Blueberry Pancakes!

One morning when Chef Frank served up blueberry pancakes, we decided to let Frankie try them.  Turns out he LOVES them.  Since he did so well with those, I made him waffles one morning, which he gobbled down with just as much gusto.  Turns out we haven't run across a food this kid doesn't like. 

Outside

A few weekends ago, Frank & I took Frankie to the park for the first time...first time, as in our first time with him.  Maria had taken him to the park two times before.  The first day she told me about it and how much he loved the swing, I was a bit disappointed that I wasn't the first to take him swinging.  Luckily, she had forgotten to take the camera with her so there was no proof, so I figured I could just pretend like it didn't happen. :) But then there was the second time.  And she remembered the camera.  There was proof.  After pouting internally for a bit, I decided that I'm glad Maria does fun activities with Frankie and he's happy with her during the day.  I digress...back to our trip to the park.  Frankie had a hoot on the swing and we even took a quick run down the slide:

Doesn't he look like he's having fun? ;)

Maria picked Frankie up some great toys from yard sales - When we got home after swim class one Saturday, I thought Santa had come to our back porch!  One of her finds was this great slide:

Frankie has fun playing with the toys on the side

Or sliding down (with some help)



Or 'crawling' on it!

Photo Shoot with Mom & Dad

The Virginia Gold Cup horse race is my company's largest marketing event, so as employees we are strongly encouraged to attend.  Since Frank had a state cup soccer game, I was daring and brought Frankie as my date.  He slept the whole way out (almost an hour) and was so good at the event.  We stayed for about three hours and I was incredibly proud of my little guy.  When we got home, we were playing around and had a little photo shoot:

He was eating my face here

My First Mother's Day

According to Wikipedia, Mother's Day is a celebration that honors mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. I decided to spend my first Mother's Day with the women that are the most influential in my life and mean the most to me: my Mom, Grammy, sister and Mother-in-Law. 

Mom, Laura, Jon, Frankie and I drove up to NY early Saturday morning for a small celebration in honor of Grammy's 80th birthday.  I was honestly torn whether to make the trip since it would be so quick and I would have Frankie with me, but when it came down to it, my heart wanted to...for Grammy.  As soon as we arrived, we feasted on cold cuts (rolled ham!) and other treats at Grammy's and then headed over to Uncle Mike's to celebrate Grammy & Grandpa's birthdays. 

Happy Birthday G&G!

Laughing with Grammy

Laughing with Grandpa

After a Mother's Day breakfast at the Pinky Diner, we hit the road back to VA where I was surprised with a steak and lobster dinner made by my loving husband AND Georgetown Cupcakes...12 of them!  (I did share.)  I just realized that I didn't take any pictures of the dinner or the cupcakes.  Probably because neither stuck around long enough to be photographed. ;)  And before Frankie went to bed, he surprised me with a necklace I had wanted with his initial on it.  Pretty darn good first Mother's Day if you ask me.   

Pearly White

Laughing with Daddy on the changing table before bedtime

It's hereeeee...Frankie's first tooth, that is!  We were a little caught off guard since it was his top, left tooth that broke through first.  Part of my nightly routine involved feeling and looking at the bottom of his mouth, but last week, sure enough, we caught a glimpse of his first pearly white.  It looks like the top, right is trying to break through next.  Kind of weird that he is getting his top teeth first, but after doing a quick Google search, I was assured that, like everything else, not all babies cut teeth in the same order and it in no way is an indication of potential future teeth issues.  Phew!

 

Is he sleeping through the night?

Inevitably when people talk about infants, the topic of sleeping through the night almost always comes up.  It's one of those first questions you are asked..."Ohhh...How old?  Is he sleeping through the night?"  And I have to say...No.  Urgh.  For the past few months Frankie has only been waking up once during the night which means most of the time I am able to get a 5 hour stretch of uninterrupted sleep.  Not quite a restful night's sleep, but also a far cry from waking up every two hours.  After a quick nursing session, he's back down and I'm back in bed in no time.  Around 5 months old, Frankie started sleeping until 3am...4am...5am...and even twice he's recently slept until 7am!  A straight 11 hour stretch for him!  You've shown your hand, kiddo.  We know you can do it...Now Mommy & Daddy just need to put our game faces on and stop going in for that one wake-up to teach you how to consistently sleep through the night.  I said I was going to wait until Memorial Day weekend to attempt cutting off the nighttime feeding, but I think I'm dropping the hammer this weekend instead.  We'll see how it goes.  I'm expecting some CIO but I really don't think it should be too bad.  I hope.

On Your Mark

About one week before hitting the 7 month mark, Frankie started getting up on all fours.  He also started scooting backwards on his tummy and turning in circles and just this past week he's begun rocking back and forth while on his knees.  I'm pretty sure all of these signs mean our days are about to get even busier, chasing this little guy around the house! 

Friday, 4/27

Here I come!

Swim Class!

Registration for spring session classes through the county opened back in March.  March 14th at 8am to be exact.  I had it marked on our calendar and had a game plan to ensure we were able to register Frankie for swim class.  Hey - Waterbabies just so happens to be a HD class.  No, not high definition - high DEMAND.  I knew from my Mom's Group that we couldn't mess around and needed to be ready to click "Register" at 8am on the dot.  I may have done a small celebration dance when Frankie got into the class. ;)

April 21st was his first class and Daddy went in the water with Frankie while I was on paparazzi duty.  Thankfully, Frankie seems to be a true waterbaby and loves the pool!  He was all smiles and kicked and splashed his way through the first session.  The second week, both Frank & I went in the pool with Frankie and took turns 'swimming' with him.  He's definitely the youngest in class but of course, the most talented - I predict that he'll be a pro at the breaststroke by the end of his sessions in June. ;)

"You mean, I get to go in that huge bathtub and play??"

Kick, kick, kick!

Back in the Game

Frank and I talked about it well in advance...We had known for a long time that I would take 6 months of maternity leave to spend with Frankie. A half a year off from work. It seemed like an eternity when we planned for it. However, I'm pretty sure those were the fastest six months of my life. After Christmas, I remember thinking, "Wow - Four more months off with Frankie - Great!" Then somehow January flew by and we were starting to look for a nanny. There were tears. There was doubt. There were more tears. There was more doubt. "How is anyone going to comfort Frankie like I do?" Then in February we found Maria and she started in March and proved to be amazing. Time for me to start venturing out on errands to get used to being away from the little guy. I felt like an irresponsible parent. "I have a nanny watching my son so I can go shopping." Little by little, I started spending more time away from the house during the day to get used to being apart from Frankie. Then somehow April snuck up on me and it was go-time. In the days leading up to my return to work, I told Frank that I thought I was coming down with something because I was sick to my stomach. Turns out that I was healthy...just worried sick about leaving my little guy, about returning to work and juggling being an amazing mom and an amazing employee, but most of all, I think I was completely sadden that my special time with Frankie had come to an end. I was hard on myself thinking that I hadn't cherished that time enough - Wishing that I had used a more 'attachment style' of parenting. To me, my return to work meant that my little baby was growing up. I kept reminding myself of a quote by Dr. Seuss: "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.” I am truly thankful that I was able to take 6 months off from work to spend with Frankie. Those were some of the hardest but happiest days of my life. How can I look back on them and not smile?

When the day finally came for me to go into the office, it was Good Friday and I only had to go in for a brief two hour meeting. I called my mom in tears on the way there. How was I going to pull myself together and be professional? I hoped that no one would ask me about Frankie for fear that I would break down and cry...in the office. But then something strange happened...When I stepped out of the elevator onto the 4th floor and was buzzed into my office, it felt good to see the faces of my co-workers. It felt good to have business discussions. It felt good to be at work. And people asked about Frankie and instead of tears, I bragged about him like any mom would. I walked into my office building terrified but walked out that afternoon with confidence. Confident that I could do this.

The following week would be the true test. 8 hour days away from Frankie. But I survived my first full day. And Frankie was all smiles when I got home. He probably didn't even notice how long I was gone. Then I survived my first full week. Then the second.  And you know what? It's now week 4 and I'm doing pretty damn good at both of my jobs.

Happy First Easter

Frank and I have thoroughly enjoyed hosting Easter at our house for the past two years, but this year when Laura graciously offered to host, we quickly accepted!  The three of us traveled out to Stephens City on Saturday afternoon after brunch with the McGarr's and Kleins - with a pit stop at the metro to pick up our cousin, Stacey.  The weather was gorgeous both days, but unfortunately Saturday was a bit too breezy to enjoy our BBQ dinner out on Laura & Jon's beautiful new deck/patio - But I'm pretty sure the burgers and dogs tasted just as delish inside! :) After church on Easter morning, we went back to Laura's house to uncover treats that the Easter Bunny left behind...I think one boy in particular may have been a bit spoiled by the bunny.

OMG - All of this is for ME?

After an amazing Easter dinner spread, we packed up and headed home just in time to get the little guy in bed by 8pm.  I headed to bed early that evening, too, in preparation for my FIRST WEEK BACK IN THE WORKFORCE!  (More to come on that...)