Change

Now that we are reasonably settled in our new home, all of the changes from the last year are finally settling in:

• Baby!
• 2 new jobs
  
• 3 homes
  

Tom and I figured why not make all of our major life changes in one calendar year.

In seriousness, it has been one heck of a year. It would be hard to jam much more change in. I think I've been a trooper, but am finally in burnout stage. All in all, we are glad to be settled in and have regular access to family. We see my folks and sister frequently -- all without having to hop on a plane.



Connor has been wonderful, he is truly thriving. We had our first parent teach conference this week. We wondered what in the heck can they say about a 10 month old, but it was good to hear that they feel he is thriving and independent. The comment was made that everyone always knows when Connor is around aka, he is loud.

He is a sweet boy. He kisses frequently versus the little love bites he used to readily give, is quite snugly, and is generally pleasant to be around. He has started to sign a bit which is awesome. First signed word=milk, first spoken word= uh oh. He has been so healthy, and we feel very grateful each day for all of the gifts we have in our life.

Settling In

We are now in Richmond and settled into temporary housing. I started my new job this week, Tom starts his next week, and Connor had his first half day of day care. I think we're all doing reasonably well.

There are lots of things that we miss about Portland, mainly our friends and comforts of home. We really miss our backyard as Miss Sadie needs to be walked 3 times a day. With working, taking care of Connor, and trying to take care of normal life things, it seems like most days these isn't room for much else at least during the week.

Connor is such a sweet boy, mostly full of smiles and giggles. I hope that the choices we are making help him continue down that path. He is starting to become aware of Sadie, and I think he will have lots of love for his fur sister.

Connor has been able to enjoy the pool here. I think he likes to watch everyone in the pool more then he likes the water, but it's fun. We have gotten together with our friends the Brolunds, and Connor and Lily are fast friends.

We feel very thankful for how everything is coming together. We know that we have been very lucky on all fronts. Thank you to everyone supporting us through this journey.

Goodbye Portland, hello Richmond?

I have always been the type of person to fare better with more on my plate than less, and 2011 is well on it's way in keeping with that tradition. After many long and late discussions, we are going to be heading east to Richmond, Virginia.

This was a really tough decision for us. There are so many things we love about Portland, walk factor, public transport, food, and progressive culture . Over the last year and a half we finally feel like we have friends that we've come to consider family here. As wonderful as that is, we found ourselves frequently wishing that we didn't have to hop on a plane to see our family. With the arrival of the little guy that feeling has grown stronger.

I was lucky enough to land an offer from Capital One in Richmond at the same time that Tom landed a job that was transferable to Virginia. We're going to give it a shot and see how things pan out. Both my parents, sister, and Tom's brother will be drivable from Richmond, and our good friends the Brolunds live in town, so we'll have some support to start with.

To our friends in Portland, we can't say thank you enough for making the last 6 years some of the best we've had. Portland truly is a wonderful little gem, and we are going to miss it and you.

Hinnies, poop, and barf

These are now daily words in my vocabulary. It feels like I spend a good part of each day tasked with the removal of body fluids. I frequently am wondering what I am smelling. Am I wearing baby barf, is Connor? Why is my hand wet? Please don't let it be poop!

I am also amazed by the number of diaper and outfit mishaps we have. Maybe Tom and I have poor diapering skills, but we have to swap out outfits nearly every day. I have become expert at removing body fluid stains from fabric. Ah life with an infant!

There is also the art of timing the diaper change so that we don't get hit directly with poop or pee. It is harder then what you may imagine. Changing diapers immediately after waking up or after feeding is risky.

One thing no one told us was how explosive baby bowels are. It is a good thing we outgrow this!

Getting burped



Immediately after a diaper change


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Growing

The little guy continues to grow. Connor had his two month appointment on Friday and his weigh in confirmed it. He is now in the 90th percentile for height and in the 75th percentile for weight. He clocked in at just under 13 lbs!

Connor also got his first vaccinations. Tom had the honor of sitting with Connor as he got them. We felt bad for him as he started to realize it hurt.

Here is a picture of him after the appointment, but before the hysterical crying started later in the afternoon.


His Valentine's Day outfit, you'll notice he has developed quite a belly and some chubby cheeks!


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Sleep or lack thereof

I've always been a person that has functioned well on little sleep, and I knew that I wouldn't be getting much sleep when the baby came. No big deal right? Wrong! What I had failed to understand is that in the early days and weeks there is no real sleep at least none like I'd been accustomed to. Instead sleep becomes a series of naps an hour here, a hour there. Try doing that across several weeks and it forms a haze across which days blur into each other and coping skills are low. Throw a little person that is totally dependent on you that has no ability to tell you specifically what they need and it gets interesting.

Most folks say sleep becomes more plentiful about week 8. Fingers crossed on that one!

Picture of the little guy on his first outing at one week.


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Life with the little guy

How life has changed in the last month. I am typing this with one hand while I feed Connor. These days, if I can't access it via my iPhone, it doesn't happen, at least not quickly.

The little guy is a five weeks old today and the time has flown. It is amazing how much time you can spend doing nothing specific. These days if I get a shower, a few bills paid, caught up with laundry, and dinner on the table while keeping up with Connor, I feel like I have had the most successful day.

Here is a picture of the little guy at one month old. Grammy K. Is burping him.




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