18 Months Old Today

I'm already so behind on this blog, I feel it's impossible to catch up. So I'll start from where we are today, which is the 5th of December, 2011, and my sweet son is 18 months old.

How to describe him? His wit and sweetness, his humor and warmth are constant founts of joy for us. He is a very early talker (I hear it runs in the family) and has a massive vocabulary, speaking two and three-word sentences. Last week he even said, "Dada, can I have pasta?" He MUST be related to me. He's learning his ABCs and numbers, shapes, and colors, and most of it has been with the help of sign language, which I believe has really facilitated his talking skills. He's starting to make jokes with words and find his own humor in silliness, which is just delightful.

He has a lot of kisses to offer, but he is becoming shy and a bit wary of the world. I've learned he needs lots of observation and lead time before plunging into a new experience. But after he's done it, he'll talk about it nonstop for weeks.  For instance, we took him to the carousel in Griffith Park and even though he'd been on it many times before, he's now afraid of it. He spent the ride sobbing and clinging to me in fear. When it ended, we spent some time just looking at it and talking about it, and we walked away to do other things. Some time passed, and then he asked to go back, so we tried again, and he LOVED it. Now this is all I hear all day: "Carousel! Lights! Ceiling! Music! Fun! Acka (Grandpa)!" This is his personality starting to bloom. He's a thinker. An observer.

 

Everyone is his friend right now. Every guest that comes to visit is later talked about for days, even weeks. "Tiffy! Paul! Friends!" He keeps naming everyone that came for Thanksgiving. He asks for his neighborhood friends almost immediately upon waking and has plenty of suggestions as to how I should be filling his time "Water Fountain? Play? Wash Hands? Signing Time? Play Water? Carousel?"

Sebastian is very gentle with his friends. He's not the chaser, he's the chasee, and always wants to get caught (he calls it "GETCHU!", as in "I'm gonna get you!"). He's not the most physically adept child just yet. He's still very enthusiastic about anything with wheels but seems to be moving more towards trains now (what in the WORLD did little boys play about before there were trains?). He loves anything to do with water and I am loving the swim classes we are taking together at the YMCA.

I have probably stated this a lot before, but he's an absolute giant. He physically looks like a 2-year-old, and I am looking forward to finding out his stats when he goes for his 18 month checkup this week.

He makes our heart ache, we love him so. Every day is a precious gift.

I'm posting this so I will remember. So that there is a record. So I can look back and feel what this time was like. We are at this moment waiting for his new cousin to arrive, and then he'll have another playmate in this life. Very exciting indeed. I cannot wait to take him home for Christmas to see his family, and for them to see him. We are so often alone in our little apartment together, and I crave the community and communion of loved ones who are so far away. Soon!

August 2011

My oh my, the time is moving swiftly. August was fast and strange, as Augusts often are. The gallery of pictures from August is here. This little guy just blossoms day by day. He continues to astound us with his words and his signs! We have been showing him Baby Signing Time and he LOVES IT. His vocabulary has expanded tremendously and he is very able to express himself using signs along with speaking a word, which makes things very helpful and clear when he's trying to tell me something. And wow, does he have a lot to say. It's amazing to get a window into his world.

14 Month Birthday

Loving his tractor ride at Underwood Farm

We went to a farm this month and he had a wonderful time riding the tractor and seeing animals and eating warm, fresh strawberries we picked ourselves.

Discussing philosophy

Coxsackie! Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease! HERPANGINA! Doesn't that sound delicious? Those have been the keywords the last two weeks. Sebastian managed to get Herpangina from someone in his playgroup, which made for a very sad week where he had a high fever and pox all over his body and in his mouth so he was unable to eat without crying.  He is now doing much better and managed to pass it on over to me, which is super fun. But I'm getting through it, and I at least have a better idea of what he was going through, poor guy.

My little buddy

It is already one whole year ago that we spent the month in Albuquerque with our little newborn. One whole year ago that David went back to work and I have been home with him, being a stay-at-home mom (WHAAAT?? WHAT? Is that what I am? Never in a million years would I have predicted that one).  I don't know how that year passed so quickly, and now I have this tall boy walking by my side. I can't wait to see where this path takes us next, little friend.

14 Months

The original nose, before The Incident

 Sebastian had a great July. A few pics to recap.

The beach with Gramsie

He had a lovely visit with his grandparents. Lots of clowning around. As a new walker, he got a little overconfident walking in the park one day and took a faceplant, resulting in cutting his nose up and it still hasn't healed up, so his pics all feature his Rudolph nose.

14 Month Birthday

 Please explain to me how he could be 14 months old.

The kid is talking up a storm. He has quite a lot to say, apparently. I started a word list but couldn't keep track after 35 words. It astounds us. He astounds us every day, in so many different ways. He's really blossoming and happy and alive and sweet and wonderful.  I've been thinking about last year at this time in Albuquerque (how can there already be a "last year at this time?") and the incredible difference between now and then. We were all so raw, so exhausted and terrified and he was in such discomfort. His stomach woes are now fading away and he's happy and mostly not in pain (OK, he has managed to teeth all four molars and four canines at once, which is clearly not pleasing to him but he's really taking it well).  He's such a blessing to our lives and every day we are filled with wonder at him and how he's transformed us.

Please pray for his little nose, that it will heal up and not leave a scar.

One Year Old And Then Some

Sebastian arrives to his party

Well, here we are, it's the end of July and our sweet son is already more than 13 months old. I am only just now getting around to writing this post about him turning one, and his birthday, and how wonderful it was.  I am falling behind on this blog but I do want to keep it up, as a sort of virtual memory book of Sebastian's growing up. I know he'll read this one day and wonder why it took me so long and I can only say, "son, I was too busy being in the moment with you to write about it. Now put your space suit on and get me an astronaut ice cream."

As a display, I made a clothesline of the clothes he wore this year that were especially dear to us. You can see how massively he grew since taking him home a year ago.

His birthday was so wonderful.  We had so many visitors who came specifically for the occasion, it just made our hearts sing. Gabriella arrived first (she is now officially called Go-Go), followed by Christina, Aunt Maria, and Uncle Don. Then Uncle Daniel, Aunt Shannon, Isabella, Nathaniel, Gabriel, and Sophia arrived, and soon after, Grandpa Warren.  We had a picnic party at a park in Glendale called Mayors' Bicentennial Park and it was perfect: we practically had the park to ourselves, and the weather was just right. I think there were around 50 guests altogether: our friends, friends of my parents, and new friends from the playgroup, all there to help us celebrate and mark what a beautiful year it has been with this new soul in the world.  It was just a beautiful, perfect, stress-free day and I will always hold it in my heart, just like I do that first day he arrived with his arms outstretched and his dark eyes solemnly regarding his new world.

The cakes, OH THE CAKES! Sebastian had a vegan banana cake. The other two were fresh lemon and chocolate icebox from Lark Bakery. I will always remember their deliciousness.

Here is a link to more pictures from the birthday party. Hey, by the way, were you at this party? Please send me your pictures! I didn't get to take a ton since I was busy wrangling the birthday boy, so any extra pics would be appreciated.

CAKEYFACE

Our sweet family

Here is a link to more pictures from the month of June 2011.

His triumphant first walk in the park!

Here is a link to pictures from July 2011. You will see that he is walking. He started fully walking on June 29th.  He went from just trying out a few steps at a time for a month to just, on that day, starting and never stopping. It was such a Sound My Barbaric Yawp Over The Rooftops Of The World moment.  He is SO thrilled about it. He just walks around with a huge silly grin on his face and his arms up in a vampire pose that is hilarious. He is talking up a STORM and already has about 35 words in his vocabulary. He is also getting EIGHT TEETH at the same time, which is obviously not fun, but he's dealing with it much better than I think I would. 

Since I started trying to write this post (that I need to just finish and put up or it will go on and on), we've had a lovely visit from his grandparents (Grandpa and Gramsie).  He had a wonderful week with them and already miss them very much. There is more, there is so much more, and one day I will write it all down. For now, there's this. Baby steps.

April and May

Oh man, I am so behind on posting it's not even funny. Sebastian got sick again at the end of April and that culminated in another double ear infection which means we essentially fell off the planet for the last month. He's just getting back to himself now.

 

At Mayor's Bicentennial Park, where we will have his birthday party

 

  

These photos were taken at Descanso Gardens

More pics from April in the April Gallery.
 

 11 month birthday

 

Disneyland!

 

I had the incredible pleasure and honor of acting with my son in a movie last week. It's called Holiday Road and will be released this fall. It was such an amazing experience to be with him and have him near me while doing my job. I loved it so much. He was awesomely patient and funny and everyone was impressed with his calmness on set.

More pics from May in the May Gallery.

Yesterday, which was Memorial Day, we were at a park with Ashley and Joel. Ashley was holding Sebastian and she said "go walk to mama" and he did. He walked about six or seven steps into my arms.  It was very unexpected and utterly wonderful.  It will probably be a while before he is really walking but this was an amazing first time, and I'm glad we were all there to experience it together.

And in only five days, my son will be one year old. I don't...I can't...I...I will post more soon.

10 Months Old

My boy is 10 months old.  He's weighing over 26 lbs.  He's a huge, huge child.  Everyone who sees him guesses at least a year and a half, then their eyes bulge when I tell them his age.  He's happy and healthy and fun and sweet and inquisitive and placid and gentle. He studies people very intensely and seems very serious around newcomers, but not fearful.  He is an observer.  He crawls very quickly and easily pulls up to standing and gets back down with ease (well, relatively...we've had two bloody lips in the last 48 hours from falls).  He insists on putting himself to sleep, which is puzzling, but I guess good? He refuses to be rocked, instead opting for rolling around in the crib and talking himself to sleep (BAB WAB BAB WAB BLAB BAB WAB!).  His stomach is clearly doing better and it's making him a happier and more engaged child every day.

I have added to the March gallery with more pictures.  April gallery to come soon.

My aunt saw this picture and saw a bit of my grandmother in him.  I see it, too.

MAGICAL

The last week has been just magical. Since he's been well, Sebastian has been having a grand ole' time. Crawling, jabbering, laughing, SLEEPING, the works! He's just happy, happy, happy.  It's really, really wonderful.  His nine month stats: 24 lbs, 3 ozs (yowza), 30 inches tall. 

We had a fun weekend and took him to the zoo where he started to really notice the animals for the first time:

More pics at the March gallery, which will be added as we go along.

I just want to say that I LOVE the comments that you, our family, leave here. I don't always have a ton of time to respond but I am definitely listening and appreciating and taking stuff to heart.  Thank you!

January and February 2011

From the way I've been not blogging about Sebastian, you'd think I didn't care or something.  Well folks, it ain't that at all.  He has been sick, poor thing, in some form or another, since before Christmas.  That's 11 weeks ago.  It started before our trip home to Albuquerque that he got a cold.  That percolated for a while, he got another cold on top of that one, and that developed into bronchiolitis and a double ear infection in January.  He was on an inhaler and had to have nebulizer treatments at the doctor.  Then he managed to get himself a third cold at the beginning of February, and we all said, "well surely this is the end now." BUT WE WERE WRONG, because after a trip to Albuquerque, he managed to get himself a FOURTH cold, which complicated into another bout of bronchiolitis and a new ear infection.  Then he became sick from all the antibiotics and had a really bad reaction including full-body hives, abdominal pain, and general very upsetness. ARE WE HAVING FUN YET?

What I am trying to say is that we've been busy. :) He still manages to be this sweet and cute and adorable through it all. 

Here are more awesome pictures from January and February.

I am sharing this so that some day I can look back on this time and laugh and say, "Hooooooey! Remember when we didn't get a decent night of sleep for eleven weeks straight? Wasn't THAT a kicker?" I'm saying eleven because it is stopping at eleven.  There will be no twelve, so help me.

Hey, future self: it gets totally awesomely better, right? I knew it. 

He will be nine months old in two days.  He is army crawling like a champ but hasn't quite mastered it with the belly off the floor.  Any day now, I'm sure of it.  He's trying to pull up on everything but doesn't quite have it all together yet.  I think it is because he is HUGE.  He is wearing 18 month clothing.  It's kind of heartbreaking and beautiful.  He has just sailed past several clothing sizes.  I'll post stats when I get them on Monday.

December

Wowza, am I ever behind on this blog. It has been quite a month. Trying to catch up. Here are pics from Sebastian's first Christmas. It was magical and beautiful, even though he did manage to catch his first cold just hours before leaving for Albuquerque. He has been sick a whole month since then! It is finally starting to get a bit better but wow, what a tough time it has been!

Here is a gallery of pics from December.

Here he is on Christmas morning:

And here he is at his baptism at Aquinas Newman Center with his very loving godparents: 

It was a truly beautiful and intimate service and he did really well.  I felt so happy to be able to have such love and light surrounding him.

He's awake, got to go.  More very soon!