Back To Work

Its 5:45 am and I haven't had to get up this early in 19 days...coffee, I need coffee. Today is the start of 3 twelve hour shifts in a row. It was nice to have a vacation and I'm not looking forward to going back to work...but I'm sure I'm not unique on that one. Todd will be watching Norrin, which is always an adventure. Once, Todd fed him rice pudding for dinner. On more than a few occasions I've come home to a dirty, crying baby in need of a diaper change (in Todd's defense, it was because he was trying to get dinner ready before I got home). A couple times they haven't even been here...and I get home at 8:45 pm. Anyone who knows me knows I have an overactive imagination and I pretty much put myself into a total breakdown before they pulled into the driveway, safe and sound from a trip to the grocery store. While I'd rather be home with my boys, I love to hear about their day. It almost always involves a nap together followed by an adventure to visit some family member or a trip to Target...Norrin always does better with a trip out into the world...he's such a people person. I can't wait to hear how Norrin surprised Daddy with all the things he can grab off the table or how if the gate at the bottom of the stairs isn't secured in both places, how Norrin opened the door and took a journey up the stairs. When Todd has such a long break from a full day with Norrin, there's always some surprise. But that's the joy of parenting such a curious little guy and we wouldn't change it for anything. So, I will finish my morning routine, nurse my baby boy one more time, kiss my husband and rejoin the working world.

Walk Like A Man...

Pictures just don't do it justice.

Naptime: Take Two

So, Norrin slept for an hour and a half by himself. Solo naptime seems to be a success.

He's Got Legs And He Knows How To Use Them

While we were at Grandmom and Grandpop Milligan's house yesterday, Norrin decided to make a serious effort to walk. In Ocean City he walked between the chair and a coffeetable a couple of times, but there was nothing as consistent as yesterday's performance. At least five or six times, he practiced moving from one piece of furniture to another. Anything more than five steps and he plopped down on his butt, not trusting himself to go any farther. Every time we cheered and applauded, desperately trying to convince him to keep going. When we got home, he tried his new trick along our hallway, going from wall to door frame and back to wall. So, we are now dealing with a walking child! I have to say as a first-time mommy, I have mixed emotions. I'm so excited for him...every new skill is so cool to watch. However, nothing is safe now. And if he walks half as fast as he crawls, Mommy should just cancel her gym membership because I'll be getting a heck of a workout at home.

As for the napping experiment, I really only got the opportunity to practice it once yesterday...thanks to his new skill, he fought sleep worse than he has ever fought sleep before. We managed to get an hour into him before going out to dinner with Grandmom and Grandpop and man, was he a riot at the diner. He was talking up a storm and at full volume. He doesn't form many actual words right now, so I assign my own meaning to them. I'm pretty convinced he says something that sounds very much like, "I love you" at least once a day. Motherly delusions- you gotta love 'em! Anyway, he enjoyed a sample of our food- soup, applesauce, eggplant, chicken, cauliflower, potatoes and pasta...I should have a truly pleasant diaper awaiting me today :). Grandmom even gave him some vanilla ice cream...then I wondered why he wouldn't settle down until almost 9:30 pm! That's what grandparents are for though...my Poppy used to give us a steady diet of Mountain Dew, Dorritos and Twizzlers.

I'll have to try to get some pics of him walking at some point today. Its pretty darn cute...but I think everything he does is pretty darn cute :).

Sleeping in Daddy's Arms at the Aquarium

Proof that this child doesn't sleep without constant parental contact...oh, and he slept for half an hour this morning before screaming bloody murder...not too bad for the first time. Of course, now he won't go down for an afternoon nap.

Experiments

Today has been a list of firsts...first, I put Norrin in front of the TV (bad mommy)...now, he's napping on his own. Since the day he was born, my son has napped in my lap or his daddy's lap. We both thought we just didn't want to lose out on that snuggle time. I spent hours away from him when he was first born and I just didn't want to let him go once I got ahold of him. Now that he's 10 months old, I realized that maybe I should teach him to nap on his own. So, I still snuggled him and let him nurse himself to sleep, but when I was sure he was asleep...I tiptoed away. He's been asleep 20 minutes. I guess I thought he'd sense I left him and be awake in less than 10 minutes...so much for that. As for my new free time, I was intending to use it for a cup of tea and some light reading, but instead I loaded the dishwasher and wiped down Norrin's highchair. Pretty exciting around here!

Good Morning Sunshine!

The Ultimate Mommy Sin

Well, this morning I gave into my needs and committed the ultimate mommy sin. While we were on vacation, I always woke up a good half an hour before Norrin. I had plenty of time to pump some breastmilk, make coffee and if he was really sleepy, drink an entire cup of coffee before he woke up and was ready to finish off what the pump couldn't :). Since we got home, I wake up with him. Unless I set the alarm, I'm incapable of getting up earlier, so we start the morning together...which means I have a baby attached to my legs while I make coffee and pulling on the tubing of the breastpump if God forbid he should see me storing away some surplus milk. Here enters the mommy sin...I turned on the TV and sat him down in front of it while I completed my morning routine. I was efficient and only used it to finish pumping, but there was a huge dose of guilt attached. There's got to be a better way.

The First Message

So, I guess I should blame my doula for this whole thing. I read her updates on her family and loved the idea. So, we'll start with a very quick update. Norrin is 10 months old. He likes to climb...everything. He can't walk yet, but he's a very accomplished climber. So, our home is now a fortress of gates that vary in size to fit our stairways. Not that it matters...our child climbs chairs, couches, dressers, hampers...basically anything that will hold still long enough. As for Todd, he is loving parenthood. I've never seen someone so happy to come home to his unruly family. We must be something pretty special...or his job is far more hellish than I realized. While he miraculously seems to avoid most poopy diapers, he is completely hands on with his son. And since I'm working three twelve hour shifts most weekends, he has certainly had to step in as a full-time parent. We are all happy and healthy. Now, I have to go...Norrin is determined to shove an entire ping pong ball into his mouth...left over from Daddy's Beer Pong Days :).