9 Month Check Up

I thought I was over sharing poop stories with you, but dang! If they keep comin', how can I not?? While enjoying a nice lunch out at our new favorite restaurant, Calafia, with our friend Michael visiting from London last Sunday, Steve was playing with Sam and he tooted (Sam, not Steve). Or so he thought. Sam later slept in his car seat for a bit. When he woke, I picked him up and knew something was amiss when I felt his wet back. I was actually confused for a moment, then I realized we had an up-the-backer. I knew this wasn't going to be easy to change in the car, so I just packed him up and took him home, 10 minutes away. I put him on the changing pad on his stomach. First, I unsnapped the onesie and lifted it up. Dear God. Crap everywhere. If the onesie weren't brand new, I would've considered just cutting it off of him. Anyway, I wiped all the poop off the onesie, then wiped off his back. Then I pulled the diaper down and got started on the butt area. It was slow going and Sam kept kicking his feet right into the poop. After much finagling and what had to be a half pack of wipes, he was clean. But then I had to get the onesie over his head and not get crap in his hair. FAIL. Into the bath he went. Unlike the last major blowout, this time my phone was handy and I did send pictures to Steve who was shuttling Michael to Scotts Valley. He seemed to think it was funny. This was seriously the worst, messiest crap on record. I hope it's the last, but I've had too many friends with older kids tell me I ain't seen nothin' yet. Awesome.

So, Jr. had his 9 month check up last Monday and is doing great! He weighed in at 17lbs 13oz, 27 1/2 inches long. He's remained in the 75th percentile since the day he was born. Length and head circumference are still 40th-50th percentile. I still don't see how that noggin' isn't in the 90th percentile, but whatev. Sam will have a visit with the pediatric neurologist next month to further examine the minor stiffness he has in his hips and legs. Doc didn't seem too worried about it and noted it was slight, but given the developmental specialist noticed it also, we are going to err on the side of caution because of the risk of cerebal palsy due to his extreme prematurity. Hopefully, the stiffness can be resolved with a little physical therapy and that will be the end of that. Other than that, Sam is doing splendidly. He's actually 2-3 months ahead of schedule in many areas, like picking up things like cheerios and raisins with his pincer grasp and understanding object permanence (that objects exists even though he can't see them). He's still lazy with the rolling over. He can do it when he tries. He just doesn't try that much.

Tuesday was my birthday and I spent it just how I wanted, a mellow evening at home. What more could I possibly want? I have the best little birfday present anyone could hope for. I ended up having to work for a few hours that day. When I got home, I scooped up my boy and asked, "How's the best lil gift ever?" He burped in my face. THANKS! I still think he's pretty neat :)

On Thursday, Uncle Frank made me his special Christmas chicken (with bacon and rosemary). Lots of wine was drunk, which made work the next day, not so pleasant. Especially when our plan was to take off for Chalet Sommerfield in Arnold Friday afternoon. Well, I could've powered through, but ended up leaving work later than expected, so our weekend got off to a late start. And it was a particularly stressful afternoon at work, so the martini HOTY made me when I got home to settle me threw me for a loop and I wasn't really in top packing form (that means tipsy). I felt completely overwhelmed trying to remember all the stuff I had to pack for Jr. Seemed much easier when we headed to Portland for some reason. We managed to get it together and get on the road by 8am Saturday morning. We met our peeps and hit the town. Our first stop was the tasting room for Hatcher Winery, one of our favorites in that neck of the woods. And it was Sam's first winery! We actually couldn't quite believe it took so long for us to get him to one. Anyhoo, we always do Presidents Day Weekend in those parts and as usual, it was a great time. Great friends, great food, awesome wine. Pretty much the perfect weekend. Oh! In addition to Sam visiting his first winery, he also got to see and play in snow for the first time! So much fun! He was so curious about it and loved grabbing and throwing it. I see lots of snowball fights in our future! Here's a pic of our little snow bear. If we had a dollar for every person that stopped us to say how cute he was, we would've bought a couple more cases of wine :-D Thanks, Auntie Sade for the bear suit!!

From Collages

Another first this week....Sam had yogurt, which went over well. He also had a turkey dinner. That did NOT go over so well. It was seriously the first time he made a face indicating what I was feeding him was completely foul, like crap on a spoon. So, we gave it to Domino and Sam went back to his blueberry yogurt.

So, the long weekend is over and it's back to the grind. Everyone have a great week!

Bizzy Bee

Been a busy couple of weeks for Jr.! Our social butterfly has been hittin' the streets! He started off last week visiting Daddy at work. He got to see all the THX Aunties that have been cheering for him since he was in the NICU. We made the rounds and I loved seeing Steve so majorly puffed up with pride to be showing off his son.

On the way home, we stopped in Sausalito to meet Sam's new friends, twins, Jonathan and Daniel. Sam made himself right at home and threw up on their couch. Their Mommy, Rachel, didn't mind much. Apparently, her house, like ours, is covered in vomit. Anyhoo, the twins are freakin' ADORABLE!! I'm super impressed with Rachel's bad ass mom-of-twin skills. I don't know how she does it, but she manages so well and still looks radiant. And skinny! I don't know how she had 2 babies and looks like that! I should probably hate her a little bit ;-)

Speaking of vomit, the other week, I saw Sam was about to hurl and when he did, I caught it in my hand. On purpose. Funny thing is, I wasn't even all that grossed out by it. Parenthood.

Anyhoo, back to the good times...On Friday nite, we had dinner with our good friends, the Boosts. Their son, Anton, was in the NICU while Sam was there and we forged a strong bond. It had been way too long since we'd seen them and was good to catch up. Last time we visited, Anton was way bigger than Sam, but the little dude is catching up now. It was funny to get them together and observe the way they regarded one another. Check 'em out. Major cuteness.

From blog photos

From blog photos

On Saturday night, the boys were feeling bromantic and decided to hit the town on a man date, so the gals did a girls night in. Auntie Maggie was on duty en la casa, It was one of those perfect, no make-up, comfy clothes wearin', girl talkin', hangin' out kinda nights. I don't think my hair was even combed and it was just fine. Children slept upstairs as we sat around the small kitchen table talking about life and stuff. Perfect way to spend an evening. Of course, I was happy to return home and slip into bed with my little angel sleeping next to me.

The next day it was Super Bowl time! As usual, I prepared pigs in a blanket. Can you ever go wrong with pigs in a blanket?? Anyhoo, It got a little loud for the boy in the house, so I retrieved his noise-reducing headphones from the car. He didn't seem to mind them much and was pretty chill. He had a good day and even managed to catch a quick nap spread eagle on the host's bed. Then, of course, he ended the evening by throwing up all over the left side of me, big time. Uncle Jim M was at the ready with a bunch of wet paper towels. The vomit was no longer seen, but still smelled. It made goodbye hugs slightly gross and unpleasant :-D

So, my birthday is coming up next week. The big 4-2. I thought about what Steve and I usually do on my birthday. Big production of a dinner a la French Laundry. I thought, hmmmm, be difficult to do hours and hours of cooking with a baby underfoot, but I don't even care. I'm not actually wanting anything more than I've got, the best birthday present ever. Though I guess another present is my break up with my nemesis, the pump. That's right, it's over. OVER, I say! After 9 months, I was ready to be done. I would've continued pumping until Sam's 1 year adjusted birthday despite only producing 2 oz/day, but now that we have a stash of breastmilk in the freezer from 2 incredibly generous moms, I've decided to throw in the towel. Huge thanks to you, Julia and Danielle! Under-producing moms like me applaud you! We are so grateful!

Sam has been having a blast lately having nekkid time. I spread a nice soft blanket on the bed, take off his diaper and just let him go. He kicks his legs like crazy and scoots all over the place. I think the air hitting his tushy feels good to him. This also seems to be the place he seems most inclined to do things like roll over from back to tummy and his latest hobby, putting his feet in his mouth. I guess those stretches we've been doing with him are working! That boy is getting limber! It's also like taking your dog on a run to tire it out. We start the fun around 7:15. Diaper goes back on around 7:45, he gets a bottle and then drifts off to sleep, as he's just plumb tuckered out. Like magic.

From blog photos

The Art of Screaming

Sam is doing his damnedest (is that how you spell that??) to perfect this art. Oh....my......GOD. Last week was particularly fun. I love the whole screaming-for-no-good-reason thing. He, apparently, thinks he's got plenty of reason. You want to change my diaper? SCREAM!! You want to dress me? SCREAM!! The other day, I thought my skull might split in 2. I gobbled down 4 Advils. How is he not harming his own little brain and ears?? On Tuesday, I went to change his diaper. Unzipped his jammie jams and saw poop escaping the leg area. Fun stuff. In addition to all the screaming, he now loves to grab his junk, which means trying to put his little mitts in his crap when it gets smooshed upward. ::sigh:: I bet you think that's it, but it's not. He also likes to play bucking bronco on the changing pad. He's either totally chill and likes hanging out there or he completly loses his sh*t. Lately, it's more the latter. So, you can imagine how fun this diaper change was. In addition to the aformentioned leg hole leak, this giant poopage was about an inch from going up his back too. It took me like, 7 wipes to get him cleaned up. Had to be sure pee pee was clean and got all up in his chubs. All the while he's SCREAMING and thrashing about. I thought a demon had posessed him. GAH! He continued to vacillate between perfectly content or screamy for the rest of the day. Man, he's lucky he's really cute.

The next day was better. Jr. had a playdate with his darling buddy, Makenna. We were to go to story time at the Woodside library, but couldn't make it on time (who's ever on time with a baby??), so went to the park instead. There, cuteness was on full display as Sam rode the swing for the first time. Check him out.

He was very focused and seemed to be checking out the ground as he swung to and fro. Did you notice how he kicked his little legs? So CUTE! He loved it. His second time in, I played the I'm-gonna-get-you game as he swung towards me. He giggled every time. It was so awesome and so much fun for me too! He was plumb tuckered out after his park experience and took a 2 hour nap that afternoon. I decided to steal a little siesta alongside him. As soon as I fell asleep, the evil UPS man showed up with our diaper delivery. BLIMEY!!!! At least the boy continued his nap. I did laundry :-/

Sam wrapped up his week holding court at our local gastropub, Martins West. We were the first to arrive. While waiting for our party, a couple walked in with a baby in a carrier. The dad looked at Sam and me and we both put our arms in the air and yelled, "Baby in a bar! Baby in a bar!" It was hysterical!!! Sam got to hang out with some of his favorite peeps, The Yummys and Auntie Dayna. It was only his third or fourth time in a restaurant, I think. Fortunately, he didn't get us kicked outta the joint. Despite his previously displayed longing for beer, he stayed on the wagon. Sam was such a good boy throughout the evening. He was just kinda fascinated by all he saw. Lots of lights and new sounds. He liked standing up and looking out the window. A total people watcher.

On a completely different note, is anyone still completely bummed about the 49ers loss?? Man, I was already planning on taking Sam to the Super Bowl victory parade! Our dreams have been dashed. Thanks Kyle Williams for ruining my son's first Super Bowl! Okay, so Sam was more interested in all the sweet attention he was getting from his cutie pie cousins, Jada and Jenna, during the game but the rest of us were bummed. Man, what a way to go out after such a fantastic season. I was still depressed when we got home, so Steve being the dutiful husband he is, made me a martini in which to drown my sorrows. Bleh. Despite such a heartbreaking loss, I can't wait to see what our boys do next season. This season has been such an unexpected pleasure. They are on the brink of greatness. It's been far, far too long. Another by-product of the 49ers loss is the bet I lost. There is now a picture of me in a Giants shirt with a caption about what a loser I am on my Facebook page (Thanks, Dave!). I hope the Giants win it all anyway. I'm so over the machine that is the New England Patriots. Plus, I have alot of New York peeps and I don't want us all to be depressed! So, let's go Giants!

Chub-a-lub

Check out this chub-a-lub! Such a strapping young lad! I swear, he's turning into a giant before my eyes. A friend was holding him on Monday as I looked on and it just hit me all of a sudden that this boy is HUGE. He doesn't have alot of fat, but he is solid and busting out of his 3-6 month clothes at 5 months adjusted age. Yes, busting out of all the clothes I just got him for Christmas :-/ Must be all the solid food. Bananas went over very well recently. Prunes did not and he yacked 'em up, fortunately, before I got his bib off. He'll be getting carrots this morning for the first time. He seems to like orange foods, so I anticipate a happy dude.

Sam is a drooling machine. A veritable waterfall of drool. Yet I still smooch all on him, spit bubbles and all after exclaiming, "Gimme some sugar!!" I kiss him over and over, he smiles. I'm covered in slobber and love every second of it. Seriously, if Steve came at me like that, you think I'd be kissing him?? Uh, NO! Again, I am reminded what it is to love a child.

How about them Niners????? Woooooo WEEEEE! What a game! We're back, baby! We watched with Sam's buddy, Matty. Both boys were so well behaved during the game. They totally got that the Moms and Dads needed to focus. Sam sat on my lap for much of the game and watched with me. I had to contain myself and not scream into his ear with every score. The 1st and 4th quarters were off the hook. At one point, I had to hand Sam off and run around the house yelling. Absolutely thrilling. I cannot wait until Sunday! I'll be wearing my 22 year old 49ers sweater, hoping it brings some good luck.

Eventually, Sam lost interest in the game and became distracted by something else......

Yes, this is our kid. No doubt. You can practically see the bubble over his head, "Um, can someone pass that over?" Better yet, "Mmmm, beer." LOL!!! Doesn't he look cool kickin' back in the recliner? Well, except for his too small, old man looking pants. Thank God Baby Gap is having a sale. I better hit that quick-style.

Let's go old school for a minute. Remember this??

GO NINERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Toughest Job You'll Ever Love

I have changed. I mean, I knew I had, but it REALLY hit me today. My nose (and the I'm-makin'-a-poop-face as seen above) told me it was time for a diaper change. I was taken aback by what I saw - a firm, adult-looking poop, not the typical Sam blow out. I grabbed his ankles and lifted his legs and it stuck to his butt! Guess the solid food is doin' its thing. Here's the funny (gross) part. I was so fascinated by this poop, I actually looked around to see if my phone was handy so I could take a picture of it and send it to Steve. My phone wasn't within arm's reach, so Steve missed out. And I am insane. Well, insane like a parent. I WAS GOING TO TAKE A PICTURE OF POOP. Is this a normal parenting thing, or is there something seriously wrong with me??

On a more serious note...A bunch of gals in one of my support groups and I recently discussed the highs and lows of parenting. As much as I love Sam, especially given his rough start, sometimes it is just HARD. Like the 10 minutes he screamed nonstop in the car Monday night. I tried to talk him down. That totally worked. NOT. I sang to him. That worked for about 10 seconds. He just kept on screaming like it was his job and I thought my head was going to explode. I felt guilty thinking I should be feeling more sorry for whatever is bugging him instead of being frustrated and frazzled. And really, he's a good baby. He doesn't scream ALL the time. He's not colicky, he sleeps through the night like a champ and eats well. We probably have it easy compared to some, but man, I still have those moments where I feel like my head is gonna pop right off.

We had to work so hard to conceive him, then he fought to survive. Why on EARTH am I feeling anything but overjoyed all the live long day?? Hey, did I mention how hard this is sometimes?? No matter how difficult his journey to us was, it doesn't somehow make us less tired, have more hours in the day or reduce our workload. When I feel like I'm going to drop, it just is what it is.

Sometimes, I worry I'm not stimulating him enough or doing all the right things to ensure his development is on track. But let's face it, if you're alone with a baby all day and all night, it's tough to keep them engaged and entertained EVERY. SECOND. OF. THE. DAY. At every check up, he's right on target. He's been home 5 months and we've managed to keep him alive, so I guess we're doing something right. Some days I think I'm a lousy mother because I just wish he'd take a nap so I can have a brief break.

Sometimes Mommy is just tired and the well is dry and I just want to go to bed. But I can never *just* go to bed. I have to PUMP (the ever present bane of my existence), wash bottles, do dishes, etc. And whoever said sleep when the baby sleeps must've had full time help. When he sleeps, I get to shower, do laundry and clean house. Every so often I say, "Screw it," and lay down with him, but pay for it later. Mostly by having a greasy, unwashed face and a little b.o., BUT I do love the stuffing out of that boy. Especially when he smiles at me with smashed peas all over his face. Today, I made him laugh harder than he's ever laughed at me (with me?). It made my heart puff up and I thought, wow, this is the hardest, loveliest gig I've ever had the privilege of having. I am very lucky :)

Happy New Year!

Hey peeps! Did everyone have a great holiday season? We had a wonderful time with Sam. We know he's not old enough to get it yet, but we will never forget it. I was off on Christmas Eve for the first time in years, so I was finally able to make it to our friend Sandi's Christmas Eve party. She, along with other party goers were anxious to take Sam off my hands. He got all the snuggles he could handle. After the party, I arrived home to find lights twinkling, a roaring fire and the delicious smell of prime rib wafting throughout the house. Steve had been slaving away over the stove for hours. He also made a red velvet cake. Yummers. I got Sam dressed in his Christmas Eve jammies and the festivities began. It was a bit magical to be celebrating with our little miracle. The miracle conked out early, so Mom and Dad got to have grown up time to enjoy the fruits of Steve's labor.

Everyone wanted to sleep late the next day. Once we got going, Sam got a wardrobe change into his Christmas Day jammies (reindeer butt!). Steve and I put on our matching red plaid footies and it was all presents, Christmas music and cuteness! Despite his young age, Sam proved to be quite adept at the ripping of wrapping paper. Gave him a little corner to start on and he just went to town. So very talented!

We had visits from Auntie Dayna and Uncle Paul then preparations for Christmas dinner began. Mommy was to contribute butternut squash risotto with carmelized onions and mushrooms, but it turned out to just be onions and mushrooms when I torched the squash while skyping with Grandma. Oh well. It was still delicious. However, not as delicious as Uncle Frank's pan roasted chicken with bacon and rosemary. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. I may have to request it for my birthday dinner.

After working back-to-back doubles on the 30th and 31st and having a sick babysitter, we had a mellow New Year's Eve at home. I got home around 10ish and managed to stay up to ring in the new year with a little bubbly. All in all, it was a great holiday season. It's kinda sad when it's over and you're back to the grind.

This week, we were surprised and delighted to learn our boy was on the cover of the Palo Alto Weekly's year end wrap up issue:

From pa weekly

What an honor to be mentioned in the same breath as a local icon like Steve Jobs! Man, our little guy has come so far. I told Steve the other day that the events of 2011 are finally starting to feel like sort of a distant memory. The pain of the early days of Sam's life aren't quite as acute. I've discovered certain things still trigger deeply painful reactions in me, so I just try to avoid those things. Over all though, it's all good. I plan to spend 2012 not being scared to death and just want to revel in every amazing little new thing Sam does. And he's doing alot! He's cut 2 teeth and has managed to still maintain his cheerful disposition. He's cooing up a storm and making some other weird noises that are just plain funny. Seriously, what is this??!

Sam also started off the new year by having his first solid food, as evidenced above. It was HILARIOUS! Breakfast has never been more entertaining. Our first go at it was with rice cereal, which tastes like paste. After having a few spoonfuls, Sam decided to sneeze and make it go all over the place. We moved on to sweet potatoes and peas. Peas seem to be the favorite thus far. It's so funny how these little things are just endlessly fascinating. And it's just gonna get better.

We hope this new year finds you and yours happy, healthy and ready to embrace all that the year has to offer. So, onward and upward. 2012, BRING IT! We can't wait to see what's in store!

Are you a robot?

It's the only thing that could keep you from smiling at this! I've been meaning to post this FOREVER, but dang it, I'm always rambling on about something else. Anyhoo, be sure your volume is up!

I swear, nobody gets this kid going like his Daddy. He's got the magic, giggly touch :)