Hiccups

I felt baby hiccup for the 1st time this morning.

P's 18 month well baby

was yesterday and went great!! Our ped said he is absoulutely PERFECT!! Mark and I talked with her about our speech concerns (he says 10 words--but they aren't consistent but he signs over 30 words consistently, appropriately, in context, and totally unprompted--he's even combing 2-3 signs and picks up new signs easily). She said since signs count as words, he's actually WAY ahead developmentally (she was very impressed)!! We were so relieved to here her say this. She said as he approaches his 2nd birthday, he will start saying the word with the sign and eventually drop the sign altogether. I have noticed he has already started saying "thank you" with the sign. P didn't receive any shots either b/c we are continuing to delay the MMR and chicken pox vaccine until he turns 2. Our ped isn't a big advocate for the flu shot either (since P isn't in daycare) so we declined that one too. So no owwies for him!! His stats:weight 22 pounds (5-10%)length 32 1/4 inches (50-75%)head 19 1/2 inches (90-95%)He's long, lean, and has a big brain!! He's still following perfectly on all of his growth curves and she couldn't be more pleased.
Today he also cut his 3rd right top tooth. Mark and I went on a date for the 1st time without putting P to bed before leaving—he did great—mom said when she laid him down, he sang himself to sleep.

learning lots

Pierce can hoot like an owl, baa like a sheep, puts arms up as if to say I don’t know, sign car, tree, leaf, and your welcome, can imitate a yawn, sneeze, or cough, knows where his hands are, and blows on hot food.

We did it!!

P is officially weaned. After we made it to our 18 month goal I decided to just take it 1 day at a time and not really force weaning until after we return from Nashville next week (I have read that you aren't supposed to wean when you are out of town and there are disruptions to routine, schedules, etc.). Anyhoo, Saturday night P wanted nothing to do with nursing (he hasn't been interested for several weeks--he was ready to stop--mom not so much). He kept pulling off signing milk. So I went to the fridge and got him a sippy of milk. He drank the whole thing. After he was finished I laid him on my shoulder and sang to him for a minute and prayed with him like I usually do after he nurses. I figured if he wanted to nurse he'd ask--but he laid his head down to cuddle. I put him in his crib awake and he went right to sleep. I, on the other hand, left the room crying. Mark was so super supportive and kept comforting me and reminding me this is a good thing--our lil' man is growing up and becoming more independent. It's so very bittersweet though...... Last night, same thing--sippy of milk, cuddling, singing, prayers, (didn't ask to nurse), put in his crib, and asleep on his own right away. I'm so proud of my lil' man, but at the same time I can't but feel a lil' sad with this milestone. I'm thankful that we made it to our goal and ended breastfeeding on his terms--when he was ready though.

A few more milestones: can sign banana and play, can hold up 1 finger when asked how old he is, can say “there you go”, papa, and thank you, can point to his ears, toes, feet, head, and belly (baby)

18 months today!!

I can't believe my sweet P is 18 months old!! AND we made it to our breastfeeding goal!! I am so proud!! Wish us luck in the final weaning process--we're just down to bedtime feeds. I haven't decided if I am going to wait until we get back from being out of town after Thanksgiving or not. We'll just take it day by day. It's such a bittersweet moment!!

my 26 week appt

went great!! I am measuring right on and baby's heart rate was in the 150s. It has been in the 140s, but I am assuming the delicious orange glucose I drank right before my appt probably pepped it up a bit. The nurse said they'd call if the GD test results were abnormal otherwise they'd discuss it with me at my next appt. I gained 3 pounds since my last appt--I was super nervous getting on the scale. This brings my total weight gain to 21.5 pounds according to my doc's scale and 23 pounds according to my scale. I asked my doctor again about the Braxton Hicks and she said as long as they aren't getting stronger and more frequent than 5 in 1 hour then everything is fine. So all is well!! I go back in 4 weeks and then I start seeing her every 2 weeks. I can't believe it's time for that already!!

Wurst Fest

We had a great time this weekend in Austin visiting my brother. He is doing well and is very happy with his personal and professional life. We made a trip to New Braunfels on Saturday for their annual Wurst Fest which is basically a German festival. Lots of good food, music, pp watching, and beer (none for P or me of course!!). Anyhoo, I'm not gonna bore you all with a slideshow like I usually do on the private board. In fact, I left our camera in the hotel by accident. But Mark did snap these two pics with his cellphone at the festival.
P and I:
P and his Uncle (Pierce really took to him this trip. In fact, he would let go of holding my hand and run to his Uncle to hold his hand. He would sign "more please" for more high 5's and tickles from him too. It was really sweet!! )
Pierce also learned to sign "train" on the trip. We were at the festival and a loud train passed by (you couldn't see it b/c of buildings, pp, and trees). When he heard it, he started singing "train" just by recognizing the sound!! Mark and I were very impressed as we have only shown him this sign a few times. He loves to do this with airplanes, dogs, and birds too. He can also sign cat, balloon, and bath (wash) and can point out his nose, eyes, and mouth. He cut his top right molar with no fuss. He amazes me daily!!

new signs

Pierce learned to sign bubble and ball today. He can also imitate blowing bubbles.

P's 2nd Halloween

Pierce's 2nd Halloween was quite fun and packed with activity. This past Saturday we took him (along with his Nana) to the Flower Mound Pumpkin Patch--the same one we went to last year. He had lots of fun exploring and roaming around the pumpkins. Yesterday (Halloween) was very busy. Nana joined us for the festivities. We carved a pumpkin after an extra afternoon nap (we knew it would be a long night and wanted a well-rested boy). He seems to have inherited my gag reflex and began gagging immediately upon seeing the stringy insides. Nevertheless, he still helped and seemed to enjoy. I was quite satisfied with how the pumpkin turned out, despite my lack of artistry. After a costume change, we took Pierce to our local town square where our city was hosting a fall festival. He played his 1st game of bean bag toss, received quite a bit of candy, and had a balloon dog made. Then we headed home to do some trick or treating in our neighborhood. We went to about 10 homes of the neighbors we know. P is one of the youngest in our neighborhood and neighbors always delight in seeing him. They were super excited to find him ringing their doorbells. Pierce dressed as a skeleton this year. We had to be really creative with his costume this year as he won't keep a hat on. I was planning for him to be a monkey but he just wouldn't keep the hat on. I had gotten him a skeleton shirt for him to wear during the day for Halloween, and Mark suggested we just paint some pants to match. So that's what we did. I scanned the shirt, used PSP to b.low up some bones, printed them out on an iron on transfer, then painted over it with glow in the dark paint. Woll-a--costume made!! Pierce had so much fun trick or treating. He is accustomed to going on daily walks in our neighborhood, but is usually confined to his stroller. He thought he was big stuff walking the neighborhood last night. We had his wagon just in case he got tired, but he had a blast walking everywhere. We had an awesome holiday with our lil' man!! I hope you all enjoyed yours!! Here is a link to a slideshow of pictures if you are interested: http://picasaweb.google.com/mandklowe/Hall...key=oxGvam_BD0g Click on slideshow for full picture and caption.