Bathtime (with pictures!)

Wyatt has been sick the past few days, so Aaron took him to the doctor yesterday. Probably just a virus, so nothing much we can do about it. But, the doctor said that he has very sensitive skin, so we should be keeping him well-Vaselined, especially his face. So, after his bath tonight I greased him all up in Vaseline - he is already so wiggly and squirmy, then you add Vaseline to the mix... He was very hard to hold onto! :)

Nostalgia

Today one of my childhood best friends gave birth to her little girl. Almost 7 months to the day that Wyatt was born - tomorrow he will officially be 7 months old. I don't know why, but seeing pictures of my friend in the hospital makes me nostalgic about when we went to the hospital to have Wyatt. It's funny how my mind has glazed over the hard parts and I just remember all the excitement, awe, and adrenaline! Well, that's not entirely true - if I think about it long enough I do remember how awful the back labor was! It's really such a neat experience though - the progression of labor, and the anticipation of the moment of meeting your baby. I remember holding Wyatt for the first time, and it seemed so surreal that this is MY baby. He was so tiny!

Anyway, I was just reading some other blogs, and I found out that some other friends of our family had to let go of their little boy who was fighting for his life. I can't even imagine how they are hurting. We are so blessed to have Wyatt - he has a runny nose, cough, and he's crabby, but he is growing and healthy. I don't ever want to take that for granted, and I want to cherish all the time I have with him.

Fruitbasket upset!

Wyatt discovered tonight that he can topple over the basket with his toys in it. Such a big boy playing with his toys!

Almost crawling

Wyatt is so close to crawling. He can get where he wants to, it just takes a little while. Chewie was enjoying smelling Wyatt and sneaking in the occasional lick when he thought I wasn't looking.
Oh Chewie! Your nose is so cold!

Hmm... I saw the big kids at daycare get up on their hands and knees. What do I do next?

Hey Mom! This trying to crawl business is exhuasting!

I'm whooped - time to play on Dad's computer! (*Nice orange cheeks - he had beef and vegetables tonight for dinner, and the tomato base stains his cheeks orange. :) )

Here's our motivated army crawler. He loves the TV remote!

Bathtime (wish I had my camera there!)

No pictures again tonight. I promise pictures with the next post. Wyatt is getting to that fun bathtime stage - tonight I broke out the bath toys and let him play in the tub for awhile. It feels weird that I'm not always holding him in the tub, but I don't think I could since he's so wiggly! He likes to sit up and play with his toys, and then he likes to try to crawl and "swim" on his tummy. He works really hard - I think he will sleep hard tonight!
I am just really loving this age - he is so full of energy and curiousity. And I really love the times that he slows down, like bedtime. He was definitely ready to go to bed tonight - mad at Mommy for taking the time to put lotion on him, diaper him, dress him in his jammies... I think he would rather go to bed naked! :) But anyways, I love to give him his bedtime bottle now. He just snuggles in and calms down, and I take my time holding him before I put him in his crib. Tonight I laid him on his back, and he immediately rolled over to his tummy and curled up and went to sleep. Sigh... So sweet. Love him!

Anyway, today I had my fill of screaming children (I don't know how you do it, Sarah). I was in Muscatine for the Pediatric Dentistry Clinic. I actually lucked out as I didn't have the loudest of the screaming children. But, I did start a root canal on an 8 year old. She was understandably nervous and jumpy, and she fussed through most of the appointment. I think I would fuss too if my tooth hurt so much too. Some of my classmates had to do fillings on 3 and 4 year olds who were NOT happy... Lots of crying. I had a headache when I got home, but now it's going away. :)

Buying and selling homes...

A week from tomorrow we are putting our house on the market. Kind of an intimidating thought for me - I have lots of tidying/organizing/packing to do to get the house in a show-able condition. Funny how living in a house for almost 4 years leads to accumulating lots and lots of stuff! And, for as small as they are, babies have a disproportionate amount of stuff as well! We are hoping that we will have an open house soon, and maybe get some offers for the house. In the mean time, we've been looking at some homes in Cedar Falls and Waverly. Right now we are drawn to a house in Waverly - it would be a house we could live in the rest of our lives, and it's in a great neighborhood. We could put an offer on it, but we'd have to make it contingent on selling our house. I'm not sure if the people selling the house would go for that, so we might do some waiting and hoping that our house will sell soon! If our house sells before I'm done with school, I may have to commute to Iowa City. That wouldn't be so bad, though, because my classmate is also planning to commute the last few months of school... We'll see how it all turns out. :) Right now our living situation is up in the air, and we are just trusting God that he will make things work out just as they should. He's already brought Aaron a great job in Cedar Falls, so we know the right house is out there for us too. Hopefully the right buyer for our current house too! :)

I'm looking forward to the day I get to post on this blog that we've accepted an offer on our house... Soon I hope!

Randomness

It's been a crazy week. Some good crazy, some not so good crazy.
- Monday/Tuesday - Driving back 14 hours from Texas...
- Missing clinic in Muscatine on Tuesday. Thankfully, my instructor was very nice about it.
- Wednesday I slipped and fell on the ice while carrying Wyatt to the car. No harm done, save a hefty bruise on my leg. When I got to my parking spot at school, one of my classmates had parked in it. So, I parked next to the spot hoping that I wouldn't get a nasty note. All of my patients canceled that day due to the weather, so I got to go home earlier. Well, sort of. When I walked to my car it wasn't there. Someone had it towed! And I forgot my wallet. Thanks to Aaron for leaving work to pick me up, take me to my car, and post bail. I was grouchy and irritated with the person who parked in MY spot.
- Thursday - more slipping and sliding down our steep driveway, but no falling today. Yay. More patient cancellations today - I was very bored this morning. I called every single patient I could, and no one would come in this afternoon. Then I texted Aaron, and he pulled through for me. My afternoon got a little crazier after he left, as I got called up to Oral Surgery twice. And I think Wyatt may be teething - our daycare provider said he napped a grand total of 15 minutes this morning and 45 minutes in the afternoon. When I got home with him around 5:30 he was asleep in the carseat, so I took him up to his room so the dogs wouldn't wake him up. It's 6:45 now and he's still sleeping! Hmm... I may have to wake him up soon so I can feed him and put him back to bed!

And, exciting news- Aaron accepted a job at UNI! He will start in February, so he'll have to commute for a little while. But it's a really great opportunity for us, and UNI is a great employer! I'm very proud of him. :) Things are starting to fall into place for moving up to Cedar Falls/Waverly... It's exciting and scary at the same time. I am really going to miss Iowa City! But, it's going to be really cool to be done with school!

Cancun Recap

Aaron, Wyatt, and I really enjoyed our time in Cancun. Here's our little family picture by the beach. And below is my mom and dad:

Wyatt was enthralled with Grandpa's beard...

And he tried drinking out of a straw - pretty funny!

On Sunday night we went to the restaurant in our resort - Gustina. It was an Italian restaurant, and it was fantastic! I had the special - Mushroom-stuffed, pancetta-wrapped prawns on sun-dried tomato risotto. Yum! :)

Aaron had some kind of a crab-stuffed pasta. I can't remember what it was called - I was too distracted by what I got!

And dessert - I got the chocolate mousse... Also excellent.

And my mom and dad got the Tiramisu, which they also said was great.

And the best part about dinner...

Wyatt fell asleep right after we got to the restaurant! Hurray! :) He was such a trooper this trip. The two previous nights he was very high maintenance during dinner, so it was nice to let him nap and be comfortable, and we got to enjoy dinner. I'm so glad we brought that stroller - it was nice for him to be able to lay back and nap wherever. He napped during lunch one day, and by the pool twice in it!

Anyway, yesterday we were scheduled to leave Cancun around 7:15 and get into Cedar Rapids around 1:45. Well, we made the flight to Dallas just fine, but once we got to our gate, they announced that they were looking for 18 volunteers to get bumped! Yikes! Then, since no one volunteered they called names of people who bought their tickets at a discount, so we got called. Turns out our names came up as some of the first people to be bumped. Well, we talked to the people at the desk, and they seemed to think that if they could get two volunteers then my dad and I and Wyatt could get on the plane (since my dad was scheduled to see patients today, and so was I and also since I was traveling with a baby). So I felt better about it all. Then our flight was canceled due to the fog in Cedar Rapids. Awesome. My dad called the weatherman at KWWL and he said that the flight on Tuesday (today) was likely to be canceled again. So, instead of flying out today, we decided to drive all the way from Dallas back to Iowa last night! Well, it was a little complicated as we didn't have Wyatt's car seat (I thought it would be easier to check it on the way home... irony). The car rental place gave us a car seat, and it came with the wrong installation directions so we had to get a different seat. Wyatt was a very good boy - he hardly fussed the whole way home, which is impressive because it was about 14 hours! He slept for a lot of the drive, thank goodness. So we got into Cedar Rapids around 3:30 am today, and got back to Iowa City just after 4 am. Then we put Wyatt to bed and ourselves to bed! Unfortunately I had to miss clinic today - I don't think I would have been worth anything if I tried to sleep for two hours and then get up and drive to Muscatine today. So I missed going to the pediatric clinic today, but at least my instructor has been nice about it.

Today, we are keeping it low key. Aaron went back to the airport to drop off the rental, and he found out our bags aren't in yet. Looks like I'm going to have to send him to Wal-mart to get some make-up, etc. since that's all in my checked bag! :)

We are happy to be home safe, and the trip was fun even if getting home was an adventure. Gotta run, Wyatt's a little fussy today. Teething???

Sunday in Cancun

Last night we went to the Japanese restaurant here at our resort, and Daddy and Wyatt wore matching plaid shorts... cute. :) Today we remembered to take the raft to the pool, and Wyatt REALLY liked that. I think it was nice to just keep his lower body in the water and keep him dry from the waist up.

This afternoon I took his playpen out on the deck so we could both enjoy the nice weather and he could play with his toys. He's still a little fussy - his last nap was short. So we are going to go for a walk and maybe he will go back to sleep!

The view today... Overcast but still warm out. I sunblocked Wyatt this morning but forget to get sunblock on me. Now I'm a little pink! :)

Roughing it in Cancun...

Friday morning we got up at 3 am, got ready, put Wyatt in his carseat, and headed to the Cedar Rapids airport! Wyatt went back to sleep in the car, and woke up later at the airport. He was a little confused why he was awake so early, but he traveled very well! He slept most of the first flight to Texas, then slept for about half of the second flight to Cancun. Here he is being entertained by Grandma and Grandpa on the plane.

Here is the view from our hotel room's balcony. It's a rough life.

Here is Wyatt in his cute swimsuit... He's ready to go swimming!

Daddy takes Wyatt for a swim...

Mommy takes Wyatt for a swim...

The whole family goes for a swim...

Wyatt really enjoyed swimming today. He would kick and splash (though he got a little irritated when he splashed himself in the face :) ). He also really liked to bob up and down in the water. He's been a trooper this trip - today he took a short nap in his stroller by the pool, and this afternoon he is still down for a nap - it's been over an hour and a half! I think the swimming, sunshine, and wind has tuckered him out. Viva Cancun!

Rockin' and Rollin'

Wyatt is getting up on his knees more and more lately - not crawling yet, but he starting to rock back and forth.

He can scoot a foot or two to get to something he really wants. Here's a little video (it gets a little long... :) ) but it shows him rocking back and forth. He'll be crawling soon!

Wyatt's new stroller

We got an umbrella stroller for Wyatt - we are going to Cancun this weekend!! Woo!! So... we decided we needed a smaller stroller that would travel well. This one got the best reviews on Amazon and didn't cost an arm and a leg. Anyway, I put it together today, and I drove laps around the house with Wyatt in it - he really liked it. :)

This is my favorite feature of the stroller. This is the normal seat position of the seat. Then...

Here is the reclining position of the seat. I thought that it would be nice to be able to put the seat back if he falls asleep in it. Anyway... I can't wait for this weekend!

Fun with Puffs

First, you find the puffs.

Then you pick them up. See, Mom? Here it is!

Then you put them in here - Mouth!

It's a messy process!!!

Wyatt's 6 month check

Aaron took Wyatt to the doctor this morning for his six month check-up and vaccinations. Poor baby, he got seven shots! Aaron said he was a tough little guy, as he didn't even cry! So here are his latest stats - he weighs 19 lb 0.4 oz (75th percentile) and his height is 28.3 inches (95th percentile). He's a big boy! :) We have to switch carseats soon, as his infant carrier is only rated up to 22 pounds... crazy.
Anyway, he has a little bit of the sniffles today, so I raised the head of his bed a little bit to try to help him breathe better. I'm hoping he sleeps hard tonight since he got all of his vaccinations!

The Orange Bowl is on right now - Go Hawks!!! :)

New Year's resolutions

I'm not very good at making and keeping New Year's resolutions, but this year I do have a few things I would like to try to do. My life has been turned upside down, in a good but challenging way, by the arrival of our little boy. Gone are the days of spur-of-the-moment trips to Walmart or out of town for the weekend. Gone are the days of heading to the gym after school and a two piece swimming suit! Gone are Saturday mornings spent sleeping in... For the time being. Everything has a season - our life right now revolves around a sweet little blue-eyed boy who still needs his mommy in the middle of the night, and who likes to talk himself awake at say, 6:30 am. But he'll grow up, and soon I'm sure the wakeful nights, diapers, bottles, etc. will be a distant memory and then I will just be worrying about where he is on a Friday night and telling him not to sleep away his Saturday. :) Anyway, my goals for the new year are to help make life feel a little more normal, and work on things that I can control. There are things I really can't change, like Wyatt waking up in the middle of the night. I CAN change what I eat, though I am fighting some really bad habits I started when I was pregnant! In hindsight, it wasn't such a good idea to eat Dane's Dairy every night the month before Wyatt was born. :) And, I CAN save some money by packing my lunch most days instead of buying lunch at school. Seriously, the cafeteria at the dental school is ridiculously over-priced. So here are my New Year's resolutions in no particular order:

*Use the Wii Fit 5 days a week.
*Pack my lunch 4 out of 5 days a week.
*Eat only one sweet/treat a day.
*Go to bed before 10 pm on a school night.
*Drink water instead of pop.
*Take the Christmas decorations down before February! Ha!

I think these are do-able... I'll let you know how it's going next week!

Happy New Year!

Matt and Hilary came down last night to celebrate New Year's Eve with us. Aaron's mom was so kind to watch Wyatt overnight for us so we could be as noisy as we wanted to! :) We made pizzas for supper, then we went to the Riverside casino - it was packed! I'm happy to report that we left the casino with more money in our pockets than when we went in - both Hilary and I hit it big on the the slot machines. :) We then came back to our house and played the Wii for awhile and then called it a night. I woke up in the middle of the night, and for a second I thought it was because I heard Wyatt. Then I remembered he was at Grandma's house! Anyways, it was a good night, and I'm excited to see what 2010 has in store for us!

Wyatt is 6 months old!

Wyatt is 6 months old - where has the time gone!?! He is continuing to grow and learn new skills - this past month he has really become more mobile and self-entertaining. He loves to be on the floor, rolling around and playing with his toys.

He is a very happy baby, and he greets just about everyone he meets with a smile.

He is a joy to greet in the morning when he wakes up - when he sees me he gives me the biggest grin. I love that... :) One of his new things in talking to himself and sort of squealing when he sees himself in the mirror. He's a little vain... :) Here's a little video of him talking to himself in the mirror.

And his newest skill yet - army crawling! I caught him doing it on video today - he won't pull himself towards just anything yet. I had to motivate him with my cell phone... :) He will army crawl towards Chewie too - I think they are going to be best friends. :)

As cliche as it sounds, I love him more and more every day. I'm going to be sad to go back to school on Monday!