It's Scary Being a Mom...

Last weekend Caleb had two visitors from NYC - Queenie & Michelle! We were very happy that they came to visit us and even though we didn't have a ton of time together, it was nice to catch up and introduce them to Caleb. I'll post a picture of all of us in the next blog.

We just had our 6 month appointment and due to one of my comments about Caleb sweating when he eats and when he sleeps, the doctor has ordered us to go to REX Hospital for a Pediatric Cardiac Echo 2D scan of his heart just in case. Apparently salty sweat is a symptom of cystic fybrosis and even though he doesn't have any of the other symptoms, they wanted to check it out anyways.

It's very scary being a mom. Everyday there are new things to worry about.

The good news is that since being sick last week, he's gained a whole pound! He now weighs 14.14lbs and he's 25 1/4 inches tall.

Did I Mention That Caleb Can Sit Up Now?

Did I mention that Caleb can sit up now? I had talked to my Dad and he didn't believe me since all of the previous pictures had Caleb surrounded by pillows.

This was taken at my bosses' house where we went this weekend. He was all smiley until I got the 'bad mommy' award. I pinched his little pinkie (by accident) on this little push toy.

If anybody is noticing that Caleb is not very big for a 6 month old it's becuase he's lost some weight due to being sick for a few weeks. At the doctor's visit 2 days ago, he only weighed 13 lbs 12 oz. The week before that he had weighed 14 lbs 4 oz. We have his official 6 month check-up next Tuesday so hopefully he'll have gained back the weight that he lost. We're on "project fatten baby"....and I keep telling Caleb to eat because people look at Mommies strangely when they see a small skinny baby. Babies are supposed to be chubby and plump.

On a Happier Note....

On a slightly happier note, even though Caleb is sick, he's still giving us these big smiles like these. We're so blessed to have such a good baby.

Jay & I were bigger babies when we're sick than Caleb is. (and he's the one with the ear infection, cough, congestion AND stomach flu)....poor baby...

The Whole Family Has Been Sick....

Our whole family has been sick this week with a 'stomach bug'.....which made for a sadly comical night in the pediatric ER where they admitted all three of us.

Caleb had a fever on Monday and when we went to the pediatricion, they said that both his ears were infected. Kathy at work had told me time and time again to go to the doctors but I when I finally went, it made me feel like the worst mother in the world. They prescribed amoxicillin. That evening, Jay & I got sick with this viral gastroenteritis... I'll spare you all the details, but let's just say that it was gross.

The next day, Florice was kind enough to come and pick Caleb up for the day so that we could get some rest and she took care of the poor sick baby. That evening, due to some strange diapers, I called the pediatricion on call and Dr. Espinol suggested that I go to WakeMed's pediatric ER to have they take a look at Caleb. While we were there, since Jay and I were feeling so poorly, we asked them to admit us as a family. (Little did I realize then that it was going to be $150/person according to my insurance!)

So now it's Thursday and we've been out of commission for almost a week. It's times like these that I need my mommy! :(

And this is a photo of Caleb in his hospital gown (at home)...isn't he such a cutie pie?

First Time Swimming!!

On Sunday, Caleb was in a swimming pool for the first time. We were at Heather's parents' house and Caleb had a ball. He was the center of attention and the weather was perfect.

The water really pooped him out.....and he was so cute! When we first put him in the water, he didn't seem to be afraid of it. He seemed fascinated by all the moving colors and the sun reflection. He kicked his legs and every now and then he would lay back on his little floatie like he was just lounging and enjoying himself.

He wasn't afraid even when people were jumping and diving into the pool. Pretty soon, he'll be running and jumping in right after Jay.

Thanks to Heather's parents' for letting us come swim there!

First My Fingers....Now My Toes!

At first, Caleb was sucking his fingers.....and now....he's sucking on his toes. If he's at daycare with his socks on, he'll suck the sock until it gets sopping wet and then Florice has to take off his one wet sock. Pretty.

He'll be in any position and he'll want to suck his toes. He'll be in his carseat and he'll just lift that leg straight up and start sucking.

Am I not providing him with enough toys that he has to revert to toe-sucking as his favorite pasttime?

And Now.....Carrots!

We successfully added carrots to Caleb's growing repertoire! He's now eating rice cereal, single grain oat cereal, green beans, peas....and carrots! Of course, this is in addition to milk.

As you can see it's not a very clean process. That's the post-feeding picture with the carrots all over the place.

He's also getting much better at sitting up!

Adults are the Biggest Babies Sometimes....

Caleb has unfortunately had his first illness this past weekend (which is one of the reasons why I don't have a new picture of him to post.....so I posted one that hasn't been seen yet).

He's all snuffly and whimpering in his sleep (which is partly funny and partly makes you feel so bad that you want to just hold him all day long). We've used the suction (only when neccessary) and he HATES us when we do that. He hasn't been sleeping which is probably due to the fact that his nose is all stuffy and it's hard for him to breathe.

Luckily for us, it was a long weekend so I didn't have to miss work or inflict daycare on him when he was feeling so poorly.

He's feeling a bit better now. Last night, he actually slept like he normally does. Florice has been so good with him. She gave him lots of love and cuddled him all day since he was sick.

I now feel a little under the weather myself.....and if what I have is any indication of what Caleb had, I have to give him props for handling it so well. Adults are the biggest babies sometimes aren't they?

A Missed Co-Worker's Birthday Comment

So, here at my work we celebrate our co-worker's birthdays by bringing in food. People normally bring in the requisite cookies, baked goods and if we're lucky some will the really yummy items such as ribs, meatballs, spinach dip....you get the idea.

Well, I come into work and I hear vague comments over the cubicle walls about spinach dip....then I see somebody bring in a huge bowl of ice......so after my morning coffee fill-up, I stroll over there and ask "Is it somebody's birthday today?".....YES!! IT WAS SOMEBODY'S BIRTHDAY! It's Wendy's Birthday! Wendy, if you read this.....HAPPY BIRTHDAY I'M SORRY I COULDN'T BRING ANY GOODIES FOR YOU!!!!

So here I am at my desk, munching away on foodstuffs while having not contributed a single thing to the office party. As bad as I feel for not having brought anything (due to being left out the "BRING FOOD BECAUSE IT'S SOMEBODY'S BIRTHDAY" email) I will still happily munch away on the array of goodies.

Is that bad?

Caleb's First Drink of Water!

I was such a proud mommy last night. Caleb was nursing before he went to sleep and I was drinking from a big BoJangles plastic cup. He stops nursing and he puts his hand out onto the cup. I thought that this was because of the condensation so I remarked that it was cold. He then grabbed or the lip of the cup and pulled it towards him. Not thinking much of this, I switched it out for a cup that was filled with a little bit of water and playfully asked him if he wanted to 'take a sip of water'.

To my surprise, Caleb actaully pulled the cup to his mouth and drank some water! I had read in the baby books that some babies as young as 5 months can master drinking from a cup but I was shocked that Caleb was already there! We weren't about to embark on the cup drinking skill for another couple of months (or so I thought).

I'm not sure if I was more surprised at him drinking from the cup.....of if I was just surprised that he could communicate to me what he wanted without crying.

I've alerted Florice as to his new skill and maybe they can also work on this new skill at daycare.

Our first Roll-Over!!

Yesterday Caleb rolled over (one-way) for the very first time! We even have it on video! Y ay!

He's been doing new things every day. Yesterday Jay brought home a 4 month old Boxer and while it was very cute, I regretfully told Jay that we can't have a dog in the house at this time since Caleb is hopefully going to be crawling soon.

But when Caleb was introduced to the doggie, he yelled at him! He didn't cry, he just made this noise that I had never heard him make yet. It was like he was saying "Hey, Go Away, You're too Big for Me to Play with you Mr. Doggie". AAH!

Tummy Time and Congrats to the Eric & Kelly

We've been trying to encourage 'tummy time' with Caleb. He normally doesn't like to lay on his belly even though he needs to spend some time there or else he may never learn to crawl. He's been getting better at it lately. He likes to be propped up so in this picture, we've been using Daddy as his prop. He has been laughing out loud lately! This is a fairly new skill. He loves to 'rough-house' and even Florice at daycare commented that he likes to play like a boy.

I just can't resist taking pictures of Caleb in his new outfits. he's wearing 6-12 month old pants (we just have the waistband rolled down) and the hoodie is also 6-12 months (with the sleeves rolled up). He's also wearing some nice white kicks which he only wears for special occasions.

Yesterday, Caleb went to Church for the first time. He didn't seem bothered by the loud music and he seemed to like looking around at everybody.....he even made a point to take a nap during the 2nd half of the service :)

I'm very excited to hear that Jay's brother Eric & his wife Kelly are expecting!! Congratulations!

Can't Help Sucking My Fingers!!

Caleb loves to suck his fingers. Every chance he gets, he's got his fingers in his mouth and if he's really hungry, he'll stick his whole fist into his mouth. It's quite comical.

Anybody see?? He's learned to grab is foot!

Here are some 'old' pictures of Caleb from a few weeks ago. It's been hot on and off here in Raleigh. Some days it's in the 80s F (26 C) and then other days it's in the 40s (4 C)....and then inbetween those crazy weather changes, comes thunderstorms. Hopefully Hurrican season won't be as bad here on the east coast as last year, although North Carolina was spared almost all the storms in 2005.

So it was really hot a few weeks ago, so we decided to buy a small baby pool and see if Caleb would like to hang out outside. Well, Jay had filled it with hose water rendering it ice cold. Without thinking, I put Caleb in his little 'swimmers' diaper and put his feet into this cold water. It took a second and then his face screwed up and and he let us have it!

I then went back inside to add some hot water into this kiddie pool....and there you have it, Caleb lounging (since he can't sit up yet) in this luke warm water outside in the hot sun. Do you notice that we now have green grass? We're one of the first lawns in our neighborhood to have green green grass (thanks to Jay's obsession with yardwork and fertilization).

Yesterady, Caleb discovered his foot. Florice alerted me first and then when I got him home, I put him on his back and sure enough, he grabbed his big toe and jerked it around a couple of times.

He hasn't rolled over yet (that I know of) but there was one day where I put him down on his back, turned away and next thing you know, he was on his belly yelling at me to turn him back over. But since I didn't actually see it, does it count as his first roll?

And Introducing the Exersaucer

Caleb is now settling into his routine at daycare and Florice (our caregiver) is a miracle worker. We are so blessed to have found her.

He's also really liking his exersaucer which makes noise when he bounces up and down and lights up with music when he touches the buttons.

I'm really liking my new job. I get to leave early and hang out with my little man all evening. Our normal routine after we get home is nursing for about half an hour and then I give Caleb his bath and wash his hair. After that, we just hang out in our room watching TV until Daddy gets home. After that, we take turns taking our baths and then get ready for bed.

By the way, is anybody watching American Idol?? I'm really like Elliot Yamin and Chris Daughtry.....vote vote!! This is the first time that I've been sucked into reality TV (now that I'm home more and actually get to follow what's going on).

Caleb's 4 Month Doctor's Appointment

We had Caleb's 4 month doctor's appointment on Easter Monday and he received 3 more shots into his little tiny legs.

All looks well. They said that his head size was only in the 8th percentile but height was in the 50th percentile. weight was only in the 25th percentile. He now weighs 13lbs 6oz and he's 25 1/4 inches long.

Btw: he's also losing all his hair in the back due to the fact that he's been sleeping on his back....:) it's funny.

His thrush was gone. The white spots (which I thought was still thrush) was apparently just tastebuds that were irritated.

I was surprised that the doctor told me to stop his nighttime feedings and that he should now be sleeping 8 hours....it seems so unfair to inflict that upon him now since we're also just starting a new in-home day care (which he loves). I was also surprised that they said that he should be starting solid foods now. Get ready for the stinky poopies!! We've bought the rice and barley cereal as well as an assorted collection of stage 1 foods. We're not going to force it but we're going to give him a taste every day to see if he's open to the idea. So far, he's a little confused as to what we're doing. We've tried the rice cereal mixed with milk and I even managed to get a whole spoonful of peas into his mouth before he wouldn't let me use the spoon anymore.

As for an update with the daycare, I am 100 percent sure that I made the right move. Florice (his new caregiver) is so great! He doesn't fuss with her and he takes the bottle very well.....he also takes naps when the other children are down for naps. This makes my day at work go by so much smoother since I don't have to worry as much (as much....notice I didn't say 'anymore'). He also doesn't fuss anymore if we put him down and go about our business washing dishes.....or writing on the blog.

Caleb's First Baby-Sitter & Our First Evening Out!

Caleb had his first babysitter last night! (That picture is a week or so old). Jay had procured tickets to Cirque du Soleil's Delirium at the RBC center and we called Heather that very same day to see if she could watch Caleb.

My sister actually suggested it!

She reported that all was well, and that he didn't fuss with her! She even gave him a bath and had him in deep slumber by the time we got home.....so deep that he didn't wake up until after midnight for his nighttime feeding. I had even apologized profusely in advance because I thought that he would fuss. Apparently, he doesn't need me every night after all.

Jay and I are so grateful for Heather for giving us a few hours off to go watch a show. The show was great! Not as great as "O" at the Bellagio or "Mystere" at Treasure Island, since it wasn't as acrobatic as the other shows and the costumes were not as surreal as the Vegas shows, but the performances were still amazing. And Jay had got us great seats. Right in the middle, row G (A being closest to the stage).

I can't wait until Caleb gets old enough to benefit from going to some shows....but in the meantime, it's great to know that he likes Heather so much! Future ladies man, here he comes. Just leave it to my son to like the most attractive girls that come visit him.

Anybody Know of a Good Caregiver?

Anybody know of a good caregiver? Caleb's isn't working out as great as we'd thought....

Visit to Sears Portrait Studio

Today we went to Sears Portrait Studio and while we intended to only get one picture in wallet size to document Caleb at 3 1/2 months and have some to send to our parents, we ended up getting the whole package which included have the pictures put onto a CD. We just couldn't resist when we saw how Caleb was smiling in those photos!

We've had a smiley day today, but I was only successfull getting him to smile if I he's the only one in the picture. We're working on getting some smiley pictures with all of us in it.

Today we went out for lunch for Heather's birthday at Mellow Mushroom and daddy stayed home and cleaned the house. We're about to embark on our second full week of childcare at Tonya's house and the his reports are getting better and better. They say that he's much more calm and even smiling every now and then.

We can't wait until he gets bigger so that we can go play at the park or in somebody's pool. We're lucky right now. He's very easily entertained by other people and the TV too (even if we're just watching the news).