Month Nine and a Tribute

Bill & I both had wonderful birthdays this year. Bill took me to a nice dinner while Uncle David and Raine baby sat. It was Will's first time to stay with any one other than my mom in a while and he did great! David and Raine are so good with him and he just loves them. For Bill's birthday I threw him a little adult party at a trampoline park in McKinney. It's basically a giant room with built-in trampolines. We had a blast! It was so fun to let loose for an evening and Grandpa Bri (my dad) and PaPa Pat (his partner) baby sat Will and they did great as well. We're so lucky to have the family we do who are always so helpful and especially loving. It makes going out so much easier knowing he's in good hands.

Will is 9 months old now and...

• Is crawling, pulling up, scooting, pulling, pushing, opening, closing, dumping out, taking apart....which means we are officially baby-proofed (for now). Bill's friend has a toddler and they used a detachable baby coral to build barricades around their entertainment center so we copied that idea and did the same around some other furniture and areas he should keep away from. So far it's worked.
• Is currently being trained to sleep in his crib. He's been sleeping in a cradle swing since he was 5 months old. He graduated from the Rock n Play to the swing. Since Day 1 he has hated the crib, hated sleeping on a flat surface. It may have had something to do with his reflux back then and it was something we just never got him used to. When he started to outgrow the Rock n Play I started using the swing to train him to fall asleep on his own. It worked great but he can't sleep in it forever. He's sleeping great in the pack n play at my mom's and he's sleeping pretty good in his crib at home. We've started with naps. I don't know if we're quite ready for overnight yet. I admit part of the delay of the crib transition is my own fear. I know someone personally who lost her infant to SIDS and it wasn't all too long ago. You just don't forget something like that...
• Weighs about 17 lbs and was 29" as of his 9 month check up. So he's still a little peanut; still in the bottom percentile. He's healthy and he's definitely happy!
• Imitates all the time! It's really funny. He cracks up when we make faces and sounds at him. He seems to have a sense of humor. He loves to play peek-a-boo. He loves to be outside. He loves people and animals. He's a talker and I believe he's starting to understand some words (da da, ba ba, night night). He also is starting to express his emotions. He loves on the people he knows by "hugging" them, crawling to them, giving "kisses" (a really slobbery, open-mouthed version which would be totally disgusting if he weren't so cute). He can also really express himself when he's frustrated and upset. This usually entails throwing, flailing, holding his breath and high-pitched screams. Oh boy. It also seems to happen most often when Bill isn't around! There was one evening I was having a hard time spoon feeding him because he was so ornery. Bill heard the commotion and I swear the minute Will heard his foot steps he was automatically a sweet little angel again. Hmm...

On a personal note, my fitness regime is going well! My 5 am wake ups to go run outside in the rain/wind/cold are starting to pay off. I'm working out 30-45 minutes 6 days/week so it's encouraging to see my body start to slowly morph into the remnants of what was. And exercise certainly does the mind some good too. It helps me find something I can do outside of my mom duties. It's something of an escape. Don't get me wrong, I get plenty of help with Will and everything else. My family is great; Bill is amazing and does more than I could ask of him. He really keeps it all together. But outside of my family I don't socialize much now. It's hard when you don't have a lot of friends with babies that can get together regularly. One of the things that puts you at a disadvantage as a FT working mom is the fact your week-ends are so jam-packed. The other working moms are too busy during their week-ends too, and the nonworking moms get together during the week and are with their own families on the week-end. Most of our closest friends don't have kids yet so we don't see much of each other. No one's fault necessarily but disheartening sometimes, nonetheless. I hate to sound whiny or complain b/c I am grateful for what I have - the family, the job, and the really good friends who have been there. My best friend is sometimes my saving grace. She doesn't have kids yet but she always knows the right thing to say...or not say. From the day Will was born she's been there like family. She's never taken my changing candor as indifference because she knows me. I know I've changed since becoming a mom. I think most mothers do. I don't think it's necessarily good or bad. It's just different. But like my family, she's always in the wings cheering me on. I hope I give as much as I get, but I do know, and I think she does too, that I am loyal to her for life.

And now our month in pictures!

Pulling up for the first time at home

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

My best friend Stephanie (right) and her girlfriend Kait at the State Fair

Tiny hands, big possibilities

Snack Box

Will LOVES this wagon.

And climbing stairs

And Grandpa and Grandma

So tiny!

It's true what they say about dogs...

Months 7 & 8 Thanks for the Mammaries

At 8 months, Will:

• Is about one step away from crawling. He gets on all fours and rocks all the time. He's taken the first steps of hand and knee forward together but that's as far as it's gone. I am in no hurry what so ever for him to start crawling! We haven't even started baby proofing yet...
• Is completely weaned from nursing. Thankfully he took to the formula just fine. We started him on formula right after he turned six months and I took 6 or 7 weeks to wean him. During that time I managed to suffer from a milk blister and a plugged duct. Thank God that didn't happen when we were just starting out, otherwise I really think I would've given up on BF'ing right then and there. It was awful. The pain from the plugged duct was excruciating, and let me say there is nothing more terrifying than watching your breast swell like a balloon. After seeing me in a full on panic over it Bill was a lifesaver. This poor man bathed me and cleaned my incision after my c section, had to deal with the many hormonal days that come postpartum, saw and heard things no man ever wants to know about, and then, just when he thought it was safe, has this grossness to help me with. Thank God one of my friends in my moms group had it happen to her and she recommended soaking in hot water and Epsom salt, (tit dip as Bill affectionately called it); so between that and Bill pressing on my chest as hard as he could several minutes everyday for about three days (worst pain ever; way worse than any childbirth-related pain), voila. So after all that I was more than ready to call it quits. Will handled it great. I think it helped that he's still relatively young and he's been bottle fed since day 1.  
• Is still loving eating solid foods and we're slowly working on the transition now to finger foods. He's started grabbing the spoon more and more so I've started giving him things like those teething biscuits and tiny banana pieces. Last night was actually the first time he didn't gag every time he swallowed it so he's starting to get used to the sensation. I'm very nervous about choking though. I never took an infant CPR class. I know, shame on me. So I really don't know what I would do if he started choking. I just break the food up into the tiniest pieces I can manage. My mom tells the story of when it happened to my little brother. He had terrible reflux and was only a couple weeks old when he choked, like turned blue and everything. She grabbed him by both feet and flipped him upside down and that forced the vomit out and thankfully all was well. I pray I'd have the same resolve should we find ourselves in that situation. 
• Loves being around people, being in public, mimicking facial expressions, talking, singing, laughing, animals. We found he likes the pool. Of course he likes the water; he's a water dragon. He's just a happy, easy to please baby. I say it all the time but we really are lucky. We are  blessed beyond measure. Everyone loves to be around Will. I could go on and on but if you're reading this you've probably been around our baby, so you already know ;-p

Being free of breast feeding has allowed me some time to focus a little more on myself again. And that mainly entails getting back into shape, (and hopefully losing a couple pounds in the process). I've started working out every day on my lunch break and this week I'll start working out before work too. I have a lot of work to do so I have to fit it in when I can, without missing out on my time with Will. It's felt great to be back into it again. It's hard to believe it now, but I used to work out 10 - 12 hours/week. While I probably won't be in that kind of shape again any time soon, I'm enjoying that old feeling I get from routine exercise and I know how great it'll feel to fit into more of my pre-pregnancy clothes again. And the best part is that Bill is doing it with me! We're doing the same training program. It brings us closer in a whole new way.

So here's to a beautiful Fall! We're excited to celebrate our birthdays (Bill's is in Oct.), take our first family trip to the State Fair, a tradition Bill and I have had together the past 9 years, celebrate Bill's favorite holiday, Halloween. It makes my heart burst when I see Bill's face light up at every baby costume, toy, book, pumpkin, etc., because I know how excited he is to share it with Will this year. It's a dream come true. For both of us.

Loves the pool!

LOVES riding in shopping carts!

High chair = mess!

Floor time

How good is Nalani to put up with that?

Month Six

We made it to 6 months! It feels great! We got through those challenging first months of no sleep, round the clock feedings, total upheaval of life as we knew it. Will has become such a light in our lives and so much fun. At 6 months old Will is now...

• Sitting up, completely unsupported! This is the newest development and oh so exciting.
• Babbles, makes hand gestures (none with meaning but fun to watch nonetheless), loves to throw things on the floor and watch us pick them up, wants to touch and grab e-ve-ry-thing. He loves Tid Bit and Nalani and my mom's puppy who he sees everyday, and he loves little kids and other babies. He smiles at them all.
• Sleeps through the night! This has been a trend for a month now, so I guess that makes it no longer just a trend! Since he was born I slept in the same room with Will. He started out in our room and he and I moved into the nursery after a couple weeks. All this time I figured he needed me to be in the room with him in order to sleep. After 5 long months Bill finally convinced me to try sleeping in our room and leaving Will alone to sleep in his room. Needless to say those first few nights were sleepless for me but not for Will! It turns out me being in the room with him was actually what was keeping him awake at night! Gah! I now feel like a new woman, like a real person again, thanks to 7+ hours of uninterrupted sleep most every night. We had to go through crying it out at the beginning of his 5th month. It was the worst. Mostly for me. But CIO works. It was worth it. Naps have also greatly improved,. thanks to consistency and my mom being so great about keeping him on a rigorous schedule. We've made so much progress this past month.
• Eats solids! We started with rice cereal at 5 1/2 months, after realizing he was just so damn hungry all the time, and he gobbled it up. The kid absolutely loves to eat. He's since tried applesauce, carrots (a huge hit), and pears (maybe not so much). The list of foods is expanding every week and it's a lot of fun to watch him enjoy this new phase. And he's actually not a very messy eater. For now. He;s still a little guy, 14 lbs, 3 oz at Friday's 6 month check up, but he eats like a champ.

Those are the major changes, and it seems they're coming fast and furious now. I keep waiting for his first tooth to break. It seems like he's been teething forever and some days are hard on him. The teething toys are all too big for his little mouth so I've found the teething tablets seem to work best right now. But otherwise he's such a happy, content baby. Every where we go people stop us to comment on how cute he is, how observant he is, and good-natured. It makes a momma proud. 

The first 6 months have really flown; they're sort of a blur really. I'm glad I write this blog so that I remember it all for years to come. But I will say it's easier now. Bill and I would ask each other over and over, when does this get easier? I think the answer is around 6 months. For us, anyway. These past 6 months I've felt like I lived in a bubble. I have an incredible husband, wonderful family and supportive friends, and of course this little cherub of a baby, but the baby blues lingered after the newborn stage. I'm just now feeling more like myself again (thanks to sleep, I'm sure), and less like a drone. I've been able to start letting go of feelings like I'm constantly being judged by others around me (with the exception of Bill, our family, and a few close, wonderful friends). I've embraced this new life, both my own and the one that was given to me, and it finally feels natural. It feels incredible, really. I think I fall more in love with Will, more in love with Bill as a daddy, more in love with God for blessing me with this life, each passing day. There's nothing else in this world that could give me that. There's nothing else that could give me these experiences, these tales and memories I will carry with me all the rest of my life. When Will reaches for me, when I see him search for me in a crowded room, when he "hugs" me, smiles at me, I know he trusts me and loves me. To say it warms my heart is an understatement. It goes so much deeper than that, to depths I don't think I have words for.

Will's 6 months photos, taken in Port Huron, the very spot Bill and I used to sit under the stars together as teenagers and talk and dream about what life would be like one day when we could be together. We fell in love there and here we are with our son, all these years later. If I didn't live to see another day I would look back and see how beautiful, how blessed, this life is and the people in it that God made just for me, and me for them.

  

First Family Trip

July was an eventful month! We spent the 4th with my mom and Dan at their lake house. It was wonderful. I love being with them b/c I can just be myself and relax. And their lake house setting is perfect for relaxation. Will loved being there and he went on his first boat ride!

We traveled to Michigan to have Will baptized. It was something I wanted to do before he was born, have him baptized in the church Bill grew up in. I knew it would be special for Bill and for his family. It would also be the perfect opportunity to introduce Will to all our family in Michigan. We named Carolyn and Chris god parents and shared a cottage rental with them and the kids. It was so much fun! We had never spent that much time together, just our two families, and I hope to do it again soon, and more often. We all get along so great, Will absolutely loves my nieces, and the girls are just a delight to be around. It was wonderful for me to be back in Michigan. I hadn't been in 4 long years but it was like I'd never left. I got to see a friend I met up there when I was a teenager that I hadn't seen in close to 10 years; Bill got to see friends from HS he hadn't seen in 10 years. It was a lot of fun to see Bill's family and get caught up with them. It definitely will not be 4 years before I am back again! They of course were delighted to finally get to meet Will and he lapped up all the attention. He really missed them after we left, I know. Traveling with an infant is no small feat but we did it and it was totally worth the effort!

With Grandma Thrash

Great Uncle Bruce and Great Aunt Kathy

Beautiful Michigan

Roger & Christine, Bill's friends from HS

Will's cousin Breonna

Absolutely fascinated with the water

Cousins Breonna and baby Nathan

Grandma and the cousins

Feet in the sand

Will wore a christening gown that's 94 years old, I believe. My grandma was christened in it, her brothers, all of my grandma's kids, her grandkids, and her great grandkids, have all been christened in it. The church is the church Bill was baptized in, his sister and sister's kids, his mother and her siblings and his grandma. 

God parents

Grandma & Grandpa Thrash

Guppy and Grandma

Oldenburg Family

Hogan Family

Thrash Family

Great Grandma Thrash

Big Boy!