Peas & Carrots

Barrett has decided that sweet peas and carrots are a great combination, but sweet potatoes are still his favorite by far.

Barrett continues to amaze us with his ability to not be normal, he hates fruit. I don't mean he doesn't like it that much, he hates it. When you put any kind of fruit in his mouth, he gags, spits, and seals his lips shut.

I don't know why I feel like he has to eat them, but every meal, I try to convince him that fruit is yummy! I've eaten it, sang about it, danced, clapped, and he'll open his mouth until the spoon gets near. O-well, eventually I'll find something that makes him a little normal!

Barrett Makes a Furry Friend

Misti, one of my very best friends, came to visit Barrett and I for the weekend. She is the friend that had my dog, Rolex, when he passed away a couple of weeks ago. She was so excited to come see us because last weekend she purchased a new shih-tzu puppy she named Oz.



He is so precious and sweet. We know no puppy could ever replace Rolex, but he is definitely filling the void in Misti's heart. The best part of Oz coming to visit was watching Barrett and him interact. It was hilarious! Barrett just giggled and giggled.



Misti and I did discover that a sixth month old baby and a two month old puppy have a lot in common. Both of them are not potty trained, both wake you up in the night (Barrett is a better sleeper than Oz), they snore, they throw up, and since they are both teething, they love the same toys.



So, Barrett has had a ball playing with Oz. Oz chews on him, pulls off his socks, licks his ears, steals his toys, and takes attention away, BUT all things even out because Barrett chewed Oz's ear, stole his toys, pulled his tail, and rolled on top of him.

The best moments of all were when Oz would attack Barrett with kisses. I don't think Barrett was ever ready when Oz decided to move in for some lovin'!

Good News, Bad News

Doug called this morning and thought he was so funny.

He said, I have good news and bad news, which do you want first?"

The good news... his new job has his new cell phone ready for him when he starts on the 28th. (Why he thought that was good news, I have no idea.)

The bad news... it's a Nextel.

Hopefully, it won't beep-beep as much as his current one does. The hours are still better at the new job and it is more money. Being able to have Daddy home a LOT more and have more shopping funds is worth tolerating an occasional beep beep.

Doing Things His Own Way

Barrett's swing is set up next to the computer so while I play, he can swing. I usually can get a good 15 minutes of "me time" before he's ready to do something else.

Since he has now mastered the art of flipping over, I guess I was stupid to think that it wouldn't happen in the swing too!

Last night while I was typing my blog, he flipped himself over. I was waiting on the inevitable cry for help that always comes when he flips in his bouncy seat. I quickly snapped a photo, and was about to rescue him when I realized that he was laughing.



When I went around to the other side of the swing, I snapped this photo.



While I am typing this, my son is happily belly down. If it gets me five extra minutes, he can swing any way he wants to.

Just Like Daddy

This is where most people would comment on how their baby boy laughs at toots like his daddy, puts his hand on his belly after a big meal while he lays on the couch, or how both of them just steal my heart every time they smile at me. While all of those are true, that's not how Barrett was just like Daddy today.

Doug has an amazing ability. Every Valentine's Day he manages to be sick. He's had the flu the past three Valentine's and various other illnesses all the other years I've known him. I would think he's faking just to avoid the whole Valentine's trap, but watching him dying on the couch each year is beyond his faking abilities.

So, about a week ago, Doug started taking the antibiotics that he acquired from a friend who recently went to Mexico. He was determined to break the cycle. Yesterday at lunch time, he was actually excited that he was feeling good. He was sure the Valentine's curse was over.

At 5:00, his throat started to hurt. By 9:00, he was in the tub trying to soak away the chills that were caused by his fever. He crawled into bed and suggested I sleep in the guest room so I didn't catch whatever he had. After all, one of us had to take care of Barrett, and it can't be the sick one.

Barrett went to sleep at 9:30, and I got situated in the guest room with a magazine I had been wanting to read. I stayed up late because Doug's 5 am alarm wouldn't be waking me up, and Barrett would at least sleep until 7 if not later. Around 11:30, I turned out the light and went to bed.

12:55... crying???

1:05... Definitely crying.

1:10... still crying?

At 1:15, I gave up and went to get Barrett. He was coughing, and I thought a little comforting and he's be right out. I decided to take advantage of snuggle time, and I headed to the guest room. As I walked, I felt something warm. Barrett had puked all over me. Yes, it was puke, not spit up. Then I noticed it was on the floor and the wall. He was screaming even more, and all I wanted to do was cry. I decided the clean up could wait, and I went to make him a bottle. Big mistake.

Barrett ate the whole bottle, then he threw it up all over me. He cried, coughed, and cried some more. At about 4:45, he finally passed out. He was back up at 7:00. Apparently he forgot he was up all night.

I decided that I had to call the doctor this morning because I couldn't do too many more nights like that. I left a message for a nurse to call back, and when she did, she felt Barrett needed to be seen. We were scheduled for 11:30.

A few minutes later, she called back and said they wanted me to come an hour earlier.

At 10:30, Barrett and I arrived at the pediatrician's office. While I sat in the waiting room, it started to hit me that I had only slept 3 and a half hours. Being the bad mommy I am, I was actually a little bitter at Barrett who was passed out in his carrier. I really wanted to wake him up, but I didn't.

At 11:30 they finally called for Barrett. Yes, I said 11:30, our original appointment time. I'm starting to think they make you wait on purpose. Did they realize they were actually going to be able to see us on time, so they called and asked me to come in an hour early?

The doctor checked Barrett out, and decided it was an ear infection again and a sinus infection. He prescribed a stronger antibiotic, and we were out the door in under 10 minutes. I almost asked if we could just stay longer to make the hour wait worth it. Little did I know that I would be getting them back sooner than I thought.

As I waited in Target for his prescription, I noticed a small red spot on his face. I figured he fell asleep on his pappy in the car. Then the red spot started growing and there were white dots. I asked the pharmacist about it, but she was clueless. (To be honest, it made me nervous that I trust her with our medications.) As his face got more red and puffy, I panicked more.

I called the doctor and pushed 3 for emergency. (It was to me!) The nurse came on, and after I told her, she seemed to think it was an emergency too. She put me on hold while she paged the doctor. He said to bring Barrett straight in, and he would meet me there. He was out to lunch, and honestly I love that he was inconvenienced. If I wasn't panicked, I would have taken my time and showed up an hour later.

Without boring you with the details, Barrett apparently has sensitive skin. Within minutes of seeing the doctor, he looked totally normal. The doctor's not sure what caused it, maybe the infection, maybe something else, but his face is back to normal.

So, just like Daddy, Barrett is sick for Valentine's. Next year, I'm going on vacation without them on February 13th...

Happy Valentine's Day!

A Couple of Pics

Barrett has recently decided that there is something he likes as much as sweet potatoes.



There is nothing like a good foot to chew on.


Also, since Barrett is now getting out of the bouncy seat, I thought you might like to see the little stinker caught in the act.




I am in so much trouble when he starts crawling!

Have a great weekend!

Is It Really Only Tuesday?

Life has been so busy! I have been helping Cindy with her new life as much as I can. I can't imagine if I was her. She will be even busier when her little girl comes home from the hospital sometime this week. I am amazed with how well she's adjusting to Speedy (Since he is a foster placement, we can't put real names on line. Speedy Gonzales describes him perfectly!) . Cindy truly is a natural mommy!

Yesterday, Barrett and I ventured to Aunt Gretchen's house to pick up a changing table for the growing family at Cindy's. (Two kiddos in diapers!!) All three of us then headed to Babies R Us and Target to update Cindy's registries. Back when I began blogging, Cindy altered my blog. So, having her registry password at my disposal seemed like an opportunity for paybacks. At Target, Cindy has registered for 4 packages of Depends adult diapers, size XL. It felt good to finally get her back!

Barrett met Speedy last night, and it was wonderful. Speedy immediately wanted to love on him. He was very sweet and gentle. Speedy also helped feed Barrett a bottle. Both boys thought it was funny when Speedy pulled the bottle out of Barrett's mouth then stuck it back in over and over again. Although, the fun had to end when Speedy decided to taste Barrett's soy milk. He didn't seem to like it because he quickly handed the bottle back to me.

Barrett has been an absolute angel this week. I know he loves Cindy because he has made it easy for me to do whatever she needs. The only problem is he will eventually realize that the entertaining boy at her house isn't leaving, so jealousy might set in.

Here is an update on Barrett's latest events:

He has officially mastered rolling. He rolls everywhere. If you put him in one spot in the living room, he'll roll until he finds something to amuse himself. Sometimes it's one of his toys and sometimes it's things I should have vacuumed up. I guess I'll have to vacuum more.

Along with the rolling talent, he can also fling himself out of his bouncy seat. He usually ends up with is head caught in the bottom of it and his feet on the ground, but he has flipped over the side. So, I now strap him in, except the one time I forgot... I was in the shower, and he was happily bouncing and chewing on a toy. He started to lean, and I said, "Where are you going silly, you're strapped in." Oops. I then saw him flip over the side. As he hung about to hit his head on the tile, I jumped out of the shower and grabbed him. He didn't hit his head, but I managed to soak the entire bathroom and hit my head on the counter.

Barrett also had a big first. He met the cows at Nana and Paw's house. Doug took him out into the pasture to meet them. It was too cute! One of the cows walked right up to him. Paw just bought her, and since she was new and liked Barrett, I decided she is now Barrett's cow. I named her Grin, as in Grin and Barrett. I'm not sure Allen will really consider her Barrett's when he sells her calves, but it would be nice for the college fund. ( Have I mentioned how much he loves you Paw???) Here is a picture of Barrett, Doug, and Grin.

Barrett's food variety has also expanded. He doesn't like rice cereal. I know it's hard to believe, but an heir to the family's rice farm empire doesn't like rice. I reluctantly switched him to oatmeal, and I convinced his daddy that his lack of interest in rice cereal did not mean he would hate regular rice. (I really hope I'm right!) Barrett's veggies have included green beans, peas and sweet potatoes. He wasn't thrilled with the green stuff, but he loves sweet potatoes! If Barrett's Paw farmed sweet potatoes instead of rice, Barrett would be in heaven! Next week we'll be adding carrots, so we'll see if it's a color thing or not.

The last of the events is my favorite. Barrett is talking like crazy. I have no idea what he is talking about, but it is so fun to listen to him. When I am driving, he's either passed out or yapping. (Yes, he gets that from me. I said it, so there is no need for those of you who comment to point that out.) Doug and I are competing to teach him Mama and Dada. I figure I have a lot more coaching time, so maybe I'll win. Besides, if he says Dada when Doug's not around, I'll never tell! :)

Speaking of talking, someone doesn't want to go to bed tonight. I guess I'll go try again to get him to sleep.

Yeah for Cindy!

Thank you to my friends and family that have been praying for Cindy and Brien.

God has blessed them today! Go to her blog to read how. :)

Rolie Polie

Last night, I received a phone call I have been dreading. Rolex, my dog, passed away.

He has been living with my friend and old roommate, Misti, since Barrett was born. Rolex didn't adjust well to the new sibling, so Misti happily took him back. Even though he was 12 and a half years old, he was doing really well until recently. He had been having occasional seizures, but this week he had been back to his old perky self. Last night, he started breathing funny, so Misti held him as he died. She said the whole process only took about thirty minutes, so I am thankful that he didn't seem to suffer much.

This morning, Misti and I met at Doug's parent's house, and Doug's dad, Allen, buried him for us under a big tree by the pasture. It breaks my heart to even be writing this. So, even though this blog is usually all about Barrett, I want to take a few moments to tell my favorite Rolex memories.

Rolex was a Christmas gift when I was a sophomore in college. My grandma, Mimi, did NOT like animals. My parents actually sent her to look at dogs for me, so she went to a shih-tzu breeder near her house in Conroe. When she got there, the breeder kept showing her all the show quality puppies while this older puppy followed both women around. Mimi asked about him, and the lady said he was no good. He was a runt, and he didn't have good markings. Mimi said it didn't even take a second, and she knew that was the puppy for me. Mimi, like me, had a thing for the underdogs. (No pun intended!) When I was given Rolex that Christmas at Mimi's house, my younger cousins all thought that the critter dropped into my chair was a skunk. I was thrilled not only to have an adorable puppy, but also that Mimi let him in the house. Up until she sold the lakehouse, I think Rolex was the only dog she ever allowed in her house.

When Rolex was little, I lived in various apartments. When you live in apartment complexes that allow dogs in a college town, you NEVER walk in the grass. College students would never carry pooper scoopers! So, I would normally walk along the curb. It didn't take long for Rolex to learn from me. I had the only dog that would walk along the curb or sidewalk and not step in the grass. Even 12 years later, he still only put his front paws in the grass to pee. I was always embarrassed as his stream of pee ran down the sidewalk.

While Doug and I talked about Rolex this morning, Doug actually admitted he liked the little guy. (This was a HUGE moment for me!) Doug laughed as he recalled his all time favorite Rolex moment.

Rolex had a thing for soap. He always got into the tub and chewed it up. When Doug and I were dating, Rolex got into the tub again. When I noticed the chewed up soap pieces, I picked them up and thought nothing of it. I was just irritated that I would have to buy more soap again. Then later that night, Rolex started that awful sound dog's make before they puke. He did it a few times with no throw up, so I really figured he had some sort of cough. Then, it happened. Rolex puked up bubbles. I don't mean a few, there were bubbles everywhere. Doug was laughing so hard that he was no help. Finally Rolex finished, and I had mounds of bubbles all over my room. It was the cleanest throw up I ever had to clean up. (it's a shame Barrett's isn't like that too!- refer to yesterday's post.) Amazingly, Rolex still ate soap after that.

I could go on and on about Rolex. He was a great dog. He was able to make people happy when no one else could, he went to school every day the past 5 months with Misti and tolerated her special needs students pawing at him, he snuggled when you needed it, and he knew when to hide. He will be missed by so many people.



I hope Rolex finds Mimi in heaven. I'm sure she'll let him in her house there too!

Barrett's First Illness

For the past few days, Barrett just hasn't been himself. Up until yesterday, that is the only way I could describe what was "wrong". I can't even tell you what about him was making him seem different, but something was. Yesterday, his cute, fake cough turned into a real, wet cough. He also woke up last night in the middle of the night, and since he has slept through the night for months, I was worried about him. I decided that when the doctor's office opened at 8:00, I would call.

At 6:45, Barrett woke up and was his typical grumpy self. I went through our same morning routine of changing and getting comfy on the couch for his morning bottle. He normally sucks the whole thing down without even opening his eyes until he is about half way through it, but this morning, he took one swig, and started screaming. Eventually, he drank a couple of ounces.

Around 7:30, I was talking and playing with him on the couch, when the unexpected happened. He puked. I don't mean spit up, I mean puke. I was covered, he was covered, the couch was covered, the blanket on the couch was covered, the two pillows on the coach were covered. It was amazing the amount of fluid that flew out of such a little body. After stripping both of us and cleaning the couch, it was 8:00, time to call the doctor.

The appointment lady wanted to know his symptoms. So I told her, "He's not sleeping well, he not eating much, he congested, he's coughing, and he puked." Her reply was, "Are you sure he didn't just spit up?" I explained to her in great detail the amount of puke that flew from my son's mouth and nose all over my living room. She then said we should come in at 2:00.

Around noon, something I completely expected happened, he was fine. He ate, pooped, and started his nap. I knew when I made the appointment, he would magically be well. I really anticipated that they would say nothing was wrong, but I decided we were going anyway.

When we got to the doctor, the waiting room was full of sick kids hacking and not covering their mouths. At first I was irritated, but then Barrett starting coughing. I guess I can't complain if my kid is doing it too.

When the nurse took us back to the room, I was explaining his symptoms again. When I said he puked, she asked me if I was sure. So, again I explained the projectile soy milk incident.

Next, the doctor came in, and yes, she too asked me the symptoms. I was really tempted to ask if she could read because the nurse had just written them all down and the appointment lady probably did too, but I guess I shouldn't irritate the lady that is going to fix Barrett. So, for the third time, I give the list, and for the third time, I was asked if I was sure it was not just spitting up. I should have just worn the clothes I had on when he puked. That would have answered their questions.

I'm not sure if Barrett could sense my frustration about being doubted or if he just has great timing, but as the nurse walked in to ask the doctor a question, Barrett puked again. It wasn't quite the volume of the first time, but his distance greatly improved.

I smiled and asked, "Is that considered throwing up?"

I love my son.

After getting to move to a new room, the doctor, in a new coat (ha!), looked Barrett over. It turns out he has an ear infection. Apparently, the drainage stuff can make him sick to his stomach.

Now that we have an antibiotic, he should be back to himself soon as long as he keeps it down!