Sitting!

I cannot believe it is already March.  February only had 28 days and I felt cheated.  I had to remember to mail the rent cheque out early and almost forgot about the Baby Fair which was yesterday (the 28th) because I thought "No.  The baby fair is the last day in February" which of course couldn't be the 28th.  Because months have more days than twenty-eight.  Except February.

I have thought about the routines with my little boy and realized that although babies apparently need routines, so do I.  I do the same things every day.  Wake up, get ready, Ashton wakes up, change him, feed him.  Ashton gets to go in one of his thingles (swing, etc) while I eat and make coffee.  I hang out with Ashton, Ashton gets tired within 3 or 4 minutes, Ashton takes a nap, I drink coffee.  Every day is different after this.  We go on walks, we go to baby groups, we go do something social.  Sometimes we go see Grandma (aka Mom).  Sometimes we do nothing at all and just play, sing and read at home until Jesse comes home and then we go out.  For every couple really busy days, I need to veg at home for one.  Today is one of those days.

Yesterday morning, I was looking forward to my coffee.  I put on the coffee and shortly after, noticed a puddle growing on the counter.  I forgot to put in the filter thingle...you know...the one that has coffee in it?  Guesstimated how much more water to put in the pot to replace the water on the counter.  And when it came out in delicious dark brown coffee form, it was the best coffee ever.  Sometimes the things you really work at are the best (I really worked at cleaning the mess I made...haha).  Then we went to the Baby Fair with my friend and her baby.  I entered Ashton in a photo contest where he gets his photo taken by a photographer and they send us a picture and everything (5x7) in the mail.  It's only a 10 dollar donation, which is awesome AND you can order prints.  It's cool because I've wanted to do portraits of Ashton but I wanted to wait for him to sit on his own first.  Which brings me to my next point...

HE SITS!  For the last couple weeks Ashton has been practicing sitting.  I hold his hands or sometimes just prop him so he's resting between my legs and then leave him sitting there and read to him.  Yesterday I let go of him and he stayed sitting for about 10 seconds before he started to topple.  He did this a few times for short periods.  One time he seemed like he might last a little longer but then Darcy walked by and he followed Darcy with his head and over he toppled (he loves to watch the cats, it's his new thing).  This is a picture of him sitting with me holding him and one of him holding my finger:

Snow day

I cannot believe it snowed a foot here.  I had been so happy that the big piles of snow that the plows had made along our walking route were gone at last because the stroller is not the best thing for snow (I love my stroller otherwise).  I absolutely love the look of the snow here and how bright it looks with the ocean backdrop out of my living room window.  I hate the driveway in it though.  This snowfall wasn't bad because it's melted some and I didn't go out to my baby group yesterday so I only left the house to get some groceries with Jesse and Ashton.  We didn't even get stuck at the base of my driveway coming home!

Yesterday I made tea with fennel, fresh ginger, cloves and lemon.  I let it steep for a really long time because I like the flavours to be strong in my teas.  It reminded me a little of chai.  Normally I just use ginger and lemon but a friend of mine suggested fennel and when I went to make it, I thought some cloves might be nice.

On Monday night, Ashton was up 3 times in the night and all he wanted was food.  This is odd for him as he normally sleeps through the night but he's been a little more demanding lately for food.  Same thing on Tuesday night.  Wednesday he was up twice.  Last night was funny because he woke up an hour after going to bed (something to do with a laser pointer and a cat outside his bedroom...ooops) and then again as Jesse and I were going to sleep.  But then after that he slept for 8 hours so it wasn't too bad.  The first wake-up was entirely my fault.

As I write this, the snow falls again.  Lets hope this doesn't last.  Although if it does last, at least my kid looks cute in his snowsuit.

Growth

We left Ashton on Friday night with our friend.  It was the first time we had left him with anyone other than my parents and the third time we had ever left him to go anywhere.  We went to a dinner function with work.  I totally trust him in caring for Ashton, especially since he has a daughter not much older than him.  Of course I keep my cell phone on vibrate and then when I see a missed call, I panic.  Funny thing is that he was just calling to let me know that Ashton was in bed (about an hour after we left) and I was shocked.  Ashton is stuck in a bedtime routine, or so I thought...it's possible that I am the one who needs to stick to this routine and this is why I always like to be home by 7pm every night. 

On Saturday, we celebrated the life of the mother of a close friend who was also a dear friend and a beautiful person that I had known since I was in kindergarten.  It was a beautiful service.  We left Ashton with my parents for the service and then Jesse retrieved him for the reception.  In an hour and a half, he consumed 10 oz of pumped breastmilk.  He drank 5 and then when Jesse came, demanded the other 5.  The following day, he fed 7 times in 7 hours.  Last night, he actually woke up three times to feed.  For the last 3 weeks he has slept 12+ hours a night and I had been talking about it.  My little guy is growing so fast!

Funny that last night, we went to bed around 11.  Ashton went down around 7ish, woke up at 10 to feed (before we had gone to bed), and then at 1:30 and 6.  I was sitting in his room, feeding him and thinking "oooh, I'm so sleepy" and then thought of what those people with the babies who never sleep are going through.  It makes me grateful for little Ashton and afraid to add baby #2 a couple years down the road.  One can be lucky enough to have a well-behaved baby, but can anyone ever be lucky enough to have 2?

Pregnancy

Everyone seems to be pregnant right now and it makes me a little nostalgic.  Not that I want to be pregnant right now.  I have a three month old who is teething and growth-spurting and I don't want to add a new baby to the mix.  Sooo I was thinking back to my pregnancy and realized that I would have been newly pregnant this time last year and didn't even know it yet. 

So I am celebrating this by posting pictures.  One is my belly at about 10 weeks and the other is Darcy in his favourite sleeping place at much further on than 10 weeks.  I'd say closer to 25ish.

 

They say that once a woman goes through pregnancy and labour, she forgets everything and that is why she does it all over again.  I think to how little I could move, hauling myself up the stairs, having to wear sandals in November in the rain because my feet were huge, bathroom excursions every 5 mins, countless nights playing Nintendo DS while my husband slept peacefully beside me, getting up between 1:30 and 3:30 am every morning because I couldn't sleep anymore, being so hot all the time, countless visits to ER, the pelvic pain, the stupid blood sugar testing, strangers asking if I was having twins or if I was "ready to pop" in August! and then the labour...ohh the labour.  It's all so fresh in my mind yet at one point, I will probably do it all over again.  The good parts? There were lots.  The ultrasounds...7 weeks, 21 weeks, the 3d one at 29 weeks.  Seeing the developing baby.  The excitement, the growing belly, shopping for stuff, people offering to help me, just being pregnant.  

I remember that I went to buy the crib, change table and dresser (it came as a set) and it was this huge box.  I had my Sentra and there was no way this box was going to fit in the car.  It must have been May or June and I was totally visibly pregnant (I got really big really fast).  I got the store guy to wheel the box out for me and when we got to my car, he gave me a look.  I said "I know it's not going to fit but just leave it and I will unpack the box and squeeze it in".  At that point, Jesse's Pathfinder was dead in the driveway (still is...funny that).  So I looked at the massive box and dug in.  It was windy and I was chasing the instruction manual around the parking lot, as well as pieces of styrofoam.  A really nice older couple came over and asked if I needed help.  I told them I was okay and explained what I was doing.  The lady went into the store and told her husband to stay and help me.  He couldn't really do much but he held the box for me and stopped things from blowing away while I removed the stuff inside.  He told me about when he had kids and talked about his grandkids too.  It was nice to have the company because it took forever to get stuff in my car.  His wife came out and talked for a little while, then I finished with packing and they left.

One other thing that was funny was that I was so freaking huge.  I worked till I was 6 or so months along and then had some issues and went on medical leave.  Anyway, I work behind a desk all day and people come and talk to me about work related business all the time.  Nobody really mentioned the fact that I was pregnant or huge and I was really grateful for that because when I would get up for breaks, everyone would talk to me about that.  I once heard a couple people talking about how huge I was and I walked into them talking and got really upset.  So when I was leaving, I mentioned to a couple people that I was going on mat leave soon and they were like "Oh, you're pregnant?".  I guess me being behind a desk hid my big preggo belly.  Funny!

Three months

Ashton is three months old today!

Yesterday, we went to Eves Park and had a picnic with Jesse and my Mom.  I had Ashton front-facing in a Snugli and as I was eating my beef chili wrap, Ashton was keenly following the wrap with his eyes.  By the time lunch was over, Ashton was squeaking in protest.  We walked for a little bit while Ashton scared away wildlife from his Snugli.

The Ukee poopie

Yesterday, Jesse and I took Ashton to Ukee for the first time since Jesse's mom passed away six days before the birth of the little guy.  We meant to get out sooner but the weather sucked.  And when the weather sucks here, it sucks even more to get there.  Jesse and I ate our usual lunch at Breakers in Tofino.  Their wraps are amazing.  I had the turkey & bacon wrap, which uses real turkey (not the deli meat turkey, but the kind of turkey that my Grandmother might cook up for the holidays).  Ashton polished off a full bottle before I even had a chance to finish lunch and then got antsy.  We executed a diaper change in the car and drove to Ukee.  We made a quick stop at the Ukee baby store as we were en route to the Wild Pacific trail where we were planning to walk with Ashton.  While I was purchasing some awesome shoes that were on sale for 9 dollars, a bomb dropped and the noise reverberated through the store.  The origin of the noise?  The child in the carseat.  Ashton looked completely shocked and Jesse said, "I think he pooped".  We put him in the car and were surrounded by the most unholy stench.  We drove to the house to change Ashton.  He was extremely pleased with himself and smiled the entire time.  When we got him out of the carseat, we saw a small stain on his pants.  No big deal, just a small diaper leak.  When we removed his pants, we saw it.  It was all the way down to the ankles.  As Jesse and I debated on how to remove the brown onesie (it was blue when I first put him in it) without messing up the babe, Ashton smiled more and more.  Eventually we removed the onesie to find that it was all the way to his chest.  When we removed the diaper, we found there was very little that was actually contained.  Ashton made finger-paint like drawings on the change mat with his feet while Jesse rinsed the diaper in the toilet and put it in the wet-bag (wet-bags are awesome) and I attempted to clean him.  Jesse says "What are we going to do with him?" and I said "I don't know.  All I know is that he's going to pee soon".  We decided to just put him in the sink, though Jesse would have preferred to take him outside and hose him off.  Ashton was very happy with his bath in the sink and the subsequent rinses.  He very joyously peed in the water as soon as we put him in.  Am I ever glad I pack an abundance of baby washcloths, not to mention baby clothes.  Anyway, he ate more when he was all changed and then threw up on himself and the floor.  I said "Ashton...we cannot take you anywhere!" and he stuck his tongue out at me in response.  We had a good night, had dinner with Neil and the cranky, tired (but will not nap) Ashton.  I can't really complain...he slept a continuous 12 hours the night before.  I took pictures:

Ashton and I have been getting out way more.  We have been going to this baby thing at the Health Unit where he hangs out and plays, we do songs and stuff and then ask questions and talk about baby things.  Last week a friend of mine came with me.  Her daughter is 6 months and weighs less than Ashton (he was double her birthweight when he was born though).  It's fun having Ashton around other babies.  He doesn't really respond much to them, but sometimes will smile.

Soon I hope to get back in to my music.  I was thinking about going back to the band with my trombone and just doing violin on my own until I figure out where I can go to resume my lessons here.  It would be cool if Ashton expressed an interest in music.  I like to teach.  Once I tried to teach Jesse how to play the piano.  

Jesse: How is that key C when you just said this one was C?

Me: *Explains*

Jesse: I don't understand...THEY CAN'T BOTH BE C.

We haven't had any lessons since.

Getting out more

Now that I have recovered from the birth of my child, I have been getting out more when Jesse is at work.  Ashton and I have been going to a group at public health that have 20 or so babies in it.  We went for the first time last week and while the other babies played and interacted on the mat, Ashton lay snoring on my lap, oblivious to the noise around him.  He was the youngest there and probably not the smallest.  When we arrived, he was screaming away.  It was rather cold outside so he was clothed in a MEC fleece onesie, jeans, his fleece-lined corduroy coat, a toque and his carseat bunting.  He stopped crying immediately when the layers were removed.  Funny that.  They always say to dress your baby the way that you would dress yourself.  I always have to remember that when the normal person is wearing shorts and a t-shirt, I am in jeans, a hoodie and thick socks.

We go for walks with the stroller every day.  That thing is a good workout, especially up hills.  Yesterday, we walked to the mall and back for about an hour and a half.  Sometimes we walk to work to meet Jesse when he's off.  Sometimes if I am really ambitious and drive Jesse to work at quarter to six, I walk towards work and he walks towards home and we meet somewhere in the middle.

Saturday was immunization day for Ashton.  I was really upset and very much not looking forward to going.  Of course, I realize that these vaccinations are very important but my main fears involved looking into my boy's eyes and seeing him in pain.  I ended up breastfeeding him the whole time, which is said to help.  After every shot, he pulled off and yelped.  The last one was awful...his face turned red and he just screamed.  It wasn't as bad as I had expected though.  Afterwards, we went for a walk.  When we got home, he got really really cranky and screamed inconsolably.  Eventually he fell asleep and crashed for the afternoon and evening.  That night, he slept for 10 hours straight (though he probably sucked his fist for the first 2 or so).