Eight Months

Honestly, where does the time go?  My sweet little Nora-Belle is eight months old.  I keep wondering why it is that nine months in utero goes by so slowly and now, I find myself screaming at time to slow the heck down.

Girlfriend is growing up way too quickly for my liking.  I can't help myself, but I always compare my kids.  It's tough not to, I guess.  But, I want them to be their own little individuals and assert their personalities without anyone comparing them to their siblings or parents.  But whatever.  I thought that Jack had mastered a lot of physical skills quickly - meaning, he was sitting up on his own before I thought he should be and he was walking before he was ten months old.  But Nora seems to be surpassing him.  I commented on this to my girlfriends over the weekend, and they told me that the second child always masters physical tasks sooner because she can see what her brother does and tries to mimic it.  But when I was pregnant, everyone told me that girls are slower to develop physically, but learn social skills sooner - i.e. talking, etc.  Well, she's bucking that trend.  Don't get me wrong - she's got babbling down pat but she's going to be walking sooner than I'd prefer.  

Jeff was in the basement playing with her last night and he said that she's going to be walking in two weeks.  Now, that may be an exaggeration, but not by much.  She picked up crawling faster than Jack did, and now she's zooming all over the house.  She's my little shadow and I have to be careful where I step so I don't get her little fingers.  Nora is supremely satisfied that she can move herself around now.  She still prefers to be held and carried, but if she sees something that interests her, off she goes to explore.  

And, in about a day, she went from pulling herself up on low objects (i.e. the dishwasher or dryer) to higher objects (i.e. the coffee table and couches) and she can walk around, holding onto the furniture.  Her biggest obstacle now, though, is that she can't figure out how to get herself "down" for lack of a better term.  She hasn't bridged the gap between standing up and sitting back down.  I can't tell you how many times over the weekend, I'd hear her shrieking from another room and I'd walk in to find her standing up, holding onto the furniture and getting upset because she was tired of standing and wanted to sit back down on the ground.       

At this age, both of my kids loved to give kisses.  I actually commented on it in Jack's eight month post - big, open-mouthed, slobbery kisses.  But honestly, it's the best feeling in the world and just thinking about her drooling all over my cheek makes me smile.  

Nora is just the happiest baby.  Jack was (and still is) a happy baby too.  But Jack was always happiest when he was busy.  There is nothing that makes Nora happier than a good cuddle.  As Jeff puts it, I finally got my snuggler.  I love seeing her tucked in the crook of her Daddy's arm when she's sleepy and I rush through everything I've got to get done at night so I can sit with her on my lap and play with her.  She loves to sit with me, pull herself up, and lean forward to plant a big wet one on my face.  When I got up in the middle of last night to feed her, she reached up her little arms to me, snuggled in to my shoulder and gave me a big kiss.    

She's pretty much a Mama's girl right now - but again, that makes perfect sense.  I'm the primary care giver and I come bearing food.  But she lights up the minute she sees her Daddy or big brother.  We're big on nicknames in our house - I think the kids have at least three apiece.  Jack has always been "Roo" or "Bear" or "Buddha" and Nora is "Belle" or "Chunk-a-Muffin" or "Tiger Baby" and these are just a few of the random things I've called the kids over their lifetimes.  But Jack has started calling his sister "Shiny."  Seriously.  Yesterday, we were driving home from the store and I asked Jack if Nora was sleeping - he looked over at her car seat, and responded, "No.  Shiny's not sleeping.  Shiny's looking at me now, Mommy."  I'm not quite sure where this came from - but I have an idea.  In addition to many nicknames, our entire household makes up silly little songs.  Jack has even started doing this - you know, taking the tune of one song and changing the lyrics.  His current silly little jam is "Five Little Monkeys" which he changes to "Five Little _____" depending on what he's doing or where he is.  It could be "Five little Jackies/Jumping on the couch" or "Five stuffed Henrys/Jumping on my butt."  Seriously.  So, one song I sing is "Shiny Happy People" and the other is "Baby Monkey."  But of course, I keep some of the lyrics and change the rest.  And maybe this is where the "Shiny" moniker came from.  Or, it could just be Jack being Jack.  

And man alive, does that kid love his little sister.  I've said it before and I'll say it again, but I'm crossing my fingers that it continues.  My sister is my best friend.  Jeff can talk to his brother about stuff he can't even discuss with me and I want to foster that kind of bond between my kids.  I know it's going to be a bit different, given the fact that he's a boy and she's a girl, but I don't want them to grow up together and then grow apart.  And I'd obviously prefer that they grow up close, thus keeping the bickering and fighting to a minimum.  Jack and I went to the doctor this morning, and as we were walking into the office building, he kept asking me where Nora was and telling me he wanted to go and see her.  Jeff had taken her to school this morning and when we got back to daycare, Jack ran over to the window, just to make sure his sister was there and okay.  In fact, when Jeff picked the kids up from school on Thursday, Jack and Nora were together, playing.  I hope the trend continues.  

So, in other news, we had a relatively low key weekend.  On Saturday, some of my girlfriends and their broods came over for a play date.  It was mayhem.  I've got a group of fourteen girlfriends from college and between us, we've got twenty-five kids.  And twelve of them were at my house on Saturday.  Jack had so much fun, running around with the older boys, playing pirate and throwing balls.  We had pizza for lunch and then everyone went home for naps.  

I spent the rest of the day cleaning up the house, doing laundry and getting things ready for the week.  Jeff brought home dinner and we tried to watch a movie, but gave in to exhaustion.  On Sunday, the kids and I went to church for Palm Sunday.  Every year, my grandpa and I sing "The Holy City" and it's a treasured tradition for me.  Auntie Margo watched the kids while I sang - and sent my mom this picture:

Can you spell trouble?  I guess she just stood by the door to prevent escape.  Anyways, after church the kids and I hit up the grocery store and came home for lunch.  Jack had filled himself to the brim with post-service treats and wasn't hungry.  Nora kept throwing her food on the ground (yet another favorite game) and so I just gave up and put the kids down for naps.  I spent some time in the kitchen - yesterday was one of my favorite kinds of days.  It was rainy and cool, so we couldn't go outside, the house was clean and the kids were being good and, on days like that, I just love to be in the kitchen and cook while the kids play around me.  

Yesterday, I made ribs, spinach and a caprese salad for dinner.  I also made some spaghetti sauce for my brother-in-law and grandparents, pudding, BBQ sauce, and I boiled some eggs.  I had hoped that, when Jack got up from his nap, he wanted to color his eggs for Easter, but he wanted to do his new Frozen puzzle and play on his iPad instead.  It was only when I told him it was time for bed that he decided to try and talk me into doing Easter eggs...

Actually, nighttime is one of my favorite times with Jack.  I know he's trying to stay up longer, but we snuggle down in bed with the lights off and talk about his day.  He'll tell me what he did during the day, the best and worst parts, and then ask me how much I love him.  I'll tell him that I love him "more than the sun, and the moon, and the stars in the sky."  And he'll respond, "Whoa - that's a lot.  You must love me very much."  We do this every single night.  And so, to me, that's worth a few extra minutes.  

The kid is a comedian, I'll tell you that much.  On Saturday, my girlfriends told me that he needed his own reality show or someone to follow him with a camera around the clock because he's just a funny kid.  We had his follow-up appointment at the neurologist this morning and he passed with flying colors.  He also weighs 47 pounds which, as my girlfriend Ashley says, is what she weighed in eighth grade.  Last night, he insisted he had an "owie-boo-boo" and needed a Band-Aid.  He showed me his finger as proof.  I looked the finger over and didn't see a scratch, but he went upstairs anyways and got himself a Band-Aid and whined until I put it on and gave the finger a kiss.

  

My parents made it back safely from Florida last night as well, which makes me happy.  I think it makes Jack happy too.  We called them on the way to the doctor this morning and, after we hung up, I told him that we'd be seeing Nana and Boppa soon for Easter.  Jack got all excited and thought we were going to see them at the condo in Florida.  I wish.  But, Grammy Camp has been on hold for a long time, and I'm glad that the kids will be able to get back to that routine again - Jack tells me all the time how much he misses Nana, Boppa, Wimmy, Bashy, and Auntie.  Grandma Jersey is coming to visit soon too.  I told this to Jack who got excited to go in an airplane.  Again, I wish.      

And now, it's Holy Week.  I was supposed to have surgery on my shoulder tomorrow, but that got moved to the end of April, so I expect things to be relatively quiet.  We're going to my parents' house for Easter dinner on Sunday and I'd like to get Jack's eggs ready for the Easter bunny before then.  I've declined taking them to see the Easter bunny this year, mostly because I think he's creepy, but I would like to get to the mall to see if I can find Jack some seersucker to be like Daddy.  Daddy already bought Nora's Easter outfit.  Which should surprise no one.  

Florida 2015

First off, before I get started on vacation, there are a couple of milestones to report.  

Nora started crawling.  She actually took her first moves while we were at the airport, waiting for our flight to Florida.  And she totally digs the fact that she can get herself to where she wants to go.  She uses her moves to get to her brother or crawl over to me and play with my toes, or she'll lift up her chubby little arms so I can pick her up.  She loves kisses right now - loves to give them and get them.  She grabs my face with her little hands and plants a big wet one right on my face.  Then, she'll pull back and get this incredibly satisfied look on her face, like she's so proud of what she did.  Or, when I'm holding her, she'll lean her head right into my mouth so I can give her a smooch.  There is nothing that make her happier than a good cuddle and a couple of kisses.  

And, no sooner did she master the art of crawling, she figured out how to pull herself up to standing.  We were sitting in the laundry room last night, and she was at my feet.  Nora grabbed the front of the dryer and just stood up, like it was something she does on a regular basis.  She is going to be walking before we know it and then she's really going to give Jack a run for his money.  She's hitting all her physical milestones at or before Jack did - which really surprises me.  Nora is going to be one tough, sweet little cookie.  

As for Jack, about two weeks ago, he just decided that he was potty trained.  Like it was no big deal.  I picked him up from day care the week before we left for Florida and his teachers told me that his diapers had been dry every time they changed him for the past two days and gave me the thumbs up to send him to school in underwear.  So I did, and that was that.  He's worn underwear for the past two weeks and we've only had 1.5 accidents.  I'm kind of sad in some weird way - like changing his diapers was the last "baby" thing he had.  However, I am not sad that I no longer have to clean up after his man-sized poops.  

Also, my nephew turned three the day we left for Florida.  We went to his birthday party before we left, and all I could think about was how much the kids have grown.

 And now...

The party was fun, quick, and it was really warm - which helped because the kids could play outside.  Jack was actually pretty good about letting Wim open up his birthday presents.  Nora hung out with the other babies and played with toys.  

On Sunday, I spent the day cleaning the house, packing and getting everything ready because my sister came to pick us up and take us to the airport for our trip to Florida at the crack of dawn on Monday morning.  For all the energy my kids have, they are fantastic fliers.  In fact, on the way home, a woman stopped to tell me that we had the best behaved children on the flight.  

  

Nana and Boppa were there to meet us - and for Jack, it was like we no longer existed.  My parents took the kids to the condo and Jeff and I got the luggage, picked up our rental car and swung by the grocery store.  After we got settled and naps were had, we got the kids greased and suited up and went for a swim.  Both Jeff and I were surprised at the change in Jack.  When we were in the Dells in January, Jack clung to us like a barnacle while we were in the water and didn't want to venture off on his own.  But, in Florida, Jack didn't even care if we were in the pool with him.  He jumped off the edge of the pool, put his face underwater, and swam all by himself.  

We went to the beach the next day.  I'm not a huge fan of swimming in the ocean - big fear of sharks, but Jack had fun learning to "surf," throwing sand into the water, and wading around.  Nora didn't like the beach and cried every time I tried to stick her toes in the water.

Since it was St. Patrick's Day, we went out to dinner that night but none of us were really having it - I was scared of some drunk dude, it was hot and Jack was kind of being a pill.  Still, Jeff got to have his oysters - his one Florida requirement.

On Wednesday, we went to see a Twins game.  We went out to breakfast at an unnamed location (per familial request) and then headed over to the outlet mall before the game to run around.  

And then it was on to the big baseball game.  It was the first Twins game for both kids.  The day was hot and I was nervous we'd have to leave because our seats were in the sun initially - but the sun moved before the first pitch was thrown and the game turned out to be lots of fun.  I don't know how much Jack watched the game, but he had fun running around the stadium, eating popcorn with his Boppa, and drinking his water.  

For our last two days, we sat around the pool, ate, swam and drank.  It was so nice.  Vacations with children are different, but this go-round was really relaxing. We absolutely loved the time we got to spend time with my whole family and it's always nice to have a couple of extra hands around.  

  

We went out to dinner on Thursday night and then I wanted to go take family pictures on the beach - problem is, I can't figure out how to get them off my camera.  But, other than that outing, we didn't leave the condo property for the last two days of our trip.  That's exactly how vacation should be, I think.  Jack made a little friend on our last day there, and he had so much fun swimming with his "buddy" and I kept marveling at how big my little man is getting.  

And now we're back, it's snowing and I miss Florida.  I miss my mom and dad.  But we really had such a nice time with them that we're already talking about next year.

In any case, on our last night, Davidson (Jeff's alma mater) was playing in the NCAA tournament, so we picked up some pizza and watched the game.  Nora and my mom were playing on the floor together and my mom told me that she felt warm.  So, I picked her up and there was no question she had a fever.  Since we left at the crack of dawn the next morning, I didn't do anything about it.  We got home, I unpacked, started the wash, and went to the office and the store.  She was burning up the whole day.  I dosed her up with Tylenol and she slept pretty well on Saturday night, but she still had a high fever when she woke up on Sunday morning.  So, Jack and I took her to urgent care.  Poor girl had a double ear infection and a bladder infection.  She got all hopped up on antibiotics and I got a good dose of mom-guilt for letting her fly with an ear infection.  

 

After the doctor, we went to McDonald's, so Jack could get the wiggles out and the pharmacy could fill Nora's prescription.  

And then it was home to get ready for another week.  Jack actually did pretty well going back to school - it always makes me nervous.  Seriously, we had such a fantastic time on vacation and Jack got so much attention from us, and my parents, that I worried he'd act out at school.  But when I picked him up, his teachers told me that he'd had a great day.  Let's just put it this way - he did better going back to school than I did going back to work!

We've got a busy weekend too.  We've got a play date scheduled with my girlfriends on Saturday morning and then I'm singing with my Grandpa at church on Sunday.  Jack keeps asking me when we can go back to Florida and I wish I could tell him we're going tomorrow - the weather is cold and snowy.  But, in true Minnesota fashion, it's supposed to be 70 degrees by Tuesday!