Our Second Substitute

As Jonah's arrival gets closer and closer, Vanessa and I continue to try out his baby products. Normally, we have Addyson fill in as a substitute for Jonah (described here). However, while Addyson is a good sport, her patience does sometimes run out. When that happens, we use our second substitute—Green Monkey. He is a little over 20 inches tall, doesn't say much, and has floppy limbs. In other words, he's just like a baby.

I installed the car seat and then had to figure out how it works. Monkey was kind enough to sit very still as I fidgeted with the buckles and straps. It took a little while, but I think I'll be able to get Jonah strapped in with minimal trouble when the time comes.


Later, I tried on Jonah's baby carrier. Those Baby Bjorn's are a little difficult to put on, so I thought I should practice a few times. Again, Green Monkey was very cooperative. He didn't even complain when I tried to stick his leg into the wrong hole. I think I need some more practice.


We now have less than three weeks until his Jonah's due date. Everyone keeps saying that the time will fly by, but these last few weeks seem to be dragging on and on. When Vanessa and I had a lot to do to prepare for his arrival, it was nice that we had so much time. Now that we are basically ready for him, June 16th can't come soon enough. Obviously, there are times when I am a little freaked out about having a baby, but for the most part, I am ready and really excited.

Thoughts From a Friend

A friend of my mother's, who in turn has become a friend of mine, wrote me a lovely message the other day. With her permission I am posting it below. I loved it because of the obvious emotion contained in it, and the fact that she got lost in her own thoughts and memories of her life as the mother of a boy. I decided to post it because of all of the ladies I know who have had boys recently and might also be blessed by a glimpse of a mother's heart who has raised a boy too. All of the little guys that are toddling around now may be small, but they will be big someday. And we will still be their mothers. Thanks Pam.

You two do a very good job with the entertaining writing. I love it. And yes, I love the "knowing glances" part. Its a club and it ain't for sissys (sp). The pregnancy, the birth, the taking care of a newborn. We mothers "know" we know that you can't explain how exhausting it is, how thankless, yet rewarding it is. We can tell new moms-to-be about it but until you are there you really can't understand. The moments you share locking eyes with this little person while you're breast feeding, or feeding a bottle, doesn't matter which, who will NOT let you be, will NOT let you sleep, will NOT let you have a shower in peace...just about the time you think "oh my gosh, I can't do it, surely this is a mistake, it's not supposed to be this hard" you share that moment that cannot be shared with anyone else but you and this little soul looking at you like you are IT. You are the sun and the moon. Little do they know you feel like they are the sun and the moon. The first time you go in to get them when they wake up for an early morning feeding and you feel like... gah! what?! and you walk in and they give you that toothless grin cuz they're so happy you're up too! What a coincidence, they're thinking...you and me up at the same time! And being the mom of a boy is fantastic. You're going to love it. Wyatt used to get up soooo early just to get up. Not hungry so much as just wantin' some company. He was so happy to see me, with his heavy pee pee diaper hanging way down between his legs. We'd get up, get cleaned up and fresh, eat and head out for a 7am walk. When he started talking he would tell me the funniest things when we were out walking. Moms and their boys share a special bond. Okay so I'm babbling. Sorry. Just bringing back fond memories...... don't worry about the teenage years. I'll let you in a secret, they never ever really hate you. Its just not good to be a momma's boy, a guy could get his butt kicked. They don't become comfortable with that again until around 22 or 23...so I'm told. I'm waiting for my little man to think I'm all that again. :)
Good luck. Stay inside where its cool.

Andrew's Artistic Endeavor

We have one more thing to cross off our list in preparing Jonah's room for his arrival...artwork! Surprisingly, we did not buy it but the art was a labor of love from his father! Long before Jonah was a rapidly approaching reality, Andrew and I were entertained by a couple of cute monster pictures that we found on the web. Since they looked more friendly than fiendish (think Monsters, Inc.), we named them our Little Monsters and proceeded to spend the evening doctoring the photos for fun. When Jonah did become an "actual baby on the way" and not just an imaginary baby, we decided that the monsters would be great for his room. We knew that they would fit the style we were going for and loved the idea that they had come about through Mom and Dad just playing together so long ago. Instead of printing them out in a poster format, Andrew decided that he wanted to try his hand at bringing them to life himself and paint them on canvas. He was meticulous with the process and has worked on them nightly for the last few weeks. I am soooo thrilled with how they came out and love knowing that Jonah will have something handmade by his Daddy to look at everyday.


We named the Monsters Gato (cause he looks like a monster cat), Jorb (yes, where "Jorby" originated), and Louie (clearly a Louie). The blue tape is where the crib is earmarked to go once Nana and Papa Smith come out with it in June. The dresser was a gift of sorts, made up of gracious gift contributions made by many, anchored by the generous gift from Uncle Bob and Aunt Nancy. The glider and ottoman were gifts from the federal government. Thanks Uncle Sam!

Knowing Glances

With one month left to go, the approaching transition seems more and more real. Not just to me, but apparently to the regular passerby as well. Everyday I get knowing glances from women who are ahead of me on this journey of motherhood. As I walk through the mall on my way to work, it seems that every woman pushing a stroller past me looks at me with a mix of sympathy over my waddling movements and empathy for just having come out of this season herself. Whether her new child is soundly asleep or wailing loudly, she will smile at me with a slight tilt of her head and kind eyes. No dialogue is exchanged but I am very aware of the unspoken bond. It's odd how comforting it is some days. At work I am questioned daily about my pregnancy status by talkative customers, but none of those well meaning inquiries mean as much to me as the glances from the women who don't ask me to explain anything. They already know.

Such a Good Sport

It seems like each day we get one more thing in preparation for Jonah's arrival. The problem is, with no baby there is no way to really try the things out. Or is there? We received my Hotsling in the mail just the other day and were anxious to try it out. Luckily, we have one cat who will put up with our silliness and honor our requests. We are so lucky that Addyson is such a good sport. And see...now we know that the Hotsling works! There's peek from this weeks belly too!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to our mothers and to all mothers!

Continued Preparations

Some days things don't work out as they should. On Thursday, Vanessa and I went shopping to get things for the house, Jonah, and our cats. Addyson needed a new scratching post, so we went to Petco. Unfortunately, they were out of her favorite kind of post, so we came away empty handed. Then, we went to Lowes to get new blinds for Jonah's room. They had plenty in stock in all sizes, except the size we needed. The nice worker there set up a transfer from another store, so they should be in by Wednesday. While at Lowes, we also wanted to pick up some planter boxes for our deck. As you may have guessed, they did not have the boxes we needed. Vanessa and I then drove across town to Menard's and they had planter boxes, but not the size we wanted. At this point, we settled and got a smaller size than we've used in the past.

In the end, I guess it wasn't that bad of a day. We didn't get everything we wanted, but we were able to plant flowers for our back deck. Unfortunately for our plants, we had a hail storm the next day. Flowers and hail don't mix. Hopefully they will recover and their peddles will grow back.

We are continuing to prepare our house (and lives) for Jonah's arrival. We haven't taken any pictures of his room yet as it is still in disarray (we'll post pictures soon). In an attempt to tide you over, I'll share one of my favorite pictures of Chloe. I like this picture for a number of reasons. First, Chloe doesn't like cameras and will often run away when I try to photograph her. Second, she was sitting at exactly the right place (in the middle of the sliding glass door) at exactly the right time (late in the afternoon so she had a long shadow). Third, it reminds me of Batman.

Scary Lamaze

Today marks the beginning of week 34, and since it is May we can officially tell people that we are due "next month". So crazy! This is the newest belly picture. Jonah doesn't seem to be pushing out as much as up, so this picture doesn't look as different from the last picture as it actually feels. I am definitely having some trouble breathing now.



This past weekend Andrew and I attended an all day Childbirth Preparation Seminar. Because we are both prone to researching and reading about things that we are interested in, a lot of the things covered were a bit repetitive for us. We did get to practice breathing and relaxation techniques that I think will be helpful; that is until they hand over the epidural! We also got to see the labor/birthing rooms and the mother/baby rooms. We were really pleased to see that they were definitely more hotel than hospital. All rooms are private and the baby is always housed with mom and dad unless medically impossible.

Seeing the facilities and covering massive amounts material in one day was a lot to take and ended up being pretty draining for this preggers. When we got home I took a nap, and then had a good cry. Andrew was the perfect calming support for me that he always is. Just another turn on the road that leads us to the end goal of having our little guy.

Spring is Springing

Well, sort of. Though one of the good things about the Midwest is that it actually has defined seasons, they don't seem to abide by the calendar very well. Right when the sun comes out, the city explodes with people itching to get out of the winter hibernation. However, more often than not, a sunny day in the mid-seventies will be followed by an overcast day in the low-fifties. It's just too cruel to put on flip flops one day and then a light jacket the next...in May!!! Knowing not to fall for the cruel tricks of Mother Nature, we have learned to keep our closets in limbo with any number of items at our disposal. At least until July.