My Twin

Today has been "Mommy gets to do whatever she wants to" Day. It's been great. I'm dreading going back to work one week from tomorrow. I am already in tears about leaving my little guy for 8 hours a day. Ugh. I am also F.R.E.A.K.I.N.G. O.U.T. about how in the world I am going to do all I need to and keep my sanity. I just don't see how I'll ever do all the things a wife/mom needs to do and still work full time while I have an infant. In a week I get to find out.

But in the mean time, I'm spending a day for myself. Haven't done that since before Cooper was born, and probably won't get to again for a very long time. So today I didn't shower until noon and I spent the morning cuddling with and playing with my son, enjoying nursing him and making him smile and coo, and watching him sleep. Among other things, I also finished a book I bought before Cooper was born. Firefly Lane is the first non-baby-related book I've read since I found out I was pregnant. I bought it because it was about a friendship between two girls that lasts their lifetime. It is very "Beaches"-esque. I won't spoil the ending in case any one of you ever decides to read it. The topic of friendship reminded me of my friend, Melodee. You can see a picture of us together last year for Thanksgiving.

Most of you probably don't know I have a Twin. Her name is Melodee Cooper and we met in 7th grade as 12-year olds. We had several classes together, the most memorable of which was P.E. Since her maiden name started with a "B" and mine with a "C" we were always seated near each other when the seating was alphabetical. She had just moved from another state, and I was looking for a friend after going through a very rough couple of years trying to make friends after moving to a new small town. Our friendship sprouted that year almost instantly. I remember the first time she invited me to her house. I was so nervous that we wouldn't have enough to talk about. Well, here we are 18 years later and we're still friends.

We dubbed each other Twin when we were in high school. More often than not we would arrive at school wearing nearly the same outfit without any prior planning. After awhile we just started calling each other "Twin." We have been through so much together: junior high, high school and all its drama, boys, living together as roommates, college, jobs, marriage, trying to get pregnant, and now the child-rearing years. There are SO many memories within those few words I just typed; too many to recount here.

Things that remind me of Mel are: dolphins, roses, leaves, movie quotes, Rush Limbaugh, Texas, yellow station wagons, U2 songs, teachers, and card games. Those are only the first 10 things that popped into my mind. Even though she is my Twin and we have many similarities, we are also very different. That is what melds us together, I think. Mel has always been that friend I could turn to no matter what. She will give me the brutal honest truth when I need it and sometimes when I don't want it, and I love her for it. She is always full of wisdom and good advice. I have always felt lacking in that compared to her. When she needs my support, I don't have that well of inspiration that she seems to have, and I have always hoped that I can offer the same kind of support and friendship she gives me. Our friendship is not one of those high-maintenance needy friendships. Now that we are older and have families of our own, sometimes we talk/email/blog to each other several times a week. Other times it may be several months. But no matter the amount of time that has lapsed, or the number of miles between our geographical locations, our friendship is always able to pick up as if we never missed a beat. Through the years our friendship has gone from a frienship between two young girls who shared their teenage ups and downs, to a friendship between two grown women who share bigger ups and downs with a friendship based on gratitude, faith, and unconditional love and understanding.

Thank you, Twin, for your friendship. Instead of sending you this in a private email, I wanted to blog about you. Besides, you are the one who suggested I start blogging in the first place and taught me Blogging 101. The book I finished reading today really made me think hard about our relationship, and how much I cherish our friendship. I cannot think of a better way to spend a day for myself than with my Twin, even if just through blogging--except maybe to actually spend it with you in person. :)

My other thought lately is that women need women, and thinking about friends only solidifies that thought. There is so much to be had in friendships between women. Here's to all the good friends out there (whether you are one or have one)! If you haven't said hello to yours in awhile, don't let another day go by without doing so.

Cooper meets Brody

This past weekend we drove down to Moreland, GA to visit Brody, our black lab that is training for hunt tests. Cooper met Brody for the first time. Brody was much more interested in the birds and chasing bumpers than looking at Cooper. We sat and enjoyed watching Nathan run Brody through several tests, and enjoyed being outside in the sunny fall weather. Here is the proud pappa with his son and his dog, and a few of Nathan starting Brody off on the training tests.

A Good Day

Today has been an exceptionally good day. I can't quite put my finger on what has made the difference, but I have a few theories.

THEORY #1: Nathan isn't working from home today so I am a lot less stressed about the fussy baby being too loud and disrupting his business calls. Also, the TV has not been on today since Nathan hasn't been home. Perhaps my own lower stress level has made the difference for me, and the quiet house has made it easier for Cooper to sleep.

THEORY #2: This is the bigger theory of the two. First, while I was pregnant I read several books about taking care of newborns, parenting, the best feeding method, the best sleeping method, etc. I was crazy enough at one point to temporarily buy into the theory that you don't need to give your baby a pacifier until afer 4 weeks old. I remember telling this to my younger brother (who has a young child himself) and getting a funny look and a response from him of, "Huh. Good luck." The thought from the American Pediatrics blah blah is that in giving the newborn a pacifier you are allowing nipple confusion, and the baby also doesn't learn to self soothe.

And then on the subject of self-soothing...I read the book BabyWise, which had a lot of really great info and suggestions on how to get your baby to sleep through the night at a very young age. Much of that has to do with teaching them to fall asleep on their own (not having to be rocked, fed, have a pacifier, etc.), and then also giving them a routine. To say the least, I was all gung-ho about this for a few weeks. That is, until we found out Cooper has GERD. I couldn't figure out why he wouldn't self-soothe as the book was saying he should, etc., etc.

Needless to say, after several weeks of going through the 3-hour feeding routine during the day, and stressing about whether I have fed him enough, or whether he has slept enough, or whether he has ate, had awake time, been interacted with, etc., etc., I have thrown most of it out the window. Today was different because I let Cooper eat when he wanted to eat, which is now at a 2-3 hour interval anyway during the day, but I didn't stress about the order of eating, sleeping, and awake time, or if he had been awake or asleep too long. This morning he was awake for over 2 hours, but seemed to make up for it this afternoon. And then I haven't stressed about whether he was falling asleep while eating/being burped, etc., etc.

Bottom line is--Cooper is happier and Mommy is happier. I was able to shower and get ready for the day in entirety (didn't have to give something up today), clean my house, get laundry done, clean out the garage, work on some photos, take the dog for a walk, and still have time to spend with Cooper besides feeding times, and that was all before 4 pm. Now I've had time to blog and still will have dinner ready in time.

I think all new parents have to go through this same process of reading/planning and then learning how to figure out what works and what doesn't for their child. And I'm sure that now that I feel I have it figured out, Cooper will throw me for a new loop. But at least TODAY has been a very good day.

Happy Halloween!

Apparently Cooper was very excited that it was Halloween. He woke up yesterday morning very bright eyed...

And VERY happy!
He was almost in giggles about it.

That is, until Mom had to change his clothes for the 2nd time since he spit up his breakfast and drenched himself before Mom put a bib on him.
He was very worried that she might change his clothes again--a process he does not like.

Then he got really mad when she put makeup on him and called him a cute little giraffe.

Aww, Mom--really?

Just had to get the little tail too.

Cooper decided that being a cute little giraffe for Halloween wasn't so bad after all. He got lots of attention from the neighbors and trick-or-treaters, and had a fun Halloween after all. (He later secretly he admitted to his parents that his favorite part was staring at the porch light every time Dad opened the door for the trick-or-treaters.)

Enjoying Autumn and Cooper

Every day since I came home from the hospital with Cooper it has been a goal to go for a daily walk, if even just for 5 minutes. At first, this was quite a challenge, and I couldn't go far (about 200 feet), nor could I go up/down any sort of "hill." Well, today I set off with Cooper in the baby carrier strapped to my chest, and Lola on her leash and we went for an hour long walk around our neighborhood--down our street, 2 streets over, up and down hills, up the hill to the pool house, etc. I was a little tired when I got home, but not exhausted. The weather was beautifully sunny and warm and we enjoyed our autumn walk.

These are some pictures of Cooper one month old. (I don't have any software on my work laptop to make a slide show, so bear with me...)

Better look quick--Cooper is calm and quiet! What a cutie.

I'm not so sure about this, Mom.

This swing is fun!

Tummy time!

Cooper James--the "b" side. See the red hair? Thought I'd better capture it before it all falls out. He's got a serious receding hair line right now. Hope it comes back in red.

Trying to goo.

Just chillin'.

Side view

I like this game!

Hi, Dad! Mom is playing pat-a-cake with me!

Content baby

I'm concentrating really hard on this pat-a-cake game.

Oh Boy, Mom!

1 Month Old

Cooper turned one month old on Friday, and I have been wanting to blog about it ever since, but life has been a little hectic. Cooper has not been behaving very nicely the last few weeks, but up until now I've had visitors to help ease some of that. Now that I don't have a third set of mom or sister's hands to do house work or take care of Cooper, I have much less time to do things like blog, so I figured even though I didn't get a picture of him to post with this today, I'm going to post anyway while he happens to be sleeping, and then maybe get a picture up in a day or two as time allows.

We went to the doctor today for his 1-month visit. First things first...his head measured at 16-1/2". That's an entire 2" larger than at birth, and puts his head in the 90th percentile for his age! He's so his daddy's son. He's only grown 1 inch longer (21-1/2", or 50th percentile for his height), and it must all be in his head or torso because even though he's wearing 3-month size shirts, the pants are still way too long for his little legs, so he's still wearing newborn size pants. Again, so his daddy's son--all torso, short legs.

As for his weight, he weighed in at 11 lbs. 3 oz. I placed him on the scale, and the nurse looked at it and then asked if I was leaning on it or something, asked me to pick him up and place him down again, and it still showed 11 lbs. 3 oz. The nursed picked Cooper up himself and placed him on the scale a third time and was shocked that that's what it read. Made me feel proud as a solely breastfeeding momma to know my kid is growing well. He's in the 90th percentile for his weight. Gonna be a football player? :o)

Our trip to the doctor today was two-fold; not only was it his 1-month checkup, but I had some concerns. He has been such a fussy baby the last 2-1/2 weeks. I have tried everything and came to the conclusion about a week ago that he must have GERD (Gastro-Esophigal Reflux Disease). I had read about it, had a nephew who had it, and just knew something was not right. Last week when my sister was visiting, she affirmed that his crying was abnormal and that I should call the pediatrician. Today at the doctor my diagnosis was confirmed. Cooper is a GERD baby. He's been put on Prevacid, and I sure hope it helps the poor little guy feel better. It's heart-wrenching to know your child is in pain and that you can do nothing for him. I am so relieved to know this is not normal baby behavior, and that with a little help from medication, I may soon have my peaceful little Cooper back.

On a brighter note, on his 1-month birthday, Cooper rolled from his tummy to his back. Well, he more like pushed himself with his legs. To make sure it wasn't an accident I promptly placed him back on his tummy, and he did it again. No more leaving him alone on raised surfaces! Pretty soon he'll be rolling all over the place.

Last week he also smiled his first genuine smile. Nathan has yet to see it, and it may be awhile before I can catch it on camera, but I have been the benefactor of several genuine gummy grins since then--usually right after I've fed and burped him, before the reflux sets in. The first smile was given to me when I was playing pat-a-cake with him. It's one of his favorite games. Our little guy is growing up. *sniff, sniff, wipe a tear*and then smile :o)*

Camyllie Cabilly

Cooper and his Aunt Camyll

Another of my three sisters came for a visit to see her new nephew, and to visit me and Nathan in GA. We are so glad she was able to come and was brave enough to leave her 8-month old at home with his dad (Thanks Jason!!!). I was just driving home from dropping her off at the airport, crying, of course, and what song comes on the radio...Green Day "Time of Your Life."

Another turning point; a fork stuck in the road.
Time grabs you by the wrist;directs you where to go.
So make the best of this test and don't ask why.
It's not a questionbut a lesson learned in time.
It's something unpredictablebut in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

So take the photographs and still frames in your mind.
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time.
Tattoos of memoriesand dead skin on trial.
For what it's worth,it was worth all the while.
It's something unpredictablebut in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

It doesn't really fit completely, but made me reflect on the last month of having a new baby and having so much family visit and making so many memories--so many mental pictures besides the camera pictures.

While Camyll was here I was feeling pretty good and we decided to seize the day and the one day of good weather during her trip, and get outside. We visited the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, a place I've wanted to visit ever since I moved here, but have never wanted to experience it with my less-than-enthusiastic-about-it-but-willing-to-do-it husband. Finally I had someone who was interested in it too. They had lots of cute fall exhibits with scarecrows and pumpkins, but our most favorite part was the Orchid House. We spent over an hour in there admiring all the AMAZING orchids. I never knew there were so many different kinds. The pictures don't even do it justice.

The next day we had grand plans to go shopping at Atlantic Station, one of the places here in Atlanta, but baby Cooper didn't exactly cooperate (LONG story), so we ended up taking a tour of Atlanta from the car, spending the better part of the afternoon in the car. Life sure changes when you have a baby. At least the car puts him to sleep most of the time. Thank goodness for sisters--we can chat anywhere any time and still have a great time. Having Camyll here was reassuring as a mother, but it was a little weird getting motherhood advice from my little sister. LOL. No, really, I love that I have someone I can turn to for advice who just gets me. Miss you so much, Sis. Thank goodness for phones, texting, emails, and blogs!