All Tuckered Out

What a week! We had yoga on Monday. I didn't get to do much yoga because Brady insisted upon standing and doing jumpies while looking around the classroom. I can't wait to see what this kid has in store for us when he's mobile! Maybe I won't need Weight Watchers anymore?

Tuesday Brady had a doctor's appointment. It was a very cold morning so he got to break in his Patagonia Synchilla. At nine weeks old he weighed in at 12 lbs 7 oz (65th percentile), he's 23.5 inches long (69th percentile) and his head measured 41 cm (73rd percentile). We also got four vaccine shots and one oral vaccine. Mom was nervous but masked it well. Dad, as always, was cool as a cucumber. Brady had no idea what was coming. He laid nudies on the table covered in Mom's extra shirt (we forgot a blankie) and kicked around happily until the doc came in. Then Brady decided that he was cold. Mom & Dad got their first shame-on-you look from the pediatrician for letting Brady sleep in their bed. Oops. The nurse administering the vaccines could be a contender in the Olympic Vaccine Adminstration Games. All was said and done in 10 seconds! Brady had already been jammin' on his paci so calming him down was a cake walk. I scooped him up right-quick and his all-out-cry quickly turned to a pouty mouth on my shoulder. What a trooper. We are so, so proud of him. He had a mini fever managed well by infant Tylenol and took a couple solid naps. But otherwise, he was a normal, happy little baby.

We laid low on Wednesday and Thursday, but man, oh man, today was busy! First, big sister Emma decided to dig up a fire ant colony. She was all bumpy, scared and miserable. We thought Benadryl would solve the problem, but after she pooped in the house (something she hasn't done since she was a pup new to our home) we decided to pack up for yet another trip to the vet (Emma went to the vet last week for a hematoma she developed on her ear flap). Don't worry. She's okay. She has the second dose of Benadryl in her now and is acting like her goofy self again. Next, we met Dad for lunch at Taco Mac. Brady slept the whole time. Brilliant! Then Brady received a friendly tour of Dad's office and met his coworkers. Verdict: Brady still looks like Dad. After an in-office diaper change Brady had lunch in the back seat of the Audi...yet another first. Then we trucked down to Buckhead to visit Mom's office. Again, what a trooper. He was awake and alert for the whole visit. He met nearly everyone in the office and helped Mom clear out her inbox and fill out some HR forms.

Now Brady is in bed playing the paci game. We're listening to a little Ray Lamontagne and Dad's playing the guitar. Yippee! Happy Weekend, everyone! See ya next time.

The Slacker Catches Up!

Sorry, y'all. Life is crazy since Brady decided that he doesn't want to nap anymore...that is, unless you hold him with BOTH arms. So I'm going to try to cover everything we did last week. There's a lot to tell!

Brady is zooming through "news". He taught himself to roll over from his tummy to his back. This early milestone accurately reflects Brady's opinion of tummy time: it sucks. Waaay too much weight lifting. But we do it everyday for the sake of his motor skills. It's also a great way to extract burps from his belly. Grammy was here last week and got him this toy to help make tummy time worthwhile. It really works. This boy really loves to look at himself in the mirror.

Brady has also opened the flood gates on smiling. The lucky recipient is usually Sparky (the puppy picture that hangs over his changing table). He'll go from full-out cry to full-out smile with one glance. He also smiles in response to a goofy grandma or a goofy mama. Grammy also helped him with his hand-eye coordination. He will stare for a while at a toy that interests him. If you repeatedly touch the toy to his hand he will eventually bat at the toy. It's really incredible to watch the learning process.

Brady also had some new visitors on Wednesday. Mom's friends from work, Mandy, John and Webster came over for lunch. Webster gave into peer pressure and held Brady while I enjoyed my Madagascar II Happy Meal. John held firmly to his resolve to NOT endanger the baby with his unsure arms. Silly John.



On Friday, Brady donned his Cubs hat for our trip to the airport where he met his Aunt Ronnee for the first time! Aunt Ronnee jumped right into Aunti-hood. She held him, rocked him, helped with bathtime, bedtime and diaper changing. She even got pooped on!

We spent Saturday spoiling the puppies. Photographer, Leesia Teh, came over to photograph Emma and Billy. Brady graciously turned the limelight over to his big brother and sister for a while. You can see pictures from the shoot on Leesia's blog dated November 18, 2008.

Sunday, Grammy was up before any of us so that she could take over Brady-soothing after his breakfast. It was very sad when Grammy and Aunt Ronnee left. But how lucky we all were that they came to see us!

A Travelin' Man

Brady's first vacation was at a cabin on Lake Sinclair, about 2 1/2 hours away. The good boy slept the entire way there, even though I'd prepped a bottle for him mid-way through the journey (the truck drivers sat at an excellent angle for spectating). It was a perfect first adventure - low key, baby friendly and FUN above all! Brady slept in his bassinet at night with his music and his twilight turtle lulling him to sleep. During the day he was held at all times and therefore, quite blissful. He loved all the bright cabin windows and luckily all rooms had a ceiling fan! Many thanks to John & Alicia for inviting us!

My Fabulous Friend, My Fist

Brady has officially found his fists. He started sucking on his fist either when he can't find his pacifier, or it has fallen out of his mouth. He is also starting to mouth things. I put him in the Baby Bjorn for the first time yesterday. He kinda gummed the side of it for 10 minutes or so. He also gummed my shoulder today while we were rocking on the front porch, reading our book. Unfortunately, he had a bit of spit up stored in his gums at the time which left an interesting stain that I noticed in the grocery store checkout line. Fabulous.

Dad is home (yippee!) and we're packing up our things for Brady's first weekend away from home. Wish us luck! See ya next time.

Election Day Excitement!

He's not old enough to vote, but Brady went to the polling location to support Mom & Dad on this historic Election Day. He claims that he'll stay up all night to watch the results, but this resolve held all of five minutes. He's passed out in his bouncy as I write. I, on the other hand, am totally wired after my free cup of Starbucks coffee! And I'm totally jonesin' for a star-shaped donut!

Dad worked from home this morning so that he could help me stand in line to vote with Brady. We packed up our prep ballots, extra diapers, a hooter hider and the new Baby Bjorn and headed to our polling location. We rolled up in the stroller to find a line four deep! How wonderful! So while voting together was unnecessary, it was a wonderful feeling to share this patriotic experience as a family.

We had lunch today with the crew from my internship: Kyle, Nancy and Webster. Brady smells like Nancy's perfume now. He liked her. He fell asleep in her arms with his paci hanging at the edge of his lip.

Dad just came home (yippee!) and took over holding Brady's paci in (my arm was getting pretty tired). He really likes to spit it out.

See ya next time!

A Day of Firsts

For the first time today, the Audi didn't put Brady to sleep (but, thankfully, it still quieted him down).

For the first time today, we were early to yoga class.

For the first time today, Brady was awake during class.

For the first time today, I had to feed Brady in yoga class (in front of non-family members *gasp*).

For the first time today, Brady laid flat on his back and played.

And for the first time today, I had to feed Brady in public. Ahhh! It was rough.

Brady likes to nap with his eyes open (do you think he doesn't trust me?). He also likes to "catch flies" when he sleeps. It's pretty funny to watch. When he falls asleep he rolls his eyes back in his head! Sounds attractive, doesn't it? But really, it's darling. Here's a picture of it. It was taken after he "dined" for the first time in a restaurant (Mom, it was your favorite place...Everybody's Pizza!).

Aside from the catnap in the restaurant, Brady slept very little today. This meant that he was nearly beside himself with exhaustion by the end of the workday. So I was really saying "yippee" when Dad came home. He gave the little pup a bath and successfully put him down. Now he's folding laundry while I'm having a glass of vino rosso. All is right with the world!

See ya next time!

A Little Boo. A Little Moo.

Brady's first Halloween was fun for all! Our much-anticipated couch was delivered. Dad came home from work early. Mom found Brady a last minute Halloween outfit on super-sale and Brady had a fabulous night's sleep - despite the fact that we threw the "bedtime routine" out the window. How else would you celebrate the first week of bedtime success? Following our photo session in his Halloween jammies, we suited Brady up in his uber-warm, fleece cow costume and watched the kids trick-or-treat from the rocking chairs on the front porch. BW really enjoys being outside when the sun is low. He can look at all the fascinating outdoor stuff without that nasty sun getting in his eyes. We did some jumpies and jammed on our paci for a little while, but BW was asleep before the first neighborhood ghoul walked up the drive. Oddly, we had few trick-or-treaters this year.

Now, if we were responsible, rule-following parents we would have put the boy down after his dinner. But instead, we took him across the street to the neighbors house for some kick-ass chili (none for mom, though). It's a good thing he slept through the whole event. Perhaps we haven't totally undone this week's progress. We'll know soon enough.