This Bites.

Yes, this.

And this is how he looks right before and right after he does it. I, however, do not look quite as happy because it hurts! I'm nearing the end of my rope on this one. We've tried "no", "stop", redirecting to more appropriate play and offering something that is okay to bite (i.e. something other than one of our body parts - shoulders, knees and fingers are his favorite targets with the occasional arm or thigh thrown in to keep it interesting). Today I tried ignoring it and thought he was doing much better, but then he just about drew blood while I was reading him a book before bed.

I don't know what to do. It's as if he thinks he has to bite. I mean, it's not as though he only bites his parents. He also bites the couch (cushions and arms, he's not picky), the dining room chairs, the tv cabinet and any other inanimate object he pulls up on. I can tell where he's cruised because his path is delineated by little wet mouth marks. I'm not so concerned about the furniture, or really even me and Jeff, but I don't want my biting nine month old to become a biting two-year old. And before you think I'm jumping the gun on this, I should tell you it's been going on for at least a couple of months and we've already had one incident of him biting a friend's finger (sorry, Isaac!).

So, wise readers, any suggestions? It's getting a little painful around here.

Moving On

I'm over it. I was actually over it about 10 minutes after the game ended because I'd already known for at least 20 minutes that it wasn't going to end in our favor. I kept cheering for the Jayhawks, of course, but I had a little trouble really getting fired up because my gut already knew it was over. Funny how I can go from being so jealous of those who live in Lawrence getting to feel all the excitement, living in that electricty that precedes a big game to being oh-so-deliriously-thankful that I live halfway around the world where people don't even notice. Because no one here is moping about the loss to UCLA and it's lovely to see that life goes on very quickly. Besides, as my wise mom pointed out, by mid-April no one remembers who won unless it was their team.

Let's talk about something fun. How about Wyatt? Okay, great! Well he's now 9 months old which begs the question: how am I the mother of a 9-month-old? Wasn't I just pregnant like a month ago? Hmmm, very curious how time can fast forward to warp speed when you're not looking. And at nine months, Wyatt weighs just shy of 17 pounds. For the love of all that's good in the world, could my child please break free of the "under 5th percentile" category?! I swear we're feeding him as much as he'll eat; choosing high calorie foods (jarred carrots are banned from this house - I discovered a WHOLE JAR only has 25 calories. Useless!) and adding an extra scoop of formula to every bottle. But still we have Mr. Smallguy. It doesn't seem to bother him in the least as he continues to tackle new skills all the time.

Wyatt at nine months has discovered the joy of his walker outside on the sidewalk and loves to go sprinting down the front walk. He pretty much sucks at steering though, so when he comes to a sudden stop and lurches forward in his seat, I say "bam!" and it makes him laugh. Big dogs also make him laugh. We kept Sandy this weekend and often just the sight of her brought on the giggles. He also thinks it's funny to grind his teeth (all six of them!) but that's not actually funny so we don't acknowledge that one, which is more than a little challenging since he might as well be dragging fingernails down a chalkboard. The sound of grinding baby teeth is horrific.

He crawls all over the house, clearly understands the word "no" but often chooses to pretend otherwise, pulls up on everything, cruises just a bit from table to couch, pets Millie even though she usually runs away from him and loves feeling the wind on his face. He looks up if we say the word "airplane" whether we're inside or out, and claps when I tell him to wave. This week he managed to sneak a handfull of Millie's kibble during the seven seconds I had my back turned and the water on (couldn't hear the tell-tale clink of the food against the bowl) but stopped before eating it because he was waiting for me to tell him not to.

He loves his refrigerator magnets, always choosing the big green one and the smallest blue one first as he's pulling them down. He knows how to crawl while carrying something in his hand, thinks his stacking cups are fun, protests unpopular decisions by saying "nnnnnnnnnnnnnnuh" and then laughs when I imitate him ("nnnnnuh! who am I? That's right, I'm Wyatt!" makes him stop every time). He rarely wakes without a smile on his face and is all of a sudden afraid of the vacuum. He still loves his little leapfrog that sings the alphabet, thinks Daddy's mustache is funny and will rub noses with me anytime I ask. He's a very vigorous nose-rubbing-partner, too! The kid's whole body goes side to side. He's just so fun and funny and cute (he shrugged his shoulders the other day when Heather called him cute as if to say, "well, I just can't help it"). I think we got a good one. We're going to keep him.

Whoa.

That was ugly, but we'll take the win. As soon as my heartrate returns to its normal speed, I'll get on with my day. Jeff just announced that game took a year off his life. The lesson here? We should avoid the large cups of coffee prior to the next game: caffeine + adrenaline = jittery Rocks.

Wee Hours

Things that are on at 2:30 am:

Major League Baseball
Spanglish
Previews for I, Robot
Pentagon News

The Jayhawks are not on at 2:30 am, much to our delight after having set the alarm for the middle of the night. But I bet you savvy readers have already done the math and said, "what is she thinking?" After reviewing the sports guide, it turns out that 0230 I saw was the projected duration of the game. Oops. We're now straight on this and are planning to watch the game in 22 minutes, bleary-eyed and all.

Go Jayhawks!

Since You Asked...

Actually you didn't, but I'm telling you anyway because that's what I do. The focaccia bread was great! Not easy so I won't try to fool you with that approach, but I got lots of compliments on the sandwich and requests for the recipe. I can now add artisinal breadmaker to my resume.

I did all this cooking for a spouses' coffee I co-hosted tonight. We had it at the apartment of the only female pilot in the squadron (Elizabeth, aka Jackpot) who is just uber-cool. She's one of the girls and one of the guys all at the same time, without ever compromising herself, if that makes sense. She and her husband have a place right on the seawall, 4th floor with stellar views of the water clear down to Naha. It was an absolutely gorgeous day here today. Jackpot and I had our toes done at Coco's first and then enjoyed a great view of the Keramas as we got all the food set out for everyone. She had all her Hawaiian music playing (she grew up there), all the windows open so the salt air was blowing in and torches lit outside. It's nights like tonight that remind me how lucky we are to have this experience, in this place, with these people. It's really an amazing, diverse, interesting, and just fun group of women. It brings me back to the nagging question in the back of my mind: who am I to get to enjoy this?

Wyatt traded yesterday's 3.5 hour nap for a non-nap this afternoon. After more than an hour of fussing in his crib - not crying, but not sleeping - it finally got quiet so I opened the door to check on him only to find him standing in his crib chewing on the rail. He was facing away from me and when I asked, "oh, do you just not plan to nap this afternoon?" he whipped his little cranium around and gave me the biggest smile. So he didn't nap. Whatever. His daddy came home early today and they got to play outside so it worked out well.

Latest trick: Wyatt now claps. He doesn't bring his hands together with enough force to make noise, but he gets it. He'll clap for Millie, for himself and for F-15s flying overhead. I think we're training him well.

We're off to bed because the Jayhawks are playing at 2:30 am our time and we're committed to watching. Or at least to having it on while we're sleeping; it always stresses me out to focus solely on the game anyway.

Help Me Understand

When attempting to make a dr's appointment, why do I always get the message that tells me the "clinic is open Monday through Friday, 0730 to 1600 daily; to make an appointment, please call this number between 0730 and 1630 daily." Hey morons! You're only supposed to turn that machine on outside those hours. So when I'm calling at 2:00 pm (or 1400, if you'd rather) YOU SHOULD BE ANSWERING! What does a girl have to do to get some migraine medicine that works?

Why do I choose to try new recipes for social functions? They sound so pretty and tasty when I look them up on allrecipes and then BAM! Here I am, the night before, scrambling to pull stuff together. And of course I'm bullheaded and decided I am making the roasted vegetable sandwich, despite the fact that it calls for ingredients I either (a) have to pay for with gold boullion (Hello! $4.50 for 2 portabello mushrooms? And $4.38/lb. for red peppers?) or (b) am completely unable to purchase. This week's example: focaccia bread. I thought I could get it but...this is how my call to the commissary went:
Local national commissary worker: heh-row, bakery.
Me: Hi. Do you have focaccia bread?
Lncw: huh?
me: can I get focaccia bread there?
Lncw: who?
me: f0-ca-cia bread? You know, Italian flat-bread?
Lncw: hold prease........Um, yes? We no have that anymore.
Of course you don't. Why would we want anything besides white or wheat?

Is it possible to channel Martha Stewart? Because it's not working out for me. You know what's happening in my kitchen right now? Yep. That's right. I'm attempting to make focaccia bread. It's not really going that well because there are approximately 37 steps to making my friend's "oh this is so easy" recipe. Easy my ass, Sly. You know what would have been easy? Calling Macaroni Grill and begging some bread off them. That would have been easy.

And does anyone know why Wyatt is taking such long naps? I mean, he usually naps for two 2-hour blocks which is great, but lately he's been sleeping a ton. Today he took his standard morning nap and then took a 3.5- hour afternoon nap. Last week he took two 4-hour afternoon naps. I mean, it's kind of nice to have some time to get stuff done (like crazy over-acheiving recipes) but what gives? If this is the precursor to a growth spurt, apparently he's going to scare the bejesus out of me one of these mornings because he'll have outgrown his sleeper overnight.

Why do the reality shows of Bravo hold such power over me? Real Housewives, Top Chef, Project Runway, Top Designer...I love you all. Please tell me I'm not alone in this.

Lastly, why did my family give me such a hard time about my childhood rock collection? I mean, so what if I insisted on giving those rocks baths? At least I didn't name them and throw birthday parties for them like they did on Sesame Street this week. Ha! I KNEW I wasn't the weird one. Everyone on Sesame Street thought it was really nice that Rocko was getting a party! And I do, too.

I'm a Little Grossed Out

The whole time we've lived here, we've been under the impression that our kitchen floor is stained and, therefore, kind of perma-dirty looking. I have occasionally gotten down on hands and knees and scrubbed with straight ammonia but to no avail; there's just dirt waxed into the floor. Now I'm remembering the last time I actually did that hands and knees bit was at least a year ago. Since then, I've been cleaning with my super-duper hoover floormate and wet swiffering.

Until tonight. I broke down and bought a five dollar mop because I've become disillusioned with the floormate. Apparently it was for good reason. The perma-dirt? Yeah, it's pretty much gone. Or at least in remission. Amazing what that little blue scrubby strip can do! There are still the weird spots of paint beneath the wax, but on the whole it's WAAAYYY cleaner in there than it was 30 mintues ago. I think this begs the following questions:

1. How did I get started on the slippery slope to a dirty kitchen floor without realizing it?
2. How much funk has Wyatt ingested due to crawling around on said dirty kitchen floor?
3. Will the Method floor cleaner* I want to order from drugstore.com produce the same results as my trusty ammonia and water did?
4. If the kitchen floor was that dirty without me fully realizing it, is the rest of my house actually a pig sty and I don't know it?
5. If I continue on this path are my loved ones going to turn me in for an Oprah or Dr. Phil intervention? (please no - if you have a tv intervention on my behalf, please make it a makeover courtesy of What Not To Wear because have you seen my island wardrobe? I'm a sad case and will need retail therapy when I return stateside).
6. Where can I ditch my hoover floormate? Will anyone actually buy that piece of crap or is it just another thing to add to our "for bulk pick-up someday" stack (it would join the potentially-fire-causing microwave and an old carpet runner...we'll probably still be waiting for bulk pick-up when the movers come and end up shipping this junk back to America)?
7. Does this mean I need a mama-san?
8. Is this a sign I should blog less and clean more?

And in other gross news (because I'm not sure you've had enough), Wyatt seems to have a pretty sensitive gag reflex because chunkier foods are still getting the better of him. Which is why tonight, after downing a bottle, it was really a shame that I offered stage 3 chicken noodle dinner with little chunks of pasta and whole peas in it. STUPID MOMMY! So it was my pleasure to dismantle his highchair and give it a nice bath.

*if you or someone you know has experience with method floor cleaner, please submit a review by clicking on "comments". Thanks! We need all the help we can get, apparently :)

Like Sugar

A few things that strike me as sweet (or suh-weet!, as you might rather say):

1. The Jayhawks. Sweet 16! Woohoo! I was recently questioned about not posting after the raging defeat of Niagara, but that was a little too soon. However, now we've made it to the Sweet 16 and it's time to talk about the Hawks again. Way to go, guys! We're flying our KU flag proudly and bringing a little Rock Chalk love to the island. And you're welcome for getting up at 6:30 this morning to watch (the 6am tip-off was just a hair to early).

2. This is my 100th post (please commence confetti-throwing and whistle-blowing because that's what's happening inside my head)! I think I officially have the "archives" that Jeff suggested I needed before sharing this blog address with anyone. Phew! Now I can tell the world about my little blog. Oh. Right. I've already told everyone I know. Moving on.

3. Wyatt. People with kids already know how this works, but I'm getting a lesson in "my kid is the most fun kid in the whole world" every day. I have video to back up this claim but STANDARD! Google video sucks.

4. We are T-minus one month to a two week vacation in Hawaii. I get jittery just thinking about all the retail that awaits. Oh, and a week with my grandma, parents, sister, bro-in-law and nephews in a tropical paradise isn't so bad either! And the mai-tais by the pool? Icing on the cake.

5. Having great friends right next door! We all went to lunch yesterday at Hanahou (the perfect little restaurant I posted about before and wasn't sure I would share....see? I'm sharing!). Nathan and Wyatt had a great time facing each other in their highchairs and pounding their hands on the table. Cool game! Then Nathan and Lisa joined us for dinner and again, Nathan and Wyatt had fun playing together. So not only do Jeff & I have friends in C, but so does Wyatt. And Nathan is so cute with Wyatt, always sharing and making Wyatt feel like a big boy. Like the other day when Nathan crawled instead of walking because he didn't want to make Wyatt feel like a baby for not knowing how to walk. So considerate!

Greetings From the Emerald Isle

What's that? You didn't know Okinawa was the Emerald Isle? Well it is. It's always green here because of the jungle that could overtake everything in about a month if it weren't kept in check, but it's especially green right now because we're in the midst of the year's first rainy season. Downside: gloomy days. Upside: lush green patches of clovers under our local palm tree (okay, and some weeds in the background - picky, picky!).

Without further ado, Wyatt O'Rock wants to say Happy St. Patrick's Day!

****

Jeff and a bunch of friends from the squadron did a triathlon this morning on Torii Station. The current was so bad they almost didn't let them swim, but instead just halved the distance so they didn't have to swim against it. Jeff was in the middle of the pack after the swim but was cooking on the bike. Unfortunately, the race guy told him he had one lap to go when really he was finished, so Jeff did a 6 lap bike while everyone else did 5. Oh well (easy for me to say!), he seemed to have fun and still did well. The weather is windy and rainy so it was yet another occasion where I was happy to cheer and glad to not be competing!

Swim to bike transition - he's the one in the yellow swimcap.

Fueling up for the bike; our friend Nojo is on the left.

Last lap. Just kidding! Clipboard man says do one more!

True Jeff style - a sprint to the finish to beat this guy. I don't think it worked.

The requisite group shot. Three participating in Mustache March - handsome, isn't it?

March Madness Ground Rules

1. Respect the time difference. If we haven't watched a game, it's because it might be on at 3 am here. For those of you needing a little world time assistance, we are now +14 hours from central time (thanks to your early daylight savings - hope you're enjoying your bonus 2 weeks).

2. Remember we're at the mercy of random AFN programming and don't call us with any news about the Jayhawks until you're sure we've seen it for ourselves. Case in point: the first-round game is being played at 8am our time, Saturday morning. It's apparently not airing over here until 4pm, Saturday afternoon. THAT LEAVES AN 8 HOUR WINDOW FOR US TO AVOID ALL MASS MEDIA (or friends and family) THAT MIGHT DIVULGE THE OUTCOME! Frustration.

3. Please withhold your comments if you see Wyatt dressed in the same outfit for the rest of the month. We only have one Jayhawk outfit that fits right now (and it came courtesy of our CU neighbors)! We'll do our best to keep it clean.

4. Neighbors and other Marek Park friends, please let us know if the thumping of the Rock Chalk chant (best college cheer ever, right Teddy Roosevelt?) gets to be disruptive. Because we own The Songs of Old KU and we're not afraid to play them.

5. For non-KU fans: if KU (God forbid) chokes in the first round again, please don't think it's funny to call us as soon as you hear the news. We're already scarred from the last two years and cannot handle your witty banter on the matter until sometime in July.

6. Also for non-KU fans: please expect a phonecall from us as soon as we hear your team loses. This half of the Rock ensemble is not a good sport and takes pleasure in your team losing. I will do my best to work the phrases "rock-chalk", "beak 'em hawks" and "that's-what-you-get-for-taking-Roy" into conversations with you (the last one is especially for our so-called friends who cheer for the Tarheels).

7. To our Duke & Marquette-fan friends: item 6 does not apply. I really do feel for you. It stings, doesn't it?

8. Pay Heed All Ye Who Enter 10346D: we're probably going to talk about the tournament at some point during your visit. If you're not interested in basketball, it'd be best to pretend like you are or avoid us until April.

9. If the Jayhawks' season is over prior to a win in the championship game, please don't bring it up with us for at least one week. We're mourning.

10. Should the Jayhawks choose to do the same thing they did in 1988, their reign will last until March of '08. So will our enthusiasm. Brace yourselves accordingly.

There. I think that about covers it. Say it with me now: ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK, GO KU!

New & Exciting!

Just kidding. Same old stuff, but cute pictures so I thought I'd share.

Wyatt's been a pretty busy boy for the last couple of days. He tried his first spaghetti last night and this picture looks strikingly like some of his daddy when he was a spaghetti-eating baby.

He also is getting very adept at getting his own toys, thankyouverymuch! He knew what he wanted as soon as he peered over the edge......that ball speaks to him!
Sneaky crawling boy is also getting really good at exploring all the nooks and crannies of the living room. He was on his way to Millie's toy basket behind the chair - this is the look I get when I say, "Wyatt...what are you doing?" To me, his little face is just saying, "Who? Me? Aww, Mom, I'm not doing anything. Swear."

And let's see....this is him standing and playing with his music table like he does all the time. It's just no big deal to pull himself right up and start pushing all the buttons. It still makes me laugh when he plunks back down and all of a sudden drops from my line of sight, though. What? You think it’s cruel that I laugh at him? Well, that’s just too bad because honestly, a stay-at-home-mom needs some humor in her day. Trust me on this!

Shout Out

Wyatt has requested that we give a little shout out to the people whose gifts make him happiest right now*; they are Aunt Susan (How Big is Baby Elmo?), Auntie Ade (lovie blanket #1) and cousin Trish (lovie blanket #2). The mere sight of one of these items causes Wyatt to break out his "special" laugh, which involves him pulling his chin back so all the little folds underneath pop out and a very gutteral chortle. We do not hear this laugh at any other time!

The blankets are only for crib time and boy, do they get a good work-over. We alternate which one is in there so we (ideally) always have a clean one. When it's time to put him in the crib, we hand him his little blanket and he clutches it tightly to his face, kind of burying his nose in it. The one from Ade is prized for its satiny backing and the one from Trish is fun because it has little squares of furry fabric. Both become chew toys as he's falling asleep.

And the book? Well, it's a hands-down favorite. I know I already have it memorized and I think Jeff's well on his way. Favorite parts that bring individual little laughs and bright smiles: "Baby Elmo says "ma-ma-ma", Baby Elmo says "da-da-da"' and "Baby Elmo plays peekaboo". But the SOOOO Big Baby Elmo at the very end? It, without fail, makes Wyatt lean forward and grab for the page in attmepts to eat Baby Elmo. And that, well, it always brings a smile to my face.

*this is not to say that we don't cherish and use many awesome gifts every day. And trust me, I remember where each one came from and think about you every time we use something you gifted. Of course, I still remember these details about most of our wedding gifts as well so maybe this explains why I can't remember what day it is? Brain is full! Brain is full!

Tales From the Road

This island NEVER disappoints! There is always something funny to see. We were getting on the bridge to go to Ikei island yesterday when the following conversation ensued:

J: What is that?
S: What?
J: That! Is it a horse?
S: I don't know...no, I think it's a cow.
J: No, I think it's a horse. Wait...is it a bull? It's a bull!
S: You're right! It's a bull! I need a picture of this.
J: I can't believe it's a bull. It really is a bull! What are they doing?
S: I don't know but I wish you would stop so I could get a picture!
J: Why do you think they have a bull out there?
S: I don't know, but seriously, PULL OVER! I have to get a picture of this!

this picture is for perspective. tide was way out, and so was the bull.

this picture is in case you didn't believe us, courtesy of the handy-dandy digital zoom.

S: I think they're giving it a bath.

J: Maybe they're getting ready to eat it.

S: Maybe they're brining it....I can't believe we just saw a bull getting a bath in the ocean.

J: Do you think it's a local bull?

Then again, maybe it's our very cerebral conversations that really make this place so fun. Like this one.

J: You know, I bet there are a lot of people who never leave this island.
S: Yeah, but there are a lot of Oklahomans who never leave Oklahoma, too.
J: True, but I don't know....it seems like there you could just get in your car and accidentally...
S: ...accidentally drive to Texas?
J: Exactly. Accidentally drive to Texas.
S: Good point.

Beep beep beep beep...

That's the sound all Japanese cars make while in reverse, but you only hear it on the inside so what's the point?

Anyway, I'm backing up because I think maybe, just maybe Wyatt has confused the sign for "more" with the sign for "hey mom, bring on the cheerios". Hmmmm.......am thinking back and realizing that I almost always used the O's as examples of the more concept and can see how this might have happened. Now I have to correct this issue or take the easy way out and make up a new sign for "more". Good times.

Whoa!

Wyatt's signing vocabulary has DOUBLED! That's right, he has two words now :) Today's new addition is more. And while we've been practicing this one for a couple of weeks with him successfully imitating me, today is the first time he's replied via sign when I asked him if he wanted more. Yippee!

Of course the only thing he wants more of is cheerios, not cereal, yogurt, peas, carrots or anything else with additional nutritional merit, but hey. I guess I can't have it all, now can I? Besides, that would probably be boring.

Caution: This Post's as Disjointed as My Mind

We've officially entered the phase when we need an extra arm (or three) to accomplish a simple diaper change. Seriously, people, please tell me this will pass quickly! I'm doing my best to use my big girl words like "stop", "no" and "that's enough" but what I really want to do is shout, "for the love of pete would you please just knock it off because if you would just lie still for 10 seconds this whole process would take a third as much time!". But no. I just keep going with the stops and nos and then resort to pinning his little shoulders down with my left forearm while the right hand is furiously working to swap out the huggies. It's really fun. You should come over and give it a whirl!

I also, of course, maintain my sternest face while this is happening until he pulls out the big guns like he did this morning. He's frantically giving me the all done sign (which I'm verrrrry good at ignoring in times like this) and then turns, looks at his hand, does the signal again for himself and gets the funniest look on his face. I swear he was thinking, "is this thing broken? (signal) hmmm, no, looks like it's working to me!" and to that, I had to turn away so I could smile without him seeing me. Very clever, Wyatt-san, very clever.

******
It amazes me that after two+ years of living here, I still see new funny things which must be documented with photos. Here's the latest example from the aquarium:

That's right, it's an umbrella vending machine! Let's talk about how smart this is because I've totally been caught at the aquarium sans weather shield and it would've come in handy. What makes this even better is that the smaller umbrellas are only Y450 and the full-size are only Y650. They're a steal! And yes, I'm pretty sure the Japanese people thought the white mommies with all the kids were kind of odd for taking picutres of the vending machine. Whatever. I encourage those of you in America to be a little less quick to judge when you see a foreigner admiring something we consider to be totally normal.

****

Jeff has returned from his little flying jaunt on mainland and it's nice to have him home but, in his absence, I was able to forget that it's Mustache March. Ahhh, you don't know Mustache March? You lucky soul, you. It's when all the guys in the squadron decide that it's fun to compete with their facial hair. That means it's also the month when wives' eye rolling increases exponentially and it's scary to be in a group setting because they all look like wanna-be porn stars. It's really nice. Really, really nice. So sorry no one's here to enjoy it with me.

Rough Life

I left Wyatt with a friend for a few hours today so I could go to a luncheon. While I was eating free Macaroni Grill yumminess, Wyatt was playing in a virtual Toys R Us! Isaac's mommy gets all the good toys and Wyatt loves it at their house - check it out!

Kristen calls this one the Hugh Hefner in training picture. "Hey ladies, wanna sit in this chair with me?" If Kristen were Japanese, I'd believe that was exactly what Wyatt was thinking! Standing up is so old-hat.
Isaac and Wyatt agree: eating plastic blocks is fun!
Wyatt's giving his best, "hey, I'm not doing anything wrong! Issac's the one eating blocks" look.
Apparently this was the part of playtime where Isaac was seeing if Wyatt could be pushed up the little people slide. The answer is only halfway. Fun game!

This here hounddog sings some nice Elvis songs....

...and Wyatt isn't sure what to make of that!

Big Timer

Wyatt is officially turning into a big boy. He started pulling up this morning! I love how he saves his new skills for when we're both home - it's so thoughtful, maybe this means he's inherited the excessively nice gene from Jeff? He started crawling on a federal holiday and Jeff has a bonus day off today so it was awesome that Wyatt waited until first thing this morning to pull up (using Daddy's leg as his support, no less). Of course now he's seeing how much he can practice, so we decided it might be time to lower his crib mattress.

In two short hours he's figured out that he can help himself to his toys in the baskets under the television and that his leapfrog music table is just the right height now that we have its legs attached. I also caught him eyeing the plant on the coffee table a few minutes ago, which probably means it's time to childproof the next layer of the house. This is so fun! But I think it means I have to start wrestling him into shoes...