Weekend Update

Craig was home this weekend, and we had nowhere to go.  I can't even tell you how rare that is, and as normal as it feels to have a weekend like that, it feels so strange when it actually happens.  Once we get past the next few weeks, we'll have a lot more of those until November or so, but then it's back to the solo parenting weekends.  I don't mind them, but there's a lot we don't get to do as a family without that free time, and a lot I don't get to tackle when I'm home alone.  And because those weekends are so rare, when we do finally have them, inevitably we do a lot of resting up.  We did have activities planned, but there was plenty of downtime, which was much needed.

We all slept in a bit on Saturday, and I got up with Carter around 8, I think.  After we all ate some breakfast, I popped him in the swing, site of many of his marathon naps, so I could shower and go out to do some yard work.  Without Jacob's afternoon naps and with a baby to take care of, our yard has definitely taken a bit of a beating.  Craig has done his best to keep up with mowing and trimming this summer, which has been great (after all, the boys use the yard a lot for baseball now), but the flower beds and bushes have definitely gotten overgrown.  I spent a good two hours out in the beautiful weather doing a little of everything--ripping out giant weeds, pulling smaller weeds, hacking away at some bushes, cutting down little baby trees, etc.  It was exhausting work, but I made a good dent.  I could use a couple more hours to do some weed killing and thin out some of the greenery in the way back of our yard, but it was a good start, at least.  I filled a couple large bags with stuff, and things look a lot better. 

While I was out there, I found out that our elderly neighbor had passed away.  He was about 90, and up until pancreatic cancer took him down he had been quite lively and active around his yard.  He was always very sweet to Jacob (though he called him David and I didn't have the heart to correct him).  He has a large garden and it was always fun to see him tooling around the neighborhood in his golf cart.  His wife has been in a nursing home for nearly two years with Alzheimer's.  I will be sad to see the house get sold to someone else, but as Jacob said, "Maybe they will have kids!"  I did check out his garden while I was out in the yard and picked a number of overgrown cucumbers.  There were also a couple dozen butternut squashes ripe for the picking, but I left them alone since I'm not entirely sure what the ideal size is for those.  I left what I picked on his patio table and hoped his family would find some use for them.  He actually gave us a couple of them probably a day or two before he died.  They were also overgrown, and we have some perfect ones from friends that I still need to use, but I can't bring myself to toss them now.

Jacob and I went in the pool for a bit in the afternoon, but it was awfully chilly.  It felt good after being so sweaty from the yard work, but I couldn't get over how cool it was despite it being August and us having left the pool cover on all this time.  The refreshment only lasted a little while before I got cold, so we headed back into the house to get ready for that night's Red Wings game.  It was Greece Little League night, which meant that Jacob got to go on the field before the game!  The showing was pretty poor, though, as there was maybe only a dozen kids or so.  Jacob was the only kid from his team there.  Still, it was fun to go out there.

Walking out!

Random pic I secretly took!

Testing his speed...one said 40, but we're pretty sure it was an error.  Mid-20s are more his speed!

We had a fun night overall.  The weather was nice, Carter was cooperative, and we headed out in the 8th inning before the kids got too cranky.  Of course, we missed a major comeback in the 10th inning and a big win in the 12th, but I would have been cursing the extra innings had we attempted to stick around for the postgame fireworks!

We got up for church the next morning, and then Craig and Jacob shuffled off to a birthday party for one of Jacob's friends.  It was at the same place where Jacob's soccer thing had been (remember, the one that ended on Valentine's Day, the night before Carter was born?), and he went prepared for anything--with his soccer stuff and his baseball stuff.  Only Jacob.  I don't have any pictures, though, because I stayed home with Carter. 

Carter and I ended up going out shopping to Kohl's for a few things.  I wanted to check on a couple things in general, and I really wanted to go look for some Spanx-type stuff to smooth me out for the dress I bought for my cousin's wedding (among other things).  It's official--I just don't get those things.  No matter what size I put on, they squeeze me way too much and I end up with bulges in the weirdest spots.  I've tried on a few here and there but I'm just not finding what I want.  I did find one pair that were a little less constricting, so there weren't any bulges, but I'm also not sure it makes the dress look any better so I'm not convinced I'm keeping it.  After feeding Carter and escaping the Intimates section, I ventured over to the kids' clothes.  I browsed for Carter, but he's now well stocked for the summer (thanks to some awesome online shopping from Kohl's and The Children's Place) after outgrowing nearly all of Jacob's hand-me-downs (since Jacob was only about three months old when summer ended).  I'm also not sure what to buy him for next year since I have all of those hand-me-downs waiting, but I can't remember how much I had for 12 months vs. 18 months.  It was way more fun when I knew I needed everything! 

Of course, I still need everything for Jacob, so when I wandered across the aisle to the boys section, I hit the jackpot.  I got him an orange Nike shirt (might be Dri-Fit...feels like it, anyway), two superhero t-shirts, a pair of reversible Nike sports shorts, a pair of pajama pants with MLB logos, and two double sets of pajamas, one in each of two different sizes, both with long pants and short sleeves.  One set is superheroes, and those will fit him for the fall.  The other set is Lego Star Wars, and those should fit him either next spring or the following fall.  Each double set was less than $12, making them less than $6 per set!  The rest of the stuff was cheap as well, though I haven't decided what is going to be a Christmas gift vs. regular clothes.  My policy on that, by the way, is that if it's something he needs, like PJs, I just give it to him, but if it's something extra cool (like the pajama pants), then it can be a gift.  Oh, and I also got him two of the $5 Curious George books they have right now--one for a Christmas gift, and one as a first day of school gift (because, of course, it's George's first day of school, too).

After all of that, I wandered over to my section to see if I could fill in any holes in my post-pregnancy wardrobe (i.e., something that doesn't cling to my belly).  There were racks upon racks of clearance clothes, and among them I managed to find four things--a dress, a 3/4 sleeve navy blue cardigan that will be good for spring/fall layering, a plain fuchsia modal long-sleeved t-shirt ($4), and a cute (and very different for me) orange shirt with a bit of a bohemian vibe.  The dress was the big splurge among them at just over $20 (down from $96), but it's super cute in a very flattering style and should translate to winter just fine.  All told, I spent $126 (and it might be down to just over $100 if I take back the shaper thing), but it was a total savings of over $300!  I know that's super-inflated because nothing ever sells there full price, but that was pretty darn impressive nonetheless, and everything will get solid use.  I'm still giddy about the PJs because I cringe every time I see a $15 pair of pajamas in the store.

We grilled up some chicken for dinner and did our best to get the kids in bed early.  Jacob had baseball tonight, and I'm currently freaking out about some blisters I ended up with on my hands and feet after my yard work on Saturday.  At first I thought they were just from weed pulling, and then I thought maybe some plant did it, even though those parts were covered, but now I'm worried that it might be related to an outbreak of hand foot and mouth disease at daycare.  I don't know if I had it as a kid, but even if I did I wonder if it's like chicken pox where you can get it again if it was a light case.  The tiny blisters on my hands and feet (about a dozen in all) hurt and definitely look a little like hand food and mouth, but it's hard to tell.  I'm worried about passing it along to Carter (even if he'll probably get it eventually anyway--Jacob had it around 18 months), because even though complications are rare, I can't imagine it's good for a 5-1/2 month old to get it.  But it may be too late.  Carter has been a little cranky and needy the last couple days, but it's hard to tell if he's teething, or if something else is bothering him.  We'll know in the next few days, I guess. 

Just a couple more things to reward you for getting through this post...

Grandma and Grandpa came to see Jacob play last Thursday.  He had a good game as usual and earned a game ball!

Look at that sweet face!

Such a smiley boy!

Jacob-Proof: Parenting Advice that Failed

As a parent, particularly a parent that reads parenting things on the internet, you get a ton of advice and suggestions on how to manage your kids.  Every parenting site or blog eventually posts some sort of list of suggestions for dealing with your unruly, difficult child when dealing with fill-in-the-blank parenting challenge.  I know that the advice is all supposed to be helpful and much of it is time-tested, but every child is different so there is never a one-size-fits-all solution for every problem.  Jacob is a prime example of that.  Here are just a few of the suggestions that Jacob has beaten into submission:

1) Give your kid two choices - The advice says that you need to give your kid choices so they feel a sense of control and contribution within a limited framework.  If you leave things open-ended, they might be overwhelmed, and if you demand a single option they will want to defy you.  So give them two choices and let them pick one.  Yeah, Jacob is inevitably unhappy with both choices, asks for another, or tries to create his own.  I read somewhere that the constant stream of choices is creating a generation of kids that don't know what it's like to not get your way.  At least Jacob might avoid that pitfall!

2) Keep offering foods - They say to keep offering foods as it can take a dozen times trying something to decide you like it.  Well...I have served many a dinner countless times, and still end up with a battle each time.  And trust me, this isn't about fancy foods that there's a chance he wouldn't like.  It's over pretty standard fare that he's eaten before or incorporates elements we know he likes.

3) Give warnings prior to changing activities - They always say that transitions are hard for kids, so give them a warning a couple minutes before changing an activity (i.e., getting ready for bed, having dinner, etc.).  I could give Jacob any number of warnings, any number of minutes ahead of time, and he still gets angry when he's involved in a project and it's time to change.  This makes bedtime particularly hard.

4) Sleep when the baby sleeps - This is a bit of a throwback, but with Jacob in particular, no matter how hard I tried to sleep when he did, inevitably I'd try napping during his nap that would last about 20 minutes.  Only when I decided to spend a nap getting things done around the house did he have a marathon nap.  Handy, yes...but sleep was probably far more important at that point!

5) Make a routine - They always say how helpful routines are for kids because it makes them feel secure when they know what's coming.  It helps with bedtime, morning, school, etc.  Well...let's just say we've done the same routines for YEARS, and yet every morning is met with resistance, every bedtime is absolute drudgery.  He may know what's coming, but that doesn't stop him from complaining about it and delaying it every step of the way.

6) Anything potty training related, including "Make sure they feel wetness" - Potty training has been a struggle for us for far too long.  As I've mentioned, Jacob is still not night trained, but at this point the doctor is convinced that it's simply a matter of his brain and his bladder catching up to each other.  I've mostly made peace with that, though there are times I swear it's out of pure laziness...but I can't prove it so there's no need to belabor it at this point.  Regardless...we bought our first potty when he was about 18 months old, just in case.  We had sporadic success starting when he was about two, but I don't think I'd consider him fully trained until he was close to 3-1/2.  Part of that might not have been within his control, but I know there were many times he just couldn't be bothered to go.  Heck, we still have close calls!  But we tried a little of everything--rewards, potty charts, wearing undies under plastic pants to make him feel wet--and yet it still took forever to get it all together. 

7) Whisper to get their attention - They say that when all of the yelling becomes too much, whisper and it will make your child pay attention.  Ha.  He'll just continue yelling right over me.

8) Lay out clothes the night before - Per #1 above, choices do not work for this child.  Picking out clothes every day is a chore.  Some people would say that we should pick out clothes the night before so we can avoid issues in the morning.  Well, sure...I guess it doesn't matter when we argue (which we will), but the bigger problem with doing it at night is that we could come to a decision the night before, only to have him wig out the next morning because he changed his mind.  No thanks.  This happens enough when we travel for a weekend and he decides that what we packed isn't good enough, so I don't need it during the week as well.

9) Involve the big sibling in caring for the baby - Jacob had one brief moment where he seemed interested in Carter...the moment he walked into the hospital room and saw me holding him.  And then reality set in and he has kept his distance ever since.  He has been getting better, as we at least have moments now where he acknowledges his brother's existence, but for the most part he still keeps his distance.  But no matter how much I've tried to get him to grab a diaper or come say hi, he still hasn't gained any interest in anything having to do with Carter.  He has mentioned couple times that he wants to help feed him, so we really do need to capitalize on that one of these days when the stars align and the timing works out, but no matter what we've tried so far, nothing has had a lasting impression.

10) Use a stern voice instead of yelling - A couple years ago when Jacob was in the throes of the terrible threes, I had asked the doctor about the possibility that some sort of food or drink (specifically cow's milk, but possibly food dyes or something else) might be contributing to his behavior issues.  The doctor, who was extra old-school, poo-pooed the idea completely and basically said all Jacob needed was some good, old-fashioned discipline.  "Use a firm voice," he said.  Ha.  We've used every manner of firm voice, but that doesn't work.  Neither does yelling, whispering (see above), spanking, taking away privileges, timeouts, reverse psychology, logic, positive reinforcement, or anything else we've tried.  At this point I'm hoping aging will do the trick. 

So, yeah, we haven't exactly been able to parent Jacob by the book, but there have been other things that have worked like a charm.  Maybe I'll post about those one of these days.  If I can think of enough for a reasonable post.  The successes tend to be a little harder to recall.  But Jacob definitely keeps us on our toes.  Carter is, so far, the perfect baby, and I'm sad to think that someday we may have these issues with him as well.  He's got a front-row seat for his brother's antics, but I'm hoping he learns that he'd rather not be yelled it, rather than simply deciding that he must follow in his brother's footsteps, despite the consequences.  Just don't watch too closely, Carter!  As I told Jacob last week, use your powers for good!

Dream Baby

Yes, I'm taking the chance that I'm going to write this post and completely jinx myself, but let's face it--Carter is fantastic and even if this bliss ends tomorrow, I need to note for posterity that there was a period in which he was the most amazing, sweet baby ever. 

That's not to say that he doesn't have his moments.  Even just this past weekend I'm sure there were a lot of people around us thinking, "Shut that baby up, already!", but who doesn't have those moments?  I'd bet that we've had a heck of a lot less with him than most people have had with their babies. 

The kid oozes pure sweetness and I can't help but swoon every time I look at him.  He's got those bright (but dark) eyes, those amazing cheeks, and the sweetest smile.  He is just the most "chill" baby ever.  Yes, when he's hungry, he is HUNGRY.  He will not let up until you feed him.  But the second that bottle is in his mouth, he is completely content.  He gets a little cranky when he's tired, but a few rocks and usually he's off to dreamland.  I won't say that he's the most patient if I leave him alone, even with toys, but usually I can get a few minutes out of him before I come back, pick him up, and do whatever it is that I need to do with him on my hip.  And most of the time, I don't mind, simply because he's so content while I'm holding him. 

He is very smiley and has a great laugh.  He's very easily amused, which is fun.  He loves peek-a-boo, he loves raspberries on his belly and tickles in his armpits, and just a silly face will get him giggling.  He's just a happy kid.

But what amazes me the most is that he's such a good baby when you most want him to be good.  He goes to bed without incident.  He sleeps through the night.  He wakes up happy.  He's a very content eater.  For the most part he's been very good when I put him in the Bjorn for certain outings, or even when he's stuck in the stroller for a while.  When we went shopping at IKEA over the weekend, I practically forgot he was sitting there in the stroller because he was so quiet.  And there were a couple times I looked at him, sure he was asleep, but no...he just sat there contentedly checking things out.  He's taken amazing marathon naps at ideal times, like the morning of Jacob's birthday party or Saturday morning when I was finishing packing.  We've had so few moments where he has been out-of-character miserable that when he does have one I'm almost at a loss trying to figure out what might be wrong or what to do about it.  I've certainly cuddled him a lot, but I honestly haven't had to actively rock him very much.  He's usually pretty predictable, right down to when he poops and when he's most prone to spit up...which, yes, he does a lot.

As I was thinking about writing this post, I figured I probably could have done a similar one for Jacob.  Turns out, I did.  Right around the same time, in fact.  I do remember Jacob being a smiley, sweet baby, but I also remember a lot of tough times.  He did have undiagnosed acid reflux, after all, but I'm guessing a lot of the tougher times were once he started teething.  We have yet to do that, of course, so it's a little nervewracking to know what could be coming.  Even still, I feel like there's an element of Carter's personality that is just so much lower key than Jacob (heck, I'm pretty sure he kicked a lot less in utero, too), so I'm hoping that we're not facing a similar future with Carter as we're dealing with with Jacob right now.  Maybe Carter just seems that much more chill because he's such a contrast to Jacob.  I didn't really have any frame of reference when Jacob was a baby, but now I know how blissful it is to have a baby that isn't old enough to get into anything, but is still old enough to smile and do a little more than just lay there.  My time with Jacob is so exhausting, but Carter energizes me and keeps me smiling.  He's such a ray of sunshine.

 

Carter is working hard on sitting up right now, and it's so cool to watch him improve.  I see him trying to curl up when he's reclining somewhere (working those abs!), and while he's still lacking balance, he's getting a lot less wobbly when I hold his hands or prop him up.  I forgot how rewarding it is to see your baby do things like that, particularly when they're starting from scratch, you know?  Jacob obviously has a lot to learn in the coming months, and I am looking forward to that, but the simplicity of baby milestones is just so heartwarming. 

 

I tell him how much I love him at least a dozen times a day, and probably kiss his cheeks twice as much.  I just can't help myself.  I'm so overwhelmed with love when I'm with him.  Everything about him just makes me smile.  I love his chubby but muscular thighs, I love that he seems to have gotten my dark eyes like Jacob did, and I love the perfect fuzz he's got on his head.  His giggle is contagious and everyone at daycare raves about how awesome he is. 

 

I tried to weigh him tonight (by stepping on the scale with and without him) and I think he weighed in around 16 pounds.  It absolutely boggles my mind that he's so big and that he's nearly six months old.  It was only a year ago that I was barely pregnant and feeling awful, and six months ago that I was suffering through the horribly uncomfortable stage of late pregnancy.  I can barely fathom that he's here and that he's so awesome, let alone that he's already such a big boy.  I looked tonight at some of his newborn clothes and laughed.  He's fitting into some 6-9 month stuff now, and he's so long!  He was such a tiny little peanut when he was born, barely six pounds and not enough fat to fill out his own skin.  And now he's this increasingly strong, super happy little boy.  The changes just boggle my mind.  I wish I could freeze all these moments in time because they're going too fast! 

 

Here are a couple shots of him from Monday night at Jacob's game.  The first one was sort of an inadvertent shot that I ended up loving, and the second one shows his happy face.  I love both!

 

Blessed indeed...

Baseball, Lacrosse, and More Baseball

Jacob's t-ball has been going relatively well.  He's definitely a great hitter, even now that they're doing coach-pitch instead of using the tee.  He gets a lot of attention from the other teams, as we hear rumblings nearly every game about what a good hitter he is.  I have to admit, his form looks pretty good.  He definitely loves it and always wants to practice, but he still needs to work on fielding and paying attention.  He gets preoccupied by checking out the bases, drawing his own batter's box, and just generally trying to do things his way, so he needs to work on being a good teammate and making sure he won't get clunked by the ball.  He's definitely a good player in comparison to the other kids on his team and other teams, but they all have a long way to go!  It's hard to watch sometimes, since they're all all over the place, but it's fun to watch them learn and improve!  Here's a picture of our little player from Thursday...

Saturday we all took off for Hamilton, where Craig had to work a lacrosse game.  We had a relatively pleasant drive up--some rain, but no issues at the bridge!  We dropped Craig off at the stadium and the kids and I went to IKEA.  I had a few things I wanted to look for and ended up with a longer list of projects I'd like to do someday, if I could just have a master handyman come and do all the scary stuff!  I got four small things.  Jacob was a little all over the place at times, but generally wasn't too bad.  Carter was completely content in the stroller.  As we finished up shopping I knew we wouldn't have time for a full dinner before the game.  I was thinking we could have gotten food at the game, but decided at the last minute that it would be much cheaper (and potentially tastier) to get some snacks at the IKEA Café.  We got two hot dogs and a soda for $2 (!) and added a cinnamon roll to split ($1.50).  It was perfect and we headed out into the drizzly night to go to the game. 

I didn't take any pictures, probably because I took some last year and had my hands full this year.  It rained once while we were out in the stands, but the umbrella did its job and the temperature stayed reasonable enough.  I had Carter in the Bjorn and we ended up sitting with Craig's boss and his wife for a while.  She loves babies and was happy to hold Carter for a while.  Craig came out to find us at one point, and eventually we headed up to his booth in the press box...and just in time, as it poured near the end of the game while we were up there.  After the game we headed to a hotel, where Jacob did his usual hellish hotel antics--not going to sleep, screwing around on his bed, throwing pillows, etc.  He didn't get to bed until late, though luckily we all slept rather well and woke up around 8:30.  Even Carter did well in his pack-n-play, aside from one barely noteworthy whiny spell that I shushed away. 

We decided to work our way back slowly, much like we did on our Hamilton trip last year.  We grabbed some breakfast and drove to Niagara Falls, where we strolled down Clifton Hill.  I fed Carter in a park across from the Falls while Jacob and Craig played, and then we walked up to the railing so Jacob could see the Falls...

Perfect day!

And then we worked our way back up the hill, stopped for ice cream and a game of bubble hockey, then headed to my parents' house for a little while.  Jacob played baseball and Carter was his usual charming self.  We took off a little after 4pm so we could hit up the Batavia Muckdogs game on our way home.  We last went to a game there when Jacob was two (!), and I took one of my favorite pictures of the boys ever, after Jacob ran the bases postgame.  It was a nice night, though it got a little chilly as the night went on, and the game was quite the barnburner (10-5 final, I think?).  The boys saw a foul ball break someone's back car window (UGH), Jacob met the mascot...

...and we tried to enjoy the night despite near-constant whining from Jacob (about any little thing you can imagine), and a little fussiness from Carter (not sure if it's teeth, or if he had just sort of had it with being ported around all weekend). 

The thing was, we had to stay until the end of the game so Jacob could run the bases...

That's him in the red shirt.  And yes, he's wearing his baseball socks with shorts (I forgot pants for him for when it got cool) and his cleats.

And, yes, we did a follow-up picture three years later to attempt to match the glory of the original.  Not quite, but it's still a great picture of the boys!


The hats have changed and Jacob is way bigger, but the smiles are the same!  Maybe next year Carter will join the crew :)

We had fun, but it was a long day.  I was so happy to get home, get the kids in bed, and get in bed myself...though I had way too much to do to get around to that early enough.  I'm still glad we got a chance to go to Hamilton this summer, but it is always hard to be gone for a weekend because I feel so far behind when the new week starts.  And this week we had t-ball again on Monday, and tonight Craig was back up in Canada for a work-related event, so I was on my own with both kids, including an overtired Jacob who was barely functional.  Oh, the whining.  Jacob, if you don't want me to yell, try listening and obeying the first time!  UGH.  So now it's nearly mid-week and I feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water.  But I am too mentally spent to do anything except blog! 

We're home this coming weekend, thankfully.  We have a Red Wings game where Jacob gets to parade with other Little Leaguers on Saturday, and a birthday party for one of his friends on Sunday.  Craig is home so we should have some good quality family time in between all of these events.  I hope.  Summer is rapidly dwindling, and I feel like we've barely gotten to do anything, including swim in our own pool!  Oy...and I wonder why I'm stressed.  Hopefully another (happier) blog post coming up in the next day or so...


Napping: A Cautionary Tale

In case I haven't mentioned it, bedtime with Jacob has been downright horrible for a while.  He used to be so great at going to bed, and then at some point, he wasn't anymore.  Over the years he's gone in phases for sure, but this particular phase was extra bad and extra long.  I used to quietly gloat about how good bedtime was in our house whenever I'd hear about the kids who endlessly needed to pee, needed another glass of water, etc.  Jacob wasn't like that.  But then he figured out that if he had to pee, we HAD to let him get up and do it.  We could deny water because he pees so much overnight (yep, he's still in a pull-up (though the big kid ones now), and the doctor says his brain and bladder just have to figure it out on their own)), but when he's sick that's a little harder...so another crack in the armor.  And slowly but surely the excuses grew.  And certainly since he's been in his new room, we've had to contend with a lot more.  He's hungry, he's thirsty, he's scared, he's having bad dreams (did you know you could dream before you actually go to sleep?  Me neither.), his light looks like it's going to come alive, he can't find an animal, he needs Daddy, and on and on and on.  Sometimes he feels the need to tell us something random or discuss something unimportant at the most inopportune time.  Even when he leaves us alone, you can always hear him up there playing with his animals.  And yes, I know that he'd have less distractions if we took them away, but dude, he's only five and I know I slept with animals for years.  Should we penalize him because he's creative with them?  I dunno.

Anyway, he's constantly been out of his room and won't go back unless we threaten or physically take him back.  It's been ridiculous.  We've taken away animals and Legos, moved up his bedtime...you name it, and yet every night it's a challenge.  And to top it all off, it's been going on for longer and longer into the night, to the point that he's barely falling asleep before we go to bed, sometimes as late as 10:30! 

Given that his behavior is an issue most of the time, I knew this couldn't be good.  In addition, sometimes he was waking up as early as 6:30 or so, and I knew that even with an afternoon nap at daycare, that wasn't enough.  On weekends at home, he's refused to nap for a while now, probably since mid-winter.  While his behavior isn't too bad on non-napped days, there have been a lot of times where we'll hop in the car to go out to dinner and he will fall asleep on the way.  Then he's impossible to wake up and gets a little hyper afterward.  Ugh.  So while I know he's not quite out of the need to nap, he still can be relatively functional without it.  We just have to stay out of moving vehicles if at all possible.

His naps at daycare have generally been an hour or two each day.  I think a lot of that was peer pressure and force of habit, more than actually needing one.  My fear, of course, is that without a nap, being at daycare all day with all that activity and stimulation would turn him into a monster by the end of the day.  At least at home on weekends there's a lot of mental downtime--TV, video games, low-key Lego playing--but at daycare there's stuff going on all day, and there are a lot of kids to keep him going.  I just didn't want his teachers dealing with a crazy child at the end of the day if they didn't have to. 

The other issue, of course, is that Kindergarten starts in another six weeks, and he won't get a nap there.  Gone are the days of grabbing your little rug and taking a break.  Heck, we did that in half-day Kindergarten when I was a kid!  But I didn't see any sign of naptime on his daily schedule at orientation, so I was a little concerned about transitioning him out of it before September. 

Well...the other night it hit me that perhaps he's not just trying to be difficult (though I'm sure that's part of it), but that he's simply not tired.  Even though he might seem tired, he's not tired enough to sleep.  So, I decided to ask at daycare for him to skip naptime.  A lot of other kids do it, and it's fine--they have other activities for them and it's all good.  And what happened?  Well...the first day he almost fell asleep standing up at Wegmans on the way home.  He kept sitting on the cart bottom looking pathetically tired and insisting he couldn't walk around the store.  But once we got past that, he was fine.  And after one or two excuses at bedtime, he was asleep within 15 minutes of bedtime.  Yesterday was t-ball, so I'm sure he had adrenaline on his side, but after 30 minutes at most, he was out, practically doing a face-plant.  Both mornings he's actually slept in much later than usual, giving credence to that whole "sleep begets sleep" theory, which I already wholeheartedly agreed with. 

So...yeah.  Turns out that naps are great things...until they're not anymore.  We'll see how this goes in the long run, but I'll admit I was pretty proud of myself 15 minutes after bedtime a couple nights ago.  It's nice to have one of those, "Hey, I actually figured out parenting for a split second" moments.  They're few and far between so it's great to get one when I can!

Busy

Sorry, I know it got a little quiet here over the past few days.  Things have been crazy.  Or maybe I'm just extra tired and thinking about and/or writing blog posts just isn't happening.  I'm way behind on so many things--going through mail, writing thank you notes, cleaning, etc., and this weekend didn't help, as we were busy Saturday and Sunday seemed to turn into a recovery day.  I meant to do all sorts of stuff yesterday afternoon with Carter in tow, leaving the big boys home to play, but I got sleepy right along with Carter and never made it.  So Craig and Jacob swam and I tried to nap, and then we ended up all going out together in the evening and cramming in as much as we could.  We had some hiccups (like a dumped full cup of ice water at dinner and not making it to the last place I wanted to stop at), but we survived.  We exchanged Jacob's new table, bought a can of formula and team snacks for tonight's t-ball game, and I still managed to use the coupon for the last stop we didn't make (Kohl's) by scoring a pretty awesome online order that took me most of the rest of the night to figure out.  It was a 30% off coupon that was expiring, and I didn't want to let it go to waste since there were things I was eyeing up for myself and Carter is rapidly outgrowing a lot of his summer clothes.  I'm quickly realizing that this four-month shift in birth months is a weird one.  I had hoped that the stuff that was big on Jacob during his first summer would at least get Carter through the hot weather, but slowly but surely I find myself throwing outgrown clothes into the bin in the closet.  Boo.  He'll actually need a handful of stuff that fits him when he's a full seven-month-old baby because we'll be in Florida for a week in September, and I'm hoping that anything I get him now will fit that bill.  Otherwise we're going to be doing a lot of laundry.  But I'd rather get stuff now that he can get some good wear out of, particularly before summer clothes start disappearing.  Hopefully by next year the larger six-month sizing interval (12-18 months) will work a little bit better with what we already have.

As I said, Saturday was busy.  Actually, the busyness started Friday night when I left the boys home with Craig and headed to Geneseo for a reunion of sorts.  During my college years I spent the vast majority of my time involved with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship.  My roommate found out about it, and we both got involved early in our second semester.  It turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to us, as we met a ton of awesome people.  We both rediscovered our faith in new ways, and it really made those 3-1/2 years more fulfilling than we ever could have imagined.  Well...it's now been over 16 years since that discovery, and over 13 years since we graduated.  There have been a couple reunions since, but this one was mostly to celebrate our college pastor, Dave, who is retiring.  He's got his reasons, and I am happy for him, but those kids won't know what they're missing without him.  He's an incredible man and was a second father to so many of us.  In the years since I graduated, I can't even tell you how much I've loved popping into Geneseo from time to time and seeing the look on his face when he sees me.  A couple years ago when I stopped into town to buy a baby shower gift for a good friend of mine, I randomly prayed on the way down that I'd love to somehow run into him while I was there, and sure enough...who do I see walking down Main St. but him!  The odds of it were slim, and yet...there he was.  Made my day.  Anyway, Friday night was a throwback to Friday nights of old, with the same kind of meeting we used to have...some music, a speaker, and lots of time to catch up with old friends.  It was nice to go without the kids (though they did have childcare, that just seemed like a battle I didn't want to fight) and just enjoy myself for a night.  Even though I catch up with everyone over Facebook nowadays, it was so nice to see them in person.

Saturday there was a picnic.  It meant another trip to Geneseo, and this one was with the kids.  Craig had to work up in Canada, so it was all me.  All things considered it went well.  Jacob was a little difficult at times and didn't want to be social with the other kids during craft time, but we survived.  I got more time to catch up with friends, the food was great, and it was generally a lot of fun. 

From there we headed back north and east to Victor, to visit with more friends.  I've blogged many times about our visits with my parents' friends' daughter Laurie and her son Colin, along with their more recent addition Kelly.  The last time we saw them Kelly was just a few months old...and now she's two!  I guess we've all just been a little busy in the interim when they've been in town!  We've kept up online, of course, but it's still amazing to realize how much time has passed.  Once upon a time we were both pregnant at the same time, and now not only do we both have two kids, but both of those first babies are on their way to Kindergarten.  We discovered during this visit that we possibly enjoyed their time together more when they ignored each other, as they were quite a handful this time.  I'm not sure who influenced who at which time, but they got into a lot of mischief, including throwing balls into trees and gardens, going too far out in the yard, and touching things they shouldn't have been.  They were both equally stubborn during dinner, as well, and finished off the visit purposely crash landing on the grass from riding scooters around the driveway.  BOYS!  I think they both felt like they had found a suitable partner-in-crime, or at least someone else to pin the blame on, so they just did whatever seemed like fun at that moment.  Oy.  Definitely easier when they just laid on a blanket and stared off into space!  Kelly is quite the adorable little girl, though she's definitely got some spunk!  I forgot how cute that phase is where they can talk just enough so you know what they're saying, and where it's cute when they say or repeat certain things, but before it turns into a constant stream of elaborate questions.  Those days will be here again for us soon enough, and I'm sure I'll remember the tougher side of that as well!  But despite the troublemaking, we had a nice visit.  Here's a shot of all four kids, three of which are enjoying their ice cream sandwiches...

Still, I was happy to get home after so many hours away, but I definitely felt like I accomplished something after surviving that long of a day away alone with both kids!

One other wacky thing from the past week was a freak storm that hit our area.  Last Thursday Craig called me while I was still at work.  He had gotten out of work early and was getting ready for t-ball.  He said, "I don't know what happened in Greece, but it's a mess."  There were trees down, a road closed, and branches everywhere.  There had barely been a rainshower in the city, but Greece got hit with a major thunderstorm, and our neighborhood in particular (particularly the road we take to our neighborhood) got hit with a microburst, leaving lots of tree damage in its wake.  The road to our neighborhood had a bunch of large trees down, and there was this view across the street and two doors down:

What you can't see is that there are actually two arms of that tree down, and they just brushed up against the house where they fell.  That tree is now gone, not surprisingly.  We had no damage, but it definitely feels a little too close for comfort.  We've had a series of bad storms, including quite the light show I drove home through on Friday night.  Seems everywhere from here to Canada has had some sort of damage lately.

Today we were back to the grind, another long day of work and t-ball.  Jacob finally got his game ball tonight!  He was due since everyone else had gotten one, but he tried hard tonight, the long-awaited first night of coach pitch.  He had a hard time with his coach's pitches (he's good with Craig's), but the swings looked nice even when they didn't connect.  Still, he was excited to get a game ball.   

 

Amidst all of the craziness, I have had this picture putting a smile on my face all week... 

 

Technically it's a reject from the five month shoot, because it wasn't set up at the right spot to compare to the others, but I love Carter's face in this one.  He's just so sweet, so happy, with such perfectly friendly eyes.  I have it as my wallpaper at work, and every time I flip back to it, I just marvel at how lovely it is.  I feel so lucky to have him.  I know we're still in the honeymoon phase and we'll no doubt have our challenges with him, too, but for now I am just loving having him around. 

Well, here we go with another week...

Five Months! (A Couple Days Late)

Hard to believe that Carter officially hit the five month mark a couple days ago!  I know he's getting bigger, and I know he's getting to be a more interactive little boy every day, but the fact that he's a month shy of halfway to a year sort of boggles my mind!  Here is his five month shot...

I've been trying to capture as many smiles as I can, because his smile makes me so happy every single time.  He is such a goof ball! 

I'm pretty sure teething has begun, since Carter is constantly trying to chew on things.  He's been a little fussy the last couple days, which might be his cold, but could also be teeth given the ferocity with which he attacks anything he can chew on.  His fingers, bibs, toys, or toes are all he needs...

I love how he sort of looks like, "Oh, hey, mom...I wasn't, like, sucking on this or anything..."

I caught this smiley face on the way back to the car after Monday's t-ball game.  He was finding the bumpy ride very funny...

When we got home, I finally managed to clean and assemble the Jumperoo, which has been sitting in our dining room for a few days.  Carter had tested things out in one at daycare that day, and really liked being the big boy in there.  He loved ours, too, and even got some bouncing in! 

 

Here's some video, though sorry it's so dark.  I just love his happy feet!

It's nice to have another way to entertain him, though we have to strategically avoid post-meal times!  He's been enjoying sitting in his high chair when we eat dinner, though, which has been helpful.  As good of a baby as he is, he likes attention and it's hard to leave him anywhere alone for too long!

He's just so cute, though, and I couldn't have asked for a sweeter baby.  I know we're probably heading into a tougher period once those teeth really start bothering him, but this has been a lovely time where he's happy and sleeping, so I really shouldn't complain!  Solid foods are just around the corner, too, which is going to be a whole new ballgame.  But his smiles and giggles will get me through no matter what...they always do!