"Happy One Street Birthday!" Part One

I admit that I had to squeeze John into the ONEsie on his big day.

 So, this post is LONG overdue, I know.  My sweet little John is already over thirteen months old, and I still haven't posted about his birthday!  By the way, James (who is reading everything he can get his hands on) reads "1st Birthday" as "one street birthday," so he was constantly enthusiastically wishing his little brother a "Happy One Street Birthday!"  Hilarious.

Back on January 29th, John turned a year old.  It was a Tuesday, and we had the luxury of having Daddy home all day since we were getting the trees taken care of that day.  We started the day with a festive birthday breakfast of blueberry muffins.

Happy Birthday to you!

Jolly John enjoying his breakfast (as ever).

In the morning, John had his one year doctor's check-up where he weighed in at over 20 pounds and was 30 inches long.  He was given the green light for cow's milk and got his shots.  The highlight of the visit was when the doctor walked into the examining room and greeted us by asking me if we had shaved John's head.  Seriously.  In her defense (which she also stated), it *is* a tradition in some (not ours) cultures.  But no, our baby is naturally bald.  Hilarious.

After spending the afternoon watching the "tree show" and going to Cherubs (where John got to see his BFF Mr. Peters), Grandma joined us for a special birthday pasta dinner.  Both boys thoroughly enjoyed their meals...

...and then it was time to enjoy some delicious and beautiful cupcakes from Baked in a Cup!

Oh- that's like my breakfast muffin, but with frosting?!

This looks interesting!

Mmmm... delicious!

Wah! It's all gone!

When we'd finished our dessert, it was time for gifts!  

James had wrapped some of his old puzzles and toys to give to John, which was very sweet.  John was delighted and we all had a fun time working on the puzzles!  Grandma brought the birthday boy some adorable new clothes and a "bike" which he found very exciting.

It was a fabulous day, and the fun was only beginning.  A few days later we had John's party!

John Eats!

So you may recall that John had begun his adventures with cereal back in late June.  Well, he came down with a bit of a cold just before we left for our two-week trip to SC, so we payed a visit to the pediatrician to rule out an ear infection.  His ears looked great, but she said to ditch the solids during our trip.  That way he'd stay hydrated and healthy (yea, breastmilk!).  Added bonus-- no need to worry about pumping, mixing cereal, finding him a seat and a bib, etc.  Excellent.

Thus we started over with rice cereal after his six-month birthday.  He did well (better than during his first foray), and we moved on to barley and oatmeal.  He's a great eater!  He gets excited when seated in his high chair, and opens his mouth wide when he sees a spoon coming his way.  And if he doesn't see a spoon coming his way, well, he'll let you know he's displeased!

Last night was his first "dining out" experience.  He had oatmeal while we were at James's friend's birthday party.  John was going after it!  He grabbed the spoon and tried to feed himself!

Today was his first adventure with veggies.  James was super excited for his baby brother!  We steamed and pureed some carrots this morning, and John looooved his lunch!  Looking forward to dinner!

Two Year Stats

We went back to the doctor's office today for James's two year "well" visit even though he's still on the mend with the eye. In fact, today we got a new prescription for eye drops because she didn't think his eye looked good enough after two days of ointment (good thing I've got Cadillac insurance!).

So... here are the measurements:

He's supposedly 34.5 inches (I still don't put much stock in the way they measure this) long which puts him in the 63rd percentile! Woo-hoo.

James now weighs 26 pounds which puts him in the 30th percentile! I think that's an all time high for him.

His BMI is 15 which she said is good for his age.

They didn't do a head circumference measurement.

Now we can switch to 2% milk, so I think we can all drink from the same bottle now. And he can start eating nuts and shellfish, although in small portions to begin with, just to be safe.

It is worth mentioning that James was none too happy to actually be there today. The first strike was that he had to be woken from a great nap in order for me to get him to the appointment in time, so he was cranky. Then I pulled into the doctor's office lot, and he got so upset. I think Tuesday's eye exam was still a fresh memory, because he was very anxious especially when the nurses and doctor came in. The nurse asked him if he wanted to go outside in order to get him to walk down to the scale. He was so happy! "Yeah!" he said running down the hall to the door. He got pretty angry when he wasn't allowed out the door and was instead asked to step onto the scale. I had to hold him and step on, then get weighed by myself, so his weight was determined mathematically.

Anyway, he calmed down a bit after that, but got riled up again when the doctor came in. However, as soon as his shot was finished (Hep B), he was soooo happy-- all smiles, Chatty McChatterson. Come on.

So, there you have it.

We did the eye drops tonight. (A big thanks to James's teacher, who is also the nurse at his daycare, who taught us a good technique for restraining him for the application.)

I spy with my little eye, something that is....

...pink and swollen.

No, it is not conjunctivitis (a.k.a. pink eye). It is a dreaded case of pasta sauce in the eye. Last night at dinner, James was going after his penne. Fork in one hand, pasta in the other (he was using both the fork and the hand to eat). The non-fork side of his face was VERY saucy. I tried to clean it off. So did he. With his saucy hand.

Suddenly, he started screaming. Cried in agony (it was awful) for 45 minutes. Wouldn't open his eye. We were flushing it with water and saline. It was heartbreaking to hear him cry like that and just wince in his little eye.

He finally fell asleep, and we thought it was all over.

This morning it was puffy. We weren't sure if it was just from the crying (as my eye would be if I'd cried that much) or not.

It didn't seem to be getting better as the day progressed, so Dan picked him up early and took him to the dr. I met them there (when the appointment was actually over).

They examined his eye and didn't see any scratches (yea!), but gave him an antibiotic ointment. This is his FIRST medication other than Tylenol for fevers (go breastmilk!). It should come as no surprise that the application was not welcomed with opened arms. More like pinned down arms. But then he didn't even try to rub it off/out. He just settled in for stories and bed.

I really, really hope it clears up quickly and there's nothing really wrong.

Update

Last weekend we took a quick trip down to SC for my Grandmother's funeral. It was sad but also really great to spend time with our family.

Our flight was early Saturday morning, and the service was at 11. We were so afraid of missing the plane-- and the funeral-- (we did, in fact, miss our flight to Greenville three years ago, and ended up spending the entire day at the airport) that we left the house at 3:30. James woke up and stayed up! He was singing in the car, exclaiming "Bus! Airplane!" as we rode from long-term parking to the terminal, and happily running laps around the gates of Terminal A. He wasn't at all interested in eating breakfast. When we got on the plane he promptly shut his eyes and tipped right over. Before we even pulled away from the gate! He slept across our laps until they made the announcement that we were approaching GSP. We thought he felt a bit warm, but chalked it up to the early waking and the excitement of the morning.

He had a brief opportunity to exercise (up & down the stairs) and eat (he had just a few bites of oatmeal) at the hotel before we all headed to the Mortuary. Then he slept through the service. This was quite handy for us, but totally out of character for James. We stopped on the way to lunch to buy Tylenol. He was still pretty hot, and we felt certain it was a fever. At lunch he still wasn't interested in eating.

Seemed like teething-- the bottom molars have come all the way in, as have the top front teeth. The top molars, however, are just bursting through. Fever. No appetite. One runny, clear nostril.

He was SUPER hot that evening. And was asking for more Tylenol even though he'd just had some. He also was begging for "nuk" (milk) which Dan ran out to get. We gave him Tylenol every 4 hours, but he was still like a little charcoal briquet in bed. So sad.

On Sunday James had an appetite for breakfast-- he ate some oatmeal and most of a waffle. Dan went out to get a thermometer (and a carseat-- the car rental place had given us a toddler booster with no harness. HIGHLY unsafe for our lil' guy.) and James's temp was over 101. We stuck with the steady doses of Tylenol and also got some juice boxes (it's getting crazy up in here!) in an attempt to move away from milk for the congestion. He downed one juice box, and then was over that. Only wanted milk. Lunch was some bread and yogurt.

Monday he seemed a bit better in spirits, but still had a low fever and didn't want to eat much aside from breakfast. Kept the Tylenol coming.

No fever Tuesday. Also no appetite. We got on the plane at 5ish which is dinner time. He hadn't eaten lunch and had refused the attempts we'd made with snacks. On the plane he ate a ridiculous amount of Goldfish crackers and had some milk (after getting all offended when we'd offer him juice or water).

We decided to send him to his grandparents instead of daycare on Wednesday. He had a temp of 100.4 when I picked him up. No appetite.

Thursday morning he woke up a bit happier and asked for eggs for breakfast. But he kept whimpering as he ate them. Then he was crying, so I brought him into my lap. Then, for the first time in his life, he threw up. So I stayed home and called the doctor. They said he didn't need to come in, that it was probably a virus, to stay away from dairy and call back next week if he's still sick. Great, because all this kid wants is milk.

We made it through the day without incident until around 6ish when he threw up again.

On Friday he woke up really happy and I was sure he'd turned the corner. I gave him a choice of oatmeal or pancakes,and he chose pancakes. He ate most of one then threw it up shortly thereafter. He was back at his grandparents' house for the day where he took a three hour nap and didn't eat or drink much. He had an egg for dinner and then a bit of milk before bed. He woke up just before midnight to hurl.

This morning we've been puke and fever free thus far. He's eaten cantaloupe and a pancake and had a bit of juice and more water than he's had in the past few days. We did get an appointment with the pediatrician for 11:45, mostly to make sure he's not too dehydrated.

15 Month Check Up

James had his 15 month well visit today. His doctor was so impressed with his language. As we waited in the lobby, he was chatting away-- "Hi" to the receptionist, "Baby" at the photos hanging up-- and then I heard, "Is that James talking?" and out came the doctor who was so proud! During his exam she asked how many words he has. I told her it was between 20 and 30 the last time we tallied (which was a few weeks and many words ago), and she was amazed. She says she's happy if they have THREE at this age!!! She said he's even beyond 18 months!

She was also impressed with his strength (he was moving the furniture around in the exam room) and mobility. She also acknowledged that his constant motion contributes to his weight (or lack thereof). He's up to 20 pounds now which is only the 3rd-5th percentile, but she said that gaining 1 pound between 12 and 15 months is what she expects, and that's what he did. Yea!

He measured 30.5 inches in length, although that's under dispute from me. By my observation, the line at his head was drawn too low (of course, it didn't help that he was a bit of a Wiggle Worm). Anyway, the reported length puts him around 35-40%.

His head is 45% at 18.5 inches.

We discussed his screaming at night, and she confirmed our suspicions that it's Night Terrors. Lovely. Basically, it is like sleep walking; he isn't really awake or aware. Well, that's annoying, isn't it? Dan & I are exhausted (and cranky), and James is Mr. Oblivious. (We feel really bad because we have a nice neighbor upstairs whom we don't want to torture with James's screams.) Supposedly, keeping him on a good routine during the day will help.

He got two vaccines and was a champ for each. A few tears when each happened, but by the time we walked out, he was all smiles and running down the hallway.

James is ONE!

We celebrated James's Big Day with a Birthday Brunch on Day 365, which, thanks to Leap Year, was on Dec. 14th. It was a lovely affair with a few guests: Grandma & Grandpa, our friends Rob & Tracy and their two-month old, and our friends Jenn & Matt and their two delightful daughters. (We really missed Nana & Pop, Auntie Peg, and Auntie Ali & Uncle P!)

In typical party fashion for us, we had way too much food-- muffins, banana bread, bagels, cold cuts, cheese & crackers, fruit, veggies, quiche, salad.... It was yummy though, and I was happy to have the leftovers to enjoy as the days went on! We also had Bloody Marys and mimosas-- delicious!

It was wonderful to spend the day with our friends!

At the end of the party, James opened his gifts (for which he still needs to write Thank-You notes!). Grandpa & Grandma gave him a "Music Parade Ride-On" which is a little Fisher Price truck that you can ride or push. Well, party-guest Jolie climbed right on! James was not bothered in the least because all he wanted to do was push it around! When Jenn insisted Jolie let James have a turn riding his new toy and took her off, all that we ended up with was two disappointed one-year-olds. James climbed right off and resumed pushing (and Jolie was all to happy to get back in the seat). James even gave Jolie's three-year old sister Sophia a ride!

On his actual birthday, it was a Monday. James & I went and had lunch with Dan which was a fun midday treat. We also had dinner with Grandpa & Grandma after which James was finally allowed to have his first taste of ice cream (Grandpa's been dying to give him some for months!). He wasn't too into it; we think he was just tired.

We went to the doctor for his one-year check-up on that Tuesday. He was 30 inches long (59th percentile) and 19 lbs 1 oz (5th percentile). In case you're interested, he's grown about a foot (11.5 inches) and more than tripled his weight in a year. At the doctor's visit we discussed increasing his intake of cow's milk and working on his sleeping habits. Also, he was cleared to eat anything other than nuts and shellfish. The other highlight was that the doctor was impressed with his pointing to and "naming" of everything in the office; she said she could tell he'd be advanced verbally! (I was thrilled, of course.)

It is AMAZING how fast the year went by!

The Most Terrifying Moment of My Life

Well, we made it back from SC yesterday (Sun.) morning. We left my parents' house at 7:00 Saturday evening, after dinner & James's bath. He fell asleep before we even got out of their neighborhood. I nursed him in the backseat twice when we stopped for gas, and other than that he slept until 6:30 Sunday morning when we were about 45 minutes from home. Yea!

Unfortunately, we had a major catastrophe later in the morning. Dan was napping (he did most of the driving while James & I slept), and James & I had just come up from doing some laundry in the basement (he loves to "help"). I was getting his lunch of chicken out of the oven and heard what I thought was James knocking on the basement door. However, when I looked over, I saw the OPEN basement door and no James. I immediately began screaming hysterically, and continued to do so as I saw James at the bottom of the stairs!

Dan came running, and we called the doctor. Meanwhile, James seemed to be alright (thankfully)! He was conscious and had no visible major injuries.

We took him to the ER, and they said he's fine. He somehow came away with just some bruises on his head. He was his usual energetic, curious and peppy self for the nurses and doctor. No vomiting, passing out, bleeding in the ears, pupil problems, etc., so they just observed him for a while and decided against a CAT scan. He was diagnosed with a "minor head injury."

We went to the pediatrician today for a follow-up, and they said he's fine.

I, on the other hand, am still recovering-- I keep flashing back to seeing that basement door open! It was absolutely the most terrifying moment of my life. We are just SO VERY THANKFUL that James appears to have come through relatively unscathed.

Happy Healthy Heart

So yesterday was the big trip to the pediactric cardiologist. When we got there the nurse stuck leads all over James for an EKG. He hadn't had that done since he was in the hospital in late December. Back then he wasn't mobile (understatement!), so this time he had to sit on my lap. This nurse had great skills and a clever little bouncy bee thing hanging from the ceiling which she used to distract James until she got a good reading/printout. She also took his blood pressure on his arm and leg. Again the bouncing bees were excellent assistants.

Next came the doctor. After chatting with us to get the background scoop, he took a peek at the echo reports. He had read the August echo and stated that he noticed an enlarged portion of the heart. Scary! He then took us across the hall for another echocardiogram which he himself would administer to find out what exactly was going on.

After James laid back onto the pillow, the doctor asked us if he'd prefer Elmo or Barney. We looked at him confusedly. "In the VCR," he says. "Oh, he doesn't really watch TV," Dan replies. "Oh. Well, does he have a pacifier?" "He doesn't really use those either." It was pretty funny. James, meanwhile, squirmed a bit (probably annoyed that we had delayed things with this discussion), so we agreed to Elmo. Well, James was much more interested in watching the screen of the echocardiogram than the one with the loud, red monster. Nice job. He also stayed very calm and still. Way to go! The doctor even remarked that he was quite impressed with how sweet James was. :-)

Now for the real news: there is NOTHING WRONG with his heart. No hole. No leaks. No enlarged anything. It is just a bit noisy (thus the murmur). YIPPEEEE!!!!!
As Dan said, "We always knew he had a good heart. Now we know it is healthy."

Three-Quarters of a Year!

Well, James has been 9 months old for two weeks now, but he just had his check-up last Thursday. He is 27.5 inches tall (20-30%) and 18 lbs. 2 oz. (11%). Our doctor was slightly concerned about his weight. She attributed it to his active nature and distractability when nursing (which is what I attribute it to as well). Since he fights the bottle (from what I've been told), she said he could have pumped milk in a sippy cup when away from me. She also recommended he start dairy consumption (cheeses and yogurts) to get some fat ingested. He's had whole-milk yogurt for lunch every day since. I've also bought more avacados, since they are fatty and he likes them.

Otherwise, he did just fine. We have an appointment with the pediatric cardiologist next week. This is the doctor who has read his two echocardiograms. The check-up is just to be able to talk with him first hand regarding James's heart murmur. Again, our pediatrician was not worried about it at all, but this is just a cautionary measure (to make us all feel better).

No major shots this time. Just a half-dose of the flu shot (he'll get the other half in October). During this shot, James smiled at the nurse and watched her the entire time. No crying. Seriously! Both she and I were AMAZED! If I hadn't seen him cry after bonking his head before, I'd be worried that he couldn't feel pain or something.

Oh, the other thing we discussed was his sleep habits. I admitted that we either nurse or rock him to sleep, and she said we need to stop that. We can nurse or rock him to almost sleep, but then he needs to be put into his bed. I knew that; it is just easier said than done. I mean, back when he didn't roll, crawl or stand, it was no big deal: turn on the mobile and he'd fall asleep. Now he crawls around and stands up no matter how tired he is. We're working on it, and it is getting easier.

For those who are curious, James's latest culinary experiences: yogurt, flounder, lamb, chicken, cheese, bread, bagel, chicken. He still loves Cheerios and many different fruits and veggies.

Happy 2 Month Birthday!

Well, James is two months old today. Wow. He had his two month checkup on Tuesday afternoon. Here are the stats:
Length: 22 inches (25%)
Weight: 10lbs 7oz (25%)
Head: 15.5 inches (40%)

He impressed the doctor with his ability to lift his head and shoulders off the table. I tried to capture that image here, but didn't really get it at the right time. You can admire his airborne feet, however.

Unfortunately, she did hear the murmur and state that they may order another echo cardiogram when he's 6 months old (if they still hear it then) to see what's going on. Also, he has a hernia by his formerly attractive bellybutton which is causing it to now appear as an outie. Boo. It is supposed to heal on its own (I hope his belly button goes back to its cute flat self.).

We received some exercises to do to help James get over his tendency to look to the right (no political jokes, please). He defaults to looking over his right shoulder, so we have to force him to turn his head to the left to loosen up those muscles. This will also lessen any head shape issues. He isn't a huge fan of his drills, but he doesn't protest much.

The traumatic part of the check-up was when James had to receive his immunizations. He screamed rather loudly and turned a violent shade of violet. Some moms in my Thursday group told me yesterday that they immediately breastfed their babies after the shots, and that really calmed them down. Well, the advice was two days too late for this round, but I'll definitely do that next time!

Thus far, to celebrate his 2 month b'day today, James has pooped across the changing table in the wee hours of the morning (I caught it with the diaper--impressive), "eaten" a lot, taken a trip to CVS to buy his TriViSol baby vitamins, napped, and donned his cute monogrammed bib in an effort to thwart future spit-ups from causing wardrobe changes. By the bye, this is his first wearing of a bib, and I honestly cracked up when I put it on him!

Well, the cutie-pie has awoken. Must go.