tidbits

Geoff went swimming inthe big pool for the first time yesterday. He's been in the jacuzzi several times and seems to like it a lot. We were not sure how he would handle the colder pool, but we didn't get a chance to find out - Danny inadverdently heated the pool to 92 degrees! He had fun and enjoyed it for about a half an hour!

Geoffrey has added a high pitched sqqueal/scream to his repitoire of sounds. He uses it when he plays with his toys, squealing happily. He also uses it when he's really worked up in a crying fit - when it escalates to that scream, daddy and I give each other a look. Daddy thinks it is funny. Mommy has premonitions of three year old temper tantrums, but right now still jumps at the sound of it to try to solve the problem.

One thing that is more related to pregnancy recovery - I have been losing my hair. Gobs of it. I know it is normal - but man, I cna't believe that I am not bald!!!!

Summer vacations!!

This summer's plans include:

Two trips to Vegas,
Camping in the Sierra Nevadas,
Disney World/Universal Studios Florida (for two weeks!)
and an 8 night cruise to Panama, Costa Rica, and Cozumel!

Spring Tv ends

Well, now it is time for crappy sumemrtime tv. Although I was thrilled with the ending of Amazing Race (Victor and Tammy), and satisfied with the end of Survivor (J.T.), the end of American Idol was a huge dissapointment with Kris Alan winning over Adam Lambert. Although Adam's music isn't my cup of tea, he was amazing at every performance and deserved the win.

Up now? I am way behind on Dollhouse,  Fringe, I have the finales of Lost and 24, and Ghost whisperer and Medium still seem to be churning out a few episodes. I am ecited about a new show, Glee, and I am willing to watch the Bachelorette to fill up my time. In the meantime, I am counting down to July (Why July??? Why not June???)  to start Big Brother - my summertime crack addiction ( i know it is bad, but I can't help it, I am addicted!) Not to mention I have this Netflix disk, Rachel got Married, that has been sitting here for a month. What a waste - sigh.

Plus - Sims 3!!!!!

3 months - observations

Geoffrey's Likes:

He loves Mommy and Daddy an Uncle Danny and Belle-dog.

He likes to laugh, and squeal, but his favorite noise to make right now is gurgling. He likes to get some saliva or milk pooled in his mouth and then smile and gurgle. He does this a LOT!

He loves his toys. He mostly still looks at them and bats at them, but he can start to hold some of the rings/links on his own. He can look at them for long periods and be amused, talking and laughing. He really is aware of them and interacts with them now! We use the toy bar on his swing, his rain forest mat, and now we bought a toy bar that can attach to different things, such as his car seat. He really enjoys these! It is quite cool to see how his interaction with them has developed!

He loves to suck on/chew his arms! He is really good at grabbing one hand or arm with the other now.

He loves baths/jacuzzis/warm water. I've been bringing his baby bath in the big bath so that he can take baths with me- that is a lot of fun! This weekend, we might go in the big pool - it was up to 85 degrees yesterday!

Being outside.

When Mommy sings to him.

Dislikes:

Sleeping in his crib during the day.

Shots (duh.)

(I am trying to think here - there was a reason I started a dislikes list and I can't remember what it was... ) He's actually a pretty happy baby - and the last few weeks of fussiness weren't a direct effect of something he didn't like. Hmmm.... maybe I'll come back to this.

Oh!!! Duh!!!! He still hates Tummy Time! I worry a bit about this - as I feel like he should be stronger with his tummy skills at this point - being able to hold himself up with his arms a little bit, but I know he'll catch up with this... but still - nothing will entice him - not mommy or daddy, not his toys. Most of the time he just cries! Poor guy. It makes mommy sad when he has tears!

Other Observations:

He is starting to sit upright with support. He uses his Bumpo for short periods. Sometimes we put his swing in the upright position, but lately he seems to be too excited and will sometimes tilt too far forward and then be leaning in front of the support pillows. He can also sit propped up on the couch or bed with blankets and pillows. He seems to like the view this way. We have started to take him in his stroller without the car seat attachment, too, once or twice.

 Outings:
Geoff has been to DIsney two more times. His 5th visit was a short one on Thursday, May 7th. We just did the Sleeping Beauty walk through, Mommy did Matterhorn, and we did Buzz Lightyear. His 6th visit was on Friday, May 15th. We went with angie, Andrew, and Cori. It was crowded - but the big people rode California Screamin', and we all rode on Mickey's Fun Wheel (formerly the Sun Wheel). Then we rode Tower of Terror before closing down DCA with 3 rides in a row on Monster's Inc. all together! Cori and Andrew came home with us. Andrew was a big help getting everything to the car. On the way home, Geoff was gurgling, and Andrew said, "I think he tried to say my name!" Cori flipped out and got mad because Geoff wasn't trying to say her name. Hee hee. She was pretty tired! It was kind of funny.

Geoff also takes lots of walks with Dad and Belle at night. He loves these and often stays awake looking around at everything!

He is also great about running errands to stores with us. He's also been to Round Table twice this week since Daddy discovered a new Round Table buffet in Fountain Valley!

He also enjoys visits from Nonna, and going over to Nonna and Grandpa's house, as well as Grandpa and Grandma DeeDee. He loves being a ham for the web cam when he talks to Grandma and Grandpa Bobby on Skype, too.

He's a busy boy! And he is truly loved - he brightens our days more then we could ever imagine!
 

3 months - Growth Spurt?

Geoffrey Walter is 3 months old. Dios Mio. He has grown and changed so much already!

I haven't blogged lately because the last two weeks were a little more difficult then usual. Nothing major, but for the most part, Mr. Geofferson was extra fussy. In the afternoons/evenings he would have very little content time, and would mostly cry or fuss or need to be held when he wasn't sleeping.

Daddy and I were perplexed. Did Geoff need a nap schedule? Although his night time sleep was fairly consistent, he had no schedule for day time sleep - he just snoozed when he was tired. It worked for daddy and I - and was really no big deal to us when Geoff slept. Could that be the problem? We started keeping track of is naps to see if we could develop a schedule, and tried to put him down for some. However, he cried most of the time we put him down, and seeing that he is still a bit young to Ferberize, that didn't go to well.

I started doing some research, and remembered that babies often have a major growth spurt around 3 months. Perhaps we were gearing up for that? '

In the meantime, we just cuddled and loved - and gave him lots of baths since he likes those. Lately, I've been getting in the big bath tub with him, and putting his baby bath in there with us.

On Thursday night, Geoff was like a new kid - he was happy and giggly and talky all night, with very few fussy periods! Friday night was pretty good, too! 

Was that the growth spurt? Was that it? I was waiting for something worse, but he seems much happier again! We'll observe the next few days and see!

Mother's Day

On Sunday, May 10th, I celebrated my very first Mother's Day with my wonderful family! I wanted to spend the day with Geoffrey and Grant - so we decided to drive down to San Diego for the day. We visited Balboa Park - Geoff slept almost the whole time. In retrospect, we probably should have woken him up at the park - because on the drive home he wasn't sleepy at all and cried for a large part of it - poor boy - at that point he wanted to play and stretch! Anyways, before the drive home, we went back to Kafe Yen in Pacific Beach - this Asian Fusion restaurant we had found by chance a few years ago. It was very yummy! It was a t dinner when Geoff first got a little fussy. Really over all, though, he did well. I loved being with my boys, and I couldn't think of a better way to spend my very first Mother's Day, then with Grant and Geoff!

Grant and Geoff also gave me the most amazing Mother's Day gift. We now are members of the Disney Vacation Club! We own at Saratoga Springs! I am so excited for the family vacations and traditions we'll be able to develop at Disney World!

stupid e cards

they pretty much all charge now.

Hallmark e cards

Hallmark charges for most of their ecards now!

Chhh. I think not.

Idols on the Musical Theater Stage

We've seen the following Idols on stage:

Amy Adams in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Latoya London in The Color Purple
Taylor Hicks in Grease

I thought there was another....

Grease!

Last night, we saw Grease at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. The cast did a really good job, and I enjoyed the show! I believe this is the first time I've seen a Broadway-caliber production of Grease!

Taylor Hicks did a cameo as "Teen Angel." I thought he did a good job with it - not over the top, but very good. At the end of the show, he performed a song off of his new album - that was fun to hear, too.

2 1/2 month pediatrician visit

On Monday, May 4, Geoff had a visit with Dr. Chang. Geoffrey is now 25 inches long and weighs 14 pounds! Dr. Chang says that he is doing very well - everything she checked - eyes, abs, back, ears, etc. looked good. He is tracking well with his eyes, and his neck is strong.

He got two shots - DTAP and PCV, and an oral rotovirus vaccine. Poor guy - he was already getting fussy before nurse Florence came back in, and he was crying through the oral vaccine. By the time he got the first shot, he was wailing, and the 2nd one brought a full blown, high pitched screech. Poor guy! I was holding him and Grant was holding me. He didn't have much reaction to the vaccine - no fever or anything - but he was definately fussier then usual on Tuesday.

10 weeks - 2 1/2 months!

Geoffrey is ten weeks old now - or 2 1/2 months. I guess I need to start talking in months now - but I am not ready for him to be old enough to start talking about him in months!

This week was sort of erratic as far as his sleep is concerned. One morning he woke up at 8:45, and another morning he woke up at 11:30! Still, the other three days were his normal 10 - 10:30 ish wake ups. However, this weekend (Saturday and Sunday) he has spent a LOT of time sleeping. Another growth spurt, perhaps?

On Thursday, Geoffrey made his 4th trip to Disneyland, and had his first park hopping experience! We started out at DCA and had dinner - it is the beginning of the food and wine festival. Then we went over to Disneyland. I fed Geoffrey in the baby care center, while daddy found a place to sit and check his email. Daddy texted us a picture and when we were done, Geoff and I tried to find him based on the pic he sent us. It was fun! After, we rode The Jungle Cruise, and then Grant rode Splash Mountain single rider. Next we went on Winnie the Pooh, which Geoff really seemed to enjoy - his eyes were huge as he took everything in! Daddy took Geoff on Winnie the Pooh again while Mommy rode Splash Mountain, and then we were able to jum in the line for Haunted Mansion in the very last group before the park closed!

This morning (Sunday) Geoffrey got his picture taken. Kelly, a music teacher at my district, came over and took some beautiful shots of him. We'll probably have Kelly come over and take shots every few months. Geoff was a very good boy for all of his pictures!

This afternoon, we went to a BBQ at Grandpa and Grandma Dee Dee's house. Aunt Tammy, Uncle Dave, Lexi, Aunt Darci, Uncle Scott, Drew, Parker, and Karson were there. What fun! Your cousins loved seeing you, and everyone else loved holding you!

Tomorrow we have a doctor's appointment for Geoff. I'll blog more then...

Wallpaper border

The wallpaper border that we chose for Geoff's room is Mickey at the Circus. It is bright with primary colors and very busy - one of the reasons we chose it was because we thought it would be stimulating for him.

We put it up midway around the room - I believe it is called a chair rail or something? In any case, it happened to align perfectly with the top of Geoffrey's changing table - just at his eye level. One of the things he loves to do when we change him is stare at his border - it is so cool! He really loves to look at it! We really made a good choice with it!

Rent at Corona Del MAr High School

Three protest high school's production of 'Rent'

About 300 counterprotesters shout them down.

By NIYAZ PIRANI

The Orange County Register

| Recommend 4

NEWPORT BEACH - Three members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas, who came to protest Corona del Mar High School's production of "Rent," were shouted down by 300 counterprotesters this afternoon at the school.

The group came with signs that read: "Fags are beasts" and "America is doomed." Another sign was anti-Obama, while a fourth sign used an obscenity and an image of a dead baby between two hamburger buns.

Counterprotesters' signs read: "Long live Elton John," "Hate is not a family value," and "Do you need a hug?"

After about 30 minutes of protesting, which started around 2 p.m., the three members of the Westboro Baptist Church asked police to escort them to their car. Students remained after the three left, holding signs and screaming and waving as drivers of passing cars honked.

Kaylin Alexander, a senior at Corona del Mar and of the counterprotesters, said "We think they are ridiculous. God loves everyone."

Fred Phelps, Jr., the son of the founder of the Kansas church, said, he was preaching to the crowd.

"(Rent) is catering to the totally out-of-control youth of this nation," Phelps said. "They've got no discipline, no morals. Only doom and destruction lie ahead for them."

Betty Phelps, also a member of the church, said, "This is the side of the fence we are always on. We speak the truth, and I don't know of any other church that does."

Rosanne Fall, of Costa Mesa and a member of the Orange County Equality Coalition, said, "We're here to support Rent. It's important for the kids.

We shouldn't discriminate based on sexual orientation."

Twenty Newport Beach police officers were on the scene for crowd and traffic control. There were no incidents or arrests at the protest, but there was a minor, noninjury traffic accident at the intersection of Eastbluff Drive and Jamboree Road.

The Tony Award-winning musical, plays tonight at 7:30 at the school and runs on select dates through May 2. The play deals with homosexuality and AIDS, became an on-again, off-again affair at Corona del Mar after drama teacher Ron Martin claimed that the school's principal, Fal Asrani, would not allow the play to go on. Asrani has denied that allegation and a "school-safe" version of the play was approved.

The play made its debut Thursday night in Corona del Mar's 230-seat Little Theatre.

Senior James Ramsey said he saw no reason for the "hoopla" because the school version has been pared down in comparison to the original.

"I think the school version does a very good job of bringing the material down and making it appropriate at a high school level," he said. "I feel like (homophobia) is just a common thing in high schools in general as well as in Orange County, being one of the most conservative counties in California."

Max Priestley, a sophomore and actor in the play, said the counterprotests are a peaceful way to express the students' side of the issue.

"It's amazing to do something this changing for so many people," he said. "Not just for me and the cast, but for so many others."

8 weeks

Mr. Geofferson is 8 weeks old now. He is so adorable! He is such a smiley boy. He is especially cute in the morning. First, he starts making noises. We go in and open the blinds, and then unswaddle him. Geogg starts to stretch and then opens his eyes, and then when he sees us, he gets a big, happy smile on his face!

Seriously, his stretches are just the cutest! Mommy and Daddy want to always remember them!

He is starting to exercize his vocal cords with babbles and coos and giggles.

He makes cute little milk-spit bubbles.

He farts a lot. He still loves the changing table, too. Sometimes, he'll stretch and fart and then get this goofy grin on his face.

He is such a good boy. He is mostly very chill andeasy to please. Yesterday, we went to California Adventure and it was 100 degrees! He was so good. He went on It's Tough to be a Bug, twice, to nurse (the termite "sqirting" startled him the first time, so Daddy shielded him with a burp cloth the 2nd time). He also did Monster's Inc, and looked at the Blue Sky Celler with us. We had dinner at Story Teller's Cafe, and he was such a good boy. He spend most of it laughing and cooing and talking to himself. Then he got a little tired and we held him until he fell asleep. Really, such a good boy!

Oh - for the past few days, he has had some green gunk in his right eye, and it has been a bit teary. It started on Friday and Saturday. Possibly a clogged tear duct - because his eye isn't red and he doesn't seem to have a cold or anything. We were going to call Dr. CHang, but he only had a little gunk yesterday (Sunday) and none today (Monday), so we're just going to watch it for now.

Avenue Q / Rat Pack: Live From the Sands

We saw two plays in the last few weeks: Avenue Q and Rat Pack, Live from the Sands.

Avenue Q is hilarious. It is a grown up Sesame Street and it keeps you laughing throughout the whole thing. We really enjoyed it!

Rat Pack didn't have a plot  - it was like a concert. The cast was really good, and the show was enjoyable, but not something I am dying to see again.

Next up is Grease!

Little things

Geoffrey doesn't use a pacifier. He doesn't like it and always spits it out if we try to give it to him. However, he does like to suck on the back of his fist - both to self soothe and to show he is hungry. So cute!

 
Also, my students say that Geoffrey looks like Bugsy from "Bedtime Stories" because of his big eyes. I must admit, I thought the same thing when I saw the movie last week.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´*Bobbi Jo*
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7 weeks

Geoff is doing well! He is becoming more predictable.He is such a good baby! He is very adaptable during the day - whether we go out or stay home. He likes being out, though. He lets people hold him, and he simply sleeps when he is tired.

He has a pattern developing at night - although he is probably still too young for us to depend on it. In general, he goes to sleep at around eats between 10 - 11 and goes to sleep about 30 minutes later. He eats again around 3 AM, and again around 6:30 AM, and then sleeps. At around 10:00 Am, he wakes up to start his day. This has been working out well - as I can do the 10:30 feeding and then sleep until about 6:30. Grant does the early morning feeding and then sleeps in. Geoff is also really good about falling asleep in his crib on his own - 90% of the time, he is put in the crib awake and doesn't need comforting to fall asleep after his night time feedings.

When you put toys in his hands, like those plastic rings, he can hold on to them for short periods.

He is still not a fan of tummy time.

He smiles in response to things now. He smiles at Mommy and Daddy, Belle-dog, his goofy faces in the mirror above his swing, and some of his toys, such as the toys in his rainforest gym.

Mommy goes back to work tomorrow. It doesn't really feel real - like I don't really believe it. I think I will sort of be in automatic pilot at first - just sort of going through the motions, tomorrow. I don't know if that really makes sense at all. I mean, normally at this time, going back after Spring Break, I would be thinking about school, lesson planning in my head, feeling nervous about going back - but I haven't really had any of those feeling yet - barely even a dream - it just feels more like school/work is a numb, hazy feeling. Sigh. Summer will come quickly, I know. Geoff is home with his daddy, safe and loved. I have a good job - I can come home quickly most days. I am sure, someday, I will be able to find a balance between a teacher and a Mommy - Of course, being a mommy will always trump - but for now, being a teacher feels more like a job then ever - more like something I just have to do, as opposed to a deeper calling. Like I said, I know that will come back - that I can be both - but right now - I am a Mommy, it my only priority (not just my most significant priority).

Geoffrey's First Trip to Disneyland

Geoffrey was 6 weeks old on Friday, April 3. To celebrate, Grant and I took him to Disneyland for his first trip!

We arrived at about 2 in the afternoon, and after getting our renewed passes, we took Geoff on the Disneyland railroad to tour the whole park. Geoffrey slept through this - heh heh.

Next, we visited the baby care center where I changed Monsieur Benedict's diaper and nursed him.

We went to Fantasyland rode the Storybook Canal - it had just opened back up following the parade - and Geoff seemed to enjoy this! His eyes were big and open during the whole thing. Then we went to it's a small world. Geoff kept his eyes open for about half of it, he seemed to enjoy the lights and colors and music. He fell asleep about half way through.

We rode Snow White, Pinocchio, Winnie the Pooh, and Haunted Mansion, and then Pirates of the Caribbean (where Geoff ate dinner - hee hee), before Grant and I had dinner at Cafe Orleans. Geoff was wide awake during dinner and loved looking around. After dinner, we went to the Tiki Room (where Geoff had dessert...) and then we finished the evening on Buzz Lightyear.

Geoff obviously lives DIsney. The poor guy was so upset when we left that he cried on the tram all the way to the car. Poor guy. He did really well!

Pediatrician - 6 week visit

On Wednesday, April 1st, Geoffrey had another well-visit with Doctor Chang. Geoff now weighs 12 pounds, 7 ounces, and he is 24 inches long! He is in the 95 percentile for both height and weight (which is good as long as he is proportional!) He is healthy and strong. He still has a bit of his jaundice - so his current skin color is not a reflection of what his skin tone will actually be.

Geoffrey got his next Hepatitis B shot, but that was all. Poor little guy - he was sleeping peacefully and theHe will get 2 more vaccines at his next visit in May (he will be 10 weeks at that visit). Dr. Chang likes to spread the vaccines out a bit so that he doesn't get bombarded with shots at his visits.

Also, Dr. Chang said we should coninue with Tummy Time - of course - and even if he cries it is ok to leave him on his tummy for at least 5 minutes.

Feeding - Dr. CHang said 7 times a day was normal for his age, and that when he eats from a bottle - he should have 4 - 5 ounces, during the day, but in the middle of the night, 2 ounces was fine if that was all he wanted before he goes back to sleep.

Yeah! Another good visit!