Sullivan: Two Months

Our little Sullivan turned two months old on April 21. Two months. I can already hear the broken record that I will become - how can another month have passed so quickly? This little man is growing up before our very eyes and it blows my mind how I can see changes in him every day. When you look down at your baby in your arms, you think they are going to remain that size and shape for a long time, but then each day, you realize they are changing quicker than you are able to accept. It's a fascinating experience.

Dear Sullivan, at two months you:

> weigh almost 10 pounds. You love to eat, but have been a bit of a slow gainer.
> are still wearing most of your newborn sleepers. You've grown out of a few of them, but only because you are long and have long arms. The next size up sleepers are still a bit big and when I put you in one, I often find both your legs in one of the sleepers legs.
> have finally graduated to size 1 diapers at around 7 weeks.
> have started smiling, big grinning smiles, right around the time when your Aunty Vanessa came for a visit, when you were 6 weeks old. There is no better feeling than when you smile at me or your daddy.
> are really strong! You can hold your head up for several seconds at a time when I am holding you against my chest.
> are a little kicking machine. You can scooch yourself quite a ways across the floor, on the bed and out of a swaddle just from your kicks. Your dad and I get quite a kick (pun intended!) out of watching your little legs just a motor.
> are enjoying baths more since we got you a wash pod.
> love to be worn by me in your wrap. You have some of your best naps in it.
> still enjoy car rides but only when the car is moving.
> are becoming more and more squirmy and noisy during feedings, with your top leg often kicking out into arabesque. Maybe you'll be a dancer like your mommy after all.
> have been getting out of the house all the time now, including outings to IKEA with your Aunty Patty, the grocery store, the mall for shopping dates, Boston Pizza for lunch dates and lots of trips to Gramma's place.

Sully, different people tell me you look like me, or you look like your daddy. I just see you. This perfect little being, with the most perfectly shaped head. Your hair comes in more and more everyday, with it being blonder on top, and more orangey-red in the back. In the hospital, the nurses affectionately called you the little ginger baby. You have the biggest, bluest eyes and the cutest button nose. Ten perfectly, long fingers and ten perfect little toes. We love you so.

Build-a-Library Baby Shower

Last month, my best friend Karen threw me a very bookish baby shower to celebrate the arrival of Sullivan. Each guest was kindly asked to bring a book to build Sullivan's library in lieu of a card. Cards are too easily forgotten and disposed of, but a book will live in Sully's library for years to come.  I did my best to get each book inscribed to Sully from the person gifting it, and I look forward to being reminded of them and this special day every time Sully and I read one of the books together. 

Greys and yellows to tie into Sully's nursery colours.

The food was delicious and creatively tied into popular children's books.

Thank you to all my wonderful friends and family for coming to meet and celebrate the birth of Sully, and a HUGE thank you to Karen for making it all happen! I'm one lucky gal to have such good friends and loving family. Unfortunately, I wasn't on top of things that day and I didn't get very many pictures of all my lovely guests! Luckily we have a book to remember each and every one of you that was there :)

Cry Now, Laugh Later

We've all had those moments: those times where you want to burst into tears over some mishap, no matter how trivial or serious, and someone, usually your mom, reminds you that one day you will laugh  all about it.  Good thing mom's are sometimes always right. Being a new mom, there have been a lot of moments where I've wanted to cry (or have cried) and I fully expect this to never end.  Being a parent is hard and every day presents you with new challenges and learning curves.

Last Friday, I took Sully to his almost 2 month check-up with his paediatrician.  It had been exactly one month since his last visit with her, and the memory of that first outing came flooding back when I arrived at the hospital.

March 10, 2014: It was my first time out of the house with Sully since coming home from the hospital, and my in-laws drove us to his appointment. My father-in-law pulled up in the loading zone in front of the hospital to drop us off before he went to park the car.

When I went around to take Sully out of the car, I realized I didn't know how to remove the car seat from its base. I tried a few times before frantically exclaiming "I can't get the car seat out!" (It would be fair to say that I do panic easily though.)

I could feel the heat rising in my face as Jim's dad got out of the car to see if he could help. I climbed into the backseat from the other end of the car to help but all we managed to do was curse and rock the crap out of the car seat and the base.

I called Jim, almost in tears, asking him how to remove the car seat from its base. Of course, he was no help, telling me to push the "red button" (note: there is NO red button!).

By this point, Jim's dad had removed the entire car seat with base still attached, onto the sidewalk beside the car. I was mortified, worried that every passerby was staring and judging this mom that didn't know how to work her own car seat.

When we still couldn't get the base unattached, and I was panicking because we were now late for Sully's appointment, my father-in-law suggested that I just carry Sully up to the doctor's office. "You can't CARRY your newborn into his appointment!", I shrieked.

I didn't know what else to do so I called Jim again, apologized for hanging up on him in frustration earlier, and asked him as calmly as I could how to get the base off. This time he had the right answer and so there on the sidewalk, I finally got the car seat off the base, rushed into the hospital, leaving my father-in-law to reinstall the car seat base all while fighting back those damn tears. And Sully - bless his dear self - slept through the entire ordeal.

It never occurred to me to practice removing the car seat from it's base before going somewhere for the first time. Lesson learned!

And yes, now I laugh about this incident all the time.

{driving home from the doctors}