On Wednesday morning, Jay, Cindy, Christopher and I packed up the Pathfinder and journeyed to Columbia, South Carolina for my cousin's graduation from Basic Training. Once we got to our hotel after overshooting by about 10 miles, I fed Christopher and then we went to grab a bite at Cracker Barrel.
On Thursday, it was up at 6am so that I could be ready before we had to leave for the base for "Family Day". Traffic was horrible, but we finally made it for the briefing and the release of Leon to his parents. There was an absolutely awesome ceremony involving smoke grenades, simulated artillery, and attacking soldiers! Rousing music, which included Toby Keith's Angry American and I can't remember what else (hopefully Cindy or Jay will be able to remind me) had me covered in goose bumps and fighting back tears. Seeing those 1300 soldiers ready to fight for our country really made me feel proud to be an American. Once the ceremony was over, Leon wanted to go to the PX (base exchange for us laymen) to buy a laptop. That place was swamped!! After spending a few hours there we hung out at the bowling alleys for the rest of the day (yes plural...there were two) where we caught up with Leon while he fidgeted with his laptop and eventually shot some pool (Jay and Leon that is). Then it was back to the hotel for a good nights sleep.
Friday brought the graduation ceremony following which Leon was given an off base pass. Once we finally got him to his barracks so he could retrieve some of his stuff, we went to the on base Burger King for lunch and then Leon had his official graduation picture taken. Finally, it was off to the hotel for some R & R. Honestly, I think we were ALL ready for some down time. We ordered pizza for dinner and then Jay and Cindy took Leon back to the base. Oh and did I mention that I tweaked my back? I don't know what it was, but as I was getting off Jay and Cindy's bed something in my back pulled - Jay thought he heard it pop, but I wasn't sure. I'll I knew was I had to get Christopher on the bed before I dropped to my knees! I spent the rest of the night taking the 800mg Motrins from when I had Christopher. I can't believe how much they helped!
Saturday meant that it was time to come home. I dropped Jay and Cindy off at the airport and then headed towards Jacksonville. Christopher slept for the first 30 minutes, woke up and cried for about an hour, ate, cried for about 10 minutes, and then slept the rest of the way. It was a nice trip, but I was so happy to be home, especially with my aching back!
Sunday, September 9, 2007
August 28, 2007
Jay, Cindy, Christopher and I made it to the Jacksonville Landing today. Jay and Cindy wanted to take the water taxi across the St. John's River. Cindy had researched and discovered that the longest trip would occur if we started out at River City Brewing Company so we went there for lunch. I was a little concerned about Christopher being fussy, but he finally calmed down and we were able to enjoy a nice lunch. I was surprised at the quality of cuisine that we got for the price. What a deal! My understanding though is that the dinner menu is much more expensive and not much fancier (for lack of a better word). In other words, I HIGHLY recommend going for lunch!
After lunch we took the water taxi across to the Landing. I nursed Christopher during the journey. With a full belly, he fell asleep shortly after we got to the Landing. We walked around for a little while before we decided to make our way home. Unfortunately we stopped at the world's worst "Super" Wal-mart where they only carried about half of the items we were looking for!
Once we made it home, Cindy showed me how to make Lo Mein. We ate dinner and eventually played a riviting game of Pictionary. Cindy and I were WAY behind, managed to catch up and take the lead only to lose the game in the end. It was funny playing, even though it did get pretty late.
After lunch we took the water taxi across to the Landing. I nursed Christopher during the journey. With a full belly, he fell asleep shortly after we got to the Landing. We walked around for a little while before we decided to make our way home. Unfortunately we stopped at the world's worst "Super" Wal-mart where they only carried about half of the items we were looking for!
Once we made it home, Cindy showed me how to make Lo Mein. We ate dinner and eventually played a riviting game of Pictionary. Cindy and I were WAY behind, managed to catch up and take the lead only to lose the game in the end. It was funny playing, even though it did get pretty late.
August 27, 2007
August 27, 2007
Well, we ventured out to the mall today. It actually went fairly well. We waited until I finished nursing Christopher and then we left post haste. I took the front Snugli carrier with us, and although he was fairly fussy while we ate (which we did when we first got there), once we got to moving around he fell asleep fairly quickly and stayed asleep. I’m guessing that he slept for about 2 hours (maybe 2 ½) while we walked around the mall and shopped some. Jay and Cindy both got new shoes and I bought 4 nursing tops – and I only spent $51 for all of them! I can’t believe I went to the mall, bought 4 tops (specialty ones no less) and only spent $50 bucks. I just didn’t think that was possible!! Tonight, Chantelle is going to watch Christopher (not sure if she’ll have the girls or not) and Jay, Cindy, Tim and I are going to go out to eat and maybe shoot pool afterwards. I think we’ll have a good time.
Chris is in his swing right now, he’s been fighting sleep for a little while, but he’s finally calmed down and I think he might end up passed out…hey a girl can dream, right!
So I should finish some stuff before our double date. I need to fold/hang up Tim’s work clothes and I’m sure there’s other stuff I need to do too; There usually is!
***8:50PM – Dinner was great; we went to Carabbas and were going to head to play pool but decided to stop off at the house to drop off food and check on Chris. Chantelle needed to get her girls home (school night) so we decided to call it a night – besides, Tim needs to go back to work. Apparently it’s a job that has to be done by tomorrow morning. All in all, it was a great night.
Well, we ventured out to the mall today. It actually went fairly well. We waited until I finished nursing Christopher and then we left post haste. I took the front Snugli carrier with us, and although he was fairly fussy while we ate (which we did when we first got there), once we got to moving around he fell asleep fairly quickly and stayed asleep. I’m guessing that he slept for about 2 hours (maybe 2 ½) while we walked around the mall and shopped some. Jay and Cindy both got new shoes and I bought 4 nursing tops – and I only spent $51 for all of them! I can’t believe I went to the mall, bought 4 tops (specialty ones no less) and only spent $50 bucks. I just didn’t think that was possible!! Tonight, Chantelle is going to watch Christopher (not sure if she’ll have the girls or not) and Jay, Cindy, Tim and I are going to go out to eat and maybe shoot pool afterwards. I think we’ll have a good time.
Chris is in his swing right now, he’s been fighting sleep for a little while, but he’s finally calmed down and I think he might end up passed out…hey a girl can dream, right!
So I should finish some stuff before our double date. I need to fold/hang up Tim’s work clothes and I’m sure there’s other stuff I need to do too; There usually is!
***8:50PM – Dinner was great; we went to Carabbas and were going to head to play pool but decided to stop off at the house to drop off food and check on Chris. Chantelle needed to get her girls home (school night) so we decided to call it a night – besides, Tim needs to go back to work. Apparently it’s a job that has to be done by tomorrow morning. All in all, it was a great night.
August 26, 2007
August 26, 2007
Christopher had a pretty good night last night, even though I was certain he wouldn’t. I thought he’d be too tired to sleep well…that goodness for swaddling!!! Jay and Cindy came into town last night (Saturday the 25th) and will be here until Wednesday the 29th at which point Christopher and I will take them up to Columbia South Carolina for Leon’s boot camp graduation.
It’s going very well so far – we’ve really enjoyed our visit. We went to Dick’s Wings last night. They took my car this morning to go to church and then ate Chinese food at Mandarin Buffet. When they got back they went to look at Swivel gliders with me. I found the one I wanted, but Tim thought it was a little high priced. After looking around at 3 other stores we decided that the first one was a really great deal for the quality chair that it was (the other ones were either more expensive or REALLY cheaply built). Luckily, Jay and Cindy were my witnesses to this fact. I think we are going to get the first one that I really liked. Now it’s just a matter of if we get the floor model (a light, mint green that matches the room décor) or whether we wait and get another color. If we wait, it will probably take like 4 weeks for us to get it in….UGGGHHH!!!!!!
Before I was thinking we should get the green, but the more I think about it the more I think we might want to wait and get a color that is more likely to go with a future decorum – maybe blue (GO YANKEES)!
I guess I’m going to go hit the hay before the boy wakes up. Until next time!
Christopher had a pretty good night last night, even though I was certain he wouldn’t. I thought he’d be too tired to sleep well…that goodness for swaddling!!! Jay and Cindy came into town last night (Saturday the 25th) and will be here until Wednesday the 29th at which point Christopher and I will take them up to Columbia South Carolina for Leon’s boot camp graduation.
It’s going very well so far – we’ve really enjoyed our visit. We went to Dick’s Wings last night. They took my car this morning to go to church and then ate Chinese food at Mandarin Buffet. When they got back they went to look at Swivel gliders with me. I found the one I wanted, but Tim thought it was a little high priced. After looking around at 3 other stores we decided that the first one was a really great deal for the quality chair that it was (the other ones were either more expensive or REALLY cheaply built). Luckily, Jay and Cindy were my witnesses to this fact. I think we are going to get the first one that I really liked. Now it’s just a matter of if we get the floor model (a light, mint green that matches the room décor) or whether we wait and get another color. If we wait, it will probably take like 4 weeks for us to get it in….UGGGHHH!!!!!!
Before I was thinking we should get the green, but the more I think about it the more I think we might want to wait and get a color that is more likely to go with a future decorum – maybe blue (GO YANKEES)!
I guess I’m going to go hit the hay before the boy wakes up. Until next time!
August 24, 2007 - He really DOES roll!
August 24, 2007
11:15AM – Christopher had a GREAT night! It was his second night in his own room. Tim and I are loving it. I think we are all three sleeping better. Christopher had a bath last night and then we got ready for bed by saying goodnight to some of the things in Christopher’s room and some of the things that he plays with during the day. Then Christopher nursed while I read “Goodnight Moon” to him. I’d like to read to him before he’s nursing, but he just got too cranky. Tim and I are probably going to buy a swivel glider for his room for me to nurse him during the night, we just have to decide where we are going to get a good one. So I nursed Chris around 9PM and put him in his crib around 9:40. I grabbed him around 11:30 (didn’t wake him though) and nursed him for almost an hour – he slept while he nursed. He then slept until 4:30, nursed for about 1 hour, and then went back to his crib for an hour (at about 5:30). Normally this would have frustrated me, but I had gotten lots of sleep during the first go round AND I had taken a nice long shower and slept for about 30 minutes before I woke up and fed him at 6:30. He then slept until about 9:45. He’s been up since then – getting a clean diaper and outfit, eating and playing on his mat on the floor.
Now, the reason I’m writing this entry is because I was SO excited about his play time. I put him on his tummy and he rolled over onto his back again. Thinking it might have been the blanket underneath the portion where his head rests (for protection) that had given him a little assistance in the roll, I decided to remove the cushion. That didn’t stop my little guy; he rolled over 2 more times all on his own! I recorded some of the 2nd time (from side to back) and all of the third time so that we have some proof! Not bad for a 10 week old! And now he’s been playing on his back ever since that last roll over (that’s been over 15 minutes now)!
11:15AM – Christopher had a GREAT night! It was his second night in his own room. Tim and I are loving it. I think we are all three sleeping better. Christopher had a bath last night and then we got ready for bed by saying goodnight to some of the things in Christopher’s room and some of the things that he plays with during the day. Then Christopher nursed while I read “Goodnight Moon” to him. I’d like to read to him before he’s nursing, but he just got too cranky. Tim and I are probably going to buy a swivel glider for his room for me to nurse him during the night, we just have to decide where we are going to get a good one. So I nursed Chris around 9PM and put him in his crib around 9:40. I grabbed him around 11:30 (didn’t wake him though) and nursed him for almost an hour – he slept while he nursed. He then slept until 4:30, nursed for about 1 hour, and then went back to his crib for an hour (at about 5:30). Normally this would have frustrated me, but I had gotten lots of sleep during the first go round AND I had taken a nice long shower and slept for about 30 minutes before I woke up and fed him at 6:30. He then slept until about 9:45. He’s been up since then – getting a clean diaper and outfit, eating and playing on his mat on the floor.
Now, the reason I’m writing this entry is because I was SO excited about his play time. I put him on his tummy and he rolled over onto his back again. Thinking it might have been the blanket underneath the portion where his head rests (for protection) that had given him a little assistance in the roll, I decided to remove the cushion. That didn’t stop my little guy; he rolled over 2 more times all on his own! I recorded some of the 2nd time (from side to back) and all of the third time so that we have some proof! Not bad for a 10 week old! And now he’s been playing on his back ever since that last roll over (that’s been over 15 minutes now)!
August 23, 2007
August 23, 2007
Last night went okay after a rough start. That was our fault though. I put Christopher in his crib and he woke up, but rather than nurse him back to sleep, we let him cry and went in every 5 minutes to reassure him. We both agreed that this is what we wanted to do, but I think we’ll probably wait for a little while longer to do THAT again! I want to make sure Christopher knows he can trust us before we do that and besides, I don’t really care if I nurse him to sleep!
He’s having a blast in his bouncer chair right now…it is so much fun to watch him. I have those rattle socks on his feet for a little added fun and he’s about to kick them off because he’s kicking so much! He’s such a happy baby!
Last night went okay after a rough start. That was our fault though. I put Christopher in his crib and he woke up, but rather than nurse him back to sleep, we let him cry and went in every 5 minutes to reassure him. We both agreed that this is what we wanted to do, but I think we’ll probably wait for a little while longer to do THAT again! I want to make sure Christopher knows he can trust us before we do that and besides, I don’t really care if I nurse him to sleep!
He’s having a blast in his bouncer chair right now…it is so much fun to watch him. I have those rattle socks on his feet for a little added fun and he’s about to kick them off because he’s kicking so much! He’s such a happy baby!
August 22, 2207 - The Big Move
August 22, 2007
I didn’t sleep at all last night! Okay, very little. After Christopher’s big day (rolling over…kinda), I decided that I wanted to stop swaddling him so that he could really get a good start at trying to roll from his back to his tummy. Tim put Christopher down to bed at about 11PM or so. Of course Chris woke up right away. I nursed him back to sleep for about 30 minutes, put him down, and he woke up about 15 minutes later. We pretty much played this game until 2:00 at which point I decided to swaddle the little guy. I thought this would make my night more sleep filled – I was wrong. We got to sleep from about 2:30 – 3:30 then it was up again for another feed. I ended up falling asleep for about an hour after Christopher napped (from 3:30-about 5pm). Put him down again, he woke up again. I finally gave up and nursed him in bed….UUGGGHHH!!!! I SO wanted to avoid doing that. Oh well, there’s always tonight!
**A couple more things to add this evening. First, I noticed today that Christopher is really playing with his hands a lot! I’m hoping this means he’s gaining control of his extremities. I think when I swaddle him tonight I’m going to try to swaddle him with his arms up by his head so that he can get a hold of those fingers if he wants them – you know the whole self-soothing thing.
Second, I’m not sure that I’ve already mentioned this (and I don’t really have time to check right now), but during the last couple of days I’ve noticed that Christopher really loves his swing now. This is a huge relief because before when we would put him in it he would just scream. Now he looks around and will even fall asleep if he’s really tired.
Third, I think we are going to attempt to put Christopher in his own room from now on. After last night, Tim is ready to have Chris out of our room. I’m a little more apprehensive, but I understand Tim’s reasoning. Don’t get me wrong, I KNOW Christopher will be fine, I guess it’s just that I want to be able to be at his side as soon as he starts crying. I want him to know that he can trust that I’ll be there. Tim thinks we should let him cry a little more, and this will make that happen. I mean, I’ve been pretty much picking him up as soon as I hear him start to rustle around so that he wouldn’t wake Tim. So I’ve moved his nightlight back into his room and I put the noise machine/CD player in there too. I’m going to have Tim go start the baby lullaby CD right before I put Christopher in his room (so that there is a steady noise) and then I’ll set the “thunderstorm sound” alarm for about 30-45 minutes later. This sound is the most similar to the sounds of the womb that I have. I really hope this goes well quickly, especially since Jay and Cindy are coming on Saturday night (it’s Wednesday night now) and will be sleeping in the room right across from him. I also really want it to go well because, well let’s be honest, I’d LOVE to get some good sleep on a regular basis. I’m hoping and praying that this will help Christopher sleep better, although I’m not sure about that. I tend to believe he usually wakes up because he’s trying to poop or has gas or because he is spitting up and he chokes on it. I had Tim put a blanket under the crib mattress to help incline him and reduce the spit-up factor. Wish us luck. God I just pray that I can stick with this until Christopher transitions into his own room. I think this will help us establish more of a routine (I’m still working on how I want that to go). It will definitely be nice to have our room back!! I’ll update sometime tomorrow to share how it went.
I didn’t sleep at all last night! Okay, very little. After Christopher’s big day (rolling over…kinda), I decided that I wanted to stop swaddling him so that he could really get a good start at trying to roll from his back to his tummy. Tim put Christopher down to bed at about 11PM or so. Of course Chris woke up right away. I nursed him back to sleep for about 30 minutes, put him down, and he woke up about 15 minutes later. We pretty much played this game until 2:00 at which point I decided to swaddle the little guy. I thought this would make my night more sleep filled – I was wrong. We got to sleep from about 2:30 – 3:30 then it was up again for another feed. I ended up falling asleep for about an hour after Christopher napped (from 3:30-about 5pm). Put him down again, he woke up again. I finally gave up and nursed him in bed….UUGGGHHH!!!! I SO wanted to avoid doing that. Oh well, there’s always tonight!
**A couple more things to add this evening. First, I noticed today that Christopher is really playing with his hands a lot! I’m hoping this means he’s gaining control of his extremities. I think when I swaddle him tonight I’m going to try to swaddle him with his arms up by his head so that he can get a hold of those fingers if he wants them – you know the whole self-soothing thing.
Second, I’m not sure that I’ve already mentioned this (and I don’t really have time to check right now), but during the last couple of days I’ve noticed that Christopher really loves his swing now. This is a huge relief because before when we would put him in it he would just scream. Now he looks around and will even fall asleep if he’s really tired.
Third, I think we are going to attempt to put Christopher in his own room from now on. After last night, Tim is ready to have Chris out of our room. I’m a little more apprehensive, but I understand Tim’s reasoning. Don’t get me wrong, I KNOW Christopher will be fine, I guess it’s just that I want to be able to be at his side as soon as he starts crying. I want him to know that he can trust that I’ll be there. Tim thinks we should let him cry a little more, and this will make that happen. I mean, I’ve been pretty much picking him up as soon as I hear him start to rustle around so that he wouldn’t wake Tim. So I’ve moved his nightlight back into his room and I put the noise machine/CD player in there too. I’m going to have Tim go start the baby lullaby CD right before I put Christopher in his room (so that there is a steady noise) and then I’ll set the “thunderstorm sound” alarm for about 30-45 minutes later. This sound is the most similar to the sounds of the womb that I have. I really hope this goes well quickly, especially since Jay and Cindy are coming on Saturday night (it’s Wednesday night now) and will be sleeping in the room right across from him. I also really want it to go well because, well let’s be honest, I’d LOVE to get some good sleep on a regular basis. I’m hoping and praying that this will help Christopher sleep better, although I’m not sure about that. I tend to believe he usually wakes up because he’s trying to poop or has gas or because he is spitting up and he chokes on it. I had Tim put a blanket under the crib mattress to help incline him and reduce the spit-up factor. Wish us luck. God I just pray that I can stick with this until Christopher transitions into his own room. I think this will help us establish more of a routine (I’m still working on how I want that to go). It will definitely be nice to have our room back!! I’ll update sometime tomorrow to share how it went.
August 21, 2007 - He's rolling!
August 21, 2007
He rolled over from his tummy to his back!!!! Well kinda. He definitely rolled, but I think he had a little help. You see, there was a blanket under where his head started out, so there was an ever so slight incline that he rolled down. But it was VERY slight! It was also the first time I really had him take some tummy time on the floor. Usually he’s on me during “tummy time”. Oh, and by the way, he HATED tummy time on the floor – he cried the whole time.
He rolled over from his tummy to his back!!!! Well kinda. He definitely rolled, but I think he had a little help. You see, there was a blanket under where his head started out, so there was an ever so slight incline that he rolled down. But it was VERY slight! It was also the first time I really had him take some tummy time on the floor. Usually he’s on me during “tummy time”. Oh, and by the way, he HATED tummy time on the floor – he cried the whole time.
August 20, 2007
August 20, 2007
Not sure if I mentioned the fact that when Chris sneezes he usually coos right afterwards. It’s unbelievably cute! Oh and yesterday, I noticed that when he’s nursing and about to fall asleep, he starts cooing. Again, so unbelievably cute. Right now he is sitting in his swing staring at the mobile. We use to have a hard time keeping him in the swing…at least happily.
Bill Moulder called today – it looks like he is taking the 2 classes I was going to have and he is in dire need of some help. I told them I would do what I could (mostly give him what I used last year), but I’m a little afraid this MIGHT turn into more of a commitment than I wanted…at least if Bill’s tone is any indication! I’ll just have to stand firm that I will NOT be doing all of his preparations for class. I know he’s only getting $10/hr, but that’s $10/hour more than I’M getting!
Not sure if I mentioned the fact that when Chris sneezes he usually coos right afterwards. It’s unbelievably cute! Oh and yesterday, I noticed that when he’s nursing and about to fall asleep, he starts cooing. Again, so unbelievably cute. Right now he is sitting in his swing staring at the mobile. We use to have a hard time keeping him in the swing…at least happily.
Bill Moulder called today – it looks like he is taking the 2 classes I was going to have and he is in dire need of some help. I told them I would do what I could (mostly give him what I used last year), but I’m a little afraid this MIGHT turn into more of a commitment than I wanted…at least if Bill’s tone is any indication! I’ll just have to stand firm that I will NOT be doing all of his preparations for class. I know he’s only getting $10/hr, but that’s $10/hour more than I’M getting!
August 14, 2007
August 16, 2007
Christopher had his two month checkup today where he got 4 vaccines -3 shots, one oral. He was understandably upset, but calmed down fairly quickly afterwards. I must say, when we put him down on the table to be injected (after I gave him the oral vaccine) I was about to cry just knowing what I was doing to Christopher. I’m still a little concerned about the side effects and whether vaccinating Christopher was something that we should do. The primary reason we finally decided to go ahead and vaccinate was because of the exposure that all three of us will be exposed to – Tim is at a number of different client sites every day, I am exposed to at least 50-75 students per day (when I’m teaching), and Christopher will be in the school system too. Believe me though, I’m still worried about the decision – God, I pray that we made the right decision.
My clogged milk duct is still clogged. I called my doctor to find out if there was anything else that I could do or take to get rid of this thing. Unfortunately, they never called me back with an answer, so I have to wait until tomorrow to call and get an answer. I am feeling a little better, but I’m not sure that means this thing is about to pass through. We had issues last night – I ran out of milk on both sides (or at least Christopher wouldn’t nurse off of either side any more) so we gave him one of the bottles that I had expressed and put in the freezer. The only problem was we had issues getting the milk through the nipple (apparently the fatty milk was clogging it up). So far today everything seems to be going well, but it wasn’t until last night that we had issues, so fingers crossed that tonight will go better!
We have another big day tomorrow – going to DA to pick up the rest of my stuff and drop some other stuff. I hope it goes well, from what I’ve heard, a baby’s worse day is the day AFTER the vaccination is given. This could bode very bad for us! I’m going to be optimistic about it all though and believe that Christopher will do GREAT…heck, maybe he’ll sleep the entire time!
Christopher had his two month checkup today where he got 4 vaccines -3 shots, one oral. He was understandably upset, but calmed down fairly quickly afterwards. I must say, when we put him down on the table to be injected (after I gave him the oral vaccine) I was about to cry just knowing what I was doing to Christopher. I’m still a little concerned about the side effects and whether vaccinating Christopher was something that we should do. The primary reason we finally decided to go ahead and vaccinate was because of the exposure that all three of us will be exposed to – Tim is at a number of different client sites every day, I am exposed to at least 50-75 students per day (when I’m teaching), and Christopher will be in the school system too. Believe me though, I’m still worried about the decision – God, I pray that we made the right decision.
My clogged milk duct is still clogged. I called my doctor to find out if there was anything else that I could do or take to get rid of this thing. Unfortunately, they never called me back with an answer, so I have to wait until tomorrow to call and get an answer. I am feeling a little better, but I’m not sure that means this thing is about to pass through. We had issues last night – I ran out of milk on both sides (or at least Christopher wouldn’t nurse off of either side any more) so we gave him one of the bottles that I had expressed and put in the freezer. The only problem was we had issues getting the milk through the nipple (apparently the fatty milk was clogging it up). So far today everything seems to be going well, but it wasn’t until last night that we had issues, so fingers crossed that tonight will go better!
We have another big day tomorrow – going to DA to pick up the rest of my stuff and drop some other stuff. I hope it goes well, from what I’ve heard, a baby’s worse day is the day AFTER the vaccination is given. This could bode very bad for us! I’m going to be optimistic about it all though and believe that Christopher will do GREAT…heck, maybe he’ll sleep the entire time!
August 12, 2007
August 12, 2007
Second time at church. Does pretty well. Took to nursery after music portion was over (Tim plays drums for the contemporary service). Nicole and Jessica (twins that were in the basketball camp at Mandarin Middle School that I helped with) help out in the nursery, so they watched him. Said he did just fine.
I have my first (hopefully only) clogged milk duct – right side near arm pit…..OUCH!! Chris is getting to eat any time he cries. Right now he’s on the floor on the mat that Grammy gave him filling up his diaper (which he also did last week during church – Tim was bright red and crying he was laughing so hard)
Teachers go back to school tomorrow, and I just keep thinking to myself how lucky I am that I get to stay home with Chris. Funny how I was a little disappointed not to be going b ack at all when Tim first mentioned it! I just love the little guy so much and can’t even begin to imagine not being with him! I am so blessed to have such a wonderfully supportive husband. Thank You God!!!
Second time at church. Does pretty well. Took to nursery after music portion was over (Tim plays drums for the contemporary service). Nicole and Jessica (twins that were in the basketball camp at Mandarin Middle School that I helped with) help out in the nursery, so they watched him. Said he did just fine.
I have my first (hopefully only) clogged milk duct – right side near arm pit…..OUCH!! Chris is getting to eat any time he cries. Right now he’s on the floor on the mat that Grammy gave him filling up his diaper (which he also did last week during church – Tim was bright red and crying he was laughing so hard)
Teachers go back to school tomorrow, and I just keep thinking to myself how lucky I am that I get to stay home with Chris. Funny how I was a little disappointed not to be going b ack at all when Tim first mentioned it! I just love the little guy so much and can’t even begin to imagine not being with him! I am so blessed to have such a wonderfully supportive husband. Thank You God!!!
August 11th, 2007 - Quick Update
Sitting in bouncer seat with the manual lights activity. Discovering to control the action. LAUGHING and TALKING AND GRINNING – absolutely loves this toy.
Will sneeze and then respond – almost like a sigh!
About 11 lbs? Will get official weight at next dr. appoint on Thursday (vaccines that day too)
Very alert – cooing a lot. Smiles when talked to and whistled at. Sits in bouncy chair or lies on floor for 30 -45 min. Usually goes to sleep afterwards.
Eating spurt the last couple days. Pretty much camped out. Very exhausting for me!
Goes to bed around 10pm, wakes up about 4 hours later (2ish) and then again 4 hours later (6ish). Sometimes will sleep for another hour or so after that – usually not though.
Going to first Jaguar party tonight at Brett and Jessica’s house. Christopher will get to play with Luke again. I hope they can grow up together (Luke is about 3 months older than Christopher).
Will sneeze and then respond – almost like a sigh!
About 11 lbs? Will get official weight at next dr. appoint on Thursday (vaccines that day too)
Very alert – cooing a lot. Smiles when talked to and whistled at. Sits in bouncy chair or lies on floor for 30 -45 min. Usually goes to sleep afterwards.
Eating spurt the last couple days. Pretty much camped out. Very exhausting for me!
Goes to bed around 10pm, wakes up about 4 hours later (2ish) and then again 4 hours later (6ish). Sometimes will sleep for another hour or so after that – usually not though.
Going to first Jaguar party tonight at Brett and Jessica’s house. Christopher will get to play with Luke again. I hope they can grow up together (Luke is about 3 months older than Christopher).
I Decided to Blog - Just not here yet
July 3, 2007
Christopher Dean Farren was born on Wednesday, June 13, 2007 at 6:56PM. He weighed in at 8lbs, was 20 inches long, and his head was 13.7 inches round. We were told that babies are expected to lose up to 10% of their birth weight during the first 48 hours – Christopher lost only 3.5 %. He was jaundice – 13.8 as of Saturday, June 16th, but by the time we went to his doctor’s appointment on Tuesday, June 19th he was MUCH better. At that appointment he weighed 8lbs 3 oz, was almost 21 inches long, and his head was 14.17 inches. The boy is an eater!
So I decided that I should try to blog Christopher’s first year (at least) of life. Tomorrow will mark 3 weeks since our little bundle of joy came into this world. I am so excited about being a mom. It’s been a fairly interesting couple of weeks. Lots of 1 hour or 2 hour naps – very little sleep over 3 hours! Oh and there was the morning when I woke up at like 5:30AM after putting Christopher to sleep at like 1ish. I was a little excited, and then I looked in the crib and saw that he was cozied up to the side of the crib with his face in the side. SCARED ME TO DEATH ~ okay, not literally as I am still living, but it did scare me. I thought, of course he didn’t wake me up, he smothered himself as I was sleeping. Needless to say, I sent Tim out for a sleeping wedge that day!! I think that was right before he turned 1 week old. Heck it might have been the weekend we came home from the hospital.
GENERAL: Shelley and Anne left yesterday. It really was nice to have them here and helping. Shells cooked for us every night – I’m going to have to get into doing that!! Chris and I’ve been getting back into the swing of things today. Although yesterday afternoon and evening was touch and go he’s doing great today!
CHRISTOPHER:
Chris lost his belly button at about 4AM on Sunday morning (July 30th) so he got to have his first real bath last night (July 2nd)!!! He wasn’t a big fan of the experience, mostly because he got cold I think. I’m not sure how to avoid that.
Today I’ve been working on getting Christopher into a new routine. I know there are a lot of people that say let the baby set the tone, but I’ve just been having a difficult time functioning in that manner. And Christopher seems fussier when we don’t have some sort of routine ~ although he is a little fussy right now (6:45PM). Right now he’s really tired and fighting going to sleep. I really hope this E.A.S.Y. system works – it’s by the “Baby Whisperer” and it makes sense. He eats, has his activity (including diaper changes, baths, etc.) and then he sleeps and I get some time. I do think it will work well once I get him completely adjusted to going to sleep on his own in his crib, as opposed to be rocked or nursed to sleep.
On a health note, I noticed that his belly button had a yellow crustiness around it. I think it is still trying to completely dry out. I can’t tell yet if it will be an innie or an outie. It looks like an innie that pokes out above the belly, but that could be because it’s still healing.
ME: I’m adjusting fairly well. I still have weepy moments, but those are usually when I just want to have some alone time with Tim and I can’t. Keep in mind, it’s been only Tim and I for almost 11 years. I’m not used to sharing my time with anyone but him. I’m sure he feels the same way, then again, maybe he likes the break from me being “up his butt all the time”! I’m hoping to start making evening meals sometime this week. Maybe not tomorrow since it’s the 4th of July. And I’m looking forward to going up to Nebraska in a couple of weeks. Not really excited about the trip with a newborn, but at least we got a direct flight both ways. Christopher and I will leave on July 13th (his one month birthday) and return home two weeks later on July 27th. Matt and Amy will have their wedding blessed in a church ceremony and they plan on having all the kids (nephews and nieces too) up front during the ceremony, including Christopher if he’ll cooperate. Not sure how THAT will go, but we’ll see. I hope he’ll be asleep in his car seat. I’m just so tickled that they asked me to have him up front with them and all his little nieces (and Amy’s brother’s son I’m sure).
TIM: What an awesome daddy! I’ve really enjoyed watching him with Christopher, he’s doing an amazing job. They’ve already played the drums together ~ Chris fell asleep though! And he’s changed quite a few diapers, all I have to do is ask. So far so good. I can’t wait to watch them together. Oh, and apparently Tim’s daddy instincts kicked in pretty quickly. Last Sunday, June 24th, Tim told me he thought I should stay home full time with Christopher. He said he thought it would be better for Chris’ development. So the next day I took my letter of resignation up to D.A. I felt a little bad because I had previously told them I would teach 3 classes every other day. But they were very understanding and told me that when I was ready to return that they’d try to find me a position.
US: we are great! I think Tim and I both appreciate the other even more than before. We aren’t getting as much time together as I’d like, but that’s okay. I’m sure Christopher will be sleeping through the nights soon and I’ll be able to have some Tim time again! That’s definitely been the most difficult part of this whole process. I miss cuddling with my husband. At least he’s here a lot (when he’s not working I of course). And they are still going to have band night here every other week, so I won’t miss out on having him here at those times. I think that might have been his idea, but I’m not sure.
So that’s it for now. It’s a long one, but only because it’s the first and it reflects 3 weeks of life. I’ll try to keep this thing updated fairly frequently, but no guarantees. Okay, I have to go wake up the little dude. It’s feeding time!!!
Christopher Dean Farren was born on Wednesday, June 13, 2007 at 6:56PM. He weighed in at 8lbs, was 20 inches long, and his head was 13.7 inches round. We were told that babies are expected to lose up to 10% of their birth weight during the first 48 hours – Christopher lost only 3.5 %. He was jaundice – 13.8 as of Saturday, June 16th, but by the time we went to his doctor’s appointment on Tuesday, June 19th he was MUCH better. At that appointment he weighed 8lbs 3 oz, was almost 21 inches long, and his head was 14.17 inches. The boy is an eater!
So I decided that I should try to blog Christopher’s first year (at least) of life. Tomorrow will mark 3 weeks since our little bundle of joy came into this world. I am so excited about being a mom. It’s been a fairly interesting couple of weeks. Lots of 1 hour or 2 hour naps – very little sleep over 3 hours! Oh and there was the morning when I woke up at like 5:30AM after putting Christopher to sleep at like 1ish. I was a little excited, and then I looked in the crib and saw that he was cozied up to the side of the crib with his face in the side. SCARED ME TO DEATH ~ okay, not literally as I am still living, but it did scare me. I thought, of course he didn’t wake me up, he smothered himself as I was sleeping. Needless to say, I sent Tim out for a sleeping wedge that day!! I think that was right before he turned 1 week old. Heck it might have been the weekend we came home from the hospital.
GENERAL: Shelley and Anne left yesterday. It really was nice to have them here and helping. Shells cooked for us every night – I’m going to have to get into doing that!! Chris and I’ve been getting back into the swing of things today. Although yesterday afternoon and evening was touch and go he’s doing great today!
CHRISTOPHER:
Chris lost his belly button at about 4AM on Sunday morning (July 30th) so he got to have his first real bath last night (July 2nd)!!! He wasn’t a big fan of the experience, mostly because he got cold I think. I’m not sure how to avoid that.
Today I’ve been working on getting Christopher into a new routine. I know there are a lot of people that say let the baby set the tone, but I’ve just been having a difficult time functioning in that manner. And Christopher seems fussier when we don’t have some sort of routine ~ although he is a little fussy right now (6:45PM). Right now he’s really tired and fighting going to sleep. I really hope this E.A.S.Y. system works – it’s by the “Baby Whisperer” and it makes sense. He eats, has his activity (including diaper changes, baths, etc.) and then he sleeps and I get some time. I do think it will work well once I get him completely adjusted to going to sleep on his own in his crib, as opposed to be rocked or nursed to sleep.
On a health note, I noticed that his belly button had a yellow crustiness around it. I think it is still trying to completely dry out. I can’t tell yet if it will be an innie or an outie. It looks like an innie that pokes out above the belly, but that could be because it’s still healing.
ME: I’m adjusting fairly well. I still have weepy moments, but those are usually when I just want to have some alone time with Tim and I can’t. Keep in mind, it’s been only Tim and I for almost 11 years. I’m not used to sharing my time with anyone but him. I’m sure he feels the same way, then again, maybe he likes the break from me being “up his butt all the time”! I’m hoping to start making evening meals sometime this week. Maybe not tomorrow since it’s the 4th of July. And I’m looking forward to going up to Nebraska in a couple of weeks. Not really excited about the trip with a newborn, but at least we got a direct flight both ways. Christopher and I will leave on July 13th (his one month birthday) and return home two weeks later on July 27th. Matt and Amy will have their wedding blessed in a church ceremony and they plan on having all the kids (nephews and nieces too) up front during the ceremony, including Christopher if he’ll cooperate. Not sure how THAT will go, but we’ll see. I hope he’ll be asleep in his car seat. I’m just so tickled that they asked me to have him up front with them and all his little nieces (and Amy’s brother’s son I’m sure).
TIM: What an awesome daddy! I’ve really enjoyed watching him with Christopher, he’s doing an amazing job. They’ve already played the drums together ~ Chris fell asleep though! And he’s changed quite a few diapers, all I have to do is ask. So far so good. I can’t wait to watch them together. Oh, and apparently Tim’s daddy instincts kicked in pretty quickly. Last Sunday, June 24th, Tim told me he thought I should stay home full time with Christopher. He said he thought it would be better for Chris’ development. So the next day I took my letter of resignation up to D.A. I felt a little bad because I had previously told them I would teach 3 classes every other day. But they were very understanding and told me that when I was ready to return that they’d try to find me a position.
US: we are great! I think Tim and I both appreciate the other even more than before. We aren’t getting as much time together as I’d like, but that’s okay. I’m sure Christopher will be sleeping through the nights soon and I’ll be able to have some Tim time again! That’s definitely been the most difficult part of this whole process. I miss cuddling with my husband. At least he’s here a lot (when he’s not working I of course). And they are still going to have band night here every other week, so I won’t miss out on having him here at those times. I think that might have been his idea, but I’m not sure.
So that’s it for now. It’s a long one, but only because it’s the first and it reflects 3 weeks of life. I’ll try to keep this thing updated fairly frequently, but no guarantees. Okay, I have to go wake up the little dude. It’s feeding time!!!
THE BIG DAY FINALLY ARRIVES
June 13, 2007
A week after my due date, I was admitted into the hospital to be induced. I was not dilated or effaced at all!!!! Doc started the Patossin at 12:30pm which was the same time that he broke my water. By about 1:15, my first epidural (that's right...FIRST) was being placed. There was one moment during that fun little adventure that freaked both of us out (and the anesthesiologist too). The needle had already been inserted and the anesthesiologist was threading the epidural into place. He told me I would feel pressure, not pain...he was wrong!!! There was a nice little tweak and I flinched and we all realized just how badly that could have gone. Thank God nothing came of that. At that point, I was dilated to 1cm and effaced about 80%. By about 4:30pm, there was a large "hot spot" on my right side that was excruciating. I was given my second epidural and fell fast asleep. At 4:30 when the epidural was placed, I was dilated to about 4 or 5 cm. By about 6:00, I was told I was dilated to about 9 or 10 cm and would be pushing within 30 minutes. Christopher was born at 6:58pm. Our life as a family (and not just a couple) had now begun!
A week after my due date, I was admitted into the hospital to be induced. I was not dilated or effaced at all!!!! Doc started the Patossin at 12:30pm which was the same time that he broke my water. By about 1:15, my first epidural (that's right...FIRST) was being placed. There was one moment during that fun little adventure that freaked both of us out (and the anesthesiologist too). The needle had already been inserted and the anesthesiologist was threading the epidural into place. He told me I would feel pressure, not pain...he was wrong!!! There was a nice little tweak and I flinched and we all realized just how badly that could have gone. Thank God nothing came of that. At that point, I was dilated to 1cm and effaced about 80%. By about 4:30pm, there was a large "hot spot" on my right side that was excruciating. I was given my second epidural and fell fast asleep. At 4:30 when the epidural was placed, I was dilated to about 4 or 5 cm. By about 6:00, I was told I was dilated to about 9 or 10 cm and would be pushing within 30 minutes. Christopher was born at 6:58pm. Our life as a family (and not just a couple) had now begun!
So it Begins
June 2006
After almost 10 years together, Tim and I decided to start a family. Actually, we were going to wait until the end of the year to start trying, but I had a very convincing Dad. On Father's Day, my Dad was taking me to the airport when we discussed when I was going to give him a grandson - this was one of my Dad's favorite topics of discussion with me! When I told him we were going to wait, he convinced me that now was as good of a time as any...why wait for 6 months. Start now and you can have all summer with him (he was convinced I'd have a boy). So when I came home I talked with Tim about it (poor guy, never saw it coming) and we decided the time was right. I told all our family that we were FINALLY going to start our family. They were all thrilled, especially my dad. Every time I talked to him on the phone he asked if I had any news to share - at the time it was annoying, now I love that I have that memory.
Fast forward three months to September. We got word that my dad had died in a car accident. I was devasted to say the least. He'd never meet any of my children. When Tim and I returned from the funeral, I told him that I thought I wanted to put trying on hold - there were just too many emotions and I didn't know how I would do with everything. In fact, on Thursday, September 28th, I was sharing my concerns with my step-mom and told her that we were going to wait, just for a little while. Imagine her surprise when I called her at work the next day to tell her I was pregnant!!! Guess God had a different plan for us. I remember telling Laurie that if I had to guess right then whether we'd have a boy or girl, I told her that I would guess boy, after all, Dad was probably lobbying as soon as he got to heaven!
We found out in January that we were having a boy! Christopher John had been the plan for a number of years. I always wanted our first children to have our middle names. It was a few days after we found out that we were having a boy that I asked Tim if we could change Christopher's middle name to Dean in my Dad's memory (his name was Chester Dean). So it was set. Our first child, and my parents first surviving grandson, would be named Christopher Dean Farren. Now we just had to wait for him to get her. And wait we did!!
After almost 10 years together, Tim and I decided to start a family. Actually, we were going to wait until the end of the year to start trying, but I had a very convincing Dad. On Father's Day, my Dad was taking me to the airport when we discussed when I was going to give him a grandson - this was one of my Dad's favorite topics of discussion with me! When I told him we were going to wait, he convinced me that now was as good of a time as any...why wait for 6 months. Start now and you can have all summer with him (he was convinced I'd have a boy). So when I came home I talked with Tim about it (poor guy, never saw it coming) and we decided the time was right. I told all our family that we were FINALLY going to start our family. They were all thrilled, especially my dad. Every time I talked to him on the phone he asked if I had any news to share - at the time it was annoying, now I love that I have that memory.
Fast forward three months to September. We got word that my dad had died in a car accident. I was devasted to say the least. He'd never meet any of my children. When Tim and I returned from the funeral, I told him that I thought I wanted to put trying on hold - there were just too many emotions and I didn't know how I would do with everything. In fact, on Thursday, September 28th, I was sharing my concerns with my step-mom and told her that we were going to wait, just for a little while. Imagine her surprise when I called her at work the next day to tell her I was pregnant!!! Guess God had a different plan for us. I remember telling Laurie that if I had to guess right then whether we'd have a boy or girl, I told her that I would guess boy, after all, Dad was probably lobbying as soon as he got to heaven!
We found out in January that we were having a boy! Christopher John had been the plan for a number of years. I always wanted our first children to have our middle names. It was a few days after we found out that we were having a boy that I asked Tim if we could change Christopher's middle name to Dean in my Dad's memory (his name was Chester Dean). So it was set. Our first child, and my parents first surviving grandson, would be named Christopher Dean Farren. Now we just had to wait for him to get her. And wait we did!!
Starting a Blog
So I have finally done it; I've finally entered the blogging world. I really had no reason to blog until now. It sucks being so far away from all of our family, especially now that Christopher is here. Hopefully this will provide all of our family and friends an opportunity to watch Christopher grow up, even if you can be here physically.
I've been typing up a daily blog of sorts since mid-August. I will start by posting those here. It's a lot of reading, but I want it all put out there for you guys. I hope you enjoy this. And please, nag me if I go to long between postings. Oh, and don't forget to leave me comments!
I've been typing up a daily blog of sorts since mid-August. I will start by posting those here. It's a lot of reading, but I want it all put out there for you guys. I hope you enjoy this. And please, nag me if I go to long between postings. Oh, and don't forget to leave me comments!
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