18 months!

WOW! Can my sweet little guy really be 18 months old today?? Before we know it, he will be TWO!  Everyone said that from 15 months to about 19 or 20 months are extremely hard with a baby.  They are developing their own opinions and are not afraid to share them (read: he likes to say NO).  I will say, things have gotten so. much. easier as of lately.  Maybe it's because we took the trip last week and I got a little break from the wild child, or maybe it's because he's growing out of this tough phase.  Or maybe it's because I am learning how to pick my battles and to relinquish some control (you wanna wear your rain boots all the damn time?  FINE!).  I think it's been a combo of all of the above that have made life so good lately. 

this morning: getting ready for our appointment! Brushing teeth, sporting a stylish robe

I love being a mom.  I really really really do.  It's hard.  But no one said it would be easy.  I love the challenges that I am faced with in this journey and I think it's so much fun to watch my son grow and learn (it'll never get old saying my son.....I can't believe how lucky I am).

Speaking of growing and learning: we had Cal's 18 month check up this morning! He was quite a ham at the office.  We got there a little early- not sure what was up with that.  I've been wayyyy late to every other appointment.  Go figure. Anyway, we were there early, so Cal had some time to play with toys in the waiting room.  Oh, and he wanted to wear his bug boots.  I tried to put on his cowboy boots because they look really cute with jeans and there was almost a meltdown to end all meltdowns in the parking lot of the office (yes, I travel with multiple pairs of shoes), so I choose to not pick that battle and he got to wear the bug boots!

 Playing in the waiting room!

When we got called back, he waved BYE to everyone in the waiting room (who were all cracking up at his boots) and grabbed my hand to walk back with the nurse.  Let me just say how much it melts my heart to have him reach up and grab my hand.  I don't know what it is about his little hand in mine, but he loves to hold my hand and I love love love love to hold his.  I don't ever want to let go....

Distracted, sorry...

We went into the "triage room" to get weighed and measured.  The nurse tried to help by removing the boots.  Ohhhhh buddy.  Not a good idea, ma'am!  After I calmed him back down again, Cal was measured and when she tried to measure his noggin, he got SO upset.  Apparently, when they reach 18 months, they aren't big fans of people touching them...good to know!  The nurse swore it was fine and totally normal.  I felt terrible.  As soon as she was done, Cal (in just a diaper), put on his boots and tromped through the entire office to the complete opposite end of the building to the examination room.  People were coming out of their rooms to look at him.  It was hilarious.  He was holding my hand (sigh), and holding his head high and clomping down the hall like he owned the place!  Cal would say "HI" to every single person we passed, and he swung his free arm.  It was great.

hanging out in the room wearing just a diaper and boots waiting for Dr. Kathy (have I mentioned how much we love her??)

Here are his measurements for 18 months:

Weight: 24 pounds, 11 ounces-----> about the 25-50th percentile (this is the lowest he's ever been in weight--percentile wise....I think it's because he is SO SO SO busy)
Height: 32.5 inches-----> about the 50-75th percentile
Head circumference: 50.2 cm -----> 97th percentile!!!!!!  hahahahahhahahaha....it's from the brains, really!

She was really happy with him developmentally, and therefore, we are too. 

We talked about his lack of TV watching... I know it's not great for a kid to watch TV a whole lot, but this kid doesn't watch it AT ALL.  I mean, we try....we try all the time (which I am not bragging about at all!), but he doesn't care a thing about it.  I didn't know if this was odd, since all of the other kids his age we know love to at least watch one show on TV.  The only thing he will ever pay attention to (other than GameDay and The Today Show) is Wonder Pets and that's only when he's strapped down in a chair, which is a trend I am not fond of.  I just didn't know if this was a sign of some ADD for later on down the road.  Okay, make fun of me, but the kid will not sit still long enough for 30 seconds of a show..... we just decided that he would much rather be going going going and watching TV takes up too much time.  I guess I should try to adopt that mentality....maybe?  But, I love the Bachelor..... (hmmm, does he get his ADD from me, perhaps???).

We had a big afternoon that ended with us playing in the yard and me taking a ton of pictures :)

Here is our monthly shot:

I just love this one....an airplane flew by and he was so excited:

 He's so serious in this one, but I love the expression on his face:

 The "boys" were having such a fun time together.  Cal would find a stick, Hank would take it from him and Cal would crack up.  This went round and round and round....

And finally, just some other fun shots of Mr. Cal Boy!

 Thanks for reading all the way to the end....phew!  This was a long post!

Birthday celebration!

What a beautiful weekend we had!  We had a showing on Saturday and on Sunday, we celebrated Elizabeth (my sister-in-law)'s birthday as well as Catherine (my niece)'s first birthday.  We had a GREAT time with all of the cousins out on the back deck playing together. 

Here is the one year old birthday girl, working on a cupcake:

 

 Notice the bathing suit?  That is what Eddie and I gave her :)  gotta love it!

The boys:

all three cousins-- love this picture

 

 

copying each other

I mean....honestly.  How can you not love some chubby thighs??

Cal is not afraid of a cupcake!

After playing on the deck, the kids headed down to the swing set to play.  Cal was on a sugar high and was having a ball!

So much fun watching these cousins grow up together!

xoxo

We're baaaaaaack!

Ahhh, it feels good to be home!  Eddie and I had a wonderful trip out to Utah, and really enjoyed spending time together, sans baby.

 It's snowing!

It's funny-- this trip was unlike other Jones trips that we have been on where you meet a bunch of people to hang out with during the week.  I guess that's because everyone skis on different levels and does their own thing during the day.  That being said, Eddie and I did not get ONE picture together (other than the self portrait above) this trip!  HA!  The last night, we had someone take our picture, but she was kinda short, and we are both looking down at her (since, apparently we are giants!), so we both have about 30 chins...and it's out of focus to boot.  I deleted it.  HA! No reason to keep it.  :)

We had a rental car while we were there, so while Eddie was out skiing, I was able to go out exploring.  It was a really neat place...and it's a good thing I'm pregnant, because I could have done some damage shopping! 

It snowed A LOT while we were there.  Like over 3 feet, which is a LOT to someone from NC!

Mr. Cal had the BEST time staying with his Grandma and Grandpa.  I made my mom promise to send me daily pictures and she actually did it!  It was so fun to talk to them and hear about their daily activities and what they were up to.  Cal had such a fun time-- I honestly do not think he knew we were gone or missed us one bit!  I can not tell you how great it is to be away from your baby and not be worrying about him.  I missed him like crazy, of course, but it was so great knowing he was so happy with my parents.  Yes, I realize how unbelievably lucky I am to have parents like mine who are willing and able to take care of a VERY busy almost 18 month old.  I can not thank God enough for my parents...

Mr. Hank went to the best camp EVER.  For those of you in the triangle with a pet, you have got to try this woman.  She runs the "camp" at her house and the dogs all sleep inside.  Hank usually ends up in her bed...!  He has so much fun when he goes there and usually sleeps for a solid week after we get him.  She is cheaper than any kennel we've ever been to, and he never goes into a cage!  LOVE it!  This woman's 3 year old niece came over to visit and she loooooves dogs.  She was pretending to be a doggie doctor and was checking out Hank and another pup.  After the examination, she rewarded them for being so good:

I LOVE this picture.  That is the epitome of a good boy... it gave me a huge belly laugh when she emailed it to me.

Here are some pictures from our trip, if you are bored enough to want to look!

Me at 29 weeks pregnant!  Wanted proof that I took this baby on a trip!

smiling at all the SNOW!

walking through the resort-- it was reallllly coming down this day

there's eddie!  I was up in the room and saw him getting into his skis.  I was excited :)

this is the resort-- I took this picture from the gondola ride up to the midway point of the mountain.  The area with the fence around it is the bunny slope.  I have never seen anything so cute as these little nuggets learning to ski in there! 

So, it was a great trip and I got to do a LOT of relaxing.  I read a ton, played some Words With Friends (hello, addicting), and got a fabulous prenatal massage.  It would have been nice to go to a tropical resort and sit by a pool all day long working on my tan, but this was something Eddie has always wanted to do...and hey, he earned it!  I was happy to let him pick a trip and I was just thrilled to get to go along for the ride. 

me = hot mess

I am not one of those moms that drops off their kid when they go on vacation and skips away happily.  Things would be easier if it was like that....

Eddie and I are leaving tomorrow morning for Utah.  I am calling it our Babymoon.  Cal spent some time over at my parents' house today since we had a showing and I went over when he work up from his nap.  I was all weepy starting from when he went down for his nap, and it's been downhill since. 

I put him to bed in their crib (and let me tell you-- he LOVES being over there. LOVES it), and started bawling.  It hasn't stopped yet.  I am such a baby.

My sweet little Cal Boy is going to have the best time over at Grandma and Grandpa's house, and I know he will, I am not worried about him....I am worried about me!!!!  The last time we left him we were headed to a tropical island where the rum drinks were flowing, and every time I started to miss him, I would order another drink (makes me sound pretty bad, huh?).  This time, Eddie will be skiing all day and I will be.....??   Resting?  Sleeping?  Walking around?  NOT drinking!  And NOT thinking about Cal....right?!?!

So anyway, I am going to take my blubbering self upstairs to finish packing and then I am going to bed early.  I am going to need lots of rest to make these puffy eyes go down :)  I am such a drama queen-- don't you love me??

PS-- I would love it if any of you reading this that can sympathize would comment telling me that I am not alone....thank you :)

Sunday Funday!

Eddie was out of town this past weekend and by the time Sunday morning rolled in, I was ready for him to get his booty back home.  He was working, so I can't really complain, but it did make me appreciate him even more.  It may not seem like husbands do a whole lot when they are home (at least in our case), but when they are gone for a few days, it really makes you realize how much their help HELPS! Cal and I both were missing Eddie.

 Going through dad's sock drawer.  Just giving it a good cleaning out.

Getting a better view of things...it's a much better view from on top of the tractor!

Anyway, by Sunday morning, Cal was sick of me saying NO and I was getting sick of his tantrums :)
My brother was over at my parents house with Jackson.  Chris was helping my dad with something on the computer and my mom and Jackson were playing.  I was originally going over to my parent's neighborhood to walk (like I do every other day), but when we pulled into the driveway, Jackson greeted us and started climbing up on the running boards screaming "HI, CAL!!!!"  I am telling you, these boys love each other!  I couldn't get Cal out of the car seat fast enough.  He was tearing the straps off of him, and Jackson was climbing up to see him and "help" me expedite the process.  :)

After i free Cal, he and Jackson ran down into my parents side yard.  They were chasing each other and playing with the balls in the yard and throwing them at each other-- so sweet.  My mom has this big creek that is next to her house and she was taking the boys down to throw rocks in the water and "look for turtles."  It was the sweetest thing to see my mom with a grandson on each side, holding her hand and following her wherever she went. 

After doing some exploring in the yard, the boys went to the treehouse/swingset:


Cal was scoping it out (notice grandma's hands ready to catch...Cal is pretty fearless): 

 I LOVE THE NEXT TWO PICTURES:

 (trouble)

 Just the boys hanging out

 After they played so hard, I tried to take Cal's under shirt off.  To do this, I had to remove both of his shirts.  Jackson decided he wanted his shirt off too. so the boys kept on playing with their shirts off!  It was 78 degrees out, so if they wanted to be shirtless, that was the day to do it!

 Having a little snack with Grandma...these boys love each other, and the each LOVE their grandma! Look at how Cal is looking at her in this picture.  He is crazy about her.

 And, not sure if you could see it in the above pictures from the treehouse, but Cal got super muddy playing so hard outside.  He was head to toe dirty!  He had a great bath and we were having some snuggle time on my bed before Eddie got home.  One of my favorite things about Cal are his sweet eyelashes...especially after bath time.  I tried to get a picture of them here, but I don't think the picture does them justice. 

Hope everyone else was able to enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend...Sunday especially!

I am 28 weeks pregnant tomorrow, by the way.... ;)

BOOTS

Mr. Cal is obsessed with boots. I've written about it before, but it has gone to a whole new level. Eddie's parents watched a video of Cal attempting to walk in the baby cowboy boots they bought for him before he was born.  They now sit on a shelf in his room because they are so so so cute, but they do not fit AT ALL!  After watching the video, they decided he needed a new pair of cowboy boots that actually fit him!  Patty (my MIL) went shopping and sent Cal the cutest pair of boots.  He LOVES them:

 As you can sort of see in the above picture, they are John Deer boots.  These fit better than his big rain boots (his other obsession) and actually stay on like they should.  He has a hat that he loves now too, see below:

 Below, he is riding his "pony" with his new boots on.  He is a cowboy, after all.  (note: the boots are VERY difficult to fit on with jammies on and someone gets VERY angry if his momma takes too long to get them on--it is NOT easy!):

 The boots are not limited to wearing with jeans and jammies.  My little Cal-boy wears them with shorts too.  And I must say, he is rocking this look:

We went out yesterday afternoon and I tried to put "real" shoes on him.  He. FREAKED. Out.  We were in the mall parking lot and people were staring at me like i was abusing my child.  It was that bad of a freak out.  So I let him wear his rain "bug boots."  The are green with bugs all over them.  He was in the stroller and was great for what I needed him to be great for, so I let him out.  He walked around like he OWNED the place.  I can not tell you how many stopped us to talk to Cal.  He was being SO good.  He walked right beside me with his big ol' boots on, his khaki shorts, and a long sleeved polo shirt.  He was so proud of himself and was just clomping along!

I guess that was a battle that I lost, but seeing him so happy, it was a battle that was won in the long run. 

He's ALLLLLL Boy!!!

Before swim class this week, I grabbed the camera and took a picture before we got in the water.  I just think he is so darn cute in his bathing suit and bare legs/arms/belly:

17 months old

My little guy is turning into SUCH a little boy!  He's always been all boy and it is so much fun to watch him explore and learn...

 He flipped his shopping cart onto its side and loves to climb up on top!

Cal spent last night at my parent's house.  Eddie and I are getting ready to go out of town and we are leaving Cal with my parents.  I wanted him to have one night over there before the trip to get used to their crib, etc.  He did great.  He went down at 7 and woke up at 7:30 the next morning!  He loves his grandma and grandpa so much....and we love having them so close!!!

Last weekend

I am wayyyyy behind in my blog postings...I've been taking a ton of pictures, but lacking the time/energy to post them into the blog!

This past weekend, Eddie's sister, Carrie came down from DC for a little visit. She is the best house guest EVER. She is SUPER helpful with Cal and keeps her room neater than it ever would be if she weren't here!  We had a showing on Saturday so she kept Cal entertained while I cleaned and then helped me get everything out that needed to be out.  I wish she could be here for every showing!

I'll start with Thursday... we had our swim class again and Eddie took some pictures of us swimming.  Cal is still loving the class and we have fun playing in the water together.

this is the "dig dig dig" that we are supposed to do to get his arms moving...he was cracking up

 During the showing on Saturday, we went for a walk:

And we had a little bit more time to kill so we went to Target where Cal spotted some wellies that look like Fireman boots.  He started shrieking and pointing at them.  Carrie Beth said we had to get them...I agreed.  They were a size too big, but he was CRAZY about them!  We put them on him in the store and when we took them off to pay for them, he started crying.  He loves these boots!  After the showings, we came back home and he walked around in his boots and played with Carrie's purse:

 And then, he was just getting plain silly.  He was running around the room in circles and falling on the floor.  He thought this was just too funny and was cracking up.  He was actually hitting the ground pretty hard, but it never bothered him!

 Saturday was also Carrie's Birthday!  We went to dinner at Kanki Japanese Steak House and Cal was VERY entertained by the chef!  He was a little unsure of him (the chef had a BIG personality!), so he leaned over to me and rested his head on my arm, and linked his little arm through mine (I seriously thought I was going to melt), and he never took his eyes off of the table.  Everyone at our table was watching Cal and his reaction.  It was pretty funny-- every time the chef did something, the table would react to Cal, not the chef.  The chef soon learned that to get a reaction from the table, he needed to get a reaction from CAL! haha!

After kanki, we came home stuffed for some birthday cake.  It was late, but Carrie Beth really wanted Cal to share in her cake with her (she's a good aunt), so they enjoyed a slice together!  Cal made a total mess of himself, so it was off to the tub.

 The next morning, we were playing around in Cal's room and he discovered how nicely he fit into a tote bag.  Carrie picked him up and swung him around and carried him over her shoulder (haha!).  We joked that he could be her carry on luggage from now on!

Now Cal goes over to the bag and tries to climb in (seriously, every time he sees the bag he does this), and whines until he is picked up and "carried" in the bag.  He is a mess, I swear!

I took Carrie by the new house on Sunday and she loved it too.  Our fingers are still crossed for that one...

We have had several other showings since the one above, and we just got some good feedback (like, really good) that we are trying not to get too excited over.  Who am I kidding?  I am totally holding my breath.  Eddie told me to not get too excited, but again, who am I kidding?  I am totally getting excited that it could potentially be something good.....

I'll keep you posted!

A MUST READ....hilarious!

This is a blog post that a friend of a friend sent out. I can only wish to be this funny. I am not. I find humor in my child's head getting stuck in things. Her humor is great...and so true. She is not anyone famous; she just writes it like it is! Enjoy!

Girls Night Out: The Revolution

As a kid, I remember my parents going out and leaving me with a babysitter. I also remember times that they would ship us to our grandparents so they could spend the weekend alone. And of course there were many times when my dad would go on fishing trips or leave to play golf with his friends. What I can’t seem to recall is a night where my mom would throw on her tightest jeans, a low cut shirt and 6-inch stilettos, and head out the door to party with her friends.

But that was then, and this is now. These days a Girls Night Out is a very common event. So common that it has earned itself an acronym… “GNO”. Personally, I hate acronyms, especially this one. It gives me chills when I see people write it, but due to my journalistic responsibility, I thought you should know. I needed to share this because it stresses how important this night is for our generation. These days, you can easily text a friend and say, “Hi BFF, I need a GNO badly. WTF is wrong with my husband? He makes me crazy, LOL.” Everyone would know exactly what you are talking about.

I believe that these nights have become so important to women because sadly, many of us are on the brink of depression, debilitating anxiety, and seemingly unmanageable stress. Therefore we each need a place to unload, compare, complain, and commiserate. What better place to do that than in some random Mexican restaurant, dressed up like we are going to the Prom, and slamming Margaritas as we try to relive our youth and find a way to remember what it was like before it all got so crazy.

This past Saturday night I went out with some girlfriends. I blew dry my hair, threw on some eyeliner and searched through my closet for something that didn’t scream ‘Ann Taylor’ or ‘Spring Break 1995’ (my closet seems to have only those two categories.) As I was getting ready my kids came in and said “Mommy, are you going on a date with daddy?” I looked at those sweet faces, those precious faces that I was literally racing to get away from, and said, “Not tonight little ones. Do you think I would be taking this much time to get ready to go out with Dad?”

See, the thing about going out with your girlfriends is that it makes you feel young and happy. Going out with your husband can be fun too, but at times, it can also make you feel old and tired. The problem is that when you go out with your husband, the expectations are extremely high. In about three hours you have to accomplish many things. You somehow have to find a way to reconnect with your husband, fall in love all over again, and successfully plan out your next ten years. It can be exhausting. And the best part is that in order to do this, you have to pay some teenager $18 an hour to check Facebook while your kids are asleep. How can that not be fun?

None of this is an issue when you go out with your girlfriends. Instead, all you have to do is hug your kids, kiss your husband, and head out the door. The drinking and driving issue is easily settled because some poor girl in the group is always pregnant. She has been forced into driving everyone to the bar and watching her girlfriends make fools of themselves. She stands there yawning, while holding her pregnant belly, and daydreaming about how much weight she will lose and what cocktail she will slam as soon as that kid is out.

I went out Saturday night and it was just what I needed. It wasn’t the craziest night I have ever had, but it made me laugh. These days, that is about as good as it gets. We started by rushing to the bar and ordering drinks, so quickly that you may have thought we were dying of thirst. For the next four hours we talked about three main topics…our husbands, our kids, and our sex life. Near death child experiences were shared, past boyfriends were remembered, and martial problems were solved. At the end of the night, a midget (this is not a lie, a real midget) came up to our table and told us we were beautiful and wished he could go home with us all. Does it get any better?

By 10:30 everyone was yawning and the waiter came over to give us the bad news. We needed to vacate our table because our two-hour time limit was up and another group of younger, hotter girls were waiting to be seated for dinner. Once I got home, I took off my painfully high shoes and snuck quietly into my house. I felt refreshed, content and grateful to be alive. I peered in at my two sleeping kids and lay down next to my sweet, snoring husband and smiled. Sometimes you just need three hours, a group of girlfriends, a margarita and a midget to realize that these may just be the best days of our life.

Have a great day!
xoxo,