Mom's Day

My mom was here for a week, including Mother's Day. It was a fabulous week.

We had silliness.

We went on walks.

We scaled mountains.

There was sushi, fun with Uncle Jay, playgrounds, and sun. There was snow, too, but we won't talk about that.

Ian misses his Grandma. I told him a few days before we left that she'd have to go home. And as we said goodbye at the airport, he pouted and said, "Grandma go home." He got really sad. I said, "Wasn't it great that she could come to see us?" He said, "YES!" and was happy again.

Skiing Fun!

Today on our walk, as usual, Ian got to get out of the wagon and walk some too. We wait for flatter parts on quiet roads. He loves these parts of the walk.

When we got to an even flatter place, we got him onto the skis.

We helped him shuffle some at first, and slid him along for a bit too. He had the biggest grin on his face! Then we started letting him just go on his own, and he did so well!

He got back into the wagon for more steep areas, then on the flats again we asked him if he wanted to walk or ski. He said "SKI!" We really need to get a skiing trail to and from home built so we don't need to bring the wagon, maybe just a sled. Such fun! Here's a short video.

All that fun and you had no idea it's in the single digits outside! Ian came very close to falling asleep on the way back, and we worked hard at keeping him awake. Back at the ranch, we had chicken noodle soup, fruit, and leftover rice and veggies for lunch, then Ian was down for the count! A family skiing outing is next!

Da-da-da Day

Father's Day was fun. John chose a hike as his activity for the day.

It was windy and chillier than we'd anticipated, but it was fine. We then went for a burger and came home to veg a bit.

Ian at 1 month old

Know what? I'm kind of hungry.

I wonder if milk comes from my fists.

It Doesn't!!!

MOM! FEED ME!

It's amazing to look at these now that we've got a very mobile boy. It seems like he couldn't do much back then, but that's the way a one-month-old is! At a month old, he's getting chubbier, has a bunch of acne (this cleared up on its own and may have been helped when we changed soaps), lost hair on the top of his head, and is outgrowing his newborn clothes.



Who'd have guessed that by this time he'd be trying to climb out of the bathtub on his own? Today we had a great walk, and Ian slept the whole way. Daddy sacrificed his farmer tan and provided a t-shirt for sun protection for our sleepy boy.

New Toy!

We got the sandbox set up today! It's a purple dinosaur!

We were hanging out on the deck. John had just finished getting the major boogers out of the sandbox and hosed it out. My job was to watch Ian and wipe it down a bit then put the sand in as John brought it up to the deck. We'd calculated that the capacity of the sandbox was about 300 lb and got that much. But it's much better at half capacity, if that, so we have more sand for later. After I dumped the first bag of sand into the box, Ian decided it'd be best if he hopped in. With his very best stair descending backwards moves, he got right into the sandbox by himself!!

His first inkling was to empty the sandbox. Then he thought maybe he should eat the sand. We're working on that. He understood after a while. It's so hard to get him to not eat things sometimes - we think he could be working on another tooth. (Sidebar: today, on our evening walk, he was chewing on the tray of the stroller and in a bumpy spot, cut his lip. Insert tears. Why then is it so amusing to chew on it? It just cut your lip, dude. Stop biting it! Thankfully, the tray folds away and he has a 5-point harness on, so we took away the distraction.)

Our new sandbox came with some toys - a shovel, rake, sifter and a few molds: starfish, duck, fish, brick pattern and castle-type. (Thank you Freecycle!) Of course, Ian isn't quite sure what to do with those, so we had to show him. He really seemed to enjoy it. Fun! Many more cute sandbox pics to come!
And a video, of course!

Later!

Ian says: "I'm going to go cruise the hallway for a while now. Bye."

Did you know that nice walks in the neighborhood make for better naps? Not in the stroller anymore - there's way too much that's interesting to see out there. But when we get back? Mmmmm. Naptime.

I think that Ian was "off" from eating because of this new tooth. He was signing for food today! He'd sign "more" (all fingertips together), and we figured out that he wants food. I think. We plopped him into the high chair and fed him and he was happy, so we think that's what it is. And he was near the kitchen. He's really good at signing "all done" when it's needed, and he's working on the mechanics of the "potty" and "milk" signs. He's close to getting those!

"Does he always smile this much?"

Someone asked me today, "Is he always this smiley?" Much of the time. Yup. Now we'll get a fussy day for saying that, but I'll take it. We had a great walk in the "warm before the storm." Let's hope the prediction for lows in the teens this week is just fiction.

The Outdoors

We're enjoying the outdoors. Yes, it's going to snow on Tuesday night. Through Thursday. But we are loving spring.

• Last night, our local Great Horned Owl graced us with his presence and song (about midnight. Not 3am. We're thankful for that). I wonder if he's awakened Ian any in his last nights in our room. I don't think you can hear him as clearly in Ian's room.
• The after-dinner walk has been reinstated. If we get out of the house at 7:30, we can get back before bedtime if the short upper loop is clear. The lower loop is 50 minutes if we hustle, best not to attempt after 7:15. Ian loves his walks and giggles for much of them. All smiles, this boy. The only fusses come when we're not moving, for whatever reason. 
• The clothesline is up and out and functioning (have to remember to bring that in tomorrow. Snow on the way). Clothes are crunchy and smell nice.
• Holding Ian as we're getting ready to head up for bed, his hair smells like the outdoors. Not sweat or anything in particular, just that smell of a warm day. So neat.

Newsy: The high chair is boxed up and ready to go. Tonight for dinner, Ian ate a whole cube of Haycorn Squash with blueberries and a whole cube of applesauce, plus 3 tater tots and some beans and peas and cheerios and raisins. I think he's gearing up for a growth spurt - he's been nursing a lot lately and usually eating fairly well. He really seems to enjoy having his own room. We let him roam the floor in there, and he doesn't get that option in our room. So, no wonder he likes it. He slept well last night, except for a fussy bit from 1-3 or so. After that, he did fine. The diapers are fitting a little bit differently - his waistline is decreasing some. Active boy!

Thanks to John for writing up a guest post last night. It was sweet. :)

Guest Post

Today was another great day, we all went for a walk in the morning and Daddy pushed me in my stroller. We were out for hours or thats how long it seemed to me, it was so much fun I didn't even take a nap. When we got home we ate lunch and then I got tired so I napped for a few hours. Tonight I will be sleeping in my own room by myself for the first time. Mom and Dad won't keep waking me up with their snoring and other noises.

Have a goodnight!
-IMW

Great Big Day

What a big day. We got some work done. Somehow, we got out the door in time to get our vegetables by noon. Then a few errands in town and brief trip to the library. Lunch in Midway, and we stopped to see Judith at ReBook. She's always great to talk to. Then we headed off to Dutch Hollow and went for a brief hike. I really have the itch to go mountain biking. One of my very first posts on here a long time ago was about a bike there. There were a number of families discovering mountain biking together today on the trails, and several horse trailers there as well. Ian fell asleep during the walk, and somehow stayed asleep as I put him in the carseat. He slept for about 45 minutes (he didn't get a big nap today) while I perused the thrift store and John stayed in the car with him and made up the grocery list. Groceries and home after 7pm! We had a wonderful salad for dinner, Ian had two helpings of food (sweet potatoes with blueberries and Haycorn squash with peas. About 1T each, and he ate it all.) along with some cheese, avocado and some bread.

The biggest developments: Ian seems poised to take that first step. He will stand for long periods of time without holding on, and does it automatically when it's convenient (when he wants both hands for something and happens to be standing). He's not decided to move his feet when standing unassisted, but will readily  "walk" when we're holding his hands.

Plus, I think he's got the "all done" sign. He did it tonight when he wanted out of the high chair, because he was "all done" eating. Then tonight, holding him on the toilet, he signed "all done" because he didn't need to pee. I looked at that and said "are you all done?" and he smiled. I think we're getting somewhere! He is practicing the motion and will do it fairly often it seems, but I think he's pulling it out when he wants to communicate and that's a huge step.

Ian says, "Books are for eating! Silly Judith. There are so many books and she hasn't eaten a single one!"

Of Walks and Naps

In trying to institute some daily structure and routine, we have locked in the daily walk. Ian had a habit of napping at around noon, but the morning walk messed this up a bit. But he's adjusting. It's really the best time for us to walk after breakfast and fires have been put out. That's about 11-12.

Ian gets a short nap on the walk. He's learning how to get comfy in the different walking modes we have, and we're learning how to help him get more comfortable. The backpack is going to get a pillow.

The backpack is also convenient for having the nap continue as required once we get home. It has a kickstand type thing that makes it stable on the floor. Of course we can't leave him in there without constant supervision - he could wake up and tip himself over. But it's easy enough to set him down in my office while I do a little work, and I take him out at the first peep.

The mei-tai needs a hood to support his head better for naps. Here, John is putting mittens on him in the mei-tai. Don't worry. I pulled his pant leg down so his leg was covered. Ian sleeps well in this carrier with John supporting his head, but it's a tad warm for John sometimes. I'm considering making a lighter-weight one. This one is made of fairly heavy fabric. It's great for a back-carry as well.

Today, we used the stroller. He seems to be just fine without much side head support in the stroller. It reclines nicely. Is the stroller easier with a 22+lb boy? If you're going downhill it is.

A couple of hours after the walk, he's ready for his bigger afternoon nap (unless you count the last few days, where he clearly wasn't. All. Day. Long.) Today, he napped well from 2:45-4:45 and went right down at 9. I think the routine is helping, and daily fresh air is certainly a good thing for everybody.

It's 50 outside!

You just can't be inside complaining of sickness when it's 50 outside. A walk always makes you feel better anyway.

Pre-walk:


During the walk:




After the walk:


He really likes walks in this backpack - he can see so much. Now if only he'd leave his sunglasses on!

By the way, I think Ian is on the mend. No fever this afternoon, but he's still a bit cranky, and definitely snotty! I have a sore throat, so we're thinking that there's definitely a little bug. Ick. We'll try to make it go away quickly! Tomorrow we've got a regular checkup with the doctor, and lots of other stuff to do while we're in town.