Gompers Growing Up

O.k., let’s see if I can add some more pictures.

Alright! I think I got it now. So, some pictures from Halloween. She was sooo cute! And she scored Daddy a ton of candy!

So, that’s what the cutest baby ever looked like on Halloween. I’ll leave you now with a last thought. Be careful what you say around little ones. I keep saying she’s wonderful, incredible, adorable, etc., but I also say Best. Toy. Ever. Well, that last one apparently sank in, because she thinks she’s a toy. And where do toys go?

That’s all for now. Tune in next time for another thrilling installment of, “Gompers Grows Up!”

I know we haven’t been getting this updated too often lately, but I am sure most of you are aware of how overwhelming life can be at times.  Anyway, Beth has finally decided to take that big leap of faith…  She has been walking with assistance for quite some time and has taken anywhere from 1 to 3 steps on her own a couple times.  Tuesday, she decided that it would be fun to walk halfway across Mommy and Daddy’s bedroom all by herself.  (And for those of you who have not seen our house, the room is by no means small).  The best part is that we were both home and in the room.  It was such an amazing thing to watch our sweet little baby girl gain confidence in her own abilities.  I can’t wait to see what she will be learning next…

Sorry to all of our legion of fans out there, But I’ve been a little busy to blog. Since being re-hired I’ve been getting very few days off, and I try to get some rest in there. But I keep feeling like I need to update this more often, so I’m sacrificing a nap to let you all know what’s up. Our darling girl has been growing and developing in leaps and bounds. She’s still not walking by herself, but when she has something to hold on to she can sure move! She’s starting to say a few words, Mama and Daddy, and for some reason, shoes. I love it when she points at either one of us and says mama or daddy, and she gets it right all the time, but I’m worried by the shoe thing. I’m picturing her closet full of shoes and my empty wallet.

A couple of weeks ago, our neighbor raked their leaves up into a big pile. Being the good neighbors we are, we went over and asked if we could spread them back out. What did we mean? Well we thought a cute picture would be to put Beth in the pile and see what happened. Here it is.

Dang it, she’s waking up and this page isn’t letting me ad more pictures. I’ll post part 2 later. Hang in there…

Hello Everyone!

As Dan promised, here I am to let you know all about Beth and my trip out to Oregon.  Our first flight was scheduled to depart on Wednesday at 4:30 pm, so my Tuesday evening was hectic.  I had to get myself and Beth ready for a week long, last minute trip all by myself.  With Dan working nights, I am usually on my own in the evening, so everything was left up to me.  We had shopping to do for a new stroller, snacks, something for Beth to wear to  a funeral service, etc.  I also had to get us both packed, her showered and me ready for bed, all within a reasonable time so I could get up and get to work on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, I left work at 1:30 and headed home.  Fortunately, Dan was able to find the few things I had thought about but did not have time to round up the night before.  I finished getting all that put in my bags and while I was getting changed, Dan loaded up the car and away we went.  Thanks to a co-worker, Dan was able to ask for a gate pass to go through security and wait with the 2 of us at the gate.  I didn’t know it at the time, but this was the easiest delay I was going to have.  (There were only 2 on-time flights the whole trip.)

 Once we finally left Cincinnati, Beth was pretty good.  I had upgraded to Economy Plus so she got to sit on the floor and play.  We had the window seat the the guy next to me helped to keep her corralled by blocking her escape route to the aisle.  We were late getting into Denver, but thankfully, the flight to Portland was delayed, then it was delayed again, and again.  Beth was a handful in the terminal; wanting to crawl anywhere and everywhere.  The problem was that I could not just leave all our things sitting there while I followed her around.  We finally left at 8:50 pm (originally scheduled for 6:10, then 6:59, then 8:30).  Remember, this is Denver time, we started the day on Cincinnati time (2 hours ahead).  Beth was exhausted.  She was asleep before we even took off.  The next time I saw a clock, we were in Portland and it was about 10:40.  What a long day…

Our flight out of Portland was not scheduled to leave until 6:19 the following morning.  Thank goodness for friends.  Charity, Mike and Olivia met us at the airport with an extra car seat.  We got to crash in the living room at their house rather than in the airport.  The four hours of sleep was so much better than none.  Charity was nice enough to drive up back to catch our flight.  This flight was on time so we made it in to Klamath Falls at 7:30 am.

While in Klamath Falls, Beth and I got to see Grammy and Grandpa Jim, Aunt Becky and Alli, Uncle Mike, Aunt Traci, Mollie and Zoey.  On Friday, Mike and his little family let Beth and I ride along to go out to Granddad’s property.  All of  his 5 remaining children were already out so we got to spend some time with them.  Most of their spouses and children were due to arrive on Friday night and Saturday morning for the not so happy occasion.  The service was held on Saturday and Beth was the only little one present.  I could not leave her sight the entire week because she did not know anybody but me and cried if she could not see me.  My Aunt said that she helped to take their minds off the service from time to time.  She was so good and only started to get a bit fussy once so I gave her a bag to play with.  Of course, she pulls out the one things that is not hers, my wallet.

After the service, we went back out to the property and had a nice party with all the family and some friends.  Pretty much everyone had a good time, until we had to say good-bye.

Mom started work on Monday and I flew out on Tuesday morning, so of course, Monday night was crazy trying to get a load of laundry washed and everything packed and ready to go again.  We were up early Tuesday to start our long day of travel to head home.

Getting to the airport was easy and fast.  It was the waiting that seemed to take forever.  There were weather delays in San Fransisco which kept our plane grounded for just under 2 extra hours.  Because it is a small airport, you don’t go through security until just before boarding, so we had to do this twice (there are no restrooms or water fountains on the other side…).  Once we got on the plane and up in the air, Beth decided that it was nap time.  She woke up just before landing.  Because of the extended delay, we got of the plane and had to get ready to board the next flight.  We did get about 15 minutes for Beth to get some of her wiggles out, but the flight from San Fran to Chicago was 4+ hours.  Beth was restless and did not want to sit.  Eventually, one of the ladies in front of us asked to hold her.  She told me she was a labor and delivery nurse and loved babies.  It was nice for me to get a little break from a squirmy baby.  After that, I walked her up and down the aisle until she finally fell asleep.

When we landed in Chicago, we had about 20 minutes to get from one terminal to another and on the plane.  In the Chicago O’Hare airport, there is an underground tunnel to get from one to the other and on the ceiling there are neon lights that put on a little show.  Beth laughed pointed the whole time.  She thought they were so neat.  They were waiting for us when we finally got to the gate.  Fortunetly for Beth (and me) the plane was pretty empty and she got to sit next to me in her own seat.  This was a short flight, and she was so good, playing with all the magazines, safety cards, barf bags and tray tables that she could reach.  When we made it back to Cincinnati, Beth so was happy to see her daddy.  He took her out of the stroller and she had a death grip on his shirt.  She would not let him go for anything.

There were two things I learned on this little excursion; (1) people will always offer to help you out when traveling by yourself with a small child and (2) I never want to travel along with a small child again, if I can help it.

(Sorry this is so long… Some pictures will be posted later for your viewing pleasure.)

Well, for those of you who don’t know, Sarah’s Granddad passed away last week. So she and Gompers flew out to Oregon for the service. I had to work, so I stayed behind. I took them to the airport Wednesday, August 27th and said goodbye. So there was Sarah, 2 carry-on bags, stroller, and 13 month old baby, getting ready to fly across the country. Not being on the flight, I can only tell you what Sarah told me, but apparently Beth was her usual wonderful self. A little wiggly for a while then sleeping. Actually, I think I’m gonna have Sarah get on here and tell about the trip. I’ll just talk about my end. Lonely. I thought at first, “Woohoo, I get the house to myself!  This will be great!”. Well, it wasn’t. It was fun for a while, but I really missed my girls! I kept wandering around thinking there was something I have to do, but there wasn’t. It was quiet, too quiet. Luckily I had to work Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, or I would have gone crazy. But they flew back in on Tuesday and I was sooooo happy to see them! We went to Taco Bell to get Sarah some food since she hadn’t eaten all day, then we went home and went to bed.  Sarah had to go back to work today, so we’re right back in the old routine. Gompers got up and had breakfast. Then she laid all over Daddy. I guess she missed me a little, ’cause she wouldn’t let me put her down. She’s napping now, but I can’t wait til she wakes up and we can play for a while. Is that her? Gotta go!

I love my daughter with all my heart. But sometimes she can be exhausting. It seems like she has an inexhaustible supply of energy. Crawling around, playing with her toys, climbing Daddy, talking at the top of her lungs, etc. But all babies need plenty of sleep too, and those times when she’s napping or sleeping are wonderful.I realize that what I’m writing is nothing new. Any parents out there reading this are nodding their heads and laughing. A sleeping child is a beautiful picture of innocence and peace. But when it’s your child it also represents FREEDOM. Yes, now you can catch up on those e-mails, read a book, watch that tv show or movie you’ve been waiting to see, or maybe a little light housework you’ve been neglegcting since it’s easier to do without a baby attached to you. Since I’ve started back to work on night shift, I usually nap. Of course I did that before I started back to work, but now it’s more important. Here are some pictures of Gompers sleeping.

Sometimes we nap at the same time. She thinks Daddy’s comfy.

This is when she was little, first night in her new crib.

And sometimes she just crashes where she is, yes she is sound asleep here. I love this picture!

Well, that’s all for now. Check back for another thrilling installment soon!

But parents have to do it. This thought came to me yesterday as I was cleaning up Beth after lunch. It’s not just the diapers, those aren’t too bad. Especially before she started eating real food. After that it started to stink. She’s brought a tear to my eye a time or two.  She usually poops twice a day, and if it’s just pee that’s even better.

No, it’s also the food, which got even more messy when she started feeding herself. Her latest thing is to take a handful of food and fling it to the floor when she’s getting full, or if she’s not too fond of the taste. Wouldn’t be a problem, but we feed her at the dining room table. And the dining room’s carpeted. We have a plastic sheet under her, with Pooh bear on it of course. But she gets it past the edge of that from time to time. Or she’ll drop it in her lap, or down the sides of her chair by her legs. So when you get her face and hands clean and pull her out of the high chair, you get to clean her bottom half. Then you clean the tray, and the seat, and the Pooh Bear mat, and the carpet. Then you look over everything one more time and find some food you missed. Then you may have to change her clothes because the meal was something messy and she got some past the bib. Then you can relax. Right.

Or it’s her toys. We have a big plastic bucket in the living room where we store a lot of her toys. And every day, when she gets done with breakfast, she begins pulling them out of the bucket and playing. She doesn’t have one toy she fixates on, she’s pretty democratic and plays with all of them. Which means she pulls them all out of the bucket and strews them across the floor. So when she goes down for a nap, or goes to bed for the night, you pick up all the toys and put them back in preparation for the next playtime.

But enough ranting. Since my last post she’s finally cutting in her sixth tooth, she’s expanding her vocabulary, and she still melts daddy’s heart with her smile.

Ever notice how the things you see every day seem to stay the same? On the one hand, Beth looks the same to me because I see her every day and her growth isn’t as noticeable. On the other hand, as I posted earlier, it seems like she’s growing every second. Sarah got a great idea from her sister Becky, and I’m really glad we kept it up. Anybody planning on having children, I really recommend this little exercise. We’ve all seen the old standby of marking the children’s growth on a wall or door frame, and I always loved the board Lisa made for Sarah Anne’s kids (I want one of those Lisa, but not till we move back out there. Shipping it would be a nightmare!). But until they can stand up straight and hold still it’s a little difficult to keep an accurate chart. Becky’s idea was to take her picture every month on her birthday next to something that wouldn’t change. We chose a giant stuffed Eeyore. At first, it’s really easy because she doesn’t move. Once she started crawling it got a little difficult to get her to hold still for a picture. It helped that she’s a little ham, she knows to smile when the camera comes out! Anyway, enough of my rambling. here are her pictures in order. My apologies to those of you that have been posting all those great pictures, I need a nicer camera and a working knowledge of Photoshop.  Or for Shari to come up here once a month….

That’s it for now, maybe I’ll figure out how to post more than one picture in a row for next time. keep those comments coming, it’s nice to know some one reads my ramblings. Love you all and miss you terribly. And Ohio blows.

Wow, we had quite the weekend at our house. Friday was Beth’s doctor appointment, always a little traumatic. She was 29 inches long, which is about average, and 16 lbs 11 oz, which is off the charts low. So she’s long and thin like her Mama. Then came the shots. And the crying. I hate watching her get shots. Those of you who are parents know what I mean, those that aren’t, it sucks. Afterward we went to Wendy’s and got some treats. She likes fries and frosties. The rest of the day was taken up with shopping and house cleaning. Because Saturday was…

THE PARTY!

Now, a child’s first birthday is more for the parents. Beth didn’t care why everyone was there making a fuss over her, she just had fun. Mama and Daddy had fun hosting the party. We bought a big cake, baloons, streamers, food, the works. We invited some people from our street, some of Sarah’s co-workers, and assorted others. We had about 16 people show up, which turned out to be all that will fit on our deck. Now, some pictures. First, Beth with food. These are always fun, but notice the careful placement of the hot dog. Yes, she did that.

And the cake. We gave her a piece knowing she would go crazy with it, but she still needed some encouragement.

From there it got messy.

After that, Mama and some other ladies took her upstairs for a bath,Daddy stayed with the guests. Once she was presentable again, she came back to the party and played, mingled, and generally had fun.

We told everyone not to feel like they needed to buy her presents, but they did. She made out like a bandit! Here’s a few select pics.

Anyway, the party was a success. The last person left at 1:30 am. So Sunday we didn’t do much of anything. One last picture of Gompers and J.T., he’s her “boyfriend” from up the street. Don’t worry, I’ve got my eye on him. But they do look cute together.

Wow, hard to believe it, but it’s been a year already. Everybody tells you that they grow up so fast, but I was kinda like “Whatever, a year is a year.”. That’s not the case at all. On the one hand, Time is a constant, measured out in minutes, days, eons, or whatever your favorite measurement might be. On the other hand, Time is an illusion, warped, stretched, or compressed by our perceptions. I’ve mentioned this before, but it really strikes me at odd times, and I think it bears repeating. 

The other day she said her first word, which was duck. ( I know, now I need to teach her to says “Ducks suck! Go Beavos!”, but that might be a while.) She was wearing some little jammies with ducks on them and her momma told her they were ducks. she promptly said “Duck.”, much to our surprise. She still doesn’t know what it means, anything is duck to her (Eeyore was the other day.), but she will say it very clearly. Now, to me, it seems like just yesterday her only vocalization was to cry when she was upset. But when I really put my mind to it, I can recall all of her new noises she would make leading up to this. My favorite was her growl. She would growl from deep in her throat over and over again. Man, I hope we have that on video!

Just yesterday she was only nursing. Today she can feed herself stuff that we eat. Just yesterday she couldn’t roll over. Today she can pull herself up on things and take a few steps, if she’s holding on to something. Just yesterday she didn’t make a sound unless she was upset. Today she chatters all the time, with the occasional word thrown into the mix. Just yesterday I could put her down somewhere and she’d be there when I got back. Today I have to watch her like a hawk or she’ll take off crawling and get into something she shouldn’t. Just yesterday she fit in the crook of my arm and was weightless. Today I have to switch her from side to side when my arm gets tired. Just yesterday…..

Today, Beth Helene Haselden turns one year old. Right now I’m going to go enjoy every minute God gives me with my beautiful baby girl.