Out of Hand: March 2012

Friday, March 30, 2012

Someone has a really, really great life! (Well, we all do really. But this one happens to be enjoying his!)

Ten Days Until Easter!

We are so excited about the Triduum and the liturgical life toward the end of Lent!

This week Isaac has been sick and waking up in the middle of the night. He's almost better now, but he had a little cold and was having trouble breathing. We bought him a humidifyer and some chest rub, and propped up his mattress with a pillow underneath it. This alleviated some of the chest congestion, but he was still waking up 2-3 times per night for a few days. Last night he slept until 4:00 AM, though, so it appears that he is on the mend! Poor little thing! It's heart-wrenching watching little ones struggle to breath. He's had a great attitude about it, though, and shows sheer gratitude when we care for him in the middle of the night. He smiles and coos as though he is staying thank you. And he has a little sparkle in his eyes. What a sweetheart!

(Daddy's Diet Mountain Dew Tease)

I'm so glad that we have this little boy! He is a lot of work. But it's so rewarding to see his smiling face every morning. He really has a great life. And that makes us so happy!!

Overall, everything is going well. We visited the cousins a couple of times this week, which gave Isaac a few opportunities to socialize with other kids. He is reasonably interactive, which makes me happy.

Grandma Helen also found some beautiful and intricate doll house pieces she had in her basement. Grandpa Richard brought them with him last weekend to share with the cousins. The cousins LOVE their doll house. When we arrived with the bag, they all swarmed around me to ask where the special presents were. Each of them opened one. You can see the joy on their faces. They promptly played with the furniture for hours! Sometimes their attention spans amaze me.

"Hey, Aunt Kateri, the piano plays real music!!!"

Anne Marie opens a furniture set with intricate detail. She informed me that they didn't have chairs yet.

Abby really liked the crib.

Lucy was also thrilled that the toilet seat opened and closed.

Grandpa also celebrated a birthday this week, so Isaac pulled out those genius-baby skills and wrote him a note:

What can I say? My child is brilliant. And on that note, this is the best blog post I read this week.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Grandpa Richard came to visit this weekend to help us baby proof our home. He and Rich did lots of things to make this place safer for Isaac as he becomes more and more mobile. Isaac showed a great deal of interest in all things male.

Grandpa designed this little crusader and Grandma made this shirt for Isaac. It's the perfect size as he continues to grow!:

The men baby proofed the bathroom,

the kitchen,

and all of the rooms with accessible outlets!

I am sure glad because this morning, Isaac decided to creep into the bathroom! So many things to discover! (Pardon the phone photo. As you can see, it all happened so quickly.)

On Saturday night, the men went out to dinner and Isaac just chilled out with them (a novel concept for this little six-and-a-half-month-old!) Switching his bedtime to ninety minutes later has really helped with these evening engagements!

While they were out, my friend, Heidi, and I threw an engagement party for our friend, Mollie, and her new fiance, Will. They are perfect for each other. We are so happy that Mollie has met a great match!

And hopefully before long there will be more of these sweet little ones for Isaac to play with! :)

Thursday, March 22, 2012

This week we decided to switch the baby's bedtime so that he goes to sleep at dusk (thank you, daylight savings time)! We also decided to start teaching him a few signs. So far he looks thoroughly confused, but attentive. He gets that something is being communicated.

We also finish a weekly schedule, which I've been wanting to set for myself. It includes things like nursing the baby (4-8 times/day), feeding him three meals of solid foods, practicing sitting, practicing sign language, my reading and exercise, grocery shopping, cleaning, laundry, and budgeting. I wrote down everything that I want to get done in an ideal workweek. This has been helpful to me because as I "check" off things, I feel a sense of accomplishment. I really do a lot of work!

I've also been thinking that this metro area is way over-scheduled. When do we take time to sit and reflect? When do we think about the rest of our lives and determine if we are headed in the right direction? What are our relationships with our children like? How many quality friendships do we really have? How many can we realistically maintain at a given time? I'm becoming more and more convinced that less is more. So my goal since I began this "SAHM" job is to do each small task very well.

I mean, what could be more important than this?:

I've also discovered a bit about how to save more money. This has been really exciting! So, for example, by simply switching to wholesale for our goat cheese, olive oil, and yogurt, we will save over $250 in a year. That is just three items, but the savings really add up. It takes me a lot of time to price book and to follow the sales, but if I can save a couple thousand dollars each year, then it is worth it to me. When Rich and I were dating, I told him that I really wanted to take one vacation per year if we could afford it. It gives me something to look forward to and really get excited about. Plus, I'd love to check off sights on my "bucket list." When we compare our lists, there are enough places to see to last us a long lifetime! Some are more expensive. Others are more economical. Either way, I think travel is a great way to build family memories. These are the things that we (and our children) will remember long after either of us is gone.

Banff National Park (Photo Credit: BanffAccomodations.org)

Monday, March 19, 2012

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Friday, March 16, 2012

We've enjoyed weather in the 70's almost all week. Everything is in bloom now. Springtime is truly beautiful in the DC area and it isn't just me! We are number 6 on the list, doubtless due to the thousands of blooming cherry blossom trees everywhere, lining the monuments. The monuments in the springtime remind me of our engagement. Oh, happy times!:

The blossoms weren't in bloom when we took these, but they were when we got engaged a few weeks prior.

It turns out that Isaac is really into the blossoms as well. He wants to look at and touch everything, especially sticks and colorful objects.

He has been eating three jars of baby food a day and particularly likes bananas and sweet potatoes. All of this food is giving him lots of energy for activities like pulling his knees up underneath his body and pushing it off the floor. He's scooting everywhere and rocking in the "crawl" position.