Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Why I Thought Having a Baby Would Make Me Blog More, I'll Never Know



June has been busy for us. The ironic thing is that we have had nothing to do. I love summer because, as teachers, we have no schedule. Even better this year, because I was on maternity leave through the end of the school year, both hubby and I have had nothing to do (scheduled activities, that is) since mid-May! It's been such a blessing for both of us to be home with Lucas.

The thing is, we haven't really been home. We've been traveling to the big city often and staying lots - we realized last week that as the month ended, we'd spent more nights away than home. It's just that there's more to do in the city - shop, eat, play (I sound like a tourism commercial!) So we pack up our world and traverse the hour or so to visit family and eat decent Mexican food. The down side is that I'm never near my computer to write a blog. I tried on my phone once and it was just too difficult. It also didn't keep my paragraph distinctions, and I can't abide by that.

So here goes a quick recap of June:

Father's Day was epic, if I do say so myself. Mark did so well for me for Mother's Day, I had to attempt to keep up. Here's the thing with us and gifts: Mark is excellent at picking out gifts for people. He just has this knack... I, on the other hand, suck. No, really, I do. I've embraced this fact, and just let Mark do all the shopping when it comes time for Christmas. But this fact means that Mark generally loses out on the whole surprise element when it's his turn to receive a gift. Usually he tells me what he wants, and for the most part he is happy because he gets what he wants and doesn't have to act surprised and happy with the potted hydrangea I got for his office. (Seriously. I did that. See? I told you.)

Happy Daddy's Day!
But his first Father's Day was different. I thought it would be a fun tradition for Lucas to pick out a Lego kit for he and Mark to put together together. Seeing as Lucas is just now developing the ability to hold something, this first Father's day Lego kit would be just for Mark. I got a little Star Wars kit, Luke's Landspeeder, because it had cool characters and wasn't too expensive. (At the time, Mark and I had decided we were going small for Mother's/Father's Day...) Once Mother's Day came around and I was blown away by his gift, I knew I needed to up the ante, or at least call! So I went back to the Lego store and got Luke's X-Wing Fighter... a kit that had been on Mark's wishlist since before he and I met. And then I went online to ThinkGeek.com and ordered him Darth Vader's Lightsaber. I figured, as the father of Luke, it was the most appropriate gift.

I totally win the prize for best wife ever. Not only because I got Star Wars related gifts, but because he never saw it coming.

June also brought another exciting milestone: little man is 3 months old! Which means I have successfully fed my child only breast milk for three months now. This is the most successful I have ever felt in my life. Now, for at least 6 weeks of that three months, I was pumping exclusively, but hey, he got the milk one way or another! One of these days I'm going to post my story of breastfeeding... the whole story, not just the one with the Mexican landscapers picnicking next to my car.

Three months is an exciting milestone because it meant it was time for his first "professional" pictures. That was an experience. My happy child who loves everyone cried like he was being tortured. I hear this is common. What's uncommon is spending 6 hours at the mall to take, choose, and order said pictures. Ugh. Luckily, Lucas handled the experience much better than Mark or I and, with the exception of the 20-30 minutes or so he was the center of attention, nursed and slept quite peacefully. I went into this thing thinking I wanted the traditional 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 12 months pictures framed on the wall. Now my perspective is that I can cover the couch with a white bed sheet as easily as the next guy or gal. At least he doesn't scream at me when I point a camera at him!

It's July. We're trying to stay cool. I'm moving back into nursing full time, instead of pumping and feeding him expressed milk. We are enjoying the freedom of summer and occasionally looking toward the upcoming fall. I will be teaching developmental English classes at the college where Mark teaches. I'll get to work two days a week and stay home the other three. I am so very excited about this - a little nervous, but excited.

Ah... the baby calls. I guess that's all for now!

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