Today is day 3 of Mercer’s diarrhea. (I finally looked up the spelling – but I really don’t want to say the word.) Todd’s been in Asheville for the past 2 days but is about to come home. I'm tired of the look of the D word, the smell of it, getting it on me occasionally, getting spit up on, etc. I should stop - shouldn't I?! It just seems like everything is bothering me more than normal. I’ve been feeling pretty crummy for most of the day and starting to get really blah quite frankly. There have been a couple things today, however, that have been highlights.
Early in the day – after Mercer’s medicine and feeding – I tried to put him down for a nap. He has been getting irritable and cranky when tired for the past month or so (I guess that's his "norm" now). Usually we can get him to go right to sleep, but not today... it took me close to an hour. By the end of that hour, I was starting to get tired myself, so I took Mercer to our bed and laid down with him in my arms. I stared at him. He stared at me. Then he broke out giggling. It was adorable. I was SO tired and a little frustrated, but how could I be upset at that amazing giggle?! It completely lifted me.
This afternoon, I was scanning tv for something to watch. I don't normally watch Oprah, but ended up catching most of the episode on today. She had a guest on who was nearing death from pancreatic cancer. He was so upbeat and good natured. Yes - his situation stunk, but why dwell in the negative / make the best of his final days. He's a professor at Carnegie Mellon U and delivered his "last lecture." You can watch the whole one on YouTube or the "abridged" version on Oprah (on YouTube too): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9ya9BXClRw
There were so many things that I thought were interesting throughout the interview:
- People want to know that they made a difference in this world.
- He told a story about how he had a brand new car and how he was taking his niece & nephew somewhere -- his sister was begging the children not to mess up his car at the same time he was pouring a soda in the back seat. He was trying to explain that it's just an object & didn't matter. One of the kids ended up throwing up in the back seat by the end of the trip and the guy said it was so nice knowing that he didn't make his nephew feel bad for having the flu and messing up his car. That was so much more important.
- They interviewed him & he wanted to play catch, so he brought a football signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The interviewer didn't want to throw it b/c it was a collector's item. The guy said -- what am I saving it for? He may as well enjoy it now.
- If you’re hopeful & optimistic – people flock to help you. If you’re down in the dump – people will still help you, but they won’t be running over to do it. You have the choice to be a person that people WANT to be around or a person that they don't want to be around.
- And my favorite story he told was about how his parents let him paint the walls in his room. They thought it was more important for him to express himself than to have a pristine kid's room. (He painted a submarine on the wall and an elevator door because he always wanted an elevator in their house.) His parents were definitely kids at heart. He showed them on their 70th and 80th birthdays. One was racing bumper cars and the other was riding a roller coaster to ring in the milestone. Fantastic!
- This guy had a great life and yes it was going to be cut too short but he was grateful for what he had been able to do and experience. He talked a lot about his 3 children and how he's loved being a father to them.
SO -- that put things in perspective for me. So far, the past 3 1/2 months have been the best yet (and that includes the sleepless nights early on... the spit-up... and the poo-related issues too. but it includes the toothless smiles, the giggles, and the snuggling.) A friend told us that she was glad we get to experience all of these things. Another told me that life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful.
It's true.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Sunday, June 8, 2008
We survived the week, however....
Mercer woke up with the runs. (You know... the "D" word... but I don't want to have to say it -- plus I can't spell it!) So, we called the on-call nurse this (Sunday) morning. She mentioned that it's not uncommon for babies to get this b/c of the antibiotic that he's been taking. We were reminded that it kills the bad bacteria as well as the good. His system doesn't have a chance right now.
Boy - I'm learning a lot. His system is messed up because of the antibiotic. He's on the antibiotic because of his ear infection. He has an ear infection because (according to some middle-of-the-night research I did on Web MD) babies have really small tubes connecting their ears to the nasal passages and they have a tendency to get clogged with fluid & drainage when they have colds. He suffered from a cold because of the snotty kid at daycare two weeks ago. What a cycle! Another thing I learned on Web MD was that doctor's like to put babies on antibiotics when they have an ear infection b/c if the fluid sits in there too long, it can cause deafness. Interesting. We don't want that of course -- but we don't want little M to be thrown into the antibiotics too soon either. It seems like I remember something in my reading about putting tubes in the ears to drain the fluid. There's so much to learn!
Todd & I picked up the nastiest cold we've ever had from Mercer. He & I are both almost over it finally. This time last week, we were both starting to feel rough. One thing that has really helped us out is that Mercer's been sleeping in his room for the past 4 or 5 nights... and has mostly been sleeping 'til 6 am +/-. I think he likes it in there! I've been waking up several times a night to check the monitor -- so I'm still not getting a full-night's sleep, but it's definitely more restful overall. yay!
Work was ok. I worked Monday, Tuesday & Friday at the office and Wednesday / Thursday from home. The goal was to work about 8 hours each day at the office and about 4 hours each day at home. I didn't quite get there last week. not far from it, but didn't quite make my 32 hours. I'll be honest... I REALLY enjoyed the working from home part of the week! I hung out with him / played with him in the morning 'til he took his nap & then got a couple of hours worth of work done. We'd have a large chunk of the day together in the middle of the day 'til I could get him to sleep a bit in the afternoon. I would get less than a couple of hours done in the afternoon, but I worked each night a little when Todd came home to get between 4 - 5 hours in both days. It seems pretty ideal, honestly as long as it works for my office mates!
In general here, things have been low-key. I think one great thing about parenthood for us: we've learned to slow down a bit & enjoy the small things... the huge toothless smiles... sitting by the pond for Mercer's feedings and noticing new flowers blooming on the water lilies & hyacinths... savoring each giggle and trying to duplicate what we did to evoke it. It's been wonderful so far.
Yesterday, we worked in the yard / cleaned it up because we created a putt-putt golf hole back there around the pond for our annual neighborhood golf tourney. We made a simple hole with a really elaborate "water hazard" -- the pond! It was so blazing hot that not as many people made it to the tourney as we expected, but we still had a great time. We noticed more than ever that there has definitely been a baby explosion on the street. One of the February '08 baby boys was there... as well as a 4 month old baby girl and a 6 month old baby girl. The 4 month old girl's name was Edith. That's my grandma's name! She was named after a grandmother named Eidth too. I've never known another Edith, but we look forward to hanging out with her and her parents (about our age / maybe a couple of years younger), as they were a nice couple.
Today was more serious: we had to work on cleaning because the social worker comes Thursday morning for her final post-placement visit. Todd leaves for Asheville in the morning and won't get back 'til late Tuesday, so we'll be doing a lot of cleaning / cramming Wednesday night to finish what we didn't get done today.
This is the only picture we took this week -- and it was to have something to post, honestly. This is Saturday night after the golf tourney & socializing was done -- Mercer and I are posing by the rules of hole # 7 (which we called "A drop in the Bucket" b/c literally - you knocked the ball into a bucket in the back yard from the top terrace of the yard). Nothing too exciting to see. Oh well!
It's late. I should go. Have a good week. Candice
Boy - I'm learning a lot. His system is messed up because of the antibiotic. He's on the antibiotic because of his ear infection. He has an ear infection because (according to some middle-of-the-night research I did on Web MD) babies have really small tubes connecting their ears to the nasal passages and they have a tendency to get clogged with fluid & drainage when they have colds. He suffered from a cold because of the snotty kid at daycare two weeks ago. What a cycle! Another thing I learned on Web MD was that doctor's like to put babies on antibiotics when they have an ear infection b/c if the fluid sits in there too long, it can cause deafness. Interesting. We don't want that of course -- but we don't want little M to be thrown into the antibiotics too soon either. It seems like I remember something in my reading about putting tubes in the ears to drain the fluid. There's so much to learn!
Todd & I picked up the nastiest cold we've ever had from Mercer. He & I are both almost over it finally. This time last week, we were both starting to feel rough. One thing that has really helped us out is that Mercer's been sleeping in his room for the past 4 or 5 nights... and has mostly been sleeping 'til 6 am +/-. I think he likes it in there! I've been waking up several times a night to check the monitor -- so I'm still not getting a full-night's sleep, but it's definitely more restful overall. yay!
Work was ok. I worked Monday, Tuesday & Friday at the office and Wednesday / Thursday from home. The goal was to work about 8 hours each day at the office and about 4 hours each day at home. I didn't quite get there last week. not far from it, but didn't quite make my 32 hours. I'll be honest... I REALLY enjoyed the working from home part of the week! I hung out with him / played with him in the morning 'til he took his nap & then got a couple of hours worth of work done. We'd have a large chunk of the day together in the middle of the day 'til I could get him to sleep a bit in the afternoon. I would get less than a couple of hours done in the afternoon, but I worked each night a little when Todd came home to get between 4 - 5 hours in both days. It seems pretty ideal, honestly as long as it works for my office mates!
In general here, things have been low-key. I think one great thing about parenthood for us: we've learned to slow down a bit & enjoy the small things... the huge toothless smiles... sitting by the pond for Mercer's feedings and noticing new flowers blooming on the water lilies & hyacinths... savoring each giggle and trying to duplicate what we did to evoke it. It's been wonderful so far.
Yesterday, we worked in the yard / cleaned it up because we created a putt-putt golf hole back there around the pond for our annual neighborhood golf tourney. We made a simple hole with a really elaborate "water hazard" -- the pond! It was so blazing hot that not as many people made it to the tourney as we expected, but we still had a great time. We noticed more than ever that there has definitely been a baby explosion on the street. One of the February '08 baby boys was there... as well as a 4 month old baby girl and a 6 month old baby girl. The 4 month old girl's name was Edith. That's my grandma's name! She was named after a grandmother named Eidth too. I've never known another Edith, but we look forward to hanging out with her and her parents (about our age / maybe a couple of years younger), as they were a nice couple.
Today was more serious: we had to work on cleaning because the social worker comes Thursday morning for her final post-placement visit. Todd leaves for Asheville in the morning and won't get back 'til late Tuesday, so we'll be doing a lot of cleaning / cramming Wednesday night to finish what we didn't get done today.
This is the only picture we took this week -- and it was to have something to post, honestly. This is Saturday night after the golf tourney & socializing was done -- Mercer and I are posing by the rules of hole # 7 (which we called "A drop in the Bucket" b/c literally - you knocked the ball into a bucket in the back yard from the top terrace of the yard). Nothing too exciting to see. Oh well!It's late. I should go. Have a good week. Candice
Monday, June 2, 2008
First real day of work today / Mercer's new trick
I know I cut Thursday's post short w/o finishing up on Thursday's events. My dad & step-mom, Charlie, came for a visit. They were passing through from visiting my grandma in North Carolina. 
Mercer was not feeling his best -- as mentioned -- he's been sick. But, they loved him all the same and Charlie told us that if they were seeing Mercer at his worst -- then he's an angel!
Mercer was not feeling his best -- as mentioned -- he's been sick. But, they loved him all the same and Charlie told us that if they were seeing Mercer at his worst -- then he's an angel! We feel so bad for the little guy. He has still been having trouble breathing and we had to put him on a nebulizer (a breathing device to open up his bronchial passages). The poor little guy has just been miserable. He coughs, then lets out a baby moan. Oh - it's like a dagger going through my heart!
Ever since Mercer's been feeling a little down -- we have been keeping things low-key... including dad & Charlie's visit. We basically hung out here. 
Dad & I picked up lunch to bring back home and ran an errand (I was trying to make "baby formula freezer pops" to ease the agitation Mercer was undoubtedly feeling in his throat... but he didn't like the cold. Maybe if I keep trying it he'll get used to it?). 
Here's a couple of pics. Look how tired Mercer's eyes are in this picture with my dad. Poor, sad, pitiful little baby. ugh!
Dad & I picked up lunch to bring back home and ran an errand (I was trying to make "baby formula freezer pops" to ease the agitation Mercer was undoubtedly feeling in his throat... but he didn't like the cold. Maybe if I keep trying it he'll get used to it?). 
Here's a couple of pics. Look how tired Mercer's eyes are in this picture with my dad. Poor, sad, pitiful little baby. ugh!Friday - low key again. I should've been cranking on projects to finish as it was officially my last day of maternity leave, but since neither of us were feeling well, I spent may last day holding and comforting our baby.... which is a nice way to spend it, honestly. Saturday was pretty chill too, as we didn't even walk to the square for the farmer's market & breakfast as is our routine. 
I did get a chance to start working on the painting detail on the nursery walls and ironed / hung curtains. It's looking really cute. Only 1/2 of the room is done... there's still a lot of detail painting on the other walls.
I did get a chance to start working on the painting detail on the nursery walls and ironed / hung curtains. It's looking really cute. Only 1/2 of the room is done... there's still a lot of detail painting on the other walls.Today, I went to work, Todd took Mercer to the doc for a follow-up visit from Thursday, then took Mercer to daycare. The pediatrician seemed to think that overall, he's doing better. He does have some fluid build-up in his ears, however, that she's been watching since Thursday's visit. Although Mercer doesn't act like he has an ear infection, she said that it's definitely developed into one. We have to give him an antibiotic for the fluid and do the nebulizer for another couple of weeks for the breathing 'til we go see her again. I don't know how I feel about him on antibiotics already... the person who recommended this doc said that she liked her b/c she's not quick to medicate with antibiotics. I suppose she did wait on this instead of having him start on Thursday? ugh. so many decisions. We just want him to be healthy!
I bought a book about Children's health care, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. Guess I need to get to cracking the pages of the book ASAP.
Time to go / time for a nap (as baby's cough continues to wake him (and us) at night).
C
oh yeah... work went well today (only got through 1 month of emails, but I didn't freak out / have to bolt out of there to pick little M up... so I guess it was ok).
and Mercer's new trick: Todd laid Mercer in the playpen on his stomach to nap. A little later, he was on his side. Shortly after that, he was on his back. He rolled over! (maybe because he was wearing his Orange Met's Onesie? Red & orange makes people (and kids) more active! Todd put him in it because they were watching a game on Sunday night together.
PS -- you can click on any of the pictures to enlarge them... you'll notice that Mercer is grasping Charlie's finger during feeding and that he's lost one of his sock monkey slippers. (He FINALLY noticed those things / stared at them / but isn't really reaching for them or grabbing them yet.) Also - you can see the detail of the fish and bubbles on the nursery walls. I was so hesitant to start the detail b/c I thought I'd hate them, but actually, I'm pretty pleased with how it's turning out. It's taking forever -- so I don't want to have to do this again for a really really long time!
Friday, May 30, 2008
So much to blog about today.
I mentioned in the last post that Todd's brother was hit by a car... his neice was also hit by a vehicle earlier this week. Tara (13 years old) and her brother Zach were helping someone on the side of the road (they live on a busy street near Atlantic City). Tara was hit by a pick-up truck and dragged under it. Luckily the pick-up had slowed way down because of all of the shore traffic and because of the person on the side of the road. People normally fly down that road at 50 mph, but the driver was only doing about 20 -- thankfully!! She suffered a broken pelvis and has been going through therapy to walk. She's been in the hospital most of the week, but should be checking out of the hospital today. It's been a crazy week!!!!
To pick back up from the last blog regarding Mercer, we went on our trip to Asheville on Sunday. We got off to a late start b/c of the doctor's visit, but they gave us the "go ahead" to go on our trip... said he wasn't that bad / keep an eye on things / keep checking his temp / etc. The first night at the B&B was rough for us. He hardly slept, but during the day seemed to feel better (he slept a lot).
We ended up going to a friend's house Monday afternoon (Tad – a former classmate from college and his wife Ashley). It was Memorial Day but also their 4 year old son's birthday party... we gave them a head's up that Mercer had a cold / offered not to come, but everyone felt comfortable & we had their children wash their hands a lot after touching / playing with Mercer. Here's a shot of Morgan who was so sweet with the baby (left) and birthday-boy Brenner (right) with little M. 4 years ago, Brenner was born approximately 3 months early. He was only 2 lbs 2oz when born. Now he is a spunky, thriving boy! We're glad we were allowed to share in this special event with them. Oh yeah -- Mercer got to seehis first fireworks.... he did great -- just focused on the bright contrast against the dark sky. (They weren't the kind with the the loud boom - otherwise he probably would've cried!)
Todd went to work on Tuesday and Wednesday. While he was at his jobsite, I did a little bit of exploring -- but not too much. I went to a nearby town, Black Mountain to visit someone else we knew from college and to check out the town. I picked up a little something for Mercer (see pic below) and got to see about 60 or 70 Model T cars to boot. (there was a rally passing through town) Later that day, I went to the NC Arboretum (which is free on Tuesdays) and spent a bit of time in the garden with Mercer. It was very relaxing feeding him in the garden, as I could look one direction over some flowers and see a mountain range.... and look another direction to see more mountains and flowers. It's so beautiful there -- and (as always) I get great ideas to bring back to our garden at home!
We both kept things a bit more low-key than a "normal" trip for us b/c of Mercer not feeling well. We actually spent a lot of time chilling out / hanging out on the front porch of our B&B. Feeding Mercer.... writing letters.... watching the rain. One of the owners, Angela, begged to hold the baby every morning while we ate breakfast (so we actually got to eat together and she got her baby-fix at the same time). They made it really pleasant for us even though Mercer was feeling so crummy / at his "worst" (which is still great as compared to many babies -- we can't complain!)
We would recommend staying there for anyone traveling to Asheville and will definitely go back there when Mercer and I tag along with Todd on another of his work trips.
www.sweetbiscuitinn.com Ok... here's my *favorite* picture of Todd & Mercer. I wanted to get Mercer a kid's hard hat -- but I was in a really small town / the only little toy store had hard hats with head lamps on the front. It's close enough for effect... and Mercer will have fun with the headlamp in the coming years. I thought it would be cute to get a picture of "baby & daddy" at Todd's jobsite (you can see a parking deck & some of the residential structures in the background that Todd' been working on). SO CUTE!!
There's more to blog about, but I need to go tend to Mercer. I will blog this weekend about the visit from my dad, Mercer’s doctor appt when we returned home, an update on Tara, and (hopefully) post pics of a finished nursery this weekend.
C
To pick back up from the last blog regarding Mercer, we went on our trip to Asheville on Sunday. We got off to a late start b/c of the doctor's visit, but they gave us the "go ahead" to go on our trip... said he wasn't that bad / keep an eye on things / keep checking his temp / etc. The first night at the B&B was rough for us. He hardly slept, but during the day seemed to feel better (he slept a lot).
We ended up going to a friend's house Monday afternoon (Tad – a former classmate from college and his wife Ashley). It was Memorial Day but also their 4 year old son's birthday party... we gave them a head's up that Mercer had a cold / offered not to come, but everyone felt comfortable & we had their children wash their hands a lot after touching / playing with Mercer. Here's a shot of Morgan who was so sweet with the baby (left) and birthday-boy Brenner (right) with little M. 4 years ago, Brenner was born approximately 3 months early. He was only 2 lbs 2oz when born. Now he is a spunky, thriving boy! We're glad we were allowed to share in this special event with them. Oh yeah -- Mercer got to seehis first fireworks.... he did great -- just focused on the bright contrast against the dark sky. (They weren't the kind with the the loud boom - otherwise he probably would've cried!)Todd went to work on Tuesday and Wednesday. While he was at his jobsite, I did a little bit of exploring -- but not too much. I went to a nearby town, Black Mountain to visit someone else we knew from college and to check out the town. I picked up a little something for Mercer (see pic below) and got to see about 60 or 70 Model T cars to boot. (there was a rally passing through town) Later that day, I went to the NC Arboretum (which is free on Tuesdays) and spent a bit of time in the garden with Mercer. It was very relaxing feeding him in the garden, as I could look one direction over some flowers and see a mountain range.... and look another direction to see more mountains and flowers. It's so beautiful there -- and (as always) I get great ideas to bring back to our garden at home!
We both kept things a bit more low-key than a "normal" trip for us b/c of Mercer not feeling well. We actually spent a lot of time chilling out / hanging out on the front porch of our B&B. Feeding Mercer.... writing letters.... watching the rain. One of the owners, Angela, begged to hold the baby every morning while we ate breakfast (so we actually got to eat together and she got her baby-fix at the same time). They made it really pleasant for us even though Mercer was feeling so crummy / at his "worst" (which is still great as compared to many babies -- we can't complain!)
We would recommend staying there for anyone traveling to Asheville and will definitely go back there when Mercer and I tag along with Todd on another of his work trips. www.sweetbiscuitinn.com Ok... here's my *favorite* picture of Todd & Mercer. I wanted to get Mercer a kid's hard hat -- but I was in a really small town / the only little toy store had hard hats with head lamps on the front. It's close enough for effect... and Mercer will have fun with the headlamp in the coming years. I thought it would be cute to get a picture of "baby & daddy" at Todd's jobsite (you can see a parking deck & some of the residential structures in the background that Todd' been working on). SO CUTE!!
There's more to blog about, but I need to go tend to Mercer. I will blog this weekend about the visit from my dad, Mercer’s doctor appt when we returned home, an update on Tara, and (hopefully) post pics of a finished nursery this weekend.
C
Sunday, May 25, 2008
first sick visit today...
Mercer woke up around 1 am wheezing and coughing (deep - from his chest)... and 2 am... and 3... and 4... you get the idea.
We called the pediatrician's call service this morning & a nurse called us right back. After using the nose aspirator on him to clear up the schmoo in his nose, describing the symptoms to the on-call nurse, and taking his temp (slightly feverish), we were advised to take him to a children's center that's open 7 days a week (or the ER). We got to the center 15 min before it opened, took a number from a message board posted on the door (Mercer was patient #1), and saw the doc right away. He didn't have a fever when he got there -- and his wheezing had calmed some. Todd read (in the middle of the night) that for congestion the head should be elevated so stuff can drain... sitting in the car seat did him some good.
His chest was clear according to the stethoscope... the oxygen in his blood was normal according to this electronic thing they put on his foot (instead of taking his blood for an oxygen count)... and his demeanor was pretty good. It's hard to say if he has allergies (that's mine & Todd's thought b/c we were outside basically all day yesterday) or if he was getting a cold. She sent us on our way & told us to follow-up with a doctor's visit later this week.
The doc was not alarmed. Boy - Mercer sure sounds horrible, though! We're still heading up to Asheville today -- just later than expected (which is ok!). Todd has a jobsite meeting on Tuesday and we're going up a day early to hang out up there. The doc here told us to see a doc up there if things got worse, but as he is now... he's ok. We just need to put saline up his nose / aspirate / try to keep the drainage down b/c that's what she felt was causing the wheezing and the hoarse cough.
it's SO tough. We feel so bad for the little guy.
****On another (very important) note**** this is bicycle safety month. I heard something on the radio about it around the same time period we found out that Todd's brother, Jim, was hit by a car riding his bike home from work Friday night. (He lives outside of DC). He has a broken ankle, scraped up knee and his helmet cracked in half (thank goodness he was wearing it!) PLEASE share the road and be safe!! http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/
We called the pediatrician's call service this morning & a nurse called us right back. After using the nose aspirator on him to clear up the schmoo in his nose, describing the symptoms to the on-call nurse, and taking his temp (slightly feverish), we were advised to take him to a children's center that's open 7 days a week (or the ER). We got to the center 15 min before it opened, took a number from a message board posted on the door (Mercer was patient #1), and saw the doc right away. He didn't have a fever when he got there -- and his wheezing had calmed some. Todd read (in the middle of the night) that for congestion the head should be elevated so stuff can drain... sitting in the car seat did him some good.
His chest was clear according to the stethoscope... the oxygen in his blood was normal according to this electronic thing they put on his foot (instead of taking his blood for an oxygen count)... and his demeanor was pretty good. It's hard to say if he has allergies (that's mine & Todd's thought b/c we were outside basically all day yesterday) or if he was getting a cold. She sent us on our way & told us to follow-up with a doctor's visit later this week.
The doc was not alarmed. Boy - Mercer sure sounds horrible, though! We're still heading up to Asheville today -- just later than expected (which is ok!). Todd has a jobsite meeting on Tuesday and we're going up a day early to hang out up there. The doc here told us to see a doc up there if things got worse, but as he is now... he's ok. We just need to put saline up his nose / aspirate / try to keep the drainage down b/c that's what she felt was causing the wheezing and the hoarse cough.
****On another (very important) note**** this is bicycle safety month. I heard something on the radio about it around the same time period we found out that Todd's brother, Jim, was hit by a car riding his bike home from work Friday night. (He lives outside of DC). He has a broken ankle, scraped up knee and his helmet cracked in half (thank goodness he was wearing it!) PLEASE share the road and be safe!! http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/
Friday, May 23, 2008
3 months old today....
I guess I shouldn't have bragged Wednesday morning. Because he slept so much -- he didn't do so well Wednesday night. Only got a few hours of (broken) sleep.
Todd & I had not met Harry's parents (Mollie & Stephen) before, so it was really a chance to meet and get to know them. Harry is a few weeks older than Mercer and is about the same size. (I think Mercer looks older than 3 months -- because of the hair?) The two boys stared at each other a little bit, but that was about it. I'm sure they'll do more when they're older. It's just crazy how there's been a lot of babies on our street lately. Little M will have a lot of kids to play with - for sure. 
(In the pics, Mercer is sporting his madras pants which he wore for his 3 month pics. Look for those on a future post when we get them back.)
We did SO much stuff Wednesday. Maybe we did too much for him to sleep soundly through that night? We went to Stroller Strides aka Mommy Boot-Camp (I'm still sore Friday from Wednesday's class)... fed Mercer... changed Mercer... met a friend at the mall for lunch... walked over to Sears for a photo session... went to a play date afterwards... fed Mercer... changed Mercer... early evening - walked up the street to meet the other February baby boy, Harry.
Todd & I had not met Harry's parents (Mollie & Stephen) before, so it was really a chance to meet and get to know them. Harry is a few weeks older than Mercer and is about the same size. (I think Mercer looks older than 3 months -- because of the hair?) The two boys stared at each other a little bit, but that was about it. I'm sure they'll do more when they're older. It's just crazy how there's been a lot of babies on our street lately. Little M will have a lot of kids to play with - for sure. 
(In the pics, Mercer is sporting his madras pants which he wore for his 3 month pics. Look for those on a future post when we get them back.)Thursday, we took things a little slower. Mercer had his 2nd round of shots (we did 1/2 of his 2 month shots at one appointment and the other 1/2 Thursday). He slept a lot throughout the day and at daycare. I dropped him off for a few hours because I needed to take a class and earn some Continuing Education Units... I'm in danger of my architecture license going into default b/c I need 18 CEUs each year -- and it's the end of May and I only had 1 from January. (Been off these past few months!) He seemed happy when I picked him up. The daycare gave me a little beef about his feeding schedule and I agreed that if he's screaming 10 - 15 minutes before his next feeding -- sure. Go for it. (But I stressed that I would not approve of them feeding him every 2 - 3 hours as they originally suggested. Don't want to go back to that schedule - like in Mercer's first month of life!)
Mercer had a fever this morning around 4 am when I changed him (nope - he didn't sleep through the night Thursday night either. Oh well!) I took his temp, then spent about an hour reading books & looking on the internet about what is "too high" and worthy of calling the doc / rushing to the ER. He was really in between the alarming temps. He clocked in at 100.8 F. For babies 0 - 3 months old -- I found that you need to go in for anything above 100.4 F. For babies 3 - 6 months old, anything over 101 F is the breaking point. He literally just turned 3 months... so I was on the fence. I stripped him down to his diaper and gave him some infant tylenol before going back to sleep around 5 am.... he clocked in at 99.1 this morning around 8 am. whew!
Oh yeah -- at the doctor's office yesterday, he weighed 13 lbs, 11 1/2 ounces (with his clothes and (dirty) diaper on). I'm thinking that he's somewhere between 13 and 13 1/2 lbs.
All-in-all, Mercer has been GROWING, HEALTHY, and HAPPY his first 3 months of life. (Todd and I are happy as well!!!) And - of course - I'm thrilled to have been able to spend the time with him before going back to work. As you can see from the blog entries between late February and now... he has changed and developed so much.
We're happy you have joined us in this journey thus far.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
"Oh what a beautiful morning...
Oh what a beautiful day.... I've got a fabulous feeling... Everything's going my way!"
Sorry - just felt like flinging the curtains open and singing that song because baby slept through the night!! yay!
He stirred & kicked around 4 am - like normal - but the stirring & kicking were not followed by crying this time... eventually he settled back down and went back to sleep. So did we. I know not to expect this every night - but it's a start. It has to start somewhere!
Yesterday was better, too, in terms of daycare. I dropped Mercer off at daycare around 8:30. It was a much calmer experience. The part-time teacher was there in the morning and there was soft music playing. There was not the craziness I experienced the day before.
I "thought" I had a meeting at 9:30 downtown at my office -- but it was actually at 1:00. So, I was there almost all day. The meeting usually lasts around 2 hours; I thought I could stick it out 'til 3:00, but it dragged on to 3:10, then 3:20 and I bolted up and said "I've got to go!" For some reason I had all of this anxiety - perhaps because in my mind I knew I was going to go see Mercer after 3 pm?
I picked him up from daycare and the full-time teacher who was there the previous day greeted me. She was much happier Tuesday. She said that the two older babies went to the other room that day (although I saw them in the morning and in the evening when I picked Mercer up in the infant room). Maybe they were there in the middle of the day?
At any rate -- it made for a happier teacher... and she wasn't pushy about his feeding at the end of the day. She pretty much fed him on schedule. She said it was a much better day. I'm *hoping* that the Monday daycare experience was just a bad day and that there are few of those!
I should run... but wanted to share the news about Mercer's accomplishment!
Sorry - just felt like flinging the curtains open and singing that song because baby slept through the night!! yay!
He stirred & kicked around 4 am - like normal - but the stirring & kicking were not followed by crying this time... eventually he settled back down and went back to sleep. So did we. I know not to expect this every night - but it's a start. It has to start somewhere!
Yesterday was better, too, in terms of daycare. I dropped Mercer off at daycare around 8:30. It was a much calmer experience. The part-time teacher was there in the morning and there was soft music playing. There was not the craziness I experienced the day before.
I "thought" I had a meeting at 9:30 downtown at my office -- but it was actually at 1:00. So, I was there almost all day. The meeting usually lasts around 2 hours; I thought I could stick it out 'til 3:00, but it dragged on to 3:10, then 3:20 and I bolted up and said "I've got to go!" For some reason I had all of this anxiety - perhaps because in my mind I knew I was going to go see Mercer after 3 pm?
I picked him up from daycare and the full-time teacher who was there the previous day greeted me. She was much happier Tuesday. She said that the two older babies went to the other room that day (although I saw them in the morning and in the evening when I picked Mercer up in the infant room). Maybe they were there in the middle of the day?
At any rate -- it made for a happier teacher... and she wasn't pushy about his feeding at the end of the day. She pretty much fed him on schedule. She said it was a much better day. I'm *hoping* that the Monday daycare experience was just a bad day and that there are few of those!
I should run... but wanted to share the news about Mercer's accomplishment!
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