It's Friday!

(on this weekend one year ago)

It's Friday, and we just listened to the last Serial podcast. Jon and I have discussed it so much, and we are totally not convinced either way. I look forward to an update on DNA evidence in the future.

Also, I have been pretty wrapped up in the Dal Dentistry Gentleman's Club situation. I keep thinking about the ladies in the class, and the men who are totally not involved. I was in my fourth year at Dal dental school only 4 years ago, and I remember that the stress of exams, patients, graduation is major. I really hope that the huge mistakes of those thirteen men don't negatively effect the other students too much. I personally think it is completely unfair to ask the women in the class to come up with a punishment. They have enough on their plate right now. Seriously, in fourth year, every morning, afternoon, evening, and weekend is taken up by school. Asking them to spend even a few hours determining a punishment is asking too much.

In other news, I cooked steak for supper tonight. We have dramatically changed out diet since Cohen's diagnosis with a huge list of allergies. We are slowly going to be introducing potential allergens over the next weeks and months. Things that he may be allergic to: oats, corn, rice, sunflower seeds (and all other seeds), almonds (and all other nuts). Things he is definitively currently allergic to: peanuts, sesame seeds, walnuts, halibut, eggs, wheat. Things that are for sure safe: fruits, veggies, dairy, red meat, poultry, sardines.

The weather is warm (slightly above freezing) and wet here, so we have weekend plans to relax, go to a kids christmas party, and maybe watch a christmas movie (Elf is my fav). No snowshoeing for us yet.

17 months old!

Time is chugging right along, and Cohen is getting so big. Some things about Cohen lately:

- The words! He has so many. He says apple (a fav snack) and orange super clearly. Other words: on, open, truck, hi, hey you, ball.

- When he finishes a meal, he will hold his plate out to us and say, "more?" It's the cutest thing.

- He loves to read books. He will take a novel Jon is reading, and sit and flip through the pages for 5 minutes with complete focus. His very favorite books right now: The Lion King, Clifford, B is for Bear.

- We just went through a super duper tough week or two of sleep. He was getting up for the day at 3:30 am, no joke. Nothing would put him back to sleep. He was ready for the day. We tried putting him to bed later, only letting him take one short nap during the day, sleep training a bit. In the end, I have no idea what made it better. I think maybe kids go through these sleep phases no matter what you do. It was hard because by the time Jon and I arrived at work in the morning, we had already been up for 4-5 hours. I was ready for more coffee and lunch by 9 am. Anyway, I think the phase has passed, and Cohen is sleeping until a much more respectable 6 am.

- His favorite toy by far is his ride-on music parade toy. He got it from our sitter for his first birthday, and it has been the first thing he reaches for every single morning since then. I think we could throw out most of his other toys, and he would be fine with this one single toy.

- We have been getting the best cuddles. He gives awesome hugs all the time, and kisses everything from pictures and books to his humidifier in his room. He seems to be a very affectionate, very quite and serious little guy.

- Jon and I are so in love with him. And, we really enjoy hanging out with him. He is just so much fun to be around. These days, he happily follows us around while we do laundry and dishes take out the garbage. And he is thrilled to walk around a store or a mall just looking and pointing at Christmas decorations. Being a parent is the best.

Some recent pics

(the day before we found out Cohen is allergic to wheat!!) 

(our Christmas tree/cedar bush) 

(family selfie at the allergy clinic) 

(in heaven with the books and bags) 

(keeping it classy with the creamer)

I will write more about Cohen's allergies later, but we took him for his first round of testing, and were totally shocked that he is allergic to wheat, peanuts, and a bunch of other things. Luckily, he is good with dairy, since he loves him some coffee cream, straight out of the little plastic container. 

Hotel review: Super 8, St. John's, NL

Even though I only have the world's worst, blurriest iPhone pics, I still feel compelled to blog about our stay at the Super 8 in St. John's last weekend. We were there for two nights while Jon attended a course. 

(dude trolling the lobby) 

(good sheets) 

(tiny, slightly grubby living room) 

(reduced privacy bathroom area)

Price: Around $160 per night including tax for a "business suite," which had a separate bedroom, but was super duper small. 

Bathroom: Pretty old-looking. It was the kind with a little room for the toilet and bathtub, and then the vanity was in the living area. 

Pool: Yes. Great for babies and kids. The water is warm, and there is a baby section with really shallow water. 

Breakfast: There is a continental breakfast with eggs, bacon, toast, cereal, yogurt. It was decent for a pre-brunch breakfast. I was loving the pre-made waffles that you put in the toaster. 

Wifi: Yes, good.

TV: Good. We watched House Hunters International, my fav. 

Location: Not downtown, which is where we usually want to be. But pretty close to shopping. Cohen and I were transportation-less for one day, so we took advantage of the Tim Hortons and Dairy Queen across the street. 

Parking: Free. 

Notes: So we have stayed at most hotels in St. John's, and this one is really good for the money when traveling with a baby. Pros: Room with separate bedroom so you can put the babe to sleep, and hang out in the other room. Pool for baby. Breakfast in the morning so you can give the little guy some oatmeal before you head out. Fridge in the room so you can bring some snacks. Really cheap compared to other hotels in St. John's. Cons: A bit dirty-looking. The carpeting in the room is covered in stains. The furniture looks like it's seen better days. For us (parents traveling with a toddler), the pros outweigh the cons. We will be back for sure. 

Lately...

(looking at beautiful dresses) 

 (en route to the hotel pool)

(just very seriously having some yogurt and berries) 

(sharing some donuts)

This is mostly what has been going on at our house lately: Cohen not sleeping. He has always been such a good sleeper (thanks to this book), but we slowly slacked off and started letting him come out and watch a show with us at 10 pm if he woke up, or we would let him crawl into bed with us for the last few hours in the morning, or we would rock him to sleep since his sweet little body fits so perfectly in our arms. And then we stayed in hotels for a handful of nights in the last few weeks, and suddenly we had a non-sleeper. Man, it is rough. So then Cohen is super tired and irritable during the day, and Jon and I aren't getting much sleep either, so we are exhausted. For us, it feels like the amount of sleep we are getting effects everything. I don't have any really great solution. I just went back and re-read my sleep book for the millionth time, and recommitted to helping Cohen sleep on his own. It's a work-in-progress. 

Back

I'm back from my weekend away from my family, and I so missed this little guy. I don't think I have ever been so excited to get off the plane before. It was only two nights, but I swear he looks older and his hair looks longer. Jon made the weekend so much easier by texting me pictures of Cohen all the time, and letting me know what they were up to.

And we found a wedding dress for my friend, so the weekend was a success for sure.

It's Friday!

It's friday, which means I am jumping on a plane to visit my best friends for the weekend. I am going all by myself, which is a first since Cohen. I am going to miss my little family so much! But I am beyond excited to visit with these girls and maybe find a wedding dress for Jenny. These girls have been in my life for so long, and it makes me feel so nostalgic just looking through old pics of us. And Jenny is getting married! Read on to learn how we met, since I'm feeling extra sentimental right about now.

The weekend, and a trip to the ER

What a weekend. On Friday afternoon, we had some brand new friends with a little girl Cohen's age over for coffee. In a super small town like ours, it is such a treat for a new couple to move into town. They actually recognized Cohen at the grocery store from looking at my blog before they moved here. So weird, and so cool. 

We had a nice visit, though Cohen started to rub his eyes a lot as soon as he started eating a bit of the treat that our new friends had brought. It had peanut butter in it, which we have been giving Cohen in small amounts for the past few months. His eyes started to get puffy and red, so we gave him some benadryl. But, half an hour later when our friends were gone, he was covered head to toe in hives.

We rushed him to the ER, and they took us in immediately, just like last time. Cohen's hives were completely covering his body, and he was coughing and wheezing. Even his ears were bright red and swollen. This time was way worst than last time, and the nurses told us he wouldn't be leaving without an epipen. We actually had the same nurse as the first time we visited the ER for Cohen's sesame allergy. The doctor gave him some steroids like last time, and told us we needed to stay for 6-8 hours for observation. Jon ran home to get Ted, the iPad, some books, toys. Within a few hours, Cohen's hives were looking way less angry, and Cohen was hyper. He kept sliding down off the bed, waving goodbye to us, and racing out of the room to look around. Jon spent a lot of time chasing him around the hospital, visiting the elderly lady in the room beside us, pushing Cohen around in a wheelchair.

By the fourth hour at the ER, it was after 8 pm, and we were ready to leave. Cohen was so tired, but the ER is bright and noisy. There was no way he was going to sleep. We asked the doctor if we could leave. He told us to give him Zantac and benadryl, and keep a close eye on him. We got home around 10 pm, and Cohen fell asleep really fast. We snuck in to check on him every half hour all night, and gave him his medications in the night. He's feeling way better now, and he now has an epipen. He was such a little trooper.

On Saturday we drove ten minutes to this new cafe in a church basement, called the Curtain Call Cafe. It was really cute.

They had books and games, so Cohen was loving it. And they had good strong coffee, so Jon and I were loving it. We had the eggs benedict on waffles, and it was awesome. 

Later we ordered chinese food and had friends over for supper. I kind of love having people over when no cooking is involved. Other things: Jon and I are addicted to Serial, like the rest of the world. I am totally team Adnan-is-innocent at this point. We did some Christmas shopping because if there is an old lady selling stuff she knitted, I am buying it. We face timed with family a lot, and played one of Cohen's fav new games: throw everything you can find into the garbage or laundry hamper.

After the whole ER trip/allergic reaction, Jon and talked a lot about how good we are together in tough situations. I think stressful times really remind me how lucky I am to have such a great life partner. And Jon and I feel so grateful that Cohen is generally a really healthy little guy. A nut allergy is nothing compared to what a lot of families we know have to deal with. Feeling pretty thankful these days.

Some recent pics...

(after-work selfie) 

(gone for a stroll) 

(he loves playing in the sink) 

(we spent 20 minutes here. he wanted to stay all day) 

(just a typical weeknight) 

(he took a selfie with his elmo chair) 

(family date, looking pensive) 

(our little town has these dogs everywhere. Cohen has to put change in every one he sees)

Back to work after baby (1 year later)

Cohen is almost 16 months old, which means I have been back to work for a year now. I started at 2 days a week and went up to three days a week when he was a year old. I can't explain enough how going back to work at 3.5 months was the right thing for me. I really think that for me, working part time helped me get back to my normal self faster. 

(one year ago, just testing out the high chair) 

This weekend

So I kinda messed up yesterday. We drove the two plus hours to the airport to drop J's mom off, only to miss the flight by two minutes. I had read the itinerary wrong, which was so tough for me to accept, since I have been our travel planner/flight booker/check-in person for forever. They didn't have another flight until Wednesday, so we get to have J's mom here for a few extra days, which is awesome. If only we lived a little closer to the airport. J and his mom were so good about it. They were like, oh, well, it happens, no worries. Meanwhile I was feeling so so terrible, and like I'm never going to trust myself with flight information again.

Anyways, I sometimes feel like I am interviewing J's mom, because I want more and more details about her childhood in Trinidad. Did you have a fridge? No. Did you have a tv? No. No phone, either. What did you have for breakfast usually? Scrambled eggs from the chickens in the backyard. Did you share a room? Of course, since there were a dozen kids. We even google earthed her childhood address, which was really cool.

 (Cohen took his Grandma to the park)

(C and G) 

(Dude was at this for at least 10 minutes)

(right after he broke my new sunglasses)

(loving his first booster juice)

Just a few more pics

We have my mother-in-law visiting right now, which means less computer/blogging time, and more coffee/chatting time. Loving it. 

(Dude wearing a dishtowel)

 (we take walks in the ergo together whenever I have a day off)

(I didn't get many halloween pics. Dude is not into sitting still for pictures at this time) 

(relaxing at the playground) 

(diner breakfast. waitresses are so great to Cohen. this one gave him coffee creamers and books) 

(walks in the rain) 

(Stickers. The latest obsession)

Some recent pics

(dude with a friend)

(staring) 

(another friend) 

(organizing) 

 (he ran straight to the skidoos in this store, and climbed right on)

(would not get off the skidoo) 

(who can resist a big puddle) 

(these two. Cohen was basically swimming in that puddle)

I may have mentioned a time or two that our little town is lacking a few luxuries (like a coffee shop, a bakery, a market, a baby/kids store, etc). But the parks are cool. We have three that we frequent. One has the baby slide, one has the baby swings, and the third one has no baby stuff, but it's newer and closer. 

Anyway, there is this little girl who is always at my "main" park when we go. The first time we saw her there, she ran over and sat with Cohen in the rocks. He started eating them, and she started reprimanding him, and actually forcing the pebbles out of his mouth. He kept eating them, she kept grabbing them directly out of his mouth. I just sat 5 feet away, trying to keep my helicopter parent feelings from taking over. After that she picked Cohen up, and carried him up the slide. She sat him on her lap and went down the slide with him a few times. She assured me that she knew what speed to go down a slide with a baby since her friend's mom was a pediatrician. I kind of loved seeing a 9-year-old playing with Cohen. I think it's good for him, and it's probably good for that little girl. And Cohen never tried to eat pebbles again.