One Month Older and Wiser Too

Can it really be that in two months I will have a one year old!?! That is just plain crazy to me.

Isaac officially became ten months old and I am sad to report that I was not having one of my better mothering days. So there are no photos from the exact day but I snapped a few today to make up for it.

The reason behind my frustration: sleep. Or lack thereof.

Isaac is having difficulty with his afternoon nap but I can't really believe he is ready for just one nap a day. Yesterday I tried again at 2 pm to put him down and he cried. And then he screamed. And I got frustrated. Any suggestions for a 10 month old who sleeps mostly great (1.5 hours usually) for his morning nap and then refuses to sleep in the afternoon? The past two days have ended in me feeding him at about 3:30 and him falling asleep while nursing or shortly after in his crib. But then he only sleeps for a half hour and wakes pretty grumpy still. I could try waking him after an hour into his first nap hoping he is more tired in the afternoon or I could try one napping it. But I really don't love either of those options. So...any help would be lovely.

Now that that is out of the way, on to all the good things about this cute 10 month old. Or at least a list of ten.

1.He loves music. He dances and grins whenever I turn any kind of music on. And he usually wants me to pick him up and dance with him. And I usually do because he is adorable.

2. He is sleeping through the night pretty consistently. He will wake some nights and cry for a few minutes and then go back to sleep. And the nights he actually needs some parental intervention are few and far between. I'm sleeping so well too.

3. He is becoming a curly blond boy. It's so cute! Mostly he has curls after his bath or when his head gets sweaty and then when his hair dries it's back to straight. Except one spot. He has one curl that stays right behind his ear. I think it's because he naps on that side. See if you can spot it in the pictures that follow. Seriously so cute!

4. He is still the most happy baby you have met. He smiles at everyone and is laughing a lot more regularly. I love that.

5. I swear his eyes get brighter by the day. Such a bright, clear blue.

6. He is learning so much, so fast. He signs "more" and can stack his stacking cups. He also waves, sometimes. He still loves to read and turn the pages.

7. He points at everything non-stop. When he wakes up and I pick him up out of his crib he points at the door or his toys like he is ready to go.

8. Isaac loves other kids. He "chats" with the other babies his age at church. Today he was sharing his crackers with the 10 month old in the pew in front of us. Then they were holding hands. It was pretty cute. He loves kids of all ages though. He smiles and "talks" to any kid at the stores. He especially loves his cousin, Maxwell. Isaac just needs to learn a little more about being gentle with other children. He is a little grabby and tend to bite. Hmmm....

9. He is getting somewhat more brave about taking steps. He is cruising all along walls and furniture and will now walk holding just one hand. But he is a little hesitant to take any on his own. Sometimes I can trick him into it but not often.

10. Isaac loves to be outside. He likes grabbing leaves and grass. He likes his stroller rides most of the time but prefers when he can get down and crawl. He likes the park and especially swinging.

I sure like seeing him grow and learn. But I can't believe how big he seems already. It evokes mixed emotions in me. I miss my little tiny baby but I am so excited to see the boy he will become. I know one thing for certain, I love this 10 month old cutie!

I couldn't decide which pictures to post so I posted a bunch.

Wanna See Something Creepy

This little (or should I say moderately sized) guy was hanging out on our outdoor light fixture. He creeped me out so I thought I'd share. I must have some sort of fascination, a love/hate relationship of sorts, with spiders because this is the second time I've taken pictures of the creepy crawly creatures and blogged them.

Yeah, I'm a weirdy.

But the webs are cool and the bug themselves are kind of awesome too. But only from a distance. Please don't fall on me or crawl up my leg. And if you keep your distance, I will usually keep mine. Otherwise prepare for the vacuum or the shoe.

It's only fair.

A New Coat of Paint

My parents are awesome.

Last week we were lucky enough to have my parents come for a visit. But not just any visit. They came specifically to help me paint some walls in my home and to make some drapes for the organ room.

Like I said, my parents are awesome.

They did get the bonus of spending some time with Isaac but I'm pretty pleased with what I ended up with. I'm not certain I'm in love with the blue in the living room, let me know what you think, but I do know that I love everything about the red organ room. Love the color, love the curtains, LOVE IT. The pictures do not do it justice.

I'm just sad I didn't think to get the camera out and take some pictures of Isaac with his grandparents. He sure loved them and I think misses them a little...I know I do. It was fun having them around for a week. Come back anytime! I promise we won't always make you work during your stay.

Breaking News

Today I left my baby in the capable hands of Jacob and then his lovely sister, Sarah and headed to Denver to take my clinical social work exam.

And I am pleased to report I passed. So I will now officially be a Licensed Clinical Social Worker!

At least for the next two years.

Colorado recently changed licensing requirements to include continuing education. And while I am totally on board with requiring continuing education I am less certain that I will be able to continue education as a stay at home mom. Which means my license will probably not be renewed. I plan on looking into the requirements a little bit more to see if I can keep it current. You never know when you may need or want to do some work on the side...

But mostly I'm pretty happy with my current gig. Still, yeah me!

Stats

Isaac had his nine month doctor's appointment on Friday. They say he weighs 19 1/2 pounds and is 29 inches tall. But I'm most certain he is not 29 inches tall. He was a little squirmy when they were doing his measurements and I am confident he gained a few inches because of it. Jacob and I tried to measure him and we get closer to 27.5 or 28 inches. But whatever. He is healthy and doing well. And pretty stinkin' cute to boot!

Evidence of said cuteness to follow.

Firsts

Today has been an eventful day of firsts, some will be repeated, others hopefully not.

On the hopefully not repeated side of the scale, we made our first call to poison control.

Yep, in our exceptional parenting our 9 month old son ate one of those packets that usually come in shoes, purses and such. You know, the ones that say "do not eat." Apparently there was one in my diaper bag that I failed to throw away. And of course, Isaac found it while I was paying less attention to him than I should have been. And of course, he ate it. I'm not sure how many of the actual pellets he consumed. There seemed to be a ton vacuumed off our floor, but who knows. Jacob called poison control and the guy on the other end of the line was very helpful and very kind. He made sure to mention that they get calls about those packets all the time. Turns out the silica inside the packet is not poisonous. He described it as the equivalent of sand. He said it was probably like eating a hot dog at the beach on a windy day. He advised us to keep Isaac well hydrated and to call back if he had any other complications though he doubted there would be any.

So, crisis averted. Phew...

On the upside of new things. I piped icing onto cupcakes for the first time and they are quit pretty. The recipe is from the "cake doctor" but I'm not thrilled with it. They are a tasty "cinnamon toast" cupcake but I don't love the amount of oil the recipe called for. They seem slightly greasy to me. I think I would cut back on the oil next time. The frosting, however, is fantastic. It is a cream cheese cinnamon frosting. Yum!

A Day in the Life....

I had this brilliant idea for Isaac's nine month update and thought I would document his day in photos. This proved to be a lot more difficult than I anticipated because every time I would try and take a picture of him doing the things he normally does, he would stop and crawl to the camera. So, what I have, and what you get to see, are a bunch of photos of Isaac stopping his activities and heading for the camera! Hope you enjoy this 9 month old baby as much as we do.(And don't worry, I have spared you pictures of all the dirty diapers changed and nursing. But rest assured we do plenty of those things too.)

Isaac begins his day playing with his favorite "toys." He loves to play in the kitchen and dining room. He likes pushing chairs and his high chair around. But he also loves bolting for the garbage can. I chase him away from there probably 5 times a day.

He also loves to pull up on everything. He likes the couches because I put everything I don't want him getting into on the couch. Sometimes it's less effective.

After a little playing it is time for second breakfast. Isaac is kind of like a hobbit. He gets many more meals than the standard three throughout the day. Because really before he played this morning he nursed. Second breakfast usually consists of cereal and fruit. But mostly Isaac is spitting out all baby food these days and would prefer to eat his favorite cheerios. Or anything he can feed himself really.

And then it's back to playing. He discovered one of his favorite "toys:" the diaper bag and it's contents.

And the most favorite "toy" is his changing pad. I'm not sure what he loves so much about it but he hauls that thing all around the living room. And I have to keep it out of his mouth as much as possible. Because, ew! We change dirty diapers on that thing!

Mom's favorite time is this sacred hour. Nap time! I was even brave enough to take a picture and it didn't wake him. Luckily.

After nap Isaac got dressed for the day and headed out the door to do some thrift shopping with mom. Probably not his favorite activity.

And after shopping and lunch the play resumed. Isaac loves stickers of all kinds. He tries to get the labels off everything he can get his hands on.

I didn't brave a picture of the afternoon nap because it is a little more difficult to come by and I didn't want to risk waking him. But after the nap we took a nice long walk.

I am sad to report that during said walk we popped a tire. More like the used stroller from craigslist had pretty bad tires in the first place and they are showing their threads. One of them did not hold up well. Good times. Now I have to decide if I fix this old stroller or get a different one... I miss our afternoon walks.

Then while mom gets dinner ready, Isaac gets more time to play.

And after dad gets home from work and dinner is had by all, lucky Isaac gets to spend time with dad and the computer.

Isaac is learning how to climb the stairs. Luckily he hasn't really discovered them on his own and only gets to climb them as he heads for his bath.

He totally knows where the bathroom is and heads straight there. He loves his baths!

He also loves brushing his teeth. Well, mostly anyway.

And then it is a few stories, a few songs, a prayer, and off to bed.

Isaac is such a busy and fun 9 month old! He keeps us on our toes for sure. And we love him.