The new Waterville Hospital... a nice place to visit but I am glad we didn't have to stay!

Jamie and I had a early NYE party last night so Grammy & Grampy Underhill kept Adrian overnight in Stickney. We went to get him this afternoon and when he woke from his nap he was cranky like I have never ever seen (nor want to again). We decided something must really be wrong so we sucked it up and went to the Waterville Hospital. (Which by the way is beautiful, has great staff, and had us back home in 2 hours flat.) After seeing a RT, having chest x-rays in a baby torture device from the 1800s (which almost made Mommy cry as hard as Adrian) and seeing a nice doctor Adrian was diagnosed with pneumonia. No wonder the poor thing has been fussy! He had his first dose of some powerful antibiotics and a nice piece of toast and jam and he felt better right away. The good news is we hopefully are on our way to recovery and I have the next 2 days off to nurse him back to health. He slept all the way home from Stickney and seems to be having a somewhat peaceful sleep right now....

So that was Christmas, eh?

Wow. It's here and gone again. Crazy. We had a wonderful Christmas at the Underhill-Jones house but to be perfectly honest I am sort of happy it is over only because I am exhausted by all of it! I got a new camera from my sweetie so I have an extraordinary amount of photos, I'll just try to pick a few of my favorites.

Poor Adrian was sick all Christmas. He certainly still enjoyed it but he just wasn't his energetic little self. And he probably got tired of people running around with a kleenex after him the whole time. It's hard being sick at Christmas but at least I have the week off to take care of him. There is nothing better than a Mom when you are sick! (I still long for mine when I am not feeling well.) He has been super duper clingy with me these last few days. I love the extra cuddling but it can really play me out.

We celebrated Christmas with the whole gang: Brian & Tracey, Grampy & Grampy Underhill, Nanny & Grampy Jones, and let's not forget Melly and Barkley. It was a full house but sort of fun having all of the hustle and bustle around. It was the usual Christmas celebrations except in a different location this year. We were honoured that everyone came to us this Christmas!

Adrian got so (too) many presents this year. He can't even focus his playing. As soon as he sits down with one another toy catches his eye. He really seems to like his toy kitchen, toy vacuum (he's a progressive man) and farm set the best. You just never know which will be hits. The books I bought him seemed to get tossed to the side but I'll work them in slowly.

We had a wonderful holiday and are looking forward to some quite time as a family over the next few days. Hope everyone was as blessed as we were!

Some random Christmas photos....

Adrian is so sick and lethargic. Uncle Brian is making fun of him.

"So this is what I got Mommy this year!"

Adrian showing Grammy how it is done. He should know, he got lots of practice!

Christmas dinner in my basement. It wasn't pretty but the food and company were both great.

Daddy must have been a really good boy this year. Trust me, he usually isn't this spoiled! Socks and underwear for the next 5 Christmases! (-;

Merry Christmas Everyone!

We would like to wish everyone a truly wonderful Christmas this year. Jamie and I both have the rest of the year off starting tomorrow night! What a delightful thought. I am looking forward to sleeping until it is light outside, eating a leisurely breakfast with Adrian (as opposed to trying to shovel it down, you can’t rush Mom’s lumpy oatmeal) and spending lots and lots of time with our family and friends. So if you are in the Hanwell area, please stop in and see us. We have big plans on spending lots of time home and would love some company!!

We have far too many exciting Christmas plans to list but there will be many a holiday party with friends, family and co-workers. My office children’s party is today and I am pretty sure I am far more excited than Adrian. Rumour has it there may even be a visit from Santa! That should be interesting as Adrian has been ‘standoffish’ with Santa to date. But Santa will have a cool toy plane for Adrian that will be sure to win him some brownie points this time. We have a whole list of people we want to visit over the next couple of days… there just never seems to be enough time! So if we don’t make it to your house, know that we wish we could and we will be thinking of you this Christmas and wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas. What an amazing time of year!

Eating like a big boy.

The big change I have noticed with Adrian lately has to do with food. Not only is he eating a whole new variety of things (i.e. pasta, chili, Mom’s lumpy oatmeal) he is also starting to eat with a spoon and fork. I find it funny that he wants to try this because if I could, I would love to eat with my hands all the time. He will usually eat with his utensils like a ‘big boy’ until it gets too hard and then he resorts back to his hands. He is doing really well though! It’s hard for me to imagine that last time this year he was nursing exclusively! Now our word revolves around sippy cups and the high chair.

Another funny food thing he does is say ‘hot’ and make a grimace face the first few bites he takes of anything, regardless of its temperature. You can imagine how this started, he actually had some hot food a couple of time and we said ‘oh hot!’. But now he tries it whenever he puts food to his mouth, even if it’s cold! Here’s a picture of Jamie and Adrian blowing on his supper because it’s ‘hot’. (Of course the ‘h’ is not pronounced so it’s more like ‘ought’ when he says it.)

Adrian is obsessed with Cheerios all of the sudden. He would eat them all day long if we let him. I think it is because I got him some cute little seasame street bowls with lids and he likes to carry them around and eat out of them. He will polish off one bowl of dry cheerios and try to get back in the cupboard for more.

The last 2 of Adrian’s first set of molars is coming through right now. It looks so strange to see all of those pearly whites when he smiles (yes, his smiles are big enough that you can usually see his molars!). There hasn’t seemed to be any visible side effects of teething this time. Only 8 more teeth to go! Phew.

I ♥ the weekend

We had such a fun family weekend. Everything is just so entertaining with Adrian. Friday night we went to the mall just to see Santa's workshop (Adrian doesn't want to go near the big guy) and play in the play climber. As expected Adrian loved it.

Saturday night was my office Christmas party. It is always nice to have a night out with my husband. It happens so rarely. Adrian spent the night at Nanny & Grampy Jones' house. We had a Yankee swap and Jamie ended up with a little remote control helicopter (which he claimed was for Adrian even though it was for ages 8+). To be fair, Adrian does like to sit and watch it fly. Barkley however hates it!

Despite the cold I forced everyone out for some fresh air yesterday. Adrian isn't fancy on his snowsuit and I must say I can't blame him. The poor thing can barely move in it. And he won't keep his mittens on. Luckily I did manage to get a couple pictures of him smiling. Just look at those rosy red checks. Don't you just want to squeeze them!?!

Oh those handsome boys.

I hope this doesn't sound like bragging but how can I not say it.... Look how handsome my boys are!!! A pretty good picture seeing as 2 of the 3 of us were feeling pretty cranky about getting our pictures taken.

Defiant.

Defiant. Perhaps that should have been Adrian's middle name instead of Alexander. Adrian Defiant Jones... it does have a certain ring to it wouldn't you agree? I guess he has realized that even when Mommy or Daddy say 'no' he has something called 'freewill' and can do whatever he wants even though it may have some consequences. He is really starting to test us out and it's really funny which makes keeping my 'serious Mom' face on very hard. For example he knows that he is allowed to 'sit on his bum' on the fireplace but not stand up. So he will sit on the fireplace happy as can be and then all of the sudden he will look to make sure I am paying attention and then he will slowly start to stand up. He'll stand a little, wait for my reaction, then sit. Then try it again standing a little more each time. Wow, just when I thought I had this whole motherhood thing down pat I have to start figuring out how to discipline him! How exactly do you try to explain right and wrong to a 1 year-old? Anyone??

Getting ready.

With the first weekend in December came lots of Christmas preparations. Jamie put our cool new LED lights up outside and I dug out the Christmas tree. I took some good advice from my old friend Jodi and bought some plastic tree trimmings at the dollar store and let Adrian go nuts. I opened the box of decorations and he seemed to know exactly what he was doing. The only problem is he puts the decorations on the tree and then takes them all off and wants to put them away. So far we have the lights, ribbon and beads on the tree and Adrian seems content just to look with a little bit of 'gentle' touching. I even let him put the angel on the top and he was mighty proud of that. He keeps asking to get up in my arms to have a closer look at it. I must say, trimming the tree is much more fun when you have Adrian helping!

We also had the good fortune of being invited to a Christmas party at the Brewers house Saturday night. What made the party even more special was that Santa made a guest appearance. Adrian didn't quite know what to make of Santa as you can see from the picture below.

He wouldn't sit on Santa's lap but he would admire him from the safety of Mom's arms. He joined the group picture with all of the kids. Aren't they just the cutest bunch you have ever seen!?!

So far Adrian is really enjoying this 'Christmas' scene. Lots of lights, friends and he even had his first candy cane! Tomorrow night we have a turkey dinner at the church, another thing that is sure to make him happy.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Wow, it's the end of November! Where has time gone? It is hard to believe that Christmas is less than a month away. I am trying not to let it stress me out as I have done no Christmas preparing yet. And to make matters more stressful we are planning on hosting Christmas this year. Travelling between Beaverdam, Hanwell and Stickney was too much work last year! But now that I think about it, hosting Christmas for 9 people and 2 dogs is no small task either.

We haven't ventured to the mall to see Santa yet. I am not sure how Adrian will react to him this year but I will keep you posted. He gets shy out of the blue sometimes which is odd because usually he has no fear in the world. Adrian and I did take a ride on the Christmas train in the Presque Isle mall last weekend and he sure loved that. He just sat on my lap and made funny little grunting noises the whole time.

Our babysitter Lisa has her Christmas tree up (protected by baby gates) and Adrian loves to look at it. But I suspect he would much rather be tearing it apart based on the little devilish twinkle in his eye when he looks at it from behind the gate. I plan on putting our tree up this weekend, so we'll see how he makes out with it. I suspect it will be a battle. 'No touch' has become a the most popular phrase in our house lately, followed closely by 'Please don't stand on that', 'Stay out of the garbage', 'Get out of Barkley's water bowl'. 'Don't put that in your mouth' and 'DANGER!'. Wish us luck!

I love that Adrian loves books

A few weeks ago I was sitting on the floor playing with Adrian and he got up and ran over to the table with his books, picked one up, brought it over to me and sat of my lap and waited for me to read it. He sat intently while I read the whole thing. And he has done this many times since.

It was the sweetest thing ever. For starters I just love it when he sits on my lap like that. I can't imagine any better feeling in the world than having your baby so close. But the really exciting thing was that he actually wanted to read a book, even with all of the toys surrounding him. Jamie and I have been reading to him daily since he was born with the hope that we can instill a love of reading in him. So this was the first sign that it might be working. I felt a tinge of accomplishment! I so hope that he grows up to be an avid reader and to know the feeling of accomplishment that comes with finishing a good book.

A weekend in Enfield

We had a great weekend visiting Brian and Tracey this weekend in their lovely new home in Enfield, NS. As an added bonus Grampy and Grammy Underhill and Tracey's sister Susan were there as well. Adrian was his usual busy self and it was nice to have 7 pairs of hands to pull him out of trouble. I am glad other people got to experience just how busy the little guy is because I sometimes feel like I am exaggerating but I don't think I am. He literally never sits still. Ever.

Despite his non-stop motion he was such a good boy and didn't really get upset once. He was even good on the drive to Halifax which surprised me seeing as he doesn't like to sit still for 5 minutes let alone 4 hours. I got quite a sore back from constantly turning around to feed and entertain but I guess that is the price you pay when you travel with a busy toddler. I came prepared with a full bag of 'tricks' (food, toys, drinks, books, etc) which helped. Ah I remember the days when Jamie drove and I sipped away at my coffee, read and had a quick cat nap.

(Check out Adrian's evil face. Not quite sure where that came from as he enjoyed 'flirting' with Susan all weekend.)

A true New Brunswicker

Please don't ask how Adrian ended up in just his diaper and his winter boots. And the worst part is that after these pictures were taken he ended up in his birthday suit and his winter boots as he finally ripped his diaper off.

The good news is that we found winter boots to fit his fat little feet. And obviously he likes them because I will catch him clumsily trying to put them on himself. I think he really likes the clop-clop sound they make when he walks.

I don't know why but seeing a guy in his underpants and winter boots makes me think 'New Brunswick'.

Evel Knievel

Adrian has been upgraded from our little monkey to our little Evel Knievel. All of the sudden he wants to be standing on everything. He tries to stand on his toys, even the balls. I am forever pulling him off the fireplace ledge. And last night Jamie was playing with him on the floor and he decided to try to stand on his bike!!! He would get his feet on the seat and balance himself while holding onto the handle bars, then ever so slowly stand completely up. It was really something to watch and because it was so entertaining we let him do it (with some careful spotting by Jamie). He was quite proud of himself whenever he made it all the way up. The only problem is now all he wants to do is stand on the bike so we had to put it in the closet for now. Hopefully a few days will get him out of this stage!! It's one that is sure to see us in the Emergency Room some night.

Monkeying around on Halloween.

Happy Halloween everyone! Halloween was so much fun this year. Having a child is especially fun on the holidays.

Adrian had many festivities to enjoy this year. On Friday afternoon we attended a children's party at the Department of Health (where I am currently working). Adrian did some cubicle trick-or-treating, followed by some cookie eating and some gourd bowling. A full afternoon! We loaded everything up in the stroller and went to an adult party at my AdvansysTMC office. Adrian was the life of the party and was really in an entertaining mood. Everytime a group of people laughed he would launch into a loud, fake laugh with his eyes closed and his hand up in the air just like an adult. How can you not laugh at a little laughing monkey? We loaded the stroller up again and made our way to my car. I have never had such an exhausting afternoon at the office! I think Adrian tired to stick his fingers in every electrical socket and network plugin in the entire office. Not to mention opening every filing cabinent within 3 feet of the floor.

On Halloween day Adrian had a party at Lisa's. He wore his monkey costume and I was really surprised when Lisa told me that he was one of the only kids that would keep his costume on. They made Halloween sugar cookies, colored some Halloween pictures and ran around in their costumes (or not). Tonight I took Adrian around the neighbourhood in his wagon dressed in his monkey suit. He enjoyed the ride and the stops along the way. I let him open a box of Smarties when we got home and he would put one in his mouth, make an awful face, spit it out in my hand and then put another new one in. I let him give a KitKat a try and he left that in his mouth for a few minutes and then spit it out. He doesn't seem to like chocolate at all. If I wasn't there when he came out I might question whether or not he was my child... haha.

I hope everyone had a great Halloween this year. We sure did. Now I am going to go eat some of Adrian's treats!! (It's not like he can eat Doritos or Oh Henry bars, so I don't need to feel guilty, right?).

Here Kitty Kitty

We had the pleasure of visiting with Sara, Ian and Emily this weekend. It was very exciting for Adrian to be out and about, especially since they just got a new adorable kitten named Ruthie. Adrian seems to really love animals but this was the first one that was actually his size (compared to our 70lb shepard and the horses at the Country Pumpkin) that he got to make contact with so he especially love her. He figured out early that Ruthie seemed drawn to the string so he wanted to have that in hand at all times.

Sara also captured the photo below which cracks me up because it looks like a male model on the beach shot. Mark my words... he'll be in a calendar someday!

More, please!

I am not sure what has gotten into Adrian's appetite the last couple of days but he has been eating non-stop. He used to eat like this when he was much younger but his appetite had slowed considerably until now. He will eat whatever I give him for supper with gusto (even if it is a plateful of veggies, he even devoured a 2 egg omelet full of broccoli and mushrooms last night), and then be looking to our plates for more. Daddy had a late supper last night and Adrian had to have a few bites of spaghetti on his way to bed. I wasn't too happy about the mess it involved but a boy has to eat! He just stood beside Jamie with his hands up in the air indicating that he wanted a piece of the action. He found 'slurping' spaghetti very silly and therefore a lot of fun!

Do you think this phenomenon could be related to the fact that all of his 12 month pants stopped fitting this week?

Hottest new toy of the season

Jamie and I travelled all the way to Bangor to get the hottest new toy for Adrian and he just loves it... a toy straw broom complete with a dustpan. Leave it to Adrian to love that the best out of all his fancy toys. He carries it around with him everywhere and even pretends like he is sweeping. He seems to be going through a phase where he wants to do everything that Jamie and I do so I kind of figured this would be a hit. The froggie PJs are new too... they really are cute. We got him 4 pairs of these PJs as they are super cozy and warm.

Jamie and I had a great trip to Bangor and shopped until we dropped. We even slept in until 9AM Sunday morning. I was getting antsy to see the little guy on the way home though... that is by far the longest I have gone without an Adrian fix! Adrian got lots of PJs and new books. We are getting tired of his current selection so with cheap books and the dollar at par I figured it was a good time to add to our collection.

Adrian still isn't feeling up to par. Sunday night he developed a rather intense fever and we have been nursing that even since. He seems ok now, but he has a whole host of issues that may be related to teething. Honestly, I am so sick of him being sick... I just wish he would get better and stay better for a few days. I guess that is a drawback of all of the social time he gets at Lisa's.... germs! He is still playing, drinking and eating well (he ate a whole bowlful of salmon and squash tonight... he's such a good eater) so he can't be too sick. He is very very cuddly with me which I much admit is a bit of a pro of him being sick as he is usually too busy to be bothered cuddling. I guess you gotta take what you can get!

Let's hope the 3rd time's a charm.

We went back for Adrian's ear infection follow up with our doctor and his left ear is still very infected. Stinking antibotic resistant germs! We got our third prescription and are in the middle of that. Let's hope this one is a winner. The first prescription was 3 times a day for 10 days. This latest one is 1 time a day for 3 days so it must be a stronger one! Die germs, die!! Look at his evil grin.

Poor baby, he has had an ear infection for over two months now. You can't blame him for being a little cranky at times. We are hoping he will be feeling back to normal for his big weekend with Grammy and Grampy Underhill. Jamie and I are going to Bangor for a weekend... first weekend without the baby. We'll miss him but I know he is in good hands. Grammy and Grampy don't know what they are in for! They are going to be tired come Sunday night I bet.

Fall in the park.

Fall is such a great time for photo taking with all of the vibrant colors in nature. I really love this shot of Adrian enjoying himself in the leaves. This is on our way out of Odell park yesterday. We figured he would be tired after over an hour of hardcore playing but in typical Adrian style he still has some energy stored up for a little more fun.

It's very interesting to watch Adrian in the playground. He is pretty much the smallest kid there and he will just stand in amazement and stare at all of the big kids playing. I can tell he wants in on the action but doesn't know how to go about it so he just stands and watches with big eyes and an open mouth. It is so cute and a little sad. But he'll be the big kid before you know it!

10 Reason Why I am Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! Hope your bellies are all full of turkey. We just finished our second delicious turkey dinner. Yesterday was the Underhill's and today was the Joneses'. Adrian loves turkey and fall vegetables, especially squash. The boy can eat a lot of squash!

In keeping with the spirit of Thanksgiving I am creating a list of 10 reasons why I am thankful. There are SO many that I could list but the first ones that comes to mind are (in no particular order):

1. Adrian. I could elaborate forever on why I am thankful for Adrian but I'll sum it up with: being a mother is a gift that is incomparable to anything else in the world. Adrian brings laughter and joy into my life on a daily basis.

2. Having a safe, comfortable home for my family and myself. 45 Sloat St is much more than a house to us, it's our home.

3. Jamie. A wonderful husband and an even better father. Watching Adrian and Jamie together melts my heart. Right now they are building a Lego house beside me on the floor. Also, he knows how to make a darn cute baby! (-;

4. Lisa. I am so happy that we have found a great home for Adrian to go to in the day while Jamie and I are working. Lisa is a great caretaker and I am so glad I can leave Adrian in her care without a minute of worry.

5. Having a good head on my shoulders. I have always made relatively good decisions in my life and feel that I continue to do so, which makes my life a lot easier. I can thank my parents for the great upbringing I received for this.

6. Ice cream, cheese, bread, chocolate and olives. My favorite foods! Sweet potatoes, grapes, bananas, cream cheese and juicy pears. Adrian's favorites for the moment. I am thankful we have lots of good food to eat.

7. You, and all my friends and family. I have a great support system and network of friends in my life. They make life interesting and bearable in the bad times.

8. This beautiful weather. I love Fall, and who could ask for a better Fall than this? Sunny and warm with chilly nights that are just right for snuggling.

9. My job. I love my new job and my new company. It makes me excited for things to come in my career. If I didn't love my job I think it would be unbearable to leave Adrian every day.

10. God, from whom all my blessings flow.

I am also thankful for all of the fun that we have as a family. Here are a few pictures from our trip to the Country Pumpkin this weekend. Adrian loves to explore and the Fall is a great time for that.