Letter to Lucas, 3 Months Old

(A picture of you at 12 weeks, taken by Aunt Sheri!)

Dear Lucas,

Hello, baby boy! You are three months old today! Where has the time gone? The days slip by even as I try to hold onto these moments, not wanting to ever forget how sweet and soft and warm you are in my arms. It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago when I was holding your brother like this and now he squirms and wriggles away and I know you will too, soon. Too soon!

Aunt Sheri just left after spending nearly ten days with us like she does every year at this time. She was very excited about seeing you and your brother—her “squishies,” she calls you. You didn’t get to have turkey and sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving dinner this year because you’re still too young to enjoy it, but you did stay awake through dinner! In fact, you are quite the alert little monkey for big chunks of the day. I enjoy your two and three (and sometimes even four) hour stretches of being awake. It’s fun to watch you kick and coo on the playmat and see how you stare at your brother with your big intense eyes.

Two weeks ago at your 2 month appointment (which was a little later than it should have been), you weighed 14 pounds and 9 ounces and you were 24 inches long. You are a big baby! You are healthy and strong, already holding your head up well and trying so hard to sit up. Two days ago, you rolled over for the very first time on our bed! I couldn’t believe it. It won’t be long before you’re rolling over both ways and sitting up by yourself.

Your brother has gotten settled into having you around and he loves your very much. He likes to pat your head and say, “Awwwww!” before running off to play. I have no doubt you’ll be running after him soon enough and I think he will be thrilled to have a playmate who is closer to his size. As much as I am enjoying your infancy, I am looking forward to my two little boys playing together! It’s going to be so much fun to take you both places and plan family trips. Soon, baby. Soon!

One thing I would like to enjoy a little more is sleep! Oh baby, some nights you are awesome and sleep 7 hours straight and other nights… sigh. You had a pretty good stretch for about a week and I thought we’d solved your sleep issues by swaddling you tightly and elevating you with a sleep positioner. But the past week or so—oh my! Two nights ago you were awake about every two hours. I thought perhaps it was because you were too hot in your fleece swaddle in your warm room, so we adjusted things last night and it went a little better. I really can’t complain too much, most nights you do sleep at least four hours straight and that’s not so bad. It will be nice when you sleep through the night every night!

You have been smiling for a long time now and your squeals and coos are a prelude to your baby laughs. I can’t wait! You are fascinated by things around you and you even crane your neck to see what’s on television sometimes. This morning I sat on the living floor with you in my lap and Patrick perched on my knee while we watched Sesame Street. These are the moments I will remember, sweet Lucas. I don’t have as much one-on-one time with you as I did with your brother because he is now an active almost-two-year old, but you are precious and patient and enjoy watching whatever we’re doing. I’m grateful for your good nature and easy smiles. I’m so grateful for you!

The holidays are here and this next month will fly by. You will be four months old on January 1 and I imagine we’ll be starting to try you on solids around that time (if not sooner!). There is so much to look forward to, so many more milestones to help you achieve, so many memories to make! One day at a time, baby… here we go!

Mama loves you. Always

A Letter to Lucas, One Month Old

Dear Lucas,

You are one month old, sweet baby boy! You came into this world weighing almost eleven pounds and with a full head of dark hair. Your hair looked for all the world like a faux hawk we had styled for you, but it was all you, sweetpea. You already have your own style—and such a sweet smile. They say babies don’t smile until they are a few months old, but you do! Your baby smiles come when you are sleepy and full and drifting off to sleep. And you make me smile, too.

I think the universe was sending a message with your birth, dear Lucas. In the week or so before you were born, we had an earthquake and a hurricane! The earthquake was a first for this part of Virginia and Hurricane Irene blew through a few days later. Plus, we’d been dealing with the ongoing smoke from wild fires in the Great Dismal Swamp. I think the universe was reminding me that Mother Nature is fierce and powerful and capable of anything—and here you are!

I’ll let you in on a secret, Lucas—your mama is rather old to be having babies. In fact, I honestly didn’t think I would ever have babies. And then your brother Patrick came along and I thought he was the only baby I would have. But the universe had other plans for our family and you arrived, big and healthy and another miracle in my life that I wasn’t expecting.

You can thank Patrick for being born first—he was my practice baby and everything I learned about taking care of babies was through the trial and error of taking care of him alone while your father was deployed. I am much more relaxed and at peace this time around, baby boy, and I think that’s a good thing for all of us! You make it easy, though. You’re only a few weeks old but you are already sleeping in fairly long stretches of three to five hours and you’re a very good eater, too!

You were born at the end of summer and I pushed for your birthday to be September 1 because I wanted you to usher in my favorite season. I love autumn and the promise of cooler weather and the brilliance of fall leaves and the warmth of comfort food. I look forward to the shorter days and longer nights because there is so much to look forward to in the fall, from starting school to Halloween to Thanksgiving. You are my autumn baby, warm and comforting and familiar and full of promise and magic.

My hope for you, dear Lucas, is the same hope that I have for your brother: that you will grow up to be fiercely independent and full of love and hope and imagination. You are still so new in the world that it’s hard to tell what your personality will be, but I have faith that between your father and me (and Patrick, too), we will help you discover who you are and what you love.

You look at me while I’m feeding you and I feel like you’re studying me. “Hello, baby!” I say, over and over, and you just stare at me with your serious expression. I wonder what you see when you look up at me, if you know how much you’re loved and how amazing it is that you’re my child. You’re probably just wondering why this woman looks so tired and sounds so silly. That’s what two babies does to your mama, sweetheart.

Two babies. I still can’t wrap my mind around that reality. Two babies under two! Two baby boys—though Patrick is nearly two years old and truly a toddler to your newborn status. But the days and weeks and months are already slipping by and you will both grow up before I know it. My hope is you will be the best of friends and always have each other’s back—brothers should be like that, I think. Friends and confidants, looking out for each other in all ways.

Patrick has the distinction of being my first baby, the one who changed my life the most profoundly, but you sweet Lucas have the distinction of being my last baby and the one who showed me that I am capable of more love than I ever thought possible. I knew the odds of having you were unlikely and now that you’re here and I see how beautiful and perfect you are, I am convinced I could not want anything more than what I have right now. Two babies, my first and my last. You are the two little miracles in my midlife—filling my world and my heart with so much joy and laughter and possibility.

It’s a great big world out there and I hope one day to show it to you. I don’t want to wish you older—being my last baby, I am determined to savor these early months despite the interrupted sleep and occasional crying jags (yours and mine)—yet I still look forward to all the adventures we are going to enjoy as a family, exploring what the world has to offer each of us. But for now, dear Lucas, your father, Patrick and you are all I need to make my world complete.

Thank you for coming into my world, Lucas. It was a pretty terrific place already, but you have made it bigger and brighter and wilder. Happy one month birthday, baby boy.

Mama loves you.

Introducing!

Lucas Donovan Wright

September 1, 2011 at 8:05 AM
10 lbs 15 oz, 21.75 inches



He is a big, beautiful boy with an amazing amount of hair! I am in baby euphoria right now-- and it's only partially because of the pain medication they sent me home with. :)

A Letter to Patrick

Dear Patrick,

I'm sorry I haven't written you more often-- after you were born I had every intention of writing you a letter every month. But the time slips by and my intentions fall by the wayside even while I marvel at all you have learned and accomplished in the time I have known you. You are just shy of being 21 months old and I cannot believe that in three months my sweet baby monkey will be turning two. I still call you my baby even though you are very much a toddler, into everything and exploring the world. I can see the little boy you are becoming and, because you have your father's features, I can imagine the man you will be. You are everything I could want in a child and so much more than I ever expected.

It is just after midnight on September 1 and these are the last few hours that you will be my only child. Your baby brother will be born this morning! After you, I wasn't sure I wanted any more children or if I could have another one even if I did. You were something of a miracle-surprise and it seemed too much to expect that we could be so fortunate again. But miracle-surprises happen sometimes-- and sometimes they happen more than once. We were very lucky. The time has flown by and in a few days, we'll be bringing your brother home. He will be moving into your old room because it is smaller and much more suitable as a nursery and you've been given a bigger "big boy's" room, which has caused me a bit of sadness because I can't think of you as a big boy. Not yet.

Even though your father and I are excited about our growing family, there is a part of me that will miss these months of it being just the three of us. For the first five months of your life, it was just you and me-- learning about each other and muddling through the best we could until we found a rhythm and routine that worked for us. It was a difficult but amazing experience. And while I was so very grateful to have your father home from deployment, I did miss the time you and I shared alone. This is no different-- it is an adjustment and a very good adjustment at that-- but things are about to change for our family once again and I know I will look back on these weeks and months and feel melancholy for a time when you were my only baby and we were a family of three.

I have no doubt there will be ups and downs in the coming weeks and I will likely count on you to be more patient and well-behaved than I have any right to ask of you (not that you're not a terrific kid, but you are still a toddler!). And yet I suspect you will surprise me in this as you have surprised me in so many other ways. You are so smart and funny-- and so sweet and gentle with animals (real and stuffed) that I know you will be a terrific big brother. Like I said, I can't really comprehend you being a "big" anything-- but I know when we bring your brother home and I'm reminded of how helpless he is and how much we have to learn about him, you will seem to have grown up right before my eyes. And your familiarity will be a comfort when your brother is crying and I can't figure out what he needs. (I'm also counting on you to use your big brother magical wisdom to help guide me!)

I know you won't remember being the only child in our family, but I do hope that you will love having a brother. I hope you will be playmates and confidants and, yes, partners-in-crime in a good natured way. While every change is adjustment, it's hard to see anything negative about this change-- there will be more love and laughter in our house, more fun and silliness and toys. You will have someone to grow up with and your father and I will have two amazing little boys to raise. All good and wonderful things. I will try very hard to remember all of that in the coming months when I'm trying to cope with sleepless nights with your brother and those defiant toddler moments you sometimes have.

Thank you for being my first baby, Patrick. If not for your amazing personality and sweet smile, I might not have even considered going down this path a second time. You have made it all worthwhile and I suspect I will feel the same about your brother. But no matter what, you will always be my first baby-- and for the next 7 hours you are my only baby. Thank you for coming into my life and rocking my world in the best possible way. You are, now and always, my baby.

Mama loves you.

My Boys

My Summer Love

In the Bath

A Letter to Patrick, Nine Months Old

Dear Patrick,

It’s been three months since I last wrote you a letter. I had intended to write you a letter each month and then missed your 7 month letter because I was crazy busy with my first anthology coming out. Then you turned 8 months old and August slipped away… So here I am, reeling at all of your developments over the past three months. Monkey, you’re growing up!

At six months old, you were just starting to sit up unassisted, didn’t have any teeth yet and were wary of solid foods. Three months later and now you are crawling, pulling yourself up, starting to cruise from one piece of furniture to the next and standing unassisted for several seconds at a time! You have at least four teeth, two top and two bottom, though I think there are at least one or two more that are starting to push through. And solid food! Oh, how you love it. Not only are you eating baby food (and will eat pretty much anything now, including the dreaded peas of three months ago), you also like finger foods—Puffs and Cheerios, bits of cheese, banana and other fruit. I’ve given you bits of whatever food we’re eating, too. So you’ve had chicken salad, spaghetti, broccoli and rice, among other goodies.

After those five months alone (with Ashleigh’s help the last three), we got quite used to having your papa home. And then… he left for Panama for a week, was gone for a field exercise for two more weeks and just returned from another two-week trip to Panama. Thankfully, you’ve become good buddies with your daddy and are happy to see him each time he returns. Hopefully it’ll be a long while before we have to go it alone again, baby! It’s good to have your father home.

Speaking of Ashleigh, she’s been with us for seven months as of next week, baby! I do believe she is your favorite person in the world, even over your dear old mom and dad. Have I mentioned how lucky we are to have her in our lives? And she knits, Monkey. A skill I lack—so hopefully she’ll keep you in knitted hats and other gear this winter!

Your circle of friends has expanded, as well. We’ve had playdates with your friends Sydney (who is 8 weeks younger) and Caitlin (who is 2 and ½ weeks older. Though, in truth, I think you prefer older women like Ashleigh). You even went to your first birthday party, to celebrate Cierra’s fourth birthday. We’ve also had a couple of cookouts and introduced you to a bunch of new people. You seem to enjoy the new faces and all the attention, which is wonderful. I’m kind of dreading the day you are frightened of meeting someone new, but perhaps your good nature will outweigh that particular baby milestone?

The little baby gear has been replaced by the older baby gear. We swapped out your Bumbo seat (which was passed on to Sydney) for a fancy Stokke highchair which lets you sit at the table with us and will grow with you. Which is nice, since you continue to be a big boy. You’ve acquired a new carseat and stroller and a bunch of new toys, as well. But the hardest thing to give up was your beloved, but struggling swing. You’re due for your nine month doctor’s appointment, so I don’t know your current weight, but you are certainly close to 25 pounds now. One day, I just decided to see if you’d nap on the couch instead of needing to be put in the swing. We’d tried off and on for a few weeks to get you to nap in your Pack and Play, but you resisted. On that particular morning, however, you simply fell asleep on the couch and napped for two hours. A week later, the swing was packed away and a week after that you were napping in your Pack and Play! (I hope you potty train this easily, baby!)

You’re now sleeping a solid 12-hours at night, with only the occasional disruption (which I blame on teething). Your napping has decreased, perhaps because you no longer have the swing to lull you or simply because your night sleep is so long, but we’re lucky if we can coax two naps out of you, usually totaling no more than 3 hours. (Some days, and it always seems to be my days alone with you, you might only nap for one hour!) While I’d like your naps to be a bit longer, I can’t complain too much. You are still a happy, smiley, good natured baby who is curious about the world around you. You’re amazing.

You’ve only had one little bout of illness, which may have been a cold but never amounted more than to a bit of hoarseness and grumpiness. It might even have been from your teething, but it came during the 4th of July weekend when you’d been around a lot of people, so I don’t know. In any case, I’m very grateful you’ve been such a healthy baby! Hopefully you inherited your health from your father. I really don’t want you to end up with my asthma and allergies.

Autumn is around the corner and it’s hard to believe we have just three months until we’ll be celebrating your first birthday! I’m not ready for my itty bitty baby to become an independent toddler, but I see signs every day of the big boy you’re going to be. You are nearly fearless—loud sounds don’t frighten you, being pushed way high (by your father) on the park swing only phases you for a moment, splashing about in the bathtub or your new pool is an adventure—and that makes your poor mother worry about the day when you can not only walk and run, but climb! Oh baby, I hope we can keep you from getting too banged up as you make your way through childhood…

It seems like you’re learning something new every week now—sometimes every day! Did I mention you can clap (though you sometimes clap at inappropriate times—like when you’re sad) and you are starting to wave bye-bye? Or that you know how to head butt (thank you, Uncle Nick) and will tilt your head forward to bump foreheads? Or that you will smack the kitchen table with authority to let us know you want more Puffs or Cheerios? Such little things, but you are learning to communicate your moods and needs.

The baby babble has begun in earnest. You started saying, “Ma-ma-ma-ma” about a month ago, though that has now given way to you trying to combine various syllables to form your own words. (And you are very serious about it!) I love your little signals to let me know what you want, but I’m looking forward to those first words, too. In time, baby, we’ll be having some awesome conversations!

Three quarters of a year, Monkey. Those first few months may have been rough because it was just you and me, but these lat few months have flown by in a blur of laughter and sunshine and baby squeals. I’ve taken hundreds of pictures of you, but it’s impossible to capture on film or even in words what an incredible little creature you are. I catch my breath in wonder as I watch you grow and change right in front of me. What an amazing adventure it is, having you in my life.

Happy 9 Month Birthday, Monkey. Mama loves you so much.

Last Weekend of Summer

Patrick is 9 months old today!

Reflections

His Name is Patrick, But...

Here is a list of Patrick's nicknames. There are probably more that I'm forgetting. I'm pretty sure the kid doesn't know his real name at this point.


Monkey
Punkin (by his father)
Honey Monkey
Baby Monkey
Wallababy (because he "wallows" on us)
Finn (by family friends)
Henry (by me, when I'm especially tired and confuse him with the dog-- though his second middle name is Henry)
Chunka Chunka
Monk-Monk
Squealy Dan (when he lets out those eardrum-piercing squeals)
Fuss Monkey
Stink Pot Jones (at particularly grody diaper changes)
Puff Monkey (when he's eating his favorite finger food-- Gerber Graduates Puffs)
Love Monkey
Angel Baby
Little Dude
Hulk Baby (because he does a scarily accurate imitation of the Hulk)

Patrick in the Pool

Patrick in his pool for the first time. This swimming stuff (or splashing stuff) is serious business.

Mother Raccoon, Human Baby

A Letter to Patrick, Six Months Old

Dear Patrick,

You were born six months ago today, changing my life forever. I have come a long way from the woman who had never changed a diaper and didn’t even know how to hold a newborn. And you, sweet monkey, have come a long way from that pink wriggling bundle that only slept, ate and taught me how to change diapers! Half a year is hardly any time at all, but I feel as if you have become a little person, complete with likes and dislikes and an awesome personality, in that short span of time.

You had your six month appointment today, along with the required vaccinations. What an amazing child you are, hardly even flinching until the third and final shot when you voiced your discomfort for all of thirty seconds before returning to your usual good humor. You are weighing in at 20 pounds and 6 ounces and are a little over 27 inches long. Quite a happy, healthy chunk, you are! No teeth yet—the pediatrician said it might be another couple of months for those.

This month has brought many new things to your life—first of all, your father is home from deployment! His homecoming was a wonderful day for us as a family, though I’m afraid the long wait for him to arrive tested the limits of your patience. It was your first—and perhaps last—experience with a Navy homecoming, but you handled it amazingly well. I don’t know who was smiling bigger—you or your father! Now it’s just a matter of the two of you getting to know each other better. It’s going well so far—no doubt because you both share the same mellow temperament in addition to looking so much alike.

I held off on feeding you solid foods until your father got home because I didn’t want him to miss any more of the milestones of this first year. You clearly don’t mind if I hold off even longer—the few solids you’ve tried so far have not impressed you. Rice cereal, bananas, applesauce, sweet potatoes, carrots and peas receive the same initial look of distaste. You seem to be getting used to the idea of eating off the spoon and want to help yourself, with messy results all around. (Truth be told, I’m far messier than you!) I think as you eat each food a few times you’re starting to get used to the taste and hopefully soon we’ll be able to offer you the things you like best. Right now, I think sweet potatoes are your favorite, but you’d still prefer your bottle to anything on a spoon. I imagine all of that will change in just a few months!

You are nearly able to sit up unassisted now. This new view of the world, with just my hand on your back or your hand on my arm for support, gives you the opportunity to grab for the things you want—whether it’s your bottle, your stuffed Tigger or whatever happens to be within reach on the kitchen table. You can roll from your back to your tummy quite easily and are mastering the tummy-to-back roll now. Crawling is on the horizon, but for now you can scoot backwards and spin yourself around while on your tummy. It won’t be long before you’re fully mobile. Heaven help us then.

You are a happy, smiley little guy, able to coax a grin from anyone, even those who aren’t too fond of babies. I think it’s the dark blue eyes and mop of blond hair—and that quirky, shy little half-smile you give strangers that blossoms into an open mouthed toothless grin once they’ve gained your approval. No one is impervious to that combination—certainly not me. (Again, heaven help me when you’re old enough to use your charms to get what you want!) Going for a ride in the truck, visiting new places, meeting new friends, everything sparks your curiosity and amusement. Oh, and you have a particular fondness for dark-haired girls. If they have tattoos, all the better. Oh my!

You’re learning new things almost on a daily basis and I love watching you study everything around you. I had no idea before you were born how entertaining it would be to watch you discover the world. You are just so much fun to be around. It seems I have learned a few things as well in the past six months thanks to my wonderful, good natured teacher. Because of you I’ve learned to slow down, be more patient and forgiving, enjoy the little accomplishments and appreciate the simple moments. Oh, and when all else fails, to smile. Thanks, baby.

Happy half-year birthday, baby. Mama loves you.

Homecoming!

After seven long months... Jay is home!

A Letter to Patrick, Five Months Old

Dear Patrick,

Where has the time gone? Here you are at five months old already and your father is just days away from finally being home. He was supposed to be back on May 6, just in time for your mama’s birthday and first Mother’s Day, but now it’s looking like it will be next week. Soon though, baby! And this will hopefully be the last time he’s away from us for an extended period of time. I know that doesn’t mean much to you right now, but trust me—it’s a good thing!

The past month has been the most peaceful since you were born. No major issues at all! You sleep well, you’re hardly ever fussy, you smile all the time (even if you are stingy with your laughs) and you love riding in the truck, meeting new people and seeing the world from an upright position. You are sleeping about 11 hours a night, usually going down around 9 and getting up around 8. Your daytime naps are getting shorter to make up for the longer nights, but I don’t really mind—it gives us more time to play and have playdates.

Speaking of which, you are becoming quite popular with the girls. You have several “girlfriends” of various ages and have gotten to play with three of them just in the past week. Caitlin is two weeks older than you, Sydney is eight weeks younger than you and Cierra is almost four—but she loves baby boys and you certainly took a liking to her! There don’t seem to be any little boys in our circle of friends at the moment, but I’m sure you don’t mind being the only boy for now.

Your babysitter Ashleigh continues to be the favorite woman in your life. I do believe you like her even more than you like me, judging by the way you smile at her whenever she’s in the room. She has been an absolute gift to both of us, monkey. She even adjusted your carseat straps when I couldn’t figure out how to do it. I don’t know what we’d do without Ashleigh! (Hopefully we won’t have to find out any time soon.)

Your big discovery this month has been… your feet! You grab them any chance you get and attempt to get them to your mouth, though your belly gets in the way. Socks are the bane of your existence at the moment and you spend a great deal of your time trying to scrape them off with each foot. Footed pajamas are a constant source of irritation for you as they simply will not come off! I’m sorry, monkey. At least it has warmed up and you can actually go barefoot a bit more now.

This past Saturday, you learned to tug your socks off with your hands. Of course, you only got as far as the one sock before you decided to shove it in your mouth. Oh, monkey. Everything goes in your mouth right now. Your poor Tigger (a gift from Aunt Leslee) spends a great deal of his time soaking wet as you gnaw and suck on his face and limbs. I believe you’re teething and I do hope it won’t be too painful a process for you. I’m not quite ready for you to be growing teeth. You’re still my little baby!

The coming month is going to be filled with all kinds of adventures, baby! You’ll be starting solids soon (I’m waiting on that so your papa can be the first to feed you) and it won’t be long before you’re sitting up on your own. You’ll be needing some new gear to accommodate your developments. Mostly that means you’ll be getting some new toys that will be as much fun for the adults in your life as they are for you!

Well, baby, we did it. That December day we dropped your father off at the airport, I told you it was just you and me kid. Here we are, four and a half months later, and we have survived! Thank you for making the past few months as peaceful as you possibly could on your poor, inexperienced and exhausted mama. I am so very grateful that you are an easy, happy, forgiving baby. You have made me an easier, happier, more forgiving person as a result.

Happy five month birthday, monkey. Mama loves you.

Oh, Baby

A Letter to Patrick, Four Months Old

Dear Patrick,

You are four months and one day old today. I didn’t get a chance to write your letter yesterday because your Aunt Sheri was in town for the weekend. She hadn’t seen you since you were 12 days old! It was fun watching you with her, and watching her enjoy you as much as I do. (I often fear I’m a bit biased when it comes to how much fun you are and how easy your are and how beautiful you are. Oh, it’s sad to have become one of “those” mothers!)

Spring has arrived in Virginia and this month has meant more time outside. Sheri and I took you to the Norfolk Botanical Gardens on Saturday. When you weren’t napping, you seemed to enjoy the great big world. The park was certainly bigger than anything you’ve experienced so far! I’m looking forward to many outdoor days when your father gets home. Only five more weeks to go!

You went to the pediatrician on Thursday—your father’s 41st birthday, coincidentally—for your four month checkup and vaccinations. You’re weighing in at a little over 17 pounds now, monkey! Though I honestly expected you to weigh more since you feel soooo heavy to me! You handled the vaccinations like a champ and only cried for about a minute before you were smiling again. Whew! You don’t go back to the pediatrician until you’re six months old, thankfully.

So far this month you have started rolling over front to back and back to front, quite an accomplishment. You don’t do it often, but you’re starting to figure out that the rolling will get you closer to what you want. You’re a clever little monkey and have figured out how to grab onto things to pull yourself from your side to your stomach. Uh oh! The days of leaving you in the middle of the bed unattended will soon be over, I’m afraid.

You’re still sleeping well through the night, which is so wonderful. I was afraid of what they call the “four month sleep regression,” but if such a thing occurred, it only affected your daytime naps. You’re still napping pretty well, but your awake periods have stretched to two hours now. Your naps are all over the place—45 minutes to over 3 hours—but you total between 6 and 7 hours of naps a day.

You love tummy time and hold your head high, a steady stream of drool dripping from your bottom lip. Your usual smiley humor disappears when you’re in the tummy zone, though. Apparently, this is a very serious activity for you that requires intense concentration and maximum drool output. (The drool is all-powerful, I’ve discovered.) You kick your legs furiously, as if you can’t wait to crawl. Slow down, baby! There will be time enough for you to crawl and walk and run….

My favorite moment this month was last Wednesday night. We were talking to your father on the computer and I was making funny sounds to get you to smile and laugh. So far, your “laughing” has been brief a-ha sounds, followed by an open-mouthed grin. But then I hit upon a sound that made you laugh and laugh… It was a wonderful moment, not only because it was the first time you’ve every laughed continually like that, but also because it was already April 1 in Dubai. I think that was your birthday present to your father!

This past month marks the one year anniversary of finding out I was pregnant with you. Those early days and weeks (and months, if I’m being honest) were nerve wracking… wondering whether I’d be able to hang onto you and keep you growing inside me. And here we are a year later, with you growing up right in front of me!

The days are going by so fast, baby. Four months! Winter is a memory and spring is well and truly here. Your father will be home soon and you can laugh and laugh for both of us. Never stop laughing, baby. Life is good.

Happy four month birthday! Mama loves you.

Spring, Baby

Sheri and I took Patrick to the Norfolk Botanical Gardens over the weekend. The weather was perfect and Patrick enjoyed exploring the great big green world (as much as a four month old can explore, of course).

Baby Babble

Oh, the cuteness. It breaks my heart sometimes.

Patrick had his four month appointment today. (He'll actually be four months old on Easter.) This picture was taken while we were waiting for the doctor-- and before his vaccinations. (Which he handled remarkably well. I hope that never changes.) We were almost late to his appointment because I-- believe it or not-- overslept. Which is not an entirely accurate statement because I went to bed after midnight and was up at 1:30, 3, 5, 5:30 and 6:40. Technically, I got up way too early. But when I went back to sleep sometime after 6:40, I fully expected Patrick to wake me up with his baby calls somewhere between 7 and 7:30. I woke up on my own at 8:22 and he was still asleep. Which is also not entirely accurate, because I remember hearing him babbling to himself sometime after 5:30. (For the record, I woke up at 1:30 and 3 for no reason, 5 and 6:40 because of the elderly blind cat, and Henry needed to go out at 5:30.) Patrick is very good at putting himself back to sleep if he wakes up too early (translation: before I'm physically able to crawl out of bed). Of course, I was kind of counting on him waking me up this morning. Silly baby.

So, I jumped out of bed at 8:22, checked on him (still sleeping), brushed my teeth and hair, got dressed, put on some makeup, gently woke baby (opened his blinds, made some noise, touched his face), changed his diaper, took him downstairs, got him dressed, slapped a bib on him, warmed and fed him a bottle, called Jay on Skype, cleaned the litter box, let the dog out again, turned the television on for Lola (the bird who gets grumpy if the television isn't on), packed the diaper bag, loaded Patrick up in his car seat and we were out of the house at 9:12 and at the doctor's office at 9:27. Whew. (I wasn't sure if his appointment was at 9:30 or 9:45 and never did find out.) I could have cut 8 minutes off my time if I hadn't bothered to straighten my hair.

It's nice to be so quick and efficient when I have to be. It wasn't that long ago (almost four months!) that it took Jay and me over an hour to get ready, get Patrick ready and get out of the house for his first doctor's appointment. And we were still late.

I have certainly adjusted to life with baby. Funny how that happens.

The irony, of course, is that Patrick sleeps through the night and I still don't. Eight hours in bed last night and I got up five times. Five! People told me that taking care of a baby would be so exhausting that I'd probably sleep better at night. Of course, they forgot about the old blind cat who gets lost in my bedroom and the old deaf dog who is still recovering from his inner ear infection (and still needs help up and down the stairs). Not to mention my own crazy insomnia. But I'd rather Patrick sleep through the night than me. It most definitely works out better that way.

Except now I'm quite tired and it just dawned on me that I haven't managed to take a shower yet today.