A week ago, on Saturday, December 13, Roo took 2 steps to his daddy! Since then, he's managed to take a few more steps, but he's by no means stable on his feet. He's getting there, though. I would have posted this news sooner, but I've been ridiculously sick. Went to the doctor yesterday afternoon (finally) and was diagnosed with an upper respiratory tract infection and bronchitis. And now Roo and I both have to occasionally use Albuterol (I got a puffer yesterday). Yay. So, that's my one illness for the winter. I only allow myself one. So we're done with illness. For the winter. Right??? So why do I still wake up with a splitting sinus headache every morning?
We had a big old snowstorm yesterday afternoon/evening, so we're looking forward to putting Andrew in his snow clothes and letting him roll around in the snowdrifts :-) Hopefully we'll get some good pictures.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Andy-Roo Update
Roo turned 1 on November 28. We made a cake and even got to hang out with Grammy and some neighbors, and with Nan and Aunt K over the computer! Roo has been taking some spins around the neighborhood in his new big-boy Radio Flyer wagon from Daddy, and he cruises around the house behind his "bike" from grammy (a push toy for toddlers).
Roo isn't walking quite yet, but he can stand on his own for a few seconds at a time, when he feels like it. He'll walk when he's darn good and ready, and I'm fine with that (in fact, there's some evidence that suggests that babies who crawl longer have higher IQs later in life...something about using opposing arm/leg movements and how it helps the 2 halves of the brain work together...). He's happy, healthy (knock on wood) and getting quite vocal. He can reliably sign "more" and "dog," and he's working on "kitty." He can say "Dada," but for some reason I'm "Baba." He actuallly can say "Mama," but I guess he prefers the letter "B." I think it's adorable.
He loves the song "If You're Happy and You Know It," and he'll actually clap his hands or stomp his feet in response to the song and your actions. If you say "Peekaboo," he'll cover up his eyes with his hands. If you ask him where his belly is, he'll point to it, but if you ask him where is nose is, he'll point to yours. I think because he can't see it, he doesn't realize that he actually has a nose of his own!
He is an ebullient, flirty baby who loves being around people. In fact, sometimes it's a challenge finding a way to put him down for a few minutes. This evening, though, he contented himself with playing with some spare (clean) oven racks on the kitchen floor while I put his school dishes in the sink to soak and prepared supper. It's nice now that he doesn't scream each and every time we turn our backs for more than 5 seconds.
He's in a phase wherein he hates having his diaper changed, but screeches this loud, fake screech in protest. It's not his "hurt" cry. It's interesting -- he's getting to the point when he knows what he wants, anticipates getting it...and is VERY unhappy when he doesn't end up getting it! I guess they would call that "getting a personality," which is actually kind of exciting.
We gave up bottles just after his first birthday. He still nurses first thing in the morning and right before bed, and anytime he wants to when we're together, but otherwise when he's at school or it's daytime on weekends, it's sippy-cup only (organic whole cow's milk).* Woo hoo -- no more scrubbing and sterilizing nipples! More about Roo's diet and nutrition in another post...
At his one-year checkup, Roo weighed 25 pounds, 7.5 ounces and was 30.5 inches long. He's 50th-75th percentile for height, 75th-90th for weight, and 50th for head circumference. He amused the nurses with big belly-laughs when I blew raspberries on his tummy -- in fact, they told me he was the first happy baby they'd had all day. The poor things -- it was 4:00 p.m.!
Roo loves books. He'll actually say "Buhh" when picking up a book in the nursery in the morning or at night. This is not to be confused with "Booff," which is what he says when you ask him what the dog says. Then again, if you ask him what a kitty says, or what a cow says, or what a sheep says, the answer will invariably be "Boofff." I tell you, this kid loves the letter "B." And dogs, apparently.
He likes to point at things, especially lights, and it being Christmas, it's a good season for it. Every morning as we're leaving the nursery and I'm carrying him on my hip, I ask him to help Mommy by turning off the light switch. He knows he's supposed to touch it, but he hasn't quite mastered the concept of actually turning it off. All in good time, I suppose. I can imagine at some point, after trying to get him to give up turning the switch on and off for the 1,000th time, rueing the day I ever taught him what a light switch does...
When Andy-Roo smiles, it lights up his whole face. And the whole room. And our hearts. We are so lucky!
*Clarification: Roo still gets a bottle at night if he's being put to bed by someone other than Mommy (i.e. Daddy or a babysitter). I'm OK with it. He gets the bottle while being snuggled and rocked in the rocking chair; he's never ever taken a bottle to bed in the crib.
Roo isn't walking quite yet, but he can stand on his own for a few seconds at a time, when he feels like it. He'll walk when he's darn good and ready, and I'm fine with that (in fact, there's some evidence that suggests that babies who crawl longer have higher IQs later in life...something about using opposing arm/leg movements and how it helps the 2 halves of the brain work together...). He's happy, healthy (knock on wood) and getting quite vocal. He can reliably sign "more" and "dog," and he's working on "kitty." He can say "Dada," but for some reason I'm "Baba." He actuallly can say "Mama," but I guess he prefers the letter "B." I think it's adorable.
He loves the song "If You're Happy and You Know It," and he'll actually clap his hands or stomp his feet in response to the song and your actions. If you say "Peekaboo," he'll cover up his eyes with his hands. If you ask him where his belly is, he'll point to it, but if you ask him where is nose is, he'll point to yours. I think because he can't see it, he doesn't realize that he actually has a nose of his own!
He is an ebullient, flirty baby who loves being around people. In fact, sometimes it's a challenge finding a way to put him down for a few minutes. This evening, though, he contented himself with playing with some spare (clean) oven racks on the kitchen floor while I put his school dishes in the sink to soak and prepared supper. It's nice now that he doesn't scream each and every time we turn our backs for more than 5 seconds.
He's in a phase wherein he hates having his diaper changed, but screeches this loud, fake screech in protest. It's not his "hurt" cry. It's interesting -- he's getting to the point when he knows what he wants, anticipates getting it...and is VERY unhappy when he doesn't end up getting it! I guess they would call that "getting a personality," which is actually kind of exciting.
We gave up bottles just after his first birthday. He still nurses first thing in the morning and right before bed, and anytime he wants to when we're together, but otherwise when he's at school or it's daytime on weekends, it's sippy-cup only (organic whole cow's milk).* Woo hoo -- no more scrubbing and sterilizing nipples! More about Roo's diet and nutrition in another post...
At his one-year checkup, Roo weighed 25 pounds, 7.5 ounces and was 30.5 inches long. He's 50th-75th percentile for height, 75th-90th for weight, and 50th for head circumference. He amused the nurses with big belly-laughs when I blew raspberries on his tummy -- in fact, they told me he was the first happy baby they'd had all day. The poor things -- it was 4:00 p.m.!
Roo loves books. He'll actually say "Buhh" when picking up a book in the nursery in the morning or at night. This is not to be confused with "Booff," which is what he says when you ask him what the dog says. Then again, if you ask him what a kitty says, or what a cow says, or what a sheep says, the answer will invariably be "Boofff." I tell you, this kid loves the letter "B." And dogs, apparently.
He likes to point at things, especially lights, and it being Christmas, it's a good season for it. Every morning as we're leaving the nursery and I'm carrying him on my hip, I ask him to help Mommy by turning off the light switch. He knows he's supposed to touch it, but he hasn't quite mastered the concept of actually turning it off. All in good time, I suppose. I can imagine at some point, after trying to get him to give up turning the switch on and off for the 1,000th time, rueing the day I ever taught him what a light switch does...
When Andy-Roo smiles, it lights up his whole face. And the whole room. And our hearts. We are so lucky!
*Clarification: Roo still gets a bottle at night if he's being put to bed by someone other than Mommy (i.e. Daddy or a babysitter). I'm OK with it. He gets the bottle while being snuggled and rocked in the rocking chair; he's never ever taken a bottle to bed in the crib.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Milestones, 11 Months
The other morning, Andrew signed "more." He was in his high chair as I was flitting about the kitchen getting ready for work/daycare, and had apparently finished the handful of Cheerios I'd given him and was still hungry. I heard him whining a bit but didn't think much of it (he's frequently anxious to get going in the mornings), until I turned around and saw him putting his fingertips together in the sign for "more." I asked him if he wanted more...and he signed "more" again! Brilliant! Of course, he hasn't done it again since then...
He can say "Bob." Or, more accurately, "Bah." Still, he reliably says it when Bob is around, or when he's looking for or at Bob. Totally cute. Oh, and I'm convinced he tries to say "book" when we're looking at a book. And if you ask him what a cow says, he'll reply "Mmmmmmmmmmmmm." Close enough.
Another favorite vocalization is "Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Not sure what it means (his teacher at daycare swears it means "eat," which wouldn't surprise me given how much food this kid can hoover down in the course of a day).
He seems to be weaning himself gradually. For the past week, including Saturday and Sunday, we haven't nursed during the day. He just doesn't seem that interested. He does still very much want to nurse first thing in the morning and right before bed, though, and I don't plan on giving those sessions up for the foreseeable future.
Last weekend he drank a little cow's milk from a cup. A big boy cup, without a sippy spout. He spilled most of it, of course, but he totally understands what a cup is for.
He eats just about everything now, except for the possibly allergenic/dangerous foods. He even tried a tiny bite of dill pickle last weekend -- and liked it, of course! Pasta, cheese, toast, cut up fruit and cooked vegetables are favorites.
He's still cruising -- not standing on his own, without support, but I'm honestly not anxious to see that happen yet -- I haven't completely babyproofed the house!
He can say "Bob." Or, more accurately, "Bah." Still, he reliably says it when Bob is around, or when he's looking for or at Bob. Totally cute. Oh, and I'm convinced he tries to say "book" when we're looking at a book. And if you ask him what a cow says, he'll reply "Mmmmmmmmmmmmm." Close enough.
Another favorite vocalization is "Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Not sure what it means (his teacher at daycare swears it means "eat," which wouldn't surprise me given how much food this kid can hoover down in the course of a day).
He seems to be weaning himself gradually. For the past week, including Saturday and Sunday, we haven't nursed during the day. He just doesn't seem that interested. He does still very much want to nurse first thing in the morning and right before bed, though, and I don't plan on giving those sessions up for the foreseeable future.
Last weekend he drank a little cow's milk from a cup. A big boy cup, without a sippy spout. He spilled most of it, of course, but he totally understands what a cup is for.
He eats just about everything now, except for the possibly allergenic/dangerous foods. He even tried a tiny bite of dill pickle last weekend -- and liked it, of course! Pasta, cheese, toast, cut up fruit and cooked vegetables are favorites.
He's still cruising -- not standing on his own, without support, but I'm honestly not anxious to see that happen yet -- I haven't completely babyproofed the house!
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Economy
I've been looking at ways to save money lately, given the state of the economy. I've always been big on clipping coupons, and I love to frequent my local Goodwill store -- that store recently moved to a bigger building and has a huge selection of near-new clothing. I feel like when I buy gently used clothing I'm not only saving money, but saving on waste and helping the environment. Plus, it's a total thrill to get a snazzy Baby Gap sweater for only $2.00!
I have no problem substituting generics for brand-names, particularly when it comes to medicines (adult and baby ibuprofen, for example). For the staples that I buy a lot of (think diapers and wipes), I shop at BJ's -- I share a membership with a coworker, so it only costs me $12.95 a year to belong.
I canceled the maid service. Sorry, house.
I started buying Purina cat food instead of Nutro. And I don't buy poor Bob treats nearly as often. Then again, with Andrew eating finger foods, and dropping pieces on the floor here and there, Bob's making out just fine all the same.
I transferred high-interest credit card balances to cards with lower introductory rates.
My mortgage is (was) held by Countrywide, which was acquired by Bank of America, which is now offering "financial hardship" deals for Countrywide customers who are in danger of falling behind in mortgage payments. I'm going to call them soon to see if there's anything they can do for me. My mortgage eats 49% of my take-home pay. It was hard enough to keep up with that _before_ Roo came along, and with him the expense of daycare, diapers, etc. If BofA is able to do something about my mortgage, perhaps I can pay off those credit card debts sooner rather than later.
Speaking of daycare, I contribute the annual maximum of $5,000 to my health savings account, pre-tax, for dependent care. I also save all of my receipts for charities, donations, etc. for tax purposes. Not that I was able to contribute much this year.
I'm winterizing the house big-time this fall: Plastic sheeting on the windows (although I'm afraid to do it in Roo's room for some whacko first-time mommy fear of suffocation; I know, it's completely irrational). Thermal drapes on the sliding glass doors in the den. Space heaters in the 2 bedrooms rather than heating the entire house. Draft-dodgers on the entry doors. I'm even thinking about those light-switch insulation kits (apparently those leak heat like a sieve).
I use reusable canvas bags at the grocery store -- for each bag you bring in, you get 5 cents off your grocery order.
I've taken to bathing Andrew only every other night, on average, rather than every night. Not only does it save on hot water, but it's better for his skin, as he tends toward sensitive skin like I do. Unless I'm scummy, I only shower every other day, particularly in fall/winter when I haven't been sweating.
Here are some areas that I really could/should cut:
1. Hairdresser. Although it's my one "splurge," I don't _need_ to spend what I spend, every 6-8 weeks. But I happen to know that my hairdresser is in more dire financial straits than I am, so I would feel bad about depriving her of business.
2. Fast food. Amazing how $4-5 here and there adds up. And I only do it because I've neglected to prepare breakfast the night before, to eat in the car. It's not hard to make a peanut butter sandwich, idiot. Even some store-bought muffins or bagels would be cheaper and relatively healthier.
3. Magazine subscriptions. I love my food magazines, but who has time to cook fancy food anymore? (Sigh). And then they just pile up before getting tossed in the recycling. Actually, who am I kidding? I never recycle the food ones. They live with me permanently. All other magazines go, though.
4. Get rid of the land line and go cell-only. The only ramification that I can think of would be that the babysitter would have to bring her cell phone with her rather than wait for me to call my home phone when I leave work on Board meeting nights.
5. Cancel Netflix.
6. Cancel World of Warcraft.
7. I desperate measures are called for, cancel cable and TiVo (nnnoooooooooo!!!!!!)
These things would help me operate with a monthly surplus, rather than a deficit. Then again, there are things that I should be doing (i.e. purchasing a life insurance plan that would actually pay off my mortgage should I die) that just aren't in the mix right now at all.
Of course, there's always the option of selling the house, assuming a) it's still worth more than I owe on it, after real estate commissions and taxes, and b) it would actually sell. Not so sure about either of those.
I have no problem substituting generics for brand-names, particularly when it comes to medicines (adult and baby ibuprofen, for example). For the staples that I buy a lot of (think diapers and wipes), I shop at BJ's -- I share a membership with a coworker, so it only costs me $12.95 a year to belong.
I canceled the maid service. Sorry, house.
I started buying Purina cat food instead of Nutro. And I don't buy poor Bob treats nearly as often. Then again, with Andrew eating finger foods, and dropping pieces on the floor here and there, Bob's making out just fine all the same.
I transferred high-interest credit card balances to cards with lower introductory rates.
My mortgage is (was) held by Countrywide, which was acquired by Bank of America, which is now offering "financial hardship" deals for Countrywide customers who are in danger of falling behind in mortgage payments. I'm going to call them soon to see if there's anything they can do for me. My mortgage eats 49% of my take-home pay. It was hard enough to keep up with that _before_ Roo came along, and with him the expense of daycare, diapers, etc. If BofA is able to do something about my mortgage, perhaps I can pay off those credit card debts sooner rather than later.
Speaking of daycare, I contribute the annual maximum of $5,000 to my health savings account, pre-tax, for dependent care. I also save all of my receipts for charities, donations, etc. for tax purposes. Not that I was able to contribute much this year.
I'm winterizing the house big-time this fall: Plastic sheeting on the windows (although I'm afraid to do it in Roo's room for some whacko first-time mommy fear of suffocation; I know, it's completely irrational). Thermal drapes on the sliding glass doors in the den. Space heaters in the 2 bedrooms rather than heating the entire house. Draft-dodgers on the entry doors. I'm even thinking about those light-switch insulation kits (apparently those leak heat like a sieve).
I use reusable canvas bags at the grocery store -- for each bag you bring in, you get 5 cents off your grocery order.
I've taken to bathing Andrew only every other night, on average, rather than every night. Not only does it save on hot water, but it's better for his skin, as he tends toward sensitive skin like I do. Unless I'm scummy, I only shower every other day, particularly in fall/winter when I haven't been sweating.
Here are some areas that I really could/should cut:
1. Hairdresser. Although it's my one "splurge," I don't _need_ to spend what I spend, every 6-8 weeks. But I happen to know that my hairdresser is in more dire financial straits than I am, so I would feel bad about depriving her of business.
2. Fast food. Amazing how $4-5 here and there adds up. And I only do it because I've neglected to prepare breakfast the night before, to eat in the car. It's not hard to make a peanut butter sandwich, idiot. Even some store-bought muffins or bagels would be cheaper and relatively healthier.
3. Magazine subscriptions. I love my food magazines, but who has time to cook fancy food anymore? (Sigh). And then they just pile up before getting tossed in the recycling. Actually, who am I kidding? I never recycle the food ones. They live with me permanently. All other magazines go, though.
4. Get rid of the land line and go cell-only. The only ramification that I can think of would be that the babysitter would have to bring her cell phone with her rather than wait for me to call my home phone when I leave work on Board meeting nights.
5. Cancel Netflix.
6. Cancel World of Warcraft.
7. I desperate measures are called for, cancel cable and TiVo (nnnoooooooooo!!!!!!)
These things would help me operate with a monthly surplus, rather than a deficit. Then again, there are things that I should be doing (i.e. purchasing a life insurance plan that would actually pay off my mortgage should I die) that just aren't in the mix right now at all.
Of course, there's always the option of selling the house, assuming a) it's still worth more than I owe on it, after real estate commissions and taxes, and b) it would actually sell. Not so sure about either of those.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Feeding Baby Bear
Being something of a foodie myself, I find that being creative in putting together new meals for Andrew is one of the most enjoyable and rewarding aspects of being a mommy. Recently, he's really taken to feeding himself finger foods (sniff sniff!), although he still doesn't mind being spoon-fed. Here's a list of what he's been eating lately:
Slightly mashed, cooked peas (canned, no-salt-added)
Diced sharp cheddar cheese
Soft-cooked ditalini pasta (thanks, awesome tip, Kate-Kate!)
Diced pears, carrots and other fruits/veggies (again, no-salt-added veggies, and fruits in fruit juice, not syrup)
Dry cereal (Annie's Bunny Love, because I had a coupon, but when that box runs out we're switching to Cheerios)
Whole wheat toast
Potato chunks or mashed potato balls
He'll also eat home fries off our plate if we go to the diner for breakfast, and he looks covetously at things like pancakes and omelets...not quite yet, Roo!
Here's what we're going to try soon:
Baked sweet potato "fries"
White fish, flaked small of course -- haddock or cod
Turkey and veggie meatballs -- probably baked, or maybe fried in a tiny bit of olive oil
Asparagus
Butter beans and black beans, slightly mashed
Any other suggestions out there for a 10-month old? I'd like to get as many flavors into him as possible now, before he gets to that "picky" phase. Good lord, I hope he doesn't get picky. I remember refusing to eat certain shapes of pasta when I was little, just because of their texture. And I loathed any type of non-string bean (again, texture). And I hated stuffing. And real butter. Sigh. The good news is that despite all that, I'm decidedly NOT a picky eater now.
Tomorrow I'm sending him to school with cooked pumpkin mixed with a dash of cinnamon :-)
Oh, also -- Roo has started, just in the past day or so, with some aggressive behaviors at daycare. I sternly said "No" when he started hitting me the other day. He doesn't do it in anger -- I think he does it just to see what reaction he'll get from the other party. Anyway, I've told his teachers that my current plan is to continue to sternly say "No" or "We don't hit," consistently, and to put him down or walk away from him if he continues after the warning. The idea is that if he's trying to get attention or a reaction, then he needs to learn that he won't get it by hitting. We're also working on reinforcing, positively, what the word 'gentle' means. The cat will appreciate it, at least...
Slightly mashed, cooked peas (canned, no-salt-added)
Diced sharp cheddar cheese
Soft-cooked ditalini pasta (thanks, awesome tip, Kate-Kate!)
Diced pears, carrots and other fruits/veggies (again, no-salt-added veggies, and fruits in fruit juice, not syrup)
Dry cereal (Annie's Bunny Love, because I had a coupon, but when that box runs out we're switching to Cheerios)
Whole wheat toast
Potato chunks or mashed potato balls
He'll also eat home fries off our plate if we go to the diner for breakfast, and he looks covetously at things like pancakes and omelets...not quite yet, Roo!
Here's what we're going to try soon:
Baked sweet potato "fries"
White fish, flaked small of course -- haddock or cod
Turkey and veggie meatballs -- probably baked, or maybe fried in a tiny bit of olive oil
Asparagus
Butter beans and black beans, slightly mashed
Any other suggestions out there for a 10-month old? I'd like to get as many flavors into him as possible now, before he gets to that "picky" phase. Good lord, I hope he doesn't get picky. I remember refusing to eat certain shapes of pasta when I was little, just because of their texture. And I loathed any type of non-string bean (again, texture). And I hated stuffing. And real butter. Sigh. The good news is that despite all that, I'm decidedly NOT a picky eater now.
Tomorrow I'm sending him to school with cooked pumpkin mixed with a dash of cinnamon :-)
Oh, also -- Roo has started, just in the past day or so, with some aggressive behaviors at daycare. I sternly said "No" when he started hitting me the other day. He doesn't do it in anger -- I think he does it just to see what reaction he'll get from the other party. Anyway, I've told his teachers that my current plan is to continue to sternly say "No" or "We don't hit," consistently, and to put him down or walk away from him if he continues after the warning. The idea is that if he's trying to get attention or a reaction, then he needs to learn that he won't get it by hitting. We're also working on reinforcing, positively, what the word 'gentle' means. The cat will appreciate it, at least...
Monday, September 29, 2008
"9 Month" Checkup
As of September 19, Andrew's "9 month" checkup (which was really closer to his 10 month birthday, but O.K.), Roo weighs 22 lbs., 14 oz, and is 29 inches long. He's in the 80th percentile for height and weight, and his head measures in the 50th percentile, as it has all along -- although it didn't feel that way when I was pushing it out of my body 10 months ago...
He's very active these days: crawling, standing, pushing things around while trying to "walk" behind them. When I say "The cow says...", he replies "Mmmmmmmuuummmmm!" Kind of like "moo," right? And today I swear that when I said "The sheep says...", he said "buh." Such a clever little pumpkin!
He's getting very good at feeding himself finger foods: vegetables and fruits cut into chunks, cereal, cubes of cheese, bits of toast -- you name it. He's also mastering the sippy cup and even seems to enjoy drinking water. We're keeping our fingers crossed on that one -- don't want to start down the fruit juice road, for fear of tooth decay, beverage pickiness, empty calories, etc. But we'll see.
I've basically decided to stop pumping. Because I left early from work on Friday (more on that later), I didn't get to pump that day, and I didn't pump all weekend, either, so Roo had two bottles of Enfamil at daycare today and was just fine. Of course we nursed when he woke up this morning and just before he went to bed at night, and we nursed on demand all weekend, and it worked out well.
One of the reasons I've decided to give up pumping, aside from my reduced supply, is that I'm just plain exhausted. Today I called in sick to work, rested in the morning after dropping Roo off at daycare, and then saw my doctor around noon. He had the nurse take some blood after listening to my symptoms -- he didn't see any sort of Lyme rash, but I did remind him that my thyroid had given me trouble in my twenties, so he added a Thyroid Stimulating Hormone test to the mix. I'll find out the results later this week, although the Lyme test can take longer. He also asked me if I might be depressed (it's interesting how many of the symptoms of hypothyroidism are also the same as those of depression), but we won't go into that right now.
My mom stopped by the house this afternoon and then accompanied me to the bank so I could deposit the loose change I'd accumulated over the last 6 months or so: $123.50! Then we stopped at Wal-Mart so I could look at thermal curtains, a space heater, and other winterizing materials for the house. I also bought a thoroughly crappy appliance safety strap that's supposed to adhere to the appliance (in my case the oven) and keep your baby from pulling it open. It's a piece of junk: Even though the appliance's surface was clean when I applied the strap, the adhesive does NOT stick. I'm taking it back for a refund. Good concept; poorly executed.
By late afternoon, when Mom and I picked up Roo from daycare, I was feeling noticeably more energetic. "Wow," I thought, "this isn't so bad. I can do this." And then I realized that I have to go to work tomorrow, and the next day, and the next... Life is just an overwhelming slog, and there's no end in sight. I feel like I do so many things, and that I'm expected to do them well -- but I can't find the time to breathe or enjoy any of them, because I'm constantly worried about all of the other things I should be doing once I'm done with the thing I'm currently doing. Does that make sense?
Last week I seriously considered putting my house on the market and freeing myself from my mortgage, the taxes, the upkeep and worry of the house, etc. But of course, putting the house on the market would mean making many improvements to it (fixing the upstairs bathroom, replacing the gutters, LOTS of cosmetic work, and on and on and on) -- and who has time to do that? And who knows? IF there is an economic rescue plan that makes it through Congress, maybe I'd be able to restructure my debt, or something.
I'm going to go read a book and go to bed.
He's very active these days: crawling, standing, pushing things around while trying to "walk" behind them. When I say "The cow says...", he replies "Mmmmmmmuuummmmm!" Kind of like "moo," right? And today I swear that when I said "The sheep says...", he said "buh." Such a clever little pumpkin!
He's getting very good at feeding himself finger foods: vegetables and fruits cut into chunks, cereal, cubes of cheese, bits of toast -- you name it. He's also mastering the sippy cup and even seems to enjoy drinking water. We're keeping our fingers crossed on that one -- don't want to start down the fruit juice road, for fear of tooth decay, beverage pickiness, empty calories, etc. But we'll see.
I've basically decided to stop pumping. Because I left early from work on Friday (more on that later), I didn't get to pump that day, and I didn't pump all weekend, either, so Roo had two bottles of Enfamil at daycare today and was just fine. Of course we nursed when he woke up this morning and just before he went to bed at night, and we nursed on demand all weekend, and it worked out well.
One of the reasons I've decided to give up pumping, aside from my reduced supply, is that I'm just plain exhausted. Today I called in sick to work, rested in the morning after dropping Roo off at daycare, and then saw my doctor around noon. He had the nurse take some blood after listening to my symptoms -- he didn't see any sort of Lyme rash, but I did remind him that my thyroid had given me trouble in my twenties, so he added a Thyroid Stimulating Hormone test to the mix. I'll find out the results later this week, although the Lyme test can take longer. He also asked me if I might be depressed (it's interesting how many of the symptoms of hypothyroidism are also the same as those of depression), but we won't go into that right now.
My mom stopped by the house this afternoon and then accompanied me to the bank so I could deposit the loose change I'd accumulated over the last 6 months or so: $123.50! Then we stopped at Wal-Mart so I could look at thermal curtains, a space heater, and other winterizing materials for the house. I also bought a thoroughly crappy appliance safety strap that's supposed to adhere to the appliance (in my case the oven) and keep your baby from pulling it open. It's a piece of junk: Even though the appliance's surface was clean when I applied the strap, the adhesive does NOT stick. I'm taking it back for a refund. Good concept; poorly executed.
By late afternoon, when Mom and I picked up Roo from daycare, I was feeling noticeably more energetic. "Wow," I thought, "this isn't so bad. I can do this." And then I realized that I have to go to work tomorrow, and the next day, and the next... Life is just an overwhelming slog, and there's no end in sight. I feel like I do so many things, and that I'm expected to do them well -- but I can't find the time to breathe or enjoy any of them, because I'm constantly worried about all of the other things I should be doing once I'm done with the thing I'm currently doing. Does that make sense?
Last week I seriously considered putting my house on the market and freeing myself from my mortgage, the taxes, the upkeep and worry of the house, etc. But of course, putting the house on the market would mean making many improvements to it (fixing the upstairs bathroom, replacing the gutters, LOTS of cosmetic work, and on and on and on) -- and who has time to do that? And who knows? IF there is an economic rescue plan that makes it through Congress, maybe I'd be able to restructure my debt, or something.
I'm going to go read a book and go to bed.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Long overdue update
I've been at work since 7:45 a.m. -- so it's time for a coffee break already. It's amazing how much one gets done, and so early, after rising at 5:30. I can't complain, though: For the first time in what seems like weeks, Roo slept through the night without a peep. Maybe the recent spate of teething has eased. He did get one more tooth, on the bottom left, about a week ago.
We've had much more babbling lately -- "Dadada" being a favorite. And I swear he tries to say "Bob" when he sees his doggie :-) It's such a love affair between the two of them. Bob can almost always cheer him up. Bob or my boobs. Works every time.
Yesterday afternoon after work, Roo was cruising along the edge of the coffee table and playing with his copy of "Moo, Baa, La La La," which we had just read. Board books have that nice shiny wax coating on the pages (before it gets chewed/drooled off, that is), and I enjoyed watching him notice, and then actually manipulate, a shiny reflection from the book that was projected on the ceiling/wall of the living room. I love those little moments of epiphany that he has. He's getting more of an attention span, and will actually interact with books, bubbles, and other babies. This morning we had time to read a book after nursing: "Touch and Feel Puppy." I petted the puppy's soft fur, and then Andrew did. This morning when I left daycare his teacher was blowing bubbles, and Roo was actively trying to pop them, and then find out where they "went" when they disappeared. A couple of mornings ago, when I dropped him off, he was chasing one of the little girl babies around the room (and pulling at her skirt -- uh oh...)
Heard a segment on NPR this morning about a mother whose college-aged daughter was killed on 9/11 on the plane that crashed in PA. I simply cannot imagine the unbelievable pain of losing a child. I cherish every day with Andrew, and with all of my loved ones.
I also can't understand the purpose of "false outrage" (Barack Obama's words when responding to the Republicans' outrage at his lipstick-on-a-pig comment). There seems to be a lot of overreaction going on these days. It seems to happen when people know, deep-down, that they don't actually have much of a valid case against those whom they decry. Or that they're just upset in general and need a whipping boy. Frankly, I just don't see the point. How utterly sad and counterproductive.
We've had much more babbling lately -- "Dadada" being a favorite. And I swear he tries to say "Bob" when he sees his doggie :-) It's such a love affair between the two of them. Bob can almost always cheer him up. Bob or my boobs. Works every time.
Yesterday afternoon after work, Roo was cruising along the edge of the coffee table and playing with his copy of "Moo, Baa, La La La," which we had just read. Board books have that nice shiny wax coating on the pages (before it gets chewed/drooled off, that is), and I enjoyed watching him notice, and then actually manipulate, a shiny reflection from the book that was projected on the ceiling/wall of the living room. I love those little moments of epiphany that he has. He's getting more of an attention span, and will actually interact with books, bubbles, and other babies. This morning we had time to read a book after nursing: "Touch and Feel Puppy." I petted the puppy's soft fur, and then Andrew did. This morning when I left daycare his teacher was blowing bubbles, and Roo was actively trying to pop them, and then find out where they "went" when they disappeared. A couple of mornings ago, when I dropped him off, he was chasing one of the little girl babies around the room (and pulling at her skirt -- uh oh...)
Heard a segment on NPR this morning about a mother whose college-aged daughter was killed on 9/11 on the plane that crashed in PA. I simply cannot imagine the unbelievable pain of losing a child. I cherish every day with Andrew, and with all of my loved ones.
I also can't understand the purpose of "false outrage" (Barack Obama's words when responding to the Republicans' outrage at his lipstick-on-a-pig comment). There seems to be a lot of overreaction going on these days. It seems to happen when people know, deep-down, that they don't actually have much of a valid case against those whom they decry. Or that they're just upset in general and need a whipping boy. Frankly, I just don't see the point. How utterly sad and counterproductive.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
F&$@!
Stupid goddamn f&#$(* germs. Got a call from daycare this afternoon letting me know that Roo had a temp of 101.5. I knew this would happen. He woke up crabby, would barely eat any breakfast, and wouldn't let me put him down all morning. I'd taken the morning off so I could take him to his scheduled checkup at the pediatrician's office (for his ears and lungs -- see last week's posts). Of course, his ears and lungs were just fine, but the doctor told me his throat looked red. Great.
So today (my birthday, by the way), I had a supremely cranky, feverish child. He took one or two bites of his supper and then started screaming (I guess his throat hurts), so we skipped the bath and I put him straight to bed. I had company at (grownup) dinnertime, and then I still had to take out the trash and recycling afterwards. I'm so goddamn sick of these goddamn germs. I've said it before: I can deal with all of this WHEN HE'S NOT SICK. When he's sick, though, it just sends me over the edge. I'm supposed to be PACKING FOR VACATION, not constantly holding/nursing/soothing a poor little sick kid, like it seems I'm doing every week or so these days. And I just hate seeing him sick in general. He's so sad and pathetic. I hope he sleeps well tonight and can beat this bug quickly.
Frigging ARRRHRHRHRHGHGGGGHHH!!!!!!!!!!!
So today (my birthday, by the way), I had a supremely cranky, feverish child. He took one or two bites of his supper and then started screaming (I guess his throat hurts), so we skipped the bath and I put him straight to bed. I had company at (grownup) dinnertime, and then I still had to take out the trash and recycling afterwards. I'm so goddamn sick of these goddamn germs. I've said it before: I can deal with all of this WHEN HE'S NOT SICK. When he's sick, though, it just sends me over the edge. I'm supposed to be PACKING FOR VACATION, not constantly holding/nursing/soothing a poor little sick kid, like it seems I'm doing every week or so these days. And I just hate seeing him sick in general. He's so sad and pathetic. I hope he sleeps well tonight and can beat this bug quickly.
Frigging ARRRHRHRHRHGHGGGGHHH!!!!!!!!!!!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
It's Baaaaaack......(this might explain it!)
So, after nearly 18 months on hiatus (during my pregnancy and the first 8.5 months of Andrew's life), it's back. I'm sure you can guess what "it" is. How exciting!
And according to kellymom.com, a site that I've found to have incredibly helpful and accurate information about breastfeeding and its associated problems and complications,
"Some women experience a drop in milk supply from ovulation (mid-cycle) until the first day or two of the next menstrual period. A woman's blood calcium levels gradually decrease during this period of time, and for some women the drop in blood calcium causes a drop in milk supply."
Well, there we (may) have it. I thought that I might have been ovulating about a week and a half ago (sorry if TMI), and that just about corresponds to the dip in my milk supply. I did call the lactation consultant on Friday, and she very nicely called me back and suggested a "pumping/nursing every three hours weekend," plus fenugreek pills/tea. I was able to manage the pumping and nursing, but we just didn't get to the health food store for the fenugreek. I do have some Mother's Milk organic tea bags in my office, so I'll make some tea tomorrow at work. I've also read that oatmeal helps increase milk supply, so what the hell -- maybe that's what I'll have for dinner tomorrow. And I'll toss a couple of granola bars in my bag, too.
With Dad's help this weekend (he and Roo got LOTS of quality time to play together), I was able to pump enough to get the freezer stash up to two bags! If I go back to pumping three times a day at work, along with all of the other measures I'm taking, I may be able to stick with the boob juice-only thing!
Roo MAY have said "Da" in the high chair at lunch today. Three times. In a row. Right after Dad said "dadada" to him. Coincidence? Or genius child??? ;-)
The maid starts on Tuesday; after that, she/he/they will visit every other week on Wednesdays. I can't begin to express how thrilled I am about this. This weekend I spent as much time as possible clearing (not cleaning) off surfaces to make it easier for them to get my house spotless. Just the thought of bathing Andrew in a sparkling clean tub gives me goosebumps of pleasure. There isn't going to be dog hair (and who knows what else) stuck to the base of my toilet. This is really, really big.
I must say that the return of my "monthlies" threw me for a bit of a loop. It's just one more step in the evolution of our mother-child relationship. It means that he's independent enough from me (well, my breasts anyway) that I'm now able to produce another baby. These days it seems like it's all happening so fast: sitting, then crawling, then standing -- soon, walking. Transferring his clothes to the dryer tonight, I remarked to myself how the sleeves and pantlegs of the clothes that fit him just keep getting bigger and longer. I keep one of his "newborn" size diapers in his sock drawer, just to remind me of how tiny he was when he was born. And oh, how tiny he was. And my goodness, how big he is getting!
I have to say that folks have been very helpful and supportive, via email, in person, and through comments on this blog, about my milk-supply quandary. Thank you! I think I'd really like to see a long-term study of breastfed-only infants and formula-fed-only infants in daycare from a young age, just to see how many illnesses each group gets, and how long those illnesses last. I'm convinced that daycare is the major factor in Andrew's illnesses here...and I must say, knock on wood, that he hasn't been terribly sick, or even that frequently. But like I've said before, I'd been led to believe that the boobie juice was a cure-all. I'm also convinced that the majority of mothers who only breastfeed (i.e. never have to use formula) are also stay-at-home moms, or moms whose kids aren't in large-group daycare. So, of course those kids (and their immature immune systems) aren't going to be exposed to every germ that passes through the center. My mom tells me that I didn't go to a babysitter until I was 9 months old, and that I was rarely sick and never had an ear infection in my life -- and I was formula-fed. And let me tell you, there are a lot of illnesses that can take hold in winter in rural Maine...but I wasn't in group daycare.
I dunno. Maybe I'm just assuaging my mommy-guilt that I've "allowed" Roo to get sick even these admittedly few times. I've got to stop that whole guilt thing. After all, we do have a wonderful, bright, very smiley, standing-on-his-own, chirpy and recently very talkative little man! I've got to start focusing on what we're doing right :-)
And according to kellymom.com, a site that I've found to have incredibly helpful and accurate information about breastfeeding and its associated problems and complications,
"Some women experience a drop in milk supply from ovulation (mid-cycle) until the first day or two of the next menstrual period. A woman's blood calcium levels gradually decrease during this period of time, and for some women the drop in blood calcium causes a drop in milk supply."
Well, there we (may) have it. I thought that I might have been ovulating about a week and a half ago (sorry if TMI), and that just about corresponds to the dip in my milk supply. I did call the lactation consultant on Friday, and she very nicely called me back and suggested a "pumping/nursing every three hours weekend," plus fenugreek pills/tea. I was able to manage the pumping and nursing, but we just didn't get to the health food store for the fenugreek. I do have some Mother's Milk organic tea bags in my office, so I'll make some tea tomorrow at work. I've also read that oatmeal helps increase milk supply, so what the hell -- maybe that's what I'll have for dinner tomorrow. And I'll toss a couple of granola bars in my bag, too.
With Dad's help this weekend (he and Roo got LOTS of quality time to play together), I was able to pump enough to get the freezer stash up to two bags! If I go back to pumping three times a day at work, along with all of the other measures I'm taking, I may be able to stick with the boob juice-only thing!
Roo MAY have said "Da" in the high chair at lunch today. Three times. In a row. Right after Dad said "dadada" to him. Coincidence? Or genius child??? ;-)
The maid starts on Tuesday; after that, she/he/they will visit every other week on Wednesdays. I can't begin to express how thrilled I am about this. This weekend I spent as much time as possible clearing (not cleaning) off surfaces to make it easier for them to get my house spotless. Just the thought of bathing Andrew in a sparkling clean tub gives me goosebumps of pleasure. There isn't going to be dog hair (and who knows what else) stuck to the base of my toilet. This is really, really big.
I must say that the return of my "monthlies" threw me for a bit of a loop. It's just one more step in the evolution of our mother-child relationship. It means that he's independent enough from me (well, my breasts anyway) that I'm now able to produce another baby. These days it seems like it's all happening so fast: sitting, then crawling, then standing -- soon, walking. Transferring his clothes to the dryer tonight, I remarked to myself how the sleeves and pantlegs of the clothes that fit him just keep getting bigger and longer. I keep one of his "newborn" size diapers in his sock drawer, just to remind me of how tiny he was when he was born. And oh, how tiny he was. And my goodness, how big he is getting!
I have to say that folks have been very helpful and supportive, via email, in person, and through comments on this blog, about my milk-supply quandary. Thank you! I think I'd really like to see a long-term study of breastfed-only infants and formula-fed-only infants in daycare from a young age, just to see how many illnesses each group gets, and how long those illnesses last. I'm convinced that daycare is the major factor in Andrew's illnesses here...and I must say, knock on wood, that he hasn't been terribly sick, or even that frequently. But like I've said before, I'd been led to believe that the boobie juice was a cure-all. I'm also convinced that the majority of mothers who only breastfeed (i.e. never have to use formula) are also stay-at-home moms, or moms whose kids aren't in large-group daycare. So, of course those kids (and their immature immune systems) aren't going to be exposed to every germ that passes through the center. My mom tells me that I didn't go to a babysitter until I was 9 months old, and that I was rarely sick and never had an ear infection in my life -- and I was formula-fed. And let me tell you, there are a lot of illnesses that can take hold in winter in rural Maine...but I wasn't in group daycare.
I dunno. Maybe I'm just assuaging my mommy-guilt that I've "allowed" Roo to get sick even these admittedly few times. I've got to stop that whole guilt thing. After all, we do have a wonderful, bright, very smiley, standing-on-his-own, chirpy and recently very talkative little man! I've got to start focusing on what we're doing right :-)
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Better Baby; Achy Breaky Boobs
Andrew seems to be feeling better, now that he's been on antibiotics for the ear infection and meds for his breathing. The pediatrician said his ears look great, actually, when we visited this morning. Plus he said his breathing sounds better and that he's not "pulling" his chest muscles anymore. We can now back off to using the Albuterol/Pulmicort in the nebulizer only a couple of times a day, and we'll go back to see the pediatrician next Wednesday, at which point I hope we can stop the meds altogether.
Tonight is the closest I've come in a LONG time to giving in on the breastmilk-only versus supplementing-with-formula thing. A couple of things precipitated this:
1. Last week, a new lunch-coverage person began work at Andrew's daycare and mistakenly gave him someone else's bottle. Of formula. He was fine, and as soon as his full-time teacher came into the room, she immediately saw what was going on and snatched the bottle from Roo and replaced it with his bottle of breast milk. I could have been very upset about this (what if it had been a bottle of someone else's breastmilk, and what if that person had some sort of disease???), but I let it slide. He seemed to have absolutely no adverse side effects from his surprise "cocktail" of Enfamil GentlEase Lipil. Good thing I've spent all this time and effort (and surgery for abscesses, etc.) on breastfeeding. The least he could have done would be to turn his nose up at the formula!!! Thanks, kid.
2. I've been quite demoralized by this ear infection and asthma-like cough/nebulizer, etc. Again, I thought breastfeeding was supposed to be a magic bullet, or rather a bullet-proof vest, protecting him from any and every germ out there. Those formula-fed babies would hack and puke their way through germ season while my hippie breastfed baby would sail through, pink-cheeked and smiling, with nary a sniffle. Oh, how wrong I was. If they're in daycare, they're going to get every germ that circulates through; it's just a matter of time. It's not such a bad thing, I guess -- my coworkers whose babies were in daycare said they were sick all the time, too, but that by the time they hit school age they were almost NEVER sick. But really, sometimes I feel like I was sold a bill of goods about BFing -- almost like the lovely people who are out there to encourage breastfeeding (and LORD knows I am one of them and can sympathize) would promise almost anything to get you to try and stay with nursing.
3. My milk supply is dwindling. Tonight, because I only got to pump once at work today instead of twice, I had to thaw the last packet of frozen breast milk from the freezer in order to make up Andrew's two bottles for daycare tomorrow. And that's it. I now officially have no reserve of breastmilk. Whereas a few months ago I had a huge oversupply and could regularly pump enough for 3 large bottles PLUS a bag for the freezer daily, now I'm lucky if I produce enough for 2 4-ounce bottles each day.
So I have a couple of options here:
1. Work really, really hard to increase my milk supply again. This will mean a weekend of nursing or pumping every couple of hours, and I'll probably have to carry that into the work week, too. So, whereas I had cut back my daily at-work pumping sessions from 3 to 2, I'll probably have to go back to 3. Or...
2. Supplement with formula. If you've been reading this blog all along, you'll know that I'm not wild about this option. But honestly, I'm less not-wild about it than I had been, given everything I stated above.
Another thing: I'm getting worse at my job. I'm so sick and tired of closing my office door several times a day, taking off my shirt, plugging in the breast pump, connecting all the tubing...Putting on the hands-free pumping bustier. Draping a cloth diaper over my lap so I don't get milk on my work pants. Screwing the connectors onto the collection containers. Pumping. Disconnecting everything, being uber-careful not to spill the precious milk. Getting dressed again. Opening the door. Opening the blinds. Schlepping everything (discreetly, of course) to the staff kitchen to wash it out. And then it seems like it's only an hour or so later that I have to do it all again.
And all that, for what? So my kid can STILL get ear infections and have an asthmatic cough? I was formula-fed and I never had an ear infection and I most certainly never had to have Albuterol. Then again, I was raised in the wilds of Maine, where the air is crisp and clean and not polluted, and I didn't go into daycare until I was 9 months old.
I'm tired of schlepping the breast pump bag back and forth from the house to the car, from the car to work, and back again. I'm so tired of carefully swabbing out the intricate breast pump connector parts, membranes, collection containers, etc. I'm tired of all this and more:
Disposable nursing pads
Lanolin breast ointment
Cracked, bleeding nipples (yes, still)
My right boob being twice the size of the left
Leaking
Not being able to wear a sexy bra
Not being able to schedule meetings at certain times of day
Being bitten, even though those little baby teeth ARE cute
Being tired and hungry all the time
Worrying about spilling the breast milk when preparing bottles
Don't get me wrong: I do want to nurse Andrew until he's at least a year old. I've got no beef about him nursing when we're together -- it's just the damn pumping.
Would there really be that much of a decrease in benefits to him if he had formula at daycare and breastmilk when we're together?
I feel like such a wimp, but I'm tired, tired, tired of feeling like a moo-cow hooked up to a milking machine.
Tonight is the closest I've come in a LONG time to giving in on the breastmilk-only versus supplementing-with-formula thing. A couple of things precipitated this:
1. Last week, a new lunch-coverage person began work at Andrew's daycare and mistakenly gave him someone else's bottle. Of formula. He was fine, and as soon as his full-time teacher came into the room, she immediately saw what was going on and snatched the bottle from Roo and replaced it with his bottle of breast milk. I could have been very upset about this (what if it had been a bottle of someone else's breastmilk, and what if that person had some sort of disease???), but I let it slide. He seemed to have absolutely no adverse side effects from his surprise "cocktail" of Enfamil GentlEase Lipil. Good thing I've spent all this time and effort (and surgery for abscesses, etc.) on breastfeeding. The least he could have done would be to turn his nose up at the formula!!! Thanks, kid.
2. I've been quite demoralized by this ear infection and asthma-like cough/nebulizer, etc. Again, I thought breastfeeding was supposed to be a magic bullet, or rather a bullet-proof vest, protecting him from any and every germ out there. Those formula-fed babies would hack and puke their way through germ season while my hippie breastfed baby would sail through, pink-cheeked and smiling, with nary a sniffle. Oh, how wrong I was. If they're in daycare, they're going to get every germ that circulates through; it's just a matter of time. It's not such a bad thing, I guess -- my coworkers whose babies were in daycare said they were sick all the time, too, but that by the time they hit school age they were almost NEVER sick. But really, sometimes I feel like I was sold a bill of goods about BFing -- almost like the lovely people who are out there to encourage breastfeeding (and LORD knows I am one of them and can sympathize) would promise almost anything to get you to try and stay with nursing.
3. My milk supply is dwindling. Tonight, because I only got to pump once at work today instead of twice, I had to thaw the last packet of frozen breast milk from the freezer in order to make up Andrew's two bottles for daycare tomorrow. And that's it. I now officially have no reserve of breastmilk. Whereas a few months ago I had a huge oversupply and could regularly pump enough for 3 large bottles PLUS a bag for the freezer daily, now I'm lucky if I produce enough for 2 4-ounce bottles each day.
So I have a couple of options here:
1. Work really, really hard to increase my milk supply again. This will mean a weekend of nursing or pumping every couple of hours, and I'll probably have to carry that into the work week, too. So, whereas I had cut back my daily at-work pumping sessions from 3 to 2, I'll probably have to go back to 3. Or...
2. Supplement with formula. If you've been reading this blog all along, you'll know that I'm not wild about this option. But honestly, I'm less not-wild about it than I had been, given everything I stated above.
Another thing: I'm getting worse at my job. I'm so sick and tired of closing my office door several times a day, taking off my shirt, plugging in the breast pump, connecting all the tubing...Putting on the hands-free pumping bustier. Draping a cloth diaper over my lap so I don't get milk on my work pants. Screwing the connectors onto the collection containers. Pumping. Disconnecting everything, being uber-careful not to spill the precious milk. Getting dressed again. Opening the door. Opening the blinds. Schlepping everything (discreetly, of course) to the staff kitchen to wash it out. And then it seems like it's only an hour or so later that I have to do it all again.
And all that, for what? So my kid can STILL get ear infections and have an asthmatic cough? I was formula-fed and I never had an ear infection and I most certainly never had to have Albuterol. Then again, I was raised in the wilds of Maine, where the air is crisp and clean and not polluted, and I didn't go into daycare until I was 9 months old.
I'm tired of schlepping the breast pump bag back and forth from the house to the car, from the car to work, and back again. I'm so tired of carefully swabbing out the intricate breast pump connector parts, membranes, collection containers, etc. I'm tired of all this and more:
Disposable nursing pads
Lanolin breast ointment
Cracked, bleeding nipples (yes, still)
My right boob being twice the size of the left
Leaking
Not being able to wear a sexy bra
Not being able to schedule meetings at certain times of day
Being bitten, even though those little baby teeth ARE cute
Being tired and hungry all the time
Worrying about spilling the breast milk when preparing bottles
Don't get me wrong: I do want to nurse Andrew until he's at least a year old. I've got no beef about him nursing when we're together -- it's just the damn pumping.
Would there really be that much of a decrease in benefits to him if he had formula at daycare and breastmilk when we're together?
I feel like such a wimp, but I'm tired, tired, tired of feeling like a moo-cow hooked up to a milking machine.
Many Milestones
Goodness, it's been almost a month since I posted! Here are some milestones Andrew has reached since then:
He learned to wave the weekend before he turned 8 months old (it was Sunday, July 27, to be exact).
He pulled himself to standing on Sunday, August 10. Apparently he's been doing this at daycare off and on, but this was the first time he did it for us.
Over the past couple of days, and especially reliably at mealtimes and bath time, he's been babbling: "mamamama" and "babababa" are favorites. I had actually been wondering (and worrying) a little bit about when he was going to start babbling -- typical first-time Mommy, I know. It seems like just when I start worry about something, he up and does it! Anyway, he's also becoming fond of the hard "g" sound, but doesn't really go "gaga" yet.
That's the good news. The annoying news is that I had to take Andrew in for a doctor's visit on Monday because he'd had a terrible weekend -- bad sleep, pulling on his ears, nagging cough, and a fever by Sunday night. The verdict: an ear infection, plus "asthma-like symptoms," so the doc prescribed Albuterol every 4-6 hours (around the clock; ugh, yes, that means setting my alarm for 1:00 a.m. nightly), plus a pulmonary steroid (Pulmicort) every 12 hours, both via nebulizer. I am very concerned about this -- is he going to actually have asthma? I'll be able to ask more questions this morning at 9:00 when we go for our follow-up visit.
Oh, actually, here's piece of good news: I've hired a maid service. They start next Tuesday the 19th, and will come bi-weekly after that. God knows how I'm going to afford it, but I can't stand the grime around here anymore, and I just don't have time to get to it.
Last night I harvested 2 tomatoes and 2 cucumbers from the garden. They were tasty, but I wonder why the bottom halves of the cucumbers didn't fill out??
He learned to wave the weekend before he turned 8 months old (it was Sunday, July 27, to be exact).
He pulled himself to standing on Sunday, August 10. Apparently he's been doing this at daycare off and on, but this was the first time he did it for us.
Over the past couple of days, and especially reliably at mealtimes and bath time, he's been babbling: "mamamama" and "babababa" are favorites. I had actually been wondering (and worrying) a little bit about when he was going to start babbling -- typical first-time Mommy, I know. It seems like just when I start worry about something, he up and does it! Anyway, he's also becoming fond of the hard "g" sound, but doesn't really go "gaga" yet.
That's the good news. The annoying news is that I had to take Andrew in for a doctor's visit on Monday because he'd had a terrible weekend -- bad sleep, pulling on his ears, nagging cough, and a fever by Sunday night. The verdict: an ear infection, plus "asthma-like symptoms," so the doc prescribed Albuterol every 4-6 hours (around the clock; ugh, yes, that means setting my alarm for 1:00 a.m. nightly), plus a pulmonary steroid (Pulmicort) every 12 hours, both via nebulizer. I am very concerned about this -- is he going to actually have asthma? I'll be able to ask more questions this morning at 9:00 when we go for our follow-up visit.
Oh, actually, here's piece of good news: I've hired a maid service. They start next Tuesday the 19th, and will come bi-weekly after that. God knows how I'm going to afford it, but I can't stand the grime around here anymore, and I just don't have time to get to it.
Last night I harvested 2 tomatoes and 2 cucumbers from the garden. They were tasty, but I wonder why the bottom halves of the cucumbers didn't fill out??
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Big Boy
Andrew first crawled, on his hands and knees, on Friday, July 11!
This weekend we babyproofed the house and installed the new convertible car seats. I had mine checked out by the very nice, adorable police officers in the town where I work. They were SO helpful, and I feel much more confident about the seat now. Man, though, car seat manufacturers do NOT make their instructions very easy to read and follow!
Roo has 5 teeth now, and I'm pretty sure the 6th is about to pop through his upper gum. This week I hope to make some more frozen baby food cubes: peaches, apples, and sweet potatoes. One of these days I'm going to see how he likes regular white potatoes.
Don't you think they have the same smile in this picture?
This weekend we babyproofed the house and installed the new convertible car seats. I had mine checked out by the very nice, adorable police officers in the town where I work. They were SO helpful, and I feel much more confident about the seat now. Man, though, car seat manufacturers do NOT make their instructions very easy to read and follow!
Roo has 5 teeth now, and I'm pretty sure the 6th is about to pop through his upper gum. This week I hope to make some more frozen baby food cubes: peaches, apples, and sweet potatoes. One of these days I'm going to see how he likes regular white potatoes.
Don't you think they have the same smile in this picture?
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Messy Life
As I was whirling around trying (futilely) to clean the kitchen tonight after putting Andrew to bed, I came to some realizations about our life right now, and I'm pretty happy with these:
1. There is dog and cat hair in the corners of every room, and on the stairs. But my son loves dogs and cats -- they elicit huge grins from him.
2. There is clean laundry from weeks ago, not yet put away, all over my bedroom. But Andrew and I always go to work/daycare in clean clothes. I take pride in getting the food stains out of his bibs, in fact. Who was the genius who invented Oxy Clean?
3. Sometimes all the groceries don't make it into the actual cupboards, so they're left sitting out on the counters. But Andrew eats all organic food, and he hasn't yet met a food that he doesn't like, and he's well-nourished and (knock wood) healthy.
4. Confession: I have 30-odd library books/movies/audiobooks checked out, and I don't know where they all are. The living room, various spots in the bedroom (including in the bed), next to the rocking chair in the nursery, and in canvas bags in my car. But I read to my son every day -- sometimes after nursing him first thing in the morning, and sometimes when we get home from work/daycare, and sometimes right before bed. And sometimes all three.
5. Usually, the hand-washed dishes in the strainer don't make it to the cupboard either. But they are clean, and everything gets run through the dishwasher at least weekly for sanitizing.
Honestly, I'd rather spend my "alone" time in the evening reading a good book, or researching interesting homemade baby food recipes, or clipping coupons, or blogging. Cleaning isn't high on my list. What is there to be learned from drudgery?
The other week I made cupcakes for Andrew's new head teacher at daycare, because I'd heard her birthday was coming up, and she's a sweet, sweet lady. It was a busy weeknight as it was, but she is worth the time and effort.
I'd also rather spend time watering, feeding, and tending to my vegetables and flowers than worrying about yard work. It's been so satisfying, even just over the past four weeks or so, to see my veggies grow from little tiny seeds to climbing vines and strong stalks that may actually provide food for us this summer.
I'd rather throw the ball for the dogs 100 times than vacuum up the dog hair, religiously, every day. How boring. When my dog's life is over, will I look back fondly at the time I spent vacuuming, or the times my fuzzy best friend ran, hell-bent, across the yard trying to catch the ball on the first hop?
I don't have nice furniture, my house needs mega repairs and updating, my car has many barely-contained fast-food wrappers in its travel trash bag, and my kitchen floor has splats and splotches on it from dogs, cats, and baby (and me, to be honest). There is dust and there are papers and baby toys and literally hundreds of books and magazines, all over my house. My beloved Cuisinart and KitchenAid mixer live out on the counter, because they are like third and fourth arms to me. Andy-Roo's artwork from daycare is taped to the fridge, as are photos, business cards for landscapers (haha), and Roo's daily contact sheets from daycare. I haven't filed old paperwork since before he was born; it's all being held in an old Pampers Swaddlers box in the hallway, to be honest. This is, well, just the detritus of our busy, active life.
It is a messy life, but oh, is it a full one. And I wouldn't have it any other way.
1. There is dog and cat hair in the corners of every room, and on the stairs. But my son loves dogs and cats -- they elicit huge grins from him.
2. There is clean laundry from weeks ago, not yet put away, all over my bedroom. But Andrew and I always go to work/daycare in clean clothes. I take pride in getting the food stains out of his bibs, in fact. Who was the genius who invented Oxy Clean?
3. Sometimes all the groceries don't make it into the actual cupboards, so they're left sitting out on the counters. But Andrew eats all organic food, and he hasn't yet met a food that he doesn't like, and he's well-nourished and (knock wood) healthy.
4. Confession: I have 30-odd library books/movies/audiobooks checked out, and I don't know where they all are. The living room, various spots in the bedroom (including in the bed), next to the rocking chair in the nursery, and in canvas bags in my car. But I read to my son every day -- sometimes after nursing him first thing in the morning, and sometimes when we get home from work/daycare, and sometimes right before bed. And sometimes all three.
5. Usually, the hand-washed dishes in the strainer don't make it to the cupboard either. But they are clean, and everything gets run through the dishwasher at least weekly for sanitizing.
Honestly, I'd rather spend my "alone" time in the evening reading a good book, or researching interesting homemade baby food recipes, or clipping coupons, or blogging. Cleaning isn't high on my list. What is there to be learned from drudgery?
The other week I made cupcakes for Andrew's new head teacher at daycare, because I'd heard her birthday was coming up, and she's a sweet, sweet lady. It was a busy weeknight as it was, but she is worth the time and effort.
I'd also rather spend time watering, feeding, and tending to my vegetables and flowers than worrying about yard work. It's been so satisfying, even just over the past four weeks or so, to see my veggies grow from little tiny seeds to climbing vines and strong stalks that may actually provide food for us this summer.
I'd rather throw the ball for the dogs 100 times than vacuum up the dog hair, religiously, every day. How boring. When my dog's life is over, will I look back fondly at the time I spent vacuuming, or the times my fuzzy best friend ran, hell-bent, across the yard trying to catch the ball on the first hop?
I don't have nice furniture, my house needs mega repairs and updating, my car has many barely-contained fast-food wrappers in its travel trash bag, and my kitchen floor has splats and splotches on it from dogs, cats, and baby (and me, to be honest). There is dust and there are papers and baby toys and literally hundreds of books and magazines, all over my house. My beloved Cuisinart and KitchenAid mixer live out on the counter, because they are like third and fourth arms to me. Andy-Roo's artwork from daycare is taped to the fridge, as are photos, business cards for landscapers (haha), and Roo's daily contact sheets from daycare. I haven't filed old paperwork since before he was born; it's all being held in an old Pampers Swaddlers box in the hallway, to be honest. This is, well, just the detritus of our busy, active life.
It is a messy life, but oh, is it a full one. And I wouldn't have it any other way.
What's Your Hot Water Setting?
For the past few weeks, I've been turning my boiler completely off at night. This came about after I went down to the basement one day to throw in a load of laundry and found that my boiler was running. In June. The only thing it would be running for in June is hot water, and I hadn't called for any hot water, since I'd just gotten home from work.
You see, I have what's called "residential hot water," or "tankless" hot water. There's a small reserve tank, but that's just for water that my furnace heats; I have no hot water heater, per se. I realized that day that the furnace actually runs, all day, to keep the reserve tank at the right temperature. So, at night after my shower I've been going back to the basement and turning the emergency power switch to the furnace to "OFF," and it doesn't get turned on again until the next evening when I get home from work. The reserve tank insulates the hot water well enough so that I have enough warm water to wash my hands in the morning.
Tonight, though, when I went downstairs to turn the thing off, I decided to check the temperature to which the boiler was heating the water in the reserve tank...
Let's back up here. Here's some background info, before I tell you what temp the tank was at:
"Popular Mechanics" (November 2005) says "A factory setting of 120 F on a new residential water heater is recommended (and is sometimes mandated by state law) because it is the highest setting considered to be safe; higher temperatures can cause severe scalding.
"According to the Shriners Hospitals for Children, a person exposed to 140 F water for about 3 seconds receives a second-degree burn and after 5 seconds will have a third-degree burn. At 120 F it will take approximately 5 minutes to receive a third-degree burn. It can take less than half that time for a child to be scalded."
Well, folks, my hot water heater was set at 180 DEGREES.
Needless to say, I was pissed. Now, I knew it was hot (I do, after all do a ton of baby/breast pump dishes by hand every night). But not THAT hot. So, not only had I been wasting precious oil by keeping the boiler on day and night, but I'd REALLY been wasting oil (and creating a dangerous situation in my house with an infant around) by having too-hot water coming out of the tap. In my opinion, the hottest water that comes out of your tap should be just hot enough to stand without adding cold water, because if you have to add cold water to hot water, aren't you kind of defeating the purpose of heating all that water?
Anyway, lesson learned. My aquastat is now set at 120 degrees, but I'm still turning off the boiler at night, because I'm a cheap Yankee, and damn proud of it.
Check your aquastat today!
Addendum: I had meant to mention that I'm mostly pissed with my oil company, which also services my boiler, because they MUST have known that the aquastat was set so dangerously and wastefully high. Hell, they may have even set it at that temperature. At the very least, they should have been checking it during annual inspections! I certainly have never, ever opened up the panel that houses the aquastat. I only found it by dubbing around; it's totally not obvious or easily accessible. I would switch oil companies tomorrow if the oil company owner weren't my next-door neighbor, and if she weren't a darn sweet 80-something widow who thinks my son is just adorable. Sigh...
You see, I have what's called "residential hot water," or "tankless" hot water. There's a small reserve tank, but that's just for water that my furnace heats; I have no hot water heater, per se. I realized that day that the furnace actually runs, all day, to keep the reserve tank at the right temperature. So, at night after my shower I've been going back to the basement and turning the emergency power switch to the furnace to "OFF," and it doesn't get turned on again until the next evening when I get home from work. The reserve tank insulates the hot water well enough so that I have enough warm water to wash my hands in the morning.
Tonight, though, when I went downstairs to turn the thing off, I decided to check the temperature to which the boiler was heating the water in the reserve tank...
Let's back up here. Here's some background info, before I tell you what temp the tank was at:
"Popular Mechanics" (November 2005) says "A factory setting of 120 F on a new residential water heater is recommended (and is sometimes mandated by state law) because it is the highest setting considered to be safe; higher temperatures can cause severe scalding.
"According to the Shriners Hospitals for Children, a person exposed to 140 F water for about 3 seconds receives a second-degree burn and after 5 seconds will have a third-degree burn. At 120 F it will take approximately 5 minutes to receive a third-degree burn. It can take less than half that time for a child to be scalded."
Well, folks, my hot water heater was set at 180 DEGREES.
Needless to say, I was pissed. Now, I knew it was hot (I do, after all do a ton of baby/breast pump dishes by hand every night). But not THAT hot. So, not only had I been wasting precious oil by keeping the boiler on day and night, but I'd REALLY been wasting oil (and creating a dangerous situation in my house with an infant around) by having too-hot water coming out of the tap. In my opinion, the hottest water that comes out of your tap should be just hot enough to stand without adding cold water, because if you have to add cold water to hot water, aren't you kind of defeating the purpose of heating all that water?
Anyway, lesson learned. My aquastat is now set at 120 degrees, but I'm still turning off the boiler at night, because I'm a cheap Yankee, and damn proud of it.
Check your aquastat today!
Addendum: I had meant to mention that I'm mostly pissed with my oil company, which also services my boiler, because they MUST have known that the aquastat was set so dangerously and wastefully high. Hell, they may have even set it at that temperature. At the very least, they should have been checking it during annual inspections! I certainly have never, ever opened up the panel that houses the aquastat. I only found it by dubbing around; it's totally not obvious or easily accessible. I would switch oil companies tomorrow if the oil company owner weren't my next-door neighbor, and if she weren't a darn sweet 80-something widow who thinks my son is just adorable. Sigh...
Sunday, July 6, 2008
We Have A Crawler!
Or, rather, a creeper. It first happened on July 2. Andrew can now push off with his legs and do sort of an "Army crawl." It's the first time he's been able to move himself forward, and it's darn cute. He's still figuring out the "up on hands and knees, belly off the floor" kind of crawl, but we think that's because he's...um...a little chubby...
Let's see, what else is new? Oh, last week we both apparently had scarlet fever (which, I didn't know, is just strep with a rash; sounds a lot worse than it is). Roo is up to 3 meals per day (8 a.m.-ish, 1 p.m.-ish, and 6 p.m.). He's eating lots of new foods since the last dietary update: prunes, peaches, mangoes, chicken, turkey, barley, lentils...the list goes on and on. Yesterday he tried some cheese. He likes it all so far! Believe it or not, he's never had green beans. I'm going to cook some up this week, puree them, and see how it goes.
This weekend we visited Nan for the Fourth; we got spoiled, and she and Aunt K babysat so we could go out to a movie AND dinner on Saturday night! We felt like actual grownups, but were still home by 9:00, and it was even still light out when we came through the door.
We're just so in love with our little boy. Every day is a new adventure, and it's just a joy watching him explore the big, beautiful world. At dinner last night, we of course spent a great deal of time talking about Andrew and his personality. He's pretty laid back most of the time, actually, but when he decides to melt down it's sudden and spectacular. He does NOT like to be left alone for any period of time; in fact, if you walk up to him when he's playing quietly by himself, make eye contact, and then walk away, he becomes despondent! He love animals; he's been around dogs and cats his whole life. He's great on car trips, and he loves being outdoors. He's not a big snuggler, except when he's tired or upset. He's getting to the age when he perpetually wants to be doing something: playing, crawling, etc. His face lights up when someone he knows smiles at him. He likes to be read to, except lately he seems most interested in eating board books :-) What an absolute joy. I feel so lucky to be his mama!
Let's see, what else is new? Oh, last week we both apparently had scarlet fever (which, I didn't know, is just strep with a rash; sounds a lot worse than it is). Roo is up to 3 meals per day (8 a.m.-ish, 1 p.m.-ish, and 6 p.m.). He's eating lots of new foods since the last dietary update: prunes, peaches, mangoes, chicken, turkey, barley, lentils...the list goes on and on. Yesterday he tried some cheese. He likes it all so far! Believe it or not, he's never had green beans. I'm going to cook some up this week, puree them, and see how it goes.
This weekend we visited Nan for the Fourth; we got spoiled, and she and Aunt K babysat so we could go out to a movie AND dinner on Saturday night! We felt like actual grownups, but were still home by 9:00, and it was even still light out when we came through the door.
We're just so in love with our little boy. Every day is a new adventure, and it's just a joy watching him explore the big, beautiful world. At dinner last night, we of course spent a great deal of time talking about Andrew and his personality. He's pretty laid back most of the time, actually, but when he decides to melt down it's sudden and spectacular. He does NOT like to be left alone for any period of time; in fact, if you walk up to him when he's playing quietly by himself, make eye contact, and then walk away, he becomes despondent! He love animals; he's been around dogs and cats his whole life. He's great on car trips, and he loves being outdoors. He's not a big snuggler, except when he's tired or upset. He's getting to the age when he perpetually wants to be doing something: playing, crawling, etc. His face lights up when someone he knows smiles at him. He likes to be read to, except lately he seems most interested in eating board books :-) What an absolute joy. I feel so lucky to be his mama!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Oh So Big
Andrew is outgrowing everything: his infant car seat/carrier and his bouncy seat in particular. We bought 2 convertible car seats last week (one for Dad's car and one for mine), which we'll install this weekend. It's a must-do, since at his 6 month (and 3 week) visit, Roo weighed 20 lbs, 11.2 ounces and was 28 inches long. The limit for the Graco SnugRide infant car seat is 22 lbs and 29 inches! What happened to my tiny little newborn???
So, what the HECK am I going to do when he can't hang out in the bouncy seat while I'm getting ready in the morning anymore? He's already frustrated with it, and I've taken to sitting him with toys in his bassinet, which is still set up in my bedroom (even though he sleeps in his own room in the crib these days). But once he starts pulling himself up, all bets are off -- no more using the bassinet as a playpen. I need ideas! Do I just plop him back in his crib with some toys while I brush my teeth, get dressed, etc? I've already given up morning showers in favor of bathing after he goes to bed, so as to minimize the length of our mornings...but I don't think he'll tolerate being sequestered in his crib, in another room. He wants to be near me all the time, and I know he'll scream if I leave him alone.
I could put him in the exersaucer, but that's downstairs in the living room, so same problem. There's not enough room anywhere upstairs for any sort of play yard, and it certainly couldn't be anywhere near where I'm doing my morning ablutions or getting dressed. Help!
Roo had a terrible weekend - he had his shots at his well-child visit on Thursday afternoon, and spiked a fever the next day, requiring me to pick him up from daycare basically as soon as I arrived at my first-thing-in-the-morning meeting. Sigh -- poor kid. He was whiny, didn't sleep well, and didn't eat well basically through Sunday afternoon. He's been OK since then, but now he has a raised, sandpapery rash on his legs and arms. It doesn't seem to bother him, but I'm wondering if it's a) a reaction to one or more of the vaccines, or b) the result of a virus he picked up, which could have explained the fever on Friday. Who knows? He seems happy enough, though, and he's eating and sleeping normally.
The garden is doing well! I'll post some pictures of it soon. This weekend I hope to trellis the cucumbers, squashes, and tomatoes. I had to thin the bush bean seedlings last night :-( It was sad; sort of like selective reduction. But I had 15 plants growing in a container only designed for 9. At least the culled seedlings went to a good cause: the composter! Oh, and the marigold seeds I planted in the spaces in my veggie planters have sprouted :-) Let's hope they keep the bug population down.
Oh, and the oregano finally sprouted. I wasn't sure if those little teeny-weeny things in the planter were oregano babies, but Mom suggested I taste one (duh!) -- Yup, oregano!
So, what the HECK am I going to do when he can't hang out in the bouncy seat while I'm getting ready in the morning anymore? He's already frustrated with it, and I've taken to sitting him with toys in his bassinet, which is still set up in my bedroom (even though he sleeps in his own room in the crib these days). But once he starts pulling himself up, all bets are off -- no more using the bassinet as a playpen. I need ideas! Do I just plop him back in his crib with some toys while I brush my teeth, get dressed, etc? I've already given up morning showers in favor of bathing after he goes to bed, so as to minimize the length of our mornings...but I don't think he'll tolerate being sequestered in his crib, in another room. He wants to be near me all the time, and I know he'll scream if I leave him alone.
I could put him in the exersaucer, but that's downstairs in the living room, so same problem. There's not enough room anywhere upstairs for any sort of play yard, and it certainly couldn't be anywhere near where I'm doing my morning ablutions or getting dressed. Help!
Roo had a terrible weekend - he had his shots at his well-child visit on Thursday afternoon, and spiked a fever the next day, requiring me to pick him up from daycare basically as soon as I arrived at my first-thing-in-the-morning meeting. Sigh -- poor kid. He was whiny, didn't sleep well, and didn't eat well basically through Sunday afternoon. He's been OK since then, but now he has a raised, sandpapery rash on his legs and arms. It doesn't seem to bother him, but I'm wondering if it's a) a reaction to one or more of the vaccines, or b) the result of a virus he picked up, which could have explained the fever on Friday. Who knows? He seems happy enough, though, and he's eating and sleeping normally.
The garden is doing well! I'll post some pictures of it soon. This weekend I hope to trellis the cucumbers, squashes, and tomatoes. I had to thin the bush bean seedlings last night :-( It was sad; sort of like selective reduction. But I had 15 plants growing in a container only designed for 9. At least the culled seedlings went to a good cause: the composter! Oh, and the marigold seeds I planted in the spaces in my veggie planters have sprouted :-) Let's hope they keep the bug population down.
Oh, and the oregano finally sprouted. I wasn't sure if those little teeny-weeny things in the planter were oregano babies, but Mom suggested I taste one (duh!) -- Yup, oregano!
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Adventures in Baby Food
So, my attempts to make Homemade Baby Barley Cereal were thwarted last night. I'd gone to the supermarket, purchased some barley, and brought it home intending to whirl it up in the Cuisinart, cook it in some water, and feed it to Andrew. No muss, no fuss.
Well, it turns out that my Cuisinart is not the right tool in which to grind grains. It's too big, and so the grains, which are ideally supposed to be pulverized into a powder, end up just taking a fun (and mighty loud) ride around the Cuisinart for 2 minutes. I was discouraged, but I vowed to try again.
Tonight, Mom brought over some organic pearled barley that she'd picked up at the health food store, along with some organic brown rice. We tried the new barley in the Cuisinart, still with no luck. After 5 minutes, there were still big hard kernels in the basket. I thought maybe I could cook it up and put it through the Cuisinart afterwards, but even after 10 minutes of cooking/stirring, the grains were still too hard for my baby (as a side note, they made a lovely porridge, which I did eat with maple syrup and milk).
Enter the Mr. Coffee grinder. This little beastie had been lurking in the back of my coffee cupboard for a few years (I buy coffee pre-ground), so I thought, "What the heck?" It worked beautifully. Presto! Powdered baby grains!
Unfortunately, Mom and I had so much fun pulverizing barley and brown rice that the thing shut down. I don't know if it just got too warm and turned itself off, or if the motor burned out completely -- I'll re-check it tomorrow. Too bad, though: It was exciting while it lasted.
Meanwhile, I baked 4 peaches, let them cool, and then we peeled and pitted them. We then let the Cuisinart do what it was designed to do: puree. It did a fine job. I ended up with 30 tablespoons of peach puree, 26 of which I froze in an ice cube tray (13 2-tablespoon cubes), and 4 T of which I put into a sealed dish for Andrew to try tomorrow night. I almost decided to send some to daycare with him tomorrow, but god forbid he hates it and ends up with nothing to eat at lunchtime. So it's jarred baby food at daycare tomorrow.
Note: Homemade peach baby food cost me 12 cents per tablespoon, and that's with no water added. Commercial baby food has water added, so I have to remember to factor that in when calculating the cost of homemade versus commercial. I guess I could thin out the peach puree before freezing it, but then I'd have to use two ice cube trays, and there's not that much room in my freezer. Much easier just to thin out the puree after thawing, as needed.
Tomorrow is his 6-month (and 3 week) checkup!
The vegetable container garden is really growing fast -- my cucumbers are about 2 inches tall, as are the bush beans, and yesterday I noticed a flower on one of the tomato plants -- one day, that will be a tomato. In fact, everything that I planted last week (was that really only 7 days ago???) is UP! I was so inspired that today I planted some gourds for fall decorations, plus some peppers. I also planted marigold seeds in and around all of the veggie pots, for color and to keep the bug population down. Theoretically. Anyway, soon I'll need to thin my seedlings and arrange for trellises for the cucumbers, squash, and other vine-y plants.
The last couple of nights, Andrew's been waking in the middle of the night -- in fact, he's making noise as I'm typing this. I think he may have teeth coming, but I don't feel any bumps anywhere. Still, if they're deep but trying to push their way down (or up), they're probably bothering him. Poor thing. I wish he could tell me what's bothering him. He's also got a cough, and he's been pulling on his ears -- again. Sigh; I guess I'll have them check his ears AGAIN tomorrow; let's hope it's "just" teething.
Well, it turns out that my Cuisinart is not the right tool in which to grind grains. It's too big, and so the grains, which are ideally supposed to be pulverized into a powder, end up just taking a fun (and mighty loud) ride around the Cuisinart for 2 minutes. I was discouraged, but I vowed to try again.
Tonight, Mom brought over some organic pearled barley that she'd picked up at the health food store, along with some organic brown rice. We tried the new barley in the Cuisinart, still with no luck. After 5 minutes, there were still big hard kernels in the basket. I thought maybe I could cook it up and put it through the Cuisinart afterwards, but even after 10 minutes of cooking/stirring, the grains were still too hard for my baby (as a side note, they made a lovely porridge, which I did eat with maple syrup and milk).
Enter the Mr. Coffee grinder. This little beastie had been lurking in the back of my coffee cupboard for a few years (I buy coffee pre-ground), so I thought, "What the heck?" It worked beautifully. Presto! Powdered baby grains!
Unfortunately, Mom and I had so much fun pulverizing barley and brown rice that the thing shut down. I don't know if it just got too warm and turned itself off, or if the motor burned out completely -- I'll re-check it tomorrow. Too bad, though: It was exciting while it lasted.
Meanwhile, I baked 4 peaches, let them cool, and then we peeled and pitted them. We then let the Cuisinart do what it was designed to do: puree. It did a fine job. I ended up with 30 tablespoons of peach puree, 26 of which I froze in an ice cube tray (13 2-tablespoon cubes), and 4 T of which I put into a sealed dish for Andrew to try tomorrow night. I almost decided to send some to daycare with him tomorrow, but god forbid he hates it and ends up with nothing to eat at lunchtime. So it's jarred baby food at daycare tomorrow.
Note: Homemade peach baby food cost me 12 cents per tablespoon, and that's with no water added. Commercial baby food has water added, so I have to remember to factor that in when calculating the cost of homemade versus commercial. I guess I could thin out the peach puree before freezing it, but then I'd have to use two ice cube trays, and there's not that much room in my freezer. Much easier just to thin out the puree after thawing, as needed.
Tomorrow is his 6-month (and 3 week) checkup!
The vegetable container garden is really growing fast -- my cucumbers are about 2 inches tall, as are the bush beans, and yesterday I noticed a flower on one of the tomato plants -- one day, that will be a tomato. In fact, everything that I planted last week (was that really only 7 days ago???) is UP! I was so inspired that today I planted some gourds for fall decorations, plus some peppers. I also planted marigold seeds in and around all of the veggie pots, for color and to keep the bug population down. Theoretically. Anyway, soon I'll need to thin my seedlings and arrange for trellises for the cucumbers, squash, and other vine-y plants.
The last couple of nights, Andrew's been waking in the middle of the night -- in fact, he's making noise as I'm typing this. I think he may have teeth coming, but I don't feel any bumps anywhere. Still, if they're deep but trying to push their way down (or up), they're probably bothering him. Poor thing. I wish he could tell me what's bothering him. He's also got a cough, and he's been pulling on his ears -- again. Sigh; I guess I'll have them check his ears AGAIN tomorrow; let's hope it's "just" teething.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Semi-productive day
This morning, Andrew was up before 6. I fed him, brought him downstairs, and entertained him for the next couple of hours, until Daddy came downstairs (one of his Father's Day presents was being allowed to sleep in this morning). After Dad mowed the lawn, we headed out to BJ's for cheap diapers (for use at daycare; we personally prefer Pampers at home), detergent/OxiClean, and other miscellaneous goods. We also stopped by Agway so I could buy garden fertilizer and some other necessities. Just before heading home, we picked up some asparagus at the supermarket.
Tonight, as a sort of pre-Father's Day dinner, I prepared a mushroom risotto with seared bay scallops and asparagus. Yummy! We even had some wine, and Andrew managed to wait long enough to eat dinner that we could actually all "dine" together (Daddy got to do the Spooning of Mush into Roo between bites of risotto).
I fertilized the veggies and my flowerpots this afternoon, with "fish and seaweed emulsion." The smell of it totally reminds me of growing up in coastal Maine ;-) I'm hoping that the thunderstorm currently overhead doesn't whip the wind into a frenzy or send hail down on my poor little baby plants.
And why the heck are garden hoses so darned expensive these days? Fifty feet for $25.00??? I'll water my plants with the $7 watering can, then.
Oh, and I've been trying out hypermiling. Today wasn't so great, because we had to run the AC, but over 80-90 miles of mixed (both city and highway) driving on Thursday/Friday, I got 29.5 mpg in my Honda CR-V!
Tonight, as a sort of pre-Father's Day dinner, I prepared a mushroom risotto with seared bay scallops and asparagus. Yummy! We even had some wine, and Andrew managed to wait long enough to eat dinner that we could actually all "dine" together (Daddy got to do the Spooning of Mush into Roo between bites of risotto).
I fertilized the veggies and my flowerpots this afternoon, with "fish and seaweed emulsion." The smell of it totally reminds me of growing up in coastal Maine ;-) I'm hoping that the thunderstorm currently overhead doesn't whip the wind into a frenzy or send hail down on my poor little baby plants.
And why the heck are garden hoses so darned expensive these days? Fifty feet for $25.00??? I'll water my plants with the $7 watering can, then.
Oh, and I've been trying out hypermiling. Today wasn't so great, because we had to run the AC, but over 80-90 miles of mixed (both city and highway) driving on Thursday/Friday, I got 29.5 mpg in my Honda CR-V!
General Update
Can I just say, I'm glad Andrew's not yet eating tomatoes...one less thing to worry about for now. And, of course, I'm growing the container vegetable garden on the back patio, which includes tomatoes. Clockwise from upper left: cucumbers, beets, tomato, tomato, beans, summer squash, buttercup squash (hmm, I may need to transplant that one later on).
The baby Patio Tomato plants:
The herbs (not-yet-sprouted oregano; the basil; the rosemary):
The basil, which is bolting (eek!):
Mmmm...rosemary:
College friend K, her husband M, and their baby boy H (not quite 6 weeks younger than Roo) visited Thursday night and stayed over until Friday morning. They were most gracious in forgiving my pet-hair-encrusted home. M even made a delicious dinner, which we enjoyed after the baby boys went to sleep. We even cracked open a bottle of wine, which we drank while recounting our birth stories. Funny how, when you're a new mom, "adult" conversation still consists of talking about contractions, episiotomies, and poo... Still, it was nice that they visited, and even nicer feeling like a grownup again.
Sigh; Andrew is in the Pack and Play downstairs here, next to the couch, attempting (unsuccessfully) to nap...this may end with howling...
The baby Patio Tomato plants:
The herbs (not-yet-sprouted oregano; the basil; the rosemary):
The basil, which is bolting (eek!):
Mmmm...rosemary:
College friend K, her husband M, and their baby boy H (not quite 6 weeks younger than Roo) visited Thursday night and stayed over until Friday morning. They were most gracious in forgiving my pet-hair-encrusted home. M even made a delicious dinner, which we enjoyed after the baby boys went to sleep. We even cracked open a bottle of wine, which we drank while recounting our birth stories. Funny how, when you're a new mom, "adult" conversation still consists of talking about contractions, episiotomies, and poo... Still, it was nice that they visited, and even nicer feeling like a grownup again.
Sigh; Andrew is in the Pack and Play downstairs here, next to the couch, attempting (unsuccessfully) to nap...this may end with howling...
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
SuperWoman Day
I honestly don't know how I did it all today. I write this, not to brag, but to remind myself of my potential at some later date when I'm berating myself for "only" getting the bare minimum of work, chores, etc. done:
I got up just before 6 a.m. Actually, I woke naturally at around 4:30, because it was light out. Silly summertime. Since we'd lost electricity due to a thunderstorm just before 11 last night, I'd woken up then to check on Andrew, and immediately went back to bed. This means I got 5.5 hours of consecutive sleep! Anyway, after the 4:30 waking (and baby check), I went back to bed until the Roo woke up at 5:45ish, and we were up for the day.
Somehow I managed to get out of the house by 7 a.m., so I got to work early. Whoa. I even brought the dog with me -- he was thrilled!
Left work at 12:30 (remember, Wednesday is my short day), fully intending to come home and spend many hours cleaning, organizing, and tidying my house in preparation for tomorrow night's overnight visit from my college friend K, her husband M, and their baby H. However, when I left work I realized that it was an absolutely gorgeous day, and that the humidity of the previous two days was gone, and that I positively HAD to plant flowers, or vegetables, or something. My coworker D had told me that it's not too late to put some things in the ground, and I'd picked up a few books on gardening (including one on container gardening of vegetables and herbs).
So, here's how the afternoon and evening went, from 12:30 on:
12:30-1: Drove home
1-2: Dropped off dog at home, put breast milk in the fridge, changed into scrubby clothes, cleaned nursery, sorted laundry, put a load of laundry in the washer, collected mail, cleaned out the fridge, cleaned the litterbox, gathered garbage/recycling, tidied breezeway a bit, rearranged the spare bedroom so that K and her family will actually be able to fit in it tomorrow night.
2-2:30: Went to Agway and bought seeds, plants, and planters.
2:30-4:30: Had a grand old time planting tomato plants, a rosemary plant (which will probably not do so well, but hey), and seeds as follows: red beets, orange beets, zucchini, yellow squash, buttercup squash (I'm also not holding out much hope for that), bush beans, and cucumbers. These are all currently in containers on my patio, but can obviously be moved or transplanted. And hey, if nothing comes of them, who cares? I got lots of sunshine and got to feel like a grownup this afternoon.
4:30-5: Cleaned up myself and the patio, switched out the laundry for a new load, went to pick up Roo at daycare.
5-5:30: Got Roo home, unpacked his bottles, etc. and put them to soak in the sink, nursed him.
5:30: Grocery delivery girl came. Put away all the groceries.
6:00: Video chat with MDad while feeding Roo his supper (peas and cereal).
6:30: Grammy stopped by and helped give Roo his bath, fed the dog, etc. I remembered to give Roo his final dose of ear antibiotics.
7:00: Nursed Roo again and put him to bed.
7:30: Cooked a salmon fillet; ate half of it with Soy Vay teriyaki sauce (I love that stuff).
8-9: Dusted and vacuumed living room, vacuumed the downstairs and the stairwell, washed the kitchen floor, did all the baby/breastpump dishes by hand, ran the dishwasher, tidied the kitchen, took out the second load of laundry, got coffeepot ready for tomorrow morning.
9:00: Took a shower. Hallelujah!
The only things I didn't get to do were pay some bills (these are some that are not able to be paid online); pack my breakfast/lunch for tomorrow; and pack Roo's jar of baby food and 1/4 cup of dry cereal for tomorrow. But I can do all of those things in the morning. Sleep now!
I got up just before 6 a.m. Actually, I woke naturally at around 4:30, because it was light out. Silly summertime. Since we'd lost electricity due to a thunderstorm just before 11 last night, I'd woken up then to check on Andrew, and immediately went back to bed. This means I got 5.5 hours of consecutive sleep! Anyway, after the 4:30 waking (and baby check), I went back to bed until the Roo woke up at 5:45ish, and we were up for the day.
Somehow I managed to get out of the house by 7 a.m., so I got to work early. Whoa. I even brought the dog with me -- he was thrilled!
Left work at 12:30 (remember, Wednesday is my short day), fully intending to come home and spend many hours cleaning, organizing, and tidying my house in preparation for tomorrow night's overnight visit from my college friend K, her husband M, and their baby H. However, when I left work I realized that it was an absolutely gorgeous day, and that the humidity of the previous two days was gone, and that I positively HAD to plant flowers, or vegetables, or something. My coworker D had told me that it's not too late to put some things in the ground, and I'd picked up a few books on gardening (including one on container gardening of vegetables and herbs).
So, here's how the afternoon and evening went, from 12:30 on:
12:30-1: Drove home
1-2: Dropped off dog at home, put breast milk in the fridge, changed into scrubby clothes, cleaned nursery, sorted laundry, put a load of laundry in the washer, collected mail, cleaned out the fridge, cleaned the litterbox, gathered garbage/recycling, tidied breezeway a bit, rearranged the spare bedroom so that K and her family will actually be able to fit in it tomorrow night.
2-2:30: Went to Agway and bought seeds, plants, and planters.
2:30-4:30: Had a grand old time planting tomato plants, a rosemary plant (which will probably not do so well, but hey), and seeds as follows: red beets, orange beets, zucchini, yellow squash, buttercup squash (I'm also not holding out much hope for that), bush beans, and cucumbers. These are all currently in containers on my patio, but can obviously be moved or transplanted. And hey, if nothing comes of them, who cares? I got lots of sunshine and got to feel like a grownup this afternoon.
4:30-5: Cleaned up myself and the patio, switched out the laundry for a new load, went to pick up Roo at daycare.
5-5:30: Got Roo home, unpacked his bottles, etc. and put them to soak in the sink, nursed him.
5:30: Grocery delivery girl came. Put away all the groceries.
6:00: Video chat with MDad while feeding Roo his supper (peas and cereal).
6:30: Grammy stopped by and helped give Roo his bath, fed the dog, etc. I remembered to give Roo his final dose of ear antibiotics.
7:00: Nursed Roo again and put him to bed.
7:30: Cooked a salmon fillet; ate half of it with Soy Vay teriyaki sauce (I love that stuff).
8-9: Dusted and vacuumed living room, vacuumed the downstairs and the stairwell, washed the kitchen floor, did all the baby/breastpump dishes by hand, ran the dishwasher, tidied the kitchen, took out the second load of laundry, got coffeepot ready for tomorrow morning.
9:00: Took a shower. Hallelujah!
The only things I didn't get to do were pay some bills (these are some that are not able to be paid online); pack my breakfast/lunch for tomorrow; and pack Roo's jar of baby food and 1/4 cup of dry cereal for tomorrow. But I can do all of those things in the morning. Sleep now!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Math is Hard
Wait, I realized I wasn't comparing apples to apples in that last post. I was using fluid ounces (at 2 T per ounce) for calculating the cost of my homemade food, but I was estimating the cost per ounce of Earth's Best based on weight. So, let's do this on a per-tablespoon basis:
My homemade sweet potato baby food cost about 10 cents per tablespoon ($2.00 divided by 20 tablespoons).
Earth's Best costs about 18 cents per tablespoon, assuming there are about 5 tablespoons in each 4-oz (by weight) jar. Therefore, my homemade baby food is significantly less expensive than Earth's Best. If Andrew consumes 10 tablespoons (the equivalent of 2 jars) of baby food a day, that's 80 cents a day, or $292 per year. At least for the sweet potatoes ;-)
However, Earth's Best is organic and (gasp!) I didn't use organic sweet potatoes to make the baby food this time. Plus there's the cost of energy to cook the food and run the dishwasher afterwards, neither of which expense I would incur with jarred food.
So, this will be a continuing saga. I noticed the local supermarket has frozen peas on sale for 8 cents an ounce (by weight, of course). I love playing the cheap Yankee. Seriously, though -- saving money by making my own baby food could almost offset the skyrocketing cost of gas! Not.
Why the hell am I still awake? I love getting a second wind at night...I just hate it in the morning.
My homemade sweet potato baby food cost about 10 cents per tablespoon ($2.00 divided by 20 tablespoons).
Earth's Best costs about 18 cents per tablespoon, assuming there are about 5 tablespoons in each 4-oz (by weight) jar. Therefore, my homemade baby food is significantly less expensive than Earth's Best. If Andrew consumes 10 tablespoons (the equivalent of 2 jars) of baby food a day, that's 80 cents a day, or $292 per year. At least for the sweet potatoes ;-)
However, Earth's Best is organic and (gasp!) I didn't use organic sweet potatoes to make the baby food this time. Plus there's the cost of energy to cook the food and run the dishwasher afterwards, neither of which expense I would incur with jarred food.
So, this will be a continuing saga. I noticed the local supermarket has frozen peas on sale for 8 cents an ounce (by weight, of course). I love playing the cheap Yankee. Seriously, though -- saving money by making my own baby food could almost offset the skyrocketing cost of gas! Not.
Why the hell am I still awake? I love getting a second wind at night...I just hate it in the morning.
Visualize whirled peas!
Tonight I made homemade baby food for the first time. I baked 2 sweet potatoes and then ground them up in the food processor. Then, I spooned the mush into an ice cube tray. Tomorrow morning I'll take the frozen cubes out of the ice cube tray and put them into a Ziploc freezer bag, and voila! Instant(ish) baby food, only a few seconds in the microwave away!
I can't remember what I paid for the sweet potatoes, but I looked at my supermarket's website this week, and sweet potatoes are $1 each there (even though I actually bought them at a local produce store...but hey, they don't have a website, so close enough). That $2 worth of sweet potatoes produced 10 cubes = 20 tablespoons = 10 ounces = 4 servings of sweet potatoes. I actually measured: A 4-ounce (by weight, not volume) baby food jar is about 5 tablespoons. Andrew eats one jar of baby food at each of his two table food meals per day. So, it looks like I paid 20 cents per ounce to make my own baby food.
I buy Earth's Best baby food jars in flats from diapers.com. Right now I spend $10.49 per flat of 12 4-ounce jars, or 22 cents per ounce. So, yes, it's economical to make your own baby food, and probably better for the environment (no glass jars and metal lids, although I'm sure the produce is still transported via truck just like the baby food jars are). But, at least with this batch, I didn't save that much money. Well, I saved 2 cents an ounce, or 20 cents.
BUT -- and it's a big BUT -- I got to satisfy my maniacal need to cook, with the excuse that it was for "my son." Anything to justify dragging out the Cuisinart... Sadly, despite my best intentions to the contrary, MY supper was a cold hot dog and a single-serve mozzarella string cheese thing, straight from the fridge. Alas.
Oh, by the way, I think Andrew is trying to say "ball" or "book," or other "b" words: He has rubber balls and a bath book for the bathtub, and I've always made a point of using the words "ball" and "book" repeatedly (but not obnoxiously; don't worry) during his nightly bath. The past two nights, he's definitely been making more "brbbbbbbbbrb" sounds in the tub than anywhere else, and always after I say "ball" or "book" or when he's reading for the ball or the book. He's so advanced!
Off to bed, to do more baby food research! Wouldn't it be great if I could grow my own veggies, harvest them, cook them, and make them into nutritious foods for Andrew? Sigh...sometimes it sucks being a suburbanite.
I can't remember what I paid for the sweet potatoes, but I looked at my supermarket's website this week, and sweet potatoes are $1 each there (even though I actually bought them at a local produce store...but hey, they don't have a website, so close enough). That $2 worth of sweet potatoes produced 10 cubes = 20 tablespoons = 10 ounces = 4 servings of sweet potatoes. I actually measured: A 4-ounce (by weight, not volume) baby food jar is about 5 tablespoons. Andrew eats one jar of baby food at each of his two table food meals per day. So, it looks like I paid 20 cents per ounce to make my own baby food.
I buy Earth's Best baby food jars in flats from diapers.com. Right now I spend $10.49 per flat of 12 4-ounce jars, or 22 cents per ounce. So, yes, it's economical to make your own baby food, and probably better for the environment (no glass jars and metal lids, although I'm sure the produce is still transported via truck just like the baby food jars are). But, at least with this batch, I didn't save that much money. Well, I saved 2 cents an ounce, or 20 cents.
BUT -- and it's a big BUT -- I got to satisfy my maniacal need to cook, with the excuse that it was for "my son." Anything to justify dragging out the Cuisinart... Sadly, despite my best intentions to the contrary, MY supper was a cold hot dog and a single-serve mozzarella string cheese thing, straight from the fridge. Alas.
Oh, by the way, I think Andrew is trying to say "ball" or "book," or other "b" words: He has rubber balls and a bath book for the bathtub, and I've always made a point of using the words "ball" and "book" repeatedly (but not obnoxiously; don't worry) during his nightly bath. The past two nights, he's definitely been making more "brbbbbbbbbrb" sounds in the tub than anywhere else, and always after I say "ball" or "book" or when he's reading for the ball or the book. He's so advanced!
Off to bed, to do more baby food research! Wouldn't it be great if I could grow my own veggies, harvest them, cook them, and make them into nutritious foods for Andrew? Sigh...sometimes it sucks being a suburbanite.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Aggravation
How am I aggravated today? Let me count the ways:
1. The time sheets were an absolute disaster this morning. These people can get master's degrees, but they can't figure out how to account for the hours they worked during a week when we had a holiday. Even after we discussed it at a staff meeting, at great length.
2. Payroll made me late for a meeting at town hall. The meeting was boring.
3. A VERY annoying customer called me and gave me a sob story, which I'm pretty sure was a lie (certain facts did not match up), saying she returned 3 items, which I know she probably didn't. On a normal day, I'd just wipe her account and make her go away. Today I refuse to do it -- and so I know she's going to be back with a vengeance. My department heads and I have all had bad run-ins with her in the past.
4. I got to work on the performance evaluations for all of 20 minutes before I got a call from daycare saying they suspected Roo has pinkeye. Great. So, I was out of work around 2:30, at which point I left a voice mail for my mom and one for my neighbor (tomorrow is not a day I can be away from work easily: union mediation meeting and a library department heads meeting). I also left voice mail for my deputy, and called the personnel director, just in case I couldn't get alternative child care tomorrow (typically, kids have to be be on pinkeye medication for a full 24 hours before returning to daycare, even if their symptoms are gone). Stopped home quickly to let the dog out and pick up a copy of the prescription medicine dispensation permission slip thingy (in case the daycare had to administer eye drops), then went to pick up Andrew to take him to the pediatrician.
5. Was informed when I got to daycare that I'd forgotten to leave Roo's blankie there this morning. I am the Worst Mommy Ever.
6. At the pediatrician's office, the doctor (not Roo's regular doc) was snippy with me about his alternative vaccination schedule. I explained that he's getting all of his vaccines on time, but that we're staggering them, so instead of getting 5 shots at 4 months and 5 shots at 6 months, for instance, he's doing more of a "3 at 4 months, 4 at 5 months, and 3 at 6 months" thing. It STILL ADDS UP TO ALL OF HIS SHOTS, BY THE STATE-IMPOSED DEADLINES. I've run it by his regular pediatrician, as well as the daycare center director, and they're both fine with it!
7. Andrew was nearly inconsolable this evening when we got home from the pediatrician, pharmacy, etc.
8. I was so upset after this that I stopped by McDonald's and got a Big Mac meal for supper. Of course, Andrew was so cranky I got like 5 bites of it before it got cold.
9. I threw the clean laundry from the washer into the dryer when I got home. But Andrew's shrieks distracted me, and I neglected to turn the damn thing on, so when I went to empty it at 8:45 it was still soaking wet. So, my sleep bra is unavailable, so I'm using the silicone LilyPadz, which will probably give me a plugged duct or something.
10. The cat threw up a hairball on the Welcome mat. Welcome home, Mom.
The GOOD news:
1. It's not pinkeye, so he can go to daycare tomorrow. He is, however, working on another ear infection (most likely due to the head cold we assumed was actually teething last week), so he's on antibiotics again, for 10 days.
2. As soon as I gave him his supper, plus a dose of antibiotics, plus some Infant Motrin (MAGICAL stuff, by the way), he was his usual happy, if slightly tired, self. I even managed to interest him in his bath, and he was nursed and put to bed by around 7:30.
3. I remembered to give Bob his heartworm pill :-)
Anyway, I'm really still pissed about the pediatrician and his snarkiness about the vaccines. I wonder if he gives mothers who formula-feed guilt trips about the risks at which they're putting their babies? There's just as much research out there -- more, really -- on that topic as there is about why certain vaccines "must" be given at 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, etc. Just don't even get me frigging started tonight.
1. The time sheets were an absolute disaster this morning. These people can get master's degrees, but they can't figure out how to account for the hours they worked during a week when we had a holiday. Even after we discussed it at a staff meeting, at great length.
2. Payroll made me late for a meeting at town hall. The meeting was boring.
3. A VERY annoying customer called me and gave me a sob story, which I'm pretty sure was a lie (certain facts did not match up), saying she returned 3 items, which I know she probably didn't. On a normal day, I'd just wipe her account and make her go away. Today I refuse to do it -- and so I know she's going to be back with a vengeance. My department heads and I have all had bad run-ins with her in the past.
4. I got to work on the performance evaluations for all of 20 minutes before I got a call from daycare saying they suspected Roo has pinkeye. Great. So, I was out of work around 2:30, at which point I left a voice mail for my mom and one for my neighbor (tomorrow is not a day I can be away from work easily: union mediation meeting and a library department heads meeting). I also left voice mail for my deputy, and called the personnel director, just in case I couldn't get alternative child care tomorrow (typically, kids have to be be on pinkeye medication for a full 24 hours before returning to daycare, even if their symptoms are gone). Stopped home quickly to let the dog out and pick up a copy of the prescription medicine dispensation permission slip thingy (in case the daycare had to administer eye drops), then went to pick up Andrew to take him to the pediatrician.
5. Was informed when I got to daycare that I'd forgotten to leave Roo's blankie there this morning. I am the Worst Mommy Ever.
6. At the pediatrician's office, the doctor (not Roo's regular doc) was snippy with me about his alternative vaccination schedule. I explained that he's getting all of his vaccines on time, but that we're staggering them, so instead of getting 5 shots at 4 months and 5 shots at 6 months, for instance, he's doing more of a "3 at 4 months, 4 at 5 months, and 3 at 6 months" thing. It STILL ADDS UP TO ALL OF HIS SHOTS, BY THE STATE-IMPOSED DEADLINES. I've run it by his regular pediatrician, as well as the daycare center director, and they're both fine with it!
7. Andrew was nearly inconsolable this evening when we got home from the pediatrician, pharmacy, etc.
8. I was so upset after this that I stopped by McDonald's and got a Big Mac meal for supper. Of course, Andrew was so cranky I got like 5 bites of it before it got cold.
9. I threw the clean laundry from the washer into the dryer when I got home. But Andrew's shrieks distracted me, and I neglected to turn the damn thing on, so when I went to empty it at 8:45 it was still soaking wet. So, my sleep bra is unavailable, so I'm using the silicone LilyPadz, which will probably give me a plugged duct or something.
10. The cat threw up a hairball on the Welcome mat. Welcome home, Mom.
The GOOD news:
1. It's not pinkeye, so he can go to daycare tomorrow. He is, however, working on another ear infection (most likely due to the head cold we assumed was actually teething last week), so he's on antibiotics again, for 10 days.
2. As soon as I gave him his supper, plus a dose of antibiotics, plus some Infant Motrin (MAGICAL stuff, by the way), he was his usual happy, if slightly tired, self. I even managed to interest him in his bath, and he was nursed and put to bed by around 7:30.
3. I remembered to give Bob his heartworm pill :-)
Anyway, I'm really still pissed about the pediatrician and his snarkiness about the vaccines. I wonder if he gives mothers who formula-feed guilt trips about the risks at which they're putting their babies? There's just as much research out there -- more, really -- on that topic as there is about why certain vaccines "must" be given at 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, etc. Just don't even get me frigging started tonight.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Six months old, and sleeping better
I think this teething thing is going to be a long slog. Does he really get twenty-something more baby teeth??? Oy.
In any case, Andrew has seemed cheerier the past couple of days, although he's still waking up at least once in the middle of the night. Last night, he woke just before midnight. I did my usual routine of letting him make noise for a while, but he didn't manage to put himself back to sleep, so I ended up having to go in and nurse him back down at about 12. He did, however, go back to sleep until about 5:30, at which point he made noise right about the time my alarm clock was going off, but then he immediately fell back asleep and didn't actually get up until 6:45, when I had to wake him in time to nurse, get dressed, and get out of the house on time.
It's interesting -- the flip side of your baby sleeping longer is that you have to time your morning differently. For instance, I'd really rather shower after I nurse him -- otherwise there's not much point in getting clean, only to have milk spray everywhere as I'm toweling off (warm showers do it every time). He's pretty good-natured about sitting in the bouncy seat in the bathroom while I shower, especially if there's a cat or dog in there with us.
So yes, our boy turned six months old on Wednesday. He's REALLY good at sitting up all by himself now; he's been doing it for weeks. He hasn't figured out how to push himself to a sitting position from lying down or anything, though, and although he's really interested in crawling, there hasn't really been a major breakthrough there, either. He just kind of pivots on his belly button. It's cute. I'm enjoying it while it lasts -- crawling is going to open up a whole new world of Baby Dangers. Sigh. Am thinking of getting a series of gate thingies to make a play yard in the living room...or I could just use the Pack and Play if I need to "park" him temporarily. Already bought 2 toilet locks for when he's walking; must also think about electrical outlets, corners of furniture, stashing chokables, securing bookcases... I'm scared.
Tonight my coworker D and I went to a local nursery and she helped me pick out some flowers for my planters (she's, like, WICKED good at this stuff). I'm psyched to plant them tomorrow. Will try and remember to take pictures. I really should take pics of the outside of the house, since the rhododendrons are blooming right now and are gorgeous. My house actually looks almost presentable. Well, the front yard, anyway.
I'm having a couple other mommies and kids from Andrew's class over for brunch on Sunday morning. It's potluck and should be fun and relaxing (I've already told them my house isn't spotless and that I don't particularly care). Must remember to throw together a quiche with the spinach and mushrooms that are lurking in the fridge tomorrow night. I heart quiche.
Oh, I forgot to mention that when I had him at the doctor's office the other day, the nurse weighed him in case they had to prescribe anything: 19 lbs, 14 ounces (clothed and diapered). He is such a big boy!
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Healthy, but not sleeping well...
I took Andrew to the doctor this afternoon -- he'd been pulling on his ears and acting fussy, plus he has this cough (again). But it turns out his ears are clear, his lungs are clear, and he had no fever at the doctor's office. While the pediatrician couldn't explain the ear-pulling (is it my imagination??), he did say that there's a "spring cough" thing going around, and that it could be exacerbated by the gushing amounts of drool that Andrew is producing. Are there more teeth in our near future?
Anyway, I gave him Infant Motrin before bed (we skipped the bath tonight; I don't think he would have tolerated it), and he seems to be doing OK sleeping for now. He didn't sleep well all weekend, though, and he took crappy naps at daycare today. Alas, I made the mistake of hoping against hope that the couple of times he slept through the night were a trend. I was sadly, sadly mistaken. He was up at 1:00 this morning to nurse, and he was up for the day at 4:30 a.m.
Oh, and on Saturday he developed pinkeye, and of course we were in PA visiting Nan, so I had to call the pediatrician and have her call in a prescription for eye drops to the nearest pharmacy. Thank god for modern medicine: by bedtime that very same day, his eyes were almost clear!
I can't believe he'll be 6 months old tomorrow.
Anyway, I gave him Infant Motrin before bed (we skipped the bath tonight; I don't think he would have tolerated it), and he seems to be doing OK sleeping for now. He didn't sleep well all weekend, though, and he took crappy naps at daycare today. Alas, I made the mistake of hoping against hope that the couple of times he slept through the night were a trend. I was sadly, sadly mistaken. He was up at 1:00 this morning to nurse, and he was up for the day at 4:30 a.m.
Oh, and on Saturday he developed pinkeye, and of course we were in PA visiting Nan, so I had to call the pediatrician and have her call in a prescription for eye drops to the nearest pharmacy. Thank god for modern medicine: by bedtime that very same day, his eyes were almost clear!
I can't believe he'll be 6 months old tomorrow.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
In my old age
I think motherhood is making a softie out of me. Tonight, a young lady knocked on my door with a petition for the Working Families Party of CT, which has sponsored legislation that would mandate 6.5 paid sick days per year for all employees in CT who work in a company of 50 or more employees.
6.5 days is not a lot of sick time. And I agreed with her that I'd rather see employees out on sick leave than spreading germs in the workplace. In my younger, more hot-headed days, I wouldn't have even had a conversation with this young woman, much less invite her into my home (which I did) while I finished the supper dishes. I also told her that this country needs much better laws for maternity leave, similar to those in Canada and many European countries.
What the hell happened to me and my Libertarian ideals? They're still in there, somewhere, I know. But then I had a baby, and the desire to make the world a better, nicer place for him took full precedence. Don't get me wrong -- I'm all for individual responsibility, and I want the government out of my business as much as the next gal, but I now feel that we have at least some responsibility for one another. Or maybe I'm just selfish and don't want some poor sick restaurant employee passing strep throat to me and my son. Oh, and the poor girl was out in the rain canvassing for signatures -- how much does that suck? I couldn't let her just be stuck out in the storm. Plus she was sweet to my dog. She reminded me of a 20-year-old me. Idealistic, optimistic, and skinnier than I am now.
Andrew's started on apples now. And I sent him to daycare with a 2.5 oz jar of peas, plus 2 tablespoons of rice cereal to mix in, thinking surely he'd at least come home with an unused bottle. But no, he drank all three bottles AND ate all of the peas. And the cereal. Plus, tonight he ate a 2.5 oz jar of bananas with 2 tablespoons of cereal, plus almost half a 4 oz jar of sweet potatoes (still his favorite), also with cereal mixed in. Oink! Let's see how the sleeping goes.
He's reeeeeeallly starting to want to crawl, but alas, he still just manages to slink backwards. At least he's been more good-natured about tummy time these past couple of days. I'm getting nervous about baby-proofing the house, since when he starts to crawl it'll be impossible just to "park" him on a quilt on the floor, etc. anymore without worrying if there's a) a stray piece of dog food, b) a cat toy, or c) something else choke-able on the floor. This totally freaks me out.
OH. I've been meaning to post this: I do, in fact, currently have bite marks on my right nipple. I reacted strongly when Andrew bit me, and then of course he immediately puckered up, and out went the bottom lip, and my heart broke a little. I cannot stand to see that little boy sad. But I also value my boobs. It was a tough situation, to say the least.
6.5 days is not a lot of sick time. And I agreed with her that I'd rather see employees out on sick leave than spreading germs in the workplace. In my younger, more hot-headed days, I wouldn't have even had a conversation with this young woman, much less invite her into my home (which I did) while I finished the supper dishes. I also told her that this country needs much better laws for maternity leave, similar to those in Canada and many European countries.
What the hell happened to me and my Libertarian ideals? They're still in there, somewhere, I know. But then I had a baby, and the desire to make the world a better, nicer place for him took full precedence. Don't get me wrong -- I'm all for individual responsibility, and I want the government out of my business as much as the next gal, but I now feel that we have at least some responsibility for one another. Or maybe I'm just selfish and don't want some poor sick restaurant employee passing strep throat to me and my son. Oh, and the poor girl was out in the rain canvassing for signatures -- how much does that suck? I couldn't let her just be stuck out in the storm. Plus she was sweet to my dog. She reminded me of a 20-year-old me. Idealistic, optimistic, and skinnier than I am now.
Andrew's started on apples now. And I sent him to daycare with a 2.5 oz jar of peas, plus 2 tablespoons of rice cereal to mix in, thinking surely he'd at least come home with an unused bottle. But no, he drank all three bottles AND ate all of the peas. And the cereal. Plus, tonight he ate a 2.5 oz jar of bananas with 2 tablespoons of cereal, plus almost half a 4 oz jar of sweet potatoes (still his favorite), also with cereal mixed in. Oink! Let's see how the sleeping goes.
He's reeeeeeallly starting to want to crawl, but alas, he still just manages to slink backwards. At least he's been more good-natured about tummy time these past couple of days. I'm getting nervous about baby-proofing the house, since when he starts to crawl it'll be impossible just to "park" him on a quilt on the floor, etc. anymore without worrying if there's a) a stray piece of dog food, b) a cat toy, or c) something else choke-able on the floor. This totally freaks me out.
OH. I've been meaning to post this: I do, in fact, currently have bite marks on my right nipple. I reacted strongly when Andrew bit me, and then of course he immediately puckered up, and out went the bottom lip, and my heart broke a little. I cannot stand to see that little boy sad. But I also value my boobs. It was a tough situation, to say the least.
Wednesday is My "Short Day"
I've rearranged my work schedule so that I can leave at 1:00 on Wednesdays, instead of 4:00 (I work later the other 4 days). This allows me to schedule doctor's appointments, get an oil change, get chores done around the house, and maybe even spend a little time on myself (yeah, right...) Here's what I accomplished this afternoon:
1. Pumped for the second time today.
2. Ate lunch.
3. Collected the garbage/recycling and took it out to the breezeway so it's ready for the garbage men tomorrow morning. Went through a lot of junk mail, cleaned litterboxes, cleaned out the refrigerator etc.
4. Cut up and froze the fresh rhubarb in the fridge (we're taking it to a friend's for lunch, in the form of strawberry-rhubarb pie, in a couple of weeks).
5. 2 loads of laundry.
6. Organized and put away the baby food flats that arrived from diapers.com yesterday.
7. Played with the dog.
8. Washed the dishes that were in the sink.
9. Prepared the coffeemaker for tomorrow morning.
Now I'm getting ready to pump for the third, and final, time today. This morning, I had a workshop at a local university, and there was nowhere private to pump. It was the first time I had to pump in a bathroom. Gross. Here's what ended up happening:
1. I had to sit on the floor of the handicap stall. Fortunately, the floor looked relatively clean, and I'd brought lots of clean towels for just this eventuality.
2. I realized too late that I'd brought only 8 AA batteries for the battery pack. The battery pack takes 10 AA batteries. So I had to try the manual attachment for the first time.
3. As soon as I took off my top to pump, milk sprayed everywhere, including on my freshly-washed work pants.
4. Just as I was getting the hang of the manual pump, which doesn't do too shabby a job, actually, the lights went out. Yes, that's right, there's an occupancy sensor in the ladies' room. I tried flailing my arm under the stall door, to no avail. So I had to try and pump by the light of my cell phone. It was pathetic. I was sad. I only got about 2 ounces before giving up, but at least I didn't become engorged.
How silly of me to attempt to attend a real, actual, grownup workshop related to my job! And I'm totally skeeved out about pumping in the bathroom, even though I was careful not to touch ANYTHING. I'm so freaking tired of pumping. I sent Andrew to daycare with 3 bottles PLUS a jar of peas and some cereal today. I'm going to see how he does on 2 meals a day (one at daycare and one at home), instead of just one at home. Given his current pattern, even if he cuts down to two bottles per day at daycare, he'll still be getting breastmilk (from breast or bottle) at least 5 times a day: once or twice before leaving in the morning, twice at daycare, and twice in the evening.
One of these Wednesdays, I'm just going to stop at a nursery, buy some nice flowers, and plant them in the planters in my backyard, dammit. I want to do something fun.
Off to pump again, then pick up Roo...
1. Pumped for the second time today.
2. Ate lunch.
3. Collected the garbage/recycling and took it out to the breezeway so it's ready for the garbage men tomorrow morning. Went through a lot of junk mail, cleaned litterboxes, cleaned out the refrigerator etc.
4. Cut up and froze the fresh rhubarb in the fridge (we're taking it to a friend's for lunch, in the form of strawberry-rhubarb pie, in a couple of weeks).
5. 2 loads of laundry.
6. Organized and put away the baby food flats that arrived from diapers.com yesterday.
7. Played with the dog.
8. Washed the dishes that were in the sink.
9. Prepared the coffeemaker for tomorrow morning.
Now I'm getting ready to pump for the third, and final, time today. This morning, I had a workshop at a local university, and there was nowhere private to pump. It was the first time I had to pump in a bathroom. Gross. Here's what ended up happening:
1. I had to sit on the floor of the handicap stall. Fortunately, the floor looked relatively clean, and I'd brought lots of clean towels for just this eventuality.
2. I realized too late that I'd brought only 8 AA batteries for the battery pack. The battery pack takes 10 AA batteries. So I had to try the manual attachment for the first time.
3. As soon as I took off my top to pump, milk sprayed everywhere, including on my freshly-washed work pants.
4. Just as I was getting the hang of the manual pump, which doesn't do too shabby a job, actually, the lights went out. Yes, that's right, there's an occupancy sensor in the ladies' room. I tried flailing my arm under the stall door, to no avail. So I had to try and pump by the light of my cell phone. It was pathetic. I was sad. I only got about 2 ounces before giving up, but at least I didn't become engorged.
How silly of me to attempt to attend a real, actual, grownup workshop related to my job! And I'm totally skeeved out about pumping in the bathroom, even though I was careful not to touch ANYTHING. I'm so freaking tired of pumping. I sent Andrew to daycare with 3 bottles PLUS a jar of peas and some cereal today. I'm going to see how he does on 2 meals a day (one at daycare and one at home), instead of just one at home. Given his current pattern, even if he cuts down to two bottles per day at daycare, he'll still be getting breastmilk (from breast or bottle) at least 5 times a day: once or twice before leaving in the morning, twice at daycare, and twice in the evening.
One of these Wednesdays, I'm just going to stop at a nursery, buy some nice flowers, and plant them in the planters in my backyard, dammit. I want to do something fun.
Off to pump again, then pick up Roo...
Monday, May 19, 2008
Lovely weekend; Baby food
We had a great weekend with the girls (my friends from high school). We did our usual thing of hanging out, eating a LOT (barbecue lunch plus lasagna dinner plus waffles/quiche brunch...oh my!), watching movies, playing games, and shooting the shit.
Andy-Roo enjoyed our barbecue -- Daddy brought his high chair outside so he could join in the fun:
Is that ridiculously cute or what? And we learned that cucumber slices are great for teething :-)
Speaking of food, before I forget I should document what Roo's first foods have been, in order (observing the 4-day-wait between foods, of course, to rule out any reactions):
1. Brown rice cereal, mixed with breast milk
2. Sweet potatoes
3. Bananas
4. Avocado
5. Pears
6. Peas
I mix #2-6 with cereal too, of course. We're looking forward to the following soon: Oatmeal, apples, carrots, and maybe even some yogurt. I'm debating which other cereals to look into (millet, barley, etc.), and trying to decide when to start lean meats (fish, turkey, chicken). Some say 6 months, others say 8. He's pretty robust, so there doesn't seem to be a need for protein quite yet, although since he IS so robust, he can probably handle meat. Then again, I've read that their fluid intake needs to be increased if they're taking in a lot of protein, and he hasn't quite mastered the sippy cup yet (he's been practicing getting a teaspoon or so of water with his supper each night).
This age is SO fun. I love the look on his little face when he tries a new food, and I think it's adorable how he gets so messy and smooshy. Everything is new to him -- who knew there were so many foods? Think of all the fruits and veggies that I can instill a love of in him!
Peas!!!
Andy-Roo enjoyed our barbecue -- Daddy brought his high chair outside so he could join in the fun:
Is that ridiculously cute or what? And we learned that cucumber slices are great for teething :-)
Speaking of food, before I forget I should document what Roo's first foods have been, in order (observing the 4-day-wait between foods, of course, to rule out any reactions):
1. Brown rice cereal, mixed with breast milk
2. Sweet potatoes
3. Bananas
4. Avocado
5. Pears
6. Peas
I mix #2-6 with cereal too, of course. We're looking forward to the following soon: Oatmeal, apples, carrots, and maybe even some yogurt. I'm debating which other cereals to look into (millet, barley, etc.), and trying to decide when to start lean meats (fish, turkey, chicken). Some say 6 months, others say 8. He's pretty robust, so there doesn't seem to be a need for protein quite yet, although since he IS so robust, he can probably handle meat. Then again, I've read that their fluid intake needs to be increased if they're taking in a lot of protein, and he hasn't quite mastered the sippy cup yet (he's been practicing getting a teaspoon or so of water with his supper each night).
This age is SO fun. I love the look on his little face when he tries a new food, and I think it's adorable how he gets so messy and smooshy. Everything is new to him -- who knew there were so many foods? Think of all the fruits and veggies that I can instill a love of in him!
Peas!!!
Monday, May 12, 2008
First Mother's Day; First Tooth
Andrew cut his first tooth on Mother's Day weekend -- awwwww. It's the bottom right incisor. He didn't seem particularly fussy leading up to it, even though he'd also had another round of vaccines on Thursday (he did sleep through the night on Thursday, though, which is unusual for him: 7:30 p.m. to 4:30 a.m., that is). Alas, when I took him in for his shots I asked if a pediatrician could stop in (it was supposed to be a nurse-only visit) and check his ears and lungs. He'd had a cough for about a week after his bad cold, and when I picked him up on Thursday I noticed he was pulling on his ears. Sure enough, although his lungs were clear, his right ear is infected, so he's on the grody pink amoxicillin crap that is IMPOSSIBLE to get into him. Well, it was impossible before I figured out that if I stick my finger in his mouth, it serves two purposes: One, it pries his vice-like little jaws open; and two, it gives him something to suck on, thereby getting the medicine down his stubborn little throat, rather than down his chubby little chin. Only 6 more days of that damned syringe and sticky pink crud.
Tonight, like a little champ, he at two whole tablespoons of rice cereal, mixed with an entire 2.5 ounce jar of sweet potatoes (Earth's Best organic!), and even then he seemed hungry, so I gave him a "dessert" of half a jar of pears, which he'd never tried before but loved. I'm a big fan of Earth's Best. I've tried everything Andrew's eaten so far, and it tastes like real food. Not "baby food." Whatever that is.
While we were waiting for the nurse to come in and give Andrew his shots, I snuck him on the scale: 18 lbs, 7 oz with a onesie and a diaper on. Big boy!
We had a lovely Mother's Day weekend in Boston: I got a cake, two beautiful bouquets of roses, lovely gifts, several cards, a fabulous dinner out (thank you, Aunt K, for babysitting!!!), a nap on Saturday afternoon, two yummy brunches, and MDad is going to spring for one or two maid visits to my house (as soon as I get it in good enough order...) When Roo and I got home from Boston on Sunday evening, Mom came over and made me dinner; she'd also brought a cake and a card. We exchanged cards and played with Roo, gave him his bath, etc. In all, a perfectly lovely weekend -- I feel so special! I'm just sorry that MDad was sick -- damn sinuses and lungs!
I had my first parent-teacher conference with Roo's teacher this morning. It's kind of a joke -- it's not like I don't see this woman every single day. But I guess, for accreditation's sake, they have to fill out the progress reports and have us sign them. The only area she suggested we work on with Roo is his "self-soothing" abilities (i.e., she thinks if you're not paying constant attention to him, he gets upset, and that's a bad thing...I'm not so sure that's accurate, since he DOES entertain himself for reasonable stretches at home, and for Christ's sake, he's a BABY and NEEDS attention!). It's not like I'm carrying him around all the time -- my back can't take it. But I do respond when he needs me, although usually not right away. I do give him the opportunity to calm himself down. Again, I think it's more of an issue with Miss S. than it is with Andrew. Her coworkers C and L, who are there when I pick Roo up in the afternoon, have made it clear to me that S doesn't necessarily like to cuddle and comfort babies like they do. And S has made it clear to me that daycare "isn't what I went to school for." It's not that she's hostile or anything; it's just that she's a little more tough-love than the others. Plus, I think I've mentioned that she's not a mom yet, and I do think that that has at least something to do with it. Anyway...
Roo's consistently rolling over...although not when anyone's looking! He seems to forget how to roll from his back to his belly, though, when it's naptime at daycare, which presents a conundrum: They're not supposed to put babies to sleep on their bellies, but that's the only way Roo gets good rest anymore. I think he's going to have to tough it out or figure it out; I'm not going to expect his teachers to break the rules for him.
This week he had a diaper rash, I think from the teething. Or the bananas. Or the amoxicillin. Or all three. And I hope he's not getting constipated from all the solids...
Some new favorite toys: My stainless steel Williams-Sonoma measuring spoons, and my spring-loaded nut chopper. They're both favorites of mine, too! The nut chopper is a "with supervision only" toy, since it has a glass cup and sharp metal blades inside (although I can't see how he could possibly ever get it open, but still). He laughs out loud when I push the plunger down on the nut chopper. What a strange and funny little boy.
Andrew also loves to laugh at the dogs and cats. He's learning how to pet them. Bob is such a good boy -- he doesn't mind when Andrew gets a handful of fur. And I know that hurts -- he gets handfuls of MY fur sometimes, too!
I need to go to bed now; it's way past my bedtime. Just wanted to post all these updates while they're fresh in my mind. Here's hoping the gobs of food he ate for "supper" bode well for a good night's sleep...
Tonight, like a little champ, he at two whole tablespoons of rice cereal, mixed with an entire 2.5 ounce jar of sweet potatoes (Earth's Best organic!), and even then he seemed hungry, so I gave him a "dessert" of half a jar of pears, which he'd never tried before but loved. I'm a big fan of Earth's Best. I've tried everything Andrew's eaten so far, and it tastes like real food. Not "baby food." Whatever that is.
While we were waiting for the nurse to come in and give Andrew his shots, I snuck him on the scale: 18 lbs, 7 oz with a onesie and a diaper on. Big boy!
We had a lovely Mother's Day weekend in Boston: I got a cake, two beautiful bouquets of roses, lovely gifts, several cards, a fabulous dinner out (thank you, Aunt K, for babysitting!!!), a nap on Saturday afternoon, two yummy brunches, and MDad is going to spring for one or two maid visits to my house (as soon as I get it in good enough order...) When Roo and I got home from Boston on Sunday evening, Mom came over and made me dinner; she'd also brought a cake and a card. We exchanged cards and played with Roo, gave him his bath, etc. In all, a perfectly lovely weekend -- I feel so special! I'm just sorry that MDad was sick -- damn sinuses and lungs!
I had my first parent-teacher conference with Roo's teacher this morning. It's kind of a joke -- it's not like I don't see this woman every single day. But I guess, for accreditation's sake, they have to fill out the progress reports and have us sign them. The only area she suggested we work on with Roo is his "self-soothing" abilities (i.e., she thinks if you're not paying constant attention to him, he gets upset, and that's a bad thing...I'm not so sure that's accurate, since he DOES entertain himself for reasonable stretches at home, and for Christ's sake, he's a BABY and NEEDS attention!). It's not like I'm carrying him around all the time -- my back can't take it. But I do respond when he needs me, although usually not right away. I do give him the opportunity to calm himself down. Again, I think it's more of an issue with Miss S. than it is with Andrew. Her coworkers C and L, who are there when I pick Roo up in the afternoon, have made it clear to me that S doesn't necessarily like to cuddle and comfort babies like they do. And S has made it clear to me that daycare "isn't what I went to school for." It's not that she's hostile or anything; it's just that she's a little more tough-love than the others. Plus, I think I've mentioned that she's not a mom yet, and I do think that that has at least something to do with it. Anyway...
Roo's consistently rolling over...although not when anyone's looking! He seems to forget how to roll from his back to his belly, though, when it's naptime at daycare, which presents a conundrum: They're not supposed to put babies to sleep on their bellies, but that's the only way Roo gets good rest anymore. I think he's going to have to tough it out or figure it out; I'm not going to expect his teachers to break the rules for him.
This week he had a diaper rash, I think from the teething. Or the bananas. Or the amoxicillin. Or all three. And I hope he's not getting constipated from all the solids...
Some new favorite toys: My stainless steel Williams-Sonoma measuring spoons, and my spring-loaded nut chopper. They're both favorites of mine, too! The nut chopper is a "with supervision only" toy, since it has a glass cup and sharp metal blades inside (although I can't see how he could possibly ever get it open, but still). He laughs out loud when I push the plunger down on the nut chopper. What a strange and funny little boy.
Andrew also loves to laugh at the dogs and cats. He's learning how to pet them. Bob is such a good boy -- he doesn't mind when Andrew gets a handful of fur. And I know that hurts -- he gets handfuls of MY fur sometimes, too!
I need to go to bed now; it's way past my bedtime. Just wanted to post all these updates while they're fresh in my mind. Here's hoping the gobs of food he ate for "supper" bode well for a good night's sleep...
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
23 Weeks Old
Andrew's recovering from his illness last week, although he still has a bit of a lingering cough, which bugs me. But it's much better than it was.
This morning, I learned that his compatriot Sean at daycare can't even really sit up at all on his own...Roo, on the other hand, can sit up unassisted quite nicely, for many seconds in a row!
This has been a tiring week. He's still not sleeping through the night, although he's usually only up once to eat (around 1 or 2 in the morning), but he then only goes back to sleep until about 5 a.m. I wish he would sleep until 6. And no, I can't put him to bed later, because he becomes cranky bear monster by 7:30 p.m.
Tonight we tried avocados! I had some with my dinner (a two-day-late celebration of Cinco de Mayo, thanks to Hamburger Helper...blech, by the way). I smooshed some avocado and he ate it off my finger. So cute. He had a green moustache and green blobs on his forehead. So -- so far the sum total of his diet has consisted of breast milk, rice cereal, sweet potatoes and avocado. Good boy!
Tomorrow afternoon he's due for more shots, courtesy of our spread-out vaccination schedule. I hope they don't bother him, especially since his immune system has been down this past week.
Last night I made 7-layer bars for Teacher Appreciation Week; parents are supposed to bring in a dessert tomorrow. Yesterday the kids brought in drawings of apples that "they" had decorated for their teachers (but of course, really the mommies and daddies decorated them). Here is Andrew's:
See the itty bitty "Roo" on the apple?
This morning, I learned that his compatriot Sean at daycare can't even really sit up at all on his own...Roo, on the other hand, can sit up unassisted quite nicely, for many seconds in a row!
This has been a tiring week. He's still not sleeping through the night, although he's usually only up once to eat (around 1 or 2 in the morning), but he then only goes back to sleep until about 5 a.m. I wish he would sleep until 6. And no, I can't put him to bed later, because he becomes cranky bear monster by 7:30 p.m.
Tonight we tried avocados! I had some with my dinner (a two-day-late celebration of Cinco de Mayo, thanks to Hamburger Helper...blech, by the way). I smooshed some avocado and he ate it off my finger. So cute. He had a green moustache and green blobs on his forehead. So -- so far the sum total of his diet has consisted of breast milk, rice cereal, sweet potatoes and avocado. Good boy!
Tomorrow afternoon he's due for more shots, courtesy of our spread-out vaccination schedule. I hope they don't bother him, especially since his immune system has been down this past week.
Last night I made 7-layer bars for Teacher Appreciation Week; parents are supposed to bring in a dessert tomorrow. Yesterday the kids brought in drawings of apples that "they" had decorated for their teachers (but of course, really the mommies and daddies decorated them). Here is Andrew's:
See the itty bitty "Roo" on the apple?
Thursday, May 1, 2008
gDiapers review
Since we were home sick today, and since the starter kit arrived from diapers.com yesterday, we decided to try gDiapers.
So far, we've had one poopy gDiaper and one wet one. And we're 2 for 2 -- I like them. No leaks.
Pros:
1. Much better for the environment. The refills, which are the only part of the diapering system that are not reusable, are flushable (in most toilets), compostable (just wet ones, not poopies, for obvious reasons), or tossable. Even in landfills, they biodegrade in 50-100 days (not 500 years, like regular disposable diapers).
2. The diaper covers are made of a nice, breathable cloth.
3. They are super-cute, and come in all sorts of colors.
4. The tabs face backwards, instead of frontwards like disposables do, so they're harder for babies to take off. Andrew's not at that stage yet -- but he will be someday.
Cons:
1. They're expensive -- about 42 cents per refill, whereas disposables (we're currently using Pampers Cruisers, Size 3) are about 21 cents each. So, gDiapers are twice the price per diaper change.
2. They're slightly more work. Once you've removed the dirty diaper (the cover should stay clean, but the snap-out vinyl liner and, of course, the disposable refill, get dirty), you need to rip up the refill and flush it down the toilet, and the vinyl liner needs to be washed in the sink. The good news is that it takes about 10 minutes for the liner to air-dry. They sent me 4 vinyl liners with the 2 diaper covers, so there's always a dry, clean liner ready. Anyway, after you've changed the baby and disposed of the refill, you should re-assemble another gDiaper to be ready for the next diaper change. So that's about 15 seconds more work.
3. The refills still contain sodium polyacrylate, a key ingredient in disposable diapers. There's some debate out there about whether this substance is completely safe against babies' skin.
4. They're probably less convenient than disposable diapers while traveling.
5. I don't know if daycare would be willing to use them. They're not willing to use cloth diapers, I know that much.
I haven't tried gDiapers overnight, but the website advises using 2 liners -- one in the regular "full length" position, and one extra folded up and placed in front for boys, or in the middle for girls. Since I'm getting ready to throw Andrew's crib sheet in the washer this weekend, I'll try a gDiaper tonight so it won't be too annoying if there's a leak.
So far, we've had one poopy gDiaper and one wet one. And we're 2 for 2 -- I like them. No leaks.
Pros:
1. Much better for the environment. The refills, which are the only part of the diapering system that are not reusable, are flushable (in most toilets), compostable (just wet ones, not poopies, for obvious reasons), or tossable. Even in landfills, they biodegrade in 50-100 days (not 500 years, like regular disposable diapers).
2. The diaper covers are made of a nice, breathable cloth.
3. They are super-cute, and come in all sorts of colors.
4. The tabs face backwards, instead of frontwards like disposables do, so they're harder for babies to take off. Andrew's not at that stage yet -- but he will be someday.
Cons:
1. They're expensive -- about 42 cents per refill, whereas disposables (we're currently using Pampers Cruisers, Size 3) are about 21 cents each. So, gDiapers are twice the price per diaper change.
2. They're slightly more work. Once you've removed the dirty diaper (the cover should stay clean, but the snap-out vinyl liner and, of course, the disposable refill, get dirty), you need to rip up the refill and flush it down the toilet, and the vinyl liner needs to be washed in the sink. The good news is that it takes about 10 minutes for the liner to air-dry. They sent me 4 vinyl liners with the 2 diaper covers, so there's always a dry, clean liner ready. Anyway, after you've changed the baby and disposed of the refill, you should re-assemble another gDiaper to be ready for the next diaper change. So that's about 15 seconds more work.
3. The refills still contain sodium polyacrylate, a key ingredient in disposable diapers. There's some debate out there about whether this substance is completely safe against babies' skin.
4. They're probably less convenient than disposable diapers while traveling.
5. I don't know if daycare would be willing to use them. They're not willing to use cloth diapers, I know that much.
I haven't tried gDiapers overnight, but the website advises using 2 liners -- one in the regular "full length" position, and one extra folded up and placed in front for boys, or in the middle for girls. Since I'm getting ready to throw Andrew's crib sheet in the washer this weekend, I'll try a gDiaper tonight so it won't be too annoying if there's a leak.
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