Max-isms

Max makes funny sounds. Here is a list of the most heard sounds in our house now (this is kind of an expansion on one of Chris's earlier posts):

• Grunts - specifically, grunting while he is feeding as though he is enjoying the most delicious smorgasboard ever known to man.
• Squeaks - if you move him and he doesn't really want to move, but doesn't feel like protesting too much, he will make a grunty-squeaking sound.
• Farts - really loud farts - most often louder than those emitted by the other human or canine inhabitants of the household. Today, he let one loud enough for Scully to look up and over at him (and she's usually the main offender).
• Crying - of course, he's a baby, he's going to cry. Most times they are benign protests indicating that he is hungry, or needs to have his diaper changed, or that he doesn't want to be burped or needs to be burped. Sometimes he can really get worked up and wail an ear piercing cry that could wake the dead. When he emits tears along with the crying, it's particularly heart breaking.

Other Max-isms that aren't really sounds but that are particularly amusing:

• Arm waving - I swear if he had feathers and could get his other arm to work in conjunction, he would take flight.
• Head weaving - when he thinks he's hungry, but really just wants to play around, he will weave his head from side to side with his mouth wide open and kind of make an "ah ah" sound. This is particularly most amusing at 4am.
• Kicking - This boy could give Beckam a run for his money - he's got a power forward kind of kick that feels particularly good on the gut.
• Combo - this is a combination of all three. Again, particularly amusing at 4am.

Max Week 3

Here's the slideshow of Week 3 pics.

Inventions

So, in trying to manage life with an infant, I've come up with some inventions that would be pretty handy. These are just a couple - I've got more but have to try to remember them! If anyone decides to capitalize on any of these, please make sure I get a cut.

Roomba Rumbler - This is an infant safety seat attached to a roomba vacuum cleaner. Particularly helpful for colicky babies, you can strap them into the seat and the vibration and sound of the Roomba will help to calm them.

Burp cloth holder - attach one side of velcro to your shirt (or nursing bra strap, or belt/apron) and the other side of velcro to a burp cloth. That way you can just attach the cloth to your clothes rather than set it down each time you go to change diapers. Keeps you from having to get up and search for it when you need it most. Also keeps the burp cloth from falling onto baby when you lay him down.

Mommy apron - similar to a tool belt - keeps all your necessities handy. Will hold the tv remote, cell phone, cordless phone, burp cloth (see idea above) so you don't have to try to reach for any of them while you are nursing. Also keeps them handy so you don't set them down and have to search for them later.

faves of week 3

Some of our faves from week 3, slideshow will be posted over the weekend.

plus 21

It's hard to believe Max is already 3 weeks. He has changed so much in that time and continues to change daily. He is becoming more alert, when we put him on his play pad he has started reaching for items himself. He is also holding his head up more and more on his own and for longer periods of time. He'll be holding it up on his own before long.

He is also becoming more expressive. One of them is the furrowed brow. It's similar to the look I have when I'm pondering something. Max already does this and I hope it is only because of gas.

There are many things to learn as a new parent. Though they lack language, babies are adept at letting you know their thoughts and needs. Within a few days you learn the cues. Of course the big cues are the cries and there is a discernible difference between say the I'm hungry NOW cry and the I'm taking a dump that could choke a grown man cry variety. Max's hunger cry consists of a loud wale where he opens his mouth wide and immediately closes into the tight frown of an old man who is bitter with the world. The working one out cries are really just like the ones grown ups have, we've only learned how to mask all sorts of discomfort better.

Max is also noisy. He grunts, groans, moans and coos. He hacks like Bill the Cat. You learn what these mean quickly. He moans when he's feeding to let us know he's happy and like the milk. He grunts when he's trying to do something, like hold his head up of reach for something. He hacks and grunts all the time. Seems like he will be an expressive child. The other night he was screeching like Axl Rose in the " you're gonna dddddddddiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!" breakdown of Welcome to the Jungle. Good thing rock singer/musician is on the list of approved future endeavors.

Max's Second Week

We survived week 2. Max is wonderful. These are mostly shots from around the house.

Max's First Week

Here's a slide show of Max's first week on the planet.

Max thowring a tantrum. Can't you almost hear him?

Thoughts on the week

Hard to believe Max is already 16 days old. We managed to survive our first week without extra helpers around, got sleep a couple of nights at least, I got the breast pump to work correctly, and Max gained some weight (he's now 9lb 7oz). All in all, I'd say it was a successful week (*knock on wood).

I've always been able to envision bad things that could potentially happen. For example, when I'm using a box cutter to open a package, even though I'm being careful, I can still envision the cutter or my hand slipping and me slicing my finger open. Thank goodness it hasn't happened, but I still see it in my mind. I'm now like that with almost everything I do with Max and I can't tell if I'm bordering on neurotic, or just being cautious to make sure my "vision" doesn't really happen. Placing him in his baby bjorn carrier and bending over to get the laundry out of the dryer, I envision a strap breaking and him crashing into the dryer - so I keep an extra hand on it just in case. Walking down the stairs with him I'm terrified I'm going to miss a step or slip and go tumbling down and won't be able to keep from squashing him. I'm going to be a wreck when he gets older and starts climbing things like Chris did as a kid.

Max has changed so much in the last week or so, it's amazing how fast it all happens. He has started trying to hold his head up, on his play mat he actually hit a couple of the toys with his fist this morning, and his umbilical chord stump fell off in the wee hours of the morning. I find myself torn -wanting this period to last forever - while he lets me know when he is frustrated or unhappy, he can't talk back, he can't run away, and he's completely dependent upon us - which is a nice feeling. On the other hand, I can't wait until he starts to interact with us a little more!

Life before Max

For anyone interested, you can visit our old blog site at http://jcfoery.spaces.live.com/

That gives you a little info about our lives before Max and the months leading up to his arrival.

Thoughts on pregnancy, labor, birth

So, as I was preparing for childbirth, I learned a lot about stuff that happens during the whole process - stuff they never tell you about in sex ed, or in conversations with other moms. I'll save you the gory details, but suffice it to say that there are just a lot of uncomfortable things that go on that really seem like they will be a lot worse than they are, but that if you knew them upfront you may well never want to have a child.

One thing I always did hear was that all modesty goes out the window when you get pregnant and have a child. Boy, does it ever. Never in your life has your gynecological status been such a topic of conversation. When in the hospital and in labor, you are exposed for anyone in the room to see. Granted, the doctors and nurses have to see what's happening down there, and you can't see what's going on so it ends up being "out of sight, out of mind", but you are still keenly aware that you are naked and vulnerable and positioned in a very un-ladylike manner.

After the birth, you are placed in a teeny tiny room that barely has room for your bed, much less a couple of chairs and visitors. There are nurses and doctors coming in every few hours to take your vitals and check your uterus and ask you if you are passing gas (at least that's what they ask you after a c-section). Then, once you begin to adjust to all that activity, they send in the lactation consultant.

Ah, the lactation consultant. First, it's just kind of a creepy profession. Think about it, someone who goes around from room to room in the mother/infant area and shows a new mother how to nurse her child. That's a lot of breasts.

So, our lactation consultant arrived on day 4. I was trying to nurse Max and he was latching on, but I didn't have much nurishment to give him and was feeling like an overwhelmed and empty fire hydrant. My mother, Chris's mother and Chris were in the room and this somewhat creepy fairy-godmother ish, rotund woman comes in to observe how my son was nursing. She tries giving helpful little hints and tips and then shows me how to express milk. First, she brings out this little stress ball that was covered in a two-tone crocheted cover meant to resemble a breast and nipple. She uses the model to show me where to pinch and massage then asks, "may I?". She then proceeds to do the same thing to my breast. I look at Chris and he is mortified.

She leaves the room to retrieve the breast pump - aka modern day torture device. Keep in mind the moms are still in the room. She brings in this machine, shows me how to position the suckers on my breasts, turns it on and tells me she can't stay for the whole session. She leaves me there - both hands holding the sucking devices, completely exposed from the waist up and somewhat freaked out. To add insult to injury, because my hands were full I could not reach the button to turn the pump off after the requisite 15 minutes, so Chris's mom had to come over to turn it off for me.

At the end of the day, Chris remarked that that day would have been a good one to stay home if you had a penis.

home with max

We have been home for a week now. Max is settling into his schedule and routine. We are fitting in with his as well. Here are a few pictures from the last few days.