The Best Little Helper

Eric asked me if there was anything we could do to make the dishwasher less interesting to Aaron... I replied that time will do that - once we have to ask him to do the dishes, suddenly he will not have any desire to open it... but for now, it's cute that he tries to help with the dishes...

No, my son does not have a tail ... he simply is wearing a onesie with broken snaps. :}

Anything to Be With Dad

Aaron will do anything to be with Dad ... even sleep in a position like this.

Does this look comfortable to ... anyone ...?

Recognizing Us

Aaron's getting really good at recognizing us... If I show him a picture of Eric he knows it is Dada and will tell you so.  If I show him a picture of me all he does is get excited... and if I ask if it is Mama or "where's Mama" he'll point at me. The only time he'll say Mama is when he realizes I am there and wants to be held (which is so adorable)

High Five

Sorry the angle is odd - I woke up sick this morning and had no desire to be in the video... Anyway, Aaron's getting pretty good at this high five thing. :}

Aaron's Accomplishments

In the past few weeks, Aaron has grown leaps and bounds! He is so smart!

• He has solidified his knowledge of "No." If he is doing something he really enjoys (like playing in the fireplace) when I say no, he'll still do as I ask and leave what he is doing, but he'll get very upset. He also will parade around the house saying "na, na, na" - three in a row, the same way that I say "No, no, no."
• He is even better at coming when I call him.
• He will throw up both arms and look at us expectantly when he wants to be tickled (it is in a different way than when he wants to be held...).
• When he has a grip on my hair (usually), all I need to say is "Let Go" and he will!
• He used to like grabbing faces and scratching them but we've been working on this... now he gently strokes faces! And if I ask him to be gentle, he will reach up and stroke my face. So cute! This is great as he plays with his cousins and with other babies. We recently went to a gathering where there were 3 other babies, and they grabbed his face and all he did was stroke theirs.
• He puts his hand in the air and mutters something - requesting a high five. And if I put up my hand and ask him for a high five, he'll put his hand up on mine (we're still working on the hitting part of a high five).
• He loves to dance - if he's on all 4's he'll rock back and forth in perfect rhythm with the music. If he's standing, he'll bounce.
• The movement isn't quite right, but he comes up to me making kissing sounds! He wants to give Mom kisses!
• He loves hugs, like, loves them. He'll wrap his arms around you and snuggle in close.
• He is back to sleeping 6-8 hours. Hallelujah!

The Bathroom

Heaven only knows why, but Aaron's favorite room in the house is the bathroom. If I close the bathroom door, he will wander the house, play in his room, then come back to me in the living room. However, if the bathroom door is open, he will go and play in there and not come back. He likes to try and climb in the tub and attempt to lift the toilet seat...

When I am doing my hair, Aaron likes to be in there with me (whatever Mom is doing, he wants to do also.). If I am doing something that does not require 2 hands, I will plop him up on the counter beside me and let him play with my clips, combs, etc. (Apparently whatever Mom is using is infinitely cooler than any of his other toys) If I am working on my make-up, I have to hand him whatever I am using after I'm done with it so that he can try too... He doesn't get to be up there often, but he LOVES it when I allow it.

Today, I found him in there (I forgot to shut the door) and instead of calling to him to come out (which he will do) I went to him instead. When I lifted him, he saw himself in the mirror and got all excited, so I sat him on the counter and did his hair with Eric's gel (if you look closely in the pictures, you can see a small mohawk...).

Itty Bitty Pretty One

Eric has a drum that is a hollowed out log with deer skin stretched over it ... Aaron loves it, even more than his bongos sometimes!




Today, I was trying to work on Aaron's quiet book and he was determined to help... Which is cute, but I can't have him eating my felt and playing with the scissors... So I pulled out the log-drum and the video is what then occurred for the next little while. Aaron really likes music and definitely enjoys dancing (a boy after my own heart!). I think it is SO cute! This is not the only song he danced to, but it is the only one I bothered to get a video of.

The Broom and Tickle

So, I know these videos are kinda long... I actually got Picasa to work for editing another video, but these took AGES to upload so I'm not going to re-upload them...

I left the broom out and Aaron's never seen it before and he had some fun playing with it...

He also has decided to show us that he wants to be tickled. Like I said, the videos are long, but super cute if you have the time to watch them!

Bear Crawl

This video is from Valentine's Day and I forgot to post it. Isn't he such a funny kid?

...My Child Knows What He Wants...

My Grandpa sent Eric and I various steaks for Valentine's Day. Along with the steaks was a 6" Chocolate Lover's Cake -- a heavenly cake with layers upon layers of goodness.

Eric and I were eating it tonight and Aaron gets angry if we don't let him try a bite of what we're eating and decide for himself if he would like some. He charmed us into giving him some cake and after that we didn't have a choice... we had to keep providing him with cake...

Sorry the camera shifted... I didn't notice till after, but it's still a fun video

Valentines Extravaganza!

Our Valentine's Day was extended which was so much fun!

On Valentine's Day, Eric surprised me with breakfast in bed! He made me an egg-in-a-basket (the basket in a heart shape) and provided me with some Love Potion.

**side note: the Love Potion is Martinelli's with a new label on it that says: Love Potion No. 9   Warning: Consumption may result in hot, passionate romance. I found them here at the Dating Divas site, in case you want to print your own. Trust me, Martinelli's is way more fun with this label...**

While at work, Eric would text me little question and answer things he came up with himself. He would pretend someone was asking him a question about me and then he would answer it. I was glued to my phone the whole day because I couldn't wait to get another text!

An example of a question/answer:

Mr. Hornibrook, I, Saint Valentine, have a few questions to ask you on this very special day.

Q: I see on your record that you are married. Please set the record straight with details about this woman.

A: Certainly, her name is Jessica but she prefers Jessie. She stands at 5’1” plus some change which is great because I always hoped for a short wife!

I had planned with the secretary at work to have little treats with notes on them put on Eric's desk throughout the day. Things like a box of Nerds that said I'm a Nerd for you or a package of Starbursts that said Stars Burst everytime we kiss.

When Eric got home we made our traditional Valentine's meal together -- Chicken Parmasean with potatoes and rolls. I have made this for him since our first Valentine's Day together - but this time he wanted to help (he knows that cooking can get difficult with Aaron wanting attention, and it is fun to cook together!)

After our meal we watched a movie... a very-much-not-Valentine's-movie-that-neither-of-us-enjoyed-at-all movie. It was called Hanna and we thought it was going to be similar to Bourne and somehow it got good ratings, but really ... ugh. A waste of time! We enjoyed each other's company but yeah...

Then on Wednesday, I had a deadline to meet! Eric's parents surprised us with tickets to the touring Broadway show Beauty and the Beast! I was so excited but I didn't have a dress to wear... (Eric had it easy ... he wore a colored shirt that I bought him for Valentines Day 2 years ago)

I wanted something knee length but all my knee length dresses either looked like (or were) bridesmaids dresses or they looked like they previously belonged to a fairy...

So I got to work. I gave Eric 3 colors to choose from (red, black, and blue) and when he selected red I showed him the dress I was going to alter. It was a strapless, floor length (well, more than floor length due to my *cough* unfortunate stature) red dress with a see through overlay containing some floral applique.

I thought about just snipping it at the knee and then wearing a jacket with it, but jackets move very easily and it is hit and miss as to whether or not the jacket will always cover my garments. so I decided it needed sleeves. Enter the hard part ... Aaron wanted to help.

I was trying to sketch out a pattern for the top of the dress and Aaron wanted to help - until he decided it would be more fun to eat the crayon. He had been crawling all over my paper and then snatched the crayon... silly boy.

I was surprised to discover that I liked my dress when I was done... I had expected to finish and then scramble to find something else in the closet to wear instead. :} If you look, the previous "neck line" or top of the dress that had rested above my breasts now sits under them. I used the bottom of the dress to create a chest piece and sleeves. I then added pearls along the Empire waist line. I was short on fabric and didn't have a piece big enough for the sleeves, so the sleeves are several strips sewn together - I had planned for them to be longer, but again, I was short on fabric. I was going to put the overlay back on but decided that I really liked it without...

My sister-in-law Kelsey took Aaron for the evening and we had so much fun. After we picked up Aaron, we went to Burgerville since Eric and I hadn't eaten dinner yet (by the time he got home from work we needed to get Aaron to Kelsey and head to Portland). **side note, Burgerville shakes are heavenly!**

Beauty and the Beast is one of my all time favorite Disney stories and the Broadway version was amazing. I loved how the actors didn't try to do it just like the movie... they really developed their characters in their own way.... All of the underlying necessary characteristics were there but they were portrayed in a unique way. All in all, for my first Broadway, I was very impressed!!! 

Don't Feel Like Doing Anything

I don't know if it was a subconscious New Years Resolution or a moving goal but since we moved to Oregon, I have tried hard to stay busy. Every day, I find something to work on or do. It's gotten to the point where I will design and sew a shirt, just for something to do. I've managed to make a list though -- of all sorts of crafts or projects to work on.

Aaron hasn't been sleeping at night, like -- at all. And even his during the day naps have been struggling. He used to sleep for 10 hours at nighttime and now the most I get is 3. Naps used to be 2 hours long and now I'm lucky to get 45 minutes.

With that being said, I'm very tired. So today, I intend to do basically nothing. I have some shows to watch, a baby to play with, and world to update...

So, here are a few updates on our little life:

• My phone battery died about 2 weeks ago and then my car died. I have a new phone battery now but the car still isn't working.  We're planning on leaving it and hoping it miraculously starts. :} Chances are, it won't, and then we'll get it fixed, but for now we're a 1 car family.
  
  
• Eric and I received callings in our ward! Eric is the Assistant Ward Mission Leader and I am the Young Women's Secretary. If I ever doubt the Spirit, I will refer back to being called to this calling. No one in this ward knows anything about me and I had never met the Young Women's president. She was praying about who to select and she knew that she needed someone good with a computer, someone who takes good notes, someone organized, etc. She felt she should call me but she freaked out about it for a while because she didn't know me and she didn't know if I would be capable of taking all of the paperwork load away from her as well as care for the girls on an individual level ... talk about inspired! I am not only organized, but I love doing it! As for the girls, I am, of course, nervous but excited.
  
  
• Aaron has a rash ... a rash that one of the treatments for it to let him run around naked... Can I just   tell you how nervous I am every time I let him loose without a diaper? He has peed on Eric twice now, but I have been lucky enough to avoid that. The other day I found a pee puddle after Aaron had gone down for a nap but that's about it. There have been so many times where he'll start grunting and I bolt for a diaper and scurry to secure it to him as fast as possible. I have always made it in time, luckily.
  
  He has to have clothes on at all times now-a-days because he has learned how to pull off the tabs and un-secure his diaper.  Considering how much he loves to be naked, I get the feeling he'll try to take the diaper off any chance he gets.
  
  I thought I'd show you a few fun pictures I nabbed the other day while he was running around. :} Just keep in mind as you view these photos that not every baby is created equal - if they were, they'd all be as cute as mine!
  
  
• Look close for his teeth!
  
  
  
  
  
  Aaron likes to use Mom as a jungle gym... 
  he tries to climb up me and he is always super excited as he does it.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  I was looking at him and not through the camera so I didn't realize I'd cut off his head,
  but the picture is still cute. 
  
  
• Last -- I leave you with a hysterical video of my son... Eric and I were playing several games of Carcassone (one day, I will win!) when we saw Aaron crawling around like this... by the time I grabbed the camera, I only got an 8 second clip of this, but you get the idea. :}

Yes, he is crawling around with a sock in his mouth breathing funny...

Sick Kiddo

Aaron's been sick for ... well ... a very long time.

He got a cold which led to his surgery site getting infected and then another cold and a rash ... and he's still on antibiotics for the infection.

Recently, it has really started to affect his sleep. He fights us when we try to put him down. He'll wake during the night for food and then not go back to sleep for another 2-3 hours. He doesn't want to play, usually... he just wants to be held and patted but if you stop he gets upset.

Last night was exceptionally rough. He woke at 1:30 and I fed him and tried until 3:30 to put him back to sleep until I was too tired to continue so Eric took over and brought him to me at 6 for my turn. Rather than go back to bed, Eric went in to work. I finally got Aaron to fall asleep a little after 7 and he woke at 9. Now, usually he does a 2 hours awake 2 hour nap cycle (except at night) so he should have gone down for another nap around 11 but he fought and fought. He finally went down a few moments ago (it is 1) and this is how he fell asleep...

He wanted to watch his youtube videos but he didn't want to sit on the couch with me. And he wanted to be held but wanted to sit on his own... (poor kid is so miserable) So this is the position he fell asleep in. I worked on the computer while he watched his videos till he drifted off.

 Sorry the pictures aren't great - I took them myself but I didn't want to move too much and accidentally wake him. He is down for a nap now. Cross your fingers he wakes up feeling a bit better.

A Strange Sound

I was out in the living room this morning - Eric and Aaron both still asleep when I heard Aaron start to stir in his room. I didn't think much of it and assumed he was playing in his crib (forgetting that when he was awake in the middle of the night not wanting to go back to bed I laid him on the floor so that I could be beside him as he drifted off to sleep).

It wasn't long before I heard him laughing and I was excited thinking that he was simply enjoying his time in the crib... but then I heard a very strange noise accompanying the laughter. Confused, I went to the bedroom to see what was going on.

I found him behind the door with a new favorite toy. He hadn't discovered this before because as you can see in the video, the door doesn't stay closed unless you fully shut it. So when he goes to explore behind the door he usually just gets stuck or shuts himself in accidentally - either way he doesn't usually enjoy being behind the door.

I thought this was super adorable.

A Special Bond

Today I was in the living room and Aaron was crawling over (I thought) to me. But he went past me and was starting to cry... I probably should have scooped him right up and asked him what was wrong but I was curious to see where he was heading. He went through the kitchen and headed for the front door. Confused, I continued to follow.  As he got closer to the door he started calling, "Dada" starting out in a low whine and progressing to a scream.

I calmed him down and went to go make him a bottle (I make the bottles in the bathroom because the water heats up faster in there). I heard him fussing again but it quickly changed to laughter. I went to see what he found to make him so happy and heard "Dada" amid his laughter. I found him again in the kitchen looking at a large picture of our little family that I have on the wall - smiling, laughing, and over all happy to see his "Dada."

I know Mama is special to Aaron but Dada and Aaron have a special bond. Whenever Eric gets Aaron in the middle of the night, Aaron does not go right back to sleep after eating - he is so excited to see Dada that he gets giggly and wants to play. When Eric gets home Aaron is instantly happy no matter how distraught he may have been.  Anything that Dada has is infinitely cooler than any other toy in the house.

I love to see the two of them together.

A Few Snapshots of Aaron

I just thought I'd share a few photos with you:

My little boy fell asleep while drinking his bottle... such a cutie pie! 

The girl on the screen is Alex G and she is Aaron's girlfriend.

Aaron will sit and watch any cover song done by Tyler Ward so long as Alex is in the video

Aaron will stop whatever he is doing if I turn on one of these videos.
We have a youtube playlist created with his favorites - it works great when he needs to take his anti-biotic. He'll take anything we put in his mouth when he's distracted by Alex.

What a hoot...