I'd like to make a reservation for the insane asylum, please

Bret, why won't you sleep at night anymore? Your schedule has not changed, you sleep in the same bed every night and your food is the same, boring milk every day. You're not sick, you're not congested. You spoiled Mommy by getting up once a night for the past 3 or 4 weeks. Now Mommy is used to sleeping again. So, what gives? Mommy figures you're ready for cereal to keep you fuller at night. She feeds you cereal and nurses you before bed. Why do you still get up 2 hours later? Mommy loves you but you're new sleeping schedule is going to send her far, far away. When Mommy is grumpy, she takes it out on Daddy. Poor Daddy.

I honestly have no clue why Bret is being a brat......When he had a cold the nurse told me that when he recovers, he'll nurse a lot to kind of make up for being sick. Ok, well that's 2 weeks ago. Now what's the reason?! Any advice???? Because I'm seriously going to go insane. He woke up at 12:30am then again at 3:30am then again at 6am. I feel like we have a newborn in the house again.

1. Sick of shady government; 2. Bret - of course :)

You know, I really don't like it when Jeopardy! is interrupted. I especially don't like it when I have to listen to how government officials are liars, cheaters and no-good-pieces-of-crap. Detroit's mayor is no different. I always said he is a thug in a nice suit. Check this out: http://www.clickondetroit.com/scandal/index.html

Bret is doing well with the cereal. He started off with a few spoonfuls then cried. He takes a few more with every try. I give it to him around 9am then again at 5pm with a short nurse afterwards. Plus, I've incorporated a nap schedule too. I put him in his crib after the 9am and 1pm feedings whether he's asleep or not. Even if he sleeps for 1/2 hour only, it's better than nothing. After he gets used to the cereal, I'm going to thicken it up a bit more because he still woke up twice last night. He may be going through a growth spurt.....It's been 5 days already!!

We're meeting up with some family tonight to discuss/plan our NYC trip. I can't wait!! More about that later. No plans for this weekend. Jason really wants to get back to finishing the basement. He's almost done framing - kind of got slowed down because we decided to put a 1/2 bath down there. I give him a lot of credit - it's a lot of work to do by himself. I kind of think that it's a stress reliever for him.

Here are some more pics of Bret. He'll be 4 months old on Saturday. "Thank you Auntie Karen for the hat. I love it!!" I don't know what got him so excited, we were just going grocery shopping. LOL

Mr. Sandman - Metallica version

Ever since I got pregnant, I've had the craziest, strangest dreams. Some of them have been so bad that I've woke up crying. Last night was a bad one.

I dreamed that Bret was getting long, random hairs growing out of his head (like in patches). His pediatrician said that that was a symptom of skin cancer. The DR tested him and me and I had skin cancer and was passing the disease to Bret through my breastmilk. Later in my dream, I found out that a guy I worked with was lacing my coffee with a carcinogenic white powder.

How f'ed up is that???

C is for Cereal

I am pretty sure that Bret is ready for cereal - or at least I am. Our Sunday night ritual starts at 7pm with a bath, then eat, then rock for a bit before I put Bret into bed. He usually gets up again around midnight to eat then sleeps until about 6 or 6:30am.

The last few nights have been very different. Last night he woke up at 10:30pm acting like he was starving so I fed him. Then he woke up at 12:30am. *I have never asked Jason to get up with Bret during the week because he has to work, but I did ask him to get up last night* At 12:30am, Jason had to change Bret because he had peed through his diaper. Sorry Jason. Then Bret woke up again at 3:30am - hungry. Now I know he eats pretty well and if you've seen a picture of him, you know he doesn't miss many meals. I am pretty liberal with nursing during the day and Jason will probably say that I nurse him too much. Now that Bret is going to be 4 months old, this waking-up-more-than-once-in-the-middle-of-the-night crap has got to stop!!

I am going to start him on cereal this weekend. Why wait? Because I want to see if there is some pattern to his waking and to discuss it at his next wellness appointment (next Tuesday). Which, by the way, will be his first round of shots :( I am so dreading that day.

Anyway, I think Bret is telling us that he's ready for some "food". Mommy and Daddy are ready for a full night's sleep!! LOL

Anniversaries and such

Firstly, I want to say happy anniversary to Jason. It's been 4 fun-filled, trying, crazy and wonderful years. Love you, babe. We kind of cheated this year.....Every anniversary we order a sample of our wedding cake (white w/ strawberry filling and devil's food w/ raspberry filling; two separate cakes). Well, Bret and I were out yesterday and I decided to pick up the cakes a day early.....Needless to say, half of the two cakes are already gone. YUM!

We bought Bret an Exersaucer (Baby Einstein Discovery) and I think that he's still a tiny bit too young for it. When I put him in it, I have to put a little blanket behind him so that his arms can reach the toys. He looks at each toy and smiles; touches them but really doesn't know what to do yet. He seems to like it but has a short attention span. Plus, he's still a little bit wobbly while sitting / trying to stand in the seat. When did your kids start to really engage in toys like that?

Not too much planned for the rest of the week. As far as I know Sunday is the only day that's really planned for stuff. I have a bridal shower to go to in the Detroit area. Jason and Bret are coming with me to hang out at my aunt's house while the girls do their thing. At least it's going to be decent outside! Yay :)

We're in the process of planning Bret's baptism. It's unofficially scheduled for April 6. I've always wanted his outfit to be made out of my wedding dress. Do I go to a tailor for something like that? I don't even know who to contact and time is running out. Maybe that's something I can look into over the weekend.

Happy Friggin' Valentine's Day

"Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies" - Aristotle

I never really liked V-Day, but I'll partake in the mushiness for everyone else's sake.

I swear I'm not a complainer, but I have to vent

Jason and I took Bret to the DR yesterday because he couldn't stop hacking on Sunday, which made him puke up every feeding. I was afraid that he'd get dehydrated, or worse, pneumonia.

The DR said that he just has a bad cold - nothing serious. Suggested that we elevate the head of his mattress, give him short and frequent feedings and make sure he wets at least 3 to 4 diapers in 24 hours.

So far so good. He's kept down some food; although he pukes up phlegm still. Hopefully he'll feel better by the weekend since I'll be by myself. Jason's going snowmobiling to Paradise.

Not much planned for the rest of the week since it's so frickin' cold. Actually, I shouldn't complain because it's not as cold here as it is in MN. BRRRRRR

I can't wait til spring. How many times have you heard that from me already??

Winter blahs

I don't know who is more sick of winter, Bret or me. Today has been very challenging for a new mom like moi.

Bret didn't sleep very well last night - he woke up at 11pm then again at 3:30am. When he woke up at 7:30am, he didn't eat very well. Soon after, he peed and pooped through his diaper and up his back. Then while I was changing him, he decided to spit up A LOT on the clean onesie I just snapped up. The subsequent feedings today have not improved. His spit up (more like phlegmy puke) has caused me to change him three times so far and go through a few wash clothes and burp clothes to clean up the mess. He doesn't have a fever but seems to be extremely irritable. He didn't take a morning nap and his afternoon nap, which is usually about 2 hours long, was only 1/2 hour today. Holding or nursing him calms him down but he's so heavy that I can't hold him all day like when he was a newborn; and I don't want to nurse him too much because of effects mentioned above. Right before I got frustrated with his whining and groaning, I put him in his swing and thankfully he has fallen asleep. I don't know what his deal is today. Maybe he's just sick of looking at me all day :) I strongly believe that he's got teeth coming in because I let him gnaw on my finger until I could take the ticklish feeling anymore and he seriously went to town. *Yes, I washed my hands before I put my knuckle in his mouth*

Winter sucks. I want to be able to go for walks and entertain Bret at the playground.

What else can I do to entertain him until the weather breaks? I think he's bored with all his toys, swing and aquarium gym. I'm still trying to get him to roll over but he doesn't seem to realize that all he has to do is shift his rollie-pollie butt to one side. He rolls half way then doesn't know what to do. I keep swinging his leg over but he still hasn't done it on his own. I know, I know he's only 3 months old.......Thank God tomorrow is a new day.

Weekend pics

I love his puzzled look! LOL

Mommy was the photographer; daddy was the entertainer

Fun weekend

Spending time at the cabin this weekend was fun. The snow was beautiful (from inside, of course). I really miss Houghton. Anyway, Bret and I played inside while Jason went snowmobiling for a while. It was great spending time with my two boys and not have to worry about laundry, dishes, etc.

I've noticed something a few days ago. Bret has been drooling a lot - like strings of drool from his mouth to the floor when he's on his belly. He's also been sucking/gnawing on his hands. Could he be getting teeth this early?! He hasn't had a fever or even felt warm and he's been sleeping fine. My friend's son got his first tooth at 4 months old so it's possible. Who knows.

We're getting our first family picture taken tomorrow. Still haven't decided what to dress Bret in for the pics. I'm not going to go overboard by bringing several outfits. He's only 3 months old for God sake. Maybe I'll be psycho mom for his 6 month or 1 year pics.

Spent last night with friends for the Superbowl. I realized that there's a lot of kids around when we get together!! There were 14 adults and 9 kids (all 5 and under)!! It was fun.