Jamus' 2nd Christmas

Jamus had such a wonderful Christmas! I think the thing he liked most was the decorations. Every time we walk by the Christmas tree, he lets out a big sigh of admiration: "Ahhhhh." He is going to be terribly disappointed when it disappears this weekend.

Here he is with his stocking the morning of Christmas Eve. This is the time we set aside for just the three of us. He got one of his very favorite presents of the whole holiday: pudding cups!

Here he is opening a present with Gammie:

His very own laptop! He loves it.

He also got to take a ride in Cappy's new bowling bag, which was very fun.

And here is the present that caused Jamus' first minor tantrum. We were giving him an indoor ride on his new sled, and he wanted to do it again and again. Unfortunately, he forgot that he has known how to politely ask for "more" for about 4 months. He was so overexcited, he just threw a complete fit. Needless to say, a nap soon followed.

Of course, when Mommy wasn't looking Grandma Faye helped Jamus enjoy a delicious cookie. You can tell he knew it was not something he would normally be allowed to have before dinner!

Christmas stocking for a tiny one

This fall I took on the project of making stockings for our growing family. I knew I was pregnant so I definitely wanted to make a stocking for the littlest Schraw.

Once the stocking was made I realized that we would certainly need to get something to put in it! There is nothing worse than an empty stocking.

Every time we've been to the store for the last month I've looked at the newborn section and tried to find just the right thing. I didn't want to overdo it because we don't know if it is a boy or a girl yet. If it is a boy, this kid is going to have plenty of great hand me downs from his brother and cousins. (Thanks Grayson and Weston!) On the other hand, if it is a girl, the last thing I want is something else neutral. I want PINK!

I think I finally found the perfect compromise. Kohl's had a buy 1, get 1 free deal on these adorable tees:
Warning: if you are a friend of mine in your childbearing years, one of these might be re-gifted to you!

Litterbug

Here is my 12-week bump last weekend. The first trimester is almost over!

I have been pretty nauseous again with this pregnancy, but last week I bravely accepted my mother-in-law's invitation to do some Christmas shopping in Traverse City. It is about an hour and 15 minutes away and our closest mall.

We left at about 10:30 AM. I requested a quick stop at McDonald's for an Egg McMuffin. (The more I eat, the less nauseous I feel, which might explain my need for maternity clothes in the first trimester). It was only 10:40, but apparently that's lunch time in their McWorld. So I just got some fries and a coke.

About 10 or 15 fries in, these fries were suddenly utterly disgusting to me. I put them down on the floor. But I could still smell them. They smelled so greasy. I realized it was me or them, so I threw them out the window, bag and all.

My mother-in-law was quite shocked but a very good sport. It ended up being a great day! As usual, Jamus brought joy to everyone he saw. His sweetness reminds me that pregnancy is worth it in the end.

Santa is on Jamus' naughty list

A lesson in sharing

I am sure you are expecting me to discuss how Jamus has trouble sharing. He is only 1 after all. It is probably a lesson he will have to eventually learn, but I guess I have to learn it myself before I can teach it.

My first lesson in sharing involves every single thing I have eaten in Jamus' line of sight for several weeks now. He is a magnet to food. It doesn't matter a bit whether he is hungry or not. Even if he just ate a full meal, if I get something out to eat he has to try at least a few bites. He will stand at my knee, look up at me with his big expressive brown eyes, point and say, "Sat sat sat." That's roughly short for "Wassat?" or, more properly, "What is that? I demand to have some." I've had to learn to plan for this. When I cut up my apple, I cut a few slices small enough to share with Jamus. (Ok, an apple sounds really good right now.). Even if I eat something he can't have, I always bring a little something he can and try to trick him into thinking we're eating the same thing.

My second lesson in sharing came after Jamus and I both had our afternoon naps the other day. I got up a little earlier from mine so I could eat a snack in peace. I put on HGTV to keep me company. When Jamus got up, I left the tv on so I could see how the big home makeover turned out. He let me have a few minutes, but then he walked over to the tv, looked at it, then looked back at me and started doing his adorable fake finger snap/tongue click. He was asking me to turn off my program and put on music instead. How could I possibly say no to such a successful attempt at communication? It is amazing that he can now so clearly tell us what he wants, but I guess that means a lot more sharing.

Jamus, age 13 1/2 months, has a lot to teach Momma, age 29 and 11 months.