Getting Old...

WOW! Seriously, where has time gone?? It's Christmas time already, and while I'm finishing up the last items on my list and making sure I haven't forgotten anything to pack for our trip to Tucson for Christmas, I still can't help but FREAK OUT over how fast it's all come!

Christmas seemed so far away, and I just kept telling myself...Em, you can make it till Christmas...by then Wyatt will be almost 6 months old! Life will be so much easier! AND IT SO IS! I just love this little stinker and it takes every ounce of control that I have not to squeeze him till he farts every time that I pick him up! He cracks me up how he'll be suckin' on that tiny little thumb of his and if I come within one foot of him he grins from ear to ear and his tongue just quivers as it's trying to continue sucking :) Oh, and my gosh...he goes absolutely NUTS when he sees his dad!! If I even mention the word "dad" he starts pumping his legs and looking around just waiting for his dad to come and make him laugh!

The other night, he woke up crying because his blanket had somehow managed to all bunch up over his head and he couldn't figure out how to move it (I'm positive he's gonna have major clostraphobia when he gets older!). I ran up to his room and pulled the blanket from his face and picked him up to calm him down. Well, Steve followed me up and and soon as he saw him he began wiggling in my arms doing just about everything he could to crawl up and over me and into his daddy's arms! Steve went downstairs to make him a bottle to help calm him down and that kid kept looking over my shoulder just waiting for him to return. The two of them together makes me crazy happy!



I know it's terrible to film your kid crying...even more so when you are laughing at your kid who is crying! But before you pass judgment...try to watch this video without laughing! Go on! I dare ya!

See??!! It's SO HARD to take this kid seriously when he cries! He pokes his bottom lip out and I can't help but laugh cuz he's just so darn cute! Thank goodness he hasn't figured out how to really cry....he still cries with his mouth closed...it's like he's muffling his sorrow on our behalf. :0)

Anyways, back to the "Getting Old" thing. I'm downloading some music so we have some new tunes to listen to on our way to Tucson and I found this song called "One Time" by Justin Bieber. Ya'll, I swear this kid is only 12...ok, ok...maybe 12 and 1/2! I'm so used to following the artists of my time and even some of the newer ones that don't seem all that far off from my own age. But all the sudden, I'm lookin' around for Steve like he's gonna catch me listening to this "kid" and look at me like, "for real? I guess he's ok if borderline jail bait is your thing."

It's just weird to see how time passes and all the things that I once thought were "cool" are now considered "old school"! And to top all that...I just had to buy my first tube of arthritis cream! What the hail?? lol Not to mention the white, not silver, hairs that I've suddenly found. (Does that mean I'm not wise? I always heard the silver hairs meant you were wise...ah well...it figures) Guess I'll have to start dying my hair more frequently cuz these buggers seem to be growing faster than any other hairs on my head! What's next?? Hemorrhoid Cream and Adult Diapers??

Stop the Leaks!

So. I have a question for all you mommas out there. Well, at least the ones who have raised little boys ;)

Pretty much since I posted online that Wyatt began sleeping through the night...he decided to stop gracing us with a full nights sleep and go back to waking somewhere between 1 and 3 in the morning. I've asked Steve to have a talk with him and let him know that it's unacceptable and if he continues with this behavior, we may have to ground him. Steve doesn't think he'll take it to seriously, but I beg to differ ;)

Anyways...about 2 weeks or so ago he found his feet. It's honestly the greatest thing to watch him try over and over to bring his toes to his mouth. He's getting more flexible, but as for the moment, he can only stretch the tip of his sock to his mouth...which amuses him immensely!

EVERY time that I go to him in the middle of the night, he's got his feet in the air! And here lies the problem: I'm thinkin' he must be juicin' his diaper or something because for the life of me, I cannot figure out how he gets pee up the sides of his PJ's and all over the sheets. This part is not so cute!!

He's wearing size 3 diapers and they look HUGE on him. They go up past his belly button! But the size 2's barely contain him. How do you remedy this???

I'm getting so tired of changing his sheets! (We have even put a towel down and he just saturates it!) I don't know, maybe there's more force behind that hose than I'm aware of...but seriously, have any of you experienced this?

A Little Home Remedy

I was so worried that Wyatt was getting sick (and even more worried that I might give him whatever cold bug I'd caught). My sister, Kristie, gave me a little home remedy to try:

"Those suffering from common or sever colds should take one tablespoon room temperature honey with 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder 1 to 2x daily for three days. This process will clear the sinuses and alleviate most cough and sore throat symptoms.

Make a glass of lukewarm honey water with cinnamon powder to help boost your immune system during the cold season."


I'll be the first to say that I've never really "believed" in most home remedies...mostly because they rarely work for me (and yet I am always trying new ones...hmm). I have been doing the 2x daily routine for the past two days. I have some about 30 mins before I eat breakfast and about 30 mins before I go to bed. I feel AMAZING...I'm talking, so-amazing-I-could-kiss-a-honey-bee!

So, I'm passin' this little remedy on to those of you who could use a little help this cold and flu season. Seriously, what have you got to lose??! If you don't believe me, do a little research of your own...you'll be amazed to see what's out there! ;)

Advice

Wyatt had his shots yesterday and the entire night was spent trying to comfort him. I gave him multiple baths (which seemed to be the only thing that worked). I alternated a heating pad, ice pack and massage. We gave him Children's Tylenol....and then Steve had to make a middle of the night run for Children's Motrin instead. I even tried some homeopathic essential oils. We tried EVERYTHING.

The only position that he wanted to be held in was where he faced forward and no pressure was on his legs. But he couldn't fall asleep in that position so he just cried and cried all night!

He even started getting congested, so we put a humidifier in his room.

To make matters worse...I woke up with a scratchy throat and body aches! HELP!

So. I thought I'd start this post off with some random "why" questions that have been swimming in my mind the past couple of days.

Why do infant pants have actual pockets?? Everyday that I dress Wyatt, the same question pops in my head. What is my nearly 5 month old going to keep in these pockets of his? I suppose it could be rather handy for me as a mom...I mean, maybe I can store my chap-stick in his little cargo pocket and maybe my debit card in his back pocket (wait...nope, doesn't fit...hmmm).

Why do garbage trucks have little scented trees hanging from their review mirror?...BETTER YET, why do they have review mirrors??? It's not like they can see behind them through it (isn't that what the side mirrors are for?) and it's not like that little scented tree is gonna miraculously overpower the stench of maggot infested diapers (that's ones for you uncle Matt!!) and fish skins! If I were a trash collector, I think I'd use the ole Vicks Vapor Rub under the nostrils instead! I mean, it totally worked when I was working on cadavers...although, I'm sure that cadavers smell like a handful of flowers compared to the city dump.

There...I'm done! Ugh, I can finally cross that one off my list! List? That's right...since we decided to put my job hunting on the back burner for a couple more months, I now have this obsession with LISTS! I went out and bought myself a fancy dancy little notebook and I write all my daily tasks in for the week. I have this need to feel like I've accomplished something...it's not just good enough that I managed to clean some of my house...NO, I need to look like I've just tackled this insane list of duties so that when my husband asks what I did today I can just show him :)

Example:

Tuesday

• Get up
• Shower
• Feed Wyatt
• Play with Wyatt
• Read to Wyatt
• Put Wyatt down for a nap
• Feed myself
• Get ready
• Go to the bathroom (JUST KIDDING...I'm not that crazy! I don't have to schedule time for the toiley!)
• Wash dishes
• Start dishwasher
• Wipe off counter
• Wipe off island
• Wipe off table
• Wipe off sink
• Sweep Floor
• blah
• blah
• blah

See! So instead of saying, "Oh I cleaned the kitchen" (which any mom can tell you IS an accomplishment)...now I have a gagiant list of tasks that I feel accomplished for completing!! LOL No worries folks, I don't need your pity praise, I've got lists to do that for me!! ;)

So I suppose I should tell you what Wyatt's been up to...now that he's almost 5 months and all.
I swear I am so blessed to have such a mellow child! I don't know what I would have done if I was given a difficult child to raise as my first!

Wyatt and I went to Tucson the weekend before Thanksgiving so that we could visit Kevin, Patti and the kids. I was a little worried to do the whole plane thing again, but he did amazing! I ended up sitting at the very back of the plane next to two business men who I had just seen leaving the bar before we boarded the plane. The back three seats were the only ones left on the plane, and I promised them Wyatt was a good flier (thank goodness he kept his end of that promise!). He barely made a peep the entire flight, even with all the musical chairs we had to play with the two drunk business men who sprung a leak from all the beer they'd consumed.

He even did great the entire time that we were in Tucson! I was so happy about that because it made visiting so much more relaxing. We just had so much fun and his Grandma Patti just couldn't get enough of him! He was just giving those smiles to her like they were goin' outta style!

He did pretty darn good during Thanksgiving weekend too! That one was a bit tougher considering most of the activities carried over into what normally is his bedtime. He loves watching his noisy cousins playing (from the quiet safety of my lap of course...lol). It was wild to see just how big this kid is compared to one of his cousins who isn't much older than him. I suppose it's the giant head that really makes him looker bigger and older than he is (he can thank his mama's side of the family for that). Steve says that was the first thing the doc noticed about him when she was pullin' him from my tummy during the surgery....GIANT HEAD! He's just so darn cute though!

Wyatt is getting really talented! He's not so interested in rolling from his tummy to his back...I think it freaks him out a bit. I suppose it's the force of his giant head slamming to the carpet that does him in. BUT, he's oh so close to rolling from his back to his tummy....if only he'd figure out how to move his elbow out of his way, he'd totally have it down!

Also, the day after we got back from Tucson, he started sleeping through the night! YAY!!! He now goes down somewhere between 7:30 and 8:30 and sleeps until 8 the next morning...PLUS, he still naps like a champ during the day! I'm so happy he figured out how to do it...I was really worried it would take far longer than 4 1/2 months for him to accomplish.

We went in for a well baby checkup on Tuesday. He now weighs 16lbs 10ozs and is 25.5 inches tall. He had to have 4 shots and one oral vaccine as well. I totally knew I was going to cry! I hate when he does his pain cry...it just reaches out and squeezes my heart so tight that I just can't help but cry myself. He did really really good though. I was worried considering we were in the waiting room for 2 hours which meant it was past his nap time and his feeding time...but I was saving both for after the shots. He didn't even need the bottle though. First thing he did was pop that thumb in his mouth! Forget binkies! This kid prefers the one that's attached to his hand!

The doc said that he's teething, which would totally explain why he's been sucking on any fabric or fingers he can get his hands on. He still won't use the teething rings or toys that we have for him.
The other day, I was shopping at Target and this kid totally filled his pants (I know ,I know...another poop story!). So I finished shopping and hurried home. As I went to pull his pants off, I realized that it had squished all the way down into his socks!! You know that video I posted earlier of the dad's gagging while changing their kids diapers...yeah, that was totally me at that moment! I was trying to roll his onsie so that I wouldn't get poop on his face or in his hair when I took it off. I guess the fabric of his onsie interested him and he just couldn't help but grab it and shove it in his mouth. THIS IS WHERE I TOTALLY GAGGED! I screamed and yanked the onsie from his head so fast, he had this stunned look on his face and then began to cry like I had just taken his woobie! And to save the rest of you from having to clean up vomit from your keyboard, I'll spare you what I had to clean off his lips...oh wait, that probably gave to much away...ooops!

The doctor said within the next few weeks, we should see the white of his gums where his bottom teeth will be trying to get through. It's just wild to me how quickly they really do grow! People always said that to me, but DUDE I saw a 2 week old in the waiting room and I honestly don't remember Wyatt being that SMALL! Now if only I could forget the horrible birthing experience...like everyone says that you do! ;)