I came home early today because of a staff appreciation luncheon. Rob was on his computer, and we had the following conversation:

Me: Where's the kiddo?
Rob: In the living room.
Me: By himself?
Rob: I'm about to go read to him.
Me: Really? What are you going to read him?
Rob: Probably The Art of War.

( Sure enough. )

This cartoon speaks the truth.

My parents have started calling Nate 'Nater Tater', a nickname my husband hates. I've taken to singing to him a song to the tune of Cinderella's mouse song. It goes like this:

Nater Tater Tater Nater Nater Tater Nater Nater (repeat at length)

It drives Rob nuts.

It's my masterpiece.

I'm beginning to understand why so many parents overshare on social media. When you spend this much time and effort on something, when it occupies this much of your mental energy, every little milestone feels like a huge accomplishment. You want to shout it from the roof tops.

HEY EVERYBODY! MY KID SLEPT FIVE AND A HALF HOURS! I GOT REAL SLEEP! I ( Read more... )

I desperately miss the ability to make plans for the evening. Even really vague ones like 'I will watch a tv show' or 'I will write a thing' or 'I will play a game' have a tendency to go down the drain in the wake of a kid who wants to eat for an hour and not really fall asleep ( Read more... )

Today is my first day back at work. I'm here just in the afternoons for the next five weeks - 4 hours a day, from 1-5. It's really nothing, in the scheme of things. I'm missing a feeding and a nap, probably. Maybe two naps ( Read more... )

By some magic I do not understand, Nate slept for FOUR AND A HALF HOURS in a row last night! I was even asleep for three and a half of them ( Read more... )

Nate came in at 11 pounds, 12 ounces at his weigh in yesterday. That is 14 ounces more than he weighed last week; he's gained over three and a half pounds since birth ( Read more... )

It's amazing how much more I feel like a person with 3+ hours of sleep in one stretch instead of a patchwork of 1 or 2 hour stretches .

The past two nights we've managed stretches of three and a half hours, which I think is directly related to the fact that we started putting Maalox on Nate's butt.

He's had a lingering rash that we've been fighting. ( Read more... )

It's amazing how fast sleep dep becomes a thing. Most of this leave has been pretty easy on that front, because there are two of us at home. That means that I can take the night shift, and then when the sun comes up, I hand Nate over to Rob and for at least a few hours, I'm only on call if Nate needs fed. I spend a lot of days sleeping til 11, and ( Read more... )

Today it took me four and a half hours to take an hour and a half nap, even with Rob around to hand the baby off to. In theory.

Breastfeeding is both blessing and curse. It's free, comes with loads of health benefits, and works almost every time as an instant 'shut up' switch.

Except sometimes it is the only thing that works, and also it means ( Read more... )