Is he teething?

So, today Jacob had a bit of a temperature 100.3 to be exact. We are wondering if he is teething- this time for real! No teeth in sight, yet. He is definitely drooling a lot more, sticking out his tongue and pressing it against his gums, and chewing everything. We took it easy today and played mostly at home. We went to the Irish Bakery and bought some goodies. We went to the playground late afternoon because it was really warm outside. Jacob enjoys the swing and the slide. He also enjoys picking up dried leaves and tasting them (of course). He managed to swallow a piece of a leaf and puked all over himself. It was our cue to return home. He was very tired so we did bath and bed time earlier today. We hope that he feels better tomorrow. Maybe its just a cold- since he does have a runny noise and he is sneezing.

So I am sitting here (on the couch) and browsing my computer while having the baby monitor by my side and I hear my baby say "mama" --> he is sound asleep. Then, when I look at the screen, he smiles so big. It is so sweet!

9 month doctors appointment!

We went for a 9 month doctors appointment today. As soon as Jacob realized where he was he started to panic and cry. Poor little man! It didn't help that it was right during his nap time. It was an uneventful appointment (thank God!), no shots, but it was nonetheless hard for Jacob. Again, he weighs 22.4 lbs, which places him in the 75 percentile. He measures at 30.5 inches, which is in the 97 percentile. He is still a big boy! After his late nap we went to Dot to Dot Cafe, a local restaurant, where we've met up with Danielle and Thomas for lunch. The boys sat in their high chairs and ate Cheerios and yogurt. Soon enough it looked liked a big Cheerio bomb went off under our table. Little crunchy O's were all over the place. Jacob and Thomas are definitely more interactive now. They wanted each other's toys and pulled a plastic circle. When one took a sip of juice, the other had to have it as well. It's great to see their little friendship develop. We returned home for nap and decided to meet them again at the playground. They had a great time swinging, climbing and going down the slide. This week Jacob is a little chick magnet. A little girl at the playground (Malaya) took his head and gave him a big smooch. He was a happy boy! We've had good weather, good company, and good times.

Sleeps through the night and loves Cheerios? Fantastic!

So Jacob loves Cheerios! I went grocery shopping on Sunday (while Jacob had fun with Grandma and Grandpa) and I got whole wheat Cheerios without the glaze. I gave him a couple yesterday and judging by his face it did not go over so well. Today, I gave him a fistful of O's in a bowl to play with. He spilled them all over the kitchen floor and enjoyed picking them up. At one point I have noticed that he popped one O in his mouth, then another, then another, then another... so the boy loves Cheerios after all. Ha! Persistence payed off!

We are so happy to have Gram back home! When we need someone to talk to we don't have to travel very far-- just walk downstairs. Saturday was pretty difficult for me- my back was hurting. I took Jacob to the playground- and to my surprise walking made my back feel a little better. My mom came over and joined us at the playground. She brought me some "special" oils and creams to relieve and sooth my back. Scottie was there to pick up Jacob when I needed him. I felt a lot better on Sunday. We went to Grandma and Grandpa's for most of the day. Monday we went to St. Brendan's playgroup and Danielle and Thomas joined us. The boys had a great time! Jacob was playing with all of his friends; Thomas, Matthew, Grace. One of the little girls (18 months or more) planted a big kiss on Jacob-- it was really cute.

So I have mentioned before that I have discontinued nighttime nursing and last night Jacob SLEPT THE WHOLE NIGHT 7:30 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. that's 10.5 hours without waking up. It was amazing!!! Naps were very good today as well (each 1.5 hrs long). They say that sleep begets sleep. I am very cautious with the jinx factor and will see what tonight brings. We've had a very laid back day. We hung out with Gram, Auntie Julie, and Auntie Karen. Then, we went to the park/playground with the Babe. To my surprise it was quite deserted there. Later in the evening we went to Grandpas'. (My mom picks up Adrian and Isabelle from school almost everyday- so she is usually not home.) Jacob has been rolling a ball back and forth with Grandpa and also he was clapping for himself. He might be a ball player someday! He can even hold a medium size ball only with one hand. I've got to get some pics of it!

SPRING

First of all, we'd like to send a message to Gram. We hope you feel better. We miss you and love you. Come home soon!!!

Although today its the first day of Spring it does not feel like it (low 40s-- brrrr). We went to the doctor this afternoon. As I have mentioned last week, Jacob had an ear infection and took his 10 day round of antibiotics. He has been sleeping fine and did not have a temperature, but was still pulling at both of his ears. Dr. Scheff looked in his ears and had determined they were full of wax. So, I had to hold Jacob down as Dr. Scheff cleaned them with a plastic scoop. Needless to say, my little guy cried and cried and was very mad at the doc for the rest of the time. The good new is that both of his ears are fine. When we arrived home, I was taking Jacob out of his car seat and completely threw out my back. I can't even stand up straight, it's that painful. I don't know what I am going to do...

~Going grocery shopping with Mommy this morning~

Please skip this paragraph if you're not interested in Nursing. The blog is my little time keeper and a public diary-- so whoever reads this bear with me! Tonight marks the 2nd night that we will be trying to discontinue nighttime feeding. I have consulted Dr. Scheff and he has reassured me that Jacob is doing fine and does not need to nurse at night time. In fact, it fragments his sleep and prevents him from falling asleep on his own. In addition, he is getting adequate calories during the day. I was surprised that at 4 a.m. last night it took him only 12 min (yes I watched the clock!) to fall back asleep, after wining and babbling (no crying!). Actually, I have been gradually weaning him from the nighttime nursing over the last couple of months. I slowly nursed him less and less time until he only nursed for 5-10 min. So the next logical step is to stop completely. Ahh! I think its harder on me than on him quite frankly. We'll see how tonight goes...

On a lighter note... yesterday we've had an awesome time. We went to our music class at the Adams Street Library and it was a blast! It's funny because there are 3 sets of twins in the class and Jacob (the only child). So, we happy to welcome Janson and Luke (9 months), Liam and Mave (18 months), Harrison and Olivia (12 months) to our circle of friends. Later in the afternoon we went to Max's house for a playgroup. Jacob enjoyed playing with Max and Teddy (12 months). Also, he liked to climb the stairs, cruise against the couch and other pieces of furniture, and play with all new toys. I was relived that Jacob did well in the car both ways.

~Max, Teddy, and Jacob-- all love the piano toy~

~Sad Face

~Who's that girl?~

~Comming home~ last 5 min

9 months old!!!!

Today Jacob is 9 months old-- the amount of time that he was cooking in my belly-- unbelievable! He is doing so much now that I don't know where to begin. Jacob has been clapping, waving bye bye, and making an Indian "aaaa" (hand to mouth) singing sound. He says "mama" (only to me), "dada" (knows dada, yet overgeneralizes the sound), "da" if he wants something ("daj" in Polish means give me), "na" or "ne" - new sound (we think it means no), "baba" (sometimes for bubbles), and occasionally he'll say "ball" and vocalize "t" for kot (cat) or tickle or toes. He also uses his pointer to identify objects, people, and to indicate his wants. Jacob enjoys playing with Mommy, Daddy, Grandpa, Grandma all the time. He has a few favorite toys which include different versions of a ball, ball popper, his car (loves to ride on it-- without us holding on to him), shape sorter (able to place all 5 shapes in the openings), blocks, water bottle (yeah, still a favorite!), shakers (will respond when you say "shake shake"), stackers, phone (loves to chit chat), and lots of kitchen stuff- bowls, Tupperware, whisk, funnels, lids, spoons. One of the most enjoyable play activity is a chase game and peek-a-boo. He laughs so hard that he gets the hiccups. Jacob looks at books when sitting in the highchair and eating food. He eats a number of things right now. Recently I have introduced a yogurt (which has been a hit), multi-grain Cheerios (surprisingly give him the willies), green beans (yum), parsnips (always mixed with something), watermelon (can't get enough), and real peaches (much more tastier). We are busy all the time, yet maintain a regular nap schedule -- always home in his crib. He gates up usually around 6:30 takes a morning nap around 9 a.m and an afternoon nap around 1 p.m. Every morning he hangs out in bed with us and the first order of business is pulling daddy's ear (ucho) and nose (nos), as I label the parts in Polish and Daddy suffers. Yet, I think it's beneficial for both- Scottie is learning quite a bit of my native tongue along side Jacob. When the weather is nice (like today50 degrees) we go to the playground. Jacob loves to swing, climb the structure, and go down the slide. In honor of his 9 months we went twice to the park today, JJ was a very happy boy. Anyways, the boy officially has taken off and now he is cruising. Today he took a couple of steps forward holding on to his car. He tries to climb everything (the dishwasher, table, car, the fence, us). Jacob loves to turn the light on and off. He still loves bath time and lately has been a "crazy man" with his splashing. He can bring down the water level to two inches in two seconds. Needless to say, the bath time is usually cut short. Jacob usually wakes up once a night for a brief nursing. During the day we go to playgroups and see friends. I don't take him out shopping that often because neither of us enjoy it that much. Anyways, now his favorite song is "if you're happy and you know it" because he can clap and stomp his feet. Jacob understands quite a bit. When I say "bubbles" he knows exactly which bin they are located in. He understands malpka (monkey), lew (lion), kot (cat), pies (dog), krowa (cow), baranek (sheep), ryba (fish), ball (pilka), daj (give me), idz (go), gdzie jest (where is), samochod (car), skacze (jump), choc (come here), gwiazda (star), "niam" (eat), pic (thirsty), woda (water), kwiatek (flower), swiatlo (light), toes (paluszki). crab, mis (teddy bear), oko (eye), buzka (mouth), nosek (nose). He is just a funny kid! In terms of his measurements- he weighs 22.4 lbs and I don't know how tall he is, but he is in 12 month shirts and 18-24 month pants.Next week we have his 9 month doctors appointment so I will have more accurate results. Jacob's hair is getting long (does he need a haircut?) and he still toothless (lucky for Mommy). So, you've just read my condensed summary. I just wanted to add that we are absolutely in love with our little man!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Cruising!!!

This video was taken March 12, 2009. Jacob has been cruising for over 2 weeks now, but I just got it on video. First he started off with one or two steps and now he is practically running. Notice the play table (aka. Jacob's command center) on the right side of the screen, he has been trying to climb on top of it. Sometimes he pushes his car next to it and uses the car as a stepping stool-- little rascal. Urwisek!

What's going on???

We were very busy within the past few days. I have signed Jacob for a music class at the local library- so now every Thursday for the next two months - we are rocking out to some classic kids songs (i.e. if you're happy, Jack and Jill, etc.). I have been going to the gym (yeah, trying to get in shape for our vacation to Florida), so Jacob has been staying at Grandma and Grandpa's for a couple of hours 3 times a week. We've had a wonderful weekend (40-50 degrees) and we've spent a lot of time at the playground. Jacob just loves swinging, climbing the structures, and going down the slide. Today Grandma and Grandpa came over to our place and little Jacob was shocked and thrilled. He was totally showing off- riding his car with this (half serious half smiling) proud look on his face, he walked holding on to the fence (yeah he has been cruising back and forth for about a couple of weeks now -- I will post the video next), placed 5 shapes in the shape sorter correctly, found the bubble solution in his bookshelf bin, and he showed off his skills at the playground. Oh I almost forgot, he took off all of the place mats from the living room table. It' s always the first order of business. I will let you know his new found skills during my monthly summary. We've spent an hr at the park today and upon leaving we saw Thomas, Danielle and Tom. Unfortunately we were beat (I don't know about Jacob -- the kid has so much energy that I am sure he could have stayed up till bed time) so we cruised home. Anyways, he went to bed early (7 p.m!!!!) so it gives me time to write. So long!

Let's Play

~Playing with the ball popper~

Jacob, Thomas, and Matthew

~We didn't do it!~ Yum, yum!~All the Grandchildren~

Jacob, Iza, and Adrian (and Eeyore?)
~Nice truck Kuba~

Absolutely Beautiful Weekend

~At the Playground~

~Sliding down with my buddy Thomas~

Video

Switch off the Sickness

I have decided to take Jacob to the doctors today. He has been pulling at his ear a bit and I had a sneaky suspicion that it might be an ear infection. The doc confirmed my gut feeling. So armed with an antibiotics (yummy bubblegum flavor) we are going to fight the bug. At the docs the standard procedure is to get the weight measurement. Jacob weighs 22 lbs and 4 1/2 oz as of today. He has officially outgrown his 6-9 month clothes and is into 12 month clothes. Big Boy! Roslindale pediatrics has theme rooms for kids. We were in the fish room. Jacob was checking out the fishes as I was chit chatting with the doctor. All of a sudden the room goes pitch black-- I mean dark as dark can be. Apparently Jacob shut off the light. It took both (the doc and I ) at least 15 seconds to locate the switch. Our little rascal! After the docs Jacob took an hr and a half nap. He hasn't been sleeping well lately so it was really good for him. Then he was happy and very playful. We had to cancel our plans with Thomas and Matthew today but give it a couple of days and he'll be back on track.

March comes with a bang!

So, it's March and 10 degrees outside and we just had a big snow storm Sunday and Monday. Yikes!!! Jacob and I have been stuck inside and we missed our usual playgroups. We are trying to make the best of it. Here are some pics of our home time adventures! Oh, he is a little sick. I think he picked up another bug at the Kids Fun (Germ) Stop last week. You wouldn't know it though by the amount of energy he has.

~Helping Mommy with the dishes~

~Making phone calls~~Running some errands~ ~Hanging out by the fire with Grandma and Grandpa~

~Don't drop the ball ~