easter 2009

we changed z back into some comfier clothes after the "photo shoot."  we didn't want him to sully his fancy easter outfit on the ride to eugene.  in these pics daddy is talking to grammy while trying to keep various objects away from zane.  his reaching and grabbing skills have really gotten better.  all hot liquids must be kept far away now!

easter 2009

here are some pics of me & z opening up his easter basket contents.  z did not get to eat his easter bunny.  his parents ate it, & it was great - milk chocolate bernard callebaut bunny (albeit a hollow one...)!

mooommmmm!

why won't you listen to me??!!!  i still do not like avocado!  i've never liked it!  i will not eat it!  not in a house, not with a mouse...

our little blazer

here are some pics from a recent fashion show.  zane was modeling his new blazers onesie.  this was way back during my spring break.  click on the middle pic and see the long stream of drool in mid-fall... he was ready for a nap by the last pic.  such a cutie!  

7 months old!

our little cutie is seven months old today on my first mother's day.  this is actually a photo from 5 days ago.  if you click on it, you can sort of see his first two teeth.  he got the second tooth a week and a day after the first.  he's quite the giggly little fellow these days.  it's so fun to play with him!  he loves swinging in the baby swings at the park, loves bubbles, is having fun chewing on a new puzzle he just got...  we just had to raise the level of his exersaucer.  every now and then he graces us with a nap longer than an hour.  he doesn't absolutely need to sleep every 90 min  now, but usually can.  he's begun waking up at 5am (or a little before), wanting to play, & then going back to sleep for 1.5 hours before being up for normal.  it's driving mommy batty!  anyway, i've been spending most of my free time this weekend updating z's baby book.  thank goodness i've been blogging, because otherwise i wouldn't have had a record of anything!  i need to get back to pumping (need the hands now), so i'll post more pics & details about my mother's day weekend later...

Happy Mommy's Day!

Hey Everyone! Z here. It's Mother's Day, and I just wanted the whole world to know that I have the best mommy! SHE'S ALSO DELICIOUS!

baby ducks

it's baby duck season!!!!

     

i was trying to catch a picture of z's new tooth peaking through, but never caught a decent picture.  i did catch these cute ones, though.  baby feet are so precious, aren't they?

so... i'm a bit of a crazy mommy.  we've been trying EC - "elimination communication."  i'm not trying to potty train z, but just am trying to cut down on poopy & wet diapers.  we got him a toilet seat & a little potty.  i place him on his potty immediately when he wakes up from naps, & he usually will pee.  when i get really lucky, i sometimes catch poops.  sometimes he'll give clues that he needs to go after being up for awhile, and i'll make some "catches."  often not.  anyway, along the same subject... i've noticed that he's a lot more mobile when he doesn't have the huge bulky cloth diapers on.  he loves playing with his feet when not diapered, so i've let him go diaperless a little bit (if he's already pooped for the day).  i was in fred meyer late one friday night, and was walking by the baby section, so i picked up the smallest size underwear they had.  they're spiderman undies that glow in the dark.  i figured if i was letting him play diaperless, at least undies would catch a stream of pee, instead of it going absolutely everywhere, and would make it easier for him to play while diaperless.  he still needs to work on his tummy time & flipping/turning....

zane has grown out of his old car seat, and so we no longer have the luxury of rocking & swinging him to sleep in his infant car seat when out in public.  i've found that he'll fall asleep against me in my mei-tai, though, so i'm happy we've found a solution.  he barely fits in the baby bjorn...  here he is, completely passed out on his mommy.  we kept him up way past his bedtime this past weekend...

first tooth!!!

zane got his first tooth this week!  he's handling it like a champ.  we've tried some more foods - butternut squash - yay, apple sauce - nay, pears - nay (although he'll drink pear juice).  i don't plan on feeding him lots of juice, but he's had a bit of a problem with getting "bound up," and juice is supposed to help.  my students' recital was this past weekend, so i'm glad to have that behind me.  they're always a lot of extra time & work.  this week is really light teaching wise, and the weather is beautiful, so i'm enjoying life!  i had some friends over for lunch today.  it was great to catch up.  it's always a big effort to get ready to host things, but definitely worth it.  z & i have gone on a few walks (he always falls asleep).   

6 month birthday

happy 6 month birthday, z!  yay!  we haven't killed you yet!  you're still alive.  and we feel happy & blessed to call you our son.  the time, for mommy at least, has gone very slowly, but there have been things to enjoy & appreciate with each stage.  (not to mention the challenges, but...)  our beautiful 6 month old is peeing & using the potty (when we put him there in time).  he likes sweet potatoes, oatmeal, green beans, and i think his favorite is bananas.  mommy is still pumping, but just 3-4 times a day.  she is still lacking sleep, but not quite as bad as a month ago.  no teeth yet.  z is sleeping fairly well, although it could always be better.  and he seems to have nightmares.  he'll start screaming for 1-2 minutes, usually around 9-10pm, only to have it stop as abruptly as it started.  mommy got a night out tonight with a friend, while friend's boyfriend had a playdate with daddy.  mommy went to everett street bistro - pretty good, at least great manhattans!  - and ended with voodoo doughnuts for everyone.  not a big fan of the triple chocolate penetration, but liked the portland creme thing, the ducky one, and the elvis one.  tomorrow brings 6 straight hours of piano rehearsals.  oh dear.  

GQ Z

The other day, our little panda was being quite interactive with the camera, so we held an impromptu little photo shoot.   He's definitely turning into quite a dashing young man...

swimming & seats

During the first weekend of spring break, we travelled to Bend for Z's cousin J's first birthday party.    While Z didn't actually get to go to the party (because cousin J got sick), the weekend did give us a chance to introduce Z to the swimming pool.    He was a bit tentative at first, but ended up really enjoying the pool, so we're looking forward to taking him to swim classes soon.

Here he is in his first moments in the pool:

In addition to being enough of a "big boy" to try swimming, we also decided that Z has become too big for his infant car seat.   So, right after getting back into town from Bend, we purchased a new, larger car seat for him.    Of course, now that he's not in the infant seat anymore, it's also time for him to start using the stroller in the normal fashion.    Fortunately, it looks like he still has a little bit of room to grow before the stroller is too small:

March Pictures - baby's first foods

So, for the last couple of weeks, we've started to introduce Z to "solid" foods and formula. It's a couple weeks before he's 6 months old, and he's big enough that he's "advanced" for his age and can handle them a little earlier. It has been a relief to have something to supplement his diet, since he's a hungry little guy and it was really stressing his mommy out to have to keep up with his demand.
So, here are a couple pictures documenting our first attempts at feeding him.
The first we tried was avocado - after a couple days trying avocado, it became clear that he just doesn't like it.



The next food we tried was banana, and we've had a lot more success with that. He definitely likes banana. Here he is with banana all over his face:

And our most recent introduction into his diet is oatmeal...he seems to be liking the oatmeal so far too....but, of course, it's not any less messy than the other foods...

5 months.

our little mothra is 5 months old now.  he had two more vaccinations on wednesday, and weighed in at 18 lbs, 2.5 ounces.  he's not a small guy.  clothes that are 9-12 months are the most comfortable on him, at least for pants.  i rarely dress him in anything but sleepers these days because pants really cut into his pudgy middle.  he's quite the little sausage!  he eats like crazy, and still doesn't like to suck very hard -  he likes a strong flow.  this means that he only half empties my breasts when breast feeding, and so i have to pump pretty much after every f#^&(ing feeding, AND i have to wake up every night and pump, separate from any time i have to get up and feed him, just to keep enough milk on hand for when i'm teaching.  on nights where j is on baby duty, it's certainly manageable.  but when i'm on duty, this means an extra waking.  and pumping is not quick.  it can take over a half hour to completely empty the breast.  and if i don't empty everything out, i won't produce as much.  so, it's 5:58am, and i'm finishing this night's pumping.  z has begun waking up earlier to eat.  he used to fuss around 3, and go back to sleep without us getting up, and then wake up at 5 or 6 to eat.  now he cried around midnight or 1, requiring us to actually get up & re-pacify him or re-swaddle him, then wakes up again at 3 needing a serious feeding.  perhaps it's switching to daylight savings time.  dunno.  anyway, i'm sick of the new schedule and my pumping.  some people are telling me to give up and start with formula, others are saying stick with the nursing, it won't last forever, that it's something you just have to endure.  some people say we're feeding him too much - he's so fat, and instead of feeding him, we should find other ways to pacify him.  others say if he's hungry, he should be fed.  i really don't know who to listen to, but i'm exhausted.  my breasts are sore.  my fingers and thumbs are getting cramps from so much compression while pumping.  i'm sick of these extra baby pounds, but being up a million times a night takes a lot of energy, and i'm too tired to exercise (and i barely have any extra time to exercise with all this stupid pumping), because i have to bear this lack of sleep without any caffeine because it affects z.  so i still can't eat any CHOCOLATE, and i can't eat things with onions, garlic, beans, broccoli, etc. during the week, i have to nap whenever z naps just to get through a day of teaching.  spring break is coming up - not this week, but the following week.  we're going to bend this coming weekend for our nephew's first birthday, and it will be our first time staying in a hotel.  aside from introducing z to swimming for the first time, i'm dreading it.  how will he sleep in a pack n' play?  will he wake up every hour?  last time we checked, he didn't like to sleep with us.  how will i pump in the middle of the night without waking him or j up?  will the refrigerator be large enough to store all the milk?  will the sink be large enough in which to wash all the pumping parts?  should i start formula?  i'm trying to wait until april 10, his six month birthday, but i'm sick of pumping.  i'm barely keeping up with him.  just when i think i'm getting ahead, he wakes up an extra time and eats a ton, and i see my bottles lined up in the refrigerator have disappeared.  feels like a kick in the gut.   

And some more pictures from February

Z using Vinny for a pillow - they're about equal in weight now...

Here's a picture of the beef wellington (and scallops wellington) with balsamic roasted vegetables  that j made for valentine's day dinner

Z after getting lotion on his scalp, and before getting a bath....he might not be quite old enough yet to truly appreciate the punk movement...

And here's Z in his high-chair, wishing he was having some of our blueberry pancakes for breakfast:

long overdue pictures

So, we've been bad about getting recent pictures up here on the blog.   Partially that is because our camera was broken for a while, but mostly it is because little Z has been keeping us busy 110% of the time.    It turns out that being parents actually consumes a lot of your time...who knew?!

These first 3 are from a super bowl party that we went to at the home offices of B.S. International.

And this one is at grandma&grandpa's house:

4th month birthday

little z is 4 months old today - happy birthday to him!  it feels like at least 4 years ago that he was born.  i'd post a picture, but our camera is broken.  it's been broken since a superbowl party, and i have no idea where you take cameras to be fixed, nor have i had the time to even take it anywhere.  z takes up a lot of time (of course).  he's grasping things more and more, like my neck, nose, & hair.  we just tried him in his high chair on sunday, and he was pretty happy playing with toys while j & i enjoyed some blueberry pancakes.  he still hates tummy time, so we're still working on slipping that in throughout the day.  he's still doing fairly well with a nap schedule, but he's still waking up too much (for mommy!) during the night.  it's wreaking havoc on my energy level.  a month ago he was sleeping through the night - 10-12 hours at least.  now it's 7 hours if we're lucky.  he's enjoying playing in his exersaucer, and he noticed persia for the first time the other night.  we had fun watching the huge snowflakes this morning.  he sat in front of the back window & just watched & watched in facination at the white stuff falling from the sky.  

schedule

so, as of yesterday at 1pm, we're trying to put z on a real schedule of nap times & eating & playing.  we're also insisting that he sleep in the crib for the naps, as he only sleeps about 20 min in the bouncy chair.  it's too early to tell, but i'm hoping it will help with his extreme fussiness that he's been exhibiting lately.  

i'm sick.  sore throat, drainage, feeling yucky.  and this came right in time for me to have to stay home and miss a dinner i've been looking forward to.  we scheduled this more than a month ago, and i would've gotten to see friends i've really been wanting to see.  friends with busy schedules.  so j will go & bring the dessert, and i'll stay home with z.  i'd have him take z along if we weren't trying to implement the schedule...

my husband has a gift for winning raffles & drawings.  at the climbing gym, they always have a drawing at the boulder jousts, and he usually wins something.  last night he went to see a climbing movie (i call it climbing porn) at the hollywood theater, and they had a raffle, and he came home with a new t-shirt & movie that he had won.  

me?  i have a gift for getting sick at the wrong times.  my 30th birthday?  sick.  the week of my wedding (including the wedding day)?  sick.  here i am, sick again.  i'd like to go, but i don't want to get everyone else sick.  several students came to their lessons this week under the weather, so of course i got it too.  just in time for the dinner, just in time for the weekend.  i gave my students today the option of coming or skipping this week.  two are coming, two decided to cancel.  sigh.    

this week is going a little better.  i'm still short on sleep, but z hasn't been going through the same crazy crying spells yet.  i'm wondering if he just needs more sleep.  the past couple of days, his crying spells have led into him either falling asleep or at least exhibiting really obvious signs that he's tired, which end in a nap.  he doesn't nap for very long periods of time... at the most, 30 min, unless we're on a walk.  my mom has been walking with him the past two days, as the weather has been absolutely beautiful.  he usually falls right asleep whenever he's in the stroller.  i've tried to make him conform to the awake-for-2-hours-then-take-a-nap schedule, but it's never worked, so i've just been letting him set his schedule.  however, i think he's finally taking one at 10, 12 or 1, & sometime in the afternoon (perhaps a couple).  his nighttime sleeping hasn't been much better... he's started getting both hands out of the swaddling at night, and i've tried just leaving his arms out a couple times, and it seemed ok.  he's always wanting to suck on his hands - the beginning of teething.  he's starting to grab onto things more often, especially my clothing & hair.  he's not quite good at grabbing toys held in front of him.  he loves to stand, especially in front of the mirror.  and j said that he pulled his legs up when putting him in the bath - something he's never done before.  he's been doing it a bit on the changing table.  he still hates tummy time, and perhaps lacks strength in his arms... hopefully he'll build it with time.  he's really vocal when he's happy (we're not counting the crying!), and is so cute!  

i've realized i haven't (and neither has j) been keeping track of anything in the baby book.  i'm just too busy.  i'll end up making some of it up, i guess.  i'm such a bad mommy!

12:25am

...and we've hit a new record.  z woke up at 12:25am.  the earliest time in about a month and a half...

bad.

bad week.  z has been sleeping like crap this week, waking up frequently so that i haven't gotten more than three hour bits at a time.  i can't have any bit of caffeine or chocolate, because it seems to magnify z's colicky behavior, so i just have to deal with the lack of sleep.  i'm grumpy.  i cry frequently.  i want to return him.  but there's nowhere to return him to.  i don't understand why he cries so much, and why it's happening NOW.  we finally went to see a new pediatrician on tuesday.  the doctor was fantastic, as was his office & staff.  unfortunately he didn't have much help to offer, other than to say that whatever it is is not harming him physically.  and he said it wasn't diet related, not dairy or wheat or something.  i'm still supposed to avoid (as i said above) caffeine, onions, etc.  it could be something related to his GERD, or perhaps teething, or who knows.  we have to carry him around a lot during the episodes.  or sometimes time playing in the mirror helps.  or listening to his mobile music & watching it (from our arms).  it's exhausting.  today it started at 1pm.  often it starts at 3pm.  i can't handle this lack of sleep forever.

christmas '08

here's one last pic of z from christmas.  this will probably be the last of blogging for awhile...

since z received an exersaucer from grandma tigard for christmas, his play gym thing hasn't gotten as much use.  persia, on the other hand, finds it pretty cozy.

here are a couple of pics of z in an outfit from his uncle e's mother in law from spain.... he's not too happy in the bottom one!

here are a couple of pics of zane in an outfit from a symphony friend.  i can't believe it fits him already...

i forgot... last friday, aunt m was really nice and babysat z while j & i went to see slumdog millionaire.  it was a good movie.  i was afraid it would be really depressing, but while parts were sad, it was generally uplifting.  thanks so much for your time, auntie m!

clearly, from all these pictures i have yet to post, i've gotten a bit behind on the blogging.  the minute i have time during the day, z starts crying & needs to change activities or nurse.  and in the evening, i'm just too tired to collect my thoughts, or it's in the middle of the night & i have plenty of thoughts, but don't want to wake up enough to write them because it uses time that should be spent sleeping.  

i had to run about a half mile of the last bit of the walk because z started crying.  i haven't been running yet because my abs are still healing from the c-section.  i'm starting to realize it was too much - it's starting to hurt when i lift & carry z around.  sigh.

and a bit more on the scavenger aspect of parenting... i'm lucky to live in the age of the internet, with so many resources online, but finding time to do the research & digest it is hard to find.  after teaching, i have about an hour or two to eat dinner, pump, & do other emailing for teaching before i have to get to bed, as some nights are shorter than others, depending on how frequently z wakes.  it's hard to remember what needs to be done, hard to remember what to research.  i have no idea how some moms do it...

christmas '08

here's a picture of an unhappy z in his stocking at grandma & grandpa tigard's home.  

christmas '08

here's a pic of aunt c holding z, with matching cap & everything.  the outfit was originally for j, but he outgrew it before he could wear it for his first christmas, so z got it and wore it instead.

christmas '08

here's a pic of j & z with his cousin j, & aunt c.  

christmas '08

here are some pics from christmas... 

mom b'day

two weekends ago, we made dinner for my mom's birthday at her house.  two of the candles on her dessert were trick candles...

play group

i hosted a playgroup on wednesday, which kept me busy last weekend with cooking and cleaning.  here's a pic of three of the older babies, who were all looking at each other.  there was a total of seven babies & seven moms- it was a little crowded.  next time i host i think we'll hang out in the basement.  we meet every other wednesday, & we take turns hosting it.  it's an offshoot from the moms group i meet up with every monday.  

so this is what zane wore on inauguration day.  i tried to catch him smiling, but kept missing.  he's been a challenge lately.  this past week he was extremely colicky as the days progressed, one late afternoon crying for over two hours.  i'm on an elimination diet now, as i think his distress was diet related.  it's exhausting when he's so fussy.  and feedings are frustrating with the whole gastric reflux thing, as he pulls off frequently, crying, requiring burping or walking around, only to try again for another 30 seconds.  i'm still getting used to the teaching schedule.  my milk supply was better this week, but only because i would pump when waking up in the middle of the night, and after night feedings, and whenever the opportunity presented itself.  i often feel like a gerbil running on one of those wheels, trying to stay ahead.  and unfortunately most of the milk i pumped this past week had to be quarantined in the freezer as "colic" milk, so here i am again having to catch up, so that my mom & j have enough to feed him while i'm teaching.  parenting is one scavenger hunt, so to speak, after another.  infant gets uncharacteristically fussy, so parent frantically searches for the cause, and then researches solutions.  there's lots of help online, but it's all completely conflicting.  so... what did i do this weekend... i had an ice cream date for mommy time set up before the colic started happening & the elimination diet, so i went ahead & had one small scoop from baskin robbins.  so far cherry jubilee isn't much of a problem.  i watched z while j went climbing today, and a friend came over to chat.  z & i went for a long walk.  yesterday was spent doing chores.  friday night i cooked the food for the diet - roasted a turkey, along with potatoes, yams, & squash, & cooked rice.  we watched a movie, and did the same last night.  i'm thinking of canceling our cable.  we never have the time to watch tv, and if we have free moments, i'd rather spend them watching an actual movie.  and most of what we would want to watch, we can find online, like snippets from the daily show.  the only thing is that we would need to get a digital tv to be able to get any sort of reception at all.  our dishwasher is broken, so we've been washing all the dishes by hand this weekend.  a repair person is coming tomorrow.  i hope we don't need a new one.  i'm worried about the recession and the safety of j's job.  intel is doing lots of cost cutting.  

life is so busy these days. i have lots of thoughts to record, not to mention pictures, but no time.  z is getting bigger & bigger.  his grip is getting stronger, he's able to stand (assisted, of course) for longer & longer periods of time.  he loves standing in front of mirrors!  we're working on tummy time.  he's not a big fan of it.  my mom said my brother wasn't either, and never crawled.  he went straight to walking, so perhaps z will go that way, too.  who knows.  he's able to sit in the bumbo chair for a decent amount of time, and we just sat him in an exersaucer yesterday, for the first time.  every time since, he's had more and more fun.  it's a total sensory overload for him.  it's really entertaining to watch.  

z has had trouble & pain with feeding, so we went to the pediatrician, and he put him on zantac.  unfortunately, the pharmacist made the prescription out for FIVE TIMES what the dosage was supposed to be, and they caught the mistake when we went for a refill.  j & i were so upset.  what if it had been lethal????!  how would they have rectified the situation?  as it was, rite aid gave us the refill for free.  we've tried to speak to the district manager pharmacist to complain, but he hasn't returned our phone call.  we'll keep trying.  

i think the medicine is helping z, but he still has pain sometimes.  i have to be sure to nurse him upright, & keep him sitting up 10 min after every feeding.  he's doing a pretty good job of sleeping these days, with a couple of odd nights now & then.  perhaps due to his good sleeping, z eats about every two hours throughout the day, making it hard to get anything done.  everything takes twice as much effort.  it feels like i'm losing my mind.  i repeat myself in conversation.  my short term memory is completely shot.  it feels as if i have no organizational skills whatsoever.  i started teaching again full time, last week.  my mom watches z while j is at work.  it's going well, but i'm really tired at the end of the day, and it feels like i never get much of a break.  the day goes by, and i have about one hour to get emails done & everything.  then it's time to pump & go to bed.  and it feels like i'm constantly washing the pumping parts.  i'm afraid my supply is going down.  i don't know if it's stress, or just fatigue, or just less nursing on z's part... i'm trying to eat oatmeal every day, which is supposed to help.  luckily i have some milk stored in the freezer, but i worry it won't be enough.  i really don't want to have to wake up in the middle of the night just to pump, but i might have to start doing that.  that's the last thing i need...

3 months

our little top banana is 3 months old today!  his quarter birthday!  yes, we sang to him this morning.  no cake, though.  just milk.  at the doctor's office on tuesday, he weighed in at 15lbs, 4.5 oz.  he's growing bigger.  we just went through his clothes & cleared out most of the 3 month things.  he barely fits into 3-6 month things.  6 month clothes are a bit of a better fit.  especially for jackets.  those are really hard to get on an infant in the first place, and it always helps if it's a little extra large.  he's started to put his hands in his mouth and suck on them a little bit.  he's talking & laughing more and more every day.  his squeals are so cute!  and the best part of the day is picking him up out of the crib after he's been sleeping.  he always greets us with a smile (even at 4am) and the best cuddling... he's always just so happy to see us!  we went to the doctor's this week for two more vaccinations and because i was concerned he had gastric reflux.  we're trying zantac.  he's not screaming in pain anymore when feeding, so i think it's helping, but he hates the taste of the medicine.  we started to mix it in a bottle with some breast milk.  it helps, but he still makes a yucky face sometimes when drinking it.  poor thing.  

we need to work more on tummy time.  he's never liked it, and because he would spit up so much & had the gastric issues, i guess we avoided it too much.  we're having fun working on it, though, and are finding new ways to play with him each day.  he's such a cutie!

goodbye 2008

Goodbye, 2008.  This has been a tough year for me.  Lots of challenges.  It brought me something very special - Z - but not without difficulties.  It's been a year of changes.  Perhaps it's telling that I've chosen to say goodbye to 2008 instead of hello to 2009.  I'm still mourning the loss of my life B.C. - before children - but that doesn't mean I don't appreciate what I've gained.  Every day I love my little bundle of joy more and more, as he grows into a responsive little being.  He's smiling a lot more these days (when he's not screaming bloody murder from gas pain), just beginning to try to "talk" to us.  His little grasp is growing stronger, and he's gaining head strength.  He's almost able to enjoy a bumbo chair (he lasts for about 5 minutes), except for the fact that he's almost too huge to fit in it.  However, he still has a ways to go in the sleep department.  He still has really fussy days.  Time passes really slowly for me, but at the same time, I hardly have time to get anything accomplished.  October 10th seems years and years and years ago.  

We celebrated New Year's Eve, sharing dinner with friends.  Good times.  Pomegranate seeds are really beautiful...  

Today was difficult.  Z was having a bad day.  I hope tomorrow is better, and hope 2009 brings great things, not just for our family, but for this nation, and the whole world.  

this says it all.

super sleeper, and then not...

this past week, we've started a night time routine with z, because he suddenly started sleeping in 5-6 hour chunks or longer.  sunday & monday night, he slept 10 hours in a row, but then broke his winning streak last night.  mommy was really distraught over this.  perhaps it was a delayed reaction to the two vaccinations he received on friday.  dunno.  i'd love it if it returned.  but i'm assuming it won't.  

we wrestled with the vaccination issue, and it's not so much the autism link as it is an issue of too much aluminum, and an assault on their immune system, doing so many at once.  so we've decided to space them out.  he received the DTaP & rotavirus vaccines on friday at his 2 month checkup.  he had a bit of a temperature friday night, and was a little fussy, but that's about it.  

he'll have two more vaccinations next month.  

z is starting to do new things.  last night he squealed & giggled, just as daddy got home from work.  he's able to push himself up more during tummy time, and is following toys & his mommy more with his eyes.  his grip is getting stronger, but he still isn't quite aware of his hands.  

i've been able to appreciate, finally, some very sweet moments with z.  i'm beginning to see how people can do this more than once.  possibly.  cuddling with a sweet, peaceful, warm baby can get addictive, especially on a cold winter night.  if only they were that way all the time!  

we're experiencing some winter weather at the moment.  not copious amounts of snow, but enough to make ice on the roads a problem.  i actually haven't been out of the house since sunday.  they don't clear the roads at all, unlike illinois, michigan, & ohio.  i'm needing some mommy time at the moment, but don't forsee any in the near future.   

2 months.

happy 2 month birthday, z!  it's about 5am.  i finished nursing z, and have been waiting to make sure he stayed asleep, while checking out photos.  j has been doing more of the photo uploading & posting, as i rarely have two hands free.  this picture made me laugh out loud.  it's worth double clicking & looking at up close.  z clearly wasn't so happy about his faux-hawk we gave him after his latest bath.  

so, he's two months today.  i'm still not getting enough sleep, and having regular mini break-downs.  it's fun.  oh well.  nobody said parenting was easy, and it's not quite as bad as i thought it would be.  z has his 2 month check-up on friday, where he'll get his first round of vaccinations.  i'm scared.  i haven't had time to do much reading up on vaccinations & the whole autism link.  my pediatrician friends say they believe in the traditional vaccination schedule, so i guess that's what we'll do.  i just hope it doesn't mess my baby up.  it will be interesting to see where he stands on the charts.  on monday, i weighed him with me on the scale, and with his diaper, he was 14.5 lbs.  he's definitely eating well.  if he could just work on the sleeping thing...

t-day holiday weekend...

too busy to post pics at the moment, but just to recap -

we spent thanksgiving at grandma & grandpa tigard's house, and g'ma & g'pa canby were in attendance, as was aunt m & her boyfriend j.  

on friday, my birthday, we drove to canby for nephew j's baptism.  we enjoyed a great lunch at g'ma & g'pa canby's house, and z met his cousin for the first time.  i spent the afternoon running a few errands, and enjoyed a dinner from burgerville - pepperbacon tillamook cheeseburger, sweet potato fries, and an ice cream cone, before getting to bed.  j & i are going out to dinner at a real restaurant sometime in the near future, when z is sleeping better, and we can really enjoy ourselves.  

on saturday, a couple old friends from the symphony came by for a baby play date.  

sunday, we spent the day getting small things done around the house, & helped g'ma & g'pa tigard out with some holiday chores.