"ma, did you say vacuum!!?"

so i remember around the time jack was about 6 months blogging that he was petrified of the vacuum, well like his bath-hating phase, this too has since passed. i would say that since he could crawl he has been IN love with the vacuum, and i don't mean that he just likes when i vacuum, he basically goes crazy for it. periodically throughout the day he will go to the closet and get all excited thinking that it is time to vacuum. it is to the point that when we're done vacuuming he actually gets upset and starts to cry--crazy kid! so i had to get it on camera...although the camera distracted him a bit, usually he books it to the closet as soon as you say the word!! now i know many will think that i'm just using this as an excuse to vacuum everyday, but i really am not, i think he has come to expect that it is part of our daily routine. and i'm not going to lie, i don't mind a bit:)



on another note, i am not sure i have mentioned this, but he has taken quite a few unassisted steps these days. each day he gets more and more brave...this should get quite interesting;)

growing and changing...

he just keeps getting bigger and more like a little boy. he is into EVERYTHING and gets so mad when you tell him no! of course i pull him away from the same things all day long; my night stand, the mac charger (which thanks to jack we spent our entire saturday at the apple store getting that fixed!) and the toilet paper (what is with him and eating paper!?).

but i guess the root of this post is the fact that he will soon be turning one and i can't quite get my head around that one. i was watching him fall asleep tonight and thought back to when he was just this tiny, helpless baby and now he is this person with his own personality and feelings (and let me tell you he'll let you know what he wants, likes and doesn't want!). i'm so in awe of him and grateful that i get to watch him grow and learn. it is probably the best gift i could have ever received.

"but ma, what do you mean i'm not supposed to play with those wires...are you sure? what if i look at you real cute and smile?" uh still no, but seriously he is going to make it very hard for me to say no!

pre-run one day this week...we definitely weren't expecting it to be 49 degrees out!?

1st and last game at shea

we went to the mets game this past weekend. it was jack's first time at shea and his last...he was so well behaved considering it was about 90 degrees and humid!

here he is taking a snooze...after we all took turns walking him around in his stroller, we resorted to the bjorn. not sure why he fell asleep in it as he seems sooo uncomfortable, but whatever works!?

he just seems like such a little boy in this pic

just caught a cute moment after his bath...you wouldn't know it from the shot but he had just had a scream-fest because he didn't want to get out! he hates when bath time is over!!

this is from this morning...captured a rare smile on camera

he seems to be much better after a couple days on the antibiotic. he still isn't napping, but i don't think that is related to the ear infection or teething. i think he just hates to nap!? if anyone has any words of wisdom on this one, i'm all ears...i have know idea how to change this and i've pretty much read and tried everything i can think of!?

my big boy!

here he is "walking" his push toy and he is so proud of himself! at the end you'll see his newest move, i've dubbed it "the frankenstein." when you watch you'll see why:)



on another note, jack has his first ear infection:( poor kid, maybe this is the root of all his sleep issues as of late. he had been pulling at his right ear, but he's done this in the past when he's tired so i thought "sure you're tired, you're sleeping like crap!?" boy am i glad i trusted my gut that something was still off and took him in this morning. sure enough he has the beginnings of an ear infection.

on a funny note the dr. (our regular dr. was off) was shocked and confused by the fact that jack doesn't nap...she was like "what do you mean he doesn't nap?" to which i replied, he doesn't nap, i'm lucky if i get a 1/2 hour out of him 2x a day!? she also mentioned that given jack's age & weight he should no longer be getting up to eat at night...umm, ya think?! he certainly isn't starving...just look at those thighs in the video! just don't mention it to him as i think he's starting to get a complex--ha, i'm kidding, but i have told him if he doesn't slim them down that he's getting a thigh master for christmas...i mean if it worked for suzanne summers, its gotta work for this guy;)

sleep deprivation...

unfortunately both jack and i are quite sleep deprived these days. i know i've mentioned it in the past, and i don't really like to dwell on it because it is just a small hiccup in what could be considered an otherwise healthy first 11 months. however, jack's sleeping is horrendous. there hasn't been a day that has gone by where he has either protested his naps or nighttime sleep in some capacity. i'm hitting a breaking point with his refusal to nap these days. he is exhausted, not napping and sleeping somewhat horribly at night. i know some of this is teething related, but i blame myself for some of it as well. no matter how much i have read and how many "sleep training" techiniques i have tried to implement, here we are 11 months into jack's life and he still cries and refuses to sleep. i am at such a loss because on the days where he gets the proper amount of sleep he is an all out different child. i've done the journal thing, but have yet to see where those good days are any different than the bad ones. i'm sure he'll sleep enventually, but i'm tired and tired of fighting him on it...as i type he is complaining from his crib. he is ridiculously stubborn!

anyways, i think this was more of a vent/therapy for me to write this post...thanks for reading it:)

happy 11 months!

i can't believe we're celebrating his 11 month birthday...it just seems like it all goes by too quickly. i wish i could bottle up every moment with him. well, ok, maybe not every moment, but you get the idea:)

so let's see, at 11 months, jack has become quite the character. you say "no" and he acknowledges you, but then continues to do it...umm, what part of "no" didn't you understand!? he knows what various objects are, such as dog, light, ball & fan to name a few. we're very close to walking, he just needs a little more confidence. but one of his most recent developments is one of my favorites, he loves to have you read to him. the kid who never wants to sit in one place for more than 2 seconds will now sit with you while you read him a story--i love it! just yesterday he crawled over with a book in his hand and gave it to me to read to him. it was his current favorite "the nose book" by dr. suess--so cute:)

monkey i love you more each day...

caught red-handed...i think i pull him away from his drawers at least 10 times a day!?
(excuse the shiny face--he's got some dry skin under his nose!)

quick...i'll crawl right past her while she's taking my picture before she can yell at me!

i just though this was so cute...he always sits with his legs crossed

here he is with his new push toy...he does this cute thing where he leans his head to the side. pretty sure he's got me wrapped around his finger!

fun day in rhinebeck...

we headed up to rhinebeck for the day on sunday...it was a lot of fun and jack totally went with the flow of things. we figured since his napping as of late is nonexistent, we might as well go somewhere and not worry about when/where he naps!

jack and mike under a pear tree

just being cute at lunch:)

one of the few of jack and i

this video is hilarious, in my opinion...so i talk a lot about jack's new found standing ability, but here it is on camera! the ending is the funny part...not sure if you can see/hear it, but at the end jack raspberried mike. he sure told him:)