A Little Pre-Christmas Update

How Roan is Doing...

 He tried solids! I was out to eat with family and someone asked how feedings were going & I explained my frustrations and how I really feel like we need to try solids, but I was waiting till 6 months. My cousin, and dear friend, Devon said "You know, I would lean towards trusting your mommy instincts on this one." And I realized that she was right. I've been ignoring my instincts. Yes, Roan's doctor said "wait till closer to 6 months"; but that was at his 4 month checkup. And I researched it and came to the conclusion that it was time. We're also gonna skip oatmeal/rice cereal.

He did really well with the avocado! Though I don't think he liked the taste, he at least ate it haha.

We're basically set with the day care. Just gotta get some paperwork filled out. We are looking for a nanny, though. If anyone knows of someone who's interested...or is looking themselves, we are definitely looking.

How Mom is Doing...

Yeah, another one from Thanksgiving. I don't have any recent ones of us.

My anxiety about going back to work increases each day. I can only imagine how I'm going to feel January 2nd! I'm expecting a massive tummy ache, haha. Sometimes I get that anyway...it's only going to be made worse given that I haven't worked since June 2011. I'm really hoping that Roan doesn't start crawling at daycare (please, oh please, baby boy). I've been blessed to witness so many milestones and "firsts" since I've been home; I really dread the idea of missing some. Such is life, I guess. I'm debating telling the daycare to just not tell me if he does something for the first time. Just let me think I'm seeing the first crawl :)

One thing that does help about going back to work is knowing I won't have to swim with the kids! It's not my favorite thing, but especially seeing how not bathing-suit ready I look, I was pleased to hear that I will swap with another para as she is lifeguard certified...so I will stay back and do her job. Thank you, Denise, for that one!

How Dad is Doing...

Another Thanksgiving one; no new photos of dad either.

I think it's safe to publicly say this now...Sean quit working at Inspired Green. Let's just say it was the best option for our family for him to return to painting...it had nothing to do with the company or the people. He was able to start painting again the very next day. One of the guys on the crew (our friend)...his wife is pregnant and is actually being induced tomorrow, but at the time Sean quit, they thought she was gonna have him soon, so he wanted to be home anyway in case that did happen. That left a spot open for Sean. So it really worked out well for everyone.

We've discussed that painting might end up being his career for the indefinite future. He has an associates, but no bachelors or anything like that. And as long as they have a decent amount of work, he makes good money. There may be a day when he can go back to school to get a degree, but at least right now, he'd want to go for teaching and now is not the time to find jobs teaching. For now, though, painting provides for our family. 

Mommy and Roan's Adventure

And what an adventure it was! Though I am glad it wasn't more of an adventure.

Roan and I left Saturday morning for the Detmers Christmas. Sean couldn't go because he had to play guitar at church all weekend.

We left after Roan's 10am-ish bottle...at 10:45. The roads around town weren't great, but I was hopeful the highway would be better.

The highway just looked wet...like after a rain. I was still taking it slow. Especially after I saw a cop car with an SUV on it's side at an exit. It looked like he was just waiting for the tow as the back of the SUV was open and there didn't appear to be anyone in it.

5 minutes later, at the most, traffic was backed up. One of those where you move 5 feet, then stop...then another 5, then stop. And it went on for a long, long time. I couldn't see what was going on, but as I got closer, they were making everyone get off at Lansing Road. Lansing Road runs right next to the highway, for those that don't know. So once I got off the highway and drove for a bit, I saw a few fire trucks and two tows taking away a pick-up truck and an RV. The truck's roof was banged up pretty bad and the side of the RV was banged up, too. So it was a big accident. They were letting people back on at the Shell station where Lansing Roand meets Vermontville Highway. I needed gas, so we made a pit stop and were on our way.

The roads still just seemed wet to me, so I think the accidents happened before it was warm enough to melt the ice. The snow came the night before and the roads were already wet, so it just created a ton of black ice.

We made it safely to my parents a few hours before dinner was supposed to start. I didn't really have time to get things situated where I wanted them...or to remember where I put stuff...because it had to be put away fast. Roan was hungry and my mom had worked tirelessly to clean the house, so I was not about to just dump everything and mess it up. The rest of our time there was kinda crazy, trying to remember where things were.

Then came bed time later that evening. I didn't bring Roan's bath sponge (really, the only way he's happy in the bath is if he's free to kick), so he got his first bath in the sink!

Love those rolls!!

Bed time was frantic, too, as I had to move the pack 'n play upstairs. No one else knew how to do that, so I couldn't just ask someone to do it. I was sweating just trying to get his bath done (I had help there), move the pack 'n play (also had help), and make his bottle...all the while knowing he was hungry and tired.

He didn't nap well that day, so I thought "He'll sleep like a champ!" At 3am, I hear him whining over the monitor. I'd put him in an overnight diaper, so he couldn't have been super wet...and he usually doesn't poop till morning. Still, I checked on him...diaper was fine...gave him his paci, and went back to bed. He continued to whine. I later would discover that he just wanted snuggles because he was out of his element. Also, I left his sleep sac downstairs, so I think he was a little chilly. I continued to watch the lights on the monitor and committed to only letting him whine or 15 minutes. Mind you, this was just his "I'm uncomfortable" grunting...he wasn't screaming or crying.

He woke up again at 5:15ish. At home, he'll sleep till 6/6:30 at the earliest. I changed his diaper and put his sleep sac on...held him up to me...put a blanket over him and started swaying with him. He put his thumb in his mouth, laid his head down on my chest, and was out instantly. I rocked him for a little longer, though, because I felt bad...and I so love snuggling him! He woke up the next time at 8am and I fed him then.

Sunday, it was time to go home. Everyone was getting together again at either grandma's or Jaa & Jody's, but it was taking a while to figure out the details. I knew the absolute latest we could leave was 3pm. Thankfully, Roan's feedings worked out to where he ate at 2pm (when everyone met up at Jaa & Jody's), so I was able to feed him and still hang out for half-an-hour or so until it was time to go.

The drive home was far less eventful & scary as the drive down. Although I was exhausted and didn't realize to what magnitude until we started driving. That was a little scary.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from the weekend: 

Happy Belated 5 Months!

Wow, Keane-y Beane-y is 5 months old (yesterday). Almost half a year! Where has the time gone?!

I was a day late taking his pictures...oops. I kinda forgot that it was his 5 month birthday until this morning. So I snapped a few pictures of him before he had his bottle & we left for church. A day late is close enough. It was bound to happen sooner or later.

Sporting his Inspired by Finn amber necklace :) Just in case he starts teething soon. Plus, I think it's adorable on him!

Gosh I love him so!

I'm happy to report that he's re-learned how to roll onto his back and rolls back and forth all the time. I've just gotta bite the bullet and get some of those foam squares so he can spend more time on the floor and have more room to roll.

We're going to try stage 3 bottle nipples tomorrow. For those that don't know, stage 1 is slow flow...0-3 months, I think. We switched to stage 2 (medium flow, 3-6 months) when he was 2 months, I think? I was pumping & bottle feeding, so I noticed that he was getting frustrated during his feedings, but he was still obviously hungry. Actually, I suspect that also contributed to why breast feeding didn't work for us. He was SO hungry that he sucked really, really hard and it caused me a lot of pain. Combined with the recessed chin thing.... Hopefully I'll have better success the second time around (it's gonna be a while till we have a 2nd baby haha).

Lately he's been like that...grunty/squirmy, but seemingly absolutely famished. He's been burp-y a lot...usually he can take 6 ounces without having to burp until the end! I think he might be burp-y because he's sucking so hard to get the formula out that he's taking in a lot of air. Stage 3 is technically for 6+ months, but since we switched to stage 2 early with success, I'm not too concerned that this will harm him, haha. Worst case scenario: it's too fast for him, so we'll stop using stage 3 and go back to stage 2.

Checking In

How Roan is Doing...

Peek-a-boo!

Roan is doing really well! Still sleeping and eating well. People have been asking me if he's crawling yet. I feel bad cause he spends much of his time in the pack-and-play or the exersaucer cause we have hardwood floors. Heck, I wouldn't want to lay on hardwood floors for longer than 2 minutes. I want to get those foam square things to put down on the floor. One Step Ahead has some that look like hardwood :) But we're seriously running out of space around here!

He's a super smiley baby, but not much of a laugher. If he does laugh or giggle, it's short-lived. I keep saying/thinking he's like his daddy and is very particular about what is funny to him. Again, it's not that he doesn't smile & isn't happy.

We're not starting solids until he's 6 months old (so...1/10/11ish). I think that's gonna be really weird when we do, though...and as he starts to eat more solids. He's growing up too fast!!

How Mom is Doing...

I'm just gonna say it. I don't want to go back to work. It has absolutely nothing to do with my job or my coworkers or the kids. I simply would rather be home with my son. I'm certainly not going to quit my job halfway through the year. The future is pretty uncertain, so I literally have to take it month-by-month. Money is tight because Sean basically took a pay cut with this new job. I'm not making any decisions right now. Gotta wait and see how things pan out over the coming months.

I'm just loving everything about being home. I love my time with Roan. I like cooking. I don't like cleaning, though, haha. But having a well-organized, clean home does feel really good, so I guess I should work harder on that. If I weren't going back to work, I'd probably have a different mindset about cleaning. I'm nervous as to how I'm gonna do it all once I go back to work. Moms do it all the time, though. Therefore, I should be able to as well, right?

How Dad is Doing...

We do this all the time...and say "SUPER BABY"!

Sean is still working, working, working. Going door-to-door in the cold, sometimes wet, weather. He definitely comes home with interesting stories sometimes. His work's Christmas party is this weekend. We've never gone to a work Christmas party for him...usually we just have mine.

We just got DVR, so I'm excited to be able to record shows I wanna watch when he's watching football & watch them the next day when he's at work ;) Not that I do a ton of watching tv.

Other than that, it's pretty much the same old, same old. Fantasy Football is still going on, he still plays guitar at church, and is teaching guitar after practice Tuesday nights.

Life is good :) Just living in the now. And our now is pretty dang awesome cause of our little guy.

Thanksgiving

We visited my family in Indiana for Thanksgiving. As usual, it was great being with family. For some, it was their first time meeting Roan. He did really well being away from home and he's done really well getting back into his "routine". Here are some photos from the weekend.

Roan with my aunt Jody

He loved his great-uncle Jaa.

Snuggling right up...super cute moment.

Grandma Berta giving him a bottle.

Uncle Micah and aunt Drea

Grandma and Tom

Uncle Morgan

He was tired and whiny...so Sean played his guitar and voila! Well, for a little bit.

In other Roan news, he's a tummy sleeper! We found him sleeping on his tummy one morning and it's been that way ever since. Only, it seems as though he forgot how to roll the other way now that he knows how to get on his tummy. Just today he rolled onto his back twice, so hopefully he'll keep that up. Sometimes I keep rolling him onto his back only to have him roll right back onto his tummy and proceed to whine until I roll him over again. Haha.

Our cloth diaper endeavor failed. I bought used BumGenius diapers from a friend. I put 2 liners in them and after about 8 leaks (during the day), I decided it wasn't worth it. Not worth it to change his outfit 3+ times a day. They seemed to be leaking from the sides because the front would be dry, but the side and back would be wet. So unless I was doing something wrong or there are diapers that hold more, looks like we're sticking with Huggies Pure and Natural. Maybe we'll try again in a few months...perhaps when he's not peeing as frequently? Does that happen with boys? Haha. I don't know what to do with the diapers now.

We're not starting solids yet. Doc said to wait till he's closer to 6 months. That was my original plan anyway. Roan sleeps 10+ hours a night...that would be the only reason why I might introduce oatmeal. I want to look more into baby-led solids and I'm pretty certain I want to give him oatmeal instead of rice cereal. It's just crazy right now to think about him eating solids! I am looking forward to him not going through so much formula. He eats 8oz at almost every feeding! We give him Earth's Best Organic formula and that stuff is expensive...and we go through a can just about every week. Our boy is an eater!

4 Month Checkup

How Roan is Doing...

Roan just had his 4 month checkup! All is on track with my little man. Here's his stats:

Weight = 15lb 14oz (50-60th percentile)
Height = 25.75'' (60th)

Head circ. = 44cm (60th)

His appointment was at 1:15pm. This was a slight problem because he was supposed to eat at 1pm. But he wasn't crying & seemed relatively happy, so I held him off. The nurse kept referring to him as a girl! I have a hard time with what to do in that situation...I usually try to ask a question using "he"...or call him my big guy/baby boy, etc. She apologized and said she has 5 granddaughters. "Plus, he's just such a beautiful baby!" I know, nurse lady, I know :)

Then it was time for his shots. He had 3 of them. Of course, he cried, but not as bad as I thought. It is harder when they have real tears. Plus, I think the fact that he was hungry didn't help. Guess that disqualifies me for the mom-of-the-year award (if you really think that, then pffft to you). Really, though, he was fine. He was hungry, but not famished. Just getting to that "Hey...hey mom...mom, I'm getting hungry."

I have to go clothes shopping for him. His plain white 3-6 month onesies don't fit! Seriously, Gerber, what the frick?! It can't be that Roan is big...I mean 60th percentile is still pretty average. Oh well, clothes shopping is fun :) Also, I know he's super close to not fitting in size 2 diapers anymore. Good thing I just bought another pack (eye roll).

We're kind of easing into using cloth diapers (except when out in public, at night, and possibly when people babysit). So far I've had quite a few leaks. Not too sure how it's gonna work out. We'll see.

How Mom is Doing...

I have been good...busy! Lots of photo shoots recently, which is great. I really need to make some investments to get my photography going a bit more. 

I'm pretty addicted to Pinterest. But, because of that site, I've learned how to make sock bun curls (no heat = awesome!), I've made some pretty good food, and I've done lots of organizing & need to do more. And there are some pretty neat DIY projects on there, too. Really, it's probably the healthiest addiction because organizing is always good...DIY projects save money. The hair part is kinda vain, but it's helpful because as a momma, I need quick hairstyles that keep my hair out of my face.

How Dad is Doing...

Sean has been good, too. The new job is going ok. I think he's only had a few days where he's installed 3 or 4 kits. If he installs 4 early on in his shift, he's technically allowed to leave work early. There were a few days where he didn't do any cause of the neighborhood he was in. Some neighborhoods just don't answer the door.