Helipcopter Mum

It's totally official, I am a helicopter mom. I think that you are pretty predisposed to becoming one if you yourself were raised by helicopter parents, but it could really go either way right? I told myself I would let Noah be independent, let him tumble, and just be a kid.

That all went out the window when he fell and got his golf ball-sized goose egg and we had to rush to the clinic. Then a day later he got knocked down by a big kid and hit his goose egg on the floor. *face palm* I gave myself another chance still at the park. I threw away my empty cup and in those 3 seconds, Noah decided he was a big boy now and tried to go down some cement steps like the grownups. This ended in a somersault down said steps and a scraped scalp. It was only three steps down, but still, he's itty bitty. After that he tumbled down the metal staircase of the play structure, hitting his head, and later face planted into another step and hit his cheek.

This is why I am currently an unapologetic helicopter parent, the kind of mother who hovers and is ready to catch her baby and everyone else's babies in the vicinity of her own. If you have seen your sweet baby injured, bleeding or in pain, you know why. My Small Human is solid on his feet, but he has his off days like everyone else. Maybe when he's bigger I can go back to being more laid back, but I am currently on tenterhooks with this zippy 15 month old.

Oh well, good for the waistline I guess. Maybe not so much for the grey hairs. ;) May you all have a glorious May weekend!

xoxo

Even the television knows he's being bad

Of Course!

The Small Human is slowly but surely learning his body parts. He can also very clearly distinguish the difference between English and other languages. When he hears my parents speak in Tagalog to me, after a while he puts his hands on his ears and shakes his head! Probably because he can't understand what's going on, which I need to work on somehow.

When I sing to him in French he thinks everything is normal, but when I speak to him in French he just grins and giggles at me like I'm telling a joke. Then when he hears Spanish he laughs his little face off! He can seriously distinguish between each one! Babies are incredible, and I need to work on making him into a little polyglot like his Tita Joy who speaks English, French, Tagalog and Japanese.

So far he responds to simple commands like, "bring me your sippy" and "put your blocks away". If I ask him where dada is when he's at work, he goes to the door to see if he's there. I plan on teaching him the parts of the body in three languages, but so far these are the English ones he can point to on himself and some on others:

1. Nose
2. Mouth
3. Feet
4. Ears
5. Hands
6. Penis
7. Belly

Is anyone at all surprised that he knows his penis? He's such a boy! What's funny is that he talks so much, but I just don't know what the heck he's saying. :) Soon! Happy May everybody!

This has been his favourite book, that he inherited from the O'Meara kids! <3

Small Firefighter

Sometimes things work out so well that you just have to thank your lucky stars and really embrace life. It could be something big or something small, but whatever it is, you should never let it pass you by.

One such occurrence graced us yesterday morning, so we rolled with it! A huge City of Seattle firetruck parked outside our building and Noah shrieked with delight from the window. So I threw some jackets on us and we went out to see it.

Noah wasn't shy at all! He babbled and chirped and laughed at the firefighters, but shook his head violently when they asked him if he wanted to ride in the truck. We all laughed at that and then he proceeded to touch the door and the giant tire. He loved that truck let me tell you. He was in such innocent awe of its grandness! They said he was the most brave littlest guy they've seen so far. Then when they drove away he waved happily and so did the gigantic firefighters who turned into cutie piles of mush around one toddler.

It was lovely and I'm glad we got to do that. :)

He was SO excited!

15 Month Favourites

This is a bit late since Small Human turned 15 months on the 16th, but so many stressors came about that it slipped my mind completely. Our littlest mister Wilson is doing well though! He scared us with a bit of a virus and hunger strike earlier this month, but I think we're hitting another growth spurt because he's suddenly way hungrier than he usually is, thank goodness.

At his last Well Baby check up, Noah was in the 90th percentile for height and 50th for weight. So, tall and thin like his dada. It makes him look like a hilarious bobblehead doll though, with his giant head and muscular little bod. He's wearing mostly 12-18 month clothes but with some smaller 18-24 month stuff mixed in. (!!!)

This kid loves to dance to music, squeeze and look at animals happily, and anything that spins, like wheels on my bicycle, his stroller, and his toy cars. Here are a few of Noah's current favourites:

1. His blue Chucks. Even when he's not wearing them, sometimes he'll go find them and carry them around the house with him. :)

2. His Foxy. He has woken up screaming a couple times this month, and we've gone in to see him clutching this fox! (so cute) He even hugs him during nap time now.

3. His Kleen Kanteen sippy. It was a struggle for us to find a non plastic sippy cup, or even a silicone one that didn't just spill water everywhere if you flipped it upside down. We use these for water and his Pura Kiki sippies for milk. That way he knows what he's in for. He is a great water drinker so we haven't given him any juice or flavoured water. No need.

4. Baby Tractor book. We originally borrowed this from the library but liked it so much that we bought it. I think he likes the different, brightly coloured tractors and the fact that there are farm animals hidden behind each one. 

Like every mom on earth, I worry about Noah's development. Physically, I couldn't be happier, he was an early walker, is very dexterous, and loves to climb things. Verbally though, he still mostly speaks his own special Noah language. :) He says mama, dada, bath, Xbox, uh oh (not really a word), light, and I think he was trying to say "dance" today! He shakes his head when he doesn't want to do something, gives ascent by nodding his head, or crosses his arms in front of him when he has had enough food. I know he understands us because he follows commands, but it is what it is. I'm still very proud, I assure you!

I know I say this all the time, but he is so fun right now! It's incredible to be able to watch him grow. <3 Happy Tuesday!

So happy! Even though he fell on his head/face THREE times in 30 minutes. Oy.

This Weekend in Pictures

The best thing about living on the west coast is the incredible springs we have. There are cherry blossoms in bloom on every street, not just in parks, and the weather is lovely and temperate. I think I just stole a little from Shakespeare there, but Will and I go way back and I'm sure he understands.

We went shopping for new Toms sandals for momie; had a delicious bubble tea treat (momie & dada); went thrift shopping and scored some really amazing deals like brand new with tags still on pajamas and a $3 jean jacket for Small Human.

There was park fun, home fun, shenanigans, burritos, hugging, kissing, and lots of laughing. What more does one need? I hope you all had a great weekend and are ready to take on the week!

Follow me on Instagram for more of our daily shenanigans! xoxo

Caught climbing his toy bin to reach the top of the shelf!

A little booking reading and eating

My boys on the teeter totter

Trying very hard to put his hat on dada

Happy Weekend

The Wilsons are going to try to do happy things this weekend. It's the last weekend of April, and I think we just need it. Small Human's humongous appetite is back which means he's feeling better finally, and my tests came back from the doctor all clear. I'm healthy, my boys are healthy, there's no reason why we shouldn't try to enjoy life.

A lot of people probably think I'm annoying for documenting and sharing our life constantly, but when I weighed it out, I felt that I would regret not doing it more. I admit that there's value in keeping one's privacy but I truly think that human experiences should be shared with one another, even if it's just the banal day to day stuff. That's what you look back fondly on when you have the luxury of looking back.

Life might start to seem mundane after awhile when you're not dealing with the stresses of office life, or retail life, or being on set. While those places of work can make for some interesting stories and memories, I think that I will cherish my time with my baby man the most.

He's so much fun, and his cuteness makes me crazy with each passing day. I used to think it was daunting to have the huge responsibility of making sure your child turns out "right" but now I feel somewhat honoured. We've been given an opportunity to show a new person our incredible world with all it's complexities and wonders.

So enjoy the weekend, rain or shine. Have fun, belly laugh, and hug. You won't regret it.

Noah "using" my laptop :)

Love

It was our friend's memorial service and funeral today. As you can imagine it was sad and beautiful and still unbelievable. My heart is broken for my sweet friend who lost her partner in life and crime and parenthood, and I think that even the baby girls knew something was up. Rest in peace Steve, we will all do our best to help your girls.

When faced with sudden death, it really puts all the petty arguments and annoyances into perspective. Life is too short to rile yourself up about little things that don't matter at all in the grander view. You can either let past grievances colour your present thoughts, or you can strive to live in the moment and love with all you have.

I'm going to try to let love be my motivator instead of hate. One feels plainly healthier than the other if you're going to be honest with yourself. Live for the people you love; follow your dreams; don't say or do things that you will regret. Life is incredibly short.

xoxo