Let's catch up

Hellllllooooooo, poor little blog. How I have neglected you. There have been about a million times when I wanted to sit down and update this thing, but life is really getting in the way lately.  So let’s get caught up in one criminally insufficient post.  It’s the best I can do. Take it or leave it.

CHICAGO TRIP

In early February Grier and I surprised Allyson will a trip to Chicago.  Her friends were throwing her a post-wedding bachelorette party (that’s a thing, right?) and there was no way I was missing it.  Going to Chicago in February is not something I’d do for many people, but I guess that just shows how much I love that sister of mine.  The trip was fantastic – full of girl talk, spa relaxing, a really good food.  Heavenly.  The best part, by far, was the surprise though.

Allyson’s friend, Jen, picked us up at the airport and we hung out at her house until Allyson got off work.  Allyson thought she was just staying in with Paul that night and ordering in.  Grier walked up first and Allyson freaked when she saw her. Everyone laughed and hugged and started walking in the house (you know, to get out of the frozen-ness). I was at the back of the pack so she didn’t see me until last. It’s hard to even describe how amazing her reaction was. Safe to say, she was not expecting to see me…

 

Of course, I was a little anxious to leave John for the first time, but it really was just what I needed. Bud and John had a great boys weekend.  I was mostly nervous because John was still nursing twice per day at that point, but he took the bottles just fine.  He slept great the first night and gave Bud a bit of a hard time the second night.  I could tell he was happy to see me on Sunday which of course made me feel good.  The week I got home was ROUGH.  It was like he was punishing me for leaving. He was BRUTAL for about a week making me wish I never came home. Thankfully things chilled out eventually.  I'm leaving him again on Memorial Day weekend so now I know to expect a devil-baby for the first week of June.  Lovely.

 

Surprised.

JOHN’S BIG WEEK

So a couple weeks ago John decided to knock-out a whole slew of milestones in one week.  It started on Saturday, March 1^st.  We were at the Cabana Club having dinner with Bud’s parents and John choked on a piece of Cantaloupe. …like legitimately choked.  We had to do the baby-Heimlich on him.  It was scary.  He just kept reaching for Bud with a terrified look in his eyes.  It lasted about one minute, but it was enough to scare the shit out of us.  After walking him around for a couple minutes to calm him down he was totally fine.

On Sunday, March 2^nd, John took his first steps.  Oh, it was just about the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.  John, Bud and I were playing in John’s room and he just stood up, started laughing, and took about 4 steps towards me.  It was adorable.  Since then he’s taken a few steps here and there, but is still mostly crawling to get around.  He’s so fast crawling and so slow walking so I don’t blame him for sticking to crawling. 

On Wednesday, March 5^th, John got sick for the first time.  He was so sad and pathetic.  He had a stuffy nose on Tuesday so I was worried that he was getting the bug that Bud had, but the kid had been so healthy for his 13.5 months that I was hoping the streak would last.  He woke up at about 11 pm (very unlike him) and was BURNING UP.  I’m not the kind of gal who can feel someone’s head and tell you if they have a temperature or not, but a coworker had told me that I’ll “definitely know” the first time John has one.  I was totally skeptical until I picked him up out of his crib and he felt like he’d been laying in the oven.  My poor baby.  Thursday was a long, rough day.  Although we were this close (picture me holding my fingers really close together) from him being weaned from nursing I let him nurse as much as he wanted that day (it was a lot).  The nurse at the pediatrician said that was a “nice thing to do.” Isn’t that a funny way of saying that?  “A nice thing to do.”  So fancy.  His fever only lasted about 24 hours, but he coughed and weezed for another 10 days. Ew. I mean, poor guy.

WEANING

Nope.  We still aren’t done with breastfeeding around here.  I never thought it’d go on this long, but I’m trying not to worry about it too much.  He’s down to only once per day (about 5-10 minutes), right before his nap.  I’ll drop it soon, but I’m terrified that once I quit nursing him before his nap, he’ll quit nursing all together. And no, I’m not kidding.  He might not ever nap again.  Waaaaaaaaa, waaaaaaaaa, waaaaaaaaaaaa.  I will be so sad.

OH YEA, WE’RE MOVING

Just a small detail that’s been neglected on the blog.  We are moving to Ponte Vedra.  It happened so much faster than expected and has consumed so much of my time lately.  I will do a whole post about it soon because there is a lot to explain, but yea…it’s happening.

Look at these dreamboats.

PS...I had a bunch of cute pictures to include in this post, but every time I tried to add them they came out sideways and I didn't want to break anyone's neck.  Who knows what's wrong with the pics I chose. 

12 Month Stats

John had his 12 month check-up on Monday so I have some updated stats.

Weight: 24 lbs, 2oz (85^th percentile...so tiny)
Height: 29.75” (50^th percentile….yay!  Out of the 25^th percentile for the first time)

BMI: “Lower than it was.  He used to be off the charts,” according to the doctor.

Hair: Gorgeous, flowing mane.  It’s getting dangerously close to SEC frat-boy hair which is not a look that Bud or I like, but we just aren't ready to cut it yet.  

See how skinny he is now. 

The appointment went well.  We are doing most things right and there are a few things we need to work on.  Bud and I really like John's pediatrician.  She's so sweet and supportive.  John had to get three vaccinations (one in his thigh and one in each arm).  Before the nurse started to told us to brace ourselves because these three shots will burn.  She was right.  Poor John trembled and screamed when she injected him and buried his head into my shoulder.  Thankfully, he cheered up pretty quickly.  The rest of the day he was a little off and took a really long nap, but doesn't seem to have any side effects.

The biggest news around here is my desire and John’s resistance to wean from breastfeeding.  As I’ve mentioned before, I’m over it.  My goal was 1 year and I’m so proud that I got there, but now I’m ready to be done.  We were only nursing 3 times a day (first thing in the morning, before nap and before bed) so I didn’t think it’d be too hard to stop.  I read a million articles and knew that a gradual transition would be best.  I dropped the morning session first because John was the least attached to that one.  He takes a bottle in his room (half breastmilk/half whole milk) when he wakes up.  There were a few mornings that he resisted, but it only took a few days and he’s been totally ok with it for a few weeks.  He honestly doesn’t seem to even remember that he used to nurse in the morning.

Because that went so well I (wrongly) assumed that the rest would be just as easy.  Oh what a fool I am.  When I attempted to drop another one all hell broke loose in Jacksonville.  I’m trying really hard not to exaggerate here, but John turned into a murderous, terrorizing, sad, sad, sad psycho baby.  It was heartbreaking.  Bud and I were pulling our hair out and contemplating leaving the little a-hole at his grandparents’ house with a note saying “I’m sorry…we can’t do it anymore.  He’s all yours until he’s 4.  We’d like him back in 2017.”

Well, Uma is too attached to John so we had to scrap that plan and come up with Plan B and that’s where we are now.  John is still taking a bottle in the morning, but nurses before his nap and before bed.  We’ll cross that bridge soon, but just decided to slow it down.  We now know that it’s not going to be easy, but that he will get it eventually. I honestly don’t know which one (nap or bedtime) I’m going to take away first.  It’s tempting to do bedtime because at least I’ll have Bud with me.

He won't be nursing when he's in elementary school, right?

Anyway…it’s not all weaning bullshit around here.  John is up to plenty of other things lately.  He’s not walking yet, but pulls up and stands all day long. He looooooves standing and will walk along the coffee table or bookcase all day long.  Several times a day I’ll catch him standing by himself, but as soon as he notices he plops down.  Thankfully, he’s much less clumsy lately.  I’m sure the constant bruises will return as soon as he starts walking.  He’s also an expert pointer.  He does it all day long, usually accompanied with a noise that sounds like “Ahn” or “uh ahn.” I think he’s still too young for pointing to be considered rude, right?

It makes me so happy to see John developing verbally.  The only word he says consistently and with purpose is “dog.”  He lights up and says “dog” every time he sees U&J and has even pointed out dogs in books.  He also says Mama and Dada, but he uses them pretty interchangeably and I don’t think he’s really connected that they are associated with me or Bud.  He tries his hardest to communicate what he wants, but unfortunately for him I still have no clue what pointing towards the table (or piano, or thermostat, etc) and saying "uhhhhh, uhhhh, uhhhh" means.  It's a non-stop guessing game.  

He loves laughing and being tickled.  His knees and feet are as ticklish as mine and will squeal and squirm when I grab them.  He still loves pulling all the books off his bookcase, but also likes to be read to now.  He prefers books with less words...I never understood the point of those baby books that I have one word per page (baby, crib, pajamas, lamp), but now I totally get it.  He could read that damn Bedtime book a million times.  He also likes books with liftable flaps....open, close, open, close, open, close.  Exciting shit, letmetellya.

I love watching him figure things out.  He has a toy that you have to put a little frog down a chute and then push a button to get it back.  He watched me do it a couple times and now does it on his own…again and again and again.  It’s a little thing, but makes me proud of my smart boy.  There are about 20 other little things like that, but I don’t want to totally bore all of you.

This is the toy I'm talking about.  

He got it for Christmas, but I didn't bust it out until his birthday.

John has recently become a daddy’s boy and has fought back when I’ve tried to take him off Bud’s hands for one reason or another.  It’s pretty cute.  He gets over it quickly, but definitely prefers Bud lately.  I think he thinks I’m just boring because he’s with me all day.

He’s a challenging baby, but still manages to make me smile.  Wish me luck with this weaning business.  I need it!

Year 1: By the Numbers

17 lbs gained

11 shots

1 freckle: on his inner thigh

355 baths

4 nights that someone other than me or Bud put John to bed

1 injury with blood

5 times I pulled over because John was crying in the car: always a bad idea...just keep driving

8 teeth

365 days nursing

2 counties visited: duuuuuuuuuuuval and st johns (we’ll see more of the world in 2014)

165 times being called a girl by a stranger

3 kisses from the lady at Publix: For real, she kisses him and I don’t know what to do about it

1 massive freakout by me: It wasn't pretty

11,180,772 times I’ve said “Oh my god, he’s so cute.”

11,180,773 times I’ve said “Why are you being such an asshole?”

26 times I've regretted his name: more on that later

Dr. Jekyll

Mr. Hyde

Happy Birthday, little love

Wonderful You - James J. Metcalfe

My darling, you are wonderful and perfect as can be,
And every day I thank the world that you belong to me.
Your loving smile inspires me to reach a nobler height,
And in so many other ways you are my guiding light.
You are my morning sunshine and the peaceful sky of blue
And you are all the silver stars that make my dreams come true.
I speak your name as softly as my lips would say a prayer,
Though I could not begin to tell how much I really care.
I love you, darling, more than life could ever mean to me
Because you are my hope and happy memory.

John's 1st Christmas

Ho, ho, ho!  Before my boy’s first Christmas is completely neglected (like his first Thanksgiving…whoops!), I thought I should write a little something here.

John was incredibly lucky to spend his first Christmas with almost his entire family…mom, dad, his sisters, all 4 grandparents, all 7 aunts & uncles (including Petey), and 4 of his cousins (including Jake).  We missed you, Shiva!  Nannie isn't able to come to mom's house anymore, but Bud, John, and I went to see her the day after Christmas.

Christmas Eve morning we woke up and headed to the Garros to hangout with that side of the family for a while.  Mimi and grandpa’s house is full of fun toys and cousins so John had a blast.  We left at lunchtime and the poor kid was asleep before we were out of the neighborhood.  We got home and attempted to get him to sleep in his bed, but that wasn’t happening.  

Around 3:00 we gave up and headed to my parents house for presents and dinner.  John got some practical things (clothes, thermometer, stroller attachment) and a bunch of really fun toys (A car! A firetruck ball pit! A piano!).   Despite not having a nap, John was pretty sweet and spent most of the time hanging out in Bud’s lap.  As usual, dinner was fabulous.  Lasagna + wine + garlic bread = happy Katie.  John started to be an ass towards the end of dinner so we had to scoot out pretty quickly before things turned ugly.  Needless to say, John was exhausted when we got home and feel sound asleep pretty quickly.

This wasn't a new toy, but kept John entertained while we opened gifts,

When he wasn't playing with that toy, he was sitting in Bud's lap idolizing Paul.

This is an awkward pose...I swear we like each other.

John's first pair of sunglasses.  Babiators.

Christmas morning John woke up at 8:00 and I nursed him as quickly as possible so we could get to Bud’s parents’ house.  All the kids over there were patiently waiting for us to get there so they could see what Santa brought them.  I’m 99% sure I would NOT have been able to wait so I was impressed when we got there that there were still wrapped presents. 

John was a little over-whelmed with the craziness once we started unwrapping, but he was perfectly happy to sit in Mimi’s lap and watch everyone.  I don’t think she minded either.  Like the night before, John was completely spoiled.  He got a water table, a cell phone, a tv remote, a ball thingy, a little baby couch, books, a magic cube, and a ton of other stuff I’m forgetting.  After presents we had the traditional Garro Christmas Day BBQ (burgers, macaroni salad, and chips) and then we left.  Again, John fell asleep in the car immediately.  We took a very, very long way home so that he could sleep knowing that it’d be his only nap of the day.

Just hold me, Mimi.

Post gift-opening haze

Asleep within 3 minutes of getting in his carseat.

(No, he didn't have that Mt. Dew...it's just a toy in the car)

We were home with the girls for about an hour or so and then headed back to PVB to my parent’s house for dinner family time.  Another amazing meal…beef tenderloin, potatoes, and salad.  Just like the night before, John started to turn into a gremlin half way through dinner so we left before Allyson and Paul decided to get sterilized.

We are so, so lucky to have both sides of the family here in Jacksonville.  It would be very hard to miss one side or another on Christmas.  We were, however, a bit exhausted.  Eight trips to and from PVB in 48 hours is a little much, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

7

I've made some mistakes in my 31 years. Some of these mistakes were doozies and some were just silly. But the biggest decision I ever made - who to marry, who to share my life with - is one choice that I couldn't have done any better.

This week Bud and I celebrated our 7th anniversary. Looking back, I still can't believe that we got engaged at 23 and married just a year later. If John comes to me in 22 years saying he's found "the one," I'll turn him around and tell him to come back in a decade. 

But we knew. At the beginning and end of every day, we knew. We knew we were special. Every-single-day I feel special because he loves me and every-single-day I try to be the person that this amazing man will be proud to call his wife.  I don’t say we’re special because I feel like we have something others don’t.  I say we’re special because we truly feel that way and I can only wish that everyone I love feels the same way about her own partner. 

We knew that adding a baby to our family would change our relationship.  I think anyone who says it doesn’t is a big fat liar, but the God’s honest TRUTH is that it has made us stronger.  It’s made me love him in a whole new way.  I’ve always felt like I “needed” him, but before John it was like when I “need” a coffee in the morning.  Now, I need him like a fish needs water.  He’s not only a lifeline for survival, he’s home. He’s in the trenches with me every day and he makes it fun. 

I don’t know what I did to deserve him, but will spend the next 60 years making sure that we always feel this way about each other.

Eleven Months Old!

I actually wrote this post in 12/23, but forgot to post it.  I'm just going to pretend like Christmas hasn't already happened and all of you are going to go along with it, ok?  Don't like it?  Click here.

Well, here we are…the final monthly update of John’s first year.  It’s so hard for me to believe that he’s only a few weeks away from his first birthday.  But before we go there, let’s chat about month 10 for Johnny.

Getting him to sit still for this picture took an act of God.

John had a really good three weeks followed by one pretty shitty fourth week…hence, the reason why I wasn’t able to write this post on time.  It’s been a long few days.  When John’s happy and well-rested, he’s very sweet, funny, and playful, but lawd help me when he’s grumpy.  You simply cannot really know desperation until you’ve dealt with a baby who can’t sleep yet can’t stay awake/wants to eat yet refuses to eat/wants to be held yet PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW.  It’s a lot.  We’ve definitely had more good days than bad, but it’s easier to remember the bad days because they’re like a horror movie that you can’t stop thinking about.  I don’t mean for this to sound so negative and I really don’t want it to sound like I don’t like being John’s mom it’s just a tough phase.

John’s absolutely favorite thing to do at the moment is standing.  He LOVES it.  He’s not walking or standing on his own yet, but will pull up on anything he can and just stand there smiling.  This has lead to a lot of tumbles and tears, but as soon as he’s calmed down he pulls himself right back up.  He also continues to love pulling any and everything off the shelves in his room.  He does this 2-25 times a day.  Whatev, weirdo.

everyone said he'd slim down when he started moving more, but don't worry...he still has plenty of leg rolls to share.

Sleeping:

Same story, different month.  John is an honor student when it comes to nighttime sleeping and gets a D+ on napping.  I have gotten several 2-3 hour naps this month, but I’ve also gotten several (including the past THREE days) when he didn’t nap at all.  Not one wink.  That’s not ok at 11 months old.  NOT OK.

I’m trying new tricks and reading endless tips online, but there are some days when it’s just not happening.  After some research, Bud and I decided pretty early on that we are not “cry-it-out” people.  It’s just not for us.  That being said, I’ve given it a try a couple times and it honestly doesn’t work for John.  He’s one strong-willed boy.  I think he’d cry all day if I let him (which I wouldn’t).  Le sigh…we’ll figure out napping one day, right?

Eating:

John continues to eat like a champ.  He’s nursing less and eating food more and more.  We’ve been trying out more finger foods like apples, carrots, or small bites of whatever we’re eating.  I honestly can’t think of one thing that he doesn’t like…he’s even come around on peas and broccoli which is more than I can say for his parents.

I am planning to stop nursing around his first birthday.  I might feel differently once it’s over, but I’m honestly so excited to stop.  It’s not hard or painful in any way, but I’m just over it.  I’m so, so glad I was able to do it this long and credit breastfeeding for 98% of the reason that John has never even had a sniffle much less an illness, but I’ll be glad to not have to worry about it anymore.

Size:

Basically the same as last month.  He weights 24-25 lbs and wears 12-18 month clothes and Size 4 diapers.  He’s a big boy, but I feel like he’s been the same size for a while.

Teeth:

Six – 4 on top, 2 on the bottom.  I thought I saw two more poking through on the bottom, but I don’t think so.  Is it weird that I’m glad he’s symmetrical?  I saw a baby with an odd number of teeth and thought it looked freaky.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooveralls.  ah! 

Hair:

Oh, John’s hair…how do I love thee?  You guys, I love it.  It’s slightly ridiculous and it wings out on the sides like he’s about to take flight, but I love it.  Bud and I have started to ask each other if he needs a trim, but I don’t think so…even if he is mistaken for a girl when we’re out in public.   We comb and brush it every night before bed and I swear it’s one of his favorite times of day. 

John’s Highlight of the Month:

Gaining an uncle!  Allyson and Paul got married on 12/6.  He was always Uncle Paul to us, but we love that it’s now official.

Favorite Picture:

Others:

'the end of alzheimer's starts with me'

I don't always take selfies, but when I do, I make sure John is in them.

bieber hair

2/3rds of his awake time is spent shoving random things in his mouth