Continued Adventures in Mobility

Fischer is a very happy and busy child. He's thrilled and totally absorbed by anything new that catches his eye. And, now that he's able to get around everywhere, he's free to investigate things at will--this is when those "eyes in the back of your head" are needed most! The gated living room and his pack-n-play keep him contained, but that doesn't mean he's always happy about it! Fischer wants to play and be played with almost constantly. It's a ball, but we've gotta make dinner and fit other things in, too, Buddy! Fischer's very outspoken, too, no matter what emotion he wishes to portray ;)

We borrowed a "Jumpstart Baby" computer program from our "crazy neighbors" that Fischer just LOVES. In fact, I had the bright idea of showing it to him on my laptop. When I tried to take it away because he was drooling on the keys, he grabbed for it and ended up ripping one of the #8 off the keyboard! So, it's a better solution to prop my open computer up so he can't reach it but can see it, and we connect a keyboard that he's free to bang and drool on. Viola!

His newest "tricks":

-Fischer stands on his own for random lengths of time--he often throws his hands out or up and bounces on his tippy toes before finally landing on his butt. He can also stand and clap.

-Fischer plays "shy" when someone he hasn't seen for awhile or isn't familiar with strikes up a conversation--he lays his head on mine or Joe's shoulder and holds on tight, while smiling and flirting nonetheless.

-Fischer has started waving "hi"--he extends his arm and opens and closes his fingers. He mouths 'hi' but doesn't really say it yet.

-On Monday, April 6th, at 10 months 3 days, Fischer took 2-3 unassisted steps at daycare! Joe came into his classroom to hang out after taking the kids to school, stood him up, knelt down across from him, and Fischer took off toward Joe :)

Fischer and his friend Hailey are watching out their classroom door. I can see them from my office :).

Check for 3 new videos on Fisch Finder--ones of Fischer standing and 'bodyslamming' Joe, one of him standing for me, and one where he's saying "Kitty" for the Crazy Neighbor Lady.

One more thing...

Fischer and I are walking for the March of Dimes March for Babies on Saturday, April 25th (right around the corner!). There's a link to sponsor us at the top of Fischer's blog page. I'm pretty bummed that I haven't gotten donations, yet. Please sponsor us--even $5 or $10 makes a difference! THANK YOU!

Adventures in Mobility

Since Saturday is our "family" day, this entry is a compilation of the last 2 weekends :) (March 14/15 and 20/21) Fischer likes to join Papa in his room downstairs (with close supervision, of course) for a change of pace to hang out and explore. He was content to play by the footstool for quite awhile!

What a big boy! He likes pulling himself up on the footstool and saying "ah-ah-ahhh!" and patting it with his hand.We got a little stir-crazy in the house, so we decided to go shopping. We didn't find the shoes Papa needed, but we did have a good time in K-mart. Fischer enjoyed riding in the cart, watching the people, and seeing all of the colorful items on the shelves and racks.

Later that Saturday, we visited Uncle Mike, Aunt Terri, Cousin Kristina, and 2nd Cousin Kaylee. As they get older, the kids really respond to each other. Fischer tried to "talk" a little more with Kaylee this time. Look on the Fisch Finder for a video of Fischer and Kaylee sitting on Terri's lap, almost kissing each other--cute!

Now that Fischer's pulling himself up on just about anything, there's no stopping him! We installed a gate to keep him in the living room several weeks ago. This past weekend, we even rearranged the living room furniture to make it even safer for Fischer--or so we think...I guess Fischer will be the true judge of that. Along with our rearranging, we took out the pack-n-play. This way, Fischer can hang out with us in the kitchen without getting burned, into the cats' water dish, or tumbling down the stairs. It also allows him to spend time on the porch with us without pulling on Papa's plants! We figured it'd be good to get Fischer used to his "portable jail" before we take it along when we go camping later this spring. It's pretty nice for keeping some of his toys contained, too!

What a goofball! Fischer's been entertaining us lately with his silly facial expressions.

For lunch we had spaghetti. Part of meal time always involves dropping some food on the floor...on purpose. I decided to get this next pic from the cats' eye view--Noel likes to play puppy and clean up what she can around Fischer's chair. This isn't good for her waistline, so we clean up what we can to keep it from her, but Fischer's constantly decorating the floor with food!

Along with his goofy faces, Fischer's been making lots of new vocal sounds, too. His teacher, Ms. Diane, told me that when one of his younger classmates, 4 month old Laura, gets tired and crabby, he says "nigh-nigh" (saying that it's time for her to go night-night, or down for a nap!). It's fun to put this info together with what he says and does at home, too, because he's been whining "nigh-nigh" when he's tired, too! He also pats his belly when he wants something--the sign for "please" is to rub your chest in a circular motion with your hand flat and fingers together--so I figure Fischer patting his belly is his version of "please". He'll sign it when I hold my hands out to pick him up and I say, "Should I pick you up?" or when I'm getting his food ready and ask him if he wants to eat. It's so neat to see him communicating in different ways!

It's crazy how quickly he's come along in just the last 3 months--physically and intellectually. We're certain he'll walk before his first birthday--unlike his parents. Joe, I believe, walked on his first birthday, and I was about 15 months and speaking in sentences before I decided to walk. Every day is a surprise with Fischer. I'm certain he's having just as much fun discovering what he can do as we are watching him do it!

9 Month Check-Up & Tooth #8!

Well, well, well. Our little man is already 9 months old!!! He continues to amaze us daily with his "baby tricks".

We had a bit of a rough time last weekend, March 6-8, because overnight, Fischer was waking up sometimes 3 times per hour!!! At least it was the weekend. On Saturday night, I said at one point to myself, because Joe gets to sleep through all the ups and downs, "He'd better have a tooth to show for all of this!" And, sure enough, tooth number 8, to the right of his bottom middle teeth, made its appearance above the gum line on Sunday.

Recent weeks at work have been stressful, too, due to low staffing (*we're hiring*--so send your friendly, responsible applicants!). Tuesday was going to be the mother of all tough days. At 5:30am, I walked into Fischer's room to greet him as usual. He rolled over and coughed, but instead of a loose phlegmy cough like it usually is when he's teething, it sounded tight like a seal bark, and he looked just as surprised as I must've and then began to cry. It sounded like he would have a sore throat to accompany it, too. Poor guy! So I nursed him, which went fine, but it seemed as though he was laboring to breathe--his chest was heaving up and down. Afterward, while I was changing his clothes, I called his doctor's office. After explaining his symptoms to at least 3 different people, I finally got ahold of the nurse. She told me what I should do (which is what I thought I should do, anyway, but wanted to know what would happen next or whether he should be seen, etc.). She had us take him into the bathroom with the hot shower on and give him a breathing treatment. If we didn't see improvement, we were supposed to give him another treatment, and if that didn't work, he'd have to go to the ER--**scary!! But she said they'd call us in 45 min. to see how things were going. So I got Joe up and I jumped in the shower--had to take one anyway--and he gave Fischer the albuterol with his nebulizer while sitting in the bathroom with me. Thank goodness the first treatment and steam did the trick. The nurse called back, I filled her in, and she said to keep him out of daycare for the day and have him seen by his doctor.

Joe said I should be the one to take him to the doctor because I was better at describing his symptoms, etc. I said that it was going to be a TOUGH day at daycare, and that if I wasn't there, that he'd have to go and "be me" the best he could--hopping in to help wherever Holly asked him to. So he did! Joe ended up helping in the 5-year-old classroom for the morning. The other teacher in the room made sure to tell me what a great job Joe did and that his help was welcome anytime. That's great, because Joe came away from the experience with a whole new appreciation for what teachers do, and vowed he'd never work in a classroom again. Meanwhile, I continued with Fischer's day, waiting for our appointment at 10. Thankfully, he was able to see his regular doctor.

He was great all morning. I was even able to get his coat and hat on him while he was at the tail-end of his morning nap, and he fell back asleep on the way to see the doctor. She said to continue giving him breathing treatments 2-3 times daily, and that his chest sounded "coarse" but not like pneumonia or anything more than a "virus aggravated by the change in weather". She said we did all the right things for him, and that she couldn't have suggested we do anything better. She said, too, that it was a good idea to keep him home that day. Dr. Hoyer said that Fischer was cleared to return in 2 days for his 9 month check-up as long as he didn't get any worse or get a fever.

Well, Fischer has been responding well to 2 treatments a day (morning & evening), although by the time morning rolls around, he does really need one. So I imagine it'll continue for at least a week. At his check-up yesterday, he was 29 inches tall (75th percentile), 19 lbs. 4 oz. (25th percentile), and his head circumference was 46 centimeters (50th-75th percentile). He's tall and skinny. His drop in the percentile for weight is expected, she said, because of how mobile he's become--he's working off more calories. Dr. Hoyer said we're right on track with the sippy cup and table foods, and to stay the course. He only got one poke for shots, and had a blood draw from his finger to test his iron levels and to check for lead. Fischer got upset during the blood draw--first the poke, and then he couldn't shake the band-aid off his finger. He fell asleep on the way home with the sun in his eyes--poor guy.

Later, while Fischer and I were having a late lunch, we heard the back door open. It was too early for Joe to be home. It was Grandpa Ken! Fischer was surprised but took it all in stride as we finished lunch. Grandpa and Fischer played and laughed and had airplane rides--a favorite from my childhood. Then Grandpa came along with me and Fischer to my haircut appointment. I go every 6 weeks (it's like therapy for me), and the last time I brought Fischer, he was 3 weeks old and sleeping all the time in his car seat! So Angela, my stylist, insisted last time that I bring him this time! Well, it's a good thing Grandpa was along, because the girl at the salon who volunteered to occupy Fischer was busy with clients while we were there. It only took a half-hour, and Fischer was content peeking at me in the mirror, spinning in the chair on Grandpa's lap, and just taking everything in.

Next the 3 of us went to Chili's for dinner (Joe had to work). So Grandpa went in and got a table while I nursed Fischer in the car. When we were all seated, Fischer was happy to occupy himself by paging through the drink menu and trying to eat the coasters. I had packed his dinner--good thing, because all of the finger foods we offered him ended up on the floor. He ate GREAT! He is very very good restaurant company. I think he enjoys all of the activity and people around him.

When we got home, it wasn't long before Joe was back with us. We all played for awhile and then it was bedtime. Quite a busy day--good thing I had taken off of work :)

I didn't mention in my last blog entry that Fischer's been talking up a storm. He babbles almost non-stop. He says Mama and Dada (of course now that Joe's decided he wants to be "Papa"), and for awhile, Fischer was even saying Kitty (sounds kind of like "dee dee")--very cute! He's also pulling himself up on everything, though he's not cruising along furniture, yet. I got him a ride-on car that converts into a push toy (for when he's ready to take more steps). He loves it.

Tooth #7 & The "Army" Crawl!

Fischer's gotten his 7th tooth--on top to the right of his middle teeth. It popped through the last week in February, resulting in more cold-like symptoms for our little man. Despite a crusty nose and cough, however, he's as smiley as ever! These 2 pics were taken by Ms. Diane at daycare when Fischer was goofing around before falling asleep for his morning nap (her camera's date was off). The cribs have plexiglass on the ends to allow them to be end to end without the babies pawing at each other through the bars. What a goofball!

Fischer has a lot to be proud of in the last 2 weeks, at age 8 1/2 months. He can pull himself up to standing while hanging onto anything stable, and likes to stand whenever he can. In fact, he whines if he comes over to us and we don't hold out our hands for him to pull up on! The weekend of February 21 & 22, he also began doing the army crawl. He uses his elbows to pull his body forward while his feet scramble to keep his back end moving, too. It looks like a lot of effort, but he sure is proud of himself :) You can check the Fisch Finder for a video of his army crawl. I've found that cell phones are good motivation to get him scooting across the floor! This week at daycare, the Picture People came and took photos of all of the kids and their classes. They wanted me to sign a model release form, too, so that Fischer's pics could be on display in their store window. He's so easy to photograph, and quick to smile for the camera.

This past week, Uncle Nate stayed with us for a few days. It sure was nice to have some time with him beyond the usual short weekend visit. Fischer seemed at ease with Nate right away, and spent time closely examining his face--I wonder if he was noticing features that Nate and I have in common, or comparing Nate in person to a big photo I have of him in Fischer's room from when Nate was 12. In any case, it was fun to go out to eat with all of my boys a couple times--Fischer loves restaurants and has always been very well-behaved when we're out!

This week Tuesday, Fischer turned 9 months old! We're still breastfeeding, and despite the recent bumps in the road, it's going very well. I can't thank my lactation consultants from Aurora Hospital enough! They hear from me regularly :) We offer Fischer just about anything to eat--except, of course, choking hazards, or foods not recommended for babies due to risk of allergic reaction or other illness. He's sporradic about when and what he'll eat well, but as long as he continues to nurse or take his bottle/sippy cup well, we're not concerned. He's super-squirmy when getting his diapers and clothes changed--it's become a game to him :) Next week, we have Fischer's 9 month well-baby check-up and shots. I'll do another update with his latest stats!

WOW!!! Tooth #6 and Hunk of Burnin' Love

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! We spent our V-Day together as a family, as we always do on Saturdays. We didn't have any plans, and it's a good thing, because Fischer napped for the better part of the day. Joe and I watched movies and cuddled on the couch until our lover boy awoke and we discovered tooth number 6! It just came in on top to the left of his middle teeth. Boy oh boy! This means that Fischer's gotten 4 new teeth in January and February so far!


Above is his latest attempt at crawling--look at the height on that "push-up"! He doesn't quite get his knees under his body, yet, but when he does come down, it results in a scooting backwards motion.Well, that's all for now. We hope you all enjoy the coming week.

OMG!!! A 5th Tooth & Getting over Thrush

This week has been a very crazy one--at home and at work. Fischer and I are getting over Thrush, a yeast infection we passed to each other through nursing. So he's been on a liquid medicine, which he takes like a champ, and I've had an ointment to apply to my nips. It took a couple days, but we're both back to normal, just finishing our meds this weekend. (Phwew!)

Clapping is a regular part of Fischer's communication these days. Sometimes, all you have to say is a brightly drawn-out "yaaaaaaay!" and he'll start clapping away and saying his version of "yay". It's especially fun when Fischer's hands are all full of food--yay!

Before I figured out it was Thrush that the two of us had, I thought my parts were sore because he popped his second tooth on top Sunday, Feb. 1st, and I fugured he had altered his latch to put pressure on his sore gums. That was the infection starting :(

However, now that Fischer's become a shameless ham in front of the camera, I was able to get a good shot of all of his teeth:In the photo below, you can see his 5th tooth emerging--It took me 3 days to realize it was there--a little preoccupied with getting us feeling better!

Fischer's a near-expert at feeding himself bits of food. We can put anything in front of him that we would eat (of course either cut up, cooked soft, or otherwise made baby-safe). Fischer continues to eat pureed fruits and veggies, often with baby oatmeal or rice cereal mixed in for texture, but he's a very good sport about trying table foods. He LOVES cheese pizza. When he's got the appetite, he will try anything you put on his tray. When he isn't in the mood, he's got a very emphatic way of turning his nose up and away from your spoon!

Our clapper...

In the midst of a toy-strewn living room...he occupies himself for 15-20 minutes by taking his toys out of the toybox one at a time, inspecting and playing with them and tossing them aside. In these pics he began applauding the evening news.

Last Saturday we enjoyed a "Welcome Leo" potluck at the Enz's (Kristy, Tom, Flora & Leo). There were a good number of kids there from newborn up to school-age. It was a very good time with lots of tasty food. I was funny to think back to the potlucks we had in college, where it was just us "kids", and now we're the parents :)

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone. We hope you are able to spend the day in the company of those you love. Saturdays are always mine and Joe and Fischer's family day--so I get to spend Valentine's Day with my two boys. Sweet!

8 Months Old & Tooth #4

This entry will be another hodgepodge of photos and info, as lots of fun things have been going on since the last time I updated the blog.

For starters, Fischer is trying his darndest to learn how to crawl. He can get his top half high up with his arms straight, he can get his body into a push-up stance on hands and toes briefly, or his butt in the air, but he has yet to put it all together. It's fun to watch as he works on it--grunting with the effort.

This past weekend, I decided to begin a search for a new dining room table set for us. We took Fischer everywhere on Saturday. We began at Bill's Pancake Restaurant for breakfast. Fischer chowed down as soon as we got comfy. His head was on a swivel watching the waitresses go by!

Next, I think we made it to 5 or 6 furniture places! Fischer was extremely "portable" and naturally charmed everyone we met.

Well, our searching on Saturday didn't yield any purchases. But we had a good day as a family.

On Sunday, Fischer's 4th tooth began to emerge--2nd one on top. This caused him to basically chew on me when he'd nurse. It felt a bit uncomfortable, but I figured he had altered his latch to soothe his gums. Well, Monday was a bad day for me--my "spiggots" were on the verge of bleeding, like bad hickies, and I had to gently pump and bottle feed Fischer for the next 24 hours. That seemed to help, along with applications of lanolin after every pumping or feeding for the rest of this week. I thought we'd have to end our nursing relationship--but happily the nips have healed!!!

On Tuesday it was "ugly sweater day" at daycare. It's hard to find ugly sweaters for babies...so we did our best with this nice red plaid number. That evening at home, after we had a dinner picnic on the kitchen floor, I got out a spoon and pan for Fischer to play with while I finished in the kitchen. He was thrilled!

There are two new videos of him--one of his "kitchen concert" and another of him laughing hysterically while I played with a tanktop I was trying to put away. Watch for them on the "Fisch Finder".

On Wednesday, we went as a family for the first time to the Baypark Square Mall. After chowing down in the foodcourt, Joe took Fischer in the Kohl's stroller and I went off to get my couple of errands taken care of. I stopped by Mrs. Fields to buy a cookie to fuel my shopping. When we met up at Build-A-Bear, where I had made a bear for a co-worker recovering from surgery (we all took up a collection--what a cute get-well present they make!), Joe told me that the lady at Mrs. Fields had given him 4 free cookies because Fischer was so cute. Ha! Do moms get free stuff like that? Anyway, Fischer passed out from all the mall excitement. As we walked past one of the jewelry stores, the man behind the counter cupped his hands around his mouth and said from across the way "He's SO cute!!!" I said back, "He already earned some free cookies with his looks, how about some jewelry?" No such luck.

Last night, Fischer and I went to Kavarna for coffee with Kristy, Flora, and Leo. He was slow to get interested in his dinner, but then I could barely keep up! What a champ. When the owner, Alex, came and sat with us to catch up on family news, Fischer waved at him. Then, later in our stay, we heard a good song, so Fischer and I were dancing and got the attention of two ladies who began talking with us and asking about him. He began waving at them, too! Although his timing is still a bit patchy, Fischer can now officially wave! This morning at daycare, he even showed signs that soon he'll be clapping his hands. Wow!!! It amazes me how quickly he learns and how much FUN he has doing it.