A year ago today...

I was at home by myself cleaning. That's right...cleaning. I was 39 weeks pregnant, and I had myself on the floor of my shower scrubbing, sweeping the floors, doing laundry, and of course some last minute "nesting" and organizing. I surely did not want to leave the house on my own at this stage in the pregnancy. My amazing friend, Lina, called me and questioned why I was cleaning and on my feet. I told her that I had a feeling Ethan was on his way real soon, and that what else was I supposed to do? I could not take just sitting at my house in anticipation. Matt was at work, so I was doing anything to pass the time.

It was later that evening that I began to have my intense contractions that would keep me up all night and then send me to the hospital the next day.

Today I am preparing for Ethan's 1st birthday. We are having our immediate family over for a small cookout and fun. I can hardly believe how fast this year has gone; I remember everything with preparing for his arrival and the actual delivery so vividly as if it was only last week! Baby boy is growing up so fast, but it is all so much fun!

Not such a little boy anymore!

Check out the new things that E can do!! He is turning more and more into a toddler!
*clap his hands--his does this all the time now! We will clap, smile, and congatulate him when he does something good, and he is surely catching on.
*shaking head "no"--he knows what "no" means, but not the head motion with it. He will shake his head like a crazy man imitating us doing it. It really is quite precious!
*drinking through a straw--Ethan has always loved straws, but what kid doesn't right? A while ago, we started dropping whatever we were drinking into his mouth; I felt like we were feeding a bird! Just this past week we were trying to get him to actually suck out of the straw. Just a few days ago he finally did it! Such a bg boy! He has never really liked a sippy cup, so this may be the way we go!
*climbing stairs-- we do not have stairs at our house, so this was a surprise. While at my parent's house the other day, E crawled over to them and stared. We watched him as he thought about it, and then he quickly proceeded to climb. He made it all the way to the top (13 stairs) without skipping a beat! Such a bittersweet moment!
*temper tantrums--this one is not such a good one. When Ethan does not have something that he wants, he will cry loudly (no tears, of course. He is a faker!), lean over towards the ground with his upper body, and then hit the ground with both hands. Matt claimes that E looks like a gorilla doing this. I would have to agree! This is only the beginning of his trying to get our attention!
*talking back-- when I get on to Ethan for something, he will babble right back to me, with a little baby attitude. I swear, my kid is already talking back to me! I know I will not laugh at this later in his life, but right now, it is rather entertaining!

I cannot wait to see what these next 9 weeks we have together over the summer will bring!

Summer is here!

I have never been so ready for summer! Well, last year I was pretty ready as well. I was 38 weeks pregnant and ready to be a mommy! Now my baby boy is about to be 1, and I am ready to spend every single day with him. Matt is pretty stoked about me being home. He has done a super fabulous job watching Ethan at home while also working. I swear, I don't know how he does it! He complains very little, and he knows what a blessing we have with him being able to be home raising our first child.

This summer will be very different from any other summer. 1--Ethan is here and very mobile. 2--Matt will be home EVERY SINGLE DAY!! I am not going to know what to do. Matt will not be able to go off and do things. Just because he is at home does not mean that he can do whatever. He has obligations with his job, one of which is being accessible by phone (not a cell phone) during the day. Even still, having him home with me this summer will be amazing!

Over the summer I normally bring things home from school (lesson plans, books, ideas, etc). Anybody who is a teacher can understand why. During the school year there are so many other things at school that get in the way of me being able to go over and beyond with what I do in the classroom. However, I did not bring anything home this summer. My complete focus is my family. I look forward to a fun-filled, relaxing summer with my boys!

Obsessions of Ethan

It cracks me up to see the things that Ethan absolutely loves. He will crawl like crazy, scream to get our attention, and finally play so contently. Here are his loves:
*the broom--any time one of us sweeps, Ethan has to be a part of the action. I will even give him the broom, and he will mimick the act of sweeping. It is precious!
*keyboard on computer--why buy a kid toys when the grown-up toys are so much better?? Just today we pulled out the old lap top so Ethan can be like us and type on a "real" keyboard. He even knows where the desk top computer is (the office). He will crawl back there, pull himself to standing at the desk, and reach for the keyboard.
*alarm clock--this is a new thing for him this week. He has discovered my alram clock on the night stand. He must like the neon green lights and sounds it will make by pushing the buttons. He will venture off into our bedroom to snatch the alarm clock off the night stand.
*pillows--he loves to crawl over pillows; they probably are like mountains to him!
*any cabinet we will let him explore in. I can easily clean the bathroom, fold laundry, grade papers, etc as long as Ethan has some new things in front of him that he can pull out and destroy.
*pack'n'play--he treats this like a trampoline. He will jump in it and then fall down. He laughs and plays all by himself. This is where Matt will place him temporarily while Matt is on the phone with a customer.
*earrings--he has always noticed my earrings, but lately he will not take his eyes off of them! He finds them so fascinating (especially the bigger ones with little dangling pieces).

Close to a year old!

I am sitting here on the couch just watching Ethan as he plays on the floor. Matt is off with a friend, and I am enjoying this one-on-one time with Ethan. Right now he is talking to himself and playing with anything around him. I think I see Matt's earphones going toward the mouth! Lil man is now pulling himself to standing and cruising around the furniture...the first stages of beginning to learn to walk!

I just sat here and read through some of my past blogs of being pregnant and during Ethan's first year, and I cannot believe all that time is behind us now. I found myself tearing up and smiling as I read what I had written about our changing life.

As Ethan approaches his 1 year birthday, here are some things that I will miss about his "baby" days
1. watching him crawl and explore...yet I know he will begin to explore in even cuter ways
2. his baby talk that means so much to him
3. nursing him...I am actually dreading this because he has been such a good nurser. He loves his mommy!
4. his smile with his few little teeth shining through
5. the way he crawls so fast to get to me
6. the way he pulls on my leg to let me know he wants me to hold him
7. his baby toys
8. watching him have the time of his life as he goes crazy in his walker...he will seriously do laps and laugh like crazy

Poor sick baby Ethan

My little man has been fighting with a pretty bad virus the past several days. It all started this past Saturday with a fever. We didn't think too much of it and assumed it was the start of some more teething. Sunday morning I noticed some nasal congestion as I was nursing him, but again, passed it off as teething; this all happened about 2 months ago when his first 2 teeth broke through. The fever continued all day Sunday and Monday. The only way to keep it down was with Motrin. He was so congested that he struggled to eat or sleep, which also meant that Matt and I were struggling as well. I decided to take him to the doctor on Monday. He received a pretty strong anti-biotic shot and he also had a chest Xray done. The doc was concerned that he might have some breathing issues, or possibly pneumonia again. We returned to the doctor the next day as a follow-up. It was a good thing because Ethan had gotten worse, and Matt and I were running on little sleep. I was worried so badly for Ethan. He was not able to get any rest, and it was nearly impossible for him to eat. Here is everything that was going on with Ethan:
*fever of nearly 103 for 3 days
*severe nasal congestion
*white puss pockets on throat
*small questionable area in left lung (possible pneumonia)
*fluid behind both ears
*white blood cell count up (indicates infection)

Poor guy! We left the doctor yesterday with another anti-biotic shot and 3 days worth of an oral steroid. Needless to say, he seemed better within about 5 hours. It seems as if he has done nothing but sleep today. It makes me nervous for what this may mean for tonight, but I don't care. I just want him to be better!

God is so good. This is my spring break, so thankfully, I have been home to take care of him. Matt has been wonderful, as always. But as with any baby, Ethan only wants his mama. I am glad that Matt did not have to deal with him on his own. Last time Ethan got really sick was over Christmas break. God is really watching out for us by allowing me to be here during his sickness. While it does stink for me to spend my break at home and not running errands, seeing friends, and enjoying the outside, the good part is that we are saving money and spending quality relaxing time together as a family!

Our Little Explorer

So many changes over the past month! Ethan is crawling all over the place; that happened a few days after the teeth finally broke through. People kept telling me that once he was crawling, I would wish he could just sit still again. I beg to differ! Yes, he is everywhere, but it is so much fun! We really give Ethan free reign all over the house. He loves crawling down the hall and venturing into his bedroom. We will follow him back there to find him playing in the floor. He knows exactly where the broom is...for some odd reason he is obsessed with the broom/mop! He is so funny. Sometimes he will go off by himself, while other times he wants us to be right there with him. It is so entertaining to watch him investigate anything in his way. The smallest things bring so much amusement to his little precious mind.

Just yesterday, he pulled himself up to standing! The loook on his face was absolutely priceless; it was as if he knew what he had just accomplished! Only problem now is that he seems to get a little frustrated because he wants to be able to stand completely on his own. Now that it is a bit warmer, we are keeping his socks off--it makes attempting to stand (and soon walk!) much easier since we have wood floors.

I love him more and more each day. I am not wanting to rush his childhood, but I look forward to what is next. Sometimes I wish he could just walk and talk...seems like it would make life much easier at times!