Theo

“rough patch”

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest

I started this blog (and named it “rough patch”) on 6/28/11 with the following: 

I often remind myself not to compare Dexter to Theodore, but it’s virtually impossible.  Daily, I’m surprised at how much is already so difficult to recall.  What did I do when Theo did this?  How old was Theo when he started doing this or stopped doing that?  Despite my efforts, I repeatedly find myself saying “Well, when Theo was 8 weeks he slept through the night for thr first time, so that must mean he was only waking up once a night by the time he was 6 weeks” or “I don’t think Theo cried this much at this age.”

Then I recall talking to the doctor (at Theo’s 1 or 2 month appointment?) about colic and wondering if Theo had it.  I remember telling my mom that Theo must be the unhappiest baby in the world because he cried so much and asking myself “what am I doing wrong?” a hundred times a day.  And I look at him now and know that, while I may not do everything by the book, I have one of the sweetest, funniest, happiest little boys I can imagine.

Unfortunately, that’s not always enough to ease my mind while in the throes of one of Dexter’s fits.  Or enough to relax me when I’m up for the fourth time in as many hours during the night.  There are certainly similarities between Dexter and Theo at this wee stage, but some new challenges particularly because of Theo.

And today, 7/9/11, is the first time I’ve had a chance to complete my thoughts and this blog entry. 

So, since I started this blog 2 weeks ago, things have gotten better, although I didn’t really get a chance to go into all the details.  I hate that I have not been able to blog because I have had so many things I wanted to jot down that I have already forgotten.  Dexter showed me his first sly smile at 4 weeks.  And yes, I’m sure it was a real smile.  Now, at 8 weeks and 1 day, he offers them freely and they make everything worthwhile.  About 2 weeks ago he scared me with the worst case of baby acne I have ever seen.  It came on so fast and seemed to be spreading rapidly so I quickly consulted with the pediatrician to ensure that baby acne was all that it was, and not an allergic reaction to something I was eating or putting on my skin.  The doctor explained that newborns between the age of 1 and 2 months go through a “mini-puberty” while the leftover hormones are leaving their bodies.  The acne cleared up as quickly as it came on.

We made a quick trip south to visit my family for the weekend of July 4th.  Dexter got to meet his aunt, uncle, and two first cousins and got to visit with Grammy again for the first time since he was 2 weeks old.  Surprisingly, Dexter slept A LOT in the car both ways and it didn’t seem to affect his night sleep.  But when he was awake in the car…oof.  It was ugly.  He has a high need/desire to be held all. the. time.  Luckily he slept over half the way down there and back.

Theo is amazing me more each and every day.  I look at Dexter and wonder how this little lump of snugly goodness will learn so much in the next year.  We are having so much fun with Theo.  Every stage that he enters is better than the one before and I’m curious when that all starts to reverse or slow down.  I love to watch him learn and make connections.  He is talking nonstop now and repeats almost anything we say (good or bad).  He still barely says “mama” at home but the babysitter recently informed me that he has been saying it for months and will point to my picture on the family wall and say “mama” on command.  Little sneak.

Theo has been clingy to me ever since Dexter was born.  It’s not to the point that it’s bothersome but sometimes it’s a little inconvenient…like, when I’m nursing and he wants to lay across my lap or smother Dexter in hugs and kisses.

I have less than 4 weeks of maternity leave left and the bitter reality is setting in.  I’m trying not to focus on it but it’s always in the back of my mind that this precious time is winding down.

Oh, something really fun was a couple of weeks ago when my friend and I took our toddler boys (same age) to the zoo while I left Dexter with his grandparents for the day.  I realized that for the majority of Theo’s life I was pregnant and therefore haven’t felt good enough or had enough energy to do a lot of fun things with him.  I had been miserable ever since he could walk.  It was so much fun doing an activity like that with him when I didn’t have to worry about Dexter throwing a fit or needing to find a private place to nurse.  Of course I thought about how different things would have been up to this point had we not gotten pregnant with Dexter when we did, but when I picked Dexter up from Nana and Pop Pop, I was ready to snuggle with him and kiss the skin right off his little face.  I missed him during those 6 hours apart and I can’t imagine having to wait another day to have him in our lives.

So, that’s it in a nutshell…so many feelings and situations have come and gone and I hate that I haven’t been able to keep up with every detail.  The problem has been our computer…it must be in remission today, because I haven’t been able to get it to even turn on for almost a week.  The battery is just shot and we keep putting off getting a new one because I want to get a good (read: expensive) one that can easily handle processing high resolution photos and videos.  Anyway, I think we’re close to getting a new one and then I will be bloggin’ Betty once again.  And my blogs will feature photos of my cute boys much more often.  This dumb computer gets bogged down when I just upload photos to it, forget editing or doing anything else with them.

Oh.  And by the way, Dexter slept 8 hours on the day he turned 8 weeks old.  There’s hope after all.

be back soon,
~C~

15 month letter to my big boy: a photoblog

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest
Dear Theo,

So, so much has changed since you turned one. Your life is completely different and you have learned and accomplished so many things. I can’t help but smile when I watch you shakin’ your tush to music, especially that silly Mickey Mouse Clubhouse show you love. It’s so cute to watch your face light up when you hear the familiar music and see the characters.

12 months

I also love telling you to stop, sit, and scoot when you approach a step down. You are figuring out how to keep yourself safe at times, but other times you have no regard for danger. You know that the stove is hot and when food is hot. It’s funny to hear you say “hot” and then blow on the bite.  You can say lots of words and you’ll try to repeat many on your own time but you can be pretty stubborn when we are trying to get you to do something or show off.

One of your favorite things to do is to ride all around the neighborhood in the wagon Grammy got you for your birthday.  All we have to say is “wagon” or “outside” and you high-tail it towards the nearest door.  You always look so serious in the wagon, taking in all the sights and sounds around you. I think you’d stay in that wagon for days. Every time you see it, you point and your mouth goes that excited little “o.”

You love books.  You love looking at them, interacting with them, and having someone read them to you.  You have some favorites but you’re not too picky.  You’ve also started playing with pull toys, like your alligator, xylophone, and telephone.  One of my favorite things about you right now is that you understand so much more every day.  We can tell you “go get your alligator” and you will do just that.  You will also throw trash in the garbage can when we ask you to.

13 months

You’re friendly and you love it when people interact with you. Sometimes you will pretend to be shy when someone new or unfamiliar comes to our house but you always wave and grin to strangers at the store. What’s that about? 

Easter 2011

Your appetite changes as much as you do. One thing has always been consistent – you love green vegetables. I hope you always like healthy foods. You used to gobble down yogurt and grilled or baked chicken but now they don’t interest you as much. You don’t care for noodles. You sure don’t want anyone to feed you, but you haven’t shown much interest in using utensils yet.  In other words, mealtimes are messy around here. You are great with all kinds of different cups now, and do really well drinking out of a straw. You only drink water and milk for now, but one of these days we’ll have to let you have some juice.  Just promise you’ll keep drinking water and milk too, okay?

14 months
You’re getting so big now!
Oh yeah, I guess we should talk about your baby brother. He is almost four weeks old and there have been some highs and lows for you since baby Dexter showed up. Undoubtedly, it’s confusing for you. Sometimes (more often than not), you just want to hug him. Well, your version of a hug is to suck your thumb and lay your head down on the object of your affection. Sometimes you pat him on the head gently. There have been a few times when you have been too rough with Dexter, like when you threw that shoe in his face and the times that you have slapped him on the head or face when I thought you were reaching to pat him. I hope you aren’t trying to hurt him. I think you are just trying to figure things out. I know it especially hurts your feelings when we sternly tell you “no” and it has to do with Dexter. I’m sorry, but you’ve got to learn that he is small and you are so much stronger than him…stronger than you realize. Overall, I think you love your baby brother and that you’ll be incredibly close one day.
“hugging” Dexter

I know it’s confusing when I can’t stop feeding Dexter or put him down when he’s upset to play with you. I have redirected you to daddy, grammy, nana, pop pop, and other grown ups at times when you wanted me to read you a book or take you outside. There are probably times when you think I don’t care or love you as much as I did a month ago and that breaks my heart.  Because you know what, sweetie?  You’re wrong. I will always, always love you more than I did the day before. You’re my first baby, my first child, my first toddler, my first son. You are the one that taught me how to be a mommy.  You will always be so special to me and we will forever have a precious bond.  I promise you that – and I don’t take promises lightly.

15 months

You’re my Peezy Brown and you always will be.

I love you,
Mommy

the good and the bad

Posted on by mommyinthemidwest
Little Dexter is 9 days old now and we’ve been home from the hospital for an entire week. The good, no…great news is that Dexter has been a fabulous baby so far.  He hasn’t cried much (yet) and while he loves to be held, he can also be sat down and has been sleeping (fairly) well in the pack n’ play next to our bed. Last night he had his longest stretch yet from 1:15am until 6am. I couldn’t believe it when I woke up and looked at the clock. I think as a parent, your heart always leaps a little out of fear when that happens for the first time.

The even greater news is that Dexter has not (yet) woken Theo up at night. Theo has been sleeping like a champ. Dexter had a doctor’s appointment last Wednesday so we took him to the babysitter’s for the day. I was a little worried that it would hurt his feelings that we were leaving him behind but apparently not because he ran straight to the toy box and never looked back. He loves his babysitter and the other little boy there so I think it was some normalcy for him in a world that’s pretty confusing right now.

Back to Dexter’s doctor’s appointment… everything was good. He weighed 7lb 8oz at birth and was 6lb 13oz the last time he got weighed at the hospital. At his appointment last Wednesday, he weighed 6lb 14.5oz so we are headed in the right direction. Last week was pretty rough for me physically. Pain from my tear, some continued uterine cramping, and engorgement made me kind of miserable. Luckily, my hormones have stayed in check thus far and I’m not feeling too crazy. 

More great news – breastfeeding is about a bazillion times easier this time around. Not to say it’s painless, but that’s to be expected when you’ve got someone latched on to a sensitive body part 10 different times a day. I don’t dread feeding my baby. He has a great latch and I suppose I’m probably more relaxed with the whole scenario. Regardless of who gets the credit, I’m happy with the outcome.

Finally, the not so great stuff. I don’t know what to make of Theo’s behavior since we’ve been home. He goes from one extreme to the other. Half the time he totally ignores Dex and then when he does pay attention to him, he’s either throwing a shoe in his face (yes, that happened) or laying his head down on him to give him a hug. I never know what he’s going to do, so I find myself cupping Dexter’s head and shielding his face anytime Theo walks by. I don’t want to give Theo the impression that he can’t touch his baby brother but I can’t allow him to be mean to him. It’s tough. Theo has thrown a few out of character fits for no apparent reason so of course I’m left to wonder if it has something to do with Dexter, being mad at me, his teeth hurting, or something else.  It’s stressful not being able to drop what I’m doing to read Theo a book or play with him when he asks me to.

All in all, we’re making the transition and so far it’s gone okay. I’m not sure I’ll ever leave the house with both babies, but going with a helper isn’t so bad.

I kinda like living in a house full of cute guys.

~C~