A Binky, a Bribe and a Belly

A Binky

I am happy to report that we are officially a pacifier free home! I stopped Weston's pacifier use during the day about five months ago and it was surprisingly easy. For our sakes, we let him use it at naps and bedtime. A few times we forgot to give it to him, when we put him down, and he would let us know about it by screaming and screaming until we figured it out!  I really wanted to have him weened from it by time Landon came, but knowing it would not be easy, I put it off. A couple of weeks ago he started to chew completely through his pacifiers. Obviously, this was a huge choking hazard! I finally had the umph I needed to follow through on weening him. We started on a Monday night. I kept hoping it wouldn't be as bad as I thought, but it was awful! He screamed at the top of his lungs from 8pm till 1am. I did my best to comfort him, I tried to let him come in bed with us, I tried sleeping on the bed in his room and finally we realized it was best just to let him cry it out. At 12:40 Devon wanted to give in, but I knew if we put it off, it wasn't going to get any easier. We held out and finally at 1am he fell asleep! After that he woke up every two hours, but only cried for about 10 minutes each time. He followed that pattern of sleeping and waking up every two hours for about a week, but then on Christmas Eve, he finally slept all night. Victory!

A Bribe

One of my favorite things about having a child is seeing them grow and figure things out. During West's first year it was neat to see him learn new things physically. It's fun to see him do something for the first time and then tentatively do it again and again until finally it's just natural and normal. As West has conquered much physically, it's been even more fun to see him figure things out mentally. As of late, he's really started to grasp cause and effect. He now knows that if he doesn't stop throwing food, he has to go to his bed for a time out. He understands that he can't play with his blocks until mom is finished cleaning. Best of all, he is now able to be bribed! I know bribing a kid isn't great parenting, but a mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do! The other day I had to clip his finger nails. By the way he usually reacts you would think I was chopping off his actual finger! To avoid a meltdown I told him that if he sat nicely while I trimmed, he could have a treat when I was done. Lo and behold, it worked!! He sat virtually wiggle free for the next few minutes and in return he got a tasty chocolate waffler.

A Belly

The other day I was watching Millionaire Matchmaker (don't judge, I can't get enough of that show!). They were interviewing possible candidates to date their millionaire. A fireman, with an incredible physique, was being questioned. They asked him to pull up his shirt, so they could get a look at his sculptured abs. Weston must have overheard their request, because I looked over and he had pulled up his shirt and was proudly flaunting his less then sculpted milk belly. I'm sure that wasn't exactly what they expected to see ;) Guess I really need to be careful what I watch!

Thanksgiving

We were able to head to Long Beach to spend some time with my family for Thanksgiving break. Devon's vacation time hasn't fully kicked in (and we have to save what little he has for Landon), so West and I headed out the Monday before Thanksgiving and Devon joined us Wednesday night. I was scared to death to fly alone with Weston. This was his fifth flight, and he's always been really good, but I was worried that this would be the time he melted down. Luckily, he was just about perfect on the way there and on the way back. Here are some of the highlights from our trip:

Spending Time With Grandma



I will have you all note, that my mother never once went down a slide with me! The things you do for your grandchildren ;)



If you wonder who would pay $2 for a 30 second ride on a plastic car, it's my mom! To say Weston gets spoiled by grandma would be an understatement!

Feeding the Ducks

 I couldn't wait to take West to El Dorado Park to feed the ducks. It was something I loved as a kid and always dreamed about taking my kids there! With the exception of the mean geese that tried to kill me, it was everything I had imagined!



Apparently, West didn't quite understand the concept of feeding the ducks and not himself ;)



Spending Time With Aunts, Uncles and Cousins

We got to spend time with two of our favorite people, Ricky and Shannon (I never thought the day would come that my brother, would be someone I enjoyed spending time with ;)

What Ricky found cleaning out my mom's bathroom



Despite our prediction, Devon made it down from the tree without incident.

Not only did we get to spend time with my family, Devon's oldest sister was also in town with her family.

One big happy family!

West and Rocky hanging out!



Cousins jumping on the bed!



Going to the Aquarium of the Pacific

Sarah and Jared kindly invited us to go with them to the aquarium. Ricky, Shannon and my mom all decided to join in on the fun!

Our little penguin family!

West enjoyed feeding the birds, until he decided that he wanted to drink the nectar!

After a meltdown, he found some water to play in and all was right again with the world.

Thanksgiving Day at Uncle Gary's

My uncle Gary lives in a house on a few acres in Central California. It's always fun to go there and I was sure Weston was going to LOVE it! I was not disappointed!

Weston and Grandma napping on the way up

No trip to Uncle Gary's is complete without playing a round or two of horseshoes! Devon and I even won!

West had to get in on the action, as well!

He's a born soccer player, even his falls are dramatic!

West was old enough, this year, to get in on the go-kart action!

Spending Time with Friends

Some great college friends!

I also got together with one of my best high school friends. Our little boys got to play together. We used to talk about how we would have playdates and all that stuff when we were both parents and we finally got to do it!! But, of course, did I get even one picture??? Nope!!! :(

Date Night

Whenever grandma's around, Devon and I take advantage of the free babysitting and go on a date. This time we decided to go check out the Queen Mary. We took a tour and just walked around. It was SO nice to have some alone time!

The trip wasn't perfect, we had our fair share of meltdowns...

But it's always fun being back in the LBC!

Halloween 2012

My obsession with finding the right costume for Weston began in September. I really wanted him to dress up as something that held meaning. My first idea was a soccer player. I didn't want a generic soccer player costume, as he'll be a generic soccer player for many years to come.  I wanted him to be a player from a team we follow. Finding a complete anything from the US in his size was near impossible. I found some uniforms from the UK, but when you factored in shipping, it was going to cost us a near fortune. So, I jumped to plan B, a football player. I knew he wouldn't wear a helmet, but I figured it was now my best option. Just as I was about to order the football costume, West's obsession with soccer grew! Devon mentioned that he really wished we could find him a soccer costume. I decided to check Ebay one more time, to my surprise I found an Arsenal (Devon's favorite English team) jersey for only $7 and that included shipping. I, then, found some Arsenal shorts for only $11. Finally, his costume was set!

 

As for the actual Halloween festivities, it was a BUSY year!! Events started the Thursday before Halloween. My Toastmaster's club holds an annual Halloween party. I wasn't planning on taking the whole fam, but I found out another person was bringing their kids, so I figured I'd bring my little guy and husband. Since West was one of only a few kiddos he got plenty of attention! Luckily, I was the only one speaking that night, because he did get a little disruptive. I didn't take any pics at the party, but here are some from before:

The next night, Friday, we had our church Halloween party. It was a chili cook-off! IMHO, it's not Halloween until you've gone to a chili cook-off. We all had a great time. It was so fun to see West running around with the other kids.

 After we ate and had a talent show, West played games in the Primary room:

 West, then, got to Trick or Treat in the classrooms. He didn't quite understand the concept. As soon as he got something in his bucket, he wanted to take it out, so I ended up having to hold his bucket.

Saturday, we had a family party with the Mommies group West and I belong to. It was a fun night of  football for the guys, chatting for the gals, playing for the kids and lots of food and pictures for all!

Sunday night we decided to carve pumpkins, well Devon and I carved, West finger painted.

Finally, Halloween! In the morning, we went over to West's friend's house, played and did a cute art project. That night we went trick or treating, which was quite the disappointment. I wasn't sure if anyone trick or treated in our condo complex, so we just went to the neighborhood right behind us. But NO ONE had their lights on! We ended up only going to four houses, on the whole street we walked up. I thought West was figuring this whole thing out, until we went to the last house. When we got to the man with the candy, West pulled some candy out of his basket and tried to give it to him. I had to explain to West that he was getting candy, not giving it away ;) I only got one picture from the night:

Even though it was hard and different not being with family, we sure had a great first Halloween in Dallas!