Ins-mom-nia

Since he was born, Barrett has been sleeping in our room. While it's convenient to have him so close for the late night feedings, it's not doing anyone any favors to keep him in there with us. So starting on Friday night, he slept in his crib like a big-boy baby! I was a little nervous about how the transition would be, but it was a piece of cake. We are lucky to have such a good sleeper!

We've reached a plateau with his sleeping. He is up anywhere from 4:30-5:30am and then again around 8. And, since day one, when he gets up at night, he eats and goes right back down to sleep. Perfect, right?

Not so much for Mom.

Once I'm up at 4:30 or so and the feeding is over and I snuggle back into my own bed under the covers, it's not exactly off to dreamland for me. All three boys are fast asleep and I toss and turn for at least another hour. It is getting very frustrating for me, to waste so much sleep at night! I'm dreading going back to work on such little sleep. Here's hoping that either Barrett starts sleeping longer shifts or I find a quicker way to get back to sleep soon!

More bathtime pics

Just because I think they're soo cute, here's some more bathtime pictures!

Less than 3 weeks of maternity leave remaining

In less than 3 weeks I'll be returning to work. This time off has gone so unbelievably fast. I look at our tiny little boy and I'm absolutely devastated at the thought of leaving him. I won't be there any longer to give him morning baths, to watch him napping in his swing, to wake up leisurely next to him, to look over and see his face and rejoice in the fact that we have all day to spend together, just me and him. This morning I leaned over his bed and his face stretched into an enormous smile at the sight of me. It melted my heart. Starting in less than 3 weeks, our mornings will consist of alarms beeping, quick showers, rushed breakfasts and feedings, panicked gathering of diaper bags, bottles, lunches, computers, coats and shoes and rushing out of the house. Someone else will be giving him his meals, watching him nap, seeing him smile and hearing him coo all day. He'll be nuzzling into someone else's neck in someone else's arms while I'm a mile away, sitting in a dreary cubicle in an overheated office filled with stale air and staring at a computer screen all day. And this thought breaks my heart into a million pieces.

I wish I could think of a way to stay home with him and enjoy every second of this brief babyhood of his. I wish we didn't live in such a high cost of living area, so that we could afford to live on just one salary. I wish that I had a job where I could have a more flexible working arrangement, so I could still work part time but have more time to spend with him.

I have no idea how in the world I'm going to drop him off at daycare, get in my car and drive away from him without breaking into a million pieces.

If anyone has any suggestions of work-at-home jobs or how to make more money so I don't have to go back to work, I'd love to hear them!

4 years ago today...

and the best is yet to come...

Bathtime!

Barrett - Two months old

Dear Barrett

You are now two months old! The last two months have flown by so quickly, we can't believe you've been a part of our lives for two months now. You are incredibly alert now. Everyone comments on how alert you are and aware of what is going on. You have grown a lot in the last few months. You weigh 10lbs, 12oz now and are 22 1/2" long. You're now in the 30th percentile for height and weight. I cannot believe you're 3 inches longer than you were at birth! No wonder you have outgrown the newborn napper part of the pack n play! Your feet were starting to reach the end so we have to move you to the bottom part of the bassinet.

You love baths and try to push yourself up in the seat with your feet. When you lock those legs, it's impossible to bend them, you are so strong! You've started grabbing Mommy's long hair and it's so hard to get it out of your fist, you hold on so tight. She may need to get a haircut or can foresee losing lots of hair to your strong grasp.

You like to sit in your bouncer seat in the mornings when Mommy eats breakfast and just look around very calmly. You notice the mobile now and watch the characters moving above your head. Today you reached up to touch the toys dangling above your head on the playmat and moved them on your own. It was exciting to see! You have really started to like to be held in the last few weeks and sometimes insist on being carried around the house. Mommy and Daddy will be getting huge muscles at this rate!

We've taken you to multiple restaurants now. Sometimes we think you'll sleep so we can eat, but no, not you! You are so interested in the noise and action at the restaurants and refuse to sleep, you want to be a part of the action!

Mommy took you for your two month shots and you definitely did not like those. There was much screaming and fussing and it broke Mommy's heart. It has also thrown off your sleeping schedule - you had been in a pattern for a few weeks now where you'd wake up at 5:15am, like clockwork, but the last few nights you've been waking up earlier. We hope you'll start sleeping longer at night, since Mommy will be going back to work soon and needs some sleep!

We love having you in our lives. Your smiles and laughs light up our days. You are our darling little angel!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

8 weeks

It was an eventful week! We had some visitors and played a lot. We think that Barrett is definitely developing more of a little boy look and less of a generic baby look. We definitely are seeing his distinct features now and think they're all adorable! He *hopefully* seems to be getting over the fussy hump and is now generally in a good mood. He has really started to want to be held a lot so we're starting to build up our arm muscles.

Payton tries to play with Barrett, but he had to settle for playing on Barrett instead. Be patient, Payton, it'll be a little while before Barrett is much use to you.


We also had visitors! My friend Laura, her son AJ and dog Ella came to visit. She brought sushi for lunch, which I hadn't had in a YEAR so it tasted especially delicious. My friend Jen also came by, but we didn't get any pictures. Unfortunately Barrett slept most of the time, but we'll be sure to get one the next time we see her.

AJ is 8 months old and crawling. It's hard to believe Barrett will soon be that big!


sleeping through the playdate








Barrett is generally very mild mannered. However, when he does get fussy, boy does he let you know! We captured his pouty lip in the below picture - definitely gets that from mommy! How sad is that face?!


Napping in his swing - little hand sneaking out at the bottom.