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Pears in the Dark

Bad storms hit tonight which knocked out our power at 6:30. It was still barely light out but candles and flashlights were needed. My gut was worried Jack would lose it. My gut was wrong.

Jack showed absolutely no fear. He proceeded to play as if nothing was wrong. He used the flashlight like a lantern and explored the living room. We played and laughed and had a great time. The power came on minutes past his normal 7:30 bedtime.

It never ceases to amaze me when Jack does things like this. I think I have more fears about how he will react than he actually has. It makes me glad to see him thrive no matter the odds.

But. we won't be giving him any pears. He snacked on some Korean pears, chewing them to mush to get the flavor, then spitting the rest out onto the dark floor. We have been stepping on the remnants for the past few hours.

Jack's Trains

Jack loves his trains. He also loves cars. If we see a car on the street, in a parking lot, on TV, in a magazine, or anywhere else, he just starts yelling CAR!

We bought him some Little People toys because he seems to want to play act with little characters and he loves them. We also let him choose between some extra Little People or a Speed Racer car that makes sounds and talks. He chose the Speed Racer. Looks like I will have to get the DVDs for him too!

Jack's First Outdoor Weekend

Jack spent a very large chunk of the weekend walking and talking and having a great time. He loves being outside and we cannot wait until the weather stays like this every day. On Saturday, we met the cousins and Grandma to check out the new Korean mega-market in Niles. It was very cool to see an Asian market the size of a Jewel, but it is quite the haul just to go grocery shopping. The place was packed, but Jack loved being with his cousins, who also came over to hang out too! Today, we enjoyed a nice day shopping at Old Navy and The Container Store. Jack also had hummus (which he LOVED!) and BBQ Chicken Pizza at California Pizza Kitchen, and then we had a nice walk around the neighborhood. Jack is growing up so fast, we can't keep up!

Jack Goes Outside

Potty Time!

Jack pooped in the potty!

Picking up Jack from daycare on Friday, his teacher informed me of the great news!  They allow each child to sit on the training toilets and Jack laid a deuce on the first try!  We were so proud we bought one for him to use.  As you can see he enjoys sitting on his throne but has not left any brown eggs and ham yet.

(Note: sorry for the poop jokes, but how often will I get to blog about crap, turds, fecal matter, feces, BM, or stool?)

Jackcabulary

18 Month Checkup

Jack had his 18 month well visit/pre-op checkup today (in case you didn't know, Jack is having the excess foreskin on his penis removed on August 18th). According to the checkup, Jack is:

Weight: 26 lbs 3 oz (50th Percentile)
Length: 32.1 inches (50th Percentile)
Head Circumference: 18.75 inches (50th Percentile)

It isn't looking likely that he will be as tall as Dad, but more than likely an average kid in physical respects (which is definitely a good thing!).

Based on his vocabulary, physical abilities, and brain function, the doctor said he is just ahead of the developmental curve (which is also a very good thing!).

Next up for Jack, the doctor recommended trying a training toilet. Not to force anything, but to get him used to the idea of it as a preparation for toilet training.

His next visit will be at the 2 year mark and that will more than likely be the first doctor checkup with both little ones!

Blabber Mouth

Sorry for the lack of updates. We were all sick as a family for a while and are just getting back into the swing of things. Hopefully these posts will become regular again real soon.

Jack has been talking NON-STOP since moving from the infant room to the toddler room. His vocabulary has exponentially expanded since the last post we had about it. Here are some of his new words:

"Moo" - Cow
"Toes" - Feet
"Blast Off!" - From Little Einsteins
"Baseball" - He loves watching the sports montages on ESPN
"Juice" - Juice/Milk


He also has been feeding himself very well. For the past week, he has been eating better than ever! He has (on separate days) eaten an entire chicken breast, 1 and a half crabcaks, 5 huge chicken nuggets, and a bowl of noodles. It is really nice to all sit at the table and eat together.

The Plague!

Jack brought home the plague from daycare last week.

He started having a fever last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Friday I took him to see our general practitioner (bad idea, should have taken him to his ENT) who diagnosed it as a common cold that he should start feeling better over the weekend. And if he didin't, then to bring him back the following Monday.

Saturday - the plague arrived full force for me and Alex. The only good part of Saturday was that Jack was feeling much better and his fever broke. Alex and I felt like crap - fever, body aches, nasty nasty congestion and even nastier sore throat and phlegmy chest congested coughs for me. We felt like we'd been beatin wth a hammer. It hurt to walk, to talk, to open our eyes.

Sunday - Alex calls my OB/GYN (as I can no longer talk due to sever throat pain and phlegm) and I am prescribed meds. Thank goodness for responsiev OB/GYNs! Alex still feels like crap and is living off Dayquil and Tylenol. Jack's fever comes back and he is oozing stuff out of his ear and his nose.

Monday - Alex and I take off from work. All 3 of use head to the doctor's office. Jack gets the meds he needs. Alex is on MucinexD along with an assortment of other meds. We are told that chances are we just have the flu.

I've had the flu before.....this is NOT the flu. My throat doesn't feel like it's on fire when I've had the flu before. I do not lose my voice when I have the flu. I do not wheeze and cough in my sleep when I have the flu!

We will be switching to a new doctor shortly.

I am starting to feel conscious again, and Alex went to work. Jack is in the middle of what is now turning into a 4 hour nap - a much needed make-up nap for all the interrupted 'sleep' he's not had the past 3 days. Poor little Fudge.

Thank goodness for my mom who came by everyday since Saturday to help out. Without her, I'm sure recovery would have been delayed and rest would not have been possible for any of us.

I'm afraid to even THINK about what it would be like once Ben is born and all FOUR of us get the plague. Gads.

Back Home

It is sad to see snow again. But, in just the 5 1/2 days in Florida, we have noticed major changes in Jack!

NEW WORDS
Jack can now say "Me," "Mom-Moms," "Po-Po" (Korean for kiss), "Ji-Ji" (Korean for icky), and "Baby."

ACTIONS
Jack can now take big steps (goofy walking), can take complicated/combined instructions (i.e. take the doll and hand it to Dad), he shrugs his shoulders as if saying "I don't know," he can put stacking boxes in a tower and then back inside in order, he has started feeding himself with a spoon, he no longer wants little torn off food but a big piece, he went down a slide by himself, he learned how to scream/yelp in excitement, and he even learned how to gently pet and touch a cat.

SIBLING RELATION
He was very careful with a baby doll, giving it hugs and kisses. This will come in very handy!

It was exciting to see him with my family and not have any adjustment time to being in a strange place. He was still hesistant around strangers, but also very adventurous with new places and things.

He now recognizes the photos of Grannie, Grandpa, Aunt Sam, and Mom-moms. I am sure he already misses them as Taylor and I do.

I can't wait to see what he does next!

Sunday in Florida: Jack Hates the Beach but Loves Cuban food!

Jack loved the beach when he was 8 months old. Not so much at 17 months.

It was in the 80s, but very windy with big choppy waves. Jack spent the majority of the time clinging to me and refusing to touch the sand. He would scream every time he did. The ocean was too loud for him.

Lets hope he does better next time.

We went to a Cuban restaurant for lunch and Jack chowed down on fried plantains, pork chunks, and black beans with rice.

Saturday in Florida: Jungle Island and Some Gelato

The weather just got better on Saturday!

We went to Jungle Island in Miami which is a cross between and amusement park and a zoo. Jack loved the animals. He got to pet a parrot, had a goat try and eat his shirt, saw 2 monkeys pee, and saw an albino alligator!

But, his favorite part was running around at the end of the day. He just loves being outside!

Back in Boca, we stopped by a gelato shop and Jack tried everyone's flavors. He is turning into a little man!

NOTE: These photos were all taken with our new Sony H3 camera. It has a burst photo feature where you can snap dozens of shots just by holding down the button. Look at the great shots we got of Jack with this. Taylor loves this feature!!

Friday in Florida: Butterfly World and The Playground

Friday had weather that was much better than the previous 2 days. Jack was in shorts and a t-shirt! We first went to Butterfly World where Jack started out by admiring a beautiful and colorful butterfly on the walkway. He then turned around and smashed it to a smear on the concrete. We couldn't help but laugh as Jack kept on running.

Jack absolutely loved being outside and the freedom to run and play and point at all the amazing sights!

That evening, we took Jack to a playground at the clubhouse for my parent's association. Jack was apprehensive of the woodchips on the ground and the jungle gym itself. But, after showing him how to play, he was using the slide by himself! This kid is a quick learner!

Watch out Boca! Here comes Jack!

Jack had another excellent flight to Florida. He slept for 90 minutes of the 150 minute flight.

We spent a lazy Wednesday in the house. Jack became oriented to everything and everyone very quickly.

It was cold and today was slightly better (mid 60 degrees). We went to a hydroponic fruit farm and Jack enjoyed being outside very much.

More photos to come.

Oxi Clean!

We have posted photos of my family in the living room to get Jack used to their faces and also to practice their names. He cannot manage Grandpa, but alternates between PaPa and DaDa for him.

But, he now recognizes The Beard.

Coming back home yesterday, Jack ran to me when the booming voice of the Oxi Clean guy came on TV. Jack turned and saw him and then yelled "DaDa!" before running to the photo of my dad and pointing at him.

Next we will try with a photo of George Lucas!

JUST TO HELP YOU GET IT:

My Dad

The Oxi Clean Guy

Jumpcut

Jumpcut is a free website where you can use video, photo, and audio to make mixed clips to share. Check out this one I made of Jack!

My Latest Favorite Jack

The Jack Dance

Jack Says Daddy

This is the same enthusiasm Jack shows every time he sees me after missing me. I love this little guy!

Jack in the Morning

Jack the Goof

Jack has so many toys in such a small area, he sometimes pulls out something to play with that he hasn't used in weeks and sometimes months. Today, he pulled out his foam blocks and his ball popper. Take a look at how he enjoyed it!

The Name Game

I don't know if I still like the name Cameron as much as I used to. We had it picked out before Jack was born as our girl name. When we learned Taylor was pregnant again, we brought the name back and decided it would work for a boy or a girl. I keep wavering from liking it to not, but I cannot find a name I like better.

The hunt continues...

It's a Boy! (Round 2)

Taylor and I got 99% confirmation that Baby #2 is a boy! So, from this point on we can refer to the baby as Cameron or Brownie! The picture at left is the profile of the baby, who looks almost exactly like Jack!

The doctor who administered the 2nd Level Ultrasound said everything looks good, which lowers the risk of Down's Syndrome by 50%. The Single Umbilical Artery we encountered with Jack is not present this time around. The baby was being difficult when it came to determine the gender, but the doctor said he was 99% certain it was a boy. Very exciting!

The three photos below are cool shots. The first one is a face shot, with the eye the black spot on the left with the nose and lips below it at an angle. The image after that shows two little feet crossed and the final image is the penis (there is an arrow pointing to it). Can't wait to meet the little guy!

More Words

Jack's language has been accelerating lately. Just within the past week he now says car, Mommy, yes, and choo choo. He wants so badly to say complete sentences, it frustrates him.

Jack has been eating like a little bottomless pit lately. The switch to food as his primary source of nutrition has been nice. He really loves Korean food.

It was -5 today, so we stayed in the house the whole day. Jack likes watching football and basketball. He claps when they call time out and gets excited when they throw the ball. I hope he likes baseball too!

Jack Says Car

The Shirt Says It All!

I am a big t-shirt fan. Ask anyone. I own all kinds of obnoxious slogan shirts that I wear until they disintegrate on me as I wear them. I can't help it!

Well, Taylor refused to let Jack wear slogan shirts even if the wording was super cute. But, we were shopping recently at Old Navy and saw some cute clothes on clearance. Needless to say, Taylor has seen the light and Jack may get some cuter shirts in the near future.

 

Jack Naked

The Machine

Jack, as of his 15 month checkup, is eating food as his primary source of food. Milk is now the primary beverage and mostly for calcium. Well, Jack is packing it away for a kid only in the 65th percentile for weight. This is a rough list of what Jack ate today:

French toast sticks
Mandarin orange slices
Peach slices
Chow fun noodles
Chicken fried rice
Taco bake
Rice crackers
Cheerios
Hashbrowns
Rice

This kid eats so much, it makes me lose my appetite!

Jack's Words

Jack uses the follow words on a regular basis:

"Da" "DaDa" "Daddy" - Who else?
"MaMa" - Food, Mom, Pretty much everything
"Baww"/"Bawwuh" - Ball
"Oon-Guy" - He says this when he sees an athlete on TV
"Buh-bye" "Bye" - Goodbye.....and Hello
"Ducka" - Not sure

15 Month Checkup

Jack had his 15 month checkup today. He weighs 26 lbs (65th percentile), is 30 inches long (50th percentile) and has an 18 inch head (50th percentile). He is right on track for everything and is now approved to eat anything he wants. He is also completely off bottles.

It is kind of scary how fast he is growing up.

The fact he is only 50th percentile for height made me a little sad. I wanted him to be a giant, like me. Oh well. This doesn't mean he is a midget though, it just means he is taller than 50% of kids his age.

My Dinner With Jackson: A Movie in 5 Parts

In which our cranky hero whines about how hard his day of napping and constant snacking has been.



But, then the offer to have dinner leads to the need to make reservations. Who to invite? When to dine? Oh, the stress of it all!



At the restaurant, decisions must still be made. Can our hero decide on what to eat? (Dun, dun dun!)



The meal arrives, but alas! Our hero can barely eat the slippery noodles!



Success! The noodles can be eaten! Our hero's belly is filling and all is content in his realm! Hooray!



THE END?

The Announcement

As you can probably tell by the blog's new title, there is a 2nd Maidy baby on the way!

Jack will be getting a new brother/sister on June 17th, 2008! Taylor and I are very excited.

We wanted to wait until the end of the 1st trimester before making the big public announcement. Today we got back our Quad Screen Test and the results were A-OK!

So, I redesigned this blog for both kids because I know we would never continually update 2 separate blogs. This way we can talk about Jack and "Brownie" and keep all of our friends and family in the loop!

So, for the time being, Number 2 will be referred to as Brownie. We will be finding out the gender on January 23rd. We will of course let everyone know right away.

Chasing Ellie

Happy New Year 2008!

Jack ON the Box

Jack Dances (Theme to Futurama)

Xmas 2007

Thanks Grannie Annie!

Jack Goes Under the Bridge

The Shit-Storm

Sorry for the vulgar post title, but that is the only way to describe today.

I went to give Jack is bath and noticed there was a clog in the tub. Jack was in his baby tub, but I wanted to make sure the drain was working. I reached my finger in to see if it was hair or something, but there was nothing in there. But, little particles of what looked like rust were floating around.

Then, I noticed water at the base of the toilet. I tried flushing it, and it just filled the bowl, and more particles came shooting out of the shower drain. Taylor grabbed Jack and I did damage control.

I ran to Jewel, grabbed some drain cleaner, and when that had no effect, called Roto Rooter.

6 hours and 500 bucks later, the tub and toilet work. The plumber had to remove the toilet and snake the drain. Apparently, our pipe beneath the toilet was lined with lead, and it began to break off which left heavy metal blockages in the pipe. He got as much as he could, but he couldn't tell how many pieces, if any, could be further down the line.

Needless to say, what a nice way to start Christmas week.

Jack Loves Pong (Rice Crackers)

Jack's New Guitar

Here is another Hannukah gift from Grannie Annie! Jack is going to be making lots of noise....I mean beautiful music!

 

Sippy Cups

Jack has eliminated drinking from his bottles! Just over the last two days he has managed to move exclusively to his sippy cups at daycare. We will start doing the same at home. It is very exciting how much he is growing up!

Also, check out the piano he got for Hannukah from Grannie Annie! He loves it!

Meeting Santa

Hannukah 2007

Jack's Holiday Wish List

Musical toys. Things that are starting to be more realistic and not so much the baby style instruments.













Character toys. Jack likes Higglytown Heroes, My Friends Tigger and Pooh, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Thomas the Tank Engine, and Little Einsteins. Make sure the toys are 12-24 month appropriate.









A wire style toy like this. It doesn't have to be this exact one, but something along these lines.















Giant foam blocks. Enough said.









Besides that, Jack can always use clothes. So, gift cards work just as well as anything.

Jack Says His Name (Sort of!)

Wintertime Jack

The Tree

Jack has not really messed with the Christmas tree since it has gone up. He will feel the texture of the "leaves" but then doesn't try and grab ornaments. He does like the lights though. We did intentionally keep all of the ornaments higher to avoid temptation.

We shall see what happens.

Love and Hate

Jack loves the microwave....
Jack hates the microwave....

The microwave takes too long....25 seconds too long I'm sure in his opinion. 25 seconds is how long it takes to warm up the 'ba-ba'.

Alex and I don't even bother saying the word any longer as the Fudge understands what it is. So we spell it out if the Fudge is within hearing distance...."can you get his b-a-b-a?"

But it's no use, as soon as Jack hears the microwave door slam shut, and the farmiliar 'beep-beep-beep' of the microwave buttons it's over. He immediately enters into some kind of histarics - his head flops back in the typical toddler tantrum fashion, his face crinkles up in a cry and his hand goes straight to his mouth. The Fudge acts like he's never been fed before, like we'd be starving him for weeks on end while making him a part of some child labor workforce in Asia.

Even when those torturous 25 seconds are up and Alex or I start walking over to the couch (yes, this is where we feed the Fudge his bottles) he cries even harder. He thinks we're stealing his bottle and walking away with it to have for ourselves.

He eventually makes it over to the couch and we sit him on our lap. He's still crying. Why? Because the bottle has not touched his lips yet. He does not yet understand that the bottle cap must come off the bottle first (1 second) and then we must move the bottle to his mouth (1 more arduous, grueling, painful, suffering miserable second).

Jack is patient with all other things in life, but man.....the food never comes fast enough! Jeesh!

Jack vs The Shatner

Jackson for Governor!

Jack Feeds Himself

Jack is becoming more and more autonomous every day. His new thing is he wants to try and feed himself. So, this past Friday night, we let him try. It was messy and he got more on him than in his mouth, but he did very well for a first try! Looks like we need to double the supply of bath soap!

Fear

Taylor brought home a toy rat with light up eyes to scare me (it worked). Too bad it freaked out Jack as well!

Peanut

We finally found an outfit for Jack's prenatal nickname. Too bad he isn't so little anymore!

Twins!

Blocked!

Sorry for the delay in updates, but Blogger has now been added to the websites blocked at my office. I can no longer update during my lunch break. Stupid, I know, but what can I do. So, enjoy the updates for the past week!

Jack's Glass Faces

Jack recently discovered how to make faces on glass. Check it out. I almost couldn't contain my laughter. Jack has developed such a personality. It is very cool to watch him act and interact.

Formal Photos

Jack's daycare had a professional photographer come in to take portraits and class photos. Below are the results of Jack's attempt. I am not sure if the worried expression is because Mom and Dad were not there or if he was just being Jack. But, we are definitely buying some copies as these scans don't show the colors of the originals.

Daylight Suffering Time

Jack has gotten up at 4:30 in the morning the past two days. No, he isn't sick. It is because of Daylight Savings Time.

The kid's internal clock won't reset. DST never really bothered me before he was born. I found it stupid, but lived with it. Now, it is a Pet Peeve.

I cannot wait for him to adjust to the time change. It probably will only be an issue for the next year or so and then he should be used to it. Until then, expect yawns.

GAP Casting Call

We entered Jack in the 2007 Gap Casting Call for the chance to be one of their models! I know, I know. We aren't going to be those parents that go all JonBenet on their kids, but I thought this would be a fun thing to do. We think Jack is supercute, lets see if America does!

Visit the link below on November 20th to see if Jack made the Top 20!

http://kodak.eprize.net/gapcastingcall/

Trick or Treat in Southport

Jack had a good time trick or treating with the Buzzards in Southport. There were tons of kids in costume going around to all the Chicago stores and restaurants getting candy. Of course, Jack can't eat any of it, but he sure made his mother happy with plenty of chocolate!

Jack's Friend, Tigger

Jack Night

Alex is out with his friends tonight so it was just me and the Fudge.

Here are some things Jack did tonight:
Sang 'Wheels on the Bus...' he loves it when I make up moves to go with the song
Ate pizza (Jack is not a big fan of mushrooms)
Stacked boxes (Tot Tower)
Stacked his foam blocks on Tot Tower
Stacked water bottle on Tot Tower
Made the 'O' face when Tot Tower toppled over (then he laughed)
Fed Mommy Cheerios
Followed Mommy around kitchen
Said "Mama" while looking at me, right before falling asleep

I love the Fudge.

Adventures at the Pumpkin Patch

Jack went hunting for his first pumpkin today. Last year, he was in the hospital recovering from surgery at Halloween time. We went to Goebbert's Farm with the Buzzard and Lim families. Jack had a great time. Just take a look at these photos!

Peek a Boo

Jack plays his new version of peek a boo.

Jack Chat

Jack has gotten much, much better at walking. He also has a lot to say!

Jack's Favorite Song

Jack is a very musical kid. He will be uninterested in something on TV or a toy until it starts playing music and then he will become absolutely enthralled. Lately, he has started really dancing to the music: shaking his hips, bouncing, and occassionally "singing" along.

I try to play happy, upbeat music in the car with him. Not necessarily kids music but normal songs that I listen too. Sometimes I play The Beatles or some jazz or even The White Stripes. Nothing headbanging or profane, but definitely music we can both share.

The video below is for a song from the album "The Reminder" by Feist. I have had the album on my iPod of almost a year, and the song "1 2 3 4" was one I played for Jack sometimes. They recently included it in the new iPod Nano commercials, and every time it comes on TV, Jack stops what he is doing and watches it. He loves this song.

ENT Visit

Jack had his two week follow up to his ear surgery today.

It was just Fudgy and Mom today, I had a blast following him around Dr. Pollack's office all afternoon. I even broke a sweat (this is what happens when you wear a winter sweater turtleneck because your office is at a constant 68 degrees)!

He flirted with everyone! The receptionist, the nurse, the ear lab tech. and all of the other parents who were in with their kids. I made one observation - only 1 out of 10 patients are girls. The majority of ear infection sufferers tend to be boys.

Anyway, Jack remembered the huge salt water fish tank in the waiting room and made a bee line to it. When he got bored with that, he decided to show off and walk around the office and peak into every exam room that had it's door open. Then back to the play area where he found a kind of jack in the box except this one was a puppy popping out the top of it's doghouse. I only needed to show Jack how to make the puppy come out once and in the next turn he was doing it himself. He moved throughout the entire toy area and played and played and played.

Nothing could have made this visit better other than Dr. Pollack telling me Jack's ears were perfectly healthy, and he passed all the ear/hearing tests. In fact, his results were so conclusively normal/healthy, the lab tech told us we didn't need to wait for the doctor to tell us this and that we could go home.

I really loved being in the waiting room with him, just playing and watching him interact with toys, other children...I just loved that my time was only devoted to Jack and nothing else (no laundry, errands, work, driving....etc.).

Trick or Treat: Test Run

Jack practices his trick or treating tactics.

The Long Walk

Jack is now able to walk a good 30-40 steps without falling. He still stumbles when he gets excited, but he is pretty much solo at this point!

Spider-Jack

Jack tried on his Halloween costume. The mask didn't fit over his big ol' noggin, but he looks pretty cute anyway!

Jack & Newt

Jack likes to play with Newt. Newt likes to play with Jack. Both get bored fairly easily with each other.

A Film By Jackson Maidy

Filmed, directed, and written by Fudge.