"shear" neurosis

Lately, at least 10 times a day, I think about cutting Jacob's hair. Not cutting it myself (don't worry, I know better,) but I do think about taking him to one of those cute little kids hair cutting places and getting his first "do". I don't know if it's really necessary but his hair keeps creeping over his ears and the back of his head is getting a little squirrely. There are curls coming out in every direction.

Here's my thing. I've had bad haircuts in my life. You know the kind...where you fight back tears when you're sitting in the chair because you don't want to insult the stylist. Why I ever cared if I insulted the stylist is beyond me because I've had some serious butchers go to town on my head and I just sat there at the end touching my hairless head barely getting out the words "no really, it looks fine" (as tears were welling up in my eyes.)

So, I'm afraid that my adorable little boy will look different after getting his first haircut and I just don't know how I will deal with that. If they chop his sweet little locks, will he still look like my baby? Or will he look like a grown up old man? Ugh, I just can't stand it. And now I've built it up in my head. The anticipation of it is driving me mad. God forbid they do a bad job and then I really have something to stress over.

I need to just bite the bullet and go. OR, I need to go get a job so I will quit being so neurotic about my child so I can concentrate on something other than baby teeth, baby hair, baby proofing, baby sleep and baby POOP.

I will say one thing. If I do take him in to the kids hair cutting place to do the ceremonious "first haircut" ritual, I will NOT be keeping a lock of his hair. Seriously. That creeps me out.

He's on the move

Jacob started climbing stairs recently -- we can't take our eyes off of him! Here's a quick video of him on the move. What cracks me up most about this clip is that Mark used his wallet to motivate Jacob to climb. Ha. He is SO like his momma.

"All I want for Christmas...

...is my 2 front teeth!"

This was going to be our Christmas card this year until we realistically thought about what Jake would do to us in 20 years as repayment for his humiliation.

But it's cute, right?

Little Indian

Not quite proficient yet, but we have the makings of a little Indian on our hands!

Possessed toy

Jacob went to bed at about 6:45 tonight and I was watching TV upstairs when I kept hearing the faint tune to "Mary had a little lamb." I thought I was imagining it (I hear enough baby songs throughout the day that they inevitably occupy my brain during my "off" hours -- without my blessing.) So, I'm sitting here swearing that I hear "Mary had a little lamb" over and over again. Finally, I muted the TV and turned up the monitor in Jake's room. Sure enough, I hear it loud and clear.

The whole time I'm thinking...Where is it coming from? Is it in his room? Which toy plays "Mary had a little lamb?" Oh no...I'm going to have to crawl in his room on my hands and knees in the dark and find this darn thing that has somehow gotten switched on permanently. And why didn't I hear it when I was putting him to bed?

Oh no, ladies and gentlemen. I walk downstairs and this one toy (that remains to be nameless) is sitting by itself on the floor in the living room playing "Mary had a little lamb" over and over again. Nothing is touching it people. It's just GOING. And I'm looking at it like it's possessed by the devil. I pick it up and it immediately stops (like "oh no! She caught me!") So, I place it in the closet of our guest bedroom (as gingerly as possible) and pray that the music doesn't start again. Because seriously, at this point, I'm scared. I'm Poltergeist scared. And Mark left for San Francisco tonight. I think that toy is going to meet Mr. Dumpster tomorrow.

Imitation is the highest form of flattery

Jacob has suddenly taken up imitating mom and dad. The first time we noticed it was when he picked up my brush and started whacking it at the side of his head. At first I wondered what the heck he was doing, but then realized he was trying to brush his own hair (after he had seen me brushing and drying my own.)

Then, for the past couple of weeks, he kept putting the palm of his hand up to his ear. Thinking this was related to his ear infection, we overlooked it. But then one day he picked up Mark's cell phone after Mark was talking on it and put it right up to his ear, listening to the silence intently. Now, we entertain ourselves by saying "Hello?" all day long and watching Jacob pick up the cell phone and put it up to his ear (as if he's answering the thing). I'm telling you, it is just too cute.

So, this is a critical time my friends. We have to watch every move we make around him so that he doesn't start imitating the wrong things. We can't have our kid walking around scratching his bottom, picking his nose and liberally (and loudly) passing gas. (These are all things he'd get from his daddy, of course. He can imitate me all day without learning any bad habits. HA.)

I guess we just have to accept and embrace the fact that we are forming his mind every single day. Good thing he has good genes. At least he has his looks going for him. :)

Too funny

I don't really know what else to say. This just cracks me up. He's been doing it ALL day.

Love bites

Remember when I said I was going to stop biting Jacob? It was in a previous post when I described how he dangerously stuck his fingers in the back of my mouth when I was pretend-biting his hand and his little finger got sandwiched between my molars (I guess I need to work on those "pretend" skills).

Well, it turns out, Jacob loves biting as well. And don't underestimate those 6 teeth, people. They are SHARP, and they HURT. Oh, and there is no biting discrimination. It's your face, shoulder, knee, stomach (yes, stomach)...not to mention the coffee table, crib, and leather wallets (must be like raw hide to a baby?) Not thinking much of it because all babies gnaw on various things, I dismissed it as a simple baby behavior.

Then, I saw an article in one of my baby newsletters entitled "My baby bites. What's going on?" The "expert" opinion read like so:

"If teething isn't the cause and your child doesn't seem particularly anxious about something (which can sometimes be behind biting), try to nip this behavior in the bud now, before it becomes a habit. Be sure that no one laughs when your child bites and that no one, including older siblings, treats biting as a game or ever gives your baby a 'love bite.'"

What? No more love bites?? But how?? How in the world do you do this? How do you not bite your baby? I just don't understand :( I am distraught. I want to inhale him -- how can I not give him love bites? Unfortunately, this is a behavior that I cannot control. I need to go to a baby biting anonymous class.

All this time, I've just been teaching him to bite more. Shame on me.

But really, don't you want to bite him too?

A Time for Thanks

I too often forget to take time to voice what I am thankful for. So, in the spirit of the holiday...

I'm thankful that we caught Jacob's ear infection today before it became a severe case resulting in too many sleepless nights (last night was enough.) I'm thankful that he is happy and healthy and for his goofy laugh that fills my heart every time I hear it. I'm thankful for my wonderful mother and father-n-law who took amazing care of Jacob while Mark and I got to waste away 8 days in Jamaica sleeping, eating and reconnecting. I'm thankful to have the choice to stay home with my son even if it is the hardest job I've ever had. I'm so thankful for friends...my amazing moms in Chicago, my dearly missed friends in San Francisco (can't wait to see you again) and, most especially, my girls (you all know who you are). I am thankful for apple pie, Ann Sather's cinnamon roles, eggnog lattes, and red wine. I am thankful that I belong to a gym that has a nursery so that I can go work off the aforementioned calorie-filled sweets I'm thankful for.

I'm thankful for my husband who almost always gets up in the morning with Jacob so that I can get a few more precious moments of sleep. I'm thankful for his patience, for his understanding, and for helping me every single day with taking care of baby Jake.

Tonight I am most filled with thanks for my family. For being there for me, and each other, without question and without limits. I am incredibly sad we can't be there to celebrate this holiday with you.

We did it!

Jacob was 42 weeks old yesterday! Yay!!

Why is this significant, you ask? He has finally been in this world longer than he was in my belly. Pregnancy is LONG my friends.

I don't know where they come up with this stuff

Back to reality. We got home from Jamaica late Sunday night. Jacob was fast asleep...I don't think Mark or myself have ever been more excited for Jacob's 5 am wake up time the next day. We were quickly back in the swing of things.

Jacob had his 9 month check up yesterday morning. Everything looks great and he's meeting all his milestones. He's still off the charts in weight too...which got me thinking about these baby growth charts.

So, Jacob weighed in at 26 lb. 12 oz. If you notice his weight line, it's above the shaded area (and we're not talking barely above here, we're talking at least 2 lbs. above which, in baby weight, is a lot!) This means that Jacob is as heavy, or heavier than 95% of the infant population. And he's been that way for 8 1/2 months now. This makes me wonder...where is the fattest baby and how much does he weigh (or should I dare wonder, how much does she weigh?) I'm fascinated by this so, of course, I had to do some research.

On October 26, 2007, it is believed that the world's fattest baby was born in Siberia. Nadia (a baby GIRL!) was born weighing 17.1 lbs. She was allowed to go home after a month. She is the youngest of twelve (TWELVE!) children. Holy moly, I pray for that family (specifically for that mother).

http://in.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idINIndia-30182820071026

So, Since Jacob didn't reach 17 pounds until he was 2 months old, I think we can safely rule out that he is not the fattest baby. Our doctor says that his growth, according to the charts, has been completely normal, even if he does form his own line on those silly things. Check it out:

One love.....one heart....let's get together and....

Mark and I have been in Jamaica for 6 days now. Ya 'mon.

We have had the most amazing vacation but there are 2 things I have learned:

1) Drinking dirty bananas, mudslides, miami vices, etc. all day has a different effect on me now and I can no longer handle my alcohol as expertly as I used to (ok, this is up for debate.)

2) I miss Jacob so badly I can smell him in my sleep.

Ugh. Please get us home as soon as possible??

I would forward these via email but...

...the Picture People's website isn't working and won't let me "share" these photos with you all. So, instead, I've hijacked them and will post our favorites here. :)

These were taken yesterday -- they are Jacob's 9 month pictures. He is such a HAM!

p.s. You can click on each picture to see a larger version of it.

If you're happy and you know it...

...clap your hands!

Jet-setter Jacob

Mark, Jacob and I just got back from Tracy's wedding in Miami yesterday. Oh my gosh, was she stunning. I remember the day I met her in 2001 when I first interviewed at Duke for the MBA program. We were sitting in the lobby waiting to go on our tour of the facilities and we just started chatting. I was so impressed by how much she knew about the program, the people, etc. I had done my own research of course, but she just blew my efforts away. I swear I owe part of my acceptance into Duke to her. In the short time we spent together that day, I learned so much more about the program and in turn, knew what great questions to ask during my interview. There began our friendship. It's so wild to think about how much has happened since that day. I am so incredibly happy for her and Matt.

This was Jacob's 4th roundtrip flight and I understand now why people say to travel with babies when they are very young. Now that he is mobile, that kid doesn't want to sit still! He still does really well on planes though. On Friday, he finally started waving. I've been trying to get him to do this for months. Every single day, Mark and I would wave "hi" when we'd see him and "bye bye" when we'd leave. I'd take his little arm and shake it up and down and say "bye bye" over and over again. I thought he'd never figure it out. Then Friday morning, randomly, I just said "bye bye Jacob" and he just started waving his arm up and down emphatically. And he hasn't stopped since. Mark was walking him up and down the aisles on the plane and he was waving at everyone. I was cracking up from the back of the plane as I watched him (in Mark's arms) wave at everyone in the seats as he passed them by. And everyone waved back. Ahhh, what a proud momma I was.

So now our little guy has been to Houston, Austin, Kansas and Miami. And I have a little hunch he'll be visiting San Francisco soon :) What a little jet-setter he is.

Check him out enjoying Miami.

Hmmm. Who knew?

Give the kid a straw, and he drinks from it.

self awareness

Jacob loves mirrors (as most babies do.) At some point, usually around 9 months, babies become "self aware" and realize that the reflection in the mirror is their own, and not another cute baby staring back at them.

Now, Mark and I have been wondering whether or not Jacob has figured this self awareness thing out or not. The other day, I was watching him as he was holding on to our full-length mirror and he kept leaning his head around the side as if he were looking for the cute baby behind it. Not a very "self aware" behavior.

Today, he started making out with himself in the mirror. "Self aware?" You be the judge.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween everyone!! My Mom's group had a Halloween party yesterday and Jacob was the cutest little scarecrow. Can't wait to dress him up again on Wednesday!

Alert the press!

Jacob finally sprouted the other top, front tooth that I've been patiently waiting for!

Miraculously, he also woke up this morning with a full head of hair! I wonder if teething causes hair growth? :) :)

amazing discoveries

Last night, while Mark was at NU doing mock interviews with undergrads, I had an amazing discovery. Jacob LOVES watching the clothes in the washer. He could have sat there watching the towels go round and round all night if I would have let him. Seriously.

Now, I'm not saying that my discovery is on par with cancer cures and polio vaccines, but man, this is HUGE. He doesn't do anything for longer than 2 1/2 minutes. I have now committed to doing laundry at least 3 times a day.

p.s. Please don't criticize me for letting my child run around in his diaper. I'm from Texas y'all. That's how we do it down in them parts.

This one's for the girls

I meant to post this last weekend but it took me a day or two to recover . Last Friday night, we had mom's night out with the girls in my mom's group. 10 girls. Blowing off steam. Away from the babies. Recipe for disaster? Of course not! What a great time we had!! Except for the fact that there were numerous emails circulating the rest of the weekend about the monster headaches we were all nursing.

I think it's pretty special when you find a group of intelligent, witty, fun, beautiful girls that are all about your age with babies the same age as well. I feel so lucky to have found them. And, of course, I have to thank Mark, the best husband in the world, who encourages me at every moment to go out and have a good time (and who happily gets up with Jacob 90% of the time when he wakes up at the crack of dawn every morning). I'm one lucky girl!

Check out my hottie mommas :)

Lifelong memories

Mark and I were talking yesterday about why you don't have memories of being a baby. I think one of my earliest memories is of when we lived in our first house on Greenlawn (I really don't even know if that's the name of the street or I'm just making it up.) Anyway, I was outside playing when I spied a black and white kitty. I think it was a neighborhood cat that we called Skinny (because, um, he was skinny). I picked up the cat and the devilish thing took its front claws and used my face as a scratching post. I had 3 scratches on both cheeks that were dripping blood, so I ran into my house screaming. I can't remember exactly how old I was but I think I was 4 or 5. It amazes me that I lived in that house until I was 6, but I have very few memories of it (other than being impaled by a psycho cat.)

So, I started thinking, when will Jacob have his first lifelong memory? And isn't it sad that he's not remembering any of these fun times that we're having now? What about the Musical Magic class we took today? Why doesn't he get to remember the songs we sang and the elephant masks we wore? (He certainly won't remember me fearing for my life that the instructor was going to ask the mommies to make the noises of their respective animals on their masks. Have you heard my elephant noise? Mark says it sounds like a dying seal.) I get to remember all of these things about our time together. Why doesn't he?

So Mark, of course, got all scientific on me and started talking about the sizes of babies brains and how they grow so much in the first few years of life, and while their brain is developing they don't have the capacity to register "memories." He started talking about evolution and somewhere along the line he lost me (*yawn*).

Then I realized something. In the last few days, Jacob has fallen down at least 50 times. He's bonked his head in maybe half of those instances. He's cried because he's hungry, he's cried because he's tired, he's cried because he wants my attention, he's cried...well...just because he feels like it. He has pooped himself and peed himself and thrown up on himself. He screams uncontrollably because he can't crawl to get where he wants to go. And that's just in the last few days.

In the last 9 months, he got stuck in my birth canal and had to be vacuumed out, he has been pricked with every needle imaginable at every doctors visit, he has had to learn how to hold his head up, roll over, sit up, feed himself, and pull himself up. All the while, he has had no means of communicating other than crying and boy did he abuse that privilege when he was a newborn.

All I'm saying is, it's not easy being a baby. No wonder we don't remember these days. Can you imagine?! We'd be all worn out by the time we were 2. I probably would have thrown in the towel at 6 months. God knew what he was doin', kids.

So now I just continue to wonder when Jacob will have that first ever lifelong memory. Will it be something mundane, like the color of his room in our house, or a favorite toy he played with? Or will it be something more eventful like his first base hit in t-ball? Or when he takes off on his bike for the first time without training wheels? I assume it will likely be an event of some significance. I just hope it's not a traumatic one, like witnessing mommy and daddy trying to make baby #2.

With our luck, that would be Jacob's first ever lifelong memory.

Bath time = fun time

Little Jake loves his baths. I think he could spend hours in there. We got some video of him splashing in the tub. Only his right hand is doing the work though. If he were in a baby boat, he'd be going in circles!

He also just got this adorable new towel from his Aunt Amy (and family). Thanks guys!

False advertising

My weekly americanbaby.com newsletter appeared in my inbox this morning.

Inside, I read this week's fun factoid:

"Each year more than a million children are treated for injuries related to safety hazards in the home. The most common? Burns from uncovered radiators and scalding hot bathwater, ingesting toxic substances such as household cleaners, and falling down."

Can someone please tell me how this factoid is "FUN"? Talk about false advertising. I'm emailing their editor. Right after I finish babyproofing my entire house.

Which brings me to my next question. How do you babyproof a baby? Jacob fell down like 8 times today. Apparently, according to this really "FUN" factoid, he is his own huge safety hazard in the home. Where can I buy one of those baby helmets? and padded baby clothes? Oh, also, how do you babyproof a mommy? I accidentally bit his finger really hard tonight. I was play biting on his hands (like I always do to make him laugh) and he stuck his little finger in between my teeth as I was chomping down. Woah nelly, he cried hard after that one. Needless to say, we won't be playing that game anymore. I'll buy some extra thick baby gloves too just in case...

Jacob's new trick

Jacob wants to show off his new trick. Take a look...

Where's my other tooth?

It amazes me how much time I spend thinking about my child's teeth.

Seriously.

If I thought this much about money (and how to save it), we'd be millionaires by now.

So, Jacob's 2 bottom teeth came in at the exact time when he was 5 1/2 months old. A few weeks ago, his top left tooth appeared (in case you have forgotten, this was the same week that he drove a babysitter to celibacy.) Well, I assumed that his other top tooth would pop out shortly after, just as his bottom teeth had. Instead, Jacob now has this 1 big, front, top tooth protruding alone without its pair. So I ask you, where is that 2nd tooth?

This continues to baffle (and worry) me so I decided to do some research last night. My fear was that this 2nd tooth would never appear and he'd be teased as a toddler as the kid with the one big tooth (think Bucky the Beaver, but only slightly less so.) Ok, so, I had had a little bit of wine last night but don't let that fool you into thinking this is what led to my neurotic behavior. This is what I do. Vino or no vino.

So, Google leads me to countless pediatricians that state that baby teeth "eruption" isn't always predictable and in the same order. (Let me digress for a moment. Does anyone find it interesting that medical professionals refer to teething as "eruptions" in the mouth? Good Lord, no wonder my child turned into a little devil that week his top tooth ERUPTED. He had an explosion in his mouth!) Anyway, in my research, I learned about 20 month olds that got their 1 year molars first, and then the other teeth followed (what in the world did they eat for a year and a half?) I then read about shark teeth...when babies get their adult teeth before they lose their baby teeth (I will pray for their parents tonight.) And I also read about baby teeth discoloration, due to antibiotics or jaundice (good think little J hasn't been sick yet.)

Whew. I had no idea that baby teeth were so complicated. Now I don't feel so neurotic. (Bring on the wine!)

No doctor mentioned that my baby's lonely top tooth was anything to worry about, so I'll just continue to search, poke and prod around his mouth everyday until I feel that little sharp edge I've been waiting for. Rest assured, I'll keep you posted as to how this all unfolds, or erupts. Until then, enjoy my adorable baby boy with his 1 big top tooth while you can.

Infant Drowning Prevention

One of my Moms in my group sent this out yesterday. Viewer discretion is advised. While I found it wildly disturbing (I almost had a panic attack watching it), I was also quite mystified as to how they teach infants (as young as 6 months) to "swim" to the top of a pool and float until rescued. Is this possible?

I tell you one thing, I won't be pushing for a pool in our backyard in the near future. This scares the you-know-what out of me.

http://www.childdrowningprevention.com/index.html

One other thought...I do realize that ground breaking discoveries are made everyday from endless testing on lab rats, monkeys, ex-convicts. But how in the world did these people throw their kid in a pool to video tape him screaming "DADDY!" for 5+ minutes while he laid stranded on the top of the water waiting to be rescued?? I sure hope (for their little guy's sake) that he was a fast learner and impeccable performer.

Chicago - Tonight's low: 43 F

Time to break out the winter hat!

Back to reality

It's been a while since my last post. We spent all last week in Texas with the family. While it was a wonderful trip, I'm questioning ever traveling with a baby again. The traveling part is easy (ironically). It's the getting-used-to-a-new-environment part that is taxing.

Grandma and Grandpa were exhausted by the end of it (they so kindly babysat last weekend in Austin while I was on bridesmaid duty). It's funny watching your parents babysit. At one point, I joined up with them, and found the diaper bag empty. No diapers. No wipes. No food. I wondered if they were going to replenish the bag at some point before venturing out again, but instead I just teased and teased. I love that my baby brought a little chaos into someone elses life other than my own.

By the end of our visit in Austin, every employee at the Doubletree knew Jacob. I think they knew his whereabouts much more than Mark and I did. Before we left, we had to bring him down to the restaurant so that his biggest fan, Lorenzo, could say goodbye. It's funny how babies leave a lasting mark on random people you encounter. Lorenzo fell in love with our little guy and just had to say goodbye before his last shift ended.

Mom and Dad, thank you so much for taking such amazing care of our baby boy.

Rachel, if you're reading, you were the most beautiful bride. I was so honored to be a part of your day. I miss you girls already.

Here's to beautiful babies and beautiful brides.

Oh that stinkin' pincer grasp

I never knew this until we had a baby, but somewhere around 9 months or so, babies learn to grasp things with their thumb and forefinger. It's called the "pincer grasp" and Jacob hasn't quite "grasped" the concept.

So, everyday, we practice with little cereal stars. He loves these little things and his frustration in getting them to his mouth is just heart-breaking (yet comical).

Here are 2 videos documenting our progress.
(pay close attention to the palm of his left hand)

I know I'm his momma, but this just cracks me UP!

Attempt #1: Not quite there yet

Attempt #2: Success!

Milton

"If evolution really works, how come mothers only have 2 hands?"
~Milton Berle

I imagine I will ask myself this question at least a few thousand times in my lifetime. It's a brilliant one.

One babysitter down

Babysitting is the best birth control. Ever.

Mark's best friend, Jim Clark, is getting married this weekend so yesterday was full of pre-wedding festivities including a Cubs game on the rooftop (see above) and the rehearsal dinner last night. Since our regular babysitters already had plans for the weekend, we asked a new girl, a recent NU grad, to sit for Jacob from about noon - 7 pm yesterday. Mark and I had to come home during that time to change for the rehearsal dinner and then we were heading out again so she was staying until Eric came over to sit for the rest of the night.

I want to back up for a minute. For the past week, Jacob has been in rare form. Refusing to nap, screaming inconsolably at times, and just plain irritable. This behavior has been so far from the norm that we took him to the doctor on Wednesday convinced he had an ear infection. Nope. Ears were as clean as a whistle. I hate to say this, but I was hoping it was an ear infection because at least that would explain his mood. I'm a problem solver. Problem = ear infection. Solution = medical attention. While I don't want my baby to be sick and in pain, I also don't want him to be crying inconsolably for no good reason (I want to fix the problem!) Alas, the doctor chalked it up to his 2 top teeth coming in. Really? That's what's causing all of this?

So, I regress. The babysitter came over and Jacob was just coming off of a long nap and had a full belly. Surely a recipe for a successful day. Mmmm, not so much.

By the time we arrived home at 5 pm, we walked in and I could immediately tell by the look on this poor girl's face that the last few hours had added a few years onto her life. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes a bit withdrawn, I think I even saw a wrinkle appear (mind you, she's 22 years old. Hey, it can happen.) We learned that he refused to nap and hadn't slept in 5 hours. For those of you with babies, you know that 5 hours not sleeping to a 7 1/2 month old is an eternity and then some. I immediately whisked him into his room and blasted that hair dryer until he was out like a light (the hair dryer is mommy and daddy's best friend in this house).

We left for the rehearsal dinner and Jacob was down for the night. Eric came over around 7:30 to relieve our sitter. When I came home later that evening, I asked Eric how it went and how the sitter seemed when he arrived. Apparently, she wasn't excited about conversing and fled the scene as fast as possible. She ran out the door as fast as Seabiscuit.

I'm quite confident she will never speak to us again. Oh well, at least we still have our regular sitters. That is, of course, as of today. Courtney will be sitting for us tonight while we are at the wedding so we may be down to 1 regular sitter by tomorrow. I'll keep you posted...

Thank goodness for sure things

If all else fails, feed baby. Makes him happy every time.

self-feeding baby + teething biscuit = MESS

I just had to snap a photo after I let Jacob go to town on a teething biscuit. I usually feed small pieces to him but he is becoming increasingly curious about feeding himself -- grabbing the spoon, biscuit, bread off my plate, food in my mouth, you get the idea. :)

Baby Bookends

I don't know why this picture cracks me up so much, but this was taken yesterday at my Mom's group. We did our very favorite thing -- lined the kids up on the couch and started snapping away. Jacob is on one end and Kevin on the other. Kevin was born 10 lb. 1 oz. and is 2 months younger than Jacob.

The 2 of them on the end look like Baby Bookends.

LOVE IT.

Don't laugh at my baby

Jacob and I joined Katie and Luke for our weekly stroll to the Farmer's Market yesterday. While perusing the butternut squashes, a 60-something man approaches me. Our exchange went like this:

(60-something man staring at my son): "Linebacker for the Bears?"

(me - forced laugh): "My husband would like to think so"

(60-something man giggling): "How big is HE?"

(me-knowing exactly where this is going): "He's 7 months and about 24 pounds"

(60-something man proceeds to start hysterically laughing...I instantly get defensive):
"Are you laughing at my BABY? You're LAUGHING at my baby! Don't LAUGH at my baby! He's very sensitive!"

(60-something man looks worried and scared at the same time): "NO, no, he's adorable! I just can't believe how BIG he is!"

And there you have it, I made a new friend at the farmer's market.

Just another day in Jacob and momma's life. Really. I wish I could say this encounter was something new, but in reality, we have conversations like this everyday. Just don't ask me "WHAT are you FEEDING that kid?" That really gets me going. Like I'm forcing steak and mashed potatoes down his throat. Come ON.

He's big and he's beautiful. And he's got the most adorable, squeezable cheeks I've ever seen in my life. Just wait, you too will want to nibble on them when you see him in person. ;)