Long Weekend Fun

We are off for the long weekend coming up. I'm pretty excited, we'll be spending one night in Fargo and will do some SHOPPING (I didn't even realize until Rebekah mentioned it today that James counts towards our duty-free amount)! If you are a Bath & Bodyworks fanatic like me, here are links to some coupons you can use if you'll also be in the U.S. this weekend.

Then from there we travel just a few short hours to Fair Hills Resort. It is a great, relaxing weekend that includes several other Plett families. I can hardly wait. I wish it didn't involve packing though, and I am totally procrastinating by being on the computer right now. I just get overwhelmed with the amount of stuff we need for what seems like such a short time! Anyway, hopefully I'll get into gear soon and get it done. I tend to over-pack, which when it comes to a baby I don't think is a bad thing. It's SO hard to pack for this time of year though - I mean, it could be cold or it could be hot! I have to pack for both! In any case, I'm stoked about the new playpen I got at a garage sale for $25 a couple of weeks ago. It is in PERFECT condition, and is smaller and way easier to setup/pack than our other one. It will be perfect.

James has also been doing really well with his sleeping this week. He has had two nights of sleeping from 8:30pm to 6:30am, and one night where he had to cry a bit but still slept well. I am now trying to slowly move his bedtime later to avoid having to be up at 6:30 every morning! It's hard though, because he is really tired and crabby by 8:30! Anyway, I hope he'll do alright this weekend - but I don't think it is going to be hard to tire him out every day. There will be a lot to do and see!

Now to try out this video feature...

The "Right" Thing

Alright, so here's my latest few questions: When and how do I start weaning James off of the bottle? How do I know he's getting enough solids once he is on cows milk, and just eating bits of table food?

I'm not really in a rush to take James off the bottle, but as I was feeding him tonight I realized that I'm going to have to do that soon! Ack! I'm SO used to giving him the bottle, I don't even know where to start taking him off of one. Would he suddenly (well, I would wean him over time, but you know what I mean) just NOT get bottles anymore - and just get a sippy cup of milk at each meal/snack? I am CLUELESS!

I know some of you are thinking right now, "Oh Heather, just trust your instincts". Well, bear with me, okay? I just want to know what others have done.

Also, in the book I have it talks about a child needing so-and-so many tablespoons of meat, fruit and veggies each day. Do I really need to keep track? Again, I feel CLUELESS! For example, we were at a restaurant for lunch today and James only ate a couple of spoonfuls of his food. So, I gave him little pieces of my food, chicken and french fries, and he ate it all up. Is that sufficient for a meal? Or, do I need to be making sure he is getting more than that? Right now I still always think he's fine, because he is also still getting formula every day. But once he is off the formula, then what?

To end off, here is a cute picture of James watching Uncle Matt play guitar...

Matt is moving to Calgary this week. If any of you are from Calgary, and know of a house or apartment he could rent, or a good church to attend, let me know!

Vicious Baby

This vicious baby attack was caught on camera today. The mother was in soggy, and somewhat bitten condition, but remained mostly unharmed.

Nine Months

By the way, don't miss this awesome giveaway that Drea is having from Playskool! She has reviewed some of their items, and they look great! James has the teething keys, and they are so adorable - he loves them! I hope I win, but I don't mind if you enter too.

NOT Chickenpox Afterall!

This afternoon I took James to the local Health Nurse to confirm whether or not his rash is, in fact, chickenpox. She took a look at it, and I was a little surprised when she said, "This doesn't really look like chickenpox to me". She then said that she really didn't know what it was, and asked a couple of the others in the office what they thought. The on-site paramedic thought it looked like swimmer's itch. I left with no real answer, and I didn't like that, so I called my Dr. I found out she was away for a few days, and I didn't want to wait that long to find out what James had. So, we packed up and headed into Winnipeg to see the pediatrician at the walk-in clinic. Luckily for us, there was only one other child in line ahead of us, so we only waited about 10 minutes. The Dr. took a look at James, and I mentioned that I also thought he had a sore throat. She took a look at it, and immediately said confidently, "Oh yes, he has Hand, Foot & Mouth Disease - it is going around the city right now like crazy".

Hand, Foot & Mouth is very contagious, and usually only effects children. The rash appears on the hands and feet, and often there are sensitive sores that form in the mouth. It is a virus, so there is nothing he can take. We can give him Tylenol for the pain of the mouth sores, and keep doing the same thing as we were doing for chickenpox. So, I have my final answer - and now we just have to avoid public places, because he may be contagious for up to a week. I'm glad I know what it is, and that it is so common. Unfortunately, it now looks like James will be getting that chickenpox vaccine afterall!

Pic-A-Pox

Okay, I actually just couldn't resist using that title for my post! Hahaha! James is doing pretty well, considering that his arms, legs and toosh are covered in chickenpox! I've been keeping him in sleepers so that he can't scratch them - but as soon as he gets undressed for a diaper change he goes after them. So far he has none on his head, face or really on his torso at all - just the arms and legs, hands and feet. I am taking him to the local health nurse today, just to confirm that it is chickenpox. I've been giving him oatmeal/baking soda baths, slathering him in Calamine lotion, and giving him Tylenol. He's doing okay, but he is definately fussy, has little appetite, and the nights have been rough. Poor little guy! I feel so bad for him - but it will all be over soon. I will try and post some pictures later on.

Chickenpox Party

Did your mom ever take you to a chickenpox party when you were a kid? My mom did! "Back in the day", when one kid would contract chickenpox, other parents wanted to expose their kids so that they would all get it - and then be done with it at an early age. I very clearly remember my friend Tracy coming over because she had chickenpox and my mom wanted my brother and I to have it so that we would be immune. Thankfully I didn't get too many pox, and they didn't itch me very much. A few others from my class at school got the pox too, and because we couldn't go to school we had playdates. I sort of remember it being kind of fun - but that's because my pox weren't bad.

Well, do you want to come a chickenpox party at my place? James has them.

It started out with a mild fever and fussiness on Friday night. Through the night James was up a lot, and very unhappy. I gave him Tylenol, but he seemed to have no appetite, and very irritable. Yesterday morning I noticed he had developed quite a few "mosquito bites", which I thought was weird because the mosquitos have not been bad. By the afternoon he had quite a few more, and appeared to be very fussy, feverish, and not hungry for anything. I needed to escape the house (as my hubby is also sick), so I took James to a family gathering we had at the beach. It was confirmed there by my mom, my aunts and my grandma that James has chickenpox. Last night was pretty rough for him again - but he is obviously itchy, and still hasn't been wanting to eat much. Hopefully the worst has passed, and he'll get through the itchy blister stage quickly. So, the invitation is open: if you want your kids to get chickenpox early in life, so they don't suffer in later years, come on down to our place over the next 3 days for a chickenpox party!

James and the Giant...

... Spaghetti Squash!

Ladies, it is the announcement you've all been waiting for!

Isn't time we all met one another in person?

I have finally made arrangements for the

First Annual Ladies Blogger Brunch.

• SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2007 •

at 11:00am

AALTOS RESTAURANT

1824 Pembina Hwy.

Winnipeg, Manitoba

It is going to be a fabulous morning of meeting one another, food and fellowship.

Darlene Schacht, editor and writer for Christian Women Online

will be presenting a devotional! It's going to be great!

Please RSVP by September 15th by email: bloggerbrunch@hotmail.com

Children are welcome, but we'll understand if you want to

make it a "mom's morning out"!

Please copy this invitation and post it on your blog as well! The more the merrier!

Weekend Birthday Party!

Birthday girl Gina & James in the bouncer.


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He's So Big!

Well, Well, Well

So, guess what?! For the last three nights James has kept the following nighttime routine: to bed at 8:00pm, up for a 'top-up' bottle between 11:00pm and 12:00am, and then slept until 7:30am! You have NO idea, (or maybe you do), how extremely wonderful it has been to have a decent night's sleep. My body is still getting used to sleeping for that stretch of time, so I am still up several times through the night. However, I'm sure I'll stop doing that soon - and just start sleeping through the night myself. Hahahaha! Thank you so much for your prayers and support. I am now officially one of those moms that will be saying to new moms "It's tough, but once you get through it, it really works!". I also just want to give glory to God, because I know He is in on this as well.

I have still been praying over James' room each night. I believe that my strength, and the wisdom to finally "just do it" (let James CIO) came from God. Sometimes I think we expect God to answer our prayers without us having to do anything, like how I was praying James would sleep better, but I didn't want to have to change his schedule, or let him CIO. I don't think that we can expect that. I think sometimes God will answer our prayers only if we first put ourselves into ACTION, believing in Him to help us. Does that make any sense? Hope so! Anyway, I am off to bed now - and praying for another good night. I'm praying for good nights for all of you too.

A Few New Things

Hi everyone! I just had to give you a quick CIO report, and also tell you about the interesting new things James has been up to. So, as far as James' nights go, they are getting much, much better! If we have to let him CIO, it usually doesn't take more than about 5-20 minutes of crying. I say 5-20 minutes, because it was down to NO crying, but last night was weird and he cried for 20 minutes. However, that is a huge improvement from the 1 hour of crying. AND, he even slept one full night for us this weekend! He went down at 8pm, and woke up at 7am! Yahoo! We are hoping for more nights like that.

He has also accomplished a few new things this weekend. For example, he is now pulling himself to standing on almost everything - and even stood unassisted in his crib for a few milliseconds. He has also mastered going up the stairs (preferably supervised, but he has gotten as far as 2 or 3 steps up before we noticed). Today after swimming we went on a short drive, and he fell asleep in the car. When we got home I debated whether to let him nap in the car, or if I should just wake him up and try to rock him back to sleep. I decided to wake him, but instead of waking up - he stayed asleep while I took him out! He stayed asleep on my shoulder while I brought him into the house. I gently laid him down into his crib, and his eyes opened, but only long enough for him to roll onto his tummy and go back to sleep! WOW! He must have been really tired!

Here are a few pictures from our trip to the Zoo yesterday... he looked SO cute in his new hoodie!

Top Hats & Toofers

CIO Night No.5

CIO Night No.5 - Much the same thing happened last night. James went down at 8:00pm, and woke up somewhat early for his bottle, around 10:45pm. After that he went back to sleep, and woke up sometime around 5:40am. He whined a bit, and then slept on-and-off until about 6:15am. Then he started to cry, but we just left him alone, and around 6:30am he fell asleep again until 8:00am.

We were supposed to go out tomorrow night with friend's, and leave James with a grandma, but I've decided not to do that. I think I would rather get this nighttime routine established first. We were also supposed to spend Sat.-Sun. night at a Motel for a family reunion, but again I don't think we will. I don't think the Motel neighbours would really enjoy hearing a baby crying at night! I think we'll just come home for the night, and go back the next day. I really would hate to see him backtrack at this point - he's doing so well!

One commenter on my last post asked how I am feeling after getting some good sleep. I feel AMAZING! I have energy for James through the day, and I don't get nearly so frustrated with him when he gets fussy. I've made a decent supper two nights in a row, and have supper planned for tonight too. My laundry is caught up. I feel emotionally more stable, and I feel like I can THINK. There is no longer a fog around my brain. I also feel more relaxed, and less irritated (I think my husband must be thankful for that). I just thank God for these last few nights of rest, and just pray that we will have more to come. It is incredible what a little sleep can do. Thanks for asking!

Another commenter encouraged me with an email this week. She stressed the importance of training up my child, and to NOT feel guilty about doing it! It was a big eye-opener for me, because I hadn't thought of letting James CIO as training. I sort of felt guilty about it because I thought I was being selfish, not wanting to get up for him all night. This friend just reminded me that it is my RESPONSIBILITY to train and discipline James, and that there is no time like the present to start molding him into the obedient little boy I want him to be. I appreciated hearing that so much. I also want to be able to enjoy helping James become a loving, caring man-of-God. I now see it as a joy to train James rather than something to feel guilty about. Thanks for that great reminder!

CIO Nights No. 3 & 4

CIO Night No. 3 - Night number 3 was not too bad. James went down at 8:00pm, and woke up for his 11:30pm bottle. He went back down to sleep, and then woke up at around 2:20am. We let him cry for a bit, and when we went in to check on him he was not standing up in his crib - he was just on all fours. Hopefully that means that the new trick has grown old already! We laid him down, rubbed his back - and he would actually almost fall asleep, but as soon as we would leave the room, he would cry again. It lasted just over an hour, but finally he fell asleep and woke up at 8:00am.

CIO Night No. 4 - Night number 4, which was last night, is giving us some hope! We put James down at 8:00pm, he woke up for the 11:30pm bottle and went back to sleep without a problem. He slept until... drum roll please... 6:20am! I heard him peep a few times through the night, but he seemed to just put himself back to sleep. So, at 6:30am my hubby was going to go give James a bottle, but I said, "No, don't do that. We want him to learn to sleep until at least 7:00am, so let's just let him be for a bit". We whined and cried a little, but we DID NOT GO INTO HIS ROOM. It only took about 20 minutes, and he went back to sleep - and slept until 8:30am, when I woke him up! Heehee - it almost makes me giddy! I'm actually excited to see what he'll do tonight.

CIO Nights No.1 & 2

Well, we did it folks - we started letting James cry-it-out. First off I have to say that it totally SUCKS! It breaks my heart every second that James is crying. I stand at his door in torture waiting for each interval of ten minutes to pass with tears streaming down my face. Here's the story...

Up until now, my hubby and I didn't really agree on how we wanted to handle James' night waking. My hubby was not interested in letting James cry-it-out (from here on in CIO), but I was ready to try anything. However, I felt we HAD to be on the same page before we could support each other through it. Finally, on Saturday night, after trying to put James down after a 12:00am bottle, Ryan walked out of his room while James wailed away in his crib. He refused to fall asleep, and the minute we would put him in his crib he would be up again. It was finally enough, and we agreed that he had to cry. We did decide though that because he is standing up in his crib, we would go in every 10 minutes, lay him down, and then walk out.

So, we did it. The first night was terrible. He went down to sleep around 8:00pm, and then woke up at 12:00am for a bottle. We had decided he could still have the usual 11:00pm bottle - but that night it was 12:00am. Then that whole fussing thing started, so it was time to let him CIO. He cried hard when we left the room, and immediately stood up in his crib. We waited ten minutes, went in, laid him down, patted his head, said "shhhhhh" and then walked out. He WAILED. He COUGHED. He GAGGED. It was BAD. My heart was aching, but I willed myself not to go in - and reminded myself that in the end, this pain will pay off. It took an hour, but finally he settled down (with those heart-wrenching after-cry hiccups), and fell asleep. He slept until almost 7:00am!

Last night was a little different. We were in the city for supper, and James slept on the way home so it sort of messed up his bedtime. He finally went down around 9:00pm. He was up at 11:00am for his bottle, which was fine, and he seemed to go down again relatively easily. He woke up at 4:00am. It was time to let him cry again. It was much the same as the previous night. We went in at 10 minute intervals to lay him down, pat his head, etc. It took an hour, but again he finally settled and slept until 8:00am.

So, tonight we will continue with CIO. The plan remains to put him down around 8:00pm, let him have the 11:00pm bottle, and anything after that is CIO. I am just praying it won't take more than a week to have him sleeping from 8:00pm to 11:00pm, and then 11:00pm to 7:00am. After that, we hope to work on eliminating that 11:00 bottle. If you think to pray for us too, that would be great. I can't remember the last time I had to have this much will power. It hurts this mommy's heart to hear her first born cry like that, but I know that we all need to start sleeping - so this is our last resort.

Another Sleep-Deprived Week

Are you sick and tired of hearing my complaints about the sleep issues at our house? If yes, please skip this post. If no, and you care to read about what is going on and either want to help or empathize, read on!

The last week has been the roughest we've ever had as far as sleep goes. Not only was this a week of milestones and many bumps and bruises, but it has also been exhausting. During the day, James is basically happy, energetic and wanting to learn, touch, explore EVERYTHING! It's crazy! He has another tooth coming in now, and possibly more on the way. He is crawling full speed, and starting to pull himself up on things - including his CRIB. Last night he was up from 4:00am to about 6:30am. Every time he would finally fall asleep in our arms, and we'd put him in the crib, it wouldn't take more than a few minutes before he was standing and crying. At one point we finally laid him down, and walked out of the room. He cried hard for 10 minutes, and I couldn't take it any longer so I went in. He hicupped after that for almost an hour! I felt terrible, but even worse is this shadow over us that is our lack of sleep. My hubby is finally fed up too, but we don't know what to do. Can we assume that he is really not suffering from any unseen problem, and just let him cry? Having no sleep, it is hard to make decisions, and it is difficult to be rational - particularly at 5:00am. I am surprised we are not divorced yet.

Seriously, I find this sleep situation distressing now. At first I was able to somewhat embrace it, but it has progressively gotten worse and worse. I am very officially at my wits end, and I don't know what to try next. I think everyone I know is just sick of me by now, so I feel somewhat abandoned with this problem, and on top of it we get very little time by ourselves. Time without James has now become almost a necessesity. Things sort of feel very fragile around here right now. Even this post doesn't entirely make sense in my opinion. Anyway, he is down now for the night (9:00pm), so I am going to end here and try to get some sleep before the party starts.

World's Worst Mother Moment

Ah, the blissful sound of a quiet house as little James takes his morning nap. Mom is happily checking up on her emails when suddenly the silence is broken by... THUMP! Mom's heart stops momentarily as she realizes the "thump" can only be one thing. The silence in the house is no longer blissful, but rather panic-inducing as mom rushes out of the office and down the stairs as fast as possible. Upon reaching the bottom stair the scream errupts, and the wailing follows. Mom (feeling like the world's biggest failure), rushes into her bedroom to find her dear little James on his knees on the laminate floor. His little nogan is garnished with a sizeable purple welt, as he decided that his adventure over the pillow-fence onto the floor should be head-first. As mom wipes tears (some of her own), kisses the "boo-boo" and rushes to find a cold compress, the world slowly becomes a happier place again. Little James will no longer take naps on Mom's bed. Mom also decides to play it safe, and calls Health Links, just to make sure she shouldn't go to the hospital. She also has grandpa come over to wire the phone shelf to the wall, and puts up the baby gate at the stairs. At least there were some smiles afterwards...

We Need Skidpants!

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