Okay, so it has been like, six months since I posted anything on here. I have no real excuse, other than the fact that Jack went from a sweet little immobile baby to this crazy kid running around all over the place, which makes it much more difficult for me to sit with a laptop for any length of time. I feel like I have so many things to say, so many things I want to document, and yet no words to describe how wonderful each day is.
I am currently doing the stay-at-home mom thing, until I start my internship in the fall. This experience is one of the most challenging and rewarding I have ever been in. I LOVE spending so much time with Jack, and yet it is really difficult to not go off to the respite of the office every once in a while. There is no distinguishing between work and home, so I often feel like I have no down time. At the same time, I know there are so many wonderful moments with Jack that I will miss once August roles around.
It is just amazing how fast he is picking things up now. I can ask him to hand me a specific toy or an object without pointing at it, and he knows which one I am asking for. When I ask him yes or no questions he often gives me a real answer. It just blows my mind that this time last year I was busy with nursing him and listening to him coo - he wasn't even eating solid food - and now he's this little boy that tells me things and shares jokes with me, it's incredible. He definitely loves to laugh and tell stories just like his father. He will babble on and on and then start laughing hysterically.
My favorite thing so far this summer is spending time outside with him. I think he got my love for the outdoors, and we have spent hours walking at the nature center or even just running around the back yard. He points out all the birds and trees, and we explore the world through his eyes. My favorite thing to do is set him down and just follow him around, seeing what he is interested in and what kind of "experiments" he will come up with. One day we spent thirty minutes at the nature center throwing sticks off a pier into the water below. I literally had to drag him away. I'm just hopeful that I can help him to always appreciate simple things like that.
Well my goal is to post more regularly on here. I definitely have some stories I want to tell, things I want to keep up with if only for myself. Now if I can just get Jack to understand the meaning of mommy-time maybe I will have a chance to post!
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Sunday, May 17, 2009
A New Beginning
Jack has reached a new stage in his ever evolving life. He has begun narrating every aspect of his life, whether it be eating, playing, watching a movie, or pretending to work on the computer (my particular favorite). It's weird, though, because you can tell he's working extra hard on chaining syllables together to make something understandable for us to enjoy. Almost every day he masters a new word or puts together a new phrase. But, of course, with all other new stages, the frustration of overcoming a new challenge makes Jack a very irritable boy. We consistently battle because he cannot tell me whatever it is he wants to and he takes that frustration out on me. That's right, my 1 year old son is abusing me. Ridiculous. Seriously, Jack and I have been working on certain phrases that I think are absolutely necessary for his early communications. We've been working on things like, "Food now." "Poop in pants." "I'm drunk." and my favorite "Hey baby!" I have to report that the only one of these awesome phrases he's been able to master so far is the latter part of "hey baby!" He runs around all day pointing at everything and going "Ba-beee!?!" to which I respond, "No, that's (insert whatever he's pointing at)."
In all other respects, Jack is abiding by his own normal standards of insanity. He's killing me with his desire to mimic. Steph is laying on the couch watching a movie so Jack laid on his couch and started watching the movie just like she was. That boy loves his mommy.
In all other respects, Jack is abiding by his own normal standards of insanity. He's killing me with his desire to mimic. Steph is laying on the couch watching a movie so Jack laid on his couch and started watching the movie just like she was. That boy loves his mommy.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Oh, Boy!
Jack is a handful. He's nuts. I know, it's not that surprising when you consider his source, but lately he's been out of control. He never wants to sleep; when he gets upset, he does this strange body contortion thing that usually results in slamming his head into either the floor or some sort of furniture; he's even lately decided that he's ready to start running and I think you can picture how that's working out for him. What's really strange, though, is how smart he is. If he does something wrong - like when he trips or he can't figure out how something is done - he sits and examines it, contemplating on the functionality of whatever he is examining. Surprisingly, he usually comes to some sort of epiphany and actually learns something. Unfortunately, this is not always a great thing.
On Friday, we were trying to put Jack down for a nap when we noticed some strange noises. Steph and I peeked around the corner to see Jack standing in his crib, stretching over the side to press the buttons on his "Lullaby player." He even tried a couple times to lift the player into his crib for a closer examination. Seems cute, right? Well, at the time it was, we both got a little chuckle out of it. Later that night was a different story. It was about 9, Jack's bed time, and I had just put him down. In his usual rhythm, he got up and started crying. As usual, Steph and I were waiting him out. And then we heard it. A loud thump followed by a split second of silence and then a bone-scraping scream that turned my innards into melted gelatin. Steph raced into the room before me to find Jack sitting in between his rocking chair and the crib, looking as confused and slightly more upset than his mother and myself. Steph yanked him up and pressed him against her while she quickly examined his legs, head and back. Once all the commotion subsided, Jack quickly fell into a deep sleep, which only made Steph worry more.
As you can imagine, the next morning, Steph had me lower the crib and rehang the nursery door in an effort to get Jack to sleep better.
At this point, I'm sure a lot of you are thinking that parenthood is a horrible adventure riddled with fear and worry. However, Saturday morning was probably one of my favorite "Dad" moments to date. While I was unscrewing the wire frame from the bottom of the crib, Jack came over to hold the screws and investigate my work. He even sat down in my lap and put his little hands over mine on the screwdriver to help out. When we were all done, he clapped and laughed as if he were saying, "Thank you, Daddy. I appreciate you taking the time to convert my crib from a death trap back to a safe sleeping apparatus." And, yes,that is how he talks in my head. Then, when Steph's dad was over helping put the door back up, Jack would stand there holding the hinge pins and a screwdriver laughing that he was getting a door. He was so excited that he had a door to open and close that he sat there for a while letting Sandy come in and then closing the door, then opening it again and letting her run out. So goofy.
Since the changes, he's been sleeping much better. Life is good.
On Friday, we were trying to put Jack down for a nap when we noticed some strange noises. Steph and I peeked around the corner to see Jack standing in his crib, stretching over the side to press the buttons on his "Lullaby player." He even tried a couple times to lift the player into his crib for a closer examination. Seems cute, right? Well, at the time it was, we both got a little chuckle out of it. Later that night was a different story. It was about 9, Jack's bed time, and I had just put him down. In his usual rhythm, he got up and started crying. As usual, Steph and I were waiting him out. And then we heard it. A loud thump followed by a split second of silence and then a bone-scraping scream that turned my innards into melted gelatin. Steph raced into the room before me to find Jack sitting in between his rocking chair and the crib, looking as confused and slightly more upset than his mother and myself. Steph yanked him up and pressed him against her while she quickly examined his legs, head and back. Once all the commotion subsided, Jack quickly fell into a deep sleep, which only made Steph worry more.
As you can imagine, the next morning, Steph had me lower the crib and rehang the nursery door in an effort to get Jack to sleep better.
At this point, I'm sure a lot of you are thinking that parenthood is a horrible adventure riddled with fear and worry. However, Saturday morning was probably one of my favorite "Dad" moments to date. While I was unscrewing the wire frame from the bottom of the crib, Jack came over to hold the screws and investigate my work. He even sat down in my lap and put his little hands over mine on the screwdriver to help out. When we were all done, he clapped and laughed as if he were saying, "Thank you, Daddy. I appreciate you taking the time to convert my crib from a death trap back to a safe sleeping apparatus." And, yes,that is how he talks in my head. Then, when Steph's dad was over helping put the door back up, Jack would stand there holding the hinge pins and a screwdriver laughing that he was getting a door. He was so excited that he had a door to open and close that he sat there for a while letting Sandy come in and then closing the door, then opening it again and letting her run out. So goofy.
Since the changes, he's been sleeping much better. Life is good.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Jack's First Year
It has been WAY too long since I last put words to web. There has been a lot going on and I guess it's been a little difficult for me to find the time to sit down and reflect on all of it. So, here's what's a brief overview of the current life and times of Robert "Flash" Gordon.
First off, married life is wonderful and family life makes it even better. Steph, Jack, and I went to the Georgia Aquarium for Valentine's Day/Jack's birthday. I hate to say it, because I was really looking forward to the trip and everything, but the Georgia Aquarium is a bit disappointing. For one thing, it has more of a flashy mall mixed with a night club feel than that of an aquarium. Also, the design is horrible. The way it's set up, you come into a main lobby area and then the exhibits all shoot off from there. So, it doesn't sound like a big deal, but it leads to bottlenecking at the entrances and exits of each exhibit, giving a very chlostraphobic feel. Also, most of the exhibits were the same as the exhibits inside the Tennessee Aquarium, so it wasn't like we were seeing anything really new. The one saving grace, though, was the beluga whales. They were gorgeous. Jack seemed to really enjoy them.
In case you didn't pick it up from the previous paragraph, Jack had his 1 year birthday. His official birthday was last Monday but he had his family birthday party that Saturday which he shared with his cousin, Allie. The theme was 1st Birthday/Tinkerbell, so some of the pictures might be misleading. We did not have a Tinkerbell party for Jack. Steph is very gender neutral, but I think she could even agree that a Tinkerbell-themed party for a 1st birthday would be going a little too far. He had his first encounter with real sweets, a chocolate cake. The sugar rush lasted three days. Ever since then, he has been talking up a storm - I mean, it's gibberish, but you can tell he wants to get some kind of message across. In fact, he gets very frustrated because he wants to be understood, even though we are obviously not speaking the same language. I fear he has my temper. But the most exciting/frightening new discovery is that he has started walking. He's clumsily making his way around the house and causing many a skipped heart beat on the tile and hardwood floors. He kills me because he refusess to walk unless he has everyon's undivided attention. Then, once he walks to his destination, he plops on his rear and begins clapping, which is a cue for everyone else to start clapping. Anyway, for part of his birthday present, Steph and I both made little videos chronicling Jack's first year. Below is the video I made. There are some things I would have liked to have done differently, but I'm still very proud of how it turned out.
First off, married life is wonderful and family life makes it even better. Steph, Jack, and I went to the Georgia Aquarium for Valentine's Day/Jack's birthday. I hate to say it, because I was really looking forward to the trip and everything, but the Georgia Aquarium is a bit disappointing. For one thing, it has more of a flashy mall mixed with a night club feel than that of an aquarium. Also, the design is horrible. The way it's set up, you come into a main lobby area and then the exhibits all shoot off from there. So, it doesn't sound like a big deal, but it leads to bottlenecking at the entrances and exits of each exhibit, giving a very chlostraphobic feel. Also, most of the exhibits were the same as the exhibits inside the Tennessee Aquarium, so it wasn't like we were seeing anything really new. The one saving grace, though, was the beluga whales. They were gorgeous. Jack seemed to really enjoy them.
In case you didn't pick it up from the previous paragraph, Jack had his 1 year birthday. His official birthday was last Monday but he had his family birthday party that Saturday which he shared with his cousin, Allie. The theme was 1st Birthday/Tinkerbell, so some of the pictures might be misleading. We did not have a Tinkerbell party for Jack. Steph is very gender neutral, but I think she could even agree that a Tinkerbell-themed party for a 1st birthday would be going a little too far. He had his first encounter with real sweets, a chocolate cake. The sugar rush lasted three days. Ever since then, he has been talking up a storm - I mean, it's gibberish, but you can tell he wants to get some kind of message across. In fact, he gets very frustrated because he wants to be understood, even though we are obviously not speaking the same language. I fear he has my temper. But the most exciting/frightening new discovery is that he has started walking. He's clumsily making his way around the house and causing many a skipped heart beat on the tile and hardwood floors. He kills me because he refusess to walk unless he has everyon's undivided attention. Then, once he walks to his destination, he plops on his rear and begins clapping, which is a cue for everyone else to start clapping. Anyway, for part of his birthday present, Steph and I both made little videos chronicling Jack's first year. Below is the video I made. There are some things I would have liked to have done differently, but I'm still very proud of how it turned out.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Transformation
I finally completed another semester of school and have hit the halfway mark - yes, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I wrapped things up last week and spent Thursday and Friday sitting at home with Jack, in awe of how much he has changed in the last month.
Somehow while I was tucked away behind books and computers he went from scooting and crawling to pulling up and trying to stand on his own. He went from saying "da-da-da-da-da" all the time to babbling all kinds of combinations including my personal favorite "ma-ma". He loves to sit and read to himself or sing songs and clap his hands. Instead of drinking bottles during the day he prefers a cup of milk or juice, throwing it as far as he can to let us know when it is empty.
It is just amazing to me how quickly these changes occur. And while I am ready to welcome them all, I still miss the little boy that would sit nesteled in my lap each day, content to hold my hand and soak in everything I showed him. Now it is he that shows me things, pointing at everything, asking what it is without knowing the words, reminding me of the joy of discovery. I am so thankful for this time with him. So thankful that I get to learn so much every day. So thankful that I get to be a teacher for this child. And so hopeful that I can remember how he is every day, because with each new discovery he changes yet again.
Somehow while I was tucked away behind books and computers he went from scooting and crawling to pulling up and trying to stand on his own. He went from saying "da-da-da-da-da" all the time to babbling all kinds of combinations including my personal favorite "ma-ma". He loves to sit and read to himself or sing songs and clap his hands. Instead of drinking bottles during the day he prefers a cup of milk or juice, throwing it as far as he can to let us know when it is empty.
It is just amazing to me how quickly these changes occur. And while I am ready to welcome them all, I still miss the little boy that would sit nesteled in my lap each day, content to hold my hand and soak in everything I showed him. Now it is he that shows me things, pointing at everything, asking what it is without knowing the words, reminding me of the joy of discovery. I am so thankful for this time with him. So thankful that I get to learn so much every day. So thankful that I get to be a teacher for this child. And so hopeful that I can remember how he is every day, because with each new discovery he changes yet again.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Sigh....
So I feel that I should preface this post by saying that Jack is a wonderful baby. He is genuinely good, rarely cries, usually sleeps well, and always has a smile on his face. But even with all of that, there are times when this is HARD. Times when I feel so exhausted I just want to curl up in bed and never leave. But I do. For him. And for Robert. And I guess for me. :)
This semester seems to be hitting me harder than the previous with Jack. It was honestly easier to get school work done while recovering from a delivery that left me in bits and pieces with 50 stitches to mend. Because back then the boy was sleeping. And when he was awake he was, you know, NOT MOBILE. This semester I can't seem to get any work done at home, but when I am away I feel guilty for many different reasons. And while I'm not ashamed to admit the difficulty of being a mom, a student, and part-time employee, something about admitting how hard it is makes me feel like I am complaining. My life is so full in so many ways, and it makes me so happy. I appreciate every moment I have with Robert and Jack, but finding the balance between home and school/work is not easy. Some days I feel like there is nothing left of me for myself.
I realize this is compounded right now with Jack teething. During the day he is pretty much normal, but at night he wakes up every hour, crying until you hold him, waking again as soon as you put him down. We have tried pretty much everything to no avail. What works one night doesn't work the next and so forth. Robert and I are both about to crack. That's one thing about having an easy baby...you get used to your sleep and your schedule, and when that's off it knocks everything out of whack.
I continue to remain optimistic that tonight will be the night he sleeps again. That tomorrow I will cross just one thing off my to do list that is growing by the minute. That if I can make it through November I will finally get a rest. A relief. And some time to enjoy my family and hopefully return to the wife/mother they enjoy.
This semester seems to be hitting me harder than the previous with Jack. It was honestly easier to get school work done while recovering from a delivery that left me in bits and pieces with 50 stitches to mend. Because back then the boy was sleeping. And when he was awake he was, you know, NOT MOBILE. This semester I can't seem to get any work done at home, but when I am away I feel guilty for many different reasons. And while I'm not ashamed to admit the difficulty of being a mom, a student, and part-time employee, something about admitting how hard it is makes me feel like I am complaining. My life is so full in so many ways, and it makes me so happy. I appreciate every moment I have with Robert and Jack, but finding the balance between home and school/work is not easy. Some days I feel like there is nothing left of me for myself.
I realize this is compounded right now with Jack teething. During the day he is pretty much normal, but at night he wakes up every hour, crying until you hold him, waking again as soon as you put him down. We have tried pretty much everything to no avail. What works one night doesn't work the next and so forth. Robert and I are both about to crack. That's one thing about having an easy baby...you get used to your sleep and your schedule, and when that's off it knocks everything out of whack.
I continue to remain optimistic that tonight will be the night he sleeps again. That tomorrow I will cross just one thing off my to do list that is growing by the minute. That if I can make it through November I will finally get a rest. A relief. And some time to enjoy my family and hopefully return to the wife/mother they enjoy.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
From creepy crawly to...
Sadly, the word that keeps coming to mind is demon spawn. But most of you probably wouldn't approve of me calling my son that. And of course that is an exaggeration, but my goodness! This child is changing waaayyy to fast for me to keep up. He went from curious, exploratory crawling to all out mischief in no time. On Saturday I had him in the office and he figured out how to stand up (YES, I said STAND UP!!) by leaning on the step up into the kitchen, and then proceeded to climb up the step and start crawling away. Granted I was watching and would not have let him get hurt, but it was yet another reminder that we cannot take our eyes off him for a second now.
Later on Saturday, I had to put him in his crib to clean up from a dirty diaper gone wrong, and he figured out how to pull up to standing using his crib rail. Needless to say Robert had the screwdriver out dropping the crib down to the lowest level real fast! After those two instances though, it was like a whole new world was opened up to Jack. Now we can't sit in the living room without him crawling around to all the furniture and pulling up on it. And while this is so, so exciting, it is so, so SCARY for me. I wind up not sitting at all, but instead scuttling along behind him in fear that he will, gasp, FALL.
I think the greatest part for Jack though is the amount of options it has opened for him. Tonight Robert left the living room to make supper, and Jack decided to tag along, crawling his way to the kitchen. I followed after he rounded the corner, and the grin on his face when he looked at me, like "I did this all by myself" was priceless. While we ate dinner he amused himself by crawling back and forth across the threshold to the kitchen and the hallway, peeping in the doorway at us and laughing.
And with all these exciting developments, I almost forgot to talk about Halloween! Jack went as The Flash, with Robert wearing his Flash shirt as well. He was so cute in his little costume! And he was a suprisingly good sport about the whole thing, even with getting lugged around and shown off all day. We didn't do the trick-or-treat thing but we did go to a family party and Jack got to play with all his cousins in costume. I should have pics on Flickr soon, though that is all dependent on finding time away from little man to get anything done.
Babyproofing tips are much appreciated. Right now I'm thinking padded floors, padded furniture, padded everything is the best option.
Later on Saturday, I had to put him in his crib to clean up from a dirty diaper gone wrong, and he figured out how to pull up to standing using his crib rail. Needless to say Robert had the screwdriver out dropping the crib down to the lowest level real fast! After those two instances though, it was like a whole new world was opened up to Jack. Now we can't sit in the living room without him crawling around to all the furniture and pulling up on it. And while this is so, so exciting, it is so, so SCARY for me. I wind up not sitting at all, but instead scuttling along behind him in fear that he will, gasp, FALL.
I think the greatest part for Jack though is the amount of options it has opened for him. Tonight Robert left the living room to make supper, and Jack decided to tag along, crawling his way to the kitchen. I followed after he rounded the corner, and the grin on his face when he looked at me, like "I did this all by myself" was priceless. While we ate dinner he amused himself by crawling back and forth across the threshold to the kitchen and the hallway, peeping in the doorway at us and laughing.
And with all these exciting developments, I almost forgot to talk about Halloween! Jack went as The Flash, with Robert wearing his Flash shirt as well. He was so cute in his little costume! And he was a suprisingly good sport about the whole thing, even with getting lugged around and shown off all day. We didn't do the trick-or-treat thing but we did go to a family party and Jack got to play with all his cousins in costume. I should have pics on Flickr soon, though that is all dependent on finding time away from little man to get anything done.
Babyproofing tips are much appreciated. Right now I'm thinking padded floors, padded furniture, padded everything is the best option.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
