So Benjamin is learning how to talk. And he likes to talk LOUDLY. I can hear him all the way across the house. It's pretty funny. I've taken one successful video (I think). Everytime we come near him with a camera (video or still), he gets real quiet and just stares. But he's really funny to hear when he gets talking. It's mostly shreiks, some "ahhs", some "goo's" and even a few "Buh's" every now and then. He's definitely got the volume, and his voice has some melody to it, as he goes up and down. Just thought I'd share.
And the sleep thing - perhaps many of you are wondering how our plan is going. Well it's isn't. Not because the methods failed, but because we haven't given them a really good try. We went on a date one night, had a visitor another night, and then a friend came to visit from out of own (didn't stay with us), but we were out late yet again. Plus I really, really like my evening strolls - and am just not ready to give them up . I can't seem to get out of the house early enough to make it not an issue of interfering with his sleep.
But I've also made another discovery. At least for the time being - he changes so fast, it's hard to make any real-lasting discoveries. He does pretty well getting himself to bed if I put him down in the right window. If I get him too close to sleep, he gets frustrated being put down. If I put him down too early, he's just not tired and wants to party. Last night I found the window, and he went down pretty easily. But then I had to pick up Mark and a friend at 10:15 from Downtown (long story of poorly planned evening (although a very fun evening!)), so I had to wake him up and take him with me. Then he REALLY didn't want to go to bed.
But -good news. Tonight is my first night off from bedtime duty in 4 nights. So Mark gets to figure out the secret for one evening. Ahh, how nice! :)
I tried to post a few new pictures, but I'm getting error messages - so those will have to wait until the next entry. :) Happy week to you all!
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Yeah for Benjamin...
And yeah for sleep! Last night Benjamin slept like a rock star (maybe it's because he wore his tie dyed "I'm with the Band" t-shirt. He only got up once at 3 AM to eat, and then went right back to sleep, leaving us to continue sleeping until the luxurious hour of 7 AM! And a double yeah because last night was the first night that Benjamin slept in his room ALL NIGHT!! Perhaps this is no coincidence - maybe Mark and I are the reason he keeps waking up during the night? We'll try this trick again tonight, and see if it works again...
Our current routine is that Benjamin takes his naps and is put to bed in his crib. When he wakes up for his first feeding, we put him in our co-sleeping bedside crib thingy, and continue to return him there after each nighttime feeding. Last night we decided to return him to his crib after the 3 AM feeding, which means he slept there all night, and Mark and I finally had our room back to ourselves. Yeah!!
Now before you think we have this whole sleeping thing figured out (which we don't by the way, which you'll probably learn in a future blog post where I complain that he is up every two hours again), he's napping well, sleeping pretty well at night - but bedtime has become this huge struggle - often lasting 1+ hours trying to put him down. We had been trying to get him to sleep at 9 pm, and sometimes he would even go down as early as 8 or 8:30. Lately, though, it's been creeping closer to 10 pm, leaving Mark and I with no alone time together at night.
To remedy this, we're going to try two approaches. One is we're going to start waking him up in the morning. He'll often sleep until 8 am or even 8:30. Today is the first day we were going to try to wake him up, but he woke up on his own out of hunger at 7. It's going to be hard - anyone who has a baby knows that waking a sleeping baby is hard. And no, it's not just because they are cute when they sleep (which they are), but because you are faced with this situation of consciously giving up some of your own free time. I could take a shower and eat breakfast - or - I could wake up Benjamin. Not that I don't love seeing our little cutie in the morning (first morning smiles from his crib are one of the most adorable, heart-warming things I've ever experienced), but if I wake him up, I'll have to change his diaper, feed him and entertain him for at least an hour while I drag myself around hungry and smelly. I'm rambling...
The second approach, which I'm not totally committed to yet, is to either nix the evening walk or move it earlier in the afternoon. I don't like this for a couple of reasons. One is I love my evening walks (often using them to catch up with friends and family on the phone - and no one will be home in the afternoon), or Mark and I get a chance to chat if he can come on the walk. Secondly, it's still pretty hot here in the afternoon. But Benjamin seems to think the stroller is his crib during our evening walk, and gets a pretty good nap in while we're walking. This could be delaying his bedtime - particularly because if he falls asleep during our walk at 7 PM, he's refreshed for several hours - and if we are at home, I wonder if there is a chance that he could go to sleep for the night if he were in his crib.
Anyways, we'll keep trying to figure out this bedtime thing, and we'll keep you posted if we have any success. If you have any handy tricks for getting your baby to sleep at night, let me know! I find it strange that he can go down just fine for a nap, but that somehow he knows when he goes down for bedtime that it's for the long haul and he wants to fight it. Curious...
Because I can't resist, here's a few new pictures of the little guy:
Our current routine is that Benjamin takes his naps and is put to bed in his crib. When he wakes up for his first feeding, we put him in our co-sleeping bedside crib thingy, and continue to return him there after each nighttime feeding. Last night we decided to return him to his crib after the 3 AM feeding, which means he slept there all night, and Mark and I finally had our room back to ourselves. Yeah!!
Now before you think we have this whole sleeping thing figured out (which we don't by the way, which you'll probably learn in a future blog post where I complain that he is up every two hours again), he's napping well, sleeping pretty well at night - but bedtime has become this huge struggle - often lasting 1+ hours trying to put him down. We had been trying to get him to sleep at 9 pm, and sometimes he would even go down as early as 8 or 8:30. Lately, though, it's been creeping closer to 10 pm, leaving Mark and I with no alone time together at night.
To remedy this, we're going to try two approaches. One is we're going to start waking him up in the morning. He'll often sleep until 8 am or even 8:30. Today is the first day we were going to try to wake him up, but he woke up on his own out of hunger at 7. It's going to be hard - anyone who has a baby knows that waking a sleeping baby is hard. And no, it's not just because they are cute when they sleep (which they are), but because you are faced with this situation of consciously giving up some of your own free time. I could take a shower and eat breakfast - or - I could wake up Benjamin. Not that I don't love seeing our little cutie in the morning (first morning smiles from his crib are one of the most adorable, heart-warming things I've ever experienced), but if I wake him up, I'll have to change his diaper, feed him and entertain him for at least an hour while I drag myself around hungry and smelly. I'm rambling...
The second approach, which I'm not totally committed to yet, is to either nix the evening walk or move it earlier in the afternoon. I don't like this for a couple of reasons. One is I love my evening walks (often using them to catch up with friends and family on the phone - and no one will be home in the afternoon), or Mark and I get a chance to chat if he can come on the walk. Secondly, it's still pretty hot here in the afternoon. But Benjamin seems to think the stroller is his crib during our evening walk, and gets a pretty good nap in while we're walking. This could be delaying his bedtime - particularly because if he falls asleep during our walk at 7 PM, he's refreshed for several hours - and if we are at home, I wonder if there is a chance that he could go to sleep for the night if he were in his crib.
Anyways, we'll keep trying to figure out this bedtime thing, and we'll keep you posted if we have any success. If you have any handy tricks for getting your baby to sleep at night, let me know! I find it strange that he can go down just fine for a nap, but that somehow he knows when he goes down for bedtime that it's for the long haul and he wants to fight it. Curious...
Because I can't resist, here's a few new pictures of the little guy:
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Three Months Old!
It's hard to believe that Benjamin is already three months old! I believe that pulls him out of the category of newborn. He's really quite fun now - smiling and interacting a whole lot more, and he has a new trick - rolling over! He can't quite do it all the time (although I see him trying as he rolls to one side and grunts as he tries to complete the roll), but he's getting increasingly better. The only thing is that he rolls from his back to his belly. And he hates being on his belly - so once he completes the roll he whines until you turn him back over on his back - from where he proceeds to try to roll over again. :)
Sleeping -
This can be a challenge. Sometimes. And other times he's amazing about it. Once he went to sleep at bedtime within 5 minutes of putting him down. One night he went to bed at 6:30 pm. But the average is 20-30 minutes of trying and a bedtime around 9 pm. He's usually good about naps, but then again, that also changes, as I'm having a terrible time getting this blog entry done, since he woke up 30 minutes into his normal long nap, and won't go back to sleep. Yes, he'll go to sleep in my arms, but then he gets very agitated when I try to put him in his crib, and we have to start all over. This may be partially due to the fact that we're trying to wean him from swaddling. Now that he can turn over, I just don't think it's safe to have his arms bound by his sides. Last night Mark went to get him in the middle of the night for a feeding and he had turned himself onto his belly.
Work -
I started back this week - on a part time schedule. The ExxonMobil policies are great - but we'll just have to see how effectively they are put to work. I'm supposed to be working 4 days per week 4 hours per day (total of 16 hours per week). I thought that sounded pretty easy, but I've been surprised at how difficult it actually is - and I've not even been keeping to that exact schedule (ie just finding time whenever I can to get a little done). I only have to go to the office for 2-3 days out of the four. My biggest concern though, is not being able to get the hours in - but of having unrealistic expectations of what I'll be able to get done during those hours. I've returned to my exact same job, with no additional help yet (they are looking for someone else to also work on the project to supplement what I get done - but I've been given no time frame for when this will actually happen). Additionally, I was supposed to have a month long transition back to my job with the girl who replaced me - and that has been shortened to 2.5 days. She's now on another project in Paris. I'm trying really hard not to stress about the whole thing, but I'm walking back into a job with a ton to do and not a lot of support. I even got a call last Thursday night (I wasn't even back to work - didn't start until Tuesday) to work on something. I feel like I'm being set up for failure, but I probably just need to do what I can and hope the rest works itself out.
Anyways, we've posted some new pictures & videos from Ben's third month. Enjoy!
http://picasaweb.google.com/griffith.photos
Sleeping -
This can be a challenge. Sometimes. And other times he's amazing about it. Once he went to sleep at bedtime within 5 minutes of putting him down. One night he went to bed at 6:30 pm. But the average is 20-30 minutes of trying and a bedtime around 9 pm. He's usually good about naps, but then again, that also changes, as I'm having a terrible time getting this blog entry done, since he woke up 30 minutes into his normal long nap, and won't go back to sleep. Yes, he'll go to sleep in my arms, but then he gets very agitated when I try to put him in his crib, and we have to start all over. This may be partially due to the fact that we're trying to wean him from swaddling. Now that he can turn over, I just don't think it's safe to have his arms bound by his sides. Last night Mark went to get him in the middle of the night for a feeding and he had turned himself onto his belly.
Work -
I started back this week - on a part time schedule. The ExxonMobil policies are great - but we'll just have to see how effectively they are put to work. I'm supposed to be working 4 days per week 4 hours per day (total of 16 hours per week). I thought that sounded pretty easy, but I've been surprised at how difficult it actually is - and I've not even been keeping to that exact schedule (ie just finding time whenever I can to get a little done). I only have to go to the office for 2-3 days out of the four. My biggest concern though, is not being able to get the hours in - but of having unrealistic expectations of what I'll be able to get done during those hours. I've returned to my exact same job, with no additional help yet (they are looking for someone else to also work on the project to supplement what I get done - but I've been given no time frame for when this will actually happen). Additionally, I was supposed to have a month long transition back to my job with the girl who replaced me - and that has been shortened to 2.5 days. She's now on another project in Paris. I'm trying really hard not to stress about the whole thing, but I'm walking back into a job with a ton to do and not a lot of support. I even got a call last Thursday night (I wasn't even back to work - didn't start until Tuesday) to work on something. I feel like I'm being set up for failure, but I probably just need to do what I can and hope the rest works itself out.
Anyways, we've posted some new pictures & videos from Ben's third month. Enjoy!
http://picasaweb.google.com/griffith.photos
Saturday, August 18, 2007
More Pictures
Somehow the order of these posts got out of whack. Here are a few pictures, but there is a text update below as well...
An Update
So now that it's been so long since I've posted a blog, I really don't know where to begin. I was hoping to write something profound about motherhood - but I find that idea a little overwhelming and don't know where to start. So instead, I thought I would ramble for a while, post some pictures, and hopefully that will keep me encouraged to try to write again before another 10 weeks go by.
Benjamin is now 10 weeks old. He's taking the long afternoon nap now, which gives me a couple of hours to do something with relative safety that he'll stay asleep. That being said, he does like to give us a run for our money when we think we've got him on a schedule. I start work again in 2 weeks, so I'm really hoping some sort of routine will stick. The long afternoon nap is a good start - since I'll be mostly working during the afternoon, as most of Mark's daytime rehearsals are in the morning. I'm only planning on working 1/2 days, with not every day in the office - partially depending on Mark's schedule. But our boy still likes to eat every 2 hours, so even with only 4 hours at work, plus an hour for commute back and forth, and add in the fact that the 2 hours is usually from the START of the last feed, to be at work for four hours means that he has to go about 5.5 hours between feedings. I'm planning on pumping at work, but am hoping to just have to do so once. Pumping is a not fun and time consuming. Plus I worry about my milk supply diminishing if I do it too much. Wow, I sound like a mom, don't I?
Speaking of feeling like a mom, I don't know that I've ever been "hit" with that feeling. I do feel love for the wee one now, and I worry about all sorts of things with and for him (he didn't make eye contact with me - is he autistic; am I holding him enough or am I smothering him), but the term "mom" still doesn't feel like it applies to me. Perhaps when he starts calling me that, it will.
I thought I would be getting restless by now, and sometimes I am a little bit when he is fussy and I can't get anything done. But for the most part, I'm not as crazy as I thought I would be, and not looking forward to going back to work as much as I thought either. I'm not dreading it, since I don't have to leave him with strangers, only a strange dad (j/k), but I don't feel a need to get away. I actually do think it will be good for me, though, because when I've had him for a while without a break, I get tired of trying to relate to him. I'll find that some time has gone by since I've talked to him, and I'll remember to do so, and he seems pleased - which makes me feel bad for not doing it more. I've actually gotten a surprising amount of stuff done around the house this summer. We had a huge pile of stuff that I had to stick in our new office since I couldn't find time to deal with it when I was pregnant, and that has all been sorted through. I've finished my pregnancy scrapbook, organized digital photos, and just gotten a bunch of odds and ends done around the house. Now that he can sleep without being held, I am realizing just how much babies do sleep - which gives me a few (if not rather small) chunks of time to get things done. I also think having limited time makes you more productive too.
I'm not sure what else to write - a little brain fried perhaps, so I'll try to update again soon. In the meantime, here are some new pictures of Ben, as well as more home improvement photos (yes, can you believe that we're still getting projects done - well actually, that's mostly Mark's doing)...
Something happened with some of the photos - see entry below for the rest...
Benjamin is now 10 weeks old. He's taking the long afternoon nap now, which gives me a couple of hours to do something with relative safety that he'll stay asleep. That being said, he does like to give us a run for our money when we think we've got him on a schedule. I start work again in 2 weeks, so I'm really hoping some sort of routine will stick. The long afternoon nap is a good start - since I'll be mostly working during the afternoon, as most of Mark's daytime rehearsals are in the morning. I'm only planning on working 1/2 days, with not every day in the office - partially depending on Mark's schedule. But our boy still likes to eat every 2 hours, so even with only 4 hours at work, plus an hour for commute back and forth, and add in the fact that the 2 hours is usually from the START of the last feed, to be at work for four hours means that he has to go about 5.5 hours between feedings. I'm planning on pumping at work, but am hoping to just have to do so once. Pumping is a not fun and time consuming. Plus I worry about my milk supply diminishing if I do it too much. Wow, I sound like a mom, don't I?
Speaking of feeling like a mom, I don't know that I've ever been "hit" with that feeling. I do feel love for the wee one now, and I worry about all sorts of things with and for him (he didn't make eye contact with me - is he autistic; am I holding him enough or am I smothering him), but the term "mom" still doesn't feel like it applies to me. Perhaps when he starts calling me that, it will.
I thought I would be getting restless by now, and sometimes I am a little bit when he is fussy and I can't get anything done. But for the most part, I'm not as crazy as I thought I would be, and not looking forward to going back to work as much as I thought either. I'm not dreading it, since I don't have to leave him with strangers, only a strange dad (j/k), but I don't feel a need to get away. I actually do think it will be good for me, though, because when I've had him for a while without a break, I get tired of trying to relate to him. I'll find that some time has gone by since I've talked to him, and I'll remember to do so, and he seems pleased - which makes me feel bad for not doing it more. I've actually gotten a surprising amount of stuff done around the house this summer. We had a huge pile of stuff that I had to stick in our new office since I couldn't find time to deal with it when I was pregnant, and that has all been sorted through. I've finished my pregnancy scrapbook, organized digital photos, and just gotten a bunch of odds and ends done around the house. Now that he can sleep without being held, I am realizing just how much babies do sleep - which gives me a few (if not rather small) chunks of time to get things done. I also think having limited time makes you more productive too.
I'm not sure what else to write - a little brain fried perhaps, so I'll try to update again soon. In the meantime, here are some new pictures of Ben, as well as more home improvement photos (yes, can you believe that we're still getting projects done - well actually, that's mostly Mark's doing)...
Something happened with some of the photos - see entry below for the rest...
Friday, August 10, 2007
Videos Are Up!
Videos are up on the Picasa website! You have many wonderful choices - you can see our boy hold his head up, smile, and hang out with Mark and I. What could be more fun? :)
I still promise to update my blog soon! Seriously, I really will!
I still promise to update my blog soon! Seriously, I really will!
Thursday, August 09, 2007
We're Still Here!
Is anyone still checking my blog? I hope so! Don't give up on me yet - I do intend to post an update soon! In the meantime, check out Benjamin's two month pictures (he's already two months old!) - they are also on Picasa - just refer to the link in the last post. We have new pictures in the "Second Month" folder, and also in the "Cousins" folder - from a recent visit with Dan's brother & family.
Also, we'll be posting videos on the Picasa website soon, as well, so check back in a few days for those.
Hope you are well -and keep checking in!
Also, we'll be posting videos on the Picasa website soon, as well, so check back in a few days for those.
Hope you are well -and keep checking in!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
