I haven't posted anything in a while in part because I had my first post-baby paper due last week (which I finished the night before, but at least I finished it!) and in part because nothing special has been going on. Last Thursday was a much better day than the week before. Even though I had parking issues yet again (though this time I wasn't worried about being towed at least) and even though I went to class with baby pee on my jeans and spit-up on my shirt, Ethan had fun playing with my friend Gillian while I was in class, and that's all that matters. He definitely missed his mommy though, as evidenced by his screaming in his car seat on the way home for the first time in a couple of months because he couldn't get to me and by his burrowing frantically into my chest after he fussed through playtime with Daddy.
No big plans for the weekend. We went this morning to Target to get some things and for their Dr. Seuss storytime event, but the rest of the day, I'm just going to be working on my next paper, making a big batch of pesto to freeze (I made tomato sauce yesterday), and finally making Ethan's first baby food to freeze for whenever we decide to start solids. Tomorrow will be church, laundry, and catching up on my cleaning since I got behind due to my paper this week. All in all, relaxing, normal, and wonderful!
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
What a day...
I feel the need to record yesterday's events for posterity and so, when I think I'm having a bad day, I can look back and perhaps it won't seem so bad. This is going to get long, so feel free to ignore this entry. To begin with, Ethan was up a couple of times during the night, so I didn't get as much sleep as I would have liked. Then he only napped 30 minutes for his first nap so I was faced with the following decision: Do I leave for class immediately after his next feeding as originally planned so I can spend some time with friends at Live at the Lampstand or do I skip it in order to let him get a decent nap at home? Since Ethan comes first, I decided on the latter. I had just gotten him down for a nap when I get an email from my friend who was supposed to be watching him during class, letting me know that she's sick and wants to go home but would be willing to watch him if I really needed her. Obviously, I told her to head home, and I'd just take him to class with me. Not ideal, but not a huge issue, especially since I'd done it before. As soon as I send the email, my iPod goes black and won't turn back on, adding just another thing to the list of what's gone wrong.
Ethan woke up after just an hour-long nap, but it's just in time for when we need to leave, so at least I didn't have to try to transfer a sleeping baby to the car seat. He is wonderful on the drive there, not making a peep except for batting at his toys. As I drive up to the parking garage, I say a prayer that it won't be reserved for an event like last time. Of course, the entire thing was reserved for a funeral, so I rushed over to the chapel circle in hopes of sweet-talking the guard. I apparently didn't think about the fact that the circle would be filled with funeral-goers as well. The guard said there was no way he could let me in, so I asked him where I could park since I had my son with me and needed to drop off a check at the bursar and take something to the chapel (both true, but I left out the part about going to class since the circle is essentially for drop-offs only). He must have taken pity on me because he pointed out the one available space and let me through. At this point, I knew I couldn't get to the chapel, so I headed to the bursar to turn in a reimbursement check they mistakenly sent me before realizing their mistake and sending me a bill for that amount. Unfortunately, the bursar apparently moved way across campus last year, so I guess I'm going to have to mail a payment and hope there's no issue because there's no way I'm going all the way there.
At this point, I'm really frustrated because I didn't get to do my fun activity, I didn't get to do either of my non-class tasks, and I'm terrified my car will be towed because the guard knows exactly where I'm parked and can see how long I'm there (though, since the entire circle was triple-parked, there's no way I could have left anyway, so at least I might have an argument). By now, I need to go feed Ethan if I'm going to get to class in time. Of course, he was too interested in his surroundings to nurse or take the bottle, so it took me forever to feed him. Thankfully, though, I got to see a lot of friends I hadn't seen yet (and who hadn't seen Ethan) during our breaks of walking around before trying to eat again. I finally get him to take all but the last ounce or so, so we head to class. He does well for the first 45 minutes until he starts fussing for a nap. I leave class, get him to sleep, and return. However, the nap only lasts 30 minutes, when that nap usually lasts 2 hours. Unlike the last time I was in class, he wasn't happy to wait until after class to eat again, and after about 40 minutes of waiting patiently, he started trying to nurse through my sweater, so I gathered all our stuff and left with about 20 minutes of class to go (though class had basically wrapped up, and most of that time would be used for an evening prayer service). He only ate half his bottle, so I decided to go ahead and leave and offer the rest of it when we got home. And (praise the Lord!) my car didn't even get a ticket! Plus, Ethan was an extremely happy baby, laughing loudly on the changing table to the delight of everyone within earshot. He even took a brief nap on the way home, so he got a total of 2.5 hours of naps, about half his usual amount.
As I feared, this lack-of-naps led to a rough night last night as he fought sleep and woke up twice within the first few hours and got up at 6 this morning. Plus, I was so stressed from the day that I didn't get to sleep until almost 2. Thankfully, I was able to get him to do a morning re-start so I got an extra 1.5 hours of sleep while he napped in the crib this morning, and he's been back to his usual schedule today. All-in-all, it could have been a lot worse, but it could have been a lot better. Hopefully my friend scheduled for next week will come through and I'll be able to park in the garage with no issue next time!
Ethan woke up after just an hour-long nap, but it's just in time for when we need to leave, so at least I didn't have to try to transfer a sleeping baby to the car seat. He is wonderful on the drive there, not making a peep except for batting at his toys. As I drive up to the parking garage, I say a prayer that it won't be reserved for an event like last time. Of course, the entire thing was reserved for a funeral, so I rushed over to the chapel circle in hopes of sweet-talking the guard. I apparently didn't think about the fact that the circle would be filled with funeral-goers as well. The guard said there was no way he could let me in, so I asked him where I could park since I had my son with me and needed to drop off a check at the bursar and take something to the chapel (both true, but I left out the part about going to class since the circle is essentially for drop-offs only). He must have taken pity on me because he pointed out the one available space and let me through. At this point, I knew I couldn't get to the chapel, so I headed to the bursar to turn in a reimbursement check they mistakenly sent me before realizing their mistake and sending me a bill for that amount. Unfortunately, the bursar apparently moved way across campus last year, so I guess I'm going to have to mail a payment and hope there's no issue because there's no way I'm going all the way there.
At this point, I'm really frustrated because I didn't get to do my fun activity, I didn't get to do either of my non-class tasks, and I'm terrified my car will be towed because the guard knows exactly where I'm parked and can see how long I'm there (though, since the entire circle was triple-parked, there's no way I could have left anyway, so at least I might have an argument). By now, I need to go feed Ethan if I'm going to get to class in time. Of course, he was too interested in his surroundings to nurse or take the bottle, so it took me forever to feed him. Thankfully, though, I got to see a lot of friends I hadn't seen yet (and who hadn't seen Ethan) during our breaks of walking around before trying to eat again. I finally get him to take all but the last ounce or so, so we head to class. He does well for the first 45 minutes until he starts fussing for a nap. I leave class, get him to sleep, and return. However, the nap only lasts 30 minutes, when that nap usually lasts 2 hours. Unlike the last time I was in class, he wasn't happy to wait until after class to eat again, and after about 40 minutes of waiting patiently, he started trying to nurse through my sweater, so I gathered all our stuff and left with about 20 minutes of class to go (though class had basically wrapped up, and most of that time would be used for an evening prayer service). He only ate half his bottle, so I decided to go ahead and leave and offer the rest of it when we got home. And (praise the Lord!) my car didn't even get a ticket! Plus, Ethan was an extremely happy baby, laughing loudly on the changing table to the delight of everyone within earshot. He even took a brief nap on the way home, so he got a total of 2.5 hours of naps, about half his usual amount.
As I feared, this lack-of-naps led to a rough night last night as he fought sleep and woke up twice within the first few hours and got up at 6 this morning. Plus, I was so stressed from the day that I didn't get to sleep until almost 2. Thankfully, I was able to get him to do a morning re-start so I got an extra 1.5 hours of sleep while he napped in the crib this morning, and he's been back to his usual schedule today. All-in-all, it could have been a lot worse, but it could have been a lot better. Hopefully my friend scheduled for next week will come through and I'll be able to park in the garage with no issue next time!
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Five Months
Dear Ethan,
It's been quite a month! As I type this, for the first time, you aren't asleep on my chest. Instead, you're sitting up by yourself on the floor beside me, chewing on the top of your shape sorter after having dumped all the pieces out. I can't believe you're already 5 months old, and yet you seem even older with everything you're doing. And it certainly seems like you've always been here since I can't imagine life without you.
Thankfully, the four-month-wakeful is behind us, and you often sleep 10.5-11.5 hour stretches in your crib at night (though you still just as often wake up once or twice, though never for long). Now, your latest stunt is refusing bottles halfway through, which leads to maternal anxiety as I wonder whether you're getting enough. You seem to be doing just fine, though, as those numbers on the scale continue to rise (15 lbs. 6 oz. as of last night!).
Your babbles, yawns, and sighs still make us laugh, and your giggles and belly laughs make our days. My favorite part of the morning is coming into your room right when you wake up and having you grin up at me with a look of pure joy. You are such a happy baby, and my heart swells every time a stranger comments on your sweet disposition or your adorable appearance (especially the hair).
We are so privileged to be your parents, and I hope we will always remember that, even when you're slamming doors in teenage angst. For now, I'll just savor these cuddles and snuggles while I can still get them.
Love,
Mommy
It's been quite a month! As I type this, for the first time, you aren't asleep on my chest. Instead, you're sitting up by yourself on the floor beside me, chewing on the top of your shape sorter after having dumped all the pieces out. I can't believe you're already 5 months old, and yet you seem even older with everything you're doing. And it certainly seems like you've always been here since I can't imagine life without you.
Thankfully, the four-month-wakeful is behind us, and you often sleep 10.5-11.5 hour stretches in your crib at night (though you still just as often wake up once or twice, though never for long). Now, your latest stunt is refusing bottles halfway through, which leads to maternal anxiety as I wonder whether you're getting enough. You seem to be doing just fine, though, as those numbers on the scale continue to rise (15 lbs. 6 oz. as of last night!).
Your babbles, yawns, and sighs still make us laugh, and your giggles and belly laughs make our days. My favorite part of the morning is coming into your room right when you wake up and having you grin up at me with a look of pure joy. You are such a happy baby, and my heart swells every time a stranger comments on your sweet disposition or your adorable appearance (especially the hair).
We are so privileged to be your parents, and I hope we will always remember that, even when you're slamming doors in teenage angst. For now, I'll just savor these cuddles and snuggles while I can still get them.
Love,
Mommy
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Working and Playing
How am I supposed to get any school work done when I have this to look at by my desk?
The answer? I'm not.
The answer? I'm not.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Sitting Up Update
Yeah, he's definitely an independent sitter. He just sat up by himself, playing with his toys, for 15+ minutes while I cleaned the bathrooms, fussing only when Scout stopped talking to him. Then I put him on the bed, and he sat up another 10+ minutes playing with his groceries while I finished up. Both times, he was still sitting up steadily when I picked him up. Who knows how long he's capable of sitting up if he had the patience for it! I'm still in shock as to what a seemingly overnight change this has been. At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if he's like his daddy and walking at 6 months. Yikes!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
We have an independent sitter!
I just can't resist sharing this here, too! This was taken after church so he's still dressed up in an outfit from his Grandmama. He's doing so well at sitting up by himself, and he's still just 4 months old! A few minutes ago, he was sitting up on our bed again while playing with his toy groceries, and he was pulling the food out of the bag and up to his mouth like a pro, all while balancing by himself, and he did it for over 4 minutes! I'm a proud mommy =)
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Back to School, Back to School...
I've been back in class for 4 weeks now, so it's about time I blogged about it. Overall, things have been going pretty well! I do my reading during his naps, and, while I often don't have time to do all of the reading, especially since I often clean and cook during his naps, too, I wouldn't do all of the reading even if I didn't have an infant to care for, so it's working out fine. I'm only a part-time student, so I'm just taking two classes instead of the usual four. Of those two classes, I'm taking one as a directed study so I don't have to actually go to the class, and I'm taking the other one pass/fail, so I don't have to worry as much about that one grade-wise. It's a fantastic set-up!
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find someone to watch Ethan every week during my 2.5 hour class. The first week, a good friend watched him. The second week, my mom was in town so she watched him at home. The third week, that class was canceled. This past week, I decided to try an experiment. I have two friends that are going to watch him once a month which leaves 2 weeks with no one to watch him (my mom will be in town another week in March). With no one to watch him this past week, I brought him to class with me. I was a bit nervous, not knowing whether he would sleep or cry the whole time, but it went great! He was happy for the first 30 minutes, looked ready to fuss so I took him out for 10 minutes to get him to sleep, he slept for 30 minutes, and then he was (shockingly) happy for the rest of class! The first time he blew a raspberry, the professor started cracking up, and when he was smiling sleepily around the class after he woke up from his nap, the professor got distracted and started baby-talking to him. Definitely NOT what I expected from this professor since he's always been a bit awkward. About half the class is made up of some of my best friends at the div. school so I wasn't worried about them, and thankfully no one else minded having a baby in the room (one of the many good things about divinity school is that it's very family-focused), and at the end, the professor said Ethan was welcome back any time and was even disappointed when I told him it wouldn't be a regular occurrence.
It's definitely not easy. There's an added level of stress when I either have a friend watching him (Will he be OK with them? Do they know how to get him down for a nap?) or have him in class (Will he start crying and disturb everyone? Will I miss something important if I leave class?). It's also not easy trying to take notes with a wiggling infant in your lap. Plus, there are only so many hours of naps in a day so several times I've had to try to get him to entertain himself so I could finish an assignment. Hopefully that part will get easier as he gets older, and the term hasn't been too paper-heavy so it's mostly just reading and short writing assignments.
All in all, I'm glad I decided to go ahead and start back this term instead of waiting for the fall. I feel good about my grasp of the material, and I don't even think my grades will suffer. It's still up in the air whether or not I'll take 2 or 3 classes a term next year (which will determine whether I have to go back in Fall 2012), but I won't be making that decision until the fall classes are announced in March. Hopefully I'll be able to keep the trends of the past week up through the end of the semester!
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find someone to watch Ethan every week during my 2.5 hour class. The first week, a good friend watched him. The second week, my mom was in town so she watched him at home. The third week, that class was canceled. This past week, I decided to try an experiment. I have two friends that are going to watch him once a month which leaves 2 weeks with no one to watch him (my mom will be in town another week in March). With no one to watch him this past week, I brought him to class with me. I was a bit nervous, not knowing whether he would sleep or cry the whole time, but it went great! He was happy for the first 30 minutes, looked ready to fuss so I took him out for 10 minutes to get him to sleep, he slept for 30 minutes, and then he was (shockingly) happy for the rest of class! The first time he blew a raspberry, the professor started cracking up, and when he was smiling sleepily around the class after he woke up from his nap, the professor got distracted and started baby-talking to him. Definitely NOT what I expected from this professor since he's always been a bit awkward. About half the class is made up of some of my best friends at the div. school so I wasn't worried about them, and thankfully no one else minded having a baby in the room (one of the many good things about divinity school is that it's very family-focused), and at the end, the professor said Ethan was welcome back any time and was even disappointed when I told him it wouldn't be a regular occurrence.
It's definitely not easy. There's an added level of stress when I either have a friend watching him (Will he be OK with them? Do they know how to get him down for a nap?) or have him in class (Will he start crying and disturb everyone? Will I miss something important if I leave class?). It's also not easy trying to take notes with a wiggling infant in your lap. Plus, there are only so many hours of naps in a day so several times I've had to try to get him to entertain himself so I could finish an assignment. Hopefully that part will get easier as he gets older, and the term hasn't been too paper-heavy so it's mostly just reading and short writing assignments.
All in all, I'm glad I decided to go ahead and start back this term instead of waiting for the fall. I feel good about my grasp of the material, and I don't even think my grades will suffer. It's still up in the air whether or not I'll take 2 or 3 classes a term next year (which will determine whether I have to go back in Fall 2012), but I won't be making that decision until the fall classes are announced in March. Hopefully I'll be able to keep the trends of the past week up through the end of the semester!
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