30 Weeks

I'm now 30 weeks pregnant.  30 weeks.  That means I'm having a baby in 10 weeks, or less, or more.  December doesn't seem soon, but 10 weeks seems way too soon.  I'm excited to meet this little one, but feel like the time is bolting away, there is so much to do, and I'm not quite ready to mother a newborn again.  Of course, Jack was born 3 days past his due date & even as I was in labor I thought, "aren't I supposed to have more time??"  My goal is to have everything major finished by the beginning of December.  I'm pretty sure that won't happen, but I can try!

I had another ultrasound on Thursday.  The doctor wanted to make sure the baby was big enough (even though I've been measuring big & look big, to me at least).  The baby is currently in the 60th percentile & weighs 3 pounds 11 ounces already.  That seems big to me since I do have 10 weeks left & that's when the pounds start packing on.  I'm hoping a 10 pound baby doesn't come out to greet me in December.

And, we're fairly certain by this most recent ultrasound photo (which I will post soon) that this baby is Jack's twin.  I seem to be winning the gene war.  At least Jack's a cutie.  That bodes well for the rest of our kids!

Two of my new favorite photos

Jack, holding John's new book.  I love this picture.  I think he looks like a doll.

We have about 5 photos of the three of us all together since Jack was born.  I'm glad this one is a good one!

Thank You Varicella Vaccine, for Giving My Son the Pox

Yes, it's true.  Jack is apparently one of the 3-5% of people who actually get the chicken pox from the vaccination.  We've delayed all of his vax, but I've been slowly catching him up on them.  Two weeks before school started he got the varicella vaccination so he wouldn't get the chicken pox.  

He now has the chicken pox.  Nothing like I had as a kid- I was covered from head to toe.  He has about 30 spots, no blisters, no fever.  He just itches.  It's supposedly not contagious, but I've still quarantined us, just in case.  The worst part has been sleep.  He's been sleeping so great for us, but the past 2 nights he's been in bed with me & up every hour or two because of the itching.  

If You're In St. Louis...

You should come to John's book release signing tonight.  It's at Subterranean Books in the Loop from 6-8pm.  Come by & buy a book or two, or three, or ten...

Barack Obama

I swear we haven't been brainwashing the kid, but he likes to walk around saying Barack Obama over & over again.  He thinks it's pretty funny.  So do we.

He also doesn't care at all that I've been leaving him at preschool.  I'm grateful not to have to deal with the tears & trauma that I was expecting, but I guess I thought he'd miss me a little bit!

In other news, I feel as big as a house.  Yesterday the doctor said I was measuring a centimeter more than they would expect me to.  I told him it's because I'm having a 12 pound baby.  This kid feels way lower & way heavier than Jack.  And, as a result I am way more uncomfortable than with Jack.  So goes baby #2 I guess.

First Day of Preschool

Jack went to his first day of preschool this morning.  I was expecting lots of tears from both of us, but we both had big smiles & dry eyes when I left.  I already feel anxious to go pick him up so I can see how his day went!

Would you like to see what's been growing in my belly??

Yep, that's our baby!  This was taken about 3 weeks ago at 22 weeks.  I'm almost 25 weeks along which means I only have 15 weeks to go before we get to meet this precious little one.

Hopefully you can tell what you're looking at in these photos.  They are both head shots.  We only had the regular ultrasounds with Jack, so these seemed pretty shocking to us when we first saw them.

Jack is very excited about being a big brother & really likes the babies at our church.  Most days he wants a brother, and for a while he would tell us he wanted a brother named Lyla.  Two weeks ago he told my friend he wanted a brother named Jesus.  Last week he didn't care about the name, but he definitely wanted a sister.  He's either going to be disappointed with the name or the gender!

We're looking forward to our Christmas baby.

Jack's latest obsession

Jack loves Buzz Lightyear & his Woody doll.  He talks about them non-stop.  We have a rule that Buzz is not allowed to sleep with him- no talking toys in bed.  But, he tucks Woody into his bed right next to him every single night.

Strange Dreams

Jack has been having nightmares the past few nights.  He keeps dreaming that it's raining inside.  Every night before he goes to sleep he says, "Mama, don't let it rain inside!"  And then, he wakes crying in the middle of the night telling me that it's raining in the living room.  

Poor kid.

9 Years Ago Today...

Happy Birthday Baby Boy!

Breaking News!

This is really only breaking news to us, but, Jack ate grapes on Monday night.  Yes, you heard me, we're hooting & celebrating because my almost 3 year old ate not one, but 7 or 8 grapes!  

I can honestly count on one hand the amount of fruit Jack has eaten since he went off baby food.  A bite or two of banana, a sliver of strawberry, and one whole blueberry (that was over a year ago).  He refuses to touch the stuff.  But at dinner on Monday John & I were eating grapes & Jack yelled, "I like grapes!", took a bite of one, shivered & made a funny face & then ate the rest.  John & I cheered & he kept on eating them.  He even ate some yesterday.

The excitement never ends around here.

This Is the Messiest You Will Ever See Jack

Jack, enjoying some cookie dough.  This child never intentionally gets messy, except, apparently, when cookie dough is involved.

Looking Forward & Back

I am not a mom who doesn't want her baby boy to grow up.  I look forward to the day when we can play board games together, watch a movie on a rainy afternoon, and read chapter books together.  I love each stage of Jack's life more than the last.  I love hearing the next new thing out of his mouth & I love watching him interact & discover his world.

That's why I was surprised when I felt sad after we took apart his crib & put a big bed in his room a few months ago.  My baby boy will be 3 years old next month.  And, as much as I look forward to the years ahead & all he'll experience, my heart feels sad at all that will fade away.

At this point in his life he is completely honest.  The idea of telling a lie doesn't occur to him.  He says it how it is without hiding anything he's feeling.  And, he believes everything we tell him.

He loves his momma & daddy.  He's so excited to see us, to play with us, to make us laugh.  He loves to hold our hands & wants 10 hugs & kisses before he goes to bed.  I will hug & kiss this boy as many times as he wants because I know the day will come when he'll not even want me to tuck him in, much less kiss him.

He can't hide his excitement.  When he sees something new or something he loves, he yells & points & laughs & wants to tell me all about it.  And I will listen as long as he wants to talk to me.   

Sometimes, I feel so much love for him that I think it will make my heart burst.  Before he entered the world I didn't know it was even possible to love someone so wholeheartedly knowing that they can give you nothing but themselves in return.  

And, I think about him becoming a teenager and I hope he still likes me.  I hope I can still make him laugh.  

I want him to be free to grow & explore & become the man he's going to be, but I also want to hold on to him so tight & hope that he'll never leave because he is my baby & he'll always be my baby.  I know I have a long time before he's all grown up, but I also know it's going to go so much faster than I ever thought possible.

So, I try to savor the days we spend together.  I try to listen to him when he talks, get on the floor when he asks me to play with him, and kiss & hug him until he doesn't want anymore.

Too Much Curious George

I went to the doctor yesterday.  Jack knows my doctor.  He knows my doctor's name.  He's seen my doctor many times & never says anything to him or in his presence except, "Great job Mama!"  (Everyone needs to hear this after having their feet in stir-ups!)

Yesterday when my doctor walked into the room Jack shouted out, "Hi Dr. Monkey!"  My doctor asked what he said & he yelled out again, "Hi Dr. Monkey!" and giggled.

There's an episode of Curious George where George is Dr. Monkey.  Apparently this made an impact on Jack.  At least my doctor thought it was funny too!  And, I'm very glad the man doesn't actually resemble a monkey.  

This is what happens when he dresses himself.

Jack picked out his own clothes this morning.  Suede boots (perfect for a 90 degree day), ratty sweatpants, and his Easter sweater vest from 2 years ago.  He obviously gets his fashion sense from his daddy.

What More Could a Boy Want?

Trucks, baby animals & snowcones!

I Forgot to Mention...

that John got me a Wii & the Wii Fit for Mother's Day.  Pretty much the best gift ever from the best husband ever.  I'm off to headbutt some soccer balls & panda heads while the child naps.

I Might Stop Blogging About Sleep Sometime Soon

Today we have an appointment at the St. Luke's Sleep Center with pediatric nurse extraordinaire Nancy Burkenmeier.  We've visited her once before when Jack was 8 or 9 months old & waking up every hour.  Last time it took us 3 months to get in.  This time they had an appointment the next day.  She gave us a plan to follow & he was happily sleeping through the night in less than a week.  I kind of knew myself what to do with an infant, but just needed her to kick my butt to do it.

I, however, have no idea what to do with a kid who is almost 3.  Do we let him cry it out or will that freak him out so much that he'll really never want to sleep in his bed again?  All I know is that the kid has no idea how to relax & go to sleep & it's up to us to help him with that.

We really do have other things going on in our lives.  I really do have other, much more exciting things to blog about.  But, the sleep issue is so all-encompassing that it's hard to write about anything else.

So, hopefully coming soon will be a sleep success story, photos of the Dan Zanes concert we went to as a family (I had been looking forward to this concert for almost a year & it rocked), and some other cute photos of the boy.  

Adventures in Sleep

The sleep saga continues in the Hendrix household.  We're quickly approaching the month mark that we took Jack's binkies away.  We soon realized it wasn't the staying asleep that was a problem, it was the calming down enough to actually get to sleep that was the issue.  

I started off very adamant that we were not going to rock or rub him to sleep.  After much screaming that has been thrown out the window.  Now I just want him to sleep & I seem to spend my entire day trying to get him to sleep.  

We ended up moving him out of his crib & into a twin bed.  That helped a lot.  I think he felt trapped in his crib.  But now we've started having to lie down with him just to get him to fall asleep.  If this was a quick process, it wouldn't bother me so much, but tonight, for example, it has taken an hour and a half.  And the longer it takes him to get to sleep the more fidgety he gets & the more he wants done for him.  He "needs" lotion, kleenex, water, a different friend in bed, his toenails clipped (yes- he has asked for this several times), his socks on, his socks off, a different blanket, and the list goes on & on.

I am going crazy.  I actually found many grey hairs on my head this week.  I'm putting a call into our trusty sleep doctor tomorrow & am hoping she can help us with a plan.