Stroller Naps, Stuffed Animals, and Small Steps!

 Week 21

Week 21 - Tyson turned 5 months on Tuesday!  So it is official now that I can say when people ask - Tyson is 5 months!  Of course that declaration is always followed with, "I know, he's small.  He was 3 weeks early."  I wonder when that will change - I don't think anytime soon.  What is going to be hilarious is when we see cousin Zasha next week.  She is only 2 weeks older than Tyson and is 18 pounds (to Tyson's 12 pounds).  Poor bugger, I hope he catches up at some point.

He is growing, though, I had to retire these 0-3 month overalls!  They are high-waters!

Friday started week 21 out with a great day.  It was 64 degrees out and felt like summer!  It was just gorgeous!  Shannon came over and we decided to go walking at the outlets.  For the occasion, we got to christen Tyson's stroller.  We hadn't used it yet, because of the cold weather, and because of the fact that we never go to the mall.  It has been stored in our basement, collecting dust.  After I had dusted it off, I realized that I really didn't know how to fold it and unfold it.  Since I am bad with puzzles, I took to YouTube to find a demonstration.  It actually is very easy, but there is not anyway that I could have figured it out by myself.  Shannon was so funny, she brought out Ty's carrier (without Ty in it) in our driveway so we could make sure we could get it to fit in the stroller without difficulty before we got there.  I said, "We'll just do it there."  But Shannon said, "We don't want to look stupid, like we don't know what we are doing!"  It was great fun to walk around the outlets and Tyson slept the whole 2 hours!  I was psyched and figured that I would do this most days, so he can get a good nap in!  Good exercise for me and good sleeping for Ty.  Can't beat it!

 Stroller time!

Sabbath I worked and Heath took Ty to Conway church (2 weeks in a row!) and over to his parents.  Ty slept 12 hours and Heath woke up with a start at 9 am!  On the weekends, we don't bother setting the alarm anymore because Tyson usually gets up by 7:30 or 8:00.  But to get to Conway on time for church, we have to leave by 9:45 AM at the latest.  Well, Heath had fun, running around, taking a shower, getting Tyson changed/dressed and fed by the time he had to leave.  He didn't quite make it and was fashionably late getting to church.  I couldn't help but wondering if the 2 hour nap on Friday afternoon had something to do with the 12 hour "big sleep."  Ty and Heath made it back from their outing at 9:45 PM and I was overjoyed to see Tyson was already in his PJ's.  I was totally ready to praise Heath for his insight and remembering what had happened the last weekend.  However, it was Grammy who put Tyson in his pajamas because of a blowout!  Either way it was easier to get him to go to sleep!  One other thing to note on Saturday night is I started Mother's Milk Tea, as suggested by Shannon Nelson in a previous blog.  I tend to be paranoid about certain things and these days it is about losing my milk supply.  I feel like I am getting less and less milk out at work when I'm pumping, and Tyson is going to be taking in more and more, so something is going to give there.  I really don't want to start formula, but I think I'm seeing the writing on the wall.  But I am giving the Mother's Milk Tea a try!  It's been almost a week, and I'm not seeing a huge improvement yet, but maybe it takes some time.

Stretching, feeling refreshed after his "big sleep!"

Sunday I worked again and Heath and Ty had a leisurely day at home.  Or as Heath would like to call it "dubbing off."  It was really funny.  I was putting on my coat to walk out of the door at work, when I got a phone call from home.  It was Heath whining, "When are you getting home to take this cranky boy from me?"  I just had to laugh.  Taking care of Tyson for the whole weekend does get a little tiring for Heath.  I think it opens up his eyes to what I do the other 5 days of the week, though!  When I got home, Heath and Ty had a trick for me.  Heath said, "Come look at this!"  Heath had made burger pizzas and he was eating one, while Tyson was in his arms.  Heath brought the pizza up to Ty's mouth and Ty proceeded to open his mouth and lean into the pizza!  Of course, at the last second, Heath moved it away.  Poor Ty!  Daddy was teasing him!  But he seriously is doing great with his rice cereal.  So good that I started giving him the cereal two times a day.  I really am trying to beef him up!

Loving the rice cereal!

Monday I was all psyched and geared up to go walking at the outlets again.  I had kept the stroller in the back of the Subaru and was all set.  Unfortunately, the warm weather had left us and brought 20-30 degree temps back and snow.  Are you kidding me?  We got about 3 more inches!  So much for my outlet outings!  We'll see when the weather will cooperate and we'll get to do it again.  Because of the snow, I really did not feel like going out, so I postponed grocery day until Tuesday and focused in on the laundry.  Fun, fun.  One thing that I figured out on Monday is that I have been depriving Ty of stuffed animals.  Because of my OCD, I have all of his stuffed animals neatly lined in a basket in his room.  And I just haven't gotten them out for him!  How terrible is that?  Another reason why I haven't is that the dogs think that the stuffed animals are their toys and I have to be on stuffed animal patrol all the time!  But the mother in me won out over my OCD.  Out came the stuffed animals (at least a few) and Ty couldn't get enough.  He loves to hug them with great fervor and also tries to either eat them or make out with them!  No more depriving for my boy!  Monday, I found out that Tyson can take a few steps!  He loves to stand up, so I was having him stand up on the family room floor, holding onto my hands - when he proceeded to lift up his right foot and walked it forward and then his left foot followed!  It was unbelievable.  I did it that night and showed Heath - which, of course, he told me, "He did that on Sunday."  What a kill joy.  I managed to show Poppy his new skill, but he wouldn't move his feet at all when I tried to show Noni or Shannon.  Monday night it was still snowing and Devin came over to spend the next 2 nights because he was taking a course at Concord Hospital.  What a treat to see him during the week!

 Stuffed animal lovin'!

Tuesday, I timed grocery day just perfect.  I went right when Ty was due for his 45 minute afternoon nap.  He, of course, fell asleep in the car, and stayed asleep in his carseat when I brought him in the house for a grand total 1.5 hours!  Yeah!  One thing I figured out on Tuesday is that Ty really doesn't like the playmat anymore.  He associates it now with being alone.  Because, if I would need to go to the bathroom, or change the laundry etc., I would lay him down on his playmat.  So now, even as I am going to put him down on the mat, he starts crying.  It's unbelievable how smart they are, even at this age!  So on Tuesday, I just started leaving him on the floor and he loved it!  He was rolling around on the floor and was actually able to spend some time by himself!  Tuesday night, we headed over to "The Fairway" (Mom+Dad's townhouse) for supper.  Of course, this was mostly because Devin was in town, but we were all there (minus Leigh and Mia).  It was a good time, but I figured something else about Tyson.  I have figured out that when there are a lot of people and sounds, he goes crazy looking at everything around him and he will never focus in on you.  It's like sensory overload and I think he gets overstimulated.  I'm sure that will get better with age.

 Ty looking at everything but the camera!

Wednesday I worked and there really isn't much to report on this day, so let's move into Thursday.  I tried to recreate the great shopping naps that Tyson has had recently and took him to the outlets again (not in the stroller because it was too cold) and to Kohl's with Shannon.  My great thought about napping went out the window when he did his usual 45 minute nap and then woke up in his carseat in Kohl's and wouldn't go back to sleep.  Major bummer.  Maybe it was a fluke so I will definitely be trying it again!  Thursday night, we went to the OG with Adam and then to our usual Thursday night Walmart outing.  And that's about it!  That brings us up to speed.  Have a great week!

Rice Cereal and Obsessions with Puppies & Feet

Week 20

Last Friday started Tyson's 20th week.  You would think that Tyson would be 5 months old - but not yet!  Last Friday, I officially gave up on Tyson's naps.  The nap trial is over.  Besides his morning nap, he just will not nap for longer than 45 minutes at a time.  I have seriously tried everything.  I have tried him swaddled or in his sleepsack, in his crib or in his pack 'n play or swing, white noise vs. lullaby CD's, and putting him down completely asleep or sleepy but still awake.  I even tried something I found on a message board - rousing him slightly (by putting the binky in his mouth) 40 minutes into his nap, to try and start a new sleep cycle.  I have tried every combination of all those things above.  It just will not work.  Some days he even naps for 30 minutes only.  But if I know what to expect and don't expect him to take a nice 2 hour nap, then it doesn't frustrate me so much.  I give up - Tyson you win this battle!

Doesn't he look cocky here?  Like he knows he won a battle!

So on Tyson's 20th week "birthday", he started his solid foods!  His RSV is completely gone, so I felt comfortable with starting the rice cereal.  Friday night, after his 7 PM feeding, he got his first taste!  I sat him in his bumbo and I sat on the floor and got to it.  I knew that it was going to be messy, but I seriously had no idea!  It is good that it was right before bed, because despite the bibs, it gets all over his clothes (and face and hands).  The poor guy, it gets so caked onto his face while eating that he gets a rash on his face, from the irritation of the cereal!  The first feeding went pretty well - he took about half of what I had prepared (1 tablespoon of rice cereal).  But he was not getting how to really open his mouth yet, of course.  However, his next feeding on Sabbath, he really started to get it!  He started opening his mouth wide and leaning into the spoon.  Now 1 week later, he is a pro already!  He is finishing the 1 tablespoon at each feeding every time and it is only taking about 20 minutes to feed him the cereal, instead of the 35 minutes it was taking in the beginning!  I was talking with Corey this week and I am disappointed in the info out on the internet about starting solid foods.  I want a specific timetable that says "Week 1, give him cereal X amount of tablespoons blank times a day - then week 2, give him a vegetable.. etc.  But I have been searching and searching and it is all vague and not spelled out.  It is annoying!  I know, I know, every baby is different - but I just want a clear path for this!  What I can find right now is that I have to wait until Tyson has "mastered" rice cereal before we move on.  What "mastered" really means, is anyone's guess!  One thing that came out of the feedings is that Tyson is now obsessed with the puppies.  I think it is because, sitting in the bumbo, puts him right at eye level with them.  And the fact that they sit right beside Tyson when he is eating because they are obsessed with the rice cereal!  (Especially Reeses, no surprise there)  It is so funny.  Ty will keep his head turned the entire time I'm feeding him to look at the dogs and then he grins and "talks" to them.  It is so cute.

First bites...

 The dogs wanting in on the rice cereal!

Tyson "talking" to the puppies!

Sabbath brought a trip to Conway church - which we had not been to in months.  It was great to see everyone!  Of course, everyone thought that Ty looked so big, but our friends, the Blakeney's, had a new daughter on January 13 and she weighs just about the same as Tyson now!  So he seriously is still a peanut.  I try not to make too many comparisons and not to let it bother me.  Then we went over to my parent's house (they were still in Florida though) and hung out with Devin, Leigh, Mia, Shannon, and Adam.  Sean was in NY seeing his brother off to Afghanistan and Shannon couldn't go because she had to work on Sunday.  Tyson's other big thing on Sabbath (besides getting the feeding thing down) was he has started sucking on his lower lip, which he has never done before.  He did it all day long!  Once he figures out how to do something, he just does it over and over.  It's so sweet.  Saturday night, we headed to Friendly's for some snacks and ice-cream.  And then I made my rookie mistake.  I should have put Ty in his PJ's for the ride home, but I was just not thinking.  We left Friendly's at about 9:30 PM (his usual bedtime) and he did fall asleep immediately in the car.  I did want to feed him again when we got home, but I could have just eased him from the car seat, nursed him, and then put him in his crib.  But I had to take off his clothes and put him in his pajamas, which brought on an intense crying fit.  Lesson learned.

 Cousin Mia

Hangin' with Uncle Adam

Showing a bit more life with Uncle Devin!

Showing off his new skill!

Sunday, he slept until about 9 am, which was really 10 PM the new time.  So his schedule was off the whole day.  So because he was off schedule, the hour time difference was not that noticeable.  Heath spent the day working on cutting new trim boards to put in the kitchen, dining room, and hallways.  I helped when I could, in between Ty duty.  We took a break during the early afternoon to go to Pizza Hut to the buffet.  We completely forgot that the buffet was Mon-Fri only.  I couldn't understand this because we had gone twice in the past month.  But the first was when Vutek was closed for a snow day and the other time was on President's Day.  We ended up going anyway, but it wasn't as cheap as it could have been!  I guess we'll have to go back to our Dunkin' Donuts run on Sundays!  One fun thing that I did on Sunday was use the Baby Bjorn for the first time!  I had been using my sling, because for awhile, he was too small for the bjorn.  But he's been big enough for awhile, I just hadn't gotten around to using it.  And I needed Heath to help me with the straps for the first time because I am really bad at puzzles!  The last thing I would want is for Tyson to fall out because I didn't have it strapped right.  He loved it and falls alseep in it a lot, just like the sling!

 Look past the bad hair day - he loves to suck on the bjorn!

Monday brought a sad day.  First of all, it was grocery day and that is never a happy time for me - but I love when it is over and I know I don't have to go for a whole week!  Then came the bad news.  We are NOT going to China.  This has been in the works for a couple of weeks and we have been waiting for the final answer, and it came on Monday.  It is a really long story, but the bottom line is that no children are allowed to go, despite what we were told initially.  This is the first year that they have chosen an "MVP" to go with the sales team on their "fancy conference" - and there has been a long-standing rule that no children are allowed to go on the sales conference.  So even though Heath was given this as a reward, the rules stand and they can't change them.  Supposedly there are multiple people that are not going on the sales conference because of this "no children" rule, so it's not like they could bend the rules for Heath.  Very, very disappointing to say the least.  Heath's boss is very upset and is working on getting Heath the financial compensation for the trip.  So at least there is that, but it truly was a trip of a lifetime, so I'm disappointed.  But there is a reason for this.  I have to believe that!

 Tyson doesn't appear too upset that we aren't going to China!

On Tuesday, Tyson slept until 9 AM again.  I had let him sleep as long as possible, because he had been up crying until after 11 PM (after putting him to bed at 9:30).  Why this was, I have no idea.  Daddy had to deal with it, because I went and picked up my parent's at the airport Monday night and I left at 10:30 PM.  It's nice when Ty sleeps in, but then his schedule is off all day.  But when he really needs the sleep, I can adjust any schedule to give him more sleep!  Tuesday afternoon, Ty and I went with Noni to Concord and did some errands.  We had a good time.  There was no need to rush home, though, since Heath did not get home until 8:30 PM.  Work has been so crazy right now for him, but that was a bit ridiculous.  It just solidified my position of why I will never have Tyson go to bed before 8:30 PM.  Ty would never see his Daddy or get to spend any time with him!  I am aiming for 8:30 at some point, but Heath is already fighting me on it.  Right now I try to get him in his crib by 9:15 PM and Heath thinks that this is too early!  Just wait until I keep moving the bedtime up!

 Ty would miss bath time with Daddy!

Wednesday I worked and Tyson would not nap at all for my mother in the afternoon.  This was a new development for her!  She has gotten too spoiled with his 2 hour afternoon naps!  And this was a rude awakening.  He started doing the lip blowing again and is continually doing it again.  He is drooling so much that the lip blowing is very messy now!  I am constantly cleaning his face off!

 Lip blowing with his bubbles!

Yesterday brought one of the more frustrating days in awhile.  First of all, Ty was up at 1 AM and 4 AM crying.  At 4 AM, he had busted out of his swaddle.  I reswaddled him and at 5:45 AM he was busted out of the swaddle again and was up for the day.  What the heck?  I thought that this was the sign that he does not want to be swaddled anymore.  So I put him in his sleepsack for his AM nap.  Well, that did not work out.  I fought with him for 2 hours to get him to take two 30 minute naps.  That was not good.  And he had already had terrible nighttime sleep.  Then he would not even give me his usual 45 minute nap in the afternoon!  He was overtired, exhausted, but the only way he would sleep was in my arms.  Back to that!  He fell asleep in the bjorn, in my arms in the bed and in the rocking chair, but 5 minutes of being put in his pack 'n play, he would wake up screaming.  So that led to a horrible, cranky day and evening.  Of course it had to be the evening we were going to Concord to the OG with my parents and Shannon and Sean.  Ty had to be walked around the OG the whole time to keep him from crying.  What a day.  I thought that he felt hot but I checked him temperature a couple of times and it was fine.  He at least went right to sleep when he got home and slept soundly until 7:30 AM.  Oh, I forgot!  He really found his feet, for me, on Thursday.  I thought it was the real first time, but Heath said he had done it on Wednesday night.  Stupid work - I keep missing things!!! )=  So, of course, in true Tyson fashion, he is obsessed with his feet now!

Subdued in Daddy's arms (did not last long)

 Getting a taste of lemon - he went back for more!

Ty doesn't care that his feet stink - he can't get enough of them!

That brings us up to date.  Ty is actually taking his AM nap now, so I hope for a better day today!  Have a great week!

 Cutie pie!

 Can you see the drool glistening on his chin?

 Grinning at Poppy!

To Swaddle or not to swaddle, "Happy Ty" returns (for a day), and Auntie Shan baby-sits!

Week 19

So Friday, the beginning of week 19, continued the RSV saga.  Tyson just felt miserable.  It was the saddest thing ever.  He would cough so forcefully, that his whole body would just heave.  And he would do a cough, cough, cough, cough, and then a pitiful cry at the end of his coughing fit.  I'm sure his throat hurt him from coughing so hard.  It just broke my heart.  I decided that both he and I deserved the right to stay in our pajamas all day long.  And so we did.  We hung out in bed a lot, and he napped quite a bit, lying on the pillow beside me.  I had to give him the inhaler a few times.  His fever stayed throughout the day, but only being in the 100-101 range, so that was good.  Heath got the 411, when he got home, that after two nights of no sleep in a row, Heath would be on Tyson duty that night.  I had to work all weekend and I couldn't start the weekend being up all night again on Friday.  I had decided that I would sleep in the guest room because I would just be awake listening to Tyson crying (I'm a light sleeper) even if I was not the one up with him.  But when push came to shove, I could not leave him and go downstairs.  Heath figured early on that he was not going to deal with getting up and going to the nursery every 30 minutes (as I had been doing), and put Tyson in bed with us.  One of Heath's co-workers gave him a type of "co-sleeper."  It is like an infant seat that you put in bed with you, between your pillows.  Heath propped it up a bit too, so Tyson was sleeping with his head elevated, and it worked like a charm.  I'm sure the fact that he could hear and smell Mommy and Daddy helped too!  Ty only woke up a couple times crying, but Heath would give him the binky, and he went right back to sleep!

 

So Sabbath brought me having to leave my sick child and go to work.  I have to say, that was really scary for me.  I think the worst part is that I know too much.  See, in my ER, if any child is diagnosed with RSV, they are automatically admitted.  Because kids with RSV have a potential to go into respiratory distress easily, and once they go into respiratory distress - it is just a matter of time before they go into respiratory failure.  So our ER is very conservative and admit the kids just to be on the safe side.  So with that thought in my head, it was so hard to leave him and to not be assessing his status continually myself!  I went on YouTube and found videos of infants in respiratory distress and left them up on the computer for Heath.  I told Heath, "If he starts looking like this, take him to the ER right away!"  But Tyson did fine.  His wheezing got better and his fever was gone (it had to be from the shots).  But his cough remained (it probably will for weeks, unfortunately) and his appetite was not great.  He only took about 3 oz in at a time, when he usually takes 5 oz.  Poor bugger.  But he had to be feeling a bit better because on Saturday night he slept in his crib all night long, without a peep.  But awoke at 5:30 AM on Sunday and would not go back to sleep.  I, of course, was heading out the door - sorry Daddy!  Early morning for you!

Chillin' in his jumper - he doesn't have the hang of it yet!

Sunday I worked again.  Fun, fun.  Heath reported that Tyson ate better and had no more wheezing.  Yeah!  Heath was excited because Tyson imitated him on Sunday afternoon.  Heath stuck his tongue out at Ty and Ty did it back to him many times!  I was proud of Heath -  he stayed home with Ty all weekend long, and did not go ice-fishing!  I think that is the first time he has stayed home all weekend long without going to his parents.  He got the real feeling of what it is like to be a homebody with Ty.  Heath did make a comment that, "You can't do anything when you have Tyson."   What can I say?  My kid is high maintenance!

He is always on the move - never a dull moment!

Monday, I was home!  I thought that Tyson (and myself) felt good enough to get back into real clothes.  Daddy, of course, keeps Tyson in his PJ's all day long when he is in charge!  Monday brought our grocery day.  Ty did fall asleep in the car on the way there (only 3 miles away) and was sleeping during the first half in the grocery store.  He woke up, in his car seat, and found himself looking at shelves full of food.  His eyes got really wide and panicked - then he started to cry.  Ty has been getting scared lately.  Especially when he falls asleep and does not know where he is when he wakes up.  I just went over and reassured him, and as soon as he saw me, he was fine.  It was the cutest thing on Monday night, when Heath got home from work, Tyson gave him the biggest grins ever.  It was like after spending the entire weekend with his Daddy, Ty had really missed him!  Daddy, of course, loved this!  What wasn't the cutest thing on Monday night, was that Tyson woke up every hour crying.  What the heck?  He had been doing great.  I was so frustrated.  I could understand if he was waking himself up from coughing, but he wasn't.

Headed to the grocery store!

Grins for Daddy!

So Tuesday, brought me going on the internet to try to do some research on the sleeping thing.  One thing that was on my mind was - is he ready to stopped being swaddled?  I thought that it was a possibility.  I read that during this time, they are very restless/active sleepers.  That is why babies move all over their crib sometimes.  So the swaddle might be too restrictive and ticking him off.  I decided to give it a go during his AM nap time.  I don't know if it was because I was sleep deprived and I wasn't thinking straight - but that was a stupid move.  Ty has 1 good nap all day and I decided that that was the time to change things around?  What an idiot!  Anyway, I tried him in his sleep sack, instead of his swaddle.  It took him about 15 minutes to fall asleep (as opposed to 5 minutes) but then he was out like a light!  I was so excited.  I thought, "could this really be it?"  Oh no.  45 minutes into his 2 hour nap, he woke up.  And he would not go back to sleep.  After fighting with him for about 30-45 more minutes, I ended up swaddling him and he went right back to sleep.  So now I am just dumbfounded.  He is not fighting me when he goes into the swaddle, so maybe that really means he isn't ready to come out of it.  I just don't know why he is waking up during the middle of the night crying.  It has been better, the rest of this week, (at least not every hour) but still usually one-two times a night.  At some point I am going to have to try him in the sleep sack at night, but I am dreading that.

"I think I should just sleep in your arms, Mommy!"

Wednesday I should have been working, but I switched with a co-worker to work on Thursday so that I would have a baby-sitter for Ty!  My parents are in Florida, so I needed Shannon to watch Ty and she was working herself on Wednesday.  My Wednesday with Ty turned out to be a delight.  For some reason, he was "Happy Ty" all day.  I hadn't seen "Happy Ty" for this long of a stretch in forever!  It was great.  He was smiling all day, cooing, and even doing a excited scream (at what else - a lamp!).  It was great.  He was even self-sufficient for a good portion of the day, so I could work on some home projects.  It gave me hope!  Wednesday night, we headed down to Concord for Heath's haircut, errands, and the O.G.  Tyson was an active bugger, switching between Heath and I throughout the meal, jumping up and down on our legs. He got a bit restless at the end, but not bad at all.  At the end of our meal, a lady and her husband sat near us and she talked our ear off about Tyson.  It is interesting that random strangers will just talk and talk to you, when you have a baby.  We were kind of glad that they sat down at the end of the meal, as opposed to the beginning, or else it would have been a long meal for us! 

"Happy Ty"

More Happy Ty!  Still excited for his diaper change!

So, as I mentioned before, I had to work yesterday (Thursday).  Shannon had Tyson all day by herself for the first time!  I told her that it was good practice.  Unfortunately, Ty can be a bit challenging, so it probably did not give her the best taste in her mouth.  One of the times I called and checked in, Shannon said, "I can't put this kid down!  I can't get anything done."  Welcome to my world.  That is all I have to say.  I know he is spoiled and wants to be held all the time.  I just don't know what to do about it.  But I am so thankful that my mother and sister live so close to me.  I seriously do not know what I would do it they didn't.  I couldn't leave Tyson with a stranger.  There is no way.

My special high-maintenance man!

That is about all for the updates.  I bit shorter this week.  I like it!  And I'm sure you do too!  Have a great week! 

Trying to see the TV through my blockade!

Showing great interest in his clean diaper!

Watching me cook dinner...

"Who is that handsome guy in the little mirror?"

Rockin' the hoodie!

A Visit to Acadia, Rolling Over, and RSV

Week 18

Last Friday started Week 18 with a bang.  First of all, Tyson was supposed to have his 4 month doctor's appointment, but we got another major snow storm.  We ended up getting another 12-14 inches!  I decided that I would reschedule Ty's appointment, since I didn't want to drive to Concord in the blizzard if I didn't have to.  So Ty and I stayed home and I continued my nap trial.  Tyson consistently sleeps 2 hours in the afternoon in the swing for my mother.  So I decided to give it a go and tried it last Thursday and Friday.  I don't know what it is, but he just will not sleep for me!  The naps both times were only 30 minutes!  I am seriously ready to pull my hair out.  One thing I figured out on Friday afternoon was that Tyson likes Guns 'n' Roses.  Well, specifically the song, "Don't Cry."  He was fussing, as usual, and I started screaming the song in Axel Rose style and he stopped the fussing immediately and gave me huge grins.  I continued to do that throughout this week and he will stop every time.  I'm telling you, the kid has good taste in music!  Anyway, when Heath got home, we headed right out to the Edwards' house for Friday night.  We were going to see Shawn, Camille, Camden, and baby Acadia in Bangor last weekend, so I suggested we stay at Heath's parents on Friday night so we would not have as long of a drive on Sabbath.  Plus, they were going to baby-sit the dogs while we went up to Bangor.  So the drive to the Edwards was slow-going because of the snow.  It had pretty much stopped but, of course, there were plenty of losers going about 20 mph!  But we made it and had a nice visit before we all hit the hay.  Tyson was in rare form and seemed to be wicked excited.  I actually made the comment, "Did I take Speed or something today and didn't realize it?"  He was wired - standing on Grammy's lap and bouncing up and down with his legs.  It was so cute.  He actually imitated the lip blowing again and did something new.  Adam was across the room from Ty and Adam was lifting his arm up and waving at Tyson.  Tyson started lifting his arm (not waving), but lifting his arm up every time that Adam did it.  What a good boy!  I was worried about Tyson sleeping in the pack 'n' play again, since we hadn't been anywhere since Xmas (very unlike us).  But he did fairly well, but cried out in his sleep many times that night.  I didn't sleep well, because I heard every movement that he made.  I guess it really is better that he is in his own room now!

Funny picture...Ty lying on the bed while I pack for the weekend

I lean in to kiss him and he grabs my hair and doesn't let go!

This is the best pic I could get myself - kind of artsy!

Sabbath brought the big trip to Bangor!  I must preface by saying that Heath got really sick with a cold on Thursday night/Friday morning.  Heath was feeling really lousy and we were worried about giving it to Acadia, but Camille said that her and Camden were under the weather too, so we should just come up.  The trip took 3 hours from the Edwards' house and Ty slept the whole way there!  He is such a good rider.  We got there at about 1:30 PM for lunch.  Camille did a fantastic job at feeding us!  I was so impressed!  She just had a baby about 2 weeks ago - there is no way that I would have been able to do all that!  We had a great time, lounging around and talking.  Acadia is just adorable.  She sleeps a lot right now, but she definitely had her awake time too.  Seeing her just makes me realize how much Tyson has grown!  Ty did well most of the day because I was holding him the whole time!  We found out Sabbath afternoon that he can roll over!  I have no idea how long he has been able to do it!  I have been really bad at "tummy time" because he hates it so much.  He just screams and screams whenever I put him on his stomach.  But I was talking to Camille about it and she was saying how Camden went right to walking and didn't crawl because they didn't do much tummy time either.  So I said, "OK, Ty, you have to do it."  I put him down on on his stomach on a blanket and he proceeded to roll over onto his back.  I was like, "Did he just do that?"  And then he did it again to prove that he had the skill!  That was exciting!  Heath slept most of the afternoon in their chair because he felt so bad, but he did see the rolling over moment!  We left around 9:15 PM and went to check into our motel.  Heath has points with Marriott, from traveling for his job, so we got to stay at the Fairfield Inn on points.  We headed to Walmart to get supplies for the sickie and headed back to the motel.  I was so excited!  Ty's first night in a motel!  By the time he was going to sleep it was 11:00 PM.  He slept for 45 minutes and then awoke screaming bloody murder.  After some investigating, I figured out that he was too hot (we were having issues with the heat in the motel).  I put him in a lighter swaddle and he went right to sleep, but that was about 12:15 AM.  He was completely awake at 6:30 AM.  Not great sleep at all!  So I have become a believer in Camille's theory from a book that she is reading.  If you put your child to bed later than they are used to, they will get up earlier.  It doesn't make sense, but it is true.  On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night, Tyson went to bed later than his bedtime.  And each time, he woke up at 6:30 AM, instead of his usual 7:30 AM time.  So I'm trying to be better with his bedtime!

 Acadia Belle

Camden Shawn

4 months apart...

A little further apart!

 Starting the roll...

 He made it!

Lounging on the bed - first night in a motel!  He looks pretty pleased with himself!

Sunday we headed back to Shawn & Camille's, had breakfast with them, and hung out talking again.  It was so nice to catch up with them - I really miss them!  Then we left around 2:30 PM and started the trek home.  Tyson again was an angel and slept the whole way in the car.  We decided that we were the closest to Portland that we were going to get - so, of course, Heath wanted to go to Cabela's and I wanted to go to the huge new Goodwill.  So we both did that - Heath dropped me off and, of course, this ended up being exactly the time Tyson needed to eat.  Because of timing (Cabela's was going to close), I ended up feeding Tyson in the bathroom at the Goodwill.  That was a first.  It worked out way better than I anticipated.  I opened up the changing table and nursed him standing up, while keeping him propped up with the table's help.  My back was to the door, but the traffic that went through that bathroom was unbelievable!  I'm sure I got some weird looks, but at least I didn't have to see them! (=  We grabbed take-out Chipotle (one of our favorites) and headed back to the Edwards' to get the puppies.  I gave Ty a bit more to eat, we showed them his new rolling-over trick, and then headed home for real!  I think Ty was being a bit of a ham and the roll-over was the slowest in history!  He just hung out on his side for the longest time - we wanted to push him over - but he finally got there!  It made the moment much more exciting, because it seemed like it was never going to happen!

Proud Papa with his daughter - just realized I didn't get any shots of Camille )=

Getting ready to leave Bangor - Ty is depressed that he has to go back into his car seat!

We awoke on Monday morning to bad news.  Tyson had caught Heath's cold.  I knew it was going to happen.  I mean, Heath tried to keep his distance from Ty, but we were definitely not crazed like we were when he was first born.  So Ty was coughing up a storm.  He went right to coughing and pretty much skipped the runny nose.  We laid pretty low, but we did have to meet Heath at lunchtime in Laconia to get Tyson's passport and then make an emergency stop at Walmart for diapers (I didn't realize we were so low).  Poppy came over for a visit in the afternoon and also got to see Tyson roll-over.  He dragged out the roll-over for Poppy too.  Poppy desperately wanted to blow on Tyson to help him roll-over!  But he got it done on his own!

Monday, the beginning of the cold

Tuesday, Tyson tried to wake up at 6:30 again.  I'm getting worried that this is a habit.  But I put his binky back in and he slept until 8:15.  I let him sleep as long as possible because he is sick.  I did a full cleaning of the house and always feel like I have accomplished quite a feat when I do that!  Let's see, Ty was pretty well-behaved, despite his cold, and he managed to have a major blow-out on me right after nursing and got poop all over my pants!  What a guy!  One thing he did on Tuesday evening was he actually pet Snickers!  Ty and Snickers were both sitting on Heath's lap and it was like Ty looked over and noticed Snickers for the first time!  Tuesday night, he woke up at 2:30 AM and would not go back to sleep.  I can't blame him, he coughs with such gusto that it wakes him right up.  But it just had to be the first time in months that he had done that, the night before I had to go to work!  I ended up nursing him back to sleep, when nothing else worked.

"Hey Snickers, nice to meet you.  I thought we just had Reeses."

Wednesday I worked 9a-9p and it was an OK shift.  The entire hospital is completely full - every room is taken.  I have never seen it this bad there before.  On Wednesday, we had multiple patients that had been waiting for rooms to open up for them on the floors for 20+ hours.  I'm anticipating that it could be this bad this weekend, and that is going to make for a LONG weekend. Anyway, I got home at about 10:15 PM and went to check in on Tyson.  At first, I was not sure what I was seeing, but poor Tyson was lying in a huge pile of vomit.  He had not eaten as much as he usually does for Heath, and he had vomited twice for Heath before he went to bed.  I was, at first, upset with Heath, because I thought that he must have been screaming in his bed and vomited and Heath hadn't heard him (Heath is a very heavy sleeper).  But Heath assured me that he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.  He was exhausted and probably threw up and went right back to sleep.  Poor bugger.  Heath cuddled him in bed for awhile until he went back to sleep.  I had showered, pumped, and was just ready to go to sleep at 12:30 AM, when Ty started crying.  And he proceeded to be awake until 2:30 AM.  I had tried everything - changed his diaper, sucked out his nose, changed his swaddle, laid on the floor with him, but nothing worked.  I refused to feed him again, because I didn't want to get into that habit and he did not seem hungry - just sick.  Finally, I rocked him in the rocking chair in our bedroom and he went to sleep eventually.  But that was short-lived and he woke up every 2 hours crying.  I keep putting the binky back in and it would work for awhile.  Very tiring night.  But that was nothing compared to Thursday.

Thursday brought a busy day.  First of all, Ty and I took Poppy & Noni to the airport.  They are going to Florida to see relatives and to go on a 5-day cruise.  Lucky ducks!  On the way back from the airport, we headed to Tyson's doctor's appointment.  I had been waiting and waiting for that.  I had a bunch of questions for her, but I was especially concerned about Tyson's cold.  He was sounding horrible and on Thursday he started wheezing pretty bad.  Lots of things to report from this visit.  First of all, Ty has RSV or Respiratory Syncytial Virus.  He has coarse breath sounds, his O2 sat was 93-94% (normal is usually 96-100%), and he is breathing fast (40-50 times per minute).  He has a slight amount of intercostal retractions (his ribs sucking in when he breathes) but not too bad.  Our doctor prescribed an Albuterol inhaler that we give to him with a spacer and a mask.  He didn't like it at first but it has helped his wheezing.  We are watching him closely and if his breathing gets any more labored, we will have to take him to the ER.  Besides his illness, he is in the 50% percentile for height at 24 3/4", 40% percentile for head circumference at 16 3/8", but poor bugger is in the 3rd percentile for weight at 11 lb 6 oz.  He did have a huge poop just before we weighed him, so he might be a bit heavier normally.  The doctor is very pleased with his growing, even his weight.  He is still on the growth chart (be it the bottom), so she thinks he is doing great.  I was hoping that he was a bit heavier, but when I think about it, he has gained 7 pounds from his lowest weight, so that is something!  The doctor said not to be surprised if he is a peanut for awhile.  He did get his shots (two of them) and an oral vaccine and he did great!  Even better than last time!  The doctor said that she had given shots all day and that he took the oral vaccine the best out of all the babies she had seen that day!  She said that he took it in well and did not push the medicine out of his mouth - and that is just one of the signs that he is ready to take solid food.  So she gave me the go ahead to start solids and that makes me so happy!  Because Ty still gives me "attitude" with nursing, he will get extra food and now I don't have to stress that he is not getting enough!  Heath and I discussed it and we are going to let him recover from the RSV first, though.  I don't want him to be coughing, sputtering, and aspirating rice cereal.  It didn't stop me from picking up some rice cereal when I went to Walmart, though.

He's not fighting it at all!

So last night was our worst night ever.  I think it is the combination of the shots and the sickness.  He slept from 10:00 PM to 1:30 AM and then he was up every 30 minutes until about 6:00 AM.  He would cough and that would make him wake up and cry.  I would give him his binky, but that would only last 30 minutes.  I am not exaggerating, because our little giraffe that we use to make the nature sounds only last 45 minutes and then it shuts off - every time I went in there, the "ocean waves" were still rolling!  I thought about bringing him in bed with me, but I was afraid Heath would not get any sleep.  At 6:00 AM, though, Heath woke up and brought him in bed with me.  I think sleeping upright a bit on a pillow helped his breathing and he slept until 8:00 AM.  His wheezing is better but now he has a fever of 101.9.  I hope it is from the shots and not the RSV getting worse.  I gave him Tylenol and now he is back in bed with me, sleeping on a pillow, dead to the world.  I hope he can sleep awhile!  He needs it!

Picture taken by Heath - Ty & I had no idea - we were both exhausted

Hopefully next week will bring reports of Tyson being a happy, healthy little boy again!  =)

 One other cute pic of the cousins - but why is Ty flashing us?

Look at how red his cheeks get after nursing!

Tuesday before the sickness fully set in

One thing he is doing lately is playing with my hands!  He loves to entwine his fingers in mine!