Blog Followers---I'm obsessed...

If you read my blog, you should click "Follow" (or whatever it says) and follow me...I'm obsessed with followers and getting more.  I have 31 right now.  I don't know why I'm obsessed.  It must have to do with numbers.  I'm also obsessed with evites.  When I send one out, I check it obsessively to see how many people have RSVP'd.

A Baptism Pic

I'm tired and dying to go to bed but wanted to post this nice 4 generation baptism picture...

Changes...

Seems like it's always something new!  Just in the last two or three days has Jack started really enjoying the activity gyms.  Today we used (for the first time) the Baby Einstein activity gym.  It has a star that is at the top and he finally found that and watched it blink...he even talked to it for awhile...and after a long while (maybe 15 minutes) he started kind of yelling at it.  I'm going to catch that on video soon. 

My grandma was here all day helping.  I got a TON done.  I cleaned out the closet where I stuff gift bags, boxes, etc.  I mailed 8 books that I owed people on Paperbackswap.com.  I did a couple loads of laundry.  John and I went to lunch.  I went grocery shopping.  Changed the sheets on our bed.  John and Tim worked on the fence.  Grandma and I sat on the front step with Jack on the activity gym mat on the grass in the shade under a tree.  He absolutely loved it.  We went out there around 3:30 and didn't go in until about 5:00.  He played on his belly for about 30 minutes, then I rolled him onto his tummy...and he fell asleep.  Just like that!  I was amazed.  I guess being outside in the fresh air with a nice breeze on a soft mat could put anyone to sleep.  He didn't make a peep despite all the neighbors being in our yard talking, the kids playing around him, Bailey trying to eat the mat.  It was fun.  I think grandma had a good time too.  Even though the three year old said, "She doesn't look like MY grandma.  She looks different."   Maggie (sister-in-law) and Katelynn (niece) stopped over with a dog they were dog sitting so we had a zoo in the back yard (four dogs including Tim's dog).

Oh yes, we hit another milestone today.  Grandma thought Jack needed rice cereal...that he is a big baby and he needs it.  You don't question grandma.  The grandma's on my mom's side are like matriarchs.  You just listen to them.  And you don't even wonder if they are right or wrong.  So I rushed off to the store for rice cereal (even though it made me really nervous and I felt like crying a little on the way to the store).  We came back and took about 100 pictures of Jack eating rice cereal.  It was really cute and once he figured out the spoon, he liked it.  I don't know if it helped or if we'll do it again but it was cute.  She thinks he is always crying like he is hungry...which he IS...but I think it's because he loves nursing.  If I let him he would just hang out nursing all day I bet.

Possibly youngest baby ever on rice cereal???

Did he like the rice??? I'll ask him when he can talk...

Jack LOVES being naked.  Is this normal?  He absolutely loves it!  He can be crying like a crazy man....take his clothes off...and he quiets right down.  I was taking a shower this week with him in the vibratig rocker...he started crying so I took him into the shower with me...he smiled the whole time.  After the shower I put him naked on the floor.  I won't show you full nudity...my mom hates it that I show people pictures of naked Jack so I don't...but I'll show partial... :)

After the shower I wrap him up while I get ready...

Then, naked...

He is smiling, laughing, and talking a ton...this has started within the past couple of weeks.  I just want to squeeze him so tight and kiss him like crazy when he does this.  He is still crying a lot but...I feel it's lessening.  I think we're just going to have to sweat it out!  Luckily, he's cute.  I go back to work Monday.  I think my feelings on that can be a whole other post.

Goose (our pit-mix cutie) is still unsure of Jack...You can see Bailey laying like a bump on a log in the background.

Best Bobby Pillow EVER...

I wish I had this....

On Friday, my neighbor, Karen, told me about the baby hammock she bought b/c nothing else worked to sooth her 6 month old son.  She told me I could try hers before buying one since they are expensive.  THEN, on an episode of "The Doctors", they said this is a great way to sooth reflux babies or colicky babies...so I went online to look it up after hearing about it twice in one week...now I really want one!!!!!!!!!!  I wish I had one of those blogs that are so great they get things to review for free :)

http://hushamok.com/shop

Has anyone tried one of these baby hammocks???

Jack's Baptism!

BaptIt wouldn't be fair if I only blogged on our bad days so I decided I must blog tonight about the friggin FANTASTIC day Jack had today!  This morning at church he was pretty fussy so I had to leave the sanctuary for half the service...typically he is pretty easy at church so I was like, "wuh woh".  But we got to my parents house for the party after and it was smooth sailing!  I was so nervous going into it knowing there would be about 35 people or so...I thought two words (or maybe one?)...OVER STIMULATION!!!  I worried about him being passed around too much, taking too much in etc.  We forgot the Beco carrier at home so my dad drove me all the way to my house to get it...it's a MUST b/c in crowds we plop him in and either John and I can carry him around while he sleeps.  So we got there, change his diaper (huge diaper and he peed all over me...which I can't help but think he thinks is funny), change him out of his baptism outfit and into his cute outfit from Janie and Jack (even my sister-in-law liked it and she always thinks I pull up his pants too high).  Fed him...and then braved out into the party...put him in the carrier where he slept for probably an hour...then handed him over to my SIL (sister in law) b/c she loves holding him and I can sometimes be a little posessive...he got handed around for at least an hour and was happy as a clam...even fell asleep on Maggie (SIL).  Most people left and John and Jack and I stuck around to hang out with my mom and dad, grandma, sister and BIL, brother and SIL.  Jack slept on John for a long time, then my dad got to play with Jack for about an hour....Jack always cries with my parents so I think my parents were in heaven...my dad even took him outside to point out different types of plants to him.  So anywho...what a great day.  I loved it.  Little slice of heaven and the weather was amazing so everyone got to hang out on the deck!  I will add pictures soon.

I'm a wimp!

I think there exists some mothers who can listen to crying and stay strong and have confidence they're doing everything (almost everything) right.  I'm not one of them!  Jack has gotten to the point where he cries almost all of his waking hours.  We'll have a good day here and there...I think probably because he wears himself out so much that he has a day here and there where he will actually sleep some.  But lately, if he is up for 12 hours, he may snooze (like when we're on a walk or whatever) for an hour or two of the day, but cry HARD the rest of the day.  There is absolutely nothing I can do.  The doctor says to just roll with the punches and let him sleep however he'll sleep.  Today he wouldn't even sleep on our walk...he cried the second half of it so I started running so we could get home sooner.  He still was happy for his bath.  He is so miserable I feel sorry for him!  I luckily know that regardless of how his day goes, he'll still be sleeping for the night by 8 pm.  My neighbor, who is 46 years old and mother of 6 (her youngest being 6 months old) tells me her 6 month old who suffers from bad reflux and a peanut allergy (that took about 5 months to discover) still wakes up about every two hours through the night and only stopped crying about a month ago.  Karen took Jack from me and held him for about 15 minutes to give me a break.  She is a baby whisperer...she soothed him pretty fast.  Of course if she stopped moving he would cry but still!  I probably would have a complete meltdown if he wasn't such a good sleeper at night.  He is being baptised this Sunday...I VERY much hope that he has a good day on Sunday so that the party at my parents will be fun.

This morning I took him to the woman who will be watching him after I go back to work.  The lactation consultant at my pediatrician thought I should do that a few times before I go back to work to get them acquainted with each other.  So I did this morning so that John and I could do some shoppin for his party on Sunday.  It was easy in that I know he likes her..he smiles a lot at her.  It was hard in that it reminded me I have to go back to work and I can't stand the thought of leaving him.  I guess I COULD stay home with him but I feel I might enjoy working (always have) and I should give it a fair shot.  I'm glad my babysitter lives next door to the mother of six b/c when Jack did his choking/gagging (b/c of the reflux), the babysitter freaked out and asked Karen what was happening.  Karen explained that its because of the reflux.  The babysitter also thinks maybe he doesn't sleep during the day b/c I hold him too much and Karen also explained that you don't really have a choice with reflux babies.  Although I will give the babysitter credit...when I picked Jack up a few hours later, he was sleeping on his couch surrounded by pillows.  Guess he wouldn't sleep in the pack n' play.  I'm worried about weird things with her though...like will she listen to me when I say not to microwave the milk?  You're not supposed to microwave the milk b/c it will kill some of the good stuff in the milk.  Will she keep track of when he is eating and how much so I know how often to pump and how much I should store up before work?  Will she keep track of when and how long he is sleeping so I know what to shoot for on the weekends?  Maybe I shouldn't expect these things from her.  But most of all, I'm worried about the fact that I'll have only four hours with Jack each night before he goes to bed.  I feel incredibly guilty.  I also feel guilty that I have even attempted letting him cry it out during the day.  I thought I had turned a corner with the naps but apparently not...crying it out during the day just does not work for Jack so I'm just going to continue the long walks and carrying him in the carrier all day to build in sleep.  The doctor thinks that during the day, just do whatever it takes to get him to sleep and I don't need to let him cry it out too much until maybe he is four months or so.

I'm concerned people will think I'm miserable after reading my blog...which I'm not!  My BABY seems to be miserable but I'm in love :)  And John and I have never had anything better than Jack.  But it IS an adventure!  I  guess parenthood can be hard to describe...very challenging but the best thing ever all at the same time.

After I picked Jack up from the babysitter, I took him to the doctor for his two month appointment.  He got two shots and apparently they were NOT pleasant b/c he cried for the rest of the day.  I gave him Tylenol twice but didn't seem to make a difference.  It's hard to know if he is crying b/c he is collicky, or because of the reflux, or because of the shots?  I just feel sorry for him.  He really did cry from like 2:00 pm to 8:00 pm unless he were nursing and even then he was kind of crying.  The pediatrician gave me a pharmacy name that can flavor the prevacid...so maybe more of it will go down now (he hates the taste and spits it out) so that he'll feel better.  We'll see!  We pick up the prevacid tomorrow.

In other news, Mr. Chubby is in the 99th percentile for weight at 14 lbs 4 oz.  He is 8 weeks 3 days old.  What on earth!  Fat (but adorable)!!!  And he is only 65th percentile in height.  He has the Geraghty gene's!  Hey, John said it first.

On "The Office" when Pam was asked how she liked maternity leave she said, "It rocked..It rocked my ass off!"  I wish mine did!  I feel like right when he starts feeling a little better I'll be back at work.  I can barely stand the thought of leaving him when he isn't feeling good.  Luckily, my grandma will be here for a couple weeks, then John is taking a couple weeks off to be with the baby, and John's mom volunteered to take a couple of weeks off...so we'll keep him with family and it will be good for him to bond with them.  All I know is that when I go back to work I hope I can find work to keep me busy b/c it will be torturous to go to work and not even be engaged and all the while knowing my baby is with someone else all day.  I only have one more week at home!  Boo!

Sorry for this downer post!

Bailey Update

I brought Bailey to a new vet yesterday.  We needed one closer to home now that we have Jack.  It's only about 10-15 minutes closer taking traffic into account but every little bit counts!  She needed a refill of her Tramadol (which is like morphine for dogs).  Since it was the first time they have seen her, they did some blood work to get an idea of how she is doing aside from her huge tumor.  Anyhow, they called today with the results and the doctor said, "Bailey is doing REALLY really GREAT!!!  Her electrolytes are great, her liver and kidney functions are GREAT...she is just doing great!"  I was like, oh great.

But seriously, I am happy!  She is cute and she loved our time together without GOOSE in the car bugging her.  (Goose is our other dog)

Jack was crying (of course) and she put her head on his lap in the carseat.  What a cutie.  I guess she does have some redeeming qualities. :)

Today = WOAHHH

Today is probably the worst or one of the hardest days I have had with Jack.  He was truly unconsolible from the moment he woke up.  There may have been a couple hours (including the few times he slept) where he did not cry but the rest of the day was not just crying but crying so hard he has a hoarse voice.  Sometimes I find myself in tears with him...mainly out of frustration and wondering..."Am I not doing enough to sooth him?  Am I doing something wrong?"  I think I know that I cannot do anything to help this but sometimes I wonder.  On a typical day I think I control the crying by walking in the stroller for hours on end through the neighborhood.  But it isn't realistic to do that non-stop.  Today was dreary and rainy so we spent most of the day indoors...maybe that is why he cried so much.  Holding him used to help somewhat but he is bigger now and I don't think he is as comfortable sleeping on me and so wakes up frequently, crying.  Lately he wakes up in a worse mood than when he went down.  Nursing usually works to calm him down but not today.  I'm glad the breast feeding worked out for us b/c it's one of the only things that usually calms him down...so its one of my only moments of peace throughout the day...he takes a long time compared to when we give him a bottle.  Today though he ate often but not for long so I didn't have very long breaks.  Maybe he is going through a growth spurt but I feel like I blame his irritability on growth spurts all the time and a kid can only grow so much, you know!?  He hates the swing, kinda likes his vibrating rocker for no more than 15 minutes.  He loves baths but you can only do that so many times in a day.   He's your basic motion junkie I guess.  No sitting around in front of the TV for us.  Well, thank GOODNESS he sleeps so well at night.  He wears himself out so much crying that he sleeps for long stretches...last night 10.5 hours.  But I'm still tired!!  This crying leaves me so rattled and frazzled by the end of the day.  I can tell its not the reflux b/c the main symptoms are missing.  I think its just typical collick.  They say collicky babies usually stop the crying around 3-4 months...here's hoping for 3 months or sooner!  That leaves me 4 weeks or less!

Today we did run out of the store just so I could get out of the house...I picked up swim diapers so tomorrow we're headed to the pool.

Baths!!!

I'm sort of a bathaholic.  I hardly ever drink so I joke that it's like my evening cocktail and I have to have it!  I definitely never go to bed without a bath first...they're not even very long...maybe 10 or 15 minutes (except for when I was pregnant because I loved how weightless I felt in the bath tub then).  So when I was trying to give Jack new "sleep associations" (other than me), my mom reminded me of the bath!  She said we used to love them when we were babies.  The bath is my mother's cure-all for everything.  Once, my dad fell out of a tree and instead of rushing him to the emergency room, she made him take a bath.  This is just always how its been...no matter what your ailment, try a bath.

Anyway, the minute Jack's umbilical cord fell off, we jumped in the bath tub.  Every night since then we have taken a bath together.  While I run the water and get things ready, I place him on a soft frog sponge next to the tub and he has learned what comes next.  It's so cute to see him anticipate the bath!  No matter what his mood, when he knows a bath is coming, he stops crying and starts waving his arms and legs.  If only I could bathe him all day.

Today is a ROUGHHHHHHHHHH day.  It started yesterday so I guess you could say we've had a rough couple of days.  He is crying like crazy and I cannot  get him to settle down or take a nap.  So I decided, its bath time.  We've never taken a day time bath  but desperate times call for desperate measures!  As soon as he knew it was bath time, of course he quieted right down.  We're going through our night time routine right now (bath, nursing, bed) and let's see if it helps him take a LONG nap.  Of course, this really isn't a very good naptime solution b/c I dont think the babysitter will be willing to jump in the tub with him every time he needs to sleep (nor would I want her to) but it might help us get him used to at least taking a solid nap during the day. 

My original plan was to swing by Buy Buy Baby (after a nap which I could not get him to take) to buy a swim diaper and head to the pull for a half hour to float around.  Since its been such a hard day already, I am not too eager to drag him to any store...which tends to over stimulate him and make things even worse.  I absolutely LOVE the water, love the smell of the pool, the chlorine, the smell of skin AFTER you've been in the pool...I love love love it!  So maybe Jack will take after me in this way seeing how much he loves the bath water!

Exercise Post-Partum

So...apparently women who exercise after pregnancy are much less likely to get depressed post-partum.  This article says so and I'm sure there are many other articles saying the same thing...

http://shexbenupdates.blogspot.com/2010/04/postnatal-women-benefit-from-exercise.html

Well, I have always enjoyed exercise for stress relief and just to feel good overall.  Luckily, I have been exercising a lot since having Jack because I HAVE NO CHOICE.  He makes me.  He is a motion junkie.  He loves to be on the move or else he cries.  We're constantlyyyyyyyyyy walking.  That's why I think the jogging stroller and pedometer are so great.  Today we walked a total of 5.5 miles.  But today, for the first time, I actually ran a pretty good chunk.  We walked 1.9 miles this morning.  This afternoon, we went for the remainder...I probably ran 3 of the 3.5 miles.  How did I do that?  Here's how.  Unfortunately, I was WALKING through the neighborhood and a little ways up was this woman RUNNING up the hill with a DOUBLE jogging stroller.  I felt like such a wimp WALKING with my SINGLE jogging stroller.  So...I started running.  I hoped she would turn a corner so I could forget that she is running with a double jogging stroller...she didn't turn fast enough and by then I felt like I was in a groove anyway.

So we had a nice run today for the first time...Jack rewarded me by being a complete grump tonight but he is cute anyway.  I can't help but laugh sometimes at how dramatic he seems.  Even the nurse at the doctors office has commented on how he is somewhat dramatic seeming.  Soon, I'll have HIM push ME in the stroller while I sleep.

Fence Project

Since we have moved into our house back in 2004, we knew our fence needed replacing.  Big time!  Its horrible looking, I'm sure the neighbors hate it.  It's rotting and falling over.  We've had to do ugly repairs on it to keep the dogs from sneaking out.  But so much else needed to be done our house that the fence always fell to the way side...windows, bathrooms, flooring, walls, electrical and plumbing...our house was a HUGE fixer upper.  Well, we're finally getting around to it.  John is a big time researcher and always has a very detailed, well thought out plan.  Drives me crazy!  I want to start something NOW, then figure it out as we go.  I can't tell you how close I came to just going outside and tearing the existing fence down, which I knew would force us to then finish the project.  (True, we could have hired someone but fences are so expensive!)

My dad is currently between jobs and if you know my dad, you know his endless energy.  He kept telling me that we HAVE to get started on the fence because time is going to waste before he starts a new job!  John and I sort of interpreted this as..."Oh, my dad needs something to do poor guy.  Okay we'll go buy the materials and put him to work."  We didn't think WE would be working on it.  John and my dad went out one night after John got home from work and bought all the wood and supplies.  Keep in mind, this is a huge thing for me b/c I literally count the minutes until John gets home not only so I can see him but so he can play with the baby.  He is a much better "player" than I am.  Jack and I usually just stare at each other not knowing what to do.  Anywho...John and my dad were busy with buying fence stuff all night so it was just me and Jack.

Where did my dad go!?!?  After the supplies were bought, he dissapeared.  He kept saying he was going to come over, but never did.  Was this just his way to push John into just getting started?  I guess we'll never know!  But it DID work...

Day 1 of fence building went slow.  Tim, John's brother, came over with Popeye (his dog) and they got to work.  Only, it involved a lot of standing around looking at the ground, wondering where to start?  Tim realized how John can't stay focused on one task for more than five minutes.  As soon as John saw Tim working on a task that looked more fun/easier/whatever, John would go take over and Tim would be left trying to figure the next step.  Maybe Tim understands why I'm so bossy now.  Anywho...

Day 2 rolled around and things really got moving.  Jason came over to help and the three of them made lots of progress.  After 3 total days of work, five posts have been set.  Only 16 more to go!  That's on the other side of the house though so...we'll leave it to later...until my dad makes John buy the supplies and takes off again.  Yes DAD you're one of my followers who never reads my blog...this is a test to see if he actually does read my blog because I know he'll say, I didn't do that!  Hey I'll come over and help!  I think John fired him from the job though.  Anyway...

Here are some pictures from the job.  Jack and I stood around observing but Jack did get his hands dirty with the level.

Before:

And here is what we've done so far:

On a break....I thought this pose of Jason's was hilarious...Bailey wouldnt stop licking his legs and the other two wouldnt stop playing at his feet.

I don't think Jack enjoys this work...

Our makeshift temporary fence...

The neighbor playing...

Blopics

I need some blopics (blog topics) to write about.  Any ideas?

It's a MIRACLEEEE!

This morning Jack woke up at 5:00 AM and after he finished eating around 6:00 AM, he didn't want to go back to sleep.  I was like, ughhhh.  I try not to complain too much since he did go to sleep around 8:00 pm which is a great stretch but still!  So I brought him into bed with John and I...he snoozed a little more but he is so noisy when he sleeps!  How do people co-sleep!?  I'd have to wear some heavy duty ear plugs...or maybe you get used to it...who knows.  Anyway...he snoozed until about 7:30 AM.  We decided to skip church for the sake of me being able to continue trying to establish his nap "routine"....or at least, teach him to sleep in the crib during the day.

Anywho...around 8:30, I put him back in his crib.  He slept until 9:30.  This is pretty typical now...WHEN he sleeps in the crib, he'll sleep for about 45 minutes to an hour.  I think that is because they say babies wake up about every 30 minutes to an hour.  (Adults wake up about every hour and a half supposively.)  I think when he wakes up and remembers he is in the crib, he is like, "OKAY GET ME OUT OF HERE. MWAAAA!!!"  Today, we might have just had a breakthrough!  I put him back down to sleep at 10:45...he cried off and on until about 11:00...and its now 12:45 pm and he is sleeping!  That probaby means that he decided he could continue on instead of crying.  I'm pretty happy about this!

I have to admit...he was losing his cuteness in my eyes.  All this crabiness and tiredness and refusing naps in the crib...I was like, you know...you're looking kind of fat kiddo...not so cute anymore.  But now...NOW he is looking (and acting) absolutely adorable! :)  I told my mom he isn't cute anymore and she said, "Oh thats just b/c you're mad at him for not napping."  Who knew she had me figured out so well!

When he wakes up, I think we'll go for our daily walk.  I like going when he is awake b/c he likes to look around the whole time...and then I also know that a potential crib nap (which is what I'm going for) is not replaced by a stroller nap...the book I'm reading says naps in motion (cars, strollers, etc) are not AS good (but still good) as naps in the crib. 

SO, in conclusion, I DO LET MY BABY CRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Can you tell this is a source of conflict for me?  I write about it all the time!  But its working for us so...I just hope he isn't completely damaged when he grows up.

Let's Talk About Our Pets...OMG

Ah Bailey...the cute yellow lab we adopted from our real estate agent when we bought our house almost six years ago...well...I'm starting to understand why they let us adopt her!  OH.MY.GOSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Alright, I'll admit it...we had better days.  Like her in this picture where she looks miserable b/c we're actually showing her affection...

Bailey has always been John's dog...and I love her but what the heck!!!  People ask, "Oh how is Bailey doing?"  They ask b/c she has some massive tumor on her front leg joint and has for the longest time seemed sort of on the brink.  In fact, we even got another dog thinking, Bailey is going to die soon we want her to teach the puppy some manners before she goes.  Lately, when people ask how Bailey is doing, I say, "TOO GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  Why did I feed her such expensive dog food and why did I always give her vegetables?  I'm convinced this is at the root of her longevity. 

John's Pride and Joy (old pic):

Even I had my moments with her...see???

She WAS kind of cute and pretty:

Disclaimer:  I will feel sad when she dies and terribly guilty for blogging about how she is living too long...and no one will believe me...b/c I blogged about how annoying she is. 

You probably think I'm evil...how can I say this about my very own dog?  Well, I don't know!  But I can!  She was getting slightly annoying even before Jack arrived.  But now, she has reached new levels.  I have no free hands and can't yell at her across the house like I used to do since I don't want to scare Jack.  I'm forced to sit there nursing Jack or whatever (so I can't get up) and grit my teeth, thinking bad thoughts.  John gets mad at me when I talk like this but WOW!  Can any dog be more annoying? 

Bailey has a few redeeming qualities?  Oh wait, no she doesn't.  The neighbor kids don't even want to play with her anymore.  When she is sick, she wants to hug.  That's it.  There you have it, WHEN MY DOG IS SICK, she is cuddly and lovable.  When she's sick.  Which is always preceeding an expensive trip to the vet.

But she has a ton of really annoying qualities!

1.  She barks INCESSANTLY.  She request barks when she wants to come inside, when she wants to go outside, when she wants a treat or a bone, when she wants food, when she wants fresh water (and she'll only drink from a certain type of water bowl). She barks when someone knocks on the door, when she THINKS she hears ANYTHING.  It's absolutely ridiculous.  We don't  hit our dogs but even if we did, I promise you IT WOULDNT WORK.  Even if we used one of those bark collers, it wouldnt work!!  Actually, once my parents put an invisible fence collar on her at their lake house to keep her in the yard...she stood right on the line, you could hear the thing buzzing but it didnt faze her because her fur is too thick...which leads me to the next point...

2.  SHE SHEDS LIKE A MANIAC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  My house is full of hair!  My clothes are covered!  I buy lint rollers in bulk.  I vacuum the furniture regularly to no avail!  She has like five coats of fur.  It's absolutely crazy.  Don't EVER get a dog with light fure that sheds so much.  It's stupid!!!  I never feel like things are clean.  Her hair floats through the air and lands on every surface.  This is despite our efforts with bathing and "The Furminator"

3.  SHE WONT LET YOU PET HER!!!  Try it!  If you pet her, she moves to a different location.  She does not like to be touched.  She just wants to be around.  She has been this way her entire life.  Something is wrong with this dog.

4.  She STINKS!!!  Talk about smelly farts.  GAH. 

5.  When people come over, she knows we will do whatever we can to SHUT HER UP so she will stand right on the edge of the kitchen and living room staring at where we keep the bones and treats BARKING and NOTHING, I repeat NOTHING will shut her up.  You can put her outside but then she'll stand at the door barking to let her back in.  You can make her lay down, which she'll do, and ten seconds...no, five seconds later, no one second later, she is back up barking. 

6.  She costs us about the same as a cell phone or gym membership b/c of her "doggie morphine"

7.  We have to CARRY her up and down the stairs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't really have many pictures to demonstrate how annoying she is now.  But here is a picture of her BARKING at me when I think she was somewhat bottomed out with all that snow we got this winter...haha!

Need I continue?  I already feel evil.  But WOW...I cannot deal with this crazy dysfunctional mental dog!  Sorry John, it's the simple truth.  She is past her prime, ready to go...but she's hanging on for dear life.  Maybe she is worried how Goose (this is our fantastic dog) will cope without her.   Even when I was at Petsmart last night buying food, when the cashier asked me what kind of dogs I have I told her I have an old yellow lab and a young pointer mix.  She said, "Ohhhh I have a 9 year old yellow lab and I hope she lives forever but she is getting so gray!"  I just flat out said, "Oh I'm ready for mine to go."  She didn't know what to say.  The guy behind me said his yellow lab died at 13.   The craziest thing of all is the vet wants me to pay almost $900 for surgery to remove the tumor on her leg.  !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I apologize, I'm sure people won't like this post and they will post comments about how I'm a bad dog owner, and her lack of discipline is my fault, etc etc.  MAybe it is.  Whatever!

Well said!!!

"No Matter What You Do Your Child Will Proably End Up In Therapy Anyway"

"Parenting by Hook or by Crook: Get the Job Done and Live to See Another Day"

Love it!  It came from below article...

http://www.newparent.com/featured/do-baby-books-have-all-the-answers/

"The Quick and Dirty on Sleep"

Love this "Ask Moxie" blog post...

http://moxie.blogs.com/askmoxie/2005/12/quick_and_dirty.html

Especially where she says:

"Whatever gets the maximum number of hours of sleep for the maximum number of people in your household, that's what you should do. And when anyone asks you how your baby's sleeping, just lie and say everything's great."

She also says something somewhere about how you just have to learn...does your baby cry to release tension or does crying build tension in your baby?  That could help you figure out what sleep strategy you'll try with yours!

What I like...Must have Baby Things

Here are my favorite baby products so far...

1.  Aden and Anais Muslin Blankets...

Why I like them:  They are breathable...keep your baby cool in the summer, warm in the winter.  They allow your baby to regulate their own body temperature.  And they're bigger than other swaddle blankets!  47 x 47!  They also get softer every time you wash.  They stretch...so you can wrap up your baby super snug but if they don't want it that tight, they can losen it up a little bit...in fact, below you will see a picture of Jack after he broke out of his swaddle...I didn't do a great job on the swaddle but he always fights swaddles.  He sounds like he is really trying to go to the bathroom actually grunting and all that until he breaks out.

So these are the swaddles I have:

And here is a picture of Jack breaking out...

And here is just a picture I like of Jack swaddled up...

2.  Soothie Pacifiers... the breast feeding class told us not to give your baby pacifiers for 4-6 weeks.  We returned every single pacifier we had bought or received as gifts.  One day after Jack was home, John ran out and bought every single one back...we were desperate!  Jack still isn't crazy about pacifiers but this is his favorite type:

3.  Cloth Diapers!  My favorite...and a new hobby.  I use two types.  One for daytime (The Flip) and one for evening (Bum Genius 3.0)

4.  Hooter Hider...gotta have one!

5.  Beco Baby Carrier Butterfly 2(We love this...lots of good things about it)

That picture above is from their website.  It's not me.  My baby isn't that big.  Anywho...this is a picture of John using the carrier.  He likes it and is able to get Jack to fall asleep, then he can sit down.  When I sit down, Jack always seems to wake up.  Today I accidentally spilled a cup of ice water all over Jack and John when Jack was sleeping on John in the carrier.  WOOOPS.

6.  BOB Revolution Jogging Stroller (we walk or run about 6 miles a day in this since Jack loves to be outside and moving)...

Here is a pic of Jack in the jogging stroller on one of our walks...we bought the infant car seat adapter to go with it so we wouldnt have to wait for him to get bigger before using it.  I promise he likes it more than he lets on...

7.  Last but not least...the Strollometer!!!

Breastfeeding...at 8. Is this a joke???

Seriously, is this a joke? This just...freaky.  I keep getting the chills thinking about it.

Let's be real...

Is my baby going to be in jail by the age of five?  I mean, you have to admit, those eyes...he looks like he is plotting...

I responded to an email from my cousin.  She is pregnant with her second.  Her first, Addison, is sooooo cute.  At least to me, she seemed like such a happy baby all the time...she even posed for the camera at a very young age.  Kara asked me how motherhood was?  I had to be honest...some days (like yesterday) it kicks my butt!  Here is an excerpt from my email to her...

"I love motherhood but WOAH. Just, "Woah." Yesterday by the end of the day I thought I would fall over and die. When John got home i practically threw the baby at him and asked if they could go outside for an hour to give me peace. Jack is the moodiest, most strong willed and stubborn baby I've ever seen. my mom thinks a lot of it has to do with collick but Im beginnin to wonder...i hope he isnt in jail at the age of five. He's just soooo difficult. he literally will yell at you with his cries. Im used to it now but when someone hears it they are kind of shocked. mornings are awful b/c im faced with the reality of a baby who hates naps and i dont know what to do with him all day...I have started putting him down when I see him tired anyway but he puts up a huge fight and its exhausting. He is a "motion junkie" and so we walk like 5 miles a day on average b/c he usually doesnt cry if we're outside walking...so we invested in a nice jogging stroller and strollometer and when we wake up in the morning we start walking. Its tiring. he DOES sleep at night...usually 7-10 hours that first stretch but he may or may not go back to sleep after. uggg. I wonder if he is so angry b/c I was yelling at the doctors during labor about the epidural I couldnt get."

I'm lucky to have a friend with a baby boy who is three weeks older than Jack.  Bastian, her baby, has a very similar disposition.  I dont know where Bastian gets it from b/c his mom is the sweetest thing ever!  (I think I have myself to blame for Jack's temperment...I'm maybe the same way).  But Sarah and I get together once a week for a walk and compare notes.

Then and Now

Huge baby...grew a lot in just 7 weeks...

Before and After...

Cloth Diapers

I love them.  How can you resist this?

Being a mom is hard!

Ughhhh.  I have to blog when I am having a little motherhood crisis!

This sleep thing is just killer!!!  Jack is a A+ sleeper at night but an F- sleeper during the day.  Since Friday (so almost a week) I've been working with him on naps.  I know he is still too young to have a routine per say...but he definitely still needs naps.  I know I can't be so rigid as to say...at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM he will sleep for two hours every day.  But I can watch for his sleep cues and when I see him  get tired, put him in his crib for a nap.  He hates it!  He hates sleeping in his crib when its light outside (his nursery is dark but not AS dark as night).

I feel like I know my kid and I'm doing what I have to do for him and I'm doing what works for him...which like I've mentioned in previous posts, involves crying.  But I can't help but feel like a bad mom!  Every doctor will say something different.  My doctors tend to say to let the baby cry, teach them how to sleep now, it will only get harder and they need sleep...it produces happier baby, happier parents and the baby is developmentally better off.  My friends doctor told her not to let them cry it out until they're over four months.  And then there is the question...how long do you let the baby cry it out for!

I think us moms need to go with what our instinct tells us...b/c I think it must be different for every baby and for every parent!  But its so hard not to question myself...and wonder if I'm really damaging my baby and if he'll stop trusting me, etc.

Last Friday was day one of me trying to teach Jack to take a nap.  The naps were not long but I'd say he slept in his crib for a total of an hour that day.  Well that night, John got home, and Jack actually LAUGHED and smiled with John for a good 10 or 15 minutes...that never happens!  Jack is usually too irritable (probably from lack of sleep).  So I thought, I MUST be doing the right thing...he is happy!  But 6 days later, I still want to cry when I start to wonder what I'm doing?  I just hope I'm not doing anything that will harm him later. 

I can't believe he will be 2 months old on Tuesday!  Time flies.

That's just a bunch of baloney!

Jack has just started smiling and laughing!!!  True, mostly to John...doesn't Jack know who feeds him?!

Probably my biggest stressor (after learning the whole breast feeding gig) has been sleep!  I've already written about that but even after Jack caught on to the whole "sleeping through the night" deal, he's really been a bad napper.  He takes cat naps here and there or he'll sleep on walks (we log lots of miles with our new jogging stroller and strollometer), or he'll sleep in the carrier, but he melts down by the end of the day b/c he really isn't getting any quality sleep!

So I decided I've gotta toughen up with myself!  I have to listen to his cries at nap time just like I had to do at night before he became such a great night sleeper!  I knew the first thing is that I can't give up after one day.  I also knew I needed to keep some sort of log so I could be consistent and  routine. 

Yesterday was Day 1 of my mission.  It went okay.  My goal is to put him in the CRIB for one nap before noon and one nap after noon.  According to my log, I put him down at crib, he cried off and on for an hour...snoozed a little, then cried a little, etc.  I think he may have slept for 30 minutes.  I put him down again at 2:30 and he probably cried 15 minutes but slept a whopping 45!  My goal is for him to be in his crib for an hour each time, crying or not.  Of course if he goes to sleep, I'll let him stay there until he wakes up.  Well, I did have to listen to his cries but instead of being an irritable grumpy crying baby by the evening, he was soooooooooo happy!!!  He smiled, laughed and was in a great mood!  So I said to myself, It has to be a bunch of baloney that letting Jack cry it out is going to emotionally damage him...it's better for him and makes him a much happier baby!  ALSO, considering how much I love him and am trying to do the right thing, how could I emotionally damage him in this way?  I just don't think that could happen.

This is why I hate to see him cry.  How sad...

Today, I put him in crib at 10, he hardly cried and slept for OVER an hour.  Of course, our afternoon nap went awful but it's a step in the right direction!  I ordered a projection mobile online to see if it helps with the naptimes!  I also play his Irish lullibies during naptime.  Now he is nursing and falling asleep since he is so tired from of course NOT sleeping at his nap.  I'll put him in carrier after and then a walk to build in some more sleep.  I feel we are making progress though!!!