How Many More Days?

Advice for Holiday Travelers

I forgot to share a funny story with all of you from our trip to Indianapolis. Our first plane left San Diego around 9 am, so we got to the airport around 7:30 and after going through security, I was in need of some coffee. I got a ridiculously expensive latte and we waited for the plane. Elijah fell asleep and about an hour into the flight I realized that traveling by myself with Elijah would make it nearly impossible to use the lavatory while on the plane. I didn't think of that while drinking my overpriced latte and there was still an hour an a half left of our flight, not to mention a sleeping baby on my lap. I suppose I could have asked someone to hold him while I went to the bathroom, I mean really, it's not like they can run off with him on a plane, but I felt awkward doing that, so I held it.

As we are starting our descent into Denver, I notice a distincitve smell coming from my little one's diaper. Yep, Elijah decides that is the perfect time to drop a load in his diaper. Being as we are making our descent, I'm not allowed to leave my seat and change his diaper. Not that I would want to because I'm pretty sure turbulence and dirty diapers don't mix.

So we finally land, Elijah is hungry and poopy and I have to pee like you would not believe so I high-tail it to the ladies room. The first stall in the bathroom is, thank God, a handicap stall so I wheel the stroller in so I can finally relieve myself. As I am sitting there, with my pants around my ankles, the stall door is apparently not latched properly and the door swings open! Hi world, I'm peeing and yes, that's my crying, poop-smelling baby next to me! I have to manuver some sort of squatting shuffle to avoid showing the whole world my hoo-ha while also not mooning them or dripping urine all over myself and doing so with superior speed so as not to attract even more attention to myself.

Needless to say, from that point on in my travels, I
a) made sure to use the facilities before boarding the plane and
b) found the family bathrooms at the airport, even if that means walking 3 miles to the other end of the terminal.

Haircut

So we got tired of trying to hold the little bugger while also cutting his hair, so we went to the professionals yesterday. Little did I know that this kids salon was located at a shopping mall. ACK! It was crazy, but we made it and he has a handsome little haircut now. I think the professionals are much better at hitting a moving target than we are.There was much crying after this point, so to preserve his dignity, there are no crying pictures.

Red eyes but cool hair.

He likes it now

Ankfulness of Thankfulness

My friend Scott is trying to get "ankfulness of thankfulness" to sweep the nation. I don't know what an ankful is but whatever. This right here is what I'm thankful for (you need the sound on).

Trip to Indianapolis

Guest post from Elijah

Hi Friends,

I just got back from a trip to Indianapolis. We went there to see my grandparents and it was my granddad's birthday. Mom and I flew on 2 planes and Dad met us there. He's been gone in a place called Chicago for a week. I missed him a lot, so did Mom.

The first night I had to sleep in a bed that wasn't mine and I didn't like it very much. I was telling Mom how much I didn't like it so she let me sleep with her. Sucker! But I'm a big boy so I slept in the new bed by myself the rest of the time.

I met lots of new people on my trip. Mom's friends and Dad's friends and some babies too Helen, Elias, Auggie, Nolan and Sylvi. I went to the International Festival with Helen and I got a marocca. Then I went to a playdate with Mom's Motus friends where I met the other kids. Mom's camera battery ran out when we got there so she only got one picture of me and Elias. Mrs. K got other pictures here. It was fun to play with all the toys and kids, it was like school!

On Sunday we went to the Children's Museum with Grandma and Granddad. I had fun playing but splashing in the water was my favorite. Then we celebrated Granddad's birthday!

It was fun to see all the new people but I am glad to be home in my own bed now. Mom keeps telling me it's not time for bed yet, but it sure feels like it to me!

Peace out,

Elijah

The Binki Bandit

Elijah has never had the slightest interest in pacifiers (binkis, nuknuks, etc.). Some babies take them, some babies don't. We have a couple and when he finds them, he mostly chews on the handle for a little while before moving on to play with something more interesting. When I drop him off at "school", I usually put him down to play with something, put away his food, diapers, etc. and then go back to say good bye to him. A couple of weeks ago, when I went to say good bye, he had a binki in his mouth. I pulled it out because clearly it wasn't his since I don't think he even has a binki at "school". I put it on the counter for sterlization, said good bye and was on my way. Earlier this week, I went to pick him up and when I got there he was in the process of taking a binki out of one of his classmates' mouths and putting it in his mouth.

The teacher is like, "yeah, he does this all the time. He finds them on the floor or other kids' mouths and tests them out."

I was like, "Does he suck on them?"

"Yeah, for a little bit, then he takes them out of his mouth, looks at them and moves on to something else"

I can just imagine the little stinker, crawling up to sleeping babies, stealing their pacifiers and testing them out. I guess he is curious as to why all the other babies have them in their mouths and trying to figure out what is the big deal.

I'm not tired!

"No, Mom, I'm not tir...zzzzzzz" Time change is a bitch.

Mind Your Ps and Qs

Now I don't pretend to be Miss Manners or anything but sometimes I just have to say "Really?" Do people realize how rude they are being? Or do they just not care? And I don't know, maybe when you have a kid, you loose all modesty so people think they can ask you anything. Yes, in my hospital room I had doctors, nurses, lactation consultants and my husband trying to nurse with basically a hand towel covering me but that does not give you liberty to ask rude questions. Here are some of the ridiculous questions I've been asked in the last 17 months or so:

1. You're pregnant! Were you trying or was it an accident? (Someone in the room actually called them out on the inappropriateness of this but another person asked me this too)
2. Should you be drinking coffee when you're pregnant? (p.s. it was hot chocolate, but still not your business)
3. Oh, you're back from maternity leave and hey all the weight is gone (this one directly from an executive director)
4. So are you going to have more kids?
5. Are you worried about finding a job? Oh, don't worry about it, just enjoy spending time with your baby. (yeah, because I don't have bills to pay or anything)

Now some of these things are okay for family members or good friends to ask (sometimes) but these were all said to me by aquaintences. In the words of one of my favorite comedians "I can't believe I have to get angry about this sh!t!"

A Day in the Life of an Artist

Elijah does art projects at "school" and here is his latest project which eventually became a jack o'lantern. (p.s. his hair hasn't grown that much in the last couple weeks, this was pre-hair cut) Painting is pretty fun

I don't like this anymore

Maybe it will be better to eat

Art is exhausting!

At "school" they say he put a lot of emotion into his art.

The Best Things in Life are Free...sort of

After painstaking research, Elijah has found the next great toys for the holiday season and we will be presenting them to Fisher-Price later this month.

1. Metal mixing bowls - make great noise, good for banging and keeping baby out of the kitchen(mostly) while making food.

2. Coasters - hours of fun, also good for banging together and on the coffee table, chewing (they are metal so I don't understand this) and scattering all over the floor3. Springy thing behind the door - results in big smiles with very minimal effort

What The What, Baby?!

In the last week, this tiny (or not so tiny) boy has decided that sitting and crawling is boring. I mean, being able to move is great because he can get all the things he's not supposed to have but there's got to be more, right? So after watching his friend Andrea at "school", Elijah has figured out how to pull himself up to standing. That's right, my not-quite- 7 month old is standing up. Seriously, Baby, you could have waited longer, we would have been okay with that. We are just getting used to picking stuff off the floor that we don't want you to get. Now you have access to the coffee table, chairs, shelves, your favorite foot rests and other things I have not even thought of yet. Where are we supposed to put things? I am guessing the only truly secure place is on top of the fridge, because even I can't reach that. And that is the true definition of baby-proofing.

6 months

Elijah went for his 6 month check up on Thursday. Can you believe it? He is 17lbs 2oz and is 26 (and 1/2? maybe) inches long. I guess that explains why my arms are so tired. But I have been bench pressing him to build my strength;) You can see how curly his hair is getting in this picture.

He's been trying out food and most of the time likes it. His favorite is bananas and he even likes peas. I thought I was going to be all Martha Stewart and make all of his baby food. (Not that I think Martha Stewart makes baby food but she is synonymous with everything homemade, so you know.) Things like bananas and pears are easy but when you have to get out the blender/food processor, it's a pain in the ass. And with the price of fruit (except bananas) it is really not cheaper. But seriously, Gerber, why does your baby food come in non-recyclable plastic containers? All I want from you is to ease my green guilt a little since I'm creating serious waste with disposable diapers (ahhh, the devil!). But I'm not giving those up so at least let me recycle the containers the baby food comes in. I usually get the other brand that comes in glass jars but they are always out of carrots and they never have green beans or squash (what's up with that?). Ok, that wasn't supposed to be a rant, but it turned into one. About baby food. Yeah, I need to get out more.

Oh, I want to point out that Elijah does not always wear pajamas (even though he looks darn cute in them). But he is always in such a good mood in the morning (I don't know where he got that from) that it is always the best time to snap a photo, hence, pajama boy.

Friday picture

In the morning, chilling in the monkey pajamas and showing off the teeth. See what I mean about looking like a little boy?!

T minus 5, 4, 3...

Our little baby boy is getting so big that you probably won't recognize him. He has two little teeth on the bottom that are quite sharp when he bites down on your finger. It reminds me of that video with the kid who sticks his finger in his brother's mouth and then starts yelling because it hurts. Yeah, this one. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OBlgSz8sSM



He chats up a storm and can sit by himself for a pretty long time (like 20 minutes). But as the video below reveals, he will not be contained for long. He's a quick little guy, able to grab my glass on the table before I've even finished sitting down with him. He is also like a vaccuum cleaner (though apparently better than ours) that finds every little speck of everything that is left on the floor. This led to our decision to purchase a "play yard" or as we fondly refer to it the "baby cage". We talked about the gates, but we needed so many of them to keep him out of things like the cat food and the cat litter that we decided this was the best and cheapest option.



As I mentioned before about "school", it seems he has learned this trick from his friend Andrea, who is about 6 weeks older than he is. But once he saw her doing it, he's like "so that's how you do it, I can do that".

Feline Friend

After 5 months of pretty much ignoring each other, there has been contact between cats and baby. Well, one cat and baby. Elijah has been watching the cats intently for a couple weeks. Izzy is the one we often call Scaredy because sudden movements, strangers and lots of times Micah all cause her to run away and hide. She does really like me when I'm sitting on the couch, which a lot of the time means that I'm feeding Elijah. The other day I had just finished feeding him when she came to the couch mewing to be pet. So I showed Elijah how we pet the kitty and he got really excited. Then Izzy sniffed his hand and rubbed her head on his hand! Then he tried to go for her with two hands and she knew she better run out of his reach. She jumped to the ottoman and then a few minutes later jumped back to the couch. Elijah thought this was hilarious and started laughing. So we pet the kitty on most days and Elijah squeals with excitment. Sophie is still being her biotch-self and does not understand why everyone is making such a fuss over this hairless cat.

since you've (or I've) been gone

It's been a little while since I blogged. The 3 people who read this blog probably know it is because I was recently laid off from my job. Now it makes sense that I would blog more since I would have more time on my hands, but it doesn't really work that way. I felt like something needed to be said about it, but I wasn't ready to say anything yet. I think I'm ready now. The worst part about being laid off from your job is telling people you got laid off from your job. Not because I'm embarrased that I lost my job, it wasn't my fault, it was some ambiguous group of people who apparently can't budget (I could go on about this, but I'm still waiting for my severance pay). The worst part is telling people because they don't know what to say and they feel like they have to say something. All you have to say is "I'm sorry to hear that" or "that's too bad" or "that sucks". But I have heard way too many "it's probably a good thing in the long run" or "now you have more time to spend with your son". How do you know it will be a good thing in the long run? Maybe it is the beginning of the end (no melodramatics here). Also, aparently no one has any idea how hard it is to get an infant into daycare because if I were to take him out while I'm looking for a job, I'd have to wait 6 months to get him back in. Plus has anyone ever tried looking for a job with a 5 month old at your feet? And they sort of look at you funny when you bring a baby to an interview.

Also, having to tell people you lost your job is kind of a downer and often a conversation killer. But you're supposed to tell everyone you know in case someone knows someone who knows someone who is looking for someone just like you! So I don't want this blog to be a downer because to be honest, I didn't like my job all that much anyway. I mean I liked what I did but, some office politics are worse than others. And I've had some interviews, so things are looking promising. So please, if you have friends that have been laid off, remember my post. We are still fun people!

This is what we think of that

Elijah wanted to share his latest trick. He figured this out last weekend and has been doing it non-stop. To the point were I am wondering how a little baby can produce so much drool. It is really a wonder he is not dehydrated.

Picture update

There's a lot going on right now that I will go into later. In the meantime, here are some pictures to look at. Someone we know is working on her photography business and needed some baby pictures for her portfolio. Luckily, we know of an adorable baby, so here are some of the family.

Go to tfortara.com
Click to enter the website
Bottom right hand corner, click on "proofing"
A text box will pop up and the password is Emily (with a capital E)

He probably already looks different because these were taken a couple weeks ago. You know how those little guys grow. Enjoy!

More firsts

In all the excitment of last weekend's rolling over, I forgot to tell about Elijah's first Symphony concert. Last Sunday the Symphony had a free concert in the park at the Organ Pavillion. So took Elijah. It was very hot and sunny and the only shade was to the right of the stage, so we found a spot. I decided to hold him because I wasn't sure how he would react to the orchestra. The first piece was the opening of Also sprach Zarathustra . Um, yeah, he was not a fan. I bet you did not know there were vocals to that piece, but Elijah knew all the words and the rest of the audience also heard them (well, the ones around us, his cries weren't loud enough to drowned out the entire orchestra). So we spent the rest of the concert walking around the perimeter of the organ pavillion. He seemed to do fine at a distance during the rest of the concert.

It has been very warm (by San Diego standards) this week and yesterday was no exception. After running around most of the day, we went to Coronado in the evening. We walked around the beach and saw about seven weddings going on. We put Elijah's feet in the ocean. He seemed truly unimpressed even with the cold water.

Roll On

This weekend Elijah rolled over. We were getting his picture taken and he rolled from his tummy to his back (granted, we were on a slight hill, very slight). Then later that afternoon, he rolled from his back to his tummy. And now everytime I put him on his back, he rolls to his tummy. I was so proud and excited. Then I started wondering, is it okay to leave him on the floor now while I take a shower or will he roll into something and get stuck? What if he rolls over in his crib and dies of SIDS? He won't just stay where I put him anymore. He's like person now. I mean, more of a little person than he was before. Now he has a choice, tummy or back? Well, sort of, he can't remember how to roll back from his tummy. And after he gets over to his tummy, he has this big smile on his face, like he is proud of himself. Whoa.

Vacation!

Guest post from Elijah:

Hello friends,

Last week Mom, Dad and I went on a trip. We went on an airplane, which was not all that exciting for me except that I got to sleep on Dad’s lap the whole time (except when Mom fed me). We landed in a magical place called Springfield, Illinois. Then we took a car ride to what Mom and Dad called “The Sticks”. Everything was very green there. It was very warm too and kind of sticky. It rained one day. I never saw raindrops before, at home the rain is tiny.

I met lots of relatives and spit up on quite a few of them. I only spit up on people I like. That’s a shout out to you, g-uncle George!

There were lots of other kids there too -- cousins, second cousins and 1st cousins-once-removed (don’t ask me). People held me all day long, while I was awake. It was fun.

Aunt Emily holding Isabelle, Uncle Andy holding me, Aunt Rachael holding Sofia

My cousin, Carlos holding me. He is an expert because he has a little brother and a little sister!

The way back wasn’t as much fun. I slept a lot but towards the end I got tired of being on the plane. There wasn’t enough room for me to stretch out and kick and the loud voice from the sky kept waking me up. But we made it home (minus one suitcase) and it was nice to sleep in my own bed again.

Peace out,
Elijah

Bath time

The second week I was back at work, I had a very long day because I had a meeting after work until 8pm. I was exhausted and as I left the garage to walk up the three flights of stairs to our apartment, I heard screaming. Baby screaming. MY baby screaming. I did my best (ha!) to run up the three flights of stairs in my heels to find out what was going on. I shouldn't have been surprised at what I saw. Micah pulling Elijah out of the bathtub. For some reason that kid does not dig the baths.

So we decided to start a schedule of every other night baths, instead of just waiting until the stench of spoiled milk was too much to handle. On Thursday I gave him a bath and there was no crying and only one scrunchy face. And last night Micah gave him a bath and he laughed! In the water! He was smiling and kicking like this was the best time he'd ever had. I don't know what changed his mind, I'm just glad he did.

Once they were done, Micah said, "Maybe we should give him a bath every night." Let's not go overboard.

He Looka Like a Baby

Elijah had his 4 month check up a little early. Since we are going on a plane next week, we wanted to get his second set of vaccines in before we left. Everything looks good: 12lbs 13oz and 24.5 inches long (Dr. said length is very hard to measure in squirmy babies, so it's really an estimate).

Everyone seems very keen on trying to figure out who he looks like. The hilarious part is that all of my friends think he looks like Micah and all of Micah's friends think he looks like me. He definately has Micah's ears because, as Micah never tires of reminding me, I have attached earlobes and despite this genetic flaw, he married me anyway. But is very relieved that baby has inherited his unattached earlobes. His nose looks like my family, if not necessarily my nose; but I kinda feel like all baby noses look the same. He has Micah's skin tone because that baby had a better tan coming out of the womb than I do after 29 years of sun exposure. He is a pretty chill baby, so he gets that from his mama. His hair is lighter than Micah's but darker than mine and appears to be on the verge of curling (couldn't really be avoided, could it?). Eyes are hovering between brown and hazel. Basically, we just think he is adorable and he looks like Elijah.

Tolerance

Most of you know that I went back to work last week and Elijah started daycare the week before. Yes, it is as hard as people say it is. I cried the night before and then that morning when I was getting ready to put Elijah in his car seat, I bawled like a baby. My poor husband stood there helpless and asked, “what’s the matter?”. Really? I think he just didn’t know what to say. It has gotten easier and there are some days when I don’t even think about him while I’m at work. I take that back, I’ve been pumping at work, so that’s a lie. You can’t really not think about your baby while a machine sucks milk out of your boob. I read something that said it’s a biological reaction for a mother to not want to leave her baby. Back in the day, if she didn’t stay with her babies, they would get eaten by wolves or mountain lions or something. Dads don’t have that because otherwise they wouldn’t leave the cave to hunt and then everyone would starve. I don’t know why that makes me feel better.

All the parenting books are very clear that every child is different so you shouldn’t compare them to other kids. No one ever says that about parents. We are all different and handle things differently. But everyone secretly, and not so secretly, judges. You had an epidural?! You are not exclusively breastfeeding?! You put your baby in daycare?! Or maybe I’m paranoid and we are all looking for someone who does everything we’re doing so we have some validation for our choices.

Everyone says you will do anything for your kids and you will; but there is fine line where it is so bad for you that it is not worth it. Elijah took 4 weeks to get back to his birth weight, which is supposed to take 1 to 2 weeks. We had to go to the pediatrician’s office twice a week for three weeks to weigh him. Then we had to discuss how we were feeding him; could we hear him swallowing, and did he seem content. Every time we thought we were doing everything right and he seemed happy. And then, the dreaded scale would reveal... no weight gained or barely some weight or, one time, weight lost. It’s a horrible feeling. I’m supposed to be able to feed my baby and provide all the nutrition he needs, that’s what all the books tell you. I felt like a failure as a mom, even though before giving birth I was totally open to the idea of using formula if he needed it. I just didn’t think he would need it. That happens to other people, not me, I’m healthy. And if I couldn't nurse him, he wouldn't need me anymore. I cried every time we went to the pediatrician until he finally started gaining weight with supplemental formula feedings. Granted, I was also sleep deprived because it would take us an hour to feed him with nursing, supplementing and pumping and that equals 2 hour stretches of sleep. Then I started slacking on the pumping after his feeds because he was awake and I wanted to play with him. Sometimes I feel guilty about that and think if I had continued, then I would be able to only breastfeed him and I’d be able to produce enough milk to send him to daycare with a whole day’s worth. But my wonderful husband always reminds me that we were going crazy and something had to give. Feeding our baby formula is not a failure, it is great nutrition for the little guy. And to be quite honest, sometimes, it is so much easier. He’s growing like crazy and laughs and smiles at both of us more than the people at daycare, so I guess we are doing something right :P

Haircut!

At 10 (almost 11) weeks, Elijah had his first hair cut. It was getting in his face and looking pretty shaggy so Mom and Dad took the clippers to it. A little bit more came off than we intended but it does make his head look less lopsided and is helping with his cradle cap (which was hard to get to with all that hair). And it will grow back, right? I was a little nervous because you see kids who don't have any hair until they are like 2 years old. However, Micah has reassured me that since his hair has grown so much in 11 weeks, it's probably not going to suddenly stop growing now.

P.S. - In the "before" picture, his shirt does say "mmm...boobies" courtesy of one of Micah's coworkers.

Elijah has been changing so much the last couple weeks. He has become quite the talker and especially likes it when both Mommy and Daddy are talking and tries to join in the conversation. He did a real laugh yesterday when Dad was making funny faces. He is also very fascinated by his hands and is getting them in his mouth more often than not. The other day he noticed his feet but hasn't gotten those close his mouth yet. He is sleeping 6-8 hours a night, which makes us extremely happy.

P.S. - We want to send a shout out to our new friend Elias who was born on Thursday!

Happy Days

Yesterday, Micah was post call and not very tired so we had a nice afternoon, just the three of us. We strapped Elijah in the Baby Bjorn and took the Trolley to Seaport Village. We spent the afternoon walking around the little shops and stopping in the little restaurants for drinks and snacks. It was fun, despite the "code yellow" when Elijah's diaper filled up and he soaked Micah's shirt. Good thing we brought an extra shirt for Dad! Here is Elijah Roo with Dad.

The video below is Elijah being super smiley after dinner.

Poop Hammock

My friend, Jen, told me that this would happen and I sort of believed her, but thought, it can't be that bad. But it is. I could write a blog post every week about poo. I mostly restrain myself but this one had to be shared. Micah says I should get used to poo because we have a boy and he will forever think poo is funny (as evidenced by Micah himself). And if you can't laugh about it, you will cry and I just don't have that much energy.

Here's the story:
A couple days ago I went to the grocery store. I have been trying to get the hang of going to the grocery store with just me and Elijah but it can be challenging. We've decided that wearing the baby on these excersions is much easier because the carseat takes up most of the cart, leaving little room for groceries. So I carry him in my sling atthe grocery store. You can probably see where this is heading. I knew he hadn't pooped yet that day or the day before so he was due for a blow out. However, I thought, it will take less than an hour at the grocery store, what could happen? Low and behold, not 15 minutes into our shopping trip did I hearing a massive fart and looked down to discover that the diaper had leaked poo into my sling and I now had a baby and some nasty green poo strapped to the front of my body. I thought, "I could go change his diaper and clothes, but I would still have to put him back in the poopy sling when I'm done to finish shopping." So I run through the store, trying to finish up my shopping before he realizes he is a mess and starts crying. Luckily, I make it through with no crying (I think he fell asleep, that was clearly an exhausting effort). I felt a little embarrassed when the person in front of me at the check out wanted to peek into the sling to see my baby. They got a little more than they bargined for because it is not a pleasant smell either.

Then I had to change his diaper and clothes in the backseat of the car during which the poo got everywhere. I mostly kept it off the seats with the changing pad but I'm pretty sure I used a whole packet of wipes to clean it up. With Elijah's dislike for diaper changes, he was screaming bloody murder the whole time, which made the process even more enjoyable. And there was this guy who was just standing there kind of behind me and I could not for the life of me figure out why. I got kind of nervous that maybe he was going to rob me or steal my baby. Then I felt like a Class A paranoid moron when I realized that he was parked next to me and he was waiting for me to close my door so he could get by and get in his car. Sheesh! He was very nice about it when I apologized for holding him up.

Like I said, I'm trying to keep the poop stories to a minimum, but that one I just had to share.

2 Months

Yesterday, Elijah had his 2 month check up.

Stats:

Weight - 10lbs 8oz - 25th percentile
Height - 24 inches - 75th percentile

So he is tall and skinny (I could have told you that). He must have gotten that from his dad, because the tall gene obviously doesn't run in my family;)

Below find the documentary "Man vs. Himself" - in which the man tries to shove his entire fist in his mouth. We might be the only ones who think this is funny.

Victory!

Finally captured on film!

Motherhood is beautiful?

CAUTION: read at your own risk, it may contain TMI (you'll know after the first sentence)

Since giving birth, I have one boob that is significantly larger than the other. I know this is partially my own doing because I am only nursing from one breast. One breast? Yeah, basically, for certain anatomical reasons, my son was having a hard time "latching on" to my right breast and therefore was sucking less and therefore I was producing less milk on that side. This caused me to have to nurse on that side, then the other side, then he got a bottle and then I pumped both sides. Once my husband went back to work and I didn't have help with the feeds (he would feed the baby the bottle after I nursed), I got too exhausted and I didn't feel like baby was getting much out of it ,except frustration. I thought, "why am I trying so hard to make him nurse on that side, what is the point?" So the boob shrunk and in times when the other boob is full, there is a very definate difference in size.

This situation is accented if I am wearing a shirt that is not a maternity shirt because it is nice and snug around my chest region. Yeah, I am still wearing maternity clothes for the most part because, although I only have 7 pounds left to lose to get to my pre-pregnancy weight, it is all centered in my stomach and hip area which makes me unable to pull regular pants up and my shirts too short and expose my maternity pants. And so I'm here, trying to decide if my body is going to change back enough for me to ever fit in these clothes again or if I should just give them all to Goodwill and go get some new clothes in bigger sizes. But then I have to buy bigger sizes...scary.

Of course, the adorable little bugger is all worth it as you can see from his pictures (he is cuter in person than in his pictures). But if anyone had any illusions that motherhood was beautiful...

6 weeks plus

I had intentions of writing each week to give updates but I'm already sorely overdue for this, so I'm doing the 6 week update today. Elijah is getting bigger every day. He is starting to be too big for some of his newborn onesies! We tried some with long pant legs last week and he must have very long legs because the crotch was down at his knees. He has been making more baby noises the past week or so and likes the tummy time. He is also smiling but alas I have not been able to capture it on camera. The flash is just not quick enough. I will post a picture when I finally capture it.

I know everyone likes some good poop stories... so Elijah has decided to only poop once a day and sometimes once every other day. So when he goes, it is copious. We went to pick up Micah from dropping his car off to get fixed and then we went to lunch. He was getting a little fussy and when I went to get him out of the carseat, his diaper had exploded and there was poo leaking from the front of his onesie. So I go to the bathroom to change him and there is, of course, no changing table and I have to put him on the floor (don't worry I had a pad to put him down on). I should have just rinsed him off in the sink! So note to new moms, always bring extra clothes. Luckily I had one in the diaper bag or he would have smelled quite ripe during lunch...mmm appetizing.

Month 1

So it's been a while since I posted so I have lots of pictures to share. The first month has been a little exhausting. The little guy wasn't gaining weight, so I've been breastfeeding, supplementing with expressed breastmilk and/or formula and then I pump after. It's pretty exhausting but has paid off because when we went to the doctor today he weighed 9 pounds! Hurray! Micah went back to work last week and the grandparents came to visit this past week so we have been very busy!

First bath

Nana
Papa

Catching some Vitamin D

5 weeks old

One million dollars

Micah and Elijah

Elenka and Elijah

10 Days Old

Guest blog from Elijah:

I have been out of the womb for 10 days, so they tell me. So far, my life is pretty sweet. I eat and sleep and poop. That's pretty much my day...it's exhausting. A little bit about me - My likes: being wrapped up really tight by my dad (Mom is working on this - she doesn't get it tight enough), being bounced and my bouncy chair that has vibration. Awesome! My dislikes - having my diaper changed and sponge baths. I went to visit my Dad's office the other day and everyone said I was soo cute. Who am I to argue with experts? I'm just getting the hang of all this stuff.

I'm looking forward to meeting all of you! Don't take it personally if I sleep through your visit, you are probably just really boring to me.

Peace out!

Elijah

Pictures from Emily

28 pictures
View Album at Shutterfly

Almost in the single digits

This might be the last post for a little while. We'll see. At 38w plus 4, Baby B is progressing quite nicely. According to the doctor, she does not expect him to go past his due date. When we saw her yesterday, I was 2 cm dialated and starting to thin out. Of course, some people can stay like that for weeks but there have been quite a few Braxton-Hicks contractions, so we are guessing that means progress.

I have a very hilarious friend who told me another friend was updating her Facebook status while in labor. FYI, I will NOT be doing that. You will all get a text message sometime after the baby is born. So make sure my phone number is in your phone so you're not like, "Who the hell is texting me at 2 am and who the heck is Elijah?" Which reminds me that last week I had a dream that the baby was born and they were showing me the birth certificate but the only part I could read was "born at 1:14 am". So really, that will be 3 or 4 AM for my midwest friends. Let's be honest though, I'm not going to text you from the recovery room. Nothing personal to any of you, but I might be a little preoccupied.

The only time people will be excited about how big you are

37 1/2 weeks down. Doctor said I could go at any time. She's thinking I might go before my due date because his head is already down in my pelvis and I've been having quite a few Braxton Hicks contractions. How much before, she can't say, of course. We are not counting on it but have the bag packed just in case.

20 days and counting

Wow! It's getting close. In the last 5 days, we have been to a birthing class, breastfeeding class and put together the baby stuff. It was quite hilarious putting together the baby stuff because I guess they feel that using pictures is easier to understand than using words. I beg to differ on this point. We spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out if we were trying to put the piece in upside down using the pictures. The only word actually printed on some of the instructions is "snap" because aparently everything snaps into place and that's how you know it's together. Not very reassuring. My hubby has created "the list" which is his OCD way of feeling better about not knowing when Elijah will make his arrival. It includes reasons to call Labor and Delivery, what days he will be on call and who I should call if he's not there (with phone numbers) and how to get a hold of him at work. He's so cute. I think think the classes made him a little anxious that we are getting closer.

So I'm officially term so the baby can come anytime between now and the next 5 weeks. Does that seem like a huge window to anyone else? He could come today or a month from now. So basically, Baby has got all his necessary parts and is just putting on some weight (as is Mama). I'm starting to feel sluggish and kind of tired. Since I went to the birthing class I think I have been feeling symptoms but then I think I just think I'm feeling them because now I know what to look for. All I want to do right now is to be able to sleep on my back.

Milk

So two of my friends, who do not know each other, both wrote blogs today about breastfeeding. Was there something in the news I missed yesterday? One, I feel, is a realistic account of what it is like to breastfeed, which I appreciate because I feel like people don't really talk about it. They just talk about how great it is for the baby. The other one is a shout out to support breastfeeding and how our culture doesn't really support it. Now, I don't want to into too much detail about breastfeeding, mostly because people like my dad read this and it makes me feel a little awkward. However, I feel like I need to respond.

I intend to breastfeed. I know full well that some women have problems and I think that if it is not possible to breastfeed, there is absolutely nothing wrong with giving your baby formula (I don't think anyone's blog was saying there was). But I do feel (and I think this comes from my husband being a pediatrician and seeing this first-hand) that some people make mothers feel bad when they are not able to breastfeed and when it doesn't come easily. It makes them feel like a failure and there are a lot of things to feel like a failure about already with a new baby. Women also don't have the support they used to have when having a baby. I mean, there is a whole generation who were bottle fed because people were saying it was better than breastfeeding. Some of our moms don't know how to breastfeed and it seems like something that should just come naturally. But it doesn't always. That's all I'm saying. I'm all for the better conditions for mothers to make it happen and for people to not be so weird about public feeding. However, there is a perfectly nutitional alternative if it is causing too much stress in an already stressful time.

Waddle, waddle

We are T minus 30 days! The amount of peeing that needs to be done at this point is absolutely ridiculous. Seriously, I got up 4 times last night to go to the bathroom. That is a record and not one that I care to break. It was suggested that I might want to cut down on my fluids in the evening. I’ll do my best.

Elijah is about 5 ½ pounds and about 19 inches long. At the end of this week he will be considered full term. But we hope that he waits until his due date when his Dad will have vacation. He moved down a little bit this past week leading to the peeing issues and the lovely waddling stride that Mama has been doing. It kind of freaked me out at first but I have been reassured that dropping or “lightening” can happen up to 4 weeks before birth, especially for a first pregnancy.

This week we will be going to birthing and breastfeeding classes. At the end of that, we should be all ready for little boy to arrive, right? Oh yeah, we still have to set up the crib and get the car seat installed and find a daycare and… We got time though.

Picture

So, here's the only one with me in it (I guess I was the one taking photos). That was at just about 32 weeks.

And I was reminded that I hadn't announced Baby B's name, although alluded to it in the last post. His name is Elijah Carter.

6 weeks and counting down

We got moved into our new place last weekend. We are now working on getting everything unpacked and the boxes are madness. Now that we are in our new place we can try to set up baby B's room/the office. It's a lot harder than I thought to make an office slash nursery. Maybe that's because our desk weighs 5 tons. Hmm...maybe we should have thought of that before the movers carried it up 3 flights of stairs because that thing is not moving now. If anyone wants to contribute to the nursery, a link to Elijah's baby registry is on the right.

Little boy is nearly 5 pounds now (the heft of a cantelop-yuck) and about 17 inches long. He's not doing much length-growing right now because he's running out of room, but he is concentrating on putting on weight for the next 6 weeks. We went to the doctor's office last week and he is moving along on schedule and his head is down (so hopefully it stays there). Mama has been a little uncomfortable lately with some back pain. But I went in last week for a prenatal massage, which was awesome. I wish I could afford to do them every week, but I'm going to try to get in a couple more times before he comes.

I have pictures from a baby shower with some friends, but have not yet found the cord that connects the digital camera to the computer so I can download the pictures. They will be coming when that box is unpacked. You will be amazed by my gigantic-ness. But be forewarned, if I hear one more person say they don't think I'll make it another 6 weeks, I might punch them in the face. Don't be that guy. I can make a punch through the computer, don't think I won't!

Moving Day!

Tomorrow is moving day and we are oh so excited (sarcasm is hard to portray in type). For those of you who have not heard the drama, it goes a little like this. Around the time we told our landlord that we were pregnant, she informed us that they were planning to sell the condo we are living in. We decided we didn't want to wait until we had the baby, because then they would probably sell the place the day the baby was born and want us out two weeks later. So we started looking. And looked and looked and looked. Everyone keeps saying this is a renter's market, but I think everyone is trying to rent so it is impossible to find a place in our neighborhood in our price range.

So 2 weeks ago, we finally found a place (not in our current neighborhood) that we liked enough to go ahead and rent. Three days later, we get a note on our door that the property we are living in has been forclosed on and the bank wants us to call them so they can get us out the door ASAP. The next day, our neighbors downstairs call us because their bathroom ceiling is leaking and the water seems to be coming from our apartment. Our shower has been a little drippy recently, but nothing to get alarmed about. And, seriously, it's dripping into the bathtub, doesn't seem like that should be a problem. Micah tightens some screws and it seems to stop. In the mean time, the plumber has somehow gotten a hold of the bank that now owns our condo and tells them there is a problem in our unit and they should have someone come over and look at it. They can't fix it the first time, they have to turn off the water to the entire building, so we have to give our neighbors 24 hours notice, they come back two days later and fix it...we think. If this isn't the part that needs replaced, they will have to cut a hole in our neighbor's ceiling to tell where the water is coming from. But, we are out of there on Saturday, so we tell our neighbors to call the bank if they have any more problems (which, let's face it, with no one living there taking showers, it's probably not going to be a problem until someone else moves in).

So people came today to pack up our belongings and people will come tomorrow to move our belongings (apparently the same people cannot do both or on the same day?). And I will be there tomorrow to point at where people should put boxes. Can't wait. Then there is the unpacking! The fun never stops. All in all, I think it will be a good move, I just can't see it right now because it is looming over my head.

I feel my last couple posts have been a little dreary, so I will add something a little more upbeat. Baby B is 32 weeks this week and is 3 and 3/4 pounds, the size of a jicama (which I didn't know what that was until I moved here. They are quite a tasty vegetable, I think, that is kind of watery and refreshing). He has been getting the hiccups a lot lately, which means his little diaphram is getting a workout. It's a very odd feeling when he is stretching out and I can feel movement by my right hip and my left ribcage at the same time. This also instantly causes me to have to pee. Don't quite know how the physics of that works... We also are very excited to welcome one of Baby B's future friends, Little Girl O'Neill (first name pending), who was born yesterday!

Shout out!

Hey, I have to give a shout out to my dear friend, Anonymous K, who featured me on her blog today. She is highlighting people she "hearts" for Valentine's Day. Isn't that fun? I heart you too, K!

Words of Advice

Dear Reader,

Please know that I am now 31 weeks pregnant and there is something I think you should know. No pregnant woman wants to hear that you think she looks big or small or any other way. The only acceptable comment to make about the way a pregnant lady looks in her 3rd trimester, is “great”. I don’t want to hear about how I’m bigger than your friend who is 9 months or smaller than your friend who is 6 months. Or “Wow, you’re really getting big!”. That was exciting when I was first starting to show, but now, it just makes me want to punch you. So remember, “You look great”. That’s all. Conversation about how I look is over. You may now proceed with other embarrassing personal questions.

Sincerely,

Pregnant Mama

3/4 of the Way Baked

Baby B is now 3/4 of the way done. We are officially 30 weeks today. He weighs approximately 3 pounds (the size of cabbage) and is about 16 inches long. I was planning to include a picture so you can see how giant Mama is getting but I can't figure out why the timer for the self photo is only like 2 seconds long. And my hubby is gone this weekend, so I'll have to add it later. We saw the doctor last week and she said everything looks good. We now have to do some kick counts every night from now until birth. I just have to time how long it takes him to make 10 movements and he is very good at it, usually completing the task in about 12 minutes. He's a very active little guy.

I also had to get a shot last week so that my blood doesn't attack Baby B's blood since I'm Rh neg and his dad is Rh pos. But seriously, they gave me the shot in my butt. What's that all about? My nurse is like, "Don't look at the needle, it's big. That's why we do it in your behind so you can't see it." I saw it, it wasn't that big. Seriously. Micah said they don't even do that for kids. I guess you probably don't want a pregnant lady passing out though.

So, I'm pretty stressed right now because we have to be out of our apartment by February 1 and we don't have a place to live yet. So send good apartment vibes our way. And also if you could pack up all our stuff and move it that would be awesome.