January fun!

Hi all! So this month has been an adventure! I hadn't flown for a few years, and had worked myself up for months before my 2 trips..After having Dex, my extreme hate for flying got way worse. It wasn't to the point of stopping me from doing it, just the super anxious feeling, and fear of plummeting to my death, pretty much. Thankfully I had Carly(my cousin) with me for the first trip to CA. We both hate flying, and it was a riot to see us together trying to make the other one breathe, or eat twizzlers every five seconds to remain calm. No joke. ha ha. I have to say Carly did better than myself, she might think different...but I disliked the ride greatly! Needless to say, we made it safe and sound, and had a great time visiting her sister Erin, my cousin, and her new little bundle, Wesley! That trip was difficult being away from Dex. I think it was just a day or two too long for me. Dex was in love mode when I got home, so that was nice!

My next adventure was flying to FL to meet Derrick while he was away on business. This was to be a little more crazy for me. I am sorta a wuss, to put it frankly, and was nervous to travel by myself. Of course I sucked it up, because this was going to be a great get away for us, even if only for a few days. I was new to this de-icing the plane thing. I assumed I would just get on, and quickly get to Detroit to meet my connecting flight...but rather, we de-iced for like 30-40 minutes...and I was already panicking about making the next flight. We ended up landing when my next plane would have been boarding. Derrick called me and said my next flight was delayed 2o minutes, and that I should run like hell to the next gate. Mind you I was at gate C22, needing to get to gate A66!!! Needless to say, I ran like I never ran before. Turned out my next flight was NOT delayed, and I got there 3 minutes after the initial flight time(which was AMAZING, i might add)...and the gate man shook his head sadly at me, and gave me a new ticket for 3 and a half hours later! Go figure, right? I was just happy I could still get a flight the same day. Not sure what would have happened if I couldn't. Probably would have called all my Detroit friends to come get me! Hehe. I was pretty much 1 of a few others that also missed that flight. I was looking for someone to hang out with, cuz that is me, and I am social. Luckily, a wonderful girl came and sat across from me also distressed! We pretty much just looked at each other, and said "bar?" This was great. We hung out for three hours, and she turned out to be a writer for a hair magazine, go figure, right? Yes, we are now FB friends, if you were wondering. ;) When we got on the next plane, we also were in the same row, not the same section, but just across from each other. Turns out she hated airplanes as well, even though she travels for work. We kept checking each others facial expressions, if turbulance occured. haha. I know you are thinking I am sooo lame. I don't care. I am lame, and proud, and I love meeting new people. Especially this adorable 25 year old Columbian girl, dating a jewish boy. Seriously, could it get any better? ha ha.

I lucked out having the seat next to me empty, but I had a 50 some year old man sitting in the isle seat. He wasn't shy, and let it be known I could hang out with him while my husband was working. I for sure decided to go to sleep after this, and when I woke he told me he would have bought me a drink but didn't want to wake me. I thanked him for not waking me, and that I didn't want a drink. ;) We did however discuss investments, because that was what he does..so that was errr interesting...passed some of the time at least..maybe he was trying to explain to me how he now doesn't have to work, so he pulls money from them..and the whole time I was wondering why he was sitting in coach if he was so rich he didn't have to work...anyway....

So I made it to FL, introduced my new friend to Derrick, and said goodbye to my new bud! Derrick was proud that I didn't freak out, and made it safely. Turns out I kinda enjoyed my little traveling adventure so far.

Derrick and I immediatly went to a bar on the water at around 1am when I landed. That was fun and much needed. We met some very drunk business men in horticulture business, and let the amuse us that night. For some reason they had to tell everyone we were from MI every so often, and people were intrigued for some reason...Even though EVERYONE I met at our hotel was from MI, and everyone everywhere we went was pretty much from MI. So it was interesting..

We pretty much stayed at the hotel pool every morning, even when it was cold. I had a sweatshirt on over my suit, and laid out like this so I could at least tan my face! The other days were warmer at least! We had a great place to eat for breakfast next door, and I got smoked salmon every morning. We ate somewhere yummy for lunch and dinner each day. Food is amazing. I had seafood the whole time. We went to the awesome Hard Rock Hollywood Casino, and that took up two of our nights. We just walked around and ate at Hooters the second night. It was in the casino. We figured we already ate at the fancy place where they were serving $62 lobster. (We didn't get the lobster)

Needless to say, it was super relaxing, and we had a great time! This time however, I could have stayed longer. Dex was in great hands, and he wasn't really missing me it seemed! lol! Driving to the airport sucked the last day because I had to leave by myself again. Derrick had to stay and drive to Tampa for more work. Landing in Detroit was super depressing, I thought we had somehow detoured to Alaska. It looked like it, anyway. I was already frowning at the snow. I got home, and my dad was just about to drop off Dexter to me! They walked in the door, and he immediatly grabbed for me and hugged and hugged me. He was very happy! Then he helped me roll my luggage into the kitchen. Such a little helper. Then the excitement wore off, and he was running around playing with his toys. Ah well. Dex was also awesome for sleeping in until almost 9:20am...yay! He knew mommy needed rest from her travel day. :)

Now I wait for Derrick to come home on Friday! Hopefully not too many more biz trips coming up..(unless i get to go, hehe)

That's all she wrote!

:-P

Before I forget!

I have to document more this week, because Dex does so many new things so quickly, and I have to remember it all! Today he was doing way too many cool things. (at least...cool to me, anyway..) The best is that he learned to say "night night". He went up to my mom today basically asking for a nap. He is such a smartie. He is so funny because he copies everything we do, and things I don't realize that he picks up on. Today he found a dryer sheet on the floor...and he started going around to all the glass tables wiping them with it.lol (he must have copied that from grandma...lol) and then he took it and started rubbing it in the carpet vigorously...which made me laugh, because Derrick is always trying to get the carpet super clean when Dex spills or myself....and Dex does watch him clean the carpet. A LOT.

There were things I thought prior to being a parent..that I see now is just craziness..but I never knew how hard it would be to do even things around the house, because at this age, they want you in there sight at almost all times. Even, then....I can be in the kitchen outside of his baby gate, and he will be upset because he can't get to me. He will scream and hold his hands up till I pick him up. And let me tell you, it is NOT easy to do dishes with a huge 14 month old on your already horrible hips. (let me remind you...there is still no baby gate at our stairs...so i can't just set him down...our stairs were built before new children safety codes I believe. You can't just put the gate up..it will have to be rigged somehow because of the railing...and we will have to put mesh stuff around the slats as well..so he doesn't fall through...needless to say..due to my back becoming that of a 90 year old woman..this must get done asap.)

Being the tv junky that I am, I also thought..I will so be able to watch a show or two in the background while playing with Dex...obviously that will be just fine. NOT SO MUCH. I don't think I have had anything but baby programs on for the past 3 months. I put on the Ellen show one day, and he brought me the remote basically yelling at me to change it to his dvd. How do I know this is what he wanted, you ask? Because he pointed at the tv yelling with one hand and had the remote flailing at the dvd player in the other. He knows you have to point it at the dvd player to work..but he doesn't understand how to do that yet..Being Derricks son, I am sure he will know soon. He knows how to press play on the dvd player itself though...which cracks us up...because if the tv isn't on..he keeps trying to press play thinking it will work. He is so funny.

Another cute thing he did today was helping me take some ornaments down. Just the ones at the bottom he could reach. It was so cute because he wanted to hang them back on the tree, because he knew they were supposed to be there, but he would just place them on a branch because he didn't know how to hook them on. I am telling you, the kid is a genius. lol.

I started showing him these flashcards with pictures of things you see every day so he could start to learn more..and I showed him the picture of the airplane, and he grabbed the card from me, ran to the window, and started looking up at the sky pointing! lol! He thought I was telling him there was an airplane outside because tons fly over my parents house, and they always show him all the airplanes. C'mon, he is seriously awesome at comprehension.(and they say baby formula isn't as good as breast milk...jk..i know it is..hehe, but still, didn't affect my babe!) I'm not even sure who "they" are...but they are out there..haha

Alright. I think I got it all down...

Holidays.....

Holidays are here, and they are way more fun now with Dex. When we put the lights on the tree, it was awesome to see his little face light up as well. I can't wait till he opens his presents on Christmas Eve with the family. We are having Christmas Eve at our house this year with both our immediate familys. Christmas Day up at Silver Lake with Derricks extended family, and the Day after in Grand Haven with my Step-father in laws family. They have an enormous family get together of around 40 people. So it should be pretty crazy.

What is Dex doing these days you ask? Well, let's see here. Lately he likes to ask for his baabaa in a whisper. For some reason he thinks it's pretty funny to say "baabaa" in a hushed voice, like it's some awesome secret only the two of us know. He understands full sentences, and it always amazes me to see if he will follow through with what I say. For instance, "Do you wanna give the treat to the doggy?" and then he looks at me all excited and takes the treat over to her. Or, "Do you wanna come sit on my lap?" and he gets all excited and lifts his arms for me to pick him up. Or, "Do you wanna go find Daddy?" and then he usually squeals with delight. It's probably his favorite thing to do. He knows daddy has a mancave, so that is usually his first spot to look. He pushes the door open squealing and almost sounding like he is talking in tongues sometimes. Creepy I know. He better learn to talk soon. He is getting good at mimicking. He was watching a kid program and they were saying letters, and he said the letter "R" right back. He also knows how to say "moo" for a cow...and for meow, he says something like "maww" for a cat. We also have a farm book, and he can point out the tractor each time.

He does so many cute things I feel the need to document it all, so I can always remember it. He was tickling grandpas feet the other day, which was super fun for him. He also is a clever little guy, and was looking through a book, and the litte bear was was upside down so he turned the book around so the bear would be right side up. He felt accomplished after that. Dex is also obsessed with the Einstein Dvds which we are going to have to cut back on! It got to the point where the tv wouldn't even be on, and he would come up to me with the remote whining..and I was like..hmmm...I don't think so..So we are trying to limit that, because we would just have it on in the background for him because of the classical music. But he gets so warped into it, he just sorta stands there in a daze.

Dex also loves playing in his new tunnel with Triz the cat. Triz is everywhere Dex is since he was a new born. They are good buddies, except when Dex touches the cat wrong and he attacks him with his claws..but other than that...they love each other dearly.

Now, off to nap before the little one gets up from his.

13 months old and counting...

13 MONTH MAN~

Well, we had our first birthday party, and it went great! The Fajita/Walking Taco bar was a hit, and we got to eat for days! Dexter has a love for food, so he liked his bday cake, but doesn't really like to get too dirty. He was pretty dainty when it came to actually putting his hands in. Sometimes if something gets stuck on his hand, he puts it in front of me wanting me to clean it off. One of his favorite past times is picking fuzz or Kela hair off the floor to give to me, so that I get rid of it. I feel as though he may take after all the neat freaks in my life. Ha ha..which is EVERYONE but me.

What else has little man been doing you ask?? Well he has been destroying things. I like to call him "Dexter the Destroyer". He has a joy throwing tv remotes, hard toys, books, and pushing table chairs across the room, and dumping full cups of water everywhere.

Dex began full-on walking everywhere a few days after his party. He had been taking short strolls prior, but only full fledged after. He doesn't take too many spills anymore, and loves running into the dog and flopping over her furry belly. Thank goodness the dog doesn't mind. His fave toy is the Cozy Coupe car from my Godparents!

As for talking, he seems to think he has a lot to say. He will mimic us if we stay things, and the we are surprised if he actually says it back. It's exciting to see him copy us. I showed him how to put blocks on top of each other instead of showing him how to push them all down, which is funny to watch..he actually placed them on top of eachother, and THEN he pushed them down. He also points the remote at the tv and pushes the buttons because he sees us do that. He pretends to text on my phone, and looks super into it when he is hitting the buttons with his thumb, and he bashes away on our keyboards. He recently tried to play my DS game, and I thought it was the cutest thing. I cracked up the other day when he was watching the animals drink water, and he started sticking his tongue out thinking he was being a part of thier club.

He claps and waves bye bye, and the thing he does ALL DARN DAY..is point to direct us where to go. He thinks this is great, because he has just realized how to play us. He will scream and point to go into one room, then get all giggly and quick point to a different room thinking he is so funny for switching it up last minute. His pointer finger is basically his voice right now. I leave certain things out, because then he can just show me what he wants. He seems to always point at the cheerio box. I think he has a cheerio obsession. He enjoys stealing his best bud, Hudsons O's all the time. He's a pretty smart little dude, and loves being outside. It's getting cold out though, so I might actually get him a little snowsuit. I was going to wait till next year..but he won't last being cooped up inside all day.

He recently was reintroduced to the Einsteing Dvds, and those have been a LIFESAVER! I cannot tell you how those help me get things done. He forgets I left the room he is so engrossed in the tv. He eventually figures it out and then goes and screams at the gate..but still! It helps. He is getting SOOOO heavy. It is difficult to bend with him, and pick things up. OMG. But ya can't just put him down, or he will run away and go open cupboards or try to go down the stairs(we still need a gate for that area, we just have him gated in the living room and dining area) The stairs he has always been a big fan of climbing, but recently he has wanted to try to "walk"down them. He always wants me to hold his hand, and step down each one. I do this for a few steps then pick him up, because it is dangerous. I don't get a good grip that way. Those kids will sucker you into doing anything.

Soooo...what have I learned the first year??? Don't listen to all the crap people tell you to do with your baby!! We did a lot of the norm, and a lot of the stuff people said NEVER to do, and guess what?? They were totally WRONG in what he ended up doing. First of all, little man slept with us for the first 5 months, in our room/in our bed. We were told he would never sleep in his room, and freak out and want to come sleep with us. He did the opposite. He actually slept better, and slept through the night once we moved him. This also was during the time we started to feed him solid foods. That also helped. Since Derrick worked all day, it was a nice time that he got to spend with Dex cuddling.

We were pretty laid back in the beginning and let him sorta show us his schedule, and it was surprising that they do just fall into one! After we sorta found it, then we got strict with it. That schedule determines theirs/and your night. Now I know why moms freak out when someone else watches their kid in the beginning. If any little thing goes different in the day, it could determine a horrible night for the parents! Luckily I had my moms watch Dex from day 1, and then they could see how he was. This helped that he doesn't freak out when I hand him over to be babysat. He is pretty good with strangers depending on if he has had a nap or not. Otherwise, it's mommytime all the way.

It has been great hosting playgroups because I think it will help the kids to learn to play/share. This is hilarious to watch since it is all beginning right now. They just grab each others toys and freak out. The moms usually laugh, and just try to explain sharing. I am not sure when that clicks..but so far it's not too bad!

Can't wait for all the other milestones to come. That is pretty much a wrap for now!

My baby is "1" in a few days!!!

It's been ONE YEAR?! What an amazing one it has been. I can't believe how much joy one little boy could bring to so many families. Through loved ones passing away, this little guy kept minds cheerful, and positive. Through huge life changes, this little guy kept everyone going. He doesn't know it yet how much he has changed all our lives, but as he gets older, we will share it all with him.

A friend of mine used to say to me, "You will never understand the love of a mother to her child, until you have your own"...being my stubborn self, I was like "Well, I love YOUR children, Leeanna! :) " and then...I had one, and was like "Ohhh....I see..."..that whole overwhelming feeling of love that fills you up, and spills out your ears, down through your toes.I get it now.

The first time they wrap their little arms around your neck and give you a hug. The first time they open their eyes and look up at you when they are first born. Holding their little hand, and them trusting you implicitly. Being that person who comforts them, when actually it is them who is comforting you. Being so proud of every moment, even if it's just them pointing at an object and understanding what it is. It is more than that. It's just pure love.

Even our little Cora changed our lives. She would be two years old this December. Babies are such a blessing. She will be talked about always. How can I not? I gave birth to a little girl, a daughter. A little girl who "I" knew, and bonded with in those almost 6 months of pregnancy. Dex will know he had a sister, and it's nothing to be ashamed to talk about.

Love to my babies.

Looking forward to the new year

It's been awhile, but Dex is almost ready for his 1st birthday! He is making us so proud with taking his first steps, and just being the best little boy we could ever ask for. The last few months it has been amazing watching him grow. From eating all sorts of new foods to pulling himself up onto everything in sight, and getting across the whole living room on two feet. We love his curly hair like his dad, and his blue eyes like...hmmm...no one has eyes like him!
Next year we have three out of state weddings, and we get to take Dex to FL and CA. We have another wedding in CO, but we will leave Dex home for that one. It will be his first time at Disney World! I know he probably won't remember when he gets older, but he lights up when he looks at ceiling fixtures or door stoppers... So imagine how much he will get to take in at Disney! I am nervous about taking him on a plane since he doesn't like to sit still...that should be interesting...He for sure got Derricks genes there.

Derrick has been doing great at work, and has recently had to travel for work once a month for about a week. Dex and I miss him, but manage well with help from both Grandparents. I work three days a week currently, and manage to fit in all of my clients. It's a blessing to be able to be with my son the rest of the week.

We are very excited to meet cousin Wes soon, and have a lot of joy to look forward to in the next few months. I am also thinking of my friends Laurie and Errick and their battle with Cancer. I know that "Trudy" will be shrinking away with each and every day!

With that being said I would like to say that I am also thinking of all of my family right now and Grandma Helen. She is an amazing woman, and we are sending her our love.

Zayde got his wish!

What a great weekend :) My Zayde was back in the rehab center minus his infections. He was just at the hospital for a UTI issue, and thank goodness was released back to rehab. We packed our bags and jumped at the chance to bring Dex to see him. We have been waiting and waiting because Zayde has been in the hospital since January. We were not allowed to take Dex at the time because he was too young, and Zayde had numerous infections and was on the contagious floor at the hospital. It was hard a few months ago, because when I went to visit him,I had to keep Dex in the lobby. It was sad for him knowing his great grandson was actually in the building but he couldn't go near him. At that visit, it looked literally like he was on his death bed. He couldn't talk, and he had an oxygen mask on. He couldn't even sit up or in a wheelchair. He was NOT himself by any means. I thought I was basically saying goodbye that trip.
So moving ahead,we got to his floor and he was waiting in the hallway. I was in SHOCK to see him like the man I knew prior to his last visit. For having congestive heart failure, he was doing as good as he can be. He was alert and speaking with his arms out waiting to hold Dex :)
Our visit went well, but Dex was pretty ornery from the trip down. We drove straight to the facility, so I had to quick change/feed/play with him to get him settled. He wanted to get down and crawl, but we weren't about to put him on that floor. It's still basically like a hospital. Needless to say we couldn't stay more than an hour and a half or so. Zayde also needed a nap, so the timing was actually ok. Grandma and him kept saying how much of a Swidersky he looked like. They couldn't get over it.
I'm still not sure how he has bounced back to his current state. Obviously he is much weaker, and needs a wheelchair, but my Grandma thinks there will be a chance he gets to go home. At this point I can say it could be possible, but only if he gets the strength to walk. My Grandma is a bitty little thing, and she wouldn't be able to care for him if he couldn't stand on his own. Zayde is one determined guy, I will give him that! All the people at the facility love him because he is a really kind man. When we got there they were all excited to meet Dex and congratulate Zayde for getting to meet him. It was a cool experience for sure :)