Fourth Down!

I have a Four Month Old!

This past month he's found his feet. He's become a drool monster. And he's been trying to sit up and lean forward on his own. And all that means he's really taken to his Jumper. He's also officially started rolling over [see previous post].

He also enjoyed a little bit of football this month. Super Bowl XLVI, that is. Unfortunately, none of our teams decided to play this year. But we chose the Giants as the lesser evil. It's my Dad's team so I was glad to see them win. How 'bout those commercials, folks? Eh, honestly we went to bed early.

My little Lucas got some sugar this Valentine's Day from the ladies at daycare. I tell ya, this one's gonna be a Heartbreaker! But this year I got to be his Valentine, and maybe for several years to come... I'll have to make sure he knows that girls have cooties at least until he's ten or twelve.

Most importantly is that he had his fourth month pediatric appointment. Here are the important stats!

Weight: 13lb 15oz - just shy of 14lbs - and that's only 25th percentile this time.

Length: 26in - 85th percentile

Head Circumference: 41.5cm - 50th percentile
He also got to get some more shots.  This kid...I swear...every place I take him I get the "He's the happiest baby!"  He had the nurse laughing so hard that she said she really didn't want to have to give him his shots.  But nevertheless she did, and he cried of course, but that was it.  Back to being a happy baby again instantly.  I don't know his secret.

And he is officially going to start on rice cereal and try some YUMMY foods. Now my task, to attempt making my own baby food.

HAPPY LEAP DAY!

Alphabet Scramble: R is for...

This week's Alphabet Scramble is brought to you by the letter R!

 

Rattle - We got this one rattle from his Aunt Kati. It's more like a teether for him because right now he prefers to just suck on it instead of shaking it. Either way he's enjoying it.

 

 

Rocking Chair (Glider) - Okay, so I already did the G's and technically my chair is really a glider but it's all the same. Unfortunately we don't get much use out of the glider like we thought. It mainly is used as a dresser of sorts. But I would be crazy if I didn't mention what a great deal we got it for all those months ago. My Mom and I had ventured to one of the second hand baby stores that a coworker of hers had recommended and just gone to the week before. We were actually looking for a pack 'n play or small crib for my Mom to keep at her house for when we visit (which we also got). I saw this glider for less than $75 and anyone knows that these things go for $200-300. We snatched that thing up. And they told us that it had just been dropped off that morning. How about that for inventory turnover? Best deal ever. Even if we don't get that much use out of it.

 

 

Rollover - I've been excited for this one. I finally got some footage this past weekend of Lucas rolling over. And my parents were visiting so they were able to see it in person. My Mom was head over heels excited. This video is of him going from front to back. We were too goo-goo ga-ga when he went from back to front to get it on film. But his trick for back to front is to stick his legs out in front of him and then use it to weigh him down to his side, then complete the turn with his arms. He's so cute!

Lessons I've Learned, Chapter Two

Now this is one that they definitely didn't teach us in my Baby Care Class.  And it won't apply to all.  I just apparently have a baby that loves to spit up.  It doesn't appear to be from overfeeding because I'll give him his "usual" and sometimes he's still hungry so I might give him just a little more.  We're at a point where he's starting to want a little bit more at feeding time, but we haven't fully upped his intake.

So, the lesson I've learned: ALWAYS CARRY AROUND A BURP CLOTH.  We keep one at his crib so that when we get him out to leave the room we'll have it on us.  And we keep one at the couch where we typically feed him.  That's pretty much the two places we keep in steady rotation.  Of course, I'm extra careful in the mornings before I go to work.  I don't want to run late due to having to change my outfit.  The evenings I'm not so mindful.

And this lesson was reinforced this weekend when my parents visited.  Lucas just all of a sudden spit up a ton when his Nana was holding him.  He mostly got himself covered in it but boy was it one degree from being projectile.

I think that a good part of why we need this so much is also because he's started drooling excessively the past month.  He still hasn't popped his first tooth yet but we keep thinking it could happen any day now.  And I think we are getting very close based on this past weekend.  So he's definitely a very drool-y baby.  His daycare actually requested we bring in bibs when he hadn't needed them at all before.  He now goes through them often.  Good thing we have tons!

We Are Young

Cue the music!

 

Is Lucas too young to be getting phone calls?

The other day I got a call on my phone and it was an automated message from his Pediatrician reminding us about his next appointment. "If LUCAS is available to accept this message, please press 1." I had to laugh! I was picking him up from daycare at the time. So I pass him the phone and I say "Lucas, you have a call!" The ladies got a laugh out of it.

 

Another thing, not so funny, rather annoying actually, is that I get mail from the AARP. Granted it always has the middle initial "O" which is definitely not me so they obviously have me confused with someone else. I mean I'm not even 30 yet! Sure I'd love to retire...but stop sending me this stuff. I actually did return one of the mailings one time. "RETURN TO SENDER - I AM NOT OLD!" I think is what I wrote on it.

Don't make us both grow up too fast.

Lessons I've Learned, Chapter One

In these first few months of being a new mom there are definitely things that you may have not been informed of in advance.  I mean the Baby Classes do teach you the basics.  And they try hard to reach other topics and answer other questions that you can possibly think of.  But there are just a few common sense things that don't really click until you've made the mistakes a few times over.

For instance, they teach you how to diaper a baby.  Well, most of you probably had experience diapering babies before, with your younger siblings or cousins or just from babysitting jobs.  Me on the other hand, not so much.  I never had much experience with babies.  I was the youngest growing up.  All my cousins lived several states away.  And my only attempt at babysitting was in college with some mischievous grade school kids.  (Pre-baby Me was NOT a Kid-person.)  

So needless to say I had never changed a diaper.  In the more recent years I did have more opportunities to get some practice but at that point I had set my mind to avoid doing so.  I decided my first diaper would be on my own baby.

So like I said, they teach you the basics of changing a diaper.  They even make sure to mention that if you have a boy to make sure you cover up the family jewels because he will be sure to spray you in the face if he can (or even his own face I might add - yeah, that's happened!).  And of course, even with that preparation it STILL HAPPENS.  Some times the little "teepee" just shoots off from the force - when he's gotta go, he's gotta go.

Here's a "common sense" tidbit that I've learned.  And if we went over it in my Baby Care Class I didn't retain it.  UNFOLD THE DIAPER IN ADVANCE.  Yeah.  Don't get the dirty diaper off and get him all cleaned up before having that new diaper ready and easily accessible.  I've caught my mom not being prepared because she's too busy making goo-goo sounds at Lucas.  (I love you Mom but it's your couch!)  Of course, the same applies when you've bathed him and need to get a new diaper on him.  We make sure we have one out and ready to go before we give him his bath.

And I'm ALL EARS if anyone else has some knowledge to pass on.  Especially those of you who have infants that are just a little bit older than my Lucas.  Because I'm definitely paying attention and learning from your mistakes.  :)  Pass on the wealth of information please!

Alphabet Scramble: B is for...

This week's Alphabet Scramble is brought to you by the letter B!

Boogers - So the past month Lucas has been congested quite often and I've had to do the whole Saline up the nose and drain with the Bulb syringe.  Ugh.  We all hate it, don't we?  But it works.  Also, my dear Sister Amber had given me some Boogie Wipes at one of my showers and we'll use those to help get the crustiness off of his nose.  Come on, Lucas...why won't you let me pick your nose?!

Bathtime - Lucas LOVES his baths.  I get him all washed up (don't forget behind his ears) and then it's a little bit of playtime.  Just a little because I don't want him to get too cold too quickly.  And then I pass off his wriggly self to Hubby with the towel.  I swear he takes his time too, as if Lucas isn't slipping out of my hands!  Then it's a short run to the changing table to get him dried off and diapered before he thinks of any funny business.  He even thinks it's funny when I slather baby lotion all over him. 

This video he was extra giggly!

T minus Coffee

I've started drinking two cups of coffee each morning at work.  They've got the fancy Keurig machines all over the place.  With about twelve different choices!  Of course, I always get the French Vanilla coffee with one pack of Sweet'N Low and one French Vanilla creamer.  And the machine lets you choose from five sizes, 5oz to 10oz.  Of course, I'm going to get the most.  So that's 20oz of coffee each morning.

I was never much of a coffee drinker.  I would have a cup every so often, especially whenever near a Starbuck's.  (Reminds me my Mom gave me a $5 gift card I still need to use!)  My usual there is the Grande Skinny Vanilla Latte.  And when pregnant it was the Decaf Grande Skinny Vanille Latte.

Hubby is definitely NOT a coffee drinker.  So there was never a reason to make a full pot of coffee in the morning.  I did have the small 4-cup pot that I would try to make only about 2-cups worth.  But I don't like having to mess with cleaning it all out every day.  And then I did get the Hamilton Beach Scoop single cup coffee maker for Christmas.  It's perfect!  So I was using that often enough even before I started this new job.  But of course now, for the most part, I'm not using that either.  I just wait until I get into work and get the yummy Keurig/Green Mountain choices.  It saves me a few minutes when getting Lucas and I ready in the mornings.

So, needless to say, I've developed a coffee problem.  Which is why I've decided to give up coffee for the next forty days.  But of course, that means that my intake of soda will increase.  The best I can do is try to stick with the zero-calorie or diet choices.  I'm actually at the moment consuming a Caffeine Free Pepsi in place of my coffee.  Do you think I'll make it through the day?

Are you giving up anything for Lent?

PREGNANT...

That's what the little stick said. 

One Year Ago...

Oh, wait...you didn't think...  Haha, no, sorry to disappoint.

One year ago today I found out I was pregnant.  This is a look back on that day.

FLASHBACK!!!!!

February 17, 2011

It's probably about 5am.  I just got up to get ready for work.  First things first.  I gotta pee on that stick that I set out the night before.  ::sigh:: 

Tinkle tinkle drip drip...two to three minutes later...

What???!!!   POSITIVE?!!

I'm in shock.  I sit down on the toilet to ground myself. 

You have to understand why I'm in shock, probably more so than some women might be.  This is the first positive test I've had so I don't doubt the results one bit.  You see I've peed on a lot of sticks over the past five years and they were always negative, not even a false positive.  So seeing this for the first time is a bit surreal.

After I regain my composure (albeit still grinning from ear to ear with the excitement) I realize now Hubby needs to be informed.  How best to tell him??  Should I jump on the bed with the stick in my hand?

Nah, he isn't even home.  You see he had gone the night before to his sister's house.  He has a job interview today and instead of making the drive first thing this morning he decided to go in the night before so he doesn't have to worry about rushing. 

So do I call him with the news?  Nope.  I make the executive decision to hold off and wait for him to get home.  The plan is for him to come home right after the interview and get in around the time I get home.  I don't want to bombard him with this news when he has an important job interview that he needs to focus on.

This is going to be tough!  I have to go about my day with the weight of this news on my shoulders and cannot tell a single soul.  You know Hubby has to be the first one, right?

But I manage.  Of course, I am a bit chipper throughout the day and chomping at the bit to tell someone at work.  But aside from Hubby having to be the first it is also way too early to be telling anyone at my work about my condition.

It's now 5pm.  I'm home.  Hubby is not here yet!  Ugh.  He's running late.  So I wait and wait...  Finally, he's home.  Yay!  Time for the news!  NOPE.

You see, there's another twist to this day.  It's my father-in-law's birthday.  (Happy Birthday Frankie!)  And we have dinner plans with the family and some family friends to meet them at Annabelle's.  We have just enough time for Hubby to settle in and for us to get ready to head over to dinner.  ::sigh::  There is no way I am telling him now and then going to see his family right after.  We're not ready to tell any of the family just yet, it would also be way too early.  I made yet another executive decision to wait.

So we go to dinner.  Let me say that in my new frame of mind I'm Pregnant!  So much has already changed and even more is about to change.  What changes first?  I order a salad and a glass of water.  YUM.  For the next hour and a half I am mostly quiet.  I don't know what to say without giving anything away.  It's getting later and later and we've finished our meals, why are we still here??  Hubby, "we need to go...", "we need to go..."  Can I not nag you enough?? 

Hubby must think I really need to get home to go to the bathroom or something if I keep bugging him.  But he is really one to drag out a conversation, especially if it's with his Dad and the topic is racing.  FINALLY, we get to go home! 

We're home.  Now what?  How do I tell him I'm PREGNANT?  Do I just tell him bluntly or do I come up with some clever and creative way to tell him?  Well, it's a bit too late for creativity.  But I can't tell him bluntly.  That's just not me.  So now we're home and I still can't tell him just yet.  I've got to come up with something.

Here it is.  You see, I have one of those cardboard boxes for jewelry, one for a bracelet so it's long.  The pee stick fits in it perfectly.  So I put it in the box.  No wait, I don't just put it in the box.  First I put it in a plastic baggy and then the box.  (I don't want any bodily fluids actually ruining the box so I can't use it again, right?)  My plan is to give it to him as a late gift since Valentine's Day was just three days ago.  So that's the plan.

Happy Valentine's!  I got you a MARKER!

Here it goes.  Hubby is already settled in the bed for the evening.  I hop on the bed with my box.  "I have a late Valentine's gift for you."  Hubby takes the box and opens it...  His face is, confused.  He tells me later that he thought it was a marker at first.  A MARKER??  What kind of markers do you use buddy??

You can see it on his face when he finally realizes what it is.  (The fact that it's the test that flat out says PREGNANT or NOT PREGNANT should have helped him out a little sooner.)  His face is beaming.  "Really?", Hubby says.  "That's what it says," I say.  And I reiterate the fact that I've never had a false positive before so I'm inclined to believe it.  But of course, we have to see the Doctor to confirm.

We spend the rest of the evening talking over our new found Baby Bliss. 

This is the moment I first knew I would meet my little Lucas.

Alphabet Scramble: V is for...

This week's Alphabet Scramble is brought to you be the letter V.  I have to admit I did not randomly pick this letter, I specifically chose it this week because of the holiday!  :)

Valentine - My Valentine this year is my precious baby boy, Lucas!  I love that boy.

Vicks - Several weeks ago at the first sign of Lucas getting congested I went out looking for humidifiers.  I found this Vicks brand Cool Mist one that uses their VapoPads to release the scent from it in addition to the mist.  I use it in addition to the generic VapoRub during the day.

Alphabet Scramble: G is for...

This week's Alphabet Scramble is brought to you by the letter G.

Grandparents - These are very special people in Lucas' life.  And they love him very much!

Gripe Water - This stuff we try not to use too often but since it's for gasiness we should probably be using it all the time.  Lucas is one Gassy baby!

Giggles - It is a wonderful thing to see this expression from my baby.

Eleven

I was tagged by Raeann at Mama West building her nest to fill out this questionnaire.  Check it out.

 

The Rules

1. You must post the rules & (link up who tagged you).

2. Post eleven fun facts about yourself on the blog post.

3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.

4. Tag however many people you want.

5. Let them know you've tagged them!

Eleven Facts about Me:

1.  I've increasingly become less organized and more forgetful over the years.  I used to be so organized! 

 

2. I gained nearly fifty pounds when pregnant with Lucas.  Blah!

 

 

3. I'm a habitual cutical biter. (I blame my Dad.)

 

 

4. I love to read smut books about supernatural creatures.

 

 

5.  I'm my parents' favorite child.  Not my opinion, just fact.  :)

 

 

6. Growing up, my brother, Nick, would call me Trashy Trisha, or something of that nature.  :'(

 

7. I met my husband at college in Charlotte, yet we're both originally from the New Bern area - small world!  (If you want to hear about our story then you'll have to ask.)

 

 

8. I planned my wedding around the reception site, The Speedway Club, at Charlotte Motor Speedway.  My in-laws love racing and got a kick out of it.

 

 

9.  I had the biggest crush on a guy in high school and somehow gave him the impression I wasn't interested.  That's how shy I was!

 

 

10. I'm not as musically talented as I pretend to be.  But I do love music.  ♪♫♪

11.   I've taken a ridiculous amount of photos since Lucas has been born.  I never thought love could be like this.

 

 

Eleven Questions:

 

1. If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would buy?

A house. 

(But technically I would pay off all my debt first.)

2. What is something that you genuinely like about yourself?

My eyes.

3. If you could have any job in the world, what would you choose?

Maybe an architect.

4. What is your all-time favorite song?

"So Pure" by Alanis Morissette

5. If you could switch lives with anyone, who would it be & why?

Christina Ricci. 

She's my favorite actress and I've grown up watching her.  I'd like to experience a day in her shoes, even though I know I would fall flat on my face.  :)

6. What is your guilty pleasure?

Desserts

7. What is your favorite junk food?

Chocolate

8. Who is the person you most admire & why?

My mom. 

She's been through a lot these past five years.  And she keeps surviving through it all.

9. If you could live anywhere in the US (besides where you currently live), where would you move to?

Back to Wisconsin.  It was surprisingly great there, even during the winters.

10. What is your biggest wish for your child/future children?

That he finds true happiness with the love of his life.

11. If you could add one obscenely expensive item to your wardrobe, what would you choose?

I'm not fashion forward at all so the only thing I can think of would be crazy huge diamond jewelry.

Eleven New Questions:

1. If you wrote an autobiography what would the title be?

2. Who was your first kiss and how was it?

3. What's your favorite date spot?

4.  If you were an animal what kind would you be?

5.  If you had a choice, what reality show would you be on and why?

6. What would your mid-life crisis purchase be?

7. What is your biggest fear?

8. If you could live anywhere in Europe where would it be?

9. What has been your most embarrassing moment?

10. What would your explanation be if your child/future children asked about the birds and the bees?

11. What is your most priceless possession?

 

Tag, you're it!

 

1. Sevi - Sevi's Levee

 

2. Lacey - Life of Lacey

 

3. Laurie - Our Family: The Hapgood's

 

 

Three Months Down...Two Hundred Thirteen More to Go...

Here's Lucas' first three months.  I honestly can't see too much difference except from the first month to the second.  But months two and three not so much.  Maybe the fourth month will have the biggest change.

3 to 6

This weekend I finally sorted through Lucas' next set of clothes.  He's moved on up to the 3-6 months size.  I just went through and washed them all.  And of course I had to do all the Ooohing and Aaahing along with it.  A full hamper's load!  This kid's got more clothes than I do!! 

 

And that means that I had to retire his 0-3 month clothing.  That was sad to do!  There are still a few outfits that I just want to squeeze him into because they're soooo cute.  But nevertheless, it was long overdue.

On another note, we put him into his jumper again and this time he's holding his head up in it much better.  And he's actually turning this and swatting that to make it play the noise.  Of course he still can't touch the ground with his little (big) feet yet.

Alphabet Scramble: D is for... Part Two

This week's Alphabet Scramble is brought to you by the letter D.  This is the second part!  You can find Part One here.

 

 

Delivery - When I had my baby boy I was nine days overdue. I had gone in on the eighth day to be induced. From the time they began induction and the time I got the epidural was ten hours of laboring. The next seven hours went by slowly still but I managed to get some rest. At some point when my doctor checked me he accidently broke my water which helped to progress my labor finally.

           So the last three hours (yes, that's a total of twenty hours) I finally got into the last stage of active labor. Unfortunately, I'd say that that was the point where the epidural no longer helped me out. It didn't actually run out until the final push but it just wasn't effective for me anymore. So in essence, my delivery was pretty much natural.

           I'd say it was about two hours of pushing with just Hubby and the delivery Nurse until baby's head finally got into position. The Doctor was called and made it to the room relatively quickly since he'd just been taking a quick nap in the on-call room. Finally the last half hour of pushing and my baby boy was here!

           This short video was taken by Hubby shortly after the delivery. It was a very special moment for me as I was just amazed by the little person I was holding in my arms, that just previously I had been holding in my womb for ninth months.

Alphabet Scramble: D is for... Part One

This week's Alphabet Scramble is brought to you by the letter D.  I have split this into two parts because one topic I chose to elaborate.

Daycare - Since we've put Lucas into daycare he gets to spend more time with other infants.  He's usually the first to arrive and one of the last to leave.  The gals just love him.  One of them actually asked me if he ever cries!

Daddy - Lucas and Hubby love each other very much!