Peek-a-boo, sippy cups, and bathtime

Gabriel discovered a new game two weeks ago. He would sit in your lap all goofy, and then collapse on his front, hiding his face, and then sit back up giggling. We thought he was just tired the first time he did it, but then he did it right after a nap, and then he played this game at a restaurant. He was sitting on my lap and kept peeking at Thomas to see if he was watching. At that point, it was pretty obvious this was a new game. Our therapist was thrilled. He now has the awareness to look to see if we are noticing what he is doing and actively engaging with us, and apparently that is a major milestone. So, yay for Gabriel and playtime. :)

We also bought a new sippy cup for him. Since the standard sippy cups all have either a hard or soft "spout" and we all know the bottle is Enemy #1, I was pretty sure he was never going to engage with a standard sippy cup. And so far, he hasn't. We've tried. So we found this 360° drinker that allows liquid to seep through around the rim of the cup so it's kind of like drinking from an open cup without the drenching that will happen when you tip it too far. The first couple times, he let us put it to his mouth and did swallow some water, but we'll see how long that lasts before he catches on and finds ways to avoid it. This is what he thinks it's for right now:

He also had his first big-boy bath today, complete with bath toys. The hidden message here is that he has finally gained enough muscle tone to sit up for long enough to take a bath! :) And here is a picture that I can certainly use to embarrass him when he's 16:

Ice cream

Today we took Gabriel out for ice cream. Actually, we had the ice cream and he just banged on the table, but he was having fun. I was sitting there thinking about how I am looking forward to the day where he begs Mommy and Daddy to go out for ice cream. Because that would mean that he was eating.

Yesterday we took him out to the Northwest Folklife Festival. We were gone all afternoon so we had to feed him twice while we were out. He has a nice little backpack that the pump and food bag fit into, so it's not like we're carting around loads of machinery. We can actually just put the small backpack in the caddy under the stroller, run the tube up his pants leg and go. Wonder of wonders, he did NOT reflux while we were out. We actually got to come home in the same outfit we left the house in! I was watching a couple of little kids dance around while the adults were doing their Irish folk dancing. This little girl would spin-spin-spin and then fall down on her bottom and get right back up to do it again. I want that to be Gabriel next year.

A few days ago, Mommy and Daddy resolved to be brave and change out the g-tube button on our own for the very first time. The previous two routine changes were done by the doctor with us looking on, but this time, we had to fly solo. It was nerve-wracking -- what if we screwed it up? But, we did manage to get the old one out and the new one in and all seems to be well. And we have now learned new skills.

This is a new skill we will have to keep using for awhile. Gabriel continues to not want to take food by mouth. Or, I should say, swallowing is where the hang-up is. We can get stuff into his mouth, and he LOVES his toothbrush. He'll stick his tongue out and open his mouth for his toothbrush. We don't want to mess up the toothbrush love, so we're keeping it food-free. I am continuing to tube-feed him as much of a blended diet of real food as I can fit into his day, although, per the dietician, he still gets most of his calories from formula. By making the formula as directed on the can  instead of concentrating its calories, we have lessened the reflux a small amount, but I look forward to the day where we can chuck the formula altogether. Gabriel is tolerating yogurt very well, so next step will be milk. If he tolerates milk, then I am taking that information straight to the dietician to see how we can transition from formula ASAP.

Otherwise, Gabriel is doing very well. He's super social -- such a little flirt. And he's sitting up for minutes at a time, although, he still hasn't figured out how to get himself into a sitting position. His favorite thing is still to lay on his back and kick his legs. He uses his feet to push off of walls or other objects to get around. However, he is spending more time on his tummy voluntarily and has managed to push backwards, so we may have crawling in our near future.

It's hard to believe how big this boy is and that it has already been a year!

Baby's first (or is it second?) Pascha

We have now come full circle, liturgically speaking from last year. At the beginning of Holy Week, we found out our little baby was a boy. We were also cautioned that I was showing a small amount of cervical funneling. I was asked to take it easy and to come back for a follow-up ultrasound the next week. About halfway through the week, I figured out that those funny tummy feelings were not hunger, but the baby kicking. He was doing just fine in there. Last year's Pascha, I felt not-great, but didn't realize I was in the beginning stages of labor. Bright Monday, we went for the follow-up ultrasound and discovered I was three centimeters dilated, and those cramps I was feeling were contractions, not GI upset. And so began our five month relationship with Swedish Hospital.

This year is completely different. Instead of realizing that was baby kicking I was feeling, we were holding Gabriel all through the services. He was very much present, and being able to feel him and hold him made last year's memories seem much more distant. This year was probably the easiest year for us to bring him to Holy Week and Pascha services. He's young enough to hang out pretty happily in his carseat or being held by one of us. Since he is g-tube fed, we could quietly feed him during services as needed as well.

Gabriel and Thomas during the Holy Friday procession.

Pascha night, Gabriel was asleep for the Nocturn service, but I put him in his carrier in preparation for the procession, and he started to wake up.

 Come and receive the light!

"Thy Resurrection O Christ our Savior, the angels in heaven sing, enable us on earth, to glorify Thee in purity of heart."

He was very quiet and attentive during the procession and when we came back inside, I put him back in his car carrier where he listened to the service for most of Matins before falling asleep again. At Communion, we woke him up and handed him over to his godfather. He was still pretty groggy, but the priest did manage to give him Communion.

 

Gabriel and James getting ready for Communion. Sleepy baby!

He wound up the night by flirting with the younger members of the choir. Shameless.

We attended Agape Vespers on Pascha afternoon which was a beautiful sunny day. And having a happy baby boy in the middle of it all made it wonderful. Those memories from last year have been replaced.

My new outlook is that Gabriel was so excited at his first Holy Week and Pascha last year, that he decided he had to be born right then. The Paschal season was too good to miss waiting around inside the womb.