life with a new baby
Archive for November, 2009
The Sneezing Marathon
Nov 30th
This year, it took us three days to get the Christmas tree decorated and all our Christmas decorations laid out.
Last year, when I was six months pregnant, it took six hours. This year, we have a nine-month old little guy who insists on having our undivided attention. That means that nothing is worthy of stealing Nathan’s thunder.
Christmas tree included.
We started putting the tree up on Thanksgiving evening. Paul hauled the Christmas tree and all the decorations in from the shed. We started pulling out the limbs for assembly when we noticed something peculiar.
Something was awry with the limbs of our Christmas tree.
For once, it had nothing to do with baby poop. But it was something else that was equally disturbing.
Something that had left clumps of insulation throughout a handful of limbs.
A MOUSE NEST.
Yes, a mouse had built a little home for itself in the bowels of our Christmas tree limbs.
Expensive Christmas tree limbs. This is the kind of tree you can’t just throw away because of some mouse. Not that our tree is some grand, magnificent sight… but for three people living off of one income, it’s magnificent enough to not just throw away.
Fortunately, the little home was abandoned. There was no mouse to be seen. Just tufts of insulation embedded in the limbs of the tree, a grim reminder of the MOUSE THAT ONCE WAS. The mouse that lived (and I’m sure died) in our shed.
Remnants of a happy life once lived.
So we spent the entire Thanksgiving evening with bottles of Lysol and paper towels, sanitizing the shit out of each and every Christmas tree limb, peeling off wisps of mouse nest from in between the fake plastic pine needles.
But then there is my allergies. Apparently, I am allergic to Fake Christmas Tree Dust and Abandoned Mouse Houses and I had a pretty severe allergy attack. My rapid-fire sneezing has been non-stop since Thanksgiving. Every time I walk into the living room, my eyes start to swell, my nose starts itching, and my chest starts that familiar I’m-going-to-suffocate-you burn.
It feels like my body is TRYING TO KILL ME.
Because apparently, when we were hauling fake plastic Christmas tree limbs out from their temporary coffin, we let loose a cloud of Danger Dust. The kind of dust that accumulates on things outside, even things that are in a shed… a dust composed primarily of leaves, pollen, and mouse-house allergens.
So I’ve resigned myself to deep cleaning the entire house. The dust has gotta go.
I banish it.
Fortunately, it doesn’t seem as if Nathan has my allergies. Thankfully. The kid isn’t even phased. He likes looking at the twinkling lights on the tree, reaching out for the ornaments, and laughing at Mommy’s multiple sneeze marathons.
Baby Kisses
Nov 29th
I absolutely love baby kisses.
And Nathan’s kisses are adorable. When he wants to give me a kiss, he opens his mouth and bobs his head around, like a baby bird waiting for his mom to drop food into his mouth. So I’ll usually bring him up to my cheek so he can give me a kiss. He’ll usually scrunch his face, open his mouth, and lick me. And that’s it. That’s how he gives kisses.
But the other day, his little kisses changed.
I was holding him in the recliner, taking softly to him in an attempt to get him into Sleepy Mode. He was leaning back in my arms, peering thoughtfully into my eyes, when all of a sudden, HE LUNGED AT ME.
WITH AN OPEN, DROOLING MOUTH.
Right onto MY mouth.
Caught off guard, I tried to move my head away. But my head was being stopped by this impenetrable force; the back of the recliner. And Nathan was attached to my face like a little suction cup.
I was stuck.
And when I moved my head from the left to the right to dislodge him so I could breathe, he pressed himself up even closer to me and planted a slobbery little hand on each cheek, smearing his saliva INTO MY PORES. When I finally peeled him off my body, he leaned back with a huge toothy grin covering his face.
“Ba-nya-nya ma ma ma!” he said proudly as strings of drool dribbled down his chin. It was all over my face, too. My mouth was covered in Nathan Drool, and so were my cheeks, chin, and nose.
Just from one single Nathan Kiss.
Although it’s a tad disconcerting to have sticky, dried slobber smeared all over my face, I still love those baby kisses. Because he really does think he’s giving me kisses. Well, to him, they are kisses.
And he’s damn proud of himself when he’s giving them to me.
His Awesome Cuteness
Nov 27th
Paul has taken a four-day weekend in celebration of Thanksgiving. Yesterday we stuffed ourselves so full of turkey that I’m surprised we didn’t start GOBBLING.
Now, we’re going to relax, watch a movie, and enjoy each other’s company. But not before I share some pictures of Nathan on Thanksgiving!
Like I mentioned yesterday, he didn’t take his nap so he was a bit moody. I had to take some pictures of him to cheer him up because he’s a rare breed and actually loves having his picture taken. So I got out the camera, and a huge smile brightened his face.
I thought taking just a picture or two would do the trick, so I put the camera away after a handful of pictures.
He started pouting.
So I turned the camera back on, but he wasn’t quite ready to forgive me for my transgression. He looked at me with Pouty Eyes that didn’t understand why I would put the camera away when we were having so much fun.
So after taking a few more pictures, his pout disappeared and he was grinning like a champ again. He looked lovingly into my eyes as if to say thank you, Mommy. Thank you for reading my mind and taking more pictures of my awesome self.
After a few more clicks, he actually started posing. Like a miniature model. Hand behind the head and all. He’s learning all the tricks on how to keep me taking pictures of his Awesome Cuteness.
Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are enjoying your holiday weekend!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Nov 26th
We had a marvelous day, chowing down on delicious, and I do mean DELICIOUS food and taking a million pictures of Nathan on his very first Thanksgiving at Paul’s grandmother’s house (Nathan’s great-grandmother.)
I even gave him a bite of banana pudding.
He loved it. He moved it slowly around in his mouth, chewing the soft graham-cracker pieces and making delightful “Mmmmmm” noises.
After we ate, I sat with Nathan on the couch and took this video:
I think he wanted to tell me just how delicious that banana pudding tasted. It was good a taste of heaven.
All in all, Nathan had a wonderful day, even though he didn’t take his nap. Not only did he really enjoy that bite of banana pudding, but he even thrilled himself by running his hands along the couch’s upholstery, feeling the texture. But when his exhaustion with all the excitement started getting to him, all I had to do was whip out the camera.
HE STOPS CRYING.
He really loves having his picture/video taken. He’ll even cry when I put the camera away. So to keep him pacified, I alternated between taking his picture and recording videos.
Hey, whatever works, right?
Even More Talk of Poopage
Nov 25th
Yep. This is another one of THOSE posts that I do. Another one talking about poop. But that’s to be expected… as documented here and here, and mega-poopage can be found here. But it wouldn’t be a blog about a baby if I didn’t talk about poop, right?
For the past couple months or so, Nathan’s been constipated. Ever since we introduced solid foods, starting with applesauce. I’ve tried suggestions from other people… oatmeal, bananas, prunes… but to no avail. I tried giving him water, but he doesn’t like it and won’t swallow it.
Literally. I even tried giving it to him via syringe, as recommended by his pediatrician. But Nathan just held it in his mouth, groaned a few times, and then just spit it all out. It dribbled down his chin and drenched his clothes. He spit the remaining water out, showering me with it. So then I tried giving him some diluted juice. He didn’t like that either.
The poor little guy is really constipated. The last time Paul changed his diaper, Nathan was playfully pounding his legs down on the changing table. Evidently, Paul didn’t move the soiled diaper far enough from Nathan’s piston legs. Those little legs thudded heavily onto the soiled diaper.
DIRECTLY INTO HIS POOP.
But Nathan was so constipated that his sock left a mere sock print in it. A round little turd with a sock print. There was practically no mess. No splattering. Nothing hideous.
There was very little poop on his sock.
I feel so bad for the little guy because I personally think it sucks to be constipated. Like I said, nothing I’ve tried seems to help. Not even the prunes.
The Malevolent Laughter of Cats
Nov 24th
Sometimes when you have pets, they start thinking they’re human after a while.
And, embarrassingly enough, sometimes you treat them as if they were human.
Sometimes, when you are on the brink of losing your sanity due to lack of adult conversation for the duration of the day, you play pranks on them. Because you have NOTHING BETTER TO DO than talk baby-talk with you baby, clean the house, and play pranks on your pets.
So anyways, the other day, Kayli and Andrew were snuggled contentedly against each other, basking in each other’s fuzzy body heat. Under the curious gaze of Turbo (not pictured) and his tail (pictured.)
Of course, when I see animals who are peacefully sleeping in such a comfortable position, I JUST CAN’T HELP IT.
I have to do SOMETHING.
So I sneak up as quietly as my creaking bones will allow.
Kayli opens her eyes slightly. Andrew stretches and rolls contentedly onto his back and grunts with warm satisfaction. Grunts, I tell you!
So, with a mischievous smile, I bend over to poke Andrew’s exposed belly. Because that’s what I do when a cat is sleeping peacefully on his back with his belly exposed. I POKE THEM.
I bend over.
And my body starts popping. Just like it does when I’m trying to sneak into Nathan’s room to check on him while he’s napping.
I try to engage in The Stance (mentioned here) but to no avail.
The cats instantly wake up. They see my outstretched finger poised in midair. And, I swear, they laugh at me. LAUGHED AT ME! With creepy glowing eyes!
Ok, maybe they weren’t really laughing at my impending old age. Or my creaking bones. Maybe they were just yawning. But still. It looks eerily similar to malevolent laughter to me.
Like they just envisioned poking me in my sleep…
Recent Comments
It's so cute how he finds the littlest things hilarious!
I'd say he gets pretty tickled, adorable!!!! .-= SuziCate´s last blog ..The Great Outdoors Of Virginia =-.
Yes! A personal maid would be perfect! Oh, that would free up SO much of my time!!
I'll take a double-layer chocolate one!!