Woa.

My kid is almost nine months old and I haven't updated much.

I'm going through emotions as I attempt to wean Bradley's lunch nursing to a full meal of protein, calcium and fluids. I love nursing but the reliance on me has become a reason for me to come home at lunch everyday. Which is great. Except when there's a meeting that runs late. Or a ladies lunch. Or whatever. And you feel guilty because somewhere, your fat baby is hungry and you're not there. That's a lot of pressure. And I'm still happy (except for lunch sessions) with nursing.

I worry that this attempt to give myself freedom at lunch will result in my fat baby's refusal to nurse at any time (which is what my sister did to my mom). Or that I am depriving my kid of the vitamins, amount and fat (really) he needs.

Also, the amount of time I spend with bryan is small. Maybe for a few minutes in the morning to hand off bradley so I can put on my heels or, if Bryan is still sleeping, say a quick goodbye kiss and whisper that the fat baby is asleep and I am jealous of the sleeping. And then after work, we play on the floor with blocks and owls and foxy squirrel and balls. Bryan cooks or picks up food. We do the bedtime routine, and then we have two to four hours before bed. That's not enough time to be silly and serious and watch tv and play games and have a good fight and have a good cuddle and pay taxes.

What's more is I'm in the awkward place between the clothes I wore before I was pregnant (guys, it's been a year and a half since I before I was pregnant.) and the clothes I bought after the fat baby was born. I'm in between two sizes and not really wanting to buy new clothes because I'm on the cusp of losing more weight but I don't yet fit into my old summer clothes. Also those aren't as bright and striped as my wardrobe has become lately. So of course that doesn't help.

So, while I haven't been posting, a lot has been going on in my head. I don't have things totally together right now. But I'm working on it. I'm thinking a lot. Until I know what I really get it, I need to think and fix some things. Then I'll be back.

Of course, my baby is the only thing I take pictures of. So enjoy: baby pictures.

Oh hey stranger

Ok you know, blogging is harder than it used to be.

Brain dump:
Bradley sleeps through the night now. Like for seven straight days, so I'm counting it as his new deal. 6:30/7-6/7. It's amazing.

Bryan did our taxes thus marking another year where I have not done them. Not one year have I had to do them thanks to a CPA mom and an economist husband.

I had a student tell me that all his classes are good except one. She has a rule about no exceptions, everyone takes the test on the same day in the same amount of time. He's requesting extra time or am a different day for more study time. She says no. Of course his conclusion was that women professors are the worst. Women are difficult by nature. I told him to study hard and get out of the office.

I want to go to the farmers market. If it were any other city, I would shower but it's not, so I won't. And I'll fit right in.

And we are starting our video blog again. Booyah.

Bizarre things that are working for us

I often think we're normal. Until at 6:45am, I have a moment of clarity. We are bizarre.

Bryan and I are sharing one pillow.
We hate all other pillows and spent the last Monty secretly stealing this pillow from the other. Finally we admitted it and share it. Makes for good cuddling, but man, we need to buy new pillows!

We feed Bradley his dinner in the tub.
While I so badly want my baby to eat food and less milk, I hate the mess of feeding him! He gets it on his hands, face, hair, clothes, legs, everywhere. So I thought why not strip him down and feed him in the tub and then just give him a bath?

We have an animal living in our garage.
We don't know what it is. It finds its way in through a loose board that connects to under the house. I didn't believe Bryan until he showed me the (white) couch we keep in the garage. It's used by Bryan when he's playing one player games. The couch was covered in dirt! Since nothing was destroyed or eaten and there's just dirt on the couch, we are guessing cat. Still, not cool, so while I put the baby to bed, Bryan ran around the garage yelling and stomping to scare the cat out if he was in there. He wasn't. So bryan boarded up and nailed shut the loose boards. And...(this is why I love Bryan) set up seven mousetraps from an improv game around the garage.

We take our baby to comedy shows.
More of this later, but this Saturday we hosted and performed in two shows. Normally we just do a show or two. Hosting requires being onstage a lot more (intro first team, intro second, intro intermission, intro third team, ending). Bradley loves to watch warmups, mostly because they are loud and improvisers make weird dance moves. But we try to put him down before our set...but which one? We left him buckled in his carseat with a toy and a pacifier to open the show. When we come backstage, we find the baby surrounded by guys. They turn to say, "Who leaves a baby backstage?" I say, we do! He's a tough crowd. He was great. We put him to sleep at intermission and hid him in a corner. He slept through our performance and the whole next show! Despite bunny bunny and other ridiculous loud warmups happening nearby.

We are what we are.

Brain dump

I wish I would have kept up with blogging because there's so much happening. But whenever there's so much happening I feel like I have no time to blog.

We had an incredible time in China. I'd love to post about the trip and traveling internationally with a baby.

We had a trip to South Carolina. It was great to see everyone, but it was a tough trip.

Back to work now and things are crazy. I feel like I never have a rest, whenever one to do list is complete another one with ten projects appears! I am waiting for a relaxing week...since November it's been overwhelming.

Bradley has made huge developments! He said his first word: Hello! And his second: Mom. My heart melted. I am so happy whenever he says it!

Also he started crawling yesterday! I was the first to see it. It made me cry to catch this milestone. Maybe I'm too emotional but man, it was an awesome moment. But now we have to baby proof the house!

I went for my first cardio workout in months! The stars aligned: I woke up early, it was the first morning above 55 degrees, my bathing suit arrived in the mail, I plan to start our "diet" Monday. It was great. A good start. I'm 8 pounds from where I was before pregnancy and 18 from my goal weight. Lets see what I can do before summer!

Our nanny has a summer internship out of town. I'm interviewing two girls next week. I'm not sure either is right. It's them or daycare. Not totally enthusiastic about either choice.

We are hosting and performing two shoes tonight in OKC. Pumped!

Tomorrow is Easter and I didn't realize that I'm a bad mom if I have no basket, bunny and gifts for my baby. Whoops.

Aaaaaaaand some recent pictures.

China update

Here's a short picture update of our trip to china. More thoughts and pictures to come.

Bradley Douglas: Seven Months

I felt like the first six months took what felt like six months to pass. This last month has FLOWN by.

Bradley is so much more fun now! He's eating trying to eat. He's laughing. He's playing sophisticated games like Peek-a-boo, Where's Mom? and Tug of War. He reacts to his name. He gives guys a judgemental look and flirts with ladies.

I think this is my favorite age. Maybe tied with newborn. (I loved him when he was tiny. And from what I've seen, he isn't getting tinier.)

He's trying lots of food. He has trouble understanding the whole swallowing food concept. He likes to suck on things and gnaw on things, but the swallowing, well, it's not really his thing right now. He's eaten purees of carrots (meh), peaches (alright), prunes (likes); pieces of green peppers (alright), tomatoes (meh), pickles (FAVORITE), baby carrots raw (likes), pork (FAVORITE), crust of pizza (whoops! likes), green beans (likes), mashed potatoes (alright), oatmeal (likes), risotto (meh), fingers (likes).

Because he now understands what food is - and that he should be wanting it - we have significantly changed what we eat and how  we eat. We now have family dinners with Bradley in his high chair. We hold him while we cook, he gets to sample when we sample or he holds a spoon so he feels involved. We set the table and put him in his high chair, normally with raw carrots or green peppers (we always have a giant bag of baby carrots and/or at least two green peppers). We eat our dinner, and when he starts getting interested in what we're eating, we give him a tiny spoonful or plop some on his tray.

He loves to try to use a spoon. And I think he prefers an empty spoon to a spoon with food on it. If he throws or drops his spoon, there is no picking it up. He has to use his hands. I'm not sure if he's old enough or smart enough to understand the logic behind that, but I want to be one step ahead of him, so that the day he learns the throwing/dropping game, it's already over before it's even started.

We've had to pack up his bouncer and his kick'n coaster. Anything where he lays down is no longer fun. He's bored. He wants to be sitting, standing or scooting. He's semi-mobile now. He likes to sit and play with toys. If he's bored with sitting, he'll get on his stomach and backwards scoot around the carpet. No much, because please, he's a fat baby and he's pretty stationary because of his roundness and will be stationary because of his roundness. He loves it when we hold his hands so he can stand. He also loves to flip himself over if you leave him on his back. He can only play on the floor or in his crib; I can't leave him on the couch or the changing table anymore for fear of falling.

Bradley is growing into his personality. He is still a very serious baby. It takes a lot to make him smile. Guaranteed smiles: Patty-cake, me coming home at lunch or end of the day, foxy squirrel. It's a short list. He's a pretty content baby, just not all smiles with strangers or even with us all the time. He's a good kid: takes naps anywhere, travels well, loves to be out of the house, and is pretty good with other people holding him (although he prefers women over men).

He's in all twelve month clothes. It's crazy. It's hard to find onesies in 12 months, but I'm still not ready for the shirt/pants thing. I like the onesies. And I'm the mom, so I can keep dressing him how I like. I love his wardrobe.

Bradley has now visited four states: Oklahoma (duh), Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina. He has taken 14 flights and attended three parties. He's been in one comedy show and seen more than I can count. He's quite the chill baby. And like Colette said in NC, he is exactly my dream baby, the one I imagined when I was pregnant. I'm not sure how much is genetics/personality and how much is learned, as in this is all he knows.

Bradley has a passport and a visa to visit China as a tourist. We leave in a week and two days for his first international trip. It's pretty crazy. But at the same time, it's pretty normal for our family. I think we knew our kid would have a crazy life, a busy life, a life of travel. We didn't exactly stop to think how we would change our plans to fit a baby; we just made Bradley fit into our lives.

He's sleeping through the night now which is AWESOME.  (EDIT: I've waited too long to finish updating, and he's now waking at 4am to eat...must be a growth spurt) When I put him down, he doesn't cry and goes right to sleep. It's awesome. He goes to bed sometime between 6:30 and 8pm depending on the night.

I'm truly happy, and I'm really starting to grow into my role as a mother. I love the guy. I think about him more, and I am really enjoying getting to know his personality. He is still serious, but he finds me and Bryan hilarious. I love his laugh! I really enjoy learning what he likes, doesn't like and what he could care less about. This is the fun part.

This weekend in a few thousand words