First Playdate!

Yesterday Connor (and Mommy!) had their first playdate!
We were graciously invited over to Mommy's friend Mary's house to play with her beautiful 3 yr old daughter Avery and her adorable 3 month old son Ethan. (Ethan and Connor are only a few weeks apart in age).

It was a great time for Mommy to sit and chat and have adult conversation!! And... the boys got to spend time with another baby! Although, I'm not quite sure how much they actually noticed one another, they seemed more interested in the Mommy HOLDING that "little thing that looks like me" (aka a baby). Here are some photos of the cuties:


<--- Connor & Ethan meet in the crib!

<--- Still haven't really noticed each other.


<-- "Wait! Is that a baby???"


<--- "Eh, let's just look at our Mommies again!"

Yippee Ay O Kiyaye

Isn't that how the Cowboys say it?

Well, my little guy is now an official cowboy thanks to his grandpa! He was given the coolest rocking horse (the horse is soft and stuffed - and when you press its ears it whinnies and neighs as well as makes the sound of hooves hitting the ground!). And...you can NOT forget his cowboy hat and Marshall's badge to make the set complete!



Connor says "Howdy Partner"

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!!
He's a little worn out already, and its only 7:30 on Christmas morning!!
Will post more pictures very, very soon!

Enjoy your families! Merry Christmas.

Baby's First Bandaid

Baby's First Bandaid = BAD.MOMMY

Well, he was asleep.
His nails were long.
I thought to myself "Hmmm, what a perfect opportunity to cut them without all the squirming!"
I had 9 successful trims, I was on the last and final finger, a thumb.
All of a sudden "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
And, blood.
Crying baby and blood. Definitely a combination to make any parent cringe.
I tried to suck on his thumb to make it stop.
I tried to wrap it with the burp cloth.
Finally, I got a teeny tiny bandaid and wrapped it around his teeny tiny finger.

So...Baby's First Bandaid = BAD.MOMMY

The "New" Meaning of Snow Days

Snow days used to mean anticipating a day off from work, or school.
Sleeping in, doing nothing all day - and just enjoying the pile up of snow.

Well, ok, lets face it - snow days still mean the excitement and anticipation of a day off of work, sleeping in (baby permitting) and doing (next to) nothing.

But - it also means - a FULL DAY with my baby boy! An extra day of the week I get to be with him all day!

As one of my good friends said "HAPPY CONNOR DAY!!"
(thanks Mary!)

Going Bald.

Me, that is.
Well, ok, not bald but a heck of a lot of hair has been falling out!!
I did look in to it - and apparently its perfectly normal to lose hair post partum.
No matter how normal it is, its never fun to be shampooing your hair and feel like you're losing more hairs than you are washing!

According to babycenter.com:
Many new moms are surprised to find themselves shedding more hair than usual in the first few months after giving birth, but it's perfectly normal... During pregnancy, increased levels of estrogen prolong the growing stage. There are fewer hairs in the resting stage and fewer falling out each day, so you have thicker, more luxuriant tresses.

After you give birth, your estrogen levels take a tumble and a lot more hair follicles enter the resting stage. Soon you'll have more hair coming out in the shower or on the brush. This unusual shedding will taper off and your hair will be back to its pre-pregnancy thickness about six to 12 months after you give birth.

Oh, joy!! So, not only do I hardly take the time to DO my hair - but now I should carry around some crazy glue or a wig in case I need to start patching things up a bit!

He laughed, I cried.

Well, today I heard one of the most beautiful sounds I've ever heard. My baby boy laughed!!
He was smiling and very happy and then he let out a nice and clear "Ha!"
It was perfect!
It actually brought me to tears! Oh, how I wish I could hear more! I can't wait until he gets the giggles :)

Mom had a sad day...

Every so often the exhaustion builds up and I feel as if I've reached my stress level maximum.
I think that everything just caught up to me -- I work all day, come home try to pack (can't always do so when the baby is fussing!), I'm TIRED!!!!!!! and it just all snowballed on me and I broke down crying.
So, Mr. E took the baby to his moms for a little while so I could take a break - and not have to worry about the baby. (He figured, if the baby was still in the apartment I would still be checking on him...)
Well, I said "Yes, please give me a little bit to relax"... Then as soon as he started packing things up to take the little guy I started crying more -- I FELT GUILTY!!!!!

How could I want him to take the baby out of our home?? What kind of mother must I be if I feel like I need a break?

So, I found myself posting a message on a board I frequent (thenestbaby.com) about the current situation and all of my fellow "nesties" gave me excellent advice about how normal it was for me to need some time to myself. However, one "nestie" gave me the best advice which immediately helped me to truly put everything into perspective. She said:

"Think of the most strenuous, exhausting job you can and remember even they get lunch breaks and weekends".

And, she was right.

2 Months is a B.I.T.C.H.

Baby Boy E had his 2 month doctors visit today. He is 12 lbs 2 oz (big boy!!), 21 3/4 inches long and the circumference of his head is 15 1/2 inches. The doctor compares him against both 2 month old and 1 month old babies since he was born early. She suggested that we not worry if he doesn't hit milestones according to his birth age, but rather go with his "adjusted age". (Adjusted age being that had he been born full term he would be only 1 month old now...so while most babies may hold their heads up by 3 mos, he may not do it until 4 mos...) This is all very normal stuff, and she said he is VERY HEALTHY!! Yay!!

But...as we all know... the 2 month appointment brings the dreaded SHOTS.

Daddy had to hold the baby while the nurse gave the shots. (Mommy excused herself because she couldn't bear to be in the room. So instead she stood outside the door crying). As the night progresses the fussiness increases, a side effect I'm sure is from the vaccines.

However, I seemed to have been able to perfectly capture Baby E's sentiments about what its like to turn 2 months old...



Do you see what I see??


The face? The finger?? He's telling us that 2 months is a B.I.T.C.H.