Jake 'n Mommy bonding

When Jake was younger one of our favorite activities to do together was shop. Grocery store, Target, even the mall. It was a bonding thing for us. He was such a good shopper too. Sometimes we'd go to the mall just to walk around and people watch. He'd sit in the cart or stroller, snack on cheerios, and help me put stuff in the cart. As he got older he would walk next to me or ride on the front of the cart (I know I know, dangerous). I would take pride in the fact that he could go into any store and not expect to walk away with a toy or treat. He wasn't like some of the kids who would be crying in the aisles wanting a new toy. Worst case he'd pick out a toy and carry it around the store but put it back as we were leaving. It was going so well that'd I even let him go into the Disney store to play for a little while (its much cleaner than those communal indoor playgrounds, right?) I thought that deserved a pat on the back for ol' Mommy. I envisioned him and I shopping together all the time. I would teach him the ways of the coupon and eventually he would take over. But recently a switch has flipped and shopping is no longer the fun bonding time I thought. Jake is now old enough to now understand how shopping works.

A few weeks ago on the way to school he asked where we were going. When I replied "school" he said "we aren't going to school, we are going shopping." He even threw a fit when he couldn't get the mouthwash he wanted (sorry kid, not on sale. We ain't buying it.) He then told me "fine, I don't want to go shopping anymore." I thought I could bribe him by letting him use the kid shopping carts at the grocery store. That worked a few times...until we went to a store that didn't have them- apparently they were getting stolen :( . That started a whole new kind of tantrum. At dinner the other night he told me he wanted a Jessie doll and I needed to go to the mall to get him one. Say. What. Son? You know its a problem when your kid tells you his favorite place is Costco. Or when he knows to get a specific item at Walmart or Target.

And that's the end of that. So now shopping will be Mommy's quiet time and the boy's bonding time with Daddy. For now at least...

Luke is 1 month old!

Where have the days gone?! Oh that's right, they've gone to hundreds of diapers, hours of sleep, and the over production of milk!

In the days since Luke was born he's: 

gained 3 pounds and 2 inches (and that was two weeks ago, no telling what he's at now)

he no longer fits into most newborn/3 month clothing

he can hold his head steady and push up for a few minutes

he's started to smile and coo when I talk to him

he loves to go on walks outside and take baths

and his favorite place to take a nap is in his swing listening to the sounds of the "ocean"

One month old today!

I'd say he's a happy little guy

Post bath contentment

For the time being he answers to: little brother, Luke, monkey, and chunks. My Mom says I can't call him chunks anymore or else he will have a complex when he is older. I told her that his fraternity brothers will call him that (or worse) eventually. She swears its different when your friends give you the nickname....

But really I'm ecstatic that Luke has some meat on him as Jake has always been super skinny and long. Luckily for me, my other favorite baby trait is hairy babies. I just love it when they are covered in hair like little monkey's. I'm happy to report both my boys were hairy and I couldn't have been happier. Though my grandfather claims they are hairy because I went to funerals both times I was pregnant which is Chinese superstition that your babies will be hairy. I'LL TAKE IT!

Last weekend Ryan had to work and I feared taking care of both boys alone so we headed to the only solace I know...my parents house! It was my first time driving in four weeks and let me tell you I forgot how much I DESPISE driving. Especially in and around the Central Valley. I'm almost positive drivers here think they are staring in the movie "2 Fast 2 Furious". Even the senior citizens drive like Vin Diesel. But I digress.

In the 24 hours while visiting my parents we took a trip to Costco, one of Jake's favorite places to shop, hit up Borders, went on a walk, and tried to catch up on sleep. They wore us out! Lucky for us my Dad took the day off to spend with the boys. 

I'd bet money that as soon as we left Saturday night my poor Dad passed out due to exhaustion.

So until next month I leave you with this....

A Big.Sleepy.Goofy.Grin.

Don't mind me. I'm just sleep deprived.

For the last two hours Luke and I have been in a circle jerk of nursing, burping, diapers, rocking, crying, swinging, pacifying, walking and repeating. It's taking everything in me not to cry, scream, pass out, or make myself a very strong drink. 

Not only that but for the last two days Luke has had the hardest time falling asleep after we put Jake to bed. We are talking 2 hours of the same routine: left side, burp, right side, burp. Still awake? Rooting? Left side, burp, right side, burp. Still awake? Rooting? Suckle left. Suckle right. Repeat for 2 HOURS!!  Finally after 2 hours he's just ready to suck. Insert pacifier and play suckle, sleep, pacifier falls out, wake up and repeat. And let me tell you I hate pacifiers. Honestly what good are they if they constantly fall out? Why doesnt someone make one that's got a harness? Kind of like a gag ball. Those never fall out of your mouth, right? 

It's like right when I think we've made progress and he's finally asleep he "sharts" his pants, wakes up and we have to start all over again. So here we are. The second hour. And I'm nursing. Again. Crap. He just farted. 

Photo Card

Tonal Type Blue Baby Announcements

Announcements for every life event: graduation, wedding & baby.

View the entire collection of cards.

The final countdown and all the anxiety that comes with it

I can count on two hands the days until my due date (that would be 6). Of course this means nothing because babies come when they are good and ready. In an effort to encourage him out sooner I have been sitting on an exercise ball and walking/window shopping everyday. I've even taken to asking other moms or google-ing ways to jump start contractions. Let me tell you some options sound much more appetizing than others. All of this leads me to last night....

I have been going to bed earlier than usual because I'm exhausted and when I roll over (multiple times) throughout the night, I wake up briefly. Last night I woke up to some odd cramping and then suddenly I was starving. I immediately thought Cash had dropped, which meant that my stomach was no longer shoved in my chest and that was why I was so hungry. My second thought was I shouldn't have rejected Ryan's offer for our nightly slice of ice cream cake. Either way I laid in bed contemplating my next move.

For the next 45 minutes I began to panic. My life will never be the same. In less than two weeks I will be a parent of TWO CHILDREN! I will be responsible for the lives of two little people and it will then be my responsibility to raise them to be gentlemen, productive members of society, good husbands/dads. I'll have to encourage their imaginations, creativity, and independent thoughts. Whatever happens to these two boys will be mine (and Ryan's) success or failure. OMG! How are we going to pay for college? Private or public school? Will they be healthy? Have learning disabilities? What if one, or both, are gay? How will I protect them, or teach them how to deal with society? And my biggest fear: how will I hold on to my relationship with my boys once they are married and have families of their own?! Screw the pain of child birth, at least there are pain meds for that. The pressure of raising children is what gets me.

After talking myself, and my inner voices, down I realized I just needed a bowl of cereal and some good infomercials so I could go back to bed. Tonight I will have that slice of ice cream cake just in case.

Week 36...is it just me or is time slowing down?

SERIOUSLY?! 4 weeks left? You have GOT to be kidding me.

Don't get me wrong, in no way am I prepared for Cash to make an appearance. I still have to put together his room, do laundry, pack my hospital bag and write a ton of thank you notes (everyone has been so generous). Not to mention he still has some baking to do. But that doesn't mean that physically I'm not ready. As I sit here typing Cash is creeping up further into my rib cage making it hard to breathe. Later I'm sure he will tap his foot to the radio, elbow my side, head butt my bladder, and scratch at my cervix...all in a days work for him. Physically I am ready. Done. Tapped out. My clothes are getting shorter and shorter while my belly gets wider. The level of uncomfortable increases each day. Really I ask you: how can your feet ache first thing in the morning?! Literally the first few steps each morning are painful. On the flip side; I could be aching in other places or not getting any sleep. Its a trade off.

It has now gotten to the point where the most common question used to be "when's your due date?" and now its "when's your last day of work?" and "have you picked a name yet?" To which I reply "whenever the water breaks." and "no names until I see the baby in person." Don't get me wrong, these are all logical and very reasonable questions....

Thanks to:
my gigantic belly (slight exaggeration)
my tiny/uncomfortable work chair (it only seems that way when I'm pregnant)
summer desk job (summer=no kids=no activities=boring)
and 103 degree weather
I now suffer from "low back pain, squished uterus, restless fetus, and swollen limb syndrome" (See pregnant)
And for these reasons I can HUG my amazing Dr (or 15, seeing as I'm a Kaiser patient) for putting me on "modified work duty" (i.e I only work 4 out of 5 days a week.)

So for the last two weeks I've been trying to relax and stay off my feet (per Dr's orders). The problem is this technically sets me back because in reality I should start walking now and not turn back until I'm fully dilated, something I like to call "Forest-Gumping-It."

And if I was to leave work at the four week mark (like now) as some women do, my day would look something like it did this past Monday:
7 am: wake up, breakfast in bed with Jake, take him to school
8 am: make smoothie and english muffin, watch Real Housewives of NYC and NJ
10 am: nap
12 pm: peddle around in baby's room, make a bigger mess than necessary, think about doing laundry
1 pm: make 32 oz milk shake and panini. Eat with Ruffles and onion dip.
1:15 pm: catch up on SYTYCD
3 pm: convince Zach to blow up my floatie so I can lounge in the pool, wrestle into unflattering bathing suit
3:20 pm: float in pool
4 pm: "sweep" backyard
4:10 pm: float in pool
6 pm: slop together some kind of dinner
7 pm: lather, rinse, repeat
8 pm: due to total exhaustion crawl into bed and doze off while watching movie
Now see, I realize this sounds totally amazing (and it was) but it's completely unconducive to coaxing a baby to come out sooner rather than later. And this is the only reason I'll be at work until the very end. Waddling from the parking lot to the office, sweating like a beast, and making dramatic noises as Cash swims laps in my uterus.

Parenting fail and our new favorite past time

I come from a town with multiple community pools. There is almost no need to have your own when you have so many to choose from. I'm not much of a swimmer but when its 90+ outside I'd rather be wading in the pool than anything else. I don't know how they did it but the Central Valley has managed to only offer community pools at the gym, which are indoors and used mostly for lap swim, or limited hours at the local high school - neither are my idea of fun.

One of my stipulations looking for a rental this year was it had to have a pool. I refused to suffer through another summer without one (especially being super pregnant.) We got lucky and found the perfect house complete with a nice pool and backyard for entertaining (because I'm totally going to want to do that with a new baby :p). 

Prior to our family vacation to Myrtle Beach, Jake never really liked to swim - let alone take a bath. We got lucky and our condo had an amazing pool area for kids fit with a lazy river, water fountains and mini pools. Ryan even got Jake to go in the ocean and jump around with the waves. 

first time at the pool - 6 months

second time swimming - 2 1/2 years. Notice the clinginess?

3 years old and ready to tackle the ocean! 

It took a few weeks to get the pool clean and working - due to poor landscaping we have multiple gigantic pine trees that shed constantly leaving the pool a mess and cooler than usual - but now we are in full swimming mode. The first few times we hung out by the pool we just put our feet in or stayed near the stairs. Since we had no intention of submerging ourselves we went out fully clothed. It wasn't long before Jake would get soaking wet from splashing around. My immediate thought was for him to strip and run around naked. This was a huge mistake because now he is under the impression that swimming should only be done in the nude. 

This the only appropriate picture I can put up...for now. We are getting there. Michael Phleps better look out!

We've also been potty training for the last 6 months. Its come to the point where anything we do is prefaced with "do you need to go potty first?" One day as we were getting ready to put our feet in the pool I told Jake he needed to go to the bathroom first. His response was "I don't need to." When I jokingly suggested that he could go on the palm tree in the backyard he whipped it out and began peeing before I could even finish my sentence. Hey, he may look like Ryan but he's got my instincts. 

So this summer you can find us swimming in the pool-wrestling Jake into a swim suit-and peeing in the backyard (its better than in the pool, right?) It just goes to show that one tiny decision can produce major consequences.