Who Dat?!?!?!

THE SAINTS ARE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!

The Jabara household is obviously very excited about the amazing season the Saints have had and we are so thrilled for the team and the city of New Orleans for their victory tonight. I never realized what it was like to be a true fan of a team until we lived in New Orleans. The fans there are so loyal and supportive, and the team could not be made up of nicer men who truly know how to give back to their city. I know this sounds totally mushy, but it's true, and, win or lose, it's going to be fun watching them in the Super Bowl. Though, I am more than slightly sad that I won't be watching the game with all of our med school friends. We'll all be united in spirit though wearing our Black and Gold on February 7th. GEAUX SAINTS!!!

In honor of tonight's victory, here are some pics of the cutest little Saints fan in the world...

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS ARE #1!

Weird Week

This week has been so strange. On Saturday night, Ben was called by his boss and told to pack his bags and he might be getting deployed to Haiti. The other doctor in the unit just had surgery, so Ben had to take his place. Fine. Ben wanted to go help anyway. So we waited, and waited and on Monday they still did not know what the plan was. On Tuesday, he was told that he needed to fly to Ft. Carson in Colorado Springs and get vaccinated and pick up some supplies and his flight left at 1:30 on Wednesday. So, Wednesday morning, we get up, Ben goes to work for a bit and then we headed into SLC. Half way there the phone rings...now he's not going at all and instead, the unit is going to the Olympics! I know, kind of crazy, going from Haiti to the Olympics, but whatever. All day Ben was trying to convince himself that he wasn't going because he didn't want to get his hopes up. So we figured this whole thing was over.

We were wrong. Thursday, through a series of phone calls and emails, Ben gets word that he is indeed getting deployed and it's either going to be Haiti for 90 days or Vancouver for 2 weeks. Hmmm....let's think about that for a minute. Then, the unit was on stand down (not on 24 hour notice anymore) for Haiti. That was good news for us.

So, where are we at now? I have no idea! Just kidding. Ben's flying to Ft. Carson on Tuesday and he'll be there until Thursday and then the following week he's going down to Ft. Hood for a training. And, if the stars align, he'll be going to the Olympics. It would really suck if he goes to Ft. Carson and Ft. Hood and not get to go to Vancouver, but you never know. I'm so excited for him though. We were excited for him to get the opportunity to help the people in Haiti, but, since that isn't happening, I'm excited that he's getting the opportunity to go to the Olympics. I really wanted to go too because I've always wanted to go to the Olympics, but then I realized last night at 3am, Cole doesn't have a passport.

Lesson learned: Always have a valid passport. You'll never know when you'll get to, or, need to, leave the country.

(Cole sporting his fancy new shoes)

(This is Cole's favorite place to sit.
I really need to get him his own little chair)

(He looks like a little dj in this track suit)
(Lola is not amused)

12 Month Check up!

(Getting ready for the Saints)

On Friday, we went into Salt Lake City and Cole got his 1 year check up and 4 shots. He did very well and the doctor was very nice. We have to go back in one month for a flu booster and again in 3 months for another check up. After the appointment we went to Gymboree. It was fun because Ben got to see just how much Cole loves Gymboree classes. The owner is letting us pay per class since we can't commit to driving in every week, which is very nice.

Here's Cole's 12 month stats:

Weight: 20lbs 13oz (25%)
Height: 30.5 inches (70%)
Head: don't remember the measurement but it was like 90% (we all know he's got a big noggin)
Clothes: he's kind of in between 9-12 months and 12-18 months. Diapers: size 3, but we're moving to a 4 the next time I buy them.

Eating: Cole's becoming a better eater every day. He loves yogurt, tomatoes, bread, pasta and all fruit. He also doesn't mind diced carrots. We're starting to introduce whole milk this week just as a supplement when he eats his meals. And we finally found a cup he'll drink out of! He doesn't like bottles (the dr. told us to just get rid of it because he's 1 and he won't drink out of it anyway) and hated sippy cups, but he loves cups with straws, so we found a winner!

Sleeping: Since we've been back, we've had a few nights of really good sleep. We had a couple of rough nights, but we gave Cole some tough love (made him cry) and now he's only getting up once a night. I slept for 8 hours straight for the first time in a year and a week the night before last! Now we're just trying to figure out naps. We think he's transitioning from two naps to one, but he's not quite ready for that, so our days are all messed up.

Words: Cole's vocabulary is growing though we're probably the only ones who can understand it. He now says: mama, dada, Lola, dog, ears, yes and this.

Strength: When Cole stands up (he still has to scale something to stand up) he can walk all the way across the room by himself. Like I said though, he's yet to just go from sitting to standing on his own, but once he figures this out, he's going to be a walking machine.
He does love to climb though. He tries to climb everything he can so we have to watch him pretty carefully to make sure he's not getting into trouble.

Teeth: 4 top, 4 bottom, and I can see the two top molars coming in (the two bottom ones won't be far behind, his gums are very swollen). I'll be so relieved when these molars come in!

Cole's Party

Here are some pics of Cole's 1st Birthday party. It was a ton of fun and he loved eating cake!

January 9, 2010
A little party with some family

January 8, 2010
Cole's 1st Birthday

*Note: Mommy made all of the decorations you see in the pictures. You can get some cute decorations for your next party too! Just contact her. ~Cole

Happy 1st Birthday, Cole!

We can't believe it, Cole baby is 1 today! We have had such an amazing year with our little boy and we can't even begin to describe how blessed we feel. Cole has been a wonderful baby (despite a few sleep issues) and we're looking forward to watching him grow and learn more each year. We love you sweet baby boy! Happy Birthday!

We made it - Day 365!

It's kind of bitter sweet that this is my last picture of Cole baby's first year. I am kind of relieved that I don't have to freak out about taking a picture everyday (you're probably all relieved that you don't have to see a picture of Cole everyday too). It was a lot of fun though and I will keep posting pictures and stories, but just not as frequently.
Cole man got his first haircut today. It was just a little bang trim so it was out of his eyes, but the first time we cut his hair none the less. I thought he'd look a little older, but he really doesn't look any different to me. Just as handsome and sweet as ever.
Can't believe a year ago we were at the hospital waiting to meet our precious little boy...

Day 365
(Cole's 1st Haircut)

Back in Spokane...

Day 364
(At the wedding dress shop...again!)

Day 363

The Rest of Maui

Here are the rest of our pics from Maui. We ended our vacation with a really fun New Year's Eve dinner at Aunt Sally and Uncle Edward's house and then the day before we left, we went and stayed the night at the Grand Wailea. Cole had so much fun at the hotel playing in the pools and going down the water slides. Uncle Edward took a video of him, which we'll post as soon as we get it. Thanks Tutu and G-Paw for a fun vacation!

Day 362

Day 361
(Grand Wailea Resort)

Day 359
(Getting ready for our first hike of 2010.
Doesn't everyone hike with a toothbrush?)

Day 358
(Ringing in the New Year at the Baldwin's)

Day 357
(Good morning, Auntie Katie!)

Day 356
(One exhausted baby)

Cole's Maui Birthday

While in Maui, we had a little early birthday party for Cole. 1st birthdays are HUGE over here in Hawaii, but ours was a small gathering of friends and family and it was perfect. We had some good food and the kids played on a little tractor that the neighbor boy brought over, which was a huge hit. Cole thinks he can ride it by himself, but he's a teeny bit too small. Soon he'll be riding around like crazy I'm sure.

Day 353

(The ALMOST birthday boy)

(Visiting the goats)

(Laila giving Cole a ride in the tractor)

(Story time with Linda)

Day 353

(Lucas and Cole, sand buddies for life)

Maui Christmas!

Cole's 1st Christmas was a great success! We started the day at 5am Hawaii time that meant we were opening presents by 5:30. We even ate two breakfasts' since we were up so early. We were very impressed that Cole really enjoyed his presents and not just the wrapping paper and boxes. He even got angry when we took his gifts away from him to take them out of the box and put them together. His favorite gift was a pretend lawn mower.
After we ate our second breakfast, we put Cole in his new backpack (see below) and hiked down to Jawz to watch the surfers. After naps for all of us, we headed up to the Baldwin's and had a delicious dinner and visited with the animals.
We had a great day and we're looking forward to Christmas part 2 in Spokane.

Day 352

(Good morning, G-Paw)

(Auntie Katie so excited to be up at 5am)

(Maui Santa brought Cole a farm)

(Cole loves the baby goats)

(Sharing a puzzle with cousin Lucas)

(Cole's now a pro hiker)

(Merry Christmas!)