No More Cast!

Yup, Nick got his cast off on Tuesday. The doctor said his arm was all healed, and apparently he didn't even get scared when they came at him with the saw to cut off the cast. I guess the doctor was saying that after three weeks with his arm bent all funny, most adults would have a hard time bending it. But little kids are so flexible. Greg said Nick moved his arm all around right away as soon as the cast came off. He is under orders to avoid the playground for at least another week or so, and then he's totally good to go.

When I saw Nick later that evening, I insisted on a bath. So Grandma Toni and I gave him quite a splashy one. He hadn't had a real bath in three weeks, and this boy gets dirty. Now he is all clean. Nick was absolutely thrilled to be able to sit in a full bath and splash with both of his hands (and his feet, too).

After his bath, Nick ran around in circles making funny noises and yelling and just generally being silly. He is getting better about recognizing shapes. He knows square, circle, and star for sure. (square=bear and circle=erkel) He's still working on triangle. I took this video of him right after his bath. Listen through until the end to hear what he says he did (and right after a bath, too).

Childproofing and Mexican Food

Man, kids are expensive. Nick and I had to make a trip to Babies R Us on Thursday. You see, Nick is a very active little boy, and he has managed to ruin and/or destroy some of his stuff. He ripped the pad on his changing table, so that all of the stuffing was coming out and the plastic was gone. That's $30 right there for a new one. I guess the diaper pail refills aren't Nick's fault, but I had to buy two packages at $16 each. Definitely necessary. But I suppose the cost is offset by his cute little shoes, which I got on ebay for $1.50.

Then there were the stove protectors. Nick has ripped off one of the plastic thingies that cover the knobs on our stove, actually cracking the plastic. Unfortunately, you can't buy just one or two, so I had to get an entire package of new ones. That's another $9.

Nick also keeps breaking his sippy cups. He throws them on the floor when he's mad, cracking the plastic, and then they leak. So I had to buy him some new ones. I got nice insulated sippy cups, with animals on them. They also have nice straws and they're thin enough for Nick to hold with one hand. He's had a hard time this week holding his drinks because of his cast. When he saw the orange cup above, he announced, "Moo!  Ball!" Yup, there are cows playing soccer printed on his sippy cups. Those were $10 for three cups. See his t-shirt? Got that at a garage sale for $0.50. It says, "I tried to be good, but I got bored."

After all that shopping, Nick and I were hungry, so we decided to try a new Mexican place in Plainfield, called La Adelita. Their chips were yummy, but the salsa and the food overall was a little spicy for me. Still good, though. We had quesadillas. Nick loved the food, even the spicy stuff. He was shoving the lettuce garnish in his mouth in handfuls, and he kept begging for more salsa. Before I had Nick, I felt just a little uncomfortable eating out by myself. Now I have a regular dining partner. He's pretty good company, if a little messy. We actually have little conversations nowadays. His side sounds something like this: "More chips!" "Moo ball." "Mmm chicken." "Birdie!" (pointing to a bird on the mural) "Hello!" (to everyone who walks by the table) "Tea!" "All done."

He might be expensive, but Nick is worth every penny.  I've really enjoyed spending so much time hanging out with him this this summer. Only about two weeks left, though. . .

Wordless Wednesday

A Little Accident

Today Nicholas had a little accident. He was playing with his Grandma Toni at the park while I was at work, and he fell down and hurt his wrist. Just to be safe, we took him to see the pediatrician.

Turns out his arm was broken. Poor guy. We spend the entire afternoon in the car going to and from the orthopedic doctor's office. He missed his nap, and you can see how exhausted he was in the car on the way home. At least he got a pretty blue cast. For three weeks. From his armpit to his fingers. Sigh.

He did have a very loud meltdown when he woke up from his nap and figured out that the thing on his arm wasn't coming off no matter what he did. But he recovered and is quickly learning to counterbalance with the heavy cast on his arm. The injury obviously didn't hurt his appetite, though he's having to learn to eat mostly with one hand.

By bedtime, Nick was a little slap happy, and he played with Grandma, Mommy, and Daddy without a care in the world. Does this look like the face of an unhappy child? I think he'll be just fine.