Brace yourselves, I have a feeling that this is going to be a long post! We have a lot of ground to cover, and a lot of pictures and videos to share. So, if any of you have been feeling like you're in withdrawal of all that is Jack, you can rest easy - you will get more than your fill in this post!
Alright - now the question is where to begin... a little update on Jack's ears is in order, I think. I'm so happy to report that the antibiotics seem to be working and he's feeling so much better. One of my biggest concerns with the recurrent ear infections was that he'd lose momentum with his speech due to his difficulty hearing. We're already a bit behind in terms of language development (at least according to the pediatrician) but we'd been making progress in recent weeks. I know Jack's ears are clear now and that he can hear. Mostly because I look in them obsessively and he's chattering away like a bird in springtime.
See? He's feeling much better. And, you can tell that he's learning how to feed himself - although this is a constant learning skill. Half of the time, food ends up all over the kitchen (much to Blue's delight) or all over Jack. And he does not like to get his face cleaned off. You'd think I was torturing him or something with the fight he puts up when the washcloth comes out.
In terms of his speech, we've got a few new words here and there - I don't know if he actually knows what he's saying or if he's just mimicking sounds. He's got the basics down pat though. The latest word in his arsenal is "baby" and part of me thinks he's referring to himself. Occasionally, it comes out sounding like "me-me" or "wee-wee" so who knows? He's gotten pretty good at sign language as well - he asks for something by signing "please" and can sign "thank you" when prompted. He also may think he's blowing kisses, but whatever - that's thanks enough to anyone who's on the receiving end! My mom just called to tell me that he's started saying "circle" but I couldn't clarify if he was actually identifying and saying "circle" or if a bunch of noise came out of his mouth that just sounded like he had said "circle" instead.
On Friday, I left work a little after noon and went to church for Good Friday services. It was an absolutely gorgeous day outside and so I grabbed Jack afterwards, and we went home to play outside. Last summer, we spent every single day after work outside with the neighbors, playing in the street. I've been seeing glimpses of our neighbors over the winter, and we've all remarked about how we can't wait until it's warmer outside so we can all get together and play.
Have I mentioned how much I love our neighborhood? Seriously, we are so lucky to have the neighbors that we do. We all watch out and take care of each other. Right now, I'm house-sitting for two of our neighbors. At least three of them have the code to our house, and I wouldn't think twice if one of them popped in while we were gone to borrow a cup of sugar or something like that. One of them dropped off a homemade "puppy basket" the other day for Blue and all the kids wander around from house to house or yard to yard. I just love it. So anyways, after I got home, Jack and I took Blue outside to play ball, hoping to get in a little playtime with the neighbors.
I call Blue my "reluctant retriever" because he would clearly rather be Jeff's dog, but is resigned to the fact that he's my dog. I'm the one that feeds him, lets him outside, and plays ball with him. But, when Jeff is around, Blue only has eyes for him. Still, Blue is a good, loyal, and loving dog. I can't say that enough. My sister commented yesterday that Blue is the type of dog that only exists in books or they make a movie about - you don't really believe he actually exists. The other day, I locked Jack in our bedroom while I ran downstairs to throw a load of clothes in the washing machine. Jack typically stays in the bedroom, playing with his toys, but this time, he decided to follow me - and managed to somehow unlock and open our bedroom door. I was in the laundry room and I could hear his feet thunder down the hallway. I knew I wasn't going to get to the stairs in time to help him down, so I started screaming, "How do we go down the stairs? How do we go down the stairs?" That usually prompts him to lay down on his belly to slide down the stairs. Anyways, I come tearing around the corner, thinking I'm going to see him tumble down the stairs, and I look up to see Jack on his belly and Blue blocking the staircase with his body so Jack couldn't get down. Yesterday, at my parents' house, Blue blocked Jack from going up the stairs as well. That dog is simply amazing.
So, I digress. Anyways, one of the other reasons Blue is my "reluctant retriever" is that he doesn't really care to play fetch all that much. He'd much rather wrestle with the other dogs in the neighborhood or run around with the kids on their bikes and scooters. So, on Friday, I tried to get Blue to fetch the ball, but he was more interested in smelling everything that had been uncovered by the snow. Oh yeah - spring in Minnesota is MESSY. There are puddles and mud piles everywhere. This delights Jack to no end. He loves splashing around in the puddles and kicking clumps of snow:
And, of course, Jack turned sixteen months old on Friday as well. When we were getting ready to take his monthly picture, he knew just what to do! I grabbed his stuffed dog from the floor and put it in his rocking chair. He climbed right on up, turned around, sat down and gave me this big, cheesy grin. So, I started snapping away. He only stayed still for a few seconds, of course, because he became distracted by Blue, who was sitting directly behind me.
When Jeff got home, we all went out for a celebratory dinner. I can now reveal that Jeff was asked to become a partner with his law firm a few weeks ago - on St. Patrick's Day, actually. His partnership became effective today.
I am so proud of him. Jeff works hard. I mean, really hard. The concept of being a "hard worker" gets thrown around quite a bit and I think gets used too much and too casually. And, I think that its a misconception that hard work eventually ends - which it shouldn't - even if it does pay off. But, I grew up in a household where hard work was not only a value, but expected. My mom worked really hard to raise me and my sister, and my dad worked hard to support us. I saw, first hand, the sacrifices that both of them had to make. Now, we're living it. I know - and feel - the sacrifices that Jeff has to make. I know the choices he's faced with. And they're big choices and big sacrifices. To see him rewarded for his tireless efforts just fills me with pride. I can't stop looking at him and thinking, "That's MY man - that's Jack's daddy." Now, this doesn't mean that Jeff gets a break, mind you. If anything, Jeff is redoubling his efforts and has moved forward with more focus and even bigger dreams and goals. When he sat down to talk about the partnership with my dad, his only piece of advice was to make sure Jeff didn't rest on his laurels. And it would seem Jeff has taken that piece of advice to heart. One day, I hope that Jack appreciates and learns from Jeff's efforts and becomes as hard-working and passionate as his daddy.
After dinner on Friday, Jeff went out with some of his buddies, and Jack and I stayed home. We had kind of a rough night. There was a thunderstorm, which woke Jack up and scared the blazes out of him, so I spent about an hour, rocking and singing to him to try and get him to go back to sleep. It worked - at around 5:00 in the morning - and he was up an hour later. So, we got up and had a dance party in the kitchen while I made breakfast. Later that day, we went up to the club to see the Easter bunny and have lunch. Jack was absolutely enthralled by the Easter bunny and kept trying to give him a high five or pull off his bow tie:
There was also an Easter egg hunt. I was surprised that Jack actually got the hang of it - although, I think in his mind he was "cleaning up" as opposed to actually searching for eggs.
After the hunt and the visit with the Easter bunny, we had lunch and Jack opened up some of his eggs at the table. We were bumping up against nap time, so he was somewhat subdued, but really enjoyed opening up the plastic eggs. All the surprises in the eggs were totally inappropriate for his age. But, he really didn't seem to mind since he preferred opening and closing the eggs instead of playing with whatever was inside. I had also bought a pair of bunny ears in the dollar aisle at Target before we went up to the club. My thought was that I would put them on Blue, but Jack loved them and loved putting them on himself.
Seriously, look at those rosy cheeks, the blue eyes and his expressions. My sweet boy.
After brunch, Jack went down for his nap and I took Blue outside to play ball. He was, predictably, more interested in rolling around with the kids and the neighbor's dog. He was soaking wet by the time we went inside. I toweled him off and realized he was absolutely filthy, so I gave him a bath. And I am so glad that I did - he had enough sand in his coat to fill a sandbox.
On Saturday night, we went over to Uncle Brendan and Aunt Lindsay's for some pizza and play time. They have a little girl, Juliet, who is about five months old and just as cute as can be.
Jack had fun playing with her toys, showing her how to build towers, and how to knock them down. He also enjoyed rocking her in her chair. In fact, he liked it so much that he decided that he should get in and rock himself:
This was, of course, great fun. Jack was quite pleased with himself, seeing as how he could get in and out of the rocking chair without any adult assistance. He may also have thought that he was just being silly...
We knew Uncle Brendan and Aunt Lindsay before either of us had kids. We used to have some pretty wild nights out together. And now, how times have changed! A wild night out before kids usually ended sometime in the wee morning hours of the next day. As we were getting ready to leave on Saturday night, Brendan remarked that now, a good night out meant we were home and asleep well before midnight. But still, we had a great time - good food, great friends and conversation, and time with our kids. Add in a glass or two of red wine, and that's a perfect evening in my book. And one I would trade for any of my old, crazy Saturday nights!
Sunday was, of course, Easter. And no Easter is complete in the Storms' house without a little seersucker.
We went to church on Sunday morning, and everyone just giggled at my little man, walking down the aisle in all his seersucker glory. And how could you not help but smile? Look at how cute he looks! And, between you and me, he knew it too.
After church, Jack went home with Nana and Papa. Jeff and I went home to change clothes and grab Blue. We blackmailed my parents into having Blue over for Easter, saying we could stay at their house longer because we wouldn't have to go home to feed him or let him out.
Secretly (or maybe not so secretly) though, I think they love Blue. He's a good dog. What's not to love?
Jack went down for his nap and we had Easter dinner. When he got up, he had discovered that the Easter bunny had visited Nana and Papa's house. Jack went on his little hunt and did a pretty good job at finding eggs, although they weren't really hidden well. I had filled a few with Jelly Bellies (his favorite candy) and my mom had a few large, empty plastic eggs. Jack would find an egg, shake it, and if it rattled, he would hand it to me and ask for a jelly bean. If the egg was empty, he'd simply throw it. It was like training one of Pavlov's dogs. My grandpa also put on the bunny ears, much to Jack's delight.
My sister and Wim came over after everyone had left and we all had a little play time. Jack invented this game which involved running into her outstretched arms for some kind of helicopter or plane ride. He kept backing up further and further away so he could run as fast as possible to her. This was, of course, great fun for all.
And, I think that's it. Like I said, there was a lot of ground to cover this week. Tomorrow, he starts full time in his new classroom at school. I'm anxious about this, and I will miss his old teachers tremendously. They were all like surrogate grandmothers to Jack. I know we'll see them around, but I hope he likes his new teachers. We've got an appointment with Jack's pediatrician on Thursday to see if we can find a reason as to why he's getting these persistent ear infections. I'm hopeful there's an answer that doesn't involve another surgery. I'm also hopeful that the weather continues to improve and we can get some more time outside this week!
And, of course, Jack turned sixteen months old on Friday as well. When we were getting ready to take his monthly picture, he knew just what to do! I grabbed his stuffed dog from the floor and put it in his rocking chair. He climbed right on up, turned around, sat down and gave me this big, cheesy grin. So, I started snapping away. He only stayed still for a few seconds, of course, because he became distracted by Blue, who was sitting directly behind me.
When Jeff got home, we all went out for a celebratory dinner. I can now reveal that Jeff was asked to become a partner with his law firm a few weeks ago - on St. Patrick's Day, actually. His partnership became effective today.
I am so proud of him. Jeff works hard. I mean, really hard. The concept of being a "hard worker" gets thrown around quite a bit and I think gets used too much and too casually. And, I think that its a misconception that hard work eventually ends - which it shouldn't - even if it does pay off. But, I grew up in a household where hard work was not only a value, but expected. My mom worked really hard to raise me and my sister, and my dad worked hard to support us. I saw, first hand, the sacrifices that both of them had to make. Now, we're living it. I know - and feel - the sacrifices that Jeff has to make. I know the choices he's faced with. And they're big choices and big sacrifices. To see him rewarded for his tireless efforts just fills me with pride. I can't stop looking at him and thinking, "That's MY man - that's Jack's daddy." Now, this doesn't mean that Jeff gets a break, mind you. If anything, Jeff is redoubling his efforts and has moved forward with more focus and even bigger dreams and goals. When he sat down to talk about the partnership with my dad, his only piece of advice was to make sure Jeff didn't rest on his laurels. And it would seem Jeff has taken that piece of advice to heart. One day, I hope that Jack appreciates and learns from Jeff's efforts and becomes as hard-working and passionate as his daddy.
After dinner on Friday, Jeff went out with some of his buddies, and Jack and I stayed home. We had kind of a rough night. There was a thunderstorm, which woke Jack up and scared the blazes out of him, so I spent about an hour, rocking and singing to him to try and get him to go back to sleep. It worked - at around 5:00 in the morning - and he was up an hour later. So, we got up and had a dance party in the kitchen while I made breakfast. Later that day, we went up to the club to see the Easter bunny and have lunch. Jack was absolutely enthralled by the Easter bunny and kept trying to give him a high five or pull off his bow tie:
There was also an Easter egg hunt. I was surprised that Jack actually got the hang of it - although, I think in his mind he was "cleaning up" as opposed to actually searching for eggs.
After the hunt and the visit with the Easter bunny, we had lunch and Jack opened up some of his eggs at the table. We were bumping up against nap time, so he was somewhat subdued, but really enjoyed opening up the plastic eggs. All the surprises in the eggs were totally inappropriate for his age. But, he really didn't seem to mind since he preferred opening and closing the eggs instead of playing with whatever was inside. I had also bought a pair of bunny ears in the dollar aisle at Target before we went up to the club. My thought was that I would put them on Blue, but Jack loved them and loved putting them on himself.
Seriously, look at those rosy cheeks, the blue eyes and his expressions. My sweet boy.
After brunch, Jack went down for his nap and I took Blue outside to play ball. He was, predictably, more interested in rolling around with the kids and the neighbor's dog. He was soaking wet by the time we went inside. I toweled him off and realized he was absolutely filthy, so I gave him a bath. And I am so glad that I did - he had enough sand in his coat to fill a sandbox.
On Saturday night, we went over to Uncle Brendan and Aunt Lindsay's for some pizza and play time. They have a little girl, Juliet, who is about five months old and just as cute as can be.
Jack had fun playing with her toys, showing her how to build towers, and how to knock them down. He also enjoyed rocking her in her chair. In fact, he liked it so much that he decided that he should get in and rock himself:
This was, of course, great fun. Jack was quite pleased with himself, seeing as how he could get in and out of the rocking chair without any adult assistance. He may also have thought that he was just being silly...
We knew Uncle Brendan and Aunt Lindsay before either of us had kids. We used to have some pretty wild nights out together. And now, how times have changed! A wild night out before kids usually ended sometime in the wee morning hours of the next day. As we were getting ready to leave on Saturday night, Brendan remarked that now, a good night out meant we were home and asleep well before midnight. But still, we had a great time - good food, great friends and conversation, and time with our kids. Add in a glass or two of red wine, and that's a perfect evening in my book. And one I would trade for any of my old, crazy Saturday nights!
Sunday was, of course, Easter. And no Easter is complete in the Storms' house without a little seersucker.
We went to church on Sunday morning, and everyone just giggled at my little man, walking down the aisle in all his seersucker glory. And how could you not help but smile? Look at how cute he looks! And, between you and me, he knew it too.
After church, Jack went home with Nana and Papa. Jeff and I went home to change clothes and grab Blue. We blackmailed my parents into having Blue over for Easter, saying we could stay at their house longer because we wouldn't have to go home to feed him or let him out.
Secretly (or maybe not so secretly) though, I think they love Blue. He's a good dog. What's not to love?
Jack went down for his nap and we had Easter dinner. When he got up, he had discovered that the Easter bunny had visited Nana and Papa's house. Jack went on his little hunt and did a pretty good job at finding eggs, although they weren't really hidden well. I had filled a few with Jelly Bellies (his favorite candy) and my mom had a few large, empty plastic eggs. Jack would find an egg, shake it, and if it rattled, he would hand it to me and ask for a jelly bean. If the egg was empty, he'd simply throw it. It was like training one of Pavlov's dogs. My grandpa also put on the bunny ears, much to Jack's delight.
My sister and Wim came over after everyone had left and we all had a little play time. Jack invented this game which involved running into her outstretched arms for some kind of helicopter or plane ride. He kept backing up further and further away so he could run as fast as possible to her. This was, of course, great fun for all.
And, I think that's it. Like I said, there was a lot of ground to cover this week. Tomorrow, he starts full time in his new classroom at school. I'm anxious about this, and I will miss his old teachers tremendously. They were all like surrogate grandmothers to Jack. I know we'll see them around, but I hope he likes his new teachers. We've got an appointment with Jack's pediatrician on Thursday to see if we can find a reason as to why he's getting these persistent ear infections. I'm hopeful there's an answer that doesn't involve another surgery. I'm also hopeful that the weather continues to improve and we can get some more time outside this week!
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