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English speakers have for 1500 years found contractions to be a very efficient way to speak our complex language. Yet, it took an almost-two-year-old to come up with our latest contraction: el'bow="all by my," as in "I will climb up into my carseat el'bow self. I think he has a future in linguistics. We're going to submit it to Websters.
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We have had TWO big changes in our house this week with Parks. First was the switch to a Big Boy Bed. We came home from Nana and Papa's on Saturday, where he had been sleeping in a big bed, and wanted to sleep in a big bed in his room too. All we had was a full size mattress so it went on the floor in his room. It is made up with sheets and a blanket and big pillows, and he has slept on it every night since we came home. He is doing great. We had no idea we were headed to a big boy bed, but here we are!
And then today, Parks actually made it to the potty and pooped! We have been trying to catch him in time to take him to the potty but have had no luck until today. Brandon was here with him and when the announcement from Parks came, off to the potty they went and finally he actually pooped! YEAH! Apparently he was a little scared and confused (Parks not Brandon), but by the time I arrived home - just a few minutes later - he was so proud he ran to the bathroom wanting me to follow him and he proudly yelled "look at it!". (again, Parks not Brandon)
We have had two great accomplishments this week. Every day continues to be an adventure....we shall keep you all posted on the next big leap.
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We went to the Harris' farm in Goodwater today to start our Thanksgiving celebrations. Parks had a great time! He loved throwing rocks into the pond, walking around with Papa, riding the Gator with Brandon to see the Cows, and exploring Libba and Grandaddy's house. It was a fun day for Parks and an exhausting day for Mommy and Daddy!
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This is a little late but I need to record our voting day. Brandon and I had been watching all the election news for weeks and Parks has seen it all on TV so much that he knew the main characters of the election. The morning of the election Brandon and I decided to take Parks with us and all go together in the morning before work to vote. Trying to get Parks out the door we were telling him that we were headed to vote for [our chosen candidate]. All the way to the polling place Parks talked in the car about voting for _____. Even when we were in line he was repeating the phrase "Vote for ______." To us it was absolutely hysterical. So even at not quite 2 years, Parks was rocking the vote!
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Since I last made an entry, Parks has had quite a run with doctor visits. Monday night the 13th, Parks managed to run into the corner of a wall at church and split his forehead open. Thank goodness Brandon was on Parks duty that night while I was out with friends. He managed to get him to the ER and call me. When I arrived, Parks was calm, but very bloody and shirtless since his shirt was covered in blood. He fit right in with the folks in the Calhoun County emergency room! After a few frantic phone calls, I managed to get the facial plastics doctor I work for at home and he came immediately to sew up Parks' wound. We had to strap him down to this board like a mummy and Brandon played assistant and I tried to keep Parks under control. It was a site to see for sure. Once the stitching was over, Parks was up and running like nothing had ever happened. Over the next week we had two visits to get stitches out- which were just as horrifying for Parks as the original encounter- and now he is looking great. He might not even get to have a scar! Those are the advantages of a facial plastics specialists doing stiches I guess. :) I am sure it is not our last stiches event but I hope we have no more in the near future.
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Tonight Parks read me a story at bedtime! He opened his Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? book and began to say "bown bear. ah-do-ee?" Then he turned the page and said "ello duck. ah-do-ee?" This pattern continued through the whole story. Perhaps tomorrow he will start on War and Peace.
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After a fun evening of riding on daddy's back from one room to another all around the house, I said, "It's time for your bath." So, Parks grabs his Elmo doll, puts it face-down on the ground, and then proceeds to climb on Elmo's back, saying, "Hold on, Elmo." Needless to say, Elmo didn't go anywhere. But, we were all rolling in the floor.
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Everyday Parks seems to be saying more and more words, doing more and more for himself, and mimicking us at every moment - good, bad and ugly. Tonight at church dinner I asked Parks if he was ready to eat, and for the first time ever (that I have seen) he put his tiny balled fists up to his chin and said a melodic sentence that included the word food and them a proud "Amen". It was so unbelievably unexpected and cute. He never ceases to amaze me!
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Parks is now 20 months! It is hard to believe that he has been with us for 20 months and in the last several weeks he has become a real little boy. He has decided that the plastic footstool (that did live in my closet so I could reach the top shelf) is his way to see the world. He now hauls it everywhere he goes. He uses it to get in his booster seat at the table all by himself, see into the kitchen sink, and reach the bathroom faucet for his toothbrush. The best use so far has been to climb up and use it as a launch pad to jump into his chair.
Everyday the adventure changes. Today we spent most of the afternoon playing our new plastic drum and singing a fantastic rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star never heard before.
More reporting on our adventures to come soon...
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Why am I blogging? It has been almost two and a half months since my last entry. Parks is now three and half months old, and like some kind of twilight zone miracle, he went down with only about five minutes of fussing tonight. Last night was the beginning of sleep training, and tonight Jennifer and I were gearing up for another hour-and-a-half of bloody-murder screaming. But, much to our relief (and relaxation), I laid him in his crib, he whimpered for about fifteen seconds and then not a peep since.
Shhhh. It's quiet right now. What a lovely sound.
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Some people are often perplexed by the concept of original sin, the idea that all humans are born sinful, contaminated by our relationship in nature to the original sinners, Adam and Eve. Some would even argue that babies are not originally sinful, arguing things like, "How can something so innocent, who can't even talk or think or will to act be sinful." Well, I have found conclusive proof of the original sinfulness of babies. Thee proof is in the pudding, or in this case, the poo. Many people tried to warn me that baby poo can start off quite icky. And, I saw pictures, but nothing can do the stuff justice like seeing it right up close. After a few days, it begins to look like gourmet mustard (and smells rather like some of the gourmet mustard I've smelled before), very yellow with seedy-looking curds (not Kurds...they live in Iraq). Apparently, baby's bowels can't digest milk solids immediately, so they end up being passed in his stool, or mustard if you will. After a while, the GI tract is more developed and begins to transform the poo goo into a pasty substance. For those of you who are about to embark on this baby thing (Jeff and Tina), my I suggest the following 6 easy steps to changing a baby's diaper: - Upon smelling the possibility of a bowel movement, exclaim something totally childish, such as, "Ooh, you've made a poo poo. I'll bet it's a sticky-icky-stinky poo poo." Or, if you have warm liquid running down your arm, say to the baby something like, "You peed on my arm; icky icky. You're just a little water fountain aren't you?" The particulars of these dialogues about your baby's waste products may vary, but the important thing is that they remain of the nature that would cause an onlooker to question your sanity.
- Strap baby to the changing table. A general rule is the more poo involved, the more squirmy and thus messy the chaning experience will be.
- Obtain necessary tools: new diaper, wipes, vaseline (if you have a boy who has been...um...well, you know), lead-lined apron (optional), hazmat suit (optional), earplugs (some babies like Parks do not like naked time and will not hesitate to let you know that).
- Remove the old diaper and wipe butt until clean. Wipe back, stomach, feet, head, and arms depending on how far the poo or urine has spread.
- Apply new diaper, making sure that all appendages are in the proper holes.
- Repeat steps 1-5 because your baby peed or pooped in the new diaper as soon as you secured the fasteners.
I hope that helps.
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Brandon, Parks and I had out first big day out on the town today. We did venture out last Friday to the pediatrician but this was a real outing to a store, lunch and around the town. Brandon and I decided this morning that we were ready to hit the world with the little one. So around lunch time we packed up Parks and ALL HIS THINGS. (Getting somewhere with a newborn takes a lot of stuff -- even to just run quick errands.) We headed out and went to Hobby Lobby. We put Parks in his car seat in the cart and shopped around for some picture frames and mirrors and things, checked out, loaded back up Parks in the car and were off. We then braved Zaxby's for lunch, and Parks just sat all cozy in his carseat with us in the booth and slept the whole time. Since everything had gone so well we decided to push the limits (we still aren't exactly sure how long he will sleep at a time and he had already been out close to an hour) and head to church to show him off at the staff meeting. We made it there and had time to introduce Parks to the staff and just as we were headed home he began to wake up. We had a great day and were so proud to have survived the day out on the town.
More to come soon.....
Jennifer
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We have been home now with Parks for 4 nights. And last night was our first night as "real parents" home alone with our little one. We have had such an exciting week. We have learned so much already and have watched Parks learn new things as well. He already has more control over his body movements and eyes that he did not have on his birthday. He is grasping at random and able to grab objects in the path of his hands. He now stays awake for a few minutes at a time, looking around and examining his new world.
I am feeling pretty good. Sleepy but good. I have spent many hours with Parks in the night feeding and rocking and talking and walking. Brandon has done the same. Last night Parks and I found our way to the couch in the den and were still there when he woke up for feeding this morning! It is always a suprise to see where I will wake up with him. This week I have slept in many strange places, including the rocker, the couch and the floor of the nursery. What an adventure we are on.
Jennifer
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When you read that title like The Count on Sesame Street, it can really crack you up, especially if you've been intimately involved with those diapers over the course of the last few hours. The first one caught us by surprise. The pediatrician had come by to do an exam yesterday at around 6:00, and we were explaining to him how Parks had been "talking," kind of a disgruntled whine, but never a full-blown cry, for about 30 minutes. The doctor began to explain how babies will develop their own unique cries for whatever is upsetting them, and especially newborns, because everything is so.... As he is trying to help us understand his crying, the doctor is conducting the exam. When he got to the genital exam, he's peeling back the diaper and he exclaims, "Oh, that might explain the crying." I had to give Parks some credit. Not bad for nine months of work.
Jennifer and I are both up. Jennifer is feeling pretty good. She allows as to how she'll feel better after a shower and breakfast. We both got between 5 and 6 hours of sleep last night, when added all togther, which I figure isn't a bad total. The nurse came to check Parks' temp and pulse at around midnight, so I asked her to take Parks to the nursery for about 3 hours. So, that helped to give us a quick breather. Today we plan to do more sitting, rocking, feeding, and changing. Hopefully we'll get some sleep in there somewhere.
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At about 1:55 PM today, Jennifer delievered (remarkably easily, according to the nurses) a 7 lb. 6 oz., 20" baby boy named Robert Parks Harris II. He was named after his great, great, great grandfather. Despite an inital protest around 11:30, Parks came out with only about 15 minutes of pushing. He is glad to see everyone, but he wishes he could get some sleep right now. He has been very peaceful, sleeping on and off, but when awake curious of the new sounds and lights that come with life outside the womb. Jennifer and I are both feeling great. Jennifer is up and eating and is going to try to sleep after dinner. Ask us how we feel in a few days and we may have a different story. We'll post more soon.   
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