1st Christmas

We had a wonderful and a unique Christmas. We were able to visit our families and friends. We had such a great time and Ethan did really well on the flights to and from Alamo. I am just glad that everyone got a chance to be apart of our special Christmas and for Ethan to get re-aquainted with his family. We finally got to eat some homemade mexican food which we have been craving since there isn't much of a selection in Ohio. Our families were so great with our busy schedule and Ethan's early rising ( 2 hour time difference) It was truly wondertful to be home, Thanks Everybody!


Picture with Santa--Ethan's Grandpa Dan who has been dressing up for 8 years to hand out candy canes in front of his decorated house which won "best lights" in our home town!! Ethan in his Christmas Suit.
Ethan loves him some sugar cookies!!
More interested in the ribbon than his gifts

Ethan's 1st Haircut

While we were down in Alamo, Ethan got his 1st Haircut. Since he missed his morning nap I thought he was going to be fussy but I guess the haircut made him relaxed because he started to fall asleep. Eric had to hold his head up for him. What was even more special is that he got his 1st haircut from his Grandpa Jerry who is a Barber. I think it looks great!!

Alamo, here we come!

We are so excited to be going home and can't wait to see our families. Before we go we want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year!!!!!

Our Family Christmas

We had our own little Christmas last night because we won’t be here for the holiday, since we will be leaving for Alamo on Monday. Ethan still wasn't in the greatest mood but he did fine opening his presents. Once he would open a gift he would want to continue playing with whatever the toy was. We had to show him that you keep opening the gifts to see what you have gotten and then play in the end. He wasn't too happy with that idea so Mommy helped him open his presents. By the end of the night after wrestling with the toy packages and scavenging for batteries, Ethan was more interested in the box that was shipped in from his grandparents then the actual toys that came in it. Oh well, all that a matter is that we were together and that if he is happy, we are happy!

Help!

Now, I can truly sympathize with other parents about doctor visits. Ethan was doing so well since my last post but then it just went downhill again. I was so sick of talking to a nurse on the phone and there not being any available openings with this pediatrician that we finally went to the ER. I thought surely they may be able to help, I knew that they couldn’t totally stop Ethan from throwing up but maybe they could tell me what I could & couldn’t feed him, or what I could do to make it easier on him. Of course my expectations were smashed when the physician’s assistant told me that since Ethan was not looking sick he must not be sick, not to give him any formula, handed me a sheet of information and then we were scooted out the door! How can you not give a baby any formula? I threw out his advice with the piece of paper and made an appointment with the pediatrician for this morning. I made it clear that I did not want a nurse or the assistant, I want the actual doctor! We did meet with the real doctor and after explaining that just because Ethan is walking around with a smirk on his face does not disguise the fact that he was throwing up gallons, has a decreased appetite and it is turning our house upside down. I wanted answers and not the turnaround! Thankfully, the doctor must have dealt with others like me because he was great, answered all of my questions and even contradicted the doctors in the ER. We left the hospital with so much more information and actually felt better on how to treat this flu. I just want Ethan to get better and back to his normal self.

On a lighter note, Ethan is doing so well at walking! He looks so cute waddling everywhere.

Sick baby

Yesterday Ethan kicked off his 11^th month with a bang, the morning bottle of milk that he enjoyed ended back up and all over Eric. For some odd reason he couldn’t keep any fluids or solids down. I called the doctor and they told me that it was the stomach flu and that they couldn’t really do anything and since he wasn’t running a fever it just had to run its course. They said just to keep fluids in him and it should only last 24 hours. Therefore we just kept giving him fruit and diluted Gatorade and I kept busy washing his clothes and bathing him. But just like they had said within 24 hours he was doing much better and was drinking and eating normally. On the other hand, Eric got sick and we had to experience the whole ordeal over again. Thankfully baby and Daddy are doing well and hopefully this flu has left our house for good!!!

Walking Fool

Ethan is getting much better at walking and seems to be doing it more than crawling. I am sorry if the video seems dark.

First Snow!!!

He enjoyed crawling in it and even ate some snow!

Faker

You could never tell that a second before this picture was taken; Ethan was throwing the biggest temper tantrum. Red scrunched face, tears, arms and legs wailing, and screaming so loud that it probably convinced the neighbors to think of moving. However once I pulled the camera out, a whole new Ethan takes over and becomes the happy sweet innocent child that you see. He will even sit still for me and watches the ready light. Afterwards he will grab the camera to see the picture on the back. How does he know this?!! I think we may take way too many pictures.

He also got his flu shot today. He is getting much better at shots, after a 2 second cry he was done and back to normal.

Frigid

We have been so spoiled living in the southern part of the United States. Now that we are in the Midwest, we are freezing. I guess with the greenery you have to take the weather as well. In the morning there was a little bit of snow on the ground but melted during the day. I can’t wait till it really dumps. That will be a fun day for Ethan and I. Eric as well because he will need to shovel it!

Eric wants to retire in Florida and I was always against it but now I think it may be a good idea. Gorgeous weather all year long and being so close to the ocean is very tempting. All I know is that I am not a cold weather person, desert or tropical for me!

Brrrrr...... Its Cold!

I am rolling!!

Eric's sister Danielle had this posted and it is so funny I had to share it. This is not the whole list, I had to cut it down. You Know You Grew Up In the 80's if:

You can sing the rap to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and can do the Carlton Eric and I can

Girls wore biker shorts under their skirts and felt stylishly sexy. What was I thinking?

Two words: Hammer Pants Eric has a pair from his younger days and someone else who is his best buddy. I will let you confess in due time.

If you ever watched "Fraggle Rock" We have fragile rock on DVD, true art!

You had plastic streamers on your handle bars... and spokey-dokes or playing cards on your spokes for that incredible sound effect It wasn’t a bike without them

You wore a ponytail on the side of your head. I actually have embarrassing photos showing this, my mom could whip up a sideways ponytail faster than you can say sideways ponytail.

You saw the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on the big screen and still know the turtles names. , Raphael, Leonardo, Michelangelo, & Donatello

You got super-excited when it was Oregon Trail day in computer class at school. I am such a dork, I loved that game. I wonder if you can buy that now, hmmm.

You made your mom buy one of those clips that would hold your shirt in a knot on the side. Once again, there are photos that can be used for blackmail

You played the game "MASH"(Mansion, Apartment, Shelter, House) If I remember correctly it told you the place you would live at, husband, kids, car and it is killing me not knowing the last one…….UUGGGH

You wore stonewashed Jordache jean jackets and were proud of it. I always felt good in my jacket!!!

L.A. Gear....need I say more? Hello! They had the best sneakers!! Mine were purple and white

You wanted to be a Goonie. Who doesn’t?

You even wore fluorescent clothing. (Some of us...head-to-toe) My mother was afraid of me getting run over in the middle of the day. Well that is what she told me…..

You took lunch boxes to school...and traded Garbage Pailkids in the schoolyard. Eric still has his Garbage kids and will not part with them.

You remember the CRAZE, then the BANNING of slap bracelets. Those are still cool

You have owned a pair of Jelly-Shoes. Really!!! What was I thinking?

You have got seriously injured on a Slip and Slide. Those suckers can burn your skin off.

You wore like, EIGHT pairs of socks over tights with high top Reeboks. They had to be a multicolored sock, now I think about it and it was the only way to make a fashion disaster worse

You know what it meant to say "Care Bear Stare!!" yes and you point your belly out to do it

You remember watching Rainbow Bright and & My Little Pony Tales. I still have not forgiven my mother for giving away my rainbow bright collection. I had the bed set, and all the dolls. It still hurts :(

You remember New Kids on the Block when they were cool...and don't even flinch when people refer to them as "NKOTB" Enough said there

You knew all the characters names and their life stories on "Saved By The Bell," The ORIGINAL class. Of course, who didn’t?

You know all the words to Bon Jovi - SHOT THROUGH THE HEART.

You just sang those words to yourself. Yes, I too was singing. It is timeless, how can you not sing it.

You remember when mullets were cool! As Eric puts it, “Business in the front, party in the rear!”

You tight rolled your jeans. Eric actually showed me how he did you do it. One more thing about my husband I did not know about

You owned a banana clip. I had more than one and they were different colors.

You're still singing shot through the heart in your head, aren't you! YUP!

Christmas Spirit

Even though we will not be home for Christmas, I still wanted to put up the tree and all of the decorations. It will be Ethan’s 1^st Christmas and ours as a family. Therefore, since it is a special holiday we are planning on having our own tiny Christmas right before we leave. Ethan has done real well on not touching the tree and hasn’t shown that much interest in it. The only time it catches his eye is when the lights are on.

On the other hand, Eric decided that since we weren’t going to be home he wasn’t going to put any lights up. That was until about every person on our block had their lights up. He gave in and embraced the Christmas tradition of decorating. As he says it, “I don’t want to be the only scrooge on the block”.

** 18 more days till when we will be in Alamo** I am so excited because I have missed our families and our friends, they are going to freak when they see how much Ethan has grown.

Movin' Along

Here is another video of Ethan taking some steps. Click here.

What do you mean he is not a baby?

Eric, Ethan and I were in line standing behind this mother and her 2 or 3 year old daughter. The little girl kept pointing at Ethan yelling “Baby, Baby”!!! Trying to get her mothers attention she kept yelling it louder. Finally her mother turns around and says, “Sweetie that is not a baby, he is a little boy”. I was surprised by that response because he is still a baby, well to us he is. He can’t walk, still eats baby food, and is not even 1 yet! However, the more I thought of it, the more I realized that he is growing and will be leaving his baby year behind to step into his toddler years. He has become so much more independent and enjoys doing things on his own without needing me like a newborn would. It hits me even more when I see newborn babies and hear that newborn cry. The funny part is when we left the line and were walking away. Eric turns to me and says in all seriousness, “Did you hear that woman say that Ethan is not a baby. When did he go from being a baby to a little boy?”

Happy Thanksgiving...From Our Little Turkey

Learning to walk

Here is a video of Ethan learning to walk with the help of his toy.

So big!

Bath Time

Here are some pics of Ethan playing in the bath. You can see his two new front teeth if you look carefully.

Truly blessed

Men have always left the child raising their wives, but nowadays fathers have become so involved and have really accepted the role of co-parents. Sometimes I forget how much Eric means to me especially when it comes to Ethan. He is such a wonderful dad and helps out so much more than I expected. Ethan enjoys seeing his dad walk through the door at the end of the day and just wants him and only him. Eric feeds him dinner and they have their own special playtime together. I thought it was really to give me a break (“break” meaning house work and dinner) but then I realized that it is a chance for Eric to catch up with Ethan and spend some quality time together. The other day Eric said that it breaks his heart when Ethan is standing by the front door in his pajamas waving goodbye to him in the morning. I had always known that Eric has cherished Ethan but when he said that, it nearly broke my heart that he felt the importance of being involved and that a little thing as a wave meant so much to him. Eric has often said that he has no idea how single mothers pull it off and has so much respect for them. It is great when a man understands the role of a mother.

“All I want for Christmas is my two……”

Ethan has two more teeth, his front teeth have started to come in. His gummy smile will be leaving me for good. It is so sad.

Today Ethan took three steps by himself. He pulled himself up along side the coffee table and went to the couch. Eric and I started clapping and wailing acting like he took those three steps on the moon. Little things like this make our day.

On another note, Ethan has been going through some crazy tantrums. I will take something away from him that he is not supposed to have in his mouth or hands and he acts as if I took away his very need for survival. He goes into this silent open mouth cry where you just see that he is about to wail a huge scream once he runs out of breath, then he throws himself back onto the floor either hitting his head on the furniture or the floor, then once I go to grab him he rolls away from me. Eric didn’t believe me till it was done to him. We just try to ignore it so he won’t think that kind of behavior gets our attention.

Hibernating

Ethan and I have decided that if we need to leave the house, it is on an as needed basis only. It takes me so long just to get him ready to go outside. This includes putting his socks, shoes and hat back on after him taking them off for the 20^th time. Therefore I would rather wait till Eric’s gets home and I go and run the errands by myself. Plus, it seems too cold to be taking a baby outside especially because Ethan is almost 10 months and hasn’t had a cold or an ear infection yet (knocking on wood).

I can’t believe that in about 2 months I am going to be the mother of a one year old!! Where has the time gone? I remember bringing home this teeny weenie baby from the hospital and how whenever he was being held he would bring his legs in and pucker out that cute little tushy.

Now I have a destructive, mischievous little boy tormenting the dog and using the big screen as his drum. He has just learned that he can open cabinet doors but with the crashing of a pot and him crawling away in fear. I hope that will be last time he tries that. He is speed walking across the furniture but has figured out going from the sitting position to the standing position without the help from the furniture. Although once he gets there he looks around and just stands without pushing his luck to move. The once adorable open mouthed slobbery kisses have been replaced with closed kisses since he has learned to pucker his lips. He is a big fan of mashed potatoes and still eyes my coke from time to time. Whenever we go out I get him his own glass of water and a straw. He absolutely loves it. One of his favorite things to do is to play ball with his Daddy; they roll the ball back and forth to each other. It is so cute to see him chasing after the ball and then trying to throw to Eric.

1st Halloween

Happy Halloween!!!

Standing Up

Ethan finally figured out he can stand up on his own, but he still doesn't know what to do after he gets there. He took one step yesterday, but fell right after. Hopefully he'll be walking soon!

Monkey Play

Since it was our last playgroup before Halloween, we decided that we would have the kids dress up in their costumes. Ethan's is dressed up as a monkey which I think resembles the monkeys on Wizard of Oz. His Grandma Teresa made it especially for him and it has truly come out wonderful. I was a little anxious about him leaving the head piece on but he did really well and didn't mess with it. There are some pictures of him at playgroup with some of the other kids. We tried to get them all in the picture but with this age it is a hit or miss. We can't wait for Halloween. Thanks again Grandma Teresa for a great costume, xoxo.

Lazy Weekend

The weather is too cold to enjoy the outside so we just lounged around all weekend. It was quite nice to enjoy the weekend instead of using it to get ahead. Besides being lazy we had a great dinner at a friend’s house on Saturday. They have a son who is the same age as Ethan, so they were able to play with each other. However, our son has assumed the role of being the bully, because he takes toys away and then crawls fast in the opposite direction to get away. We had to keep reminding him to be gentle because he loves to slap his hands on heads. I may say “gentle” a little too much because the other day Ethan was slapping Eric’s head and before I could say anything it sounded like Ethan was saying gentle. I thought that maybe I misheard him but Eric said he heard it too. He still didn’t stop hitting so I doubt he knows what it means. He must have associated it with hitting and has assumed that is what you call it. I may need to come up with a different way to get it across.

Mischevious kid

It seems I may have jinxed us because ever since I posted the last message Ethan has been falling all over the place. He is trying real hard to stand and balance without any help from the furniture. Unfortunately, he has not been too successful because he is constantly falling down. I try to help him, but of course he wants to do it on his own. He has a purple bump in the middle of his head that just makes me cringe.

We have a video to share of Ethan and his adventures. Click here to see it.

Bumps

Our little explorer has once again proved to us that he is a risk taker. He has been walking along the furniture lately and is getting very good at it. Yesterday we were in our bedroom getting Ethan ready for bed and he started to walk along side of the bed. Well at one point Ethan must of gotten brave, because he decided that he didn't need the bed and made a leap to the nightstand. Unfortunatley, he came down on the nightstand hitting one of the nobs with his head. He was screaming and Eric and I tried hard to comfort him. Now he has a little bump on his head near his right eye. I just kept reminding myself that there are going to be more bumps as he learns how to balance himself. I just hope that he doesn't get too hurt. Poor little guy:(

Family Pictures

Grandparents,

Be expecting a package with our family picture that we had taken a few weeks ago as well as a Halloween present from Ethan.

Playing

Who is throwing styrofoam at me?

The day started out pretty cold at 21 degrees but we still went to playgroup because it is not only playtime for Ethan but a chance for mommy to get a break and get out of the house. Once we returned home the day got a little warmer but not by much. After putting Ethan down for a nap I went outside to throw the trash. While I was out there some white stuff was landing on me that looked like broken up Styrofoam. I actually turned around expecting to find a person throwing Styrofoam on me (why I have no clue, I am just weird). Of course, no one was standing there and the ditz that I am realized that it was snow. Yes, it was snowing! Thankfully, it didn't stick but I am really starting to dread that it is the beginning of October and already snow. I can safely bet it isn't snowing in San Angelo. One good thing is that I have already gotten Ethan a thick winter coat in case the weather gets worse.

Little stinker found the toilet paper.

Iowa

Crawling in the Hanger
Four Generations

We went to Iowa over Columbus weekend to visit Grandpa and Grandma Haut as well as that side of the family. It was about a seven hour drive but we enjoyed seeing all of them. Ethan got to meet his great grandparents and warmed up to them like he has known them forever. During the weekend we looked at old pictures, heard some hilarious stories, toke a boat ride on the Mississippi River, doubled our money at the River Casino and ended it off with a plane ride from Great Grandpa Haut (Eric and I went on the plane ride, Ethan stayed in the hanger). We had so much fun and hopefully we will be able to make it out there again.


Oh yeah, Ethan turns 9 months today.

Military Wife

The good Lord was creating a model for military wives and was into his sixth day of overtime when an angel appeared. She said," Lord, you seem to be having a lot of trouble with this one. What's wrong with the standard model?"

The Lord replied," Have you seen the specs on this order? She has to be completely independent, possess the qualities of both mother and father, be a perfect hostess for four to 40 with an hour notice, run on black coffee, handle every emergency imaginable without a manual, be able to carry on cheerfully, even if she is pregnant and has the flu, and she must have six pair of hands."

The angel shook her head. "Six pair of hands? No way!"
The Lord continued. "Don't worry, we will make other military wives to help her. And we will give her an unusually strong heart so it can swell with pride in her husbands achievements, sustain the pain of separation, beat soundly when it is overworked and tired, and be large enough to say, "I understand" when she doesn't and "I love you" regardless.
"Lord," said the angel, touching his arm gently, "Go to bed and get some rest. You can finish this tomorrow."

"I can't stop now," Said the Lord. "I am so close to creating something unique. Already this model heals herself when she is sick, can put up six unexpected guests for the weekend, wave good-bye to her husband from a pier, a runway or a depot, and understand why it's important that he leave."
The angel circled the model of the military wife, looked at it
closely and sighed.

"It looks fine, but it's too soft."
"She may look soft," replied the Lord, "but she had the strength of a lion. You would not believe what she can endure."
Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek of the Lord's creation. "There's a leak," she announced. "Something is wrong with the construction. I'm not surprised that it has cracked. You are trying to put too much into this model."

The Lord appeared offended at the angel's lack of confidence. "What you see is not a leak," he said. "It's a tear."
"A tear? What is it there for?" asked the angel.
The Lord replied, "It's for joy, sadness, pain, disappointment, loneliness, pride and dedication to all the values that she and her husband hold dear."
"You are a genius!" exclaimed the angel.
The Lord looked puzzled and replied, "I didn't put it there."

Author Unknown

9 month check up

Today we had Ethan's well baby check-up. He now weighs 20.3 lbs, and his length is 28 inches. He has lost some weight but the doctor said it was due to him crawling. Thankfully there were no shots at this visit, but Ethan reacted as if he was given a shot. He is going through this whole seperation anxiety thing and the nurse or doctor could't get close to him without him clawing on me. It got worse when I placed him on the scale and stepped back. He started to cry so bad it sounded like a growl. The doctor said we should try leaving him with a sitter so he can get used to being around other people.

Goodbye walrus crawl

I guess the babies at playgroup had an effect on Ethan because later that night before bedtime, Ethan gave up his walrus crawl for the regular crawl. Here is the video .

Ethan goes to the farm

Today we visited the Young's Dairy Farm and Pumpkin Patch. We had fun petting all the animals and Ethan got to sit on the tractor. Ethan enjoyed playing with all the pumpkins and he picked two baby ones for himself. We finished off the visit with some homemade ice cream from the dairy.

Ethan goes to the farm Part II

It's getting colder

The days are getting a little colder; today's temperature is 55 degrees. However, it didn't stop us from going to playgroup. Ethan was having a ball and just couldn't get over all the other infants moving around. He kept me busy by either chasing him or prying him off of another baby. He has this fascination with heads. He is constantly trying to touch their heads and then grabs their hair.

It was also a great chance for me to meet some other AFIT spouses. We each brought something to eat and a recipe to share. I brought muffins and my recipe was for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip bread. It is so delicious and I got it from another spouse at Goodfellow.

I enjoy getting out of the house and socializing. You know I don't say no to talking or to food!

Old foggies

The other day Eric and I started to watch Wheel of Fortune. Yes, I admit it! To us it seemed that only old people got into it. We catch ourselves watching it everyday. Isn’t that sad! How did we go from knowing which bars had their nightly specials in college to actually scanning the preview guide to find Wheel of Fortune or the Price is Right which by the way I think Barker is a robot because that man was super old when I was a baby. In my defense I do have some age appropriate shows, like Grey’s Anatomy and Fashion Runway. I just wish they didn’t come on so late, because 10:00 is my bedtime. Yes, 10:00 is my bedtime, go ahead and laugh but if I don’t get my sleep I am not the nicest person. It is just not our TV viewing that surprises us but the other night I treated myself to a cape cod for my birthday. For those of you that know me, would know that it is my drink of choice and have drank them for a while. The other night I realized I hadn’t had one in a LONG time because after one I was already loopy. It isn’t that I don’t like to drink while watching Ethan. It is just if you drink more than one, it is so hard to get up with a baby. Therefore, it is just easier to not drink.

I don’t know if this is due to becoming parents or if we have just gotten soft but hopefully we can figure something out so we don’t feel so old. I will tell you one thing though; I am not giving up the Wheel of Fortune. Especially because Eric and I race each other to see who can solve the puzzle and I sometimes beat him. He hates to be beaten by a girl, which is why we don’t play rummy any more. Well then I guess there is only one solution to fix our problem. Drink more!

From Daddy to Ethan

The rocking chair that Ethan is on was once Eric's. Too cute!!