Family Vacation - Seattle

Last week we went on a trip to Seattle. It was a pretty big deal (a little stressful) for us to pack all Andrew's gear and board the plane with a 5 month old, but it was well worth it. We planned... we prepped... we packed his whole dresser up... and the trip was a success. Here are a few pictures from our adventure.

Andrew on the plane. (He road as a lap baby!).


"The Family" at Pike's Market. My mom and dad were with us on the trip. We stayed in West Seattle at a condo of their good friends Sharon and Larry. It was a BEAUTIFUL little condo... walking distance to great restaurants (and a bakery) and the grocery store (and a liquor store).


The Seattle Music Experience (museum).
First Starbucks... of course we had to stop there.

The Seattle Space Needle.

And there was lots of "down" time back at the condo, where Nana and Papa kept Andrew well entertained.

Please do not disturb.

This is how I spend two 30 min "sessions" during each of my days at the office. I put up my sign, close my door, and... pump.

I'm not really sure what I expected of myself when I first committed to breastfeeding. I kept my expectations low... aiming to make it through the first two weeks, then through my maternity leave, then until Andrew went to day care... and I'm still here.

I can say that I'm proud of myself and how long I've "lasted" so far. So, very, many times through out it all I was ready to stop.

When he was first born - feeding took an hour, with about an hour (maaaaybe 2) in between feedings. Then an hour went down to 45 min and then that went down to 30 min... luckily, now he's down to about 20 min... 6-8 times a day (2-3 hours a day, if you're counting!).

While I love, love, love spending that time with Andrew... breastfeeding has always felt to me more of a chore, than a choice. I'd rather be playing with him... and cooing at him... interacting with him... than feeding him.

I'm starting the "weaning" process this week. It is strange to say that as Brandyn and I were discussing this last night... I was sad. Why? Why was I crying at the thought of giving up something I have felt so negative about since the beginning?

Its very hard to even process my feelings about breastfeeding, let alone type them out. I guess my thoughts are this.

While Andrew grew in my belly for nine months... *I* was responsible for growing him... keeping him healthy... giving him nutrients. I took care of myself... I watched my diet... I stopped drinking caffeine... I stopped drinking alcohol... ALL for him. When he was born... I was so proud of myself. Proud and relieved to see how big, beautiful and well developed he was. All my hard work paid off.

Once we was born... Andrew was no longer 100% my responsibility... his care was in both my and Brandyn's hands. I got my body back, but I gave up a little... control.

But feeding him... keeping him healthy... "growing" him... that was still *my* responsibility. I took care of myself... I watched my diet... I cut out pepperoni.... I stopped drinking caffeine... I limited my alcohol... ALL for him. When Andrew grew... and gained weight... I was proud of myself. All my hard work paid off.

Now... as I think about weaning... think about taking some of *myself* back (ahhh... caffeinated coffee and pepperoni pizza - here I come!!)... I realize this is a choice I'm making (not being forced to make)... it sorta feels like I'm giving up control over Andrew's growth and development... its sorta feels selfish.

I guess I can associate these same feelings with the ones that I had when I went back to work... went I send Andrew to day care... and how I assume I'll feel all along the way through parenting... loss of control. (I can't imagine the break down I'll have when he goes off to college!!).

Happy Five-Month Birthday Andrew!

We didn't have any doctors appointments this month, so the stats are "home made."

Weight - 15 pds and 7 oz.
Height - 27 inches

In other developments...
- Andrew now rolls back and forth both ways on to his tummy and back.
- He has developed a "squeak" when he talks... yesterday he "chirped" his way through Target. It is very entertaining.
- This month Andrew started day care and seems to be adjusting well.
- Napping and sleeping has been much better. Andrew is usually awake for two hours and then naps for one. His night time sleeping is going well too.
- Andrew took his first vacation this month, more on that in a future blog update.

Super Kidz (yes, with a "Z") Club

This week marked the end of summer vacation for Brandyn... and the beginning of day care for Andrew. Super Kidz Club is a pretty cool place. Its a day care, preschool and after school care too. So their are kids there of all ages. Andrew is in the "infant" (2 and under) room and is, of course, charming all the ladies there. Each day when we've dropped him off or picked him up, one of the teachers has exclaimed "Andrew! We love Andrew!" He's really such a good boy. Very smiley all the time and really only cries when he need something - what's not to love!!

Each day we get a report card of how Andrew's day went. Nap times, feeding times, diapers, etc. They write a little about the "activities" Andrew did for the day. It usually says something like "Played Peek-a-Boo, Tummy Time, Me Time, and Played with my friend Dakota" (can someone please tell me how almost 5 month old Andrew is "playing" with "friends"!?!). Too cute!!

Our routine is that I take Andrew to day care each morning and Brandyn picks him up. Drop offs are a little hard on this Mama, but Ms. Stephanie easily gets a smile out of Andrew every time, so that makes it a little easier.

Yesterday, Brandyn needed to stay late at school, so I left work early to pick up Andrew. Picking him up was a special treat. On my drive to get him... I had butterflies in my stomach with excitement to see him!

Father and Son

Grandma C (Brandyn's Mom) emailed me today to say that she pulled out Brandyn's baby book to look at his 4 month old stats. At 4 months Brandyn was 25.5 inches tall... Andrew is 26.5 inches tall (a full inch taller!). Brandyn is now 6' 6".... where do you think Andrew will be at 30!?!

Happy Four-Month Birthday Andrew

Four months... it really has seemed to fly by. Good bye newborn stage... hello active, wiggly, talkative baby.

At Andrew's four-month appointment, his stats were:
Weight: 14 pds and 14.8 oz
Height: 26.5 inches

In other developments...
- Andrew exercises by doing baby crunches (lifting his head off the ground when he's laying on his back).
- He is crazy with his feet and loves playing in his kick chair.
- He's pretty entertained by his feet in general and will grab, hold and play with them a lot while in his car seat or laying on the floor.
- He's wiggly. He rolls from his belly to his back and from side to side often.

Soothing techniques...

Brandyn has always been better at soothing Andrew than I have. When Andrew was itty bitty and eating what seemed like (and probably was) every other hour... Brandyn would work his magic on Andrew and "entertain" him while I squeezed in a few extra minutes of sleep. He rocked, he shhsh'd, he coo'd, he bounced... whatever it took. Brandyn's patience last much, much long than mine.

My tool box of soothing techniques is limited to one... "the boob." My bouncing, cooing, etc. is apparently not as effective as Brandyn's and my patience has a short fuse. So after a few minutes of fussing, my solution is ALWAYS... feed him. While its a nice "crutch" to fall back on... imagine my thoughts as I'm beginning to wean Andrew and wonder how the heck I'm going to calm him when I can't pacify him anymore. Well, last night... I got a little taste of how Momma CAN sooth.

We were at a friends house and we put Andrew down to go to sleep on a blanket on the floor. He was mildly fussy and so I laid down with him. I put my face against his, and wrapped my arm across his chest and "pet" him. He grabbed my finger in one hand and my ear in the other. And there we lay, my forehead against his sweaty little cheek and Andrew gripping my finger and stroking gently on my ear. He wiggled and wiggled and eventually feel asleep in about 3 minutes. (And I'll admit, I was crying with love and joy while it happened). It was one of the most amazing and touching moments of my "life with Andrew." It felt so sweet and great to be able to soothing my baby to sleep... and to have him "cuddling" with me... I could have laid there next to him for hours.