Old MacDonald Had a Farm - No Pigs Were Allowed

I will admit it: the swine flu has me completely paranoid. Mick and I argued about it this morning. He asked me what was wrong & I told him I'm nervous about the swine flu. He had a very reasonable response: why worry about something you can't control? He thinks we just need to be sensible: wash our hands, cover our mouths when we sneeze, etc. I, on the other hand, think I'm justified to panic. I have a baby. I think that, as a mum, I'm wired to be hyper-protective of my little one. Plus, I have a husband who travels a lot for business so I feel that we are more susceptible than many other people.

I guess we're both right, even though we have different responses to this.

I usually scoff at the media when they hype up a danger (think Fox "news" and its classic "your laundry detergent could be silently killing you!!" segments) but this one is really getting to me.

For the time being, I am going to take Mick's advice (well, I'll try) and will control what I can. I will make sure that Mick washes his hands before interacting with Jack when he gets home from work. And I will try not to become so loony about this that Jack wonders what happened to his normally-rational mother.

If anyone else has advice for me (some moms from playgroup have already helped me, even if just by saying "I feel the same way - I'm nervous too!") please pass it along.

(And no, this isn't a picture of Jack. It's a picture that my sister-in-law, Sarah, just sent to me with the tip "Swine flu prevention: don't do this!")

Was it Crazy of Me to Try?

Several years ago, I was babysitting two kids: a newborn and a two-and-a-half year old. The baby had really horrible acid reflux and needed to be held constantly. The toddler wanted a sandwich -- a PB&J sandwich.

So, with one hand, I managed to remove a twist tie from a bread bag, cut a slice of bread in half, open a jar of peanut butter, spread the peanut butter on the bread (one handed!!), open the jelly and spread it as well, and assemble the sandwich.

For a long time, I used that story as my "greatest feat ever accomplished with a child" example.

Until now.

Jack and I ran a few errands this morning and went to a storytime class at the local library. It is another blistering hot day (above 90 degrees) and he has been drinking water like crazy. As I loaded him into the car at our last stop, I thought to myself "should I just change his diaper now or wait until we get home?" The diaper was soaking wet but the car was very hot and he was getting crabby as it was nap time. I decided it would be easier to just get him loaded into the car seat and drive the 2 miles home and then to change his diaper there.

We arrived home and he was fast asleep in his car seat. No problem, I thought to myself; he never stays asleep when I remove him from the car seat. Alas, this time he stayed sound asleep. I entered the house and Shergar went nuts -- yelping, crying, begging for attention. Surely, I thought, Jack won't sleep through this. He did. I set him in his crib, on his belly (the way he likes to sleep), and thought "I'm sure he'll wake as soon as I move my arms out from under him." Nope, he kept right on sleeping.

So I had a real dilemma. Do I let him continue sleeping even though I know the diaper is about to burst past capacity or do I attempt to change him, risking that I wake him and that the nap is ruined? I decided to leave him as I kept thinking about the parenthood mantra "never wake a sleeping baby." But then the guilt set in. He took a very crummy morning nap and so I figured he might sleep a while. And wouldn't it be cruel of me to leave him in that wet diaper which was likely to only get more wet as he slept?

After a few mintues of debating with myself, I tiptoed back in his room and slowly, very slowly removed his wet diaper. This was an exercise in precision: I felt as if I were dismantling a bomb. I had to slide my hands under his belly (once gingerly unsnapping his onesie) so I could unstick the tabs from the side of the diaper. Then I had to ever-so-slowly slide the diaper out from under him while trying not to let the sticky tabs stick to his legs or tummy. Getting the diaper off was the easy part (relatively speaking). Putting a new diaper on him was incredibly tricky. I think it's on well enough to capture anything that may be expelled during nap time. But I'll definitely need to adjust it once he wakes up.

He's been down for a little over an hour now and I am so glad that I ended up changing him. Wowie, was that tricky though!

Thank You!

On Sunday, we participated in the March of Dimes' March for Babies. Thanks to all of your generous contributions (and those we are expecting to come in), we raised $1000 and met our goal. That means that in the past three years, Mick and I have raised $3425 for the March of Dimes. We would not be able to reach these ambitious goals without your help. As I said on my March for Babies page, the current state of the economy makes each and every donation so much more meaningful. Please accept our sincere thank you to everyone who made a contribution! (If you would still like to donate, the donation window is open until June 30.)

While preparing for the walk, we were approached by a reporter from the local CBS station. She asked why we were walking and told us to stay tuned to the nightly news as we might be included. Sure enough, we were! The only slight bummer was that they put the name "Kelly Collins" up with a woman who was walking with her husband & healthy twins, who were born at only 27 weeks. Oh well... Here's the clip:


We only ended up doing about half the walk because it was close to 90 degrees out and we were very concerned about Jack. I had lathered sunscreen all over him but we started worrying that he might overheat as babies can't regulate their temperatures as well as we can. Nonetheless, it was a really special day for our family. I signed the "Family Teams" banner, as I do every year, and wrote a little message to Landon. I also made a square for a quilt that will be hung in a local NICU to encourage sick babies to get healthy.

To me, this annual event is one of the best ways I have to honor Landon and to make sure that he did not die in vain. Again, thank you for all of your support.

Peek-a-Boo!

Just had to share this as it is Jack's newest "trick." I don't know who gets more satisfaction out of it: Jack or us!

Support Us As We Walk in Landon's Memory

In one week, Mick, Jack, and I will be walking in the Washington DC March for Babies. We do this, as we have the past two years, to honor Landon's memory. This year, we also walk to celebrate the lives of all of the healthy babies born in our family & to our friends this year.

Our sincere thanks to those of you who have already made a contribution to this cause. If you would like to make a donation, please visit www.marchforbabies.org/landonjames or click on the "March for Babies" logo on the right side of this page.

We will post an update after the walk to let you know how it goes and to give you our final fundraising total (only $350 to goal!).

Attention, Grandparents!

We've got big news to share:

Jack slept straight through the night last night! He went down around 8:00 and didn't wake until 6:30. Of course, I went in three times to make sure he was still breathing. I've gotten so programmed to expect that he'll wake multiple times throughout the night (wanting his paci, trying to practice crawl, teething, just wanting to play with Daddy & look at the cars at 3 am) that when he didn't make a peep I freaked out!

I know you guys have all been following our sleep saga & offering tidbits of advice since he was about 4 months old and you told us (over Christmas) "just let him cry it out - he'll be fine!" so I thought you'd be especially happy to hear that we finally had success!

Tribute Concert

On Sunday, with Mick still in England, I decided to take Jack to the Mall so we could be part of a tribute concert to Marian Anderson. Anderson sang on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday in 1939 after being banned from singing at Constitution Hall because she was Black. Eleanor Roosevelt, angered at the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR - the group overseeing Constitution Hall performances) not only resigned her membership with the DAR but also invited Anderson to sing in an outdoor concert at the Lincoln. (Go, Eleanor!) So, 70 years ago, Anderson sang before an integrated crowd of 75,000 gathered on the Mall.

This past Sunday, the tribute concert included performances by opera singer Denyce Graves (what a voice!), Sweet Honey and the Rock (women's a cappella group), the U.S. Marine Band, and the Chicago Children's Choir. Colin Powell attended and he spoke twice during the performance; he told a heartwarming story of how his parents -- both Jamaican immigrants -- came to this country. There was also a naturalization ceremony for 200 people who gained American citizenship on Sunday.

The entire event was incredible. The singing was beautiful and gave me chills. Jack loves music so he and I swayed along to the songs. (I sent my mom a video of Denyce Graves singing 'Ave Maria' but my mom had to shut her eyes while listening b/c my swaying made the video camera go back & forth, thus inducing nausea.) There's a decent video on YouTube of Graves singing "My Country Tis of Thee" (interesting enough, this song is set to the tune of the English National Anthem, God Save the Queen). Here's part of a video I took during the concert:


The naturalization ceremony was special to see and especially meaningful as I told Jack that Daddy would be doing this same thing next year. One interesting thing I learned during the ceremony is that people are sworn in by country of origin, not by name. So, instead of listening to 200 individual names being called, we heard the 55 countries from which these people hailed.

I found the oath that the new citizens were asked to recite to be quite... difficult, for lack of a better word. Here it is:

"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the armed forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

Seriously? That's the oath that we ask people new to this country to take? We couldn't update it? Fix some of these crazy words like "abjure" and "potentate"?

In all, it was a very nice way to spend our Sunday. With Mick's return home last night, we are looking forward to spending time together before he leaves on Sunday to head to San Diego for a few days for a business trip.

Surviving Without Daddy

It's day three without Mick here; he's in England visiting his family. Jack and I have survived the last three days & nights on our own and Jack has acquiesced in letting me give him his nightly bath (even though he clearly prefers Mick). This is what he did this morning, demonstrating to me that he wants to get OUT and get to wherever Daddy might be. (Sherg was right there with him as she misses Mick more than any of us!)

We've had lots of developments in the last few days. Jack has started crawling... and that has meant a LOT more work for me. Getting him dressed is now a full workout for me. All he wants to do is flip over and crawl away, so I am constantly chasing him and dressing him backwards. He does the same in the bathtub and that's a little trickier as obviously I don't want him face down in the water.

The crawling has also wrought havoc on our sleeping situation around here. The night before Mick left, Jack's sleep was very shoddy; he woke up every 15 - 20 minutes, just screaming hysterically. It was frustrating to say the least. Parents are programmed to know there will be sleep disturbances in the first few months of life. But once your little one is doing a good job sleeping and then all of a sudden just stops, it leaves a parent in a bit of a frenzy. I did some research (of course... as I'm the consummate researcher) and found that babies can encounter "sleep regression" when they are about to hit a developmental milestone. Aha! I thought. Babies commonly have sleep issues when they are about to learn to crawl as they try to practice this new-found skill during their light sleeping phases. I am certain this is what has been going on, as every night that I've gone in to settle my little screaming monster he's on all fours, rocking in his crib. Poor thing is trying to crawl! I read this online and it described our situation precisely: "Crawling can also bring on separation anxiety as your little one starts to realize that they are not an attachment of you but their own separate being. This type of anxiety has a distinctive cry that is often described by parents as more of a scream or as hysterical and can cause quite a bit of sleep regression."

Not only is Jack working on crawling though, but he's also worked out how to pull himself to standing in his crib. Alas, this is what I walked in to find on Saturday morning:
Needless to say, I lowered that darn crib mattress yesterday afternoon as I don't want any acrobatics happening in Jack's bedroom in the near future!

Now, knock wood, Jack's sleep was near perfect last night. Finally. In addition to not sleeping at night, he's also been on a nap strike, sleeping maybe a grand total of 1 1/2 hours during the day. He woke up last night once and I just went in and gave him his pacifier (which he really only takes at bedtime) and he went right back to sleep. It was only a seven-minute disturbance in my sleep. I feel SO much more like a human today. After four days of functioning on so little sleep, I was beginning to fear I might become a real hazard to Jack's and my well-being! I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that this lasts... (at least until the next developmental milestone!).

The Grape Escape

Thought I would share some tasting notes from our time in Napa Valley last weekend. As always, reviews are subject to distortion, personal bias, and revisionist history.

We went to 9 wineries; here are some of the best.

Napa Valley

1. Whitehall Lane
They offer a recently refurbished tasting room featuring very courteous staff. The 2007 Sauvignon Blanc ($16) was very good with lots of fruit. The Reserve Cabernet ($75) was excellent (“velvety” I said to the host). Got a bonus pour of the 2007 Belmuscato dessert wine, which was mildly sweet, with banana and apricot flavors.

2. St. Supery ($15 per tasting)
They offer a couple of wines sold locally in DC; most others are only sold at the winery. Lots of wines on offer to taste; as I was holding a sleeping Jack, my main task was sipping wine without moving him around.

3. Charles Krug ($10 per tasting)
Most notable for Jack taking a leak on my shirt (which prompted a speedy “hold on, I’ll be right back” dash for the exit). Kelly was a big fan of the crisp, grapefruit 2007 Sauvignon Blanc ($18). I liked the bold, deep-flavored Zinfandel ($25) and the chocolatey 2006 Cab ($27.00).

4. Chateau Montelena ($20 per tasting)
Brought to national prominence by the book “Judgment of Paris” and the movie “Bottle Shock, both of which chronicled the unprecedented success of Californian wines in a 1976 French wine tasting, Chateau Montelena is clearly living the good life. Located towards the northern end of Napa Valley, it cost $20 for a tasting, which didn’t include their winning Chardonnay. Tasted a Reisling (dry, tart, unlike a traditional Reisling), a Zinfandel (spicy and tannic, would need to pair with food), and two Cabernets (the Estate version of which was very strong and fruity and retails for $135).

Sonoma

1. Gloria Ferrer
The winery makes a number of excellent sparkling and still wines, most of which are only available by the glass. The sparkling wines were top-notch. We enjoyed a glass outside on the patio, overlooking the valley floor.

2. Cline
Our final stop before heading back to San Francisco. We’ve long favored their Zinfandel, but were pleasantly surprised by 2 blends ( a “Five Reds” and a “Four Whites”) both of which cost less than $15.

Bon Voyage

With Edward looking after Jack, Mick and I headed to Bistro Lafayette in Alexandria, scene of Mick's last birthday dinner. Taking a few hours for ourselves was fantastic, and we gorged on many French bistro classics (Onion Soup, Escargot, Pate, Steak Tartare, and Mussels) all washed down with a Burgundy Pinot. Bread was scarce though; upon asking for a refill of the basket, we received anywhere from 1-3 slices in return.

Returned home to find Jack melting down. We played with him for a bit and saw him crawl (on hands and knees) for the first time. Everyone was thrilled with that. He also has seemingly mastered "So Big!" as of yesterday. He raises his arms, hands clasped, above his head. I shed a few tears tonight when I saw him do "so big" and then crawl in quick succession. My little guy is growing up so quickly.

Edward heads back to England tomorrow and Mick follows him there on Thursday for a long weekend in the motherland.

What Was in That Bottle?

Although it was Edward & Mick who spent some time on Saturday afternoon in the sun (golfing), it was Jack who couldn't keep his eyes open last night! While Mick & I prepared dinner, Edward gave Jack his evening bath & bottle. At the tail-end of the bottle, Jack's eyes closed and he slumped forward. He was OUT! I just had to snap a few pictures.

Visitors, Travel, and Colds, Oh My!

I realize it's been a while since our last post. It's not for lack of having things to report. We've been busy!

Mick's mum came to visit at the end of February and stayed for about 10 days. We had a really lovely visit with her and I was sad to see her go. I get such joy out of watching the grandparents interact with Jack. Julie's specialty is her singing, and Jack just giggles with delight each time she sings a little song to him. I've tried to replicate some of her songs for him, but he just raises an eyebrow at me and gives me a slightly disgusted look. I've posted a few pictures from her visit in our photo album under "Granny's Visit." (Rest assured, there were many more pictures taken while she was here; the vast majority though are on her camera.)

We then traveled to Michigan for about two weeks, starting off our visit with my cousin, Emily, and her family in the Ann Arbor area. We had 2 days there and Emily & Brian watched Jack while Mick and I got out and enjoyed the city and even got to meet up with my beloved English professor from U of M. Mick then headed back home while Jack and I continued up to Big Rapids to spend a bit of time with my parents. Other than one night when we sent my parents out for dinner to celebrate their 35th anniversary (congrats!), we had lots of quality time with them. Jack enjoyed the pool, snuggling with Grammy, and helping Papa with various tasks (reading the sale paper, working in the office, feeding the fish). I took lots of pictures from that trip and have not limited duplicates yet as my mom wanted to see all of them first -- so just a warning before you embark on that massive photo album (Michigan Trip).

We capped off our Michigan stay with a weekend with the whole family: Trevor & Steph came up from Kzoo while Andy, Sarah, Marcus, and Deagan traveled over from Fremont. It was so neat to see the three cousins interacting with each other. Marcus is an absolute gem and is so good with the babies. Deagan is doing laps around Jack (seriously - Deagan is crawling AND walking behind push-toys) while Jack is content to sit and eat. The size difference between the boys is still noticeable but I think Deagan is closing the gap. I took tons of pictures of the boys together & with the grandparents, all in the album called "Cousins."

As luck would have it, Jack came down with a nasty cold the day before he & I were due to fly out to San Francisco to meet up with Mick. I debated whether or not to go and eventually decided I would make the trip. I won't go into detail here about the flight, but suffice it to say I don't think I've ever come as close as I did on that plane to having a nervous breakdown. I knew things were going to be bad when I tried to reach the first plane from Grand Rapids to Chicago. It was a puddle-jumper so it didn't even pull up the the jetbridge; we had to walk across the tarmac. So, here I was with Jack (in the Jackpack), a backpack diaper bag, purse, stroller, and car seat. I had to get through security with all of that (of course removing shoes, belt, laptop, and bag full of Jack's food & medicine and collapsing stroller & car seat) and then I had to navigate down about 15 steps out the the tarmac and then back up 6 steps to get onto the plane. Luckily, a good samaritan (father of 3 kids) helped me get the gear to the plane's side as the airport personnel seemed a bit disgusted that I should need help. I desperately hoped Jack would sleep from Chicago to San Fran, but alas, it was not to be. I ended up standing with him for almost the entire flight so I could rock him and calm him down. At one point I seriously almost locked myself in the airplane's bathroom and cried, but then I channeled Grandma Drouillard who I could just hear telling me "girl, get a grip -- crying isn't going to get you anywhere!"

Anyway, we made it. I think Mick was a little concerned when we met him after getting off the plane, I handed him Jack and said "I just need a few moments in the bathroom to cry and then I'll be okay."

Despite Jack's cold, we had a terrific time in San Fran. We stayed in Nob Hill for two nights and Jack and I enjoyed a picnic lunch in the hotel courtyard and got some serious exercise trekking up and down the hills of the area. We were able to go, as a family, on a cable car ride and to enjoy some seafood at Fisherman's Wharf. We then headed up to Napa for two nights where the highlight was Jack weeing through his diaper onto Mick's shirt and all over the floor at one Napa tasting room. Classy. We finished our trip with two nights near Union Square in a great hotel with stunning 29th-floor views. Photos are in our "San Francisco" folder.


We've been home since Tuesday evening and are slowly getting back into the swing of things. Jack has been to the doctor and has a little inhaler to help clear his chest congestion. Mick's dad arrived Wednesday afternoon and has been keeping our Jack busy and amused with lots of playtime. Mick will fly to England on Thursday to spend a long weekend there so Jack and I will be on the lookout for fun things to do around here. If the weather's nice next weekend, I may venture out with him to the zoo or, if we are really brave, we'll navigate the crowds downtown and check out the cherry blossoms. We'll keep you posted!