The "ehhhhen" phase

Ladies and gentlemen I present you "the ehhen"phase. It's very frustrating for mommy as most of the times he's whining about the forbidden objects and he doesn't want to give up on them. No matter how hard mommy or papa is trying to use the good ol' method of shifting his attention towards other activities not to mention the pile of toys, he's focused on the Other Thing.:)
I'm just very curious how much is just a stage in his development and how much is just pure personality.
More to come, I'm sure....

1 in 3

That's what I should call it: 3 parties for 1 celebration. Or 1 celebration with 3 parties. You choose.:)
That's how many parties little Bryce had for his 1st birthday.

1. Michigan - so all the family can give him a kiss and a present.:)

2. Park in Encino - a little party with his little friends from the work out, right when he turned 1;

3. Party at home - 3 days later, on a Sunday, for all the good friends that were working in the middle of the week.

But, I have to write here very clear, that this will NOT become a habit. :) One party is enough. So, please, when you will read this post, later in life, my dear Brycy,  don't start complaining.:)

1 year and 1 week check-up

So, after 2 months from the last visit, we had our 1 year old appointment.
Some results:

-height : 31 1/2 " ( 80 cm)
- weight : 21.5 pounds (aprox. 9,8 kg)

At one year old, he is also supposed to get the MMR shot (measles, mumps and rubella), the chickenpox shot and Hep A shot as well as drawing some blood to be checked for anemia.
We only went ahead with the anemia test and postponed the shots. The reason for which I postponed it is that Bryce is still recovering from a week in which he didn't feel that well.
However, I still have a different approach about the way I want to do this whole shot schedule:
- I know for sure that I don't want to do at all the chickenpox shot  (our doctor doesn't have anything against it)
- I also want to delay if not skip at all the Hep A shot;
- now when it comes to the MMR shot, I have mixed feelings, each disease by itself is not dangerous for him, as a kid. According to dr. Bob Sears, in his "The Vaccine Book":
"Measles is a virus that travels throughout the body and causes a fever, rash (red, round bumbs and spots all over the body) runny nose and cough. [...] Measles is usually not serious. Most cases, especially in children, pass in a week or so without any trouble. "
"Mumps is a virus similar to measles. It causes fever, rash and swelling of the saliva glands in the cheeks (right in front of the ears). [....] Mumps is not serious. In fact, most kids who have mumps have some fever and a slight rash but not enough for anyone to worry about or even make a diagnosis. [...] Fot teens and adults, however, mumps can be more serious. Males may have sore, swollen testicles, and men and women can have arthritis, kidneys problems, heart problems or nervous system dysfunction. Very rarely, the disease can make adults (men and women) sterile.
"Rubella, like measles and mumps, is a virus that causes a fever and rash ( red, round bumps and spots all over the body). It can also cause aching joints and swelling of the glands behind the ears and in the neck. In children, the disease is so mild the it often goes unnoticed. [...] We vaccinate for rubella because if a pregnant woman catches rubella, [...] it can infect her fetus and cause birth defects. So, we vaccinate the kids to protect pregnant teachers and mothers and their soon-to-be born babies."
So, after this brief presentation of each of the diseases, the bottom line would be: no shot for the measles, maybe a later shot for the mumps ( as it can be somehow dangerous in the teenage, adult years) and an early shot for rubella (depending on how much interaction with pregnant women he's having - is he going into daycare, kindergarden etc)
Taking in consideration that the MMR shot has by far too many side effects than any other shot, I'd rather pursue the splitting of the vaccine, meaning doing only the mumps shot and the rubella shot.
So, my alternative schedule would look like:

15 months - Pc, HIB

18 months - DTaP, Polio

24 months - Rubella (that's about the time when we would like to get pregnant again with another baby)

3 y.o - Mumps (he will start pre-school)

EDIT : Thanks to my wonderful friend MQ, I found out that MMR shot is no longer available into separate shots. There's a very useful article about it, here. Having said that, I will revise my schedule, as fallow:

15 months - PC, HIB

18 months - DTaP, Polio

3 y.o. or later (depending when he will start pre-school) - MMR


Shots are not an easy one!!!

A week to remember

OMG!!! What a week that we've just ended!!! So many events, all so meaningful and important in their own way!
August 18th - Bryce's first birthday
August 21st - The Emmy awards (my hubby was nominated for outstanding VFX for Ben 10)
August 22nd - Bryce's mom B-day (33 yo)

In the middle of all these wonderful events, we've also had our share of not so happy moments.
Right at the beginning of the week, Bryce started having fever. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 102 F (38,8). If he didn't seem to care or be bothered by it in the first two days, reason for which I basically didn't give him anything, except for keeping him hydrated, by the 3rd day, he was kind of overwhelmed by it, a bit lethargic, not so active. We decided to give him some Ibuprofen, and after the first dose he already felt so much better and more active. No second dose was necessary.
Now with the temperature gone, some more stuff to deal with. A bit of diarrhea. Only 3 stools a day and just a bit runny. Again, because he was not bothered by it, I basically only gave him some probiotic, a bit of menthe tea and some rice. And after about 3-4 days, his stools were back to normal again.
So, what would have been the cause to all this? Well, we suspect it was a combination of both a little cold virus (as he was coughing a bit, but no runny nose) and teething (as all 4 up incisors came in at once).
Today, after more than a week, he's back to his old self, happy, starting to eat solids again and not in pain.
What a week!!! Not to forget it so easily!!!

Tooth X 4

Right before his first birthday, Bryce got himself a present: 4 teeth coming out at once. All 4 above incisors. We're still waiting for the other 2 on the bottom.
A little bit of ouch for him, some loose stools and lots of clinginess. Sometimes, it's hard to be a baby

Happy B-day, my awesome son!!! La Multi Ani, "somitate bebeluseasca".:)

One year ago, at 7:27 am you came out from my womb and thought me how to be a better person, how to be a MOTHER. And you were so patient with me and so kind.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, my dear son!!!

LA MULTI ANI, dragul meu fiu!!!

Mami te IUBESTE foarte, foarte mult.

O ZI

UN AN

Dragul meu fiu,

Ai intrat in viata mea ca o ploaie calda de vara. M-ai racorit, inveselit,
curatat si m-ai facut sa privesc viitorul cu si mai multa hotarire.

M-ai invatat ca dragostea e neconditionata si ca rabdarea poate fi
recompensata doar cu un zimbet sau o dulce privire.

Nu mi-as mai putea imagina nici o clipa viata mea fara tine.

Ce incredibil poate fi sentimentul matern!!! Cum creste inlauntrul nostru si ne
cucereste definitiv cind ne stringem pruncii in brate pentru prima data.

Calatoria noastra a inceput acum un an!!! Si cit de multe aventuri ne mai
asteapta!!! Si cite provocari si poate citeva lacrimi, si o inima frinta si
citeva dezamagiri, insa, pentru bine si rau, succes si nesansa, bucurii si
tristeti, vei avea un umar pe care sa te sprijini, brate deschise in care sa te
scufunzi si multa, multa iubire.

Iti multumesc si te imbratisez cu drag

Mami cea zgubi :))

Thought of the day

When you raise  kids, raise them with the thought in your mind, that one day they will be grown ups among other grown ups.

All night long sleep

I have to record this, even if will not become a habit in the near future. But last night was the FIRST NIGHT when he didn't wake up at all. He slept all the way through it.
Some myth busted right there ( you know the one in which they say that baby start sleeping through the night by the age of 6 months old...blah...blah).:)

Scribbling

Just like that while we were in Michigan. We went to a restaurant where they were offering to the kids paper and pencils to draw. Bryce was very excited and the moment he put the pencil in his little hand he started scribbling on the paper.
Now he likes it even more.

BLW -6th month

It's been half of year of BLW. I really don't know how all this time went by, but here we are, close to our first birthday.
For us, BLW was the perfect choice. I'm so happy I've learnt about it (one more time, thanks so much MQ for sharing with us) because I gave my baby the opportunity of being himself and choosing for himself, discovering for himself and learning how shapes and textures work and how they can melt into a delicious meal.
As time went by, Bryce evolved from playing with solids to the degree of actually understanding what solids mean :that they can fulfill bellies, that they have different tastes, that he can ask for more 'cause something is very yummy, that meals are fun 'cause he can see both mom and dad and that he is free to choose and free to go and never forced to do something he doesn't want to do.
By doing BLW, I was never forced to invent stories or behave like a clown or trick my baby just for the sake of eating. And after only six months, I can see the benefits: how independent he is, how grown up, how he sits in the chair and really enjoys every piece that goes into his mouth, asking for more or refusing when he is full.
For some reason, even if he's my first born (or maybe because of that) I just was so confident and just trusting him in the way he approached this concept. For some reason, I've never freaked out that one week went by and he may be he only ate some grapes and blueberry. I guess that the concept :"Solids are fun til' they're one" kinda of sticked in my brain really well.:)
And now, at almost one year, he's eating well. Well for him 'cause I know he's smart to choose what he needs. Mom will just offer and baby will do the rest.
Way to go, Brycy, mommy is so proud of you. Bon appetit!

Torch Lake

There's a place where the memories and the fun and the quiet come together. There's a place where kids grew up with the sound of the waves breaking on the shore. There's a place where a grand parent built a little house and a father listened to the music played on the porch. And because all the places in the world need to have a name, then this place is called: TORCH LAKE.
So begins the story of our first baby and his first experience on Torch. I would love for him to look back in 20-30 years and be amazed by the heritage, by the souvenirs, by his own adventures on TORCH.
If I would have to write a word for everyday we spent on TORCH, let me see how that would work out:
wind, cottage, lake, beef jerky, Charelvoix, piano, family, sunset, turquoise, sandbar, dockside, concert, Petoskey, bonfire.

There's a place so vibrant yet so calm and its name is: TORCH LAKE.

I want to use the fork

Mexican restaurant. Menu: carne asada and tortilla soup. On the table: plastic fork and spoon. In the high chair: Bryce.
Purpose: I want to use those things.
First: the spoon for the soup. He's very happy to make the connection between that bowl of soup, spoon going in the bowl, spoon full of soup then spoon in the mouth.
Second: the fork for the carne asada and some other stuff on the plate. Mom will impale a piece of meat on the fork and baby will transfer into his mouth.
Little things towards a total independency.