be getting a little more body-aware. He hates his hands being dirty and wants them washed (a new thing for him). Or maybe he just becoming a clean-freak, to counteract his mom's messy ways. He loves to "wash" the walls and is constantly stealing wipes or toilet papers to wipe them down. He is also a fan of dusting, but this usually deteriorates into playing with the cat and the duster. He still loves throwing away trash. He sometimes even starts putting his books and toys away on his own. He even helps load the dish washer.
He LOVES his fisher price farm more than ever. He also found a play house that Katsu made a long time ago out of popsicle sticks and he loves that too. He gets pretty upset when he loses one of his farm pieces and kept asking me for days where the goat was - thankfully, we finally found it. He also loves to do all his puzzles several times a day. He is a huge fan of bubbles - mainly trying to get the cat to chase the bubbles. He also loves running now and mostly running away from me whenever I need him for something. He loves to run all over the house. He also likes to pretend - especially that he is eating something from a picture in a book or likes to pretend that he is sleeping.
Eating and sleeping are about the same as before. He did finally gain weight though. We had to take him to the doctor after another asthma episode (this one was really frustrating because after breathing treatments, he still wasn't breathing well at all and wasn't eating at all because he couldn't breathe). The bad - they had to put him on steroids for the weekend to help him breathe. But the good - we saw that Andrew definitely weighs 26 pounds. Andrew also LOVES getting stickers at the doctor's office. We still took Andrew to the Super Bowl party, steroids and all. He definitely enjoyed all the snacks, but I think his poor sleep (stimulant breathing treatment + stimulant steroids + not being able to breathe DO NOT EQUAL good sleep) finally caught up with him and he feel asleep on my lap for the last quarter and didn't even wake up with people screaming right next to him. Definitely a first.
Andrew really loves going sledding outside and tromping around in the snow in his boots, but unfortunately it was pretty cold this month and we didn't get out a lot (I just think when the wind chill is below 0, it is too cold). But it warmed up a lot this weekend (definitely not permanent) and Andrew got to go sledding.
Andrew loves going to his class with Daddy on Saturday mornings and started a new one this year - Exploration Zone. They don't do as fun of singing, but Andrew loves all the toys. Funny kid spends half of each class playing with the fisher price little people - I guess he is hooked. He even got to spend all Saturday with Daddy last week when I went to my cousin's baby shower in Columbus.
Andrew still loves nursery. He cheers when it's time to go. He gets very excited every time he sees the church and yells "Church! Yeah!". I am glad he is so enthusiastic, though he is less than enthusiastic about sacrament meeting.
I have been trying to make more of an effort to take Andrew to story-time and the like at the library and book stores and stuff. He is still a little young for preschool story times and Andrew gets bored. Andrew still really really loves books, though, and is starting to enjoy older, non-board books more. His new favorite is "Frog and Toad", which he loves. We read the three books of those we have ALL the time.
It's been a fun month with Andrew. I can't believe he's so old already, but I think the older, the funner.
Andrew is talking a lot more, although I swear, I understand less and less of what he says because he is adding so many new words and I'm not all caught up. He doesn't say any Japanese words yet, but is saying at least one Bulgarian word and what seems like a Spanish word (I can only guess he learned it from watching Dora at his babysitters ?). He loves to jabber away. He has finally learned some more verbs, like "want" and "play". He loves to say, "Uh oh, no no" from his favorite book, "Baby Says". He also is constantly saying "hand" and grabbing me by the hand and leading me somewhere.
Andrew seems to be much more opinionated now that he is talking more. He is always trying to tell me exactly what he wants, but a lot gets lost in translation and he gets really frustrated and throws these little tantrums. Andrew has become a bit of a drama queen this last week. Whenever you say no or he doesn't get what he wants, he flops on the ground and rolls around a bit. Overall, though he is mostly pretty good.
Andrew finally seems to be getting a little more body-aware. He hates his hands being dirty and wants them washed (a new thing for him). Or maybe he just becoming a clean-freak, to counteract his mom's messy ways. He loves to "wash" the walls and is constantly stealing wipes or toilet papers to wipe them down. He is also a fan of dusting, but this usually deteriorates into playing with the cat and the duster. He still loves throwing away trash. He sometimes even starts putting his books and toys away on his own. He even helps load the dish washer.
He LOVES his fisher price farm more than ever. He also found a play house that Katsu made a long time ago out of popsicle sticks and he loves that too. He gets pretty upset when he loses one of his farm pieces and kept asking me for days where the goat was - thankfully, we finally found it. He also loves to do all his puzzles several times a day. He is a huge fan of bubbles - mainly trying to get the cat to chase the bubbles. He also loves running now and mostly running away from me whenever I need him for something. He loves to run all over the house. He also likes to pretend - especially that he is eating something from a picture in a book or likes to pretend that he is sleeping.
Eating and sleeping are about the same as before. He did finally gain weight though. We had to take him to the doctor after another asthma episode (this one was really frustrating because after breathing treatments, he still wasn't breathing well at all and wasn't eating at all because he couldn't breathe). The bad - they had to put him on steroids for the weekend to help him breathe. But the good - we saw that Andrew definitely weighs 26 pounds. Andrew also LOVES getting stickers at the doctor's office. We still took Andrew to the Super Bowl party, steroids and all. He definitely enjoyed all the snacks, but I think his poor sleep (stimulant breathing treatment + stimulant steroids + not being able to breathe DO NOT EQUAL good sleep) finally caught up with him and he feel asleep on my lap for the last quarter and didn't even wake up with people screaming right next to him. Definitely a first.
Andrew really loves going sledding outside and tromping around in the snow in his boots, but unfortunately it was pretty cold this month and we didn't get out a lot (I just think when the wind chill is below 0, it is too cold). But it warmed up a lot this weekend (definitely not permanent) and Andrew got to go sledding.
Andrew loves going to his class with Daddy on Saturday mornings and started a new one this year - Exploration Zone. They don't do as fun of singing, but Andrew loves all the toys. Funny kid spends half of each class playing with the fisher price little people - I guess he is hooked. He even got to spend all Saturday with Daddy last week when I went to my cousin's baby shower in Columbus.
Andrew still loves nursery. He cheers when it's time to go. He gets very excited every time he sees the church and yells "Church! Yeah!". I am glad he is so enthusiastic, though he is less than enthusiastic about sacrament meeting.
I have been trying to make more of an effort to take Andrew to story-time and the like at the library and book stores and stuff. He is still a little young for preschool story times and Andrew gets bored. Andrew still really really loves books, though, and is starting to enjoy older, non-board books more. His new favorite is "Frog and Toad", which he loves. We read the three books of those we have ALL the time.
It's been a fun month with Andrew. I can't believe he's so old already, but I think the older, the funner.
Friday, January 09, 2009
Andrew is 20 months old
Since I skipped 19 months, it really seems like Andrew has grown up a lot since the last time I wrote.
Andrew is talking so much more than before. He probably knows at least 100 words and seems to be adding and using new ones all the time. I guess you really do hit a language explosion about 18 months. He is starting to say 2 and 3 word phrases (I wouldn't call them sentences without a subject) like "good job", "more rice please", and "play cars". Of course, about half of his words still seem to do with cars and trucks, even when he's asleep! He is also learning polite words. He picked up "bless" for bless you when someone sneezes on his own. After much teaching, he learned please and half the time when he wants something he will just say "please" instead of telling us what he wants.
His new favorite thing is to pretend to talk on the phone: his play one, our old phone, or our actual phone. He pretends to talk to Daddy and Pa and mostly talks about eating rice and playing cars and says, "What?" all the time. He figured out how to make our actual phone ring and then answers it and talks on the phone. He actually answered the phone once this week without me knowing it and said, "What?" My friend thought it was very funny.
For awhile there, his tantrums were very bad. One day, he had two tantrums that were over 30 minutes each! And he could still remember what he was fussing about. Mostly it was because he was tired/hungry, but still. Thankfully, the tantrums have really calmed down and are down to the normal 30 second things. I'm sure it's just a taste of what's in store for the next couple years.
Andrew is finally finally starting to sleep better. He is finally very settled on one afternoon nap that lasts anywhere from 1-3.5 hours. He usually wakes up still tired and cranky and then ends up falling asleep in my arms for another little while. Fine by me - reading time because it's too hard to do real work on the laptop like that. He is still hard to get to sleep (wants us there / takes awhile), but he sleeps by himself in the toddler bed all night and only wakes up once (usually) around 4:30 and needs comforting back to sleep. I don't blame him for waking up because we live like 20 feet from a railroad and the train comes by then (well, twice actually) and blows its whistle SOOO loud. Half the time, people's car alarms go off, too. Anyways ... this is quite an achievement for Andrew and I am so glad he is in a toddler bed instead of the crib.
Andrew LOVES to play, of course. He is starting to get quite imaginative. He got a Little People farm set for Christmas and loves to play with the animals - they dance and walk around, go for trips in his plane, kiss each other, ride on his cars. He also loves to play with his cars, lining them all up or throwing them off the table. He loves to build towers with his blocks and then put cars or people under them or run his railroad tracks under them. He loves to build railroad tracks and run his train on them or send his Little People down the railroad track as a slide. He also loves to read, for as much as 30-45 minutes at a time.
It's been so cold and snows almost every day so I've been very negligent about taking us outside. But this week, I decided that has to change. So each afternoon, we got out for a little 15 minute walk in the snow. Andrew loves to wear his boots (which are really rain boots because I have never bought him snow boots), hat and mittens. (The snowsuit, as you can see, wasn't such a great idea). He hates when the snow gets on his boots but eventually gets used to it (he has to when there's a foot of snow). We even went sledding today! I'm not sure how much he liked that - he said "Whee", but twice was more than enough.
Andrew really loves to eat. He still loves to eat rice, but meatballs have actually surpassed that love. He also can eat more than 6 clementines a day! That's a lot for a little boy. He loves to get canned food from the pantry and tell me he wants to eat it - his favorite is corn, but he likes canned fruit, too. He even has drunk milk a few times! And I think he is growing. He is definitely getting taller and has finally outgrown all of his 12 month clothes. 24 month clothes are still much too tall for pants, but fine otherwise.
He really loved visiting his grandparents for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. He talks about Pa all the time and also loves to look at the collage of family portraits we have above his bed. He likes playing with kids as well, but is still not too keen on sharing. But he loves nursery and the classes that Katsu and he attend together.
It's been a fun few months with Andrew.
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Our Trip to Texas: On the Way Back
3 more days of adventures leaving Dec 30th and getting home Jan 1:
Stop One: Hot Springs National Park
We only stayed for an hour, but seeing the steaming hot water come up from the ground was pretty cool - well, actually hot at about 134 degrees. The grounds were pretty, the weather was excellent and touring the historic bathhouse was fun, too.
Stop Two: Bill Clinton Presidential Library and Museum
These sort of museums always seem to be very well done. So, we stopped in and really enjoyed it. Andrew was a little less than impressed, but even with the speed-tour he necessitated, I feel like I learned something and was more appreciative for a lot of the bills that were passed during his era. The coverage (or scanty coverage) of the whole Monica Lewinsky affair was interesting. The museum itself was beautiful.
Stop Three: Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site
After visiting the Civil Rights Museum, we were really interested in seeing the school where rioting over integration was really crazy. Even though the site was officially closed, we took a few pictures.
We stayed the night near Memphis (I think ...) but in Arkansaw. The next day we drove and drove and drove. We stopped at an Old Country Buffet for lunch and then drove and drove and drove through Tennessee and into Kentucky until we finally reached:
Stop Four: Abraham Lincoln's Birthplace and Boyhood Home
We hit the birthplace about half an hour before it closes because you switch time zones back to Eastern right before getting there. We watched a video, same the nice memorial (with a typical, but not the Lincoln's, cabin, looked at the well where they got there water, and then hurried back to the car (it was cold). We drove another 10 miles to the boyhood home (which was closed) and saw the original, but not open boyhood home. A nice stop to commemorate a nice president. Glad I don't have to live in such tiny cold log cabins!
We drove and drove some more to the border right before Cincinnati and found a hotel room, then Katsu drove to Kroger and loaded up on cheese, fruit, and sparkling cider to celebrate the New Years and we cuddled on the bed all 3 of us and watched New Years specials. Katsu had to wake me up at midnight for the countdown (whoops!).
Stop Five: Cincinnati Museum Complex
This old train station includes a Natural History Museum, Cincinnati History Museum and a Children's Museum, so we went and saw all three. The Natural History Museum had some really cool parts - a cave to climb through with water and formations and everything. Andrew LOVED the trains in the History Museum. Andrew loved the Children's Museum with all their fun play centers and especially the water area. We took a little break for lunch and then saw the History museum which had some really really cool train exhibits showing Cincinnati at all different times in history.
Then, we drove and drove and drove until we got home to Ann Arbor!
Stop One: Hot Springs National Park
We only stayed for an hour, but seeing the steaming hot water come up from the ground was pretty cool - well, actually hot at about 134 degrees. The grounds were pretty, the weather was excellent and touring the historic bathhouse was fun, too.
Stop Two: Bill Clinton Presidential Library and Museum
These sort of museums always seem to be very well done. So, we stopped in and really enjoyed it. Andrew was a little less than impressed, but even with the speed-tour he necessitated, I feel like I learned something and was more appreciative for a lot of the bills that were passed during his era. The coverage (or scanty coverage) of the whole Monica Lewinsky affair was interesting. The museum itself was beautiful.
Stop Three: Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site
After visiting the Civil Rights Museum, we were really interested in seeing the school where rioting over integration was really crazy. Even though the site was officially closed, we took a few pictures.
We stayed the night near Memphis (I think ...) but in Arkansaw. The next day we drove and drove and drove. We stopped at an Old Country Buffet for lunch and then drove and drove and drove through Tennessee and into Kentucky until we finally reached:
Stop Four: Abraham Lincoln's Birthplace and Boyhood Home
We hit the birthplace about half an hour before it closes because you switch time zones back to Eastern right before getting there. We watched a video, same the nice memorial (with a typical, but not the Lincoln's, cabin, looked at the well where they got there water, and then hurried back to the car (it was cold). We drove another 10 miles to the boyhood home (which was closed) and saw the original, but not open boyhood home. A nice stop to commemorate a nice president. Glad I don't have to live in such tiny cold log cabins!
We drove and drove some more to the border right before Cincinnati and found a hotel room, then Katsu drove to Kroger and loaded up on cheese, fruit, and sparkling cider to celebrate the New Years and we cuddled on the bed all 3 of us and watched New Years specials. Katsu had to wake me up at midnight for the countdown (whoops!).
Stop Five: Cincinnati Museum Complex
This old train station includes a Natural History Museum, Cincinnati History Museum and a Children's Museum, so we went and saw all three. The Natural History Museum had some really cool parts - a cave to climb through with water and formations and everything. Andrew LOVED the trains in the History Museum. Andrew loved the Children's Museum with all their fun play centers and especially the water area. We took a little break for lunch and then saw the History museum which had some really really cool train exhibits showing Cincinnati at all different times in history.
Then, we drove and drove and drove until we got home to Ann Arbor!
Friday, January 02, 2009
How to Survive 36+ hours of Driving with a 1 1/2 year old
A portable DVD player.
(also lots of snacks and stopping every 2-3 hours and many many impromptu sing-a-longs)
Between that and lots of TV / movies at Grandma and Grandpa's ...
The following conversation took place between me and Andrew about 30 minutes away from Ann Arbor on the way home:
Amanda: Now that we are home, we will go back to the old rules - no more movies and no TV.
Andrew: (bursts into tears)
In Texas
I am not a big picture taker, especially when I'm at family's being lazy, but we did get some pictures when we went to see ICE - a huge display where EVERYTHING is made of ice. After donning parkas and going into the just above 0 degree room (which Andrew did NOT like), we explored. Katsu even slid down an ice slide. It was way too expensive, but was still fun. Plus, the adjoining hotel had lots of stuff to look at too - a huge tree, a full-size real gingerbread house, and more!
Our Trip to Texas: On the Way
We decided (sort of spur of the moment, sort of not) to take a road trip to Texas for Christmas. Gas is cheap, for awhile anyways. We wanted to get out of the cold. We had time off. Why not? And a surprise visit!!! I have ALWAYS wanted to just "pop" up on my parents doorstep.
We planned on leaving Saturday, but hearing Friday's forecast for another foot or two of snow, I called up Katsu Thursday afternoon and 3 hours later, we were on the road.
Knowing me, we can't just drive straight through - especially with a kid. So, we did the 18-hr trip in 3 days and stopped to see things on the way. Here is the trip down.
Stop One: Mammoth Cave
On a tour with other Michiganders escaping the storm, we climbed through the cave with Katsu carrying Andrew. The 300 or so steps were very narrow, steep, and slippery ... a little harder than the 10-step tour we missed by 5 minutes. But we had a fun time. Andrew even fell asleep at the end.
Stop Two: Grand Ole Opry and Gaylord Opryland
We stopped by later in Nashville. We first stopped at the mall before realizing that was not Opryland (confusing signage) and then saw the site of the Grand Ole Opry and toured Opryland - a huge beautiful resort with lots of beautiful plants and walkways indoors. A fun diversion.
Stop Three: The Parthenon?
Who knew there is a full-size replica of the Parthenon in Nashville?
Stop Four: Civil Rights Museum (Memphis)
This museum is at the site of Martin Luther King, Jr's Assassination. Andrew slept in the stroller through the entire museum, but Katsu and I just LOVED it. I have a totally different perception of race and civil rights now. It really was beautifully done and definitely paradigm-changing for someone like me who wasn't born until after all these things happened.
Stop Five: Graceland
Can you visit Memphis without visiting the King? Definitely expensive and crowded, but I actually enjoyed learning more about Elvis and seeing his interestingly decorated house. Andrew mostly loved watching his horses. Still - the people who come here for a 3 week vacation every year -- crazy!
Finally, we arrived in Texas with my family no where to be seen. So much for some surprise caroling! After a couple hour stop at my friend Crystal's house, my family finally showed up and we surprised them. So you never know who those 11pm visitors on your doorstep may be!
We planned on leaving Saturday, but hearing Friday's forecast for another foot or two of snow, I called up Katsu Thursday afternoon and 3 hours later, we were on the road.
Knowing me, we can't just drive straight through - especially with a kid. So, we did the 18-hr trip in 3 days and stopped to see things on the way. Here is the trip down.
Stop One: Mammoth Cave
On a tour with other Michiganders escaping the storm, we climbed through the cave with Katsu carrying Andrew. The 300 or so steps were very narrow, steep, and slippery ... a little harder than the 10-step tour we missed by 5 minutes. But we had a fun time. Andrew even fell asleep at the end.
Stop Two: Grand Ole Opry and Gaylord Opryland
We stopped by later in Nashville. We first stopped at the mall before realizing that was not Opryland (confusing signage) and then saw the site of the Grand Ole Opry and toured Opryland - a huge beautiful resort with lots of beautiful plants and walkways indoors. A fun diversion.
Stop Three: The Parthenon?
Who knew there is a full-size replica of the Parthenon in Nashville?
Stop Four: Civil Rights Museum (Memphis)
This museum is at the site of Martin Luther King, Jr's Assassination. Andrew slept in the stroller through the entire museum, but Katsu and I just LOVED it. I have a totally different perception of race and civil rights now. It really was beautifully done and definitely paradigm-changing for someone like me who wasn't born until after all these things happened.
Stop Five: Graceland
Can you visit Memphis without visiting the King? Definitely expensive and crowded, but I actually enjoyed learning more about Elvis and seeing his interestingly decorated house. Andrew mostly loved watching his horses. Still - the people who come here for a 3 week vacation every year -- crazy!
Finally, we arrived in Texas with my family no where to be seen. So much for some surprise caroling! After a couple hour stop at my friend Crystal's house, my family finally showed up and we surprised them. So you never know who those 11pm visitors on your doorstep may be!
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