A Decade...

How is it possible? Today is Rolf's and my tenth wedding anniversary. I know we married young (21 and 22), but I just don't feel old enough for ten years to have passed. I suppose part of it is that I had no idea it would take nearly a decade before we had a baby, and somehow we lost two years of our lives miserable in McKinney (we never felt it was home) and six months living with my grandparents as my Granny went through chemotherapy, but time really has flown. We've been in our house for nearly four years, and I get my 5-year paperweight at the end of this school year. We can always remember how long we've been together overall because our first date was the Halloween after my nephew Aidan was born, so we just keep track of his age. He's twelve now. Dang.

To celebrate, Rolf and I are leaving the little man with my parents and flying to Vegas for two nights next week. We had originally planned on renewing our vows, but that costs nearly as much as a wedding, so we just decided to spend the money on a fancy night out. We don't need to renew our vows to affirm our continuing love. True, having a baby has changed our relationship, and we are both looking forward to time to reconnect and re-energize by spending time together, but there isn't any doubt that we're both in this for the long haul.

Will's First Christmas

I will post more about it later when I can get some pictures uploaded.

Suffice it to say, Will was spoiled rotten. Among the cooler of his gifts: a Johnny Cash onesie, a Trout Fishing in America CD, a Xylophone piano that he just LOVES, books, books, and more books (including the Leap Frog touch book), and a TON of cute clothes. This boy is going to be stylin'! I think because of the lead paint scare, most people were too afraid to buy him toys, and I don't blame them. We generally stuck to simple things like balls and CD's, although we did get him this activity table (we did NOT pay that much for it!), which Rolf loves because it plays jazzy music and Will loves because it lights up on his command.

No real crawling yet, although Will can hold himself up on a coffee table or chair for quite a long time before falling. He has started to shuffle himself along as he holds on for dear life. He gets frustrated that he can't go forward when he crawls (he generally pushes backwards) and looks around for something to pull up on or sits himself up instead.

All I Want for Christmas...

As of Saturday, December 22, 2007, Will has officially cut his first tooth! Huzzah! I could feel the difference in texture as he bit down on his spoon while eating yesterday, so after the cereal was all swallowed, I stuck my finger in there, and lo and behold, there was a rough little spot on his lower gum. Will doesn't like to show his lower gums - his tongue is usually over it - but this morning, I caught a glimpse of the tooth. It's really there and not something I just imagined. I am so excited. I was afraid the poor baby would never actually cut teeth. We have a feeling another 2 or 3 are just behind.

So maybe he'll just have one front tooth for Christmas, but hey, that's more than I was afraid he would have. If we can ever get a picture of it, I'll post it, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

UPDATE: Rolf dug his finger in to Will's mouth after dinner tonight, and there ARE two teeth in there! Hooray! All we wanted for Christmas was his two front teeth, and we got it!

Family Pictures - Finally!

The last time Rolf and I had our pictures professionally made, it was December 27, 1997, at our wedding. Needless to say, we were long overdue. I always wanted to wait until we had a child to expand our family to get our pictures made again. Little did I know that would take as long as it did. We've had requests from family members for a family portrait, and since we only had ONE picture of the three of us together (that we took ourselves) where Will is not crying, we decided Saturday would be the day. Some of them didn't turn out too bad. Of course, the best ones are of Will alone.

The Fam

Will and Rolf

Will and Mommy

There's that impish smile again!

O Christmas Tree

Today we got to fulfill our task from last week: cutting down and putting up our Christmas tree. We tried to go last Sunday, but it was too cold and pouring rain. This morning, we rode out with my mom and dad to our traditional Christmas tree farm to find our yuletide pine for the year. Pickings were slim, since north Texas has been so dry the past few years. There were lots of great cedar trees, but Rolf is so allergic to cedar that was out (it's one of the few things that doesn't bother me, oddly enough). After much deliberation, we figured out that we had come back to the same tree three times. We figured that meant that tree must be the one for us. Rolf cut it down, and we met back up with Mom and Dad at the barn. Will had a good time. I took a couple of pictures of him as he was in the infant carrier, strapped to me, and Rolf took a couple of him investigating the tree on the hayride back to the barn.

After we decorated the tree, we put Will on the floor, and tried to get him to go from sitting to his hands and knees by putting his toy to the side of him. Damned if that little booger didn't start trying to pull himself to standing on the crates of Christmas stuff around him. Rolf may be right - he may skip crawling and go straight to walking.

Will riding with Mommy

Will inspecting the tree (it's prickly!)

Will and Grandma back at the barn

I'm such a good mom...

that I had to run across the house and get the camera before I helped him out of this situation:


Poor baby.

My Little Bookworm

My students would say that it's typical that an English teacher's kid would have a lot of books, and I take that as a compliment. Will now has so many books that we had to get him a couple of new shelves to accommodate them all. Here are a couple of pictures of Will helping Daddy put them together.

Will's First Thanksgiving

Last week went by in a blur. Since I was off school Wednesday through Friday, and it costs full price at daycare if they watch Will even one day, Will stayed with Grandad on Monday, and Rolf stayed home with him on Tuesday.

Will had a good time on Thanksgiving, although he really didn't want to nap at all. He's always afraid he's going to miss something cool if he goes to sleep when there are more people than just us around. After his vegetable turkey baby food, we tried a little table food on him. A small bite of mashed potatoes, a couple of peas, mashed, and a teeny tiny taste of chocolate pie. He seemed to like it all. Here he is, looking like a typical American after Thanksgiving dinner.




Friday, Rolf's dad and stepmom came in with his aunt and uncle. We hosted a secondary Thanksgiving dinner for them that evening. Saturday, we took them to North Park mall to see the toy train exhibit. Will was enthralled. I wish I had pictures of him watching those trains roll by. After lunch, we went to the big Half Price Books, where Will had his picture made with Santa. As soon as we get a printer that works, I'll get that scanned in and posted, either here or in the picasa album (see link on the right). Then we visited Central Market, where Will had massive (wet) diaper leakage. Fortunately, we were in the company of doting grandparents and a great aunt and uncle who spoiled our boy by buying him clothes when we were at Macy's. I rushed Will to the car through the cold rain, opened the back of the Vibe, and changed him as quickly as I could in the parking lot. That evening, it was once again difficult to get Will to sleep. Rather, I should say it was hard to get him to STAY asleep. He was tired enough to drop off multiple times, but he was so afraid of missing the party that he'd wake up after about 5 minutes. Finally, after the relatives headed off to their hotel, we were able to get him to stay asleep.

Sunday, Rolf's relatives concluded their all-too-brief visit, and Will took a long nap. We were going to go cut down our Christmas tree with my parents (a tradition), but the cold rain started up again. It was fortunate that the weather didn't cooperate, however, because Will had a bad afternoon. He was inconsolable. I'm sure it was the combination of being the center of attention for three days, his teeth hurting him (they STILL haven't broken through, poor baby), and his schedule being out of whack for nearly a week. He screamed himself to sleep on the way home from my parents', and slept for over two hours. He woke up in a MUCH better mood. Getting back on schedule was the best thing for him. He had a great day at daycare, even though he didn't nap much, he ate a good dinner, and he is now taking his evening nap (which he approached without getting fussy).

Hooray!

Will has decided carrots are okay again. We went to Rolf's stepdad's for dinner on Sunday, and we were served a fantastic stew. I took a carrot, a potato, and some peas out of my bowl and mashed them up with my spoon. Will ate it all up. This inspired me to try out the last tub of carrot baby food we have in the pantry. What a difference a couple of months makes! He made a little face when he first tasted the carrots, like, "what are you feeding me now, woman?" But soon, he was eating them up. Hooray! Tonight he finished them off and even ate some green beans. He wasn't as sure about the green beans as the carrots, but I can't blame him. Have you ever had just plain green beans with no seasoning whatsoever? Bleah.

Here's Will with carrots on his face, much happier than in the earlier video with carrots.

6 Months Old!

Where on earth has the time gone? My baby, my tiny little man, is already six months old, and it's time for Thanksgiving again. I was thinking the other day about our time in the hospital. He was such a little guy, weighing less than 7 lbs. at birth. He was less than 20" long, and his little body had almost no fat on it. Now, he's a big, healthy boy.

At his appointment today, he was 27" long (50th percentile), 17 lbs, 2 oz. (50th percentile), and his head measured 17 1/2" (also 50th percentile, but the measuring tape slipped as he squirmed, so I don't know if that's accurate). He is eating more types of solid food, he's trying to drink out of a cup, and he's started in on the teething biscuits. Just look at the changes over the last six months. The first is the day we brought him home from the hospital, and the second was taken this week, his requisite "naked in the bathtub" pictures...

His vocalization is getting more and more specific, although he still speaks in Sim ("dag dag"). I'm still waiting for the day he comes out with "Mama." I've been waiting to hear that for over five years. For now, my heart is full when he snuggles into my shoulder or when he sees me enter the room at daycare and shoots me that fantastic grin.

Here's a video of the little guy laughing at his daddy. He's just such a happy little boy:

Food Fun

Will kept showing intense interest in the bowls I was feeding him from, so I told him that one afternoon, he could play with his food. Here are the results - a big mess, but a ton of fun! Will really enjoyed feeling the different textures of the peas/oatmeal combination and the banana/blackberry/blueberry fruit mixture.

My Lil' Punkin'

Will celebrated his first Halloween in style. He went as a Jack o' Lantern. Not very original, I know, but those costumes that people stick their infants in seem so restrictive. I think it would be cruel to put my baby, who is beginning to try to crawl, in a costume that doesn't separate his feet. Plus, we wouldn't have been able to take him to visit grandparents in costume, which is how we spent our Halloween. He was the star of the show, that's for sure.

Sittin' on Top of the World

Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, Will can sit on his own. We were able to get him to sit up, unsupported, on our bed for about ten seconds last week, but tonight, we must have spent a good thirty plus minutes with the little man on the floor. He fell over a few times, bopping his head on the rug, which really scared more than hurt him, but he stayed upright on his own for most of that time. It's so exciting to see him make these strides. Before we know it, he'll be crawling all over the place. We'd better get crackin' on the baby-proofing!

The video below was after he'd fallen over a couple of times in quick succession; he's a little perturbed at this point.

Woohoo!

Sweet potatoes are a go again! Woohoo!

This kid is eating like a horse. This morning, for example, he ate a bowl of oatmeal mixed with formula, 1/2 a tub of applesauce, and he STILL wanted a 4 oz. bottle. Then he ate less than 3 hours later at daycare. Last night, he ate a bowl of oatmeal, 1/2 tub of peas, 1/2 tub of pears, and a small bottle. Then four hours later, he ate a 6 oz. bottle. The kid is no chunk. My friend's baby, who is just now 9 weeks old, weighs just about a pound or so less than Will, and Will turned 5 months on Sunday. Their birth weights were only about 1/2 lb. apart, too, so it's not like Jack started out at 10 lbs. He just caught up quickly. And he's exclusively breastfed!

As for us, we booked our 10th anniversary trip to Las Vegas. We purchased Terra Passes to help counteract the huge carbon impact of flight. What a great idea those are! I'm considering getting one to counteract our house's carbon footprint for the year. If we don't take care of our environment now, what kind of world will my child (and his children) inherit?

Here's Will modeling his "Born to Read" bib I got from the American Library Association's website.

This is one cute baby!

Feed Me, Seymour!

Will has really glommed on to the whole eating solids experience. He has now tried the following:

Sweet potatoes (cause diaper blow-out, discontinued for now)
Carrots (see post below on reaction)
Squash (likes okay, but not as much as sweet potatoes)
Applesauce (we think he likes it; he licks a lot when he eats it)
Bananas (see note on applesauce)
Peaches (likes pretty well, but best mixed in with his cereal)
Peas (liked them TONS the first two days but now, not so much)

Plus, he's getting much better at helping me feed him. Check out this video




Of course, he may just be really good at finding things to chew on now.

Speaking of chewing, Will's first teeth are on their way. Yes, I said TEETH. He seems to be cutting at least three at once. And the thing is, they aren't his front teeth. The most prominent one is his left canine. I guess he wants to be a vampire for Halloween. And then he wants to be able to wish for his two front teeth for Christmas.

At least his teeth let him sleep mostly through the night now. We're only up once a night with him. Last week, when his gums really hurt, it was almost once an hour.

A Weekend of First Experiences

This weekend, we went to First Monday in Canton with my parents, my nephews, and my sister and BIL. This was Will's first time out there (except when we went this time last year and I was 5 weeks pregnant). It was hot and VERY crowded, but Will did great! He hardly fussed at all, and he even napped a little bit in his stroller. I think I was crankier than Will was.

Today, when we went to Target, we used our shopping cart cover for the first time and had Will sit up in the seat. He did fine, since he was strapped in by both the shopping cart's tether and the cover's seat belt. I think he liked being able to be up and see more than just the fluorescent lights going by. He got a little fussy, but that was because he was tired. Once I got him out of the seat, he fell asleep in my arms. We were able to lay him down sideways in the cart seat so he could nap (and I could rest my back).

Will has slept through the night since he was about 8 weeks old, but this past week he started a new trend. He wakes up several times in the night fussing. Rolf usually stumbles into his room, tucks his paci back in his mouth, and that works for about an hour or so. We believe that we have discovered the reason: Will is cutting a tooth. We armed ourselves with Baby Orajel today to see if that helps him any.

Also, as you can see above, Will has started to hold his bottle to feed himself. He doesn't have tons of coordination or strength yet, so it's easier for him once he's about halfway through, but he really likes to hold it when he can.

On my front, I have had a sore throat for a week and a half now. I got a shot for strep throat (yuck!) last Thursday, which took care of my feeling like a semi ran me down, but my sore throat has persisted. If it is still sore tomorrow (and I'm sure it will be), I'll be heading back to the doctor to try to kick it once and for all. I've been tearing up my stomach (and my liver) by living on ibuprofen and acetaminophen for the last 10 days. This means that for the last 6 weeks or so, someone in the house has not felt up to par. We're ready for that to end. Fortunately, Will seemed to escape the strep monster. So has Rolf. It was flying all around my school, and as susceptible as I am to the disease, it was inevitable that I get it. Grrr...

Women's World Cup

Slightly off topic, but...

I wish ESPN would re-broadcast the games at a more suitable time! They start at 7 AM here (some at 5 AM!), so we can usually watch about 15 minutes before we have to head out the door. Fortunately, the quarter final game between the US and England is on Saturday, and I know we'll be up at 7 because Will usually gets up at around 6.

The major negative - Will is fascinated by the television. I don't want him to watch it at all until he is two, but I swear the kid can turn his neck 270 degrees to catch a glimpse of the boob tube. I suppose I should be grateful that the major thing he watches is soccer. Honestly? I think he has a crush on Abby Wambach.

4 Month Checkup

Good grief, how is he already four months old?

Stats:
Length - 24.75" (around 50th percentile)
Weight - 14 lbs., 9.5 oz. (around 50th percentile)
Head - 17.5" (around 90th percentile)

I promise you, he is not a lollipop kid! He just has his daddy's huge noggin. Seriously, the older Will gets, the more he looks like Rolf.

The doctor said he had gotten over his ear infections beautifully, and that we were fine to start him on cereal. I admitted we already had because he was screaming every two hours for food. I didn't tell her that we had already been through nearly two boxes of rice cereal and had graduated to oatmeal and rice with bananas. We even tried sweet potatoes last week. He had a couple of blow-outs after that, but we don't know if it was the end of the amoxicillin or the sweet potatoes that caused that. We suspended the sweet potatoes, just in case. We are trying carrots this week. Will doesn't seem to like carrots too much. He will eat a few spoonfuls, but then he looks like he's nearly gagging trying to swallow them, so we'll stop for the night. They say to try new foods for 4-5 nights before giving up on it so the little tykes can get used to the taste. Will may end up like his mommy, though, and dislike cooked carrots. We'll see. I'm very conscientious about keeping my face happy or neutral so he doesn't get any bad vibes toward the carrots from me.

It's really fun to find new things to feed him. We'll try sweet potatoes or squash next week. Our doctor told us to start with the yellow veggies, then head to the green and THEN to fruits. My mom says there's nothing worse than green bean baby food. We may stick with peas, if that's the case. Who knows? My child may be strange enough to eschew carrots but love green beans. We'll see.

Say Cheese!

We took Will in to get his picture made professionally today. He did a great job. He didn't spit up on his shirt, and he didn't get fussy until the very last pose. We ordered some huge number of prints, and we got the CD, which gives us the right to copy and print any others we want. Fortunately, Rolf just installed a really nice version of PhotoShop, so we are really having fun playing with the pictures. Here are a couple of examples of the studio shots. I would have preferred fewer kitchy shots and more plain background (there are some of him surrounded by feathers, for godssake!), but the photographer did capture some cute faces.

Channeling Carol Burnett

Will took his cold to the next level over Labor Day weekend. By Monday, he started tugging at his right ear, so we knew that we'd need to take him in. Rolf stayed home with him on Tuesday and took him to the pedi. He weighs 13 1/2 lbs. now, so he's still a little on the small side for his age group. I wonder how small he'd be if we hadn't started him on cereal! But I digress...

Will is now about halfway through his prescription for amoxicillin - the bubble-gum pink stuff I took over and over again as a child to get me through my yearly bouts with strep throat. As soon as Rolf opened the bottle on Tuesday night, I had major flashbacks of being forced to swallow that stuff. Ugh. Fortunately, Will takes it like a champ. We just stick the syringe up in his mouth like it's a bottle, and he sucks happily on it until the entire dose is in his mouth.

The congestion is clearing up: his cough is much looser, and the gunk in his nose much thinner and clearer. He still seems to be rubbing at his ear, which troubles me a bit. I hope this Rx will get rid of this stuff once and for all. I hate to see my sweet boy in pain. The funny thing is, except when his ear hurts or his tummy gets upset from the medication, he is still happy little Will with the smile that makes your day. He's such a good-natured baby.

Poor Little Man

The "snot goblins" Rolf referred to in his earlier post seem to have exploded into a full-blown cold. Will's face is all puffy, his eyes are red, and he constantly rattles while breathing. He hasn't learned how to blow his nose, so the bulb syringe has become both his best friend and his worst enemy.

We are hoping that this is really just a sinus infection that will go away in a day or so. Poor little guy seems so miserable. All we can really do is bathe him in the Johnson's soothing bath for colds (has rosemary, eucalyptus, and menthol), and keep using the plug-in menthol vapor pads. He's too young for cold or allergy meds.

I know if he inherited my sinuses that this is just the first of many colds. I wish I could take it all from him.

Through it all, though, Will has kept his sense of humor and that sparkle in his demeanor. The lady at daycare said he laughed out loud on Friday, and he was grinning away at us this morning through his red and bleary eyes.

Fnurf

Will has upgraded his trying to talk to SimSpeak. His two most common words are "fnurf" and "cwoumph."

i'm afraid that the snot goblins i've been fighting since my dip in the lake have decided to take up residence in will. last night, my little dude had problems breathing through his nose. this posed a problem getting him to sleep since he usually needs a paci to get to dreamland. i awoke this morning and found that ghostie had sucked some nasty stuff out of his nose. i hope it's a very short lived ailment as i've decided that i really don't like seeing my little dude sick...

Daycare and Cereal

So Monday was my first day back at work in just over four months and the first full day I had to leave Will in daycare. Not exactly my best birthday ever, but it turned out not to be nearly as bad as I thought.

I had everything ready and laid out for Monday morning. We packed the car full of my school stuff and the stuff we'd need to take to the daycare to store: diapers, wipes, extra clothes in case of spit-up, etc. I left early so I'd have time to get Will settled in before I needed to be at school at 7:30. Will seemed to be comfortable. The staff is great. There is even another little boy at the center who was born the same day as Will, in the same hospital!

I cried on the way to school, but only a little bit. I sat patiently through our meetings in the morning. I had planned on using the two hours we had for lunch to work on my room, but my friends came and invited me out to lunch. We took one of the new teachers along with us. In a discussion of ages, it was soon revealed that it was my birthday. My friend Laura paid for my lunch as a birthday treat. Very sweet. Really, the best part about it was that it kept me from spending the entire break thinking about Will. I had resolved not to go check on him in the middle of the day because I knew I could not leave him again, especially if he was crying when I got there.

Finally, after more meetings in the afternoon, we were dismissed for the day. I rushed to the daycare center to pick up Will. The teacher for his room had just fed him and was about to change his diaper. I watched as she changed him. He looked at her for a long time, and then he smiled. That smile meant everything to me. At that moment, I knew for sure that he would be fine. I know he'll adjust much faster than I will.

On a lighter note, Will is now eating rice cereal from a spoon! We mix up two tablespoons of dry cereal with water every night, and he has taken it like a champ. He really seems to enjoy it. It has made a HUGE difference in how often he wants to eat. Before we tried adding a little cereal to his formula, he was screaming for a bottle every 2 hours. Now, he usually goes 3 1/2 - 4. Much better. According to our pedi, we aren't supposed to start him on cereal until he's 4 months old, but developmentally, Will is ahead of the game. He has been able to sit, supported, for a month now. He has excellent head control (except when he gets tired or excited, then you have to watch for the unintentional head butt), and he has been able to find his own mouth with whatever he's holding for several weeks. In fact, while I was feeding him today, he grabbed the spoon and stuck it in his mouth! It's a lot of fun to watch him experience the new texture and taste. I can hardly wait to move him on to oatmeal, then veggies!

Will's First Swim

We went to my brother and sister-in-law's house for a mass family birthday party. My brother-in-law, dad, grandad, and I all have birthdays within a month and one day, ranging from August 9 to September 10.

Last year, at the party they threw me for my 30th birthday, I wished for one thing as I blew out the candles, and here, one year later, I have my little man. That's the only birthday wish I think has ever come true for me.

We wanted to get Will into the pool, and my SIL has a canopied float designed for babies, so we figured it was the perfect chance to introduce him to water not designed to bathe in. I had taken Will to the edge of the pool and dunked his feet earlier so he would understand that the water was for people to play in. He loves baths, so I didn't think we'd have a problem.

I changed Will into his little swim diapers and a swimsuit SIL had at the house for all little nephews. I brought Will slowly into the water. He did great! He was kicking a bit, like a natural. We put him into the float and tried to lean him back in the seat. No go there. He didn't like not feeling in control. I don't blame him. I'm far from a water baby myself. He did great leaning forward on the seat. Great, that is, for about five minutes. Since it was only 90 degrees on Saturday, the water was a little chilly for Will's taste. He liked it while he could stand it, but he got cold pretty fast. We know that next year, he'll love hopping in the pool in his pint-sized life jacket.

Trial Run

Yesterday, Will spent his first hours alone in daycare. I had another meeting at school to attend, and we felt that since he will be starting full time on Monday, we needed to get him acclimated to the environment.

Will was fine when I dropped him off. The lady working there was even sweet enough to ask, "how are you holding up?" I suppose that in the infant room, they're used to more tears from the mothers on the first day than the babies. I am still at peace with the facility, although I did cry on my way to school. After my meeting, I forced myself to stay and work in my room until 3:30, so Will would be at the daycare center for at least 5 hours. It was hard.

When I arrived to pick him up, he had just spit up all over everything. I took him in my arms, and he just turned his head into my chest. He seemed shell-shocked. He is not used to so much noise. At home, it is just Will and me, and we don't even have the TV on. Poor thing only slept for a total of about half an hour while he was at the center. I'm sure it was a combination of the noise from the other babies and the fact that the daycare center is legally required to put him down on his back. I know it goes against all pediatric recommendations, but my boy sleeps on his tummy. His startle reflex is so sensitive that he wakes up within 20 minutes if he is laid on his back or if he rolls over in his sleep. If he's on his tummy, he sleeps restfully, 8-9 hours at night and long naps in the day. He has enough head and neck strength that he can easily lift his head (and does, many times a night, to face different directions), and he is capable of rolling over, even if he doesn't do that very often. We don't have any of the risk factors for SIDS - no smoking, no record of it in the family, no preemie baby, our ethnic group is not high risk. Granted, I still check him compulsively before I turn in for the night and several times during his naps, but he sleeps like a log.

I'm sure Will will adjust to life in daycare much faster than I will adjust to his being there. Monday, his first full day at the center and my first full day back at work since I was put on bedrest April 19, is my birthday. What a way to celebrate.

back from a sinusy grave

i know we'll say it more and more but i can't believe how big he's really getting. going back though his recent pictures, its amazing how LONG he is. the kid's gonna hit his head on the door by the time he's ready for high school :) he's beginning to use his tongue more an dmore in his vocalizations. its amazing what he's trying to do. i love it.

on the other side of the nasty sinus infection from the lake i am still glad we took the trip to see ghostie's sister and BIL over the weekend. Will did well, for the most part. and i think we realized we can take longer car trips with him.

another big party coming up this weekend. most of ghostie's family was born in august and february, so they all get together and have one big party during each of those months. we'll have a good time, but i bet will is going to have a GREAT time. he's a big hit with all the ladies.

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Now playing: Gorillaz - El Mañana
via FoxyTunes

Three Months Old!

Somehow, the summer is over. Will turns three months old today. I have such mixed emotions right now. On the one hand, Will has grown and developed so much in the past few months. He has learned to control his head (except when he's excited or sleepy), he can mostly sit up with support, he makes eye contact, plays with toys, smiles, coos, tries oh-so-hard to talk back to you (he works his mouth figuring out the shapes you used to make your words), and now, he giggles. I feel so lucky to have been able to witness these milestones as they happened. Being a mom is the most fulfilling job in the world. It is everything I ever hoped it would be.

On the other hand, summer is drawing to a close. I have to report back to school next Monday, so Will is starting daycare then. I tear up every time I think about leaving him, even though I am very happy with the facility we picked. I know he'll be taken care of, but I know it won't be me who is taking care of him. That breaks my heart. I wish with every fiber of my being that I could afford to stay home, but that just isn't happening for us. I knew this time would come, but I didn't realize how quickly the summer would fly by. The next time I'll get to spend an extended period of time with Will (more than 3 days), he will be six months old! I really can't wait until Thanksgiving now. It has been so hard for me to get back into the right frame of mind for school this year. I know we'll develop a new routine, but for now, I just have to hold onto every minute I have with my little guy.

Will's First Trip

Will in the car, stuck in traffic in Hillsboro

This weekend, we headed to Austin to spend Saturday night with my sister and brother-in-law. My BIL's birthday was Thursday, so they were hosting a little shindig and wanted us to attend. We built in more stops along the way than we've ever had for a 200 mile trip. Will did really well on the way down. He was quiet and/or sleeping until West, when I had to wake him up to change his diaper. That made him a little fussy once we got back on the road, but he settled down until nearly Round Rock, when it was time for his bottle.

By the time we got to my sister's house, Will was getting tired. We put him down for a nap, and he woke up in time for the party. Unfortunately, there was a lot of noise, and a lot of people in his face, and he didn't like it very much. We took turns keeping him away from most of the fray.

On the way home the next day, Will didn't do quite as well as he had on the trip down. Part of that was our fault; we stopped at IKEA (which was crazy crowded), and the outlet mall (which was crazy hot). Then, we hit horrible traffic around Hillsboro that added nearly an hour to our drive. None of this made Will very happy. To be honest, it didn't make me very happy, either. To top it off, Rolf had come down with a sinus infection that probably wasn't helped by his staying up into the wee hours on Saturday. We were a pretty grumpy crew on Sunday afternoon.

The best thing about the whole weekend, though, is that I got to hear a real giggle from Will - one that sounds like a true baby laugh - on Sunday morning as I was getting him dressed. It was the sweetest sound I've ever heard in my entire life.

Waxing Philisophical

The other day, a colleague and friend of mine commented how she will never forget how confident I looked with Will when I took him up to school at eleven days old. I was a little flattered and more than a little flummoxed. Motherhood is natural to me. I have always wanted children. Even when I was a young child, I knew I wanted to be a mother. The cruel irony was never lost on me that I, who always wanted children, suffered from infertility for years . It seemed that everyone around me was getting to realize the dream I had held so dear for so long. I know more than one person who met her future spouse, began dating, got engaged, got married, and had not one, but TWO children in the nearly five years Rolf and I tried to get pregnant (starting in our fourth year of marriage). I suppose that waiting for so long helped make us immune to the nerves of first-time parents. I never felt nervous about any of it (okay, finances, maybe), and I'm pretty sure Rolf is the same way. He never had that "Oh-my-God-I'm-going-to-break-the-baby" new dad moment. He was a natural from minute one. I've never seen him prouder. I feel that our instincts are right. I thought I would panic the first day Rolf headed back to work and left me alone all day with a nine-day-old baby, but nothing seemed more natural. I haven't worried about any decision since.

Will has completed my life. He is the most precious thing in the world. Knowing I have him is the thing that makes me happiest, but the scars of infertility will never heal. I sympathize and empathize with all people who are facing the struggle. According to statistics, one in six couples experiences infertility. Considering there are so many who suffer, it is one of the loneliest afflictions one can live through. There is still a taboo on infertility. Many people seem to think that if they cannot reproduce the old-fashioned way, they are less of a man or woman. I know I went through many months of sobbing into Rolf's shoulder that I was "broken" because I couldn't get pregnant. It's a vicious cycle of hope that gets crushed and grief that turns to false hope again before the grief is fully dealt with. No wonder so many people become depressed.

I find that being open about our struggles makes people a little more educated, a little less likely to tell me silly things like "you'd better cherish these moments now because he'll be running around before you know it." Strangers say that to me, and I just smile and respond with a, "Oh, I do." Not one of my friends or acquaintances has said that to me because they know how much I cherish each moment with Will, just as I cherished each moment of pregnancy. I embraced the morning sickness because I knew it meant he had definitely taken hold in there after an early miscarriage scare. I wish I had looked more pregnant because I know that this could potentially be the one and only time we get to experience this miracle. I hope with all my heart that it isn't, but we are content to have just Will if lightning doesn't strike twice.

Like Father, Like Son

Today, I had a meeting at school that lasted all day, so my mom watched Will. By the time I got through, my mom had taken Will over to my grandparents' house so she could work with my aunt to get it cleaned out and ready for sale (my grandmother passed away three days before Will was born and my grandfather is in assisted living now). Will had apparently entertained them all day, smiling and laughing and trying to talk.

When I arrived to pick Will up, my mom told me that he found a few phrases funnier than others. In particular, "poopy pants" and "buuuurrrp" made him giggle. I expect that when he's four, but three months old? Add that to Rolf's insane and uncontrollable laughter whenever he sees a fart joke on TV, and I see many inappropriate dinner conversations in my future...

On another note, my mom told me today that Will is trying very hard to talk, and he is getting frustrated with his physical limitations. He just doesn't have the coordination to form words yet, and it's cramping his efforts to communicate with us more eloquently. Since my mom raised four kids, I feel a little vindicated that she thinks he's trying to talk, too. I wasn't sure for a while if we were just reading too much into his mouth movements and coos (or if we were just being overly proud parents). I think this boy is going to be scary smart.

A prelude to a drop off

this morning felt kinda weird. it felt like it was a rehearsal for when will begins daycare (a scant few weeks from now). everyone had woken up with me and had gotten dressed and ready to go someplace. it was exciting and sad all at the same time. Normally, i'm out the door having kissed everyone goodbye in their slumber. Will was having a great time with mr. butterfly and kept daddy entertained on his way out the door to work. i can take on the world when he smiles at me.

:-P

One of the things Rolf has taught Will is how to stick out his tongue. Will knows we think it's funny, so when we have his attention and are cooing and smiling at him, he'll stick out his tongue and giggle. Today, while shopping at the mall with my mom and aunt, Will woke up from an all-too-brief nap and started smiling at me. I talked to him and smiled at him. I stopped grinning because I was answering a question from my aunt. Will didn't know what to make of this. His brow furrowed a bit, he studied me, and then, all business, stuck out his tongue. I couldn't help but laugh, so he was satisfied. He grinned a big ol' grin around his little protruding tongue, knowing he had bested Mommy yet again.

Silly boy! :-)

Here comes Mr. Butterfly!

One of my favorite things to do is to turn on Will's mobile and watch him watch it. He concentrates on his favorite dangly character (the butterfly), and watches it go around and around. If you look to the picture, you'll see how he reacts to Mr. Butterfly. He gasps, he coos, he works his mouth like an old man sucking on his gums. He is trying SO hard to figure out this talking thing.

Lately, he has started reaching for the mobile. He either puts his fists up and waves them around like the Cowardly Lion ("put 'em up, put 'em up!"), or he puts his open hand up. Sometimes he seems like he's pointing at it. Look, Mom! Here comes Mr. Butterfly! He's the best!

Will loves his mobile so much that the music plays for 20 minutes or so before shutting off, and we usually have to start it again for about 5 minutes before he gets bored. What an attention span for an 11 week old!

a doo-doo-doo, a da-da-da

Will really wants to talk. i really like watching him concentrate. he gets very excited when he's learning in fact his whole body gets involved when he's really into the experience. i want to make sure he keeps that excitement throughout his life. that being said, i can tell he's frustrated by what he can't do and i wish i could make it easier for him.

Brave New Blog

I've tried blogging before, but I always felt awkward writing about me. I mean, who cares about what I'm thinking? But now I'm a parent, I figure the blog has turned into the old photo wallet. Everyone must want to hear about my boy, right? ;-)

For those of you who do want to hear about Will, welcome. We'll try to be entertaining as we keep you up to date on Will's progress. We hope this will give some of you who are distant a way to stay in touch with what's going on in Will's young life.

Speaking of, he's awake from his nap, so I must run...

A message from Will's Dad

this marks my first blog posting to any site, anywhere. i will be documenting my continuing adventures in first time dadness with my co- adventurer, ghost writer.

many thanks for stopping by, and i hope you find this blog amusing, thoughtful, and at least somewhat interesting.

rolf