"Mike" TV*

* Note, this is one of a very few occasions where I will refer to him as "Mike"...unless of course he grows up to prefer it...but it suits the scenario due to its connection to Willy Wonka :)

Now that Michael is sleeping in his own room (see previous post) we want to keep an "eye" on him from a distance. Instead of just getting a sound monitor, we decided to get a video monitor as well, primarily because Michael still sleeps with his swaddle blanket, and he has been known to wiggle free of that thing and get it over his face. The video monitor is a perfect solution for us to see him, without having to get up and open the door, risking waking him, but still be able to see his little face.

Michael Sr and I are fascinated with this device. It's so cool! Our little closed circuit TV, with Baby Michael as the star! We have it out with us as we sit in the living room, and I admit even though he is just laying there, it is quite enthralling!

We don't buy too many baby gadgets...so we decided to splurge, and so far (it being only a few hours since we opened the box) we love it!

Sleeping in his own room

Tonight is the first night Baby Michael will be sleeping in his own room.

For the past several nights, he has been particularly...um...shall we say, chatty? whiny? demanding? throughout the night, leaving Mom and Dad pretty darn tired. He's not always hungry, but sometimes just needs a little hug before he goes back to sleep. He also wiggles so much during the night that the pin in the cradle loosens and he ends up tilted towards one side or another.

Sometimes, he just whines, maybe even while still sleeping, but it is disturbing enough that one of us is bound to get up and try and figure out what he needs, only to find out that by the time he is in our arms, he is already asleep again. So, did he really need that involvement from us? Did we really have to get up? Could he have gotten to sleep on his own?

We've been exhausted, and are definitely at the point of seeing if a softer, bigger, comfy-er bed will do the trick. Not only that, but him being in his own room will give him the freedom to fuss a little in is bed a little and see if can get himself to sleep without having mom or dad interrupting him.

So, we'll see how he does. It may be short-lived, but so far, he seems pretty happy in there. But I miss him in our room already. It's a big step--our little boy in his own room!

No words needed

A really good day

In these three months of taking care of Michael, there have been up days and down days. Days that go by like this:

And days that go by like this:

And there are many days when I feel like if Baby Michael could talk, he would ask me:


Lady, do you even know what the heck you are doing?!

Of course, the over-arching sentiment is that I am having a blast, despite my constant worry over whether or not he is getting enough sleep, or I am messing up his schedule by bringing him here and there, etc.

But there are certain days that are just more fun than others. Certain days where I feel like, for a fleeting moment, we got the hang of it. Certain days where I don't have suspicions that baby Michael is filling out a secret baby petition to be mailed off to the Mommy Distribution Center, asking for a reassignment.

Today was one of those days.

From his first waking up, Michael was all smiles today (minus a block of time where, for one reason or another, he was just totally and completely inconsolable. Not sure what was up with that. He had napped, he was clean, he was burped, he was fed. I suppose he has a certain quota of crying he must fill for one day. Usually he spreads it out...I guess yesterday he just got it out all at once and was perfectly charming the rest of the day).

But most of the day:

I look at him...he laughs.

I kiss him...he laughs.

I go in after a nap...and instead of crying, here's what I see:

It's been such a fun day!

Michael's mom came down to look after Baby Michael while I took care of a Bible study at Church. It was great to not worry about dragging Baby Michael everywhere late at night postponing bedtime.

And he was all smiles for her too! It was great! Definitely a win-win!

So, tomorrow is promising to be a good day as well (because Grammy and Poppy are coming!)....

But whatever the next day brings, today is a day that I thought to myself...I think I'm kind of getting the hang of this!

They must think I'm crazy

I was reading the washing instructions on one of Michael's outfits and couldn't help but utter a loud "Yeah right!" when I saw this:

Notice the instruction:"Warm iron when needed."

Is it just me, or does it seem ludricous to iron a baby onesie? First of all, it's smaller than an iron itself...but secondly, what is the point? To impress all their friends at the Baby Country Club? So the Baby Employers don't think they are slobs? I've done baby laundry before, and let me tell you, the biggest problem an outfit of a baby can have is definitely not a little wrinkle...I'll leave it at that.

Maybe I'm a lazy mommy...maybe I should develop a keener sense of presentation for my kid, so that ironing his onesie doesn't seem so silly. Maybe I need to get a nanny so I have time to tend to these meticulous details. I'm satisfied if no one can see the baby spit-up on my shoulders I have on any given day!

So to you moms out there who do iron their child's onesie, I salute you! If we meet on the playground of life, please feel free to stop by and give me some advice on how you find the time. I'll be easy to spot...I'll be with the kid in wrinkled clothes!

Random Thoughts....Bad Product Name

I know I am no marketing specialist, and I know that Breyers is simply naming the product for what it is double-churned ice cream. But everytime I see this in the freezer section of the grocery store:




I always have to do a double take because it looks like it says Double Chin.


Not exactly the type of word association you want with a product like ice cream....right? People have an inkling to buy it, they see the word "double chin" and maybe think twice about it, because the product is foretelling the future. And that future looks something like this:

Bon Appetit!

Tummy Time is improving

Michael still does notlike tummy time very much, but his skills at keeping his head up are greatly improving.

Check out this adorable picture of the Michaels:

He lifted his head up really high to get a good glimpse of Daddy!

The last time we went to see the Campbells, she pulled out her Boppy pillow and demonstrated with Peter how well it can be used to make Tummy Time a little more palatable to babies. So I went home and tried it with Michael and she was right! The pillow gives them a little head start on seeing the world with a new perspective, which helps them maintain interest enough to want to see more!

I also love how Michael needs to raise his eyebrows in order to lift his head higher. I guess that little lift of the forehead gives him the momentum he needs to keep his head up!