UFO

Here's the photo we took, the day we bought the Exersaucer for Brock,  March 10th.  Happiest day of his life.2 Sidenotes: One, haven't loaded said video and photo from post below.  Two, in order to keep Brock happy while creating this post, I clicked on the "Dare" link, below.

Baby Fever

People (and by people, I mean female friends and acquaintences) regularly see Brock, and eventually exclaim, "Oh, I have baby fever". Not that it has anything to do with Brock in particular, I am pretty sure they feel this way anytime they see a baby. A major baby boom is going on right now (related to the recession??) Or maybe it's that I live in Prairie Village, a part of town full of young couples beginning their families. Nevertheless, Brock is 5 months today. And I find myself not thinking of him as a baby at all anymore. Yesterday, our neighbor commented that she has "baby fever", and I replied, "So do I, and I have a baby!" They are addicting. Everyday I see little changes in him, I wake up wondering who he will be today. I used to wonder what in the world my mother was thinking having 5 children - now I know.

A few characteristics that make Brock so addicting:

• He is soo damn cute.


• "Dare" by the Gorillaz. This is absolutely no exaggeration, there are NO exceptions to this rule. If Brock is sad or angry while in the car, and he hears 1 note of this song, he goes silent. It paralyzes him. Originally (2 months ago, when this began), I thought it was a coincidence. And I assumed it was because he loved the song. Now, proven by the fact that is works EVERY time, despite his level of unrest, I know it is no coincidence. Oh, and trust me I have tried a lot of other songs, no response. But due to his complete silence and lack of motion, I wonder if maybe it grates on him to the point that he cannot move. Maybe he hates it!? Either way, it's on repeat.


• Imitating the cat? His new thing is to try really, really hard to reach for things just out of his grasp. If you move it into his range he loses interest. I am pretty sure he purposely pushes things to the farthest tips of his fingers. It is especially entertaining when he is on the floor and has contorted himself into the strangest positions - I think it's all to create a dramatic image of effort. This is mostly cute, and funny, until he actually does get frustrated that he can't reach it, but giving it to him isn't what he wants either (que for nap time...)


• Milestones: he currently sits for short periods of time, but quickly loses the concentration and rolls over. He has been physically able to roll both front to back, and back to front for quite a while, but only ever wanted to be on his back - that has finally changed and he flips often to switch it up. He can stand on his own if he has something to grab onto, not a tabletop or couch cushion yet; a blanket, my hands or the center part of his Exersaucer - yes, he has already lost interest in sitting in the middle and now thinks it is much more fun to try to stand around the perimeter. Brock doesn't seem to realize that he is only 5 months old, and there are just some things that are physically impossible at this point in life. Looks like someone got their mother's patience, and their father's motor control (Matt walked at 7 months, 3 weeks). Great combo. NOT!

Insert photos/video of Brock holding on to Saucer & grabbing for objects out of reach.

I let you out of my sight for 2 hours!?

My next door neighbor from childhood, Jan, invited my mother and I to a charity event last Saturday evening.  This consisted of a silent auction and entertainment by a local, women's jazz group.  One of the group members was 92 years old!  She could sing like Louis Armstrong.  Amazing woman.  

Anywhoo, at the very last minute, I decided to bid, $185 on the "Weekend Getaway" package.  I won.  Needless to say, despite the 1 night stay at the Sheraton on the Plaza, breakfast for 2, $75 to the Princess Gardens restaurant, 2 tickets to the Unicorn & 2 tickets to Quality Hill Playhouse ($432 value in all); Matt was not too happy with my "impulse buy".  He might change his tune, when we use the stuff, after I'm done with boards, and Brock stays with my mom for the night...  

Baby Style

Ghetto Baby

Ok, I dis'ed on Matt for playing dress up with our little boy, but I'll give you the real truth. Matt, Leah and I, regularly dress the poor child up in various outfits for the sole purpose of our own amusement and entertainment. We then proceed to laugh at him and how riduculous he looks and then take pictures. There. It's out.

473 Eggs!?

Is my estimate for the number of colored, plastic eggs Matt has inherited from his uncle. We only used 130 in the hunt this year, filled with a range of prizes from $1 to $200 cash, or an iPod Shuffle to a 2 liter bottle of bubbles. In my opinion, the voice warper wins the best prize award.We had quite a family filled Easter weekend. Friday and Saturday spent with the O'Laughlins, and Sunday split between the Smith's and the Giblin's (mom's side). As always, there was some exciting news, My cousin Katie is due in October with her first baby. And her brother Joe, got married last weekend, in a secret wedding of sorts. By the looks this photo here with "Pops", there is a chance Brock DID get my legs afterall! His ankles are thinning out, his legs are long, and his thighs are rock solid.

No Turning Back, Now.

I am officially registered to take my first Medical Liscensing Exams. Because I am getting a D.O. degree, it is recommended I take 2 different board exams: the USMLE on May 23rd and the COMLEX on June 2nd. The latter being the one I MUST pass in order to become a physician.

I have 6 weeks to prepare. I keep being told I should be worrying more about these exams, and that I am beginning my preparations too late, but it is not within my nature to freak out about these kinds of things (this early...the night or two before is a different story). So, for the next month and a half, I have sitters lined up everyday for ~8 hours. Wish me luck.