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.