History of the J Man

Jonah had his first drop off play date this weekend.  He went next door to his friend Luca’s house for a few hours.  I was a little worried about how the drop off would go since in the past either Chris or I have always stayed with him at play dates but I shouldn’t have worried.  He literally walked into Luca’s house, took off his shoes and dove into the box of cars.  When I said, “bye” he was like, “yeah, bye” without even looking up. 

They had a great time playing at Luca’s house and then riding in the wagon to the park.  Here’s a photo of the two of them at the newly redone park in our neighborhood.  It was wonderful of Luca’s parents to take both boys out so Chris and I could get some other things accomplished child-free, at least for now (less than 1 week away from my due date!).

Below is a photo of Jonah and Luca at the park.

I have some unrelated photos from this month that are cute so I wanted to get them posted before Jonah’s little brother arrives.  Less than 2 weeks until my due date now.  My last day of work is May 7th so I’m hoping he doesn’t come early, I’d like to get that one last pay check in. 

This first photos is of Jonah and Chris decorating Easter eggs at our house.  I think Jonah’s fingers got almost as colorful as the eggs.

A post-bath photo of him in his new Ikea bath towel with a hood that actually fits over his head. He’s outgrown the other ones we have…

And this last photo is from the other night. He fell asleep with his baby doll and I thought it was really cute. He used to sleep with Elmo like this but lately he’d rather have cars or trains in bed with him. He keeps talking about his baby brother sleeping in his bed with him too. I told him in his room yes, but they will each have their own beds.

I also found him one night with a bunny rabbit toy stuffed into the belly of his shirt, he fell asleep that way. Maybe imitating how I look? I’m not sure what that one was about and didn’t take a photo.

Jonah is into singing lately. Here are short videos of him singing his current favorite songs.

Just in time for the Cub’s home opener next week it’s Take Me Out to the Ballgame:

Take Me Out to the Ballgame from Julie Diehl on Vimeo.

And his other favorite to sing is Itsy Bitsy Spider:

Itsy Bitsy Spider Song from Julie Diehl on Vimeo.

About 2 weeks ago Jonah started a big boy swim class.  He’s not 3 yet but he and Kate have been going to the baby swim class at the park district since he was about 6 months old and by last session the instructors thought he had gotten about all he could out of that class.  He suggested Jonah sign up for the next level even before his birthday.

This class is different in that Kate is NOT in the water with him.  He’s there with other big kids and a few instructors.  The kids take turns sitting on the wall or getting into the water with the teachers.  We weren’t sure how Jonah would like it but he did great.  No crying or anything.  He did most of what the instructors asked him to do and waved at Kate in the window as he swam by. 

Here are photos from today’s class, before getting into the water. 

This weekend Jonah gets to go swimming with mommy and daddy at the hotel.  We’re going back to the hotel where we got married to spend the night for our anniversary.  Jonah will come swimming with us that afternoon then Grandma and Grandpa are going to pick him up and take him for the night.  Should be fun for everyone.

A friend of mine was looking for new books for her 10 month old son so I created this list for her.  Her son is into animals and trucks so that was my theme here.  Those also happen many of our favorites too.  We’re getting more into longer stories and Dr. Seuss books these days but I thought I’d capture a list of what we’ve really liked up until 2.5 years old.  There are some obvious favorites missing like Good Night Moon, Bear Snores On and Runaway Bunny but most of the moms I know already have those. 

Perfect Pets – Bright Baby Touch and Feel

          There are others of these but this is my favorite.

Big Red Barn – Margaret Wise Brown

          Also one of my favorite bedtime books. 

Sheep in a Jeep – Nancy Shaw

The Going to Bed Book– Sandra Boynton

          Love the Sandra Boynton books but this and Horns to Toes are my favorites.

Tails – Matthew Van Fleet (also like Dogs by the same author)

          We’ve already done through 2 Dog books but these are both fun.

Little Blue Truck– Alice Schertle

          One of my favorites!  A fun story, Jonah can make the sounds and it has a good message.

Roadwork – Sally Sutton

          This is a clever truck book that I don’t mind reading.

How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night– Jane Yolan & Mark Teague

I like this series of Dinosaur books we have a few in the series. 

Move it! Builders– Mike Brownlow

(I’m feeling like we need to post some new photos here but first we have to take some!  With Passover and Easter coming up that shouldn’t be a problem, stay tuned.)

For now I want to post a quick potty traing update.  As of this morning Jonah has spent 2 dry nights, in a row, in underpants.  It was his idea the first night and the 2nd night I didn’t really give him the option.  I thought this would be a tricky transition becuase he’s always gotten so wet at night.  For about 2 years now we’ve been buying the super absorbent Huggies Overnights because regular day-time diapers would leak before he woke up.  Those were the only ones that worked.  Hopefully now they are no longer needed!  We’ll see, I know it’s early to proclaim success but he gets it during the day and during nap time so maybe this is just the 2nd step.  We cut out his drink before bed and I think that helps too.  Keep your fingers crossed….

Now - if anyone has ideas on how to get him to poop on the potty I’m all ears.  So far he still asks for a diaper when he has to do that.  We’ve tried promising him stickers or other rewards for sitting there or even for trying sometimes but so far those don’t seem to work.  He likes to do it in his diaper after our nanny leaves.  He asks for one, we put it on, he tells us to leave the room then comes walking out, legs spread when he’s done and says, “You change it,” pointing to Chris or I, whomever he deems worthy at that moment, usually me, lucky me.  I’m anxious to give up that duty and only have to buy one size of diapers at a time once his baby brother arrives.  If you have ideas, send them our way!

Unfortunately, Julie has not been feeling well lately, so Jonah and I spent a lot of time together this past weekend.  Even though we missed Mama, we still had a really good time.

For new parents looking for a cheap diversion, I highly recommend the pet store.  Jonah and I went there on Saturday and we had fun looking at all the animals.  Jonah especially enjoyed the fish and birds.  There was a little kid there who was buying a hamster, and he was interested in watching the pet shop worker take it out.  And as always, he enjoyed seeing the cats.

Saturday evening we visited our friends Amit and Amber and played with their 20-month-old Kalyan.  Jonah hadn’t seen little Kal since our big trip to California and the San Diego Zoo just before New Year’s, so it was great to see him again.   Jonah loved playing with all of Kal’s toys, especially a four-wheeler that he enjoyed taking for a spin at Kal’s apartment.  We looked at some photos on TV and Jonah got a kick out of seeing himself on a big flat screen, which is a lot nicer than the TV we have.  Jonah still looks like a giant compared to his friend, but then, he’s still pretty big for his age.  He stands about a head taller than Kal, but I think Kal is at around 2nd percentile for h/w, and Jonah is at like 75th percentile, so comparisons aren’t really fair.

On Sunday I took Jonah to Chinatown with his Aunt Kelley and Uncle Jeff for dimsum brunch.  Unfortunately the place we wanted to go was too crowded, so we went to a smaller place around the corner that was just as good.  Aunt Kelley was nice enough to buy him an action figure from some anime program and of course load him up with candy.  And I got my BBQ pork bun that I always have to get when I’m down there.

As far as milestones, in the last week or so, Jonah has been counting everything.  for the longest time, if you’d ask Jonah, “How many?” his answer was usually “One” if there was one, and “Two” if there were two, four, seven or 25.  But now he is able to count to 10 usually without any help, and he can get up to 20 if you help get him rolling.

I’m also impressed by Jonah’s singing ability.  He now loves to sing songs by himself.  He is able to sing “Itsy Bitsy Spider” and “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” without any help.  He really loves the “One, two, three strikes your out” part, delivering that line with particular gusto.  He’ll sing “Wheels on the Bus” but usually asks for help on that one.  He also likes the teeth brushing song and will correct you when you’re wrong, which is entertaining.

Potty training gone OK thus far; he’s able to recognize when he has to go #1 and there haven’t been too many accidents there, though #2 is more of a challenge, as he likes to go in his diaper still.  We’ve been encouraging him to go on the potty, offering special treats and such, but thus far, no substantial progress.  We’re not worried at all, but it will be nicer once he’s out of diapers.

Finally, we are doing what we can to prepare for the birth of baby #2.  Julie keeps telling me I need to change the name of the blog, which I guess I’ll have to do, maybe after we settle on a name for the new guy.

Jonah has been fighting us about bedtime lately.  Some nights we just let him play in his room as long as he does it quietly.  He usually ends up in his bed on his own but on this night he spread out his new blanket on his floor and must have fallen asleep reading.  I took a video of it so the camera flash wouldn’t wake him up. 

Jonah Asleep on the Floor from Julie Diehl on Vimeo.

Jonah had a great time decorating Valentine’s Day cards this year and sending them out to friends and family. Here’s a quick video of him explaining the one he made for Aunt Amy & Uncle Tim.

Aunt Amy’s Valentine Card from Julie Diehl on Vimeo.

Have Chris and I been together too long already?  It will be 5 years in April for us but this Valentine’s Day shows we know each other well.  After breakfast we pulled out cards and gifts for everyone.  Jonah got a couple cards and some candy and was happy with it. 

Chris and I both opened our cards then checked the front of the envelope because we had given each other the SAME CARD!  Of all the Hallmark cards out there what are the chances we’d pick the same one for each other?!  Pretty funny.  Great minds think alike I guess.