The Perfect Winter Day

As I write this, we have 6-8 inches of snow on the ground in our yard. This is North Carolina and snow storms like this don't happen often. Riley is napping in his crib. Winston and Wrigley are so tired from playing in the snow that moving is out of the question. Casey is snuggled up on the couch reading a book. I have completed the laundry and am now enjoying a cup of coffee and a few minutes of peace. It seems that all of the stars have somehow miraculously aligned to give us the perfect winter day. Of course, it's noon, so who knows how the rest of the day will shape up, but still, this is one of those moments where I actually have time to realize that life just doesn't get much better than this.

Granted, Riley has been sick with a stomach virus all week. I am still trying to get rid of an ear infection. Casey is recovering from a sinus infection. Winston has been nursing an ear infection for about 4 weeks now, and his surgery to repair his knee is on hold until the ear infection is completely gone. Sleep has been spotty for all of us, Riley's stomach virus has led to a mountain of laundry so disgusting that all we can do is rinse it out and throw it directly into a Oxyclean-filled bucket, and everyone has been on edge in anticipation of this snow storm. Perhaps that's what makes this quiet, sleepy day seem so great. Or maybe it's that the roads are pretty much unable to be driven upon, forcing us to stay put for the first time in who knows how long. Whatever the reason, I wish days like this were more frequent.

Riley may still be pretty much immobile (although we can already tell that those days are going to come to a quick end very soon), but still, life as the parents of an 8-month-old and two crazy dogs is pretty exhausting. I can't wait to see what I'll be saying a month from now when Riley is crawling (or even walking) while we are nursing Winston back to health after his surgery...

For the time being though, I am going to sit still for a few minutes, take a few deep breaths, and appreciate the many, many wonderful things that I am usually too busy or too exhausted to pay attention to.

Specifically, a fun day playing in the snow.

Heartbreaker

It's official. I'm in love. It is still amazing to me that my eight month old little man can simultaneously break my heart and make it swell with pride. I was struck by this when driving Riley to "school" this morning. As I turned around to look at him in the back seat like I have done every day since he was born (don't worry, I only do it while safely stopped at a stop light - what kind of mom do you think I am?!?!), I almost burst into tears. There he was looking right back at me using Panda (his mirror). Not only is it cool that he has now figured out how to use the mirror to look at me, but what did he do -- SMILE. And a great big smile as if to say, "I love you, Mommmy". I almost missed the green light because I certainly was not going to be the first one of the two of us to look away.

Only about 5 minutes later I was again struck by this simultaneous sadness and pride. When I dropped him off at "school" and he saw Miss Tamilia and Miss Niga (his teachers), he instantly grinned at them as he does every day (he is such a flirt). But then, much to my dismay, he actually held his arms out for THEM instead of wanting to hang on to ME any longer. I was proud of him for his independence, but sad to know that I am no longer his first choice.

I guess I should get used to it.

And another month goes by...

Well, here it is - the beginning of November. Can Thanksgiving really only be two weeks away? And then Christmas. What they say about life going by in the blink of an eye seems more and more true every year. I just want life to S-L-O-W D-O-W-N!

So much has happened in the last month that I'm sure I'll forget to mention a lot of it.

First things first -- eating developments. Two weekends ago Riley was super whiny. He does not whine often, so our first thoughts were that he had either begun teething or he had come down with some new ailment from daycare. Two days of whining went by before we realized that the poor guy was starving. I suppose that would make me cranky too. So we upped his bottles from 6 ounces per meal to 8 ounces per meal. Problem solved, right? Well, not so much. He was still a bit "fussy" at school (which is so unusual that they actually wrote it on his daily log), so they politely encouraged us to try introducing some rice cereal (which, I will note, we DID understand that we should be trying anyway; however, we were determined that his first rice cereal should happen on a weekend in case it didn't go well and somehow interfered with his sleep schedule -- after two weekends came and went because one event or another got in the way of our grand scheme, we finally gave in and decided we could try it on a week night). So on October 27, one day short of his 5-month birthday, Riley had his first "real" food. As I'm sure it must be with every baby, the experience was hilarious. He didn't really understand the spoon, would hold the cereal in his mouth for a few seconds and then decide it was fun to use it to blow bubbles, and generally had a big time. Not to mention that he sat in his high chair for the first time. I doubt much food actually was consumed, but many pictures and videos were taken of the event. Each day he seems to enjoy eating more and more. Last night when Casey fed him, he even grabbed the spoon and wanted to hold it (more like play with it) himself. I suspect we will be adding some fruits and veggies to his diet before too long.


First Rice Cereal

Physical developments: We haven't had Riley weighed or measured since his 4-month check-up, but I'd be willing to say that he's grown quite a bit since then. He is developing quite a little belly at this point (see feeding developments above). I also think he is getting taller, as he is pretty much too big for his infant carseat at this point. He has loved his carseat since the first time he sat in it, but he is starting to get quite uncomfortable in it. So we have bought his "big boy" carseat and will have it installed this week. It can hold him until he is 65 lbs, so I hope he likes it!!! His 3-6 month clothes are starting to get too small, so I am going to have to fold up another batch of my favorite truly "baby" clothes and start the process of putting 6-12 month clothes in his closet. I can tell you that the 6-12 month items seem so much bigger and more grown up (more patterns and bright colors and less baby blue), and I am probably going to be in tears again when I fold his sweet little boy clothes for the last time (I was borderline hysterical when I had to pack up his newborn clothes -- thank goodness Casey was on his guys' weekend when I did that).

Beyond just growing, he has all sorts of new capabilities. He is rolling really well now from his back to his front. He is sleeping on his side now instead of flat on his back. He can spend about 30 minutes in his exersaucer before tiring out. He has less use for his swing and more use for his jumping toy (the kid LOVES to jump). He is starting to understand cause and effect (i.e. if he jumps, the music starts playing or if he his one of the keys on the piano, it lights up). He is extremely interested in Winston and Wrigley and has started reaching out to pet them (although it is more like grabbing at their hair and pulling really hard -- they have been great sports, which was to be expected). He grabs at absolutely everything and then proceeds to stick it in his mouth (this includes his feet).

His language skills, if you can call them that, are also coming along. He is doing a lot of what I will call shrieking, for lack of a better word. Not the kind of shrieking that hurts your eardrums, but funny and cute (but loud) sounds. He is also concentrating a lot when trying to use his lips to form sounds. So cute to watch. He is particularly talkative when getting his diaper changed. Diaper changes still continue to be some of my favorite times of the day.

Riley continues to be an easygoing little guy. Lots of smiles. Not much crying (only when Mom and Dad are too dumb to realize he's starving). Still a great sleeper (oh, I forgot to mention that as of two days ago, he no longer requires his 10:00 p.m. feeding -- we still put him down to bed after his 7:30 feeding and he will sleep non-stop until about 6:30 a.m., at which point he will wake up and "talk" to Wally until about 7:00 when he lets us know he's ready to get up and have some breakfast -- as an aside, I'm not sure if 6:30 will become his normal "waking" time or if this is the result of the time change (fall back) that just happened to occur on the same night that we did away with the 10:00 feeding; prior to that, he'd sleep until 7:30 a.m.). He is also a tremendous traveler still. He can amuze himself in his carseat (usually by playing with his ladybug or by staring at himself in the mirror) for fairly long periods of time and then will usually drift off to sleep without much fuss. On our drive to and from Amelia Island this past weekend to visit Casey's parents, he probably cried 10 minutes or less during the 15 or so hours we spent in the car. I'd say that's pretty good.

Speaking of our trip to Florida, we had a ball over the weekend. It was Halloween so there were lots of activities going on at the Plantation. Winston and Wrigley took part in the pet costume parade (Winston was Darth Vader, Wrigley was Princess Leah -- incidentally, Riley was supposed to be an Ewok, but ended up sleeping through the entire thing and never even made it into his costume). We all got some good quality time with Casey's parents. Besides the costume parade, the two highlights of the weekend for me were that Riley took a few naps on my chest (the little guy was worn out), which he hasn't done for months and which he probably won't do much more in the future, and that he really took a liking to the pool. Over the summer when we'd put him in the pool at the Club, he didn't really know what to make of it. Now he splashes the water with his hands, kicks his feet and tries to drink the water.



Amazing what a difference a few months can make. It was sooooo much fun for Casey and I to watch him in the pool. Such a goof.



Since this is the "Otis Family Blog" and not the "Riley Blog", I should probably devote some time to the rest of the family. Wrigley continues to be Wrigley -- devoted to playing ball and little else (she does, however, believe that she's Riley's mother and is constantly licking him and on guard to protect him from evil until it's time for her to take a nap or play ball). Winston is still our sweet little boy. Unfortunately, as they warned us would likely happen, the ACL in his other knee is on the fritz. It appears that another surgery is imminent -- most likely in early 2010. Poor guy, I know he will be brave, but I also know how much he disliked the experience last time around. I know he was in a lot of pain, but I think it killed him more that he couldn't come along on the daily walks or sleep in the bed or play with Wrigley -- all things that he is passionate about. Hopefully this surgery will be as successful as the last and he'll be good as new in time for Spring. Casey and I are good, but busy trying to juggle the things we did in our "old lives" with being devoted parents. Wouldn't trade it for anything.

Riley's Four Month Check-Up

Wow, have 4 months really gone by already?!?! Amazing. But we feel like we have had Riley in our lives forever at this point, and really can't remember what life was like without him anymore.

Riley weighed 14.1 lbs today at his check-up (33rd percentile - down slightly from the last visit - he was around the 50th percentile then - could be a result of him being sick for pretty much the last two weeks straight (poor guy)). He is 25 inches long (55th percentile - about the same as last time). He received high marks from the doctor and seems to be progressing at a normal rate in all areas of development. He can hold his head high now, and has great neck control, so that is good. He also rolled over from his back to his front for the first time EVER while we were in the examination room waiting for the doctor. There is a mirror that stretches the length of the examination table and he caught site of himself in it (he LOVES the "Baby in the Mirror" as we call him). Apparently he REALLY wanted to get to that baby, so he kept trying and trying and trying and finally made it over onto his stomach. Then he did a mini "push-up" so that he could get a better look. You could tell he was really proud of himself. So cute.

Besides that, not much else to report except that we all love Riley more and more each day. He continues to amaze us all with his sweet, easygoing personality. Always a smile for someone. If only they could guarantee that he'd keep that up his whole life...

I promise to post more pictures soon. I know I have been terrible about that.

And so it begins...

Riley has his first cold. His first illness of any sort, actually. And while I'm grateful that he made it almost 4 months without getting sick, I have a feeling this is the beginning of a difficult fall and winter, especially since he spends his days at daycare.

Although he is not excited about being sick, Riley has been a real trooper. I think he is the most irritated at night because he is used to sucking on his fingers and thumb to fall asleep. Since he can't really breathe out of his nose right now, he is having a hard time falling asleep. But during the day he is his normal cheerful, smiley self, just with a constantly runny nose, a slight temperature (100.3) and a bit of a cough. Nothing the slightest bit alarming, but you better believe we still called the pediatrician. I'm sure the nurse had to suppress giggles while we gave her the list of "very serious" symptoms. :) I bet new parents make their days sometimes.

Laughter is the best medicine

It's been an awesome weekend, one of those that seems perfect while you are living it. To begin with, it marked the last days of the summer. We decided to let all "projects" sit idly by while we enjoyed ourselves - no errands, no laundry, no cleaning - it was wonderful.

To start the weekend, Casey and I went to an event at the Children's Museum on Friday night while Riley hung out at home with Tim and Bree who were kind enough to watch him for us. It was only our second "date" since Riley has been born. We managed to spend a few minutes not thinking about him, although the only auction item we bid on was a child's photography package (which we won!!!).

On Saturday morning, the whole family went on a long walk - the first morning where it was not scalding hot when we left our house. Then Riley, Casey and I went to a Wake Forest football game, and spent much of our day tailgating. Afterwards we went to the pool to enjoy pool time and the Michigan-Notre Dame game that was playing on the TV at the pool (incidentally, how nice is it to have a TV at the pool?!?!).

Sunday we spent most of the day at the Club again. Casey played a little golf while I hung out with some Riley and some friends at the pool. Perfect weather and an awesomely good day. But not one of the fun things we did over the weekend could compare with what happened at the pool before Casey left us to go play golf - Riley laughed out loud for the first time!!! And not only did this happen for the first time while we were both there to enjoy it, but the truly amazing part is that we also had our video camera with us and got it all on film. I can't tell you how many times we are going to watch that video. There is nothing cuter (and funnier) than watching Riley laugh. And all it took was for me to say "hi" to him in what I will say is a really annoying voice over and over and over again. Who knew I could be so funny!!!

What a great way to end the summer. I can't wait to see what the pool will hold for us next year. Something tells me that lounging on a chair in the sun and reading a book while Riley sleeps is NOT going to be in the cards for us next year. But I'm sure it'll be fun in a whole new way for all of us. It would've been the perfect weekend if only Winston and Wrigley were allowed to come to the pool.

Two Weeks Later...

Riley has been at daycare for two weeks now, and although I still hate leaving him, it has definitely gotten easier. For the first week, Casey and I went to visit him during lunch every single day. And we probably would've continued that for his whole life if we hadn't realized that it was actually making his day harder. We'd interrupt his naps, we'd get there and want to feed him right after he'd already had his bottle. We felt like we were cramping his style. So we have stopped. We both miss him terribly all day long, but we are more anxious than ever to leave work at the end of the day. We rotate days on who gets to pick him up, but it seems that no matter which one of us it is that gets the honor of being the first to see him, he always greets us with a great big smile. It's as if he's trying to tell us that it's OK that we've left him all day. Like he may even appreciate the break from his embarrassing, doting parents.

I'll tell you who does love the idea of Riley being at daycare and me being back at work -- Winston and Wrigley. They have more energy and more pep in their step now than we've seen in months. I am convinced that it's because they are no longer going on 2 or 3 walks a day in the brutal Carolina summer heat. (Each day, Winston, Wrigley, Riley and I would set out on extremely long walks -- partly because Riley loves to be outside, partly because it puts him to sleep like nothing else can, partly because the dogs love their walks, and partly because I need to shed these last ten pounds that have been clinging to me since I lost the other 27 pounds two weeks after Riley was born. We walked to Starbucks and the three of them hung out while I wrote thank you notes. We walked to Roche, another coffee house in our neighborhood. We walked to the park. And sometimes we just walked without a destination or a care in the world. Wow do I miss those walks!!!!). Whatever the reason, the dogs are happy to have Casey and me to themselves again during lunchtime. I think it reminds them of the good ol' days.

Riley seems to be thriving at daycare. His neck has gotten a lot stronger. He is really starting to sit up well (although still not on his own). He has learned how to roll over onto his side. He watches the "big kids" (9 months old) in his class intently. And he's always smiling. His teachers have told us that the only times he cries during the day are when he has a dirty diaper (he doesn't seem to care about wet diapers) and when they take his bottle out of his mouth before he's done eating (this makes me laugh because we've seem him do it at home too, and it is hilarious how angry he gets). They say he has a great disposition. This makes my heart swell with pride.

This past Wednesday I had scheduled a girls' night out with three friends. As it turned out, Casey had a tennis match that night, so instead of leaving Riley at home with him as I'd planned, I schlepped him to dinner at the Village Tavern with me. Even without his usual afternoon nap, he was a saint. He didn't make a single noise the entire time. Instead, he just sat on my lap (head held high with very little bobblehead-like movements) and smiled at the girls. He is just such a laid back little guy. I love him more and more each day as more of his personality is starting to show.

This weekend is Labor Day weekend, and also the start of the college football season. Tomorrow Riley will attend his first Wake Forest football game. We are so excited about it (and the tailgating) that it's all we've been able to talk about all week. And if we are talking (and thinking) about something else besides the guilt of leaving Riley at daycare, I'd say life is good indeed.

Go Deacs!