the return of the pee pee tee pee

I had heard that having a boy could make changing diapers a bit "challenging" from time to time. Starting in the hospital soon after Ethan was born the "spout-ing" started and he would pee while we would change his diaper, or when he was taking a bath. Pee has gotten on the wall, the sink, the counter, the floor, and of course all over anyone who has been changing his diaper at the time. A couple weeks after Ethan was born my sister and Uncle Russell picked up a few "pee pee tee pees" to see if they might help capture some of the stream. We had some success with this but as the weeks have gone it seemed to be less often that Ethan would pee during diaper changes and so I kind of stopped using the pee pee tee pee.

Well that has all changed this week! Over the last few days he has spouted 4 or 5 times during diaper changes and during his bath. He's also "pooped" (more like sprayed!) twice on my hand when I changed him yesterday and today. And of course he was all precious smiles, although I have to admit I was too - it is kind of comical! Sometimes all you can do is laugh!

Let's just say I'm bringing back the pee pee tee pee.

ethan turns 2 months old

We've had quite a busy couple of days! My cousin Janelle came to visit us from Minnesota and we spent the weekend showing her St. Louis, planning Lindsay's wedding and hanging out with Ethan. We also had Ethan's 2 month check up yesterday and he had to get 4 shots and 1 oral vaccine. I think it was harder on me than him! He screamed (of course) during the whole ordeal, which lasted all of maybe 60 seconds, and was a bit fussy in the afternoon but by bedtime seemed back to his normal self.

Turning 2 months old has brought a few changes. We finally moved him into size 2 diapers which fit so much better! He is also growing out of most of his 0-3 outfits and is mainly in 3-6 month or older clothes. At his check up he weighed in at 14.1 pounds and 26.5 inches. That puts him in the 95th percentile for weight and way off the charts for height. He is the height of an average 5 month old right now!

Here are a few photos from his "2 month photo session" shot by yours truly on Friday. I tried to get him to smile, which is something he does a lot right now, but it seemed he was all about having a more "serious" look for these pics.

what i didn't know before baby

My sister is getting married in November. We are currently in the midst of planning her wedding and she and her fiance are busy trying to prepare for marriage. Whenever Pete and I see a friend get engaged it always makes me think of all that I didn't know before marriage. How much better marriage is than what I thought it would be but in a totally different way. And how impossible it is to explain that to someone who isn't married yet; to capture what the "difference" is between what your expectations are and what marriage is really like.

I am realizing how much this is true with parenting as well. Before Ethan came I spent 9 months trying to prepare for his arrival. I read books, bought clothes and a crib and all the gadgets that "they" say you need. I took classes at the hospital to learn about birth and breastfeeding. And yet Ethan is born and it's almost like I had to start over. Rewind the tape and start learning all over again.

What didn't I know before he was born? Well first of all - when all the moms told me to "nap now" while pregnant, I really should have listened. Since Ethan has been born I haven't slept more than 5 or 6 hours at night and certainly not all in one stretch. Another thing is that the LAUNDRY is incredible! I can't believe how much laundry I do - between wet clothes filled with pee or spit up, towels, burp cloths, sheets --- it's crazy! I absolutely never would have thought that a baby could go through so many clothes and cloths so quickly!

And yet I think the most important thing that I didn't know before Ethan was born was truly how much I would love taking care of him. For a long time the thought of being a "stay at home mom" was ridiculous to me - I thought it would be so boring! And yet here I am, over 8 weeks into my "new job" and I could not be more thrilled with how I get to spend my days. I get to see Ethan grow up (way too quickly) before my eyes - and it is an honor to be able to be there to help teach and mold and care for him.