Santa!!!!!

Duncan met Santa!!!!
or did Santa meet Duncan?
Either way, Santa was visited :)  Mighty D did very well and even almost smiled for a picture.  He asked Santa for something he could put in his mouth.

Here are the family pictures from the birthday party:

 Now back to Christmas-y things :)

Happy Birthday Great Grandma!!!

I love my lion.  His name is Aslan.

Happy Birthday Grandma Inez!!!!

Family photo

Great grandkids

Grandma and the great grandkids (Finn, Duncan, Tucker & Tess)

Grandma opening her presents (Finn was helping)

Grandma & Duncan before opening presents

Opening stockings

Duncan's not loved at all!

shiny

Yay!  He's looking at the camera!

Duncan's first laptop

Very odd "Sing-a-ma-jig"

I will sleep with my book and my wubby

This past weekend we were able to go down to New Meadows/McCall to celebrate Aaron's Grandma's (or Duncan's Great-Grandma's) 90th birthday party.  It was so much fun!!!!

All of her children and all of their children and all of their children were there (did you follow??).  That's 3 children, 7 grandchildren and 6 1/3 great grandchildren!!!  Amazing.  We had a wonderful time.  There was enough food to feed an army.  We tried to eat it all but I'm not sure we even made a dent!

We also had professional pictures taken of each family and then all of us.  I haven't gotten copies of those yet so I'll hopefully get them posted eventually.  It will be interesting - we had the pictures taken outside & it was snowing.  We were all wearing white shirts & jeans (worst wet t-shirt contest EVER) but hopefully we all showed up okay.  Duncan had his first exposure to snow and was very cute.  He was trying to eat it!

It was really cute to see the great grandkids.  There were 4 under age 4 which was terribly entertaining.  Tucker & Duncan are 2 1/2 months apart, Tess is 18 months and Finn is 3 1/2.  Made for wild times!!  I don't think any of them napped for more than an hour or so.  There were some serious meltdowns by the time we left.  Duncan did okay but was definitely ready for bed when we got back to New Meadows.  So were the parents!

On Sunday we celebrated Christmas with Grandma Sylvia & Grandpa Ken.  Duncan raked in quite some loot!  He is a very loved little boy :)  We are so blessed!  Duncan had fun trying to eat wrapping paper.  He paid a bit of attention to his presents but then discovered the ceiling.  But he sat quietly and patiently through all the present opening.  


It took us about 6 hours to get home Sunday.  We ran into rain for a while but it was simply an excruciatingly long ride.  I was so glad to get back!  Glad we were able to go but grateful to be back at my house with my bed.  I love my bed.  LOVE my bed.  So does my back :)


We both had Monday off so we lazed around all day.  It was wonderful...

and now, the baby needs me :)

My poor bunny

This is another of those posts that will prove justifiable matricide...perhaps I shouldn't leave evidence on the internet...oh well.

Last Sunday we noticed Duncan had a diaper rash that had broken open.  We slathered on Desitin and it was still nasty bad.  So today he & Aaron got to go visit the pediatrician.  Turns out my poor bunny has acid burns from his poo.  So now he has 2 creams we put on him.  One is a sulfa based one that we have to use gloves to apply.  It's going to be interesting...Hopefully it clears up soon.


Other than that it's been a pretty quiet week.  Well, there has been an overabundance of snow which then melted and turned to slush.  Then the slush turned to concrete when it re-froze.  Super.  Aaron's is very sore and tired of winter already.  I can't disagree.  


And now, I need to go do some Christmas-y stuff so this is a short one :)


But at least I updated this twice in a week!!

Happy Thanksgiving?

Okay, so I'm a couple days late.  But we did have a lovely Thanksgiving.  We traveled to Post Falls to have dinner at my sister's house.  The weather was terrible and it took us almost an hour to get there.  Fortunately Duncan slept almost the entire time so that was one less thing to worry about.  

My nephew Adam has decided that, being a big boy of 20 months, he should be able to hold the baby (of 5 1/2 months).  Makes sense to me!  And my nephew Thomas was a wonderful cousin.  He shared his blanket with Duncan, held him and read a story.  It was beautiful to see my guys hanging out & reading together!  

Mom I don't need any help I'm a big boy!

MY baby

 Aren't they adorable?? 

Thomas and Duncan

All 3 cousins.  Adam is trying to grab Duncan so he can hold him.

Cousins!!!  (notice Adam is "holding" Duncan")

Adam had to take pictures.  This is his blankie.

Dinner was delicious!  Mary went all out and made us a fantastic traditional turkey dinner.  Duncan hung (literally) in a jumper for a while then got fussy because he was sleepy.  I grabbed him & he fell asleep on me.  So I was very glad most Thanksgiving food is already bite-sized.  Made one-handed eating nice & easy!

Mary was originally planning for 10 or 11 of us - My step-niece Eileen and her family and our family friend Brett were all supposed to be there.  However, my niece lives in Seattle and they couldn't get out of town let alone over the pass.  So we missed them very much.  But were very grateful they were safe.

We left pretty quickly after dinner because of the weather.  It was snowing and blowing and yucky.  Made it home in about an hour.  

Friday I didn't go shopping.  First time in years I skipped Black Friday.  There wasn't anything we wanted to get for people.  Besides - I have my gift for the person whose name I drew for my family.  Aaron has his person's from my family done, too.   We have most everything else planned and/or ordered.  YAY!!!

Saturday my friend Lois & I went to knitting class to learn how to make fingerless mitts.  It was easier than I expected!  I even made thumbs which is a huge deal.  Trust me.  I then spent Saturday evening & Sunday finishing the project :)  Mom came over to watch Duncan while I knit & Aaron worked.  They had a good time together.  Duncan loves his Grandma's!!!!!  Both of them :)

Right now, Mighty D is arguing with his binkie.  I don't know why.  He keeps pulling it out of his mouth and talking to it then putting it back in.  Sometimes right side up, sometimes upside down.  It's quite adorable!

Aaron & I have such a good baby!  He sleeps through the night, rarely cries, when he wakes up he just chatters until we wake up & get him.  We're really blessed!  


He's picked up on sign language, too.  He responds to "more" and "milk".  We're now working on "change" and "done".  We all go to class on the 15th to learn more about sign language and how to incorporate it better into our lives.


Now I need to get the baby to go to sleep so I can go out & shovel before Aaron gets home.


Global warming my tuckus!!!

Duncan asleep

Please note he has a death-grip on his ball

update

It's been an entertaining month.  Aaron & I keep passing the rotovirus back and forth.  What everyone else would call the stomach flu.  It's about 24 hours of sheer "joy" in the loo.  I've had it twice, Aaron once.  Not fun.  We now have a huge can of Lysol and Clorox wipes everywhere to try & combat it.  Hopefully we won't get it again but with our luck one of us will get it Thanksgiving morning.  Then we'd have to miss out on the family get-together.  But we couldn't go because it's soooo contagious.  Anyway :)

Duncan has almost started rolling from back to front.  He gets about 3/4 of the way over then decides he doesn't want to do that.  His head control is improving daily.  He's not quite ready to sit up but is pretty close.  He really likes it when you touch his feet to his nose.  I get belly laughs from him every time!  No clue why but I'll take them :)

I sorted through Duncan's clothes last night.  He's finally grown out of the 0-3 clothes!  Washed and folded all those he's outgrown & all the 3-6 month clothes.  They're still a bit big but that's okay.  I now have 2 boxes of clothes - strictly boy clothes & neutral clothes.  That way I can give them away a bit easier.  :)  

My mom came over today.  She got to hang out with Duncan for a couple hours which thrilled both of them.  


Not much else is happening.  I only work 3 days this week & then get a 4-day weekend.  Mom's coming over to watch Duncan on Saturday so I can go to a knitting class.  Should be a fun relaxing weekend!

Quick post

Aaron & I were able to go to a concert tonight!  Our dear friend Erin came over to watch Duncan for us - they had a great time!  Duncan loves her.  LOVES her!!!!  We're super grateful to her for watching Duncan!!
And Aaron & I go to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra :)  I am blind, deaf and mute.  It was a great concert!!!  It was really weird to have hair done, makeup on and nice clothes that weren't spit-up on before we left!  
 

Check me out!

Duncan has mastered rolling over from his front to his back!!!

 

Veteran's Day

Words cannot express my gratitude to our active duty servicemen and servicewomen and our veterans.  Because of you and your sacrifices I can write this blog.  I can rest knowing I am safe and that my family is safe.  I know my son will have role models.  
You and your families are in my prayers and I cannot thank you enough.
You are my heroes.
May God bless and keep you safe.

Found it!

Found the camera cord.  Pictures!!

This is my wubby

I love my wubby!

 

Busy weekend

Wow we had a busy weekend here at the Tinsley house.  Grandma & Grandpa Tinsley came to visit!  Duncan was put down only to sleep, I think!  Even then he was held most of the time :)

We had dinner & celebrated Ken & Gabe's birthdays.  Which, of course, included cupcakes from Celebrations.  That's the new cupcake place in town and they are fantastic.  I go about once weekly.  Bad habit but so delicious!  I'm already planning what to order for my birthday.  Work people and my family will probably get lots of yummy deliciousness!

Anyway!  We had a great dinner and then just hung out.  Saturday, Sylvia & I went to the Shadle Park High School craft fair.  It was huge and fun :-)  We had a good time.  Then we stopped for pizza and came back to relieve Ken from babysitting.  He did a great job, though!!!


We went shopping later that day and I found some Christmas presents (YAY!!!) and then we just hung out again for the evening until Aaron came home.  


Sunday was a delicious brunch at Old European.  The entire wait staff fell in love with Duncan.  Most of them detoured by our table to check him out.  I agree - he's pretty darn cute.


Sunday afternoon, Duncan & I took our nap.  He was fussy so I put him on my chest & we napped.  It was lovely!  Laundry didn't get done on Saturday so Aaron took care of it on Sunday.  Very nice :)

Duncan has also figured out how to roll over!  He can go from front to back pretty well.  He almost has back to front figured out.  But not quite. 

Right now he's laying down and trying to fit 8 fingers into his mouth.  Loudly.  It's pretty great.


Last week on my work at home Friday, Duncan was down for a nap in his crib.  The Mighty D farted so loud we heard it clearly in the living room and it woke him up.  He giggled.  It was priceless!!  I thought farting and giggling was a learned behavior.  Guess it's not!!


I have pictures but can't find the cord so those will wait.  Sorry.

But I promise he's still cute!  And we still don't know what color his hair is.  We're pretty sure his eyes will stay blue - almost exactly like mine.  They have the golden aura around the iris and then blue on the outside.  But they could still change!

Duncan's most recent check-up with the endocrinologist was very positive.  The growth issues have been corrected by the meds.  She ordered a second growth test to check his growth factors and we should know the results in about 3 weeks.  But he's healthy and such a happy, good baby.  Aaron & I have been truly blessed by our little man!  


We're starting sign language with him.  Just a few signs for now - eat, milk, more, eat, change, Mom & Dad.  He actually responds to the milk sign by sticking out his tongue almost like he's panting.  Very cute.  


And now, I'm off to either knit or search for the camera cord.  Most of you will probably guess which wins...

Trick or Treat!

My company has a great tradition.  Every year since I've worked there (10 years!) we've had a safe trick-or-treat for employee's kiddos.  It's wonderful!  Not only do we get to see cute kids in adorable costumes, we know our kids are safe.

Previously, I've been a candy giver.  This year I got to take Duncan!  He was a big scary dragon.  Well, a little, cute dragon.  See below :-)

The dragon top only lasted about 20 minutes.  It was really warm in the building and I didn't want him to get overheated.  But he was a hit!  And he was very well behaved!!  

Now my arms are very tired.  Carting around a small boy for an hour is very tiring.  But totally worth it to show off my boy!  

We're not going trick-or-treating on Sunday.  Since I'll be at work at 5 am on Monday, I'm not going to take him anywhere.  We'll hang out at the house and watch the World Series.

And now I'm off to try and figure out a new scarf pattern.

Seriously people!

This is my balloon.  I love my balloon!

So cute while sleeping!

Apparently I'm not blogging enough.  Whatever, my 2 complainers.  Yes, you.  You know who you are.  It's not like I have anything else to do...

Let's see...Duncan survived his shot day and the day after.  He was an unhappy boy.  But we all made it.

Since then, not much has happened.  Mighty D loves to hang out on the floor.  He got to visit Momma's office not once but twice last week - there were things that needed done at the last minute & I couldn't get away so Aaron brought him up.  And he got loved on by my co-workers.  I think Duncan enjoyed it :)

On Friday, Duncan got to go to lunch with Daddy & Mr. Greg & Mr. Mike.  He was a good boy, although he was giving Mr. Greg the stink eye for a bit.  But then they became friends.

Friday night we got to go hang out with some of my co-workers so we could all regain our geeks cards.  We lost them because not one of us had seen Iron Man 2.  So we watched it together.  Duncan fell in love with Nikki.  Jeff got to hold Duncan for a while to help sate the baby need but I'm not sure how long it will last.  :)

But Duncan behaved very well and was a hit.  They couldn't believe how much he's grown since our team picnic!  

We had a nice, quiet weekend.  I've started doing all the laundry on Saturday while Aaron's at work so we can have Sunday as a family day.  It's worked pretty well for 2 weeks now.  

Today was a rushed day.  I set my alarm for the wrong time so I had to sprint from the time I got up.  My desk at work was re-configured so I can sit or stand and the ergonomic guru was there to make adjustments.  My back & hips feel better already!

Poor Aaron - Duncan did NOT want to go to sleep last night.  He was fussy & crying until after 10.  Duncan finally went to sleep.  Then, apparently, someone was hitting him in her sleep.  The baby was up at 4:30 and he couldn't get back to sleep.  And Duncan has been a real pill today.  Not wanting to eat or sleep so he's grumpy.  Not good.

So hopefully Aaron can get a good night's sleep and the baby behaves tomorrow.  I think I'm in charge of dinner...hopefully there's something in the freezer!  And I'm finally washing Duncan's Halloween costume.  My office does a safe trick-or-treat which happens on Thursday so I need to get it all ready.  I'm pretty excited.  He'll be super cute!  And yes, I'll take pictures.

This is my friend, the washcloth

Happy now?

Shot day

I hate shot day.  I really, really do.  Duncan did really well at his 4-month appointment. He's finally on the chart - 38th percentile for height! He's 12 pounds, 5 ounces and 24 inches long :)  We're both really excited!

But then it was shot time...2 shots today.  Duncan was a bit cheesed off but then was okay after some snuggles.  He & Aaron came home & Duncan slept for 3 hours.  He's been awake pretty much since then, just catnapping.  And very unhappy.  Mighty D has a 100 degree temp and is just uncomfortable.  My poor bug.  We've given him some baby Tylenol and that's helped.  I think he'll sleep hard tonight and be back to his happy self tomorrow.

4 months!

First night in his crib

My little man is 4 months old!  I can't believe it.  Tomorrow he goes in for his check-up.  It seems like just yesterday we found out we were having a baby!  Now we have our Mighty D who is just about ready to roll over.  Then, the baby-proofing will begin.

The child to put his bib over his face

I'm sure I could wax poetically about something and make this a longer post but that's not going to happen.  There's a baby that needs played with!

Best laid plans

Today I had grand plans.  Including getting the laundry out of the dryer.  Putting Duncan's clothes away that are currently draped on his crib.  Pulling out all the clothes he's finally outgrown and bringing up the next box of clothes.  Cleaning out the rest of Duncan's crib so we can move him into it (sobbing in the background).  

What actually happened:  After work, I fed Duncan and put him to bed in his bassinet so he'd sleep longer and I could get stuff done.  About 40 minutes into his nap, he let out a scream that wasn't a normal "I'm waking up and want to see if she'll let me out of my baby prison" cry.  My poor bunny was terrified by something.  I think it was a nightmare.  I sprinted into the bedroom and grabbed him for cuddles.  But then he wouldn't calm down (which is understandable).  The only way he'd rest was on me.  So I let him.  

Fast forward to 7 pm...He finally wakes up.  I get him fed and try to put him down so I can eat dinner.  He stayed calm long enough for me to eat then was upset again.  So I picked him up and he was fussy until Aaron got home from work around 8:45.

I am a tired girl.  But now that Daddy's home, Mighty D is all smiles and coos.  Sigh.  I'm glad he's doing better but could've used a few of those this afternoon!  Oh well :)

Observations

Recent observations and discoveries

• Never call your husband from Lowe's.  I went for a lightbulb.  I had to call for the size of the flood light in the kitchen.  Ended up with a new outside light and 3 boxes of lightbulbs for various lights in the house.
• Cupcakes can make a bad day FANTASTIC.  And a great day even better!  But when you walk in and they ask, "Do you want your usual?" I might be going too often.  If you're curious, check out http://www.celebrationssweetboutique.com
• $1 subs from Jimmy Johns, combined with cupcakes, make for the best afternoon in a while.
• My Kindle is possibly the best present I've gotten in a long time.  I can cuddle Duncan and once he's asleep grab my Kindle and read and continue cuddling.  It's awesome!  It's also great when I'm pumping because it's easy to turn the pages :)
• My son is the cutest and smartest baby ever.  EVER!!!  :)  My nephews are tied for 2nd cutest & smartest boys ever.  I love all my boys!
• I never knew a mirror could be so entertaining.  Mighty D can talk to himself for 30 - 45 minutes.  I sometimes wonder if I'm creating a narcissist but then stop worrying because he's so stinking cute when he's all chatty!
• I love my mom.  Last year she had tickets to the Best of Broadway series with us.  This year she volunteered to give up her tickets so she could watch Duncan and give Aaron & I date nights.  What a sweetie!  We are so lucky to have family so close!
• I wish Aaron's parents lived closer.  Blog updates and video snippets are nowhere near enough contact.  Hopefully they'll get high speed internet soon so we can Skype.  That will be so much fun!
• Baseball season is almost over.  I can't believe that none of the National League teams I'm a fan of didn't make the playoffs.  Wait.  Yes I can.
• I'm very excited 2 of my 3 American League teams made it to the playoffs.  A Twins/Rangers ALCS would be great!
• My friends are totally awesome.  They make me laugh & cry (sometimes at the same time).  I'm astounded my the miracle of them.  I love you guys so much!!!
• I never realized how much love I could possibly have until Aaron gave me my son.  I never thought I could love Aaron more but every time I look at Duncan I do.  
• I also never realized how much love I could give until I had my son.  He can be so frustrating and then he looks at me and gives me a huge gummy grin and I melt.  I am so lucky!
• My job and co-workers are hilarious.  They make going to work at 5 am tolerable.  
• Starbucks is a godsend, even when it's decaf.
• Zippered sleep n'play outfits totally rock.  Zippers are so much easier than snaps, especially if you're mostly asleep.
• Better living through chemistry.  Nuff said.
• knitpicks.com is my favorite knitting store.  Well, my favorite online knitting store.
• It's possible I like Amazon.com too much.  But dangit, it's not easy to get a baby ready to go after an 8 hour workday.  Amazon delivers stuff right to the door.  Which doesn't require changing out of my yoga pants and comfy t-shirt.  I like that.
• Have I mentioned my son is adorable?  He is.  Trust me.
• Have I mentioned my family & Aaron's family totally rock?  We have fun when we're together, we miss each other when we're not.  I know I'm possibly the worst person for keeping in touch but I really appreciate them :)

And now, a story.  Last night Aaron & I went to see South Pacific.  Mom came over to babysit.  Duncan had a blast!  We got home around 10:30.  Duncan was hanging out on with his Grammie.  She left a bit later...and Duncan watched the door.  And kept watching.  And watching.  Grammie didn't come back.  The wee beastie then proceeded to scream and fuss for a few minutes until he decided Momma & Daddy were okay, too.  Booger.

By the way - our date was great and it was a bit odd to eat a hot meal together.  Enjoyable but odd.  

Grandma brought cool shades for Mighty D

It might be time to move Duncan from his bassinet to his crib.  I didn't get to bed until after 11:30 last night and had my alarm set for 3:45.  Blech.  At 12:24 I woke up in a panic.  I had somehow twisted myself pretty much sideways (sorry, PB) and reached to the left to check on Duncan.  All I felt was pillows.  I panicked because I thought I had somehow pushed my pillows onto Duncan and was smothering him.  I finally woke up enough to realize Duncan was okay and I was having a night terror.  I finally got back to sleep about 1 and then was up at 3:45.  So this weekend I think I'll take that step and move him.  There will probably be tears.  But I'll make it.  Duncan will probably like the peace and quiet!

Oops

So it's been quite a while since I posted.  I didn't even realize how long it had been until my sister mentioned it yesterday.  Oops.  Oh well.  Nothing I can do about it now!  Except write an exceptionally pithy post.  But the odds of that are slim, frankly.  Plus I had misplaced the cable for my camera so I couldn't load pics or videos.  Good news is I found it.

Duncan is doing great.  I can't believe how much he's grown!  We'll find out officially how much next week when he goes to the doctor for his 4 month check up.  He'll get weighed and measured :)  Unfortunately he'll have shots, too :(  

Hanging out.  Eating my hands.  Life is good.

I can so totally hold my head up.  I just choose not to.

 Mighty D has reached the super fun stage where he interacts with us but can't move.  Love it!  He's got such a personality.  He is a very good baby.  He only cries when he's hungry, is scared or really tired.  2 of the 3 can be solved with cuddles, 2 of the 3 can be solved with warm milk.  He does love his bottle :)
He keeps helping us hold the bottle.  Again, terribly cute!

Aaron & I are trying to start sign language with him.  He won't be able to sign back until he's 6-8 months old but we figure if we start now it'll be easier for him later.  Plus it will be consistent.  We hope.  

 There.  Lots of pictures and two videos.  Hopefully I will now be forgiven.