Dare Devil and a Busted Lip

So we made it all the way to WV and back safely. The night we return, A decides to ride his tonka riding toy off the landing in the living room. He has a big purple busted lip. He took it like a champ though! I took a picture last night and will try to upload it sometime tonight for you to see.

Other than that, all is well with us. We had a great time in WV and we are both exhausted from the trip. A's late night rendezvous at my mom's house have caught up with him now that we are unable to sleep in until 10am every day. Oh well... what are vacations for?

I know we were only gone for 10 days, but I feel like I came home with a different child than I left with. And I"m not just talking about the fact that he is more spoiled after 10 days with his GiGi and aunts. He is climbing more, talking more, giving more kisses (if that is possible) and throwing fewer temper tantrums!

I feel like we have a slight improvement in the biting arena. Now when he is mad at me, instead of trying to bite me, he'll lean down and bite his shirt, the couch, his beloved giraffe or even himself. At times it is funny and I have to turn away so he doesn't see me laugh, but at least he is moving away from human objects (other than himself)! I am not encouraging self-mutilation, but maybe if he keeps biting himself in these fits of anger, he will realize that it hurts and stop doing it to others.

OK, I have to get back to work. Its so hard to focus after vacation.

Rusch Hour

Thanks to my friend, Trish , I am changing the name of our blog to Rusch Hour! Its cute and catchy! Thanks for the suggestion Trishie!

More to come later.....

Cannibal???

We are in WV and are having a blast!!! We were supposed to come home tomorrow, but have decided to postpone our visit for a few days. A is having a wonderful time being surrounded by all of my family. It took him about 5 minutes to warm up to everyone and now he is liberally giving kisses to all!!!! However, he warmed up so well that he decided to start biting again!!!

UGH... I can't figure out this biting thing. Everytime I turn around that mouth is wide open and going for flesh! Is he lacking some vital nutrient in his diet that is causing him to crave human flesh, is he a cannibal, or is this just a phase??? We had 3 incidents last week at daycare in which A bit sweet little AJ. He got put in time-out there for his offense and when I picked him up, I pointed to the imprint of his mouth on Alice's arm and again scolded him to remind him that we do not bite!!!

All of you have heard me speak of my 6 year old nephew, J, whom I absolutely adore. He has always been so sweet with A and to our surprise, has not been jealous at all. A bit him 3 times the first two days we were here. Unlike his victims at daycare, J is old enough to realize what was happening and pull away before A was able to break the skin, but still, the intent was the same so he had to be punished.

I'm so praying this phase passes soon. If anyone has any endured the biting phase with their own and has any tips/suggestions, I am all ears!

I'll write more about our trip later!

Taking the plunge......

Yes, that's right. I am taking the plunge and stepping into modern day technology and creating a blog!



All of you are so sweet to ask about A and want to know how he's doing on a regular basis. Now that we are full into the toddler phase, there just isn't enough time in the day to stay in touch with everyone. So hopefully you can check out my blog periodically for the latest and greatest with the Rusch's. Plus, it just seems like a fun thing to do :)

A quick update on where we are today.....

A is 20 months old today! Everyone keeps asking me at what point you stop tracking their age in months. I don't know the answer to that, but my guess is 2 years. Up until that point they go to the pediatrician so often for the "well baby" check-ups and there are so many monthly critical developmental milestones to track that, as a parent, each month feels critical to your child's development. Hopefully that will let up soon!

We have officially nicknamed Aiden "The Destroyer" as he is destroying our house faster than T and I can run behind him and clean it up. I pick-up up tupperware at least 18 times a day as he loves to pull every piece out of my cabinet several times a day. Up until now, I have spared that cabinet from the baby proofing so he could have something to do while I make dinner, but for my sanity, that one may get bolted down also.

A's vocabulary is expanding every day now! He can very clearly say about 12 words including "Hi, Bye-Bye, Mama, Daddy, light, Big Bird, La La (which is for Elmo), Yum Yum (which is for Cookie Monster), T.T. (for my sister B), keys, duck, dog. And several others that without a translation from T or myself, you wouldn't know what he was saying :)

This truly is a fun age, but it is very exhausting. Some nights we literally fall into bed. Still, all the hugs and kisses make every single moment worthwhile!

A and I are off to my mom's house on Thursday for an entire week. We can't wait to get there! They haven't seen A since Easter and man ole' man, are they in for a surprise! I hope GiGi gets the house babyproofed this week :)

I'll be in touch soon!