Today is Oct 2, 2008

Today Phin looks like this:

One month ago, Phin looked like this:
Two months ago, Phin looked like this:



The last four weeks have been a whirlwind!
We got through the gas-gas-gas issue.
(The pediatrician told me it could be milk products and or cabbage/broccoli.)
Phin has gone on walks in the neighborhood, he's been present for his first birthday party (Daddy) and he's been FED in a Penny's dressing room (or two)!
Phin has continued to grow and in the last few days, he's started RECOGNIZING items.
He SEES his mobile in his crib. He SEES my face and smiles back at me.
Phin has, at times, decided to take his hand or finger instead of his Soother (pacifier).

There are still days where I only get 1.5 hours of sleep about three times through the night, but I am not even mad about it. Maggie is a little hooker who "keeps the bed warm for me"

(note that he HEAD is ON MY PILLOW!!!) Even with Maggie and a sometimes gassy baby, I am completely content and happy.
In the middle of this month, I was at the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. There was a woman and man there waiting for their prescription to be ready. Of course, they bent their heads into Phin's seat as he lay there sleeping. He was dressed in white and jeans so the lady asked me if I had a boy or girl. The conversation when on - at her insistence. You see, she had just had surgery on her arm. She does daycare for two toddler girls while her husband is a rancher. (There was also a 93year old man there who looked to be in the early 80's who was also a rancher...) The lady told me about how right now she keeps two girls and her heart is just breaking as she is unable to keep them for two weeks while her arm heals. She said that the last day she watched them, it was like the little girls knew she was going to be gone for awhile. She said they cuddled up to her and stroked her face and the whole story made her start to get a little weepy. I was a little surprised at her reaction - but more so - so very sorry for the mothers. The mothers who have to leave their babies with this day care lady - who obviously does a good job with their children - but also gets to have those special moments with THEIR children.
I can not imagine being away from Phin all day long. It would completely rip my heart from my chest. We had to travel about 1.5 hours to a doctor's appointment a couple weeks ago. Phin was in his car seat for the ride, and then in his daddy's arms while I was seeing the doctor. Then we visited Grandmother Allen and she held him and then, back to the car seat for the ride home. Phin was "with" me the whole time... but when we got home, I could hardly wait to get him into the house to hold him because I missed him so very badly from not holding him at all that day.
Before I had Phin, I really wanted a baby. I could not imagine my life without a baby... but now that I have him, I am really not sure how I lived without him.

Last, on the day of his birth, Phin's Grandpa Routier brought us a "It's a boy!" balloon. I liked having it in the hospital room - exclaiming our great blessing. Phin is two months old today, and HERE is the balloon! AMAZING.

A mother's mantra

I have never been a mother before. However, from what I have seen on TV, mothers spend a lot of time saying the same things over and over. They have a mantra, if you will, that changes as necessary for their children. It may be "Clean your room" or "Put your shoes away" or maybe "Put your dishes in the dishwasher" (come to think of it, I say those kinds of things to Daddy!)
Getting back to the subject, I realized today that I have my own, first mantra. It is "Hands out of eyes please!" See, Phin has this nasty habit of poking at his eyes while he's nursing... So, over and over every three hours, I say "Hands out of eyes please."
I often see the most touching faces when Phin is nursing. Sometimes, he has the most sincere look on his face and I just wonder what he must be thinking. I mean, it's probably thoughts about poo or something, but it looks completely sweet... I have this urge to photograph these faces, but can't bring myself to share my cleavage with the internet. So, this is the next best thing.

Squirreling = CRUST

Dan likes to call me a squirrel.
It's because I like to put trash into the door pockets of our cars (instead of on the floor) - as the trash is then contained. I like to put things away in little spaces so that I know where they are and then get that stuff out later for use. He calls this "squirreling."

It seems that baby Ethan has my squirreling habit too.
The difference is that Ethan likes to squirrel a mouthful of milk away and not exactly SWALLOW it. So, when you pick him up to burp him, it spews forth from his mouth down the front on him and his designated burper. Due to this bad habit, my baby had become a little crusty. To rid baby of said crust, tonight we gave him a quick sponge bath. Grandma Susie was there to catch it on video.
Enjoy!