We've Made It!

Hallelujah!

I’ve managed to breastfeed Kaden exclusively for 6 whole months! To some, this might sound like a small feat but after the low initial milk supply, the toe-curling latch-on pain during the first 3 weeks, then trying to get back into the swing of teaching/exercising again & the planning that involves (hello 3 bras!), I feel like we’ve made it through our first HUGE milestone.

Last night I decided to give solid food a try, and I have to admit that I had been looking forward to this day for a long time.  I was literally giddy as I unfolded the brand new high chair and strapped him in.  I’m not sure what Kaden was thinking, but he seemed to be enjoying watching us- all smiles.

We only managed to get a few bites of rice cereal down before taking a break.

Kaden seems to be more of a morning person, so when he woke up in good spirits I decided to try again. In addition to some rice cereal, I offered some mashed up avocado. Although he gave several puzzled looks, he swallowed and opened his mouth for more.

According to the book, Baby 411, I believe that Kaden's feeding behavior falls into the category of "The Eager Ineffective". Since birth, his tendency is to get so excited about eating that he that he jerks & thrashes his body, grabbing onto objects instead of being patient (this is where he might take after his momma).

The most challenging part for me is trying to get food IN the mouth while avoiding his flailing hands & death grip on the spoon. For such a little person, I am truly amazed at his ability to clench his tiny fist onto objects and hang on!

I think he was a little confused at the notion of water and I'm not sure how much he actually drank.  Nonetheless, he sure enjoyed gumming the rubber tip and playing with his new "toy".  I'm chalking this feeding up as a success.

Although I plan on continuing to breastfeed until he turns one/he decides to wean himself, I cannot help but feel immense satisfaction of making it to this 6-month milestone. 

Ahhhh... (sweet sigh of relief!)

Waking Up Happy

I would like to say that I spring out of bed every morning, ready to take on the day.  More often than not, I groan, wish I had a few more hours of uninterrupted sleep in my warm bed, then stumble to the kitchen to greet Mr. Coffee. 
Ben is much worse...

As cliché as it sounds, walking into Kaden's room first thing in the morning makes life so much better. Whenever Ben or I go to retrieve him from his crib, he almost always has a wide, open-mouthed smile.

To wake up happy!

FEET!

I thought it was funny when Kaden discovered his hands around Christmas... little did I know how much joy feet could bring.

Every time I try to change his diaper or strip off his clothes, the feet suddenly come up & sometimes make their way into the mouth.

Bath Time... with Ducks

Bath time has always been a fun time at the Dow house, but it's become even more so ever since I found these yellow, rubber ducks in the dresser drawer.  I remember tucking them away after my baby shower because I knew he wouldn't be able to use them for a while.  I'm so glad I found them because they kept him entertained for at LEAST 20 minutes during his last bath.  He might have played longer, but his hands and feet were becoming more pruny & the water was beginning to turn cold...

Do you like the strategically placed duck?

and foot?

Good Sport

Within the past month, Kaden has taken much more of an interest in our dog, Schatzi.  He watches her as she moves across the room, he lights up & belly laughs when she gets close, and he tries to reach out and touch her.  The only thing we really have to watch is her trying to lick his face.

What a good sport; doesn't she look thrilled?

Entertaining Ourselves

It's a rarity when I don't get out of the house at least once during the course of a day, and it's almost unheard of when we actually have company in town.  BUT when the snow started yesterday morning we stayed in all day & failed to even change out of our pajamas. 

Better than an electric blanket.

Day 2

Between dad, Kaden and Schatzi, I'm not sure who is entertaining whom.

By today the walls were closing in (did I mention we have a small house?) 

SO (dad, Kaden and I) we felt the need to drive around Amarillo.  Probably not the safest thing to do, but nobody said we were the smartest bunch... poor Kaden.

Here is a view of us driving the loop.

With all of the wind and blowing snow, I'm not sure what the final accumulation ended up being.  In some spots there were 6-8" while in other spots there were several feet.

more teething...

Blizzard in Amarillo

Even as an adult I still get giddy at the possibility of a real snow and a "snow day".  I'm not talking about one of those dustings you might find on the windshield of the car in the early morning either.  A REAL snow involving fat flakes blanketing the town and everyone is forced to bunker in for the day. 

I also realize that this is probably due to the fact that this rarely happens in Amarillo.

If the roads are too bad for Ben to drive to work and all of the local schools are closed, then I shouldn't feel too guilty about hanging around the house all day... Right?

Here is 11:00 a.m. and Schatzi tearing through the backyard, not sure what to make of it all.

I also feel like I need to point out the fact that this is the 2nd year in a row that David Cook (dad) has been to Amarillo when there has been a blizzard... The ONLY two serious snows in the past two years.

Coincidence?

The Best $4 I've EVER Spent

I think we have reached the infamous teething stage that I've heard so much about... and if this isn't teething, I think we might be doomed.  He is constantly sticking his fingers (and sometimes trying to get his entire fist into his mouth), drool keeps rolling down the front of his onsies, and I have begun referring to him as "Senor Crabby Pants". 

Since my school checks have ceased & we have gone to only one income, I have been diligent about clipping coupons, watching ad sheets, trying to buy generic/only items that are on sale, and plain ole NOT going shopping unless completely necessary.  And though I like to think I'm doing a fantastic job of not spending money, I simply cannot help myself from cruising the baby isles on my trips to Target.  Last week I found this "Sassy Teething Ring" and I swear it's the best $4 I've spent... EVER!  He can easily grasp the ring with both hands and it keeps him entertained for up to 10 minutes.

I know I did a poor job of dressing him, but getting some coffee going was a top priority at this stage of my morning.

Entertaining himself in the car seat.

Sitting quietly with Grandma Shanny.

As of now I don't feel or see any teeth, but this new teething ring seems to be doing the trick for the time being.

Strolling Around the Park

I almost feel guilty for admitting that it was a cloudless day and it got up to about 65 degrees outside.  Apparently all we need for a great day around here is warm weather (with minimal wind) and a nice stroller.  I buckled Kaden & "monkey man" in & our spritis were immediately lifted; within 5 minutes of walking around Paramount Park, Kaden was fast asleep...

4-month pictures

Jessica Claborn, one of my best friends from high school AND the person to introduce Ben & me was in town for Christmas this year.  Luckily for us, she came over one afternoon and took several pictures of Kaden.  Here are his 4-month pictures. 

The best part was that I didn't need to leave the house. I didn't realize she was taking half of them, and they turned out much better than a "professional photographer" would have taken in a studio.  I think she needs to come to town more often! (hint-hint)

3 Christmases

Not quite the movie with Vince Vaughn & Reece Witherspoon, but our family celebrated Christmas on three different days in order to be with our families.

On December 18th, we went over to Ben's parent's house for our first Christmas celebration.  Ben & I decided that this was the "quiet Christmas". 

Don't even ask how long it took me to load up the car to head to Missouri for the week!  Not only did I have to pack all of Kaden's necessitites but ALL of the Christmas gifts for everyone.  By the time it came to packing things for me, I was past the point of caring and my belongings became an afterthought.  As it turned out, I forgot my winter coat (luckily Ben brought it when he flew in).

Kaden did great on the 12.5 hour car trip, but gone are the days of my world-record setting pace.  Our first stop was to California, Missouri to see Grandpa Cook (or is it great-grandpa Cook?) and dad (or is he the new Grandpa Cook?) 

Anyway, we ended up spending a few nights before visiting Kyle and doing the annual Saturday-before-Christmas-shopping-marathon with dad.  Kaden was a trooper.
Kyle also saved us all by "flying" Kaden through Sam's on our last stop.

For the next few days, we spent some time back in Warrenton, Missouri with mom (grandma?).  One the 24th we celebrated our 2nd Christmas, which was considerably louder than the first. 

I didn't take too many pictures on my camera but enjoyed this one of the psychadelic tree...

Christmas morning

Ben & Kaden loaded into the Prius, while I got into Kyle's Saturn to make the drive [back] to California.  I always have fun with Kyle, but the drive to California was "typical Kyle".  He neglected to mention that his car didn't have heat until I was buckling in.  The further we drove, the colder it seemed to get.  By the time we pulled into grandpa's driveway, I had layered on Kyle's clothes from his suitcase and we were doing exercises in our seats in order to get the blood moving.  Again, always a good story when you're with Kyle.

Of all of the new people to meet at the LOUD Christmas with the Cooks, Kaden seemed the most at ease with my cousin, Daniel.  We thought it was because they had the same haircut.

Christmas 2009

Exersaucer

My good friend, Heather, is letting me borrow Danni's exersaucer since she has outgrown it.  I continue to be amazed at how much Kaden changes from week to week. Just two weeks ago he was too small & unstable to sit in it without assistance but now he likes to sit in it and play for about 10 minutes at a time.

As Kyle constantly marvels, "What is he thinking...?"

I often find myself asking the exact same question.

Good Lookin' Men

On Sunday we attended the Boys Ranch Christmas Cantata. 
Ben had to be there and I just wanted to tag along; I wanted to do something as a family & I desperately needed to get out of the house.  It also gave me a good excuse to put on some makeup, get out of my (Ben's) sweatshirts and put on some real clothes.

Overall, Kaden was a trooper.  He was quiet for the most part, especially while everyone was mingling and trying to find a seat.  He started getting restless about the time the lights dimmed.
I didn't want to be "that mom" with the agitated/wailing kid in church, therefore we did a lot of swaying & pacing the halls outside the sanctuary.  In the end, I couldn't really tell you what happened during the production BUT I made a few new friends- other parents of tiny children who were in the same situation. 
It was a good night.

SNOW in the Texas panhandle!

I can't count the number of times I've heard weather forecasters say to "watch out for snow" and then... nothing. 

This fall there had already been a few of these instances in which I rolled my eyes and didn't count on seeing anything.  During the holiday I hadn't checked the weather so I was plesantly surprised to awake to flurries on Sunday morning.  An hour later GIANT flakes were streaming down, and the peaceful snow kept on coming for several more hours...

Ben, Kaden and I headed back over to Shanny & David's house for a few more family photos with Dorothy's snowman.  It was a lot of fun to see Kaden's reaction to the cold & snow.  There's a FANTASTIC picture of the entire Dow clan, but it was taken on Dorothy's camera.  Stay tuned...

Kaden's first snow!

He clearly seems happy in his oversized Patagonia fleece from aunie D.

The tongue comes out when Kaden is really happy.

Later I curled up to a new book with Kaden drifting in & out of sleep on my lap. In my opinion, he was born at the perfect time- right in time for cold weather. Good thing we both like to cuddle.