good picture...

good lighting...



For Christmas, Caspian got a "buddy" (I refuse to call it a doll) from the ILs that we named "Toby," which was soaked up to the armpit from being in Mr. Teether's mouth. It has a cow bell inside, and Caspian just adores it. My mom bought herself a Pooh walker to keep at her house, which Caspian thoroughly enjoyed.


flossing with the paci keeper


as long as there's something in his mouth...poor Toby...



Caspian has just been talking up a storm recently! He's even added a high-pitched squeal to the end of some sentences.

Last night, Charlie was handing Caspian down to me on the couch to eat, and Caspian threw himself forward in anticipation, banging his forehead into my nose! Three seconds later, he started to wail. To console himself, he thrust his face into my shoulder...banging that same place on his forehead! He was so confused, poor baby.

Can you believe he was ever this small?



We decided at the last minute to go with the ILs to South Carolina this weekend to see Charlie's grandma, who's never met Caspian. We'll leave Saturday and return Monday. I'm so tired of being out of town, I wish we could stay home and still see her.

Happy almost-New Year!

Picture-rama!

Tummy Time with Daddy


Perching Atop Daddy


Chewing on Technicolor Giraffes

Caspian rolled front-to-back yesterday and thoroughly startled himself! He won't roll the other way because he enjoys looking the light fixture too much.

Caspian burned his fingers last week! I had microwaved a pot pie, then chopped it up and let it cool. I carried it into the living room with Caspian on my other hip, and when I leaned over to set it on the table, he reached out and grabbed a handful! All was silent for a few seconds, then he started shrieking and crying. For a while afterwards, his palm was really sensitive to touch, but about 15 minutes later he was back to grasping with it. He'd never done anything like that before, but now I'm always on the lookout for Mr. Grabby-Fingers. I think the metal-coated pie plate must've brushed his knuckles, because they did stay red and peel a little.

Caspian has some really dense spit-up sometimes, that sticks and spreads like a web. I said to him, "You're a sticky spit man! It's like Spider-man in your mouth!" ...cracked myself up, anyway.

You all have to see this! It's long but it's incredible. Those men are also the members of the band that's playing.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

Pumped Up - A Dad Labs Experiment

"At the dadlabs we believe you should do everything in your power to understand what she, the breastfeeding mom, is going through. We put our beliefs to the Breast Pump 101 test. Wonder what it must feel like to get hooked up to a breast pump? Maybe you should. Daddy Clay and Daddy Brad perform a controlled experiment to increase their understanding of this ordeal. Gain insight into what breastfeeding working moms go through every day. And wonder what the hell the DadLabs guys were thinking."

MY SCARY EVENT OF THE WEEK:
Caspian had a steadily increasing fever all last week, topping off at 103.8 degrees. It was back down to 99-something Thursday night and he was sweating, so we thought it was over...until I woke at 2:30 a.m. Friday to him having a seizure. I'm so glad we were co-sleeping, because I wouldn't have heard him choking if he was in the other room. He started out gasping and clawing at his throat (because it was seizing closed), then started shaking all over and rolling his eyes back. Between shaking episodes he'd just look at me all confused and scared, without even crying. We took an ambulance to the ER and were there until 11 a.m. It was a febrile seizure, which happens when kids' temps jump a lot in a short period of time. Apparently it's pretty common. They had to draw blood from his arm and get a urine sample using a catheter, so the poor guy was pretty traumatized by the end of the morning. The whole fever thing turned out to be a UTI, which is also common with runny-poop infants (since it can easily slide up the urethra when they squirt it out). He started one antibiotic Friday, but they called us to switch it on Sunday because it wasn't effective against the bacteria in his urine sample. That one was so rough on his stomach he was up all Sunday night and all day Monday, screaming and doubling up. He switched to a third antibiotic Monday night, and that only seems to affect him only a little, praise God.


All About Caspian:

* Our 4-month with the new ped was uneventful. He didn't know what a Boppy was. Caspian is 27.5" long, 16" around the head, weighs 16lbs 9oz, and was pronounced "very strong" and "just perfect." He's so tall (past 95%ile) that he isn't fat...except for his Michelin thighs, which Charlie and I call "chubbers." He definitely has teeth coming in, too.

* When I look at Caspian, put food in my mouth, make exaggerated chewing motions, and say, "Mmmm -- yummy!" he licks and smacks his lips in the cutest way! He's eyeing our food, too.

* When he needs a diaper change, he spits and blows raspberries with his lips only. He doesn't do it every time his diaper's dirty, but every time he does it it's accurate. He's also been holding his thighs back (like when I was in labor ) so I can wipe him, but recently he's started grabbing and pinching his penis! It doesn't seem to hurt him...

* Whenever Caspian sits in his bouncy seat now, he grabs the dangling giraffe, lifts up his legs to counterbalance, and sits up to get the giraffe in his mouth! He just gnaws on those little plastic legs like there's no tomorrow.


All About Me:

* My little brother (AF pilot) got deployed to the Middle East last Tuesday. He wasn't supposed to go until February, but he got bumped up just 2 weeks beforehand because the last guy got a last-minute reassignment. Please pray for his new wife, who relocated from Colorado to D.C. in September and doesn't have a local support structure. They'll miss his birthday and Christmas together.

* My Mary Kay conference in PA was awesome and inspiring. I have a huge new goal for Seminar in July and will be pushing to get part of it done by December 15 (next Friday) since I barely got any work in while Caspian was sick. ...so if anybody needs stocking stuffers or Christmas gift ideas (or wants her own wish list shared with her husband), I do free gift wrapping and shipping!

* Thanksgiving was really good. Caspian broke into a huge grin every single time he saw my grandma, which really made her week. The weather was fantastic, and we got to see my childhood best friend and her 7 month old . She and Caspian kept trying to grab each other and missing, but they loved it.

* We were in Dayton for two days this weekend, for more MK training. This time, it was a 7-hour makeup workshop with a professional makeup artist! It was SOOOO great. I can't wait to use those techniques in makeovers!

* We're officially finished traveling for the year. Being out of state three out of the last four weekends has been really taxing on Charlie and Caspian. We're glad to be putting down roots again. Who knows if we'll even get anything decorated for Christmas...we're so worn out.