And the award goes to...

Yes, it's true, I have officially nominated & awarded myself the Worst Mom of the Week Award.

As you can see by the big red scab in the above photo, Jack had some accidents this week.

1- On Thursday we were playing outside & he was running to me, tripped, fell & had a run in with the corner of a concrete stair that leads up to our house. We both cried. A lot.

2- Today we were in the bedroom & he was on our bed playing. He bounced rather hard & oops...went right off the bed, into the wall & onto the floor banging his head. And he had just finished throwing a tantrum after I took some gum away from him. He cried & I freaked out screaming so loud that John came running out of the shower.

3- Then at dinner tonight I gave him a little piece of pizza that was HOT & burnt his little hand & mouth. He cried & John took him out of his seat to go outside for a few minutes. That's when the award officially became mine.

I'm very honored to accept this award on behalf of all of the other moms out there whose kids look like they've recently been in fist-fights. For my next trick I am planning on driving the car in to oncoming traffic or allowing Jack to play in the street. I'll keep you posted.

Good news though, as you can see by the photo, Jack is very much enjoying peanut butter. He had it for the first time this week & can't get enough.

Nice Moments

Jack & I had a great week. He was a happy boy all week, was sleeping better than he has in a while & we were very busy. Some extended babysitting by both of his grandmas was helpful for me as well. It gave me a little break that I'd been needing for a while to get some things done. Jack loves his grandmas. If either of them are in the room I instantly become invisible.

In other good news, it seems I have become the favored parent once again. This summer Jack was all about Da (John). He couldn't get enough of him. When John would go in his studio to work Jack would cry outside of his door. When he was with me & John would come in the room he would immediately push away from me & run to John. But, since school has started for John again, Jack seems much more content with me. I'm glad. I wasn't prepared for him to hate me until he's at least 13 or 14.

I had one of those moments this week where everything seemed perfect and for the first time I felt perfectly content just being a mom. I've felt like I should be the perfect mom & be very happy doing that. And I've also felt that I should be working a meaningful job outside of the home and have felt guilty for not doing so. But, on Friday, Jack & I were driving home & he was falling asleep. I was keeping him awake by shaking his leg & talking to him in silly voices & he just sat there and grinned at me with his half closed eyes. I was so happy to be with him & he was happy to be with me. And it all seemed perfect.

Goodbye Cruel World

Yipee!

Nothing to say about this one except that he looks super cute in his stripey shirt!

Fun with Food

What you can't see in this photo is that Jack is taking bites of the banana and spiting them out all over the house. He won't eat bananas, or any real fruit or vegetables for that matter. I thought if I just let him hold the banana and investigate it, maybe one of these days he'll actually eat it!

And he's also figured out how to get in this cabinet. He likes to take everything out of it.

Fun time outside

Jack loves to run around outside. He also loves to throw a tantrum when I don't let him go in the street! He laughed & laughed when I put the hood on his head.

The best time is bath time

This is Jack's favorite time of the day.

Babies need to exercise too!

Lunch

I don't think Jack likes his lunch! Pasta is never a big hit.

Growing teeth is hard work

We thought he would get a little break after those 4 molars came in. Poor kid. And his dad is laughing at him too! Popsicles always help the teeth.

The Making of a Bully

We babysat Elliot tonight and saw a different side of Jack. He liked having Elliot around- he was very interested in his head as always. But, we also saw a little bully in him.

He would hit his ball machine so it would start up & as the balls came out he would collect them & put them in the basket under his stroller. He's never done that before. He also collected all the sippy cups. I think he needs a little more time around other kids. It's going to be a shock when he discovers he's not the center of the universe!

What a nice head you have

King of the Pacis

I always knew he would be king of something, I just didn't expect it to happen yet. Suck now little boy, for soon they will all disappear!

Good news!

Jack has started drinking his milk. Oh the little things that make a mom happy. Of course, I had to add a touch of chocolate syrup. Now he sucks it down.

Washin' dishes

Jack climbed into the dishwasher today. It's his new favorite place to play. If it's locked he likes to turn it on and walk away. If it's unlocked he likes to open & close the door & pull out the silverware. No more knives in the dishwasher!

It's a dreary day in St. Louis...

I never know what to do with Jack when it's raining. He just ends up stomping around the house all day long (which he loves) and getting in to everything.

I got sucked in to the 9/11 coverage this morning. It started to make me too sad so I turned it off.

Go Cardinals!

Our first trip to the ballpark as a family. I saw no more than one minute of the game. I couldn't even tell you if we one or who we were playing, but I was finally able to wear my cool jersey. Jack spent the whole evening walking up and down the ramps. The party box is the way to go!

Our trip to the beach

We took Jack to the beach for the first time in August. The ocean was a big hit. He loved to sit and let the waves hit him. Of course, the first thing he did was eat a mouthful of sand. He only did that once. Smart boy.

Jack's word list

Jack is currently saying some essential words:

kitty
da (in various forms- da, dad, hida, DAAAAA while pounding on John's closed studio door)
duck
peek-a-boo
uh-oh

You'll notice MAMA is missing from that list still. So, I've banned all words in our house except for mama.

And yes, he even cleans house

He rocks out with John

He reads the Bible (he's so spiritual)

A peek...

Would you like to know what Jack does all day?

Well...

And we're off...

So, thanks to the urging of Kevin & Laura, I'm starting a wacko Jacko blog. Stay tuned for up to the minute details of Jack's comings & goings. And, most importantly, some dangerously cute pictures.