hi, ho, hi, ho it's back to work I go

Well, I did it. I made it back to work on time and with no tears. I think the practice days really did help. I wasn't stressed out going back. I think part of that was do to the fact that it all seemed overwhelming so there was no one thing to stress about, it was all stressful! ha!
Seriously though, I was worried about leaving Emery and that was a little hard, but I tricked my mind into thinking he was still in his little crib with daddy b/c that's where I saw them last before I got in the car. Blake was good enough to take him to daycare today and he'll even do it tomorrow.
The day flew by and before I knew it, it was lunch. I had forgotten to pump in the am during my little 20 minute break b/c I was so busy being exhausted! I did have time to pump at lunch and I dropped the fresh milk off at daycare for him tomorrow. So far: no dipping into our frozen supply. Yippee!!!
Overall, the whole day seemed surreal. Like a step back into my previous life. I didn't feel like myself completely. It wasn't a bad feeling at all, just a weird one. I don't think being back will be too bad after all. I keep telling myself we have a ton of days off in February, a whole week in March and then I'm out at the end of May! It'll go by quickly. I hope...
PS-Update on the PPD: I had a follow up with the doc yesterday and I said that other than some intense dreams (some violent) all was well. She seemed moderately concerned about the dreams, but said if they bother me then I can try another anti-depressant. I'm not really stoked about that since I'm breastfeeding and from what I read, my choices are limited. I feel great and I have full energy back, so I say leave well enough alone.
Here's praying for a snow day tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed!

Operation 7 am: Day 3

I did it!
I got up at 6:45, but was awake at 6. Blake brought Emery in to nurse and the three of us snuggled for about 15 minutes before I got up.
I've already packed my lunch for tomorrow and loaded the car with the breast pump. I think I'm about ready.
We'll see...

Operation 7 am: Day 2

A little better.

What I did right: showered the night before. I was in bed by 9:30. Emery was asleep at 9 (woke up at 2 Mandy, but then slept until 9). Set my alarm for 6. Pumped at 2 while Blake fed Emery. Woke up at 6.

What I did wrong: didn't get out of bed.

I stayed awake though. Blake and I listened to NPR until 7 when he got up. I got up with him and worked out. I think it was a much better dry run than yesterday.
It'll be interesting to see what happens tomorrow morning. I'm not sure how E will sleep. He had a very weird day...he stayed awake from 9 am until 5 pm. I'm worn out and I have no idea what caused him to stay awake all day. ALL DAY. Sheesh.

Operation 7 am: Day 1

Epic failure. Oi!!!!!

Ok, so here's what I did right: Showered last night. Bathed baby last night. Had all baby items ready for loading in the car. Had rough idea of what to put on in the morning. Brushed teeth, dried hair, took contacts out.

What I did wrong: Didn't set alarm...I know, I know, but I was sort of hoping baby would wake up at 6ish. He woke up at 4:15 instead. I didn't get back to bed until 5. I sort of knew at that point it was a lost cause.

What I will do tonight/tomorrow: Bathe myself and baby tonight. Make lunch tonight. Wash and prep bottles for filling. SET ALARM. Lay out clothes. Dress baby in tomorrow's outfit before bed. Hope "that-which-must-not-be-named" happens again.

Wish me luck!!!

Let the dry run begin

Well, the time has come...I must return to work. I have weird feelings about this. I have loved my time at home. LOVED it, but I also felt like I wanted to return to work. This past weekend, I went up to school to get the lay of the land after being gone 12 weeks. It was strange. I had a very Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde thing going on. One minute I was excited and the next I so didn't care. Sigh.
I guess the good thing is I only have 4 months before I'm home with him again. That'll be a good test run for me. I'm really, really not looking forward to August already.
But, enough whining. Now is the week to practice getting all ready again. I go back Thursday. Starting tonight I am beginning "Operation 7:00 am." I need to be completely ready and baby loaded every morning by 7. My mother-in-law seems to find this idea humorous. I've decided I'm going to bathe myself and the baby the night before so I don't have to do that in the am. I need to defrost the milk bottles the night before and pack my lunch too. It'll be a busy night, but I'd rather do it then than get up an hour earlier to do it. PLUS...a recent event has happened in our house. I call it "That-which-must-not-be-named", in the event we jinx ourselves. This said event is usually one that parents rejoice when their children first accomplish it. Emery has been doing it for 4 nights in a row now. About 9 hours at a stretch...but it shall remain nameless...please don't jinx us by saying it in the comments.
Wish me luck on Operation 7 am. I know we can do it.

Blake has turned into Sean

About a month ago we were in Wichita for Christmas with my sister and parents. We stayed with my sister who has a 4 month old. We got a kick out of the fact that my bro-in-law Sean spent the better part of EVERY evening walking Greta around the house while she wimpered and fussed. This was just part of their everyday life and Sean didn't seem to mind. It was the only way Greta kept from screaming bloody murder all evening.

Well, we've hit that stage. Emery now requires walking for a portion of the evening. He wimpers and fusses unless Blake walks him around the house. Thus, Blake has turned into Sean.

You can't make this @#& up...

Alternative names for this post:
Wyandotte Co.'s well deserved rap
7 people, 1 brain
This @$#& is better than TV
Come on natural selection!!!

Ugh. It is now 4:30 in the morning. Blake, Emery and I are all awake due to the dumbasses who live next door. For those of you who know our place, you are familiar with the parking pad out front. For those of you not, we have a parking pad that is level with the road and hold two cars. Our yard slopes away from the road at a shallow angle, thus leaving the front of the parking pad about 18-24 inches above the yard. There is a set of railroad ties at the front to deter anyone from trying to drive off the front. Alas, this is where the story goes awry.
The dumbasses who live next door managed to somehow get their 83 Chevy jack-knifed off the front of the parking pad so the front wheels were on the ground and the back wheels are on the pad. Now, a normal human would see this and know that A. a truly stupid person was behind the wheel B. no amount of "pulling" on the back will dislodge said truck C. A tow truck must be called. None of this occurred to the dumbasses. Sooo, at about 2:30 this morning, they decide to dislodge the truck using a friend and his Bronco. That's right. We both wake up to tires squeeling and 7 morons yelling various stupid ideas back and forth right outside our bedroom window. My personal favorite was when they thought they could stand on the back of the bumper to "give it some more weight". Are you @$#!ing me??? THE TRUCK IS ANGLED AT A 45 DEGREE and wedged between the ground and a concrete slab!!!! After much grunting and scratching, the decide the best solution is to drive the truck forward and completely off the pad onto our yard. At this point, they realize the truck is nearing the end of it's gas supply. I hear: "Are you kiddin'? We just filled up with 1/4 tank!" The Bronco is sent in to "push" the truck onto our yard. This works. Time to celebrate. Now the truck is stuck on the slope of our side yard and spinning its tires wildly trying to climb back up the embankment. No luck. The Bronco is sent in to try and pull it out, only instead of lining the vehicles up, they decide to hook them up at an acute angle and tow the truck back toward the road. Yes boys, that will work. Never mind the laws of physics, go ahead and try it. While you're at it, why not shower our house with pebbles and other crap in the process. At this point all hell breaks loose in our house; baby wakes up, I'm audibly cursing them and Blake snaps.
I need to break here and mention something about my husband. He is Clark Kent. Mild mannered, polite to a fault, helpful to everyone, cool under pressure and patient as the day is long.
Not tonight.
Tonight he turned into Superman. It is now 3 am and Blake marches out our front door and proceeds to yell at the top of his lungs some "choice" words at the dumbasses. Their response? "Are you mad??" YOU THINK????????????
They try to pull the "aw shucks" routine with Blake. Blake will have nothing to do with it and shouts some more "choice" words. The neanderthals decide to take a break until the morning. I go out to try and break up this potential fight by mentioning the now awake baby.
Thus, the reason we are still awake at almost 5 am.
I'm trying to decide what to do in the morning. Do I go out and take pictures so that when the morons back over our air conditioner we'll have proof it was fine before the accident? Do I go over and ask them if they'd rather reseed the lawn in April or May? Or, do I suggest they use 6 of the 7 as traction and let Darwin weed out a few.
I'm leaning toward the latter.

10 weeks old

I just love this little guy so much!

Here are the latest pictures! It's hard to believe that 10 weeks have already passed. He's growing like a weed. He is wearing 3-6 month clothes already. He has such a pleasant personality. He finds joy in almost everything. Enjoy.

We have a celebrity in our midst

That's right folks, Emery has seen the bright lights of fame and there's no turning back now. I, however, couldn't shrink away fast enough. I hope I'm able to endure the red carpet in a few years. I may have to put on makeup for that one.
What I'm talking about, of course, is Emery's appearance on the news Tuesday night. Yep, that's right. The news.
We went to his 2 month well baby check up and the health reporter from Fox 4 was there doing a story on the lack of seasonal flu in dr. offices this year. After filming several other patients, they filmed Emery and myself (blah) with the doctor. Our bit was to show that getting parents inoculated helps keep little ones safe too. He looked cute as ever. Only problem? The doctor kept calling him "her". Thankfully you can't hear it in the segment. For some reason that office thinks Emery is a girl. Does he look like a girl? maybe, I can't ever tell when they're little like this. Is it his name? maybe, Emery hasn't been popular for 100 years so maybe they think it's a girls name. It's not, btw. I think maybe we're just living in a time when many names are ambiguous enough to apply to both genders. Hayden, Peyton, Corey, Elliott, Avery...you get the idea.
Here is the video segment. Enjoy.

2 month visit

Emery went to his 2 month old well visit today. It was an interesting time.

First: the percentages...
He weighs 13 lbs. which is the 75% for his age

He is 24" long, which is the 79% for his age
His head is in the 80% for circumference.

Yeah! His weight and height flip-flopped from last month.

Doctor said everything looks great and he's as cute as a button.

Next: the shots...
Poor little thing had to get his first round of vaccinations. 4 shots to the legs and a live virus of rotovirus in the mouth. He gobbled the live virus down. He screamed for a few seconds when he got the shots, but then quieted right down once I held him. Such a good boy.

Lastly: The news crew: yep, that's right. While we were there, the news came to do a story on the lack of patients in doctors offices this season due to the rampant campaign to vaccinate against the flu this fall. They interviewed me and took some footage of Emery. The segment is due to air on Tuesday evening at 9 on Fox4. Meryl Lin McKean was the reporter.

I will leave you with pictures of our little trooper. He was extra sleepy since his ordeal.

Sleep well little one. You did awesome.

Winter Wonderland

Hope you all enjoy the new blog design. My, um, someone accused me of being lazy with the blog.

Have you been outside lately? It's crazy with snow out there! We have at least 8" in our front yard, not counting drifts.

2 months old

New pictures...2 months old on Wednesday. He's getting so strong. Holds his head up 80% of the time now. Enjoy.