Lullabye

Oh I've been meaning to post for days. Our little prince seems to have acquired a cold (thanks Dad) so he's been a bit grumpy the last couple of days. We have been letting him self soothe when we lay him down for sleep (which means he may have to cry himself to sleep). This was going really well, not too much crying, until this week. Oh man he would cry for over a half hour. Sometimes he would sound so pathetic, we would second guess ourselves on how tired he really was and let him come out. We were right the first time, and he would finally fall asleep on us out of pure exhaustion. I'm hoping the crying fits will pass soon, when he's feeling like his old self. Anyone reading this please humor me and let me believe that's true.

A few exciting things have happened this week. Rooney has been a bit trepidacious to enter the realm of table foods. He was always such a good eater, no complaints and barely snubbed any vegetable...as long as it was smooth and came from a jar. I have been having problems getting him to try new foods and he seems a little put out with having to chew. I realized I had to become a little more creative and this week I was able to get him to eat raspberries, cherries and a nectarine. He also now loves hummus, when served to him on a Baby Mum Mum (see picture) and he is eating Cheerios as a snack. We have been easing him onto milk and he will now drink it plain without complaint.

With Rooney starting to walk and going off of formula I have become aware that I have to be pretty conscientious of his diet and make sure he gets everything nutrionally that he needs. Being creative with his food has been a challenge, but I really enjoy finding new things for him eat. I especially enjoy when he does eat them. I am hoping by exposing him to different foods at a young age, that when he is older, he will enjoy trying new foods and eventually have a broader palate than myself, but you'd basically have to be an Eskimo not to (umm...wait a minute. They eat whale blubber, right?).

Here Comes Trouble

Big Man Walking

Hot! Hot! Hot!

Oh this weekend was hot! Mix in a little humidity and it was downright uncomfortable. Mike and I decided, on Friday, to purchase a portable air conditioner for the living room. It was really quite funny. As we were walking into Fry's everyone we passed heading out had a portable air conditioner! We knew with the heat wave in full swing we were risking not being able to purchase one if we waited one second longer. We found the one we wanted and we made sure lick it to place dibs. OK I might be fabricating the last part.

With the weather being so hot this weekend we thought it might be a good idea to shave Rocco down. He had such a thick, long coat it seemed like something we had to do. I don't think Rocco thought so. It was a wrestling match but got his hair down a few inches. He looks totally different and I think he might be worried that he lost his sexy. I think he still looks beautiful though.

Today was a busy day for Rooney. We hosted a playgroup at our house. That means we had to do a lot of cleaning yesterday. The a/c couldn't have come at a better time. No one wanted to leave because it was so much cooler in the house. 3 1/2hrs later the last of the moms slowly made their way home. We had a good time. I like all the ladies and their kids alot. All the kids seemed to like Rooney's toys alot.

CodeBlue (Lips)

Tuesday Rooney went to his first protest. Renae, Felix, Rooney and I went downtown to the Federal Building to support CodePink. We did not fast but we wanted to do something so we went to show our support. I think Felix really stole the show though.

Wednesday we had our usual playgroup and then headed over to Renton River Days to help support the Moms Club booth. Traffic was a nightmare around the park where they were holding the event. I found a decent parking spot; a block or so away. The walk would have been easy. I opened up the back of my car to pull out my stroller when I saw that the back was empty! Where was my stroller? I was so confused for a minute but then I realized I left it in Renae's minivan from when we went to the protest! Ugh! I had to carry Rooney to the booth and suddenly my easy little walk became a very long walk. I went to the gym yesterday to get my new workout program. They took all my measurements and it seems my left arm is 1/2" bigger than my right arm. Hmmm that is my baby carrying arm, no surprise there.

The booth seemed to be very successful and a lot of moms (and even some dads) stopped by and picked up membership info. I think we may have attracted a few new members from this event.


Today Rooney and I did not have any plans so we called Aunt Annie and decided to head for the lake. By the time we finally got moving, got coffee, bought Little Swimmers and drove there- it was 5pm. That is normally around the warmest part of the day here so we may have picked a good time. I got a floaty ring for Rooney, blew it up and took him in the water.That water was freezing! It actually took my breath away, but Rooney didn't seem to mind. He loved the pool noodles we brought into the water with us and seemed to like floating around. We stayed in a few minutes but I made sure to take him out before his lips turned blue.

Made For Walkin'

Sunday was Christmas in July for Rooney. I've been mulling around a few ideas on toys I would like to get for him, so we went to Toys R US, to check them out. One toy I really wanted to get him was a little walker where the speed could be adjusted. A little while ago we bought him a little wood push toy that he can eventually sit on & scoot around plus it has a shape sorter built in. He loves this toy, especially the little wood animals that came with it, but on our floors the wheels on it move too fast for him to feel secure using it as a push toy. Well, Mike and I found the walker I was looking for PLUS SOME! We also found these cool textured interlocking beads, foam blocks and my all time favorite kids book...Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb.

Once we got home I put Rooney's little walker together and he took to it right away. He looks so cute pushing it around the house. Next, we have to teach him to steer. He keeps finding himself up against a wall or piece of furniture.

Yesterday, Roonster and I met up with a few moms for a trail walk. I really like these walks because we get outside, we are being active and we can chat while we're doing it. We walked 3-miles and at one point all the babies were crying. We definitely made it known that we were coming. We were out several hours and it was quite warm so I don't blame the kids. As soon as he got in his car seat Rooney zonked out. Almost made me wish the drive home was a little longer, because once we got home he was awake. So much for an afternoon nap. He did end up sleeping about 11 hours last night.

I have to make sure we schedule more of these walks.

The Old Man and the Sea

Yesterday was a really fun and active day. Friday night we got a call from Rooney's friend Parker (and his mom) to find out if we wanted to go out on their boat, up to Kirkland, have breakfast & then come back. We thought that sounded like a lot of fun, despite the fact we would have to set the alarm to get up early. We got the boys loaded up in their life vests and set our course around 9:30 a.m. Rooney and Parker looked so cute in their vests, although I do not think they liked that their movements were stunted by them. Eventually they said screw it and both fell asleep.




It was a beautiful day to be on the water and we cruised past alot of beautiful houses (including Mr. Gates'). I picked out a few for us to keep our eyes on. Maybe we'll fly you all in on our helicopter when we get it.

When we got to Kirkland they were having Summerfest, which is an arts and crafts festival, so parking spots for the boat (I believe this is called moorage... look at me I sound like an old salt) were a little scarce, but we found one and Mike utilized all his boating knowledge to help Parker's dad get the boat parked. We had a great day on the water and got home just in time to go to a BBQ we were invited to by another Moms Club friend.

We had a nice time at the park. Rooney played on the swings, played with a bucket, crawled on the grass and tried to eat leaves (he may have been a little successful on the leaf eating). Mike got to meet some of my new friends and their husbands and they got to check out my husband. He was looking pretty cute with his contacts in, shades on and new short hair cut.

Finally, against my better judgment, I have decided to let Rooney try biter biscuits again. He worked on the latest one for a good 20 minutes before gagging and my relieving him of said biter biscuit. See those photos and the BBQ photos in the next post.

Old man and the Sea Pics

Chunky Foods and Felix Too!

There is a lot to write about from the last couple of days, but where do I start?

I've decided that Rooney is ready for chunkier food (despite the terror from the biscuits of death) and I thought he was probably ready to try new things. To start things off, Mike bought a gallon (?!?) of whole milk for Rooney. Obviously we were a little excited after Rooney's MD appointment. At first Roonster didn't seem to be a big fan but over the last couple of days I have started making his morning cereal with it and recently I started doing some of his bottles half & half. He doesn't seem to notice. I'm actually glad he hasn't fully switched since we still have 2 large cans of Enfamil left. I suppose we could have taken them back to the store but let's be honest with ourselves...never would have happened.

Since Rooney has started on milk I also decided to try a few other dairy products: yogurt and cottage cheese. These weren't big hits at first either. Monday he did seem to start enjoying the yogurt (but later we all hated the yogurt when there was a major BLOW OUT). The cottage cheese is still in the iffy stage. Unfortunately I got the large curd and I think they are kind of confusing him. I'll give him a little bit each day and see if his loves for it grows. I've also tried giving him hummus and little bits off my plate. Last night he tried orzo.

This week we've also had several playgroups and outings. I really enjoy the playgroups but the one we had on Monday was special, because I finally got Renae signed up with the Moms Club (there was a lot of arm twisting) and Felix has joined our playgroup. It was great to have Felix there and hopefully the cousins will get lots of days to play together. Unfortunately we weren't able to go blueberry picking or the Kids Party the Moms Club planned together (the opening picture was taken at the party). Fortunately for Rooney, his best bud Parker was there.

Lastly, I am very pleased to announce that Dan and Kim have asked Rooney to be the ring bearer in their wedding. Of course, it is a big honor for Roon and he accepted immediately. It's nice to know that besides being cute, the tuxedo we bought will now also be functional. Rooney has been working on his walking too. He's been taking steps here and there and maybe, just maybe he can walk down the aisle.

Goal! Goal! Goal!

I cannot say that this weekend was uneventful since the World Cup Final was yesterday. That was very eventful. Other than that, Mike and I, didn't do much.

Saturday, I shopped for and purchased a dress for Dan and Kim's wedding. This was a little stressful because how many times do you go shopping, knowing exactly what you want to purchase, and then can't find it? Or you look awful in it? Or you found it and you'll look fantastic in it, once you purchase another $100 in accoutrements? Thankfully my sister came shopping with me. If Mike came...god knows what I would have ended up with! It's very sweet, and it's one of the things I love about him, but I could wear a burlap sack and Mike would think I look good in it. It makes me feel great to know he'll basically love me and think I'm beautiful no matter how ridiculous I look, but, it can also be frustrating. He won't, and it's a good thing, tell me if I have back fat, or if the stripes are making me look like a circus tent or the cute poof makes it appear I'm expecting again. That's good marital advice...have a shopping buddy other than your husband.

I'm sure all the husbands would agree.

Anyway, the excitement of finding a dress paled in comparison to the World Cup games this week. Germany took 3rd place and Italy won over France when it went to penalty kicks! Throughout the whole World Cup I was always distracted by Rooney, the dogs or getting dressed when a goal was made. I believe every goal I've seen was on instant replay! Seems I was even distracted for all the major red cards...Zidane doing the now infamous "head butt" or when Wayne Rooney did his "groin" stomp...all on replay! Seems my emotions and reactions were at least 1 minute behind the rest of the world.

After the World Cup I caught a few special shots of Rooney. Hmmmm there could be something here...


Hey no hands! Mouth?...OK, but no hands!


Here Rooney is setting up his corner kick...







"I can't believe I missed that kick..."




Here's Rooney trying to show Courage the Zidane red card

The Little Human

I promised to write about 4th of July in yesterday's post. I feel a little guilty because that promise may have led you to believe something BIG and EXCITING happened. It didn't.

We went to Annie's house for a little BBQ and fireworks. We do the same thing pretty much every year. This was Rooney's first 4th of July, he seemed pretty excited.




















Rooney wasn't scared when the fireworks went off. He just stared at them (kind of like he's doing in this photo). I kept him safe by wearing him in his sling. Thankfully he was kind of tired so he didn't try to weasel out. He doesn't know this but I was just happy to be able to cuddle with him for an hour or so. We got home around 10pm, Rooney was tuckered out and went to sleep right away. He was so tired he slept until 9am the next day.

We love 4th of July!

Now for the big news...Rooney's 9 month MD appointment. When I picked Rooney's pediatrician I was very scientific. I looked through the Preferred Providers with our insurance and then I picked the MD by last name. I've employed this technique before with my own MD. The results have been hit and miss (who would have thought that an MD w/the last name Jolly would really be a big ol' grump?). This time I picked the pediatrician because his last name was the same as my Mom's maiden name and I think it really worked out well.

First, he told me that Rooney was the size of a 15mo. old. He said he was perfect and wanted to make sure I was not intimidated by people thinking he should be doing certain things. Because he's so tall, people may think he's older than he is, and expect him to be walking, talking etc. I think Rooney still looks like a baby so I really haven't had too many problems with that yet. The MD also said that we could switch Rooney to whole milk if we wanted. They tested Roonster's blood & his iron levels are good so they felt if we wanted to Rooney would be fine if we switched him. I felt this was great news. Now, once we get through the 2 giant cans of formula we just bought at Costco, we will start buying him milk.

Rooney was also weighed, measured and charted of course. He is now 32" tall, 22 lbs 3oz but his charting has changed a bit. His height is still off the chart for his age, but his weight is now in the 75th percentile for his age (it was previously 90th) and his head is now in the 50th percentile (prev. 75th). What is this telling me? Well 1. for Rooney's height, he is underweight & 2. he is fastly developing my mothers head (I believe she calls herself "Pea Head"). Other than that his body seems to be pretty proportionate and really he is just a "little human" (Mike's term).

Biscuits of Death

I know it's the day after the 4th of July and I should probably post about that. I will in the next post plus I'll thrown in the results of Rooney's MD appointment.

I had a real long post written about Rooney's little dog blanket (being held here by Rooney plus his beloved Alburquerque coaster) but I wanted to write about a few other things as well. This little dog blanket has become Rooney's best bud. This blanket helps him get to sleep at night and when he wakes up he's often still clinging to it. He crawls with it on the floor and when he fell recently and cut the top of his mouth, he used this little blanket to chew on and make his mouth feel better.

Speaking of falls...I don't ever want to see Rooney get hurt again! When Rooney fell last week (see above story) it was awful. He was trying to pull himself up on Mike & I'm not sure what happened but he fell. When he hit the ground he somehow cut his mouth & there was a decent amount of blood. When I saw blood on my nieces and nephews, I of course was alarmed, but I knew they would be OK yada, yada, yada. When I saw Rooney bleeding I didn't like it. I don't want to see it again but I know...there are going to be many, many more injuries.

Now that he's trying to walk I know he'll be falling alot. He already is. Monday I was at my sisters and Rooney fell off her bed. Oh that was another heart stopper. I thought Cuyler was watching him when I turned my attention to an outfit Annie was showing me. I turned around just in time to see Rooney fall off the bed and do a flip onto the floor. Yikes! That was scary for us both. He wasn't really hurt, just seemed scared, but again...I didn't like it. Then yesterday, I was talking to Cuyler on the phone (hmmm is there going to be some pattern here with Cuyler?!?) when Rooney was trying to take steps (I think) and he fell and hit his face on the table. Thankfully he wasn't hurt too bad but I screamed and hung up the phone. It's going to start sounding like a horror movie around here soon!

While were talking about scary things lets talk about Biter Biscuits or as I call them Biscuits of Death. You know...I'm not really sure if you should ever feed your child something that has a big warning on it. Don't we normally try to steer our children away from things that have Parental Warnings? But here I am giving Rooney biter biscuits and having a panic attack each time I do. It is very scary seeing Rooney try to cram the whole thing in his mouth. I will pull it out, he'll cram it back in. When it's still a hard biscuit, not as scary, but soon it starts disintegrating from drool, and chunks are falling off all over. Oh man the dogs love when Rooney has one! The other night I had to finally just take the biscuit away I couldn't take it. Learning to chew and swallow isn't that important- he'll just eat pureed food forever. Either that or I'm going to get a Xanax prescription for when he's eating.

Last thing I would like to mention is Rooney's new sound. Within the last couple of days Rooney has learned to start doing the Popeye laugh (ga-gagagaga). Funny thing is he's never even seen Popeye! He actually doesn't do it as a laugh, but he'll be cruising around the house doing his Popeye impersonation. It's pretty cute. Then again, other than choking noises, most of the stuff Rooney does I think is pretty cute.

Sleepy Boys

Hmmmm...Rooney is kind of being weird this weekend. I'm not sure if he's going through a growth spurt, sprouting 10 more teeth or if he's really just proving that he is his father's son, but he is sleeping SO MUCH!

Normally, Roon will take, maybe, an hour long nap in the morning. He will fight an afternoon nap most of the day, but sometimes I can get him down somewhere between 1-5pm, and then he'll go to bed between 8-9pm. This weekend he has been taking 2 hour naps. He took a 2 hour nap this morning at 11am. He got up, ate, got changed and then we left to do a little shopping. We left the store around 3:30pm and he was already making noise about being tired again. It's 5:30pm and dad and baby have been asleep for at least 1-1/2hrs.

I hope Mike's not going through a growth spurt!