What a Feeling!

With my first Mother's Day behind me, I have been asked a lot about how I feel as a mom. I've heard it said that while men become fathers once their baby is born, women become mothers the second they find out they are pregnant. While I can see some truth in that, I really had no idea what it meant to be a mom until Ethan was born. Actually, in all honesty, I think it took me a bit longer that that. The first few days, weeks, even months, are such a whirlwind that they seem almost surreal. Every waking moment is spent in anticipation of the next, second guessing decisions, holding your breath, marveling in the beauty of the tiny creature that you created. I went through a mental checklist every time I scooped newborn Ethan into my arms (1: Wrap the baby straight jacket swaddle, 2: Support his head, 3: Bounce, jiggle, rock, repeat). I sanitized EVERYTHING, and made all visitors scrub like surgeons before touching the baby. I changed my body wash and shampoo to neutral scents that wouldn't offend Ethan's delicate sense of smell, and washed my clothes in baby detergent so that his skin wouldn't be irritated when in my arms. I caught glances of myself in the mirror, babe in tow, and almost didn't recognize myself.

Wow, how things have changed.

I was chatting with a friend the other day while Ethan squirmed on my lap. Instead of jumping up and starting the frantic bounce/jiggle/rock dance, I stayed seated and switched Ethan's position about five times without missing a beat in the conversation. It was then that I was hit with the realization that (while extraordinary) being a mom has become ordinary. Routine. Comfortable. Delightful. I really like this mellow mama version of myself much better. Mental checklists are out the window, except when leaving the house (Diapers? Check. Wipes? Check. Cheerios? Check. Keys? Where are my keys?). I let the dog lick Ethan's face, and allow Ethan to "explore" (ie: chew on) Max's toys. I am guilty of blowing dirt off of a dropped piece of food and popping it back into his mouth. I'll scoop up my non-swaddled, sturdy boy ten different ways, sometimes even *gasp* throwing him into the air or flipping him upside down. I can change a diaper in less than 30 seconds flat. I make baby food. I sing lullabies. I stare in wonder as my little man discovers the world around him. I'd rather be home than anywhere else in the world. Okay, that's a lie, I'd rather be on a beautiful sandy beach in an exotic foreign country, but only if my boys are with me. I know that with each new phase I'll learn and feel something different. For now, though, I can say that I've learned what it feels like to be a mom, and it is incredible.

Punkin' Pickin'

We took Ethan to his first pumpkin patch over the weekend. He 1) had just woken up from a nap and was still drowsy, and 2) is far too young to appreciate holidays, so you can definitely tell in the pictures that we were enjoying it much more than he was. There was a petting zoo with pigs, goats, and bunnies that we observed from outside of the fence (Sarah wasn't sure that she wanted the baby to get too close to the critters). It turns out that Ethan is just as interested in farm animals as he is in Max... he barely even gave them a glance. He'll love that kind of stuff when he gets older, but for this outing he was largely unimpressed. That didn't keep us from having fun with it, though!




In other news from the weekend, we're happy to report that the swaddle-free sleeping is going really well. We had expected to wake up a lot to a crying baby, but Ethan (as always) is sleeping through the night. He's actually sleeping longer than he ever has - almost twelve straight hours on average! Yes, we're well aware that we're spoiled, and are prepared to pay the price for our good fortune with a super fussy baby the next time around!

Where Does the Time Go?

The days have flown by, and our baby boy is already ten weeks old! He's changed so much over the past two and a half months, and we delight in seeing what each day brings. Our favorite development is Ethan's smile - he lights up and it shows all over his whole face, which is so cute! We weren't fast enough to catch the big smiles on these shots, but you can see a glimpse of our happy, happy boy!


He's holding his head up more and more, and is getting super strong. He'll "stand up" and bear his own weight if he has someone balancing him. We recently had to start buckling him into his bouncy chair, as he'll kick and wiggle his way right out of the seat. He's no longer a limp sack of potatoes - our strapping boy is all muscle and solid as a rock. Ethan is very considerate and sleeps for about 10 or 11 hours straight at night, which we know is unusual for his age. We are lucky, lucky, lucky to have such a good baby!

In the last few weeks we've found Ethan at the opposite end of his crib when he wakes in the morning. We're amazed by how he can squirm his way around when he's swaddled and doesn't have use of his appendages. He's also a budding Houdini, and has managed to escape from his Miracle Blanket on more than one occasion. For those of you who haven't seen the Miracle Blanket before, it's essentially a little baby straight jacket, and is as impenetrable as Fort Knox - unless you're 15 pounds of sheer muscle. No blanket can match the brute strength of our little brusier!

Prenatal Massages and Preterm Labor!

Ryan officially goes down in history as the most incredible husband ever! For our anniversary on Thursday, Sarah was surprised with a spa appointment for a prenatal massage. She was able to lie on her belly, thanks to the handy dandy cut outs in the massage table. It's been MONTHS since Sarah has been able to lie on her belly and, though it seems like a simple thing, it was quite a treat! The spa was so relaxing and was the perfect, perfect anniversary gift.

Despite how relaxing the massage was, Sarah started feeling very uncomfortable on Thursday night. When she was still feeling the same on Friday morning she called her doctor, who told her to go to the hospital to be checked out. We headed over to Labor and Delivery and Sarah was strapped up to monitors to see what was going on. We quickly learned that Sarah was having regular contractions that were only 2 to 3 minutes apart! It's still a bit early for the baby to arrive, so she was given an injection to stop the contractions. Though the contractions continued, the medicine did weaken them, and since Sarah was not dilated at all we were allowed to go home. Since then the contractions have tapered off to a much more irregular pattern, which is what we want to see for a few weeks. We officially hit the full term mark on July 5th at which time it would be 100% safe to deliver the baby - hang in there for a while longer, little man! We still have a few stragglers on the birth date and baby name poll, but we'll post the results soon.

Who knows... our delivery date could be right around the corner!

Mommy Update:
- Now knows what contractions feel like and will be that much more prepared when the big day happens.
- Realizes that she and Ryan need to pick a pediatrician soon and pack for the hospital... just in case!
- Cannot believe that there are less than thirty days until our due date (we're going to be parents soon).
- Attended two childbirth classes with Ryan and got to watch him quite skillfully swaddle a baby doll.