Look! Filler!
July 26, 2007
I just got a phone call from Early Intervention: our initial intake assessment (which consists of signing paperwork and making sure that we don't keep Noah locked in the liquor cabinet) has been bumped up from August 8th to...tomorrow morning. 9 am.
I'm thrilled that we're getting things underway as soon as possible, but also pissed as hell because Jason has neglected to put out the recycling for two straight weeks and now I have to go hide empty wine bottles like...like some kind of person who drinks too much wine. God.
Anyway, this isn't the important assessment (the one that will determine what services Noah qualifies for, if any, and oh dear GOD he better fail that one spectacularly), but it's something.
In the meantime, how about some pictures?
Baby vs. Sprinkler, the Final Showdown
(I can SO still call him a baby. He's still got his elbow and knuckle dimples.)
By the way, despite being QUITE the chunker at birth, Noah only ("only") weighs 26 pounds now. He wears 6-12 month shorts. We buy 18-24 month shirts, which cover his belly but the sleeves hang past his elbows. He wears size 7 shoes. None of those numbers make a damn lick of sense to me, which is why he's only in a diaper half the time. Who's he got to impress? Me?
BUT. I KNOW. He needs a haircut. I know. I will.
Tomorrow maybe. Or the next day.
Or Sunday. How's Sunday? Talk to me on Sunday.
He's such a happy mini-you! And I'd have a hard hard hard time cutting that hair... Like, thinking maybe never? Never is a good time for cutting that hair.
I'm sure you've heard this before (perhaps in this very page of comments but I didn't get a chance to read them all) but Noah is a dead ringer for you. It's especially striking in those last three photos.
Lucky you! Everyone tells me my two girls look like my husband which is nice because he's cute but annoying because I did all the hard work during labor and delivery dammit.
I LOVE those last three pictures!! He is so cute.
You can still call him baby. My girl is 4 1/2 and I still call her baby.
WOW! He is soo cute! Looks just like you! And, I still call my 3 year old baby!
Oh my goodness he looks like you in that last picture.
I wouldn't want to cut that hair either.
Um, at least when your kid's mop is overgrown you get sweet little curls. Ahhhhh.... Preshus......
My kid? Grows a HELMET. Of hair. That only a mother would think is cute (and I do!)
don't you dare cut off those delicious curls!
No! Don't cut his hair! My son's looked exactly like that and I soooo regret it. Noah is just too cute for words!
Good luck tomorrow. I'll definitely be by here to check and see how it worked out.
Don't be too paranoid about cutting the curls. We trimmed up Max's mop (full of much the same blond curls) and they bounced back even more. Just be sure and take him to someone accustomed to cutting little kids' hair.
One question: was Jason even IN the room when you made Noah? Jeeebus crow, that kid is a spittin' image of YOU.
If it makes you feel any better...my three year old, who will be four in Sept., is 30 pounds and wears a size 8 shoe. She's a little taller though as she can JUST NOW fit into size 3T clothing.
When she was born she was over a pound heavier and an inch longer than my first born.
For anybody wondering how I got those last shots: that's the face you get if you ask Noah to "SHOW MAMA HAPPY!"
You should see the pout you get if you ask him to "SHOW MAMA BOO-HOO." Totally killer.
I love the one with his belly poking out. And his hair is gorgeous. Just enjoy those curls while he'll let you!
omg...how cute are those last 3 pics? I died a little from the cuteness!!
nooo no haircut i am loving the sexy baby rocker hair.
wait i mean that in the most non to catch a predator way!!
I wanna see the pout!!!!
Ask him to "show mama boohoo!"
Pretty please?
Best of luck for you guys tomorrow.
Leeann
niccofive.blogspot.com
I relate so much to what you write that I can't read your blog (yet here I am.. irony). Your little boy is SO beuatiful and looking at his chubby cheeks reminds me of my little guy at that age.. ok he's only 6 now, but still.. Every time I read something you have written or see the pictures it tears my heart out, even when it's funny! I seriously mean that in the most complimentary way! I just... relate.
And then, after enjoying her lukewarm porridge, Goldilocks beheld Noah's golden hued hair and was instantly self-conscious of her roots.
That hair is commercial-worthy.
he looks so much like you! so cute!
ha. everyone said what I thought ... don't cut that gorgeous hair! :) Thanks for sharing the way cute pictures.
I too am finally delurking because my golden-flossed 25-month-old's father and I just decided today to let it grow, let it grow, let it grow! Of course, we live in California, but our boy still doesn't have a job and until then, why not?
ALSO....I just have to say, our golden boy is pretty small (24 lbs, 18 month clothes, size 6 shoe, albeit ginormous head)and just now starting a vocabulary of nouns. Pretty "speech-delayed". It kills me to say this, but he only started saying "mama" about three weeks ago. AND.....I'm telling you this because there's so far nothing Wrong with him. Our super twinkly and aged doctor assures us that he's seen alot of kids and ours is just perfect. I wish you all the best with your assessments and with Noah's clearly competent language skills. At the end of the day, he is....just perfect.
Ohh no! I *just* finished buying my son's wardrobe for next year. He is, essentially, the same build as Noah and is nearly a year younger. I thought that I'd buy him 2t shorts for next summer. That made sense to me. But, if Noah is wearing 6-12m shorts, that means the clothes I bought for my son are going to be way too damn big! Maybe he'll still fit into these summer's shorts though? Hopefully?
(I know, long and rambling... sorry)
You should post pictures(or video) of show Mama sleep. Especially you doing it!
Good luck today.
OMG he is so precious. And girl - he looks JUST like you!!
In those last three pictures I was SHOCKED at how he morphed from Jason (pic 1) to you (picture 3).
!!!!
PRESHUS.
Look at you, still getting triple-digit comments...with fluff!
Looks like Noah's having a great summer. You can *really* see your face in his...seems like it's been coming out more and more recently!
Do not cut his hair! Noah is the most spectacular looking child.
He looks like his mama!
The intervention team is probably going to tell you to please make a very serious commitment to reading to Noah everyday (twice a day would be even better) and start a routine of going to the library once a week to pick out different books and go to story time at the library and at the bookstores!
It will be good for both of you and get you off the computer!
DONT CUT IT!
and when you finally do cut it, take this picture with you when you need a new look. maybe keep it a little longer but the color and style is perfect.
100% cuteness. Don't cut his hair! :)
I recommend you put the wine bottles out in the alley/drop them off near a dumpster in a seedy part of town, and let some guy with a grocery cart take them away for you. That way you help the homeless AND get rid of the incriminating evidence.
Noah's adorable. Good look with failing the assessment and succeeding on qualifying for EI.
And this is why you didn't go to BlogHer. You are psychic...and you told us it was all about the money just to throw us off.
Along with everyone else I hope that the visit goes in whichever direction is best for Noah.
Dude. Cutest. Baby. Evah.
Don't cut the hair. I love it!! He can look like Kate Hudson's kid!!!
If anyone asks about the wine bottles, tell them you COLLECT them from your neighbors' recycling bins and use them in craft projects. It would help if you had at least one "sample" project already finished.
I simply cannot be held responsible for the noises I make at work when I see pictures of Noah. SQUEEEEEE! OH MY GOD! OH NO!!!!!!! HAHAHAHAHA!
He's impossibly cute and precious and that little face makes me wanna squish him all up and kiss him repeatedly until he giggles with glee (or pushes me away screaming "Scary lady Mommy!" That'll get him talkin!)
Srsly... he is SO gonna marry Bethany (when they are older of course -- but we can just go ahead and make the arrangements now).
MOVE TO MY TOWN AND LIVE NEXT DOOR TO ME. you know you want to. :)
Oh, don't get his haircut until you're ready. We just got my son's cut about two months ago because he's three and started preschool. I miss his curls soooo much and I know that I probably won't ever see them again. I have to go cry now :) because my baby's not a baby anymore.
You could take the empty bottles to a recycling center and stash the money away for rainy day trips or Noah stuff.
ps- My brother never said a word until he was about three, and then busted out perfectly structured sentences strung together in paragraphs. Boys will be boys.
I tried to comment on your last post but it wouldn't let me for some reason.
Your son is wonderful, perfect, and so handsome. I am travelling on the same road as my sweet handsome little guy is also not talking. He's about 6 months older than Noah and doesn't know how to say "oh no" or "aball". He says mama, dada, ee-ee (for Issy his big sister) and a few other sounds. He's been communicating through sign, pointing, sounds, and looks for a long while and as a mom I always know what he wants. Still, listening to that inner voice telling me something was wrong was the best thing I've done. That first call to Early Intervention was hard, and the subsequent meetings, paperwork, etc felt surreal.
William has been working with his speech therapist 3-4 days a week for a few months now, she comes right to the house and he is making slow progress. He was just diagnosed with apraxia of speech and they tell me he is so much better off that I got him into the program early (at 2 years).
He knows all his letters, colors, shapes, etc. He LOVES to "read" books with us and is an expert on all things that move (tractors, trucks, trains, motorcycles, etc). He's perfectly normal in every way except he doensn't speak. Yet.
All this was just to say you're not alone. My son is blonde and handsome with a devilish smile like Noah. These little guys are just the best.
Too stinkin' cute!
Oh, my boy, Logan has been seeing OT and PT through early intervention for over year. Good luck! I think it is the best thing we ever did for Logan, contrary to what others (read ILs) may think.
Oh, I SO hated giving my son his first 'real' haircut (besides trimming bangs). Cutting off all those beautiful curls...
*sniff*
Leave it long, oh please oh please??? He looks like lil skater dude.
Amalah! Post! Please! We are all waiting to hear how it went this morning!
Thinking of you three, and sending positive, talky, calm, sensory-integrative thoughts Noah's way. :)
Oh. My. God. The belly. The Crocs. The dimples. The curls! That boy is just precious.
I'm sure everything went well this morning. This little man(er, baby, SORRY!) will be talkin up a storm in no time at all.
Much love to the three of you!
May you have a wonderful evaluation full of tantrums and uncooperative toddler behavior. For this one and the next one.
May your bra absorb all the sweat before it shows through to your capable looking outfit as you are fearing the judgment of the professionals.
May you remember during the moment in the near future when they (maybe) confirm a label/diagnosis and you are heartbroken once again in that little place deep down that was hoping this is all a cruel joke that it's still all good. No matter the label, the more help, the better for Noah. And you. May the force of all parents everywhere who love their quirky kids be with you.
Just learn from my mistakes... my weepy, weepy mistakes. Don't let them cut off more than just the TEENIEST bit of hair. Just enough to prune back the hedges a bit, if you will.
Otherwise? You will end up like me - sobbing that the evil hairdresser stole your baby and replaced him with a much too grown up little boy. Then you will drink too much and think of creative ways to get back at said hairdresser. Eventually, you will have fully formed fantasies in which you shave her eyebrows and then somehow gain the magical powers to regrow your baby's beautiful curls.
Um. I'm also pretty sure I started therapy soon after. We'll blame the hair for that, too. :)
omg, he looks EXACTLY like you. Your smiles are identical!!
Don't touch those curls! You have enough on your plate worrying about him and we all know you will cry big salty tears because he won't look like your baby anymore! Actually, the rest of us will cry, too, so you should really be more considerate of our feelings ;)
Amy, that baby is just too gorgeous. Keep those curls and enjoy them while you can!
Hey guys - things went fine this morning, although it was mostly a total non-event. She asked a million questions, took some notes, we signed some forms, the end.
August 9th will be the "big" one, where two evaluators will come and determine exactly how delayed Noah is, and whether he qualifies for the free services through the state.
(She did say Noah was beyond adorable though. Multiple times.)
I want a copy of that third one..
OH MY LORD. LOVE HIM.
(yes, that deserved all caps because he's so damn adorable)
The hair is adorable, but beware: my mom grew my brother's hair out, much like that, into beautiful blond curls. When I was babysitting him at age 13 (he was 3), he found scissors and cut a huge chunk out near his bangs and in the back. Thought my mom was going to kill me! But apparently Jaymes thought it was time for a shorter look.
Good gracious...could he BE any cuter? I don't think so! Keep the curls!!=)
She would have had to have been blind to not think he was beyond adorable. I have spent the last 2 days coming back and looking at those pictures because they are SO BEYOND ADORABLE!
My son had such beautiful blond ringlets when he was Noah's age and I had people keep telling me that he needed to get a haircut because he was a boy and boy's hair shouldn't be long blah blah blah. I so wish I hadn't caved because I literally cried when I saw him afterwards. He looked like a little grown man and even when I let it grow back out it was never the same. The ringlets were gone. :o( To this day (12 yrs later) I wish I hadn't listened to them. Don't let anyone presuade you to do it until you are darn good and ready. They grow up fast enough. :o)
PS.. He is adorable and the curls are beautiful. :o)
Still the absolutely most adorable baby on the entire WWW!!!
Don't cut the hair - its beautiful. Let him keep it for now!!!! And thanks again from the entire WWW for sharing Noah with us!!!!
He looks JUST LIKE YOU!! Love the curls.
I know you are going through it right now, and I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for being so open, thank you for sharing. There are many of us with young children that are learning right along with you.
Amy, I've never posted a comment but enjoy your blogs immensely. I find humor and writing are the best escape for life throwing poo at us. That and chardonnay...and cheese..and chocolate. Many of us have been down this road your traveling and no matter what the outcome, you will be wiser, better, and stronger than before. Noah will continue to be Noah..adorable and wonderful and bright in every possible way. My thoughts are with you.
ah cuteness packaged into one child... almost too much to handle!
Don't worry, I don't think he is anything but normal...do all the testing if your need be. Some kids are late bloomers, boys particularly, often speak much later than girls. Keep his hair however you are comfortable, they are only little once and it is gone and done before you know it.
Just love him and savour everyday!
I couldn't figure out how to e-mail you directly. I am here at BlogHer and I was told by someone about you writing regarding your son's possible Sensory Processing Issues. I write about my son (who is 6 now) at my blog and his SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder) among other things. Hope you are able to get your son whatever help he might need. Feel free to stop by Spinning Yellow or e-mail me.
I hope everything went well today!! He's so cute, I love the Farrah-Fawcetty hair, It's so cute. CUTE.
Oh So adorable! And those curls!
Glad this morning went fine!
fingers crossed for the 9th...
and I forgot to say earlier, trim only is my vote! It's way too cute to cut off!
My 19 month old 26 lber wears 6 in shoes and wears anything from 6 months to 2t in shorts. I think clothes makers are fucking with us.
The hair? Leave it alone, it still looks adorable! Also? It is a look he can rock well into his 30's.
don't cut it just yet - it's way too cute!
but his hair is so adorable! and curly! and awwwww!
Wow, these are just too cute !
I am one of your lurkers....meh. Delurking just this once to say this: Please don't cut his hair. Not yet. He is gorgeous.
I kept my youngest son's curls (there were loads of them) until 3 weeks ago - he is 7 now - when he took it upon himself to get rid of them - man I was devastated to see his hair cropped short.....he was my baby and now he's a little boy! My baby is all gone.
Hold on to yours as long as you can. They grow up way too fast as it is.
Noah is gorgeous!
OH MY GOD. Your child is adorable. Freaking adorable. Those grins! Those curls! Glorious.
What a total cutie!
I've just been reading some of your first posts from way back when. I wondered if you ever did too, just to see how much your life has changed?
Best wishes
That is one beautiful child. Sigh. I have three sons and I am DONE but still -- sigh. BTW Amalah is a lovely name, I wish my parents had gone ahead and named me "Sarel," for my great-grandma, but they decided to keep it "American." D'oh! Now I always have name envy.
Ack! No haircut!! Me luvs me some baby boy curls!
Takes me back to when my son was a baby with a headfull of curls...sigh...so sweet.
Things will go great tomorrow! GL!
You can't cut his hair. Then I would be forced to cut my little guys hair...they have the same cut and I love it.
My 4 1/2 yr old is supposed to be 75th %ile on height and weight and still can wear 24 month shorts. Shirts are 5T though, similar to what you're experiencing. Summer isn't so bad, it's pants season that will get you because to get the waist to fit, the pants are like knee-length.
Our two year old is also in 12-18 month shorts, but can wear 6 month shorts. I think it's just a weird weight distribution thing.
On the hair, you should check out the KodakGallery/Johnson's baby shampoo contest on healthy-beautiful baby hair. Noah is a winner for sure with those lovely locks. The deadline for entering a picture is tomorrow.
He looks just like you. (But a boy version of course) The dimples comment made me weepy.
I wouldnt want to cut those gorgeous blonde locks either!
Altho Im sure you will do this anyway, but SAVE them! :)
I'm actually relieved to read his sizes, as Max is about the same (but size 6 shoes). So, you know, I no longer have to live in fear that my body is all under-fed and slowly withering under my very nose.
Oops, make that "my BOY is all under-fed..." damn these quick-typing fingers!
He is a cherub. I expect to see wings and a little bow and arrow set in upcoming photos to confirm that he is, in fact, Cupid.