Oh My Gosh

You will never ever believe what Gumba can do! Nope, sorry, walking is not the right answer. On his first birthday he started "pumping" in his swing! Can you believe that? At one years old he can swing by himself! I am imagining all of the jealous mommies at the park that watch as I get to swing while Gumba is swinging, and there they are pushing their three year olds!!! Hahahahaha.

Also, last night for the first time, Gumba started to go down the stairs backwards! This is sooo exciting for me. He's been crawling up great for the past month, and now tries to launch himself onto the stairs so he can practice. However, we've had an issue with him wanting to go down head first. The stubborn little butt only got frustrated when we showed him differently. Then last night it happened, as he was crawling up the stairs, he paused, put his foot back down, then repeated! Then I stood there for five minutes as he went up and down. So needless to say, I watch and wait patiently (yeah right!) and he "masters" this new skill.

Merry Christmas To All!

Our "first" Christmas as a family went well. Gumba liked the gifts he received from all, even though he can't say it! So, thank you everyone! We did Christmas dinner in Fairbanks with Husbands family. For those who have never met the Fairbanks part of the family, that included 14 of us. And surprisingly, dinner was mostly on time, and we were able to get Gumba home at a reasonable hour. It was great fun.

Below I've included a couple of recent, very cute pictures of our little man. He has his one year checkup this past week and weighed in at a hefty 22lbs, 5oz and is 31inches tall. He is in the 90th percentile for height! I wonder if this trend will continue, or if he'll start working on other things like talking and walking!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GUMBA

One year old, can you believe it? I know he's gotten older, but a year older? No way. Husband and I had a bunch of people over yesterday to celebrate. I think Gumba had a great time. He didn't seem overwhelmed at all, must be that male selective hearing kicking in because I sure was overwhelmed. Take a look at the pics:


The cake was a homemade applesauce and banana cake with cream cheese frosting. Did you expect anything less from a wannabe hippie mom? He was a master at eating it, and everyone couldn't understand how it didn't get everywhere. What a champ!

Here he is eating his cake. Isn't he just precious!

The proud parents and birthday boy.

Our presents were a big hit with the two and under crowd, go me!

Gumba practicing rushing his cousin with a pig in his hand. That jersey spoke volumes to him! He more than once took her out. It's a good thing she has six other siblings, or else the tears would have flowed for sure. However, she was terrified of the dogs.

It's been a wonderful year, and I can't wait for all that year two will bring. We do have a great video of him eating his cake, however, it's too big to post here. Stay tuned for the YouTube link.

My Husband Has Been Busy

Husband has kept himself quite busy the past couple of months, but not always doing things I wish he would. Here's a list of what he's been up to:

- Splitting the basement zone into two additional zones. This was actually a worth while project. The thermostat is in the living space, so the two bedrooms got incredibly hot during the winter, and the temperature would fluctuate wildly. Not the best scenario for little baby. Two days ago Husband finally finished with the soddering. Now all that's left are several large holes in ceilings that will need to be repaired. And even then we'll be left with parts of ceiling that are unspackled. But, I think it'll be worth it.

- Building a server for our computer. Lately Husband has been obsessed with having enough backups of our files in case world war three starts, our house burns down, and we get robbed. There are other things he could have been doing. But, once he gets his mind set on something, there really is no stopping him.

- Finally finish the patch on Gumba's wall. In September a pipe started leaking in Gumba's bedroom wall. The pipe was quickly fixed, but tonight the last (hopefully) bit of mud was put on the wall. Hopefully on Friday Gumba will be put back in his room. For the last three and a half months he's been in the guest room. Again, the hole is patched, but there will be no spackle and no paint for months, or who knows, years to come. The joys of owning your house!

- Putting a fuse in my car. This wasn't a project, but I'm totally excited about it. My car, which is only four years old, has a wiring problem in the hatch (best thing about the car). A lot of time when I opened the hatch it wouldn't latch shut. And then it got worse. Sometimes when I would use my rear windshield wipers the hatch would open, and my dashboard button wouldn't work. So we took it in, paid a bunch of money to have the wires repaired, and then my rear wipers didn't work. Husband being handy as he is (thank God) diagnosed the problem, and happened to have fuses for my car and fixed it. But seriously, how many Husbands have extra vehicle fuses laying around. I married a jack of all trades, and my garage definitely speaks to that.

Any projects going on in your lives? Other then my mother's complete remodel of her upstairs?

Turns Out I Can't Do Everything

Back in October I had this great plan to make Gumba a Halloween costume. He was going to be a penguin. That didn't happen, and I have no cute pictures of my son for his first Halloween. As Halloween approached, and I realized the costume wasn't going to get made, that maybe I had gotten in a little over my head. Turns out that having a 10 month old, who is in cloth diapers (lots of laundry, folding, etc.), who eats homemade baby food, I work 25 hours week (commute 35 minutes one way), and being pregnant, really is a lot for one person to have on their plate!

Here's the sonogram from several weeks ago, eat your heart out:

The baby is due June 14th, barring any complications, like another baby coming early. First trimester on the brink of being over, thank goodness. Trying to wrap my brain around the whole thing, I suppose it's too late to have second thoughts! Gumba will be 18 months old, so they'll be a good little bit apart. And I'll have the summer off!

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Gumba, Husband, and I spent ours down in ER with the family. We flew. Never again would we attempt to drive (especially in winter) with a stubborn baby that doesn't like to sleep. Been there, done that, learned a valuble lesson. The flight down went amazingly smooth. Gumba was "home" in time for an afternoon nap, so he wasn't thrown off of schedule too bad. Thanksgiving was fun. I was able to see all of my siblings. Gumba had turkey for the first time. Didn't do any black Friday shopping. I detest buying gifts (sounds terrible huh), so there was no way I was going to venture out and spend the day with a whole bunch of crazies. The flight back was a bit more interesting. Gumba didn't get a second nap so we was, shall we say, a little rambunctious. Luckily everyone thought he was being cheerful. Now we're all back home, heading into a work week. Hope you all had fun. My family believes in being laid back and comfortable, hence the sloppy outfit!

11 Months Old

Gumba just turned 11 months old, yes, I said 11. How the heck is that possible? Not too much new stuff with him this month, just a whole lot of cuteness. Yesterday I gave him a spatula to play with while he was standing up, and he stood there, on two feet, not holding anything, like it was no big deal. He stood there for five seconds or so, then sat down like it was nothing. Then he decided to push a dining room chair around in circles. I can't believe he's not walking yet. I guess all the extra practice means he won't fall down as much.

In the last week or so he's turned into quite the babbler. All sorts of sounds are coming out him now. He likes to play peak-a-boo with our living room curtains. And he the baby gate is still one of his favorites toys. If I could add a grumpy face to this post I would. Gumba has finally acclimated to his play pen, he throws himself and tumbles around in it (We'll see how well he takes naps at Grammy's house now). And a few times I've caught him laughing at the "baby" as the computer screen saver shows pictures of him.

Oh, and one more thing, he is currently getting in THREE teeth, at the SAME time. Needless to say he's been quite the grump the last several days, with plenty more to come I'm sure.

We Survived DST

This post is late, but, we did survive daylight savings time. I was very fearful, you all know what a battle sleep has been, and I thought this would truly throw a wrench in the mix. Could you imagine if I had to start waking up at 5am instead of 6? I couldn't even wrap my brain around it. But, as Husband would say, I waste too much energy being worried, because things were fine. In fact, they are better then before. Not sure what I did, but hopefully I'll be able to recreate it in a few months when we "spring forward."

And, why in the world do we still have DST anyways? Especially up here in Alaska. All it does is makes parents crazy, and kids crazy. I guess it's one of those things that has become status quo, and will remain even though no one has a good reason why.

No News is Good News

I realize I haven't posted in over a week. But in my defence, nothing has happened that warranted a story session. Gumba is starting to refuse his afternoon nap, which he can't skip, so we've been dealing with that. Also, we finally have him accustomed to hanging out in the play pen, so he doesn't scream the instant we put him in it. I've been wrestling with the concept of adding more solid feedings to Gumba's day. I know at 10.5 months old he's old enough to start getting "real" food, not just mushed up fruits and veggies. But, I'm having a hard time figuring out what to give him. It seems strange that he's close to the age that I can feed him off of my plate. Gumba still only has the beginnings of two teeth, so that's an additional consideration.

At the moment Gumba is being pretty cute. He's in the play pen, rocking the swing back and forth! He's also found the on/off button. Luckily he still entertains himself well. It must come with being the first child and not having anyone to entertain you. Oldest children are so unlucky!

Gumba has started doing the following cute things:
-Plays peak-a-boo with the curtain in the living room. He laughs and smiles, and squeals really loudly.
-He started to click his tongue. Not sure how to best describe it.
-Oh, if I say "shake your booty" he'll wiggle his little butt!

Winter is Here

Here is the view off of our deck, isn't it lovely! When it's snowing and the wood stove is ablazing, you really feel like you're in a cabin in the woods all alone.



Not sure how excited I am though. Usually I look forward to a change in the seasons, but this year winter came later than usual, and with it much warmer temperatures. Last week on my way home from work, Husband received a phone call from his crying wife begging him to pick her up on the side of the highway. I had never been so scared to drive before. I found out there's a reason my car gets great gas mileage, it weighs as much as an aluminum can. Husband, Gumba, both cars, and I made it home safely. Husband got to get the 4-wheeler out and plow for the first time this year. Gumba had a lot of fun watching Daddy:





Gumba also discovered the pot and pan drawer under our stove. The house is suddenly louder:

Fun Things Gumba Does

Before I forget all of these things, I'd better write them down. Here's a list of cute things Gumba has, or still is doing:

- He just started hitting his head while nursing. Strange I know, but the mommy forums on the net say their babes have done the same thing. Also while nursing he'll tug on his left year, and only on the left! I heart nursing. (Sorry Jenny)

- He is now turning the corners of furniture, which is a pretty big step. Before he could walk in a straight line while holding on, but then he'd have to stop.

- Pretty sure he goes after the baby gate and china cabinet for attention. When I tell him no he smiles at me then starts to shake/open it. This morning he put his arms up in preparation of being moved before I even got to him.

- His love for the vacuum. One of his friends also loves the vacuum, and cries when it gets turned off!

- Waves

- When I hold him, he finds my thumb and holds on.

- Talks to himself while riding in the car. He usually fakes a cough. I cough back and the game has begun.

- Laughs at nothing and for no reason. I wish humor came that easily to me, so does Husband.

- He goes after Lilies bling (dog tags) and she obliges. Last night Gumba was determined to get around her, and the only way to do it was to go through her. Lilie is a great dog.

There are plenty more things that just aren't coming to mind at the moment, or things I probably only find adorable. But Gumba really is the most precious thing ever. He's still relatively quiet and when we're at the station visiting Husband he snuggles on daddy's lap.

What are you're most precious memories of your precious babies?

Cute Videos

Here he is spending time with one of his best friends:

Look how much fun feeding yourself oatmeal can be, and no we don't do this often:

Sad Sad Day

Gumba is now 10 months old! And not much has changed, although he is much more capable pulling himself up on things and getting down. I've let him climb up the stairs a few times and no ragging on me about that. We have stairs, the kids' gotta learn, better when I'm there. This month also marks the most unfortunate of unfortunate days for me. Gumba is now taking one bottle of formula a day when I'm at work. Very sad. I'm remaining upbeat though. Not too many working moms make it to 10 months without formula so I'm very lucky. Gumba doesn't mind either way, food is food. Speaking of food, we've added a few new items to his menu. He now enjoys the taste of blueberry, nectarine, and mango! Also he gets cheese which he loves. However this can be expected because both Husband and I LOVE cheese. And today he tried yogurt for the first time! Since avocados are out because of his intolerance to them I started to look at other high fat/calorie foods that are good for him, hence the cheese and yogurt.

There have been several requests from Granny and Grandpa for pictures and video. Gumba can now reach the top of the table. Yikes!

I Jinxed Myself

I don't think I'll ever write about Gumba's sleep progress. It seems every time I do he spites me, he's got this sick sixth sense. It's 1:45am as I write this. Gumba has been crying for almost 45 minutes, this is his second time waking up. Last night after I wrote the last post he woke up twice, but fell asleep within 10 minutes. So we're doing worse, way worse. Woe is me.

Shooting Myself in the Foot

At least I hope I'm not. Many of you know what a difficult time Husband and I have had at getting Gumba to sleep well, both at night and during the day. When Gumba was first born he slept with Husband (I cherish my space too much). Gumba liked feeling us close, which was understandable considering he spent the first 10 days of his life in an isolete in the NICU. Getting him to sleep by himself took a lot of patience, much hair pulling, and a lot of trial and error. Gumba would only fall asleep in our arms, and then sometimes wake up when put down. I know where our mistake was, don't need to point it out. If you could only have seen how cute and precious he was, there was no way I could listen to him cry. The day finally came that we could put him down drowsy but awake, but the routine to do this was 15 min or longer. Then, we got it down to a couple of minutes. We NEVER thought this possible. Two months ago we succumbed to the CIO because I was still nursing 4-5 times a night. I was exhausted and I knew something had to be done. We really really wanted to do the attachment parenting thing, but Gumba was a baby not responding to this strategy. After a month of CIO Gumba was still waking up at least once a night and crying for 30 minutes. Gumba then had an ear infection and was back to sleeping with us getting nursed 2-3 times a night. After his ear infection cleared up the CIO was re instituted and with great effect. By night two he was sleeping from 6:30pm - 5am. After Gumba waking up at 5am and not going back to sleep for a week or so I decided to start nursing him at this early wake up. I think he was really truly hungry. Since I started nursing him at this early time he has more times than not slept until 6am. An added bonus is he's starting to get up later for this early feeding. This morning he woke up at 5:40, nursed him, and he slept until 6:30. He is taking naps at 9 and at 1. Six months ago I wouldn't have said this was possible.

I hope I didn't shot myself in the foot for telling you this. Sometimes I think Gumba knows when I being boastful about such stuff.

I Like Being a Sort of Hippie Mom

As it turns out, I kind of like being a "hippie" mom. I love cloth diapers. Not only are they way cheaper and healthier for babies they are great for the environment. Years ago NBC did a program during a green week campaign and an episode showed how many disposable diapers one baby goes through from infancy to potty training. I was horrified. It was probably then that I committed to using cloth diapers when the time came. Thankfully I have a husband who is as committed as I am. Which is good because he is the primary care taker. I love making baby food. I've been lucky enough to exclusively breastfeed for almost ten months, go me! It's taken a lot of patience and dedication on my part. It sucks having to pump two-three times a day at work. But now it's time for solid foods. Making Gumba's food has enabled me to still feel like an integral part of his feedings. Plus I like the food and when he doesn't finish I have a tasty healthy snack! Now I know there is much more I could be doing to be an actual hippie mom but I enjoy red meat, showers, and my car. We all have to start somewhere.

I Support Vaccines

I don't normally get involved in this kind of thing but it's something I must share my thoughts on. Even though I feel passionate about many things, I usually share my thoughts with those who are like minded, and my husband...a great debater I am not, and plus, it's easier. I believe in getting vaccines. Gumba gets vaccinations as will all of our children. They are a GREAT idea. Who wants their child to get a life threatening illness or worse die of whooping cough, measles, mumps, polio, or anything else preventable? And yes, that is the point of vaccines, to prevent serious illness and death. Here are few of the most common reasons people don't want to vaccinate their child:

- "Vaccinations cause autism." There are SO many studies that discount this. And, have a little more faith that their isn't a huge conspiracy to hurt your children. Why would someone lie? Yes, scientists are people too, and they have also have children. It's their job to find these things out. I should know.

- "My kids just aren't going to get them; all the other kids out there are." However, you are putting my child at risk. You are putting INFANTS at risk of death. You are putting the ELDERLY and those with other illnesses at risk. You are putting those, who can't get vaccines because of real medical causes, at risk. You are truly putting others at risk.

- "Too many too soon." Our immune system is BOMBARDED hundreds of times a day with foreign microbes. Our immune system is designed to fight these things. That's why immunizations are so successful.

I've added a few pod casts that have great information in them about vaccinations. If you choose to listen, which I hope you do, please do so with an open heart and mind. I know I seek out other people with differing opinions to hear their side, and see if I can be persuaded, even if I'm not always so open to share my opinion.

The podcast at Science Friday is on the upper left hand corner: http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/200808292

Lets Kill The Children or A Defense of Vaccines

Taking Our Medicine

Shot of Fear

Recurrent Fever

I do worry if I'm doing the right thing each time Gumba gets a vaccination, but I firmly believe that the benefits far out weigh any risk. Living is risk in its self, yet we all strive to live our lives as fully as we can.

A Glimpse

I saw a glimpse of my future today, scary. I watched Gumba crawl around the house for an hour. He was busy checking out everything. Up, down, up, down, up down. To the oven, up, down, up down. To the table, up, down, up down. To the china cabinet, up, down, up, down. Panting loudly as he went. Proud of how much he's able to do. Not wanting to be held, wants his own space. As I watched him crawl I realized that in a short while this was only going to get harder once he starts to walk. Gumba will move so much faster, which means I'll have to be much more diligent. I can't believe how big he is, how grown up he already seems, and he's only nine and half months old. This too doesn't even seem possible. How is it that a year has almost passed?

Nine Months Old

Gumba just recently turned nine months old and to celebrate I'll give a run down of how busy he (we) was (were).

- Started to get first tooth. He's been working on this for several weeks and it's only a third of the way in!

- Pulling himself up on everything.

- This quickly manifested into Gumba having to figure out how to get down from everything.

- Walking along furniture. Still not his favorite though.

- Just started to wave! It's pretty cute, he stretches out his arm and then looks at his hand as it moves. Yesterday in JoAnn's he way wooing the ladies.

- Eating oatmeal. I made this amazing blueberry sauce that I can't wait to give with the oatmeal. I'm totally excited.

- Found out he's a little behind developmentally. I guess if you don't clap or wave to your child they don't learn it. So, we're practicing.

- Had his first official illness, and ear infection. Thankfully it's cleared up. I'm back to getting (better?) sleep. Husband and I were taking turns sleeping with Gumba during naps and bedtime. By the end of it all I was pretty wiped out. Now he's back to sleeping on his own.

I'm sure I've missed something. But there's most of it anyway. Next I'll post about Husband and I's month. Everything that could have gone wrong did.

- Oh, let's not forget about Gumba's baptism with his cousin. The visiting priest was awesome and grabbed the two of them and started walking around church. I don't have any pictures, my parents have them all. Both sets of grandparents were able to be there, and Gumba's godparents were visiting from San Diego. Afterwards we had a barbeque at our house were 19 immediate family members (from McGilvary side) were here. That doesn't include everyone by the way.

Walkin' In A Winter Wonder Land...Sort Of

We had our first snowfall of the winter season on Tuesday. Many may think this is early, but I've seen it earlier. The snow of course has come and gone several times this week. This morning I awoke to more snow, and some of it has stayed, but who knows how long. Gumba has an ear infection, poor guy...and really poor me as well. Every night and all naps he sleeps with us (mostly me). I haven't had a good night sleep in several days. But, back on topic. Since Gumba loves walks I packaged him in his over sized snow suit and off for a walk we went. Here are his first encounters with snow:

Grandparents Kick A$$

Grandparents day was earlier this month, so I thought it was a good time to celebrate Gumba's grandparents...they kick a$$. Husband and I are VERY lucky to have both sets. Each love this grandson to death and take great care of him. Gumba's paternal grandmother takes care of him whenever Husband and I's work schedules overlap. This typically happens once a week. It is wonderful to be able to leave your precious child with someone who has as much of a vested interest in his well being as you do. I don't know what we would do without her. Gumba's paternal grandfather helps out as well, he keeps Gumba company during his naps!

Gumba is my parents first grandchild, and therefore holds a special place in their hearts. The day he was born they drove up to Fairbanks in -40F weather to see him. My mother, Gumba's maternal grandmother is great. Before Gumba was born she came up and helped me wash, fold, and sort clothes. She made many meals that we froze. She additionally has come up to visit many times. In doing so she has kept him company so I can take a little break. She too has sat for us many times. My father thinks Gumba is the best looking kid ever (I agree!). Gumba loves his grandfather and always gives him a big smile when he walks through the door.

Below are Gumba's grandparents. I discovered that we don't have any currents photos of Gumba with his paternal grandfather. This will be remedied at tomorrows barbecue. Celebrate your grandparents!

Maternal Grandmother

Materal Grandfather

Paternal Grandmother

Paternal Grandfather

First Tooth!

Gumba is getting his first tooth! I've felt around his precious little mouth every morning for a couple of months, and finally I left something sharp! Granted it's barley there, but I'm counting it. Husband and I had no idea when to expect this little jewel, he comes from a lineage of early teethers, I from late. Gumba came out right in the middle. His cousin who is roughly the same age already has six to put it in perspective. When the tooth has grown enough I'll try to get a "toothy" smile so you all can see.

Bumps and Bruises and Bawling Oh My

Now that Gumba is pulling himself up we've run into the tricky issue of balance, and holding on to things so we don't hit our head on the hardwood floors. Gumba only wants to stand now which is great if you don't mind a little bit crying. Turns out balance and holding on to something sturdy isn't innate. We have ourselves a baby that has bruises all over his head and has had countless consoling with mommy. He also moves so quickly now while on the floor he spins himself into sharp cornors. Grandma learned that first hand when Gumba hit is head on the TV stand and ended up with a big goose egg on his head. Her guilt was tempered with the fact that the previous day he had rolled over on the changing table, pushed himself up, then rolled onto his face, leaving a bruise on his cheek on my watch. Husband will get his chance to chase his son around the house tomorrow. So far he's been lucky to get out of it.

What a Week

The last week has been a pretty big one for the McGilvary family. Husband had a successful hunting trip, he shot his moose while on the trail to get to camp. He was gone for less than two hours. When he called and said he had news I thought the four wheeler broke again. So, with the moose and the fish my dad gave us, we're stocked for this winter. Hip hip hurray for Husband!

Gumba has been a busy little bee. He is very proficient at crawling now. He has even gone so far as crawling away from us into the bedroom or kitchen. Plus his whining about being able to move away from me has substantially subsided. It's pretty amazing how fast he took to crawling, and it's pretty cute when he crawls up to me and pulls on my pant leg to be picked up. I can't believe how cute he is! The other big Gumba news is he is now pulling himself into a stand position on anything he can get his hands on. He's taken two good spills so far. But, today (I think) he's started to figure out he needs to hold on. With all the changes this week, I can't imagine what next week has in store.

Solid foods are going really well. Gumba ate a lot of zucchini I had frozen. He hates green beans still. Peas are a new favorite. He loves bananas and applesauce. I'm still making the food. Last night my mom helped me make a bunch of stuff to store. For the next couple of weeks Gumba will be eating peas, green beans (hopefully), applesauce, yams, mango, nectarines, carrots, and bananas. My biggest fear is I'm not giving him enough variety. Oh, and I think next week we're going to give oatmeal with bananas a try. I was thinking today that in a couple of months Gumba will be able to eat what ever Husband and I are eating. How crazy is that!

Hope your week was as great as mine!

Allergic to Avocados

Gumba is allergic to avocados, a food that is listed as a "first" food for baby because of it's mildness and low likelihood of being an allergen, go figure. I fed him avocado about six weeks ago with no adverse affect. Then two weeks later I gave him a little more and he threw up for the first time. I didn't know if the avocado was an allergen for Gumba, or if it was just a bad avocado. So today my MIL gave him a little bit, and wallah, the goodness of a puking baby occurred. So, no more avocado's in his future anytime soon. I was looking on line about avocado allergies and each site mentioned that latex allergies are closely related to avocados. How unlucky is that? We'll have to make sure to mention this to the pediatrician and see what she says. I'll be getting up a few more times tonight to make sure the little bugger won't become dehydrated...go me for getting even less sleep then I have!

The Army Crawl

Gumba doesn't crawl so much, he's more into sliding on the floor, pushing himself along with just the left foot. It's really quite comical. And he usually only does this to get to the jumperoo to mouth all over it. I suspect the cold metal feels good on his gums. Not much else is new. I did learn that I wasn't feeding Gumba sweet potatoes, but was instead giving him yams. He's been eating true sweet potatoes the last couple of days and likes them. Go me for not knowing my starches! Husband is leaving once again for a couple of different hunting trips. He tried to go out and set up moose camp today but the hunting gods kept raining on his parade, literally. Today it was pouring down rain, he had a heck of a time getting the darn four wheeler to start (which took an hour), and then as Gumba and I were finishing up our walk (in the rain) Husband came up the street. I guess while he was in the middle of nowhere a tire went flat. The poor man couldn't catch a break. And as it turns out it's a good thing he worked for Forestry this summer, he now has to buy new tires.

He's Mobile!

So, Gumba is officially crawling. We knew he was close, he's been in the crawling position for ever, and had been throwing himself forward. But, he was stuck pushing himself backwards. And then today... Today he crawled to get some toys at his Grammy's house. And yes, I even got to see him the first time! He is only going short distances, but hey, it counts. It's a good thing we have the upstairs secure. The dogs had better watch out. He's a short video of Gumba at the station:

Different Spin on Same Toy

So, I've put a link below that will let you watch the cute video of Gumba. Like I said before, it's long, but worth the wait!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJj_zWY7KCQ

Also, Gumba has been currently feasting on apples (sauce) and banana. Like all the other foods, he has to see them three times before getting really excited about them. He still LOVES sweet potatoes though. I'm going to give him another taste of avocado, and think I'll try green beans next. What's great about feeding him fresh foods that I make is that they taste great. So...there's no faking the yumminess of the food! And applesauce homemade rocks. And you can save the water you used for steaming for cider.

Cute Little Boy

Here's a video I took of Gumba today, it's a lot of fun. At least I think so! I had a few good chuckles, which you may be able to hear. I know that it's long, about 10min, but if you like Gumba, it's worth taking the time to watch! You'll see how incredible close he is to crawling. Husband and I can't believe he isn't on the go yet. But we're prepared, sort of. Is anyone ever truly prepared? So I couldn't upload the video, it's too big :( So very sad, because you all would have enjoyed it.

I'd post some pics, but I see that I'm taking more video of him now than pics. But I do have this really cute one of him from yesterday. Gumba is still a fussy pants, so I've been trying to keep him interested in anything and everything. I decided to take him out on the deck in the JumperRoo. It made him very happy for 30minutes or so, a lifetime for me at the moment! Here's a pic that I got of him:

Gumba's Cage

We finally did it, made our stairs and banister baby safe. We decided to go with lattice. We had other not so cleaver, visually appealing, and cheaper ideas, but we figured there would be more than one child and therefore should fine something we could live with for several years. Especially since I told Husband I was through with moving for the next two decades or so. Yes the lattice is very secure, it's made out of hard plastic so baby can't break it. Also, notice the cute cat escape hatch on the bottom left corner. Husband thought Jasper should have the option of not being around us/have access to the litter box whenever he wanted. I don't think we have to worry about a baby falling through the little hole. Here are before and after pictures. I'm also going to have Husband put sliding face plates on the outlets. When asked why since we have the outlet plug covers, I told him Gumba would eventually unplug something, and then we'd have a free outlet for his cute small fingers to explore. That's the next item on the baby proofing list.

Has it Really Been 5 Years?

Husband and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary on Saturday. Can it really be five years already? They sure have flown by, here's a recap:

Year 1: Moved to Michigan for paramedic school. I ended up in the Upper Peninsula for three months while Husband was down in Ann Arbor.

Year 2: Moved back to AK, bought a house.

Year 3: Bought a car for me.

Year 4: Bought another house, became landlords (not slumlords :)

Year 5: Had a baby.

And of course in between there were vacations, adopting numerous pets, and other fun, frustrating, fascinating things. Husband and I were able to go out and celebrate thanks to my mom, who was in town, and provided excellent childcare. Husband was able to see the second Transformers movie. Let's face it, some movies should be seen on a big screen, and since I haven't approved the plan for one to be built at our house, we had to go out. It was fun to be sans baby, but I was glad to get home!

All in all it's been a great five years. I'm not sure if we're any closer to figuring each other out. As the time changes, so do we. We figure we have another 65 years give or take a few to get things right. We'll have to wait and see what happens in this sixth year. Pretty hard to top the first five.

Mr. Fussy Pants

Care to guess which one of the following Gumba is right now?

1. Over tired
2. Frustrated at the world
3. His first tooth
4. Practicing a new sound

I don't have a clue which of the three it is, all I know is that I want it to stop. Gumba has started whining/fussing constantly. There is only a total of one hour reprieve from the ear piercing, eye-rolling sound. I have no idea how to stop it. I post a video of it, but I wouldn't want your eyes to roll into the back of your head, or your ears to bleed. It is that annoying. Husband and I think he is overtired, but, how do you make a child sleep? We offer three naps a day, and twelve hours of sleep at night. So, if it's not over tiredness, what could it be? Does teething produce almost constant whines? I've felt in his mouth, there are no inflamed gums, no pearly white teeth. So, if it is a new sound, the chances of this stopping soon are slim. Once Gumba tries out a new sound, he become addicted to it for two-three weeks. If we're lucky we'll hear cheerful baby sounds in about a week and a half. If he's overtired, I hope he learns to take longer naps. Any of you mothers remember such a thing happening?

Gumba is this Close

Gumba is nearly crawling. It happened so fast. On Saturday he started to get on his knees, and then started to rock like a mad man! I told Husband that once he got home it was imperative for us to figure out how to close off the stairs and the banister. I did not want to become one of those parents who was "going to get around to that" and then have Gumba tumble down the stairs. We already have a baby gate up. We're really not quite sure what to do with the banister, but we figured we'd try lattice first. Here is a video of Gumba almost crawling. You'll see we're really in for it soon. Enjoy! Forgive me for the amature videography. I hope it doesn't make you dizzy.

Oh, and Husband is home, safe and sound. He was gone for twelve days, and here are some of the pictures he took while gone.

Leo Went to New Home

Well, I finally did it, Leo is off to a new home. And, surprisingly, I feel terrible. Leo got into a pretty nasty fight with an animal outside a while back, and his wounds seemed to be healing. Then last night when I got home I noticed that it had opened into a 2x2 inch wound and had to take him to the vet. No easy venture since Husband is still out with Forestry. Our good friends who are amazing took Gumba for a couple hours. After speaking to the vet about the care Leo would need, and the cost, and the high probability he would need additional sutures because the area would be prone to opening back up, I opted to sign Leo over to the clinic. He will get adopted into a home that can love and cherish his quirkiness and persistent personality. But, I feel awful about the whole thing. Hopefully time will take away the guilt of abandonment I feel right now. I know it was the right thing to do...I think. It's best for him to be in a home that appreciates him. It's just hard feeling like I failed one of my pets. And in the end I'm going to miss him.

Forest Fires...

Take Husband away...again. Husband went out to Nenana on Friday, and today I received a phone call saying he was headed up to Circle to provide structure protection. Not sure when he'll come back. So far it's been something like the third warmest, or driest (can't remember) summer on record. Obviously this isn't helping with keeping fires under control. However, this year isn't as bad as 2004; the summer which all other summers will be forever (hopefully) compared to. 2004 was the worst fire season on record, over 6.6 million acres were burned over the summer. To put this in perspective, Connecticut has approximately 3.5 million acres to it's name. Fairbanks was bathed in smoke for weeks, and to top it off it was HOT HOT HOT. I believe our top temperature was in the low 90s. Very few people have air conditioning because it's Alaska, so we all sat inside sweating, praying for sweet relief. My relief came when it was time for Husband and I to go on our honeymoon. Thankfully it's now August and the daytime temperatures are starting to dip a little. Still can't open windows though, or take Gumba out for very long. We've had ash falling at our house off and on again for weeks. I can't imagine what's in the air that we're breathing. It's off to single parenthood again. I hope Gumba cooperates and makes the next however many days it may be, pleasant.

A little bit of this and that

- Fairbanks is once again cloaked in smoke. We've been lucky in NP, but not today. Last night when I got up for the forth time to take care of Gumba I could smell the smoke permeating the house. Ughh. The interior has had a lot of fires, and more are starting everyday. Husband had to go respond to a wildland fire in the city at midnight the other night. And, to top off his tiredness for working hard, Gumba didn't take very good naps. Poor Dad.

- Gumba was sick on Sunday, his first pucking experience. It of course came on before bedtime, so I got to worry all night long that he was dehydrated and would die, and it would be all my fault. Husband was of course at work through all of it.

- Gumba is still waking up many times a night. I am at such a loss. I'm starting to think he'll never ever sleep for longer then 3hrs and I'll be sleep deprived forever. The pediatrician told Gumba he was well on his way to having his prayers answered, he may end up being an only child. What happens if we hit the lottery more than once and get a child like this again?

- Oh, let's not forget that Sadie had the runny runny poops. I woke up three mornings in a row and had to clean her up. Ughh. Pets are wonderful, however when they're sick, it sucks.

For some much better news:

- I weighed Gumba the other day, and he is a hefty 19lbs 14oz. Now, remember that he is only 7 months old. I wonder what he'll weigh on his one year birthday.

- I bought an organic crib mattress for baby. It was very expensive, and I'm sure many will think I'm nuts, but I feel good about it. I know he's not inhaling fire retardants, and other, what may turn out to be, harmful chemicals.

- My friend Jenny had her baby!!! Hudson was born on Wednesday. Congratulations McCulloch family!

Listen to Gumba Screech!

Gumba has decided that he will only communicate through loud, variable pitched screeches. Luckily he does this only when he is happy, which is 99% of the time. I know screeching annoys most parents, but I take great joy in it. Gumba went through this faze at six months were he stopped vocalizing and it scared me, so I'd rather have deafening noises then silence any day. So, I have a video for you all, a sample if you will, of what we've been hearing at our house the last couple of weeks.

Also, Gumba has just about mastered sitting up. It was amazing how quickly he caught on. I'm sure it had a lot to do with my mother-in-law taking the time to give him practice. As it turns out, I'm the slow learner. It took me watching Gumba hit his head on the hard floor three times before I figured out putting him on the bed first would be a good idea. Luckily his head has healed and he won't have any memories of how dumb his mother is.

Cute Video

This video is one of my favorites. I hope it brings as many smiles to your face as it does to mine. In this video Gumba is almost three months old. Sorry if the quality isn't very good. We use our camera that's considered ancient in the world of technology.

Most Precious Baby Ever

So, I know that many of you will disagree, and I understand that you have to, but I have the most cutest, precious baby in the whole wide world! I don't know what it is about him, but he is just amazing. Today I brought him to the grocery store where he just sat looking around and behaved like an angel. Every time I looked at him I couldn't get over how lucky Husband and I are to have him. When he's in the car he looks out the window, very rarely do we hear anything from him. The other day we took him couch hunting, and again, he was very patient and let us try out all the couches. I have the best video of Gumba from the other morning. Once he wakes up and is fed the ritual goes like this: I remove his many layers of nighttime clothing, take off the cloth diaper to let him air/dry out, then he puts his toes in his mouth and squeaks, and screeches and talks. So, the video is of this, and I would love to post it so you all could eat up his cuteness, but it's probably considered kid porn for all those who aren't related, so it'll have to stay in the family vault. But believe me, you all would melt and go awwhhhh, and then want him for yourself.

Husband is Home :)

Husband is home, safe and sound. It turns out that he wasn't even worried that I was mad at his abandonment of me. Originally he told me he would be gone during the days only. That was the last I heard from him for eight days. There was a fire out past Ester where a company does logging. They had 120 people working on it. Evidently Husband slept by a lake making sure the water pump kept working. He even has a sunburned lip to prove how much napping he did! He had a lot of fun, and made a little extra money. With that money and the donation from my dad we went and bought a couch!!! We are really really excited. We have never owned a new piece of furniture. Our "couch" at present is a used, old futon that is extremely uncomfortable, we've had it since we got married. The couch is soft, and comfortable, and the end recline. I'll post a pic when we get it on Wednesday.

New Things for Gumba

Gumba has learned to do many new things this past month. First he found his feet, which actually brought much joy to me. Next he discovered, thanks to his cousin, that feet can be brought up to the mouth and chewed on.

Gumba has started eating real human food! I am making it all myself which brings me much satisfaction, as well as a much much lower grocery bill. I've even been making the rice cereal, which I only use as a filler. I had no idea making baby food would be so easy. So far he's had sweet potato, avocado, zucchini, and a little taste of watermelon and cantaloupe.

We've also been working pretty hard on sitting. Here he is sitting just long enough by himself for me to take a picture! This boy is making great strides! Sorry for Gumba's weird face, I didn't have much time before he was going to tip over. I threw in this other really adorable pic just for the heck of it. I can't believe how cute he is. Husband and I totally lucked out with this one.

I don't know if many of you have heard but there are several large wildland fire's that firefighter's are battling right now. Husband was sent away from Gumba and I six days ago, and we don't have a clue as to when he'll be back, it may be as long as 14 days. He is out of cell phone range so we haven't been able to touch base with him. This is actually the reason I have so many pics of Gumba, I don't have much else to do! I've found that keeping a baby occupied for three or four hours is very taxing. I'll let you all know when Husband comes home. I'll be ready for a break.

Finally, a Pedicure

I finally get my pedicure. I have been waiting to get it for seven months, not an exaggeration. My thought way back around Christmas time was that I wanted pretty toes to go along with shaved legs while I labored and delivered what turned out to be an 8lb baby. Little did I know that mentioned baby was going to be early and I was going to have ugly toes during labor and delivary, but would have smooth legs. Ever since then I've been trying to get the universe to align just perfectly so I could make the trek into town on a weekend day that both Husband and I had off. Obviously this was not as easy as one would expect, since it's now been six months. Here a few reasons why it's taken so long:

1) Baby was too early and on my appointment date I was probably exhausted, unshowered, breastfeeding, and changing mountains of dirty diapers.

2) Husband ended up working on the day I was supposed to go in.

3) Gumba laid down for a nap, so did I. I woke up ten minutes after my appointment had started.

The universe is playing a sick game this time around also, but I've found a way to fool it. Husband is out with Forestry trying to keep a forest fire at bay and I have no idea when he'll be home. My appointment is tomorrow morning and I haven't heard for him for three days. So, I found a babysitter, and am just estatic. I hope the pedicure is all I've ever wished for. Not for a lady that treats my feets as if they would a lead brick.

For Crying Out Loud

Okay, does anyone have any words of wisdom to give Husband and I, because we are, or at least I am, at our wits end. We have been blessed with a very handsome, very fun baby (during the day) who then turns into a crying, screaming beast at night. We first tired the "attachment parenting" technique, going to Gumba every time he cried or waked up, giving pacifiers, nursing him. When this failed to solve the problem of him waking up every hour or two, we finally succumbed to the holy grail method that EVERYONE boasts about, the "cry it out" (CIO) technique. We've been at it now for four weeks, and he still has nights (more then less) where we are forced to let him cry anywhere between 20-90 min at night. I asked the pediatrician why he hasn't learned yet, mind you everyone says that you'll have three difficult nights, and she couldn't come up with why he's still crying for so long. I do still nurse him during the night. I figure we either have an incredibly stubborn child, or a dumb one. At this juncture I'm not sure which is best. So, I've decided that my maximum time limit for letting him cry before we soothe him is 40 minutes. Does anyone out there have a similar experience, or have some advice to give us? We could sure use it.

Happy 4th

Happy 4th of July everybody! Ours was busy, and a lot of fun. I hosted the annual family get together that included both my parents driving up from ER and Husbands clan. His clan includes his parents, sister/BIL and their seven children. I got a little over zealous and started inviting a smattering of people I thought would like to come, mainly friends I don't get to spend nearly enough time with. Most went to the parade and watched Husband drive a firetruck while I stayed at home and listened to Gumba sleep.

Once the parade was over with gobs (a slight exaggeration) of people showed up and ate lots of yummy, and mostly unhealthy treats. My parents spent lots of time with Gumba, they hadn't seen him in a month. Between them and everyone else, I think the only time I spent with my son that day was when I was breastfeeding him! Gumba's cousin is just three weeks younger than him, and they had a great time together. Here a few picks of them having fun.

Gumba's cousin is almost crawling, whereas Gumba won't roll over. The difference is he sleeps on his back while she on her stomach. So Gumba is a little developmentally behind. Oh well, at least he's happy. The weather was nice, hot, but it kept the mosquitoes at bay. Husband treated all the cousins to 4-wheeler rides (ATV for those out of state!). They had a blast. I hope you all had as much fun!

Jumperoo kicks a$$

Here is a video of Gumba in his jumperoo. He jumps so hard in it, it's amazing. Once he moved it a foot forward. We've been putting him in it since he was ten weeks old. Gumba has always loved to stand/jump and our arms got so tired we decided to try it out, and he had good head control early on so we could. I'm not sure how parents survived without these things, they are amazing, and make good babysitters :) Enjoy watching.

So, ignore the tubes and the IV in his head. This is one of the best pics we have of Gumba after his was born. We didn't take many pics immediately after his birth, and had no idea most of our pics would be of him in intensive care. But he was still darling, and his head looked pretty normal after birth. I forgot to mention that he was 8lbs and 21.5inches when he was born, and yes, my dates were right. My in-laws grow 'em big before their born.

Here is Gumba presently, enjoying tummy time. He now weighs in at a hefty 18lbs 5oz, and is somewhere in the 27.5inch range. He's quite the monster! Not crawling yet, and doesn't care to roll over. Gumba can "tripod" which the pediatrician says is a skill above rolling over, so it'll be interesting to see what happens in the next month or so. I'll have to post a video of him in his jumperoo, pretty amazing how much he likes to jump and stand.