New Swing Application

We aren't quite sure if an infant is supposed to use the swing's mobile like this or not, but it seemed to put Jacob to sleep. Amy and I were doing different things around the house while Jacob was swinging away. Based on what Amy found, we aren't sure whether the swing put him to sleep or if it was the fact that he was cuddling the teddy bears on the mobile. Looks like the clamping technique that Graco used isn't good enough for a 5 month old any longer.

Technical Difficulty

We are currently experiencing some technical difficult with our internet. Please be rest assured that everything is okay and we are not just blowing off the blog... Heehee!!! Comcast is "upgrading" our area which is causing some outages. I believe this means resetting everything as I have attempted in part, but not all as yet.

More importantly, today is the last day to vote for a fun center at Detroit Children's Hospital. Houston has started to leave us in the dust, so hopefully Detroit can battle back today.

Hope everyone is enjoying the snow today!!!

Diaper, What Diaper?

Amy left Jacob on the floor with just his diaper on as she threw the old diaper out and got her phone to make a call. Now, Jacob has been playing with the velcro on his diaper, but we are usually there to stop anything. Upon Amy's return, she found Jacob in one spot and his diaper in another along with a wet spot on the floor about an inch from his little pickle. Apparently, Jacob decided as much as he likes being naked, he would take off his diaper and roll over. Since he was free as a bird, he also decided to relieve himself. His mother couldn't help but to laugh because it was just so unexpected. She immediately called me to let me know what was going on at home. He is definitely happy when he is naked and it looks like we are going to have to watch him because he knows how to get himself naked... ;)!

5 Month Appointment

So, what brings you in today asked the doctor? Amy responded with, just getting a 5-month checkup. The doctor said I normally don't do 5-month appointments, so let's just talk (the doctor at the 4-month appt. said that he likes to see his patients every month until 6 months and our new insurance pays the bill for it, so why not?). Jacob was very active and trying to take off the nurses glasses and moving anything he could get his hands on. He has definitely reached the stage that if it isn't nailed down, it could be moved...

During the visit and relatively quickly, the dr. said that we need to get his eye cleared up. Yep, that's right, Jacob's left eye still isn't right once again. She gave us another prescription for drops and said that if it wasn't cleared up by 8 months, Jacob would have a procedure to fix the drainage issue. At this point, the procedure would be done in the doctor's office. After this point, he would need to be put out and the procedure, etc. wasn't discussed at this point. If it is still an issue, we will address it at his 6-month appt.

Other than that, Jacob is an active growing boy and still hasn't lost his touch in flirting with this doctor. Amy is still convinced that this is Jacob's favorite. Jacob's stats for this visit are that he is 25-3/4" tall and weighs 15 pounds, 14 ounces.

Two Days Left For Fun Center

There are only two days left to help the Detroit Children's Hospital get a Fun Center from Colgate-Palmolive. Houston in currently in the lead by about a 1/2 per cent. Voting ends on Friday and Detroit needs your help. Please be sure to vote every day!! Let's DO IT!!

Jacob Has Joined Us At The Table

Jacob can now eat at the table with the rest of us. The bouncer just wasn't cutting the mustard when it comes to feeding. With the more actives hands and arms, couple with the bouncing, it was time for something a little more stable. Yep, you guessed it, time for the high chair.

Jacob and I had our first father/son project. I went up to Jacob's closet and got out the booster chair/high chair. Jacob read the plans and I put it together. He could be an aspiring engineer and the early age of 5 months. Jacob couldn't wait for us to be done putting it together so that he could christen it while testing it on the floor. Oh well, not like it was going to stay crystal clean anyway... It didn't take long after it was strapped to the chair and getting fed that it was fully christened once more.

Jacob enjoys hanging out tilted back in his chair. We think it is just because he knows when he is in it what is coming next. It's still squash at the moment. He did continue to be hungry the other night and rather than continue squash, we tried green beans. That was not to his liking. He was hungry, but didn't like the fact that we tricked him in the middle. Guess we'll wait on the mixing a little longer ;)! Needless to say, this all happened on Sunday which is why he has his "spit stop" bib on.

News Flash

This just in... Amy has decided to also feed Jacob sweet potatoes prior to starting the fruits. The ending time for voting has been extended for those that have not viewed the blog in a while, haven't made up their mind, or just plain haven't voted yet... :)!!

Watch out for those curve balls...

Mom Stop The Car!!

This is a little bit that could be enlisted for "Kids Say The Darndest Things"...

After Aunt Abby picked up Jacob from the motel, she needed to pick up Jacob's cousins before heading home until it was time to head to grandma's. Jacob decided it was time to be a little fussy. This is something that Colton hasn't really dealt with too much in the car, so he hollered up to his mom, "Stop the car, there is something wrong with Jacob." Aunt Abby quickly noted that he was okay and was just a little fussy and they were almost home. The kids weren't convinced, however... Sydney asked where's that thing you put in his mouth? They quickly went through Jacob's bag to find his pacifier and put it in his mouth. Jacob was quickly relieved. With Jacob's relief Colton states, "Oh! Thank goodness he's safe..." No bothers here! Oh to be a little fly on the car roof to see this. I'm sure I am not doing the situation justice... LOL!!!

Wedding Anniversary Night Out

It was a time to relax away from at least one of our children. We have had offers for Jacob to spend the night away from us, but we just haven't felt like giving him up at all yet. We decided that a night out for our anniversary would be a good thing for all of us. Timing was just right for Amy's school as well because this week is her winter break.

The outing started off with Aunt Abby picking Jacob up from the hotel. Jacob's mom did amazingly well as I didn't see her shed a tear... this time... ;)! It was definitely difficult to get her mind off of our little man, but a trip to the store to get some adult drinks and bubble bath eased her minded enough to be able to relax. Most of the night was spent hanging out at the motel with the exception of heading to downtown Ann Arbor for a bite to eat and a stop to an infamous ice cream spot.

A night without the need to wake up in the middle of it or without the possibility waking up was a great feeling. Well, the night didn't go off without an interruption. At 1:00 am, we heard a pounding on our door. Who the heck is beating on our door? Amy thought my phone didn't ring what is wrong with Jacob, I thought, did the tub leak or is there something else going on. I opened the door to find a high school aged girl asking for Dustin. She was dressed up with caked on make-up. I quickly told her that she had the wrong room and closed the door. Amy was able to get back to sleep pretty quickly, but then I was up because the adrenalin was flowing...

Jacob had a great time spending it at his grandma's house. It turned out being a slumber party with his two cousins too! They all slept together while downgrading grandpa to the pull out couch... It was a nice relaxing night for us as well.

Time For A New Look!

If you haven't noticed that Doug & Amy's Rattle Tattle has taken on a new look, then you haven't been here before. Out with the old and in with the new. Now that Jacob has arrived, we don't need a gender neutral feel and can go with whatever we want. Besides, it is time for a change, don'tcha think? The color theme may continue to change along with some other smaller items, but the bulk of the changes are done. Feel free to comment on whether or not you like the new look.

Yes, those are Jacob's eyes in the header. I knew I wanted to put a picture in the header instead of the same old boring description and title that is generic to the template. I had a few ideas, but nothing that I could really get started and make it look good. I just started playing with some pictures just to get an idea about what I could/wanted to do and what you see is what you get and it didn't take too long to make it work.

Squash

Jacob is now eating sqash in his diet. Amy tried waiting for dad to get home from work, but there was no stopping Jacob in wanting to eat, so Amy gave in, of course, why wouldn't she? So, Jacob did make a funny face and wasn't quite sure if he wanted to eat this new stuff as he shook it off, literally. It is like the shiver you do when you take some horrible tasting cough medicine. I guess this "cough medicine" wasn't too bad to Jacob because he shrugged it off and opened his mouth for more. The squash did settle pretty well. So, to recap, he is now eating green beans, peas, carrots and sqash. The only questionable food has been the carrots, but nothing to worry about...

As it stands now, it looks like Jacob will be eating bananas which I kinda find funny. His mother is rooting for bananas and doesn't even like eating them. Maybe this is just so that dad will have an "eating buddy" when Jacob gets a little older. This is a good thing since she can be a picky eater at times. Jacob and I can't eat Chinese all of the time... ;)!

It's Almost Fruit Time - You Get To Decide

Jacob has been trying a new vegetable every week. After the peas he is working on this week, we are going to have one more vegetable to add, squash. So, the next step is to introduce fruits. We have decided to let you pick which fruit Jacob should try first. There is one fruit available that has been purposely left off of the list. It is prunes. It is our understanding that these will help "move" things along more so than others and we are reserving them for when they are needed. Also, we don't think Jacob will ever really get prunes other than baby food because Jacob's mom and dad don't really eat/like them.

So, there is about a week or so before Jacob will be getting to try a fruit. You have plenty of time to vote for your favorite. I think you will only be able to vote once per computer...

Peas, Peas, Peas...

Peas are/were the next choice of food to try for Jacob. The camera was loaded (when isn't it... okay, it's when Amy wants to take a picture... lol!) and ready to capture the funny face that Jacob makes when he tries something new. Since we were at Grandma G.'s house, Jacob had the proper attire... an "I love Grandma bib"... Drum roll please...

The peas traveled through the air on the spoon held by Jacob's mom. Jacob's mouth opened in anticipation not knowing what was coming his way. The peas slid into his mouth... and... NOTHING!! Jacob took the peas in stride like he had been eating them for a week. He sucked those green veggies down like a champ and was yearning for more.

The introduction of peas into Jacob's diet this week was obviously anti-climatic. There are still a lot more stage 1 foods that will follow and maybe there will be a funny face to capture. The next food on the agenda and I think the last vegetable available is squash. We'll just have to wait a week and see what happens then!!

Hanging Out At Dinner

One way for Jacob to be involved and entertained is to put his in his bumbo seat on the table. He certainly pays attention to what is going on and likes to share in conversation at the dinner table. Amy made a comment that we are going to have to start having family meals more often, especially if he is going to be this good.

Here's a picture of Jacob just hanging out waiting quietly for his turn... Yes, the peas...

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!!

Better late than never... Although this was a school day, Jacob was able to spend much of the day with his favorite valentine, his mother. There were still a little issue with our day care, but Jacob was able to spend some time with one of his grandma's, another valentine, while his mother took an exam. She doesn't like taking exams from this professor because she needs to write a novel. However, she got an A on the first exam she took, so let's hope a trend can be made with this exam.

Jacob decided he wanted to go out for dinner and promised he would be a good boy. He said that he wanted to go somewhere that was kid friendly so that there wouldn't be grumpy old stuffed shirts around. Red Robin was the place he wanted to go. There were definitely a lot of kids there, but none of them were as good as Jacob. After all he promised to be good. He was VERY good as he slept through the appetizer and dinner. Then when mom was almost finished, he decided it was time for his dinner too. So, we headed out and got him fed.

I can't take credit for these pictures, I can only take credit for picking the ones to put up. I can also take credit for only the socks he is wearing... If you can't read his shirt, it says 'Heartbreaker'...

How Did Daddy Do?

Since Amy wasn't around to dress Jacob yesterday, how did Doug do with Jacob's selection of clothes? Be careful, the outfit he is wearing may be something that you gave him... ;)!

A carrot update... Carrots may not be Jacob's choice of food. Monday was rough, Tuesday was fine and tonight was a little bit of an issue. Tonight was the first time Amy fed Jacob carrots and she noted how runny they were. Jacob kinda spits them a bit, not on purpose, but they tend to be messy as you may have seen in the picture. I think there is one more day of those. We may have to limit the amount of carrots he gets for now.

Well, time to go. Jacob is waking up from a nap and Amy is upstairs studying on the computer!!

Daddy Day

Yep, daddy had a day with Jacob all by himself. Unfortunately, this wasn’t necessarily a normal day, even for Amy… The day started at 2:00 am with a mid night feeding. Fortunately, Jacob ate and went to back to sleep rather quickly which isn’t the norm because he thinks his daddy is going to play with him. This was great! Jacob went back to sleep and now I can too!! Well, much to my chagrin, I was not able to get back to sleep for another few hours…

Time for Amy to get up at 6 am, which is later because she didn’t need to drop Jacob off, and head for class. This woke me up and right after she left, I decided it was time for me to prepare for the day and get things together. Why you ask? It was also the day Frankie was going to the vet to be put under for a dental cleaning. Jacob decided he was going to lay in his crib and talk, so I got cleaned totally expecting he would be screaming for me shortly, but didn’t. Things that make you go hmm… After getting him up, etc. he still wasn’t acting hungry and it was getting time to go. So, I made a bottle and fed him something to hold him over. We eventually dropped Frankie off at 8:30 and then started to run errands. Jacob was now definitely hungry so we hung out at BK for a drink together. Boy!! It is now definitely time to keep things on the table away from him… Jacob was able to sleep while running errands so that he could play when we got home, and play we did!!

Along came 2:30 and unannounced to me, this is the time that Jacob usually gets a little fussy. I was not prepared for what was about to ensue and didn’t think there was an issue because Jacob had just awoke from a nap. Jacob began uncontrollably screaming and crying. Let’s just say a pacifier, gas drops, feeding, bouncing, swaying, playing, and probably some other stuff, etc. just didn’t seem to work In the meantime, I am watching the time tick away because I needed to pick up Frankie soon. I was able to eventually get him settled down and got him fed. Off we go back to the vet to pick up Frankie. Of course, Jacob, now very tired, slept during this adventure again.

Back at home, I now have a dog that isn’t herself. Frankie was wandering around aimlessly and uneasy. Jacob ended up having another fit, not as severe as the one earlier in the day, but much more prolonged. There was a definitely a balancing act. Bounce Jacob to settle him down and then find Frankie and take care of her for a few seconds before Jacob cried again. This went on for a few hours. Eventually, it was time that Jacob was able to sleep, but I knew he wouldn’t be down for the count. I took advantage of the open time to console Frankie and get some bottles cleaned. It wasn’t long and Jacob was up again. Another feeding and fortunately, he went back to sleep. I took advantage of knowing he was now down for the count and went out and cleaned the driveway around 10:15 so that Amy could get in without any trouble.

Where in the world is Amy? I got a call around 9:15 to let me know that she wouldn’t make it home in time so I could play hockey, but had to go because there were sirens coming. I didn’t know if they were for her, or just what. Was she getting stopped by the police, was she in a crash, was she a witness…??? I gave it a little time and then I couldn’t reach her, which I now know was because her phone died. She eventually got home at 10:45. Fortunately, her professor let her out of class an hour early and she didn’t need to pick up Jacob, otherwise, she might still be on the road…

So, I think Amy was surprised that Jacob and I are still alive and the house wasn’t a mess when she came home. It was quiet and dark and everyone but me was in bed, almost like it was when she left…

Put On Those Dancin' Shoes

Okay, so maybe there won't be any dancin' in these shoes, but it was about time for us to put Jacob's first pair of shoes on him. We already missed the opportunity to put two pair that we had on him. Those were 0-6 and 3-6 month sizes. Looks like Jacob is going to have a good foundation like his dad.

Jacob doesn't mind the shoes although they look big on him. When his shoes are off, his feet don't look that out of proportion. Good thing we didn't get the bigger shoes like I wanted. Amy stuck to her guns and I'm glad she did. The bigger ones would have really looked ridiculous.

The third night of carrots may not have settled with Jacob. It was the first time that he didn't keep something down other than formula. It wasn't bad, so we will just have to wait and see what happens tomorrow night.

Adding Foods

Jacob has now added carrots to his repertoire of food. I don't think he was sure about it after the first bite as he definitely knew it was something different than he had before. After a few bites, he had his mouth open waiting for more. His mother was studying and we forgot to put a bib on him, so needless to say when you are feeding him in a bouncer, there was food all over him. Amy mentioned that maybe we should get out his booster chair to help stop him from bouncing all over. Of course, Jacob isn't sitting up by himself enough for that, but maybe we can rig something up to keep him upright. He is starting to do mini sit-ups on occasion to work out those stomach muscles.

Sorry, no pictures of the carrots all over his face. Frankie is now enjoying her little brother a little more... ;)! She gets the leftovers/gets to clean out Jacob's food dish. Aside from the fact Jacob's food is keeping her close while he is eating, she is getting more curious about him and letting him pet her. It used to freak her out when Jacob was even near her and she was getting touch, regardless of who it was. It's nice to see that Frankie is a little more interested. Llasa's aren't always the most kid friendly and being 13-1/2 years old doesn't help much either.

Okay, so another little story about today. I was downstairs doing some rearranging and also playing around and all of a sudden I hear "Oh, my LooooRRDdddd!!!", which sounded like Jacob just did something for the first time. I quickly finished what I was doing and ran upstairs to see what the new trick was... As I am rounding the corner to the living room, I hear Pee U!!!! False alarm. All of the commotion was just over and "orange load" as Amy called it. You would have thought it was the worst smell she had ever met up with!!!

Fun Center Competition Returns!

The Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation has once again teamed up with Colgate to potentially place a family fun center in our area. The hospital targeted is Detroit Children's Hospital. There are nine hospitals in competition with each other for the fun center with only one receiving a fun center. With your help, Royal Oak Beaumont, the hospital Jacob was born in, received one of thesefun centers last year. Let's help out others in our area enjoy the benefit of a fun center at the Detroit Children's hospital. VOTE HERE!

A cousin of mine forwarded a message to let me know that Colgate was once again offering the challenge and followed up witha personal note. She wrote:

Hey Everyone!
I just sent an e-mail regarding voting for Children's Hospital of Detoit to receive a play/fun center from Colgate. We are currently in 2ndplace! I have personally experienced this wonderful hospital over the past few years while dealing w/ a few issues w/ our daughter and I was completly blown away with every aspect of this hopital. There are MANY MANY sick children that stay there and visit everyday and this play center I'm sure would bring a little sparkle to their eyes! It takes Less than 1 minute to vote! Please make adifference to a child!!!!!

Her note was sent only a couple of days ago and Detroit has sinced dropped way behind and is now in fourth!! Let's get the word out and get people voting for Detroit!! It doesn't cost us a thing and doesn't take much time at all... Please take a few seconds to vote for Detroit!! You can vote once a day per computer, so if you have multiple computers at your hands, use them!! Voting ends Feburary 29, 2008. Mayor troubles or not, a fun center helps the children!!

Jacob Sleeps Through The Night

It looks like Jacob is getting better as he has slept through the night once again. He ate pretty well yesterday as he downed a whole container of green beans. He was only eating half of it before he was sick. His eye seems to be a little ickier, but not near as bad as they have been in the past. Our little guy is definitely on the road to being healthy.

Too Early To Tell?

It may too early to tell, at least today, but Jacob does seem to be feeling a little better. He still didn't want to eat solid food (okay, so more solid than formula), but seems to be eating formula pretty well. He definitely wants to be his happy-go-lucky self, but just isn't quite there yet. Fortunately for his mom and dad, Jacob did sleep through the night last night until he was swooped up from his crib and laid in his car seat at 6 am.

Let's hope that Jacob has a great day today and is back 100% himself tomorrow and is ready to be happy all weekend!!!

Jacob Has A Winter Cold

Jacob started getting a little sleepy/not himself late Monday night. It wasn't bad, but you could tell that he wasn't quite himself. I wasn't sure if it was because it was the first time that I gave him a bath in the big tub or if it was because he wan't feeling well. He went to sleep a little earlier than usual, but nothing seemed to be way out of whack.

Jacob woke up at 3:30 am expecting to be fed, but he went to bed earlier than usual, so he didn't get his usually "topping off" like he has grown accustomed to. He slugged down 4 oz and he was filled up. Then the little rascal wanted to play a bit, but I didn't play into him and just bounced him around trying to get him to go to sleep. After a couple of hours he was getting there so I tried putting him in his crib, but he would immediately wake up and begin to be fussy. Eventually, it was time to eat right before he was bundled up for grandma's house (school day), so he ate a couple of ounces and was off. I noticed he wasn't quite himself then, but figured it was beacuse he didn't really sleep a ton during the night.

Jacob's fussiness didn't go away. Grandma could tell he wasn't feeling himself as he wasn't eating much if at all and his eyes were droopy and glassy at times. As the day went on, he seemed to get droopier (is this a word?) and started tugging at his ear and just wasn't himself. Unfortunately, Amy had an exam in the evening so she couldn't go pick him up and take him home. Aunt Abby stopped by and helped out getting him to sleep a little bit while on her. Jacob really didn't sleep during the day, but like 10-15 minute intervals.

Jacob reverted back a couple of months and was up every few hours last night wanting to eat and did a little better. This morning he was still droopy, but a little more playful and still tugging at his ears. So, Amy called the doctor and they said to bring him in. We figured he had an ear infection and possibly a cold as he had had some congestion Monday night and then later yesterday.

So off to the doctor...

The doctor thought for sure that Jacob had an ear infection, but was surprised to find that his ears were very clean. His chest does have some congestion in it, but not bad. The goop in his eyes is back, so we now have another prescription for eye drops, but were pretty convinced that this is just because of his cold that he has been diagnosed with. The tugging/scratching at his ear is thought to be related to his cradle cap that is still evident. Now that Jacob is older the doctor thinks Jacob realizes that something isn't right and is now scratching to try and get rid of it.

So Jacob is a little under the weather, but should be okay by the weekend!!

Jacob's First Superbowl!

MMmmmm....!!!! I REALLY like this Superbowl stuff!! Mom tried making some new nacho dip and it is really good. Of course, it wasn't spicy enough for dad, so he added jalepenos on the side, but mom was okay with that. And to think I was going to sleep through everything. I'm glad dad put me down so that I would wake up a little bit. I can't wait to see what happens in the second half. However, I am getting pretty tired since I have only slept about an hour today and I have been up since 8:30 this morning. I think if I get me some dessert soon, I should be able to hit the hay by 8:30 and then sleep 'til dad leaves in the morning.

Which Way Is Up?

Jacob is now trying to determine which way is up and what side he wants to lay on. He has been rolling over on occasion from front to back and is now going the other way as well. Although going back to front is something new, he is not scared of doing it. The first time was earlier today and this evening when mom was cleaning his front, before she knew it, she was cleaning the back because he decided he would much rather be on his stomach.

With the new trick(s) of rolling over for Jacob, it was off to Babies R Us for checking into gates and of course, the diapers, formula, etc. There was also the first impulse buy because Jacob wanted it. We happened to be in the toy section after getting extra spoons, bowls, etc. and his mother and I were passing toys back and forth. Many of which didn't even phase Jacob. When all of a sudden, I passed a piano, rattle, slidy thing in front of him and he started grabbing for it. He would not let it out of his site. Mom and I were both surprised at the attention the new toy received. He would follow it everywhere it went. Fortunately, it was an inexpensive toy, so we decided to get it. Mom also had to get him his first tv remote because he has been checking out the remote when she has been using it and wanted to be like mom.

So, we have one gate for now in case Jacob starts rolling around or crawling unannounced. He is really moving his legs and getting high on his elbows. It seems like it won't be long before he is crawling. Of course, he still needs to build the strength in his legs to do so, but time flies...