Stroller

We all took a walk (Diego took a stroller ride) to the library to pick up some books and cds. I reserved some kids music for Diego. Stuff like Raffi and Sweet Honey in the Rock. My year in the Children's Room will be good for Diego because I got familiar with kid-lit (and media).

It was so nice to get out in the fresh air. Diego did so well. Didn't make a peep. The ride sort of hypnotized him, I think. When we got home, he was still in a daze. I think he liked it but he didn't really say. We used to stroll him a lot more when Daddy was on family leave. I don't really go out much with him because I am so tired and a little overwhelmed sometimes. But I think it would do me good to get out. I am going to try to work that in... and hopefully get my body back in doing so. I had a dream last night that I weighed 135lbs and then I woke up!

four month well child check up

Diego had his four month well child check up on 12/3.
He weighs 14.3 lbs. He is doing well. Meeting all his milestones.
We really like his doctor.

Colds

Diego has his first cold. Not the kind of "1st" that you really celebrate or look forward to. It isn't as bad as I expected - so far at least. I am hoping it won't get worse. He is sleeping well and nursing well and well, pooping.

All is well.

teddy bear

Diego is into this teddy bear. It is really soft and he likes to suck on his ears and paws. It also has a rattle inside so that just adds to the appeal.

raspberries and spit bubbles

Diego has taken up an interest in blowing raspberries and along with that comes a lot of spit bubbles. Pretty cute but he'll get you with flying spit if you aren't careful. I have never not minded being spit on before now!

push ups

Diego has been pushing up on his hands now instead of just his elbows. That is so exciting because before he just wasn't strong enough to lift himself like that... or it didn't occur to him to try it, I can't be sure. But now he pushes himself a full arm's length off the floor. He can rotate himself around like the hands of a clock and is now never in the same place that I left him.

diego is getting mobile

Today, I put Diego down for tummy time and he rolled over right away. Then after awhile he rolled over onto his stomach again. After another awhile he rolled onto his back again! Pretty soon he's gonna be rolling across the room.

It's touchy because I have to leave him alone long enough to motivate him to get moving but if he isn't in the right mood he'll throw a fit. It is scary for me when he screams and thrashes around like that so I have to find the right time of day to let him get motivated. Usually, the best time is first thing in the morning.

feet grabbing

Diego has been grabbing his little feet. It is super cute to watch him explore. He can just stare at something for so long, trying to work it out. He likes to stare at the pages of his little cloth book.

don't know what happened

I don't know what happened with that last post. It looked good yesterday and now it is all weird. Just copy and paste the web address for the photobucket album. My kodak got updates that ruined the program. Now it won't work right and when I try to upload pics, it gives me a stupid error message that doesn't make any sense to me. I have some really cute pics to upload so this is my solution... photobucket.

http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k121/lnwn/diego/

Click for Diego's Photobucket album

Photobucket Album http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k121/lnwn/diego/

videos of Diego on YouTube

I am now uploading videos of little Diego on YouTube. To make it easier on some of you less web-saavy folks, I put a customized video player at the bottom of this page so you don't have to go to the www.YouTube.com/lnwn to see the videos. They will play right here on this page if you click play. Check them out, we got some cute ones.

I am still trying to get him on video as he rolls over but I haven't gotten it yet. So far he rolls over too quick - almost as soon as I put him down before I get the camera on him... or not at all. I will have to find my tripod soon.

He's napping in his swing now. Looking really cute in his "I love Daddy" jumper.

roll over

Diego rolled over during tummy time on Thursday. I went out to the living room in the morning so Jay could sleep in a little on his day off. I usually do tummy time first thing in the morning because Diego is in a good mood when he first wakes up. Also because it wears him out so he'll go down for a nap so I can cook some breakfast. Well, as soon as I put him down, he rolled over pretty much immediately. None of that grunting and struggling he usually does. It was as if it was no big deal. He was happy as a clam. Later on in the day when I tried it again, he couldn't figure out how to go over. And he hasn't done it since. He tries so hard and gets so frustrated that it takes me awhile to soothe him once I pick him up. He sticks his little booty in the air and rubs his little face on the blanket and tries so hard to go over.

sisters - cousins

Just look at these gorgeous little girls. Diego's little cousins, Abigail and Emily. Our littles nieces. I can't wait to meet them.

in the market for infant toys

diego is ready for some toys i think. i think he would like some kind of activity mat. i have been letting him work out his abs by laying him down on the floor on his back. i dangle a toy over his head to stimulate him a little. he likes to lift his legs a lot and his muscles are getting stronger and stronger. it would be nice to find a good mat that could dangle toys over him and keep him entertained so i could cook dinner or do the dishes instead of hold a toy over his face. anyone have a good one that worked for their baby? there are too many to choose from, my mnd boggles and some are really expensive for what they are. this one looks good but i don't really know.

we got him this chair from babycenter.com and he is just starting to tug on the toys. seeing him do that just about blew my mind. when we first got it he wasn't interested at all. now he can sit entertained for at least 15 to 30 minutes and that really makes for a happy momma. it is hard to keep a baby entertained all day long.

heads up

Diego has been holding his head up very steadily for probably over a week now. He likes to be pulled up into a sit gently by his arms. If you count it out he anticipates it and helps pull himself up. He's such a strong boy. He is still enjoying standing and he even tries to bounce himself up and down. He's not that good at it yet.

Tummy time is still a struggle. He grunts and sort of whimpers but when I pick him up, he cries. It is as if he wasn't done yet. If I wait too long, he'll cry. If I pick him up too soon, he'll cry. The doc said he is almost ready to roll over so I am waiting for that magic moment.

I have been showing him this little cloth baby book. He loves it. He'll stare at it for a really long time.

Emily Lynn

Diego's cousin was born on September 25, 2007. Yeah! Nicole is back at home now with Abbey. We wish her luck and fast recovery. It must be so challenging having a toddler and a newborn baby at the same time! I hope Abbey adjusts well to having a little scene stealer to share the stage with.

Oh and isn't she adorable? Jason sent me that on my cell phone while I was driving back from the tide pools at Cabrillo with my mom and Sue. I took a glance assuming it was Diego and passed it to my mom. We were all fooled for a minute that it was Diego. When I parked up by the lighthouse, I looked at it again to see if Jason had written a message for me regarding Diego's milk supply I left with him... and I said, "Wait, that is not my baby!" How embarrassing to mistake someone's newborn baby for your own 2 month old child. Well. They do look alike and in my own defense, I was driving a very winding road along the side of a cliff.

The visit was good. I think I packed a little too much sightseeing in because I am sick and totally exhausted. We all got sick actually. I am looking forward to resting and getting better.

Jason spend pretty much all afternoon on his own with Diego on Monday and Tuesday. I thought I would really enjoy having a break away from breastfeeding and just being a single person again. But I found myself missing him and wondering what he was doing and this was only a few hours away from him. I was surprised by this. Maybe that sounds stupid to all those seasoned Mom's out there. But I am pretty independent and I never really dreamed about Motherhood the way a lot of women do. So I guess I thought I could spend a few hours away from Diego and not feel torn like that. I guess I was wrong.

I know Jason is taking it pretty hard having to go back to work and leaving us here to fend for ourselves. He really wants to be apart of every moment. He is adjusting well but I can tell he is sad leaving us every morning and he calls to check on us so often and wants updates updates updates!

I may be going back to work October 22nd. I was offered a half-time substitute Clerk position that is four days a week - 20 hours. Saturday 6 hours. Sunday 5 hours. Monday 5 hours. Wednesday 4 hours. We might be able to swing that. But it is gonna suck big time! I wish we could afford otherwise. But it is really expensive to live out here and on one income it is too hard.

Visiting

Today, I brought Diego to the library to see my co-workers. They are all such nice women. All mothers and one is a grandma. They love babies and were so enthusiastic about Diego. It was really sweet. And to watch them handle him made me feel like such a novice. Which I am. He'd fuss in their arms and they would make a slight adjustment and he'd stop. Of course, I know how to do that now too but I thought they would need me to tell them how to defuss my baby but they didn't.

But that made me really sad about having to leave that job. I really enjoy my work and I don't want to have to give it up. I wish I could stay there and work less hours but it doesn't work that way. I was offered half-time (20 hours a week) but not at my branch. At some other branch that they have yet to disclose to me. It is actually pretty amazing to get offered half-time like that. So easily. Usually, you wait for months or years even to get a class change like that.

I don't know how I will manage 20 hours without daycare. It would have to span four days (at the very least - 3). Jay has arranged things so I can work on Saturday and Sunday. I would so like to stay benefitted which would mean I have to find a way to do the 20 hours. The benefits are so so good and you get paid vacations and holidays and tons of other stuff.

But I may have to kiss it goodbye and end up just doing 11 hours over the weekend. I would have to be an hourly substitute without benefits and work at all the different branches instead of just one. I hope the branches they send me to are as good as Serra Mesa. I really doubt it though. Really. Some branches are in really scary parts of town and have nutso patrons. And some branches have nutso staff too. But for 11 hours, I could put up with a lot of crap. I have before, that is for sure!

When I got back, Jay was doing 5 loads of laundry and had already showered and walked the dogs and vacuumed the entire apartment. Then he cooked us a delicious breakfast. A scramble with eggs, cheddar, potatoes and onions. Yum!

Momma is coming tomorrow with her cousin (my second cousin) Sue. We always just called her Aunt Sue, cuz she and mom are like sisters and best friends. She is much closer to us than a second cousin sounds. Anyway, I am really happy that they are coming. It is gonna be so nice to be with them. And Sue and Mom together are a lot of fun, they get goofy and laugh a lot. It'll be nice for Mom to have Sue to keep her company on this journey. This is a big deal for Mom. I don't think she's flown since she was a teenager.

I hope Jason and I can bring Diego back soon so we can visit Grandma Diane and all the Grandpappies! Diego's lucky - he's got two wonderful Gramma's and three Grandaddies.

If we can get relocated back to Ohio or Kentucky, Diego is gonna have a lot of people to love him. He's gonna have three cousins to play with. And maybe even more by the time we get back there cuz my sister is thinking about having another next year. We already got two boys (Diego and Brian) and two girls (Abigail and Emily (coming soon!!!)). Even. And Abigail will be the big, bad boss of the pack just like I used to be when we were all kids. I ran everything cuz I was the oldest (and the bossiest).

Tomorrow, we have our pediatric appointment. It will be the two month checkup. It will be cutting it close with the appointment and the airport pickup back to back. I hope they don't keep us waiting at the doc's like they tend to do otherwise we will surely be late to pick up my momma and Sue. I can't wait to see how much Diego weighs. I am guessing about 12lbs now. He is a big boy. I also want to get some advice about his cradle cap. He has a mild case and I want to get rid of it.

Giggles

I swear I have heard Diego giggle twice already. Is that possible? He seems to reach his milestones early. I mean, he already has the head control he is supposed to reach at three months and he's had it for quite sometime already. He can't hold his head up constantly or anything yet but when you put him on his stomach he holds it up for a long time and way up. He arches his back and lifts his head so high like 90 degrees and looks all around.

He also wants to stand. When you hold him up under his armpits he thrusts his legs out and stands on his feet bearing a lot of his own weight. It is pretty cool. He is so so strong.

home alone

J's going back to work and I have been really worried about what it would be like here without him around to help me. He was off work for a little more than six weeks and that is a lot more than most people get. It was so nice to have him here. And of course, not just because he did everything besides breastfeed.

A few times I did actually pump so he could do the early morning feeding when I was dead tired and frustrated. I probably only did it 5-7 times though. I really should be building a milk bank. It was recommended to me to not start pumping until at least four weeks in to establish a really solid milk supply and to allow Diego to develop a really strong suck. He had no problems there, he was good from the moment he was born. But I followed lactation consultant's orders just in case. I sure didn't want any problems.

So far it has been okay here alone with Diego. We are surviving. It is sad though. But we nap a lot so it goes by pretty fast. When J was here all day with us, I didn't nap as much because I didn't want to miss out on this rare and special time together. In fact, it was hard for either of us to shut our eyes at night because it meant the end of one more day. Once we passed the halfway point, it became a dreadful countdown. We tried not to dwell on it so much that it impeded our enjoyment.

It is so cute to see Diego recognize his Daddy when he comes home from work. Very sweet. He tends to get fussy around three o'clock and J gets back a little after four most days. So it is great to see him forget to fuss when he hears Daddy's voice. He soon remembers and gets back on track though. His train of thought isn't easy to derail.

Daddy's Birthday

Today, we all went to eat at Souplantation. It was a risk. All you can eat buffet with a baby? I have seen it done. I didn't know if he'd let us eat all we could eat.

He did! He didn't even nap. He sat quietly and stared around looking happy. It was a magical thing. He did start to fuss when I was finishing up but J pushed him around in the stroller and we went out onto the patio because nobody was out there and sometimes he likes to fuss and cry before he falls asleep. But he didn't do that. He just looked around some more quietly. Very cool.