margaretyagan

I’m getting closer and closer to sleeping through the night.  Dad woke me up before I got hungry enough to cry.  Mom and I didn’t leave the apartment today and we didn’t have any visitors.  It was actually a completely and totally uneventful day, except that I entertained mself for 40 minutes on my activity mat while Mom talked to one of her colleagues from work.

Amazingly, I slept until 5:30 before waking up for my bottle.  In fact, Dad kind of forced the issue by waking me up, since he liked to leave for work by 6.  There go my crazy parents thinking I’m sleeping too much again.  Sheesh.

So, as you may recall, I hadn’t pooped since Sunday (day 55).  Mom asked Dad to call the doctor to figure out when they should start worrying, and indeed he called and left a message first thing in the morning.  All morning goes by and my bowels are clearly the only thing on Mom’s mind.  While I napped after my 8:00 breakfast, Mom surfed the web, trying to figure out how worried she should be about my non-poop.

And to make matters worse I really didn’t feel like eating much.  I mean, not to get too graphic, but when you have four days of, um, processed food, in your system, it gets kind of backed up and whatnot.  Anyway, I barely ate at 11, 12, or 1:30 and Mom’s stress level was on the rise.

Then, at 2:30 pm on Thursday, May 08, 2008, the unimaginable happened.  I was sitting on Mom’s lap when Mom noticed that I was starting to move my bowels.  Mom’s a smart one and she immediately starting moving toward the changing pad.  In the past, Mom has had helped me out by changing me mid-poop.  So she was standing by, at the ready.  By the time made it the five or so feet from her desk chair to the couch, there was a ring of poop visible through my clothes around my belly. 

Mom quickly made a detour and headed straight for the bathroom and she set me on my little bath sling in the bathtub — with my clothes on.  Mom’s plan was to first wash me with my clothes on (so as to get the poopy outfit off of me so that she could give me a bath).  But before she could even turn on the water, she realized that no amount of clothed bathing would get all of this poop off my onesie.

So, drastic times call for drastic measures.  Mom spread a receiving blanket on the bathroom rug and put me on the floor.  Mom ran out of the bathroom and brought in wipes, two diapers, and … scissors.  Like me, you’re probably thinking, “scissors?”  Mom then cut me out of my onesie! 

This surgical manuever succeeded in getting the onesie off me without having to pull the poop-stained clothes over my face, but it left a trail of poop all over my stomach, back, legs, and arms.  Mom then changed my diaper and used about a dozen wipes just to get me clean enough to get back in the bathtub.

So, that was my day.  I hung out with Dad in the park while Mom went to yoga and then Uncle Marty came by, but nothing compares to letting loose four days’ worth of creamy, smelly, runny poop!

I woke up much earlier than usual last night – around 2:30.  I had a quick bottle with Dad and then fell asleep until 6:30.  I had breakfast with Mom and then slept until 9:00.  Not to bad to get almost 12 hours of sleep with just a couple quick feedings.  I fussed and played and napped pretty much all day.  I know, hard to believe I live such an exciting day.  The big excitement was that Dad and I danced for almost an hour to an eclectic collection of songs from albums starting with the letter ‘A’ (e.g. Achtung Baby, Ah We Nos, and Alterno-Daze).

There are few things I thought I’d share with everyone today:

– I’ve got another poop issue.  It’s been over seven weeks until my last poop debacle – one that ended up requiring a call to my pediatrician.  Well, I haven’t pooped in the last three days.  My belly is so huge, both because I’m eating a ton and keeping it all in.  Mom’s starting to get worried.  I have a feeling the doctor’s going to get a call tomorrow! 

– I’ve made progress toward a couple big milestones today and in the last day or two.  First, I’ve learned how to fall asleep on my own and done it twice (not in a row, but hey)!  I’ve blogged about the many times that (mostly) Dad brazenly put be in my bassinet before I had falled sound asleep.  As soon as he would put me down, I’d wake up and start crying.  Yeah, it still helps if Mom or Dad helps me calm down a bit first, but I have proven I can definitely do half the job on my own.

– There have also been a few times when Mom or Dad has put me down on my activity mat while I was screaming my lungs out and I’ve managed to stop crying and start amuse myself with the various shiny noisy objects in my gym.

– Fellow babies beware: my mom has a trick to calm me down that almost always works!  No matter how loudly I am fussing, if Mom turns on the running water (I prefer the kitchen sink or the shower, but the bathroom sink is ok, too), I almost always quiet down right away.  I also usually succumb to an elevator ride (or when I was in Chicago, walking up and down the stairs). 

I fell asleep a little after 10.

Ho hum.  I woke up at 4:00 for my overnight bottle with Dad and then fell back asleep until 7:00 when I got up for breakfast.  After eating again at 8:45, Mom and I went for a long walk (and one that Mom would later regret!).

We walked across the park to Walgreens, to pick up a free 8×10 picture of me (enter code 4MOM to get a free 8×10 photo at any Walgreens!).  While there, Mom continued her attempt to buy baby fingernail clippers.  It didn’t carry such a thing, but a clerk referred us to Cherry’s Children’s Drug Store which had exactly what we’re looking for.  Then we walked back across the park while Mom talked on the phone with an old friend from high school.  We stopped by Mom’s doctor’s office to sign a form on the way home.  As soon as we got home Mom cut my finger nails — I really prefer the clippers to the old file that Mom used to use.

Within an hour of getting back, Mom really started to regret the outing.  See, the pollen levels were really high and Mom has really bad allergies.  The rest of the day was not fun for poor Mom.  I hung out while Mom showered and then she gave me my bath, which was fun as always.  I spent the rest of the afternoon napping, playing, and fussing.

I thought I was going to get quality time with Dad in the evening because Mom planned to go to yoga class, but moments after she left came back, having misunderstood the schedule.  Dad seemed pretty distracted watching the election results come in, but he still found time to play with me.  We also had some technical difficulties with the blog, keeping me from getting this post up on time.  I turned in a bit early, just after 9:00.

I woke up around 3:30 for my overnight bottle.  Well, I didn’t really wake up, actually.  Mom woke up Dad as soon as I started whimpering and by the time Dad got my bottle ready I had kind of fallen back to sleep.  So, I pretty much mailed in the feeding, never really waking up fully enough to eat a lot.  I ate about half what I usually do and went back to sleep.

So my day was pretty boring, so I thought I’d update everyone on the state of my hair.  I’ve gotten many comments as I’ve gone through my good and bad hair days over the first eight weeks.  On day one, in the labor and delivery room, Mom started the rumor that I had curly hair.  Not so.  Then, once I was a few weeks old, my hair starting falling out and I was definitely going down the balding path (with the exception of the hair on the back of my head, which threatened to give me a mullet).  In the last week, though, the rest of my hair is growing in pretty nicely.  Mom estimates that it’s about 1/8 of an inch long.  The official color so far is dark brown.

I didn’t leave the apartment until about 5;15, when Mom was heading out to yoga class.  We met Dad in between home and the studio and I got handed off.  The plan was for us to head back home, but Dad was inspired by the beautiful day and we went and hung out in the park instead.  It was just beautiful.  Instead of settling for a not-really-grassy area like he usually does, Dad walked me all around the park until we got to the Sheep’s Meadow where we found a big area of lush grass all to ourselves.  Dad and I hung out and sang for a while, but eventually I just wanted to sleep.  We met Mom after her class and headed home.

My big accomplishment for the day was calming myself down.  I had started screaming a bit while sitting in Dad’s lap at the dinner table.  He put me down on the activity mat while he went to wash his hands and by the time he got back to me, I was staring intently at the singing star in my gym.  He was astonished and Mom was pretty impressed, too.  I did some tummy-time, took a quick nap, had a bedtime snack, and turned in around 9:45.

I woke up at 4:00 am (definitely seeing a pattern here) and had a bottle with Dad.  It went really fast, again.  I like these new glass bottles and new nipples because it’s easier for me to get all of the milk out.  I always had to leave a bit in my old bottles.  I fell back asleep and then woke up at 8:00 for breakfast.  I played for a bit and then ate again around 10:30. 

 So, it turns out that Mom didn’t get home until 3:00 am (!) last night, so Dad made a point of trying to get out of the house with me so Mom could catch up on some rest.  At 11:15, Dad and I went to Starbucks (after dropping a load of laundry in the washer).  He worked on his computer and I pretty much just napped.  We stopped by Barnes & Noble to pick up some thank you cards on our way back home.  We got back at 1:30 and I ate lunch.  I was pretty fussy all afternoon.  Mom went to get a pedicure around 4:30 and I Dad gave me a bath.  It’s definitely getting harder to clean in between all of my fat rolls!  Then I had play-time with Dad until I fell asleep during tummy-time.

After Mom and Dad had dinner, the three of us played, sang, and read together.  It was good old family time.  I ate again around 9:30 and turned in for the night at 10:00. 

I woke up at 4:00 and Dad got up to give me my overnight bottle.  It was by far the most efficient feeding ever — I gulped down my bottle, burped, and fell asleep in 30 minutes.  I got back up at 6:45 for breakfast and then since Dad was just starting to wake up, Mom put me in bed right next to Dad.  Dad and I played around for a while until Mom joined us for family time!  After a quick snack, I did some tummy-time before a bunch of Mom’s friends from college came over brunch.  First Aunt Ali came by as she has almost every week that we’ve been in New York.  Aunt Kaley came with her and they surprised us by bringing turkey sausage from the farmer’s market.  A few minutes later, Aunt Bridget & Aunt Sarah (no, a different college friend from the one who came last week) joined us.

I started out with Aunt Bridget who held me while she ate brunch (and I slept).  Then everyone took turns holding me.  I decided to let everyone hear how loud I could scream, but I succumbed to the swaddle-strategy and fell asleep in under 1 minute, having just been screaming at the top of my lungs mere seconds earlier.  Everyone left and I ate again.  Then we got all packed up and met Eric and Kim, friends of Mom and Dad.  Eric is now the principal of the Ilinois Math & Science Academy, where my parents met.

We met them in the lobby and walked to the Boat Basin Cafe where there was an IMSA alumni event.  While we were there I met a bunch of nice people, including Suzyn, Vanessa, Seve, Matt, Jennifer, and Dr. McGee.  We couldn’t stick around too long because I was getting hungry again, but it was nice to meet so many people, especially those who were at IMSA while Mom and Dad were there.

I got back and had a snack with Mom and then Dad and I went to Whole Foods.  This is the first time I’ve ever gone grocery shopping with just one of my parents.  Dad carried me in the Bjorn, but also brought my stroller.  At first I was confused, but it definitely came in handy to push back all the groceries.  I hung out a bit and then had dinner with Mom.  Then, for the second night in a row, Mom left us all alone!  She went to hang out with all the girls who came to visit us earlier in the day.  Dad and I, again, had to fend for ourselves.

We had all kinds of play time — singing, swinging, tummy-time, and activity-mat time.  Then Dad gave me my good-night bottle.  I just kept wanting more to drink and Dad just kept giving it to me, adding to my bottle three different times.  I had probably drank over six ounces of mil.. — blllllllllllreaeeeechhhhhhhhhhhhhh — when I spit up.  This wasn’t a garden-variety spit-up, though it would have been enough to irrigate a garden.  Dad’s forearm was covered, as were his shorts and tee shirt.  About 3 square feet of floor were also covered with my spit up.  Come on, Dad, you should have known better.  Mom never would have fed me that much!

After spitting up I felt a lot better and fell asleep for the night.

I woke up at 4:00, and again no bottle!  I ate with Mom and then fell back asleep uptil 9:00!  So, I slept for 11 hours with only one interruption.  Now that’s impressive.  After breakfat at 9:00, Mom and I sang, walked around, and played on my activity mat.  I took a nap, ate, and fussed for a while while Mom showered. 

Then I wasn’t really feeling too hungry, so I got Mom all worried because I ate tiny little snacks at 12:45, 1:45, and 2:15.  I had my midday poop, did more activity mat time, and then took a nap before eating a real meal at 3:30.  Dad surprised us by coming home early — around 4:15.

Dad offered to take me on a walk both to get some quality time with me and to let Mom get some time to herself.  He decided to try the Baby Bjorn again, even though I resoundingly rejected it last weekend.  Dad put it on and strapped me in.  It was a lot more fun this time around!  It was a bit cold outside, but Dad had on a big red sweatshirt that he zipped up over me in the Bjorn. 

Not surprisingly, I fell asleep almost immediately.  (Unfortunately, he also had a zip-up sweater on which my face pressed against when I fell asleep.  I woke up with zipper marks all over my face!)  We walked all over the neighborhood, stopping by Starbucks, Bed Bath, & Beyond, Duane Reade, and Barnes & Noble.  All we bought, though, was kleenex for Mom.  Finally we got back home and I ate dinner.  Then, I couldn’t believe my eyes when Mom got all dressed up … and LEFT!  Apparently tonight was “Girls’ Night Out” for Mom and her posse.  So, just like that, Dad and I had to fend for ourselves.  I hung out with Dad — tummy-time, goofing around, etc. — until about 9:00 when I had a bottle (brand new glass bottles!).  I fell asleep for the night around 9:30.

A little over six hours after I fell asleep, I woke up for my overnight snack.  For the second night in a row, Mom got up to nurse me instead of getting a bottle from Dad.  It’s so much more work for me to eat with Mom — bottles are easy-peasy!  I worked so hard eating that I didn’t want to fall asleep too easily, so Dad got up and rocked me back to sleep before hopping in the shower and taking off for work.

After an hour of “noisy sleep.” Mom moved me from my bassinet into bed with her.  I had breakfast at 9:00 and then Mom gave me a bath before taking a shower herself while I hung out in the bathroom.  I played on my activity mat before eating at 11:15, 12:00, 1:15, 2:15, and 3:00 — with just enough time in between to fuss a bit, sing a bit, and nap a bit. 

I learned two new action-songs today.  What’s an action-song?  The Hokey-Pokey, for instance.  The song is really just a set of instructions!  We also sang “If you’re happy and you know it.”  Well, we had to edit the song a bit, since neither Mom nor I can really clap our hands when she’s holding me, even if we know we’re happy.  And, anyway, how can you be happy and not know it?  If you don’t know you’re happy, are you really happy?

Then I played in my bouncy seat before falling asleep for a nap and then having a snack at 5:00.  We had plans to have dinner with Uncle Mac at 6:30, so I got dressed up and got ready to go.  We met Dad and Uncle Mac down in the lobby and went to Raku for sushi.  The waitress kept touching me and admiring me, which was cool, except I was trying to sleep!

We stopped by one of Mom’s favorite places, Magnolia Bakery for dessert on our way home.  I had supper at 9:00 and then fell asleep at 9:30.