Same Old

Life around here has been, well, uneventful.  Even boring.  I find myself needing a hobby--and one that doesn't require sitting.  Or maybe one that I immediately fall in love with.  Everyone always talks about how busy their lives are.  Mine is the opposite.  Why do I feel ashamed to admit that?

I'm honestly having a hard time knowing what to do to entertain a one-year-old all day long.  The short attention span coupled with staying inside due to cold weather and my inability to be creative makes for one bored little boy.  At least I'm pretty sure he's bored.  He's even tired of playing "I'm Going to Get You" with me.  The silly thing is, he still loves the game with everybody else.

I looked online for some activities to try this week.  With five minutes at each activity, we total 25 minutes of fun!  What about the other 9 hours of the day?  Well, I guess we'll just have to figure that out on our own.     

Being bored isn't all that bad.  I remember when my grandpa was in the hospital (on his death bed).  I was at the bus stop and overheard a conversation:

Boy: "How's it going?"

Girl: "Same old.  Same old.  Life is pretty boring."

I wished, in that moment, that my life was "boring."  I wished that everything was okay with everyone and that I had nothing to report when someone asked how everything was going.  I wanted everything to be the same old.  

So I guess I should be grateful that my days are sometimes boring.  

Birthday Celebration

Thanks to grandmas and grandpas, Henry received a number of gifts on his birthday.  To this day, we play with those toys daily and are grateful for the added variety to our toy collection.

To celebrate our Henry, we held a small birthday party with close family and friends.  I am generally not one to "get into" this sort of thing, knowing that Henry is so very young, it costs money, and I am not a decorator.  But for once, I couldn't resist and had so much fun planning and carrying out our simple party.

In order to get Henry's birthday decorations hung before his birthday (a couple days before his party), I stayed up a little late to finish and hang a few things.  When Henry woke up, I walked around to show him his "Happy Birthday" sign, a picture garland, and a birthday wreath, saying, "Happy Birthday, Henry!" while pointing to each item.  Henry loved everything.  He smiled every time I pointed and said, "This is for you...Happy Birthday, Henry."  I couldn't believe how much he seemed to appreciate everything.  His happy face occurring several times throughout the days leading up to his party while looking at all the decorations made every ounce of effort worthwhile.

My favorite part was definitely baking.  I've been wanting to make cake pops and this was the perfect excuse to do just that.  I probably definitely consumed more than my fair share of cake (and cake mix) in the two days leading up to the party.  Decorating the cakes, though definitely not up to par with the professionals, was right up my alley of "fun."  Floods of memories from working at the BYU pastry kitchen came to mind as I frosted cakes.  I'm looking forward to a lifetime of cake baking and decorating.

Just like I knew he would, Henry devoured his cake.  He dove right in and ate and ate and ate.  Thank goodness Grandma Sue was here to tell me to take the cake away after 15 minutes or Henry just may have consumed his entire cake, which was quite large for a little boy (or an adult, for that matter).  While getting Henry ready for his after-cake bath, cake was falling off of Henry and landing on the sink counter.  Henry was quick to snatch up anything he could find, even returning to his high chair for remaining crumbs after his bath.  Ooo, I just love my little eater.

After experiencing his first jet stream of sugar in his body, Henry was first exhausted and took a small nap.  When he woke up, he was wired and talked and jabbered like never before.  Dad & I couldn't quit laughing with our little man.  It was hilarious!

One

Has it really been one whole year since I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy?  I still remember everything so clearly...I just had a one-year review in my mind of all my feelings and experiences.  Not only is it a miracle to periodically see the growth of a baby from inception to delivery, but also to see the growth of a baby from one minute old to one year old.

This is so bittersweet.

Henry was grown from a baby to a toddler this year, experiencing everything from love and laughter to tantrums and tears.  Brendon and I have been very grateful and amazed at Henry's gift to love, laugh, and bring happiness to others.  Henry radiates when he is with people.  We know this will be a lifelong gift that will bless the lives of many others.  Henry has already brought so much joy into our lives and our love grows for him daily.

Within the past month, Henry started doing the following:

• Saying "gog" or "gie" when he sees a dog
• Scaring us, just like we scare him
• Crying...a lot (maybe because of teeth coming in? maybe because he knows what he wants but can't tell me what he wants?)
• Throwing tantrums when I take something away, complete with his head lying on the floor, tears, and his little bum up in the air while he lays on his stomach
• Feeding himself with a spoon (or maybe I should say making big messes with spoons)
• Mimicking words and sounds, including "Bbb" for "Baaaaa" (like a sheep), "hi," and "hey" 

We love you so much, little Henry!  Happy Birthday to you!

My Favorite Rotation

Putting all educational value aside, this February month has been my favorite rotation. Probably not Brendon's favorite, but definitely mine. At the beginning of the month, I felt like he was getting cheated out of opportunities to learn, but now, I could care less about that. (Brendon would probably not even say he was cheated in any way.)  You see, this month Brendon has been on his Internal Medicine rotation, following a doctor who works three, yes 3, days a week. With seven days in a week, Brendon has been home more than he has been away.

Not only did Brendon work less days than he didn't, but he also didn't need to leave for work until 9:30 am. Lucky for me, Brendon woke up with Henry in the morning whenever possible. But sleeping in wasn't the only reason I loved this month's rotation. I feel like--in anticipation of upcoming months spending time a part from each other while Brendon learns from busy hospitals in California--I have cherished time with him. The same way I cherished time like the good ole' days in Missouri, when time together was scheduled and sparse. We didn't necessarily DO a lot this month. But we definitely were together a lot.  In each other's presence, that is.  For the most part, we were both carrying on with own agendas; Brendon with studying, scheduling rotations, and taking regular breaks to chase Henry and me with cleaning, playing, and cooking.  But we were all together and I could talk with him whenever I wanted to.

My "caring less" about his opportunities to learn this month stem from completely selfish desires of having time together. I almost feel like this was our last time having a lot of time together (in our own element) for a long, long time. One more month before Brendon leaves for four weeks to go to California. Is it bad that I tear up cry just thinking about being a part as I type this? I don't know if I'm cut out for this. Hopefully the anticipation is worse than the bite.

Brendon is hoping for seven out rotations to California, and I sincerely hopes he gets each one of them.  But I hope, more than anything, we will only grow closer together. I hope we will appreciate each other more. I hope we will love each other more deeply. Now that's a lot of hoping.

Thank you, IM rotation, for giving us a lot of time together. And thank you, upcoming rotations, for helping me appreciate our "together time" more than I may have otherwise.

Love Day

Highlight of our Love Day:

I'm lying on the couch.

Brendon comes over.

Brendon kisses me.

Henry comes over.

Henry kisses Mom. Henry kisses Dad.

Brendon kisses me.

Henry kisses Mom. Henry kisses Dad.

Brendon picks up Henry for a family hug.

Brendon kisses me. Brendon kisses Henry.

I kiss Brendon. I kiss Henry.

Henry kisses Mom. Henry kisses Dad.

Kiss. Kiss. Hug. Hug. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss.

All around. From and for everyone.

It was a wonderful love fest.

Baby Showers

Way back before Henry was born (nearly a year ago...crazy!) and we were living in Missouri, my friends threw a baby shower for me. Everyone was so generous and I was so grateful for everyone who came to show their love and support. I felt like I was swimming in gifts (see pictures below).  The evening was a blast! I wish we had get-togethers like that all the time. Oh wait, we did...

I love these pictures of old friends.  Oh, the memories!

After we moved back to Utah, my sweet aunts wanted to throw another shower. Again, everyone was so generous. It was fun to have Henry with me this time. I think all baby showers should be thrown with the baby.

Brittany, Grandma Myrtice, Great Aunt Rosemari, Grandma Carol, Me

The star of the shower (3 months old)

We played "Smell the Poop" (I just made that up). The hosts put melted candy bars in little diapers and we guessed which candy bars were in each diaper. I almost got a perfect score. I'm pretty much a candy expert.

My aunts & cousin sewed this beautiful puff quilt which now lays on Henry's crib.

My Aunt Dawna made this darling photo book of Henry. We look at it often. Henry reaches for the book and loves looking at the pictures of himself. I'm pretty sure it'll be something we always look at. I can often be found looking through Henry's newborn pictures or watching video of when he was younger. I already miss that stage sometimes.

                        

                        

My cousin Addi made this life-saving church book: ABC's for Sunday.  Really, it has been wonderful.  The book keeps Henry entertained every Sunday during church.  He used to find the pictures of himself and smile; now he thumbs through the pages for anywhere from five seconds to five minutes.

We all had a great time together, at both showers.  And we've been using everything we received at both showers.

Thanks (again) everyone!

Eleven Months

Whenever I think about Henry, I mean really think about him, I am overjoyed. But it's different than the joy of him being my son and me being his mother (although there is certainly a joy that comes from that); it's an overwhelming joy, a sense of peace and love. Henry is blessed with a happiness about him: it radiates in his countenance (can you see it?). I can't tell you how many times he has lifted my spirit; it happens almost daily and sometimes multiple times a day. He has truly brought a piece of heaven with him. I feel immensely blessed to have him in my family to help me through this mortal journey. If, as an eleven-month-old boy, he is teaching me so much about our purpose and opportunities for happiness, I can't even imagine what he will be teaching me for the rest of my life.

Henry has grown leaps and bounds this month. The ten- to eleven-month-old stretch made him a new little man. It seems to me he is becoming a little toddler and may not be the "mellow man" I once called him. He is cuter and more fun than ever! I love this stage! Henry is so busy, so anxious to laugh, and remains my happy buddy. And he makes one good little buddy.

We've experienced a number of "firsts" this month. Brendon and I have really enjoyed watching the many changes in Henry. In a nutshell, the following describes Henry's big month:

Feeling frustration

Making his body limp

Pushing my hand away

Walking

Waving and saying "bye"

Finding a comfort toy

Reading by himself

Laughing and playing in the mirror
Kissing

Feeling Frustration
Although this has happened several times now, I still laugh every time. The first time it happened was definitely the funniest because it was very unexpected. Here's the story: I gave Henry the sticker from opening a new CD and he started playing with it. Shortly after, he keep trying to eat it (like he does everything else) and I kept taking his hand away from his mouth and saying, "Don't eat it." After half a dozen times of me pushing his hand away from his mouth (...lightly pushing, I might add), he looked away from me, cringed his fingers tightly to his hand, clinched his mouth, and his head started shaking as his face turned slightly red. I wish I could get a picture of it because, even at his expense, it is adorable.

Making His Body Limp

Along those same lines, I picked up Henry to take him from my grandma's sewing room and he gave me the limp body. Again, I laughed.

Pushing My Hand Away
About a week later, I showed Henry a toy to distract him from doing something he shouldn't and he pushed my hand away. He was tired, upset, and did not want whatever I had to offer him. Now that I'm typing all of these things, I'm realizing the disciplinary aspect of parenthood (which I am so not ready for) just might be around the corner. Yikes!

Walking
For our loved ones far away who want to see Henry talking three steps, here it is:

Goldfish (or any food, for that matter) work wonders in encouraging Henry to walk. So far Brendon has seen up to ten steps. Every step is still so exciting. We love to see him walk.

Waving and Saying "Bye"
Henry is picking up on "good-byes." He says "bb...bb...bb" (as if to say "bye") and waves, even if it is after we close the door from saying bye to someone. (Okay, to date he has only done this once, maybe twice.) Point is, he is coming right along in his social skills and we couldn't be more proud of our little eleven-month-old boy.

Finding a Comfort Toy
While most children choose a blanket or stuffed animal, Henry decided he likes Link-A-Doos. He recently decided he likes to go to sleep, eat, play, walk, crawl, and bathe with a Link-A-Doo in hand. Brendon said, "It was only a matter of time before he latched onto them," and reminded me he has been surrounded by links since birth. We have had links on his car seat, stroller, and we keep a stash in the diaper bag. Toys are often attached at the end of the links, but ever since Henry was little, he has enjoyed holding onto the links. Brendon also reminded me Henry used to fall to sleep in his car seat while holding onto a link. Now, they're his comfort toy. 

Reading by Himself
When Henry is quiet these days (and the door to the bathroom is closed, leaving him no access to the toilet bowl or toilet paper roll), he can be found in his room, looking at his books. I hope my efforts to help him enjoy reading are working.

Laughing and Playing in the Mirror
The past couple days Henry will be laughing while playing. When I peek at him around the corner, he is playing in the mirror that hangs on our bedroom door. He just laughs and laughs. Can I say adorable??? He has also enjoyed playing with his (and my) reflection in the metal thing (whatever it is) in the tub.

Kissing
Although this isn't one of his "firsts" this month, I did want to document that Henry loves kissing anything: dolls, little babies, grandmas, and especially me.  I love those wide open mouth kisses.  He also loves to kiss himself in the mirror.  He knows he's that cute and lovable and I hope he remembers that forever.   

Henry, we love you are are so happy you are a part of our family.