Growing Pains

Waylon is definitely a toddler, heading quickly towards the Terrible Twos. We dont see the same fast-paced physical development we did the first year, but there have been plenty of changes the last few weeks. As I posted below, Waylon is now refusing baths. He is also tantruming a little bit, giving mommy and daddy glimpses of the fun to come. He is definitely opinionated about what he will and wont do. For instance, not only does he have his own chair (see post below), but sometimes he wont sit in his high chair and insists on sitting on a barstool to eat. Since we only have two stools, this means daddy usually has to eat weekend breakfasts standing up.

Another interesting change is Waylon's eyes. He used to have Aaron's turqoise-blue color, but now they are changing to a grey-blue, similar to my dad's. We'll have to wait to see if they turn green like mine. I realize this isn't exactly earth shattering information, but it was pretty strange when we first noticed it.

Of course, no post about changes (especially titled "growing pains") would be complete without a comment about Waylon's verbal skills, or lack thereof. At eighteen months he was not saying five words, so the pediatrician referred him for a hearing test and Regional Center ("RC") services. The RC assists the developmentally delayed, but they also provide early intervention for children under three that have developmental or speech delays. Waylon is still in the intake process with RC, but the coordinator seems to think he will qualify for services. This is strange for me since many of my young clients at the Children's Law Center that qualifed for RC services were drug babies (maybe I snuck some crack during my pregnanct that I dont remember...). Waylon has a full developmental evaluation to determine services. In the meantime, we had his hearing tested last Thursday and got big news--Waylon has mild to moderate hearing impairment, which they think is due to fluid behind his eardrums. We have an appointment with an ENT doctor next week to learn more. This may be the reason for his delayed speech, but Iprobably only time will tell. Even if they can do something for him (probably tubes in the ear), I have to imagine he'll still need some speech therapy since the world has sounded like its underwater for most of his life, and he will probably need some therapy to catch up.

I thought this picture of Waylon attempting yoga really summed up his evolving personality.

Bubba's Big Boy Chair

Waylon is getting older, and he was making it clear that he needed a place of his own. Since we are the most indulgent parents of all time, we complied. Introducing Waylon's very own "big boy" chair. Its amazing how much he enjoys sitting in a chair that it is his size. Often when I give him his sippy cup or a snack he'll walk over and sit down before enjoying his treat. Very cute!

Kickin' back in his PJ's on a weekend morningMesmerized by the Teletubbies while enjoying the chair. How disturbing is his slack-jawed response to watching 4 weird monsters dance around the screen?!

Mr. Clean Refuses Baths

There are not a lot of things you can bet on with a toddler, but one thing that has been very consistent with Waylon is his love of bathtime. We often had to drag him out of the bath because he loved sitting and playing with his toys. About 1.5 weeks ago that all stopped. He just refused to sit down and would cry and do the "all done" sign until we pulled him out. I was forcing him to stand in the bath so I could get him scrubbed up. Not fun for Waylon, and definitely not fun for mom and dad.

We recently figured out a compromise...showers. Waylon LOVES to be in the shower. The problem is that it wastes a lot of water for him to just hang out while the water runs next to him and he plays around. We're trying to figure out how to make it work, but its clear (once again) that Waylon is running the show around here.

Waylon enjoys one of his first showers
A few weeks ago when our little guy still enjoyed showers

How did it go from this big smile to screaming bloody murder in the bath?More smiles...long, long ago...

Two of Waylon's favorite bathtime games were playing basketball (see red hoop in foreground), and baseball. He used his bee-rattle to knock the "baseball" off of a shampoo bottle. Seriously, this kid loves to whack at balls!

Waylon loves to run around naked after bath/shower time and suddenly wants to read every book and play with every toy in his room.

Waylon's ducky tub moved out of the bathroom and into our bedroom (still not sure how that happened). He crawled in for some post-shower fun this weekend and could barely fit! I guess he really is tall for his age.

Kareem Abdul J'Bubba

Waylon had dress-up day at school last week, and he was dressed in the most creative thing I could come up with 2 days notice and only the clearance rack at Wal Mart to choose from. The high socks were Aaron's touch, which was my favorite part. You wont be surprised to learn that he ended up being sick the day after these photos. Looking back, he looks so sick I cant believe he made it through a whole day of school. It was also appropriate that he dressed as a basketball player since at his last pediatrician's appointment on 8/23/07 he was in the 90th percentile for height (34"), 80th percentile for weight (28 lbs), and of course his famous head was also the 90th percentil (49.5 cm). Our little boy is definitely growing up, and looks like such a big boy in these photos.

Mommy & Daddy's Big Weekend Away

I've always loved weddings, but now they are extra fun since they seem to be our only excuse to get away for some serious adult fun. In mid-August we had the ultimate mommy and daddy weekend when we went to Calistoga in the Napa Valley for Ben and Melodie's wedding. Grandma Josephine and Grandpa Ed took care of Waylon for 4 days and 3 nights while we had adult time. It was an AMAZING weekend, and extra special for us since Aaron was in the wedding. I cant begin to describe all of the phenomenonal weekend events here, but it was definitely one for the record books. The best part was that the bride and groom seemed to be having a blast the whole weekend, which always makes it fun. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Rubin!

Ben and Melodie head down the aisle after a beautiful morning ceremony on a private estate. It was a gorgeous setting and their vows were hilarious.

Me and my favorite groomsman. As much as I love attending weddings, I am always glad not to be the one stressing about all of the little details.
Their first dance, during the post-wedding brunch.

Between the morning wedding and the evening festivities, Aaron and I got the chance to sneak away in the bride and groom's getaway car. It was a beautiful old Packard and the driver was a hoot. He took us all over the backroads of Napa while we ate BBQ and he told us crazy stories about celebrities he's had in the car.

Aaron and I pose in our blacktie attire in front of the castle where the ball was held. Yes, a castle! I'm telling you, this wedding was off the hook!