With Love, Mommy

Last week was the Perfect Storm at our house. We just kept getting hit. Last weekend, the hubs got sick. Not just the sniffles, but full out stay-in-bed-for-40-hours type sick. No problem, right? I can handle a sick husband and an 8-month old. Ha...that's what I thought. Cut to the scene of me pleading with baby J to just go to sleep while trying to make soup for the hubs. Little J picked a hard time to try to drop a nap. For 4 days, this baby refused to take naps, would not go to sleep until after midnight, and woke up often during the night. Thursday was another adventure, for several reasons. J woke up with a fever and a runny nose. I was so upset. And within hours, he was fever-free and playing like normal. Let me just say, this is one of the best things about breastfeeding. This child is resilient!!! He gets all of those good antibodies that my body is building up in order to fight off the hubby's sick germs. In fact, he has only been sick twice, and neve...

This was absolutely my favorite year of the Olympics ever. I have to admit, I was never obsessed with watching before. This year, I decided to make it a bit special. We had an Opening Ceremonies here at our house, complete with a paper torch and lots of decorations. Baby J even helped by coloring his first drawing. Then we had our own Olympic games. That night, Mommy and Daddy played fun games with Little J, but he won every time! Can you believe it? He won at "Sitting like a big boy," "Being the cutest," the "5 foot crawl" and of course the "Messy Eating contest." We had so much fun! Over the last few weeks, J has really shown us what a little Olympian he really is. His favorite new sport: chasing the dog and kitty. Fortunately, we have great pets who really enjoy the attention from baby J. I love to watch my little man interact with my "Fur-babies." Another Olympic sport at our house is standing on everything. Anything ...

As I see those developmental milestones whizzing by, I find myself begging J to slow down on a daily basis. It becomes really apparent when I talk to a family member who I haven't seen for a week. I find myself rattling off a list of things that J has learned to do in the last week. Holy cow! My sweet baby boy is now crawling (and is belly flopping much less). And boy, does he just take off... after the dog... after the cat... away from Mommy's tickle hand. About a week and a half ago, J learned how to pull himself into the standing position using toys, the couch, whatever is closeby really. Now he thinks he can stand on his own and walk, which may not be entirely possible. One of the things I love most about this baby boy is his reaction when he falls down. When he falls hard, he looks right at me and smiles. Then within seconds he is up again. I am so amazed at his resilience, my strong little boy! I just wish he would slow down a little bit so I have time to get ...

My baby boy is 8 months old today. Happy 8 month birthday, baby J! I love celebrating these little birthdays every month, taking a lot of pictures and making it a little special. This month I cannot help but be a little proud of myself as well as my little J. I have made it through 8 months of Mommy-hood! Sure, no one said this would be easy. Everyone told me about sleepless nights and poopy diapers. But that is just the newborn stage. The hubs and I only had about 3 months of little sleep and our transition into parenthood. What I really needed to know was how hard breastfeeding would be, and how many times I would just want to throw in the towel. What I really needed to know is what to do when your pediatrician tells you that your 3 month old would need a major surgery within weeks. What I really needed to know is that I would be okay once I left the hospital with this tiny new baby (and they do not let you take one of those nurses home with you to help, I asked). But now...

We love Infantino’s new product, the Pop & Swap Gym!!! I would absolutely recommend this product for babies, which they can use as they grow. My son is 7 months old and it is his new favorite toy. He is captivated by the music, the dancing lights, the hanging toys, and the interactive pods. The gym can be set up on a stand for baby to lie under or they can sit in front of it. The legs easily come off and the base can be attached to baby’s crib or set on the floor for some tummy time fun. It is very simple and quick to attach and detach the legs to the base toy. My son loves to sit in front of it (perfect height) and it helps him keeps his balance while he is learning to sit. My favorite part of this new toy is that it can be changed to keep it fresh and keep baby curious! The hanging toys can be removed and changed out or attached to other things. And the pods are genius! Each pod has a strap (which is hidden when it pops into the gym) so it can be attached to the stro...

Well hello and welcome! I am hoping that this blog will be a way to share my experiences and my fun times with parenting! A few years ago, I went to an amazing conference with Nancy Thomas, who spoke about issues of attachment. She said something that really stuck with me: "If you are not having fun with your parenting, you are doing it wrong!" So that is my goal with my son: having fun!!! Seven months of having fun and counting! When my son was born 7 months ago, I started my very first letter to him. It was really very simple: J, Welcome to the world! I'm so happy to be your Mommy. With love, Mommy Since then, I have been writing my little boy letters and notes in his very own journal. These letters have shown how proud I am of my little boy and how much I love being his mom. As a first time mom, I am learning right along with him! I am loving every minute of it! With Love...