Quick, before I get Sidetrack'd

Hi. I’m still here and everyone is doing fine. I would love to say I’ve been away because we went on a fun trip or because something super exciting was going on, but that’s not the case. I’ve spent the week with a potty training 2 year old (more on that later) and a teething 6 month old (more on that later, too) and a good time to blog just hasn’t presented itself. Sometimes life just gets in the way.

Tonight I’m off with my best friend for a girls’ night out to celebrate meeting our Challenge goals. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Last night…I was sitting in the floor changing Boo’s diaper when Little came in the room.  She walked up behind me, put her arms around my neck, and said, “I wuv Mommy.”

This morning…Little was playing in the living room while I took my shower.  When she heard the water turn off she came running into the bedroom and up to the bathroom door…

Little: “You done, Mommy?”

Me: “Yep, sweetie, I’m all done.”

Little (with a huge grin): “I so glad!”

This Mommy gig?  It’s not too bad most of the time.

My tiny man isn’t so tiny anymore.  This week marks the end of his sixth month in this world, and he is doing his best to make his mark on it.

Today we went for his six month checkup and the doc said he looks great.  He’s in 50th percentile for height, weight, and head circumference.  He’s meeting or exceeding all of his physical and social milestones.  And we seem to have his reflux under control.

At weigh-in he tipped the scales at 17 pounds 11 ounces; up 3 pounds 9 ounces since his four month visit!  He also measured a healthy 26 inches long.  They were impressed with how well he’s sitting; he’s gotten very good at it in the last week or so.

He’s been officially cleared to eat solids.  We’ve been giving him fruits for the last few weeks, but now he can do foods twice a day and we’ll probably start adding Gerber puffs or something of that nature in the next couple of weeks.  He is also allowed to drink some water now, so we’ll see how he likes the sippy cup.

I love this stage – the constant learning and discovery and the emergence of his personality; he’s such a sweet and friendly baby.  Just wish my little people didn’t have to grow up so fast.

I saw this meme on my SIL’s blog the other day.  I haven’t yet written out the kids’ birth stories, so I thought this would be a good way to record some of that information.

Were you married at the time? Yes, for 5 years.

What were your reactions when you found out that you were pregnant? We were so excited; we knew we were ready to add a little one to our family.  I was also a bit nervous as I think all first time moms are.

How old were you? 27 when she was born.

How did you find out that you were pregnant? I had been charting my temps (using FAM), so I knew that having a higher temp for more than 16 days probably meant I was pregnant.  I tried to wait 21 days before I took a test but only made it 18.  The first test must have been defective because it only made part of a plus, the second test registered positive almost immediately.  We found out on Nana’s (Matt’s mom) birthday.

Who did you tell first? I called Matt at work and then my best friend, Nicole.

Did you find out the sex? Yes, I think it would have driven both Matt and me crazy not to know.

Due date? August 7.

Did you deliver early or late? a week early.

Did you have morning sickness? that would be a yes.  I threw up every morning and felt terrible the rest of the day for 8 weeks.

What did you crave? pineapple pizza from Papa John’s during the first trimester, anything spicy the rest of the time.  I went through 2-3 jars of salsa per week.  I also had a major aversion to the smell of coffee until about 17 weeks; I almost threw up one night in the cereal/coffee aisle of Target.

Who irritated you most? I can’t recall one person in particular that irritated me, but I’m sure everyone irritated me at one point or another.

What was your first child’s sex? she’s a girl.

How many pounds did you gain throughout your first pregnancy? 24.

Did you have any complications during your pregnancy? not a single one, thank God.  I didn’t even have any swelling until the very end.

Where did you give birth? in a hospital.

How many hours were you in labor? my water broke at 1:45 p.m. and I hadn’t had a noticeable contraction yet.  They started a pitocin drip about 4:00 p.m. and she was born at 10:33 p.m.  So labor was just under 9 hours.

Who drove you to the hospital? Matt.  When I called him at work to tell him my water broke and he needed to come home he didn’t believe me at first; I think he was in shock.

Who watched? Matt was there the whole time and my mom made it into town about the time I started pushing, so she got to see her first granddaughter come into the world.

Was it vaginal or c-section? she came out the old fashioned way.

Did you take medicine to ease the pain? I had an amazing epidural when I got to 7cm; I didn’t feel a thing after that.

How much did your baby weigh? she was 7 pounds 1/2 ounce.

What did you name your first born baby? she has a beautiful name that I love, but we call her Little around here.

How old is your first born today? she’s two years old.

Little was born on her Pops’s birthday.  Matt called Nana and Pops while we drove to the hospital to let them know that Little’s arrival was imminent.  They were at Nana’s college registering for her Fall semester classes, so Pops had to call us back when they got somewhere quieter so he could hear Matt.  I think he thought we were calling to wish him a happy birthday; he was quite surprised to hear that his granddaughter was on her way on his birthday.  It’s pretty neat that she shares a birthday with her Pops.

I am not an observant person. I can drive by the same building twice a day, every day, for weeks and not realize anything has changed until Matt points it out to me. Fortunately, Little does not seem to have inherited this trait.

Lately, she has been very interested in all the details surrounding my polished toenails – the color, the polish bottle, the act of polishing. A few weeks ago, she pulled all of my polish bottles out of my bathroom drawer, carried them to the living room, lined them up side-by-side, and chose the new color for my nails.

A few days ago it was time to polish the toes again. This time Little was sleeping, so I was able to accomplish the task without the “what doin’, Mommy?” that usually accompanies everything I do. The next morning, the first thing out of her mouth after “I lawnt mi-ilk” was “What dat?” while pointing at my nice “ruby slipper” toenails.

Definitely more observant than her Momma.

There are times when you get glimpses of your children and realize that they might turn out okay.  Such was the time a few nights ago…

We sat in the bathroom floor blow drying her hair after bathtime.  Glancing down I noticed that she sat quietly with hands folded and head bowed.  After a few seconds she said, “Amen,” and looked up at me.  She told me she was praying for her friend and asked for me to pray more.  We prayed as we finished drying her hair, thanking God for her friends, her grandparents, her brother; petitioning God for healing for her great-grandmother; asking God to be with us, watch over us, protect us.

It was a precious moment, a few short minutes of connection with Jesus.  I pray that in 10 years, 20 years, 30 years she still stops in the midst of the everyday to spend time with Jesus.

It would seem that I hit myself with the mommyspoketoosoon jinx when I hit publish on Tuesday’s post.  Tuesday night Boo slept okay, Wednesday night he did bad, and last night he did terrible.  

We shall never speak of his sleeping accomplishments again.

Two years ago today we held you in our arms having no idea what it really meant to be parents. Two years ago today we counted your fingers and toes and were awed by the blessing and responsibility that God had given us. Two years ago today we looked into your eyes and dreamed of the things God has planned for your life. Two years ago today we fell in love with you.

We smile when we hear your sweet voice.  We are proud as you learn new things and develop new skills.  We delight in the sound of your laughter ringing off the walls and ceiling.  We laugh at the funny things you do and say.  We cherish your hugs and kisses.  Our hearts swell at the sound of “me wuv Mommy” or “me wuv Daddy.”

These last two years you have brought us tears, fears, and headaches, but more than anything you’ve brought us untold joy.  We thank God for you, our little bit of girl, and we celebrate your life today and everyday.

We love you,
Mommy and Daddy

When I published last Wednesday’s post I had no intention of it being the last thing I wrote for a week.  In fact, I was planning another post in my head, but like so many things, blogging got pushed to the side when we went from “getting enough sleep to function” to “getting enough sleep to survive” around here.

Boo has never been a great sleeper, but we’ve managed.  For the last several weeks, Matt and I would get up probably a half dozen times a night (on average) to give his paci back or in some way soothe him back to sleep (he was down to one feeding per night).  Then last week, he decided that he needed to be awake and screaming a couple of nights and the other nights he just wouldn’t stay asleep.

It seems that the doctor’s recommendations for treating his reflux just aren’t cutting it.  After hitting bottom on Wednesday night (and two terrible days on Tuesday and Thursday), I figured it was time to call the doc and see what our next step should be.  As of today, my baby boy will be taking prescribed medication every day for the foreseeable future.  I don’t feel real great about him going on a daily medication when he is so young, but the poor thing is obviously in pain and I don’t want him to be in pain.

And so begins our new adventure…trying to get a three month old who has never had a bottle to take 4 ounces of water with the medication dissolved in it twice a day.  We’re hoping and praying that this will work and our sweet boy will find some relief, and, in turn, we’ll find some sleep.

All of that to say I’m back (for now at least) and looking forward to catching up with everyone.

So, as I related in my last post, we had a wonderful time last weekend with family.  It was not, however, all smiles and giggles. When you have two parents who prefer to be close to home, you end up with two children who prefer to be in their usual environment.

The kids travelled remarkably well.  Boo slept most of the trip, and Little sat in her carseat and talked and played the whole time.  Yep, you read that right, she talked the whole trip.  She is her mother’s daughter.  They made the trip home nicely, too.

The problem arose from being out of routine for four days and being with strange people people we don’t see often.  I’m not a strict scheduler (although, sometimes with Boo I wish I was), but we do have a definite pattern and rhythm to our days.  The kids know when we’ll eat, when it’s naptime, who we’ll play with, etc.  I also have two children who sleep in their own beds, in their own rooms, and in the dark.

All of this was thrown out of whack while we were travelling.  Because of the number of people involved, mealtimes were somewhat sporadic.  Because of the laid back nature of our visit, naptime would sneak up on us.  And because of space issues, Little slept in the room with us.

She was totally thrown off by the fact that Boo and the sun rise before 6 o’clock a.m.  Waking up at 5 one morning, 5:30 the next, and 5:45 the last made for one irritable girl well before her normal naptime.  Add to the mix that there were 4 children age 3 and under and 10 adults living under one roof with another child (age 5) and several other adults coming in and out, and Little was having a tough time with overstimulation.  She did wonderfully the first couple of days, but by Sunday she was definitely ready to be in her home with only her Mommy, Daddy, and brother.

Then there was Boo.  His tummy trouble that was aggravated by something(s) I ate; the poor guy was crying in pain on Saturday, and there wasn’t much we could do to comfort him between doses of medicine.  He also decided that it was a good time to attempt learning to suck his thumb, so I don’t think he slept as well as usual because he was knocking his paci out of his mouth and waking himself up.

Overall, the children behaved well and were in good spirits, but there was enough crankiness to make me glad we don’t travel again for awhile.  Or, maybe I was the one who was overstimulated and cranky; I know I was happy to get home Sunday as well.