Repenting...for the moment, anyway

I've been laughing at myself lately. Before Seth was born, I used to get SO FRUSTRATED when my friends' blogs turned into blogs about their children. As cute as they are, I was not interested in looking at 15 pictures of some kid sitting like a blob on the couch.

HOWEVER, my tune has definitely changed now. I LOVE looking at pictures of your kids, especially if you happen to have a baby near Seth's age--I love comparing babies (which has given me a slight complex. Ask my mom). And, as you've probably noticed, Seth has completely dominated our blog since the day he was born. On a related tangent, he's also the reason we didn't send out a Christmas letter. It's hard to fill an entire letter with "Seth rules our lives with an adorable iron fist."

Basically, I'm empathizing with those of you who are actually here to read about me and Jon and are forced to read about our kid. So, in an attempt to remedy this situation, here's what we are up to:

JON had a four day weekend which ended (sadly) today. It was SO nice to have him home. I wish I could say we were extremely productive, but we weren't. I did get him to chop off the end of the curtain rod so it will fit in our window, and got him to hang up his posters and No Loafing sign in his office. But he spent 90% of the weekend working on his Carcassonne game on the computer. So far he's created a peg game, Fill or Bust game, Sudoku solver, Boggle game, and Monopoly game, but Carcassonne has been his biggest challenge. I tried to take a picture of his screen, but he insisted that I wait until it's done. So instead I took a picture of him trying to explain the coding to me. I really do try to understand, but it's over my head. My husband is so smart.

He starts a new rotation today on the Edgewood side of the APG. He's very excited about it--hoping that they'll actually keep him busy (and doing something he loves). I can't remember the acronym, or I'd tell you where he's going. He can fill it in later. I really hope he ends up enjoying this. He still hasn't LOVED any of the places he's worked so far, so maybe this is the one!

ME: Yes, my life still revolves around my baby (who is STILL sleeping at 8:20 am! Dang it, I should have gotten in the shower. But then he would have woken up, of course). But I did get my scrapbook caught up to January 2005. That's right--in scrapbooking years, I've almost officially met Jon! This is actually a huge accomplishment, considering how many pictures I took while in Nauvoo (Winter 2004) and living with Val (Summer and Fall 2004). Just 4 more years to go...grr...

The rest of my life is basically Seth, piano teaching (I have 10 students now), and church. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed, but I really do enjoy it. I have a hard time (being the extreme homebody that I am) when my schedule for the week is full--I'd much rather have nothing to do, because then I get to hang out with Jon all I want. But once I'm actually at whatever activity I'm supposed to go to, I have a really good time. I really have nothing to complain about--my life is wonderful and I'm so blessed to be able to stay home with Seth.

SETH: Yes, he gets an update, too. His pictures are cuter, anyway. He's become a fabulous eater and has moved from rice cereal onto squash (thanks, Dad Blood!). We were so busy with our various projects this weekend that we looked over at Seth and this is what we found:He was dead asleep. No whining or anything beforehand. He slept for a good 20 minutes and then woke up and started jumping like he'd never been asleep. Very funny. He also experienced his first snowfall (he was asleep during the last one we were home for). We took him outside and Jon couldn't even get him to touch the snow. Absolutely zero interest in it.

As for Seth's official graduation from Cry-It-Out University, I'd have to call it a success. Not a stunning success, but a success nonetheless. He's officially pacifier-free, except when we're trying to get him to sleep during church. Church sure messes with little people's schedules... He'll (usually) sleep from 8pm to sometime after 4am, then eat, and sleep until 7:40 am. I can totally live with that. He takes two or three naps depending on how tired he is (and sometimes one if he screams through his morning nap). I'm feeling much better about life.

My only concern is that he now nurses to sleep. As in, he falls asleep while nursing, I put him in his crib, he wakes up, cries for a few minutes (usually) and then sleeps. Bad habit? Probably. But it works. And he still has to soothe himself to sleep, so I'm okay with it.

We still have naps when he screams for 40 minutes before falling asleep (usually on Sundays or Mondays, right after church has messed up his schedule), and sometimes he still wakes up at 2 am for no reason, but things are much better. So, of course, now he will start teething and throw it all off again. Kids are great, aren't they?

Already?!

So yesterday when Seth started screaming in pain in the middle of his rice cereal dinner, we finally shoved our fingers in his mouth. And guess what? Tooth #1 is in. We really had no idea before then--he hasn't been fussy at all.

I would consider us lucky, but last night was no fun. We finally gave up and fed him some baby Tylenol at midnight (we don't have any Orajel, and it was way too cold here yesterday to venture out). Then he slept until 5:30 am, but now he's crying instead of napping (which usually isn't a problem in the morning). So teething could be fun. Loads of fun.

I was so not ready for this yet. :( We'll put up a picture once the tooth is actually visible...

Official Stats

At 6 months old, Seth weighs 18 pounds, 5 ounces. He's 27 inches long, and his head is 46 centimeters in circumference. Which basically puts him between the 50th and 75th percentiles for everything.

His pediatrician was very impressed with his walking ability. She spent the whole time trying to get him to smile, with absolutely no success (it was naptime). He did whine tremendously for her, though. She says his teeth will be in soon. Joy...

Luckily for us, the weight gain has slowed. Maybe we won't have to buy another carseat... But now I can't complain about how heavy he is. At least not as loudly.

SLOW DOWN, Dang it!

Yesterday our little monster man (who is currently screaming in his crib instead of sleeping, which is what he REALLY wants to be doing) turned 6 months old. And I am not happy about it. I'm not ready for him to grow up. I like him just the way he is, with the rather large exception of sleep issues. I'm trying to savor every moment because they're going by so quickly. But then again, he is getting SO much more fun as he grows older.

6 months is a big milestone for Seth. First, he's learned to actually jump in his jumperoo--and enjoy it. (Pardon the video--it was originally taken sideways and is now stretched).

Thank you, Grandma Mikesell (aka Mom), for his jumperoo! He loves it, and there are very many nights that dinner would not have gotten made without it.

He's also had his first taste of "real" food. His initial reaction was priceless. I did NOT want to give him real food--it makes him seem too grown up--but he was getting so hungry that we had to. He's doing much better as of yesterday. There was some actual eating and not just drooling...

He also got his first haircut. I know this is rather early for a haircut, but we couldn't stand the greasy-old-man-combover look any longer (which is featured prominently in the video above).

Seth after:

It makes him look older. :( And trying to cut a 6 month old's hair? Not fun. Or easy.

Seth's greatest skill acquisition, however, is walking. That's right--our 6 month old is walking. We have no idea where he picked this up. Now he doesn't want to stand anymore--just walk.

Other developments include the words "do", and "da", forgetting how to roll over, and learning to sleep without a pacifier. Sleep training officially ends on Saturday--I'll give you the full update then.

And yes, he's still screaming upstairs. And I'm not going to get him because he needs this nap!!

Seth has skills

(I realize this is terribly late. We got sick just after this and couldn't compress the videos until now)

Happy 5 month birthday, little monster. It's hard to believe that you're getting so big already.

In lieu of a boring list, this month we have video proof of Seth's new skills.

Skill #1:

Ta-Da! Seth rolls over. Tummy time is now officially pointless.

Skill #2:


Let's try that one again...


Seth can (mostly) sit up on his own

Skill #3:

Seth can pretty much grab whatever he wants. Like the camera

Skill #4:

He sings like a nightingale and can put himself to sleep (provided the pacifier stays in his mouth). You can't tell from the video, but he was dead asleep right after the camera cut off.

Other skills (not caught on video):

Smiling and laughing up a storm

Grabbing eyes, mouths, and noses--preferably those of other babies

Some consonant sounds--I've heard a few "gagaga"s

Scratching. And scratching, and scratching, and scratching.

Down to one feeding at night (and 2-3 pacifier trips, darn it)

Actually jumping in his jumperoo

Attacking the baby in the mirror and the Warcraft characters (when Daddy lets him get close enough to the screen)

Wearing 6-9 month clothing, size 3 diapers, and almost grown out of his carseat. Stinker.

Stand without support, provided he actually holds on to the couch/crib/parent

And we're still going...

This is what your child looks like after 3 days of attempted (and failed) sleep training:

Poor, exhausted, little guy. But if you think he went right to sleep that night, you are
DEAD WRONG.

This is basically just a record so I can keep track of Seth's progress (or lack thereof).

Night #3: I can't even remember. He screamed, that I know, but I can't remember how long. Then we didn't hear from him until 5:45am. So here I am thinking we've at least got the nights figured out...HA!

Day #3: Nap #1--he falls asleep after 15 minutes of crying. Nap #2--he screams for 1 hour, 45 minutes and falls asleep just as I'm about to go get him.

Night #4: Falls asleep in Jon's arms, wakes up when placed in crib, then screams for 30 minutes before falling asleep. Wakes up at 10:45, screams for 30 minutes until I go put his blanket back on him. Wakes up AGAIN at 3:30. Screams until I go feed him at 4:30. What a long, stinking night.

Day #4: Nap #1: screams for 30 minutes, falls asleep for 45. Nap #2: screams for 20 minutes, then sleeps for THREE STRAIGHT HOURS. A miracle.

Night #5: Another miracle--screams for (seriously) ONE MINUTE, then sleeps until 3am. Eats at 3, wakes up at 6:30 (and I do NOT go get him) falls back to sleep after 10 minutes, up at 7:30am.

Day #5: Nap #1--screams for 15 minutes, falls asleep, and then gets woken up by the wind. Proceeds to scream for an hour until I get him. Nap #2--cries for 10 minutes, then falls asleep.

I've decided that the reason this is so hard for Seth is because he was seriously addicted to that pacifier. As Jon says, Seth had trained himself to wake up at night so he could tell us he wanted his pacifier. Now he has to train himself to go back to sleep.

And THANK YOU, Sommer, for the tip about 2 naps. Seth is just at a terrible sort of in-between phase. He seems to need about 2.5 naps (3 is too many). He's also about ready to start solid food (he's getting hungrier earlier), and he may have a tooth coming in. Joy.

Basically, I've been saying lots of prayers. 10 more days, that's all...

"This looks like it could, quite possibly, pass as a pacifier. I think I'll give it a shot."

Sleep Training?

Please, someone tell me that this is normal.

Night #1: Seth screams for 1 hr, 45 minutes before falling asleep until 6am (hallelujah!).

Day #1: Seth only sleeps in his dad's arms. He screams for an entire hour when put down for a nap in his crib.

Night #2: Seth cries for two hours straight. Mom gives up, picks him up, nurses him, and walks him until he falls asleep. Once again, we don't hear from him until 5:30 am. So at least the nights are going sort of well.

Day #2: Seth cries for 3 minutes before falling asleep for nap #1. He screams for an entire hour during nap #2 (until I go get him). He's currently working on screaming through nap #3. So basically, my child has only slept one hour today.

Has anyone else dealt with this? I thought things were supposed to get better--that he'd cry a lot the first night, then a little less. But he just can't soothe himself. And I don't know what to do. Even when I rock him, he screams. He'll fall asleep while nursing, but only for 10 minutes or so.

I know it's only been two full days, but someone PLEASE tell me that this will work. Otherwise, I'll just deal with a pacifier forever.

Christmas with the Bloods

Holidays with the Bloods are always exciting. Any time you have 10 kids, 2 parents, 4 spouses, and 3 grandbabies in one house, there's bound to be a bit of insanity. This year we were short two people--Stephen is serving his mission in Spain, and Aaron is in Chile. The rest of us, however, crammed ourselves into the house and tried not to wake each other up with our crying babies.

It was fun to see Seth interacting with baby Megan. He's at the stage where he LOVES other babies (particularly their eyes and mouths), so it was lots of fun to watch them together. Megan is so adorable--she smiles, laughs, and makes little cooing noises all the times. She's also an incredible sleeper, which did NOT rub off onto her cousin. Watching her made me realize that Seth really is a serious baby. He smiles and laughs, but most of the time he is just studying the world around him VERY intently. He is his father's child.

Just before Christmas we woke up one morning to find Scott & Mary's room abandoned. Mary, who was due just afer New Year's, had started having contractions and decided to head back to Charlotte. Although the contractions stopped before they got home, it was a good thing they left. Baby Rebekah made her debut on Christmas Day, about the time her parents had originally planned to head home.

On Christmas Eve we reenacted the Nativity. As the youngest boy, Seth got to play Baby Jesus (which made me Mary and Jon Joseph). He didn't cry during his big performance, but he did give some incredibly manly grunts which were completely unscripted. But, since he is adorable, his fans didn't mind. They still mugged on him as much as ever. We finished the night by singing some carols around the tree. And no, Seth didn't sleep well that night. Or any of the nights we were there (except the one night Jon & I were up late--then he slept until 6am, the punk). My mom just thinks this is such poetic justice--I was a terrible vacationer as a baby.

Christmas Day was nice and relaxing. Wendy and I were the first ones up, thanks to our children. We dressed up our babies in their matching "Baby's 1st Christmas" onesies and snapped away. I love the second picture--Seth is totally grabbing Megan's thigh. She's well on her way to becoming a chunk just like him.

Eventually we got everyone into the living room to open presents (this is harder than it sounds with so many people involved. Getting a game started is even worse). Everyone was quite spoiled--me, included. Dad Blood bought us this fabulous bread machine, and I am SO excited to try it out. Seth was spoiled (again). He especially loved his bear from Grandpa & Grandma Blood.

We spent the rest of the day lounging around, watching each other play on the Wii. It was a lovely Christmas.

Pre-Christmas Preparations

Before we left for West Virginia on the 20th, we managed to have a few little Christmas celebrations of our own.

First, the ward party on the 13th. I spent the first half of the party dishing up food for the youth to serve to everyone. Despite what you may think, this was actually pretty fun. We have a good group of kids. We had a good time socializing--we really, really like our ward. Before we left I joined the other new moms who butted in front of the Primary kids to get pictures with Santa. As you can see, Seth was thrilled. At least he didn't scream... The only downside to the evening would be the passing along of the stomach virus. For some reason it makes me feel better to know that Jon didn't get it from me.

Despite our plethora of illnesses, I was feeling decent enough to attend my students' first piano recital on the 18th. Bente was kind enough to let us use her home (and to let us in the house once I promised not to breathe too much on her family). The kids did so well. There were a couple who didn't practice like they should have, but the rest were SO good. I want to take credit for it, but that goes to their parents and themselves. I wish I'd gotten a picture, darn it.

On the 19th Daniel & Wendy drove down from New York to spend the night before we caravaned together to West Virginia. Before they got there we had Seth open a few presents from the Mikesells (so we didn't have to haul them around). Let's just say that he is one extremely spoiled baby boy. Being the lame parents we are, we didn't actually get him a present from us. We used the money from the Carnahans to buy him a booster seat and called that his present. How awesome are we?

Our drive out was nothing short of miraculous. Seth made it over 4 hours without eating, which is amazing for my son who screams for food at exactly 3 hours past his last meal. Baby Megan (2 months old) did awesomely as well. We had a nice lunch/dinner at Texas Roadhouse before finishing up the last two hours of driving.

I think I may be crazy...

Jon's at a Stake Priesthood Meeting tonight, which means I'm all alone listening to my baby scream his heart out. Why? Because his cruel parents officially decided that sleep training has begun. Which means no more sleeping in his pimping chair, and no more pacifier. If there were some way to keep that dang thing in his mouth, I'd let him have it, but it's just impossible.

I can't really say if he's making any progress. The poor kid has completely lost the capacity to soothe himself, so this is really rough on him. He screamed for an hour and 45 minutes last night before falling asleep, screamed for an hour at nap time this afternoon, and is currently finishing up hour #1 of screaming tonight. So are we bad parents? During the day I don't think so, but after listening to him scream (not just cry, SCREAM) for so long, I feel horrible. We're giving it two weeks--if he's still screaming after that I guess we'll just let him sleep in his chair with his pacifier forever.

In the meantime, I'll try to distract myself by updating our blog. Poor Chubbers...