Grocery Store

Jack really enjoyed the shopping cart made just for him.  He thought that Roche Bros. was classier than Stop and Shop....and of course he had his own cart here.

Valentine's Day...

Monday was our second Valentine's Day with our little man. He had a great morning surprise waiting for him when he woke up - candy hearts, red socks, a new Elmo t-shirt, new sunglasses, an Eye-Spy Valentines book, a book about bears, and a small teddy bear. He loved his loot and he looked so cute in his Elmo shirt (I will have to post pictures later!)

He had a fun day eating lots of sugar and celebrating the holiday with his teachers and classmates. I think he may think that Valentine's Day is every day because he keeps begging for candy hearts. No sir! :)

Here is a pic of his sunglasses, which he loved!

Happy Valentine's Day from our little man!

Jack at School and at Home

Jack came home yesterday with the Toddler One January Newsletter. I thought I'd share some of the things he has done at school over the past month:

• Throughout January, the children had many opportunities to play with snow, both inside and outside. They explored how cold the snow felt in the sensory table and also had fun watching the bulldozers move the snow outside. (Mom note: their classroom windows overlook the front parking lot.) They would yell "truck!" every time they saw the snowplow coming.
• Besides the abundance of snow that we had, the children engaged in many other activities. Some of their favorites were using flyswatters as a painting tool, painting with jello, using fine motor skills to put animal stickers on paper and of course, finger painting. We use many tools while painting, and the children are all learning which grasp to use while holding a paintbrush.
• Literacy time in the classroom is always a favorite. Their favorite books this month were Three Brown Bears, Animal Sounds, Polar Bear Polar Bear, and The Truck Book.
• Our little toddlers love to engage in sensory play! This month they made Play-Doh, which was very messy but lots of fun. We brought snow into the room and had the children spray water colors and see the snow turn different colors. They also played with dry rice in the sensory table. The children put rice in cups and watched it go through the strainer.
• Mr. Phillip the Music Man came this month and we learned lots of new songs and dances while we clapped our hands!
• And finally, weather closings for the school will now be posted on Fox 25 News and http://www.myfoxboston.com/ . Hopefully February will bring warmth!

We were very happy with everything they have been doing and we are looking forward to a very fun Valentine's Day party at school!

In other news, Jack has a few new obsessions. The first is Plum Tots Mish Mash. It's really a great idea - puree a bunch of fruit and put it in a fun, easy pouch for kids. The only problem is that Jack can literally suck down 2-3 in one sitting, asking for more. While they seem very good for him...they are a bit expensive for that! So we are starting to make them a special treat. He is a HUGE fan!!

The second, which has been growing for awhile but has now become a full-fledged thing, are his Taggies. (See videos below.) He can't sleep without them and he even likes to have them around during the day just as comfort. He has one at school but it's only brought out for naptime.

Also, our little man has always loved bathtime, but it's become much more interactive (and wet!!) He loves to have water dumped on or throw in his face (weirdo) ... Justin and Jack were both laughing hysterically in all of these pictures. It was adorable especially because they are clones. :)

Also, a special thanks to Aunt Courtney for his super special guitar (NOT LOUD AT ALL.) He loves to "play" it while watching Elmo....

Finally, what would a winter post be without a snow pic?? Thankfully we have a forecast of 5 very cold days but with NO SNOW!!!! PHEW!!!

Sick.

So life with Jack lately has been great, but the weather has been horrible, and I have been majorly stressed out with a whole lot of things going on. I started feeling really bad around New Years, and spent most weekends begging Justin to watch Jack for "just a little while" so that I could sleep in or take a nap. I had multiple sore throats, stuffy noses, and various other ailments too. I finally went to the doctor a few weeks ago and they did all kinds of blood work - finding nothing. A week later I still felt really bad so I went back and lo and behold, the strep test came back positive. I had strep throat, no big thing, and I was prescribed some antibiotics.

I felt better, got back to work, and back into the stress of life. I finished my pills last Thursday and by Saturday morning I was feeling awful again - tired, sore throat, stuffy, runny, fever, etc. I went to Urgent Care on Saturday and they ran another strep test - which came back still positive. The doctor basically threatened my life, telling me how dangerous it is to leave strep throat untreated for so long (from the paperwork she gave me: "In many cases, untreated strep throat can lead to tonsillitis, otitis, rheumatic fever, and scarlet fever. On the premises of a weak immune system, the infection can even become systemic, affecting the body on multiple levels....") She said I had two options: a) be admitted to the hospital that day to force me to rest and recover, or b) stay home from work, literally in bed, not outside, not answering emails or calls, for a whole week.

I grudgingly took option B. It's a little humiliating to have to take a doctor's note to work, but here I am, resting and in bed just as I should. I got a shot (the second one) in the hip on Saturday and I am on another round of antibiotics that is tearing me up. I still feel tired but already much better. It's scary but I really appreciate everyone covering for me this week as I try to get better.

I called Jack's doctor just to make sure he's ok. Luckily strep is pretty rare in kids under 2, and they are confident that he's fine. Justin has also somehow avoided this, although I have been careful to not kiss or drink from the same glass as either of them. I hope that I can post next week about how much better I feel!

And Winter Continues...

I keep posting about the snow, but really, it's all we can see or think about right now. It's out of control!! Some quotes from the past week...

"The roofs of buildings around the region continued to collapse today, overburdened by this grueling winter's seemingly endless onslaught of snow, rain, ice, and sleet. And the forecast offers little hope -- the National Weather Service says another storm will hit on Saturday." -Boston.com

"THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHERN...CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS...EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS...ANOTHER STORM IS POSSIBLE ON SATURDAY. THIS WILL BRING THE POTENTIAL FOR SNOW...FREEZING RAIN...AND RAIN." - National Weather Service Alert

"New Englanders dug out from under more than 2 feet of snow and children in hundreds of communities enjoyed a second day off from school Thursday as power companies worked to restore energy to homes and businesses darkened by the region's third snowstorm in three weeks. Winter-hardy New England was working its way to normal one day after the storm. Many major Massachusetts highways were cleared, but many secondary roads remained slick and mountains of snow obstructed views at many intersections." - MyFoxBoston



So you get the point. We are weather-weary and praying, just praying, for a few days over 40 degrees so that some of this snow will melt before all of our buildings collapse. Spring, PLEASE GET HERE SOON!!!

Jack seems to be enjoying life even if he is out of school or stuck inside half the time. Here are some recent pics...
 

I can never resist watching my baby sleeping :)

I love being Santa! Look at my beard!

Daddy got me a special treat at BJ's :)

After being stuck inside ALL DAY on 2/2/11, the kid is still pretty happy...