Showdown

So as mentioned, baby Davis was sick. With a crazy high fever. And we went to the doctor and then waited it out per her recommendation. And it was a very long and very tiring weekend- the opposite of what weekends should be. And I was disappointed because all I want to do on the weekends is play with little D and feel footloose and fancy free. Anyway...to the point...on Sunday his fever broke and we all cheered and looked forward to a good night of sleep. But alas, no good sleep was to be found. Instead, he cried and woke up almost every hour. And so we woke up (and some of us cried) every hour too.

He wouldn't take his bottle- and he wouldn't sleep. Both things very out of character. And the same thing happened Monday night- more waking, more crying, all around. And I worried that something was wrong that we had not detected. Did he have a stomach problem? Did I give him too much Tylenol? Was he teething? So big Davis took little Davis back to the doctor...and she said "He is totally healthy. Don't let him keep you up at night." (Basically)

So last night- I was like "Listen Mister. The buck stops here. You're going to eat this bottle, you're going to lay down and go to sleep and you're going to like it."

And he, if he could speak, basically said "Oh really lady? Things have changed around here and I'm starting to realize that I don't really HAVE to do the things you want me to. I don't have to lie nicely in your arms while you feed me at night, and I don't have to fall asleep quietly in under five minutes. I can stretch it out. I have staying power. I can go all night long, sister."

We stared each other down.

And in a moment of weakness, I started to second guess myself. Davis doesn't cry without reason, I thought. Maybe I'm off here. Maybe he wants to be rocked? NO? Okay, maybe he wants to play more- it is pretty early? NO? Maybe he really is hungry? NO?

And then I found my resolve. I realized that little Davis was testing me.

I laid him down. He cried. I decided I would give it 30 minutes before I went in there. Come hell or high water or just tons more screaming...I would wait.

And I only had to wait 8 minutes. And he was out...until about 11:30 when I forgot and slammed the back door when letting Pico in. He cried again. And I let him cry himself back to sleep. And then at 6:15 this morning- we went in to check on him- and while he did give us this look of "OHHH, so now you want to be my friend?" he was alive and well!

Anyway- a very long-winded way of telling you that he is smart and figuring things out. And it's both incredibly exciting and a little tiring. BUT- another thing he figured out- splashing in the tub. It's so funny. He loves it.

Thanks for tuning in.

Stress City

Is what it feels like around here. Baby Davis has woken up almost every other hour for the past two nights- he has a fever- but when we went to the doctor yesterday- they couldn't figure out what was causing it. If we have to go back to the ER- I will be super depressed. And stressed. Nothing is any fun when your baby is sick...and there is so little you can do to make it better. It's the worst. And we're having our guitar showcase tomorrow and I have practiced once this week. I was hoping to prepare a lot this weekend- but Davis being sick has put a kink in those plans.

I guess the one positive thing about this weekend is that I lost a pound. I am excited that I lost- but I need to pick up the pace. My goal is to be back to myself by June and time is running out. I am feeling better week after week though...so I suppose I should focus on that.

OY VEY.

Angelic

is how I would describe Davis in this picture...and I'm sure that if he is anything like his dad, someday, about 14 years from now, I'll think to myself, "remember how you once described him as angelic?" and I will laugh. or cry. ha!

Busy Bees

We've been crazy busy lately- but trying to play it cool- as seen in the picture of Davis with his shades. Here are some pics and some things to note.
1) Davis had his first real babysitter- uncle B- and apparently had a blast. B got the biggest smile out of him that we've all seen- so I guess that will be his first and last time babysitting since we're all very jealous. :)

2) Davis had his first play date. Unfortunately he was very anti-social and spent most of the time with his bottom lip sticking out, pouting. The rest of the kids had a great time, though, and so did the moms (which was the real point of the thing anyway).

March

Here are some recent pics of the not-so-little man.
We have started trying to give him some solid foods per the doctor's suggestion...and I say "try" because it really is an effort. If you just watched Davis' face, you would think we were feeding him poison. We usually get one bite in and then he screams until we abort the mission. We've tried bananas, applesauce, rice cereal, carrots...but to no avail. Real food is so offensive.

In the other pics- you'll see Davis with his girlfriend, Carter, Davis playing in the new rainforest thing Honey bought him, and then snuggling with his dad.

One good thing is that recently he has been waking up babbling in the morning. This doesn't sound like a big deal- but it's a much nicer alarm clock than crying for goodness sakes.

Just the Facts

1) I took some amazing pics of Davis this weekend and now can't find my dang camera. So be looking forward to some new, smiley pics in the next couple days.

2) I lost 2.5 pounds at WW this week- putting me at 8 pounds total in about 5 weeks. YES! Long way yet to go, but it feels like progress.

3) This was a great weekend. I checked out some really cool panels at SxSW, had fun with my girlfriends on Saturday night, and enjoyed the AMAZING weather today with the Davises. Can't beat it!

Proof

She's back today...sans floral bandana. So today I snapped a picture. And today, she has been there since at least 8:00 a.m. because now all of my co-workers and I are tracking her workouts as we arrive at different times. This means- she isn't just killing time waiting on the bus- a theory that occurred to me yesterday afternoon. That theory is now defunct.

What if she gets a Forrest Gump-like following out on the sidewalk in front of GSD&M?

This whole scenario (and how I'm reacting to it) reminds me of when I was little, living on Meadowlark Trail in Sioux Falls. I was very into detective-work and always hoping that some mystery would occur in our little neighborhood, so I could be the sleuth that got to the bottom of it. Luckily, I had a great imagination because there really weren't very many mysteries taking place, so I would make them up and spend hours looking for clues. Some things never change.

Today

I showed up at work to see a lady working out on the front sidewalk. If you know where I work, you know that the building is huge and conspicuous, there is a large grassy area out front, then a sidewalk, then a pretty busy street.

At first I thought she was working out on the grassy knoll, and I said to myself "Hmm...maybe she is from Santa Monica and thinks this is normal..." She had a stretch stick- which looks like an 8 foot pole- and so I thought maybe she was doing some stretches and needed the grass- which I guess is justifiable, but still a bit odd. I kept watching, walking slowly, and I noticed that her workout was not happening on the lovely green grass but was really taking place ON the sidewalk, within about a foot of the edge, right in front of the busy street.

I was intrigued. I kept watching and I thought to myself "Maybe she works at GSD&M." Nothing phases me here anymore and I guess that would make this a bit more normal (?) which sort of concerned me, but at this point, I really wanted to know who this lady in sweat pants, with super long hair (the kind i wanted when i was little and had a bowl cut) and a floral banadana was.

I kept walking until I quite literally ran into a co-worker of mine, (who, between you and I, is kind of a kooky guy himself), who looked at me like "WTH?" We both watched as she jogged in place- and moved her arms in circles- using DIRT FILLED OZARKA WATER BOTTLES as her weights.

Where do these people come from? SxSW is about to happen here so I could blame it on that- but really I'm dying to know her story. Was she walking from a nearby yoga/stretch stick class to her apartment and decided she needed to burn a few more cals before proceeding any further? Is she doing a documentary on exercise and traffic? There was no camera crew...

Anyway, I probably won't think of anything else all day.
And this picture of Davis is unrelated- except that his face sort of looks like mine while I was watching this lady work out. It's not the best quality BUT I keep forgetting to charge my phone battery so I can upload some new ones.
Peace out.

Heaven

Heaven must be like getting 12 hours of sleep after 4 months of getting roughly 6-8 interrupted hours each night. I know, I know...this might last only one night, but I am reveling in the refreshing feeling that good sleep provides and man, I am so proud of him, you'd think he was running for president or something.

Funny story- he started fussing around midnight last night- and he wasn't really awake, his eyes were closed, but his arms were flailing around (seriously- they operate on their own) so Davis went in to check on him. He came back in about 15 minutes later and I was like "What happened? What did you do? How did you get him to keep sleeping?" He goes "I just pinned his arms down to his side until he fell asleep..."

The moral of the story is- I think he was ready to be out of the swaddle. And though it's taking him a little time to adjust- he's sleeping better because of it.

Unswaddle Me

We had such a great time in Houston this weekend- got to spend time with Jodie and Duane, all their kiddos, and we got to see Mason perform in a musical. She was great and the musical, in general, was amazing. Little Davis had a rough time, I am guessing because of his shots. None of us got much sleep Saturday night and that made me really nervous to go into last night, knowing that we were going to begin the unswaddling process, and limit the nighttime feedings.

However, I think the little guy was ready for it. He did wake up a few times and seemed pretty confused/upset about why he was so free in his crib, but he went back to sleep arguably more quickly than he did before when we swaddled him. I tricked him a little bit by simply taking a light blanket and loosely tucking it around his body. He could have easily gotten out- but I think he liked the feeling of it. He ate once at 4:30 a.m. and was happy as a clam when he woke up at 6:15.

P.S. I didn't get to go to WW yet- had his appt Friday morning and left for Houston on Saturday. I'd like to go today- but if that doesn't happen- I will probably just postpone until Friday. Here is hoping...ugh I am so annoyed with how long it is taking/is going to take to lose all this weight. I feel like such a dud. The truth is- I'm trying to position this as a challenge of my character. If I can't feel happy because of something as stupid as extra weight- then I'm not really joyful in the first place- and I need to work on that...do some character-building.

Ugh. Character building? My effort to fool myself is very transparent.

Good Riddance

This week was a doozy and as today is the final day of the week- I say "Good riddance." The high point of my week was Davis' 4 month check up today. Here is what we found out and please excuse the forthcoming obnoxious braggardy.

- Davis is 16+ lbs putting him in the 80th % for weight
- He is 24.5 inches, putting him in the 75th % for length
- He is still putting big numbers up on the board when it comes to his head- 90th % (because of all the brains, duh)
- He has reached all of his 4 month milestones and has even gone a bit beyond (rolling from back to stomache, grabbing his feet, etc). He also grabs his tongue a lot, which is really funny to watch.

Anyway, I asked the doctor what all this percentile stuff really meant and she said "The thing is, people get so excited or so upset, but they don't really mean anything until he is about two years old. That's when you can start to predict his size moving forward..."

The doctor also said he is ready to start solid food- rice cereal, fruits and veggies. She thinks this will cut back on his caloric intake- which was news to me.

Also, bad news for Davis, he is too big to be swaddled at night. Davis frowned at her when she said this. We've been thinking of how to break the swaddle- and even tried it the other night- but gave up after he woke up every hour or so. She also said he doesn't need to be fed unless he's already slept a 6 hour stretch. What this means is: one of these nights, Davis will wake up at hour 4 or 5, ready for a bottle. When no one comes at his bidding to give him said bottle, he will be frustrated enough to break out of his swaddle in an effort to come barreling down the hall to shout "HEY! What gives?" When he realizes he can't come barreling down the hall, no one is coming with the milk, and his arms are wacking him in the face like loose fire hoses- he is going to be so PO'ed.

Needless to say- as we are going to see Jodie and the fam tomorrow- we will begin these long nights on Sunday.

To friends, family and co-workers...when Tuesday rolls around and we look like we've taken up all-night raves, throw us a bone. We're really just having the aforementioned slumber party- sans slumber.

VICTORY

Davis slept from 8 pm to 4:30 am last night. Okay so maybe it's a little early to declare victory- especially considering the fact that at 4:30 am he decided he was up for the day- but still, it is a step in the right direction.

Too bad I was in the ER at this time (4:30 am) with a severe kidney infection. I am hoping that is my 2nd and last visit to the ER in 2010.

P.S. Davis is now rolling both from stomach to back and back to stomach and cooing up a storm. Last night we took him to get a little jumper or exersaucer, so to choose, we clearly had to let him try them all out. We ended up with a little rainforest exersaucer and he got what to do with it right away- bash around at things. Pics to come! Our house is being taken over...

2 Steps Forward, 3 Steps Back

And I'm not talking about Paula Abdul and Scat Cat...although I really loved, loved, loved that video.

Anyway- remember how I mentioned a few weeks ago that Davis was sleeping through the night? Just kidding about that whole thing. We're now getting up 3-4 times a night again. Sometimes we're hungry. Sometimes we've worked so hard to get out of our swaddle and then realize how upset it makes us when we get even one arm out. Sometimes we are awake and ready for the day at 4:30 a.m. Sometimes we just wake up to see what everyone else is doing.

And I am all for the "cry it out"/Dr. Ferber method...if I knew he wasn't hungry but he chugs his bottle in record time. UGH. All of this before his 4 month shots friday and our first overnight trip this weekend.

p.s. other titles considered for this blog:
- I've hit a wall
- All night slumber party (minus the slumber)
- Do people still put booze in baby bottles?

Thanks for tuning in.
Until next time...