Firsts

A few firsts have occurred in the last 24 hrs:

1) I was alone in the house, without Kyle! Jared took him for a long walk yesterday, and I used the time to clean the upstairs (I had cleaned the downstairs on Saturday). Maybe I should have used that time to lie on the couch and do nothing...

2) I drove in my car without Kyle! Yes, I ran a few errands last night...picked up photos at CVS, returned a ton of online purchases to Old Navy, bought some picture frames at Michaels and got gas. Errands have never been more enjoyable...I'll have to start doing that more often.

3) I may be speaking too soon on this, but Kyle has been asleep in his crib for about 30 minutes now. As you know, he does NOT nap during the day. But I was determined to get him to take one today, so I rocked him from a hysterical state to sleep over about a 45 minute span and am now enjoying the fruits of my labor. If he sleeps in there for at least 1 hour, I'll consider it a nap...his first one ever in the crib!

Real Outfit!

It took almost 7 weeks, but Kyle actually wore a "real" outfit today (i.e. not a sleeper). Unfortunately, I had "misfiled" these 3 month jeans in his 6 month drawer. So I basically missed the window on them because they're now a bit tight/short. But that's actually good news because Kyle has lots of cute 6 month outfits to wear (thanks to cousin Alex!).

Kyle slept from 10-6 last night, and then from 7-10. So Jared and I are very well-rested! And thanks to Nonnie, we now know why Kyle doesn't sleep during the day...he's his daddy's boy :)

Loud Walk

I just took Kyle for a walk, hoping to get him to fall asleep for a little bit, because that's what babies do on walks, right? Grammy, you know better (like mother like son). Well right around the halfway point of my loop (about 1.5 miles from home), Kyle started crying and it just kept getting louder and louder. So I started doing different things with the stroller to try to calm him down...swerving, figure 8s, going backwards, spinning in circles, etc. I must have looked like a lunatic! He'd calm down while I was doing these wild maneuvers, but would start crying as soon as I resumed the traditional forward motion. Eventually though, I just forged ahead, with him still screaming. Fortunately, I had my iPod so was somewhat able to drown out the crying. Not the most relaxing walk I've ever taken, but he did finally fall asleep a few minutes before he got home. So I left him in the stroller on the back walkway (and I sat on the deck), hoping he'd sleep for a while. But that didn't happen...he woke up about 15 minutes later. He's definitely challenging during the day, as he just won't nap! But he is sleeping great at night, and that's half the battle!

Milestone?

Grammy and I were playing with Kyle on his playmat today and decided to give him some tummy time. After holding his head up for a little while, he rolled over onto his back! This could have just been a fluke, because my books say he's a few months early for that. But he is a strong little fellow, so who knows!

Kyle wasn't quite his easy Wednesday self today...Grammy got a little flavor of his evil twin, the one that cries a lot! But we had a nice visit, and walk through the neighborhood. Grammy was a little hot on the walk though. It was almost 70 degrees out and she had on a jacket, wool sweater, turtleneck and undershirt :) I was sweating in my one layer!

Hopefully Kyle will have a night like last night...he slept for almost 8 hrs straight!

Busy Day

Kyle and I had a busy day today (he was well rested after sleeping for a 7+ hr stretch last night). We headed to the polls around noon, which I would think is one of the busier times of day (lunch hour). But there was absolutely no wait...just walked right through. I don't understand these places that have mile long lines! I've voted in 4 presidential elections now, in 3 different towns, and have never waited for more than a couple minutes. It really is too bad that they can't come up with a hack-proof online voting system. Think of all the time/money/trees that would be saved!

From there, we picked up Grammy and visited Kyle's Grampy at the cemetery. Kyle enjoyed hearing us talk about his Grampy. And the weather was perfect. On the way home, we stopped and picked up some apples at Bolton Orchard. I should mention this was the first time that Kyle has cried for any length of time in the car (I'm worried!). So I dropped Grammy off and then drove around while she was getting the apples, because he would have become hysterical if I stopped. Then, Grammy made a delicious pizza for us. After a fun visit, we headed home and are watching the election coverage. This just in...Obama is projected to win Massachusetts ;)

Oh, and this morning, we bought stocks for the first time. All our other investments are mutual funds, but this seemed like a good time to "dabble". I could definitely see myself getting into this! I love numbers/statistics and I think it will be fun to follow (kind of like fantasy sports teams!). Jared did all the research, and I just clicked the mouse. But maybe I'll educate myself and become a day trader...

Kyle's Official

Kyle's identity is now very well documented. He and I took a little field trip to the town hall today and got a copy of his birth certificate. And then when I got home, there was his social security card in the mail. With all these documents, I think he's ready to vote tomorrow!

6 Years!

Yes, today marks 6 years of wedded bliss for Jared and me. And since going out to eat isn't really an option these days, we decided to get lobsters for our anniversary dinner. I'll start off by saying that the lobsters were delicious! But the meal ended up being a bit of a "challenge". As hard as we tried, we could not get Kyle content anywhere (swing, playmat, papasan, etc). And this was after he did not nap AT ALL today (for the second day in a row). So as much as we wanted to have a nice 20 minute meal together, it didn't seem possible so we decided to eat in shifts. I was going to eat first, because I only eat the "easy stuff" on lobsters (meaning I'm quick), whereas Jared likes to pick out every last fleck of meat.

Jared thought they were softshells, but I quickly discovered that they DEFINITELY were not. And I couldn't find our lobster crackers (or even a nutcracker) anywhere. The last I remember using the crackers was at our apartment, so maybe they somehow got lost or thrown out in the move. These shells were impossible!! After struggling and cutting up my hands trying to break them apart, I knew I needed Jared's assistance. That's when Kyle gave us his anniversary gift...a 25 minute nap in the swing! So Jared was able to join me at the table. And with the aid of a garlic press (the closest thing we could find to a lobster cracker), he was able to successfully crack open the lobsters. But boy was it messy! Shells and juice were flying everywhere...all over the table, floor and us. So it wasn't exactly a relaxing, romantic anniversary dinner (and not that we thought it would be with a 6 week old!), but we're glad we got them. Despite all the effort required, they really hit the spot. And the kitchen has since been "hosed down" and we've each taken showers. So all's well that ends well.

Didn't Kyle do a good job taking this (cheesy) picture of us?! ;)

Happy Halloween!

As you can see from the photo, Kyle was very excited about his first Halloween! He went out trick-or-treating (in his stroller) on Grammy's street with a couple monkeys and a bear. Oh, and a witch...sorry Grammy! Alex, Rachel and Evan were fun to watch as they bravely walked up to houses. And they were VERY excited about the candy! Kyle passed on the candy, as he's very committed to his milk-only diet, but he had fun being part of the gang.

And I know they say babies Kyle's age can't get on a schedule, but he's slept from 11pm-5am and then 6am-9:30am the last three nights. Coincidence? I hope not!

Easy Baby

Kyle has been such an easy baby the last couple days. Yesterday, Grammy visited and Kyle was on his best behavior because it was her birthday...lots of smiling, playing and sleeping. Then last night, Kyle slept from 11-5 (is that considered "sleeping through the night"??). And he's taken a couple good naps since then (in his Miracle Blanket, which is truly living up to its name!). Such a good little guy :) I think he's resting up for his first Halloween. If it's warm enough tomorrow night, Kyle will be "trick-or-treating" up in MA with his cousins (dressed as little monkeys).

And on Ca's recommendation, I've started watching Weeds. Netflix has Seasons 1 and 2 on "Watch Instantly", meaning I can watch them right online. The episodes are 30 minutes long, which is conveniently about the length of a nursing session. So I've watched the first two episodes this morning, nursing with the laptop next to me...very convenient and I really like the show so far!

Tidy Little Package

Ca, I am sold on the Miracle Blanket! Last night, after several rounds of putting Kyle in his crib and watching (on the monitor ) his little limbs flailing around, I decided that I needed to figure out the Miracle Blanket. I had tried it before but couldn't get his flexed little arms to straighten out. But last night, I guess he was a bit floppier, because I was able to put it on him (I think the right way). At first he seemed terrified, but then he seemed to relax and slept for a 5 hr and then a 4 hr stretch. His good sleep might also have something to do with the fact that he didn't sleep at all yesterday. But I do think he feels comfortable and secure as a "tidy little package" (if I may steal your terminology). And like you said, his hands/arms do probably distract him when he's trying to fall asleep. So assuming I'm doing it right, I guess I don't need Miracle Blanket lesson on Friday! But maybe I'll bring it anyway, so Kyle can be a mummy for Halloween :)