I Kinda Like Him

In three days CJ will be three months long. I am starting to like him. Yes, from the moment he was put into my arms I have loved him, but now, he's getting fun. He laughs and smiles and plays. He will actually look at the book for a moment or two while we are reading. I think he has even started watching the movement of the TV screen which is fun, but also means I am trying to keep it off more. We had a friend's two-year-old daughter over for a visit, and she was watching Sesame Street. CJ was in his swing which does have a view of the TV. When Elmo's World came on, I swear, he turned his head and watched the whole thing. He even laughed. Here are pictures.




























 He is also really in control of his neck and loves to sit in the Bumbo chair we have thanks to the Layous.

He definitely wants to be part of it all, always preferring to be on someone's lap if we are eating than playing or swinging by himself. We make have to get a high chair just to keep him happy, not for eating.

Our one real hurdle has been Coltrane's development of one highly stuffy nose. I spend a good bit of the day holding him down so I can shoot him up with saline and suck all the gunk out. It's very pleasant for both of us. Really. I am usually a winter fun kind of a person, but I hope Phil doesn't see his shadow tomorrow if it means an end to the nose fun.

The pregnancy is motoring along at full speed. I have started to pop out a little and the weight gain is going at an alarming rate. I think I felt the baby move this weekend, but it could have been a muscle spasm. I am on the look out. If we get to know the gender, it won't be until 32 weeks at the next ultrasound. 2.0 wouldn't cooperate last time. 

Life is good. We are really enjoying being parents, even the rough patches like last night. My only complaint I can think of at the moment has to do with baby and kids stuff. I cannot believe how much the kid industry pushes gender stereotypes. EVERYTHING is "boy" or "girl". Even white socks are label as boy socks and girl socks, and they always seem to work a flower on something for a girl or a truck on something for a boy. It's absurd. However, that is my only complaint, so I go back to the beginning of the paragraph.

When I realized that I'd adapted to parenthood . . .

This morning, I had a particularly astute observation. I did my normal thing, up at 5:00, walk the dogs, feed the dogs, workout, shower, dress for work. As I was getting dressed for work, Duffy mentioned that Coltrane hadn't pooped the previous day -- now, he's been sniffly, sleeping a lot, and not eating as much as normal -- all things leading to the fact that he was likely fighting off a cold, and the lack of poop wasn't particularly worrisome.

So, I go to work, and get a text from Duffy as I'm in the middle of a meeting -- big poopie diaper. I realized that I had actually graduated to "father" when these were not the first thoughts that went through my head:

1. Ewwww!


2. I'm glad I didn't have to change that one

My first thought was "what did it look like - is he exhibiting signs of illness?". And, then I realized that I'm actually thinking like a father, & not just a guy who suddenly has a kid in his life.

The Holidays

November and December of 2009 may have been the busiest months of our lives. Coltrane arrived at the beginning of November along with the news of Baby Batzer 2.0. Right after Thanksgiving Auntie Alex or Tee Tee got married to BJ (not Meathead. At least one of your nephews will respect you, BJ. Then again, is BJ a whole lot better? ;-) ) Then, of course, it was into full Christmas mode. CJ made out like a bandit. Seriously, it took me two days to get all the presents out of packaging and the clothes all washed. John got  a lot of clothes too along with a new XBox game to unwind with. My highlight gifts were a Kindle (so sweet), and the promise of costume made maternity clothes from Yiayia. Seriously, the clothing industry apparently believes that women under five foot, especially curvy ones, should go naked during pregnancy. And, as usually, we got to spend a lot of great time with family and friends. It was truly amazing to finally have our baby for the holidays. Nothing was missing this year. That was gift enough.

Double the Trouble

Just to make us a perfect cliche, we are expecting a biological child in June. We will be finding out the sex sometime in February. We will keep you posted!

We've Survived a Month

We've been parents for a month, and the little guy is still alive and, dare I say, happy and health. We see his peepers more and more every day, but sleeping is still taking up the majority of his time. When he is awake, he takes watching the lights on his bouncy seat very seriously. He is also already used to doggie kisses. (The dogs were also essential to answer the doctor when he asked if CJ startled.) And never in my life have a met a more vocal baby, not in the crying sense. He's quite the squeaker.
With more awake time, we have started reading stories. So far, The Hungry Caterpillar seems an early favorite. Snuggle Puppy not so much, mostly because it means I have to sing. Even at a month old, the kid knows what music is supposed to sound like.
We managed to get the Christmas tree up this week, though it took two tries due to parental exhaustion.

Sleep, More Precious Than Gold

CJ sleeps a lot. Except at night when we try and put him down. Then he pretty much won't sleep unless he is being held. I have spent a couple nights on the couch. Last night, I tried to make it back to the bedroom. It was a lot of up and down until I fell asleep with him in bed, yes, I know, a mortal sin these days. But he slept for almost three hours that way, so call me a sinner.
Otherwise, he's agrowin', getting fatter as he sucks down bottle after bottle. He's still not much for keeping his eyes open, but we see them more and more each day. Right now, he's being mesmerized by the lights and music of his bouncy chair. Here's some homecoming pictures.

In the Beginning

It has been a long, hard journey for John and me to parenthood. Five years to be exact. It has all been worth it. Note that statement down as our kid is only three days old, and I might just change my mind somewhere along the way. Right now we are sitting in a hotel room waiting for the states of Delaware and Pennsylvania to OK our trip home to PA. So here are some pictures to start the show. If you want a more detailed account of Coltrane's arrival, go to The Unknown Zygote. Cheers!