Simon is now 5 months old! He has really blossomed over the last few weeks and his growth blows me away everyday. Our boy truly is the happiest baby, constantly smiling and making friends everywhere we go. I've been trying to take more pictures of him with my nicer camera, both for better-quality photos and because I've been running out of space on my phone. We've had a fun and busy first month of summer with many big changes for our little family.
a day with Daddy
watching TV at Pappy's
Boppy sleeper
The biggest news in our house as of late was that after 18 weeks home with my love bug I finally had to return to work. I agreed before Simon's birth that I would teach summer school this year, and during the days leading up to my first day back I was completely dreading it. 4 hours a day for 4 weeks should've been an easy transition for me, but I found it difficult to stay organized, find the time to prep, and figure out a pumping schedule. While the change was a struggle for me, Simon adapted with such ease. Eric was off work on my first day back, so he stayed home with Simon and had great daddy/baby time and sent me many pictures. Kristine then watched Simon for a couple days and also had a good time, although he would only sleep while in her arms and would do so for hours at a time. Finally, my dad offered to babysit, which turned into our best setup yet. He got Simon to take naps in the Boppy pillow, fall asleep with his pacifier, and quickly picked up on all of Simon's fussy cues (hunger, tiredness, gas). Eric and I loved having my dad here to watch Simon and felt better about not having to drop him off somewhere else. It worked out so well for us and we were so thankful for my dad's help. And now that summer school is over, I'm thankful to be off work again for another month!
activity mat fun
watching Daddy's phone
Simon decided one day that his tummy is the place to be! When we began tummy time at 1 month, Simon was not a huge fan and would only tolerate the belly activity for a few short minutes here and there. After meeting an acquaintance's baby who is almost a month younger than Simon and appeared to have stronger head control, I realized that we really needed to step up the tummy time in our house. It definitely paid off because after only a few weeks, Simon is loving the belly-down position! Lying him down tummy-first is a piece of cake now, and he'll willingly stay in this position for long periods of time. As I observe him, I think Simon has found that he has a better view of what's going on around him when he's on his tummy; he lifts his head quite high to look at the TV or to watch us walk around him. And of course if there's anything bright with lots of colors and movement nearby for him to look at (laptop, cell phone, Eric's PSP), Simon's attention is immediately caught. He also enjoys his large variety of toys that always surround him while he's on his play mat or the Boppy pillow. His interest in his colorful noise-makers and teethers grows by the day.
dog park visit in the Ergo
hanging out the Bumbo chair
first time in his jumper
We recently introduced Simon to the Ergo carrier, Bumbo chair, and doorway jumper. Near the end of May, I scored my Ergobaby Carrier on sale at Target for $20 off ($20 gift card with purchase). Simon is no stranger to being carried, as he's spent time in my Moby, so the transition from the wrap was no problem for him. Right on cue, he falls asleep easily and comfortably in the Ergo, as he did when we recently took him to the dog park with Courage for the first time. This carrier is perfect for summer since it is open in the back and allows for more air flow around both of us than my wrap does. It's definitely a winner, and is even more comfortable than I expected it would be! Simon has also started spending some time in his Bumbo Floor Seat. It was given to us by a friend of Jen's, whose youngest child outgrew it. Upon sitting Simon in it for the first time, Eric and I thought it was the cutest sight ever and took several pictures. Simon seems to really enjoy it, too, and will sit in it for longer than I ever expect him to. Another place where he loves to spend lots of time, surprisingly, is our Graco Jumpster® Doorway Jumper. Given to us with several hand-me-downs from one of the families from Eric's hockey team, the jumper is pretty much the best baby item ever made. Simon LOVES it! I was so excited to set it up and have him try it out, and it just blew me away how quickly he figured it out and fell in love. Simon jumped so hard in it one day that he fell asleep! All these new toys just remind me of how fast Simon is turning into a big boy, but it's completely worth it to watch him have so much fun.
Father's Day at Apple Hill
with Pappy, Daddy, & Cho-Cho
our family
driving to IKEA
4th of July BBQ
Simon's 1st Independence Day
Eric's first Father's Day was quite the success. After opening his card from Simon and me, we started the day up in Apple Hill at the Jack Russell Farm Brewery. We enjoyed delicious brisket sandwiches with coleslaw and watermelon for lunch and tried their amazing Cyser, a combination of wine, mead, and cider. We then made a quick stop at Boa Vista Orchards for apple juice, apple-blackberry wine, pumpkin butter, and apple cookies before heading to Lester's for dinner. We picked up my dad on the way and made burgers with cream cheese and raspberry Chipotle sauce (The Squeeze Inn's special at the BerryFest we went to on Mother's Day). It was the first day that Simon had spent with us and both of his grandfathers in a while and it was a nice get-together. I look forward to many more future celebrations with our entire family together, surrounding Simon with lots of love and the most important people in his life.
We also celebrated Simon's first 4th of July, which was really more of a relaxing day than a night of partying like years past. IKEA was having a big Independence Day sale, so we drove out there in the early afternoon with my dad, who treated us to lunch in the cafe when we arrived. My dad was the one who ended up making out with a bunch of great finds, but Eric and I were happy with our dollar treats and the end--hotdogs for him, a cinnamon roll for me. Later in the evening, we got together with all of our friends for a BBQ and passed Simon around to visit with everyone. I held him outside in the front yard briefly during the neighborhood fireworks in the street and he did surprisingly well. I think he was more intrigued by the bright colors and lights than scared of the loud screeches and booms. With the holiday falling on a Thursday this year we couldn't stay out too late because of work, but we had fun as always spending time with our friends and sharing so many delicious treats. Our gang really does know how to throw a food party!
I took Simon to his second wedding; we went with Jen to Rancho Cicada Retreat in Plymouth to watch our friend, Shannon, from college get married. The drive was about an hour each way and the weather was a little warm that day. I wasn't too worried about how Simon would do, so of course he was absolutely perfect and didn't fuss a bit. I brought a bottle to feed him during the ceremony and nursed him during the reception. My hands felt a little full not having Eric with me... I had to keep the car seat on the ground and I didn't want to rely on Jen too much to hold Simon since she was 8 months pregnant herself, but he was awesome and even took a little nap while I ate. And as always, complete strangers kept coming up to us to tell me how adorable Simon was. I never get tired of hearing how cute my baby is, but I don't think I'll ever get used to hearing it from people I don't know. The wedding was very sweet, and we were thankful to Shannon, who looked lovely, for having us to share in her special day. It was also very nice of Jen to ask us to attend with her, as I would've hated for her to have made that drive alone!
happy boy
cool baby
talkin' away
It was a quick and busy month for our family and I'm glad to be back at home with my boy. My short stint back at work was just a taste of how life will be when I return full time when the school year begins in the Fall, and I am still in shock over just how difficult the transition was for me mentally more than anything. I'm happy to say that I now know what to expect come mid-August when school starts, and I actually have many positive thoughts about being back this new school year. We were so thankful to have my dad and Kristine's help with watching Simon, and while I would be a stay-at-home mom in a heartbeat if I could, I have faith that hopefully I can stay at home at some point down the road. Eric started his new job with SCP Distributors and is really enjoying it and doing well so far. We have the same hours when I'm working, but the tradeoff is that he's home in the evenings and on the weekends and we have dinner together as a family every night. With the continued help of family and friends to babysit, I feel okay about our identical work schedules. But since I'm not working for the rest of the summer, I can focus on my number 1 job of being a mommy and spending as much time with my little man as possible!
