For those of you interested, I thought I'd give you an update on the pregnancy. I'm officially out of the first trimester and for the most part feeling better. My appetite hasn't fully returned and I still mostly feel like eating is a chore, but I rarely feel nauseated these days (today being an exception). My allergies have been driving me nuts and I get headaches from time to time (both increased due to the pregnancy), but I have more energy than I did for the first few months and I'm feeling more optimistic about getting things done ("things" being Releasing my Software, Folding the Laundry Pile, Updating this Blog).
I saw my OB on the 10th and he indicated that based on my first ultrasound, my due date is Oct 14th rather than the initial Oct 7 we had calculated. I knew the fetus looked smaller than whatever the LMP date was, but didn't realize we were adjusting the due date by a full week. I go for my next prenatal appointment with the nurse practitioner on May 4th and then on May 11th we have the detailed ultrasound that should reveal the sex. I can't wait.
Speaking of doctor's visits, I'd like to take a minute to vent about Pacificare, my insurance provider. I had Aetna from my previous employer when I was pregnant with Aaron, so this is my first pregnancy with the new insurance. The summary of benefits given to us by Thom's employer during open enrollment last year, when we were deciding if we should switch providers since we were planning to get pregnant said "Maternity: Prenatal Office Visits - $20 copay (first visit only)". Which we took to mean that we would pay $20 for the first visit and then prenatal care would be covered 100%. Wrong. At our first prenatal appointment, when I paid my copay, she told me it was $40 because my OB was considered a "specialist". She even called to confirm with my insurer that I would have to pay $40 each visit.
Both Thom and I called Pacificare separately and were told the same thing. Prenatal visits with my primary care physician would only be $20. I said that it didn't make sense to me to go to my PCP for maternity care. She explained that some PCPs specialize in obstetrics. I asked if I could make my OB my PCP and she said no. I found the whole thing misleading and infuriating. How is an OB/GYN considered a specialist for women? I guess this is the main difference between a PPO (my old Aetna plan) and an HMO. (Ironically, when we got the full statement of benefits that we requested from Pacificare, the plan title included the acronym POS in it. Yeah, no kidding.)
When I saw my OB last, I explained the copay issue and asked if instead of seeing the nurse practitioner on alternate visits (who also is considerd a $40 copay "specialist"), if I could see my PCP, who is part of the same medical group, although in a different building. I figured they just take a urine sample, take my blood pressure and listen to the fetal heartbeat. What's so hard? But he said the PCPs in the group won't even do prenatal. They don't know enough about it and don't have the equipment. Right now I'm going about once a month, so it's not outrageously expensive, but towards the end of the pregnancy, visits ramp up to twice a month then every week. He said he could space them out more, maybe do every 10 days instead of once a week, which is what he does for patients who travel longer distances to see him. I'll see how the pregnancy goes before I decide. But I won't be staying with Pacificare after the next open enrollment.
Although I'm not quite 4 months pregnant, if I wear a maternity top, I look about 6 months along. I saw a photo of a mommy blogger I read from time to time who showed a side view of her belly at 30 weeks and she doesn't look as pregnant as I do. I find it discouraging. Especially when someone asked me if I was carrying twins after finding out I was only half as far along as she had guessed. I know the second baby often "pops out" sooner than the first, but I saw a woman who was due two months sooner than me whose belly was about the size of mine. When she said she thought I was further along that I was, I embarrassingly said it was my second by way of explanation. Which was when she told me hers was her fifth.
Oh well. I'd better go eat something. Lunch was 2 hours ago and I'm hungry again.
26 April 2009
Visit with Grant
Several weeks ago, were were invited to have dinner with our friends Mark and Jill and their son Grant, who despite his relative size to Aaron is actually 3 months younger. The boys played pretty well together and even at this young age, the 3 months difference in age was negligible. After dinner, both boys were put into pajamas. We knew we'd get home late and wanted Aaron to be ready for bed.
At one point, Grant got his blue teddy bear and Jill suggested he show us how he goes night-night. So he got down on the floor with his bear. Aaron didn't pass up the opportunity to "hug". His idea of hugging lately is to lie on the floor on his stomach and get you to lie next to him. Then he'll put his arm around your neck and sometimes he'll say "Night-night Mama" (or whoever you are). The last picture shows Aaron "hugging" Grant. Many thanks to Mark for sharing these photos with us. The great indoor night-time shots have inspired me to start looking for an upgraded camera. All of my indoor night shots come out blurry and red-eyed, whereas these came out beautifully.
At one point, Grant got his blue teddy bear and Jill suggested he show us how he goes night-night. So he got down on the floor with his bear. Aaron didn't pass up the opportunity to "hug". His idea of hugging lately is to lie on the floor on his stomach and get you to lie next to him. Then he'll put his arm around your neck and sometimes he'll say "Night-night Mama" (or whoever you are). The last picture shows Aaron "hugging" Grant. Many thanks to Mark for sharing these photos with us. The great indoor night-time shots have inspired me to start looking for an upgraded camera. All of my indoor night shots come out blurry and red-eyed, whereas these came out beautifully.
Firehouse Visit
Last weekend, the day after Aaron's birthday, the local firehouse had an open house event, so we decided to check it out. It was a fairly small event, but it was worthwhile for locals to attend, especially in light of the fires we've had nearby. There were several rows of tables set up inside the garage. (The fire trucks were either in the driveway or parked on the road nearby.)
Our electric company was at two of the tables. At one they were giving away Frisbees which Aaron loves. At the other one, they had a model of a section of street with overhead lines and a guy holding a metal stick in his gloved hands showing how you don't want to touch the wires. When he touched the metal stick to the wires, it caused a flame to appear. There were also several non-profit organizations related to things like fire safety, recycling and hazardous waste disposal. There were some service dogs, too, but one of the highlights were the "brush abatement goats" penned up in the brush near the fire station. There were about 65 (I overheard that number, I didn't count them).
The goats were busy munching away, some of them jumping up to eat the leaves off the trees in their enclosure. And there was an adorable puppy running among them, too. I assumed from the trailer nearby with a phone number that you can rent the goats to help clear a fire break around your house.
But once he saw the power of the fire hose, he quickly got into it. He was calling out excitedly "Fall, fall!" when the traffic cones fell over. This is opposed to when he says "Uh-oh fall" when he thinks something shouldn't have fallen over.
Later, we got to tour the firehouse, which Thom and I found interesting and Aaron seemed to tolerate while being fed hop-hops. It wasn't really like I imagined a firehouse to be. It was only one story, so no fire poles. And they said that the firemen at the one station in the precinct that still has fire poles are not allowed to use them for liability reasons - they were getting banged up using them. And rather than bunk beds or some sort of group sleeping arrangement, there were 6 individual rooms with a single twin bed in each one.
Our electric company was at two of the tables. At one they were giving away Frisbees which Aaron loves. At the other one, they had a model of a section of street with overhead lines and a guy holding a metal stick in his gloved hands showing how you don't want to touch the wires. When he touched the metal stick to the wires, it caused a flame to appear. There were also several non-profit organizations related to things like fire safety, recycling and hazardous waste disposal. There were some service dogs, too, but one of the highlights were the "brush abatement goats" penned up in the brush near the fire station. There were about 65 (I overheard that number, I didn't count them).
The goats were busy munching away, some of them jumping up to eat the leaves off the trees in their enclosure. And there was an adorable puppy running among them, too. I assumed from the trailer nearby with a phone number that you can rent the goats to help clear a fire break around your house. The other hightlight of our trip was the fire hose. Two firemen were out on the side of the station with some orange cones to demonstrate how powerful the fire hoses are. Aaron got to help hold onto the hose. He seemed cautious at first.
But once he saw the power of the fire hose, he quickly got into it. He was calling out excitedly "Fall, fall!" when the traffic cones fell over. This is opposed to when he says "Uh-oh fall" when he thinks something shouldn't have fallen over.
Later, we got to tour the firehouse, which Thom and I found interesting and Aaron seemed to tolerate while being fed hop-hops. It wasn't really like I imagined a firehouse to be. It was only one story, so no fire poles. And they said that the firemen at the one station in the precinct that still has fire poles are not allowed to use them for liability reasons - they were getting banged up using them. And rather than bunk beds or some sort of group sleeping arrangement, there were 6 individual rooms with a single twin bed in each one. At one point I asked what type of calls they get besides for fires, since I figure there aren't that many fires. They said 80% of the calls they get are medical. Everyone is trained as a paramedic and even though their station doesn't have an ambulance, they have paramedic equipment in the back of the fire trucks. And the one guy only knew of one call for a cat stuck in a tree. It was a palm tree.
25 April 2009
Vocabulary Follow up
Up until his 2nd birthday, I continued to update Aaron's vocabulary list in my previous post. At final count, it was over 175, but I kept thinking of words he knew when I wasn't at my computer, so I think it is safe to say his vocabulary was 200+ words by his birthday.
He continues to string words together, sometimes obviously thinking about what order the words go in. He still doesn't use articles like "the" or "and" and confuses the pronouns "you" and "me". More and more often I hear him spontaneously repeat a word or phrase he overhears. But the one achievement I'm most proud of is when I hear him say "thank you" unprompted, as he did yesterday when my friend's daughter Allison shared some crackers with him, or last week when our neighbor gave him fresh strawberries from her garden. (Granted, in both cases I prompted him the first time, but when they shared additional food with him, he said thank you without being reminded.) The downside is that unless you hear me prompt him to say it, you might not understand what he says. His pronunciation is still a little off.
He continues to string words together, sometimes obviously thinking about what order the words go in. He still doesn't use articles like "the" or "and" and confuses the pronouns "you" and "me". More and more often I hear him spontaneously repeat a word or phrase he overhears. But the one achievement I'm most proud of is when I hear him say "thank you" unprompted, as he did yesterday when my friend's daughter Allison shared some crackers with him, or last week when our neighbor gave him fresh strawberries from her garden. (Granted, in both cases I prompted him the first time, but when they shared additional food with him, he said thank you without being reminded.) The downside is that unless you hear me prompt him to say it, you might not understand what he says. His pronunciation is still a little off.
Easter and Spring Birthdays
My parents were kind enough to host this year's Spring Birthdays celebration, combined with Easter. My dad's birthday fell on Easter this year, supposedly only the 3rd time it has. I've posted some photo highlights in this blog, but you can find more pictures here.
Cousin Larissa (aka Babu) helps Aaron with a snack.
My mom color codes the plastic eggs so each grandchild has their own color. It's much fairer this way. Aaron's color was yellow. We found 6 of the 7 eggs my dad hid. Last we heard, he still hadn't found the missing egg.
My mom filled Aaron's eggs with Cheddar Bunnies and stickers. He was happy enough with those, I didn't see the need for candy until next Easter at the earliest.
During lunch, Aaron would not sit still while we were trying to eat. Finally, as he was hanging on the edge of his cousin Grayson's chair, I asked if he wanted to sit with Grayson (6 years old). I didn't think Grayson would like it, but they both seemed to enjoy this arrangement.
Both Grayson and his twin brother Noah wanted to feed Aaron. I let them give him some grapes. Noah really wanted to sit with Aaron, too, so later he switched seats with Grayson. Unfortunately by that point, Aaron was nearly ready to get down. Look at the photo album to see more pictures of Aaron and his cousins, including pictures of his adorable baby cousin Clara.
Cousin Larissa (aka Babu) helps Aaron with a snack.
My mom color codes the plastic eggs so each grandchild has their own color. It's much fairer this way. Aaron's color was yellow. We found 6 of the 7 eggs my dad hid. Last we heard, he still hadn't found the missing egg.
My mom filled Aaron's eggs with Cheddar Bunnies and stickers. He was happy enough with those, I didn't see the need for candy until next Easter at the earliest.Sometime after the egg hunt and before lunch, my sister Lia gave Aaron a haircut outside. He cried most of the time since he hates getting his hair cut. It gets in his face and his mouth, which he really hates. My sister didn't want to finish because she didn't want him to hate her, but it was lopsided and I insisted he'd be OK. I don't think she'll cut his hair for me again. During the haircut, his clothes came off to keep the hair off of them. We left him in his diaper and shoes until after lunch.
During lunch, Aaron would not sit still while we were trying to eat. Finally, as he was hanging on the edge of his cousin Grayson's chair, I asked if he wanted to sit with Grayson (6 years old). I didn't think Grayson would like it, but they both seemed to enjoy this arrangement. 
Both Grayson and his twin brother Noah wanted to feed Aaron. I let them give him some grapes. Noah really wanted to sit with Aaron, too, so later he switched seats with Grayson. Unfortunately by that point, Aaron was nearly ready to get down. Look at the photo album to see more pictures of Aaron and his cousins, including pictures of his adorable baby cousin Clara. Valet parking
Aaron has a wide assortment of cars and trucks, especially since his birthday. He will spend stretches of time parking and reparking them, lining them up on the dining room floor. He will then lie on the floor on his stomach next to the cars and truck and say "hug". The truck he has in his hand is a "revver" which lets him push it forward and keep going, unlike traditional toy cars that require the hard-to-learn maneuver of pulling back and letting go. Lately his interest in this truck has taken off and he will push it around for 15 minutes or more. He likes to run it into things and see how it bounces off or upends, or what happens when he pushes it off the stairs into the living room. It's like a physics lesson. He also likes to push it under the couches in the living room where he has to wait until Dada can get it. (I'm hoping if this happens often enough while Dada is at work, he will learn not to do it. In reality, I could probably get it for him with a stick of some sort, but I'm trying to discourage the behavior.)
Train Set
I'd wanted to get Aaron a train set for awhile. Kim or I will sometimes take him to toy stores with train sets just to pass the time. He has liked playing with train sets for months. I wanted to get him a wooden train set and had looked at several brands online. Plan Toys and Brio are two that I remember having high quality sets. I wanted something that will survive a couple of children and that can be passed down to grandchildren some day. But the good ones tend to be expensive.
But then several weeks ago, a local children's boutique toy store that carried the Play Toys line went out of business. I was sad, but I quickly discovered that the 40% off on all toys made the Plan Toys train set nearly affordable. Or at least much cheaper than the lowest price I've seen online. So we splurged and bought it for Aaron's birthday. I could hardly wait to get it out and set it up, but forced myself to wait until his birthday.
I followed the complex instructions to set up the multi-level train set on the coffee table while Aaron napped. When it was done, it was beautiful. The following pictures show his initial reaction to it.
Above, Thom attempts to show Aaron how it works.
The following pictures show that he was still unclear on the concept.
He parks the trains the same way he parks his menagerie of vehicles.
But then several weeks ago, a local children's boutique toy store that carried the Play Toys line went out of business. I was sad, but I quickly discovered that the 40% off on all toys made the Plan Toys train set nearly affordable. Or at least much cheaper than the lowest price I've seen online. So we splurged and bought it for Aaron's birthday. I could hardly wait to get it out and set it up, but forced myself to wait until his birthday.
I followed the complex instructions to set up the multi-level train set on the coffee table while Aaron napped. When it was done, it was beautiful. The following pictures show his initial reaction to it.
Above, Thom attempts to show Aaron how it works.
The following pictures show that he was still unclear on the concept.
He parks the trains the same way he parks his menagerie of vehicles.The elaborate track setup did not last long. I found myself following him around to fix the track as he moved the supports about. Within 2 days, I took it apart and fashioned a simpler track with just one small hill (that he still destroys nearly daily). He has also since learned how to put the trains on the track, although mostly he motors them around the entire table, through the mountains and over onto other furniture. As long as it engages him, I'm happy.
2 Years Old!
I'm going to post out of order and cover Aaron's second birthday before posting Easter. Our little boy is growing up fast. For his second birthday, Thom took the day off from work and we went to see the butterflies at the Wild Animal Park. Click here for pictures from our visit, which included going to the petting zoo as well.
Afterwards at lunch, in lieu of birthday cake, we let Aaron have a taste of Thom's mocha. He really didn't drink it, just got a taste of it, but he enjoyed it. He now knows how to say "mocha".
After nap time, we did our weekly shopping (as we do every Friday) at Trader Joe's. When we told the woman who was at the tasting table that it was his birthday, she pulled out a sample bag of chocolate cat cookies, which I helped him eat. Then she sent another employee after us later and he not only got us a balloon, but went on the loudspeaker and said "Attention Trader Joe's shoppers. If you see a little boy with a red balloon, it is his 2nd birthday. Wish him a happy birthday." And the thing he loves best of all - he got stickers when we checked out.
Afterwards at lunch, in lieu of birthday cake, we let Aaron have a taste of Thom's mocha. He really didn't drink it, just got a taste of it, but he enjoyed it. He now knows how to say "mocha".
After nap time, we did our weekly shopping (as we do every Friday) at Trader Joe's. When we told the woman who was at the tasting table that it was his birthday, she pulled out a sample bag of chocolate cat cookies, which I helped him eat. Then she sent another employee after us later and he not only got us a balloon, but went on the loudspeaker and said "Attention Trader Joe's shoppers. If you see a little boy with a red balloon, it is his 2nd birthday. Wish him a happy birthday." And the thing he loves best of all - he got stickers when we checked out.After we got home, we showed him the train set we got for his big birthday gift. I'll post more on that in a separate post.
His birthday celebration really started on Easter when my family celebrated all the Spring birthdays. He got several new books (which is what is on my wishlist for him) including a wonderful pop-up-book my sister Theresa made that has pictures of him in it and a cute story to about him.
During the week, birthday cards arrived from distant relatives as well as not-so-distant friends. Then on Wednesday, when my friend Biriz visited with her daughters, she gave him a wonderful wooden tabletop workbench that is contained in a tool chest that we can take with us when we visit Grandpa. He doesn't understand the whole concept, but he likes putting the bolts and screws into the holes on the work bench, and all of the tools are used as if they were a hammer.
On Thursday, his nanny Kim brought a bag of gifts. From hearing us talk and knowing how he isn't into opening presents, she didn't bother to wrap them. After the first 2 presents, he eagerly looked in the bag for more until it was empty. Kim got Aaron several new vehicles for his collection that he enjoys parking and reparking, including some small Matchbox cars that he can take in his bag when we go out, plus some foam puzzles he can play with in the bath.
On Friday, in addition to the train set from us, he got a wooden train puzzle from Aunt Janine and Uncle Bruce. Besides the train set, we got him two new books. I had also gotten him an Automoblox car from the local toy store's Going Out of Business sale, but decided not to give it to him yet since he got so many things already. In fact, by Thursday, I had to reorganize his toys, moving some things to his closet and other things out of the dining room play area because it was getting out of control.
I almost forgot, also on Easter, my brother helped us bring back a plexiglass doll house that my mom's father made for her when she was a kid. I played with it growing up and my parents have been storing it for years. Since Aaron likes playing with doll houses at toy stores, I offered to get it out of my parent's garage now that we have room for it in Aaron's bedroom. So far it only has a few pieces of the sturdier furniture from when I was a kid, but I plan to get some new pieces for him. Mostly he just likes to open and close all the doors and take the furniture in and out. I'll have to do a post on it when I get some pictures of Aaron playing with it. It wasn't really supposed to be a birthday present, but the timing worked out that he got it the same week as all the other gifts.
All in all, I think he had a good birthday.
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