Potty Singing

Part 18 of Jack's Potty Singing Greatest Hits. Someday we'll teach him that he can sing elsewhere.

This is a color song they sing at school. It's the colors in English and Spanish. I'll get the spelling wrong (my Spanish is a bit rusty), but basically it's:

"Red is rojo
Green is verde
Blue azul
Yellow amarillo
Purple morado
Brown cafe
Grey is gris."

Party

3 posts about Jackson's 3rd birthday, 1 for each year he's been alive.

Here's a fun Jamie fact: I have an irrational fear of people not coming to children's birthday parties. Every year that we throw a party I have this image of no one coming and Jack being really sad. This never happened to me or anyone I know, so I'm not sure where the fear comes from. It's definitely there though.

But don't worry, lots of children (with their corresponding adults and various members of our family) all came. Jack was thrilled, and I was relieved. We had a great time - kids running all over our backyard and playground. It was great.

Pictures are up on Flickr (link on the right)...You can pretty much taste the icing by just looking at the pictures.

Thanks to all who came. You are slowly getting me over my fear of guestless birthday parties. By the time he's 18 I should be all cured.

Jackson's Birth Story

Stealing an idea from other blogs, I would like to share Jack's birth story. I feel the need to document it, and I also feel that it's my right as the person who had to go through the labor and delivery to make everyone else listen to this once a year. Apologies in advance for how long this will be.

Jack was due on September 19, 2005. I was tentatively scheduled to do an all-staff presentation at work (BBBS) on the 21st, so my boss kept joking with me that my baby couldn't arrive until after I had finished. I arrived to work on the 21st and did the presentation, during which I started having mild contractions. Nothing too major, so I stayed at work and even went out to dinner with Bob, Bernice and Chuck to celebrate Bob's birthday. At 2am I woke up with strong contractions and started timing them, sleeping in between. Around 5am I woke Chuck up - we called the hospital and confirmed that we should come in. Chuck then called my mom, who had been carrying luggage around with her for weeks prior to this, to tell her that we were ready to go to the hospital. She sped over to Gaga's house and I'm pretty sure Gaga had to make a running leap into the moving car so they didn't lose any time doing silly things like using the brakes.

We went to the hospital around 6am and were held in triage, then told to walk the halls to make sure things were moving. We had to walk for an hour - a walk that was simultaneously boring, surreal and painful. We finally were put into a room. The next few hours were pretty much of a blur. At some point I had an epidural, which was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. At another point the epidural wore off on my right side, so I felt labor naturally on that side, which was every bit as bad as I thought it would be. I remember watching Tommy Boy on the TV in our room and making Chuck sneak me Popsicles. My mom, BJ, Bernice and Bob all arrived that afternoon and hung out at the hospital.

In the early evening I was ready to push, but Jack was pretty stubborn and wouldn't progress. Finally they brought the doctor (Dr. Agee) into the room and he talked to me about having a c-section. I burst into tears - too tired, hungry and emotional to think rationally. Across the hall our families were watching the doctor and nurses hurrying in and out of the room, and finally my "in labor" light was turned off. They thought something awful had happened. The nurse came into the hall, pointed at my mom and told her to come in. My mom walked in to find me crying and the bassinet empty. After a minute of confusion, she figured out that I was going into surgery.

Jackson was born at 8:06pm. We hadn't found out the sex of the baby during the pregnancy, but had been so convinced that it was a boy that when Dr. Agee announced "it's a boy!" to the room, I thought "yeah, duh." Then I realized that we hadn't really known that for sure and that this really was news.

I'm not gonna lie - I was NOT a happy camper immediately after surgery. I was in a lot of pain, but once I had my magic morphine drip I felt much better and was ready to enjoy spending time with our new little baby. The next few days in the hospital were amazing. I didn't really want to leave! They brought me food, we had visitors, talked and watched TV, and Chuck got to sleep in a real bed in the room with me. And we got to do it all with a new little member of our family. He was so sweet and cute we could hardly stand it. We made all the nurses agree that he was the cutest baby in the hospital before they could enter the room.

Anyway, that's the story, as best as I can remember it.

We love you Jackson Manning Van Nostrand.

Birfday Boy

Happy 3rd Birthday (or "Birfday" as Jack says) to my sweet baby boy.

3 years ago today we were sitting in the hospital waiting to meet our little boy. He was born at 8:06pm and weighed 8lbs, 2oz and was 21.5 inches long. It was a Thursday night.

Our life hasn't been the same since. He grew at an astonighing rate, even as far as babies go. And with each growth spurt he looked more and more like Chuck. He has his lips, his body-build, his eyebrows. From me he got blue eyes and his complexion. Sorry Bud.

It's been awesome to watch him grow into a little person, complete with his own likes and dislikes, strengths and "opportunities." These change daily, as this blog has hopefully captured. He went from signing for milk, more, change, and food to speaking in a sort of external-monologue format. He went from a baby who refused to roll over to a kid who will pick up and carry his picnic table to a different location if he thinks it needs relocating. He was colicky and wouldn't sleep unless you were holding and bouncing him to a 12-hours of sleep toddler to a kid who wants to sleep on our floor and have breakfast at 5am. He went through a phase of hitting and kicking you when he was angry and came out on the other side as a boy who says "I'm frustrated" and will take deep breaths with you. He gets humor and irony. He says "Momma, you twickin' me!" and has a fantastic imagination.

I could go on and on. But most of all I just want to say that I'm so proud of my little man. He is sweet, kind, and consientious beyond my wildest expectations. He is an old soul and we love him.

Jacknastics

Today marks the beginning of Jack's athletic career. Someday we'll look back proudly on this moment - the moment he took off his froggy boots and raincoat, waved bye bye to us and began training for what he is destined to do.

Today was the start of Jacknastics.

Okay, so maybe he doesn't have the typical build of a gymnast. The most recent height predictor told me he will be 6'5". But he showed real promise. He listened really well, tried everything, and even took his thumb out of his mouth. For how nervous he was, that was a big deal. Two days ago, when I told him he was going to start gymnastics class, he quietly replied "Momma, I not know how to do that." God help him, he's already showing signs of Chuck and my perfectionism.

Anyway, Chuck and I were laughing, cheering and taking pictures the whole time while the other parents sat reading Reader's Digest. I'm not kidding. Not all of them, just one, but still. Who reads Reader's Digest? At gymnastics class? We couldn't take our eyes off of the class and our sweet little man.

Tons of pictures are up on Flickr. Take a look - it was adorable.

Leaving Maternity Leave

I've been thinking minutely (is that a word? I mean the unit of time, not another way to say "tiny") about the end of my maternity leave. I go back to work on Monday. And although he's sitting right next to me, kicking my arm as I type, I miss my baby already.

I went through this with Jack too, and I know it gets easier each day and that when you pick them up from daycare it's the most wonderful feeling ever, but still...I'm sad.

When I'm typing things at work, there won't be a little person smiling up at me and grabbing at my arm. Even if there is, I will have to call security to have them removed because that would be creepy. And my coworkers won't let me hug them and squeeze their cheeks and pat their bellies all day. Again, that would be creepy. And this time security would have to remove ME. To say nothing of the fact that I'll have to form complete sentences and string them together into coherent thoughts. My family can attest to the fact that I'm having significant trouble with that right now. Minutely.

Other things I'll miss:
1. My non-Ryker morning companions: Ellen and the hosts of the View
2. Walks around the lake
3. Cuddling
4. Wearing comfy clothes all day

So I'm sad. But Ryker will love daycare just like Jack does. And I'll get a 9 hour break from changing diapers. Speaking of which...gotta run.

Cardinals Baseball Game

Check out the new pictures in Flickr (to the right). They are from BJ's (Gaga's) birthday party in a party box at Busch Stadium. All were taken by Eric, one of the cousins on the Chaney's side of the family - thanks Eric!

Highlights From Our Trip

Highlights from our trip to St. Louis, as I imagine Jackson would list them:

1. The car rides got shorter for awhile (until our return journey yesterday).
2. There were big hachines working near Gaga and Papa's house.
3. Old MacDonald was Momma's dentist. (His name is really Johnny MacDonald but Jack thought he was "Old Dondo".)
4. There were toys at the dentist office that he got to pick from even though Momma was the one that had work done.
5. The chair at Great Clips was really fun (for Grandmommy).
6. He got to have cake.
7. Grandmommy's piano played awesome songs, and he got to beat a drum along with it.
8. Grandmommy bought him his very own set of big hachines.
9. He got to play with Papa, Gaga, Grandmommy, Ry Ry, Pristi, Beth, Nik, Kaya, Buster and lots of other people while one of the other ones was holding Ryker.
10. The Cardinal Baseball Game!!!! He loved this. Mostly just Fredbird.

Things You Need Before Driving 550 Miles With a 3 Year Old and an Infant

You need a few things before heading out with a toddler and an infant.

First, you need to have another adult with you that is calm and sane and doesn't mind you being frustrated. Grandmommies work well. Second, you probably shouldn't call it an "adventure," or you're liable to hear "Momma, I don't like this benture anymore. I want to go home." And you'll be hearing that about 8 hours into the trip.

Oh, and you shouldn't be used to 8.5 hours for this trip - because it will take you 11. And for a period of time you should expect to go 20 miles in 45 minutes. There will be no inclement weather or bad traffic, just lots of potty breaks for the toddler and nursing breaks for the infant.

The other adult comes in handy for the nursing breaks, because then you can sit in the car, which is parked in a vacant lot that used to be a gas station. The other adult can take the toddler and make him run laps in the lot (to his pleasure) and then take him to talk to the trucker driver and the fixerman who is fixing his truck (to his even greater pleasure).

You need to stretch a lot, not because you'll have your legs cramped into a car, but because you'll be contorting your body to reach behind you the whole trip to pick up Mr. Potato Head limbs. 

Questions you should have an answer ready for:

"Momma, what your favorite color cow is?"

"Where St. Louis is?"

"Why we need be quiet?"

"Where TomTom is?"

"Where Daddy is?"

"Where my sunbrasses are?"

"Where my tractor is?"

"Momma, you see that policeman?"

"Please I have another fruit snack PPPPLLLLEEEEAAAAASSSSEEEE??????"

Then be ready for your toddler to loose his mind. He'll hand you Mr. Potato Head and instruct you to ask him what he's doing. You'll say "What are you doing Mr. Potato Head?" and your toddler will say "Momma, what you say?" Then you and the other sane adult will laugh silently for awhile, because you are both kind of tired at this point. 

Shopping List:

earplugs, coffee, iPod, diapers, more than 3 baby outfits, and LOTS of Purell

But the other adult will safely guide you into St. Louis and then things will be nice and quiet and you will once again have clean bathrooms.