That's how long Evan slept last night. He didn't wake up at all, not even when Neela decided to bark at 4 am, and again at 6 am. Nope, he slept right through it. Woot!

Let's hope that becomes the rule and not the fluke. And let's hope Neela gets with the program...

One year ago, I got out of bed early, POAS and handed the test to DH. After a few minutes, he turned on the light to look at it, turned it off again, and told me three magical words: Big Fat Positive.

One year ago, we found out we were pregnant again. And now there's a little Bug in our lives (ruling our lives, really), that makes us giddy with happiness every time he smiles, every time he discovers something new.

One year, one major life change. And life is good!

I love Evan's feet. They are the most adorable thing! I nibble on them every diaper change, and he laughs every time. I worry that I'm going to create a foot fetish for him, but not enough to stop. And I love giving him Buddha bellies. I do this while I wait a little bit for his skin to air dry after the wipes, but I really just do it cause I love it and I love to make him laugh.

I also give Buddha bellies to my husband. He's a child at heart and begs for them from time to time.

My Bug is awake, time to go.

Evan has been sleeping in a sleep sack for weeks now. He had no problems with the transition from swaddling to sleep sack, so we thought we'd try the next step. He'd been staying with us in his pack and play, but we were asking for trouble because he's been over 15 pounds for at least 3 weeks now. The bassinet in the pack and play in very sturdy, but we believe the risk doesn't come from the bassinet falling into the pack and play, but from the pack and play falling on its side since the bassinet makes it top-heavy. We got rid of the bassinet and decided he would just sleep on the "floor" of the pack and play, but then that same night we started talking about us.

We're still struggling to find the balance between being parents and being a couple. Evan takes so much of my time (or I give him so much of my time, however you want to look at it), that we have little time for us a couple, and virtually zero time for us an individuals. Yes, DH goes to work and is away from us during the day, but he's still trying to learn all the things he needs to know as part of his new job. And once he gets home, he pretty much takes care of the girls (the puppies) while I take care of Evan. The fact that our sex life is still pretty much on hold doesn't help either (it's still too painful for me).

So after that conversation, I decided it was time to make one more change. Evan has been sleeping in his crib for two nights now, and he's been fine. It helps that he practically sleeps through the night: Washington nights, that is. He goes to sleep around 9 pm and wakes up between 4 and 5 am, which is from dusk until dawn. Then he goes back to sleep for another 2-3 hours.

And I think he's getting ready to ditch that last feeding too. The past 3 nights he's been eating just from one side. I personally think that's great, because it's the only time I can pump to start building a stash. With all the moving, I didn't have a chance to freeze any milk, and the rest of the day he pretty much eats every two hours, so there's nothing extra to pump, ever. So now I'm very proud to have 10 oz of milk in the freezer :)

Another change of late is that we're down to only one disposable diaper per day. We only use a disposable at night because Evan is such a big wetter, but during the day we're using only cloth, and we feel great about it. Garbage disposal here it's on the expensive side and you pay by weight, and diapers get pretty heavy! So that's another huge incentive for us to use cloth. We're getting our new BG one size pocket diapers today (yay!), and other than getting a few hemp inserts in the future for night, we're done buying diapers. We should be covered for Evan and for the next baby (if we ever decide to have another, that is!).

Honestly, I thought prefolds were a great idea for the newborn stage, but now I'm really tired of them. I need something easier. I guess I'm not too great at folding them, because it only takes one good poop to ruin a cover until wash day, and I only have 3 covers. Maybe if I had more covers it'd be easier. We also have BG bamboo fitteds, and poop is contained in there 98% of the time, and they're easier to put on, so we prefer those. But you still have to use a cover on top.

I have 24 prefolds, but I never use more than 12 when I run out of fitteds and run to do laundry. And sometimes I only use 6 prefolds by the time I have to do laundry because I ran out of covers. Don't get me wrong, prefolds and fitteds are great and they work fantastic for many moms, they're just not my favorites. I'm sure stuffing pockets won't be a walk in the park, but I'll be glad to have the one step diaper instead of the 2-3 step diapers we have now (I count the snappi as a step, I have difficulty with them. I've managed to get my finger in the past, and those things are sharp!) Anyways, I'll report on our new diapers in a couple of weeks.

Back to us. We had a great night last night so I have a somewhat happy husband today, but I need to remind myself that we're the most important part of this equation, and that without us this family falls apart. I know this, it's not that I forget, is that I trust we'll be fine and forget to work on it. And like DH says, that's not sustainable.

Perhaps I need a post it in the bathroom mirror...

(sorry this was all over the place)

Ok, maybe not a complete fail, but it feels like it.

Evan and I went to the library this morning for an infant and toddler class. I figured it would be the best place to meet other mothers, and other babies that Evan could eventually play with. Well, not really. There were quite a few people there, about 10-15 adults and probably over 20 kids. Sad thing was there were only 2-3 infants, and from those only one under one year old. And the only reason why that mom was there is because she also has a 3 year old. Obviously it was big and noisy, which Evan didn't mind, but you could hardly follow the librarian that was singing rhymes and dancing while some of the kids followed. We just on the floor, while Evan was sitting and standing, and watched.

The people running it, the librarian, M, and another lady, B, were great and very friendly. We even got a free "welcome" book, a black and white book with animal silhouettes . But I was told time and time again to check out the Tuesday meeting at another place that's for babies.

I didn't really talk to any moms. The one that were next to me at first moved closer to their friends, and the ones that stayed were not moms, they were nannies. I talked to one young mom, she has a 13 month old boy, but we ran out of conversation very soon. Then I talked with the mom of the other baby for a bit (her girl was born January 23rd, only 5 days before Evan), but then B joined in and they started talking about people in town, and of course I have no idea who they were talking about, so I just said good bye. I'll try to check out the babies class, but it's on DH's day off, so we'll see how that goes.

Then I went to a store we were told to go to by our landlord to rent a lawn mower, and I made a fool out of myself, AND I was made feel like a fool, just in case I hadn't realized it myself. Big fail.

And just now I got an email from my dad saying "I'm sorry for not calling on your first mother's day, but congrats", and "tell DH congrats on the job, but to try to get a job in a place closer by so we can visit". Bigger fail (on his part). Maybe it's just me, but you'd think he would be over that by now. I mean, we already took the job and we already moved, and he knows we're going to be her for a while, so what's the darn point of the "but" in that sentence?

Anyways. So now I'm sulking. I know these "problems" are small, but they brought me down. I need a walk in this wonderfully green place to feel better. And my husband. Thank goodness DH is on his way home.

It's Mother's Day in Mexico, so I'll go with that. Feliz Dia de las Madres!

I was thinking the other day that motherhood is truly amazing. You may see mothers and imagine what it would be like being a mother, but you really have no idea until you experience it. From the sleep deprivation, to the physical reactions you have when you're child is in distress, there's just no way to know until it's you.

In a way it's like getting super powers. I know when Evan is crying, even before I hear him cry. I know what he needs 90% of the time, and the other 10% he needs the second thing I think about. My body is always ready to feed him when he needs it, even when I think there's no way I have any milk left. If he's crying, I have this overwhelming need to comfort him. It's not just an emotional need, it's a physical reaction, it's a force that pulls me towards him, that tells me I HAVE to comfort him and make it better. It's truly remarkable.

This in no way means these "super powers" give me "super mom" status. The house won't always be clean, dinner won't always be an elaborate meal (did you know quesadillas make a good breakfast, lunch AND dinner?), laundry may not get done until we're out of underwear. But I will spend time playing with my baby everyday, and I'll make sure he's well and healthy. I may not be a super mom, but I'll still try to be a darn good one.

Happy Mother's Day to all my mom friends, you've all thought me a little something just by being in my life.

Sorry it's been so long! It's been a long couple of weeks, and we still have the nursery to unpack (I hope to tackle that tomorrow), but we're home, and we're loving it! We're going on walks every afternoon, exploring our new area, and it's just gorgeous. The camera is outside in the car, but I'll post pictures sometime soon.
Anyways, I won't bore you with stories about the move, let me tell you about Evan. He's such a happy baby! He did great on the drive here (which took 5 days!). He napped most of the time, and then he spent the afternoons chatting away. He's a little chatterbox, this one! It was like he had to tell us all about the dreams he had while we were driving.
Now that we're back, he has taken to do something Grandpa Chuck taught him: standing. He loves standing!

So I set him up kinda laying on the boppy pillow, and from there he grabs my hands and pulls himself into a sitting position. He tries to do this by himself, his little legs go up in the air as his abs aren't strong enough to do this yet, but just a little help from me and he's sitting. And from there I pull him up into a standing position. He gets a smile almost every time!

Now that we have a carpet it'll be easier to play on the floor. It's a lot easier for us to sit next to him and help him do things that way. He's such a big, strong boy, though! Can you tell I'm a proud momma?