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New haircut

It's hot in Brooklyn these days. So, this morning I took scissors to my hair. I'm a mama pixie now.

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Out and about... sans kidlet

On Saturday night we celebrated our anniversary, even though it was technically the next day. My amazing sister in law was in town and she babysat Jude while we went to dinner at a lovely little Italian resto in the 'hood. It was so hard to leave that little bean! I knew he was in the most capable hands (she's a kindergarten teacher and she is beyond fabulous with babies), yet I was nervous.

My sister in law is the only person I'm comfortable leaving Jude with at this point. As much as I love my friends and family, she's still the only one Matthew and I feel good about when it comes to watching our 6 week old tiny package of poo and goo. I'm hoping this will change soon... she lives in Boston!! It's kind of hard to call in the sitter from 4 hours away. Lucky for me she'll be here for the months of July and August staying with us.

Those of you with kids - how long did it take until you were comfy (or at least not *totally* against) leaving your kids with friends/a sitter? I'm really thrilled we went out alone because we needed to celebrate the first year of our marriage without the distraction of Jude for an evening and we had a wonderful time. But, I can't see that becoming a regular pattern because I'm still uneasy about leaving him. I've got to get comfortable with trusting other people with my child or I run the risk of becoming one of *those* moms. You know the type - helicopters - they hover and hover and never leave the kid alone. I do not want that AT ALL. Maybe we should start with short amounts of time (and hour or so?) and work up to longer stretches (dinner and a movie?). Thoughts? Advice?

P.S. It's absolutely gorgeous in Brooklyn today. Jude and I took Duke for a walk... Duke went a block and sat down as if on strike. He hates, I mean hates, the heat. It was 78 at the time and he was done. Wait until it's 90 later today - oh whatever will that pooch do? The horror.

Momming is weird. It's wonderful, totally wonderful, but man oh man, it's weird!!

dates...

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It's my wedding anniversary today. One year. Jude is 6 weeks old. We really didn't waste any time!!

Mmm

The perils of playing with a baby too soon after he eats. You could end up wearing his dinner.

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Coming to a theater near you

The international cinematic release of Jude's First Bath.

The wheels on the car go round and round...

We took Jude on his first road trip this weekend. We went to my in-laws' in Rhode Island. Since we drive a VW Jetta and not a mini van or similar vehicle with 3 rows of seats Jude and Duke had to share the backseat. This meant hooking up a mirror to the back headrest so I could see Jude and could mediate when Duke got a little too curious. He loves to smell the baby! It went surprisingly well. Duke liked to sleep with his head in Jude's carseat, which didn't seem to bother Jude one bit.

Matthew's extended family got to meet the baby and that was the big deal of the weekend. He was a hit with everyone.

I'm really glad to be back. It's nice to see family, but it's nicer to be home. Last night Jude slept like a dream child - 4 hours in a stretch - so, we think he's happy to be back in Brooklyn, too.

***********************************************
P.S. There's a post forthcoming about breastfeeding and all that comes with it - the good, the bad, and the milky - and I'd love to get your perspective. Did you breastfeed your kids? Do you have a staunch stance one way or another on breastmilk vs. formula? Did it come naturally to you? What is your opinion on mothers who breastfeed in public? Did you go back to work and pump while at work? Any other personal anecdotes or opinions would be greatly appreciated, so feel free to leave me a comment or drop me an email - you can click the link on the right sidebar.

But Daddy, I don't know if this mohawk is really my style.

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Ah, a sunny Sunday

The park was teeming with life today. People from all over Brooklyn came to Prospect Park to welcome Spring to the borough. Frisbee, kickball, volleyball, cricket, and football were the choice games of the day from what we could tell.

Although, tree climbing was a much more popular activity with the younger set. Take a look at this photo. Notice the height of the tree. Notice the kids *in* the tree. Matthew said this must be where they grow the kids.

The best part was all the parents standing under the tree watching carefully, but not in an overly concerned way. These kids knew what they were doing and they were being good little monkey children. No padded playgrounds needed. No anti-bacterial hand wipes were waiting for the kids once they came back down to earth. They were just fine and they had a blast. You could hear the giggling across the field - it sounded great.

Jude liked the park. Well, he liked eating in the park. We took a thin, gauzy blanket and I used it as a drape and fed him right there. Consider my public breastfeeding anxiety gone. It was silly anyway. Breasts actually serve a purpose. It's a shame our society doesn't always embrace that. I'm not out there flashing my boobies around, I'm feeding my son with them. If anyone has a problem with that I'll kindly refer them to their own mother for counsel.

The funniest thing of the past 23 days by far.

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So tired

The past couple nights Jude has reverted to his first week nighttime behavior pattern. Which means that he will sleep for 3-4 hours at a time during the day, no matter how hard we try to keep him awake, and then at night he'll be awake for 2 hours at a time, 30 minutes of that he's nursing, and the other 90 minutes are spent either staring wide-eyed at Matthew and me or screaming inconsolably.

It's so hard when your child is crying and you have no idea what to do to help. Jude scrunches up his face and he looks at me pleadingly with those huge, dark, tear-filled eyes and I just want to die because I can't make the bad stuff go away.

Everything you try seems fruitless. Shhhh-ing will work for 5 minutes and then just when you think he's drifting off to dreamland the screaming starts up again. Swaddling will work for a little while, but then teeny weeny Houdini wiggles his way free just enough to have a tiny arm flail up in the air and jolt himself out of sleepiness. Walking around the apartment while bouncing and singing is a miracle cure... as long as the walking and singing never stops.

This is what life is like with a 3 week old baby. It's typical. It's totally normal and everyone struggles with this stage.

If only knowing that made it even one bit easier.

Baby hiccups are hilarious.

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