Well, the weekend is upon us and the pool drama continues. The workers seriously ruined our sprinkler system. There are several feet of pipe uprooted all along the side of our house...totally broken and ripped to shreds. The pool company refused to pay for a penny of the damages, instead referring to a form that the homeowner signed (our neighbor) saying he was responsible for any damage to the neighbors yard. So our neighbor now has to pay to have our entire sprinkler system redone. Needless to say, he is furious and so are we. The men who came in to demo the yard never measured or even looked over the yard. They just railroaded right in and ruined everything without even attempting to avoid the damage. That is just wrong. Since they are still going back and forth with heavy machinery, we can't have our sprinkler system fixed yet. So our neighbor went out and bought us old school sprinklers that we have to use for god knows how long. This is NOT cool.
In Colin news, he is officially off formula as of today! I finished the last of the formula yesterday around lunch time and we switched to milk cold turkey. Colin has not even blinked! I had been giving him a milk bottle at bedtime for the last week to get him used to the taste, and he loved it. So we went to milk full time yesterday afternoon and he is doing great so far. My baby is turning into such a big boy!!!
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The View From My Back Door
Day one of my neighbor's pool construction and this is my view. You know what the best part is? See that white spec in the middle of the dirt in the bottom picture? That is our main water line for the sprinkler system. Which is now completely destroyed. When you turn our sprinklers on, no water comes out anywhere but a geyser out of that pipe. In the middle of July. In Texas. No sprinklers. GOOD TIMES. As you can imagine, Jer is going over to talk to our neighbor as we speak. He is a really nice guy by the way...it is not his fault that the pool idiots already broke our yard. I just hope this does not have to get ugly with the pool company...they are going to have to repair our sprinkler system NOW. The temps are over 100 this week and dry as a bone and two days without water will mean a dead yard. Did I mention it is not my pool? I think they should go ahead and put one in my yard for free since they already busted up my whole yard. That is reasonable, right?
Pools, Thank You Notes, and Other Messes
This week needs to just go ahead and end, I think. My next door neighbor is getting a pool. We have known about it, but the HOA has been holding him up all summer and I was starting to hope (pray) that the plans had fallen through. Not so much. They start digging today and that means that the fence we share with him is coming down. The big deal? Well, for starters we have my dog Enzo. Enzo has a doggie door and goes in and out of the house at will. At 9:00am, I have to close off the door since the fence will be down and go back to taking Enzo out on a leash to potty, circa apartment living in 2004. This is going to be a major pain while taking care of Colin by myself. Enzo is used to going outside all the time, so it will be a big mess. The second issue? Colin's all important-do-not-skip-ever nap schedule. Major construction at the house next door = awake Colin. I hope I am wrong. We shall see. We had another neighbor a couple of doors down put in a pool last summer and it blew my mind what a messy, loud, intense production it turned out to be. Do you all hear my violin music playing?
I tried again yesterday to pick up my thank you cards from Wolf Photo. As I knew would happen, they still did not print correctly. I knew that I had submitted them correctly the first time, but since I am a huge pacifist, I did not make waves and went home to try again on Tuesday. I am too nice. I know it. Most of the time, I don't mind my overly sweet nature. It generally does not get in my way and helps me to make friends with most anyone. HOWEVER, when it comes to standing up for myself in situations like that one, it is not good. I end up in the car cursing a blue streak to myself. I had finally had it yesterday when I got back to Wolf. I let the idiots have it when I got there. They (seriously!) tried to tell me that I could not have my money back. Have you ever seen a the mother of a toddler out in 100 degree heat who drove 20 miles out of her way two days in a row get told she can't have her money back? Yeah, it is just as bad as you are picturing. Needless to say, I got my money back. Miss Nice Girl moved out of town. DO NOT SHOP AT WOLF. I am STILL blown away.
On a positive note, Colin has slept in to 7:00am every morning this week! (don't jinx, don't jinx, don't jinx) He has started to walk 100% of the time and is a busy little man during the day. I am hoping that he is just expending a lot more energy and needs the extra sleep. Always. Every night. PLEASE! :-) It may go right back to 5:45am tomorrow, who knows. At least I got some great sleep this week!! I have been thinking a lot this week about ways to socialize Colin. At his party last weekend, he was very confused being around all the other babies. He grabbed at them the way he does with a toy or stuffed animal. He did not really understand they were human like him. It really opened my eyes to the need of socialization with other little ones. There is a Little Gym close by that I think I may have to break down and sign up for. I know they offer classes weekly and I think Colin would like it. There is also a Kindermusik class near us as well. Colin LOVES music, so that might be another good option. If any of my mommy readers have other ideas, let me know! We are members of a mommy and baby meetup group, but the meetups are all over the metroplex and generally too far to drive for us. The meetings that are close to me end up being lunches and things like that. I need actual playtime with other toddlers. Is Colin officially a toddler now? Good lord.
I tried again yesterday to pick up my thank you cards from Wolf Photo. As I knew would happen, they still did not print correctly. I knew that I had submitted them correctly the first time, but since I am a huge pacifist, I did not make waves and went home to try again on Tuesday. I am too nice. I know it. Most of the time, I don't mind my overly sweet nature. It generally does not get in my way and helps me to make friends with most anyone. HOWEVER, when it comes to standing up for myself in situations like that one, it is not good. I end up in the car cursing a blue streak to myself. I had finally had it yesterday when I got back to Wolf. I let the idiots have it when I got there. They (seriously!) tried to tell me that I could not have my money back. Have you ever seen a the mother of a toddler out in 100 degree heat who drove 20 miles out of her way two days in a row get told she can't have her money back? Yeah, it is just as bad as you are picturing. Needless to say, I got my money back. Miss Nice Girl moved out of town. DO NOT SHOP AT WOLF. I am STILL blown away.
On a positive note, Colin has slept in to 7:00am every morning this week! (don't jinx, don't jinx, don't jinx) He has started to walk 100% of the time and is a busy little man during the day. I am hoping that he is just expending a lot more energy and needs the extra sleep. Always. Every night. PLEASE! :-) It may go right back to 5:45am tomorrow, who knows. At least I got some great sleep this week!! I have been thinking a lot this week about ways to socialize Colin. At his party last weekend, he was very confused being around all the other babies. He grabbed at them the way he does with a toy or stuffed animal. He did not really understand they were human like him. It really opened my eyes to the need of socialization with other little ones. There is a Little Gym close by that I think I may have to break down and sign up for. I know they offer classes weekly and I think Colin would like it. There is also a Kindermusik class near us as well. Colin LOVES music, so that might be another good option. If any of my mommy readers have other ideas, let me know! We are members of a mommy and baby meetup group, but the meetups are all over the metroplex and generally too far to drive for us. The meetings that are close to me end up being lunches and things like that. I need actual playtime with other toddlers. Is Colin officially a toddler now? Good lord.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Colin, The Cute!
I don't have much to report today...I took Colin out this afternoon to pick up our Thank You cards at Ritz Camera. It was a complete fiasco, they are totally wrong, and I have to go back AGAIN tomorrow. Do you ever have one of those days that just refuses to go right!? That was today! They are wrong, as in the text of the damn card printed on the wrong side AND upside down. DON'T ASK. The best part, however, was when Colin demanded to be let out of his stroller. Since it was taking Jay and Silent Bob about three years to attempt to fix my cards, I let Colin loose on their store. OH THE HILARITY!! Colin was running around screaming and laughing and pulling assorted things at his level off the walls. I just stood there smiling. There are moments when a manic toddler can come in handy. ;-)The first picture I had to post just because Colin looks cute enough to eat. My mom left her awesome camera with me, so I am having fun with picture taking until she takes it back. The second two shots that I took tonight are for Steph...my best friend from basically birth. She sent the A&M pj's for Colin's birthday and I know it pained her to do so, as she is a die hard Longhorn. ;-) See, Steph!?! He looks adorable in them! He loves them and I love you!
Monday, July 21, 2008
Colin's 12 Month Checkup
Today was Colin's official appointment at his pediatrician as a one year old little man! I was excited to find out the latest stats and discuss feeding plans.
Weight: 24lbs, 1 oz (50 - 75th percentile)
Length: 31 1/2 inches (90 - 95th percentile)
Colin slowed down slightly on the weight gain with all this moving around. Last visit he was in the 75-90th percentile for that. His length and head circumference continued to grow at the same pace; his head was in the 95 - 97th percentile again. The pedi noted that Colin is a big guy...very tall and very healthy. He said that his growth rate has remained perfectly even throughout his first year and he is really happy with his progress. Yay Colin!! I brought up Colin's pacifier and he was very laid back about it (which is why I like this pedi!). He told me that the paci is not really a worry for teeth problems until he is two, so to go at my own pace with taking it away. He said not to stress about it and it does not bother me that he likes it. He does not need me to put it back in his mouth for him at night, so as far as I am concerned, he can use it for awhile yet. I will probably start putting them away more during the day just to encourage his speech with me. My main goal on this visit was learning about weaning Colin from his formula bottles. The doctor thinks cold turkey is the method to try first and see what happens. Colin has tried milk in the last couple of weeks and likes it, so maybe it will be easy! I sure hope so!! I am going to give him a six ounce (instead of 8 oz) bottle of whole milk at the normal times and then the doctor thinks he will naturally begin eating more at meal times to compensate for the loss of "meal in a bottle". :-) I sure hope this works...I will be saving $30 a week in formula costs very soon!! I am going to finish up the can that we have open now and then see what happens. He also told me that babies are notoriously picky at this age, so I am prepared for that. So far Colin will eat anything that I give him, so I hope he will be the exception to the rule. I am dreaming, huh? :-)
Colin was all smiles when he saw the doctor (the pedi always says "he is the happiest baby I have ever seen!" during our visits) but soon after we had a major meltdown. Like an idiot, I scheduled the visit at 9:15, which is exactly Colin's nap time. I realized what I had done last week, but they could not get him back in with our specific doctor for another three weeks, so I stuck with the appointment. UGH!! Colin was crying almost the entire time we were waiting for the doctor, was briefly happy when he saw him, and then lost it completely when he started the check-up. He was out of control sobbing by the time the nurse came in with the shots, so you can imagine how that went. The poor little guy cried so hard that he could barely breathe! Once I finally got him back in the car, he was sound asleep before we got out of the parking lot. I brought him home and carried him inside to bed and he slept for two solid hours. He is up playing now and in great spirits again. Thank goodness!!
Weight: 24lbs, 1 oz (50 - 75th percentile)
Length: 31 1/2 inches (90 - 95th percentile)
Colin slowed down slightly on the weight gain with all this moving around. Last visit he was in the 75-90th percentile for that. His length and head circumference continued to grow at the same pace; his head was in the 95 - 97th percentile again. The pedi noted that Colin is a big guy...very tall and very healthy. He said that his growth rate has remained perfectly even throughout his first year and he is really happy with his progress. Yay Colin!! I brought up Colin's pacifier and he was very laid back about it (which is why I like this pedi!). He told me that the paci is not really a worry for teeth problems until he is two, so to go at my own pace with taking it away. He said not to stress about it and it does not bother me that he likes it. He does not need me to put it back in his mouth for him at night, so as far as I am concerned, he can use it for awhile yet. I will probably start putting them away more during the day just to encourage his speech with me. My main goal on this visit was learning about weaning Colin from his formula bottles. The doctor thinks cold turkey is the method to try first and see what happens. Colin has tried milk in the last couple of weeks and likes it, so maybe it will be easy! I sure hope so!! I am going to give him a six ounce (instead of 8 oz) bottle of whole milk at the normal times and then the doctor thinks he will naturally begin eating more at meal times to compensate for the loss of "meal in a bottle". :-) I sure hope this works...I will be saving $30 a week in formula costs very soon!! I am going to finish up the can that we have open now and then see what happens. He also told me that babies are notoriously picky at this age, so I am prepared for that. So far Colin will eat anything that I give him, so I hope he will be the exception to the rule. I am dreaming, huh? :-)
Colin was all smiles when he saw the doctor (the pedi always says "he is the happiest baby I have ever seen!" during our visits) but soon after we had a major meltdown. Like an idiot, I scheduled the visit at 9:15, which is exactly Colin's nap time. I realized what I had done last week, but they could not get him back in with our specific doctor for another three weeks, so I stuck with the appointment. UGH!! Colin was crying almost the entire time we were waiting for the doctor, was briefly happy when he saw him, and then lost it completely when he started the check-up. He was out of control sobbing by the time the nurse came in with the shots, so you can imagine how that went. The poor little guy cried so hard that he could barely breathe! Once I finally got him back in the car, he was sound asleep before we got out of the parking lot. I brought him home and carried him inside to bed and he slept for two solid hours. He is up playing now and in great spirits again. Thank goodness!!
Sunday, July 20, 2008
HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY, COLIN!!!
It is just after 4:00pm on Colin's very first birthday. I am a little overwhelmed to write a post at the moment...I am not completely sure how to put this weekend into words, much less today. We hosted Colin's birthday party yesterday afternoon at Jer's parents house. The day was bright, sunny, and very hot! We started the party at 4pm in order to give the little ones a chance to catch afternoon naps before the festivities began. Our families were there as well as our best friends. We had lots of Colin's little buddies over, all of whom were born within just a few months of each other. It was a wonderful day and the kiddos were all amazing. Colin was hysterical...this was the first time he had really gotten to spend a serious amount of time with little ones his age and he was brutal on the girls! He found every bow he could get his hands on and pulled with all his might! Luckily we caught him before too much damage was done, but there were enough tears to know that we need to work on Colin and "gentle" play! We had such a great time and our friends all gave Colin fun gifts that he has been playing with all day today. He took two VERY short naps before the party...I suspected that he was going to sense all the excitement and not nap well...I was right on that one! Since he had not had much sleep, he started to get a little tired and over stimulated after a couple of hours. My mom took him inside and cuddled him up to watch one of his movies, which helped out tremendously. He perked right up and went outside to share dinner with some of his friends. He ate hot dogs and chips for dinner and then opened presents in front of the crowd. We finally let him tear into his cake at 7pm...it got so late SO fast!! I was totally shocked at how gentle he was with the cake. I ended up breaking it up for him and he did not make near the mess that I was expecting. It may have been because he was pretty tired at that point! After the cake show, the party was winding down. Colin said goodbye to all his buddies and I whisked him home to take a quick bath and get into bed! He was fast asleep at 9pm and did not wake once until 7am!! That was one tired little man!!
Today is his actual birthday and Colin got the amazing present of getting to hang out with his favorite twins, Kate and Carson. My WONDERFUL friend Shannon and her husband Mark came all the way from Austin with the twins to attend Colin's party. They have family in our area, so they were able to make a trip out of it, and I am SO GLAD they did. I still can't believe that I finally got to play with those babies!! Shannon and I became close right before we both got pregnant and I love sharing all of this with her. It really felt like a gift to me to celebrate Colin's birthday with her. I feel so blessed this weekend!!
As I rocked Colin down for his nap today, I was overcome by how much more amazing my life is now. Having Colin has filled a gap in my soul that I never knew was there...he is my angel and the greatest gift God could ever have given me. This year has been more than I ever thought it could be...I have been scared, happy, tired, elated, blissful, and every other emotion in between . I spent so much of this year just waiting to make it to the next day...learning how to be a mother with each passing hour. I feel like we passed a threshold today, like I earned the ribbon...passed the torch...reached the top of the mountain. The view from up here is more beautiful than I could ever have imagined.
Today is his actual birthday and Colin got the amazing present of getting to hang out with his favorite twins, Kate and Carson. My WONDERFUL friend Shannon and her husband Mark came all the way from Austin with the twins to attend Colin's party. They have family in our area, so they were able to make a trip out of it, and I am SO GLAD they did. I still can't believe that I finally got to play with those babies!! Shannon and I became close right before we both got pregnant and I love sharing all of this with her. It really felt like a gift to me to celebrate Colin's birthday with her. I feel so blessed this weekend!!
As I rocked Colin down for his nap today, I was overcome by how much more amazing my life is now. Having Colin has filled a gap in my soul that I never knew was there...he is my angel and the greatest gift God could ever have given me. This year has been more than I ever thought it could be...I have been scared, happy, tired, elated, blissful, and every other emotion in between . I spent so much of this year just waiting to make it to the next day...learning how to be a mother with each passing hour. I feel like we passed a threshold today, like I earned the ribbon...passed the torch...reached the top of the mountain. The view from up here is more beautiful than I could ever have imagined.
Colin's First Birthday in Pictures, Part Two
The pictures turned out great...it was 100 degrees and we were hot, but all was amazing! The middle picture is my crazy sisters and the next one is of Shannon and I!!
Colin's First Birthday in Pictures, Part One
Be sure and click on the pictures to enlarge them. What a wonderful and amazing party this little man had! I am going to post pictures first and follow up with the story.
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