April 2010 – Page 3 – Our Family Adventure

Stacking and Talking

We’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t really done a developmental progress report for Ajax in a while.

Ajax’s imagination and curiosity are developing more and more everyday. He will make up games for himself and sometimes want you to join in, which can be difficult as you don’t always know the rules. He’s also getting closer to walking, but no first steps to report. He loves stacking objects. He’s not terribly coordinated yet, so his towers don’t always stand, but he’s very interested in putting things into larger containers, or stacking things on top of one another.

Ajax is also talking nonstop. I mean constant chatter. He’s also stringing words together- daddy ‘n’ momma, baba ball, etc. It’s pretty cute. As I’ve mentioned before he also loves to sing and hum while driving in the car. Again, so cute.

On a food note, Ajax is a pretty good eater. On Wednesday Ajax and I met Dave for lunch before his doctor’s appointment and at the restaurant Ajax ate lamb (from a yero), we were shocked, but he ate it up! He does not, however, like eggs. He hates hates eggs.

On a sleep note, Ajax has been sleeping beautifully. He generally sleeps from 8 pm to 6:30 am during the weekday and sleeps into 7:30 pm on the weekend. This is a much needed sleep improvement as he had gone through a 2 month stretch of getting up 2 to 3 times per night. Tonight for the first time I also put him to bed without giving him a bottle first (or sippy). I just laid him down, gave him his paci, and left the room and he was out. yea!

DSCN5337 — Ajax is still running pretty hot from his vaccinations, while is a little nerve racking, but we're keeping him on motrin.

DSCN5338 — Ajax loves stacking these toys.

12 Month Checkup!

Today Ajax had his 12 month check up, what a big boy! His measurements (because really that’s what we all want to know) – Height – 31 inches (75-90%), Weight- 23 lb. 10 oz (50-75%), and Head- 48 1/2 cm (?%). The doctor said that Ajax looked happy and healthy, we talked about his development and growth. The doctor was happy to hear that we had phased out bottles (yes we really have, cold turkey) and that he was eating “people” food. lol. He also got four shots and that was kind of rough on him, but it’s been a few hours now and he’s doing ok.

I did ask the doctor about something odd that Ajax does now and then- he hits his head with his hands. Sometimes he does it because he’s tired or frustrated or because he thinks it’s funny. The doctor said that yes, he may be doing it because he’s – tired, frustrated, or thinks it’s funny… I should have been a doctor!

Favorite Toy

So, like my previous post- I just had to hit up Kmart for the blue light special. Ajax and I ran up there to see what deals we could score. Of course the section of the store we had to go to was also right next to the tower of toy balls. As soon as we came down the aisle and Ajax saw them, he started saying “ball ball!” I gave him one to hold (the same as the Wolverine ball we bought him before) and he was in heaven. He just held the darn thing saying “ball ball ball.”

Well that ball was $3.99 and he had one at home, so when we were checking out I distracted him with a toy I had brought and snatched the ball from him with the other hand. I then practically threw it at the cashier saying- hide it! hide it! She was a pro and shoved it under the counter without missing a beat. Since it was at the end of the transaction Ajax was distracted by the toy and then zip, we were out of the store and on our way to the car.

DSCN5329 — with all his toys, he still loves the tupperware and bowls.

DSCN5331 — now that the weather's nice we're all about being outside.

DSCN5332 — we have a very long driveway and Ajax loves taking his walker up and down it.

DSCN5334 — getting more comfortable with nature.

One Year and Changes

Now that Ajax is a year and his party is behind us I’ve stuck to my word and we did away with the bottles. That being said, it’s been a slightly stressful day. I’m trying to transition Ajax so that he takes the majority of his milk during mealtime from a sippy cup and doesn’t rely on a whole 6-8 oz bottle for each nap (like he’s grown accustomed to). To help ease the transition, I did give him a sippy cup during nap time, but it just wasn’t his bottle and boy was he mad. I mean throwing the cup, screaming at the top of his lungs mad. The screaming, however, didn’t last as long as I thought it would and he ended up calming down with his pacifier (lesser of two evils). We also need to start working on this screaming thing, which he finds hilarious, and this throwing… but he’s a boy so that may never go away.

We’ve also given up formula completely and he is now only taking whole milk. We’ve also given up all purees, he only gets applesauce (because he likes it). So overall, our little guy is growing up.

KMART

I’m not a huge fan of Kmart. The one near our house is a little grungy and I’ve only been in it twice (in an act of desperation). In a one week blue light special, however, Kmart will double 5 coupons per day, up to $2.00. This means that if you have a $2.00 coupon, it will double and you will end up getting $4.00 off the item you are purchasing. Match this with a sale item and you have some awesome deals. My coupon friend has been telling me for a while that I should give Kmart a try, but again the grunginess has kept me away. Well today the sales were just to good, so I rounded up Dave and Ajax and we headed to Kmart.

I got – 2 containers of ALL, 2 Rite Guard deodorants, and 1 Gillette body wash = FREE. We did end up paying just over $4 out of pocket though because Ajax saw a Wolverine ball that he just had to have. Dave said he saw it and immediately started saying “ball ball.” How could we say no? Ajax then carried the ball through the parking lot and held it in his car seat on the way home.

Chicken and White Bean Soup

For Ajax’s birthday I made his favorite meal on the planet- Southwestern Chicken and White Bean Soup. This kid loves loves loves this soup. I found this deceptively simple recipe on AllRecipes.com and it is amazing. It’s quick, easy, cheap, and best of all Ajax eats everything in it- chicken, beans, corn, onions, everything! I thought I’d post the recipe because honestly I’ve gotten so many compliments on it that I just had to share! I’ve also added my comments/additions to the recipe in italics.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into small 1 inch pieces (to cut down on cooking time, I cook the chicken all the way through and then shred with a fork)
1 3/4 cups Chicken Broth
1 cup Pace® Thick & Chunky Salsa (I always add a little more salsa, about 1/2 C. I also use whatever salsa is on sale)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 (16 ounce) can small white beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen whole kernel corn
1 large onion, chopped

Directions

Heat the oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until it’s well browned, stirring often. (Now you can stop there and throw it all into the slow cooker and cook it for 8 hours, or cook the chicken completely and shred, which is what I do as it’s easier for Ajax to eat. With the chicken cooked thoroughly it cuts down on cooking time- 3 to 4 hours in the slow cooker.)
Place all the ingredients into a 3 1/2 – quart slow cooker. Stir well.
Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 9 hours* or until the chicken is cooked through.

DSCN5325 — Dinner- soup, peas, and whole milk! Ajax is now done with formula.

DSCN5321 — I thought this was a funny face he was making.

Easter

Ajax celebrated his second Easter holiday! It was a quiet Easter as we were all so exhausted from such a hectic birthday weekend. We did head over to my Grandpa Nader’s house for brunch and visited with the family. It was a beautiful day, in the high 60s, low 70s, and sunny (of course) and Ajax just wanted to be outside. Every time I brought him in, he would lunge at the next person heading outside, he didn’t care who took him, lol. Outside he tried to keep up with the older kids. One would run by and he would try to chase after them, then another would zip by and Ajax would change directions to chase the other one. Round and round we went.

It was too nice to be in, so Dave and I took Ajax to the park. Ajax spent the majority of time picking up wood chips from the slide platform and throwing them off the side. He has such fair skin that we didn’t want to be out too long as I forgot a hat for him. Overall, a lovely Easter Sunday. Very relaxing, which we all needed.

DSCN5292 — Ajax and his cousin, Eli. Eli is 9 months old.

First Birthday!

(I know I’m a day behind here, but I was too tired to post anymore last night)

I think Ajax’s first birthday was a complete success. Guests, big and small, all seemed to have a good time and Ajax was happy for the majority of the party! We had almost 40 guests plus 10 or so kids. We polished off an 8 foot sub from Subway (I didn’t have the energy to cook and really who doesn’t love a big sub?) and two birthday cakes.

The weather wasn’t as nice as Friday, it was warm in the morning but at noon it turned windy and a little rainy. Of course the party started at noon and the kids did an Easter egg hunt in a little drizzle, but no one seemed to mind. The kids were in a mad dash to find eggs and the parents of the littler ones were pointing to eggs trying to get them to pick them up and put them in their pails. This was beyond Ajax so Dara held him and they watched (along with the other adults who were watching from the cover of the garage), which seemed to suit him just fine as it was quite blustery and cool outside.

Ajax sat while everyone sang happy birthday and I blew out his candle (he was pleased with all the attention I think). We gave him a large slice of chocolate cake and at first he just sort of poked at it to test it out, but once he realized how sweet it was he more than delighted to gobble it up. There was hardly any on the floor or his chair; he didn’t waste much. He has never had that much sugar before and toward the end of it he had this sugar glazed look to his eyes.

After cake and ice cream we opened gifts. Well, I opened the gifts as Ajax wanted nothing to do with it.

Thank you again to our families who helped so much in preparing for the party, we wouldn’t have been able to do it alone. And of course thank you to everyone for coming out and celebrating with us, I hope you had as much fun as we did. Oh, I also have over 40 minutes of video from the party, as soon as I figure out how to chop it down I’ll post a little of it.

DSCN5190 — We hid almost 100 eggs! This was the only pic of the hunt that I got, since I was out running around with the kids.

DSCN5252 — Although Ajax wasn't into opening the gifts, he was all about playing with them.

DSCN5232 — Ajax kept playing with the cards, so I really hope none were lost in the chaos!

DSCN5265 — After the party, after the cleanup, everyone (even the dog) was pooped.

Birthday prep- Good Friday

Well a First birthday takes quite a bit of prep work, so Rod came over Thursday night, Theresa flew in late Thursday night, and Dara drove down from Mikado early Friday morning. On Friday, I prepared some food for the party and did some running in the morning while Dara and Theresa made Ajax a John Deere tractor cake (there was some issue on this as my dad is a Ford man, lol). Dave and Rod had the truck and rented a rototiller and prepped the ground behind the garage for our garden. I never got around to making Ajax his healthy birthday cake as we all ran out of time and energy.

In three cars we then formed a caravan and headed out to my parent’s house in Brooklyn, the site of the fiesta. My mom, dad, and sister had been hard at work and the house and barn were all tidied up. Since it was all clean we ordered pizza and played with the horses. Ajax and Theresa got to ride a horse for the first time and both did wonderful!

On top of that the weather on Friday was lovely, actually a little too hot. It was 80 and sunny. When Rod and Dave were working on the garden I brought Ajax out to sit in the grass and watch the progress. Ajax, however, was not too fond of the feel of grass on his feet and he refused to stand. He just sat there curling his toes. He wouldn’t even touch the grass with his hands and kept holding them up. It was pretty funny.

DSCN5168 — Theresa and Mary doing ground work with Farnnie.

DSCN5185 — Frannie is a very tall horse... Dave is 6'2''.

DSCN5183 — Ajax kept trying to put his fingers in Diamante's nose, she was very patient with him though.

Independence

As Ajax approaches the big ONE, he is becoming quite the independent and stubborn kiddo. When he wants to do something he is driven and determined. It’s usually pretty funny, unless you’re in the grocery store and what he wants is all the glass jars on the shelves, etc. and then it’s not so humorous. With Ajax’s big birthday coming up we’re going to be be pretty busy and I won’t have time to post anything until Sunday or Saturday night! I honestly am so excited for his birthday, I feel like it’s Christmas!