Just a picture...

And we're back...

Wow. It's been a while since I updated! The reason I didn't update last weekend was...well, there just wasn't a whole lot to say. The weekend before, Lukie's cough had gotten a little worse and then gotten better. Then I got the bug and came home early from work on Monday, stayed home Tuesday, lost my voice, and was back at work (though not happy about it) by Wednesday. Pete started feeling icky on Friday and was sick Saturday and Sunday, causing us to cancel a planned date night and a bonfire with friends to get our little boys together to roast marshmallows. Ah, well. Is what is.

Mom and Dad, knowing Pete would probably be better by Monday, went ahead and visited this week! They came in on Monday and stayed until Friday morning! I am always a doofus about remembering to take photos, so I just have a couple from their stay, but I'll pepper the post with other pictures of Lukas.

Mom and Dad got in on Monday evening just before I got home from work. I had put together some baked spaghetti so that dinner would be ready, and it was nice to get home and have dinner with my family. Lukie had a pretty good evening, and Mom helped me give him his bath.

Tuesday Pete took a big group of students on a field trip to Old Salem in Winston-Salem, NC, where they toured the old town and the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts. It's place after Pete's heart- full of old furniture. He said the student who had taken the material culture class from him last spring did a good job of identifying different periods of furniture, and I think that made him feel good. He was gone all the way until 9 p.m. that night, so I was sure glad to have some help!

DROOLMONSTER.

Thanks for the cools duds, Grandma Vickie.

Standing against Mommy...not so sure about balancing, though...

Mom and Dad and I took Lukie to Johnson City to shop for Lukas' winter clothes on Tuesday. We have tons and tons of onesies for him, but he needed some warm pants and jackets in which to bundle up when we're leaving for daycare in the mornings! Mom is a saint (a saint who likes shopping for baby clothes, I guess) and bought Lukie his whole wardrobe. He's been sporting some pretty dapper looks this fall, already. After that, we strolled over to the bookstore to pick Grandpa Bob up and then went to Five Guys Burgers. Mom and I had eaten there before, but Dad never had. We knew he'd like it, and as burgers aren't really Pete's thing, it was a good time to go.

We came home, cooked some dinner, and hung out until Daddy got home. Well, Lukie and I were asleep, but we left Pete some pretty righteous pumpkin bread pudding that I had made from the pumpkins we grew in the yard this year!

Wednesday, I had to work. Boo. Nothing really happened Wednesday, but Mom and I both noticed that Lukie's cough was getting a little worse, and I noticed he was starting to pull off when he was nursing, like something was bothering him. I amateur-diagnosed an ear infection, since I figured the pressure of laying on his side might be what was bugging him. I called the doctor on Wednesday to set up an appointment. Nothing really ALARMING was happening, but Lukie had had the cough for about a month, and while it wasn't bad, it was starting to bug me a bit.

Dad and Pete also got a digital antenna up and running. We had gotten so sick of poor service from DirecTV, and honestly, we just didn't watch enough TV to justify the cost every month. We got satellite service when we moved into the house a year and a half ago after living our first year down here with only Netflix, but it's just never been something we really felt like we needed. So, with the antenna up, we canceled our satellite service and were still able to watch the World Series opener. I fell asleep with Lukie way too early to find out the outcome, but Pete informed me the next morning that the Cardinals had lost. He tried to keep the glee out of his voice. Glad they've tied the series up now.

I'm glad I set up the doctor's appointment for Lukie. Dr. McGill (whom I really, really like) diagnosed an ear infection in both ears, a minor sinus infection, and maybe a bit of gunk in his bronchial tubes, as well. None of those infections were bad infections, but they were enough to be causing him some decent discomfort. As of Thursday, Lukie has been on antibiotics. I think they're helping. Oh, and Lukie now weights 17 lbs. 10 oz. What a big boy!

Eyes are still blue. 

Thursday afternoon, Mom, Dad, and I took Lukie to Asheville, NC. It's basically Pete and my favorite town within easy driving distance. Pete and I went to the North Carolina Arboretum in the spring, and we really thought it was something Mom and Dad (Dad especially) might enjoy, since they had a really neat bonsai exhibit. My dad is a tree lover, so it seemed like a Bob type activity.

Lukie was totally passed out from his antibiotics and slept the whole way down, and then slept pretty much the entire time we were at the Arboretum. I was right about my dad liking the bonsai...but what's not to like? TINY TREES!!!

Lukie all bundled up and sleeping. Poor kid was knocked OUT from those meds.

They had a LEGO art display going on. This fox and rabbit exhibit was my favorite. The fox was at least as big as Maggie is.

Lukie did really well until after the Arboretum. Then we had a melt-down in the car because he was hungry (Mommy's bad. Should have fed him before we left the Arboretum), so we stopped in the parking lot of a Dunkin' Donuts to feed him while Mom and Dad went and got coffee. Then we went to have a painting that Dad inherited from his grandfather appraised for auction. The auction house was REALLY neat, and they had an original tile by Henri Toulouse-Lautrec there that they are planning to auction in November. It was worth the stop just to see that tile!

About to fall asleep holding Mommy's hand.

The drive home went smoothly until about Erwin- the same place Lukie broke down the last time we went to Asheville. It's hard work entertaining a freaking-out baby for 20 minutes, but I did my best.

Mom and Dad left at about 4:15 on Friday morning. My folks have always been crazy early risers, and they figured if they were up, they might as well be driving. I don't blame them, but it always makes me sad to wake up and they're already gone. House feels kind of empty on those mornings.

Lukie had a rough day at daycare yesterday. He didn't want to eat all morning, I'm assuming because his ears hurt. Refusing a bottle is a sure-fire indication that something is wrong with this kid-- he usually LOVES to eat. I called the doctor and asked if it was okay to give him Tylenol in combination with his antibiotics, and I think giving him some pain killer helped because he ate better in the afternoon. Poor kid has had a rough go of it. 

The fact that Lukie gets sick so often at daycare makes me feel kind of guilty that he has to go. There's no changing it, as I have to work, but it doesn't make it easier to know that he's having a bad day that could be made a little bit better if Mommy was around. I work because we need me to financially and because I'm a happier person with a career and life of my own...but oy, is it a tough line to walk. The worst part is that I don't get to spend tons of time with my son; often it's only 45 minutes to an hour after I get home that he falls asleep for the night, and those 45 minutes are often his fussiest minutes of the day, since it's getting toward bedtime.

Oh, well. I value the time I spend with him and I look forward to the day when I can get home and we can all sit down at the table and have dinner together, talking about our days and finding out all the cool things Lukie learned at daycare that day. I know it's a ways off...but it's a thought that keeps me going when I feel bad about not seeing him for 11 hours a day.

At least he's THIS CUTE when I get home.

Fall Fun!

It's been a week since I last updated...going back to work has definitely meant that I update the blog less often, but I'm trying to make sure I still get in one post per weekend. The problem with that is trying to make sure I remember everything from the week!

Last Sunday, Pete and I decided to use some gift money that my cousin had sent us to buy Lukie an activity gym and playmat. We had noticed that he really liked the one at daycare, so it seemed like a wise investment. In general, I don't like buying him tons of toys. I figure we wait and see things he likes and then decide whether or not it's something we want to buy for him. I don't want a house full of toys he doesn't use. I'd rather pick some quality toys that he really likes!

The mat we picked out has LOTS of fun stuff on it, and it's totally collapsible so I can still put it away at night so it's not constantly out in the living room. There's a mirror, three hanging toys, and a mobile that plays music and has butterflies that spin around. Lukas LOVES it, which has made Pete and me wish we had bought it earlier...but he probably wouldn't have gotten nearly so much enjoyment out of it before now. It keeps him occupied really well, and I can run to the kitchen and do the dishes really quick and come back to find him totally content.

The week went by pretty much as usual. Lukie managed to poop on his daycare teacher for the second time, so...way to go Lukie. I'd say I'm the only one who hasn't been pooped on, but he pooped in the bathtub with me in it, so I can't. Actually, he's done that multiple times now. Sigh.

This weekend was a busy one! Yesterday, we took Lukie on his first car trip longer than an hour. We drove to Asheville, NC and dropped Lukie off to stay at Pete's friend Robyn's house. Robyn and her husband retired to Asheville from Schaumburg, and they don't have any grandchildren yet. Lukie gets to be a visiting grandchild every once in a while! I'm a doofus, so I didn't take any pictures of Lukie with Robyn.

Pete and I went out to lunch at the White Duck Taco Shop, which basically turns everything into tacos. Pete had a fish taco and a Bangkok Shrimp taco with chili aioli and sesame glaze, and I had a Korean Bulgogi taco with kimchee and a lamb gyro taco. All were awesome. We also had their salted coconut macaroon pie, which was good, though I honestly think they went a little heavy on the salt. Either way, it was a nice lunch, and the place was PACKED, so the rest of the menu must be really good, too!

We also visited Asheville Hardware, the place we went on our day date in August, so that Pete could pick out some wood to build nightstands for our bedroom. I always get furniture for Christmas, so I think this is my Christmas present this year. I'll take it!

We headed back at about 4. Lukie slept the entire way down to Asheville and all but the last 20 minutes of the way home. He wasn't particularly happy when he woke up, though, so I scooted into the back seat to entertain him. That worked for a while until Mommy got kind of carsick. However, I did discover that Lukie laughs now! If I make laughing noises, especially loud, high-pitched ones (think a witch), then he giggles just a little! I can't wait until he's giving me belly laughs!

Pretty gorgeous day for a road trip.

The mirror and the mobile came, too. That activity center is worth its weight in gold!

Laughing at Mommy's noises.

We stuck a lot closer to home today. Pete and I planted pumpkins in two small raised beds earlier this year...well, they've overtaken the side yard. We decided to pick what was out there and pull all but one vine. Lukie came along for the ride. Then I cleaned and roasted one pumpkin...and got 10 cups of puree out of it. The variety is an heirloom variety called Long Island Cheese, partly because the pumpkins are flattened and look like a wheel of cheese. They're supposed to be about the best "eating pumpkin" out there..and I have to say, I agree! I'd have eaten the puree with a spoon, unseasoned. Pete disagrees, but that's because he really just doesn't like squash. I hope Lukie does, because I've got a ton saved in the freezer for him!

Finally, Lukie graduated from HAVING to take a bath with Mommy in the bathtub to being able to take his baths in the sink without a freak-out. I'm glad. I was sick of getting wet every other night, and honestly, sick of getting pooped on. It's happened like 3 times now! Anyway, now I can just clean out the sink instead of the entire bathtub if he poops. Thank goodness.

The bath went mostly well...but babies are slippery! 

Alright, folks! That's the recap! We'll see you next week...I believe this brings us to...

...the end.

3 Months Old!!

Lukie is 3 whole months old! We did our traditional (can it be a tradition after only 3 months?) birthday party. We were lucky enough to have my mom around at the last two, but in her place, my friend Suzi came over. I'm a doofus, so I didn't get any pictures of her there, but somebody had to hold the camera to take our 3-month family photo, so trust me, it was a party with more than just me and Pete!

I got off work early (yes, I rearranged my time this week so I'd get off early on Lukie's 3-month birthday) and came home to make dinner and pie. I spent all afternoon cleaning the house up and cooking; we had chicken pot pie, french bread, Illinois sweet corn my mom froze last time she was in town, and coconut pie!

Suzi came at 6:15 or so and we ate dinner, but Lukie started falling asleep while we were eating so we rushed through and brought out the pie to take pictures. It's amazing how much he's changed since we started doing month birthday parties. Here are his first two:

And here he is on Thursday, October 3rd, his three-month birthday (with an actual "3" candle instead of the same old "4" candle we'd been using:

Little bubs is starting to lose some of that beautiful hair, especially on the sides, but he's raelly starting to look like a little boy!

I've been trying to recreate pictures each month so that I have comparisons to show.

Here he is at one month again:

At two months:

And at three:

He's doing some serious growing up!

On the daycare front, the ladies have told us that he's a totally different baby since he started coming. They used to tell us he was having a good day...yeah, apparently they were blowing smoke up our you-know-whats and trying to make us feel confident, because he wasn't always having such a good day. I kind of appreciate that. I didn't need to know every time he was fussing, and it would have made me feel guilty that I wasn't there to make him feel better.

Talking with the director the other day, though, she says that he really seems content now. He doesn't fuss much at all, and he's learning to be patient a little longer when he's hungry. They can't always pick him up right away, and he's learning to wait until they can get him. He's much more content to just lay around on the floor and play when he's home, too. We used to have to hold him all the time, it seemed; now, we can put him on the floor with some toys and play with him, but we can also make a quick trip to the bathroom or walk around the room tidying up talking to him without fears that he'll have a meltdown.

Lukie has also started batting at toys a little bit. Tomorrow, we're going to go to Target and buy him an activity mat. He likes the one at school and will lay there and stare at all the things dangling in front of him, so we're hoping he gets as much fun out of one at our house!

I've also caught him watching and smiling at the dogs a little bit. Dixie in particular is very interested in him.

We try to keep her from licking him, but I also don't want to yell at her every time she comes near him. I'm pretty sure she gave him a French kiss earlier today, though...

Finally...sigh...I thought we were doing better as far as sleeping goes...but no. Last night was another rough night. He falls asleep early, and I really don't want to mess with a 7 or 8 p.m. bedtime because eventually, that's what I'd like his bedtime to always be, but it often means that he gets hungry before midnight or so. I wake up and feed him, and then it seems like we're up every 2 hours or so after that. Until 7 a.m. when it's IMPOSSIBLE to wake him up to feed him before I go to work and Pete takes him to daycare. Go figure.

For the last two nights, we've tried moving back to his bassinet from the buzzy seat, but last night he woke up barking again and I had to sit him upright to sleep the rest of the night. Oh well. I guess we'll figure out something that works for us, but I'd really like to move him to the crib within the next couple of months.

Who Needs Sleep, Anyway?

There really isn't a whole lot to report since last Saturday or so.

The biggest thing this week was getting Luke past his cold so that everybody in the household could sleep again. I think Luke's cold coincided with a sleep regression, which is a fancy way of saying a period when babies seem to take a few steps backward on learning to sleep through the night. I wasn't really expecting one until 4 months, but it seems Lukie hit his early...or maybe it was just the cold and we can still look forward to the 4 month regression.

Anyway, he basically slept from 8-midnight or so, and then would be up every 1.5-2 hours after that. I was going out of my mind, mostly from sheer exhaustion. Pete even had to take him early in the morning a couple of days so that I could get an hour or two of uninterrupted sleep while he and Lukie slept downstairs in the living room.

Last night, however, Luke slept from 7:30-1 a.m., and then from 2 a.m.-6:30. That's progress! Well, it's actually just back to what he was doing before the cold. Honestly, though, the wake-up at 1:00 was my fault, though I imagine he'd have been up at 2:00 or so anyway. Lukie is still sleeping in his buzzy seat next to the bed, since he still has some significant sinus drainage and a cough. Light sleeper that I am, I was kind of half awake and reached down to check him, since he hadn't been awake yet and I was used to the wake-up-every-two-hours thing we'd been doing for the last couple of weeks. In my half-awake state, I couldn't feel him breathing and I freaked out and woke him up. Silly Mommy.

Luke gave me his cold. That's the other news. So in addition to operating with the cognitive capacity of a squirrel lately, I now get to operate with the cognitive capacity of a sick squirrel whose throat, head, and sinuses hurt. Oy.

That said, I hope it's Luke's cold that he gave to me and not something new that I could give to him. I'd take all the colds if it meant that he didn't get any.

Oh, and by the way, Lukie is 12.5 weeks old! He turns 3 months this Thursday, so expect an update after our 3 month birthday party (with special guest, Suzi Greene!). Until then...

Oh yeah, and Lukie's "school pictures" are in. I haven't bought them yet, and when I do, I'll have to scan them at work because I can only get hard copies...but trust me...THEY'RE ADORABLE.

Under the Weather (but at least the weather's nicer...)

Most of this was written Thursday. I was waiting to publish it until I could take some decent smiley pictures of Lukie.

Thursday:

I guess I should have expected it. Lukie got his first cold after being at daycare for a week. I knew I wouldn't LIKE seeing him sick...I didn't know that it would turn me into a psycho mommy.

We had a pretty nice weekend before Lukie really showed many signs of being sicker than just having a runny nose (which I mentioned in the last post). On Saturday morning when he woke up, it was running pretty constantly. He and I spent some time wrapped up in blankets on the front porch, swinging back and forth while I wiped his nose every once in a while. Luke LOVES being outside, and I figured if he didn't feel very well, that was the place he'd enjoy cuddling up to me the most. I even took a rare selfie (actually, there's another one later in the post) of him and me hanging out on a Saturday morning.

It was so nice and cool, we just snuggled under blankets for an hour or so. He went down for a nap, and I watched some Looney Tunes, but eventually, we made our way back out to the porch. The weather was so nice that we actually spent a good part of the day out there. I even moved his swing out so he could sleep out there while I read a book and Daddy mowed.

Sunday afternoon we went to a concert at Dogwood Park. Pete works with a group called Rural Resources which supports local agriculture and runs children's and adult's programming to educate people about sustainable farming. Pete is on the board, and they had asked him to come help with the concert, since Rural Resources was providing all the food as a fundraiser. I decided to tag along with Lukie. Despite feeling a little sicker by then (I have to assume), he really did a good job staying happy almost the whole time. Of course, sleeping through half of it helped, too.

The only bad thing about the situation was that Pete and I forgot to get cash before the event, so we couldn't eat there, and the food smelled SOOO good. Pete was cutting watermelons, but the spot next to us was dishing up roasted vegetables that had been cooked in these giant blue hubbard squashes. There was barbecue, stuffed peppers, goat cheese and crackers, ice cream...it was AWFUL to not be able to eat it all! That said, we came home and had some Mexican sweet potato lasagna I had whipped up earlier in the day, so at least we got good food later!

Okay. We've reached Sunday night in our little recap. Sunday is when it all went to hell in a handbasket. He went down fine at about 8:00, like usual. His nose wasn't really even running. He woke up at 11 or so, which is unusual for him, but he went back down so I thought everything was fine.

Then, at 2 a.m.....it all went to heck. I heard one cough and thought maybe I'd made it up, since sometimes I THINK I hear him when really it was a dream, and the cough sounded really weird, anyway. But then I heard it again. Lukie sleeps in a bassinet right outside our bedroom door; we had to move it out there because I'm such a light sleeper that every little move he made would wake me up when he was in the room with us. He started coughing and it sounded AWFUL, like a seal barking. It was croupy and congested and so scary. I brought him into the bedroom and woke Pete up, telling him that Luke was sick, and then I tried to nurse him to calm him down.

Then Luke spit up, coughed, and gagged all at the same time and I swear, it sounded like something out of the Exorcist. It scared me so much that I said, "Oh, my God!" and pulled him off of me, which just upset him more. I was shaking by then because it sounded like he was choking and couldn't get any air. I gave him to Pete for a minute, but I couldn't take not holding him myself and I asked Pete to give him back to me. I told Pete I wanted to go to the ER because Luke was gagging and choking and gasping. Pete talked me off the cliff and told me to calm him down first and we'd see if it was serious. I finally got Lukie calm and he stopped coughing. He fed, and then we put him in his buzzy/bouncy seat next to the bed for the rest of the night. I got NO sleep, but Luke really didn't do too badly.

I called the doctor in the morning and they got me in at 9:30. The doctor told me Lukie had a cold, that the drainage had caused all the nighttime problems, and that he was doing fine but that I needed to stay home with him that day (I had no intention of sending him to daycare, anyway). He slept a lot that day and wanted to be on me ALL. DAY. LONG. Which I really didn't mind...

 ...because I kind of wanted to hold him, anyway.

 Luke never ran a fever, and he really didn't do too badly on Monday, though he was tired and quite a bit fussier than usual. By Tuesday, he was clearly feeling better, barely sniffling, and coughing just a little bit. I'm actually quite impressed by how quickly he bounced back from the cold. He still coughs a little, but it doesn't sound too congested, and I'm constantly watching to make sure it's not developing into a secondary infection. We're still letting him sleep in his buzzy, just so that he's upright and we don't have another incident where the drainage starts choking him, which is ultimately what had happened on Sunday night.

I was also impressed by Lukie's ability to still be smiley a couple times on Monday when was his sickest. He cried a lot of the day, and it was a sad, pathetic, drawn-out whine that just BROKE my heart, but there were a couple of times he seemed to bounce back a little. I got a few smiles out of him. They didn't last long, but at least I knew he was feeling okay-ish.

Nothin' makes a man smile like a clean diaper.

So that was the big hullabaloo this week. My baby got sick. And honestly, I wanted to pull a Miss Frizzle and shrink myself down, get inside him, and hunt down whatever bugs were making him sick and GET. THEM. OUT. OF. THERE. I felt super helpless, like I just couldn't fix it. But at least Luke had a better attitude than I did. I think the cold was tougher on me than on him!

In other news... Lukie turned 11 weeks old on Wednesday! Time is flying so quickly now that I'm back at work. I still take him to daycare even on my days off, mostly because those are the days I can catch up with all the work that still needs done at home.

Case in point: today I dropped him off, went to the gym, the produce stand, the gas station, and got a cup of coffee. (Ok, a chai latte. I hate coffee. At least now I've found something that I can drink and it makes me feel like a grown-up.) Then I went home, unloaded the groceries, did the dishes, cleaned the bathroom, the living room, and the kitchen, vacuumed the entire house top to bottom, did 4 loads of laundry and folded all of them, made a casserole for dinner, made zucchini bread, changed the sheets on the bed, and pumped 3 times before picking Luke up at 4:30. I think I work harder on my "days off" than my "days on". And I STILL don't get everything done! There's still a garden to weed. That, plus making meatloaf and a Moroccan chili recipe I found this week, will have to be a weekend project.

Update Saturday: Here are some "11 weeks old" photos from this morning. I definitely don't take as many pictures of him now that I'm working, but I got a few today! The mark on his nose is from him scratching himself. Those little nails are like razors!

Also, the Moroccan chili was a total success!