6 months and 19 months!

Happy Birthdays to my BABIES~~~~

Here are are looking all ... .homey ... Good MORNING everyone!!!

So strong! ... oh and Halloween

Today I was wearing a blouse like this ...

obviously not me ... but the pic shows the flaps down the side ...
AAANYWAY,.... I was at the counter preparing dinner for Aiden, and he grabbed one of the flaps and was playing inainai ba (peekaboo) with it. Then he started trying to wrap it around himself, playing with it, etc. Then he suddenly grabbed it REAL hard, and ran behind me. He pulled so hard that I almost fell backward! It jolted me, and I barely caught myself before I fell right on top of him! But the jolt and sudden slack made him fall down and he hit is head on the wall next to him, and then fell flat on his face! Poor baby wasn't hurt too bad, but he was so shocked he burst out crying and only wanted mommy (refused to go to Papa). I am so shocked at how strong this little boy is getting!

Yesterday evening I took the kids to a Halloween party (co-hosted by me, ahem). I got one of my friends to come along to help watch the kids (Thanks Smyle!) and thank GOD for her because I was running around pretty much the whole time picking people up, or taking pics (unofficial event photographer).
I am too tired to upload the pics here, so you will have to click this link here ...
CLICK HERE

Hope you had a fun Halloween!

P.S. Happy Birthday to MEEEEEEEE 

Papoosie 18 months

Can't believe he's a whole year and a half old~!!
Whao ... he's just growing up so fast, his behavior an mannerisms have changed so much, he's not gonna be a baby for much longer!

He is so smart, so cute, so sweet, so loving, so naughty ... just the perfect baby ever!

I realize that I didn't do updates for him since LB was born ... but here are some highlights of what I remember (sorry ... it's not gonna be real proper ... mommy brain!)

May 15th, 2012 - 13 months old!
LB was born! We went away for 2 days, and came back with a tiny monkey of a thing! I swear Aiden must think Mushu is a pet and that we went and 'bought' him! haha ... that month I slowly recovered from my surgery, Brandon got accustomed to the world, and Aiden cried. When he came around us we tried to make sure we gave him attention as much as we could, but it was still tough on him, because he cried for every little thing. Diaper changes, eating, sleeping, playing ...
But at least he loved LB. Took him awhile to realize he wasn't a plaything, but we tried real hard to show him that he was something he could love.

June 15th, 2012 - 14 months old!
LB was still too small to go out this month (he did go for a few short walks with us) so we took Aiden out as much as we could. I would pump and leave milk for LB with Grandma. We started going to the pool a lot with Aiden, and he did better as far as his crying and acceptance of LB. Looking at the pics he was still so chub chub and so ... tiny looking. Just 5 months ago but he has changed so much!

July 15th, 2012 - 15 months old!
LB started tagging along for our summer activities ... to the beach, to the pool. This year we were so much more active than last year. We were so much more ... cautious with Aiden and we only went once to the pool/beach, but we went quite often this year ... taking our little LB along also! Aiden loved being outside, and ESPECIALLY the pool! We pretty much spent as much time as possible out of the house ... either at the lake, the park, or the pool, or the beach! Daddy was very into dressing in matching outfits and taking LOTS of pictures (LOTS= so many that I haven't even been able to go through them and organize them all!)! The first weeks of August Aiden also got REAL sick for the first time in his life! He had such a high fever and it was so scary!

August 15th, 2012 - 16 months old!
Summer fun continues!

September 15th, 2012 - 17 months old!
We went on Summer Vacation! That was definitely the highlight of the month! Since I already posted the pics from that, here's a pic of the boys together!

October 15th, 2012 - 18 months old!

I've missed logging about his developmental progress, and tricks because honestly I just don't remember when he started doing them! But as of now, his 18 month birthday, he says: 15-20 words
Peshk (fish), no (in both Albanian and English), Nene (grandma), Mom, Daddy, push, cape (grab), topi (ball), yum  yum (for food and also for his pacifier), hopa (dakko, or carry), help, kale (horse), up, three (after one, two ... three!), go (after ready, set, GOOO, and when he wants to go somewhere), prape (more), po (yes), bye, this, tickle .... .... (I think that's it ... hard to remember them all)
And signs another 10 or so words ...
more, all done, please, thank you, sorry, help (he alternates between saying and signing this one), kiss, hajde (come here).

He also makes a variety of sounds like brrrm for car, different animal sounds like this:

He is extremely coordinated and loves climbing onto things ... the couch, chairs, computer chairs ... benches ... he even figured out how to climb onto his car to look out the window! He loves opening (and now closing) the doors. It's amazing because he has to hold onto the doorknob and back up to close the door, but he knows how to pull the handle down to make it 'click' ... we recently changed the doorknobs on the kitchen and bathroom doors to make them heavier but he somehow manages to open those now too! If it's really important to keep him out we gotta lock it from the outside now! But soon he'll figure out how to turn the key ... so we'll see how long that lasts!
He loves twirling around like a ballerina, and does this funny 'hop' thingie when we tell him to jump, he 'tickles' baby brother (and us) ... gosh I can't keep track of all the crazy tricks he has. :)

He's a sneaky naughty baby who is too smart for his own good. He is extremely naughty with grandma and grandpa especially because they refuse to spank him (I guess it's ok because its the grandparents right to spoil their grandkids). He used to get really mad when I would nurse LB and he would try to climb into my lap to get to the other boob, which he would refuse to drink from ... but he would kiss it!

He does so many funny and cute things that I can't even list them here, but he is just the sweetest baby ever!

Here are some goals I have for the next 6 months.
By the time he is two, I hope to:

*Have him used to sleeping on his own. Right now it takes him a very long time to go to sleep (unless it's in the car), and we have to be there the whole time with him. Hopefully by the time he is two he will learn that bedtime is bedtime and it won't take hours for him to fall asleep.
*Have him eating normal food. He is getting better at eating 'adult' food (food that isn't pureed) but it really depends on his mood because something he accepted the day before, the next day he will refuse, and generally he still likes pureed food more than stuff he needs to chew. I would also like him to be able to eat on his own. I guess the main reason why I don't let him eat on his own and make a mess right now is that I don't have the time to have him sit for long periods while he eats his own meal. I have two babies so when it's time for Aiden to eat I need him to eat within a certain amount of time before LB gets cranky, etc. Hopefully by the time he is two the eating situation will get better.
*Get him over the pacifier! He is still addicted to it and needs it for sleeping and drives in the car. He now understands the difference between baby brother and his pacifier, because if we say it's LB's and ask for it he will give it back ... but I try not to give it to him during normal times ... so hopefully by two he will be weaned off of it completely! You understand why I can't do cold turkey right? It's cause LB gets paci's too so we can't just STOP giving Aiden his ... it has to be a conscious thing and us teaching him that he can't have it ... anyway ... it's goal #3.

Ok, this is gonna get too long, so I'll post it before I end up running out of time (again) ... here are a few more pics ... these ones are RECENT!

Happy 25th Birthday Daddy!!

Quarter Century Old!!!
Happy Birthday to the Best BESTEST Daddy EVER!!!!

All dressed up in Japanese Jinbei's ... I LOVE the kids' facial expressions!

Happy Family Photo ...

A SUPER cake for a SUPER dad and husband!

A quick look at how we've changed from 2011 to 2012 ... 

Happy Birthday DADDY! You are the best daddy ever and this next year is gonna be better than the last one! We will make sure of it!! xoxo

LB is 1 week old!

Well ... so on Tuesday LB turned 1 week! Woohooo ... and he's still alive! Hahaha ... so much has changed since we had Papoosie. I remember with Papoosie it was a constant checking to see if he was breathing, positioned right, covered enough, etc etc ... now I'm comfortable enough to know that if he's wrapped up fine, he will be ok unless he's really screaming. A little moving about doesn't make us jump, and we can tell the difference between the tummy ache cries and notice the signs of his being hungry right away. I'm so much more comfortable with this little one than I was with Papoosie which makes for so much less anxiety and worrying about every little thing. It's made things so much easier and I've been able to have a lot more fun with him as a result.
So far LB is quite a happy and well-behaved baby. He's still in the 'sleep all day' stage so he only has about 1 hour of awake time in the morning, and 1 in the afternoon. He rarely cries (he'll give one or two sharp screams for a tummy ache, but it won't go on for minutes or --God forbid--hours). I'm really hoping he doesn't get cholic and gas pains like Papoosie did. With Papoosie it started around 1 month so I guess we'll just have to see. That was a hard time when Papoosie just WOULDN'T STOP CRYING ... and it lasted till he was like 6 months old so I'm really keeping my fingers crossed that LB will be spared.
I got my stitches taken out yesterday but a TERRIBLE rash has popped up on all the places where I had surgical tape stuck on me ... my back (where they gave me the anesthetic), my wrist (IV drip), and the cut (that strip is the WORST). It's REAL REAL puffy and itchy and ... who heard of an allergy to surgical tape anyway? And why would it come out a WEEK afterwards? Oh well ... hopefully in a couple days it'll go away.
I still spend most of the day lying down (not so much sleeping anymore though) because I still have pain in my right side, and if I'm standing for too long I will start getting dizzy, but I feel real good and very much on the mend.
I'm going to be doing Papoosie's 13 month update after this too ... so I'll finish here with some pics!

In pictures newborn Aiden and newborn Brandon are very much alike! Here's Brandon:

And here's Papoosie:

11 months old

I say this every month its just crazy!

It's very strange though. With Papoosie growing time just seems to be whizzing by light-speed! But then when it comes to LB I wish he would just pop out already ... I'm tired of him beating me up from the inside out, and carrying him around like a big fat pregnant woman! Ahem.

Wowie Zowie! Next month Papoosie is gonna be a whole year old! Who wants to come to his party? I'm only gonna take like 10-15 ppl so if you want in you gotta let me know.

Papoosie continues to grow and develop and every day (yes, even the crazy not so happy ones) is such a wonder to me. He is such a sweet baby and is so loving and adorable!

Here are the news in his 11 months:

-Got his bedtime routine down

-Sleeps in his own crib/room

-Such attitude

-Teaching him signing

-Teething

Yep ... sounds awesome doesn't it! Here's what an average day in the life of Papoosie looks like:

Most days he will wake up anywhere between 7-8, and Grandma brings him to our room. He started really moving and kicking a lot in his sleep and it would hurt my tummy when he kicked so we moved a bed into his room, and now he sleeps in his crib and grandma sleeps in the bed beside it! I am so thankful grandma loves him so much and actually WANTS to (instead of doing it as a favor to us) sleep with Papoosie. I am SO darn lucky!

Anyway, so grandma brings him in the morning, and goes off to work, and Papoosie plays between us until we wake up enough to make him breakfast and start his day. He will eat, get his bottom wash and diaper change, and play for an hour or so. Around 2 hours after he wakes up he takes his morning nap .... anywhere between 30 min and 1 hour.

Then once he wakes up he will have second breakfast (HIIIIIIIIIIII Patty), then since it's been warm these days we take him out. To meet friends, go to the lake, go window shopping, do errands .... we stay out till around 2 or 3 when it's his nap time. We feed him, and by the time we get home he's sleeping! He will sleep for an hour or two, and then after he wakes up and has another meal we have happy play time between mommy, grandma, and daddy in the afternoon.

Around 8:30, 9 I make him dinner, we wash hands, mouth, and bottom, change into pajamas, brush teeth and by 9:30 ish he will sleep. Of course he's not a clock so its just a general flow ...

His favorite playtime activities are standing up (with his head popping out of the playpen/crib) and throwing the ball and having us 'fetch' it for him. He will do this over and over and over again ... sometimes we substitute the balls for blocks, or string/chain and he loves the sound it makes. He also LOVES walking. Like the video in the previous post, we bought him a little harness thingie and when we go to the lake we put it on and he walks along with us ... he's quite a good walker and can go pretty far before tiring!

Other than bye, hajde (come here), pointing, and saying please, I'm also teaching him I'm sorry, thank-you, more, and all-done. He watches baby signing videos as well, but those are the ones that I am teaching him. He's SUPER smart. He also understands DAME (no in Japanese), when I tell him not to touch something or put it in his mouth he retracts his hand or takes the thing out of his mouth. But he's really naughty because he gets a little mad that I told him no and he will kind of make an 'ugh' sound and try to hit my hand, or throw the thing that he was putting in his mouth away. Kind of like throwing a fit that I said no. For now I say 'good baby' in response to his taking his hand back or taking the thing out of his mouth ... but if his reaction gets stronger I'll have to work on that.

A week or so ago he had a couple days where he was teething bad ... those nights he got a break from the crib and came to sleep with us. I could feel the 3rd bottom tooth coming in, but since then it cold feet or something cause I can feel it but it's not showing. Funny.

A few times now he has 'fallen asleep' on his own either in his car seat or in his high chair. These are cases of him in a state of extreme tiredness, but it's PROGRESS I say!

Anyway I don't have his measurements cause I have to go tomorrow so I will leave off for now.

Enjoy some CUTE CUTE CUTE pictures!!!

Counting ...

Saying please ...

My sweet sweet baby!!!

Mommy loves you so so so so so so so much!!! xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Recent pictures and videos

Happy Summer Day!

First of all, the weather has been getting so much warmer so mommy and daddy have been taking me out so much more! I enjoy it very much!
A couple weeks ago I went to the lake with U. Sawyer and A. Elda and mommy and daddy of Suki. Mommy let me try some of her ice ...

I also played a lot on the ground with Suki but mommy didn't get any pictures of it. But it was fun!

Then U. Sawyer took me to see a cat that was lounging in the sun!

A few days ago, a box of new clothes arrived in the mail for me! It's batch 1 of my new summer clothes and had my bathing suit inside! I can't wait to go swimming! But anyway, here is a video of me playing in the box the clothes came in.

Here's one of me climbing ...

And this is the way I entertain myself at bath time! I love bath time and it is still one of my favorite times of the day (well ... when it was cold I only got to take a bath once or twice a week but now that it's getting warmer I hope mom and dad let me have baths more often!)

And recently daddy bought a harness for me so mommy wouldn't have to bend down so much when she takes me for 'walks'. Little Boss really is getting bigger and mommy's back gets owie when she has to carry me too much, or when she has to bend down for too long. And it's supposed to teach me how to walk too!
I enjoy my walking times very very much!

Those are all my most recent videos ... pretty much all taken in March!
I'm going to be 11 months old tomorrow and I'm very excited because that means in just one more month I will be 1 year old!
Mommy says that since LB is coming soon I need to learn to share my space with him. Basically it just means that mommy doesn't want to make another blog for LB. So this place is not just gonna be all about me anymore.
Hahaha ... what am I saying. It's always going to be all about me! But LB will be visiting a whole lot so you'll see a whole lot of him more I guess.

Well, I have lots of pictures to share but for now just enjoy the videos!

Love,
Aiden

Recent videos

Papoosie's Christmas present ... December!! 

A little after Christmas ...

Playing with Daddy...

Getting himself out of the box

Self-feeding (before he stopped liking bananas)

Walking practice

This is an example of the fore-finger preference!!!

Crazy playtime with Papa!

10 friggin months old!!!!

kyaaaaaaaaa~~~~

Can't believe it! 10 months old and in 2 months he's gonna be a whole year old!

It makes me so proud and yet so nostalgic at the same time ... lucky for me I'm gonna have another baby so I won't miss his baby stage too much ...

Before I forget here are his measurements:

Weight: 8.3 kg (only small weight gain attributed to his being sick for so long and rejecting food)

Height: 72.5 cm (compared to his usual 0.5 cm growth in the past few months, this month he grew 1.5 cm!)

Head circumference: 42.5 (I think ... I forgot and I can't look at his book cause it's in the car)

He is 'catching up' to the average size so the doctor is quite pleased.

He spent 2 weeks of this past month being sick (poor baby) so he hasn't had a lot of time to learn new things ... but he is just generally growing and getting smarter doing little things here and there to just make us so happy and proud.

He has started 'walking' by holding onto things ... learning to re position himself and shift his weight to get different places.

2 more teeth are starting to come out on the upper side ... they started right around the time he was sick so it was like a double whammy and my poor love had a hard time coping. Also they didn't come out one at a time like they have been so far but came out simultaneously so that seems to be hard for him too.

Grandma has been gone a lot taking care of great-Grandma since great-Grandpa passed away, so it seems Papoosie has forgotten her a little. Also coupled with him being sick and just generally being sticky to mom more ... it makes her sad. He's totally fine if she keeps him while I take a nap, or something ... but if I am in the same room he will try to come to me, and now that he has 'please' mastered we can't really say no if he's asking so nicely.

I've been trying to introduce him to the next stage of eating ... self feeding!!!! I steamed some carrots, we got some non-salted cheese, I tried bananas, etc ... I put them on a plate and try to get him used to feeding himself. I wrote about this before, but even with his toys, he really prefers his forefinger and will only use that one finger to pick up toys, etc. So he does the same thing with these foods ... so obviously he has a hard time picking them up. Then he gets frustrated and just starts playing with the plate which leads to all the food ending up on the floor. hehehehe ... but when he does get some food in his hands it goes properly to his mouth. He also started spitting out foods he doesn't like. Before he used to eat anything (pretty much) ... but now if he doesn't like the taste he will spit it out. He doesn't like bananas anymore ... or if we give him some of our food sometimes such as pasta, he will suck all the meat/sauce and spit out the pasta part. I just hope he doesn't start spitting out his veggies ... up until now he's been so good with the veggies.

Sleeping is still rough ... still wakes up many times throughout the night to be held ... if we don't pick him up he will crawl to where were are and sprawl himself out on top of one of us. I'm trying not to pick him up so we'll see how he does. At least he doesn't drink in the middle of the night. He goes the whole night without drinking and will take his bottle in the very early morning after waking up.

Well I don't know what else ... I've been a lot more tired these days (I started my 3rd trimester YAY!) ... I take naps 1 out of 3 days and for like 2 hours. (TG for Grandma! hehhehe)

Anyways, my baby is just growing and growing (along with Little Boss, of course).

I don't know how it's possible but I love him more and more everyday! How does the heart not burst with all this mushy mushy-ness???

Hehehe ... I will post photos soon ...

Bye Bye

9 months old

I've been meaning to do his 9 month update but between work and baby (and now me and daddy) being sick I just haven't managed.

But he's growing so much!

-Crawling ... he really started a while back, but it's a funny belly scooting type ... funny thing is that he really gets going fast even though he doesn't have the proper form going on. He does get the proper form starting out, but then he gets so excited to move that he lets his legs go and kind of drags himself like army style. He especially loves chasing balls around!

-More than crawling, he LOVES standing up/walking. He will try to pull himself up on anythingso I always gotta make sure he doesn't topple over or pull whatever he's pulling down on himself. Sometimes I just wish he would sit still and play tho ....

-Been trying to teach him to say please for things he wants, cause he's been starting to freak out and cry if he can't get something he wants ... just trying to show him that if he wants something he doesn't have to make a big deal ... so far no luck ... but it seems like it has taught him how to clap. Which leads to ...

-Clapping and dancing. He LOVES music and certain songs Grandma sings to him or videos we show him he will bounce up and down to, or clap to ... its so adorable ... he also sometimes claps for himself ... sometimes ... when he does something good ... like we clap for him after he finishes all his food ... and he claps along with us ... he also does this funny leg tapping thing when we sing for him or listen to music. Just one leg bounces to the music ... its just funny.

-Been trying out some self-feeding ... some cheese, bread, fruit, etc. I'm not brave enough to give him the puree or yogurt that we feed him cause I know he'll make a huge mess and I'm not ready for that yet. He does this quirky thing when he picks up the food from the tray or my hand. He does this with toys too, but he doesn't grab it with his whole hand, or his thumb and forefinger. He does this funny thing with just his forefinger. He rolls it back and forth a little, then brings it into his hand and of course that makes it hard for him to get the piece of food into his mouth .. .but it's just so funny. He does it with toys too ... just rolls them around with his forefinger before picking it up. Weird baby.

-Feeding continues to go well. Now I don't puree his veggies completely and leave some soft lumps in there to get him used to the whole 'chewing' concept so he doesn't choke. He LOOOOOOOOVES food which is awesome cause when we go eat out he will sit (relatively) still in his stroller as long as I am feeding him parts of chicken, some bread, etc. He loves sharing our food with us and seems to know when he is being fed his 'puree' instead of 'big ppl food'.

-Has 3 teeth now! The 2 on the bottom, one on top and his 4th one it juuuust starting to show like it's getting ready to come out.

-Getting so skilled at 'multitasking' ... he does one thing with one hand while doing something else with the other. No specific example comes to mind but when I see it it just amazes me.

-He tries so hard to talk these days. Dada now dominates most of it ... somehow he does seem to understand it relates to daddy somehow cause it comes out a lot when he's tired or fussy and wants to go to dad. Which is a little sad, but he likes daddy more than mommy. It's understandable I guess ... I spend less time with him and since I started getting belly problems I just can't hold him as much as he would like so a lot of time with me is spent playing alongside each other instead of playing dakko games like does with dad. Dad also lets him sleep on his tummy during nap time and I just can't do it anymore. waaaaaaaaaaaa. But he still loves mommy ... I guess it's all about his mood.

He's such a sweet baby and I really feel like he's growing up too fast! Course I want him to start walking soon before Little Boss comes around, but looking at recent pics of him I just don't see a baby anymore ... he's such a grown-up little boy! So smart and sweet and just the best son EVER!!

Some recent pics ... I haven't taken many recently ... gotta take some more ...

Newest toy! I've always wanted one of these 'playbox' thingies with multiple activities ... I was so excited for this!!!

With him moving around so much we bought him a playpen for his 9 month birthday. He fell off the bed again cause he gets over the pillows now so I needed it for when I am alone in the house ... bathroom, laundry ... etc etc ...

My most recent pic of him. I saw this and couldn't get over how 'grown up' he looked! He doesn't look like a little baby anymore!!!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to my friends and relatives and fans all over the world!
I hope this Christmas was as awesome and fun as my Christmas was!
And I also hope that your presents were as awesome as mine were!

8 months old~!!!!

Kyaaaa getting so big!!!!

Just 4 more months till he's a whole year old, and 5 more months till Little Boss comes along!

He's learned quite a few new tricks this month ... the most dangerous being that he can pull himself up to stand and lean on the pillows, or arms of couches, etc. that I put up to keep him from rolling off the bed, or couch, etc.

He's also started crawling ... backward! hehehe ... He actually gets such a good crawling pose as he reaches for something from a sitting position, but then he gets too distracted trying to reach it that he just flops around on his belly and flails his arms and legs. But he does know how to scoot backward and the confused face he makes as he gets taken further away from the toy instead of closer is so priceless. He also knows how to just roll around everywhere so that eventually he DOES reach the toy, or the edge of the bed ... or any random place.

On December 5th his tooth popped out! The mouthsore I mentioned before turned out to be the tooth breaking out and the break in the gum getting infected. I probably wouldn't have noticed it until the mouthsore healed up ... but Papoosie happened to bite me ... woohoooo!! I don't think there was ever a more happy Mama to have her baby bite her! ehehehe

Here's a pic of the little thingie ... it's much bigger now ... but its the first pic I took of his toothie!!!

He 'talks' and 'sings', and 'dances', and is such an active baby. Almost too active for me! I really limit the amount that I pick him up and hold him because Little Boss is really starting to grow and both of them together is just too much for me. I try to keep him really happy and fill him up with the 'mommy' time by sitting down with him, playing lying down next to him, letting him sit in my lap during school time, etc. but he's at the age where he knows the difference between sitting and standing so it's hard sometimes. He falls asleep most days with grandma or daddy or even grandpa most nights now because he still refuses to sleep on his own. I have tried a few times, but the times when he isn't too tired he makes a fuss and grandma comes in and begs me to let her hold him. I told her I want him to get used to sleeping on his own before he gets too big (because by then Little Boss will be too big to let that happen), but she promised that she would hold him ... so I let her.

He still loves the Paci ... but now I've pretty much gotten him off of it during the day. He only cries for it when he's sleeping ... and I'm not sure how to get him off of it, but his teeth are coming in so I'm hoping that somehow the feel of the teeth will make him not like it anymore ... fingers are crossed.

Also coinciding with his 6 month vaccinations and tooth coming out he got real sickly/grumpy and turned into a 100% co-sleeper. He now refuses to sleep in his crib, but loves to snuggle up in our big bed and sleep with me. I tried putting the couch back up next to the bed like we did when he was first born ... but that doesn't work either. He needs to be right next to me sharing my blanket and practically with my arm around him ... kyaaaaaaaaaa ... what am I gonna do .... for now I just want to enjoy what time I have left to enjoy with him like this before I turn into a whale and there's no space for him to snuggle up next to me.

His eating is progressing really well. He can now takes small chunks of solids (cheese, chicken, biscuits, etc) and 'chews' them in his mouth before swallowing them. He still has some stomach problems where it's hard for him to make a bowel movement ... he really has to push and struggle and he cries a lot ... so I still only feed him veggie and fruit purees, or soup or yogurt. I have considered that the formula we give him might not fit him so well so we are going to switch to a different brand ... we'll see how that goes.

His measurements are:

Height: 67.5 cm

Head circumference: 42.5

Weight: 7.6 kg.

His height and head circumference didn't really change since last month but he gained 600 grams which is quite good for him! Still a small baby but he's perfect to me!

He's getting so smart and learning so many tricks but in general he is still such a good baby and is such a joy to have around, even on my sick days.

Ouch

My poor baby fell off the bed yesterday. It's his first accident. Recently he's been rolling and scooting so much that every time I leave the room I leave him surrounded by pillows to hopefully prevent him from falling off the bed. But it wasn't enough yesterday, and he rolled right off the bed. Thankfully he was wearing a really fluffy sweater (which also had a hood that he just happened to have pulled over his head!) which somehow padded him a lot and he was more shocked than hurt. I was freaking out for a good five minutes ... checking his head for lumps, rubbing his body to see if anywhere hurt ... trying to get him to let me comfort him ... but he just wanted to get back to playing ... 'MOM ... I'm FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE let gooooooooooooo of meeeeeeeeeeeeee .... waaaaaaa' .... hehehehehe

He's been growing and learning so much new stuff almost every day ... I thought one day his tooth was FINALLY coming out but it turned out to be a mouthsore ... he got his vaccinations and was such a brave boy and cried only a little ...

And CHRISTMAS is coming!!! I have so many grand plans for Christmas but I'm gonna be so busy with work (as is daddy) that I have ditched them all and will just settle for taking a nice family photo.

Oh and the one other thing I can't let go of is having a Christmas tree and presents this year. I say it's for the baby's sake but I thought about it and it's more for my sake than his ... cause he enjoys the lights and all but he doesn't understand the concept of presents so ... but still ... I have a little mini tree ... and we picked out presents for Grandma, Grandpa, and baby ... so now we just have to find presents for daddy and mommy.

Hopefully I won't be TOO busy this Christmas to do at least a few Christmas-y things with the baby (and hopefully daddy too) ... we shall see ...

7 months old

My darling baby is 7 months today!!! And 'technically' I'm 12 weeks! PROGRESS!!!!!!
Somewhere along the line I miscounted the weeks ... so starting this month I am gonna stop doing the weekly updates ... been sick too often and it just doesn't make sense anymore.

Measurements-wise he's below average for his age. I chalk it up to him being a preemie and continue with my assertion that he is PERFECT!!!!
Weight: 7 kg
Height: 67 cm
Head circumference: 42 cm

Still no sign of the little teethies ... doctor says the gums are abnormally hard so its contributing to the no-show.
Suddenly seems to be growing up so fast! Little things he suddenly started doing that are just so adorable and cute ... like sitting on his own like a pro to play or watch videos, using his fingers to twist objects (namely his pacifier) to fit his mouth better ... or for better grip, throwing objects and then 'looking' for them, etc. He also has gotten so much more expressive with his face and voice ... is able to reach when he wants to be picked up, arch when he wants to be put down ... lean towards the person if he wants to go to them, or refuse by turning toward the person holding him and burying his face in their neck. He also cries or yells when he's frustrated, 'babbles' when he's happy ... etc. He's been such a joy to be around even though I can't pick him up so much.
Of course along with 'growing up' he has learned some naughty tricks ... he doesn't like being put down on his mat, or on the couch alone to play ... so he cries and cries for no reason until you pick him up and find something new for him to play with. And recently he's really learned to yell oh my gosh ... SO LOUD! I usually give him a little swat on the leg if he's throwing a fit and kicking is feet ... thankfully he doesn't do it too often ... but he's a smart baby so I gotta watch out as he goes along. I also feel a little bad that I can't pick him up and play with him as much as I would like because of my sickness ... sometimes I have to just dump him on the bed for a few minutes as I make a run for the bathroom and I can hear him screaming but I can't go back to him until the queasiness subsides or everything comes out ... those times I feel really guilty but what can I do ... he seems to understand because when I come back and pick him up he perks up right away and we get back to playing or whatever.
Grandma is the hero ... in the afternoon when my sickness gets real bad she takes the baby and he just loves being with her! Sometimes even in the middle of the night when he has a hard time sleeping she will come and he will end up sleeping the rest of the night with her! I would probably die if she wasn't around to help with the baby!
Grandpa is also starting to come around more often! Now that the baby is more attentive and responsive (and easier to hold) grandpa feels more comfortable around the baby and playing games and entertaining. Baby doesn't get AS excited to see grandpa as he does with grandma ... but it's still cute to see him sharing a smile with grandpa.
AAAAAAnyway ... he's just growing up so fast! And I can't WAIT to get over this darned sickness!!!!!

Here are some pics from today ...







And we ordered him a johnny jumper because the exer saucer we have for him bounces but doesn't really give him the full range of motion that the jumper would've ... and it arrived just in time for his 7 months!
We put him in to try it out and he LOVED IT!!!!





And in this one we are using the jumper as a swing ... :D:D

30 weeks

So I'm posting my weekly update today and not mommy.
Mommy's been sick a lot these days. She said that there's a little baby growing inside of her. I don't really understand what that means but I can tell that mommy is suffering, so I have been trying to be a really good boy these days.
Of course I get bored and cry sometimes but daddy says I need to take care of mommy so I'm really trying.
I'm getting really big and all the extra layers of clothes I wear every day make me look even bigger! I'm gonna be 7 months in a few days! I'm sure mommy will be able to post something for that.

Mommy told me today that it was lucky that I am turning 30 weeks on 11.11.11. I don't understand what that means either but she sang to me with the guitar so that was nice. I sat still and listened for a whole 15 minutes! Mommy says that she's going to sing to me and Little Boss a whole lot more especially since Christmas is coming up.

I have been a little sick this week with a runny nose and cough and there is a time in the afternoon where I have to just let out all the cries that I was holding back all day ... but once that time is passed and my cries are all out I go back to being as happy as can be playing with my toys.
I feel my teeth coming in and it hurts but they still haven't popped out so mommy is really looking forward to when she will be able to see them.
I miss going outside if daddy isn't home during the day to take me out. Mommy says it makes her tummy hurt to carry me ... she says I'm getting to be so big and heavy!
I try to send messages to Little Boss by kicking mommy's tummy but mommy doesn't like that so much so maybe I will learn to sing with mommy so Little Boss can hear my voice too.

Here's a picture mommy took today of me watching a video. My favorite video right now is a video about colors ... and my favorite parts are when the puppets come out.

29 weeks

Obviously I've skipped a week but I feel justified because I've BEEN SICK!

Oh the horror it has been ... and still not over yet! But I'm hanging in there ... what else can be done, eh? I feel so terrible that maybe the Papoosie is suffering because I can't give him the attention that he needs ... but I promised myself as soon as the sickness is over I will re-double my efforts all over again!

As of yesterday I've stopped pumping milk (and offering the boob as a soothing method). Papoosie is a formula and food baby from now!

I bought him a potty ... but am in no condition to start trying to get him used to the idea so I am not even going to try ... I am going to wait another month or so until I can do this the right way with my full attention and energy ... otherwise he will just end up hating the potty and not get trained properly.

Such a sweetie pie my Papoosie is. Seems he understands most of the time that I am unable to do things that I used to for him ... he still overflows with smiles and love for me and the ppl around (daddy, grandma, grandpa, auntie) ... it melts my heart how sweet he is! Of course nowadays he is also starting to scream and cry for 'no reason' ... and sometimes we have swatted his leg when he seems to be throwing a fit just for the sake of it ... but it makes me feel so sad because half of the reason he does it is because I am unable to pick him up ... or I leave him lying on the bed when I get too nauseated and have to run to the bathroom ... etc. Oh well ... I'll figure it out.

He now refuses to sleep in his crib ... so he sleeps with me now on our big bed and daddy has been relegated to the baby's room. It's been getting really cold these days and most nights he ends up cuddling up in the crook of my arm even though I start him out on his own little pad next to me instead of really snuggled up with me. I guess I don't mind because eventually once the belly starts growin' he's not gonna find it as comfy as before ... and once the baby actually comes he's not gonna be able to do it anymore either ... so I want (and want him) to enjoy this snuggling as much as possible.

Eating is still progressing steadily, which is a relief and a joy to watch. I am really not a fan of formula (not only because it's expensive) ... so the less he drinks now and the more he learns to eat will be just awesome.

27 weeks

So I forgot to post his measurements last week ... so here they are:

Height: 65.5 cm

Weight: 6.6 kg

Head circumference: 41 cm

So his height is average, but his weight and head circumference as small for his age.

But we aren't too worried ... just taking note of the fact that he is a little small for his age.

This week the sickness has hit in full force, and I spent very little time with the son and lots of time lying down ... I tried moving around but somehow it gets worse when I move ... I went out a couple of times for walks but since the sickness has gotten really heavy I have been at home for 5 whole days now ...

One thing I have noticed is that he seems to have 'forgotten' how to do things. He still reaches for toys and is quite deft with his fingers, and likes sitting more than lying down... but now he refuses to roll over (both from his back and from his stomach) ... preferring to just have the toys brought to him ... even when I refuse to help him out, he rolls halfway just enough to grab the toys when straightens back onto the original position. He is either really lazy or he really has forgotten how to do these things ... which I think is kind of strange.

I fed him too much cereal a couple weeks ago and it resulted in constipation, and unfortunately we had to give him laxatives a couple of times. Poor baby. So I stopped giving him cereal and switched to making fruit and veggie purees ... focusing for the time being on foods which are supposed stool softeners like pear/prune/peach, spinach, carrot ... etc. He still likes all of these purees just fine and is eating well.

Milk continues to diminish ... he is now drinking anywhere from 200-400 ml of formula daily and only 3 of his 5 bottles daily are breast milk. When will the milk come back! It's so frustrating pumping only 90 ml at a time where I used to get around 200 in one shot. WAAAAAAAAAAAA

I don't have such presence of mind these days because of the sickness ... and god only knows it's going to get worse before it gets better ... but thankfully my darling boy seems to be doing okay, and still happy and growing. I'm so thankful to Daddy and Grandma for taking the baby so much when I just cant muster up the strength.

6 months old~!!! (26 weeks)

Can't believe my cutie Papoosie is already 6 months old! So grown up and adorable already!

Here he is just 1 day old ... he didn't want to sleep alone in his little 'bed' at the hospital ... daddy had to hold him like this and they slept together ...

Here they are on August 20th (almost 2 months ago now) ... see how much the LITTLE Papoosie has grown!!!!

Couple months back we ordered his 6-12 month clothes!!!

This is his newborn sleeper on top of his 6-9 month one.

This is his 0-3 month sleeper on top of his 6-9 month one.

His 0-3 month sleeper 'sets'. OH so cute and yet completely outgrown.

Awww ... baby socks are just too cute! The first one's are his newborn socks that he outgrew after a month. The second ones he outgrew by 3 months. He's pretty much outgrown the 3rd pair now and is wearing the last ones now! I ordered some more 9-12 month socks but they haven't arrived yet.
New clothes!!! You'll notice an abundance of Mommy/Daddy themed rompers ... hehehehe
More clothes! My FAVORITE set is the brown fleece set ... it's just the CUTEST!

Most of these clothes are still too big for him ... but some of the 6-9 month clothes he is wearing already!

It's hard to describe the feeling I got as I was putting away his outgrown clothes .... it's a mixture of pride, sadness, ... I just don't know! He really is growing up so fast and somehow he is already such a big boy!

He brings me such joy ... and these days when I'm so moody and emotional and tend to get sad more often than not ... he's always there to give me such a big smile when he sees me, cry faithfully when I leave the room, and share his love and slobber with me! I couldn't ask for a more perfect son ... I'm the luckiest mama in the world!