Bye!

Jackson and I are off to Seattle for a wedding this weekend. Hope to have many stories and pictures to share when we get back!
Happy Labor Day! :)

How to be a protective parent

Courtesy of Anne Lamott, Operating Instructions:

Today Sam and I went to the convalescent home, where my congregation conducts a worship service once a month. There was this new woman there, about eighty years old, and I went up to her wheelchair to say hi and introduce her to Sam. The people at the home usually gape at Sam as if I've brought Jesus into the room with me. But this woman looked at him angrily and said, "Is that a dog?" And I said, "No, it's a baby." And she said meanly, "What kind of baby?" I tried to be Mother Teresa and to see Jesus in the distressing guise of the poor and incontinent, but I secretly wanted to push her wheelchair over and then kick her in the head.

Five months

Jackson Reed,

You are five months old today! And you are reaching milestones right and left these days. Two weeks ago, you cut your first tooth. A few days later, you had your second one! You like to put everything in your mouth to test them out. Unfortunately, you have hurt me a couple times when I'm feeding you. They are sharp, honey! I can't imagine what that will be like when you have upper teeth! Be careful with me. The other big news is that you can roll over from your belly to your back now. We were sitting around yesterday watching you enjoy tummy time, and all of a sudden, you went all the way over! It was so exciting. You were very proud of yourself. :)

Our summer alone together is almost over. Pretty soon we'll have four other kids to play with! All that matters is that I will still be with you everyday. I can't imagine it any other way. You are just too much fun! We've really had a lovely, laid back summer. I love our morning routine. You wake up and eat, and we go downstairs and fall asleep watching The Today Show or Ellen together. Ellen makes you laugh. Actually, Ellen makes me laugh, and you look at me funny when I laugh. We've gone swimming a couple more times. Unfortunately, the Dennis' bought a new house without a pool, but you spent some time in Kendra and Janine's pool with Mimi and Papa, and we went to the Maple Grove Community Center with Rebecca and Jack Faatz and Janet and Sophie Reed. So much fun!

Pretty soon you'll take your first airplane ride. We're going to Seattle for Shauna's wedding. Can't wait to see how that goes! You'll also be experiencing your very first trip to the State Fair next week. We'll see how long you last. Too bad you can't enjoy the food yet. :) I'm sure you'll enjoy the animals, though. You certainly enjoy dogs and cats! You can pull on Ruby's fur all day long, and she doesn't mind it one bit. And barking dogs still make you laugh like crazy!

I wish I could report that you are sleeping wonderfully. You aren't. You did for a while! Not sure what happened. Some people say you'll sleep better when you start eating solid food. I'm not so sure about that. I'm not too anxious to start real food. It's not as if you aren't growing properly. You're quite solid, in fact! So strong and just a little chubby.

I love to hear you laugh. You are so silly sometimes, just "talking" and laughing like crazy at who-knows-what. But it's so fun! We'll do practically anything to make you happy. And it breaks my heart when you're sad. Luckily that doesn't happen too often! It will be fantastic when you are saying real words to us. Right now, we have to guess at all of the buzzes and gurgles you make. I'm sure it all means something.

I will finish with words from Anne Lamott, since I'm still reading Operating Instructions:

"One thing about [Jack], one thing about having a baby, is that each step of the way you simply cannot imagine loving him any more than you already do, because you are bursting with love, loving as much as you are humanly capable of--and then you do, you love him even more."

I love you, dear one. Happy five months. I'm glad you're mine.

Love,
Mom

Baby news

Well, before I could even announce that Jackson had popped his first tooth, he had a second one. That's right, Mr. Jack has his two front bottom teeth! Sharp little buggers. :) Here are some recent pictures of our big man.

Happy, happy, happy!

Tummy time. Soon it will be "crawling time" and "rolling over time."

Lounging with Ruby. They are very good friends. :)

This is a little off center. The only way I could get him to smile this big was to hold the camera away from myself and make faces. :)

Jackson is in a constant state of "fingers in the mouth" with these new teeth.

What a cutie!

Gotta love her

I'm presently re-reading Operating Instructions by Anne Lamott. The book is in journal form, recounting the first year of her son's life. It's hilarious, especially for me as a new mother. She has such a fantastic way of putting things into perspective. Here's an excerpt I read today and loved. It's so true!

A man from church showed up at our front door, smiling and waving to me and Sam, and I went to let him in. He is a white man named Gordon, fiftyish, married to our associate pastor, and after exchanging pleasantries he said, "Margaret and I wanted to do something for you and the baby. So what I want to ask is, What if a fairy appeared on your doorstep and said that he or she would do any favor for you at all, anything you wanted around the house that you felt too exhausted to do by yourself and too ashamed to ask anyone else to help you with?"
"I can't even say," I said. "It's too horrible."
But he finally convinced me to tell him, and I said it would be to clean the bathroom, and he ended up spending an hour scrubbing the bathtub and toilet and sink with Ajax and lots of hot water. I sat on the couch while he worked, watching TV, feeling vaugely guilty and nursing Sam to sleep. But it made me feel sure of Christ again, of that kind of love. This, a man scrubbing a new mother's bathtub, is what Jesus means to me. As Bill Rankin, my priest friend, once said, spare me the earnest Christians.

Welcome, Caeden!

My friend Holly had a sweet little boy on Friday afternoon. She was almost two weeks late and was in labor for a very long time. We're so glad he's finally here!

Four months

My dear Jackson,

You are four months old today. And to celebrate, we went to the doctor! You weigh 20 pounds, 11 ounces, and you are 27 1/2 inches long. Holy moly! Dr. O'Brien says that you are very proportionate--just a big baby. But your head circumference is totally average. :) You had to get a few more shots today too. You hardly cried, though. What a trouper! The doctor also says that they don't get concerned about spitting up unless babies aren't gaining weight or aren't happy. No problem with either of those, so we'll just deal with your spit up for as long as it lasts. Which hopefully isn't too much longer....

We are having a very fun summer. Since you don't like going for walks in the stroller, we got a baby carrier, and you like that so much better. In fact, you usually fall asleep before the walk is done! We have also gone swimming in Brant and Nicole's pool a few times. You weren't sure about it at first, but now you think it is so fun. You just kick like crazy. It's a bummer that they are moving to a house without a pool in a few weeks!

You are smiling, laughing, and cooing even more now. The thing that makes you laugh the hardest is when dogs bark. Go figure! Particularly Rich and Corinne's dogs. When they get going, you just can't contain yourself! It is the most delightful sound. We will surely get that on video camera before long. You also really enjoy being on your tummy. Your legs get moving as if you are just going to take off! You haven't yet, though. And I have a feeling when you learn to move around, there will be no stopping you!

Sleeping has gotten much better. You had a couple weeks where you were completely sleeping through the night. The last week or so, you've gotten up around 1:00 in the morning. Not sure why! But last night you slept all night again. So keep that up. I'm a much happier mom when I've had a full night's sleep! You are still content with just being nursed, so we won't start solid foods quite yet. Maybe more like 6 months. We'll see. I can't wait to see your face the first time you try something new. :)

You continue to bless us beyong belief. Your dad and I are so amazed at how much joy you bring us without even trying! We are so excited for our future with you and can't wait to see what the months ahead will bring. God bless you, little one!

Love,
Mom

Almost four months....

Here are some new pictures of my big boy! We have his four-month well baby appointment tomorrow. Can't wait to see how much he weighs! Shots on the other hand I could do without. :)

Fast asleep in dreamland. What a sweet boy!

Looks like he's talking to us. Can't wait for that day!

We got home from shopping and I put him in the swing so I could put groceries away and make myself some lunch. This is what I came back to. Just couldn't keep those eyes open!

Tummy time! I swear, he'll be crawling anyday now.

Teething, teething, teething. He is in a constant state of drool. :)

Why I think my dad is awesome

So my dad turned 51 yesterday. And being the adventurous guy that he is, he decided that he wanted to bike a "century" today (100 miles at once). So he planned to bike until he reached 51 miles and then turn around, for a grand total of 102 miles (two miles for every year he's been alive). And he did it! He's amazing. I would have been calling for a ride home at about mile 17. Here's a picture of my dad with my mom and Jack (old picture!). I know, he doesn't look a day over 38, right? :)
Love you, Dad!

Getting sleep

Well, this book, Sleeping Through the Night, is awesome. We decided to start the "program" on Thursday night. The first night he cried for a half hour and then slept for seven hours. Friday night he cried for 10 minutes and then slept for seven hours again. Tonight he only cried for five minutes! He's also taking more naps during the day. Life is good. Sleep is good. Baby is good. :)

Sleeping? Not so much....

So, the "crying it out" didn't last too long. Actually, I think he's teething now, so we have a whole other fish to fry. Anyway, I'm reading a book called Sleeping Through the Night, which will hopefully give us some strategies. Until then, we cherish the nights like last night: Down at 10:30, up at 4:45. Then we took a super long nap together this morning. He does know what he's doing sometimes. :)
Here are a few recent pictures!

Here's Jackson sporting the latest look in infantwear: burp cloth on the head!

Here's a new take on tummy time--using the Boppy pillow to lean on. I got the idea when the Target photographer used it during Jack's 3-month pictures!

Hi Uncle John! I miss you! Look, I'm wearing the shirt you brought back for me last summer! :)

Bye!

This is what three months looks like!

I know, what a cooperative little boy to let me blog twice in one day. He must know I'm posting about him....

I'd love to know what he dreams about. He smiles and laughs in his sleep so much! What is funny to a person with no life experience to speak of? :)

Here's our daily "tummy time." Sometimes he enjoys himself. Sometimes he fights it. I like to think it will make him crawl sooner. Who knows.

Here he is snuggling with a burp cloth. Hey, whatever works.

Now, where is my finger supposed to go? Mouth or eye?

Buzzing lips with Mimi!

This is how he fell asleep while I was in the shower this morning. With his finger in the toy.

Happy baby!

Three months

Dear Jack,

I know I could start every month saying this, but it's so true: I can't believe it's been three months! The time goes entirely too fast. When we see newborn pictures of you, we can't believe that's what you used to look like! You have matured so much and are becoming a handsome young man. :)

After about a month of being very confused at night and getting up way too often, you have recently begun sleeping through the night. You sleep for about seven hours, which is just heavenly for Mom! (And Dad, but he doesn't wake up much when you do!) You always wake up so happy. After you eat, we smile and laugh at each other. And your new trick is imitating us buzzing our lips. You had Mimi hysterical the other night!

You had a two-month appointment on May 24th. Dr. O'Brien was excited to see that you are smiling and have quite the personality! The nurse weighed and measured you. You were 16 pounds, 8 ounces (exactly 7 pounds gained since birth) and 25 inches long. Big boy! You also got some shots. You cried when they happened, but then you slept all day. A couple weeks later, we decided that you had officially outgrown your infant car seat. Now you are in one that will take you all the way to 80 pounds! And at the rate you're going, that could happen within the year. Just kidding!

It's summer now, so I get to be home with you everyday. I am so excited about that. Going back to school for the last five weeks of the year was no big deal, and it was so easy to leave you at home with people we knew and loved, but it is nice to be home myself now. I see many outings in our future! Yesterday was Dad's first Father's Day. It is so fun to celebrate these new holidays that we couldn't before. And someday, you'll know what they mean!

Right now, we are awaiting the arrival of two new babies. My friend Holly is having a boy named Caeden. We know you will be great friends! And my cousin Renee is having a baby any day now, but we don't know if it's a boy or a girl. I'm sure you'd love a little boy cousin to play with! And we're excited to share the clothes you've outgrown with both of these new moms.

Sometimes I try to think about what our lives were like before you came into the world. It's hard to remember! What did we do when we could sleep in without interruptions? What did we do when we didn't have to leave for someplace with enough time to pack your diaper bag and strap you into the car? What did we do when our garbage can wasn't overflowing with diapers and boxes from a highchair and a car seat? These probably sound like negative things to people, but I wouldn't trade them in for anything if it means that I get to keep you! You bring us so much joy, and everyday is a new adventure. We love you like crazy!

Happy 1/4 of a year,
Mom :)

Crying, part deux

So last night was our second "cry it out" night. He actually stayed asleep when I put him down, which eliminated the initial crying period. I woke up to him making some noise at 2:00 or so, and I turned the monitor off. (Am I a horrible mother?) So I have no idea if he cried much at that time. Then I woke up to him crying again (without the monitor) at about 5:00. Not bad! I'm gonna call that our fourth "sleeping through the night"!!! We can SO do this. :)

Crying update

Jackson did, indeed, cry it out. He cried for about 40 minutes and fell asleep. He woke up at about 2:15 to eat. A little over four hours. Not bad compared to how he's been sleeping lately! I guess we'll try again tonight!

Just cry it out!

As I write this, I am doing just that--letting my little one cry it out. At this point in the parenting game, we know he can sleep through the night. He has done it three times. And he was even getting to the point where he would sleep for five or six hours, get up to eat, and then sleep for another two or three hours. Then a couple of weeks ago, Jackson decided that it was time to revert back to the sleeping patterns of the early weeks of his life. He would be up every couple of hours. It was not fun! Then last night happened. Last night took the cake. Jack was asleep at 10:00, up at 11:45, down at 12:30, up at 1:20, down at 2:00, up at 2:20, down at 3:00, up at 4:15. Finally at 4:45, I gave him to Dan and got about an hour of sleep. At 6:00, Dan decided to call in sick. I had a ton to do today and we were both exhausted. We assumed after a night like that, Jackson would be very sleepy today. Not so. He finally took about a two-hour nap this afternoon and slept for another hour after dinner. He was getting super restless and cranky around 9:00 this evening, so I decided to feed him and put him down. He was asleep when I put him down, and woke up about 10 minutes later. So I decided just to let him figure it out. He's bound to wear himself out, right? I had to come downstairs so I couldn't hear him as well. It's not easy to listen to his cries and screams. So I'm kind of killing time. I'm hoping that when I go back upstairs, he'll be fast asleep. Hope with me....

Here's my boy!

Okay, these updated pictures are SO overdue. Hopefully the number of pictures will make up for it!

Here's Jackson asleep with Daddy. They like napping together.

Before I went back to work, I painted the lower level of our house. You know, the paint job that started last year at this time. :) Anyway, my little trouper hung out right here while Mom painted. It was so nice of him!

Here is Jackson on my first Mother's Day.

Mimi with her little man.

Smiley guy!

Sleeping in with Daddy. AKA enabling Mom to take a shower!

Such a happy baby!

This is Lucy, the newest member of the Bennett family. :)

Awesome moms, big babies, and crazy cats

1) Awesome moms. As of yesterday, my mom is a two-year breast cancer survivor. Hooray! Someone asked me if the time has gone fast or slow. In some ways, it feels like just yesterday that I was sitting on the kindergartener-sized chair in my classroom, listening to my mom's voice on the other end of the phone telling me news no one ever wants to hear. But in other ways, the whole ordeal seems like forever ago. Even dream-like (or nightmare-like). But it was reality. And my mother was the trouper of the year! I told her yesterday that she is my hero. And it wasn't just to sound cute. I'm totally serious. To go through something as ugly as cancer with the grace she did is beautiful to me. I love you Mom!

2) Big babies. I took Jack in for his two-month appointment yesterday. He is 16 pounds, 8 ounces, and 25 inches long. Wow! He is officially off the charts. :)) (That's his double chin). He also got three shots, but he was so good. It did kind of knock him out for the rest of the day, though. I will try to post some new Jack pictures this weekend. Not that he's changing before our very eyes or anything!

3) Crazy cats. Since Maddie died last week, we decided to get a new friend for Ruby. She had been walking around the house meowing and just looking so depressed and confused. My mom and I met at the Humane Society on Monday night and I left with Lucy. She is just beautiful and very sweet. Ruby is still deciding if she likes Lucy. She was a little hissy at first, but she's coming around. I know they'll be great friends eventually!

Two months

Dear Jack,

We can't believe you have already been in this world for two whole months. Time goes by too fast! You are growing up so much. A couple of weeks ago, we officially switched out all of your 0-3 month clothes with 3-6 month clothes. I can't wait to find out your weight and length at your two-month appointment next Wednesday. You are definitely off the charts!

You like water a lot. At this point, the only water you have experienced is in the bathtub. But we're sure you will love swimming this summer. You also like swinging. Sometimes it puts you right to sleep! You are focusing your eyes on things a lot and even grabbing at objects. Your smiles are ever abundant and just make my day! You are chewing on your fists a lot lately. We're not sure if you are trying to suck your thumb or a finger or if you are already feeling teeth come in. It seems to early for teeth! Then again, you are wearing clothes that most 6-month-olds could fit into. You have become a little more of a spitter. Somedays you spit up every time you eat. Other days, you hardly do at all!

I went back to work last week. I have missed spending my days with you. But you have so much fun at home. On Mondays and Thursdays, your grandma comes and watches you. On Tuesdays, Mandie Bolton comes to play. On Wednesdays, Kathleen Kale is your babysitter. And on Fridays, Mimi is with you. They all have so much fun with you! But I think you are happy to see me when I get home. And even though you take a bottle just fine, I know you prefer the real thing. :)

I got to celebrate my first Mother's Day this year! We had a lovely day with brunch after church. You gave me a wonderful gift (besides the Pier 1 gift card that Dad signed your name on). You allowed me to take a 3-hour nap on Sunday afternoon. It was so heavenly! You have also been sleeping longer at night. For two nights in a row now, you have slept for six hours straight! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is the beginning of a routine.

We had kind of a sad week. One of our cats (and surely one of your future play mates) Maddie died. We knew she had gotten outside, and we assumed she had run away. But she had only gotten into the garage and got stuck in Dad's car. I'm sure we'll get another cat someday, but for now we just miss our little girl. I think Ruby misses her the most!

Here's to another month of wonderful life with our little man. I am so excited to have the summer with you! We will have so much fun. Keep smiling and laughing and cooing and kicking and even spitting up. I like it all. All of that makes you the cutest baby in the world! I love you so much. I never knew life could be so much fun. I love being a mother. And I love that you are my son.

Love,
Mom

Can't make it up!

I warned my husband that if he didn't blog about this, I would....


Dan was walking downtown yesterday and saw a man with a cardboard sign that read:

"My family was killed by ninjas. I need money for karate lessons."


Is "Will work for food" getting too predictable?