Angels among us

This morning was one of the scariest experiences of my life.

Nick had a great night's sleep. Down by 8:00pm, only cried for 15-20 mins, and I had to wake him up at 7:15am to go to daycare because he was still in dreamland.

We were so ahead of schedule that I made myself a cup of caramel vanilla cream coffee (love that Keurig...although sadly, ours is on the fritz), put it in my travel mug, and out the door we went.

We cruised down the parkway towards the babysitters house, jammin' to some Christmas music and happily babbling to each other about what a beautiful day it was shaping up to be - albeit much colder than the last several days.

I noticed a huge 18 wheeler about 3 cars in front of me to my left. I only noticed it because of it's long black-tarp covered sides. I genuinely thought to myself "hmm, wonder what he's hauling!"

As we neared the back entrance to Huntsman shopping center, cruising along at the 50 mile an hour speed limit, I closed in on the 18 wheeler, coming up on his right hand blind spot. I intended to pass him, but was barely allowed the time, as suddenly a small compact car made a last minute u-turn right in front of the semi-truck.

A u-turn that brought the compact car within inches of being hit by the semi truck. A u-turn that caused the semi to slam on his brakes, burning rubber on pavement on all 18 of his tires, making the long bed of his truck teeter back and forth and buckle up against the cabin. He swerved right and left and managed to stop himself from both slamming into the compact car, and tipping over.

In the position that I was in my car, next to this semi truck, had he actually lost complete control and tipped over, there would have been nowhere for me to go. We would have been crushed in an instant.

The compact car darted across the two lanes of traffic, into a right-hand turn lane, and pulled into Huntsman shopping center. I silently cursed him, hoping he was pulling into the shopping center to gather his composure and think about what he just did - who he could have harmed - and how he will vow to be a more cautious, courteous driver. But in all reality, he was probably picking up his dry cleaning, or grabbing a cup of coffee. Something he clearly did not need to be in a rush for.

I instantly felt the hot sting of tears streaming down my face. As my baby continued to happily babble in the back seat, blissfully unaware of what had almost just gone down, I looked up to the sky and audibly thanked God for sending some angels to watch over me this morning.

The parkway is a dangerous road. Far too many lives have been lost there. Every time I venture down the parkway, I keep my eyes wide open for any danger - drunk drivers, deer, texters. I do not look at my phone. I do not drive over the 50 mile an hour speed limit. I'm not saying I'm a perfect driver, and there are plenty of times that I find myself at fault of not paying attention or driving too fast on other roads. But on the parkway, there is no room for error.

I shared my scary morning on facebook, and my mom reminded me of the trailer accident that my brother and I were in when we were very little. I briefly blogged about it recently when we had an earthquake in VA, but what I failed to mention was after my brother saved my life and I stepped out of that tiny, completely destroyed, upside-down trailer, without so much as a scratch on my body, I looked at my mom and said something to the effect of "the angels said they weren't ready for me yet, mommy!" Three years old. And I had never been to church. What did I know about angels?

Well, now that I'm older, I know for sure that angels exist. I'm not entirely sure who my guardian angel is -- there are many valuable people in my life who now watch over from Heaven. I like to think it's a combination of my great-grandmother (Gran-Gran), and Stef's mom (SYG), and my Aunt Debbie, and Donnie, and Peter, and my mom's muffin's Sasha and Katie...a veritable collection of people that were so meaningful in my life, and the lives of those that I love -- a collection of people that are constantly watching over me, my loved ones, and their own loved ones...because they know we all need each other...just as we need them. And while we might not be able to see their faces every day, I find pure comfort in knowing they are always here on earth, keeping us safe, holding our hands, walking among us.

Hail to the Victors!

It must be documented. Michigan has not won a game against Ohio state in 7 years. UNTIL NOW! This past Saturday, with our little good luck charm, decked out from head to toe in our finest Maize and Blue gear, we watched Michigan whoop up on Ohio state, resulting in a 40 to 34 victory for the Victors!

Here are a few pics of our little blue enjoying his first taste of sweet victory!

Hmm...we better have a little pre-game fuel, Dad.This isn't milk, is it?Nah, never mind...you can have the beer back Dad. Not really my thing...yet. Besides, I have far too much exploring to do.

(Best attempt at catching three out of four of us in our Michigan gear)

Is it game time yet??

What's that? We're winning?! Woo hoo!

Hooray! We won! Take that Ohio state!

Could that have been the answer all along??

I added 2 tablespoons of rice cereal to Nick's 6 oz bottle last night, and he slept all night. Granted he cried for about 35 minutes right after he went down -- and I went in twice to quickly pat his back and tell him night-night again, but I left before he fell asleep both times. And he slept! No 1:30am wake-up call. No 4am scream-fest. No 5 hour sleepover in mommy & daddy's bed. Just sound sleeping for 10+ hours.

Truth be told, I woke up at 3am in a panic because I've gotten so accustomed to his middle of the night crying, that I tiptoed into his room and laid my hand on his back to make sure he was ok. Sure enough, he was just zonked out.

I have no idea if rice cereal was the answer, but it sort of made me slap my forehead thinking "well he used to be getting a whole extra scoop of formula per bottle, so maybe it's just been lighter than what he's used to, and isn't keeping him full all night". Regardless, it was glorious to have a peaceful night's sleep, and he'll definitely be getting rice cereal in every nighttime bottle from now on!

Night and Day

In the darkness of night, running on fumes, dragging from the lack of sleep your getting due to a teething infant that's also battling with separation anxiety, it's very easy to pity yourself. To find the negativity in all that is happening in your life. To think up excuses to spout to your boss about how you couldn't complete something required because you're so tired. To plan how you'll burst into tears at the slightest comment about under-eye circles, or disorganization. To actually burst into tears while you're contemplating these things because you're just THAT damn tired. To want to reach over and poke your spouse in his closed eyes. Even though you know he's not sleeping either...which is totally unfair considering he gets up two hours before you usually do, and he has to work a 16 hour day. But his ability to look like he's asleep is the slightest motivating factor you have to want to start jumping on the bed just so somebody else has to share in your misery of a crying, screaming, unhappy baby down the hall.

In the darkness of night, when you haven't slept, the whole world becomes your enemy.

But in the light of day, when you've had three cups of coffee, and you've shared in a multitude of morning "just because I'm happy to be awake today" smiles from your bouncing baby boy, things fall back into perspective. You still fight the urge to burst into tired tears at the sound of a sad song on the radio. But suddenly you're grateful for the spouse that laid awake, albeit with eyes closed, next to you in bed last night. Because you weren't alone. You're grateful for your babies ability to scream, because it means he has strong, powerful lungs. You're grateful for the fact that he spent 30 minutes standing in his crib, because it means he is developing properly, and will be able to walk. And you're happy about those teeth cutting through, because it means soon [hopefully], those teeth will be all the way in and he will find some comfort.

In the light of day, when you realize there is so much to be grateful for -- so much to cherish -- the whole world suddenly seems perfect.

And it truly is.


But good LORD, child -- could you please sleep through the night just once a week? Please? :)

Giddy!

I'm so giddy about all of the upcoming holiday festivities. Probably enhanced by the fact that we now have the most precious baby boy in the world to spend the holidays with. That, and the fact that I'm watching Justin Bieber on The Today Show singing songs from his new Christmas album, which totally puts me in the holiday spirit.

So what do we have to look forward to in the next several weeks?! EVERYTHING!

• Thanksgiving tomorrow!


• Yearly morning-after-Thanksgiving breakfast with our oldest family friends, the Isibels!


• Dinner at Clyde's restaurant where we FINALLY get to see long lost love, Stephanie!


• Visiting with Jenny -- another long lost love, who will be in town for T-Giving!


• Taking Nick to see Santa for the first time (ohmigosh this is so exciting!)


• Everything Christmas related, obviously -- including Nick's FIRST Christmas!


• Finally seeing Sara -- another long lost love, whom we haven't seen since her wedding IN APRIL!


• Seeing Jersey Boys with our best friends, the Schwass'!


• And somehow acquiring Justin Bieber's Christmas album!

Now those are all things to celebrate!

Yes, even The Biebs.

Happy Feet

I'm sure my hubby will be happy to know that I finally fit - comfortably - into my deeply coveted Tory Burch Reva's. He gave me these beauties for Christmas last year, which I was thrilled about, and was so excited to wear a stylish pair of flats to my upcoming baby showers, seeing as I was so hugely pregnant that heels were definitely out of the question until after Nick was born.

But sadly, when I tore open the box on Christmas morning (the box that I had accidentally opened when it was delivered to our house a few weeks prior), I was sad to see that my feet were so frickin' swollen, there was no way I was jammin' those puppies, into those pretties.

So after nearly a year of owning these gems, and several months of trying to shed the dreaded water weight, swollen-ness, and general puffiness that came with pregnancy -- my feet have finally shrunk down...and not just back to their original size, but even a bit thinner in my opinion.

Ahhh...it's like having access to a whole new wardrobe!

Happy (man am I a slacker) 9 months, Baby Boy!

I can't seem to get my act together to post these on the correct date. Here we are 3 days away from Thanksgiving -- a mere 11 days away from Nick's 10 month birthday -- and I'm just now posting. Had I posted this recap on his actual 9 month birthday, or somewhere in that time frame, this post probably would've been entirely different, as the 9th month of Nick's life has been full of milestones...so, here we go...

How Old is Nick: Well, now he's 9 and 3/4 months old. That's less than 3 months shy of 1 year. Which is practically school aged. Which means soon he'll be graduating college, getting a job, getting married, and declaring his love for another woman - that's NOT me. My heart can't take it right now. He is growing up WAY too fast.

Stats: head circumference: 18" (61%) height: 28" (38%) weight: 21lbs, 9oz (65%) This basically means he's still a chubby little bobble head. Doc said he is perfectly healthy, and considering at one point in his life he was in the 3rd percentile for most of his measurements, he is growing beautifully. This is probably due to the accidental formula overload we've been giving him the past 8 months. (more on that later). He's wearing size 4 diapers, mostly 12 month clothes (occasionally some 9 month stuff still fits...if we stretch it...), 12 month jammies, though he could probably get away with 12-18 month, and still 6-12 month socks (which are snug around his ankles because homeboy has some serious cankles and the chubbiest feet I've ever seen). He is up to 6 teeth (four on the bottom, two on top) with two more coming in.

Sleep: Sleep was going beautifully. And then the top two teeth started to push through. And all bets were off. It was a miserable few days (for all of us, though I'm sure Nick was in more pain...we were just tired). And then, just like that, the teeth were through. And Nick went back to his fabulous sleep habits. For a couple nights, at least. Now we're fighting with the next two top teeth pushing through. With these two, he'll at least sleep for a good chunk of the night, before waking up in pain somewhere between 2-4am. I have a whole 'nother post written in my head about his sleep habits, which I'll post later. But let's just say he is the least predictable sleeper. EVER. You never know what you're gonna get after little dude goes to bed...

Milestones: At the beginning of his 9th month, Nick was getting into the crawling position, and rocking on all fours back and forth, but couldn't quite make the connection between moving hands and knees at the same time. Well, after some practice with his Great Aunt Lauri, and watching a little video of his girlfriend Addison (who is about 5 or 6 weeks older) crawling, Nick took off. At first he struggled with going lengthy distances (usually only made it about 5 feet before flopping to his belly)...and forget about the hardwood floors...he just couldn't figure out the traction. But in no time he figured it all out, and now he cruises. He's even attempting the one step from the living room to the dining room (though he can't figure out how to swing his leg over the step), and he navigates the hardwood floors like a pro. The other day he crawled over to the stairs, pulled up on the first step, and started to go for the second before I panicked and yanked him back. Naturally, as soon as he figured out crawling, he decided he'd prefer standing and has started to pull himself up on anything he can grab hold of -- the ottoman, the couch, people, and now his crib. So we had to drop it down for fear of him taking a nose dive out the side. Nick is working on clapping, and knows his hands are supposed to be flat (not balled into fists) when we "clap" them together. Last night when he was in the bathtub, he made an attempt at clapping, but was quickly distracted by a toy, so it was short lived. I have a feeling we're only days away from clapping. As for waving "bye-bye", he watches intently if you say "bye-bye Nick!" and wave at him, and he'll wiggle his fingers, but hasn't quite figured out the full waving motion.

Food/Appetite: Nick is eating like a champ! The doctor said at his 9 month check-up, that he could really be eating anything now. He said incorporate new foods slowly, but there were no exceptions to what he could eat. We started slowly with yogurt and cheese, but he's also had spaghetti with turkey meat sauce, mac & cheese, cheerios in milk, rice and beans, Mexican rice, scrambled eggs, and even sampled a McDonald's french fry. He has mastered feeding himself harder, crunchy items (such as puffs, cheerios, and crunchies), but still struggles with the softer finger foods like cheese, cooked apple or carrot, and banana. Anything mushy ends up smushed between his little fingers. We've been working with a sippy cup, which he is great at, but still prefers it be held for him. Lazy! He has slowed down his formula intake immensely, which worried me until the doctor said it was normal -- especially as they start eating more solid foods. He said at this age, Nick needs about 16 ounces (at least) of formula per day. Right now, he's getting just about that much, only wanting to eat about 3-4 ounces of formula per bottle. Although his last bottle of the night, he'll usually finish all 6 ounces.

Speaking of bottles, we had an epiphany a couple weeks ago, in which we realized the Target brand bottle liners that we were using in our Playtex drop in bottles, were not the expandable kind...but that the measurements on the bottle were for the expandable drop-in liners. So while we were measuring water up to the 8oz line on the bottle, it was really only 6oz on the liner. Meaning we were giving him an extra scoop of formula. No wonder he's a chunk! We've since re-measured. Maybe that's why he is drinking less...he thinks he's gone from whole milk to skim!

Nick also got to enjoy his very first Pumpkin Patch and Halloween! We dressed him up, but only took him to the house next door, where they fawned over him for a full hour, before we had to head home for bed time.

Now we're gearing up for Nick's first Thanksgiving and first Christmas. I'm as giddy as a little kid, thinking about taking him to see Santa, and watching him tear open presents just to play with the paper and bows.

Our little guy is getting bigger (and seriously cuter) every single day. His hair seems to change from blond to red, depending on his outfit, and his blue eyes seem to sparkle a little more every time he looks at us. My heart melts at how excited he gets to see me or his daddy. And the snuggles, hugs and kisses he gives out are the absolute best. He has yet to meet a stranger, and graces everyone he meets with a big (now toothy!) smile. His laugh is my favorite sound in the world -- especially when it's brought on by my dad tickling Nick's ribs. I can barely remember what my life was like before Nick was in it, and I can't even fathom the thought of not having him here. This year, at Thanksgiving, and every day of the year, I'm so thankful for my healthy, happy, beautiful little boy -- because he has truly opened my eyes to what life, and love is all about. He is the light of my life -- truly the best gift I've ever received, and I fall more in love with our little miracle every single day.

Because he's so multi-cultural

My husband can relate anything back to a Chevy Chase character in a National Lampoon movie.

Case in point:

The other night we were watching "Restaurant Impossible" on the Food Network. I stated that I did not like the contrast of the bright blue walls versus the bright red chairs that they were painting to makeover this disaster of a restaurant.

My ohsosmart hubby said "yeah, but it's very German".

I raised an eyebrow in his direction and said "because you've been to Germany and know German interior design?"

To which he replied "no, but I've been to France..." and then chuckled "and they're basically the same..."

So I jabbed back with "they are SO not the same! you don't know anything about German fashion and decorating!"

Which he matter of factly stated "Sure I do. They like bright, solid colors. I've seen European Vacation a million times. That's how I know."

Melissa - 0, Todd - 1.

Happy Halloween! Just a wee bit late...

I'm working on Nick's 9 month post, but would be seriously sad if I forgot to post pics of my little cutie in his Halloween attire! So, a Halloween photo dump, if you will...

We attempted to get Nick and Whinnie in a couple of pictures together, but one squirmy baby + one crazy terrier = picture failure.

Best of the bunch Excited about Trick or Treating
All dressed up

Feeling Dino-mite!

Cutest dino in town!

A couple weekend's prior to Halloween, we dressed Nick up in a Tigger costume, and hauled him to a pumpkin patch for some serious photo ops. He was by far the most adorable kid at the Pumpkin Patch (duh), and posed like a champ. Of course, he wanted very little to do with the actual pumpkins, and was more fascinated with the hay all over the ground...which he sampled quite a few times. Can't imagine it tasted all too good...

Ready to roll!

"They couldn't find me an orange pumpkin?" "This sure is a funny lookin' one..."

"Taste's good to me!"

Mommy kisses

Proof that there were, in fact, orange pumpkins at this Pumpkin Patch

Just plain cute.

Proof that Daddy was there, too!

And just a little something for me to look back on one day,

and remind myself that I actually was thinner than I thought... Happy Halloween! Just in time for Thanksgiving!

Girl Pants/Boy Pants

Yesterday Todd was going to pick up Nick from daycare, but got stuck at work late. And as luck would have it, I got stuck at work late, too. So it was Gramma to the rescue with the pick up. I called the babysitter to let her know that my mom would be picking up Nick, and in a slightly worried voice, she informed me that Nick had an "accident" earlier in the day.



Rule #1 -- Don't use the word "accident" with a new mom when referring to her child. It causes instant panic.

I asked her what she meant by "accident" and she informed me that he ate a huge breakfast, and then proceeded to "throw up" all over himself.

Rule #2 -- Don't use the phrase "throw up" when you really mean "spit up" because to a new mom, "throw up" implies illness. "Spit up" implies "he ruined his clothes".

Anyway, she proceeded to tell me that he had dirtied his entire outfit (shirt and pants) and she had to change his clothes. But because I clearly don't care about being in the running for mom of the year, I forgot to leave a change of pants at the sitters house in case of necessity.

So seeing as it was cold outside, the babysitter didn't want Nick to just be sitting around in a onesie and socks (much appreciated) and had to dress him in the only thing she had:

Girl pants. Size 2T. Bright reddish-magenta. Ruffled cuffs.

Seriously, I forgot to take pics, but the above is the best shot my mom got of him in said "girl pants". (The babysitter kept calling them "girl pants" which for some reason was hilarious to me.)

I'm completely relieved that Nick was too young to know or care that he was wearing girl pants because I have a haunting memory of a time in the 3rd grade when I wet my pants (I know, a little too old for pants wetting...but I digress). After wetting my pants, I embarrassingly told my teacher, who sent me to the clinic, where they kept a supply of old donated clothes for situations exactly such as these.

But apparently girls stop wetting their pants after kindergarten, because the clinic only had boy's underwear and pants on hand. And they made me wear them. I'm talking mighty mouse under-roo's, and boy sweat pants. I. Was. Mortified.

So I hid out in the clinic until my mom could leave work, grab a pair of panties and girl pants for me from home, and bring them to me so that I didn't have to spend the day in boy underpants. Not that anyone could tell I was wearing them, but in my little third grade mind, it was the end of the world.

And I never wet my pants again.

Just to clarify...

I haven't actually forgotten about Nick's 9 month post (holy $h!t, 9 months?!). I'm specifically waiting until our 9 month well-baby visit next Tuesday so that I know his exact weight/length/etc. because I've been guesstimating since our last well-baby check-up which was 3 months ago.

Is it weird that I actually LOVE taking Nick to the pediatrician? Granted, I only love it when he's going for his well-baby check-ups. Don't love those sick visits (which, knock on wood, I think we've only had two of...one for pink eye, and one for what sounded like a cold, but was chalked up to probably teething. And yes, his 4 bottom teeth all started to appear a few days after that visit).

Anyway, I'm looking forward to finding out just how much our mini chunk weighs, and how tall he is now.

In other less-than-exciting baby news, we're switching out Nick's infant carrier this weekend. Time to put the big boy car seat in the blazer! This is so bittersweet. I'll miss being able to lug Nick around in the carrier, and not have to worry about waking him up if he's just fallen asleep in the car...but in reality, I can barely lift that carrier with him in it anymore, and we rarely take the carrier in places now that Nick can sit in the grocery cart and high chairs.

So, long story short, the 9 month post -- true to form -- will be posted a week late. :)

I can't believe...

...that it's already November. Where the hell has the past 10 months gone?

...that I have a 9 month old child. Seriously, where the hell did the past 9 months go??

...that I resisted all urges to splurge on Halloween candy, only to ruin my success by eating half of a Hershey's cookies and cream bar that some kid dropped on our front porch. Seriously, what the hell is wrong with me?

...that even though I now have the most amazing view from my office, I sort of miss my old cozy office. Having all this space is kind of creepy...not to mention it's freezing next to this giant window.

...that I actually enjoyed the pulled pork BBQ sandwiches we made for dinner last night. I actually lean more towards the side of "hate" when it comes to anything BBQ (ribs, pulled pork, brisket, etc.). But something about making it at home made it super yummy...that and the fact that we used the leanest piece of pork roast ever sold, so there was no disgusting fat hanging off of it.

...that I jinxed myself on facebook by saying I had my great sleeping baby back, because sure enough, he woke up at 3:00am crying.

...that I actually turned off the monitor when he started crying, and passed back out. Todd was the one that eventually got up to go in to Nick's room. whoops.

...that I let Nick sleep in the bed with me from 3:30am - 7:30am. I told myself I wasn't going to let him sleep in our bed anymore for fear of him never wanting to leave our bed, and us never being able to give him a sibling. But dammit, I was tired, and that was the only way I was gonna get some extra zzzz's!

...that I went to Old Navy yesterday with the green light from Todd to spend a little $$ on myself (ok, so it was $10 because we had rewards coupons and I was already going to return stuff anyway), but I didn't buy myself ANYTHING. I did, however, buy lots of socks for Nick...which he needed...but could care less about...so in hindsight, I suppose they really were for me.

...that I have to write Nick's 9 month post...didn't I just write his 8 month post??

...how fast this year is flying by. SLOW DOWN LIFE!

...that I actually said the above statement. Had you seen me 9 months ago, you would've found me on my knees, praying for time to speed up just a bit...hoping Nick would get the hang of sleeping, eating, pooping, gaining weight, etc. I couldn't wait for him to get a little bigger...be a little more interactive. And now I'm kicking myself for wishing away that time. And now that he is bigger, more interactive, and basically the cutest, most fun baby on the planet, I just want to freeze time. Just for a little while...

...that I can't freeze time. :(