Nothing Earth shattering, but learned none the less

• Nothing is better than a family hug as Daddy goes off to work.
  
• Even with the time constraints of fitting in naps, feedings, tummy time, reading time, rolling practice, standing time, and sitting, there is always time for a good cuddle.
  
• One of the most annoying sounds in the world is the sound of a baby's toy whose batteries are about to die.
  
• One of the biggest pre-baby mistakes I made was buying any stuffed animals. a. Your friends and family will buy him more than he needs. b. It just adds to the laundry.
  
• Making up Isaac's end of the conversation is one of the greatest simple pleasures in life. I especially love our made up dialogue in the car as he babbles at the other drivers.
  
• It never fails that Isaac will decide to lay the biggest man-size poo ever the minute after I've changed him into a fresh diaper. This is usually just following a nice bath as well.
  
• While we're on the subject of poo, Isaac is usually a once a day kind of guy. Nothing is more thrilling ~sarcasm~ as "Bonus Poo Day," as Adam and I have affectionately named it.
  
• As a soprano, I love the fact that Isaac has mastered the lip trill in at least 2 octaves.
  
• Being a mom is amazing, but seeing Adam being a dad brings the kind of joy to my life I never could have imagined.
  
• As sad as it makes me to leave for work, I am twice (probably more) as happy to come home.
  
• I never underestimate the feeling of finding something on clearance or on sale. I'm still bragging to Adam about the highchair I found for 24 bucks!
  
• Baby food became less fun the first time I was wearing white and Isaac sneezed avocado everywhere. I now have an extra painting shirt.
  
• I love my mom even more now that I'm a mom. The endless stream of great advice and support is amazing.
  
• I love the way that Isaac's personality comes through his eyes. The glimmer in his eyes as the cats lick his feet is priceless.
  
• I am so glad we live in the age of digital photography. I can take 1 million pictures and delete 999,999 of them without any of my Catholic guilt creeping in.
  
• I love that my day starts and ends with a huge smile from Isaac. It carries me through the times when folding another burp cloth just seems too daunting.
  
  My baby boy is now 5 months old. Here are just a few of my favorite moments so far. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-YbWM1VV6s
  ~ Andrea

Finger Foods

Has anyone started finger foods yet? If so, what did you start with and how did you introduce it? I don't think Hadley is quite ready yet, but I think she will be within the next few months. She is starting to try to grab the oatmeal/babyfood off the spoon--which does not usually work out so well for her or her outfit.

--Amanda

Mila's Daydreams

http://milasdaydreams.blogspot.com/

You all must check out this blog! Looking at me makes me feel so uncreative but it also brings such a smile to my face!

-Emily

We have a schedule, finally!!!

Well, I went back to work about a month and a half ago now, and things have been BUSY! I am really happy to be back at work, but it is a lot of juggling, even though I am not working as much as I used to. Unfortunately, my job is not the kind of job that allows me to have a set schedule, and it is very intense--sometimes I do not get a drink of water or go to the bathroom the whole time I am there. But the one thing about my job that I now appreciate is that it has taught me to be flexible. I now think I actually might be really bad at a 9 to 5 job because I cannot keep myself on a set schedule anymore since I have gotten so used to adjusting my schedule every time the workflow changed. Flexibility has been an invaluable skill over the past 7 months with a baby, and is even more invaluable now that we have added working back into the mix. There is just so much other stuff to stress over, that it really helps not to add another layer by stressing over whether I am staying on a schedule.

However, schedules and routine are important for babies and kids, so we do at least like to try to keep Hadley on a schedule. We still don't really have Hadley on a rigid schedule, but I am happy to report that we have a "most of the time" schedule now, FINALLY! She has been eating about every 3 hours for several months now, but we never could get the times down because her naps were very unscheduled, and since her eating times depended on her wake-up times and nap-times, it was really hard to figure out a schedule for her. But within about the last 2 months, she has finally settled into a regular sleeping/napping pattern. She is not a 12-hour a night sleeper, but she sleeps for about 10 hours every night. And she goes to bed so easily--we read her a story and rock her for about 3 lullabyes, and then we put her down in her crib and she falls asleep on her own--normally without a single tear! And she is like her momma in that she likes to wake up early, eat breakfast and play a little bit and then go back to bed! So her first nap is at 8am every morning--which actually works out really well for me working because I can take a shower and get ready for work during her first nap.

Daycare is going well so far. There have been little issues here and there, but the daycare we take her to is always very responsive to any concerns that we have. She loves being able to watch and interact with the other kids, and we have worked out our schedules so that she is only there for about 5 or six hours a day, so it's kind of like Mother's Morning Out. We are very vigilant about letting the daycare know when we don't like something though. I think one of the most important things about any childcare situation is communicating with the person that is caring for your child. Every child and every parent are different, and other people don't know your child as well as you do, so you just have to tell them when they do something that does not work for your child. Sometimes I feel like "that mom" when I have to tell them to do something differently, but they never really seem to mind that much, and I've decided that I'm just going to have to get over that. It will probably be like that, even when she starts school--the kids that get the most out of school are the ones that have the parents that are involved and concerned about what they are doing at school. So, for the next 20 years or so, I'm putting on my "that mom" hat and wearing it proudly!

--Amanda

Let's shop!

One of the joys of having a baby is the shopping that goes along with it!! The KidzExchange consignment sale is coming to Charlotte August 13-15 and I think it might be the perfect opportunity to get us all together, even if just for a quick weekend trip. If our Georgia group can't make it up, I definitely think the NC girls should represent and head out for some major shopping! Hopefully, we can make it a whole group outing though! ~Andrea

http://www.kidzexchange.com/

Night terrors

Ugh! Have any of you experienced night terrors with you little ones? They are atrocious! Molly just had one tonight. She's had 2 other ones over the past month and I can't stand them. It happens at some point early in the night after we have put her down. All of a sudden we hear her cry bloody murder. It seriously sounds worse than when she gets shots...like something is hurting her. But she is sound asleep. I seriously think it scars me more than her.

From what I've read, children do not remember their night terrors at all. I think you're suppose to leave them in the bed and just make sure they do not hurt themselves (ie fall out of the bed). Todd and I have not been able to resist picking her up. She flails in our arms and screams but eventually wake up and looks at us like 'what are y'all doing here?'

I plan on calling the doctor on Tuesday to get his advice but I thought I'd check with y'all as well.

On a brighter note, Molly had her first experience in a pool tonight! I really think she loved it. She was splashing the water and had lots of grins. I told Todd I was going to dunk her under and he wasn't too keen on the idea until I did it and she came up with the cutest face. Then Todd said, 'Do it again!' Pictures to come!

Emily