Noah News: Week 50

50 weeks, 50. Holy cow. Maybe the next two weeks will change my demeanor, but right now I am not having any sign of the weepy, "my baby is one", moments. I have enjoyed this year so much, but I enjoy each day more and more so I am more anxious for what is to come. Plus, one year birthday parties are pretty darn fun to plan and witness. So, as I see it, there is nothing to be sad about. Let the 1 year celebrating continue!! 

That said, things seem to be going at warp speed and I don't even know how to recap the past week and half in any kind of concise form. I am going to do a formal round up of all the first birthday party festivities rather than trying to recap them as we go (we started celebrating early this past Friday)...so stay tuned for that!

Ok, a preview of cake smashing. He was psyched until his hands were covered in green frosting. Then "all done, all done"!

Also, I have realized that Noah News isn't so much Noah News any more...it is more family news. Oh, how far we have come in these 50 week ;-). 

Speaking of family, we are now a family of 3. Only three humans. No fur babies to snuggle with any more. Don't worry, Arnold Pomeranian is alive and well, so no need for a eulogy :-). But, we did have to make a very hard decision for him to go and live with his original "dad". Ever since Lola passed AP started to seem more and more miserable. I think Lola was his protector and made him feel safe in the midst of Noah the hair-puller. But lately the poor little guy was just fleeing from Noah and seemed generally unhappy. So, we decided to make the unselfish decision and let him go live in a house free of 11 month olds where he can be a couch pomeranian in peace. Being a dog free household is beyond strange but I think it is the right decision right now for our little family.

I think Snooch wanted to like Noah :-).

Let's talk baseball. The Cardinals lost. Let's not talk about that part.. But, we are talking about the Giants WINNING the World Series. What a crazy ride this week has been.

The smallest Giants fan.

We went to game 7. While the outcome was unfortunate, we had a BLAST.

Yes, my loyalty was switched about half way through the game. Hey, I AM a Bay Area resident these days.

Go Giants!

There was a lot of Panda love in Menlo Park this week. (please excuse the penguin...he was feeling left out)

Remember that foam finger above? Yeah, turns out the end that I bit off was lucky.

Here is some Noah News...we said goodbye to his infant car seat and hello to his toddler seat. While we haven't quite hit the weight limit, it was time. Noah seems super happy to be sitting up straight in his new seat and there is much less whining in the car these days (that could also have something to do with the brainwashing Music Together CD).

Bye bye baby seat!

Halloween 2012. What a fun year we are having already. This is the first time in 5+ years I have donned a costume and it was a blast. The whole family got dressed up for a night out this weekend and it was a lot of fun picking out costumes and getting into character for a party

I was seriously ready to head to the football field to cheer on the Colts!

Hottest nerd I know.

We opted for a costume that didn't hinge on head wear. There were so many adorable kid costumes but they all needed a hood or hat to complete the look. While a cowboy hat would be a nice topper (ha, pun not intended), this is what happens....

Not even on long enough to capture.

And a mustache. Not happening.

As you can see, it was a wild and crazy party! So fun to have new friends that are all enjoying our kiddos together.

Ok, I ran out of pictures that aren't birthday related so I am going to wrap this up. Please save 1-2 hours for the birthday post coming in a couple weeks. It is going to be long!

Noah News: Weeks 48 & 49

Happy Flight! GO CARDS!

We are back in California! Since being back I have opted for cleaning every nook and cranny (including the junk drawer and the dreaded filing cabinet) in place of blogging. This is a major disservice to you, my reader (singular, I'm a realist), but it is a major help to my house I can assure you. However, it still looks like a bomb went off (I blame the toddler(?!?!?!)) and we have a mouse in our attic. So, in between setting a zillion mouse traps and picking up blocks for the millionth time, I am here with a quick update.

Our time in St. Louis finished up perfectly...well, aside from the fact that it was spent without Scott. Fall officially descended and it was PERFECT. I gladly laced up my walking shoes and set out around the old neighborhood for a daily stroll. The one thing that struck me on these walks...SPACE. I didn't realize just how much I missed the bits and pieces of land that don't have a house stuck on them. Case in point:

Don't you just want to take off running across it?!

Sure, there are power lines in this particular example, but in California that would be no big deal...they would just run across your backyard. So, yeah...I soaked up the crisp air, friendly neighbors and space for the last few days in the midwest. Oh, and something about that air made me want to don my PCH cheerleading uniform and hit up a football game. Nostalgia, I tell ya. 

The ride home was pretty amusing. Unfortunately Noah and I didn't luck out with any extra seats so we got to wrestle for 4.5 hours in flight. We had a brief break in Denver but that was more of a shenanigan than a break. I wish I would have kept a list of everything I did to keep Noah entertained...it would have included things like:

• Play with seatbelt
• Play with headphone
• Throw keys into aisle
• Throw keys into aisle again
• Eat puffs off the nasty airplane floor
• Pull eveythign out of seat back pocket
• Eat headphones
• Play dentist (this was a good one...about 5 minutes of Noah sticking his airplane-ridden hands in my mouth)
• Walk the aisle
• Change diaper.

You get the idea. We switched activities approximately every 1.25 minutes so it was A LOT.

Next time we might spring for some extra legroom :-).

Wait, back up...before we took off from St. Louis I got to do a Parents as Teachers (PAT) visit with Katie's mom, Debbie. Seriously, California, GET ON THIS! This program is pretty much amazing and I am so disappointed we don't have it. Debbie came and showed us some great toys we can make at home (that are age appropriate for developmental learning) and I learned SO MUCH about what is going on at his age. One thing we honed in on was separation anxiety. While Noah is pretty good and hasn't given any full blown fits, he is starting to become more clingy and gets sad when his people leave. I could go on forever about this, but suffice it to say, I was so happy to have the opportunity for this visit. 

Debbie said driving was extremely advanced for his age!

Now, for some Noah Updates...Let's make these a top 10 5 list, shall we?

5 -  Just do it. Noah got his first pair of Nikes and they are amazing. We tried Stride Rite...I will not be back. We are sticking with the "cool" kicks for life!

Seriously, when did a toddler arrive at my house?!

4 - Mooooooo. We have entered the world of "real" milk. And by real, I mean from a cow, not a human. Noah isn't quite sure about it just yet but hopefully by his birthday he will be a convert. 

No pictures of him and his milk yet. He does enjoy holding this phone up to his ear though!

3 - SIP. After a few failed attempts, Noah can now use a straw. He pretty much thinks it is the greatest thing ever and we have found it is a nice tool to keep him in the high chair a bit longer.

Obsessed.

2 - Chop chop - Noah's first haircut. The picture speaks for itself. 

:-(

1 - Peanut Butter Jelly Time! - Yep, call CPS, I gave my child peanut butter before his first birthday. And guess what? He loves it. I am so happy to have a good "on-the-go" lunch option.

He'll probably be packing sandwiches for all his homies in his car!

 And, just a few more for the road:

Allie and I tried to get a picture of all 3 kids. It didn't turn out as planned. I also wish I had a full picture of the witch they are sitting in front of. Allison is pretty much amazing and this witch project was genius!

We tried to go to the pumpkin patch as a family. Noah was not thrilled by this activity this time around :-(. Luckily, we still have a bit of time before Halloween so maybe we can try again.

Yeah, the cornstalk in the foreground is awkward.

His face here pretty much sums up how he felt about the day.

The 2.5 seconds he spent with his feet on the ground at the patch. This little guy just wanted to be held!

I am pretty glad I am not still carrying him in my belly though!

If we are friends on Facebook, you know that there is some serious battling going on back here in Menlo Park. While Scott and I stay tried and true to our respective teams...we let Noah alternate games to keep the peace!

Our best attempt at compromise!

I am clearly way more excited about the matching!

Alright, I have to go build an ark. I hear a flood is coming on November 9th ;-).

Noah News: Week 47

This edition of Noah News is still being brought to you from St. Louis. As a result, the format is going to be a bit different...less "updates", more pictures and recapping what we have been up to. 

Me and my boy. This is a framer!

Screech Owl - Noah has learned an awesome new skill...screeching. It mainly shows up when he is tired but it has become a conditioned response to not getting what he wants or a means to demand what he wants. He did it in the car seat the other day and scared me half to death. Thankfully a nap turns him back into the normal pitched little boy I love so much.

Let's be honest, he can screech all he wants...look at that cutie!

Noah Tested - We have decided that Noah could do all quality testing for, well, just about anything. Not only does he have a strange affinity for picking up things that are extremely large and heavy, he tests the strength of pretty much everything. Case in point, the adhesive corner protectors for my parent's glass tables. No sooner did they go on than he ripped them off...and they were on there tight! God help my house...Noah the destroyer is on the loose.

Exhibit A: Carrying a shovel that is at least twice as tall as him.

Exhibit B: This belongs under the refrigerator. Maybe I'll make this a weekly series, "The Giant Thing Noah Carried This Week"

Some other fun happenings...

A trip to the pumpkin patch with Allie and her littles.

Jillian, Noah and Eli checking out the piggies.

Eli hanging at the top of the hay pile.

Jillian in the hay pit.

Noah in the hay pit.

I forced him to sit on this tractor. He fell off twice but I got an ok picture!

A trip to the zoo

Checking out the orangutan.

Our little family with Phil the Gorilla.

Grandma and Noah checking out the penguins.

First carousel ride. He thought it was awesome before it started moving, then was a bit stunned.

The Botanical Gardens

The littlest park goers got a ride.

Eli gave the little ones a ride in the wagon.

And, of course, a little family time.

Noah's second cousin Owen giving him his first wheelbarrow ride.

Getting in some quality time with Great Grandma aka, Grams.

And, lastly, a quick addendum to my reunion recap. I need to say THANK YOU to Abby for making it all happen. As our senior class president she got the job of "reunion organizer" placed on her. She did a wonderful job and it was great to catch up in person. I say in person because Abby has a blog of her own that I follow. I have added a link on my side bar (Live, Laugh, Run Today) and you can also get there by clicking any of the links I just made in this paragraph. I wish I had half of her motivation to work out daily. You won't see me in the gym at 5am!!!

Abby and I at our high school reunion.

  

Ok, off to do some more fun St. Louis things. See you next week!