Our Baby Turns ONE!

A year like no other...

In my last post, I talked about all the things that made this year so extraordinary to me, highlighting the victorious Jayhawks and historical and inspiring presidential election. Now for the most special part of this year, of course, and that is our son Reed....aka Mr. Fantastic. A very happy first year to you, little man!

So I am writing this a bit late and fudging on the entry date to hide my procrastination a bit. I have been thinking of all the great things there are to say about our sweet baby, now active toddler but always a baby to me, and I could really bore you with a super long entry but will just sum it all up in my "Top 12". Why twelve? Well, because he was born on November 12th, he is now officially twelve months old, and I have had "The Twelve Days of Christmas" in my head since hearing it on the radio recently. For all these reasons, I deemed this the magic number to go with...

Twelve Thoughts on Mr. Fantastic's First Year:

1) love those bright, piercing blue eyes that people often comment on...they are like no other and will be a hit with the ladies one day (oh no! :))

2) his distinct monkey screech is a vivid first year memory of mine, though hasn't let itself out in months and for that I am very thankful for this

3) fire and water seem to be Reed's "elements", definitely a water baby and loves all things that have to do with this...bath, pool, ocean, hose, sprinkler, shower w/ mom or dad, Tucker's water bowl, etc.. And the fire is in his wild eyes and constant energy. This he gets from Daddy :)

4) Besides streams of "mamamama", and "dadadada" that he used interchangeably, Reed's first words were "No" and "Tucker" which we find amusing as that is mostly what he heard from us over the course of his life thus far. He often intentionally prompts the "No!" from us by doing something he knows he is not supposed to, with a naughty smile of course.

5) Nothing sweeter than his affectionate "wrestling" with Dad...the "come and get me AGAIN" tackle is priceless

6) Mr. Fantastic has been a very proficient sleeper and eater from Day One. For this, we are so so lucky. I am already anticipating his future sibling will not be so. Oh well...fair's fair, right? :)

7) Reed loves strangers. There is a lesson to be learned in this, I know, but for now it is darling to see him approach anyone he can get his speedy self to in public and grace them with his schmoozing laugh as if all the people in the world share an inside joke with him.

8) Humor. This kid is funny in his babble and over-expression and I can't wait to hear what all he has to say once he talks more...this could come back to haunt me so don't quote me on this in the future, please :)

9) While he has grown in to those big feet and hands for the most part, they still remain his cute and quirky signature to me.

10) As crazy and on-the-go as Reeders is, he will sit still and completely focus when being read to. It is sweet and interesting to see this total absorption and I always wonder what he is thinking as he studies the pages and listens to our words.

11) Many now teach their kids sign language and so I went with the trend and focused on a few "words". Amazed at how they just came to him, right around his first bday to the day. His few signs are still cute and oh-so-genious to me :)

12) "Sweets for the Sweet"...Reed's (main, there are a few!) nickname is "Sweet Bo", don't know where I got it from, but that's how nicknames just go sometimes. Anyhow, our Sweet Bo LOVED his birthday sweets and we (okay, I) took would would have been two film's woth in the 'old' days, of him devouring his birthday cake. I know we all do this for our baby's first birthdays, but I still found it thrilling. He even licked the plate at the end! He also ate up all the attention from guests, happily smiling along to his birthday song...his crazy mother even made the guests sing to him twice. Such a "Stage Mom" :)

As you know, my list could go on and on but I am sure you'd agree that it has enough already :).
We had a great celebration of family and friends for Reed's 1st and went to dinner at Red Robin on his actual day, too, and I am including pics of both. Spoiled little one...must be the first (and currently only) child.

Happy First Year, Mr. Fantastic!

"Barack Chalk, Jayhawk"...yep, you read that right

Well, we really did it this year. And by "we" I mean those dear to me who I have been cheering on with all the heart and spirit I have, my Jayhawks and Barack, of course!

For those of you who have had your fill of my political postings and emails, I get it. I can only swallow so much from "the other side", too :), but I assure you this is the last for a long while...wait, have I said that before? I promise this time, really, but it has been one of the most memorable years of my life...The Year of The Jayhawk+Obama '08= "Barack Chalk Jayhawk", of course. (And yes, not to be forgotten, the wonderful year of Mr. Fantastic as well...but I will save my entire next entry to his greatness as his birthday is nearing).

"Barack Chalk Jayhawk" was coined by a witty, or several clever, KU fans and I loved it immediately, as I am sure all who love both the 'Hawks and Obama do, too. Let me begin by admitting that we can be fanatic fans...a tad obnoxious even...and tend to integrate all other things we know and love into KU. For example, a long while back one St. Patrick's Day I was wearing my bright green "Shamrock Jayhawk" shirt to watch a March Madness game. A friend asked me out of true curiosity and jokes aside, "what does St. Patty's Day have to do with Kansas?", he went on, "I know the Notre Dame Irish significance, but explain to me KU's". Ummm, well, let's see, hmmm...we like celebrating St. Patrick's day as most do and also love our Jayhawks, so it seems totally normal to send it to the tee printing press, right? And so it was with the Barack Chalk slogan....gotta love (or loathe, depending on your take) the spirit of it all.

And so it went that the year brought Lawrence Lovers an Orange Bowl football win and the NCAA Basketball Title. And then more recently some of those same Larry L-er's welcomed the historical, memorable, heart-strings-a-pullin' victory of our new president, Barack Obama. (btw, we usually celebrate our 'crimson and blue' but cheered on the blue while that electoral map was turning one or the other, next time the rest of Kansas will hopefully join the spirit of things in color!). Barack even addressed us fanatics in a crowd at a rally a few months back, recognising "So you all must be those 'Barack Chalk, Jayhawks' I have been hearing about?". Yes, and like our shamrock shirts and numerous other examples of such, the connection seems so natural yet again.

Seeing that all major events that we hold close to us have gone our way this year, my fellow Barack Chalk Jayhawkers, let's bask in all the glory while we can as many more 'seasons' are around the corner and I am thinking I'll never know again a year quite like this!

(and until then, I will be keeping my tribute to Obama song playing on this blog and both my 'obama mama' and ncaa tourney tees worn frequently :)).

Week-O-Excitement

Week-o-excitement.

With super warm temperatures this week, Reed and I have been outside even more than usual, as if we have been given a second shot at summer these last few days. We went to the Denver Aquarium on Wednesday which he found a bit scary until he got used to the idea of hundreds of fish seemingly swimming all around him, and he really enjoyed the zoo yesterday (especially the carousel, I wish I'd had our video camera!). We wore shorts, basked in the sun and piles of leaves, gawked at the intriguing animals, shared a meal at the outdoor cafe's picnic table, and walked until the last possible pre-nap minute and it really was the perfect reminder of how much I love this "mom thing".

We are so excited to celebrate Reed's first Halloween tonight. We are headed to my parent's house in Colorado Springs as they have a big "to do" downtown near their house on the historical Tejon Street. Of course Reed doesn't 'get it' quite yet, but we are taking advantage of the warm weather (a Colorado Halloween rarity!) and having some fun people-watching of our own. The question of what costume to come up with always lurks, but I have a few more hours to figure it out :)

Tomorrow morning, we will be meeting our new niece, Megan Havenar. Her addition to the family makes for FOURTEEN cousins on Steve's side! Reed remains the one-and-only on my side, so he gets the best of both worlds....big family/hand-me-downs and spoiled-only-grandchild! And, tomorrow night is our annual "Urban Friends Thanksgiving" where we stuff ourselves full of turkey and all the fixings with our good Denver friends. With so many busy schedules, it came very early this year!

SUNDAY is Steve's birthday and he will be celebrating with Reed for most of the day as I have a friend's baby shower and another friend's book signing (check out: http://www.mucumbermcgee.com/) but we will do something special for him come evening. So much to celebrate!

FINALLY, as if the week isn't packed-full and exciting enough, the BIG election is around the corner, mere days away. I have never been so anxious and passionate for an election before (as most would agree, sans the Kennedy election which also brought much interest but of course my great presence had yet to arrive :)). Being raised in a "house divided" when it came to politics, I am thankful that I have always been fully informed and introduced to both 'sides', thus forming my own opinions instead of merely adapting those of my parents, peers, or church (though I am not saying that these aspects didn't have part in shaping my views). Believe it or not, I was even registerd as an independent until recently...yes, it's true! As a teacher, I feel the need/want/duty to advocate for education and "the kids". That is where I am coming from when I enter the booth and how amazing that each and every one of us has their own specific "reasons" for voting. However, I admit to already dressing Reed in "Babies for Barack" gear, taking him to a rally and debate party or tow, and so am not really sure that he will be receiving a bi-partisan perspective here at home, though I have a few years to think about this :).
No matter what your political views or interests are, the most important thing of course is that you exercise your right to vote, a privilege so many have fought hard for. Not to be too "teacher like", but this is my soap box message: Be fully informed when you vote, know why you are voting for who you are voting for...what's important to you?...and GET OUT THERE! And, God- willing, may whoever 'wins' turn this country around as there is quite a mess to clean up. I am confident that either candidate will only improve our state of affairs and, in that, we all 'win'!!!

Off to prepare for the fun ahead...Have a GREAT HALLOWEEN!!!

Well, it's been a LONG time since I have posted. I am in the process of transferring posts from Reed's site on www.babysites.com so that I will have those entries when my membership there expires! (Trying to budget a bit better these days since I am now earning half a paycheck :)).

I love this season so much! Fall is just the best. I attribute my obsession with this time of the year to my October birthday roots but maybe all love the change of foilage, crisp air, and seasonal flavors like pumpkin, butternut squash, apples at their prime and more. I could smell my spice candles and pumpkin crumb cake all year-round and probably still adore it, though maybe then it would lose some of it's luster. And the around-the-corner holidays add that much more excitement, too, especially with the seemingly earlier than usual store/shopping preparations. I could have picked up my Christmas lights along with my Halloween candy when shopping for my students back-to-school goods this year, I swear!

On the 16th, had a great 32nd (Lord, where has the time gone?) birthday, Steven's 33rd is around the corner, and Reed, too, will be a year old within the next few weeks (again, where has that time gone!?). Needless to say, we are having some busy fun around here.

I posted a few pictures from our neighborhood pumpkin patch and hope to post video of our new walker, too! Mere days until the BIG election, Halloween w/Reeders before that, and Thanksgiving in Kauai for us this year, too...our first time visiting the islands. So, much more to come and thanks for checking in on our family-o-three. Hope to be better about this blog thing in the months to come!

Until then, enjoy this October greatness :)

1st Valentine's Day with baby...

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

TONIGHT:
Since Steve LOVES this holiday and is forever romancing me, we are headed out for a 'real date' tonight...sans Reeders. My generous friend Caroline has offered to watch the little man...and she has twins of her own, too! She is super woman and can handle it, though, so we are granting her the honor of being Reed's first (non-family) sitter. Hope he is perfecto!

GRADUATIONS:
They say the first three months of life is considered "the fourth trimester". We are proud to have made it through with as much ease as could ever be expected, thanks to our 'easy' baby. Heading into his 4th month now, Reed has officially graduated from two 'baby things' as of late...

1. His small, portable bed that he slept by us in no longer fits his long legs. So, last night was his VERY FIRST night in his 'big boy crib' and I was kind of sad to have him across the hall instead of by my side (I admit to not liking change, being much attached and what am I going to do when I go back to work...yikes :)?!). He passed the change with flying colors...perfect baby!
2. Newborn diapers. Steve being the frugal (not cheap, no :)) man that he is, and with my hating to waste, we were determined to use all our newborn diapers before moving on to "Size 1". They were still fitting okay, though a bit short, so we had some "poop outs" (ah, all the little details new parents feel they must share). We didn't waste a one and the tall man is now in that next size...

bigger diapers, bigger bed, and still a' growin'...as is our love for him every day.
We adore our little Valentine...happy February 14th!

(More oh-so-thrilling changes coming soon. ;))

Two Months Young

LIFE WITH REED:
Reed has been with us for two months now and I can't believe it still.
Half of me seems amazed at how time has flown and at how much he has grown since November...four inches! It makes me sad each time he grows out of a pair of p.j.'s or cute outfit but I am happy he is still fitting into the newborn sized diapers. I admit I am not good with change and want to freeze time sometimes!
The other half of me, though, thinks that his birth last November seems like AGES ago. Being pregnant seems like years ago, really! It is as if someone re-programmed my brain the day he was born and my life before Reed seems so very distant. Our lives now with him in our family, I will say, is better than anything I have known.
People told us that it is amazing how much you love something so much from the very second your baby arrives. For us, we were kind of stupefied those first few days. Thought Reed was great and cute, but everything seemed a bit surreal. Each day since, though, our love grows and we can't imagine loving anything more than we do him. When he falls asleep on my chest (which he can maintain for hours...I love it!), I tell myself I could stay like that for the rest of my life and be happy. I feel like the luckiest person in the world to be Reed's mommy!!!

"THE STATS":
Reed weighed in at almost twelve pounds at measured 24inches (two feet tall...crazy!) at his two month appt.. He is in the 94th percentile for height and 50th for weight...a Gugat! He looks just like the Gugats, too, and since he looks like mom, Steve is hoping at least his athletic skills will take after dad!

MATERNITY LEAVE:
The turn of the new year meant no more money for me :). I knew this when I picked my return date just after Reed was born and, for me, it is well worth the time I spend with him in these first few months of life. I will be going back to work at the end of February and am going to like the "adult contact" and being busy again but am not looking forward to leaving the little guy behind. Brooke is going to watch him for those first few days and we have yet to decide who does after that, though have a few centers...one near Steve's work and another at-home childcare near our home...in mind. If any of you want to cuddle with this cute bundle full-time for two and a half months (until I have summer break), please add yourself to our interview list :)

SKI SEASON:
Steve is skiing as much as possible, per usual, as the snow is better than it has been in years (so he says). We have some weekend trips to Vail planned in the next months which we are all looking forward to.

Happy Valentine's Day coming up!