Ankle Sprain

With such beautiful weather today, we spent the morning outdoors. Matthew and I switched off organizing/cleaning the garage, while the other played with Hudson. Hudson played in his police car, threw his ball around with Daddy, and Mommy blew bubbles with him (which, to my surprise, when I started blowing bubbles Hudson said "bubble". This was before I ever said the word, so Miss Erica must have taught him that. I know they've blown bubbles before). However, Hudson's favorite thing to do was run up and down the driveway, and he's learning not to go into the street (even though Mommy is right next to him to stop him if he tries). Hudson had a little injury though. He tripped on the lip at the edge of our garage and twisted his ankle. He was limping around a little bit... poor little guy! It's definitely true that boys injure themselves often! Hudson also doesn't have much luck with this since he inherited Mommy's clumsy gene. All of this running around, along with going to bed very late last night because we were at supper club, wore Hudson out, and he took a 4 hour nap this afternoon! This gave Mommy (and Daddy who NEVER naps) time to take a little cat nap as well. When Hudson woke up, he was limping around slightly. However, after being up for about 30 minutes, he is back to running around on it. I didn't expect it would bother him for too long.

Spongehud

Hudson is 17 months old today. This is such a fun age because he is constantly saying and doing new things....continuously learning, experimenting and experiencing. He is perpetually repeating words and imitating things we do now. It's fascinating and so fun for Mommy and Daddy to watch him grow, absorbing things like a sponge - Our little Spongehud!

A few things we will remember about Hudson at 17 months:

• Hudson is adding new words to his vocabulary almost everyday. A few that I can think of include: "Buba" (what he calls Lucas), "Bobo" (bottom), baby, thank you, keys, bowl, kitty, eye, "biper" (diaper), touchdown, hot, puppy, peas, "gree" (green), "birwi" (birdie), puppy, "nigh nigh" (night-night), more, "ome" (home), Memere and Erica

• Hudson will say "stinky" and then walk to his bedroom to have his diaper changed. He will also bring me a diaper out of his basket, and I will ask him... "Do you want me to change your diaper?", and he will walk to his changing table for me to change it.

• If we are in the living room, I can say, "Are you ready to take a nap?", and he will walk to his crib. Also, when I say, "Let's go brush your teeth.", he will walk up to his sink.

• Many times when we pull into the garage, Hudson says "ome" (home).

• Hudson calls Misha a Good Girl every time she comes inside from going potty.

• Just like Daddy, Hudson has talked in his sleep! He's only done it a couple times, but it's very cute! Just the other night, I went in to check on him before I went to bed, and I always either brush his hair with my hand or rub his back gently when I go in there. Well, this time, Hudson decided to talk to me, but I'm convinced he was still sleeping... he was saying "Go, Goo Girl, Go, Go".

• Hudson can sign and say more if he wants some more food.

• Hudson will hold up one finger when asked "How old are you?" or if you say "one".

• Hudson will throw up his arms with the touchdown motion when we say "touchdown".

• The Happy Birthday song makes Hudson cry. Ever since Hudson turned one, he cries to the birthday song, and he'll also cry if you sing any other slow song to him, such as Amazing Grace. I think those songs make him sad - He likes happy songs!...And, for the record, it's not just Mommy's voice because he will cry when anyone sings him a slow song!

• Hudson still wants "Mommy Cuddle Time" every time I pick him up from spending the day with either his grandparents or Erica, while Mommy is at work. Each evening he wants about 30 minutes of one on one time with Mommy holding him. He has always done this. He also likes to tap on my face with both of his hands and give Mommy kisses/hugs. Also, when Daddy comes home each evening, Hudson insists that he holds him for a few minutes as well.

• Hudson can now drink from a straw, and he is learning to eat from a spoon. Although we still need to help him scoop food into the spoon, once it's on there he can do the rest.

• He is eating off plates now when we're out to eat... Surprisingly, he doesn't try to tip them over.

• Hudson now has 16 teeth.

• Hudson has done this new thing a couple times recently where he will bend over from standing and walk on both his hands and his feet, almost as if he's trying to walk on all fours like an animal. It looks so funny!

• Starting about a month ago, Hudson is now pointing with his finger instead of his hand.

• When I come in his room in the morning before I get him out of his crib, he will hand me his blanket, night-night, and Peanut each one by one before he stands up for me to pick him up.

• He's been getting better about eating meat. He still prefers fruits and veggies but will also eat some meat when offered to him. He really likes meatballs and parmesean crusted chicken.

• When you wink at Hudson, he will close both of his eyes thinking he's winking at you.

• Hudson loves to dance and clap to American Idol.

Home Stretch

Well, I am now 30 weeks pregnant - in the home stretch! I can see an end; although, it's still several weeks away. Boy am I ready!! I'm getting more and more uncomfortable! All you other Mommies know what I'm talking about: can't find a comfortable position to sleep, feeling full all the time, can't bend down or even walk gracefully anymore (I am pretty clumsy to begin with, so I have no chance with this one), and getting up and down from a chair can be a chore in itself! All of this, along with the contractions and cramping that I'm feeling, can be exhausting; although, I know having a newborn will be a whole new level of complete exhaustion, so I need to watch before I complain too much!

I am now going to the doctor every two weeks, which is an indication that we are getting closer and closer to the big day. With the day fast approaching, I am starting to get anxious about the delivery, especially because of what happened last time. However, it's good that this time around, Dr. Williams is aware of my history and can keep a close eye on me.

At my appointment this morning, Luke's heart rate was 145, and my belly is measuring perfectly for 30 weeks. Everything is right on track! So far, I've gained a total of 20 lbs, which is less than I had at this point with Hudson, so maybe Lucas will be a smaller baby. We'll see! However, my doctor did say that a few pounds of the weight gain last time was from extra water retention I had due to the extreme summer heat. I know this is true because I still have ankles! At this point last time, my feet and ankles were SO SWOLLEN... I called them my elephant feet. I had to elevate them every evening to help with the swelling. Maybe I'll be lucky to avoid that unpleasant (and unattractive) symptom this time around!

Bouncing Around

Matthew and I took Hudson to the bounce house this afternoon. This is the first time Hudson has gone since he's been walking. He was hesitant with the whole idea at first; those big bounce houses can be intimidating! He was scared with going down the slide, but Daddy and Mommy went down with him. We arrived right when it opened, and, after a few minutes, lots of kids starting showing up, which made Hudson very excited, warming up more to the big bounce houses. He enjoyed running around and crawling up the bottom of the bounce house steps, although he didn't go all the way into the bounce houses just yet. We might need a few more trips there before he feels comfortable doing that! Hudson was very disappointed when we left!

Hudson wasn't too sure about the slide, so Daddy went down with him.
...and so did Mommy

Hudson enjoyed running around!

Nigh-Nigh

This morning, I have been playing around with my new camera and took a couple pics of Hudson carrying around his "nigh-nigh". Memere made him this night-night before he was born. Hudson looked so cute dragging it around behind him! Hudson also has a new smile where he "smiles with his eyes" by squinting them.

Hudson's new smile for the camera

The night-night that Memere made

Hamming it up for the cameraDrawing on his new Doodle Pro that Mommy got him last week for being so good at the dentist and Mommy's hair appointment (Thanks for the recommendation, Steph...he loves it!) I can draw with my left hand too! Look at my masterpiece, Mommy! Another one of Hudson's new camera smiles!Playing with his Alphabet Train

I also took a couple practice pics with the camera yesterday (I'm still learning)...and, yes, we are still wearing the Halloween jammies until they no longer fit (which probably won't be long because we are almost into 18-24 month clothing)! The pictures above are actually Christmas jammies!

Fun Dentist

Today was Hudson's first trip to the dentist, but it wasn't for a cleaning just yet... A couple weeks ago, while we were at Mimi and Papa's, Hudson chipped his tooth when he fell. It's not a very big chip at all; in fact, nobody else notices it except Matthew and I. The chip is a tiny place on the corner of his top middle/left tooth. We decided to take him to the dentist just to make sure that the tooth didn't have more damage that we couldn't see and that there weren't any other teeth injured. Especially since Hudson won't let Mommy look in his mouth at all (unless I'm brushing his teeth), we thought a professional opinion was best. The doctor said that everything looks wonderful and that it should be fine but to just keep an eye on his gums for infection (although it's not likely). He didn't recommend bonding it because that requires deep sedation, and he said that with his age it would likely come right back off anyways with how much toddlers fall. He also mentioned that after a while with eating and everything, it will naturally file down to even out with the rest of his tooth. Of course, since it's his baby tooth, we weren't too concerned with fixing it. He also confirmed that we are doing everything we need to right now for his healthy pearly whites (right now he has 14). We are going to make an appointment in 6 months to go back for Hudson's first cleaning! To my surprise, Hudson actually had a lot of fun at the dentist! I was prepared with toys and distractions just in case, which I never needed to take out. Hudson really liked Dr. Cremer and even walked up to him while we were talking at the beginning (I thought Hudson was about to sit in his lap!). The only time Hudson fussed was while Dr. Cremer was looking in his mouth, which only took a minute, and then Hudson was back to good. The nurse gave him a slinky for being so good. After that, Hudson kept walking up to her and smiling at her - little flirt!! Our first dentist experience was very pleasant and even fun, so I look forward to future visits to Dr. Cremer!

On a side note: This morning, while I was getting Hudson ready to go, I asked Matthew to look up http://www.fundentist.com/ to get the address of exactly where we were going. When he typed it in the computer, I heard "Oh my Gosh!" from Matthew, and I asked him what he was talking about. His response was, "Drs. Hyde, Bailey, Miller and Cremer, that was my dentist!!" To my surprise, without knowing it at all, I scheduled Hudson with the same dentist practice that Matthew went to as a kid. They opened up an office in Hurst by our house, and they still have the office in Arlington, which is where Matthew went as a child. Matthew saw Dr. Bailey and also knows Dr. Hyde because he played golf with his son. The reason I chose that practice is because they were highly recommended and located in the same office complex as Hudson's pediatrician. What a weird coincidence!

After our dentist visit, Hudson and I went to lunch at BJ's with a surprise guest - Daddy! Hudson and I sat down at the table first, and when Daddy arrived, Hudson squealed "Daddy" with excitement! It was precious to see him so excited and surprised to see Matthew arrive! We enjoyed our lunch outing with Daddy!

Note: These pics were taken with my old camera. I brought it because I still haven't taken the time to learn all the features on my new one yet!

Waiting patiently in our exam room for Dr. Cremer (though we only had to wait a few minutes)

Eating some Cheerios (part of his breakfast since we left right when he woke up)Dancing for Mommy! This toy is fun!!

The nurse gave me a slinky! I like going to the dentist!

Where is Baby Lucas?

For a while now, Hudson has been pointing to Mommy's belly and saying "baby", referring to his baby brother, Luke. However, in the past couple days, Lucas has moved from Mommy's belly to Hudson's belly. Now when asked "Where's the baby?" or "Point to the baby.", Hudson will point to his own belly and say "baby". Although, Hudson does know what a baby is because, lately, when I've held a baby Hudson will point to the baby and say "Baby". So, I'm not sure if he thinks a baby and his belly are the same word or if he really thinks there's a baby inside his belly!

Cupid's Visit

With all the love in the air, it's evident that Cupid visited the Arnold Home today! For Valentine's Day, Hudson gave Mommy a single red rose and Daddy the picture mousepad that he's been wanting. Mommy and Daddy both gave each other something sweet... chocolates! Hudson also got some chocolates, along with a set of books from Mommy and Daddy.

Our family enjoyed Valentine's Brunch at The Cheesecake Factory, which is always great! Afterward, we stopped by the furniture store and ordered the furniture for Luke's nursery. In the afternoon, we visited my Grandma for her birthday, which is tomorrow. My aunt had a party to celebrate her. Grandma gave all her little grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren lollypops. She loves to give the kids Sees lollypops when they come visit - Hudson gets one everytime! We managed to get a few brief pictures of Hudson with his Great-Grandma, but Hudson was quite the wiggler as he wanted to get down to play with his cousins. While we were there, Jaxon gave Hudson a valentine, which Hudson held onto practically the WHOLE time, including when we were in the car. He loved that Spiderman Valentine! After Grandma's party, we (finally) picked up my new camera!! I'm SO excited about it!!! Although, I am still learning all the features and exactly how to use it, so far I'm very pleased with it! I took some practice pics in the car on our way home tonight.

We had a fun-filled Valentine's Day with lots of love, hugs and kisses for everyone!

Hudson gave Mommy a beautiful rose!

Hudson with his Great-Grandma
Hudson was a squirmy little guy, wanting to get down and play!Practicing with my new camera...

One for the Books...

Reports today indicated that we received around 12 inches of snow, and this was the first time in 111 years that DFW has received this amount in a 24 hour period. Pretty awesome! Also, it was also reported that every state in the U.S. has snow today!

Winter Wonderland

The sight outside our windows this morning was INCREDIBLE... Truly a Winter Wonderland! We can get an occasional snow in Fort Worth but nothing like THIS! It is so much fun and gorgeous to look at! It's a good thing that I'm already off on Fridays because I don't know if I'd be going in to work today. Right now, we are staying inside where it's cozy, and we've pulled up all the blinds on our windows to enjoy the view!

The view outside my kitchen window this morning Our backyard

Out front

Mr. Snowman lasted through the night.

The new snow on our driveway after Matthew shoveled it up last night!

Kisses from Heaven

Snowflakes are kisses sent from Heaven, and God has started this Valentine's weekend sending us bunches of kisses!

We woke up this morning to beautiful white snow that covered everything: the housetops, trees and lawns. These kisses fell continuously all day long, piling up on the ground... it was absolutely gorgeous!!! In the morning, Hudson played in the snow with Erica, while I was at work. I enjoyed watching the snow fall outside our windows in downtown all morning long. It gave the feel that we were in a northern city, such as Chicago or New York, with all the white falling from the sky.

Matthew and I both came home from work early, so we went back outside with Hudson to play and build Hudson's first snowman! We didn't have any Oreos for the eyes or carrots for the nose, so we had to improvise with Teddy Grams and a Pirouette rolled wafer.

So far, reports indicate that we've received about 9 inches of snow today, and it's still falling! We have been blessed with snow for every holiday this winter season - Christmas, New Year's and Valentine's. It's been fantastic! I love the festive weather!

Playing in the snow at Erica's

Thank you for the kisses, Jesus! Playing with Mommy & Daddy
Dancing in the snow!
FUN!!
Daddy making a snowman for Hudson
Thank you, Daddy!
I can't walk in this snow, so I'll just stand here! Matthew shoveling snow to get our cars in. (You don't do that often in Texas!)
Daddy showing Hudson his first snowman
The biggest one on the block!
...With the best eyes and nose!
Hudson had lots of fun!