Second Tooth

Jacob's second tooth (bottom next to the first one) is rearing it's ugly head (at least in Jacob's eyes...). The white of it is showing through Jacob's gum, but it has not quite poked through. We have been attempting to look for activity on the top, but we haven't been so lucky as Jacob can sometimes make it difficult to peruse his gum lines...

So, no time for rest between teeth. Guess the doctor knew what was going on with his teeth when Jacob saw her last. She has been right on so far. This is probably only one of the many reasons why she is Amy and Jacob's favorite in the practice!!!

Happy Mother's Day!!

Jacob celebrated his 1st Mother's Day by waking up his mommy at 8:45 with a card and present. We would havfe let her sleep, but we had plans of going to see his grandma for an earlier lunch. With the cold and wet weather, we weren't able to enjoy the day as much as we would have liked. Amy decided that being with her son was more important than going to her internship. Today was the first weekend day in quite a while that we have all been together all day.

The day has gone by way too fast. Jacob is still fighting a cold and we think that he might also be working on some more teeth. We have been passing Jacob back and forth hoping that he won't get bored with just one of us and keep him calm. Unfortunately, with the events of the weekend, he hasn't been able to get his much needed naps which we think is contributing to his mood. Even when he is at his worst, we can still manage to get some big smiles and good giggles, so he is definitely trying to be happy, but just isn't feeling well... We are hoping to get him to bed early (being worked on as I type this...) so that he can get tons of rest. Tomorrow is the first day of the last semester Amy will have for her Associates degree... Biology starts bright and early at 8:00 am and gets done at 2:15 pm.

First Tooth Is In!

Amy and I (okay, so Amy...) has decided that we can say Jacob's first tooth is officially in. Of course, it is not full length yet, but it has definitely broken the skin and is all the way through the gum.

Jacob Focusing On His Toy...

Here's what happens when I'm not around...

Jacob Attends Chloe's B-day Party!!

Jacob has now attended family birthday parties and his first kid's party for some one who is not related. Chloe turns 2 on Saturday and had her party this evening. There were many friends in attendance for this grand event. The special guest of honor was draped in her Elmo gear.

When we first arrived, Chloe's mom held Jacob and it wasn't long at all before Chloe was staking claim to her mom. The attempt at swapping Jacob and Chloe was a bust even when her dad stepped in to help out and try to sway her attention away from what her mom was holding. After all, it was her day and she should be able to have her mother any time she wants to, right?

As with most, if not all kids, there is always that one toy for the year that they are focused on. This year for Chloe, it was Elmo. As she was really getting into being fed toys, etc. and really liking the presents idea, along came a musical Elmo. After that moment, the remainder of the gifts just didn't cut the mustard as she became a little preoccupied. There were still some interest in opening more gifts, but nothing like before the gift of her life showed up... :D!!

As for Jacob, he and I were on our own this evening as Amy was tutoring and being a companion for kids. This was initially thought to not be a good thing as Jacob was having a rough afternoon and didn't really have much if any sleep. I was pleasantly surprised that he lasted until basically 9:00 pm without any major breakdowns and even then it was only minimal. Jacob is going to be/already one of those kids that needs to keep his mind stimulated. There were many faces that he hasn't seen much or not at all and was very content checking them out as well. He seemed to be very tired and hungry so we left around 9.

Did I tell you about the phone call that I received from Jacob's mother? It was a reminder that Jacob needed to get a little bit of frosting. The cake was served and I hadn't given Jacob any, so I hung up and did give him not even a covered fingertip of frosting... It is now almost 10:30 with Jacob only getting about an hour of sleep (generally 4 - 5) during the day and he is content, happy, playing and smiling away in his exersaucer. Okay, so he might have had 10 minutes of sleep on the way home too, but he is WIRED!!! Guess we will need to be careful with that sugar stuff in the future... ;)! Time for the "mama bounce"... so that we can all hit the hay...

The Tooth Is On The Loose

Where o' where is that dog gone tooth, oh where o' where can it be... Not exactly the tune we are working with as there is some resemblance of a tooth poking through... Although Jacob is not allowing us to get anywhere near his mouth without playing games, we are able to see some white poking through and are having an easier time feeling the tooth on our finger. There is still quite some protruding that needs to take place befor his tooth is completely in, but we think his tooth has broken all the way through the gum now. We are still feeding Jacob teething tablets and also Ibuprofen on occasion to help him with the pain we think he is feeling, but we are hoping this will subside for a little while or at least until the next tooth/teeth is/are ready to come through too.

Aside from the tooth stuff going on, Jacob is definitely picking up his "ground" speed. Frankie's food and water dishes need to be protected as Frankie's water dish is one of Jacob's new found toys. We guess taking him to the pool was a good thing as he certainly doesn't seem to mind getting wet. Fortunately or unfortuantely, depending on how you want to look at it, Jacob has tipped the water dish over a few times and has been soaked. He's all boy because getting wet didn't seem to phase him at all. Frankie has been doing very well with Jacob. Jacob has been touching her tail and on occasion grabbing her coat and Frankie kinda gives Jacob a look and then meanders away looking for a new resting place and actually sometimes just stays there depending on what she is doing at the time.

Jacob Hangs Out At The Pool

Our family finally made it up to Davison to enjoy our membership for the first time this year. Amy worked a few hours for her internship and then we loaded up and headed out to try and see if Jacob would like the water or not.


Boy oh boy, was the pool ever busy AND noisy. There were actually people that were leaving because it was the busiest they ever saw it. It was the busiest we have ever seen it too, but we haven't been there very often at all. We were all a little unjust with the noise, but we decided to stay and try it anyway.
Jacob wasn't too sure about the pool at first, but we really think it was because of the noise and getting splashed no matter where we moved to. We tried to put our backs to the splashing which helped, but didn't stop the madness. After a while we were able to play with Jacob a little more in the water as he started splashing. The first couple of splashes got his mom in face and completely avoided himself. The next few weren't quite as lucky to miss him. He didn't like the splashing in his face, but he was a trooper and kept movin' on... After a little more warming up to the water and maybe a few less decibels, we were able to get a little more active with our playing and Jacob was able to smile and enjoy the water more. We were in the water for at least 25 minutes. I think he started making noise at the end because he was getting hungry. He ended up eating a stage 2 container of peas and 6 ounces of formula. You may get one or the other, but not both...

Since it was time for Jacob to eat, etc. we just hung out in the club house and spread his toys out on the floor and hung out away from home. We met an older gentleman whom we found has been nicknamed "The Walking Man". It sounds like he walks a lot because of the arthritis in his right leg. Yes, we paid attention... LOL!! He was there to watch the Piston's game, but unfortunately the cable was out and the attena wasn't good enough. We were sure if he hung around because he was hoping the cable came on or if he was enjoying spending time with us. Jacob seemed to like him as he kept crawling over to him to check out his feet. Probably just eyeing up his shoelaces. After eating at the grille, wouldn't you know it? We saw the walking man walking through the resort...

Beware if you are brave enough to play this boring and NOISY video, be sure that you do not have your volume turned up as it may make you jump out of your seat....

Tooth Update...

Nope, no tooth is officially in yet. However, there is definitely some white beginning to be noticeable and also something that is able to felt. No, I haven't felt this personally because Jacob wasn't himself today from what I hear until I got home. He was still a little "rough", but definitely had rounds of being VERY happy and energetic as he would make the mad dash to Frankie's water dish every chance he got. Yes, he did reach it and was able to play in it before he was turned to another direction or swooped up, but he was not able to tip the dish over because one of us was right there. There could be some relief for Jacob and of course us too in the near future... ;)!

Last Day Of Class..........This Semester...

Today was the last day of class for Amy this semester. With taking two finals on Tuesday and an exam and then her final in that class today, Amy is definitely ready to kick back and relax for a week. With everything else that has been going on in addition to our regular lives, Amy now has a cold and can't fully enjoy her accomplishment.

Do you remember Amy's first day of Algebra class and how the teacher wasn't very nice? Well, she stopped Amy today and noted how she was a pleasure to have in class. Her teacher really backed off of her initial assessment and realized how much Amy needed to go through to get to an 8 am class. Nothing says "In Your Face" more than getting an A in this class... Amy was very happy to receive this compliment.

Accomplishment you ask? The unofficial results of this term taking 15 credits is that Amy will have completed the semester with a whopping 4.00 GPA!!!! She'll find out the official results next Wednesday. In addition to the 4.00, can you believe that she scored a 100% on her final exam in algebra?!?!?!

After much discussion, Amy decided a couple of weeks ago that she will be partaking in commencement ceremony. In my opinion, I think the final straw was when she spoke to one of her former advisors when she said "Wouldn't it be nice to have a picture of you in your gown holding your son?" This hit home with Amy and the fact that she has been working very hard toward improving herself. How much better of an example of focusing your energies toward a goal than becoming pregnant, having a baby and completing school all at the same time. You can't set a better example...

So, in addition to the commencement ceremony, Amy has also been invited to attend an honors convocation for those graduates with a 3.50 or higher. After this semester, Amy's overall GPA will be a 3.9+!!! Jacob and I are very proud of Amy!!!

Achy Breaky Heart...

Achy breaky tooth may be a better name for a song... This is the theme in our house... The past few days Jacob has been more uncomfortable than he has ever been and didn't even appear at times to be his usual self. Well, this wasn't 24/7, but definitely way more than it should ever be. Teething tablets, orajel and baby Tylenol would help, but were not the answer.

While seeing grandma more than usual this week and seeing the look on his face, etc. grandma mentioned yesterday that we should take him to the doctor because she thought he had an ear infection. We weren't concerned and kept a close eye on him as we knew how he has been, but began watching him closer. Amy has heard stories as to how parents would think the "mood" was thought to be just teething and it was something more. Jacob was at his grandma's this morning for a little bit and when Amy returned to pick him up, grandma said he was tugging at his ears. On the way home a little later, Jacob's mom called the doctor and got him in early this afternoon.

Symptoms of Jacob were fussiness, chewing on his gums, screaming, tugging his ears, breaking out, scratching his head, sleeplessness and throwing up as the biggest symptoms. The doctor checked Jacob out and found his ears and everything to be okay and that Jacob is just having a worse than average time with teething. Jacob is just so uncomfortable that he is just doing whatever he can to try and ease the pain. We have been feeling something different and can his gum changing color and texture, etc. The doctor thinks Jacob will have a tooth within a week with a few others follwing right behind them. Bottom line is that Jacob is fine which is good news. We also found out that we can now give Jacob Baby Motrin and that it is actually preferred because it lasts longer the Tylenol

Other discussion with the doctor led to how Jacob has been crawling for a couple of weeks and really moving around and how Amy thought Jacob would be sleeping better. The doctor questioned "Crawling?" Babies we found don't usually start crawling until nine months and the doctor wouldn't have thought too much of if it was eight months, but was pretty shocked that he was so active at seven months and really less than that. After discussing how Jacob's big toes are getting scuffed, etc. the doctor said, "Yep, he's crawling". Jacob's not yet on all fours, but he definitely has picked up speed. I guess I never got my belly off the floor either, but Jacob is starting to show signs of getting himself up. Amy didn't get a height, but Jacob is now 18#, 8oz.

Okay, so one more topic came up as well and Amy admitted that the doctor got on her a little bit. The funny thing is that I had just mentioned this, but about a different part of the day and Jacob's grandma also brought up how she spends her day. My comment was how Jacob is "playing us" and knows that he is fine, but fusses just so he gets picked up. Grandma mentioned that her day is spent bouncing Jacob around in her arms and that I should close my ears. I guess I didn't realize how accurate my statement really was until I got the call about Jacob from Amy. The doctor told Amy to quit going to Jacob's side during the night so quickly. I didn't think either one of us were, especially when it wasn't more than two hours after he ate at night, but I guess she/we have. He definitely doesn't get picked up right away and usually just gets pats on the back to soothe him, but I guess it is time to hear more of Jacob at night.

Wheel Of Learning

Let's try this for the dozenth time... We have been having issues with our internet provider, Comcast. We think it is only the fact that we cannot send messages from our e-mail accounts. We have been able to receive messages though. Comcast support has been called a few times and they still don't have it fixed. I think the first call was this past Tuesday (now Saturday). We were told that they needed to escalate the issue which basically means that some one that knows more than them needs to work on it and that the issue would be resolved in 24 - 72 hours. Well, a call was made at about the 48 hour mark because we could still not send messages. When I called, they said that Amy's was working and that they had called to let us know. No, they didn't. I was home all day that day and there were no messages, etc. As a matter of fact, Amy's e-mail didn't work either. They also noted that my e-mail address wasn't being worked on either even though when I called after Amy called on Tuesday, I didn't get added to the notice... While they were working doing whatever they were doing, they offered to save me money because they have phone service. I politely told them that I wasn't interested because I may be taking my business elsewhere because this wasn't the first time that we have been having issues. With Amy taking an online class, her internship, etc. where things need to submitted by specific dates and times, we can't be having a service that you don't know if it is working or not. He was still dumb enough to ask, "so you don't want the service?" The dummy tried again later. Here we are, another 48 hours after two more phone calls and our service still doesn't work and we have not received any updates like they offered and we accepted. Comcast customer service and support seems to be less than competent... Oh, we have not been able to send messages for what we think is about 3 weeks now. So, I guess we can't be upset if you haven't responded now can we... ;)!

Anyway, I am trying to updload this video again... Jacob was pretty tired, but wanted to play. It was one of those times where he is crying because he is tired, but cries because you pick him up as he turns to try and play some more. Only moments after this video ends, Jacob is crashed on my chest for an hour and 45 minutes.

Yeah!!! It finally worked. Let's hope I can keep posting videos. I think there are a few more to share... I am not going to push my luck right now though. I will loading another one tomorrow...

Crawling Snippit

The Great Outdoors

With the rising temperatures and the sun coming into view on most days, Jacob is now being introduced more to the outdoors. In addition to the stroller rides, the ground is new adventure... While I was working in the front yard, Jacob and his mother laid on a blanket playing with various toys, watching daddy work and all of the passersby enjoying the weather.

Laying on the blanket proved to be a new endeavour for Jacob. He tested the feeling of the grass just off the edge of the blanket and was sure about its feel. He would caress the grass and then be sure that he only touched the blanket. There were a few rolls in the grass, but no crawls/squirms propelling across the lawn... ;)! There was one family that went by that had a baby girl that will be 6 months old next week. They seemed pretty nice, so I guess we will really have to watch Jacob so that he doesn't run off with just any old girl "strolling" past the house. We have yet to mee the 6 month old across the street, but we are seeing them out more now and willl be attempting to get over there. They are new neighbors from the fall that we haven't really been able to welcome to the neighborhood. Between Jacob being born and them having their own preparations, our paths never really had the opportunity to cross.

So, Jacob is getting the feel of the outdoors. We are working on getting to the pool at our membership and getting him in the water, but we haven't been able to find the time yet. We are curious to see how he will react as we don't want him to develop a fear of the water and would like to get him in as young as possible...

Less And Less Is Safe!

Less and less around the house is safe from little hands... Over the weekend, I was in the kitchen either cleaning or cooking something when Amy put Jacob on the floor behind me sitting up. Without hearing a thump or anything, Amy came back a few seconds later and I turned around to find Jacob in a puddle of water hanging onto Frankie's water dish. Jacob had a look of bewilderment, but true to being a boy, the fact that his onesie and pants were sopping wet didn't phase him. Fortunately, he didn't continue to the next bowl to enjoy a "Frankie" appetizer. Guess his mother will just need to keep him in the living room to buy some time until he reaches the dog dishes, at least for now...

Jacob is spinning on his belly much less these days. He has found that he can travel on his stomach while moving his arms and legs similar to a snake. Most of his movement is in his arms. I found out over the weekend that I pretty much crawled with my belly on the floor. So, we will see if Jacob continues getting better at what he is doing now (which he is), or if he will spring into action with his belly off of the floor.

Determination is definitely a trait that Jacob possesses. Once he sees something that he wants, there is nothing stopping him until he gets it. I'm sure this is the same for all "new movers", so we will see how this progresses with time...

6 Month Photo Picks

Here are the 6-month photos that we decided to keep and print, etc. Of course, they are edited from the originals. We hope you enjoy them as much as we have...



This last picture was an impromptu photo op that presented itself when we were getting pictures of Jacob with his cousins. A special thank you goes out to Colton for backing out of the photo while Jacob was in a photo shooting mood. There were also some pictures of just Jacob and Colton that were pretty funny, at least to us because we saw what was going on... I just might have to post a couple of those and explain the laughter behind them...