Bathtub Surprise

We had our first experience of having a "snickers" bar in our bathtub the other night. Actually Brooks just pooped while taking a bath. Yes, I know it's gross. But, I found it hilarious. Mostly for two reasons. One, I remember this traumatic event happening quite a few times as a child and two, I couldn't wait to see Justin's reaction. Good times for sure. It didn't catch me off guard b/c I watched Brooks' face turn red a couple times during his bath, but I figured it was just a bit of discomfort. He had already pooped that day and he rarely goes at night. He's a before noon kind of a guy. I did laugh pretty hard to the point where I almost cried listening to Justin clean it out of the tub. He used one of Murphy's pick up bags to fish it out. Surprisingly Brooks managed to do it again the next night only this time I was quite shocked. That time I pulled him out of the tub like lightning. Here is a picture of the first night's aftermath and then I captured look on Brooks' face... who me?

Our Baby Seal

Yes, I'm talking about Brooks. He became our baby seal late Friday night when he came down with croup. It's a horrible upper respiratory virus young children get from colds. If you aren't familiar with this virus, wait until your child coughs. It sounds like a barking baby seal. We ended up taking a trip to the Emergency room Friday (November 26) night.

He woke up around 11pm coughing (like a seal). He had such a hard time breathing that we decided to load him up and quickly (no speeding) drive to the hospital. When we arrived the nurse used an external thermometer which said Brooks had a 104 fever. The nurse then said, "this thing never works." Nice.

They whisked us into the back where Brooks received his first rectal temperature. 101.5. A few minutes later we went to room 18 where we would spend the next 2 1/2 hours. During that time the nurse gave Brooks some Tylenol, a steroid which caused him to spew all over the floor, more Tylenol, a breathing treatment and then another type of steroid. Brooks took it like a champ.

This first picture is when we first got into room 18. In the hustle of leaving the house we forgot his diaper bag. Thank goodness the hospital had a diaper to spare... unfortunately, no change of clothes for the massive amount of throw up that ended up down his front side.


This is video of Brooks during his breathing treatment. He was so tired and not too happy with steam blowing into his face.

The second video is Brooks shortly after his breathing treatment and a 15 minute nap. Most of the time you would rather not see your baby hyper at 1am, but everyone who passed our door stopped to say hello to him. What a ham.

We finally left the hospital around 2am. We had to make a quick stop at CVS to pick up a medicine cabinet for Brooks. Not bad for our first trip to the ER.

Good Doggy

Brooks loves Murphy. He obviously can't understand me when I say "No Murphy or Get Murphy" 100 times a day. I do take the time to let Brooks say hi to Murphy when he comes home from daycare. He gets so excited to see her. The other night Justin tried to let Brooks pet Murphy and he went crazy. He laughed for a good 10 minutes as Justin helped him chase Murphy around the house. Murphy took it in strides, but she's not a super fan of the "petting" or rather grasping of her hair.

Parkin It

Justin and I took Brooks to the park at Folly Beach Sunday afternoon. Earlier in the day I had asked Justin about taking this small venture and he said yes on the condition we watched the first few minutes of the NFL games. Coincidentally, the break in football came right after Brooks finished his nap.

When we first arrived at the park we weren't quite sure what to do with Brooks since he really can't go off an play on his own. First we tried the rocking seahorse. Yes, the look on Brooks face seems to be the same one we get every time we go in public. The "what in the world is going on and where am I" look. We eventually gave the swing a try which worked out pretty well. We weren't quite sure how he would fit... perfectly! And, lastly we sat him on the to of the slide long enough to snap a few photos.

Sorry, the video is sideways.

High Chair Highness

Brooks is growing up. He is now using a high chair. At 6 1/2 months, I'm sure some people are saying, "It's about time." I held off on using it because he would drool the food out of his mouth if he sat up too straight. I used his travel swing for the past two months until... the other day he practically squirmed out of of it.

My cousin Marc and his wife gave us the space saver chair which is awesome b/c it fits in a regular chair and doesn't take up any extra space... thus the "space saver." Anyway, Brooks loves it! And, it makes feeding him so much easier. Why did I wait so long?

Family Affair

The Ball family came to town Halloween weekend for Brook' baby dedication at church. The whole clan included my older brother, Adam, his wife, Mandy and their 2 1/2 year old, Wyatt. My younger sister Rachel lives here in Charleston. And, my young(est) sister, Joanna, her husband, Joseph, and their 10 month old, Lena drove down from Charlotte. Quite the crew.

My mother hired our friend Tara to take some pictures of the family before church that Sunday. Tara is such a trooper to coordinate 19 people (Justin's parents also came), 3 of which are children. We met at the gazebo in the Battery on the Peninsula which is a super place to take pictures. We hustled around for about an hour trying to make sure our smiles didn't turn into fake face stretches. I'd say it went rather well despite a few moments of bribing Wyatt to take just one more photo.

I would love to see the couple hundred pictures Tara snapped just to see the split seconds of everyone not looking at the camera. Tara picked out 60 photos to focus on and edit. It's fun to look at them and remember that moment when Wyatt broke out into song, "This is the day, this is the day," or when 10 people are waving keys making silly sounds to get Lena & Brooks to smile. You will notice Brooks mostly had what Justin and I call the "surprised" look on his face. I can't blame him. It's also fun to see the moments you didn't notice like Wyatt and Lena glancing at each other or Wyatt grabbing Brooks around the neck for a hug or my favorite is Lena looking back at Joseph... super cute!

After our hour long photo session we walked a few "long" blocks to church. Justin and I could help but be a little nervous about the dedication. The pastor calls the family up front, asks a few questions, explains the dedication and then... takes the baby on a walk around the sanctuary (Dun, dun dun). It could have gone three ways. Good, Bad or Ugly. Good, meaning Brooks sits somewhat still in Marshal's arms smiling like crazy. Bad, meaning at some point he gets scared and starts crying. Ugly, meaning he decides to poop as we walk up and then throw up all over Marshall during the walk. It could happen. Thankfully, we timed it well and he started falling asleep. Ha, ha.

Later, everyone commented on what a good baby we have. Awe.

Happy Half Birthday

Brooks turns six months old on Wednesday. Everybody says it goes by so fast, but honestly I think it's been perfect. Half birthdays are nearly just as special to me as the big day. I remember quite often my mother singing half of the birthday song to us on our half birthdays. It felt like a milestone and October 20th certainly feels like a day to celebrate.

We went to the doctor's office on Thursday (14th) for his 3rd set of immunizations. Brooks is such a trooper. He didn't even wince during the first two shots and he only cried for a few seconds after the second two shots. (Yes, he got four... one was the flu shot)

27 inches (75%)
17.5 lbs (50%)
44.5 cm (75%)

Bottom line: tall, skinny kid with a big head.

Brooks has picked up a few new tricks in the past few weeks. One that is fun to watch, but he doesn't do on demand... is the zerbert sound. This is something I would do with him when he was first born b/c it would make him smile... so, Justin blames me for his ability to make this new sound.




Brooks learned to roll over from his back to his stomach a few weeks ago. (Video in a previous post) For weeks I was excited for this to happen so that he would be able to sleep on his stomach. The first few nights were a little rough b/c every time he made it to his stomach he would wake up crying. Now, the stomach is the only way to go (with the butt in the air).

A couple weekends ago we went to a wedding. Brooks is usually pretty quiet in public, but when we returned to the hotel room after the reception he became a bit hyper. Justin used his silliness and hate for Miami to get Brooks laughing.

Finally, Brooks found his feet a few months ago, but now he can suck on his toes.

Model Face

Brooks is a natural at posing for pictures. Maybe we will see him in a Baby Gap ad some day. Our super duper friend, Tara, purchased a new camera recently and asked if should could practice using it by taking photos of Brooks. I didn't really need to think about it b/c of course!

Tara tooks the first batch of pictures when Brooks turned 2 months old. He actually went to the doctor's that day for his first set of immunizations.

The second set of pictures came off the cuff a few days before Brooks turned 3 months old. Tara came to the house for about an hour to watch Brooks while I went to the grocery store.

The last few pictures happened a few weeks ago the day before Brooks turned 5 months old. Tara came to the house to take a few "naked baby" photos. She did a phenominal job using the natural light to bring out the best in Brooks.

Flipper

Brooks can roll over... kind of. Technically he can, but it takes a lot of hard work and motivation. Justin noticed him arching his back and turning his head to the floor a couple weeks ago... almost like he was looking for food. We kept pushing his butt over to help him get to his stomach. September 24th went down in Brooks history when he finally flipped on his own. If he could just get his arm above his head it would be a much easier and successfull turn. It took some patience, but I did get one of his first few rolls on camera. Once he flips over he gets a big smile on his face like he knows he worked hard to do it, but then a few minutes later and he's angry that he's still on his stomach. :)

Boat Trip

Over Labor Day weekend Justin's Dad rented a boat so we could go hang out on the river. We had 10 people in the group plus Brooks. His parents purchased a life jacket for him which was more like a straight jacket. It said it fits 0-30 pounds, but I'm not sure a baby smaller than Brooks would fit in it without falling through the bottom.

We arrived at the dock half an hour before our launch time. Brook started getting fussy and I thought to myself, this isn't going to work. I had nearly convinced myself to head home, but everyone kept saying we could give it a try and just turn around if he started crying. Instead, I popped in his pacifier and that seem to settle him down. This could go one of two ways... it's either going to be fine or this could be a diaster. Thankfully, he ate twice and took two naps which meant he was quite a trooper.

We took a few pictures to mark his first boat ride. Yes, the life jacket practically swallowed him. And, yes... Justin and I sound like red necks in the video.

Yum, Paste... or Rice Cereal

The doctor mentioned at his 4 month exam that I could start feeding him rice cereal. I had it in the back of my mind that I would entertain the idea more in a few weeks only because he sticks out his tongue quiet a bit and I thought it might easier if he could actually sit. Our doctor told me that if in a few weeks the bottles don't seem to satisfy him, then I could try the cereal to tie him over. I thought, perfect. I'll see how it goes.

Well, tonight (3 days later) we tried rice cereal. He started sucking his 5 ounce bottles dry on Saturday so I bumped him up an ounce which he gladly took. A couple of times over the weekend he ate the whole 6 ounces and seemed to want more. So I thought maybe we'll give cereal a try.

Part of my hesitation comes from my sister, Joanna's, experiences with her daughter, Lena. Let's just say rice cereal didn't work for miss Lena Loo, but Brooks took it like a champ. Keep in mind the first feeding we tried, he'd been awake for 2 hours and was fussy because he was tired. It did cross my mind that I should have waited until he was a bit more manageable, but we went with it anyway. Brooks actually ate 7-10 half spoonfulls of cereal. I thought he did really well, for something that tastes like paste.

I tried a second round of rice cereal after he took his 8pm bottle. Again, he sucked down his 6 ounce bottle and went straight for his hands. This time, I made a teaspon of cereal and he ate all of it... and, this time with a smile. :)

Sprawled

I'm anxiously waiting for Brooks to start rolling over so he can sleep on his stomach. Right now we put him to sleep on his back. He does pretty well, but I think he will seelp more soundly on his stomach. I've decided to wait on putting him down on his tummy until he can roll over to that position. Well, I better start praying for a wife who doesn't need a lot of room in bed.

4 Month Birthday

Brooks turned four months old on Friday (August 20th). I felt like I needed to throw a party. The day before we went to the doctor's for his 2nd round of immunizations. I love how they make you strip down the kid before sticking him on the scale... don't they realize he's a boy? I mean, I'm frantically trying to hover my hand over his lower region for any shooters, hoping he doesn't spray everything. (Note: He's not much of a shooter right now... even in the bath tub.) Anyway, here are his stats:

Weight: 14.12

Height: 25 inches

Head: 42 cm (I'm assuming cm, because inches would mean he's got problems.)

Compared to other babies, he's right in the middle. 50% across the board. I was relieved to hear this because he was a bit on the short side during his 2 month exam. We may have a wing man instead of a point guard. :)

The immunizations went well. He started crying after the first shot and the second shot just made him plain mad. His face turned red and he did the silent cry before finally taking a breath. Definately more crying than his 2 month check up.

The 2 hours at the appoint timed out well b/c by the time we left he was ready for a nap. As you can tell in the picture, he had enough for the day.

Almost Laughing

As usual, just before I started video taping Brooks, he cackled out loud for the first time. For weeks, he came so close to laughing and you could tell he just needed a little push to make him crack up. While this isn't a hearty laugh it is cute to see him smile at me blowing in his face.

Say Cheese

I don't have any stories that go with these pictures, but I thought you might enjoy seeing the many faces of Brooks.

Skinny Face

Pout Face

Back Seat Smiles

No Head

Sitting Up

Heads Up

Brooks isn't a fan of tummy time, but we try to get him on his stomach a few minutes each day. For some reason, he doesn't quite get that if you put your arms by your head you can use them to push up. Instead, he puts them to his side and looks more like super baby. This is a little video of his heads up pose just moments before he threw a fit because he was soooooooo over it.

Feel the Love

I've posted before Brooks' love afair with inanimate objects. He learned how to lift his butt in the air and scooch along the floor. This is video of him making his way up Mr. Giraffe and giving him some kisses.

Beach Bum

Brooks took his first trip to the beach recently. I realize he's now four months old and my sister questioned why we waited so long to make the visit. My answer: it's 90 something degrees with a head index. We didn't want a baby cookie. We finally realized that we could go in the evening, when it's still excessively hot, but at least the heat warning has expired.

The trip went super well. I mean, it's hard to tell if he "loved" it, but he didn't cry so that's always a measure of success. I took a few pictures and a short video to document the baptizing in the ocean.

Ta-Da

When Brooks reaches a milestone it's almost like magic. It unexpectedly happens. Tuesday marks his 3 month birthday and sometime last week it crossed my mind that he wasn't really lifting is head up. I thought to myself, "Man, I have a week to get him caught up. I mean, shouldn't he be pushing up and starting to roll over." Keeping in mind that every child develops differently, I knew doing these things were 3 month milestones.

Well, low and behold my little Einstein surprised me with a little head bobbing last night. Mind you this is at 10pm (The late night is another story), but I couldn't help but be excited.

Here is some video of his magic trick.

Speaking Japanese

Brooks and I had a conversation the other day. It wasn't the first one we've had, but definitely the longest. I call it talking, although it sounds more like Japanese. Here's how it went:

Me: "What are you doing today?"
Brooks: "Ah, goo." (Translation - Hanging out on the couch.)
Me: "Oh really?"
Brooks: "Ohhhhh Ewwww" (Translation - Yep)
Me: "Do you come here often?"
Brooks: "Owwwwwe, goo" (Translation - Every day)
Me: "Let's go play in the rainforest." (His play mat with lights and music)
Brooks: "Ah um." (Translation - Ok)

Video Disclaimer - The camera started to drift so you only see half his face for most of it. :) My bad.

Turn that Frown Upsidedown

Brooks is adding to his repertoire of facial expressions. He now frowns. And, while I should feel sad that he sad, I actually find it more humorous than his squawking happiness. The frown will appear out of nowhere. The smiling, almost laughing child, will in an instant flash that puckered bottom lip. Justin will continue to play with him and Brooks will go back and forth between smiling and frowning... like, "Am I happy or am I sad?"

Major Milestone

I realize Brooks has probably met many milestones... such as smiling when he is awake and not just when he's falling asleep, but I feel like he really hit his first milestone this week. Brooks can now take his hand and put it in his mouth to suck on (Baby steps people). I find it quite entertaining because his little tongue gets going and you can tell exactly what he's doing based on the sound when you aren't looking.

I noticed a kid his age in his daycare class (the not fun daycare) doing it and I thought, "Wow, that's amazing. He's the same age and Brooks can barely get that one lick in if his hand just happens to make a pass near his face." Just a few days later and Brooks can do it too. AND, I noticed it's his left hand. We're praying for a switch hitter. :)

Here is some video of him doing it. He looks a little special so, don't judge.

Best Friends Forever

I know friends will come and go, but Eli (The Elephant) and Moses (The Monkey) are something special. I found the pair at Wal-Mart and Brooks instantly fell in love. I'm pretty sure this is how we will hear his first laugh as he gives the biggest grins when his friends visit.

We also have Gerry the Giraffe... yes, the same giraffe Brooks made out with in the stroller (previous post). Gerry sings to Brooks while he gets his diaper changed. It makes the cold wipe against his skin just a little less breath taking.

Signs Brooks is Hungry

There are several signs a baby will exhibit to let you know they are hungry... crying, tongue pushing, turning of the head, chomping on the pacifier like there is no tomorrow... or if you are my kid, you make out with whatever object is closest to your mouth.

This has happened twice, once in public. Vicki had just bought Brooks a giraffe that played music and we sat it next to him in the stroller. Justin looked down and noticed Brooks making out with his new toy. We had to stage it a bit to catch the video, but it was worth it.

The second time, Brooks and I were out running errands. By the time we got home... it was about 30 minutes past his typical feeding schedule. And, once again, he was making out with the car seat flap.

I still laugh when I see the videos.

The Fountain of Spew

The first time it happened I sat in shock and awe before rushing to grab a towel. Brooks not only "spit" (kind of a lame word when you're talking about an entire 4 ounce bottle) up, but it shot at least 2 feet across the couch. I've heard stories about projectile vomiting, but there is nothing like experiencing it for the first time.

Shortly after Brooks ate he started drooling milk out of his mouth. Then, slowly it continued and much like a volcano he exploded. Holy Mackrle I thought... now I have to change clothes, Brooks has to change clothes, we need a new couch and now he needs to eat... again.

We've had two other similar experiences and my reaction hasn't changed. I did manage to capture the 2nd erruption for a future scrap book page.