Baby's first tooth

know it's a weird question but Max has the worst breath! But the big news... Max has cut his first tooth!! And he did it with pretty much no fuss. Or maybe that was what Sunday night was all about. He was a little fussy yesterday and when I checked his mouth this morning, there it was, a little tooth just poking through the bottom gum.

But here's the thing. He has had the worst breath today. And I don't mean anything like sour milk. I mean serious halitosis. I could smell it in the front seat of the car! And while I was giving him his bottle before bead, I couldn't look down at him it smelled so bad. The only thing I can think of is that's it might be the garlic in the chickpea pasta thing that he had for lunch, but he has had it all week and today is the only day that it's bad. So what's different? The tooth. I know, it's a stretch. When should I start brushing said tooth anyway? Guess it's something to look up.

SNOW!

This is what it looked like from our front door about an hour ago. It's much worse now. The weather warning is predicting about 50cm of snow. That's just over a foot and a half for anyone still stuck in the empirical system. So as Marty and I begin to feel a little house bound (the snow is actually up over our door jamb!) we started to have a little fun with Max. He is our little play thing, you know.

At the moment, Max's favorite thing to play with is anything that stacks. These stuffed stacking rings are on an I Dream of Jeannie shaped bottle. Then there are four balls that are like little maracas that you can drop into the bottle which sets off lights and sound. What more could an almost eight month old ask for. As Marty and I got bored with just watching Max have fun, we decided to get involved.



We were rather impressed with Max's balancing abilities, we decided to see how far we could get.



We actually made it to three, but we were laughing so hard that I couldn't get a good shot.

As the ring stacking get a little boring, I decided to get a picture of Max with our Santa. This is one of our Thanksmas gifts, which I totally love. And Max has taken a shine to him as well. I took many pictures, well just because he is just so darn cute, but things started to get a little hairy.







Max finally got fed up and brought Santa down to his level and tried to rip his beard off. All in all a pretty good day. Now the little guy is having a great nap and I am considering a nice mug of hot chocolate, made with milk. Mmm...



Although Marty and I are marveling at the storm, each of us trying to remember when we last experienced this sort of dumping, I hope that everything returns to normal tomorrow as we are not prepared for a long shut in. Mainly, we only have enough formula to get us to tomorrow dinner time. This is going to teach me a lesson to make sure there is always an extra can in the house.

Oh, the little guy is awake. How are you weathering the storm?

Santa Claus

Olga and I took our little guys to see Santa Claus on Monday. I know Max is too young to understand the whole Christmas thing, but I have decided that I want to get a picture with Santa every year as long as he still believes. I should have a good 5 or 6 years hopefully.

Max was his usual smiley self and the photographer had quite a few really good shots. Isn't he the cutest? Grandparents, let us know and we can get some prints done.

Yeah Winter!

Welcome to winter! Today we are in the midst of one of the biggest snow storms I have seen in a very long time. It really is something from my childhood. Playing in the street with the dog in shin high snow and catching huge snow flakes on my tongue. Max even seemed to be trying to catch some snow flakes. Quebec students and teachers got a snow day today. Unfortunately Ottawa doesn't believe in closing the schools, even when the buses are canceled. So Marty had to dig his way out this morning and head into school. Basically what teachers end up being on days like today are glorified daycare workers, which is what they try not to do every other day of the school year.

I can't wait to get out cross country skiing. I usually head out to Meredith's and we go for a ski along the Wakefield Train train tracks, which are just at the end of her street. It's a great spot. If the roads get plowed, I may attempt to go out tonight. Though I am not holding my breath. I think we will have about 40cm by then end of it all. Yeah!

Here are a couple of pics from our snow fun this morning.

Finally!

Let it be known, that on this day, Friday, November 30, 2007, Maxim Tomas Detto rolled for the very first time. He is 7 months and 6 days old. According to legend, or Tammy, he will be right handed as he rolled right. We'll have to wait a while to test this theory. I am kind of hoping he will be left handed as I am the only south paw in the family.

This has made my day which threatened to be horrible as I have been awake since 3:30am. But now with a good cup of tea (with honey for my throat - laryngitis), a big bowl of miniwheats and my boy rolling, things are starting to look up.

This is Max right after he rolled, while Mommy clapped and praised him (a little too enthusiastically I think).

And this is Max when he rolled back over about 10 minutes later. Doesn't he just look as pleased as punch?

Knee Update

Well, I am not to play soccer, or any other sort of active sport. This is the diagnosis from my sports doctor. She figures I just have a bum knee. Other people get through the surgery 100%, but it would seem that I am not one of those people.

She told me to do some physio to strengthen the hamstring and quad muscle and do some jogging and maybe I could try again in the spring. Let's be honest here. I don't have the time or money for physio and I HATE jogging. So it looks like I will be a swimming/pilates/yoga person. Yeah... I will try and be more enthusiastic.

More news, I have come down with a cold and have lost my voice, so basically read this with a very high pitched squeek in your head.

Happy days!

Nothing new

I always feel a little guilty when several days have gone by and I haven't posted anything. But nothing exciting has happened lately. We are still in the same routine, though sleep has become a bit of a challenge again. Max seems to think that 5:30 is a good time to get up in the morning. I tend to disagree with him strongly, though I never seem to win that argument.

In case you are counting, Max turned 7 months old yesterday. No he isn't rolling yet and there is not a tooth in sight. Most people are telling me to count my blessings, but it would be nice to see him achieve the rolling milestone soon or I will start to worry. You can see that he is almost there, but still doesn't see the whole purpose of it.

Oh another little update on me. I have hurt my knee. I decided to play soccer more aggressively, which is how I play and I have been swollen and limping since Wednesday. I am seeing my sports doctor tomorrow to see what the problem is. There are three other women on my team that had the same surgery and they don't seem to have any problems. If worse comes to worse, I really hope I can find someone to buy my season from me. I hate to see $200 go to waste. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

A me update

I figured I would give a bit of an update on myself. Most of the blog readers are out of towners, so they don't know the little details of what's going on in my life. Believe it or not, I do a few little things away from Maxim.

General Health: I'm doing pretty good health wise. At the moment I am suffering a bout of insomnia, but I usually come out on the other side of them pretty much intact, though this is the first time since Max was born. We'll see how it goes. I still have about 10 pounds to go and am getting a little frustrated. I have been wearing the same pair of jeans, every day for the past 7 months. I am ready to burn them, and really think I will once I can fit into my old pants (hope you don't mind Tam!). I have accepted that I probably won't ever fit back into my tops with these new boobs, so I think Meredith is going to be getting some great tops in the next little while.

Physical Health: I still walk to the dog park almost every morning, and attribute that to getting most of the weight off. Now I am going to have to go a little farther to get the rest off. Heather has decided to join me for Thursday night swims which will make it so much easier to get there. Misery loves company. We went for the first time last week even though I was on only a few hours sleep I think I did pretty well. I have also started indoor soccer. My first game was last Tuesday. I didn't do nearly as bad as I thought I would and I don't think I was totally useless on the field. I went easy, not knowing how my knee would feel or if my lungs would burst. Surprisingly both were fine, so tonight I will push it a little harder. I am also going to try and fit in a night of yoga, or some pilates. That is going to be the tricky one to get organized. I seem to have lots of things to do in the evenings and Marty always ends up being home. He said the other day that he will have to find some things as well, since we both need the break from the house at least once a week.

Emotional Health: Well we all know that it was a little rough in the beginning. But I am feeling great right now (other than the lack of sleep). Max is such a little wonder and even when I am having a bad day, he is always there with a smile for me. And we can get him to laugh on cue mostof the time, so I can always get a little giggle out of him that makes me laugh right along with him.

So there you have it, a little update on me. What's new with you?

Dreaming American

Last night I dreamed that I was having knee surgery again. My surgeons were McDreamy and McSteamy (I had just watched last week's Grey's Anatomy - thank you PVR). So all in all a very pleasant experience. How did I know I was dreaming American? During my MRI McDreamy said that I definitely needed surgery and then said... "We'll book you tomorrow." I did how ever wake up before the bill arrived.

A bad night

For the past few nights, I have been suffering from insomnia. I get it every once in a while and I usually get over it in a week or so. But this is the first time that it has happened since Maxim arrived and I can say, it's way worse!

So last night, Marty, the love of my life, said that he would sleep in Max's room and do the night time stuff and let me sleep with my earplugs in to try and get over the insomnia hump. After catching up on some Heroes, I snuggled up with earplugs in and fell into a blissful sleep... for a while.

Marty said that Max woke up crying at midnight. A little earlier than usual, but Marty decided to feed him. Well, both Marty and I, in a brief stupid parenting moment, didn't look to see if there were any bottles made before we went to bed. How does that "assume" adage go again? So Marty had to hold a screaming Max while trying to make bottles. I can assure you that there will never be no made bottles in the fridge again. I however slept blissfully ignorant through the whole thing.

Then I woke up at 3:00am. This is the usual time that my insomnia kicks in. So I stumble down stairs to pee and then when I crawled back into bed I could hear crying through my earplugs. I take them out and Max is having a complete melt down. This is very unusual. Marty was at a total loss and so was I. I told Marty that there was no reason for the two of us to be awake, and since I was up I would try and sooth him. I did manage to. Marty was a little upset that I was able to do it quickly, but he has to realize that I am with Max all day and have picked up a couple of tricks. But the soothing didn't last too long. He slept for about 30 minutes and then woke up screaming again. So I gave in and got Marty to heat up another bottle. Max took it greedily (another growth spurt perhaps?) and fell right to sleep. If only I could say the same about me. Max started to stir around 6:00 so I brought him into bed with me. I used to be able to get him to fall back to sleep for another hour or so, but this hasn't worked for a couple of days now. So after listening to Max coo for an hour, I got Marty up. I needed to try and get some sleep. And I did. I slept until almost 10:00am! It was wonderful. I am feeling very refreshed today.

Here's hoping that tonight is better.

Maxim Update

For about a nano second, I thought that maybe I would join the NaBloPoMo (National Blog Post Month) where you attempt to post every day in the month of November. Good thing I didn't try or I would have failed miserably. Where did I get this idea? Karen - my ultimate blogging friend, of course. So since I haven't been very diligent in my blogging, I will try and give a comprehensive blog update.

We had our 6 month check up this week. Unfortunately, Max couldn't get his shots as he has a cold. He is blowing snot bubbles with the best of them, and his little voice is hoarse. I don't know whether to laugh at him or cry. So we have to go back in another week to get his shots. He is now a healthy 19lbs 2oz and 26 1/2". Best thing about the check up, the Doctor told me that we didn't have to sterilize the water for his formula. He said that they put enough unsterilized things in their mouths that it's not really needed. Woohoo! That saves a lot of time and stress.

We still have a nice routine. He sleeps in to about 7:30ish (I am sleeping in the spare bed with him, but I am not complaining). We go to the dog park every morning. In the afternoon I either try and get him to nap or we are out doing some errands. Night time is still really good. Marty gives him his bath and puts him down around 7:30. Max is a really good night time sleeper, and we are very lucky.

We are still really enjoying the music class we are taking on Thursday mornings. We have learned lots of songs and stories and Max seems to get a real kick out of seeing all of the other babies. We are going to start going to a drop in baby group on Tuesday afternoon with Heather and Sarah. As you can see, Max is trying to flirt with Sarah, but she is much more interested in the cube. We met Heather and Sarah through an online moms forum. They live just near by and we get along great. Isn't it the best when you happen to meet up with someone with whom you have so much in common with and just gets you.

Max's favorite place seems to be in his excersaucer. He actually has managed to figure out how to sit in it like a lounge chair. He is his father's son! He loves to spin around and scream at the animals. Actually his favorite thing is to yell and scream at their tails. He is really fascinated by them. He has also been enjoying the Jolly Jumper that Karen lent us. He is starting to get the hang of it, and again spins around to find the animals.

And finally, Max is eating really well. Avocados seem to be the only thing that he is not interested in. I guess I will have to thaw the avocado cubes and make some guacamole. Now he is having some turkey and we even gave him a little bit of spaghetti yesterday. I am hoping that he keeps his healthy appetite.

That's the news for now.

But I don't want to be a Leafs fan!

Poor Max is being forced to be a Leaf fan. Marty said he could choose his team when he moves out. Yet another motivation for him to start rolling!

Blog neglect

I have found myself in a bit of a dilemma. You see, I am having trouble keeping both the Blog and FaceBook up to date. After Thanksmas I put up some photos and updates on FaceBook about some visitors we had, but unless you are an old high school buddy, chances are you didn't see any of it. And considering that this blog is for friends and family, ... well let's just say I goofed. So here is a late entry.

After a very successful Thanksmas we had a busy week of visitors. Four very important visitors to be precise. Grandmaman and Pepe came down for a couple of days while their RV was in for repairs. For those who are not aware, Mom and Dad are now full time RVers - and this is no ordinary RV. It has a bay window, gas fireplace, central vac and air; basically, nicer and almost bigger than our house. It was the last time that we will see them until April and Mom smothered Max as much as she could. He will be so completely different the next time they see him. If we are lucky, he will be rolling! ;-)

After Grandmaman and Pepe left, we had the next very important people arrive: Nana and Opa. Glenna and Tom came down for the weekend and we had a great time together. Marty had a lot of school work to do, but we still had fun without him.

On the Saturday we went to the Canadian War Museum, leaving Marty at home to do homework. It was really interesting to go with Tom. He escaped Berlin during the Second World War and a lot of the exhibits brought back memories - some good, some bad. But he was willing to talk about them with me, which I truly appreciated. Tom has lived more in his lifetime than many people would live in four. I hope he will also share some stories with Max when he is older. I very much want Max to know as much as possible about his families' histories. That night Nana and Opa babysat and Marty and I went to see a movie. We ended up seeing a kids flick, but it was an outing nonetheless and for that we were grateful.

Sunday we all went for brunch and after Glenna and Tom walked around the Market for a while, I packed Max up and we went to Gatineau's Park. Again, leaving Marty behind. We went to Kingsmere to see Mackenzie King's summer home and gardens. It was cool but sunny and the colors were spectacular. There was a trail down to the waterfall which I suggested we take. An hour later, and some pretty steep slopes, we found out that the waterfall was dry! Well, I think I might be hearing about that one for a while. But it was a nice hike and Max seemed to really enjoy being in the backpack. And what a workout it was for me! That night we all just hung out at the house and Glenna and Tom headed back to the Big Smoke Monday morning.

It's so great having visitors. I barely have to hold onto Max. Everyone wants to either feed or bathe him. It's like a little mini break for Marty and I. So anytime anyone wants to come down for a visit, let us know. The bed is ready and Max loves to be smothered by everyone.

Busy weekend and more

I know it's almost the end of the week and I am giving a weekend update, but it always seems that when I get a few minutes to post something, 5 days have gone by!

We had another busy weekend. Saturday night was Duncan's Halloween Birthday party. In attendance were myself and Maxim (Marty had too much homework); Julie, Pete and Nathanial; Karen, John, Emily and Hope; and ours hosts Meredith, Ron, Ella and Duncan. Six kids and seven adults. Soon there will be 7 kids( Julie will be ready to pop in a couple of weeks)! No one else is allowed to have any more kids or we will no longer out number them.


Max was great. There was so much stimulation going on, there was no chance of napping. He just loved it. He screamed at all the kids as they whizzed by him, looking longingly at their speed. Hey buddy, you've got to roll before you are going to be able to get any sort of speed. All of our friends kids are so well behaved. It really was great fun to watch all the action knowing that Max will be a part of the comotion next year. Meredith made yummy spaghetti and an incredible banana-chocolate cake that was shaped like a pumpkin. We left about 7:45 and I think Max was asleep before I put the car in reverse.

Sunday was another late night. We had dinner at Kevin and Sabrina's as Kim, Dan and Liam were in town. I was really glad that we were able to meet up with them as we didn't get a chance to see them when they were visiting this summer. Liam has turned into this cute walking guy who loves cheese and is pretty easy going. He will be two in February. Kim and Dan are doing great and it is always a good night at Kev and Sabs'. Again, Max was wonderful. As long as there are things and people to entertain him, he can be a little energizer bunny and last a very long time. This time we left just after 8:00, and I think Max was asleep before we clipped him into the car. Even with two late nights, Max wasn't cranky during the following days.

This afternoon I went to Karen's and helped her and Emily carve their pumpkins. I have to admit that I am a huge fan of the pumpkin carving. And bonus, I got to take home the seeds to roast. A fall favorite for both Marty and I.

We just survived our first Halloween with Max. We had to take turns watching him, eating supper and handing out candy. There actually wasn't a whole lot of handing out candy though. It's now 8:30 and we still have half a box of Doritos, not that Marty is complaining. Next year I should buy yucky candy so I won't be so tempted to eat all the left overs!

Happy Halloween Everyone!!

Random thoughts

There have been some positives and negatives attributed to my body since I became pregnant.

Positives: my psoriasis seems to have pretty much cleared up and my IBS is completely in remission. I think that is the best. I no longer have to take an inhumane amount of fiber!

Negatives: well, I no longer pass the pencil test (something that I have mourned), the saggy belly which I am now determined to tighten as I bought a new pair of jeans that a just a little snug. But the weirdest thing to happen to my body since I became pregnant is I have a cyst on my right forearm. It's bizarre. My doctor wasn't worried about it, but I am slightly weirded out about it.

Those are my random thoughts for today.

6 months old

Dear Maxim,

You are six months old. Where has the time gone? I still can't believe that you have been a part of our lives for six months. What did we do without you?

There are a few milestones that you have reached the past three months. You can now sit on your own when I place you on your butt; your babbling has developed into blowing bubbles and constantly saying "dadadadada" much to Daddy's delight; and you have started solids. So far you have been very fond of everything (especially bananas), though lately you have turned your nose up at avocados. You are still trying to master getting the mum-mum crackers into your mouth, but I really think you enjoy turning them into mush and smearing them all over your clothes more than eating them.

You have become a very social animal. You aren't strange and will happily go to anyone's arms, as long as I am still in your field of vision. You are quiet in large crowds, which makes everyone ask me what did I do to get you to be so mellow. I think you are just soaking it all in and waiting for your moment. Our routine is pretty simple: dog park in the morning, visiting with friends or running errands in the afternoon. And Thursday mornings we have music class, which you seem to really enjoy.

You still haven't figured out how to fall asleep on your own during the day. I think this is going to be a battle that we will fight soon as you are getting a little too heavy for me to put in the sling for long periods of time. Your nights are not too bad at the moment. You wake up once for feeding and then again around 4:00am, when I will grab you and sleep with you in the spare bed. I think we both really like that and it will be difficult for both of us to break that habit. But there is no need to at the moment, so I will cherish it while I can.

You still haven't figured out how to roll from your back to your front. I really don't think you see any reason to. I put you on your stomach every day and you still aren't a fan. Yesterday you did roll from your stomach to your back, resulting in bumping your head on the floor. You really weren't impressed with that, no matter how much I praised you. There are still no teeth trying to poke through, but I know that they are on their way and I am in no rush to go through the whole teething process, but how cute will you be with little chiclets in your mouth!

There are only six months left of my time at home with you. I always wondered if I would be able to last a whole year away from work, and now I know going back will be a challenge. But let us not think of that, but about all the adventures that are ahead of us.

I love you my jellybean,

Mommy

A wonderful weekend

What a wonderful weekend I had. The weather was great and I got to do so much.

Saturday was a girls day out. Meredith, Julie, Karen and I all went on an adventure, sans kids. We went to Perth for lunch at Fiddle Heads (yum) and then Julie brought us to the craziest antique place I have ever been. This place is more junk yard than antique shop. Anything that you would ever look for, it's here. And then you go inside. It's mind boggling actually. I had to hug my arms because I was afraid to knock something in the leaning towers of porcelain and crystal. I ended up knocking something, but it was with my feet (there are piles on the floor too). Thank goodness it wasn't too damaging. I'm on the look out of old frames, and believe it or not, I was a little disappointed. I thought I would come out with an arm load, but only ended up with two.





Saturday night Kevin and Sabrina came for dinner. I made the famous homemade ravioli. We also made lava cakes from a package. Nothing to write home about, but did provide a quick chocolate fix. I think I might have dozed off in the living room at one point. If I did, I'm really sorry guys! But it was after 10pm, and it's a challenge to stay up much longer than that.

Then on Sunday Marty and I went to the Gatineau's for a hike. We left before noon to avoid the major crowds. It was a beautiful day and it was pretty busy, but we did end up on a trail that wasn't too crowded. Marty had Max in the backpack and we went for about two hours. It was wonderful. Marty and I haven't had some real time together with nothing else to do but talk. I didn't realize how much I missed that sort of time until we actually had the time to do it. Max was asleep for most of the walk but we did take him out for the compulsory pictures.



I couldn't have asked for a better weekend.

It's back!

After fifteen glorious months, my period has returned. Can't say that I am over joyed to see it come back. It has served its purpose, I have born a child. No need for it to return. Though it seems to have given fuel to Marty's quest to try and convince me to have another. We have created the perfect child. Why tempt fate?

Last boob update (I promise!): my boobs have dried up. No more leaking. So that meant I could go bra shopping. Usually this isn't a very pleasurable outing for me. I have always had such a terrible time trying to find something that was comfortable and fit well, as well as give me some sort of flattering shape. This time I decided to get sized. Everything you read says that at least 3/4 of Canadian women are wearing the wrong size. And wow! was I ever in that category. I was way off. I'm sure the whole having a child thing made a bit of a difference, but not this much! So I am now a proud 36 D (ack!). I have bras that fit, are comfortable and make me look and feel great. How much more can you ask for. And since I have become more buxom, none of my tops fit me. Can you say shopping? Woohoo!

Boob update

Yes, I know I promised no more boob updates but I need to vent.

Mother nature is one cruel woman. I struggled for five months to produce breast milk. I did it all. I was poked and prodded, I pumped, I nursed, I took drugs. Everything. And I did manage to give Maxim some breast milk. I was finally in a good place and happy to have done what I could. But here is the kicker: My boobs are LEAKING!! For five months I could barely get anything out of them, and now that I have decided to stop all the craziness, they start to leak. And not just a little. All I want for them to dry up so that I can buy some new bras. Is that really too much to ask? After everything I did, is it really too much to ask?

Ahh. Thank you. I needed to get that off my chest (pun intended).

Thanksmas in Ottawa

Now isn't that a damn fine looking bird? Marty and I kicked butt on the cooking of the turkey. It was moist and tender and oh so yummy. And we have enough turkey to last until next Thanksmas I think. Not complaining. though if anyone has any leftover turkey recipes, please send it our way.

Thanksmas 2007 was really nice. The whole famdamily came to Ottawa for the afternoon. It consisted of food, gifts, more food and some really good laughs. Mom made Tam and I photo albums of pictures from birth to about 6 years ago (the first Leclair Thanksmas). A lot of the pictures are of us in the most atrocious fashion imaginable. And we always thought we were so in style. If we had a scanner I would post a couple, but alas we don't. Shame, isn't it. Tam and the kids made us really nice picture frames which include a picture of each kid and hearts that they made. Marty and I want to fill our stairwell with pictures, so these are going to have the privileged positions of being the first up. And Mom made Marty pickled asparagus. Yummm. Oh, and Dominique bought us this awesome 3 foot Santa.

It was Maxim's first Thanksmas and he did incredible. He was just an angel (as usual when there is company) and even sat at the table with us. Next year he will be able to eat some of the yummy turkey.

Hope everyone had a happy gobble gobble and are thankful for what they have.

Happy Thanksmas

It's 7:30am and the turkey has been in the oven for two hours now. Yes, you have done the math right. We got up at 5:00am to get the turkey in so that we could do Thanksmas lunch. Why did I offer to do it here again? Oh right, I thought it would be easier to have everyone here than pack all we need for Max for just a day. Hmmm, I maybe I was a little hasty with that decision.

Marty and I set the alarm (yes, Max has been good and sleeping in to about 7:30 every morning) and got up to prepare our first turkey. It's a 26 pounder and we have no idea what we are doing. It was an interesting adventure, especially trying to figure out where to put the sausage meat. I guess we'll see how it all turns out in about 5 hours.

For those of you who are asking, "What the heck is Thanksmas?" here is the brief history. My family celebrates Christmas at Thanksgiving as my parents are snow bird RVers and are south every winter. My parents missed having Christmas with the family so we created Thanksmas, with gift giving and everything. A little twist to the gifts is that we have to make the gifts for the adults, the kids get bought stuff. It's been 6 years, and I really like our little family tradition. And yes, we do have a little Christmas tree, along with pumpkins.

So Happy Thanksmas everyone. I'll let you know how the turkey turned out.

Mum Mums and other stuff

The well has dried up, the cover has been put on and bolted down. I pumped for the last time yesterday morning. I am a little uncomfortable today, but nothing a hot shower didn't help with this morning. The end came rather organically and without much fuss. I think that was the way to end it. I am feeling fine with it and am actually even a little relieved that it is over. As much as I wanted to do it for as long as possible, it was really inconvenient and put a lot of restrictions on our days. A little selfish I know, but I did what I could and I am actually proud of myself for holding on so long. So there you go, no more boob updates.

We introduced a new food yesterday. Mum Mum biscuits. They are rice biscuits that basically melt when wet so they are easy for kids new to food to eat. Max wasn't entirely sure what he was supposed to do with it. I tried to get him to hold it and then put it in his mouth. There was some success but most of the biscuit ended up being mushed between the tray and his belly. But it did keep him occupied while I was making supper, which is really what I wanted in the first place!



Fingers are much tastier than this dry biscuit!















No, Mommy, I can do this myself!














Success!!

Bumbo

Have you heard of the Bumbo chair? Well, if you haven't been around kids in the past couple of years, you will have no idea what I am talking about. If you have, then you will understand my jubilation when I say that Max enjoys the Bumbo that Karen has lent us.


For the uninitiated, the Bumbo chair is a little molded schmoochie plastic chair that babies can sit in, even if they can't sit up on their own yet. You can also buy a tray, for toys and eventually some snacks. Who ever came up with this gadget is rolling in it now, considering that the retail price is $60, plus the tray! I was hoping to find a used one, but they sell really fast. I just happened to mention it to K when I was visiting this week, and voila! I have to say that our timing for having a kid was pretty great. We get all the stuff that all of our friends' kids have out grown! And yes, the picture is of Max on top of the dishwasher. Not recommended by the Bumbo manufacturers, but Max really likes to be eye level with us (well me at least).

Boob update. I am down to pumping only in the morning and at night. And it is more to alleviate the discomfort. Mother Nature is rather cruel in that way. I can't produce enough milk to feed my baby, but do produce just enough to make me really uncomfortable. I tried not pumping the other night and ended up getting out of bed at 1:00am after not being able to sleep because my boobs hurt. I was a bit of a mess that night. On most other days, I am dealing with the end pretty good I think. Although if one more woman asks me how the nursing is going I think I might wind up and clock her.

Yumm...

Max has started solids. The pediatrician said to start at 5 months and if he doesn't take to it, try again every week. Well, Max turned 5 months on Monday and he took to food. You actually can't get the spoon to his mouth fast enough! The past couple of weeks he has been watching us eat and phantom chewing, so no surprise that he likes solids.

Last weekend Mary Francis came down for her birthday weekend. We went to the National Gallery in the morning (always fun to show someone your favorite works of art), we picked up Marty and Max and went for Vietnamese for lunch, then we dropped off Marty and headed to the Museum. We went through Canada Hall, which is pretty cool the first time 'round. We made pizzas for dinner, watched Flushed Away (very funny!), and I was in bed at my usual 10pm. On Sunday we went to the dog park and then MF and I headed back to Montreal, with Maxim in tow. I was meeting up with Susie, Emilie and Jojo. We hadn't seen each other in probably a year or so. It was nice to catch up. And then I headed home on Monday after lunch. That drive is sooo boring! But it was a great weekend.

Big news this week... Max's new best friend has FINALLY arrived. Matteo was born on Monday morning. Everyone is doing really well. He is a really cutie pie. I can't get over how small he is. I totally don't remember Max every being that small. Especially since he is starting his separation anxiety and my back is in spasm almost all the time. Picking him up is an ordeal. Going for a massage tomorrow. Hopefully it works!

Another Detto

Maxim has a new cousin. Emily Amber Othen was born last Friday. Rick and Reanne are doing really well and brother Connor is adjusting. Nana Detto is exhausted after looking after Conner while Reanne was in hospital, but has recovered nicely. I hope to get at least one picture up her on the blog shortly. She has a tonne of hair!

Other than that there isn't a whole lot new on our front. It has been a spectacular week, weather wise. I have been out every day with Max. Today was a great adventure. I've made a new Mommy friend. Heather and her daughter Sarah (a month younger than Max) live near by and we have been doing little things together like going for walks and visiting the National Gallery. I gave her a call to see if she wanted to walk to the Market this afternoon. It was gorgeous and we stopped to pick up a smoothy and then went to sit in Major Hills Park. She is new to Ottawa and had never wandered up there.

After sitting in the grass for an hour and having the kids laying on some blankets, I asked if she wanted to wonder over to the Museum. She hasn't been there either and I thought it might be nice just to pop in to show her and then go later on in the fall when the weather isn't as great. We both wanted to walk a little longer to make the kids fall asleep so over the bridge we went. When we got there I bumped into Chantal, my director, who was coming out of the Glenn Gould exhibit. It's the exhibit that I was working on before I left on mat leave. Steve (the project manager that took over for me) was in the exhibit and let me in to have a sneak peek. It only opens next week. The whole team was there and it was great to see the exhibit in its final stages. It looks great, exactly as we had imagined it. I love when that happens. I was so excited to get a chance to see it before the opening. I am definitely going to go, but you never really get to see the exhibit at the opening. With my parents and Marty's parents coming down in October, I will have plenty of time to wander through it and listen the the audio guide. After the impromptu visit, Heather and I walked home. It's about a 45 minute walk. We were gone for pretty much the whole afternoon. Max was great for the most part, except for some pukage in one of the exhibits. Good thing the carpets are a mottled gray and hide everything!

Mary Francis is on her way here for the weekend. For her birthday this year, Marty and I bought her a bus ticket. We are going to go to the National Gallery tomorrow morning, having lunch in the Market, hitting the Museum in the afternoon and maybe a little shopping at Rideau Center. Mary Fran loves the Museum, and I think there are some great exhibits that she is really going to enjoy. Then Sunday I am driving her home. I am going to meet with some friends that I haven't seen in way too long Sunday afternoon and then driving home on Monday.

It's going to be a busy weekend. Hope your's is going to be just as fun.

How dry I am

The end is drawing near; the well is starting to dry up. I am pumping less and less breast milk and I imagine that soon there will be nothing left to pump. The milk flow was pretty stable for the first month or so but has been gradually slowing down as the weeks went by. In the past few days though, the flow has dropped drastically. I was really hoping to go for at least 6 months and it looks like I might not get much past 5.

The guilt is still there, as well as the feelings of failure but I am working through them. Marty is really good at reminding me that I have given Max more breast milk then a lot of women have given their children and probably have endure more then many women would put up with. I think I will still have to go through a little period of mourning though. I wanted to much to actually nurse for the first year. A few tears will probably be shed and then I will move on.

Max is doing wonderful. I had him in a real laughing fit today at our friend's Krista and John's place. It's still the best noise in the world. Their two dogs were constantly covering him in slobbery licks, which Max thought was just the bees knees. I am so glad that we are bringing Max up amongst animals. He screams at the cats when they walk by and loves to watch the dogs play at the dog park every morning. I can't wait for him to be able to throw the ball for Chili. Maybe next summer...

Getting fatter

Max had his 4 month check up and shots today. He was a very brave boy and didn't cry for very long. Here are his new stats: 15lbs 13oz (in the 52nd percentile) and 25" long (in the 72nd percentile, thank you Detto genes). Dr. Gfeller said he looked good and was happy with his weight gain. I asked about solids and he said not to start before 5 months, as he probably won't be ready to swallow anything yet. We'll see what happens in another couple of weeks.

We have settled into a pretty good routine, so that should mean Max will change it very soon. He is an early riser. He is up at about 5:00-5:30, but is ready for a nap around 7:30, which I am very happy to join him for. I don't think I would be of much use during the day if I didn't get that morning nap. Not so much a morning person.

We walk to the dog park with Chilli and are back around 10ish. By 11 or 12 he is ready to nap again. This time I have to stick him in the sling. He doesn't like to fall asleep on his own for that one. The nap lasts anywhere between 45 minutes and 3 hours! I prefer the longer one, I can get more done. By 4:00 he is starting to get cranky again. His witching hour is between 4-6, which makes getting supper ready a challenge some days. At the moment he loves to sit on the front step. Don't know what we will do when the weather gets really cold! By 8 we are giving him his bath and he is usually asleep by 8:30ish. The night time feeding is anywhere between 2am and 4am. The 2am is better because he usually doesn't fall back to sleep after the 4am. Good thing is that we can leave him in his crib to talk to his mobile for about an hour before he gets fed up.

He hasn't started rolling yet, but is thinking about it. I believe he doesn't see much use for it. But he gets half way and then gets comfortable and stays there for a while. He is pretty good on his stomach. Lifts his head nice a high. Gets a little frustrated after a few minutes.

He is in his excersaucer now. He likes it for the most part. On a good day he will be in it for about 30 minutes. Other days it's maybe 10. I'll take what I can get. He grabs things and has certain toys that he likes better than others, and there are a couple of books that he really enjoys. Next step, Jolly Jumper. I think he'll really like that.

Reflections of the year past

Another birthday has come and gone. It was a rather uneventful day. My gift from Marty was time to go swimming. It was wonderful. Since Marty is back at school, we are on a pretty restrictive budget, and the time to go swimming was worth more than a big ol' wrapped gift. And we went out for Korean, with Max, who was a complete angel. Who could ask for a better way to end the day?

Do I feel older? Not really. But this is the first year that I really feel blessed. Sounds a bit odd, doesn't it. Last year at this time, Marty and I were still reeling over the news that we were pregnant, considering we were told it was almost impossible. How incredibly fast the year has gone. I was pregnant and now we have Max, who is already 4 months old! One third of my mat leave is already gone. It's speeding by. At this rate, Max will be heading to university in a blink of an eye. I don't even want to think about that.

What have I learned over the past year? Laying upside down on an ironing board will not turn a breech baby, PC grapefruit soda is actually pop and not grapefruit flavored carbonated water and I finally understand the whole parental love thing. Today I was sitting on the front stairs with Max on my knee blowing strawberries on his neck, making both of us laugh. And I thought to myself, there is no where else in the world that I would rather be. The only thing that was missing was Marty sitting beside me.

And tonight we had the most incredible meal of home made ravioli. Yep, a four month old baby, and we made home made ravioli! I will post the extremely easy recipe in the next couple of days. It'll blow your mind.

Mr. Detto

Marty started Teacher's College on Monday. He is doing the on-site program from University of Ottawa. This means that he is in a school actually teaching more than sitting in seminars. He has been placed at a school in town and has met his mentor teacher for the first half of the year. He will be in a grade 5/6 split. Originally he was supposed to be teaching kindergarten which gave everyone a good giggle. I think he is actually a little relieved not to have to teach the wee ones.

I love seeing Marty so excited about something. He has come home from school every day, energized and excited. He even wants to go out and buy some books, that aren't on his reading list!! Marty is going to be such an incredible teacher. I am so very proud of him.

You've made it baby! The rest is just gravy.

Reno woes

We are still amidst bathroom renovations. I don't even want to try and figure out how long we have been at it. Or to be perfectly honest, how long Marty has been at it. We finally called a plumber to install the toilet, and he finally showed up on Tuesday afternoon. We went a whole day with no leaks to wake up this morning to find it dripping again. Pretty much put a damper on the day, and it's our anniversary! Both Marty and I are starting to get really down about the whole thing. Living in a house that is in complete chaos, not to mention having a bathroom with no door on it, is no longer fun. Both of us are very anxious to get it completed. Or at least the door back on!

But there is a little good news. Yesterday Marty and I bought a dishwasher. We have been waiting for a portable one from Home Depot for about a month now. It's back ordered. So on a whim, we checked UsedOttawa.ca and voila! A two year old Kenmore portable dishwasher for a third of the price we were going to pay for the one we were waiting for. We called, checked it out and 30 minutes later arrived home with a dishwasher! Marty changed the faucet today and we are good to do a load tonight. Very exciting. And the 4 year anniversary is appliances! Marty lucked out on that one!

Max and I went to our first play group today. It was interesting. The conversation didn't flow very freely so there was a fair amount of sitting around staring at each other. I tried my best to get conversations going, but you can't get blood from a stone if there just isn't any there. There were two women that I could see myself doing stuff with, but they live out in Rockland or Orleans. I really would like to meet some women in town. In a couple of weeks I will be starting a Kindermusik group with Maxim here in town, so hopefully I will meet some nice moms and maybe be able to strike up a friendship or two.

We are still waiting for Little Booger to arrive (Olga and Jonathan's bundle). Olga's on mat leave already and Matteo is not due for another couple of weeks. It's nice having her off already so that I have someone to play with!

Marty starts school next week, so I will be back on my own. It's been really nice having him home for that past few weeks. I think it will take a little adjusting time when he is gone all day and I have to get back into fulltime Mommy mode. With a little more organization, I hope to have a nice little routine. We'll see how well that works out...

Another gift

We must send out another thank you for the latest gift that came at the right time. Our friend Karen is a great cook. And when Max was born she made a meat pie for us. We finally managed to get together this week and K (as she is affectionately known) gave us the pie. Now this isn't any old meat pie. This is a home made crust, ground pork, turkey and big chunks of apple pie. And it is THICK. Well, it was thick. We made short order of it tonight. After another day of the bathroom beating us down (no we are not finished, and have resolved that a plumber will have to be called in) having a dinner already made for you makes all the difference. And when it is one of K's pies and a lovely glass of wine, well the day didn't seem to be that bad after all.

So our thanks go out to you K, especially from our very full stomachs. You can cook us meat pie any time!!

Simpsonizing

This is pure fun. Marty and I have been Simpsonized! You upload a picture of yourself and then they give you the base look and then you can customize it. I think Marty and I look pretty good! The website is through Burger King. http://simpsonizeme.com/#\

Babble

I challenge anyone to remain in a bad mood after watching this video. We are now entertained by Maxim's babbling several times a day and no matter what comes our way, be it a leaking toilet or a 'nuit blanche', we smile and laugh with him.

Gifts

We have received some wonderful gifts over the past few months. And three of the most thoughtful were received in the past few weeks.

First, our friends Kevin and Sabrina popped by one day to say hello and came with a gift certificate. It is for three hours of house cleaning with a maid service. How incredible is that? I'm thinking we will call once the bathroom renos are completed, the house is beyond dirty at the moment.

The second came all the way from Halifax. Our friend Chara is a textiles artist and sent an email to friends calling for pieces of material. Along with the material, she asked for a little story about the history of the piece and its significance. Once Chara received the material, she created a quilt based on the poem "The Owl and the Pussy Cat." It is the most incredible quilt. When I opened the gift, there was a little booklet. The booklet had pictures of some of our friends, who I know Chara doesn't know and I was a little confused. And then I got it. I was so overwhelmed. I could barely read the little stories for tears. It really is the most beautiful gift. It's something all three of us will cherish for a life time.
The third gift came while I was at home. Last week I stayed with my sister Tammy and the clan. One night Tammy and Matthew said that they were going to bring the play pen into their room and take Max for the night. They gave me the gift of sleep. Oh blissful sleep! It was wonderful. I don't remember turning out the light, woke up at 4am to pump and then again at 7am. It was wonderful!

Thanks to all of you.

Sleep

Max slept 6 hours straight last night, had his feeding and then went back down, IN HIS CRIB and slept until 7:00 this morning! We have seen the future people, and it is bright!

Unfortunately tonight he will be sleeping in a play pen as we are heading to Toronto for a barbeque, and next week I am in Montreal for four nights, but we have hope that he will have a taste for the long sleep and will want to repeat it again!

3 months old

I am going to take a cue from my friend Karen, who writes letters to her two little ones every once in a while on her blog.

Dear Maxim (or jellybean as we like to call you),

Today is July 24th and you are three months old. It's hard to believe that you have already been in our lives for three months, and other times it seems that you have always been part of our lives.

Daddy and I consider you our little miracle baby, since we were told that chances of getting pregnant naturally were pretty slim. But you persevered, your stubbornness started right from the beginning. I really liked being pregnant. It took us so long to get pregnant, and knowing that I only wanted one child, I cherished every moment I had. The last month or so was the best (other than you being breech, again, the stubbornness showing very early on). Yes I was rather large, going up stairs was an effort, and my swim suit barely fit me anymore (I was swimming up until about 2 weeks before you were born), but every night when I went to bed, I would lay there with my hand on my belly and just feel you move. And every time you did, I would smile and say "Hello little one!". It was just the most wonderful feeling. I got a little annoyed sometimes because you had the hiccups everyday, but even those would make me smile while I rubbed my belly thinking it would alleviate the annoyance for you. I know I hate it when I get the hiccups.

Your birth was fast! I couldn't believe how fast it was. They had already started cutting me open and Daddy hadn't arrived yet. I first knew of your arrival when you let out a great cry. My son had arrive! Daddy brought you over to me and nestled you to my cheek and all I could do was smile and stroke your cheek and say "Hi Maxim." I was pretty overwhelmed that you were finally here and I could finally see who you looked like. You were beautiful! A perfect little round face, not all smooshed. The football shape of your head made me laugh and I loved stroking your fuzzy hair. I was in awe of you.

Now I am still in awe of you. Every day you show me something new. A few days ago you lifted your head up high when I put you on your belly (something you aren't terribly fond of), yesterday we had a long conversation back and forth, and today you had your first giggle fit. Every time I am exhausted and don't know how I am going to get through the day, you give me one of your smiles that takes over your whole body, and I am refreshed and ready to tackle anything.

We had a rough go at the beginning, but the first three months gone, the ground work is laid, and the rest is just gravy. ;-) I can't wait to see what the next three months bring.

I love you my jelly bean,

Mommy

Haleluah!

I would like thank all of you that offered sacrifices to your various gods and deities. Maxim is now back on breast milk, and I don't have to be on a crazy diet. We started giving Max expressed breast milk from the bottle last Tuesday and he didn't have an adverse reaction to it. How happy were we! So now he is a breast milk baby. I think we might have to supplement a bit, I don't think I produce quite enough milk, but he will be primarily fed breast milk and I am a happy camper.

We got back from the cottage Friday. The weather wasn't perfect, but it was still a nice week away with the family. Max was really good with the long car ride. His limit seems to be about 4 hours, and then he isn't terribly pleased after that point. So the last hour/hour and a half was a little hard with max cranking and crying, but we made it both there and back with little trauma.

Everyone got to know Max over the week, and I think Glenna and Tom were very happy to have a little more bonding time with him. We also got to know Max's cousin Connor more as well. He is a rambunctious 18 month old with a mind of his own. Reanne is going to have her hands full when the new baby arrives in September. After a week of eating until you bust, sitting around, laying about and all around sloth-like activity (all very much enjoyed), it was nice to get out and walk to the park. Now back to our regular routine.

The Plan

We have a plan. We saw the pediatrician yesterday and he got us on this track. Here is what we are going to try.

Max needs to be on the formula only diet for a week before we can really ascertain that it wasn't just a couple of fluke nights. That will bring us to next Tuesday. In the mean time I have to continue to pump to keep my milk production up. Then we can introduce breast milk again, by bottle. The pediatrician said that it might be Max on the breast that is the problem and not the breast milk itself. So Tuesday we give Max expressed breast milk and pray. If he takes it without the grunting and discomfort, then all will be good in the world. It would mean that I could continue pumping and feeding Max breast milk and wouldn't have to go on any weirdo diet. If we give Max the expressed breast milk and the grunting and discomfort returns, then we will know it's my diet. The diet is: no dairy, no wheat, no citrus fruit, no garlic, no nuts, no shell fish, no fun. I have to be on it for a couple of days, try giving Max the breast milk again, and if he doesn't grunt, then I can begin introducing one thing at a time until he grunts again. If he still grunts after me being on the diet, then we know it's something bigger than that and we will have to go back to formula and officially give up on breast milk.

I am obviously hoping for the first scenario, but am willing to go on the no fun diet for 6 months if it means Max will get all the good stuff of breast milk. Start praying or doing your sacrificial dances for me folks! We'll have an update when we get back from the cottage.

Eureka!... I think I'm going to cry

Well my enthusiastic post yesterday was a little premature. We have figured out what has been causing Max's discomfort... me.

Marty and I decided to try a little experiment. As the Zantac didn't seem to be working, we thought it might be something in my diet, other than lactose( which I had quit), that could be bothering his tummy. So instead of me eating boiled rice and chicken for a few days, we decided to give Max only formula for a day and see what happens. I bet you can see where this is going.

Well yesterday was the test day. He didn't seem to spit up as much as usual and the big reveal... last night he didn't have his grunting, groaning, squirming, etc. After the 2am feeding, he sucked furiously on this hand (he hasn't figured out how to get fingers or thumb into his mouth consistently) and then fell asleep. Not a grunt or a groan, except from me that is. With Max blissfully falling into a painless sleep, I came to the realization that it's me. My milk is what has been giving him all this discomfort. So now that I figured out that there is tones of it, it's no good!!

So now the decision is whether or not I go on the boiled rice and chicken diet and introduce one thing at a time, day by day to see what is bothering him. I don't know if I am up to it. I am feeling rather defeated. It seems that every time we figure something out with the breast feeding, something else comes up to beat me back down. I'll have to make my decision soon as there are already 5 bags of breast milk in the freezer and another bottle in the fridge.

With the digestive history of my family, it's no surprise Max has a sensitive gut. From my IBS, Grandma's belches that you could hear from down the street and Dad's legendary "fly poops" (for some reason that's what he calls his farts), poor Max didn't have a chance.

Got Milk?

Yes, as a matter of fact, I do! I made the decision yesterday that Max wasn't latching well, breast feeding was hurting again, and it was just unpleasant all around. The decision was that I would pump and we would just give Max the bottle, with breast milk and formula. Well, I starting to pump and holy cow (pardon the cow reference), there's milk in them boobs! And a significant amount to boot. So it would seem that it isn't so much my not producing milk, it is more Max and I can't seem to work together to get the milk from boob to mouth. So I am glad that we will be able to give him mostly breast milk, but am a little sad that the actual breast feeding didn't work out. I will still nurse him everyone once in a while, perhaps once a day, to make sure that he can still take the breast just in case we are somewhere without a bottle.

Preparations are starting for our trip to the cottage. And by preparations, I mean I have already starting on lists in my head, next step is to put them down on paper. Marty has already started to make fun of me, but he will appreciate the lists when we are at the cottage and nothing has been forgotten. I really hope the in-laws are ready for us. Max doesn't sleep through the night and scream when ever we try to burp him, including in the middle of the night. I hope they think is cute enough to let it slide!

Not much to report

I must apologize to the few dedicated blog readers for not having posted recently. There just doesn't seem to be much to report. Things are still the same. Max spits up terribly, the night indigestion doesn't seem to have gotten any better and I don't think the Zantac is working any. But this is now all routine, it isn't overwhelming anymore and therefore nothing new to report. We see the doctor again this week and we'll see what he has to say.

One thing new, Max is starting to giggle. It's a real throaty giggle, but adorable all the same. We can't always get him to do it, but when we do, it's golden. I'm starting to get a little fed up with the fact that he can't seem to fall asleep on his own. He gets tired and cranky and if you try to put him down in the bassinet he has a complete melt down and just can't sooth himself because he is so upset. The only way he seems to be able to fall asleep is in the sling, or in your arms if you are sitting down. Needless to say, this is rather inconvenient. I'd love to have an hour during the day to do some pilates or even just to sit and have a quiet cup of tea. Oh, I can see all you mothers out there rolling your eyes saying "what did you think you were getting into?!?" but I bet your babies slept on their own for a few hours a day!

We are gearing up to go to the Muskoka's where the Dettos have rented a cottage on a lake. We went last year and it was a great time. It will be interesting to see how it works out with Max. I can't say I am looking forward to the drive, as it was a good 5 1/2 hours last year and that was sans baby. Hopefully Max will travel well long distances. The furthest we have gone is Montreal, and that wasn't too bad. I'm sure the week at the cottage will give me lots of fodder for new posts. Oh, and by gearing up we bought a cargo box for the car. Nothing like spending a significant amount of money on a plastic box! But with Chili in the hatch, there is no room for anything else. The trip to the cottage will be a good test to see whether or not it was worth the money. I think it will be.

The Many Faces of Max