Paige's First Tooth

Well, the waiting is over! Paige has her first tooth coming in! You know what that means, don't you? That's right! I need to start weaning her ASAP. After all the hoop-de-la of New Year's is over, I'm going to start the weaning process. I just hope it doesn't take a really long time. It will be nice when anyone can feed her; Chris and I need longer date nights. We really enjoy having our alone-with-each-other time.

But, anyways, the tooth is on the bottom left...her left, our right. She already looks so cute with a toothless smile, so it will be cool to see a smile with some pearly whites.

2008 Christmas Letter

To Our Friends and Family,

We have had an amazing and busy year in 2008. Chris, Jen, and Micah are blessed with a new addition in the family, Paige. She was born on June 27th and weighed 6 lbs. 1 oz. A small package, but what a wonderful gift she is. Chris graduated from Brigham Young University-Idaho on Micah’s 2-year birthday, July 18th, and then we moved back to Springfield, Missouri where both our families are close by. In October, he found a job in a company called Gannett who owns the Springfield News-Leader. He works in a collections call center as a systems technician setting up workstations for the other employees, reviewing credit applications, and as the manager’s assistant. Jen is at home with the children; she is doing her best teaching them and helping them grow. She also baby-sits a 16-month-old named Enzo four days a week. The extra income is always helpful. Micah is a wild, energetic toddler. He is determined to do things on his own and be independent. He just started potty training; it will be nice when we won’t have to buy him diapers anymore. Paige is now almost 6-months old, and she certainly isn’t the scrawny little baby she used to be. She can roll over and chew her toes. It seems as though she is teething, because she has been somewhat cranky and drools quite a bit.

The poem below describes our family right now to the tune of The Christmas Song (Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…) Enjoy!

Graduation, then Chris was hired
Micah’s taking off his clothes
Peace and quiet, that’s what Jen desires
And Paige can roll and say some “Oh”s

But the children grow, their eyes, their ears, their mouth, their nose
It makes our days and years so bright
Pretty soon, Paige’s hair will have bows
And Micah will use the potty just right

We have great blessings every day
We thank the Lord; His love guides us when we pray
No worries and no fears not even sighs
To see how we will get through or get by

And so we’re offering this simple phrase
To friends and family, all of you
Although it’s been said many times, many ways
Merry Christmas to you!

Have a happy New Year, too! May your days be filled with the Lord’s love and blessings. With best wishes for you and yours,

The Crosby’s

My Poor Baby

Unfortunately, it turns out (after a doctor's visit) Micah has a throat infection. He has a fever of around 101 degrees. We're trying to encourage him to drink lots of juice. He hasn't really eaten anything today besides part of a banana. We are to keep him rested, and he has a prescription as well. This is only the second time he has been seriously ill. I'm not really worried, just concerned. I'm sure he will be his old self again soon.

Micah and...gross!

Well, Micah had a re-certification appointment for WIC today. They measured him and asked questions about his diet and so forth. I asked them about the Parents As Teachers program where they provide info on how your child should be developing mentally, emotionally, and socially depending on the child's age. They also teach parents how they can help their child develop in those areas. They offer to come to your home to "assess" your child or (as I am doing) you can go to their office (which is right by the WIC offices). It sounds like a good, helpful program. So, here are his stats:

Weight: 28 lbs.
Height: 35 1/4 in.
Other comments: The WIC nurse says he is growing normally. I told her I didn't feel like I was giving him enough veggies, so she gave me some ideas about that. The Parents As Teachers consultant said that Micah is doing very well in his vocabulary and in matching. She suggested giving Micah some easy puzzles to work on and to not be afraid to challenge him. She looked at Paige, too, and said that she is developing well also. She can roll over both ways, and she is absolutely fascinated with her hands. I'm pretty darn sure she is teething, because one second she is her normal happy self and the next second she is screaming. She is still sleeping well through the night, though. I'm grateful for that!

Oh, now the gross part. Micah threw up his dinner and his lunch...all over Chris yesterday. Later, we were watching the preview for "Four Christmases" where the baby pukes on Witherspoon's character. We laughed as Chris said, "Yep, they never stop throwing up on you." It was quite the mess, but we got it cleaned up, so no worries...unless he throws up again. :) We'll just hope he doesn't.