Birthday Boy

One year ago today, the most wonderful thing happened...

Brittany Spears went to jail.

Oh yeah, and Ethan was born, too!

My little man is one year old today - can you believe it? So far, we've celebrated with a trip to Jewel (the lady at the bakery gave him a cookie before she even knew it was his b-day), playtime with his new blocks, lunch with Grandma and Grandmama (great-grandma), and a nice long nap. Dad is at a conference all week in the city and won't be back until 5 or so. We will have dinner and a birthday cupcake later.

Presents in his crib this morning.

Here he is in his "I'm one" hat.

Playing with his new, eco-friendly blocks.

SO BIG...really, he is. :(

Ethan the Hollywood stuntman

Guest Appearance by Will

I have never written on a blog before (as having one of my own would be pretty ambitious for me right now) and Michelle just so happened to leave this page open so I thought I would do some reporting of my own.

I'll limit myself to one of the things Ethan did that made me laugh today. The man was in his little car today and managed to tip the thing over while he was inside. I held my breath as I awaited his reaction (the Jedi manual says to let younglings figure things out for themselves to a certain extent). The E man escaped his wrecked car by rolling out and then crawling away from the vehicle before it became engulfed in flames and exploded (this last part is exaggerated for the Hollywood movie script). After he crawled 10 feet away, he turned around in the middle of the lawn and then just sat and looked at the car. He had a contemplative expression as if he were reflecting on his narrow escape and near brush with death. Then he looked at me as if to say "I know I scared you dad, but I live on the edge...it's what I do."

Thanksgiving in June

Though I thought about blogging a few times this past week, I kept avoiding it because I knew it was never going to be a positive post. The truth is, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself all week. After the weekend fever fiasco, Ethan's sleep was still bad; I got called to jury duty on Tuesday (I didn't get selected); and then Will came down with strep throat. By mid-week, I was thinking I had a much better week the week before when Will was still in school! While everything is not back to the status quo around here, I was thinking today of all of the things I have to be grateful for, so here's a few things:

My family is healthy.

Will is still recovering from his virus, of course, but, comparatively, he is very healthy. Last Friday evening, I participated in LT's Relay for Life, which is an all-night walking event that raises money for cancer research. At the opening ceremonies, an eleven year old boy with a malignant brain tumor gave one of the best speeches I have ever heard. I was doing my best not to start bawling while I listened to this incredibly brave little boy speak, all the while thinking about my own little boy, whose worst illnesses so far have been a little fever/irritability. We are so lucky!

We live close to the zoo and have a membership.

The Brookfield zoo is about a 10-15 minute drive from us. My mom and dad gave us a family membership for Christmas, which saves us $40 per trip. (We wouldn't be going without this membership, needless to say. Thanks mom and dad!) I took Ethan there Friday so Will could get some rest, we all went yesterday, and I'm meeting my mom, Ben, and Drew there tomorrow. Now that Ethan is more aware of his surroundings, it's getting more and more fun to go with him. Tomorrow, we hope to see the dophin show. Having a great attraction so close to us and to be able to go for free gives us a great family fun option on nice days.

We had Will's family over for Father's Day.

Will was still feeling a bit under the weather, but his whole family came over and helped us christen our new patio with a small party. The two youngins played in our little pool, and the adults feasted on Lou Malnatis and other goodies. It's nice to have family close.

Our summer is terribly busy!

A few days ago, this fact was one that was making me feel a bit overwhelmed and sad. Our summer really is very busy, busier than it's ever been, which is not always easy with a nearly one year old. But then I got to thinking about what our summer was busy with, and all the events are happy ones. The summer is full of weddings, birthday parties, bridal showers, graduation parties, weekend trips, and vacations. Those are all happy occassions, right? So why not be thrilled with all these fun things? That's what I will be from now on: thrilled.

I officially belong to a playgroup.

I went to my first playgroup this morning. My neighbor invited me to join. It actually started a few weeks ago but I had to miss the first two meetings. But even before today, I met one of the other mothers at the park near our house. We got to talking and discovered we were both going to be in the same playgroup. She is very nice, and her son Derek is only a month or so older than Ethan. In fact, the playgroup is all boys except one little girl! The moms seem very nice, and I am very happy to finally be meeting more moms around here. I will be especially happy come fall when Will is back at work.

And, saving the best for last, I am most grateful because:

I have a new newphew!

Matthew Joseph was born this morning, by cesarean, just before 10am. He weighs 7 pounds 13 ounces and is 19.25 inches long. He's just cute as can be and I had a nice visit with him today at the hospital. I cannot wait for Will and Ethan to meet him. Congratulations to my Lisa, Brian, and big brothers Ben and Drew!

Not So Great Weekend

While Will's and my weekend started off very fun with the Dave Matthew's Concert with Hammond and Courtney, Ethan did not have a very fun weekend at all. On Friday, the day of our concert, he was quite irritable all day and then had a fever. It got up to 102.9, which is his highest by far. Luckily, my sister-in-law Laura, a pediatric nurse, was our babysitter for the evening, putting me at ease. She did great and got him back to sleep after a little wake up. Later that night, though, he was up a couple more times. Saturday, his fever was up and down and he really was not himself at all. He didn't want to eat or drink and was just a bit sad you could tell. Saturday night was pretty horrific but Sunday during the day was a bit improved. He was definitely grumpy again, but his fever was either low or gone most of the day.

Since his fever was gone, we decided to take him out of the house for a trip to Target. He got a new pool, swim trunks/shirt, water shoes, imitation Croc shoes, a sun hat, and a toy boat from the dollar section. It was like his birthday a few weeks early! He did start running a slight fever again, but after his nap it was gone. We decided to let him try out his new pool since it had stopped raining for a bit. He liked it but didn't want to sit down, despite the fact we added hot water to it, making the water lukewarm. We got some pictures of him playing it with before water and after. We don't have an electric pump, so I inflated the pool with a small hand pump or my own lungs. Boy, am I glad we didn't get the bigger pool! We had hoped his pool party would tire him out even more, making him more likely to sleep through the night. I'm happy to report that it worked. Although he had a rough time getting to sleep, once he did, he did sleep through the night, making for a much happier Ethan in the morning. My boy is back! We're not sure if he had a little bug or is teething or what. I didn't think he was teething because his fever got pretty high at one point, and he also was fairly congested. Plus, he didn't seem to be bothered by his first set of teeth coming in. But, he does seem to have some symptoms of teething, so we'll see. I don't see any poking through just yet.

Here's the new pool:

Great Weekend

Now that another one is just about upon us, I am getting a chance to post some pictures from last weekend. We had a WONDERFUL weekend, with great weather and a lot of fun play time together. And...we did not use the car one time over the weekend. Not once. Not bad.

We went to the LaGrange Pet Parade on Saturday, and Ethan's cousins Ben and Drew came. The Pet Parade is a LaGrange tradition, yet we've never been. It's actually a very large parade, with over 100 different groups walking in it. My favorite were the alpacas. They were so cute! The money raised from the even goes to help animal shelters. It was definitely something we will be taking Ethan to every year, so it was neat to start a new tradition. Ethan liked looking around at everyone/everything. Pictures are below.


Sunday we hung around the house and park and then had my mom, dad, and grandma over for dinner and mojitos (grandma LOVED the mojitos!). Now that Will is done with school, as of tomorrow, we'll have even more fun days like this ahead.

Milestones Milestones

I'm through one week as a "retiree," and I'm feeling pretty good! I think it will hit me again in the fall when Will goes back to work and I'm home - again - but, really, I am so happy right now. We have had a lot of encouragement from those close to us, which is much appreciated. And having made the decision makes me look forward to summer without the scary stress of school hanging over my head.

So...you'll notice in the pictures below that Ethan is helmet free! We thought we were going to keep it on until his birthday, but when we met with his orthotist last Friday he said that he thought we could be done. He said any more growth at this point would be negligible and if we wanted to be done, he was fine with it. So we're done! It's kind of sad because we really were attached to his little Obama helmet, but it's been nice not to worry about it, too. And he hasn't had any major bumps...yet. (Knock on wood, please.) The first night without it he did wake up, which is rare for him, and we thought he might have been weirded out from not having his helmet. I went in and put it back on him and then he slept until morning. But since then we haven't had it on at all and he's adjusted just fine. Not having the helmet does make for some pretty interesting hairdos, though, as you'll see in the first two pictures. He woke up the other day from a nap with total Jack Nicholson hair. And, now, when we feed him, a lot of food goes into his hair and acts as a sort of gel so that by the end of the meal he's got spikes of food sodden hair everywhere. It was easier to wipe down his helmet than his head of hair!

Our biggest news of the past week is that Ethan took his first steps on Saturday! We were at our friends' house for a bbq, and he was up against the couch. Will was a little away from the couch, and he took a step unassisted to Will. It took us a few seconds to realize what happened. I was mid-story when I said, "Did he just take his first steps?" And everyone said, "I think so!" It was pretty funny. And I'm so glad that both Will and I (and witnesses) were there to see it together. Good timing, Ethan! (Not like his first roll, which I'm still disgruntled about.) Since Saturday, he has taken 1-2 steps about every day, both for me and for Will. He just turned 11 months old on Monday, so it looks like he may be an early walker. I'm not in any hurry, but it is fun to see how he learns so much every day.

He really is such a good boy. He goes down for naps very easily lately and, besides an early wake up, sleeps well at night. While awake, he's happy and content to play with others or on his own, and he is just so darn funny. Yesterday, Will had a speaker to see in the city after work. Since he didn't have much time with Ethan, we walked with Will to the train station in town. While in his stroller, Ethan was waving to or reaching for anyone who passed by. Then, he kept turning around in the stroller and putting his arm out towards me. Every time he did it, I would shake his hand and say, "Nice to meet you." He just laughed and laughed. We did this over and over on the way home, and neither of us tired of it. I'm sure those looking out their windows at me thought I was a goof with a silly smile pasted on my face. Better that than a frown, though, right?

Goofy haired Ethan after his nap.

Here's a close up.
Mr. Jake and Mr. Ethan at Hammond and Courtney's house on Memorial Day. Ethan kept taking toys away from Jake!
I'm not sure if this is before or after Ethan tried to eat a helicopter (maple seed).
The boys with their uncles.

Look at Jake in his madras! He is so cute!

Grandpa took the boys for a stroll in H & C's giant backyard.

This is our new patio set. I had it set for lunch for my best friend, Sarah. I meant to get a picture of her and her 8.5 month pregnant belly, but I forgot. We had a great lunch, and Ethan got to join us in his booster seat.

New Job

As of this morning, I have officially resigned from LT. Will and I made the decision early in the week, and I met with the HR guy just this morning and gave him my official letter. He was very nice, and not all that surprised, and did say that he will call if there is ever a small overhang (1 or 2 classes) they want to fill. I also spoke to my old division chair (now director of curriculum), current division chair (though not for long...), and my assistant division chair. All were supportive and kind. It is definitely bittersweet to be leaving. Some of my closest friends work at LT, but even just being there today solidified that we made a strong decision. I know I will not regret it, even with a major drop of income. The reality is that I would not be taking home all that much money after taxes and daycare expenses. That was actually what made Will decide I should stay home. When he did the math, he said it would just not be worth all the time I would put in to teaching 3 classes with 2 new preps. He'd rather have me spend that time with Ethan. I am SUPER proud of Will for having the faith that we will be okay and knowing that it is what is best for our family. All along, he has wanted me to stay home, but he's a worrier by nature so it was a difficult decision for him to come to. I can already see, though, that he knows it is right. Give him a hug when you see him.



I haven't wasted any time, though, and I actually applied for a part-time, work from home job last night. The official position is Writing and Communications Specialist, and I would be working for a non-profit organization called Healthy Schools Campaign. Here is the background information and position as stated on their website:



Background: The Healthy Schools Campaign, a vibrant and growing not for profit organization dedicated to making schools healthier places in which to learn and work, is an increasingly powerful voice for people who care about our environment, our children, and education. Since its inception, the Healthy Schools Campaign (HSC) has become a leader in addressing issues of environmental health and wellness, particularly in connection to the growing crises of childhood obesity and asthma. HSC believes that all stakeholders—including teachers, students, parents, administrators and school nurses—must have a voice in decisions that affect the school environment. HSC’s ability to effectively articulate its mission, vision and program activities is crucial to the advancement of the organization’s policy platform and its success in engaging a broad base of individuals in these efforts. In addition, HSC must regularly report to the foundations, corporations and government agencies that support the organization’s work.



Position: The Healthy Schools Campaign is seeking a part-time Writer & Communications Specialist to work approximately 10 hours per week to support the organization’s development and external communications efforts. The individual will research, write and edit grant proposals, reports, electronic newsletters, web content and other materials for audiences including foundations, government agencies, corporations, community advocates, parents and individuals working in schools. This individual must be a strong communicator who is able to write in a variety of styles for different audiences.

When I came across this job, I thought it was perfect! I would be writing, working in the field of education, and working toward goals that are so completely in sync with my "green" lifestyle. I'm trying not to get my hopes up because I have no idea who they are looking for to fill this position. While I think that my training as a teacher makes me pretty qualified, I don't know if they're looking for someone with more experience in a strictly writing/editing position. Keep your fingers crossed. It would be nice to be able to still work, even indirectly, in education while still being home with Ethan. Plus, the extra income would come in handy!

Meanwhile, Ethan continues to wow us with his fun antics. He really is such a fun, happy kid. The nicer weather has been great, and we spend a lot of time outside. Really, he's happiest out on a blanket in the backyard with some toys and his big car on the sideline. Here are some recent pictures:

Here he is getting ready for a bike ride. We bought this trailer and I ride him around the park.
He's saying "With gas prices this high, I think I'll just crawl!"
Beep Beep
I love these big smiles!
He decided he'd had enough...

...and he was getting out...

...bonk!

"SO BIG!" His new favorite game. He does it without prompting now.

Here we are at a play date at Ethan's girlfriend's house.

Ethan's putting the moves on Emmy, holding her hand. "Come here often?"