Hello!

I plan to finish my layout this coming weekend (October 9) but otherwise I AM BACK from my month-long blog break! Before I start the new version of this blog this weekend, I might as well bring you up to date since I won't be posting updates on the "new version" of this blog. The last time I caught you up was I Love This Age!!!, written on September 1st.

I mentioned that Logan had come down with his 4th virus of the year. It was his longest one - lasted a full two weeks. Unfortunately he had about a week break before getting virus #5 (or #8 of his 17 months). That one ended with a rash all over his entire body. It was kind of scary - he didn't have a temperature or any other signs that anything was wrong, but I took him to the pediatrician last Wednesday because he had red bumps everywhere but his face! Doc said that he'd seen a lot of kids with the same thing that week - I guess his particular type of cold ends by coming out through the skin, eeek!

Good news is that he's over it now and back to normal. He's still had less virus' than the average kid his age, but with all of the talk about how incredibly contagious the swine flu is, it seems inevitable he's (we?) going to get it. We have the option of giving him the vaccine at his 18 month check up October 19th but I get uncomfortable when CNN interviews experts who can't say for sure that it's safe. Yes, it was approved by the FDA but they were also in a huge rush with a lot of pressure to get it out. Since it is a new vaccine they have no info on long term effects (back in the 1970's there was a swine flu vaccine that caused paralysis), and Logan's age group has to get TWO doses. All you have to do is google "is it safe" and you'll see "it exceeds the recommended amount of mercury." So we won't be giving it. . .but this means I'm probably going to have to deal with the flu this year (which I've only had once in my life, Joe's only had once, and Logan has never had). I just hope we don't all get it at the same time. At least we are healthy people and so getting the swine flu isn't "scary" as it was when it first came out and they were acting like everyone was going to die. Many people aren't even realizing they have it - they think they have a bad cold so it probably won't be any worse than any other virus we've experienced.

Despite Logan's two colds, he continued to be AWESOME during month 16 (and his eczema didn't come back with either cold). Month 15 and 16 were the most enjoyable of his life because he was so incredibly easy and happy all day, every day! Both months he only had two days when he had just one fussy moment - I wrote about three of them - the fourth was on the evening of September 11th. We went out to eat at Applebee's and it was the first time he threw a temper tantrum in public. The first time he'd ever cried in public was just this past July at the zoo (The End Of Summer) - but this was his first temper tantrum. His mac & cheese came and he picked up a HUGE spoon to eat it with. When he put down the spoon I took it away because usually he eats mac & cheese with his hands and this spoon was not going to help him eat. He freaked out! So I immediately took him outside (thankfully they'd put us right by the door). We walked for a minute and I said, "If you stop crying you can go back inside and eat your mac & cheese." He abruptly stopped, lol. Then he was happy the rest of the meal and they gave him a balloon.All of the other days and hours he just did the cutest things, giggled constantly, and really didn't require anything from me! I had a blast with him every day. I told Joe, "Wow, I could have a lot of children if motherhood was this easy - and I'd start right now!" But knowing that I also liked months 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 11, & 13, I also remembered months 4, 6, 7, 9/10, 12, and 14 that were exhausting for me! Sure enough, month 17 has not started on the best note (he turned 17 months old two weeks ago). I think it's because his final 3 teeth are coming in. They have been taking their sweet time (as in, for two weeks he SOAKED his shirts which he hadn't done forever), spent all day with his fingers in the spaces and chewed, and whined ALL DAY, EVERY DAY. But then last Thursday (exactly two weeks later) it all suddenly stopped - with nothing to show for it! :(

It began Thursday, September 17 (technically one day before his 17 month birthday) when his babysitter called me at 9 am - an hour after he'd been dropped off (he goes to a babysitter 8 hrs a week) to say that he'd been crying the whole hour! She was surprised and I was surprised because in the almost 6 months of him going there that has never happened! I asked if she wanted me to pick him up and she said she would let me know in an hour. She took him outside and he played with the other kids so at 10 am she said she thought he'd be okay and I could pick him up at noon as usual. Unfortunately, when I got there I immediately heard him crying. She said that about a half an hour after she'd called me he had started crying again and hadn't stopped! At that time he had his cold so I thought maybe that on top of the teething was just too much for him. But the next day was the same thing (and he even took a 4 hr nap)! Tylenol helped a little (thank goodness our Tylenol wasn't on the recent recall list), but he didn't really return to normal until this past Thursday (October 1st).

I was glad to get him checked out by his pediatrician because every day for those two weeks I'd say, "I'm calling the pediatrician" - but then he'd act fine for awhile. We've been lucky only to have had to take him to his doctor on one other not-already-scheduled appointment (when his lips were blue, Did You Know). I kept thinking if he so much had a mild temperature I'd take him in - but that never happened in those two weeks. Babysitter was convinced it was his teeth - and other than that one day he was normal for her. So I really hope the teeth will just sneak through now because month 17 was starting to mirror month 14 (Logan's hardest month, probably because he got 6 teeth). It was a good time for me to take a vacation!

Those who read my posts tiled Everything or Everything--2, or Our Weekend, or The End Of Summer might remember that Joe's mom gave us a gift card for Joe's birthay to Lake Rathbun, Iowa. Joe was able to leave work early on Friday (October 2) and we drove two-and-a-half hours away to my dad & stepmom's house because they agreed to dogsit for us. Logan has been doing a lot better on car trips lately, I was able to sit in the front and it was uneventful. We stayed for about an hour and a half so my dad & stepmom could see Logan. They gave Logan a thoughtful gift of a book and puzzle which I know he will enjoy!

From there we drove another half an hour to where Joe's mom lives. We met her at The Pizza Ranch for supper - Logan does best with buffets, lol. In month 17 he's thrown another temper tantrum in public since his Applebee's one. We went out to eat at 370 Grill with Matt & Stacy and Jaxson Sunday, September 20th. I knew from the minute Logan was born that patience was not going to be his strong suit. That has still not changed. We had to wait longer than normal for our food and he'd had enough snacks so I didn't want him to have anymore or else he wasn't going to eat his dinner. Well obviously this was a lose-lose situation. I was hoping the video games would distract him - but no. So I had to take him outside and boy did he ever do the classic temper tantrum. We were out there for a few minutes and then our meal arrived and so all was well.

At least he has continued to obey. Back in month 14 I was worried because he was disobeying when I said no for the first time. But other than that one month he has been respecting me wonderfully. He's been very sweet and polite, still wanting to do what is right and tries to make me happy. But although month 15 and 16 he didn't throw one temper tantrum, he threw several during his first two weeks of month 17 - ALL having to do with food. I mentioned in my post I Love This Age that he was getting picky for the first time about food. All he wanted were snacks. Well that is still the case even though I'm trying to keep them mostly to out in public or the car. But he still knows where they are and so he's really been fighting me at meal times. No matter what I offer him (even his fav stuff) he refuses to eat it. So that was really exhausting me this past week. I kept having to put his meals in the fridge after warming them up and saying "well you're not eating anything until you eat such-and-such."

Usually he gives up after 5-10 min. Sometimes I just walk away and that does the trick, other times I try to distract him with something else, and other times if I just hug him he becomes like a sweet little doll in my arms and that is all he needs. But last Wednesday (the day I took him to the pediatrician) he threw a temper tantrum for exactly an hour!!! No matter what I did, it did not help and so I finally just went upstairs and shut my bedroom door so I could be sure to stay cool. It had started at 5:15 pm and for absolutely no reason he just decided to stop crying at 6:15 and was perfectly happy - uh! He was just weird that day: that morning he'd fallen asleep while playing on our family room at 8 am! He hasn't done that since he was four months old! I thought maybe he'd be up 20 minutes later but he slept for 2.5 hrs and then took another 1.5 nap later that afternoon!

Joe's mom had her longest time for watching Logan (about 32 hrs) this weekend because Joe and I left her place Saturday morning for Ames, IA where my uncle's memorial service was. Those who read my post RIP Uncle Dave know that he passed away on September 17. :( She said he was an ideal child and she had a blast. My mom & stepdad picked him up today at 4 pm and are going to watch him until Tuesday when we pick him and the dogs up and head back to Omaha. I am glad that Logan is doing well! I was worried he might cry when we left yesterday but he just waved goodbye so that makes it easy to enjoy our vacation! I think it helped that we had stayed there the night before so he felt comfortable. I called and asked how his eating was and she was like, "He eats non-stop!" Welcome to my world, haha!

It's cute all of the talking he does these days. He still says "hot" whenever he points to me cooking something on the stove or he eats or touches something hot, he says "wet" whenever he touches water, doesn't say "oh shoot" as much as he did over the summer but says "uh-oh" a ton, still says "dog" and "dad" a lot, says "icky" only it sounds like "issy," says "cheese" when he wants a piece of cheese, "nanna" when he wants a banana, "ilk" for milk, "hello" when he picks up a phone, and here's a funny one: "Joe!" Obviously he got this from me, it's hilarious - whenever he's calling someone from another room or he's looking for someone, he will peek his head around and yell, "Joe!" The other day Joe was in the bathroom and Logan started knocking on the door saying, "Joe? Joe?" Joe was like, "Yeah, Logan?" He actually says this more than any other word!!! Sandi heard it while we were there and thought it was hilarious.

One day he said "Cosmo" - Joe and I were yelling at our male maltipoo to come inside and clear as could be Logan called out after us, "Cosmo!" I was like, "Wow I can't believe he said that!" So then I tried to get him to say it again but he hasn't. There have been a ton of other words that he has said once but then not again - all words he just says on his own to communicate, he still doesn't mimick a lot, only when he is in a certain mood. He still says "yes" and "no" often when I ask him a question. He says "trash" when throwing something away, he's been calling his Babysitter by her name for a month (because the other kids say it all day long), and a few times he has said "bye" when waving. I'm probably forgetting others, but they say 15 words is average for his age group which he's passed, so looks like he's right on track. Except you may notice one word that is missing. . .a-hem I'm still waiting for him to say it other than mimicking me saying it!!!

Let's see what else is new. . .OH! For those who read my post, Never Buy Anything From Someone Who Approaches You--Ok Marketing, Inc. Scam about my experience being scammed -- you will never believe what happened before we left for our Lake Rathbun trip. Joe went to get the mail and there was an ESPN magazine in the mailbox. WHAT THE?!?!?! At first we were like, did someone else buy this for us? But then I noticed that my last name was misspelled - the guy who "sold" me the subscription had misspelled my name! That means my receipt actually went through to ESPN magazine!!!!! I am sooooo confused. There is even more stuff online about the scam now then there was when I wrote that post a month ago. The P.O. Box and bank account has been closed/shut down! Yet it looks like we really are going to be getting ESPN magazine!!! Looking back I have no doubt now that I was scammed (you can read that post if you haven't already and you'll see the red signs) so what is up?!?! Three months later I actually got what I bought. . .so then I wasn't scammed???? We are confused. . .I'll let you know if I ever figure it out!

I haven't had a chance to work on my revisions for my potential publisher yet (I Love This Age). . .I've had NO motivation whatsoever when it comes to creative writing lately. I've just been having so much fun with Logan - going to the park every day, he and I went on our first picnic by ourselves on Thursday, September 24, we've gone to the library a few times - the most recent time we finally got to join the other stay at home moms for "toddler time" which I had mentioned in my post The End Of Summer I went to in July but no other moms had been there that day. Logan had a blast singing, dancing, playing with the kids, crafts, and eating a snack. So hopefully I have years to write but before I know it Logan will be in school and that will be it for these experiences so I want to soak up every minute!I'm sad that the weather has been cold the past week. I've said before that I didn't want summer to end because we got spoiled by spending our days outside every day. Well we weren't able to go for our daily walk at all last week or to the park. I'm worried that the downside of having a cool summer is that we're not going to get a fall and will just go straight to winter! :( At least his playhouse arrived on Monday, September 28 - I mentioned in Shop Wiki UK and Swing Set Time that I hope it will give him something to do this winter. So far he loves it!I had also said that we bought Logan a toddler toilet shortly after his 16 month birthday since he was showing signs of being ready to start the potty training process and sure enough he'd caught on right away. Well before he even reached 17 months old he ran to the bathroom on three different occasions to let me know he had to poop! He has yet to pee in it (one day he would have, but he decided to stand up and so it sprayed everywhere :p) and I haven't been able to catch him pooping to carry him in so that he'll do it every time, but he still sits down whenever I go and he goes through all of the motions. So hopefully I can get him to pee in it soon, although it makes sense that would be harder because pooping is a longer process so it has time to register in his brain, lol.

We haven't switched him to cloth diapers yet (which I wrote we might do in The End Of Summer) because I ended up trying the organic style of Huggies disposables and they have been working excellent (I used to use Earth's Best but now that Logan is so active they fall off). I still might make the switch to a Bummis sometime but this new style of Huggies seem to work just as good as the Little Movers style (and are the same price) so I plan to only buy Huggies Pure & Natural disposables from now on.

We still have the name and phone number for the dog behavior specialist sitting by our phone since Bella's second bite to Logan (I Love This Age), but we have to get a physical arranged with our vet first. Thankfully both dogs have been well behaved since then. . .but so were they after the first time it happened in May until August! :(

The progesterone cream is going GREAT! I went into more detail in my post, Can Progesterone Be The Solution? When it came time for my first period while using it, I did have moderate cramps but that was better than severe (and they say it takes 3 months for it to fully work anyway so I'm still hoping they will disappear like they did when I was breastfeeding). My mood was excellent (I started my period on day 30 but had no warning as far as the way I felt) and have only had one headache/migraine since September 6 (and it was one of the days when I was not supposed to put the lotion on). I could majorly tell a difference during the 15 days I did not use the lotion once my period started. I actually couldn't wait until it was time again! I was having cramps (even though it was the start of my cycle) and my mood was up and down. Now it's day 22 so I've been using it for a week and have had no cramps and my mood has been stable. After 3 months of using it, all of this stuff should be regulated throughout the month and not just on the days I use it. I hope so because this is easy if this is all I need!!!

Since I was still having migraines until September 6, I ended up having to go off the Five Factor Diet after only two days! :( I was just so incredibly nauseated that anyone who has felt like that knows that you can't eat every three hours and then when you do feel like eating you just want whatever you are craving so as to help you feel better. Needless to say even though my goal date had been this trip, I decided to wait until after this trip to go back on it. The two days I did it were no prob at all! I didn't feel I was "dieting" and I felt excellent. I still exercised when I could during the month of September, but the only way I will lose weight is if I combine exercising and eating. So I am doing it HARD CORE starting this Wednesday and hope to lose 20 lbs by Christmas! This blog can help me record each day to keep me accountable :)

Logan's phase of crying when Joe or I leave lasted a full month but it seems to have passed so I feel comfortable finally getting a nighttime/weekend babysitter now. However, it won't be for our photography class since we're entering holiday season, we'll probably wait to take it until the spring.

I found my keys! I had mentioned in my I Love This Age post that I had lost them along with two other items - but just this past Thursday I found them underneath the backseat of my car! I had checked behind the cushion but it wasn't until my spare key fell right in front of my eyes in the crack and then under that I reached farther than I had previously - and there they were! This was perfect timing because Joe had just lost his keys a couple of days before (Logan had hid them) and so I was like, "As soon as you find them we HAVE to make duplicates immediately!" Well he found them the night before I found mine so we were planning on going when he got off of work that day!

In my post, Blog Break Continues, I mentioned that my neighbor had her baby girl. We went over there on Monday, September 14 to meet Makenna. She was the most precious little doll!

I had also mentioned in that post that we were going to an ISU game party at Lisa P & Darin's on September 12th. That was a lot of fun, especially since Logan missed his nap and was still in the best mood! There were other kids there and toys and a swingset -- all his favorite parts of life! :) Sadly ISU lost but I still enjoyed the company of the adults.I'd also written that Joe's nephew & his wife had a baby last month. It was a good decision that they had their baby in a hospital. They had considered a home birth up until the end but was told that she most likely would have bled to death because there ended up being a problem with her placenta and they had a hard time stopping her bleeding after she gave birth!!! I mentioned in my post 9 Months Old (Next Week) that although I am all for natural childbirth and women taking charge of their labors - I do not support home births.

I had my annual exam on Tuesday, September 29th. My doctor moved across the street to a hospital and I really liked their new building. Very modern and classy. I had to meet with the PA for the first time because my doctor had to deliver a baby - but she came back as I was leaving so I got to say hi. She recognized me right away and asked about Logan which I thought was nice and chatted with me before returning to her patients. I told her by this time next year I planned to be pregnant with #2 and she said she was glad to hear it, haha!!

Logan did well at his babysitter's - he had never gone in the afternoon before, but I had made my annual exam appt. last year for 2:15 pm which meant he took his nap over there. I was really skeptical because he has never been able to sleep with anyone around him before! But she said he took a 2.5 hr nap! That is longer than he usually takes nowadays because he's been sleeping until 7-7:30 am (I've been lucky if I can get a two hour nap out of him the past month). So I'm glad to know that afternoon is an option if I need a babysitter during that time again.

In Blog Break Continues I had written about how my friend Brooke and I were going to start getting together every week since we are both stay at home moms. So on September 16th we went to the zoo which was fun (Logan's favorite part is the petting zoo)-- --and then she invited Joe, Logan, and I over for a yummy supper at her house on the 25th, and she came over to my house the morning of the 28th. Her daughter is five months old (born exactly a year + 6 days after Logan), I look forward to when our kids can play together. We're going to check out my area's MOPS group this week when I get home.

I had mentioned that we hadn't gotten together with Matt, Stacy & Jaxson all summer so we met them at Fontenelle Forest on September 20th for the Dinosaur Exhibit and then out to supper, as I said earlier. It was SOOO fun to see the boys play together since they are just 6 days apart, they play together so well.

Unfortunately, while Logan was playing in the dirt he decided to eat some!!! We grabbed our wipes right away and stopped him but it was too late - he had diahrrea all of the next day :( I'd like to think this will be the last time he eats dirt. . .!Stacy's friend Lisa K (who I've hung out with three times, the two most recent times being Jaxson's birthday and last December we celebrated our birthdays together because Stacy, Lisa, and I all have December birthdays - I mentioned this in my post 8 Months Old), is having her first baby in February and is going to use my babysitter if she can get her mom to watch her baby one day a week (my babysitter can do 4 days a week but not 5 because one of her current kids is going to have a sibling around the same time and she only wants one infant at a time). It will be fun to have another baby to add to Logan's circle! :) (They find out if it's a boy or girl later this week!)

I read The Lovely Bones and gave it my full 4 star rating. I will definitely be seeing the movie when it comes out this December.

We bought Logan's Halloween costume (a really adorable tiger) but he does not like it, as you can see from the pic. It's the same reason he doesn't like his coat (which is another reason why this winter may be hard) - it's confining. I was hoping if I put it on him a few more times he would get used to it but if it doesn't happen soon then I think we'll have to save it for next year (it's a little big anyway) and he'll go as something more simple.

I put my Halloween decorations out on September 22, I was so happy - fall is my favorite time of year!!! There is just something about this season that feels like the year truly begins. Maybe it's because that's the season when school starts, or maybe just because it's so beautiful, or because you don't have to share it with the big holidays - whatever the reason - my "new year" usually happens in October. I have been enjoying life a lot more since July so I'm hopeful that 2010 will be better than 2009. I just feel that after last October it wasn't a good year. Last October was awesome - it was my first month for actually going outside with Logan. His first trip to the park, our first walks, etc. 2008 was the best year of my life - I melted when I uploaded the pic on my post, Swing Set Time of Logan last October! This year it almost seems like this will be the first month we don't go outside (since the spring) unless the weather warms back up!!!! I hope it does because this Thursday we are meeting Lisa P and her two daughters Lexi (who will be 3 in January) and Riley (who will be a year old next month) at Vala's Pumpkin Patch. I can't wait, it's one of the best places in our area.

Yesterday at my uncle's memorial (outside at a park) it rained and was cold and windy. It continued to be like that on our drive to Lake Rathbun but thankfully today it was nice enough for Joe and I to walk around outside. This place was just built a year ago so I think it will be more impressive in a couple of years, but so far there is an indoor water park that Logan will love if we come next year, and there are cabins as well as the resort we are staying in. They are building walking paths around the lake and there will be a beach area next summer. Right now people can rent jet skies, boat, and fish. The closest town is 20 minutes away, Joe and I went to a chinese restaurant there last night, and plan to go to a movie tonight. Tomorrow we'll visit Bradley Hall. This morning we had a big breakfast in our resort's restaurant and ate a late lunch there as well. We plan to do room service either tonight for supper or tomorrow for breakfast. Joe watched the Bears game (they won, yeay!) while I wrote this blog - our idea of a vaction, haha (and I brought a ton of books to read. He had hoped to golf - there is a golf course here - but it's going to be cold again tomorrow).

It was really nice to see three of my cousins yesterday who I hadn't seen in 6-12 years. We went to the church for lunch after the service and enjoyed catching up. The last words I'd said to their dad (because I re-joined facebook in early September) were "How fun! That's great you've gotten the opportunity to do that!" referring to his status on September 2 that said: "This week will bring to an end a two-day-a-week exploration of southern Wisconsin with two of my grandchildren. They have half days of school this week, so we will go check out the new otters at the Madison zoo this afternoon, and go to the Walworth... County Fair tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully they will have good memories of their summer of exploration."

If you read the post about my uncle, then you know he was a wonderful person. As the minister talked about all of his achievements it just seemed never-ending. How could one guy have done so many excellent things?! He was so selfless, he seemed like the ideal to be, I can only hope to be half of what he has when I die. I guess I don't feel so old when I think that he has lived double my life plus an additional half. That gives me hope there is time for me to do something with myself!