November Cold

Well Alex stayed home today. He was coughing, sneezing and not eating well. He had horrible sleep last night so we thought it best not spread any germs at daycare. He had a great nap today and finally seemed more like himself in the afternoon. I took a peek in his mouth and sure enough he has two upper eye teeth and two molars that have just poked through all at once. I am sure that is why he has not been eating very well. They just look nasty! I am continually amazed at how long it takes those teeth to actually come in. It seems as though we have been watching these come in forever. At least they have finally broken through the skin.

I tried to keep him occupied today with some videos. We watched an Elmo Christmas, Bob the Builder and his Baby Bach dvd. I was hoping this would help him rest a bit instead of being crazy busy all the time.

O Christmas Tree

We decorated the tree today. Alex really got in to it. He enjoyed helping open the boxes of ornaments and he even put a few on the tree. Then he decided that it was too hard to open the box so he just put the box on the tree! That was really cute. He like looking at his ornament from last year and always points to it when he sees the tree. We made the lights blink for him and we also decided not to put any glass ornaments on the tree this year just in case he gets a bit raucus with the tree.

We enjoyed listening to Christmas music and decorating today. It was a nice day just to be at home and not leave the house.

Children's Museaum

We met Tanya, Ted and Stella at the Children's Museaum tonight. We have never been there and due to the snow, it was very quiet. Alex and Stella pretty much had the run of the place and loved it. Alex was in to everything. He knocked down big brick walls, went shopping at the grocery store, and explored the tot world. It was so much fun to watch him explore everything. I was glad that Justin could help chase him and he did most of the chasing because I am moving slower these days.

I had my 35 week check up and things are beginning to change. I am starting to dialate a little bit and eface as well. I can tell the baby is getting bigger because it is often testing the limits of its room and pushing arms and legs out. We can actually see lumps protrude from my belly. That never happened with Alex, he was pretty happy being confined. Maybe this one is bigger than he was....

More teeth

We noticed those molars and eye teeth that I mentioned several weeks ago have finally just broken through. There have been a few grumbly nights, but not too many. We started giving Alex his own baby pillow to see if that helps him stay more in one spot in his bed at night. Right now, he is crazy in there and often does 360's in his sleep. Not quite ready for a toddler bed yet. I think he would spend most of the night on the floor. So far the pillow is making no difference and when I check on him before I go to bed his has already gotten rid of it. At least he is not climbing out of his crib yet. I have made sure to remove any toys that could be used as a step stool and the aquarium is now attached to the back wall of the crib and that is against the wall.

Alex had his first taste of Thanksgiving today. He did not like the turkey. He shook his head no a lot. He has definately developed his own opinion of what he wants to eat and what he doesn't. He liked the sweet potatoes, crackers and mashed potatoes. He refused the pumpkin pie which is odd because he likes everything pumpkin. At least he drank 8 oz of milk with his dinner.

More swimming

I have missed a few days in November! I have to get myself to jot down drafts even if I do not have time to proof and upload them. I have also been having some camera trouble which must be straightened out before Christmas and baby II.

Alex went under the water to retrieve little toy octopus at swimming this week. He also stood on the ledge of the pool and jumped to Justin for the first time. He was very excited and did this several times. Up until recently, he has only sat on the ledge and fallen forward in to Justin's arms. He is so excited in the pool now, that he does not want to get out. He is quite smitten with his blond swim instructor. Justin and Alex are the only boys. All the other kids are girls with thier mom's. Alex pays no attention to them, he just makes googly eyes at the instructor. He is a flirt already, we are in trouble.

Down

Alex is saying down now. He is also doing the all done sign consistently at meal time. He is good at shaking his head no and becoming a bit of a picky eater. He won't eat his french toast unless it has syrup on it and all toast has to have jelly. Nana's are his favorite fruit and if he can see them on the counter he is insatiable. Last time we had burritos, he loved them, but tonight he decided that they were not for him. He is also quite interested in using a spoon even though he can not really control it yet. He likes to have help, but not too much. He is becoming quite a big boy and wants his independance especially when it comes to eating.

Alex and duck

Alex is saying new words everyday! He can say his name, even though Justin and I have not heard it yet! He also is saying done, duck and blowing kisses. Each day he is doing something new. It is amazing to watch how fast he is learning new things. He is so full of energy from his new daycare. We are so happy that he is enjoying it so much. He is constantly learning new things and everyday there is quite a report of all the new things that he has accomplished. We are not surprised that he has learned to say duck. He loves his ducks and has five of them for bath toys and obviously is in love with the big one at the pool.

A biter

Alex got bit today at daycare right on the cheek. It was for no reason by one of the other boys who is almost three. He is kind of aggressive and is moving in early December. Alex did not bite back and so far is not being aggressive back. We hope that he does not pick up any bad habits from this other boy and hopefully the other boy learned that he should never bite Alex again. We are not too worried and expected some kind of biting incident at some point. Alex gets along with other kids great and hopefully will never become a biter himself.

26 pounds!

Alex went to the pediatrician today for his 15 month check-up. He is right on track development wise and he weighed 26 pounds and is 33 inches long. He was in the 75% range for height and weight. He is wearing 12-18 month shirts and they are still quite big on him. His legs seem a bit short for the 12-18 month pants so he is still wearing mostly 9-12 month pants. That seems crazy, but the 12-18 month ones fall off of him and he trips on the legs even if we fold them. That makes for a frustrating walking experience and aome potential fat lips. He is not the most graceful at falling and seems to have no fear which is not the best combination. Sometimes I think a padded room would be a good thing to have for our little beginning walker.

Swimming!

Alex had his first swimming lesson today. He and Justin had lots of fun. Alex was most interested in the large duck that was floating in the pool. He is not ready to jump to Justin yet. Every time he would go in the water he would turn around and slide in. He seemed to really enjoy himself and was quite tired after it was done. Justin had to chase him often while getting dressed because Alex was ready to explore. He was able to close off his throat and hold his breath during the water dunking, but he is a bit nervous in the pool and holds on pretty tight. We are sure that will improve in the coming weeks as he gets more confortable. It will be great to get him use to the water because when we move, we will have access to a community pool that is only a block away. It will be a fun summer!

Four a.m. wake up call

Alex decided it was time to get up at 4:00 a.m. today. We discovered two more molars and two eye teeth are coming in. I am sure that his mouth was quite sore. We cuddled him for a while and he finally went back to sleep. Those molars seem to be taking thier sweet time breaking through. I will be glad when they are all done!

We get to do a walk through of our house on Friday. We are so excited to see all the progress. They have now started siding and all the plumbing, heating and electrical is done. They expect to begin sheetrocking soon.