poo poo parenting

The past two weeks have been a blur.

blurry photo, baby still cute

Greg had a stomach flu that kept him down for the entire work week. Kara cared for him as needed while keeping Jude happy, fed and rested. And then took mildly ill on Friday. We're glad there's no webcam to see what our kitchen looked like on day 3 :-)

While everyone is better, this week is Jude's turn to deal with issues. Not having dealt with an infant before I have to say that I'm against feeding solid food to babies! OK not really, but the change in the results on the other end is shocking and disturbing.

The past few days our child had apparently been having problems with that process. So after some lovely prune juice, he kept us up much of the night with his results.

relaxed bahama parents

As I watched him in the high chair at lunchtime (momentarily quiet, no whining while eating :-) )

I thought about how its the ordinary daily stuff of life that God uses to teach grace, self sacrifice and giving.

an easier baby day in the bahamas

I, a successful, smart woman, really struggled to care for sick hubby and sick baby. Today I even jokingly called Greg and asked him, on speakerphone, to have a talk with his son about pooping less. Its definetly a season of learning about holding a looser grip on my own plans and time.

On a lighter note, I think Jude has officially decided George is his buddy. He grins and babbles when George appears. Today he kept leaning way over his high chair to watch the dog. and kept reaching out his little hands from way up in the chair to try and pet george. I think the dog is only mildy amused...and perhaps jealous of all the people food Jude gets to try.

well Hello

here's one of the highlights of jude's day! He loves spending time in his exersaucer. we try to give him variety and some tummy time as well. but man, he can entertain himself for awhile in that thing. in fact, as you'll see, he quickly bores of the camera and goes back to playing.

teeth

an update on the teeth situation for those of you keeping track. ok we know its just us who keep track. but...jude has popped in a top tooth on his upper right side. and another one is creeping in right next to it.

i love drool

we had plenty of drool in the process but less fuss than we feared. And we just got a great suggestion to wet his baby washcloths and freeze them slightly crinkled up. i think jude will like gnawing on those things as he gets new teeth.

closer to boy

I'm getting a bit emotional writing this as the mom of my ever growing and developing baby. I so clearly see the turn in him moving from baby to toddler and beyond.

He sat last night in his high chair lunging and grabbing up hamburger, peas and potatoes. And earlier in the day, watching him scream and when he didn't have cheerios instead of vegetables.

Then last night before bed we sat on the ground, and instead of his gentle baby reach, explore, touch, chew. It was frantic, fast paced, moving from object to object, as he sat on the ground.

Jude just seems less babyish these days. And frankly I'm sad. I am so grateful he is growing and that I get to see him change day by day. and have the opportunity to be with him so much of the time.

super baby

I think we're going mobile soon. i'm not sure mommy's ready. But I have really, really enjoyed the sweet baby times we have. And his cheerful ways and grins. What a blessing.

I like vacation

Jude meets the ocean

The bahamas gave us our first chance to show Mr Jude the ocean. And because it was cloudy and a bit chilly, we didn't have to slather with sunscreen and cover him up. so i actually think the photos of the moment are better because you see his cute face.

Jude and dad walk to the waterwhat is that?

Atantis also let Jude get up close and personal with some 7 foot reef sharks. Notice the clear 'tube' in the tank, more on that adventure later.

can i eat you?the shark appears annoyed with baby trying to eat it...or perhaps excited mommy photographer

The sunshine did make an appearance on our first two days. We took Baby Jude out in his gear and even let him splash in the pool.

sunshine baby

Its amazing what they make for babies these days. Baby Sunglasses...check. Baby tshirt with UV protection...check. We even brought along a floating fortress, as Greg calls it. Basically its a floating ring, with squeaky parts, that has an inflatable canopy over it as well. We used it to take Jude in the pool. We didn't have our camera with us for that first time. And...we didn't realize that would be the last day it was warm enough to take him in the water. Oh well. hopefully it will make a reappearance this summer.

bahama baby

Now for more on the family trip to Atlantis in the bahamas.

getting ready

Jude makes friends

Jude is moving into eating more of the food we're having at our meals. so we can break up some chicken pieces or veggies and put them on his tray while we dine. The first night we expected to do that for dinner. But our baby continued his streak as Best Baby Ever and promptly slept through dinner in his stroller while we enjoyed our meal. Greg in particular enjoyed the dessert bar.

Greg explores the dessert options

Our room turned out to be right above the driveway. Though there was cement in the way, it was still lush and green. We were happy to give baby jude some fresh air that wasn't frigid.

our 'view'

Jude gets fresh air

We are still adjusting to all the crazy colored baby items that have taken over our home. Especially the crazy mobile. But we have found something that rivals that color scheme...the drapes at Atlantis.

After settling into the room and getting Jude's crib and a mini fridge delivered for his food, we realized our dresser doors were stuck and the sink handle was coming off. So Atlantis moved us to a better view.

our new Views. the closest lagoon has stingrays.

the far one with the rope bridge has hammerhead sharks

Kara and Jude enjoyed Jude's dining process a lot more when they could watch the ocean and see sting rays swimming in the lagoons.

nursing not allowed

We took Baby Jude on vacation to the bahamas. In the tough economy we found a crazy sale at the beautiful Atlantis Resort in Paradise Island. They have one of the largest outdoor aquariums in the western hemisphere.

Jude meets the nurse sharks

Even though their name involves 'nurse', no nursing allowed (sorry for the bad pun) with the large nurse sharks in pools scattered around the property. They appear docile enough, but Kara watched them during a feeding time and saw plenty of agression.

Jude got up close and personal with all kinds of new creatures and experiences. we'll have more in the days to come.

baby rankings

We find it a bit funny to have our child 'ranked' at the pediatrician's office. But it is helpful to find out how he's doing against the average baby.

At his 8 month checkup Jude weighed 20 lbs, 4oz which is 75th percentile.
His heights 27 1/2 inches which is 50th percentile
His head size (can't remember the number) but it was also 50th percentile

These are the exact same percentiles as his 6 month checkup. Its amazing considering how much his baby diet has altered since the last time with the introduction of semi solid foods.

We are also seeing two new teeth budding on the top right side of his mouth. So it may be a difficult few days soon.