Ear Infections

I know I complain about winter in the last few posts, but seriously.... It's never ending. I'm so happy to have Caden with us this winter. It's not so depressing because we have him to entertain us. All is going well these days minus the double ear infections we've been dealing with. I took Caden to the doctor's last Monday because he was really fussy and pulling at his ears more than normal. It turns out he had a double ear infection - I thought it would have turned out to only be one. He was prescribed amoxicillion twice a day for 10 days. The medicine has been making him poop like there is no tomorrow! Other than that he seems to be doing well on it. Seeing the pink liquid amoxicillion reminded me of when I was kid. I LOVED that stuff! I take him back this Monday for a recheck and hopefully his ears have cleared up. I've noticed his ears have been less waxy - not sure if that has anything to do with the infections or not.

I've been working on Caden's birthday invitations.. I can't believe it. He'll be turning 1 in less than 2 months! Holy cow! About a week or two ago Caden took his first couple of steps. I couldn't believe and was totally shocked. He can stand on his own pretty good if he wants to. That's right, if HE wants to. Most of the time if I try and stand him up he buckles his legs. I think those first couple of steps scared him. Poor lil guy! He needs to build up some confidence and my lil man will be walking in no time. In all honesty, I cannot wait for him to start walking.

His new favorite thing to do is shake his head "no". It's pretty funny and I think because Ryan and I made such a big deal about it, he does it ALL the time. Here is a cute video of him "saying" no.

My friend Nina is due on Monday with her little girl. She will be induced on Monday if she does not go into labor before hand. I cannot wait! I have baby fever, so I need my fix! I had a talk with baby Nina yesterday, but apparently she is nice and comfy and not ready to come out just yet. Can you blame her?

Doesn't he look so peaceful?!

Happy 10 Months!

10 Months is here already! 10 months ago our sweet little blessing was born. He is even more perfect than I ever imagined. My love for him grows stronger and stronger each and every day. I love watching him learn and discover new things. It’s quite amazing actually. Caden learned quite a bit during his ninth month. He learned to crawl – really well, cruise along furniture, pull himself to a standing position, he says mama, dada, and gee (doggy). He can push his walker all by himself and will occasionally stand with only holding one of our hands. That’s a lot for a little boy to learn! I’m always curious what the next month will bring and each month I am left in amazement.
Happy 10 months sweet baby boy! Mommy and Daddy love you SO incredibly much. You are our world.

This morning when I was getting ready to load the car Caden was in his crib. He was saying ba-ba and da-da, shaking his head no and making is tough guy face. He just seemed so grown up. Every noise he makes puts a smile on my face. He recently started shaking his head no when we are feeding him and he is not ready for another bite. His tough guy face is hysterical. He scrunches his nose up, crunches his eyebrows down, and then breathes in and out really fast through his nose. Hysterical!

Did I mention Caden cut two more teeth! He cut the two next to his top front teeth. He is also cutting one of the bottom teeth now too. We are almost up to seven teeth. Poor guy – teething really stinks.

I can say with certainty that when I write a post of Caden turning 11 months I will be in tears. All his month birthdays will be gone. It’s hard to believe that I am already starting his birthday party planning. I want my little baby back! Sniff, sniff.

I am posting the 9 Month milestones again because I believe I had it wrong. These are the milestones at the end of each month.

Most babies should be able to . . .

Stand while holding on to something - Yes
Look for dropped objects - Yes
Pull up to standing position from sitting - Yes
Clap and bang objects together - Yes
Combine syllables into word like sounds - Yes
Separation and stranger anxiety may begin - No

Some babies will probably be able to . . .

Use thumb and finger pincer grasp to pick things up - Yes
Walk holding onto furniture - Yes
Stand alone momentarily – for like a nanosecond
Wave goodbye - No
Drop object and then looks for them - YES
Understand the word no (but usually doesn’t obey it) - Yes
Begin to identify self in a mirror - Yes

Some babies could possibly be able to . . .

Say mama and dada to the right parents - No
Play patty cake – No, but he can clap
Play ball - If this refers to throwing balls/toys, then yes
Drink from a cup independently - Yes
Stand alone well - No
Say one word other than mama or dada – Yes, Gee (doggy)

I save the best for last - pictures of our sweet boy.

My teething baby


Look at all my teeth mom!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Can you believe that Ryan gave me a Valentine's Day card? This is the first card I have EVER received from him. (I was giving him a hard time about a week ago). It was really sweet and fitting. He also bought me a pint of my favorite ice cream - Haagen-Diaz Waffle Cone. Mmmmmmmmm... I bought him a a gift card to Starbucks. We typically do not exchange anything on Valentine's Day, but thought this year we would do something small and thoughtful.

As promised I have a few videos of Caden to share, so enjoy!

"Gee, Gee"

When did my little boy grow up?

Doggy!

Caden has learned his second word, and it's not "da-da". Caden just LOVES his dog Mia. He is constantly pulling himself up on her and thinks it is the funniest thing in the world. Of course he forgets each time that Mia is going to walk away and he will fall down and go boom! Well, Ryan and I will carry Caden around "chasing" Mia. Basically we just walk behind Mia and Caden has a ball with it. We always say "Is that your doggy? Is that your doggy, Caden?" Now when we "chase" Mia with Caden he says "gee, gee, gee". Poor Daddy.. his son says mama and doggy before da-da. It is so cute! I am going to try and catch it on video this weekend for kicks.

I'm not sure if I have mentioned Little Einsteins before, but Caden loves that cartoon. His favorite is Annie. He always gets a big grin on his face when she is on the screen. He is already crushing on the girls. He was watching an episode the other night when I was getting dinner ready. There was a tune playing that sounded kind of sad. All the sudden Caden starts crying in the middle of the living room. I ran over to him and rubbed his back and he just leaned into me crying. Poor kiddo! Already emotional like his mama. Haha.

Here is a picture of him sitting in the living room watching his show. Doesn't he look uber tiny in our living room? (which mind you, is not that big at all).

Here he is being all independent playing with his toys

And by the way, all that white stuff outside has melted - FINALLY! I'm sure we'll get snow again before Spring though. It's still only February.

Winter Winter Go AWAY!

This winter is really starting to get to me lately. Maybe that is the reason for feeling so blah and so incredibly exhausted these days. I'm so excited for Spring and Summer when we can be outside. We have a park across the street that I am anxiously awaiting to take Caden to. All we have been doing is sitting at home and feeling couped up. It is such a chore to get Caden all bundled up to go somewhere. We switched Caden to his big boy car seat about 2 weeks ago and we all love it so much more. Caden seems comfy and Mommy's back doesn't hurt (as much). Since the car seat is always in the car, this means warming up the car a bit longer in the mornings too.

I've been trying to keep busy around the house and I'm still learning my new camera. I bought a Camera Powershot SX110 (whatever that last piece means). The quality should be better for such a nice camera, but I have no clue what settings to use. (still working through the manual here!)

Caden's been doing awesome. I've actually been able to get him from 5 bottles to 3 1/2 bottles a day. He seems to be adapting well. Before I know it I'll be writing about weaning him from the bottle. I still feel like he was just born yesterday and I'm in complete amazement when I see how much he has grown. He is all over the place crawling and getting into everything. He just recently learned how to open cupboards and the doors to our entertainment center. Ryan will be putting locks on those and the cupboard with all our cleaning supplies this weekend.

I don't believe that Caden has much interest in walking yet. He can walk if you are holding his hands, but most of the time he pulls down so he can crawl. It just feels safer to him. I am in no means rushing him to walk either. I hear it's even more work then.

Here are a few recent pictures of my big boy! (from the new camera too!)

Mr. Crabby and Mr. Turtle - Caden's favorite bathtime toys

LOVE this face!

Watching his favorite "Little Einsteins"