A Rite of Passage....

My booboo got his first big boy haircut on this past Saturday. It started out okay and ended in terror. But, the barber had lots of experience cutting wormy and screaming kids hair. The final product is a little boy I have to get to know. I'm not used to this look on him and my baby is starting to fade away.....tears.

Eye can't see!

Well I don't see very well at all! Turns out that in addition to the bilateral conjunctivitis I also seem to have corneal abrasions. This is what has been causing me so much pain and agony for the past two weeks! I finally went to the ER, as resistant and adamant as I was being a nurse and said, " I need help". Started out to work with Joshie in tow (he goes to my Mom's until hubby picks him up and takes him home). I get on the road and.....and.....I can't see! Literally, the cars are blurry, the signage is unfocusable until I get right up on them. I'm scared and decide that $#&!-ing with my eyes is no game, girl take your behind to the ER. I wait until hubby hits my mothers and I call in to work and let them know what's going on. Well, they have an idea because I've looked like hell for two weeks. Anyhoo, after getting my eyes numbed which burned then felt like heaven,... no pain, dyed, so that they could visual them under ultraviolet lamp and pricked, they found corneal abrasion on both eyes. If you've ever had a corneal abrasion you will know...IT HURTS!!! Why it's taken them so long to heal I have no clue. It could be the horrible ventilation at work forcing particles into my already delicate eyes or the wrestling I do with Joshie. Yes, the boy has poked me numerous times in the eye. So rest and multiple drops of Tobramycin ointment to the eye every three hours I think they are getting a little better. Vision is still blurry and ain't worth crap. I can't pull out of my driveway. And I'm sure work is threw with me. But look, the thought of not seeing my babe's face again because I didn't care for my eyes would tear me apart. Now, due to the holiday I can't get in to see an opthalmologist until next week (after turkey day). Oy vey!

MMR and Autism

(picture:PopPop and Grandma Woods)

So Joshie had his one year check up and vaccination. For the longest time I contemplated forgoing or nixing the MMR shot. With all the hype regarding it's possible link to Autism, of course I was afraid. But, I had to put aside the media hype and do my own research in addition to discussing it in depth with his pediatrician. Well, I found that here in New Jersey the incidence of Autism is higher than any other state. We all know the air quality in Jersey isn't the greatest and cancer incidence is also high in this area. But I found that diagnosis is very tedious and also involves many other factors despite the MMR shot. Joshua's doc starts early (at around 6 months) with her testing for Autism. Joshua passes with every visit with flying colors. "He is alert and bright" in her own words "and his attention towards me proves he's not autisitc". Autistic children tend to be in their own world, will not acknowledge a stranger and if they do will tend to focus on the mouth rather than the eyes when someone speaks (a cardinal sign). Check out the links for more symptoms and great info. As a registered nurse in L&D we adhere to many of the NICHD standards so I trust their info greatly. So my baby is doing wonderful and I thank the Lord above for that. He also tolerated the vaccination with not even a hint of temperature fluctuation ( I expected a mild fever and irritability). So there, as a mother you do what's best for your kid.

On the other side, myself, I've been awful. I've been battling this eye infection/conjunctivitis since his birthday. Used anitbiotic drops for a week and it's not gone yet. It seems to be aggitated by my work environment. It's very dry and the air vents probably haven't been cleaned in years (yes people, this is a hospital okay!). I really need to make an appointment with an internal medicine doc to get a full physical and all that good stuff. So, baby good, Mama bad. And oh yeah, Master Woods is starting to stand without holding on to anything for a long period of time. He even gets bold and will rock and dance but not one step yet.

Settling down

I finally feel like the whole birthday shabang has settled now. We've cleaned up the house (popcorn, decorations, candy all over the place) and are finally getting back to normal. I have to say though, a party in your home takes waaay more work than I'd imagined. I may have to consider doing a hall next time or a party place. But, in the end, the little man was overwhelmed by all the family around him and had a good time. He made out like a bandit with money, clothes and toys. I don't know what to do for Christmas!

Now, getting into the developmental side of things, Mr. Joshua is still cruising but with a more rapid gate and has even found interest in the steps. YES the steps!! He's taken two steps so far and I've had to stop him from going further. Soon I'll stand behind him and see how far he can go. He's even tried standing on toys as a step stool in an attempt to climb over the safety gate. Yup, my boy. Oh yeah, another tooth and broken through so he's got four on top and the two little front teeth on the bottom. They look like little pearls, so adorable, but crazy sharp.

On another note, we've been really struggling financially for the last 6months now. I've been pulling extra shifts here and there but hubby's new job shows no opportunities for advancement or overtime. I laid on the tough love and told him it's time to start looking for bigger and better things. My husband is a graphic designer and has been in his field for quite some time now. He's got loads or talent and experience. Considering we're a stones throw (figuratively) from NYC, I want him to look there. Why? More money, better chance of advancement and career growth. Problem is the competition is serious. He's had a few interviews here and there that have gone nowhere. My deduction is that they either found someone to do the job for a cheap or they weren't keen on his interview. We always get into arguments about how he should open up more. My husband is the kind of guy that has to work up to getting to know you and will then open up more. You can't do that in an interview. So, any of you listening or reading out there, say some prayers for us. If we don't have a financial breakthrough soon, we may have to move! I put it in God's hands.

I refuse to Walk!

As the title says.....not walking yet. But here's a couple more pics from the birthday boy's party.

Happy Birthday Joshua!!

WOW.....it's been three long hard weeks. Working overtime at work, planning the last details of Joshie's Party, preparing the house for company and the arrival of the in-laws. I didn't realize that I hadn't typed one word in three weeks! It just proves that I've been busy, hands full.

Well, Joshua's Party was on the 28th, but today is my boy's actual birthday. It was an eventful day (the party), much fun to be had, games and pirates running all around my home. In the end, it looked as if a tornado hit. I'll never do a party in my house which entails children again....repeat...NEVER again! I must look into a hall or party place for next year. As for today, hubby's car broke down on the Garden State Parkway...yup. So Joshie and I spent time taking DaDa to work, stopped by grandma's job to say hello, spent the rest of our time at great-grandma's cause it didn't make sense to go all the way home and have to turn around again (this is sounding like a pepa-vent post) and then back home by 7pm to meet the last few trick or treaters. I just distributed the candy in handfuls cause I knew we'd only get the stragglers of the day.

All in all, I can't believe I was in this place last year, contracting by this time and almost fully dilated. Josh was born at 11:55pm, just before midnight. He was determined to come on Halloween. With his cord tucked underneath his arm and over his shoulder, crying for a short minute, skin clear and like butter, not a bit of vernix. I could still smell him now. He's not walking yet today, but I'm proud of my big baby. Again and again I say, I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat.

Teeth attacks

Lately, Joshua has been using his new chompers to eat very well. Problem is, he's also biting his family! He has bitten me and my mother in a 24 hour period. It amazes me that now his verbal/phonetics are really coming along. I ask him little questions and have chit chats and he will respond to the best of his baby ability. So when I ask for a kiss, he will lean in to me and give me a big one. But just yesterday, I come in from work, without asking he leans in to give me a kiss and decides he's going to take a chunk of Mama's bottom lip! Let me tell ya, he bit down so hard I saw stars! I told hubby to check if he saw blood. Thank goodness he didn't but my reaction was hilarious to Joshua. I gave him a stern look and it ended that. So yesterday I started re-teaching him how to kiss....geez.

Security Breach

Gates, gates all around and the boy still finds ways to get into some mess! I don't understand it. I guess in his little brain he thinks, "fine you silly big people, I'll just find something else dangerous to do." We have plug covers and two gates barring the kitchen (because you can enter from the foyer/living room and the dining area). I've also latched the inner cabinets that are within his reach so that they only open about 1. 5 inches. He still breaches security. He's tried to knock down the gates and reaches in the cabinets to try and get out items. We're in trouble when he starts walking. Right now, he's to the point of holding on with one hand and cruising around. I get a kick out of seeing him rock and jump when some good music is playing. I have to hit Babies R Us or One Step Ahead to see if I can find tighter security!

Breaking news: The in-laws are coming, the in-laws are coming..possible Monday of next week to spend some time. I hope I can take this opportunity to get some projects done while they're here getting re-aquainted with Joshua. It's been months since they've seen him...way too long.

Soggy DooWop

This baby can fill a diaper, thus the title of this post. I'm telling you, when he wakes up during the night I know it's for the soggy, pee-loaded diapers that's doing it. If I had a scale to weigh them all I'm sure they'd come in at at least 5 pounds! He gets his last before bed bottle around 8pm and then it's bed time around 9pm. It's very rare that he makes it past 9pm unless he had an extra late afternoon nap. He bustles around 11 or 12 and gets himself back to sleep without our help. But depending on the night, it could be between 3am or 6am that he's up again screaming. We usually find him holding on to the railing and jumping up and down like he's on a trampoline, screaming and crying "MaMa..aaaaaa...MaMa.....babababa". I feel the butt and sure enough there's a load. I'm wondering if he remained dry if he'd sleep longer? I guess anyone would wake up from a sound sleep to a flood in their pants.

As far as health, Joshua's is doing well and has been cool tempered since the diarrhea resolved. Can't see anymore teeth coming through as of yet and the ones he has are lengthening. I'm sure another will pop through soon and then we'll have to deal with that. I better stock up on the Tylenol and Motrin. I found that alternating the two works really well and the Motrin is actually longer acting and reduces the inflammation.

Development -wise, he's more verbal and dances so much more than before. He'd always rock back and forth to a nice beat but now he has preferences...jazz, r&b and reggae. We live in a community that contains lots of caribbean brothers and sisters. So while we're relaxing on the porch, if a vehicle comes by rockin a dancehall or reggae tune and loud, Joshua is rockin' with them. Then he looks at Mama and grins wide. I have got to get this boy to Jamaica. Believe it or not I don't have a passport. The last time I was on the island was for my wedding in '03....a shame I know. And then, all you needed was a birth certificate and a drivers license. So the new rules of traveling internationally....passport. Gotta buckle down and do it. I'd feel good about getting one for the babe too. Cause if you think of it, babies don't have picture I.D. And it'd be nice to have a legal document with my baby's picture on it, so no mix up.....THIS IS MY KID!! What mother doesn't think any fool out there wouldn't want to try and take their beautiful baby? Call me ridiculous or outrageous, I don't care. With the high rise in infertility and child abduction, I'm getting my baby branded by the goverment as mine with a passport. It links him to me and hubby. So, hopefully I'll be getting that done soon.

Doing Better

The short and sweet of it, we are doing so much better. It's been a few days and I haven't had the time between work (been out of control, lots of deliveries) and playing home nurse to Joshua to get on the web.

I have about 1oo some odd emails waiting to be weeded out and/or read. It's amazing how things get away from you.

Well, to update, pediatrician got back to me that day and recommended Nystatin cream and to "keep doing what your doing, it'll resolve....if not bring him in". So I applied the cream and the butt rash went away. Continued the BRATY diet and the poop thickened...hahaha. Now, I'm about 20 minutes away from the peds doc. She suggested I run to her office for the cream. Can't do that, I'm beat tired, been running all week and up with the kiddo. So what do I do? I call my best friend, Josh's godmother who is a physician assistant and have her call in the cream to CVS which is two blocks down the street. Problem solved. In addition, she adds another cream to the order which also benefits in clearing the butt rawness.

As of today, he's a happier baby and has slept soundly through the night the last three nights. And on another note, I think I'll start calling him the copy cat kid. Lately, everything we do or say he makes his baby attempt and mimicking me and the hubby. From covering his mouth to cough, saying 'Uh oooh' and blowing a kiss. Too cute.

Nuff said. Good night all.....SIGH.

BRATY not working

So the BRATY diet hasn't helped and it seems my baby is feeling worst. I've sacrificed a morning of sleep (I worked last night until 7am this morning) to keep him home and nurse him back to health. I just don't feel as if the sitter will take the same care as I would. She has many kids and Joshua sitting in a poopy mess for any length of time would tear me apart. Now don't get me wrong, she changes him frequently and the proof is in the empty diaper bag and dry, fresh and clean bottom when I pick him up. This is just such a severe case that only one to one Mama care will do. Also I've rotated a few butt creams to see what's worked better. Everything from Desitin, Balmex, Beaudroux. I'm now using A&D ointment and he seems to be getting more relief from that. Placed a call to the peds doc. and I'm waiting to hear whether I should continue to manage at home or make an appointment with her for tomorrow. Next step is spreading out the sheets and towels on the floor and letting him go naked to help heal the broken skin. Only problem is that these episodes of diarrhea are explosive! Fortunately we have all wood and tile for easy clean ups. We'll keep trudging on and pray for speedy booty recovery.

Ohhh diarrhea

Okay now, it started on Thursday. I thought nothing of it because all of the mucous he swallowed being sick the last few weeks has to go somewhere right? Well, it hasn't let up and only got worst and stinkier. He has some skin breakdown on his butt and the 'taint' area (slang for 'taint the balls, taint the butt' area on boys). My husband craps up when I say taint. Anyhoo, I've been applying generous amounts of Beaudroux butt paste and Balmex and he's on the BRATY diet. If I get no improvement by tomorrow am then it's back to the pediatrician. It could be a yeast infection from his immune system being compromised. I always urge my hubby to use utmost cleanliness when changing him and washing his hands after coming in from outside/work etc. Guess this was bound to happen.

I have to say, he has been sleeping better. I think if it weren't for the sickness he's been experiencing that he'd sleep better and possibly straight through the night. He slept until 4am this morning and woke up screeching, not screaming cause his diaper was filled with loose poop and urine. I felt so bad and all I could do is give many kisses and 'Mama so sorry'.

On another note, I just downloaded some great new music on Itunes. Of course Jill Scott was the top of my list and second the new Prince album. It's amazing how these two artists bring out the creativity in myself and always speaks to my heart and emotions. Jill and Prince have out done themselves AGAIN! Somehow they make the stress, the bills, the property taxes and mortgage, the diarrhea, the weight, all go away for a little while. I know it sounds silly, but the simple things in life make me happy sometimes. Another thing, the arrival of fall/autumn used to depress me cause I'm such a summer person. I thrive from the sun's warmth. But since the birth of Joshua, it reminds me of my last weeks of pregnancy. The smell of the crisp air, the changing leaves all in anticipation of my first baby. I welcome it now and it warms my heart like the summer sun does and sends tingles to my stomach. My baby is going to be one year old. WOW. Thank you for this Lord and I'm sorry I don't speak to you as often as I should.

Sleep wonderful sleep

He slept through the night last night! Ya heard it hear first. One waking at 11pm in which I refused to go in and see what's the matter. I laid down the law with hubby and told him don't even think about going in there. Josh cried for about 6 minutes and went back to sleep on his own. My dumb ass kept waking up checking on him to make sure the boy was still alive cause I couldn't believe he was still asleep in his crib. Finally after 1am it was sleep I haven't had in a long time. Woo Hoooooo! Now I know what it feels like again. I pray that he does the same thing tonight.

On another note, has anyone every watched children's television. You know, shows are just not what they used to be when I was growing up. Seriously, another blogster brought this subject up and it made me think about my childhood. I watched the classics, Sesame Street, Zoom, New Zoo Review, Mr. Rogers, Electric Co. (which always followed Sesame Street and where you know who got his start in TV) and these were great shows. Now....what do we have now...Sponge Bob...ick, Barney...never let Josh watch it, and everything is vulgar and rude, from boogers to farts. We tend to lean towards Backyardigans which was created by a sistah, love it! Also all of the shows on Noggin we like. Joshua will stop dead in his tracks when he hears certain theme songs, Dora, Diego, Blues Clues and the hip Backyardigans. I can see that TV is going to be a big issue in our house. Oh yeah and parental control, gotta figure out how to work it on the remote cause I haven't got a clue.

Jazz Baby

I posted these pics the other day in hopes of getting a chance to type an entry but it never happened. Well here I am days later finally doing it.

Joshua had his second jazz festival experience this past weekend at the cd101.9 Liberty Jazz Festival and it was hotter than Hades! I think the temp with the humidity reached at least 94. And of course I was post-12 hour shift and hadn't slept since the day before. But anyway, this child loves his music. If he wasn't cooing and humming to the music he was rocking and trying to snap those fat little fingers to the beat. We had a lovely two days in Jersey City State Park with a backside (literally) view of the the lovely green lady (Statue of Liberty). At sundown her torch lights and the back drop of the NYC skyline is gorgeous. I still miss the site of the twin towers overseeing the city. I get misty cause the skyline just doesn't seem right without it. I thank God all my family in New York that lives or works there survived 9/11 and I pray that the Lord gives the families who lost, the strength to go on.

Thank You Lord

I think we've finally gotten over this cold/respiratory thing. For the last week and a half, a mild summer cold had turned into an upper respiratory disaster. Josh became more and more miserable until finally the doc visit and then he hit the basement in health. Why the hell is that? Possibly his fragile immune system just picked up more nasty germs in the doctor's office. I don't know. But my child had a temp of 102 and was extremely lethargic. He wasn't himself at all! It was the scariest moment I've ever had with him yet. All he wanted to do was sit in my lap and put his little head on my chest. His breathing was labored and he just looked exhausted from trying.

So, of course I did everything in my power and training to make him feel better. At any point if his temp went up a half a degree I was taking him to the ER. But it never did. I know in my heart of hearts the first thing any parent would do is run to the ER. But, as a nurse I know the parameters of what is considered a pediatric emergency and what's not. Unfortunately after auscultating his lungs and taking his vital signs myself, Joshua's case would find us sitting in a germy ER, then getting sent home with nothing but pats on the back and "see your pediatrician in the morning 'shpiel' (sp?)" So, I sat in our small closet of a bathroom with the shower on hot, sitting on the 'john' with Joshua in my arms and telling him to "breathe baby, breathe in the steam, Lord God help my baby". Gave him the Albuterol medicine and a dose of tylenol and watched him, all night long. The next morning, no fever and he was in better spirits. Gradually as the day pressed on, the sick Joshua melted away and the smiley, playful baby reappeared. The day after that, himself again. At breakfast he vomited a wad of mucous. Wonder where all that phlegm they swallow goes? Now you know, loose stools and vomit. Oh, trust me, I'm not done watching him like a Mama hawk.

So two days of calling out from work and many nights of lost sleep, tossing and turning, coughing and gagging, here we are. I pray this is the end!

10 months today

To my Joshua,

My, my baby have you grown! You are starting to look like a little boy now instead of a babe. I can almost see you at age 5 and it makes Mama want to cry. I'm so pround of you and so is Dada. This year has almost been a blur. You've hit every milestone with ease except for sleeping through the night. But it seems like you've joined the club of many babies that don't sleep through in your generation. So Mama isn't worried, that night will soon come. Two more months until your birthday. I'd repeat that day ten times over to have you and we're blessed God chose us to be your parents.

Well, the peds. visit went okay. We had to wait a little while which we aren't used to because it was an urgent/sick visit so we were squeezed in appointments. Josh got restless in the waiting room and fell in love with an older woman (little girl about 16 months old). He insisted on touching her and I mentioned to the father that he is sick and it wasn't a good idea. They were drawn to each other as most children/babies are.

Finally in the exam room, right away after listening to his lungs the doc said he was wheezing. My heart dropped and right away I though, 'he is going to have asthma like me!" I'm hoping this is something that'll go away but asthma is hereditary. And why does it seem like African American's tend to have it? I remember a study done years ago about low-income families living in the projects and the corelation with roaches. For lack of better words, WE AIN'T GOT NO ROACHES! It pisses me off because despite the diet, the care, he still may get asthma.

So, the doctor prescribes Albuterol liquid which I know right away will help him but one of the side effects is jitteriness, tachycardia and for kids that recipe is bouncing off the walls. Josh didn't sleep until 10pm. About an hour an a half later than his usual bedtime. I'm thinking he'll sleep late...not this kid. He's up 6:30-7:00am like clock work, with three times waking up during the night. I want him to cry himself to sleep but my husband gets up with one little "ahhh" from Joshua. I urged him to let him cry, we've done everything else BUT Ferberize this kid, it's the last resort but he won't stick to it. I work nights and I know when he's home at night with him he doesn't let him cry. This should have been part of yesterday's 'pepa vent' too. But anyhoo, my gut feelings about this cold rang true. I can only hope that it ends here and not with another visit. I'm not looking forward to dealing with asthma if that's what it is.

Sigh pics

My husband knows nothing...(peppa vent)

about this blog...HA! I mentioned it to him some time ago. But my husband's interest when he sits down in front of the computer is graphic design. He'll spend HOURS...on a project in Photoshop or designing new t-shirts. Do you think he'd want to know what his wife is saying about his fam on the internet...nah! I could call him a one eyed purple puking people eater and he'd never know the difference. That goes to show that opposites sometimes don't attract. Joe and I are like day and night in a lot of aspects. Yet we are both creative with our hands, me more on the tactile side of crafts, knitting, card making, cooking, gardening. He's more of a graphic and drawing creativity. Although I draw a little myself..no where near as good as my other half. I'm telling you, if he shows me another black superhero he's thunk up (yeah thunk), I'll scream. How bout drawing your beautiful wife as a superhero....stop laughing at me yall.

Too many days I've felt like, like, like MultiTask Wooooman! I've got gatchets, pda, cell phone, coffee maker, wipes warmer and diaper dispenser all on my trusty belt. At night I shut down and become SEXY MILF Woooman! Sidebar: I've always hated the term MILF, it's not cute at all but in this entry I use it as such. But I'd never want to be called that by anyone! But you get the picture. And some nights I'm CryoMom, I sleep through baby cries, hubby snores and cat-capades (we have a cat that has spastic rantings from time to time, running and seemingly jumping off the walls to exert her energy) because if I don't I'll have a heart attack and die from exhaustion.

But Joe, my spouse, partner, love sometimes misses the point. So I yell it. Nuff said.

YES! YES! YES!

As you can see from the title I'm quite happy today. For the past week Joshua has been eating like a champ. Yes, you heard it hear first. We've made it throught the storm. I still can't tell you what was going on with his appetite. I do have to say that for the past week he has had the worst cold ever. Symptoms: runny and slimy gook from the nose, drooling profusely, coughing-but with productive tones to it and no fever. I've been giving him Infant Tylenol cold Plus and it's been expectorating the mucous but due to him having no fever I've been hopeful and assured that it isn't an infection. Actually, I've been waiting for the fever so I could make the appointment with the doc...but nothing. His spirits are high and he plays normally so I haven't been overly worried. If it doesn't settle down by this week I'll call her up and take him in for an exam.

On the teething front, he's got another upper central incisor coming through in the front next to the other one. And low and behold it looks like he'll have the diastema or space in front like his Mama. I was hoping he had teeth like his Dada but because he's a boy it'll probably look good on him and be a defining trait. I grew to hate my space and then at times I like it. On my many travels to Jamaica, it's a feature that men there tend to find attractive in a woman. But here in the states it's always ugly and negative. Well, still too early to tell what his permanent teeth will be like, I can only hope he has a better history with the dentist than I did.

What's in the milk man?

Again, we are confronted with more food issues. The struggle continues with getting Joshua to eat as well as he used to. Each meal is a surprise whether we'll get cooperation from him or a tantrum. We've removed the high chair table to prevent feelings of confinement. I've pushed the high chair up to the table so he feels like a big boy. Joe has even put him on his lap to get him to eat better. I believe it's beyond teething that's the problem.

Furthermore, I've changed milk formula this week. The nursing ended at around 6 months. Joshua just stopped wanting the breast and my production slowed down. So prior to this any supplementing we used Enfamil Lipil. Never had any stomach problems and he never was the throwing up type. It worked so we stuck to it. Well, I switched to the formula for older babiew Enfamil Lipil Next Step. He drinks it down like the other milk but I've noticed his stools have been smellier and looser, with even a lighter color! I'm wondering if the higher iron content is causing the problem. Usually it'll make the stools tighter rather than loose but in Joshua it's done the opposite. Also he's had a nasty cold with coughing and a runny nose, no fever. So the combination of the two may be causing the loose bowel movements. Other than that he's a happy baby. Activity hasn't changed and he crawls around more and more each day.
I'll have to keep investigating before I finally decide to take him back to the pediatrician.

Speaking of the pediatrician, one of the down sides of being a nurse and the pediatrician knowing it, is that things aren't always explained fully. Now I'm a labor and delivery nurse first, a well baby and post partum nurse second, but I'm NOT a pediatric nurse so I don't know everything about baby development. At times I need a little extra explanation which she fails to do. Last visit, I almost felt rushed. If it happens again, I'll have to let her know my feelings or maybe even change doctors which I'd hate to do because technically she is quite smart. She's young and she keeps up on the latest in child care. But, we'll see.

On a lighter note, I'm still working on my baby's invites to his party. I'm making them myself and it's take longer than I expected. I'm glad I started early. And I've really gone overboard on the pirate theme. Oriental Trading Co. will be getting another big order from me within the next week or two. I want to make sure the house is fully decorated in Halloween and Pirate stuff galore! I think I'm more excited than Joshua (of course he'll probably never remember being so young). But this will be a family tradition, Joshua's big birthday/halloween party! I love it. We must purchase a camcorder. Financially we haven't been able to afford it so a moving cdocumentary of his first months wasn't a possibility, but stills we have plenty. Scrapbooking, card stamping and recording is my passion.