Summer...Day 1: 4 month appointment including shots

Today Thuglet had his 4 month appointment. He was about a week past due, but I wanted to wait until I was out of school. True to his Thuglet nature how woke up at 4:25 this morning, rip roaring to go! So we hung out for about 45 minutes before he fell back to sleep. He was then up again at 7:00 to start the day!

One of the best things about summer vacation...I get to chose his outfits. It is so fun to mix and match. I can't even image how fun a girl would be in this aspect.

The appointment went as expected. He is thriving!! 25 percentile for weight and 35 percentile for height...And then came the shots. Even before they were administered he was upset. He KNEW!

After a little booby time he was as good as new. This afternoon we were able to sit outside and enjoy the beautiful weather.

Until the evening, and then he was feverish and fussy. It took three times before he finally settled down for the night, which is very out of character.

Precursor...60 Days of Summer

Summer is one day away and I am excited, with a capital E!

With my little Thuglet and Pickchu the Puppy I feel like this might be the best summer yet. I am looking forward to spending so much time with my son. I am also hoping to reestablish my "life after baby," so that it might slightly resemble my life before baby. In the spirit of these thoughts I am going to blog everyday, at least try my hardest. It will be called "60 days of summer."

Some of my goals for this summer:

• Clean quilt room (haven't used it in 2 months)
• Finish I Spy quilt 
• Finish pirate quilt
• Finish whimsical quilt
• Chalkboard frames
• Cork board/fabric project
• Deep clean entire house
• Hang out with Aunt B, Moo Baby and Danety Leon
• Start puppy training
• Declutter the entire house
• Finish side table project
• Etc...

So many things to achieve and the most exciting thing about it is that I get to hang out with the Thuglet for the whole duration!!!!

I think I might be crazy

Growing up I always had at least one dog and it was one part of my child that I truly cherish. Six months ago my glorious Magnus died and left me wanting. He was amazing. A big bullmastiff with the most gentle way about him. His only downfall was his purebred genetics. He was never very healthy.

After he died there was no thought of a replacement because the Thuglet was going to be born within a couple of months. Well, Thuglet joined us in the outside world and is doing fabulous. I have settled into my mommy routine and now have time to think of other things...like puppies!!!

I want Thuglet to have what I had. A dog that can be his to climb on and cuddle with. A dog to be his to run around with, who loves him unconditionally.

First I had to talk the Husby into the idea. It took some compromising but I received the go-ahead. Then I began my search...two weeks later I ended up my little Pickachu. She is 1/2 french mastiff and 1/2 american bulldog...a Hooch/Petey mix! She is adorable. 

But....she is so much work. I forgot what having a puppy was like. I don't regret getting her but damn, what did I get myself into? Thuglet and her don't really know how to interact yet but I know they will be best of friends. 

That being said, I think I might be crazy for venturing into this situation. A four month old and a 6 week old puppy...two little babies to care for. The only saving grace is that summer is only 9 school days away and I wont have work to contend with. Also, Pikachu will develop quickly and become the pup she is meant to be!

Downtown Buster Brown

Husby and I celebrated 5 years of marriage this last weekend. We booked a room at the Hilton and left the baby with his Grand (maternal Grandma). We got almost a whole 24 hours of no baby. It was very fun. We arrived at the hotel and there was a party going on at the Hard Rock Sunday Intervention.

You know you are a crazy partier when you get your kicks watching other people going to a party. People watching from our room was awesome. We saw several "walks of shame" or rather "stumbles of shame," and all these dudes and girls wearing their bathing suits downtown San Diego.

We don't have cable so one of the greatest things about staying in a hotel is laying in bed watching mindless shows that we don't have to access to at home, like MTV Ridiculousness. Unfortunately, even if Thuglet was with his Grand my boobs were still in action. While watching some mindless program I had to pump. Thuglet needed the milk for another day.

After pumping, we headed out for our big night on the town. We headed to Eastern Tavern and Bowl. Keep in mind it is only 5:30 pm and it was like a ghost town...better for us. We ordered our drinks...cider for me. We ended up playing 5 games, which resulted in a ridiculous amount of soreness, had a great time and headed back to the hotel at 9:00. That's right, getting crazy and staying out until 9:00!

Back at the hotel I had to wait for another hour to pump so the milk was usable. I made sure the timing and the drinking worked out. (breastfeeding mother issues). It was the first night I have slept more than 4 hours straight and it was glorious. The only problem was I had to get up in the middle of the night and pump again. Pumping in the middle night is horrible...my hat is off to all woman who exclusively pump. Slept for another 5 hours and woke up refreshed. Add one more pumping session and we checked out. The hotel didn't have a refrigerator so we had to improvise. The ice bucket makes for great milk storage.

Went to breakfast and then headed home!

3 months: mommyhood analysis

Love my little Thuglet so much, but having a baby is a lot of work, more than I could ever imagine. I have learned so much and been pushed to the edge. After 3 months I am feeling like I am finally getting a hold on mommyhold.

Pro's:

• I can now understand what Thuglet wants most of the time.
• Breastfeeding is a cinch now.
• Thuglet is actually sleeping in his crib and the pack & play for multiple hours a day.
• I have lost all the baby weight.
• I am starting to feel like myself again.
• Each day I get a little more confident that Thuglet will live another day.
• Thuglet is the cutest baby around.
• Thuglet can hang out and play on his own for quite a while now (20 minutes).
• He smiles so much now and it brightens my day every time.
• Waking up next to Thuglet.
• Watching him do new things: rolling over, smiling, laughing, grabbing.
• Taking pictures of Thuglet.
• Finally he is not freaking out every time he is in the car seat (only sometimes).
• Getting some use out of his toys and room.
• Watching the baby monitor while he is in his crib.
• Watching him grow and develop everyday.

Con's:

• The constant anxiety about Thuglet's welfare (that I know will never go away).
• Thuglet's frequent spitting up. (He has reflux.)
• Not having a full night's sleep since he was born.
• Going back to work.
• Pumping because of going back to work.
• The strain having Thuglet puts on marriage, work, everything.
• Having to plan everything around Thuglet's schedule.
• Packing like I am going out of town every time I want to leave the house with Thuglet.
• Watching him grow and develop everyday (it is happening to fast).

Cloth Diapers....Getting S**tfaced

We decided about a week before Thuglet was born to use cloth diapers. It was mainly for the money savings but we also felt really good about not having so much waste. 

So far, I love them!

And one might say, "well you have never used disposable, so how do you know." Before our babymoon vacation that person would have been right, but we used them for three days on that vacation and I love them even more now. 

There are some obvious drawbacks....cleaning them after they have been decimated by the Thuglet. We have enough diapers to wash every two or three days, but when that times comes around it is not the most fun ever had. Both Husby and I clean them and it is about a ten minute process.

There is a small walkway to the laundry room with a hose bib. The hose has a power spray nozzle on it and that is where all the magic happens. The diapers companies say you don't have to clean them out while the baby is exclusively breastfeed but the idea of putting that much fecal matter into the washing machine rubs the wrong way.

For the most part the washing out is just tedious, but at least once during the process the water sprays up into your face. This always occurs when you are washing a "duke-filled" diaper. And believe me there are a lot of them. As I was watching Husby cleaning them out this weekend, he got a good face full of Thuglet's duke and realized that he totally just got "shitfaced." Not the cool kind, where you don't remember what happened the day before. No, the gross kind where you have microscopic specks of your kid's shit on your face. 

Good times! 

Essentials and unnecessaries: Baby Stuff

Having a baby requires a lot of supplies and you really don't know what is essential and what is unnecessary until you are in the trenches. Some of the supplies you can just wait on until they are older. Here are my newborn essentials and unnecessaries:

Essentials:

• Moby Wrap/Ergo both great carriers
• Muslin Swaddling Blankets (I have twelve and use them all)
• Softbums Cloth Diapers (they are so amazing, infrequent leaking, no smells) 
• Bouncy Chair
• Nuk pacifiers (only ones he'll take)
• Medula "pump in style" (necessary to build up the stash for returning to work)
• Sleep and play one
  
  piece outfits (long sleeves, pants, with attached feet totally necessary if you have a winter baby)
• Sleep sacks/dress (so easy to change during the night)
• Petunia Pickle Bottom Weekender (awesome for everything you need)
• Boppy pillow (use it several times a day)
• Wash clothes (babies are messy)
• Portable changing cloths

Unnecessaries (at least for the first two months):

• Crib (I'm sure we'll use is soon but he is sleeping with us)
• Pack 'n' Play for sleeping (it is used as changing station)
• Swing (very hit or miss) (if you get one, get the Graco; you can plug it in)
• 10 bottles of baby wash (haven't even gone through 1/2 a bottle)