Andi’s exciting life.

People, we have our countertop! It was finally installed today. We
still have another five days before we can actually use the kitchen
because the backsplash has to be done this week, but on Monday the
guys are coming back to hook up the sink, dishwasher, range, and
finish the electrical. We should be cooking in there by Tuesday!

Here are a few cute photos I took of Falco eating his dinner today.

Rosco started squinting his only remaining eye yesterday, which I was not happy to see. That’s always how his problems started with his right eye, and eventually it got so bad that it had to be removed. We got him in to see the ophthalmologist, and he has a corneal ulcer. She wasn’t clear on why this happened except that it’s an “old eye.” I told her that I was very worried because if he loses vision in this eye, he doesn’t have a spare. She seemed sure that it wasn’t the same kind of problem that he had in the past, but we’re not feeling very confident about that. They did a debridement, which is rubbing the dead tissue off his cornea with a rough Q-tip (with local anesthetic), and this seemed to make him feel a lot worse than when he went in. Now he is wearing an E-collar to keep him from rubbing it and on antibiotic drops, and he goes for a recheck on Wednesday. He’s just lying around taking it easy, and we have to carry him in and out of the house because it’s not clear how well he can see. Hopefully it won’t take long for him to feel better and get his already not-so-great vision back.

We already had to be careful with Falco around him because he will snap if Falco reaches for his face, but that situation is worse now because Falco wants to touch the E-collar and Rosco is in pain and can’t see well. We have to be extra vigilant about keeping them separated, and I think it’s likely going to be like that from now on. Such is life with a baby and an old dog I guess.

Check this out:

Falco is standing! Two weeks ago he figured out how to get to a
sitting position on his own, and a week later he learned how to pull
up to standing. Of course, once he stands up he starts jumping,
which decreases his stability. That first week he fell a lot and hit
his head often, but he’s already getting better at it. He is pretty
obsessed with his new skill and pulls up on everything he can find:
Bookcases, chairs, tables, couches, our legs, the toilet (his
favorite), cardboard boxes, etc. Oh, and did I mention that he is
standing in his crib now? Naps usually involve him standing and
crying in protest and me going in and lying him down several times
until he finally gives in and goes to sleep.

Other exciting news is that I went back to work this week doing
medical transcription. A friend I used to work with got me a job
offer that I couldn’t refuse, so I thought I would give it a try.
I’m just working 2-3 hours a day during the week while Falco naps.
Wednesday was mostly just training, and then I really worked on
Thursday and Friday. Falco was very cooperative with his napping,
and I got a good bit done. It was nice to be back because I really
enjoy the work and like having something productive and challenging
to do. The boy doesn’t always nap as well as he has the past couple
of days, but I think they will be understanding if I can’t work much
some days. I’m an independent contractor and only get paid on
production, so I can pretty much set my own schedule and just work as
much or as little as I want.

Besides that, there’s not much new. The kitchen is still in a
holding pattern while we wait for the countertop install. That’s
scheduled to happen next Wednesday (hooray!), and the backsplash will
be done at the end of the week. The contractors will be back October
1st to finish everything up, and we should have a functional,
fabulous kitchen that night. I can’t wait! At this point, we are
just eager to have a kitchen back, and the fact that it will be brand
new and beautiful and wonderful is a huge bonus. The six weeks of
eating off paper plates and washing dishes in the bathroom sink
really makes you appreciate the kitchen.

Oh! We also finally have a date night coming up! Falco hasn’t
stayed with a babysitter and we haven’t really gone out since he was
born. We are going to start exchanging babysitting with friends who
have babies around Falco’s age, and our first night out is scheduled
for October. We will go out to eat at a grownup time instead of 5:30
in the afternoon and not have to rush to finish our food or get a
highchair or let our food get cold while we feed a baby. I think I
will miss him while we are out, but he will be asleep anyway and I
will love to go out for a relaxing meal! I’ll post the full report
after said date.

…kinda. Our kitchen is done for the most part, but we are
waiting on the countertop, which means we are also waiting on the
sink, dishwasher, and range. Without all those key elements, the
kitchen is still not functional. It looks great so far! We are very
happy with the cabinets, appliances, and floor. I can’t wait to see
the finished product! See more photos here.

Yesterday was Matt’s birthday. We had a good time overall, though
there were a lot of chores involved. We had to paint the laundry
room so that it would be ready for them to move in the washer and
dryer this week. That was a pain, but it’s great that our kitchen is
finally coming together. We also went out to breakfast and Chinese
lunch. Matt wanted a PSP for his birthday, so we made a run downtown
to the only store that had the new one in stock. Overall it was a
good day and good weekend.

Lots of new things are going on in our kitchen. We have cabinets,
and the tile is being laid as I type this. Check out the gallery for
updated photos.

Falco drank from a straw today! When he first figured out how to suck water through it, I think it surprised him how fast it came and it all just oozed out of his mouth. He started to get the hang of it after a few tries though, and by the end of lunch he was practically a pro. The only problem is that the straw is so rigid that he can choke or poke himself if he spazzes out while drinking (which he tends to do). It will be a handy skill for when we forget his sippy cup when we go out.

Here are two great photos that our friend, James, took at their
house in San Jose yesterday. It was hot down there, so we got to go
swimming and grill out. Fun day!

Today was the big day: Falco’s first haircut! He did really well,
with only a little crying in the middle. I can’t decide if I like
his new do or not, but it looks pretty good and will grow long again
fast. Instead of just taking photos of the event, I took this
movie. It’s four minutes long, and if it’s too boring you can just
fast forward to the end to see the finished product. Check out the fancy
fairy princess/Harry Potter smock he got. Nice. There is a gap
of about a minute when he was crying and I stopped recording. During
the crying, he was reaching for me to pick him up — the first time
he has ever done that! I was sad that the first time he reached for
me I couldn’t hold him, but I don’t think he was too traumatized. He
clearly recovered pretty quickly. There are some before and after
photos below too — he looks even more like Matt now that they have
matching haircuts!

After the cut we went to Chili’s for lunch to celebrate. He ate
macaroni and cheese and cinnamon apples, which were basically apple
pie filling. That was surely the sweetest thing he has ever eaten,
and needless to say he liked it a lot. It’s really fun to be able to
order food for him off the kid’s menu now. He is such a big boy!