Aric vs Helmet the Turtle

We have a turtle made out of an old Army helmet and machine parts welded together.

The neck of the turtle is made out of a big spring. Aric is fascinated with the turtle and repeatedly beheads the turtle.

Yesterday the turtle fought back.

Aric pushed down on the head and then let go. The head popped up and hit him under his eye. He is now sporting a beautiful black and blue bruise underneath his eye.

I wonder how I'm going to explain this at his 9 month checkup this week...

Snow Day and Sledding

This morning we woke up and had five inches of snow on the ground and it was currently sleeting. Both Ryan and I had to go in to work this morning bright and early. It took me about an hour to drive what is normally a 20 minute drive. At one point near the beginning of my trek to town I called Ryan and told him that I just couldn't do it. It was intense driving on unplowed roads, covered in snow drifts in the early hours of dawn. We all made it to town safely, though,and thankfully when we all went home this afternoon the roads were just wet and slushy. That is until we reached our driveway, which was still snowpacked. It took me five tries to get in the driveway and I still ended up getting the car stuck near the house. Ryan helped me get it unstuck, but I was unable to actually make it up to our parking pad and decided to trudge up the snow covered hill to the house rather than drive the car anymore today. Our neighbor came by this evening and plowed our driveway so tomorrow morning we should have no problems making it out to work.

We decided to take Aric outside to play in the snow for a bit since he's older and now has a snowsuit. (Thank you Aunt Jill.)

Ryan dressed up warmly to take Aric out (I can't fit my belly in my ski pants) and I followed with the camera. Ryan had a wonderful idea to take Aric sledding. Since we don't actually own a sled, he found something that would work just as well and maybe was a little safer too.

Yes, they used one of our kayaks as a sled. And Aric loved it.

Can't Hide it Any Longer...

This adorable little boy (who is cutting another tooth)...

...will be a big brother in October. And...

...I can't hide that tidbit for much longer, since my belly isn't cooperating.

Mommy's Little Helper...

Mommy's little helper...

...is making it almost impossible to get any vacuuming done. There's nothing better, though.

Nine Months

Can you believe how big he is now? Aric dwarfs that puppy. He actually kept picking it up and throwing it around during our photo shoot. In case you're wondering why he's not looking at the camera it was because Baby Einstein was on.

And, yes, those are new shoes. We got them today, but he probably won't be wearing them to daycare any time soon if the other kids are going to play keep away with his shoes.

The Great Outdoors

Yesterday was the first day in a long time that the three of us were home together. It was nice to run errands, do chores and play together.

Aric had a little bit of a rough start to the day when he found a mouse trap and discovered what happens when you touch it. Ryan took him outside later in the afternoon and let him play in the yard. He had a fun time picking up grass and leaves. Now if he can just master crawling on a slope...

Daycare Update

Aric had a good week at daycare and yet he seems to have had a rough week, too.

This was the first week that Aric did really well with the other kids. He wasn't as scared of them as he has been in the past and didn't cry when they were loud or crying. Ms. Autumn said that he was smiling and happy the whole time. Having him go now on three consecutive days seems to be helping.

But... he lost a shoe somewhere at daycare. (One of the other kids probably hid it and it'll turn up.) The only bad thing about that is Aric only has one pair of shoes. Now he only has one shoe and two feet- that could be a bit of a problem.

He also came home today with an abrasion on the outside corner of his eye. Who knows what happened. It could have been self-inflicted for all I know. He's definitely going through the bumps and bruises stage now that he's trying to figure out how to stand and walk.

The best part of daycare for me is picking him up at the end of the day. He's starting to go through a little separation anxiety right now and when I come to pick him up he gets so excited. Yesterday he tried to lunge out of Ms. Autumn's arms to get to me and today he crawled over and gave me numerous sloppy kisses. How I treasure those sloppy kisses!

There's a little girl (about 18 mo old) at daycare who is taken with Aric. Apparently when he isn't there this little girl asks about "Baby Awic". When he is there she goes up to him repeatedly, so much that he has apparently started to throw his hands up to keep her away from him. Ms. Autumn said it's not in a mean bully sort of way more like a wild animal trying to protect itself kind of way. Poor Aric, getting affection from an admirer already, an "older woman" even.

Why does he get to see all of the sites?

Every time Ryan goes on a "business trip" it always seems like he gets to visit somewhere really neat. This time Ryan had a long layover in London and left the airport.

Homecoming

We haven't really advertised, but Ryan's been gone since early February on a "business trip" in another country. It's been hard working full time and being a single parent. Ryan being gone was one of the main reasons that I went to visit my parents for a week, well that and to see them of course. I talked to Ryan late last night and he's back in the country and should be home this afternoon. I'm excited and I'm sure Aric will be when he sees his dad again

Deja Vu

Aric started showing signs of a runny nose yesterday. This morning he had a full blown cold again. I'll be so glad when cold/flu season is over with. At least I'm on my days off so I don't have to use up my sick time.

Bumps in the Road

It seems like everytime I think things are running smoothly something happens and there are bumps in the road again.

Monday morning I took Aric to daycare at Ms. Autumn's house. It was his first time going back since our trip. When I pulled up to her house all of the lights were off. I immediately called work to tell them that I would be running late. Then I went to the front door and rang the doorbell. (Aric was still waiting in the car, since I didn't know how long it would take to wake her and it was chilly.) Thankfully it didn't take long to wake Autumn. She was genuinely embarrassed and sorry and I was only 40 seconds late to work. (Had I not called in, I would've been written up for being tardy. Good thing I called.)

This morning I dropped Aric off at Ms. Autumn's house again. (It's our first week with my new schedule of Thurs-Fri as my days off.) Autumn complained a little about waking up with allergies. I thought nothing of it and went to work. I was there about an hour when she called. I have now felt the terror that only a mother can feel when you think something is wrong with your child. It seemed like forever until she told me that she was sick and was closing her daycare for the day. I had to take a sick day at work and go pick Aric up. Frankly we've done nothing today but nap and play. It was kind of odd going home when we were both healthy and doing well. I did find someone to watch Aric tomorrow. I'm pretty sure that Ms. Autumn will not feel up to having children, and even if she is, I would rather Aric get as little exposure to whatever she has. I really would like to save my sick days.

Today made me realize that Ryan and I have done nothing lately with our friends. I hate feeling like the only time I call my friends is to ask for something. I really don't want to be THAT person. Today I've decided to make an effort to renew friendships and not be so much of a hermit. I'm sorry if I've been THAT person to you.

Breakthrough

Today I went back to work after having 11 days off. It was definitely hard to go in this morning. Even Aric whined a bit when I left him with Laura this morning, something he has never really done before. I guess we both became used to hanging out with each other this past week and a half. Someone please remind me next time I return to work after an extended amount of time to look at the calendar of community events before I schedule my return date. Today, it seems, was fake St. Paddy's Day. Lucky me. It was a busy day dealing with whiny neighbors, drunk college students and parking complaints galore. What a way to immerse yourself back into work!

I was able to get Aric to drink an ounce of straight formula at dinner tonight. Even better I was able to get him to take a full bottle of formula before he went to bed tonight. I was a little apprehensive when we returned home from our trip, because he kept refusing bottles from me. I don't blame him, though, he didn't have a bottle on our entire trip. Today was a huge breakthrough in our weaning process and I must say I'm pretty excited that we're on the right track.

I Know You've Always Wondered...

I know you've always wondered who is above the great white shark on the food chain. The answer to that age old question:

Well, at least this particular great white did not survive.

My friend Natalie gave me a wonderful idea this morning on how to keep Aric entertained in his Pack'N'Play. After a trip into town to Target, I was able to make Aric his very own ball pen. He loved it. Hopefully he continues to enjoy it as much as he did today.

Aric's First Vacation

We had such a good vacation visiting my parents and brother. Aric slept on both airplane rides, making me and all of the other passengers extremely happy. The best part of the trip: watching Aric play and bond with my parents and brother. He might not remember them right now, but they'll remember the time they had with him.


Reading with Nana in the early morning. Aric woke up at 6-6:30 everyday.


Trying to pull Uncle Rudy's glasses off. A favorite pasttime of the entire trip. Uncle Rudy did say that if Aric's first words were "Uncle Rudy" he would send him to college. We're working hard on that!!


A quiet moment with Poppa.

Waiting for Mommy to finish stacking the cups. Knocking them over was so much fun.

Playing Peek-A-Boo with Mommy. That coffee table now has tons of teeth marks. Thankfully they're on the underside of the lip.


Exploring Poppa and Nana's house.


Hanging out with Mommy.

Changes

There are several changes that have come to our house lately. Somehow all of those changes involve Aric.

-I packed away the baby swing and the jumperoo this morning. How sad that the "baby" stuff is no longer needed. Aric is "cruising" along the furniture and has no desire to remain in one place even if it is to jump. He also sits up in his swing now and attempts to grab the animals on his mobile. No matter how soothing that swing is, I didn't think it was the safest place to put him any longer. In their places, I put the Pack'N'Play. Since Aric is so mobile, I can use that to confine him when I need to get things done and can't keep a close eye on him.

-I put up a gate around the bottom of our stairs. Aric has figured out how to climb up steps and a wrought iron, spiral staircase is probably not the best place for an almost 9 month old to be. I feel much better having the gate around the stairs, since those stairs have become a magnet for him.

-I am beginning to wean Aric. I originally planned to wait until he was 12 months old, but the time seems right for the both of us. I tried to give him his first bottle with a formula/milk mixture in it today and he refused to take it and cried. It's going to be a long process switching him over to formula, but one that we both need to embark on. Wish me luck!

-In case you were wondering about the bee background, it's in honor of Aric. He loves the Baby Einstein Baby's First Sounds DVD. I brought it along on our trip and he watched it 3-4 times a day. Needless to say we are a little sick of it, but he loves it and is fascinated by the bee.

Home Again

Aric and I just returned home after a week long trip visiting my parents and brother. It was so nice to spend time with them catching up, relaxing, and playing. Aric was so spoiled and loved on the whole week. I think the next few days trying to get things back to a normal routine might be rather difficult for the two of us!

Well, I have a dead mouse downstairs I need to clean up and I should scope out the rest of the house to make sure there are no more new "toys" for Aric to play with. And I should figure out why the cats pushed a loaf of the bread onto the kitchen floor. I think it might be a long evening!!