Daddy moment

Don't get me wrong I have PLENTY of mommy moments, but this daddy moment just made me chuckle!

The parents as teachers lady talked about how we can start Will on cereal and see how he does with it etc... and Luke has probably heard me use the term cereal with people here and there.

The other day standing in the kitchen looking at the pantry...

Luke "What kind of cereal will we be feeding Will?"

.....long pause....

Me "You don't think he eats actual real cereal do you?"

Luke "Yes, didn't you hear, that lady said he could start eating cereal!"

Me "No babe, he is not going to sit down with you and eat a bowl of frosted flakes... not just yet. She meant baby cereal, it is more like watery oatmeal"

Gotta love daddy and mommy moments! :)

Will's four month doc visit!

Has it really been four months already? I just cannot believe it! Things are going well and William is doing great! We have recently tried to stop swaddling so much to see how he does and hopefully we will have a handle on the sleep thing here before long!

His doctor had a good point, if we sleep train him now then stop the swaddle later we might be back to square one. Crystal and other mommies had no problems stoping the swaddle (no problems sleeping after this) but we'll see how he does for now. Were doing a lot of trial and error and hoping something works soon.

At four months old Will is picking up toys and putting them in his mouth, recognizes voices and turns his head in their direction (which cannot always be a good thing when you are trying to nurse) he sits in his highchair and bumbo and holds his head up very well, loves to coo and talk but the favorite is blowing raspberries!

Holding his lovey "franklin"

Another favorite thing right now is standing, he loves to stand anywhere you will let him! Also enjoys playing airplane on mommies legs.

He might be having his first tastes of cereal soon and is growing up right before our eyes. His brother Boomer still doesn't care too much about his existence but Will is starting to watch this creature roam about the house more and more.
Ohh, we've also started reading books which is super fun and I love having a new activity that he can do! My favorite is "twinkle twinkle" because I can sing it to him, however Luke has recently informed me while watching American Idol that I do NOT, let him repeat himself do NOT have a good singing voice!... Thanks babe.


At Will's four month check up everything went very well and he is a healthy and happy baby boy!

Weight: 14.12 58%
Height: 25.75 83%
I never record the head, as long as his head is growing normal I'm good ;)

We are in size two diapers and usually about 6 month clothing

A {much needed} low key weekend

Since the lack of Zzzz's, and the current work on the Zzzz's we were all very excited to have a relaxing weekend! I had a snow day home from work last Thursday and started researching all of the different methods of sleep training, chatted with other mommies, and really took a day to sit down and asses the situation to decide what would work best for us.

I decided we would try the Ferber method, it has them try to figure it out by crying but allows you to go in and soothe (without picking them up!) More facts here

After talking with my sister I also realized Will did not have a good daytime schedule at all. He napped, ate, and played all at different times and the sitter, Luke's mom, and me all had different schedules and ways we did things which was very confusing for him. So I started the WAKE, EAT, PLAY, NAP schedule Thursday and everything went SO smoothly he did great with it and seemed so happy. All the research says that as well, that if they can expect what is coming next and have a routine to follow they will be very comforted and happy.

Thursday night (first night) he went down fine around 8:30 was up around 1 am I went in at 5 minutes, then 10 minutes, then 15 minutes then 15 minutes again then he was back asleep (finally) it took about an hour all in all.

Friday night he was at Crystals house and he slept all night! She said he got up around 4 and "talked a little" but went right back to sleep till 6:30 am.

Saturday night it was about the same as Thursday up for about 45 minutes total.

And Sunday night, he slept completely through the night!!!!!!!!! 9 pm - 6:15 am!

Aunt Crystal is a saint, loves William so very much and knew how much mommy and daddy needed a night off! So the plan was to take him over there Friday night and get him Saturday morning. When we got there Friday I soon realized I forgot his milk in our fridge at home, so after some more driving back and forth we left Crystals at about 9:30 after Will was already sleeping soundly. We decided Will needed some extra one on one Aunt Crystal time so he spent some more time with her Saturday and Luke picked him up at 4! Yup That's right 4! I got SO much done! Some things are just impossible to do with a baby around, and I also enjoyed a trip to Walmart where I actually got to look around instead of the normal 2 minute trips!

Thank you SO much Crystal, it was MUCH appreciated!

Crystal picked Bennett up at 3 on Saturday and he was very delighted to see a fellow backseat traveler!

She did a little photo shoot with my little buddy, see Crystals blog or my facebook page for the complete pictures. She got some really great ones!

Smiley ones, cousin ones....

and some that made mommy laugh out loud at Walmart when she got the photo texts! :)

Texas Trip!

Were back! We went to Texas for a long weekend for our good friend Johns wedding reception. Luke and John grew up next to each other and were best friends when they were younger. John moved to Texas at the beginning of high school but we have always stayed in touch. John and Rachel came in to Saint Louis for all of our wedding events so we were a little bummed we didn't make it to Mexico when they got married in December but it was just a little too soon for us to be traveling with a little one at home and we were sure we would be there for their big reception in Texas! It was a beautiful wedding, Rachel plans weddings for a country club so she had all the inside ideas and tricks! Unfortunately the stomach flu decided to hit and hit hard! It was a 24 hour thing but so bad that Johns parents had to miss the wedding reception and Rachel ended up getting sick the night of the wedding!

We lucked out for the most part but now that we are at home Luke just had his turn with and and Will and I are still holding our breath and hoping for the best! Doing some tummy time and hanging out with mommy in Texas.

Will hanging with dad on the plane home.

Will was an angel both on the plane ride there and back! I nursed him for take off and he fell asleep shortly after. On the way there we had about 5 minutes of mad cry but after that is was snooze land! He is a professional flyer which makes me want to plan the next thing to look forward to SOON!

Sleeping with mommy on our way to Texas!

The beautiful couple, seriously they are both gorgeous people! :)

The wedding party!

Even though we didn't make it to Mexico John still wanted Luke in all the wedding party pictures which was very sweet.

Best buds

A night out!

Mrs. Brummett

another friend of Luke's from high school, but more like my friend now :) lives out that way in Texas and offered to come out and help watch little Will while we went to the reception on Saturday night. I am so grateful for this because there is just nothing like leaving your baby, while you are out of town to get your emotions running! But with twin girlie's at home and two older boys I know she is awesome! It was such a sigh of relief that night to be able to leave the house and not worry ONE bit! Will did great for her and I think she enjoyed a quiet night to herself as well! Thank you again SO much!

The girls and I

Minus the sickness's we all had a great trip and look forward to seeing ALL of our Texas friends soon!

Update on sitters and a ROLL!

I think I am starting to feel comfortable enough with our current situation to update the blog on the sitter!

After doing some searching for a new arrangement for lil Will I went back to some old emails from over the summer and ended up making a few appointment/interviews with sitters.

Note- if meeting a new family with a new baby DO NOT under any circumstances show up smelling like smoke, but not only like smoke like you have been standing in a bar on the landing (street of gross bars in stl) for the past four weeks. I literally could not breathe as I talked to one of the girls, then when I asked if she smoked, she said, "OHH NO!!!"

Needless to say she is NOT the new sitter.

And then it happened.... I fell in love.

She came over after Will's first doctor appointment and we all hit it off! She loves Will and I love her, I could not ask for anything more!

She has his best interest at heart, records all of their daily activity on a sheet for me, and truly cares for us as a family. She has helped out around the house throwing in the laundry, starting the dishwasher etc which after a 9 hour day and being up at night means more than she may ever know. I do believe that God had me try out the in home sitter just to find out it was not right so that I would find her. My fear is that she will get bored sitting with a baby in our quiet home but so far she has brought dinners to prepare, bills to pay, and things to keep herself entertained.

I cant even begin so explain how differently the day went knowing he was with someone who was holding him and talking to him all day. I also get to leave him at home in the morning and come home to him in the afternoon which works just great for us right now.

So for now Will will hang out with his new best friend on Mondays Thursdays and Fridays, Luke's mom watches Will on Tuesdays and I am going to try to work from home on Wednesdays. This week will be the first week we try the actual schedule out.

And on the very first day she found out the way to this momma's heart: photo texts! :)

It is hard being away from my baby but I did need some adult interaction and time away. It makes the time I have with him every evening and on the weekends so very special. One fear is that I will miss things. Today I texted Gigi to check on the boys (Luke is home sick with the stomach flu) and she told me Will rolled over! From his back to his stomach! He was swaddled and napping in his crib and rolled over! Since he has been sick we have his crib elevated on one side which my of "helped" the roll a bit, but it did not help me to be a little upset that I missed this first big milestone! I know he will do it again and I will be there next time and I know how much Kris cares for Will so I am glad she got to be there for this first of many first moments.

Prayers for Grandma Ad!

Please send prayers for my Grandma Ad. She got a twisted stomach, they tried to fix it but over the weekend (or maybe it was Friday) needed surgery, they put in a "bag" that she will have, but then there was a problem with that and they had to go back in and do another surgery. Needless to say it has been a very rough weekend, hoping for an easy recovery for poor Grandma Ad.
Ad is short for Adeline and she is one of the best and sweetest grandmas of all time. They live about four hours from us on a farm in Illinois but they always make it in town for every shower, lots of holidays and many times throughout the year just to visit. Her and Grandpa Bill have been married for a long time (around 55-60 years I think) and are the cutest strongest couple you will ever meet!

This was just 2 weekends ago at my sisters house, Grandma Ad helped us get lil Will to sleep, Grandmas just have the "touch" don't they! :)

My 3 month man!

Look at me I'm three months!

I blow bubbles!
I smile!

I laugh!

One of my all time favorite pics of him..... thus far ;)

I listen!

I "dance!"

and... I BURP!

I cant believe my little newborn bear is three months old! My whole pregnancy three months seemed so far off, that is when I would return to work and it just seemed like it would take forever to get here. I had so much fun staying home with my little man and it seems to of went by in the blink of an eye!

Will is 14 pounds and 24 inches long. He loves to be held and snuggle (which I LOVE and I hope lasts for a long time!) But he also enjoys his alone time in his swing or bed. He still loves to play in his bouncy seat and we are working on grabbing toys and rolling over. He is mostly in 6 month clothing and wore his first pair of jeans yesterday with his new babysitter. He loves to eat but has started getting distracted easily by people, toys, tv and will often get bored with eating and want to go play. Breastfeeding and pumping are still going very well and I hope to keep it up for a while longer. He loves to coo, smile, and laugh and thinks yawns and silly noises are just hilarious! I love this age and we are having a blast, things are a little crazier than normal here at the Wilson's now that I am back at work but were loving every minute of this roller coaster called life.

My little fish!

Yup there is this little B Fish, Isn't he cute?
And now.... THIS little fishie!

Poor baby Will has had a cough and some congestion for a while now. I know there is not much they can do for him since it is a cold and he is baby, but the past few days his cough has progressively gotten worse which is also leading to him not sleeping very well.

We took him into the doctor and after a long listen to his little lungs she was concerned with the amount of congestion. She did a test where you place this thing on his toe and it makes sure his body is getting enough oxygen which was very hard because his leg and toe had to stay still to preform this test. After this we tried a breathing treatment on a nebulizer in the doctors office and then she had another listen.

We left with an antibiotic, a breathing machine, and the medicine to put in the machine. There is no definitive treatment but she is hoping the combination of these things will help him to get feeling better and be able to fight this off.

Friday he was with a sitter at our house and she did two breathing treatments with him while we were gone... new post soon about new sitter. So right now we are on the antibiotics and treatments every four hours.

Hoping the little guy fights this off and gets to feeling better soon, we leave for Texas on Thursday!

Bathtime!

A rub a dub dub... I've got a WILL in the tub! Will does so great at bath time, he loves to lay and be scrubbed and take in all of the warm relaxing goodness! He used to cry when he got out becuase he was cold and uncomfortable but now even that part he is fine with. We are still doing baths about twice a week since his skin is so dry from the winter I don't want to it to dry him out anymore. He has not learned that he can splash yet but I'm sure its only a matter of time!

All clean.....

and ready for lots of mommy kisses!

The first week....

Well I just about have week one under my belt. I honestly don't think I have ever worried more about someone in my entire life!
Is he okay? Is he crying? do they know what he wants? does he miss me? is he sick?
Our childcare situation is a little different than the normal everyday same thing routine. My mom was going to watch him on Mondays but since her arm incident this has been put on hold for a while (even after it is healed she will need to go through physical therapy to get muscle and strength back) not all places do part time which is what we need.
So Monday Will went to the sitter I found for the second time, I took him when I had my follow up doctor appointment just for a few hours.
It was so hard for me to say goodbye to him in the morning, Poor little Will was wondering why mommy was crying so hard. Little did he know it would be 9 hours before we would see each other again :( Luke dropped him off which helped a little though.
I called to check on him and she said he had some trouble falling asleep but was doing okay, I picked him up and all went fine but when we got home he had a big poopy diaper. He was sleeping over there so I didn't want to read too much into it, however this sitter had also just taken on a couple other young ones. I didn't jump to any conclusions but I thought maybe a more one on one or a stay at home mom with just a couple other kids would maybe be a better fit for us.
Tuesday Gigi, Luke's mom watched him, Whew I could breath a sigh of relief, I know that Kris loves him more than life itself so he was in good hands. I talked to her a couple times throughout the day and I know that it will take them a couple of these Tuesdays to get used to each other and for her to learn his routine, so they had a couple rough patches but I am sure they both had an awesome day!
This was my first experience with hearing my baby cry through the phone... worst feeling ever! All I wanted to do is run home and make him all better but I couldn't. It is so weird from going from three months to doing nothing but taking care of his every need for him to being 30 miles away.
Since we were doing some trial and error this first week Wednesday I decided to try bringing him to work with me. I loaded up the extra swing, bouncy seat, and baby supplies! It wasn't too bad having him there but it sure was exhausting, when I wasn't working I spent every second making sure he was happy, and comfortable so that he wouldn't cry. I just felt pretty on edge all morning. When I got him to go to sleep I had turned off all the lights in my office and closed the blinds so I was working in the dark to the sound of ocean waves. I had some white noise on to try and block out the phones etc.

We lasted from 7:15-about 1 pm I just don't know if this is something I will be able to do every week. While I did get SOME work done, the majority of my time was spent tending to baby Will. Will playing on the floor in mommy's office.
And chilling in my seat.

Thursday: He is back at the sitter, and I am on the full hunt to try and find someone that can come to our house. If we can find someone we like and the price is okay we would much rather have someone be able to watch him in our home. We wouldn't have to drop off or pick up, he would get more one on one attention, and I could set my own "rules" as far as what I want done, when, how etc...

My friend Michelle said something to me the other day that was pretty powerful. "You have to LOVE where your baby is, Its YOUR baby and you are his only advocate" If we cant find or afford someone to come to our home maybe we can find someone that is more one on one than he is getting now, we'll see but the hunt is on and you know what happens when I put my mind to something :)

I hate not knowing where he will be next, or what will happen, but I want the best for him and I don't want to settle so hopefully some changes will happen soon and it will be worth the wait.