Getting (me) Through the Sick Season

I don't know what it is about this year, but we can't seem to keep George well these days.  Someone that Clay works with said that from birth to 1 year old, kids may get little things here and there, but overall, they stay pretty healthy.  But from 1 to 2 is a no-holds-barred kind of year where they get EVERYTHING.  George has proven that statement to be oh-so-true.

Last week he was fighting off the stomach bug, and this week, I'll spare you the gory details, but let's just say that he's 'sick'.  Really sick.  Luckily, today we seemed to have turned a corner of sorts, so hopefully we're on the mend.  All that to say, we've still managed to have some sweet moments along the way, and a few milestones, so I wanted to make sure I write them somewhere because I will surely not remember anything from this week once it's over.

George's language is growing at a rapid pace these days.  I've noticed that if it's something that he's really passionate about (food), or really obsessed with (characters/books) then he figures out the correct word for it and uses it.  Here are a few examples:

*I let him watch Toy Story for the first time yesterday simply because it was a movie-watching-kind-of-day.  So we snuggled up in bed, and within the first fifteen minutes, he started pointing and saying 'Woody! Woody!'.  It was bizarre how quickly he picked up his name.  Now he walks around the house asking for Woody all day.  

*He is very passionate about 'bites', and is loving foods (when he's not sick).  Besides fruit, I haven't found a 'bite' that he doesn't love.  Sometimes when I go into his room in the morning he's standing up at his crib pointing at the door saying 'bites pees!'

* He does still love 'mick mick', but I'm afraid Woody has edged him out.

* I've started asking him to say 'thank you', and sometimes he will say 'ank you'.  It's pretty sweet.

He still says nonsense words that Clay and I have no idea what he means, and this will frustrate George to no end.  We're in that hard place where George can communicate some things, but not everything, and he thinks he can communicate more than he actually can.  It's hard to watch him struggle, become frustrated, etc., but there is literally nothing I can do about it in the meantime.

I have been terrible about taking pictures lately, but here are a few I've taken with my phone.  

 Learning to color.  He's more into finger painting, but crayons are less messy.

 I can't remember when Saty gave him this shirt, but he was really excited when we put it on him (for fun) the other day.  

I'm thinking he may be a cowboy for Halloween this year.

 I heard him belly laughing in the back of the house, 

and came around the corner to this.

 After Mother's Day Out one day, I tucked him in his crib, and found myself contemplating snuggling up with him.  I can't imagine how hard it will be once he has a bed I can actually fit into with him.

 Best find ever at a consignment sale!  

George is obsessed with rocking chairs (have I mentioned that he's an old soul?).

 Train book from Aunt Marianne.

Here's how you know it's a favorite- when the binding is completely broken because it's been read so many times and you don't even think about throwing it away.  Thank goodness for duct tape saving this gem of a book.

 This picture, and the ones below, were taken this week while George has been sick.  Two things have made him happy: taking pictures of himself with my phone (not sure why, but this is the face he made in every. single. one.) and Toy Story!

 His best attempt at a smile.  While watching Woody.

 This is what he did 90% of the time he was awake.  There's only so much Mom can do to entertain herself with a 100+ degree baby draped over her.

Watching Woody.  He was literally on the edge of his seat, and had to walk closer the first time he watched it.

All-in-all, we've had lots of snuggles and sweet moments around here this week.  I have friends whose babies are in, and have been, in serious danger for their lives, and that keeps things in perspective really quickly.  I know that God has given me the grace and strength for today, and that is all I need.  

Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus, far surpassing all the rest

It's an ocean full of blessing in the midst of every test

Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus, mighty Savior, precious Friend

You will bring us home to glory where Your love will never end.

O the deep, deep love

All I need and trust

Is the deep, deep love of Jesus.

The Things We Do For Love

For Christmas, we gave our nephew, Rogers, a trip to Build-a-Bear with us (Clay and me).  I could see the let down on Rogers' face when he opened up our gift to find a teeny tiny little credit card-thing, but I knew once we got him in the store, he might get into the excitement of it all.

We didn't even have to get to the mall for Rogers to get excited.  Just the car ride out to the Galleria alone was almost enough entertainment for Clay and me.  Rogers was excited to see the escalators, Chick-Fil-A, and all of the shiny watches displayed in the department store (which, in case you're wondering, are all on a child's level).  Once we got into the Build-a-Bear store, I wasn't sure that Rogers would be able to contain his excitement, but he did a great job- and was even more patient than I was!

 We tried to explain the concept of the place to him.  Basically, he could pick out any animal and outfit he wanted, and he would get to turn it into a stuffed animal of his own.  His first choice was this pink/purple/blue tie-dyed bear with a Buzz Lightyear outfit, but we steered him in another direction.  

After he had picked everything out, we were waiting in line.  I think we're used to George who walks figure-8s around/between our legs and begs to be held most of the time.  We turned around, and saw that Rogers had made himself comfortable at the computer station.  This picture just cracks me up.

 After a lot of deliberation, he went with a tiger in a Batman suit.  He seemed pretty pumped about it!

He was such a trooper with the long line!  Much more so than Juju. 

 Finally, it was Rogers' turn!  Mackey helped Rogers stuff the tiger, and put its heart inside.  There was a three-year-old girl in front of us who had to put her very last pacifier inside her bear.  It was traumatic for everyone involved- even the by-standers.  I get the theory of it, and it seems like a good enough way to get rid of the paci, but that little girl was traumatized, and I think Clay was a little heart-broken for her too.

 After some emergency surgery (see below), the tiger was ready for its first bath!  Rogers got really into this part.

 Here, tiger is having some emergency surgery.  See, Rogers wanted his tiger to smell like cupcakes, so he bought a smelly tab that goes inside.  Mackey forgot this key part to the animal, so we had to go see the on-call animal surgeon.  I know that sounds sarcastic, but she truly had her own set of tools/needles/thread to open the animals and close them back up.  She was referred to as the 'expert sewer'.

 After careful consideration, Rogers chose a tiger, in a Batman costume, that smells like cupcakes.

I can see the love he has for Tiger already.

Finished product!

I think about all of the fun times we had with the Lee's growing up, and it makes me want to do fun things with all of my nephews (and Frannie, too!- just different activities probably).  Some of my most favorite memories from childhood are with our cousins and Marianne and Ed.  Glamour Shots, Christmas night movies, going to the hunting camp, etc., would have been fun with friends, but they are lasting memories because they are family.  With almost all of our family within a stone's throw of our house, I can hardly contain my excitement to get to do these fun things with them.  

I would not have thought being at the Galleria on MLK day would have been my idea of fun, but it was one of my favorite times with Rogers.  Clay and I had a blast with him- and it's so different because he is a talker, and the things he says are absolutely hilarious!  We are so thankful for Rogers, and for the time we get to spend with him.  This was a sweet memory that we will always cherish.

Ch-ch-ch-Changes

I borrowed the title for this blog from the most recent episode of Friday Night Lights that Clay and I watched.  It also is appropriate for our life, as it was for the lives of those in Dillon, Texas for that episode.  I've had several friends recently discover this series, and Clay has just started it over for us.  It was like being reunited with old friends starting back over with Season 1.

Anyways!

The Cochran family is going to get a little bigger in August!  We are so excited for George to be a big brother in August, and are so thankful for this little baby on the way.  It's going to be another long, hot summer for me, as I'll be the biggest in June, July and August, but the good thing is that it's all I've known, so I'm ready for it.  I'm also ready to spend my summer submerged in a pool, and I think George is on board with that idea, too.

We got to tell our families on Christmas Day with this little picture.  I'm not sure who was the most excited- our parents, us, or George.  This could be one of my favorite pictures of him.


George is going through changes of his own.  He's starting to crave more independence- which is a double-edged sword, for sure.  He knows what he wants, and an absolute meltdown ensues if his wants aren't met.  I have to admit- it is really hard not to cave.  Because sometimes what he wants isn't necessarily a 'bad' thing- raisins (he walks into the kitchen saying 'nack pees...nack pees'), another episode of Mickey Mouse, etc.  But it's not always what is best for him at the moment.  I have a hard time communicating this to him, and I look forward to the day that we can communicate and understand each other.  I guess right now we're working on ironing out the minor detail that Clay and I are the final authority in the house.

George is also extremely picky about what he eats.  But not in the way that I was picky as a kid (Marianne and Saty- no comments about my pickiness!).  I actually think it would be easier for me if he was picky like me- especially with this first trimester nausea lingering around for a while.  George absolutely loves vegetables.  We've tried a wide range- asparagus, okra, carrots, brussel sprouts, all types of squash, zucchini, spinach, green beans and then some.  He loves them all with the same passion and excitement.  The smell of roasting veggies just about makes me turn green right now, but I'm trying to power through for Georgie.  I mean- what kid cries when he runs out of okra?!  That would be George tonight at dinner.  He would rather eat okra and butternut squash than the baked chicken nuggets sitting next to his veggies.  It is bizarre.  His teachers at school asked if I would start sending in this squash/zucchini/orzo pasta salad I used to make instead of PB&J, because he wasn't eating the peanut butter & jelly sandwich I had sent.  At 8am, a PB&J is a whole lot easier to whip up than a balanced-made-from-scratch meal.  I'm just being honest.  

There are a few things that George has a true love for, and I want to make sure I record these for posterity reasons:

* He is obsessed with reading books.  There are some he likes more than others, but he gets excited for pretty much any book.  He picks it out, brings it up to us and says "REE!!" and then shimmies into our lap.  I am also obsessed with these moments.

* There are some times when I wonder if Mickey Mouse showed up to our house, if George would run away with him, and never look back.  Sometimes he points to the TV and says 'mick mick????'.  I think we're all seeing why we have to limit the TV watching around here.  The other night Clay caught George with his stuffed Mickey in his lap "reading" a book to him.  I'm telling you- it's real love.

* A close second to Mickey would be Elmo, but this one is a puzzler.  We have no books that have Elmo in them (until we learned about this love of Elmo), and we've never watched anything with Elmo in it.  Is it just ingrained in children from birth that Elmo exists, and that he is good?  Whatever the catalyst to this new friendship, George cannot get enough Elmo.

Overall, I feel like we are in the sweetest spot with George.  He's a great napper and sleeper at night.  He has the sweetest spirit.  His laugh could melt me into a puddle.  My favorite thing these days is that I can tangibly tell that he loves Clay and me.  If Clay and I are hugging, he runs up to us and wraps his whole body around our legs.  The entire first year of a newborn's life is spent taking care of any need that arises for the baby, and you do these things out of this unconditional love.  But that love is unrequited for- what seems like- forever.  Now that I see glimpses of George's love for us, it is unreal to me.  It makes me know that he will be a great big brother to this baby, and I look forward to watching him continue to grow and develop.  

Wow- this was a long post with only one picture!  Sorry for those of you who only want pictures- I'll do a picture post soon.

Cabin Fever

I feel like I need to preface this post with the obvious statement:

I really love staying home with George.  He is so much fun to me, and I am not exaggerating when I say that I absolutely treasure my days with him.

Last week was the first week back to Mother's Day Out since 2 weeks before Christmas.  I knew George would have so much fun at school, and I was (selfishly) excited for a little bit of time by myself.  Almost on cue, George came down with RSV (respiratory virus) after Day 1 of school.  We've never experienced a viral infection before, but those bugs don't come and go like a bacterial infection.  They like to stick around for a while, and get real cozy.  

Since the week after George was born, I can honestly say I have not spent an entire day within the confines of our house.  Last week, I realized why- it's because it makes me crazy.  I need human interaction and fresh air.  Coincidentally, the Northwest's wet season must have also migrated this way, as it has been raining for the last 10 days (maybe it hasn't been that long- but truly, I lost all sense of time last week).  All of these situations piled together gave me a bad case of cabin fever.  I'm pretty sure George was feeling the same way, but he was so tired that he stopped caring.  I am so thankful that Clay took care of us- and even planned a fun date night for Friday night.  I cannot express how much that was needed.  

George was such a trooper, though.  He is a good sport about doing his inhaler.  He became an expert sleeper, which is pretty much the only thing that will help him get better.  Best of all, he is now the best snuggler ever.  I was talking with a friend about how much sickness has come in and out of our house since we brought George home from the hospital almost a year and a half ago.  I can't remember ever taking a sick day from work before having George.  It was easy to avoid being sick before kids: if someone was sick, I just stayed away from said person.  Now, not only can I not stay away from this sick person, but I'm wiping his nose, covering his cough, changing his diapers, and snuggling with him in between all of this.  My only hope now is God's protection and the 2,000mg of Vitamin C and echinacea I take daily.  Fingers crossed!

I know there are a few people who check this blog just for pictures, so this one's for you!

Somehow a balloon from Publix always brightened his day.

Here's to a healthier week for us and y'all throughout this sick season!

Christmas 2012

This Christmas was so special to Clay and me.  I wish I could post the video of George walking out into our den and seeing what Santa had left him, but it would take ten years to upload.  His face and reaction was priceless, and it just got better throughout the day.  

Christmas Eve we had family over for a spaghetti dinner.  George was really into spaghetti.

Christmas morning, George slept in and came out to find his presents from Santa.  I think the hardest thing for him was opening a gift that he loved, and then putting it down to open another gift.  This really confused/frustrated him, but when they were all opened, he had so much fun.

He even combined his headlamp with Mickey.

He got the hang of opening presents after round 1.

His musical instruments might be his (and Clay's) favorite!

We headed over to Mama Zo & Pops' house to celebrate Christmas with the Cochran's.  George had an absolute blast- he loves playing with Chase and Hank!

These three take a lot of cute pictures.  This one is my favorite from Christmas.  

The boys got sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and camping pillows from Mama Zo & Pops!

We came back to Saty and Pop's house for naps.  After Scott, Katie, Rogers, Frannie and Erie came over, we got up for round 2 of Christmas celebrations.  Here is George in his fisherman's vest and his new tool bench!  He had so much fun- but ended up crashing around 6:30pm.

 George really loves playing with his cousin, Rogers!  I don't think either of them know their own strength (or personal space for that matter), but I love capturing the things they do on camera.  They are absolutely hilarious together!

 

This was such a full Christmas.  Full of family time, laughter, love, and every great thing that comes with this time of the year.  We have so much to be thankful for this year, but I am most thankful for the people with which we celebrate our Savior's birth.  As we are on the cusp of a new year, I am excited to see what this year will hold.  We have seen God's faithfulness in such incredible and tangible ways this year, that we could hardly wait to celebrate Him this season.  Something about seeing it through a child's eyes makes it even more special.

Happy New Year!

A Very Nana Christmas (Volume II)

Every year, the Zbinden family gathers together to celebrate Christmas.  This year was no different.  Scratch that.  This year we had two new babies, and 46 people in attendance.  Coming from a smaller family, I'm not sure that I ever understood what people meant when they said they come from a 'big family'.  When we had Christmas with the Lee family, it was a modern miracle to have all six 'children' and their spouses, and all the grandkids gathered together with all of the grandparents.  Wrap your mind around the fact that this family is able to gather almost 50 people on the Saturday before Christmas- now that's some familial commitment. 

 Nana with her 12 great grandchildren

 Then all of the cousins and spouses jumped in.

 Nana & George!

 Christmas Pageant 2012:

Joseph, Mary, Jesus, the Star, the Angel of the Lord, a shepherd, and Baby Jesus #2

 Cast Picture with new Baby Jesus

 George was the Drummer Boy.  I think he was upset he didn't get to have Chase's costume from last year.

 The aunts singing Sleigh Bells...the highlight of my year!

 All the cousins of the handbell choir.

George was so excited to pass out presents.  I think he took all of his presents to Nana.

There were a lot of activities, memories, singing, and love to go around to everyone that day.  At one point, I noticed a plaque in the corner of Nana's garage that says, "All Because Two People Fell in Love."  When you see a family this big gathered all together, that quote takes on a whole new meaning.

  

I'm doing Christmas in a different post, because Nana's Christmas needed a post all its own.  I remember last year thinking I needed a picture of Uncle Frank to put in this post.  So look out, Uncle Frank, next year's post is dedicated to YOU!

Pitiful

There are few things that break my heart more than a sick child's face.  It reaches a new level of pitiful that cannot be reached in any other state.  On Thursday, Saty took George to ride the carousel at the mall and then back to her house to make gingerbread houses.  Usually I get pictures of George getting into mischief, or smiling ear-to-ear, so I was really excited to see pictures of this super-fun-Saty-day.  Here's what I got:

After a diagnosis of pink eye and a double ear infection, George made a speedy recovery with a little bit of medicine, and watching The Polar Express.  He is truly captivated by this movie, and it's pretty cute to watch him love it the way Clay and I do.

In the midst of this, we did get to take George to see Santa.  Based on his last visit with Santa, we were prepared for the worst.  Call it a Christmas Miracle, but George was really excited when he got to sit in Santa's lap!  

It's hard to wrap my brain around the fact that Christmas is less than a week away.  In light of everything that has happened over the last week in our country, I am reminded how broken our world is, and am sure that we need Jesus' birth in a new way this year.  Our church is studying the hymns of Christmas, and these words made me well up with tears with the promise from our Savior:

O come, Desire of nations, bind all people in one heart and mind;

Bid envy, strife and quarrels cease and be Thyself our King of Peace.

Rejoice!  Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.