Toddler

"Cheese face"

Caden can walk! He officially took two steps on Independence Day. How suiting. Since then he's slowly built up his courage and is now able to walk all around the house. And last Thursday evening he stood up without holding onto or pushing off of anything. Caden looks so funny when he toddles around. He's still a bit unbalanced, making him look drunk, and he puts his arms up in the air, like a chimp. He thinks he's so big and bad now that he can walk and loves when we cheer him on or chase him. He hates shoes (the photo was taken while he was upset, but once he saw the camera he smiled).

Another silly thing he likes to do is the yoga position downward dog, but with his head touching the ground. He is just so cute! And mischievous. Wednesday he took off his diaper.

Caden is a little Narcissus. He loves the mirror. If he wasn't banging on it, he was just sitting there gazing at himself and laughing once I caught him doing it. It calms him down when he's crying too. We had to move it (who knows when Justin will put it up) because it fell on him one day. Caden also enjoys shutting doors and putting his toys in his drawers. He's obsessed with his toes. When he's on the potty or just randomly sitting down he'll stare at them while wiggling them around. He inherited playing with his tongue from Justin's mom. They both stick it out slightly and bite on it when concentrating. Speaking of biting, his four top two teeth are coming in. It's been a nightmare. Caden's hair is getting long and curly. He looks less like a baby each day. Something random: he always smells like applesauce, even if he didn't eat any.

Every night we put away the toys before bed while singing the "Clean Up" song. Caden joins in with "ee-nuh." I'm not sure if he associates it with actually tidying up because he says it sometimes when he sees his toys during the day. Can I count them as his first words? I think he knows Dad(a) too, but he makes that sound for other things as well.

Caden still spends most of the night in bed with us. And let me tell ya, this guy is a little gymnast in his sleep! He ends up sideways, upside down, or on his side arching his back and head into a C. We are working on getting him back in his crib because we can't stand being pushed and kicked and rolled on anymore!

One more month and my baby will be one years old. I cry if I dwell on it.

My Life Is Over

I was transferring files from one USB drive to another and accidentally deleted some file folders. I'm not even sure how many I lost, but it was a lot and most of it was important and irreplaceable. Does anyone know how to recover them? I thought they would go to my laptop's Recycle Bin, but apparently I'm wrong. Please help!

Bittersweet

Yesterday I saw the final Harry Potter movie. I can't believe it's over. The books ended first, and now the movies. No more to look forward to. It's a bittersweet feeling. It's crazy how emotionally invested you can become in a book, especially in a series with film versions that lasted for 14 years. In fact, Harry Potter is the only series I have been so passionate about. I love Narnia too, but I don't get that same feeling of excitement pondering plot intricacies and watching the movies. (I've also realized I have a thing for British authors--besides Rowling and Lewis, add in Agatha Christie, another ultra-successful writer.)

I loved the movie until Harry and Voldemort fought. Not the dramatic ending I was expecting. And you'd think with such great makeup artistry these days, they'd do a better job making the actors really look 19 years older. So for me, about the last 15 minutes were a disappointment. But for the rest of the time, poor Justin's arm was squeezed blue and my eyes were cried red.

Justin's Birthday Weekend

June 11 was Justin's 26th birthday. We couldn't go rock climbing (no sitter), so we all went golfing at Justin's work instead. I even played a few holes. I hadn't touched my clubs in two years! Of course I was terrible, but I did have a couple good shots and putts. Caden was great! He was quiet and cooperative and loved being outside. He lost a sock though. He hates wearing socks. Like me. Anyway, we put Caden on the grass while we putted. It was his first time on grass. At first he was a little timid, but then he wouldn't stop crawling all over the green. We only played 12 holes because Caden was really tired by then (we had woken up at 5:30). He fell asleep on my lap on the ride back to the car.

Once home Justin opened his presents: Napoleon Dynamite from Caden and How to Train Your Dragon and Pop Tarts from me. We then changed and headed to Benihana's for lunch. We shared a table with another family whose father was also celebrating his birthday (as were half the people there). Again Caden did great, though he did scream every now and then for fun. He loved the show and thought it was funny. After lunch we went to the dollar theater to see Rango. We thought Caden would fall asleep. He did--but woke up as soon as we got there. We decided to try taking him anyway, although I had vowed never to be one of those people who take babies to movies. Bad idea on two accounts: 1) Caden was too noisy and wanted to move around, and 2) the movie was terrible. I didn't even mind sitting out in the hallway for most of it. Afterward we let Justin shop for basketball shoes at the mall as another present. He didn't buy them yet, but he found a couple he liked.

On the way home we picked up Papa John's, Justin's favorite, and ate it while watching the rest of the third Narnia movie which we had rented the night before. On Sunday we made Justin's cake, German chocolate as always. He also got to participate in a baby blessing. On Monday we watched his new movies. Justin says he had a good birthday and that his favorite was golfing with his whole family. Caden and I agree.

The following weekend was Father's Day. Justin had to work and we had Justin's brother and his wife staying with us. So when he got home he got his present, a charcoal grill, and we used it to make dinner. He's used it several times since and loves it!

Sums It All Up

Growing Up Is Hard to Do

A while ago at the thrift store I found a collection of children's books by A.A. Milne, comprising two poetry books and the two Winnie-the-Pooh books. At the end of the final book, The House at Pooh Corner, I bawled my eyes out. In the last chapter Christopher Robin tries to find a way to tell Pooh he will no longer be able to visit the Hundred Acre Wood. He is unsuccessful--because he doesn't want to say it and Pooh isn't bright enough to take a hint--and simply tells Pooh to never forget him.

It took me some time to regain my composure after that. The ending hit just the right sentimental buttons inside me. I could relate so much. I loved playing pretend; I loved my dozens of stuffed animals; I loved all the stories my Dad made up about them. When I hit middle school, I found myself in an awkward situation, as do most kids. I was neither a child nor a teenager. It was a hard transition.

Two years ago I finally went through my stuffed animals when I visited my family. I remembered almost all their names and where I got them. I finally let go and only kept the nearest and dearest ones. I went through all my stuffed animals again once we moved, only getting rid of newer ones, not childhood ones. In the future the bag may become smaller, but there are a few I know I will never part with.

As you can imagine, I also cried at the ending of Toy Story 3. Little problem with it though: the toys will have to go through the same thing again once the little girl grows up! I guess they want us to assume that they will just continue to be passed along from kid to kid happily ever after. I like the ending of The Brave Little Toaster better (remember that one?). Then again, it's much easier for a college boy to take practical items like a toaster and vacuum with him to college than to take toys.

Fakebook

After editing my Facebook friends several times recently and having an upsetting conversation with my father today (not upset with him but with other people), I've decided I am done with Facebook. I just need to download some photos, videos, and notes, and then I'm gone! Of course, that may take a while. I need to figure out how to keep my giveaway page though. Might be tricky. I don't want to have to redo it and lose all my followers.

Just a note to you all: if you don't want people looking at, commenting on, and liking your statuses, links, and photos, then why the heck do you post them? I thought the purpose of Facebook was to share and stay connected. If you have a problem with that, get off Facebook and try something more private! And don't add anybody as your friend just because you met them once. If you don't care about them or they don't care about you, don't add them. Who cares if you offend them; you're obviously not close anyway. And if it is someone close, still only add them if you truly care for them. If they don't reciprocate your efforts to stay close, drop them. That's how I got down to 60 friends today (and I'd like to drop some more). Note, some of you were dropped because I follow your blogs and interact with you much more through them than through Facebook.

New House

When we renewed our ASU resident parking sticker last July, we ran into trouble requesting one for our second car. Apparently we were listed as being in single-student housing, and single students are only allowed one car. We had to go to the housing office to get proof that we were a family. We were able to get the second sticker, but at the housing office we were informed that we were placed in the wrong area and might have to move. Since I was about to have a baby, we could no longer live within the protective cap (lead in the soil). Apparently, Williams Campus Housing put us in single-student housing because we didn't have a child and did not tell us we would have to move when we did have one. If they had, I would have requested a different home since we knew we were going to try that year. After I got pregnant, ASU took over housing. Ever since then, everything has gone down the toilet, and WCH was bad enough to begin with (though ASU should have been monitoring them). Anyway, a lady told us she would check out the situation and call us. She never did, so we assumed everything was ok. I was relieved. I didn't want to move while eight months pregnant or with a newborn. We went on with life, renewed our contract in March with that same lady (and brought the baby), and went on our merry way.

Then at the end of May, Justin got a phone call from the office saying they had done inventory and realized we had a baby and needed to move. We met with a couple ladies, one nice one I knew and another uptight one. The mean one demanded we move immediately because it was a safety issue. I was M-A-D. Really? She dare ask us to start packing that same day? It was their mistake to begin with! We asked if we could wait a few weeks until Justin's family was in town to help us. She said no. The nice one said she would call their superiors and ask. They said yes. So at the end of the month, Justin's brother, sister-in-law, and father helped us move everything to our new home, and Caden miraculously took two 2-hour naps that day. Here's how I feel about the new place.

Positive

• Same layout (but in the mirror image) and rent
• Better color: dusty red instead of pale pink
• Windows can open
• Front door locks open easier and the door doesn't need to be slammed shut
• Fridge is quiet
• Less bugs--so far
• Bigger backyard with an awning providing shade and a grassy area behind the house (just dirt at the old place)

Negative

• Windows aren't tinted
• Washer/dryer hookups are opposite, so the washer and dryer doors hit each other when open
• Other side of South Desert Village, right next to the construction site, railroad tracks, and busy road (a reminder of ASU's incompetency), and far away from the mailbox, park, and carport (all were right next to our old house) and the outdoor track (ruins my route and timing)
• Smaller toilet and no cabinet under the sink
• Very low water pressure in the shower
• Loose outlets; the plugs either don't stay in all the way or don't get consistent electricity
• A/C makes a loud noise when it kicks in

Neutral

• Gas: two bills instead of one (and we had to pay fees to set up the gas and change our electrical account--ASU should have paid!), but it's nice to have a gas stove now, though I got used to electric
• Different dishwasher. Works just as well as the old one, but I have to figure out the best way to load it (I had a system with the old one--yeah, I'm crazy)

I don't mind the change; I like change. I do mind all the stress, money spent, timing, and drama with ASU. Not happy with their lack of professionalism. I can't wait to be out of here!

If It's Not One Thing It's Another

Caden's potty strike is officially over. Last week he started signing again when he needed to go and has been consistent about it. Yay! Once he's over his sickness we'll go back to cloth diapers.

He's also learned the sign for all done (both hands up shaking them back and forth, though he shakes them up and down). Yesterday morning when I did the sign because I thought he was done going potty, he signed potty to let me know he had to go more, finished his business, and then signed all done. What a smart little guy!

However, sleep has been a struggle. With all the change and chaos that happened over the last two weeks--the hives, moving, traveling, being sick, and family in town staying at our place--the poor little guy's sleep patterns are chaotic as well. The coughing and congestion keep him tossing and turning all night; he wakes up with bags underneath his eyes. He won't nap for long either even though he's exhausted. I'm exhausted as well. I just hope that as soon as he feels better, he'll sleep much better too.