Days 9-14

Day 9 - For weekend getaways... Ok, so most of the time, as a member of our church, the weekend pretty much ends on Saturday evening. Even so, we were able to head out of town when Matt got off to go spend the night with some sweet friends who have moved away. The poor (childless as of now) folks were not expecting to hear the weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teething from our little howler monkey ALL night, but they were kind enough to tell us the neighbors music kept them up instead. Lesson learned: don't plan overnighters while the baby humans are earning molars.

Day 10 - For modern technology, specifically cell phones. We seriously take these things for granted even though most people my age grew up without them. At most, our parents may have had a carphone, or eventually a pager, but I got my phone in high school and I'm not sure how life worked -logistically speaking- without it.  We spent Saturday at the Renaissance Festival in Plantersville, TX and it was super fun... except for the part where Mason and I got separated from the group so I could feed him. I had no map, no clue where I was, where I was going, where the others were, or how to get to them. Every text I sent... wasn't sent! It was horribly frustrating and it forced me to resort to the "stay in one place until they find you" trick.

Day 11 - For living close to our extended family. I love that we can just get in the car and go see any of them, pretty much anytime we want. We don't have to decide who we will and will not see on the holidays, or plan and schedule some huge production every time. Granted, its more work now with a baby in tow but when someone mentions that they're cooking something yummy (and big) for dinner, the Merritts flock. Impromptu Sunday/Anyday dinners are the best.

Day 12 - For lists. Is that dumb? Oh well if it is! I love a good list... and right now I'm loving making lists about what I'll be making for upcoming holidays, be it food, crafts, gifts, or otherwise.

Day 13 - For talents-- everyone's. Speaking of crafts... I decided to face a fear of mine and revisit the art/science/voodoo witchcraft of crochet. I had a pretty bad experience with it the first time I tried it, so naturally I've avoided it ever since. A super talented friend of mine gave me the courage (and youtube links!) to try it again and I ended up making Mason a pretty sweet little beanie. I've been quite bummed since realizing the one he got from his Aunt and Uncle last year no longer fit his big ol' noggin. But guess what... I actually found the pattern for the exact same one on Etsy! Score! After the practice one, I plan on making a few with stripes like the original. Then I'll probably take a few hundred pictures of a cute, screaming kid with an ADORABLE hat on his head. Because he'll love that, ya know...

Day 14 - For modern medicine. Mason is running fever tonight... He had one freak illness (thank you Children's Museum) his first year of life and now he's getting his second "something" in a matter of weeks. I know its flu season and all, but somehow I always feel sort of immune to it all, not much different than people think that natural disasters/accidents will never happen to them... or their kid, in this case. I'm sure grateful though that I can check his temperature relatively easily, give him some medicine, and know that if it doesn't help that I can take him to a doctor who will most likely be able to cure whatever ails him. We went without health insurance for the first 5 years of our marriage but I can't imagine having to decide whether to take him to a doctor because of no coverage. I know people do it everyday...

Days 4-8

How quickly time can get away... I've got some catching up to do! I've thought of these things each day, but went a few days on my phone only so they didn't get posted.

Day 4 - For the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the opportunity of salvation afforded by his atonement. There is nothing in this life or the next that I could ever be grateful for if it weren't because of a blessing from a loving and mindful Heavenly Father. I have no doubt that one day we will find out just how masterfully each second of our existence has been crafted, so that we can experience the most joy possible. We know so little about so much. I am grateful for the things that I do know, as well as the things that I don't need to know yet. My favorite part about the gospel? The eternal promise of hope.

Day 5 - For friends who look out for me and are honest enough to tell me, "Hey, let's go walking you fat cow." Okay, maybe she didn't say it like that, but Sarah and I went walking today in the cool, crisp 85-degree November weather and even though I ended up gross and sunburned, I was so glad we got to go. We had 3 kids under three (2 in strollers and one in a Moby wrap!) and a big, giddy dog with us but we STILL managed to have fun. I'm thankful for the company and the accountability.

Day 6 - Election Day... Thankful today to live in a country where you're allowed to be pleased or not with the outcome of government elections because you had the privilege of voting for your choice, and the freedom to express your opinion of the results. I am grateful for the founders of America who fought and died and were persecuted for standing up for their belief in what our nation could become. It wouldn't have mattered were it not for men and women much braver than me who continue to fight today so that I can have the freedoms I enjoy. There are a lot of things about the government right now that I do not agree with, but the beauty of it is that I don't have to. Come what may, I still believe that America is the greatest country in the world.

Day 7 - For the fall weather. I've mentioned it here before, but I love waking up to a chilly fall day! We don't get many around here so I've come to appreciate them when it happens, even if I'm sweating again by noon. The lazy college kid in me yearns for hoodie weather year-round.

Day 8 - For the luxury of of a comfortable living. Look-- I know its not all about money and "worldly treasure." But there is something to be said for the peace of knowing you don't have to worry about how the bills will get paid or if you can afford food or shoes for your kids. I'm so grateful for Matt's willingness and ability to provide for us. I try to be as responsible as I can with our money, because I know he puts up with a less-than-ideal job to earn it. Our home is no mansion but I've loved it since the first time I walked through the door. We (finally!!) have a nice, SAFE care that I'm allowed to drive despite my embarrassing driving record. I'm thankful that we don't usually worry about the basics because it means I can focus my energy on the things that truly matter, like time spent and memories made with my family. Priceless.

Day 3

Today, Nov. 3rd, I'm thankful for old friends.

Not that age has anything to do with it. Today is my friend Melissa's birthday.  We became best friends in first grade and have been through the best of times and the worst of times since then. People used to mistake us for sisters, a fact I still love since all I had were brothers to resemble. Do you know how fun it is to be told you look like your brothers? They're good-looking and all but what girl wants to look like a boy?! Anyway... whatev.

There's just something special about having someone who's known you pretty much as long as you've known yourself. There's no faking, no fronts. It keeps you honest. Real. Humble.

She's not the only one. There have been others along the way that I share history with. We helped write each others' story, even if our roles aren't as big anymore. One day I hope to be able to let go of some of the guilt I always feel when I think about how some of us have grown apart. Either that, or I'll do something about it and pick up the phone. Part of me knows that things change, no matter how hard you try to keep them the same.

I'm just grateful that the important ones don't need apologies or excuses, and we can just pick up where we left off... after some harassment, of course.

Day 2

Today (like most days) I'm grateful for the sweet little guy that joined our family a year ago.  Mason has brought such meaning and purpose and joy to Matt and me as well as our entire family.  It has been one whirlwind of a year, for sure.

Most people, if they remember the beginning through foggy, sleep-deprived memories, they don't usually tell me how fun the brand-spankin-newborn phase was. For me it was pure bliss. I fell so madly in love with that baby so frighteningly fast! He was so relaxed, slept "through" the night at about 3 weeks, and loved to snuggle.

Then before I knew it, he decided to wake up. He turned into the real Mason and never looked back. Now, that's not to say that I don't love the new Mason just as much if not more, but he is definitely not the easy, chill baby he came here being.  We had our months of colic (p.s. I hate that term), reflux, rivers of spit-up, screaming, allergies and intolerances, and cardboard diets, but we all survived. Somehow during all that the child figured out he could sit up and crawl, but little did we know that the early mover would decide not to walk until he neared his birthday. My big plans for making all his baby food myself, much of it grown in our own backyard, completely and utterly backfired when the precious darling refused to eat any solid food for a full two months after we introduced it. He chose to eat such baby-friendly foods as celery sticks, olives, rice cakes, cucumbers, beans, apple slices. Applesauce? No way. He had to be in control of the situation and any spoons that tried to airplane into his mouth were flung across the room as he sputtered food in your face... and on the blinds... and in your hair. Good times.

So far, I think the biggest thing I've learned from the little person, besides selflessness, is that I really am not in control. He made sure that I started that lesson early. It's not about me at all, at least not for now. It's not my job to force him to do anything, even at such a very young age, but rather to show him the way, teach him about things (everything), and hopefully guide him to being able to control himself. You might think I sound crazy talking like that about a baby, but even at 6 months old this boy not only knew when he shouldn't touch something, but actually showed that he was learning how to resist the urge to do it anyway. Most adults I know (ahem, me!) can't even do that! I'm not saying he never does things he shouldn't, quite the contrary, really. But I'm often reminded that he is a person who is learning just like the rest of us, not a pet that needs to be "broken" of things.

The craziest part of all? The fact that we've just barely gotten started on this adventure! Words can't express how much I love that kid and I've only known him for a year! I'm so thankful that he and Heavenly Father decided to let us be his parents.

Let's hope we still like it as much when he starts talking ; )

Gratitude

So, a WHOLE bunch of my people on facebook have started their "30 days of thanks" thing for the month of November and I just can't get on the bandwagon. Not because I'm ungrateful -I think- but because that sort of thing usually makes me want to do the opposite just out of defiance, I guess... healthy, no?

Anyway, I have SOOO much to be grateful for... especially considering that yesterday was my dearest Little Dude's first birthday. I promise I will post pictures and write something mushy for posterity and all that but for now, I just want a place to be able to come and write a few things, probably more for my benefit than anyone else's. Something longer than a status update and without everyone feeling like they must "like" it or add their two cents to every little thing I write. If you want to comment, by all means do so because I really do like reading what you have to say, its just that I know my audience here is not so broad or, well, annoying... So with that I must say that for Day 1:

I am most grateful for my Matt.

He really, truly is my world. Everything I hold near and dear and meaningful in my life can be traced like a Kevin Bacon movie, right back to him. Even the parts of my life that were there before he came around are better for having him there now. He's my very bestest friend and I just love him. Everything about him... well mostly, but I love him just the way his is, no matter what. I'm grateful that he is soo dorky sometimes and doesn't care. I'm grateful that he is gentle. I'm grateful that he works so hard and with such real integrity. I don't know anyone else like him. I'm grateful that he is kind. Genuinely kind. I'm humbled (no easy task I assure you) by the fact that he chose me to co-pilot this wonderful journey through life and beyond. And I love that he's okay with having to buckle up for the ride!

Eye Luff Ewe Babe!

Memory Full...

Fun at the park with the coolest Dad around.

See my cute puppy?

I love my new little farm animals!!

              

I want THIS one!

So many fun things, where to begin?

Nonnie zerberts!

Little Dude - 6 months old

Sorry about the taco neck this requires... I can't figure out how to turn it.

Just a normal conversation around here these days.

Time Marches On...

Well folks, we've been a family of 3 for HALF of a YEAR now! Yes Mason turned six months old yesterday and today I find myself a little saddened by the fact that every day he is now closer to being a 1-year-old than a newborn. So here's a little update of all things Mason... as though that's unusual.

He loves being outside, watching and listening to everything, feeling the wind. He is becoming an expert weed and grass puller/eater and doesn't mind too much the inevitable mosquito bites that come with so much time outdoors in SETX.

He's liking bath time more and more since we stopped using his little chair support thing. He wants to be free to slip and slide around the sink and scare his parents to death! His most favorite part is when the dad says splaaaaash splaash! and then he beats his hands into the water right on cue, soaking me and my kitchen in the process. The dad likes to stand back and laugh. : )

Because of the water and outside fun, we got a kiddie pool and set it up this week on our back patio. The water was still pretty cold from filling it up but he still had fun kicking around. His little float is almost the right height for him to stand supported like in his jumper so, once its a bit warmer I think he will love it. I'm looking forward to a summer spent splashing around out there.

Not sure how I forgot to mention this, but the allergies are gone!! I figured this out accidentally a couple weeks ago and have been pigging out ever since. He started solid food yesterday and Matt finally got to be the one in charge of feeding him. We decided to start with sweet potatoes so I cooked up a few yesterday and tested out my Baby Bullet. Its awe-some! We have probably 20 servings in the fridge and freezer and it took about 30 min start to finish. Anyway, the kid was far less impressed. I think we waited too late in the evening because he was mad before we ever got started. Matt tried so hard to make him happy but maybe tonight will go more smoothly. He did like playing with the spoons, just not the one with food on it.

In other news, Mason is crawling! He's not taking off down the hall or anything but he can get anywhere he wants. He usually prefers to lunge forward from sitting, take several steps, and lean back to sit for a bit before going after something better. Recently, the better something has been Mocha... I'm pretty sure Mason has been blacklisted by her just as so many of his cousins have been before. Unless she lives until he's about 6 or 7, he will probably remain on her naughty list from now on. At least she's learned pretty well how to get away from pesky miniature people.

Add to the crawling pulling up on your leg to stand, or the ottoman or crib with a little help because its still just out of his reach. So many people have told me to push him down and I think its absurd! I don't try to push him into doing something he's not ready for, but I certainly don't discourage him from doing what he wants. He has always, literally from day 1 wanted to be up, seeing the world around him. He picked his head up and looked around before we ever left the hospital with him and hasn't slowed down a bit. I guess I understand why one might want him to stay a baby for as long as possible, but it just seems a little selfish to me. Maybe because he's our first and I am too naive to understand how quickly time passes, who knows, but if you could see the look of excitement and satisfaction on his face when he accomplishes something, how could you discourage him? I don't want a pause button or to keep him a baby forever, I just want to appreciate and remember every stage without lingering too long or looking too far ahead. He's ours forever, after all... and that's one of the greatest promises I've ever been given.

Some of my favorite things Mason is doing right now are:
Laughing at "jokes" (like peeking around a corner when he didn't expect you to be there)... he has quite the budding little sense of humor and it cracks us up!
Huge gummy grins when we throw him, spin him, flip him, tickle him, or any other general rough-housing. So glad it doesn't scare him like some kids. The huge green yoga ball, however... took him 2 days to not shake with fear around it.
He pats my face and arms when he's eating, and plays with my hair (usually gently!). So sweet...
He "feels" everything and listens for the sounds when he scratches different things like the floor, recliner in his room, car seat cover, my workout ball, etc.
He turns off the lights when we leave a room, now with only his index finger.
He sings with me in the car. I cannot begin to describe how much I love this.

I'm hoping to be able to upload videos of him doing some of those things, if blogger will cooperate. I guess it's worth the hassle if its for family that doesn't get to see him much, eh? Picture parade coming soon!

Dependents...

I know everyone has bad days, weeks even. This past weekend was crazy. Sunday was especially sucky. I really hoped Monday would turn around but once we got home from my Mom's kinda late I knew it hadn't.  Finding that the neighborhood boys we hired earlier that afternoon to mow our lawn had mowed down my fig tree (which had been transplanted from my grandparents property where I grew up before it was sold a few months ago) almost did me in. I keep telling myself that I don't like figs anyway, but every time I look at the back corner of my yard, it just makes me sad. I didn't think I was so sentimental over a stick in the ground.

Yesterday was marginally better. It ended well at least. But today? Well you be the judge...

5:00am - Mason wakes up crying. We do the "who's turn is it anyway" dance until finally Matt goes in and gives him his pacifier.
5:01am - Matt's back asleep... I am not.
5:27am - Mocha decides she might need to go outside again (for the third time?). Matt wakes back up, we both let out "UGH, Mocha, seriously?" Matt mumbles something about his alarm going off in 5 minutes and I end up taking her out.
5:35am - Back in bed. Can't get comfortable because my back is screwed up from something I did yesterday. Also, can't fall asleep due to waiting on the alarm to go off any.second.now...
6:00am? - Matt's alarm, snooze, repeat. At this point I'm just hoping his shave/shower/sonicare noise will lull me off to sleep again, as it sometimes does.
6:38am - Morning routine white noise unsuccessful, he showered last night. Off to work he goes.
6:50am - FINALLY back to sleep!
6:59am - Baby crying... starving and mistreated... I go in, feed it..
7:20am - Tiptoe back to my room, crossing my fingers that I've bought myself another hour, maybe hour and a half...
7:21am - I approach my side of the bed, only to find that Mocha apparently needed to go out again. She left a little gift for me - IN MY BED!!! I am so absolutely disgusted, and seeing red at this point. I jerked her up, put her in HER bed, ripped the sheets off and got in on Matt's side, fuming. I still cannot believe she did that. She has been sleeping with me for nearly 15 years and has had maybe two accidents (#1, never the other), only when she couldn't get down. Unfortunately, one of those times was earlier this week when she decided she either couldn't or didn't want to jump down. Incontinent little wretch will not be in my bed tonight.
7:26am - Texted Matt to vent, I guess. I was so mad!!
7:30am - Done texting... sooo tired... might drift off in my rage.
7:45am - Text from Carrie beginning with "I know its early, but..." In her defense, she doesn't typically do that so I answered quickly and clamped my eyes shut.
7:51am - I hear a little human talking down the hall... I ignore said human, still hopeful that the morning might be salvaged by a few winks.
7:52am - Another text from Carrie. Did she not understand that yes, I was awake, but against my will?! Told her I'd call later... then got a trailing "K." Love it.
7:58am - Mason cries. Resistance is futile.

So here I am. PBS is babysitting but not very effectively. I sincerely hope that the "nap while baby naps" phenomenon will happen today. If it does it will be maybe the fourth time ever so I'm not holding my breath...

Sometimes it hits the fan...

This weekend is General Conference. For us that means its also work-your-butt-off-in-the-yard-while-blaring-the-broadcast-to-the-entire-neighborhood weekend. I bet we've gained even more popularity points with the neighbors now.

The crafty bug has bitten me. Hard. The only problem is: now that I have a cute little person to make all kinds of adorable things for, I also have a cute little person to wrangle while attempting to make anything for him. I have managed to get a simple, yet classically sweet little Easter romper (a.k.a. Jon Jon) done this week. Well, mostly done but I have to finish the snaps and buttons today.

In the meantime, I made this for a friend's baby girl on the way. Its a good thing I've got a boy or I might need a Joann's credit card.

The last few summers I have had this obsession with finding just the right maxi dress that was neither too bold nor bland, covered what needed coverage without looking frumpy, was long without making me look stumpy, and did all of this while making me look not pregnant. They have a way of doing that. Needless to say, I never found it. A few weeks ago I came across a cute-ish one at Ross that was a tube-top style and it screamed for a little makeover. The problem now is that I've tried a few different ways of changing the top and I keep getting poor reviews from the resident fashion expert. I'm still hoping to figure out a way to wear it without using the go-to cardigan fix because seriously, who wants to wear a sweater in the heat of a Texas summer? Kind of defeats the purpose of a comfy, cool dress if you ask me.

We went to the fair last week with Paul, Carrie and the girls. I can't believe I didn't get a picture of everyone but it was fun anyway. We mostly just walked around but I did ride one thing with Gracie and Kelly. It was fun but waiting in the long line with piles of vomit along the way was not. Eww.

Matt enjoyed some boudain and I left without so much as a bottle of water.

Even though we didn't leave until 10:30pm, Mason did great. He had so much fun, he forgot to put his arms down when he fell asleep.

Lest you all think I'm suffering too badly on this diet, this is what I had for dinner a few nights ago. Yumm-o!

I've added corn and it seems to be okay with baby, so this week we grabbed some corn tortillas, ground turkey with homemade taco seasoning and whipped up some guacamole right away. It was so good, I'll probably never buy those little seasoning packets again. It went like this:

4 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp oregano

2 tsp paprika

2 tbsp ground cumin

4 tsp salt

4 tsp black pepper

I shook mine together in a jar and used 2-3 tbsp per pound of meat. Customize at will!

As many of you know, we use cloth diapers on Mason. They're not your grandma's style of pins and plastic pants or we would not be doing it. Its not nearly as gross or complicated as most people think. Still, as great as they are, there are some situations where we still opt for the convenience of disposables. Let me just say, although his clothes can sometimes wick moisture out of the leg holes if we let him get too wet, we have had ONE poop leak with cloth and it wasn't even bad.

THIS? This is the result of a "convenient" disposable day...

I'm still working on getting the stain out of my pillow cover. Oh, and putting pictures in those frames I hung over a year ago.

Sunshine on my Shoulders

1. Mason is still doing great with the elimination diet. The only setbacks we've had are when I unknowingly eat something with soy, like at a restaurant. Did you know a plain, dry baked potato from Red Lobster contains soy? Me either. My bad, Little Dude. My one and only splurge has been the occasional drive-thru french fries and I even checked to see which places don't use soybean oil to cook them. I thought Sonic was safe, but it turns out, only Chick-fil-A uses plain 'ol spuds in 100% peanut oil (to which he hasn't reacted). Why must there be so many additives in everything?!

2. Lately, I've stumbled upon a few new things I can eat. Unfortunately chocolate cake is not one of them... but jell-o is! Hooray for sugar!! Since avocados seem safe so far, I've been spreading them on rice cakes, imagining that I'm back on that lovely little private beach in Mexico. I even found some gluten-, dairy-, soy-, corn-, egg-, nut-free vegan mac n' cheese the other day. Sad news is that it tastes even worse than it sounds. Ick. Mocha wouldn't even finish it.

3. Speaking of her: I woke up this morning to find that last night she peed on my freakin' yoga mat that has been out in the living room for a few days. Can't wash that out. Thanks, turd.

4. It wouldn't have been so bad except that the morning was already off to a rough start after the little neighbor kids were playing right outside Mason's window and woke him up. Perfect timing too, since it was late enough that he was not going back to sleep and early enough to put us both in a bad mood. And right about the time I found Mocha's surprise, the kid filled up a fresh diaper and began screeching at me as though it was my fault he was sitting in poop for 0.5 seconds. I know I'll be grateful for that reaction when he starts potty training, but in the mean time, Iamsotiredofcleaningupbodilyfluids!

5. Matt got a slammin' new computer. Mine is basically on hospice, so we went shopping Monday to see whats new in the 5 years since being in the market for one. Well, Matt came home last night in a funk and decided he needed some retail therapy. Two hours and several dollars later, he had his fix. The coolest part is that he got some gadget that wirelessly connects it to our TV so now he can watch his espn.com, youtube, and whatever else in all its HD, 40-something-inch glory.

6. Last spring we had grandiose plans for sprucing up our yard and planting a garden. We even borrowed a tiller and bought flowers... annuals. Then out of nowhere, morning sickness slammed me onto the couch and March-June became little more than a blurry haze of barf bags, chicken nuggets and 2-day-old mascara. When I finally got over it, my summer class was nearly over, Matt had undergone foot surgery, and the little flowers (never taken from the tray) had been dead and crunchy for months. I guess it got pretty ugly because the only topic of conversation in the last year between us and two of our neighbors has been our pitiful lawn. We actually caught one of them trimming our hedges a few weeks ago when he thought we weren't home. AWKWARD! I never imagined we'd be the trashy ones on the street, but go us! This year we are determined to finish what we started and maybe add a little curb appeal too. We haven't even bought dirt and I'm already overwhelmed. Why does yard work have to be so much... work? We're sticking with perennials this time.

7. I luurve springing forward. It is my signal that I survived winter and the sun will shine once more. My serotonin tank is usually on empty by the time February is over and I was exceptionally nervous about it this time, having to go through the first few crazy months with a baby during the same time of year. But alas, we survived. One thing I haven't figured out is: Why don't we just move the time by 30 min and call it good?

1/3 of a Year?!

Today was Mason's 4-month checkup, a week after the fact. We all know he's been a chunk from day 1 but here are his latest stats:

Height: 25 inches (maybe a little more because he scrunched up)

Head: 42.5 cm

Weight: 17lb 6oz. Yowza. No wonder the Baby Bjorn is cutting trenches through my shoulders on even the quickest trip to the store.

Overall the Doc seemed pleased and said we had the green light to start solids but once I told him about the allergy issues, he said it would be fine to wait until closer to 6 months too. It's not like he needs the extra calories, after all!

He also casually mentioned that he should be sleeping through the night. This is exactly what I wanted to hear, and exactly what I didn't want to hear. Remember the last post when I said we moved him to his room? Well the next night he was back in ours... then back in his for a week... and he's been next to our bed ever since. Most people would think the crying at bedtime would be the hardest part to deal with, and let me tell ya, its no fun. But it was all the up and down all night long that did me in.

You see, I couldn't hear him crying over our fan (which freaked me out to begin with) so we left both bedroom doors open. It still took major screaming to wake me up so Matt started going in and bringing him to me. Easy enough, right? Wrong... at least when you have a senile, incontinent little daschund who wakes up and needs to go outside all night too. And did I mention that since the doors were open, said doggie had free access to the green shag rug (read: grass) in baby's room? Add stumbling over a baby gate multiple times in the dark and suffice it to say, it was a circus around here.

I just figured we'd try again in a month or two, once he wasn't waking so often to eat. Then the Doc said he doesn't need to be waking to eat since he's clearly not having trouble gaining weight. Goodbye excuse... It seems my baby has been labeled a "trained night feeder." It also seems that it's not going to be easy to straighten this out. Doc said his child once cried for 2.5 hours straight, almost with a touch of pride. Who does that!? When I said I was thinking more along the lines of 5 minute cries, he gave me one of those "oh, its one of those first-time-moms" looks.

What is it about pediatricians that makes you feel like such a loser upon leaving their offices?

What we know for sure is that the little dude is healthier and happier than the last visit. One positive note (that its not all in my head) is that even the Doc noticed that he is active, busy,and any other cute little word to say that he is a handful. My mom's favorite is intense and she gave me a book about high needs babies. Sounds like this might not be just a phase... Oh joy!

We've definitely got our work cut out for us. Good thing he's cute...

Turkey for you and turkey FOR me...

Today marks 2 weeks since starting the allergen elimination diet. I wasn't sure I'd ever make it. Ever. But there hasn't been one bit of cheating and it looks like its paying off. I'm thrilled to report that Mason is feeling soooo much better! He still spits up, but its probably not any more than any other baby his age. Most importantly though, the non-stop crying has finally stopped! Our old friend Gripe Water has been lonely and abandoned for several days now. I can't convey how relieved I am. Thanks everyone for your advice and words of comfort.

But now that we know it was mostly (if not completely) caused by something I was eating, it means that I can't just quit now at two weeks. Looks like turkey and rice will be on the menu for a while yet. I do get to add other things in now, one at a time, and I figured apples wouldn't be too bad since I've been craving something fresh. I couldn't do the fresh pear thing so I've been baking them. Last night I went to the grocery store and stocked up on 15 bucks worth of honeycrisp apples. Oh. My... They are like heaven's candy to me right now! Worth every dime.

Now that one crisis is under control, we've decided that it might be time to move him into his own room. He's been sleeping next to our bed in a cradle of sorts since birth. Its so convenient having him so close at night that I just assumed we might start making the switch around six months or so, once he would be too big to stay in the little bed. Even though there are probably 1,002 reasons why, he still isn't sleeping well. Every morning after Matt leaves, Mason ends up in the bed next to me with his arms stretched out over his head. *Don't ever say you won't do something with your child (like co-sleep) because I assure you, you will!*

Last night we did the unthinkable. We abandoned our first-born in a dark, lonely room a mile down the hall. But you know what? He didn't seem to care! Granted, he didn't sleep any better, but I really didn't expect him to the first night. Maybe the point is that it wasn't any worse! You know what the very best part was? Matt totally got up with him just as many times as I did! Epic. All this time, I've been the lone ranger at night because he only woke up to eat. I might have been a little resentful of this on occasion and I may or may not have kicked dear husband once for not waking up and "at least playing like I wasn't in this alone!" I have labeled the man a Sleep Wuss for all intents and purposes, but he really stepped it up last night. We'll see if he takes a nap when he gets home from work today. : )

First outing with the stroller-- Shopping? Meh...

And since I have absolutely no life anymore, I'll tell you something else about the kid. He's going to be four months old next week and that, to me, is crazy. Aside from all the tummy drama, he really is doing great. He rolled over (intentionally, repeatedly) a day after turning 3 months and a week later he was pretty much sitting up.

Coolest hair ever. : ) 3 1/2 months!

At the moment, Little Dude is happily sitting on the floor, playing with his favorite toy... a Tonka truck. Boys will be boys, I guess! I'm considering re-naming him Hooch, though, because of the steady stream of drool flowing from his gummy little mouth. Ah, teething...

NomNomNom...

He has been quite the helper with the laundry lately. Maybe he'll learn how to wash his own diapers?! Yeah, I don't think so either... a girl can dream.

MXC

Have you ever seen the show Most Extreme Elimination Challenge, a.k.a. MXC on Spike? You should youtube it if not. Your life will be better for it, trust me. : )

Unfortunately I'm talking about a different MXC.

You see, my sweet, chill, happy little baby has become possessed. He screams bloody murder most hours of the day and no longer sleeps through the night like he has been since his 3rd week. Top that off with the giant puke splatters regularly landing on my floor, furniture, clothes, hair, you name it, and I've been dangerously close to losing it. But even with that, I'd do laundry all day if it meant my little guy didn't have to hurt so bad.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Even the prescription antacid wasn't helping anymore, so I turned to my old friend, Google.

We've tried everything from sleeping at an incline to homeopathic remedies to prescription drugs, but there was one other culprit I hadn't given much credit to. ME. Since he is exclusively breastfed, I'm trying a total elimination diet in an attempt to get to the bottom of Mason's colic/reflux/allergy/sensitivity issues. It is quite extreme in my opinion, and quite challenging for a fatty like me. Not nearly as awesome as the real MXC, fo sho.

The info can be found here, but it's referenced lots of places. It basically takes the idea of eliminating certain foods from your diet one by one to see if it was causing the problems, and turns it around so that you eliminate almost everything then add one thing back at a time. I can currently eat organic turkey, potatoes, rice, squash, and pears. SO exciting! I have been getting a little more creative in the kitchen as a result. I realized I can have rice chex and rice krispies with rice milk in the morning, and throwing in ground turkey instead of only "thanksgiving style" has helped me feel like its normal food. Last night I thanked my lucky Mormon stars when I had the thought to use my wheat grinder to make rice flour to use as a thickener. Sauce! I miss sauce...

Anyway, it's the first time I've ever been so diligent with a diet. It changes everything when the stakes are as high as your child's health and happiness. It will be one week tomorrow since I took him off the Zantac and started this and I do think its helping. Its a good thing because I was one bleeding eardrum away from walking out in front of a train. We've only used the gripe water once today AND we opened up his stroller and went to the mall! WhatWhat!?

I think the main offenders are probably dairy (since I am still somewhat intolerant, too, but not enough to pass up a bowl of ice cream), caffeine, wheat, and soy. Don't know for sure yet, there may be others or it may be one simple thing. I guess we'll find out in time.

My question to all you out there (BOTH of you!), is: Do you have any experience with babies with food allergies? What did it take to ease the insane reflux? How long did you have to restrict your diet, if that's what helped? Recipes? Restaurant options?

I know he'll grow out of it eventually, but I had reflux as a baby and still have issues that come up, literally. In the mean time, I'd like for all three of us around here to enjoy this fleeting time, and not wish it away.

The Event

Matt had to work 12 hour night shifts last week because of some possible drama at the plant. He is usually a "straight days" kind of guy so, being the night owl that I am (or was), I was looking forward to some quality time with Netflix. I don't watch much TV and the only show I follow is typically viewed online weeks later but I found a series that I vaguely remembered being interesting when I had seen the commercials, so I started it. I had at least several nights to occupy so the fact that there were 22 episodes didn't stop me.

It was called The Event. Pretty intense, suspenseful in a TV sort of way, you never really knew who the good guys and bad guys were, and someone was ALWAYS running for their life. Probably not a good idea to watch while at home alone because my bad dreams always always involve someone chasing me, trying to kill me. Turns out it was about the eminent takeover by an alien race, because that dead horse hasn't been beaten enough.

One night when I finally decided to go to bed I made my rounds, turning off lights, locking doors, setting the alarm, etc. I fell asleep around 3:00 and Matt would be home in less than 3 hours.

A seemingly short while later I was startled awake, not by a baby crying, but by my phone buzzing like mad and loud yelling in my living room. You know how in scary movies the people always go towards creepy danger instead of away from it and you think, "Moron, you deserve to die if you go willingly down into that dark basement."

Well, sure enough, I ran down the hall and into the living room to find my security system siren going with a woman frantically asking, "Mr. Ruggles is everything okay?" and the back door dead bolt latch thing being slammed as someone was trying to break into my house.

I almost had a heart attack.

It was Matt. I forgot to leave one of the inside latches open so he could get in when he came home! He set the alarm off by opening the garage door and only had a minute to get inside to the panel to disarm it. When he couldn't get into the house, he tried calling me and then the security people started calling him. He had his face stuck through the 2 inch opening in the back door, yelling to the operator talking through the panel inside. It's hilarious to think about now but I was seriously freaked out at the time.

I guess it serves me right for watching that stupid show and staying up wayyy later than I should have. Good to know the alarm works!

Baby of Mine

Most of you know by now, but it's time to make it official on the ol' neglected blog!

Mason Merritt Ruggles was born October 31st at 3:31 p.m. We got our Halloween baby after all! He was a sturdy 8 lb 13 oz and 20 in!

Tonight I was catching up on the blog of a friend who is ready to have her little boy any minute and it made me realize I need to write down our "experience" before I forget too much more of it. Feel free to close this tab now if you don't want to hear yet another chick's war story. For the rest of you, I guess its more for me to remember than anything, soo...

My original due date was always Nov 5th. The doctor never changed it but my calculations put it a week earlier so I was hoping for a Halloween birthday ever since we found out in March! It's my favorite holiday and we have tons of holiday birthdays in our family so it seemed only fitting.

In all fairness, I feel like I had a realllly easy pregnancy after I stopped puking my brains out for the first 19 weeks or so... but by the end of October, it was getting increasingly difficult to stay positive. The last two weeks got uncomfortable but I tried not to whine because what do you say? "I'm freakin' huge. I can't sleep. My skin doesn't even fit me anymore, much less clothes. My hips, back, feet, ribs, etc. HURT." But the only sympathy you get is, "Oh I know! For me it was..." and then they proceed to tell you just how much more horrible they had it than you. Thanks. No, really. I just kept telling myself not to complain because if I couldn't handle whatever it was at that moment, then I was in trouble because labor pain and sleepless nights with a newborn would be sooo much worse.

I complained anyway.

The Friday before what was to be D-Day on Monday totally messed with my head. I spent all day doing laundry, the last few dishes, packing my bag (because I hadn't yet) and being giddy in general because I just knew we were headed to the hospital that evening. I had been having contractions since sometime that morning and even though it wasn't the 31st, I could compromise if he would just get out of me already! Well, at some point that afternoon, in all the excitement of getting everything ready, I noticed that I didn't notice the contractions anymore. NO!! Wait! Come back!! We're doing this today!

Turns out, Little Dude (as he was known, since we didn't tell anyone the name before) had other plans. I proceeded to pout the rest of the weekend. After all, there I was... Halloween weekend. No decorations put up because, why, really. No plans, due to similar logic. And now, no baby.

I was becoming convinced that he was far too comfortable and that he would never, ever come out. Irrational? Yes. But that's what happens when you have something inside your body that you're supposed to be in love with but you aren't even convinced is human, much less yours, much less cute and cuddly that you might want to keep around. I told several people that I was keeping my receipt until I knew for sure I wanted it! So maternal, I know.

Sunday evening, I went to my mom's (massage therapist!) in desperation. Until then, any time she massaged my back or feet she avoided certain spots that are "dangerous" on preggos because they can induce labor. That time, those were the only spots she hit. If nothing else, I thought, it felt good and I could get some sympathy from my mom. We went to bed that night in an odd frame of mind. Matt just assumed all weekend that he wouldn't be going back to work Monday but with the alarm set for just a few hours from then, it seemed his impression was wrong.

Well, coupled with a few other "techniques," the massage worked. I started having contractions again at 3:30 Monday morning. Instead of getting my hopes up again I just went back to sleep. Around 5:00 I woke up again, annoyed that my back hurt and decided to use the stopwatch feature on my cheapo watch and see how far apart they were, just for grins. Maybe 4 minutes? Then good grief, the kid kicked me so hard I made an audible UGH! Matt was to be waking up any time now so I just stayed perfectly still and quiet until he got up because I know how much I haaaate being awakened just before the alarm.

Alarm goes off. Finally... He's getting up... I think I'll go get in the tub because this kinda sucks all of a sudden...

He hits snooze. WHAT? Man, get up already! I'm in pain and I'd like to be able to move without freaking you out!

Snooze, again! Too bad buster, I'm just going to quietly go to the bathroom. Remember that really hard kick? Evidently that was my water breaking. Just didn't know until I got up. I told Matt through awkward nervous giggles that we were going to have the baby TODAY! I couldn't believe it was actually going to happen on Halloween! Sweet!

Naturally, he wigged out. Totally calm on the outside, panic stricken on the inside.

You see, I had this plan all along that I was going to have a natural birth, at home until the last possible minute I could get away with. I didn't want all those unnecessary hospital interventions, most especially, they were NOT cutting this thing out of me. I had watched too many documentaries and decided things would happen a certain way. But now my water had broken and that was one of the 2 scenarios my Dr. gave for "...then you'd need to head to the hospital."

Dang.

So I showered, dried my hair, straightened it, packed a few more things, talked to Mocha for a bit, said goodbye, and finally got in the car. Matt was trying to be patient. I told him I needed a Dr. Pepper since all I'd get once there would be ice chips and I was not okay with that. We went to Sonic. : )

We got to the hospital (10 min away) about 2 hours after the water thing... I hadn't pre-registered. Did I mention I had a serious case of denial? Serious. So they checked me out, called my Dr. and admitted me. (I've always thought it was strange to casually discuss the status of your cervix in normal conversation, but hey, its my blog. I can TMI if I want to.)

I was at 2cm. That's all?! The Doc decided they would start me on pitocin to get things moving along. Dr. Rising, you sell out! This was not in the plan! Suddenly my head started spinning with phrases from all those darn documentaries! All I could think was, "Great. Now I'll have artificial, artificially painful contractions that are going to be so bad that I won't be able to handle it on my own and I'll freak out and get the epidural then labor will slow down because I can't feel anything and it will take forever and they'll start getting worried about the baby then he'll go into distress which is just a catchall for 'I've got plans tonight so we need to get the baby out now' and the only way is a c-section so we're taking you back now blah blah blah..." AHHH!!! I might have over reacted to the pitocin proposal a liiiiittle bit.

They started it at 10:00. I wouldn't even sit on the bed for them to start the IV because I was so mad about being there and having to have a needle in my arm. Grr.. My nurse (angel that she was, more about her later) let me sit in the rocking chair instead. We watched a little TV. I continued pouting.

By 12:00 Dr. Rising had come in and I resisted the urge to kick him in the shin. He said I was now 5 cm and seemed pleased. I was sure they kept upping that stupid pitocin but they swore they didn't. I won't lie, that crap hurt. I was to the point that I couldn't really get my head straight after a contraction before another one was coming. So I decided I'd have a little hit of nubain in the IV... suddenly I forgot all the reasons I was opposed to pain meds... Matt says I didn't open my eyes for 2 hours after that. : ) zzzzz.....

I only remember snippets during that time. Flashes of the bathroom... Matt texting... the nurse trying to kill me... the Doc coming in... then leaving! the NERVE!

When he finally came back it was go time, and the nubain had just worn off. Fantastic. All my you-tube, google, and TLC-guided research told me that it wouldn't be long now. Riiiight. It was a few hours of go time, not merely 10 minutes. Since I was med-free at that point, I remember that part quite clearly. Gory details aside, Matt did awesome. I've always wondered if he could handle it since he nearly passed out once when *I* gave blood. He was a pro. Leg-holding and all. Go Matt is all I can say.

Eventually, that gooey little pointy-headed giant was plopped in my arms and I was in complete awe. He was so big! And so tiny! And so human! And so, so perfect...

Matt cut the cord (he wasn't sure about it), the Dr. collected the cord blood (maybe the topic of a future post), and off he went. Dude... I just had a baby. What? The next few days were filled with the same thoughts mixed with overwhelming love for this little person I had just met. I honestly didn't think I'd be one of those love-at-first-sight people. I was keeping the receipt, remember? When we got home I couldn't even listen to music for about a week because even the dumbest stuff on the radio sent me into a sob-fest over the little guy. I totally blame hormones. Matt got to stay home with us the entire first week and it was so surreal. I've never felt the Spirit in my home as much as I did then. Pretty sure I've never even felt it as strong in the temple as I did in our home. We had a real, live angel in our midst. Not only could I see this one, but I could snuggle and kiss him all over, all day and night!

And we did.

And we do.

Mason is the coolest. We are so completely smitten and have sooo much to share with everyone about him. I am now officially an obnoxious mommy blogger who will gush about their kid non-stop because I get it now. So if you've made it this far down this ridiculously long post, I assume you'll probably read all the ones to come about our new life as a family of 3! Wow, you need a hobby!

: ) This is my newest --->