Plop right inside the wicker chest and take a second to recover.

(Sorry for the blurry image…I’m no pro at this but I just love taking pics!)

Sit up and grab the toy that’s been calling his name…

Stand up and chew on a piece of wood puzzle…

Sit back down and continue chewing while settling in to make the area as comfortable a play place as can be…

Move to the other side and on his way there, reaches for his Momma’s camera…

But Momma says no so he sits back down and plays some more…

Then Momma takes him out and he runs back to the wicker chest to get in the wicker chest one more time but…

So he makes incorrigible sounds that says, “Please come get me out, Momma.”  His Momma takes him out and plays the clean up game with him to fill the wicker chest and leave very little room for him…at least for now.  Tomorrow we’ll do it again.

The end.

One year of endless curiosity.

One year of growth and good health.

One year of safety from sharp objects while learning to roll over, crawl, sit up, walk, and run.

One year of play, sleep, food, and diaper changes.

One year of splashing in the bath water.

One year of hugs, snuggles, kisses, and loves.

One year of readings.

One year of beautiful memories with you, too many to write, but nonetheless precious.

Looking forward to many many more years of endless curiosity, learning, and loving.

Love,
Mom and Dad

Paul has been creeping since he was six months old but lately he’s really slithering across the floors like a snake who has caught sight of his prey – focused, determined, and fast.  He hasn’t quite figured out the “crawling on all fours” style yet but what he has discovered is the “rocking on all fours” style.  Somehow, he’s also picked up on shaking his head side to side.  I don’t think he associates it with NO but I really don’t know what prompts him to do so.  It’s very random when he shakes his head.

I think Paul is a little too eager to conquer the world.  I mentioned earlier that he stood up against the railing of his crib one morning, all on his own.  Everyday now, he’s standing up on his own and holding on to boxes, furniture, the outside of his exersaucer, crib, and pack-and-play, and stay standing there playing, moving from side to side, and grabbing things to put in his mouth.  He even got so daring as to move from one thing to the other.  It’s fascinating to see how he developed his confidence in his ability to move his feet without letting one foot stay in the way of the other’s movement while at the same time balancing his upper body with his hands and fingers.  He still curls his toes sometimes while he’s standing – not sure why.  He used to fall flat on his head or face once he figured out how to stand but in a matter of days (not to mention a lot of falling episodes), he discovered that he can use his hands and/or his butt to get down.  When he falls, I tell him that falling is as much an imporant part of growing up as learning how to stand.  He looks at me confused, gives me a smile, and then moves on.  It doesn’t matter that he knows what I’m saying, at least I get a smile!

I told Steve the other day when Paul went on a day of wanting to do nothing but stand and move around (and fall) that my baby boy made me so nervous.  Each time he fell, I felt this rush of heat to my head and this instant body motion to catch him before he hit the ground.  I watched Steve play with him that evening and he just let him fall at times.  I didn’t think I had it in me to just let him fall – you know, all the stuff about head injuries makes me so worried.  But Steve encouraged me to sometimes let him fall…he said that Paul needs to learn how to balance himself.  He’s right.  Thankfully, our play area is carpeted – that makes me breath a little easier.

To top this off, Paul is also now walking, not all by himself yet.  As long as he has something to lean on to, he walks like a big boy.  We inherited a sit-to-stand walker that Paul uses to walk around the house (shout out to Ms. Karla Z. of Chicago – thanks for the walker!).  He loves that thing.  He dances with its music when he’s stopped for a rest and walks with it all over the house.  He still needs supervision, of course, and I enjoy every walk with him.  My back, though, not so much.  If my back could talk, he’s be writing right now, “What do you mean enjoy…you nuts!  I’m all bent and hurting here, you hear?”

Anyways…that’s my boy, growing and moving along.  It sometimes feels like it’s all too fast and the reality is that it is.  There’s no stopping him now.  And I am glad, along with his Daddy, that we are a part of his discovery.  If only he could do a little better with sleeping through the night.  I sure could use a night of uninterrupted sleep.  Ah…but I know that day will come.

By the way, if you sense a lot of momma pride oozing from my words, it’s ’cause I am a proud momma of my little Paul boy…and I won’t apologize for that.  But more importantly, really, I love him so so much more than I can ever put into words.

August 13.  Paul is eight months today!  And he keeps on growing.  I was looking through some of his first months’ pictures yesterday and it’s amazing how much he’s changed in such a short time.  This past month has been an incredible time of development for him.  Once, when I went in his room to get him out of bed, I caught him on his knees, his upper body up against the railing of his crib, arms stretched out reaching for the baby monitor.  He saw me with this big smile as if to say, “Look what I can do, Momma!”  That was the end of the half-raised crib rails.  Three weekends ago, again as I went in to get him out of bed, he was standing on his crib, his little fingers grasping with all his might the top of the now fully raised crib railing.  I was so excited, I yelled at Steve to get out of bed to see his boy even though it was his day off and I know he would like to stay under the covers for just a little bit longer!  We were gushing and I was clapping and stomping my feet, laughing and grinning from ear to ear like a madwoman.  I think Paul was quite amused.  I don’t know if my reaction is normal but I guess I really don’t care that much.  I’ve decided a long time ago that I am a crazy woman and it’s ok that people think or call me that.

This boy’s pincer grip is spot on, man!  He’s the king of tags – on his clothes, toys, blankets, bibs, you name it.  When he sees one, he pinches it like a pro and brings it to his mouth.  Ah…the glories of teething and just plain curiosity.  For the longest time though, his use of his pincer grip was limited to just food and tags.  He ignored little pieces of lint, paper, or some little things on the floor as he crawls until just recently.  So far, he hasn’t been successful putting any of that in his mouth, mostly because I’m right there to intercede but it won’t be long when he’ll be chewing on who-knows-what and the game of open-your-mouth-and-let-me-take-that-out will commence!

One of the highlights of my day is our morning breakfast ritual.  Paul is at his happiest after waking up in the morning.  He usually lasts in his exersaucer for as long as it takes me to cook my one-minute-oatmeal and prepare his oatmeal.  Then we both sit at the table, him on his high chair and me in Mommy’s chair and gobble up oatmeal together.  As for other foods, he’s so far been eating sweet potatoes, peas, avocados, carrots, green beans, broccoli, kabocha squash, butternut squash, potatoes, and chicken – mostly pureed and some cut up in chunks – with no problems.  Obviously, the first time we introduced these foods were the most fun – oh, the faces he makes!  I’ve tried yogurt, apples, and bananas separately but have not had success.  The only bite he’ll take is the first bite, understandably, his test bite.  I thought for sure he will instantly like bananas because of its natural sweetness but I think he has trouble more with the texture than with the taste.  He almost always acts like he’s about to gag.  The same goes with the yogurt and bananas, except this one he makes this sorta shivering act after eating a bite and then he closes his eyes and puckers his open lips – must be a bit sour for him, or he just thinks those foods are nasty!  I don’t blame him but I do hope he’ll come around to eating them.  For the most part, his meals are uneventful – no tantrums and throwing food on the floor – oh wait, he’s not there yet!  Well…he is a good boy when it comes to eating his food.  He eats three times a day and still nurses full time day and night.  He also made sure I learned that when he clamps his mouth and looks away when I give him a spoonful of food that that means he’s either done or dislikes it.  Subtle signals are important to decipher in the life of a little man who cannot verbalize what he’s feeling yet, I’m discovering.  It makes both of us a lot lot less cranky.

Paul curious about his wanesh

little American-Igorot boy

Proud Lola holding Paul in his wanesh

In real Igorot fashion, G-string is worn by men with absolutely nothing on their bodies except for the locally woven loincloth covering their nether regions.  This traditional garb has been the standard clothing of generations past.  I still remember my Ikit Fao-anan (Great Grandfather Fao-anan) in his g-string.  More recently, wanesh is worn on occassions calling for mountain or tribal dancing.  Google the words “Panagbenga” or “Lang-ay” and you will find folks in their best traditional garb.  In fact, check out my friend Marilou Ayeona Huber’s amazing photo coverage of the 2007 Lang-ay and you’ll see exactly what I am talking about.

A special thank you to my good friend, Judith, for sending Paul his first ever wanesh.  I will make sure to take a photo of him in the real Igorot way sometime and post that here, too.  You’re the best, Judz!

This past Sunday was only the second time Paul had been to the Nursery.  Last week, Steve and I brought him to his room together.  There was this one kind sweet lady who took a little time and talked to Paul while I was filling out the information paper.  Soon as I was done, we said our quick goodbyes as she took Paul from Steve’s arms.  Aww…my baby’s first day in Nursery!

30 minutes.  He’s doing great, the Nursery pager hasn’t vibrated yet!  One hour.  Wow!  He’s doing REALLY great!  One hour 15 minutes.  Bzzzzt bzzzzt!  Bzzzt bzzzt!  Bzzzzt bzzzzt!  Bzzzt bzzzt!  (Flashback:  Sweet Lady says, “we will not page you unless he’s really not doing well for a good long time.)  I’m thinking, hmmm…he must be in distress!

When I got to the Nursery room, all was quiet.  Then I saw my little boy, held by a different sweet girl this time.  My baby saw me too and what did you expect?  Yes, he let out a good cry with his sweet pout as if to say, where have you been momma?

Ahh…nothing like the embrace of your own momma.  All was well after that.

Today.

I signed him in and he was happy when I gave him over to another kind lady.  He needed to eat in 45 minutes so I made a note of that so the incoming volunteers knew I was coming back in that time.  I went off to the sanctuary for the service.

45 minutes later, it was time for Paul’s feeding.  Walking into the welcome area of the Children’s Nursery, I saw my little boy being held by the host that morning!  Wait!  I thought he was suppose to be in his room?  And why didn’t my pager buzz??!

Apparently, my little one decided to give the second service volunteers a concert so he’d been screaming and was rather inconsolable.  Way to go, Paul boy! *chuckle* But as soon as he was out of the room, he quieted down and was just looking around.  He was put in a stroller for a stroll around the halls but he didn’t think that was as much fun as just being held!

Oh my!  Have I ruined my baby’s early life already?  He’s afraid of people, people!

Actually, I know he just needs to be  out meeting people more often.  And I’ve decided that Nursery, no matter, how hard it is for him right now, is a good thing for him.  So we will be back, dear sweet ladies.  Whatever. it. takes.

My one-day-old baby

Five months later…

My baby loves making faces!

Today…

Sorry, I don’t have an official 6-month-old photo of him yet…but I must tell you that he is now a bouncy, full-of-life little one!  He’s slowly discovered the use of his knees and arms and in the last two weeks has really gone mobile.  He can now crawl from one side of the room to the other to get something he’s set his sights on to, never mind that he keeps flipping on his tummy to back to tummy and back again about ten times.  I think he rather enjoys that!  Ahh…tummy time has finally paid off!  It’s scary to think what he can do if we leave him all on his own.  He just might wander out of the house!  Oh, and ya, both Steve and I have been fascinated by his unusual high tolerance for pain.  His small body would hit something on his way to grab a toy he’s been eyeing and he would not even flinch.  There were more than one occassion when we’d expect him to cry because of a hit or a scrape but not even a fuss comes out of our baby’s mouth.  Mind you, when he went for his 6-month vaccination, he screamed and big tears streamed down his face.  There, he’s not so immune to pain, after all.

He’s also been pooping pretty regularly in the toilet, at least once, at most three times a day.  I don’t have any grand goals in this exercise besides teach him that poop goes in the toilet.

The last three weeks he has been sleeping through the night.  That means he’s been sleeping on a stretch of four hours, wakes up for his nighttime feeding, then settle down for another stretch of four hours before his early morning feeding to last him another two hours of sleep.  It’s amazing how much moving he does in his sleep.  Just about every time he wakes up he’s on his tummy and has moved from his original position to someplace else in his crib.

I am a new person because of his new sleeping pattern.  Where before, I’d be lucky to have a shut-eye of two hours, now I’m finding myself in dreamland again.

His first tooth is out!!  It sorta sprang out overnight.  And he was not unusually irritable.  There’s another one coming out right next to the first one.  I actually can feel it just above the surface of his gum when I stick my finger in there to feel it.  As you can imagine, he is putting anything and everything in his mouth…and with his mobility these days, he sure is keeping his momma on her toes!

He is such a joy to watch as he grows and discovers the world around him…and I am ever so grateful that he is with us!

Being the oldest grandchild in my extended family, I was asked on many many many (and many more) occassions to babysit my cousins.  The practice has been that as soon as the baby can hold his head up, we “teach” them elimination by giving them the chance to pee or poop right before or after a nap and/or as soon as we see cues, such as a grunt, that they are about to p/p.  It’s sort of a two-step-forward-one-step-back process all the time.  The kids couldn’t talk yet so the parents/caregivers had to really learn their cues and schedule.

See, back in the 80’s and early 90’s, all we had were flour sacks for diapers and it is rather icky to be pooped and/or peed on all the time, besides being burdened with the job of handwashing the diapers, which are limited in number, over and over again.  Ack!  I hate washing those diapers!  First, they had to be soaked to loosen the power of the sticky poop then soaped and rinsed!  And the smell of even just one poopy diaper?  Oh mercy!  Well, you get the picture!

How about a reminder that life is beautiful when you have two beautiful boys like these?

My two boys

Back to the subject at hand.  (Sorry but I have to finish my line of thought here.)  So when I heard about IPT, I got all excited!  I’ve observed that Paul has a rather predictable rhythm to his pooping so I thought I’d give IPT a try.  A couple days ago, I put him on the toilet to try this thing but he was more interested in smiling at me and reaching for the next thing that’s within his reach.  Needless to say, he didn’t even pee!  So this morning, I was hopeful!  And he delivered, not once, but twice!  It felt good flushing the toilet, knowing my baby saved us from one dirty diaper.  Never mind that water costs money too.  But at least that’s one less diaper in the landfill!  Ha!

Anyways…Tonight, Stephen reminded me not to get my hopes up too high.  I know!  I’ve read some mommy chronicles where the mom was about ready to sleep in the toilet with her child all day.  I told my sweet husband not to worry.  All I desire is for Paul to learn the use of a toilet and if it goes really well this early, great!  But if not, I won’t be disappointed.  He’s got many years of learning ahead of him…including pottying in the right place!

I hope I didn’t eek you out too much!  Here’s a good lovely smile from my adorable and beautiful son to spur your mind on to other beautiful and lovely things.

Paul making faces!

Please do come back for more reading.  I promise not to talk too much about my baby’s pottying.  Sorry again!  Would you just look at that!  Awww…

Paul in his carrier during our hike at Cades Cove in the Smokies. (He was 4 months old in this picture)

Do you have stories about your baby’s potty training?  How did it go for you?  I would love to hear from you in the comments section.