Tuesday's thoughts

As I sat in the Doctors office today listening to John tell the doctor Jay's routines and accomplishments for his 6 month checkup I realized that John really is the stay-at-home dad and knows what is going on. I just was there to ask questions and analyze the information. He is 17 lbs (42%), 27 1/2 inches (80%), and head circumference 17 1/2 (75%). He is a "solid" guy with good muscles according to the doctor. After getting 4 shots (and some Tylenol) Jay is surprisingly chipper tonight!

Right before that we got his pictures taken and John did all the hard work trying to make him smile, I just kind of watched and caught him when he fell over (except the one time that I didn't catch him and he fell over:()

John gave me an awesome Christmas present this year. I had no idea he was getting it and secured funding from the parents and made the rest himself to buy it. It was a huge surprise and shock when he handed a (wrapped) new laptop to me in front of my family (who was all in on the secret of course). When I think that he got up at 4am on Black Friday to get it at a good price it makes me even more proud. Now I feel kind of guilty because I wasn't willing to spend the money to get what he really wanted. I got him a gift card that he could combine with another gift card I knew he was getting so he could buy it himself. Yep, I'm that cheap:(

Other things we enjoyed about Iowa last week were my brother's Christmas present, the game "Ticket to Ride". John won both times he played, so now he likes the game:) My nephew got Silly Putty. Who knew it would be so much fun. Here Caleb is modeling what we can do with Silly Putty...12 fingers:)
And we enjoyed the SNOW. We didn't really play in it, but it was fun to look at compared to Colorado's dead grass.
In the early morning before we left on Monday, Jay was super crabby and kept squirming his body around in discomfort. Finally at 5am after I was going nuts not getting much sleep my mom took him for a while and I went back to sleep. Eventually after some more Tylenol and a big poop he seemed much better. This also meant he slept most of the 10 hour drive back to Colorado. Here he is after waking up from one of his naps.

Jay's First Christmas

We have had a lot of fun with Jay this holiday season. He enjoyed a White Christmas in with family in Iowa. He hung out at church with us during the Christmas eve service and fell alseep during the sermon. Then afterwords he was wide awake to open presents.
Jay enjoyed looking out the window while it was snowing.

He was pretty excited about this present that makes noise.

He loved hanging out with Grandma,

Grandpa,
and cousins
Jay was sick the first day (you can see the red cheeks), but now he is doing better.
I love this one!

Christmas Photo

We tried 3 different times to get a good photo of Jay for our Christmas card. Here are some cute ones that we rejected.




I am so thankful for the crease in the couch where we can set Jay and make it look like he is sitting up. I wonder what we do for his 6 month pictures (in a few weeks) if he is not sitting up unsupported yet. Anybody know?
Happy Holidays.

Jay's favorite books are....

Any book that he can eat. These are the books I read to him anyway, but I usually only get a few pages in before he prys them from my hands to chew on them.

I have a few "soft" books, but he prefers the ones that are not meant to be chewed on:)

Just look at the concentration on his face:)

I look foreword to to the day when he will actually enjoy reading books with me.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Well, we don't have a blizzard like my friends and family in Iowa, but we do have our Christmas tree up, and Jay did some Christmas-y stuff.
First he helped put up the Christmas lights:

Then we dressed him in his Christmas PJ's. After I took a shower one morning I found him in bed like this. I think he was busy pooing.
He LOVES the Christmas tree, and I'm glad he can't crawl yet because every time we get near it he has this whole body reflex that is attracted to the tree:

He has been getting a lot more mobile with his rolling. A few days ago I left him in the middle of the living room floor for a minute while I went to the bathroom. When I returned he had rolled over 4 times and was attempting to eat a DVD. Time to move EVERYTHING off the floor:)
Grandma and Grandpa S. came over this week. We tried tried to share some Christmas cheer:
Today we dressed him up like an elf (or that's what I call it) for Choir practice at church and caroling. Everyone thought he was adorable. When we got home and took a picture he was pretty sick of it all:)

Here is a video of Grandpa S. playing with Jay. Notice the high pitched noise...Jay does it a lot!

laughing with grandpa s from angie shaler on Vimeo.

Hangin out

These pictures are just too adorable not to post. He is wearing overalls and shoes:)



What else is going on over here? We are working on sleeping issues. I have put him in bed sleepy (but not sleeping) for the past 3 nights. I would consider it a success, because he has cried for less than 5 min (and mostly just whimpered himself to sleep). On another note: Jay is rolling over a lot. In the middle of the night. Then he gets stuck because he is in his wrap (so he doesn't fling his arms and wake himself up). Then he cries and needs to be held (not just flipped over). This happened about 5 times last night. So I am torn...do I help him learn to sleep on his stomach or not wrap him for a night to see how he does? All I know is that I am going to bed early tonight:)

Stay-at-home Dad

My husband has been the stay-at-home dad for a little over a month now. He is awesome and I am so glad that He loves kids (especially our adorable one) and that Jay is not at a day-care center.
He has made more than one trip to the library to return books, he is a pro at browning the hamburger for supper, and the windows and floors are now clean!

It becomes apparent that he is a stay-at-home dad when:
-at 10:30 at night I hear the shower start. When I ask him why he is taking a shower at 10:30 at night he responds with: "I haven't taken a shower in 2 days, I thought it would be a good idea". That sounds like my first few weeks with with baby:)
-The first DVD he pops in the DVD player in the morning isn't "The Big Bang Theory" or "How I Met your Mother" it is "God made Me" or "Baby Beethoven"
-While at a family gathering over Thanksgiving, my cousins and aunts and I were talking about breastfeeding, colic, teething, and baby poop when I realized that John was the only guy in the room and was joining right in the conversation. Afterwords I heard that the discussion in the other room was about video games. Ironic.
-He talks to the TV. I think it is something about hanging out with a baby all day that makes an adult want adult interaction.
-While taking care of Jay on Saturday a few weeks ago, Jay and I let John sleep in. When John did get up and smiled at Jay, Jay let out a little giggle because he was happy to see Daddy!

Although I am jealous once in a while, I really am happy to be at work. I love Jay like crazy and can't wait to see him smile at me when I get home...but I know I am where I am supposed to be. Thank you to my AWESOME husband.

5 months

Jay turned 5 months today. He has had many accomplishments.
He can roll over multiple times. He especially does it when he is MAD:) He grabs everything and has a super strong grip. I have special earrings and necklaces I wear only for work and take off right when I get home so he doesn't pull them off. This morning he broke another one of my necklaces while I nursed him for a few min. before I left.
He holds a bottle by himself for a few minutes (but we are always there for support).
I didn't get his height or weight yet for this month. He still loves his exersaucer and other toys. He has been somewhat crabby the last few days and has had a temperature of 98-99.7 off and on since last weekend. Some people have told me that he could be teething and by the way he chews on EVERYTHING they could be right, but I don't feel any teeth.
He saw his first snow:
Everyone says he has grown so much. I see babies a few weeks old now and I agree...he has grown a lot!
Here are a few more pictures from our Thanksgiving trip.
My mom loves this picture and thinks he looks like a doll.

We got together with friends from high school:

He hung out with his cousins:

What a fun trip.

Road Trip #1 down...a lifetime to go:)

We went to visit my parents and other family for Thanksgiving. When Jay first heard it was a 10 hour trip in his car seat he was shocked!

Here is how the rest of the trip went. A journal entry by Jay:
The drive really wasn't that bad. Sometimes mommy rode in the back with me and gave me toys and sang. I only got a bottle a few times. When I got really crabby we turned on Tim's music or I watched my "God Loves Me" movie. I got to hang out with Uncle Chad and Aunt Christine a lot.
On Thanksgiving day, I wore a cute bib that Grandma S. gave me. Sometimes daddy and I get sick of smiling for all of mommy's pictures.
I had a lot of fun hanging out with Grandma N. too!
More pictures and the rest of my story coming in a few days.

Fun by myself

Jay is just starting to enjoy playing by himself for SHORT stretches. This usually consists of me doing what I am doing right now: setting lots of toys in front of him while he goes through them one by one and throws them on the floor. Only a few things have lasted a few minutes before they end up on the floor. A baby toothbrush I got him, and this blue tractor.

wordless wednesday

I finally participated in one of these theme days from the blogosphere.

All the things I have been meaning to post...

or at least the things I can remember.
I was super pumped to go shopping on Saturday while Grandma and Grandpa watched baby Jay. I started out having a blast going to a few stores...then I got down to business and started shopping for a pair of tan pants for work that fit. An entire mall and 3 stores later I found NOTHING. Some stores even told me they only stock tan pants in the spring. GRRR baby weight. GRRR my oddly shaped stomach. At least I got a sweatshirt and a pair of shoes that fit.

Jay has started blowing bubbles now. It mostly just adds more moisture to his drool-soaked bibs. It is pretty cute though. Another thing that is super cute is HATS.

It is so funny to watch a baby go through the process of pooping. First they squirm and whine and fart because they have to poo. Then they concentrate seriously on something (Jay likes his dino lamp). Then he pulls up his legs, his face gets flushed and he grunts. After a few times of that his eyes start watering a bit and the grunts get louder and louder until he poops. Then it starts to smell:) It's even more funny when it happens during the sermon at church.

I took Jay out shopping quite a few times this week. Once with John and we took turns holding him, and twice when I wore him in the baby bjorn that someone let us have. He really likes facing out and being able to see everything in the isles. I have gotten TONS of comments on how cute he is and how blue his eyes are. I agree that he is adorable, but after a while I get sick of smiling at all the people who are smiling at the baby. I did get a funny reaction from some college guys...but they might have been trying to impress the girls they were with. Babies are just cute, and I guess Jay can brighten other peoples lives.

Jay now understands the car seat and how it is a place where you stare or sleep. He usually only makes a few squawks or whimpers for a few minutes before he is quiet. On our drive to grandma and grandpas house he slept almost the whole time (an hour and a half). I wonder if we can train him to stare or sleep when we are trying to do our homework?:)

what we've been up to

I combined a few of my favorite things: making videos, and my son. It will probably take a bit to load.
For your viewing enjoyment:

diaper tips

I know so many ladies who are pregnant. I am SUPER excited for all of them! Even though I feel like I have had some small bumps with the whole pregnancy(sickness)/newborn (colic)thing...Jay's smiles totally make it worth it.

This post was originally an e-mail written to a pregnant friend to give her my thoughts on how to save money on diapers by stocking up. I thought a few others might enjoy reading it.

Most people would say the easiest way to save money on diapers is to use cloth. They would be right...but I never considered cloth diapers. Mostly because I knew I was going to be a working mom, and I didn't want a babysitter or John to have to worry about it. Also, I did not consider it because many of the people who do start to use cloth diapers are excited about it at first (how cute the diapers are, and how much money they are going to save)...but end up switching back to disposable diapers in the long run.

My advice:
1. Sign up with the diaper companies (Huggies and Pampers) and their rewards programs now. They will send you coupons every month or so that are usually better than the Sunday paper ones.

2. Register at Babies R us and Target, because you get free stuff when you register...including coupons.
(I also signed up for free magazines, and with Enfamil and Smilac and got coupons for formula and diapers.)

3. Generally when I use coupons, it only saves me a lot of money when I buy the regular size packs (not the jumbo boxes).

4. If I go to Target, I can stack Target coupons with manufacturer’s coupon to get even more off.

5. Ask friends for coupons, or if you think you will be using a lot you can actually buy coupons online (legally:). I have only done it once.

6. Don't stock up on diapers that you don't know if you will like (Huggies and Pampers are usually a safe bet, but when it comes to generics it is best to try the brand before you stock up on something you will hate).

6. Walgreens usually has good deals every month or so...where you get register rewards if you buy certain diapers. A few months ago they had buy two packs for 8.99 each and get a $3 RR. I had 2- $3 coupons and got a $3 RR (which I had to use to buy something else at Walgreens, but still it is $3 free) So ended up paying 8.99 for 2 packs.

7. I usually consider it a great deal if I can get a pack for $5, but I think most people would think less than $7 is a good deal.

8. Read blogs to find diaper deals. Some of my favorites are: http://moneysavingmom.com/tag/diaper-deals , http://www.pennypinchingparent.net/category/diaper-deals/

9. Keep in mind how many you will really need. I only needed 3-4 packs of newborn diapers, and 4-5 packs of size 1. Now he is in size 1-2 (they come in these sizes at Sams- I got them as a gift). I'm sure Jay will be in the other sizes a bit longer, so I have started buying bigger sizes now. Plus you will probably get a few of the smaller sizes for gifts.

10. You can exchange diaper sizes at the store without receipts. I have heard this is true on multiple occasions, but I haven't tried it yet.

11. Don't forget about wipes:) I’ve heard you can make your own wipes with paper towels, but that seems too time consuming. I wait till I find a great deal and get as many as I can. A while back Pampers had a $2.00 off coupon. I got like 12 boxes of wipes for .07 each.

Buying ahead will definitely save money and you never have to worry about running out of diapers!

Clarification....

So it looks like John messed up at his appointment and thought he heard 17 lbs...but he really heard 17 inches (his head circumference).
I called the Dr. office today to get the rest of his stats:
Turns out he is 14 lbs. 7 oz.
That is more normal I think.
He is 25 1/2 inches long.

4 months!

Jay is 4 months old now!! He has experienced a lot in the last month. We flew to my brothers wedding on a plane, he got baptized, he smiles like crazy, he is great at grabbing things, and most recently was sick for the first time.

Yesterday afternoon Jay started puking...and kept it up about every 20 min. for 2 1/2 hours. After a while I called the doctor, because I didn't really know what to do. He told me I could give him a little bit of water (less than 1/2 oz.) and see how he does with it. He puked that up to...so we decided not to feed him until morning. Surprisingly he slept almost as much as normal and I sung him to sleep and used a pacifier when he woke up. This morning I started with a bit of water, then BM...and he kept everything down. We had a doctors appointment already scheduled for today, so when John took him in this afternoon he looked fine and they gave him his 4 month shots.
Tonight he is quite crabby again (because of shots).

If you think he looks bigger than last month...that's because he IS! *changed* He is now 14.7 lbs.

Even though Jay was sick so we didn't get to go trick or treating, we did carve pumpkins on Saturday.