There is nothing cuter than a baby in overalls, unless said baby is also wearing a cowboy hat

So my blog hiatus is over, and I have a million things to write about! We all had a great Christmas - twice, actually! :)

(If you look carefully, you can see Ethan's belly hanging over his pants. Maybe we need to stop feeding this kid.)

On Christmas Eve, we traveled to Cincinnati to visit with the Jewett family. Ethan was a super boy in the car, and even fell asleep for just a little bit on the way there. He was delighted to see all of his relatives, some of whom he hasn't seen since last Christmas. Very different baby then!
We had many wonderful meals (that I didn't help prepare AT ALL) and boyo was the recipient of some fantastic gifts. It took him a little while to get interested in them, because he was determined to throw out all of his Aunt Kim's Tupperware, put everything he could find in his mouth, and terrorize any cat that dared to make an appearance.

I apologize for waxing nostalgic and philosophical for a moment, but I realized on this trip that I have kind of grown up. (I'm 37, it's about time.) One of Brian's nephews is 15, and was horrified that all we wanted to do on Christmas day was hang out, take naps, and follow Ethan around. I so remember being that age and still desperately wanting to see what was under the tree! Sometime between then and now I became fairly unconcerned with Christmas as a present-bearing holiday, and became relieved that it's an opportunity for family get-togethers (and really yummy food)!

Anyway, one of Ethan-boy's gifts was this fantastic set of corduroy overalls and a little snowman shirt. (Somehow the 14 month old boy fits perfectly into a 24 month outfit. I really have to stop feeding this kid.) As soon as we got back into town and I washed it, he was geared up for the Jones family celebration this morning, before my sister headed to Chicago to see some friends.
Anda now lives in Santa Fe, and brought a little something special for her favorite nephew.

Unfortunately, he reacted to its placement on his head the same way he reacts to anything being placed on his head. We all wore the hat and agreed that Gramma Judy looked best in it. :)

Brian and I finished this dual celebration very very grateful that our families are 1) into only stocking-stuffer-type presents these days, 2) enjoy having a loud baby at the table who throws food that he loved yesterday all over the floor, and 3) are not too far away to see at the very least once a year. Happy Holidays to all!

Mean Mama!

Before....

After!
Maybe next year. Poor little boy. :)

Two Weeks to Christmas?! &%#$!

Excuse my symbols, but I can't believe that it's even December! In our house, it could pretty much be July. We have no tree, no lights, no presents...a whole lot of nothing going on here. In the last 10 days, I've been to a three-day training in Bloomington, done my civic duty at the Champaign Courthouse (meaning sitting in the freezing cold jury assembly room for hours), stayed home with the Ethan-boy after we discovered he had a double ear infection (for how long, I have no idea - he's not fussy at all!) and a lovely case of pink eye (pic below), and gone to work as much as possible. Brian has been up well past midnight most nights in order to do late-night weather briefings and prepare lectures for class, and last week he flew a plane into that lovely winter storm we all heard about. We're a little frazzled. :)

However, with my whining comes the understanding that people do this kind of stuff all the time! So I'm pulling myself up by my bootstraps (the Jewett clan will appreciate that one) and getting over myself - bring on the Christmas cookies!

I keep reminiscing about last year at this time. With a little guilt, I have to say that I'm so relieved that Ethan is now 13 1/2 months old and not 6 weeks old any more! Those newborn days were wonderful, but hard - I don't think I've ever felt so clueless in my life. He's a totally different kind of challenge right now, and such a fun one.

Did you just tell me NO, Mom?

(Apparently our childproofing needs a little work. I think the goal is to keep the kid's hands out of the cabinet.) He is learning several words, like "No!" and "Stop!" pretty well by now. :) After falling down our two stairs once, he now stops when I tell him to.

New Developments

Well, as you can all see from the giggly post below, Ethan is now walking. ACK! Actually, he's so delighted to be mobile that Brian and I are very happy to see how excited he gets when he's moving around - we are barely anxious about all of our papers and computers, or his inability to stop once he gets near our (two) stairs. (Actually, we are kind of anxious about the latter...)

He is also:

• Carrying things around as he walks, which is pretty funny to watch
• Loving being chased - "Mama's going to get you!" produces many giggles
• Trying to eat with utensils but is only successful when it's something he really really likes, like cheese :)
  

One thing that we've enjoyed recently is heading to the library on the weekends. Our public library has a great children's section - even for kids as little as Ethan!
Ethan thinks his mother is very very strange. Why on earth would a giraffe be crawling up his arm? Really.....
The most popular options were anything that opened and closed. He is a big fan of open/close.

The library has come in handy as we are considering this transition from two naps to one and need something fun to do away from a crib in the morning. And they have such great activities there, too! During the week, they have a Babies Lap Time, and I can't wait to take Ethan during my Christmas Break. When he gets a little older, there will be crafts, computer games, and even chess games with other kids. Oh, there are books there, too. But the librarians frown when you put them in your mouth, which kind of holds Ethan back. :)