Birthday Boy!

Our little B celebrated his 1st birthday this past week. It was great. We celebrated over the course of 3 days. Nat had to work on Saturday, so when he finally got home in the evening we opened presents, sang happy birthday, and had cupcakes. B loved the cupcakes. He ate 3. As for present opening he proved to be like his Grandpa Petersen and would open one thing and play with it very happily for a long time before he showed any interest in opening anything else. He finally decided he wanted to open his last gift on Monday night. Sunday we had some friends over to celebrate his birthday with us. One of the mom's even made him a beautiful birthday cake of his very own. He LOVED messing that up! The tub was a mess after his bath! And on Monday we took him to the Virginia Beach Aquarium. It was great fun. He especially loved the sting ray exhibit. They'd removed the stingers and the kids were allowed to play with the rays. B loved splashing in the water and watching the rays swim around and up to him to let him pet them. We had a great day. Happy Birthday Little Man!

Quite the Vocabulary

B will be a year old at the end of this month. I can't believe it's gone so fast! He already has quite the vocabulary which I find rather amazing for someone his age. He'll literally entertain himself for hours each day pointing at things and asking me "Wha dat?" He knows everything has a name and he wants to know what it is--little smartie pants. I won't transliterate what he says but here are a list of our not quite one year old yet's words:

hi
bye bye
momma
dadda
papa
attack
kittie cat
dog
help (not because he needs help but because he wants to help)
eat
what
that
look
balloon
duck
toe
stop
no
ya

His 2 sentences so far are "Look! Hi cat." and "What's that?"

Poop and Puke

I am sad to say that everytime I change a stinky diaper these days I puke. It's been quite awful really. A few times I've even missed the toilet, B and his bare bottom have escaped, and I've had to clean up poopy diaper, puke, and a puddle of tinkle once I've recaptured my naked little man. Yesterday I gagged so hard I actually dislocated a rib! It hurt so badly I couldn't bend forward at all and could hardly breathe. Nat rushed home from work to rescue me and begged the chiropractor to help me even though it was after closing, which he kindly did. Shannon, be very grateful that Collin no longer has poopy diapers! (And for those of you saying, "Just have Nat change him," he does every time he's at home, but when he's working it still falls to me! Yuck!!!

Picture Update

Here are some photos from our summer so far. For those of you who aren't in the pictures, please forgive me, I was just trying to pick a few out of several hundred pictures and of course, I couldn't resist featuring our baby boy.

A Funny Story

B is a really funny kid. Some of you have read that B says "Attack." He learned it in relation to kiss attacks from his daddy. The other day we stopped by Nat's office. Nat was working at his computer and I had a drink from McDonalds. B just had to play with the straw. All of the sudden he draws the straw like a sword, points it straight at Nat's head and yells "Attat!!!!" at the top of his lungs. Three of Nat's co-workers came running and popped their heads into the office to see what the noise was all about. It was too funny! Especially since he's never seen or pretended sword fights or any type of "attack" but kiss attacks, but he knew exactly what it meant. He's such a funny little smartie pants!

Thanks!

Thank you to everyone for a wonderful visit! It was great to see you all. And a special thanks to Josh & Jacquelyn. We love you guys! We'll get some pictures up soon.

Baby Talk

B is talking more and more. It's very cute. You can't get him to say something though just because you ask him to. He'll only do it when he wants to, but it is quite clear that he knows exactly what he is saying.

English Words:

Hai = Hi
Dada = Daddy
Dittie = Kittie
Up
Baby

He tries to say ball and airplane, but so far ball is more like the sound of the letter b and airplaine is aaa p! (We live right next to an air force base so planes fly overhead often here and he likes to listen. They are LOUD!)

French Words:

Ba ba = Papa
Aa tat tat tat = Attaque! (Or Attack in English)

The story behind this is that every night when Nat comes home he and Bplay "Bisou Attaque!" or "Kiss Atack!" and Nat kisses B's belly and he laughs and laughs. So, every night now when Nat comes home B either reaches for or crawls to Daddy and says "Aa tat tat tat! Aa tat tat tat!" And if he isn't immediately Bisou Attaqued, he'll lift up Daddy or Momma's shirt and blow kisses on our bellies and laugh and laugh until Nat does it to him.

C's Cousin

My side of the family knows that B cousin C loves to play with unusual things, especially if he found them in the kitchen. Well, the two boys are obviously related because that's what B likes too. He carries the spatula/pancake turner with him everywhere. (Notice he's got it with him in both photographs below.) He won't even set it down to get his diaper changed or to take a bath. It just comes too. He also gets quite delighted when he sees me sweeping, so sometimes I let him hold the broom and that makes him very happy! He loves watching us cook and likes it when we let him hold the vegetables and finger paint with the flour. He especially likes playing with red peppers. I'll have to get a picture of that next time.

Other than that, not much has been going on in the Meyer household. Nat's been working A TON so we are really looking forward to vacation here in the near future. And K and B have been housebound for over a week now because we caught ourselves nasty colds and coughs last weekend when we decided to get out of the house and make a few visits. So, we unwittingly caught the colds of our friends who we didn't realize were sick. Oh, well! We're over the worst of it and so far Nat hasn't gotten sick. We're keeping our fingers crossed!

Our Little Smartie Pants

B surprised us this morning by looking straight at his daddy and very clearly saying "Hi Dadda." It was so cute! Later tonight we were talking about it and apparently B was listening because he gave a big smile, turned to Nat and again said "Hi Dadda." What a little smartie pants!

Air, Space & Adam!

My sister-in-law, S, surprised my brother on Valentine's Day with a trip out to see us. Happy Valentine's to us as well! It was great to have him here. Bloved being held by Uncle A and would just sit there cheek to cheek with him. It was so cute. One day when he was here we went to the Air & Space Museum. B loved all the things to look at and being able to touch anything he wanted. It was great to have you out here Ad! Thanks S! Love you guys!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Allergy Testing

So, I've been going to an ENT recently --- practically every day for 2 weeks it seems like. I've got some unexplained vertigo and pain in the left ear that no one can seem to figure out what it is. The ENT said that sometimes allergies can cause the nerve from the middle ear to burn and cause pain and vertigo so he wanted to test me for allergies. As far as I knew I was allergy free (except to dogs, I thought, cats, and banana trees. Yes, banana trees. Random I know, but I made that discovery while working on a kibutz in northern Israel 10 years ago.) Anyway, it turns out that I'm allergic to practically EVERYTHING except dogs, one form of dust mite, bananas the actual fruit, and apples! Who knew? The test was done in a series of 3 days. Today was the foods. I was sure I was allergic to no foods. It turned out that I got such a reaction today that I received 2 emergency shots, an inhaler, the doctor kept coming in to observe me and ordered that no more allergy test shots be given, and I was not allowed to drive myself home! I tried for over an hour to get a hold of Nat, but he didn't realize he had his phone turned off. I was going through my cell phone list trying to call and beg someone to take me home. One kind person said she could after her son's doctors appointment, but I was able to finally get a hold of Nat and B before she was finished. So, I sat at the doctors office for 2 hours being "observed" and waiting for someone to come save me. The shots they gave me reacted really weird and made me feel really moody. It freaked me out. It was just Benadryl, but I've never taken that before. Nat was so sweet and took a 2 1/2 hour lunch break so I could sleep it off while he watched the baby. I feel much better now. Just itchy and a little shaky! What a day!

A Few New Pictures

Not a lot has been going on lately, but we are glad to report that we are all healthy and happy! Yesterday we did celebrate Nat's 2 year mark as a FedEX manager. Hooray! We are very proud of him. We tried a Mexican restaraunt up in Williamsburg. Still not quite authentic cuisine, but much better than anything else we've had around here so far! Here are a couple of the most recent pictures of our little cutie.

A Visit From Papi

My dad came out for a visit last week. He was finally able to meet B. B took to him right away. It was so much fun to have him here. We were able to go up to Washington D.C. and go to the temple while Papi and B played together at the Visitors Center. They sure had a good time. We also all got to go to the National Archives and see the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights. And wouldn't you know it? We bragged about our beautiful southern weather, so it snowed and stuck to the ground for the first time since we came here while Dad was visiting. B had lots of firsts while Grandpa was here. His first tooth, his first swim in a pool, his first trip to the ocean, his first taste of chocolate mousse (which he LOVED bye-the-way), and his first time sleeping through the night! It was a great time. We miss you Dad!

Merci Mathieu

Thank you Mathieu! Nat absolutely loves the new soccer uniform. And thanks to Shaun for the scarf. You two sure made his day!

3 Marvelous Years

Yesterday was our anniversary. It was a pretty quiet day. B wasn't feeling very well, so we were afraid to try and go out to a nice restaraunt or something, but we did have a nice day. Nat is on vacation --- Hooray! We got Chinese food and watched Charade together. (One of my favorite Audrey Hepburn movies.)

Nat and I have had 3 wonderful years together. We actually met 4 years ago this month though as Nat says I "disappeared" for 6 months. Had I any idea that he liked me as well, I certainly wouldn't have disappeared, but we found each other again in July. Thank heaven! I'm so blessed to have Nat as my sweetheart. He's so good to me. And we're very happy to have our baby angel here with us as well. I've put together a little video of some of our favorite memories over the last few years. Enjoy!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Merry Christmas!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We love and miss you all. Our Christmas was really nice. B gave us plenty of sleep--that was a first! (We seriously needed it too after the long days Nat spent working this past month.) So, we were able to enjoy Christmas day. B absolutely loved the wrapping paper. What could be more fun the rolling around in shiny red and gold stuff? He also loved his little beanie-baby reindeer that he actually picked out himself. He takes it with him everywhere. He's always got it in one hand. It's so cute. After unwrapping gifts we had a nice nap, talked to family, played mad libs, and made cinnamon rolls! The cinnamon rolls were all gone within 24 hours. They turned out great! It really was a nice Christmas. Oh! And check out the beautiful piano that My Love got me for Christmas. I'm in heaven! Thanks to Kelli for getting all of my music together and thanks to Mom for getting it mailed out to me. I'm really enjoying it! I would also like you all to take note of the beautiful green field across the street still flourishing in December. Everyone, the weather really is great here. It was 65 on Christmas Day. Have I convinced anyone to come visit us yet? =)

Enjoy the video!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

It was bound to happen . . .

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later. B has been exposed to some nasty germs I'm sure. It really is kind of a cute story though. I had gone shopping with a friend and on our way home B started crying because he had a dirty diaper. (He only cries for tummy aches and dirty diapers. He's a very good baby.) My friend's little girl who is 18 months old was sitting in her car seat next to B. She started singing to him and trying to make him stop crying. Very cute. Pretty soon we noticed in the rear-view mirror that she was sucking on her sock. We thought she must have kicked her shoe off in the car somewhere. When we arrived home we found Bixente sucking on her dirty nasty shoe that she had just been walking around the mall in! Yuck!!!! So, I'm sure he's now been exposed to something nasty, but hopefully he will be okay. But it was very darling to see the baby trying to comfort the baby. She'd given him her shoe to cheer him up and it had worked! As soon as I took her shoe away, he started to cry again. So, he got a diaper change and was okay again.

Yankee Candle Factory

We love going up to Williamsburg on Nat's day off. There are so many fun things to do up there. Yesterday we took B up to the Yankee Candle Factory. It's huge! We had the best time. B loved looking at all the lights and decorations. He couldn't get enough of it. It really is a cool place. They even make it snow real flakes inside of the building to give the feeling of Christmas.

So Sleepy

Little Mr. B doesn't sleep much. He likes to get up at night every hour and a half and stay up for an hour each time. Every once in a while we'll get lucky and get a 3 hour stretch. It's heavenly when that happens! He also refuses to go to bed before midnight. This happens whether he's been up since 6:00 that morning or has had 3 long naps that day. Needless to say we're getting pretty sleepy around here. This is me and B after church last Sunday. We fell asleep together on the couch and Nat took our picture.

So Frustrated with Doctors!

I am so frustrated this week with doctors! Now for those of you who are doctors, my wonderful cousin-in-law Sarah P., whose parent, sibling, spouse, etc. are doctors please don't take offense to this post. I am well aware that there are very good doctors out there other wise Russel M. Nelson could not be a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. Bixente's pediatrician is wonderful as well. I just seem to have bad luck with them myself.

So, for the sake of venting =) :

I've had an ear ache for several months now. Not in the canal, but pressure behind the ear. Over the months it's gotten so bad that I can feel the tubes. Even though Nat had this same infection back in the spring, I didn't bother going to a doctor myself because I have TMJ from a neck injury that sometimes causes me to feel like I have an ear ache. I didn't want to risk going to the doctor and being told that was all it was. Well, recently it's started spreading down my neck and up through my head. I can trace the path and it's full of water and swollen. Then my throat started hurting and I've got swollen lymph nodes in my neck and under my chin. When I shined a flashlight down my throat there were blisters everywhere. Not white spots, but blisters.

I finally got feeling bad enough that I was convinced to go to Urgent Care on Sunday. With the exception of pregnancy doctor's visits and chiropractors I haven't been to a general doctor since I was 18. Why? Because those were both awful experiences that I won't bother posting about right now. So, for me to decide to go to the doctor and on Sunday I was feeling pretty badly. I ended up waiting for 3 hours. If the room was jam packed I would've understood, but it was simple laziness. They took a person back approximately every 20 minutes. When I finally got my turn to go back I was then left waiting in the examing room for 30 minutes.

The doctor came in, asked what was wrong listened to the first sentence and tuned me out completely. I tried to explain what I did above about the fact that yes, I do have TMJ but now that my throat hurts and I have swollen lymph nodes I'm sure it's an infection. But no, he listened to "I had an neck injury in the past," jumped in and said "Oh, nothing's wrong with your ears. You just have TMJ." Then started trying to explain it to me like I didn't know what the heck that was. No matter how many times I tried to finish my explanation he'd cut me off. Finally I said, "Well, will you at least look in my throat?" And as if he were talking to a little child he said "Now didn't we just do that?" No!!!! We didn't just do that. So he shined the light in briefly and said it wasn't strep. And like he said it was just TMJ. That I could have an antibiotic if I wanted one, but I didn't need it. I could have one like you'd give a kid a Scoobie-Doo bandaid on a bruise to cheer them up. Oh, I was so mad!

And here was his wonderful solution! Let's prescribe me with Darvocet! That's a major pain killer from the Schedule II closet. In other words, if even one pill is unaccounted for at the pharmacy the pharmacist could go to jail. Why would he prescribe me that? I didn't come in complaining of unbearable pain. Then someone came in and said "Dr., Nancy needs you." And he jumped up mid-sentence and left me in the room and never came back.

I was so furious. When I got home Nat tried to call and reason with them. But of course the arrogant man thought he was a god and was incredibly rude to Nat even though Nat didn't even have any hint of irritation in his voice. Then he said that his nurse would prescribe me my "bandaid" antiobiotic. And what was it????? A Z-Pak. For those of you who don't know, that is a heavy duty antiobiotic usually used for respiratory infections. I am not a fool, that doctor was.

Anyway, for those of you who were brave enough to read this lengthy post, I thank you for "listening" to me vent. And again for those of you who are or are related to doctors, please don't be offended. I know this isn't an example of every doctor out there.