I hold the flower there ~ Doesn't know she's beautiful ~ She wakes every morning seeing ~ All the other things are beautiful ~ Well she's free ~ Companion to the wind ~ From "Gradle" By Widespread Panic
I'm on the WMW train again! Julia has a great post this week where we have to pick our favorite posts from the year to share with those who link up on her page. It was hard to pick my favs, and it will probably take me all night to read the ones everyone posted, but I sure intend to once BBZ is asleep tonight. He is taking an extra-long nap right now, which has pleasantly allowed me to do some mid-day blogging! Enjoy!
15 month stats: 20.1 lbs (10th percentile) 31 inches (75th percentile) He's tall and skinny! The doctor checked his ears and he still has fluid in them regardless of the antibiotic he has been taking since 12/18. We have an appointment on 1/6 with the ENT, so my doctor also recommended that I continue to give him the antibiotic until then because he is just going to get another infection anyway because of the fluid that is there. She is pretty convinced that the cause is the shape of his inner ear because of the failure to drain, so the tubes seem inevitable. Hopefully we will know more after the ENT appointment. I actually feel ok with it. If the tubes will make him better, I think we should do it. The one thing I want to talk to the ENT about is what is causing all of the congestion. My doctor (and I) think it's allergies. We'll see what the ENT thinks!
------------------------------------
N's parents came over on Saturday and brought us our deep freezer! It's awesome and holds a ton of food, which at this point we don't really have. We are thinking about a Cosco or Sams card since we can now buy in bulk. Since I already make out a menu, maybe I can plan for more than just 1-2 weeks at a time! I'll still have to shop weekly though for the fresh stuff I buy, but this should save us some dough for the other stuff. Yay! While N's parents were here I talked about the Shark pocket steam cleaner that I really wanted to buy for myself with my Christmas money. I had $50 and $10 of Kohl's cash, AND N's mom gave me another $10 Kohl's cash! I went to Kohl's and it was $20 off plus my real and Kohl's cash left a balance of $13 and some change! So I am now the proud owner of this fabulous chemical-free cleaner that can be used anywhere...except on my hardwood floors. I went for the pocket one over the mop because I can use this one all over the house! I haven't tried it yet because I am on vacation and really don't feel like cleaning. Maybe I will before the end of the week, but we'll see!
------------------------------------
I went to a winery today that was ran by an old German man who lived in this rural town since he was a boy. He has been making wine since he was 16 years old. There was another man there who was younger that was complaining about his sore bones and failing health. Somewhere in the conversation the younger man mentioned that he had a grudge. The old German fellow started laughing and said "forget the medicine and the surgery, your body hurts because of that heavy weight you are carrying! Let that go and feel lighter" he exclaimed. What great advice! His wine was absolutely fantastic too.
-----------------------------------
I found a DVD video full of snapshots of BBZ's first 6 months. We are working on the best way to convert it to digital format so I can share it, but for now I am enjoying looking back at when my little one was brand new. It's hard for me to remember that he was ever that small, so the video proof is pretty cool!
-----------------------------------
I did something terribly painful to my back/shoulder. It hurts more than it has ever hurt, so I don't know what is going on. All I know is I really don't want to schedule a doctor appointment for myself in between the ones I have for BBZ. I'm just hoping it will go away. And no, it's not from a grudge! At least I don't think so anyway...
Merry day-after Christmas! We had an amazing Christmas here at the Z household. BBZ was incredibly cute and happy and made this Christmas the best yet. N and I have always loved Christmas. The spirit of giving is in us and we absolutely love it. It's one reason we got married in December, because of our love of this time of year, but this year was so different. Having a little one made me remember how fun Christmas was as a child. His face when he saw the presents was priceless! He never really did get the whole open presents thing, so he just got excited when he saw something new to play with. He had an innocence that I had long forgotten. And N and I had a blast celebrating with him.
My mom bought him this chair when she was here a couple of weeks ago...he loves it! And, it matches our furniture perfectly, as you can see.
On Christmas Eve we baked cookies for Santa. BBZ always loves to see what we are doing at the island, but now he is finally old enough to understand that he has to either stay on the step stool or stay off of it. It's so much fun!
We always go to N's sister and brother-in-law's house on Christmas eve, a tradition I always look forward to. We ate and opened presents and had all kinds of fun! Isn't there something so cute about baby boys in overalls?
When we were t my parent's house for Thanksgiving, BBZ and his daddy discovered "fumble" while playing football in the living room. It is now a really fun game where BBZ lays down on the floor and yells "Fumble!!!" and expects someone to come and lay on top of him. It's seriously the cutest thing.
Here he is opening his first present. Like I said, he really didn't get it and had to get some help from me. He loved playing with the toy once it was out!
His Grandpa and Grandma Z got him this Fisher Price farm...do you remember these!? It's so fun reliving life through his eyes. He loved this farm and had fun pretending that the cow was eating out of the trough.
Such a handsome baby boy!
BBZ's cousin JJ...she's so grown up all of a sudden! She was only 3 when N and I started dating.
BBZ with Aunt C and Grandma Z
I absolutely love this picture of BBZ and his grandpa.
Grandpa and Grandma Z got us a deep freezer! They brought it by the house today along with some meat we went in on with them. Finding a place for the freezer gave me a good excuse to clean out the basement a few days ago. I actually like going down there now! Everything is so organized!
I love this one with the red background. How perfect for Christmas! Notice he is playing with Grandpa Z's flask. He know exactly what it is for!
He brought it over to me just to prove it!
See, told you.
Here is our house on Christmas Eve after Santa came. We got a sneak peek while BBZ was in bed already :)
Puppy Claus came too.
We found BBZ this remote-control car, which I think we love as much, if not more than he does!
Shake it!
I asked Santa via facebook on Christmas Eve for a white Christmas, and he listened! It started snowing while we were opening presents and didn't stop until after we left for N's parents house. I love this one of him looking out our front door through the snow.
We headed out to N's parents house for Oyster stew, another Christmas tradition that I really, really look forward to. People warned me before my first Christmas day with them that I probably wouldn't like Oyster stew, but boy were they wrong! I love it!
Here is BBZ at G and G's house...check out his shirt with a Christmas tree made out of balls! It is just perfect for him! It was a great find at a garage sale this summer!
BBZ with Grandma and Grandpa Z in front of their lovely tree.
And here is our little family. We all had such a Merry Christmas!
Helping daddy make dinner on Christmas night. Notice the "Dad's Helper" apron, which was a gift in BBZ's stocking.
Here is a shortened version (but still 5 minutes long) of this little man on Christmas morning. This is mostly for the parents who really wanted to be here for this!
I think it was a fantastic Christmas for all of us. Besides the remote starter for my car, N got me an awesome fleece poncho from Snake Mountain Threads, a spaghetti measure, a cool laptop table thing for my blogging, leather gloves, candy, and some yummy-smelling shampoo. My mom got me a beautiful necklace and my dad sent a few small pottery pots (which I collect) that students at his college made. They bought N some steak knives, a cutting board and a knife sharpener to go with the awesome knife set they got us for our anniversary. N's parents gave us each some cash, so I will be heading to Kohl's here in a bit to try and get the Shark pocket steam cleaner with my $$ and my Kohl's cash! WOO HOO!!
As usual in the Z household, it was a wonderful holiday full of the spirit of giving and the love of family. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!
This is a new blog carnival that I have been watching for a few weeks and this week I have decided to jump on board. It feels kind of funny though, since my day off is Wednesday, but I guess if I work the other 4 days it counts :)
This week Julia has asked us to show off our Christmas card photo! I have a confession to make though. This was going to be my Not Me! Monday post, but I skipped it this week. In an effort to save some dough this year, I only bought about half of the cute cards from the photo store than I usually do. I'm not really sure what my plan was...I guess I thought I would send cards without photos, but that's no fun at all! So 2 days ago when the cards finally came (thank you procrastination, one of the many new characteristics that I have obtained as a result of having a BBZ) I decided I really wanted to send photos, so some of the ones I sent had the cute pre-made cards with this photo.
The card said:
Have a Merry Christmas!
We Triple-dog Dare You!!!
Love,
The Zs
That was N's creative mind that came up with the phrasing...he's so smart! BBZ cracked us up when we were at my parents house walking along a paved path in their neighborhood when he ran up to this pole and went completely A Christmas Story on us and started licking the pole! Thank goodness I had my camera to capture the moment. And it only seemed appropriate to share the comedy with friends and family. The other cards I sent had a wallet size photo of this shot...
Nikki over at Purple Lemon Photography took this and all of the other amazing photos for BBZ's 1-year photos. It is one of my very favorites. I think it really captures our family at one of its happiest times.
So if you didn't get a card from me, I am wishing you a very Merry Christmas and sharing the pictures with you now! And I have learned my lesson...saving a few dollars is not worth messing with the spreading of holiday cheer. My Christmas cards will be back in full force next year. Merry Christmas!
I am taking a break from the Not Me! Monday post today, not because I didn't do plenty that I need to confess, but rather because of a something that played on the radio today. I get frustrated with music in my car sometimes. N got Sirius radio for me a few Christmases ago, and I could not live without it. I absolutely hate listening to radio commercials and also hate trying to fumble with CDs while driving, so a commercial-free radio is perfect for me.
I also absolutely hate channel surfing. N is the king of channel surfing both in my car (when he's not driving) and at home. I firmly believe this is why we don't watch TV shows other than those on HBO or Showtime. Every commercial he changes the station to something else so we never, ever watch a show all the way through. So I often get frustrated when my favorite channels on Sirius aren't playing something I want because then I have to surf. The new Holly station on Sirius is wonderful, but even then there are Christmas songs I do not like.
I say all of that to also say that channel 32, the Grateful Dead station is old faithful for me. It never fails, when the other stations let me down, good ol' GD comes through and never disappoints. Today I was at my wits end with my musical choices and pressed my beloved #2 pre-set station and they were playing "Truckin'" from a show on 12/19/1973 in Tampa, FL. This date is remarkably important because it is my parent's anniversary. Their 3rd anniversary in fact, which also happens to be the anniversary N and I just celebrated. It really made me think. My parents were celebrating their 3 year marriage just as N and I just did. It's weird to think of myself as my parent's age. It's an amazing transformation to see your parents stop being just your parents and start being real people. It is cool to think that BBZ will think of us as parents, and one day he will realize that we are real people too. People who just celebrated our 3rd anniversary. Maybe he will think of us on his 3rd anniversary.
And time keeps on tickin'...
I got away from the Sing-a-Long Sunday for a while because 2 of the other blogs I follow started doing a similar posting and i realized it wasn't as creative as I originally thought. And, people mostly want to hear their own kind of music, not what someone else likes. But then I was out with N Friday night and he put this song on the jukebox. It was pretty cool to hear Widespread Panic on the radio at a bar. It was one of those touch screen juke boxes, so N was able to find just about any song he wanted, and this is one. This song is one of my all-time favorites. To me it's about friendship and love. It was written by Jerry Joseph and performed by WSP. Check it...
You can hear, hear it comin'
Like a train out of control
Surely leaves you wonderin'
Exactly where your ticket goes
You scream to the conductor
But he's been deaf for twenty years
Hear the other people laughin'
As he grinds through every gear
Go to grab your nerve, you find that it is missin'
Seems you've lost your faith in everyone you know
And I surely hope that you don't plan on winnin'
Better start payin' more attention to the ones that throw you clear
You are seconds from the impact, and you're movin' way too slow
Time will surely mold you
Into something you don't like
Get you runnin' like a rabbit
Stick your finger in the dike
Look around your room you find the paint is peelin'
Your reflective skin is fallin' off your bones
Well, I must admit I know just how you're feelin'
We must grab each others collar, we must rise out of the water
And you know as well as I do it's no fun to die alone
Climb to safety
After all that I've been through, you're the only one that matters
Climb to safety
You never left me in the dark here on my own
Climb to safety
Feel the water rising. Let me be your ladder
Climb to safety
I promise you'll be dry and never be alone
Love has always scared you
Like the things under your bed
Baby, we can walk on water
Like some junkies swore they did
You call me on the phone, you say that it is crucial
You stick your fingers in your ears 'til they explode
I guess the business will be goin' on as usual
We must grab each others collar, we must rise out of the water'
Cause you know as well as I do that it's no fun to die alone
Climb to safety
After all that I've been through, you're the only one that matters
Climb to safety
You never left me in the dark here on my own
Climb to safety
Feel the water rising.
Let me be your ladder
Climb to safety I promise you'll be dry and never be alone
Climb to safety, safety
Climb to safety, safety
Climb to safety, safety
Climb to safety, safety
As you know, N and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary on 12/9/09. We actually went out and celebrated on 12/16. Here are a few picks from our fun-filled afternoon and evening.
We saw a matinee show of A Christmas Carol. It was fun to hear all of the music and see a classic old tale.
Then we went to the bar where we had our first date. It's a little holeinthewall place that was hoppin' for a Saturday afternoon. We reminisced about when we first met a little over 7 years ago.
In this bar was this classic southside fellow. We enjoyed his happy demeanor and awesome outfit complete with Miller Lite hat box and motorcycle belt.
After the bar we went to the same restaurant where we celebrated our 2nd anniversary. It was a beautiful place and a fantastic meal!
I love to blog. I really do. In fact, I blog every single day, sometimes more than once...the only problem is that these blogs stay in my head because I have no time to actually type them. So here we are, with yet another almost full week without blogging. Let me catch up... This was my Facebook status update yesterday afternoon:
Bad- dishwasher part won't be in until 12/22. Good- I think I can repair it myself. Bad- Isaac is sick again. Good- my mama was in town to stay home this morning with him. Bad- he has another ear infection. Good- Nate and I get to Christmas shop for him tonight. Bad- Isaac will probably need tubes. Good- Christmas is in 1 week! And, I'm on vacation for 2 weeks!!! Helz yeah.
This pretty much sums it up. Sometime last week the handle on my dishwasher broke. It still worked with a little tinkering so I didn't think much of it...until Wednesday when it actually really broke and a plastic piece broke off. The door couldn't lock, so it wouldn't work. Of course I realized this with an absolutely full dishwasher. Luckily my mom was here and helped dry while N was out bowling with one of his buddies. I took apart the door of the washer and tried to glue the broken piece back on. That didn't work, so my mama called Sears parts department and I bought a new handle for $47. I guess that's better than if I had to pay for someone to come out. My SIL (sister-in-law) said they had to pay $95 just for the Sears guy to come out last time, so hopefully this will save us some dough.
So on Tuesday my mom came in town. My day off was Wednesday as usual, but I took BBZ to school so I could get my Christmas gift installed in my car...a remote starter!!!! N gave me this gift early because he thought it was mean to make me wait with all of the cold days we have had. We don't have a garage so it has been quite the ordeal to get BBZ in a warm car for our short drive to daycare every day. I am loving this!!! A garage was on the list for our next house when we move, but with this awesome starter that is not necessarily a deal breaker! BBZ's teacher called and said he had diarrhea twice so I had to pick him up early. He was really snotty, but otherwise not too bad. He started pulling on his ear on Thursday evening and I took him to the doctor Friday afternoon. He has another ear infection. This is his 6th one since 2/2009. We have an appointment with an ENT in January who I am sure will talk about tubes...but we'll see. It was great to have my mom in town. She had all of these plans with friends and dropped everything to stay home with BBZ all day Thursday and 1/2 of Friday.
I am on vacation for 2 weeks! I had lots to do on Friday to get everything done for the break, and I got it all absolutely done. I can start 2010 with a brand new clean slate, and that feels amazing. Another awesome thing about my mom being in town is that she stayed home with BBZ after he went to sleep last night so N and I could do a little Christmas shopping. It's funny, we realized while we were out and about that we have never gone out shopping like this for him before. We always pick something up for him while we are out, but we never set out with the intention of buying toys...it was so fun! The only bad thing is how hard it is to find toys at Toys R Us. There seems to be no rhyme or reason where things are, so we circled around trying to find a few things we already knew we wanted. Plus it was crazy crowded, but we were anticipating that. We got him some very cool stuff and had a few beers afterwards!
So tonight we are just relaxing, drinking some wine and watching movies. BBZ really doesn't feel well and is showing it...poor baby. I know he is at least feeling better tonight than he was this morning, so hopefully he will have a nice peaceful night's rest. And me too!
I did not sing a Miley Cyrus song at the top of my lungs on my way home from work this week. I am perfectly aware of my age and know that only 12-year-old girls (and some young boys) know all the words to "Party in the USA". I am not hoping that some of you readers are singing the song now too. Go ahead, you know you want to...
Put my hands up, they're playin' my song
And the butterfly's fly away
I'm noddin' my head like "yeah"
Movin' my hips like "yeah"
Yeah, I did not just do that. Sorry.
I did not hide in the corner of the kitchen (twice) and eat Oreo cookies so that my toddler wouldn't see me. I also did not bake some oatmeal raisin cookies and decide to share only one with BBZ and eat ALL of the rest. No way, I have waaaay more self control than that...especially when it comes to cookies. At Christmas time.
I am not still gasping over the Dexter season finale that was on last night. I realize it is just a show and would never spend parts of my day wondering what will happen to his family. I am not a bot in awe of the writers who manage to make me feel badly for a serial killer and hope that he gets away with murder. I know murder is wrong for any reason and would never think otherwise.
In an attempt to rid BBZ of his growing mullet, I did not use scissors and cut the long hairs off of the back of his head. I did not then spend the rest of the evening deciding that I missed spots and should keep trying to even it out. It was not N who said that his hair looked fine and I should leave it since no one will even notice that it was cut. I am not still obsessing about the little uneven cuts I left. No way. I never obsess about anything!
Want to join in the Not Me! Monday fun? This blog carnival was started my MckMama, head on over to her blog and see what she and the other moms have not been doing this weekend!
I was never very good at relationships. I had my share...the high school sweetheart, the college love, and each time I was too immature and did something to ruin it. I dated the same boy in high school off and on until I was 23. We would date for a while and he would do something that proved he wasn't perfect and I would break it off. I always had this perfect idea of what love was...what the perfect man was, and when he or anyone else fell short of those expectations, I broke it off. He told me once that I put a wall up and once it was there, there was no chance at breaking it down. I had unrealistic expectations that no one would have ever lived up to. He left for the Navy my second year in college. We were never in the same place at the same time (physically or emotionally)...and the rest is history.
In college you would think I would have matured. I was mature in many other ways, but looking back I did a lot of childish things in relationships. I have always had a hard time expressing my feelings. I remember once trying to have a conversation with my boyfriend about our relationship and I literally could not put words, much less sentences together. We were on a road trip and I think we drove the rest of the way in complete silence while I as trying to figure out what to say. He surpassed my maturity immensely. He was so sure of himself and of our relationship, and I was a mess. I ended the relationship and was unable to communicate my feelings or reasons at all. I think in the end I was afraid...and the rest is history.
After college there was some time when I was single. Even though I sucked at relationships, I seemed to always have one, so I struggled during this time. I met N a few times through mutual friends, but the first time I really met him was when a group of us were heading to Memphis to see Widespread Panic. There was an open spot in our car, so he jumped in. He and I sat in the back seat and didn't talk too much on the way there. We made small talk and I remember mentioning some random things, you know how people who don't know each other talk. Someone on the radio mentioned the name Darius and I commented on how much I liked that name. When we got to Memphis, we hung out at a few bars and our waitress at one was named Darius and when she said her name N pointed it out to me because of what I said in the car. I was genuinely surprised that he was actually listening to my babble. After the second Panic show I was laying in bed ready to go to sleep. N came to the hotel door and said he and Nik were going to get into some mischief and wanted to know if any of us wanted to join. I jumped up ad we went exploring the hotel. We kept talking about our adventure and our seeking out of mischief. We wondered into the hotel library and as I looked over at the books on a shelf, I saw a book called American Mischief. I thought it was pretty cool and told N all about it. The next morning when we were packing up to head home, he came to our hotel room and said he had a gift for me and handed me the book. It was a little thing, but for some reason it really got my attention.
When I got home I wondered and paced and thought and thought about what to do! I was really excited about this person who listened when I didn't think anyone was and gave me a silly gift celebrating our first adventure together. I finally convinced myself to call Nik and ask her for his number. Then I called him! Yes folks, I called him! He invited me to a bar that he was working at that was about 50 minutes from where my parents lived. I was living with them at the time and had plans to move into my own apartment about 2 weeks later. I begged my sister to go with me, so we went upstairs and asked my parents if they would watch my nephew so we could go. I still remember my dad telling me not to drive so far for a boy. I told him that this boy was different...and I was right.
When I began to get to know N, I realized that I really wanted to make this work. I tried hard to say what I wanted to say when I wanted to say it, and worked hard to communicate my feelings. We dated for almost exactly 4 years from that date before we got married on December 9th, 2006. It has not always been easy...I'm sure I am difficult to live with at times. I have to try very hard to communicate and sometimes still have a very hard time putting words together into sentences, especially when trying to describe how I feel, but I am working on it, and N's unwavering acceptance of me for who I am, imperfections and all, certainly makes it easier. So today I reflect on our life so far together and realize that this is still the beginning. We met 7 years ago and hope for 73 more. I love his humor, the way he makes up songs for and about me on a whim, the way he sits back and listens to any given problem and when the time is just right jumps in with the best suggestion possible, he interrupts my blogging to ask me questions like "how is it that you do the running man again?", he wrestles with BBZ and reminds me how fun life with a little boy should be, he takes amazing photographs, he is the best gift-giver I know, he loves me and I accept his love with open arms, he knows all of my flaws and loves me anyway. N and I were finally both in the same place at the same time...and the rest is history. And with all the wondeful gifts N always gives, the best one is napping upstairs right now, and I will never be able to thank N enough for giving me him.
Elizabeth over at Confessions from a Working Mom started this carnival and I am finally jumping on board! I really wanted to post last week when she asked her readers if they would ever get a boob job. I didn't have time to blog last week but I have to answer the question. Even after breastfeeding for 14 months and still going strong, I still don't think I could have any elective surgery. I hate medicine enough as it is, so I really don't think I could voluntarily go under. And ever since last Tuesday this song has been in my head.
So this week Elizabeth asks what we really want for Christmas this year. Her little girl was born just a few weeks before BBZ, so we both had some baby-making happening around Christmas 2007. For us it was actually Christmas morning. This is me at Christmas Eve in December 2007 holding my youngest 2nd cousin.
At the time I was on myspace and posted this picture. A friend I have known my whole life commented on it saying how wonderful I looked holding that baby on my lap. I commented back that I was having crazy baby fever. N and I weren't trying at the time, but we were hoping to start trying in Spring 2008. I got pregnant the next morning! It was the best present that I didn't even know I wanted.
Last year BBZ was my only priority. We did a lot for Christmas, but I don't remember seeing our family open presents at our gatherings. My focus was completely on him, my precious baby boy. The best present there was!
This year was amazing. He changed in so many fun and exciting ways! Looking at him a year later makes me really realize how precious life is and how fast it goes by. He was so sick in July of this year. He changed into a different child after his tragic sickness. He went to the hospital and they fixed him. He is healthy, and happy, and the absolute love of our lives.
All I want for Christmas is to see him smile when he opens the things we pick out for him. I want him to bring a book to his daddy and ask him to read to him. I want him to close his eyes and stick his neck out to kiss me when I ask him to. I want 2 weeks of vacation to spend with him. I want to wake up each morning as happy as I am when I fall asleep.
Is that too much to ask for? No? Then I'll take this too...
...you know you are grown up when you ask for cleaning products for Christmas.
I am not a little too excited about a major interstate in my city reopening after a 2-year closure. I did not repeat in my mind the whole way to work and the whole way home "Well hello there 10-minute-long-drive-to-work, my how I have missed you". I also did not very much enjoy the buzzing hum of the cars driving on this interstate as I walked to my car which was parked about 50 feet from the highway.
BBZ did not call his primary teacher Mommy today. This is not the 2nd time I have heard him call her that. I am not contemplating quitting my job and staying home to ensure I am the only Mommy he will ever know. My feelings are not hurt, not in the slightest. I have a much thicker skin and would never let something so innocent make me question my parenting choices.
I did not RSVP "Yes" to a party this weekend only to realize today that N and I are celebrating our anniversary this weekend and we will probably have to miss it. I am always on top of all of my plans, especially those that celebrate an extremely special once-a-year event.
Are you up for some Not Me! Monday fun? This blog carnival was started by MckMama, head on over to her blog and see what she and the other mamas have not been up to this week.
...but the prettiest sight to see...
Is the holly that will be...
...on your own front door.
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, soon the bells will start.
And the thing that will make them ring,
Trac-tor! (Complete with a loud yelling of the word and excited finger pointing when a tractor or big truck, or any construction vehicle) is spotted from the car.
Fumble! (Complete with rolling around on the floor staring at us wondering when we are going to get onto the floor and wrestle with him while also yelling fumble).
Teet! Teet! (aka Teeth). He loves to brush his teeth, so I have to tell him he has to wait until he gets out of the bath tub, which is then my excuse to get him out of the tub. See how smart that is :)
Cracker, which is NOT goldfish crackers. Hand the boy goldfish when he asks for crackers and we are all in trouble.
Ice. Every time he even barely bumps his head he begins to yell...Ice, Ice while walking toward the fridge to get some for his bump. I'm starting to notice that a lot of the words he says now are said loudly.
Blanket. He always asks for it when he wants is to nurse. After 6pm or so I only nurse him upstairs because I know he will want to nurse to sleep, so I put him off as long as I can until then. So when I say "Ok if you want to nurse it's bedtime" he starts walking to the stairs waving and saying "bu-bye", and proceeds to wave separately to N, Delilah and Bill.
Jacket, which sounds a lot like cracker and blanket, but whenever we say we are going bye-bye, he immediately goes over to the coat rack and points and his jacket saying the word over and over. The last couple of days he then wanders around the house while I am holding the jacket so I am then following him around the house trying to get him to put it on. Today I was cold so I had a zipper hoodie on inside and he did not understand why I was wearing a jacket and wasn't going anywhere. That combined with trying to explain to a 1-year-old that a vest is a jacket when it's not that cold out has been interesting.
Cup, car, truck, bubbles, book, Ba-pa, mommy, daddy, kitty, ball and Delilah are still ones we hear all day long. He is definitely a talker! The last 3 evenings, when BBZ asked for his blanket early and I said it wasn't bedtime yet, he reached up to my hand (while I was on the couch) and said "get-da" (get down) and pulled me toward the floor. He then picked out a book to read and plopped down on my lap. He then walked over to N and did the same thing. So we were all sitting on the floor reading his book because he knew it was almost bedtime. He gives kisses, hugs and snuggles, which I just can't get enough of. If I tell him no or not to do something, he walks around the house and does every single thing he knows he is not supposed to do. He throws his food even when he is still hungry, which is making N and I crazy. I have spent 10 of the last 12 days with him and will miss him like crazy again tomorrow when we head back into our routine. He is such a little sweetie.
Helping daddy make dinner on Christmas night. Notice the "Dad's Helper" apron, which was a gift in 
