Jacob @ 10 Months

At 10 months, Jacob is no longer my squishy, snuggly baby but an active, curious little boy who loves to explore, get into mischief, and of course EAT. Though to everyone else it may seem like he's always smiling and happy, at home if he's not entertained, he is whining. He can play fine on his own for awhile as long as he doesn't see me. If he does, I have to pick him up-- he loves attention.

He really is a good boy, though, and sleeps well. He is napping twice a day still and barely waking up at night at all. He doesn't care much for boring baby toys but would rather have the big kids' toys, or things that aren't toys at all-- like electrical cords or water bottles or spoons.

He doesn't care for being in the stroller at all, for some reason, but doesn't mind being in the car. He likes to go places and is usually content on longer car rides.

He recently began refusing to eat baby food or anything I try to feed him from a spoon. He only wants to feed himself. I can maybe get 2 or 3 bites in, but then he starts pushing the spoon away. So every meal I have to find bite-sized food he can gum, because he still doesn't have a single tooth. So far he loves pancakes, Cheerios, mac & cheese, and bananas. He will taste anything I put on his tray, but he may make a hilarious face & spit it out if he doesn't like it. He is usually content quite a while in his high chair as long as he has something to eat. He also still nurses about 4 or 5 times a day. 

This little guy has given us quite a few scares with all his breathing issues and trips to the ER, but he seems to be developing perfectly normally and is a fun-loving perfect addition to our little family.

Andrew's 6th Birthday

Somehow or another my 2nd born has turned six years old already. I vaguely remember bringing him home from the hospital, all 7 lbs., 2 oz. of him. He is growing into a silly, sweet little boy full of energy, questions, and compassion. He sometimes hates being stuck in the middle, when Leah doesn't want to play with him because he's a boy and he's younger, and he fights with Abi because, well, they both have strong personalities and know what they want. Yet he so badly wants them to accept him and play with him. 

He is definitely all boy. He is currently into superheroes, especially Spiderman, and of course still loves cars and trains and planes and anything that goes. He loves being with Daddy and hearing his stories, especially those that involve "boy sounds" like farting. He has quite an imagination, always pretending to "be" some sort of animal he saw on t.v., running around the house on all fours, jumping on furniture and pouncing on things. He still wants to be a firefighter when he grows up.

Andrew is great at math and science, and is really really improving on his reading. I am always catching him up in his bed at night "reading" a book-- most of the time he really is reading it correctly. He is ALWAYS asking questions-- he wants to know how everything works, what everything means, etc.etc. He loves building things, he loves playing computer games and he loves playing outside (although not as much as most boys). He's not really athletic, but he's definitely getting into tae kwan do and loves practicing his "ninja" skills at home. His instructor plans to test him for his yellow belt this coming week! Every night he always asks what we're going to do the next day-- always ready for a new adventure, and it doesn't matter what it is, as long as we're together.

This year VBS fell on the same week as his birthday, so we didn't have a huge party-- just cake & presents at home after lunch. He rarely asks for anything specific for his birthday, but I had a few ideas of what he would like, and he's usually excited about anything he gets. He loved the superheros on his cake. And everyone loved the Whoopie Cushion for making farting noises. His new archery set came in the mail a couple days later, but that was probably a favorite.

He must have had this smile on his face all day, and before bed he said he had a great birthday. I'm so excited to see this little boy grow and learn each day!

Our 1st Camping Adventure

This past weekend our family was invited by another area church to their annual Family Camp. They rent out a campground with a bunch of campsites and families come to spend 2 or 3 nights in nature. They provide a few activities & meals, but mostly you're on your own. We didn't really know too many people there, so mostly we spent time just us, but enjoyed meals we didn't have to prepare ourselves!

When we got there Thursday afternoon, we had just enough time to get set up before the rain came in. It poured for a good hour before it started to clear out. There was a 3-walled "lean-to" structure on our site. We put a tarp in front of it and it stayed perfectly dry. Jacob's portable crib & our air mattress was inside there. We put up our tent just outside for the kids. It did get a little wet inside, but they didn't mind too much.

The last time I went camping was when I was pregnant with Leah. So naturally we didn't have ANY gear. We borrowed a large bug tent, some camp chairs, and an air mattress from some friends at church. Here's what our campsite looked like:

We managed to have a little campfire the first night after dinner. The first night, I didn't really sleep much at all. I never really do in strange places. Leah didn't sleep well either-- she's a lot like me! Everyone else slept okay and enjoyed themselves.

The next day we had breakfast with some of the other church people. They cooked a full meal.

Then we enjoyed some time on Emerald Lake.

We had a picnic lunch and then Brett and the older three went on a pedal boat. As it turns out, none of them could reach the pedals. So they came back fairly quickly when Daddy got tired!

Jacob & I took a nap on the shore while Leah and Andrew went swimming some more. (Abi was only pretending.)

Back at the campsite, we started a fire again and roasted some hot dogs for dinner. As you can see, Jacob did NOT want to sit in one place. He got extremely dirty because he would not stay on the GIANT blanket we had out-- he'd rather play with rocks.

Leah got to decorate her doll's hair and her own with some of the other kids there for camp. They did have some fun walking around with a few of the other kids that were their age. 

For dessert we had banana boats on the grill-- fill them with chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, marshmallows & anything you want. Melty and good!

After dinner a new adventure began. For the third time that day, we noticed Jacob have a spell where he would stop breathing for a few seconds-- his lips would turn blue and his face pale. Then he would seem really "out of it" for a minute or two before returning to normal. With his breathing condition, we didn't want to ignore this-- especially since it wasn't just once. So I took him to the nearest ER. It was in a town we go to all the time, near to home, but it was not our usual hospital. They decided to admit him to monitor him overnight. Of course, I had not come prepared to stay overnight. So I showered there and put on the same smelly camping clothes I had been wearing. (The really nice nurses did loan me some scrub pants, and there was shampoo & soap in the shower.) 

He slept fine and had  no more episodes. They determined the episodes were tracheal spasms that were happening as a result of under-dosing his reflux meds. So I honestly hadn't given him his meds in a couple days because we were camping and because I really thought he was doing better with the reflux and the breathing. PLUS, he is now refusing baby food so he has been eating a lot more finger foods that are probably irritating his throat. Besides that, he was only prescribed about half the dose he should have been taking for his weight. So essentially he WAS stopping breathing for a few seconds each time his trachea closed up. It was very scary but hopefully the situation is going to improve now. I had to keep him entertained for several hours the next morning while hooked up to all these wires with no real toys to play with. 

Thankfully, they let me eat off his meal menu and after lunch they released us. As soon as I got back to the campsite, the rest of the family  had already cleaned up the site and had gone on a hike. We packed up the car and after a quick trip to the camp playground, we headed back home, not really feeling like camping much anymore. We enjoyed the camping trip but definitely not the hospital part! We do hope to do something like this again next year!

July 4th Weekend

I always love the 4th of July holiday-- I love the warm weather, cookouts, fireworks, being with family & friends... I felt a little crafty the day before July 4th so the kids made a fireworks craft. We used twisted up pipe cleaners in the shape of fireworks and dipped them in paint, then added glitter.

On the day before July 4th we always go up to Burlington to a giant party given at the home of a church family's son, an attorney who has a huge house & yard. There's usually at least 300 people there-- he has tons of food & drinks, a bounce house for the kids, lawn games, and fireworks. We didn't stay late enough for the fireworks this year, but we still enjoyed the food.

On July 4th, as we've done the past 3 years, we went to the parade in Bristol, VT-- the longest running parade in the state. It's always really fun. We also always get friend bread dough (think funnel cake, only with maple syrup on it), which even Jacob enjoyed!

The parade always seems to run late so we wait forever. The kids played on the playground a little while but it was pretty hot. Jacob got tired and cranky but didn't fall asleep until the parade actually started-- I guess he needed the noise. He slept through probably the first half of the parade then sat and watched quietly from his stroller.

The kids were candy- catching experts by the end, even Abigail this year. They always ran out and dived to get as much as possible and we ended up with a huge bag-ful by the end.

As if we didn't party enough, that evening we had a cookout at church with another group. The kids enjoyed lawn games and running around outside.

Then we came home and enjoyed sparklers on the porch in our pajamas. What a day!