Parker is 15 Months

the biggest news, parker took his very first step on, tuesday, July 11th, a little over 14 months. the three of us were in preston's room reading a book, when he stood up, and hesitantly took a few steps towards us before falling down. i didn't have my phone on me! he did it again with some encouragement. then jack came home and he grabbed my phone, but parker was done and didn't do it for daddy that night.

over the next few days, he would continue to take a few steps at a time, always falling down after just a few and laughing, he thought it was so funny. i am a little late on this entry, so at a little over 15 months, parker was walking pretty confidently. it is the cutest watching him waddling along, being his own little person. 

he is definitely saying dada, he's giving and blowing kisses, he is building towers with blocks and toilet papers, he started playing with the little kids big legos, he's been sitting at the little kiddie table with preston on most mornings and eating his breakfast on his own. parker started taking swim lessons in late July, and he is trying to blow bubbles in the water. he can go under the water, and doesn't mind water on his face. 

he is saying words like balloon, no, and being the cutest little guy. i can't give him enough kisses, just such a cute age. he likes to pick up trash for the most part and throw it away, he likes to pick things up and put away in a basket. he is into playing with pots and pans and cooking utensils, it keeps him pretty occupied while i am busy in the kitchen. 

he's more into playing these days, so he's not eating as much. it's a bit disappointing, i do love watching him eat. he eats a bit and is ready to get out and about. so i am feeding him as he's on the move these days, i do not enjoy this part, especially with 2 kids being like this. can't wait for it to be over, and for another grown spurt to hit! 

Parker is 14 months

Parker is 14 months on Saturday! There are a lot of updates since his 1st birthday.

• Parker started crawling backwards down the stairs at 13 months
• We went to the atlantis with the boys in mid-june, and parker enjoyed the pool and the beach a lot! i've never seen him so happy in the water before. he's not afraid of water splashing on his face and actually finds it thrilling. he is also kicking in the water and finds it ticklish to lay on his back and put his head in the water. this was a much different experience from when he was a few months old last summer and we went to the pool. 
• on june 19th, parker started his first day of daycare at Goddard. i went with jack to drop him off and of course he cried when we left. we were prepared the 2nd time around and made sure to bring a blanket from home for him to hold when he's in distress. apparently, that helped.
• parker unfortunately got sick on his second day and had to stay home for the rest of the week. poor guy got the hand, foot, mouth.
• 2nd week went by very smoothly for him, he cried a little during drop off but was fine a few minutes after jack leaves. jack told me how he'd bury his face in jack's shoulders and tried to avoid eye contact with the teachers when they walk into the room. aww i know he was hoping they don't see him and take him away from his daddy.
• during the 3rd week, it was the 4th of july holiday on a tuesday. when jack dropped them off on wednesday, parker did not cry at all! i think we made it! 
• parker is very happy, smiley, and fun when he's home after school. he gets very excited when we walk into preston classroom to pick him up. 
• this week, he learned to blow kisses. he blew kisses to my mom last night, to me this morning when i was leaving for work, and this afternoon to his teacher as we were leaving school. i asked during pick up if they teach them this and indeed they did. why is it they learn so much faster at daycare than at home? i've been trying to teach him at home to no avail! 
• i noticed tonight his bottom molars are coming out. so far, parker has 11 teeth, his other bottom molar will be out any day now. 
• parker is clapping his hands when he's happy or proud of himself
• he can wave bye bye
• he is truly saying "mama" when he's referring to me
• he's been practicing standing up on his own, but it's almost like a game to him because he'll fall over half way up and thinks its so funny

Parker's 24 Hour Schedule

6:30-6:45AM – Wakes-up

6:45AM – 7AM – Warm up 6 oz of whole milk in glass bottle and feed him in his room

7:00AM – 7:15AM – Play in his room, change diaper, wash face and hands

7:15AM – 8AM – Breakfast (Pancake and banana) and Fiji water in a sippy cup

8:00am – 8:45AM – Play, brush teeth (I’ll set aside his tooth brush and toothpaste, ok to use a small rice size amount of toothpaste to brush his teeth), wipe up any access toothpaste with a clean cloth in his top, left side dresser

8:45AM – 9AM – Get ready for morning nap.  Warm up 4-5 oz of whole milk and give to him in his room, with noise machine on.

9AM – 11AM – Nap

11AM – Snack time - Fruit (ie, small cut up pieces of oranges, strawberries, cut up grapes) and water in a sippy cup

12PM – Lunch (Fried Rice and Chicken Meatballs) and Fiji water in a sippy cup

1:30PM – Get ready for afternoon nap – Warm up 5-6 oz of milk in a glass bottle and give to him in his room with noise machine on. Sometimes he may miss the afternoon nap or take a short one while going on walk or in the car if you are out and about. As long as he gets a nap in, he will be fine, but if no nap at all, he may get cranky in late afternoon and will want to go to sleep early. The earliest you can put him in bed and have him stay asleep is maybe 7-7:30pm.

4PM – Snack time – Cheese stick or fruit

5:30PM – Dinner (Mac and Cheese with chunks of avocado) and Fiji water in a sippy cup

7PM – Small Dinner while you’re eating dinner (you can give him whatever you are having for dinner), sometimes, he will have a pretty decent amount for his 2^nd dinner too. He can eat small chunks of most food.

7:30PM – Bath time, or just wash his face and hands, play, story time, winding down activities

            -his bath towel is Winnie the Poh behind the bathroom door

            -PJ consists of a longsleeve onesie and pajama pants

8:00PM – 6 oz warm milk (he may get fidgety and stop drinking several times, just put him on the floor to play a little and try giving him the milk again. He will eventually finish it after 3 or 4 tries, unless he refuses it several times in a row, then he’s really done.

8:30PM – Brush his teeth, turn on night light and sound machine, hold him upright, sway, and sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star until you feel him getting really sleepy, doesn’t have to be fully asleep, put him down.

Parker is ONE!

how fast a year flies by, my little guy is now 1 year old...<tear>. happy birthday parker!!!! we celebrated this huge milestone moment with a little man mustache bash themed party on Sunday, May 7th, one day before Parker's real birthday. On his actual birthday, Monday, May 8th, i am so glad i took the day off from work to spend it with parker. i will never have this day again, so it was time well spent taking him to his 1 year appointment, spending time with him, decorating his crib and taking bday pictures of him, and finally, having our family, plus jane, aey, and sky over for a bbq dinner celebration. he was so happy on his birthday and surrounded by people who loves him. i could not ask for more for my little man.

at his party, we had 79 guests , which was a whole lot of people, and i am sure parker was feeling a little overwhelmed, but that was expected. as long as he wasn't fussy and throwing a tantrum, i'd consider it a success and indeed it was. the cake and sweets were made by andorinha, always so helpful and gracious, so lucky that she's our very close friend and that she's so good at what she does! we loved everything she made, so cute and delicious. we had a caricature/face painting artist (mimi ton) who was amazing, and we also set up a photo booth area with props and a remote clicker for the guests to take their own photos. we also had a ring toss game which the kids seemed to enjoy as well. we also had susie, our friend and neighbor, as our photographer. the venue was at stella barra at pike and rose, i loved the venue, it was so perfect for this theme and the space, although tight, was pretty perfect too. the staff was so amazing, helpful, and nice. the food could've been better, but we loved the bar area where guests were able to "wet their whiskers." parker wore white slack, white button up onesie, a bow tie, and a navy blue vest, and his Kyrie's. i thought he looked quite spiffy! i can't wait to post pictures of the party soon. 

so at age 1, parker is as much fun as ever! here are some facts about the little guy:

-weight: about 19 lbs

-height: 29 inches

-favorite food: eggs, string cheese, avocado, mac and cheese, fish, carbs, milk, apples, bananas

-favorite toys: blocks, robot hand (he loves holding it while walking around, last night i noticed parker was holding it and using it to push a ball around the floor like a hockey stick. he's so funny)

-common things he does: grabbing everything in sight on his changing table and dropping them behind his dresser, tries to put lids back on containers (he's getting better at actually making contact now), tries to feed himself by grabbing the spoon from us and practicing scooping the food from the bowl and into his mouth, throws food on the floor when he's done, feed people and paris (sharing is caring and parker seems to be a very caring & generous little guy), he tries to help preston do his homework by grabbing crayons and tries to draw on his paper (even if you give him his own piece of paper, he just really wants to color on his brother's homework)

-what he likes: parker likes to make his brother and other people laugh. one time in the car, he started blowing raspberries which cracked preston up, so parker got egged on to do more. by the time we arrive at our destination, his face was all wet! parker also loves to be applauded, he gets really happy when he receives positive reinforcements. parker is also an animal lover, he loves petting paris. he also enjoys going into his brother's room and playing on preston's bed and toys. he loves baths. he also loves getting physical with his brother, in the morning, i'd take him to preston's room to wake him up and he would climb right next to him and put his forehead against his brother's face, it's so endearing! he enjoys watching his brother play basketball and taking the ball and making dunks himself. he obviously likes being held by others, but he also enjoys his freedom to crawl around the house and walk around the house assisted. his pillow and blankets. 

-what he doesn't like: getting his diapers changed, he refuses to lay down and let us change his diaper,  he'll turn and pop right on up and i have to put his diaper on while he's sitting or standing. he's not really a big fan of reading at night i've noticed. he'll sit still for a very short period of time before wanting to close the book and get down to play. i don't get to read to him during the day much, so hopefully, he's better about it during the day. we're getting into a teeth brushing routine, which he doesn't like, but very quickly, he seems to be adjusting to it already. he doesn't like getting buckled into the car seat, but once you have the straps locked, he settles in quite quickly and stops fussing. he doesn't like long car rides, although he'll fall asleep easily in the car when it's close to nap time. 

-what i love about parker: we've been so blessed to have such a great baby, i think that's why the year seemed to have gone by so fast.parker is great at eating (in fact, he'll grab the food right out of your hand and feed himself if you're too slow). during bath time, he'll go in and come out of the bath without a fuss. he's also pretty easy to put down to nap/sleep. parker just naturally sleep trained himself at 11 months. now a days, our night time routine goes like this: once he's had his milk and we played or read a little in his room after bath time, i'll turn on his noise machine (which plays ocean waves), and his night light, turn off the floor lamp, and he'll pretty immediately put his head on my shoulder, let me sing him a few rounds of "twinkle twinkle little star," and then i'll put him down in his bed. sometimes, he'll stand up and say nigh nigh to me, and others, he'll cry for a little bit and then he'll fall asleep. in the morning, most times he cries, but sometimes, he'll lay in his bed and talks to himself until i come get him. his bed time is between 8:30-8:45pm. 

-his first word we believe is "go" he likes to point with his little fingers in the direction he wants to go and tell us to "go!" yes, someone is getting a bit bossy already.  he's also been saying "nigh nigh" at bedtime as i leave his room and tells him night night, i believe he's saying night night to me. jack's mom thinks he's saying "nai nai" which he does during the day time too, but i am not so sure if he's saying grandma. 

-achievements: right after he turned 1, i noticed  he also started signing more. he's good at signing milk and he does "more,' every once in awhile. however, when he's 'all done,' he tells us by climbing out of his high chair or just very obviously refusing his food. he's tried shaking his little hands for all done before, but i must've ignored it not believing he was really done eating, so he must think that sign doesn't work or something because he doesn't use it! a week after his birthday, this past Tuesday, may 16th, the little guy started climbing up the stairs. i noticed this week as well that he's been standing up holding on to things much more confidently and dropping back to the floor to get down. 

i really am going to miss my little baby boy. i know once he starts walking, he won't seem so much like a baby anymore and that's going to happen any day now! i am so happy and blessed to have experienced the joy of motherhood, of raising two little babies since the day they were born. thank you parker and preston for being our babies. we love you both so very much, and you will always be our babies no matter how old you are! 

11 months

Parker at 11 months is full of fun!

-he starts dancing (bopping his head and body up and down) when he hears music he likes
-he has 8 teeth now
-he's pulling himself up and cruising along the furnitures
-this past weekend (4/15), i think he completely stopped nursing, just refuses outright (how rude right?), so now i have to pump and give him milk in his sippy cup. i can't believe 11 months of nursing went by so quickly, pumping is a pain
-since he stopped nursing, it's been much easier to sleep train him. i am keeping my fingers crossed, by putting him down for his nap and bedtime was such a pain recently because he kept waking up when we put him down in his crib. at last, out of desperation, we just let him cry it out, and it seems to be working. he will cry for 15 min at most and then go down and slowly fall asleep. napping this morning was easier too because i put him down just at the right time when he was tired but not overly exhausted. either way, it's getting better and i cross my fingers it will remain this way!
-he's been a little jokester, laughing at his own raspberries, and making his brother and everyone laugh too. he'd do it in the car and when we reach our destination, his whole lower face would be wet from all his raspberries. just a little funny guy.
-lately for some reason, he hates riding in the car for too long. parker would start hollering, so now i've resorted to sitting in the back seat with both kids, and he's been a lot happier.
-his favorite book, doesn't seem like he really enjoys reading, but at the moment, he enjoys Dear Zoo
-changing his diaper is a pain, he doesn't stay still! always flipping over and crawling away!

ok, need to work on his bday party planning! yikes it's only 3 weeks away!

Parker 10 months

At 10 months, parker hit some major milestones.

-4 teeth came out on top, 2 at the bottom
-he started crawling
-he's eating chunky solid foods

8 Months

At 8 months, Parker is as adorable as ever, if not more. he continues to be easy going and a happy baby full of smiles when he's fed and rested. i am truly treasuring my time with him as much as possible while he's still just a little baby, because low and behold, he's already 8 months! sigh..

Parker has crossed a few milestones at 8 months. he is confidently sitting and can be left alone while i run around and do things. he plays perfectly well on his own with his toys and easily plays with pretty much any toy. an exciting milestone is that parker is getting his first tooth, it is the bottom left tooth! today, he started blowing raspberries! he is able to fall asleep on his own (fingers-crossed it continues to be this way). 

In terms of food, he tried beets today and i am not sure if he loved it, but he ate it, alone and blended with sweet potatoes. he's tried spinach, cauliflower, tofu, chicken, and yogurt at this point. this 2nd time around, i am finding it much less stressful when it comes to everything involved with food. i do a little bit of research on what vegetables, meat, and fruits go well together and then i just cook/steam/sautéed them and puree. i remember with preston, i was cooking up a bit complicated recipes and then it was frustrating because he wouldn't eat it. i wish i still have the patience and time to make special baby food for parker because he appreciates it..sigh...it's the 2nd child syndrome, poor guy. i can see how having more kids may continue to get easier now, ha!