Sunday, June 14, 2009
Scary Storm
This post is less about Parker and more about living in TN in general. Last Friday we had our first severe weather episode since moving here in February. Parker and I had enjoyed a great day of swimming at the pool then going to the splash park with friends when it started to thunder so we came home - luckily the splash park is close. Shortly after we got home it got really dark and started to storm. Jon called from work and said that Cordova just got hit by a horrible storm and they had lost power several times. While we're on the phone the tornado sirens go off so I hang up with Jon, get my dogs in the house and shuffle everyone into the master bathroom. The master bathroom and master closet are the only two rooms in the house without windows and the most center part of the house that we can all fit into. I'm trying to keep my cool so that Parker doesn't gets scared, but the sirens kept screaming and the storm picked up FAST! It always seemed like when the sirens went off in IL that you had 10 minutes or so to get into shelter - well not in TN! I called my mom and had her logon to the weather web site to see what's going on and when it's supposed to end. Thank God she was home! Just knowing more about what was going on made me feel better - plus having my mom on the phone was comforting too! I got into the bathtub with Parker after a few minutes because it sounded like the things were hitting the house and the winds were very strong. Parker thought the bathtub was great and proceeded to play with the soap and shampoo bottles. He still thought I was just playing a new game with him. The storm passed and we came out of shelter to find about half of one of our trees was down and some of our patio chairs were blown over - they are very heavy chairs so that must have been some wind! The rest of the neighborhood looked intact, so we were fortunate. We learned later that many people in our town had lost power completely (ours only flickered a few times) and they may be without power for up to a week! I feel like I'm much better prepared now to handle the next severe storm/tornado, but I hope that we don't see it! I really missed my basement after this, but homes here don't have basements because of the high water table.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
What's New in Parker's World
Parker has been working on getting his first molar this week. It's almost threw his gums. I think it's been a little sore lately b/c he has been a little finicky with some of his meals and I notice him chewing on the opposite side of the molar. For a treat tonight I gave him some vanilla ice cream - he really liked that!
Parker has picked up a few new words...the one I hear the most is "bubbles". He got a bubble machine for the bathtub for his birthday and he cannot go past his bathroom without saying, "bubbles, bubbles, bubbles". I try to keep the bathroom door closed (out of sight, out of mind) but when I forget to close the door he crawls in there and stands up on the edge of the tub looking up at the bubble machine chanting for me to come in and turn it on.
Parker is pulling up on everything - including my legs everywhere I stand - and cruising along the furniture. He has let go a few times to stand alone, but he falls to his bottom as soon as he notices he's not hanging onto an object. I think he's a few months from walking yet.
I recently noticed Parker is mocking things he sees everywhere. What caught my attention was the other day I saw Parker mimicking something he saw on the television the night before while watching a movie with me and Jon. It wasn't a "bad" or "dirty" movie, but there were several scenes where this man would scrub his body in the shower...the next day I saw Parker rubbing his toys on his arms and chest just like the guy in the movie. He had to have picked that up from the movie...there is no where else he would have saw something like that. So, now we are watching very closely what we watch when he's around. I try not to watch too much TV when he's up anyway. He's also trying to repeat what we say...so we really have to watch those bad words that slip once in awhile. :)
So far, we're 2 weeks into Toddlerhood and it's had its challenges, but the good definitely outweighs the bad.
Parker has picked up a few new words...the one I hear the most is "bubbles". He got a bubble machine for the bathtub for his birthday and he cannot go past his bathroom without saying, "bubbles, bubbles, bubbles". I try to keep the bathroom door closed (out of sight, out of mind) but when I forget to close the door he crawls in there and stands up on the edge of the tub looking up at the bubble machine chanting for me to come in and turn it on.
Parker is pulling up on everything - including my legs everywhere I stand - and cruising along the furniture. He has let go a few times to stand alone, but he falls to his bottom as soon as he notices he's not hanging onto an object. I think he's a few months from walking yet.
I recently noticed Parker is mocking things he sees everywhere. What caught my attention was the other day I saw Parker mimicking something he saw on the television the night before while watching a movie with me and Jon. It wasn't a "bad" or "dirty" movie, but there were several scenes where this man would scrub his body in the shower...the next day I saw Parker rubbing his toys on his arms and chest just like the guy in the movie. He had to have picked that up from the movie...there is no where else he would have saw something like that. So, now we are watching very closely what we watch when he's around. I try not to watch too much TV when he's up anyway. He's also trying to repeat what we say...so we really have to watch those bad words that slip once in awhile. :)
So far, we're 2 weeks into Toddlerhood and it's had its challenges, but the good definitely outweighs the bad.
Monday, May 18, 2009
12 Month Check Up
Parker had his 12 month check up with his Pediatrician today. He is right on track for weight, height and head circumference. There are not any concerns right now about his other developmental areas - he is not walking yet, but is "cruising," which is acceptable at 12 months. I think he'll take off walking in the next 2-3 months...and the doctor agreed that was fine. We do have some homework - getting rid of the morning bottle before solid foods. Parker has protested eating breakfast before his bottle...he always eats Cheerios or something similar after his bottle, but since he's had all of that formula he's not very hungry so he only eats a handful of Cheerios. So, we are going to offer up food with a sippy of milk for breakfast every morning and quit the morning bottle cold turkey. I'm sure it will be a few days of protest, but he'll catch on quickly. We're going to keep the before bed bottle for now and work on getting rid of it in a month or so - I'm in no hurry to take his bottles away if he needs the comfort of one to go to bed at night.
This leads me to my next challenge - getting rid of the pacifier. Parker uses his pacifier to go to sleep, but usually spits it out while sleeping and doesn't seem to care about it any other time. It doesn't interfere with his sleep, meaning he doesn't wake up crying because if fell out of his mouth, so I'm not too anxious to get rid of it, but I know it has to be done sooner rather than later.
It's hard to believe my baby boy is now techincally considered a "toddler"...WOW how 1 year went by quickly.
This leads me to my next challenge - getting rid of the pacifier. Parker uses his pacifier to go to sleep, but usually spits it out while sleeping and doesn't seem to care about it any other time. It doesn't interfere with his sleep, meaning he doesn't wake up crying because if fell out of his mouth, so I'm not too anxious to get rid of it, but I know it has to be done sooner rather than later.
It's hard to believe my baby boy is now techincally considered a "toddler"...WOW how 1 year went by quickly.
Friday, May 8, 2009
1 week and 1 day...
I can't believe Parker turns 1 in 1 week and 1 day! I'm not sure how I feel about my baby boy not being a "baby" anymore. We turned his carseat around yesterday - yes, I know he's not 1 yet and I'm breaking the law - P smashed Goldfish crackers all over his carseat yesterday and I had to take it out to vacuum it so I just flipped it around when I reinstalled it. He loves riding forward and watching where we are going instead of where we've been! :) But, that's just one more thing that grows him up from being my baby.
Here's an update on what P's been "doing" recently:
- Crawling all over and getting into everything. He's very fast, but since most of our floors are tile, we can hear him coming from anywhere. His hands go slap, slap, slap as he's speed-crawling to his next destination.
- Pulling up and trying to stand. His latest attempt to stand is the funniest. He gets up on his hands and feet with his legs straight as can be and his butt up in the air - like he's doing a bad push up - and then he turns in a circle until he gets frustrated and sits down. It's funny to watch him do it, but I can't seem to catch it on camera yet...he's fast!
- Babbling non-stop and actually getting out a few words. His clearest words are mamma, da da, daddy, get (he tells this to the dogs when we do)...a few not so clear phrases are puppies, thank you and snack. I know what he's saying but no one else does.
- Shaking his head "no". Mainly when it's time to eat he will shake his head "no" if he doesn't want to eat what we have for him. He locks his lips shut too.
- Rolling the ball. P loves to roll the ball back and forth and throw it around and chase it. If it is a bouncy ball he likes to throw it and make it bounce too.
- Reading - P's into the touch and feel books as well as other books that we read to him.
- Putting shapes into the shape-sorter. P has a hard time getting them to match up, but he's persistent and usually finds the right shape hole.
He's changing so much...and I realize this is still the beginning. ;)
Here's an update on what P's been "doing" recently:
- Crawling all over and getting into everything. He's very fast, but since most of our floors are tile, we can hear him coming from anywhere. His hands go slap, slap, slap as he's speed-crawling to his next destination.
- Pulling up and trying to stand. His latest attempt to stand is the funniest. He gets up on his hands and feet with his legs straight as can be and his butt up in the air - like he's doing a bad push up - and then he turns in a circle until he gets frustrated and sits down. It's funny to watch him do it, but I can't seem to catch it on camera yet...he's fast!
- Babbling non-stop and actually getting out a few words. His clearest words are mamma, da da, daddy, get (he tells this to the dogs when we do)...a few not so clear phrases are puppies, thank you and snack. I know what he's saying but no one else does.
- Shaking his head "no". Mainly when it's time to eat he will shake his head "no" if he doesn't want to eat what we have for him. He locks his lips shut too.
- Rolling the ball. P loves to roll the ball back and forth and throw it around and chase it. If it is a bouncy ball he likes to throw it and make it bounce too.
- Reading - P's into the touch and feel books as well as other books that we read to him.
- Putting shapes into the shape-sorter. P has a hard time getting them to match up, but he's persistent and usually finds the right shape hole.
He's changing so much...and I realize this is still the beginning. ;)
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Swine Flu
So, it was announced today that the swine flu has infected a child in Collierville. This has really scared me - I am mostly afraid of the unknown...what is this flu? Is it more contagious than the regular flu? Can it kill healthy small children? Can it kill healthy adults? What do I need to know?
I've been reading up and haven't found reason major concern, but I also haven't found much peace. I know I don't want my family to get infected, but I don't want to quarantine myself and Parker to the house all day, everyday. Jon doesn't have a choice - he has to go to work, so his exposure risk is greater. At least he doesn't work with the general public, but there are a lot of people in his office and I doubt the building has the best air ventilation. :)
So, instead of living in fear I am going to do my best to combat this virus and continue to live a normal, but cautious life. We'll wash our hands more, cover the shopping carts/high chairs that Parker sits in, try to keep him from touching everything he sees (easier said than done), try to keep people from touching him...he's such a lovable kid that everyone wants to come say "hi" and ends up touching him - even complete strangers, and avoid hanging out in small, closed in spaces (like small restaurants, etc) until this outbreak is under control. I just hope it's quick!
I've been reading up and haven't found reason major concern, but I also haven't found much peace. I know I don't want my family to get infected, but I don't want to quarantine myself and Parker to the house all day, everyday. Jon doesn't have a choice - he has to go to work, so his exposure risk is greater. At least he doesn't work with the general public, but there are a lot of people in his office and I doubt the building has the best air ventilation. :)
So, instead of living in fear I am going to do my best to combat this virus and continue to live a normal, but cautious life. We'll wash our hands more, cover the shopping carts/high chairs that Parker sits in, try to keep him from touching everything he sees (easier said than done), try to keep people from touching him...he's such a lovable kid that everyone wants to come say "hi" and ends up touching him - even complete strangers, and avoid hanging out in small, closed in spaces (like small restaurants, etc) until this outbreak is under control. I just hope it's quick!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
10 Smiles Tuesday
I saw "10 Smile Tuesdays" on my friend, Jessie's blog and thought it was a very cute idea. So, I am borrowing it. Thanks for the inspiration, Jessie! This is a list of 10 things that made me smile during the past week...or in this case weeks.
1. Seeing Parker fall asleep in his stroller at the zoo.
2. Having Jon home in the evenings again - Stratas Foods is officially live. There's still a lot of work to do, but at least he gets to come home at a decent time now.
3. Moms'/Girls' night out. I was fortunate to have 2 of these nights out last week. It was great to get out with new friends and remember what it's like to socialize with adults.
4. Going to the many parks in the Memphis area. There are several great parks that P & me have visited recently. So far my favorite is Cameron Brown in Germantown. It has a great pond with a walking path around it where I can push P in his stroller and enjoy the outdoors.
5. Feeding P new foods. P loves to eat, but when he finds something new that he doesn't like he'll stick out his tongue with food on it and make a horrible face while shivering in disgust. It cracks me up!
6. Being back in Illinois for Easter. I loved seeing my family and friends.
7. Watching my baby boy turn 11 months old. I can't believe how time has flown by...and he'll be 1 year old next month!!!
8. Riding my bicycle with P on the back. Jon put a seat on the back of my bicycle and we got P a helmet so we can ride around the neighborhood and to the park.
9. Nap time - I love those few hours of each day where I can catch up on email, FB and update my blog. 10. Getting my neighbor's dogs to stop barking constantly when I'm outside. We put up an ultrasonic anti-bark device in our yard that seems to be working well to stop the barking. Now I can grill out and sit in my back yard without being barked at non-stop. I just hope its keeps working.
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