Da-Da

This past Saturday, Jack said his first word! Okay, so he probably has no idea what it means, but he has been saying "Da-Da" or "Dadadadada" or sometimes even "Dad" (that one kills me) nonstop since he first discovered the word. I love it, and obviously Marc does too, as Jack sits around all day asking for his daddy :)

It makes sense, I suppose...Marc IS pretty awesome. One of the many reasons I fell in love with him was that I knew he'd be a great father. And he is. He also has a completely different approach to parenting than I do, and I think it's great that Jack gets to have both of us in his life. Don't get me wrong, we agree on the big parenting issues, but we definitely have different styles when it comes to our interactions with Jack. For instance, last night I went into the kitchen to grab a glass of water and when I went back into the dining room I found this:



Seriously? It would NEVER occur to me to put my baby on the table, during dinner, and give him a catalog to flip through/rip up. But Jack loved it, and it made me smile, so I guess it wasn't such a bad idea. It would also never occur to me (at least at this age) to give my baby a mohawk. But again, last week I walked into the living room and Jack was sitting there with his daddy, sporting his new 'do. I am looking forward to a lifetime of laughs with these two jokers!



In Like a Lion, Out Like a Gram

If February was the month of all of Jack's other grandmothers, then March is the month of his Grandma Carol. The month begins with her birthday on March 2 (random and embarrassing fact: it is also Jon Bon Jovi's birthday, which means that my mom shares a birthday with Marc's favorite singer), and will end with a week-long visit. I CAN'T WAIT for my mom to get here. I never imagined I'd be raising a child 500 miles away from my mom, and although we visit as much as possible, I miss her (and my dad) daily.

Although I don't get to see her as often as I'd like, my mom is always here when I really need her. After Jack was born, I needed help while I was recovering from the c-section, and Marc had to go back to work. My mom arrived the day that Jack and I left the hospital, and took care of me so that I could take care of Jack. She cooked, cleaned, chauffered Jack and I to our doctor appointments, and - her favorite - watched Jack while I slept. Then when I was ending my maternity leave, my mom came out for another two weeks to help me transition into work outside of the home. I don't know if I could have made it through that time without her...it was so difficult to leave Jack after spending all of our days together for his first three months, but Grandma Carol loves that little baby as much as I do and I knew he'd be in good hands.

So Happy Birthday, Mom! We love you and can't wait for you to get here!

Six Months!

Jack turns 6-months this week, which is so crazy to me. On one hand, I can't remember my life before he arrived (though I suspect it involved more sleep), but it also seems like just yesterday that he arrived into this world. I am a big fan of half-birthday celebrations, but Jack's is proving to be a bit tricky, having been born on August 31. Technically, his half-birthday would fall on February 31, but since that's impossible, should we celebrate it on February 28? The 29th on a leap year? Or March 3? I'm so confused.

Either way, Happy Happy Half-Birthday to my little man! I took him in for his 6-month photos on Saturday, and I couldn't believe how big and handsome he looked! Then I went back and looked at the photos from birth until now, and couldn't believe he was ever so teeny-tiny. All I know is that every single day since he has been born, that baby boy has put a smile on my face and extra love in my heart.

First Day Home from the Hospital

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

The Greatest Grandmas

 

As I mentioned in my previous post, all of Jack's great-grandmothers have February birthdays. My beloved Grandma turns 92 on the 26th, and Marc's grandmothers have birthdays on the 20th and 24th. My dad's mother (who had an October birthday) passed away when I was nineteen, but she's still a part of Jack's life...every single night I rock Jack in her old rocking chair that my dad so lovingly restored. Jack and I are so blessed to have these women in our lives.
 


Happy Birthday Nonnie!

Happy Birthday GG!

 

Happy Birthday Great-Grandma!

Grandma's Little Valentine

February is a special month for the ladies in Jack's life - all of his living great-grandmothers have birthdays in February, as well as his paternal grandma. If February was a normal-lengthed month instead of so darn short, his maternal grandma would also have a February birthday - instead my mom was born on March 2. I always think how lucky Jack is to have so many wonderful women in his life, and how lucky I am to have them in MY life as well. Jack's "Grammy Judy" watches him a couple days during the week, which is no small task considering she also watches his two older cousins. Somehow even after spending her days with 3 small boys, she still has a smile on her face and perfect hair at the end of the day!

When Jack isn't with Grammy Jude during the week, he's at daycare. At first I was completely nervous and afraid to send him off with a bunch of strangers, but now I love it. I know that he's being cared for by a group of women who have come to truly care for my son, and he's close enough to my office that I get to spend lunch with him each day. When I picked him up this past Friday, I was given a special valentine that he made for his daddy and me...

Seriously, how stinking cute is that?! I love it.

I also love my little Valentine, who was not particularly pleased to get all dressed up in his finest red for one of mommy's photoshoots. Thanks to Great-Aunt Patti for the adorable Valentine monkey, he's bigger than Jack, but Jack LOVES him!





The Very Hungry Jackerpillar

At Jack's 4-month doctor appointment, his pediatrician told me that Jack could start on solid foods whenever I felt he was ready. I had planned on feeding him breastmilk exclusively for the first six months of his life, but as with most of my pre-baby plans, Jack didn't agree. He had reached all of the necessary  milestones for starting on solids, particularly "shows interest in others eating around him". This is a kid who can't be bothered to look up from his busy exersaucer activities when I pick him up from daycare, but open a carton of ice cream in front of him and he'll immediately drop what he's doing, stop his adorable (and constant) "talking", and just stare. He gazes at the food I'm eating or the beverages I'm drinking with such longing that I couldn't put off feeding him any longer. So on his 5-month birthday, Jack got his first taste of solid food.

I had been warned by the pediatrician and many other parents that babies usually make funny faces and spit out their first few bites of "real" food. Marc and I had the video camera on hand to capture these funny faces...only Jack didn't make any. This poor baby was so ready for big people food (if big people ate organic, whole grain, brown rice cereal mixed with breastmilk) that he scarfed down the entire bowl without batting an eye.

I think it's safe to say that we made the right decision giving this kid solid food when we did. Not only did he finish the entire bowl, he was grabbing onto it, looking for more, in between spoonfuls from his mommy or daddy. This week rice cereal, next week avocados...by 6-months this kid will have moved onto steak and sushi!

Snow Day!

New England has been experiencing crazy amounts of snowfall this winter, which makes for scary driving (these people were not made to drive in the snow...it's like driving in a San Diego rainstorm, which is chaotic and scary, at best), but also makes for fun with the little ones. Okay, so Jack may not be ready to make snow angels or help Marc and I build a snow family, but that doesn't mean he can't have a good time. Marc's parents were really great about keeping his childhood items so that his own kids could use them one day, and for this I am grateful. There's just something so satisfying about passing a cherished toy on to the younger generation, and Marc's baby sled is no exception. I'd never seen such an awesome sled - it has a little seat for the baby to sit in, and has skis and wheels so that you can pull your little one over all kinds of terrain. So after one of this year's many blizzards, we decided to take Jack around the neighborhood for some fresh air. Marc got an old belt of his and secured Jack to the sled (the only downfall of the sled is that it doesn't have a safety belt...clearly this thing was not manufactured in this millennium)...after he was bundled up in his coziest snowsuit, of course. It was a bright day, so Jack needed his baby sunglasses, which he'd never worn before. I'm not sure if it was the snow, the sunglasses, or being dressed like the little kid in "A Christmas Story", but Jack did not crack ONE SMILE the entire time we were outside! Nor did he cry or fuss - the poor kid just sat there with the most hilarious pout on his face. I honestly cannot recall laughing that hard, ever. Every time Marc or I looked at our child, we would start up again, and it continued that way until we arrived back home after our trek around the block.

I am now trying to find other fun winter activities for infants, and I must say, there aren't many. We're anticipating another winter storm tonight - maybe inspiration will strike and I'll think of something fun for Jack. But most likely, we'll be curled up on the couch with a blanket and a book, a fire in the fireplace and daddy nearby. Sounds like heaven to me.