New Photos

I have added 4 new photo albums to our group room on Snapfish. Let me know if you need the room code.

Thanks to those of you who commiserated with my car seat posting, put things in perspective for me, and helped me realize that the mistake is more normal than I had thought. Also, a HUGE thanks to all of you who offered sleep suggestions. I followed the idea a few of you had (start bedtime earlier) and Jack slept last night from 9:15 to 7:00 this morning, with just two short feeds between 9:15 and 12:30. So I got solid sleep from 12:30 on! That meant Mick actually got to spend a little cuddly time with a happy Jack this morning before he went to work. (Poor Mick usually arrives home right as Jack starts what I call his "unhappy hour" -- which tends to drag on for more than just an hour!) We'll see if last night was a fluke or if this will continue...

Worst Mother in the World

Wow, was yesterday a doozy! Jack is back to going to sleep every night between 3:00 and 4:00 am. Once he settles down, we get a good 6 - 8 hours out of him, but spanning that time between 10 pm (when we start trying to get him to sleep) and 3 or 4 am is not easy. It makes things even harder as he is now really starting to smile and laugh and interact with us. Nothing melts a parent's heart like looking at your little guy at 2:30 am and saying "Jack, it's not playtime, it's bedtime" and getting a giant gummy smile in return. (If anyone has tips for how we can get Jack to go to bed a bit earlier, please let me know!)

The photo above shows Jack in the midst of his bedtime routine last night. Mick gave Jack a bath (on his own!) and then "styled" his hair and gave him a bottle. Mick then kindly sent me to bed while he stayed up with Jack. Jack finally went down around 3:00 am; Mick couldn't fall asleep, so he went into the office in the middle of the night so he could plow through some work. I am hoping he comes home early today for a nap...

So, yesterday was going fairly smoothly. I had showered (I forgot to rinse the shampoo out of my hair, which I didn't realize until I was drying it -- but at least I was clean!), fed Jack his mid-afternoon meal, and dressed both of us. I then walked across the street to our neighbor's house to ask if they needed me to pick up any groceries for them (they just had their third child, who arrived three weeks early; and I think I have MY hands full!). I loaded Jack into the car and headed off to the grocery store, our first venture out to do a big shopping trip. I have been nervous about doing a real trip for groceries because I wasn't sure what I'd do if Jack had a meltdown when I had a full cart. Would I just leave the cart and run?

Of course, one block from the store, Jack started screaming. I thought the motion of the cart would help him, but no such luck. So, I carried him around the grocery store while an empty car seat sat in the shopping cart. This was not easy, but I was able to get a few needed items, including ingredients so I could make a nice dinner for Mick. I was able to get a few reprieves when I would set Jack back in his seat, whiz through a few aisles (forget checking prices or comparing items to each other), and then take him out again to quell his screaming.

Finally, I got throught checkout and back to the car where I loaded Jack and the groceries and then collapsed in the driver's seat. I was sitting at the red light, waiting to cross through the busy intersection, thinking about what a supermom I was for accomplishing all of this with a 6-week-old when, all of a sudden, my heart dropped. I realized I had forgotten to strap Jack back into his car seat when I placed him back in the final time. So, while the car seat was attached to the car, Jack was just resting on top of all the belts in the seat. I panicked and then I got into the other lane, drove across the street, and stopped in a parking lot to make adjustments. And then I started crying. I can't even begin to think about what could have happened had I been hit by another car. Sarah told me this happened to her too when Marcus was about 2 months old and she cried too. So, I guess I feel a bit less alone about this, but still... how inept am I?

Needless to say, arriving home was a blessing and a curse. Jack was screaming - again - so I had to lift him out of the car seat and "shush" him while simultaneously screaming at Shergar to be quiet (she realized we were home and was threatening to jump out the window screen while yelping away frantically). I didn't know how to get the groceries in, so I went to the yard and grabbed a stroller. As I was trying to open the stroller (with one hand) Jack's head smashed my shoulder and he started screaming again. It took forever for me to load the bags into the stroller (of course, I put the bag with the bread on the bottom) and this whole time I was still comforting Jack and screaming at the dog. I finally made it into the house and tried to get dinner started while dealing with an insane dog and a baby who was threatening to launch himself out of the baby carrier pack I had him in because he was so hungry.

Mick complimented my cooking though AND I didn't burn down the house. So in all, we survived, but what a day!

Future Frequent Flyer

We can happily report that Jack survived his first flight to Michigan! We flew into Grand Rapids on Thursday night and Jack received a "First Flight Certificate" signed by the captain, first officer, and flight attendant. Since he was such a good boy on the plane, we decided to fly back to DC with him on Monday, despite the fact that my parents would have been happy to keep him. Jack and I will return to Michigan in October to stay with my mom after her knee surgery, meaning he'll have had 4 round-trip flights by the time he's four months old.

Our visit to MI was exciting on many fronts. Jack was able to meet his grandpa (Papa), Uncle Andy & Uncle Trevor, Aunt Sarah, Stephanie, and his cousins, Marcus and Deagan. Here he is with Papa and Deagan (who is just two days younger than Jack!) and then with Marcus and Deagan. If Jack looks a bit disheveled in the second picture, it's because he was distraught about Michigan's poor performance against Notre Dame... (thanks for the outfit, Andy & Sarah!)



Jack also attended the "Sip & See" party thrown by my friend, Andrea, and her mom. He was able to meet quite a few of our Big Rapids friends and to wow them with his generous head of hair.

One of the most special parts of the weekend (for me, at least) was the "welcome to the world" celebration we held for Jack and Deagan on Sunday. We had cake and champagne and dressed Jack in the christening gown worn by my grandma, my mom, and me & my brothers (as well as my mom's brothers, my cousins and their kids!). The gown is 99 years old and remains in mint condition, a true testament to my grandma and her impressive laundering skills.

Andy took some great pictures of Jack in the gown and I will post those, along with the rest of my weekend pictures, when I have a chance.


On a final note, Jack continues to grow and to be a very good eater. We went for his one month visit to the pediatrician yesterday and his stats are as follows:

• Weight: 11 lbs, 10 oz (93rd percentile)
• Height: 23 1/2 inches (97th percentile... he's grown 2 1/2 inches since birth!)
• Head: 14 1/2 inches (25th percentile - I guess it's just the hair that makes his head look so big!)

It's hard to believe Jack has been here for five weeks now. The time is going so quickly that I am trying to relish every single moment, even those at 3:30 am. We are truly fortunate to have such a wonderful, healthy son!

One Month

It's been a wonderful, hazy, tiring, rewarding month since Jack arrived. It seems like a lifetime ago that I was admitted to the hospital for labor induction & that Jack made his harried appearance (pun intended!). We continue to learn more about him, to settle into a relatively-stable routine, and have started to distinguish between his cries. He's now sleeping a solid 8 hours at night which has been a tremendous help to both me & Mick. He is quite a predictable chap: he cries when he's tired, overstimulated, hot, hungry, or has hiccups. He's what one of my books refers to as a "textbook baby."

We all dressed up on Sunday morning for brunch with my in-laws. He did quite well at the restaurant (his third meal out!) though we did pass him around to keep him quiet. We took the above photo when we returned home - the first proper family photo (with Shergar) since Jack's arrival.

Here's what we all felt like after the huge meal though:

We are headed tomorrow evening to Michigan for a few days and will be sure to post an update after that trip as we are looking forward to seeing how Jack does on the plane.

He has just awoken from his nap and is calling for his mum so I'm off now! Shergar hates it when I let him cry for a minute or two and is moving between his crib and the sofa (where I am) to let me know that Jack is up. She's a pretty funny dog...