Boy, oh boy, oh boy

See the series of events of the EPIC tantrum:

Aiden watching pretty Nina on the Sprout channel

Mom turned off Nina and Aiden gives Mom stink eye.

Mom still does not turn on Nina.  Aiden throws himself backward and throws a big, big fit.

I have a boy's boy.  *sigh*  

I have discovered that a boy is a boy from day one.  I love good manners in children, in adults, everyone.  Even Chris recently told his friend that I am not a fan of belching, so if he comes to dinner, be warned.  

My son LOVES to burp.  And giggles.  Even when I "Ewwwwwww....." at it.  He makes vrooooommmming noises and belches a lot.  

But the top was tonight.  Let me explain by a little poem quoted often by Uncle Dave:

"Tiny bubbles...in the tub...

Means I tooted... in the buff..."

So many bubbles during bath time.  It stunk.   Boys are gross.

Nine month checkup

Okay, for anyone needing to catch up, I LOVE my pediatrician, Dr. Martini.  She is hilarious and is quite possibly the most caring, loving, interactive doctor I have ever known.  That is why I will continue to drive to Salt Lake to see her for as long as I can.

So, here are the specs on little man:

Height: 27 1/2 inches (25th percentile)
Weight: 17 lb 14 oz (10th percentile)

Yes, he is tiny and under weight.  He is eating well.  He is just tiny.  He started tiny and the doctor is not concerned.  She thinks he is "a riot" and she is so very pleased that he is NOT crawling since his surgery is in 15 days.  (I know, I know, 15 days... it is so sad.  The countdown has started.)

BUT!  Today, she commented on how big his hands and feet are.  I said, "He has good cellist hands."  Dr. Martini looked at me really funny and said, "are you a cellist?"  "Yes, I am"   She said, "SHUT UP!!!  Me too!!"  I guess she played in college and high school and still "farts around" (her words, not mine...) with it.

So, the next 30 minutes we talked about cellists, Jacqueline du Pre, Dr. Martini's two daughters who are violists and pianists, respectively, and how she spent $200 on tickets to see "Yo Yo Ma and his crappy Appalachian Songs crap tour."

Aiden also had his shots and was the saddest little man you have ever seen with this little cry that made my heart ache.  But he got two cool blue chamo bandaids.  Mom got her heart broken by the bottom lip trembling.  Poor baby.

The bandaids for his shots!

Snuggling in for a long winter's nap... with his best buddy.

Spring Snow

This is Aiden at 4 days old.  My little baby has always had to have his left leg uncovered. Funny.  He sleeps this way all the time.

(This has nothing to do with my post)

I LOVE a good spring snow.  Most of you will poo-poo my blog post.  I don't care.  There is nothing more beautiful than snow after having none, but having the snow be the kind that will melt quickly.  I love that it is clean, especially after yesterday's dust-fest.

The view from my office window

Love it

And I love that I will have this post to remind me what 35 degrees feels like in August.

Nine Months

So, Mister is officially nine months old yesterday and is the most fun of any baby ever.  He is not quiet.  He is loud and fun and energetic.  He likes what he likes and hates what he hates.  You never have to guess how he feels.

In the nine months I have had the fortune of being Aiden's mommy, I have learned a few things:

- an unopened package of Tic Tacs is the cheapest rattle you will find - and it rattles the best.
- food is so much more fun when it is sticky, gross, and finger food
- stick with the pediatrician who believes that Mother's instinct is more important than lab results or computer data
- when you think a baby is not learning or paying attention, think again.  When Aiden recognizes Mickey Mouse or the zoo entrance, it is very rewarding.
- 20 minutes to color my own hair is 20 minutes of GOLD when Aiden is sleeping.
- guilt will happen if you choose to co-sleep, if you choose not to co-sleep, if you choose to breastfeed, if you choose not to breastfeed.  Once again, Mother's intuition is important.
- buy a case of sunscreen.  Put one in your purse, one in each diaper bag, one in the car, one in the pantry, and one in the scripture case.  You never know when you will take your little one out for bubbles in the sunshine.
- teach them early to tolerate hats.
- Yams are the best thing to share - especially when it has butter and brown sugar.
- time spent with the baby is more important than any other task you have to do.
- take lots of pictures.  Write things down.  You think you will remember, but you don't.

Yes, it is possible

Yes, yes.  It is possible for a nine-month old to go an entire day from 6:30am to 9pm with NO nap.  Not a hint of a nap.  Luckily, he was happy for all but the last 30 minutes of it.  But then again, he usually is happy.

But I was secretly hoping to take a nap with him for a couple of hours.  Rats.

Everybody's doin' it!

Aid-o watching the tigers

It is such a beautiful day.  It is getting warmer and it seemed like such a wonderful day to go to the zoo.

Everyone in the Northern Utah region felt the same way.  It was PACKED!!!  I joked to Chris that it must have been "Bring Your Polynesian Gangsta to the Zoo" day.  But we don't "do" the zoo like most people.  I stop for long stretches at a time and talk to Aiden about what is going on.  We people watch.  He eats tasty rice puffs (okay, Mom sneaks a couple too).  We sit at the bench at watch the carousel go round, and round, and round... about 15 times today.  

Time #7 watching the carousel.  He thinks it is hilarious.

We hang around the tigers until they wake up.  We don't usually see all the animals at one time.  We are there about every 2 weeks, so we will see the Discovery Center one week, the big cats another week, the ugly rare wild pig things (that the sign says are closer to bears than pigs, but whatever) and monkeys one week... but we always see the giraffes.  Aiden loves the giraffes - especially the baby giraffe.

It was a wonderful day and Aiden is getting more and more excited about things that he recognizes (giraffes, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse songs, "A Parrots Life for Me" story...) and the zoo is no different.  When we pass the fountain at the front, Aiden will laugh and squeal.

Check out those cutest teeth!!!  He loved the zoo!!

Sidebar:  Aiden has a few choice sounds that he makes.  We call them the "slipped timing belt" sound, the "worn brakes" sound, the "needs power steering fluid" sound, and the "tiger growl".  All VERY loud.  All cute.

I also made fresh salsa with my new produce box ingredients.  It was so tasty.  I have eaten almost half already.

Finally Gave In

I finally gave in tonight and admitted that my son is getting bigger.  I shed a tear and gave a bit of a sob.  Aiden is finally to be dressed in 9 month clothing.  He is no longer a little baby, he is a big baby and almost (GASP) a toddler.

These are premie clothes that we too big when we brought Aiden home.  

And look at those socks!!!

Awwww.....

A few people have said that with their first child, they want their child to crawl early, walk early, talk early.... Aiden will be 9 months old on Monday and is still not crawling.  His pediatrician has said over and over not to worry unless he is over a year old and is still not rolling over (which he has been doing for many, many months).  I guess I am not a typical first-time parent.  I LOVE that Aiden is not mobile yet.  When I plop him down to play, he stays there, albeit not happily at times, but he stays put.  Soon, I will have to baby-proof the house.

The other, more practical, reason I am happy he is not mobile is because he is having his major surgery in two weeks and mobility makes it harder for him to heal.  They suggested that we cast his legs if he was walking.  They estimate more than 100 stitches in his little "special boy area" and they don't want them to tear.  God knows what he is doing in delaying things.  And I could not be happier.