Jacob :: 15 Months

Jacob turned 15 months last week, but we went for his well check up today, so I waited to blog until today. He has slimmed down since his last appointment. He was 26 lbs. 6 oz. and 32 inches long. He is now on the chart and in the 91st percentile. 

Not too much has changed since last month. He is sleeping better at night (translated LONGER). He rarely wakes up before 7 and has even been sleeping until 8 these last few days. The nap schedule is all sorts of unpredictable. He usually just takes one a day but depending on what time he woke up, it could be at 10 or 12 until as late as 2. I try to hold him off as long as possible but some days are harder to do because of our schedule with kids. 

We started giving him diluted apple juice this week and he loves it. If he could pick, I'm certain he would eat cereal bars and lil crunchies (and ritz crackers) all day long. So, we add in some yogurt and still give him some baby food to make sure things are as balanced as possible. 

We did finally get rid of that 4 month battle of a diaper rash. Dr. S said we could go back to using our cloth diapers (my wallet thanks you Dr. S) so we'll give it a try and see. If it comes back though, I'm afraid we'll have to move on. 

He is signing bite and all done, waves and nods his head "yes" and is developing perfectly. Dr. S wasn't discouraged or worried about the fact that he isn't walking. Taller kids walk later, boys walk later, and he has made it clear since birth that he is on his OWN schedule. He has 3 more months to figure it out before physical therapy is in the future. 

He is currently fighting a cold and allergies, but no meds needed. He continue to be obsessed with cars and going for rides in the wagon. His favorite thing to do is stand in your lap in the drivers seat. In fact, I let him do that a few times waiting on Jim to get done in his office and he will now scream most car rides because HE wants to drive. Oops. We did give him a toy steering wheel and it helps most of the time.

A Busy, Busy Weekend

I have a lot of things I need to unpack after this weekend. Nothing too gigantic or life-changing; just little decisions here and there, some weightier than others, that are on my mind and heart. I won't go into too much detail, as some things don't need to be put out on the internet for all to see!

One big thing comes after attending the Love and Respect conference. We were invited by our mentors. Honestly, we wouldn't have gone if they hadn't invited us. It's not that we think we have this marriage thing down perfectly. And it's not that we think we know it all or don't have areas we can improve in. When I said "yes" to Jim, we started getting ready for the big day almost immediately. An important thing was getting pre-marital counseling.  We had EXCELLENT pre-marital counseling. They sat us down for weeks in a row, gave us books to read, things to think about, asked us hard questions that sometimes made us uncomfortable, and even more importantly modeled for us what they preached. As the anniversaries come, I grow more and more grateful for their wisdom and their faithfulness to share it with us because I know we are better for it. I know that not everyone gets the kind of equipping we did going into marriage. All of that being said, there is ALWAYS room to learn and grow. I can't speak for Jim, but I know there were things that I was convicted over and am challenged and want to change to better our marriage. In the grand scheme of things, Jim and I have a great marriage; at the end of the day, I know he loves me and is on my side and I'm confident that he knows I respect him and will stand by him till death do us part. 1 Corinthians 10:12 says it best, though:   "Don't be so naive and self-confident. You're not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it's useless. Cultivate God-confidence." (MSG) God designed marriage, he designed the inner workings of marriage and has a purpose bigger than procreation and pleasure. Marriage is a refining fire, a work in our lives to make us aware of just how much we need Christ. My youth pastor in high school always told us that "who you are at home is who you really are." There is great truth in that. I left the weekend encouraged, thankful, convicted, and energized to ask God for strength to do better. An unexpected take-away from the weekend came as I thought not only how I relate to Jim, but also in parenting and understanding Jacob.

After the conference, we celebrated my Grandfather's birthday and then Jim, Jacob, and I went for a run. I'm doing the Couch to 5K thing (I'm only on Day 2) but we went 1.5 miles at about a 12:30 pace (it has you walk and run at intervals which is less daunting to me than going out and running a mile and a half outright). After Jacob went down, we finished Season 2 of Downton Abbey. If Season 2 hadn't ended the way it did, I'm afraid I would have had to read ahead about the seasons to see if I wanted to invest anymore time in this. BUT, since Matthew proposed to Mary and she said "yes" and Mr. Bates got his punishment moved to only life in prison, I will continue on. But things are going along too well, I'm afraid, so I am a little nervous about what is going to happen. NO SPOILERS PLEASE.

Sunday, Jacob woke up a little earlier than usual, so Jim went to our 8 am service and I went to the 930 service so that Jacob wouldn't have to be at church until noon and could get his nap in. We tried an afternoon nap after church, but that never happened. We headed out grocery shopping, to Bahama Bucks (Jacob wasn't a huge fan of snow cones, but he did like Jim's smoothie!) and then I cleaned the Cube. Janey (our "good" house trained dog that hasn't had an accident in YEARS) peed on the carpet RIGHT in front of me twice yesterday evening. It was like she was trying to prove a point or get my attention. This was after two small run-ins with some neighbor dogs and Jacob pooping in the tub. Anyone who knows me knows that I love animals, especially dogs, and especially my dogs; but I would be lying if I didn't say that there are some days that I wonder if we might need to find them new homes because they aren't cut out for apartment living. : (

BUT Monday is here- a new week, a new start, the end of the month. What did you do this weekend??

Apartment Life + Nap Schedules + Run for Boston

We've lived in our apartment for a week and a half now, and we're completely settled in. I was set on getting things unpacked and placed as quickly as possible. My home may not always be clean or in perfect order, but if it's chaotic for more than one day, it affects me in big ways. My productivity slumps, my mood changes, I am more "on-edge" and start being critical. Sure, there are some things I may want to change and projects I want to do, but everything as it is now is functional and mostly organized.

I'm not sure if it is all in my head or a reality for now, but I feel like I can clean the apartment and be done. When I cleaned my house, I felt like I was never done. There was always something I needed to do. Maybe it's having less space and less stuff. I have no scientific findings, but I like that I can shower, read, and clean up the apartment (using the schedule from Clean Mama) all during morning nap.

Speaking of naps, that may all be changing. Yesterday, I had to take my little brother to therapy at 11. I knew if Jacob went down at his normal time (9:30) I would have to cut his nap off. The past week he has really only taken one nap most days. A few days I put him down in the afternoon because he was acting tired, and he laid in his bed and played and talked for almost two hours. I decided yesterday to try to hold him off until after the rehab appointment and it was a success! I kept him busy and he went down at noon and slept until almost 3. Glorious.

If we are making the transition to one nap, that means I've got to get up earlier than he is to get my stuff done! Man...I hate alarms.

We are in a moderate risk for severe (even tornadoes! ahh!) weather today so I'll be keeping a weather eye out, praying for the rain we desperately need, and for safety from severe weather. I'll also be running later on, whether it be outside or at the YMCA for Boston. You should do the same today, too!

Easter 2013

March 31st was a great day! Not only was it Easter (which is the most important part) but it was also Opening Night for my favorite baseball team, the Texas Rangers. We won't discuss what actually happened at the game because it was a giganto let down (Astros? Really?) but we've since moved on.

Normally, the ministry that we serve in at church has small group time after the 11 am service because the chances of a college student making it to church at 11 and then staying for free lunch and small groups are much greater than said college student making it to 9:30 small groups and then staying for church at 11. For Easter Sunday, we didn't have small groups after church so that the students and leaders could spend time with their families. We were encouraged to serve somewhere instead, so Jim and I worked the Nursery for the first time. We had two year olds and it was great. The preschool staff was there for any issues we ran into. We are now on the rotation to volunteer at least once a month. I snuck this picture while washing my hands after a messy finger painting project:

For lunch, we went to my Dad's house. We had delicious food and snacks and Jacob went on his first official Easter egg hunt. We had plans last year of walking kids everywhere, but alas, Jacob had to be carried everywhere to pick his up. Back breaker. He loved it, though, and all the cousins went on a wagon ride that was super fun, too!

That evening we hung out at my Mom's house for a delicious dinner. We were home by 7pm to watch the disaster of the Ranger game. 

Hope you and your family had a great Easter weekend!

Jacob :: 14 Months

Jacob turned 14 months old today! This has been a big month as far as milestones go. We are completely done with nursing (I came down with mastitis right around the 13 month mark which expedited things). It took a week after quitting cold turkey to feel "normal" again and there hasn't been much of an issue since.

Jim took over bedtime routine at that time because it was frustrating for me to handle Jacob when he wanted to nurse but couldn't. He now gets a bath, a warm sippy cup of milk, and a song in the rocking chair. He stays asleep (or cries, but stays in his bed) until 6:30, but sometimes 7 or 7:30. I handle morning times so that Jim can focus on his things and getting ready for work. I do mine in the evening. It's the first time we've really had a pretty solid routine and it's working for us for now. He is still napping twice a day, once for 2+ hours and another time for 90 minutes. That doesn't happen every day, but most of them.

We are almost completely done with baby food. He much prefers table food at this point and especially loves Lil Crunchies. We usually give him those while we finish up eating. I spent a lot of time feeling like he was behind in things and wondering if it was something we weren't doing or were doing that were keeping him from eating them. I'm so glad I didn't force it on him because the transition was so easy. We occasionally would give him something to try and see how it went. Suddenly, one day, he did okay with it. And since then, we can't keep food on the tray fast enough for him to eat.

The diaper rash almost went away with the seventh generation diapers. So, we tried stripping our cloth diapers and wearing them again and it's back. Onto the next thing...

His love for cars is growing and he can almost say "car" as they drive by. He also actively waves at everything coming or going. A few spanks with the spanking spoon was helpful for now; he seems to respond more obediently to a "no." I know that probably won't be forever, but for now, I'm enjoying it.

Jacob :: 13 Months

• Is almost completely weaned. Thanks to an awesome onset of mastitis, that process is now being expedited (and in fact he was cut off completely yesterday thanks to the antibiotics and infection). It is absolutely heartbreaking to deny him what he wants because I know he doesn't understand. It's also incredible that he is so smart. He will start crying and point to me and to the chair in his room where we spent so many hours hanging out- but then he throws an absolute fit when he doesn't get it. So tiny and yet so manipulative.
• Is in all 2T clothes
• Still has a mean diaper rash (going on a month). What started out as a yeast infection turned into a diaper rash thanks to the chlorine in disposable diapers that we were using because the cream that we were using to treat the yeast infection couldn't be on our cloth diapers. So, now we're onto clean and free disposables because the cloth keeps wet against his skin and isn't allowing the moisture to wick away so he can heal. 
• Basically, life is hard for the little guy right now!
• He is eating much better! Still mostly baby food and we add in table foods as we see fit. The kid can put away 2-3 containers at meal times though (when he's not with me, though- he's holding out)
• Still LOVES being outside- watching birds, cars and now planes. We have a base nearby that has flight paths right over our house; he loves it.
• We now have a spanking spoon. Little dude is going to have to learn that Momma means business when it comes to a few things.
• He has slept "through the night" twice now (and by that I mean from 8pm to 5 am). I was nursing him at that 5 am time and sending him back to bed so I'm not sure what we're going to do about that now. Cry it out? Get up? 
• Napping has become more of a guessing game, but that's partly because my schedule changes as does his sleep at night. If he wakes up early, he'll usually take two good naps. If he sleeps in, sometimes it's just one nap. 
• We have the two bottom middle teeth in. So cute.
• One funny thing he did this month was take his long sleeved shirt off during a nap. I went in to wake him up and it was in the floor. 
• He talks a lot more (mostly babbling) but it's super entertaining and funny. 

Jacob :: 12 Months

UPDATE ON FEB. 6: We went to Jacob's well check today. He weights 27 pounds 7 ounces, is 32 inches long, is still off the charts, is going to cry it out at night and we're starting the weaning process down to one feeding just before bed. He's still got a bad yeast infection from antibiotics, but we're doing everything we can. Because he has nursed so long and so well, textures are going to take longer to get used to, so we're going to stick with the Stage 2 foods and keep introducing new things! He'll eventually come around!

Jacob turns one year old today!
We started out the day with a sleepy rendition of Happy Birthday.

He continues to scoot everywhere. Sometimes I think he'll start crawling, but he always keeps that leg under him. Cautious kid? Maybe. Being a boy, I'm not sure that's the case. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

We're almost back to a good sleeping schedule. He's only waking up twice at night and still taking two good naps during the day. I have a feeling I'm going to get the nod from our pedi to invest in some ear plugs and let him cry it out. I'm not sure what I'll do with a full night of sleep.

The whole table food and weaning thing is still so confusing to me. I'm pretty sure I'm just a wimp and need to let him gag it out but it's just scary. That's something else we'll be seeking advice from our pedi on.

He is equal parts ornery and cute. We are in a parenting Bible Study, and one thing we learned is that even from early on, they're fighting for control. And he is. We have some started disciplining as he sometimes finds hitting people in the face amusing when he isn't getting what he wants.

His party isn't until next weekend and i'll definitely be posting about it. Here is 12 month picture:

A Friday List : Life Update

1. My child's sleeping schedule has been ruined since strep throat. He wasn't sleeping through the night before, but he was only getting up once MAYBE twice to nurse. Now, it's like every 3 hours. We tried crying it out for 4 days and it was miserable (2 hour scream fests are NOT awesome). We go to the doctor in a week and a half so I guess he'll tell me what to do. I'm just lost!

2. Is fests not a word? My iPhone is telling me it's not. Those little red dots underlining it bother me.

3. Speaking of iPhones, my screen has a crack in it. I have no idea how- I guess it was something in my bag. I had taken it out if the case to put on the iHome we use at dance and when I got it out a little later to recase it, cracked! It's not huge or a huge hindrance to my screen, so I won't be forking over the cash to fix it.

4. MY BABY TURNS ONE NEXT WEEK!! What the heck?

5. Happy Birthday to my very awesome youth minister extraordinaire cousin, Justin! Another birthday shout out to a great friend of ours as well as the College Pastor we serve under, Brady! Hope you guys have a fantastic day!

Life Update :: Strep Throat & Golf Lessons

It's been quite a week here in the Johnson house. I feel like it should almost be February, but alas, it's January 9th! Jacob got sick last week and it turns out he had Strep Throat! Poor guy! We're finishing up antibiotics this week. In the meantime, I also got sick (again!) with the same stuff I had before Christmas, so I'm doing what I can to feel good (my medicine options are limited thanks to breastfeeding).

On Monday, I took my Mom on her birthday trip. We went to Top Golf for some golf lessons (she's always wanted to learn how to play) and it was a super fun trip. I listened in on the lesson as best as I could with Jacob and then we played a couple of games. I think I probably enjoyed the two hours in the car there and back talking to my Mom, but I hope she had fun!

Yesterday, dance resumed for me as did a new schedule for my siblings (and Mom). I have a new student in my older class which is exciting for financial reasons and so my sister isn't soloing it anymore.

Today, we're finally back to a more "normal" schedule. Jacob and I went grocery shopping this morning and I've already got crock pot pasta fagioli cooking in the crock pot. He's taking a nap, so I'm enjoying some down time.

Jacob :: 11 Months

Jacob is 11 months old today. I cannot believe that I'm planning his first birthday party. Jacob is still not crawling in the traditional sense, but he can navigate around on the hardwoods by scooting. We haven't been sleeping well this past month- a combination of teething and traveling has been hard on him, I think. There are no teeth to show for these hard nights, though.

Jacob loves being outside. He loves watching the birds and cars. He actively points to the door and grunts to go out there. He got lots of new toys for Christmas, and especially loves the puzzles and this v-tech learning station he got from Jim's cousin Jenny. He is still taking 2 great naps a day (around 9:30 and 2).

The diaper we ordered to try was too big, so we're using a disposable at night. He is still wearing mostly 24 months and 2T clothes. His newest favorite food is yogurt and fruit. We tried the table food again last night, and he seemed to do better. He also has down drinking water from a certain type of sippy cup (the cheap one that leaks) but its progress and only has it at the table.

He also continues to set himself up at night and starts crying. He never does it during the day, only in his bed. I can only assumes he is using the bed to help get himself up. We'll be dropping the bed any week because I don't want to wait until he falls out of the bed to discover that he has learned how to pull up.

Jacob :: 10 Months

My baby boy is 10 months old. I can't believe in 2 more months, we'll have a one year old! I better get planning for his baseball party!!

It is so fun watching Jacob learn new things. He has a toy that requires two steps (putting a toy on it and pulling a lever) and he does it without help (and then claps for himself!). He is waking up just once a night (sometimes two but we cry it out) and napping so well now (two naps a day anywhere from 1-2 hours each). He is talking constantly and saying "da da" ALL THE TIME. The only time I ever hear him say "ma ma" is when he is crying. We got a different diaper to try (for chunky thighed babies, but it didn't work out.

I got out a tub of clothes that I purchased last summer. They were clothes I assumed we'd be wearing next year, mostly 24 months and 2T, depending on the brand. The table food thing didn't last, as he constantly gagged and is having trouble with that pincer grasp (guess the few times he did it last month were just lucky!) He loves playing in the floor with his toys and jumping in his saucer.

He scoots on his bottom to move around. He's made the crawling motion a few times. Last night, he even pulled up to a sitting position in bed (while he was sleeping). I'm not sure he realized what he was doing and then couldn't figure out how to lay back down so he started crying.

So excited to be getting ready for his first Christmas!

Jacob :: 9 Months

Yesterday, Jacob turned 9 months old! We went to the doctor for his check up, so here's what we found out, plus some other important information in my favorite way of writing, a list:

• He weighs 26 pounds 2 ounces
• He is 31 inches long (that's almost a yard!)
• He is still off the chart in height and weight, but follows a proportional curve above the graph
• He can play Pat A Cake, Peek A Boo, give high fives, wave (sometimes at appropriate times) and has good control of the "pincer" grasp (using his index finger and thumb to grab things) and a good "vocabulary" (makes lots of different sounds with his mouth in response to things).
• He is wearing 18-24 month clothes, but we've even had to venture into 2T for pajamas and some t-shirts.
• He was a skunk for his first Halloween
• I did find some shoes from Old Navy that will stay on his feet (as long as he isn't able to pull them off!)
• We will start offering table food to him since he seems to be snobby about preferring nursing over baby food. Feeding my child has been the hardest part so far about being a Mom. I never know if I'm doing the right thing or when to change. That probably sounds weird because you would think eating would be something you wouldn't have much trouble with, but it's hard for me. I need a checklist!
• He got a flu shot today and cried less than a minute.
• Still loves jumping-jumping-jumping in his bouncer and is content to sit in the floor with toys to play.
• Has made no motion toward crawling. He's got until 12 months to start or we'll have to do some physical therapy. I've been assured/encouraged that this is not uncharacteristic by other mom-friends. Things change so fast, anyway, I'm not worried about it at all. We'll be adding in some baby massage/exercises to see if that helps.
• He still doesn't sleep through the night. We go 7 hours at the most, but some nights he wakes up 2 or 3 times. If I didn't have a job, I'd probably be more into to crying it out in the middle of the night, but knowing nap times are my only "me" time at home to get stuff done (like showering or Bible Study or cleaning) before I go to work in the afternoons just makes me want to get him back to sleep ASAP so I can go back to sleep, too. I figure once he weans from breastfeeding, I'll be more gung-ho about making him cry it out.
• He's been wearing a disposable diaper at night- every diaper he was wearing was leaking and I was done changing sheets/jammies in the middle of the night. We're hoping for some different diapers for Christmas that will change that.

And now, for cute pictures:

Sick Baby Boy

First of all, shout out to my brother James because yesterday was his 25th birthday! He works on a ranch hours from where we live, but got to come into town so we could celebrate! Looking forward to when he lives closer!

This picture is of my brother, Mom and sister from Easter 2012.

Jacob hasn't been feeling 100%. He's got a super snotty nose and a cough. Two nights ago, we were up every 2 hours. It was exhausting to say the least. Grandma saved the day, though, and kept Jacob so I could rest. He didn't nap and hardly ate. Last night, I was expecting the worst! However, he slept from 8 until 3:40 and then until 7. Hoping he gets to feeling better! Today is his first Halloween and he is supposed to be a skunk! Pictures will definitely be coming!

PS: Did you know I have another blog? I wanted to separate projects from personal life and so this blog is all about what's going on in the life of the Johnson family. The project blog, called a Neverending List (because I ALWAYS have a project I want to be doing) can be found here!

Baby Food Strike

For the last couple of weeks, Jacob has been on a baby food strike. I thought at first it was because he was teething and didn't feel good and then he got all congested. However, on Sunday, he went to my Mom's house and ate an entire large packet of baby food. Hmmm....

I've tried feeding him baby food multiple times this week and he'll eat about a tablespoon before he begins waving his hands (sometimes flinging baby food everywhere) and whining. I've thrown away at least 5 packets of baby food in the last couple of weeks because he won't finish them all in the allotted 24 hour time period after opening. I don't know what it is about ME feeding him the food- the only thing I can think is that he prefers breast milk, which is why he would eat for other people and not me. The other issue, maybe, is that because he hasn't been eating baby food during the day he also hasn't been sleeping well at night. It's like we've reverted back to a newborn schedule of eating every 3 hours during the day and every 4-5 hours at night. Exhausting.

Two nights ago, he ate an entire Gerber plastic container of food for Jim and last night he ate another one while we were out for dinner. Jim's parents stopped by at the restaurant we were at to see him and they fed him while we ate. I got some more of the Gerber plastic containers of food because they keep for up to 3 days after opening. I know that means they have more preservatives in them, but we aren't in a place to be throwing money in the trash! I guess I'm going to go back to square one and feed him breakfast, lunch and dinner and see how it goes. Not sure what else to do! Anyone else have this kind of problem?