Fun-O-Rama

We went to York Beach yesterday with Nana and Pops. I used to just take a towel and a trashy gossip magazine with me to the beach. . .man, are those days over! I needed to pack the night before to make sure Cole had everything he needed.

I also used to poke fun of those people on the beach with sun tents. You'd have a perfect view of the water and some lady with 4 kids would set up shop in front of you. . .and if the screaming kids throwing sand right next to you wasn't bad enough - they'd have one of those tents blocking your perfect view of the ocean. I'm sorry to report that we've become those people. I tried to be mindful of people with my former view of sun tents. . .but it's really tough to set up somewhere that won't block someone's view. We did the best we could. . .at least Cole doesn't throw sand. . .yet.



This is our "small" sun tent for the baby. . .honestly. You can fit about three adults comfortably napping on the beach in this thing.

Cole had a blast. Unfortunately he got a little bit toasty on his arms (I did use a ton of sunscreen!). . .but he went to Fun-O-Rama, watched mom have an ice cream (and fudge!) and took a nap on Nana.

I should be a professional photographer. . .is that shot of Pops and Cole great or what?

There's the action shot of Cole's piggies in the ocean.

We just love that fishy hat.

burritos and new toys

Big doing-s for Bill and I the other day. We went out to eat with Cole for the first time, together. Crazy to think he's almost five months old and we're just taking him out (or rather, we're just now going out with each other with him) for the first time. We were doing some shopping near Shorty's (one of our favorite Mexican joints) so we stopped in.

Overall, he was great. We ordered drinks, totally expecting to have our drinks and then needing to order our food to go. But Cole was fine. He played with his toys and his binky (so weird!).

When our meals came we ate quickly ( I think Bill took roughly 7 minutes to eat his meal), still thinking we'd need to make a quick escape when Cole inevitably started fussing and ruining others' meals. But he didn't. In fact, when he started to get uncomfortable, we showed him what we were eating. He's totally into food lately. You can't eat something in front of him without him stopping what he's doing to watch.

Here he is choosing his burrito.

Then, we got him his first stacking rings. Not a big deal to most of you, except he is getting better at grabbing things and moving them the way he wants everyday. The stacking rings are very exciting to him because he actually means to take them off the post and put them back on. . . even if he does need a little help.

Looks like he's having a staring contest with this giraffe. . .not too sure what's going on here but you get the picture.

teething rings and flea markets

We haven't had too much excitement lately. Mostly, since our visit to the doctor last week, Cole has been a drooling machine. It hasn't been worth using bibs because they are soaked within minutes. He does a complete wardrobe change about three times a day just to keep him dry!

He's also putting everything he can get his hands onto in his mouth. . . including his whole fist when he can't find anything else! We both get a kick out of it when he gags himself because he smooshed his fingers in his mouth too much, just to do it again right after.

I got him a teething ring the other day, even though I don't believe we're getting teeth for awhile. Cole really likes it, especially while he's watching his Baby Einstein. . .

As soon as he figures out how big his mouth actually is and stops slamming things into it, we'll all be much better off.

Cole, Pops, Tracy, Marc and I also went to a flea market yesterday. It wasn't Cole's first trip, but it probably was the first trip he remembers. I was worried because we didn't have his stroller, but I did have our front carrier. Cole was asleep within minutes. . .and allowed us to have a nice time walking through all the junk. . .

We didn't find any treasures, but at least Cole got to take a nap!

a whiskey for everyone at the townie concert

Bill and I took Cole to his first townie band concert tonight. Kids are just so cute when they run around in circles "dancing" to the music. . .or like one little sweetheart, just bouncing up and down to the drums.

Cole was digging it. He mostly just watched the trees overhead, until he fell asleep. Neither of us are sure how he was able to fall asleep with all that noise - but that seems to be a common theme with his sleeping habits lately. Bill joked that we should get some band music and blast it on the stereo. . .to put Cole to sleep!

While Bill and I waited for Cole to wake up, we overheard two elderly women ask a man who was sitting on a park bench,if they could join him. He said to them, "Nice night for some music." To which they replied "What?", a few times. He repeated himself a bit louder and the old lady said "Yeah, great night. I just had myself a whiskey and I'm feeling fine." Fantastic.

Seemed like Cole had himself a whiskey too because he didn't wake up until we walked into the house! Notice the binky, too. . .guess there's a first time for everything!

I might be turning into a hippie

So today Cole and I went to a eco-friendly baby store in town and purchased some cloth diapers. I know. . .how absolutely crunchy of us. I'm not saying we are making a complete and total switch, but since Bill and I are the main diaper-changers of Cole's life . . .we didn't mind trying it out.

There are a few reasons for the trial run of cloth diapers. A major factor is cost. I was lucky enough to have gotten so many packages of diapers for my baby shower that I am only now needing to buy diapers. Seeing the cost of diapers and how we go through them for the first time, made me start to research other options.

Secondly, we don't have trash pick up in Milford, and Bill's had to practically double our trips to the dump every week because of the diapers we throw away. Our trash is always full. . .and it's always full of diapers.

Which leads to the third reason, which is just to be eco-friendly, if we can be. Throwing away that many diapers which sit in a landfill for a bazillion years. . .is upsetting. Maybe that's the hippie in me coming out a little but if we can make some changes to help minimize the effect we have . . .then we should. And cloth diapers may not be that bad.

I could go also tell you about all the gross chemicals and other ingredients in disposable diapers that I discovered while researching cloth diapering options, but it'll make me sound like a paranoid mom and I'm not sure we're giving up on disposables yet, anyway.

Those are the reasons. So far we've only tried it today and it's gone just fine. For those of you new to cloth diapering, and for some reason interested. . .I'll show you some pictures.

The cloth diaper is on the left, followed by the "doubler" and the cover on the far right that keeps it all together. The cover is a lightweight, breathable material that Velcros around the baby like a disposable diaper.

When you put them together it looks like that. . .

And that's what it looks like when you put them on a confused Cole.

And this is the cute Cole bottom in cloth diapers. ;-) I'll let you know if we're still pro-cloth after one of his "situations".

a tour of his room

I wouldn't normally post twice a day but as I was in Cole's room trying to get him to take a nap, I realized that some folks hadn't seen his room and might want to. Here's some pictures of his adorable room. . .that he doesn't use.

Please notice the lack of window treatments and things hanging on the walls. . .it's a Paradis staple.

That's his nice crib that he refuses to sleep in and his dresser filled with clothes that fit him for about a week.

Another of the dresser. Please note the Sox hat on Pooh Bear that we are just dying to fit into! (Thanks Auntie Colette!)

And. . .our rocking dinosaur that plays classical music and roars . . .fantastic. I'd show you pictures of all these unworn clothes in the closet that he grew too fast to wear - but it's depressing.

Here's what Cole was up to while I thought he might be taking a nap this afternoon:

There's always tomorrow. ;-)

I have proof!

Dr. M suggested we try putting Cole in his crib for his morning nap - since that nap is established and going well. I hadn't even thought of that. . .remarkable. Only problem was that we were having our sliding glass doors replaced yesterday and it was sure to make a racket.

I got Cole to sleep and put him in the crib and walked away. I didn't go too far, because I knew once the builders starting sawing and hammering, it was over. We even brought the stroller outside and got it ready for a mid-morning walk to keep him busy and out of the noise.

I was reading the paper in the kitchen and had to leave myself because of the noise when they started working. I immediately went to Cole's room - figuring he must be crying and I just couldn't hear the monitor. This is what I found . . . with his bedroom door wide open and all the noise. . .

It wasn't until they took a break from working that Cole woke up. Go figure!

an apple a day

The four month stats:

14 lbs 10 oz
25 inches long



Cole, Pops and I went for our 4 month check up today with Dr. Margolis. Its always so nice to go there; the nurses are sweet, the reception folks get you in quick and Dr. M is fantastic! It's even nicer when Cole isn't screaming the entire time, too.



We talked about how Cole is doing - laughing, cooing, holding his head up and grabbing things (especially hair)! We decided to wait on giving him cereal or any other solids for a few more months because he's certainly gaining weight just fine. Cole also got the 2nd round of vaccinations that are required for New Hampshire daycare and schools.



He started to cry when the nurses unveiled the needles. I think he knew what was coming. That's why we bring Pops - for the moral support, of course, but more importantly, so Cole associates his face with the pain because he holds his legs steady during the shots.



The best part of the visit is that Cole gets a dose of Tylenol and I get the go ahead to give him another later on when we get home. Infant Tylenol is a wonderful thing for a new mom. That boy of mine turns quiet and takes a nap like a champ.



Except at 10:00 p.m., when he should be sleeping but just woke up because you've drugged him to sleep for the afternoon. . .

A little spit-up in the pool never hurt nobody

Today, we decided to try out the kiddie pool.

I think for the most part, Cole liked the pool. The squeaky frogs were certainly a plus. As was his Bumbo seat - which made it much easier for me to take pictures.

Once the water crept into the seat and hit his bottom though, the pool was much less fun. So we did the "band-aid" approach to getting in - going in all at once. Easy for me to do to someone else! We also decided that his fishy hat was a necessity for pool time (thanks Memere)!

Cole started to quiet down for a bit (he had done quite a bit of splashing up until this point) and focused very intently on his squeaky frogs. I thought he might be really digging this pool thing, but then he just spit up. . .all over himself and all in the pool!

Somehow, I managed to be taking a picture of him at that exact time. Weird.

just singing in the heat

I think Cole is singing along with me to George Michael! Sorry for the grainey-ness of the video. . .it's hard to keep steady when you're rocking out to old 90's hits. This entertained him for about an hour, if you can believe that!

It's just about a million degrees here today so Cole and I are limited on our adventures for the day (thus, the serenade earlier). We spent a good portion of today sleeping (he, not I) and laying around on our belly (again, he, not I).

He's getting very good at keeping his head steady and looks less and less like a bobblehead everyday!

I've also resorted to playing dress up with my boy on these kinds of days. Of course if his grandfather would stop buying him glam rock sunglasses we wouldn't have to take pictures like this. . .

We go for our 4 month doctor visit this week, too. We'll be sure to update you on the visit. I think he's pushing about 15 pounds and 24 inches - we'll post the official tally on Wednesday. We'll be talking to Dr. Margolis about vaccinations (there are so many that are so scary these days) to find out what Cole needs and if there are any given that aren't necessary. Time Magazine just published an article in their last issue about the subject (although I think it reads very "pro-vaccinations" and doesn't truly capture the other side of the issue).


You can find it here http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1808438,00.html

ridiculous

red eyes in morning, sailors take warning

This was the calm and pleasant face before bedtime.

So many things went wrong with our attempt to sleep train Cole last night. Bill had to rush off for a plumbing emergency at his folk's house, so I was alone to do the deed. I procrastinated as long as I could, waiting to see if Bill would return in time. When he didn't, I gave Cole a nice long bath, read him a story, then fed and rocked him to sleep.

These were the exact recommendations in my book. Cole was out like a light. . .sleeping like a log. . .or a rock. . .or whatever they say when the kid is out. And I mean out. I waited until I could raise and drop his arm without waking up before I put him in his crib. I even sung one more verse of "My Bonnie" before letting go of him while laying him on his crib (very tough on the back, I should say).

I got all the way downstairs and even was able to make a phone call before the wailing started. And he wailed. He wailed so loud and so hard that I shut off the monitor because he was filling the entire house with his pain. I called my Mom and she couldn't listen to it. Tracy asked, "Do you think he's too young for this?" Greg said he was just telling me in babyspeak how much he liked what I had done with the furniture.

All the while Cole was screaming. He stopped twice for less than a minute to recharge and finally, after what seemed like 3 hours but was actually only 27 minutes, I went and got him.

He had turned over on his belly and managed to wedge his arm through the slats in the crib. No wonder he was wailing! About a half hour later Bill returned to find Cole and I watching the Celtics, both of us sniffling with swollen eyes. It was not a pretty sight.

I guess we'll just try to stabilize the daily naps for now. Maybe work on sleeping in the bassinet first. I certainly can't repeat last night for a little while or at least without a few glasses of wine. Think it's time to realize that's it's not I who's training him . . .he's training me! Course all that excitement has him pretty sleepy this morning. . .

his going-ons

In celebration of Cole's fourth month, we've decided to create a Cole blog. As Greg said it best, a collection of his "going-ons" for you to read and to refresh your Cole information as you please.

The major news on the home front is that we are trying to regulate Cole's sleep schedule. At the advice of an old high school buddy of mine, I picked up the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child and I think they're onto something. The premise of the book is that the more your child sleeps, the easier sleep will come to them, especially at night. There are two major components to healthy sleep; naps and a regular bedtime.

Naps aren't our problem. Cole naps roughly twice a day and usually during the same time. . .but bedtime has been brutal. In fact, I don't think there's been a day in the last four months that Cole hasn't slept with us. He just won't. And, because sheer exhaustion outweighs patience, we've been reinforcing this bad habit just to get some sleep ourselves.

So tonight's the night, we've decided. There are clean sheets on the crib, the mobile is ready to go, and there are strategically placed musical puppies in the corners. The book has warned me on every one of its 457 pages that Cole will cry - and cry a lot for the first few nights. I'm ready. I'm ready for this war of wills between my inevitable guilt for letting my baby cry and his will to keep up his antics. We'll keep you posted. Wish us (and the neighbors) luck.