Summer break

Now that Cameron is on the go there is a parenting skill that is getting difficult to master. The chase. I will say my size is starting to become a problem, but you would think his belly would slow him down too. I understand not everyone loves a small child hobbling around like he owns the place, but sometimes my arms need a break. Taking him to Target, I realized my days of having a shopping buddy are just about done. If the store doesn't have a cart with a car attached to it, we shouldn't go. Within 8 minutes of pushing him around Target Cameron starts throwing himself around in the cart. I cave and pick him up only to put him down for the sake of my back. The chase is on. He takes off down the aisles as his personal walking track, and I am now chasing him pulling the shopping cart behind me with one arm. He U-turns like a mad man outrunning the cops, and the turning radius on my shopping cart is sub par. Do I really need the pack of hamburger buns in the cart? What about the diaper bag?

The spray parks around town are amazing... for running, which is an adrenaline rush for a pregnant lady. Cameron hates swimming pools but put a few sprinklers out with plenty of room to run, and he's good to go for at least an hour. The tricky part about spray parks? The chase. He's really good at running around and chasing the girls, but all that running makes a kid thirsty. What does my little one do? Get on all fours and lick the excess water off the ground. Awesome. What disease did he just contract? I hustle through the water buckets and fire hydrants pouring out full stream and pick him up. Now to resume my post on the outside. And he's off. He manages to find a lady texting, and his eyes light up at the potential of putting that cell phone in his mouth. I chase him down and redirect him elsewhere. (This lady by the way refused to put the phone away almost the entire time we were there. Eventually I gave up trying to get him away from her. ) His next target was ever too sneaky. He started walking around this table of moms watching their kids. I am not chasing him around and interrupting the conversation. All of a sudden his little hand reaches and SUCCESS - drinking from some other child's sippy cup. The chase is back on. This leads to questions from the other moms. How old is he? A year. How much does he weigh? 32 pounds. That's the same as my son. He's 4. There goes Cameron heading for the exits. Saved at last by the chase.

Fun in the sun

What do you do in the heat? Strip your kid down and turn on the hose. Instant water park for a one year old.

Can you hear me now?

I have a little thief on my hands. His specialty - purses and candy at the supermarket. It started out being cute. A little boy digging in mommy's purse seeing what he could find, and I guess it just seemed amazing to him at how much was really in there. He started by pulling out keys and pens to chew on. Yes, he's still the gross kid who puts EVERYTHING in his mouth. He reached into the garbage the other day and started eating a banana peel, but I digress. The next thing is my wallet. I got to give it to him. Not much money in there, but at least he knows where to look. The jackpot is the cell phone. Upon taking the phone away, I realize it doesn't turn on. There is also something leaking out of the phone. DROOL!!! After removing the back it looks like I have dropped the phone in the toilet. I took the whole thing apart to dry overnight. This is why my child still has a pacifier. If the pacifier is in his mouth, it limits the damage elsewhere.

The candy. I needed a place to take Cameron with air conditioning so we went to the grocery store. He rode in one of the carts with the cars on the front, which is pure entertainment for him and the other shoppers because I can't seem to steer the darn thing. As I am loading up the belt with my groceries, Cameron reaches over and grabs a Rolo and of course the tractor beam that is his mouth is quickly pulling that candy closer and closer. The amazing thing was the two other candy bars by his feet inside the car.

25 weeks

Milk anyone?

Parenting lesson # 34: make sure the lid to your child's cup is screwed on tightly.

Sometimes you just have to kick your feet up for a little bit and take a breather. I mopped, vacuumed, dusted, and even cleaned the base boards for Cameron's party! Whew! I was sitting in the living room, and Cameron was playing in the kitchen cabinets. He still an inch too short for the breakable and sharp objects. (I'm kidding. He's definitely tall enough, but we did baby proof.) I can hear each tupperware bowl hitting the floor one by one. "Splash!" Definitely not a bowl. The next sound I hear is a whole bunch of "splat, splat, splashes." Not a sound I should be hearing, but no crying. I grabbed my camera thinking this had to be good. As I turned the corner, I see my 1 year old on all fours licking up every bit of milk off the floor. My bad on the cup thing. I hesitated for a moment. Do I let him finish the drink from the floor? It would be less I had to clean. Or should I pick him up clean him and the floors up and pour him some more formula? Formula sure isn't cheap. Hmm, parenting dilemma.





If you are wondering why my son is only in a diaper, it's because a spilled cup incident happened three times that day. After I changed him out of his third outfit, I gave up on clothes.

Birthday Boy!

After Brian got home from work, we celebrated Cameron's birthday. We got him a laptop to try and distract him from playing with our actual laptop. So far... it's not working.



Did you really think he wouldn't get a piece of cake too?


On Saturday we had Cameron's grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins over for an Elmo-themed party. My mom made his outfit, which was perfect. I did not witness this first-hand, but several people noticed Cameron pushing his older cousins away from his toys. That just doesn't seem like him. Yeah, right. He won't have the "he's the baby" card to play much longer so he better watch out.



When we found out we were having a boy, the first chore we planned on assigning was cutting the grass. Cameron got a bubble lawn mower, and refused to stand behind the thing and push it. I took him outside to see if the bubbles would spark any desire to walk behind it, but that didn't go over well. We don't have a riding lawn mower so he better shape up.

His first truck. Thank God this one doesn't require insurance.

Happy Birthday Cameron!

Cameron is 1!!! What a year filled with joy and blessings. I am so proud and so fortunate to be a mother, and I love watching this little boy grow up before my eyes. For his birthday, my mom and I took him to the Baton Rouge Zoo. It's July. I know the zoo is outdoors, but we really had a great time.



Here's where the desire to get a picture interferes with better judgment. Both of these tigers kept staring Cameron, and one of them just kept pacing in front of him. While I appreciate being able to see the animals, I question the strength of that glass.

I put Cameron down thinking he would try to bang on the glass. (Probably not the smartest thought) That big cat was just looking at my child's beefy thighs, and Cameron got the hint. He took off back to us as fast as those little legs would carry him.

Honestly, we could have just gone to the kid zone all day, and Cameron would have been fine. He loved playing on all the jungle gyms, and he especially loves socializing with the ladies.





Highlights of the trip: snowballs and a train ride.

22 weeks

New tricks

Here's how he does it: He usually holds onto the red coffee table then slowly walks backward up the sofa.

The doctor visit

After much deliberation I brought Cameron to the doctor because I thought he might have an ear infection. He was tugging at his left ear all the time, he was cranky, and his appetite was lacking. No fever, but the anti-food thing was a complete shock. I am not a run-to-the-doctor-because-my-kid-just-sneezed person so it took some convincing. After a few hours of crying and trying to crawl back into my belly, I caved. Big mistake. Our appointment was for 11:30. I frantically got Cameron ready so we could be there on time. Once we arrived in the waiting room the social butterfly could not be contained. I had Cameron in the sick baby area even though I did not think an ear infection would be contagious. There were about four kids in the sick waiting area, and Cameron decided to play with these kids first. He walked up to each one, and after each time would wander back to me to bring me whatever germs the kiddos had. Thanks, Boo. Two little boys then start building castles with the contaminated doctor's office blocks. A mother's nightmare. You want to know what's worse? When your son personally licks each one of the blocks to make sure he comes home with some parting gift. Did I mention this hot zone play area is set apart from the waiting room by three stairs? No problem for Cameron, but his momma eventually gave up trying to pry the blocks from his mouth. I know how bad that is. I get it. My watch hit Noon. Okay, I'm about pissed. My child then tackles the five year old in an effort to knock down the castle. Okay, I'm ready to go. I drag him back to where I left my purse and diaper bag, (Should have worn a fanny pack.) and I try to feed him some snacks. No, I didn't wipe down his hands. I know you can let out the disappointed, "Oh, Sarah." My watch hit 12:15. Isn't WebMD the same thing as here? What's worse than prying your child from the germ infested blocks? Trying to keep your child from entering the well-baby area. Could they not have installed a door? Is that too much? You are already making it clear that your child is well, and you don't want to socialize with the diseased so what's closing a door going to do? Well Cameron saw a little baby in a stroller, and he just had to give this kid a push. I had to fight with everything I had to keep this kid from entering the clean, clear air. What time is it? Finally 12:30 rolls around, and we get called in. It's another 15 minutes before the doctor arrives. Cameron is crying, and I would really like to. At least he's making it look like he's sick. The verdict. Doctor:"Everything looks A okay to me." Me: "What?" Doctor: "I apologize for the wait. I was right on time until 10:30 when a 2 year old came in. He had passed a worm about this long (holds up his hands to about 8 inches)." Me: (In thought) I wonder which block he licked.


Impressed? That's a whole wiffle golf ball. I'm asking for another trip back to the doctor.