Best Christmas Gift

Jake started to walk on his own today. He did this much like the first time when he was 14 months old. Except when he did it the first time, he was in school and Mark and I missed it. But this time, we were there to see it. It was wonderful.

He first stood up on his own withouth holding on to anything. Then he steadied himself, legs wide apart for balance and walked without assistance. I was so happy that I called out "hey Mark!" Jake was happy with himself as well so he called out "hey Mark" repeatedly. Everyone there, Popa, Grammy, Nancy, Dan, Isaac, Madeleine, Eric, Heather, Jeff, Mom and Dad all cheered.

I saw beautiful moments tonight. Jake walked towards everyone he loved and gave them a hug. He was so happy with himself.

Jake and his cousins played with their Christmas toys. They also had a ball riding a makeshift sled down Popa's stairs. Jake didn't want to leave but he was getting tired. Jake feeling better and walking again was the best Christmas gift. Pictures to follow...

Jake is walking

Jake is walking now. He started this week and he has now gained more confidence. We know the treatment is working because a month ago, this would have been impossible due to the pain.

Please enjoy, yet another video because action speaks louder than words.

Greenday

Jake had a fabulous day. He got to spend some time at Poppa and Grammy's house. Then he got to ride in the car and have french fries and hamberger. He then took a long nap. He got to go shopping. I got a bonus at work and I told Jake he could buy whatever he wanted. Mark and I presented him with toy cash registers, toy cars, keyboards and a karaoke machine but he wanted an 8 pack of wiffle balls for $2 and a big yellow bouncy ball. I am going to savor this moment because I know it won't be long before he asks us for a real car or a mobile phone.

When we came back home, Mark found a concert special of Greenday on TV. Greenday is Jake's favorite band. The song "Wake me Up when September ends" is his favorite. On a recent road trip to Omaha, we had to listen to that for 2 hours. We finally bit the bullet and told him the song was "gone." We had to listen to 15 minutes of him crying for it. We rather hear him cry then to listen to that song again.

He listened to Greenday and played with his toys. Every now and then he would stop and dance. What a nut. He attempted to walk on his own holding onto a push toy with wheels. We ended the day with me pimping his ride. Nana bought him a toy car that he can ride in but it didn't have a horn. I bought a book with buttons that play music and I hooked it up to his steering wheel. This made him very happy.

I'm looking for more days like this.

Jake's pimped ride.

Clinic Day

Every Thursday (sometimes Wednesday when Thursday is a holiday) we have clinic. We go into Children's Mercy for various procedures. The worst days are when he is getting Chemo through IV, bone marrow aspirate and spinal tap. Today was just the spinal tap.

Jake somehow knew today was clinic day. We don't know how but he suspected it. He started to panic and cry well before our ritual of EMLA creme on his port to numb his skin. By the time we loaded him into the car, he looked totally defeated. We try to soothe him with his favorite movies and books but those are slowly loosing their lustre against the scray clinic.

Jake met a boy named Collin in clinic today who is 5 with ALL. He was diagnosed last year. Like Jake, his legs began to hurt and then he stopped walking. His doctor sent him home saying he was having growing pains until someone finally decided to do a blood test.

He was very nice to Jake. Collin let Jake play with his ball and Jake read to him his favorite book of cars. Collin also showed Jake his port but Jake took no comfort in it. We are hoping for a day when clinic does not cause Jake so much anxiety.

On the bright side, Jake is more mobile and trying so hard to walk!

Jake, if you read this one day please know how much we love you and mom and dad wishes we could go through all this for you.

Jake Standing Tall

Jake has been doing much better physically. It's been a long process to come back to him standing when he was running a few months ago. But we are happy for these milestones redux.

This is dedicated to all those who are actively working to help Jake with his cancer.

Guideline for friends

I had a friend e-mail me the other day. I hadn't talked or e-mailed him in a while and I told him about Jake. Like others, he didn't know what to say.

I've debated how to handle telling friends and close business acquaintances about Jake's illness. I would love to say everything is fine. I say the truth as quickly as possible like yanking off a bandaid that is really stuck on your skin. People usually react with sadness and controlled words to prevent saying the wrong things.

I want to tell you all that it is ok if you are lost for words. Yes there are things you can do for me. I will definitely call you and ask so I hope you mean it. Please do not treat me with kid gloves. I'm still capable of carrying on with my responsibilities as a co-worker, friend and mother. I've just added nurse and Google doctor to my resume. There will be times when I'm crankier or more preoccupied. I will cry if you hug me so please do it somewhere private if you must. More importantly, this won't make me bitter or meaner but my priorities and perspective have changed.

Jake in ER

We had to go to the ER tonight. Jake spiked a temperature of 102. He is fighting some skin infections. We have him on a antibiotic called Clindamyacin. Jake remembered the drill from the first night we were there when we got diagnosed. He was getting nervous and stressed.

I have to say that Children's Mercy is an excellent hospital. I hope you all never have to experience it personally. They ran a CBC, which tests blood for all kinds of things. Anyway, all is normal and he has a temperature because his body has just started to fight the infection and the antibiotic has not had time to work. They sent us home and we were elated.

We are home and Jake is now in his bedroom watching "The Incredibles" for the 100th time. He has literally memorized the movie. He knows what they're going to say next. He feels most comfortable in his room. It's his safe zone and we don't do anything medical in there.

We have 9 more days of the yucky Clindamyacin. Wish us luck.

In Remission

We got at call from Dr. Shore today. Jake is in full remission. According to him, this is the best outcome that we can expect. His treatment will be on the low/average risk path. We will find out the cocktail of chemo this Thursday but Mark and I are so hopeful.

Jake has been crawling everywhere. He has also started to put weight on his legs. He is feeling more confident. We are going to celebrate tonight with chicken, beans, corn and crab legs watching "Toy Story" and "The Incredibles."

He's back...

Jake has been off steroids and he is starting to get his tastebuds back. More importantly we have our old Jake back. I didn't notice until now, how sick he was before we diagnosed him. He has tons of energy and he is spending every bit of it being curious, joking and learning.

Jake is a joker. We were watching a documentary on Greece. They were showing ruins and Jake's reponse was "rocks...lots of rocks." He didn't want to take a nap today so when I laid down with him he said "mom, more tickle please." He wanted to play and have me tickle his chin which he loves.

He is crawling and talking alot. He points at everything he knows and shouts out the name. We are so happy to see him getting better.

Day 29 - End of Induction

As of today, we have concluded the "Induction" phase of Jake's treatment. We finished the steriods yesterday and everyone is happy. We went to the clinic today and Jake had his spinal tap with MTX injection and bone marrow aspirate. We will hopefully know the results Friday or Monday. We also suspect that Jake has become lactose intolerate.

Since Dr. Shore was away on family leave, Dr. Wood did the procedure. They had a new doctor who started recently at Children's Mercy and they wanted her to do the procedure but I stuck to my guns and insisted on Dr. Wood. I felt bad for doing this but a couple of things happend in the hospital a few weeks ago. First, a doctor who had a fellowship at Children's Mercy did Jake's first bone marrow aspirate and she couldn't get it done so another doctor had to finish up for her. They stuck Jake 3 times! Second, Jake's IV became inoperable so they had to find another vein. Three (3) seperate nurses stuck him and couldn't get it done. They finally had to take him to the OR to get a doctor to do it. Each nurse insisted that they could do it while Jake screamed for mercy each time. They already experimented on Jake enough.

We are going to have a quiet but restful Thanksgiving with just the three of us. Poppa and Grammy will be coming by Thanksgiving night to light the tree. The family gathering was cancelled to keep sick family members at bay. Jake's ANC (2310) , platelet (208,000) and white blood count (8.07) are returning back to normal. He is doing well and we are thankful.

Who rules Barter town?

There is a scene in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, where the evil Aunt Entity (Tina Turner) is forced to admit that a little man called Master Blaster rules Barter town because he provides Barter Town with electricity.

We have now realized that Jake is Master Blaster and he rules our Barter Town. We feel awful that Jake has to go through painful medical procedures as well as having been in pain for months. So naturally, we have been endulging him. This hasn't been good for Jake. He needs things to get back to normal for him. He also needs structure so that he knows what to expect. That was painfully obvious to me when he asked me one day if he could go back to school.

We are pulling back slowly and letting him do things for himself. I am also going to setup a chart of daily tasks that he has to complete. Instead of offering him things, I will wait until he asks. When he is done with the aggressive treatment, he will go to poppa and grammy's house for school. This will help greatly to get his confidence back. According to his latest lab results, he is getting better so I know when he's playing me. Ha ha.

So far so good

Last week Jake had his second bone marrow aspirate (biopsy). This was done to check how he is reacting to treatment. We got the news today that he is in remission by clinical standards. This is good because it will shape his future treatment and hopefully it will be less toxic.

They have done another test called the MRD (Minimal Residual Disease). Without giving you all a history lesson, in about 1950's they developed a more sensitive test that looks at a broader sample of cells. This test came back "on the border" for Jake. By MRD standard, he is not in remission. However, we expect him to pass this test by the end of his 28 day treatment.

We are happy but cautious and anxious. Jake had a great time with Poppa and Grammy today. They read him books, played with him and got a much needed break from mom and dado. Jake is probably sick of being stuck in the "bubble" but we can't risk him getting sick with his neutrophils down.

Day 15

On Thursday 11/13/2008 was a stressful day. Jake went to the cancer clinic. He had four procedures conducted: 1) Vinchristine (chemo) through his IV; 2) blood draw; 3) bone marrow aspirate and 4) spinal tap with chemo. They gave him pain medicine as well as some drug that is supposed to make him not remember what happened. Mark and I could have actually used the drug that made us forget. It was very hard to see them take what seemed like gallons of bone marrow. They stuck a needle the size of Texas in his butt. They also stuck another big needle into his spine to get spinal fluid. Mark asked the doctor how long will it take to get all that bone marrow back and the doc said "a couple of days."

The doctor dripped spinal fluid all over the table while grabbling for 1 of 3 vials that collected the fluid. They have to put back equal amount of chemo drugs into his spine what they take out in fluid in order to prevent Jake getting a massive headache. So the dripping of spinal fluid onto the table bothered us since that does not get measured.

Jake was lethargic and tired all day. We wish like anything that we can take the meds and get the procedures done to us rather than Jake. We will find out on Monday whether he is in remission.

Jake is so strong. I've heard many parents say that their child with cancer is their hero and I now understand.

Halfway

We are halfway through the "INDUCTION" period. We go into clinic tomorrow to get additional chemo through his IV, conduct a bone marrow aspirate and a spinal tap. The spinal tap will tell if any of the cancer is in his brain or spinal fluid. They will replace what they take out with am equal portion of chemo. This will either kill the cancer or keep it at bay. The bone marrow aspirate will let us know if he is in remission. They will again put Jake under sedation but not under. He should not remember what happened to him. This is good for him.

It will be a long day for Jake since he won't get to eat anything from 6:30 AM until he is done with his procedure which should be around 1:30 or 2 PM. I only say this because being on steriods makes you VERY hungry.

Please stay tuned on Friday. I will post as soon as possible to let you all know if he is in remission. I hope we have great weather this Sunday so we can take him to the Zoo. Pray for Jake and good weather on Sunday.

Bit of Good News

We went to the cancer clinic today to get a second round of Vinchristine. This drug interferes with the cancer cell's ability to split. They also did blood work. The good news is that they found no cancer blasts in his blood! This does not mean he is in remission, but things are going in the right direction. The doctor said that his blood work couldn't be any better. Jake has also become netropenic. That is one of the side effect of chemo. We have to make sure he does not come in contact with anything or anyone that can get him sick. Other than that, we are good.

I'll be spending most of this weekend, cleaning the house from top to bottom. Yeah!

We're Home

The doctor released us on Friday. We were able to get Jake to take pills and everything is *working*. We will be making regular trips to the oncology clinic starting Monday. Jake has bad days and good days.

Today, we took Jake to the zoo. He was a little cranky but started to enjoy himself after the train ride. I think he is still traumatized by the hospitalization. I am dreading the clinic visit on Monday.

Day 2 of Treatment

Our spinal tap results came back negative of cancer! This means he will have less intense treatment.

We are on trial. As parents, we have to get Jake to take his chemo pills in order for us to go home. Keep in mind that he is only 21 months old. Mark and I tried to give him liquid form, but Jake refuses since it tastes so bad. We crushed up the pills and gave it to him in chocolate pudding, vanilla pudding, apple pie and m&m's. He is starting to not trust his food so we stopped that.

We finally sat down with him and told him he had to take his pills in order for us to go home. He took the pill and put it in his mouth and spit it back out! I love him for trying. We are force feeding him the pills now and holding his nose with a shot of water. It isn't what we want to do but works. I hope he gets used to it.

Jake is taking the chemo very well so far. They said that the steroids will make him crazy, moody and mean. We're ready.

Leukemia

This post is very difficult to write. It was unthinkable 5 days ago when Jake was initially diagnosed with Leukemia. Now that we have a good oncology doctor, a sound plan for treatment (hopefully cure) and hope, I am able to share the story with all of you. I've made Jake's blog post private for now. I will share updates on the blog to keep everyone updated. If there are others who want access, please let me know. So here it goes...

We took Jake to the doctor on 10/24 because he refused to get out of bed that morning and he was getting worse as far as wanting to stand on his legs. The pedi saw red spots on his face, petechiae. This was a warning sign that he was anemic. She ordered blood tests which showed his platelet, hemoglobin and other blood health indicators being off. We also took x-rays of his previously broken leg an ultrasound of his hips. His fracture was healing but he had fluid build up on his hips. She suspected he may have an infection causing him pain. We were to call if the petechiae showed up below the waist.

Friday night, we started a therapy of Tylenol to keep the inflammation down. We got sushi and tofu soup (his favorite). He acted crazy and had a lot of fun that night. We thought the Tylenol was finally helping him with his pain. We thought once the virus cleared up, he would be good again.

The next day, while he was taking a nap, I saw petechiae on his legs. The pedi told us to take him to the emergency room. She also told us that we may have to stay overnight. Mark and I were very surprised. We were at Children's Mercy for 4 hours while they ran tests. We had no idea why it was taking so long. We were ready to walk out.

We knew it was bad when 2 doctors came in with somber looks. They told us that the lab saw blasts that were indicutive of cancer. They are suspecting Leukemia but will have to do further test to find out what kind of cancer Jake is carrying.

Mark reacted with disblief and wanted to take Jake home to get a second opinion on Monday with the "A" team doctors. I wanted them to be desperately wrong. They put us in the bone marrow transplant wing of the hospital because they had a full house. After we put Jake to bed in his hospital bed, Mark and I sobbed uncontrollably.

Sunday morning, we woke with broken hearts and unbelievable sadness for our Son. We were supposed to take Jake to "Boo at the Zoo." I felt so deprived for Jake. He should be out at the Zoo running, having fun and begging for candy. He should not be in the hospital with cancer. I asked God to give me the cancer. We met our interim oncologist Dr. Dean. She had a fellowship at the hospital. She tried to comfort us with hope.

Monday morning, we conducted a bone marrow biopsy. I can never forget the look Jake gave me when they gave him the sedation drug (Versed/Fentenyl) before the procedure. It was a look of paralyzed plea for rescue and artificial happiness. We read him "Baby Bear Baby Bear what do you see" while they pushed a needle the size of a pen head into his hip to extract bone marrow.

We talked to Jake's oncologist, Dr. Shore, Monday afternoon. He said that 95% of childhood Leukemia go into remission after the first treatment and 78% go into total remission (cure). We were hopeful. The doctor was factual yet likeable.

Monday night, Dr. Dean told us the bone marrow results. Jake's cancer was Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL). His cancer also had its own DNA pattern which will allow them to target the cancer more closely. This is all good news.

Tuesday night Jake got his port. A port is a surgically inserted tube that allows IV delivery of drugs. They can also take blood from it. This was good. Jake's veins were collapsing and they had to stick him numerous times for new IV lines and blood samples. He was supposed to go in the morning but didn't go into OR until 8 PM. He had not eaten or had liquids for 20 hours. Tuesday was our 13 year wedding anniversary. Anne and our friends brought dinner from Morton's of Chicago to the hospital. We sat in the OR waiting room eating our dinner waiting for Jake. Mark and I didn't eat or drink along with Jake. The dinner was absolutely wonderful. It didn't hurt that was from Morton's either. We got a little taste of the "good life."

Wednesday, they did an LP. They tapped into Jake's spine to get spinal fluid to check for cancer. Although he received sedation cocktail of Versed and Fentenyl, he cried. He was so tired of painful procedures. Jake also received his first rounds of chemo today. He is starting to get his color back from the blood transfusion. I didn't realize how sick he was until I saw how much better he was today. We have a rough road ahead of us with 6 months of intensive therapy and 2.5 years of maintenance. Mark and I are hoping with all of our might that he is cured and we can see Jake's children.

The cast is off

We got the cast off today after two weeks. Jake was not happy to be back at the hospital. As soon as we drove up to the hospital, he said "uh oh Doctor." His bones have healed and his Salter-Harris fracture Type II will need to be checked every 6 months to ensure the bone healing does not seal up the "growth" plate. Another thing I'll be worrying about.

We kept the cast. I joked with Mark that I was going to plant something in it. He is still hesitant to walk. It can take up to 3 weeks before he is back 100%. Hopefull it's sooner. He is too heavy to carry around.

20 months

Jake is now 20 months and he's growing so fast. He got his first and hopefully his last leg injury. We discovered that he has a Salter-Harris Type II bone fracture in his left leg. We don't know how he got it or when it happened. He has a blue cast and learning to walk on it. Fortunately, he only has to have it on for a couple of weeks.

Jake can also count to 10 and is working on counting to 20. He makes complex sentences like "no eat, more outside", "no night night", "ride bi-ky-ko (bicycle)" and "more cho-co milk".

Below is a video of him counting. He likes to count his ducks in the tub.

Fun Day at Papa's

Jake went to spend some time at papa's house. They turned on the sprinkler play pool and he had a great time.

Toddler Bed 2

It didn't take long. He now climbs out of bed when he wakes up and comes look for us. At one point he climbed out of bed and walked out of the house into the hallway. Mark caught him when he heard the door slamb.

I love it that he can wake up on his own and come out when he is ready. He wakes up very slow like his mommy.

Kung Fu Panda

We took Jake to his first movie, Kung Fu Panda. He did very well. At first he was amazed at the big screen. Then he got bored about an hour into the movie. He had eaten all his fruit jellies, popcorn, crackers and water.

He decided to then go explore the theatre. He thought the lights embedded in the stairs were cool and screamed in delight. We will have to make sure to get the DVD when it comes out so that he can actually see it when he gets older. It was a great movie.

Toddler Bed

We have reconfigured Jake's crib to a toddler bed a week ago. We took the front part of the bed off and now it has an opening where he can get in and out of his bed on his own. He completely went nuts-o with excitement. He kept getting in and out and clapping for himself when he gets out.

Springtime in KC

Our fourth floor garden is full of blooms. We took an early morning walk to take pictures before the blooms start fall. Last year at this time, Jake was 3 months old and he was memarized by them. He still thinks they're pretty cool. He says "pretty."

He's walking!

We went to pick him up at school and his teachers said that Jake has been walking all day! I didn't believe them at first but it is true. Jake is walking and walking and walking. For a month now, he would walk taking 3 to 4 steps at a time when STRONGLY encouraged with claps and "yeahs". But not any more. He does it on his own. With his new found skills, he has also found his freedom. He has developed a very strong will to go wherever he wants. Oh boy....

SARS Pit of all SARS Pit

We take Jake to various indoor amousement areas. My husband and I call them SARS pit. A little disclaimer, we are not saying there are any SARS. We just think that is funny. We've gone to the one in Zona Rosa and Oak Park Mall in Overland Park. We decided to take him to the one in Indendence Mall because they have a huge play area with a merry-go-round and a food court.

Well I don't have to tell you that Jake started yelling for joy when he saw it. We were there for at least an hour playing and eating. When you have a rainy and cold Saturday and wonder what to do with your active child, you should try it. Here he is on the merry-go-round with his dad-o.

Jake loved the merry-go-round. The first time around, he was enjoying the ride. The second time, he was studying the horse. The third time, he wanted to know how the horse was going up and down. Jake is very analytical.

He is finally walking!

Jake took his first step on March 18th! He has been standing and taking few more steps since. Mark and I worked with him tonight to get him to walk more. He loved the attention and did very well.

We took him took him to the park today since it was 70 degrees in Kansas City. As you can see from the picture above, he loved the park. I am sure we will be back.

14th Month Birthday

Jake caught a sparrow, tore its head off and ate it. Ok, not really. For his 14th month birthday we got him a red velvet cupcake with cream cheese icing. He thoroughly enjoyed it as you can see.

Happy 14th month, son.

Not a Walker but a Talker

Jake is now 13 months and still insists on not walking. He can "cruise" meaning that he can walk holding onto things like the wall and furniture. He has started to stand on his own without holding onto anything.

He has been increasing his vocabulary and say about 15 words but understand a whole lot more. He learns new words every day and beginning to pronounce them more accurately. The doctor says that the reason he may not be walking yet is because he is concentrating on learning words. Apparently babies can't do both. Why not???

He loves Teletubbies and says "La La" which is the yellow Teletubbie when he wants to watch the show. We will begin weaning him off the bottle. We've been waiting until he is well. He's had a cold FOREVER. He even developed a rash from it.

He is getting all four canines at the same time right now. Poor kid. He got his first tooth when he was 5 months and he hasn't stopped since. I wonder what he'll do when he no longer has tooth aches?

He loves to go to a play area in Zona Rosa. The indoor facillity is a mall that has a play area made up of big fruits that you can climb and crawl. There are lots of children and Jake loves it. He literally screams in joy the whole time he is there. Below is a picture of him on a slide made out of a peach.

He is starting to transform into a boy from a baby. He is starting to test his limits. I think it's kind of cute now but I'm sure I'll won't later.

Dado

Jake is really starting to talk...alot. He spoke his first word, with intent, at the doctor's office. He looked at Mark and said "up" when he sat him down at the examination table. That was around 5 months.

Now he is making up words. He is starting to call Mark "Dado". He said "hi do" to me on the phone. Instead of Mom, up, he says "Mup." He is also becoming quite a parrot. He is very good at repeating words.

We had spaghetti the other night. Here he is enjoying.

1 Year Doctor's Appointment

Jake had his 1 year doctor's appoitment today. According to the doc, he is progressing well. He is 26 lbs. 8 oz and 30" tall. He received 4 shots and they drew blood to check him for lead and hemoglobin level. Two (measles and rubella) of the four shots were live but "injured" germs so that his immune system can fight it better. By the end of the visit he had 4 bandaids and tape wrapped around his arm where they drew blood. I felt really bad for him. We watched him all day but he showed no signs of discomfort.

This MLK weekend was a big one for us. Our baby is turning into a little man.

Jake's Birthday Party

We had Jake's 1st birthday party at T-Rex. We had parents, good friends (Mayers and Anne T.) and relatives. The picture above shows Jake's birthday cake with the Diego theme. He loves Diego. You can also see Savannah Mayer in the background smiling.

Jake Digging into his birthday cake. It got messier after his second piece.

He had cake frosting up his nose, between his fingers and of course on his clothes.

Back home, we had an adult version of his birthday party with wine and presents from Mark and I. Jake got a big dump truck in this box. As we suspected, he liked the box. Jake was so wound up from the day, he didn't want to go to bed. We had plenty of people over and he wanted to party. What a year it has been and we are looking forward to more.

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY JAKE!

Happy Birthday Son. Mom and dad love you!

Jake less than an hour after his birth. Can you hear those lungs working?

Denver trip

Back in November 2007 we took a trip to Denver. We went to the Denver Art Museum. The musuem is made up of an old building and a new building which are connected together. They had some really nice art but the staff was very cranky and liked to yell at you for no reason. Mark had Jake riding on his shoulders (Jake loves it) and I had a big diaper bag, our coats and my purse. I was struggling to get the big glass door open when a guard came up to us. I thought for sure he was going to help me open the door. But no, he told us that Jake had to get off of Mark's shoulders. He gave us a stern look and left. What a jerk. I hope he doesn't have a part-time job at the DMV.


One of the good things that came out of the museum is that we took this picture of Jake that shows his naughty nature! Ah ha, it has been finally caught on camera.

Almost 1 Year Progress

Jake will be 1 year old this Saturday. We are taking him to his favorite restaurant called T-Rex. He is a very active little boy. He can crawl (at lightening speed now), can stand up, and climb stairs. He knows ball, up, all done, mom, dad, Pearl, bottle and bubbles. He likes to give me kisses on the cheeks. He hasn't grasped the concept of puckering the lips so I get very wet kisses. Jake looks to me for comfort but dad is the fun one. Jake knows no fear. He is starting to be a dare-devil. He catches onto things very quickly so Mark and I have to be careful what we say and how we act! YIKES.

After his birthday we will start weaning him away from his bottle. He gave up his bikie pretty quickly (at 6 months). I don't think the bottle will go as smoothly.

3rd Molar

Jake has his third molar coming in and we can see it poking through the skin. His third molar is his upper left. He already has two other molars on the upper and lower right still coming in. So far he will have 11 teeth before he turns 1 year old. Poor kid. He had a hard time going to sleep tonight. He wanted to stay up with mom and dad. Here are some pics from our shannigans tonight!

You can see the lower right molar in this pic.

Mark and Jake were getting the mail and a couple of people (strangers) asked Mark if he adopted Jake from China because they were going through the process. Hmmmm...Mark told them that Jake was his biological child.