What's That?

David may not say much but he says it A LOT. Just this past week he's started pointing to everything in sight and asking "What's that?" So far it's the only thing he's ever said consistently, but he does it at upward of a hundred times a day. I think I've told him what a Christmas tree is somewhere around a billion times. The ironic part is that I've completely brought this on myself. I hadn't realized until now how much during the day I say to him, "David, what's that? Is that a yellow block (or something similar)?" I was hoping that doing so would teach him new words, but it didn't exactly work out as planned.

Happy Holidays

Whew, this holiday season has been fun, but hectic. Now that it's almost over I'm looking forward to relaxing a bit. I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. My sister and here family were here this year and we enjoyed being able to see them a little bit (unfortunately no pictures though) before we left ourselves to be with Derek's family in Pennsylvania. While the flights out and back could have gone worse, they definitely weren't much fun for any of us. Now that David's walking he has little interest in sitting in our laps but he's still too little to be distracted by anything for more than a few minutes. Also because most airlines now charge for checked bags we had to pack all of our stuff plus Christmas gifts into our carry-ons and only 1 checked suitcase. The logistics of packing Christmas onto an airplane and flying it across country means we probably won't do it often, but still it was a fun trip and we're glad we went.
David was showered with toys and attention and got to spend time playing with his cousin Alexandra who is only a few weeks younger than he is. Both are only children who haven't had much experience with sharing toys so there was a fair amount of of grabbing with ensuing tantrums, but even so they were cute to watch. For Christmas I got a new flash attachment for my camera which I love. Now I can bounce light off ceilings to get crisp, perfectly exposed shots without the harsh effects associated with direct flash. Here's some pictures of the trip (many were taken with my new toy!).

David's Birth Story

Warning! The following post contains a birth story so if you are the type that is easily bored or nauseated by such things you will want to stop reading now.

Before David was born I assumed that shortly afterward I would get online and post about the birth so that we could have a record of it and that anyone interested could read the details. Considering though that the first week of his life I spent writhing in pain because of a nasty spinal headache and the many, many weeks following filled with sleep deprivation I somehow never managed to get around to it. So I decided that instead I would feature this post around David's first birthday. Once again I'm behind schedule but I figure I better do it anyway before the details get fuzzy and I forget them.

Last year on December 9th it was a ridiculously freezing morning when I woke Derek up probably 2 full hours earlier than necessary so that we could get ready for my 7 am scheduled induction. Considering that we'd packed everything into the car the night before though and were planning on grabbing breakfast on the way it only took us a few minutes to get ready so we were free to spend the rest of the time nervously pacing around and getting in each other's way. We stopped by McDonalds on the way and I ordered 2 breakfasts figuring that since it was going to be my last meal for a long time I'd better make the most of it. Of course it's not physically possible to cram 2 meals into a stomach compressed by a nine plus pound baby so Derek wound up with 2 breakfasts instead.

After I was admitted the doctor came to break my water and I was hooked up to some pitocin. The next 8 hours weren't a whole lot of fun. Derek was troubled by the fact that the TV remote was attached to my bed so he had to watch shows like What Not To Wear and even had to go with no TV for a couple hours when the pain was pretty intense and I just wanted things dark and quiet. I was more bothered by the contractions getting stronger and more frequent not to mention (TMI warning!) a fresh wave of amniotic fluid gushing into my bed every time I moved.

Labor wasn't pleasant for me, but it also wasn't as bad as I was anticipating based on some horror stories that I've heard. The epidural was awful though. It took nearly a full HOUR of prodding around with a huge needle which sent pain surging down either leg as it scraped the nerves of my cauda equina. The anatomical term cauda equina not only makes me sound immensely intelligent, but is also significant because it is where the spinal cord branches off into several stringy nerves. Fortunately for me epidurals are placed at this level of the spine or I would undoubtedly be paralyzed from having my spinal cord pierced so many times by that needle. I digress though. The true moral of this substory is that when an anesthesia student wants to practice his budding skills on you the answer is HELL NO!

I seem to have inherited an unfortunate combination of a small pelvic opening with a propensity for large babies so even with having my water broken and the pitocin turned all the way up labor wasn't really progressing and after eight plus hours David was showing minor distress. My doctor gave me the option of waiting it out longer, but there didn't seem to be much point so we opted for a C-section. As I was being wheeled out my mom tried to ease my nerves by reassuring me that she had experienced this 3 times and lived to tell the tale. Of course with Michelle the anesthesia didn't take and she felt each and every cut, but the point is that she survived. Thanks Mom.

"Feel free to give me lots and lots of medicine," I begged the anesthesiologist while everyone prepped for the surgery. When my doctor announced she was ready to start I wanted to leap off the table because I was definitely not numb. I could totally feel the nurse spreading the drapes over me and swabbing my abdomen with the betadine. They explained that I would still feel pressure but not pain and started to cut. The nurse invited Derek to stand closer so he could watch and he almost passed out on the spot before he regained his composure and explained that for my sake he needed to stay where he could comfort me.

While it's true I didn't exactly feel pain, the words 'pressure' or 'discomfort' don't even begin to describe the unpleasantness of being fully conscious while someone rearranges your innards. Soon the head was out and Derek was even convinced to go watch while they finished pulling David out. I couldn't see anything but the next thing I heard a baby screaming and one of the doctors exclaiming, "He's practically a toddler! I hope you didn't buy any newborn sized clothes." I glimpsed him briefly as a nurse held him up for me as they whisked him away to the nursery but I had to crane my neck to see him from the corner of my eye and my mind was so fuzzy from the drugs that I don't really remember anything about it.

By the time I got to recovery everyone but me had already seen David and I wanted him brought out to me but I was shaking so badly I wasn't sure if I'd be able to hold him. I also discovered that Derek had already announced to everyone that the baby was named David even though he was the one that had been adamant about not deciding on a name until we had seen him first. Since we really didn't have any other names in the running it wasn't really an issue, but I gave him a hard time afterward about not consulting me.
I would have much preferred to hold David for the first time without being attached to a million different monitors but I managed to hold him and even nurse him for a few minutes while I was still in recovery. As cheesy as it sounds as soon as I held him the shaking stopped and the pain was immediately much, much less. He was wide awake and I think I was just so amazed to finally be meeting this little newborn person that even pain couldn't distract me. It's hard to believe that it's already been a year since then and David gets more fun and lovable all the time. We are so blessed to have such a healthy and sweet little boy.

Happy Birthday David!

I suppose that since David's birthday was a little over a week ago it's high time I got around to posting about the event. Take your pick from the following excuses for the delay: 1) Our laptop broke and we had to send it in to get fixed 2) I've been focused on getting ready for Christmas or 3) If David ever sees me at the computer he tries to run over and pound on all the keys.Anyway we had a pretty relaxed celebration. My family came over and we enjoyed pizzas with cake and ice cream. David wasn't really sure what to do with his cake when we gave it to him. He only ate a little of it and had a lot more fun smearing the icing and flinging crumbs everywhere. The gifts were all a major hit although he's pretty easily overwhelmed if he opens more than 1 at a time. His favorite toys all came from his grandparents. He loves the play kitchen Derek's mom gave him and it's always the first thing he races to when he's in his playroom. Then if we get out the little builder set from Pop Pop he'll spend upward of an hour stacking and unstacking the blocks, picking out all the yellow pieces (his favorite color), and "driving" the truck down the ramp. Last but not least there's the rocking horse from my parents whose batteries are already worn out because David thinks it's hilarious to press the horse's ear to make it sing so he can giggle and dance along.In any case we really have loved getting to know this little guy over the past year and can't believe how lucky we are to have him as part of our family. I also can't believe how much he's learned and grown from that tiny newborn we met last year. He's walking now although he'll still crawl when he wants to move quickly and he's said a few words although they have been mostly mimicing others.
His personality is also starting to come through loud and clear. He can be fiercely independent at times. When he was learning to walk he would throw tantrums if we tried to hold his hands to help him. He really wouldn't hold onto other objects for support much either but preferred to stand in the middle of the room and try to will his legs to work. Oddly enough he actually learned to leap before he could walk because he would literally try to jump to where he was trying to go when his legs wouldn't move fast enough. As mentioned earlier he also has developed a clear preference for the color yellow as well. When presented with a variety of toys David will inevitably pick out the yellow ones to play with first. He'll also try to hoard his yellow toys and frequently walks and crawls around with one clutched in each hand as shown above.P.S. I know the photos I've posted aren't the greatest, but I figure they're better than no birthday pictures at all. If I'm lucky I might get something for Christmas that should help get better indoor shots...

Mmm. Pass the Baby Food!

Spices, herbs, and seasonings are my friends. I hate bland foods and love to try exotic new flavors. Knowing that babies supposedly like bland foods I used to make David special baby food sans seasoning, but he turned his nose up at all of it. Then I discovered he actually likes his food to taste good (amazing, huh). Strained carrots or peas? No way! But panang curry, black bean enchiladas, or chicken tikka masala and he's begging for more. A pretty good rule of thumb is that if it sounds like something I would like then David probably will too.

Yeah, I know that soon his tastebuds will probably change and he'll start demanding the disgusting foods that all kids seem to love so much like fish sticks and fries. For now though he's loving the pitas slathered with forty spice humus and olive tapenade or some lemon pesto ravioli and so am I!

The Strategy of Indoor Play

Whew! I'm glad to report that we're all once again healthy and resuming normal life. Since it's the first weekend in awhile that we've all felt well we decided to get out and have some fun together. With the weather cooling off I've been trying to think of activities where David can get out of the house and explore but are still indoors. Our community center has a nice indoor pool he loves to go to, but it can be a hassle when you factor in getting everything packed, inflating his pool float, bathing and showering afterward, plus washing and drying all the suits and towels. It's very fun, but not the kind of thing we have time for every day.

On Saturday we decided to check out Ogden's Treehouse Children's Museum and were not disappointed. David thought he was in Heaven! Of course he was too young to appreciate many of the exhibits, but there was still plenty to hold his attention. He got to spin colorful gears, ride a giant stuffed pony, play all kinds of musical instruments, crawl around tee-pees, and much more. We had so much fun that we decided to get him a very reasonably priced membership. I plan on taking him a lot in the upcoming weeks so hopefully I will get some better pictures, but for now enjoy the one of him playing on the giant chess board (that's a sign of future genius right?).

Sick of Being Sick

Some of you may have noticed my absence from the blogging community and wondered where I have been. I would now love to inform you all that we have been taking a thoroughly enjoyable exotic vacation and that I will soon have some lovely pictures to post. Unfortunately that is not the case.

The truth is that we have all been sick and there will be no pictures coming because 1) I have been too ill to take any and 2) It hasn't been pretty. David was the first one to get sick a couple weeks back. A few days later Derek came down with it and then finally I did. I was definitely the most severe case, but after a few days it seemed like we were all on the mend although I still felt fairly weak and shakey and Derek and David still have a lingering cough.

Then on Thursday I felt a bit worse. An hour later I felt a lot worse. By the time afternoon rolled around I had a fever of 104, was hallucinating, had chest pains, and was gasping for air. Somehow I managed to get David into his crib so I could crawl into bed and call Derek. I hated hearing David scream (it wasn't naptime) to be let out, but I could hardly move. Derek came home and took me to the Dr where in addition to collapsing in the middle of the hallway (not embarrassing) I had labs, chest x-rays, and a couple liters of IV fluids pumped into me. The diagnosis was H1N1 plus a nasty case of pneumonia. I got to go home on the condition that if I got any worse I would go right to the hospital and they recommended that David be sent to my mom's until my fevers started to come down to prevent him from getting pneumonia too.

The last few days aren't something I particularly want to remember much. David was a pirate for halloween and I'm sure he was incredibly cute. I wouldn't know though because at the time my fevers were still around 102 and I was mostly confined to bed. Yesterday was the first day I was able to spend a significant portion of the day out of bed (and also get David back!) and today I was even well enough to care for David for several hours while Derek worked. So I am getting better. Thanks to everyone who has been concerned and sent their thoughts and prayers. Hopefully this will all be over soon.

Allergic to Idiocy

People's allergies say a lot more about themselves than you might think. If a patient hands me a typed list of about 100 or so drug allergies I know right off the bat that he has a complicated medical history. For one thing I know the patient has tried hundreds of different medications for actual or perceived illnesses and symptoms and for another thing I know that the patient is likely a very anxious type of person. It would be really rare to actually be allergic to that many medications and generally it only takes a little probing to determine that most or all of the allergies listed are not allergies at all. Sometimes the things people list are downright comical and I thought I'd share some of the more bizarre "allergies" I've come across in my career.

1. Water- causes patient's skin to dry out
2. Certain personalities- cause patient to break out in hives
3. Plastic- causes patient to become anxious
4. Tape- rips off body hairs when removed
5. Reglan- causes patient to FOAM AT THE MOUTH
6. Salt- causes thirst and dry mouth
7. Sleeping pills- cause drowsiness
8. Caffeine- causes insomnia
9. Carbohydrates- make patient get fat
10. Certain fragrances- cause male erection

And yes, I have had patients look me straight in the eye and in all seriousness tell me about these "allergies" they suffer from. Sometimes it's really tough to keep a straight face.

Falling into Fall

I admit to being a major blog slacker lately. Here's a rundown of how things have gone since my last post. I found an awesome babysitter for David, but then after a couple weeks her husband's hours got cut and she couldn't afford to stay home and watch him anymore. So I had the wonderful task of finding a new sitter. Monday was supposed to be David's first day with her but he was sick so if all goes well she will be watching David tomorrow for half a day while Derek studies for the CPA exam. Keep your fingers crossed. I really, really hate trying to find childcare.

We planned a really fun family weekend a couple weeks ago but wound up canceling when David came down with a cold. We postponed it for the next weekend but then he got sick again. He's starting to feel better although he still has a cough and some sniffles. He also has cut his first teeth (the front bottom 2) so the past few weeks haven't exactly been the most pleasant for any of us. None of that has slowed David down any however. He's now a master crawler and has learned to open drawers and cabinets, empty bookcases, turn on the hot water in the bathtub, and poke his finger into an electrical socket. He also has made calls and sent texts using my phone despite the fact that I always lock the display.

Some of you may have noticed that I never posted David's 9 month updated bear picture. Even with Derek standing to the side we couldn't prevent him from trying to dive headfirst off the chair. Sitting him on the floor wasn't much easier as he seemed to feel bears are for tackling and eating. Finally I managed to get this photo but I think it will be the last attempt. Here's the first one I took to compare. He definitely has grown.

Pacific Northwest Adventures

For Labor Day weekend David and I joined my parents in heading northwest to visit my sister Michelle and her family. In Seattle we took the kids to the Children's Museum which was enjoyed by all. They even had plenty of exhibits geared toward David's age. Unfortunately the lighting inside was really bad and I wasn't able to get as good of shots as I would have liked, but David was a lot of fun to watch.
Later my mom babysat (thanks mom!) while the rest of us enjoyed an evening on the town to see Wicked. It was a lot of fun, especially since it was my first time seeing it although I did miss Derek and David a bit. We even got to meet up with my Dad's sister Janice and her family before the show which was an added bonus.The next day we headed up to Bellingham and spent some time at Michelle's house. The highlight for me was our trip to Larrabee State Park. The scenery was gorgeous and I got to see jellyfish and starfish along the shoreline which was a first for me. David's favorite was the hotel pool. He was a great little traveler (It helps a lot that neither he or I got sick this time) and gets to be more fun all the time. I really wish Derek could have come along as well, but at least he was able to get a fair amount of work and studying accomplished in our absence.

Protecting Our Youth

Today is one of those days I'm so proud to be a Utahn who may one day be sending my child in Utah schools. An elementary school in Davis County (the school district in which we currently reside) has recently issued letters of apology for inappropriately exposing innocent children to this "radical, leftist propaganda video." Or at least it has been so dubbed by the Utah Eagles Forum, an upstanding conservative group who apparantly have a lot of clout locally. In a quick perusal of their website I learned that this fine group boasts many admirable feats such as thwarting hate crime legislation and exposing feminists for who and what they really are (yes, these really were listed as accomplishments on their site). I sure am glad that someone is willing to protect our youth from such radical extremism. Maybe I should start investigating private school.

Stuck In a Rut

I both love and hate taking new photos. I love learning about photography and finding ways to improve my images. Yet because I'm still learning it I need more time to experiment with different settings, lighting, etc, especially if I'm shooting in manual mode where I control all the settings by hand. Too often by the time I've tweaked exposure settings to where I want them my subjects have lost patience or the photo opportunity has already come and gone. And then of course even my best photos are far below the level that I'm aiming for so taking pictures is always at least a little discouraging. I know though that I'll never improve if I don't practice though so today I did just that and here are some of the results.

Grandma Ingrid Comes To Utah

Grandma feeds David his first taste of raspberries at the Ogden Farmers Market. They were a success!

Last week Derek's mom and Jim came to visit us from PA. I wish I could have gotten some more pictures while they were here, especially of the grown-ups but I guess I'm so used to taking pictures of David I didn't even realize until it was too late that I ONLY had pictures of him. We all enjoyed getting to spend time with them, especially David who was spoiled by getting to swim almost every day they were here. He's a little fish and loves to splash around whether it's in the inflatable kiddie pool in our yard or taking a trip up to Lava Hotsprings in Idaho. As you can see he was a little disappointed about not getting to ride the waterslides. Maybe next year.

Derek, Grandma, and Jim all relaxed in the hot pools while David and I rested.

David pulls himself up to stand in his crib for the first time

Eight Month Update

I can't believe it's already time for another one of these posts! Based on how hard he's been trying to get the hang of crawling lately I have a feeling that by next month David will be on the go. He can get himself up on all fours but he still tries to move both arms and legs at once and hasn't got the coordination down. Even though he's not crawling just yet he still tries to roll and scoot his way around. I guess I really should get serious about babyproofing. He also has been trying to pull himself up from sitting to standing, but again can't quite manage without help yet.

David still gobbles down all kinds of fruits but the only vegetables he's interested in are ones from Mom's and Dad's plate so I just make sure each night for dinner we have some sort of vegetable dish he can have. He loves being outside as much as he can whether it's swinging at the park, splashing around in the baby pool, or just riding around in his stroller. I don't know what we're going to do once the weather gets too cold, but for now we're enjoying the warm summer days.