Joshie

We saw my cousin Thuy's sister-in-law, Anh; her husband, Richard; and their son, Joshua, at the Hermann Park Train a couple of weeks ago. Josh is about six months older than Andrew and is absolutely adorable--not to mention so smart too. Anyhow, we talked about getting the boys together; and after a few unsuccessful attempts, we finally had our play date.

Anh was taking Joshie (he even calls himself Joshie...I love it) to the Children's Museum and invited us to join them. Since we didn't have any concrete plans, we gladly accepted. Well, the CMH was packed, but the boys seemed to have a good time still. The boys played a little bit together. I wish more, but my son likes to roam/run around the TotSpot wherever his little heart and little legs will take him. But when the boys were playing together, they seem to get along. Also, Anh and I were able to chat, which is another benefit to play dates--adult conversation. It was getting close to lunchtime, so we took the boys downstairs to eat. The boys ate and played and ate and played. All in all, a great morning! I can't wait to do it again sometime.

A Dozen

So, it's been a dozen years that James and I have been together as an official couple. Twelve years?! As James and I talked about it tonight, he made the point that we have been together for over a third of our lives. I retorted that one-third doesn't seem like too much, but I guess it depends on relatively. My parents have been together for 37 years--now that's a long time, to me anyways. But not to belittle the time we have been a couple, it really is a long time. I figure that I am hoping to be with James until we are well into our senior years and therefore, we will have been together for like three-fourths of our lives.

I asked James if he ever would have thought we would end up like this that fateful night twelve years ago. He couldn't and neither could I. I am just in awe of how our lives have turned out. We are so lucky! Well, babe, here is to twelve years down and many more to go! I am so lucky to have you and Andrew in my life. I love you more than you will ever know!

I thought I would share some of our engagement pictures tonight.

Taste of Texas

Tonight before Nonna left back for San Antonio, she wanted to take us out to celebrate Mommy's birthday. We chose to eat at a steakhouse called the Taste of Texas, a restaurant that we have been meaning to try for a while now and since it was on Nonna's way out, it sounded like a good idea.

We began by ordering Andrew the junior prime rib, which would have been enough meat for Mommy. But the little guy totally dug it. Andrew typically does not like or eat dry meat, which can be a problem sometimes, but no problem with dryness here. It was very tender and melted in your mouth. He ended up eating over a half of the slice. James guesses it was like eight ounces of meat--I don't know because I am not a good gauge at measurements. He also ate some fruit and bread to top off his meal. Mommy better take her little carnivore for some more prime rib soon!

Of course, Andrew was done eating before we were. The waitress came by one time and asked if something was wrong with my peach tea, which I had not drunk much of. I told her there wasn't--I just hadn't had time to drink it. Then, she proceeds to ask if she can take Andrew to the big stuffed bear in front of the restaurant. I was a little taken aback. First, we really didn't know her but all of thirty minutes. Second, I didn't think that Andrew would go with her. But I thought I would let her give it a good ole college try. We were all curious how it would turn out. She took him and away they went. We weren't sure how Andrew would react once we were out of his eyesight. So, we gave Andrew a little head start to see how he would do; and Daddy followed just in case. Well, surprise surprise! Andrew went all the way to the front of the restaurant with the waitress and didn't cry! But soon enough, Andrew was back, but he was hooked. He kept wanting to go see the bear, so we all took turns walking him around so we could all eat. The food and the bear must have made him happy because he was a little ham tonight--waving, blowing kisses, and giving knuckles to people.

After the meal, we got a birthday dessert topped with a sparkler. Andrew didn't cry or try to get out of my arms, but he definitely wasn't into it. However, he sure enjoyed the Snickers Pie!

The meal was delicious; and it was a night to remember. Andrew sure does always makes life more interesting--even going out to a restaurant!! Thanks again, Nonna!

The Downtown Aquarium

Today, we took Andrew and Nonna to the Downtown Aquarium. We purchased the day pass giving us access to all the attractions. We started out with the Shark Voyage train. Andrew has loved the Hermann Park train so we thought he would really enjoy this one. He started out liking it until we got to the tunnel where you see the sharks. I don't know if it was because of the darkness or what, but Andrew wasn't too happy. He did start to look around and watch the sharks, but he wasn't too enthused still. However, Andrew was fine for the rest of the ride though.

Next, we headed to the Aquarium Adventure Exhibit. Andrew enjoyed looking at all the fish and other animals and made his newly learned fish face a few times for us to boot. One of the highlights was the stingray pool where you could touch them!! I have to admit that I was nervous at first and not big into the idea of petting them, but mustered up enough courage to do it. I am not a big fan of stingrays, but was comforted by the fact that the facility had removed their barbs or whatever so they couldn't sting us. It was okay, they just feel like regular fish. But Mommy was still anxious nonetheless.

We continued on through the exhibit seeing lots of other animals until we came to the part that we thought Andrew would really like--the white tigers. And we weren't wrong! He really dug them and said "roar" numerous times. There were two of them; and they were so pretty and so amazing!!

After we went through the rest of the exhibit, we headed back outside and played in the dancing water fountains. Andrew was tentative at first, but got into it some after a little bit. Then, Andrew kept signing for train. I guess he must have not been scared off from the first ride becase he seemed to want to do the train again so we obliged him. He still got scared during the tunnel part again, but was fine afterwards. Then, we took Andrew on the carousel. Andrew was okay at first and sat nicely just like he sits on his rocking horse. But as the ride went on, he became more fussy and wanted off his seat. So, we sat in a little chair for the rest of the ride and he was fine. I just don't think he likes how fast it ends up going because he did the same thing at the carousel at the zoo. Our little scaredy cat! The man has some weird phobias!! After, we were going to take him on the ferris wheel, but the line was too long and it was much too hot to wait.

It was a fun time; and I think Andrew had a good time. We will definitely have to take him back another day.

Breaking It Down

Here are some videos of Andrew breaking it down and dancing along to "Hip Hip Hooray" from the cartoon Super Why! and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" from his Sesame Street DVD. The first one was taken back in late May, but wanted to include it here along with the other videos. I was hoping I would get a better clip, but haven't been able to.

The Sprinkler:



The Cabbage Patch:

The Twinkler:

Happy 16th Month Birthday!

Well, Daddy jokes that Andrew is now 1 and 1/3 years old. He grows up more and more each day--sometimes too fast for Mommy. Who am I kidding?! It's more like always too fast for Mommy!

For a while now, Andrew has loved to pretend that he is an adult. But now, it is becoming more evident everyday. In the beginning, it was drinking out of a cup versus a bottle or sippy cup or eating table food versus his baby food. Lately, he has gotten more interested in not just eating what we eat, but how we eat it. One time, we were have chicken wings; Andrew didn't want to eat the little pieces I had cut off for him, but instead hold it and eat it off the bone. Another time, he wanted to eat corn on the cob off the cob. And then, there was the ribs last the other night.

Andrew still loves drinking out of cups (he doesn't drink from a bottle anymore, but does normally drink out of sippy cups), but likes to hold it by himself. Usually, there is no drink in the cup or a very small amount. But he still likes to pretend or try to drink from a cup especially in the tub.

Lately, Andrew doesn't like to eat in his high chair for the entire meal. He will sit and eat nice for a while (depending upon how much he likes the meal). But after a while, he wants down and either will walk around and continue eating or want to sit in someone's lap and eat. Sometimes, we will let him sit by himself and eat off the table, but we don't trust that very much.

Speaking of eating, Andrew likes meat, but loves shrimp especially in dim sum and Pei Wei's honey seared shrimp. A.J. luckily still loves veggies like broccoli and corn. Andrew also enjoys peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, donuts, and Eggo waffles for breakfast. He can almost say donut by saying "do da." Andrew also still likes to eat grilled cheese sandwiches. Lastly, the little guy loves all sweets, especially ice cream even more so since we had been giving him quite a bit during the whole HFMD saga.

Andrew has eight teeth--four up and four down. Another thing we have been working on is brushing his teeth. Most of the time, he likes to brush them, but I think he already realizes that his kid toothbrush is different than ours. So sometimes, he will want to use ours instead. I also think he knows that his toothpaste is different too.

In terms of communicating, Andrew says "ooon" for oink. He also says "unn" like a grunt for "uncle." I have plans to keep at him to learn the "cle" part so he can say the whole thing. Instead of saying "mama" like before, he also likes to use a British accent when he refers to me and says "mum". It's too cute! As for signing, Andrew will pump his fist up for "up", i.e. to be picked up. This is his way of pointing up, which is what I have been trying to teach him, but for some reason, he won't stick his finger out. For a while now, he has been pumping his fist up and down for "train" to mimic pulling a horn of a train.

Drew still likes to read books, but now he would sometimes just rather flip through the pages and identify the things he knows like cars, dogs, balls, and animals. I love it when he kisses the book on his own volition. Andrew now plays with his Thomas track, but will sometimes pull it apart and have a hard time pushing and pulling the trains around the track properly. He still loves to play with his diecast cars. He still loves his rocking horse that he got from Brennan, but now he Drew can climb up and rock himself though we get scared about him falling off as he will sometimes rock with no hands. He can get himself down too...although it can be a very scary looking dismount. Our son still loves to clean with the broom. His latest thing is to get the dustpan and pretend to empty it in the trash can.

Andrew is more into television now. We try to limit how much he watches it, but he will want to watch more than what we want. I typically let him watch PBS in the mornings with breakfast. Andrew loves the cartoon Super Why!, especially the song played at the end, and Sesame Street. He also loves the "Hot Dog" song from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. He loves the Sesame Street DVD that we got from Jenny particulary when Telly sings Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. We do try to minimize the TV watching by playing the songs on the iPod, but unfortunately, that doesn't always work.

As for motor skills, Drew's climbing has greatly improved. He can climb up onto our couches and dining room chairs. Also, he has gotten much better about climbing down the stairs. We have tried to teach him to go downstairs stomach down feet first, but he has always wanted to walk down like we do. But lately, he will actually do it how we have showed him. However, at some point, he will turn back around and try to walk down. He can also ride some of his riding toys and is able to move it around Fred Flintstone style.

Andrew still loves tubby time. He has learned to blow bubbles in the tub and drink out of the faucet. Also, he will put water in the cups we have in there and then pour it out. We have added jugs to the onslaught of tub toys and he loves pouring with those. We have tried taking showers with him, but he isn't the biggest fan of the water in his face. However, he is getting better about it. After tubby, Andrew also likes to help me rub lotion on his body. I will put a dab on his body and he will smear it around. This has been a good way to test his knowledge of his body parts.

When we put him down the night, we ask him if he's ready for the crib. Now, he will point to it; and we will lay him down in it. Then, he will lay down and fall asleep. Normally, Andrew takes one nap a day. And Andrew takes after Mommy by being able to fall asleep in car rides.

One bad thing that has come about is that Andrew can be quite tempermental. He knows what he wants and will fight to get his way. I don't think that James and I are this tempermental. We joke that he got it from Papa who has a temper on him (but has gotten much better over the years). When he does get mad, he will knit his brows when he gets upset. It's so cute that it's hard to stay mad at him. Unfortunately, other times when he gets mad, he will pull hair or hit. I don't know where he learned it because we do neither to him. We try telling him no hit or no pull, but he won't stop. We will have to keep working on him to stop this behavior. I hope he learns it soon enough!

Additionally, Andrew can be very possessive of his mother and her things. One tme Papa was holding my purse before we left their house and Andrew went after him and said "mum." Another time, Daddy was holding the camera; and Andrew subsequently says "mum" again. It's sad that he thinks it's solely mine because I take so many pictures. And yet another time, Daddy was talking on my cell phone with Nonna. Andrew proceeded to grab the phone and give it to me as if returning to me. Sometimes when he has my cell phone, he will bring it to me and say "Ngoai" because he is used to me calling her in the mornings. You can see the creature of habit lurking in!

But for the most part, our son is still a good kid. He is getting harder as he learns more stuff, but I hope that he will learn that he can't get everything he wants and to be patient. But these are things we will have to work on and teach him. Even though he can be a punk at times, we still love him!

Here is our sixteenth month old dressed to root on the Longhorns for the CWS. Hook 'em and happy birthday!

I Want My Baby Back Ribs

Tonight for dinner, Ngoai made us ribs in the oven. I guess they looked and smelled so good that Andrew couldn't wait to eat them. He wanted in his high chair straight away and tried to climb up himself. Uncle Anh Tuan was trying to pull bits off to feed him, but Andrew didn't want any part of it. He wanted to eat it off the bone!!! He just wants to eat things like we do. First, it was eating chicken wings and then corn on the cob. Crazy kid!

I can't help but to think of Austin Powers!

The last picture is Andrew doing something we call lam bo (pronounced as it sounds), which is this trick some Vietnamese people teach their kids meaning to squint their eyes.

Happy Father's Day

Today, we celebrate all the fathers in our lives; and Mommy is lucky to have some wonderful ones in her life. I was a little sad today with today being the first day that Papa left. But he called me during his layover in Miami; and it was nice to be able to talk to him today even for a little bit.

Andrew woke up at 7:15am this morning; and I was still tired. So even though it was Father’s Day and I should have let Daddy sleep in on “his” day, James was willing to take care of Andrew and let me sleep in. Daddy took Andrew for a morning walk to the grocery store. They came back with Canadian bacon, Swiss cheese, and croissants. The least I could do was to make the breakfast croissants. Andrew also really seemed to like the croissants.

After breakfast, we hung out around the house. Andrew and Daddy took a morning nap while I cleaned up the house a bit. After lunch, we decided to take Andrew out for a bit. We headed down to the Museum of Natural Science and took Andrew to the Cockrell Butterfly Center. We weren’t sure how Andrew would like it, but he loved it! He was intrigued by all the butterflies flying about—he even signed for "more"! Andrew also enjoyed the iguana and tree frog they had in there as well. He also liked the waterfall, which is so different than a few months ago where he didn’t like falling water or fountains very much at all. This time, he kept say “wa wa” for water. I think he would have put his hand in the water had we let him.

After playing a little while in a small area for young kids, we decided to head home. Uncle Anh Tuan was on his way up from League City. Anyhow, I don’t know if Andrew didn’t want to leave the museume or didn’t want to go home or was just too tired, but he gave a good tantrum while trying to get him buckled in his car seat. But it must have been at least partly due to fatigue as Andrew fell asleep as we pulled into the house. He slept in the crib for about 45 minutes and then woke up. However, he fell back asleep in my arms and stayed asleep for another hour and 45 minutes. Since it was getting late and we needed something rather quick, Daddy chose a nearby sushi restaurant. I feel bad that Daddy didn’t get a fancier meal, but we will have to owe him one I guess.

We went home and gave Andrew a bath. He played with Uncle and Daddy and then ate some ice cream. He finally went to sleep at 10:30pm. That’s one bad thing about a late two hour nap. But oh well.

James, thank you for being so amazing! Our little boy is so lucky to have you as his daddy (and I am so lucky to have you as my husband to share this experience with). It still touches my heart seeing you two together. Happy Father’s Day, Da Da!! And Happy Father's Day to all the other Dads out there, especially Granddad, Papa, the uncles, and all the other dads in our lives. We love you all so much!

Bon Voyage, Papa

Tonight, our hearts were a little heavy as we had to say goodbye to Papa. He accepted a job to work on a project down in St. Croix, Virgin Islands. It's a great opportunity; and there could definitely be worse places to work. But it's hard because it is far away and Papa won't be able to come home as often as we like (Christmas will be the first chance he gets to come home).

Anyhow, we wanted to give Papa and Andrew as much time together as possible so that's why Andrew and I went down to League City yesterday. I thought about spending the night, but didn't want to risk it with a sick baby whose nighttime sleep is rather erratic and uncertain. I didn't want Papa and Ngoai have to hear Andrew crying. So, today, the three of us went down again for our last day with Papa for awhile. We hung out and of course, Papa and Andrew played together and spent some time outside (Andrew doesn't seem to care if it's terribly hot outside). And then, Papa made us an incredible dinner--steaks and lobsters, which incidentally, he had made the same for Uncle Anh Tuan and I when we visited him down in St. Croix when I was a senior in high school when he was working on a similar project down there.

It was really hard to have to say bye to Papa. Since Papa officially accepted the job, I have teared up a few times thinking about him and Andrew being separated, but no big water works. And I have refrained from doing so until we were in the car driving home tonight. Most of you guys probably know that I am a big crybaby. So I got to give myself props for not bawling beforehand. I am sad to see him go, but I didn't cry because of my feelings per se, but more for Andrew's and Papa's. They have such an incredible relationship and love each other so much; and I know they are going to miss each other like crazy. And what really gets me is that Andrew won't understand why Papa isn't around like he has been. We have both gotten used to seeing him and Ngoai once if not twice a week. We have been very spoiled. Every time he sees Ngoai, he immediately asks for Papa and expects him to be there. And every time we go to their house, he knows that Papa should be around. A few times when we have spent the night, Andrew will ask for Papa first thing after waking up similar to how he asks for Daddy. I know it's going to take a good while before he stops asking for Papa and assuming that he should be here.

But I find some comfort knowing that we will be able to see him in a few months and we have technology to help us stay in touch. We have phones (thankfully, Papa is going to the U.S.V.I. so his cell phone should work down there). We also have email and instant messaging. And once Papa figures out the IT situation there, we will both get set up on webcams so he and Andrew can see each other. And he has the blog to see what Andrew is up to in the meantime.

Bon voyage and safe travels, Papa. We love you so very much and will miss you. But I know the next few months will pass quickly and we will be reunited again (and in a very beautiful tropical island at that!)

Here's Andrew eating lobster for the first time and his last picture with Papa for a few months.

HFMD

HFMD stands for Hand Foot Mouth Disease; and it has infiltrated the Lenz residence. When Evan came over on Saturday for the birthday celebration, he actually had HFMD, but we didn't know it. Belinda called us Monday after their appointment with their pediatrician who diagnosed him.

After our conversation and a quick search online, we knew what to expect. We were hoping that we wouldn't come down with it, but were not going to be surprised if we did.Tuesday was fine, but Wednesday, I noticed a blister on my right palm. Then, I found one on my toe and then another on my right ring finger. As for Andrew, I noticed a blister on his left hand first and then another on his right hand. They are tiny red spots smaller than an ant bite. The blisters hurt me a little at first, but the pain goes away.

Andrew started to become disinterested in eating and drinking, both of which are common symptoms. He didn't have much of an appetite, but we have been able to get him to eat rice soup, Jell-o, and ice cream. Most kids don't want to suck as it hurts their mouths because of the blisters, so they don't like sippy cups or straws. Drew also didn't want to nurse at all--so you know it must be bad then! So, we just let him drink straight out of cups. We have been trying so hard to make him drink and keep him hydrated especially since he wasn't eating very much.

Andrew still normally sticks out his tongue when I ask, so I was able to see a bit into his mouth, but not very far back. We were able to see one red spot on his tongue. But then I noticed a few red areas in the back of his mouth in a photo I took with him and Papa. My poor baby! :( My throat has been a bit sore, but I don't see any spots in my mouth yet. Andrew has run warm a few times as a fever is also common with HFMD, but nothing a little Tyenol couldn't cure. He sleeps okay at night. He wakes up a few times crying, but we have been able to put him back to sleep somewhat quickly. It's been more challenging not having the ability to nurse him to sleep, but we have managed luckily. One thing that helped was having a sippy cup without the valve on hand so he could drink when he wanted.

The virus is supposed to run its course in a week. Andrew seems to be already on the mend. Daddy and Mommy say that he might have Granddad's threshold of pain when he bumps his head or falls or whatever. But with this illness, some kids are inconsolable. But Andrew hasn't been too bad. He has been a little whiney, but not too bad...very understandable under the circumstances. But like parents, especially first time parents, we worry so much about Andrew. He doesn't know what is going on; and he can't tell us what hurts him. He has been a trooper for the most part. It also sucks that we are limited to what we can do to help him. They don't give antibiotics either. It's not like we can just give him warm tea or throat lozenges for his throat. As for me, I am pretty much okay now--not too much ill effects from the virus itself. More so, it's just been fatigue due to lack of sleep. But it hasn't been too rough on me at all. Fortunately, Daddy has gone unscathed. I guess he had it before or was able to fight it off.

Here are pictures from today: (1-3) Andrew enjoying a push-up to sooth his mouth; (4-6) Andrew and Papa (I also have cropped the picture to zoom in so you can see the boo boos); and (7) the blister on my right palm. As you can see, he's in good spirits--that's my happy boy! Not even a stinky virus can keep him down!

Daddy's Back

Daddy's back, i.e., Daddy is able to spend his free time with us once again. No more having to tell Andrew that Daddy is studying and can't play with him. No more having to go out on the weekends with Andrew so Daddy can prepare for his test. No more spending the nights down in League City so Daddy can have peaceful evenings to hit the books (I am sure we will still have overnight trips, but for reasons other than leaving Daddy to his own devices).

And Daddy has definitely been making up for lost time too. The three of us have tried out a different park close to the house with a public pool that we might have to try out. Then, on Saturday morning, we went to the zoo. We arrived about fifteen minutes before it opened so we went over to Hermann Park to check out the ducks and the playscapes. Point of interest:we finally saw Toby the Red Panda awake!! We also took Andrew on the Hermann Park train after we left the zoo. He loved it! He kept looking around and was so into it. I can't wait to take him again soon. Then, this morning, we went to the River Oaks park.

Andrew has been really getting spoiled having the full attention of both Mommy and Daddy. When one of us isn't around, he calls and looks for us. But then when he gets that person and the other one leaves, he calls and looks for the other one. He also tries to get both of us to put him to bed too. What can I say?! The man wants it all. :)

But Andrew isn't the only one happy too. Mommy is glad to have Daddy around more again too!

Ervan Chew Park (also, here is a video of Andrew going down a slide by himself):








Hermann Park and Houston Zoo:

River Oaks Park:

Happy Birthday to Aunt Bee and Me

Tonight, we celebrated Aunt Belinda's and my birthday. Since our birthdays are close together, we thought it might be fun to do something together. We didn't want anything big or really go out, so we decided to have an intimate dinner at our house. This way, the boys could be included and play together--moreover, no need for a babysitter.

The food was delicious!! Daddy grilled out steaks, shrimp, and chicken. Uncle Steven and Aunt Bee came bearing appetizers of spinach artichoke dip and brie cheese with bread and for dessert, an ice cream cake. Miss Evonne prepared pasta salad and cornbread casserole. And Auntie Monica made her infamous Neiman Marcos cake.

We had a great time. Evan wasn't feeling too well, but he was still lots of fun especially when he sang "Happy Birthday" to us and helped to blow out the candle! That kid gets even cuter every time I see him. The boys played well for the most part. We still had some instances of toy hogging, but nothing too bad.

Everything was so wonderful. Thanks to everyone for coming and making my birthday tolerable!! And thanks to Belinda for being willing to celebrate her birthday with us. Happy Birthday, Aunt Bee! We love you!