Thanksgiving in Nebraska

We had a great time in Nebraska for Thanksgiving. The weather was great and we got to eat lots of great food, see Brad's family, and enjoy some time with our friends (whom we only get to see once a year). The trip took 15 hours (one way) - yes, we drove! Parker did great on the trip - a lot better than me! We did the trip in 2 days because it's just too hard to drive straight through with Parker. Jake did great too - he slept almost the entire way there and back home. We hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving with your family and friends as well. We have lots of pictures below from our trip - enjoy!

Brad always goes duck hunting with his dad while in Nebraska. Brad always hopes to shoot lots of ducks - I always hope he doesn't! HAH! However, this day Brad (unfortunately) came home with 4 ducks. So, the tradition is to get a picture with the ducks and the hunters. I am glad to see Parker turning his head away from the ducks!

Jake sniffing the ducks.  We don't think Jake would make a good hunting dog because Brad blew his duck call for Parker and Jake, and Jake barked every time.  I've trained Jake well!

After the first couple of days, Parker adjusted to central time and Jake was worn out!  I think by these 2 pictures - you can see why!

Parker doing some exercises on the workout ball.

Grandma "working out" with Parker.  She taught Parker to do a leg workout with her.  They lay on their backs, put their feet in the air, and bring their feet together, then apart.  Parker would do this for several minutes.  All of us got worn out way before Parker did.  It was hilarious!  Parker will even do it now when he's laying on his back or waiting for his diaper to be changed.

Brad working with Parker on some push-ups.

Jake wondering why he can't find some peace and quiet to sleep.

Beautiful sunset views from Brad's parents backyard.  You just don't see sunsets like this in Georgia or Tennessee!

During the week, we got to visit with our friends, Donnie and Shannon.  It's always so nice to see them because we only get to see them once a year.  They have 2 sweet girls, Sidney and Charlotte, and another girl on the way.  We told Parker he was going to their house to see his "girlfriends."  We were anxious to see what Parker would do because this is really the first time he has interacted with "little people" for an extended period of time.  It was really cute to watch all 3 of them play with each other. 

Parker wanting what Charlotte has.

He's very persistent!

Parker really liked Charlotte, but she was a little skeptical.  Sidney just did her own thing. 

Parker starting to climb on Shannon, with Charlotte looking on.

Parker happy - Charlotte NOT!

Parker then moved on to petting their dog, Jericho.

As you know, Thursday is the big day for the sale ads from all the stores for Black Friday.  I have been out in the madness before, but I didn't venture out this year.  However, I am proud to say my mom and sister did.  My sister went at midnight, then got up again around 3:30am to head to the stores!  My mom got to Wal-Mart at 5:15am, then on to Toys'R'Us by 6:30am.  I wanted to get Parker a rocking horse for Christmas, and wanted to go, but our car space was limited, so I knew we wouldn't have room.  Luckily, my mom was able to get the rocking horse for me - thanks mom!  So, I didn't participate in the early morning crazies, but Brad and I did go out later Friday morning, so Parker and Jake looked through the sale ads with me to see if there were any good buys. 

We always go to Brad's aunt and uncle's house for Thanksgiving.  The food is so good - turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, corn, broccoli casserole, and pies!!  One of the best dishes is the corn.  It is sweet corn - "real" corn from the corn fields.  Oh my - it is the best ever!  We rarely eat corn in Georgia because we are so spoiled with the sweet corn!  Trust me, once you have this corn - you will know the difference in "real" corn and frozen and canned corn.  The same is true with the steaks.  Brad and I only eat steaks when we are in Nebraska because the meat is that much better!

We had a little bit of drama on Thanksgiving.  You will notice in these next 2 pictures that Parker has on 2 different outfits.  Well, after eating lunch, Parker started crying, then he got really warm.  We tried playing with him, walking him around, laying him down - nothing helped.  So, I sat down with him and started rocking him.  He was almost asleep when he started crying again.  Parker never cries - so we knew something was wrong.  I got up to walk him around again and out came his lunch - all over him - all over me - all over Aunt Anita's carpet!  It was just gross!  Luckily, after Parker "lost" his lunch, he was fine!  That is only the 2nd time he has ever thrown up, so I know we are lucky.  We think it may have been the mashed potatoes being too sweet for him.  

So, Parker's clothes had to be changed.  I did not have any pants for him, so we borrowed a 3T pair from Parker's 2nd cousin Landon - thanks Landon!  Aunt Anita was sweet enough to wash my sweater and Parker's clothes while we were there also - thanks Aunt Anita!

Luckily, we were able to stay at Aunt Anita's, so Brad and I were glad about that.  After a couple of hours, Parker drank some apple juice, ate his dinner and all was well!

Parker with 2 of his great aunts - Corrine and Anita.

The picture below is last Thanksgiving with Great Aunt Corrine.  Parker was a little over 2 months old!  Wow - what a different a year makes!

Here's Grandma Kleeman working with Parker on "rockin" on all fours.

Great Grandma Kleeman with Parker and her version of "Paddy-Cake."  Parker loved it!

Parker walking with Daddy before the Nebraska football game.

Jake relaxing on the sofa watching the NE game.

Parker and Jake watching the NE game.

Parker in his new NE outfit with his phone Great Grandma Kleeman got him for Christmas.  He loves it - thanks Great Grandma!

Parker was absolutely fascinated by these encyclopedias!  Every time we were downstairs, he would crawl right to the bookcase and "pat-pat" the books and trace them with his fingers.

Thanks Mom and Dad Kleeman for a great week!  We enjoyed every minute and we thank you for everything.  We are thankful to have you in our lives!

On the way home, Jake was sleeping and Parker was playing with this book.  Parker got tired of the book and tossed it over and it just happened to land this way on Jake's head.  I turned around and saw this and had to get a picture!  Just look at Jake's face - I'm sure he's saying, "Are you kidding me?  First off, this is all the space I get in the backseat, and now I have a book on my head!"

I wanted to take this picture of Parker sleeping because he really didn't sleep much at all going there or coming home.  We drove a total of 30 hours round trip, and Parker probably slept for 3 hours total.  Jake slept about 28 hours total!  HAH!

The traffic was awful coming home Sunday.  What should have taken us 5 hours to get home, took almost 7!!  However, overall - we had a great trip.  We always enjoy our time in Nebraska, but it always seems to go by so fast!  Happy Thanksgiving to all!

My Little Helper

Parker has been my little helper this past week.  I decided to go ahead and decorate the house before Thanksgiving this year.  It just seems like after Thanksgiving is over, Christmas comes so fast and I always feel like I never get to enjoy our trees and decorations.  So, as I was decorating this year, I thought back to last Christmas when Parker was just 3 months old.  It was quite easy to decorate the house then, however, this year is a little different.  It's always fun to get out the decorations, but this time it was even more enjoyable.  Parker was fascinated by everything.  He loves all the lights on the trees and he was quite entertained while I was decorating.  Parker was moving all over the house, just "seeing" what I was doing and to see if he could get into anything.

Parker with his "friends" by his and Jake's tree.  (For Amy and Whitney, if you look close, you'll see the purple bat and bow ornament from Tech that Terri made for us 1 year.  I also have the purple TTU ball ornament).


Parker already looking under the tree to see if there are presents!  Patience, little one.


Grandma Henry was down this weekend, so she got to spoil Parker for a few days.  Her birthday was Tuesday, so we celebrated the weekend together.  Thanks for a fun weekend!


Ok, seriously - how do I resist this face?


Here's Parker playing with one of the decorations on our tree.  It was so funny - I was decorating the tree and Parker was moving all over the house.  All of a sudden, I look down and he's by my feet.  He crawls under the tree, turns over, and starts playing with this bell ornament.  Parker loved it - every time he hit it or pulled it, it would make noise and Parker was just fascinated with this ornament!  We actually moved our tree to a different room this year to try to keep Parker from pulling things - we'll see how long that lasts! 

Parker hanging out with me in the kitchen.  He's sitting in front of the fridge playing with his magnetic learning game that his buddy, Will, got for him for PK's birthday.  Thanks Will!

Parker also likes to brush his own teeth now.  I used to be able to brush his teeth and Parker would just sit there.  Now, I'm lucky if I can get the toothbrush in his mouth myself!  He always reaches for the brush and puts it in his mouth.  I think he's telling me he's a big boy and can do it himself.  Of course, I also have a hard time getting the toothbrush back!

14 Months!

Well, we are better and over the strep! Thank goodness it didn't last too long. I have never seen one little guy sleep so much! I know it was good for him to sleep, but mercy, he was sleeping 18-19 hours a day! Whew! Finally, Parker is back to his old self again today.
Sunday, Parker turned 14 months. It was kindof a bummer day, because Parker was still recovering from strep, then Brad decided to join in the fun and he got sick as well! I don't know who is worse being sick, baby or hubby! I banished Brad to our bonus room and I was Lysoling everything every hour. I sure hope we don't get what he has. Luckily, it's just a stomach bug, but still!

So, some new things Parker is doing:
-drinking "big boy" milk all the time (in his sippy cup); I've tried to use different tops, but he seems to like this one particular kind right now
-eating table food (good eater; I haven't found anything he doesn't really like - at least not yet!)
-can feed himself big pieces of food (he's also getting better with using a "spork" - I hand it to him and he takes it to his mouth and eats the food - he's definitely getting the idea!)
-sleeping well (2 hour morning and afternoon nap; bedtime by 8pm, up by 7-7:30am)
-commando crawling
-stepping with our help (hi-stepping with legs - it's hilarious); for all my athletic friends - it's like reverse butt-kicks!
-pulling up (still needs help getting from floor to standing, but he's definitely trying on his own); loves going up the stairs (with our help)
-loves to swing (laughts and smiles when he's swinging; he almost fell asleep in the swing Sunday afternoon)
-likes Jake (laughs at him and pats him - sometimes he tries to grab a chunk of fur)
-likes getting his teeth brushed (he's starting to grab the toothbrush and "try" to brush his own teeth)
-babbling more (pretty good at saying "mama")

Parker is watching his reading video in this picture. He only watches it 1 time a day and only during the "work" week (it's about 30 minutes). The big challenge with this now is how long he stays still. I used to put him laying down, on the boppy, and he would stay there the entire time. Now, as soon as I lay him on it, he begins crawling over it to get close to the tv. So, I've tried sitting him down and putting the boppy around him, but that doesn't seem to work either. He'll just lower himself down and crawl towards the tv. A few times I have found him so close to the tv, that he's patting the tv screen. I always move him back, but then, I think he thinks that's fun, so he'll start crawling again towards the tv. I don't get mad, I laugh, because it's great that he wants to move!

Strep!

Parker has strep - poor thing! He's done so good staying healthy so far, and he picked up strep from somewhere. He was just fine a few days ago, but Thursday night he started showing signs of not feeling well. After he ate dinner, he started a "whine-cry" and we knew something wasn't right. Our first thought was his teeth are coming in. Then, we felt the back of his neck and it was so hot! I went to take his temp and it was 103!! I gave him some Tylenol and called the nurse and she told me to monitor him. His temp kept going up and down, so I took him to our pediatrician Friday afternoon. They tested him for strep and flu - thank goodness the flu was negative! We are giving him some antibiotics and he eats a little and then sleeps a LOT! I know that's good for him. When he's awake, you can just tell he doesn't feel well. He sleeps so good - 3 hours solid! Last night he slept for 12 hours straight! Hopefully he'll get to feeling better in a couple of days.

This is Parker's 1st toothbrush that we're going to have to throw out because of his strep. I wanted to take a picture of it, before it heads off to the landfill!

I also got Parker his 1st pair of real shoes! He's been wearing the "baby shoes" because he hasn't really decided if he wants to start walking yet, but once these shoes were on his feet, it's like he's a new little guy. I got them at Target and even though he won't get to wear them very long, at least they look cute on his feet!

We've hit another big milestone. We have lowered Parker's crib. He's finally starting to push up and "pat-pat" the crib and he's at the beginning of pulling up on the front of the crib. It was an exciting day!

This is Parker's favorite game now. We call it the "stair-master." These stairs lead up to our bonus room, which we are starting to turn into a playroom. We put a toy at the top of the stairs, Parker sees it, and he works so hard to get to the top to play with it.

Parker finally made it to the top and he heads straight for the futon and his other toys. The futon is perfect for him to practice pulling up!