13 wks vs 6 months

So around this time last year I was about 13 weeks pregnant. We had already made the announcements to family and friends, I wasn't showing, in fact all bloating from the very beginning had disappeared. I could still touch my toes, was attending a Tai Chi class, and felt absolutely wonderful. We were thrilled beyond belief and spent nights talking about all the possibilities and what our baby would be like. . .was it a boy. . .was it a girl? Would we be good parents? How would we pay for everything (okay, only Steven worried about that)? Would they have curly hair, blue eyes, long legs? All we knew was a heartbeat. A heartbeat that made us cry every time we heard it. It was the most beautiful sound in the world to us. We were so in love. . .just hadn't met him yet.

http://thehokiepokies.blogspot.com/2010/02/i-know-cheesy-but-i-am-so-in-love.html

And now that we have met that precious bundle of joy. . .we are so in love. It's hard to believe that 6 months have already flown by. He is growing way to fast. He is quickly becoming a toddler and less of newborn. He is curious, wants to get in to everything, has those precious blue eyes we dreamed about, the sweetest smile that melts my heart every time he flashes it, and the best laugh in the world! If it wasn't for how hard parenting and marriage can be at times, I would swear we were living in a dream world. Every day is like Christmas at the Hokie Pokie house.
So what has changed from the 13 wk preggo me and the official Mom, me? Where do I start. . .

• The new me is no longer worried about being selfish. I would spend my last dime on Grayson before I bought anything for myself.
• If anything the new me could use to be a little more selfish. Those size 6/8 jeans aren't going to fit otherwise.
• I love the new man in my house. Nope, not just Grayson, but the man that is proving to be a great father and husband.
• We do the best we can. Nope, I wasn't going to use pacifiers, and only cloth diapers, no formula and he would only eat organic food. Well, he started using a paci the first night he was home. We use cloth at home, but disposables at daycare & when we are out & about for long periods of time. He is now on solids that are mostly organic. But not always. And at times, since I've been back to work, I've had to supplement with formula.
• I have always been pretty modest when it comes to showing skin. As Steven put recently, "Man, you'll just whop those things out anywhere nowadays"!
• I have touched poop, pee, and vomit more than anyone could ever realize (unless they too are mothers).
• I hate baby socks. I am working on an invention to keep those damn things on. Why hasn't this been done before?!
• I know longer worry about my decisions as a mother. I know whats best for him. I may not know everything, but I do know my child, and I feel pretty confident in my choices that I have already made for him in his 6 months. In fact, I am much more confident in myself than I have been at any time in my life.
  
• I'm back to touching my toes and sleeping soundly through the night, just like the 13 wk me.
• I love my Moo even more. I am so thankful now that I know what a mother's love is like. It's a good thing we don't know that growing up though. . .can you imagine what brats we would all be knowing we could get away with it?
• Wow. I know how hard it all really is now. There are times I miss pre-Grayson times with Steven. We are tired a lot. I Hate being away from Gray. It pulls at my heartstrings to be anywhere other than, with him. There is never enough time to get things done, and I am pulled in a million different ways.
  
• Have learned there is a new division in friends. . .you know, married, single, with kids, without kids, pet owners, etc. There is also working moms and stay at home moms. Few people in my life have defied all these divisions when it comes to our friendship. Those are your best friends.
  
• I knew I would love him. But there is no way to know how much. Does he really have to grow up and move out of the house? I know, ask me again when he's 13 how I feel about this.
  
• My body, life and mind will never be the same.

In two days my little man will be 6 months. He is rattling off ba-ba and ma-ma and da-da. He pulls himself up so he can stand. He is eager to run and play with Cadha pups. He has such a personality without saying a word. And thank goodness he loves his Momma.

When did I blink?

Where's the manual?

If I had a dollar for every time I was asked. . ."Do you think he's teething"?

Let me tell you, this newbie mom is clueless. Months ago, he started drooling enough to fill a swimming pool. That's when the questions started. Well the pediatrician at his 4 month told me not to get too excited. Excess drool and putting everything in his mouth was just part of his development. Wow, I guess things could be worse. Oh, and they do. . .

Then started the nighttime fussiness. Well, we thought, okay this is it. Then. . .the fussiness went away and nothing. Hmmmm. Well, maybe these things take time.

So then he starts not only putting everything in his mouth, but then he is chewing on it. Blankets, tags (oh, how he loves tags) fingers, his feet (maybe this is a yoga move) toys, mommy. . .they all get the gummy wrath of Grayson. But still no pearly whites.

The most recent is spitting up. Steven had a 24 hour bug on Saturday. . .so it may be that Gray picked something up. But wow, he is spitting up everything. I gave him some bananas last night to see if that would help. BRAT diet. . .mom's mentioned it before. . .banana's, rice, apple juice, ??? what's the 'T' for??? Anyhow, this morning before we all had made it out the door, Grayson had made sure that we were all christened. Thanks bud. So maybe this is it. . .maybe it's just more leading up to it. Just like he had to raise his head first, then roll on one side, then the other, then before we new it he is rolling around everywhere.

It would be nice if there was a manual. Sure there are lot's of books to help. But every child is different. A manual, a good warranty, and a return policy. We don't get any of that. Of course, it wouldn't matter anyways. I can't imagine starting my days out right now without a little baby puke and that gummy smile.

Spring Fever

What a weekend. Steven and I had anxiously been awaiting Saturday night. Date night! Babysitter lined up, tickets for Glass Menagerie in Newton at the new OPOP, and two adults craving some adult attention. Saturday morning I leave the house at 7:30AM to head to work for a meeting, and as I bend down to say good-bye to my sleeping hubby he grumbles. . ."I don't feel well". "What?! What do you mean you don't feel well"? So he calls to tell me during the meeting (5 times. . .you have to love how helpless men can be when their temperatures spike at 98.5. . .) to tell me he is sick. He has canceled with the babysitter. He's not going to be able to make it. "Ummmmm, can I still go"? Of course, I am sure Steven wanted me by his side and we did need to spend some time together. But, well. . .I really wanted to see the play, and I needed to have adult time that I enjoyed. . .not including work. So I called Sherry. Thank goodness she was able to go last minute (she has five kiddos, mind you). I ended up having a fabulous time, and the poor hubby was better by the next day. Thank goodness. Don't worry I told him to wash his hands every time he touched Grayson. I didn't want a pukey baby.
Sunday thank goodness was still a beautiful day outside and Steven felt good, so we decided to go walking at one of the Hickory parks. We enjoyed 60 degree weather this weekend! Holy cow! Gray and I were so glad to be outside. He gets it honestly. We both have had enough of this miserable cold weather. Plus, I desperately needed to log some miles. I am falling very short of my 500 mile challenge. I was planning 10 miles a week, which means right now I should be at 40 miles. Ha! I am just now hitting 13 miles! I better step it up. I have committed myself to a half-marathon in September. I know, still far away. . .but I am still nursing this ligament injury.
Gray rambled on and on during our little hike. He is getting pretty good at Da-Da. Of course, he is just rambling, but that doesn't mean that Dad doesn't love it.

Enjoying the sunshine

So happy to be outside

Worn out and trying to get some shut eye. Sometimes you just have to shut the world out.

Sittin' handsome

Grayson has reached another milestone. Little man is sitting all by himself. He is so excited about his new view of the world. He's able to sit everywhere now- grocery carts, highchairs, and even just hanging around the house with mom and dad.




We also put his highchair on the dining room table this weekend, so we could all eat together. Grayson was so thrilled to be watching the both of us at the same time. We also handed him his first sippy cup (which is way to big for him just yet). He still has a ways to go on figuring that out. Maybe handles will be easier.

Snow Day(s)!

I think the last measurement I heard was about 4in. and it's still snowing! Since we missed the snow at Christmas time this is our first big snow of the season. I went ahead and stayed home from work. . .we can't afford for me to wreck another vehicle while the one is still in the shop! Plus, they still haven't come down our street to clear it at 2PM. They are calling for freezing rain over night, so I figure the three of us will be homebound again tomorrow. No complaints from this Momma!

When stuck inside, what better time than to dress up as a dinosaur?

Big boy eats

For the past month Grayson has really been showing some interest in what we are eating. Okay, interest is putting it lightly. The boy stares at your spoon/fork/hand and watches intently from plate to mouth and back again. Then he takes a few swipes at those yummy looking morsels, wondering how he can re-route them to his toothless little mouth.
So we talked to the pediatrician at his 4 month check up and he said it would be fine to start introducing some foods, starting with cereal. Would probably even help some of the reflux (kids are a world of wetness). So I decided that I would wait until we were in Florida, so that my mom could 'enjoy' this first. Well, first off bad idea to delay food delivery in anyway when your son is on steroid medications and fussy from being sick. Secondly, bad idea to start the introduction when he was already crying that he was hungry. This is where he takes after me. When we are hungry, we are hungry. The longer we go without the crankier we get.
We were unable to get the rice cereal to him quick enough. It was a little messy, but considering everything, Grayson did pretty good.
Mommy learned (as I always do with him), and decided a different approach. We continued giving Gray cereal, but in his morning bottles only, a little more each day. The other night I decided I would make it a little thicker and give him some cereal via that weird spoon contraption he is not used to, in addition to his regular nursing. Timing this time was much better. Gray had dozed off from our trip back from the gym, so he was quiet, and still waking up. This time we did much better at getting the spoon in the mouth, and Gray was outstanding. He tried to suck the cereal off the spoon a few times, but overall, he did good at opening and taking the cereal off the spoon. He got fussy if I took to long doing the airplane to get him to open up, and he was funny smacking his lips, trying to figure out the new thicker consistency.


After a week of rice cereal, I decided I would try another stage one food, so we tried some carrots. He loved them and ate them like a champ! He had orange-stained cheeks. . .and the occasional carrot smell the rest of the day.


Thanks Aunt Nita for the family shot! Sorry I didn't fix the settings on the camera.

Our Gray is back!

So poor Grayson has been fighting a nasty cold that eventually turned into bronchitis for weeks now. (Thanks daycare). The week we were in Florida was particularly tough. Grayson was prescribed albuterol treatments. Which let me tell you, I'd rather give pills to one of the cats than to give him these treatments. He never ran a fever thank goodness, but he was unable to sleep because of coughing and just not feeling well, and was fussy because of it. All three of us became worn out folks real quick! Once we got back from Florida, we hoped that Gray would get the sleep he needed to recoup. On Saturday he finally slept. In fact he slept pretty much the whole day. We stayed home on the rainy, gloomy day, perfect for sleeping, and Gray got his beauty rest. On Saturday night he was back to normal. We were so glad to have our happy boy back!