Random Tidbits

I'm getting annoyed with opening my blog everyday and looking at the same old post from a month ago. I know that I badly need to write a new post and upload pictures, but I don't have any new news or new pictures to share. So I just want to write a post so that I don't have to keep looking at the old one. I will make it my project to take some new pictures this week so that I can replace this post with a real one. I guess I'll just share some of Hank's new tricks and words.

1. Last weekend we finally installed a new handle on the door to our pantry. All the doors in our house have the lever-type handles, which Hank opens with ease. I get so irritated when Hank opens the pantry door because he will destruct everything: poor salt on the floor, empty boxes of crackers, and eat through a pile of cookies. We finally got wise and installed a round knob on the door and instantly my quality of life has dramatically improved. I expected Hank to protest this new restriction but he hasn't really seemed to mind at all. He's just moved on to raiding our junk drawer next to the telephone.

2. It seems that Hank is really catching on to the concept of words. He's picking up new words really fast these days. This past week Hank learned the words "nana" (grandma), "bu" (bus), "a-pa" (apple), and "ap" (lamp). His enunciation isn't always the most clear so in order to understand him, you have to pay close attention to the context of his speech. For example, it is easy to confuse his words for 'poop' and 'soap', which obviously have vastly different meanings.

3. Yesterday I took Hank to see his pediatrician to get a referral for his dietary issues. There are only two things that Hank likes: junk food (cookies, chips, and crackers) and smooth food (Gerber 2s). He doesn't eat anything in between. I'm always trying to add variety to his diet by introducing new foods, but he doesn't seem to have the most adventurous palette. Interestingly, I discovered this week that he does like sunflower seeds, which are a good source of protein. His doctor gave us a referral to see a special 'feeding team' at a children's hospital in Tacoma so hopefully they will be able to provide me with some new ideas.

4. Hank learned to climb onto our bar stools. I worry about him toppling over since the stools are taller than he is, but its kind of fun to have him at counter height to help me with dinner.

5. Lately Hank has been very amorous. He will randomly smack his lips and give you that look that means he wants to kiss you. He starts leaning in to you and then plants one right on your lips. Sometimes, if he's feeling really lovey, he'll lay his head down on you to initiate a hug. So cute. I love it.

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

In reality, I'm only a day older than I was yesterday. However, the idea of turning 26 makes me feel really old. I can't believe that I'm now closer to 30 than I am to 20! In my mind, I feel like I'm still just a year or two out of high school. What really scares me is that it feels like the years are speeding by at a much faster rate than they used to. Earlier last week, when I was preparing for a major court hearing, I prayed that time would speed up. Now, I wish I could just pause time for awhile and enjoy where I'm at. All in all, I had a good birthday. A friend of mine took me out to lunch at the Olive Garden and then later Robyn and I treated ourselves to pedicures. That night, Aaron, Robyn, and D and I celebrated over dinner at the Claim Jumper. Between Hank's restlessness and Macie's hunger, I think we were the center of attention in the whole restaraunt but we had a good time. The next day, my parents and Adam and Brittany came to visit so I got two days of celebration instead of one. We went out to lunch at the Roadhouse, came back home and ate cake, and then played games. I definately feel well loved and well fed!

White Christmas

After we finished opening presents on Christmas morning, we looked out the window to find that it was snowing! The snow didn't last long but it was fun while it lasted. Hank loved trying to catch the snow flakes.

Christmas Morning

Aaron, Hank, and I travelled from my parent's house to Aaron's parent's house bright and early on Christmas morning to spend Christmas Day with the Grovers. After opening presents the night before, Hank had a better idea of what opening presents was all about and this time wanted to help everyone open their gifts. Hank got a mini Kawasaki bike, tub time toys, and more puzzles. Aaron's favorite gift was his Tomtom GPS unit and my favorite gifts were my new coat and new purse.

Christmas Eve

In my family, we celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve. We begin the festivities with a fabulous buffet feast, then we read the Christmas story, and then the opening of the presents begins. Hank enjoyed crunching the wrapping paper and tearing open the boxes but wasn't entirely interested in the contents of the packages. He got just as much enjoyment out of playing with everyone else's wrapping paper as he did opening his own gifts. Hank got a pair of overalls with his name embroidered on the front, a teddy bear with a matching overall oufit, puzzles, books, and megablox.

Santa Claus

The week before Christmas, we took Hank and his 1 month old cousin, Macie, to see Santa Claus. After waiting in the horrendous line for an hour, Macie was out cold and Hank was nervous about sitting on Santa's lap.

Cookies

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is to bake bunches of cookies and then deliver them to friends and neighbors. This year, I may have o.d.'d on cookie baking. I guess I lost count of how many cookies I had baked and when I finally counted up my cookies at the end of the day, I had made over 25 dozen cookies! We didn't have a hard time finding takers for the cookies though. We made enough to deliver a dozen goodie plates and then Aaron took the remainder to work with him the next morning.