Train

We have been very busy recently, so I have not had a chance to add any new posts . . . sorry!! Unfortunately, since we've been busy we haven't gone anywhere that would result in any fun, new, exciting pictures to post. So here's one from today when we were just hanging out at home. This is Cass with his new train - when we went to Kansas City, his friend Kyler had one, so we figured we should buy him his own. I'm not sure if this was exactly what Kyler had, but Cass LOVED it when we were there and seems to love this one equally as well. He pushes it all over the house, then stops at his sippy cup and takes a drink to get a rest.

Where did he come from???

Well, like I said in my previous post, we haven't been too exciting recently, so I don't have a lot to post about. So, here are just a couple pics of Cass eating his dinner tonight. Look at those hazel eyes!! With my dark brown hair, Chris's black hair, and our brown eyes, we are perplexed about Cass's coloring. One of my friends calls his hair hazel as well - it's gone from brown, to reddish blonde, to kind of a light golden brown.

Here he is showing off his pearly whites, as well as the ravioli that he had for dinner. :) His 4th top and 4th bottom teeth are just starting to poke through, so he has a total of 8 now.

Doctor Appointments

Cass has had quite a week. He has absolutely no immune system because he is rarely exposed to anything or anyone outside of our house (he hasn't even had a cold!!). So, I expected that he would get sick after our trip to Kansas City, and I was right. He had a runny nose the first week after we returned home, then on Labor Day he came down with a 103 degree fever. He went to the doctor Tuesday, who checked his ears and throat and concluded he just had some kind of bug. On Thursday his fever broke, and he then broke out in a rash. We went back to the doctor today for his one year check-up, and the doctor said the rash is evidence that he had Roseola. Apparently it's a common virus little ones get. I know this is the first of many - I guess it's good that we're starting to strengthen his immune system.

The highlight of today's doctor's appointment was the weigh-in. We have a little beanpole, here are his measurements . . .

Height: 31 Inches = 90th percentile (daddy was happy!!)

Weight: 19 lbs 8.5 ozs = 10th percentile

I can tell he is starting to feel better. We are babysitting my mom's dog this weekend - here he is playing with the dog cage . . . I caught him crawling in it earlier!

Poem

My mom emailed me this little poem . . . you may have seen it already. I have it posted on my fridge - it definitely helps keep things in perspective, especially when my "Type A" tendancies kick in and I stress about not having time to keep my house clean, read my work emails, etc. . . Thought some of my fellow "mom" blog readers would like it. :)

*Just for this morning, I am going to step over the laundry, and pick you up and take you to the park to play.
*Just for this morning, I will leave the dishes in the sink, and let you teach me how to put that puzzle of yours together.
*Just for this afternoon, I will unplug the telephone and keep the computer off, and sit with you in the backyard and blow bubbles.
*Just for this afternoon, I will not yell once, not even a tiny grumble when you scream and whine for the ice cream truck and I will buy you one if he comes by.
*Just for this afternoon, I won't worry about what you are going to be when you grow up, or second guess every decision I have made where you are concerned.
*Just for this afternoon, I will let you help me bake cookies, and I won't stand over you trying to fix them.
*Just for this afternoon, I will take us to McDonald's and buy us both a Happy Meal so you can have both toys.
*Just for this evening, I will hold you in my arms and tell you a story about how you were born and how much I love you.
*Just for this evening, I will let you splash in the tub and not get angry.
*Just for this evening, I will let you stay up late while we sit on the porch and count all the stars.
*Just for this evening, I will snuggle beside you for hours, and miss my favorite TV shows.
*Just for this evening when I run my finger through your hair as you pray, I will simply be grateful that God has given me the greatest gift ever given.
*I will think about the mothers and fathers who are searching for their missing children, the mothers and fathers who are visiting their children's graves instead of their bedrooms, and mothers and fathers who are in hospital rooms watching their children suffer senselessly, and screaming inside that they can't handle it anymore.
*And when I kiss you good night I will hold you a little tighter, a little longer. It is then, that I will thank God for you, and ask Him for nothing, except one more day. . .

All dressed up and no place to go :(

It's game day!!! We are dressed in our purple to support our K-State Wildcats today. Unfortunately, it's about a 17 hour drive to Manhattan, KS, so we aren't able to make it to the game. ha ha. We just have to watch the score periodically scroll across the bottom of the TV screen. :( However, we usually get to see a few games a year on TV here at home. And, there is a KSU almuni group in Charlotte that gets together for the games . . . one of the members manages a bar in downtown Charlotte and is going to show any K-State games that are broadcast there, so hopefully we can make it to watch a couple games with the group and get acquainted with some of the almuni. Oh, and here's something random . . . the guy that lives across the street from us went to K-State, and his mom used to own the American Restaurant at Crown Center in Kansas City. Small world, huh?

High maintenance baby

Here are some pictures of our little buddy today. While we have child-proofed our cabinets, there is one cabinet that Cass can still get into. He loves to make the biggest mess that he can out of what is in there. Fortunately, it's just ziploc bags, so he can't cause too much damage. :)

This it the typical view I have of Cass. It is the view looking straight down. He pulls himself up on my legs and grabs on to my shirt until I pick him up. He is quite the mama's boy . . . he always wants to be held!

See? He got what he wanted (after I changed the shirt that he had soaked with water, as you can see from the previous picture). I don't mind holding him all the time. I know that a year from now he'll be too busy to let his mama hold him, so I take advantage of the time I have now!

Kansas City

Cass took his first airplane ride last week when we went to Kansas City. Our friends Jacob and Mandi always rate their son Mitchell's behavior on a scale of 1-10 on airplane rides (10 being the best). If we were to do the same thing, Cass would have received a 4 on the trip to Kansas City. He actually did very well during most of the flight (because he was sleeping), but then screamed bloody murder for the last 30 minutes during the landing. I'm sure it was because of the pressure change hurting his ears . . . I kept nursing him and trying to get him to drink juice from a sippy cup, as I've heard this helps. He got to the point where he had drank so much that he wouldn't drink anymore. Then, when Chris picked him up to carry him off the plane, Cass peed through his shorts and all over Chris!!!! Needless to say, Chris vowed that we would never fly with him again. The trip back was a little better, but still not great - I rated him a 6. We'll definitely be driving next time!!!

Cass got to meet his cousin Gabriella ("Gigi") when we got to Kansas City - she is 2 months and one day older than Cass. Here's a picture of them playing.

Here's a good picture of Gigi - look at those beautiful eyes!!!

We spent a couple nights at the home of our friends Jeremy and Stephanie Genrich. They have a son named Kyler that is a couple months older than Cass. Jeremy and Chris thought it would be cute if the boys bathed together. I'm sure the kids will appreciate this in about 15 years.

By the way, I'm joking about this being Jeremy and Chris's idea . . . I just wanted to get a rise out of them if they read the blog. Of course this was all Stephanie and I - the daddys did not approve! :)

My friend Lindsay Henry came from Manhattan to Kansas City with her twins, Tess and Max, who are a few months younger than Cass. Here's a picture of Tess - she is a little pudge and is sooo adorable! I just wanted to keep holding and squeezing her!!

And here is Tess's brother Max. He is equally adorable - I love those pouty little lips!!!