Friday, January 14, 2011

He took a bath!!!

While the above statement may seem a tad ridiculous when referring to a one year old - it made us ecstatic last night. After almost 2 weeks of screaming, tears and a refusal to sit (or even go into the bathroom) last night we had a breakthrough. I filled the tub, undressed Donovan and let him walk in there on his own. We got to the tub and I let him look in and I splashed the water a bit. He grabbed onto me at first but became interested in the splashing. When I thought he would be OK I picked him up and put him, standing, into the tub. He cried and clung to me for a few minutes but after Stephen and I splashed a bit he calmed down. I did not force him to try to sit or even really wash him. No water over the head or soap on the face. Last night was just about getting over the sudden fear of the water. We let him play. He went from watching us splash to joining in... each time getting lower and lower to the water. After a good 15 minutes, he forgot where he was and sat down! He looked shocked at first but once he realized it wasn't so bad.... he played some more. When asked if he was ready to get out... he said no.

While we're not sure if this fear is over, or what even started it in the first place, it was a step in the right direction. We'll do another free time bath again this weekend and every other day until he gets in and sits right away. Here's hoping we are returning to the happy fun bath time Donovan use to love!

Monday, January 10, 2011

15 Month Dr Appointment...

Well, really, 16 month. Donovan was a trooper with his FOUR shots! I felt horrible when he screamed and I literally had to hold the upper half of him down by gently laying on him to keep him still - poor little guy!

To backtrack a bit, he did excellent with the doctor. Showed him that he knew how to hi-five, say hi and showed his knowledge of where his toes are. Was all smiles and his normal busy self. He is on track with his speech, the doctor thinks his teeth will pop through at any moment and is showing all the signs of being a normal happy toddler. He weighed in at 23.4 pounds (about the same as last time) and has grown a whopping 1.5 inches and now stands 29.5 inches tall!

So, when the doctor was done, we had to wait for the nurse to come in and give him his shots. She came in and Donovan gave me a worried look. He then ran over to where his shoes and socks were, took them down, sat down and placed them on top of his feet! He then looked at me as if to say - time to go Mom! It was even funnier since he was only in a diaper. And, it is SO CUTE that he literally places the shoes and socks on TOP of his feet. He knows where they go but has no clue how to get them on :)

He cried loudly during his shots and for about 5 minutes after. After that, he was all smiles again and flirting with the staff. I decided to treat him to a Happy Meal for being such a brave boy.

His next appointment is March 14th! Hopefully we won't need FOUR shots again on that visit!

Friday, January 7, 2011

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Back to life...

Back to reality...

Stephen went back to work today and thus starts our back to reality via 2011. I took care of Donovan and went grocery shopping, the normal everyday humdrum of life.

Donovan is getting more and more vocal but still not so many words. He says sounds that I think are words so I answer accordingly. For example... we went to Toys R Us today to return a duplicate gift and get a new one. I was thinking of getting him some sort of Little People toy. I took the cart to that row and showed the toy to Donovan... he turned away and said no. Then I thought of his favorite cartoon (next to Mickey Mouse) and headed over to the toy trains. I picked up a Chuggington starter kit and I swear he said "I like it!" when he was holding the box. Since he wouldn't give the box back to me... that was the gift he got. He played with it all afternoon so I guess it was a hit! He said the "I like it" sounds over and over. He seems to be trying to talk but he babbles more than it seems he is trying to form actual words.

While I do enjoy the babbling and love hearing him learn to talk - sometimes I do wish he would just talk already! When he wants to eat or drink he basically whines or yells and goes over to the fridge or pantry. It's an annoying noise and I do wish he's just tell me what he wants. Of course, I am sure you'll all hear me say I wish he'd stop once he does talk and asks me Why about a gazillion times :)

The rest of our day was rather bland. I am sick and not feeling so hot which means we just kind of sat and played quietly while we were home... no chasing games today. Brooke will be home soon which truly means everything will be back to normal.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Happy New Year!

Is it really 2011 already? The year went by FAST! So much happened and it was a good year overall. There were high points (Got to celebrate Donovan turning ONE!) and low points (We had to say goodbye to Grandma Covino). We've made it through all the ups and downs and are ready to see what 2011 brings us - maybe Donovan will get to be a big brother? Time will tell!

We had a low key New Year's Eve - played cards and drank with Dad and Rosemary. And now, we're having a low key New Year's Day. While it's nice to laze around and do nothing... it's sad too. For the first time in my life, we are not in Somerville with tons of family and friends celebrating the day and drinking Asti. It's the first time in about 30 years that her house has been empty on New Year's Day. It really doesn't feel like New Year's without going there...

However, we will start our own traditions and make lots of terrific memories for Donovan. Maybe we'll start a big once a year event for him to have lifetime memories of! Grandma would not want us to be sad - life is for the living is what she always said. 2011 is going to be a new year with lots of new traditions and fun things to start doing as a family. Grandma will never be far from my thoughts though and I am going to try to incorporate some of my favorite memories of her into Donovan's life. Because, you know, every once in a while it's OK to have chocolate cake before dinner - I mean, it IS made with all natural ingredients. :)