Easter

Can you believe I am 6 months old? Here are some new things I am doing these days:
1. I have discovered that my little fingers feel really good when I dance them on my head. Mom finds me doing it to sooth myself. One funny time, I was caught with one hand scratching my head and the other scratching my cousin, Ryan’s head who was laying beside me.
2. I started eating solid foods! Mom started me on rice cereal and that was ok. I put up with it for about a week but then I decided that was enough. For a couple of days, each time I ate a bite my face contorted and I even choked on most bites. Since my mom decided choking me to death was not worth feeding me rice, she got some oatmeal and I am loving it!
3. Even though I am still a pretty chill baby, when I get talking and screaming there is nothing stopping me. I’m sure the neighbors will be complaining soon. I love the sound of my high pitched screeching and can easily tire myself (and my mommy) out with it.
4. I am sleeping even less than before I started eating solid food! I wake up every 2-4 hours. Isn’t that great! Well according to mom it is not that great especially because she thought I would sleep better with a full belly. There are many possible reasons I am sleeping less and none of us are quite sure what it is. I tend to get a lot of gas at night plus my nose plugs up in the mornings. Hopefully we will figure it out soon.
5. I am reaching for the unreachable. Reaching for toys that are just to far makes me so close to rolling from my back to my belly. I’ll get there eventually. I am a pro at rolling from my belly to my back.
Three Sundays ago, mom and dad gave talks in church. Dad’s talk was on enduring to the end and mom’s talk was on Christ’s atonement (with the Easter season). I was pretty tired so grandma held me in the back. I listened to mom’s talk because I know her voice so well but I was too tired to stay awake during dad’s talk. They were both happy when they were done. Mommy wants to thank everyone who helped her with her talk, especially Grandma Schlenker and Auntie Crystal.
That same weekend Uncle Derek had a sad ending to a fun night up in Edmonton. He and some friends went to a gymnastics facility to play and while diving over some tall structures, Uncle Derek landed on his wrist in between 2 mats and broke it quite severely. He was admitted to the hospital and went into surgery the next morning. He had 2 plates and 13 screws inserted and has to have a cast on for 6-8 weeks. This is his 4th broken wrist. Mommy hopes I do not follow the trend of her family breaking a lot of bones.
Last weekend was Easter. On Friday I helped mom and grandma babysit Cousin Ryan and Cousin Kat while their parents went out for a night on the town to celebrate their anniversary. On Saturday, the whole family went out for ice cream to celebrate Cousin Katie being in town for spring break. Afterward I went to bed and mom went to play games at the Vastola’s but she didn’t last long because like most nights, she is very tired (I guess that is my fault). On Sunday, we all relaxed in the morning and then headed over to Great Grandma and Grandpa Coppers for supper and games. All the partying made it seem like Easter but the rainy weather made it seem like winter. Happy Easter everyone!

5 month highlights

On March 9th, I turned 5 months old. I am making leaps and bounds in my development! First, I can roll over very easily from my tummy to my back (however lately it has seemed that I have forgotten). I continue to practice rolling from my back to my tummy by jolting my head back and grabbing my toes so I fall on my side. I love my newly found feet. I giggle when mom puts them in my face and find them very interesting to look at. I am not as flexible as my cousin Ryan so I don’t suck on them, but I wish I could. Grandma and Granddad Wilcock recently bought me a jungle gym with lots of hanging toys. This is my new favorite place to play. Mom calls me “the destroyer” because I love to swat really hard at many of the toys. It also has a hanging mirror and I love to look at myself (though who could blame me). Mommy thought the day my hair would stop falling out and start growing back would never come, but it has! Slowly but surely, hair on the top of my head is returning and my mom loves playing with it. Also, I am such a talker! I love to jabber mommy’s ear off (and throw some really high pitched screams in once in a while). I respond most with talking and kicking when people talk to me which is good for my development. Everyone loves my giggle and daddy is by far the best at making me laugh.
Another big step we took this week is starting me on solid foods. Like most babies, I started eating rice cereal and I did pretty good. Mom was smart to let me such on a spoon for much of the day so I got used to it’s feeling in my mouth. Everyone was really impressed with how easy it was for me (it is simple, I love to eat). Mommy is excited and hopes this will help me sleep better during the night (I still only eat once a night but I am back to waking up quite a bit).
Great news for daddy is that he got into Graduate school at BYU!! He begins this fall but we are not sure when we are moving back to Utah. Mommy is a little stressed about finding a place to live because she is pretty set on not moving during the two years we are spending there. My parents want a three bedroom place that is fairly new and well kept. If you know of anywhere available this summer or fall, let us know!

Canada Pictures

Visiting Mommy's Homeland

So much to write about… I’ll do my best to keep it brief but if you have been reading my past entries you know it will probably be quite long.
The first thing we can finally talk about is mommy and my surprise trip to Canada. Grandma Schlenker helped organize a flight up for mommy and me to surprise Papa Schlenker for his 50th birthday. We were planning to leave Friday, Feb 26th. Thinking she was on the ball, mommy was reading over travel info for the both of us the Monday before we left and realized I needed a passport to travel to fly across the border. Yikes… this sure gave mommy and grandma a real scare because they had 4 days to somehow get me a passport. As usual, it was daddy to the rescue. We are so lucky to be living where we are living right now because there was a passport office right in San Francisco. Daddy found out that we could go to SF early, stand in line and get a passport by Wednesday. So that is exactly what we did. We left the house at 6:30am, road the BART with all the commuters, walked a couple blocks to the passport office, stood in line for an hour and a half (well mommy sat on the sidewalk while I slept on her), walked into the office at 9am, walked out 10 minutes later and were back at the house by my next feeding time. I was very impressed with the whole process and grateful I could get a passport. One nice memory mommy will always have was when a nice lady gave us an extra blanket and some mitts for mommy while she held me in the cold. We love kind, thoughtful strangers!
Mom and I were excited all week to go to Canada. Unfortunately I woke up like 6 times Thursday night so mommy was super tired all day Friday. The only good thing about waking up a lot was that daddy brought me into bed with him. Daddy was going to miss me so much and snuggling was a good way to say good bye. Everything at the airport went smooth except the flight was delayed twice. While we were waiting, mommy found a nursery that I could eat and nap in. Mommy was sure grateful for that. I slept most of the flight and mommy watched New Moon. When we landed at 10pm, a cute Philippino lady came and sat down beside us. She could barley speak English but she offered to help mommy carry all her stuff if we helped her get through the airport. She was coming to visit her daughter. She was very sweet and mommy told her all about Uncle Matthew who served his mission in the Philippines. After we stood in the long customs line together and waited for our luggage, the lady met up with her daughter and her family. Her daughter was also very sweet and offered us a ride home (which is no small task in Calgary) but we gratefully declined, said goodbye and met up with Auntie Laurel. My cuteness gets mommy so many perks.
The next morning, we drove to Medicine Hat with Uncle Mark, Auntie Laure and the boys. It was fun listening to Ashton, Nick and Uncle Mark’s loud music. It was a miracle I snuck a nap in. When we arrived, everyone went in but mommy and I (remember, Papa Schlenker did know we were coming). A few minutes later, mommy sat me in a bumble seat in front of the door, rang the doorbell and ran. Papa opened the door and there I was, cute as ever! Papa would have been more surprised if Cousin Ashton didn’t say “its Cherish” as soon as the doorbell rang hehe.
Before the big party, mommy took me to Jessica’s to show me off to her high school friends. Dayna, Kristin and Jessica just loved me and were in awe that Mommy was in fact a mommy. Jessica’s puppy, Frankie also loved me.
The surprise party that Grandma put on for Papa’s birthday was pretty cool. Mom laughed almost the whole time because it was a “roast” for Papa. Many of his friends wrote poems and prepared little speeches to make fun of Papa because Papa is always giving others a hard time. No one could blame me for being tired, so I struggled for some of the party and was happy to go to bed when it was over. The next day was also fun because mommy could show me off at church. Everyone thought I was so cute, big and such a good boy. Grandma and Papa wanted me to wear my team Canada jersey because the big gold medal Olympic hockey game was later that day.
I definitely saw a new side to Papa and Uncle Derek during the hockey game. This particular side was not my favorite however because it made me cry. Without fail, every time either a really good thing or a really bad thing happened, Papa and Uncle Derek yelled and it startled me to tears. Mommy was sure glad to be amongst fellow Canadians when Team Canada won!
The rest of the week up until Friday was spent mostly at Grandma and Papa’s house relaxing. On Wednesday however, I went to Mommy’s friend Dayna’s new house for supper. I was such a good boy and loved their puppy, Bella. I giggled when he licked my hands and screamed (with happiness) when he ran around me.
Mommy and my flight was scheduled to take off Saturday evening from Calgary so we drove up with Grandma and papa on Friday to spend time with family. We had a nice day at Uncle Mark and Auntie Laurel’s. I played a bunch with Ashton and Nick and they showed me a lot of cool things. I even got to sleep in Ashton’s room on his mini couch and mom got to sleep in his bed with the plastic sheets. Saturday morning, after a delicious Mc Donald’s breakfast, we went to Auntie Janine and Uncle Clayton’s (they are mommy’s cousins) house. They have 2 daughters who are very sweet. Since it was such a beautiful day, we went to a park with a beautiful frozen lake beside it. Like everyone, they all thought I was super cute. After a nice lunch and a last visit with Uncle Mark, Auntie Laurel and the cousins, it was time to head to the airport. On the way we quickly stopped by the Lacusta’s so they could meet me. They said cousin Ben should be coming home from his mission in Las Vegas in August!
The trip home went very smooth. The flight attendants loved me so much, mom could have given me to them and slept the whole time. Since we sat near the back of the plane, everyone that waited to use the toilet could stop and admire me. I was sure glad to see daddy come to pick us up and he was even more excited to see me. He told me I can never leave for that long again, but we will see about that.

February Family Party

The Wilcock family has a monthly tradition of having a family party. Since our family has never hosted one before, Grandma Cari decided to let us host February’s party. We had bread bowls, soup and salad and fruit pizza for dessert. During the party the first team Canada verses team USA Olympic hockey game was on. It was a very exciting game and mommy put my team Canada jersey on for it (I had to take her side because everyone else was cheering for USA). After a close game, team USA came out victorious. Mommy and I were not worried however because we knew team Canada would win the gold medal in the end.
My latest development is rolling over with great ease (at least from the tummy to my back). Mom thinks she is giving me lots of tummy time but I show her.

Road Trip

Mommy turned 24 years old on February 7. It was the same day as the super bowl so we went to grandma and grandpa Cooper’s house for a super bowl party. It was pretty fun and Daddy and me gave mommy her gift. Daddy helped me press my hand and foot print into some molding clay and then fit it into a frame with a picture of daddy and me on the other side. I know she loved it because tears came to her eyes when she opened it. She must love daddy and me a lot. Mommy also woke up to a huge bouquet of flowers from grandma and grandpa Wilcock. Plus she got many cards in the mail from family. She is very grateful! Mommy loves her birthday because she gets to talk on the phone to lots of family members back in Canada. She was on the phone all night!
A couple days later I turned 4 months old. My latest discovery is my feet. I hold them up and look at them when I’m supposed to be napping and grab them when I sit in my car seat. I don’t think I am as flexible as my cousin Ryan so I doubt I will be putting them in my mouth any time soon. I have my 4 month doctor appointment coming up so we can see how much I weigh now. Mommy has lots of questions for the doctor but generally she thinks I am doing great. I am happy (as long as I get my 4 naps a day in) and healthy!
This past long weekend our little family took a road trip to southern California. We stayed with Shawn, daddy’s best friend from high school and his family. Shawn’s wife is so nice and super smiley. She made breakfast and us every morning and was very hospitable. Their 4 year old daughter is named Sophia and she loved showing me all her toys and telling me stories. I think she may be able to beat out some of my cousins (particularly Kit Kat and Ashton) in talking competitions.
Even though our trip was short, we packed a lot of fun activities in. On Saturday we went on a hike in Thousand Oaks to see some water falls. Mommy and daddy took turns carrying me in the strap-on carrier. To protect me from the sun I wore one of Wyatt’s old hats. It was too big for me so it covered my face. This worked out nicely however because I was tired a slept most of the hike anyway. That night Daddy and Shawn went to a BYU vs some Cali college lacrosse game. On Sunday we drove to Santa Barbra so I could see the ocean. It was very beautiful and we got some nice pictures. During this trip mommy fed me many crazy places but my favorite was right on the beach because my feet could play in the cool sand the whole time. Sunday was Valentines Day so the men wanted to take the ladies out for a nice meal. We walked up and down State Street like 40 times trying to find a nice restaurant but we ended up just eating at a pizza joint. One fancy place claimed they only took reservations (mind you the place was practically empty) but probably didn’t want us there because we were in shorts and had kids. Monday we said good bye to the Kings and drove to Santa Monica to visit one of mommy’s best friends from high school, Eryn Wenzel. Actually it is Eryn Cameau now because she just got married. Eryn is in Dental school at USC. We met her and her husband Ryan at a cute little place to have brunch. Mommy was so excited to see Eryn and had a great time catching up. After brunch we walked along on the ocean and onto a busy pear with lots of shops and carnival rides. Eryn and Ryan thought I was pretty cute and I was sad to say good bye.

Jan 31

January 31, 2010
Everyday I am discovering new things. I am also gaining more control of my hands and using them to discover as well. Mom tries to introduce me to new toys everyday but I clearly like 2 the best. One is a plastic football that has many holes I can stick my fingers in and the other is a red monkey that is soft and has really long limbs. If mom leaves me in my car seat to sleep after a drive and can be later found awake silently playing with my football. Mom thinks it is so cute.
Lately I have been hearing people describe me as a momma’s boy. Daddy’s opinion of this goes back and forth. Sometimes he is defensive because he knows he has always been a momma’s boy and sometimes he gets a little sad because I become happy when mommy holds me. Don’t get me wrong, my dad and I have a great time and I love him so much. Mommy just has the goods and knows how to get me to sleep when I’m tired.
On Saturday I was able to Great Grandma and Grandpa Cooper who just got home from a month long vacation to Australia. They had a great time and said I had grown up so much in a month. Now that mom has started to go jogging, I stay with G &G Cooper for about an hour everyday. We have a great time. Today I got to watch some old western shows with them and after I told them some stories.
Later on Saturday Grandma Wilcock babysat me while mommy and daddy drove to San Francisco. Daddy won some tickets for the traveling motor cross races. They had 3rd row seats and said the show was amazing. There were lots of fire and fire works, loud music, big jumps and a couple of big crashes. I heard mom say that they whole time she was thinking how much Uncle Mark would have enjoyed it. Mom said she really enjoyed it but would have liked it a bit more if she wasn’t dead tired and didn’t have to smell alcohol and weed the whole time, whatever they are.