It's A Toss Up!

It's a toss up... No pun intended. Jacob hasn't been to school all week and still may not be tomorrow...

Everyone was ready for work and school this morning and Jacob was even in the car when... Jacob lost all of his milk from 5 am and the banana strawberry food. Amy came back through the door as I was walking by and I wondered what she was doing until I saw Jacob. We both handled him with care so that neither one of us would get anything on our work clothes. This was at least until we figured out who would be staying home with him one more day. We decided it would be me.

Jacob did fine today and was gaining speed with being better. He was alternately drinking and eating. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to my liking, but he was eating and drinking and keeping everything down. Then, it came dinner time and he ate applesauce and a little bit of chicken noodle. It wasn't too awful long after that and he no longer had any of it in his stomach. We tried pedialyte close to an hour later and that came up too. So, we let him sleep on us while he was restless to calm down. Amy put his to bed, so now we are wait and see what happens tonight before we determine whether or not he goes to school and/or the doctor once again tomorrow...

Jacob Vs. The Flu - Round II

The attack of the flu hits us again. The first round found it to be only Jacob of which he fully recovered from a little over a week ago. Jacob became really fussy and did not want to eat when some of my cousins were over. He was having a ton of fun with Kylie and Will until it was time for dinner. He absolutely would not sit in his high chair, so we didn't force him to eat. We were able to get him to bed without too much trouble.

About 10:30 or so Saturday night, Jacob woke up crying. I went in to console him and went to move his blanket when I felt something wet. I hollered down to Amy to come up because I needed some help to clean Jacob up as well as his crib. Jacob was inconsolable and was thrashing about in our arms and on the floor. He had bumped his head earlier in the day and was wondering if the two were tied together, so Amy decided to take him to the hospital. While were on our way, he calmed right down and went to sleep. Keep in mind that we got a bunch of snow, but we still decided to go for a drive while we were out. At least it had stopped snowing by then.

Eventually, we got back home after driving around for an hour. Amy and Jacob spent most of the night awake and Jacob relieving himself. I took the day shift over while Amy got some shut eye. He just wasn't keeping anything down. We did have some pedialyte and he wasn't keeping that down either.

Jacob wasn't himself Monday morning and had thrown up some time during the night on Sunday. So, we ended up taking him to the doctor. Jacob had lost 6-7% of his body weight in a week or so and the doctor was concerned. She said to basically get him hydrated and if he wasn't able to keep anything down during the day to give them a call and that we would probably just have to take him to the emergency room. Fortunately, he was able to start holding the pedialyte down. He just hung out on me all day and then on his mother after she got home from work. Things seemed to be looking up at least a little bit as he was starting to move around a bit and we actually got a couple of smiles out of him.

THEN, I wasn't feeling so hot. Amy was hungry and had to fry up some salami for her dinner. This was all I needed. As soon as she got done with it, I headed for the bathroom. Yep, I know had the flu too. It wasn't real long after that that now we had our third victim... You guessed it, Amy was now sick too. Jacob slept through most of the nighgt and then woke up early, so Amy and I took turns holding him and trying to get him to drink.

Amy attempted going to work as I had already planned on taking a second day off or Jacob and was sent home shortly after she got there. I thought I was starting to feel better and was thinking about going to work. So, I went out and blew the driveway out, etc. Then, I took a turn for the worse again. Jacob now became a little unconsolable again and neither Amy or I could sway, bounce or whatever we would normally do to console Jacob. So, Amy made a call to her mom. She came right over and ended up taking Jacob back to her house so that he hopefully would not get reinfected again and give us a break and rest ourselves.

I am now doing pretty well, but Amy is still sipping vernors and hoping things don't continue to move. We hear that Jacob is doing a little better as well and hope he continues to get better. We are hoping that everyone will be at work and Jacob will be in school by Thursday... Keep your fingers crossed!

First Week Complete

Amy, Jacob and I have survived the first full week of work and "school". The week started out great and ended great, but the middle was a little stressful on mostly Amy. I think she handled things well, but I'm sure if you ask her she wouldn't think so. However, she is beginning to feel much better, especially after one of her phone calls to school on Friday. She was told that Jacob was in the gross motor room running all around and dancing, yes dancing to the music that was on. At that point, we knew that he must be enjoying himself and we both wished we could have been flies on the wall to see him dance. He definitely has his mom's rhythm and ability... ;)!

Amy was a little saddened when she went to pick Jacob up. There is a big room with winodws all around it that kids can be depending on the number of kids and teachers that are there. Amy saw Jacob in this room sitting at a table coloring with two other girls when she got there. She tried getting Jacob's attention, but then figured she could take this opportunity to gather his snow clothes, sipppy cup, etc. before picking him up. This is when she realized that he was having fun and didn't need to see him mommy... Well, this all changed when she called his name as he quickly turned to her and saw her and started pointing. Jacob couldn't get out of the chair fast enough and started running towards her with the biggest smile you could ever see! The other mothers that were there even made a comment on how cute Jacob was as he was running towards his mom.

Jacob was much happier tonight and actually played a little bit. He was a lot less tired as he took a longer nap during the day. So, he seems to be liking school a lot more now, but is still transitioning. The school thinks he is doing well and also told us that the transition is usually about three weeks. We are already seeing some changes in him which one of the biggest is that he is much more comfortable sleeping or at least attempting to sleep just about anywhere. He seems to be more at ease with just putting his head down on the floor and curling his legs under him with his butt way in the air (like he does in his crib) and just going to sleep or at least relaxing for a moment.

All in all, although it was rough at times, we are feeling pretty good about the progress Jacob has made with going to "school".

A Couple Of Rough Days, But Getting Better!

The past couple of days have been rough at least in part if not the whole day...

Jacob started off yesterday a little tired and clingy at home. He took his bottle well along with some cereal before he was loaded up for school.

Jacob was apprehensive about his mommy leaving him as his favorite teacher was not there. It was a rough day for Jacob and Amy made a number of calls hoping that things were getting better. He was pretty upset most of the day, but was very happy to see his mommy when she went to pick him up. He was VERY happy once he got home even if he was a little tired.

Today's drop off wan't much better, but Jacob's favorite teacher was there which made Amy feel much better. Amy could hear him screaming down the hall as she was leaving. The school called Amy later to let her know that he did calm down relatively quickly and that he was having a much better day. He went for a walk outside in the morning and then a buggy ride in the afternoon. Jacob's teachers asked/commented about him liking to be outside and we concurred. After all, he still gets excited when Frankie needs to go outside, even if he isn't really outside, he at least gets some fresh air.

Jacob ate better today, but didn't sleep much. He only slept for about 45 minutes, so he was ready for bed when he got home. We fed him and Amy gave him a bath and he was ready for bed early. We tried keeping him up a little longer, but decided just to put him to bed early and he is now and has been sleeping soundly. Fortunately, going to school has tuckered him out and hasn't been fighting sleeping.

First Day Of School

Jacob, Amy and I survived the first day of school. Jacob was definitely out of sorts when he was stripped from his bed and whooshed downstairs and getting milk and cereal shoved in his face. Then it was back upstairs to get changed into a cute outfit (yes, Amy input...) and a few last minute things and out the door...

Jacob was dropped off in the infant room to Miss Kenisha whom Jacob met while we were touring and signing up. He was a little apprehensive at first so she backed off and then took him after a bit. Amy got Jacob's belongings settled and said goodbye to Jacob. He wimpered a bit, but then was okay. Amy did a couple more things and then looked in the window before she headed off to work. She saw Jacob sitting on Miss Kenisha's lap reading a book and was content. It didn't help keep the tears from falling, so Amy quickly headed to the car and settled herself before heading off to work.

Jacob did really well today and Amy only called the school four times. I'm sure this isn't even close to the record of calls for a first day though... The first call found Jacob to be very clingy to Miss Kenisha, but he was doing fine. By lunch time, he was getting pretty tired and wimpered a bit because he didn't have his passy and apparently they couldn't find it and found a new one in their stash and immediately went to sleep.

Amy went to pick Jacob up tonight and found him in the infant room (this is the gathering place when the workers are coming and going). He was playing with some toys and looked up and gave him mommy a big smile and continued playing and pointing to something, so he was obviously enjoying his first day at school.

Jacob was very happy when he arrived home, but also was very tired. So, we were able to get him back into his routine from before and putting him to bed at 8 pm. It was a little rough for him to go to sleep, but his sleep training has been getting easier and easier.

So, the first day of school went well for everyone and I am sure Jacob will be looking forward to another day away...

A Poop Story

Earlier, I was posting a blog about the status of Jacob and his bowels... As I finished and posted the blog, I hear a voice from above... "Can you please come up here and hurry!". Jacob was upstairs getting a bath, so what could this be. As I enter the bathroom, I see Jacob kneeling in his tub and Amy is frantically draining the water and rinsing it out! It would appear that there was an accident...Jacob's diarrhea was in full force and turning the bath water brown!

Amy tells me to pick Jacob up from the tub so she can clean out the poopy water and refill it with fresh water. Tomorrow is a big day for Jacob and she hasn't even gotten to washing his hair yet! So, I picked him up and stood him on his towel and proceeded to clean his bottom. While Amy was still cleaning the tub, Jacob decided he wasn't done yet. So, there was more cleaning for me. Jacob was just as happy as could be just standing there naked, wet and pooping like a free bird. He decided to take a few steps away and was far enough so that he was off of the towel and now on the tile. I had cleaned up the towel, so that was done. Jacob now decided (like he has a choice at this point), to drop another pile. I quickly covered it with some tp. It wasn't much longer and the pile got bigger. Amy and I gave the little guy a couple more minutes to be sure he was finished. The knee pad was still next to the tub and Jacob would look at each of us wondering if he should/could climb in the tub. Just as Amy and I were laughing at this whole situation and definitely enjoying the humor in it Jacob decided he also needed to pee so we just giggled some more as we just watched our son freely pee all over the knee pad. I still had tp in my hand as a backup plan and did some covering. Jacob was then placed back in the tub and the bathy calmly continued!

Although it was a little gross the humor in the situation can't be denied and it will go into the books as our first "poop in the tub" story!!!

Originated by Doug; Re-written by Amy... ;)!

Go Away Poopies?

Jacob's bottom is looking much much better than it did, but still has a little bit to go to be back to normal. Unfortunately, he still has the poopies too. However, they are not near as often or as bad. The doctor told us that it isn't contagious and that he is fine to go to his first day of school tomorrow. We are hoping that "things" will bind up a bit so that Jacob is not sent home. This would stink for the first day... no pun intended. I really wish I would have gotten something in writing to cover us in case something happens. We might just call the doctor tomorrow anyway if things are different in the morning. Jacob is back to his playful self and hasn't been wanting to nap much at all. So, we let him sleep, finally, lat this afternoon for an hour. Enough to keep him from having a complete meltdown, but no too much so that he doesn't get back into a routine.

Tomorrow is Jacob's big debut at school. Big changes for everyone as it will be the first day of school for Jacob, first day of work for mommy away from Jacob and my first day back after being off for close to two weeks. Not to mention that I will now have to share the shower in the morning. This is something that I haven't had to do in well over a year. We are looking forward to working the kinks out and adjusting our morning schedules and agendas. I'm sure it will take a week or two for all of us to get into the swing of things and knowing what to expect, etc.

Warming Up!

After Jacob's appointment today and finding out that he is not contagious, Jacob and I ventured to his school that he is starting on Monday. We decided that since it has been some time since he was there for the tour, etc. we would let him play with hopefully one or both of his new teachers and possibly some of the kids.

Jacob was pretty tired by this time, so he clung to his daddy for a little bit and didn't want down. Before too long, I got on the floor so that he could see everything at his level. We weren't in the room that he was going to be in, but many many of the kids and teachers were not in today because of the holiday season. Jacob was able to play with one of the kids in his class and a teacher that he will have for a week or so. He was really warming up by the time we left and as I was putting my shoes on, he wanted to go back in to play.

Looks like Jacob will be ready for school on Monday. We have to get some things ready and labeled for his big debut, but we think this will be a good thing for everyone, even if Jacob's mommy will struggle with it at first... ;)!

A Poopy Time!

The bugs are a flyin' this year! Jacob decided that he needed to do a #2 in the afternoon of New Year's Eve and let's just say it was the start of things to come. His bottom was a little red, but didn't seem to be anything to worry about. So, we were off to our New Year's celebration...

Part way through the party, Jacob needed to have a diaper change. So, I headed upstairs out of the way of any passersby and a little less noise for Jacob. He was pretty upset and was crying a fair amount. We thought it was because he was just a lot tired... While changed another messy diaper and not quite having the new one buttoned, Jacob started hacking because we think he just had himself so worked up... Well, if it was this or not, we will never know, but I quickly picked him up because of the hacking when Jacob let loose all over my shirt and pants. His freshly eaten brownie was the most noted. After relieving himself, he settled right down and allowed us to get cleaned up and rejoin the party.

We were able to keep Jacob consoled until the drop of the ball and the pinata. The 15 plus kids were anxious for both and Jacob just cowered with me in a dark corner... It wasn't too long after a little more visiting that Jacob starting to get upset again, so we decided it was time to leave because he was tired and not really feeling himself.

On the way home, we tried going as fast as we could (can't push it that much on New Year's Eve). We got close to our exit when we knew Jacob was getting worked up again and pushed ourselves a little more. Whoops! Too late! Jacob yacked again all over his coat and car seat. I considered running red lights, but again, not on New Year's Eve...

By this diaper change, Jacob's bottom was on FIRE!! as we coated/caked it with Desitin. It was a rough night getting and keeping him to sleep as we have already been having issues at night that we were planning to start working on again.

New Year's Day was spent changing many dirty diapers and trying to console Jacob with Motrin and gas drops as the poopies just kept happening. We also kept pushing water on Jacob of which he was happy to oblige. His bottom started showing some relief later in the day, but there was still some concern that this might be a reaction to one of the shots. Depending on the source, symptoms could show in the first 7 days or they could show after the 7th up to the 12th day. The side affects could include fever, diarhea, swollen glands and a rash.

We decided to call the doctor and get him in today to get checked. Jacob's bottom was definitely better, but the poopies weren't. After a visit with the doctor, Jacob was found to have a stomach virus. We were told to give him pedialyte, apple juice, bananas, etc. to help him out. He was also given an antifungal ointment for his bottom.

We know that Jacob was definitely in pain during his diaper changes because he would just shake and/or chew on his shirt sleeve during it. He has been a real trooper this whole ordeal as he has not really batted our hands away, etc. and has allowed us to clean him and get some cream on to help his bottom. It has really wiped him out, so we are hoping that we can all get a great nights sleep tonight...

15 Month Well Baby Visit

The 15-month well baby visit is the first dr. appointment that Amy has not been to. It was very trying for her not to be there, but took in stride as she sent me to the dr. with her own laundry list of questions.

Everything went well with the doctor this time. Jacob weighed in at 22 pounds, 1 ounce (22nd - 23rd percentile) and 32 inches (75th percentile). We noticed that Jacob seemed to be having some growth spurts, but when you see him every day, you just don't really know if you are just thinking you are seeing the growth before your eyes or not. He went from the 50th to the 75th percentile in the past three months. He is similar (very slightly lower) in the weight category.

The doctor noticed Jacob's skin and how good it is now looking. We haven't been struggling near as much with it. Hopefully, it will continue to stay as good as it has been and get even better. With the winter dryness upon us, we will just have to wait and see. Jacob still isn't saying words consistently, but the doctor was not concerned with this. She isn't concerned because Jacob is definitely jibber jabbering and talking to us without saying anything and is saying words on occasion clearly and he knows what he is saying. He has pointed to Frankie as she was walking by and said doggy, says mommy and daddy on occasion, etc. We are working through trying to get Jacob off of baby food and onto non-baby food on a regular basis. There still is no concern, but something that we just need to keep working at.

Jacob was only scheduled to get one shot at this appointment, but the next one would have three. So, the doctor offered to move one of the shots ahead that she thought would be okay. I jumped at the chance to spread them out and also help out Jacob's mommy if she would be at the next appointment. It would save her from seeing at least one shot. I'm not sure Jacob was so pleased though, but he once again took them in stride for the most part...

Jacob is a healthy, active baby boy!!!

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from all of us to all of you. May you have a safe and happy Christmas with lots of love and family.

Jacob Goes Swimming

Jacob's cousin Sydney turned 10 and had a pool/basketball party for her birthday. We took Jacob's suit and Amy packed dad's too, jut in case he would want to go. We figured that he would, but without a nap and the fact we had another party to go to after, we weren't sure whether we should or not.

Well, Jacob won and got to go in the pool. He had a blast!! It was sometimes difficult though to know whether he or his dad was having more fun.

Jacob Goes To School

After finding out that Amy has a new job, the wheels started rolling trying to find suitable daycare for Jacob. There are many, many locations relatively close for daycare, but wouldn't you know it, many, well all that we called were full. We found this to be a little interesting considering the way the economy is. Our first choice was booked until at least March, so we had to broaden the horizons.

After calling around, we made an appointment with a facility that is kind of on the way to Amy's new job and kinda on the way home for me. We ventured out in the snow storm that we had to check this place out. After all, we didn't really have a choice if we were to both check it out and also to make a quick decision. We ended up spending well over an hour checking out all of the rooms and also letting Jacob play in the room that he would be in, if we were to decide on this "school". There are different rooms for different ages as they accommodate a large range of ages. They offer care for children from 4 weeks to 12 years of age and also has a pre-school integrated into it. The highlights for Jacob during the tour were pushing around the horses (toy, of course), sitting at the piano (we couldn't believe the huge smile he had since he has the opportunity to play hear whenever he wants) and I think it's called a crazy car. He was not happy when daddy had to take him out... We took some information with us as we needed to decide whether it was worth it or not to continue looking. This place was definitely a nice place with a lot to offer, but it was a little more expensive than a few others. However, it also includes diapers, wipes, hot lunch and three snacks a day.

So, we ventured back out into the 10 inches of snow or so by this point and ran some errands. On the way home, as we were passing back by the facility, we decided to make it official and enroll Jacob. A quick run home to get the checkbook (and let Jacob take a little more of a nap) and we went back and enrolled Jacob. Jacob will start "school" on January 5th!!! We are calling it school to 1) make it easier on Amy to think that he is going to school and not just having some one else take care of him and 2) it really is much more like a school than it is a daycare.

Jacob and I, at least, and possibly mommy too will be venturing back during the holidays so that Jacob can meet his teachers again along with his fellow classmates. He may have met most, if not all of them already, but they didn't really get much of a chance to play. With the weather and the holidays, the facility isn't as full as it normally is as parents are going on vacations, etc.

Amy Lands A Job!!

Amy interviewed with a temp agency last week to help with the job search opportunities. The interview went went, but it didn't sound like there would really be anything until after the first of the year. With the economy the way it is along with the end of the year around the corner, many companies froze the positions that were open. So, we basically figured we would have plenty of time to spend together as a family during the holidays without either one of us working.

So, the temp agency called yesterday about an opportunity and noted they were interviewing today and tomorrow. Amy made an appointment for an interview at 9 am this morning. Amy's interview started at 9 and at 9:03, she was told that she had the job and the manager wanted to take her around to meet a few people and was asked if she could start tomorrow. Amy was taken back a bit because it all happened so quickly and accepted the offer without talking to her family. She did say that she would start on Monday though because we needed to find daycare for Jacob...

Amy has accepted a job with a commercial construction company as their receptionist. She is definitely overqualified for the position and both the temp agency and the hiring manager both noted this. However, it should be relatively stress-free opportunity and given the times (looking for a job for over four months), it will definitely be something good for us both emotionally and economically. The hiring manager has also already told Amy that she plans to hire her direct as soon as the required time is over for the temp agency. We don't know how this will affect things, but we are assuming it will be for the better.

Amy, Jacob and I have an interview set up with a daycare facility for Jacob tomorrow. Since I had today and tomorrow off, it works out well. We are hoping to be able to find one or two more to check out, but with the snow supposedly on its way (schools being closed and the snow isn't to start for another few hours...) and lack of availability in the area (so, we have found out), we might get kinda stuck. The daycare we are checking out is sort of on the way to Amy's new job and is kinda on the way home for me, so if we like it, it might just be a slam dunk easy decision to make.

The transition from being a stay-at-home mom for almost a year and a half back into the work force is definitely going to be a challenge for both Amy and Jacob. There is definitely going to be a need for both to adjust. Fortunately, Amy will be working a few days before I need to head back to work and before the daycare will start. Jacob and I will definitely have to go and take Amy out for lunch at least one day to help the transition out.

CONGRATULATIONS AMY!!!

Jacob Gets Tooth!

Where o' where are Jacob's other teeth? Well, we found one more. It is now officially through. It has been about 5 or 6 months since there has been any new activity poking through. We were wondering if and when he would ever get any more. The latest protrusion is on his bottom left, making a total of 3 on the bottom and the 4 on top. Stay tuned because the first 6 came through within a couple of weeks...