Whew! I feel much better now...

I've been worried about Jack seeming UNCOOL -- what
with the Barney incident a few days back and the
goofy Bookbabies activities...I now feel redeemed as a hip
mama with a hip kid that is sporting his Ramones onesie.
Long live rock and roll! 1 -- 2 -- 3 -- 4!

Had you told me 2 years ago...

Had you told me 2 years ago that I would be spending my
morning at the library singing songs and shaking rattling
eggs and bouncing a kid on my lap with 20 other moms and
babies, I would have burst out laughing. But, that's what we
did today. It's called Bookbabies. It was so cute that it
would have made a weaker mommy weep. 30 minutes of
reading books aloud mixed up with nursery rhymes and
cute little made-up songs. 30 more minutes of socializing
for the babies and the moms. There were 6 moms from our
playgroup in attendance so we got to meet them and their
munchkins. Pictured above is Jack playing with his new
friend, Liam. Right after this photo was taken, Jack leaned
over and started petting Liam on the head. We'll do this
every Tuesday until they kick us out. So fun. So silly. Who
woulda thunk??!!

Best Father's Day EVER

Rob's first Father's Day.
I tried to get him to open his gifts 2 days earlier but he
made me wait until 8 a.m.! Jack got his dad 2 footballs --
one tiny one for now and a pee-wee size for later. Jack
didn't really know what all of the fuss was about but he
did have a great time eating the wrapping paper (as you
can see in the photo...) Rob has already been tossing
them around the house and I know that he can't wait until
Jack's hands are big enough to throw a spiral. Actually, I
don't think my hands are big enough to throw a perfect
spiral...Gift unwrapping followed by omelets courtesy of
Mommy and sous chef Jack then free food at Tokyo Joe's
for dads. Rob said it was the best Father's Day ever and I
must agree!

Jack's first grown-up party

We all went to a friend's birthday party today. 15 adults
and 4 kids. Liz and Mark (our hosts) were kind enough to
provide a highchair and the toys and blanket pictured above
for Jack to use. Olivia (their 7-year old daughter and the
previous owner of the baby gear) was happy to share until
the end of our evening when she told her mom that "Jack is
really cute and all, but I think we're going to have to wash
all of my toys because he is drooling all over them!" The
only downside of the afternoon? Barney. Big purple scary
dinosaur. I thought that I would be able to control what
Jack sees and hears and thinks for just a little while but
imagine my horror when he found a stuffed Barney in the
toy tub, squeezed its tummy and squealed with delight when
the toy started that AWFUL song..."I love you, you love me..."
I somehow thought that I would end up with a kid that was
cooler than this...

Raspberries -- and we're not talking about the fruit...

I know you will all be duly impressed that at 4:05 p.m. MST yesterday, our pride and joy, Jack, discovered that he can now blow "raspberries." For those of you that are not familiar, a raspberry is a messy, slobbery, spitty noise that you make with your tongue and lips. And, as an extra bonus, our version is ESPECIALLY fantastic because of all of the extra drool from the teething issue...We, as I am sure you can understand, are extremely proud. When Rob saw this new skill he was beaming. A perfect Father's Day present, for sure.

First (and maybe last?) trip to the library

Ok -- so today was our first trip to the Children's Library in Downtown Denver. Huge space, lots of germy fun toys and drooly stuffed animals to play with. Little did I know that it would also be the home to lecherous weekend dads and ridiculously overbearing moms. Rob was in the grown-up section while Jack and I staked out some prime floor space and waited for the action. For future reference, DO NOT wear a low cut dress to the library on a Sunday afternoon. The father of a 16-month old wearing a Superman costume was ogling me like I was the first woman he had seen after a long stint in the joint while his child -- deeply in need of Ritalin -- repeatedly ran head first into bookcases. As for the overbearing moms -- I actually heard a mother say to her daughter, "No, you can't have that book. It's not on the recommended reading list. We won't be reading anything this summer if it's not on the recommended reading list." Heaven forbid the poor little girl might want to read a book that she was excited about in addition to the listed books. Way to go, mom! Make your child book-phobic so that the only thing she will read when she is out from under your thumb is the want-ads or the side of a cereal box. Please make sure that you crack me upside the head if you ever hear me say ANYTHING like this to Jack. Rob would be heartbroken if Jack didn't become an avid reader -- he already has a list of books that he wants Jack to read as soon as he is able! I promise we'll return to the library. Often. But, I'll be the mom wearing a turtleneck and carrying a spray bottle of germicide...

Mommy throws a tantrum at the pediatrician's office

I admit it. I may have overreacted. We were 15 minutes early for Jack's 10 a.m. 6 month check-up like we always are. Somehow they deleted our appointment and didn't tell me until we had already been in the waiting room for 30 minutes. They apologized but that didn't make Jack feel any better about the situation because I think he is starting to put 2 and 2 together and knows that not-so-good things happen there. We finally saw the doctor at 11 and the good news is that Jack is in perfect health -- 15 lbs 11 oz (25th percentile), 27 inches long (75th percentile) and head circumference of 17 inches (50th percentile.) The bad news is that we waited another 25 minutes for his 4 shots. Jack was screaming -- hungry and tired and bored. I was pacing with him in the hallway and then -- something snapped -- I yelled. Loudly. Probably way too loudly. "Is anyone going to give my son his shots so we can get out of here?!" I got sympathetic looks from nurses but no one jumped into action. Finally, we got the shots and it took a good 15 minutes to get Jack calmed down enough so that I was comfortable to drive home with him. If you have never been in the car with a screaming baby -- or if it's been a while...then let me refresh your memory -- I will tell you that it would be much preferred to jump off a cliff or have all of your teeth pulled out without Novocaine. Before we left the office I had a discussion with our doctor at the reception area listing out my demands for our next appointment -- first appointment of the day with no waiting, shots ready as soon as the exam is over & a confirmation call the day before the appointment so I know that we are on the books. She agreed (I think she agreed only to get the crazy mommy out of the office so the other patients didn't get scared!) Like I said before, I may have overreacted but common sense and tact seems to go out the window when Jack cries. The rest of the afternoon was much brighter and happier ending with oatmeal and bananas and a bath with his new rubber duck. If only my day could be made better with such simple pleasures...

Amy breaks down and joins the other mommies

I /we joined 2 different playgroups this week. I am thinking that Jack will -- at some point -- want to hang out with someone other than me. I have just been resisting the idea of playgroups because:
A. I don't really get along with other women and
B. I really don't get along with other women.
I fear that we'll spend 2 hours talking all about quilting and toy recalls and breastfeeding. I don't need to discuss world affairs or analyze haiku poetry but, sometimes, it would just be nice to have a group of women to talk to about Brad Pitt's butt. The kids can just quietly play together on the floor while we talk about music or movies -- but PLEASE -- I don't want to swap casserole recipes each week. Wish me luck. Strollercize on Thursdays and Bookbabies at the library on Tuesdays.

Man -- it's a tough life...

Do you see the size of this belly? The kid is obviously not starving. Off for his 6 month shots and check-up tomorrow so we'll have new height and weight stats for everyone. Crawling is still on the horizon...Jack can turn in a circle and scoot himself backwards but the forward motion still eludes him. I guess I don't have to worry quite yet about losing him in the house. Kind of hard to make your big escape if you can only move in circles...I am freaking out, however, that the day is coming when I will turn around to look for him where I JUST left him and he won't be there. Can I put a bell on him like the cat has??

Old guy and New guy share a birthday

I know it's a day early, but we celebrated Rob's 41st birthday and Jack's 1/2 birthday today. The cupcakes I made were a disaster so we celebrated with Power Bars. How sad. Jack didn't get any gifts since he already has every toy on the market but he did have fun opening Rob's presents. Tonight we're planning a lovely dinner of carrots and applesauce...and that's just for Rob and me! Enjoying my afternoon of quiet as both boys are napping soundly.

And he sleeps...

Three hour nap followed by crazy cool fun play time in the Exersaucer and a lovely dinner of carrots, applesauce and breast milk. Lucky guy. Only 2 songs necessary before he was off to dreamland: Waitress in the Sky (The Replacements) and the always fun Five Little Ducks. It's hailing in Denver right now. Hoping like hell that Jack doesn't wake up because I can't bring myself to sing about those damn ducks anymore tonight.

Jack says "No teeth, no way!"

Great day today...until the crying. And the screaming. And the flailing arms and legs. Jack has decided that teeth are really not something that he would like to have and has barred the tooth fairy from our door. 20 minutes of sleep alternated with 20 minutes of crying. Big, sobbing, loud crying. Huge salty tears that broke my heart. I called Rob to talk me down off of the mommy ledge while Jack sat solemnly in his swing. 5 minutes later he was asleep, clutching his duck and his monkey and a burp cloth. Sweet relief. Still napping 1 hour later.