Surgery tomorrow (hopefully)

Jack is scheduled to have his surgery tomorrow at 8:30 am. However, he's been feeling a little crummy the past few days, and if he wakes up tomorrow and has a fever, then we'll have to reschedule. He hasn't had a fever so far during this illness; he's mostly just congested and grumpy. I think he just has a bad cold. We'll see what happens!

On an unrelated note, here's a cute video from this weekend of Jack dancing.

We'll miss you, Coco

Late last night Aunt Lisa had to bid a sudden and unexpected farewell to her beloved dog, Coco. It won't be the same without Coco at all our family gatherings and our thoughts go out to Lisa as we know she is missing her friend.

Last night, before things happened with Coco, Grandma and Grandpa Nold, and Aunt Lisa came over. We enjoyed spending time with Grandma and Grandpa before they left for Florida. As I'm writing this, they are already happy and warm down there while we're freezing our butts off in Chicago. Here's a cute picture of Jack with his Aunt Lisa:

Jack pulled all his toys out and played to his heart's content with Grandma and Grandpa. Grandpa kept trying to get Jack to wear his Michigan hat, but Jack had enough sense to keep taking it off.


Jack loves this toy that his cousin Alexis got him. He had to show both Grandma and Grandpa how he's learned to get all the animals to pop up now.




Stay-Puft baby


Jack watched his second Chicago Marathon this morning (our house is a block away from where the runners pass mile 14). Unfortunately for us and the runners, it was a lot colder than last year. I tried to get Jack to clap for the runners, but he literally couldn't move his arms close enough together to clap his hands. Oh well, at least I had no doubts he was warm. Here's a picture from last year's marathon--how different he looks!

One of my employees ran in the marathon, and I was able to snag a picture with her as she went by.

The first wheelchair marathoners that went by. I believe the guy in 2nd place there went on to win.

And finally, a quick shot of the men's lead pack. I don't think the sound is good enough quality for you to pick it up, but there was a dog near us that would howl ever time people cheered "woo!". It was nice to see all the species supporting the runners.

Hypnotized

We don't let Jack watch TV that often, but when we do, he's a total zombie. He absolutely loves those Baby Einstein videos. I took a few pictures of him last night while he was watching a video--you can see that except for his face, his body stayed completely motionless the whole time. No wonder Americans have such a weight problem!

Apparently Baby Einstein is mesmerizing...

Funny...

Suspenseful?


Here's Jack during one of his favorite segments of a video. (Lou was being very noisy in the background, chewing and snapping on his toy.)


Tomorrow we have to say goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Nold, since they're getting ready to head down to Florida for the winter. We'll miss getting to see them so often!

How to squash a dog

As I write this, Jack is upstairs screaming his lungs out in his crib. He's been a bit more tempermental than usual lately, and I'm wondering if we're entering the terrible twos. He pitched an absolute fit before and during preparations for his nap today. Hopefully he'll be in a better mood when he wakes up.

Earlier this morning, Jack put on a show of his climbing skills, though as usual his entertainment was at Lou's expense.






Poor Lou. Jack also showed off his flexibility and balance skills.


He had to take a little rest afterward.


Here are a few pictures from when Jack stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Nold this week. Grandma took Jack to a cool indoor playground. At one point he was not a happy camper, but he calmed down and managed to have fun. They said he really liked the slides.

Lazy weekend at the lake

We took the boat out for one last time yesterday. Jack "helped" Andy fish, though all he managed to catch was water. Today the boat and our dock will be taken out and stored until the spring. After we leave the lake house today, I'll be dropping Jack off at Grandma and Grandpa Nold's house so they can watch him while I have to travel for work to Springfield, Illoinois (very exciting place) for 3 days.

Jack still isn't talking, but he has started to make some more interesting babbling sounds lately. I managed to catch a few seconds of him doing it this morning:


While we were eating dinner on the porch last night, a local aviator was having fun practicing his water take-offs and landings with his float plane (I think that's what they're called?). He probably took off and landed 15-20 times while we were out there. Jack loved it! Here's a recording of one of the take-offs:

Crazy baby

Here's a couple short videos from tonight when Jack was getting ready for bed, after his bath. He had his first day of "school" today--the tots class at the local park district. It's the same class he attended last year, but they don't operate in the summer, so this is the first time he's been in several months. Our nanny said he did well at first, but had a little meltdown mid-way through the class. I guess the first day of school can be scary, even for a toddler! The class is 3 days a week; hopefully he'll do better tomorrow.

All banged up

As usual, the flash washes Jack out so much you can't see the marks on his skin very well, but trust me he's looking a little rough today. He took a spill earlier while he was holding a toy, and his right cheek wound up landing on the toy, leaving a nice scrape. He also has a bruise on his top right forehead from slipping in the tub Tuesday night. Looking good kid!


Jack's been getting practice feeding himself lately. He still hasn't mastered the art of scooping food onto the spoon or fork, but he's getting better at putting the food in his mouth. Mmmm, spaghetti!