Porterfield Family 2009-03-06T11:52:23Z theBABYjournal.com Copyright (c) 2010, Porterfield Family Update 2009-03-06T11:52:23Z 2009-03-06T11:52:23-05:00 2009-03-06T11:52:23Z I think a little update on Aidan’s speech and motor development is due. 99% of things Aidan says sound like gibberish, however the intonations are very similar to English. Here are words he uses:   Daddy Doggie Cookie Cracker Cork Bottle Water Ball Kick Run Go No Thanks Bye Kiss   We think he says ‘Where did it go?’ but it sounds more like ‘whe di go?’ accompanied with hands raised in the air and looking around. All the words above do not sound like they are supposed to, but recognizable enough to actually know what he is talking about.   He understands everything now. He closes doors he knows should be closed, picks up trash of the floor and puts it in the trash can. If he finds pieces of dog treats he puts them in her food bowl.  He cleans up his table after meals. He always makes sure the lights are turned off before we leave the room.   He can point animals and objects out in his books (favorite are dogs, bananas and balls). However he does it mostly for Jason and ONLY when he feels like it. He still  refuses to read books or even look at them for more than 5 sec. He prefers photos of animals / objects to drown pictures.  Aidan can point some of his body parts: foot, knee, hair, nose and penis. We are working on the rest.   Aidan is getting a little picky with his food. He will not eat regular food if he is not hungry, but will gobble up a cookie without any problems. So we have to be extra cautions with that. For myself I figured that there are only two reasons Aidan refuses food a) not hungry b) texture or flavor of that particular meal is not appealing.  We do not force him to eat anything, even on the days when he eats only a banana, a cup of cottage cheese and a rice cake and a bite of his breakfast, lunch and dinner. I guess the important thing is to offer nutritionally sound snacks if a meal is not an option. There were a couple of days when Aidan ate breakfast cereal for dinner. I pick my fights…   In Aidan’s case the trick to get him to eat dinner is to let him feed himself. He gets his table, his bowl and a spoon – no assistance. He loves to feed himself with a spoon!  The other day he ate his yogurt by himself without much help. Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com Milestones
I think a little update on Aidan’s speech and motor development is due.
99% of things Aidan says sound like gibberish, however the intonations are very similar to English.
Here are words he uses:
 
Daddy
Doggie
Cookie
Cracker
Cork
Bottle
Water
Ball
Kick
Run
Go
No
Thanks
Bye
Kiss
 
We think he says ‘Where did it go?’ but it sounds more like ‘whe di go?’ accompanied with hands raised in the air and looking around. All the words above do not sound like they are supposed to, but recognizable enough to actually know what he is talking about.
 
He understands everything now. He closes doors he knows should be closed, picks up trash of the floor and puts it in the trash can. If he finds pieces of dog treats he puts them in her food bowl.  He cleans up his table after meals. He always makes sure the lights are turned off before we leave the room.
 
He can point animals and objects out in his books (favorite are dogs, bananas and balls). However he does it mostly for Jason and ONLY when he feels like it. He still  refuses to read books or even look at them for more than 5 sec. He prefers photos of animals / objects to drown pictures.  Aidan can point some of his body parts: foot, knee, hair, nose and penis. We are working on the rest.
 
Aidan is getting a little picky with his food. He will not eat regular food if he is not hungry, but will gobble up a cookie without any problems. So we have to be extra cautions with that. For myself I figured that there are only two reasons Aidan refuses food a) not hungry b) texture or flavor of that particular meal is not appealing.  We do not force him to eat anything, even on the days when he eats only a banana, a cup of cottage cheese and a rice cake and a bite of his breakfast, lunch and dinner. I guess the important thing is to offer nutritionally sound snacks if a meal is not an option. There were a couple of days when Aidan ate breakfast cereal for dinner. I pick my fights…
 
In Aidan’s case the trick to get him to eat dinner is to let him feed himself. He gets his table, his bowl and a spoon – no assistance. He loves to feed himself with a spoon!  The other day he ate his yogurt by himself without much help.

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4647 Mr. No-no-no-no 2009-03-05T10:26:30Z 2009-03-05T10:26:30-05:00 2009-03-05T10:26:30Z Aidan is transitioning into a toddler. You can guess about the transition by his new nickname – Mr. No-no-no-no. We have entered that very fascinating and frustrating period by being introduced to a very loud and clear NO. The kind of NO that you cannot mistake for any other word. He says No a lot and he means it. -Aidan, can mommy have a kiss? -Mmmm  [looks at mom] No! As annoying as it could be at times, this No is also very exciting. This little word sort of ties our adult world of ‘speech’ to a baby word of ‘pointing and grunting’.  Aidan is also discovering that he can express his opinion! I feel that this is a huge step in his development and is bringing us (as in speaking grownups) and him closer. He is learning that there is a new way of expressing his feelings that does not involve a meltdown!   Of course our journey is not easy (is it ever for any parent and child?). There is a lot frustration for Aidan. He has all these needs and feelings but not many ways to express them. We are in between baby and toddler. As parents we feel the need to respect his NO as much as we would like him to respect our No. It is not always easy. Now he chooses what he wants, so we have to think about available choices and how to persuade him to choose the right thing without a major meltdown. There is no reasoning with Aidan yet, he simply is too young to understand The Why’s. I am sure every parent goes through this and that is where we are. We also try to use word NO only when we absolutely have to, hoping to lead by example.   Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com Milestones
Aidan is transitioning into a toddler. You can guess about the transition by his new nickname – Mr. No-no-no-no. We have entered that very fascinating and frustrating period by being introduced to a very loud and clear NO. The kind of NO that you cannot mistake for any other word. He says No a lot and he means it.
-Aidan, can mommy have a kiss?
-Mmmm  [looks at mom] No!
As annoying as it could be at times, this No is also very exciting. This little word sort of ties our adult world of ‘speech’ to a baby word of ‘pointing and grunting’.  Aidan is also discovering that he can express his opinion! I feel that this is a huge step in his development and is bringing us (as in speaking grownups) and him closer. He is learning that there is a new way of expressing his feelings that does not involve a meltdown!  
Of course our journey is not easy (is it ever for any parent and child?). There is a lot frustration for Aidan. He has all these needs and feelings but not many ways to express them. We are in between baby and toddler.
As parents we feel the need to respect his NO as much as we would like him to respect our No. It is not always easy. Now he chooses what he wants, so we have to think about available choices and how to persuade him to choose the right thing without a major meltdown. There is no reasoning with Aidan yet, he simply is too young to understand The Why’s. I am sure every parent goes through this and that is where we are. We also try to use word NO only when we absolutely have to, hoping to lead by example.  

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4642 Winter blues 2009-02-18T13:04:49Z 2009-02-18T13:04:49-05:00 2009-02-18T13:04:49Z Aidan has had a runny nose for a couple of days now. I think it’s caused by his teeth cutting, Jason thinks he has a cold. He does not have any other symptoms though.  I guess if you put all of us together you will get something: Aidan’s runny nose, my absolutely stiff-for-no-reason neck and sore throat, dad’s sneezing and congested chest. Charlie is the only one without complaints. Speaking of Charlie…she has impressed us once again! We have a treadmill now. The first day we put it in the house Charlie was up and running. She just got up on the treadmill, Jason turned it on and she started walking! Just like that. No special tricks. Now the plan is to get her to do it by herself. Right now Jason has to hold her collar because she gets distracted and falls off. We will probably have to rotate the treadmill so she can face the room and we should keep Aidan away - he is the biggest distraction. Aidan is obsessed with the exercise/storage room, mostly because it is generally off limits for him. As soon as we turn the lights on he rushes in. Aidan to the storage room is what Charlie is to the door bell. They both drop whatever they were doing and run over. Actually now that I am thinking about it, last night when Aidan heard the door bell ring he dropped his cookie, jumped off my lap and ran to the door…I wish he learned stuff from us, not the dog. He likes Charlie a lot I think. He is always getting stuff for her. If she is sitting by the cookie jar begging for yet another treat, Aidan will come over and demand we give him a cookie so he can give it to her. He always shares his food with her, brings Charlie her toys and cuddles with her. Charlie mostly silently tolerates all the cuddling in hopes to get some more stuff out of the kid. As you see, it is working out for both of them. Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com News
Aidan has had a runny nose for a couple of days now. I think it’s caused by his teeth cutting, Jason thinks he has a cold. He does not have any other symptoms though.  I guess if you put all of us together you will get something: Aidan’s runny nose, my absolutely stiff-for-no-reason neck and sore throat, dad’s sneezing and congested chest. Charlie is the only one without complaints.
Speaking of Charlie…she has impressed us once again! We have a treadmill now. The first day we put it in the house Charlie was up and running. She just got up on the treadmill, Jason turned it on and she started walking! Just like that. No special tricks. Now the plan is to get her to do it by herself. Right now Jason has to hold her collar because she gets distracted and falls off. We will probably have to rotate the treadmill so she can face the room and we should keep Aidan away - he is the biggest distraction.
Aidan is obsessed with the exercise/storage room, mostly because it is generally off limits for him. As soon as we turn the lights on he rushes in. Aidan to the storage room is what Charlie is to the door bell. They both drop whatever they were doing and run over. Actually now that I am thinking about it, last night when Aidan heard the door bell ring he dropped his cookie, jumped off my lap and ran to the door…I wish he learned stuff from us, not the dog.
He likes Charlie a lot I think. He is always getting stuff for her. If she is sitting by the cookie jar begging for yet another treat, Aidan will come over and demand we give him a cookie so he can give it to her. He always shares his food with her, brings Charlie her toys and cuddles with her. Charlie mostly silently tolerates all the cuddling in hopes to get some more stuff out of the kid. As you see, it is working out for both of them.

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4594 Teeth 2009-02-12T08:53:54Z 2009-02-12T08:53:54-05:00 2009-02-12T08:53:54Z It seems like Aidan is getting all of his teeth at once.  Every time he opens his mouth there is a new tooth! He has been feeling OK. I think it does not bother him that much. He is a happy easy going baby during the day (still takes 2 naps), it is only in the evening hours he gets a little extra tired. Last couple days were not easy. He cried the minute we got home right until the bath time. Now we try to feed him dinner a little earlier and put him to bed earlier as well.  Aidan is always on the go. Now when we go shopping riding in the shopping cart is not an option anymore. He absolutely has to walk! So shopping is a challenge now, we have to think what store has enough space between the isles and does not have very low shelves. We also have to take in account Aidan's nap time - wheather his rested enough or not. If we take our tired baby out, the baby tends to insist on a) being carried around the store b) grabbing items off the shelves and running away with them c) dropping to the floor and demanding to be dragged around (we play like that at home - excellent way to clean floors by the way)   d) all of the above and then some.     Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com News It seems like Aidan is getting all of his teeth at once.  Every time he opens his mouth there is a new tooth! He has been feeling OK. I think it does not bother him that much. He is a happy easy going baby during the day (still takes 2 naps), it is only in the evening hours he gets a little extra tired. Last couple days were not easy. He cried the minute we got home right until the bath time. Now we try to feed him dinner a little earlier and put him to bed earlier as well.
 Aidan is always on the go. Now when we go shopping riding in the shopping cart is not an option anymore. He absolutely has to walk! So shopping is a challenge now, we have to think what store has enough space between the isles and does not have very low shelves. We also have to take in account Aidan's nap time - wheather his rested enough or not. If we take our tired baby out, the baby tends to insist on a) being carried around the store b) grabbing items off the shelves and running away with them c) dropping to the floor and demanding to be dragged around (we play like that at home - excellent way to clean floors by the way)   d) all of the above and then some.
 
 

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4575 Our First Video 2009-01-27T14:51:32Z 2009-01-27T14:51:32-05:00 2009-01-27T14:51:32Z Check out our first video! This is what Aidan does during the day. He has lots of chores. Thank you Chris for helping out with the video! Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com Videos Check out our first video!
This is what Aidan does during the day. He has lots of chores.
Thank you Chris for helping out with the video!

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4525 Dancing 2009-01-20T14:50:05Z 2009-01-20T14:50:05-05:00 2009-01-20T14:50:05Z Every time Aidan hears music that he likes he dances! He puts his arms above his head and twirls around. I have done it ever since he was a little baby. Most of the time it was me doing all the dancing, now it is always Aidan twirling around the kitchen island. Every now and then we catch him singing or humming some sort of melody. It is very close to whining, but he sings in a more pleasant ‘normal’ voice.  We have so much singing and/or (depending on the mood) whining going on in our house (between Charlie and Aidan) that sometimes we just do not notice that sort of noise.   Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com First Moments
Every time Aidan hears music that he likes he dances! He puts his arms above his head and twirls around. I have done it ever since he was a little baby. Most of the time it was me doing all the dancing, now it is always Aidan twirling around the kitchen island.
Every now and then we catch him singing or humming some sort of melody. It is very close to whining, but he sings in a more pleasant ‘normal’ voice.  We have so much singing and/or (depending on the mood) whining going on in our house (between Charlie and Aidan) that sometimes we just do not notice that sort of noise.  

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4503 Wet kisses 2009-01-20T14:43:34Z 2009-01-20T14:43:34-05:00 2009-01-20T14:43:34Z Aidan has never really enjoyed kisses. It is probably my fault. I am an ‘over-kisser’ when it comes to Aidan. Jason calls me Chupacabra ever since we came home around midnight after a party once and I HAD to kiss Aidan before I went to bed. I could not just give him one little kiss and leave, so I woke him up. It was three in the morning before Jason was able to get Aidan to go back to sleep. So from now on I am only allowed two small kisses before Aidan is carried away to his bed and no more ‘blood sucking’ as Jason calls it. Now back to kissing. Whenever we ask Aidan for a kiss he gives us his forehead. Last weekend he started putting his mouth forward. We were thrilled! Now when we ask for a kiss, if he feels that we deserve it and he has a moment, he will get his face as close as possible, open his mouth and press it against mine or Jason’s. Couple times he slipped a tongue in. It was hilarious! Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com First Moments
Aidan has never really enjoyed kisses. It is probably my fault. I am an ‘over-kisser’ when it comes to Aidan. Jason calls me Chupacabra ever since we came home around midnight after a party once and I HAD to kiss Aidan before I went to bed. I could not just give him one little kiss and leave, so I woke him up. It was three in the morning before Jason was able to get Aidan to go back to sleep. So from now on I am only allowed two small kisses before Aidan is carried away to his bed and no more ‘blood sucking’ as Jason calls it.
Now back to kissing. Whenever we ask Aidan for a kiss he gives us his forehead. Last weekend he started putting his mouth forward. We were thrilled! Now when we ask for a kiss, if he feels that we deserve it and he has a moment, he will get his face as close as possible, open his mouth and press it against mine or Jason’s. Couple times he slipped a tongue in. It was hilarious!

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4502 Mommy’s Little Helper 2009-01-14T13:28:52Z 2009-01-14T13:28:52-05:00 2009-01-14T13:28:52Z Aidan LOVES to help around the house! It is very interesting considering that we did not teach him any of that. He just watches what we do and tries to imitate. His favorite thing to do is unload the dishwasher. He likes to take items out but since he cannot get into the cabinets we have to grab things fast otherwise they go randomly on the counters or floor. He is slowly getting the idea of ‘dirty’ dishes. Sometimes he tries to unload dirty dishes, but we are working on that. His second favorite activity is mopping floors. We have a swifter mop in the coat closet downstairs which we hardly ever use.  Jason took out the middle section out, so now it is perfect length for him.   Whenever we do laundry Aidan is always around. He likes to put dirty clothes in the washer (with our help) and then put wet stuff in the dryer. He is also a big help when it comes to putting his dirty clothes into his hamper. On occasion he put some clean clothes in there (clothes that he got from his dresser). Pretend ‘plant watering’ is a big hit too. He mostly runs around with the watering can though. I put plant food in the water every time I water my plants, so Aidan does not get to participate in actual watering yet. Aidan is always there to help me unload grocery bags. Unfortunately he has not figured out what item goes where, so he sometimes insist on putting eggs in the pantry and canned goods in the fridge. There is a good reason why our pantry has a lock on it. If it was not for the lock, we would never find anything because Aidan loves reorganizing things. He will sit there and take every single item out and then put it all back in, but the way he feels it should be organized.  Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com News
Aidan LOVES to help around the house! It is very interesting considering that we did not teach him any of that. He just watches what we do and tries to imitate. His favorite thing to do is unload the dishwasher. He likes to take items out but since he cannot get into the cabinets we have to grab things fast otherwise they go randomly on the counters or floor. He is slowly getting the idea of ‘dirty’ dishes. Sometimes he tries to unload dirty dishes, but we are working on that.
His second favorite activity is mopping floors. We have a swifter mop in the coat closet downstairs which we hardly ever use.  Jason took out the middle section out, so now it is perfect length for him.  
Whenever we do laundry Aidan is always around. He likes to put dirty clothes in the washer (with our help) and then put wet stuff in the dryer.
He is also a big help when it comes to putting his dirty clothes into his hamper. On occasion he put some clean clothes in there (clothes that he got from his dresser).
Pretend ‘plant watering’ is a big hit too. He mostly runs around with the watering can though. I put plant food in the water every time I water my plants, so Aidan does not get to participate in actual watering yet.
Aidan is always there to help me unload grocery bags. Unfortunately he has not figured out what item goes where, so he sometimes insist on putting eggs in the pantry and canned goods in the fridge. There is a good reason why our pantry has a lock on it. If it was not for the lock, we would never find anything because Aidan loves reorganizing things. He will sit there and take every single item out and then put it all back in, but the way he feels it should be organized. 

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4464 15 months 2009-01-12T14:08:59Z 2009-01-12T14:08:59-05:00 2009-01-12T14:08:59Z Last Friday we took Aidan for his 15th month check-up. As soon as we walked into the room Aidan started crying, it was like he remembered his last visit.  When the nurse came in to get his measurements he was screaming so loud we could not hear each other. It was hard to have a conversation with the doctor; I could not hear myself speak. However we were able to find out that he is 24 pounds and 32 inches long now (measurements are approximate, because Aidan was not very cooperative). He also received some additional shots, so it was not fun for him. Over the holidays Aidan had some sort of breakthrough if you will and now we can proudly say that he is using the following words: Daddy Doggie Bawa=ball Anana=banana Wawa=water Kaker=cracker Lego lego=let's go let's go run run   He has been talking a lot lately, but it is more gibberish than actual words. Our pediatrician said it is absolutely normal for his age, and not to worry.   Physically he is doing great. Now we have to run after him (we could just walk before). Last weekend we stopped by the camera store to look for a case for my camcorder. To distract Aidan we gave him the case, hoping it will keep him busy while we wait in line. Next thing we know he is running for the exit with the case in his hand! As soon as he saw me running after him he turned around and ran in a different direction! He thought it was a great game!   Running around is his favorite game of all. That’s the one he plays with his dad. Jason usually gets whooped in an hour! I do not even try.  While daddy is Aidan’s #1 play mate, Charlie is his #2. I am waiting for her to file a harassment suit against the boy, seriously. He is always ‘hugging’-pressing his body against her, ‘petting’ – smacking her, ‘initiating play’ – shoving all sorts of toys in her face and he always gets her in trouble. We have several plastic balls that are for Aidan and Charlie is not allowed to take them (she crashes them), but he constantly throws them for her and teases her, so she ends up grabbing them.  However there are plenty of tender moments between those two. Aidan loves to curl up with her and she enjoys all that food he throws to her while eating.   Speaking of food… My goal has always been to introduce him to as much stuff as possible, while he is young and does not have an opinion. He is definitely a meat eater (at least for now): chicken, beef, venison, lamb – you name it. He loves salmon and always eats huge amounts. Aidan is also big on starches: rice, pasta (including ravioli, tortellini etc.) We have also introduced all sorts of beans, as well as vegetables and fruit. Basically he will eat anything as long as it has good flavor. We use all spices when cooking (I keep the heat down though). Recently he has tried some Lebanese cuisine and enjoyed a lot.   Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com Milestones
Last Friday we took Aidan for his 15th month check-up. As soon as we walked into the room Aidan started crying, it was like he remembered his last visit.  When the nurse came in to get his measurements he was screaming so loud we could not hear each other. It was hard to have a conversation with the doctor; I could not hear myself speak. However we were able to find out that he is 24 pounds and 32 inches long now (measurements are approximate, because Aidan was not very cooperative). He also received some additional shots, so it was not fun for him.
Over the holidays Aidan had some sort of breakthrough if you will and now we can proudly say that he is using the following words:
Daddy
Doggie
Bawa=ball
Anana=banana
Wawa=water
Kaker=cracker
Lego lego=let's go let's go
run run
 
He has been talking a lot lately, but it is more gibberish than actual words. Our pediatrician said it is absolutely normal for his age, and not to worry.
 
Physically he is doing great. Now we have to run after him (we could just walk before). Last weekend we stopped by the camera store to look for a case for my camcorder. To distract Aidan we gave him the case, hoping it will keep him busy while we wait in line. Next thing we know he is running for the exit with the case in his hand! As soon as he saw me running after him he turned around and ran in a different direction! He thought it was a great game!
 
Running around is his favorite game of all. That’s the one he plays with his dad. Jason usually gets whooped in an hour! I do not even try.  While daddy is Aidan’s #1 play mate, Charlie is his #2. I am waiting for her to file a harassment suit against the boy, seriously. He is always ‘hugging’-pressing his body against her, ‘petting’ – smacking her, ‘initiating play’ – shoving all sorts of toys in her face and he always gets her in trouble. We have several plastic balls that are for Aidan and Charlie is not allowed to take them (she crashes them), but he constantly throws them for her and teases her, so she ends up grabbing them.  However there are plenty of tender moments between those two. Aidan loves to curl up with her and she enjoys all that food he throws to her while eating.
 
Speaking of food… My goal has always been to introduce him to as much stuff as possible, while he is young and does not have an opinion. He is definitely a meat eater (at least for now): chicken, beef, venison, lamb – you name it. He loves salmon and always eats huge amounts. Aidan is also big on starches: rice, pasta (including ravioli, tortellini etc.) We have also introduced all sorts of beans, as well as vegetables and fruit. Basically he will eat anything as long as it has good flavor. We use all spices when cooking (I keep the heat down though). Recently he has tried some Lebanese cuisine and enjoyed a lot.
 

]]> tag:porterfieldfamily,2010:1.4462 Holidays 2009-01-05T12:53:49Z 2009-01-05T12:53:49-05:00 2009-01-05T12:53:49Z It has been ages since we posted any updates; therefore one of my many New Year’s resolutions is “update more”. This is the first time I am actually making resolutions and I have a few…we will see how that turns out. Now with all major holidays behind us I have no more excuses. What happened since October? Our Halloween was pretty low-key. Aidan was dressed as a Monkey (see pictures) and even had a real banana as a prop, but he ate it right away. We passed out candy from our porch (it was a super warm night and all the neighbors sat on their porches and gave out candy). We had a very good turnout and most of kids’ costumes were pretty imaginative. Aidan mostly hoarded candy (who can resist shiny wrappers?). This year we hosted Thanksgiving dinner. Since Nanna and Poppies were going away on vacation next day, Daddy offered to cook. We had a very traditional meal of turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, cranberry relish, and corn and of course a pumpkin pie. Aidan loved it all! Right after Thanksgiving we were able to visit Grandma and Grandpa Porterfield. Aidan and I stayed for the weekend only, while daddy spent first week of December hunting. Now we have a freezer full of venison. Since daddy cooked our Thanksgiving meal, it was my turn to cook for Christmas Eve dinner. I made a leg of lamb, mashed potatoes and brussels sprouts. We invited a couple of friends over, put Aidan to bed and had a nice adult dinner. I also made a traditional Christmas wine drink (traditional in Germany), called Glühwein. It was very delicious. On Christmas Day we went to Nanna’s where we got to see Aidan’s Auntie Dee and his cousins.  Unfortunately neither dad nor I got to talk to anybody that day because of one little boy who did not want to sit around and unwrap his presents. All he wanted to do was climb the stairs, open doors, grab things that were not meant for little boys and so on and so forth. Needless to say we did not get any photos …or video. Oh yes, one of my gifts was a video camera! And a MAC laptop for all my movies and photos! Now I just need to get back to taking pictures and recording all the precious moments. Ever since Aidan gained his freedom (freedom to move around), it has been almost impossible to get a picture of him. As soon as he sees me with the camera he runs away or tries to grab it! We celebrated New Year on the couch in our PJs just like most of Americans, or so said Ryan Seacrest during the Dick Clark’s New Year TV thingy. We both sort of fell asleep there for a while, but Jason woke up just in time to pour some more champagne before the ball dropped. Aidan was sound asleep in his bed of course. Lena and Jason http://www.theBABYjournal.com/blogs/PorterfieldFamily/ lporterfield@mcking.com Holidays
It has been ages since we posted any updates; therefore one of my many New Year’s resolutions is “update more”. This is the first time I am actually making resolutions and I have a few…we will see how that turns out.
Now with all major holidays behind us I have no more excuses.
What happened since October? Our Halloween was pretty low-key. Aidan was dressed as a Monkey (see pictures) and even had a real banana as a prop, but he ate it right away. We passed out candy from our porch (it was a super warm night and all the neighbors sat on their porches and gave out candy). We had a very good turnout and most of kids’ costumes were pretty imaginative. Aidan mostly hoarded candy (who can resist shiny wrappers?).
This year we hosted Thanksgiving dinner. Since Nanna and Poppies were going away on vacation next day, Daddy offered to cook. We had a very traditional meal of turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, cranberry relish, and corn and of course a pumpkin pie. Aidan loved it all!
Right after Thanksgiving we were able to visit Grandma and Grandpa Porterfield. Aidan and I stayed for the weekend only, while daddy spent first week of December hunting. Now we have a freezer full of venison.
Since daddy cooked our Thanksgiving meal, it was my turn to cook for Christmas Eve dinner. I made a leg of lamb, mashed potatoes and brussels sprouts. We invited a couple of friends over, put Aidan to bed and had a nice adult dinner. I also made a traditional Christmas wine drink (traditional in Germany), called Glühwein. It was very delicious.
On Christmas Day we went to Nanna’s where we got to see Aidan’s Auntie Dee and his cousins.  Unfortunately neither dad nor I got to talk to anybody that day because of one little boy who did not want to sit around and unwrap his presents. All he wanted to do was climb the stairs, open doors, grab things that were not meant for little boys and so on and so forth. Needless to say we did not get any photos …or video. Oh yes, one of my gifts was a video camera! And a MAC laptop for all my movies and photos! Now I just need to get back to taking pictures and recording all the precious moments.
Ever since Aidan gained his freedom (freedom to move around), it has been almost impossible to get a picture of him. As soon as he sees me with the camera he runs away or tries to grab it!
We celebrated New Year on the couch in our PJs just like most of Americans, or so said Ryan Seacrest during the Dick Clark’s New Year TV thingy. We both sort of fell asleep there for a while, but Jason woke up just in time to pour some more champagne before the ball dropped. Aidan was sound asleep in his bed of course.

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