Weekly Diary

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APR.
3

Entered 11:50 PM by Brian

Swings & Things

We finally got a nice warm day so I got some metal eyelets to hang up Elizabeth's swing. She really seemed to like it.

Jodi's mom got Elizabeth a little inflatible pool a while back. We got this out as well. I was charged with inflating it, since I have a lot of hot air I guess. I couldn't believe how long it took to do this. I eventually resorted to a bicycle pump, but even that seemed slow.

Eventually we got it pumped up and filled with water. Elizabeth LOVED it! She really seems to like the water. She splashed and splashed. There was a lot of water to clean up after she was done.

 

9 Month Checkup

Elizabeth went to the doctor last Thursday. Her weight and height are still in the 25 percentile, but she is holding steady.

The day before we went she was getting a gooey build-up around her eyes, so the doctor gave us some eye drops. We haven't seen the eye-boogers since.

 

Family Reunion

My Aunt Donna & Uncle Paul and their two daughters, Kelsey and Miranda got a chance to visit us last week (We hadn't seen them since our wedding) and a good time was had by all. The girls enjoyed playing with Elizabeth and probably would have taken her back to Illinois, if they only had more room in their car.

The highlights of the visit (for me) I think, were:

The Scategories Wars: We bickered over rules & regulations of the game before playing. Kevin voted himself grand master and proved that absolute power does corrupt.

The Great Walnut Race: We all threw walnuts into the creek at Saunder's Spring to see whose walnut could make it to the finish line first. Kelsey & Miranda, though bored at first, got quite animated as the lone walnut neared the finish line. Though no one could accurately tell whose walnut won, it was still pretty exciting.

 

MAR.
22

Entered 11:08 PM by Brian

Cheerios, Showers & Bicycles

Elizabeth has been eating Cheerios by the dozens this last month. Well... most of them end up in her lap, but we are still going through them.

We got these baby spoons called Lil' Dippers that are supposed to be baby friendly. She can certainly hold them by herself, it's the process of dipping it in the food and making it to her mouth that will take some time and coordination. It's fun to watch.

She is getting more vocal. She knows how to scream loud. She's been making the dada and mamma sounds, but I'm not sure she really associates them with us yet.

When we are holding her, she will point at things that she wants to investigate. She is starting to get attached to those things too and getting vocal about it. When went to Toys 'R Us she wanted every stuffed animal she saw and often made loud yelps until I let her touch them.

When Jodi takes a shower, sometimes I will lift Elizabeth up and let her peer down at Jodi, which she really enjoys. Jodi tries to do the same, but we all know who has the muscles in this family!

We...or I have been wanting to get a bicycle seat, but I discovered that my bike can't accomodate these. We have looked at the little cars that you can pull behind, but we haven't made any decisions yet. We really don't have anywhere convenient to take something like that. We have a bike helmet for Elizabeth should we ever make a decision though!

FEB.
24

Entered 9:59 PM by Brian

First Post of the Year

Good grief I have gotten lazy!

Let's see here. Elizabeth has passed several milestones:

  • She has two bottom teeth
  • She has started crawling
  • She can grasp and eat (but just barely) a small object (Banana Fruit Puff)

Since she has started crawling, I've put caps in all of the most exposed electrical outlets and locks on some of the cabinets. The last measure has especially frustated Jodi - I'll have to get another set for my candy stash!

We don't really have a lot of unstable furniture or sharp objects lying about. Lately though, she likes crawling over to the TV and opening the glass doors underneath it. Of course this contains the heart of the Howell entertainment system - no place for babies!

Well, to make up for the lack of words in this space for the last couple of months, I am tripling the word output for this post. Enjoy.

 

Must Invest in Turtlenecks

Now that the little one is moving about, she is also pulling up on things to get to higher ground. That sometimes is me. She seems to take particular delight in pulling my chest hair.

Yes, I am a freak of nature, I have hair that pokes out of the top of my shirt - like small ropes for climbing youngsters.

I read somewhere that young puppies learn what is called bite inhibition. Basically they know when their playful nips turn to painful bites when their play partner starts yelping loudly. Thus, they learn not to bite to deeply.

"YOOOOUCH!" I have yelled and cried, but Elizabeth has NOT learned hair pulling inhibition. In fact, she thinks it's funny. Now that there is no more hair at the top of my shirt, she has moved on to my legs.

 

Breakfast is a Battleground

Lately, mornings have been an excercise in frustration. Most of the rice cereal or oatmeal goes uneaten. Elizabeth just doesn't seem interested.

I have mixed applesauce with the oatmeal, and the rice cereal already comes with apple flakes, but it doesn't seem to matter.

I have tried waking her up earlier and letting her play, but that has backfired too, because then she wants to continue to play instead of eat.

Sometimes, the only way to get her to eat anything of significance is to give her a spoon or other object. When she attempts to put this in her mouth, I move with a spoonful of food. Sneaky, I know. I learned this from Jodi. I don't have any sneaky genes myself.

 

Thanks to All Who Sent Christmas Gifts

I apologize for not sending out thank you cards to those who sent Elizabeth Christmas gifts. I am a fat, lazy jerk.

I resolve to do better this Christmas. I will have cards done earlier and have thank you cards mailed promptly.

Again, THANK YOU KINDLY to all who gave! Your gifts were thoughtful and well received!