Luke did NOT enjoy my attempts at force feeding him the frosting! Apparently I have not given this child enough sugar in his life :)
Happy New Year 2009! When Luke woke up this morning, Jeremy told him Happy 3rd Year. At first I questioned what he meant, and then realized that this is the beginning of the third year that Luke has experienced...2007, 2008 and now 2009.
We had some dear friends over last night for a wonderful dinner of bruschetta, italian beef sandwiches, cheesy potatoes (both a Susie Zeller specialty!), salad, and apple pie with ice cream. Yummy to my tummy! After dinner we talked for a bit and then hunkered down for a great game of Trivial Pursuit; Women vs. Men. The women won! (Need you really ask?)
It was fun to sit down with these friends last night and reflect on the last year. Last December 31st we spent the evening with the same friends, but we spent $150 per couple on a dinner and dancing event. There was a band, there was some great people watching, and us girls had an absolute blast cutting it up on the dance floor. Even with all of that, though, I still think last night was one of my better New Year's Eve. I love the comfort of close friends, the non stop chatting, the constant laughter. It never stops, and I could be in the midst of it every day, all day long.
Of course we all showed our age pretty well when we called it a night just before 11:00 and Jeremy and I headed straight for bed. We were hysterically laughing as we tucked ourselves in because we were both watching our bedroom clock anticipating the turning of midnight so we could give a kiss and call it a night. The reason we laughed so hard is that we both know that our clock is 10 minutes fast!
Our Christmas was wonderful as well, and it's going to be hard to get back into the swing of things. I have to go into the office tomorrow for the first time in over a week, so that could be really tough.
I hope that you had a wonderful holiday season as well, and here's to a fabulous 2009!
For those of you who may not have picked up on it yet - I'm a HUGE fan of my little boy. Every morning when he wakes up I walk in to find him sitting in bed, sucking his pacifier (don't judge, he'll probably still have it in a year people!) and holding onto his favorite blanket (thanks Nana!). He gets the biggest smile on his face and lifts his arms as if I am the most important thing in his entire world and I have come to save him from the confines of his crib to start yet another exciting day. But then something happens...something changes...the dogs walk in!
Luke L.O.V.E's our dogs. Jeremy and I run a very distant 3rd and 4th place to Kenyan and Cadence. Every morning Kenyan (who in any other situation acts as though Luke is a total burden on his otherwise very busy social calendar of walking around, sniffing things, and sleeping) goes into Luke's room with me to get him out of bed. The minute I lift my angel out of the crib and he sees Kenyan he starts laughing like the Pilsbury Dough Boy. What does Kenyan do to make him laugh you might ask? Nothing. No joke - nothing. He simply walks in, stretches, and sits at the crib waiting for me to life Luke out. Luke cannot control himself! The hands start flapping, the knees start tucking into the belly, the semi jumping while hanging onto my neck occurs. And this is before we even leave the bedroom! I can't begin to tell you the mess that Luke becomes when we step foot in the hallway and he finds Cadence waiting and then watches the dogs waddle down the stairs. It cracks me up every time.
So this past weekend Luke and I were shopping and he kept using the word "dat". I figured it was more baby babble and I continued to hold conversations with him knowing that one day these words will mean something. We then met Jeremy for lunch at McDonald's (I know, big spenders) and Luke and Daddy were looking at a poster on the wall while I ordered. I overheard Luke saying "dat" to Jeremy and smiled to myself at his jargin. As I turned to walk to our booth, Jeremy calls me over and tells Luke to show Mommy where the dog is on the poster. Immediately Luke points at the dog and says "dat". I almost cried! And then of course I had to ask him to show me the dog about a thousand more times.
After arriving home that afternoon I paid close attention to Luke's interactions with the dogs and noticed that he does call them "dat". When they walk by, he points and smiles and says "dat". So I get it, he's not saying D-O-G, but come on...this is big news people! If most kids can get away with pronouncing YELLOW by saying LELLOW, then darnit my baby can say DAT when he means DOG :)
Jeremy took Luke to Grandma and Pop's house yesterday to stay over night so we could enjoy an evening with some of his college friends and their wives. These are the people we used to see every weekend and take vacations with; we now see them once every 6 months....and what in the heck is a vacation?!?! I digress :) I used the time without my little monkey running around getting into everything to put up Christmas decorations. Putting up the decorations, for me, is almost more exciting than any other time of the season.
When I was a child, I would sit in awe and watch my mom decorate our home from top to bottom, making it look like Midwest Living had done a professional photo shoot there. At night I would lie in front of the Christmas tree staring into the lights, and would often times fall asleep, only to be carried to bed later. I'm still the girl who wakes up in the morning and immediately plugs the tree in. Who says it needs to be dark outside to enjoy the Christmas lights?
So needless to say, yesterday was very fun for me! Jeremy watched as I fussed with every branch, every bow, every light. He, during this time, was making homemade peanut brittle in the kitchen...somehow I think we switched domestic roles :) I am still not completely done with the decorations, but the big guns (the tree, the mantle, etc) are done and ready to be enjoyed until early January.
In the spirit of the season, I've posted the album of our Christmas photo shoot a few weeks ago with Luke. Jeremy is still having a blast with his camera, but I watch him get a little more frustrated each time he pulls it out because he can't quite figure out how to make the pictures just a little bit "cooler" like a real photographer. Maybe he'll have to ask Santa for some photography classes this year!
Happy holidays to you and your loved ones!
I received a call from KinderCare, Luke's daycare center, on Thursday afternoon of this past week and was informed that Luke had taken a spill while walking and had cut his lip open. The director wanted to let me know prior to us picking him up and seeing his swollen lip. Jeremy was picking Luke up that afternoon as I had to work late at the office, so I called to forewarn him.
About 3 hours later I received another phone call, but this time it was from Jeremy who gently explained that it was "a little more than a busted lip" and mentioned a possible broken nose based on looks alone, but that he was acting fine. By the time I arrived home that evening Luke was asleep, so it wasn't until the next morning that I was able to see the damage first hand.
Poor little monkey! Yes, he did in fact bust his lip and it was very swollen, in addition to a swollen nose with a bruise across the bridge and nostrils full of blood. Okay, so it was definitely a little more than a busted lip! I called the pediatrician who saw us on Friday morning and did confirm that more than likely Luke's nose is broken. Homeboy is only 1 year old and already he's got a broken bone? I've been around for 30 years and I've never broken anything!
We were instructed to wait it out over the weekend to assess the damage. Apparently three things can happen when a nose breaks...it can break and reset itself, it can break and initially move but then reset itself back to the original position, or it can break and move itself permanently. Obviously we didn't want the nose to break at all, but if it did then we definitely want it to either reset itself immediately or soon thereafter. So that is what we are waiting for! If the nose bleeds, if he can't breathe, or if it continues to swell over the weekend then we have a severe break which will require putting Luke under and resetting the nose manually. No thank you! So far so good over here, though. The swelling has subsided, he can definitely breathe, and it isn't bleeding. Keep your fingers crossed that we make it to Monday with no set backs and we should be in the clear!
On a nother note, when he fell he also ripped that piece of skin in your mouth that connects your top gums to the inside of your top lip. Guess what folks? That is apparently good news! I know, it's weird huh? Apparently that skin can remain very taut and can cause a gap between the two front teeth as you age. Often times this skin has to be snipped to avoid a gap. Crazy! So the silver lining is that little monkey will not have any gaps in his teeth in the near future :)
We'll keep you posted should anything change, but for right now I think I'll just chalk this one up to the fact that our boy is a bruiser!
So I've always considered myself a "little bit" technologically savvy. I can figure things out if I try hard enough without having to read an instruction manual. I can trouble shoot problems with our computer, television, DVR, etc. I'm no Einstein, but I can make my way through some of the simpler issues.
So lately I have been receiving emails that my blog has been updated. Considering that I am the only one who updates this blog, it was a little alarming to say the least. And then I figured out that every time a person leaves a comment on the right hand side of this screen, my blog updates, and then I receive an email telling me so.
So in the last few days I've gotten more of these email updates, and I keep checking the right hand side of the screen and there are no new comments! I haven't updated the blog since Sunday night when I posted a journal entry, so I knew it wasn't that. I sat here this morning at my office just wrecked over the fact that I couldn't figure out how my blog was being updated with no obvious updates in front of me!
As always, before I log out, I have to look through every photo album posted because I love seeing pictures of my family. So I start perusing the albums, and on occasion, in very small type, I see the word COMMENT under some of the pictures. I click on said pictures. People have written comments about some of our photos!
Ok, so 1) I am completely touched, and I love the comments, and thank you to those that wrote them, and 2) I am dumb! Seriously people, it's not that hard. Why was I failing to realize that a person commenting on a photo would set off the blog update alarm? Heck, why was I failing to realize that a person could even comment on the photos in the first place?!? Oh people, just remember...laugh at yourself when you have the opportunity. If you can't, you'll find yourself crying your eyes out. Love to all!
I know that some of my friends get upset with me because I don't post on here enough, or I don't upload pictures from my camera in as quick as a fashion as they'd like (ahem...MOLLY!), but I swear people, I just haven't figured out how to do it all yet. And at times I think I'm crazy. There are definitely people who do as much or more as we do that can keep their houses clean, put hot food on the table every night, and return phone calls to loved ones in less than 24 hours. However, as I look back on our month of October (actually, our entire Fall), I realize that we are extremely busy and maybe I should give myself a little bit of a break :)
In late August, Jeremy and started taking Luke to Aqua Babes on Thursday evenings. Aqua Babes is an 8-week water course offered by a hospital group here in Indianapolis at a rehab/fitness center a block from our house. The water in the pool is an astonishing 90 degrees, which makes the children feel as if they are in bath water thereby lessening the anxiety. In this class, the babies do such things as splash the water with their hands, kick their legs and feet, float on their backs, float on rubber mats, and even go under water! Luke's first class was horrible. He hated EVERY minute of it, and I begrudgingly sat on the side watching Jeremy with him in the water getting angrier by the minute for spending $75. Clearly by Luke's reaction it was money well wasted. Boy was I wrong! Come to find out, Luke was coming down with the worst case of 48 hour flu that I'd ever seen, so boy just didn't feel well. For the remaining seven classes he was a little fish; loving every minute of his time in the water! Pictures are above and are quite sweet :)
Jeremy and I were able to sneak away for a few days to celebrate our five year anniversary during the month of October, too! We retreated to West Baden, Indiana, about 3 hours south of Indianapolis. In the late 1800's/early 1900's, West Baden Springs was coined the "Eighth Wonder of the World" as it housed mineral springs that claimed to bring health benefits to all who drank the spring water. At one point people traveled here from all over the world! I will do no justice to the history of this landmark if I try to tell the story of its life, which includes two massive fires, being sold after the Great Depression for $1, housing a monastery and a college. It sat abandoned for years, and finally in the 1990's it was purchased for a very small amount of money in comparison to the $450M renovation that has since been taking place. I highly recommend that anyone who has the opportunity should travel here! Please note as you look at the pictures in the album, there is a picture of a swastika. The entire porch is surrounded by a gorgeous iron railing with swastika's on every third post. I was appalled! And then I read the small sign that explained that the post was created prior to Hitler, and the symbol (not even called a swastika at the time) represented hope, faith, happiness, life, etc. It wasn't until much later that Hitler chose it as his symbol of Nazi Germany. Who knew?!? This history of this place is amazing!
And lastly, I have posted pictures of Luke's birthday party that our dear friend Molly captured with our camera, as well as pictures of Trick or Treating with neighbors on Friday night. Luke was an adorable pumpkin! He was supposed to follow in the footsteps of the Zeller nieces and nephews and wear the bumble bee costume that has been passed down. Fortunately for all of us, I decided to try it on him about a week ago just in case it didn't fit and I had to buy a costume before they sold out. Thank goodness I did! The bumble bee outfit, while absolutely adorable, is a size 6-9MOS. All I had to do was hold it up to the poor child to realize that while my nieces and nephews were definitely peanuts at Luke's age, he was BORN a size 6-9MOS in comparison to them! And that, ladies and gentleman, is how we became a pumpkin :)
So here we are, November has begun. I started my November running the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon with one of my best friends, Kelly. We've been training together for 12 weeks, running on our own on the weekdays and then meeting very early every Saturday morning to take off on our long runs. We rarely talked when we ran, but the comraderie was wonderful nonetheless. We used this time to mentally relax without our husbands, babies, jobs, etc. We'd meet, stretch, put on our headphones and take off. And at the end of every run we'd give one last sweaty hug and head back into our cars and home to our crazy lives. Saturday was a gorgeous day and we had a great run. We stuck together for the first 10 or 11 miles, at which point Kelly was able to dig deep down and grab some stamina from her toes and take off. Way to go girl, you killed it yesterday! So I ran the last 3ish miles solo, but I still had a great time and Kelly was there at the finish line screaming my name, waving her hands, and jumping up and down. Talk about an adrenaline rush! And I have to say, while I usually don't brag on myself, that I ran this race in 2:07 which is 14 minutes faster than I ran my only other half marathon almost 5 years ago. This mama is proud of herself...and very sore :)
We arrived at the hospital at approximately 4:00AM, and were promptly admitted. Poor Jeremy had to get me checked in, make sure that I was safe, and then had to run home to ensure that I had turned the heating pad off. I was convinced that I had left it on and that the house would catch fire and the dogs would not survive. P.S. It was turned off :)
I was placed in a labor and delivery room just doors away from a woman who had opted out of an epidural and was enduring the pain with nothing but sheer will. No thank you! I was very excited to meet that wonderful anesthesiologist who held the ticket to numbing me from the waist down! The only difference was that the other woman quickly progressed without the delay that drugs often bring, and she delivered her child 3 hours later. Luke was a different story...
Our families chose NOT to listen to us, and did in fact drive through the night to get to the hospital. I have to say that I still tear up just thinking about all of them driving so many miles to sit in a waiting room and do nothing but anticipate the ringing of the chimes. (FYI the hospital where we delivered Luke plays nursery chimes when a baby is born. So sweet!) I was so excited knowing that they were out there waiting, and seeing them shortly after Luke was born was nothing short of spectacular. Jeremy and I both come from amazing families with an abundance of love, and they all showed it that day!
To be completely honest, it was a relatively uneventful day. I couldn't feel a thing, I watched some movies, I slept a lot and the nurses took wonderful care of both Jeremy and I. They kept me posted on our family in the waiting room, and from what I understand they took good care of keeping them posted on us, too. (Although they're still not happy that the ONE nurse who found out what we were naming Luke and would NOT tell a soul!!)
At one point I thought Luke might never decide to enter the world. The progression to 10cm seemed to take forever. And finally, at 9:15PM my nurse announced that I could begin "practice" pushing while we waited for my doctor to arrive. We did one practice, and I assumed she'd then stop me. Boy was I wrong! She took one look at me and said "Well, he's almost here!" Luckily, my doctor arrived very soon after that and exactly 30 minutes and 17 pushes later, Lucas Jonathan Feller entered the world weighing a whopping 9 lbs 3 oz and measuring 21.5 inches long. I'd never known a love so strong!
Every day with Luke over the past year has been nothing short of a miracle. A college friend once told me that her mother used to say that when you have kids, every day is Christmas. I couldn't agree more! No matter how tired we are, he can make us laugh. No matter how bad of a day we've had, he can cheer us up just by clapping his hands.
We had a wonderful first birthday party for Luke yesterday, surrounded by some of our closest friends and family. Not only has Luke blessed our lives beyond words, but our families and friends have as well. Jeremy and I thank God each and every day for every one of them. Thank you to all who made the trip to celebrate his big day :)
Jeremy and I both took a vacation day today to spend time with our little monkey. We had intentions of visiting The Children's Museum, but they are closed on Monday. Bummer! We were fine, though. We went out to lunch and the staff sang to Luke and brought him an ice cream sundae. He got 2 new pairs of kicks at Stride Rite, and a new winter hat, too. We visited some friends at our bank, and our neighbors brought their 3 year old twins over this evening for cake and ice cream. All around it was a wonderful day!
Life has been nothing short of amazing since Luke was born, and this past year has been the best of my life. I can't wait to see what the next year brings! Happy birthday baby Luke, we love you very much!
"Heaven blew every trumpet, and played every horn, on the wonderful, marvelous night you were born."
-"On the Night You Were Born"
It was exactly 7:30PM, a year ago tonight, when my OB/GYN looked at me and said "Jaime, I can keep you here at the hospital and hook you up to Pitocin, or you can leave and labor at home and return when you can't handle the pain any longer". My first question? "What's the difference between laboring at the hospital and laboring at home?" And thus began the very brief explanation that laboring at the hospital meant IV fluids which meant no food. Zero. Zilch. Nothing.
Laboring at home, on the other hand, meant that I could eat; albeit small amounts, but I could eat nonetheless. People, I'm not kidding you when I say that I was halfway to the car before my OB was finished with the sentence. Those of you who know me know that I do not, under any circumstance, give up the opportunity to eat.
I did, however, have one last question for my sweet little doctor. "Dr. Del, do you think this is it? Do you think he's on his way?" And with a big smile she replied, "I can say with almost 100% certainty that you will be back at the hospital within 12 hours".
Jeremy and I decided to stop at Panera Bread for a light dinner on the way home from the hospital. We called our families and told them the situation, asking that they wait until the next morning to leave rather than driving through the night. While my doctor presumed I would be back at the hospital, there was no telling when baby Luke would arrive.
After we left Panera we went to Barnes & Noble where I tried to focus on fun magazines and creative book covers rather than the excrutiating contractions. Jeremy tried reading to me about cars and engines, and I'm pretty sure the look on my face told him to shut up as fast as he could if he planned on staying alive. We left the book store and started to drive home and Jeremy asked if I wanted to go see Mike and Kelly. Hell, they'd just had Izzy 3 weeks earlier, they could certainly do something to keep my mind off of the pain!
Kelly and Mike opened their doors with open arms. They'd gone to Cancun (the restaurant) for dinner that night with our friends Rick and Katie, and were getting ready to start their new nighttime routine with Izzy that they had read about in "The Baby Whisperer". Mike grabbed Jeremy a beer, and he grabbed me the exercise ball to sit and bounce on. I bounced, I walked around their house, I bounced some more. Then Kelly suggested a walk. So Baxter the bulldog, Kelly and I took off into the gorgeous October night and started walking around the cul de sac across the street.
Kelly had walked the very same cul de sac 3 weeks earlier at 3:00 in the morning. We laughed, I cried, she reminded me to breathe, and Baxter pooped in a neighbor's yard :) We returned to our house at approximately 10:00 that night, and Jeremy begged me to try and get some sleep.
I laid down in our bed for approximately 2 minutes until I couldn't handle the pain any longer. I told him to stay in bed and that I was going to head downstairs to labor on my own. I wanted pure privacy. Just me and my baby boy.
I set up a routine. I would lay on the couch with the heating pad, then I would do gentle yoga in the living room, and then I would walk from the living room, to the dining room, to the kitchen and back to the living room. Over and over again. I promised myself I would make it to 4:00AM. I called my mom at 3:30 and left her a voicemail. I talked of the pain, the anxiety, the exhaustion. And before I hung up I said "I'm going to try to make it to 4:00AM before going to the hospital. I love you, and I'll see you tomorrow". I hung up the phone, stood in the kitchen and prayed to God. I breathed. I cried. I prayed some more. Then I looked at the clock. 3:35AM.
I surrendered to the pain. I crawled up the stairs and into the bedroom and woke Jeremy. "I can't do it anymore babe, we have to go to the hospital". And with that, we were on our way...
After surviving the sweltering heat of last weekend at the pumpkin patch, I was convinced that global warming had reared its ugly head yet again. I mean come on, it should NOT be 90 degrees in mid-October in Indiana! You can't even call that an Indian Summer. But I have to admit, I think Mother Nature has finally figured things out and we are officially entering Fall. I love it!
This morning my girlfriends, Kelly, Sandi and I ran 9 miles. We started at 7:30 and it was still dark, though the light was starting to break on the horizon, and the temperature was a perfect 50 degrees. The run felt great. I am so proud of us! And in my opinion, we couldn't have asked for a better morning.
The leaves are turning, and those that have fallen were crunching under our feet. There's something very therapeutic about the Fall. You know it's just a matter of time before Winter pulls in, so you suck up every minute of this weather while it lasts. You pull out the jeans and long sleeve t-shirts, but the heavy coats stay in the closet just a bit longer. You can actually sit on your back porch in the early evenings without feeling like you're in a sauna.
Jeremy and I had the best time on our 5 year anniversary trip last weekend (more to come on that when we get the pictures uploaded), and the weather was great. It was still warm, the sun was shining, we were able to take walks on the resort grounds and sit on the patio in the white rocking chairs. But I was ready for the season to turn, and I am so happy that it has begun! Enjoy your weekends, and I hope the weather in your respective locations is just as good!
Thank you to everyone who has been praying over the past week for my co-worker and friend, Sally. There have been many small updates regarding Sally's condition, but everything finally culminated into some solid information within the last day or so.
Sally is suffering from 2 spinal compression fractures, and many other injuries, but her family and healthcare providers are very optimistic about her recovery! She is making progress much quicker than anyone (herself included I hear!) could have imagined, and that in itself is a huge blessing. She is actually already at home and starts physical therapy tomorrow!
The road to recovery is still long and tough, I'm sure. But honestly, for one second, just think about this...a week ago she rolled her car multiple times in morning rush hour traffic. She was physically trapped inside the automobile and listed in critical condition. And then today my boss spoke to her on the phone! We are all so happy and relieved that this story will have a happy ending.
Thank you again for all of your prayers. I speak for Sally and her family when I say it is very much appreciated.
This past Saturday, October 11, was Jeremy and my 5 year wedding anniversary. 5 wonderful years! We had planned a trip to West Baden Springs Resort in French Lick, Indiana, but we were not leaving until Sunday the 12th. Therefore, Saturday became an open day to spend with Luke!
We'd planned on venturing to a pumpkin patch somewhere nearby as I see signs for them all over. But luckily for us, our good friends the McCulloch's already had the same plan in mind and had picked a patch for all of us to go to!
We met up at Stoneycreek Farms in Noblesville, Indiana, for a day full of fun! Well, actually, it wasn't a day...it was more like a few hours. It was hotter than anything I've experienced in October in Indiana, the kids were getting a bit tired, Kelly was being chased by a bee (and sadly, Izzy girl was stung on her hand) and the enticing advertisements for the Lemon Shake Up's were a big farce! p.s. In the future, please note that when they say Lemon Shake Up they just mean lemonade.
The few hours we spent there, however, were a blast! We watched some serious pumpkin throwing, took a hayride to the pumpkin patch, and snacked on some kettle corn. And the pictures are priceless! Thanks again to Kelly, Mike and baby Iz for the invite. It was all the more fun having your family there :)
Excuse me for having to continue in another post; I did not realize that I only have a specific amount of space to type in!
At any rate, the day started out rough. And then I got to work.
My girlfriend Sally was in a horrible car accident this morning on the way to our office. Her car flipped multiple times on the interstate, trapping her inside. She was immediately taken to St. Vincent's hospital where I delivered Luke, at which point they found that she had suffered a spinal fracture (we are still unsure of the location though we believe it is in her neck) and severe lung injuries. We all feel as though we have been sucker punched.
Just yesterday I was talking to her. Just yesterday she was laughing with me at work and telling me stories about her kids, Jordan and Keagan, and her husband, Shawn. Just yesterday Sally was at work...and today she wasn't.
She was transferred to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis (they must have a better trauma center) and the prognosis is still unknown. (I will update you all when I know anything tomorrow.) Please keep Sally and her family in your prayers.
So I made it through the day OK, just continuing to put one foot in front of the other and on occasion remembering to breathe. I left the office late, I was late to pick Luke up, I remembered that he was out of formula and that we were out of food.
And folks, I flat out lost it. I called my dear friend Kelly, who was celebrating her daughter's first birthday, and proceeded to boo-hoo my eyes out. I'm stressed about work, and about not seeing my son enough, and about trying to make sure that I get all of my run's in for the upcoming half marathon, and about making sure I get Luke's birthday party planned, and about spending time with my husband. I'm getting a sense of deja vu...I am almost positive that I posted something very similar to this a few weeks ago :)
So here it is...here's the question, and the point to the post. Remember the song...these are the days. And they are. This is it people, this is all we get. Each day we wake up, we get just those few minutes, and we hope for more of the same. We put one foot in front of the other. We remember to breathe. We take in the highs and the lows and we put into perspective what really matters in life. We have NO idea when our number will expire.
These are the days...make 'em count.
When I was in high school, I loved the song "These are the Days" by Natalie Merchant. Who am I kidding? I still love that song! Any time I hear it my body is filled with instant adrenaline, I turn it up as loud as I can stand it, and I scream the lyrics at the top of my lungs. It wasn't until today that I realized just how poignant that song really is.
I woke up this morning still suffering from a completely non-alcoholic hangover after returning from San Francisco late Sunday night. 4 days in San Fran, 52 hours of work, little sleep, no working out and lots of horrible food. See where I am going here people? No alcohol, horrible hangover that has lasted awhile.
I also woke up to Luke, which I have not done in almost a week because he has been visiting Nana and Papa and his aunts and uncles and cousins in Chicago. Lucky little monkey has been spoiled! And believe me, I am the last person that will ever mind being woken up by the sweet sounds of my son's voice. But I will also be the first to say that I was instantly jerked back to reality...I am a mother!
It was gray outside; cloudy and gray. I felt as though the weight of the world were on my shoulders based on the amount of items that were waiting for me at work. Is it truly possible to feel tight in the chest based on your to do list before you've even had coffee? Scratch that, I know it's possible, but it surely is not fair! I digress.
So I got Luke to daycare, and for the first time in my child's life I had to sneak out the door while his teacher distracted him. He was a complete wreck this morning. He hasn't been there in almost a week. He misses his Nana. He misses me! And here I was handing him off yet again after just getting him back last night. HEART...RIPPING...OUT...OF...MY...CHEST.
Since the day I met Jeremy he has been talking about wanting to own a nice camera one day. It was obviously never a top priority for us. In fact, the digital camera that I won in a company raffle while working for J&J worked just fine for us for quite a few years! But a few weeks ago, we came across the mother load of savings on a new camera. It was on sale, we had a coupon, AND we had received some extra perks in the mail for being a member of Best Buy's frequent shopper program. How could we NOT go for it? (P.S. We promptly received the answer to that last question when we received our credit card bill in the mail last week!)
So we went for it, and we have been very pleased with the result! I rarely touch the camera. It's one of those things that I know I'll inevitably break just trying to pull it out of the bag. Jeremy, however, has fallen in love with his new toy. We've decided to enroll him in some recreational photography classes this winter so he can gain some actual knowledge behind his new hobby. In the meantime, though, we're enjoying his amateur status :)
Take a look at some pictures he took of Luke a few weeks ago in his Peyton Manning jersey. I know, you don't need to tell me twice, I have one good lookin' baby on my hands!
When Luke was born, my mom came to stay with us for over 2 weeks. In that short time she taught me one of the most important lessons of my adult life - you cannot break a baby. I know, I know, it sounds weird. Pick your jaws up off the floor and read on.
I was a postpartum mess when Luke was born. I would cry when he wouldn't eat for EXACTLY 15-20 minutes because that is how long the books said a newborn would eat. I would cry if he went one second over 3 hours between feedings because that is how long the books said a newborn would go. I literally almost lost my mind when he was jaundice for almost a week after he was born. Sure, it's normal, babies are jaundice. Notice I said babies; I never said MY baby could be!
I remember standing in my kitchen at one point and bursting into tears (yes, it's common for me) and asking my mom what would happen if I went to the pediatrician and she listed Luke as a "failure to thrive" baby. My mom, as calmly as she could, sat me down and looked me straight in the eye and said "Jaime, you cannot break the baby". Let's be honest here, the child was born at 9lb 3oz, were they REALLY going to list him as failure to thrive?
Slowly but surely I came out of my haze and realized that my mom was right (as is often the case). Luke tells me when he is hungry, when he is tired, when he wants to play, when he wants to be changed, etc. He tells me, without words, everything. So it was a matter of learning his cues and Voila! I knew how to do this baby thing.
So here's the real question... I have the baby thing down pat; but can I be a mother? Better yet, can I be a mother while being a wife at the same time? Can I be a mother, and a wife and a full time worker? Can I be a mother, a wife, a full time worker, a friend, a daughter, and a sister every single minute of every single day?
I know that I am not the only woman to ask herself this question day in and day out. It is a struggle to find time to do everything that I need to do. Whoever came up with the idea of only putting 24 hours in a day clearly never walked in a mother's shoes!
As my mom was leaving from her stay with us, she handed me a small package. In it was a beautiful keepsake that reads "Mothers and daughters become closest when daughters become mothers". She couldn't have been more right!
So to all of the important mother's in my life; my friends, my sisters, my grandmothers, my mother's-in-law, please know that I am proud of you and the effort that you make every day to keep your families running. To my 5 close friends that are due within the next 30 days, take my advice and listen to your mother's.
And lastly to my Mom...thank you, and I love you more :)
Those of you that know Jeremy know that he often refers to himself as "kind of a big deal". In fact, he has made this claim enough times that some friends of ours actually gave us a onesie with those same words imprinted on the front just before Luke was born. I typically roll my eyes and blow off this kind of talk from him. Someone has to keep the boy grounded! But I must confess that right now is one time that I think my husband is definitely a big deal.
Jeremy was contacted a few months ago about a photo shoot for the magazine Car and Driver. Don't feel badly if you have no idea what this magazine is, as I hadn't a clue before I met Jeremy. For a reference point, consider it the People of the car world.
Jeremy and his Toyota Supra were part of a feature article that showcased a mix of cars including a BMW M3, Acura NSX, Porsche 911, and Corvette Z06. Jeremy was invited to Gingerman Raceway in Michigan for a day of cars and fun, with the end result being a cover story for Car and Driver.
Also, as many of you know, Jeremy has an addiction for Boss 429 Mustangs and his passion has finally started to gain some notoriety. Jeremy was asked by the head of an elite "invite only" musclecar show to help him gather the most impressive group of Boss 429's ever assembled including one of each color ever produced. The show promoter and president decided to use Jeremy's Boss as the promotional car for this year's show. And much to our surprise, just last week we received a complimentary copy of Old Cars Weekly with Jeremy's Boss on the cover!
I am always very proud of my husband, but this is one of those times when I am EXTRA proud. I know at times I vent about his hobby/passion, but in all honesty I am so happy that he has worked so hard to make some of his dreams realities.
Congratulations babe, and Luke and the puppies and I wish you the best of luck at the show this weekend! All our love, xoxo :)
Anyone who knows me well (and if you are reading this site then you probably know me pretty well) knows that I can be quite emotional at times.
For example, I watched Michael Phelps on MTv the other night and actually cried for him because he looked tired. He made a comment about having not been home since returning from Beijing, and how he really misses his dog, and before I knew it I was bawling out of pure pity for the kid. Nice work Jaime, he brings in multiple millions of dollars a year to pull off this tired look. His life isn’t that rough!
I digress.
So last night I was sitting on the couch watching television and I began to get weepy again (nope, I’m not pregnant people, this is just me). Jeremy asked what I was crying about and all I could muster out was “He’s growing up. He’s not going to need me forever”. And thus began a series of thoughts of all the changes that I have watched Luke go through in the last 10 months.
I realize that more than likely I have spent more time anticipating his “firsts” rather than cherishing his “lasts”. How am I to know when it will be the last time that he wants me to hold his bottle rather than holding it himself? How am I to know when it will be the last time that he lays his head down on my shoulder as we walk from the rocking chair to the crib just before I lay him down? As a parent I go through my days talking about his growth and development, all the while failing to realize that with each step taken forward there is something left behind.
Don’t get me wrong, each day that he does something new I find myself jumping for joy, clapping, and celebrating his every move. All I’m saying is that in life, we all may need to take a step back and learn to watch for, and appreciate, what might be a “last”…
Jeremy was out of town last night so it was just Luke and I hanging out with the puppies. We had a great time (no offense babe)! We stopped at Best Buy and bought a few new toys to go with our Nintendo Wii.
After returning home it was into the stroller and off on a long run! I love running with Luke as he chatters away to whatever toy I have handed him for that particular ride. Last night it was a set of plastic keys.
I used to run with my headphones turned up so loudly that I could barely hear myself think. The music motivated me and before I knew it the workout was over. But now times have changed...now I have much sweeter music to listen to. The sound of Luke's voice can keep me entertained for hours. I typically let him talk for quite awhile before I chime in with my own thoughts, at which point he'll abruptly turn and look up at me through the stroller's plastic window like 'oh hey Mom, when did you get here?' Too cute!
Daddy will be home this evening so I am not sure what is on our agenda. I can assure you, though, that there will more than likely be a little more baby talk :)
Welcome to what I am sure will become my newest addiction :) As I sat in front of the computer this morning getting ready to send out updated pictures of Luke, it dawned on me that I could create a photo site and send just one Web address to everyone. Feel free to stop by any time to see the latest pictures of our family and to read the occasional update on what's going on in our lives. Enjoy!