Summer Colds in a Heat Wave

Its been a while since we last updated and while it seems like things have been too busy to sit down at the computer and post, at the same time, there is not much excitement to report on! Just been spending lots of lazy, hazy, summer days here in Syracuse!

Last week was a HOT HOT HOT one here in Central New York. Now, I know people down south are probably thinking we are complaining for no good reason, but just as a couple inches of snow is enough to paralyze southern cities, days and days of heat and humidity have a similar effect on us! Charlie (and mommy and daddy) does not handle it very well, so we have been doing all we can to keep cool! Lots of air conditioning and water fun!

Everyone around here has caught a cruddy summer cold the past week or so. Lots of sniffles and coughing, but we all seem to be on the road to recovery. Before the cold, we were working hard at switching Charlie from bottles to sippy cups. Our pediatrician wanted us to wait until we got the stomach/puking issues under control and (KNOCK ON WOOD) he has not puked since the end of May! So we were slowly but surely working towards the sippy, but when he got sick he went back to bottles and is now back to square one. Well, not quite square one - - he has progressed enough that he will use the sippy for water and juice, but now refuses to take his milk/formula combo from it.

As for his dairy intake, he is eating yogurt and cheese with no problem now, but when we increased the amount of milk in his bottles I think we went a little quicker than his system could handle and it wreaked a bit of havoc on his belly. No hives or reactions like that, but we took a step back and are progressing VERY slowly to give his system ample time to adjust. Right now he gets about 6 oz of whole milk and 12 oz of formula throughout the day and it seems to be working for him!

Eating real food has been getting better and better (again, KNOCK ON WOOD!). We have given up trying to feed him by spoon because the battle just wasn't worth it. The nutrients we were forcing into him were not worth the trauma of the process. So, now we just try and find as many good foods as we can that he will give a try. We spent weeks and months offering him foods (things we knew he liked!) only to have him promptly throw it across the room without even trying a bite. BUT... the past couple of weeks he has become a little more mature about things! He is eating grilled cheese and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches regularly. He will eat a variety of fresh fruits - - he has a deep love for blueberries right now! He likes rice cakes with peanut butter on them He had a little pizza the other day. And - not that this is something to brag about, considering how hard we have worked to instill healthy eating habits - he ate nearly an entire McDonald's cheeseburger last week!

In all, Charlie has been happy and loving life! We took him to swim lessons for a couple weeks and are going to attend another two week session later this summer. He progressed a lot in just two weeks and by the end would let me dunk him under without freaking out. He loves playing and is truly a rough and tumble little boy! We can't keep him off the couch for anything, even though he has taken many spills over the past few weeks. He fell off the couch yesterday and managed to land on a pillow and roll to the floor. After laying there shocked for a few seconds, he laughed hysterically, climbed back on the couch, and jumped off. We have a real daredevil! I am going to start taking bets on how long it will be before he breaks his first bone! Not that I want to experience that! I am just assuming it is a guarantee at this point! We will have to see what mischief the rest of the summer will bring!

mmm... strawberries

Charlie was eating them almost as fast as we were picking them!

Charlie and Noah get their first tastes of

Mommy's famous brownies on the 4th

AHHHHH!

I love the sprinkler!!

Keeping cool with Cousin Eman in the sprinkler

Our neighbor bought this Buzz Lightyear rocket that hooks up to the hose when her grandson was in town a few weeks ago. The two three year olds made Charlie set the rocket up while they shared the controls. Charlie has NO FEAR!

"OK guys, I think its ready!"

"AHHH! It got me again! This is so much fun!!"

eating a big boy breakfast

swim lessons

He LOVES floating around on his belly!

warming up after pool time

Didn't quite make it through lunch after swim lessons this day!

Swimming makes him a sleepy boy!