Father's Day Weekend

 The first trimester of this pregnancy was pretty uncomfortable.  Jake had to leave work early or go in late on a few occasions to just to help with Parker until I could crawl out of bed.  I know better than to cry wolf and have Jake stay home from work unless it was an emergency... and these days were that bad.  During these first twelve weeks we even had two fun weddings to attend.  I had been looking forward to these weddings for months.  Finally some nights out with dinner, drinks, dancing, and friends - I love weddings!  Well, I knew I wouldn't enjoy the drinks, but I was sick for both of the weddings.  I was able to enjoy both ceremonies and receptions, but my beat-up pregnant body had to call it an early night for both.  They were both amazing weddings and I decided my friends have very good taste.  Unfortunately, I have no pictures from those events.  The good news is I'm feeling a million times better.  The only complaint is I am still in the tired phase and fall asleep on the couch very early.  Poor Jake gets about twenty minutes of my time after putting Parker to bed and then I can't keep my eyes open. 

Last weekend was Father's Day and we had a great weekend!  Saturday we went berry picking at a local ranch.  They have a picnic area, gift shop, and pie stand where you can purchase their delicious pies.  We weren't sure if they had lunch to buy (which they did) so we brought our own subway.  Parker loved running around and stopping in for a quick bite of sandwich before running off again. 

 Lately he wants any adult drink or cup... especially if there's a straw.  Here he's trying his hardest to get my drink.  (Please ignore the awkward, early pregnancy phase I'm in... no real baby bump but wearing the last of my normal clothes.  This is a loose fitting top I never wear because Jake says its unflattering.  Well, nothing is flattering at this stage...)

 I gave in and let him have the last watery sip.  He also loves to chew on ice. 

 After lunch we went to the berry picking area to pick olallieberries.  They give you a bucket and tell you which row to go down and then you pick until you're tired.  We started by showing Parker how to only pick the black berries, not the red ones.  He figured it out right away and loved finding the ripe olallieberries.

 Of course he wanted to carry the bucket all by himself.  Such a determined little boy.

 Our loot! 

 Sunday we took advantage of the beautiful weather in Monterey Bay and escaped the near 100 degree weather where we live.  We went to the aquarium, had lunch, and walked along the water.  It was such a perfect day.  Parker was even a good restaurant patron (which is something we're really trying to work on) and stayed in his highchair for a decent amount of time and ate his food.  Normally I avoid restaurants with Parker because this kid won't sit still long enough for a waiter to take your order, get the food, pay the bill, etc.  Also, he's a horrible eater and even more so when there's a new and exciting restaurant to look around at.  He gets very distracted and eating is the last thing he wants to do.  But, I can't avoid restaurants forever so we're working on it. 

 Loves buttons

 Going into the tunnel... I cross my fingers he won't pinch another kid (he's in a pinching phase... yes, I have that kid)

 He likes to flop himself over to go down the slide.

 Sitting still for a split second... quick take a picture...

 Beautiful day in Monterey Bay.

 Wants to be a big kid and push the stroller.  He actually does a great job at sitting in the stroller for a certain amount of time.  This past week my car was in the shop so we walked everywhere and used the stroller a lot.  For such an active kid, I was surprised at how easy he was to put in the stroller... it may or may not involve cookies, but at least I get him in there.  Here we were letting him walk because we were going to put him in the car to go home.

Next, we're off to San Diego for a mini vacation.  Jake has been working so hard lately and needs some fun and relaxation!  I can't wait!

Also, we're going to pay the money and go to a private 3d ultrasound place to find out if this nugget is a baby boy or a baby girl.  I can't wait to find out!!!  I'll be excited for either one, but Jake and I both have a feeling it's a girl.  That could explain the different pregnancy symptoms, right?  We'll find out soon...

 

Leave it to Parker to find the only mud puddle in the park!  This park is huge, so I let him run and run as far as he wanted to go.  I was chatting with a friend when I noticed him plop down and play with something.  We started to walk towards him just to check on what he was up to... and I found him covered in mud.  This kid has never found a pile of dirt he didn't like. 

 He also loves looking for lizards, bugs, birds, and rocks.  The picture below is Parker and Jake taking rocks to the stream so they could throw them in.  Parker loved the thud the bigger rocks would make when he threw them in.

He is still obsessed with the vacuum and has been know to throw some tantrums when we're all done. 

 He has become my little kitchen helper and I love our days together.

 Other tidbits:

- He's been leaving the room and saying "bye" to us in what sounds like a southern accent.  I love it.  He'll go into his bedroom and before he closes the door he looks out, waves, and says 'bye' like Paula Deen.

- He made up his own sign language for the word "please" - he puts both hands under his chin and attempts to say it.

- He loves airplanes

And for the big news:

We're expecting baby #2 in December!!  I've been feeling pretty gross this time around.  The first pregnancy was easy, but this has been a very different experience.  I can't wait to find out if Parker will be having a little brother or a little sister!  He is going to be a great big brother.

 What a difference a year makes! 

April 2011 - Parker loved his first taste of "solid" food.  (I'm looking beat...)

 April 2012 - Parker insists on eating everything by himself... and he's pretty good at it!  Notice he also wants to sit at the table like a big boy.

This kid only takes one nap a day for about an hour.  Maybe an hour and twenty minutes if I'm really lucky.  It's usually lunchtime, so I eat and relax on the couch.  My time is precious and I just don't have the time or energy to post much... but here's some pics to enjoy.

Parker has been one busy little boy. In the past month he has been all over the state of California visiting friends, family, amusement parks, toy stores, beaches and parks.

We met our friends Mike and Jessica at the Oakland Zoo. It was great! Parker's favorite part was the large grass area where we had a picnic lunch.

One weekday after meeting Jake for lunch, Parker and I stopped at Happy Hollow. They have a small petting zoo, a few animal exhibits, and a couple rides. We showed up during a puppet show (I think) so the petting zoo and animal areas were empty. We were the only ones there! It was pretty neat. Parker got up close and personal with a meerkat. He loved going in and out of this tunnel a hundred times. Stopped hitting his head after the second try...

Parker showed me where the wallabies were sleeping.

We had a lot of rainy days in March so I had to get creative about things to do with a boy that always wants to be outside. We decided to go play at Toys R Us. Parker loved looking at all the toys and pushing a toy shopping car up and down each aisle. Then he spotted the balls and he ran over chanting "ball, ball, ball" pointing the whole way. I'd hand him a ball and he'd play with it and then throw it back in. This went on for twenty minutes. Then he found the big cars. He'd open the door (they have doors that open?!?!) and get in and out a bunch of times and then shake the steering wheel. This was another twenty or so minutes. He slept really well on the car ride home.

He really liked a hot pink Barbie car, but I chose this picture instead.

By the end of the month we packed up for our Spring Break trip to San Diego. We had planned on driving during the middle of the night so Parker would sleep the whole way. At the last minute we decided to leave in the afternoon. He did a great job in the car, but we planned lots of stops for some fun. At the grapevine we stopped for frozen yogurt and played in the grass.

Once in San Diego we made lots of trips to the beach and various parks.

Parker also met up with his best friend, Beau. It was very difficult to get a good shot of these two wiggle worms.


Parker also met a new friend while playing some chess.


And then it was Easter! Parker loved looking for the eggs and he loved discovering what was inside. His favorite might have been the slinky.



And that's it. Now we're all trying to get back to normal here.

14

14 things I love about my 14 month old

1. He loves to dance.
2. He helps throw trash in the trash can and put the laundry away.
3. He still only has two bottom teeth - it makes for a cute smile.
4. He'll feed himself (squirt pouches of baby food and his sippy cup of smoothie) with no mess. Still lots of mess with spoons.
5. He tries to jump! Very cute!

6. He is trying to talk a lot more - dog, duck, ball, balloon, bubbles, mama, dada, octopus (says ah, ah, ah - it's from a song about an octopus), tries to say "uh-oh" (just a high pitch "uh")
7. He is sleeping much better - 7:30 - 6:00 most nights.
8. He is better at getting changed and getting in his car seat.
9. He tries to talk on the phone.
10. Sometimes he crawls on top of me just to give kisses... they're sloppy.

Parker attacking me
11. He will cuddle with me - at least for a few minutes.
12. He likes his nighttime routine with dad. I can tell I don't read books or play games the same way. He looks upset and annoyed when I don't do things the w ay Jake does. I love that they have that special relationship.
13. He's getting so smart! I'm always amazed when he can point to something or do something I've asked for the first time. It proves how he is listening to everything! Jake and I really need to start that swear jar.... Anyways, we have a book about gorillas thumping their chests, so Parker learned how to thump his chest. The book had a cartoon looking gorilla, so I was shocked when Parker saw a photograph of a gorilla and started thumping his chest. It was cool that the idea of a gorilla transferred from weird looking cartoon to other images. I have other examples of how Parker is destined for Harvard, but I'll spare you all.... Just kidding. I'm just excited he's getting smarter than Roxy.... although that may still be up for debate. Roxy is pretty smart.


Parker thumping his chest like a gorilla

14. He's such a social kid; he's always waving and saying hi to strangers. It gets a little tricky when he tries to reach out and grab hands as people walk by... but cute nonetheless.


Parker at the Children's Discovery Museum

13 Months Old

This little guy is growing up way too fast. He has been so much fun, but a ton of work! We call him our little tornado because he leaves a trail of destruction wherever he goes. I clean up during every nap just for him to wreak havoc when he wakes up. He really wants to feed himself so that gets extremely messy. He'll be content just holding a spoon or toy, but soon it's flinging food in the air.

Although he's not much a talker (he's babbling a lot more), this kid understands A LOT! We are able to communicate with each other and this has helped a ton with his crankiness and changing him. He'll nod, point, or give the "more" sign. Most of the time he's not really asking for more of anything, but a change of scenery or something new. It also means he's hungry. He'll make the more sign as he walks into the kitchen and then points at the pantry. I ask if he wants something to eat and he nods his little head frantically. His favorite thing to eat these days is smoothies. I introduced him to smoothies when I got frustrated that he wouldn't eat any of the fruit I cut up for him. He LOVED it! Now he cries and points to the blender constantly. He also loved that I snuggled with him on the couch and shared the smoothie with an adult cup and straw. Now that's how he'd prefer to take his smoothie. I give him a toddler straw cup that's spill proof and he's always very disappointed he's not getting the big cup. Jake couldn't stand that I fed him on the couch, but I just love sitting with him. He even points to the couch and tries to pull himself up.

He's not able to pull himself up on the couch yet, but it's coming. And that means climbing out the crib is coming... Uh this kid keeps me on my toes. Just yesterday he walks into the kitchen and opens the door to the pantry! When did that happen?!?! Aye aye aye. This morning I desperately needed a shower, so I Parker-proofed my bedroom and left him with Sesame Street and some toys. He did fine (and I could see him from the shower the whole time), but as I'm drying my hair I see him open the freaking door! Good thing the gate at the top of the stairs was closed. Needless to say, Babies R Us (or somewhere) will be getting more of my money for baby proofing products.

He's been such a funny and happy little toddler. He likes to play chase and be tickled. He wags his little finger when we read "No more monkeys jumping on the bed!" He loves splashing and playing in bathtub. He likes to brush his teeth. He waves hello and bye-bye. He gives me kisses when I ask (they are very slobbery). He loves his mom and dad and we love him!


Trying to get Roxy out from under the bed.