18 Months

I realize 18 months isn't 18 years, but I understand why parents say their children grow up too fast. It seems like yesterday that we brought Warner home from the hospital - a fragile, helpless preemie. He is quickly developing into a busy toddler with quite the personality.

I was so nervous about his 18 month check-up with the pediatrician. Friends had told me to expect a long questionnaire regarding Warner's developmental progress and milestones, and I worked with Warner as if we were preparing for the SAT's. However, I was (imagine this) worrying about nothing.

I thought he was supposed to be using 20 words appropriately - which he sort of is. Okay, it's a stretch to name 20. When the doctor asked if he used 6 words I said (surprise in my voice) "well yes, of course he uses six words". The other milestones such as "can he run?" were pretty easy. Uh, yes, he can run - this comes in handy when I'm trying to change a diaper or get him in the car when we're running late. Or, "can he use a toothbrush?" Again, yes - he brings his toothbrush and toothpaste to me multiple times a day wanting to brush his teeth (really just chew on the toothbrush and suck the toothpaste off of it).

So, he's on track. Whew. Therefore I can continue to tell Kevin it's pointless to put money in Warner's 529 plan because he's going to earn a full-ride scholarship to Harvard.

Oh, and his physical stats: 33 inches long (75th percentile) and 28 pounds 12 ounces (85th percentile). Here are some shots from his 18-month pictures:

Minnesota

We survived 24+ hours in the car this weekend for a trip to Minneapolis. We went for two reasons: to walk in the "Get Your Rear in Gear" 5k for Colon Cancer as a part of team Meredith's Miracles, and to visit our good friends Corey and Andrea from when we lived in Minnesota.

The weekend was wonderful. Corey and Andrea treated us to exceptional food (they should start a restaurant, I think I gained 5 pounds over four days) and welcomed us into their home without regard for the mess and piles of stuff that come with an 18 month old. My mom came on Friday so we got to spend time with her, too.

The walk on Sunday was bittersweet. The entrance fee for the race went exclusively to Colon Cancer research, which seemed a bit different than other races I've run. Generally the race itself is the point, and no one knows which charities it's benefiting. This race was certainly the opposite. Most everyone was part of a team that was supporting a colon cancer patient, or a loved one who had died of the disease. Our team had about 12 people, but others had 50 plus members. We met many people who had lost loved ones at a young age, like Meredith, to colon cancer. While it saddens me to know there are so many people affected by this disease, I found a sense of comfort knowing our family isn't alone. Team Meredith's Miracles.Warner had a great time being pushed by others. I think I'm going to request his spot in the stroller for the next race.A yummy dinner with Corey and Andrea.Corey quickly won Warner over by throwing him in the air whenever he wanted.Andrea, Warner, and me playing outside. Thankfully the weather was nice for most of our visit. (You never know in Minnesota - I was afraid there'd still be snow on the ground.)Warner enjoying a Jimmy John's sandwich and a video on the ride home.

I had a conversation with my sister about a week before she died. I told her that from there forward, every race I ran I'd dedicate to her. She politely smiled, but then said "that's nice, but you know I really hate running". Which is so true. She never understood why I love long-distance running.

We laughed about that as we walked in celebration of Meredith on Sunday. Even though she hated running, I'm sure she'd approve of our efforts to honor her memory and create hope for the future of colon cancer treatment. We plan to make this an annual event, for our Meredith.

Easter

We celebrated Easter with Kevin's parents, his sister, and her family yesterday. We had so much fun! The kids did a scavenger hunt to find their Easter baskets, played Easter games, and did an egg hunt.

We also enjoyed a yummy meal. It's funny, because Kevin and I didn't grow up that far apart, geographically. With my family in Ohio/Indiana and his in Kentucky, you'd think culturally the cuisine would be similar. But the food his family enjoys is different, and just lovely (probably even lovelier since I'm pregnant). Dishes like broccoli cheese cornbread and hashbrown casserole never graced the dinner table at my family functions growing up. And let me just say, we were missing out.Kevin and Warner are off to find Easter eggs in our backyard.Found one! Once Warner realized there was food inside the eggs, he wasn't very enthusiastic about finding more. He much preferred eating the marshmallows and candy in the eggs he'd already found.Quick stop for a picture with mom.After the egg hunt with full baskets.

Art

Warner's friend Ethan lent him an Aquadoodle mat and pen, but it's taken him a while to get the hang of it. For a while he would just suck on the pen (filled with water - yuck) and run around the house with it in his hand. After some instruction, I think he's gotten it.And, he doesn't eat crayons anymore, either. What progress.

New Blogger

It's never a good sign when I've taken my eye off of Warner and the house becomes very quiet. This happened the other day and I found him here:
We might just have a new blogger in the family.

It's a ...

... girl! We had our ultrasound Thursday and everything seems to be going well this pregnancy. Thankfully we had a patient ultrasound tech who went back a second time to find out the sex of the baby - she wasn't too cooperative the first time around!

We are so thrilled to know that the baby is healthy. The fact that it's a girl is icing on the cake! We can't wait to meet this little one in August. Well, Warner might be able to wait, but I'm sure he'll love being a big brother once he gets used to it.

My Little Helper

Warner has just started "helping" around the house. He will (sometimes) help pick up his toys, put his clothes in the laundry basket, etc. But he surprised me today.

I stopped using a diaper genie a long time ago and instead just put his stinky diapers in the garbage in the garage. I had set a stinky diaper on the steps to our basement to take to the garage on our next trip out, but before I had a chance to throw it away, Warner and I were coming back up the stairs to the kitchen. Warner picked up the diaper, walked to the pantry, opened the pantry door (I didn't know he could do this - kind of a bummer that he can now reach the knob), and put the diaper in the garbage! The best part was afterward. He shut the pantry door, turned to look at me, patted his chest (he does this when he's proud of something he's done), and gave me the biggest smile.

I could get used to this.

Florida

Warner and I spent 10 days in Florida and returned home earlier this week. Unfortunately Kevin wasn't able to join us. The flight was my only concern as far as traveling alone with a 17 month-old, but it turned out to be okay. Warner passed the time by running up and down the aisle of the plane, trying to sneak into first class/playing with the first class divider curtain, playing with the bathroom door, eating snacks (he blew through them about 30 minutes into each flight), and watching Mickey Mouse on DVD. Whew.

Once we arrived at the beach, Warner was in heaven. Each day he played in the sand, the ocean, the pool, and probably his favorite was the hose that you use to wash your feet off after coming in from the beach. Go figure. He would run straight into the ocean alone if we weren't quick enough.In the pool with Grammy.
"Look at the birds, Mom!""I'd like to go this way, Grammy.""Swimming" in the ocean.

All of the playing took it's toll - Warner took 2-3 hour naps each day and slept like a rock for 11+ hours each night. It was wonderful! I got plenty of beach/pool time during his naps (my Grandma would watch Warner for me while he slept) and finished almost 2 books and got to walk each day. Truly a vacation for me, too!

The rest of the time we spent with family - my mom was there the whole time, as were my Grandparents. My dad was there for a few days, and so were my Aunt Debbie, Jami (my cousin Tommy's wife - their blog is on my links - The Warner Family), and their kids Maddi and Trey.Warner with Grandma and Grandpa Warner (we call them Grandma and Grandpa Gene though, because I have a feeling the Warner thing will get confusing pretty soon).
And of course our vacation diet was a bit unhealthy. Ice cream, suckers, goldfish whenever Warner wanted, etc. Over the course of our visit, Warner and Grammy became quite the friends. Even though my parents are in Texas now, it's nice that we can still spend quality time together so often.What a great vacation.

Sweet

We started out really well with Warner's diet. He didn't have processed sugar until his first birthday, and I even made his baby food. Unfortunately it's been downhill since his first bite of birthday cake.

Warner is what we call an eater. He generally eats whatever is in front of him, which for the most part is healthy. In my defense, I'm very conscious of his diet being well-balanced and including plenty of vegetables and fruits. But sweets are my weakness and I'm pretty sure they're going to be Warner's, too. Add in the fact that I'm pregnant and love to bake, and you've got a recipe for disaster.
During our trip to Muncie last week, MaNell, Emme, Warner, and I had doughnuts for breakfast. This is Warner pointing to them, saying "dat" for "that", which means he wants more. Lots more. (Notice his mouth is already full when he asks for more).
And then this weekend for Nanny's birthday, Leslie and the girls made cupcakes. Warner put down two entire cupcakes before we cut him off.

Yes, he's my son indeed.

Grey's Anatomy

It's Meredith's fault that I watch Grey's Anatomy to begin with.

She and I drove to Chicago in the fall of 2007 for a girls weekend with my mom. Mere had been on me for a while to get up to speed on Grey's so we could discuss the newest episodes that came out. We rented the first season that weekend and watched the entire thing in my parents' basement. I'll never forget that weekend. It was a lot of tv to watch, and Mere joked that it was a tough job, but we "pressed through" (her words).

She'd laugh as drums would start to beat loudly in the background music and would say that means a commercial is coming. She said it always worked that way (and I've found she's right). And, she could often tell us when the show wasn't medically sound. Like when they talked about giving someone pain medication for a CT scan. Mere had tons of CT scans so she knew it was a painless procedure for which drugs weren't given.

From that weekend on, I started watching Grey's Anatomy. Mere and I would call each other after the show and discuss our thoughts about what had happened. She was frustrated with the Meredith/Derek relationship and thought the older seasons were better because they contained more medical drama.

Now every episode reminds me of my sister. In nearly every story line I see Mere, her battle, and my family's battle. I think about Mere and what she might think about this season. About what we'd talk about when we discuss the show. And then I cry. Sometimes really loud and obnoxious crying (I watch the show after Warner goes to bed and on the nights Kevin works so my obnoxious crying thankfully doesn't annoy anyone). I tell myself it's therapeutic, but I'm not so sure.

Meredith's death is still so fresh in my mind. I think of her last moments daily. I think of all of the years that were taken from her by the cancer. I think of her in heaven. What is she doing? What is it like there? Can she see me here on earth? Does she see how big Warner has gotten? Does she know that we're expecting another baby? Does she know how much I miss her?

The pain is raw. Still. April 22nd will be here before we know it, marking one year since she left us. A year seems like a long time. It feels like an eternity since I've seen or spoken to Meredith. But it also feels like just yesterday that she was here.
I came across this picture the other day. It was taken around the time of our Grey's marathon in Chicago, when Meredith was in the hospital. Meredith found my camera and decided I needed a few pictures of her, and took this one herself. I cherish it now. It's so Mere.

I know I'll see her again one day soon. And I'm so thankful to Jesus for that.

Frustrated

He may not look ornery at first glace. But looks can be deceiving.

Warner has tested my patience today. Too many times to count. This little person who was once so compliant now has a (strong) will of his own and is very colorful in the ways he expresses himself. Mainly, he hits. Hits me, himself, or anything nearby. Or, he throws things - toys, food, sippy cups (thank heavens for spill-proof sippy cups. Our house would be one sticky mess without them).

I've tried everything from gently putting his arms at his side and telling him that we don't hit or throw ... to not so gently explaining that we don't do these things. I've tried time-outs where we sit and count to 20. I've tried leaving the room (my personal favorite, as I get a break and a chance to cool down). Nothing seems to work.

We had our first playgroup today with Mom's Club. Four other boys ranging in age from 13 to 16 months came over to our house with their mothers. As the moms talked, I was relieved to hear that my son is not the only one driving his mother crazy. I just hope I'm responding to Warner's behavior appropriately.

And, I'm often told it's a phase. He won't go to college hitting things when he gets mad ... right?

Cookies

Warner helped me make Valentine's Day cookies today. It turned out to be a time intensive process between making the actual cookies and keeping Warner involved/entertained. He was a good sport though. As I made the dough Warner watched closely and used his own cooking tools.The look of disbelief at how I could keep cookie dough from him for this long.Let's just touch this one to make sure it's ready for the oven.Are they done yet?He didn't care what was going on once I gave him the spatula with icing on it. He had a death-grip on it for about an hour, including during dinner. He ate the entire meal one-handed so he could keep the spatula in the other hand.The finished product. And they taste better than they look, if you can believe it.

Museum

We met one of my friends from college at the Children's Museum yesterday for a playdate. Jessica and her husband Jay have a daughter, Madison, who is two months older than Warner. They are new to Cincinnati and had never been to the museum, so Warner was happy to show Madison around.

Well actually, Warner pretty much did his own thing and occasionally seemed to notice that Madison was there with him. This is the best picture we could get of the two kids together - he's not so sure about sharing the car with a girl:Well, if it's Mom then it's okay.
I love watching Warner play at the museum. He seems to enjoy it more with each visit and is quickly becoming quite independent while playing.
Warner let Kevin hold his hand as we walked to the car on the way out. This is one of the first times this has happened (usually Warner would prefer to walk all by himself, thank you very much) so I'm glad I got a picture.

Worn out

Warner has refused a nap for the past three days. It's been exhausting, probably more so for Kevin and I than for him. Each day he sat in his crib for 2 hours babbling, banging the wall, playing with his stuffed animals, and whining. But no sleeping.

He has been the best napper for so long now, I haven't known what to do with this. He normally sleeps for 2-3 hours in the afternoon so you can imagine how tired he must have been each night that he refused a nap.

Thankfully the streak was broken this afternoon. He is sleeping soundly in his crib. For now.

Peanut Butter

I left Warner alone in his highchair with his breakfast (banana and peanut butter toast) for about 2 seconds and this is what I came back to:And I thought we were making progress on the self-feeding front.