11-month letter

My darling Malcolm,

I sometimes think your Daddy and I procreated so we could have an excuse to laugh and play all the time. You love to laugh and play and explore and it's reminded us how much joy those things can bring into our lives. Sometimes grown-ups forget to laugh every day. It's really hard not to laugh with you around!

We had a very busy month of visiting with family and friends. You and I flew all the way across the country to Florida to visit your JoJo and PopPop. You also got to meet a lot of other family and friends. We first spent the weekend hanging out with friends in Tampa where you got to swim in a pool for the first time. You loved it! Here is your auntie Betsy eating your face:

We then drove down to Naples where we spent a week with JoJo and PopPop:

You went to the beach for the very first time, too:

On the day that we left, your Aunt Rachel brought over your cousins Aiden and Ally so you guys could play together:

The day before we flew home, we hung out with family in St. Pete:


Although our trip was a lot of fun, it was waay too long to be away from your Daddy. We both missed him a lot.

Shortly after our return, your Granpa and Nana arrived for a visit. We spent the days hanging out and taking care of house stuff. Before we knew it, it was time for them to head back home. They got you a cute outfit from their trip to Switzerland:


I missed writing you a letter last month because I got so busy getting ready for our trip. Now we're back home and we're getting settled into our routine again. You've sprouted a total of 4 teeth and enjoy grinding them. It makes my skin crawl to hear that noise. With a bit of prompting and guidance, you can now take a couple of steps on your own. I don't count it as walking yet, but I know that day will be coming soon. Your most recent word is 'row' which is something you say when we read the book, "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" or you say it when you want us to read the book to you. You actually say, 'row, row, row' and it's just the cutest thing. It also kinda sounds like you've started saying, 'mama', but that just might be wishful thinking.

Love,
Mommy

Back Home

Hi All! Malcolm and I made it back to Seattle from our trip to Florida. We got in late last night and now I'm trying to get the house ready for Dad & Carolyn's visit. I hope to write a much-delayed update soon, but my plate's pretty full for the next week. The PEPS group that I'm leading meets for the first time next Tuesday and there is much I need to do to prepare for that. Gotta run!

And then I said 'Ouch'

A couple of days ago, I was walking. I do that. And then, for some reason, I decided to kick a hard thing. It wasn't on purpose. We all do it. It hurt. It still does. It is quite likely that I broke my toe. See?

This picture does not do justice to the actual color of my toe. I noticed today that the bruising has extended to the top of my foot.

Wednesdays is Farmer's Market day. There was no way I was going to miss it this week since I didn't go last week. I taped my toes together and walked to the market. This was at the point where I thought I probably just stubbed my toe. It actually didn't start feeling worse until Wednesday night. I'm sure all of the walking didn't help. But, I scored some great stuff at the market, consignment store and used book store!

Mal's been sleeping much better the past couple of nights. His bottom left tooth has broken through the gums and he's drooling up a storm. We had a rough day yesterday because he refused to take his morning nap and then fought me a long time when I went to put him down for his afternoon nap. Fortunately, he has not repeated this behavior today.

One week until our trip to Florida! There is much we want to get done around the house this weekend since Dad & Carolyn will be arriving a couple of days after our return from our trip. We need to convert the office into the guest bedroom since Mal is sleeping in his room now and we'd have to take apart the crib in order to move it into our bedroom.

Another Step in Becoming a Domestic Goddess

In an effort to eat locally for longer than the growing season, I've decided to take up canning. On a whim, I bought a few extra pounds of asparagus at the Farmer's Market with the intentions of pickling it. It would have been wise of me to actually read up on how to can before I bought the asparagus. I knew I needed mason jars and lids, but a special rack to put in the pot? Huh? So anyways, I decided to work with what I had in my cupboards which meant putting the jars on their sides during the hot water bath because my largest pot was not tall enough. For those of you that have canned before, you probably know what happened. Out of the 4 jars, only one didn't leak brine. I'm thinking it's no big deal. However...

When I cook, I often eye measurements of dried ingredients. I read today that it's a big no-no when it comes to canning. You need to have the proper ratio of sugar/acid/etc to avoid botulism. Oops. It looks like we're going to be eating a lot of pickled asparagus in the next week.

Now I'm on the lookout for the proper equipment to do hot bath canning. I'm hoping to pick it up second-hand. I'm also going to pick up a book on food preservation because I also want to learn how to properly freeze greens & fruits so they last a long time. I'll freeze soup and occasionally fruit right now in a food storage container, but the fruit gets consumed pretty quickly. I'm looking to keep fruit in the freezer so I can enjoy plums in the middle of winter without feeling guilty that they've been transported from a far-away place.

Drainbrainnotfunction

I love my son. I do. But two nights of waking up ever 1.5 hours (and then some) is KILLING ME. The joys of teething. I gave him teething tablets all last night and they did nuffin. Baby Tylenol = nuffin. I know this will pass soon so I just need to whine about it for right now.

I asked Tony to get up with Malcolm at 7 this morning so I could get a little bit of sleep. Tony likes to give Mal a bottle of watered-down juice in the mornings. Since we were all out of juice, Tony gave him SODA. Granted, it was caffeine free, no HFCS stuff, but still! I really wanted to put off giving the kid junk food for several more years.

Happy June!

Wait? Is it really June already? Where did May go? Seriously!

Tony got a new job about a month ago and it's going well so far. He's working for a small publishing company doing web development and random IT stuff. He's in L.A. today for a business meeting - it was so odd not having him here last night.

Several months ago, I planned a trip to Florida and made it a long trip because it takes a day to fly there and a day to fly back. The plan was to have Tony come out for part of the time. It has become apparent that he won't be able to come out at all because (1) the cost of the plane ticket has doubled (that's conservative) since I bought my ticket, and (2) his boss is going to be out of town the whole time so he can't take any time off. Now I feel bad for taking such a long trip (11 days) because I hate to think of Tony and Malcolm being apart for so long :( What can you do?

Sleep is a precious, rare thing around here lately. Malcolm has another tooth coming in - his top right one. Isn't that odd? I thought his bottom left one would be next. We're going to have a little snaggled-tooth boy running around here! His teeth are slow to come in and wouldn't be obvious in photos yet. Once they are, I'll be sure to post some.

We think he's really close to walking. He's able to stand up w/o support for quite a long time and he can walk around with the support of just one hand. I've been meaning to take a little video but keep forgetting.

Speaking of videos, here's a couple of Malcolm & Screech "playing":


Screech is an incredibly tolerant kitty to say the least.

There is News!

But I'm not sure if it's OK to share it yet. It's not my news, but Jenn's news. If you are saying to yourself right now, "What news could Kris be talking about?" and you know my beautiful sister, then you need to get in touch with her. That's all I'm sayin'...for right now. To Jenn & Piet: I wouldn't mind paying a visit to Tallahassee in the future (hint, hint).

Last weekend, I had a training session for volunteer work that I will be doing with PEPS. Tony took care of Malcolm the whole time. Here is the feeding adventure:


Please note that this is not a normal occurrence. Malcolm does not get this messy when I feed him :p

Eliska Has Arrived!

Please give a warm welcome to Eliska Belle! She arrived into this world on Sunday, May 18, 2008 at 9:10 PM weighing in at 7 pounds, 4 ounces and measuring 19 1/4 inches. After Julie's body showed no signs of being ready for labor, she was checked into the hospital on Saturday since her amniotic fluid was very low. They administered Picodin in the afternoon to help things along and it did it's job. She woke up to contractions around 1 AM and the epidural was administered around 11 AM. I was able to be there for the birth and it was amazing. I'm still pretty flabbergasted at the difference between a natural birth and labor with an epidural. The difference is pretty extreme! Julie did a fantastic job and pushed like a pro when it came time. Everyone is doing great except Eliska's having a hard time figuring out how to latch on to her mommy's boobie. I'm going to head down to the hospital to pay a visit after Mal wakes up from his nap.

I am very thankful to Tony for watching Malcolm for the 9 hours I was gone :)

Facts 5.11.08

In no particular order...

1. Today is Mother's Day. Happy Mom's Day!
2. Malcolm's first tooth sprouted this week. The bottom right was the first to appear.
3. Mal turned nine months old on 5.7.08
4. My cousin, Steve, had a birthday on 5.7
5. 5.7 was also the anniversary of my grandma's passing
6. My beautiful sister celebrated her birthday on 5.9
7. Malcolm now weighs 16 pounds, 10 ounces. He has moved up to the 5% curve from 3%
8. He is now 27 1/2 inches tall. I can now refer to it as his height instead of his length since he can stand up (with a little help).
9. My cousin, Colleen, celebrated her birthday on 5.1
10. Julie's estimated due date was 5.5.08. She's still pregnant and is not pleased about this.
11. My upper back hurts.

9-month letter

My Favorite Malcolm,

You've been out of my womb for as long as you were in it. The thing that amazes me most is how quickly you have changed in nine short months. I realize that this is something that I will be saying for pretty much all of your childhood, but it's true. Nine months ago, you were a tiny, little thing that was as helpless as could be. Today, you are crawling and creeping all over the house, exploring every nook and piece of dirt.

This month, you and I went down to San Diego to visit your Auntie Jenn and Cousin Cameron. We had a lot of fun with them; you were just fascinated by your big cousin. He would come over to you and say, "Baby Malcolm! Hug?" and would then lean into you so you could give him a hug. Being that you aren't really sure what a hug is and have little baby arms, you would reach out and grab onto the hair on his head. Cameron would sometimes say "Ow" in a little voice, but he didn't seem to mind that you were pulling his hair. He was also quite fond of holding you, but you weren't too sure about it. Your Auntie Jenn is, of course, enamored by you, but that is no surprise.

As your personality blossoms, the one trait that everyone comments on is how happy you are. I often hear, "He is such a happy baby!" When we are out in public, you smile and babble at anyone who will look at you. You just love to absorb every activity that is going on around you. Anyone that loves babies REALLY love you and you love the attention.

Your favorite things this month are bread, chasing Screech, playing in the kitties' water bowl and licking the faces of me and your Daddy (we like to think you are giving us kisses. Wet, slobbery kisses). Nine months is such a short period of time, but my life has been changed in ways that I never could have imagine in this brief period of time.

Love,
Mommy

Today's Firsts

It took him just a day to figure out how to crawl 'properly'. I have spent my afternoon chasing him around. I finally put him in his playpen so I could eat dinner (he wouldn't tolerate his high chair). While playing in his playpen, he actually made himself laugh. That's the first time I've ever heard him do that (he was throwing around a ball).

Julie & Jeremiah's house was broken into yesterday in the middle of the day while Julie was out shopping and Jeremiah was at work. Sunny's house was broken into about a month ago while she was at work. Robbery is so wrong.

Nose Eating

He likes to eat my nose, lick and suck on my face. It's very slobbery!

Almost Crawling

We took this movie last night. He's already improved his crawl technique today. He's going to be zooming around before we know it! I think I should go buy gates today or tomorrow.

Giggling

Malcolm laughs at Tony bouncing a ball

Trip to San Diego

Malcolm and I recently visited Jenn & Cameron in San Diego. Needless to say, it was so great spending time with them. Cameron grew up so much in the last year. He was so excited to see us and constantly said, "Auntie Kris and Baby Malcolm!" The cousins are fascinated with each other; I can't wait to see them grow up together. Why oh why does San Diego have to be so far away?

Here's a picture of Jenn, Cameron and Malcolm. Doesn't Mal look like a doll?


We went to the zoo on Sunday. Cameron insisted on pushing his little cousin in the stroller:


I love this picture of Cameron:


Mal loved riding around on Cameron's little plane. Jenn took this picture of me and Mal:


Cameron loved holding Malcolm (with help from Mom):


I miss them terribly.

Little Milestones

Mal's holding his own bottle consistently, lifting himself up to a standing position and then cruising around the table and he just figured out how to get himself into a sitting position from a laying position today. He's going to be crawling before we know it!

The Dreaded Thump

There are things that you never want to hear as a parent. One of them is a very loud THUMP which usually means your child has fallen hard onto something. This morning, as I was flushing Mal's diaper, there was a THUMP. I had placed Mal in his usual spot - the crib. I've always felt it was a safe place to put him when I wasn't in the room. (you know where this is going) I really didn't expect to have to worry about him getting out of his crib at 8 months because he hasn't figured out how to lift up his leg to climb things. Needless to say, I was very surprised to hear the THUMP and then find my poor baby laying face down on the floor, screaming his little head off. The trauma! He's fine - no blood, no broken bones, no concussion. I can only figure that he was reaching for something outside of his crib and he flipped over the side. Poor little guy! I feel like a bad mommy, but I know that these things happen. The mattress will be lowered today and if he's able to fall out after that, his nickname will be Houdini.

In less traumatic news, I turned 34 last Wednesday. Tony and I went out to dinner Wed. night to 22 Doors thanks to Mom & Paul (Christmas gift) while Manda babysat for us. Yesterday, Julie had a bbq at her new house so we could celebrate my birthday with friends. We had an unusual summer-like day in Seattle - it was very sunny and 77 degrees. Seriously! Julie and Jeremiah have a fabulous deck and yard - perfect for bbq's with friends. It was great fun to hang out with everyone.

Speaking of Julie, Mal and I spent Friday afternoon with her at the hospital. She was experiencing pain in her lower abdomen and back. Although it wasn't labor, the doc told her to go to the hospital so they could check it out. It was determined that she had a kidney stone. Poor thing! We went there to keep her company and make sure everything was OK. She's officially full-term tomorrow so we were all happy that nothing was wrong with the little one and that she hadn't gone into labor.

8-month letter

Little Squirt,

You turned 8 months old a few days ago and your adorableness increases by the minute. Currently, your favorite food is peas and you still like to make a mess when you eat. You are getting better and better at pulling yourself up to a standing position from a sitting position, but you have no idea how to get into a sitting position. You cannot wait until you can crawl or walk. I now have to keep all eyes on you all the time because you are lookin' to get into trouble!

Here you are, standing in your crib and looking pretty proud of yourself:


You love to make a mess when you eat, but you hate for me to clean you up. I try explaining to you that I wouldn't have to clean you up if you weren't so messy, but you haven't caught on yet:


Here's you, me and your Daddy at a party we went to at your uncle chris' house. You loved it when all of the pretty ladies held you because unlike me, they had long hair for you to pull on.


This month, you started sleeping in your own bed and seem to really like it. We occasionally have our rough nights and you are still waking up a few times each night, but we can definitely see an improvement in your sleep habits. Most nights, you do not want to go to bed because that would mean no more play time with Daddy. I would have to say your most favorite thing this month is playing with your Daddy. Your face lights up every time he comes into the room and it's the sweetest thing.

Love,
Mommy

Going to give it a shot...

I've been buying little things here and there for Mal like books and stuff. They are things that we could easily do without. I tend to be pretty frugal with spending as it is, so the challenge shouldn't be too difficult for me. I'm wondering if I could get Tony to join in...

How about you? Think you are up for the challenge to buy nothing (excluding food, medications and other essentials) for the month of April? Consider it a birthday present to me!

Sleep Deprived = Me

There were some really good nights at first which made me very hopeful. Lately, the squirt's been waking up frequently during the night and getting up too early in the mornings. Ah, the woes of being parents to a babe.

Our weather here has been funky! In the last week and a half, it has snowed, hailed, and thunderstormed. Right now, it's sunny and fifty-something degrees.

My 34th birthday is in a week. I suppose this means I will officially be in my mid-thirties. If you would have told me that I'd be a SAHM 10 years ago, I would have guffawed at you. Me? Children? Wha? Hee.

Speaking of children, sounds like the little guy just woke up from his far-too-short nap. Must run!

So Unpredictable

Thursday night: up every two hours and then up for the day around 6 AM. Ugh. Yes, I was sleep deprived yesterday.
Friday night: we met up with a few of the other PEPS families at a kid-friendly bar in Madrona (what? yes - you heard me right) for dinner and beer. They have toys and a play area in the place along with a wall of sippy cups behind the bar. Since we got home shortly before 8, I skipped giving Malcolm a bath. He didn't go to bed until 10 PM. The boy is set in his routine! He woke up around 10:45 and we were able to get him back to sleep pretty quickly. He woke up around 2:30 and then around 6. I brought him to bed with me at 6 because I wanted to avoid a repeat of Friday morning and it worked. He didn't wake up for the day until around 8:30.

Tonight is a dinner party at Chris' house so it will be another night out of his routine. I'm looking forward to hanging out with our friends - both Tony and I miss them a lot. I'm hoping that the little guy will fall asleep around his normal time (8pm) and that he'll sleep happily in his car seat until we get home.

I finally got around to filing our taxes and we actually get a refund this year which is nice. We're going to use a bit of it as 'fun money' but the majority of it is going into our savings account to replace the $$ we took out while Tony was out of work. The money that we'll be receiving in May from the government will be going back into the economy. We're going to do as this administration wishes and buy stuff with it. There is a long list of things for the house that we'd like including proper window treatments. We've been in this house for almost a year and a half and still have the temporary window treatments up on many of the windows. I hate it! It's going to be so nice to have quality window treatments; it's really going to help finish off the look of many of the rooms.

My book is calling out to me - I have to take advantage of Mal's naptime while I can!

Transition

After another episode of being awake for 2 hours in the middle of the night, we came to the conclusion that Malcolm may be ready to move out of the family bed and into his crib. I tried having him in his co-sleeper, but he never liked it. The sleep deprivation has been wearing on all of us and I just couldn't let it continue without trying something new.

So, last night, I put him to bed in his crib. I made up the hide-away bed in his room so I could be close by. I put him to bed at 8, he woke up around 9 - 9:30 and wouldn't go back to sleep until around 10:30 (this isn't uncommon), he woke up again a bit before midnight and I was able to get him back to sleep within 15 minutes and then he woke up again around 4. A 4 hour stretch of sleep for him is pretty good - especially when he wasn't sleeping next to me! I tried putting him back down in his crib for the next hour but then gave up around 5 and brought him to bed with me. It was during that time that I realized that I didn't dress him warm enough for sleeping by himself. We then slept until 8. The night went much better than expected. I was sure he'd be waking more frequently, but he didn't. Let's see how things go from here!

When Mal started the new pattern of staying awake for a period of time in the middle of the night, Tony and I talked about the need to move him to his crib. We were resistant because we both really like the practice of bed sharing. But, we always said that we'd move him to his crib when he was ready. In all honesty, we didn't expect him to be ready before we were.

Remember When?

When he was a few days old, Tony took this picture of Malcolm:

Here he is, 7 months later:

Our little guy is growing up!

Other Stuff

Malcolm started pulling my hair, so I got my hair cut:

I also had my 'permanent' earrings put back in because I always forgot to put in earrings. Plus, I only have one pair that Malcolm doesn't like to play with (play = pull). He hasn't tried to play with these yet, but it's only been a day. If he does, I'll be switching to posts.

Please Sleep Now

K? Thx. Bye.

Daylight Savings Time has not been kind to Malcolm's sleep schedule. He's been going to bed anywhere between 8pm and 12am. The past couple of nights, he's gone to bed between 8 and 9, but then will wake up sometime in the night and not go back to sleep for a couple of hours. This makes for a sleep deprived, very grumpy baby. I spend a good portion of my day attempting to help him get to sleep for a nap. In the past week or so, he's been resistant to naps. Who knows why!

Here's the typical day of this SAHM:

- We wake up between 7 and 8 AM and play in bed for a little while.
- We get up and and dress him.
- He then plays in his exersaucer while I get showered, dressed and make the bed.
- We head downstairs where he plays with toys on the floor while I make myself breakfast.
- If he didn't get a good night's sleep, I will then focus on trying to get him to nap. When he's tired, he wants to be held constantly.
- If he's not grumpy, I'll then make his breakfast.
- After he's eaten, he'll take his morning nap.
- Nap time = computer time for me. Nap time can range anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.
- When he wakes up, we play upstairs in his room. I will often do laundry at this time.
- Then he gets breakfast if he didn't eat before his nap.
- More play time!
- I make myself lunch.
- If he's showing signs of being tired, get him down for a nap. If he's not tired, it's lunch time and then nap.
- If he doesn't go down for an early afternoon nap (this is a new thing), we'll go for a long walk if the weather permits. He'll pretty much always nap this way. If it's raining or too cold, we'll run errands with the car instead. This will also promote a nap.
- Play!
- Make dinner.
- Tony gets home and spends a bit of time playing with Malcolm while I finish preparing dinner.
- We eat. Sometimes I'll feed Malcolm at this time if he doesn't eat lunch. This often doesn't work out - he doesn't eat very much in the evenings. I've read this is quite common with infants.
- Clean up dinner dishes while Tony & Malcolm play.
- Give Malcolm a bath and do bedtime ritual of bath, stories, quiet play, bottle. He used to fall right asleep after the bottle, but things have been wonky lately.
- Baby's in bed and Tony & I hang out, talk about our day, watch a movie/tv/play Guitar Hero.

The end.

7-month letter

Hey squeaker!

What a fun month this has been. You remember what has made it so fun? You now eat table foods every day AND you are sitting up like a pro. You have really taken to eating everything I feed you with a spoon. Sometimes, though, if I try to feed you when you are tired, you cry the whole time. It seems that eating is torture when you want to take a nap. You also tend to be much messier when you are sleepy.

Now that you are able to sit up, it's all you want to do. Before a few weeks ago, I could put you in your bouncy seat while I took a shower but now you contort your little body so the half of you that isn't strapped in is falling out. How unfortunate for me.

It's a good thing that you love hanging out in your exersaucer. It may be a pain to carry around the house (makes me wish we had two), but it allows me a bit of time to shower, cook, use the toilet, etc.

Your favorite things this month: making a clicking noise with your tongue, saying 'dadadada', bouncing in your exersaucer, the kitties, bananas, holding onto my fingers and pulling yourself up to a standing position, playing catch with your Daddy, the remote controls and getting tickled.
Your least favorite thing is when you are sitting and you fall over. The falling over part isn't the bad part. You haven't figured out how to get yourself into a sitting position yet and it frustrates you to no end. You also don't like spinach very much, but you'll still eat it.

Since you've been learning new things, your sleeping habits have been off. The change to daylight savings time hasn't helped one bit. Me and your Dad try to explain to you that you like to sleep a lot and you are much happier when you do, but you don't want to seem to listen. I've started doing interpretive dances to explain things to you and you seem to respond to it, even if it is with lots of laughing.

Love,
Mommy

Dear Blog

I think about you often. I do, I swear! I think about how I should update progress (or lack thereof) on my goals, talk about the baby shower for Julie & Jeremiah, post some of the pictures and movies of Mal, share stories about the get-together of longtime internet friends that we threw on Wednesday...you know, the usual babble. But, when I think, "I should post something!", I get taken away from my computer.

Right now I'm thinking about how I should be composing a 7-month letter to Malcolm and how I need to take a picture of him today with his Ugly Dolls. He's taking a much-needed, very long nap right now but could wake up any moment. Plus, I just got done writing a long post at tonyloveskris.com because I've recently got the idea in my head that I should upkeep two blogs again. We'll see how that goes.

And now my brain is telling me that I should really be using this time to write down my very long to-do list. This means that my brain is telling me that writing this is a Waste of Time even though my heart tells me differently. Ha. Silly heart.

pictures
movies

Clock watching

I hate this part of the morning. The part where I have to wait to eat and I'm really hungry. I have to take my thyroid medication on an empty stomach and then wait an hour to eat after I take it. I can have water, but that's it. I also have to wait 4 hours to take anything else like multivitamins and Tylenol. Even though I've been on this medication for 4 years now, I still hate this part.

What will happen if I do eat before the hour is up? I imagine that the medication won't work as well and I'll end up feeling like my veins are filled with cement instead of blood. Therefore, the most I'll risk is 10 minutes. I admit, sometimes I just can't wait the full hour and I'll eat food 50 minutes after taking the medication.

The clock is getting close to the magic hour so I'm going to go make some coffee and pour myself a bowl of cereal.

Applesauce

Who knew it was so easy to make? Not me until I made it today for Malcolm. He likes it, but makes funny faces when he eats it. I'm assuming it's a reaction to the tartness.

Co-sleeper update

Monday night, I put Malcolm to bed in his co-sleeper. He proceeded to wake up every half hour. The last time he woke up before I went to bed, Tony went up to settle him. Unfortunately, he's still having difficulty putting him back down and getting him to stay asleep. So, when I went to bed, Mal was put in the bed with me.

Tuesday night, I put Mal to bed in the co-sleeper again. This time, he only woke up once before I headed to bed. The next time he woke up, I was already in bed. I picked him up to settle him, but could not figure out how to put him back down in his co-sleeper while I was sitting on the bed and holding him while sitting up in bed was KILLING my back. So I put him down in bed with me again.

Tonight, he's in his co-sleeper again and I guess that I'll have to get out of bed when I put him back down. We'll see how long I can keep him out of our bed since, in all honesty, he's there because it's easiest for me.

Before this week, I'd settle him by nursing him. I've stopped that and he didn't seem to even notice which is a surprise to me. We're making progress and it's been at the right pace for all of us.

So...

Last Wednesday, I put Malcolm down in his co-sleeper when I put him to bed. That night, he woke up every 1.5 hours. That was an exhausting night. The next night, 2 of his diapers leaked for some unknown reason which meant he woke up twice crying to get into some dry clothes. The second time was around 1:30 AM. He didn't go back to sleep until around 3:30 / 4 AM. For some reason, Tony wanted to stay up with him even though he had to get up for work in the morning. We were both pretty exhausted on Friday. Fortunately, we haven't had any more incidences since then.

Friday night, Chris, Allison, Natalie and Cory came over to hang out. Yay, friend time! Chris brought over his PlayStation 2 to give to us along with Guitar Hero II and Rock of the 80's :D This is a fun thing since my computer's video card is too slow to run the Guitar Hero III game I bought and I can't upgrade since I have a laptop.

Thursday night, Amanda came over to babysit so Tony and I could go out on our first date since Mal was born. Since the restaurant we wanted to go to was only serving a fixed menu since it was Valentine's Day and it was not vegetarian friendly, we went to an Ethiopian restaurant. Mmmm! I love Ethiopian food.

Introducing table foods to Mal has been fun. He now eats banana, oatmeal, avocado and yams. The process is slow at first since you can only introduce a new food every 4 days. I think I may introduce rice cereal next so he has some variety in his cereals. I'm a little concerned about making it, though. I don't have a food processor so I puree all of his food with a blender and I'm not sure if my blender can handle uncooked rice. It was suggested that I use a coffee grinder, but I fear coffee residue getting into his food. I know I could just buy commercial rice cereal, but it's incredibly processed and it's so much more expensive than making it myself. What to do, what to do...

The Eleventh Goal

The 11th goal: instilling better sleep routines with Malcolm. This has been the goal that I've been focusing on the most and have been experiencing moderate success. First part = putting Malcolm down for his naps in his playpen instead of his swing or rocker. I gave away the swing to take away that crutch and am able to put him down in his playpen about half the time. The thing is, he has to be completely asleep before I can put him down on a flat surface to where he won't wake up but can put him in his rocker as he's falling asleep. Sometimes, it's hard to tell when he's completely asleep. I feel good about getting him accustom to sleeping in his playpen.

We've been experimenting with the nighttime routine and have recently come to the conclusion that he sleeps much better when he has an evening bath. When I don't give him a bath, he is more likely to wake up about an hour after we put him to bed and not go back to sleep for 2-3 more hours.

Since he was born, we've been following Dr. Sears' theories on sleep. It's what has seemed natural to us from the start. Mal's not the perfect sleeper, but it's unreasonable for us to expect him to be. Honestly, we don't have a problem with his sleep habits; I just worry that he doesn't get enough sleep at night when he stays up until 10:30/11 pm at night. One of the babies in our PEPS group was waking up every two hours pretty much every night. If Mal was doing that, then we'd have a problem. We're still going to see if he'll take to the co-sleeper to see if he's ready to sleep on his own at night. If not, it's no big deal.

Malcolm vs. Screech

Don't worry - he keeps his claws in :)

6-month letter

My adorable Mal,

You turned half a year old yesterday - how exciting! We've spent a lot of this month holed up inside due to the cold, rainy weather. When the sun does come out, we go for walks around the neighborhood. Even though I bundle you up lots, you still seem to get cold.

We were introduced to your second illness this month: the stomach virus. I think we can all agree that it was no fun at all. Both me and your Daddy were so happy that you recovered quickly.

Your Granpa and Nana came for a visit - you loved the extra attention and never wanted to take your naps. You were pretty fascinated by the funny noises that Granpa makes. He invented lots of them when your Mom was growing up because they made me and your Aunt Jenn giggle a lot.

This past Wednesday, we went to the pediatrician's office for your well-baby visit and he gave the thumbs-up with your development. You are currently 13 pounds, 6.4 ounces and 25 3/4 inches tall. Your vocabulary is continuing to expand and you love sitting up even though you still need a little help. Table food is our newest adventure and so far you seem to really enjoy it which makes my job much easier.

Me and Daddy fall in love with you more and more each second; sometimes it feels like our hearts will burst!

Love,
Mommy

Malcolm's first food

Malcolm's first food
Originally uploaded by Snake in Seattle

The little guy turns 6 months old this week so we've started him on table food yesterday. I pureed banana with a bit of formula and he loved it. I made it a bit too liquid, so today I used half the amount of formula. And, of course, it's a big mess.

A Visit from the Tummy Bug

Baby tummies sure are cute and bugs are pretty neat, but Tummy Bugs are no fun at all.

After a very nice visit with Dad & Carolyn, Malcolm got right back to his nap & sleep schedule. Things were looking good. On Monday night, Mal was acting tired earlier than usual so we put him to bed about an hour before his usual bedtime. When he woke up about 45 minutes later, he wouldn't go back to sleep (this is a common occurrence that we're trying to resolve). I brought him back downstairs for Tony to walk him around in hopes of getting him back to sleep. Around 10 PM, Mal threw up all over himself and Tony. He then proceeded to throw up then dry heave every 30 to 45 minutes until 4:30 AM. It was a looooong night.

I call the pediatrician's office Tuesday morning to see what I should do. I was giving him Pedialyte every 15 minutes and the nurse told me to start feeding him small amounts if he was able to keep the clear liquid down for two hours. I started feeding him and things were looking good. He was starting to act like himself again. I thought we cleared the woods until he threw up again around 1 PM. Fortunately, he didn't continue to throw up. So I did the clear liquid for 2 hours and then started feeding him again. When I tried feeding him at 5:30, he was not interested and I knew we were in trouble again. Tony got home around 6 PM and gathered poor Mal into his arms. Guess what happened next...Mal threw up again all over himself and Tony. Ugh.

We waited several more hours this time to feed him again. We had a really hard time getting him to bed because he was pretty hungry. I fed him small amounts throughout the night and he was able to keep it down. When he woke up at 7 this morning, I probably nursed him longer than I should have in hopes of helping him get back to sleep. When he didn't fall back asleep, we got out of bed and came downstairs where he then threw up again. However, it was a lot less this time.

The tummy bug is no fun. There is lots of crying involved. He's either whimpering because he doesn't feel well or crying because he's hungry. Taking care of a sick babe is definitely one of the more difficult parts of parenting. When he whimpers, I hear him saying, "Mommy, why aren't you fixing the way I feel?" When your little ones are sick, all you can do is comfort them until it passes while it breaks your heart a little that you can't magically make them feel better right away.

Recipes

When I cook, I often use recipes more as guides rather than following them exactly except for the first time I make it. For the quiches, I use this recipe. Instead of a 9x9 pan, I use a pie dish. I've used fingerling potatoes, yellow potatoes, red potatoes and russet potatoes. Our favorite is the fingerling and least favorite is russet. I added the caramelized onions because it's good and I use whatever greens strike my fancy. It's definitely the best with fresh herb goat cheese from the farmer's market, but will use plain goat cheese crumble often because it's a third of the cost.

The basics of fried rice are similar in every fried rice recipe. I add in the vegetables that I have in the fridge and always use long grain brown rice because that is what we keep in the pantry and I always spice it to taste. I use VegWeb a lot for ideas and recipe basics. The recipes are all vegan, but I often use real eggs and real cheese when the recipes call for the substitutes.

Goal update

I know this goal stuff doesn't make for the most interesting reading and for that I do apologize. I'm writing these out for myself because if I do not keep track of my progress, I will likely forget about them.

I cooked some good food this week. Mmmmm. I made a delish quiche with caramelized onions, garlic, kale and goat cheese. I also made fried rice with snow peas, broccoli, yellow onion, garlic, pineapple, marinated tofu and green onions. When you make fried rice at home, it's so easy to keep it good and healthy.

My eleventh goal this year is to transition Mal from his current sleeping places into his crib. When he naps, he sleeps in his swing and at night, he sleeps in our bed next to me. Before Mal was born, we intended to have him sleep in a co-sleeper that is attached to the bed thinking that there wouldn't be enough room in the bed for all 3 of us. Once he was born, we found it no problem for him to fit in the bed with us. The family bed has worked out great so far, but now he's at an age where he could be sleeping for longer periods during the night and this is not happening. It's possible that he could sleep longer when he's in his own bed. Transitioning him to his own bed is going to take some work and some loss of sleep. I've started working on transitioning from his swing to his playpen or crib for his naps. The first step has been successful so far - I stopped turning on the swing so he gets used to sleeping in a still place. Unfortunately, when I put him in his playpen when he's pretty much asleep, his eyes pop wide open and I have a difficult time getting him back to sleep.

We'll be trying the methods mapped out in The No Cry Sleep Solution and The Baby Whisperer. The other parents in our new parents group are going through the same thing right now. We are often discussing sleep issues in our weekly meetings. Who would have thought that teaching a little one how to sleep could be so complicated!

Baby steps

No, Mal's not walking yet. He's not even close to crawling. I'm referring to myself taking baby steps when trying to meet my goals. It seems that it's all that I have time for.

Speaking of time, the little guy decided to wake up at 4:30 AM this morning. I tried getting him back to sleep for 45 minutes, but finally gave up and got up. I brought him downstairs to play in his playpen while I laid down. I moved him to his swing around 6:30 and he fell right to sleep. I sure do hope he doesn't outgrow the swing anytime soon!

My sciatica has been flaring up these past few days. This displeases me greatly since I no longer have the insurance coverage for chiro/acupuncture/massage. The other thing that really helps the sciatic pain? Exercise.

This is so stereotypical but I suppose it's a must. Another goal for 2008:

- Exercise regularly

My goals so far:

1. organize the garage
2. organize the office
3. give away the stuff we hold on to and never use
4. move around more (yoga, exercise, whatever!)
5. read more child development & discipline books
6. make a house cleaning schedule
7. start a new hobby
8. get back into cooking good food regularly
9. take more quality pictures
10. exercise regularly

I've done a little bit of the organizing of the garage and office, but still have lots to do (baby steps). I've given away one item and set aside some clothes to take down to Goodwill this week. The cooking part is hard because it really depends on Malcolm :) I've been taking some cute pictures but my camera battery died and I haven't gotten around to recharging it.

5-month letter

Sweet Malcolm,

It sure has been an exciting month! You took your first plane trip to Utah to visit family and you did so great on the plane. You charmed everyone in the family and confused the little ones but only because they would mix you up with your cousin, Collin. You and Collin didn't wrestle like I predicted but he did try rolling on to you every time we put you two on the floor together. Everyone joked that he wanted to eat you.

You loved all of the new faces and getting so much attention. On Christmas day, we found out that you will have 3 new cousins next year, so get the 'new baby' attention while you can!

Things have been a bit out of whack since returning to Utah. Mommy caught a cold on the plane and has been keeping you up with her coughing. Also, we kept you up late a few nights with holiday celebration which made you very grumpy. Now you have a cold and are having a hard time breathing out of your nose. I keep demonstrating to you how to blow the snot out of your nose, but you just can't seem to get the hang of it. When it gets really bad, I use a bulb suction thing to get the snot out for you which you HATE but you then appreciate the results.

You have gotten so strong this month - everyone who holds you takes notice. You are standing up while just holding on to Mommy's fingers and you've been practicing sitting up on your own. You have actually started to play with toys while laying on your tummy which is such a huge improvement from just a couple of months ago. You are still a squeaker and a fist-eater but now you've added in rolling your tongue around in your mouth. Sometimes, you do all 3 at the same time which amuses your parents greatly.

Have I mentioned how adorable you are lately? Do you need proof?


You are doing a great job growing, kid. Keep up the good work!

Love,
Mommy

*Hack*Hack*Hack*

This cough will be the death of me. I'm coughing so much that it has given me a headache. I didn't wake up as often last night, but did wake up too early this morning and also woke up Malcolm. I feel worse for keeping him up. He's taking a long nap right now and is having no problem sleeping through the current hacking.

The plan is to go snowboarding this weekend. I will only go if I am 100% better. We have been getting a good amount of snow in the mountains and I would LOVE to board this weekend, but cannot risk getting sick again and passing it on to Malcolm.

Our friend, Kait, gave birth to Kailyn Elise yesterday morning. Congratulations to Kait and her family! She was able to have a water birth at home with no complications. I wish I could go help her out, but they live in Minnesota.

Another goal: take more quality pictures!

And then we danced

I just can't shake this cold. Ugh. My voice occasionally makes an appearance and when it does, is quite deep.

Last night, we played Sandi's Wii = Dance, Dance Revolution and some bowling. The recent playing of group games has made me want a game console. Since I know I wouldn't get our money's worth from purchasing one, I will just invite us over to friends' houses more often. However, I found out that there is a version of Guitar Hero III for the Mac. So...it was ordered today thanks to Dad & Carolyn (Christmas present!) I bet they never would have thought to buy that for us for Christmas :) Hell, as of recently, I never would have asked for it.

I've been thinking about making some new year's resolutions, but have decided against making 'resolutions' and have decided to set some goals for myself:

- organize the garage
- organize the office
- give away the stuff we hold on to and never use
- move around more (yoga, exercise, whatever!)
- read more child development & discipline books
- make a house cleaning schedule
- start a new hobby
- get back into cooking good food regularly

That's a start! I will be making 12 goals - one for each month. Right now, I must go take care of Mal. He's starting to squawk as if he is bored with the current activity he is doing :)

Happy New Year!

A head cold caused me to be up earlier than I would prefer. Everyone else is still sleeping in bed but congestion would not allow me. I apparently caught a cold on our flight back and have been ill since Thursday. I am not used to illnesses lasting this long. It started with a sore throat and earache for a few days and then moved to my sinuses. I think today has been the worst for my throat but that is because I did something a little stupid last night - I sang the vocal part while playing Rock Band. The first song, my voice cracked many times which made my friends laugh. The second song, I sounded like a foghorn. By the end of the night, my voice was gone. I couldn't resist playing the game - I think it's terribly fun.

We went over to Jill and William's house for a small gathering last night and kept Malcolm out too late. We didn't stay until midnight, but it was pretty close. Our potluck party was a success and I have to admit that I'm glad that not everyone we invited showed up. Our house can only hold so many people! Today, we are going to a New Year's brunch at Sunny's and then a get-together at Sandi's house. It's been fun having Jayne here and I am very glad that she likes little ones and can tolerate a bit of crying from time to time.

Mal just woke up so I'm going to go get him and let Tony sleep for a bit longer :)

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone has been enjoying their holidays. We've had a good amount of snow here and we would have had a white Christmas in Seattle if we had stayed home this year. Yep, it snowed there today. Little Mal didn't sleep very long last night and has been a cranky pants today. Poor guy :( He's 20 weeks old today.

It has been really nice hanging out with the family this week. Our vacation here has flown by - I can't believe we leave for Seattle in the morning. It really feels like we just got here. We're going to have fun when we get back. A long-time internet friend, Jayne, is flying in from Australia tomorrow night. She'll be hanging out in Seattle for about a week before she heads up to Whistler for snowboarding fun. We're going to be throwing a little holiday potluck on Sunday afternoon to celebrate the holidays with our friends. It should be fun!

Utah for the Holidays

We're in Utah visiting Tony's family for the holidays. Gosh it's cold here. There was a snowstorm last night that was pretty crazy. We've been having fun with the family - here's a picture of the two cousins that are 4 days apart:

Two quarters down...many more to go

Fall quarter is over without too much grief. Management of IT = done! Here's my review of the class: The instructor, Dr. Diane Lockwood, is very knowledgeable and experienced in the IT field. She assigned us very useful readings. However, the lectures were repetitive and a bit boring. A big part of our grade (30%) was participation in class discussion. Unfortunately, I personally didn't find many of the lectures interesting enough to provoke discussion. The structure of the lectures was pretty much the same for every class. I also didn't like that we didn't receive grades on anything until the end of the class. I did like it when she mixed it up and brought in a guest speaker. Overall, I did gain some good knowledge from the class that will be useful in my career.

I got a B+ on my final and a B+ on the group presentation. I'm expecting a B overall in the class. Of course I would have liked an A, but I wasn't inspired enough to try and force myself to find things to discuss in the class. I was a little surprised that I got a B+ on the case part of my final (I thought it was A work) but am pleased with the grade because I wasn't that confident in the answers I gave to the questions part of the final.

The group presentation is always more of a challenge because your grade depends on the quality of work that each group member puts forth. I felt like everyone put forth a really good effort, but you could tell that we had different presentation styles. When we actually presented, I gave the introduction and the conclusion. Unfortunately, some other members talked too much during their sections and we were pretty much out of time when it was time for me to give the conclusion. Oh well...it happens. It's done and I'm happy that we got a B+.

I'm taking Business Statistics next quarter. I was also going to take Legal & Regulatory Environment, but decided against it because I've been told that it's a ton of reading. I know plenty of people who have struggled with Statistics and I feared overwhelming myself. Although I do have some time during the day to do schoolwork, I never know how much time I'll have.

Little one just woke up from the phone ringing. I'm going to go with Julie & Jeremiah to Babies R Us to help them register. They found out this week that they are going to have a little girl!

4-month letter

My little Mal,

Your Daddy got a job this month so now it's just you and me hanging out during the days. When your Daddy gets home from work, you are so excited to see him. Sometimes, though, you don't take an afternoon nap so when he gets home, he finds himself coaxing you to sleep while I cook dinner.

You improved very quickly with controlling your arms and hands and like to grab things constantly. It's fun because now you can entertain yourself with toys. It seems that you have inherited the talkative gene from your Daddy. This past month, you figured out how to squeal so loudly that people react by covering their ears. You sure do enjoy using your voice! Your sounds have expanded to the cutest coos that make my heart melt.

Now that you are getting stronger, tummy time isn't so bad. I expect you and Collin to be wrestling when we go visit family next week. Everyone is very excited to meet you.

Can we talk about the drool? It's getting a little out of hand. I have to change your bib 2 to 3 times a day - what's it going to be like when you start teething? Now it's your job to figure out how to start swallowing your spit 'cause your Momma is tired of her shirts being wet all the time.

Love,
Mommy

Soup Swap = Delish

Last night, I attended my first Soup Swap and I sure do hope it's not my last. I just finished a bowl of Great Northern Bean & Kale soup and it was very yummy. I love soup! Since my crock pot is only 3 quarts, I made 2 different kinds of soup: Black Bean and Lentil. I should have made 2 batches of Black Bean because I think there were 4 lentil soups there. It was a vegetarian swap, too. I scored the previously mentioned Bean & Kale soup, a spicy tomato soup, a bean extravaganza soup, french onion soup, miso soup and a bean & barley soup.

A spare moment for a quick update

Mal's appointment with his new pediatrician went great. He has no concern with Mal's weight because it's consistently on the same curve. He said that the little guy is exactly where he needs to be in regards to his development and remarked on how strong and vocal he is. Good things! He's currently 11 pounds, 13.6 ounces and 24 1/2 inches tall. I really like his new doctor. He actually took time to explain the vaccines to me and why each one might have side effects.

The company I've been doing the contract work for wants me to do even more stuff for them on a longer-term basis. Horray! Unfortunately, I can't work as many hours as they would like, so I hope it works out. It helps when you have friends in high places.

The Loss of Kitty Companions

I have had two dear friends lose feline companions recently - one to an automobile and another to cancer. My heart hurts for them both. When you have an animal companion in your life for a period of time, you become quite attached to him or her and many people consider their animals a part of their family and most of those people would tell you that they love their pets.

So when your pet dies, it hurts a lot. A big piece of your life is gone.

Both of our kittums are getting up in age and I worry about their health. Fortunately, the vet says they are both quite healthy for their age (both are around 12 years old). I hope they are around for many more years.

Whew!

I've been reluctant to post anything until it was finalized: Tony got a job! Here's the story: he had a phone interview and in-person interview for a Quality Assurance Analyst position at Classmates.com before the Thanksgiving holiday. That Wednesday, they told him they would be offering him the job and sending him the official offer on Monday. Our friends, Cathy and Eric, both work at the company and worked hard at getting him the interview and had a big influence on the hiring manager's decision. Tony hasn't done QA in about 7 years, so his experience is rusty.

He also had a phone interview the Wednesday before the holiday with a small, Microsoft-owned company doing PHP & MySQL Web Development which is what he's been going for this whole time. The phone interview went better than he expected because he honestly didn't believe he was fully qualified for the position. His face-to-face interview with the company was this past Monday. He was upfront with them from the beginning regarding the job offer with Classmates. The interview went really well and they presented him with a job offer on Tuesday morning.

Imagine that - after 3.5 months of job hunting, he gets two job offers. He accepted the Web Development job and started on Friday. The compensation is what he was looking for and the location is just a 15 minute bus ride from our house so we won't need to get a second car. The Classmates job was south of the city and would have been an hour and a half bus ride each way. His first day went really well; he's very excited about the work environment and says that all of the people that work there seem to work together well.

We can now breathe a sigh of relief.

My final was more challenging than expected, but it's done. Malcolm is doing really great - I haven't been taking as many pictures lately. Shame on me! He has his 4-month well-baby appointment next Wednesday. I'm anxious to see how his weight gain has been. He's still a lanky tike, but he does have more pudge and is definitely growing in length.

We might get snow in the city this weekend and the local ski resorts have started opening. It's killing me a bit because I am DYING to go snowboarding but have no clue how to do so while breastfeeding.

Here I am!

I haven't forgotten about you, my dear readers. I've just been busier than usual. During my free moments during the day, I've been helping a friend prepare for a move the company she works for is about to do (paid gig) and also trying to work on my final and group project for my class. My final is due next Thursday and the group project is due on the 13th.

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving. We went over to the house of Lorian and Douglas along with many more people (12 total) for a large feast of good stuff. I contributed sweet potato casserole, mushroom stuffing and Field Roast. Manda brought the meat-free gravy and homemade cranberry sauce. There was also two other kinds of stuffing, ham, turkey, corn casserole, asparagus, green bean casserole and 4 pies. Douglas also made sweet tea. He's also from the south so thought it was appropriate to add that to the feast since I was bringing sweet potato casserole. Malcolm did really well the whole time we were there.

On Sunday, we are going to an after-Thanksgiving potluck at Jill and William's house where there will be at least 20 people. I'm making homemade cornbread for that feast.

Yay, food!

3-Month Letter

My Little Mal,

You turned 3-months old earlier this week - good job! This past month, you discovered that you can have fun. You like to smile a lot and suck on your right fist. My suspicion is that you are right-handed. One of your daddy's favorite things to do is to get you to giggle (he's much better than I am).



Your giggle is infectious! We have to work at getting you to giggle like we had to work at making you smile. Now you will greet me every morning with a smile. You've been working really hard on figuring out how to control your arms and get better at it every day. When you suck on your arm and fist, you make this obnoxiously loud slurping noise. It really is the cutest!

Since your 2-month exam with the pediatrician, your dad and I have been obsessed with your poop. We took a sample of your poop to the lab to have tested and the results showed that you weren't absorbing enough nutrients when you ate. We started giving you something to help out with that and you've been gaining weight like a champ since then. The other change is your poop. I won't go into details, but I will say that changing a poopy diaper is now an adventure.

A few weeks ago, we started attending a support group for new parents. We hang out with these other families every Wednesday and talk about how we deal with particular situations. On the first night, we decided to get a picture of all of the babies together.

You're still figuring out how to stay sitting up and have actually improved since this picture was taken. Fortunately, you are sitting next to Michael who is a few weeks older than you so he did what he could to help you out.

You also love for mommy and daddy to sing to you and make faces at you. You're trying really hard to mimic the faces. Your newest thing is blowing raspberries.

I would have to say that this has been a very productive month for you. You really seem to be enjoying the growing up thing except for tummy time. We're going to work on that more before you meet your cousin, Collin. He's a few days younger than you and he loves tummy time. He started lifting himself up weeks ago! Check it out:

I know you'll get there really soon. No pressure, I swear.

Both of your parents got sick this month and somehow you didn't get the illness from us. I am so impressed! I have to admit, I fear your first illness, so keep up the good work with staying healthy. You are my favorite little guy.

Love,
Mommy

How to be a good parent when you are sick

Please tell me because I do not know.

I think I had a 24-hour stomach bug yesterday that totally kicked my butt. I woke up and felt a little 'eh' and it proceeded to get worse throughout the day. I couldn't eat or drink anything without my stomach cramping up and add on nausea, diarrhea, weakness, fever and a headache. I could barely lift my arms. How am I supposed to take care of Malcolm when I am that sick? I really don't know what I would have done if Tony wasn't here to take care of the little bean all day long. He brought him to me when he needed to eat but I was having a hard time with that due to dehydration.

I am feeling much better today. Not 100%, but definitely better.

Update on the baking soda as deodorant: it is working much better than expected. I have to admit, I am quite surprised. I would be interested to see how it works in more humid environments where people tend to sweat more.

There are a couple of ways to apply it. Some people mix it up into a paste as described here. I brush it on with an old make-up brush. I've done it when my pits are completely dry and when I splash a bit of water on them - it doesn't seem to make a difference. Although I apply it while leaning over the sink, baking soda tends to get all over the bathroom counter.

Armpit stink

I have sensitive pits and they are particular to what gets put on them. Most anti-perspirants give me a terrible rash and deodorants don't do the trick in covering up the smell. I've tried the 'natural' crystal deodorant but it stings my sensitive skin. Right now, I have Trader Joe's unscented deodorant in my medicine cabinet but it doesn't really deodorize very well so I end up not using it most of the time.

Since being eco-friendly is the new 'it' thing these days, I've been reading a lot about people using good ole' baking soda as deodorant. I think I'm finally going to give it a try. I don't have much need for an anti-perspirant since I don't sweat much (it kinda weirds me out anyways. Aren't we supposed to sweat?) and I don't have much to lose since I'm basically not using anything now.

This post is brought to you by the stink of my armpits as I wait for Tony to get out of bed on this Saturday afternoon so I can go take a shower while he watches the little guy.

12 Weeks old!

12 Weeks Old:

8 Weeks Old:

4 Weeks Old:

2 Days Old:

Updates

Jenn's house is still standing and a friend who lost her house is staying with her. Cameron is also back home with her.

Malcolm's appointment on Tuesday went well. He gained 17 ounces in two weeks. Go Mal! That was the last time we will be seeing that pediatrician. Although she was happy with Mal's weight gain, she instructed us to start feeding him even more formula. I just don't get it. We're going to start taking him to the pediatrician Angie & Jessie take their kids to.

The little guy is talking up a storm and he's been working hard on his arm control. He now rubs his eyes when he's tired and he sometimes finds his mouth and sucks on his fist. He makes these loud, slurping noises that are darling. This past Wednesday, we went to a new parents support group that meets weekly. At the end of the meeting, we put all of the babies on the couch and one of the dads took pictures. It was hilarious! They are all pretty young and haven't started sitting up on their own so there was lots of leaning on each other.

Today, I made a vegetable stew with kale, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, onion and garlic. Delish!

California fires

My sweetest sister lives in San Diego. Last I heard, her house is still standing. Cameron is staying with his dad - his place is currently not threatened by the fires. The hospital where Jenn works is taking in evacuees from nursing homes and she's on call 24/7. It's an intense time in SoCal right now.

We love you, Jenn and Cameron! You are constantly in our thoughts.

The Weight of Poop

I think little Mal will weigh more tomorrow just from all of the poop he's holding in. Before we started everything, we were changing around 5 poopy diapers a day. Now he's only pooping every 2-3 days. And when he does poop, it's A LOT of poop. If he doesn't poop before his appointment tomorrow, I'm sure all that he's holding in will add at least half a pound to his overall weight. OK, enough of the poop talk.

On Sunday, we had Julie, Jeremiah and Natalie over for brunch. Nat stayed over all day hanging out - it was great! Her computer broke so she brought it over to see if Tony could figure out what is wrong with it. We sent her home with a somewhat functioning computer + my old desktop so she could at least use the internet at home. Sunny & Annie were in the neighborhood so they stopped by for a little bit to hang out. I feel really lucky that my friends want to come hang out with us at our house since we can't afford to go out to eat and socialize.

Metric played a show at The Showbox this past Tuesday. I am a little sad that I missed it. I also realized that it's unlikely that I'll be able to snowboard for most of this season since I'll still be breastfeeding Malcolm. I can't go all day without feeding or pumping, ya know?

SAHM

I never thought I would become a stay-at-home-mom. I never thought that we could afford it. It's funny how you prioritize your life differently once you have a child. My main focus in life is my family. The biggest decision I have to make everyday is whether the weather is good enough to take Malcolm on a walk. There are very few 'new' events that occur, but I don't mind one bit. My biggest concern in my life is the well-being of our child.

Tony has 2 interviews next week for jobs that sound pretty exciting. WaMu is deciding if they want to have second interviews or if they are just going to make an offer which tells us that they are having a hard time deciding between Tony and another candidate. Things are definitely looking up on the job front!

My milk production is definitely up so let's hope Mal's weight is also. Since we've started the whole formula, Lactaid, fennel and Fenugreek regime, he's been spitting up often throughout the day. If he's gained enough weight to satisfy his pediatrician, the formula is the first thing to go. Tony has been really enjoying feeding him daily, so I'm going to start finding time to pump throughout the day so he can continue to do so with bottled breastmilk in the evenings. It's going to be so weird not having him around all the time. I've gotten quite accustomed to him helping me out during the day. Although it's been a little scary with him being unemployed the last couple of months and us not knowing where our income will be coming from after my severance pay runs out, it's been quite wonderful for all of us that he's been able to spend so much time with Malcolm. They really do adore each other.

Poop update

He's pooping less and it's definitely thicker. He had one of the messiest diapers yet this morning. The real test to see if the Lactaid is doing its job will be his weight gain.

I started drinking fennel infused water per the recommendation of a friend. It increased her milk production when she was having difficulties. If the Fenugreek and the fennel do not work, I'll look into a prescription (thanks for the recommendation, Jean).

I'm reading an interesting book right now: Into the Minds of Babes: How Screen Time Affects Children from Birth to Age Five. It's pretty interesting so far. I'm planning on doing a chapter-by-chapter book review when I'm finished. The information in the book is important for all parents to know which is why I'm going to review it and post it online for those who do not have the time to read it.

Our recent digestive pleasures: crustless broccoli & mushroom quiche, banana bread and lentil stew. I cook while Mal is napping :)

The Scoop on the Poop

On Wednesday, we took a sample of Mal's poop to the lab to get analyzed per his pediatrician's instructions. She wanted to make sure he was absorbing all of the nutrients he needs since his weight gain is slow. She called us last night with the results: he's absorbing the fat just fine, but isn't absorbing enough lactose. Apparently, it's not uncommon for a newborn's intestines to not produce enough lactase, the enzyme that breaks down lactose. This is often called lactose intolerance, but that would be an incorrect diagnosis. True lactose intolerance is actually quite rare in babies.

Anyway, the symptoms we read up on when doing our own research matched exactly what Malcolm experiences: watery stools and gassiness. She recommended that we start giving him Lactaid before he eats.

When I started going to class, we started giving Mal a little bit of formula when Tony would run out of pumped breast milk. We noticed that the next day, he was spitting up quite often. So, we went ahead and got him soy based formula. Boy does he hate the taste! The pediatrician instructed us to start supplementing his feeding with formula until his weight increases and I can increase my milk production (she thinks that my milk production is low).

While I was giving Mal his bath last night, Tony ran to the store to pick up some Lactaid. We gave him the dosage she recommended, I then fed him and then Tony gave him a bottle of formula. He was a happy baby. Tony was playing with him on his lap and he was doing his cute cooing and whatnot when suddenly, he vomited all over himself and Tony. Ack! Our first time having to deal with our kid puking! And of course he did it after his bath. He didn't cry or anything so we think he was feeling just fine. This morning, I gave him some more Lactaid and also a bottle of formula (he only drank an ounce this time) and so far we are in the clear. I've come to the conclusion that he just had too much to eat.

I'm really hoping that he puts weight on quickly so we can stop giving him formula every day. It's hard for him to digest.

2-month letter

Hey Malcolm,

Can you believe it? You are two months old already! We have been having so much fun hanging out with you - more than we could have imagined. Your first few weeks of life, you liked to snuggle all of the time which everyone enjoyed. Then, you suddenly became alert and started to interact with us. Everyday, we can't wait to see what new thing you are going to do. You have become very talkative and have started to roll from your back to your side and have figured out how to scoot yourself around the bed.

We took you to see the doctor yesterday and found that you are now 22 1/2 inches tall and weigh 8 pounds 12 ounces. Although you eat quite often, the doc wants you to put on more weight. She says that you are too skinny. I wonder if this is an indication that you are going to be a lanky kid - it does run in the family.

Since we brought you home for the first time, you have been really good about sleeping for long periods of time during the night. We feel really lucky because that means that your mom and dad aren't sleep deprived. Apparently, this is rare. I've been reading that your sleep patterns will change in the next few months when you start teething. Let's make a pact now that you'll continue to figure out how to sleep through the night :)

I'm typing one-handed ATM in an attempt to finally get this letter finished (been working on it for two days now). We love you, lil' bean, and are so happy you came into our lives.

Love,
Mommy

2 months old!

I'm thankful these times are rare

The little guy didn't get to sleep until midnight last night and woke up around 2:30, 4:30 and then again at 6. I can usually nurse him back to sleep quickly, but he thrashed around the whole time which is quite uncomfortable for me. I gave up and got up to put him in his swing in hopes that it will lull him back to sleep. He's yawning lots and also making grunting noises, but no sleep. Maybe he has gas? Sleep, baby! Mommy needs more sleep, too!

What we eat

Something my mum said when she was visiting inspired this post. She said that she would have no idea of what to cook for us since I'm vegetarian. This past week, I made Mexican Bean and Polenta Stuffed Peppers and Creamy Rice and Spinach Casserole. The stuffed peppers came out well but definitely needed more salt. They've also reheated well. I made the casserole with orzo pasta and a variety of greens (broccoli, spinach, green beans and edemame). It was a bit disappointing - especially since it got such high ratings on VegWeb. I ended up adding parmesan cheese and it made it better. It was also better the next day. I also made a batch of chili and froze half for later. For quick meals, we eat a lot of wraps. Essentially, we just put random things in tortillas and eat. It's easy, quick and usually healthy.

Now that we have a limited income coming in, I'm trying to get us on a food budget. This has proved more difficult than I thought. It's easy for me if I'm just buying for myself, but Tony often doesn't like what I buy. It's too healthy and not convenient enough. He's also been on a meat kick lately and prefers to make his daily trips to the store to buy food he wants to eat that day. We have quickly found that meat is expensive!

7 weeks (and a few days)

Why don't babies blink? Mal is in his swing just staring away at the red button on the side of it and not blinking at all. Do their little eyes not dry out?

Poor little guy got painful diaper rash earlier this week due to me drinking orange juice. It's an adventure figuring out what foods I eat affect him.

I went to my first class last night for Management of IT and was gone for 3.5 hours. I had only pumped enough milk for one bottle and Mal drank that quickly shortly after I left. Tony didn't know where the formula was for back up so when he got hungry again, Tony gave him water with sugar in it. I'm still not really sure why he put sugar in the water, but it made for one bouncy boy! Fortunately, it only kept him up about an hour later than his usual bedtime. My class was kinda boring. I really hope it gets more interesting. Maybe it bored me because it reminded me of work and I don't really want to think about work right now since they laid me off this week. Yes, a week before I was to return. And that's all I'm going to say on the internet. If you want more details, email or call me.

Smile!

I was finally able to catch Mal smilin' on camera today:

Update - Six Weeks

Six weeks ago today, lil' bean was born and we named him Malcolm. JoJo (my mom) arrived on his two-week birthday followed by PopPop (Paul) and Aunt Jenn. Shortly after their departures, Grandma (Tony's mom) arrived for a 5-day visit. A few days after she left, Granpa (my dad) and Nana (Carolyn) arrived and they just left today. Now I have two weeks to convince little Mal that he wants to eat from a bottle when I'm not around. I really don't know what I'm going to do if he refuses a bottle since my maternity leave is up and I have to go back to work on October 3rd.

He slept in today missing Nana & Granpa's departure so that means no morning nap. Right now, he's in his vibrating rocker being as cute as ever. His neck and leg get stronger every day and he's started to smile but we're not convinced he's doing it on purpose. The biggest unfortunate thing is that he suffers from uncomfortable gas and we're not sure how to alleviate it. One thing that calms him down is going up and down the stairs. I'm starting to think that he does this so we stay in shape. He has the cutest expressions but we can't seem to capture them in a picture to share with everyone.

These brief moments of having both arms and hands free are valuable and I usually spend them making food for myself, doing laundry or taking care of myself (peeing or taking a shower). As he gets older and we can establish a routine, I hope to update the blog more frequently. I also need to prioritize sending out thank-you notes for gifts from the baby shower (why oh why didn't I do that before he was born?!?) and birth announcements.

Oh yeah - school starts next week. I'm only taking one class this semester but can only do so if we can convince Mal to accept a bottle. I suppose that means we only have one week to accomplish this. Although my class is only 2.5 hours, he is still eating on demand and pretty much wants to eat constantly in the evenings. He's a hungry boy!

Be sure to check out the pictures from all of our visitors on my Flickr gallery.

Looks who's 4 weeks old!

4 weeks old:


2 days old:


He's started a new routine - awake and alert in the morning and grumpy in the evenings. He's stopped taking naps during the day and I think it's making him grumpy. He's still sleeping 6 to 7 hours straight every night and eating constantly when awake. I have no idea how I'm supposed to get up a supply of pumped milk for when I go back to work. We still can't get him to take a binkie and he won't take the bottle yet. We're going to try different nipples and hope that works.

One Year

One year ago today, Tony & I got married at Smith Tower surrounded by family and friends. Since then, we went to Prague for our honeymoon, bought a townhouse and welcomed Malcolm to our family. I started the MBA program at Seattle University and we visited Atlanta and San Diego over long weekends. It's been a wonderful (albeit busy) year and it baffles me how much our lives have changed over such a short period of time. I feel so fortunate to have a supportive, loving partner and an amazing son. We have so much to look forward to and much to be thankful for.

Malcolm will be four weeks old tomorrow. 4 weeks! My mom came to Seattle on the 21st and Paul & Jenn joined her on the 25th. They helped out around the house and got lots of cuddles with Mal. Tony turned 36 last Sunday and we had several friends over for a birthday brunch. Tony's mom comes into town on Tuesday for a 5-day stay and then my dad & Carolyn come to town after she leaves. The consensus so far is that Malcolm is a very sweet baby :)

The last few days, he hasn't been sleeping for long periods of time during the day and wants to eat most of the time he's awake. I spend much of my time sitting on the couch and my body is starting to ache from the lack of activity! He will sleep for long periods of time during the night if he's sleeping in bed with us. I love having him so close, but I have anxiety dreams of him falling off the bed or getting smothered. We've been putting him in his cosleeper for part of the night, but that means I am up ever hour. When he's sleeping by himself, he doesn't stay asleep for longer than an hour and it's usually 30 minute stints. I had him in his cosleeper for about 4 hours last night so I am pretty tired right now. I started pumping breastmilk this morning so I put him in the cosleeper after feeding him, turned the monitor on and came downstairs. Shortly afterwards, I heard him making his little 'awake' noises and then he was quiet for the rest of the time. I went upstairs to see if he was still sleeping and sure enough, he was fast asleep but not in his own bed. Tony had picked him up and put him in our bed so they could both get more sleep. I almost crawled back into bed but decided to take advantage of having both of my hands free :)

There are pictures up on Flickr of the recent visit from family (thanks, Paul!)