Park

We had some nice weather this weekend, so much that we were able to enjoy a lot of fun time outside playing/working in the yard, going for walks and going to the park.

Papa was over on Sunday on we went to Riverside to play on the jungle gyms. Payton had a blast going down the slides. This kid is fearless, I tell you. She went belly down, head-first down one of the tube slides. The enclosed slides that we cannot hold her hands on. This was by choice, too. Fearless and klutzy, such a great combination.

You might notice in these shots that she has a boo-boo on her nose. That's from going head-first out the kitchen door and onto the breezeway carpeting. Rug burns on the nose can't feel good. Yikes.

Payton also had fun playing in the backyard with Papa, swinging next door and going for a walk. She LOVES being outside, to the point that we sometimes have to hide her shoes and coat or she'll attempt to put them on and go to the door and throw a fit about going out. Fearless, klutzy and temperamental.
This outta be fun!

Our Peep

Daycare held an Easter Egg hunt today and Payton was, being new to this whole experience, her stoic self. She started to get a bit "into" it as it progressed, but what we don't have pictures of are the two adult-sized bunnies that appeared and waved to the kids. So not having that. And they were on the other side of the fence.

Overheard

Scott & I usually takes turns getting Payton into the tub and ready for bed. The other night while drawing her bath water, Payton was playing in the bathroom and I heard this:

Hey, get out of there (as she must have opened the vanity door and got under the sink).
Payton! Seriously. Do you really want to play with tampons?
We've got another 12-13 years, I hope, until you have to worry about those.
And then Lord help us all.

Walking

Payton just started walking this past week and she's really pretty good at it. She was having a good time this weekend and walking a lot. It wears her out, I guess, because she's been sleeping pretty well.

Here's a highlight from the weekend.



Payton Walking from Dana Jacob on Vimeo.

BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

NOT REALLY SURE WHY THIS DIDN'T POST WHEN I ORIGINALLY WROTE IT, BUT HERE IT IS - A BIT DELAYED.



Baby, it's cold outside. Forget, cold. It's Anarctica, frost-bite-inducing, freeze your ---- off cold. I wish I had taken a photo of it, but my thermostat in the car said -11 on the way to work Friday. That doesn't include the windchill which made it feel more like -26 outside. Needless to say there's been a lot of cancellations around these parts and we haven't been venturing out too much aside from the neccessary.
Last weekend we had a good batch of heavy snowfall. Scott got all geared up to snow blow and Payton was a tad upset that her Daddy was leaving, so we went to the window to watch him. She thought it was pretty funny when he blew the snow onto the window. She loved watching him. So then we decided to bundle her up and take her outside for her first experience in winter and sledding. She didn't seem to mind much, and really loved when I would run fast pulling the sled behind. I'm not much of a winter person, but I think taking Payton outside for some good ol' fashioned fun, fresh air and physical activity is good for us all.

Poor thing

A Christmas post is coming, I promise. It's just been a hectic week since. Payton is on the supposedly stronger antibiotic and as of yesterday she wasn't showing signs of improvement. In fact, daycare called and said she was really fussy and inconsoable at times. We were scheduled to follow-up with the doctor on Friday, but I called and the nurse agreed that Payton needed to come back in. Scott took Payton to the pedi today where they agreed that she's a sick little girl. Her infection had become worse (how does that happen while on medicine?) and they heard enough junk in her lungs to say she has bronchitis. Daddy had the great joy of holding Payton down long enough for a breathing treatment with the nebulizer and for a shot of antibiotic directly into the leg. He was less than thrilled about this doctor's visit. It sounds like this respiratory infection/virus, whatever it is, is going around daycare so they advised us not to take her back. Could be a couple long nights and days ahead. I'm hoping she's on the mend, though, as she appeared to be eating a bit better today. Thank God, because she has had little to no appetite through all this. I just hope she soon starts feeling like her good, ol' jolly, happy self again because the sick Payton breaks my heart.

Right ear

A trip to the doctor's office on Tuesday confirmed that Payton indeed has another ear infection. That or the same infection from about a month ago has never gone away, considering it has been a rough few weeks. All in all, she still is a fairly easy-going baby so it's very apparent when she's irritable that she isn't feeling well.
This time a different antibiotic with hopes that it clears everything up, but her Daddy, Papa, Grandma & Grandpa Jacob are all sick right now too.
We just hope she's not heading down the same road as my niece, nephews and Uncle Seth, all of which had numerous ear infections.
After a bit of crankiness this mid-morning, Payton turned it around and was such a baby doll today for her first Christmas. She really didn't nap, despite a couple attempts, and she held on strong like she knew today was her big social event of the year! What a trooper. And Santa was very good to Miss Payton, and Mommy too! More to come on that soon.

Moving on up

I've had the chance to talk a bit more with the 'teachers' at daycare about Payton's transition from the Bunny room to the Turtle room. Since Scott has to be at work lately at 6 AM, I'm taking Payton to daycare and have more opportunities to see and hear what's going on. I am very happy with the daycare and I think Payton, the social bug that she is, enjoys it. They like to call her 'Nosey Rosey' there since she's all about everyone's business.

So far, the transition seems to be going well. I'm impressed with how flexible Payton is and how easily she goes with the flow. Even more impressed with how she is taking one big long nap (2-3 hours!) and often not in a crib. In the Turtle room, the big kids take naps on mats with blankets and they eat at small tables instead of high chairs. WOW, our baby girl is turning into such a big girl.

As much as it makes me sad about how fast she is growing, I also realize how ready she is for the next step, figuratively and literally. She's ready for the next room and all the new learning, discoveries, challenges and frustrations that come with growing. I'm still holding her hand every baby step of the way.

Tres bebe

It was a brief visit but I had the opportunity to visit with my good friends Eric and Julie who continue to invite me over and include me in some BC Enquirer functions despite leaving the paper almost 2 years ago. While there, I got to see little Henry and Darby and her son, who's about the same age of Henry. The funny thing about this photo is that the boys are about 5 months younger than Payton yet they all three weigh the same.

I'm so used to everyone having boys, and big boys they are, that Payton always looks so petite. Let's hope she doesn't get that huge growth spurt in her teen years where she gets all tall, awkward, clutzy and uncoordinated because her body is growing faster than her brain. Because I bet that would be really stressful and to whom would she turn for support and guidance?

Bake-a-thon

Don't ask me what sugary goodness was up with my sudden desire to bake about a dozen dozen cookies yesterday. I think maternal instincts took over or I was suddenly possessed by a spirit of Paula Dean because I couldn't stop. In fact, just to get started I had to go to the grocery story in blowing snow, freezing temperatures and on bad roads to get one ingredient - shortening. Because peanut butter cookies just aren't right without lard.

So much chocolate and so little desire to eat it once the cookies and treats were finished. Does that happen to anyone else? When you bake you have no desire to eat the goodies afterward. It's probably from tasting the dough and smelling all the sweetness for hours. Here's a glimpse at my lusty all-day affair with chocolate in the form of chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter blossoms and magic bars. And to think, I was happy this morning that I squeezed into a pair of pre-pregnancy old corduroys that haven't been worn in a couple years.

Digging out

Snowed Friday, more Sunday and again this morning. Not cool. In fact, downright frostbite chilly. This winter is really going to suck. They're saying there's more coming tomorrow and Wednesday too. No doubt we will have a White Christmas, but I'd prefer a little sunshine and above subarctic temperatures. I also like desserts without nuts, pizza relatively plain, trendy neutral-colored clothes, SHOES, milk chocolate (not dark) and wine with my cheese, but hey, that's not asking too much, right?
Meanwhile, we're all feeling a little ill lately. Payton keeps spiking random fevers so it looks like another trip to the ped tomorrow, and no, that isn't a mani-pedi.

Snowed in

We were hit with the motherload overnight Thursday and Friday morning. According tot he news, it sounds like we got about 8-10 inches of snow. Going to work on Friday wasn't really an option. As I mentioned before, the commute is less than fun but on days like this, it's nearly impossible. Add to this the fact that our hot water heater sprung a major leak last night and we were without hot water Friday morning. So, it was a snow day for Payton and I, but poor Scott had to go to work at 6 a.m. because he has so many workers who couldn't make the commute to work. As we sat at home watching the snow pile up around us, I called neighbor Chris who also stayed home. I made him a deal - I'll watch the kids (Payton likes playing with his son) while you dig us out. He bit and helped us out by snowblowing the driveway.

Meanwhile, conditions improved a bit Saturday. Enough so that I could get out and run a few errands, mail out gifts, etc. But by late night, we starting getting more snow. And today, we're under another Winter Storm Warning. It is only 12 degrees out and with the windchill, they say it feels well below 0. Yeah, the plans we had to take Payton out and try to sled in our backyard will have to wait till another day.

Bracing ourselves

I'm trying to mentally prepare for a couple biggies right now. Tonight, we're supposed to get hit with a major snowstorm that lasts through the day Friday. They're prediciting 6-10 inches of snow on top of the accumulation and ice we had earlier this week. Sounds like we'll be staying in this weekend. After Payton gets her flu shot in the morning, I'm going to work at the BC office to avoid getting stuck in Albion when the blizzard of 2008 hits and to be nearby in case she isn't feeling well.

Then, there's a biggie happening with PJ. She is moving up to the next room at daycare. Our Bunny is becoming a Turtle (those are the names of the rooms, which to me is kinda backward. Didn't you ever hear the tale about the turtle and the hare? Silly daycare, rabbits are faster than turtles.) It's a bittersweet transition for me. The teachers always commented about how advanced Payton is. She's so strong. She's crawling already. She's ready for tablefood. Look how close she's getting to walking. We've been so impressed and thrilled with Payton's development and socialization at daycare that I sometimes forgot how she's getting closer and closer to being ONE YEAR OLD. That's when kids usually move up, but they told us Payton would be ready sooner. Yeah, that's great, but am I ready? No one asked me if it was OK for my baby to start becoming a big girl.

My feelings aside, it does seem that Payton is transitioning well. I'm going to daycare tomorrow so more on that to come.

Daily commute

There are days that I think I should carry my digital camera with me for the roughly 50-mile round trip commute to and from work. I don't mind the drive, really. It only takes about a half-hour tops to get there from home. And sometimes I see the strangest and coolest things while on the highway.
There are nights that I see a dozen deer off in the field, and mornings like today where there were another dozen wild turkey strutting around.
There are things I don't like seeing like the cement burial vault being towed to its final resting place, accidents and cars with children not properly restrained.
And then there are nights like tonight. I have to admit the highway was in better condition than the backroads. The average speed was probably about 55 mph. Mainly the concern was the blowing snow and poor visibility.
And my main annoyance are the DBs who drive crazy in snowy, no blizzardy, weather. Usually you hear people bitching about the big SUVs and 4x4 vehicles that appear to be running others off the road. NO, my beef is with the drivers of the little cars. The small, less-than-reliable, couldn't possibly be safe cars that fly by me and then begin fish-tailing all over the place.
All I can say is that I'm grateful for the guardian angel who looks over me as I commute, especially this winter.

Four months later.....

I know, right! I've been awful about keeping up with this blog. You can blame Scott for always having the laptop attached to his lap and Payton for always having me attached to her.

So, since time is always of the essence, and I'm extrememly tired, here's a quick post to get us back on track. And I felt it was relevant just in case you forgot who I am.

1. What is your occupation right now?
Communications Director of Starr Commonwealth

2. What color are your socks right now?
Black

3. What are you listening to right now?
TV, "60" Minutes

4. What was the last thing that you ate?
Peanut granola bar

5. Can you drive a stick shift?
Yes

6. Last person you spoke to on the phone
Seth

7. Do you like the person who sent this to you?
Yes, and miss her. She's my blogging hero.

8. How old are you today?
31

9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV?
Football. The NFL. The Lions, any year but this one. (ditto)

10. What is your favorite drink?
Bud Light or Pepsi.

11. Have you ever dyed your hair?
Yes

12. Favorite food?
Italian

13. What is the last movie you watched?
Revenge of the Nerds

14. Favorite day of the year?
Payton's birthday

15. How do you vent anger?
I tend to throw things, slam things around.

16. What was your favorite toy as a child?
Cabbage Patch Dolls

17. What is your favorite season?
Summer

18. Cherries or Blueberries?
Neither

19.Do you want your friends to e-mail you back?
Yes, leave comments

20. Who is the most likely to respond?
Iwan

21. Who is least likely to respond?
Iwan

22. Living arrangements?
Me, husband and daughter in too small of a house that's up for sale.

23. When was the last time you cried?
Last week

24. What is on the floor of your closet?
shoes, clothes, a pillow, yeah not so tidy

25. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending to?
I'm posting, not sending

26. What did you do last night?
Went to Scott's work Christmas party

27. What are you most afraid of?
Something happening to Payton or Scott

28. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers?
Cheeseburger - cheddar or american cheese

29. What is your favorite kind of dog?
Those that don't shed, chew on things or take off running

30. Favorite day of the week?
Saturday

31. How many states have you lived in?
2

32. Diamonds or pearls?
Diamonds

33. What is your favorite flower?
Iris

Craziness

I know it's been a while since I provided an update, but things have been a bit crazy around here. Payton had her 6-month shots on Friday, Aug. 22 and then my brothers came up that weekend to visit. We had fun hanging out and Payton was really pretty good most the weekend. She didn't spike a high fever or get too cranky, just a bit of fussing.
We talked to the dr. about her not sleeping all not and he said "we're getting played and to let her start crying it out at night." It's really not the route I would like to take, but I don't like getting up every night between 1-4 either. Makes for some short nights and long tired days. So we let her cry, and cry, and cry some more and wail, and scream, and you get the point. But we held strong and she fell asleep.
It was working for a few nights, until one night I made her cry it out and then the next morning she woke up not well. On Wednesday, Payton was sent home from daycare with a fever over 101, and by mid-afternoon she was at the dr. with a fever over 103. Blood work, a urine bag and two days later, still not better. Viruses SUCK. There's nothing they can do and you just have to give tylenol and/or ibuprofen to bring down the fever. I was off work two days, we were getting little sleep, Payton was very needy and clingy (understandbly so) I was nearly getting sick myself with worry. But she recovered, and despite being really cranky all weekend, she is pretty much back to her good ol' self!
Meanwhile, we were preparing to show our house that Friday to a potential renter but canceled because of Payton's illness. Good thing, because over the weekend we had chance to walk some property owned by the Deloofs and found ourselves very interested in not renting but selling and possibly buying this land to build.
Fast forward, we're now signing papers to sell our house and talking to lenders about financing the land/home construction. It's very exciting and scary at the same time.
Back to Payton, she slept through the night for the first time in a VERY long time. Sleep is my favorite color!! There are so many things to tell you about with Payton, like how she's crawling all over, pulling herself up to standing, eating a bunch of solids, her first talent show, ETC. Keep coming back for more.

Primer

I know many of you actually receive the blog posts via email. I have it set up to send an email to you every time I update the blog. But what then happens is that many of you reply to me through my email when you should be posting comments on the blog.

In other words, those emails are just to remind you to check out www.sdjacob.blogspot.com where you can read the blog and leave comments there for me. Just scroll down to the bottom of the entry and click on the text where it says 0 Comments. Then add your own remarks.

More coming soon on Payton's lessons in physics!

Slop

Payton is now eating solids twice a day. She started off with the traditional first meal of rice cereal and we have progressed to eating a variety of fruits and vegetables along with mixed grain cereal and oatmeal. She wasn't too keen on eating off a spoon at first, but she's really gotten the hang of it and is eating quite well. Only thing now is that she's still waking up at night, which I would've thought would end by now since she's eating bottles, baby food and is over 6 months. But that's what parenthood teaches you - whatever your expectations are - just throw them out the window.

When we first started out, we fed Payton in her Bumbo seat with the attached tray. It worked out really well. Then, my boss and his wife, Molly, were kind enough to give us their highchair and a bath seat now that their girls have outgrown them. We're getting good use out of the highchair, and it's nice that it has two covers because one is always getting messy and thrown in the wash.



I can't really say yet that Payton has any favorites. She seems to like just about everything she tries and has not absolutely refused anything yet. On to the prunes!

Sitting

Sorry we haven't posted much lately. I definitely don't keep up with this blog as much as I'd like, but it's hard when you're raising a kid, working, keeping a home and trying to find a new one. We want to move so badly and have been looking at a lot of houses, some online and some in person. I love going to open houses! But we desperately need to sell our current house first, or possibly rent. So we're just sitting on this place but wishing we could move.

Speaking of sitting, Payton mastered the skill a couple weeks ago. She was able to sit with some help, but she then figured out how to push herself up and stabilize herself. Of course, she has the tendency to knock her noggin on the floor at times so we bought a foam-padded floor thing that looks like giant colorful puzzle pieces. It's like her own personal play mat. Payton has made amazing strides the past couple weeks and is getting too big for her britches at times. More on that later.

Enjoy these various shots of her sitting....

Vacation

Payton just loved sitting in the sand and having the Lake Michigan waves lap up toward her. She sat in the sand and played with it between her fingers and toes forever. The paci in her mouth was only there to prevent her from trying to eat the sand and she never did.




This is during our boat ride back from Mackinaw Island. We spent the day going over to the island, strolling around with the kids and having lunch. I think the island is ridiculously expensive, overrated and too crowded, but at least we can say we did it.



Payton looking outside the camper at her Daddy. She sat in her Bumbo seat to eat and could peak out the window at the activities out there. She's very social and can't miss a thing.




Payton slept in bed with Mommy & Daddy, while Brody Deloof slept in the pack-n-play in the kitchen area. In the morning they would play in the big bed for a while. We called Payton the "Happy Camper" and this is pretty much how she usually wakes.



One of my favorites from vacation. Payton is learning to crawl as she gets up on all fours and rocks back & forth. This is just a cute moment of her playing on the beach blanket in the summer sun!