Healthy.

My 8-week-old is 3/4 ounces shy of being 15lbs. The pediatrician says he is exactly where a 3-3.5 month old should be. He is in the 97th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height.

He is 3/4 ounces shy of outgrowing his Pack N Play bassinet as well, which means that he will be sleeping in the actual bottom part of the Pack N Play...which means that it's a good thing this Mama found some weights on clearance at Target today. Strength training will pay off at 2am when I haul his sleep-heavy body out of bed for a feeding. Why is it that babies weigh so much more in the middle of the night?

As for the immunizations...I was beginning to wonder whether or not this child ever felt pain after I nipped him with the nail clippers on Saturday (bloodbath!) and poked him directly in the eye this morning and he didn't flinch at either incident. Not to worry: at first poke, he went a very healthy shade of puce, and I am here to tell you that the kid can cry. But the kid also has a sense of humor, so just moments after his shots when Mama and Daddy were struggling to re-dress him in the most difficult romper EVER, he was having a good giggle at our ineptitude.

So, the good news is that Reid is very healthy - both physically and developmentally - and very happy. And with a doctor's appointment like that, there IS no bad news!

Slow down, you crazy child

I never considered myself a type-A control freak, but I guess I was in certain ways. For example, from age 18 to about this past December, I counted almost every calorie I ate. I would get upset if I ran for 29 minutes instead of 30. I would get a little itchy if the dining room table or the ottoman tray was cluttered or the bed was unmade...yet I could easily go a little longer than advised with cleaning the bathroom or dusting the house.


I'm trying to fight certain elements of the control-freakiness but it has been hard. Especially these past few days. Our routine was blown out of the water and Reid and I are both feeling it. I've been exhausted and tense, and he's been fussy. Or is he fussy because he can tell I'm exhausted and tense? Who is the routine for? Him or me?


Sometime in May or June, I was lamenting to a friend via text message that I didn't understand why my thighs were so big - after all, they were not carrying a baby. She replied, "actually, they are. So let them be what they will be." Very wise words, and I've been trying to apply this mantra to life these days. Let the house be what it will be. Let Reid's schedule be what it will be. This goes completely against my nature, though, so it is really hard for me. And ironically, I'm not exacty letting me be what I will be, am I?

But some changes are for the best, and I definitely need to learn to roll with things better.

So this morning when we had a little setback and we couldn't go for our walk right away, which nearly caused a 2-star meltdown, we did some morning errands, then we drove along the lake for awhile and listened to what I've come to think of as Mama's Lullaby: Vienna by Billy Joel, on repeat:


Slow down you crazy child
You're so ambitious for a juvenile
But then if you're so smart tell me why
Are you still so afraid?
Where's the fire, what's the hurry about?
You better cool it off before you burn it out
You got so much to do and only
So many hours in a day

But you know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want
Or you can just get old
You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through
When will you realize...Vienna waits for you

Slow down you're doing fine
You can't be everything you want to be
Before your time
Although it's so romantic on the borderline tonight (tonight)
Too bad but it's the life you lead
You're so ahead of yourself
That you forgot what you need
Though you can see when you're wrong
You know you can't always see when you're right(you're right)

You got your passion you got your pride
But don't you know that only fools are satisfied?
Dream on but don't imagine they'll all come true
When will you realize
Vienna waits for you

Slow down you crazy child
Take the phone off the hook and disappear for a while
It's alright you can afford to lose a day or two
When will you realize...
Vienna waits for you.

And you know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want
Or you can just get old
You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through

Why don't you realize...Vienna waits for you
When will you realize...Vienna waits for you

I hope after reading that, you are all as relaxed as I am. OK, you got me: I'm not totally relaxed yet. But my other life mantra is Fake it 'Til You Make It. :)

Formula is Expensive

I worked the rough numbers, and to feed Reid for a week on Target brand formula - not even name brand! - it would be about $70.

Then why have I gotten so many manufacturers' coupons for formula since becoming pregnant? Yesterday I got an actual sample in the mail, along with a $4 coupon. OK, if it's so easy to to hand out coupons and samples of this stuff, why not just...you know...lower the price?!

And why not do some market research to learn that I do not use formula before wasting $10 worth on me? Why not send these samples to women's shelters or doctors' offices so that they can be given to women who need it? The can is sealed so I plan to do just that (unless my local reader knows someone who will use it) but seriously. I just don't understand why something so expensive is tossed out like candy at a parade.

Tree of Life

My bestie Erin and I both have October birthdays and have discussed getting tattoos this year as part of the celebration. I pretty much knew what I wanted to get, depending on whether Reid was a boy or a girl. If a girl, the Celtic triple spiral (aka triskele or triple goddess), which I was told* symbolizes "maiden, mother, crone." Or more loosely, "daughter, mother, grandmother" for those who object to the word "crone."

If he was a boy, I wanted the Celtic Tree of Life, which I have read** symbolizes rebirth. I thought that was appropriate given that Reid is named after his Great-Grandfather who died on the day I found out I was pregnant (or, as I prefer to say, he went up to Heaven and sent another Reid down). The Tree of Life is also rumored to signify strength, longevity, and wisdom. Anyone who knew Reid the First would agree that this is a felicitous*** description.

So back to the tattoos, the thing is that I think there is one great place for a tattoo and I already have one there. So I'm not entirely sure whether or not I'm going to get one. But when the little guy was born, I did know that I wanted a pendant of the Tree of Life to commemorate his birth (because the baby isn't enough proof...? Whatever, any excuse for jewelry).

I've been waiting and waiting for Irish Fest so that I could go see if this guy had a Tree of Life pendant. I have a Celtic Turtle and a Claddagh that he made, and I know he does great work. Well, I found him, and I found the Tree of Life charm, and I'm very happy about this (just ask my mom).
SIDE NOTE: I was assured that Sean's online store is going live soon, so if you are in the market for Celtic jewelry, bookmark that site!

Reid seems to like it, too; he keeps trying to eat from it.

*I was told this by a woman at Irish Fest. These knots and symbols have so many different meanings, I'm not 100% positive which is correct and I have not done a ton of research. So don't get on my case if I'm wrong!

**Ditto the above except I read the meaning on the internets, and even though they never lie, I feel I should acknowledge that again, I haven't done a ton of research. Several reputable sites seem to agree on this meaning, however.

***Thesaurus. Booya.

Judgment Call

I feel like we've really gotten to know Reid better in the past few days. When he's driving the Fuss Bus for seemingly no reason, he's tired and will be asleep soon if we quit trying to pacify him. If he starts his patented Eat 'n' Punch, that means he needs to burp. That sound that sounds sort of like he's fussing and sort of like he's choking? That's a LAUGH! But...what do you do when you suspect a Category 5 Diaper Emergency on a peacefully sleeping baby?

Wake him? He'll be crabby.
Leave it? It could leak.
Wake him? But I could still possibly get a shower today.
Leave it? He could get diaper rash.

I guess since he is peaceful, I will leave it for now. He'd let me know if it was bothering him. But I'm putting a bucket under his bouncy chair just in case.

UPDATE: It's okay. It turns out the bouncy seat cover is very easy to remove and totally machine washable. And now I know.

There are so many things I should be doing right now

But instead I'm on Amazon looking at Halloween costumes. HELLO.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Irish Fest, Irish Fest, Irish Fest!

There is nothing I don't love about this weekend. It opens tomorrow at 4pm. You know where I'll be!

Busy Hands

I love the way Reid moves his hands when he nurses. For a couple of weeks there, he sewed. He'd hold his thumb and forefinger together with the rest of his fingers splayed, and rotate his wrist. Sometimes he twirls the hair at the back of his head (say it with me now: eeeeeee!!!!). This weekend he has just started clapping his hand to his forehead and leaving it there. I can't tell what this means.

Is he hungover?*
Should he have had a V8?
Is he wishing he'd done this whole eating thing sooner?
Is he wishing I'd lay off the raw onions?

*I assure you, I researched and researched the effects of alcohol in breastmilk, found that it is okay in moderation, and decided that I was gonna [carefully] drink some beer! Then I got really tired. Usually I can't make it to the kitchen to retrieve one, and if Joel brings me one, I rarely finish it. So this is totally a joke. Besides, no child of ours would have such a weak tolerance.

Reid All About It!

This blog is just one more item on the "Things I Never Thought I'd Do When I Had Kids" list - a mass updating of family and friends on the adorable things my baby does. There is a part of me that still thinks, "you REALLY think all your family and friends want to read a blog about Reid's latest spit bubble?!" but the Mama part of my brain says, "who cares. If they don't want to read it, they won't."

So, here it is. A blog about Reid's latest spit bubble. It was about an hour ago. It was adorable.

In case anyone is wondering, here are the other things I thought I would never do when I had a baby:
1 - feed him/her formula. Now, this is not meant to start a formula vs. breastfeeding debate, I just never thought I'd do it. He got his first formula bottle at 1 day old (and his last at 5 days old)

2 - use drugs during delivery. Most of you know I was pretty dead-set against it. Then I had a contraction, a good laugh at myself, and a lovely epidural that I loved so much, I almost named.

3 - buy ANY apparel with writing on it, ie "Mommy's Little Prince!" or "Daddy's Little Darling!" Sigh. OK, I will still never buy anything that calls my kid a prince. I always think of that Sex & The City episode where they all attend the suburban baby shower, and the crazy mother says something like "my son is the best thing in the entire world and I tell him so every day," and Miranda says, "what are the chances of a woman ever making him happy?" You get the point. Of course this is neither here nor there because there will never be a girl good enough for Reid, and we all know that, and he will spend his adult life being brilliant but single and living close to his mother, but he doesn't need to go around with some sort of royalty complex. ANYWAY, I bought an outfit yesterday with cute little cars all over it that says "Dad's Speedster." It's stinking adorable. What! Put a Carter's label and a clearance tag on it and I will buy it. It's a fact. Unless it says "prince."

4 - use disposable diapers. I haven't broken this one. YET. And I probably won't now that Little Big Man's thigh chub fills out the leg holes, saving me from volumes of leaking pee. But sometimes I admit to dreaming about Pampers and Huggies and Diaper Genies. You can't deny the cloth ones are cute, and I have to say, our system of using wet baby washcloths as wipes is really efficient. I had to use 4 baby wipes to clean up my prolific pooper while out on the town yesterday. It's usually a one-washcloth job. But one day I am going to change a diaper and two minutes later I will hear that telltale rumble and will think of the laundry that my husband works so hard on because Lord help me, I only did those stinky things once, and I will think of how easy it would be to toss it and forget it.

5 - clog up the FB news feed with photos and baby-related status updates. Ahem. I believe you're all on FB.

6 - listen to Kiddie music. What's wrong with regular music? Music is music! Ahem. See my status updates of late.

I think that's about it for now. If you all can think of anything else I swore I'd never do but did, don't post it in the comments. I'm allowed to make fun of myself but you're not. That's a good ground rule to lay down right now.

That's all for now!