Cowboy Reed

This morning I took Reed out to a ranch where our good friend Megan boards her horse, Reina. Reed has been obsessed with horses since he watched a video from my Mom's college roommate of horses jumping at her facility. I told him what we were going to do and he talked about it all morning but once we got there he was pretty quiet, but very observant. I helped him feed a few of the horses apples and carrots. We brushed Reina for a bit and then watched Megan saddle her up. Reed loved watching the horses run around the arena and when Megan asked if he wanted to get up on the horse he answered with a quick yes and nod of the head without a second thought.

 

 

 

Even though he was pretty quiet at the ranch, once we got back in the car he turned into a chatterbox again. "Horse eat apple," "Brush horse," "Megan ride horse," etc. That is until he crashed, he fell asleep a full hour before normal nap time, all of the excitement must have really done a number on him!

The Little Gym

On Reed's first Birthday I took him to a trial class at a place called The Little Gym in Fresno. He had a great time and so I enrolled him in once a week classes thinking the exposure to other kids his age would be really good for him too. We have been regularly attending classes for the last eight months and I'm amazed by some of the things Reed does, like walk by himself across the balance beam, hang from bars, introduce himself by name to the class, and clean-up when instructed by his teacher. Last month we had to switch out of the "Bug" class to the "Beast" class because of Reed's age, that has meant being the youngest kid in class for the last month. The new class was a little intimidating at first but I think Reed watching older kids do things really encourages him to try to do them to.

 

We are enrolled in the Summer session, but this past week was his last class of the regular session and they invited parents to bring cameras to document their child's skills. The kids even worked for two weeks on a beam routine that included a turn, forward roll, kicks, and a jump. At the end of class they were each called up one by one to receive a ribbon for their hard work (and a photo op). I tried as best I could to capture The Kiddo in motion so you can see the fun he has when we go to "gym clath."

 

 

 

 

20 Months

After a whirlwind spring, it has been very nice to settle into a normal routine again. We have been quite busy Monday through Friday, but being able to recharge over the weekend is so wonderful. Reed has really blossomed this month. He knows all of his colors (with the exception of purple which he gets right about 50% of the time), can count to eleven, is stringing together three and sometimes even four words, and has some "chores" he does around the house regularly (giving Dodger his treats, putting pillows on the bed when I'm making it, and setting the table for dinner). He also has really taken to helping out in the kitchen. He loves to dump measured ingredients into the bowl and then mix them together.

It is kind of nice because if he asks for something I don't have on hand, like muffins, I say we have to bake them and he gets excited to help out and not at all frustrated that they aren't immediately available. I've been trying to have him help me with prepping veggies and this seems to make him more likely to try them. Today he had a heaping plate of sautéed zucchini strings with his lunch and last week he couldn't get enough broccoli. I guess my last few months of continuing to put vegetables on his plate at lunch and dinner has paid off!

We have also been trying to do a few things to get Reed used to the idea of a baby in the house. If asked he now shows you which room is the baby's, whenever we are around another baby we make sure to make a point of telling Reed that he or she is a baby like the baby in Mom's tummy, and since my cravings for cheese have not died down if Reed sees me eating some, I tell him he can't have any because he's allergic to it, but that the baby needs it - he totally accepts this explanation by the way.

Monthly Statistics

Weight: 25.5 lbs

Clothing Size: Everything is now 18 or 18-24 months, he has a few 2T tops

 

Shoe Size: 6

Teeth:  14!!!  - 4 bottom/front, 2 bottom molars, 4 top/front., 2 top molars and the new additions of a top canine and a bottom canine.

 

Reed likes: Shoes, Soft Sheep and Pup to sleep with, Big Sheep to take running, and all his other stuffed animals to play with, balls, reading books - especially the "Tat Books" (Pete the Cat),  playing outside, Dodger, blocks, going to gym class, bath time, his Grandma and Nonna, rocks, hats, sunglasses, playing with any sort of plastic cup, puzzles, markers, watching soccer with Dad, cooking with Mom, and anything that has to do with water.

Reed dislikes: Sleeping in, diaper changes, taking his pajamas off, being told no, and having his food cut, or otherwise altered, in a way he doesn't see fit.

 

Nicknames: Reedster, Reedcito, Reed Reed, Buddy, Monkey.

Food: He loves fruit, meat, hemp milk, and most "carbs."  He is still not a huge fan of vegetables, but has liked carrots, broccoli, and zucchini this last month, and is still okay with peas, mushrooms, and sweet potatoes (in the French fried form).

Communication: We have a chatter box on our hands. There are very few things that when I ask Reed what they are called he doesn't have an answer. He is also forming sentences like "Reed play with blocks" or "Mom play outside."

 

How Reed is sleeping:  He goes to bed around 7:30pm, then he usually wakes somewhere between 5:15 and 6:15 am, I don't let him out of his crib until 6:00 though. He sleeps in a sleep sack, with a pacifier, a sound machine going, and his two "guys" Soft Sheep and Pete the Pup. He goes down for his nap around noon and sleeps 2-3 hours.

 

Favorite Moment(s):
This Kiddo is such a sweetheart. He constantly wants to give people hugs and kisses and if I say I miss someone because they are out of town he gets the saddest look on his face. He also will say sorry if he notices a hole in someone's pants, which is cute when you realize he's saying it because he thinks they are hurt, but also a little embarrassing when you have to explain to someone why your child is saying "sorry" repetitively to them.  A couple of times we have disagreed on something - him playing in a certain drawer for example, after I've laid down the law he usually fusses for a minute or two and then one of us says "big hugs," we embrace, and it's all over.


 Milestones:
05/05/13 Reed knows his colors well
05/09/13 Reed gets his first official haircut
05/16/13 He can count from 1-10 unassisted
05/18/13 Reed participates in his first race - this is more a milestone for Mom who ran a 10k while pushing Reed in the jogging stroller at 15 weeks pregnant.
Favorite Photo Shoot Outtake:

And So It Begins

I made the decision to blog when I was pregnant with Reed. I wanted a way for our Grandparents and other long distance friends and family to be able to watch our family grow and change and it seemed like a good way to document milestones, etc. for the Kiddo that was on the way. I went back and forth on the name of the blog, I wasn't sure about "And So It Begins" because I knew our baby would quickly be growing up and we wouldn't be "beginning" for that long.  However, I quickly realized that when you have a kid you are constantly starting new chapters, learning new things, and every day brings a "beginning." With that being said we start the next chapter in our family's life . . .

I love this picture for so many reasons, but mainly because Jon looks scared, Reed looks mad, and I look hesitantly happy. I think that pretty much sums up our feelings on the situation quite well!!! Baby #2 is expected to arrive during the first week of November and in all honesty we are over the moon excited. When you ask Reed where the baby is, he lifts up his shirt, points to his stomach, and says "baby tum" - it's pretty precious.

I didn't really write at all about my pregnancy with Reed, but now that I blog regularly I'm sure pregnancy information will sneak in from time to time and I also plan on doing a couple posts dedicated to the new Little One as well as, drum roll please . . . Belly pics. Good God I know, but I plan on this being the last time I'm pregnant and I think it might be something I look back on years down the road and am happy that I did.

Here is a quick recap of what my first trimester looked like:

Week 4 - Long story short I take a pregnancy test, don't even wait to see the results, and am floored when I get out of the shower to see a positive result. I take two more tests during the week. I know it is pretty much impossible to get a false positive, but I'm in disbelief so I keep peeing on sticks.

Week 5 - I get a horrible cold/flu that knocks me on my butt. Reed is such a sweetheart he keeps bringing me his stuffed animals to cuddle with and if he sees my wet washcloth on the ground he picks it up and puts it on my forehead. This was a miserable week and on top of a high fever, congestion, bad cough, and body aches I had no appetite at all. It wasn't until the end of the week when some of my other symptoms had gone away, but my nauseousness and lack of appetite remained that I realized I was experiencing "morning sickness."

Week 6 - 11 - I never throw up, but am nauseous quite often, most food sounds horrible save, saltine crackers, oranges, really greasy/unhealthy foods (fries, burritos, pizza, hamburgers, etc.), and my old pregnancy stand-by from the first time around, cheese. Oddly enough my sweet-tooth completely disappears. For the first few weeks of sickness I have a hard time working out and also don't play outside with Reed nearly as much as I normally do, favoring laying down next to him to stack blocks, read books, etc. During week 9 we take a family trip to my Doctor's office and get to see Baby #2 dancing around. Towards the end of this five week period I start to have a few days here and there when I feel normal, and am hoping that my appetite and energy levels will get back to normal soon.

9 Weeks

10 Weeks

11 Weeks

Week 12 - 14 - Although our parents have known for a few weeks, we've remained tight lipped with most everyone else. It is fun to start telling our friends and family our news. I also feel like my belly "pops" during this time period (this is weeks earlier than the first time around). During week 13 we get to see the baby on a 3D ultrasound and he or she looks healthy and even puts on a show for us sliding around my uterus and sucking his/her thumb. I still don't feel like myself but manage to sneak a few naps in here and there and otherwise just make the best of it. I also enroll in the same prenatal yoga class I did with my first pregnancy and am proud of myself for setting aside at least a small amount of time each week to focus on #2.



12 Weeks

13 Weeks

14 Weeks

I apologize for the Belly Pic outfits but I have a stack of these tank tops and running shorts, I feel like they are fitted enough that you can see the bump, and they fit me until the end the last time around.

A new Do for my Little Dude

Reed has really needed a haircut for the past couple of weeks. If  you've seen him lately he had this Donald Trump-esque hair swoop thing going on. In the past I've been brave enough to take a pair of scissors to his hair when it has grown out a bit and do a little chopping myself, but I decided my days as a hair stylist needed to come to an end after I lumped off a huge chunk of hair the last time.

There is a salon just for kids right down the street from Reed's gym class so I bit the bullet this morning and we headed in to get the Little Guy his first official haircut. I was hoping that he wouldn't hate it and more importantly would sit still long enough for the girl to do her work, this kid never just sits, so that is a pretty tall order. Luckily they plop your kiddo down in a car that has lots of buttons to push and wheels to turn and then turn on the boob tube about three feet from their face. Reed was in heaven and perfectly behaved for the entire 20 minute process. The only part he didn't like was her squirting his hair down with water, and even then he just crinkled his nose and made a weird face. He made his Mommy so proud and looks so grown up with his new hairdo!