The Eastern Kids' Christmas

Every year, around the 27th of December, we venture down to my parents' place on Emerald Isle, North Carolina and have a little fun in the sun. My brother Jim and his family also come to the Island and we have a Christmas with our parents. Because the two of us are the pair of siblings on the East Coast, my dad affectionately refers to us as the "Eastern Kids". So, on Saturday morning, we packed up the car and started the 6 hour drive down, and sure enough, 6 hours, on the dot, we drove off the bridge and onto the island.

The last time Jim, Lindsay, and his three sons Max, Jack, and Ben, saw Jamey, he was but a little boy of about 5 weeks. The boys could do nothing but stare at him. Imagine their delight to find that their little cousin could now interact with them and beyond that, brought some really amusing toys. Needless to say, they love it, and especially Ben takes joy in making funny faces to make Jamey laugh, or just make him stare at him enthralled.

With the temperature rising to a surprising 70 degrees, we all headed out for a Hardee's lunch on the deck at the clubhouse, and a touch football game for the Big Boys on the beach. Now that Jamey is more aware of his surroundings, I let him wriggle his toes in the sand, which he seemed to enjoy very much. Mesmerized by the sound of the waves, he was asleep in my arms after about half an hour.

After weeks of spending the day with Christopher and now, a few days of watching his cousins run around and talk, I think that Jamey has really begun to find his voice. Now, if only we knew what he was saying. But I suppose that will come soon enough!

Jamey's First Christmas

Well, it happened. Jamey celebrated his first Christmas. Or at least the first part of his first Christmas. With Jamey here, we have begun to set out a kind of Christmas schedule to follow for years to come, so that we get to spend some time with everyone and still get Mommy-Daddy-Baby time as well. On Christmas Eve, we got to hang out at the West Virginia house, eat a great meal, and open some gifts. On Christmas day, Jamey sat in my lap as I opened presents for both of us. Every now and again, he would reach up and grab at the paper in an effort to help, but for the most part, I distracted him with whichever gadget that made light and sound I had nearby. He loved them all! He isn't picky!

For his big present, Jamey got a Get Up and Go Jungle Play thing from Fischer Price. It has a hippo, monkey and elephant on it, and whenever you move something, it sings. Unfortunately it only has two songs, which I am pretty sure I already know. Ah well. All in all, I think that Jamey really enjoyed his first holiday.

Today, though, he has been a bit more cranky. For one thing, Glenn reached into his mouth today and he felt something we have been waiting for-- the sharp corner of a tooth popping through. And so, I held my breath in anticipation of the crankiness that would ensue. Sure enough, Jamey has been more cranky today. However, the tooth isn't the only bothersome thing. Jamey has also developed some sort of cough. It sounds a little like a wet cough and seems to be a bit of chest congestion. My question to all you mommies out there is-- Is this a coincidence or is this tied to getting a tooth? I know that a lot a lot of other things happen when a baby gets a tooth-- fever, crankiness, other things.... But what about congestion? Baby Center tells me that the jury is still out on this one, but often, the best advice comes from the experience of other moms.

Traditions... and a 5 month Update

With my return to work and the arrival of the holiday season, my time has been pulled very thin lately. So thin, that I have been unable to update the blog, as you may have noticed. Here, I have gone almost an entire month with no word, and for that, I say, sorry. But as the title says, Jamey is now 5 months old. At this point, he doesn't have monthly doctor's visits, so we had to use our own methods to measure his weight. (Mommy weighs herself and then weighs herself while holding Jamey.) Using this very scientific method, we have determined that Jamey is now 18 pounds 3 ounces. In addition, he is getting ever closer to sitting up on his own, and likes to babble. He is also very much in love with his hands and feet.

But bigger for Jamey than staring at his hands and feet, is the beginning of a new holiday season. As was mentioned in Abby's blog about her daughter, Jamey really has no idea why we are doing what we are doing. Why the tree with the many colored lights? Why the bushy green stuff all over? Why are all the boxes covered in paper?

Really, it doesn't matter to him. All things listed prove very fun for the senses, whether that means staring, pulling, or trying to taste. We have been training him, too, to open presents. It isn't hard. All we have to do is wave a stray bit of wrapping paper in front of him and out pops the hand to grab on. As his arm flails around, he tears the paper here and there.

Along the lines of presents, I have brought to him a tradition that was one of my favorites each year. It is called the 25 Days of Christmas. Growing up, every day, my mom would hide a little gift somewhere in the house, and each of us in the house would read that days clue to tell us where to find the goodies. Sometimes toothpaste, sometimes a toy. Little things. The fun wasn't in the present. The fun was in the finding. As we have 11 grandchildren in the family, my mom has taken to doing weekly gifts. But wanting Jamey to experience the full tradition, I took it on myself. Well, for this year, Glenn helps him a lot.

Now that we have Jamey, I have found that tradition means so much more. One of my favorite things about our tree at home was the homemade ornaments, such as the "colored" in wooden ones from my brothers. At a $5 store (which is conceptually an "upscale" Dollar Store), I found a Crayola ornament kit, which contained ceramic ornaments to be colored with Crayola markers. We decided that Jamey will color in one ornament each year over the next 12 years as a tradition. This year, of course, I had to show him how it is done, but he helped me choose which colors to use... or I think that is what he was doing while he held those markers for me. :)

And he just keeps on going....

It seems Jamey has gotten to the point where I can't keep up with the developments he has! One day he is eating rice cereal; three days later he is able to down an entire container of Gerber carrots in one sitting. (Not, of course, without getting a large amount on his face, and not without saving a little under his chin for later.)

As if that weren't enough, last Thursday, on the day before I was set to go back to work, he performed yet another trick to comemorate the day, when he mastered rolling over from his back to his front. A few months ago, he managed to flop over from his front to his back, and recently had figured out how to settle onto his side. However, the actual roll all the way over had been eluding him.

Using his stuffed giraffe Carter as bait, I got him to tilt his head back, forcing himself onto his side. I then cheered him on and watched him slowly roll his way over. Finally, he figured out to tuck his arm underneath him so that it wouldn't get in his way. That day, he was still having a few issues pulling that tucked arm out. That is not a problem anymore, though! Now, he just rolls over like a barrel and pulls that arm right out. This evening, I actually watched him roll over and stare into space as he wrenched his arm out from under him! I am not sure, though, if he has decided that he likes being on his belly.

I remember that Jess told me that once they figure out how to go to their belly, they never want to stop. And boy, was she right!!!!

And the last trick of all-- Jamey fed himself a bottle. We have taken to using his high chair as a seat for him to sit in while we do things in the kitchen. The other morning, Glenn leaned him back in the chair and handed him the bottle. We had known for a while that he had the strength to hold the bottle, but until that point, he had just opted to be lazy and let us hold it for him. But no more!

Back to Work!

Last Friday the day finally came when I had to return to my other "children". The ones who had apparently been missing me so badly. The ones who I really hadn't been thinking about for a while. Of course, with my return to work, came the inevitable two questions-- 1: Did you cry? and 2: Are you happy to back?

For one thing, I am happy to say that I did not cry. People often looked at me like I was lying when I answered this question, but I think Glenn put it best when he told the people he worked with, "It's not like he is at a regular daycare. He is staying with someone who was there the night that he was born." I hadn't thought of it that way, but he was completely right. This wasn't just another daycare and it actually wasn't just some friend of ours. This is a person who I consider to be a close friend. A person who was there in the waiting room the night he was born, waiting to hold him. And it is a person who has been doting on him since, and bringing him together with her own son, teaching him to say Jamey's name, which he does with joy.

And as for whether I was happy to be back, it actually is a little hard to explain. It wasn't as though I was overjoyed to be going back to work and the little bit of stress it brought. It wasn't as though I were clammering to be around a throng of teenagers all day, as much as I do love them! But at the same time, it was good to get back there and start picking up the pieces of the classes I had left behind. I had a feeling that they hadn't been learning exactly what I would have hoped, and I was right. As well, I knew that my job would bring me a different sense of accomplishment that I had been missing. Being a Mom is an incredible accomplishment, because I am sustaining this little life with what I do and the choices I make. However, at work, it is a different sense of accomplishment. A place where I make a list and I actually create a work. This was especially true of going back to doing the yearbook.

The two days so far have gone really well! My AP's, who have known me for 3.5 years, were overjoyed to get back to some of my routines. They had gotten quite used to my way of doing things. And all my classes seem to be very friendly. Quite possibly the best compliment I have been paid by one of my new students so far, a compliment that proves to me that I have come back and gotten right back to where I want to be, happened this morning. With ten minutes left in German 1, one of the guys said, "Wow, this class has gone by so quickly! That is awesome!"
For those of you non-teachers out there, when a class goes by quickly, that means that the student was drawn in and really interested. I couldn't ask for more!

And as for Jamey, he loves staying with "Tante Monica" and Christopher. He bounces, he swings, he plays, he laughs! This evening at dinner, he especially loved hearing her name. Whenever we would ask him, "Do you like hanging out with Tante Monica?" he would giggle. We tried to say other names like "Tante Idi" or "Tante Marla", but the only one he would giggle for was "Tante Monica." Hm!

Another Weekend of Firsts!

Once again, Jamey had quite a weekend!  Although we didn't do a whole lot of Saturday besides take a gander over to Target, we went there to buy a very important item for Jamey.... his first box of rice cereal.  That evening, we went about giving him his first bit of solid food.  It was somewhat successful, but Jamey in the end was too hungry and opted just to wait it out and nurse when we were done trying to get him to open his mouth.  

However, we showed Jamey once again that we were more persistent than he, and kept trying.  Lo and behold, yesterday, Glenn tried it at a time when Jamey wasn't quite set for a feeding yet, so hopefully wasn't overly hungry.  And boy, did it work a whole lot better.  Suddenly Jamey viewed the spoon not so much as a thing he didn't want near him; rather he saw it as just another thing that he could grab and stick in his mouth.  So he put his hands out, grabbed onto Glenn's and brought the spoon to him.  However, his face revealed that he hadn't quite predicted that the spoon would leave anything behind after we took it back out.  After the first few times, though, he got used to it, and this is how far we came by tonight...

As for the other firsts, they happened on Sunday.  Around 11, we met up with Monica, Chris,

 and Christopher and headed out to the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum that is out our way.  Monica had to go to do some "research" for a paper for one of her classes, and invited us to come along for fun.  Because for this museum, the charge is by car, we all piled into the Davids' van, and went in.  In order to conserve space, which was already a little lo, as we all packed in, Glenn and I decided to see if Jamey was ready to test out his sitting skills in the "Big Boy

 Stroller" we have.  (In case you didn't know, Jamey can now hold up his weight pretty well.)  Although he leaned a little,he was fine reclining a bit in the stroller, as long as he was

strapped in.  And thus, his first excursion in the "Big Boy Stroller".

This was followed that evening by his first "Big Boy Bath" in a bathtub.  For a few weeks now, Glenn and I had said to each other, every time we used the baby tub, "We are going to have to move up to the bathtub soon."  Finally we said, "Tonight is the night."  So we laid a towel down in the tub for him to lay on, and filled it a bit with warm water.  Partly because it is getting colder nad partly because he wasn't sure what to make of this bigger area with water, Jamey cried a bit, but made it through-- with  few annoyed faces along the way when Mommy did things like pour water out of a cup over his head and body, and rubbed the bath soap on him.

His last first on Sunday was only witnessed by Glenn.  Let me preface the "first" by saying that occasionally when I am playing with Jamey, I will take off my glasses, lean down close to his face and just raise my eyebrows.  It usually makes him smile and giggle.  I also figured at some point, maybe he would catch on.  Well, on Sunday, Glenn was carrying Jamey around, facing outwards.  They walked into the bathroom to observe Jamey in the mirror, and when they left the bathroom, Glenn was laughing aloud.  

"Guess what Jamey did when he saw himself in the mirror?" he said.  "He raised his eyebrows at himself!"

And there you have it... Jamey's first "trick."

4 Month Update

Another trip to the doctor brought about the same question we always seem to be answering with Jamey: "Is he always like this?  Playing around and smiling?"  Actually, he was a little more serious this visit, but once we got him stripped down to his diaper to be checked out, and laying on his belly on the little bench for the patient, he was busy squirming around and tearing up the paper that they lay down over the bench to prevent the spreading of germs.  Once on his back, the doctor noted his new favorite game when on his back.  He lifts up his legs, curling them a little so he can stare at his feet for a second, and then in a swift motion, he slams them back to the ground.  Then he begins again.  (I have in fact heard him play this game in his crib when I am downstairs.  I sometimes think that he has hit something or that something has fallen, but no, it is just Jamey.)

Of course, he got his new measurements too, and this time around, he is perfectly proportional at the 90th percentile.  His weight is now 17 lb. 1 oz., his height 26 inches, and his head 17.5 cm.  Apparently when I was in last week and they said he was 17 lb. 5 oz., something was off.  He showed off all his newer skills from holding up his own weight to trying to sit up, to sticking everything in his mouth.  

It was also time for another 4 shots, but he went through like a trooper.  I stood over him and held his arms down.  Looking in my eyes, he started out with a smile, which went to serious mode.  By the time she was doing the 3rd shot, his smile had turned completely upside down to what I call "the sad face".  This is the super-frown that he puts on just before he lets out a loud, prolonged cry.  So he let that out, and then we were done.  The nurse was shocked because he immediately stopped crying and didn't start up again, as I got him dressed.  Glenn and I also got a shot, to make Jamey feel good... and also to prevent the flu.

The biggest news is that Jamey gets to start trying rice cereal now.  Don't worry-- as soon as we try it, it will be on the blog!

Mommy Tunes

Often when Jamey and I are doing things up in my bedroom, I will prop Jamey up on my pillow, turn on the radio (and the fan for Jamey of course) and give him a toy to play with.  Whatever song is on, I try to insert Jamey's name into it, and of course I am always singing-- much like when I was pregnant.  Mommy's hits include, "When you Love a Jamey" by Bryan Adams, "Push It" featuring the line "Ooh, Jamey Jamey, Jamey Jamey" by Salt N Peppa, and the most recent addition to the songs: "Irreplacable" by Beyonce.  

Of course, I haven't found a way to insert Jamey's name into Beyonce's tune, but he seems to love the song nonetheless.  It is the latest thing to make him stop crying and smile.  Or maybe it is less the singing and the "eloquent" words of the song, and more the Mommy rendition complete with hand movements and dancing.   

Sleep Update

Last time I wrote I told about the troubles we have been having with Jamey's sleep training.  I am happy to say that Jamey is doing great with his sleeping.  At night, he has no problems.  He goes down, cries for a few minutes, and then falls asleep.  He sleeps through the night, wakes at 5 for a quick 15 minute feeding, and then goes back down for another 3 hours.

The daytime?  That is another story.  As I think I wrote before, Jamey only likes to nap for 30 minutes.  He has gotten really good at laying in his crib, crying for a minute or two, and then giving in to the lulling song of his "Ocean Wonders" aquarium.  Then, like clockwork, he wakes up after half an hour.  

I asked the doctor about this and she told me that because he is so healthy, it is quite possible that he is just a "cat-napper".  He takes little naps now and then.  Ah well!  Not exactly what I was hoping for, but at least now I don't have to let him lay there and cry and cry for an hour.

Oh, and speaking of "Ocean Wonders", we know for sure that Jamey loves it.  One morning, we woke up to find the Ocean Wonders music on.  Now, the time only goes for 18 minutes and it shuts off, and neither of us had turned it on.  Hmm....

So I got up out of bed to check the situation.  I peeked through the crack in the door, and saw Jamey laying in his crib facing the aquarium.  It wasn't on, and then with a swift kick of his leg, I watched him strike the button on the front that turns it on.  

Wonder where he got that temper..... ;)

When we were in the hospital, I remember very clearly that one of the lactation consultants who came to help me learn to breastfeed noticed that Jamey certainly did have a temper.  This was evidenced by his refusal to breastfeed, although we were doing absolutely everything that we should be doing, meaning that the consultant had no advice for us.  Five minutes after she left, he ate.  Basically, even then, he did what he wanted when he wanted and showed his temper and stubborn streak.  

I saw that nurse the day we were leaving the hospital and she said, "He certainly does have a temper.  You are going to have a lot of fun with that one as he grows up."  I laughed with her and said, "Well, his dad and I both have bad tempers, so I'm not surprised."  Indeed, both Glenn and I are absolutely jolly the majority of the time, but when you make either of us mad, WATCH OUT!  And so it is, naturally, with Jamey.

If you meet him he is a happy, smiley, and definitely flirty baby about 95% of the time.  That last 5% is when he is mad because he wants to be doing something else, because he is beyond hungry, or if he is beyond tired.  That is when you hear "the angry cry."  The cry where the baby gapes his mouth open for a few minutes before letting out a loud yell.  When we drove down to my parents in August, we got to listen to it for an hour, because Jamey simply didn't want to sit in his seat anymore!

As we begin sleep training, we have been hearing a LOT of the "Angry Cry" lately.  The time is coming closer that I have to go back to work, and I don't want Monica to have to be the one to get Jamey used to napping in a crib.  In the past, he has napped in his swing or simply on me, which was of course my favorite time.  And, as hard as it was to give up, I recognized that I didn't want him to get to be able to walk and not sleep in his crib.  Better that he learn to soothe himself before he can get up and follow me out of the room.

So we have been using the Ferber method, in which you wait til the baby is tired, and then lay him down to soothe himself to sleep.  If he doesn't immediately fall asleep, you simply let him cry.  And then, in ever larger increments you check on him, soothe him, and hope he falls asleep.   When it comes to nighttime, the technique is working well.  He eats and goes to bed pretty easily.  On the rare occasions that I have to get him in the middle of the night, I am able to feed him and get him back down in as little as 20 minutes.  And the other morning, Glenn and I caught him simply hanging out in his bed, laying on his side, sucking on his hand quietly.  We went in and played with him, and he didn't seem to mind being in his crib.

Naps are another story....  Jamey is used to napping either on me or in a swing, or simply somewhere where there is motion.  Now suddenly, we are putting him down in a crib and he is a little shocked.  One day, he actually cried for about 2 hours before finally falling asleep for his one hour nap.  In the last two days, he hasn't needed hardly any time to calm himself to sleep.  However, once he is out, he will only sleep for 30 minutes.  I am trying to figure out if this is all he needs or if this is just another case of his temper striking again.  The coming days will tell.  

Jump Up, Jump Up and Get Down!

Twenty points to anyone who can identify the song that I used as my title....

And to what does it make reference???  Well, Jamey's new favorite toy, of course.

This past weekend, the three of us took a journey to Grammy and Hoopapa's house in West Virginia to celebrate their birthdays.  While there, they showed Jamey a bunch of new toys they had gotten passed down to him, one of which is often referred to as a "Johnny Jumper" or a "Jumpereroo" or simply, "That Jumpy Thing."  No matter what you want to call it, there is no denying that Jamey took to it immediately.  

I had been noticing for the past week, that Jamey is far happier when I sit him up against my leg or in his Bumbo, or hold him standing up.  He sees all the grown-ups running around and wants to be part of them.  And so, having this mechanism that allows him not only to "stand" on his own, but also jump around and move, is fantastic.  

The best part about it, he will happily sit in it for as much as an hour, which allows Glenn and me to run around the house fervently cleaning and doing the things we can't when we are holding him.  He wore himself out so much the other day that he literally fell asleep in his Jumperoo.  Now if only he would stay asleep when we lay him in his crib....  

But that's another blog entry.....

What is this talking machine??

Jamey has gotten very good at finding voices when they talk, but is often puzzled when he doesn't see a person to attach to the voice.  The other day, he thought the lamp was talking to him, when it was really the radio down below.  And today, he sat on Glenn's lap to call and wish Hoopapa (Glenn's dad) a Happy Day After Birthday.  Putting him on speaker phone, it became clear that Jamey could hear that his Hoopapa was somewhere, but all that he saw was this little machine in "Daddy's" hand.  So he just decided to grab that.

Jamey's Dance Partner

After four short months, Jamey is no longer the "baby" of the dance group.  It only took that short amount of time before someone else in the group had a baby.  For months, we  had been debating whether Bill and Lara would have a boy or girl, giving Jamey a dance partner to waltz with, or someone to fight with in the Bankltanz (where two guys plattl and fight over a bench).  And then, about a week ago, Leah Nicole was born.  

I was excited to meet her, as I know she will be a big part of Jamey's life, as he grows up.  Someone to pal around with at dance practice, someone to learn to dance with, and someone to just be a kid with, and get into trouble.  Jamey's second girlfriend-- after Katie, of course.  

On Monday, our group was invited to a Thank You early Thanksgiving dinner at our favorite 

local restaurant-- Euro Bistro.  We were all excited to get to meet Leah, and when I walked in and saw how tiny she was, my jaw dropped.  I 

believe she is 6 pounds and with a now 17 lb 5 oz baby, even I was in awe of her size.  Bill held her in one arm, as she slept in his arms.  As soon as he saw me, he said, "Where is her dance partner??"  I scooped a sleeping Jamey out of his carrier and we posed for a picture.  And let me just say, this picture makes Jamey look like a giant!  As Glenn says, it's funny to see me, who is pretty small in size, with a big baby, and Bill, who is a big guy, with such a tiny baby.   On top of that, as I say, it looks like Jamey could eat Leah!

But really, congrats to Bill and Lara, and I look forward to watching the two of them grow up and see if Leah ever catches up with Jamey in size.

Jamey's Part of History

Although I am a little late in posting this, Jamey went out and voted two days ago.  We had bought a onesie for him that said "Vote now", and he was over my shoulder as I cast my vote.  I must say I was a tiny bit disappointed that we didn't get to use the electronic touchscreens, as I was going to make Jamey push the last button to send the vote out, but it's okay.  He got his sticker anyway.

I have to say that having Jamey puts a whole new light on such a big election.  It is really cool knowing that a moment of history happened while he was alive, and he will be able to say in 20 years that he "voted"/ was there when Obama was elected.

    

The Two H's of the Fall: Homecoming and Halloween

For a baby, the fall has proven to be the most interesting time that there is.  Everywhere he looks, there are colors to see, sounds to hear, and crazy people to talk to.  Or perhaps the crazy people were just the members of our dance group.  Every morning, we take a walk around the neighborhood, and Jamey stares up at the trees and their many colors.  Where once was green, is now thousands of shades of orange, yellow, red, and brown.  

On top of that, fall is the time for Homecoming, whether it be in the high schools or at UVA.  Being in a county with 26 high schools, and with both of us teaching at one, Homecoming parades abound in the month of October.  And so, within three weeks, we enjoyed not one, not two, but three parades: Westfield, Centreville, and of course our local high school of Herndon.  

I must say, that the Herndon parade was by far the most impressive.  This wasn't just a parade for the high school.  It was a parade for the community, as throngs of kids marched through the main street in Old Town Herndon.  The Girl Scouts were there, the Boy Scouts were there.  Even the politicians showed up to shake hands and kiss babies.  And of course, every school in the area designed their own float, from the wee ones at the elementary school to the flat bed truck that carried the seniors from Herndon High.  What we expected to be a 20 minute stop on our way to the grocery store, turned into an hour of watching and listening.  All of which wore Jamey out, as he fell asleep in Glenn's arms.  The parade only reiterated to me how happy I am that we were able to find a place in this area.  Living in the Town of Herndon, there really is a sense of community and not just a huge amount of townhouses grouped together.

Jamey also got to experience Homecoming at UVA, as we went for a visit to show the Austrian teacher we are hosting what an American university looks like.  Although we couldn't get tickets to the football game, we say tons of people of all ages who once went to UVA.  On the way out of town, we stopped by the apple orchard that overlooks the city, and tried to make Jamey blend in with the pumpkins in the pumpkin patch.  Much to Glenn's chagrine, the Great Pumpkin didn't appear.  ;)

And of course, the season is capped off by the sweetest "H" of them all-- Halloween.  Although Jamey isn't quite old enough to understand what is going on, or why all this weird looking people are at the door, we had to dress him up.  Inspired by Jamey's Trogdor Dragon onesie, we decided that would be his costume.  At first we thought of putting it together ourselves, but in a recent trip to Target, we took the easy way out this year and bought him a costume.  That was a month ago, and we were relieved to see that the costume still fit him on Friday night.  

Dressed and ready to go, we marched up and down our street, visiting the few families that we know.  We also drove the five minute drive over to Katie's house to check out her costume.  She seemed to understand much better what was going on.  As we stood and talked to Jess, Jamey became cranky, and within seconds of me holding him in my arms, his head turned to deadweight on my shoulder.  And that was it for our trick-or-treating.  It was just past Jamey's bedtime.

Upon arriving home, I laid him on the couch while I ate some pizza, and when he woke up, I let his grabby fingers get ahold of the pumpkin that held his pile of candy, and watched him as he peered inside at the colors of the candy packages.  Sadly, we ran out of candy, and had to use Jamey's 

candy to give out to the kids who came around, so 

there will be no enjoyment of candy for him this year.  That's okay-- I will sacrifice and buy some candy to eat when we go out today.  That way, he will still get his dose of sweets!

The Amazing Grabbing Baby

In the past few weeks, Jamey has developed a habit of grabbing absolutely anything that is within reach.  If it is near him, he wants to grab it and not only that, he REALLY wants to try to stick it in his mouth.  Doesn't really seem to matter what it is; Jamey figures it must taste good.  Whether it is his burp cloth, the cord for the vacuum, a telephone cord, or just simply his entire fist, he is up for trying anything.  And while he doesn't seem to understand that you can't just eat any old thing, he has caught on to the fact that this stuff that Glenn and I are sticking in our mouths, is most certainly tasty.  

Often when we eat dinner, Jamey demands to sit on one of our laps.  So, naturally, we have become multi-taskers, capable of holding him on our laps as we eat with the other hand.  The other night, Glenn's salad bowl was within reach, and Jamey dipped his hand in to feel the slimey salad dressing.  And then, when we ate out at Corner Bakery, the plate was within reach and he slowly began hitting at the plate and moving it closer to the edge.  I didn't think I had to watch out for this stuff for another few months!  

Jamey is especially fond of giving his stuffed animals "kisses."  When laying on his back, I frequently sit his stuffed giraffe Carter on his belly.  He quickly flashes Carter a smile, reaches up and grabs her neck.  And then, he gets a little fresh with Carter.  Like I always say, "He is a big flirt."

"3 month" update

Although Jamey is now already 13 weeks, he went for his 3 month appointment today.  He continues to "overachieve".  His weight is now 15 lb. 14.5 oz (92%).  His height is 25.5 inches (90%).  And his head had a growth spurt up to 17 1/8 cm (95%).  

On the way in, the nurse who had helped us previously stopped to say hello in the hallway, causing our current nurse to say, "Hey, stop talking to my patient."  At which, every other nurse or doctor we passed on the way to the room stopped to wave at Jamey.  "He can't help it," I said, "he is a flirt."

Throughout the entire appointment, he kept up his happy behaviour and Dr. Eng Tow even had to stop her checkup and laugh when he flashed his wide grin at her.  "He is cracking me up.  Is he always this amenable?" she asked.  To which, I sat up a little straighter and proudly pronounced, "Yes, except when he is hungry, tired, or poopy."

And while I am updating, let me just say that Jamey had a BIG week last week.  Sunday night, after Christopher's birthday party, he was worn out from keeping up with Christopher, and slept through the night.  I thought it would be another fluke, as he did this the night after the Renaissance Fair too.  But lo and behold, he continued through the week.  And just when we thought he would sleep through the night forever, he didn't.   For the past two nights, he has woken up for his one feeding, which I think may have to do with the cold that he caught from me.

As if that weren't impressive enough, on Friday, I put him on his tummy for tummy time.  This 

usually ends in him face down and shrieking.  Today, I was watching General Hospital while we played.  Apparently, Jamey wanted to watch too, as judged from the way he propped himself up and gazed up at the screen. I was about to start encourage him to push up and over, when suddenly, he was teetering on the point of rolling over.  A second later, he had flopped over onto his back.  I jumped to my feet and screamed!  Thankfully, he repeated the trick for Glenn once he got home. 

Party Animal

To the naked eye, it may seem that Jamey is something of a party animal and active little man.  Well, I must say, it is because he is.  He always loves to be a part of what is going on, likes to watch his older friends and learn what is what.  And of course, what would a party animal be without parties?  What with Oktoberfests every weekend, I think he has it down.  But beyond that, he has also attended two birthday parties and he isn't even three months old yet!

Yesterday, we headed off to the Brown's (Monica and Marla's parents) to celebrate Christopher's 2nd birthday with a Curious George themed party.  Just as with her wedding, Monica did a lot of the preparation herself.  She put together a cupcake cake decorated as Curious George, burned CD's for all the goody bags (with Jack Johnson Curious George music), and even made a beanbag toss type board with 

Curious George on it and a hole in the mouth where you threw in bean bag bananas-- yup, those were homemade too, but by Monica's mom.  Not to be one to be left out, Jamey took part in all parts of the festivities, from staring at the bubbles coming out of the bubble machine to falling asleep in Mommy's arms while she pretended he was hitting the pinata.  And of course, he had some cake-- second hand, that is.  

Don't worry, we aren't getting anywhere near time for him to eat cake himself.  And what was Jamey's favorite part of the party, you ask?  Well, it was a tie between the fan in the Brown's living room and the balloons hanging up outside.  

Along the lines of our strong, active party boy, Jamey is getting quite strong.  He can now stare at a rattle for a few minutes and then grab for it and shake it.  

As well, he falls asleep in his car carrier now with his hand entangling in the rings hanging down.  And now and again, he grabs ahold of my finger and won't let go.  Perhaps the strangest feat of strength is what I found when I went to get him from bed this morning.  You see, when Jamey sleeps, we lay him down on a sleep positioner, which keeps him from rolling over onto his stomach.  There is a flat part in the middle and on either side of him a pyramid like tube thingie to hold him in.  Except it doesn't really hold him in anymore....  When I went to get him this morning, this is what I found....

In case you didn't know, the positioner SHOULD be under him and opened up more, not crumpled together in a pile below him.  This is one of those times when I really wish that we had a camera on him at all times.  

A weekend with Friends

I must admit, it is funny because I think that I am really starting to appreciate "Mommy" friends.  I have always had friends who have kids, but now, it seems, that the ones that I feel I can talk with the most are the ones who have kids themselves.  Lucky for me, we are in the middle of a baby boom and there are tons of people with little kids.  

This past weekend, Jamey and I both got to spend time with two of ou

r favorite people-- not to mention their children.  For me, I got to spend time with Jess and Monica, while Jamey got to hang out with his buddies Katie and Christopher.  On Saturday, he celebrated Katie's first birthday and on Sunday, we visited the Renai

ssance Fair with Monica, Chris, and Christopher.  

I must admit, he slept through the majority of Katie's party, but he got passed around a bit, nonetheless, and even got a hug from the birthday girl!  Kind of.  At least she didn't try to hit 

him in the head.  In signing his name on the card of her present, I realized that this is the first of many many many birthday parties we will be attending for Jamey's friends.  Granted, this one 

also happens to be the daughter of one of my best friends, but whatever.

And Christopher continues to try to guide not

 only Jamey, but us in how to take care of Jamey.  When it began to rain at the Ren Fair, he was very worried that Jamey not get wet.  He even let Jamey use his big boy stroller, if for no other reason than it allowed him to splash in the mud puddles.  But Jamey found much to look at when we were at the Ren Fair, from the waving flags to the horses in the joust, to the band that Glenn helped him to conduct.  

I am really grateful to have these friends, especially because they afford me an opportunity for Jamey to make lifelong relationships.  I hope that in years to come, I will be able to show Katie and Jamey their picture and have them blush in embarassment and say "Aww Mom!"

5 Things that make Jamey smile...

As I use this blog not only to communicate with all of you out there, but also for the purposes of my own memory, I wanted to jot down a list of things that I have noticed that especially amuse Jamey-- so that I may one day recount them to him.

1.  laying on his changing table in his diaper

2.  the ceiling fan in Mommy and Daddy's bedroom

3.  Mommy speaking French via a plastic giraffe

4.  finishing up doing his business in his diaper

5.  when someone imitates the sound that the Tivo makes when it fast forwards "Buh-doop, Buh-doop, Buh-doop"

6.  flirting with Mommy while he is nursing or Daddy when he is getting a bottle

"Comment tu t'appelle" said the plastic giraffe...

In reading Glenn's cousin Drew's blog, I saw him mention that there are a lot of firsts as you raise children.  Granted, I don't have 4 kids like Drew does, but with a baby, the firsts seem to come every day.  Since last Friday, we have had two big "firsts".  

For every little boy, there is no doubt that at some point sports will come into play, no pun intended.  People have asked what sport we want Jamey to play.  Well, really, it doesn't matter. Football, basketball, swimming, soccer... we are fans of it all.  But whether he plays it or not, football will probably be something he gets exposed to as a fan, seeing as Glenn and I are both avid UVA football fans (although not so much lately) and of course, there are always the Westfield/Centreville games to deal with.  

Last Friday was Jamey's big introduction to sports, as we packed up and headed to the Westfield vs. Chantilly football game.  As we knew it would be a later evening, we bundled him up in pajamas and his Grammy-made Westfield bib.  As we strutted him around in his carrier, he got oohs and awws left and right.  Usually followed by a second ooh and awww as the person saw the bib.  While Glenn scoped out the players and the records of the teams, Jamey was probably most fascinated by the enormous stadium lights.  I can just imagine what was going through his head, "Those are the biggest lights I've ever seen!!!"  He did his usual thing: stare, turn his head, stare some more, take it all in, stare at the lights, and after a while, fall asleep when it all seemed boring.  That's right-- our son fell asleep at a football game surrounded by insane Westfield fans.  Keep in mind that Westfield is the largest 4 year high school in Virginia, so this wasn't just a dozen groupies hanging around.  This was a CROWD!  In fact, the only time he freaked out was when Westfield made their second touchdown and everyone around us jumped to their feet and shrieked simultaneously.  Not what you want to wake you out of a dream!  So I took him down out of the stands and just after that, at half time, we took the little man home, knowing that Westfield would win anyway (which of course they did at 32-7).  Needless to say, this will not be Jamey's last football game, and next time, hopefully, he will start to notice those tiny little people running around down there.  

And what, might you ask, was his other first this week?  Well, it actually

 just happened this evening before dinner.  It all has to do with the plastic giraffe mentioned in the title of this entry.  As part of a package, Jamey received a small plastic squeaky giraffe from my Aunt Pat and Uncle Don in Canada.  It made me happy because I remember having such a giraffe named Jerry, when I too was little.  This giraffe, though, as stated on its packaging is named Voolee (I don't know how you spell it, but that is how you say it) and Voolee is French (I am guessing he hails from Quebec).  Jamey took quickly to Voolee and enjoyed grabbing him by the leg and swinging him around until he hit himself in the head with Voolee.  

(Note: The giraffe in the picture is "Voolee's mother", a stuffed giraffe that I have named Carter after the student of Glenn's that gave him to us.  Note also, that while Voolee speaks French, Carter is a German.  I have yet to meet the father, who I am sure is a Dutch speaker.  This allows me to use all the different languages I know, while I play with Jamey)

Lately, I have been trying to entertain Jamey with different toys and today, it was Voolee's turn to take on a whole personality to go along with his squeak.  So I laid Jamey down on his blanket on the floor and began to have Voolee speak to Jamey.  Now, of course, because Voolee is French, he speaks French with a thick Parisian accent.  (Okay, so I don't know for sure that it is a Parisian accent.)  But because my French isn't like my German, and doesn't always come 

flowingly, I stick to simple sentences that Voolee can say to Jamey. 

 Things like, "What is your name?", "What did you say", "What do you want to play"  "My name is Voolee.  I speak French.  Do you speak French" and of course, "You are a big boy, but you are also a good boy!"  Occasionally, I will say longer sentences, but Jamey doesn't seem to like these as much.  I soon found that Jamey was entirely amused by Voolee's French.  The intonations probably sound funny to a baby in a way that the German he so often hears does not.  Listening to me/Voolee talk, Jamey opens his mouth in his giant grin and his eyes light up.  

Tonight, as I was cooking dinner, Glenn was playing with Jamey and Voolee, but had yet to see Voolee come to life.  So in a moment of peace in the cooking, I ran over and let Glenn watch how amused Jamey was by Voolee.  And this time, when Voolee asked "What did you say?" in French several times in a row, Jamey let out an honest to goodness laugh!  First one ever!  I have yet to make it happen again, but it was there and we both heard it.  So maybe our son was French in a former life and is laughing at his mother's terrible accent, or maybe he is laughing at the idea of a giraffe who speaks French.  Who knows....

And speaking of things Jamey does now, this video shows how Jamey can snore, just like some other people that we know...  He doesn't do it all the time, but it is just another of those little noises he can make.

2 Month Check-up/ Update

Although Jamey is officially 9 weeks old, he was (per the calendar) 2 months old this past Thursday.  As such, he had his monthly wellcare checkup on Friday afternoon.  I was a little worried, as I knew that he would be getting 4 shots at the visit.  Before the visit, Glenn and I prepared ourselves for 1)the unveiling of his latest weight, and 2)a screaming baby on the way home.  We took guesses as to what the weight would be-- Glenn said 4 and a half pounds, I said closer to 4 lb. 1 oz, just to be contrary.  

The first thing they check of course is the weight and let's say, Glenn was closer, as Jamey proved to be 14 lb. 6 oz., keeping him right up there in the 95% for weight.  For height, he is now in the 80%, as opposed to 90%, at 23 3/4 inches.  In true Van Welzen fashion, his head continues to grow well, and is in the 75% percentile at 16.5 inches.  Needless to say, he still looks much older than his age.  

The end of the visit brought time for the shots.  Glenn held his arms down to give him a bit of a feeling of being held tight, as the nurse asked us to do.  And then she just put the needle into his leg.  A sudden scream filled the air and then it subsided a bit, until the next shot.  By the end of the last one, Jamey's entire head was red and he had lapsed into the furious/ hyperventilating cry.  I call it that because you see him about to cry before you hear it, with his wide open, building up to the scream.  But really, after a moment, he calmed down and just looked around.  The nurse stepped aside for Glenn to pick him up and in, what I must guess is his idea of retaliation, he let out a really loud fart, and settled back down.  That's our boy.  :)

He has become much more vocal in the last week, and yesterday, he seemed to discover that on those hand things he found recently, he also has fingers.  I caught him yesterday curling them as though he were waving goodbye.  Then, as Glenn gave him a bottle, he used his little fingers to feel Glenn's fingertips individually.  I also caught him "plattling" this morning, as he raised his leg and lowered his hand at the same time.  I guess watching at the show yesterday really taught him something.  

And of course, Jamey loved the recent visit from Grammy and Hoopop (Glenn's parents).  They came up yesterday and hung out with him at our show, so we didn't have to worry as much about finding someone to watch him if we were both dancing.  Hoopop showed him all the places in the area that he could get into trouble and he and Jamey also planned a fishing trip for some day a few years from now, and Grammy taught him how to splash in rain puddles on the tabletop.  And just to show them how much fun he had, he giggled and smiled at them quite a bit.  Both Glenn and I were so happy that we got to show off our grinning boy to them, and so happy that he smiled just for them and showed them how much he loves them too.  :)

I must admit that, as any Mom would say, it can be very frustrating when I don't know what Jamey wants and he just continues to cry.  Every now and again, he decides that he just doesn't want to nurse, and cries until his head is literally completely red.  But really, just when I think I am frustrated to no end, he lays in my arms, looks up and me and grins.  He has this look in his eyes like, "Aw, come on, Mommy, you can't be mad at me."  And indeed, I'm not mad at him, and I can already tell that when he is a little older, he is going to get away with way too much with me.

Oktoberfest Beginneth...

It is true that Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany doesn't start until the end of September and only lasts a week or so there. But for Glenn, myself, and the rest of our dance group, Oktoberfest started at the end of August, as we began our dancing season. In addition, it doesn't end right away. Rather, it goes on until the beginning of November, with at least one day of celebration each weekend.

Since he was in the womb, Jamey has been hearing Oompah music every Friday at practice. Not to mention, he was just a tiny little group of cells when I went through last Oktoberfest season. Because of that, he is already adjusting well to the shows we have done.

As I said, our first big show was the second-to-last weekend in August at Hagerstown Maryland's Augustoberfest. Our group (Alt Washingtonia) goes every year and entertains for two days and thank God, this year it wasn't that hot. As Jamey was still about 6 weeks old at that point, he was still sleeping through much of the day. And the soothing tones of the Bavarian music put him to sleep through the majority of our roughly 4 hours of shows.

In fact, at one point, we had a "Baby Parking" area for Jamey's and Christopher's strollers as the two took naps side by side. It is the kind of picture that I am sure they will look back on and laugh. And Monica and I will look back and say, See, even then you did stuff together. Being worried about a little too much noise, we brought ear plugs, but they didn't really fit. In the end it didn't really matter, as he didn't seem bothered by the music, as I said. But Monica has a brilliant way of blocking out the noise while Christopher sleeps. She puts on ear protectors that block out noise. They belong to her dad and we decided that we would try a pair on Jamey to see how they would work. From this came perhaps my favorite picture of Jamey. (Forget the fact that he actually only wore the noiseblockers for about one minute, as they proved too tight for his head and made him angry.)

Bumming around at the Beach

From the beginning, it has been our intention to let Jamey experience everything we have to offer him so that as he gets older, he won't be afraid of these things and so that they will seem natural.  For this reason, we took him out to restaurants early, took him to West Virginia to visit Grammy and Hoopop and took him to the fair.  The more he gets used to being out and about, the better for both he and us!

And so, that was the thought in mind, when we headed out on our most recent adventure to Emerald Isle, where my parents live.  As well, after 

having my mom stay with me for a week of transition time as Glenn got back to work, we decided taking her home would be a great opportunity for another quick getaway over Labor Day Weekend.  We were further excited when Jim and Lindsay decided to make the trip over for a day or two so that both Lindsay and the boys could meet their latest cousin.  Needless to say, they were enthralled, especially Max, who continually asked to hold the baby.  I was also excited to find out from Ben (7), I think it was, that Jamey couldn't talk yet 

because he didn't have teeth.  Well, if that is all it takes, he is going to be speaking sooner than I thought.

Jamey took quickly to being at Grandma and Granddad's house, especially as a large portion of the wall is made up of windows, letting in tons of light in and making everything very interesting for Jamey to see.  He was more awake than we had seen him before.  This, we soon discovered, was just another building block in his development, as in the following days, he stayed awake for much more of the day.  

Back when I was just barely pregnant, Glenn's mom and I had found a special outfit for Jamey, knowing full well that he wouldn't be able to get through the summer without someone taking him into the water.  And so he had his own swim shorts, surf shirt, and beach hat waiting patiently in his closet to be used.  On the Saturday after arriving at Emerald Isle, we suited him up and took him out to the beach.  No worries to anyone, he sat under a canopy the entire time, and I kept a cold washcloth on his belly so he didn't get overheated.  

But I needn't have worried, as Jamey took the beach like he takes to most things.  He just rolled with the punches, sat on our laps, and stared around him at the myriad of sites.  Between the glow of the sand, the feel of the small amount of sand that somehow got on his hand, the constant motion of people running around, and the sound of the crashing water, his senses definitely got a workout.  Although he didn't go in the ocean or spend more than about an hour or so on the Beach, it was definitely a good warm-up for future visits.  

The next day, Glenn and I decided that we did want to take Jamey into the pool.  I wanted him to get the feel of being in a lot of water at a young age, so as he gets older, he will feel that the pool is a safe and normal place to be.  (Safe to a point, that is)  Around 5 PM, once the shade was over the pool and the heat had subsided a bit, we suited him up again and took him on his first golf cart ride over to the pool.  Being held firmly by either Glenn or I, we waded into the kid's end of the pool, getting him wet about halfway up his body.  Just as with the Beach, there was not a cry to be heard.  Granted, there weren't really any big grins either.  But Jamey just sat in our arms looking all around, taking in everything that was around him.  Probably the thing he liked best, though, was being snuggled in his towel afterwards, judging by how quickly he fell asleep in my arms.

Also, on this trip, Granddad was reminded of the smell of a dirty diaper.  With Jamey propped up on his bent legs, my Dad said to me, "I definitely think he just pooped."  Well, as a rule, Jamey never just goes once-- as I have heard it is with all babies.  I told my Dad to wait just a few minutes to be sure Jamey was done.  After a few minutes, Dad seemed to be on the verge of suffocating, so I took Jamey and cleaned him up.  One thing of note, that Jamey seems to like-- he loves it when Granddad makes his funny noise that sounds much like a dog howling.  Without fail, it always brings a smile to Jamey's face.

A Man of the Same Name...

Over one weekend in August, Jamey had a special visit from his Uncle Jim, who happens to share his name.  Although he wasn't named after Jim, them sharing their names is an excellent coincidence.  After watching Jim's three boys grow to where they are now, it was wonderful to be able to show off my son to him.  Perhaps the coolest thing about Jim's visit was the special gift Jamey received from him.

While here, Jim said that he wanted to get us something that we needed.  What with all the 

hand-me-downs and gifts we got, we really didn't need anything.  The only thing we were still looking for was a toybox for Jamey's room.  Suddenly a lightbulb went on over Jim's head.  He decided that he would get Jamey a toybox and paint it for him.  Well, after fervently searching (for roughly an hour) the local Michael's and other craft stores, we returned to the place we 

started-- Babies R Us-and bought an already finished toybox to be painted with a 

design.  Due to the cowboy theme in Jamey's room, Jim went online and looked up different cowboys.  To make a long story short, here is the end result!

All smiles...

Although I don't have time at this very moment to write a full blown blog entry, I wanted to post another video for all my far away relatives, which tends to be most of my relatives.

Jamey has become very smiley in the last week. He is definitely a morning person and seems happiest after he eats at around 6 AM. After he is done nursing, I put him up in front of my on my bent legs and look into his little face. He stares around the room at the paintings that we have hanging and then studies my face. And suddenly his whole mouth breaks into this huge smile. Plus he is cooing. It is very cute!!! And here is a video as testament to his smiliness. Not his best smile, but any smile is good.

On another note, at a doctor's visit yesterday, we found out that Jamey is now a whopping 12 lbs. 15 oz, or in short, one ounce away from 13 pounds!!! As well, he is already able to walk around in his carrier facing outward and BOY, does he love it. On our walk tonight, he just took in all the trees and especially the sky.

One month report

Although Jamey is officially 5 weeks old today, I am a bit delayed on the report of his 1 month check-up at the doctor this past Monday. In summary, Jamey is doing fantastically. But that is just in summary. I know that most of you out there are wanting more detail, so here we go.

For one thing, Jamey is growing at a rapid pace. Even we were a bit surprised when we put him down on the doctor's scale and he weighed 11 lb. 7 oz. As has apparently been said, "Melissa must have some good milk!" This put him in the 95 percentile. As for height, he is now 23 inches long, with a growth of 3/4 inches, putting him in the 90 percentile there. Although I don't remember the exact number of his head size, it put him in the 70 percentile. So needless to say, our boy is certainly growing.

Beyond his body size, he seems to be exceptionally strong. He is able to hold his head up pretty much already and if you balance it just right on his hands, he can even hold up his bottle on his own. Not that he knows what he is doing, but it looks like a cool trick! I am very proud of his strength, but it can cause a little trouble when I am trying to burp him when he doesn't want to be burped. I will sit him down over my leg, but when he is angry, he stretches his legs out and won't bend them. Making it impossible to burp him! The doctor says he will probably crawl early, based on how he acts in his appointments... Oh fun!

Little Tidbits from Jamey's Days

Here I sit at 10 PM, eager to type up the 101 stories I have from our three weeks with Jamey, but with so little time to accomplish that. Thank goodness I can type about 60 words per minute, so this won't take me as long. And yet, I find I still have to pause because Lord only knows where I should start. I will type up little snippets of our days here:

The Long Endless Nights:
I guess the hardest part is the part that comes to mind first-- and any parent can tell you that the hardest part in the beginning is the night time. It seems I can put up with any amount of crying, so long as the sun is up. But when the times comes when it is night, everything seems 1000 times harder. And every night seems to be a different treat. Some nights he is easy to get down. And then there are nights like last night. He decided that he would cry whenever we went to put him down. Sure, pick him up and hold him against you and he is content, but the second he is on his back, and it is like hot coals are in the crib. The easiest thing is just to lay him on my belly in bed and nap together, but we are trying desperately not to make this a habit. So instead I have learned to sleep in his glider-- thank you, Lindsay.

Wakey Time:
But that is the only bad part, really. Jamey is a happy little guy who loves to be held. He has his fussy time, as any baby does, but really, if you solve his problem, he is content. The best parts of our days, we refer to affectionaly as "Wakey Time". These are the times when his eyes are wide and he will just sit in his bouncer and stare out the back door. Or sit in his boppy and study the trees. I know he can't see far, but he must indeed be able to see a lot of contrasts around the house. We have found that he loves to sit in our laps and stare at paintings on the walls. The one above our bed, which is completely black and white, is especially a favorite. I can't wait for the moments when he can actually see the squirrels and birds that traipse around our yard. It will lead to endless hours of entertainment for him. Wakey Time seems to come at roughly the same time every day-- usually around 11 AM and 2/3 PM. It lasts about an hour and then he drifts off the sleep.

Little Superman:
Another thing that surprises everyone that sees him in person is how strong he is. He is doing things he shouldn't be able to. When you put him up to your shoulder to burp him, and he happens to be awake, he will lift his head off your shoulder and move it around. It used to just be that his head would bob around when he lifted it for a moment, but that was a week or so ago. Now, at three weeks, when he lifts his head, he can hold it up for a good amount of time. Every day, he also gets a little tummy time, where Glenn usually lays on his back and puts Jamey on his belly on top of Glenn. Jamey will lift up his little head and gaze around. One day he scooted himself along a little bit, and he has already proven that the sleep positioner is no match for him. One night I enterred to get him up and there he lay, perpendicular to the positioner. Another night, he was down below it. And he does all that when he is swaddled!

Nicknames:
It seems everyone picks a nickname for their child. "Pumpkin, Little Man, Buddy, Momo." I have wondered, what we will call our little Jamey. When we brought him home from the hospital, we called him Hippo. He was a little chunk, and he had a hippo on his outfit. And didn't it just fit that he couldn't seem to get enough food-- our Hungry Hungry Hippo. And yet, the noises he makes aren't any that come from a hippo. Rather, his noises lead to his nickname of "Birdy". When he sleeps or stretches, there are little peeps that escape, and occasionally a squawk even comes out. While Jacquie was here visiting, she called him Froggy. When he sleeps on your chest, he tucks his legs up under himself. And when he is hungry, his little tongue flicks out, much like a frog. Perhaps my favorite of all the little names we have for him helps to describe his habit of passing loud gas and loud poops. The other night, Jacquie and Nick were sitting on the couch, as I played with Jamey. Suddenly, a loud noise came from Jamey-- I won't describe the noise, but rest assured, I knew it had produced some poop. I looked at Jamey and said, "Good job, Vladimir." Nick looked at Jacquie and then at me. The next time, as I went to congratulate Jamey again on "doing his business", I caught a funny look from Nick when I called him Vladamir again. I looked at he and Jacquie and explained. When Jamey is pooping well and we can hear it, we like to refer to him as Vladimir-- as in Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia-- to congratulate him on the good "pooting" he is doing.

Gotta Love Background Noise:
We have discovered that Jamey is a big fan of noise. This is yet another trait that I think he has inherited a little from both Glenn and I. Come into our house and I like to have some kind of noise on at all times. The TV may be on, but I often only have it on just for the noise of it, not for the content. As well, in my classroom, I can't stand to have a completely silent room (most of the time). I like for my kids to work together, to interact with me, to actively take part in their learning. The ultra quiet drives me nuts.

In the same vein, Jamey seems to be most relaxed when there is a lot going on around him. This is best illustrated by how relaxed he has been any time we have taken him out of the house. He has already made "field trips" to Babies R Us, Target, Red Robin's, Virginia Kitchen, Euro Bistro, Leesburg, on a driving tour of DC, to Monica's, to a fair, and dance practice. And in every situation, he will fall asleep with everything happening in his midst. Whether it be German Plattl music or the clatter of kitchens around us, he sleeps through it all. Lucky me...

And now, as I feel my lids begin to get heavy, I am off to pump and then fall asleep until I get up for the 1 AM feeding. Gotta love that one!

Baby's First Outing

Well, this is much in delay, but Jamey had his first outing last weekend. In the morning, we headed over to Target and Babies R Us for a few returns and purchases. Jamey slept right through.

But then, the bigger adventure came that evening. I had gotten a call from Monica and when I called her back, she invited us over for dinner. Although my initial instinct was that it would be so much for Jamey in one day, we decided, "Why not?" In addition, in the parking lot of the high school where I teach, there was a children's fair. Sure, Jamey would be oblivious to it, but the hope was that Monica and Chris' 18 month old (Christopher) would find some things to enjoy.

So we headed over to their place that evening, with Jamey asleep of course. He stayed in his carrier through the whole dinner. Perhaps the best part about the visit was when Christopher met Jamey for the first time. You may remember that I have mentioned Christopher before in my blog. He is the little boy who would put his hand on my belly and declare "Baby" when I was still pregnant. I was anxious to see how he would react when I didn't have my giant belly.

When we first came in, he was overwhelmed to see Glenn and I, and danced around. After about five minutes, he noticed this carrier sitting on the floor. Looking up at his dad, he squatted down and gasped. "What's that?" he asked, in his little Christopher voice. As quickly as possible, I whipped out the video camera. He was very good with the baby, though. He didn't dare touch him. He just squatted right in front of his character and stared at Jamey and then he would swivel his head to one of the adults with a big grin, as though he had made this amazing discovery. At various times throughout the dinner, he would remember that the baby was there, squeal and point at the carrier, screaming "Baby!" It was a cool site to see.

After dinner and a quick feeding, we went to the fair. As may be predicted, Jamey slept through the entire field trip. Nothing bothered his slumber-- not the lights, nor the sounds. It turned out that the rides were all too big for Christopher, but he seemed just as happy to point, stare, and oooh and ahhh them. He also played a game where you pull a duck out of the water and get a prize. He wanted to keep the duck more than the prize that he won, however. Monica also ended up winning them a hermit crab.

We had a very interesting interaction with an extremely well dressed carnie-boy. Glenn had pulled out the video camera to tape a sleeping Jamey in front of the ferris wheel. Just then an 8 year old came over and said, "May I look?" I said looking was fine. He stared, and as he started to talk, I began to wonder if he was somehow a 30 year old trapped in an 8 year old body. "How old is the little guy?" the boy asked. Other statements made by him, "I have two brothers and they are 6 and 7. Where do the babies go to, I tell you?" "Is he your first?" So now, for the rest of time, we will be wondering who this strange little boy on the video is. We noticed later that he was going around offering to help out the various game workers, which is what led us to realize that he must be one of the carnival people.

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Other James tidbits:
-His favorite place to sit is in his bouncing chair. He loves to sit and face looking out the glass door in the living room, taking in all the light that is outside there.
-Just like all other babies, he makes lots of little noises. In fact, when he is sleeping, and is stirring, he sounds a bit like a little chicken. He makes little peeps as he struggles to come out of his sleep. To accompany that, his little arms will flail around with the startle reflex and punch at whatever is around. I could watch it forever!

Speaking of Jamey, he seems to be stirring, so that is all for me at this point!

1 week old

It has been one week now, and in the last few days, Jamey has been more and more awake. He has been especially wide-eyed around 3 o'clock, giving me the opportunity to take photos.

Jamey loves to sit in his boppy when he is awake, facing out the window. The light fascinates him, and he can just stare for days. (As can Glenn and I-- the only difference being with stare at him!)


Here, a few more photos to enjoy!



-Jamey is a very good baby, as long as you keep him full. He is a big eater, and VERY strong. At times, the main reason, I can't nurse him is because he uses his arms to push me away. At the doctor's visit, he was on his belly, trying to wriggle away from her, and she said, "What are you trying to do? Are you trying to crawl? Yes, you are trying to crawl!"

One more funny story-- I had to go to the OB's office for a check-up on Wednesday, and as I walked in the receptionist gave me a knowing look. As I told her my name, she looked at the other woman and Receptionist 2 said, "told you". At this point, my curiousity is peeked. Receptionist 1 said, "Oh, there was a little rumor and we weren't sure if you had already delivered." She glanced down at my still swollen belly and said, "I can see now, you haven't."

I laughed and said, "Oh, I have. I used to be much bigger."

I didn't care. It was just a funny story!