New

Our new gymboree class is going okay. We went from being one of three children to one of ten. The children are a lot more active and I think Ben was taken back in our first class. He spent most of the time just watching other kids! This class has a lot more physical activites so I think it’s good for him. However, I have found that I have a harder time keeping things (ie- balls, beanbags, plastic toys) out of his mouth.

I foam with our antibacterial hand foam, ever time we go to a new activity. I also don’t let him put anything in his mouth which can be unavoidable. Sometimes, I catch the other mom’s looking at me while I foam both of us. I struggle with announcing to our class that Ben has CF or not. I want other mom’s to know why I sanitize so much but another part of me doesn’t want anyone to look at him differently. For now I will keep silent but I’m sure a time will come when I need to speak up.

After our class, there is open gym time. I often stay with Ben to let him play until he gets tired. It can be hard at times, other mom’s come in with older children that run wild. Last Friday, some brat boy started throwing balls at my head! The first time, I let it go, smiled at him and glanced at his mom (who was in deep convo with another mom, completely oblivious to what was going on). The second time, I picked up Ben and moved away. The third time, he started throwing them at Ben! Talk about maternal instinct, I nearly threw one back at him! Teach him to mess with my child! However, I held myself back and grabbed the ball from his hand, told him no in a loud voice (so his mother would notice) and moved completely away.

I have joined a mom’s group, MOPS, at a church in Roseville. Today was my first day. I brought Ben into the group because I’m not ready to leave him in the childcare. Needless to say, it wasn’t easy and I’m not sure how often I’ll make it. A 10 1/2 month old doesn’t sit still for long.

Before we know it, he’ll be walking!

His new favorite activity is to pull all his books off the shelf. Because I don’t have enough to do already!

 

Shenanigans

Our little man certainly is moving lately! Phew, we can barely keep up!

Giving lots and lots of kisses to anyone


Getting into everything



But still totally adorable!

Wordless Wednesday

Can you tell what the little man is hauling around?!

The million dollar question

"When are you having your next baby?"

This seems to be a question I'm getting a lot lately, so I thought I'd address it. I think it's only natural for people to be curious and to think that our next one won't be too far behind. So let me set the record straight- Ryan and I are not financially nor emotionally ready for another child.

Don't get me wrong, Ben has been the biggest joy in our lives. We love him more then we thought possible. We did think that our children would be close in age but our circumstances have changed. The economy isn't what it used to be and with every conception we have a 25% chance of having a baby with CF. That is something we don't take lightly.

After being pregnant for nine months and breastfeeding for nearly eleven, I'd like time to just be. Time to myself, time with Ryan, and time with Ben. We are enjoying being a family of three for now.

We have been thinking, discussing, and praying about this for awhile. We are making decisions that we feel is best for our family. We feel that when the time is right we will know. Our next move is to buy a house but who knows how long that may be. I feel comfortable leaving you with this; when we buy a house, Baby Hughes 2.0 will soon follow :)

Weekend Fun

This weekend went by in a whirl! On Saturday, I took a limo down to Lodi with some of my friends and went wine tasting. It was good to get out for the day, and I know that Ryan and Ben had a good "boy's day" together. I missed my boys though, I couldn't wait to get home to them!


It's nice to be back in Sac so I can go out with my friends.

On Sunday, we headed out to Serene Lakes by Lake Tahoe, where my Aunt and Uncle have a cabin for the night. Boy, was it cold! There was a huge storm that came through and just dumped snow on us. Ben and I didn't even go outside. Ryan spent the day snowboarding with my brother and friend. It was great to spend some time with extended family.



My mom ready for her walk. I refused to go for obvious reasons

Ben with my brother and Daniel

Ben loved leaving his mark on the cabin....

...his fingerprints!!

Decisions, decisions

Ah, to be a kid again, where your hardest decision is deciding which toy to play with:




Yes, that is a bell pepper and asparagus. He loves to gnaw on both. I think it feels good on his gums but I'm done guessing when his teeth are going to come in. I should be thankful for no teeth because I'm still nursing.

I am hoping to take a class on raising a child with CF. It is based on the theories of the Love and Logic series. I, personally, really like their ideas on how to raise a confident, responsible child. Would anyone else like to take this with me?? You don't even need to leave your house. Click on the picture to make it bigger for info.

Goodbye...

....level 2 Gymboree! We are moving up a level to the 10-16 month olds. That's right, we're saying goodbye to teacher Katie, and hello to teacher Audrey! Ben has become so much more active the last couple weeks, that I am glad we are moving up a level where they do a lot more physical activities. No more signing songs in a circle (which Ben wouldn't sit through anyway!). Our new class time is on Fridays which is great because Ryan maybe able to join us once in awhile. Of course, we couldn't leave level 2 before numerous amounts of pictures....