The March Wrap Up

Well, hey there! Feels like forever since I've been here with an update. 3 or 4 weeks have flown by since my last blog and I failed to jot down all the little things I'd usually share, so I'll stick to the big stuff. I will also be assaulting you with videos because Jr. has been doing some really cute and funny stuff.

First off, Sam finally had his appointment with the pediatric neurologist in mid March. We were concerned about the risk of cerebral palsy due to the minor stiffness he has in his legs. I'm happy to report the neurologist believes there's no way he'll have CP. She said he may not be the most flexible guy in the world, but big deal! She added that he's doing fantastically well for a term baby, let alone a 24 weeker. So, a glowing report and a HUGE sigh of relief for us. It was the last major physical preemie hurdle we needed to get over. We'll still continue to do stretches with him to increase flexibility in case he decides he wants a career with Cirque du Soleil. We will hopefully also soon get an appointment with a physical therapist to see if they have any tips for his in-home treatment. Btw, the boy weighed in at 19 pounds at that appointment. He's just a chunk.

So, our world is about to chance dramatically. Here's why:

Since that video was shot last week, Sam's started using his knees more and is getting around faster and faster. It will soon be time to break out the baby gates and fences. And everything that ain't bolted down, will have to be moved out of reach. Parents, you feel me, right? It's about to hit the fan in a major way. Exciting that our boy is doing that whole growing up thing so well, but terrifying is the prospect of having to chase him down. This should be fun! We already knew Sam had a perky personality, but we're seeing just how much energy he has. A lot. I see a little maniac developing. He absolutely LOVES to jump up and down, check this out:

Another funny little thing....Sam's hair is growing in blonde! Brown at the tips, blonde at the roots and he looks like he has a weird dye job and bald spots. We wondered what the texture of his hair would be. I always envisioned a boy with big brown curls, but it's been pretty straight. Now throw in the blonde and it's going to be extra fun to see how it turns out! Guess it shouldn't be much of a surprise since Daddy looked like this:

On a bummer note, Sam got his first cold a couple of weeks ago! Boooooo! I was always so worried about him getting sick, given his compromised immune system. Poor little guy had a snotty, stuffy nose and couldn't breeve very well. The first night, he was up and down around the clock. We had a routine - suction out nose, put boy down, boy sleeps for an hour, boy can't breathe, boy wakes up. Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat. And let me tell you, he HATED getting the snot sucked out of his nose. I had a pretty good method for holding him down while doing it, but his whole face, no wait, his whole HEAD turned completely red and he screamed his fool head off. He would usually stop his fussin' and be pretty happy as soon as I stopped, but for the times I had to go at it for awhile to get a ton out, he cried and seemed pretty pissed at me afterwards. Really seemed to be holding a grudge! Anyhoo, over all, his cold wasn't that bad and I'm starting to think his immune system is pretty damn strong. Aside from the snot and a fever that lasted about a minute, he did just fine. By the way, Steve & I both got sick too. It was loads of fun. Fortunately, we're all better now!

Here's the last of the videos. Sam hasn't seemed to like meat much. Or maybe it's the chunkier texture of the food? I decided to give beef stew a whirl the other day. Here's how it turned out:

I tried again the next day:

It was right out of the fridge and cold, but he chowed down!

So, now that we're all pretty healthy, we are looking forward to lots of celebrating at the end of the month! Happy Birthday, Anton! Happy Birthday, Santiago! Happy Birthday, Matty! Happy Birthday, Franklin! And Happy Birthday, Sam! April is going to rock!

10 1/2 Months

Well, I planned to post an update for Sam's 10 month milestone a couple of weeks ago. As usual, time was not on my side. Seems like the simplest tasks easily fall by the wayside. One of these days, I will get the hang of all this and be a super efficient mommy machine that's able to work, make dinner (meaning not just warm up something in the freezer), get all the laundry done before it piles up and pay more attention to my cat, who has seriously got dementia.

So, Sam is 10 1/2 months now. 10 1/2 months!!!! I can't quite wrap my head around the fact that he came crashing into this world almost a year ago. We are planning his birthday party. It all just seems so unreal. We will soon have a 1 year old. I can't tell you how many parents told me, "It goes by so fast!" I never could have imagined the warp speed with which the past 10 1/2 months have flown by after the excruciatingly slow 110 NICU days. Once Sam came home, it just flew and I have trouble remembering the tiny thing he was and that baby look he had. A few nights ago, I was watching him sleep and saw that look and just smiled.

As the 1 year mark draws near, I'm going to start losing it more and more. Earlier in the week, I was giving Sam his last bottle of the night. My Caspar Babypants (Thanks, Wendy!) Pandora station was playing in the background. I was thinking how nuts it seems that we have a birthday party coming up for this not-so-little guy going on 19 pounds and started feeling so weepy. Then a song caught my ear with lyrics that really resonated with me. It went like this:

Welcome to this world
Whether you're ready or not
Welcome to this world
Come give it all that you got
Before you know it you'll be
Singing right back to me
Welcome to this world

Uncanny timing for that song to coincide so well with the thoughts I was having at that moment. I held my boy close and just cried my heart out, feeling so grateful and so lucky, but wishing time would just slow down so I could savor each moment with him a little longer. Hard to do when there aren't enough hours in the day and so much else that has to get done just to get from one day to the next. I'm going to try much harder to burn every little thing he does into my memory.

I will try to do this even when the things he is doing are driving me a batty. Lately, his writhing on the changing table is just out of control. Before getting him in the bath recently, I tried to cut his eagle talon toenails. He kicked and squirmed and kicked some more. I gave him his little stuffed giraffe, hoping it would distract and calm him. Well, he proved to be quite the multi-tasker. He was able to keep kicking and wriggling while beating on me with his giraffe. Seriously beating the crap out of me. Relentlessly. ::sigh::

Sam had an eye exam on Tuesday. The doc checked for signs of near or far sightedness. All went well and his peepers are just great! He also had an in home session with a developmental nurse on Wednesday. As usual, Sam is ahead of his adjusted age of 7 months in nearly every way. I asked for tips on gettng his lazy butt to roll over more. What the nurse shared with me produced immediate results. Amazing! So, the one area where Sam was lagging a bit is now coming up to speed quickly. Oh, another thing...He is scooting around army commando style really well! Crawling won't be far behind. Guess we better start thinking about babyproofing, huh?

Sam has spoken his first official words and they are uh oh. He said it the day before we headed up to Arnold for Presidents Day weekend. He was on the couch between Steve and me and out it came, clear as day. We whipped our heads around and looked at each other like did you hear that??? Of course, we thought it was a total fluke, but he keeps saying it, so uh oh it is. He's also making the ba and boo sounds and likes to do that pffffffttt! thing with his mouth that sends spit everywhere.

We continue to do battle with solid foods. Though hummus made him hurl, he likes most everything he's been given. Let me correct that....He likes most everything he's given when he's in the mood. I don't understand how he can like something so much one day and completely reject it the next. He's the king of pursing his little lips and has even learned to smile without opening his mouth, despite my best efforts to get him to open up. Sometimes he will polish off 4 ounces of food in a sitting and will barely take a couple of spoonfuls at other times. It's maddening! So, instead of stressing about it, I'm just going to let him dictate the pace (like I have a choice). Eventually, he'll eat more. He's growing at a good steady clip and that's good enough for me.

Mr. Two Teef is working on number 3, which seems to be coming in quickly. His pediatrician said we should start brushing his teeth or using a washcloth to rub them clean. Yeah, that's easy. He does NOT like it. I try to do it after his last bottle. You'd think it would be easier since he's tired then, but oh no. He's easily able to muster the strength to make it a fight. Oy. I'm sure my friend's kids with perfectly fine teeth had the same battles, so again, I'm just not going to stress.

Sam got to see his partner in crime, Santiago, recently! He is growing by leaps and bounds too. Here are the two buddies together.

Santiago was born 1 week earlier than Sam, on Steve's mom's birthday! April is going to be an awesome month of celebrations :)

Here's Sam doing his new favorite thing. He just LOVES this jumpy thing! Goes absolutely bananas in it.

So, I guess we're all caught up now and it's way past my bedtime. Turn the volume up on your computer and enjoy Welcome To This World. Nite all!

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 :)