Life Lately

Besides having a ton of fun with cousins and going to new places, our house has been very sickly.  It all started on a Friday night with Scott not feeling well.  He was down for 5 days. 

Then while all of this was going out, we had family come in town.  Then a trip to the Magic House and cousin sleepovers.  And then Gabe was down for the count.  He has been suffering major diaper rash and then a cold and a nasty cough.  Then he was pulling on his ears and not really eating much. 

The lack of eating from a typically good eater worried me.  We finally went to the doctor and there was slight inflammation in his ear.  But everything else was just a virus and has to run it's course.  Not words I really liked to hear.

Scott has recovered and is back to work after missing 2 days.  He is still a little tired but improving daily.  We are told he had a strain of the flu that is not covered by the shot.  I'm pretty sure he got it at the doctor's office on Thursday.

Gabe is improving.  I stayed home with him today to have a little more time to kick this bug's butt.  He is starting to seem more like himself as the day goes on.  We've had a great day together.  Lots of playing and helping me work.  It's going to be hard to leave him tomorrow.

The Magic House

**Disclaimer - Please ignore all my very animated faces in these pictures, we had fun.**

We finally made it to the Magic House!  It only took the Bates' to come in town for us to go.  The weather Saturday was incredibly nice and I hoped there would be more people doing outdoor activities than going to the Magic House.  I was wrong, it was still packed on the first floor.  There were a bunch of birthday parties and way too many people in the main area. We quickly went elsewhere to alone Gabe to have fun.

Walking with Aunt Jeni and cousins

There is a whole section for babies - 1-3 years old. Gabe was able to play in the sand, water and ball pits. He loved climbing and playing. We could have spent the entire time in there. 

There was plenty of things for the older kids and me to enjoy.

We did manage to go through all 3 floors and even touch the ball of static.  My hair didn't get as crazy as Gabe's or even some of his cousins. 

And what better way to end one's first trip to the Magic House than a trip to Ted Drewes.  This was the first time I left Gabe eat the custard.  He loved it.  I would give him a bit and he was grabbing at my shirt saying "Ma, Ma, Ma" before I could take a bit myself.  I think a life long love for Ted Drewes has started, and is that really so bad?

Science Center

Gabe had his first trip to the Science Center.  I met up with a friend from San Antonio and a couple others from St. Louis for a quick catch up and meet Gabe.  The first thing Gabe and I did when we got there was to check out the Dinosaurs.  He couldn't believe how big and noisy they were.  He was also on people watching overload. 

Dinosaur Roar!

Showing Stacy how it works

Once we caught up with everyone we started checking out the exhibits.  Gabe was able to play with a lot of the exhibits.  He did enjoy climbing around on everything.

We finally made it down to the first floor and he was able to get up close with the Dino's. He just walked right up and waved and he started talking.  I think his 1 dinosaur book paid off.  There was a lot to see and do and he was one tired little boy when we left.

Our Valentine's Night

This year we treated ourselves to a Valentine's night out.  Last year we had a 3 day old baby and had been home for a day.  And to be honest, I wouldn't have been able to tell you it was Valentine's Day had I not seen posts on Facebook.

This year we planned out the night.  My SIL is an executive Chef at Bella Vino and mentioned they were doing a Valentine's dinner for that weekend.  Gabe was invited to spend the night at Nana and Grandpa Ron's and or reservation was set. 

We were informed earlier in the week of where our table would be, in the back room.  It was mostly private and cozy.  We also, had a sneak peak of the menu.  I knew walking in that I wanted to try one of everything.  And that's how we ordered and shared.  I don't think I can say enough of the food.  I'm not a fish person, I liked the tuna and I do not like creamy salad dressings, I loved the Kale Caesar over the vinaigrette. 

It was a perfect evening followed by a walk down Main St.  It was freezing, but worth the walk to Picasso's for evening lattes. 

And a shameless plug for Bella Vino's, check out the Riverfront Times write up.  It's really that good.  And of course, everyone knows I hate to cross bridges it's worth the drive.

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to all my family and friends.  Especially to our favorite 1 year old - he is truly our favorite Valentine's Day gift.

 

 

 

Birthday blog and some family pictures to come...

12 months!

How did we get a 1 year old?  Wasn't he just coming home from the hospital and slowly learning to crawl?  We have such a big boy in our house these days.

Gabe had his 12 month check up on his birthday, lucky kid.  He was pretty spoiled on his birthday, checking out needlepoint shops with Grammie and me.  He was even treated to Bread Co. for lunch.  He had some of my apple and his veggies.  They gave him a birthday cookie that he graciously shared with me. 

During his 12 month appointment we were told that he can now try any food.  Scott and I are really excited to see what he will/won't eat.  So far he has enjoyed most things we've given him.  Cheerios's are the biggest winner these days.

His stats are:
Weight:  22lbs (around 50%)
Height:  30inchs (around 60%)


His doctor was impressed with how well he is walking.  He showed off his skills and crouching over to pick up things without falling, pointing and saying his mama and Dada's.

Overall a great checkup until the shots.  This was the first time he cried before he received the shots.  He still managed to stop crying about a minute after they were injected.  He's a tough kid.

Gabe's Birthday Party

We had a ball at Gabriel's first birthday party!  Scott and I decided on a baseball theme and created baseball tickets as the invitation.  We also decided that it would be family and few friends for the first party.  We did not have much room for a lot of people and, in all honesty, Gabe had no clue what was going on. 

We spent the morning cleaning and cooking and recovering from migraines.  It was a little stressful.  Thankfully, my parents were able to help run errands and entertain Gabe while Scott cooked and I slept. 

Everyone arrived around 1 and we ate and chatted with everyone.  It was a nice gathering and Gabe loved seeing the Birch boys.  After lunch, we opened presents.  Gabe got some new and an old gift, his Zio Andrew's firetruck that was returned to us from the Birch's.

After presents, it was time to let Gabe have some sugar.  I ended up getting 2 cakes for the party.  One for Gabe and then me, and one for everyone else.  They were delicious!

 We all sang and then I gave Gabe the baseball and he wasn't sure what to do.  He kinda played with the cake then ate some, then ate some more.  Eventually, we had cake and icing in the his hair.  I wasn't sure what to expect with him.  He had a lot less on him than I had anticipated.  He even shared some of his cake with Mathew.  I think Mathew really enjoyed hanging with Gabe.

After cake the party started to wind down.  Gabe enjoyed playing with his toys and the bags they came in.  After everyone left, it was time to relax.