Ian Says His First Word!

I thought he has said,"dog" and "duck" in the past month in reference to a dog and and duck, but he wouldn't repeat it, so I couldn't be sure. He "woofs" whenever he sees a dog and has since June, but that is speaking Dog, not English. I do think it counts for something, though, because he uses it whenever he sees any dog (including pictures of dogs on the food bags at the store) or he is looking for Roxxy.

But, today he said,"Daddy" while on the phone with Daddy.

I said,"Do you want to talk to Daddy?"

He said,"Daddy" and took the phone.

When Curt spoke to him, he said,"Daddy" again.

I asked him to say it again and he did, three times, only one of which was Dada, the rest were Da-dee.

Very cool for Curt to catch this.

Now we'll see if he does it next time we talk to Curt on the phone.

Book Review: Mama Knows Breast by Andi Silverman

I love to give and receive advice, especially on all things related to breastfeeding: resources, challenges, products, everything! Mama Knows Breast by Andi Silverman is a compact, concise collection of advice that you might receive from a trusted, experienced breastfeeding friend. There are many great breastfeeding resources out there like La Leche League's The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and Dr. Jack Newman and Teresa Pitman's The Ultimate Book of Breastfeeding Answers, but they are large and thick books with a lot of detail. In your last months of pregnancy when you are busy buying things and preparing for labor, it is difficult to read a reference book straight through when you don't yet know what applies to you.

Andi's book (you'll feel like you can call her by her first name after reading it) is a small, handheld crib notes of breastfeeding guide that you can read in one sitting. The book touches on breastfeeding topics from proper positioning to the impact on your sex life, offering quick suggestions and listing resources for further assistance if you need it. Mama Knows Breast is divided into 8 chapters and is indexed, making it easy to find what you are looking for, but I suggest reading this book from cover-to-cover. Andi intersperses anecdotes from her own experiences throughout the book. She also shares stories from mamas throughout the country in break out sections titled, From the Mouths of Moms. These sections keep the book interesting and demonstrate the wide variety of options and issues you may face in your own breastfeeding adventures.

Like a good friend, Mama Knows Breast has a friendly, informative, non-judgmental tone. Andi emphasizes the importance of getting help if you are having problems, the value of support from your partner and other breastfeeding moms, and the use of common sense when making decisions about issues like public breastfeeding. While the book is more conservative than I am about public breastfeeding, it provides suggestions and encouragement for the shy, and reassures moms that it is both legal and often necessary to breastfeed in public. The section, Responding to Critics, has pre-planned responses to breastfeeding questions/criticisms. Parenting brings a lot of obnoxious questions that can hit the wrong note and leave you feeling vulnerable and judged. Pre-planned responses, especially, calm, confident quips, can preserve your dignity and prevent you from feeling defensive or badgered.

Andi ends the book on an empowering note:

In some ways, that's the beauty of this whole Mama thing. You get to make it up as you go along. No matter
what anyone else says--and they'll be sure to say a lot--you're the one who decides how to feed your baby.
You're the Mama, and Mama Knows Breast.

You can purchase Mama Knows Breast at Amazon.com. You can get more breastfeeding tips and news on Andi's website Mama Knows Breast

First Word Watch

Ian might have said his first word last Saturday. He looked at my friend Kristy's dog and said "dog". He did it at Melanie's house the next day with her greyhounds and seems to have done it a few times with my sister's dog, Teddy. I'm not ready to call it, yet, though. I know he understands the word, "dog", and he seemed to be referring to dogs when he used it, but didn't repeat it when asked so I can't be sure. He also seemed to have said "duck" a few times since we've been in Georgia when holding his rubber duckie. He does know the word "duck" because he will go pick it up out of a pile of toys when asked, but I can't be sure. Therefore, we are in First Word Watch, waiting for confirmation.

People Watching with Roxxy

Looking out the screen door is a favorite passtime for Ian and Roxxy.

11 Months Old!

This post is a bit late because we've been traveling. Here is Ian at the Canfield Dog Show in Ohio.


Playing in the water at the dog show:


Roxxy's Nephew, Matt, in the Ring


Ian after an Unsuccessful Manoeuver:


Ian took his first steps on June 28th and about two weeks later, he was running. After running, he started climbing people and furniture whenever he gets the chance. He has been climbing steps since he was 7 months old, but there is definitely an invigorated interest in climbing now. In July, Ian went to the Erie Zoo for the first time and made new friends at playgroup. He is starting to interact with other babies more instead of their mamas, though he still prefers mamas.
He ate lots of wonderful things and improved his drinking skills, but he still doesn't drink from a cup very well, yet. He refuses to use a sippy cup, only a glass will do. Blueberries and cherries were two of his favorites. Spicy mexican food, meatballs and anything with garlic were quite popular as well.

Flashback to North Carolina

Today, I met my friend Rudy for lunch. I haven't seen Rudy since I was in the 10th grade. We went to EE Smith High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He graduated from Smith and still has family in Fayetteville so he has kept track of a lot more people than I have. A lot of things came back to me while we were talking. Unfortunately, he lost touch with some of my favorite people. I was hoping to find them through him, but, no luck.

He did tell me that 1% of his graduating class was on death row by the 10-year reunion. It was 3 people out of 300 in the class. The school was really well-run and safe, but about half the students came from the nearby army base (like me) and the other half came from the poorest section of Fayetteville so I guess statistically we were bound to have people in jail. Still, 3 people on death row is shocking.

Ian's Culinary Adventures Continue

Georgia has a lot of barbeque places, but not their own style of barbeque so there is a lot of diversity in the offerings. While we've been here, we've had barbeque twice. The first time, my sister's boyfriend made pulled pork with a sweet, yet, mildly spicy red sauce. Today, we had pulled pork again at a restaurant with the red sauce, North Carolina red vinegar sauce and South Carolina vinegar-mustard sauce. Ian who enthusiatically ate goat cheese pizza, refused the mac 'n cheese until I dipped it in the mustard-vinegar sauce. Bonus for this place: it had unsweet tea! I can drink sweet tea if I cut it 50-50 with water, but it was nice to drink unsweetend tea.

Road Trip!

Ian and I are on a road trip that started last Saturday. We went to Germantown, Maryland to see my friends, Kristy and Jeff. Ian ate Korean-style potatoes and loved them. We think he might have said his first word, "dog". He has said it a few more times since when it seems to be in reference to a dog, but it is hard to tell.

Sunday, we headed to Richmond, Virginia for my friend Melanie's birthday. It was The Watermelon Festival downtown, but we didn't make it over there because of the heat. Ian had spinach and goat cheese pizza. He is quite the foodie (except for the fact that he tries to eat dog food).

Monday, I called the YMCA to get him into baby swim lessons and the hit the road to Athens, Georgia. Ian slept for the forst 7 hours, but that last hour was rough. I think I am going to stay in West Virginia somewhere on the way back. So far in Athens, we've been helping my sister move into her new place and apply to medical school. In the move, she didn't realize that her secondary application for Medical College of Georgia was due today. With work and other appointments, she couldn't get it done in time to express mail it yesterday, so we got up this morning and drove to Augusta to turn it in. It is about 1 hour and 45 minutes to get there.

This weeekend we are going to Alpharetta (outside of Atlanta) to see my friend, Rudy, who I haven't seen since the 10th grade. We will probably head back to Erie on Monday. We have 1st Birthday invitations to get out!