A Day in the Life

Another guest blog by Tyler.

First of all, I apologize that this post doesn't have pictures.  Mama has taken a bunch of me, but has been too busy back at work to load them on the computer.

At two months old, I've started to realize what this world's all about.  I'm becoming a lot more mature, which has made me able to start following a bit of a routine.  Here's what my day normally looks like.


I wake up hungry a couple times a night.  I've found that if I get a bit fussy, Mom will come in and feed me.  I don't really have a concept of time, but Mom says it's usually around midnight or 1:00 and then again around 4:00.  She then starts to get ready for the day by taking a shower and eating breakfast, but I get to go back to sleep.  Being a baby is rough!

When I wake up again, usually around 7:00, it's Daddy that comes and gets me.  That's because Mom has already left for work.  Daddy works from home a bit in the morning until my daycare opens, so he lets me sit in my monkey bouncy chair and chew on my fist or blanket while he works.  That is, when he's not feeding me a bottle, holding me, changing my diaper, or just generally playing with me.  I'm very distracting, but Daddy can't resist my charms, especially since I wake up smiling and ready to embrace the day!

Daddy gets me dressed in an outfit Mom laid out for me, and then we drive to SAS where Daddy drops me off with my teachers.

I love daycare.  There's new toys to play with and new people to fawn over me.  They feed me or change me when I get fussy, lay me down for naps, and generally take good care of me.  Around 3:45, Daddy comes to my room and picks me up.  All the other kids are jealous, because it's another hour before their parents come to get them.  Maybe they should talk their parents into working from home in the mornings like Daddy does.

Mama is waiting for us when we get home.  She welcomes Daddy with a kiss, and then is all about me.  Sometimes I fall asleep on the car ride home, so I'm a bit foggy as to what's going on.  Other times, I'm wide awake and super excited to see Mama.  She likes those days best.

The afternoons go pretty quickly.  I play with Mama for a while, either on her lap or on my activity mat, and then she hands me over to Daddy so she can go make them dinner.  I sit in my monkey chair with them while they eat.  Daddy cracks me up because he dances around during dinner to my chair's music (songs like "If you're happy and you know it" and "Alouette").  I smile and laugh and kick my legs around to the music.

After dinner, Mama cleans up and makes my bottles for the next day.  Then, we all head upstairs for bathtime.  I'm starting to get the hang of this.  At first, I was so frightened that I remained perfectly still in the tub, staring up at my parents who constantly assured me everything is ok.  Now, I'm becoming a little more comfortable, and I enjoy kicking around in the water and on the tub.

After bathtime, I put on my pj's and eat one more time before going to bed.  Then, I wake up and do it all over again tomorrow!  And that's a day in the life of Tyler.

Two Months!

I know most of you saw these on Facebook, but my little boy turned two months yesterday!  Can you believe it?  Oh, how this smiley boy melts my heart!

Tyler's First Day

Tyler started daycare yesterday.  From the sounds of it, he fit right in and had a really good day.

Tyler's bed:

Tyler's room:

already winning over the ladies

His teacher called me around 11:00.  I panicked.  She quickly calmed my nerves by saying she was calling to check in and let me know that everything was going really well.  He had had a bottle and a nap and was staring at a mobile while she was talking to me.  I have to admit, I teared up a bit.  I was so glad to hear that he was enjoying himself.  No working mom's guilt here!

When he came home, he was all smiles.  I guess he was glad to see me.  Thank goodness, because I was sure glad to see him, too!  He gets a report each day -- things like naps he took and times he ate.  It also included a list of things he did yesterday -- played in the bouncy seat, with a wooden mobile, and the activity mat.  They said he was happy all day, and was "a pro."

Their note also mentioned one more thing: "We have fallen for his little 'self'."  Don't worry, ladies, it happens to all of us!

Out with the Old

Good-bye old "Jitterbug" flip phone.  Hello new iPhone.  That's right, folks.  I've become part of the smart phone generation.

I fought it for years.  After all, I primarily use my phone to actually make phone calls, so why get a smart phone?  Plus, our cell bill would go up to pay for the data.  Well, after getting lost one day and after having to come back home because I had forgotten to look up the business hours for a store another day, I started seeing the merits of having a smart phone.

Fellow "smarties," I'd love recommendations for apps.

God Bless Swings

We didn't register for a swing, but a coworker of mine gave us her old one.  Boy, are we grateful!  Tyler loves staring at the mobile.

If we turn on the sounds (very weird white noise sounds), he'll drift off to sleep no matter how alert he was when we put him in the swing.

Tyler's swing... allowing Mama and Daddy to eat dinner in silence.  God bless you, swing!

Daddy Time

I love watching Jason interact with Tyler.

It's amazing to watch them together.  I think most of the day I'm in survival mode.  When I'm not feeding him (which honestly takes up the majority of my day... *sigh*), he's either sleeping or he's  hanging out in his swing or bouncy chair while I get some stuff done.  We do play together on his activity mat or on his robot blanket in his room, but it's not the same as when he's with Jason.  

Jason is so creative with how he plays with Tyler.  I see a whole different side of Tyler when he's with Jason.  Sure, he smiles and coos and crows at me occasionally during the day, but after all day away from his dad, Tyler gives Jason a HUGE wide-mouth grin when he gets home from work.  That's not too surprising though.  After all, he is a Daddy's boy.

I Love Lamp

Ever since he saw "Anchorman," Jason will occasionally say "I love lamp."

Well, like father like son.

What has my son so mesmerized?  Oh, nothing, just our lamp.

On-the-Job Training

So much of parenthood is on-the-job training.

"Ok, he's crying.  What can I do to distract him?"

A few days ago, Jason discovered a new hold that seems to calm down our fussy boy.

Is it because he can look at the floor, new territory for him?  Is it because he likes tummy time?  Is it because he's frightened he'll fall, so he stays very still and doesn't squirm?  Who knows, and who cares?  It works... at least for now!

Visitors

Last Thursday, my mom, aunt Carol, cousin Jason, and new 2nd cousin Riley came to visit.  We had a great time!  Mom and Aunt Carol brought food (not to hard to entertain when people BYOF), Jason and I talked babies, and the grandkids got some good grandma time.

Riley was born on August 1st, so she's about one month older than Tyler.  It's hard to tell, though, since she's so much smaller than my big boy!

picture courtesy of my cousin Jason

Grandma lovin'...

Wordless Wednesday

In case you needed a laugh today...

365 Days of Praise, Weeks 5&6

I'm a little behind, so I'm doing two weeks today.

Sunday, 9/15:
The Selfs ventured to church, and it was a huge success!  Tyler was a trooper the whole time, with nary a peep.  I guess he loves being out of the house.  I'm thankful for successful outings.

Monday, 9/16:
Another outing, this time to the grocery store.  Another good boy!

Tuesday, 9/17:
Tyler managed to pee on his face not once, or twice, or three times, but FOUR times during the day!  Poor little guy!  He just looked up at me like "What just happened?"  I'm thankful for life's little humorous moments and for embarrassing stories to share with my son's girlfriends in the future.

Wednesday, 9/18:
Today was not a good day.  Without getting into too much detail, I was trying to implement some scheduling stuff from a parenting book, learning how to pump, and working with the plumbers, all the while dealing with a fussy baby.  I am thankful for bad days because they make good days all the sweeter.

Thursday and Friday, 9/19 & 9/20:
I have no recollection of these days.  Maybe I'm repressing something?

Saturday, 9/21:
I'm thankful for the sound of pouring rain outside my window while I'm up in the middle of the night feeding and tending to a fussy boy.

Sunday, 9/22:
Brian Frost was speaking at church about how Jesus calls the church His bride.  He talked about how in love and enthusiastic Jesus is about the church.  He said that out of all the weddings he's performed, in a few of them, the groom has been so enthusiastic to marry his bride that he jumps the gun during the vows.  Brian Frost asks a long "will you" question and said that a few grooms answer "I will" after the first pause instead of waiting for the end of the question.  MY groom was one of those grooms!  I'm thankful for a reminder of the joy of our wedding day.

Monday-Wednesday, 9/23-9/25:
I'm sure things happened these days that I was thankful for.  I'm sure my sleep-deprived brain has forgotten them now.

Thursday, 9/26:
Tyler and I had visitors on Thursday (look for a future post).  I'm thankful for family, for advice, and for grandmothers that fawn over their grandchildren.

Friday, 9/27:
Tyler and I had a very minor household incident Friday morning.  I'm thankful for God's watchful hand who protected us from what could have been worse.

Saturday, 9/28:
Saturday was Addison's birthday party, but the Selfs weren't quite ready to make such a long trip, so we had to miss it.  I'm thankful for long phone conversations where I get enough details to feel like I was there.