Swine Flu Birthday

BJ is officially one!! Crazy to think how time has flown! We spent Wed. night playing with his blocks- a new toy from Mommy and Daddy and had a family birthday party with both sets of grandparents on Saturday. But we did have an uninvited guest- BJ got H1N1 from daycare. We're pretty sure he's gotten every childhood illness possible these days from daycare! Poor guy. So the party was limited to adults- no cousins coming over to infect after he spiked a fever. What a memory for all of us. Luckily with a bit of Motrin he was fairly social!

BJ at one year

Nicknames: Beej, little man, stinker, lovebug, bug, Captain poopypants, bud, Stink, Little stink, baby boy (I'll have to stop that one), Mister, Babycakes
Weight & Height: 21.5 lbs (according to our scale) He had dropped about 2 lbs with his recent rotavirus and according to our doctor will probably stay in the 50% now for a while. I think height wise he was 29" last doc appt.
Hair: Blonde
Favorite foods: cheerios, any kind of meat, applesauce, eating fruit whole
Favorite toys: blocks, kitchen utensils, books, Diego car (he pushes it around and rides it), remotes, cups, and balls (any ball)
Favorite stuffed animal: doesn't really have one
Bedtime: 7 p.m.
Wake-up time: 6 a.m.
Naps:. down to one nap at 11:45 a.m.- at home around 2 hours, at daycare, it varies
Favorite person: definitely Mommy
Latest Accomplishment: walking, having milk in a sippy cup, moving to Toddler 1 room (from Infant 2) next week
Likes: playing with Mommy and Daddy, "reading", going for walks, "cooking", hiding balls, nursing, knocking over towers, "driving" the car (with Daddy into the garage)
Dislikes: his inhalers, having to go to bed, getting dropped off at daycare, doors/drawers that won't open, having daycare workers cheer him on walking
What gets said about BJ most often: how cute he is
Best known for:
Fears: suffocating with his inhaler?
Health: this year has been a rough one for BJ's health- with RSV, rotavirus, H1N1, ear infections, asthma, eczema, and allergies- we're hoping his immune system will be amazing when he gets to kindergarden
How he's like Daddy: he likes Mommy, has a mischevious grin at times, loves to "drive the car", mostly laid back personality (although that is changing)
How he's like Mommy: his coloring, his hugs

Playing blocks with Daddy

Finally- sugar!! Loved the frosting, spit out the cake

Opening presents with daddy

"I want you Mommy!"

Big Boy!!

BJ is growing up in leaps and bounds!! The quick update- he is feeling better- was finally diagnosed with Rotavirus (bad gastrointestinal virus) and an ear infection, but it doing much better. He has started drinking his milk during the day out of a sippy cup, is moving to one nap a day, and last night took 10 steps unassisted!! We are still practicing for the real thing, but it was pretty cool! Today he had his first big boy haircut!! Here are some pics. . .

Getting into the Halloween Spirit!

Eating an apple whole- "all by myself"

Before- "What is going on?"

After. . .

Later the same afternoon- after a 3 hour nap relaxed the hairspray- playing with the pumpkin!

Sick fam :(

Wow, I guess I did not blog in September- so sorry! The short update is that I had a very difficult last month at work- being on call and having some bad outcomes- namely having two fetal demises in one night- really rocked me a lot. Also, the thought of having one of those turn into a lawsuit has been really emotional for me. (Note: no lawsuit yet, just a really upset family with a mother of the patient blaming me). Needless to say we are very happy it is October!! I can't believe in just a few short weeks BJ will be 1! When did my baby grow up? We are planning a family party later this month to celebrate- it will be great!

We have also had a month of illness. 3 weeks ago BJ starting not wanting to eat many things-eating mostly bread or puffs. Then he had a day or 2 of a fever before he started into 2 weeks of diarrhea. He, for the most part, didn't know he was sick, but defintely had a decrease in his appetite. So when I took him for his follow up appointment last week at the pulmonologist, he was actually 1 lb down from his weight 2 months ago. Which means my cutie chunk of a baby has dropped below the 50th percentile for weight. There could be many reasons for this (his increased activity, being sick, etc.) but for someone who is supposed to gain weight each month it is a little concerning that he is down a lb since 2 months ago. Our doctors are somewhat concerned, and I am taking him in on Monday for a sweat test to rule out Cystic Fibrosis (a very minute possibility but one we should rule out). Then the day after I take BJ to the pulmonologist, the gastroenteritis (read:stomach flu) bug hit us all. It was nasty. I had to take Brandon to the ER for IV fluids and IV meds so he wouldn't faint, and then come home to take care of an 11 month old who doesn't understand vomiting. Did I say we were glad September was over? I think today we are mostly on the mend- although BJ is still refusing most foods- but loves saltines and Pedialyte.

Despite such a difficult month, he continues to be super mobile- loving to cruise on the furniture, and take 2 steps on his own before diving into a parent's arms! He loves to play with books, tupperware, phones/pagers/computers, and remotes (and anything that mom and dad have). He has mastered climbing up and down the stairs- although still needs supervision.

I am busy working on my resume for work (still) and hope to send it out this coming week to a few clinics- Aspen Family Care, Kaiser, and a handful of others.

Brandon's job has changed some- he now works in a different department at work, and is missing his old department- so we pray daily for interesting challenges to keep him intrigued at work!

That's probably enough of an update for now. BJ is sleeping so I need to get the things done that need to be done without little helper hands!

Brandon and I at a Rockies Game for date night!

One of BJ's favorite pasttimes- pulling all the books off the shelf to read!

Learning early not to give up the remote just because it is time to eat!

Playing with tupperware- again- on hat day!