Monday, February 28, 2011

Daily cuteness: Cole getting rip roaring mad

Here is Cole getting rip roaring mad at the fact that he cannot open the childproofed cabinet (Roar roar roar ! Or so goes the song of the Dino.) He was once able to open it, so naturally it should always open. And as his personality dictates he will do everything he can to make it open. Cole had to be physically removed from the kitchen and provided with a distraction in order for him to "forget" his need to open this cabinet. Notice his mode of transportation parked nearby. And don't forget my slippers on the bottom of the picture!

Proteins, Yoga, and more discussion of Sleep Deprivation

Ever since I got pregnant, my eating habits have changed. For as long as I can remember, I never finished what was on my plate. My grandfather used to say I ate like a bird. He was right, if birds really do indeed eat the way I did. Essentially, I'd leave pieces of everything on my plate. If I finished a meal, I had to  a) have been really hungry OR b) really loved the meal

Now, especially as a breastfeeding mother, I usually finish what's on my plate and even go for seconds. I crave proteins so much that Keith has actually started to complain that we eat too MUCH meat. Whatevs, is what I say. My body is making milk for a human being. I need my meat. I eat cold cuts (of the organic variety) every day for lunch and we usually eat beef, chicken, turkey, or pork for dinner. I used to despite pork. Now I like it. I used to tolerate chicken. Now I LOVE it.  Last night, the smell of cooked chicken was absolutely invigorating. (In fact, it's what inspired me to write this post.) I've always loved beef, that's no different from my pre-pregnancy likes. Although I once was a vegan for medical reasons (IBS), now I can't imagine ever eating totally vegan again. Sure, we make vegan meals, and I don't usually eat dairy because of the IBS. But I could not ever live long term on a vegan diet again. I get too hungry. Maybe this will change once I stop breastfeeding, but now that it has become habit, I don't think it will.

 Something that I've started up again is going to yoga class. I used to go to yoga regularly before my pregnancy and then as much as I could up until my second trimester. But once the pre-term labor started, I obviously had to stop yoga.  I know I've mentioned my new class before, but I didn't really write about it in detail. I found two classes about five minutes away. They are Saturday and Sunday morning classes. I try to make it to one of the classes each weekend - never both, but sometimes neither (my back suffers when I don't go.) I've gone two Saturdays in a row. And I am loving the teacher, Anne. She rocks. Yesterday, after going through a pose, she realized people were trying to perfect the posture and not the purpose of the pose - to lengthen the back. So she showed us that if we did it a certain way, just because it didn't look perfect, didn't mean it was wrong. Honestly, I think it made everyone breathe a sigh of relief and she continued to emphasize that in the poses we did following that. I felt so much more relaxed knowing the pressure was off, not only for myself, but for the others as well. Sometimes in yoga, people sometimes (I'm guilty of this too) try to look like their posture is a perfect one even if they are killing themselves doing it. That defeats the whole purpose of yoga. Ego has no place in yoga. Yet, so often, we allow it to be present, if not take over our practices. So after she shared alternatives to the posture, I know I didn't feel as though I had to "get it right" just as long as I was lengthening, or working on my core, or whatever the purpose was for the pose at the time.

This yoga class was better than last week because I wasn't suffering from a killer headache like I did last week. Last week I left for yoga without drinking my morning tea, so my sleep deprivation was causing me to feel like total crap with no caffeine. What was also better was that she came over to me to help me with the Crow pose, something I'm not very good at, particularly because I feel like I'm going to topple over. She showed me how it should begin and I practiced it while all the other students did their crazy back inversions. There is no way I will be caught dead trying a head stand. My neck is too precious to me! I also left there feeling invigorated that I could actually practice some of the poses at home. When I was a kid I used to do the bridge and the wheel constantly on my bed, not realizing that I was doing yoga. I was usually busy pretending I was some world class gymnast (gymnastics was my heart's desire when I was a kid).

Okay, so now onto my discussion of sleep deprivation. We are tired. So tired, we walk around like zombies half the time. But one of my co-workers helped me realize just why it is I don't want to try the Tough Ass Method (as she termed it) otherwise known as the Cry It Out Method. It's actually very simple. As I wrote about in my pregnancy blog, my mother abandoned me when I was a toddler and therefore, I assumed (and was mostly correct in that assumption) that she did not love me. Living with that knowledge for so many years did a number on my self-esteem. It took me until very recently (Cole's birth, actually) to realize that it's not MY fault she didn't love me. It's no deficiency of mine.  Really, you'd have to be a VERY selfish person to not fall head over heels for your own child. So, how could I - a motherless, previously abandoned child - allow my own child to cry himself to sleep? How could I  - while he is crying hysterically - allow him to question my love for him or wonder why I'm not there for him? I never want him to have to wonder that. I never want him to think I am not or will not be there for him. This is why Keith and I trudge on, half zombied, coming to his aid to nurse/feed or rock him in the dead of the night.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

The obligatory 9 month post

By the time Cole turns - insert number of months here - it seems as though everyone else's baby has already turned that age, so it almost feels anti-climactic to be writing about it, especially considering we've been telling people that he's "almost" 9 months for about 2 weeks now. (And by everyone else's baby, I mean the several blogs I follow whose babies were also born in May). It's the same way I already feel 34 even though my birthday is not for another 2 months. So this is it. Cole is 9 months old. I was pregnant for 9 months. Add that together and you have 18 months. A year-and-a-half since his creation. Happy Birthday Cole!

To celebrate his birthday he woke up numerous times last night. So much so, that by 6:45 a.m., neither of us was budging when he woke up for the 15th time. We were just THAT tired. But, he was in the partying mood, ya know?

So, February has been an exciting month. So far Cole has gotten:
-an ear infection
-an allergic reaction to the amoxcocillin given to him for said ear infection
-a stomach flu he caught from his daddy
-three top teeth - all at the same time - oh BOY!

Thank God February is over with tomorrow. We're both looking forward to March.

What does Cole like to do?
Crawl around the house and chase after the cats
Open cabinets and inspect their belongings
Chew on spoons
Stand outside his exersaucer
Touch the television
Watch the television
Listen to classical music
Dance with mommy or daddy
Look at the snow
Grab the phone and remote control for afternoon inspection and snacks
Listen to mommy sing
Be worn around the house or the store

What does Cole not like to do?
Eat solids at home (he eats them at day care just fine)
Fall asleep by himself
Be told he can't have the phone or remote control
Jump in his jumparoo (it's almost time to retire that thing!)
Have his diaper changed or his clothes changed

What is Cole eating (at day care)?
Sweet potatoes
Turnips
Rutebegas
Peas
Pears
Apples
Bananas
Mango
Parsnips
Broccoli
Potatoes
lentils
peaches

or some combination of the above foods

Appearance
-Cole has gotten heavier since his last well-baby visit, just a few ounces over 19 pounds. But it makes all the difference. My back and forearms will attest to that! Luckily, the constant lifting has helped strengthen my arms for yoga (more on that later).
-As you can see from the numerous pictures on this blog, he has continued his cuteness. What is interesting is that he finally has some hair. It's funny because before he was born, I would see other babies who were hairless and I said to myself, Not my baby. He'll have a full head of hair. After all, most of the babies on my side of the family (myself included) was born with thick black hair.  Then Cole proved me wrong.

Personality Traits
- Determined (once he sees something he wants he goes for it)
- Persistent (once he sees something he wants he tries for it, again and again until he gets it)
- Loving (Keith is convinced he's been trying to kiss us whenever he tries to "bite" our noses or mouths)
- Good-humored (usually when he's cranky or crying if we can make him laugh he will. He can also laugh at himself when he falls.)
- Curious (this is not a unique personality trait, I'm sure all babies are curious, it's just cute to watch his curiosity at work)

Motor Skills
He's still at the crawling and cruising stage. Although I thought he'd be an early walker, I don't see it happening for another month or two. Maybe more. I think he's content crawling right now. He's really fast and he doesn't fall doing it. He was practicing walking for a little while, but I think the aforementioned illnesses set him back a bit. Two weeks ago, before all of the illnesses began, he was beginning to practice standing on his own. He would do it for a few seconds and then either fall or lean on something. But he hasn't tried that in at least a week. Although it was exciting, it's not a big deal that he has slowed down. He has plenty of time. Like Keith said, he'll walk when he's ready. Why rush it? Right now is a time for exploration.

He's also perfecting the pincer grasp and able to pick up and hold blocks and balls pretty well now.  He enjoys smacking his wooden blocks against things.

Sleep
He still wakes up every 2-3 hours, sometimes more often if he's not feeling well or his teeth are hurting him. Sometimes we'll get a 4 hour stretch and we'll be pleasantly surprised. After some reading up on the topic I discovered that if he had a routine napping schedule he might actually sleep better at night. I've read this in numerous books (and believe me, I have the spectrum of sleep books) and it's come down to this: he needs to nap around 9 or 10 a.m. and again around 1 or 2 p.m. It's been hard to see the consistency since I only see him during the day on the weekends, but so far this weekend, that's when he's gone down without a fight (for the most part). At day care, they put him down when he's REALLY tired and he usually takes two 30-minute cat naps, which every sleep book yells is NOT RESTORATIVE sleep. So by the time I get him, he's one cranky baby who does not sleep well at night. So we're going to ask that he be put down around the above times. I'll get back to you in a few weeks and let you know if it works for them and, if it does, what the effects are on his nighttime sleep.

Here are some February photos....


In the kitchen with the Dino

Waving at Mommy

Investigating one of the kitchen cabinets

Ruddy complexion due to the rash (it was actually worse than this!)

Keith's photo - baby toes

Baby fingers

Look at those lashes!

Happy boy

He's got hair!

Smooch for mommy

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

His new fascination

Doors. Mostly small cabinet doors that he can open from a seated position, but he occasionally tries to open the refrigerator and freezer doors. Sometimes the warmer drawer of the oven. It's funny to watch him open and close this end table door a dozen times in a row. At first we had a child proof latch on it, so he was able to open it a little bit but not more than a few inches. That was hard for him to understand. Finally, Keith took the child safety latch off and Cole went to town on that door. What's also cute is that once he finally opens this door, he will swing it back and forth another dozen times, as if he is testing its integrity.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Daily cuteness: On my back...

and in the Beco butterfly 2. On Monday I wore Cole while I made some baby food ( sweet potatoes and turnips). These pictures were during our mirror checks. If I noticed he was getting cranky I brought him to the bedroom where we smiled at each other in the mirror. During one of the mirror checks I got the bright idea to use the mirror to take a picture of him up close from over my shoulder. You can also get a great view of my messy dresser.

Sweetness

Keith took this of Cole and I this weekend at P & G's. Cole had passed out while nursing, and I just couldn't get enough of his precious face.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Lopsidedness

Lopsided boobies are a frequent source of jokes in my house.

Check out this page for a funny comic on this very topic.

Not loving the solids

So, something weird has happened over the past week and I'm not exactly sure of the cause. Cole has started to spit out his solid food.

Here are two possible causes I am considering:
a) He got used to nursing more when he was sick
b) Another tooth (called the Lateral Incisor) has come in next to the one Central Incisor that recently came in.
c) He inherited my finicky ways

I think it's maybe a combination of a and b, but who the hell knows. All I know is Cole wants to nurse more and eat less solids. It's very much hit and miss these past few days. We tried feeding him solid food three times Sunday. They were all food we made and food that he's eaten gleefully before. He didn't want anything to do with any of them. What he does is push the food out with his teeth as he makes his scrunched up "unhappy" face. Have you seen that face yet? I MUST post a picture (see below). It's too damn cute. So back to the story. He made the face and after a few tries with this, he was all  "Waah Waah Waah" -or roughly translated: "boob, boob, boob." And I was all "Try what's on the spoon first!" But no.  Eventually he just turned his head and thrashed his legs. He wasn't feeling it. However, the night before last, I fed him potatoes and he gobbled it right up. And the potatoes were lumpier than anything we've given him in a while. So, like I said before, who the hell knows?

Who can make the better scrunched up face,
Mommy or Cole?
But if YOU know or have any idea what I could do to help him be on better speaking terms with his solid food, I'd so appreciate it.




Cole gives Daddy the scrunched up face.

Friday, February 18, 2011

My sweet valentine

I woke up Tuesday morning to find this on our dining room table...

with this written on the back.
It was apparently a picture Keith had taken recently for his full-time gig at the Culinary.

This was my Valentines bouquet. Keith photographed it for the florist whose studio is across the hall from his. He bought it from her as a gift for me. 

My sweet valentine.

Our day today

So today was Day 1 of my four day weekend, a.k.a. My Mini Winter Break. It seems like every other school district around here has off next week. Everyone but mine. But this week and next week are 4-day work weeks, and this is the only long weekend we have until Spring Break in mid-April. So we're livin' it up.

First: Well baby visit in the a.m. Cole got his first Polio vaccine and his first HepB vaccine. He weighs 19 pounds and is 28 inches long. We got a referral to an opthamologist because I'm super paranoid about Cole inheriting my wandering eyes. He also got a prescription for his first multi-vitamin.

Next: Cole and I went to Panera, where he managed to get the attention of EVERY SINGLE PERSON walking into the place. His MO? He stares until they look at him and then smiles when they do.  Then, he has a captive audience, and he can play look-see at his leisure. He also had almost every single senior citizen in the place smitten. He got numerous waves and hello's from the elders, male and female. It was a fun experience. Like Keith said on our Valentines Day dinner (where Cole had the two tables next to ours riveted), it's all about community baby sitting. Everyone kept him occupied so I could eat peacefully.

Then: We went to Barnes and Noble so I could buy the Sandra Boynton book Moo Baa La La La. Cole loves Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? by Dr. Seuss, mainly because of all the animal sounds and various sound words in the book. Moo Baa is no different. And it's funny to boot. We also got a boxed set of song books with a CD, so Mommy can sing more songs to Cole while doing the dreaded duty of changing his diaper. The kiddie section of Barnes and Noble is neat. Lots of colors and small things for Cole to lean on. He started screaming "Ha Da. Da Da" until a family of boys showed up. One of the boys noticed Cole staring at him so he started to put on a show of swimming and crawling. Cole was the one riveted this time. He LOVES other kids. That's one of those moments where I can feel good that I send my kid to day care.

Finally: We went home to discover that our power was out. Big surprise there. Our neighborhood usually loses power at least 4 times a year. This time a blown transformer was the cause. So we went to lunch with Daddy (He's finally home!) to the local cafe and had a yummy lunch (see Daily Cuteness picture). Then we went for a nice walk along the trail next to the High Falls, for which this little hamlet was named. Did I mention today was a balmy 62 degrees? Yeah. Tomorrow and Sunday - not so much. So we really did live it up. Then we ran a few other errands before ending up at the grocery store, where Cole wooed the cashier with his neat upside down tricks. See below.

Now: Cole is finally sleeping and we're barbecuing. Yes, you read that right. Just before the thunderstorm started, Keith moved the barbecue to the front of the house (yes, we are THOSE people), where it would sit nice and dry under the eaves.  We are making a nice strip steak, baked potatoes and asparagus. Yes, I know, it sounds like a summer meal. Maybe we're living in a fantasy (where summer happens in February), but when you get weather like this there is no excuse NOT to pretend it's summer.

In the early morning light before the doctor visit.


Cole & Daddy

On the trail

Upside down tricks


The reward at the end of the trail

Daily Cuteness: The baby and his spoon

Cole loves his spoon. 

Thursday, February 17, 2011

The ear infection lowdown

Turns out it wasn't a bacterial infection after all. That became evident today when he came down with what the doctor said could only be a viral rash. In other words, Cole would have gotten better without the penicillin. His ear is completely healed. Yay! My baby is resilient and healthy. We go back again tomorrow for a well baby visit, so we'll find out the goods: exact weight, height, head circumference and everything else in between.

The return of the nursing pillow

So I hope I don't jinx myself with this post, but I think I may have figured out the cause of my milk blisters. I think it was Cole's latch. As soon as he was old enough I wanted to stop using the nursing pillows. I felt like they prohibited me from nursing anywhere anytime, and I wanted that freedom.
I started to just use my arms, holding him in a cradle position or holding him while he sat up halfway nursing. However, I think doing that has caused him to have a bad latch. He is not "high and tight" like they encouraged me to keep him in those early breastfeeding support groups at Kingston Hospital. He is low and loose and therefore, pulling at my nipples and probably causing unwanted friction. It dawned on me about a week ago that this might be the case after I did some serious soul searching trying to figure out when this started and what I started doing differently around that time. Losing the nursing pillow (figuratively not literally) was the only cause I could find.

As a result of this discovery, I use the Baby Balboa nursing pillow to push him up close to me and keep him there. He doesn't always love it, but it's better than wearing a nipple shield. It really is the perfect pillow for later infancy. I'm glad I bought it. The other thing I have been doing to prevent the milk blister from returning is taking more of the soy lecithin. I take two pills twice a day. Let's hope after the past few days I've had with this ear infection that the milk blister does not come back with a vengeance just to show me who's boss.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

I win the award

So I am the new winner of the Mother of the Year award because I missed the fact that my baby had an ear infection.  In all fairness, Keith missed it too, and I'm not berating him, so I should forgive myself. But if you're a mother, you understand why I am a tad mad at myself. I have to keep telling myself, IT IS WHAT IT IS and let it go. (Gee, I could use that same motto for other regrets that plague me daily - why don't I?)

Back to the ear infection. It explains the sleepless nights, the crankiness, the not wanting to nurse on one side. It explains all of that and maybe more.  He's on antibiotics and infant ibuprofen. His fever was high Monday and it is still continuing today, although not as high. That means that I have to keep him home for another day, because it's almost 101 and they have a rule at daycare (and for good reason) that they need to be fever-free for 24 hours before returning.  Even though the doctor said he's not contagious, we still are going to have to keep him home. Wait, let me rephrase that. I am going to have to keep him home because Keith left for his business trip this morning.

Oh and did I mention I have a very tired baby on my hands? A very tired baby who won't stay asleep?
Yeah.

Here is me in my pajamas wearing
a sleeping and sick Cole.
Thank goodness for the Beco Butterfly 2 back carry which has enabled me to get some chores done around the house so that the house doesn't turn into a disaster area when it so easily could, considering the circumstances. When in it this morning, Cole fell asleep to the steady movement of me folding clothes.  I had to watch a few You Tube videos last night to figure out how to get him in the back carry without help. Then I practiced without him in it just to get a feel for the body movements involved in maneuvering it to my back (not an easy process let me tell you). Next, I'm going to try moving him to the back wearing the Beco Gemini. The Gemini has a thicker head support. So, if he falls asleep again, his head hopefully won't look like it does in this picture.

Here's hoping my baby feels better soon!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Daily Cuteness: My valentines

To celebrate Valentine's Day we went out for a nice dinner last night. Here is daddy and baby talking to each other about the food. You can tell Cole is a true Italian, since he now "talks" with his hands. The teachers at day care call him "the politician."

Sunday, February 13, 2011

The Ferris formula for teething

Two teeth + Two grand entrances = Two weeks of no sleep

Sent from my iPhone

Saturday, February 12, 2011

The longest week ever

So much to say, yet so little time.  I've been out of service for a whole week. I think that's probably a record for me. I have my reasons. Mainly, because I was too tired and lacked the energy or the motivation. Also, because when I thought about writing, I realized I really should grade, but I didn't want to grade, so I ended up reading other people's blogs instead, checking facebook and then crashing in bed (only to be woken up an hour later). I am the QUEEN of procrastination. Last weekend was nice (despite the fact that I got yet another milk blister/clogged duct combo) because we went snowshoeing at Mohonk (pictures to follow) after Keith got back from snowboarding. But the rest of the week sucked.
Multiple choice question: Why did my week suck?
a) no snow days
b) no 2-hour delays (even when we had icy, snowy roads)
c) I went snowshoeing instead of prepared for school
d) Cole's teething took a front seat and kept him up half the week
e) all of this bullshit grading I have to do because someone thought it would be a good idea if we English teachers had MORE work
f) all of the above
If you chose letter "f" you would be correct. I know; You're probably thinking I'm a whiner just because I had a FULL week of work. Big whoop. But really, when you get used to that, you almost come to rely on it. And then it becomes  a real shocker when it doesn't happen. Plus, those days allows me to recuperate from the previous night of hardly any sleep.  By Thursday morning, Keith and I were so physically exhausted we were snapping at each other when we shouldn't have. Then I left home mad, then I got screamed at by a bullying parent, and then I went home early in tears. Thank God for awesome school guidance counselors. On the bright side, taking a half day did afford me the opportunity to nap for 2 hours before I picked up Cole, and by Friday I was feeling better.  I even felt like I had a solid lesson. So all in all, not terrible, but Thursday was definitely the pits. I cried so much, I thought I might actually be getting Aunt Flo. But no such luck.

I also felt disconnected this week because of a self imposed restriction on Facebook. I removed the Facebook App from my iPhone and only go on Facebook once a day on the laptop. I felt like having the App on my phone made it too accessible. I'm still reading that book Clutter's Last Stand and I really started to get the feeling that the Facebook App was cluttering my life. I was constantly reading updates on people I didn't really know or care about (this does not include you my dear reader), and would waste too much time checking it when I should be paying attention to my son. As a result, I'm on my phone only for necessary things (like texting and checking email:). I think the disconnection was kind of like Facebook withdrawal. I really wasn't disconnected with the world, I was just feeling the side effects of not constantly checking it.

So enough about my sad little self. You probably want to hear about Cole, right? Well, he's not walking, but he is starting to stand on his own for seconds at a time.  He also likes his teacher's daughter so much that he actually crawled from my lap yesterday afternoon and went over to her and started to wave and "talk" to her.  Speaking of talking, he's still been saying "Ha Da" but he also now says "HAT," and recently he started adding an "s" to the HAT. He also says "Da Da" regularly and then sometimes adds in "Neh" for added flavor. He has the cutest little voice. He's starting to outgrow some of his toys. Not that he's too big for them per se, it's just that he is so interested in moving around that he's not as interested in the jumparoo or the exersaucer. The good thing about the exersaucer is that he can still stand against it and play with the toys. But the jumparoo is too high off the ground for him to play with it from the "outside." We're considering retiring it to the garage.

Today was nice because Allison, Shawn and Juni came for a visit. What fun! Cole was in awe of Juni and Juni enjoyed playing with Cole's toys. It was great connecting with Allison and Shawn about lack of sleep. Poor Shawn was exhausted (and he's a light sleeper like me), so even when he can go back to sleep, he sometimes can't - and I have the same problem! Allison referred to a night of uninterrupted sleep as the promised land. I love that metaphor because it's so true. It's something we're always hoping for or trying to get to, but never quite make it to. It made me feel better to know that we're not alone. And with most people urging me to try some version of sleep training, it's nice to hear the alternatives from someone not trying sleep training and, therefore, not pushing me to do it. It's funny, because I've been hearing so much of it lately.  "It's horrible." "I cried all night." "My husband had to keep me from going in." But then it's like a cult or something because I always hear this right after those declarations: "You've got to do it." "It really works." etc, etc.

Allison and Shawn had been trying night weaning before Juni's molars started to come in. Sickness and teething - sleep's two greatest enemies. Night weaning is something we've been trying the past few nights. It hasn't always worked, but each night he's slept at least one clip of 3-4 hours, so it's got to be having some effect. What we decided to do was have Keith go in every other time. If after a while Cole would still cry, I'd go in and nurse him. But if he fell back to sleep, then I'd get to sleep too.  It has actually eliminated the need for Keith to give him a bottle of formula at night (so far), so that's a plus.

But enough about that. To make up for the fact that I didn't post all week, here are some (10 to be exact) pictures from the past week....


A nice moment with my baby.

Daddy caught Cole in the beautiful natural light of his bedroom

The Catskills from Mohonk

Babywearing Daddy

Babywearing Daddy on snowshoes!

Me snowshoeing up the trail

Cole watches Juni

Juni gets comfy on the ottoman

Cole watches Juni (see the awe?)

This was Cole in between crying. His arm is actually extended to my finger. He wouldn't let go.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Sound words

Cole loves sound words. I am sure this is common with most babies, but I'm new to babies, so it's fun for me to try new sound words every day and see the look of joy appear on his face. It started with Bzzzzzzz and continues every day with some new word we discover. Vroom Vroom. Woof Woof....The list is endless. What's good about sound words is that they have the ability to stop Cole's crying in its tracks. It works especially well on the changing table, which he hates with a passion.

These pictures are from Friday after work. Cole found a new play toy - the monitor, which he has a fascination with when it's not in use.


I thought this was the cutest. He looks so serious but so innocent at the same time.

Keith liked this because of the dramatic lighting.

This is Cole walking with the "Dino" we got from Babies R Us. It's a walker and will convert into a ride-on when he can walk. His balance gets better by the day. It just so happened that when I picked him up from day care the teacher told me he had been using the walker there really well. When she tried to get him to demonstrate for me, he refused and shoved his face in my chest instead.

This was our dinner last night, curried chick peas and potatoes. It's from the cookbook Vegan Favorites - the best cook book on the planet. I kid you not.

Friday, February 4, 2011

Collective of hope

In lieu of actual prayer (Keith and I are really not religious) I was wondering if you could think of my little family each night around 9 p.m, which is our bedtime (Cole goes to sleep at ~6:30) and hope for longer chunks of sleep throughout the night. Yes folks I am that sleep deprived and that desperate.

I do not expect Cole to just start sleeping through the night. I know that is not realistic, but sleeping in larger chunks of, say, 4 hours is. I know he is capable of that. Now I know he's teething and that is probably what is waking him up, but last night was brutal- it seemed like he woke up every hour and 45 minutes. And there's no respite in that. Because sometimes it takes us an hour to get him to fall back to sleep! (That usually occurs once a night).
So I was thinking that if you all collectively hope with Keith and I, that maybe Cole will feel the energy and sleep for longer chunks throughout the night. Just maybe.

Sent from my iPhone

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Merle Whaley rocks my socks

Merle Whaley is the name of the company from whom I buy my grade and plan books every year. I love the books because they are well made and the covers are plastic so they do not tear, unlike some grade-books or combo grade/ plan books with paper covers. However, this year the wire Os binding the books together have unwound and made them practically unusable. They catch on everything- even Keith's mouth, as you can see from this photo. Since I've called twice before and spoken to the same person each time, I figured it would not hurt to call and let the company know this year's batch was poorly made. I was also seriously considering buying a new gradebook from a different company because there's no way I can spend the second half of the school year using this book that is literally falling apart at the seams. As a result of my phone call he is sending me two new books. If that's not good customer service, I don't know what is.

Blogging is the Bomb


So I was given the Stylish Blogger Award by Mommy A.And I feel very honored. I've been blogging for a long time. My first blog was kind of lame (although the one post I left up there is the beginning chapter of the novel I am currently writing-but-not-writing). So when I became pregnant and people wanted updates on the pregnancy, rather than send them emails, I decided to create a new blog to share pictures along with my trials and tribulations. Never did I realize the trials I would face while pregnant. But that's when I met Mommy A. - on the discussion boards of Sidelines. She was my very first Internet friend. We both had our baby boys within two weeks of each other, so it is so much fun keeping track of her son's progress and her hilarious take on life and all things parenting.

So thank you Mommy A. for the award.

First let me say how much I love blogging. No longer do I feel like I am not writing. I used to get down on myself for not writing enough in a journal. But now, I write regularly and I have an audience. Even if that audience is a small one, it still feels good to know that people enjoy reading what I have to say. I'm sure the pics of cutie patootie don't hurt either.

Now I have to give this award to five other bloggers. Then I have to tell you 7 things about myself that you don't know (or that I didn't mention here on this blog).

First the awards.

1. Keith's blog at Keith Ferris Photo. I know he's my husband, but that's not why I'm giving him an award. Keith has been working hard at making his blog an authentic blog, where he posts regularly on topics such as trends in photography - in addition to posting pics from various studio shoots and recent weddings.

2 & 3 I devour Harvesting Kale and Harvesting Kale 365. Randalin lives in Canada and her son, Kale, is just a few weeks older than Cole. I relate to so much of what she writes about (parenting, mothering, babies), plus the title of her blog is so clever!  Not only is she a good writer,  but she takes amazing photographs. (Keith agrees! And if you've got Keith's approval that's as good as gold.) She's the second friend I made over the internet.

4. Senorita Dewey Decimal over at http://vamonoslibrarian.blogspot.com/ is hilarious. I know Senorita from our post college days. We were in a writers group together and she lived with my friend Allison for several years. She is a great writer, and I admire her for quitting her job and traveling in South America for a whole year. How awesome. I just started following her blog and am slowly but surely dipping back into the archives to laugh some more.

5. Kitten over at Mumsyhood has what could best be described as a stylish blog, so this award is perfect for her. When I first stumbled across her blog, I was blown away. What intrigued me the most was the monthly pictures of her daughter on the side of her blog, that show how progressively cuter Nadine has gotten.

Okay now for 7 things you may not have known about me.

1. I was a waitress once for 3 months in grad school (circa 2004) and I was terrible at it. I was snotty to the customers and would only be nice once I realized my tip was on the line. I did occasionally have my good days, but those were rare. The perks of my job was that I got to see a few semi-famous actors who live here in the High Falls area: John Leguizamo, Steve Buscemi, and Aidan Quinn. (Speaking of famous actors - we saw Willem Defoe at the grocery store the other day. He looked so scruffy with his knit hat, if Keith hadn't pointed him out, I wouldn't have know it was him.)

2.  I like cheesy teen movies and television shows.  For instance, I'm a big Twilight fan and I like the show Vampire Diaries. I blame it on the 17-year-old still locked inside my body.

3. I did not major in teaching when I was an undergrad because I did not want to take the Public Speaking class that was a requirement. So I majored in Journalism, and the rest is history.

4. Growing up an only child, I always said I wanted four children. I wanted them all to be boys. (Honestly, I think it's because, when I was younger, I saw this awesome movie with Susan Sarandon called Safe Passage. I imagined myself having so many sons and having a really lively household.) Now I think two will be just fine. I would like Cole to eventually have a sibling, preferably a brother  -  I already have a name picked out! But a sister would be fine too. No name yet!

5. I developed mono when I was in college and was hospitalized for acute tonsillitis. I missed two weeks of college and was told by a few professors to take an incomplete. I was also advised by a relative to drop out, move back home, and go to Queens College the following semester. I refused to take anyone's advice. I wanted to stay at SUNY New Paltz, and although I did not pass with shining colors, I passed. If I had not stayed here, my life would be very different. Thank God for stubbornness.

6. I wish my son looked more like me. I don't know why I want this, I just do.  Fortunately, time is on my side.

7. This month 9 years ago, Keith and I started dating. Just when I had sworn off relationships, Keith found his way into my heart.

I must now tag the five bloggers listed above and let them know I've bestowed this award on them.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

A babywearing snow day

This photo - of a church message board in Poughkeepsie I pass every day on my way home from work - was in the New York Times today. The church always posts some really  clever things. It's always been in my head to write a post about it.

So today is our second snow day of the week and yesterday was the last free day. Today was taken from the Friday before Memorial Day. I am sad about this. Not because I wanted a day off in May, but because that day is Cole's first birthday. I was looking forward to being with him on his first birthday, not being stuck at work while he spends the day with someone else.

For that reason, I am trying to enjoy today with my son. However, like I mentioned yesterday, the baby is teething, big time and he's probably a little bored from being cooped up inside for two days, so the morning was a challenge, to say the least. Around noon, I got the brilliant idea to put Cole on my back in the Beco Butterfly II and bake cookies. It was amazing his reaction when I took the Butterfly out. He became ecstatic at the idea of being worn (this is the first time we've ever gotten THAT reaction) and Keith helped me put him on my back. I made cookies for Keith and then made lunch and Cole was content to follow my movements and watch from behind the fun process of baking. I also played the new CD Lori sent me called Global Lullabies and danced a bit since I've discovered that he loves when I dance and wear him at the same time. (We found a cable music channel that plays old school hip hop and Cole and I had a great time yesterday dancing to "Bust a Move").

This is of Cole last week taking books off of the end table.

Cole's first experience with eating broccoli, taken this past weekend.

Cole and I dancing to "Bust a Move" yesterday afternoon.

Who spotted a cat?

Just after we finished baking cookies together.

It's not easy digging the snow out after the snow plow comes through. 
From the kitchen window, Cole and I watched Keith do the dirty work.