Sleep Disorder Central

Oh lord help us! Our house was once a place of quiet nights and peaceful sleep....about 4 weeks ago anyway. Right before I went back to work Parker decided he wanted to stop sleeping through the night and start waking up repeatedly. Sometimes it would be to eat...sometimes simply to play. That got old REALLY fast!

Yesterday, I had to take Parker to the pediatrician because the day care called to say they were concerned because he hadn't been taking his bottles well. I added it up and he'd only taken 9 ounces of formula in a 12 hour period....very unlike him! I called the pediatrician's office and the nurse said that sometimes they'll quit taking a bottle when their ears are hurting them and he could be getting an ear infection without running a fever. So of course I immediately make an appointment for that afternoon because I'm not going to get caught with a little one and an ear infection over the weekend!

Turns our Parker's as healthy as a horse. Ears? Clear. Nose? Clear. Chest? Clear. Throat? Fine. He was playing on the examination table, chattering and laughing and squealing. Oh well...call me the neurotic first time Mom. As I was talking to the doctor...I mention how his sleep habits had changed and we discussed how I was putting him to bed. As it turns out I had changed up his routine at night and this probably changed how he was sleeping. Before I went to work I had established a good evening routine and put him down before he was fully asleep so he would work to pacify and soothe himself to sleep. Once I started working our nighttime routine started changing and I, wanting to spend more time with him, would rock him until he was fully asleep and then put him down. The doctor said this wasn't a good routine to be in and that I needed to get back into putting him down when he was drowsy but not fully asleep so that he could put himself to sleep. He said we'd be better off down the road if I did this now.

So last night I did as he said...went back to our routine before I went to work and what do you know....he went to bed around 8:30pm and slept until 4am and then took a bottle and slept until 7:40am. Pretty darn good for a 4 month old. Now...if I can work on him taking his bottle a little later and hold him off until about 5:30pm or so...we'll be cooking with Crisco! :-)

I'm pretty glad that he and I both have managed to deal with this disruption in our schedule/sleep routine and not gotten sick. **knock on wood** Here's to hoping that the next few days get us back in a good sleeping routine....and we'll add some cereal into his nighttime bottle in a few days to see if that helps too. :-)

L.

Halloween Fun!!

Well, Halloween at our house wasn't exactly what I'd planned for my lil munchkin. The weather turned for the worse and we ended up not being able to do the Trunk or Treat at Parker's school like we'd hoped. It was just too drizzly and cold.

We did get there and took some pictures of him in his costume. Isn't he the sweetest lil Tootsie Roll you've ever seen???

After our morning excursions we went home and took some pictures of him in the Halloween outfit that his Grandma got him. Okay...he's too stinking cute for words.

And look at those chubber thighs....I can't stand it....I have to give 'em kisses every chance I get.

Oh...and this hat...it slays me....everyone at his day care loved it and his outfit.

The socks....geez...I can't stand this cuteness anymore....

L.

Teething sucks....

Okay...so my boy is not quite 4 months old yet...we have a week to go....and he's teething like a maniac. He's actually had these two teeth since he was about 12 weeks old but now they're really working their way through. He's drooling like a madman and a cranky-potamous. Don't get me wrong, he's an incredibly happy boy but his nighttime sleep habits are killing us. I think what's happening is that he's drooling so much that he's causing himself to gag a little when he lays on his back - therefore he wakes up about every 20 min or so. He sleeps well when he is laying on our chest or in his swing....so swing sleeping it will be until these teeth come in.

Pray for us....sleep deprivation is setting in....we're walking zombies....I'm not sure I'm safe to operate heavy machinery....

L.

New Vlog from Parker

Hey all!! We recently found out that Parker loves playing in his jumperoo at day care so we decided to put him in the one we have here at home. To say he loves it is an understatement! Here is a little clip of him playing in it today.




Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Laura

Recipe time!!! Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was online looking for a good cookie recipe and this seemed to fit the bill. I modified the original recipe a little bit and it resulted in a chewy yet crispy cookie that is just perfect!!!

Here is your cast of characters, ultimately I did end up using 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup shortening :

Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened (or you can use 1/2 C butter and 1/2 C shortening)
1/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (8 ounce) package heath bar chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Mix sugars, margarine and shortening until light and fluffy.


Mix in egg and vanilla. Stir in flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir in chocolate chips and heath bar chips.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Make 9-10 minutes until lightly brown.

These are some of the best cookies I've ever tasted. I hope that you make them soon and enjoy them with an ice cold glass of milk!

Laura

Dear Parker - Month 3

Dear Parker,

This last month has been filled with great changes! You now enjoy spending time on your belly and can push up on your arms and look around some. Your movements are so much more intentional now and not as jerky as they had been. You've discovered your hands and love to chew on your fists. You probably chew on your fists a lot because you're cutting two teeth!!! Mommy couldn't believe it when she first felt them, but sure enough - there they were! Grandma asked if it was normal to cut them so early and I told her that whether it was normal or not, they were coming in! ha! Parker, you now look at Mommy so focused and intent - we laugh together now and you smile when Mommy blows raspberries on your belly. You wake up so happy and talkative. You usually spending 10 minutes stretching out on your changing pad in the morning - stretching and talking to us.

We have spent lots of time with family over the last month - we spent two different weeks with Grandma and Grandpa in Tennessee. They enjoy spending time with you so much. We also made lots of trips to see Nana and Pop and they love seeing you grow and change.

We took you to a pumpkin patch on your three month birthday and took some pictures of you with the pumpkins. Unfortunately you're not sitting up so well yet and they looked kinda funny. But we had several other pictures that looked great and we'll cherish them always.

You are Mommy's sweet boy and I love you so much. Everyday you do something that amazes me and makes me so proud to be your Mommy. Just don't grow so fast!! :-)

Love you always!

Mommy

The best moment of being a Mommy....so far!

The last three months have been filled with momentous times in my life. So many firsts that I cannot count them all. However, yesterday there was a moment that caused me to stop in my tracks. Caused me to lose my breath. Caused me to cry. Caused me to completely understand why I became a Mother.

I was rocking Parker to sleep in his nursery yesterday afternoon. I had neglected to turn on his lullabies so I started humming a lullaby - only it was more like a La La La lullaby. Anyway, La is one of the sounds he makes a lot these days. He stopped sucking on the paci, looked up at me, grinned so hugely and said "LA!" I couldn't catch my breath. He recognized the sound and spontaneously interacted with me! It was a huge first in his development and a huge step in our bonding. For the first time I really understood that he knows me, knows my voice, and remembers our interactions.

I go back to work in two weeks and I really wish I had another 12 weeks off with him. Honestly, I wish I could have gone back to work and worked for the first 10 weeks and then started my leave - he's reaching such a cute stage that I'm relishing every moment with him!

Also, here are a few new pictures of the precious puddin' cup!

This motherhood thing is pretty darned awesome!

:0)

L.