Made it

Jason is finally home from training in Denver! He got home on Friday night after being gone for two whole weeks, plus a short weekend home and then another week in Denver. I missed Jason soooo much and the evenings were lonely.

While it was nice to have a lot of just me and Seth-time, not everything got done around home because I was still working during the day. I'm so thankful that my mom and mother-in-law offered to take on additional days for watching Seth during the week.

I kind of felt like a working single mom. When I got home from work each day, it was a juggling act to spend time with Seth, make dinner and do other typical evening stuff like a little playtime, storytime, and baths.

On most nights, we were able to Skype with Jason after he was done with training class. Seth got a kick out of seeing his Daddy on the laptop. I'd set Seth in his highchair right up to the table and set the laptop on the table. Jason would talk, make faces at Seth and Seth would just eat it up, squealing over his Daddy.

Seth and I had some fun bonding moments. On Wednesday nights, I'd bring Seth to Noodles & Co. for dinner for a Mommy and Seth date. He'd get a kick out of all the other families and little kids. We'd go to church afterwards. It was a fun time, plus it made me really confident in handling a pre-toddler out in public. :) But Seth is so easy-going that it's an easy job. :)

Here are some fun pictures.
One night while playing after dinner, Seth would head to his bedroom and we'd hear him rummage around his room, mumbling to himself. He'd run out of his room with a stuffed animal and deposit it on my lap. He did this 3-4 times. He was so happy to share his animals!!

This is either "So big!!" or "Touch down!".

15 months

Seth, you are 15 months! You seem like such a little boy. When we came home from Mexico and saw you for the first time in a week, it seemed like you had grown two feet.

In two weeks we go to your pediatrician to make sure you're "on track" with your height and weight.
Weight:
Height:

You never stop moving. I repeat. You never stop moving on your feet unless I am rocking you to sleep before you go to bed or you are sleeping. I am a little bewildered by how busy you are!

First, you play with your blocks. Then, you're flipping your green dinosaur upside down to spin its wheels. Then, you're carrying a toy to your room and back out to the living room. Then, you're kicking a soccer ball down the hall. Then, you're pulling your bag of diapers out into the living room. Then, you're climbing onto the little stool in the dining room. Then, you're throwing your blocks down the stairs. Then, you're running around the dining room table. Then, we're reading a book. You are so busy!

You just started climbing onto the couch. Oh, dear. You're learning how to slide off the couch too.

One day, Grandma found you kneeling on your knees on the piano bench banging on the piano. You had flipped the green dinosaur upside down and used it to climb on the bench.

You love to dance. When an upbeat, bouncy song comes on, you stop what you're doing and start bouncing to the music. You shuffle your feet and slide to the left and then the right. Sometimes you turn around in a circle. When your favorite Kindermusik songs come on, you stop what you're doing and run to me or Jason because you like to be danced with, since it reminds you of the dance we do at Kindermusk.

You are good at communicating to us, plus you take in so much and remember it well. We show you the animals in books and the next time we read those books, you point out the animals when we say, "Where is the ____?" You can also point and touch our mouths and noses when we ask you, "Where is Mama's nose?" We're working on getting you to touch your nose and mouth. Every morning while I'm rocking you in your nursery chair, I unzip your sleep bag and we play the game "Find Seth's Feet". I say, "Let's find your feet. Are they in here?" Then, you rummages around the bottom of your sleep bag until you find your feet and then we celebrate.:)

You point and "Mmmm" for something that you want. I'm trying to teach you how to sign "Please" and "More", but we're still working on that. Sometimes I don't guess the thing you wanted, so sometimes it can be a guessing game.

Your box of words just started expanding. For a few months now, you've said "mama" and "dada" here and there, but not necessarily to our faces. You try to repeat easy words back - it's cute because you think you're saying the word.:) Just the other day you repeated "doll" which came out like "Daw" and you said "ama" for "grandma".

You love to read and look at books. Your favorite books are the Winnie the Pooh Encyclopedia of Animals, Biscuits Goes to Sleep, the World in 7 Days book, the Minnesota Twins, Minnesota Vikings book and the Nursery Rhyme book.

You have even had your first.....tantrum! Are the terrible two's starting early? I'm not sure....you've had a few little crying fits, but I think it's mainly because you're frustrated with not being able to communicate.

Being your mother is such a joy. You're my little buddy and I love seeing the world through your big, ocean-blue sparkling eyes. I've seen the moon for the first time all over again. We sit rocking in your nursery chair before going to sleep and you play with my hair and touch my nose. Sometimes we just giggle and giggle.:)

Seth, you are a fun, spirited, sweet little boy and I'm glad God gave you to me and Jason. We are blessed that you are healthy and growing right on track. I enjoy every moment of these sweet days of your little world. Enjoy these moments, Seth.

Dancing King

Who doesn't love watching a little baby dance?? Seth has been taking cues from his mommy and daddy and is perfecting his dance routine: spin around in a circle with arms wide out, shuffle to the left and shuffle to the right, bounce up and down.

Seth's favorite song is "Skinnamarink" because we also played and danced to this song at Kindermusik. When I play the song on his CD, he stops what he's doing and comes over to me to be picked up and danced with.

Guess what little gem I found? Hand motions from a 1980's Canadian children's show that put hand motions to this original song:



Guess what we'll be doing soon??

Back from Mexico

Jason and I were blessed to go on a trip to Mexico. By ourselves. For a week. Happy dance! Our parents were UBER generous to watch Seth while we were gone. We will owe them for a while. Seth stayed three nights at the Teichroew's, then he stayed three nights at our home with Mom Joyce, then another night at the Teichroew's and his last night at home with Mom Joyce. We left on Feb. 20th for the sunny, white-sandy beaches of Playa del Carmen. We were able to stay at an all-inclusive resort - I had never stayed at an all-inclusive, so a week of not preparing meals was one of the best treats ever! Jason and I really didn't do much except lay on the beach, swim in the ocean, grab some cocktails and eat. We walked the cobble-stone streets of downtown Playa del Carmen one night. Our biggest decision each day was deciding where we would be - the beach or the pool! The beach had a perfect, white-sandy beach. The waves were just big enough to jump through, but not so big where I'd feel out of control swimming through them. A few weddings took place on the beach that we peeked on. Each night we'd go to the main resort court where they'd have caribbean or latin bands, karoake and other festivals. There was nothing better than walking around the resort and along the beach at night in 70-degree weather. It was so fun! I was so hesitant to be away from Seth for seven nights. Not because I was concerned about the care he'd receive while we were gone, but because I knew I'd miss Seth alot. We saw quite a few young families at the resort and it would make my heart hurt seeing them, thinking how fun it would be to have Seth with us. At the same time, I kept reminding myself that it was equally as important for Jason and I to have extended time for just the two of us. By about the fifth day that we were gone, I was really missing Seth. By our last full day, I was ready to go home. When we flew back to MN and our parents, along with Seth, met us at baggage claim, it was a happy and tear-filled reunion. My dad was holding Seth and when we got 10 feet from Seth, it registered to him that it was us. The look in his eyes and face was one of panic, "Where did you guys go? Why did you leave me? You're here now!" He couldn't get out of my dad's arms fast enough to get to us. Seth was so happy! Seth did great while we were gone. He enjoyed his time at my parent's. Sunny and Molly made peace with having Seth around. We are so lucky that Seth feels so comfortable with his grandparents that he can be away from us overnigth (if needed). It was so nice to have a get-away with Jason and really just focus on being a wife. Jason was patient with me as I worked through missing Seth and my mommy responsibilities.

12-14 months

I'm a little behind on writing about this last month and what Seth has been doing. He is now almost 14 months! The last two months have been quite the whirlwind in Seth's life. Nothing catastrophic, but so many new things.

The orthotist finally gave Seth the clear the last week of December that Seth no longer needs to wear the helmet. Yay! It is like we have this new little baby in our home. A little tow-headed blonde baby boy is toddling around our home now.

That's another realization I've had over the last month. Seth is a toddler now! Since Christmas, Seth has been an official walker. When he turned 13 months, he graduated from having to crawl over to a steady item to pull himself back up and walk on his way to using his own legs and arms. Now, he'll bend over and place his hands on the ground and bounce!

Seth points at everything! It's fun to try to figure out what he's trying to tell us. Okay - sometimes it can be frustrating too, because there have been times when we're just not getting it so Seth will get frustrated that he can't communicate. So, we do a lot of, "Show me, Seth. Is this what you want?"

He picks up on new things. Now that it's gotten warmer and the moon has been in the night sky, I've taken Seth out on the driveway and shown him the moon. It was so fun to be a part of person's new experience with something. I took Seth out onto the driveway one evening when the moon was out. We stood there and I pointed up in the sky to the moon and said, "Seth, that is the moon. Do you see it? It's high in the sky and it shines so bright!" We went out onto the driveway the next few things to look at the moon. Seth knew to look up in the sky and point to the moon. Now, when we're reading books and come across the moon, he points to it. I love seeing how he connects things in his world.

Seth loves nursery rhymes. I play "Wee Willie Winkie" on his Kindermusik CD. He stops what he's doing, looks up like he's just on the edge of his seat waiting for the sound effects in the song and squats at the "upstairs, downstairs in his nightgown".

He LOVES books! Right now, his favorites is the nursey rhyme book, the Minnesota Twins book, the Creation book. Seth will go into his room, sit down in the middle of his room and flip through his books. Some of my most favorite moments are times during the day when we snuggle in the fuzzy brown blanket in his nursery rocker and just read. He likes to flip the pages, so we don't always linger long in the books.

One day at the end of his afternoon nap, Seth was found in his crib flipping through a book that he had grabbed from the bookshelf by his bed!

Seth also has quite the opinion on what he should have. When he wants something, he'll cry for it! I can't believe how my sweet, little non-resistant little boy has changed to a little baby boy who is quite determined to have something he wants (whether we want him to have it or not). Here comes the part where we delicately balance the development of his will. Ha! We are teaching Seth how to share by showing him how to give Mommy or Daddy something that they ask for. It's rewarding to see when Seth obeys and listens to commands.

Right now, Seth still takes two naps each day: a 1-hr morning nap and then a 2-hour afternoon nap. He goes to bed around 7pm. He has 10-11 teeth. We can always tell when he's teething because he drools a lot and he has more restless sleep.

Trial Run

We had a big weekend. It was the first time that we spent the weekend at my parent's home. We're trying to help Seth feel comfortable sleeping in a bed that's not his own while Jason and I are gone in February.

The plan was that Seth and I would spend Friday night at my parent's house so Seth could get a feel for sleeping over in the "grandchildren's" room at their house. I was to stay over on Friday night, so I could put Seth down to bed and be there for him when he woke up. Then, we'd spend the whole day at my parent's, during naps and all mealtimes. Seth would spend Saturday night with just my parents. My wonderful husband was home repainting our living room and hallway.

I have to admit that I was really nervous about the whole thing. I worried that Seth would protest at sleeping in the pack and play at night or that he'd wake up in the middle of the night terrified and confused at where he was.

I tell ya what. I worry way too much about stuff.

While Seth was initially scared at being in a pack and play in "his" bedroom on Friday, I sat with him until he fell asleep in my arms (okay, I loved this because Seth moves so much during the day, that I love these cuddle moments!). It took about 40 minutes for him to get to sleep. Then....he was out, for the rest of the night! He didn't make a peep until at 7am Saturday morning. My mom, Seth and I had a leisurely morning in our jammies and ate Belgian waffles. Seth packed half of a banana and 1 1/2 waffles somewhere in his body.

After lounging around in our jammies and playing with (i.e. patting) Sunny, Seth took
an hour nap in his pack and play. We went to a used children's clothing store and found some nice shirts for Seth, plus an adorable Old Navy coorderoy jacket for next fall. In the afternoon, I had a baby shower to go to so mom and Seth went back to their house for lunch and an attempt at putting Seth down for a nap. It was an attempt. He just rolled around and cuddled with his blankie for an hour.

I came back to my parent's house to hang out a little bit before leaving Seth at my parent's house for the night. THE BIG TRIAL. Jason came over, dropped some church clothes for Seth and then we gleefully left Seth with my parents for the night. We went out to dinner and a "I spent $10 on that?" movie. It was kind of hard to really let go of my mommy mind of constantly caring for Seth, knowing that he was being fully cared for by my more than capable parents. Jason and I got back home and stomped through the house and talked loudly since Seth wasn't there....oh, and wistfully stood at Seth's open door wondering how our little buddy was doing at Grandpa and Grandma's house.

Seth was doing fabulous. He went to sleep for my parents and didn't wake up at all. Yay - success!! I feel so much better going for a week away and leaving Seth with my parents and Joyce.

When we went to pick Seth up at my parent's church the next morning, Seth just started crying when he saw me. I think he just didn't realize that he missed his parents until he saw us. :)

On some other notes, I'm capturing some stories about Seth so I'll remember them....

Seth has become more attached to his nighttime and nap blankie. On his own, he's walked out of his room holding his blanket in both hands out in front him - so much that he's nearly tripped himself! Seth has even gone into his room, pulled his blankie from his crib and laid down on the floor with his thumb in his mouth. Translate: naptime!

Over the months, we've been diligent reading books to Seth, whether it was before naptime, before bedtime or just when Seth seemed to want to slow down a little. When Seth was little, like 4-5 months and we'd read a book to him, he would bat his hands and arms on the pages of the books. Now, we say, "Seth, would you like to read a book?" and he'll walk to his room, pick out a book and bring it to us! It's so fun to see him so excited over something that seems so adult.

Seth is also really into pointing at things. When we wake Seth up in the morning and we open his bedroom door, he points to the hallway light and we let him turn the light on. Jason says, "WHere is mommy?" Seth points to me. Or, if I say, "Seth, can you find Daddy?" He goes to where Jason is.

It's been a fun month!

Toddler or no?

I cannot even keep track of all the little things that make up Seth's unfolding world as a toddler. In fact, I was surprised to learn at Seth's 1 year appointment that his first 1-year molar had popped in. It boggles my mind of all the things Seth is learning and picking up on a daily basis. So, this is just a mish-mash of little stories that reflect his budding personality, his will and what happens in the day of a 1-year toddler.

We put new ceiling lights in our entryway, hallways and family room last weekend. Seth wasn't around when Jason was putting them in, but he immediately noticed the new lights when we came in the room. He still points at the new lights.

Seth does so much pointing. He points and we say, "Show me. What do you want to see?" We also made progress during mealtime. Just a week ago, Seth would whine for something he wanted. I showed Seth how to point at what he wanted instead of us guessing and now he just points at what he wants. We're still working on the sign language "Please" and "More".

Seth has been more expressive with waving and blowing kisses. It's so cute. We're not sure who taught Seth how to blow kisses - he just sort of started!

A week ago, Seth and I visited my girlfriends at Caribou. Seth was flirting with one of my friends - shy-ly dipping his head, batting his eyelashes and smiling at her. It's so funny to see him flirt!

The other night, we gave Seth a bath. We were all in the bathroom and Jason started squirting me with one of Seth's squirt balls. Seth got a kick out of me squealing and getting soaked. He laughed and laughed. But then he got really concerned because I was screaming. I think he thought I was getting hurt. We stopped that really quickly!

These are the best days of my life - being a family with Jason and Seth. We have such a good time. THere is always so much laughter in our home. What's funny is that I can tell when Seth is really laughing at something because he honestly thinks its funny.