Simon [11 months]

We have now arrived to the very last month before Simon's first birthday!  I am trying my best not to be daunted (or too emotional) by this milestone and am instead attempting to get a jump-start on the party planning.  The theme has been selected (which you've probably already figured out if you follow me on Pinterest - yes, I've recently become addicted), the date has been chosen, and I will be shortly setting off to tackle my list of DIY items for the event (this is a huge deal because I am not a big DIY-er) in our pursuit of saving money.  On that note, I've had to give in to the realization that we will have to keep Simon's birthday party on the smaller side.  While I dreamed of throwing him a monster-sized bash complete with bells and whistles and surrounded by everyone we know, a shindig of these proportions just isn't in our budget right now.  We've settled on having the get-together in our little house and are keeping the festivities small.  I know in my heart that it is much more important that we make Simon's first birthday special instead of expensive.  While he may not remember any of it, the rest of us will, and I want our family and friends to have memories of how lovingly--not lavishly--we celebrated the momentous occasion of our darling son turning one.

baby's first omelet!

big boy with his bottle

escape artist!

Simon's diet has greatly expanded over the course of the last month.  He is a regular cheese eater now (his most frequented being mozzarella string cheese), although he has had cheddar as well.  Cho-Cho often shares his cottage cheese with Simon (which the boy surprisingly loves!) and has gotten to taste bites of mango and peaches along with it.  Other foods now often gracing the presence of Simon's high chair tray are: Greek yogurt, spinach, cantaloupe, green beans, whole grain pasta, pear, chicken, and ham.  He has also tasted rice and a bit of waffle (each only once), but I'm not so sure how I feel about him eating those foods on a regular basis just yet.  There was one food I went back and forth on about whether to give it to Simon, and that was egg.  Based on what I've read and with whom I've asked, the opinions about egg are varying.  Some say eggs are okay around 9-10 months if baby is successful with solids and is only served the yolk; some are firm about waiting on egg until one year; others feel that if there are no family allergies to eggs, introducing them when baby is on solids is fine; one mom said she never separated the yolk from the whites and her child never had a reaction; and so on and so forth.  Eric and I discussed it, and ultimately we decided that we felt comfortable letting Simon try egg yolk.  And the result?  It was a success!  The boy willingly and excitingly gobbled up his first bites of cooked egg, and now he is a regular omelet eater with Mommy and Daddy on the weekends.  We've put cheese, meat, and veggies in Simon's baby omelets and every nibble is almost always completely devoured.  As we happily expected, Simon hasn't had any reactions to egg other than sheer delight when served his delicious yellow breakfast.  Now all we have to worry about is that silly monkey escaping from his high chair!  (Yes, I grabbed a camera before pulling him off the high chair; sometimes you just HAVE to get photographic evidence.  All parents are guilty of this at some point!)

view from the backseat

growing out of his "sleepy chair"

Ergo rider

While he hasn't yet exceeded the height and weight limitations for his infant car seat, Simon is reaching the end of his time in the infant seat and will soon graduate to a convertible car seat.  With the help of the Facebook group and website for Car Seats for the Littles, I began doing some research on convertible car seats and figuring out which seat would fit best for long-term rear facing in my car.  After reading and looking up prices, I selected a seat that best matched our needs at a price that we can afford.  During my winter break from work, I set off selling some of our unused and unneeded items online as a way to begin a car seat fund.  I'm happy to report that we've surprisingly been doing a great job of getting rid of clutter and have made some decent cash!  In the mean time before we are able to purchase the new seat, Eric and I are already practicing what Convertible Car Seat Life will be like by pulling Simon out of his infant seat when we get out of the car in public.  The boy is getting quite heavy to carry around in the infant seat while out and about, so leaving the car seat in the car is much easier.  As a result, Simon has spent a lot more time riding in shopping carts and in my Ergo carrier when we go places, the latter being an extra great workout for me.  Even though I have a hard time not being emotional over Simon growing up, I am excited about his coming transition into the convertible seat; this mama LOVES getting to buy new gear for her little guy!

first Christmas presents

Christmas Eve at Pappy's

first Christmas smiles

The biggest event to occur during Simon's eleventh month of life was of course: Christmas!  We started the holiday with our Christmas Eve tradition of having dinner at Lester's.  It was a full house with the three of us, my dad, Lester, Benjamin, and Kristine and her three daughters.  We also always bring Courage with us to play with his doggy cousin, Peanut, so the evening was quite lively with the two pups running around.  Simon opened his first Christmas presents from the family and was, as expected, more interested in the wrapping and boxes that his gifts came in.  We dined on a delicious ham dinner and snacked on Eric's famous fudge for dessert (baby excluded).  Simon had lots of fun playing with everyone and showing off his talented moves and grooves.  Eric's Aunt Sam arrived later in the evening from the airport with her boyfriend, Matt, and we were very excited to see her for Simon's first Christmas.  Our family had a great time at Pappy's, and the presents--both given and received--were special and wonderful.  Simon was lucky to get some pretty cool stuff from his grandpas!

Simon's first time looking at Christmas lights

walking with Daddy

in front of my favorite Charlie Brown house

After leaving Lester's, we went home for a bit to recharge our batteries (i.e., feed and change the baby and put the dog to bed because he was exhausted from so much play!) before heading out for our other Christmas Eve tradition.  Just like last year, we headed over to the Pebble Creek Christmas lights in Rocklin for our 9th Christmas Eve in a row.  Simon slept during the drive over, but awoke the minute we were parked and pulling the stroller out of the trunk.  To avoid a cranky baby, I decided that it would be best to just carry Simon to keep him happy while kicking myself for leaving the Ergo at home.  Thankfully, he did just fine being carried in my arms and gazed very curiously at all of the twinkling lights around us.  This experience was very surreal for me because in nine years, this was the very first time that Eric and I weren't walking the neighborhood alone as just a couple.  As we are no longer a twosome, sharing this tradition with Simon was so joyous and heartwarming.  I am already looking forward to next year and am hoping that over time the little one will become more accepting about riding in the stroller; he'll be SO heavy to carry by then!

our family on Christmas morning

exploring his new treasures

Santa baby

Christmas morning was fun and exciting at our house!  Promptly after waking up, Eric and I exchanged gifts with each other as Simon played with the discarded wrapping paper.  We checked out some of Simon's new loot from the night before and changed into our new pajamas (Eric and I both bought them for each other and Simon got his Christmas morning pjs from Cho-Cho a few weeks back).  We did some prep for breakfast and waited for everyone to make their way over.  This was the first year that I requested everyone wear pajamas, so when Lester, Kristine, Sam, and Matt arrived for our traditional omelet brunch, I was happy to see them dressed accordingly!  My dad baked biscuits from scratch, I baked pumpkin and Devil's food muffins, and Eric was in charge of the loaded omelet station.  We also served bacon and fresh fruit, enjoyed egg nog, and sampled coffee specially brewed in my new Keurig!  Baby got a delicious sampling of breakfast complete with egg yolk, ham, and veggies.  After breakfast, we gathered to watch Simon open his gifts from Mommy and Daddy (plus a few more that Cho-Cho snuck over), and Eric, Simon and I also exchanged gifts with Aunt Sam.  Our boy was well-loved on by our family during his first Christmas, and our laid-back, relaxing celebration was a nice way to spend the day.  Our tradition of having more of the 'hoopla' on Christmas Eve at Lester's and the lazies at our house the next morning really seems to work out so lovely for everyone.  Simon surely loved all of the attention he received and was in awe of his many new and shiny toys!

our little monkey

with Great Aunt Sami

3 generations

As I mentioned above, Eric's Aunt Sam was in town for Simon's first Christmas.  This was her third time visiting since Simon's birth and the trip marked the end of her longest stretch since her last time here in May.  In addition to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, Sam joined us for an afternoon at our house to spend quality time with her two nephews and me.  Simon played in his jammies while us adults ate the Chinese takeout that Sam treated us to while we visited.  Sam took some pictures of Simon and we also got a few shots of them together back at Lester's (where she was staying) before she had to prepare for her flight home.  It means so much to us to have Sam in Simon's life since Eric's mom isn't with us.  It is important to us that Simon has a relationship with Sam and even though she lives in Las Vegas, Eric and I will make sure that Simon knows she is a member of our family.  Some day I hope we will be able to take a trip to visit her, and if we are lucky, Sam will hopefully continue to visit us here to see her "favorite grand nephew."

my football fans

playtime with Bliss

just like Mommy

Time is ticking by so quickly.  Our babbling, expert-crawling, cabinet-opening, door-closing, phone-and-remote-and-water bottle-stealing baby is growing up right before our eyes.  While I was pouting about our infant soon becoming a toddler, Eric remarked to me: "I'm excited for Simon to get bigger; it means we will get to do so many new and cool things with him.  But, I know it's different for you because you're his mommy."  He was right, it is different for me.  I am so not ready for my little boy to become a Big Boy.  Even though I could sit around sentimentally looking through pictures and whimpering over all of his outgrown clothes (which I actually did do when we tackled our huge baby clothing organization project!), I'm finding some comfort in reminding myself that even though we're almost through his first year of life, we do have many more fabulous years with Simon to come.  And above all else, not being a baby anymore won't mean that my boy won't need his mommy any less.  At least, that's what I hope.

Simon's nursery revealed

I know, this post is like 11 months late.  But what else can I say other than that I've been a little busy?

It's no secret that the nursery wasn't finished when Simon arrived.  That's actually an understatement because in reality, the nursery pretty much wasn't even started.

Over the course of a few months I slowly got to decorating the room, somewhat replicating the simple idea I had in mind.  I wanted an owl theme with the incorporation of a few small elements relating to Eric, since Simon is his prized first born son after all.

(No offense to any future sons we may bear!)

Anyway, here are the very long-overdue [to me] photos of Simon's nursery.  While it may not look like much, I really love his room with its matching and--at the same time--non-matching qualities, the array of bright colors, and the embracing coziness.  I'm happy when I come in this room.  And so is Simon.  Unless we're trying to put him to bed...  Oye.

Simon's nursery

I purchased the blue dresser at a thrift store years ago

it was previously in our office

crib from Babies "R" Us

bedding (breathable mesh bumper not part of the set) from Target

owl wall decals found on Amazon

owl hook from World Market

this dresser was a Craigslist find

wooden "S" sign found at Marshall's

white frame: invitation from my 1st baby shower

hanging owl ornaments were part of a gift

gray owl found at Ross

frame from Michaels

photo courtesy Shannon Squires Photography

this frame is another Marshall's find

photo courtesy of Kristine

owl bank purchased from Etsy seller whitedovecrafts

blue/white/brown blanket knit by a coworker for my 3rd baby shower

the owl pictures are wall decals I found at Ross and decided to frame

mats were custom cut for me by Athena

frames are from IKEA

drawer knobs also found at World Market

soap/lotion dispenser from Pier 1

we use it for hand sanitizer

red frame: invitation from our 2nd baby shower

white frame: Abominable Snowman movie poster we had in the office

gray frame: Abominable Snowpeople Family print from Etsy shop berkleyillustration

blue children's table scored in IKEA's "As Is" section for almost 50% off

will be perfect for playing, coloring, etc. when the boy is older

lamp is another World Market find

owl speaker from Toys "R" Us

the famous chair where Simon takes his monthly photo

I haven't rocked him in this much, but we have fun doing photoshoots here

(remember the owl pillow?)

"Baby Simon" banner from 1st baby shower

cube organizer and storage bins from Target

penguins and My First Cthulhu plush were gifts from Simon's 'uncles'

we gave Simon the Laugh & Learn Love to Play Puppy for Easter

owl puppet was a gift (from IKEA)

photo: Eric's hockey team "A win in honor of baby Simon!" after his birth

(photo courtesy of Kristine)

hockey team beanie was made by the wife of one of the players

owl babushka found at Target... Simon's favorite toy right now!

Daddy affectionately named it, "Babushkowl"

Disney books scored at Goodwill

top photo: ultrasound at 18 19 weeks

middle photo: one of our maternity photos

bottom photo: one of Simon's newborn photos 

white rug purchased from Marshall's

I hope you enjoyed Simon's nursery!

welcome to 2014

With it being the start of the new year, I felt it necessary to post something to kick off 2014 here at my blog.  So, here I am posting: Happy New Year!

ringing in 2014

We stayed home as a family rather than going out on New Year's Eve, although we had several invites to parties and to friends' homes for a relaxed evening.  Nothing was more relaxing than being in our home in our pajamas, eating junk food and playing with Simon.  The baby and I conked out on the couch around 10 or so, and I awoke shortly after midnight to Eric lying on the floor, dozing in and out while playing video games.  We had our New Year's kiss and as soon as I suggested we take a family photo with Simon adorably snoozing on my chest, the boy woke up quite fussy and wanted nothing to do with being in a picture.  While it might not exactly be a Kodak moment, our first family photo of 2014 is in fact an accurate portrayal of our night and I love how it turned out.  Needless to say,we went up to bed minutes later.

When we woke up that morning, the three of us headed over to Jen and Earl's for breakfast (confetti pancakes and mimosas!) and spent some time visiting (and napping, for Eric).  In the afternoon, we headed over to James and Athena's to give them their [belated] Christmas gift and enjoyed some tea and treats.  We relaxed at home for the rest of our evening, doing a little cleaning and picking up around the house.  Since I had just purchased a large plastic tote from Target (they're having an after-Christmas sale right now), we started breaking down a few baby items that Simon no longer uses to put in the garage for storage.  Watching Eric dismantle Simon's swing was such a surreal moment; I feel like it wasn't too long ago that I watched him put that swing together when Simon was a newborn.  There's no denying that over the next couple months the baby stuff will begin moving out and making way for the toddler stuff that will inevitably be moving in.

Daddy breaking down Simon's swing

and for comparison:

Simon's 1st time in the swing, 3 1/2 weeks old

Oh my, what a difference [less than] a year makes.  I can't wait to see what 2014 has in store for our family!

Simon [10 months]

Eric said to me, "We don't have a baby anymore; we have a big boy."  I have been saying this for weeks!  It feels like we have a toddler already, even though his first birthday is just under 2 months away (pause while I take a second to freak out).  Simon shows us more and more that his days of being a baby are quickly becoming a thing of the past.  Continually growing, continually on the move, and continually getting into everything; Simon is loving life and still takes our breaths away with his innocent curiosity, his uncanny and rapid ability to learn, and his sheer happiness and wonderment for life.

Simon waving!

gazing out the window

sleep monster

In his tenth month, Simon learned several new things.  He just recently started waving, and it's THE CUTEST THING EVER!  He sometimes waves goodbye to me in the morning when I'm leaving for work, he waves hello to Daddy when he gets home, and he has also waved to other friends and family when we see them (and even strangers at the store!).  Along with his "mama" and "dada" babble, he is almost making a "hi" sound when he waves, and I swear he tried to say "all done" when I was cutting his fingernails a few weekends ago.  Simon is trying to climb up on some of the living room furniture--and succeeding at times--and is really showing us that he is quite the little daredevil.  We've reached the point where a close eye is required when baby is in the room otherwise he'll quickly be in an area he's not allowed, either in an attempt to grab at or already holding a no-no object of desire (our phones, the TV remote, videogame controllers).  He loves to stand in the front window now, too, and can commonly be found there around the time I arrive home from work, gazing out at the birds and trees with a big smile on his face.  I'm surprised (and happy) to report that even though he's moving more than ever, Simon's sleep habits have gotten a little better.  He's waking less during the night (even though he's still sleeping with us) and is taking a few naps by himself during the day thanks to my dad's help.  Not every nap is a long one, but even the shortest one is making progress in the right direction.

with Chelsea, Emma, & Elle

morning walk with Bliss

 play nap date with Kinlee

Thanks to a few quiet weekends before Thanksgiving and my holiday break from work, I was able to get in a few 'play dates' for Simon.  He is such a social butterfly at home and around friends and family, so I love getting him together with other babies for more socializing opportunities.  Before they returned home to Texas, Simon and I visited with Chelsea and her girls one more time at the end of their California visit.  She invited friends to meet her at Starbucks on a beautiful, sunny Sunday afternoon.  The group, which was a mixture between adults and children, sat outside in the sun and my little wiggle worm wanted to explore every corner of the patio.  He crawled all over the place and caught the attention of the other toddlers, including Emma (Chelsea's oldest daughter), who adorably followed him around.  During my Thanksgiving break, the boy and I also went for a few stroller walks with my mom friends and their girls.  Jen and I did two chilly morning walks with Simon and Bliss (both babes slept most of the time), and we also met up with Kesley and Kinlee on another day for a neighborhood stroll.  Kinlee and Simon also took the opportunity to nap while us moms walked, but afterwards we went back to Kesley's house and had some play time.  It was hilarious watching Simon and Kinlee together as they shared toys and wiggled around each other.  She is the closest to Simon's age out of all of his baby friends, so I definitely want to get them together again for more play.

searching for leftover turkey

post-dinner expressions

Simon's first Thanksgiving

[photos courtesy of Kristine]

I was so excited for Simon's first Thanksgiving!  Being old enough to eat with us made the holiday extra special, and I got into the spirit by getting him a cute Thanksgiving bib.  We decided to have dinner at our house; Lester bought a turkey to deep fry, but the bird ended up being too big for his fryer.  He purchased a second, smaller one and fried it at home while making homemade stuffing.  Eric cooked the bigger turkey in our oven (his very first time!) and rather than basting it, he decided to wrap it with bacon.  He also made amazing mashed potatoes with cream cheese and green onions and tried a hand at recreating his mom's candied yams.  My dad baked delicious muffin-sized pumpkin pies and whipped up a cranberry salsa at home, and then came to our house to make fresh green beans and bake the rolls.  I made our traditional green rice casserole, adding spinach for the first time, which came out better than I was expecting.  Once Lester and Kristine made it over with the stuffing and deep fried turkey, it was time to feast.  We gave Simon turkey, plain potatoes, and broccoli, all of which were met with great eagerness.  He had some trouble with the turkey and gagged up a few bigger bites, but did great the following day when we made sure his leftovers were in smaller pieces.  I thought we would have shared more food with Simon, but there ended up being so much sugary, fatty goodness.  Next year, Simon's plate will be much fuller and just might even include dessert as well.  What was most important was that we spent time together as a family, cooking and watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, and being thankful for everything we have.

Christmas tree lighting at Mommy's school

showing Simon the lights

Simon the red-nosed reindeer

Simon (and Eric!) both attended their first Tree Lighting ceremony at my school.  Every year, our students with their families gather on campus in the evening to light the giant evergreen tree standing in front of our school, sing and sign (using America Sign Language) holiday carols, and enjoy various sweet treats with hot chocolate.  We attended this event as a family and even though it was super cold outside, we bundled up and kept warm by huddling near one of the many fire pits set up on the blacktop.  My coworkers got a kick out of seeing Simon in his reindeer suit and he socialized really well with all of the 'strangers' he saw.  I am always looking for reasons to bring Simon up to work with me, but there are unfortunately not enough.  Regardless, we enjoyed ourselves at my school's little event and I was very thankful that the three of us were all able to go.  This was the very first Christmas tree that Simon ever saw, and he really took in the sight of the big, breathtaking tree covered in lights!

 in line to see St. Nick

Simon's visit with Santa

lovin' on Lilly

Unlike last time, I got my act together for this huge, upcoming holiday and promptly scheduled Simon's first visit to see Santa!  We made it a family date with James, Athena, and Lilly and met up at the mall to take the kids over to jolly old St. Nick.  Simon was all smiles while we waited in line, flirting with Lilly and gazing at the lights and decorations that surrounded Santa's village.  Athena held him for a few minutes before Lilly took her turn to sit on the fat man's lap, and we watched as James and Athena took their traditional holiday photo with their daughter.  Then it was our turn, and I excitedly and slowly handed a happy Simon over to Mr. Claus.  IMMEDIATE TEARS!  I was shocked!  He'd been in such good spirits that I definitely did not expect that Simon would cry.  Simon's first photo with Santa quickly turned into a family photo, and Eric chatted up the sweet, old big guy as I calmed down Simon.  A few shots later, we got a decent picture where Simon didn't look traumatized and Eric had made a new friend.  When we were finished, our two families headed to the food court for dinner and afterward we did some moseying around the mall.  Lilly still absolutely loves being around "Baby Simon" and I enjoy seeing the two of them together (and Simon clearly loves her, too!).  As always, I hope that we can carry on this Santa-seeing tradition with our dear friends for the years to come. 

sleeping during the parade

 

awake and in awe

our first Festival of Lights

I mentioned before that instead of throwing our annual Holiday Cocktail Party, Eric and I took Simon to the Festival of Lights Parade in Auburn.  Attending this parade held special meaning for us because it was supposed to be Eric's and my very first date exactly 8 years ago.  I say "supposed to be" because on that night we had left my apartment late and by the time we made it up to Auburn, the parade was over and done with.  We decided to make do and ended up going to a little café for dinner and walking the streets of old town, looking at the decorated shop windows and holding hands.  I wouldn't trade that memory for anything, but the idea of recreating our first date with our son made me very excited.  Being our first successful attempt to attend this year, there were some bumps along the way like not knowing exactly where the parade began or being able to find close parking, but we made it to the front of the route just in time to see the first floats and walkers pass us by.  It was freezing cold, so Simon was bundled up in two sets of jammies, socks, mittens, and was wrapped in two blankets.  He surprisingly slept through the first 20 minutes or so until a passing fire engine blew its horn and sprang Simon to life.  Once he was up, Eric and I enjoyed pointing out of all the beautiful lights and waving to the passers by.  The night was so special and I am already looking forward to attending again next year.  At least we are now well-versed in where we need to be next time!

like father, like son

shopping cart fun

focused on Daddy's hockey game

This last month with Simon has truly been such a ball.  I've never seen Eric exude more joy over being a father than I have in these recent weeks.  Discovering the new things that Simon can do, showing him new treasures, and inventing new games are equally as entertaining for us grown-ups as they are for the boy.  The best new skill that Simon has learned is the art of imitation.  He copies the silly noises we make, repeats after us when we say babble words he is familiar with, and again will wave back to us when we wave first.  With Christmas quickly coming, there are going to be so many more wonderful new events and adventures that we will get to share with our son and I couldn't be more thrilled.  Simon is truly the light of our lives, and we are shining ever so brightly with pride and love.