Merry Christmas!

Though Rhys was around last year, this, to me, felt like our first Christmas with him.  Last year I was beyond exhausted and still in a lot of pain, both physical and emotional, so Christmas was far from merry.  I’m so, so happy to be in such a different place now, one in which I was able to thoroughly enjoy Christmas with our little man.  

We got a lot of gifts for Rhys, many more than I had planned on, but they were mostly books and we feel like books are never a bad thing, so we splurged.  Shopping for them was actually a lot of fun.  Brian and I both took a day off of work and left Rhys home with Katie so we could get our shopping done and, more importantly, enjoy a relaxing day together.  Mission accomplished on both fronts. 

Though we got many gifts for him, we asked Rhys for only one thing…a sleep-in day.  

And…? 

Maybe next year. 

We did presents and breakfast at our house and then headed over to Gramma and Grampa Wynne’s for food, more gifts, family fun and snow!  It was a lovely day.

The first gift we opened (from Dave) came in this great box that, of course, was as big a hit as the real present.

These are the great things we found in that very cool box.

Rhys quickly got the hang of unwrapping.  We're pretty sure he's a genius.

One of the many books from Mama and Dada.  Rhys is very tactile, so we tried to find books that could be played with as much as read.

"That was all really fun, guys, but I've been up since 4:50.  Can I take my nap now?"

"Ahhhh, just what I needed."

Trying to convince Uncle Pat to share his beverage.

This boy adores his Grampa.  I think the feeling is mutual.

Auntie Megan made Rhys this great dinosaur pull-along.  He loved it!

Speaking of Christmas, I'm sure you're all wondering how the Santa visit went. 

The answer?  Fine.  Pretty anti-climatic. 

I started waiting in line about an hour before Brian and Rhys arrived, but there was still another hour wait ahead of us.  The guys walked around downtown for awhile, but eventually joined me in line where we got to witness temperament differences between little boys and little girls.  In line behind us were two girls about Rhys’ age who were more than happy to just sit quietly in their strollers or be held in their parents’ arms.  Rhys, though, wanted to MOVE.  He wanted to walk around and touch things and interact with people.  When we finally got to Santa he did cry but not because he was afraid, but because he was ticked that this strange white-bearded guy was forcing him to sit still when there was so much exploring to do!

Can I get down now?

All in all it's been a great holiday season.  We're very blessed. 

Zoomarium

Rhys is a mover and a shaker.  Our house is feeling smaller by the day as he masters walking and is into everything.  A quick Google search revealed lots of places for tots to roam and play, but most are only available during the week.  Lucky for us, the Woodland Park Zoo has an indoor play area that is open every day of the week!  We went up there last Sunday and had a grand ol’ time. 

  

The highlight for me was Rhys' interaction with a little girl just his age.  He toddled over and gave her a nice, gentle hug.  It was so sweet.  The lowlight was leaving the zoo.  Rhys was pretty ticked and screamed most of the way out.  The car ride home was no better.  This kid hates the car.  Ugh.

This picture really has nothing to do with this post except that Rhys' expression in it is exactly how he felt when we left the zoo.

 

Old Pictures

I was going through our pictures last night to create our holiday card and came across a few cute ones that were not card-worthy but are definitely blog-worthy.  They are from Auntie Audrey and Uncle Damiao's visit this summer.  I am surprised that I did not post them before.  (If I did forgive me, it is Friday night and I am tired).

 

 

Recovered, Finally

It took awhile but we are all healthy again.  My recovery took a circuitous route via a hive breakout, an ER visit, Benadryl (IV and oral), a 1am walk through our not-so-safe neighborhood and very little sleep.  Oh, and some nasty cold sores.  Somehow I made it through and am healthy again.  Whew.  That was not fun.

Once we all felt better, it was time to deck the halls.  Brian wanted a tree and while I agreed it would have been fun, I really wasn't excited about keeping Rhys away from it for the next three weeks.  So we compromised with a swag:

Yes, that's a monkey on top.  Brian loves monkey and works them into our household whenever possible.

Rhys and Dada went to get the swag so Mama could take a much needed nap.  I was sorry to miss out but thoroughly enjoyed a nearly 2-hour rest.

The father/son outing also included a trip to Home Depot.  Brian needed to buy a special tool in order to install locks on some of our smaller drawers.  Brian is the most capable person I know and yet installing locks has proven to be quite a task.  Hopefully this special tool, whatever it is, will make it easier.

Hey Dada, I'd be happy to help you as soon as we get home!

 We're going to visit Santa sometime this week.  I've been wondering how Rhys will react, not to Santa so much as to the camera.  He is so obsessed with all technology and immediately gets ticked when he's not allowed to hold/grab/chew/play with it.  I was encouraged when, this morning, Brian decided to take some pics of the little man in his WSU jersey and there wasn't too much whining.

Go Cougs!

Awwww, big hug for Mama.

What are you looking at?

Come on, Mama, let's go play.

Rhys absolutely adores cats and dogs.  Every time he sees one he just wants to wrap him/her up in a big bear hug.  Our friend's 100lb black lab handles the love well, as does Uncle Pat and Auntie Dawn's much smaller Boston terrier Norman.  Our cats are less enthused, but Elliott does pretty darn good.  I think he and Rhys have a pact - Rhys gets to hug Elliot as long as Rhys throws food on the floor for Elliott.     

Elliott is very gentle, but does let Rhys know when he's being too rough.

Rhys:  "I love you Elliott!"  Elliott:  "You better throw me some food later, kid." 

 

  

Baby no more, Rhys is definitely a toddler.  He's walking all over the place now and is looking sturdier by the day.     

Watch out, world, here I come.

  

What a Week

Rhys was a generous little boy this week and shared his illness with me, Gramma and Grampa and our nanny.  Down like flies, one by one.  Brian, thank goodness, remained unscathed. 

There was a lot of puke in our house this week and it's frustrating because some of it could have been avoided.  We called the pediatrician on Monday morning after Rhys got sick for the third time and we got some standard advice...small sips of clear liquids, no solid food until after 8 hours of no vomiting, etc.  All fine and dandy, but it would have been nice if they'd mentioned what the doctor told Brian when he took Rhys in on Thursday (b/c he puked twice on Wednesday) - "no milk or dairy products for a week or so.  A stomach bug like this tends to make babies lactose intolerant."  Hmmm, well, wish we hadn't given him a bottle of milk prior to coming here.  The doctor said he wouldn't be surprised if that came back up within the next 24 hours and, sure enough, when Rhys started crying at 4am on Friday morning we found his crib covered in vomit.  (For those who are wondering, avoiding rolling in ones own vomit is apparently not an natural instinct.  So, yes, Rhys was covered in vomit too.  Bath time...)

Really early morning wake up calls and taking care of a sick kid are not what the doctor ordered for my own speedy recovery, so I'm still on the mend.  I feel a lot better than I did a few days ago, but still don't have much of an appetite.  Which brings me to one of two bright spots of the week...vomiting, diarrhea, and not eating for five days are all it took for me to finally lose those last couple of pounds of baby weight!  So easy, why didn't I try it sooner?!  (Or not)

The second bright spot of the week is literally bright.  My birthday gift from Brian was to get the sapphire of my wedding ring reset in a new band.  The old band didn't hold the stone properly so it was often loose.  We ordered the ring over a month ago and it finally came in this week...when I was home sick.  So, Brian fought through Friday night holiday traffic to pick it up for me and it made my week.  It is sparkly and stunning and I love it.

Oh, and in non-vomit related news, Rhys sent his first text this week.  He was playing with my phone and somehow managed to send Brian a text.  Blank, but a message nonetheless.  So, if any of you get a blank or jibberish message from my phone, you can assume it's from Rhys (or, if it's past his bedtime, you can assume I'm on my third glass of wine).  

Too Cute

Footed PJ's on a baby has got to be one of life's cutest sights.  This isn't the greatest picture nor are these his cutest pajamas, but it's still awfully sweet.

In other cute news, check this out:

Being sick, seemingly, is not cute.  Just ask Dada who got vomited on three times before 9am yesterday morning (a little even got in his mouth).  Or ask Gramma and Grampa who got to change 6 diarrhea diapers today.  For us, though, a sick baby is a snuggly baby which is awfully cute.  Typically, Rhys is a man on the move.  He loves being held if you're up and moving around, but sitting and/or laying down with him to read, snuggle, etc. just doesn't happen.  So, while we certainly hate seeing Rhys sick and unhappy, we've definitely enjoyed the sweet snuggles.  No picture(s) to share...he wasn't sick enough to quickly stop cuddling and demand the phone when it came out for a photo opp.  (Our nanny took the video above...not really sure how...she has magic powers).   

Brrrr

You may have noticed that it's been awhile since we've posted a picture of Rhys wearing a cute hat.  That's because he now REFUSES to keep a hat on head.  In a store one day I tried to put one on him and he screamed bloody murder.  When I tried again (why did I try again?  I don't know) he screamed even louder.  Fortunately, if he's sufficiently distracted by a fun activity like walking around the block with his walker, he'll allow a hood to stay on his head.

Mittens do not seem to piss him off as much as hats. He simply removes them, hands them back and goes about his business, cold hands be damned.

One!

I should be working right now, but this proud Mama would much rather tell you all about her sweet one-year-old! 

Stats
Height:  31.25" (92nd percentile)
Weight:  23lbs, 9.5oz (82nd percentile)
Head circumference:  49.4cm (100th percentile)

We really like our pediatrician.  By the point in my pregnancy that it came time to choose someone, I was just done with making decisions so we went a friend's recommendation and nothing more.  We didn't interview the doc.  We didn't even meet her.  And, frankly, I'm really glad because the type of parent I *thought* I was going to be would not have meshed with her.  But for the type of parent I've turned out to be, she's a great fit.  

But about our little man...my favorite things about Rhys are...

...his hugs first thing upon waking.  Mornings come far too early for my taste (5am anyone?) but the reward for getting out of bed is a pair of sweet little arms around my neck.  It makes getting up worth it.  (Usually.  You all know how much I love my sleep).

...watching Rhys dance.  He does this cute little booty shake and it's awesome.

...his smiles and laughs.  Rhys is a happy little guy.  We work hard to keep him well-rested and well-fed and it shows in his demeanor.

...watching him walk.  He's quickly mastering this skill and it's great fun watching the progress every day.

...his expressions.  Rhys has always had an expressive face and it gets more so each and every day.  Happy, sad, frustrated, whatever, it shows on his face.

In the interest of journalistic integrity, I must admit that Rhys is not perfect.  Unless he is sleeping, he hates the car and is not afraid to make it known, which makes riding him with him quite unpleasant.  His current method for letting us know that he's done with his meal is to throw his food on the floor.  Kinda annoying.  And, finally, he tells us that he is frustrated with a sound that is a little bit like nails on a chalkboard.  Other than these three things, though, he is perfect.  :)

We had a little family birthday party for Rhys and it was great (many thanks to Auntie Megan for several of these pics):

You can't tell it from this picture, but this boy loves to eat.  He packs away A LOT of food.  It's pretty amazing.

See note above re: expressive face.

Hangin' with sweet cousin Norah.

One of many generous gifts.

A homemade cake made with love by Dada.

Rhys wasn't a huge fan of his happy birthday serenade.

He had a few bites of cake and then proceeded to throw it on the floor.  All done, Mama!

A happy family.

I love this picture because you can see Rhys' 3-month portrait in the background.

No, that is not a meth dealer.  That is Uncle Carl.

Rhys got a kick out of Grandma Ann.  She elicited many laughs from him.

The party was on Saturday, the day before Rhys' actual birthday.  Here are a few shots from the actual day.

Dada, when is it my turn to play with the camera?

I love how it looks like he was calming sitting on my lap - not the case at all!

Jacques making a rare appearance.  Usually he hides out until the kid is sleeping.

Giddy up, Dada!

We love you, Rhys.  Happy first birthday sweet boy.

Skills

It's been far too long since I posted.  All the usual excuses apply...busy, tired, work, etc.  However, a new excuse is this...Rhys loves tech so every time Brian pulls out his phone to take a picture or video Rhys turns all of his attention to it, stops doing whatever cute thing he was doing and starts whining that we won't give him the phone.  Tonight, though, we had no choice but to just make it work because our boy is WALKING!  He has taken a tentative step or two over the last week and now he is stringing 4 or 5 steps together.  Yes, it usually ends with him falling into something, but it's still walking.

Here's a video.  It's weird and chaotic and sideways because we had to hide the phone from Rhys while convincing him to walk.  And, yes, it's a beer bottle that we're using to entice him to walk to us.  No, we're not parents of the year.

This next video we were able to capture right-side up and in focus because Rhys was focused on Elliott.  The cats are his second favorite thing after any Apple product.  I think Brian and I rank a distant third. 

Random Thoughts

We've been really busy lately so blogging has fallen to the bottom of the to-do list.  Here's a random smattering of thoughts/topics that I've wanted to write about, but haven't had time (or when I did have the time, didn't have the energy).  I anticipate Rhys waking from his nap in about 15 minutes, so this will be more stream of consciousness writing than my typical posts...bear with me.

Since the day we brought Rhys home from the hospital, I've struggled with knowing how warm or cold to dress him, especially for sleep.  I personally find the right temperature to be very important in sleeping well so I'm always very anxious to make sure he's the right temp...and therein lies the problem - who the heck knows what the right temp is for him?!  The whole problem is exacerbated (in my mind) by the fact that we still don't put a blanket in the crib.  So whatever we dress him in has to be just right, because there's no blanket to help regulate our missteps.  The old man on the bus who scolded me the other day for not dressing Rhys warmly enough did not help my confidence in this arena.

I used to have a pretty impeccable memory at work.  Now if I don't write things down, they're gone.  It really stinks.  I blame it on the fact that my brain is full of things like worrying about how warmly to dress Rhys.  Only so much can fit in there.

On the topic of worrying...it kind if cracks me up how little I worry about germs.  I am an extreme worrier on most other topics (the kid must get enough sleep!  he must poop enough!  he must eat spinach!)  But when it comes to germs, I am about as laid back as they come.  It's good to know that I do have it in me to be easygoing.  I'll need that skill as Rhys gets older and parenting gets a lot more complicated than deciding between short or long-sleeved PJ's.     

Our weekends are much "longer" now that Rhys is around.  On a good day (like today) we get to sleep in until 6:20.  I used to sleep in until at least 8 and wouldn't really get going until 10 or so.  Nowadays I am likely to have done the dishes, folded some laundry, fed Rhys breakfast and gone for a walk by 9am.  You really can fit a lot in the day when it starts at 6am.

A friend's mom told me towards the end of my pregnancy that children had "ruined her sleep forever."  I was aghast at the thought and was sure it wouldn't happen to me.  Now, I am pretty convinced that it has.  Thanks to the lasting physical effects of childbirth, I cannot make it through the night without having to pee and once I get up to go, I have a terrible time falling back asleep.  So while Rhys is sleeping away, I am laying there frustrated.  Even when I am sleeping, it's so light.  It used to be nearly impossible to wake me from slumber.  Not so now.  In addition, napping, once a favorite pasttime, is just not relaxing because it has to be on Rhys' schedule, not mine.         

Ok, the sweet boy is awake.  Time to sign off and enjoy some playtime.

Opinions

Our baby is turning into a little boy.  A little boy that has opinions.  A little boy who isn't afraid to express those opinions, loudly.  On Friday Rhys had a playdate. (Our nanny's sister is also a nanny so the two meet up now and again).  Apparently Rhys had a grand old time and was none too pleased to leave.  Same thing happened later that day when they were playing with the nanny's dogs.  Brian and I experienced the fun on Saturday when Rhys was seriously ticked off that we were carrying him through REI instead of letting him down so he could play with all the little kids running around.

Even a quick photo shoot led to drama. We attempted to capture a few photos of Rhys in a cute outfit.  One minute all was well...

Next minute he's ticked because Brian won't let him grab the camera...

 

Oh, well, at least we finally got some photographic evidence of his teeth!

I think part of Rhys' general frustration stems from his desire to be more mobile.  He is very interested in exploring his world and crawling just ain't cutting it anymore.  He's using his walker more and more and gets frustrated when it gets stuck somewhere.  Unfortunately, because our house is about 12' X 6', that happens a lot.  Just when he gets some steam going, he runs into a wall!

As such, we decided it was time to take the fun outside.  We don't have a big 'ol yard to enjoy, but we've got plenty of sidewalks.  Rhys got a good workout; he walked the length of the block a couple of times:

Ahhh, freedom!  See ya Mom and Dad.

I wish Mama would stop slowing me down, but I'm a happy camper anyway.

Always gotta make time to stop and smell the roses.