First Day of School (Sort Of)

First things first - I have decided to call Charlie's day care "school". For whatever reason, I like the way it sounds (probably because, as a teacher, I've been going to school for almost 30 years). Today Charlie and I went to his school and spent about an hour in his new classroom. I like the space where he'll be and he spent the entire time sitting on the play mat and playing with toys. I got to talk with two of the teachers in the room (there will be three when he officially starts next week) and got a feel for what his day will be like. The school seems great and I feel confident leaving him there; but to be honest, the whole concept just doesn't feel "right" to me. I'm really struggling with this right now, and I'm hoping it will get better in a couple of weeks once we've all fallen into this new routine. As I was driving today (I do some of my best thinking when I'm driving) I seriously started to resent the womens' liberation movement. If it weren't for this whole "equal rights" thing, I'd be sitting pretty at home with my baby while my dear husband went to work to provide for his family. I'm mostly joking, but I think there is something to be said for the 1950's nuclear family. I absolutely love my job, and I'm looking forward to teaching again, but I wish I could wait until Charlie was in Kindergarten. I feel like the best place for him is at home with family. He could socialize with friends in the neighborhood at play dates and Gymboree classes. I know this is our own fault. We live in a HCOL area about 20 miles outside of NYC. Le sigh... It will be OK.

In happier news, Charlie took his bath in the big bath tub today, rather than the sink. He's getting so big!

Baby and the City

What's this?? A post from yours truly two days in a row?? Well, lucky you. ;)

Charlie and I went to NYC today to visit JA at work. We drove to Hoboken, purchased our tickets for Pier 11 and boarded the ferry when it arrived. I called John when we got off in New York and told him we were waiting right by the adorable little duck pond with the waterfall and pretty flowers. Cue silence on John's end... then, "Umm, there is no duck pond at Pier 11." Uh oh! Somehow I had managed to get on the wrong ferry and was on the west side of Manhattan when I needed to be on the east side. This would ordinarily not be a problem since I could just hop in a cab, but Charlie doesn't exactly travel well in cabs without his carseat. He was riding in style in the Maclaren Spitfire, which we busted out for the first time today.

I really love this stroller! But, I digress. After asking three friendly officers of the NYPD, as well as an equally-friendly employee at the ferry station, it was determined that I was going to have to walk. So we got a wonderful tour of Battery Park and the surrounding areas and finally arrived at John's office about 25 minutes later (after one more check-in with a super-friendly Parks & Rec officer who actually exited his vehicle and showed me the path on his map!) Who says New Yorkers are mean? During the walk Charlie tried his best to avoid looking like a tourist, but he was pretty wide-eyed the whole time. But he wasn't wearing a fanny pack or anything, so we blended in pretty well, I think. ;)

After being scanned through security (which included a full-on airport X-ray system and metal detector, along with scanning my ID and printing out a visitor badge with my name and picture on it) we headed upstairs to visit JA's co-workers. Charlie was his typical charming self, though he did play it a little shy at times. I nursed him in the mothers' room they have on their floor (wish we had one of these) and then we headed to lunch. Charlie was a perfect companion throughout, though he kept opening his mouth everytime I picked up my fork or grabbed a fry off JA's plate. He's getting ready for finger foods, I think!

On the ferry ride home (John walked us to the pier and made sure we got on the right one) I started to nurse him again, but after a few minutes, he looked like this:

New York may be the city that never sleeps, but Charlie sure does! :)

Earthquake!

Yikes - today was one of the craziest days Charlie and I have had this summer. This morning we dropped off Daddy at the train, then continued on to my school to start working in my classroom. I brought Charlie's pack 'n' play, his Baby Bjorn bouncer, his Jump & Go, the Bumbo, and an assortment of toys. I also had a bunch of diapers, wipes, changes of clothing, bibs, and burp cloths. We were there from about 9 AM to 2 PM - and it was so hard to actually do work! I only managed to cover a couple of bulletin boards and unpack the closet. Charlie did his best to keep himself entertained, but he needed to see me at all times. He also (understandably) needed to move every twenty minutes or so to another activity. Plus, it was really hard to do work when my beautiful baby was there just begging me to play with him!

During one of our feedings today, I suddenly realized that the walls and floor were shaking. I immediately knew it was an earthquake. It only lasted a few seconds, but even Charlie picked his head up, looked around, and made a face as if to say, "What is that??" It was, in fact, baby's first earthquake. That's one for the baby book! :)

Charlie was not too pleased with napping in the pack 'n' play. He took two naps that were each only about 30 minutes. Poor guy. He then fell asleep for the last ten minutes of the ride home - FAIL! Since I knew he wouldn't be going back to sleep when we got home, I opted to make some food for Master Charles. In about 40 minutes time I was able to make brown rice cereal, pureed avocado, and baked butternut squash. Yummy! Charlie ate prunes for dinner, but I'm sure he'll be enjoying these other tasty treats soon.

While his bedtime is usually around 6:30, he was asleep in his crib before six o'clock. Sweet dreams buddy!

Charlie is six months old!

I wanted to take this time to recognize that our son is half way to a year! I can hardly believe that he is six months old. Charlie is such a good baby and I am so thankful that God gave him to us. Here's a little insight into what our day looks like at six months:

6:00/6:30 - wake up and nurse; diaper change; play

8:30 - nurse; diaper change; first nap

10:15 - wake up and nurse; diaper change; play

11:15 - eat oatmeal and fruit

12:15 - diaper change; second nap

1:00 - wake up and nurse; diaper change; play

3:00 - diaper change; third nap

4:00 - wake up and nurse; diaper change; play

5:00 - eat fruit or veggie

6:00 - nurse (from one side); naked time; bath

6:30/7:00 - nurse (from other side); bedtime

He seems to be a creature of habit, and I love how he's fallen into this little routine. And I am so incredibly appreciative of his 11-12 hours of straight sleep. Glorious! :)

Today I made some more food for Charlie. This morning I headed out to Whole Foods to purchase some organic sweet potatoes and pears. I couldn't find the pears so I bought Gala apples instead. When I got home I put the potatoes in the oven to bake for an hour and put the apples in a steamer basket in a saucepan to steam for 10-15 minutes. When they were done and cooled, I simply scraped the flesh into the blender. I mixed the apples with some of the water from the saucepan since I plan to mix them with oatmeal and breast milk. I mixed the sweet potatoes with breast milk. Both got pureed in the blender (separately, of course) and poured into trays for the freezer. Voila! Charlie enjoyed some homemade applesauce and oatmeal this afternoon and we'll try the sweet potatoes on Thursday (following the four-day-wait rule). He's currently eating two meals a day (fruit and oatmeal and another fruit or veggie) and seems to love everything so far. I really love that I know exactly what's going into his body too (and what isn't, namely pesticides and other chemicals). On my list for next week: sweet peas and zucchini. Mmmmm!

Just in time...

On Monday I welcomed this new beauty:

Our avocado green washer finally crossed the rainbow bridge into appliance heaven. And since Charlie started solids, he now has what I am calling "real person poop." This makes laundering our cloth diapers interesting. :) Charlie is loving his food, so I'm glad that we can continue onward. So far he's had oatmeal, avocado, and prunes. The prunes were because he went a week without pooping. Trust me when I say he made up for it today!

Thanks for the prunes Mom!